Happy Birthday Sharon!!

On the IPOD "And So It Goes" by: Billy Joel

I'm feeling a bit of mixed emotions at the moment...I just got back from an amazing Nia class and group dinner to celebrate Sharon's Birthday. Sharon is an amazingly strong unbelievable woman in my class who is fighting a very difficult battle with cancer.

Last week I made Sharon a playlist ie:mix tape for her to listen to during chemo. It wasn't just that I wanted to but more that I had to... After following her story and hearing about the infusion room which I remember way too well, all I could think about were the playlists still listed on my ipod under such titles as: For Daddy, Chemo, Joe Bill... What you don't know is that my Dad was the ultimate playlist maker. He made CDs for everyone of his friends and not just one but tons...He would usually put a picture of himself (Gotta love the narcissistic behavior) on the cover and either hand deliver or mail them all over the world. When he got sick, we bought him an Ipod...and when he felt the worst I would put together playlists of music for him and load it on to his very own ipod. Today when I go into the back rooms of my mom's house and still see the rows and rows of CDs, I feel a certain amount of comfort, knowing that these were his favorite things. My brothers and I feel like sometimes it is just too quiet in the house without the blare of music coming from the back...maybe that's why the music is so important to me in class...

I don't think my Dad ever accepted that he had cancer and that's what makes Sharon different. She is so incredibly positive about the situation, I mean are you kidding me she went from a chemo treatment to Nia class today! She said something last night that made me really think...She said that she doesn't understand why people refer to the chemo as poison, when what they should think is that how could you call something poison that is going to save your life! My Dad called it poison hopefully that was his mistake and hopefully Sharon's incredibly positive spirit will cure her.

All I know is that seeing this woman, who is fighting for her life, dance is one of the most inspiring things I think that I have ever been lucky enough to witness. Chances are that Sharon will receive many more playlists from me...I mean I am my father's child.

This all kind of makes it silly that I'm still somewhat worried about the 2 ounces of salad dressing that I used at dinner!

I'm giving you one of my favorite recipes...It is a weight watchers recipe that I have tweaked a little bit.

Jalapeno Chicken

4 Servings or more

8 4oz thin chicken breasts
4 tsp or 1 package of low sodium taco seasoning (homemade if you want)
1 tsp of olive oil
4-6 ounces of really good pepperjack cheese

Heat grill or (non-stick saute pan). Trim chicken well and mix with the oil or a little bit of cooking spray and taco seasoning in a plastic bag. Grill chicken about 3-4 minutes on each side or until nicely marked and cooked through but not dry (times many very based on thickness of the chicken.) Place in a glass pyrex dish and cover with shredded cheese. You can either bake now or prepare up to this point and heat to serve later.

Bake at 350* for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly and chicken is hot.

Hope everyone has a great day!

xoxo chef a