The Adventures of Shiitake Jones

Though you can read all of Shiitake’s past adventures below, the latest one can read in the latest edition of Macrobiotics Today Magazine. Purchase either as an instant download or subscription to read what’s been going on with Shiitake and Ken lately.

Shiitake Jones sat in the park watching her boyfriend Ken kick a soccer ball around with his nephew, when her Enya ring tone roused her from the daydream she had fallen into. He’s so good with kids, she had been thinking as she watched Ken coach little Stan on the finer points of tackling. He would make a great dad… Then she stopped herself mid-thought. "Shiitake Jones!" she admonished herself. "You haven’t been dating him that long. There is no reason to be ordering an amasake wedding cake or bidding for an out-of-print copy of Macrobiotic Pregnancy and Childcare on eBay just yet."

(more…)

Despite her usual air of confidence, Shiitake found a swarm of butterflies in her solar plexus as she and Ken pulled up outside Ken’s parents’ home. This was to be expected for a first encounter with them, she tried to tell herself as Ken squeezed her hand reassuringly. Glancing around the pristine manicured front garden, Shiitake thought that she should have left that second serving of blueberry couscous cake alone before they left. Why did she always eat more when she was nervous? As they approached the house, the front door was flung open and she filed the niggling question away to be addressed another time—as usual.

"You must be, Shiitake, dear," Ken’s mother exclaimed, ushering them inside. "You are as lovely as Ken has told us." Shiitake immediately warmed to her and filed away her instant visual diagnosis evaluation for later.

(more…)

Shiitake thought Ken was right behind her when she stormed off from Gloria’s stall at the Farmers’ Market. It had been bad enough to run into her most tiresome yoga student on her day off, but to find out that Gloria had shared an office romance with Ken had heated Shiitake’s blood more than the drop of ginger juice in her morning miso soup. She was a little surprised at herself. She had never had a jealous streak before.

Ken would have been right behind Shiitake had he not taken a moment to say a hurried "see ya later" to Gloria and to pop one of her jam tarts in his mouth. By the time he pushed his way through the crowd, however, Shiitake was nowhere to be seen. (more…)

Ken yawned as he paced back and forth in front of his apartment building. He had protested that 7:00 a.m. was way too early to even contemplate getting out of bed on a Saturday, but Shiitake had insisted so they’d be in time for all the best fresh-produce bargains.

Shortly, a small electric hybrid car, in what could only be described as spleen tonifying yellow, roared around the corner and came to a halt just inches from Ken’s feet.

Was that a pair of overalls Shiitake was wearing? He thought they were going to buy the vegetables, not pick them. And why did she have her hair in those plaits?

Shiitake leaned over and threw the passenger door open. "Jump in!" she said. "We’ve got to get a move on before all the freshest vegetables are sold." (more…)

Ken flung open Shiitake’s bathroom door—skin glistening with drops of chlorine-free, energized water and wrapped only in one of her organic cotton bath towels. "Have you seen my cell phone?" he asked hurriedly, "I forgot to check for calls."

"Yes, it’s right here." Shiitake’s cheeks were smarting with embarrassment at being found with it in her hands. "I picked it up because it kept vibrating and I thought it might be your office and…"

"Well, who was it?" Ken blurted out. Shiitake remembered the knot of tension she had found when shiatsuing his shoulders the previous evening. Could his worry be the cause?

"It was a woman," Shiitake’s voice had lost all expression, "about little Stan…""Oh my goodness!" Ken exclaimed, his face revealing deep concern, "I hope he’s okay. Shiitake, I have to go…" He grabbed his clothes and ran back into the bathroom to dress. (more…)

Ken wasn’t sure if it was the morning sunshine filtering through the organic cotton curtains or the aroma of an unusual breakfast that woke him from his chardonnay-induced slumber. Whichever it was, he was quickly reminded that he was not nestled between his chi destroying polyester sheets, but wrapped in a hand woven alpaca blanket on the firm futon couch in Shiitake Jones’ living room.

Shiitake heard him stirring noisily. "Good morning, sleepyhead!" she called cheerily, then poked her head around the corner as he was examining the hemp pajamas he found himself in.

Who did these belong to? he thought worriedly. Did Shiitake regularly host overnight male guests? (more…)

Ken was about to call it a night and make his way out the door. The cooking class with Shiitake seemed more like a first date to him and he couldn’t help reading more into Shiitake’s warning about the chi obstructing nature of his outer garments. Perhaps they were reflective of some deeper sentiments on her part. Maybe she didn’t want the night to end either. He closed the door and discarded his jacket.

Shiitake couldn’t help eyeing his broad, muscular shoulders with more than a lingering glance. "Boy would I like to shiatsu those," she thought longingly.

(more…)

Ken had an inkling that this cooking class to which he had been invited by striking yoga teacher and macrobiotic hip chick extraordinaire, Shiitake Jones held more romantic potential than he had been willing to admit to himself. He knocked nervously at the recycled bamboo door of Shiitake’s abode. When he had encountered her while stocking up on macrobiotic staples for his new lifestyle at the local Wild Rice Super Wholefoods store, the electricity that had sparked between them over a box of Quinoa was something he had never felt the likeness of. Organic, locally produced, preservative free chardonnay in hand, Ken waited on the doorstep in anticipation. (more…)

Deep in the heart of the newly refurbished downtown Wild Rice Super Wholefoods store, self professed macrobiotic hip chick, Shiitake Jones was carefully inspecting a batch of new season biodynamic short grain brown rice in the bulk foods section. It seemed to be of reasonable quality so she filled several brown paper bags with it, collected her chickpeas, adzuki beans and barley and headed off in search of some rare quality wildcrafted kuzu collected under the full moon by Mongolian peasants in the middle of winter. It would be such a relief to cross that off her shopping list. (more…)