My Wal-Mart has a big frozen fish section. I like it because they have wild caught* salmon for a very reasonable price. I began looking at the other types of fish they carry. I found tilapia – which I order in restaurants, but do not cook at home**. Sometimes Wal-Mart has whiting. This is a good choice for my family, so when it is available I stock up.

I also found swai. The package had a glowing description of a delicious and nutritious fish. It was not on the BTD food list I carry in my purse. That usually means a food is neutral, but I decided to do a little checking.

It turns out that swai is a river catfish that is native to Southeast Asia. Since catfish is avoid for both Type As and Type Os, I have was glad I hadn't bought any.

Interesting that the GTD says catfish is beneficial for Gatherers***. I don’t quite understand that, but since I default to the BTD, I’ll not be swai-ed.

* I wrote a blog a year or so ago after talking to the manager of a local fish market. He says that the legal definition of wild caught is tricky. It can mean that the fish are raised in a netted area in a river or ocean. They are sort of wild, but not free to escape. More important, they can be fed whatever the farmer wants to feed them in order to plump them up for market. So while I buy wild caught when I can afford it, I don’t really know it’s wild unless I catch it myself.

** Tilapia seems to always farm raised, which means lower than expected Omega 3s. That’s why I eat it in restaurants, but cook something else at home.

*** Grilled catfish is often on the menu in restaurants. Perhaps this would be a reasonable choice for the Gatherer half of me. However, I won’t be cooking catfish at home, either.

Sometimes when I am out and about, I need something to drink, and the first thing I look for is green tea. If I am near a health food store, I really like several products by Honest Tea. If I am near a grocery store, I like Arizona’s diet green tea and Snapple’s diet green tea.

If we are traveling, like we were last weekend, the choices have been slim. I think all convenience stores and ice houses must use the same massive supplier. It’s obvious when you are standing in front of the refrigerator at a convenience store that green tea is increasingly popular. But, until yesterday, there were only sweetened green teas with lots of sugar and corn syrup; or diet green teas sweetened with aspartame.

Yesterday we were returning from taking a truck load of furniture to DD’s new apartment. HH was fighting a cold, so I drove the whole trip. We stopped at a convenience store because I needed to walk around, and I needed something to drink. I went to the refrigerator cases, looking without much hope for Arizona or Snapple diet green tea. Just before I walked away I saw Lipton, Diet green tea with watermelon flavor. That is new. Knowing that all the other Lipton diet teas are sweetened with aspartame, I looked suspiciously at the label. It is sweetened with sucralose. I bought a bottle. The watermelon flavor is delicious.

When I got home, I checked the website. Lipton has changed all their bottled green teas to sucralose. Hurrah for Lipton!

Update: Read the labels! I was in the grocery store the day after I wrote this blog, and looked at diet Lipton Tea. It had aspartame! I guess they are getting all of the old stuff out of their warehouse! Let the buyer beware.

First choice is my own green tea either unsweetened or lightly sweetened with agave.
Second choice is Honest tea.
But Lipton now joins Arizona and Snapple as adequate third choice bottled green teas.

Today was a busy day at work. I had an appointment several miles from home at 10:00 and another in the same city at 2:00. I didn’t want to waste the gas to drive home, so I went to an internet café where I could work on my laptop.

I ordered iced green tea. They had three flavors: jasmine, oolong, and fruit oolong. I chose fruit oolong and it was delicious. After I got home I looked up oolong. It is not BTD or GTD rated, so it is considered neutral. I read an article that says oolong is half way between green tea and black tea. I’m not exactly sure what that means, but next time, I think I’ll take the jasmine green tea.

Our final day in Colorado was a drive across Trail Ridge Road. The road had been closed earlier in the week. It was lovely to see snow before we returned to summer like temperatures in Texas. The trail at the Alpine Visitor’s Center was closed. It is a short climb to the top of a mountain. We always gauge who is in the best shape by how many times each of us has to stop, and how long it takes us to catch our breath. We found another trail where we could hike across the tundra. The elevation gain was minimal, so we weren’t nearly as short of breath. Nevertheless, we reached an aerobic effect much quicker at 11,796 feet than we do at 1,000 feet. If I lived in Colorado year round, I wonder how the altitude would impact my exercise routine.

We stopped to visit two friends on the way home. One lives in a Denver suburb. He took us to eat at the Castle Cafe. Barbecue chicken was special of day. In Texas it is ok to eat barbeque chicken with your fingers, but I wasn’t sure about Colorado. I ate my 1st piece with knife & fork, but I gave up and ate the 2nd piece with my fingers. On the way out of the cafe our friend stopped to introduce us to some other friends of his. They couldn't shake hands because they were eating BBQ with their fingers. Good, I didn’t commit an etiquette error.

