Ode to Whole Foods Market

Sandi asked me what I missed about living in the States last night.  I had to think (and am really not sure I ever answered her).  Mexican food?  Yes, but then the availability of good Mexican food in Texas resulted in 47 lbs / 22 kg's of unwanted weight.  Bed Bath and Beyond?  I used to miss that but not so much any more.  Friends and family yes, but I see them often.  TV shows?  Movies? Get all I want to watch overseas.  

Then it hit me today.  Whole Foods Market.  Is Whole Foods the strictly organic store that it was when it started out in Austin, Texas in the 1970's?  No.  Sometimes you have to search for organic fruits and veggies (depending on the season...but then eating local and eating in season is a whole other discussion isn't it?).  Is it accessible to the everyday family allowing Joe Lunchbox to feed his family with natural, organic and wholesome foods?  No, their price point is certainly at the high end.  Has it been corrupted, to some extent by corporate greed?  Almost certainly.  But I think it's done well to stand true to it's founding philosophies of caring for people and caring for the planet in the midst of the age of technology and shareholder profits.  You get the feeling that they care.  The San Francisco store that I've just visited is selling recyclable bags to feed the hungry.  When I asked one of the clerks for the location of plastic, resealable bags he showed me, he didn't just blindly point the way.  And when I went to check out another clerk grabbed me and opened another register for me so I didn't have to wait in line.  

But more than service, shopping at Whole Foods is an experience.  You feel good about yourself when you're walking through the produce section full (in this case a lot) of organic fruits and veggies gleaming seductively in all colors of the rainbow.  You feel proud of yourself for choosing the sprouted bread from the cooler with a sign above it telling the story of the woman who makes these breads, instead of that processed stuff from a sterile metal rack showing nothing but the brand name, that's so readily available in the more mundane supermarkets.  And you feel downright triumphant when you choose a braised kale and seaweed salad to go with your turkey panini (ahhh, turkey sandwiches...now that's an ode unto itself).

My trip there was complete with a few bottles of Naked Superfood (sorry Brad, I'm no longer an Odwalla drinker...I've discoverd the joys of being Naked) and some dark chocolate covered goji berries for my sweet tooth (I've got to wean myself off of Ben and Jerry's somehow!)

Now, my fridge has been delivered to my room and all of my snacks put away to be deployed during the long Tony Robbins course days.  It's time to make my way to the lobby to register for my course.