Squirrelly Notes

Sometimes I hate life.

That's all I wanted to say. Today was not a good day.

More Bad News for Animals

>When will people realize that by eating animal products, they support this abhorrent behavior?

WAR, it's not the President's decision.

Call your congressman and ask them to vote against more war escalation.

Annual Health Exam Returns Promising Results

I had my annual health exam Monday and this year for some reason, the results came back fast (at least for me, Joe is still waiting for his.)  I was curious to see if being vegan for 11 weeks would yield any noticeable results. The one thing I was most concerned about was the 'C-reactive protein' which had taken a HUGE jump last year. It was supposed to be in a range between 0.00-3.00. Last year mine was 18.85   YIKES!!  This protein is an indicator of inflammation in the body and is related to 'cardiac', though I don't understand it completely.   This year, though still out of range, my level had  come down to 5.92. Five or six other indicators of kidney function that had been abnormal, have now normalized. Cholesterol (184) is only one point lower, yet tricglycerides are up a little (maybe because I weighed in 7 pounds heavier this year since I had been dieting last year.)  So it will be interesting next year to see what happens.

You'd think being vegan, I would have dropped tons of weight, but actually I went up 3 pounds. Since starting to drink a gallon of water everyday, over 2 of those 3, have dropped off again. I'm hoping this starts the trend I'm looking for - the numbers are certainly pointing that direction.

Do NOT Shop At, or Support, 'Petland'

Sicko employee and manager kill bunnies and apparently enjoy it enough to post it on Facebook.

http://blog.peta.org/archives/2009/08/bunnies_drowned.php

Healthcare Forum Is Anything But

Joe and I attended a not-so-democratic healthcare forum tonight that was to be a civil discussion on the proposed healthcare legislation - an opportunity for the public to ask questions, express concerns, etc.  About 250 - 300 people in the room, hundreds of people did not get in. I'd already heard about various forums around the country that were closer to unruly brawls, but I'd heard that this one was going to be more controlled. My friend, Dianne,  said she knew we were in trouble when many in the crowd yelled "UNDER GOD" during the pledge of allegiance.
Joe got there early and tried to save Dianne and I a seat, but as it filled up he couldn't hold them any longer. Joe gave me his seat and he stood with Dianne along the wall. Our Representative Kathy Castor took the floor and  asked that people listen for FIVE minutes, and then would be the time for questions. The listening lasted about 30 seconds at best. People shouting out, booing and thumbs-downing her - I couldn't believe it. It was so incredibly rude and childish - what were these people thinking? The crowd that was not allowed in due to limited space, stood in the hall and were yelling also. The lone police officer started to shut the double door since they couldn't be civil and you couldn't hear the speaker. It took numerous additional hands to get the door closed because the mob outside was not going to allow it. When the door closed, the banging on the door started - and the chanting. I could not believe that this was the 21st century, that there couldn't be a peaceable meeting. We literally were fearful for our well-being, it was rapidly becoming apparent that this group could get way out of hand.   Next thing I knew, some people in the center isle were bordering on an actual fight, instantly others rushed in to take pictures - it was like the paparazzi.  These protesters were rabid. Their whole mission was to deny any discussion or debate. It's too bad that their mission wasn't to offer alternatives to what they see as a bad idea, but I guess that's asking too much.  Logic was missing. At one point Ms. Castor was pointing out that we all have SOME opinions in common. Such as, 'There's probably no one in this room who wants to see Insurance companies continue to reap rising profits at our expense.'  (Now, you'd think this is a no brainer right? Guess again.) The crowd went wild yelling YES and then shouting at Castor. Apparently they like to keep paying higher insurance premiums. Was I in a dream?  Am I really hearing this correctly?  These people are friggin' NUTS!!  A couple families we knew who had taken their kids there were fearful enough to leave early.  As things were being thrown at the windows from outside, protesters along the wall pulled up the blinds so that the signs they were not allowed to bring in, could be held against the glass and be seen.
We too, decided to get out before the unthinkable happened. I've never been in a situation before where I actually feared for my safety. This took the cake.
We were told by someone who stayed until the end, that  additional police were called in. In riot gear. Scary stuff.
The Insurance lobby is behind all of this. Spending millions a day to fight healthcare reform, it's obvious who stands to lose the most - the very companies that charge us an arm and a leg for diminishing quality healthcare. We may not want to pay for a healthcare system. Sadly, we've been paying all along.

