Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Suryanamaskar - a step towards a beautiful you {Health}

Suryanamaskar is a yoga technique done in the morning as a worship of sun god. It is a collection of 12 postures which flow from one to another. It provides all the benefits which yoga provides to the body.  Practice 10 rounds of the exercise early morning everyday.
I have enumerated some of its benefits:
  • improves memory and concetration
  • increases self-confidence
  • improves the spine flexibility
  • strengthens immune and digestive system
  • detoxifies the body
  • improves the body posture
  • removes the excess fat
  • improves blood circulation
  • improves the skin and hair health
  • increases the oxygen flow to the body and lungs
  • improves mental health by combating stress
The video describes the procedure of Suryanamaskar. Visit here for a detailed step by step explanation of the salutation.

READ MORE - Suryanamaskar - a step towards a beautiful you {Health}

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Don't hit me!

Used to be if you claimed that you got cancer because you were hit there (wherever on the body there was), people would scoff. Now researchers are looking into the possibility that a blow or wound could lead to cancer, and paying special attention to the cells around tumors. If the cells are weak, they allow the cancer to spread. You can read about new respect for old ideas here in the New York Times.
READ MORE - Don't hit me!

Aloevera for Hair: a quickfix {DIY}

A quick fix to make your hair beautiful and style it in a short time is to apply Aloevera gel. Take a little of Aloevera according to your hair length in the palms and apply it to the hair. Massage some of it into the scalp and apply the rest on the hair. Pay special attention to the ends. Aloevera makes the hair sticky till it gets absorbed into the hair so you can style your hair in the mean time. It takes around 5-15 minutes for aloevera to get absorbed into the hair and does not weigh your hair down. After getting absorbed, Aloevera makes your hair shiny and bouncy.

Aloevera conditions your hair, makes hair smooth and soft and protects it from sun. It also stimulates hair growth if used on a regular basis. Aloevera can be used to moisturize hair. It is a natural humectant like honey and retains moisture. It can also be used on a daily basis. The gel from the plant can be applied directly on the hair. If bought from store, ensure that aloevera is pure and does not contain artificial additives.
READ MORE - Aloevera for Hair: a quickfix {DIY}

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Routine Hair Care {Hair Care}

Hair is one of the first thing which gets noticed when you meet a person. It can create or destroy one's personality. It can make a plain person beautiful. But, one needs to take care of their beautiful locks if they want to keep it in good condition all their life. Hair undergoes major changes three times in a woman's life: puberty, child birth and menopause. Apart from that, it is said that our Hair undergoes texture change every seven years. So, to keep up with these changes, one needs to take care of their hair meticulously. Some of the tips followed as a routine can help in taking care of your hair:

Regular Care
  • Love your locks as they are. Do not compare them with others. Every person's hair is different.
  • Use only those products which suit your hair. Do not get diverted by nice campaigns or beautiful packaging. Price of the products does not determine its worthiness. 
  • Do not tease your hair or put any pressure on it unnecessarily. Try not to use brush as much as possible. Use a wide-tooth comb. Brushing puts unnecessary strain on hair. If you want to use a brush, use a natural bristles brush.
  • Use satin or silk pillows while sleeping. Do not sleep with open hair. Braid your hair loosely.  Or, tie your hair with a satin or silk scarf. It also helps preventing the wrinkles and drying of the skin at night.
  • Drink water regularly. Hair comprises of 95% proteins and 5% water.
  • Take beauty sleep of 7-8 hours regularly.
  • Take proper nutrition. Do not let your body be deficient in any of the vitamins or minerals.
  • Oil your hair regularly. It gives natural conditioning to your hair. Use cold-pressed oils. Heat destroys the benefits of the oils. Mix various oils to get as many benefits as possible. Hot oil treatments are very useful in improving the hair condition.
  • Keep the scalp clean. Wash your hair whenever you feel your hair is dirty. Remember to use mild shampoo. Use a conditioner after shampooing your hair. It keeps your hair moisturized. 
  • Use various home remedies for deep conditioning treatments. They take time to work but if used regularly, keep your hair free of chemicals and keep them in better condition naturally and for longer time.
  • Exercise and massage your scalp regularly for beautiful hair.
These simple steps followed regularly in the routine can take care of your hair in any weather and you will never have a bad hair day.
READ MORE - Routine Hair Care {Hair Care}

Friday, December 25, 2009

Exercises for Healthy and Beautiful Eyes {Eye Care}

Hi all!!!
Hope you are all enjoying your vacation. Well, today I have something really useful to tell you all. Its about cleaning the eyes. We all know the importance of keeping our eyes dust-free and giving them time to relax. Morning eye exercises are most important to keep eyes in good condition. There are various exercises which you can do:
  • Stare at a far away object without blinking your eyes till they begin to water. It will sting badly if you are a starter, but, you get used to it gradually. This is one of the best exercises to remove the toxins from eyes and also improves your self-confidence.
         Tip: Try holding the eyelids with your fingers if you are not able to stare without blinking.
  • Close your eyes tightly and pull all your face muscles in a taut condition for 5 seconds. Relax. Rub your palms together to warm them and place them on your eyes for 5 seconds. Repeat the procedure 10 times. 
  • Look towards extreme right and then extreme left without blinking and without moving the head. Just move the eye balls. Repeat 5 times. Blink several times. Look up and then down. Repeat 5 times. Blink. Look diagonally up on left and then, diagonally down on right. Repeat 5 times. Blink. Follow the same with diagonal right up and diagonal left down. Repeat 5 times. Blink. Finally, rotate your eyes, first, in clockwise and, then, in anti-clockwise direction. Blink several times. 
These exercises are enough to keep your eyes and the skin around it in good health. There are many others which you can try out. Do not forget to blink. Blinking keeps the eyes in watery condition and eliminates the toxins. The more you blink, better your eyes will look.
READ MORE - Exercises for Healthy and Beautiful Eyes {Eye Care}

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Do we apply the face masks correctly? {DIY}

Hi All!!!!!

So, how are the preparation for festivities going on????? Hope you are all having a gala time........Today, I wanted to talk about the face masks. Every lady uses face masks to rejuvenate her skin but do we all apply it correctly? Are there any ways to apply it correctly? Well, it is no rocket science. But, you just have to be careful not give any grounds for bacteria to breed or get any breakouts due to its incorrect usage.

  • While using any mask, one should always prepare a fresh batch. Otherwise, the fresh ingredients used will turn stale and not give you the benefits you are expecting it to. On the other hand, it might even cause in outbreaks on the skin or any unwanted allergy. Keeping the face mask for a day in fridge is acceptable but make sure you keep it covered.
  • Before applying the mask, make sure you have washed your face thoroughly and patted it dry. Do not allow it to be damp. The moisture may not allow the mask to work effectively.
  • You might want to open your pores before using the mask. For that, you can take a wash cloth soaked in tolerable hot water and cover your face with it till it cools down. You might repeat this cycle for 5 minutes. Make sure you do not burn your skin. Allow the water to be as much hot as you can tolerate. After 5 minutes, your skin is ready for the treatment. Make sure the skin is dry.
  • Take a paint brush or any make up brush thick enough to be able to spread the mask on your face. Try not to use the hands as it is unhygienic. Keep the brush solely for this purpose and wash it after every use thoroughly. Sterilize it once a week to prevent bacteria.
  • In case you have to use hands, wash your hands with a disinfectant well. Dry your hands well and only then apply the mask to your face. Or, best, try to follow the facial right after a manicure. Your nail beds are clean at that time.
  • Let the mask air dry. Do not use the blowers to dry it forcefully. Keep ample of time on hand to begin with the treatment. Relax in the mean time. Use tea bags for your eyes and lie down. Stay still. Do not try to pass time by reading or doing any other work. Minute movements can cause the mask to break, especially clay.
  • While mixing the mask, you can use green tea (or any herbal tea), floral water, honey, glycerin or any vegetable oil which suits your skin instead of distilled water. It gives undoubtedly better results. Same goes with dry scrubs.
  • After the mask has dried, do not use water to remove it. Take a water saturated cotton ball and gently wipe off the mask from the face. Be very gentle. Take your time. Do not hurry. The clay masks are little difficult to remove with this method. Try not to use wash cloths as you have the work of washing them and drying them carefully. You can use disposable paper napkins instead. Anything which is disposable and which is gentle on your skin is a good idea.
  • After removing the mask, wash your face with water several times. You can follow with a green tea toner. Make sure your face is squeaky clean. Apply little moisturizer or better, 2-3 drops of oil. It will trap the moisture and keep the skin supple.

