Bits & Bites 2

OH CANADA EDITION

This week has been pretty monumental.

- On Canada Day itself I tried rhubarb pie. There are many reasons I've never tried rhubarb pie, but they boil down to two main hangups: my pie aversion and rhubarb is just plain scary. It looks like celery, but is treated like a fruit.(Isn't part of the plant poisonous?) However, I was at a friend's house celebrating and his mom had just made it. It was still warm. This is apparently a good thing for pies, rhubarb especially. I couldn't refuse. The first bite through me for a loop: sweet, yet quite tart. I kept eating and it started to grow on me. I'm a sucker for sour it seems. Halfway through my slice someone tried to make sure finishing was a challenge by asking if tapioca was in the pie, like usual. My brain heard the comment, but by sheer force of will my taste buds never received the message.
VERDICT: Polite. If offered, I'd gladly eat rhubarb pie again. Who knows, maybe after a few times I'll even upgrade it to Order status.

- Today we had garden salad with supper. I decided I'd just eat the cucumbers and peppers, if I got any. Normally, the "if I got any" would mean I'd be using the hyper-picky tongs when filling my plate; however, I only used the slightly picky tongs and crunched down on some non-leafy vegetables with supper.

- When cutting up vegetables for make-your-own pizzas tonight, I had an unnatural urge to pop a fresh mushroom in my mouth. I resisted. (Hopefully Kristin eats them all before she reads this.)

Bits & Bites 1

This term the room I share during my prep has changed and I've enjoyed getting to know another one of the English teachers at the school. Unfortunately, for my picky self that is, he is both a gourmet and a gourmand. He puts me to shame. While in Japan, he even taught himself to eat natto! So, I've been braver than usual lately.

• Last week I ate a cookie with raisins in it. I didn't squirm. I didn't flinch. I didn't even squinch! In fact, I barely noticed them. How many cookies have I turned down needlessly? No more!

• I declined guacamole on a hamburger when out for lunch and found I couldn't justify why I didn't like it. So, a few weeks later I picked up some sushi for supper. I had a vegetarian roll that just so happened to have some avocado in it. I was brave. I removed it from the roll and ate it on its own. It tasted like nothing I've ever, well, actually it tasted like nothing. It was soft, mushy nothingness squishing terribly in my mouth. I remember why I don't like avocados.

Tomorrow, we're going out for lunch again. Wish me luck.