The local coverage shows our meeting tonight. Click on 'Video', then the play arrow under the video. If you watch the middle segment, you will see Joe standing by the wall where they focus on a sign outside the window. The irate blond woman who claims to have been there since 3:00 is lying. Joe got there at 5:00 and was in before there were very many people in there. The back door was not visible from the front door, and the front door remained open until it was closed with a struggle during the meeting.

The news video below reveals the names behind these mobs.

New Family Room Addition

We've been talking about doing this for awhile. The while finally arrived. When Joe suggested cutting down the entertainment center, I thought he was nuts. But it worked!  And it worked well. We set out to buy a 42" tv and came home with a 47". It was only $100 more - which we actually ended up not having to pay because of a misquote by our first salesman. So when we checked out, they took off the $100 that they under-quoted.
























How did we get it home? Believe it or not, it fit in my Fit.

A Fun Time With The Mattress

Are you curious? Or scared? No need to be. There's been a transformation of the sleeping kind.  We've been trying to get rid of this king size mattress for several months, a Simmons Beauty Rest  'Do Not Disturb Mattress' with individual coil springs inside all hooked together. It was fairly pricey. But nobody wanted it. Recently, Joe has had a sore back - he thinks from sleeping on our one-of-a-kind air bed (coleman air mattresses with a 2" Tempurpedic topper on top).  We had stopped using the Simmons mattress because it's very firm and my shoulders were aching whenever I'd sleep on my side - there just wasn't enough 'give' to it. But now that Joe doesn't like the airbed, he was ready to shop for a twin mattress for his side of the bed.

I decided to see if I could soften the shoulder area of the mattress so that I'd be comfortable on it again.  I tried separating some of the coils from each other by cutting the fabric that tied them together but it didn't seem to make any difference - I think, because the coils themselves were just too stiff. But seeing how it was made, I could see that it wouldn't be that hard to make the mattress smaller - saving us the cost of a new one.

I separated and rolled back the covering and cut through the fabric to release half the coils from the other half.

Cutting the wire framing.

Metal rings were what held it together, but thank god for zip-ties!

All the layers back in place, ready for sutures! No wait....hot glue!

Edges glued......drum roll please......

A perfectly new twin mattress (well, almost new) There's always a transformation waiting to happen.

First Time For Swiss Chard.........BLECH!!!!

It's supposed to be very healthy for you but it's like chewing on soft leather. Joe said he'd rather "take a pill".
 The rest of the dinner was sweet potato fries, corn obviously, and a black bean side dish.

Meet Your Meat.

If this bothers you, you shouldn't be eating meat.

Kentucky Fried Chicken Shameful

Only recently have my eyes been opened to the abuses of animals at factory farms just so that I could eat chicken. Never again. Unfortunately, the abuse extends to cows, pigs, fish, and other birds. Are we really this hungry?

A Vegan's Dinner

Black Bean Burger
Szechuan Greenbeans
Coleslaw

Yuuuum Yum. Very tasty and filling too!

A New Blood Analysis, Good News

Remember this picture from February?  Linked red blood cells overlapping, big chunks of plaque among other smaller indicators - it was bad, somewhat scary news for me. Having the tiniest drop of blood analyzed under a microscope they found poor digestion of proteins,  liver stress, plaque and fungus in my blood. The 'fix' they told me was pretty easy.  Take digestive enzymes 4 times a day, oregano oil for the fungus and probiotics to help with all of that. I was faithful on this regimen for about 3 weeks and then became less regimented - sometimes missing days at a time. Then something would remind me and I'd start taking them again. I didn't know what to expect this time, I was just hoping for some improvement - I didn't want to see that it had gotten worse.

