How To: Make a Banana-Avocado Smoothie

Recipe: Banana Avocado Smoothie

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 2 min

Makes: 2 smoothies

Ingredients:

I am so excited to share this recipe for one of my all-time favorite breakfasts! It will turn out a nice pale green color, and it tastes like vanilla and cinnamon (probably because that's what's in it).

So. You take a banana. Pull it apart into chunks, and put those chunks in a blender.

Now, do the same thing with a whole avocado. Most other recipes say only use half - I say those other recipes are lame. Use the whole thing. The healthy fat in the avocado makes this turn out nice and creamy.

Next, cover all that with cold almond or coconut milk. You'll need at least a cup.

This is the fun part: add in as much cinnamon as you'd like. I like a LOT. (It's good for you!) And then at least a couple drops of vanilla extract. Most vanilla extracts contain alcohol, and I won't judge you if that's what you want in your breakfast smoothie, but I use an alcohol-free Trader Joe's version. 

Zap it in the blender until smooth. Add more almond or coconut milk, if necessary to thin it out. Then pour into glasses and drink up!

Weekend Recap: 9/29

Two retirees celebrated the birth of their grandchild this weekend. Because those two retirees are Bill and Hillary Clinton, there were perfectly staged photos and tweets and the media was all like....

"Everything the light touches...but what about that shadowy place?" "Those are the Red States. You must never go there, Simba..."

Noted international human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin married George Clooney this weekend. She has represented Julian Assange and the former Prime Minister of Ukraine. He was in a movie about astronauts. He's 53. She's 36. The wedding was in Venice. I'm assuming my invitation was lost in the mail?

Nothing in your life will ever be this perfect. Source.

In less-glamorous news, a South Carolina firearm store put some hot & fresh truth up on their store sign. I love rednecks. They're so honest.

And finally, in honor of International Coffee Day - a fun article on the CIA Starbucks. Baristas go through intense background checks, and there are no names on the cups (not even fake ones!) "Stealth Starbucks" is one of the busiest Starbucks locations in the world - those guys and gals need their caffeine!

An Act of Terror in Oklahoma

Earlier today in the town of Moore, Oklahoma, Alton Nolen ran into his former workplace, beheaded one former coworker, and stabbed another. He had recently converted to Islam, had been trying to convert others - efforts that didn't seem to have much success. We can only wonder why they were so reluctant to become Muslims, what with Islam seeming so welcoming and reasonable! Anyway, Nolen was stopped by the company's COO - an off-duty deputy who shot and injured him. Nolen's got a pretty long rap sheet, including two drug-related arrests and assault and battery of a police officer.

Seems like a fine, upstanding citizen. Anybody's guess, really, why he could have been fired from his job at the Vaughan Foods warehouse.

This story involves lots of things that liberals don't want to talk about:

• An armed citizen stopping a heinous crime. A good guy with a gun.
• Radical Islam - To a liberal, if it is radical, then it is not Islam. Case in point: The war, that is not a war, against Islamic State, which they keep telling us is not really Islamic.
• A businessman being a hero. 
• A Muslim being violent to women - Remember, ladies, the real enemy are Republicans who want you to pay for your own medicine, and not the guy with the knife at your throat!
• Lone Wolf attacks, which federal officials warned of a few days ago
• A U.S. citizen heeding ISIS' command to "kill any disbeliever" 

I don't expect Obama to send a delegation to the victim's funeral, the way he did to Mike Brown's funeral. I don't even expect him to call this what it is - which is Islamic terrorism. But we can hope that someone will put cameras on this like they did in Ferguson - not to incite protests/riots/anything, but to educate people about this important and tragic event.

Eric Holder Looks Like Stedman

Somebody had to say it. And a lot of people did.

Classy: Derek Jeter's Farewell

This is Derek Jeter's resignation announcement, posted on his Facebook page at the start of the 2014 baseball season.

He is honest, humble, and gracious. As he closes out a 19-year career, The Captain still puts the team first, saying that his first goal is to win one last World Series. This is classy.

At a time when Law & Order: NFL is all over the news - it feels really good to see that pro athletes can still be role models.

Jeter will play his last game at Yankee Stadium tonight, weather permitting. The last game of his career will likely be over the weekend, when the Yankees face the Red Sox for the last games of the regular season.

#2 on the field, and #1 in the sport.

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I want to start by saying thank you.

I know they say that when you dream you eventually wake up. Well, for some reason, I've never had to wake up. Not just because of my time as a New York Yankee but also because I am living my dream every single day.

Last year was a tough one for me. As I suffered through a bunch of injuries, I realized that some of the things that always came easily to me and were always fun had started to become a struggle. The one thing I always said to myself was that when baseball started to feel more like a job, it would be time to move forward.

So really it was months ago when I realized that this season would likely be my last. As I came to this conclusion and shared it with my friends and family, they all told me to hold off saying anything until I was absolutely 100% sure.

