Before I had children I used to be a more elaborate cook. I prepared more sauces and used more interesting seasonings. When my children were little, they liked simple, single ingredient foods. They were much more receptive to carrots, for example, than carrots with a ginger glaze. My son has grown to like more savory seasonings. But my daughter still likes simple food - or at least I thought she did.

Several weeks ago we had company for dinner, and I decided to fix green beans. I pulled out one of my old recipes - basil green beans - just to make the vegetable a little fancier for our guests.

Then I went back to plain green beans for the family. My daughter said, "These green beans don't taste the same as they did when our friends were over." I explained that I had used more seasoning for our guests. "Oh," she said, "Those were really good."

I should have taken the hint, but simple food is a habit. Tonight she came in to set the table and help with drinks. She peeked into the pots. When she saw green beans, she said, "Could you do those fancy green beans again?" I did, and we all enjoyed them. I thought you might enjoy them too.

Green Beans

Salt to taste

Garlic powder

½ tsp dried basil

Begin cooking the green beans in your usual way. Sprinkle garlic powder lightly over the cooking beans. Crush the dried basil between your fingers as you add it to the beans.

It is a very easy, but very flavorful way to serve green beans. And my daughter, who usually prefers plain food, thinks they are delicious.

I find that truth rarely limits itself to just one arena. For instance, what I have learned about inborn differences in blood types has helped me be a better teacher. It is much easier now to remember to look at each of my students' imbedded strengths and weaknesses than it was before I started the BTD. I try to give them assignments that will develop their individual talents, rather than expecting them to all work in the same way.

I heard two interesting things yesterday that at face value had nothing to do with the Blood Type Diet, but both of them made an immediate connection.

The first was in Sunday School. The lesson was from Jeremiah 18, when Jeremiah went to watch a potter at work. As he watched, the jar the potter was making was ruined, but the potter squashed the clay back down and reshaped it. Our class was discussing the application that God can mold and shape our lives according to His plan. Someone spoke up saying, "That is true until the jar goes into the kiln and is baked. We can become so hardened that we can no longer be shaped." Excellent spiritual insight, and what a BTD insight as well!

I came to the BTD with nearly 10 years of problems with indigestion. But within a few weeks of eating the right food, my body had responded, and I was free of pain. Our bodies are eager to get the right food. They can forgive a great deal of abuse and wrong eating. Even if you have been eating junk for years, when you begin eating right for your type, you can "reshape" your health. However, there is a point at which your bad habits "harden" your health, and beyond which it is too late.

The bad eating habits of my childhood left me wearing glasses. By the time I began eating fruits and vegetables it was too late for my eyes. God said to the people of Israel, "Turn from your evil ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and your actions." Excellent spiritual advice. Truth being truth, that is excellent health advice as well.

The second was on the radio. I was listening to a psychologist talk about how people learn to restrain themselves. The discussion dealt with manic behavior and how children observe their parents' actions and learn either self control or self indulgence. It was fascinating. As he talked about how to train teenagers to have more restraint, he suggested asking yourself this question when faced with a decision, "Will I be glad I did this tomorrow?" What a great question! Would that I remembered to ask it!

Think of the Blood Type Diet applications. We all get cravings. "Will I be glad I ate that tomorrow?" We all yearn for old favorite avoids. "Will I be glad I ate that tomorrow?"

My husband plans to do a big computer maintenance project this afternoon. So this morning I have been cleaning out all my files. As much as I like the computer, I've about had enough. I'm ready to mow the yard or go for a bike ride or do something to get out of this chair! But I'm not finished yet.

I thought I'd take a break and blog while I ate my lunch. I suspect this will be a rambling sort of blog. I have two or three ideas that I've been meaning to write about, but none of them are substantial enough to make a complete blog.

I'm having cold roast beef for lunch. That's good, not only because roast beef is beneficial, but also because this roast beef was very inexpensive. My husband usually takes our daughter to school, but his schedule was such that I took her last week. One day I stopped at the grocery store on the way home, and I learned something. The meat department manager goes through the case early in the morning and marks down everything that is going to expire two days later. I don't like buying things that are past the expiration date, but buying something that's two days away from expiration to cook or to freeze is a bargain. I bought two eye of round roasts for nearly half price; plus I got a great deal on some steaks. I can learn to shop at 7am in order to get meat for 1/3 to 1/2 off!

