Summer Evening Walk – Where Do Dragonflies Come From?

Aug 31st, 2010

Tonight there were at least 1,000 dragonflies on the levee – a sure sign of summer.  The hotter it gets, the more of them I see.  I’d never seen so many before, though.  Maybe it’s their last hoorah before the end of summer.  It occurred to me that I don’t know much about the life cycle of dragonflies.  How long do they live, what do they eat, how do they reproduce?  Where are they all going to go once it gets cold?  Do they just die and resurface next summer? 

I’m a city person – love nature – but don’t really know that much about the specifics.  I really appreciate the flora and the fauna and study it when I get curious – like now.  I see a Google search in my near future.  And the future is now.

I had no idea dragonflies started out in the water – and kind of ugly at that.  But fascinating.  Now to find out where they go before they die … to start the life cycle over again…..

Are there any insect experts out there who can add to the description provided in this short video?  Click the comment link below.

If you cannot see the video below, your work place is blocking it—I hope you can watch it at home or convince IT to allow this feature (a long shot but worth a try).  Once you click the arrow to watch, you will need to click the link to watch it on youtube – but it’s worth it.

The Cure for Breakfast

Aug 23rd, 2010

Breakfast is a tough meal to get together every day – so I make it up ahead of time, usually Sunday evening.  Here are three of my favorite breakfasts that can be made up to eat at home or take to the office.

Favorite Breakfast #1

This week I made 5 to-go containers of Greek yogurt with fresh and frozen fruits:   pineapple, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries. Then, when I open a container for breakfast, I sprinkle crushed almonds on top. It’s SO good. My friend Layla turned me on to it!

Favorite Breakfast #2

When I’m eating smoothies for breakfast, I do basically the same thing.  I make up small baggies for the week with all the fruit I’m going to dump into the blender in the morning so I don’t have to open up several large baggies of frozen fruit every morning.  I just open up one that has all the mixed berries in it that I’m going to blend. 

Favorite Breakfast #3

Another good breakfast also uses the meal kit idea.  I put a mix of whole grain cereals in meal-sized containers – enough for a week.  They’re portable and guarantee a yummy meal.   I keep a container of milk or rice milk in the refrigerator so I’m good to go.

If you’re challenged to eat breakfast every morning, try these fast breakfast ideas.

Do you have any fast, healthy breakfast ideas to share?  See the comment link below?  Go there and share.

Celebrating 90 Years – my mom

Aug 2nd, 2010

At age 90, finding out you’ve got an aggressive rare cancer (stage 4), moving from one assisted living apartment to another one several states away with a husband who has dementia and congestive heart failure–that’s a lot to take in, but mom’s doing it.  She comes from pioneer stock to be sure. 

In the past month,  mom and dad moved from their assisted living apartment in Sanford, NC to their new assisted living apartment in Chelsea, Michigan to be near family for mom’s remaining weeks or months.  The surgeon removed a third of her colon and discovered that it had spread to her abdominal cavity.  She was hopeful that she could do chemotherapy but was recently informed that chemo was not recommended in her case.  She’s taking it like a trooper but confessed she wishes she had a couple more years.  Her family does too.   Her kids are heading to Michigan this weekend to celebrate her 90th birthday.  Dad turns 87 in August so we’ll be celebrating his birthday too.

The video below was made last year when mom was released for a few hours from the rehab hospital where she was recovering from a stroke.  My sister Diane and I were visiting and clearing out their home of 24 years so they could move into assisted living in Sanford, North Carolina.   She has a missing tooth (it broke when she bit into a biscotti biscuit she received in a birthday basket—tough luck!).  Other than that, she looks pretty good for 88 don’t you think.  This little snippet is so funny – she has an infectious laugh and sense of humor.

I welcome your comments and stories about your family. 

Nighthawks on the Kansas Levee

Jul 20th, 2010

The other evening while walking on the Kansas levee with Toby, I watched the nighthawks dive bombing for insects. Their wings look like boomerangs.  So when I got home that night, I did a google.com image search to find a picture to see if I was right to call them nighthawks.   My search brought me to a little audio lesson (a few seconds) that tells about the bird and its song.  Here ‘tis:  http://www.birdnote.org/birdnote.cfm?id=198  (click to play the MP3).  Note, the bird is really not a hawk but in the whippoorwill family.

