Wow! Have I been off the map for a while.
Got a new job and it has taken me some time to adjust to it.
Also I'm not convinced that the new job is for me and that is important to one's overall health.
One of the famous Chinese philosophers - I think it was Chuang Tzu - said that if you consider the job that
you have in life to be toil, you should put a knife through your heart. Pretty drastic huh? Not really when you think about it!
If you hate what you do, you are spending one-third of your life toiling, another third of your life sleeping, and most of
the remainder of your life coming and going between these two activities. Not happy healthy behavior!
What can you do about hating your job? Learn to like it? No! The simple answer is to find a new and better one.
The reality of this is less than simple. It takes work, time, and committment. But if you succeed it is well worth the effort.
I know people who quit high-paying jobs they hated for lower paying jobs they enjoyed. There's more to the quality of life than
money and the things money can buy. Don't get me wrong. Money is useful and important. But it's not the root of all evil, the love of it is.
Be well!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Saturday August 08
Just ruminating about the joys and perils of alcohol.
There were and are many drinkers in my extended family - Grandfather, uncles, brother, and sister. My parents don't drink a drop. Never did. Neither do I, but I'm not some kind of holier-than-thou anti-drinking advocate. I believe that drinking in moderation is quite acceptable. There are, however, few people that I know who truly drink moderately.
Drinking alcoholic beverages is well know to most cultures on earth... and most suffer the same consequences. Families torn apart by drunkeness and irresponsible behavior, jobs lost, friendships broken. Not to mention innocent people run down by drunken drivers.
And yet, for some reason, there are countless jokes and lighthearted stories involving drunks, that cut across all cultures.
My drinking friends have the following rules governing their drinking conduct:
1) They only drink after hours....hour, after hour, after hour!
2) They only drink on special occasions. Happy Wednesday!
3) They quit drinking when they can no longer count to zero! and
4) They only drink when they are alone or with someone!
Very droll!
There are actual places in Canada where 80% of discretionary income goes towards alcohol consumption. Like Newfoundland in Canada's far east. I knew one Newfoundlander who took a vacation to Florida one year and never left his hotel room for two weeks. He landed at the airport, booked into his hotel, went to a corner store that sold packaged goods (what alcoholic beverages are called in some places), bought $250 worth of mixed drinks and beer and stayed in his room for the entire vacation. He never went out, never went to the beach, never even went to the hotel bar. Just stayed in his room, watched TV and drank. I asked him what the point was of going all the way to Florida to engage in such activity. He said it was nice to get away from home! Amazing! He has since passed away. The following Newfie joke sums it up best.
This Newfoundlander was stranded on a desert island for years. Walking along the beach one day he happened to kick over a bottle buried in the sand. When he brushed the sand off the bottle a Genie appeared and said that he would grant him any three wishes his heart desired.
The Newf looked at the bottle that the Genie came out of and, picking it up, said "I wish that this bottle was filled with Old Sam rum and that it would never run dry!"
"Done!" replied the Genie, and the bottle was instantly filled to the brim with rum. "My God a'night" said the Newfie taking a big pull on the bottle. The bottle instantly refilled itself. "Lord Tunderin'" said the Newfie taking another long drink. "Wonderful grand" he shouted taking another swallow.
"Hello?!" said the Genie. "Is anybody home?"
"What do you mean?" replied the Newfie.
"What I mean is you have two more wishes left. Get on with it will you?"
"Alright" replied the Newfie. "Gimme two more bottles the same as the first one!"
If that doesn't say it all, nothing does.
Where this blog is about health and well-being I will sum up my feelings on the entire matter of alcohol by saying that, in general terms, it is very bad for you. Only because it so often leads to excess. Excessive drinking damages your body inside and out. It addles your thinking processes, impairs your judgement, and slows your reflexes. Over time it kills brain cells, damages the liver, and clearly and visibly ages the user.
Every day across North America and the world many innocent people are killed and maimed by drunk drivers. Many countries now consider drunken driving as an assault with a deadly weapon. Leave alcohol alone and you will be better off for it.
Be well!
