ArcaMax

Editor's Note: We hope you enjoy this previously published Zola classic!

Ouch! My Back!

As a little teeny girl I have a very vague recollection of a specialized bed that was set up in our den. It had these strange contraptions hanging off the end of it.

I also remember stories of Big Marie. Big Marie was a woman who was helping my mother to raise us little tykes and clean around the house. There were five children by the time I came along, and 15 months later my brother was added too, so there was a constant flurry of activity. Big Marie was referred to as such because I have an older sister named Marie. So we had Big Marie and Marie.

The bed was used to put my mother in traction to help her back pain. I am pretty sure they’d put her in the bed with weights hanging off the ends of her ankles; sort of a Medieval rack of sorts. I don’t know if she stayed there for months, weeks or just days. I think she was allowed out of bed to bathe but I think she spent considerable time tied up in that bed while Big Marie tended to things around the house. Or maybe she just slept in that bed. I’m not sure and have no good way to confirm. But it doesn’t change the story.

Seems I have inherited my mother’s back. We all inherit different physical, social and mental traits. I got a lot of really positive attributes thanks to my parents. I’ll always be grateful for that. I just have this nagging back issue.

Four years ago, as many of you know, I had back surgery. I won’t go into detail but it involved things like a medical air ambulance, an 11-day stay in Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where they poked and prodded and tried to figure out what was wrong with me, a referral to a surgeon who clocks in at $700,000 a year and a very long recovery period during which I tried to run the company while on heavy pain killers. I don’t want to repeat that few years of my life and will do everything in my power to make sure I don’t have to.

That said, my back has been acting up again; this time in a slightly different fashion. The first time I started off with the classic sciatica. This time I am experiencing a lot of different pain. I keep having hip pain, (but we have confirmed I don’t have arthritis) my thigh muscle will start to clench and twist. Then maybe a section around my knee will hurt or even a cramp in the back of my leg. It’s really odd. Sometimes I have toes that go numb or sting. I am consulting with a naturopath/allopath and a chiropractor. We are making progress. I’m hopeful I can stay out of the surgeon’s office. I never really liked that guy anyway, but I have to give him credit for fixing me (at least temporarily) the first time.

I recently had a specialized standing MRI. I guess there aren’t a lot of those machines around; only one in the Midwest, and it happens to be in the Chicago suburbs. It was a very unpleasant experience because one of the hardest things for me to do is stand for 45 minutes and standing without moving for that long to do an MRI is even worse. I got through it though. The prognosis is I have three discs that are in various stages of failing.

But we are on it! I’m doing all kinds of simple exercises aimed at getting my discs to get back in line and hang out where they should be instead of sliding off toward my nerve endings.

I may have inherited my mother’s back but I also inherited her ability to carry on even when in pain. If I’m sitting and typing I have very little pain and since I spend an inordinate amount of time at my desk I guess this isn’t really all that bad. Just thought I’d share.

Basil Cream Chicken
Serves 4

I adapted this dish from one I saw in a recipe site. I had to change it quite a bit to “Zola-fy” it but it was just so decadent and creamy I had to share. You can do pasta with this dish as long as you don’t do it very often. I eat a cup of pasta about four times a year. That’s it. Most times I put the pasta in the bottom of a bowl and put the sauce on top. By the time I get to the pasta I’m usually pretty full so I barely eat any of the noodles. That’s a good habit I have built and it has served me well.

Ingredients:

*cooked fettuccini. If pasta isn’t your thing you can serve this over a cup of shredded, cooked zucchini to keep it low carb or even a half cup of mashed potatoes. Just treat the mashed potatoes the same as you would pasta; sparing portion sizes and not often.
1 pound of boneless chicken breast but into cubes.
1 cup of minced shallots (if you can’t get shallots, sweet yellow onion will do)
1 pound of sliced, fresh mushrooms. You can choose how fancy you want to get. I used half button mushrooms and half shitake)
2 Tbl of olive oil
3 Tbl of butter
1 Tbl of flour
2 cups of chicken broth
1 cup of whipping cream
3 Tbl of minced fresh basil
¼ tsp of grated fresh pepper
1 tsp of grated sea salt (or to taste)
½ cup of grated parmesan cheese

In a large sauté pan heat the olive oil and cook the chicken cubes, mushrooms and shallots on medium high until no pink remains in the chicken. Stir often to keep them from sticking.

While this is going on you can take out another sauté pan and add the butter. Stir in the flour and then add the chicken broth and the cream. Stir. Cook until the sauce starts to thicken. Then add the salt, basil and pepper. Taste and continue to cook until it’s a thickness you like. Adjust seasoning to your palate.

Combine the chicken mixture with the cream mixture and you’re ready to serve. You can stir the parmesan into the mixture or serve it on top. Your choice.

Serve over pasta, zucchini or potatoes. If you are looking for a great casserole you can put a layer of pasta in the bottom of the casserole and stir the chicken in on top. Serve warm on the buffet.

This also reheats well in the microwave at work!

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola