may not work

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MAY NOT WORK
ive written before about the new alzheimers vaccines
that are in phase 3 studies
a lot of hope was being placed on these studies

the theory is that these anitbodies are injected into the
body and then bind to beta amyloid
this beta amyloid which is thought to be the end result
of the disease process in alzheimers disesase is then removed
from the brain
the hope is that by doing this there is improvement
in cognitive abilities

two of these drugs are called solanezumab and bapinineuzemab
the studies were large studies done on patients with mild
to moderate alzheimers

the results were not promising
overall there was some slowing of cognitive decline
but not significantly
however when the mild alzheimers group was looked at
their was more improvement in cognitive decline than in
the moderate group

the thought is that maybe the drug should be used in people
who dont have symptoms yet or people like me who are in
the early mild mild cognitive impairment group might have
more improvement if started on these drugs early

much like the cholesterol drugs such as lipitor and crestor etc
that are given early so that heart attacks and strokes can be
prevented later in life

the iv immunoglobulin study that was recently done showed
in those who received the larger dose of this stuff
had no change in their alzheimers disease over the three
years of the study
so there is something in the blood that will slow down or
stop this disease but what it is is not known yet

this will be continued soon i hope

have a good labor day weekend

the organicgreen doctor

keyholeless garden

Walk to End Alzheimers

this is the quilt given to me for participating in the
alzheimers disease neuroimaging initiative (adni) study
it was made and donated by a quilter from southern
california

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KEYHOLELESS GARDEN
this is the way a true keyhole garden is suppose to
look like
this one was made by a friend jim
looks like it should be in better home and gardens
or southern living

my wife she had two square foot gardens at her school
one had got overran with bermuda grass
a real curse thats almost impossible to get rid
even with that terrible product roundup
it still comes back

this summer we dismantled both square foot gardens
and piled the soil up and leveled it off
we then covered it with clear plastic and left it
there all summer long
the edges were held down with rocks and crushed
granite to keep the heat it

did it ever get hot this summer
it even over the three months of brutal hot sun
totally destroyed the clear plastic
but the job was done all the grass was killed
without using any poisons

the next thing was to come up with a design that wouldnt
eat up that pie wedge area that could be used for gardening
but yet maintain the central composter which is the main
ingredient of the key hole garden

since i had 3 months to think about it
i came up with the keyholeless square foot garden

since the schools around here are always putting up portable
buildings and there was always the possibility of having to
move this one day
i wanted to make it easy to dismantle and move if we had to

heres the design
we put down a layer of newspapers to help add extra
protection to suppress weed growth
these papers will eventually over time decompose

we then added a one layer wall of concrete blocks that were
8 in x 16 in x 8 in
this made the inside diameter of the square garden 64 inches
on each side
then a central composter made from rabbitt wire and concrete
wire was placed in the true center of the garden
then the old solarized soil was added
then new hill country garden soil-a local organic soil that is
ready to plant was added
besides adding nutrients it also adds good bacteria and fungi
that were probably destroyed by the solarization

we also added a 2 ft sheet of black plastic around the garden
and covered it with 2-3 inches of crushed granite
this will help to deter weeds from growing back into
the garden

in the composter i added layers of composted mulch
country n chicken composted manure and compost

over time my wife she and her students will add plant
material as it becomes available
anything that would normally go in a compost pile
they will also pour water in the composter which will
will eventually diffuse to the edges of the garden
they also add the water from several fish aquariums in
the school

my wife she and her students will now be able to sit on the side
of the garden and have to only reach 2 ft in any direction to
plant and care for the garden

later next month we will add with the help of her students
another layer of concrete blocks and more of the hill country soil
with the plans by next spring to have 3 layers of these bricks

now if the school moves in a portable we can just move the garden
somewhere else

all schools need one of these gardens
the kids love messing with this garden and being outside
and especially eating the products of their efforts

fall plantings will be lettuce spinach swiss chard beets carrots
multiplying onions kale cabbage broccoli bok choy mustard greens
just to name a few

yes
the organicgreen doctor

thank goodness for football

Walk to End Alzheimers


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THANK GOODNESS FOR FOOTBALL
thats all i can say today
thank goodness for football

i sure look forward to the first nfl game of the year next
week when the cowboys play
yes im a cowboy fan
dont like jerry but ive always been a cowboy fan
always will i guess

