Life isn’t fair. It never will be fair. We can ask why. We can cry. We can complain. We can withdraw from life. There is only one healthy option, move on. We have to get up and move on when life unfairly hits us and knocks us flat on our back. Don’t stay down. Don’t quit. Rise and fight again. Rise, dig deep down, and fight on. Get inspired by this double amputee who wouldn’t quit. He dug down deep and is fighting back. He is my inspiration today. I hope he’ll be your inspiration to fight on.
I love tacos! Think about it for a second. No, meditate on it for a moment. When you find your center, there will be a taco waiting for you. Hah, you say. You doubt. You double doubt. I have it on excellent authority from the taco gurus Tony and Tina Martinez, owners of Tony and Tina’s Taco Time Veggie Tacos. Tony and Tiny have been eating tacos since they were a week old. Tony’s abuela (grandmother) claims it ended his cholic. Tony met Tina at a taco food truck. Tony’s working the truck and Tina wanted a vegetarian taco. Tony never heard of a veggie taco, but Tina’s dark eyes, pouty lips, black hair through a steel cable around his heart. He was gone, long gone. He scooped veggies onto a corn tortilla, layered it with guac, added a few jalapenos, asked Tina if she wanted a dab of sour cream. She slowly and seductively shook her head no. Tony asked her to wait a minute, he quit his job, took two veggie tacos and dined with Tina on a nearby park bench. Asked her to marry him. A quick trip to Vegas, Tony and Tina are married. The cause of this romance? Tacos! Veggie tacos.
Let’s get real. We need protein in our veggie taco. Raise your hands vegetarians, “How do vegetarians add protein to their meals.” Not you in the front row. You have enough brownie points. You to the left, put your hand down, you answered the last ten questions. How about you staring out the window, wondering why you’re reading this blog?”
“Who, me?”
“Yes, you.”
“What was the question?”
What did I ever do to deserve this? Is this my penance for sneaking a piece of chicken and telling vegetarians it was quinoa?
Put your hands down, class time is running out. I’ve got to cut to the chase, cross the finish line, meet the WordPress deadline to get this post online before my laptop turns into a pumpkin, apologies to Cinderella fans.
If you can count to five you can do it.
!. Buy extra firm tofu. That’s right extra firm tofu. Cut it in rectangles, squares, triangles, use your creativity as long as it is in bite size or two bite size pieces.
2. Baste it with EVOO, crushed red pepper, put it in a non-stick, easy to clean skillet that has a layer of EVOO, turn the heat up to mostly high. What does mostly high mean? It’s guy talk – I don’t know.
3. Watch the sizzle, flip occasionally. If anyone is watching, add a little flair so you look like you know what you’re doing. When the tofu is closing in on a nice shade of golden brown, toss in the cut up veggies – oops – I didn’t mention the cut up veggies. How hard is to dice onion, poblano pepper, a red pepper, and a jalapeno? Not very. Okay, it is for the dude playing with his iPhone and doing selfies during class to post on Instagram.
4. Mix it all together. If any of the tofu look well done, pull those babies out. When the deal is done, turn off the burner. Move the skillet to the side, put the mixings into a nice bowl, and bring on the tacos. Five steps, recorded in photos for you. Another meal well done, Ray.
5 steps and you have one healthy, awesome veggie taco dinner that will take you to the sweet spot in your center.
You ever have a day where the chaos grabs hold of you, tosses your plans in the air, and you watch a southerly breeze carry them down the street and over a fence? It happens frequently to me. That’s why I have a contingency backup, surefire, ready fix, not going to miss backup plan.
I hear what you’re thinking. You’re saying you understand why the Ray was born with brown eyes. I was born with brown eyes, but they’re as blue now as the south Texas summer sky at noon. What does that mean? No, I’m not wearing contacts. It means, what I’m about to share with you, is between you and me. And, everyone else who reads the blog.
I live in San Antonio. I’m only two and half hours away from Corpus and the Gulf. This makes lots of sense to me. For one, when you’re enjoying the snow and sub-zero temperatures, I can take a drive to the Gulf and walk barefooted along the shore. Ouch, you say? I’m sorry, that was an unfair shot at everyone north of the Texas border. The second reason, fresh fish is always available in San Antonio. Today, I’m going for the second option. Hence, the title, Fish Tacos.
Make it easy, two small corn tortillas (a staple of life in this wonderful city). Chop, chop, how hard is it to make pico de Gallo, shred cabbage and top the tortillas with a dab of sour cream? Not very!
Check out my healthy plate. Note the avocado (my heart is doing backflips it’s so happy). A bit of rice and I’m good to go. Easy as 1 – 2 – 3;
I said it was fun. I invite a friend to have dinner with me. Food is always better when you share a meal.
Let’s talk about easy. Okay, I’m busted. We went to a great Mexican restaurant (another trait of the Alamo City).
You can eat out, eat healthy, and have fun. And, there is no cleanup.
I had a lengthy conversation with my heart this morning
“Good morning heart, hope you have a great day.”
“Give me my morning coffee Ray. I’m not awake yet. I’m running on automatic pilot. Did you know coffee helps to protect from heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and may even help the Red Sox win the World Series?” my heart says groggily.
I scoop out Starbucks and put it into the coffee maker. I want to make the ticker happy.
“Hey, I don’t care for the name ticker. I know what you’re thinking. Remember, I’m connected directly to your scatterbrain,” says my heart.
“Don’t get fresh, your coffee will be done in five minutes.”
“Let’s think ahead Ray. Put the coffee maker on autopilot when you go to sleep. It will be ready when you awake. Better yet, move the coffee maker next to the bed.”
“That’s all I need is to smell coffee all night long,” I say.
“What’ for dinner?” says heart.
“Dinner? I thought we were talking about coffee.”
“Unlike you, I can juggle more than 1 ball,” says heart.
“Coffee’s done, heart. I hope it turns you into a kinder, gentler person.”
Nothing is spoken for a bit.
“My, you’re looking good Ray. Coffee is my miracle drink. Let’s enjoy the day and life.
CHEERS!
