there i am planking on the roof of my barn
in front of my solar panels
this is the time of the year when i think a lot
about solar power since the sun is high in the
sky and shines without interference from clouds for
several weeks
today if you live in a progressive green city in texas like
san antonio or austin you can get your system placed
for half price or even less as my rainwater brother did
last year
when hes gone on vacations he is making money
as he overproduces electricity and sells it back to the
electric company
i usually dont overproduce electricity as my system is
smaller than his but i do come close several months
out of the year
i now have a meter that tells me how much of my own
electricity i am using each day and how much im buying
back from the electric cooperative
the rates in some areas are getting high enough so that
with rebates the cost of the systems are making it easier
for more people to get them
we are finally making that turn that needs to be made
to convert more people to solar power
if you ever get the opportunity to sit and watch an
electric meter spin backwards yes backwards
youll get inspired to get a system for yourself
SUGAR DRINKS BAN
looks like in new york they are going to ban those big sugary
drinks
like the big gulp
seems over 50% of the kids are overweight in new york as
are 50% of the adults
no big gulp for the big apple
CREDIT DR
now medical balance billing is affecting your credit
several people have discovered this the hard way when
they applied for a loan for a new home and either
were denied or received a higher interest rate
if you carry a balance after a dr visit that goes on you credit
report
they seem to use anything they can to screw us dont they
now going to the doctor can affect your health and your credit health
OBESE KIDS
in a county near here a recent study was done which
showed that close to half of the kids in the schools were
obese
surrounding the schools were a lot of fast food restaurants
in the kids neighborhoods there were no side walks
there were no parks or places for the kids to play
the school district has cut back or eliminated pe classes
because of budget cuts
some kids only get exercise at school if their regular
teachers stop and incorporate it into their day
if you fast forward those kids to my age
many will have died already from the diseases that
obesity can cause
diabetes
heart disease ie heart attacks
stroke
if we dont pay now society as a whole will pay later
incorporate good nutritious foods in the school
and please put back pe classes
FOR THE HEART
besides lack of exercise and eating properly
here are some things that are bad for the heart
some of them increase the risk for heart disease
as much as 50%
those who spend 4+ hours a day in front of a tv
xbox computer etc have a 48% increased risk of having a
a major heart related event
even if they still exercise
hummm thats interesting
keep on smiling
turn the frown to a smile
have a good attitude
stay happy
laughter makes the heart healthier
happy people live longer
nuff said
dont snore
if you have obstructive sleep apnea your chances of a stroke
and heart attack increases
dont worry your spouse probably knows if you have this
correcting sleep apnea greatly improves your health
eat more fiber
yes people who have an increased intake of fiber
live longer
women over fifty who eat increased fiber may have a decrease
chance of death from stroke and heart disease by 60%
floss those teeth
dental disease can increase twice the chances of heart disease
then finally
dont smoke even just a few a day
the risk of heart attacks goes up 400% if you smoke a pack
a day
so
dont watch too much tv
stay happy
dont snore
eat more fiber
floss
dont smoke
SIBLINGS
most of us have siblings
we have 8 kids in our family
all are usually recognizable at a distance
as we all have grey hair
that usually stands out because of it whiteness
as we all get older
ive noticed that we all are starting to look alike
especially we look like one or both of our parents
funny how that happens as we get older
everything changes
was able to spend memorial day with 3 of my siblings
we were able to do a lot of visiting and ate food
that we love
guess your would call it soul food
but it was good ole nutritious soul food
we were able to visit for several hours together
something we dont get to do very often
old memories discussed
catching up on family and family matters
then of course there was some nap time involved
all in all
a great day with three of my siblings
siblings
maybe we all should stop and enjoy our siblings
while we can
LEBRON
ok hes the man
hes the best nba player
not sure how another team can really stop him
hes such a powerful athlete and can do so many things as a basketball
player
theres not another one like him
he might just win a title this year
look forward to the rest of the games
BIRTHDAY
today is my nephews birthday-#21
hes the one i pick on in this blog some
the one that didnt fall in the rainwater tanks last year
he still has that rock to get out of that tank for me
happy birthday dude
memorial day is monday may 28th
its the day to remember those who died while
serving in the military and fighting the wars of
the past
stop on monday for a few minutes and ponder
what memorial day really means besides a
three day weekend
thanks to all the veterans who died serving their
country and
thanks to all veterans who have served their
country
thanks to mack my nephew for serving in afghanistan
recently
am glad he is safe back in the states
make memorial day a day to make a memory of
those who served
and be safe
ALZHEIMERS NATIONAL PLAN
the government passed a alzheimers national plan this month
its one of the few things that received bipartisan support in congress
(too bad they cant agree on other things that need to get done)
the bill provides funding of $156 million to advance this alzheimers
national project
its a national plan to attack alzheimers like the ones that were
launched against cancer and aids
we are now heading in the right direction
hopefully a cure will come soon
the goal is 2025
HARVEST TIME
one of the fun part of gardening is harvesting time
especially when the tomatoes start producing well
here is a picture of a sample of what we recently harvested
from our garden here at the country n