Some tips to remember:  
  • Skin care treatments should be performed, preferably, in the evenings followed by a bath and sleep.  Sleep always helps the skin to rejuvenate with the extra nourishment you have just provided. Do take care that you have no appointments that evening and make sure you are not disturbed, even, by phone calls. You can keep your mobile on silent mode and return the calls next morning. Always keep in mind the effects of skin care prove best when you are completely at leisure and take your own sweet time for the whole process. 
  • Sometimes, the treatments may be followed after the Oil Cleansing Method which I have already talked about.
  • Complete the skin care routine before 9 P.M as body starts its detoxification process after that. Check out Face Good to know more about what time is best suitable for taking care of the skin.
  • You can read a book or listen to music before going to bed. Going to bed after watching television or browsing internet is not definitely a good idea as it does not calm your mind and the sleep you get is disturbed. 
  • One important thing to remember is to apply the face masks only for the time advised on the back of the packs or wait until they dry. Remove them as soon as they dry. For fruit masks, wipe them off after 15 minutes. Keeping the masks for longer time than specified is not a good idea.
  • Apply a thick layer of the mask. Do not save on the mask (money to buy it) by applying a thin coat. The mask works by creating a barrier between your skin and the environment and provides its goodness to the skin. If the layer is not thick enough, the mask will not give the results expected.  
Have a happy basking with the mask.
READ MORE - Do we apply the face masks correctly? {DIY}

Monday, December 21, 2009

Keeping skin flawless and beautiful for the festive times {Skin Care}

Everyone is busy in Christmas and New Year preparations. So, how to prepare to look good in the celebrations. Follow the following tips and enjoy the holidays:
  • Drink adequate amount of water, no matter what. People tend to drink less water in winters but it affects the skin more adversely. The winter winds dehydrate the skin anyways. You have to hydrate yourself to keep in balance. If you fail to do it, your skin will look leathery with all the make up on and no suppleness.
  • Sleep properly and adequately. Finish your beauty sleep for minimum 7 hours. Do not take any drinks two hours prior to sleep. 
  • Cleanse your face every night, no matter what. Otherwise, your skin will look aged on next day. 
  • Before the celebrations begin, get yourself an appointment at the saloon well in advance. Remember this is a rush hour season and be on time. Get yourself pampered and indulge in expenses. You would love the result. Get a hair cut and highlights if you wish. They will look great. 
  • On the day of festivities, give yourself appropriate time to get ready. Do not rush through it.
  • Include body scrub, bath oils, bath salts in your bath and soak for 15-20 minutes. Alternatively, you can pour 2-3cups of milk and 2-3 drops of any essential oil of your choice in your tub and soak. Scrub with wash cloth afterward gently.
  • While soaking, you can also apply any fruit face mask if you want and tea bags on your eyes to relax them and make them look brighter. Banana, papaya, orange brings an instant glow on the face. Apple makes your skin look clean and bright. Any fruit will do the job because of the natural ingredients present in it. You can also include milk cream or vegetable oils suitable to your skin while mashing the fruits to moisturize. Prepare a fresh batch every time.
  • Wash your hair before you go for a soak. Do not condition. While you soak, apply honey on your hair and cover with a shower cap. While you are showering, wash your hair well and use any tea or vinegar as last rinse. It gives instant shine to your hair. Let your hair air dry if not in hurry. 
  • When you come out of the shower, apply some perfume on the skin. Dab perfume on warm areas of your body like armpits, cleavages, inner thighs. Moisturize your body. Apply perfume again on the same spots you applied earlier or as per your choice. You can apply talc and then again apply perfume. Last layer can be put on the clothes you wear. Ensure the floral smells and buy a natural perfume which is non-irritating to your skin. Applying perfume in layers and warm areas ensures it to stay longer.
  • When your hair is damp, style your hair. You can use shine serums to increase the shine or other hair products of your choice. Use products in moderation so as to not let your hair weigh down. Less is good.
  • Before applying make up, do not forget your sunscreen in case your are going out in day time.
  • At night, a lip gloss and mascara is enough to give the effect.  
  • For people who are not product junkies and like to go natural like me, 2-3 drops of any vegetable oil would be enough to bring shine to your hair. When your hair is damp, take oil into your palms and finger comb through your hair paying special attention to the ends. This will seal the moisturizer into your hair. While finger combing, gently untangle your hair so that you do not need to comb or brush it. Simple finger combing can give great style to your hair. Try it out. Definitely, it depends a lot on the hair texture too. Wavy hair is the best bet. Or, if you still prefer combing, use a wide tooth comb. Do not forget sunscreen in any case. To be ready for a night out, a lip gloss adds a smashing effect. Making up the eyes is no harm but the least you can do is to apply kohl. They give an instant lift to your eyes. Wash your eyes with lot of cold water before that to make them look brighter. Buy good products. Do not worry about expenses. Cheap products are often not good for the skin but, again, do not judge by the brands. Go for products which suit your skin.
Take care of your skin regularly and you do not need any special vanity case to prepare for a party. Proper nutrition is important in skin care. But, indulge during festivities. Do not starve yourself of the enjoyments.

Wish you all a Happy Christmas and a very Happy New Year.
READ MORE - Keeping skin flawless and beautiful for the festive times {Skin Care}

Friday, December 18, 2009

Living While Black/O, the Tribune


[Is this breast black or white?]

For a while, there's been the term DWB--Driving While Black--African-American drivers report being pulled over for this offense. Now we're finding out (again) that it's dangerous to be LWB, especially in Chicago. Today's Tribune reports on a study that showed that the African-American death rate from breast cancer in 2005 was 99 percent higher in Chicago than for white women, a fivefold increase since 1990.
This is not new. Chicago Magazine reported on this a couple of years ago, or a version of this--a previous study by the same researchers at the Sinai Urban Health Institute. The same bad news: Chicago is worse than other cities. The gap between black and white health here is widening. The Trib is careful to quote an African-American doctor who partly blames the victim--the problem is partly lifestyle, she says; partly it's poverty; and partly lack of knowledge about health.
Hmm, says Cancer Bitch to herself, why is it that this is the only person in the story who's identified by race? Could it be that everyone else quoted is "normal," i.e., white, and so doesn't have to be identified?
The health study was published online yesterday in the American Journal of Public Health, the Tribune avers. It identifies Steve Whitman (no race), director of the Sinai Urban Health Institute as the author of the study. The conclusion drawn from the study, according to the journal abstract: Overall, progress toward meeting the Healthy People 2010 goal of eliminating health disparities in the United States and in Chicago remains bleak. With more than 15 years of time and effort spent at the national and local level to reduce disparities, the impact remains negligible.
You can find the abstract of the piece here. You can get the article for 30 bucks from the AJPH site.
Along these same lines, but even more depressing: A Rush University Medical Center study published in November showed that Chicago's black and white breast cancer mortality rates were the same in 1980. This was also in the Chicago Magazine story. From that piece, by Shane Trisch:
We've arranged things in this country so that the darker your skin, the shorter your life will be--Steve Whitman.
READ MORE - Living While Black/O, the Tribune

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Soyoyoy


Soy has been another one of those things--unclear whether it's bane or boon to women whose tumors feed on estrogen. The reason is that soy has estrogenic properties. Thus, Dr. Keith Block, who practices integrative medicine, advises women with estrogen-positive tumors to eat soy no more than two to three times a week. On the other hand, the very mainstream oncology bigwig from Fancy Hospital said that women with estrogen-positive tumors could have soy a couple of times a day. He said this at the Town Hall meeting this fall, but he didn't quote any studies that led to his recommendation.

