Summary: <br> Henry went on vacation to a Carob factory!<br> He visited a tourist attraction called Carobana, and discovered that one of the owners, Jean Hamey, had a lot more to talk about than just carob! She and her husband Ian operate Carobana, which is a tourist attraction, and a factory, which manufactured Carob coated treats.<br> If you have never seen carob, it is a large seed pod of the carob tree. We actually have them in San Diego where I (Kathe) live. First you remove the seeds. Then you dry and powder the pod. Jean explains the rest of the process in the interview.<br> Jean agreed to talk about her carob organization with Henry.<br> She and her husband inherited the place after her in-laws passed away. They now have a successful manufacturing, retail and tourism business. Much of the interview focuses on the development of the enterprise, and Jean’s unique business skills.<br> As far as the carob business, Ian has built much of the machinery, and persistence and hard work have produced a steady growth which has resulted in the success Carabana is today.<br> A couple of things to know about carob are:<br> <br> * The pod not only contains many small beans, but also a semi-sweet pulp.<br> * These pods contain iron, magnesium, calcium, along with vitamins A, B2, B3, and D.<br> * Carob pods are used as a cocoa substitute for chocolate flavoring. It doesn’t taste like exactly like chocolate but it does work as a substitute.<br> * On a diet? Carob contain just 1/3rd of the calories of chocolate.<br> * Even if you are allergic to chocolate, you can usually eat Carob.<br> <br> Henry asked Jean what she was going to do after her imminent retirement. And boy does she have plans! Not only has she been running a business all these years, but she also does book-binding, writes children’s books, AND writes craft books as well. So she has a lot going on.<br> Have you ever heard of “Quilling”?<br> I, Kathe, had never heard of this before, but Jean has written a book on it <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Quilling-Beauties-Bush-Jean-Woolston-Hamey/dp/0731807855/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1495922226&sr=1-4&keywords=beauty+and+the+bush" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quilling Beauties of the Bush</a>. You may have heard of it, but it’s basically a way to make beautiful 3D pictures out of paper. Basically, you use strips of paper and then roll or shape them, and glue them together.<br> Then you loop, curl, and twist the paper until it makes something beautiful.<br> Quilling creates greeting cards, jewelry, or pretty much anything that you want to make in a 3D manner.<br> I (Kathe) found the quilling part of the interview to be fascinating. It was fun to learn a little about a hobby that I’d never heard of. Of course once I looked it up, I realized that I had seen the finished works of these artists.<br> If you are in Australia you can purchase Jean’s tasty treats at <a href="http://www.carobana.com.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">http://www.carobana.com.au/</a>. And you can purchase her quilling books anywhere in the world on Amazon.<br> Have you ever done quilling or eaten carob? Let us know what you think in the comments below.<br> Special Thanks to:<br> <br> * Angie Strehlow who helps us get great guests that help us with our retirement lifestyle while keeping everything on track…and helps with these show notes!<br> * Les Briney, my husband, and Danny Ozment of Emerald City Pro who edits the show and makes my guests and me sound terrific<br> * Henry Shapiro, host of Retired Excited that airs on Fridays<br> * YOU for telling your friends about the show, leaving comments below, and sharing episodes you really like on Facebook, and <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/rockyourretirements-podcast/id1090807493?mt=2">reviewing the show on iTunes</a><br> <br>