What’s the tie-in with wellness?  Nature.  When we have a strong connection with nature, life is more interesting.  In fact, I drove home from the dentist in torrential rain just now.  Lightning all around me.  My wipers couldn’t keep up.  After a quick prayer of safety for everyone traveling, I anticipated coming home and throwing open my front and back doors so the energy of the storm could move through my home.  Love it!  The temperature dropped 20 degrees or more – a welcome respite from the scorching heat. 

The wind was so fierce the rain blew in both the front and back doors.  So I propped my heavy umbrella in the doorway to keep the rain from the hard wood floors (mostly).  I can think of nothing more relaxing than sitting in my oversized chair enjoying the surround sound of rain and thunder. 

Without a connection to nature we’re more likely to be afraid of bugs and stay cooped up inside our cars, homes, and office buildings.  And if we really lose sight of the benefits of nature, we may start to trash the landscape and use up more than our share of the natural resources.  Without a regular dose of nature, we’re more likely to feel stressed.  Spending time in nature has a dramatic calmative effect.

As I started this description about why it’s important to  have a connection with nature, a loud clap of lightening enlivened me (read: startled me).  What a great way to revive one’s energy.  I was getting a little sleepy on the drive home….until the rain hit.  Now I’m alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic – just like the Girl Scout song says.  I found several renditions of this song on youtube – from many different cultures.  I thought I was the only one who thinks that song is cool!  And fun!

How does nature impact your wellness?  Share at the comment link below.

Weekend Chores – Like Money in the Bank

Jul 19th, 2010

You get home from a long, tiring day…..open the fridge……see a wall of produce in plastic bags…..shut the door and head to Taco Bell or Applebee’s.  The same thing happens the next day because you’re even more tired and busier.  By day 3 or 4 you get an attitude about it (annoyed with yourself for being lazy and wasteful, annoyed at your spouse because he/she doesn’t cook, frustrated with your busy family life that gets you to bed by 11 and up by 6 – day after day).  Finally on the weekend you clean out the drippy mess and either put the fruits and veggies in the real compost pile or in the trash and vow to do better. 

I’ve done this myself so I know what I’m talking about. 

One secret to success is to keep a list of everything perishable that’s in your refrigerator so you can plan meals.  Take the list to work with you and while on break or enjoying  your morning tea, ponder the list for meal ideas.

Another secret is to better manage your fridge, and do it on the weekend or whenever you feel you have the most time.  It doesn’t sound appealing, but it’s very satisfying to take everything out, see what you have, and then put it back in an orderly way.  If you have a few extra minutes, prep as many of the fruits and veggies as you think you’ll eat in the next few days. 

I just did this and I feel very virtuous.  Now I can start the week with a hopeful attitude about cooking and eating at home.  In fact, while I was cleaning and organizing my fridge, I made a salad for tomorrow and bagged up snack baggies of cherries and grapes. 

I’m not always successful, but I like to get the week off to a smooth start by getting the following chores done on the weekend:

• getting groceries
• planning meals for the week
• cleaning and organizing the refrigerator
• doing laundry
• changing the bed sheets
• mowing the lawn
• calling friends and family (not really a chore but it’s on my mental list each week)
• cleaning, dusting, and vacuuming

And if I really want the week to go smoothly, I spend several hours doing whatever I want to do relaxing and having fun.  If all I did was chores, I would soon see the corners of my mouth droop – and no one wants to see that.  So I have plenty of fun too.  This weekend I lounged on my deck for hours working on a writing project, had a wonderful brunch with my Lawrence “family,” and bowled for the first time in decades.  Thankfully they now have automatic scoring.  My first game was 112 and the second was 165.  Then we celebrated with a snow cone – another thing I haven’t done for decades.  So it was a great weekend and I’m ready for the week ahead. 

How about you?  Leave your comments and stories at the comment link below.

A Wellness Moment When Life Takes a Turn

Jul 14th, 2010

With much flurry, I emailed my blog subscribers that the Spring Clean Your Body series would be extended through June….then I got the call that my mother had colon cancer.  After several nights of tossing and turning about the tossing and turning events of life, I headed to Sanford, North Carolina to the Parkview Retirement Community.  The day after arriving, I got mom out of the hospital (no easy task) and into a rehab hospital one hour away in Pittsboro (also no easy task).  After a Dairy Queen treat with my dad, we settled down for a few wellness moments of story telling.  With my handy Flip video camera I pressed the red record button and dad reminisced.