Now comes a study from Vanderbilt and Shanghai. Researchers looked at 5,000 women with breast cancer. They found that those with the highest intake of soy protein had a 29 percent lower risk of death during the study period, and a 32 percent lower risk of breast cancer recurrence compared to patients with the lowest intake of soy protein. Women with both E-positive and E-negative tumors had positive results. http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/302/22/2437?home=

“I would say that this study would indicate that women with breast cancer should (eat) soy products,” says Dr. Xiao Ou Shu, an epidemiologist at Nashville's Vanderbilt University Medical Centre who authored the study. “I think that it shows there is protection there.”

So bring out the edamame, which I'd been eschewing all this time, and let's cut up the tofu, which I've always maintained is the original manna.
READ MORE - Soyoyoy

Oil Cleansing Method {DIY}

Hey All!!!

Good to post again. A few days ago I had talked about OIL CLEANSING. Well, let me introduce to you something which I stumbled across a few days ago. I tried it and trust me, its amazing. I do not know how well it removes make up but it makes your skin squeaky clean without drying it. Rather, it leaves your skin smooth and supple. And, your skin glows the next day. You would love yourself.

Procedure:
  • Start by keeping everything close to you. You would need a dry wash cloth (not too harsh for your skin), a bottle containing castor oil and olive oil mixed in a proportion suitable to your skin* and running hot water.
  • Apply oil generously to your skin and massage the oil into your skin well using firm hands for around 5-10 minutes. It feels relaxing and is soothing for your face muscles. Exercise your cheek bone, jaw bone, nose, chin, forehead and eyes (use ring finger for eyes). The finger movements should be outwards and upwards towards the ear from the chin, cheeks, nose and upper lip area.
  • After massaging to your heart's content, soak the wash cloth in hot running water and apply it on to your face. Keep the warmth of wash cloth to the point you can bear. Keep it on until it cools down and then wipe your face nicely with the same wash cloth. 
  • Wash and soak the same wash cloth under hot running water for sometime to clean it and saturate it. Again apply it your face, keep till it cools and then, wipe away your face. Repeat this cycle till you feel your skin is clean. 3-4 times should be enough. 
  • You can apply moisturizer according to the need of your skin. In place of moisturizer, you can apply a drop of the same oil used to cleanse your face. If it does not feel dry and tight, do not apply anything on to your face. Your face needs to breathe. Go and have a nice sleep.
Next morning, you need not cleanse your face. A wipe with a wash cloth is enough to clean it. Your skin would be glowing. Oil cleansing not only removes grime, dirt and make up from your face, but also, the blackheads and blemishes. This procedure should not be done too frequently. I think 2-3 times is fine in a week. Care should be taken not to scratch the skin.

Go and check it out for yourself. Have a happy cleansing.

* Remember, castor oil is quite thick and can be drying for the skin if used in large quantities. It has cleansing properties but is too strong on skin if used alone. That is why you need another light oil to dilute it. You can also use jojoba oil. For the mixture of oil, you can use 75-25 castor-olive oil combination for normal skin. You can experiment with different proportions till you find the one suiting your face.  The proportion of mixture should be such that for dry skin people, castor oil should be less in proportion like 50-50 or 60-50 and people with oily skin can have 80-20 as the proportion. But, since every skin is different in its needs, you should find out the right one for yourself. It would take trial and error but remember one rule, do not use too much of castor oil. It will dry your skin irrespective of its type.
READ MORE - Oil Cleansing Method {DIY}

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

How do you solve a problem like tamoxifen?


I take it and don't think about the side effects very often because I can't bear to. The oncologist said to take it so I take it. I know there's a chance of developing endometrial cancer, so I get checked out by the Smooth Gynecologist Who's Younger Than I Am But Acts Like She's Older. What tamoxifen does seems so direct: It cuts off the absorption of estrogen, which is what my tumor grew on. In August the New York Times told us that tamoxifen can cause the formation of a non-estrogen-sensitive and hard-to-treat tumor. And Tuesday's NYT tells of omission bias, a term for the phenomenon whereby a person worries more about a low risk of harm from something they do than about a higher risk of harm from doing nothing. In the story, the worry was about tamoxifen. The Times reported that women are afraid to take the drug. Out of 632 women in a study, 80 percent said they were worried about side effects, and most of the women said they wouldn't take tamoxifen.
At rowing practice (indoors) Monday night someone was complaining about tamoxifen's side effects, including weight gain. I feel like a fool to take it. But the good it can do is significant. Though now I read now that there's a chance of cataracts and blood clots. My polycythemia vera puts me at risk for clots, and I take hydroxyurea for the p. vera, even though the drug could cause leukemia, because the condition itself could cause leukemia, and my inhaled steroid for asthma could combine with my other drugs to make me even more liable to develop blood clots. But the hydroxyurea lowers my red blood cell count, which makes me less likely to have a clot. Red blood cells are those round red spheres in the image above.

It is a difficult, difficult thing to be alive.

The papers pile up and the news gets worse and there's another surge, the world is dangerous and the wind chill here at the moment is four below. The house is creaking from the cold. I'm wearing a flannel nightgown from Austria and L is asleep between flannel sheets with sketches of snowmen on them.

On the one hand, on the other hand, on the other other hand.

[shrug image from dreamstime.com]
READ MORE - How do you solve a problem like tamoxifen?

Monday, December 14, 2009

Green Tea Beauty Uses {DIY}

Hi

We all are, by now, aware of the benefits of drinking Green Tea everyday thanks to the marketing of its benefits done so aggressively by everyone from cosmetics to health care professionals.

It can provide you with abundant anti-oxidants to slow down your aging process. You can cut down your calories by not adding any sugar or honey to your tea but it depends on your taste, of course. Not everyone can drink it. Anyways, I am not here to tell you how to drink your cup of tea or tell you about its benefits. I know that you all are more than saturated with all that information.

You all must have heard about the growing use of green tea extracts in the cosmetic industry. Well, instead of spending large bucks on buying such products which contain less than 10% of the green tea extract as its ingredient and mixed with all sorts of chemicals, you can use your own freshly brewed green tea for the same effects at home and save your bucks simultaneously. You can use green tea as a rinse for your hair, wash your face with it, use it as a toner, in the body scrub and for those people who like making their own moisturizers and all, you can use green tea instead of simple distilled water to provide you with extra benefits. After drinking your cup of tea, you can use the left over tea leaves to brew another cup. You might want it to be a little concentrated so use less water and let it sit for at least 15 minutes. After straining, put the brew in the fridge for half hour. When chilled, you can use it the way you want to. You can also relax your eyes by placing cotton balls saturated with green tea on your eyes.

If you do not drink green tea then you can buy the supplements available at drug stores. Enjoy your cup of tea and the health and skin benefits that come with it.
READ MORE - Green Tea Beauty Uses {DIY}

Growing Long Eyelashes {DIY}

Hi

Well, growing long eyelashes seem to be too difficult. Everyone wants beautiful eyes framed with long and lush eyelashes. Such eyelashes are not a natural gift to everyone but you need not despair. Some patience and regularity in your routine can help you achieve that task. To be frank, I do not know whether you can grow that thick eyelashes as you watch on the screens when you look at your favorite actress but definitely, you can make them better than their present condition. Apply castor oil every night. Be patient. The results would not be seen over night. Your eyelashes cycle completes in about two months so by end of two months, you can definitely see your eyelashes in a better shape.

And, before leaving, vaseline does no good for the eyelashes so please do not waste time using that remedy. It just makes your eyelashes wet and sticky and when they are wet, the eyelashes look longer so basically, what you see after applying vaseline is just an illusion and I'm not even sure whether you should actually apply vaseline to the delicate skin around the eyes.

Bye for now.
Have a Good Night.
READ MORE - Growing Long Eyelashes {DIY}

Welcome to my blog!!!

Hey All!!!

I just wanted to post my first blog saying I hope I keep on my resolution to keep blogging. I find it interesting to read others posts and tried on blogging earlier but due to work pressure, discontinued in the middle and it has been a year since I have written anything. So, please keep up with my grammatical or spelling errors and give me time to get back into my mode of writing.

