I have a certain way of viewing the world. I cannot turn it off. I guess it is my curse.
Before heading off to class, I show up at the coffee shop in the Union to get my cup of coffee. This morning, on the counter, I notice a ballot being distributed to customers and so I read about the issue under consideration. It turns out that Food Services understands the University commitment to healthy living and wants advice concerning the foods they serve. If customers agree, they plan to eliminate an item from their offerings. I captured a couple of images to bring this to your attention, but I want you to consider what unhealthy choice you would predict is being considered.
If you have read this blog frequently, you can probably guess where this is going. Should the coffee shop stop offering the chocolate glazed donuts? How about the 700 calorie, chocolate muffin? How about the monster cookies (calories beyond calculation)? Nope! The referendum is addressing the dangers of coffee creamer – the regular, unsweetened or hazelnut creamer (35 calories). Evidently, the creamer contains hydrogenated oil.
I know that muffins also contain oil so I checked with Harvard on the dangers of muffins. If you are a muffin muncher, do not try this link. There are options, but none of them look anything like the offerings available in the Union shop.
You probably recognize that I sometimes tell stories to get people to think about larger issues. My university is just now venturing on a campaign to identify university priorities. There are multiple committees and consultants. Much time and resources will be expended to help us focus on important things and issues. It occurred to me the participants may have decided to start small and work their way up. I do acknowledge that those working on this important agenda have offered everyone a chance to weigh in. Now that we all have had a say on whether creamer is available in the union, we can turn our attention to other matters.