recently dug up our potatoes
we should have about 10 gallons of red potatoes
which we will store and eat on a regular basis until
sometime in the late fall
we also harvested a large bed of onions
those of you who saw the video from the
alzheimers research center
its the bed i was messing with in the video
we take all those onions and hang them in panty
hose on the rafters of a shed and cut them down
as we need them
the harvest was limited this year because i put
hairy vetch on my beds to act as a green manure
the problem was they over grew my onions and
the tops fell to the ground
this limited the onions growth
overall though we got a good harvest and should
have onions through the fall also
sure are good fresh
we are just now getting the beginnings of our tomato
crops
our vines are full of maters
some never make it to the house as i eat them right
off the vine
for memorial day meal we will have fresh potatoes from
the garden with fresh green beans from the garden
we also picked our peaches yesterday and got
4 5 gallon buckets
thats as much as we need
we will freeze them and use them in my wifes shes
peach cobbler
she promises one for the memorial day meal
they also are used to make a drink called the peach fuzz
it makes you feel fuzzy when you drink it
we planted also this year the three sisters
corn rattlesnake green beans and miniature pumpkins
which we will eat like a winter squash
the pumpkins shade the garden beds
the green beans grow up the corn stalks and fix
nitrogen into the soils
the corn grows up for the support of the beans
we get three veggies in one garden bed
those indians were smart werent they
after we harvested the onions and potatoes i overseeded the
beds with black eyed peas which we will eat from all summer
the peas also fix nitrogen in the soil
this fall ill turn the peas into the soil and they will act
like a green manure
this is so much fun
you should try it if you are not already
start with a square foot garden preferably a keyhole garden
good luck
URBAN FARMS
if you live in the austin area you are probably familiar with some of
its urban farms
theres several but the two weve visited more than once are
the boggy creek farm and the springdale farm
they ink out a living farming in town
great places to visit
all around texas people have ag exemptions which give you a break on
your property taxes if you have farms
heck we all know people who have bent the rules a lot and get
a big break on their taxes
two goats on a small acreage area and they are ag exempted
thank goodness those urban farmers get a tax break since we all
know what how high those taxes are in town
(my taxes are a fourth of what they were in town for the same
property value)
think again
those guys dont get an ag exemption
teach them to try to farm inside the city limits
the law was passed to help prevent urban sprawl from wiping out
farm land
so now heres a farm in the city that could be wiped out because of
the rising land values and taxes
now that just aint right is it
im on the urban farmers side of this arent you
hopefully the press coverage of this will help get something done
sure would hate to lose those urban farms
thery are a special feature to austin
helps keep it weird or at least different
MY FRIEND GREG
i wrote this blog on a visit to see greg last year
i knew then and i think he knew that would be
the last time we would see each other
it was a hard blog to write and is a hard blog
to read even now
ive been asked to read this blog at his memorial service
ill do it but may not be able to finish it
so someone will finish it for me if i cant
my wife she cant do it either as she cries
every time she reads it also
greg died in the final stages of huntingtons disease
this last weekend
its a terrible progressive genetic neurological disease
thats passed from parent to child
he knew he definitely had it for several years as there
is a genetic test that can be done to accurately diagnose
if you have the disease
if you get the gene you will get the disease
and if one of your parents had it then you know whats
going to happen to you
i may have alzheimers disease
i say i might have it as i cant be 100% sure that it will happen
all the lab studies point to that as being the cause of my mild
short term memory
greg he knew 100%
maybe i have some hope while he didnt have hope
he was going to develop the terrible symptoms of huntingtons
i may not develop alzheimers
not sure which is worse or better
knowing for sure or having a little sliver of hope
greg and his wife made the most of the years after he knew
for sure
with travel and generally enjoying life
they were lucky to get to prepare themselves for what has
eventually happened
others who dont want to know dont get to prepare as well
they did as good a job as anyone could do
and i think it made things better for them
because they were prepared
although it was been difficult for them
if i could choose alzheimers vs huntingtons disease
which would i choose
having a progressive disease and knowing all the way through what
happens to you as you deteriorate or
having a progressive disease and not knowing as things get worse as
you deteriorate
i think i would choose alzheimers every time
although both are hard on the family and the caretaker
sometimes life isnt fair and just sucks doesnt it
for more information on huntingtons disease go to www.hdsa.org
for more information on alzheimers disease go to www.alz.org
greg my friend
rip
you will be missed but i know your suffering is over
this is a picture of my wife she and i with hook em
the mascot from the university of texas
just before the baylor ut football game in november 2010
(this is a few days before i had my eventful trip to the
ut southwestern for my initial neuropsychological exam
to enter the adni 2 study
little did i know what was coming
it was also the day rg3 stuck it to the longhorns)
inside that mascot uniform is a special person
(youll see him in this uniform on espn this fall on some commercials)
that has it
you know it when you see it
this kid has it
he is the son of friends of ours
hes graduated from the mccombs business school this month
and will be working in finance at a non large bank company
in new york
he was asked to fix the financial mess while he was there
