Microbiotics for good health, Live!

I came across this lovely picture and information about microbiotics the other day as I tried to find some information on holiday recipes. I didn't stop to read through it at the time but bookmarked it for a later read. The piece popped up today as I logged in to the computer so I decided to look closer at Microbiotics. As I browsed the pages, I realized that it is something I really need to look more closely at. It certainly hit home today after the extensive holiday grubbing that went on here. The fruits and vegetables were part of the fare but certainly not the centerpiece.

As some of us gorge our selves on foods - sweet, delicious, glorious holiday foods, I think we need to reflect on the point that we can get carried away and do things, even as we enjoy them, that can reeve havoc on our lives and our loved ones. It is important that we do the holiday things in moderation and mix it heavily with what we know that is good right and wholesome. I have to do this. I think we just really have to take care of our lives everyday for longevity.

I have to do some re-engineering of my lifestyle now that I have absorbed this information on Microbiotics. This is an approach to life and living not just a kind of diet. The philosophy is that by combining quality foods, enjoyment and appreciation of life, each other, the environment, spirituality and trust or faith, we can live happier, healthier, long lives. These are interconnected and interdependent forces in the natural world that give rise to each other thereby creating a balanced way of living, the yin and yang.

So what I know now, well I've always known but would brush off and chalk it up to the holidays, festivities and celebrations. Part of the festivities is to provide a lot of food. We tend to over eat, swallowing without or just barely chewing and loading up on processed, greasy foods and say, ahhh it's sooo good! This is a no-no and gotta go! We must include healthier food options and take and eat in moderation and without the chase.

Now I really must let those habits go. The mega pieces of meats and turkey drum sticks, with a drizzling of veggies have to be reversed so that I will continue to live, love, laugh with my family and friends for a very long and healthful time.

I am making a case about microbiotics and behaving as if it is a new phenomena, but its not. This has been practiced since the Incas and the Han Dynasty. More and more we hear about whole foods and see whole food stores and whole grain products promoted but access is still a problem for many. As a society and community we need to 'normalize' healthy foods and balanced lifestyles to our day to day life. There are broader implications for society such as education, resources, access and supports as well.

You my friend should take a closer look at microbiotics, maybe also look at the "man in the mirror", like me, and make a change. Check out the information and recipes here. Make a move to a balanced way of living!

Let me know what you think about microbiotics if this is new to you. For those of you who are practitioners, please share some tips and/or advice with us.

Here's to a happier, healthier you! Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving 2009

To you and yours I wish you all a blessed and glorious Thanksgiving Holiday.

How do I choose a Home Phone Service

Telephones are so plentiful these days but I am having such a hard time choosing a phone service for my home. I guess it is not really hard to find a phone service or carrier it is the cost of the thing. I think that we are spending a huge chunk of our budget on telecommunication and I can't afford it anymore. We all have cell phones - blackberries, smart phone, sidekick etc and actually use more than one phone carrier. I need to fix that set up too. But anyway, the thing is that with all of these communicating devices which we use all the time, why am I insisting on maintaining a dedicated home phone line?

Gone are the days when we need the phone lines or land lines to make calls or faxes, or to get on-line, which so consume our lives these days. Actually, I just like to have the old stand by phone to reach out and touch somebody. I know that the phone companies are concerned about the drastic reduction in the number of people electing to cancel their land lines. This is actually having a negative effect on the cost of the cellular system by way of the excessive amount and number of taxes on the cell phone bill. Right now I am concerned about getting a phone service that I can afford to keep that house phone on.
As I surfed the web for information and services, I couldn't decide between the viable choices, price wise, that I came across. I hope you guys can offer some assistance. I looked at the Magic Jack system, Vonage and Time Warner. Right now I am dying under the cost of the Verizon system I have. Are there more sensible options out there?

Here is where you come in. Do you have a land line at home? Who is the service provider? Is it a reasonable or economical system?
Have you any information or opinion on:



Magic Jack ?




Time Warner Cable Digital Phone service?



Vonage?

Which would you recommend and why?

I hope you will take a minute to leave your comment.

Thanks in advance!