one reason im looking forward to watching football
that also includes college football is that it transcends
politics

democrats republicans independents far right conservatives
left wing radicals anarchists etc
we all love our football
and we leave the politics at the door
yes we can all get along cant we
at least for a season

ive decided not to watch either political parties conventions
if thats what you call those things
ive already decided how im going to vote and neither
party will be changing that vote

its all orchestrated and no drama is allowed
years ago they would all get mad at each other and fight
to decide whats on the platforms and who the candidates
would be
not any more
thats against the rules

it used to be like a football game
with a lot of bruised egos and sometimes bruised noses
from fist fights

can you imagine if a football game was orchestrated that way

what an exciting season this will be
there are a lot of rookie qbs running teams
yes andrew and rg3 are the real deals
peytons definitely back
heck even romo looked pretty good
maybe they can keep their wide receiver from getting into
more trouble
drew brees may be the best coach in the nfl this year

theres no bs about stuff that doesnt matter like the politicians are
doing
man im tired of listening to it

yes total immersion in football starts now

thank goodness for football

the organicgreen doctor

lets debate, off to school

Walk to End Alzheimers

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LETS DEBATE
could we just debate whats important in this upcoming
election
and not talk about all that superfluous stuff that keeps
showing up on tv and the papers and the internet

i know mitt should not have put that dog on the
top of his car but that doesnt matter
yes obama is a us citizen
could we leave that out of the discussion
all that stuff doesnt matter

we watched a show this weekend that included two
conservative republicans one a congressman who is
on one of the defense committees
two liberal democrats and
a good ole british commentator from bbc
those british they see it and tell it like it is
thats the way we should be

the war what war oh yeah we are fighting in afghanistan
1000 killed in the first 8 years and then 1000 killed in
the last two years
all 7 said we need to get out of there and be done with it
it is a no win situation
all 7 agreed we needed to have gone in in the beginning but
we lost our way when we went into iraq
the afghan people always win
thats why its not being talked about much in this election

all 7 agreed that religion should be left out of the discussion
mitts a morman ryans a catholic obamas a christian
(no hes not a muslem) and joe is a catholic


here is what needs to be discussed and all this other stuff
left alone

medicare-all agreed it needs fixin
how is where the disagreement is

a lot of the money they are talking about that 700 billion is
dealing with the medicare advantage programs or the
disadvantage program if you are not in the money making
part of the plan
when i hear vouchers for medicare all i think of is the
medicare d plans for the prescriptions when they came
out a few years ago
even i a practicing doctor who keeps up with all of this
couldnt interpret those plans
doubt that the voucher system would be better

social security-they better leave that intact if they want
to get reelected
dont privatize it either
but some adjustments need to be made
but dont make it so that we cant get our social security
until we die
and feds keep your hands off that money we put in the
system from our taxes

health care-there are going to be a lot of mad people
if the health care law gets canceled
there is too much protection for all of us in this law

womens health
how stupid can politicians be to mess with a group that
makes up more than 50% of the population
and will be the group that determines this election
dont mess with issues that were settled years ago

the economy
both sides need to present their plan for how they plan
to fix our economy
this my friends and all on this panel think is the
most important issue in this election
could we please talk only about these important things

the upcoming debates between romney and obama
may be what determines the next election
hope they are well moderated and no goof ball
questions or answers are allowed

its the economy

this election is coming down to 11%  of the voters
most of us have already decided how to vote
sorry guys most of you are for romney
the women will be the ones that determine this election
they yes they always get their way dont they
and just 7 states will determine the election
one that may be the most important presidential election
ever

vote just vote correctly please

OFF TO SCHOOL
my niece at posted this on her facebook yesterday
my wife she and i have been there twice
so we know what its like


the organicgreen doctor

deliverance

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DELIVERANCE

this weekend was the 30th year reunion for our medical
school class
we were not able to attend this weekend but
it made me think of the movie deliverance starring burt reynolds
jon voight and ned beatty
as i thought back to the end of our junior year of med school

if you saw the movie youll see the connection
if you have not seen the movie or dont have grey hair
just say that things didnt turn out well for those three guys
in that movie
banjo music pigs etc

my best friend from medical school and i never ever had a
good experience when we got in a boat on water
there are three times we did that and none of the
experiences turned out very well

