Finding my edge

I spoke today in public. For the first time in years -- many years -- I completely froze when I walked up to the stage. I stuttered once, I repeated myself, and I nearly lost my entire train of thought. During the unveiling of a plaque, I lost my focus and shook someone's hand behind the plaque instead of in front of it. I hope whatever useful message I might have had to offer made it through.

I felt as if I lost my edge on a sheet of ice. This period of being in between pushing forward on what has become familiar and discovering what is real is disorienting, perplexing, frustrating, challenging and draining.

I wouldn't have it any other way.

Awake

Now that I am awake, I realize that circumstances and the past don't have to define me but rather that I can define my circumstances and the future. The question before me is what I am more afraid of: failure or success?

High definition

I'm thinking about buying a new TV. I have an incredible TV right now. But it is four years old. And as I noted while walking around Best Buy today, that's ancient in the electronics world. The new LED TVs are so vivid, so thin, refresh so quickly and use so much less energy!

As I drove home (without a new TV), the sun was setting. It pierced the clouds with its fiery orange and red. Only the nascent shades of blue, indigo and violet gave the hint that soon it would be dark. As I saw the range of colors of the sunset, it dawned on me that nothing is as high definition as nature.

Berkeley Riot

On February 26th, a group of people rioted on the streets of Berkeley. The Daily Californian described it in the following manner: "A crowd of more than 200 people swarmed the streets of Southside early Friday morning in a riot involving seven law enforcement agencies, runaway dumpsters, flaming trash cans, shattered windows and violent clashes between riots and police."

I am very sympathetic to students who are experiencing unprecedented tuition increases, but I also realize that people who are experiencing far more difficult challenges have not resorted to rioting. There is a video of this riot on YouTube. I was struck by a particular scene that starts at 1:25 of this video. It is a stark juxtaposition that really caught my attention:

A Dubious Start for the World Cup

Yesterday I watched the team drawing and placements for the 2010 World Cup next summer in South Africa. While many throughout the world are already mapping out what they hope will be the easiest path for their team (and no doubt I will start considering the various permutations soon enough), I am struck by the ongoing "Le Hand of God" saga involving Thierry Henry. If you follow soccer even casually, you are no doubt aware that Henry handled the ball (not just once, but twice) before the goal that secured France's passage to the World Cup (and doomed Ireland's hopes). Apparently even this year's World Cup draw host nation babe Charlize Theron entered the fray. During the rehearsal for the drawing it is rumored that when she drew the ball for France she called out Ireland's name.

Always ready to defend honor (and perhaps also to criticize the French), the English soccer press has insisted that nothing short of the "honor of the game" is at stake. SMS alert: the honor of the game has already been lost. Anyone who knows me somewhat knows that I am a soccer fan. But I'm not a fanatic.

FIFA and UEFA are investigating one of the biggest soccer match fixing cases in history that might include matches in the Champions League -- the jewel of European club soccer. Only three years ago, mighty Italian clubs Juventus, Fiorentina and Lazio were relegated to Serie B for match fixing. Players regularly dive looking for penalties or free kicks. Even one of FIFA's attempts at fair play has been twisted for perverse purposes. Players will regularly fall to the pitch and writhe around in apparent pain, seeking a stoppage in play or for the opposing team to kick the ball out of play. It's amazing how many of these players hop up right afterwards or if the ball returns nearby. And there continue to be truly unfortunate and reprehensible incidents of racism or violence associated with soccer. The beautiful game has a distinctly ugly side.

Apparently, Henry is quite distraught about this whole incident. This is the individual who helped launch FIFA's anti-racism campaign so he clearly has a civil streak within him. FIFA is investigating the matter. It's possible that they might even ban him for the opening match of the World Cup. France's last World Cup campaign ended with Zidane's inappropriate use of his head and their current World Cup campaign begins with Henry's inappropriate use of his hand. Let's hope that they and the other teams let their feet speak for them. With such a high profile case of cheating, it's possible FIFA might clamp down on unsporting behavior during the 2010 World Cup. Each World Cup offers another opportunity for FIFA to right the ship or at least keep it from hitting an iceberg.

