If you follow me on instagram (@karakomp), you have seen that I’ve ‘grammed a number of food items all ranging from amazing Chicago classics to my own food! Yes, for any one that knows me, it’s very hard to believe that I have learned how to cook on my own while living in Chicago. It surprises me too; after all, I am the only person who I have ever met that has ruined pots because I forgot about the boiling water on the stove. (Sorry Ma!)
Food has always been my most favorite thing on Earth. I love food more than life itself and learning how to cook was a challenge because like so many 20-something-college students who are without meal plans, I forgot how privileged I was to have meals made for me even when I was not eating out! Learning how to not only cook but go grocery shopping on a budget was a bittersweet milestone in my life; letting go with the reality you can’t eat out every night or that the groceries need to be purchased even if you have to take public transit is actual a lot more emotional than I made them out to be at the time. But the independence that comes with these skills is one that is unlike any other, if your life and job are unstable or cause you crazy stress, you still have complete control over what you eat. Though money is often an issue, the art of budgeting becomes almost very easy, especially when you are on a tight budget because you quickly know what you need and what you don’t need. And black everything else you actually want to eat.
As someone that is passionate about food equity and works with a lot of food justice issues during my service time while at school, I’ve always been conscious of not being wasteful as I kept so many of the people I serve weekly in Providence in the back of my mind. While serving these people, I only knew that they were hungry and in some ways I thought I had seen hunger just by seeing them. However, on the first day of my internship (one week into living in Chicago), I had went out to lunch at a small Thai Restaurant down the street from IWJ with some of the other interns and while I was eating my food, I looked outside the window and across this street, I saw a man eating remnants of someone else’s left-overs in the trash. And honestly, I have not been the same since. I have been working with food issues and studying it for a while now but nothing prepares you for the first time you witness raw desperation for food from a very deprived individual. You can imagine how this must have set the mood for my time in Chicago. For one, it was very hard to deal with in the fact that I was so far away from the community whom I always spoke about these issues with, the Food Recovery Network/Friar Food Rescue and the Feinstein Institute at Providence College. I did tell one friend back home because I really needed to tell someone and then realized afterwards, I just simply needed to count my blessings and do more good for the world. I saw it as a sign as to why I was in Chicago in the first place and given the opportunity to intern for IWJ. (But more on that later in a different blog)
The meaning of food was always something special to me and has taken on a whole new meaning of special this past summer. I look at food as a form of freedom and transformation. Is there anything else in the world that can make you feel good, sad, happy or glad, sometimes all at once? Is there anything else in life that is a part of everyday life that gives you one of life’s greatest lessons of how to be independent, conscious, and most importantly, healthy? Did you think of something? Can that same thing also give you insight to people’s culture and history? There are few things that can do all of these things, and one of these few things is food.
Chicago is said to be the food capital of America and I am extremely blessed that I got spend my summer here. Sure, my mother is going to KILL me after seeing all the credit card statements but I don’t think I have any regrets (unless I’m actually dead next week, then maybe). Being able to experience all the restaurants and learn about the history behind them were enlightening. Eating deep-dish pizza, the Chicago hot dog, Garrets Popcorn, and more have all been incredible and soulful experiences.
I return home this weekend for a whole new appreciation for food, especially my mothers, and the access I have to it and the people that I can share it with. In fact, in all my times of traveling, I just discovered that one of my few family traditions involve my brother picking me up from what is a usually late flight into Boston and going into Chinatown to chow down on some delicious probably MSG based meals until 1am. I can’t wait.
3 More days in Chicago. See you soon, New England.
XO
KK
Food has always been my most favorite thing on Earth. I love food more than life itself and learning how to cook was a challenge because like so many 20-something-college students who are without meal plans, I forgot how privileged I was to have meals made for me even when I was not eating out! Learning how to not only cook but go grocery shopping on a budget was a bittersweet milestone in my life; letting go with the reality you can’t eat out every night or that the groceries need to be purchased even if you have to take public transit is actual a lot more emotional than I made them out to be at the time. But the independence that comes with these skills is one that is unlike any other, if your life and job are unstable or cause you crazy stress, you still have complete control over what you eat. Though money is often an issue, the art of budgeting becomes almost very easy, especially when you are on a tight budget because you quickly know what you need and what you don’t need. And black everything else you actually want to eat.
As someone that is passionate about food equity and works with a lot of food justice issues during my service time while at school, I’ve always been conscious of not being wasteful as I kept so many of the people I serve weekly in Providence in the back of my mind. While serving these people, I only knew that they were hungry and in some ways I thought I had seen hunger just by seeing them. However, on the first day of my internship (one week into living in Chicago), I had went out to lunch at a small Thai Restaurant down the street from IWJ with some of the other interns and while I was eating my food, I looked outside the window and across this street, I saw a man eating remnants of someone else’s left-overs in the trash. And honestly, I have not been the same since. I have been working with food issues and studying it for a while now but nothing prepares you for the first time you witness raw desperation for food from a very deprived individual. You can imagine how this must have set the mood for my time in Chicago. For one, it was very hard to deal with in the fact that I was so far away from the community whom I always spoke about these issues with, the Food Recovery Network/Friar Food Rescue and the Feinstein Institute at Providence College. I did tell one friend back home because I really needed to tell someone and then realized afterwards, I just simply needed to count my blessings and do more good for the world. I saw it as a sign as to why I was in Chicago in the first place and given the opportunity to intern for IWJ. (But more on that later in a different blog)
The meaning of food was always something special to me and has taken on a whole new meaning of special this past summer. I look at food as a form of freedom and transformation. Is there anything else in the world that can make you feel good, sad, happy or glad, sometimes all at once? Is there anything else in life that is a part of everyday life that gives you one of life’s greatest lessons of how to be independent, conscious, and most importantly, healthy? Did you think of something? Can that same thing also give you insight to people’s culture and history? There are few things that can do all of these things, and one of these few things is food.
Chicago is said to be the food capital of America and I am extremely blessed that I got spend my summer here. Sure, my mother is going to KILL me after seeing all the credit card statements but I don’t think I have any regrets (unless I’m actually dead next week, then maybe). Being able to experience all the restaurants and learn about the history behind them were enlightening. Eating deep-dish pizza, the Chicago hot dog, Garrets Popcorn, and more have all been incredible and soulful experiences.
I return home this weekend for a whole new appreciation for food, especially my mothers, and the access I have to it and the people that I can share it with. In fact, in all my times of traveling, I just discovered that one of my few family traditions involve my brother picking me up from what is a usually late flight into Boston and going into Chinatown to chow down on some delicious probably MSG based meals until 1am. I can’t wait.
3 More days in Chicago. See you soon, New England.
XO
KK