Food Fight Fables — Weekend Safety Update
tw: domestic violence
It feels like it has been too long since I brought you a Florida story (not from lack of content) but when I heard about this one on the radio a little while ago, my curiosity was piqued so I did a little more digging. The headline to this one reads: Couple Arrested For Mutual Pasta Battery. That’s amore! On August 2, 2021 police responding to a 1 AM domestic disturbance found a Florida couple “covered in spaghetti” following a physical confrontation that resulted in the pair’s arrest on domestic battery charges. According to the arrest affidavit, during the altercation the couple each shoved a plate of spaghetti in the other’s face. The alcohol fueled food fight led to each being booked into the county jail before being released the following day on their own recognizance.
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Maybe you thought food fights were just a little harmless yet messy fun; however, further “investigation” reveals that food fights can actually be incredibly dangerous! In one blog post, the author reported that they made a trip to the ER after being burned by piping hot cheese from a mozzarella stick that was shoved in their ear, another was temporarily blinded after a bottle of vermouth was poured over them, and a third reports throwing what they thought was a plastic wine glass (which definitely wasn’t) and watching it shatter on the head of a fellow party goer. In 2012, a mealtime melee at a Cleveland elementary school resulted in at least 26 injuries ranging from broken wrists to head injuries.
Have you ever heard of the Carnival of Ivrea in Italy? This festival in the city of Ivrea includes a tradition of hurling oranges between groups, known as the Battle of the Oranges. It is the largest food fight in Italy and surrounding countries and is believed to commemorate the town overthrowing a tyrannical baron. Each year, dozens (sometimes hundreds) of participants sustain injuries. If this seems like your cup of OJ, you still have time to make it to Italy before the festival begins on February 27.
Pelting strangers with oranges not your thing? Perhaps consider postponing your next Ivrea vacation a week or two.
Have a happy and SAFE weekend!
