We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.
Aging is characterized by changes in body composition. CT studies demonstrate that as we age, subcutaneous fat (below the skin, SF) decreases and visceral fat (in abdominal cavity, VF) increases. VF is the enemy. Because it causes systemic inflammation, it is an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease, stroke and death. If that’s not enough, VF also provides the Buddha-belly mid-life midriff.
The other most common age-related change in body composition is muscle loss. Because muscle has a high metabolic rate, its loss is associated with a reduction in energy expenditure. This decrease in caloric burn lends itself to weight (fat) gain.
16:21 From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.
16:22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you."
16:23 But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
16:24 Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
16:25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
16:26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?
16:27 "For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done.
16:28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
For me, it's the US Open. A day session is pure delight. Better than a Broadway show. One of the thousand best things about NYC. Wander around, watch some doubles, some singles, some gal games, some guy games, eat some sausage sandwiches and pizza. The night sessions are too late for me, except on TV.
Worth a trip from anywhere, if you ask me. Flushing (in Queens, NYC) is easy to get to. The Open is a multi-day festival. In the day sessions, it's great to sit on the bleachers, up close, in the side courts for a while.
As much as I love playing tennis, I think it's the only sport I would rather watch than play. I love touch football, baseball, used to play hockey, squash, and lacrosse too. Sheesh, preppy sports I guess. Parents protective, didn't want me to play football even though I was a good sprinter.
Right now, Meyer is giving Nadal a headache. Wonderful stuff. Nadal will win, though.
Sure, it's fun listening to a half-century old Dylan tune. Sure, it's a kick to hear about how a bunch of snowflakes were scared by a banana peel. Sure, it's interesting reading about how a 1926 tractor was rebuilt.
But let's talk about an important issue, shall we?
Booze.
For those of you who like your booze mixed with a soda, allow me to introduce a truly wonderful product to you called Everclear. Because here's the fun part: It doesn't have any taste.
Almost be definition, alone, all liquors (yes, even vodka) have a taste. The question then becomes, how does it affect the taste of your favorite soda? Usually in the negative would be my guess.
In my case, I'm a confirmed gingeraleaholic. I've been buying Canada Dry Ginger Ale since it was located in the wine aisle of the grocery store, right next to the Tom Collins mix, simply because it was originally designated a mixer, not a soda pop. It wasn't until years later when the Dr. Pepper people bought Canada Dry and turned it into an everyday soda that it came into its own.
Since I don't like drinking straight booze, I started experimenting, mixing different liquors with my Ginger Ale. I tried a number of different whiskies, scotch, bourbon, brandy, vodka, a number of rums, and they all failed the taste test. Basically, nothing goes with Ginger Ale.
Then I raised my plaintive plight while sitting around the community table at one of the marinas I stayed at while living on my boat in the Florida Keys, and someone suggested Everclear.
Et voila!
Oh, and the reason it doesn't have any taste? It's pure grain alcohol. On top of that, it's 190 proof, so just a splash in your soda of choice does the trick, so one could argue that it's one of the most economical liquors out there.
As a small side note, in case your local liquor store doesn't carry it, there's a similar product called Golden Grain, made by the same company.
Thank goodness we finally got around to discussing an important issue!
A friend has a patch of Castor plants, self-seeding in the garden. 5-6' tall, dramatic foliage.
Shade plants, annuals in northern climates. They are the source of castor oil, also of the poison ricin. However, many garden plants are poisonous (eg daffodils).
We term this phenomenon "False Hunger" because overweight people have no need for outside energy sources. In fact, though, overweight people tend to experience more subjective hunger than normal-weight or ectomorphic people. Is that cause, or effect?
A bit of both but mostly effect, as it turns out. It mostly has to do with how pudgy people ramp up their insulin response and the resulting, or related, insulin insensitivity. Illogical as it seems, having extra body fat makes people feel hungrier. Feed me, Seymour. It's a vicious cycle: Always Hungry? Here’s Why.
Overweight people can survive weeks or months without carbohydrates/sugars using their body fat as an energy source as long as they consume protein, fats, and oils to prevent muscle deterioration.