he said he would work on it for me
we went to his graduation party and met several of his friends
who had also just graduated
they all had jobs already
thats better statistically than the average graduate today
after spending time with these students i must say
that our future is in good hands
yes there is
hope for the future
NBA
dang i love watching nba playoff basketball
watched lebron go off on the pacers on sunday
what an athlete
then theres the plodding along spurs just getting it done
and no ones paying much attention
its either duncan or the coach or both as they are
always there without any flash
i decided what they need to do is just get rid of the regular
season and just have the playoffs
they play half a season anyway in the playoffs and
the players really dont play real hard until the playoffs
and do they get chippy with each other or what
by the 7th game of a series they are usually tired of
playing each other
spurs vs okc
plodders vs the gazelles
then who knows what will happen in the eastern division
should be a good next few weeks of games
VIDEO
below is a link below to a video my wife she and i did recently for the
alzheimers research center at the
university of texas southwestern medical center
the video explains itself
please take a few minutes and watch this video
spread the word
share the video
do volunteer somewhere
you and others will benefit
i have chosen habitat for humanity
meals on wheels
alzheimers association
and
the alzheimers research center at ut southwestern medical school
as the places i volunteer
i feel good every day for doing this
you should try it
volunteering
here is the link to the video on my wife she and i
and our involvement at the alzheimers research center
WHAT IF
the theory is that alzheimers disease is caused by the accumulation
of a sticky gooey substance called beta amyloid that attaches itself
to the brain and as a result the brain nerve cells die and what the end
result is
alzhiemers disease
thats the theory that is about to be finally tested in a clinical trial in
columbia
why columbia and not the us
in columbia there is an extended family of over 300 people who
get full blown alzhiemers disease in their mid 40s
they have a genetic mutation that predisposes them to get the
disease
there are people here in the us that have the same mutation but they
are not in the same family and in the same area of the country
like the family is in columbia
the new drug being tested is called crenezumab
its an injectible drug that induces the body or it is an anitbody that
attaches itself to this goey sticky beta amyloid and starts to remove
it from the brain
instead of giving it to people who have full blown alzhiemers
the drug will be given to people who dont have any symptoms yet
but who most certainly will get the disease within 10 years
if the beta amyloid gets removed as its produced and these people
who are destined to get alzheimers dont get alzheimers then the
theory that the beta amyloid is the cause of alzheimers disease
is proven and we then will have the first real medicine that can be
used to prevent alzheimers disease from occurring
thats the treatment america and the world is waiting for
i know if it was available and it works i would be first in line
to volunteer to get it
similar drugs as ive mentioned before though do not work as
well in patients like me who carry the apoe 4 gentotype
so if it works it may not work as well in me and others who
carry this genotype
could we have a cure or preventative treatment coming soon
the goal is a cure by 2025
i of course dont have that much time to wait
ADNI 2 FOLLOW UP
yesterday i went for my one year follow up for the adni 2 study
alzheimers disease neuroimaging intiative phase 2
i had tons of blood drawn in special tubes that are sent off to
the adni central location i think in uc san diego
i had a neuropsychological exam done again
yes the torture test
this was a little shorter yesterday as it was only an hour long
next year i have the lengthy one done of 2-21/2 hours
dont look forward to that one
i had another neurological exam done by a neurologist and
a lot of questions were asked about how i was doing
my wife she also has to go with me
they ask her lots of questions about me and she
has to fill out a lengthy questionnaire on how im doing
she was real good this time and didnt get faintified
then finally i had a special volumetric mri of the brain done without
contrast that also takes extra views of the area of the brain
where alzheimers usually starts
this volume of this area will be measured and any subtle
changes in its size will be detected on this mri
this mri although read locally will be sent to the research central
area i think again at uc san diego to be officially read for the study
as a part of the deal i dont get the results of these studies
however when i take the neuropsych exam i know personally how
i am doing
i still have short term memory problems that are noticeable when
i take the test and have been persistent
they do correlate with things i notice but others dont notice
in my everyday life
none of this interferes with what i am doing now but
would have interfered with my practice of medicine
this does seem stable however and has not really worsened in a
year and a half since i had my first neuropsych exam done
my wife she and i did a video for the alzheimers research center
they did over 4-5 hours of filming and made a 5 minute video
ive reviewed it and although its hard to watch for me i know
that its a good video that hopefully will encourage people to get
evaluated if they are having symptoms or to volunteer for an alzheimers
research study
i should be able to post it on my blog and it also will be available
on the azheimers research centers website and possibly other
national websites soon
i will post where it can be viewed when its available
ADNI 2
adni 2 stands for
alzheimers disease neuroimaging inititative phase 2
its a mulicenter study on alzheimers
mainly funded by the stimulus package from 3-4 years ago
its the 2nd phase of this study
it will last for 5 years but if funding is present will be continued
it is considered the most important study on alzheimers that
has ever been done
important research information is being written on results of
this study almost on a weekly basis
