In a 1984 issue of theTown & Country magazine, James Villas wrote an article entitled "The Unsung Sardine" in which he said that "ounce for ounce, sardines provide more calcium and phosphorus than milk, more protein than steak, more potassium than bananas, and more iron than cooked spinach."Imagine how surprised I was when I went to get the kids from school today and Amanda said, "Someone cussed at me at lunch today."
"What? What are you talking about?", I gasped.
"He walked by me and said, 'Jesus Christ, what are you eating?'".
Then Sarah said, "The girl sitting next to me almost threw up. She had to move."
Then Gregory said, "Somebody told the lunch monitor on us."
Sarah said the smell of their sardines created such a ruckus, someone went and got the janitor to intervene. When he discovered they were eating sardines, he told all the kids that sardines are "da bomb", which quelled the riot.
"Did the Asian kids complain?", I wondered.
"No.", they all agreed.
"Okay, sit next to the Asian kids when you eat fish.", I instructed them.
Who knew eating healthy food could be so disturbing?
My friend Libby used to bring in sardine sandwiches. I'm not sure why her mother bothered with the bread, because she would just open the sandwich up and eat the sardines one by one.
ReplyDeleteConsidering I ate a baloney sandwich every day for twelve years (one slice, dry, between two pieces of white bread), a sardine sandwich was quite exotic to me.
Sorry, but I'm with the other kids! I can't stand the smell of sardines! They may taste wonderful, but I just can't get past the smell.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a kid, I made the mistake of asking my mother what that brown stuff in the middle was. Fish poop! They don't clean sardines, just chop off the heads and tails. Have you ever had pet goldfish? Then you know what fish poop looks like. I don't care how healthy sardines are, it's no way for me.
ReplyDeleteLMAO!
ReplyDeleteMy son eats ham, dry with homemade bread. He would throw up if he smelled sardines. We are not fish people. I hide tilapia sometimes, but if the know its fish forget it. My step dad loves Sardines. Yuck.
ReplyDeleteI could never eat them, but my husband likes them and has shared them with the kids. He has a list of things he's not allowed to eat when I am around: sardines, squirrel, chicken livers, etc.
ReplyDeleteSomeday when they get jobs and bring their lunch they will get yelled at for bringing fish. Fish is not allowed as a work lunch. :)
ReplyDeleteI grew up eating sardines for breakfast every morning with my Grandpa. I still love them and eat them occasionally.
ReplyDeleteBack the car up here....you aren't *allowed* to eat fish at work? Is this in AMERICA?
ReplyDeleteI absolutely hate it when a co-worker brings canned tuna for lunch. The smell is strong and just lingers. I have to close my office door and I still smell it. I think anything with a strong odor that disrupts co-workers is just wrong to bring in. A ban would be ridiculous, but I always hold out hope that the tuna offender will start to realize that the smell of her lunch makes some people sick. One poor girl was pregnant and would actually leave work because the smell was too much for her.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love fish, but the smell of tuna and sardines is too much in a confined space when people are relatively close together!
Well I'm sitting in the doctor's office right now, waiting to get my annual physical and between the cheap perfume, the guy passing gas, the people who put the cigarette butts in their coat pockets, and the ones that think toothbrushing is optional, I'll take sardines anyday. I'm bringing Frebreeze the next time I come here. Gag.
ReplyDeleteFarters in the Dr office waiting room are assholes. UGH. I hate that!On a side note, what kind of Dr do you have that sees men and women and does your annual exam? Unless the guy passing gas is really a GIRL passing gas?
ReplyDeleteHa! I was just at the family doctor for my annual physical, not pap smear. LOL!
ReplyDeleteMy GP family doc also does my annual and my girly bit issues. I find it easier to keep all my records in one place. If a serious issue came up, then I'd go see an ob/gyn, but until then, my GP is awesome. (And a woman.)
ReplyDeleteI have never tried sardines because the smell is so horrific that I just cannot bring myself to do it!
ReplyDeleteI bet my kids would love them if I could ever get past the idea of them and offered them. My kids eat tons of thing other kids won't eat, but I haven't offered those.
ReplyDeleteWhoa, flashback! When I was about their age, I used to eat exactly that - sardines on crackers with yellow mustard. Yum. I would not be caught dead bringing them to school though!
ReplyDeleteThere is something deeply troubling about "sardines/tuna/pap test" all being mentioned in the same comments section!
ReplyDeleteI agree that smelly fish in a small lunchroom is gross.
ReplyDeleteI hate when co-workers nuke their fish. The only people not complaining are the people eating the fish.
Fish in the office lunchroom doesn't bother me, but those jackasses that burn popcorn in the communal microwave can go straight to hell. :)
ReplyDeletesardines in mustard was one of my favorite foods as a child--it was one of the first foods I ever learned to serve myself--I figured out how to open the cans with that little key when I was about 4.
ReplyDeleteUm, yes, I am asian.
You can also find me with the other Asian people (and African-Americans too!) chawing down on the crawfish in the IKEA cafe....
I dunno about fish one way or the other; but your perfume comment made me shudder just thinking about it. I am extremely sensitive to scents--especially "floral" scents--and I despise perfume wearers...it's like an instant migraine for me. Thankfully no one in my office wears perfume.
ReplyDeleteYou guys are seriously cracking me up!
ReplyDeleteSo last night for Valentine's we went to dinner at a wonderful Spanish restaurant, and one of the appetizers was basically sardine bruschetta. I decided to order it. If I'm going to try a sardine for the first time, then on top of a tiny toast and covered with fresh sweet peppers, olive oil and a little garlic is about as watered down as it gets. It was actually good. Tasted like tuna to me. Closer to canned tuna than fresh tuna. Even Adam ate a bite. He admitted it was good, but the thought of it was still too much for him to take more than one bite. I'm not ready to eqt one plain on top of a pretzel (like on The Burbs) yet, but I'm baby stepping my way. Your post inspired me to try something new. How about that? And I consider myself a fairly adventurous eater.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you mean,"No fish at work", just go outside!
ReplyDeleteAnd as far as brown stuff in sardines, buy a better brand, the cheap ones may be chock full of organs, poop and egg sacs, but if you pay a little more you can get clean fish. (Chicken of the sea, skinless and bonless is 1.40$ at Big Lots here)