With a title like that, this book was impossible to resist. I caught a glimpse of it skulking on the bottom of the new arrivals shelf, and I nimbly dodged an old woman who reeked of cigarettes to grab it. After all that effort, Death by Pad Thai turned out to be a collection of short essays about food and memories of food, rather than a collection of lethal pad thai recipes, but it still looked interesting, so I decided to go for it.

In a way, I would consider this book an homage to MFK Fisher, and it was pretty awesome. It had some selections by authors I really like, such as Steve Almond, Michael Stern, Andre Dubus III, Richard Russo, and Ann Packer. So that was pretty exciting. But the essays by authors I didn’t know were quite awesome as well, and all in all it was a good book.

Usually, when I read a collection of short stories or essays, there’s a weak link. I think I’ve mentioned this before, actually, so I’m sorry to  bring it up again, but there it is. There’s one story that’s just not very good, one thing that’s just not as gripping as the others. Only that wasn’t the case this time.

Each essay was distinctive, unique, and interesting, from Michael Stern’s story about a humiliating dinner gone horribly awry to Lan Samantha Chang’s essay about Buddhist fortunetelling and plain food. I think I loved all of these essays because they spoke to the idea of memories built around food, describing specific life events and the food which shaped them, or played a role in them, and I liked that. There weren’t stories about the most amazing meals ever, or detailed analyses of the impact of particular dishes on people’s lives, but simple reminiscences built around food.

I think that even people who aren’t as obsessed with food as I am would find something to like in this book, because that’s the whole point, in a way. Food is ever-present, and it plays a vital, living role in our lives which goes far beyond basic nutrition.

Demographics:

Death by Pad Thai, edited by Douglas Bauer. Published 2006, 239 pages. Gastronomy.

I am often overheard making the comment that I would kill for Indian food in this town.

Until October, at least, it looks like I won’t have to make good on my hyperbole, because there’s Indian food at the farmers’ market! And it’s vegan! And it’s pretty good!

I really don’t think that this day can get any better.

One perhaps predictable result of the Iraq War is a skyrocketing PTSD rate among American soldiers and allied forces returning home. I think in part that this is due to an increased recognition of PTSD, paired with more aggressive screening and a willingness to diagnose it, in the hopes of getting help for service members, but I can’t help but wonder if it’s also due to the style of war which is being fought in Iraq. Being constantly under threat from IEDs and insurgents has to be more stressful than I can even begin to imagine, and it’s a different kind of stress than has been endured in previous wars.

While all wars are fundamentally the same, in some sense, they are markedly different, also.

At any rate, I saw not one but two articles about the treatment of PTSD this morning, which seems to indicate that some steps are being taken to address the rising PTSD rate, including considerations of alternative and more unusual treatments.

The Washington Post had a great article on the use of meditation and yoga in the treatment of PTSD. Both of these treatments have actually long been used to treat civilians with PTSD, and I’m glad to see them being used by the military, because they really do work. And I think that promotion of yoga among service members is just a good thing in general, because I like yoga. And I think it’s good for your soul. Observers at Walter Reed have also pointed out that the yoga plan seems to be working to reduce stress and anger, which is pretty groovy.

Speaking of groovy, there’s apparently a hot new drug for treating PTSD, according to the Times of London. Maybe you’ve heard of it? It’s called methylenedioxymethamphetamine, but you might know it better as MDMA, or Ecstasy. In a funny turnabout, it turns out that Ecstasy might be beneficial for the treatment of PTSD, which brings back memories, for me at least, of the use of other now restricted drugs in medical treatment. LSD in psychiatric therapy, for example, or heroin as a painkiller. But if it works and research can be taken seriously, I think that would be pretty excellent.

It’s good to see PTSD being taken more seriously, because I think it’s a problem that’s not going to go away. PTSD isn’t just an isolated problem: it becomes a social issue when people with PTSD engage in acts of violence, find themselves unable to hold down jobs, or end up homeless. I also believe that the least we can do, as a nation, is provide adequate care for veterans, whether or not we agree with the wars they fought, who they are, or the reasons they joined the military. Military service comes with a contract, in which the government claims to care for veterans, and lately I’ve been noting a lot of breaches of that contract.

Penguins are turning tricks in the Antarctic for cold, hard stones. Prostitution: not just for humans! (Thanks to Vicki for the link.)

Controversy is bubbling after the death of Eight Belles. Is it possible that we are going to see some major reforms in the racing industry? The Rail has more information and details, for those who are interested.

A reporter tries to live on the foodstamp allowance, and ends up wondering if perhaps she is spending a bit too much on food. I can’t say I’m too impressed with the shopping list; I would have skipped the packaged crap and gotten real food, myself.

Triage is important, and a number of medical groups have tried to come up with plans for pandemics and mass disasters which basically boil down to who to save and who to leave. As you might imagine, this tends to attract controversy.

A birthday party has turned into a family feud, at high cost. Sheesh, people, can’t you just get along?

Peak oil isn’t just for petroleum products. Olive oil production is declining at the same time that prices (and demand) are rising.