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Great Grape

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I have to admit that as a kid growing up on the East Coast in the 1970s and ’80s, I didn’t really know what real grapes were. I mean, I knew what they were, but somehow I thought that the two …

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The FruitGuys Plant a Tree for UMOM

By FruitGuys Staff on

Since 1964, UMOM has helped Arizona families in need, and The FruitGuys is proud to have such a wonderful organization as one of its community partners. The largest homeless shelter in the state, UMOM …

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Plum Crazy for Plums!

By Julie Collins on

By Gretchen Bay It’s officially summer. And summer means (among other delicious things)—plums! Unlike their stone-fruit cousins' peaches and nectarines (which come with a white or yellow flesh and …

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Bada Bing, Bada Boom

By Heidi Lewis on

By Heidi Lewis You know what sweet summer cherries like? They like winter. That’s when they catch up on a little shut-eye and wake up refreshed. Many stone fruits and pomes need the chill hours to …

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How Do I Love Bee?

By Heidi Lewis on

Farmer-Beekeepers Count the Ways Honey from bees is quite the miracle. Why does it taste so good? And why does it have so many healing properties? Many scientists have studied the organization of …

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Passion, I See, is Catching

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Mr. Brown is in the kitchen, head down, looking for a spork. Ms. Bright walks into the room and heads to The FruitGuys crate. They smile at one another, nervous to acknowledge the habit they have both …

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Got Fiber? Dietary Fiber Helps Weight Loss, Lowers Cholesterol

By Rebecca Taggart on

Looking for a miracle food that helps you lose weight, feel full, lowers blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and keeps you regular? Fiber is the answer. Most of us know very little about fiber, beyond …

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The Pronouncements of Passion

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

A cool fall breeze rustled the leaves outside of Peter's toy-store window. "Pauline," he piped." Pat pitched Paul a prototype policy that primes Pat for promotion." Pauline pulled the penguin puppet …

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Celebrate with an Apple

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Our FruitGuys softball team has a motto: “More runs than injuries.” Up until last week, we hadn’t yet won a game, but we were wildly successful with our safety goals. Mom would be proud. This past …

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It Takes a Village: California Town Saves Heirloom Apple

By FruitGuys Staff on

The Gravenstein Apple is dear to many apple lovers for its tart taste and superior juice, sauce, and pie abilities, but it is especially dear to the residents of Sebastopol, CA (Sonoma County) where …

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The Great Local Fruit Shark

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

During Shark Week on the Discovery Channel, and my all-things-marine-life son is loving it. Between South African great white sharks that launch themselves into the air after yelping seals, and the …

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Tale of a Scientist Farmer

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Ed Magee spends his days thinking about sunlight. When he isn’t working on his  38-acre orchard of white peaches and nectarines in Vernalis, California, he’s in a  lab studying the energy of …

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Plum-tastic!

By Heidi Lewis on

Look closely at your plum. Real close. See that? That's Luther Burbank's thumbprint. Luther was a botanist wizard at the turn of the century, a Midas of sorts whose more than 800 varieties of …

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Fruit & Veggie Magic

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Fruito the Ripenificent was a world famous fruit magician. For years he had competed for top billing against Vern the Vegetastic until Vern suffered a fatal injury while trying to extricate himself …

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Sustaining Sustainable

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

As an ex-suburban Philadelphia kid now turned Californian, I find myself drawn to stories of the underdog.  Gosh knows the Philly area is full of tales of heroes on the brink who have pulled it back …

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Riding the Peach Train

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In the pantheon of great lyrical misunderstandings, I remember this: summer sunlight circa the mid-1970s and me dancing around our living room while singing at the top of my lungs to the “The Age of …

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Bike Love: A Commute that’s Good for You

By Bridget Meigs on

PHILADELPHIA My commute: therapeutic, thought-provoking, calming and centering. Is such a commute possible?   You bet!  I am one of the estimated 10,000 Philadelphia residents who bike to work each …

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Pest Policy Questioned: Panelists say Quarantines Unfair to California Farmers

By Pia Hinckle on

The Light Brown Apple Moth is an indigenous pest considered harmless to crops in New Zealand, Hawaii, Australia, and the UK, all countries that are free to export fruits and vegetables to U.S. markets …

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The Season of Cherries

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I have many favorite fruits but cherries hold a special place in my heart. Maybe it’s because their harvest period is relatively short; or maybe it’s because they just taste so good—whatever the …

