Fast food and me.
When I was a little girl my mother and father never took me to a fast food joint. It was a once in awhile treat. I don’t know if it was too expensive, or if they just didn’t like it. Maybe twice a year we would go o McDonalds or Taco Bell. In my early teens, McDonalds had the .20 cheese burgers and $2.00 bucket of fries. My allowance wasn’t that much, so my friends and I bought a lot through the next few years. Then every fast food place came up with a “value menu” or “dollar deals”, so it was not only easier to eat fast food, but now it was cheaper. As I got older I ate more and more fast food. I kept eating fast food even when I moved on my own. I lived in a house with 15 people and there was one kitchen. There weren’t a lot of home cooked meals in that house. When I moved to Oregon I had to learn to cook. Veneta is the town I lived in, and the only fast food place was Dairy Queen. I really don’t like Dairy Queen. Even then, I would find an excuse to go into town at dinner time. Nuked hamburgers were definitely a lot tastier then my burnt cooking. Then I got food stamps, and sadly McDonalds doesn’t take food stamps. So I for the first time had to buy food to cook for myself. I grew an appreciation for the burnt taste, and now like my food “well done”. I got cook books and started experimenting. Found out very quickly that I like baking more than cooking. My taste for fast food faded as I stopped going to fast food restaurants. My life style had changed at this point, and I was now cooking for a family. I look back, when I was a child. Maybe that’s why we didn’t eat out much. It was too expensive for an entire family to eat out. One meal is a lot less expensive than five.
My lifestyle changed again, and I found myself cooking for one. For awhile all I ate was fast food. Three meals a day were fast food. Until one day I asked for a nutrition sheet from McDonalds. I was shocked to find out how many calories are in a salad at McDonalds. The snack wraps aren’t any better, and they’re supposed to be the healthy option to fast food. Now I try to stay away from it, but it’s impossible. There are situations that come up when you need to eat and there isn’t much of an option. Your miles away from home and your kids are hungry. Or your on vacation and don’t have access to a kitchen. That is what the industry is looking forward to. I don’t know how everyone would survive without the assistance of the fast food industry. So the convenience is good, but the nutritional facts aren’t. If only they could make healthy, cheap, and fast food. We would have a healthier future.

Past, Present and Future




I was born in Santa Barbara, California, Sept 1982. I am a single child, but I do have a half brother I used to see about once a year. When I was in third grade my parents divorced. My father stayed in Santa Barbara, and I moved to Fresno with my mother. We lived in a 5th wheel in the back of my grandparent’s house. When I was twelve my mother remarried and we moved in with him and his father. He was controlling, and later would lose his mind. I was grounded constantly and failed in school. When I was fourteen I stayed in a sanctuary for 3 weeks, and when I came home my step-father told me he was not ready to have me home. That same night I was on a train back down to Santa Barbara to live with my father. After living with my father for about a year he told me to pay rent or move out. I dropped out of school, started working full time and moved in with my boyfriend at the time. After renting a room in a house with 15 people; still paying 900.00 a month we decided to move to Oregon. Prices were cheap for houses, and we could afford to purchase one. After living in Oregon for a few years we got married. A year later we were divorced and I was knocked up with another man’s baby. I tried to make things work with my son’s father, but we were no good for each other I left him, and moved back to California to be close to my family.

Currently I am enrolled at Oxnard College, and until recently I was not sure of what I was studying for. I have recently come to the conclusion that I want to be a Dental Hygienist. I know most people think “why??” But honestly it’s a good profession. It is something that I can do, and financially support myself and my son. My main goal is just that, to live comfortably without the support of anyone else. So I am happy with my decision and know many struggles will lie ahead.

The future is a tricky one, every decision impacts our path. Hopefully I can make the right decisions and stay focused. Once I get my AS degree I will work full time as a Dental Hygienist, find a house that fits my family. If my mother’s health doesn’t get better, she will be living with me. I want to continue my education and move toward a BS, Masters and eventually you will be calling me Dr. Garcia. However, first things first…. Passing English!