This time I wanted to write about something really different and exciting which I hope would be useful to all. That's why, I have picked up skin care as my topic. Seeing the boom in cosmetic industry and latest craze for organics and natural stuff (into which even I have also fallen!!), I thought I could share some interesting tips which might help you with your budget and give you some satisfaction which comes with doing stuff on your own. Even men have become too conscious of skin care. Bravo!!!!

There are a lot of blogs and sites on skin care and I personally like some, the links to which I'll be posting in my subsequent posts. I know you must be thinking why to spend time reading new and newer blogs which post the same things over and over again and also that, since I personally like some of the blogs and sites, why do I not be happy just reading them. Well, to answer the second part is that I wanted to do some thing constructive and feel involved in helping people out, not only by commenting on someone else blogs but also writing things in my own way and sharing my personal experiences with each and every remedy I have tried.

I just hope that my readers will like the blogs I post and will comment on how they liked it and if they did not like, I would want them to please tell me what they dislike. Send me comments for any topic which you think I should write about.

In due time, I would be writing about OIL CLEANSING as a method to remove make up and improving the texture of your skin. Watch OUT!!!

BByes for now. Take Care. God Bless You.
READ MORE - Welcome to my blog!!!

Monday, November 30, 2009

Ducks in a Barrel



OK, it's not fair to attack the Tribune twice in a row--it's too easy, but I had to point this out. An editor was sleeping when working on an astute review of Jonathan Safran Foer's book, Eating Animals. The lede is: Looking forward to your turkey dinner? Think twice. It's time, argues Jonathan Safran Foer, to stop lying to ourselves.
How smart do you have to be to know that you need to change this if it's running the Monday after Thanksgiving? Why not change it to: Did you enjoy your Thanksgiving turkey?... The editor had heard that you're supposed to cut from the bottom, but I guess never learned to change the top if it's not applicable any more
It was written by LA Times Staffer Susan Salter Reynolds, published in the Times on Nov. 8, when readers (there must still be readers, right?) were looking forward to their Thanksgiving meals. To read the original review, click here.

READ MORE - Ducks in a Barrel

Sunday, November 22, 2009

All solutions are individual.


That's what I learned from reading the Chicago Tribune today, specifically, a little wrap-around page touting itself. But wasn't it preaching to the choir? It should be boasting to people who don't have the newspaper in their hands.

First problem: A pizza deliveryman was mugged and carjacked. Solution: "...people from as far away as South Korean and Germany sent in more than $16,000" so he could return to his pizza route, which I would bet doesn't supply him with health insurance. But that's not mentioned.

The second problem: A reporter wrote about a family living in a storage faculty. Solution: the "generosity of friends, family and Tribune readers touched by their troubles" provided money to put the family up in a motel.

Whew. Problem solved. Don't look to the left or right to see if there's anybody else homeless.

Third problem: A kid was in foster care and he got himself more than $1 million in scholarship offers. I remember reading about this kid. It was a feel-good story. It was the kind of story to make you think, Why don't all the kids pull themselves up by their bootstraps?

Also of note: The Tribune tells us it is "[s]hining a light on the persistent and often ignored problem of youth violence...." Persistent? Yes. Ignored? By whom? Not by the kids who are killed each year and their families. Not by people who live in violent neighborhoods.

Everything was off today. Ask Amy said that doctors should always be called by their titles because of their expertise. Hell, I'm an expert and my students call me by my first name. This is America, talk-show-etiquette America, where everyone has a first name but maybe not even a last. I call some of my doctors by their first names. Sometimes I have to force myself because of all the years of calling doctors doctors but if they call me by my first name, I do the same, especially if they're 20 years younger.

But we subscribe and we read the Tribune and it does give us some information about the city. And suburbs. Even though it is so so embarrassing how every other story seems to be based on a TV show. We can't be treated like real adults; we have to be able to relate our news to broadcast (or digital?) fictional dramas and comedies. We are amusing ourselves to death.

Which is the title of a book by Neil Postman, in which he writes: "What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism."
READ MORE - All solutions are individual.

Friday, November 20, 2009

...and now Pap smears...


["Curiouser and curiouser."]


Holy Toledo! Now we don't need Pap smears as often. Have we been (the equivalent) of navel-gazing in the past, getting ourselves checked out too often? Our society is paranoid about cancer. Screenings make us feel like we're doing something, like we're being (that horrible corporate word) pro-active. As Sen. Arlen Spector told the New York Times, That is curious.
The past recommendation had been for young women to have Pap smears three years after becoming sexually active. Now the guidelines are to wait until age 21, no matter when a girl started having sex. The numbers bear this out: only two new cases per million teens (15 to 19 years old) per year in the U.S. What if you are one of the two girls? Everything makes sense, statistically, but not if you're one of the statistics.
The old tension between the individual vs. the community.
Cervical cancer is slow-growing, and pre-cancerous conditions often don't turn into cancer. Surgery for the pre-cancerous conditions could lead to premature births, says the Times.
This is the same thinking that went into the decision to recommend mammograms less often. The mammograms picked up non-cancerous tumors, which led to biopsies and more tests, for nothing, I guess you could say. And anxiety. Everyone is worried about our anxiety. I think most women would vote for a little surgery and anxiety so that their anxiety about cancer would be lessened. At least most women who have the choice.
A student of mine this fall thinks she has mono but can't afford health insurance or a visit to a doctor. She assured me last night she was no longer contagious. But she wasn't absolutely sure about the diagnosis, which had been delivered by a guess-timating nurse.
We all need the health insurance coverage that our federal elected officials get. Don't we deserve that?
READ MORE - ...and now Pap smears...

Who will watch the store now that he is gone?

Dr. Jan Vandersloot.....was our personal hero! He
marched across difficult terrain, when going another
way may have been easier. He applied himself each
day with a renewed fervor.....a renewal of spirit
that was infectious. He wanted to make people aware
that San Diego and other places around our nation....
may not be doing the right thing. He asked us to attend
meetings with him. He stood tall when no one else would.
Dr. Jan's solitary presence, at not only City Council
Meetings, Country Boards and State Commissions told of
someone truly dedicated to a better world. Someone who
would show by example; rather than just shouting from the
roof tops or spouting off for an uninterested audience!

Some people in life that serve as role models are later
to be named for streets, parks, open space, buildings
and even sometimes with a bronze statue. What they have
accomplished could be of little consequence...perhaps
family or powerful friends fronted the cash for these
endeavors. So it would be easy to be cynical about the
process of being grateful to those that have served
without a desire to be remembered. What was in it for
them? "A better world!" comes to mind when the name of
Dr. Jan Vandersloot is mentioned!

Dr. Jan Vandersloot, marched ahead with facts, figures,
study and a targeted desire......to move things forward
and to save our "Quality of Life" for not only our
progeny but those that would survive the years with
memories of wonder and beauty that once existed before
"Redevelopment or Naked Progress" that would take our
community and make it into something that was without
beauty or at worst, simply unlivable.

Water quality, Open Space and the beauty of trees and
plants.......were protected by Dr. Jan and his warrior
mentality. He stood tall, he asked the tough questions
and he offered solutions. He did all this....without pay
or self-aggrandizing purpose. He did it, because he knew
that if no one did it....the worst could happen and most
likely leave us depleted in spirit and in the beauty of
our environment!

Dr. Jan Vandersloot should be remembered. Should be
honored by our City, our County and our State. His
passing on November 5th, 2009 came too early. The people
standing in line to replace his tireless energy are not
only too few - but without his amazing knowledge! We
need to honor his memory with a Park,a street or Open
Space..marked by his name!

Thank you Dr. Jan, but the Lord has taken you too early.
We needed you to stick around a lot longer. We needed
for you to bring that tireless energy back to the Dias,
time after time - to protect us!

To his family and friends, the citizens of Newport Beach,
Orange County and California...and even the patients of
his caring, healing Dermatology practice - God bless us
all. We will remember you Dr. Jan and do our best to
walk a tiny step or two in your shadow!
READ MORE - Who will watch the store now that he is gone?

