sb country n news-squirrels 6 togd 2

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-SQUIRRELS 6 TOGD 2

looking at that score
it sure looks like togd thats me
is losing the battle

after i moved here an elementary school teacher
asked if i would help with their garden
which needed to have some make it better attention
so
i agreed

we cleaned off the beds
added soil
added compost

i got the list of what to plant around here this time of year
so
we planted them
the kids did it themselves
they got in the beds and pulled all the weeds out
then turned in the new soil and compost

each week we planted something different
rainbow carrots
sweet rainbow beets
lettuce mix ok so i snuck in some spinach seeds and
some swiss chard seed and some arugula seeds
strawberries
sweet peas and sweet snap peas
cilantro kale swiss chard parsley broccoli
trying to plant things the kids might eat

i knew there was a problem with the gophers around here
but
each cage was covered underground with hardware cloth
to keep them from digging up the garden

so they worked hard planting the stuff
then
i noticed bits and pieces of plants started to go missing
was it
squirrels rats mice birds

then
eventually everything was gone
like someone had come in with a weed eater
i even brought in a squirrel expert
my rainwater brother who gardens with squirrels

so
we replanted
added a cover of bird netting
it worked for awhile
then
suddenly it seemed big ole holes appeared in the netting
the stuff was all gone

so
i toured a couple of school gardens with a gardener educator
they have a big squirrel problem
they think its from the drought
the only thing that really worked
was a cage over each bed made from chicken wire or hardware cloth

so
i did a lengthy you tube and google search
this is what i came up with

a pvc cage with chicken wire
really similar to what i did at the old country n with my
chicken coup
the cage is held down onto the frame of the raised bed
with latches

when you want to work in the garden
just unlatch the latches
lift off the cage

i used 3/4 in pvc schedule 40 and pvc connectors
i didnt glue them in since the wire once it was
ziptied in place seem to hold the cage together
also
it is easy to take apart if needed
just cut the zipties and take the whole thing apart

so in this cage
which had been in place for two weeks
we have growing sweet peas swiss chard two types of kale
broccoli cilantro and parsley with a scattering of
radishes between them

so far
we have kept the squirrels out

we built a teepee with old bamboo in one bed
wrapped it with the bird netting
it lasted less than one day
the squirrels feasted on more than 20 sweet pea plants
that the kids had planted in cups and later transplanted there

we made a large cage to sit over the bed
today we plan to make a small teepee to fit inside
we will replant all the peas again
so hopefully when they come back from christmas
the peas will be growing up the poles

next
we plan to do the same cages on the remaining three raised
beds so that we can get back to the job of growing food
the kids will like to eat

if they plant it they will eat it

i think there is a lesson to learn here for them
its
to be persistent when you run into an obstacle
until you figure out a way to remove that obstacle
then move forward