There were and are many drinkers in my extended family - Grandfather, uncles, brother, and sister. My parents don't drink a drop. Never did. Neither do I, but I'm not some kind of holier-than-thou anti-drinking advocate. I believe that drinking in moderation is quite acceptable. There are, however, few people that I know who truly drink moderately.
Drinking alcoholic beverages is well know to most cultures on earth... and most suffer the same consequences. Families torn apart by drunkeness and irresponsible behavior, jobs lost, friendships broken. Not to mention innocent people run down by drunken drivers.
And yet, for some reason, there are countless jokes and lighthearted stories involving drunks, that cut across all cultures.
My drinking friends have the following rules governing their drinking conduct:
1) They only drink after hours....hour, after hour, after hour!
2) They only drink on special occasions. Happy Wednesday!
3) They quit drinking when they can no longer count to zero! and
4) They only drink when they are alone or with someone!
Very droll!
There are actual places in Canada where 80% of discretionary income goes towards alcohol consumption. Like Newfoundland in Canada's far east. I knew one Newfoundlander who took a vacation to Florida one year and never left his hotel room for two weeks. He landed at the airport, booked into his hotel, went to a corner store that sold packaged goods (what alcoholic beverages are called in some places), bought $250 worth of mixed drinks and beer and stayed in his room for the entire vacation. He never went out, never went to the beach, never even went to the hotel bar. Just stayed in his room, watched TV and drank. I asked him what the point was of going all the way to Florida to engage in such activity. He said it was nice to get away from home! Amazing! He has since passed away. The following Newfie joke sums it up best.
This Newfoundlander was stranded on a desert island for years. Walking along the beach one day he happened to kick over a bottle buried in the sand. When he brushed the sand off the bottle a Genie appeared and said that he would grant him any three wishes his heart desired.
The Newf looked at the bottle that the Genie came out of and, picking it up, said "I wish that this bottle was filled with Old Sam rum and that it would never run dry!"
"Done!" replied the Genie, and the bottle was instantly filled to the brim with rum. "My God a'night" said the Newfie taking a big pull on the bottle. The bottle instantly refilled itself. "Lord Tunderin'" said the Newfie taking another long drink. "Wonderful grand" he shouted taking another swallow.
"Hello?!" said the Genie. "Is anybody home?"
"What do you mean?" replied the Newfie.
"What I mean is you have two more wishes left. Get on with it will you?"
"Alright" replied the Newfie. "Gimme two more bottles the same as the first one!"
If that doesn't say it all, nothing does.
Where this blog is about health and well-being I will sum up my feelings on the entire matter of alcohol by saying that, in general terms, it is very bad for you. Only because it so often leads to excess. Excessive drinking damages your body inside and out. It addles your thinking processes, impairs your judgement, and slows your reflexes. Over time it kills brain cells, damages the liver, and clearly and visibly ages the user.
Every day across North America and the world many innocent people are killed and maimed by drunk drivers. Many countries now consider drunken driving as an assault with a deadly weapon. Leave alcohol alone and you will be better off for it.
Be well!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Friday July 31
All over the news!
Don't get a Swine Flu vaccination. It can kill you and will do little or nothing to help you. In fact there is researched opinion that all flu shots do more bad than good.
The powers that be won't confirm it but there is every indication that the vaccination shots that children get at 2 months, 4 months, and 6 months, are largely responsible for an epidemic of autism. Look at the figures! Just 30 years ago the incidence of autism was one in thousands. Today it's one in one hundred and sixty children. Autism is brought on by the mercury in the innoculation. There are now cases of families winning big legal settlements where their children developed autism immediately after a vaccination.
If you are dealing with the heartbreak of autism in your family I would suggest that you read the definitive book on the subject by Donna Williams, entitled Nobody Nowhere. Donna is herself a high-functioning autistic.
Infant Sudden Death Syndrome has also been linked to innoculation and booster shots.
Clinical studies actually reveal that all flu shots are, in fact, worse for you than getting no shots at all. But that doesn't stop the system from pushing them on us. They push us to take shots when we travel overseas.They pressure us to allow them to give shots to our children in school, actually threatening to pull our kids from school should there be an influenza epidemic. In Barbados, in the West Indies, nurses go door-to-door making sure that you and your family didn't miss your shots at school or elsewhere.
