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How to make a delicious five-a-day fruit and vegetable smoothie March 11, 2008

Posted by Niels in : How to , 2 comments

Struggling to get your daily vegetables? Get 8 servings in a tasty berry smoothie!

Most people are familiar with the “5-a-day” campaign, encouraging people to eat 5 servings of fruit and vegetables every day. Most people fall far short of that, and even those who try don’t realize that:

That’s a lot of veggies! Trying to eat healthier, my roommate and I were intimidated until we realized we could blend an entire bag of spinach into one of our berry smoothies without even changing the taste. After that, the sky was the limit. There have been some near disasters, but nothing undrinkable. We’re still experimenting, but for now I present to you our baseline smoothie. It’s got eight - that’s right, eight - servings of fruits and vegetables and tastes better than anything you can get at Jamba Juice.

We get our frozen berries from Trader Joe’s and the frozen cooked squash from Safeway.

Niels and Craig’s Five-a-Day Smoothie

Blend spinach and orange juice. Liquefy. If your bananas are unfrozen, add them. Blend. Microwave the squash for 15 seconds so you can break the frozen block up into ice-cube sized pieces by hand. (You can skip this if you’ve got a better blender, but our $150 blender is pretty good and we still have to break up the squash.) Add all remaining ingredients. Blend.

Fills two glasses with a little left over. Whether this serves one or two is up to you.

Your thoughts?

Ask Niels: How do I set up a second date? October 8, 2007

Posted by Niels in : Ask Niels, Dating coach, How to , 1 comment so far

I just wanted to let you know I think you are a stand up guy. I just read your blog and I too dididn’t have my first date until 20. It was the same for me just a few phone calls before and after the date, then the calls stopped. Since then I have been single and it’s been hard to find a descent guy. If you have any advice that would be great.

-Susan

Hey Susan! You’re not giving me much to go on - I’m not sure whether you mean it’s hard to meet a guy, to get a first date, or to get a second date. But one thing I can offer you is this: arrange the second date when you’re still on the first date. If you can’t set up the second date when you’re with him and having fun together, how are you possibly going to do it over the phone? And if he doesn’t want to meet you again, at least you know then and you save yourself all those painful phone calls.

Your thoughts?

Dorodango: Make a shiny ball of mud October 5, 2007

Posted by Niels in : How to, Personal , add a comment

You can take a ball of mud and polish it until it has the sheen of marble. These are utterly amazing. Who knew?

Your thoughts?

Positively delightful September 21, 2007

Posted by Niels in : Ask Niels, Dating coach, How to, Life, the universe, and everything , 1 comment so far

One of the most powerful tips for self-improvement is also one of the simplest. Be positive. Learn to relate to the world in a positive light. “This heatwave is great! It’s given me a whole new appreciation for ice cream!”

It’s so easy to fall back on negativity to drive a conversation. Everyone can relate to being frustrated, or sleep-deprived, or depressed. But these topics are a conversational crutch.

Stay positive. Be the optimist who pulls any group up and people will fight for your company.

Your thoughts?

How to become a leader September 18, 2007

Posted by Niels in : Dating coach, How to, Personal , 1 comment so far

Employers consistently name leadership as one of the top qualities they look for in job applicants. The ability to lead is important in relationships, too. Everyone’s had this conversation: “What should we do tonight?” “I don’t know, whatever you want to do.” “Well, I’m flexible. What do you want to do?”

Each partner means well, but they’re missing the big picture: that what their partner really wants is for someone to make a decision.

So if you’ve never been a leader, how do you become one?

Anytime you have a goal that seems daunting, begin by taking small steps. There are plenty of small opportunities for leadership in your every day life. Next time you’re out to dinner with friends, take the lead. Pick the place, herd everyone out the door, split up the check. Once you’re used to that, organize the dinner yourself. Craig and I have an at-least-monthly potluck at our place.

Take initiative. Pick a movie that you want to see and invite friends along. Or host a video night. Or a games night. Remember, you choose the game.

Teach your friends something. If you learn something interesting, chances are, they’ll find it interesting, too.

Tell your supervisor at work that you want to start a side project. Excel at it with minimal supervision. Take even more initiative next time.

Stick your neck out. Make leadership a habit.

Your thoughts?