Our friend wanted dessert, and I agreed to share a piece of pie with him. I don’t remember what the pie was called, but it had a graham cracker crust, a layer chocolate, a layer of bananas, a layer of pudding, and whipped topping. It was delicious. I could make this into a very BTD compliant dessert. Walnut crust, layer of chocolate, layer of bananas, layer of custard made with almond milk. I have already made a note to try it when I get home.

Our second friend lives in Lubbock. Her husband recently passed away from pancreatic cancer, complicated by liver cancer. We had a wonderful visit with her. She is very lonely, but her faith in God is keeping her strong. We are eager to be at home and sleep in our own beds tomorrow night.

The closest I have come to being a waitress was when I had a job at Baskin Robbins Ice Cream Parlor in high school. Serving people cones and sundaes is certainly easier than serving them a full meal. Cleaning up dirty napkins and wiping ice cream drips off of tables is nowhere near as nasty as bussing a table after a three course dinner. Yet my limited experience does make me sympathetic to how hard servers work, and it does make me prone to leave good tips.

But the tips I’m leaving today are of a different kind. We have had some lovely meals on this vacation. But three times servers have made dining out a disappointment. I’m not going to name the restaurants, but here are three tips for Colorado servers.

We had lunch at a barbeque restaurant, and BBQ chicken salad was on the menu. At first I thought this was going to be a BTD friendly restaurant. They listed several choices of sauce in the menu, and they noted which ones were gluten free. I asked the server what was in the chicken salad, and she said “lettuce tomato, chicken.” That sounded fine. However, When salad arrived it had also had raw onions, carrots, and finely grated cheese. I was glad to have the carrots. The raw onions were in big enough pieces that I could pull them out and give them to HH. There was no way I could get the cheese out of the salad. I went ahead and it. A little cheese is not going to ruin my day, and I didn’t want to waste the food. But it made me think of several friends who have serious food allergies and the difficulties they face when a server gives bad information.

Tip #1. If a customer asks what is in a menu item, give them accurate information.

We were in a location where we had purchased tickets to get into a park. We had finished eating in the concession area. I wanted to refill my water bottle before we resumed our walk, so I asked one of the servers where I could find a water fountain. I was told in a very curt voice that there was no water fountain, that they SOLD water bottles. I left without buying anything else, and stopped at the next convenience store outside the park to buy water. If the server had said, “I am so sorry. We don’t have a water fountain. But our bottled water is only …” I would have pulled out the wallet.

Tip # 2. Politeness will increase sales.

We arrived at a restaurant and were seated by an obviously overworked server. He appeared to be the only server at a moderately busy lunch hour. To his credit, he served his customers in the order in which they arrived. However we watched as he refilled water glasses, took dessert orders, and bussed tables, while we sat for 20 minutes with our menus. All of us had decided what we wanted to order. I was having a chicken salad with artichoke hearts, avocado, mushrooms, feta and craisins. We weren’t in a hurry. If the server had taken a moment to just bring us a glass of water and write down our order, we could have visited quite happily while we waited. As it was, we couldn’t even leave the table to wash our hands for fear we would miss him.

Tip # 3. Give new customers just a little attention before waiting on those who want a third glass of soda.

One more tip for future Colorado travelers. If you are in Estes Park and want elegant service, BTD friendly food, and a fabulous view, go to The Shores. It was a delightful dining experience with attentive (but never pushy) servers.

The weather forecast has been a little questionable the past two days. Clouds and snow flurries were predicted for yesterday. This morning the website said that Trail Ridge Road was temporarily closed. We decided to stay at the lower elevations.

Yesterday morning we walked along the River Walk in Estes Park. Living in South Texas, we have been to the San Antonio River Walk several times. There the river is slow and peaceful. The River Walk in Estes Park is beside a rushing mountain stream. The water makes a delightful noise as it tumbles downhill over the rocks. We walked for nearly an hour and never came to the end of the paved path. But we were getting hungry, so we headed back the other direction.

We are sharing a condominium with a long time friend named Les. He and HH wanted to go to Subway for lunch. Subway is ok. I can always get a salad, but just around the corner from the Subway I had seen an India Buffet. While they got sandwiches, I went to the buffet. We met to eat at a table beside the river.