Go online and do some research of your own.
My advice is to forget the shots and be well!
Don't get a Swine Flu vaccination. It can kill you and will do little or nothing to help you. In fact there is researched opinion that all flu shots do more bad than good.
The powers that be won't confirm it but there is every indication that the vaccination shots that children get at 2 months, 4 months, and 6 months, are largely responsible for an epidemic of autism. Look at the figures! Just 30 years ago the incidence of autism was one in thousands. Today it's one in one hundred and sixty children. Autism is brought on by the mercury in the innoculation. There are now cases of families winning big legal settlements where their children developed autism immediately after a vaccination.
If you are dealing with the heartbreak of autism in your family I would suggest that you read the definitive book on the subject by Donna Williams, entitled Nobody Nowhere. Donna is herself a high-functioning autistic.
Infant Sudden Death Syndrome has also been linked to innoculation and booster shots.
Clinical studies actually reveal that all flu shots are, in fact, worse for you than getting no shots at all. But that doesn't stop the system from pushing them on us. They push us to take shots when we travel overseas.They pressure us to allow them to give shots to our children in school, actually threatening to pull our kids from school should there be an influenza epidemic. In Barbados, in the West Indies, nurses go door-to-door making sure that you and your family didn't miss your shots at school or elsewhere.
Go online and do some research of your own.
My advice is to forget the shots and be well!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Thursday July 30
Just reading about how many sick children there are in the modern western world. Little wonder with all of the chemical garbage we throw at them.
Take flourides for example. A bi-product of the production of aluminum it is absolutely poisonous. It's not good for your teeth or the teeth of your children. Yet toothpastes worldwide have a flouride component and we send our kids to the dentist for a flouride treatment. The whole issue behind flouride involves fraudulent science. Check it out on the Internet by browsing "The Flouride Deception."
Airborn flourides have caused more worldwide damage to domestic animals than any other air pollutant. Flourides cause attention deficit disorder (ADD) and hyperactivity. Look at the magnitude of ADD and hyperactive children around today. It's an epidemic.
Children under 9 years of age, in ever increasing numbers, are also becoming sick with a variety of cancers and respiratory illnesses that were unheard of in bygone days. It's as simple as the chemicals we surround and bombard them with.
Just take inventory of the products in your home. The oven cleaners, countertop cleaners, air fresheners, wipes, sink un-cloggers, bleaches and other caustic products. We're placing our children on the front lines of an all out chemical attack. There are growing numbers of safe, organic products on the market - some by the very same companies that brought you the chemical soup in the first place. Find a healthy alternative. Our children deserve the best we can give them.
Speaking of children.
Bill, a Newfoundlander, was out fishing off of the Grand Banks, when his wife, back home in St. John's, gave birth to twins. As is the tradition in Newfoundland, when a man is not present for the birth of his children, his brother is asked to stand in and name them. Bill had a boy and a girl and his brother Reg named them.
When Bill returned home, he rushed to his wife's side, only to find her and the new arrivals healthy and happy. "So my brother Reg named the kids? he said to his wife. "Yes" she replied. "Oh no!" exclaimed Bill "everyone knows my brother's an idiot! What did he name the girl?"
"He named her 'Denise'" replied his wife. "Denise! Denise. Not bad! Not bad!
What did he name the boy then?"
Keeping her composure his wife replied "Da Nephew!"
Be well!
Take flourides for example. A bi-product of the production of aluminum it is absolutely poisonous. It's not good for your teeth or the teeth of your children. Yet toothpastes worldwide have a flouride component and we send our kids to the dentist for a flouride treatment. The whole issue behind flouride involves fraudulent science. Check it out on the Internet by browsing "The Flouride Deception."
Airborn flourides have caused more worldwide damage to domestic animals than any other air pollutant. Flourides cause attention deficit disorder (ADD) and hyperactivity. Look at the magnitude of ADD and hyperactive children around today. It's an epidemic.
Children under 9 years of age, in ever increasing numbers, are also becoming sick with a variety of cancers and respiratory illnesses that were unheard of in bygone days. It's as simple as the chemicals we surround and bombard them with.