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

In Memoriam Jan Vandersloot, MD


And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. Galatians 6:9

No one exemplified these words better than Jan Vandersloot, medical doctor, environmentalist, and family man. He was generous with his time and his money, and we are thankful to him as well as to Cheryl, Jon and Tiffany.

I first met Jan about twenty years ago, though I’d seen his numerous and eloquent letters to the editor before that. I was a city planner at Newport Beach and he called about illegal fill of a wetland. Someone in the office said “that Dr. Vandersloot” always had some complaint. Still, I arranged to meet Jan at the site along with a biologist and, lo and behold, a wetland was being illegally filled.

After that, I got many calls from Jan. Sometimes he’d be reporting habitat damage, or illegal dumping. I learned that when “that Dr. Vandersloot” called, it was something I really needed to check out. If he had a complaint it was well-founded and well-researched. Unlike some residents who called regularly, Jan was concerned about all areas of the city and beyond, not just matters within a block or two of his house.

Sometimes he was just looking for information. For Jan, there was no such thing as too much information.

Years later, after I’d left the City and was involved in various causes, many at the prodding of Jan, my house was overrun with environmental impact reports (EIRs) and other studies. Jan stopped by about some project. I was mortified at the boxes of documents spilling into the living room. Jan was delighted.

Jan had a way of pulling people into his causes. Bolsa Chica, Ocean Outfall Group, San Diego Creek, trees on the Peninsula. He put so much into so many causes, how could you not help at least a little? Almost daily there’d be e-mail from Jan with calls to action, research requests, or outlines of potential strategies for ongoing projects.

As he toiled to end the Orange Count Sanitation District’s waiver from federal clean water law, he’d ask not IF you’d attend any meetings to speak against the waiver, but WHICH meetings in which cities you’d attend. Eventually Jan, or in rare cases a surrogate, spoke before every city council and sanitary district in Orange County, usually with a few others in tow, but alone if need be.

Jan didn’t care if he was the only one to stand up and fight for something. If it was the right thing to do, he was there.

It wasn’t all just hearings and meetings. I especially appreciate the work he did at Fairview Park. Jan advocated for the park at hearings and also weeded and planted plants, sometimes with a group, sometimes with just one other person, like Gil Collins, sometimes alone.Though I’d been involved in Fairview earlier on, soon Jan surpassed me in his knowledge and dedication to improving habitat at the park. I’d be out for a hike and there was Jan, clearing away the anise choking out native species. Seeing his hard work, I’d go back to my car for an extra bag to pick up trash along the way. How could I not?

We distributed flyers at election time. Of course, if you and Jan covered opposite sides of a street, you really had to hustle. With his long legs he’d finish the distance long before you.

Jan really loved to celebrate the big wins. And he hated to lose. After a setback, he’d be seeking other strategies. Was there a way to appeal? Another agency involved? Should we litigate? Any other options?

Jan just did not give up. If we’d finally run out of options, he’d be planning how we could handle a similar situation “next time”. Unfortunately, now there is no “next time” with Jan.

Today, we are able to reap what Jan so diligently sowed and tended: Open space at Bolsa Chica, cleaner beaches, wetlands, trees, and habitat in various areas. What a tremendous legacy!

Perhaps an even greater legacy is the army of activist that Jan has encouraged and mentored over the years. Now we must continue in well-doing, that we and others may reap in the years to come. How could we not?
READ MORE - In Memoriam Jan Vandersloot, MD

Everything They Told Us Is Wrong...


...or at least it seems so. Now they say that self-exams aren't necessary and that you don't need a mammogram until age 40. I'll have more about this. In the meantime, you can read the study and recommendations here.
If you found your cancer via under-40 mammogram or breast self-exam, please comment! Of course, all comments are welcome, by survivors and non-, as long as you're a real person, not a computer program.
Meanwhile, Our Bodies Our Blog concurs with the guidelines, and explains why, providing important history and perspective, with excellent links. Check it out.
READ MORE - Everything They Told Us Is Wrong...

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Siapa Pemenang Kontes Cinta Pandeglang

Tidak aneh kalau kita menebak nama pancallok.blogspot.com dalam beberapa hari kedepan akan menjadi pemenang dalam kontes cinta pandeglang yang sudah hampir menghabiskan masa putarannya. Hampir sepanjang perjalanan kontes Kenali dan Kunjungi Objek Wisata di Pandeglang namanya selalu mendominasi posisi puncak.

Di bawahnya masih ada aleusia.com dan kerjakeras.com, apakah mereka akan membuat kejutan di akhir kompetisi. Saya fikir kejutan masih mungkin saja terjadi meskipun peluang itu tidak begitu besar. Dan saya yakin kedua peserta tersebut masih akan berusaha memaksimalkan kesempatan itu berapapun besar kecilnya.

Jawaban itu semua tidak akan lama lagi akan segera kita ketahui kalau tidak lebih dari seminggu lagi kontes ini akan berakhir dan pengumuman pemenangnyapun akan di keluargak oleh penyelenggata kontes Kenali dan Kunjungi Objek wisata di Pandeglang ini. Buat saya sendiri, kontes ini sangat bermanfaat untuk menambah pengalaman dan menambah ilmu. Meskipun semakin mendekati akhir semakin malas mengikutinya :D
READ MORE - Siapa Pemenang Kontes Cinta Pandeglang

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Wow! I Told You So???

It's not too often when a highly respected "member" of the community agrees with a very small, yet very vocal, part of the community.

For years now, residents of West Newport Beach and the Balboa Peninsula have been complaining about, and opening their wallets to fight, the Sober Living/Rehab homes which littered through the community.

The claim was that the Residents of these Sober Living/Rehab homes were thieves and destroyed property.

The claim was that the Residents of these Sober Living/Rehab homes were disruptive.

The claim was that the Residents of these Sober Living/Rehab homes were disrespectful and rude to their neighbors.

The claim was that the Residents of these Sober Living/Rehab homes didn't belong in residential neighborhoods.

Denys Obermann and the Concerned Citizens of Newport Beach spent lots and lots of money to get the City of Newport Beach to do something about it.

The Sober Living/Rehab homes hired some seriously BIG GUNS to defend themselves.

The City of Newport Beach's response?

Tepid to Ceremonial.

And realistically, as the 2008 City Council showed, that's how the voters felt about the Sober Living/Rehab "patients (and I use that word VERY lightly...)" living in residential areas.

A Council member was accused of profiting off the Sober Living/Rehab Homes.

And while he may have lost in the districts affected by them, the rest of the City cared less, indicating that they were more concerned that he had a house in disrepair, for many years, and that he seemed to push his weight around to keep it in disrepair.

And he was overwhelmingly re-elected.

Well...finally.

Finally, a highly respected "member" of the Community has echoed, and VALIDATED the sentiments of West Newport Beach, Balboa Peninsula, and the Concerned Citizens of Newport Beach.

Finally, a Company, who's President's endorsement is highly coveted and sought after by Potential City Councilmembers.

I can still remember Mayor Pro-Tem Keith Curry quoting their President's words when he was on the campaign trail.

It's all in the title of the Orange County Register article.


Hospital bars drug rehab patients from A.A. meetings


Read it.

Study it.

Here's are some excerpts for those too lazy to click

"Effectively immediately, sober living homes and substance abuse treatment centers that drop off van and bus loads of residents to attend this meeting will be asked not to do so," says the letter. "We ask that you find other meetings to attend."

"Unfortunately, there has been an ongoing history of disregard for the property and policies of Hoag Hospital," according to the letter from Dotty Dozal of the Hoag Chemical Dependency Recovery Center.

"These behaviors include: theft, destruction of property, smoking on campus, profanity, congregating in groups outside of the building rather than attending the meeting, gathering in restricted areas and other disruptive behaviors."

Wow...

Sounds just like ALL OF THE COMPLAINTS THE RESIDENTS HAD ABOUT THESE REHAB "RESIDENTS."