I did something else because of last week's wacky schedule. Two days in a row I ate switched breakfast and dinner. Several BTD contributors advocate that Type Os have a big meat and vegetable breakfast, a good lunch, and a very light dinner. Whenever I tried it just for one day it seemed that after a big breakfast and a big lunch I was still hungry for a big dinner. That was too much food for one day. What was interesting this time was that the second day worked great. I wasn't nearly so hungry in the afternoon. During school this is not going to be a practical schedule for my family. But I may see about flipping breakfast and dinner more often this summer.

I must have touched a nerve with my blog about gaining weight from looking at cake. The funniest comment was from Amy who wrote, "I gain weight on a few slices of bread and lose it on porterhouse steaks." How would one of the calorie counting gurus explain that?

You've heard the line, "I gain a pound if I just look at a piece of cake." It always gets a laugh. Ha Ha.

The "experts" agree one pound of body fat is equal to about 3500 calories. They say if you either eat 500 calories a day less or burn 500 calories a day more, you will lose a pound a week. It sounds so simple. In fact, there is an article in our local paper today about how if you trim 100 calories a day out of your diet, but keep your activity level the same, you will slowly but steadily lose pounds. If it was really that simple, there would not be an epidemic of obesity.

I used to laugh with everyone else at the "gain a pound if I just look at a piece of cake" line, but sometimes it sure seemed to be true. A piece of cake has somewhere between 200 and 500 calories, depending on the kind of cake and whether it has icing. At the worst, that would mean I would have to eat 7 pieces of cake to gain a pound. But that's not what happened. If I ate a piece of cake I would gain two, maybe three pounds.

Scientifically impossible, perhaps; but it's what my scale would report.

When my husband and I first married, it drove me crazy that he could eat mounds of pasta and multiple slices of bread and never put on a pound. I exercised and counted calories, and still struggled to keep my weight level. It wasn't fair, and it just didn't make sense.

Nutritional principles kept my weight steady during my health nut years. But it was not until the Blood Type Diet that I began to understand why the "gain a pound if I just look at a piece of cake" joke seemed to be true for me. Type Os gain pounds when we eat wheat. Some is water retention; some is fat, but nonetheless the scale does go up.

All of this came home to me again last weekend when I ate two pieces of pizza on Saturday night. My weight was up two pounds on Sunday. It took until today - four days- to lose those two pounds. Admittedly I did more than look at the pizza. But two pieces of pizza do not have 7,000 calories, and shouldn't increase my weight by two pounds over night according to the "experts." But the "experts" don't understand Blood Type principles or understand me as a Type O!

If you are Type O, and have stumbled across this website, and if you laugh at the "gain a pound if I just look at a piece of cake" line not because it's funny but because it's painfully true; I urge you to try the Blood Type Diet. If you are not Type O, there are other weight loss keys that will work for you and your Type.

I enjoy a wide variety of music from classical to rock to gospel. My daughter likes Country & Western, so that's what we listen to on the way home from school. The other day I heard a song that mad me laugh. The chorus was:

I'm in a hurry to get things done

Rushin' rushin' till life's no fun

All you really have to do is live or die

I'm in a hurry and don't know why.

"That's me," I said. "That's me during deadlines!" Since then I've been humming that song in my head. Especially today. I thought once I got past the yearbook deadline, my life would slow down, but I'm still "rushin' rushin'"

I had rushed all morning and it was almost time to leave for school. I had been starving at 10:30 and had eaten carrots and almond butter as I worked on other things. I needed a green vegetable and I needed meat. There was chicken left from last night's dinner, but no vegetables and no time to cook anything.

I had one kohlrabi, but no lemons to make kohl slaw. I grated the kohlrabi, tossed in some chopped chicken, and made a dressing of concentrated pineapple juice and olive oil. I know it sounds weird, but it was sweet and tasty and filling. It contained three beneficials and a neutral meat. And it was fast! I only wish I had taken the time to sit down and eat in a leisurely manner, as Live Right recommends for Type O.

