Have You Ever Been To Oatman, Arizona?

You have probably never been to Oatman, Arizona, much less heard of it.  It is a village in the Black Mountains of Mohave County, Arizona, off Old US 66, near Laughlin, Nevada  It began as a small mining camp soon after two prospectors struck gold in 1915.  It grew to a population of more than 3,500 after the discovery of gold.  The population in the 2000 census was 128.

Oatman was named to honor Olive Oatman, a young Illinois girl who had been taken captive, along with her sister, by Indians during her pioneer family's journey westward in 1851 and forced into slavery.  The rest of her family was slaughtered.  Why she and her sister were spared, is not known.  Olive was later traded to Mohave Indians, who adopted her as a duaghter and tattooed her face in the custom of their tribe.  In 1856 she was released at Fort Yuma, Arizona.  She went on to have an interesting career as a speaker.

Since gold was discovered in the Black Mountains, Oatman became a gold mining town for nearly half a century, but in 1941 the US. government ordered the town's gold mining operation shut down as part of the country's war effort.  When a new Route 66 was built that bypassed the old route, Oatman was all but abandoned.

The reason I have even heard of Oatman, Arizona, is because I am reading a book, The Blue Tattoo,  by Margot Mifflin about the life of Olive Oatman.  It's a fascinating story, and led me to want to learn more about the town.  Now it is an abandoned ghost town, but if you're ever in the vacinity and see a sign for Oatman, you will know what it once was and how it was name.

Off The Strip Eating in Las Vegas

Ron and I spent four full days in Las Vegas, playing bridge, poker, pai gow, and eating.  Ron loves his poker, so when he wasn't putting in his bets on the horses, Ron was playing Texas Hold'em.  He ended up doing quite well, so the trip was practically free.  I was there to play in the national bridge tournament, which didn't work out so well.  We originally had a team of four, one dropped out, so we had to pick up a sub.  We ended up with someone unknown, and the results were, we were knocked out on the first round.  Oh, well.  Since I'm not  big gambler, I went shopping and explored a bit of Las Vegas.  I went to Henderson for lunch one day to a little restaurant in a shopping center.  It was spotless, and the food was outstanding. It's called 8 Kitchen. They described the food as modern Asian fusion.  I would describe it as a ramen shop with some Asian fusion dishes.

I had a most delicious ramen dish.  The broth was rich and flavorful, with pieces of pork and pork belly, vegetables, poached egg on top.  Yum!  Other dishes included  Saimen bowl, which is a fish cake with rice and veggies, furikaka shrimp plate, short rib plate, burgers, chashu pork donburi bowl, and crispy shrimp bao bao.  The last dish is something I would try next time.  It was two little baos, slit open and filled with shrimp and veggies and sauce.  I think they also have it with pork and chicken.  It sounds so delicious.  Breakfast and lunch is all they have, but it's so fresh and delicious you won't want to miss it if you're in the area.  Also, it's only a mile or two from the Sketchers outlet.

The other restaurant we went to on the recommendation of a friend who lives in the area, is a local French bistro in Summerlin called Oh La La.  Free parking, and very good handicap access were other reasons why we went there.  The prices were moderate.  Our bill for the two of us, including a $15 glass of wine for me, was about $75.  We had beef tartare, escargots, baked brie with bread and onion soup.  No main course, but, we were absolutely stuffed.  It's a great little find outside of the bright lights of the strip.

Ask a local for places off the strip for dinner.  You'll generally find great food at moderate prices.  Yes, the celebrity chefs all have restaurants on the strip, but you pay a hefty price to eat there.  I'm not sure you're getting your money's worth.  For us, having to deal with a wheelchair, access is very important.  Also, go to Caesar's valet and you might wait as much as 20 minutes for your car!!!  We're sticking to the smaller, off the strip restaurants for now.

Support For Caregivers

When Ron was first diagnosed with ALS, we were asked if we wanted to join a support group.  At the time we felt it would be extremely depressing, as Ron was functioning normally at the time.  Even today, as the disease has slowly progressed and he is able to do less physically, we both feel the support group is not for us.  I have known many people over the years with other diseases like Parkinsons and cancer, who have joined support groups.  For many, support of others who face similar problems is very therapeutic.

