TRAINWRECK

On Friday, July 20, 2012, the sheriff came around and took me to jail because I had unauthorized herbs in my home garden. Made bail Saturday morning, then on Sunday logged in here and said 'so long' for a while. It's been a while. Much has changed over the years since then...

        "The decline of western civilization leaves me strangely unmoved."

SO LONG

So long, folks.  So sorry, but circumstances demand I suspend this chronicle for the time being and I do not know how long that will be.  So I'll just say "See you later." 

Thanks for looking in.

cheers, BC

NUTRIBLAST

This is the NutriBullet "As Seen on TV" promoted by the raw foods guy David Wolfe.  It makes what he calls "NutriBlasts."  Looks like a blender.  Maybe a super-blender.  It's not a juicer since it does not remove pulp.  It pulverizes the pulp along with everything else.  They call it an "extractor."  Now that it finally arrived, the book says to do nothing until my doctors say it's OK.  Hmm.  Well, OK, I have appointments on the 30th with the Mayo dietitians, then with Dr. M., my new primary, on August 1st for complete physical and lab workup.  I've asked him to help me in my quest.  It remains to be seen how helpful he will be, but I feel that he is morally obligated as a health-care practitioner to do the right thing and practice some Health instead of giving me more pills.

The Mayo baryatric people promise to be the most help thus far.  Dr. Lynch, my go-to guy in Baryatric, is quite thrilled to learn about my new direction and has offered the resources of his department.  So, I won't be doing this alone without supervision or regular monitoring in any case. 

Heard from Victoria again reminding me that she is there with encouragement and support, should need arise, as it may well do.  She's such a sweetheart (see yesterday's posting).

The NutriBullet people say, "Nothing feels so good as feeling good."  Gotta like that.

"Nothing tastes as good as healthy feels."  I like that one even better.  It's on my bulletin board to help keep me honest and focused.

cheers, BC

IF WE ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE MIDNIGHT SNACKS

 WHY IS THERE A LIGHT IN THE REFRIGERATOR? 

VICTORIA

                                           Victoria Everett, Before and After

I watched a video on YouTube a week or so ago featuring Victoria telling her story.  When she said the voices went away, I was stunned. 

My youngest brother whom I call Dano, has been schizophrenic all his adult life.  He's presently living in a group home for defective people and is practically a zombie from all the meds he is on to control "the voices" and other chronic problems associated with a dissolute existence.  Until Victoria mentioned her own voices leaving, well, the stun I felt was the return of hope for Dano.

Her video on YouTube:    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCkpEtpZ5bQ

In the video, she invited correspondence, so I wrote her about how wonderful it was to hear about her return to Health and the renewal of hope for my brother Dano.  I just heard back from her this morning (she'd been camping).  Her letter (email) was warm and personal, wishing the best for Dano and giving more detail on how it worked for her.  I am so grateful to have found this person.  Here's an excerpt from her letter...

"Since I am not a doctor I cannot say what will work for other people with schizophrenia, all I say is that eating a diet made up of only fruits and vegetables is the only thing that works for me. Certain foods will trigger the voices again.

Oils

Overeating fats, such as nuts and seeds. I have to be real careful and eat sparingly.

Gluten

All dairy products

It is so very wonderful to be able to live a happy fulfilling life. Once the voices went away I spent a year studying and learning about emotional stability and balance because I found that my emotions were very childlike. It is pretty much impossible to mature emotionally when there is constant chaos going on in your head."

Also in her video, she mentioned she would soon have a website up and running.  And so she does:   http://crazybananalady.org/

Her story is inspiring.  Not least for the resurgence of hope that Dano can yet be saved and returned to the bright funny guy he was before the schizophrenia attacked and warped his brain.  The presumption is that it's never too late.  That goes for all of us fat sick and tired people who want to get better.

Never Too Late:
I am 67 on August 10th.
Rando is 63.
Dano is 60 on August 4th.

cheers, BC

DANGER

We provide food that customers love, day after day after day. People just want more of it.
~ Ray Kroc

Thanks, Ray, but Isn't this a symbol for why there are so many obese Americans?  Not just Americans, either, but everywhere people eat Western-style these days.  It's how I got "Fat Sick and Nearly Dead."  Tasty mountains of calorie rich and nutrient poor fast and junk food.  That's how we all got fat.  Even the good steaks and ribs, wine and cheese, bacon and eggs, peanut butter and milk, and coconut-fried shrimp too have let me down, leaving me a long journey ahead to regain sanity and Health.  I'm on the way, soon come.

cheers, BC

The most dangerous food is wedding cake.
  ~ James Thurber

By all means, marry. If you get a good wife, you'll become happy; if you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.
~ Socrates

GREAT-GREAT GRANDFATHER?

An early 20th century photograph titled "Big Man of MO, 630 lbs."

I saw this picture and thought, hmm, this fellow's face resembles mine.  Could we be related?  I never had any trousers like that, but I've felt 325 pounds-worth of his pain.  And that's gracious plenty, as they say in the South.  Just imagine!  He does look tall, though, besides being so radically rotund.

cheers, BC

Spaghetti can be eaten most successfully if you inhale it like a vacuum cleaner.
  ~Sophia Loren



YESTERDAY

Howdy,

The night before last, I slept for 6 hours straight, from 9 pm to 3 am.  I cannot remember when I last slept for more than 3.  "Normally," I have to get up thru' the night to whiz, even with the meds I'm taking for that very thing.  Six hours is a breakthrough.  Last night was normal again, but I'm taking that six as a sign of things to come.

Yesterday I bought a $50 GE Juicer at WalMart.  Made myself a Reboot #1 "Mean Green" (being impulsive and too impatient to wait any longer for the N'Bullet to get here).  It was disappointing, to say the least.  The juicer, I mean, not the juice.  Well, the juice, too, because the GE just didn't do a good job on the greens.  The 3 double handfuls of kale made so little juice that it barely covered the bottom of the cup.  And it spit everywhere coming out.  By the time I had the cukes and celery in, a puddle was forming on the countertop.  Now I feel like throwing this thing in a ditch.  The $55 Hamilton Beach from Amazon I sent to broRando was much better, not messy like this POS GE.  Another lesson learned as I thrash about trying to get this project in shape to make a smooth take-off in August.

Cheers, BC

People seldom do what they believe in. They do what is convenient, then repent.
~ Bob Dylan