As I rushed to the car, I was again humming that chorus in my head. I think the reason I like the song is that it makes me smile. It reminds me to slow down and enjoy life. It reminds me that I don't need to rush; my times are in God's hands.

We made our first yearbook deadline. What a relief to have 1/3 of the book at the publisher. My daughter had a service project at the school Friday night. I thought I could finish proofing pages by the time her event was over at 10. I guess I was optimistic; I didn't close the final envelope until midnight. But the pages look good. Walnuts have become essential to page proofing. Whenever I find a big error, I grab a handful of walnuts. I need an extra bit of energy and something solid to calm the sinking feeling in my stomach.

We have three huge live oak trees in our yard. If you're not familiar with live oaks, they do not drop their leaves in the fall with the other trees. They stay nice and green all winter, then as the new leaves are starting to bud, they drop all their old leaves. The leaves are small and tough. Instead of quickly decomposing, they form a layer of slime that can kill the grass. We've tried several methods of picking up the leaves. Since my husband is still in physical therapy, I lobbied for renting a bagging lawnmower. Even with the mower, it took five hours to get up all the leaves and scalp the grass. Type O intense physical workout would be an understatement. I was very tired and sore when I finished. But I felt fine this morning. Amazing - this lifestyle is paying off.

Some friends had invited us over for dinner last night. Back when we both had young children we always had pizza when we got together with them. Now it is a tradition. I had two slices of hamburger pizza and a plate of raw veggies and fruit. I took extra bladderwrack and didn't feel any irritation in my stomach at all. However wheat always makes me retain water, and sure enough my weight was up a pound this morning.

After church we had lunch with friends. They selected a seafood restaurant. I had grilled cod, steamed vegetables, and salad. I have a little bottle of olive oil that I usually put in the car when we're going to a restaurant, but I forgot it today. Our server was honest enough to admit they didn't have olive oil, so I ate my salad without dressing.

It's light enough with daylight savings time to take the dog for a walk. My daughter just finished a dish of yogurt and tells me she is ready to go. That's as good a place as any to end this weekend blog.

I am cooking collard greens for lunch, and it brought back a long forgotten memory. I grew up in the 50s and 60s when women boiled vegetables in pots full of water. One day my Dad came home and told my Mom that he had read in a scientific journal that many vitamins were water soluble, and that the more water you used when you cooked, the more vitamins were lost from your food. It was a radical new concept for both of them. My mom began to change her cooking style.

Why I remember this conversation I don't know. I didn't eat vegetables at the time, so I didn't care how they were cooked. The only thing I knew about vitamins was that they came in a pill called One-A-Day.

Years later when I read my first book on nutrition the author was adamantly against boiling vegetables. She cited all sorts of statistics about the percentages of B vitamins that were lost when you poured the cooking water down the drain.

Since then I have cooked with very little water. I use steel pans with good lids. I steam whenever possible. Never would I boil carrots, broccoli, asparagus, artichokes, or parsnips. Sometimes instead of steaming I sauté in a skillet with a tablespoon of water and a tablespoon of oil. That is how I cook yellow squash, zucchini, and frozen spinach.

However some vegetables have to be cooked in water. In that case my goal is to have enough water to get the cooking process started, but very little left in the pan by the time the vegetables are done. Today I started my collard greens with a cup of water. Before they were done most of the water had evaporated so I added another cup. They are almost tender now, and there is less than a half-inch of water left in the bottom of the pot.

Admittedly cooking this way means I have to pay attention. I steamed parsnips a couple of weeks ago, got distracted, and nearly ruined them. I had put about an inch and a half of water in the pan so that the parsnips were well above the water line. By the time I heard an ominous hissing sound, all of the water was gone and the bottom of the pan was scorched. I ate that batch of parsnips myself. They were not so spoiled that I would throw them away, but I wouldn't ask the family to eat them.

Fortunately I don't do that very often. I have a timer with a repeater function by my stove. I often set it for 3 or 4 minutes, just to remind me to check the progress of my vegetables.

My bottom line advice: drink lots of water, but cook with very little.

