Observing and Reacting Photographs by Angelo Merendino

This photo is not in exhibit but I liked the photo

I enthusiastically walk into The Cleveland Print Room gallery for their new photography show; I instantly see a walker in the middle of the room. My first thought was, did someone leave this or does it belong to somebody? No, on both accounts. It is part of the show. The show, “Observing and Reacting” is eloquent and touching; photographer Angelo Merendino takes the viewer through his wife’s battle with cancer in a dramatic way – large black-and-white photographs show people gazing at a young woman in a walker. Their expressions alone says it all – why is a young woman on a walker?

For me, this show instantly transported me back when my mother was also battling cancer. The hair loss, the lethargy, countless radiology and chemo treatments was my life for 15 months. In a bold statement I will say, I hate cancer. It withers people down to bare bones and a life where they can barely function. They can’t eat because food tastes like crap. The look on their face – why is this happening to me; what did I do to deserve this? My answer is absolutely Nothing!

I see this beautifully in photographer, Merendino’s work. You see people walking along living their lives; suddenly, they see a woman on a walker; they’re taken aback. Who is this person? Why is she struggling so in this walker? I also love the work that Merendino doesn’t show his wife in full view, just a glimpse – the edge of the walker and people’s gasp says it all. You can’t help but think, life is so incredibly short. You take for granted those simple pleasures – walking down the street and feeling the bright sun on your face without the aid of a walker.

I can’t help but also feel the courage of Menendino’s wife, Jennifer, walk those streets with so many people gawking, not understanding what cancer feels like. I don’t know either but many times I had to cajole my mother in getting out of bed and go to the doctor. Had I known that she would only live 15 months, I would have told her, “Stay in bed, relax and do what you want.” And, forget about those damn radiation treatments.

I saw her get thinner and thinner day after day. She was embarrassed that I saw her in her most vulnerable state – her lithe body where she could barely get in the tub for a shower. “Get out she would say; I don’t want you to see me like this.” I’m sure she thought, “I’m the mother and I should be taking care of you, not the reverse.”

I feel the same when I see these dramatic, large prints of Jennifer walking around the streets of New York City. I don’t need your pity; I’m just trying to get through the day. The prints are so meticulously clear and concise that I feel that I’m walking right along with her. I wish I was – perhaps holding her arm so she can cross the street. She was so young – but you can’t tell with her hairless head. I admire her courage that she tried her best to live life to the fullest, pain and all.

The beginning of the show, there is a photo of Jennifer in her walker (the only one in full view) in a stripped sun dress, so frail. These words are so moving, “Today I am sad. I feel like the girl who has cancer. The girl who doesn’t want to get out of bed . . . . the girl who people stare at because of my bald head.”

At first, I didn’t understand why a bald woman so young stood with a walker until I read those sad words. I understand somewhat the struggle she faced every day. I am compassionate with anyone whose day begins with a cancer pill or being dropped off at a chemo treatment. My heart goes out to each and everyone one of them.

Please see this show, for the strength of a young woman battling cancer. For the love and compassion of a spouse wanting to keep her memory alive by photographing her everyday no matter how mundane.

The show is available until October 27, 2013
www.clevelandprintroom.com

Food that’s Junk - Book Review

By Michael Moss

Diet Coke, Pepsi, boxed lunches and/or potato chips are so bad that I try not to consume them. Okay, at parties I will gravitate towards the chips but I try to work it off by the next day. I usually eat vegetables, salads and once a week I eat meat with water as my main drink. I don’t have an over-consumption problem but many do. What is it about “junk food” that many can’t resist the temptation to over eat?

I recently read, “Salt, Sugar, Fat” by Michael Moss that solidifies that obesity is a serious problem; manufacturers of “convenience” products add so much salt, sugar and fat that we can’t help ourselves but to continually eat more. Nothing in is this book was anything that I didn’t already know – how bad processed foods are but it was interesting to learn how manufacturers purposely “draw-us-in” to eating massive amounts of this food. Everyone should read this book and fight against manufacturers that produce food that really shouldn’t be eaten.