in this study there are 4 categories of study subjects
-normal controls-i tried to enter as a normal subject but it
was found i had some short term memory deficits so i was
placed in the next category
-early mild cognitive impairment-these subjects are real early
in the process
many like me have very subtle symptoms not
noticed by others
many are still working their jobs
none are pilots or doctors or air traffic controllers who are still
working though
although real early many of us are already on aricept (donepezil)
which can slow the symptoms of alzheimers but will not stop the
progress of the disease
some times starting the meds now at this stage will delay the onset
of the disease sometimes as much as 5 years
-mild cognitive impairment-these subjects have less subtle findings
some which are obvious to friends and relatives
-alzheimers disease-these patients have all the signs and symptoms
of alzheimers
if the new medicine crenezumab thats being tried on the large family who
carry the early onset alzheimers gene in columbia works then that medicine
could be started
one day on normal subjects who will get the disease or
those of us in the early mild cognitive impairment group
the disease would be stopped or slowed down significantly
we are a few years away though from knowing if that will work
sadly for me since i carry the apoe 4 genotype double gene
these meds may not work as well on me
today the tests i will have are
a general interview with my wife by the research coordinator to make sure
i am not having any new problems
a large number of vials of blood sent for muliple screening labs like
thyroid liver function test cbc etc and tests for proteins in the blood
that have been associated with alzheimers disease
eventually these blood tests will be available to everyone so that you
can be screened to see if you have a chance of getting alzheimers
it may be 90+% accurate
then next i have the test i dread the most the
2+ hour neuropsychological exam
the torture test
its frustrating because i know that i will have problems with parts of the
tests and cant do anything about it
then i have a mri of the brain
its looking for brain shrinkage and for subtle changes in the size of
the hippocampal area of the brain-the area where all this crap
starts
then i get a one year reprieve and go to annual visits
next year i will have all these tests done plus a spinal test for
amyloid and tau protein a fdg glucose metabolism pet scan and
a amyloid pet scan (thats like the new amyvid test thats now available)
is it worth doing this
yes it is even though i dont ever get the results
this research study the adni 2 study may help me one day but
will definitely help my kids or your kids or our grandkids
so
its worth it
ITS THE WATER STUPID
in the presidential race the most important issue is
its the economy stupid
in this area the issue that may limit development in this area
is not the economy
ours is one of the best in the us
its the water stupid
we need to realize this and all start doing something about it
aquifers lakes wells rain water systems levels are all low despite
all the rain weve had this spring and winter
if we get a hot dry summer like last year we
could be in water trouble here
i know you just go in there and turn the faucet on and
the water comes out
what if one day it doenst come out or is restricted more
than just alternating watering days and no washing your
car days
whats a person to do
on a personal level
you cant make it rain but
you can conserve water
if you open your faucet to run water to get hot water in your sink
run it into a bucket
in some houses thats 2 gallons
in a year that about 750 gallons
about what my wife she and i use in two weeks
theres a method of conserving water called the bucket list
not the bucket list ive done and am trying to get through
while i can
but a bucket under the faucet shower etc
catch that water in a bucket and use it to water plants
when you wash veggies run it in a bowl and use it for plants
when you shower catch shower water and use it for flushing toilets or
watering things outside
when you wash your hands catch that water
when you boil taters or eggs or pasta
save that water in a bucket and use it in your yard
i pour mine down my central compost basket in my
keyhole garden
if you have a fish tank
save that water for your garden
its a great liquid fertilizer
my wife she puts this on her square foot garden at school
save water from water bottles left over drinks and use
in the landscape
you do have to be careful what you pour on your plants
though
some things cant be put on plants like clorox water and
other caustic liquids
catch water from the ac units in the summer
sometimes we will get 5 gallons a day from ours
pure distilled water
when you take a bath scoop that water for use in the landscape
and again
when you shower catch that water in a bucket
these methods above are how we managed to keep many of our
plants in our yard alive during the severe drought last year
and how our garden survived partially from this recycled water
of course we have an incentive here at the country n as we
only use rainwater for our water source
MAKE MY DIRT
make my dirt
thats what ive decided to do this year
in my keyhole garden that ive made from an old
watering trough
in a recent blog on how to do this
well ive done several blogs about keyhole gardens
see lists to the right of this blog and click on
keyhole garden heres a link on how to do it
dr deb tolman a guru of the keyhole garden in texas did a
demonstration garden in a small town in central texas
where she took old rocks and clay and made a frame for
her keyhole garden
in the garden she made her own soil
she used lots of old phone books newspapers and manure
and mixed it all up
whala after several months she had soil that was producing
great crops
when i did my keyhole garden with its central composter i
did it the simple way and added the natural gardeners hill
country soil that has composts, minerals, good germs, granite
etc in it
i dumped it in the old water trough up to about 6 inches from
the top
that worked well until we finally started getting rain
the soil gradually settled down another 6 inches
so i decided to try what dr deb did
and make my own soil
heck the country n hens are busy mixing up old newspapers