I've had a sense that my husband was getting a little bored with meals. He tends to find something he really likes to eat, request it often, get burned out on it, and then declare he never wants to eat it again. I try to keep the foods rotating, so that he doesn't get bored. I don't want him to cross old favorites entirely off the list.

At the store today I saw some natural chicken Italian sausage. I used to buy it on a regular basis because our son really likes it. It's been ages since we've had it. I served it with a packaged rice and lentil dish and broccoli. My husband was very enthusiastic.

No lentils for me, of course. While there were no Type O avoids in the sausage, I've never been a real sausage fan. So I opted for the truly beneficial lamb left from Easter.

The first yearbook deadline of the year is this weekend, so this is a fast paced week for me. I don't have time to be bored! I'm spending hours and hours on the computer, using the mouse to perfect graphic files. I didn't realize how tense my shoulders and neck were until I went to the pool today.

During my warm up laps I noticed that my arms weren't as flexible as normal. The more I swam the looser they got. By the time I was finished my arms and shoulders felt great.

I make sure I don't neglect Type O intense physical exercise when I'm under deadline pressure. I've worked out every day this week. But today's swim was doubly beneficial.

This was a wonderful weekend. Our son was home, so our family was complete. We had good food, with plenty for each blood type. Worship at our church included joyful music and an uplifting message.

We watched lots of basketball together - emotions running quite high at some of the close finishes. Our son did some chores that his Dad can't do right now because of the physical therapy. We laughed a lot around the dinner table. We also grieved together for some we know who are going through troubles right now.

We ate out for lunch on Sunday at a restaurant that serves meat and vegetables. Each of us was able to make choices that were good for our Blood Types. Yesterday afternoon I roasted a leg of lamb for my son and me. It seemed like an appropriate Easter meal. But I didn't forget my As. I baked fresh bread for them, and fixed black-eyed peas as well.

Our church had a communion service on Thursday night. The church that is affiliated with our school did a drama presentation on Friday night. There was an overflow crowd for church on Easter morning. All of the services drew our hearts to thank and worship God.

The activities of the weekend met my needs at all levels: my need for love from family and friends; my need for healthy food, and my need for a relationship with God. Eliminate any one of the three and I am not a healthy, whole person.

This Blood Type Website is about getting the right type of food and the right style of exercise for your Blood Type. As you know if you read my blogs, that is very important to me. I work hard to prepare food that is beneficial for all members of my family. I also discipline myself to get the exercise I need to keep my muscles and bones strong.

But if that was all I did, I would not be a whole person. I was reading this morning Jesus' words, "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." It is just as important that I feed the spiritual part of my self with good food.

I have the same concern for people who only go to church once or twice a year that I have for people who only Eat Right for their Type when they need to lose a little weight.

Everyone who follows the BTD would agree that while it is sometimes hard to do, the benefits are well worth the effort in physical well-being. Discipline in your spiritual life, to study the Bible, pray, and fellowship with other believers is sometimes hard as well. But the benefits to your spiritual well-being are equally beneficial.

Eat right for your Type every day this week. But don't neglect to hug your family and to worship the God who created you. That is the only way to be a whole person.

I had planned on putting in a long day at the school proofing yearbook pages. I knew both of my kids would sleep late on Saturday morning, and I knew they would be immersed in March Madness in the afternoon, so I didn't think anyone would miss my being away from the house. But I decided to make something special for breakfast. If my son could travel 400 miles to be home for Easter, it seemed like the least I could do.

I decided on the Rye and Apple muffins that Paul once blogged about. While I was baking them last night, my daughter came through the kitchen. "What smells so good?" she asked. I told her that I was making apple muffins - from a recipe posted by the man who gave us the shortbread recipe.

She looked very serious and said, "The last time my brother was home and you fixed something new for breakfast, he ate all of it. Promise me you'll set some aside for me in case he gets up first." I said I didn't think she had anything to worry about, that I was doubling the recipe.

My husband was listening in. "Where are you putting the muffins?" he asked, "In case you leave before we get up." Our daughter said, "Just follow your nose, Dad." Our son piped in, "That's right. Just follow your nose to the empty muffin pans. They'll all be gone by the time you get up." This drew a shriek from our daughter and a lot of laughter from the rest of us.