Perhaps the Sky was falling...
READ MORE - Wow! I Told You So???

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Halloween Massacre at China Cove

Bet you thought that title was some kind of joke. Unfortunately not.

Akin to what occurred in West Newport when some reprobates decided to bulldoze the dunes, someone has hacked away a fair amount of vegetation at China Cove, including native plants (pictures). Word has it the Newport Beach Police have apprehended the miscreant.

Could it be the same guy that’s been chopping down trees elsewhere, including Costa Mesa parks? Is he just a spoiled brat who feels he has the right to alter public property to suit his convenience and/or enhance his own property value? News flash chainsaw man: You are not the center of the universe.

It’s hard to understand what this jerk was thinking. Were the plants blocking his view? One would think that any views blocked by the massacred plants would also be blocked by Kerckhoff Marine Lab.

What was next on his agenda? Was he planning on disassembling Kerckhoff and burning it in the fire rings piece by piece? Oh, wait. Council Member Gardner’s getting rid of those.

Never mind. If some predictions as to climate change are to be believed, it will all be under water in a few years.
READ MORE - Halloween Massacre at China Cove

Friday, October 30, 2009

Horrors! Woman touches own breasts on TV!



{Sorry--I couldn't figure out technically how to capture a still of the woman examining her breasts. It is much less sexy than this stock picture from photosearch.com. }

It took a while, but I finally found the un-blurred video from the ABC News local WJLA in Washington, DC., which showed--horrors!--a pretty 28-year-old woman with cancer (before surgery) examining her small, perky breasts. Reporter Gail Pennybacker, thank goodness, warns us beforehand that "Images are going to be graphic." Gosh!! Nipples!! Nipples, which are obscene, are going to be shown. Lock up your women and children! Your children will be traumatized by seeing nipples! Of course, they are not affected by daily, hourly images of war and mutilation--or "action" movies and videos.
The news station brought this all on itself by happening to air this during sweeps week, when viewership is measured. If WJLA wanted to be as blameless as Caesar's wife, it would have run this earlier in the month.
Meanwhile, conservative groups have criticized this display. The AP tells us: The Parents Television Council reacted cautiously to news of the series but suggested it saw the potential for problems.

"We hope that WJLA-TV is not using a crucial public health issue as a ratings stunt, and that the station has fully considered what is appropriate to tell this important story to the public in the most suitable manner possible," the group said in a statement. That might mean different versions of the story at 5 p.m. and at 11 p.m., it added.


I wish the reaction were more outlandish so I could make fun of it. It's also annoying that that first thing that pops up on the PTC web site is a study that says that images of violence against women are on the increase on TV. Really, how can anyone find fault with an organization that cares about violence against women (at least representations of it)? If you read further, you find the organization is Mrs. Grundy-ish (Does anyone say "Mrs. Grundy" any more?) about "indecency" and cursing and sex on TV. Yeah, a lot on TV boils down to immature sniggling about sex, but that's not my most pressing issue.

It's easier to make fun of another critic, Concerned Women for America, which strives "to protect and promote Biblical values among all citizens - first through prayer, then education, and finally by influencing our society - thereby reversing the decline in moral values in our nation." But reading about them makes me more scared than sarcastic. Separation of Church and State, anyone?


[Mrs. Grundy by Walter Crane, 19c]



[not to be confused with Miss Grundy of Archie Comics, pictured at top]


Breast cancer is one thing I do think about a bit. And I was and am lax on breast self-exams. Mostly, the hoopla about the news report is serving to remind me that I need to examine my right breast, that I shouldn't just rely on the six-month mammograms and doctor exams. So ladies, go to it! See instructions and illustrations at this site.

Click here for visuals that are really adult and graphic and for which our country is to blame.

"Murder is a crime; describing murder is not. Sex is not a crime. Describing sex is. Why?" Gershon Legman wrote years ago. I know, I know, this weakens all of the above, because my implied argument is that showing a breast exam is not a smutty, sexual event, but it seemed apropos.
READ MORE - Horrors! Woman touches own breasts on TV!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Breast Cancer Drove Her to This


[Imagine a red slash through the smiley face]

The pinkness and cheeriness of the breast cancer industry made Barbara Ehrenreich note the pervasiveness of exhortations to be positive. This is from Saturday's New York Times, by Patricia Cohen:

.....In “Bright-sided,” [Barbara Ehrenreich] traces the roots of the nation’s blithe sunniness to a reaction against Calvinist gloom and the limits of medical science in the first half of the 19th century. Starting with Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, perhaps one of the first American New Age faith healers, she draws a line to Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science; the psychologist William James; Ralph Waldo Emerson; Norman Vincent Peale, who published “The Power of Positive Thinking” in 1952; and the toothy television minister Joel Osteen, who preaches the gospel of prosperity.

To Ms. Ehrenreich, the reliance on one’s personal disposition shifts attention from the larger social, political and economic forces behind poverty, unemployment and poor health care. “It can’t all be fixed by assertiveness training,” she said wryly.

Ms. Ehrenreich found that the more she listened, the surlier she became. All that shiny optimism, she said, was “like sitting in a warm bubble bath for too long.” Luckily she found other churlish comrades, scholars and doctors who were similarly skeptical of undimmed positivity.

“We began to call ourselves the Negatives,” said Micki McGee, a sociologist at Fordham University and the author of “Self-Help, Inc.: Makeover Culture in American Life.” The group would meet on occasion and discuss their research and the news of the day. The thread of positive thinking that runs through self-help culture says, “If you dream it and believe it, it becomes reality,” Professor McGee explained. “That kind of thinking contributes to the economic bubble that we just saw explode in enormous ways. Barbara’s take on it is very important.”

Richard Sloan, a professor of behavioral psychology at Columbia, is a more recent member of the Negatives. He has written at length about the absence of scientific evidence showing links between prayer and healing in his book “Blind Faith: The Unholy Alliance Between Religion and Medicine.”

“There is some relatively recent evidence of the benefits of positive affect, but not the simplistic approach that is advocated by coaches that all you need to do is be happy,” he said. “There is no evidence that trying to put on a happy face makes a difference.” Rather, those who are characteristically more optimistic may have an advantage over those who aren’t, but, he said, “you just can’t change who you are very easily.”


Janet Maslin didn't like it so much: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/books/12maslin.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper (My linking thing isn't working.)
READ MORE - Breast Cancer Drove Her to This

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Self-conscious Narrators


L took the picture of me above and it didn't seem to look like me. It reminded me of young Leonard Michaels (1933-2003), whom I talked about in class on Thursday. He was known for reading student stories aloud and then stopping when they ceased to hold his interest. Then he'd ask the class to explain why.

I always get him mixed up with Leslie Epstein, who is alive and well and heading the MA-turned-MFA program at Boston U. They don't look alike, though, do they?



I was writing stories in little pieces when I was a grad student writing by instinct. At Iowa I was like an outsider artist with no training in fiction. I had a bachelor's degree, a GRE score but I didn't have any of the basics that everyone else had. I didn't know that a story should have suspense at the beginning, I didn't think about whose story it was, or if the ending was "earned." My friend E read my story in little pieces and said I would like Leonard Michaels' collection, I Would Have Saved Them If I Could, which had stories in pieces. Was I even thinking I might learn from him? Was I looking for a kindred spirit? I don't remember.

I don't remember when I read Leslie Epstein. Maybe it was before I went to grad school. I read The Steinway Quintet plus four. I still remember a line from it, more or less: "Gentlemen, I believe that these are not Jews," said by an elderly member of the quintet when they're about to be robbed. Maybe I read it because I was reading books by faculty at the schools I was applying to. I didn't apply to Boston, though, because it required the literature GRE, and the deadline was late, so I figured I'd wait to see if I heard from any others, and I was accepted by others before the BU deadline. I was successful at applying to grad schools, which in my day was a simple enough thing, once you got your transcripts and test scores sent in, and got the recommenders to send their letters, and all you had to write about yourself was maybe a line or two. Plus of course you sent two stories. Nowadays, you have to write a personal statement and there are dozens upon dozens of MA and MFA programs, and all around the country kids are wringing their hands and worrying and asking each other teeny tiny questions on the MFA blog. They make the Kremlinologists of old look like pikers. There you can also find aceptance rates, so you can figure out if you want to apply to a selective school or very selective school. It is all quite scientific. (Whenever I talk about the olden days, I remember this from a high school play, rendered in a shaky old voice: "I can remember when there were Indians in this very territory. We had to put boards across the street to walk across."--Long Christmas Dinner, Thornton Wilder). And I wasn't even in the play.