cardboard leaves kitchen scraps and pooping all over it
every day in my large compost pile
they were basically making her soil for me
first i took leaves (i am a leaf rescuer as ive rescued over
50-100 bags of leaves from friends this year) and layered them
with shredded cardboard and with shredded several weeks of newspapers
then i added a layer of good ole chicken manure compost
which is high in nitrogen
this is straight from the chickens butt and is lightly mixed with leaves
then place in its own compost pile
then i added composted dirt that the country n hens have been working
on for several months
this is all mixed together
all i need to do is add rain
and add handful of worms
by the end of summer i will have the richest soil on my property and
will plant my fall garden there
cost of all this
zero
old trough was here when i moved in
it leaked so i used it for this garden
we get the newspaper every day and usually compost it in my
compost pile or take it to my wifes shes school to recycle
the cardboard was from things we have bought or was given to us
then the leaves were rescued from the curb side
free dirt
now all i need to do is wait and add lettuce spinach swiss chard
carrots kale italian parsley garlic onions etc in october
pictures to follow
IT DOESNT MATTER
it doesnt matter
that
bill clinton didnt inhale or had sex or didnt or didnt know what
is was or
george w snorted coke and drank too much when he was younger
or
obama used drugs when he was younger or that
he supports same sex marriage
(most of us dont care about this issue its time to move on to
these other important things)
or
mitt held somebody down in high school and cut his hair or he
put his dog on the top of his car and drove cross country
(well that does bother me some)
or
what religion they are
catholic protestant agnostic unitarian episcopalian
these are what past presidents have been
it doesnt matter
if mitt is mormon or even if obama was moslem which he isnt
hes a protestant
it doesnt matter
that stuff all doesn't matter when it comes to who we pick for president
here are the things that matter
religious freedom-we have to have it to survive here in the us
economy economy economy
jobs
education
womens health issues-they are the majority you know
child health
taxing those not taxed enough
control spending reasonably not on the backs of the poor and women and
children
control military spending
its time
its time for us to get out of afghanistan
we cant afford to be there any more
lets spend that money at home where its needed badly
we cant afford to lose any more soldiers over there
watched a national geographic special on the viet nam war
sure are some similarities
think a lot of americans are tired of us being there
its time
these are the things that i wish the candidates would discuss in this election
as
these are the things that really are important and need fixed
those other things dont matter
I WAS WRONG
when you do a blog its written posted and its there for
everyone to see
forever
last year in april i wrote that i thought the spurs were getting too
old and injured and that the spurs as we knew them were done
for the future
well i was wrong
here they are
all rested all injury free
the old guys are mixed in with a lot of younger guys who let
the old guys like duncan stay fresh legged
they are the turtles of the nba
they just keep plodding along with no one really paying attention
to them
the turtles will be up against the hares
sometimes the turtles win
yep i was wrong
spurs vs okla city is a possibility
definitely turtles vs the hares
MOTHERS DAY
on sunday i will pause and think about the two mothers
that have been important in my life
this is my mother
she would be 90 years old
she raised 8 children
the wife of a baptist minister
she was loved by all of her kids and all that knew her
she was a nurse and loved her profession
she was devastated by alzheimers disease in the last stages
of her life but
we remember her today during the best times
the other person
is my wife she
shes a good mother and a good wife and
a good sport for allowing me to pick on her
in this blog
shes a special person
will be thinking of her on mothers day
love you
POST ABBIE
what response to the blog on abbie
it is a special story
pass it on to those who would benefit from reading it
when you think you cant do something in life just think of abbie
you can do it
she did and does
AD CLASSIFICATIONS
there are three new levels in the new diagnostic classification
for alzheimers disease
pre clinical azheimers disease-you and no one else notices anything
mild cognitive impairment due to alzheimers disease-you and others notice changes
dementia due to alzheimers disease-those changes are more obvious
the preclinical phase can last for several years before symptoms start
the mild cognitive impairment starts subtly then advances to more
obvious symptoms after the process has been smouldering in your brain
for all those years
dementia due to alzheimers disease occurs when those processes start
damaging the brain and start snowballing in their effects
its the downhill roll that occurs with alzheimers disease
preclinical
the red line the 1st line
beta amyloid starts to form and accumulates in the brain
if my younger brother had tests in his mid to late forties on his spinal
fluid
they would have found decreased levels of beta amyloid
and on a beta amyloid pet scan they may have found some accumulation of
beta amyloid in his brain
my beta amyloid in the spinal fluid is reduced
i dont know my results of the research beta amyloid pet scan but plan
eventually to have the amyvid pet scan for beta amyloid
the orangey line the 2nd line
the synapses those nerve connections in the brain start to get damaged
if you measure glucose metabolism in the brain at this stage you may start
to see some loss of glucose uptake on a fdg glucose metabolism pet scan
at the beginning of this he would still be working without noticing anything
and
later as it progresses up the red and orangey line he will began to notice
some subtle things that others wont notice
this is where i enter the picture with the very early noticing of things
my fdg metalbolism test is normal
the green line the 3rd line
the damage is done to the nerve cell