I got home late this afternoon and looked in the plastic box where I had stored the muffins. More than half of the double recipe was gone. There might be enough for breakfast before church tomorrow - if you get up early.

Here is the link to Paul and Sue's recipe.

http://www.dadamo.com/bloggers/e/archives/00000090.htm

Our son came home for Easter. This year his Spring Break and Easter were just a week apart. When we said good bye last Sunday, we agreed that he wouldn't drive all the way home just five days later. But a friend at school was coming and wanted company for the long drive. So a little after 5:00 our doorbell rang and there he stood. We have been smiling ever since.

I fixed taco salad for dinner. The grocery store had Romaine lettuce at a really low price on Wednesday so I bought a lot. Wednesday night we had salad with tuna. I grated lots of carrots. There were also cucumber and celery sticks for the As.

Tonight I cooked ground turkey in one skillet and ground beef in another. The turkey I mildly seasoned. The beef was quite a bit spicier. In addition to Romaine lettuce we had fresh spinach, grilled onions and grated soy cheese.

Not exactly a traditional Good Friday meal, but everyone had beneficial choices and everyone liked it. I'll keep this blog short - I don't want to miss any of the conversation or the unexpected pleasure of this surprise visit.

This is bicycle week at our school. Elementary and middle school students brought their bikes, skateboards and skates to use during PE. I had a meeting at the school yesterday morning. My plan for the rest of the morning was simple. I would run at a nearby park, then stop by the grocery store on my way home.

However, elementary students riding their bikes looked like a great picture opportunity for the yearbook. It's hard for my photographers to get out of class to take pictures of events like this, and I had not brought my own camera. I borrowed a young man's digital camera and took pictures of 5th graders on bikes and skateboards.

The PE teacher told me that 3rd grade would be next. Between classes I checked the status of some yearbook ads. I was walking down the driveway back to the gym when a 3rd grader rode his bike square into the back of me.

It was one of those slow motion moments. As I was falling I thought, I can't let this camera hit the pavement, and I pulled it into my chest. As I hit the ground I thought, is this what if feels like to get hit by a car? I'm sure a car is worse, but I hope I never find out.

The 3rd grader untangled himself from his bike. He was not hurt. Little boys are built for rough and tumble activities. However 51-year-old women are not, and I got up more slowly. I took some more pictures, but by that time I was starting to feel stiff. I decided to skip the run. My body didn't need any more jarring.

By mid afternoon I was feeling better. I have couple of bruises. Both shoulders and my neck are a little stiff, but because I fell straight back I didn't seem to twist anything. My tailbone is sore. But as I told my husband, there is no indication that beyond being bruised I did any damage. I have no sharp pain, swelling, numbness, or tingling that would indicate a broken bone or damage to my spine.

I went to bed early enough to get 8 hours of sleep. (I really should do that more often) I'm taking anti-inflammatory protocols just to be safe: glucosamine sulphate, ginger juice, cayenne pepper, and bromelain.

I worried that I would be really stiff when I woke up but I was not. Oh, I can still feel the effects of the fall - I'm sure I will for several days. But all of my joints are moving freely. I even worked out with a video tape before breakfast - admittedly at the rehab level - but nonetheless it felt good to do all that stretching.

This could have been much worse. I'm thankful I did not hit my head. I also think the level of fitness I maintain on the BTD protected my body from a much more serious injury.

My husband's knee and back pain are both improving with physical therapy. He is taking the instructions very seriously and doing his exercises at home the way the therapists have asked him to do. He has also had some interesting conversations with them about physical fitness.

One day they put ankle weights on him for some leg lifts. He mentioned that I wore ankle weights and carried hand weights when I walked. The therapists told him to discourage me from walking with ankle weights. The hand weights they said were ok, but the ankle weights, they said, would damage my knees.

I shrugged off the advice. I've never felt any ill effects from walking with ankle weights. I've blogged about mowing the yard wearing them. When one of you wrote that she vacuumed the house with them, I tried that as well.

On his next visit the therapist brought up the subject again. She said that ankle weights were good for exercises like leg lifts, but not for walking. "You have no idea," she said to my husband, "the problems we see. People come in here with damaged knees from those weights, and we have to try to put them back together." She urged me to stop in the strongest terms.

