January 5, 2026
Hi Friends,
Well, this week just flew by. On Monday we left TrueNorth after a glorious 12 days of fun and community. Dr. Goldhamer doesn’t normally allow desserts at the center, but because it was the holidays I got to prepare my 2-ingredient Pecan Pie for Christmas and my Naughty But Nice Key Lime Snowballs (which I demonstrated for the 3-Day Jumpstart group on Saturday) for New Year’s Eve.
Speaking of New Year’s, the 3 Day Challenge kicked off this past Friday. Did you join? And don’t forget to come join me for the 21 Day January Jumpstart starting soon.
I truly cannot say enough great things about TrueNorth, and one of these days I may devote an entire newsletter to it. It is genuinely a place of hope and healing, and honestly the most affordable vacation you could ever take. For less than the price of any hotel I’ve ever stayed at in California, you also enjoy three all-you-can-eat, delicious buffet meals every day, along with 2-3 daily lectures and activities. My favorite activity was the poker tournament and the dealer was none other than Dr. Goldhamer himself!
Driving home, we got hungry. You know the old saying, “Fail to plan and plan to fail”?
So I asked ChatGPT if there was any place in Vallejo where I could eat that was vegan, gluten free, and oil free. She found a place called Ike’s Love and Sandwiches, which has a huge vegan menu, and I was able to customize my order. It turns out there’s an Ike’s just a few blocks from my house, so I will definitely be back. I have to tell you, my life has become so much easier since I let go of dietary perfection (and a whole lot tastier too… LOL)
On Tuesday, we attended the 90th birthday party of a dear friend, Al Schmidt. I did a live show with Al right before the party, and he talked about how his heart disease at 80 was so severe that he was given only months to live. And he also beat cancer! I think his inspirational story gives us all hope and shows that it’s never too late.
You can watch the replay by clicking here!
I brought him my famous SOS-free German Chocolate Cake.
And the food was spectacular. Here is the caterer, Vicky, with a charcuterie board to end all charcuterie boards.
On Wednesday I did a show with another dear friend, Chuck Carroll, who is the host of PCRM’s The Exam Room podcast. We bared our souls…and our bloated bellies 😂.
You can watch the replay by clicking here.
On New Year’s Day I had an honest conversation with my dear friend and colleague, Dr. Matt Lederman. He helped me make two important decisions: (1) whether or not I, as a Jewish ethical vegan, should take pancreatic enzymes for the unrelenting porcine pancreatic pain and insufficiency I’ve had since March 20 of last year (the vegan ones just don’t work), and (2) whether or not I should pursue this novel procedure for the lung cancer.
An Important Lesson From My Dog Shiloh
Shiloh is indeed a goofball who brings daily joy and laughter to our lives. After I snapped this picture of him, I recognized there was a lesson in it. It was as if he couldn’t decide whether he wanted to lie on his bed or on the floor, so he did both…and frankly, he didn’t look all that comfortable.
I feel like that has been me for the last three years in regard to my lung cancer – trying to decide whether or not I should treat it and, if so, how. In some things in life, you’re either in or you’re out. And I’ve been so scared of making the WRONG decision that for the most part I’ve made no decision…which IS a decision.
I do have a plan now for moving forward, and you can find it here.
Wishing you a happy, healthy, and FUN 2026!
Love & Kale,
💜 Chef AJ