i know ive mentioned this story before but on the event
of our 30 year reunion here it is again

our junior year was the hardest year we had except maybe
well probably worse than the intern year
think sleep deprivation for a year

we rotated together in groups of 12-15 people
we spent a lot of time together that year
almost as much as we spent with our families

we did eternal (internal) medicine general surgery obstetrics
gynecology and pediatrics
after the weeks on the wards in eternal medicine i ruled out
internal medicine
after the 2 months of doing general surgery i quickly ruled out
surgery as a career
we spent 4 weeks on the burn unit probably the worse experience
of all my med school education
then we did obstetrics
we did the see one do one teach one method
see a delivery do one then teach the next student how to do one

through that year we all got close and decided that at the end of
the year we would take a canoe trip down the buffalo river and
fish canoe swim and have one last time together before we
all moved on to our own medical paths we would take

it should have been a sign when a cold front moved in in may
it was cold in the 50s windy foggy misty rain
we should have stopped there
but we didnt

heck we survived worse during our rotation as third year med
students doing all the scut work that was required of us

we learned to dislike nurses but later as interns we developed
an appreciation for how much they knew
they saved me many times that intern year

one student was even told by a surgery attending staff
are you stupid or you just dont care

after that year we could do anything
except a canoe trip

we all got our canoes
we divided up 2 to a canoe
think 6-7 canoes together going down a high fast river
on a cold wet day
maybe we should have watched that movie first
i can hear that banjo music now

in one canoe was a future obstetrician and a future plastic surgeon
that was not a good combination
my niece almost did not have her ob/gyn available to her when
she got older

as one of my friends now deceased and who was a family doctor
and i were canoeing we were at the back when we saw
clothes food canoe paddles float by
we recognized it as that from the above two students
they had not reappeared around the bend

we fought our way back up against that fast high river
and found the obstetrician bobbing up and down in the water
his head was like a bobber on a fishing pole that was
being pulled under by a fish

the plastic surgeon was in the water
holding on to an old limb and had
the other hand holding the obstetricians hand
which was what was keeping him from going under

we could see their canoe all mangled under a log
with his foot caught in the corner of the canoe
we jumped in and as we hit the canoe it dislodged his foot
he bobbed up the limb broke and they both floated down to
the bank where we rescued them

we put them in our canoe and floated back to everyone else
we divided all our clothes up so we all had some dry clothes on
and decided were through

we paddled ourselves to our camp site as fast as we could
it was about a 20 mile trip
we just about froze
the obstetrician and plastic surgeon were purple when we got
back to camp

despite a large camp fire and blankets i dont think any of
us ever got warm until we got home the next day

the plastic surgeon has her blog sutured for a living  and she wrote about
that day recently on the eve of our reunion
the obstetrician still probably has scar tissue on his leg where
his leg was caught in that canoe

and yes that was the last time i got in a boat with my best
friend from medical school

deliverance
we were lucky we were delivered safe and alive that weekend

the organicgreen doctor

nia, charlies special

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click here for the alzheimers association 
website at www.alz.org

NIA
the nia is the national institute on aging
the video that my wife she and i did has
been posted on their website

here is the link
to the you tube video

yes thats my mother and i at my nephews wedding
a few years ago
she was just starting to show some of the effects
of alzheimers

the disease steals your soul and your personality

CHARLIES SPECIAL
charlie rose has done an excellent special on alzheimers disease
here is the link to the 50+ minute show

if you have an interest in alzheimers or if your family has
alzheimers and you want to know more about the disease
and you want to know whats happening in alzheimers research
i highly recommend this show

charlie roses show on alzheimers

the organicgreen doctor

mr b

MR B
this blog is about a friend of mine
mr b
hes an elementary student and a former patient of mine

i have tried to keep up with some of my former patients
with facebook and email and this blog its been made easier



theres michael from last year
his story was well documented in this blog titled
thanks michael the hope for the future
yes michael made me cry the day he gave me that letter



then there is abbie who is such an inspiration to a lot of
people
she lets nothing stand in her way
heres is the blog titled abbie

mr b came to most of my larry weekends we had here each
april for the employees and families of the clinic where
i use to work