Just take inventory of the products in your home. The oven cleaners, countertop cleaners, air fresheners, wipes, sink un-cloggers, bleaches and other caustic products. We're placing our children on the front lines of an all out chemical attack. There are growing numbers of safe, organic products on the market - some by the very same companies that brought you the chemical soup in the first place. Find a healthy alternative. Our children deserve the best we can give them.
Speaking of children.
Bill, a Newfoundlander, was out fishing off of the Grand Banks, when his wife, back home in St. John's, gave birth to twins. As is the tradition in Newfoundland, when a man is not present for the birth of his children, his brother is asked to stand in and name them. Bill had a boy and a girl and his brother Reg named them.
When Bill returned home, he rushed to his wife's side, only to find her and the new arrivals healthy and happy. "So my brother Reg named the kids? he said to his wife. "Yes" she replied. "Oh no!" exclaimed Bill "everyone knows my brother's an idiot! What did he name the girl?"
"He named her 'Denise'" replied his wife. "Denise! Denise. Not bad! Not bad!
What did he name the boy then?"
Keeping her composure his wife replied "Da Nephew!"
Be well!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Monday July 27
Franken-corn approved!
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has approved a genetically modified corn named SmartStax. I call it Franken-corn!
SmartStax has eight different insect- and weed-fighting genetically engineered traits that will allow the corn to tolerate certain weed and insect-killing products.
The research agreement on this corn is between Monsanto and Dow Agro-Sciences. The irony is that the insecticides that the SmartStax corn is protected from - RoundUp, glufosinate, and insecticidal proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis - are produced and sold by Monsanto and Dow Agro-Sciences. The CFIA has approved this Franken-corn with its 8-stack of genetically engineered traits without an environmental assessment.
The thing that rots my socks is that this Franken-corn will hit the shelves of supermarkets and grocery stores across the country (and the world?) with no tag or flag or notice to the public that it's a genetically engineered product. Lucy Charratt, co-ordinator of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network, said "You'd think that a combination of 8 GE traits would trigger an environmental assessment, but the CFIA has provided no public record of their evaluation."
What a surprise! The poet John Milton wrote the following words around 1650.
"The hungry sheep look up and are not fed.
But swollen by the winds and the rank mist they draw,
rot inward, and foul contagion spread."
Most of us will just take what they give us. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
The only safe course of action is to buy organic produce from a reputable dealer.
If you think I'm overreacting to this Franken-corn issue, read on!
In May The American Academy of Environmental Medicine said that genetically modified foods pose a serious health risk and called for an immediate moratorium on their production and consumption. You can read the AAEM report at: www.aaemonline.org
Be well!
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has approved a genetically modified corn named SmartStax. I call it Franken-corn!
SmartStax has eight different insect- and weed-fighting genetically engineered traits that will allow the corn to tolerate certain weed and insect-killing products.
The research agreement on this corn is between Monsanto and Dow Agro-Sciences. The irony is that the insecticides that the SmartStax corn is protected from - RoundUp, glufosinate, and insecticidal proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis - are produced and sold by Monsanto and Dow Agro-Sciences. The CFIA has approved this Franken-corn with its 8-stack of genetically engineered traits without an environmental assessment.
The thing that rots my socks is that this Franken-corn will hit the shelves of supermarkets and grocery stores across the country (and the world?) with no tag or flag or notice to the public that it's a genetically engineered product. Lucy Charratt, co-ordinator of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network, said "You'd think that a combination of 8 GE traits would trigger an environmental assessment, but the CFIA has provided no public record of their evaluation."
What a surprise! The poet John Milton wrote the following words around 1650.
"The hungry sheep look up and are not fed.
But swollen by the winds and the rank mist they draw,
rot inward, and foul contagion spread."
Most of us will just take what they give us. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
The only safe course of action is to buy organic produce from a reputable dealer.
If you think I'm overreacting to this Franken-corn issue, read on!
In May The American Academy of Environmental Medicine said that genetically modified foods pose a serious health risk and called for an immediate moratorium on their production and consumption. You can read the AAEM report at: www.aaemonline.org
Be well!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Thursday July 23
It's a dog's life!