Veterans Day 2009

Today is a special day that we set aside from the usual hustle and bustle to appreciate, recognize and to say thanks to those brave men and women who have given their lives for our country. The sacrifice of a family of their loved one to go serve for our safety and security is appreciated. I myself am very appreciative of the folks who have taken the bold and brave steps to join the military forces to be on the frontlines of national security. I salute you all!!

As we see all of the ceremonial events and proclamations and commerative events it gives us pride in having such bravery and selflesness of the men and women who serve. We thank God for all of you and especially for those who will return home and continue to enrich our lives. For those gone on, we pray that you will rest in peace. As a society we should encourage and demand a better program and compensation for the Vets as they return home and resume family life. Too many stories are played and re-played on the air about the lack of services and supports for our Vets. The quality of medical care, housing, jobs and re-entry support services seems to leave them un-rewarded and feeling un-apppreciated.

They have done us proud. They have served us well. It is only right and fitting for us as a society and for our government to make serving these our heros a priority and care them well.

Let us all share our love and appreciation to the Vets by giving what we can and by lifting our voices and our votes so that our Vets are provided for as they have protected us.

Veterans I salute you. families of Veterans , I salute you.

I thank you!

The Ladies Room discussion

I rushed into the ladies room at work early afternoon to relieve myself after a long morning of presentation. I walked into a robust conversation about what parents teach their children to call their body parts. I don’t usually tarry in the rest room for various reasons but mostly the odor. I stay long enough to complete the task at hand and scamper out. This conversation was one I would have enjoyed getting into but I made my escape as per usual. I have mixed feeling on the topic and some fond memories of some of the names or terms I’ve heard for the private parts.

A triad was standing around the sink area fully engaged in this discussion. It seems that they were all talking at the same time. At this point they were trying to make the connection between the names used and the part or function of the part to the anatomically correct names. What is pee pee? How did they come up with pee pee one of the women asked? If anything it should be u, u for urine, she said. That comment got a chuckle from everyone. They delved into other names and parts as I stood washing my hands. I don’t understand why parents don’t just tell their kids the proper names, said another one of the women. I always told my kids right away the proper names and I think that is the best way, said the third woman. You confuse the kids she continued.

They continued as I left the room seemingly summarizing the discussion exchanging what they thought parents should tell their kids and what they told their kids. They also talked about why it is important to teach children the proper names for body parts, their privates.

As I exited the room I thought that this was a good topic of discussion in the ladies room and else where. Teaching children the correct names could prevent misunderstandings and the potential for abuse. There is also an element of embarrassment in self expression and possible poor self protection. I found research studies that was done in Canada that actually looked at this issue and the various names used. Other informational sources seem to indicate that giving proper names as early as possible is preferred even though there seems to be a split for giving kids both options.


What did/do you teach your kids’ to call their body parts? How did you name them? Do you think that ‘pet’ names for the body parts or baby talk have a negative impact on the child’s development?

Tell me your thoughts.

Is the Recession Over

Is the recession over or am I missing something?

My mom came to visit for the weekend. We are all very happy about that. We didn't expect this visit so we had to plan her into the usual weekend activities of house hold chores, shopping etc. I had a few odds and ends I needed to get from various stores. The weather was good but we thought we would take a trip to the mall since it's enclosed and have many more stores in the same spot or proximity. We didn't have much to spend but we had a few stores in mind. The stores where I know I can get good deals at times and I would be sure to find the items we needed. Notice I said needed. Additionally, we wanted to get dinner so going to an area with options for food was also important. We decided to go to the Garden State Plaza Mall in Paramus New Jersey.

I like that mall because it has a lot of stores and covers the spectrum from high end to variety stores and boutiques, specialty shops and popular chain stores. The issue for me with this mall is that I don't particularly like to pay the toll to get back home. The trip to the mall started out nicely. The afternoon was bright and sunny and the temperature mild.

There was chatter and laughter and also noise from the radio as the kids fooled around in the back. Traffic flow was good until we got on Route 17 half way to the exit to the mall. We were wondering what was causing the traffic delay. We speculated that there must be an accident, a car had mechanical problems, traffic light malfunction, something.