WOW!  I was thrilled!  The red blood cells are free and moving around like they're supposed to. There was NO sign of plaque, NO sign of liver stress and the fungus was better, but not gone. He said there's more oxygen in the blood now and no sign of Iron deficiency.  I couldn't believe it! The guy kept saying, "This is pretty good really, it's looking good."  So I'll continue on the regimen and see what happens next time, but I completely expect even better results. Another possible contributor to the better report could be that I have not been eating animal products. Yes, I'm going Vegan! Not vegetarian, vegan.  I didn't know the difference myself until recently, but vegetarian refers to not eating meat, vegan means not eating animal products at all -  I.E., milk, cheese, eggs.  Truthfully, I will be an 'almost' vegan. I've decided I'm not giving up honey, which apparently vegans don't eat either.  So what inspired us to do this - you ask?  A friend named John who had started it a few months ago. John is thinner now, says he feels good and has more energy.  He pointed us to a couple great books, 'The China Study' and 'Thrive Diet'. 

The China Study by T. Colin Campbell, PhD & Thomas M. Campbell II

In a nutshell, this book covers 30 years of study revealing that many of our health woes, including all cancers, are magnified immensely by a particular protein, 'casien' - which comes from animals.  Proteins in plant foods do not do this, and in fact, do the opposite. Bottom line, we need to eat lots of vegetables, fruit, and whole grains and if we're smart, no animal products. I know from dentistry that our teeth were not designed for meat-eating.

So, there you have it. At 53, my diet is changing, and probably  just in time.

For a MUCH better description of the book contents, read John Vaughn's comment below, and click the link for his posting about it.

I Have Too Much Time - My Splash In The Kitchen & A New Car

I know by the title you must have thought  'huh'?  We'll start with the car. It's Ben's. It's nice. And it sucks that he's got the nicest car in the family. I am so jealous. But actually, we're proud of him. Apparently he's been saving his money and decided to take the plunge. He talked to people, researched and decided on a 2009 Hyundai Sonata. And, there was a manufacturer rebate of $3000 and a dealer rebate of $1800, so it worked out well. Anybody want to buy a 1997 Lexus that looks like it's been 'ridden hard and put away wet' (as they say) but runs real well?  Yeah, well, just let us know ok?

I haven't had any work recently so as you know, I've been doing a little painting. And one project leads to another sooooo....... You see this single color backsplash? Go ahead....click the picture.....there ya go. Well, we don't like it so I decided to change it. Can't afford real tile right now, so I had to go with the 'faux'. Treatment that is, faux treatment. I'd seen this particular treatment done on walls before but never on tile. So, new challenge - And I think it's going to work! It's basically done now except for letting the glue cure for a week, and then I'll coat it with polyurethane.  Take a look and see if you can tell what it is. Put your color-shock-proof glasses on because it isn't boring any more!

It was done with tissue paper. Yes, that flimsy excuse for paper and a product called Mod Podge - which is used for paper mache objects. 'What's next' you ask?  Hmmm, don't know. But I'll show you if I do something else. I think I need to finish whipping the backyard into shape.

FYI, I am scheduled to have another blood analysis on June 9th.

Former Interragator Rebukes Cheney's Torture 'Life-Saving' Claims

More Space in the Kitchen!

There's always been only two things I didn't like about this house. The master bathroom has no counter space - which can't be remedied without knocking out walls, and the kitchen hasn't had enough storage space, but this is now changed!  Since it's open to the family room, there are only three sizable upper cabinets in our kitchen and it's isn't enough!  There is a small pantry but it too is very small. Though Joe loved having the little bistro table in the kitchen to sit at, it now lives on the lanai and actually looks good there too. Only minutes ago, the countertop installer left and it is done!  I love it!  It has added atleast 50% more storage and 7' of added counter-space. I've already moved into it. I don't have to take all the spices out of the cupboard anymore to find what I'm looking for, or go to the laundry room to get paper towels or napkins, or go to the garage to get the canned goods I need. It's now all in the room it should be in. Everybody's happy.

