{"id":1404,"date":"2026-03-12T18:21:30","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T18:21:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zeusben.online\/?p=1404"},"modified":"2026-03-12T18:21:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T18:21:30","slug":"the-foreign-neighbors-gave-me-this-and-wished-me-a-pleasant-appetite-but-its-something-hard-and-not-at-all-like-food-more-like-an-egg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zeusben.online\/?p=1404","title":{"rendered":"The foreign neighbors gave me this and wished me a pleasant appetite: but it\u2019s something hard and not at all like food, more like an egg"},"content":{"rendered":"

I was given this by my foreign neighbors, who also wished me a good appetite, but it\u2019s something tough and more like an egg than food\u00a0\"\ud83d\ude31\"\"\ud83e\udd14\"<\/p>\n

\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I was initially even afraid.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n

The neighbors are foreigners, and we just say hello to one another in the elevator. Then, one night, someone knocks on the door. They\u2019re grinning, giving me a bag, and speaking in accented Russian:<\/p>\n

Enjoy your food!<\/p>\n

I peek within, and this is what I see. Strange, hard, dark objects that seemed like they belonged in a dinosaur movie or a museum. They don\u2019t appear to be edible. They feel as cold as stones in my hands. Even when I smelled them, there was hardly any smell.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Is this food? I asked warily.<\/p>\n

They went after nodding and grinning even more.<\/p>\n

I spent a lot of time standing with the bag in the kitchen. My mind was racing with ideas: \u201cWhat if this isn\u2019t even supposed to be eaten? Could it be a joke? What if I\u2019m overlooking something crucial? Throwing it out felt strange; putting it in the refrigerator was frightening.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, I went online. I looked for images, descriptions, and shapes. And I was astounded by what I saw when I eventually located it.Have you previously witnessed anything similar?\"\ud83d\ude31\"\"\ud83d\ude28\"Have you ever seen anything like this before?It was a water chestnut, as it turned out.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It is consumed. You eat it raw, boil it, and peel it. It is practically considered a delicacy in several nations. It was just like nothing I had ever seen in my life.<\/p>\n

I met the neighbors the following day and informed them that I had discovered what it was. With joy, they began to quickly explain something, using gestures to demonstrate how to eat and peel it.<\/p>\n

And that made me realize how odd the world is\u2014for some, it\u2019s a terrifying, unfathomable thing, but for others, it\u2019s just \u201cenjoy your meal.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was given this by my foreign neighbors, who also wished me a good appetite, but it\u2019s something tough and more like an egg than food\u00a0 I was initially even … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1405,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nThe foreign neighbors gave me this and wished me a pleasant appetite: but it\u2019s something hard and not at all like food, more like an egg - BEN ZEUS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/zeusben.online\/?p=1404\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The foreign neighbors gave me this and wished me a pleasant appetite: but it\u2019s something hard and not at all like food, more like an egg - 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