Now that I read this book, I look even closer to how much salt is in our products especially Italian sausage that I eat sporadically. I’m not a fake; I really do enjoy eating vegetables but I do crave meat sometimes. A package of five sausages and each link has 770 mg (32%) of salt with 24 g of fat (37%). I am now looking at the frozen package, which now I have to reevaluate if I will ever buy this again. Unbelievable! No wonder a high percentage of people are gaining weight. 

According to the author of “Salt, Sugar, Fat” we should only be getting 2300 mg per day and if you have diabetes, hypertension or kidney disease it should only be 1500 mg – less than a teaspoon a day. After I just ate that sausage, I’m pretty much done with my salt intake. If you eat all your meals from a box, it’s not hard to surpass that salt limit.

The author further discusses the difference between salt and sodium. Salt isn’t the real problem it is “sodium,” which is a chemical element in salt. Consequently, everyone needs salt in their diet to be healthy but as I described the sausage above, everyone consumes more than ten times the recommended dosage; hence, obesity and high blood pressure. You would think that all the salt shakers should be banned but during a study in the early 90’s the salt shaker was not the problem – adding sodium to packaged food was the culprit.

In the manufacturers defense, sodium is added so products won’t taste like cardboard. Cargill (largest supplier of salt and other grains) tested a new product that wasn’t as bad as sodium, potassium chloride. It’s salt without the bad properties of sodium. However, a few problems resulted: higher cost and research showed kidney problems for the elderly and children. With this new development, it wasn’t considered a good argument to switch.

Depending on the usage, as in chips or cereal, the salt is added differently. Salt is produced in grades: a light flake or heavy depending on its usage. The book discussed many scientific studies on the best practices in salt utilization along with sugar and fat.

What I learned that was interesting is that there is a “bliss point” or formula for products from sugary snacks and/or drinks to salty potato chips. This means that there is a point when a product becomes either too sugary or not sugary enough. Hence, manufacturers conduct studies on finding this “tipping point” on how much sugar is adequate for optimum consumption; again, it is all in the science. The author spoke with many scientists that perfected their “products” so we consumers will crave increasingly.

How did these “convenient” products hit the shelves anyway? It began when families got busy and the women entered the workforce. It became increasingly hard to cook all meals from scratch. Moreover, the “Leave it to Beaver” mother having the dinner on the table was becoming a thing of the past. Women didn’t have time for this arduous task.
My favorite story in the book is how a scientist (Al Clausi) began his career at General Foods creating instant pudding. He took the time down from hours to a mere 30 minutes –patented formula that took him over two years to perfect. Right before Clausi had his patent, a competitor perfected their instant pudding but the problem was it kept thickening (the chemical reaction wouldn’t stop), turning it to rubber. Clausi studied the coagulation of milk and thickening process that made him a legend at General Foods - Patent No. 2,801,924. Genius! Instant Jell-O pudding that we’ve taken for granted is now a product mainstay.

Stories such as these were interwoven into the book that created depth and understanding of the complex issues that is not easy to solve. How do we get manufacturers to create healthy products? I travel down the aisles to tons of varieties of cereal to some of the worse products – “Lunchables.” This product was created to entice consumers to eat boloney by making it fun. Marketing, commercials, fun packaging is over loading us as consumers to buy – convenience and ease.

Now that I’ve read this book, I am more conscious than ever about “salt,” my vice. Even my sugarless Whole Wheat Brand Flakes cereal has 170 mg of salt without the milk. And, I am avoiding Italian sausages with an overabundance of salt that I will need an extra bottle of water to flush out my system.

As I read books and watch documentaries, I remember what a nutritionist said – buy ingredients not food. Preparing your food is not only healthy and good for you but you know what’s in there – not ingredients that you can’t pronounce. For me, if food is in a box, I keep on going.

I highly recommend this book but it might be unsettling at times.

Moss, Michael (2013) Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us.
http://www.amazon.com/Salt-Sugar-Fat-Giants-Hooked/dp/1400069807

Summer Mode

I’m having the Fall Blues. I realize as I’m sitting here gazing out into the blazing hot sun that summer is practically over. It doesn’t seem so as the temperature will reach 90 degrees today on September 10. Even so, I crave the sunshine and activities that summer brought this year. It seems like I keep revisiting all the things I was able to do and some that I completely missed. Summer is the time of year that I wait for all year long. Summer is just too short.