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Preservation Harvest

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When the price of corn started going up in Exeter, California due to high demand for ethanol, Mr. Herrera, an owner of 22 acres of family farmland, nearly plowed under his 40-year-old plum orchard. …

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I’ll Meet You on the Farm

By Bridget Meigs on

Warm spring weather is waking up the farmer in me. I suddenly have the urge to sink my hands into the soil and grow greens, tomatoes, potatoes – you name it. A new resident of Philadelphia, I was not …

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Capay Valley FarmShares

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In elementary school, some friends and I went through a phase where we had dreams of being city planners. We diagrammed a world of baseball diamonds and arcades and woods with bike paths that somehow …

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FruitGuy Noir in Peachy Keen

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Nick fell into my office crying like an Italian sub forced onto sprouted wheat that had run aground on Mixed Metaphor Island. “Fire all morta-della-pedos!” he shouted in meat panic. He was in …

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Punch Buggy Blueberry

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Our all-seeing school bus driver with the flip-up, two-tone shades, and an extra-wide mirror above her head had a ranking system that was distinguishable by the depth and tone of her voice. Sit in …

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A Peachy Mothers Day

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Chrissy W., a Fruitguys customer service expert, flies me back to South Carolina on a magic carpet woven just for Mother’s Day from matriarchal memory threads in a southern storytelling …

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Of Rabbit Holes & Writing Desks

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Nessie, the six-month-old chocolate lab, tears through the house wanting nothing more than to lick the cat until it becomes her friend. A puffed up and spitting blur of fur trailed by a bottle brush …

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Office to Home; Inside to Out

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In my daydreaming mind, skyscrapers in cities all across America turn Chia Pet and sprout Alfalfa as a cover crop on their roofs; highway medians spontaneously erupt with tomato vines causing traffic …

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Swords into Ploughs

By Heidi Lewis on

It’s quiet at Kokopelli organic berry farm except for the occasional proud exultation of a laying hen. Farmer Dr. Shepherd Bliss loves it that way; the quiet gives him peace after his own …

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Banana Jungle

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Every summer when I was kid we would visit my grandparents in New Orleans. My dad’s folks lived in Metairie, a parish just outside the city near Lake Pontchartrain in a small, brick, one-story house. …

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The Sound of Cold at Night

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

As a kid, I always looked forward to springtime. Winter didn’t just mean less sunlight and standing at a bus stop early in the morning in a red down jacket trying to quickly mound up disparate …

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Mothra Update

By Pia Hinckle on

In March, California held senate hearings on the status of the state’s eradication program for the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM). FruitGuys founder and CEO Chris Mittelstaedt testified in defense of …

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The Spring Transition

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In the fruit world, spring is the hardest time of year. Summer brings its abundance of stone fruits, Fall its apples, pears, persimmons, and pomegranates, and Winter all varieties of citrus that grow …

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A Natural Belly

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

My daughter walks into the kitchen like a drill sergeant as we are getting ready for dinner. “OK everyone!” she yells. “Belly check!” We all look at each other as she approaches my wife. “Shirt UP!” …

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Plum Tree Tales

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

The plum tree in my backyard is awake with white blossoms that shine silver in the moonlight and cluster on the dark wood branches like downy-snow.   These small, soft, flowery nests attract wobbly …

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Camp Garbology

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I’m a chaperone on my son’s 3-day, 5th-grade outdoor education trip. We’re on a bus heading back from a camp in Santa Cruz. As my head bobs against the cool glass window, I’m jarred out of a twilight …

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Fruit Olympics

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Bob: “Jane, we’re here in client services where Engineering is finally getting the chance to redeem themselves against Outbound Marketing. It’s been a tough winter Olympic season for Engineering whose …

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The Budding System

By Heidi Lewis on

The first time I went to a Scion Exchange I didn't know what to expect—was it a science-fiction convention? As I drew nearer I saw people entering the building with little sticks under their arms—was …

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Stairway to Heaven

By Rebecca Taggart on

Looking for ways to burn a few extra calories, build your strength, or tone your rear end? Stair climbing is a great way to get an excellent aerobic workout, no matter where you are or what your …

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Ponce Upon A Time. . .