There's a great deal of attention and focus on this first World Cup in Africa. Nelson Mandela was instrumental in bringing the World Cup to Africa and he offered words of inspiration and encouragement in the sublime manner that perhaps only he can manage. The movie "Invictus" will bring to the screen the story Mandela's simultaneously inspired and calculated move to unite South Africa behind their rugby team during the 1995 Rugby World Cup. At the least, sport is an interesting pastime and, at the worst, a terrible distraction from things that really matter. But it does have the power to unite, inspire and electrify an entire nation. If the 2010 World Cup brings attention to South Africa's remarkable journey, then perhaps we should celebrate that more than the soccer.

But at the end of the day, what drives soccer more than anything is money. Is it a surprise that players, managers, and football federations behave in an uncivil manner given the very large sums of money that are involved. Which team would sell more t-shirts and tickets: France or Ireland? This World Cup may bring attention to Africa but I doubt there will be much discussion about soccer clubs basically purchasing the "rights" to children from Africa in the pursuit of the next soccer legend. I have no doubt that FIFA will try to do something about fair play during this World Cup. But I suspect something else is worrying them even more at the moment.

World Cup ticket sales are much slower than expected.

Chipotle's Response

I signed an online petition for Chipotle to sign an agreement with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW). Here is their thoughtful response:

We’ve never believed that you need to have a contract to do the right thing.

At Chipotle, we’ve built our business on doing what we believe is right. We have a decade-long track record of working to improve the nation’s food supply by choosing like-minded suppliers who share our belief in raising animals and growing vegetables in ways that demonstrate respect for people, animals and the environment. When we can’t find such arrangements, we use our purchasing power to influence change among those who are willing to work with us.

Most recently, this led us to negotiate a pact with East Coast Farms, one of Florida’s largest and most reputable tomato growers, in order to pay a penny a pound more for the tomatoes we buy. This additional money will be paid directly to the workers who pick our tomatoes. That might not seem like much, but it is substantial. Workers are paid a set amount for every pound of tomatoes they pick. Over just one hour, a worker typically gathers several hundred pounds of tomatoes, such that this price difference effectively amounts to a wage hike of nearly 70% for the average worker who picks our tomatoes.

But evidence of our commitment goes well beyond that. Today, Chipotle serves more naturally raised meat (from animals that are raised in a humane way, never given antibiotics or added hormones, and fed a pure vegetarian diet) than any other restaurant company. We are also the only national restaurant company to commit to serving significant amounts of organic or locally grown produce, and the first to move to dairy products made with milk from cows that are not treated with the synthetic hormone rBGH. These decisions have come at a price. In fact, Chipotle has the highest food cost in the industry because of our commitment to serving food made with ingredients from more sustainable sources.

We’ve done all of this without contracts binding us to one agenda or another, instead working to find or create opportunities to make positive changes, and pursuing those opportunities to the best of our abilities.

This most recent progress comes after months of working with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), whose campaign to improve wages and working conditions for farm workers who pick tomatoes in Florida prompted an organized effort by the Florida tomato industry to block fulfillment of similar agreements between the CIW and other large tomato buyers. By working directly with the grower, we have found an alternative that allows us to have an immediate and positive impact on the lives of people who pick tomatoes for us.

We will continue in our quest to provide Food With Integrity, always looking for suppliers who share our belief in producing food in ways that demonstrates respect for workers, animals, and the environment. And we will continue to use our purchasing power to push for change when we cannot find suitable alternatives.

-Chipotle

Chipotle Mexican Grill, 1401 Wynkoop #500, Denver, CO 80202

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) has a post today indicating their praise and appreciation for East Coast Growers and Packers and the additional penny per pound approach.

I will eat a Chipotle burrito for lunch today and keep eating at Chipotle. And I'm even more irritated with Chick-fil-A's lack of response to my questions.

Et tu, Chipotle?

I recently wrote about my reactions to Food Inc and new decisions about eating choices and behavior. Part of the change includes eating more at Chipotle (which sponsored Food Inc.). Now I have read an article about Chipotle's apparent unwillingness to work with the Florida-based Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) toward improving working conditions for migrant workers. I joked with one of my friends that since I have seen Food Inc. but have not seen The Cove, the only food I can eat is dolphin ;-)

Why is it so hard to identify a meal that ultimately doesn't harm someone or some animal?