During chemo, my appetite falls off track faster than a 12th grader with senioritis.
I dutifully order the most nutritious items on the Hotel Hope menu, but a nearly full tray is whisked away hours later. And, I have to admit, that the possibility of the "second coming" (of the food, that is), is a powerful disincentive to chowing down.
The lousy appetite dogs me after my homecoming, but, like clockwork, it miraculously returns within 48 hours. After round one, the potato balls from Porto's Bakery reignited my taste buds. Pork and shrimp shumai from my favorite dumpling house did the trick after round two.
Two days after returning from round three, I offered to bring home pizza from Casa Bianca, a popular family-style Italian joint in Eagle Rock. My appetite hadn't returned yet, so I thought the large pizza pie sitting in the passenger's seat was safe. The aroma of the fennel-laced sausage hit me, and I thought, "Just one small square." But those tasty nibbles woke up my sleeping taste buds, and I couldn't stop myself. After consuming several more squares, I maneuvered the pieces around, hoping noone would notice that a fourth of the pizza was missing. (Unfortunately, I didn't fool anyone.)
Do you see a theme here? Carbs and fat are the perfect antidote to chemo-induced appetite loss. I'm already plotting a breakfast of old-fashioned, high-fat biscuits and sausage gravy to rev up my appetite after round four. Care to join me?
12 comments:
Um, Suze? Is that photo the original meal? Or the second coming? 'Cause it looks pretty nasty from where I'm sitting.
Eeek! I see what you mean about the biscuits and gravy.
Does that mean you won't be joining me for breakfast?
Hi Susan, I am so glad you have some easy to get, tasty treats to tempt you to eat! And that you can eat! You want to keep that strength and muscle. Those dumplings sound really good. We have a great sushi place over here but I have yet to find and try those dumplings! Here's to appetites! Lots of Love, Suze
I thought maybe that was a picture of a hospital meal, intended to illustrate the problem with keeping them down. But I don't think COH would be that mean.
Imagine a restaurant that would put a plastic version of that in the front window! Do you think they could pay people to eat it?
I could start a "You know you're from West Virginia" string based on the reaction to the photo of the biscuits and gravy.
You know you're from West Virginia when a plate mistaken for a "second coming" or hospital grub appeals to you!
To get your fat/carb ratio up, make sure you have some potatoes fried in bacon grease. A good helping of fried potatoes added to your photo would definitely heighten the appeal. Don't forget the ketchup and tabasco sauce. (WV sweet and sour.) Not for the faint of heart.
You know you're from WV, after ordering sushi, you look for the ketchup.
Hey.......for dinner, you better have the old standby of soupbeans cooked in smoked hamhocks. Top it off with onions and relish. Don't forget the cornbread topped with real butter. That is instant fat/carb AND it will increase your compression ratio.
Depending on what study you prefer, WV is listed as 1st or 3rd in state obesity. Huntington, WV is listed as the most obese city in the nation. Charleston, WV is a rotund 4th. One prominent scholar has WV as the world's most obese "region". Ninnie Choo Choo, if you have a hankering for fat/carbs, do what they do in Huntington.....have a fried bologna sandwich with a thick slice of American cheese. Cha Ching! Check out this link. Wellness Council of West Virginia? (Seriously now, don't laugh). I suspect they serve Twinkies as crudites.
http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=3271
Love ya!
p.s. Do you remember Jesco White?
And you know you're from West Virginia if you know to score the bologna slice before frying it!
"And you know you're from West Virginia if you know to score the bologna slice before frying it!"
That's hilarious! Do you think we're the only ones that know why?
I must share this story related to bologna. During my coaching days, two brothers who wrestled for me, had a big igloo cooler they lugged into the gym. They weighed in and then opened the cooler. It was tightly packed with sandwiches neatly wrapped in wax paper. I asked them what they had under all that white bread. "Bologna with mustard, bologna with ketchup, bologna with mayo, bologna with cheese", they matter-of-factly replied. Curiosity getting the better of me, I asked, "Do you like fried bologna sandwiches?" In perfect unison, they plopped down in some seats, closed their eyes, tipped their head back and exclaimed, "Mmmmmmmm.......yes!!!" My first encounter with true bologna aficionados. Only in WV.
I have to confess- the biscuits and gravy actually looked tasty to me and a fried bologna sandwich (Or as some West Virginians would say, "sam-wich") is tastier than it sounds. And I DO know why you have to score the bologna! I'll join you for breakfast any day. Especially if it's Bob Evans :)
See you tomorrow!
Well I DON'T know why you score bologna before frying it. Do tell!!
Personally, I prefer scoring turkey or peanut butter, but not to fry them.
Scoring peanut butter is especially good when it's in cookie form -- though you don't really score it, you just press it with a fork.
I'd like to hear some more "You know when you're from WVA" lines.
Here are some "you know you've left WVA" lines:
- when you do pilates in your hospital bed.
- when you work out with a big rubber band anywhere at all.
- when you buy a Prius and are sad because you don't get a "carpool lane" sticker (BTW -- I just read those add $4,000 to the value of a used Prius.)
- when you do Flori Cani Yoga in your backyard.
Do they have Perkins Restaurants in WVA? When we go to Ohio to visit Don's family, we sometimes eat at one. I was amazed to see that it has cinnamon bun French toast on the menu. (Cinnamon buns dipped in French toast batter and fried.) I love cinnamon buns, and I love French toast, but I didn't have the nerve to try cinnamon bun French toast. I was afraid I might have a coronary on the way out the door. No, I didn't have the biscuits and gravy, either. Or fried bologna.
You know you're from California when you're sad you can't have yogurt, granola and berries for breakfast.
Love,
Mrs. Duck
If you try to fry a slice of bologna without scoring, it curls into a little bowl that's hard to squish between your two slices of Wonder Bread.
Karen, you're on a roll. I love your, "You know you've LEFT West Virginia entries."
And, in spite of my annual hankering for a plate of biscuits and gravy, my usual breakfast fare is yogurt with fresh fruit. (Skip the granola.)
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