Change Brings On Chaos

Any change will create chaos...the degree of chaos is commensurate with the degree of change. Think about what happens when you change your name, phone number, address or, good grief, you change your lifestyle! Its one thing if this change is self-activated. But...what if it's someone else's idea?

This past December I started going to a Naturopath because I needed professional help with probiotics...what to take and how much. Of course, it hasn't stopped there, and that's OK. I want the best healthcare I can get. My regular doctor isn't into "natural" so much, but he understands I try to be. So, the  Naturopath takes over where my MD leaves off.

First, I was having a problem with UTIs ever since I was hospitalized for c. diff back in October. Dr. Marie had me go off sugar to see if that was contributing to my problem. No sugar made no difference thank goodness. Back to my sweet snacks.

Second, I've had this post nasal drip since my sinus infection back in October. Dr. Marie thought it might be an allergic reaction to a mold that is on peanuts and in peanut butter. I went off peanut butter for a whole month. PEANUT BUTTER IS A MAJOR FOOD IN MY LIFE! Change. Chaos. It wasn't the peanut butter. I still have PND. Phew! That was a close one.

Now...here's the big one...go gluten free to see if it's gluten that is messing up my thyroid. This is the first time I've had my entire thyroid function checked and some of its function is low. I was diagnosed with low thyroid back in 1996. Go online and read what it says about gluten affecting thyroid function.

I don't eat much bread, but I do love my cakes and brownies and cookies and pasta. Doing without these has created CHAOS in my life!!!

I won't have to go without...I'll just have to substitute. That's the problem. That's the chaos!

Gluten free sweets and snacks aren't all that bad. Bread is so so. But it's the pasta that creates the most chaos in my life...or at least it has the greatest potential. It has been my limited previous experience thus far that leftover pasta tastes pretty bad.

Warm weather is coming (honest...it is). It is my culinary habit to alternate potato salad and pasta salad all during the warm weather months. Do you see where this is going?

I recently went GF pasta shopping with my friend Elizabeth. She has no problem with GF. Elizabeth assured me that the chances are good that the pasta I bought will still be good on day two and three. I have yet to cook up the GF spaghetti or elbow macaroni. When I do, it had better taste good the next day and beyond.

Oh, and the most chaotic part...this will go on until I have my thyroid checked again IN AUGUST! And I so hope this goes the way of the sugar and peanut butter.

This a sampling of what gluten free foods I have in my pantry now.
 I also have Udi gluten free bread, but forgot to bring it out for its photo op.

 I don't do change very well.

Spring and Childhood Memories

When I was a kid growing up in rural South Windsor, CT, I would hop on my bike and ride down the street, usually with no destination in mind. Freedom was the only thing on my mind. During the spring and summer, I would pass a marshy area just past my house and the red-winged blackbird that nested there would chase me. It became a game that I always won…of course. Even today, if I should drive down that street just for old times sake, I slow down, as I go past the marsh, just to remember that small piece of my childhood. If I am on my bike (yes, I still ride a bike), I speed up because there is a new generation of red-wing in that marsh and I still get chased, and I still win!

Today is the first day of spring…even though I still have a foot of snow on the ground and it’s cold and windy…and we are expecting more snow this afternoon into tomorrow morning. However, there was a bright spot for me this morning.

As I cradled my cup of hot coffee and gazed out on the area where I feed the birds, there was a red-winged blackbird! And before I knew it, the rest of the flock joined him. It didn’t take long before their aggressive behavior expressed itself. They were jockeying for space even as they gobbled up as much seed as they could. They continued to fly in, argue with each other, then fly off as a flock…only to come back again and again. I guess they liked what I was serving.

This is why I feed the birds. The benefits are mutual. But, bringing back a childhood memory is a bonus.

Memories of Record Low Temperatures

During the coldest part of any winter, I think back to one winter when I was a very little girl…I’m guessing 7 years old.

My family, (father, mother, brother and me) lived in a house that was built in the early 1900s to house farm hands. This is in the Wapping section of South Windsor. The house had no insulation, single floors, garage/cellar under the house, no central heat and it stood on a little knoll with nothing to protect it from the wind. In the winter it could get quite cold. My brother and I would come downstairs in the morning and stand on chairs next to the big black stove to get dressed. Every fall, my father would buy a crate of Macintosh apples and we would store them in the upstairs closet that was open to both my bedroom and my brother’s.

One winter in particular I remember, for a few nights, we couldn’t sleep upstairs. My father closed off the dining room so the heat from the big black stove in the kitchen would, hopefully, warm the living room, too. My brother, who was 11, and I slept on the couch, layered with blankets.  We slept feet-to-face, and because he was longer than I, his feet came closer to my face than mine to his. My mother and father slept on the floor on a mattress my father brought down from upstairs.

There were many cold winters before we had central heat, but this one is the one I remember most. Maybe that is the reason, to this day, I like a cold bedroom. I sleep with an open window all year round (except heat waves)…the degree of open depending on the outside temperature.