This is how the wall used to look.

My Mother's Day Bouquet

 ...From Ben. Ben and Jaqueline were in an obstacle race in Orlando today called 'Muddy Buddy'. So we'll spend some time with Ben next weekend instead of this weekend.  But I was very surprised yesterday when the doorbell rang and UPS had left a box of flowers for me. I'm so lucky Ben is so kind and thoughtful.

I too, was in Orlando today but not doing something nearly as exciting. I went to a dental seminar. I can't say that I learned a whole lot but I saw a lot of dental people I know and got to meet the people from a lab that I just recently started doing some work for, they even bought me lunch! I also saw someone who claims he'll need a ceramist in a couple months and who says he'll be calling me. So if I get even one new client out of it, the trip was not wasted.

 Well, you all know how much I like to paint - at least until I'm in the middle of paint hell,  and then I have to remind myself that I like painting.  Do I?  Do I really? I decided to tackle the family-room/kitchen area. It was of course already painted but I wanted to tweak the color just a little -  a little more orange-ish as opposed to the yellow. Long story short, three walls were washed with a colored glaze. I couldn't get it the way that I wanted so I had to completely repaint with the original color, do the antiquing, and then do the orange wash.  When I was using the glaze (which is a very thinned-out color) I couldn't see it very well when I started out. So I added more! Then it dried. Dark. After living with it for a few days, we decided it was TOO orange. I have now redone all those walls AGAIN and they are finally done. Ay-yi-yi, I could have painted the whole house by now.

I think our summer is here. We went along for months in the 70's and 80's (perfect) and then all of a sudden it got hot. But it's been dry so it's really not even like summer yet because the humidity's low. There's a SEVERE water shortage here and they keep lessening our watering times. We're not even allowed to wash our cars anymore unless we go to a commercial place that recycle's it's water. We can only water our lawns one day a week in a four hour span, midnight to 4am.  The fine is $200 if you're caught watering outside that time. Needless to say, the lawns are drying up, as are the ponds, the rivers....... Oddly, the local energy company has been give the thumbs up to build two nuclear power plants that will each need ONE MILLION GALLONS OF WATER EVERY DAY. Obviously those that stand to make money don't care about water shortages.

We have some new neighbors who along with our friends across the street, and the people behind them, give us a nice social network right here in the neighborhood. It's very handy to be able to imbibe in some libations and then just walk home. I think mojitos have become the neighborhood favorite. When the new neighbors had a house warming/Birthday party, we gave them a lime tree and rum, and some other neighbors gave them mint

The cats are well, they even had a little fun with a snake in the garage the other day. It was just a black racer, nothing to worry about. But imagine my surprise when I was out there to grab a pair of the blue latex gloves for painting and a snake skin came out with gloves!  I'm just glad there was no snake in there!  I'm a little more cautious while walking barefoot in the garage now. (Monica, I know you're shaking right now :)

FYI: I have not yet had another blood analysis, so I have no update on that yet.

Nutritional Blood Analysis - YIKES!!!!

    At a local health food store I noticed a sign for an upcoming blood analysis clinic where by just from taking a drop of your blood, they can tell you about your nutritional health - or unhealth. The cost was $50, so I signed up! 'What could it hurt?... I thought. I have issues; digestive unrest, itchy skin, tight aching muscles - maybe they'll tell me something I don't know and can point me in a positive direction. So today was the day. I told Joe before I left that I was going to refuse to fill out a bunch of paperwork and then have them tell me things based on what I wrote. I was happy to find out the only thing to fill out was contact information. 
    So after a minor prick of the finger, smeared on a glass slide and put under a powerful microscope, Bubbles!!!  No, turns out those are my red blood cells - which I'm happy to report  I have!. But instead of being free-floating, they were all clumped together and in long chains. Right away he says those chains and clumps are from undigested protein making things hard on the heart, and can cause high blood pressue!  Amid all the clumping was a random white blood cell - a good thing. Then there were some random red blood cells that looked like cheerios (he called them donuts). Those, he said are red blood cells that didn't have enough iron to form completely, OR, it can be that I'm not digesting iron properly. (Did I mention that by age 50 our bodies produce only about half the origianl digestive enzymes as when we were  young - uh, I mean, younger?) There were some small irregular spots which he said is fungus. There were also spots of undigested sugar - which shows the inability to digest carbs and sugars. At that point, he asked me if I crave sugar. Ha! Silly question! There were some large jagged cells (which looked more like large islands) that they refer to as 'PAIN'  - mainly to muscles and joints - those are uric acid crystals. Ok, I know all about uric acid, or at least my left foot does!
    The good news in all of this is that a few supplements (some of them temporary) will undo this wickedness. Also good news to me, is that a lot of my physical complaints were answered today. But I've saved the best for last, which is not really good news, but sort of good news - shocking so-to-speak is this picture (click to enlarge).

