 |
Taken from The Green Smoothie Pinterest Board |
Strawberry
Banana Green Smoothie
Take…
I/2 bunch of spinach
1avocado
1 (previously frozen banana), peeled
2 cups soy milk or water
8 oz. fat free yoghurt
6 previously frozen strawberries
6 baby carrots
Step
1: Blend
Step
2: Pour
Step
3: Drink and say cheers to your
health and the health of your friends
The
United States of Friendship Part 8 – Julia
“Hi there”
“Who’s that?”
I asked? There was no one in the room. Just me and my laptop plugging away at an
FSD ( Functional Specifications Document ) for a Varicent implementation.
“Your
taste buds” said a chorus of voices.
“My taste buds!”
I exclaimed, “I’ve had Cheburashkas talk to me, birds talk to me, spiders talk to me. I’ve never had taste buds talk to me!”
“We’re here to talk to you about Julia” said one
of the taste buds.
“Julia?” I
asked, surprised, “why Julia?”
“She’s messed
up our lives!” said one of the taste buds.
“How could
that be?” I asked. “Julia is a positive influence on anyone she meets. If I am eating healthy, it’s thanks to
Julia.”
“That’s
just it,” said one of the taste buds, “Healthy is not a good word in our book.Tasty. Yummy. Lip-smacking good. Those are the words we like. But those words
can be used on almost none of the foods you eat today…. thanks to Julia…
“First it was sugar, she talked you into
cutting that out” ….
“Then it
was sweeteners, she talked you into cutting that
out”…..
“Potato chips were the next thing to go - something
about trans fats,”
“Hold on”,
I said, these are all good changes….good for my heart. Good for my arteries. Good
for my pancreas.”
“Your
pancreas! Of all things” said one of the taste buds.
“Who would you want to have at a party? Your
pancreas? Or us? Huh? Huh?”
“When David
or Mohammed makes their yummy biryani, or Rosie makes her delectable appams
& stew, who do you want? Your
pancreas, or us? Huh. Huh….?”
“When Pete
hosts one of his sensational barbecues, who do you want - us, your taste buds,
or your pancreas?” Huh? Huh?”
“When a
slice of Persimmon Cake, or Sweet Potato Pie, or Freshly Baked Bread is put in
front of you; or lunch is Crockpot Stew or Kari Udang Dan Terung or Stuffed Bell Peppers…..?”
“I get it.
You, my taste buds” I said.
“Speak up.”
“You, my
taste buds!” I said louder.
“We thought
so. So before things get any worse and
all the taste is sucked out of your life and ours, we want you to cut ties with
Julia.”
“Cut ties
with Julia? I couldn’t possibly do
that,” I said… “I like her too much.”
“Like her
too much? What do you like? Tell us….because
we can’t see what there is to like about her.
To us she is raw carrots and celery and smoothies with avocado and
spinach in them. No, really, what is it you like about her?”
“Well, for
one thing, Julia’s an analytical chemist who works in the pharmaceutical
industry,” I said, “so she tells me lots of interesting things about
medicines,” I said.
“Like what?”
asked a taste bud.
“All sorts
of things. Here’s one – did you know the
blood thinner Coumadin was initially developed as a rat poison to kill rats? You can google it and check it out. I’ve
learned many interesting things from her like that. Heard about drug delivery? It’s an
area of pharmaceuticals where they do research on the best way to get a drug to the
exact site in the body where it is needed, without it getting degraded by
stomach acids and enzymes or causing harm to other organs and tissues.
If there are patches, inhalable medications, medication released through
stents, and surgically implanted pumps today, it’s because of developments in
drug delivery. Soon Type 1 diabetics will even be able to inhale their insulin.
“What else
do you like about Julia?” said one of the taste buds. I could tell they wanted me to go on.
“She has good values. So some of the things she’s said to me have become philosophical touchstones in
my life. Let me tell you a story…
“One day, Julia
and I were sitting outside the karate place waiting for our daughters to get
done with karate class. “Minoo, let’s
get some tea, Julia said.