Even though he has dementia, he can recall old stories with a good deal of accuracy.  But at this stage in life, accuracy is less important.  In fact, if someone asks what he had for lunch and he doesn’t remember, he’ll make something up.  That’s pretty smart.  An accurate account of life is over rated when you have dementia or when you’re listening to a story you’ve never heard before. 

The next day I took him to the emergency room for congestive heart failure.  After a stay in ICU, he was released – so glad to go home—read the paper, take a nap, read Time magazine, take a nap, watch Larry King or CNN, take a nap, eat dinner, take a nap, and then go to bed.  It gets simple for old folks.  And complicated for their kids.

So here’s a peek into my dad’s life the day before hospitalization.  He tells stories about his 44 years of selling on the road. 

Caring for An Aging Parent (EAP Services)

Jul 14th, 2010

Over the next several days, I will share stories and interviews about the journey my siblings and I are taking with our aging parents. I’ll post several short video interviews of my mom and dad. Many of you are currently on this journey. And many have already completed this journey. I welcome your comments at the end of each post. Just click on the comment link.

If you have an EAP program at your place of employment, contact them for services associated with aging.

As we live increasingly longer lives, more and more of us are finding that our loved ones need ongoing and long-term care. This care often falls to grown children, individuals in their forties, fifties, and sixties who are busy with work and often times have children still at home. Most of us have heard of “getting caught in this care-giving sandwich,” but it can be a real emotional and financial burden. This is especially true if you are new to the responsibility.

If you are about to become a caregiver, here are a few things that you might want to consider. First, you’ll need to think about some legal and financial matters. To provide good care for an elder loved one, it may be necessary to deal with care facilities, insurance, powers of attorney, and many more complex issues.

Figuring Out What Needs to Be Done

The following is a checklist that can help you determine what your loved one may need. Don’t let it overwhelm you. Simply use it to make your own list of things to do or to research, if necessary. Then you’ll be in a better position to ask others for help with the short and long-term tasks.

Remember also, there may be many terms or phrases used in the information below that you are not familiar with. Again, don’t be overwhelmed. A simple call to the HealthQuest EAP can be a real “clarifier,” and a great place to start. You can get an eldercare expert to help at no charge!

Type of Care Needed

To determine the types of care your loved one may require, ask yourself the following questions:

• What kind of care does my loved one need now and how will that change in the future?
• Could my loved one be taken care of at home if he or she had help from a skilled nurse and/or a health aide?
• Would assisted living be appropriate for my loved one?
• Will he or she require a skilled nursing facility now or in the future?
• Does my loved one’s mental condition require him or her to have special care and housing?

Health Insurance and Medicare

The following questions will help you understand what kind of health care coverage your loved one has or may need:

• What are the likely costs of the care my loved one will need?
• What do Medicare & Medicaid cover?
• What kind of health insurance does my love one have, and what does it cover?
• What if my loved one doesn’t have long-term care insurance? Does he or she need it?

Taking Over Finances and Decisions

The time may come when you or family members need to make basic financial and health care decisions for your loved one. Be sure to get answers to these questions:

• Does my loved one have a living will (advance health care directive) or power of attorney for finances? If not, how can I help get the necessary documents?
• Is my loved one no longer capable of making his or her own decisions or consenting to a power of attorney?

End-of-Life Issues

Finally, here are some important issues to consider about wills and other arrangements at the end of life:

• Does my loved one have a will? If not, how can I help them create a legally binding will?
• Has my loved one communicated any wishes for final ceremonies and the disposition of his or her body?
• Has my loved one shared information on where to find important documents and passwords regarding bank accounts, retirement accounts, safe deposit boxes, stocks, life insurance policies, and wills or trusts?

Get Personalized Help

After you’ve reviewed the list above and have an idea of the tasks and issues involved, take a deep breath and remember that you can get the help you need. To begin, you can encourage your loved one to be as involved as possible in his or her care. Avoid taking control of tasks that your loved one can still perform. The more your loved one is allowed to do, the longer he or she will be able to maintain a sense of ownership over the course of his or her own life.

Then, make some phone calls. Your employer’s EAP program is a good place to start.

Finally, remember that caring for an elder relative is not easy, and you deserve all of the support you can get. During the hard times, it might help to remember that what you are doing is noble and generous. Whether or not your loved one is able to express it, he or she is fortunate to have someone who is willing and able to do the job you’ve taken on.

This article was provided by AlternativesEAP.