There were two vegetarian entrees on the buffet. One was mostly eggplant, so I didn’t taste it. The other was really good, after I picked out the cauliflower. There were three chicken entrees, and all three were outstanding. Chicken Curry, Chili Chicken (which is nothing at all like Mexican Chili), and Chicken Masala. They had green beans cooked with onions and seasoned perfectly. But the best dish of all was called Swag Mushroom. It was made with spinach and it was delicious.

The men had an ordinary lunch, but I had a feast. The irony was that I paid less for all I could eat Indian food than they each paid for sandwiches and chips.

When I got back to the condominium, I googled Swag Mushroom. I got a lot of random results from tents to urban slang, but no recipes. I’m so disappointed. I had wanted to make it when I got home.

After lunch we drove into Rocky Mountain National Park and went to the Alluvial Fan. Les and I climbed to the brink of the falls. There isn’t a trail. You just pick your way over the boulders until you are at the top. HH did not think his knees would like that kind of activity, so he sat in the shade and enjoyed the view.

Today we took the trail to Cub Lake. It is near Moraine Park, which is one of the places the elk are hanging out this year. Our trail passed 20 yards from a heard of elk resting under the trees. The unique thing about Cub Lake is that water lilies grow all around the edge. From the ridge above the lake the dark blue water and the light green lily pads are striking. The trail went through several aspen groves that were at their peak. I never put my camera away. I was taking pictures constantly. It was a feast for the eyes.

My Honorable Husband was doing some research about a vacation we hope to take in the fall. One day we want to take a scenic train ride. He said, “Uh oh, you’re not going to like this.”

The website states emphatically that you were not allowed to bring food or water on the train. They sell drinks and box lunches. They do not want any outside competition.

I called the toll free number. I was very nice, and my tone of voice was friendly. I said that we were looking forward to our train ride in the fall.

Then I said, “I am on a wheat free and preservative free diet. Will you be able to provide me with a box lunch that meets my needs?”

She quickly said that they would not be able to make me a special lunch, but that I could bring my food in my purse. If anyone questioned me I should just tell them that I am on a special diet.

I like it when people are accommodating. I like it when those in customer service know when to bend the rules. This is not always the case. Sometimes I talk to people who are rigid and irritable.

This morning’s conversation makes me look forward all the more to our fall trip. I’m thinking chicken and asparagus sounds good for a train ride.

Of all the professional hats that I wear, I think my favorite is event photographer. This week I was the official photographer at an elegant fund raising event. My assignment was to show the whole spectrum of supporters having fun. The first part of the assignment was easy because such a variety of people attended. There were high profile people – the mayor, community leaders, and board members. There were also many people who benefit from this particular non-profit organization. The second part of the assignment was also easy because from the silent auction to the four course dinner to the live music and dancing, everyone did indeed have a wonderful time.

Perhaps you are wondering if I will ever get around to the Blood Type Diet in this blog. Just wait, I’m getting there.

I arrived early, and began taking pictures of table decorations and ice sculptures even before the first guests arrived. I got pictures of tuxedoed waiters carrying trays of hors d'oeuvres and ladies in beaded gowns bidding on a weekend get-away. As dinner time drew near, I circulated among the tables taking pictures of people talking.

My employer wisely knew that the guests would not want to be photographed with forks in the air and food in their mouths. She told me to put away the camera when the food was served and return to work when the speeches started. She even found me a seat at one of the tables. The food was delicious and elegantly served.

The salad was mixed greens – not a shred of iceberg lettuce to be found! I ate mine with lemon juice, though the others at the table said the vinaigrette dressing was wonderful. The main course was beef tenderloin. I don’t know what the Type As in the room did, but this Type O was in taste bud heaven. The beef tenderloin was served with two vegetables. Asparagus and spinach topped with feta cheese and sautéed onions & peppers. One of the vegetables I have missed on the BTD is creamed spinach. The spinach and feta combination was even better than my memories of creamed spinach. I’m going make this at home, and soon.

There was a basket of bread, which I easily passed to the guest on my left. But I did not pass on dessert. At each place was a small plate with 5 elegant bite sized desserts. Each was a work of art. Three of them contained wheat, but I enjoyed them without guilt.

Then dinner was over, and I was back at work. Three hours on my feet snapping pictures wasn’t exactly strenuous exercise, but it certainly qualified as a workout.

Forty five baby chicks arrived at the farm. Oh! They were so cute and soft. The hatchery boxes them up for shipment almost immediately after they come out of their shells. When they arrived, John had to dip each chick’s beak into water. They didn’t like the water in their nostrils so they opened their beaks and got a taste of water. This reminded them that they needed a drink after their long ride in a box.