“I
remember I was always fascinated with Julia’s Goldilocks maneuver with tea. If it was too cold, she would add a few drops
of warm water to it. If it was too hot, she would put an ice tube or two in it.
“Anyway, sipping
from my Goldilocked tea, I said to her ‘Hey, Julia, I am thinking of leaving
Palm. There’s an opening at a Johnson and Johnson company in Fremont for a
Commissions Manager and I am tempted to apply because it will mean a step up
and more money.
“I continued “I’ll have to drive 32 miles each
way and I won’t be able to work from home anymore. (At Palm
where I was employed at the time, I was allowed to work from home 3-4 days a
week). So I am wondering if it will be worth it – I guess it will if they
compensate me adequately for the loss of that benefit, give me x amount of
money more. But what is that amount? I
am having a hard time figuring that out.
What do you think? What dollar value should I put on not being able to
work from home and be there for Tanita and my Mum? I threw
out a number at her. Julia’s reply
was instant: ‘Minoo, you can’t put a dollar value on that - it’s ‘priceless.’
“I was to remember
those words many times in the following year when I accepted that new higher
paying job at the medical company, only to find myself profoundly unhappy. She was right. Working from home and being
able to be with Mummy and Tanita was indeed ‘priceless’. Neither the money nor
the prestige of my Manager title was able to compensate for it.”
This story
was greeted by silence from the taste buds.
Then one
of them piped up and said, “What else do you like about her?”
“Julia is one of the kindest, most un
self-centered people I know. That’s
another reason I like her. If a friend or acquaintance is in some kind of
distress, she reaches out instantly. A
month after my mother died, she sent me a gift card for a massage at a spa. Two
years ago, when we thought Tanita might have IBS, she sent us some hard-to-find
nutritional products she thought might help. When I was looking for work, she
sent me material she had received from an outplacement company. She never thinks
twice about doing things like that for people. Truly, she is one of the kindest
people I know. I feel blessed to know people like that, people such as Julia
and Janet and my brother David.
My taste
buds didn’t say anything to that, so I decided to go on….
“I also
like Julia’s sense of style. She has a
talent for working with fabric and jewelry and she can embellish an ordinary object
such that you wouldn't recognize it when she's done. She is also naturally elegant and composed.
When you are around Julia, whether you are an adult or kid, you will find
yourself inclined to exercise more calmness and restraint than you normally do,
just because Julia is that way. I used to compliment her about this saying, “All
kids should be sent to the Julia Finishing School….
“Should I
go on?” I asked the taste buds. They
nodded.
“Like me,
she’s into books. She has introduced me
to many good books and stories over the years. The Crimson Sails story is one of my
favorites. You can read about it and download it for the Kindle here – it is a beautiful love story. Why didn’t I
think of it when I wrote my post Happy New Dear?....
One of the
taste buds prompted me to go on with a “What else?”
“And of
course, everyone knows she’s been a big influence on my eating habits.”
At this
the taste buds perked up.
Out of
thin air appeared some ear plugs.
“Here”
said the taste buds.
“What are
these for?” I asked.
“For when
Julia calls you next and starts talking nutrition. Go ahead and listen to her
talk about medicines, talk to her about your job, about books and stories like
the Red Sails story. Just put those ear
plugs in your ears when she talks nutrition and we’ll be happy.”
“That’s a
tough promise….I’ll try.” I said.
“Can you
promise to have lunch with Nina at least once a quarter?” they said.
I paused,
but only for a moment.
“Yes?” they asked again.
“Deal,” I
said, secretly chuckling.
Because it
was time for me to make that infamous Julia spinach and avocado smoothie!
Thank you
Julia. I am grateful for all the different things our friendship has
brought me over the years, including your excellent nutritional advice. Happy
Mother’s Day to you.
2 comments:
I like it Minoo,keep it up!
Here's to driving the taste buds crazy and living to a healthy old age :):):)
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