Do Your Moods Control You?

Jun 9th, 2010

The secret to successfully sticking with a healthy diet or exercise routine is the mastery of your moods.  When I quit smoking 20 years ago, I used to say “I’m too bummed to eat a salad” and I’d order a cheeseburger and fries.  I wanted comfort foods because I no longer had the comfort of my cigarettes.  Since then I’ve learned a hundred ways to self-soothe, and still my moods challenge me to stay the course at times.  Og Mandino has the key:

“Henceforth I will recognize and identify the mystery of moods in all mankind, and in me. From this moment I am prepared to control whatever personality awakes in me each day. I will master my moods through positive action and when I master my moods, I will control my destiny.” Og Mandino

What positive actions can you take today to help you stay the healthy, happy living course?  Some possible actions include having a personal vision for healthy living, keeping healthy snacks in your desk drawer at work, planning the meals for the week so you aren’t caught at 7pm with no healthy food in sight.  What ideas do you have?  Please comment at the link below.

Secret to Reduce Your Stress Level

Jun 8th, 2010

Any cleansing cleansing program can be amplified by a cleansing of negative thoughts and feelings. Angry or stressful thoughts can wreak havoc on our health and well-being. The Loving Kindness Meditation as taught by Buddha has been practiced for decades to great effect. Try it for a few days and watch how it works in your life to bring peace and calm.

Close your eyes and imagine people you love (or just one person) as you mentally recite these words (slowly):

Breathing in, I breathe in the world’s pain.

Breathing out, I send it healing love.

May all beings be happy.

May all beings be peaceful.

May all beings be kind.

May all beings be free.

Next, visualize people (or a person) you do not know well – a neutral person (e.g., check out clerk, someone you see in your building) and recite these words slowly again:

Breathing in, I breathe in the world’s pain.

Breathing out, I send it healing love.

May all beings be happy.

May all beings be peaceful.

May all beings be kind.

May all beings be free.

Finally, visualize someone in your life who you feel is difficult to be around or someone you are having conflict with. Repeat the following words with this person in mind:

Breathing in, I breathe in the world’s pain.

Breathing out, I send it healing love.

May all beings be happy.

May all beings be peaceful.

May all beings be kind.

May all beings be free.

Let us know how this stress reduction practice works for you. Do you practice other stress reduction exercises?

Crazy One Pan Dinner

Jun 3rd, 2010

I’m a lazy cook and I don’t really like fish.  With that disclaimer out of the way, let me tell you what a delight I cooked up in one pan – it involved fish and cooking and I lived to tell the story.  Though I did die and go to heaven when I ate it.

I really don’t know what I’m doing half the time when I’m cooking but I’m a risk taker and follow my intuition.   My intuition is a powerful tool – thankfully I listen to it now and then.

I wish I had a video to show you how I made this meal, but it was so tasty I didn’t want it to get cold while I fooled around.  Speaking of fooling around, let me get to the point.

My one pan meal….

I added olive oil and a splash of sesame oil to the skillet.  Next I added the following chopped veggies:

• fresh pea pods (from the farmers’ market)
• fresh asparagus (ditto)
• zucchini – quartered and chopped
• minced fresh ginger and garlic

Then…now this is the genius part…I cleared a spot amongst the veggies and added a 4 ounce slab of cod.  Why dirty two pans?  The lazy cook in me got creative and started thinking…hey the veggies and fish would take about the same amount of time to cook, why not use one pan?  I was right!  I love it when that happens.

Next, I added a splash of tamari (you can use soy sauce) and a touch of water because the pan was starting to get dry. 

After about 4 minutes I added a large handful of fresh spinach around the edges of the fish.  It got too complicated trying to stir the spinach around the fish so I chunked the fish up and gently stirred.

Then, I added a half cup or so of brown rice prepared the night before (for just such an occasion). 

Finally, I squirted about a quarter of a fresh lemon over the works, added a bit of salt and pepper,  and heated it all through.  In less than 10 minutes I was eating a fabulous one pan meal. 

Look at all the amazing things here:  I don’t like fish, yet I loved this meal.  I am a lazy cook, but I prepared this delightful meal in 10 minutes.  I don’t like cleanup and had just one pan and wooden spoon to wash.  The bowl and fork went into the dishwasher leaving plenty of time for my 45 minute walk with Toby.   Life is good!

How do you speed up the process of cooking…..as you make delightful, healthy meals?