There are at least three MFA guidebooks around and several blogs. If we'd had the technology back then in the olden days, would we have asked the same questions and worried as much as these young'uns worry now? I don't know. I do have to say that I don't like the sample personal statement provided on the MFA blog. In case anyone wants to know what I think, after having participated in more than 25 admissions committee meetings, I will tell you: Tell me what you read and what you've learned from what you've read. Tell me what you admire. Tell me how your work has grown up to this point, and tell me how you want your work to grow in our program. Be specific. Do you want to work on point of view, for example? If you're trying to brown-nose us by mentioning our faculty, please be sure to spell their names correctly.

I saw Leslie Epstein on a panel about bad Jews (I think; or did the panelists all claim they were bad Jews?) at a Tikkun conference in Boston in 1990 or 1991. I think it was Epstein. It could have been Michaels. You can read about "Lenny" in Wendy Lesser's book Room for Doubt. Also on the panel was E, my Iowa grad school friend.

I think I got into MFA program(s) because I submitted a story in second person. This was years before Jay McInerny's whole novel, Bright Lights, Big City, was published. It was told completely in the second person. I was influenced by Mary McCarthy's The Company She Keeps, which is one of my favorite books. It's a collection of autobiographical short stories and is clever and brilliant and features a self-conscious narrator. One story,
"The Genial Host," is in second person ("When he telephoned to ask you to do something he never said baldly, 'Can you come to dinner a week from Thursday?' First he let you know who else was going to be there..."). I discovered the book in a neighborhood library in Paris in 1976 or 1977 when I also fell in love with another self-conscious narrator, Christopher Isherwood.


Mary McCarthy

Epstein grew up around LA and his father and uncle wrote the screenplays forCasablanca and Arsenic and Old Lace. Leonard Michaels is the other one, the one who went from East to West, not the other way around.
READ MORE - Self-conscious Narrators

Thursday, October 8, 2009

The Need for Health Insurance



At present the United States has the unenviable distinction of being the only great industrial nation without universal health insurance.

Health insurance is like elementary education. To function properly, it must be universal and to be universal, it must be obligatory.

Certain interests which think they would be adversely affected by health insurance have made the specious plea that it is an un-American interference with liberty. According to the logic of those now shedding crocodile tears, we ought, in order to remain truly American and truly free, retain the precious liberties of our people to be illiterate, to suffer accidents without indemnification, as well as to be sick without indemnification.

It is by the compelling hand of the law that society secures liberation from the evils of crime, vice, ignorance, accidents, unemployment, invalidity, and disease.
--by Irving Fisher, The Progressive, Jan. 1917
READ MORE - The Need for Health Insurance

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Seo : Mudah atau Susah?

Perjalanan kontes seo Kenali dan Kunjungi Objek Wisata di Pandeglang telah memasuki akhir dari bulan kedua. Silih berganti para peserta masuk dan keluar dari halaman pertama, hanya beberapa posisi teratas saja yang perubahaanya tidak terlalu banyak dan sering.

Dari ajang kontes seo saya semakin yakin bahwa untuk mengoptimasi blog kita tidaklah susah dan juga tidak mudah. Artinya setiap orang bisa melakukannya, seorang pemulapun dia akan mampu bersaing dengan blogger yang telah lama bermain seo asal mau belajar, memperhatikan, mencoba, dan mau berusaha keras. Hasilnya tidak sedikit dari beberapa kontes seo memunculkan waja-wajah baru yang bisa tampil di halaman perta, tidak terkecuali pada kontes Kenali dan Kunjungi Objek Wisata di Pandeglang ini.

Namun SEO bisa menjadi susah kalau kita tidak pernah mau memperhatikan, mencoba, dan berusaha. Karena memang seo bukan hapalan tapi praktek. Siapa yang mau mempraktekannya dan berusaha dengan keras maka dia akan memiliki peluang untuk bisa masuk ke halaman pertama. Tentu saja dia harus siap berhadapan dengan orang lain yang sama-sama juga berusaha keras untuk mencapai halaman pertama.

Bagaimana seorang pemula bisa melakukannya? Hal yang paling mudah adalah dengan mencontek. Jangan takut mencontek di sini tidak akan ada yang memperotes asal jangan isi artikelnya saja yang di contek, Conteklah cara seseorang melakukan optimasi blog nya. Mencontek strategy seo seseorang bisa pada optimasi on-page dan juga bisa pada optimasi off-page. Bagaimana cara nya mencontek? silakan fikirkan sendiri caranya, saya yakin sebagian besar telah mengetahuinya :D

Saya pun belajar seo dengan mencontek kok, meskipun masih cupu. Ayo jangan takut lagi mencoba ikutan Kenali dan Kunjungi Objek Wisata di Pandeglang atau kalau mau yang waktunya masih panjang bisa memilih kontes Mengembalikan Jati Diri Bangsa. Tidak ada kata susah selama kita mau terus belajar!
READ MORE - Seo : Mudah atau Susah?

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Maybe I'm wrong.

Maybe I'm wrong about the reason the original oncologist didn't give me Cytoxan. Maybe there was another reason, which I forgot in my chemo-brain-ness. But I must have been wrong for two years. In June 2007 I wrote: L reminded me that I'm not taking Cytoxan, which is one element of the usual ACT chemo brew--Adriamycin, Cytoxan, Taxol--because I have a platelet disorder. Cytoxan could cause a blood clot, which is more dangerous than the cancer.
I am confused.
READ MORE - Maybe I'm wrong.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Please vote.

Dear Cancer Bitch readers,
I will relate a scenario to you and I'd like you to vote on my response.

Today I went to a town hall sponsored by Fancy Hospital. My oncologists (past and present) were there, as well as my surgeon, and they all spoke and the audience asked questions.
I went to the mic and asked two:
1. For chemo, I took Adriamycin and Taxol, but not Cytoxan, which usually goes with them, because of the fear of blood clots. Is there any research on the effect of using just Adriamycin and Taxol?
2. What is the research about drinking milk with Bovine Growth Hormones?

I'm going to 2. first. The only person with a clear answer was the nutritionist on the panel, and she said she recommends that you avoid milk with BGH. My surgeon said that organic milk is expensive.

Now for 1. My erstwhile oncologist said that he doesn't know why someone wouldn't prescribe Cytoxan, but he thought that a chemo regime without it would probably be effective. (I wanted to ask, Then why do you include Cytoxan, if you can do without it?) So here's the question. I really wanted to say, You prescribed the chemo regime without Cytoxan. (Because it's true.) But I didn't say that.
Should I have? Please vote in the Comments area. I have a blood disease that gives me, in essence, "thick blood," which makes me more likely than the average person to get a blood clot.
READ MORE - Please vote.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Neighborly


D called at noon when I was finishing up my morning sun salutations and we decided to meet for lunch at 12:30. I rushed out and got into L's car because it was closest to Clark Street and would get to Ben's Noodles faster. I'd gone about 20 feet when I noticed some noise and bumping. I pulled into the nearest alley to check it out. As I was getting out, a guy ran into the alley and told me I had a tire as flat as a pancake and to park my car on the left and he would fix it. Then he disappeared behind a gate.