We inched along until we got closer to the exit and had a view of a side of the parking lot at the Plaza Mall. The lot was full like we've seen it at Christmastime. We started to ask each other and check to see if the Mall had some give aways or mega sale or some special event. None of us in our vehicle heard about any special sale or event that should bring out such a crowd since everyone is crying out for money. Well, we didn't have money to shop willy-nilly or even keep up with essentials, but let me tell you the parking lots were full all around the facility. I was amazed at the sight of so many cars and couldn't wait to enter the place to see what I could get for what I had in my purse or less.

After riding around for about 25 minutes looking for parking, we decided to sit around the areas by the entrance to store and follow folks as they leave the store heading to their vehicles. We got around to the Nordstrom's entrance and decided to wait. We got lucky after waiting for about 5 minutes.

We got into the mall with anticipation and good thoughts. Well, the stores had sale signs posted, 15, 25, 30, 40% off. There was a flurry of people in the stores and the mall but I didn't see the bargains or the urgency that brought all those people out to the mall. Did someone give a rebate or a stimulus check and forgot to send me one? Hey that's not fair!

I was able to get the things we went for. I must say I got and saw some good prices for a few things. The kids made out like a bandit with grandma. There were some things at better prices than I've seen recently but I couldn't even pick them up. Folks were hustling about with bags, and bags and with happy smiling faces. I came out with the bags of the things I needed to get and no more and managed to hold the $8 for the tolls to get home.

I was happy to see that people are beginning to shop and get into the holiday season or just enjoy the fruits of their labor or enjoy life. For me, I have not gotten on that wind fall or coat tail of the infusion of cash into the purses. Sadly, me and my household is still struggling on a 2003 salary and resources.

Imagine how deep my recession is. OR, does anyone knows where the next wind fall is coming from? Can you give me a heads up? I really, really need a break!

Andy Rooney's Advice to the Airlines

Part of my Sunday evening routine is to watch 60 Minutes on CBS at 7pm. I have been doing this for years. I've lost track of the number of years. I would block out the hour to watch the show. Truth be told, these days I don't always block out the time or watch the whole program. I would however tune in for what I call the ticking highlight at the beginning of the program to see what will be covered. I would decide if I would stay for the entire program or just check back for Andy Rooney's segment, my highlight of the program. Many times it's all Andy!

This past Sunday, I just caught Andy Rooney's segment and was very amused. This is not unusual for me but the topic was very timely. I have been going on about the changes in the airline practices and I am preparing for holiday travels and ranting. The title of Sunday's segment was Andy Rooney Has Some Advice For The Airlines To Make Flying More Pleasurable. I hope they were watching and will take heed.

I was amused because I have been on this kick of the airline industry foolishness. My family travels a lot. Not always by air but I always keep my eyes out for a good deal on air fair because air travel is faster. We are a real hurry up and get there kind of a group. More and more these days, the policies and practices of the airlines get more ridiculous. I still don't understand why we now have to pay to check a piece of luggage when it was included as part of the cost of the trip and the fare in the past.

What happened recently that caused checking a piece of luggage to add such expense to the airlines that they need to add this fee. If there should be charges, I think it should be fees paid to the consumer for damaged baggage. Samsonite's are strong but they take a beating even now with the additional charges. Do they want us to travel without necessities or our luxuries if we so choose to carry them? They still have the same restriction on the number of pieces and the weight allowances. What's changed? Level of greed?! I don't get it!

There are so many other issues and concerns with airline travel these days, not to mention safety or dangers, but we still use them or rely on them because we all have to or want to go some place else and may not have all day to get there. With airline travel, you can count on delays getting on board and take off, cancellations, late arrivals and now no food or refreshment. The food part may not be so bad though because even when they ask you to pay for the food it's horrible if not just down right nasty. What the hell!

Yes Andy, a lot of people complain about the airlines, like me, because they get you angry with the nonsense they give you.

For those of you who may have missed the segment on Sunday, or if you enjoy Andy Rooney's rantings, here is the piece again.

Yes they could do better all around!