things unravel in the cell and release a substance called tau
which can be measured in the spinal fluid
as the green line progresses upwards the symptoms he notices become
more obvious to him but probably not to others
the beta amyloid would be increasing in his brain and decreasing in the
spinal fluid
his tau protein levels would be increasing in the spinal fluid
he was in the middle of his second career as a policeman
i entered above and this is where i am now
my tau protein is increased and is in the borderline range
mci
the blue line the 4th line
the damage is occurring and on a mri there starts with subtle
changes in volume in the brain in the area of the hippocampus
that controls short term memory
at this stage the symptoms are becoming obvious to my brother and to
those around him
he actually sought medical help but was mostly ignored
i am not at this stage yet but am just where the purple line the 5th line
is beginning
the purple line the 5th line
this is where things start to take off
cognition begins to show up as worsening
the black line the 6th line
this is clinical functioning
this is how well your are functioning in the real world
as this line takes off and crosses the 2nd dotted line is where my
younger brother was officially diagnosed
short term memory was a problem
getting lost driving was a problem
at this point spinal fluid would show high tau protein and
low beta amyloid
fdg glucose metabolism pet scan would show progession of the decreased
uptake of glucose by the brain
a beta amyloid pet scan (like the amyvid) would show more involvement
of the brain with the beta amyloid plaques
a mri would show some brain shrinkage and changes in the hippocampus
he would have to quit working at this point
their life just changed significantly
after this point the lines all continue to increase and things just
get worse
where exactly am i
im at the first dotted line and if i follow my younger brothers path
i am 5-10 years behind him
hope its the later number
ABBIE
this blog of more than 500 blogs ive written
is one of my best stories i think that ive written about
its also one that has made me cry several times as i wrote it
abbie is a special person
she is a 11 year old 5th grade dynamo
if i could choose a daughter or granddaughter
i would want abbie to be her
watch this video
then go below and read abbies story
youll be inspired
i know i always was and still am
abbie was my patient for several years before i retired
i always enjoyed seeing her
she was such a normal kiddo
she was smart smiley bright happy obviously intelligent
healthy and
seemed well liked by her friends and her siblings
she i will admit was one of my favorite kids to see even though
i rarely saw her because she was so healthy
abbie has been the typically active kid
playing multiple sports such as soccer swimming tball track and field
and dance
she regularly bicycles and swims
well she does what all other kids her age do
her favorite sport though has been competitive cheerleading
and tumbling
in fact she is working on a full twisting layout
this video above is one where she is practicing her flips
you know the ones they do at the ball games that make me
dizzy just watching them do it
what sense of balance and athletic ability they have to have
what makes this video and abbie doing all this amazing is that
abbie was born without her lower left arm
now knowing this go back up and rewatch this video ok
when your kids whine i cant do it have them watch this video
and tell them abbies story
as my wife she says
wow
thats amazing
and when i saw abbie i saw abbie
i like most people that really know her dont even notice she is
missing her lower arm as
her personality and smiley face and intelligence masks that
if you know her then you know what i mean
what an inspiration to us all
and especially to kids
who may need some motivation
when she was a baby she learned to crawl
when she was four she locked herself in her room and
came out four hours later with tied shoes
she struggled with the monkey bars and you guessed it
she figured out how to go from bar to bar without falling
but it was painful to watch her fight to do it
but she finally did it
she paints her own fingernails and yes she changed her siblings
diapers when they were younger and that cute ponytail she wears
she puts her hair in it herself
when she was in the 3rd grade she wanted to attend a 3rd-5th grade
basketball camp-she had never played before
at award day on the last day mom attended and was shocked as
abbie won
1st place in the one on one tournament against 5th graders
1st in layups
1st in freethrows and
of course she won the ms hustle award
that tells a lot about who she is
thats also when her mom realized that abbie was special and could do
anything she wants to do
that she can
then
3 years ago abbie asked for a prosthetic arm
she went to shriners and was fitted with one at several visits
she wore it to school but on the way in she took it off and put
it in her backpack never to put it on again
she realized that it changed who she was and interfered with how
she does things
she probably wont ever wear one
(its now used to pull pranks on people)
she doesnt give much thought that she is different
in preschool kids would always wanted to know what happened
to her arm
she does sometimes tire of the questions from people
but doesnt really feel any different from other people
she has lots of friends
teasing has never been a problem for her
when asked who her hero was
its her best friend g
her best friend since she was 2
g will do all those things abbie wants to do
abbie is an entrepreneur
she has sold lemonade walked dogs swept porches and even
did a backyard restaurant for kids only last summer
she is an all a student
she is in the quest program
she has been first and second runner up in the school spelling bee
she is on the destination imagination team
where they have to do creative problem-solving
something abbie has always done
she wants to be rich and famous
she has this drive that will get her there
its inside her little heart
no doubt that will happen
she wants to attend the university of texas
and of course be a cheerleader there
they dont know whats coming their way
so
abbie is a special kid
maddam president abbie
dr abbie
counselor abbie
judge abbie.........