On last night’s weather, it was pointed out that February 16, 1943, had the record low temperature of -24°. That had to be the winter I remember.

Keep in mind, I would have been in the third grade by this time and we walked to school…one mile away. And, no, it was not up hill both ways! The older kids were instructed to keep an eye on themselves and the younger kids in case of frostbite.

I don’t know if this was the same winter or not, but one winter we had so much snow the Army tanks went down Clark Street side by side clearing the drifts. That was quite a sight! The Army was bivouacked in a field not far from our house. That would make it during WWII, so 1943 would also make sense.

Ah, those were the days. 

New England Snow Storms — Carry On!

My location is in north central Connecticut…2 hours southwest of Boston. It will be weeks before we see Boston again. Why? Good old fashioned New England snowstorms…one on top of another!

In three weeks time, we had a blizzard, then a snowstorm, and now another blizzard (for Boston) and lots of blowing and drifting snow for the rest of us. Right now it’s 13° F. with a wind chill of -5° F. That’s quite a bit warmer than when I got up. The wind is a steady 20 mph from the WNW. Translation: it feels damned cold.

So, what does one do while these storms are in progress? Here’s a sample.

There is the usual getting up routine. I’ll spare you the details. Once the coffee is made, I sit in front of the TV while I doze and sip. Once I’m really awake, I grab my iPad and catch up on what’s been going on since last night. Usually not too much. Although this morning I was greeted with a photo of my great granddaughter (just turned 1 year old) munching on a waffle. She’s so darned cute even without the waffle!

Once that’s done, it’s time to get dressed. Yup. Haven’t done that yet. And, because I know I will be shoveling and sweating later, no sense taking my shower now. Once the proper ablutions have been completed and the sufficient clothing for today’s temps, I head down to the kitchen for breakfast.

Of course no one is making it for me, but it’s the same breakfast every Sunday morning so I don’t even have to think about it. Sausage patty sizzling in the pan. A small red potato pealed and diced. Toss that in with the patty. Take patty out and put in toaster oven to keep hot. Once the potatoes are done, they join the sausage patty on a plate in the oven. I have already cut some asparagus into small pieces and they are now being sautéed in that same frying pan. Last, the egg mixture is added to the pan and scrambled away. Breakfast is ready and I sit down at the table with the Sunday morning Hartford Courant and enjoy.

Now, here comes the shoveling/sweaty part. Although the landscaper’s crew has been through with shovels and snow blowers, I still have to wade out to my car and start it. I had a dead battery last week and needed AAA to jump-start my car. The battery checked out OK at the dealer’s by the way. But I’m not taking any chances.

While the car is running, I go out back to clear the space for the birds. It’s a large space. It faces north-north-west and the wind was howling like I haven’t heard in a long time. The snow was only about 3-4 inches deep so it didn’t take long to shovel. All the while the birds were cheering me on. Or…was that their way of complaining I wasn’t moving fast enough?

Once the shoveling/sweating is done, the feeders need to be tended to and seed scattered for the ground feeders. Even with all the work it takes to keep up with the feeders, it’s worth it. The birds give me such joy just watching them come in to feed.

Even though these pictures were taken earlier this month, everything looks the same Snow, snow and more snow!

Now all of that is done! What’s next? Sitting in front of the TV with the rest of this morning’s paper and as many basketball games of interest I can find.

So, that’s just me. There are plenty of hardy folks around here who will hit the ski slopes or the hills to toboggan or sled. I might enjoy that, sledding that is, if it was not so cold and windy. I just wish I could get out there and walk! And for those of you who know me, you know I can’t wait to get my bike out and start riding. Come on, Mother Nature! Have Mercy!!!!

PS: Yes, I remembered to turn the car off.

A Blizzard Named Larry

The blizzard we are expecting later today through tomorrow is being compared with the Blizzard of 1978, when Connecticut Governor, Ella Grasso, closed the state down for 3 days so clean-up could take place. My kids and I will never forget Blizzard Larry. For us it had drama and humor. Drama: neighbor threatening suicide; an ambulance needing an ambulance. Humor: the landlord's son plowing the driveway.

So here it is, just as I remember it.

A Blizzard Named Larry

FEBRUARY 6-7, 1978

We knew a snowstorm was coming, but no one knew just how intense it would be.

It was Monday and I had gone to Geissler’s for groceries to see us through the storm. As I  put the car into my section of the garage, Thelma was standing there looking strange. When I got out of my car she said to me, “I’m going to commit suicide.” At first I didn’t believe her then I looked at her again. “Well, if you do, please do it on your own side of the wall. I don’t want your mess on my side.” I was all heart as you can see.

I brought the groceries into the house and told the kids what had just happened. I recognized what she had just done was a cry for help; what made me mad was the fact she had involved me and I felt responsible for her. Her! Of all people! Thelma and I had an ugly history, but that’s another story.

I called the visiting nurse in town, who I knew to be a friend of Thelma’s, and told her what had happened. In the meantime, the snow had begun falling and was accumulating fast. The visiting nurse arrived accompanied by the local police. After an hour or so, an ambulance came and took Thelma away through the rapidly deepening snow.