mr b was fascinated by larry the rooster and all the
country n chickens
(these chicks are laying eggs now and are selling them for
donations for our
organicgreeendoctor.com walk to end alzheimers team)

he as well as the other kids liked to ride in the trailer
pulled behind my lawn tractor

he liked my rainwater systems and i think he got infected
with the rainwater virus also
he started with putting 5 gallon buckets and anything that would
collect water under the gutters
when his mom told me about it i donated an extra rainwater
collection barrel to the cause

he now tells me this ones full so when i took him on a
recent tour of my favorite organic garden center he really really
liked the big green 10000 gallon tank there












he told me he wants one like that in his yard
maybe where his trampoline is
maybe mom will get that for his birthday

he was also my walking buddy for the
walk to end alzheimers last year
he was walking for his grandmother who died
recently from this terrible disease

but the common feature of all of these kids are that they
are our hope for the future
mr b talked freely with me about green issues and how we
need to do more green things like collect rainwater save water
do solar and wind energy collection stop polluting the air
drive energy efficient cars
grow more vegetables
this is an elementary kid now
there are thousands of these kids out there now thinking
about our future and ways to solve our problems

sure hope some of them go into politics
maybe the politicians should be talking to these kids

thanks again michael abbie and mr b
you guys are our hope for the future

the organicgreen doctor

vacate not work

VACATE NOT WORK
i read this review of a blog written by rebecca thorman in
her blog called kontrary
it came across on some news feed i was looking at

when i was on vacation in nicaragua i for some reason
had printed it out and was sitting on the patio overlooking
the ocean in the early morning
it made me think of vacations past and
about many of those of you who went on vacations this year

our cell phones did not work there
we did not watch tv for a week even though the olympics was
going on full blast
the internet connection could be variable
i found i got the best and fastest connection at 4-6 am

of course i dont have to worry about work now since im retired
only whether it rains, the garden, the rainwater system, our next
trip to cross off our bucket list, planning our walk to end alzheimers
events, our habitat for humanity projects and my meals on wheels
folks i deliver meals to once a week

all thats all low keyed and can always wait another week or another
day to do

so yes i enjoyed my vacation
i didnt do what a lot of yall did when on vacation

you might have fought a slow internet connection like i had
to get your work done each day
bet your family got mad at you for slowing them down
come on dad lets go
i got to get this report out to work
its a vacation turn all that stuff off

if you are the boss at work and your sending work from your
vacation what a bad precedent to set for the employees
youve had those bosses right who tell you what to do when
they are suppose to be somewhere to relax

sometimes all that working on vacation isnt worth it in the long run
you need time to unwind and get separated from work and relax
it took me several years of practice to figure that one out
when i did i enjoyed my family and my life better

sometimes you get fresh ideas and can feel inspiration when vacationing
know thats happened to me a lot
you get all that day to day clutter from your mind
it just clogs up your creative side

then when you are laying on your death bed bet you wont wish you had
done all that work on vacation
bet you wished you had just enjoyed the moment and spent more
time with your family

this can also apply to your weekly life
have that time to yourself when you can reflect on your life
and whats happening around you
it will make you a better worker and a better person

the organicgreen doctor

show me the money, its sad

SHOW ME THE MONEY

i think that mitt romney should show me the money
not because i think hes hiding anything because he
probably isnt hiding anything illegal
just embarrassing
how much money he made and what write offs he
took for tax purposes

i dont have a problem with him making as much money
as he can
heck we all do that
i have a problem with the tax deductions and tax rates
that we will find on his returns

20 million dollars and paying 13% tax rate
my best year while in practice i had a 28% tax rate
i wouldnt have minded keeping that extra $25,000 a year
in taxes i paid

he pays $20,000,000 x .13 = $2,600,000
thats a lot of taxes but not really a fair share when you consider
he pays the same rate as a single school teacher or a secretary

if he paid my rate he would pay $5,600,000
to me that seems fair
i would think that would seem fair to most people who pay
taxes on a much lower income at a higher rate than mitt does

now i dont begrudge mitt making money
he should pay a fair tax rate like we do
remember he didnt break laws or do anything illegal
heck i even use the tax loop laws to save income tax

but the problem i have is the way our income tax laws are
set up to allow someone who makes that amount of money
to pay a less tax rate than a new teacher
doesnt seem right does it

