Friends. Gotta love them. No matter how infuriating and annoying they can be, you’re lost without them.
I truly believe that when God made us humans, He meant us to be together, to be co-dependent, to be social, to be co-workers. Solitude is nice and peaceful, but without some social activities in your life…well, that’s when you become loony. That’s when you become one of those cat ladies.
I also noticed that one of the key effects and symptoms of depression comes from isolation. During my days of depression, I drew away from my family, my friends…everybody. The thought of speaking to someone, or just hanging out with anybody sickened me.
But the more I isolated myself, the more depressed and lonely I became. The more depressed I became, the more I resented people, from my worried parents to even the little girl in the street who laughed a little too loud. And because I hated other people, I withdrew myself even more. What a vicious cycle! It got to the point that I was angry and bitter towards everybody in this world.
Friends are more than just acquaintances with whom you do fun activities. They are, quite literally, one of your lifelines, an integral connection that holds you rooted in the real world. Because of them, you learn to compromise, you learn to share, you learn to laugh, you learn to be a person.
And I would like to send out a big fat “THANK YOU” to all my friends out there who has stuck to me through both thick and thin, and who played a part in forming who I am now, and who I will be in the future (Though I’m not sure if they even read my blog xp)
Lunch today was with one of those dear friends I mentioned, Joanna. Remember her? We finally found the time to have some quality time together before I left for college. This time, I treated 
.
We went to my local Greek diner, Amphora:
The last two times I visited, it was for dinner and was dark, so today I actually got the chance to truly appreciate its inner decor.
Nice! Look at the rustic, quaint utensils! See? This is the reason why restaurants should have bright lights! Otherwise, we could be dining in a pile of cow shit without knowing it. What’s the point of having a nice interior if we can’t enjoy it? (Listen up, all you foolishly dark restaurants out there!)
Joanna ordered the Gyro Sandwich. She called it “Jai-roh” on purpose to see what the waitress’s reaction was, but aside from a little smirk, the waitress didn’t say anything.
Grecian favorite. Combination of beef and lamb thinly sliced on pita with red onion, on a bed of shredded lettuce, accompanied by tzatziki sauce. Side of fries.
Wow, this is actually the first time I’ve seen such interestingly-sliced meat! It was nicely-cooked, but a bit too salty.
Crazy Joanna didn’t like the tzatziki sauce at all, so I stole it x-).
I ordered a “Build-Your-Own” Burger:
Turkey Burger, on top of pita, with caramelized onions, goat cheese, and pickle. Served with cranberry relish and steamed vegetables and onion rings.
Okay, you don’t need me to gush about how good this was. Caramelized onions? Goat cheese? Cranberry relish? Best combination ever.
Since I pilfered Joanna’s tzatziki sauce, she helped herself to some of my cranberry relish:
The steamed vegetables were actually really fresh! I was impressed by the selection: Broccoli, cauliflower, julienned carrots, zucchini, and green beans:
The onion rings were nice and crunchy:
I’m now convinced every burger should be served on a pita. It’s fun to eat a burger “elegantly” with a fork and knife, and the pita was so nice and chewy, soaking up all the juices!
Big forkful of burger with caramelized onions, goat cheese, and cranberry relish! MmmmMM~
Oh, and today, I went to get my eyes checked in Costco for new glasses and contact lenses, and I picked up this:
Swirled Frozen Yogurt. Blech. Never again. This is frozen yogurt? Where is the tangy taste I love? This was just plain saccharine sweetness. But for $1.35, what did I expect, right? Even McDonald’s soft-serve (which I indulged in two times yesterday) is less sweet than this sugar-laden crap. Oh well. I still finished it though. It was hot!
Question of the day: For what are you most thankful to your friends? And what is the best froyo place you know?
P.S. YESS!!! Blogspot is no longer being a pain in the —!
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I’m glad you got to spend some quality time with Joanna. You are right, friends are soooo important.
I love Greek food, but I haven’t had any in a long time. I really don’t think reading food blogs late at night is a good idea; it always makes me hungry…
My favorite fro yo places are Pinkberry (had it today, but the toddler ate almost all of it by himself!) and also Red Mango. I actually probably like Red Mango a bit more, but hubby prefers Pinkberry.
Friends to me are a life line. They are there when I am happy, sad, scared, mad – through all the good times and bad. True friends don’t judge. I am very lucky to have some truly great friends.