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Day 26: The marsh of cubicles has cursed our party. We lost Lenny two days ago to the gurgling fried dough found in the quicksand pits of a budget-planning meeting. Sue has been eating the native …

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Layers of Health and Goggles

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Lily, my four-year-old niece, who says things like, “Daddy, are you satisfied?” or “Mommy, what does the word "comely" mean?” decided last weekend that when going to swimming lessons one has a duty to …

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The Book of Citrus

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Jonathan Sauer, in his book Historical Geography of Crop Plants: A Select Roster, notes that “Almost nothing is certain about the natural geography and ecology of truly wild citrus. Both the …

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The Lessons of Nature

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When we look for lessons in life, it’s not often that we can say: “Hey, check with the slime mold.” However, in The New York Times science section, there was a story about how researchers in Japan …

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Profile: Chaffin Family Orchards

By Heidi Lewis on

Oroville, CA - Oroville is a gold rush town in Butte County, CA.  Oro means gold in Spanish, and during the Gold Rush prospectors stampeded over the area in a greedy frenzy.   When Del Chaffin came to …

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Cirrus Nimbus in: The Guarantee

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Once upon a time, there was a little girl (she was a Libra for those who follow that stuff) whose mother was an amateur meteorologist. She dreamed of growing up and becoming the best weather …

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FruitGuy Noir in “Like a Fish Needs a Motorcycle”

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I was already on my second cup of hot water with lemon when the phone rang. “FruitGuy, are you experienced with Vegans?” The voice on the other end didn’t sound alien but I wasn’t taking chances. …

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Vitamin D – What’s all the fuss?

By Rebecca Taggart on

Vitamin D has been getting a lot of attention lately for several reasons. It appears that vitamin D deficiency may affect many more people than previously thought who reside at mid-northern latitudes, …

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Start Me Up

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

At dinner one night, I announced a grand holiday idea: “I think we should road trip this year when we go visit my folks,” I said enthusiastically. My wife and kids just stared. “Come on! No airports. …

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Gimme a C for Citrus!

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When I was 15, I had two secret wishes: first to become a ninja, second to be an astronaut. As I was already practicing my throwing-stars and rubber nunchucks skills in the backyard, I decided to join …

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FruitGuy Noir: Citrus Rules

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I was on the outs with the in-laws. Thanksgiving had added lesson number 816 to my little black book of lessons I should have been born with. You know that kind of book—we all keep one. It starts with …

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There’s Gold in Them Hills

By FruitGuys Staff on

For those getting on of our fruit mixes, you will notice these little easy-peel mandarins nestled amongst a variety of fruit. At The FruitGuys we treasure all the various fruits over the seasons …

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Taste for a Red Bouncy Ball

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Here are two things that happened within a half an hour of each other: first, I was in a book store looking for a gift when I spied a rack of books that, for lack of a better description, can only be …

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Worldwide Wellness – Making a Difference

By FruitGuys Staff on

Congratulations to our fabulous farmer friend and environmental steward, Allen Harthorn of Harpo Organics, who grows succulent organic Valencia oranges in Ventura County. Allen Harthorn and wife, …

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Early 20th Century-Pear in the 21st Century

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Technology and life in general advance so quickly around us that sometimes it's hard to imagine what the future will really hold: What products will last? What will become obsolete? Sure, there are …

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None of Your Beeswax! (The Get-The-Bees Address)

By FruitGuys Staff on

Four hives and five months ago, The FruitGuys brought forth to Gabriel Farm a prodigious gift of pollination, conceived in the spirit of Farm Stewardship and dedicated to the proposition that all …

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Way Back Machine

By Heidi Lewis on

Recently Google celebrated their 10th anniversary. In honor of their birthday, they posted one of their oldest indexes. A search unearthed The FruitGuys very first webpage and a flashback to the early …

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A Fruitful Holiday Season

By Jeff Koelemay on

Fruit + Mouth = YUM When you read a digital clock, do you try to make equations out of the time? When you're driving, do you calculate factors of the mile markers and add license plate numbers up to …

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We ♥ Fruit

By FruitGuys Staff on

February is American Heart Month. Not just the chocolate-filled, pink-foiled, "Will you be my valentine?" heart month, but the 10-oz …

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Are Your Boots Made For Walking?

