“Wasting food is no joke!” he’d shout. “That’s how Karen Carpenter died!”
Since the dawn of time, parents have told their kids to finish everything on their plates. Back in the Eighties, we were told not to waste food because of “starving children in Africa” which actually seemed reasonable since the Ethiopian famine was on the news every night and “We Are the World” was on the radio 24/7. On the other hand, drug stores had an aisle marked “Diet Aids” where they sold what was essentially speed that made you hyper and killed your appetite. It was a mixed message, to say the least, and I can’t imagine how much it messed with your head if you were a young woman. Karen Carpenter was America’s sweetheart — squeaky clean, wholesome, talented, and a real girl next door until her anorexia killed her. That threw a lot of people for a genuine loop because they couldn’t get their heads around the fact that this girl who seemed so perfect could be so broken. Mr. Lang’s terror that his daughter might be anorexic is sweet, and misplaced, but that’s parents, right? They’re always protecting us, but usually from the wrong thing.
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Though at that ag…