See that very large splotch in the middle? That is arterial plaque!  OH MY GOD!!  He said THAT is what causes heart attacks and strokes when those cells are bigger than a red blood cell. As you can see it's WAY bigger. The good news is that getting the digestion fixed will dissolve this free-floating plaque. So $165 in supplements later, I'm ready to heal!  Hopefully I won't drop of a heart attack first!
    I had read in another health book that once you hit middle age you should take digestive enzymes with every meal - good ones! Today I learned you should take one at bed time too. Who knew?

Guests Visit, Bamboo Disappears, A Peaceful New Years

A post Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!
As the clock ticked closer to Christmas, we anxiously awaited Will (Ben's adopted brother), and his girlfriend Tracy's arrival. They flew into Orlando Xmas eve. evening and Joe and I picked them up because unfortunately Ben had to work late - (long story). Will and I texted back and forth while they were on the ground two different times before ending in Orlando. It was obvious we were all looking forward to seeing each other again. Because of an unfortunate fiasco at Ben's work-place requiring him to put in over 80 hours Xmas week, Will and Tracy ended up staying at our house 5 nights. We watched movies, drank and played Catch Phrase until wee hours in the morning - good times! 
Toward the end of their stay we had dinner down at the Hurricane restaurant in hopes of catching a good sunset, however there was a pretty heavy bank of clouds out over the gulf and we only got a little bit of color - which was quite pretty anyway.  This first pic is Ben and Jacqueline, Will and Tracy, and on the left, Ben's room mate Josh. I love this picture! It was really fun getting to spend time with all of them. (They even invited us to join them for another dinner the next night).

 

 

Joe had the week off and so we did what any two derranged people would do with their time off, we dug out the rest of the bamboo - which I now think of as bambooboo. Poor Joe did the hard part - cutting a slice (about a foot deep) through woody roots and down the two sides between the roots and steel flashing. Then he got to ("got to" - ha!) dig and pry that peice loose so we could pull it out! Then he got to carry it to the wheel barrow and come back to do it again! What did I do you ask?? I held the canes so they didn't poke Joe in the eyes. It was quite gruelling, really. After two days of that, we rented a truck and hauled it all off to the recycling facility. It was quite a site going down the road.

Will and Tracy are on their way home as I type. When they left here I cried telling Will goodbye. I wasn't planning it but he feels like family. I know how uncomfortable it made the three of them feel, but ya know, I felt a little awkward myself. I look forward to his next visit!

World Peace Christmas Wreath

So I've been wanting to do this for a couple years and finally got around to doing it. Good thing I didn't have any work to do this week (not really a good thing) or I'd STILL be working on it. This was one of those build as you go projects. I made the framework with PVC to start, but it snapped, not flexible enough. So I used flex water pipe, wrapped it with green duct tape (in hind-sight I would have spray painted it), put the garland on with wire, the lights on with wire - and tape in places and lastly, put the cloth map on with lots of strands of nylon rope. Have you ever done something you were so excited about and so sick of by the end you could hardly stand it? I am so glad it's done. But I'm pretty happy with it. Europe isn't the best representation, but oh well! Now let's see how well it holds up outside. Peace.