SENIOR SCAPE: A Seniors Guide to Diet

November 26, 2014 · 0 Comments

By Jim Abram

Well, I am back. Back to what is important. Thanks to all of you who supported me in my election romp. It is now time for a completely non-political focus. Enjoy!
I make every effort to attend the Wednesday Budget Bistro Luncheon at the Aurora Seniors’ Centre as often as I can.
Not only do they serve delicious food at a great price, they provide the best service you will get anywhere, without exception.
The volunteers at the Centre are a great inspiration and we surely need to show them the utmost appreciation. Last Wednesday I had the split pea soup that was out of this world-delicious. The last time I had a split pea soup that I could stand was at the original fortress in Canada at Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, where they served authentic pea soup with a day’s ration of bread from “The King’s Bakery”.
I was so hungry I could eat it but the soup at the ASA Budget Bistro was far and away the best I’ve ever had.
I like Nova Scotia. I particularly like Cape Breton Island. The Fortress of Louisbourg is the largest reconstruction project in North America. Fortified against the threat of British invasion during the turbulent time of empire-building, Louisbourg was besieged twice before finally being destroyed in the 1760s.
The site lay untouched until well into modern times, when archaeologists began to reconstruct the fortress as it was in the 18th century. The fort at Louisbourg is one of my favourite historic sites in Canada, but not the soup.
So, enough about the pea soup already.
The soup was followed by a delectable pasta dish, which also was prepared with seniors in mind, as it had less salt and less tomato sauce than you might find elsewhere. Coffee or tea and a healthy fruit-based dessert and your noon hour is complete.
Oh, did I forget to add, the friendly company at each table is just like you? Everyone is eager to get out for the afternoon, share stories and share a meal. Oh, and beware, hold onto your dessert and defend it with your fork if Ron or Larry are around.
I have always lived by the axiom: “be as nice as you can be to people who serve you” such as waiters and waitresses, be they paid staff or volunteers. As a business person, I always prided myself in the fact that I could always judge a person’s true character by how well they treated a waiter or waitress, and as it turns out, I was almost always right.

More Dietary Tips
I like pickles. I believe that seniors are best off if they eat a pickle every day. Try it. You have nothing to lose. Only the pickle loses in this interaction.
Have you ever bought Cheez Whiz? If so, have you ever read the ingredients of Cheez Whiz? Well, I did. It is a long list of ingredients. I read the list to the end then asked myself, why is there no cheese listed in the ingredients? I then concluded the obvious: it is all Whiz. In fact, I believe, there is more nutrition associated with the product if you eat the label on the bottle instead of what is in it!
I am a believer in the triumvirate of meat. That is “Pork – Bacon – Ham”. Do you know that these wonderful meat products all come from one species of animal? Amazing really. To me, pork, bacon and ham are the three essential food groups.
There is good news and bad news though. The bad news first: You may die of clogged arteries, heart disease and the negative effects caused by bad cholesterol. The good news: Only one animal has to die.
The last piece of advice I can give is that chicken soup cures anything….except for a reaction to pea soup. Never mix your soups. The chicken soup always wins.
Jimmy’s last word: Never eat anything bigger than your head.

For more information on the Aurora Seniors’ Centre and all it has to offer, drop by 90 John West Way, visit the web site www.auroraseniors.ca, email auroraseniors@rogers.com or call 905-726-4767 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday to Friday.