merry christmas

After singing and bell ringing at church last eve enjoyed a lovely sane gift exchange wtih my 3 favorite men and my 2 fav pets... off to work NOW (hospitals don't close...)..then dinner at 7 pm... MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Cooking without salt

Low Salt Cooking: When I was a dietitian student nearly 20 years ago I was taught that it will take your taste buds 8 weeks to get used to the way NO SALT tastes and after that when you salt food it will taste terrible (too salty).That’s what I teach my patients. Watch out for LEMON-PEPPER which may contain salt. Never use salt subs that contain potassium (instead of sodium) unless you get doctor approval.
NON-SALT SEASONING IDEAS:
Fish: anise, cilantro, coriander dill, fennel, parsley, sage, thyme Pork: anise, cilantro, coriander, oregano, rosemaryChicken and poultry: anise, parsley, sage, rosemary, thymeVegetables: basil, chives, dill, fennel, marjoram, oregano, parsley, rosemaryWhen using cilantro and coriander on fish or pork, mix it with a something citrusy, like lemon.
Flavouring Foods Without Salt
1. Choose herbs, spices and seasonings that do not contain salt. Always check that salt or sodium is not on the ingredient list. For example, use:• Fresh garlic or garlic powder (not garlic salt)• Fresh, dried or powdered onions (not onion salt)Note: Sea salt is just as high in sodiumas regular salt.
2. Try using fresh herbs. Herbs add flavor and a fresh taste to foods.
3. Make your own blend of salt-free seasoning. Mix and store in a salt or pepper shaker.Universal Seasoning15 mL (1 Tbsp) dried mustard15 mL (1 Tbsp) paprika15 mL (1 Tbsp) garlic powder15 mL (1 Tbsp) onion powder7 mL (1 1/2 tsp) black pepper5 mL (1 tsp) basil5 mL (1 tsp) thyme
4. Sprinkle fresh lemon or lime juice on cooked rice, potatoes, vegetables, fish or chicken.
5. Look for new flavouring ideas in cookbooks and magazines.• Use fruit sauce for fish, meat, or chicken (pineapple, nectarine, orange, kiwi or mango mixtures).• Add curry powder to meat, poultry or fish.• Make your own salad dressings from oil, assorted vinegars, garlic, herbs, and spices.• Flavour stir-fried foods with fresh ginger and garlic. Add unsalted peanut butter for a Thai flavour.• Experiment with homemade pizzas made with any combination of fresh vegetables, allowed cheeses, herbs, and meats. Try it with and without tomato sauce (called flat bread).
6. Sprinkle balsamic vinegar on vegetables, and use it to give extra zip to marinades and salad dressings.
7. Use juice or wine as a flavouring in marinades, stewed meats and sauces.
8. Collect cookbooks and recipes that use low-salt flavourings. Exchange low-salt recipes with friends and family

Here's to Health

"The trouble with always trying to preserve the health of the body is that it is so difficult to do without destroying the health of the mind." ~G.K. Chesterton

Top 10 health innovations of 2009

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/12/14/top.health.innovations.2009/
(CLICK ON Here's to Health TITLE ABOVE)

THANKSGIVING 2009

God Bless those who have lost loved ones recently or have to work on Thanksgiving.

“Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action. “ ~W.J. Cameron
“Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence.” ~Erma Bombeck
“For each new morning with its light,For rest and shelter of the night,For health and food, for love and friends,For everything Thy goodness sends.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Thanksgiving Day is a jewel, to set in the hearts of honest men; but be careful that you do not take the day, and leave out the gratitude.” ~E.P. Powell
“He who thanks but with the lips Thanks but in part; The full, the true Thanksgiving Comes from the heart.” ~J.A. Shedd
“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Living

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. "
--Martin Luther King Jr.

H1N1 VIRUS

CDC recommendations on H1N1 vaccine
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/public/vaccination_qa_pub.htm

BOY SAVES TEACHER

CUB SCOUT SAVES TEACHER!!!!! AWESOME!!!!!http://www.digtriad.com/news/thebuzz/story.aspx?storyid=131799&catid=259

A 10-year-old autistic boy in Texas is being hailed as a hero after he performed the Heimlich maneuver on his teacher while she was choking.

RAIN

"God sends showers on earth and waters the fields"...... Job 5:10

Check out this Church

Great Church to check out if you live in southeast Los Angeles County, California:

http://fpcdowney.com/

We can work it out.....