After the chicks were settled we drove to Chattanooga to visit the Tennessee Aquarium. We ate lunch at Sticky Fingers in downtown Chattanooga. I had sliced turkey, pulled chicken, sweet potato fries and collard greens. The Aquarium was wonderful. We have visited aquariums in South Carolina, Louisiana, Florida, California and Texas. This is as good as any of them and better than most.

The next morning we waved good bye to John and Marsha and drove past the tornado area to Montgomery, where we visited long time friends Jim and Margaret. Jim grilled chicken, Margaret fixed vegetables and salad. We had a wonderful dinner and watched classic black & white movies.

Today we walked to a lake near their house. We ran up and down the dam for exercise. We had lunch at a downtown barbeque restaurant called Dreamland. This restaurant is famous for pork ribs. The best choice for me was a barbeque chicken salad. It was delicious, but it I could not help compare and contrast Texas barbeque with Eastern barbeque.

Texas barbeque is focused on beef brisket. A few restaurants will serve chicken or turkey, but beef is what Texas barbeque is all about. Eastern barbeque is focused on pork ribs and pulled pork. They may serve chicken and turkey, but our friends all say usually there is no beef.

Barbeque restaurants in Texas have three standard side orders – Cole slaw, pinto beans, and potato salad. Occasionally a restaurant will add another vegetable, but usually not. Barbeque restaurants in the East have long lists of side orders. Almost always there are cooked greens of one beneficial variety or another.

If I were going to imagine the perfect barbeque restaurants it would have the best of both worlds. It would serve beef, chicken and turkey. OK, maybe they could have pork ribs, not that I’d ever eat them, but people in the East seem to want them. I would also have a lot of side orders including sweet potatoes, okra, green beans, and cooked greens. What a BTD banquet that would be.

The years I spent as a full time Mom were without a doubt the best years of my life. The one advantage to having one child now employed and the other off at college is that my Honorable Husband and I can travel in the spring and fall. We are off on a trip to Alabama to see friends and wildflowers. Perhaps I should say we hope to see wildflowers if the tornados have left any for us to see. If we have wifi available, I will try to blog as we travel.

Our first stop was to visit HH’s mother. She has passed her 90th birthday and is still able to live in her home. Her greatest difficulty is severe osteoporosis, particularly in her spine. As her vertebrae are slowly compressed, she has increasing pain in her legs and hips. Her doctors tell her that there is not really anything they can do for her. Seeing her condition makes me even more faithful to take calcium/magnesium & horsetail supplements and to be diligent about weight bearing exercise.

HH loves Subway sandwiches; I do not. There is too much bread and too little meat for a Type O. I have the option to “make a sub a salad,” and I certainly like salad, but even the vegetables at Subway don’t agree with me. I wind up with iceberg lettuce, tomatoes and spinach. All of the olives, cucumbers, and peppers are avoid.

So when we travel, HH looks for exit signs that say Subway, and I dig around in my box of food and fix myself a bowl. Today I had canned asparagus, canned salmon, and an apple. He was happy, and I was happy.

We ate dinner at a buffet in Brandon, Mississippi called Annie D’s. We both found lots of beneficial food. I don’t think I have ever eaten brisket that was more tender. It was delicious. I also had cooked greens, green beans, and sweet potatoes. He had fish, green beans, rice, and a salad.

We had not planned to have dessert, but we walked by the dessert buffet. He saw Boston cream pie, one of his favorites. I saw coconut cream pie, one of my favorites. It was too hard to resist. Don’t think too many harsh things about me…at least I didn’t eat the pie crust.

I had a great blog for April Fool’s Day, but life has been so busy and distracting. Here it is April 5 and I haven’t posted it yet.

I’ve mentioned that I’m in a hiking club. Our leaders came up with the idea of a “mystery hike" for April Fools. They sent out an e-mail telling us where and what time to meet. We were told to wear hiking boots and long pants because there were snakes and spiders. We were also told that we would be eating afterward at a restaurant which was not friendly to vegetarians.

You can imagine the conversation I had with my husband.
“I’m hiking with the club on Friday”
“Where are you going?”
“I don’t know.”
“When are you coming back?”
“After lunch.”
“Where are you having lunch?”
“I don’t know.”

There were 17 of us on this hike. Only the four drivers were given directions to our first stop - an ice house with lots of bathrooms. After our rest stop, we learned that we were hiking at Palmetto State Park. I had never been there before. It is a park along the San Marcos River. All of the nearby country is rolling ranch land with an occasional mesquite or oak tree. But along the river it is a tropical paradise with lush foliage and dwarf palmettos.

