Jen X, Y & Me

Jul09

wheat, global food security, scary as hell

World Wheat At DEFCON 5

While most of my posts are fun and generally fluffy little pieces, I ran across this article and it scared the beejezus out of me. Wheat around the world has an old enemy, stem rust. We’ve been able to develop variations on wheat that have, up till this point, been effective in resisting the fungus. It’s the fungus’ turn to have an advancement and it’s a doozie, it’s able to attack the current wheat variety. To quote The Incredibles “It’s penetrating our defenses, avoiding all the obstacles!“

To put this in perspective, a similar fungus, yellow rust, emerged in Eastern Africa in the late 1980’s. In four years, it was able to spread to wheat fields in Southeast Asia, causing catastrophic losses in Egypt, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The losses totaled over $1 Billion USD. As these spores travel by wind, it is probable that the outbreak currently in Yemen will spread to the vast wheat growing areas of North Africa, the Middle East, and India (representing roughly 25% of the total global wheat harvest) in the next few years. The loss of wheat production in those areas would devastate not only the ability of the people to feed themselves, but also the national economies of those countries. As always, I put my faith in science and my hope in the communal activity of farmers and politicians.

May wheat be with us.

Jul06

generational cohorts, smoking mothers, nurture v nurture

Nurture v Nurture

There is a theory by researchers at the University of Arizona that says smoking while pregnant “biologically primes” the unborn child to become a regular smoker as a teen and young adult. For the study, the team used data from the Tucson Children’s Respiratory Study to see whether a mother’s smoking during pregnancy and during her child’s early years affected whether the child smoked later on. What they found was this; women who smoked during pregnancy and during their child’s early years were more likely to have kids who smoked at age 22. This proved true whether the mother smoked or did not smoke during the child’s school years.

Now this is all very interesting, but does not reflect my experience. My sister and I were born a year apart from each other in 1969/1970. Our mother was a smoker before, during, and after the births of both my sister and I. We do not and have never been smokers. My theory is that the Univ of Arizona theory is applicable to Millennials only and no other generational cohort. One of the core philosophies of GenXers (which is what my sister and I are) is to be the opposite of what our parents were… If they were smokers, we weren’t. If they were over-achieving Gordon Gekkos, we were “slackers”. This is more of an argument of Nurture vs Nurture. The socio-economic setting in which Gen Xers grew-up formed their worldviews and sense of distrust. While being exposed to a smoking mother would also fall into the Nurture category, I’ve got to say my experience is that generation pressures define whether I was a smoker or not. So, University of Arizona theory, I disagree with you. Take that!

Jun29

random thoughts, adult beverages

Black Cherry Bourbon

A few weeks ago I ran across an article about a new bourbon, another in a long line of liquors that has gone “flavor”. The culprit this time is Jim Beam and they are rolling out Red Stag, a black cherry flavored bourbon. This is very interesting to me because for a very long time I was a Jack and Diet Coke girl. Red Stag is making me rethink my drink. My grandparents used to drink Manhattans (along with other cocktails). The thought of using Red Stag in a Manhattan feels both nostalgic and new. For those of you wanting to spice it up, the website offers other possible concoctions with the Buck Shot standing out (Red Stag + Jägermeister®). A shot that every fun hunter can get behind, regardless of your game.

MindComet

Jennifer Carey