> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.tom-shaw.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # A Finely Processed Delicacy - URL: https://www.tom-shaw.uk/a-finely-processed-delicacy/ - Published: 2024-05-27T08:01:06.000Z - Updated: 2024-05-27T08:01:06.000Z - Description: A Poem by Tom Shaw - Author: Tom Shaw - Tags: Poems, #substack, #substack-type-newsletter, #substack-access-everyone, #Import 2026-10-24 12:50 Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedPlaying chicken with the rotten wash that foamed his nose to the sinuses, fork hovering back-and-forth with hesitancy for this ‘delicacy’. Looking neither animal nor plant, perhaps a little wormish, insectoid, maybe part tentacle, for sure artificial, puffed-up suckers to drain his insides. But he’s a guest at this party, who swallow this monster with pride. So he follows suit, opens wide and takes a plunge - in a gushing rush of gangrenous juices, souring his teeth and making mincemeat of his cheeks, dragging the inside of his throat down with it, producing the urge to throw it all up. But he’s a guest and so he smiles, tongue tied up in terrible treacle, trying to masticate tar and rubber, dreading what the main course might bring. ###### A Finely Processed Delicacy - A Poem by Tom Shaw --- *Music:* [*Musique De Table. Seconde Production. (Banquet Music II): Trio in E Minor*](https://archive.org/details/lp%5Fmusique-de-table-banquet-music-production%5Fgeorg-philipp-telemann-schola-cantorum-bas/disc2/03.02.+Musique+De+Table.+Seconde+Production.+%28Banquet+Music+II%29%3A+Trio+in+E+Minor.mp3) --- This poem originally came out of a writing session run by [Saffron Morter-Laing](https://open.substack.com/users/127937810) as part of her Poetic Library Spotlight series. With a theme of “Hunger and Disgust”, in response to [“Hunger”](https://arianelizabeth.substack.com/p/hunger) by [—esque ](https://open.substack.com/users/1914770), we wrote a poem with a particularly unsettling banquet image prompt. I don’t have the original image, but I thought it would be fitting to let AI generate some monstrosity in-keeping with the nature of the poem. I think it did well. ![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/fdf3b291-e92c-46a1-9d3e-838839f06770_1280x1280.webp) I wanted to work a lot of ideas around processed food into this piece. So much of what we eat is not real food at all - it’s factory made garbage with addictive additives and empty fillers. The grand deception by manufacturers into believing this food is what we should be eating has happened over many years. The consequence? The rates of disease and illness in society are at an all-time high. For those conscious of this, it can be a pain to try and eat out or enjoy a meal somewhere that this knowledge is not widespread - a situation I have found myself in many a time. All of that became the poem you’re reading today. [This Is Your Body On Fake FoodHello! It’s hard out there. So much junk food and temptation. Adults living in this society have the deck stacked against their food choices. And now we have to take care of children in this atmosphere of food dysfunction.![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/7a988b1d-451d-437f-b60f-bf2989f26593_1199x1199.png)Time2Thrive](https://www.time2thrive.ca/p/this-is-your-body-on-fake-food?ref=tom-shaw.uk) But it doesn’t have to be this way - and it can be easier than you think to make it a reality. I’ve linked [Beth Bollinger](https://open.substack.com/users/163944381)’s straightforward introduction to “Real Food Made Simple” for those interested below. [Part 1: Real Food Made SimpleLearning to choose foods that nourish, protect, and energize our bodies![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/21c2d3d7-f87d-4786-a64b-f274e4389d4e_1280x1280.png)Nest Wellness by Beth Bollinger](https://nestwellness.substack.com/p/part-1-real-food-made-simple) Thank you for taking the time to read this piece. I hope it sparked something in you. With gratitude, Tom --- ![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/38cb9dda-4264-4a53-8160-9694aa24d586_640x640.jpg) [Subscribe](#/portal/signup) --- ## More Like This [Haikus of a ForagerWhen I’m in need of some downtime and reconnection with nature, one of my favourite activities is to go on foraging hikes. I love being able to find wild-grown foods and use them in all manner of ways. 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