***
Spies and secret agents on perilous missions typically carry cyanide capsules for personal use in case of capture by the enemy. Some might as well carry peanuts, for if one happens to be sufficiently allergic, ingesting a goober will do the job just as effectively as biting on a standard-issue suicide pill.
For unknown reasons, serious food allergies are on the rise. These days, roughly 6% of American infants are born with mild to potentially lethal adverse reactions to particular proteins found in certain types of food, with peanuts and shellfish leading the league as far as ferocity, followed by tree nuts, seafood, dairy products, wheat, eggs, and soy. (Allergies to brown rice and broccoli are virtually unheard of, which—once again—goes to show that the boring things in life are generally safe, while all the fun stuff is liable to occasion obesity, pregnancy, delinquency, skin rashes, or anaphylactic shock.)
Granted, the wars on terror, drugs, and Aids sop up the lion share of available press coverage, but the war on food allergies is being waged quietly yet with equal zeal by a contingent of dedicated individuals. To help bankroll their invaluable efforts, the Tenth Annual Food Allergy Ball, presented by the Food Allergy Initiative, netted up a record $5 million.
Although many items on the gala menu featured potentially problematic items like salmon, eggs, or flour, all ingredients were punctiliously listed, and the Waldorf=Astoria staff all but performed back flips to accommodate every single special dietary need articulated by any of the over 1000 attendees. (Expect this measure of solicitous accommodation during your next evening of dining out in New York City at your own risk!)
Cerberus Global Investment Advisors LLC President Frank W. Bruno received honors, and the Jaffe Family was awarded a Special Tenth Anniversary Award for their invaluable footwork in the trenches of allergy combat.
Ronald O.Perelman, Sharyn T. Mann, Todd J. Slotkin, Patricia and James Cayne, Mary Richardson Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and Julia and David H. Koch served as various types of gala chairs, and Reneé Fleming and Brian Stokes Mitchell performed a sing-along version of I Could Have Danced All Night. (Had Eliza Doolittle been allergic to glass, swallowing that marble could have had disastrous consequences indeed.)
***