that trickle down theory is just bs
dont seen any of it trickling down to most of us

i dont really care if he releases his tax returns from the past
he made his money
but im glad that what he has shown us shows how the tax
system is set up to benefit the rich in this country
the middle class will be given the burden to support the country
with its higher tax rate on us

yes republicans and democrats
this all needs to be changed
this is what we should be talking about from both parties and
demanding they change things

its just not right

ITS SAD
its sad that representative akin is still leading in the polls
after the remark he made about a raped woman not
getting pregnant
even the republicans are asking him to step down
if he stays and gets elected its a real low point in our
political system

the organicgreen doctor

its a secret, call it what you will

ITS A SECRET

this is secret beach in nicaragua
its thought to have been caused by a tsunami that
brought all that sand up onto the side of that
cliff to make a strip of sand that is almost
100 yards long down the side of the cliff
people have been known to go to the top and
with a boogey board slide down to the bottom

its called the secret beach because if you manage to
get there you will definitely be by yourself
its a tough walk and steep climb to get to this slab of beach sand
on the side of the hill
but apparently its worth it if you make it to the beach

i didnt go down but have added that to my bucket list
for my next visit there

its officially called playa duma

CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT
you can call it what you want
climate change or global warning it doesnt really matter
somethings happening
the glaciers are melting
there are small islands in the pacific that are disappearing
under water
thats real you cant deny it
man made or just natural occurrence
it doesnt matter its here now

i see evidence of change on my property on the country n
see that dark maroon color above that denotes severe drought

the map where i live has that dark maroon color
and it shows around here

my grass on some of my property is dead and there is no new
stuff taking its place
ive lost a lot of trees on my property that provided shelter and
food to a lot of animals
ive lost several trees ive planted over the years since weve been
here and have lost several native shrubs also
some were those xeric drought tolerant ones

we have deep ruts and holes in our pastures from the last
two-three years of decreased rain

weve also noticed a decrease in animals around here
skunks possums rabbits foxes deer armadillos and even snakes
that makes my wife happy

heck even the road kill has decreased
enough to starve a buzzard

it shows also on my garden and landscape
theres stress on many of the plants and the soil is extremely dry

we did get 2.5 inches of rain this weekend
not a drought buster but it helps
however i dug down into the soil in the garden and it was dry
just a couple of inches even though we had all that rain

hopefully the color on the map will lighten some for us and for
those midwestern folks

yep call it what you will but it is happening

maybe the politicians could stop arguing over what its called
and whats causing it
and just accept that its happening and that dumping stuff
in the air and ground and the environment really isnt good for us

the organicgreen doctor

wtea, preventative treatment, chocolate helps

WTEA

the walks to end alzheimers are all happening soon
across the usa

you can go to the alzheimers association website to find
a team in your area or join a team

or

you can join and donate to my team the organicgreendoctor team at
this site
we are slowly moving toward reaching our goal this year

PREVENTATIVE TREATMENTS
last week i wrote about aricepts (donepezil) use to slow
down the progression of alzheimers disease
its the only proven medicine that can help

however
there are things that you and your kids can do to slow down
or possibly prevent this terrible disease
early on in the disease these things can slow things down for
a while

get adequate sleep
eat a mediterranean diet fish chicken lean meat in moderation
with fruits vegetables and nuts olive oil limited milk products
un processed foods
control your blood pressure
control your cholesterol
control your diabetes
maintain a normal weight
exericise-walking 5 days a week is the easiest and cheapest
form of exercise
if depressed seek treatment through medicine and counseling
avoid a stressful life
stay active mentally-staying on facebook may help but you
need more mental stimulation that what that offers

watch for new changes and treatments that are coming in the
future

omega 3 adequate vit d folic acid multivitamins coconut oil may
not help but it wont hurt you

these are things you can do now to help
remember these are all things that you should be doing anyway

DARK CHOCOLATE

it seems that dark chocolate may improve memory and may
help some in alzheimers

yes
i have more reasons to eat that chocolate that is given to me
all the time by friends and family
hope it helps

the organicgreen doctor

dont mess with..., skeeters, playhouse

DONT MESS WITH...