Great relationship song from THE BEATLES
(McCartney/Lennon)Recorded: October 20, 1965, Abbey Road Studios, London.
"Try to see it my way...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59NNupminV8

S M I L E

"Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing."
... Mother Teresa

THE AMAZING DANCE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJTS1dxgd_M

Recently, in a televised modern dance competition in China - a very uniquecouple won one of the top prizes and received the longest standing ovation.She was a dancer, who had trained since she was a child. Tragically, shelost her entire left arm in an accident and fell into a state of depression; soshe decided to coach a children's dancing group. From that point on, sherealized she could not forget dancing. She still loved to dance and wantedto dance again. She tried to do some of her former routines but without herarm she had difficulty maintaining balance. She practiced strenuously anddeveloped a dance routine - always dancing alone in her studio.He was not a dancer. He lost a leg in an accident and he had fallen into adeep state of depression. They met - and her goal immediately became tohelp him become positive about life again. She taught him to dance and inher studio they danced together and developed a routine as their lives andfriendship became closer.Their life together, behind the closed doors of the dance studio - was one ofcreativity, challenge, determination, practice and sometimes failure.Theirfocus was on doing what others said would be impossible.. Several timesit became so difficult and frustrating for them that they gave up, broke up.But life alone, without each other, brought them back together again andthey became even more determined to perfect a dance routine to a pointwhere they might try to dance outside the studio to see what friends andfamily thought about what they were doing all that time inside the studio.Their friends and family were so supportive they encouraged the coupleto enter a dance competition, which they finally agreed to do. Only laterdid they realize the competition was to be televised locally. We will nowsee the first - and to date only televised performance of their dance......:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Olivia Claire Perry and Nicolas Falco Elias

Thank You to Brad and Luke for being such good helpers!

Pre-Prom May 30, 2009.... see FACEBOOK for many more photos.... luv the color... luv the luv

KUDOS TO NICK and Luke

CONGRATS TO MY SON NICK WHO GRADUATES FROM HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 18, 2009!
PLUS, HES ONE OF THE VALEDICTORIANS!
IMAGINE THAT!
Nick Also Received the Bank of America MATH award... hey, where's the money?

PHOTO FROM MOM DAY 2009

NICK, CHRIS, LUKE

Good Job to Lucas also for his Freshman year at Reseda. Great Grades. Plus, 47 volunteer hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And on Volleyball team.

when did i get so short????????????????????

SLEEP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih3/sleep/guide/info-sleep.htm

Table 2. Representative Total Sleep Requirements for Various Species
Species Average Total Sleep Time (hours/day)
brown bat 19.9
python 18.0
owl monkey 17.0
human infant 16.0
tiger 15.8
squirrel 14.9
golden hamster 14.3
lion 13.5
gerbil 13.1
rat 12.6
cat 12.1
mouse 12.1
rabbit 11.4
jaguar 10.8
duck 10.8
dog 10.6
bottle-nosed dolphin 10.4
baboon 10.3
chimpanzee 9.7
guinea pig 9.4
human adolescent 9.0
human adult 8.0
pig 7.8
gray seal 6.2
goat 5.3
cow 3.9
sheep 3.8
elephant 3.5
donkey 3.1
horse 2.9
giraffe 1.9
Sources: References 1, 5, 16, and 36.

PENGUIN POO!

Penguin poo stains expose emperors' icy homes

BONN, Germany (Reuters) - Ten new colonies of emperor penguins have been found in Antarctica after satellite photos showing brownish stains on the ice turned out to be the excrement of thousands of birds.
The findings, revealed by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) on Tuesday, will help understand penguin populations and the vulnerability to global warming of the breeding colonies which are on sea ice.

http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE5507T320090601

beatles rock band..... sept 9

Remaining Beatles come together to promote game
16 hours ago
NEW YORK (AP) — Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are coming together to promote the upcoming "The Beatles: Rock Band" video game.
The two surviving Beatles, along with Yoko Ono and Olivia Harrison, appeared at Microsoft Corp.'s presentation Monday at the E3 video game conference in Los Angeles.
In the game, fans will be able to follow the band's career beginning with their early days in 1963 Liverpool through their final rooftop performance.
Forty-five Beatles songs will be available on the game disc. Another, "All You Need Is Love," meanwhile, will be released on the Xbox 360 for download, with proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders.
"The Beatles: Rock Band" hits store shelves on Sept. 9. Its publisher is MTV Games, the developer is Harmonix and Electronic Arts is the distribution partner.

