#25: Tiff Bushka
"I am open to novel information and am also skeptical of a lot of it; I like to try random things that random people recommend because it keeps life exciting for me."
Tiff was recommended by Libby, who was recommended by Paul. You can check out her cooking on @areyoucomingoverfordinner and Resturant Blog ⚘
At a glance…
Location: NYC
Big 3: Taurus/Pisces/Libra
What does health, or being healthy, mean to you?
Being healthy to me is feeling good and happy. Not having a stomachache after eating something. Having balanced hormones. Not having mood swings. Eating healthy but not to the extent that you’re not enjoying eating. Enjoying what you're eating is more important than suffering through eating something that you think is good for you. Being healthy is about balance.
How would you describe your current lifestyle?
“Random,” maybe. I'm currently enrolled in online school and relying on creative endeavors for income. My life feels random most of the time and I put a lot of pressure on myself to make my life feel structured and my endeavors feel worthwhile. I would like to get a normal job so I can stop thinking about myself so much but at the same time I have so many ideas that I want to bring into existence. Having free time lowers my tolerance of the city a lot so I run away every week or two. I wonder if I would be happier living on a lake? Would my friends come visit me?
How do you start and end your days?
In the morning I make coffee for my boyfriend and then we make breakfast. Breakfast is really important for me and I have to eat shortly after waking up. Lately it's usually eggs, scrambled and rolled into a fully cooked omelet (I don't like runny scrambled eggs). Sometimes this will have fillings—a recent favorite is corn, shallot, pickled peppers sauteed in butter—or sliced pickled herring on top. I usually will have some fruit or dates with butter. Take vitamin e. At night I cook dinner. Usually something simple, an animal protein and a vegetable. Watch a movie or a show. Take magnesium acetyl-taurate, turn on the noise machine, put on my sleeping mask.
What’s your relationship to self-healing?
Growing up I rarely went to the doctor, except for physicals required for school. I generally don't like telling people this, but it seems safe enough to say here—I didn't receive vaccines as a kid and still haven't gotten any. I have a really terrible fear of doctors which manifests as an extremely high heart rate anytime I'm at the doctor's office. It freaks them out every time which makes it worse for me. So I avoid going to the doctor unless I'm really stuck in a hypochondriac loop that I can't get myself out of. If I feel like something is off I'll get some bloodwork done and address deficiencies. Otherwise, most things just get better in a week or so.
Was there a specific moment in life that made you change your approach to health, or become more conscious generally?
To me health mainly comes from eating good food. My interest and consciousness in health I think originated from my interest in cooking and in using really good ingredients, which started after I moved to New Work in 2019. Living in New York, I have access to things like fresh meats and produce from the greenmarkets and imported Italian goods from Gustiamo (based in the Bronx and available at many little gourmet stores around the city, but you can also buy from their online store). Learning about really high quality ingredients led to learning about the nutrient density of certain things and about eating seasonally. It feels rewarding to me to have all of this knowledge about food and comfort and enjoyment in cooking. It's so basic, like obviously everyone needs to eat, but being mindful of what you're putting in your body and taking time to prepare meals is really good for you I think. Cooking is the best hobby in the world in my opinion because it's delicious and shareable.
Where do you look to for information or advice?
Earlier this year I was cleaning out my grandparents' house after my grandpa passed away. My grandma had died several years prior but no one had really gone through her stuff. My uncle wanted to throw everything out and my mom wanted to keep everything so I was tasked with finding a middle ground among all of her ephemera. My grandma had a lot of books on esoteric health movements and also a lot of "Potions" as my mom would call them. I had known about her fringe health ideas but had never seen any of the source materials. A lot of the information I saw was stuff I'd also seen via Ray Peat followers and random people on Twitter, and I realized a lot of the things that seem like a new trend have actually been around for a long time. This has been a long tangent to say that I feel like my interest in seeking health information is in my blood or something. I am open to novel information and am also skeptical of a lot of it; I like to try random things that random people recommend because it keeps life exciting for me.
Do you have any guiding principles?
To me the biggest thing is just to be happy.
F*ck, marry, kill: three health trends of your choice.
F*ck: beef sticks, marry: in-season produce, kill: raw milk (the last bottle I got gave me a stomachache).
What’s your perfect meal? What foods do you find yourself returning to?
Reverse seared steak or a lamb shoulder chop, ghee-fried potatoes, panzanella, fresh mint chip ice cream. Alternatively, anything from Bread and Salt in Jersey City.
What advice would you give to your past self?
Don’t become vegetarian.
What advice would you give to the person reading this?
Filter your water.
What would you like to see or create more of in the world?
I used to host a lot of dinners at my house, but since I haven't had a steady source of income for the past year I've put that on pause. As soon as I have money again I want to get back to doing that. I love to share nourishing meals with my friends while also getting to enjoy their company. I also want to see grape juice receive the same reverence as wine. At Chez Panisse they have a pinot noir grape juice on the wine list. I want to see single-varietal grape juices and field blends from different growers on more wine lists.
Note: this Q&A was originally published via Mailchimp. Read the full issue here.
