cucumbers

Women are manipulative creatures. The lack of physical strength is substituted with a ruthless mind and sadistic tendencies that drive them to achieve the impossible, without even being the one to do it.

Here's a simple example, from my mom.

I hate cucumbers. Well, i dont really hate cucumbers, i just wouldnt put a cucumber in my mouth and eat it just like that. This applies in the present day. I still feel that way about cucumbers.

I'll never eat a plain cucumber.

It was even worse when i was a kid.

One day I walked into the kitchen. Mom was making sushi. The roll kind (maki). Mom always put cucumber in it. Just to give it the extra crunch. As for me, i wouldve been perfectly fine if my mom would just make plain maki out of mayo, egg and crabstick. Who gives a damn about cucumber?

But mom always insisted on it.

I was 10, i think. Maybe even smaller. Because i remember the cucumbers were huge.

Anyway, i walked in and mom was just about to start slicing up the cucumbers. She did the most unusual thing. She cut off a small part off one end and a small part of the other end.

But she didnt throw those parts away.

Instead, she kept them. And it looked as though she regretted chopping those parts because she put them back on the cucumber that she just cut them from. And she started rubbing. She rubbed the end of cucumber with the part that she had just cut from it. She did it for about 20 seconds for each end.

"Why are you doing that?" I asked.

"Hmmm..." she thought, "It makes the cucumber sweeter."

"Sweeter?"

"Yeap," she said, "If you just slice the cucumber like that without rubbing it, it'll be quite bitter."

Even back then, i was already a mini-engineer.

"But that doesnt make sense!!" I cried.

"Ok, then," mom said, "Try a piece now."

She sliced off a piece of cucumber and put it in my mouth. I took it in reluctantly and chewed.

"Still yucky!" I said.

"Then rub it somemore then," she smiled and handed me the piece that she was using to rub.

"Huh? You mean it'll get sweeter the more you rub?"

Mom beamed a bright smile, "Yeap! It really does!"

"Okay..."

I rubbed the cucumber for about 20 seconds. Then i held it back up to mom. She cut a good slice off of it and put it in my mouth. She watched it intently as I chewed it up.

Wait a min....!!!

"Eh...!" I exclaimed, "Yeah it is! Just a BIT~~~~~ sweeter."

"See? See?" Mom said, "Go on, it gets better!"

AMAZING!! It did work! Mom is a genius!!

I ate almost a whole cucumber that day. Plain.

Some time ago, i was at home making sushi. And yeah, i put cucumbers in them. For that extra crunch. And to make sure jasper and oliver get a serving of vegetables, however small.

I cut off a top frm one end and a little from the other. And I kept the cut ends. I took one cut part in my hand and rubbed one end of the cucumber with it.

Mom walked in at that moment. It had been more than 12 years since she first taught me that. She saw me rubbing cucumber and looked back at me.

"Hmm hmm!" she flashed a cheeky grin and walked out, leaving me standing there with a cucumber in my hand.

And i hate cucumbers.