i hate this every 4 year cycle of political ads

they now are getting nastier and nastier

and we have 3 months to go

i personally dont listen to them

either sides ads

what they need to focus on are just a few things

that are really important to all americans

state their views so we can decide

one thing they dont want to mess with is 

medicare

social security

can you say florida electoral votes

if you are not on it now your parents probably are

and you will be on there sooner than you realize

its a safety net system for retirement and health care

that keeps elderly from severe severe poverty

when i hear privatize thats always a code word for

some rich folks are going to make a lot of money 

and we are going to get screwed

do these programs need changes and adjustments

absolutely 

but they need to be retained

something needs to be done to keep congresss hands off

the social security funds just like we do with our 401ks

you dont withdraw 401k funds too early and you dont

borrow from them either

they are part of the safety net we have now for retirement

as only 30% of us have pensions now

yep dont mess with medicare and social security 

just fine tune them and keep your greedy political hands

off the funding

talkin to you mr romney and mr obama

SKEETERS

when i was a child i remember chasing after those fogging 

machines as they came through the town in the late afternoon

spraying for mosquitoes

it was fun running through that fog and smelling that smell

of course the stuff was toxic and is now off the market

wonder if that causes alzheimers

once in my preorganic days i would spray malathion on a tree

to kill fruit flies

i felt real dizzy and fuzzy headed for awhile then it cleared up

thats the stuff they spray on fruit flies sometimes

even though its off the market now

now its only available as a prescription lice treatment for kids

some things just arent right and thats one of them

do wonder what dallas is spraying over the city to kill those

mosquitoes

and what long term effects it may have

do notice that i cant find out which chemicals they are spraying

hopefully it doesnt have the word agent in its name

PLAYHOUSE

the habitat still is auctioning off its playhouse in october

heres the information on it

 

this playhouse was built by some of the group from
the habitat for humanity where i usually volunteer

this playhouse is available for a $5 raffle ticket that
you can buy by going online at
www.williamsonhabitat.org

the funds from this raffle will be used on the next
habitat house that will be built in leander texas

the playhouse will be on display at various sites
recently it spent a few days at the dell diamond
but will be displayed throughout the area until
the october 12 deadline

the winner will be announced on the website above
on october 15

nice price for $5
got a daughter niece or granddaughter
buy a raffle ticket today
for $5 its worth it

the organicgreen doctor

limb drop, hope solo, shark week

LIMB DROP
this is not about losing an arm or
losing the use of an arm or
having nerve damage to an arm

its about a tree limb

last week when the sun came up i was
sitting in my living room looking out over
our front pasture when i noticed that a limb
had fallen from one of our pecan trees
it was a large limb

i thought well there must have been a storm
last night or high wind
our dog would have let us know if a storm had
come through as he is deathly afraid of storms
for such a good guard dog he sure is a wimp
when it comes to storms

i knew the limb was not a sick limb as it had
all its leaves and had had no signs of disease

that limb just dropped off the tree for no reason

sometimes things just happen together
seems funny how that happens
that same day i got my monthly newsletter from the
dirt doctor who writes about organic gardening and
green stuff-another organicgreen doctor

this week it was on a phenomenon called limb drop
never heard of it but didnt realize that what i was
seeing on my pecan tree was limb drop

basically what happens is that a normal limb just
breaks and falls down because the plant has
decided (they and nature are smart you know) to
cut off transpiration to the affected limb

the limb then will eventually crack and fall off
transpiration is the exchange of water in the tree
from evaporation from the leaves
times are stressful so the plant has to make a decision
where to cut back on water demand

the result is summer limb drop

here is the dirt doctors article on limb drop

thats your garden class for the day

HOPE SOLO
if you are a womens soccer fan like i am or if you watched
this years womens soccer team play in the olympics then
you know who hope solo is

she has a memoir called solo: a memoir of hope
she has had a difficult life at times
some of it self inflicted
should be an interesting book

