Single-Minded: An Independent Journal of Fact and Opinion

I was putting away the dishes the other day and was visited by one of those rare moments of epiphany wherein one of the more nettlesome aspects of contemporary American society was brought home to me through the unlikely vehicle of a plastic cup. Obviously this was no ordinary plastic cup. This was one of those mega-jumbo cups that holds enough Coke to supply the daily needs of a small country.

When was it decreed that all portions must be of a gargantuan size? I can remember a day not that long ago (okay, so maybe it was 20, 30 years ago) when everything came in much smaller portions. A candy bar could fit in the palm of your hand. A bottle of Coke was half the size it is now. A sandwich ordered in a diner was not filled with an 2-inch layer of tuna or chicken salad surrounded by thick bread that could not be encompassed from top to bottom in a single bite. Today's sandwich must be eaten in stages, the first bite taking the bottom crust and half of the filling, the next bite taking the top crust and the remaining filler. What used to be a simple salad is now served in a bowl that could hold the Olympic flame.

And it is not like we were unhappy with our smaller portions. We expected less, and were content with what we got. Now we get more, but it's hard to say if we are any happier for it. Look around. See all those overweight Americans. Ever wonder how they got that way? Part of the answer has to lie in the ever-growing size of the portions we are forced to accept when we buy snack foods or order food in a restaurant. Let's be honest. Not too many of us are going to turn away from food that is sitting right there in front of us. My wife and I may share a single meal, but this is not a practice that most restaurants find endearing. So we eat more than we need and, in many cases, more than we want.

Why has this happened? Two reasons, I suspect. It probably began as part of the competitive process. This candy bar maker comes out with a bigger-sized product so the others follow suit. Of course, the price goes up. That was when some genius discovered that the price increase didn't have to bear any relation to the cost of the extra product being added. So we get more, but we pay disproportionately more for that extra bite of chocolate. Over time the large became extra-large which has in turn evolved into super-sized, and we end up paying more for a product we don't really want that much of but which we have to take all of to get the part we DO want.

Fortunately, I have noticed a new trend. The small-bite-sized candies, like the ones you get to pass out at Halloween...well, they are getting bigger. I figure that in another year or so, the bite-sized candy will be about as big as the candy bar that I remember from when I was a kid. Of course, I won't be able to buy it for a nickel but then a nickel isn't what it used to be either. As for the restaurants, my wife and I order a lot of take out, but we only order one meal and maybe an extra side dish or salad. The service is a lot faster, there is no tipping, and the portions work out just about right for two smaller-scale appetites. Adapt or die, so they say.

June 1999

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