I've decided to follow her advice. I've never had a problem, but if the physical therapists have seen that many patients with damage, I don't want to take a chance.

Sometimes you have to trust the experts. It's like people who write in to this website saying, "I eat oranges all the time and have never felt any ill effects." Or "I just can't give up potatoes, I've eaten them all my life."

Some avoids, like peanuts, wheat, and dairy, cause me immediate problems. Dr. D'Adamo says that other avoids are doing damage to my body on the inside where I can't see it until it becomes a crisis. I've decided to follow his advice. I don't want to take a chance.

I am quite content with my breakfast of nuts, seeds, and fruit. I get enough variety by combining two or three different fruits every morning. Today I had mango/grape/pineapple. Some days I have ground flax seed and ground almonds. Other days I have ground pumpkin seeds and ground pecans. I always include a Tablespoon of nutritional yeast, a Tablespoon of rice bran, and two Tablespoons of lecithin.

My daughter always has a soy protein shake. My husband always has grapefruit juice. My daughter likes muffins, pancakes, waffles and similar breakfast breads. My husband eats with my daughter some days and other days he eats cooked cereal. I try to make the breads and the cereal from grains that are beneficial for As.

This morning I made French toast. My pre BTD recipe called for eggs, salt, milk, vanilla, orange juice concentrate, and bread. That recipe had to go; there were too many avoids and not enough beneficials!

So this morning I used

2 eggs

¼ tsp salt

½ cup soy milk

2 Tbsp pineapple juice concentrate

4 slices of low sodium Ezekiel bread.

While the bread thawed, I mixed all the other ingredients. I dipped the bread in the egg mixture, and then cooked it on an electric griddle. No traditional powdered sugar! I served the French toast with a bowl of cantaloupe and strawberries. My daughter said it was "scrumptious!"

When I first started the Blood Type Diet, I read Heidi's column every day. I was fascinated, and I always learned something new. Not only that, it was as if Heidi was personally holding me accountable day by day. After she stopped writing new columns and went to reruns, I got out of the habit. But over the weekend the title on her column caught my eye. It was one I had never read, and it sparked an interesting conversation with my daughter.

If you want to read the whole column it was called. "Neutral vs. Neutral." The question was about whether all neutrals were equal or whether a neutral meat was better for a Type O than a neutral from another category. I'll paraphrase part of Heidi's answer in third person.

Neutral meat, poultry or fish has advantages over the grain and bean neutrals. Our digestive systems are better suited to the flesh food, nuts and vegetable categories than to the grain or bean groups. All neutrals are not equally useful. This applies within as well as across blood types.

A meal of grilled chicken and red lettuce salad, for instance, is heavy fare for a type A. For a Type O it feels like an appetizer. Yet these foods are neutral for both. And if a Type O had black beans instead of the chicken he would have an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach.

My Type A husband eats a fair amount of protein. He almost never eats red meat anymore, but he eats a lot of fish and turkey. Our daughter on the other hand has never eaten much meat of any kind. She likes tuna, chicken and turkey, but she eats very small amounts.

Before the BTD I worried about her a lot. Was she getting enough protein for her brain? (OK, she is an honors student; her brain must be fine.) Even after I began to understand the Type A diet, it didn't seem right that she ate only a half a slice of turkey. That is nothing in comparison to the amount of meat I eat.

I showed her Heidi's column, and she totally identified with it. She said, "If I eat a whole slice of meat, I get full way too fast, and I can't eat anything else. Half a slice of meat is fine, then I have room for salad and veggies."

I needed another gentle reminder that my As are not like me.

From Matthew 25:35-40. Jesus said, "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in"…Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?"…He will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me."

People come to this website looking for food that will give them good health. We share recipes. We share experiences. We study the latest research. We hope that by eating right we will improve our physical well-being.

In my blog I try to encourage people to make the best decisions available to them, even if they can't follow the BTD perfectly. Make a few more beneficial choices. Decline a few avoids that you once would have accepted. Make the best choices you can, even in a difficult situation.