Caregivers, regardless of who they are taking care of, face similar issues.  I was out to lunch recently with a friend whose husband is declining and needs her help now, and she had a great idea.  How about a support group for caregivers?  Regardless of what disease they are dealing with, caregivers have many things in common.  Talking about one's frustrations with others is very therapeutic.  I can't wait to find a small group of caregivers that want to get together and vent.  It really makes one feel better to know that their frustrations are normal, and talking about it makes the caregiver feel better.

I have been caring for Ron for several years now.  It has changed my life in many ways, as it has changed Ron's.  He is dependent on me for most of his daily activites, which certainly must be hard on him.  It has taught me patience, lots of patience.  It has made me learn to make the best of the time I have without Ron.  Most of all, it has taught me to appreciate everyday and everyone who is important to me.  The one thing we can never get back is time, so we no longer waste time going out with people we don't like, just to be polite, or doing anything that we don't enjoy.

To all you caregivers out there, make sure you have someone in your life to talk to.  If you are angry or frustrated, you need to talk about it to someone.  It's normal.  Besides the frustrations, there is a lot of satisfaction derived from caregiving.  Nothing makes me happier than to see Ron in the morning after breakfast, dressed and ready for a day of bridge or poker or work, with a smile on his face and, looking forward to life.  That is very rewarding.

The Wisdom of the Crowd

Dr. Lisa Sanders, longtime author of a medical article in the New York Times Magazine, is on to something.  She is trying to find a diagnosis for individuals with rare diseases.  She has a new show on Netflix, called Diagnosis, and I am hooked.

Dr. Sanders seeks out the most unusual cases that doctors are stumped by and puts them out on the internet.  She feels the wisdom of the crowd will help if not find a cure, at least give the patient a diagnosis.  Dr. Sanders puts the information out, hoping people with similar symptoms, or researchers from around the world that may be working on an unusual disease, to see her post, and speak out.  Often an individual case will get thousands of responses, with doctors and lay people offering their opinions.  Through the use of the internet, Dr. Sanders has brought families with rare conditions together so they have a community of people who understand what they're going through, even if there is no cure.  In other cases, the internet helped a young woman from Las Vegas find a cure for her chronic extreme muscle pain, from a team in Turin, Italy, who just happened to be researching her specific condition.

To me, this is one of the great uses of the internet.  It has become a resource and an informational source like no other.  People from all over the world can contribute in a big way to solving medical mysteries.  There is nothing more frustrating than going from doctor to doctor to try to get a diagnosis on your condition.  I know this first hand from the 6 months it took for Ron to get an ALS diagnosis, and this is a disease doctors know a little about.  Take a rare condition that doctors may have never seen, and the situation becomes much worse.

If you have the time, check out Diagnosis on Netflix.  I have watched four episodes, and can't wait to watch the next one.  Episode one is my favorite.  It shows the power of persistence, the awesome reach of the internet, and it has a happy ending.

Harumama: Sushi and So Much More

I do love Asian food, so when I heard about Harumama several months ago, I got excited.  It took me a while to get there, but it was worth it.  Harumama is a mix of sushi, baos, noodles and bowls.  It is so good.  They have two locations, one in San Diego, the other on Madison St. in old Carlsbad.  I visited the Carlsbad location.

The restaurant itself is spacious inside and very comfortable.  I sat outside on the covered patio, right near a table where they put all the food ready to serve, so I got to see everything.  The menu has the typical offerings, like Krab wontons, fried rice, potstickers and sushi.  But it is much, much more.  They are known for their character baos.  These are order (2 per order) of steamed buns filled with red bean, beef, pig, nutella, chicken or custard.  They are decorated to look like Snoopy and other well known characters.  Very cute.  They also have bao bao's, which I especially liked.  They take a bao, split it in half, and fold it to look like a taco, then fill it with deliciousness.  Pork sausage, duck, crispy shrimp, fried eggplant.  There are lots of interesting flavor on top, like taro chips and pickled cucumbers or onions.  The noodles, although I didn't sample them, looked delicious.  Vegetable, beef brisket and truffle are just a few of the noodle dishes.

As if this weren't enough, they also have fresh made every day ramen broth.  /vegetable, chicken or beef broth, with maybe a dozen add ons to make this one delicious meal:  noodles, poached egg, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, kale, etc.  Bowls are also available, like poke bowls with salmon or ahi tuna or more traditional chicken bowls with rice.

The coup de grace is dessert.  They have the Japanese shaved ice (looks like snowflakes) filling up the middle of a plate, with fruit surrounding the snowflakes.  It is unique and delicious.

