Well, it’s a fact, I was a McDonald’s employee, and here’s a photo to prove it, circa 1984, Springfield, Virginia–orangey polyester and all. Don’t I look enthusiastic?
Thanks, Chuck, for reviving one of my ugliest (in more ways than one) secrets.
I can honestly say that I have not eaten a meal at McDonald’s since I quit working there in 1985!
Haha, that got your attention, didn’t it? So I was facebook “friended” by an old high school friend yesterday, Chuck. (He thinks we dated but I don’t remember that. We grew up in Northern Virginia but now, funny enough, live a few blocks from each other in Utah.)
Anyway, he said this highly threatening thing to me, and I thought I’d better pre-empt public exposure by getting ahead of it and “outing” myself–here’s what he wrote:
“I HAVE A PHOTO OF YOU IN A MCDONALD’S UNIFORM.”
Yes, it’s true. That was my first job. I was 16 years old and I schlepped greasy fries and instantly/chemically-frozen “ice cream” and shakes to the unsuspecting American public. Also burgers that I counted 20+ ingredients listed on the boxes of frozen patties. Chuck worked there with me.
We used to go into the freezer and throw the patties against the wall as hard as we could. Never did break one. (Yes, I was an OUTSTANDING employee. Perhaps this is why I now find it almost imperative to work for myself.)
I’m super excited for Chuck to scan that photo and send it to me or post it on Facebook or whatever. NOT.
Isn’t it funny how life does a 180 sometimes? I told Chuck of the public damage that photo could do based on my current life choices and professional direction and books authored . . . I am not entirely certain, but that may have just goaded him into coming up with all kinds of ways to torment me with the alleged photo.
I just bought my first case (9 ct) of Young Thai Coconuts. The first one I drained had about 10 oz of brown tinged juice and there wasn’t any meat left in it. It didn’t smell bad, but it definitely smelled and tasted different than the other juice, so I assumed this was a bad or old coconut and tossed the juice. The rest all had mostly ‘clear’ juice (kind of had a yellowish tinge, but much lighter than the ‘bad’ coconut and tasted sweeter) and averaged about 12 oz juice each and 1/2 cup meat each. The thickness of the meat varied on each coconut from pretty thin to maybe 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick, and the thinner stuff was kind of gelatinous and the thicker was more like tough slimy cooked egg white (yum!). These coconuts were also very cold, borderline frozen, so I don’t know if that affected them badly. Since this is my first foray into using fresh Thai coconuts I’m wondering what the juice and meat is supposed to be like? Does it vary from coconut to coconut, or are there certain things I should beware of? I’m excited to try some of the 12 step recipes using the meat but that bad one I opened kind of spooked me and I want to be sure the rest are okay to use. Also, how long would this juice last in the fridge? I froze about half and put the rest in a pitcher in the fridge to use in Hot Pink Breakfast Smoothies, but I wasn’t sure how long it would be okay in the fridge. One last question-has anyone used any kind of power tool to cut the coconut in half after the juice has been drained? I cracked them by beating them on concrete while inside a plastic bag, which was kind of messy for me, but my hubbie has tons of power tools and I’m wondering if one would work…. :)
TIA!
Marisa
So I really wanted another shot at my green smoothie demo after my first 3-minute one. Here’s Green Smoothie 2.0, with Superfoods, part 1:
(After that, you can watch Part 2.)
How do you make decisions about whether to buy organic or not? What do you choose in the greens section of the grocery stores where you shop? How much do you pay? What do I do with the rest of the plant when I buy root vegetables? What are some new things you can put in your smoothies when you get bored?
Check out my two new videos now on the site addressing these issues and giving you a tour through the produce section of one of my favorite local stores:
http://greensmoothiegirl.com/videos3.html
My favorite part is where I randomly (I did not plan it, I promise) make friends with an elderly shopper named Elizabeth and sell her on raw food made easy with the green smoothie habit. (Don’t chase people down at your grocery store who look like they need help. They won’t appreciate it. But when you are making a video in the grocery store with a film crew, and someone expresses interest, open your mouth and start talking, because you just might be in her path for a reason that day!) :-)
. . . if anyone wants it, email me. thanks
We have had some struggles this year switching to a new shopping cart right as we started the group buy. (Dumb move. NOW I know better. Can you say “bugs?”) Thanks for your patience as we tried to do the group buy on a much bigger scale this year and kinda tripped and stumbled and fell quite a bit. Next year I intend for it to go SO well. :-)
One of the bugs in the software was that for folks from out of state, who wanted to pick up here locally, we couldn’t search on those orders. So in several cases, my shipper sent those AND Jenni emailed to let people pick them up from me.
Consequently, at the moment, I have 100 lbs. of almonds that have arrived in Twin Falls, ID and Boise, ID. If you see this email this week and want them for $300–a great deal with no sales tax and no shipping–let me know by emailing me (robyn@oppublishing.net) and I’ll hook you up with the customer for pickup.
Free radicals (atoms with unpaired electrons) cause cancer. Radiation (grossly simplified) is a massive amount of targeted free radicals used to detect cancer (also CAUSING cancer). This study does not surprise me, and it’s not the first study I have read with the same conclusion:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20091201/hl_hsn/mammogramsmayboostcancerriskinhighriskwomen
Here’s my everyday green smoothie “template” recipe. It allows you to use virtually any green, and any fruit, maximizing the greens. Enjoy!
Robyn’s Green Smoothie Template Recipe
Makes 8 cups of 100% raw smoothie.
Put 2 1/2 cups filtered water in the BlendTec Total Blender.
Optionally, add:
½ tsp. stevia (herbal sweetener) or ¼ cup raw, organic agave nectar (low glycemic index)
¼ whole lemon, including peel (anti-skin cancer, high in flavanoids)
2-3 Tbsp. fresh, refrigerated flax oil (omega-3 rich oil)
Gradually add greens until, briefly pureed, the mixture comes up the 5-cup line (or less if you are “converting”):
¾ to 1 lb. raw, washed greens, added up to 5 ½ cup line:
spinach, chard, kale, collards
Puree greens mixture for 90 seconds until very smooth.
Gradually add fruit until the container is very full, blend 90 seconds or until smooth:
1-2 bananas
1-2 cups frozen mixed berries
any other fruit to taste: pears, peaches, apples, oranges, apricots, cantaloupe, mango, pineapple
Make a full blender and you’ll have some to drink, and some to share. I know from my research that 84 percent of my readers who have adopted a green-smoothie habit are teaching others about it!
That’s your goal for today!
To Your Health,
–Robyn Openshaw
p.s. Tips: For beginners and those trying to convert children, consider using LESS greens and MORE fruit (especially berries and bananas) in the beginning, gradually working up to a 50/50 ratio as described here. With kids, consider using only spinach the first few days, then sneak in chard, collards, and kale, the other mild but excellent greens gradually. Add other savory or bitter greens only when your family are “experts” in green smoothies! Add a bit more water if you feel the smoothie is too thick.
I also have a collection on the site of 230 green smoothie recipes, most of which were contributed as “favorites” by readers! Check it out:
http://secure.ultracart.com/catalog/GSG10/category/recipes/10008.html
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