But what if you have no choice? A few months ago I went with one of the middle school classes at our school to volunteer at a food bank. I watched the students pack boxes that will be given to poor families in our community. The food in those boxes will keep them from starving, but in most cases it is not the kind of food that builds health.

Even worse, what about a person who is completely dependent on someone else to feed them? They cannot feed themselves, and rely on their family or a hospital worker to give them food and water. A baby depends in its mom and dad to feed it. Many elderly depend on family or nurses to feed them.

It used to be unthinkable that those helpless ones could be intentionally denied food and water. But today in America a court ordered that a woman in Florida be starved to death. It will take her 10 days to 2 weeks for her to die.

I understand that tragedy sometimes forces disconnecting life support equipment. I understand a "do not resuscitate" order. I can even understand a decision not allow surgery or not to administer any more medication.

I do not understand starving a person to death. You would be arrested for starving a cat.

I have not enjoyed my own food today for grieving not only for one helpless woman, but for a society that would be so calloused and intent on self gratification. I feel helpless because there seems to be nothing I can do for one of the "least of these."

Someone wrote and asked what my favorite meal would be. I had fun planning and cooking in my imagination. Here is what I came up with.

When I think of a favorite meal, it starts with red meat. Thinking about leg of lamb or eye of round roast or prime rib makes my mouth water. I order steak when we eat out, but at home I roast meat in the oven, so I have leftovers for several days.

Melissa another blogger once wrote: "I've heard somewhere that since grains don't digest properly, they cause an expansion in your stomach that gives you a false sense of fullness, or over-fullness. I haven't felt that old uncomfortable feeling for a long time, no matter how much I eat. I don't miss it, as I've traded it for a comfortable, sense of satisfaction."

I do miss that feeling! So the second thing I plan into my meal is what beneficial or neutral foods will make me feel full and satisfied. Root vegetables are good for that: baked sweet potatoes, lightly steamed parsnips, and raw carrots with nut butter for instance. Some squash fill me up - butternut and pumpkin to name two. Black beans and adzuki beans are good. A handful of nuts like walnuts or almonds will make a salad more satisfying.

I use lots of olive oil and ghee on my vegetables. Most meals I probably exceed Dr. D's portions, but we Os can handle beneficial fats. Olive oil and ghee make a lot of difference in how food tastes to me. Collard greens alone, I eat because they are good for me. Collard greens coated with oil are very good. Collard greens coated with oil and mixed with grilled onion are downright delicious.

So to finally answer your original question - a really good meal for me would be a slice of roast, romaine salad with shredded carrots and chopped walnuts, broccoli dipped in olive oil and a sweet potato.

Equally good would be a slice of lamb, spinach & raisins cooked in butter, parsnips with maple syrup, and black beans.

Our son's college roommate is visiting with us for a couple of days during spring break. He is a Type B. If I thought cooking for two blood types was complicated, planning a meal for three blood types is a real challenge.

For dinner tonight I fixed a leg of lamb. For the As, I warmed up some of last night's garlic chicken. We had curried rice, basil green beans, and tossed salad with a variety of raw vegetables. I made a quick stop at the grocery store this afternoon, and saw watermelons on sale. Remembering that watermelon is B Beneficial and O&A neutral, I bought one to go with oatmeal cookies for dessert.

Sue and Ron H. sent me another bread machine recipe. I tried it this afternoon since it was made with all spelt flour so all of us could eat it. After dinner I called my husband and daughter aside and said, "OK on a scale of 1-5, how was the bread." My husband said "five", my daughter held up 6 fingers. Here is the recipe:

Herb Bread

1 cup + 2 Tbsp warm water

2 Tbsp oil

3 Tbsp brown sugar

1 ½ tsp salt

3 ¼ cups spelt flour

2 tsp dry Italian seasoning

1 ¼ tsp Bread Machine yeast (I used 2 tsp active yeast)

Both my son and his roommate lift weights, work out, and drink protein shakes. I cautioned my son about being lured into trying whey protein. "You stick with soy, egg white or rice protein, " I said. But turning to his roommate I said, "You might really benefit from whey protein." They began kidding around, and the conversation ended with his roommate saying to me: Don't worry. If he bothers my protein, I'll say, "Get out of my whey."