thats the way life is

projected score by christmas
squirrels 6 togd 6

the organicgreen doctor

no $ympathy

NO $YMPATHY

thats what i told my wife she last week

i have no sympathy for those guys

its usually guys 

football coaches

that get the big bucks

they know what they are getting in for

you win or you go home

there is no 

what you have done for me lately

its all

what have you done for me

now 

it seems they all got axed this last week

ucla

arkansas

tennessee

texas am 

florida

i saw in one article where $70 million will be paid out

to those coaches fired recently with buyouts

eg

coach sumlin from texas am gets to leave

if he accepts a check for $10 million

not bad

for not working for awhile

now this seems all wrong

like the proposed new tax laws

a graduate assistant say at baylor or harvard or usc

may have to now pay taxes on their free tuition they get

for being an assistant

think 15-20% of their close to $30,000+- tuition

while the coach

they get paid big bucks just to leave

ok so the coaches have to pay taxes too

but

those dollars put the coaches in the higher tax bracket

now a lower one

i calculate he will pay $300,000 less in taxes

the grad assistant will pay $6,000 more in taxes

man 

those coaches are making out like bandits arent they

the new coach was hired at ucla for a total contract of

$23 million with $10 million guaranteed

no matter what the ucla football team does

he gets his money

and

like sumlin will pay fewer taxes now

so

i have no sympathy for those coaches

just those fans who supported their colleges teams

and

now

those students those grad students

who may have to pay more a lot more in taxes

those folks

i have sympathy for

i just all seems wrong to me

we just seem to be getting things wrong 

the organicgreen doctor

a special trust

A SPECIAL TRUST

i read last week about the trial of the olympic doctor who
will spend hopefully the rest of his life in jail
my guess he will get what he deserves during that stay in jail
for what he did

i was appalled that a physician would break that special trust
that patients and their physicians have

folks are sometimes at their most vulnerable states
in his case
many were kids
he took advantage of their vunerabilty
their naivete

i am amazed though that it was allowed to go on for so long
someone knew who could have stopped it years ago

patients allow you to do exams that our medical community
allows us to do
its all based on that trust
that sacred trust that exists between the patient and the physician
it has to be there for them to get the care they need
think pap smears and other exams
think telling you very personal information that no one else hears
they trust you with this information
forever

i will admit there has been times that i was told things
that i never ever put into the medical record
knowing it was there for others to see someday
i will go to my grave with those things

no
i never went home and talked about these things with my wife she
i saw her best friends and colleagues as patients
she never ever knew and still doesnt
unless they tell her

commonly when i see a patient has died or got married or got
graduated from high school or college or a professional school
or have a child
i remember those things we talked about
they trust me and i have honored that trust
forever

some things would be quite damaging if others found out
they could lose their marriage their job their friends
there has to be that trust
that sacred trust
that can never ever be violated

ive known physicians like this olympic doctor who violated that trust

thankfully for patients
the tolerance for this is usually close to zero
ive seen physicians just disappear suddenly
for violating that trust

now
there were times when i violated that trust
whenever i was given information on illegal activity
usually involving abusive things
especially kids
or
if i felt that the person was a threat to themselves or others
i will admit i broke that trust
but
our society allows
actually requires it

i have patients i saw over 40 years ago
that have since died
i have kept that trust  agreement that we had together
forever

it will be lost as my demented mind develops
or
when i die

as a physician who has done intimate exams on patients
young and old
i cannot image how anyone could use that power you have
to take advantage of a patient
especially a child
i always kept a nurse or assistant with me when those exams
were done
i cant imagine doing them otherwise
doing things without the assistants should raise suspicions

he will get what he deserves
i am sure
thats the way the system works

that trust
that sacred trust
our medical system has to have it
to protect the vulnerable at vulnerable times

its a special trust
one
that i have been honored to be part of

the organicgreen doctor

alzheimers news-put a stamp on it

ALZHEIMERS NEWS-PUT A STAMP ON IT

this year as you are addressing your christmas cards
pulling out your stamps
to mail all your card
dont use a christmas stamp
instead
do this

get this new alzheimers stamp
and
put it on all your cards

it will be unveiled at a ceremony at john hopkins medcial school
on november 30th

why this stamp

after the overhead for this stamp is paid
all the proceeds
go to the nih the national institute of health
which supports alzheimers research

i know i know
bill gates is donating $150 million for alzheimers research

i know i know
the federal government is allocating more money for
alzheimers research

but
thats all is not enough

we are within the reach
of finding a treatment and or a cure
for this awful terrible disease

it
will take all this funding to do it
find a cure

so
go to the post office and buy the alzheimers stamps
then
lick them
stick them
to your christmas cards

help us find a cure

the organicgreen doctor

dear ms b-the banana leaf

DEAR MS B-THE BANANA LEAF

ms b
i enjoy picking you up from preschool by myself
i dont have to share you
we can do things together
that it seems we both enjoy

when i pick you up
we go from the preschool
to the garden where my garden plot is located