The trails were well maintained. We walked for a little more than two hours getting glimpses of the river through the trees. We have one birder in our group, and she pointed out many birds and imitated bird calls. The wildflowers were just starting to come out. It was a lovely hike – and we didn’t see a single snake.

After the hike we drove into Luling and ate at the famous City Market. Its barbeque is legendary and the line was long. The brisket was very good, but the side orders were limited: white bread, crackers, pinto beans and potato salad. I was happy with brisket and beans, but I probably wouldn't go back again. There are too many other barbeque restaurants with equally good beef that offer cole slaw, sweet potatoes, green beans and other sides.

All in all it was an April Fool’s Day I will never forget.

Yesterday 13 lucky ladies in the hiking club loaded up our cars and drove to Austin. There is a green belt in Austin called Lower Barton Creek with a hike and bike trail. We hiked 8 miles in delightful springtime weather. The skies were cloudy so it was not too warm. Little violets and big red bud trees were blooming beside the trail. The trees all had delicate green buds. It was enchanting. Spring has not yet arrived in the higher elevations of the Hill Country where I live.

We had all packed lunches and at the 4-mile post we began to look for a place to eat. Around the bend were some large boulders under a cliff. It was the perfect picnic area. I took two sushi nori rolls for lunch. Both were made with turkey and feta cheese. They caused quite a bit of comment from the other ladies. I also took a sweet potato, an apple, and a bag of carrots and celery. I anticipated being hungry during a long hike.

As we got close to the end of the trail the ladies began to talk about a famous little food stand called The Mighty Cone. The consensus of the hikers was to stop at The Mighty Cone before returning home.

I had guessed correctly about the amount of food I needed, so I was not particularly hungry. It’s never a good idea to eat just because everyone else is eating, so I went along for the fun, but did not order anything. The menu at The Mighty Cone is limited. You can get a cone with shrimp, chicken, avocado or a combination.

As my friends picked up their orders, I have to admit, I have never seen anything remotely like the fare served at The Mighty Cone. They started with a paper cone. In it they put a flour tortilla, so that the tortilla also took on a cone shape. In the cone they put a scoop of Cole slaw. On top of that they put the toppings. All three were deep fried. Now, fried chicken and fried shrimp are common, but I never imagined deep fried avocado. On top of that was drizzled Thousand Island dressing.

I was so glad I had not ordered. It was a nightmare from a BTD or any other kind of nutritional perspective. But the ladies all seemed to enjoy it.

No experience should ever be wasted. As I was preparing my lunch today, I had a bowl with leftover ground beef, mustard greens, and black eyed peas. I sprinkled on some curry powder and turmeric before I warmed it up. I fixed my husband a turkey sandwich with some Cole slaw. Suddenly I thought of The Mighty Cone. Into my bowl I put two handfuls of chopped cabbage. It added a lot of crunch and I liked it.

So hurrah for The Mighty Cone with its nest of Cole Slaw and meat on top. But spare me from deep fried anything, particularly deep fried avocado.

Yesterday was a good day for exercise and beneficial eating. The ladies hiking club took excursion at Bastrop State Park. Bastrop is also called Lost Pines because it is an isolated Pine forest in the middle of the Texas Prairie. The temperature was 23 degrees when we got in our cars. That may not seem cold to you, but 23 is extreme for South Texas where some winters the temperature doesn’t get below freezing. Two ladies dropped out of the hike because of the weather, but nine of us bundled up and began the long drive to Bastrop.

We enjoyed a 2-hour hike. The sun came out and warmed the air. The bright green pine trees were a beautiful contrast to winter brown. The trail was a blend of strenuous and relaxing. The smell of pine needles was refreshing.

After the hike we drove into the charming town of Bastrop. The historical buildings of the old downtown area have been preserved and converted to cute shops and cafes. Our group chose a café called Gracie’s. Though the specialty of the day was chicken fried chicken, but I was confident I could find something BTD friendly on the menu. Two of the other hikers also follow the BTD. One is Type AB, and she quickly settled on soup and salad. The other is Type B and she chose a tuna melt.

I found a chopped steak dinner with potatoes and a vegetable of the day. I asked if I could substitute a salad for the potatoes. I was told “no substitutions” in a rather emphatic way. I must have looked disappointed, because the server said, “We have two vegetables today, corn and green beans. You can substitute one of the vegetables for the potatoes.” Now I was happy. I ordered a chopped steak dinner, with the onions, but without gravy and two portions of green beans.

