Prospectus

     In today's food industry, companies handle allot of different produce at one time.  Because of this many different vegetables are being processed at the same time, using the same machines.  If any one of those vegetables happened to be contaminated by an outside source during harvest, that vegetable can bring that bacteria into the factory and transfer it to the other vegetables.  The contaminated vegetables will then be eaten by humans that will then digest it, making them sick.  Same goes for the animals, many of the animals that we eat are herbivores.  If a farmer puts contaminated vegetables into the animals feed, when they are then sent to the slaughter house and sold for consumption, the bacteria that is in the meat can then be transferred to the humans eating it.
    In my research I would like to find what food borne illnesses are out there?  How they can effect the food supply and human race?  and what can be done to prevent this from happening?  I hope to use first hand accounts of people who have suffered from an food-borne illness, how it has effected them or there life?  What areas these illnesses are most common in and why?  and How can these illnesses be transmitted and then cured? 
     What I will be using for my research is:
Balkin, Karen. Food-borne Illnesses. San Diego: Greenhaven, 2004. Print.
Also Internet sources, newspaper, and magazine articles all having to do with my topic of food-borne illnesses.

The Melting Pot

     One of my favorite things about growing up in a very diverse and multicultural neighborhood is that you have so much knowledge, about different cultures, right at your fingertips.  From the moment I leave my house I am surrounded by different culture.  Sitting right at the top of my bock is a row of many different restaurants from any background that you can imagine.  My home town has really developed into a melting pot of culture all stirred up brewing in one little area.
     I live in Astoria, Queens, a neighborhood full of diversity.  The neighborhood first started up mainly as an Irish and Italian neighborhood, with a bakery and a pub located on every corner.  The neighborhood then changed to many Greek restaurants, and the pubs that once thrived there changed to cafes with tables on the sidewalk where you can sit outside with your friends and drink a cup of coffee.  With time a lot of Brazilian, Spanish and Asian families began moving into the area, and with them came great restaurant opportunities for the growing neighborhood.  Now Astoria is known for some of the best restaurants in New York City.  I cannot walk a block in my neighborhood without passing a Thai, Mexican, Italian or Greek restaurant.  There is a restaurant to match your every mood and craving.
     For my project and for the next few weeks I will visit the many different cultural establishments in Astoria.  Every week I will eat from a different cultural restaurant, try the dishes that they are famous for and write a blog about what I learned from the restaurant about the culture, where the restaurant is located,  how the food tasted and what, if anything,  I would recommend.  I thought of this idea while walking around my neighborhood this weekend and realizing how closed off I am to trying new and different things.  I look forward to this project and reporting my findings to you every week.  Now lets eat!! 

Problem Posing Method chapter 3

     The Growing mistreatment of fast food employess has caused the workers to retaliate in a way that does not involve forming unions.  "About two thirds of the robberies at fast food restaurants involve current or former employees. The combination of low pay, high turnover, and ample cash in the restaurants often leads to crime." (Fast Food Nation, pg 84)  The constant disrespect that the employees recieve from their employers, the low pay, long hours, little to no benefits, no rewards for a job well done, and knowing how easily they will replace you, drives the workers to act out againt the company.  When the employees see how much money the restaurant takes in on a daily basis and how little shows up on their paychecks, they build   resentment and this resentment makes them want to steal back all the money they believe they have earned and deserve.
     Everyday people are faced with obstacles at there jobs.  When people do not like there jobs or feel that the are not treated fairly,  they begin to do things that they believe will hurt the company.  It can be stealing office supplies for use at home or making exspensive long distance phone calls on your work telephone.  These little petty practices are ways employees feel they are getting justice.
     The fast food indutries thought that they had come up with a great solution to there theft problems.  "The leading fast food chains have tried to reduce violent crime by spending millions on new security measures-video cameras, panic buttons, drop-safes, burglar alarms, additional lighting" (Fast Food Nation, pg 85)  By installing all these devices, people would be less likely to steal and  they are sure to catch more burgulars.   If the fast food chains just put all that money into their employees alot of thier theft problems would drastically stop.  Happy employees make for a happy workplace and everyone would be win.

My McDonald's Part 2

     I always know that I am home, when the N (elevated) train is pulling into the last and final stop on Ditmars Blvd, and you see the Golden Arches of McDonald’s. When the train comes to a complete stop and the train doors open, then begins the rush of people getting off the train and running down the two flights of stairs to the street level, periodically moving to the side for pedestrians making their way up the stairs to board train. When you reach the bottom of the stairs, you are faced with floor to ceiling glass doors with gold m’s running across the middle. Outside the restaurant are groups of highschool kids in uniform, talking, laughing, singing, listening to there ipod's. They must go to the neighboring highschool, St.John's Prep, and stopped for a quick snack to eat before getting on the train. I walk toward the restaurant and I pull the heavy glass door open for me and the eight people who followed me in. I have now entered McDonalds.

