We grabbed seats and then watched as a steady stream of students, professors, farmers, foodies, activists, bibliophiles and ethical eaters poured into the space. As the pews filled, people were invited to sit on the stage and those with a seat were urged to squish closer together.
Soon the wide center aisle was jammed with a combination of standing and sitting spectators. By 7 pm there was no where to squeeze another person.
That's when Thomas Wenzel, chair of the school's environmental studies program, approached the microphone.
"We've never had to do this at an Otis lecture," Professor Wenzel told the crowd, before informing the hundreds of people in the aisle that they would need to leave. The building was wildly beyond its capacity, he said, and the talk couldn't begin until the aisles were clear. To compensate, the college would replay a videotape of the speech at numerous times and places. Clearly a poor substitute for the real deal.
He concluded by pointing out that there is no ideal human diet when it comes to good health. But there is one way not to eat: the Western processed food diet.
Asked whether or not either Presidential candidate had read his "Farmer in Chief" open letter in the New York Times, Pollan pointed us to this interview with Senator Barack Obama done by Time columnist Joe Klein, where Obama references the letter in response to a question about energy policy. And who knows? Maybe those of us jammed into the chapel tonight were listening to this country's future Secretary of Agriculture. I can't think of a more perfect candidate for the job.