Harumama is a wonderful place to try with a group.  That way, you can share everything and enjoy many delicious flavors.  Enjoy.

Talk To Me

I walked into Starbucks in Solana Beach one Friday morning and was greeted by a nice young man who leaned forward and said, "Talk to me."  That greeting immediately put a smile on my face.  He took my order, and when my phone was scanned for payment and my name came up, he called me by name.  I told him how enjoyable he had made my ordering experience.  He was happy to hear that.

I told him that it was so nice to see someone who loved their job, and strived to be the best at it.  He thanked me, and said that I was probably his 200th customer of the day, but that he was my 1st barista of the day, and that my interaction with him should be as good as the first person he served this morning.  He made the experience so enjoyable that I felt compelled to write this blog.

No matter what your job is, it's your choice to make what you want of it.  You can be a star at any job you do, and this young man certainly has made himself a barista his customers will remember.

Valentina: Neighborhood Restaurant in Leucadia

New restaurants are popping up almost weekly in North County.  It's hard to keep up.  We dined a few weeks ago at a new restaurant on Coast Highway in Leucadia called Valentina.  We enjoyed our meal, but felt it was pricey, with just average service.  It has only been open for a few months, so hopefully things will improve. 

Valentina is  a cute little restaurant right on the Coast Highway.  Parking is a problem.  There isn't any.  Most people end up parking in the dirt near the train tracks across the street.  I was with Ron, in a wheel chair, and getting Ron into the restaurant and getting the car parked, was a real challenge.  Once we did get seated, the tables were difficult to accomodate a wheel chair.

I think the theme of the restaurant is Spanish, as they have Spanish language music playing and other references to Spain.  The menu itself is all over the map.  Starters include frites and aioli, albondigas and marinara, beet terrine, and gazpacho soup.  Mussels in wine, mac and cheese, grilled salmon and veggies, gnocchi pesto and steak and fries are just some of the offerings.  I had a tomato and burrata salad which was absolutely delicious.  It was drizzled with thick aged balsamic vinegar, and was my favorite part of the meal.  Richard ordered the gazpacho soup, which was only fair.  I also ordered steak tartare.  It too was only far.  Laura ordered mussels in wine, and was disappointed .  Ron had steak and fries.  The first plate came with cold fries, but when it was returned and brought out again, it was delicious.  They cooked another steak for us by mistake, and we took that one home.  Pepper enjoyed it over the next few days.

Valentina has lots of room for improvement, and I hope they will do just that.  It's a family run restaurant which I like to support, and the owners are trying hard to please.  Some of the dishes were excellent, others only fair, so I will probably give it another try.  For us, the challenge is parking.  It is tough for the handicapped, so food has to improve for us to make the effort.

How Does Climate Change Affect Food Production?

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, recently studied climate change and how it affects food production.  What they found is what scientists already knew, and that is that we're in trouble if we don't change our ways.  First of all, we need to convince the naysayers to admit that climate change is real.  Only those with a financial or political interest are holding out.  The panel discussed how land use contributes to climate change and how climate change affects land.  It's a very complicated issue, with weather, soil, agriculture, livestock and forests all affected.

Our destructive patters of land use include agriculture, deforestation and development of wetlands.  They now contribute 23% of all human caused greenhouse gas emissions.  As average global temperatures rise, the land all species suffer-  heat, drought and dust storms are more intense.

The good news is that we still have time to change our ways.  We have got to conserve, restore and better manage land, as well as shift diets to more plant based foods.  The carbon dioxide released from the waste of livestock is adversely affecting the climate.  There are things that can be done to reduce carbon dioxide, but not enough is being done now.

Nutrients from plant based foods diminishe as the earth warms.  Our food choices are a major driver of changes in land.  Half of global human caused emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas 30X more potent than carbon dioxide, comes from agriculture, namely livestock and rice culture.

The problems and solutions to the problem of how climate change affects food production is extremely complicated.  The IPCC report should serve as a warning to everyone, that changes in agriculture, livestock and forests must be made.  Many scientists suggest converting to a more plant based diet, but personally, I think this would take decades to do in the U.S., if ever.  We should concentrating on maintaining soil that is safe, and ways to eliminate waste from livestock that will not affect climate.  Finally, forests and wetlands that have been destroyed by money hungry developers need to be replanted and maintained.

