How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier.

In 1897, a book by H.G. Wells called The War of the Worlds was serialized in the Pearson’s Magazine in the UK and the US’s Cosmopolitan. It was a science fiction tale of creatures from Mars invading Earth. Science Fiction had been around since 1616, but Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein had reignited interest in the genre in 1818. Wells, who had trained as a science teacher, was up-to-date with the science of his time. In 1895, American astronomer Percival Lowell proposed that the random lines seen around the equator of Mars were irrigation channels, constructed by an intelligent race of sentient beings. Wells said that his book about invaders wiping out the indigenous population was based on what happened to Aboriginal Tasmanians. The book was popular and still makes a good read today. Skip ahead 41 years. Actor and script-writer Orson Welles [no relation to H.G.] lead a weekly radio program on CBS called Mercury Theater on the Air. On October 30, 1938, they presented an adaptation of War of the Worlds. Cleverly written, it lulls the listeners into thinking that they are hearing music from a New York ballroom, but then the program is ‘interrupted’ by news flashes about an object that has landed in New Jersey. Horror, death, madness, and despair ensue, narrated by a scientist character voiced by Welles. According to Welles, the show created a nation-wide panic:  “Six minutes after we’d gone on the air, the switchboards in radio stations right across the country were lighting up like Christmas trees,” Welles said. “Houses were emptying, churches were filling up; from Nashville to Minneapolis there was wailing in the street and the rending of garments.” Or maybe not. Rather few people listened to the show, so Welles was probably hyping the result. My parents were both in college at that time. My father recalled listening to the radio play and thinking that it was a well-played joke. My mother, typically, was doing her homework. It is a good radio play, that still holds up well today — especially as an example of early “fake news.” If you have never read the book, give it a go. Then listen to the 1938 version, and enjoy a little shiver at Hallowe’en.

In all the versions of the story, Martian ‘cylinders’ and ‘Tripods’ appear all over the world in the wide-spread invasion. Our foods come from wide-spread areas of the world: Wales and India.

Welsh ScrOmelette: 156 calories 9 g fat 0.6 g fiber 11.5 g protein 6 g carbs 91 mg Calcium  NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages.  PB GF This is a real taste sensation and a great way to start the day. Reward yourself by making the effort to find the correct cheese.

1½ two-oz eggs  HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs and pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid to store in the ‘fridge for next week.  0.3 oz Cheddar cheese, preferably Caerphilly or Red Dragon  ¾ oz sliced leeks, white and green 1 oz melon  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Slice the leeks across the leaf and rinse under running water. Put into a small sauce or saute pan, add a few tablespoons of water, put on the lid and ‘sweat’ the leeks until they soften. HINT: I did this the night before. Cut the cheese into small dice. When ready to cook, spritz a non-stick pan with cooking spray and add the leeks. Cook about 10 minutes more until limp and maybe beginning to brown on the edges. Whisk the eggs with salt, pepper, and a pinch of thyme. Pour over the leeks in the pan, scramble until cooked. Then sprinkle the cheese over the eggs at the last minute. Serve with melon and beverages of your choice. Fabulous.

Mushroom-Pork Vindaloo: 250 calories 7 g fat 5 g fiber 21 g protein 15 g Carbs 52.5 mg Calcium  PB GF  This unique curry dish comes from southern India. If you can’t find packaged Vindaloo Seasoning, you can prepare your own.  HINT: this recipe serves 2 [two]. 

1½ Tbsp Vindaloo seasoning  2 cloves garlic ½ tsp ground ginger 2 tsp canola oil ¾ cup onions [2.5 oz] 3 Tbsp cider vinegar ½ tsp sugar 5 oz cubed pork tenderloin or turkey breast [1.25 cups] 7 oz mushrooms [200 g] 3 oz broccoli florets, steamed ½ cup cooked brown rice

Press the garlic and stir into the vindaloo powder. Combine with the vinegar. Marinate the meat in that mixture for 30-60 minutes. Saute the onions in the oil until beginning to brown. Add the ginger, then add the sugar right away. Pour in the meat with the marinade and stir-fry until the meat is almost cooked. Add the mushrooms and cook over low heat until the sauce is thick. Plate with the rice and top with the broccoli.