It was true--the tire was flat and the guy returned and fixed it. Just like that. He was wiry and a cop. He showed me the badge to prove it. He's a detective in the organized crime division. He showed me more proof. I believed him before he showed me anything, but I think he wanted me to be street-smart and require that he show me proof. He was quick and said he owns the apartment building across the street from us, and he was doing repairs and improvements. He was fast-talking. When I told him my last name, he asked if I had good holidays, and said his wife was Jewish. I said we would have invited them to our break-fast (dinner when you break the Yom Kippur fast) but he said they go to the Standard Club. I asked if his wife was German Jewish. He said Russian. Ashkenazi. This is a standard misconception. I asked the German question because the Standard Club was started by German Jews--Jews who came to the US in early waves, were often assimilated and middle class. You used to have to be a German Jew to join, I'm told. I'm part of the unwashed masses who came over in the first quarter of the century. I mean my grandparents and great-grandparents were. We were the Eastern European Jews who were typically more religious and poorer than the (snobby) German Jews. And Yiddish speaking. And historically the Eastern Jews (Ostjuden) have embarrassed the Westjuden, because we were unassimilated and allegedly smelled of garlic and the shtetl. I grew up without being able to discern the difference between us and them, but my parents were quite aware. And in Germany, especially, in the late 19th century and early 20th, there was a big divide.

Now the misconception: Most of us from Northern Europe are Ashkenazi--those from cities as well as shtetlach (plural of shtetl, little Jewish town). That means we speak Yiddish (again, our foreparents) and eat certain holiday foods--gefilte fish, matzah balls, tsimmes (carrots), kugel (noodles), apple haroset on Passover. (Hmm, these foods seem Eastern European. What a coincidence.) We are the Jews you know, because we vastly vastly outnumber the Sephardic Jews in the US. They are generally from Arabic countries, speak Ladino instead of Yiddish, don't divide themselves up among Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox branches, and have cooler traditional clothes--shinier, for one. This is a generalization--there are Sephardic Jews in and from Spain and Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and other Christian countries. Many or all Sephardic Jews descend from Spain, which had a little thing called the Inqiusition where they killed all the Jews they could.

Jewish Yemenite bride

A great story about the tension between the assimilated and the unassimilated is Philip Roth's "Eli, the Fanatic."
Roth is writing about the Western Jews (assimilated Ashkenazi Jews) and Easterners (unassimilated Ashkenazi Jews who survived the Holocaust and are religious). Europe is, after all, east of the US.
And us Ashkenazim, you may recall, are more likely than the Sephardim and the general population to have the BRCA gene mutations linked to breast and ovarian cancer. Whether we're assimilated or not.
I was walking later this afternoon to L's car and it was raining. It was medium-heavy, not oppressive. A woman with a large, deep umbrella gestured for me to get under it with her. We agreed that the rain was muy frio. I said something about invierno, hoping it meant winter. When we got half-way down the block, she wanted to walk me across the street to my car but I said it wasn't necessary. After I started the car, I realized I should offer her a ride. I drove up next to her, rolled down the window, asked her, but couldn't get her attention. I turned and drove away.
I was running late. If I was a nicer person I would have made sure she saw me and understood my offer.
READ MORE - Neighborly

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Where's your wife?



Cancer Bitch recommends that you do not ask this question. She has asked it twice in the last 2 years and it was awkward in the first case. So why did she ask it again? She is a slow learner.

In spring or summer of 2007, she greeted one of her husband's co-workers at a fundraiser by asking where his wife was. He said, I don't know, and Cancer Bitch quickly understood that something was amiss. She asked her husband L, Why didn't you tell me? and he said he'd just found out himself. L is never the bearer of good gossip; he doesn't ask enough questions. The co-worker and wife are still separated.

At the Kol Nidre service at the hippie congregation, the rabbi asked everyone to introduce themselves to their neighbors. The man in front of her turned and they realized they knew one another. One of Cancer Bitch's pre-Prozac boyfriends (read: angst-ridden relationship) was friends with this man, M, and Cancer Bitch would always talk to the wife L when they ran into one another. Cancer Bitch remembered the wife describing how she photocopied her dissertation at her husband's office and sent out copies of the manuscript to agent after agent. Or was it publisher after publisher? And it was published. L sang in Hebrew and Yiddish and had red-frame glasses and a New York accent. Her husband told C Bitch: She passed away. Four months ago.

After services M said that a year ago she'd had a seizure while singing in California and they'd found out that she had lung cancer that had gone to her brain.
She returned early to Chicago so she could sing on Yom Kippur with the hippies. She died at home, her sons sniging to her till the end.

Cncer Bitch had not heard, obviously. The family took out a paid notice in the New York Times, but not in the local papers. There is too much cancer-dying these days. There was L above; and K's wife E, who also had lung cancer; and the wife of another old boyfriend, after five cancer-free years; and her friend P's cousin is dying of ovarian cancer. There are heart problems and neurological damage and it seems that absolutely everyone is getting dental implants. This is middle age and it is only the beginning of the body's decline. Cancer Bitch has finally begun calling herself middle aged. For years and years she'd considered her mother to be middle-aged, but now that her mother is 81, she has to face facts. Sunday in Evanston Cancer Bitch walked past a house on Chicago Avenue north of Dempster and as always, remembered the time in 1980 when she went there to see about renting a room, and the guy there said that a cute Southern girl with a great accent was there first and he couldn't resist. She told this to her husband who said loyally, You were a cute Southern girl. She thinks about the Southern girl every time she passes the house but Sunday was the first time the memory was accompanied by a strong swoop of sadness: the passage of time. She thought of herself in her early 20s with her whole life ahead of her. The sadness of losing that feeling of potential. She doesn't regret her choices, except her many hours of wasting time, but she is no longer young, no longer just becoming, that's the point. Yeah yeah, there was Grandma Moses who started painting late in life, but there was also Mary McMarthy who told Cancer Bitch (in an interview in Florida) that people in their sixties and older couldn't write novels any more. She was referring to herself.

C Bitch has a novel in a file cabinet in the other room and in her computer and needs to gear gear up to revise and rework it.
READ MORE - Where's your wife?

Friday, September 25, 2009

The Passive Cancer Patient


She said, Did you ask your oncologist what she thought about the calcifications?
I said, No, I forgot.
Then I thought better of it and thought maybe I had asked. I said, I think I did. I keep forgetting about it.
She said, It seems you either are at zero, not worrying at all, or way up here, thinking about dying. You need to be able to tolerate a 3, to do what you need to do.
She said, It takes energy for you to forget about it, because you're not really forgetting, it's in the back of your mind.
She told me how she went to four doctors who all said she didn't have cancer. The breast surgeon told her she was a hysterical female.
She waited a month or two and finally insisted on surgery and of course it was malignant.
She reported the doctor to the board of whatever, but there were no consequences.
The form the Breast Experts gave me in June and December and in June again said "calcifications that are probably benign." The radiologist in December said I could have an MRI if I wanted but warned me about false positives.
Now, she said cancer begins as calcifications, if it bothers you, you need to do something about it. She said, It's labor-intensive for them to read MRIs, that's why they don't like to do them. And: it's labor-intensive to do a biopsy using ultrasound and they don't make much profit from it. She said Fancy Hospital was on the TV news because they had a backlog of mammogram patients and they didn't have enough radiologists though they promised to get more.
A local TV station reported earlier this month that at Fancy Hospital, women have to wait between 8 months and a year to schedule a mammogram. ABC7 checked with six other hospitals in the area and all were able to schedule a mammogram within a few weeks.
Fancy says that there's a shortage of radiologists.
But it seems to be restricted to only one block in the city.
Calcifications can be malignant--they don't turn malignant, they can begin that way. "Probably benign" can mean that there's an 80-98 percent chance that they're benign. MSN reports: Please note that some specialists may prefer additional testing (breast MRI, biopsy, etc.) while others may be more conservative. A lot has to do with your personal or family breast health history.
I still think the calcifications are not cancerous. But I don't know for sure. I emailed my surgeon's nurse and asked for an MRI. She wrote back today and said that she sent over the order, that I should call the MRI division and make an appointment, that it would take a few days to get precertification, but that insurance might not pay for it.
Because it's elective, I suppose. But it's not like I'm doing it for vanity. And it's odd--usually the doctors prescribe extensive tests to CYA.
There's a blog written by The Assertive Cancer Patient.
This is not that.
READ MORE - The Passive Cancer Patient