Just looked out the window and saw two neighbors walking their dogs, or maybe saw two dogs walking the neighbors. It's easy for an animal to turn the tables on an emotional level.
Comic Paula Poundstone said that she was "one failed relationship away from being one of those women with 15 dogs." Many people with emotional problems accumulate pets and dote on them like they were their children. It's easy to fall into that pattern.
Someone said "to err is human, to forgive Canine." There's a lot of truth in this. You can kick a dog in the slats and treat it poorly and it will come back for a rub, and give you a lick, and repay your cruelty with a show of love and affection. Better, of course, that you treat all animals with love and respect. Modern civilization owes much to the dog and the horse, and the dog continues to play a mighty role in today's society. If you are an emotionally balanced individual you will bond with your dog and he/she will be an integral part of your family. A wonderful example, in fact, of unquestioned love and loyalty.
Take things too far and you end up with dogs in swimwear and sun glasses at the beach, and fur coats and boots in the winter. Dogs that sleep in your bed and eat at your table. Having a dog in your life can make and keep you well. It can also amplfy your emotional neediness and promote antisocial behaviour. Don't bring a dog into your life if you are not ready for the responsibilities attached and if you lack the emotional stability to keep the role it will play in your life to a calm, sane, and loving relationship.
Be well!
Just looked out the window and saw two neighbors walking their dogs, or maybe saw two dogs walking the neighbors. It's easy for an animal to turn the tables on an emotional level.
Comic Paula Poundstone said that she was "one failed relationship away from being one of those women with 15 dogs." Many people with emotional problems accumulate pets and dote on them like they were their children. It's easy to fall into that pattern.
Someone said "to err is human, to forgive Canine." There's a lot of truth in this. You can kick a dog in the slats and treat it poorly and it will come back for a rub, and give you a lick, and repay your cruelty with a show of love and affection. Better, of course, that you treat all animals with love and respect. Modern civilization owes much to the dog and the horse, and the dog continues to play a mighty role in today's society. If you are an emotionally balanced individual you will bond with your dog and he/she will be an integral part of your family. A wonderful example, in fact, of unquestioned love and loyalty.
Take things too far and you end up with dogs in swimwear and sun glasses at the beach, and fur coats and boots in the winter. Dogs that sleep in your bed and eat at your table. Having a dog in your life can make and keep you well. It can also amplfy your emotional neediness and promote antisocial behaviour. Don't bring a dog into your life if you are not ready for the responsibilities attached and if you lack the emotional stability to keep the role it will play in your life to a calm, sane, and loving relationship.
Be well!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Tuesday July 21
Just thinking about what to make for dinner tonight and a dish by Edgar Cayce, the most well known of psychic healers, came to mind.
This dish, which I have known as Cantonese Chicken since the 60s, is very simple to make, is versatile, and it tastes great.
Take a small whole chicken and put it in a pot that has a lid.
Mix together:
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup soya sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup tomato sauce, or tomato paste, or tomato ketchup
Mix up these ingredients and pour the resulting dark, thick liquid over the chicken. Put the lid on the pot, turn the stove burner on very low and leave it alone for five or six hours.
Serve with rice and fresh vegetables. To make more just use multiples of the ingredients.
The mixture tenderizes the chicken to the point where it literally falls to pieces. It tastes great and is good for what ails you. I regard this dish as Cayce's response to Jewish penicillin (chicken soup).
Be well!
This dish, which I have known as Cantonese Chicken since the 60s, is very simple to make, is versatile, and it tastes great.
Take a small whole chicken and put it in a pot that has a lid.
Mix together:
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup soya sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup tomato sauce, or tomato paste, or tomato ketchup
Mix up these ingredients and pour the resulting dark, thick liquid over the chicken. Put the lid on the pot, turn the stove burner on very low and leave it alone for five or six hours.
Serve with rice and fresh vegetables. To make more just use multiples of the ingredients.
The mixture tenderizes the chicken to the point where it literally falls to pieces. It tastes great and is good for what ails you. I regard this dish as Cayce's response to Jewish penicillin (chicken soup).
Be well!
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