     After entering the restaurant, I begin to walk up the aisle. The aisle is surrounded entirely by tables; to my left is a group of elderly gentlemen sitting together enjoying nice friendly chatter, steaming coffee and little delicious apple pies. I continue to walk and I begin to hear the sound of children laughing and playing in the distance. I approach the end of the aisle and go straight up to the cashier. She then asks me what I would like to order, and with no hesitation, I ask for the number two. The number two consists of two cheese burgers, fries, and a diet coke. She asks me if I would like my order to be supersized, and I say no. As I am waiting I begin to see happy little children coming into the restaurant with birthday presents. As I am following them with my eyes I realize the stairs to the basement of the restaurant are roped off with pink balloons, and the distant laughter that I had heard was coming from a little girl’s birthday in the party room downstairs. A few moments later the cashier tells me that my order is up. I take my brown paper bag, with big red McDonald’s logos on it, and my empty soda cup. I walk to the right hand side of the restaurant where they keep their soda dispensers. I fill up my soda, no ice beacuse it takes up to much room, dump out the extra soda fuzz, fasten the lid and I walk down the aisle to the exit. I push the big glass heavy door open and I head home.

My McDonald's

                I always know that I am home, when the N (elevated) train is pulling into the last and final stop on Ditmars Blvd and you see the Golden Arches of McDonald’s.  When the train stops and those doors open, then begins the  rush of people getting off the train and then running down the two flights of stairs, periodically moving to the side for pedestrians making their way up the stairs to board train.  When you get to the bottom of the stairs, you are faced with floor to ceiling glass doors with gold m’s running across the middle.  I pull the heavy glass door open for me and the eight people who followed me in, I walk down the aisle.  The aisle is surrounded entirely by tables; to my left is a group of elderly gentlemen sitting together enjoying nice friendly chatter, coffee and little apple pies.  I continue to walk and I begin to hear the sound of children laughing in the distance, I get to the end of the aisle where the cashier is.  I order the number two, which consists of two cheese burgers, fries, and a diet coke.  They ask me if I would like my order to be supersized, I say no.  As I am waiting I begin to see little children coming into the restaurant with birthday presents.  As I am following them with my eyes I realize the stairs to the basement are roped off with pink balloons and the distant laughter I heard was coming from a little girl’s birthday in the party room downstairs.  The cashier tells me that my order is up.  I take my brown paper bag with big red McDonald’s logos on it, and my empty soda cup.  I walk to the right hand side of the restaurant; this is where they keep their soda dispensers.  I fill up my soda, dump out the extra fuzz, fasten the lid and I continue down the aisle push the big glass heavy door open and I head home.

Welcome to my blog

Hello everyone,
            My name is Mary and I am enrolled in ENG103- Research Methods and The Ethics of Food at LaGuardia Community College.  I am excited about what I will be learning in this course because I never gave much thought as to what I was eating before.  I live with my parents so I very rarely cook for myself, but when I do it is mostly frozen dishes that I can heat up in the microwave, or I will eat left overs from the night before.  If i am really hungry and there is no dinner I will usually order out.  When I do order out I still try to eat on the healthier side so I will get a salad with grilled chicken, soup, or dishes that tend to have a lot of vegetables in it.  I do go grocery shopping with my mother, and it is at Best Yet and Keyfood, which are regular super markets where you can basically find whatever it is that you are looking for.  Aside from the regular groceries my parents buy, I will buy yogurts and nutrigrain bars to have for healthy snacks and as a treat at night time I like to munch on chocolate chip teddy grahams.  I do not know that much about the food that my parents buy except for the fact that it is boxed and the meat comes pre-cut and packaged ready for cooking.
              My dad does most of the cooking in my house, and he makes hamburgers. hotdogs. pasta with salad/ or vegetables, chicken cutlets, porkchops, and on the weekends we tend to eat bigger meals.  On Fridays we order pizza, Saturdays is typically fend for yourself day because everyone has there own plans and nobody is around, and on Sunday is my mom's turn to cook and she will make a turkey, with all the fixings,  or she will make a loin of pork, or roast beef.  In my house we do not venture out form the normal and the meals tend to repeat themselves a lot.
              I believe that taking this course with give me a better understanding as to what I am eating and where it is coming from and hopefully not change my mind about food to much.