How is it already Wednesday? I am so behind the eight ball this week it’s not even funny.
I’m in one of those spaces where I don’t even eat regular meals. I just chow down on whatever happens to be around, and try to organize meetings around food.
Thankfully, yesterday I had a breakfast/coffee meeting AND a lunch meeting, which left me in a good position, nutrition-wise.
When I’m working from home, it’s more catch as catch can. Sometimes I find gifts of food my husband leaves in the fridge – mostly grilled chicken sandwiches and protein balls. Sometimes I eat cereal, or toast – I love toast – or yogurt, or cheese sticks, or some combination thereof. Not terribly balanced, I know.
I’ve been trying to stay away from red meat, which isn’t hard since I don’t cook at home, and when I’m out I want to order something I wouldn’t be able to cook if I had the time and/or was so inclined – like grilled octopus, which I love. Now and again, though, I get a craving for a burger.
Somehow the hamburger has become synonymous with America and summer and barbecues and fast food. There is, of course, a fight over the burger’s US origin story. Any iconic foodstuff seems to fall prey to a whole slew of people who want to claim credit for “creating” it.
So, depending on whose story you believe, the hamburger – defined as a patty made of ground beef (or some other meat substance, I guess, but we can get to this later), cooked in some fashion and put on bread – might have originated in Texas or Wisconsin, or perhaps New Haven, Connecticut, at a place called Louis’ Lunch, which is still operating to this day and serving burgers on toast with cheese, tomatoes and onions. NEVER ketchup. Blasphemy.
But consuming ground beef in some sort of sandwich form actually dates back hundreds of years, and the practice of eating it in patty form was likely brought to the US by German immigrants in the former of Hamburg-style chopped steak.
At one point in time, doctors actually suggested that consuming raw beef that was grated or ground might be good for the digestion (Aside: I do love a good steak tartare, even though I try not to eat it).
That morphed into a cooked version known as the Salisbury Steak after New York doctor, James H. Salisbury, who thought that vegetables released toxins in the body, was a big proponent of consuming tenderized chopped meat to balance the gut.
Upton Sinclair’s send up of the meatpacking industry – The Jungle – a journalistic novel (definitely a work of fiction informed by reality) that exposed icky tactics like adding fillers and scraps to low-quality and even rotten meat and selling it to an unsuspecting public, was not at all good for the hamburger’s image.
Enter White Castle. With its gleaming white tile and stainless steel interiors, this steamed burger joint helped resurrect the hamburger, even pushing the idea that it was something healthy to consume and not a once-in-a-while treat.
Fast forward to today and we’ve got everything under the sun – shrimp burgers, veggie burgers of all shapes and sizes, Beyond Meat burgers, salmon burgers, lamb burgers, etc. and so forth. It has become trendy to pile all manner of fixings on a burger – everything from peanut butter to a fried egg.
On average, Americans consume three burgers a week, adding up to about 50 million a year. That’s a lot of beef. And despite the fact that these burgers might be cheap to purchase (depending on where you’re getting them, and assuming they’re not made out of Wagyu), they’re actually pricey from an environmental standpoint.
May is National Hamburger Month, which ends with the unofficial kickoff of summer: Memorial Day Weekend – a time when many of us will be grilling and chilling and consuming all manner of things. Keep in mind that too much grilling has been shown to be bad for your health and potential carcinogenic. (Tips on how to reduce that here…after all, everything in moderation).
I’m not sure what to make of this weather forecast – yesterday, 80 degrees; today, barely reaching 60? What’s up with that? At least it’s going to be sunny. Keep in mind, though, it is VERY dry out there, which means the fire risk is high. No outdoor burns, please. And be mindful of those butts.
In the headlines…
Debt-limit talks shifted into an encouraging new phase yesterday as President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy named top emissaries to negotiate a deal to avert an unprecedented national default.
Biden is deploying two of his top advisers to negotiate a debt deal with Capitol Hill Republicans — a sign of progress, however incremental, for the negotiations weeks away from a potential default.
