Monthly Archives: February 2015

02.04.15
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Brussel Sprouts – both sides of the story

First the bad news:  Brussell Sprouts could be bad for your health….from Wikipedia

Consuming Brussels sprouts in excess may not be suitable for heart patients taking anticoagulants since they contain vitamin K, a blood-clotting factor. In one such reported incident, doctors determined that the reason for a heart patient’s worsening condition was eating too many Brussels sprouts which countered the intended effects of blood-thinning therapy.

I’m just thankful that I’m not taking anticoagulants!

Lunch

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I’ve always eaten brussels sprouts; but, I was one of those kids sitting at the table with boiled brussel sprouts in front of me as my unsurmountable challenge of the day to eat it.  Sprinkled with salt and pepper and vinegar, mom said I had to eat them along with all of the mom reasons why I had to eat them.  So I did.        Spring forward to the day she decided to fry them in the frying pan with butter and onions, then sprinkle with salt and pepper and she was right (did those words just come out of my mouth?) they were good.  There’s something about the dark brown edges of the fried brussel sprout that changes the taste.  As an adult, I morphed into serving brussel sprouts topped with cheddar cheese.

Now that I’m an adult-adult and a health conscious adult-adult, I’ve been eating more brussel sprouts and have added garbonzo beans to the mix – a healthy serving will keep me full from lunch until supper aka dinner for you who drink your hot tea with a pinky raised.

Watching a hershey’s chocolate spread on a cracker commercial during The Bold and Beautiful today had me shaking my head to the advertising of junk food that is going to kill us early.  I never say never – but now that I’ve realized the importance of healthy eating, I rarely eat junk or processed food.  Its a mind thing and a priorities change and a life change and once you adopt the concept, it is very easy to say NO.

I had a conversation with someone who was lamenting about how much organic meat and produce cost and I either said it to myself or said outloud (I can’t remember) but, seriously, have you added up the cost of the bags of chips, crackers, candy and processed food you buy…..

Until next time….

02.03.15
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Well, what a delightful morning….the Mammogram

As I told the mammogram technician, I have all kinds of excuses…but I didn’t share them with her because she didn’t deserve it…anyone who can slap boobs around on a cold slab all day deserves a little peace and quiet!  During the squeezing, I realized that I had never had a mammo like this one.  I actually felt some tenderness as she squeezed the vices down on the breast then manually turned the little crank to get-it-just-a-little-bit-tighter.  There!  I’m sure manipulating all the different breast tissue in one day is pretty routine…but I’m guessing around 3 pm, any whining from the patient would get on their last nerve – then there is the fact that going deodorant/lotion free is required.  We wear deodorant for one reason, and around 3 pm, this could be unpleasant.  The job just would not hold much appeal for me….better than hog castrating, though!

For me, the anxiety of today’s Mammo was self inflicted.  I could not remember when my last mammogram had been.  I know I had it after my mother died in ’09 and not since.  Like I said…I have all kinds of excuses.  Once I decided I had to do it, I scheduled one in Des Moines for today.  We were going to spend the weekend and a couple of days visiting family and friends, visit the clinic this morning and head back home.  The weather killed that dream.  Yesterday I called around to find a place in Lee’s Summit to get it done, called insurance to be sure the Iowa insurance would pay for it here and sat around agonizing the results.  In my hypochondriac mind (handed down from my mother), I was pretty sure that because I had waited so long, I would have breast cancer…around the 2:00 am trip to the bathroom this morning, I realized the nonsense of that thinking and realized that mammos don’t prevent cancer, they just reveal that you have cancer – and by not taking care of myself with regular screenings just meant that I wouldn’t have caught it early.  That twisted thinking actually helped me to go to sleep.

I still don’t know anything…I have to wait for the requested comparison information to be sent from Des Moines…but at least he didn’t mark immediate followup recommended.

So we wait.

Until next time…..

02.01.15
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Snow or no snow…keep the pictures coming

We were supposed to be in Des Moines this weekend…had a motel room rented through Monday night…when I talked to Katy on Friday, I said..ya..we are coming…don’t mind the snow – probably the only good snow we will see this winter.  WTH…did that really come out of my mouth.  Woke up Saturday morning and saw the Storm warning and the possibility of 10 inches and we agonized…so we opted to stay home and forfeit the money on the Orbitz reserved room!?!

This morning, it looks like we probably made the right decision…after being an Iowan for 57 years, I know what a winter storm is like and after 30 years working 911, I know what a nightmare a winter storm is.  I’ve been enjoying everyone’s Facebook pictures from Iowa this morning.  It is truly beautiful.  I ALMOST regret not being there but I think we made the right decision for safety and it is not like we would have wanted to sit in the motel room and awe about how beautiful the motel parking lot is…and we will be watching the Super Bowl game today which I understand may not be a choice for satellite TV folks.

Here’s the view from our kitchen today

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What a difference being 4 hours away makes.

It kills me to say this too.  Go Seahawks!  Believe me…it is more a cheer against the Patriots!

Until next time….