The server gave me a long look and said, “No gravy at all; not even on the side.” I said, “No gravy at all.” She shook her head, but followed my instructions. The meal was delicious and well cooked. After lunch we wandered through the shops before we started for home. On every level it was a beneficial day.

I have nudged my Honorable Husband toward the BTD for years. He eats what I serve him, and usually takes my advice in restaurants, so he has been pretty close to a Type A diet without much effort or thought on his part. I knew at the beginning that if I pushed too hard he would resist, so some things I have left alone, respecting his preferences and his comfort zone.

He is changing. As he has gone into retirement, and particularly as we watch our friends face increasingly serious health problems, he is asking more questions.

Sunday we had lunch with friends at Chili’s. I like Chili’s because they will give me a hamburger with broccoli instead of French Fries without any fuss. I get a side order of black beans for me and a take out box for the bun. Sometimes I make HH a turkey sandwich with the bun the next day; sometimes I put it in the freezer and feed it to the ducks.

We were eating with our Type O doctor friend who for years was totally convinced that a very low fat diet was best. You have met her in my blog several times. She has come to recognize her need for essential fatty acids, but she is still rightly worried about the danger of hydrogenated vegetable oils and trans fats.

Before she ordered, she asked our server what kind of oil they used at Chili's. The server was clueless, but went to the kitchen to find out. The answer was that they use 100% vegetable oil, so MD decided on a salad.

She asked what oils I used. I said that flax oil was the best source of Omega 3s, but that it is not a good cooking oil, so I cook with either ghee or light olive oil. She asked what I thought about canola, and I said that it was a neutral choice and certainly better than corn oil or coconut oil. She wasn’t familiar with flax oil, and I said that I had started using flax oil on my salads instead of extra virgin olive oil.

We were in a lively discussion and I had no idea that HH was paying any attention. Suddenly he chimed in with “Do you give me that flax oil?” It caught me off guard. I said “No, because you always want salad dressing.” He said, “If flax is that good for you, give me half salad dressing and half flax oil.” MD was laughing hysterically.

Last night I gave HH a salad with half salad dressing and half flax oil. He said he couldn’t taste any difference and said to keep making his salads that way. I am delighted to do so, but I am still recovering from the shock.

We are back at home – thankful for safe travels. We may not live in the majestic mountains, but the Texas Hill Country is a delightful and lovely place to dwell. I have one more story from our trip that applies to the BTD.

On the last day, we were in a restaurant for lunch. One of our friends had a hard time deciding between a fried chicken dinner and chicken & dumplings. He finally decided on the fried chicken, but asked the waitress for a taste of chicken & dumplings “for my grandma’s sake.

He closed his eyes and sighed as he tasted the dumplings. “Mmmm, just like grandma’s.” Then he said, “That is why people on my mother’s side of family were so fat. All roly poly. They ate stuff like that.”

Perhaps when you read that he chose fried chicken, you were a little judgmental. It’s easy for those of us who have been involved with a demanding diet like the BTD to look with disapproval on others who don’t eat as we do.

When I look at our friend, I see how far he has come. He was not taught good eating habits as a child, but like most of us he could get away with eating anything when he was young. When he and my husband met in Viet Nam in their 20s, they were both thin and fit. He gradually put on weight until by the time he was in his 50s he was getting portly. A diagnosis of diabetes got his attention. He changed his diet and began to exercise. Today he looks great and has lots of energy.

Was fried chicken the best choice for a Type O with diabetes? No. If I had been ordering for him, I would have chosen something else. But there were certainly worse choices on the menu – like chicken & dumplings.

I never want to be so rigid that I cannot celebrate when people make meaningful changes to their eating habits that bring them a step closer to the Blood Type Diet – which I consider to be the best way to eat for maximum health.

I have total control over the two meals that we picnic when we are traveling. We eat at a restaurant for the third meal for three reasons. First - we get fresh produce that it is sometimes hard to carry around in the car. Second - while I can get canned tuna and salmon or sliced turkey for picnics, it is hard to buy beef that doesn’t have to be cooked. I feel better when I have beef or lamb at least every other day. Third – we are on vacation, after all. It’s nice to have a little break from kitchen chores. On this trip we have had several outstanding meals, a few average ones, and one real disappointment.

We had lunch one day at Shanghai Pearl in Durango. I ordered beef and broccoli. The portions were generous, and they added some carrots to the broccoli. I liked that. I also liked their egg rolls, because they were stuffed with lots of vegetables.