SOS:The Lungs Of The Earth Are In Trouble

Brazil's Amazon rain forest is often called the "lungs of the earth."  Well, those lungs need some emergency treatment, and soon.  Under the new president, Bolsonaro, Brazil has defunded and politically sidelined government oversight of the environment.  This has allowed farmers and loggers to slash and burn the land without the proper license.  This is the opposite of what Bolsonaro said he would do while campaigning.

Bolsonaro is a climate denier, and surrounds himself with like minded people.  Under his watch, 35% more fires have been set this year than the historical average.  The land is being cleared of much needed plants and trees to make way for farming and construction.  Brazil, until recently, has balked at any outside help in controlling the fires, but lately he is both accepting help and sending in local fire and others to help control the fires. 

The planet will suffer from this continual misuse of its resources, and may do damage from which we cannot recover, all in the name of commerce.  Protests in Brazil and elsewhere are numerous.  Environmentalists, indigenous groups that are being displaced and activists trying to save the planet are all protesting.  Think of the millions of animals that have been killed from the fires, not to mention small indigenous tribes that have been threatened with extinction.  All for money.  Is it worth it?

Lunch at Pita Guys in San Marcos

On the recommendation of Phyllis, I had lunch at Pita Guys in San Marcos, with my friend Audrey.  For a little strip center fast food restaurant, the food was delicious.  Everything from the babaganoush to freshly baked pita was delicious.  Although there is no ambience at all, the good food makes it worth a trip.

Pita Guys offers sandwiches, bowls, salads and plates.  Audrey and I both got the falaffel bowl.  The base was white rice (lettuce can be substituted), followed by three big falaffels.  Then come the toppings, that are added to your specifications.  I added pickled onions, hummus, babaganoush, and tzadiki.  The bowl was literally of burst of wonderful flavors.  Both chicken and beef schwarma are available.  They even offer a mini bowl for $7.95 which is just a smaller version of the one I ordered.  A mini bowl is more than enough for most appetites.

Pita Guys is great for lunch or dinner, but don't expect any atmosphere.  We sat outside and enjoyed a beautiful day and great food.  Try it if you're in the area for lunch.  It's great.

Changes in Our Access To Information

After reading Michael Lewis' book The Fifth Risk, I had to find out more about Americans decreased access to information under the Trump administration.  The book is fascinating, describing in detail what went on during the transition period from Obama to Trump.  The last half of the book details the disappearance of data across the federal government.  Both the EPA and the Department of Interior removed from their websites the links to climate change data.  The USDA removed inspection reports of businesses accused of animal abuse by the federal government.  Micck Mulvaney said he wanted to end public access to records of consumer complaints against financial institutions.  The list goes on and on. Michael Lewis' information was only the tip of the iceberg in terms our diminished ability to statistics and information.  Here's a little bit of what I discovered.

Altering or removing links or moving entire web pages or altering or removing pertinent sections was one way the federal government decreased public access to important information.  The Fedstats website removed or relaunched websites under a different name to make access to information more difficult.  What used to be accessible became inaccessible and cannot be found anywhere.  Statistics on homeland security, agriculture, education, census, transportation, labor and justice are just some of the statistical information that has either been removed, altered, or renamed, so as to make finding the information more difficult.

Why is this so important, you might ask?  We are a free society, and citizens are entitled to information about society that may help or hurt them.  Changing, removing or altering information to make a particular agency look good is just wrong.  I highly recommend The Fifth Risk to anyone who wants to know the kind of people Trump chose to run important departments, and more specifically, how they profited from their positions.

Google has been asked to remove content from web sites for a variety of reasons.  The number of requests have sky rocketed in the past 2 1/2 years.  The probable answer is that the government does not want that information available to the public.  Below is a google statement on why content removals are requested.

Why governments request content removals

Governments ask us to remove or review content for many reasons. Some requests allege defamation, while others claim that content violates local laws prohibiting hate speech or adult content. The laws surrounding these issues vary by country. Our teams assign each request a category, such as hate speech, obscenity, and defamation. Note that we did not begin providing reason data about the reason for the request until the December 2010 reporting period.

Often times, government requests target political content and government criticism. Governments cite defamation, privacy, and even copyright laws in their attempts to remove political speech from our services. Our teams evaluate each request and review the content in context in order to determine whether or not content should be removed due to violation of local law or our content policies.