Biden cut short an upcoming overseas trip in hopes of closing an agreement before a June 1 deadline.
A planned summit of Quad leaders from the US, India, Australia, and Japan in Sydney next week has been canceled after Biden canceled his visit, Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, adding that talks could still proceed as leaders visit Japan.
Albanese said he understands why Biden pulled out of the summit to focus on debt limit talks in Washington, because they are crucial to the economy.
Biden’s pledge that “America is back” after a period of political turbulence is looking a little shaky after a debt showdown with Republicans forced him to shorten an Asia-Pacific trip designed to showcase US power amid a challenge from China.
Biden marked Jewish American Heritage Month yesterday by highlighting his administration’s efforts to combat rising antisemitism, at a White House reception that featured performances from the stars of the Broadway revival of “Parade.”
A White House official said that the Biden-Harris administration is slated to release a novel national strategy to fight antisemitism.
Biden vetoed a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that would have undone his two-year moratorium on solar tariffs.
In the veto message, Biden presented the tariff suspension as essential to achieving the renewable energy goals of the Inflation Reduction Act, the sweeping climate and infrastructure bill he signed in 2022.
Yesterday saw a number of key races in Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Florida, which underscored former President Donald Trump’s grip on the Republican base and Democrats’ relative strength in suburban areas, among other things.
After a crowded primary, Cherelle Parker, a former state representative and City Council member who campaigned on hiring more police, won the Democratic nomination for Philadelphia mayor.
Daniel Cameron, Kentucky’s attorney general and a close ally of Senator Mitch McConnell, clinched the state’s Republican nomination for governor, fending off a spirited and costly challenge by Kelly Craft, a wealthy former ambassador to the UN.
A day after he swooped into the GOP primary for Kentucky governor with a last-minute endorsement — turning the race into a proxy fight between himself and Trump — DeSantis watched his chosen candidate lose in a landslide to the Trump-backed rival.
Trump has long touted what he says are strong relationships with high profile leaders on the world stage, but they actually think he’s a ‘laughing fool, according to John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser.
A dysfunctional investigation led by a Trump-era special counsel illustrates a dilemma about prosecutorial independence and accountability in politically sensitive matters.
Trump “has more than sufficient information to prepare his defense” and is not entitled to a written statement with additional details about the criminal charges he is facing, the Manhattan district attorney’s office argued in a new court filing.
Japan’s economy grew at an annual pace of 1.6% in the quarter through March as private demand rebounded after COVID-19-related restrictions were eased, according to data released today.
House Democrats put a measure on the floor to expel Long Island Rep. George Santos from Congress, after he was arrested and charged in federal court last week with money laundering, wire fraud, theft of public funds and making false statements.
To succeed, a privileged resolution introduced by Robert Garcia, a California Democrat, must attract two-thirds support in the House. The resolution could come to a vote within two days.
“The Republicans in the House are actually going to have to go on record and make a decision about if they’re actually going to stand for truth and accountability, or if they’re going to stand with someone that’s clearly a liar,” Garcia said.
Republicans could vote to table the effort. They could also refer it to the House Ethics Committee for consideration.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy said that he wants the House Ethics Committee to “move rapidly” on its investigation of Santos after Democrats pushed to force a vote to expel the embattled congressman.
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s favorability fell to its “worst-ever” rating after a tough to start to 2023 that included a late budget — and New Yorkers are of mixed minds when it comes to whether she is a “strong” or “effective” leader, according to a new Siena College poll.
According to the May poll of 810 registered voters, 45% of New Yorkers have an unfavorable opinion of Hochul compared to 40% who view her favorably, a notable change from a month ago when respondents were evenly split at 43%.
A strong majority of those polled said Hochul is hard working, 58-20%, and a plurality of voters said Hochul is honest, 44-32%, and not corrupt, 47-26%. However, voters are evenly divided on whether Hochul is effective, 39-39%, or a strong leader, 40-40%.
The poll also found that more New York voters believe the recently passed state budget will be good, rather than bad for the state (38-26%).