Wedding Anniversary

HAPPY HAPPY BRAD

Wonderful day despite being sick

HUMAN SWINE FLU ... NOT YET PANDEMIC

==> THIS RESPIRATORY VIRUS IS SPREAD THROUGH COUGHING AND SNEEZING
==> THIS SPREADS FASTER THAN 1918 FLU DUE TO AIR TRAVEL
==> GOVT ADVISES AGAINST UNNECESSARY TRAVEL TO MEXICO
==> SYMPTOMS TAKE 3 - 4 DAYS TO SHOW UP

This is a virus we’ve never seen before -- part of pandemic criteria

This virus is also affecting 20, 30, and 40 year olds

Unusually, the viruses all appear to carry genes from swine flu, avian flu and human flu viruses from North America, Europe and Asia. "We haven't seen this strain before, but we hadn't been looking as intensively as we have," Dr Schuchat said. "It's very possible that this is something new that hasn't been happening before." Human-to-human spread:
"We believe at this point that human-to-human spread is occurring," Dr Schuchat said. "That's unusual. We don't know yet how widely it is spreading.

"NO SINGLE ACTION WILL IRRADICATE AN OUTBREAK"

TAKE PRECAUTIONS
To protect yourself and your family, officials say you should cover a cough, stay home when you're sick or have a fever and wash your hands frequently. Besser says for now he'd prefer to focus on regular hand-washing, and people "not giving that little kiss of greeting that they're used to right now."

== TAMILU MAY BE USED FOR VERY YOUNG CHILDREN ... ASK YOUR DOCTOR FIRST == COAST GUARD AND BORDER OFFICERS HAVE ANTIVIRALS

COMMON SENSE GUIDELINES :
==> WASH HANDS OFTEN
==> STAY HOME IF YOU FEEL SICK
==> COVER MOUTH WHEN YOU COUGH OR SNEEZE
The Centers for Disease Control says people who have flu-like symptoms — fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing — should see their doctors. The CDC says some people with swine flu also have reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.There is no vaccine for this disease. The best way to prevent its spread is to exercise good sense — stay home if you feel sick, call your doctor, cover coughs and sneezes with tissues and throw the tissues away and wash your hands frequently with soap and water or an alcohol cleanser.Oh, and you can’t catch swine flu by eating pork — at least if it is fully cooked.For the latest information about swine flu, go to the CDC’s Web site, www.cdc.gov.And don’t panic.

PRAY FOR OUR WORLD

50 YEARS of research on heart diet

Not All Diets Pass the Heart-Healthy Test
Study Shows Mediterranean Diet Lowers Heart Disease Risk; Western Diet Gets Poor Marks

http://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/news/20090413/not-all-diets-pass-the-heart-healthy-test
Researchers evaluated more than 50 years of research on diet and heart disease and found diets rich in vegetables, nuts, and those that follow a Mediterranean pattern with lots of fruits, vegetables, and fish have "strong evidence" of lowering the risk of heart disease.

The final results showed only three specific dietary factors had strong evidence behind them as proven heart disease fighters:
· Vegetable-rich diet
· Eating nuts rich in monounsaturated fatty acids like walnuts and other nuts
· Following a Mediterranean-style diet high in vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts, whole grains, cheese or yogurt, and fish
Of these, only a Mediterranean-style diet has been shown in randomized controlled studies to reduce the risk of heart disease.


Mediterranean Diet Is Healthy For Your Heart: McMaster Study
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/146349.php

The study concludes there are certain food groups or dietary patterns, that are beneficial, including vegetables, nuts, monounsaturated fatty acids, and an overall 'healthy' dietary patterns such as the Mediterranean diet which incorporates generous amounts of fruits and vegetables, healthy fats, such as olive and canola oil, small portions of nuts, red wine in moderation, very little red meat and fish on a regular basis. In addition, the researchers conclude there is strong evidence which supports that certain dietary factors such as glycemic index/load of foods and trans fatty acids are harmful.

FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS

Fan Club link
http://flightfans.ning.com/

My Web Page link
http://flightfans.ning.com/profile/ChrisE