Robert Paterson's Weblog

Songs that sum up a singer #2 Something - George Harrison - Eric Clapton et al

Eric Clapton was one of George's best friends. He played the lead on the original recording of My Guitar gently Weeps. He and George "Shared" Patti as "Husbands in Law".

Eric wrote Layla for her. George wrote this for her. Eric arranged this concert for his friend - what an epitaph! All the material in this epic concert is fantastic. They spent 3 weeks rehearsing and it shows. Check out who is playing!

For me beyond the music - this is all about the reality of life lived by the time you get to be a geezer like me and them. It's all about loss. In this context, our worries, and sins of the past can fade away. 

All the protagonists in this concert have lost a lot. They may have fame and money but it has cost them dear. Men become more gentle as a rule. I was struck by how they are with each ither and how they look at each other. 

So here then are 2 great songs - Someone and the My Guitar - Eric is indeed the Guitar God.

 And see the guy who looks like George - it is Dhani his son

 

 

The Correct Perspective for Health – David Brooks on Clouds & Clocks

I think that one of the barriers for us to see the power that resides in Michael Roses Evolutionary Context for health is that our prevailing culture predisposes us to see problems like a clock – made up of the sum of many different parts. Look at how medicine itself is organized into specialties that all seek distinct and non related pathways and simple cause and effect. But the reality is that our bodies and how we fit into the world are complex. They are like clouds. I find this very short video by David Brooks on this issue very helpful.

via missinghumanmanual.com

More after the link - When we can see the connections - then we will "see" I hope

Songs that sum a singer up #1 Eva Cassidy - Over the rainbow

 

Eva Cassidy - an angel. She was dead 10 months later - I first heard this song while driving. I did not know then that Eva cassidy even existed. I had to stop the car. By the time she finsihed, I was in floods and had tp find out more.

I am going to post a few more songs by singers who knew that the end was coming - not all death - sometimes the end of the group too.

What's on your list?

How do cows feed? Why it matters to you

Cows - like any other animal have evolved over millions of years. Like us their interact with the food that they have evolved over time to eat. In their case - they eat grass. No bovine ate any grain at all until very recently.

We now feed them grain as a matter of course. They do get fat as a result - as we do - but they don't do very well. They get in fact very ill - massive diarrhea - gas and all sorts of digestive failure.

This is why - the grass they eat is not what they digest to give them protein. It's more complicated than that. So when the food is shifted from grass to corn - all hell breaks out.

 

She actually eats the bacteria that she feeds with the grass that is fermented in her rumen.

Cattle are ruminants with stomachs designed to eat poorer-quality forages that what is normally found in grains, such as grass and legumes. The rumen has a neutral acditiy of a pH of 6.5 to 7, maintained by the activities of the microorganisms in the ruminal digestive tract that help digest the fibrous tissues the animal consumes. A quick introduction of grains throws this balance off, increasing acidity to a pH of 5 to 6, which invites bacteria to produce lactic acid which further decreases pH. Acidosis, which this condition is called, causes decrease in consumption and pains in the belly. If this condition isn't treated the acid could cause ulcers in the rumen which invites infection since the bacteria is allowed access to the damaged ruminal membrane. Furthermore, the rumen eventually stops contracting, and the animal eventually dies. (Source)

This is why they have to put on large doses of anti biotics. This is also what drives the risk of e coli.

But they and we can adapt? No they can't and nor can we

 

The smart consumer will ask for Grass Fed beef - the smart Farmer will provide it as here in Manitoba

It good sense and good business.

Why I no longer Run for the Cure

Once upon a time I used to work for CIBC. A friend called me up and told me that she had met with the Breast cancer folks and that they had had a mad idea. That we at CIBC could partner with them and start a Run. That year, the first, most of us who ran - me included - were friends at CIBC. The rest is history.

I felt good about this. I felt even better when my wife was diagnosed 9 years ago with Breast Cancer. I thought that my money was going to make a difference. I thought that people were indeed being paid to find the cure. 

But now...

Now I think that this is all a diversion at best and a scam at worst.

Quite a statement to make - so here is why. "Follow the Money!"

Nearly ALL the money goes into the business of breast cancer.(Mercola)

Prices for new cancer therapies have skyrocketed. Cancer drug costs rose nearly 16 percent in 2006, while other prescription drugs averaged a 3 percent price increase.

But are they worth it? The fact is, these expensive medications often give patients just a few more months of life – and sometimes they kill people prematurely.

Take a look at these examples.

• AVASTIN – Avastin, when used to treat colorectal cancer, sold for $50,000 per year. However, once it was approved to treat breast and lung cancer as well, Genentech announced a new price tag: $100,000 per year, even though it may extend your life by no more than a few months. 
• ERBITUX – Another colorectal cancer drug, with a price tag of nearly $10,000 per month, even though there is not a single study showing it helps colorectal cancer patients live longer. 
• EVISTA (Raloxifene) --  This Eli Lilly drug was found to prevent breast cancer by one-third in a study of more than 10,000 postmenopausal women. Your true cost? Trading your breast cancer prevention for a 50 percent increased risk of fatal strokes and blood clots. Ironically, Evista was once sold as an osteoporosis drug, being illegally promoted for treating cardiovascular disease back in 2002. 
• GLEEVEC – Also sold under the name Glivec. This cancer drug, used to treat leukemia, unfortunately also kills heart muscle cells, which may cause fatal congestive heart failure. 
• ABRAXANE – A new version of an old cancer drug, Taxol, sells for $4,200 per dose. The older version, which has similar effects, costs 25 times less. 