she has no limit to her future
some lucky guy will find her one day
abbie i miss seeing you
you were a joy to see each time i saw you
even if it was with your siblings office visit
you are an inspiration
we wish you the best for the future
IT WASNT ME
i told my wife she that wasnt me
i know i had cooked some potent pinto beans
but that wasnt me
recently homeowners in the austin area awoke
because of vibrations in their homes
ok one home with vibrations would be one thing
thats why my wife she accused me
but multiple homes
it must be something else
the fire departmeent was called
the sheriff department was called
no it wasnt from a block party bbq
where potent beans were served to all
it as it turns out was from methane being released
from a landfill
methane is the by product of the landfill
apparently a release valve was damaged by recent storms
(thats always my excuse a damaged release valve)
those guys that live in that subdivision sure are lucky
now when their house 'vibrates'
all they have to say
its that landfill again
tried that one on my wife she and she didnt
accept that explanation
we do live close to ft hood and ive blamed 'vibrations'
on them when they are shooting their big weapons
TATERS
last saturday before we went on our chicken tour we had to
go to the farmers market to pick up the map of the tour
while there we picked up some veggies that werent quite ripe
yet at our place
we saw this amount of organic red potatoes for sale for $4
these are from my garden
i couldnt help it i had to come home and dig some of mine
these are from one of my plants
and i have over 30 plants
i cant wait to dig them all up later this month
now if my green beans were ready i could make green beans
and new potatoes for mothers day
ABBIE
tomorrow i will be doing a blog on a special little girl named abbie
it is an inspirational story
read it tomorrow
ATRAZINE et al
if a chemical truck turned over in your yard and dumped its
chemicals on your yard would you let your kids and pets
play on that yard afterwards
most sane people would not
then many of you dump a chemical on your yards every year
to try to kill weeds that
dont work because in this area its dumped at the wrong time
of the year
if you use products like weed and feed etc
you are dumping these chemicals on your yard then letting your
kids and pets play in your yard
studies done can actually measure increased levels of these
chemicals in the urine
of kids exposed to them
use corn gluten on your yard in the fall to prevent seed germination
of the spring weeds and in the late winter to prevent summer weeds
if your kids or pets play in it or eat it its ok
as its corn
unless of course it was grown in a field with atrazine in it
many of the corn gluten products sold are chemical free
whats atrazine
well its another chemical that found in many water systems in
areas where atrazine is used to kill weeds in corn fields and soybean fields
many municipal water systems have increased levels of atrazine
atrazine is banned for use in europe and is under consideration for
limited use or ban here in the us
remember the us is also considering bringing back the use of
ddt products (vietnam vets know this as agent orange and non vets
should know this agent well as youve paid millions of dollars to vets
for the long term damage done by agent orange in viet nam)
(would recommend not getting rid of the epa but making it stronger)
atrazine is associated with several types of cancers in humans
slowed reproductive systems in some animals and is not easily
broken down when it gets in the water system
i read an insert that said dont put it out within 60 ft of a stream or lake
really
you know that s&*% gets in the water
there is a level allowed in our drinking water (not mine as i have
pure rainwater) but in areas where its used a lot the atrazine levels
get higher during the application time
wonder how that happens
its time to ban it like europe has
and please dont bring back the agent orange stuff
and do something about weed and feed
to protect us and our kids
YOUNG CHICKENERS
one of my former patients was involved in the recent hill country
chicken coop tour
her two kids were actively involved in assisting people as they
toured their chicken coop
when i see kids like this that are involved
i do have hope for the future
thanks guys
THE TOUR
my wife she and i did the first annual hill country chicken coop tour this
weekend
we saw 6 of the 10 coops
we love chickeners as we are one of them
they are so enthusiastic
about raising chickens and helping others do the same
below is one of the most impressive coops ive seen doing this
tour or the funky chicken coop tour in austin
these chickens have it made for sure
we that is i asked a lot of questions of the chickener at this place
think this tour was a success
all the chickeners were good ones
got to see a lot of the hill country that ive not seen before
next year will devote time to see all of them
NBA
this is the time of the year when i start to watch the nba
cant wait to see the lakers and thunder play each other
what a series that will be
then each series after that just gets better