we have this routine you know
as we head in to the gate
you ask
where are the pumpkins

i think to myself
you are just two how can you talk like this
remember all those things

there was this big ole pumpkin you liked to pet as
you went by and another pumpkin that was all
warty and lumpy looking
one of your favorites it seemed

then on to the bock bocks as you call them
chickens for those who dont know
we talk to them dont we
we fed them leaves of veggies and cukes
they pecked and squawked
we were there for awhile
visiting those chicks

then
on to the garden plot
you helped me water my bed real well
i look forward to you being able to pull up a carrot
from the garden later this winter
and
like a rabbit eat it on the spot
just maybe
eating it just as it comes out of the ground
we gotta boost that immune system you know

then
you as usual want to go over to the birdbath
to fill it up
splash it a lot
then
you pet the bluebird sitting on the side
not quite understanding why you cant
put its beak into the water
although
you did cup your hand to give it a drink
you also bent down and petted the big ole strawberry
growing underneath the bath
then
for a not done yet adventure
we went out the back gate
to the orchid

there is this big ole tree
full of these ripened oranges
we picked one
a satsuma orange
and
peeled it
i got one piece
i guess you were hungry
you ate all the rest

then
down and around the orchard
there we picked a pomegranite
my niece says you can cut one in half
give it to your kiddos
they can spend thirty minutes getting those seeds out
i tried it
on myself
it works
a little messy
but it kept me busy

then
into the cool big ole tall banana grove
there hanging up high
like in a jungle
was a whole bunch of bananas
i lifted you up
you got to pet all those baby green bananas

maybe
well come back when they are ripe
they taste so much better than the store bought ones

then
there on the ground
was this big ole banana leaf
it was 3 times as long as you were
having fallen down to lay on the soil
to keep it cool the soil that is

nope
you said to me
mine
so
i let you pick it up
by one end

you drug that big ole banana leaf
up the hill
around the garden
back to the car
we stretched it out all 6 foot of it
from the back to the front seat it stretched

then
you pulled it out
walked back to our condo
dragging that thing all the way

then
we placed it on our balcony
for all to see

i must say
this was an adventure i would like to repeat
many times over

the organicgreen doctor

helter skelter

HELTER SKELTER

i saw the movie
when i was reading the book
it was so bone chilling
that i would lock all the doors and turn
on all the lights just to read the book
and
i only would read it during the daytime
when my wife she was home
never read it alone

thats how gruesome those murders were

now
i am not a real believer in the death penalty
why
becuause
if you execute one person who was innocent
thats one too many

we have seen too many times in history
especially some of those tied to racial injustice
where an innocent man was put to death
or
was about to be put to death

that said
there are crimes when they are committed
that there is no chance in hell
that the justice system could be wrong

when that happens
iv infusions of drugs to quietly put them to sleep
like you would an old ill dog
that too good for some people

a more uncomfortable death should be considered
like
a firing squad
electrocution
maybe
decaptatiion
even
hanging

thats what should have been done
to the helter skelter master mind
we should never had allowed him to smolter
in prison for around 40 years
on our nickel

he should have been taken care of
not long after he was convicted

yes
there are certain cases that fit that criteria
this
was one of them

i refuse to write his name
may he not rest in peace
ever

may his accomplices never ever get out of jail

the organicgreen doctor

alzheimers news-is there room

ALZHEIMERS NEWS-IS THERE ROOM

thats the question raised by a recent rand corporation study on
what would happen if a treatment for alzheimers disease
came on the market

well that very likely will be a reality in less than 5 years
if some of the drugs show promise in fighting this disease
get approved for use

biogen which makes the aducanumab drug i take each month
sponsored the rand corporation study

the result of the study i am in will come out in 2019
if the results are promising the drug will be approved
soon after that

they probably will go after folks who have changes in the
brain already of alzheimers they just dont know it yet
the prealzheimers or prodromal state
ie normal memory with positive scans
and
those like me with early symptoms

