What at first glance appears to be a gaudy and colorful retelling of a famous old story is, in fact, anything but. If you looked at Lorena Alvarez's art and saw nothing but the princess struggling to feel the pea through far too many mattresses, look closer.
There is, admittedly, a leaf of the pea towards the very bottom of the pile. The pea itself, however, has escaped. It's no longer in the bed. Our princess is never going to feel it, because it's not there to be felt. All she has below her is a tiny piece of it. If she wants to feel the rest, she's going to need to get off the bed. Sometimes the things we want are within our reach, but not within our grasp. We have to go looking for them. Lorena Alvarez has subverted a fairytale to remind us of that.
Over the years, weve seen so many food trends come and go, such as ramen burgers, matcha, and spiked ice-cream. Nowadays, were seeing another trend making waves in the food industry. How many times today have you seen an Instagram photo of a scoop of black ice cream, or a cup of black yogurt, or hamburgers with black buns? Indeed, the charcoal trend has taken the world by storm.
So, what gives your latte that deep black shade? Activated charcoal, or coconut ash, is produced by heating coconut shells to insanely high temperatures until theyre burnt to a crisp. The ashes are then increased in size by steaming at high temperatures. Through this process, the ashes become a strong detoxifier, mostly because they become extra absorbent. This product may be purchased in pill form, and promises to alleviate hangovers, minimize the effects of food poisoning, and fight the visible signs of aging.
Activated charcoal is said to boost ones energy as a result of decreasing toxins in the body. However, no evidence proves that detoxifying can lead to increased energy. Also, while it can help cure a hangover, it doesnt necessarily remove alcohol from your blood. It is also said to aid in debloating your stomach because it cleanses your colon but again, this all anecdotal and isnt supported by scientific evidence as of yet. All we can say for sure is that it is a proven detoxifier.