By Jeff Koelemay on

Regular exercise is great for you, even without any other complicated changes to your daily routine. A Duke University study showed that walking just 30 minutes a day could help you lose weight and …

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Yosemite Gold Rush

By Jeff Koelemay on

Prospecting for gold always makes me hungry. Panning for flakes gets me thinking about crispy corn cereal and managing a sluice box always leaves me craving a juice box. It’s been a long time since …

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Bees vs. Seeds

By FruitGuys Staff on

Many FruitGuys customers love seedless mandarins and grapes - they've become increasingly popular and even expected. But did you ever wonder how they get the seeds out? There are many varieties of …

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FruitGuy Noir

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

The Case of the Crate on the Web They were standing around the FruitCrate when all heck broke loose. Jane was trying to convince John that "grapefruit" descended from a dinosaur egg-sized fruit-grape …

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Myth Buster

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

By Chris Mittelstaedt On May 12th, 2007, the kids are still awake. My daughter has a quizzical look on her face as she skeptically slides her freshly-lost tooth under her pillow in a legal-sized …

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Fruit = Intelligence

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Fruit is so good that scientists think it may make chimps smarter. "Chimpanzees remember the exact location of all their favorite fruit trees," wrote Matt Walker on Earth News (A BBC.com website). …

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Heavenly Angelcots

By Heidi Lewis on

“They're here! They're here!” The FruitGuys' buyers exclaim as if they were kids and a favorite rapscallion uncle has just pulled up in a convertible Caddy with a trunk load of fireworks. FruitGuys’ …

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Back to Suburban Nature

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

By Chris Mittelstaedt Wayne, PA, June 1981. It’s a hazy and humid gray-blue Saturday, and the summer beetles are whistle-clicking as I push the riding mower backward out from the garage. I’m in …

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Cats and Peaches

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When my grandfather was in his 80s, weak and suffering through the New Orleans summer heat, a dark yellow cat appeared at his back door in Metairie, Louisiana. The house was raised on cinder blocks …

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Good Morning Starshine

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Here are two things that I secretly wish sometimes: 1. That interpretative dance was an acceptable way to start a company meeting. 2. That I hadn’t tried to leap from my desk and spin on the …

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Junk Food: Tips to Avoid it

By Heidi Lewis on

Whether you choose fresh fruit as a healthy snack from a natural impulse or are making a conscious health decision, perhaps the craving for some crunchy or gooshy junk food is still there. Even a …

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Real Bodies

By Pia Hinckle on

Here are some startling statistics: two out of five women and one out of five men would trade three to five years of their life to achieve their weight goals, according to the Eating Disorder …

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Profile: Johnson Orchards, Ukiah (Mendocino County) CA

By Heidi Lewis on

Nestled in the Ukiah Valley, sandwiched between the famous Napa Valley and the redwoods of Mendocino County, is Johnson Orchards, a family farm for more than a century and home to some of the tastiest …

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Pumpkins: Not Just for Halloween

By Heidi Lewis on

By Heidi Lewis While the glowering Mr. Jack O' Lantern will certainly do some face-melting in the next week or two, inspiring investigation by the budding entomologists in your family, there is …

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Get Back!

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Here's the thing about modern living. At 40 years old, I can form a rock band that gets top billing in my living room. Rehearsals are quick, and I tower over my band mates who barely crest four feet, …

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Mr. Brown and Ms. Bright

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Mr. Brown is in the kitchen, head down, looking for a spork. Ms. Bright walks into the room and heads to The FruitGuys crate. They smile at one another, nervous to acknowledge the habit they have both …

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Bonne Automne

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

We just got back from a trip to Southwest France to visit Jacky, my wife's ailing 82-year-old grand cousin. She's a very sweet lady who slaps your face when she is happy with you, lives in the tiny …

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Watering for Winter

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

My three-year-old niece takes a sip from her paper water cup and stops mid-gulp. Her pink Minnie Mouse ears are slipping. She purses her lips intently, tilts her head back and looks skyward as she …

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Squeaky Pear

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I'm just about to climb the Grapevine on I-5 South into LA when I get the call on my cell. "Papa," my daughter's voice sounds thin like she's trying to hold back tears. "Is Squeaky with you?" She …

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The Art of Asian Pears

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It's my humble opinion that Asian Pears are not only one of the tastiest of all fall fruit treats but also one of the most beautiful. The flavor of the different Asian Pear varieties plays in your …

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The Friendly Butterscotch

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Scott, the Firebird-drivingm, WYSP-FM-listening, tan and mustachioed manager of the Friendly's ice cream restaurant in the King of Prussia mall, is scowling at me. I'm only a few months into my first …