hope the spurs hold up to all those games
they just plod along and takes care of winning with
out any splash or flash or drama
all the west is playing for a chance to get to the heat
miami vs lakers or thunder or spurs
either one will be a good finals
cant wait
WANNA COOKIE
maybe thats what ill have another should be named since iha loves
cookies and that where the name came from
bought for $11000 by a blue collar owner trained by a blue collar
trainer rode by a newbie jockey
hope iha makes it through all three races as the winner
? next triple crown winner
what a story that would be
NO MOON
we were looking forward to that moon this weekend
even had friends over to view it since we have a great
view of the sky not available in town
instead we got clouds then later that night we got a fantastic
light show from all the lightening (of course no rain with it)
but it wasnt as good as that fantastic moon would have been
maybe next time
BRACELET
lance has his yellow one
susan has her pink one
i wear my purple one
its the alzheimers awareness bracelet
i wear it in memory of my mother my father and my younger brother
and i guess maybe myself
here is the link to order a 5 pack of them
AMYVID
here is the alzheimers associations statement on the new fda approval
of the florbetapir pet scan amyvid by eli lilly
i wrote a blog on this recently
their statement i totally agree with
its a beginning for diagnostic tests that may help define the
cause of a persons dementia
for me
i have short term memory loss showed on multiple neuropsych exams
i had a normal evaluation two years before they became abnormal
i have normal labs looking for other causes
i have had 3 normal mris
i have had one normal glucose metabolism pet scan
i have a strong family history of alzheimers-mother father brother and
distant relatives
i carry the apoe 4 double allele gene thats associated with an increased
chance of developing alzheimers disease
i have a borderline spinal fluid analysis for tau protein and beta amyloid
i have had a beta amyloid pet scan like the amyvid last year and will have
one next year but i cant get those results as they are part of the
alzheimers disease neuroimaging initiative adni-2
if i had the amyvid beta amyloid pet scan done and it was completely
negative them there would be some reassurance that what i have
is not due to alzheimers
if the scan is positive for beta amyloid plaques then it would be more
information added to the other that says that i probably have
alzheimers disease
so will i have the test
yes
i plan on doing it as i want to know as much as i can about whats
going on with me so ill know where im at
not everyone will benefit as well as i will to have this test done
estimated cost $6600 non covered by insurance
GOOD FAT BAD FAT
fat has gotten a bad rap in the last few years
there are good fats and bad fat
moderation is the answer
if you eat too much good fats they can be bad for you
fats help the body absorb the fat soluble vitamins
a d e k
we got to have them to live
eating good fats can lower your risk for heart disease
diabetes high cholesterol and obesity
heres the ones to eat
mono unsaturated fats
these are found in plant foods
nuts avocados (yes its is ok to eat them) olive oil cannola oil and
in poultry
they help lower your cholesterol levels and blood pressure
eg i eat a handful of mixed nuts a day
poly unsaturated fats
found in fatty fish such as salmon and mackerel and in corn and
soybean oils
they improve cholesterol levels and reduce your heart disease risk
saturated fats
found in meats and dairy products such as milk cheese and butter
theyve got a bad rap in the past but in moderation are actually
ok to eat
HERES THE ONE NOT TO EAT
this is the bad one
TRANS fat
its not a natural fat
the other ones if youll notice are all found naturally in nature
this one is mostly made by humans
and is a real bad one for you to eat
its in processed foods
its found in fried foods packaged snacks and shortening
its used as it increases the shelf life of foods
just leave out a trans fat hamburger or fries and see how
long it lasts
dont put it in the land field since the plastic bag will decompose
before the burger and fries will
it also increases the shelf life of those fat cells on your buttocks
thighs and tummys
it raises your bad cholesterol and lowers your good cholesterol
think of it as an anti cholesterol drug
ie it makes it go up instead of down
its an antistatin drug
is this the one of the causes of the obesity epidemic in the us
yes
if you eat the right amount of good fat you can actually loose weight
say what
the good fat can suppress you appetite some
try eating a handful of nuts for a snack and youll find youll be less
hungry
good fats and the bad bad trans fat
NICE PIC
heres a picture of a field near where i walk
this has been the best year for the
mixture of wildflowers
the best since weve lived at the country n
TOUR
dont forget the hill country chicken coop tour this saturday
starts at 1000
go to the cedar park farms to market at lakeline mall to pick up
your map to the tour sites or
go to the hill country chicken coop tours website
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