The Remodeled Blog

More Interested “I”

“It became a more interested eye, while the other one just sat there waiting, watching.”

This is a line from Mastercards new “Curious Orb” commercial. Like many physical defects, socially we tend to make fun of people with Strabismus or Amblyopia, otherwise known as a lazy eye. We characterize them as being crazy, stupid, slow, unattractive. We joke about not knowing which eye to look in or feeling like we are always being watched. We joke because we are uncomfortable and don’t know how to deal with it. We avoid talking about it as though the afflicted person is somehow unaware. We try not to look because we don’t want to see like that A-hole who can’t stop staring, while we are that A-hole who has made an inappropriate joke at the afflicted’s expense. Don’t worry, it is only when they are not there, we are hypocritical A-holes rather than in-your-face A-holes.

For all these reasons there are support groups and blogs that offer better understanding and support. Me and My Lazy I is a blog that discusses the social effects of strabismus extensively, as well as her personal experiences with trying to get corrective surgery.

I think we can all see why this can be such a socially debilitating condition. Mastercard has taken a new perspective on this condition in their “Curious Orb” commercial. They are presenting the “lazy eye” as an eye that is curious, that is searching out life and knowledge without the permission or knowledge of the other eye, who is the more complacent of the pair. I like the play on words with “eye” and “I”, the curious eye, energertic eye, all together more interested eye. The renegade eye/I is the one that is breaking out of the mundane existence of the man. The commercial makes a direct link between concepts of self and the eye commenting on other people being who are just watching, but he is engaging with life through his newly energetic eye calling it “this spirited orb of mine.”

It seems to offer a very positive and new perspective on what has been previously acknowledged as socially disabling condition. But the jury is still out on this. Take a look and tell me what you think.

Obsession- Confessions of a Fruit Fly

It  is true, I have been accused of being obsessed with things.  I have also been accused of being a fruit fly. Well, today the twain met. A great article was posted about Blood Oranges on Siciliamo. Not only is this article informative and provides some more UK (useless knowledge) about blood oranges but they deemed me as having an obsession with blood oranges and thusly linked to me. I found this amusing, and appreciate the link. So grab an orange and toast to fruity obsessions!

So along this vein here are some very cool fruity things:

A wall mounted Fruit Holder. Art, food, art, food, no it’s both!

Its like a mathematical equation had sex with art and made fruit!

It’s the One (Fruit) Ring!

It’s called a Fruit Loop…GET IT! HA!

If you prick us do we not bleed? - The Merchant of Blood Orange

A bowl of blood oranges sits on my coffee table. They look like regular large  oranges, but they’re not. They have a dark secret.

Blood oranges are generally pleasing. They have thick skin that peels easily and comes off as large satisfying hunks in your hand. When you separate the slices you get a peek at the purple red meat beneath the thin skin. Then you bite into it, the bright red of the fruit is revealed with a burst of orangey-grapefruit like flavor. It’s exoticness is part of what makes it so enjoyable to eat. It is an orange, but inside is red. It is an orange but tastes like a grapefruit. Most of all, it is always a little surprise to peel the skin away and find the red meat. Even if you know it will be there, a part of you is never quite expecting it.

Every time I eat a slice of this entertaining fruit, I have questions. Why is a blood orange red? Where does it come from? Why does it taste like a grapefruit? If grapefruits and blood oranges are red then maybe the question should be, what makes an orange, well, orange?

So in my quest for useless knowledge, I have answered some of these questions.

Why is a blood orange red?

It is because it has an additional pigment called anthocyanin. This is a pigment that is found in purple and red flowers, as well as other fruit (though it is uncommon in citrus fruit). The reason an apples skin is red is because of anthocyanin. However, this is not the only reason. Carotenoids are also present in blood oranges. This pigment causes a color range from pale yellow to bright orange to deep red. It is the pigment responsible for the coloring of flamingos, salmon and lobster.

Where do they come from?

Blood oranges are native to Italy and Spain. There are new varieties that are being grown in other citrus regions, but they are Mediterranean by nature. It is hypothesized that they are a hybrid between a pomelo (chinese grapefruit) and a tangerine (which is a Moroccan citrus) . Interesting side note about the pomelo, it is not bitter like modern grapefruit and can weigh upto 22 lbs! WOW! That is a massive fruit! That is bigger than my head!

Anyway, that makes the blood orange seem all special and everything, coming from an ancient Moroccan South-East Asian fruit ancestry, but with a little more digging I found out that all sweet oranges are pomelo tangerine hybrids. So why that has been specifically mentioned with blood oranges, I don’t know. Maybe to make the collectors of useless knowledge (UK) feel satiated. But any proficient collector would be able to shoot down that piece of UK with the their more extensive UK.  Then where would you be?

I digress, that new knowledge did make me ask where oranges come from. They come from South East Asia. They are also known as Chinese Apples! Yup, we have come full circle! (oh wait, you haven’t read that part yet, when you read about the coloring you will see why we came full circle)

Though unlike apples, all oranges are actually considered berries because they have many seeds, are fleshy and soft and come from one ovum. Sounds kind of like people actually….hmmm

Why does it taste like a grapefruit?

That seems to be an influence of the pigment. Both the pigments seem to be non-sugar based acid neutralizing flavors. So they add sweetness, but not sugary sweetness and they neutralize the acid that makes grapefruit bitter.

Why should I eat it?

Outside of the fact that diversity is the spice of life, that you are braver than all your peers, that you like to add color to your life and that you have developed a palate more sophisticated than a 7 year old… you mean beyond all that? Well, they are really cool! Ok, and they have some great nutritional benefits.

Blood oranges have about 130% of the recommended Vitamin C. It diminishes the risk of heart disease (women you are at a high risk for this, read this article it might save your life), some types of cancer and”bad” cholesterol build up. They may also reduce the risk of cataracts and aid in the body’s general healing process.

The anthocyanin is an antioxidant that reduces the risk a lot of things of different ailments, but specifically age-related illness. It also decrease the free radical damage for people with low antioxidant capacity like diabetics and smokers.

The anti-aging product ROC stands for Red Orange Complex.

They have recently discovered that they have antidiabetic properties.

Of course eating oranges in general is good for you. So on top of all the special properties of blood oranges you also get this:

• 260 milligrams of potassium or 15% in a medium sized orange. Potassium lowers blood pressure, decreasing the risk of heart attack or stroke, helps regulated heart rhythm and keeps your electrolytes in balance. If you have ever had your electrolytes go out of whack, trust me, it is aweful!
• 28% of recommended dietary fiber. Oranges actually have more fiber than most of the fruit and veg out there.
• They are also a valuable source of iron, calcium and vitamin A.
• Lastly, the citric acid lowers teh acidity of fruits and juices, so it protects ascorbic acid from oxidation and lowers urinary pH, thus preventing the formation of renal calculi.

So now you know why blood oranges are red, why you should eat them, and can now affectionately call all oranges Chinese Apples, as well as have a bunch of other useless, and not so useless, knowledge that you can blurt out at parties. I have already impressed someone today with the 22 pound pomelo tidbit. Just think, your wow-factor has just been increased by at least 2 points!