No, no - THIS is why you're fat

Gearing up to garden/farm/have chickens in a one bedroom apartment, I'm reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, where she and her family try to eat seasonally on their semi-inherited patch o' land in Virginia (the fact that she's written #1 bestsellers and is an wimmen's icon with quite a following buying her books probably makes this sort of farming more easy, but I digress) - but anyway, there are all sorts of facts herein that are freaking me out, not the least of which is the fact that you are breathing HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP right now. Shit's in everything! Well, maybe in a Jack D. Ripper sense I exaggerate, but only slightly. Then, all settled in to a nice account of how broccoli can survive late snow or whatever, BK et famille (who co-authored) hit you upside the head with nice thoughts like:

* concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) in the US produce 6X the volume of, ahem, fecal matter, as ALL OF THE HUMANS ON EARTH. Or, as you drive to Chik-Fil-A, try not to think of the fact that a six by eight foot room can "house" 1152 chickens! Ouch!,

* the average vegetable in the supermarket has travelled 1200 miles,

* six companies control 98% of seed sales,

etc etc - all of which is presented not in a really "tut-tut" sort of way, but more like "we can't believe this either!" Plus there is a thing about how the family had to tell the youngest daughter not to kiss chickens on the mouth, which is not a cruel adjuration but just good sense.

All of which is a long way of saying I'm giving up soda for Lent.

As soon as I say this, Cheerwine will add Ohio to its distribution list. Damn and blast!