Burgers from heaven?

Recently, I caught the charming animated film, "Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs" on HBO.  It was always a book I loved, but I never caught the movie.  The story, as portrayed in the film, is about a geeky but lovable inventor who creates a machine that goes into the clouds, and converts the clouds into food, that falls to the earth.  The town is showered with whatever food has been programmed in - which is a lovely change from the sardines that the town folk usually eat.


These people who eat nothing but sardines suddenly find hamburgers falling into their hands, and they joyfully nibble on the perfectly made food landing in their lap, literally.  They love it - especially the mayor.  As the story progresses, people begin requesting foods they love - pancakes with butter and syrup, ice cream for a special birthday treat, chicken, hot dogs - everything.

Eventually, the machine starts to malfunction and the food comes down, bigger and faster.  The people are eating more and more - especially the mayor - and getting bigger and bigger.  By the movie's end, a tornado of spaghetti and dangerous projectile meatballs threatens to kill everyone.  The hapless inventor and intrepid weather girl have to risk everything to save the town - and stop the gigantic food from falling and killing all their friends and family.


I can't help but think there's some social commentary for those looking to change their diets in this lovely film.  The more food they had, the more they wanted.  Eventually, the mayor becomes so fat that he had to ride in a scooter.  He gets painted as the villain, the one who wants more and more, and cannot stop.  No wonder fat people feel like they're doing everything wrong.  (It's not the movie's fault, it's our perception as  society.)


In real life, you get some other side effects when you eat with brazen abandon - diabetes, muscle pain, heart disease, and a host of other things that make your life uncomfortable (and shorter).  In a cartoon, you don't get those things.  And I don't live in a cartoon.


I think the people of sardine town have a lot in common with those of us restricting ourselves in our diet.  Especially while on this diet.  They had sardines, I have shakes.  They craved variety - I do too.  They took that variety too far.  I will not.  I absolutely will not.


In the end, the town saves itself - they make it through the terrible onslaught of food being hurled at them from every direction.  I will too.  I will resist the bagel breakfasts at work and the ice cream trucks that play music as they pass.  I will leave the Oreos on the shelf at the store, and drink my shakes.  And I'll do it because it's the most important thing I can do for my health and future.  


Like the geeky inventor, I'll fix the problem I've created, and live happily ever after - even if that means life with a few less burgers.