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Swimmer Meet Orchard Walker

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I took a late vacation in 2009 - one week at the end of August up at the Russian River in Northern California. We rent a small house that's down a bumpy one-lane road, up and over hills, and through …

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Shadows

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

"Mama, I woke up at 3:19 this morning!" my 8-year-old daughter announces to my wife. My wife, who has the superhuman ability to raise just the end of one eyebrow as if tugged on an invisible string, …

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Purple Hair and Purple Plums

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Popi's brown Chrysler smelled of warm leather, 70s dashboard plastic, starched shirts, white mint Tic-Tacs, and something atomized that I couldn't quite make out that felt powdery and sticky in the …

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Captain Chlorophyll

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It comes up all the time. In cafes, at dinner parties, just chatting with folks on the bus in the morning: "When you play "superhero," what's your special power?" Sometimes I say underwater breathing, …

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A Peach of Memory

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

By Chris Mittelstaedt At this time of year, new varieties of peaches come in and out of harvest each week, evolving from early June tartness to the cinnamony-sweet notes of late August. As I track …

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FruitGuy Noir in The Blueberry Trail

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It was 2 pm when Jane called and asked for my assistance. "The IT department did it again," she sighed. "Where is he?" I asked. "In the server room." I walked past the IT team and heard the high …

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Coming up Triple Cherries

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I'm not a big gambler. I never knew when to hold em' or when to fold em' and if I walked away I wouldn't know where to go, or if I should saunter or skip or something. My first trip to Vegas was only …

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As The Orchard Turns

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

[SCENE: Orchard. Dappled sunlight falls softly. Ripe fruit hangs on trees.] DAD: Nectar? NECTAR: Yes, dad. DAD: Well, son, we have something to tell you. Mom and I have been thinking that …

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You Never Can Tell with Bees

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Sometimes things just don't work out. Take the time I wanted to build a hovercraft from a lawnmower. Or the time that a 6th grader convinced me that if I sang Pink Floyd's “Another Brick in the Wall” …

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Fruit Games and Rain

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

If I were a betting man, I'd wager most of you know about the board game "Hi, Ho! Cherry-O." It's a simple game, originally released in 1965, where a spinner tells players how many cherries they gain …

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Fruit On First

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

This March in History: March 1938. Abbott and Costello debuted their famous "Who's On First" baseball routine for a national radio audience 71 years ago this month, and their classic comedic gem …

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Federal Fruit and Presidential Palates

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Whether corner, cubicle, home, or Oval, The FruitGuys believes all offices are created equal in their right to have fresh fruit and nutritious fare available in the workplace. In honor of Presidents' …

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ORANGE = EGNARO

By Jeff Koelemay on

The sound is deafening. In the post-Thanksgiving haze of sleeping babies and whispering adults tip-toeing on sock feet, the plastic-on-plastic rumbling of the Boggle game sounds like a string of …

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The Fonz and the Grapes (Aesop’s “Happy Days”)

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

By Chris Mittelstaedt Early November 1975. Richie, Chachi, and Ralph Malph are drinking milkshakes at Arnold's Drive-In Restaurant, swapping wholesome fantasy stories about catsuit-clad rock star …

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Move Over Charlie Brown, it’s the Great Pomegranate!

By Jeff Koelemay on

By Jeff Koelemay Dracula and Linus walk into a Halloween pumpkin patch. Linus says, "Hey, are you waiting for the great pumpkin too?" Dracula strokes his pointy chin and looks a little embarrassed. …

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Exchanging Summer for “Sha-na-na-na-na” Fall

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

The first time I traveled out of the United States, I remember going into a bank with my parents to change money. This was sometime in the 80s when you still had to go to a bank or currency exchange …

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Flames that quench

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Red Flames may not be what people want to hear about in a month of record wildfires, but these are the delicious thirst-quenching kind. Red Flame Grapes are the first eating grapes of the season to …

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A History of Apricots in the USA

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

My wife recently finished writing a book with two other authors on California legal history. In it, she wrote of the early industry in the San Francisco Bay Area. It's hard to imagine amongst the …

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Duho! The Donut Peach

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Don't be afraid - this is not Homer Simpson's donut. This donut is not fried or powdered or sugared. It's not meant to be dunked or hoarded or stuffed into some flour-covered, winking baker's …

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The Days of Our Earth

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

"Like Fruit in the FruitGuys crate, we see the changing of the seasons, because these are the days of our earth!" Organ music dramatically plays as we fade in on peaches and a handful of apricots in a …

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Low-Down on the Banana Show

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

We've had some questions recently about the availability and rising cost of bananas in the grocery store. We've still been able to provide bananas to those clients who want them, but I thought it was …

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Spring and Wellness

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When April rolls around, the sunlight beams a little brighter, the days last a little longer, and I start to think about spring cleaning. The piles on my desk that I haven't moved in a month twitter …

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Why Kick the Soda Habit?