if you are too far long with the disease its probably too late
to get treatment

now recently in this blog i wrote titled
alzheimers news-can we afford it
that we basically may not be able to afford these treatments
at the same time we cant afford not to do them

lets say in 2020 a new treatment becomes available
there are literally thousands of people no thats millions
in just the us who will fit the criteria for treatment
eg
me when i was 55 i would have had a positive scan
thats when if not earlier i would have wanted to get treated
to get maximum effect from the drug

so what would it take to get diagnosed and evaluated
to qualify for treatment

first
you go to a doctor usually a specialist like a neurologist
a geriatrician or psychiatrist
its usually a neurologist
there arent enough of them available
now remember we are talking about several million folks
needing to see the specialists
can you imagine the back load of appointments just to get
seen
then
the work up will include probably the amyvid pet scan
for the beta amyloid
its the stuff that the aducanumab removes

remember we are talking millions of people here
after finally getting into the neurologist
now need the amyvid pet scan
there are not enough scanners that do this in the us
to do all the scans that will need to be done

can you imagine the delay its going to take to get
your diagnosis

then
this stuff will probably be given in infusion centers
the ones where things like
chemotherapy is done
infusions for ms connective tissue diseases like rheumatoid
lupus ulcerative colitis psoriasis etc

you can see the backlog that will build up just to get the infusion
whenever you finally get diagnosed
then
especially early on
will there be enough drug available for all these folks who
will need treatment

the rand corporations conclusion is that it will probably take
18 months to get seen and get diagnosed before receiving
treatment

as those of us know who are familiar with alzheimers know
those two years are a long time in alzheimers time

it is predicted by the study that starting in 2020 over the
next 2 decades over 2 million people will develop alzheimers
waiting for diagnostic studies and treatments

we will be at the finish line but we wont be able to cross it

i feel like those of us needing treatment
are like charlie brown when he goes to kick that football
lucys gonna pull it away at the last minute

the organicgreen doctor

do i or dont i

DO I OR DONT I

those are those words that i mumbled under my breath
like those shakespeare words
to be or not to be
that is the question

so now
its all about
blood pressure

do i or dont i

well according to the new guidelines
heres an article that discusses them
do i or dont i
well
with the new guidelines
more of us will now have high blood pressure
or hypertension
hbp for short

the new goal is 130/80

at first
these three things came to mind

uh oh
now more of us will have preexisting conditions
hbp can get you axed from good insurance rates
if they being congress mess with the no preexisting clause
when looking to buy health insurance

those drug companies are going to make a killing
actually
i realized
most bp meds are generic and are cheap
but these new guidelines will generate more drug costs
more labs and more doctor visits

then
as you push folks blood pressure lower
there is a point on folks where its too low
they get dizzy
they especially the older folks can fall
break bones or get head injuries etc

but
the counter to all this is
by improving blood flow and preventing damage to
the heart the arteries and the brain
diseases like heart disease stroke alzheimers disease
may be prevented or the journey to those diseases
slowed down a lot

for me
personally
i want the envelope pushed to the limit
of where i get maximum benefit from controlling my bp

when i gave up on not taking bp meds
my bp was running around 140+- over 90+-
i felt ok
but
when i read more about how important it was to control
the bp in regards to slowing down alzheimers
i jumped on board with the bp control idea

i dont mind dying suddenly from a heart attack
or a stroke
i just dont want to fall into that alzheimers pit

so
on the meds i went
no second thought about it
i did notice that
when i lost weight and starting eating better
sleeping better exercising that my blood pressure started
easing downward
when i got near 110/70+- that i started getting dizzy when i
stood up and had problems with fatigue
so
i had my dose decreased
my bp stays between 120-130/80s
i feel ok with that
so
im happy with that dose of medicine and no side effects

so you if you didnt already have hbp
you need to decide if you want to take meds
for your new high bp according to the new guidelines

