The Little Green Apple Factor

With all of the talk about Paula's (yes, by the way, we are on a first name basis) type2 diabetes and the fact that she withheld the information since she found out in 2008, only coming out due to the fact that she is sponsoring a diabetes drug. She has been met with a lot of criticism and a lot of her fellow chefs are not speaking, probably due to the fact if you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything at all. It's a tough one. She is one of the most likeable celebrity chefs out there, and I have gotten several ideas from her. However, unlike, Giada and Ina, whose recipes I have used to take off on my own, I have watched Paula more for the entertainment factor, and the fact that she seems like family. She is likeable, you gotta give her that. But there is that whisper saying something like greedy that seems to have darkened her sunny, southern disposition. It's a shame. I've been saying for a while now: Cooking Is Not A Spectator Sport; it is something we all need to be involved in and make as a priority, not an after-thought when we're starving. It's up to us to weed out the entertaining, over-indulgent chefs with shows. Home cooking is a very real and powerful action, and when it comes down to it, its in our hands.
There are a lot of women out there just like Paula, in many, many ways, and they have a tendency to overindulge their loved ones. Paula's fans became her family and she loved each and every one of us. Maternally, her instinct was to show overindulgence in a showy way. It was sort of her way of loving us back. Just like a grandmother does to her grandchildren; over cook, over display of affection. Her behavior is not just a southern thing. In real life, however, it's kept for special times and celebrations. For Paula, every day had become a special celebration with her new family: her fans. And she wanted to treat them as if they were really coming to her home for some sort of annual picnic, only the annual picnic became every show.
It is interesting about the sponsorship and the timeliness of it, for that I guess, she just didn't know any better. But I'm sure this woman loves her fans like family, you can't knock her for that, you just can't.