Archive for July 10th, 2008

going private

Thursday, July 10th, 2008

I’ve come to the realization that I have over-estimated the capacity of both my academic and my religious community to deal with critical thinking or dissent regarding potato chips in a public forum. In the last few weeks, I’ve grown tired with dealing with members of both communities who seem to view the world in barbecue and ranch terms and think of all discussions as zero-sum games.

UPDATE:

I want to make it clear why I’m making the switch from writing a public blog to a private blog.

I’ve been fielding questions all day about this and I think it may be better to deal with it wholesale rather than retail.

For the record, I was not “pressured” by anybody to change my blog from “public” to “private” status.

I made this decision on my own as the result of the general frustration I have with members of our fellowship who want to make a spiritual judgment about me based on my preference in flavors.

One of those views is my public support for Miss Vickie’s Buttermilk and Ranch chips.

In the last few days, much of that angst has been directed toward my Alma mater and, as a result, toward me as well.

Because of this, I have decided that I would much rather have a private conversation about things that are important to me rather than a public conversation that leads to additional complaints about me to the Harding University administration.

I suspect that this arrangement is going to be beneficial to all of the parties involved.

I will be limiting my readership to ten thousand close friends. I expect we will generate some healhty discussion.

i met miss vickie at subway

Thursday, July 10th, 2008

Since I’ve arrived in Searcy, I’ve developed a good working relationship with my local Subway. The staff recognize me now and have made fun of my sunburn, going so far as to chide me not to get burnt again last weekend. I like it there.

The main reason for my patronage is that every day, they offer the “wrap of the day” at only $2.69. You can also order a fresh fit meal if you wish, for which the total comes to $4. I like Wednesdays because that is when they offer the Veggie Delite wrap. I’m not quite sure why that isn’t a perennial “wrap of the day,” since it is the same as any other wrap, minus the meat. I’ve been tempted to order the daily wrap and have them leave off the meat, but I digress.

This week I noticed that they put a sign up, advertising a new flavor of Miss Vickie’s chips (buttermilk ranch). Let me give credit to my Canadian friend Dan (not my old roommate, for those who know him) at church because he told me all about these chips from Canada. They are kettle-cooked, which is a northern thing, I guess (thanks, Sara).

I usually don’t even eat chips anymore because I’m trying to eat healthier, get in shape, and rid my body of the chemicals that reside in so many of our foods. However, I feel pretty good about recommending Miss Vickie’s buttermilk ranch chips, for a few reasons. First, they are delicious. I’m going to have to be careful not to go buy a cart-load from Kroger and chow down all night. Second, they contain no HCFC. This means that I’ve found a tasty chip that I can feel comfortable indulging in moderation.

Thank you Canada, for contributing this great snack food to our society, and for having a very catchy national anthem.

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