Pistachios

Well, there is a pistachio scare in the news lately. I don't have to worry. I haven't eaten pistachios in more than a decade. I can't look at pistachios without being disgusted. And since I had to be disgusted today, so shall you. :)

When I was little, my parents would buy pistachios very often. It was a splurge that my parents insisted on. We didn't have a whole lot of money, so we didn't have cakes or cookies often, but every time we went grocery shopping, pistachios were bought. My parents love them. I don't think I loved them like my parents do, but I didn't think they were bad and I ate them once in a while right along with them.

Mostly, I just liked to suck the salt off the shells. I would pop one in my mouth and suck on it until the salt was gone and then I'd break open the shell and eat the nut. One one particular occasion, I sucked on the shell and popped it open as I normally did. There was a little bitty worm wriggling around in the center of the shell.

I was absolutely mortified. For those of you that don't know, the pistachios are already partially opened, so I was basically sucking on this worm. I thought I was going to vomit. I don't normally think of worms as horrifying or even that disgusting, but the fact that I wasn't expecting it and the fact that it was in my mouth really shook me.

I couldn't handle it. I haven't eaten a pistachio since then. In fact, every time I see a pistachio or someone mentions pistachios, another wave of nausea passes over me. That worm traumatized me. If it's been this long, I don't think I'll ever get over it. I will probably never have another pistachio in my life. I'm glad that I didn't love them before, or I might be disappointed.

Anyway, for the rest of you, check out this pistachio scare, and beware. Even if you don't get Salmonella, you might still get more than you bargained for.