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Because soda, and diet soda, in particular, is one of the most common drinks available in offices, I wanted to share with you an article I saw in the Tuesday, February 5, 2008, New York Times by …

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NEWSFLASH: Lawn Darts Aerate Soil Like Worms!

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I thought I had the Great American Novel by the tailback in 1995. I grew up in the suburbs where old Pennsylvania farmland - the kind painted by Andrew Wyeth - had been mixed and cooked into 3/4 acre …

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It’s Cold Outside, but What Does it Mean?

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When I was in college, we'd pack the elevator with students, turn off the lights, and yell - "Molecule!" The car shook in the shaft as we bounced off of each other and the walls, finally tumbling out …

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Nature as Medicine

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When I was 15, I had two secret wishes: first to become a ninja, second to be an astronaut. As I was already practicing my throwing-stars and rubber nunchucks skills in the backyard, I decided to join …

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Spreading Happiness September 3, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

During my freshman year in college, everyone made each class choice seem dire and grave: "Are you sure you're making the right choice? This is the rest of your life you're talking about here." To let …

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Flavor Pacifists July 30, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Most fruit is named for the farmer (or someone close to the farmer) that cultivated it. Sometimes it is named for a fantastical image that the fruit conjures in mind. Take for example the Elberta …

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Russian River Gravs July 23, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

The Russian River in Northern California bends quietly through the thick redwood covered hills of Sonoma County. Communities of shingled, dark wood river houses are tucked into the musky groves and …

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California Dreaming July 16, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

I grew up pretty naive. Before moving from my home town of Philadelphia in the early '90s, I didn't know what to expect of Northern California. I thought that nude beaches were the punch line of a …

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A Summer Poem June 25, 2007

By FruitGuys Staff on

Here's my little poem, I've sprinkled it with rhyme Tis an ode to the fresh sweet tastes of fruit in summertime. Week one of grapes has now arrived from warm California sun We've found again the white …

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Semper Ubi Sub-Ubi Arpril 9, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

We all wore togas to our Latin Club party my senior year in high school. I wasn't a great Latin student, but I lived by the motto developed by our Latin club members - semper ubi sub-ubi, "Always wear …

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Guy Noir and the Grapefruit April 2, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

April had a knack for making my life complicated. So when April walked through my door on the First, I couldn't help but feel like a fool. "Trick or Treat," she said with a smile. It was all show and …

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Muscat Love, the Non-Sequitor Flashback March 19, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It's 1980, and yes, I'm wearing Izod. My dad has a consulting gig with a large hospital group in LA, and we're on a flight from Philadelphia to Los Angeles. Tray table down, window shades up, my folks …

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Connection January 8, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It's the little things that keep me going. The bits of life that compress into diamonds that make me laugh and feel connected. Like the time my friends Matt and Maria ordered an elegant seafood meal …

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Happiness is. . . Folate & Fruit January 2, 2007

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Well, you made it through the holidays. Mom assured you that she would be "just fine" on the floor of the guest bedroom while dad noted that the blow-up camping mattress smelled like the battleship he …

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Ode to the Fall Transition September 25 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Lo' the waning of the peach Makes me to the fruit box reach For that fresh and tasty pear That apple that puts the wind in my hair Even on that patch of balding where Nothing flows but cool …

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Kadota and The lightness of Bee-ing September 11, 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

At one company meeting, Jeff, our distribution manager, told us a great story about how on the second day of a rafting trip on the Snake River in Idaho when he was 10, he and his dad woke up early on …

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Sweet & Fancy Memories July 24, 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It was 1982 — 7th grade at Valley Forge Junior High school. My shop teacher, Mr. Mickey, had the stereotypical nub of an index finger that he could put on his nose, so it looked like it was going into …

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Fla-Fla-Flavorosa (republished 6/12/06)