SHARK WEEK
this is shark week on the discovery channel
move over football and other sports
stay out of the water and on the beach this week

the organicgreen doctor

farmers market

FARMERS MARKET

here in texas i dont go to the farmers markets much because

several years ago i went to several and to several local

organic farms and observed what they were growing in 

each season 

i also talked to the farmers who was growing the stuff

i then tried to duplicate what they were doing

eg

right now i am growing okra malabar spinach barely tomatoes

bell peppers arugula and basil

everything else has shut down in my garden and also in many

of the farmers markets

however when we were in nicaragua we went to the ultimate

farmers markets

think rows and rows of fresh vegetables and fruits

all ran by friendly nicaraguans

 

they also had a great bean selection

for those of you who like beans

they are a good source of protein

and great producers of gas

we also ate at a local outside restaurant

which had delicious fresh fish either from the pacific

or from lake nicaragua one of the largest

fresh water lakes in the world

then there is this guy (ill change his name) 

that every calls greens bob

he is probably an old hippie from a well known liberal

university who has been in nicaragua for years and 

has not ever gone back to the usa

he grows organic salad greens and sells them to local 

restaurants in the area

locals can buy from him if you can find his place

so we went there to his place

felt like i was in an old movie

there along the small streets in this town there was a row

of buildings all connected together was

a green building with a blue door with no markings on it

my relatives said thats his place

we knocked and knocked and finally someone answered

felt like we were on some clandestine mission

we were only buying salad greens

inside there is the living area with open courtyards

where he sells his greens

they weigh it out and you buy it

yes it was salad greens nothing illegal

then as we were leaving there was a mirror with this 

on it 

those ron paul supporters will like this one

yep great fish great farmers market and great salad greens

wonder if greens bob votes in the us

the organicgreen doctor

my olympics

MY OLYMPICS

i watched a lot of olympics this year
especially in the last several days
however when we were in nicaragua we did not
watch any tv at all while we were there
but i sure caught up after i came back from there

i am not sure i quite understood those opening and
closing ceremonies
i did like it when the queen jumped out of the
helicopter
shes now in the same ranking as the elderly george bush
who did it at 80s
woops my wife she said the queen didnt really do that
well she gets my vote just being involved with all that

my favorite olympian is gabby douglas
she just makes you feel good watching her
flying like a flying squirrel over those parallel bars
would like to adopt her as my daughter

so those swimmers are human after all as they pee
in the pool too
michael phelps will need to go to ft knox to store all
that gold in the medals hes won
best olympian ever
time will tell

one of the favorite and exciting events that i watched were
the games the us womens soccer team played against
canada and then against japan
what great games
wonder if hope solo would let my wife she and i adopt her also
i do have one more slot left for a daughterinlaw
she does seems independent minded though

that missy franklen what a 17 yr old swimmer she is
she has several more olympics to go
fun to watch

the womens basketball totally dominates that sport in the
olympics
they should give them a special medal then let the other teams
vy for the gold to make it fair

the mens basketball tried to lose that last game
lebron james is the best basketball player alive
kevin durant is silky smooth
kevin love is the best player that no one knows

the richest olympian is lebron james
also in the top ten is bolt
now theres a fast guy
move over carl lewis

the womens beach volley ball team won in the end for
their last olympics
thanks kerri walsh and misty may-treanor
they have two supportive husbands it seems

the blade runner did good for someone who had no legs
do wonder if it would have been fair if he had won
bet everyone he beat would be ticked off
now he moves to he paralympics in a month
bet he wins there

then another of my favorite olympians her 5th time to win a medal
is kimberly rhoades the skeet shooter
dang she only shot 99 of 100
that guns ok but why would she need an ak47

then the womens 400 relay team almost lapped the competition

there is a dominate theme in this years olympics
it seemed that most of the us medals were won by the women

guys theyre taking over
we already knew they were under control of things anyway

great job england
you were a great host

now im ready for some football

the organicgreen doctor

to or not to

TO OR NOT TO

here are my qualifications for writing about medicine for
alzheimers and the treatment and management of this
disease

i was diagnosed with early mild cognitive impairment
thought to be due to alzheimers disease
i am presently on aricept (donepezil)
my mother probably my father and my younger brother had or
has alzheimers disease
i am a study subject in the largest and most important
research study that has been ever been done on
alzheimers disease called the alzheimers disease
neuroimaging intiative (adni)
i read most of the articles that are written on this disease
i am a family physician who has treated alzheimers
patients in my practice

so yes i feel like i am as qualified as anyone to talk
about alzheimers disease

i am frequently asked by patients families and friends
whether to take or not to take aricept (donepezil)
for alzheimers disease

my answer is
take it
its all we have that can be used against alzheimers

dont take it and the disease symptoms will progress faster

dont take it and your family member friend or yourself if
you are the patient will lose time in this battle against
delaying the diseases progress

