The Power Of A Group

Several months ago I wrote about a variety of food products either imported or domestic, that were recently banned from the American market. I wondered when I wrote it how some products that had been sold here for years became banned, and what kind of politics might be involved. Not being an investigative reporter, I did not pursue this thought, but now another product that is near and dear to my heart was close to being banned by the FDA. It was only the food community coming together to protest, that save artisan cheese aged on wooden boards from being banned by the FDA.

The move would have devastated the American artisan cheese industry. Products included in the ban would have been Parmigiano Reggiano, among others. Not surprisingly, the American Cheese Society immediately issued a statement promising a fight, noting that over 60% of cheesemakers use wooden boards for aging. There have not been any foodborne pathogen issues as a result of aging cheese on wooden boards. The FDA said that the porous nature of wood used to age cheese made it susceptible to absorbing bacteria. How have we survived for decades eating cheese aged using this process? What was behind this potential ban?

The FDA has the authority to ban such cheeses under the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011 initiated by the Bush administration as part of its anti-terrorism policies. Are they kidding? The FDA banned the import of raw milk cheese aged less than 60 days in 2013, even though it allows the sale of raw milk cheese in the United States. Does this make any sense?

For now, we cheese lovers are safe. The FDA will engage with the artisanal cheese-making community to determine whether certain types of cheese can safely be made by aging them on wooden shelving. Cheese makers have been using this process for decades, even centuries, and now all of a sudden the FDA thinks it's unsafe? I have to think there's more to this decision than meets the eye. Thank goodness the Cheese Lobby has clout. If this interests you, take a look back at a story from last year (in my blog archives) about banned food. It was called "Forbidden Food," and it was published on June 12, 2013. Very interesting.

Give Yourself A Homemade Facial

Going to the spa is expensive. You can give yourself an at home facial for next to nothing, and you'll be thrilled with the results. Granted you don't get the pampering you receive at a spa, but then you've still got the $100 you saved to go out and do something special for yourself. Better yet, invite a friend over and give each other facials. There's no real skill involved. Here's how to give yourself a home made facial.

Ingredients

Headband to hold your hair back

gentle soap to wash face

bowl for water (I often use a big pot on the stove instead of a bowl)

steaming hot water

fresh lemon or mint

exfoliating scrub

mask

cucumber slices

cold water for rinsing

moisturizer

Procedure

Use headband or hair clips to hold hair off face. Wash with a gentle soap to remove all dirt and makeup. Next put head over a bowl of steaming water. I like to use a big pot on the stove. Cover your head with a towel to make a tent and keep the steam in. Steam for several minutes, if you can stand the heat. At the end, add some lemon or mint for a refreshing feel, and the mint may open your sinuses. Pat face with a towel. Then, add exfoliating scrub and massage in gentle circles around your face, avoiding the eyes. Rinse with cool water and apply a mask. (your choice). Take two cucumber slices, place on eyes, and lie down and rest while the mask dries. When time is up, remove mask with water, then splash with very cold water, to close pores. Finally, apply a light moisturizer and take a look at the results. You should look refreshed and rested. I've never done it with a friend, but the more I think about it, the better it sounds. A little spa morning in your own home!

Lemon Chicken

One of my favorite dishes at a Chinese restaurant is lemon chicken. The problem is the dish is likely made with lots of sugar and MSG. Here is a baked version of lemon chicken which is savory rather than sweet, and is great any time of year. During the summer I change it up a bit, add cilantro to the marinade, and grill the chicken rather than bake. At the end I take the leftover marinade, heat and reduce a bit, and add some cornstarch to thicken if necessary. It makes a great sauce, especially if you serve the chicken with rice or couscous. Try it either way. I think you'll enjoy it.

Lemon Chicken, baked or barbequed

2 tbsp. lemon zest

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

1 tsp. fresh rosemary leaves, minced

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

2-4 lbs. of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or drumsticks(I prefer breasts, so I halve the breasts

Thinly sliced lemons, for garnished

Combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper in a large zipper-lock plastic bag. Seal the bag and shake well to blend. Place the chicken pieces in the bag with the marinade, pressing out excess air and sealing once more. Refrigerate and let marinate for 2 hours or more.

Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and transfer to a baking dish, skin-side up, reserving the leftover marinade.

Bake for 50-55 minutes, until the skins are crispy and well-browned. Halfway through baking, pour the remaining marinade over the chicken pieces in the baking dish. When finished, cover loosely with foil and let it rest 10 minutes before serving. Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with lemon slices and serve.

Another option is to barbeque the chicken. After marinating the chicken, grill until cooked, basting with the marinade occasionally. Thicken the remainder of the sauce and serve with the chicken. Enjoy.

Fun Facts About Redheads

Have you noticed the number of red headed babies and small children recently? I have, and it got me wondering why there are so many redheaded children, when only 1%-2% of the population has red hair. I don't have the answer as to why there are so many redheads, but I do have some fun facts to tell you about redheads that you may not know.

Redheads have less hair on their heads, in total number of strands. Brunettes have 140,000 strands on their heads and redheads have only 90,000, but the strands on redheads are thicker, so they usually appear to have thick hair. Also, redheaded hair hold its pigment more than any other color, thus it is more difficult to dye. The headstrong nature of redheads relates not just to their personality, but their hair as well.

Red hair and blue eyes is the rarest combination in the world. Both are recessive genes, meaning both parents must have the same coloring. Only 1% of the world's population has this combination.

Redheads are more sensitive to thermal pain, and their bodies are able to change temperature much quicker. Redheaded women bruise more easily, get Parkinson's twice as often as people with other hair color, and they generate their own Vitamin D. They can produce their own vitamin D within their body when exposed to low light conditions.

The Romans kept redheaded slaves at a higher price. They were thought to be strong and determined, and were held in high esteem by the Romans. They were the more expensive slaves. Historically, Russia means "Land of the reds," and boasts a high density of redheads in the Kazan region, over 10% of its people being redheads. Scotland and Ireland have a similar amount of redheads.

Adolf Hitler reportedly banned redheaded marriages, fearing that they would produce "deviant offspring."

Who are some of the famous redheads in history? Here they are, in no particular order: Nero, Helen of Troy, Cleopatra, Napoleon, Queen Elizabeth 1, Oliver Cromwell, Emily Dickinson, Winston Churchill, Galileo, James Joyce, Vivaldi, Mark Twain. Now, can someone tell me why more redheads seem to be out there today?

Surgery: 28 Days Post Op

As I write this, it's been a month since my partial knee replacement.  Tomorrow I go for my one month check up, but prior to hearing what the doctor has to say, I will tell you what I have to say about the first month with my new knee.

Some days are better than others.  I started out like gangbusters.  I was back at the Y in 10 days, off most of my meds in about the same amount of time, and from the looks of my knee, things were healing up nicely.  It was about the third week post op that I noticed I was not progressing as quickly as I thought I would.  In my effort to get off the pain meds in order to drive, play bridge, and read books, I was in quite a lot of pain.  I resisted the pain meds, which was a bad decision.  I have now returned to taking 1/2 a Norco twice a day.  Not much, but it's enough to take the edge off.  I feel much better.  Today I actually took 1 1/2 pills, and I plan to continue to do that as necessary.  Everyone told me, "Stay ahead of the pain,"  but did I listen?  No, not like I should have.  Actually, my physical activity has improved a lot, my range of flexibility is excellent, and my endurance is good.  But I'm so tired!  I go to the Y and workout in the morning, then come home and take a nap.  I have stabs of sharp pain from time to time, which is normal.  I don't sleep well at night, despite the fact that I am tired.

Tomorrow Dr. Bugbee will set me straight.  My guess is that he will tell me to take the pain meds before the pain and not have a constant gnawing pain all the time.  He will also most likely tell me to continue my exercise, and try to get more rest.  My hope is that in the next month I will have less pain, which will mean less pain meds, and less exhaustion.

We sometimes forget what we've been through when we have any type of surgery.  Surgery is a huge stress on the body, anesthesia in one's system can take weeks to flush out, and we're just not as young as we used to be.  Again I say that everyone is different, and that the healing process varies from patient to patient.  I'm glad to have the first month behind me, and look forward to month two being the month that I see big progress.  One more report, at the end of month two.