For the remainder of the storm we listened to the radio for information on the outside world. We also watch cars being abandoned right and left on Route 5. At one point a VW Bug (the original model) was stopped at the light at Route 5 and Trombley Rd. Along came an ambulance (with a patient inside we later learned) and we watched it run right up and over the VW. That brought police and two more ambulances—one a replacement of the first and the other for the driver of the car.

The storm lasted two days. At the end of that time, Governor Ella T. Grasso, closed everything in the state for 3 days so clean-up could be done.

The day after it stopped snowing, we had about 3 feet of snow in the driveway, along came an ambulance. Thelma is dropped off at the edge of the road and made to wade through the snow to her house. Thelma seems to have an ugly history with many people.

The ambulance attendants were pretty angry. They had trudged through all that snow to get her to the hospital and they were not going to do it again. Thelma decided she didn’t want to stay. The ambulance crew told us she was nuttier than a fruitcake! We knew that.

Eventually a truck showed up to plow the driveway— it was the landlord’s son. He hooked the plow onto the dumpster to move it out of the way, and tipped it forward, dumping garbage bags everywhere. It took over an hour for the plow to get it set upright. We watched from the window in Anne’s room and laughed hysterically!

On Cape Cod: This was the storm that took out Coast Guard Beach, the parking lot and bath houses, and most of the dunes south toward Nauset inlet. The Outermost House was thrown way back into Nauset Marsh/Salt Pond never to be seen again. This storm was just the beginning of major erosion that goes on to this day.

The Possible Cause of Earthquakes in Eastern Connecticut

In this morning’s Hartford Courant, there is a story about the swarm of earthquakes recently plaguing eastern Connecticut. (‘Swarm’ of Quakes Has Bit of Mystery, by Kelly Glista, Section B, page 1, January 14, 2015). The article points out, “While Connecticut does not lie on a major fault line…minor faults spiderweb all over the country…”.

Earthquakes are caused by the movement of sections of the Earth…either slippage or subduction. Connecticut is not known for earthquakes even though it is known that there are faults that run through the state, particularly through Moodus.

This is what I think is going on.

Because of climate change/global warming, it is a fact that the Arctic ice cap is melting. The effect of all this fresh water being put into the oceans is a matter for a separate essay. For now, lets talk about the weight of the ice that is no longer there.

All that ice had weight and weighed down the land mass under it. As the ice melts, lessening that weight, the land rebounds. And that is what I think is causing the earthquakes in eastern Connecticut.

As the land under the arctic ice rebounds it causes changes in other areas (everything is connected). One area gets to rise up and areas abounding it get to expand. Those minor faults in Connecticut are expanding, probably causing slippage (as opposed to subduction). Slippage of one side of a fault will create quaking of the Earth.

Something to consider.

January This and That

We, here in the northeast, have just come through a cold snap. It's been a while since we have had wind chills to -30. I was out most every day...in the car. Haven't had much in the way of walking exercise. Hopefully that will change as the weather gets warmer.

I've been getting a lot of pleasure watching the birds at the feeders. The feeding frenzy has been unbelievable! Even though it's costly in terms of dollars spent, the returns are worth it.

I had to call the folks who installed my central air about the functioning of the humidifier. As it turns out I had greater expectations than the reality of the situation. I thought having the humidifier on the system would keep the humidity at a steady level. Not so. Moisture is pumped out only when heat is being pumped out. But...at the rate the heat was being pumped out I expected more moisture. Now that it has been explained to me, I have revised my expectations.

We've had snow...just not a lot of it. I would rather have 2 ft. of snow than the 0° weather. Especially since I live in a condo where all the plowing and shoveling is done by others. Well, not all the shoveling The workers do not shovel out my car. So when it's time to move my car so they can plow, I do the shoveling. First I clean off the car, which puts more snow where I need to shovel in order to get into the car. Are you feeling sorry for me yet? No? I don't blame you. When I lived in a house (before the condo) I had my own snow blower. The biggest, baddest, bestest. I really enjoyed getting out there and clearing the driveway, the mailbox, and a path around the house to the bird feeders. I would have cleared the whole lawn, I enjoyed it so much. But, I thought maybe the neighbors would have some negative thoughts about my mental stability. You know...

Thank goodness for family and friends. Visiting and going out for lunch or breakfast keeps me sane in times like these. Winter is not my favorite time of year. I prefer Spring and Fall. I don't like extremes.

There have been a couple of minor health issues and now I'm seeing a naturopath. For the next two weeks I will be avoiding wheat, sugar, and peanut butter. These are staples in my diet! I went to the health food store and got store-made almond butter. Avoiding sugar isn't that bad if you don't count I won't be having cookies, brownies, carrot cake... I'm holding up pretty well. I just happened to have a package of gluten free spaghetti in my pantry so that's for lunch, with home-made pasta sauce. I guess I'll survive after all.

So, until next time...