SC - RE: Allergies (A Long Rant From One Who Goes There)

[willow at dowco.com]

Dear Gentles:

It has been some time since I have last felt the need to post something
to this list.  Allergies has made me come out of hiding.  Some people
will definately not like what I say, but I guess I have the right to say
it.  

I have several allergies, one or two which could be fatal, given the
right circumstances.  My food allergies are not in this group, but they
will indeed make me very ill if I indulge in the wrong food.  Which
brings me to my point.

It is rude, inconsiderate and just plain stupid to put the problem of
living with my (your) allergy(s) onto the backs of the cooks.  You know
what you have to deal with.  It is your responsibility to inform others
of what you can or can not eat.  AND it is also your responsibility to
let them know far enough in advance that they can accomodate you.  IT IS
NOT the responsibility of the rest of the world to look after you.  If
you could indeed die from the mere whiff of a certain food, then you
have no business being in public where this food could be found at the
time or even left by another camper.

I have a deadly allergy to bee stings.  I try not to go where there may
be bees.  If I do decide to go, I have to weigh the risks against the
benefits.  I always have my kit with me.  My husband is well-versed in
the use of the needle.  If I am with someone else, I have to decide if
they can be trusted with my life, for that is exactly what I would be
doing.  Those who have a deadly allergy must decide if going to an event
is worth their lives.  The choice is theirs and theirs alone.

The menu is always posted well in advance, so there is NO excuse for
last-minute complaining.  If the menu does not lend itself to easily
being adapted, then I take food with me.  It is worth the price of a
ticket to be with friends, old or new.

Too many of us expect the rest of the world to take care of us, thus
leaving us free to enjoy ourselves.  We too readily lay the blame for
the maintenance of our lives on the shoulders of others when it belongs
only to us.  I would no more go into a field full of blooming flowers
than I would sprout wings and fly.  Neither would I expect others to mow
the field, take the debrit away and spray the field so that I could
gambol about like the other 97% of the population.  If you would die
from the smell of such-and-such a food, you have no business being in a
place where that food may be or may have been consumed.  You have no
right to expect the rest of the world to stop eating that food and/or
leave the site.	

It is rude to expect cooks to be waiting for you to come up to them and
demand that you have a *whatever*-free meal just because you have paid
for a ticket.  It is truly boorish to yell at the same cook because you
can not get everything you wish, instantly.  To throw someone out of
camp because of something they did not know about is truly swinish.  A
real gentle would have explained the situation to the person and helped
them make other arrangements.

Cooks work very hard for us, with little or no rewards.  To blame them
for the stupidity of people who have allergies is reprehensible.  I have
never had a timely request denied.  If it would cause a great deal of
trouble to prepare the alternative, I prepare it myself.

Hoorah to all the unsung cooks who must put up with all these things and
slave over a hot stove in less than ideal circumstances.  I am sure I
could never do it.  I always honour those who do willingly what I would
not do, even under duress.

Brighid Morgan ap Crawford of Shrewsbury
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