The business uses our fears and our insurance or the state to pay exorbitant amounts. Their focus is on the business of screening and on treatment.

There is in reality no cure for cancer because it is inherent in mammals. It starts when the conditions for it to start are ideal. So the best action that we can take is to know what these conditions are and to live so that we don't meet them. 

So here then is the Context for why Cancer is part of us.

Here is the process that it depends on

Here is the food that it likes the most

Here are some things that you can do to avoid it after the jump (mercola)

Farm Subsidies - Who gets them - The Agri Business Guys

 All the things we think are import - small farms - healthy foods are not subisidized. But the bad stuff is.

The Gin Epidemic and Junk Food Epidemic - The same?

In the 18th century government policy made local grains very cheap. The result was the Gin Epidemic.

In our time government policy has made grains very cheap. The result is the Junk Food Epidemic.

Here is how the Gin situation is described in Wikipedia - See a pattern?

Gin became popular in England after the government allowed unlicensed gin production and at the same time imposed a heavy duty on all imported spirits. This created a market for poor-quality grain that was unfit for brewing beer, and thousands of gin-shops sprang up throughout England, a period known as the Gin Craze. By 1740, the production of gin had increased to six times that of beer,^{[citation needed]} and because of its price, it became popular with the poor. Of the 15,000 drinking establishments in London, over half were gin shops. 

The Gin Act 1736 imposed high taxes on retailers and led to riots in the streets. The prohibitive duty was gradually reduced and finally abolished in 1742. The Gin Act 1751 was more successful, however. It forced distillers to sell only to licensed retailers and brought gin shops under the jurisdiction of local magistrates.^[8] 

What to do? Regulate and change the subsidies to support good food.

BUT here is the problem of our time that is unique. The food system is owned by a few very wealthy organizations who can easly prevent this.

So maybe another lesson of history may be this?

Temperance was a social movement that was inspired by the ruin that a free for all for booze approach was having on the most vulnerable.

Now I am not a fan of prohibition - but Temperance took on the powers that be of the time. Would not a social movement help us today?

The long term result of Temperance is that booze is regulated and expensive. Most of us drink in moderation. Our society is no longer under attack from it.

We eat so much of it not because we are lazy and stupid.

We eat junk food because it is cheap because it is subsidized. Good food is not.

We eat junk food because it is addictive and people make a lot of money from it and export the costs to society.

We eat junk food because it is easily available. Good food is not.

We eat junk food because it is not regulated as a dangerous and addictive substance. It is the same as booze and tobaco. 

Worse, we have been by all the organizations that we trust - that this is safe. That in fact we should be eating lots of grains.

Change the levers and we change everything. We did it for tobacco. And BTW have you noticed that many of the organizations that own tobacco now own our food system. 

What fruits have the lowest Fructose

Fructose Recommendation DR Mercola "As a standard recommendation, I strongly advise keeping your TOTAL fructose consumption below 25 grams per day. The average American is consuming THREE times this amount, so this is a fairly substantial reduction for most people.

For most people it would also be wise to limit your fructose from fruit to 15 grams or less, as you're virtually guaranteed to consume "hidden" sources of fructose if you drink beverages other than water and eat processed food. Remember, the average 12-ounce can of soda contains 40 grams of sugar, at least half of which is fructose, so one can of soda ALONE would exceed your daily allotment.

Fifteen grams of fructose is not much -- it represents two bananas, one-third cup of raisins, or two Medjool dates. In his book, The Sugar Fix, Dr. Johnson includes detailed tables showing the content of fructose in different foods -- an information base that isn't readily available when you're trying to find out exactly how much fructose is in various foods. I encourage you to pick up a copy of this excellent resource.

Here's a quick reference list of some of the most common fruits that you can use to help you count your fructose grams:"
via articles.mercola.com Just a reminder - Fructose goes direct to your liver and is stored as fat. If you like fruit this may help

Brothers and Sisters - The best for me

Who knows you like a sibling? 

This is my sister Diana and me in April this year. 60 years of being best friends - confidants - defenders - supporters.

We were always close

 We were wild things 

Largely ignored by our parents - brought up by nannies - we had to rely on each other as young children.

With all of life's ups and downs - we have remained true and close to each other.

And so have our children and now our granchildren

And one more on the way.

Isn't life a miracle.

My Friday Pre Rapture Dinner

In case I make it through the Rapture - I am still on the Paleo diet.

Last night - maybe my last - we had curried chicken - baked local tomatoes (Van Kampen) - roast red onions - fiddle heads and raost raddichio

What's not to like?