At Mesa Verde, we ate at the Spruce Tree Terrace. When we first walked in and I saw the menu, I was worried - sandwiches and pizza. Then I noticed a big refrigerator with premade salads. I chose a Southwest salad with grilled chicken. It had a little corn and a few pinto beans in it, but the greens were fresh and beneficial (no iceberg) and it was very tasty.

The day we rode the Durango Silverton train, we ate at Grumpy’s in Silverton. The piano player kept us entertained as we ate. I had one of the best hamburgers imaginable (without the bun, of course) and a huge salad. They even had real olive oil.

One day it rained, so we went to a train museum and several art galleries in Durango. For lunch we stopped at Serious Texas Barbeque. My husband’s barbeque turkey was good. One of our friends ordered brisket and the other ordered a Texas taco. They were both satisfied. I ordered brisket and it was dry and hard. I could see that I had either gotten the end piece, or brisket that had been sliced and left out for a while. I rarely complain in a restaurant. When I asked our server about the brisket, I got a defensive and sarcastic reply. Eventually they brought me more meat. It was good. But I’m from Texas, and this was not real Texas barbeque.

Yesterday we visited a honey farm. We saw working hives, watched the bottling operation, and tasted samples of several flavored honey. Cinnamon was my favorite. Lunch was at Christina’s. At first the menu did not appear to be BTD friendly. But our server was friendly as well as helpful, and in the end I got a delicious and beneficial meal.

Today we drove the Million Dollar Highway. The fall colors were spectacular. We were on sensory overload. We ate at the Red Mountain Inn in Ouray. My Philly cheese steak was loaded with onions and peppers. Since I didn’t eat the bread I got two side orders – sautéed snow peas with carrots and sweet potato fries. Every bite was delicious.

I indulged in dessert twice. One was ice cream mixed with tropical fruit. The other was a sorbet made from fresh grapefruit. Don’t hold the desserts against me – after all I am on vacation.

We took a load of furniture to DD on Friday for her college apartment. On the way home this afternoon, we stopped in Brady, Texas for dinner. Usually my husband wants to stop at Subway when we’re traveling. He eats a sandwich. If I haven’t packed a meal for myself, I get a salad. He ate at Subway yesterday on the way to DD’s, so on the way home he wanted something different.

We drove through Brady, looking. There were lots of fast food restaurants. None of them looked appealing. There were several local restaurants, but there were few cars in the parking lots. That didn’t look promising. We were reaching the edge of town when I saw a Subway sign. Looked like it would be Subway two days in a row.

Next door to the Subway was a café called Boondocks. It advertised seafood and steaks. The parking lot was filled with pickup trucks. I looked at HH and said, “Do we take a chance. This place will either be really good or really bad.”

We took the chance and it was really good. All of their meals are served with choice of potato, choice of salad, beans and hush puppies. I ordered Cajun tilapia. I said that I didn’t want a potato, and asked if I could have two salads. They were agreeable, so I ordered Coleslaw and a garden salad.

The tilapia was cooked to perfection. The Coleslaw was excellent. The beans were well seasoned, but not too spicy. I gave my hush puppies away.

If you are ever driving through small rural towns looking for a restaurant, take a chance on the parking lot with all the pickup trucks. If you are ever in Brady, you’ll get a good meal at Boondocks.

We have had two more days of interesting sightseeing, scrumptious food and unusual exercise.

One day we toured a plantation just outside of Charleston. There were alligators walking free on the grounds! I picked up one bit of blood type trivia. Sickle Cell Anemia is an inherited blood disease that mostly affects people of African descent. While the disease has many disadvantages, one advantage is that it provides protection from malaria. On this particular plantation, for large parts of the year all of the activities, including management of the house, gardens, and crops, were entirely handled by black overseers while the white owners fled for less mosquito prone climates.

Another day we toured the USS Yorktown, a retired aircraft carrier. The kitchens on board were certainly not organized to provide WWII era soldiers with meals related to individual needs or blood types. Nor was the concession stand set up to provide healthy meal choices for tourists. We were glad we had packed a picnic lunch in our backpacks – turkey on oat bread for my husband, PB&J on Ezekiel bread for DD, salmon and English peas for me.

Last night we drove to Sullivan’s Island and ate at Seels. The rest of the family raved about the fish tacos. I thoroughly enjoyed my flounder with collard greens and sweet potato fries. After dinner we went for a long run on the beach. Running on sand works different muscles, I learned when I hopped out of bed this morning.

Tonight we had dinner at Jestine's Kitchen, a downtown restaurant famous for soul food. My meal was outstanding: meatloaf collard greens and okra gumbo. There is a hike and bike trail over the Ravenel suspension bridge where our son likes to exercise. DD and I power walked the bridge after dinner. We not only got a good work out, but we saw a beautiful view of the water and the downtown skyline.