Can you lose weight via exercise? No, not practically
Does high-intensity exercise reduce appetite? Yes, usually. Dedicated fitness people force-feed themselves to keep their strength and endurance improving.
Stomach-stretching? People who eat bulky meals on any regular basis do stretch their stomachs, which can result in increased subjective appetite and hunger. We recommend small meals for everybody, regardless of weight. Except on feast days or special occasions. People feel less tired, more energetic, and more productive with small meals.
Fast eaters, voracious eaters? Fast eaters trick their satiety signals by overeating (ie, greater volume of nutrients than needed to thrive) before satiety can kick in. Very few fast eaters are in good shape. A bad habit, and bad manners too.
Except for Texas, the US will focus on wholesome outdoor fun, gardening, kayaking, mountain hiking, exercise, and grilling meat from today until Tuesday morning. So will we. Except for church...
So no depressing or alarming morning links but there are plenty of wholesome posts in our pipeline. End of summer, one more time. Fall is a fresh start. Time matters. Where born in time?
In the lonely night In the blinking stardust of a pale blue light You're comin' through to me in black and white When we were made of dreams.
You're blowing down the shaky street, You're hearing my heart beat In the record breaking heat Where we were born in time...
If you read the news you might almost get the idea that storms and floods are an abnormal modern event. The news forgot about Noah. In fact, floods and storms are not only natural but beneficial in every way to nature's processes but injurious to human hubris and property.
For examples, when a river overflows its banks it delivers fresh silt and soil to the flood plain, rejuvenating it (eg the Nile, eg the Mississippi Delta). When a strong storm blows through a forest and knocks down miles of trees, it restarts the forest cycle providing fresh habitat for all sorts of species who live in forest openings. For the Indians, that was an excellent thing.
The disaster part is man-defined, not nature-defined. When people build on flood plains (eg Houston) or on sea-level marshes (New Orleans), big trouble is predictable. And when man covers those flood zones with asphalt and buildings, or alters rivers with canals and levees, it makes it all worse.
Of course governments and benevolent souls have to step in when these "natural disasters" threaten lives, but a good way to think about it would be, in future at least, market pricing for flood and storm insurance. Let the actuaries figure out the real risk and cost of what people do and put a price on that.
Can an analogy be made between the pursuit of mental fitness and of physical fitness during aging? I certainly do not know, so I will remain skeptical.
The idea that pursuing mental fitness could prevent Alzheimer's is ridiculous. However, it appears to me that many retired people take on difficult mental challenges for an hour or two daily to try to keep their brains geared up. I am not talking about passive learning (ie reading), but active studying. A few examples from people I know:
- A retired guy who decided to refresh his college calculus, and has since taken his math studies three levels beyond where he had gone before, and is still going
- A retired gal who has become fluent in Italian, and can now read Dante and hang out in Italy, considering buying a summer place in Ferrara.
- A retired lawyer who has become fluent in Mandarin
- A friend who decided to become fluent and literate in a new language every two years, and has thus far done that three times using Rosetta Stone.
- A friend who at age 50 has taken up piano in a serious way
- A retired executive neighbor who thought he was too smart to take up mechanics in high school who took up small engine mechanics and is moving on to (pre-computerized) auto mechanics. Now a grease monkey and very happy.
- A retired physician who decided to become an expert in immunology and the genetics of immunology, and has been doing so, while having to learn biomedical statistics on the side.
- A friend who has just gone back to college. Graduated decades ago, but feels she missed a lot.
Mental exertions/disciplines like these are analogous to physical training. I'm sure it's not wasted effort because difficult achievement is its own reward. One thing we know is that strenuous physical exertion (ie not walking or relaxed swimming) is good for brain maintenance but not the opposite.
Sure, it's fun listening to a half-century old Dylan tune. Sure, it's a kick to hear about how a bunch of snowflakes were scared by a banana peel. Sure, it's interesting reading about how a 1926 tractor was rebuilt.
A friend has a patch of 
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