Exposing the Truth About Food Wasters

a really big problem. I’ve tried ignoring it. I’ve tried to just NOT look at it as it happens, but it is happening every day of my life somewhere in this grand world of ours. The thing is, the problem is not one that would endanger the Security of The U.S.A. and not even the world—but the problem has been with us for so long that I dare say that this situation has grown to such proportions, nothing, not even the military (of every nation) cannot get a hold of it.

And it’s our fault! I admit it. I know that this problem did not start out to be as stealthy as it is now, but I have to give the credit to the problem for making its move right in front of our noses. Did we care? Naaaah. We just went along like things were fine, and so what if the problem became a world-wide epidemic? That’s right. I said epidemic!

The problem may look nice and sweet, but so do baby rattlesnakes. But in my 65 years of living, I thought that I would never see such (willful) waste as we see in the restaurants and fast-food businesses in our country—possibly in other nations too. I said waste. But there is no way to honestly-describe such an open amount of wasting great food and not even thinking about the loss.

either way, waste is waste. You cannot call it by any other name. Waste! I do dread eating-out with my wife simply because as I’m sitting in a nice restaurant, there it is. I try not to look, but I have grown to used to spotting the Food Wasters that it is easy to see how wasteful that these people really are. My wife notices how I am staring, without batting an eye, at the wasteful diners, and she gets upset. I have learned though, to keep my head down and eyes closed.

And to be perfectly-honest, I will go as far to know that in my heart, these Food Wasters are pillars of the community—ministers; teachers; factory workers, sad, but true. “I” used to waste food many years ago, but thanks to a man named, the late Justin Wilson, the Bayou Chef, who had his own TV show about cooking and one day someone must have asked him why do you scrape every ingredient (to the bottom) of the dish that he was preparing.

Wilson asked, “you’ve never been hungry, have you?” With that question, it hit me. I was guilty as sin in 1992 because I used to order food or my wife would cook some delicious food and I would only eat half of the food and leave the table. My wife would ask me if I were sick and I would laugh and say that I ate all that I wanted. But the truth is sometimes painful—because I watched her dispose of the food on my plate into the garbage pail and then given to our cats. I think that afterwards that I cried about this scene. But I learned the error of my wasteful ways and the next time a meal was served by my wife, I ate ALL of the dish. I mean I cleaned my plate. There was this beam of light that shined on my wife’s face and that was what I should have been doing years.

of consciously or unconsciously-wasting food? Well, I would have to guess that groups of college students and the 20ish age bracket. But I have witnessed (years ago) a group of college students who sat near my wife and me and this was a perfect situation to study their eating habits.

When the waitress came, all of them ordered beer and they all ordered a food item from the menu and continued to laugh at the older people, the government, and me if I were not hiding behind my huge menu that could serve as an umbrella if it rained. This is the truth!

Finally, the waitress came with their food. I noticed a delicious cheeseburger, fries, salad and a steak or two, but with baked potatoes and more salad. I waited patiently for the (one in every crowd) “that” loud mouth who tried to tell jokes, and most of them flopped, but he would take (a) bite of his food and tell more painful one-liners, laugh loudly with his mouth open—hoping that the rest of the group would laugh also, but it didn’t happen.

I took extra pains to notice the two girls, also college students, who nibbled at their salad and steak between the two girls whispering to each other and laughing very lady-like with their hands over their mouth. Then more nibbling, but NO really big bites. Even the loud mouth and the two other males did NOT take big bites of their food that I knew was cold now because it was not eaten like a normal person.

One of the girls got a little playful with the other girl and threw a cruton at her and giggled. The other three guys only sipped their beer, laughed like mules, and sat quietly for a few minutes because their waiter came and gave them their check—then the entire group laughed more, winked at each other and left. I should have said . . .winked at each other leaving . . .more uneaten food on their plates that could have easily fed a platoon of Army G.Is with some to spare. Did they care? Or was this a college prank? I mean, I could see the two girls not “pigging out” because they were watching their figures, but I wondered what good came out of the three guys who barely touched their food?

The sad, sad fact is, and I am using my own opinion, people, of college age or later, when about to eat in a restaurant and just play with their food is nothing short of an INSULT to the restaurant, waitresses/waiter, the cook, the manager and why do I feel this way? Do you know how much work and time it takes to prepare an order for five or more people? I just cannot justify “that” Intentional Food Wasting by anyone. If this group or any group or couple really didn’t want to eat at the restaurant that the group chose, then why visit the restaurant to begin with?

know the truth. Although my wife scolded me harshly, I got up and walked by the 20ish group’s table and I almost fainted. Not all of any of the delicious food was consumed—not even the beer was drank. Do not try and sell me on the idea that people can live and function on “some” food each day. Try as you might, you will be wasting your time.

Now a days when I eat at home or in some restaurant, my wife (sometimes friends) uses the terms: inhaled your food and wolfed it down—because that is how I eat great food. Years ago when our daughter (rest her soul) and my wife and I would go out to eat, my daughter informed me in this pizza restaurant that I kept my head down while I ate slice after slice of delicious pizza and never knew that my wife and my daughter were having a great conversation. I suppose that somewhere in this restaurant, someone like me was watching my eating habits, but of the two habits: Intentional Food Wasting or Vacuuming Your Plate Until it’s Clean . . .I choose the second habit every time.

Is it dinner time?

May 21, 2019_______________________________________________