Chestnuts, Fall, Squirrels, and Stats

I have these two dogs, Hattie and Hank, that I walk in Piedmont everyday. They're both wonderful little dogs. The streets where I walk them are lined with old growth chestnuts, beautiful golden brown chestnuts. You an tell when fall is here because the leaves turn yellow and the chestnuts are on the ground.

The problem in Piedmont is everything is manicured. The people, mostly Mexicans, who keep the  homes groomed and looking beautiful, sweep up the leaves and chestnuts before you can even get a chance to gather them. The squirrels barely have any luck getting any, let alone us dog walkers.

If you go down to Chinatown in Oakland you'll see the very same chestnuts selling for ten dollars a pound at the produce stands. Chestnuts are high in dietary fiber, folate, and vitamin C to name just a few health benefits.

It was still common to see hot chestnuts sold on the streets in New York when we were growing up. When we were in Italy our friends served hot chestnuts after dinner. My father loved chestnuts, and my cousins had several trees down the street from us. We used then to have chestnuts fight when we were kids. They have a prickly outer layer that hurt like hell when you got hit, kids. A fungus wiped out most of the mighty American chestnut trees in the early part of the 20th century, too bad.

If you decide to serve them after dinner you can put them into the oven to heat them. Make sure you score them first or they'll blow up. It will sound like a gun went off when that happens. I've done this so I know. They go nicely with fresh fruit and grappa.

That's it today.

Peace,

Make Food/Not War

Food Consumption;

Breakfast; potato pancake w/Irish cheddar,  2 poached eggs, 1 piece of brown bread

Lunch; Turkey cheese burger on brown bread

Dinner; salad w/cucumber, feta, beets, olive oil, s & p, fresh lemon, single chocolate ice cream
             cone

Exercise; 5 miles walking