North Country GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik led the GOP delegation in sending a letter to Hochul, strongly urging her to reverse her unconstitutional ban on natural gas appliances that was included in the new state budget.
Hochul has accepted the resignation of Michael L. Joseph, an influential developer and political donor in Western New York, from his longtime position as chairman of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center’s board of directors.
State Senate Democrats advanced legislation to close a “lobbying loophole” on judicial nominations and other state offices that followed undisclosed efforts earlier this year to influence votes on the selection of New York’s chief judge.
Lawmakers are igniting a last-minute push to adopt three measures they say will improve accountability and treatment of people held in state and local correctional sites across New York, including expanding the elected officials who can visit the facilities.
State Sen. James Skoufis (D-New Windsor) wants to crack down on animal cruelty following controversy about “banana races” at the Orange County Fair last year that controversially featured costumed capuchin monkeys aping horsemen while riding dogs.
A New York Supreme Court judge granted a temporary restraining order against New York City, stopping them from sending more migrants to Orange County, said County Executive Steve Neuhaus.
Mayor Eric Adams took another shot at the White House over the ongoing migrant crisis yesterday, saying Biden was nowhere to be found.
One senior official in a Democrat-led state said the White House has been too defensive toward Adams’ critiques. “Adams is right to be upset, and I think it’s a massive mistake to be dismissive of him,” the Democrat said.
New York City is prepared to house asylum-seekers in as many as 20 schools with free-standing gyms, Adams said.
“We have not made a final determination on all the gyms, but that we are looking at are separate from the actual school buildings, they are independent from the school buildings, they are not in buildings where schools are,” the mayor said.
Adams claimed that his new policy of housing migrants in public school gymnasiums won’t directly impact students — even as parents protested his latest effort to find ways to shelter the more than 60,000 migrants who’ve come to the city since last year.
Emergency shelters for immigrants have been exempted from the city’s lengthy land-use process under an executive order – an apparent effort to preempt bureaucratic delays the administration could face as it seeks temporary housing for the new arrivals.
As New York City continues its scramble to find shelter for the relentless surge of asylum seekers, the city’s economic development officials are scouring real-estate listings and contacting brokers about the availability of space.
Nearly 50 percent of Big Apple residents are giving Adams a thumbs up after sixteen months in office, a new analysis shows.
Two weeks after a Marine vet choked a mentally disturbed homeless man to death on the subway, Adams advised New Yorkers to call 911 or 311 if they encounter a situation involving someone in a similar state of emotional distress.
Harlem Council Member Kristin Richardson Jordan was celebrated as part of the rising progressive movement. Now, after just one term, she has decided not to run for re-election.
RIP Bill Perkins, a hard-charging, reform-minded city and state lawmaker who championed equality in health care and criminal justice as an energetic force in Harlem politics across three decades, who died this week at the age of 74.
“Harlem has lost a giant,” Adams tweeted. “Bill Perkins was a legend of New York government. He was also a good friend. I will miss his company and his counsel.”
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is preparing to roll out prototypes of new turnstile designs that are harder to jump over or sneak under as it seeks to crack down on fare-beating, which costs the agency an estimated $500 million annually.
Student data, including names, birth dates and addresses, are not always kept secure by school districts or the state Education Department, the state Comptroller’s Office found in an audit issued yesterday.
Schools across the state are being forced to invent ways to stop the growing trend of vaping, which is easier to hide because the smell and look of tobacco smoke is gone, while trying to get students to understand that nicotine is still addictive.
The 12 jurors who will decide the fate of Nauman Hussain in the Schoharie limousine crash trial began deliberations yesterday afternoon at the Schoharie County Courthouse.
The accreditation commission for Paul Smith’s College is asking the Adirondack school to submit a plan to relocate students should it cease programs or operations.
The newest honor proposed for Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Henry Johnson would place his likeness on a U.S. postage stamp to salute his bravery fighting in World War I.
There’s a new home renovation series coming to the small screen — and, perhaps, a Hudson Valley town near you — this summer.