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

The folks around the office make fun of me when the flavorosa pluot begins to come in. I must have some synaptic cross-wiring because when I bite into the sugary-sweet flesh of the purple-plum looking …

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The Banana Zone! May 8, 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Imagine a tree, a gigantic herb really, that produces a single flower. From that frightful and fantastic flower grow 20 hands. If this seems impressive and terrifying to you, if it puts images of …

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The plane or the pilot? April, 10 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It's 4:30 on a Friday afternoon at LAX. I'm waiting for my flight to San Francisco to board. A group of five-year-old kids wearing i-pod headphones is singing out of key and out of synch. People wait, …

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Give that Nature a Raise! February February 6, 2005

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Have I mentioned how impressed I am with nature? I gave it a job review previously. I mean, all those things it does for us, like make the trees magically bud and the gnomes come out and those talking …

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A Boy and his Cara-Cara Janurary 23, 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Dad is on the hood of the family Volvo - jumping up and down and cursing. I'm 18 years old, it's the 4th of July weekend, and we're having a grand old time. Yesterday, I drove the family car into …

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A Friendly Ripening, December 12, 2005

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Scott, the ice cream store manager, looks up from behind his bushy brown mustache. His feathered hair is a constant windblown reminder of his recent promotion and brand-spanking-new black Trans-Am …

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Mary Jo Banana and the Weiner Dog, November 21, 2005

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

It is Thanksgiving 1975, and our customer service FruitGuy, Erin Giordano is eight years old. Wild red hair and polyester, she is off at her aunt Dorothy's house in Glendale, California for the …

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What to say?, September 5, 2005

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When I was born, my grandfather Popi planted a peach tree in the small back yard of his house in Metairie, Lousiana. He did the same three years later for my sister Jenna and five years after that for …

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Plum Body, August 29, 2005

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When my sister was three years old, she loved plums. Dad called her the "plum body." She would go to the oven and pull down the small, bottom door that held the pots and pans. She carefully spread out …

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Sweet as Nectar

By FruitGuys Staff on

We once spent a day driving through the Brentwood agriculture corridor hunting of the perfect nectarine. Brentwood is only a 90 minutes drive from San Francisco and is an ideal oasis near the …

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Apricots from the farm

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In the middle of the summer, The FruitGuys truck turns twice a week down a dusty driveway off a bumpy two-lane road in Patterson, California to load up on freshly-picked apricots. The workers on the …

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Tango with your taste buds

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Straight from the central valley of California comes this weeks fab-four of summer taste explosion. Enjoy and as always – let the peaches ripen until they give slightly to the touch. Pluots and …

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Cling Peaches

By FruitGuys Staff on

One of the things I love about peaches is that the taste of summer itself is captured in the peach at the moment of harvest. Peach varieties build in sugar as the days lengthen from May to late June. …

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Climbing the food pyramid

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

The new Food Pyramid came out last week. Walt Handelsman drew an excellent cartoon for Newsday on Friday, April 22nd, 2005 in which an overweight Uncle Sam was lounging in a recliner with a …

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“C” is for Cold Turkey

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In the 1970s, as a fan of Sesame Street, Cookie Monster was my hero. There was not a better role model on the face of the planet to illustrate the process of getting your mom to make a fresh batch of …

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Drink More Water! (or get it in your fruit).

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

In 1980, when I was in fifth grade, my family took a trip to the West Coast. After 7 hours on the cross-country flight listening to The Captain and Tenille's Greatest Hits, I couldn't stop humming …

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It’s Not Easy Being Green

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

By Chris Mittelstaedt Let's admit it; the holidays can be stressful. It could be your mother and father crammed into the guest bedroom telling you not to go to any extra trouble, and that they …

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Setting up Santa

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

At the age when a kid starts to wonder if the whole Santa thing is real, my sister and I used to try and catch him. From age 6 until 10 on December 25th we'd wake up to the Pennsylvania winter cold, …

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‘Twas the FruitGuys

By FruitGuys Staff on

'Twas two weeks before the holiday when all at work; reports abounded and budgets began to lurk. The memos were posted in the kitchen with care; in hopes that The FruitGuys would soon be there. When …

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Who You Callin’ an Heirloom?

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

When I found this week's heirloom apple (the Arkansas Black), I thought about being ten years old and accompanying my mom on an antiquing trip in the country outside of Philadelphia. We visited Ms. …

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