my warning
try diet change decrease salt decrease stress weight loss
exercise
two of my siblings had to get off their bp meds when they
did those things
now they are drug free
with normal blood pressures

but
if these things dont work for you
i say
get on the meds
just be careful with getting it too low
you may have symptoms
but
getting those numbers down in the new normal range
may add years to your life
and or
add better health to your last remaining years

summary
try diet and exercise and weight loss first
add meds if this doesnt work
watch for side effects of dizziness on standing or bending over
try to get your blood pressure to stay in the new guidelines
insist on the cheaper generics
and
live longer

the organicgreen doctor

no more taxes more taxes

NO MORE TAXES MORE TAXES
🐀

when i do our budget for the year
i figure out how much we will have in income
then
i do a budget to fit our spending to fit that budget
no credit card debt no borrowing money to live on

so
at the end of the year
we live within that budget
we have accumulated no more debt

thats the way it seems most financial folks recommend
that you do

now this new tax bill thing
i read about it in the left media and the right media and
the in between media
how can they all say three different things

actually
when i read that stuff
i get real blurry eyed
i get vertigous
i get to where i cant concentrate
i get to where i cant even think

i have tried to put our income into the proposal to see
how it would affect us
you know how you feel if you are so tired you cant think
well
thats how i feel when i try to figure it out

all i know is that i want to pay my fair share of taxes
but
not more than that
and
at the end of the day
i dont want our country to have this big pile of debt

all seem to agree though
at the end of the rainbow for the new tax bill
there is a pile of debt
$1.5+-trillion of it

sorry
none of us should accept this

it just seems
like they are hiding something
this carrot is being offered us
a tax cut for the middle class

what i want to know is what will
bill gates pay jerry jones pay the koch brothers pay
donald trump pay those millionaire congress folks pay
those millionaire athletes pay

then
what will a couple who are both working pay
what will a struggling mom with a kid pay
what will a retired grandparent pay
etc

then
for me
what would i have paid in my prime
what will i pay now

now i am all for simplifying the tax code
just
make sure we all pay our share
make sure that those richer than most of us
well
they should pay more
i think most of us agree with that

when i look at the tax bill
it just doesnt smell right

i am sure if it was the democrats doing a bill
it probably wouldnt smell right either
they tend to go too far the other way

if it looks like a rat smells like a rat
its probably a rat

this new tax bill
well
the odor is there

the organicgreen doctor

bummer year

BUMMER YEAR
😞
now i love my sports
im not like overly obsessed with it like
some folks are
thanks
mostly
to the invention of the dvr

so
now i know i can watch the games when i want to
on my on terms

it seems to relieve some of the tension
when i would say
i cant go to that whatever
the cowboys are playing

now
i sort of dont really well maybe a little
have an excuse

if sports went away from my life
i would survive
but barely

my teams that i am the most for
are
the cowboys
the longhorns football and mens basketball
with peripheral watching of the womens team

i really dont have a nba team that i consider
my team
like i do with football and the cowboys

i just look for a good nba team to watch play
or
good players like lebron or stephan or kevin

in baseball i like the rangers and the astros
but
during the year i dont watch any of the games
i really didnt know the astros were that good
until they made it to the world series
i usually just peripherally keep up with the
astros and rangers

so
my teams
what i call my teams
are
the cowboys
the longhorns
thats it

the rest i just like to watch good sports whether its
soccer or womens basketball or volleyball or softball
now i usually watch the womens softball world series
and the little league world series
i do watch the nba playoffs when all the bad teams
get eliminated

it just takes up too much time
all those games
i got better things to do than to sit all day and watch games
so
i usually watch via dvr so it shortens the time i commit to
watching the game

my preference is watching the game by myself with
no one else around

i prefer no conversations

so
i am having a bummer year
the longhorns football is sort of falling apart
with glimmers of hope here and there
with glimmers of a better year next year