Your Most Precious Belongings

With 15 minutes to evacuate, what would pack, thinking that you may come back home and find nothing left? Many of us were faced with this situation in May, during the many fires that our area endured. My neighborhood was told to evacuate in place, which meant to pack as if you were going to evacuate, then wait for further instructions. We did that, and fortunately never had to actually evacuate, although many neighborhoods just a few blocks away actually did evacuate. It's a good time to think about what's important to you, what's necessary to take with you, and what you can comfortably leave behind. Here's what we packed.

Most importantly, I had Pepper ready to go, his food for two days, his leash and a few treats thrown into my purse. Then, we took our medications, makeup and tootbrush. Next, we took important papers: passports, insurance policies (especially those relating to the house), checkbooks, etc. Ron took his computer, since he has all his work on it. I did not take my computer, but grabbed my address book, my calendar (don't know why), my ipad, and of course my iphone and all my cords. I also took a small bag with some favorite pieces of jewelry. Lastly, we packed a small suitcase with clothes for 2-3 days, including good tennis shoes and a jacket. We also opened our garage door and put the cars on the street. If the power goes out, you may have trouble getting your cars out

I did not take my sterling silver, which in retrospect I should have, nor did I take any photographs, which I should have, nor did I take any paintings or crystal or china objects, of which I have many. There's only so much you can take.

It's a good idea to mentally make a list of what you might take if such a situation arises. Some people think it's a good idea to have an emergency bag packed with 2 days worth of clothes, stuff for your pets, medications and personal items ready at all times. Then, if an emergency arises you already have the basics packed, and you just have to get the rest of your stuff in a bag, which doesn't take long. The one thing I did learn from this experience, was to photograph as much of your house, paintings, mementos, closets with clothes, kitchen items, jewelry and furniture as possible, and to have that safely put away. I photographed our entire house while we were evacuating in place. I will put that on a flash drive and keep it somewhere safe, but not in the house. The other thing I did when the fires were over was call my insurance company and raise the amount of property in the house. If we were undervalued, many of you probably are too. It's a good idea to value your contents. It could make a big difference if there's a disaster. We're lucky to have the former Fire Chief from Encinitas living two doors away. He gave our neighborhood valuable information. Thanks, Bob

My Personal Journal

This will be my last blog on the subject of Ron's incarceration and our journey since his release, on July 27, 2011. The journey is never over, as recovery from any traumatic incident is always ongoing, but we are doing so well that what I have to say is probably boring. So, I will move on to my own surgery, which took place on July 9, and write a bit about my recovery. Surgery of one sort or another is something we all face eventually, so my fears and apprehensions may be relevant to many of you.We were sitting in the movies several weeks ago watching Jersey Boys (loved it), when Ron said to me that his PO popped into his mind because it was a Friday. Rather than get the typical stomach ache that ordinarily went with any thought or correspondence with her, he immediately dismissed it, realizing that she was no longer part of his life. The freedom that he enjoys most is hard to verbalize. I guess it's just knowing that at anytime we can take off for Dana Point to play bridge (something we haven't been able to do for years), meet our family in Orange County for dinner without having to plan weeks in advance, or just take off and drive to Palm Springs, or Phoenix, or wherever we want. You can't imagine what that feels like until it is taken away from you. The next best thing that Ron appreciates is not having to be accountable to someone every month for financial matters. I think the lack of no longer having to report is saving him many hours every month.Still, hardly a week goes by that something doesn't remind him of the past dozen years. He sees someone that reminds him of what he's gone through, hears about an old friend or client, or remembers an incident that brings back painful memories. He still struggles emotionally with the effect incarceration and recovery has had on his family, especially our children. Shame and embarrassment are what he thinks his children have felt for these years, but he also believes they are proud of him, and how he has responded to adversity. He recently reconnected with a longtime friend/client of his, and is pleased about that. He tries everyday to make his family proud, and I think he's doing a great job. I have written more than 110 blogs titled "My Personal Journal," so if you're a new reader or are curious about all we've been through, you can go back through the archives and check them out. I've enjoyed writing them. They've helped me a lot, especially the ones I wrote weekly for the 19 months Ron was incarcerated. Now, it's on to my current journey: surgery and recovery. I'll keep you posted.