And the thing is, I could not be more sure. I know it in my heart. The 2014 season will be my last year playing professional baseball.

I've experienced so many defining moments in my career. Winning the World Series as a rookie shortstop, being named the Yankees captain, closing the old and opening the new Yankee Stadium. Through it all, I've never stopped chasing the next one. I want to finally stop the chase and take in the world.

For the last 20 years I've been completely focused on two goals: playing my best and helping the Yankees win. That means that for 365 days a year, my every thought and action were geared toward that goal. It's now time for something new.

From the time I was a kid, my dream was always very vivid and it never changed: I was going to be the shortstop for the NY Yankees. It started as an empty canvas more than 20 years ago, and now that I look at it, it's almost complete. In a million years, I wouldn't have believed just how beautiful it would become.

So many people have traveled along this journey with me and helped me along the way: I want to especially thank The Boss, the Steinbrenner family, the entire Yankees organization, my managers, my coaches, my teammates, my friends and of course, above all, my family. They taught me incredible life lessons and are the #1 reason I lasted this long. They may not have been on the field, but they feel they played every game with me, and I think they are ready to call it a career as well.

I also couldn't have done it without the people of New York. NY fans always pushed me to be my best. They have embraced me, loved me, respected me and have ALWAYS been there for me. This can be a tough, invasive, critical and demanding environment. The people of this city have high expectations and are anxious to see them met.

But it's those same people who have challenged me, cheered for me, beat me down and picked me back up all at the same time. NY made me stronger, kept me more focused and made me a better, more well-rounded person. For that I will be forever grateful. I never could have imagined playing anywhere else.

I will remember it all: the cheers, the boos, every win, every loss, all the plane trips, the bus rides, the clubhouses, the walks through the tunnel and every drive to and from the Bronx. I have achieved almost every personal and professional goal I have set. I have gotten the very most out of my life playing baseball, and I have absolutely no regrets.

Now it's time for the next chapter. I have new dreams and aspirations, and I want new challenges. There are many things I want to do in business and philanthropic work, in addition to focusing more on my personal life and starting a family of my own. And I want the ability to move at my own pace, see the world and finally have a summer vacation.

But before that, I want to soak in every moment of every day this year, so I can remember it for the rest of my life. And most importantly, I want to help the Yankees reach our goal of winning another championship.

Once again, thank you.

Derek Jeter
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Barney, Bush, and Obama's Latte Salute

Stepping off of Marine One yesterday at the Wall Street landing zone, President Obama did this:

UMMMM.

President Pumpkin Spice over there gave what has been dubbed the "Latte Salute." Military veterans quickly noticed that this was, shall we say, kinda tacky - and they took to Twitter to voice their disappointment.

Liberals could have admitted that this was a misstep by President Obama, albeit a minor one, and that a Commander in Chief ought to show more respect to servicemen and women in uniform. But that would require liberals to be either self-aware, or reasonable. SO! Instead, we got a lot of whining about this:

This, however awkward it looks, is the proper way to salute. Switch the item to your left hand, and salute with an empty right hand. Involvement of a puppy is optional (but I encourage it because HOW cute is Barney in that photo?!)

It's not required of the president that he salutes the members of the armed services in situations like this. It's also not required that anyone enlist in the military. These people enlisted, trained, and now serve - the least President Obama could do would be to hold his coffee cup in his left hand, and salute with his right.

Weekend Recap: September 22, 2014

The Good:

NASA inserted satellite MAVEN into Mars’ orbit on Sunday night. The satellite will collect data on Mars’ atmosphere - data that can tell us what it will take to put humans on Mars.

Thousands of Baltimore Ravens fans turned in their Ray Rice jerseys in exchange for the jersey of a player who is not a known criminal. Good job being decent, Baltimore Ravens + fans!

Afghanistan elected a new president, finally. This could mark the first peaceful democratic transfer of power in Afghanistan’s history.

The Bad:

A bunch of people (over 300,000 of them!) went to #PeopleClimateMarch in New York City. Leonardo DiCaprio was one of those people. They left a LOT of trash behind, which has to make you question just how “green” their motives are.

The WTF:

Senator Mary Landrieu, a Lousiana Democrat, actually did something to help a constituent:

At least now she’ll be known for something other than lying about where she lives…

A man tried to break into the White House grounds, which would normally be kind of funny, but he’s an Iraq veteran suffering from PTSD, and it’s just horrible that he has been failed so very badly. 

The UN Security Council has unanimously declared that Ebola is a “threat to international peace.” Ebola has yet to comment on the matter.

Oprah Winfrey was in DC this weekend, speaking at an event at the Verizon Center. So if you had a good weekend this go-round, and I hope you did, just know that you have been blessed by the presence of Her Holiness, Pope-rah.