the cowboys
sorry jerry
its not the commissioners fault that the running back
beat up his girlfriend
just because the charges were dropped doesnt mean
it didnt happen
your running back needs to look in the mirror
accept what he did
pay the punishment
then
learn from this
and
how to treat women better

quit defending him
he has a lesson to learn
maybe
you need to learn one too

i dont think the cowboys will make it to the playoffs
this year
they just dont seem to feel right when i watch them play

so
ill continue to watch my teams play
watch the good teams win like the rams the saints the eagles
i personally now look for their games to watch
but
as a sports fan its a bummer year
maybe what i need to do is pick a favorite team
in each sport and follow them closer

nope
aint got time for all that

the organicgreen doctor

alzheimers newa-veterans and alzheimers

ALZHEIMERS NEWS-VETERANS AND ALZHEIMERS

today is veterans day
i would like to thank those in my family who served in the military
my three older brothers all served and retired from the military
my moms brother was shot in the pacific war during ww2
two brother in laws served also
there are multiple extended family members who have served
a great nephew is serving now in the marines

so
tomorrow is veterans day
i would like to thank them all for their service

no matter your politics you should do the same to those
in your family who are serving now or have served

today on veterans day
i ran across several articles on veterans developing alzheimers
here is a link to one of them
it seems as a whole they have a similar incidence as the general
population

however
those who suffered traumatic brain injury or tbi are 60%
more likely to develop alzheimers than those who didnt
have the brain injury or tbi

if you add ptsd or dementia to the mix the numbers get worse

my concern is
the number of these injuries that have occurred over the
last decade or so in the middle east wars
these are mostly young folks who got these brain injuries
they sad to say are
at a much higher risk than you and i to get alzheimers

thats a tough price to pay for serving your country
maybe right behind giving up your life for your country
they are just doing it in a slower more painful way
a more expensive way for society

so as we celebrate veterans day today
honoring those who serve
lets us remember to help these veterans who are destined
to enter that alzheimers disease decline that happens
as they get older

thanks again to all those who served

thanks to cdn and rln and hdn for serving
we are proud of you

hn thanks for serving now

the organicgreen doctor

5 second rule

5 SECOND RULE

we all have probably heard of the 5 second rule

now

if you just have 1 kid 

you probably dont practice the 5 second rule

yet

but

most folks by the time that 2nd or 3rd kid comes around

well some move that out to a 10 second rule

so 

what germs are you really worried about

you know there are good germs

heck

i read where farm kids are healthier and have 

less asthma and allergy than city kids

why

they get exposed to a lot of germs

how else are city kids going to get exposed to 

those germs

the ones to really worry about

are the ones that you see on tv

when there are the outbreaks from 

meat contamination

packaged food contamination 

even salad mixes

these are the well known ones

e coli

salmonella

listeria

some viurses

parasites

just ask chipotle about these guys

my theory is that you are more likely to get sick

from eating at a restaurant 

buying meat

buying processed food

buying contaminated veggie

than

following the 5 second rule

now 

i sit here looking at my kitchen floor

i think

how long will i let the food sit there before i pick it up

and eat it

now i vacuumed the floor yesterday

dust mopped the floor

wet mopped it

so its as clean as its going to get

so

i dropped a chip on the floor

set the timer

at 5 seconds 

i popped it in my mouth

didnt bother me at all

so

i dropped another on the floor

set the timer

by 10 seconds 

i was having second thoughts

but

i popped it in my mouth

didnt bother me at all

so at what time frame would you give up

now i guess if you have a dog 

you just leave it there 

since they dont really care

i always wondered how come they can violate

the 5 second rule

and

never get sick

heck just thing of the places they put their mouth on

it dont hurt them none it seems

so after this short experiment 

i would say

10 second could be my new rule

oh wait

is that a brownie in the corner over there

so

i looked around

my wife she aint up yet

i reached down

and

savored every minute of its flavor

yes

i admit im a  rule breaker

the orgnicgreen doctor