This summer I tried to ride my bike to some events but I wasn’t as successful as I should have been. I rode to a few of my Transformer Station volunteer shifts on Saturdays, the Garden Walk and the Larchmere Arts Festival in early July. I could have done more to reduce my car emissions and get exercise to boot. I guess it was better than nothing. I find excuses that I need my car to transport my computer or I need to go to the grocery store. On a positive note, I am seeing more bike riders traveling to their destinations. I am also seeing more cars getting angry that cyclists are clogging their precious streets. Please share the road. Like it or not, there are more cyclists opting to pedal than operating a vehicle. Get over it!

I did walk down my street for the North Collinwood free concert series that began in early June until August 30. There was Eighty’s music and blues; there were local bands and some from New York. Local residents gathered along with others from other neighborhoods listening to fabulous tunes and gazing out along Lake Erie. The sunsets are different every time – the sky glows in brilliant orange and red; other times there is a thin pink line along the horizon. The clouds interrupted the sun. That is what makes living along the lake so special. These unexpected pleasures.


Transformer Station

The Transformer Station in July was the place to be. There were five fantastic concerts at the same caliber as the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Solstice Party. The first night, a husband and wife team (Amadou & Mariam) performed an Afro-pop sound that reached well beyond West 29 and Church. The first night was a hit-or-miss that maybe a few residents will patrol the street just to see what band will be performing. Some thought it would be some local talent. To everyone’s surprise, the performers were outside the U.S. playing on a giant stage. The word-of-mouth of these stellar performances got out that by July 31, people couldn’t wait to experience these concerts. I’m still thinking about them; I hope they will add more in 2014. Pencil it in!

Not only were there free concerts all over the city, but art. I mentioned the Transformer Station with Todd Hido’s, Silver Meadows retrospective that highlighted photos and characters that made you think – what is going on here? Winter scenes and women in stiletto heels. Every time I walked through the door, I saw something that sparked a new thought.

Cleveland Print Room

Recently, I headed out to Cleveland Print Room to view these beautiful black-and-white portraits that were amazing. The photographer used FILM and took the time to “look” at his subjects. I was struck by how clear his images were. I felt immediately immersed into the culture and country sides of Africa and Asia. One of my favorite images was an intimate view of a woman (the wrinkles and blemished skin) dressed in black where the hard work she endured was easily seen - her eyes a metaphor into her soul. She reminded me of Greek widows in Greece dressed head-to-toe in black. You can feel their every day struggles – their expressionless faces. Eyes piercing the photo paper. I didn’t know them but I can emphasize with them.



Carrie Mae Weems

The Cleveland Museum of Art has a retrospective of Carrie Mae Weems on view until September 29. Again, I love black-and-white photographs and Weems has a brilliant array that boldly addresses race, gender and class - the clarity alone transports you into the artists viewpoint. Her “coffee table” series makes you think: what it’s like to live in poverty; raising a child and reflecting on choices you’ve made. A woman is sitting at the “kitchen table” where everyday things happen – she is helping her daughter with homework; she is arguing with her husband or significant other. It’s mundane scenarios where discussions and “real life” happens at the kitchen table.

My favorite, however, is the black-and-white video titled: “Cornered.” There are two video screens that are hung in a corner where the 1960s Boston riots are happening. I like the concept of polarization where neither side is listening. The riots occurred because schools were forced to desegregate - forced busing. This continually happens today when everyone talks and/or shouts. You do feel “cornered” where you don’t know where to go.

Everyone can’t wait to wear their fall clothes consisting of turtlenecks, closed-toe shoes and wool pants. No thank you. Just give me my sandals and sundresses, please!

Fall Events

Ingenuity Festival - September 20, 21, and 22.

http://ingenuitycleveland.com

Sparx City Hop - Saturday September 21, 11am until 9PM

http://www.downtowncleveland.com/events/sparx-city-hop.aspx

Chalk Festival at the Cleveland Museum of Art - Saturday and Sunday, September 21 and 22
http://www.clevelandart.org/

Cleveland Botanical RIPE Festival - September 21 and 22
www.cbgarden.org