take it and you could gain 6 months to 5 years of delayed symptoms
when you look back or your family looks back later after the
disease has taken over you or they will be glad that the aricept (donepezil)
was taken
and they had you around for that additional time

yes take it

of the ones that take it 33% get slight improvement 33% stay the same
then 33% arent helped at all
if you wait to take it then later it wont have as much effect
the earlier you take it the better it works
thats why i started it as soon as my diagnosis was made
as it will work better in me because i am early in the disease

if you start it dont stop it as the disease can progress more
rapidly to the point it would have been without the medicine

for me its a no brainer
take it

alzheimers disease is a progressive disease that has no cure
it will win eventually

there is no other treatment that can help despite what you
read or hear

aricept (donnepezil) dosent cure alzheimers it just slows it down
for awhile then the disease marches on

it works by blocking an enzyme that breaks down a chemical
called acetylcholine which makes the nerve cells in the brain
work
in alzheimers the acetylchholine levels drop as more and more
nerve brain cells are damaged
the symptoms are then delayed for a period of time
-the time you will appreciate later when your love one is gone-

it has side effects but nothing compares to the effects you will
notice with the disease
they are all tolerable and manageable
nausea diarrhea insomnia leg cramps blurred vision restlessness
many of these symptoms improve after it is taken for a month
ive been on the medicine for 2 years now and have some side
effects but they are less severe
again as ive written before i love those dreams i call my aricept
dreams

do dont let the side effects list prevent you from taking the medicine
remember you are dealing with a fatal disease that has no cure
you are only gaining time with your family or family member or friends

its like a terminal cancer thats incurable but chemotherapy can
keep you around awhile before it finally takes over
but you have gained time by using medication

the cost is minimal
i pay a $5 copay each month
the cash price at costco is $27.92 for 90 days of medicine

to take it or not to take it
yes i say take it

if you are the caretaker
DONT DO IT ALONE
if you try to do it alone it will be a long long lonely path for you
contact the local chapter of the alzheimers association
you can locate the local chapter by going to www.alz.org
remember you need help dealing with this
let your friends and family help you

the organicgreen doctor

the parade

THE PARADE

bienvenidos a las hipicas de managua
welcome to the horses of managua

we went to this parade on our first day in nicaragua
thats probably not the right word
maybe the nicaraguan mardi gras would be a better word
it was miles and miles of horses and carriages and loud
spanish music and miles and miles of people along the sides
of the parade
and miles and miles of people drinking beer tequilla shots
rum and other drinks
it was loud loud loud

you could feel the vibration of the soul of the community as these
magnificent frothing marching large mostly stallions by the
hundreds marched down these streets of managua for miles
these majestic animals would all dance in unison
at times with the loud music
i smelled of horses and sweat at the end of the day
but it was a masculine smell that i didnt want to remove

these are our hosts that allowed us to ride in one of
their carriages during the parade
americanos all in a carriage
what a majestic royal like appearance these two made as they
rode in the parade
the american peace corps worker who fell in love with
this aristocratic like nicarguan several years ago
a story that should be told in a movie or book
they probably dont realize what affect this parade had
on all of us
this was our introduction to nicaragua
wow it couldnt get better than this experience
yes it was the highlight of our trip

my surfer but more than that brotherinlaw was very
brave to mount one of these white majestic stallions
all excited sweating wide eyed fighting the bit to
march forward
i mean the horse not my brotherinlaw

i was sitting by the driver on the americano carriage
as the parade continued the crowds got thicker louder
more excited

the top picture appeared to be a cross dresser who was
one of several street performers that were present along the
parade route

riders of all age and all walks of life were in the parade
this is one of the former presidential candidates
who was riding his majestic black horse in the parade

she may not have been a true princess but
she sure looked like one

the military was present along the fence of the old
presidential palace

never did we feel unsafe even as the crowds grew larger
and closer and closer to our carriage
we could feel the heart beat of the parade
the vibration or soul of the parade
not felt by those in the many pavilions and stands along
the way

what a start to our vacation in nicaragua
the sounds and smell and scenes still persists in our memories

viva la nicaragua
thanks to our hosts p and j
and to our relatives for providing us the fantastic experience

the organicgreen doctor