We have some wonderful friends who we have known for more than 20 years. We have prayed together, traveled together, and watched each others kids grow up. "Jim" loves to eat. His favorite foods are chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, and macaroni & cheese. He is Type A; his wife is Type O. I've been talking to them about the Blood Type Diet, and they are going to give it a try. I got an e-mail from Jim's wife asking how I cooked fish. Here is how I answered.

I am a very simple cook, and I tend to like single ingredient foods. I'm also frequently running late at the end of the day because of school activities. So I usually cook fish with seasoned salt.

A Vogel/Bioforce makes two salts - Herbamare which is really good for As and Trocomare which is really good for Os. Another seasoned salt at the Health Food Store is Spike. There are a few avoids for both As and Os in Spike, but they are in such small amounts that I wouldn't worry about them. Dr. D'Adamo says that if you eat 80% beneficials and neutrals you will see benefits in your health. Because of my stomach problems, I try for about 90%, but it is more important at the beginning to enjoy your food and see success than to agonize about avoids that are way down on the ingredient list.

Our daughter likes Lemon Pepper on her fish, especially trout. Look for a brand without MSG. Pepper is a Type A avoid, but again, if you can get Jim to eating fish instead of chicken fried steak, don't sweat about a little pepper!

Tony Chachere makes a Creole Seasoning that is wonderful for Os. You and your mom will love it on cod. My husband likes it too, though again it is technically too spicy for Type A low acid stomachs. Look in your grocery store for seasoned salts that Jim would like.

When we eat in restaurants, I love fish topped with grilled vegetables. I do this at home sometimes, but our daughter would rather have her vegetables raw and on the side. Onions are highly beneficial for both Os and As. Garlic, celery, and carrots are beneficial for As and neutral for Os. Jim can eat all mushrooms except shiitake. The most common mushrooms are avoid for Os, though we can have portabello. Bok Choy, fennel, and ginger are good toppings that you all could eat on fish.

Since Jim is trying to lose weight, you should move him away from wheat and toward more beneficial grains. Fortunately, most of the Beneficial A grains are Type O neutral. If you buy Ezekiel bread, you can make bread crumbs from the crusts. I bake bread in my bread machine with spelt and rye flours. I freeze the crusts and make bread crumbs from them as well. You can oven fry fish with beneficial bread crumbs and light olive oil.

When we were in Seattle for vacation a few years ago, I fell in love with smoked salmon. I have a smoker, and often smoke salmon in our back yard. Plain salmon is nice, but smoked salmon is outstanding.

My daughter and I were in the store yesterday and passed a display of cascarones. I asked if she thought her brother would have fun at college with a dozen cascarones for Easter. She said yes and that she would like some too. I certainly would enjoy giving cascarones more than giving any kind of Easter candy.

If you are not familiar with cascarones, they are confetti eggs. They are a Hispanic tradition for Fiestas and Easter. It's easy to make them yourself. Instead of cracking your eggs in the middle, you break a hole about the size of a nickel in one end and shake the egg out. The yolk usually breaks, but if you were going to use the eggs for baking or in an omelet that won't matter.

Rinse the empty shell and dye it the way you would dye a hard boiled Easter egg. Fill the shell about ¾ full with paper confetti, then glue a piece of tissue paper over the hole.

Then you walk up to a friend and break the egg over their head, sprinkling confetti in their hair. (Note: do not smash the egg on someone's head. That hurts - I know from experience! You sort of crush the shell in your hand as you rub their head)

Someone started a thread on the Forum looking for healthy Easter ideas. Cascarones are fun for people for all ages. I have another Easter idea for small children.

When my children were little, I tried to keep them away from sugar as much as possible. For my son's second Easter, my Mom bought some of the plastic eggs that you can take apart and put back together. She filled some with raisins and some with bits of cereal. Then she hid them around her house. He had a wonderful time finding the eggs, opening them, and eating the healthy snack inside.

Because I never wanted baskets of bunnies and eggs to distract us on Easter Sunday morning from church and worship, I always gave my children their baskets on Saturday before Easter. They thought it was very cool to get their baskets a day ahead of everyone else. They had their fun on Saturday, and on Sunday we could all celebrate the risen Christ.