Your burger on a pita looks great and so does your friend’s gyro. I don’t have a favorite froyo place – I don’t eat it often.
my my..I luv those yummy sandwiches u eat! Such marvellous combos~
We jz dont have those in msia.. (u knw wat? Maybe I’ll open one deli that does those yummy sandwiches!) But not sure if the Msia market is ready for this.. u knw us laa…noodles and rice and pork
i can relate so much to this amazing post. Depression has isolated me so immensely and made me such a loner. I, of course, still enjoy others but not the same way I used to. I used to have more friends than I could count. Hundreds of people I spoke to, laughed with, shared stories with, and had a great time with. Of course these werent all close friends (you can only count your close friends on one hand). Despite the retraction into my own little world I know that I will get back to that old self. The one who was with someone new day in and day out. Ill be back!
Hmmm best yogurt places. The list is WAYYYY too long! I know about 50 hahah not kidding! fro yo addict right here
I’m thankful for friends who’ve encouraged me directly or indirectly to love God :
- the people who’ve modeled what it means to take up the cross and follow Jesus
- those who’ve shone irresistably the light and joy of abiding in Him
- those who’ve showered me with unconditional love even while I was difficult to love (especially when I was having EDs)
- those who’ve shown me the blessedness of being rich in the Lord despite being poor in the eyes of the world
- those God placed in my life for His own reasons at different seasons of my life, who refreshed me, helped me grow, brought me cheer, and gave me lotsa things to be thankful for!!!:)
And Sophia, I’m thankful to know you – even though we’ve never met in person, nothing is a co-incidence because God is a God of purpose, amen?:)
Friends are definitely important in our lives….to stick with us through hard times and specially to come with us to enjoy delicious meals like this!! our photos made me drool!
My fave froyo place is a little dairy bar in my hometown called The Homewood Grill. It’s a block from my grandma’s house and has been there for 50 years!!
I love my friends even though they are all far away. I love getting together with them when I get back to Florida and joining them for a meal. I do tend to isolate myself as well – story of my history with depression as well, but sharing laughs and stories over food helps me immensely.
This diner looks perfect, fun and the food looks great! That is one great turkey burger combo!
I love gyros too, with plenty of tzatziki sauce…cranberry relish looks so tempting.
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I am with you on the friends thing. When depression hits me, spending time with anyone is at the very bottom of my list. I try to make sure to get in sometime with friends as often as I can but with my busy schedule, sometimes it only happens once a week or so. I can really tell when I need some quality social time too, I literally start to crave it.
My friends are all true friends and I’m thankful to them for being them! Sounds silly I know but that’s why Ilove them!
Hi hun
i truely believe friends are SO important to our souls! i isolated myself for so long and now that im getting back out there and enjoying being around others i feel so happy!
another great post
enjoy the rest of your day girlie
and thanks for the kind comment on my last post!
xxxx
I like the build your own burger idea… sounds great!
My best friend is my hubby. He says the right things to cheer me up and make me happy. He is totally my heart. Costco is pretty cool too though lol. We have it in England. I love going there, though i never tired any froyo there! Gotta fix that!
that burger looks so artful
xxxx
ooh, now i have a mad craving for greek food
the tart fro yo is quite new thing, so don’t expect it everywhere1 friends and family are the cornerstones of life 
I’m thankful to my friends for being there whenever I need them! THey are the best! Love the Caramelized onions, goat cheese and cranberry relish combo.
Cranberry relish & goat cheese & caramelized onions…………………………..
*food coma*
oh man that greek place is adorable!! i lovee restaurants like that!
i do nottt love isolation though, insightful post, i’m working on getting myself back out there, its great to be reminded on how wonderful friends are!
its been ages since i had froyo…all we have around me is yagoot…
loveee
i’m so glad you were able to spend some time with her, and your meals look great! we have an awesome gyro place here – soo good. you’ll have to try it the next time you’re in Blacksburg!
we don’t have ANY froyo places here besides TCBY and that isn’t the tangy froyo I would like.
That diner looks SOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOD. The gyro! The perfect fries! LOVE the combo on that burger – I am going to have to try it at home!
Lately I’ve been moving on from old friends. They’ve let me down in many ways. Though I have met a lot of new people that have impacted my life in a positive way. I’m grateful that I had the chance to met these people and share laughs with them. My closest friends are my family members, they’re the only people that I can honestly say I’d be lost without them.
and I’ve actually never tried fro-yo. I’m sorry that it was so unpleasant :[
Ive had such bad experiences with friends. Other than my friends from treatment who all live at least one state away, I only have one friend at home. But I am really excited to go away to school next year and meet new people! From the brief time I spent with the girls at volleyball camp, I could tell that I am going to have a lot of fun next year.
I definitely need to try a burger on a pita now!!!
Have a great day sweetie!
Fantastic post!
I agree about friends — they’ve totally saved me on many occasions!
