Deejay Dancing in Publix

Adam Sandler dancing in a supermarket in Punch Drunk Love

I grew up wanting life to be like a Broadway musical, with people spontaneously bursting into song & dance in the middle of their everyday lives. I can't say I've encountered that very often. But it happened today, Saturday! Right here in Sarasota.

In this hypohurricane weather, I went to Publix to buy some supplies. When I stepped through the automatic doors, right there in front of me was a teenage deejay spinning dance music. I could hardly believe it! I parked my shopping cart and began dancing. Right there inside Publix's entrance doors.

It was dinner time, and although there were other shoppers, I was the only one dancing. Once I hear compelling music I've just gotta dance. Middle-aged shoppers in the checkout area peered over at me, bemused. Teenage store clerks looked at me and smiled. When the music slowed down, I did some shopping, then came back to join a conga line of six employees and an eight-year-old girl. They were doing an intricate dance as the song instructed: "Slide to the left, jump back, spin around, cha cha." I'd never heard this one before, but it must be popular because the little girl knew the steps perfectly.

Turns out that the deejay booth--complete with a boombox with a built-in video camera and a black and white screen--is just a one-weekend promo. But I love the idea of dancing while buying salad greens and pineapple, any time. Why limit it to one weekend? When I got home, I sent a letter to Publix corporate, suggesting that a dedicated dance area become a permanent feature of the Lakewood Ranch Publix. Being the only supermarket in the country with dancing would get them tons of publicity. I can see it now, entertainment news and late night talk shows all talking about Publix. I like the year-round idea because it beats driving to Ibor City to go deejay dancing. I'll be going back to Publix Sunday to dance. Who knows--I might even become their first-ever salaried go-go dancer.

April 21, 2008:

I just discovered this awesome video of two guys dancing to disco in a supermarket!!! These guys are my soulmates!

Newsweek Online's Erroneous Piece

My response to Newsweek online's April 12, 2005 article on raw foods:


Dear web editors,

As a long-time raw foodist and the founder and editor of www.RawFoodsNewsMagazine.com, an online magazine celebrating raw foods since March 2001, I'm glad to see you ran an article on the raw foods lifestyle.

I wanted to point out an error in your article. The writer says that Woody Harrelson came out with the 400-page book Living Cuisine a year ago. The book is actually by the raw chef Renee Underkoffler; Woody Harrelson merely wrote its foreword.

Also, your writer says that most people eat raw foods for health reasons. I would like to know where she found statistics on this. As someone who has been in the raw foods community since 1992, I know that while a decade ago many people tried raw foods at first for health reasons, over time more people are eating the food because it tastes great and because it makes them feel and look fabulous.

Your writer cites an M.D. and a nutritrionist as saying that it's ok to eat cooked food. Please explain to me why it is, then, that people who eat 100 percent raw foods don't ever get colds or sore throats.

Judy Pokras
editor/founder/designer
Raw Foods News Magazine
http://www.rawfoodsnewsmagazine.com
vegwriter@aol.com
An online newsmagazine founded in March 2001 as rawfoodsnews.com celebrating the raw foods lifestyle with authoritative info, breaking news, and fun interactive features. * Rated Number 1 in the Webseed Directory's most interesting sites list, based on how many articles a person looks at in any one visit. * Recommended by Writer's Digest, EnergyTimes, The Vegan Guide to NYC, the Japanese magazine Engine, breathing.com, and the national radio program Carolyn Craft's Inner Wisdom.