We are taking a few days of family vacation before our kids strike out on new adventures. Our son is completing his last Physical Therapy internship in Charleston. He is interviewing for jobs and studying for his board exams. Our daughter is finishing up a marketing internship and preparing to go back for her senior year of college. I had traveled to 46 of the 50 states. South Carolina was one of the four I was missing.

Our Strong Son picked us up at the airport, and took us to Red’s Ice House in the Shem Creek area for dinner. While we were waiting for our table, we watched dolphins from a big deck over the water. I had mahi mahi fish tacos. The one time I cooked mahi mahi, it was dry and tough, but this was tender and delicious. I’m going to have to give mahi mahi another try at home.

After dinner we drove to the beach. We had hoped to go for a run, but SS advised against beach running in the dark because of jelly fish and shells. We walked to the light house, enjoying the sound of the surf.

Yesterday we took a carriage ride around downtown Charleston. This gave us a good overview of the historic part of the city. We had lunch at Gilligan’s. I had a bay scallop stir fry with asparagus and green beans. It was fabulous! I love the way food is seasoned in Charleston. It is a combination of Southern and Cajun. When I get home, I plan to look up some traditional Charleston recipes.

After lunch we took one of the two downtown walking tours. I’m not sure how far we walked, but we wound our way through the historic district from the Market to the Battery and back. By the time we finished, we were immersed in the history of this charming Southern city. We were also hot and tired. We returned to our hotel for a picnic supper in our room. Hurrah for hotels with refrigerators, they make vacation eating so much simpler.

Just how big of a deal you should make about avoid foods at restaurants is open to debate. Where to draw the line about what you will and will not eat when you are a guest in someone’s home may change under different circumstances. But when you are offered something to eat that can make you sick, you have to stand up for yourself – even if it is embarrassing.

My husband and I were invited to a banquet by a friend of mine. It was a fund raising event that included a nice dinner, a hilarious after dinner speaker, and an appeal for money. My friend paid for our tickets.

The dinner was barbeque and included a choice of chicken, ribs, and sausage. I chose chicken and ribs. I don’t usually eat ribs, because I prefer lean meat, but these were well trimmed and cooked until they practically fell off the bone. The trouble came when I cut into the chicken. It was not cooked. The outside was brown, but just below the surface, it was pink, and next to the bone it was bright red.

The last time I saw chicken like this was on a camping trip when I was pregnant with DD. There were about 30 of us on the trip, and we had played hard all day. We got a late start grilling the chicken, and everyone was getting hungry. The cooks turned up the heat to speed things up. At last dinner was ready, and it smelled delicious. I cut into my chicken and saw red. Something warned me not to eat it. The next day half of the people on the trip had diarrhea.

I picked up my plate and walked across the huge banquet hall to the serving area. I politely said, “I don’t think my chicken is cooked.” The server lit into me. “I could cook that chicken for two hours and it would still be red,” she snarled. “Chicken is just like that. Here, would you rather have this piece?” She put a little piece of chicken on a clean plate. I took it and walked away.

For some reason I was embarrassed. I felt like everyone had heard her reprimand me. It was a long walk back to my table.

However, the little piece of chicken was fully cooked, and I enjoyed it. The more I thought about what had happened, the more I realized that I had been right. Compromising on a food that isn’t the best choice for maximum health is one thing, but inviting pain and sickness is something else. People with allergies or debilitating food sensitivities must insist that their food is properly prepared even if a server or a cook is inconvenienced. And if a restaurant, or even a friend, serves something dangerous, stand up for yourself and don’t eat it.

I’ve been comparing green tea at two popular wifi hot spots. The only internet access at my parent’s old house is dial up. It is s o s l o w. So every other night my sister and I pack up our computers and head for wifi so that we can get caught up on e-mail and other internet based business.

I order the same thing wherever we go – unsweetened green tea, iced.

When we go to Borders, they brew the tea fresh – a process that takes about 5 minutes. They told me all the steps they go through. When we go to Starbucks, the green tea is already made and in a pitcher. They pour it up while I pay for it.

The Borders freshly brewed tea has a slightly bitter taste. It’s not bad. In fact after the jolt of the first sip, it is very good. The Starbucks tea is smoother.

I have to admit that I like Starbucks a little better, but I suspect that Borders is better for me since it is fresh. Either way, it has been fun to enjoy green tea while we furiously sort through e-mail messages.