When I went through a break-up last year, they were critical to have near me.
That all looks SO good! I like the idea of a burger on a pita. It sounds so gourmet using cutlery.
I feel the same way about depression and isolation from friends; I went through the same thing when I was suffering from depression. Right now I’ve got four very close friends who really do just mean the world to me.
I am so glad to read that you are getting stronger and stronger everyday. You are always in my prayers.
The food…looks so scrumptious. You certainly know the right s spots to dine girlfriend!
friends are the best – they pick you up when you are down and help you keep going. i <3 my friends.
that food looks soooo good!
haha, laughed at the cat lady remark. friends indeed are the best! that spot you dined at it so adorable. and i LOVE greek food, gyros are so good. that meat looks perfect and the caramelized onions?! nowhere near me serves them up like that! ok i agree, i hate that kind of “fro yo” you had~i know exactly the type. same flavor as TCBY and other fat free ice cream soft serves that just say they are “frozen yogurt”~ i always thought that WAS fro yo until i had some at red mango and was like WOW. that tangy taste cannot be beat! now my fave place to get it is a place called spoon me.
Way to go with the turkey burger! Back when I ate meat, they were my favorite…I really think that they can be made to be even better than hamburgers.
I couldn’t figure out what the ‘pork roll’ photo was from your comment icon on other blogs. I was thinking it was a picture of homemade feta cheese, just out of the cloth! Is a pork roll like a potsticker?
I’m grateful to my friends for having people I can share interests with and joys and heartbreaks. People I can cook for and who cook for me. People who will remember things about me/for me even when my own family doesn’t! I agree – they are a lifeline.
Froyo place? Hmmm…. you know the tart stuff is a recent trend. BTW… it’s REALLY easy to make – 1 container of ff greek yogurt (the larger kind at Trader Joe’s), 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1 tsp vanilla – blend in ice cream maker. Cool, huh? It was off of Su Sweets’s blog. My fave ice cream is gelato. Not sure about the froyo stuff.
I’m grateful to friends who stick by me even when I’m not the best friend.
Your onion rings look great!
I really like McDonald’s ice cream sundaes – the only really decent thing there.
I know you’re coming to LA for USC…so if you like build-your-own burgers you’ve got to try The Counter–not only are their burgers great, but their sweet potato fries are orgasmic!!!
I’ve never tried Froyo!! Criminal I know…
Friends are there for good times and bad which is the biggest cliche in the world but it’s true. The best friends will be there to pick you up when you’re down and will be the first people you want to spend time with when you’re happy.
Oh man that turkey burger looks mahhhvalous! I love creating my own – but never had a burger on a pita before..going to have to try that one out.
My luck with friends hasn’t been the best. I have a small handful of very close ones that treat me the way I treat them-and believe me there are a lot of fakers out there (esp. down here in FL!), but I’ve always found my family to be the bestest friends I’ve got!
And the best fro-yo place I’ve been too is actually in Cali – Yogurt Park. I know for sure theres one in Walnut Creek and one by UCBerkeley. Sooooo freakin goooood!
I love my friends too. I am so thankful that they’ve always stood by me
That place seems really cool! I love eating a burger with a fork and knife. It so does make it special!
And thanks so much for the comment
I would love to meet you too!
<3 jess
xoxo
Oh Greek food, how I adore thee. That meal looks fantastic. And how can someone not like Tzaziki?
Tzatziki sauce is where it’s at! I totally would have stolen it too, hehe.
I definitely prefer the tangy kind of froyo. Actually you could say I’m obsessed with it! Everywhere I’ve been it’s so expensive though! I wish there was a way to make it myself.
I love how many people mis-pronounce “gyro!”
I’m still not sure how to say it!
You’re food looks so good!
Friends definitely make all the difference! They are lucky to have you as a friend too, and the struggles you have conquered are going to make you such a great friend to people throughout life.
I could eat tzatziki on anything!!!
Uggh, I hate how depression makes you so irritable and resentful towards the people you love most. It’s all just one big downward spiral. Thankfully, we’re both out of that now
I’m thankful to my friends for continuing to call me to hang out even when I repeatedly turned them down or made up excuses.
Your food looks delicious – love the onions and other goodies on your burger. I can relate so much with what you said about isolating yourself, and all the repercussions that go with it. This is the second post of yours this week that I related to in a huge way. You have such incredible insight. It’s making me see myself in a whole new light – very thought provoking. Thank – you.
Its so great that you were able to go out and meet your friend!
You are very right, although it often seems easier to stay isolated, the more we pull ourselves out of that isolation, the happier we will be
great looking eats by the way
vat a perfect meal!! friends are very important in someones life..
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