I got used to the left-sided driving fairly quickly. It was the roads, and the driving habits that made me exhausted…..

The smaller highways sometimes have curbs! no shoulders, no warning tracks….just jolt when you bump the curb at 60 mph. Country roads should have shoulders, not curbs.

Once off the major highways, most of the roads are winding the countryside. Again, no shoulders, and occasional curbs. At best there is a 6 to 15 foot hedge row that blocks any chance of seeing anything ahead. Worse case: a  5 foot high solid rock wall that has been there for 1,000 years. Sometimes the road is wide enough to paint lines. You have about 6 inches leeway on each side of your car. When a bus comes around the corner at 45 mph and you see his tires over that white line….you pray that your left front end is not going to kiss the rock as you swerve that way. For some reason, I noticed that shifting your whole body and twisting away to the opposite side while squinting and briefly glancing away at the possible moment of impact seems to help.

Polperro has very narrow and steep streets.

The little village of Polperro on the southwest coast prefers you park outside the village and walk in. Click here to see why.

Typical’ “2-lane” country road, not much of a shoulder!

Other times there are no lines. This is bad. It means the road is not wide enough for two vehicles. That doesn’t sleep to slow down the country buses and trucks. There are pullouts for long stretches, but for a short stretch of single lane road it is a squeeze play….and again pray. Check out a video here.

Parking is allowed with cars facing either direction. It’s not uncommon to suddenly see an oncoming car cross the lane directly in front of you to swing into a parking spot on your side. Freaked me out. And, because there are no shoulders or any extra room on the roads, even in towns…people just park on the road.  Not off to the side (there is no side),  just right on the road.

On the M-highways….things are great. 3-4 lanes each direction with great lane etiquette  No one cruising in the fast line at 55 mph. Immediately after passing anyone in any lane the cars go right back into the lane they were in. I could set the cruise control for 85, and still get passed by the occasional drivers doing 100, or more.

The top is dying in the sun, pulling memories from the roller

Yes, spring is here. It’s time to reminisce over the past year – with my Dyson. Remember the last time I talked about my vacuum? Well, this isn’t about the dirt, it’s about the hair. I love cleaning the roller. Don’t get me wrong, I like rinsing out the top half, seeing all the stuck on dust from months of cleaning wash away, revealing the shiny yellow plastic again. But there is something about getting down there in the roller, having to pull, spin, pull, spin. You have to work at it. No cheating using a knife…the fun is the manual pulling of the hair, and carpet threads wound so tightly around that roller.

There are still a few Max hairs showing up. They are shorter of course, intermingled with the other hairs and carpet pieces. I think about the good years we spent together, and about the other dogs I have had. The thin blond hairs, Cyndi is in there of course. Uh oh….what’s this? Beautiful long silky strands of black hair interwoven in the mix. They wrap around several times. If CSI were checking this out…maybe they would think there was someone else involved. No trace in the house, but the vacuum reveals it’s secrets. Who else has been here, who has stayed been in my living room and bathroom and left their DNA in my Dyson, their long beautiful hair…..

oh yea….how could I forget……

I took a look, and there were at least 30 warts, soft round bumps covering inside the right side of the mouth and upper palate. She had a history of all vaccinations, but otherwise was in excellent health.

We were able to find some homeopathic remedies just a block away from the house, so I purchased a remedy in liquid form. Since we were leaving the following day, my instructions were to shake, and put 3 drops in the mouth twice daily. Let me know in a week if there if there are any changes.

Much to my surprise and delight, about a week later I got an email saying that “it is as if she never had the warts–they are all gone. Nikki’s recovery was really awesome and I’m eternally grateful to you for saving my daughter from embarrassment when she goes to the park to meet her boyfriends. No more “pimples” for her, thanks a lot!”

The remedy was Thuja 200c

Nikki is a 2-year-old yellow lab mix.

Nikki relaxing

Nikki and Vallarta sunset

I was reading thru one of my “throw-away” med journals and saw an ad for new med. Linzess is NOW APPROVED in adults for the treatment of both irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) and chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC).

Before we get into to side effects, ask yourself : just what is the”disease” that needs to be treated here. This is a fairly common diagnosis when they can’t find anything wrong with you but you complain of diarrhea and constipation back and forth, usually with some abdominal pains. “idiopathic” means we have no clue at all….it just happens, like an a “Act Of God” I guess.

In my opinion this “dis-eaze” is just a symptom, not a disease. Why aren’t the bowels assimilating the nutrients and passing the waste products out in a efficient, timely matter. If you listen to the whole story of the person, there is always more. More symptoms: maybe mental, emotional, or physical or all three. These are also the symptoms of the main disturbance, the real problem. Treat this main disturbance with homeopathy, remove any obstacles to them getting better, and ALL their “symptoms” will get better, including their bowels.

Back to the new drug. Under “adverse reactions” included are: diarrhea, abdominal pain, flatulence, abdominal distension, headache. (so, it could make you worse?)

But here is the scary part. “Contraindicated in pediatric patients up to 6 years of age. Use should be avoided in pediatric patients 6 through 17 years of age. “

Why? In nonclinical studies death occurred in young mice within 24 hrs  following one or two doses of the drug. That’s right, baby mice got one dose and died. (!!!)

I know there are a lot of helpful drugs, with a lot of potentially horrible side effects, and some not so bad side effects. But, wouldn’t it be nice to not have to take the drugs at all? This is a plug for homeopathy, (and any other non-injuring healing method.)

2 tbsp lemon or lime juice, (about 1/2 lemon)
2 tbsp genuine Grade B maple syrup
1/10 tsp cayenne pepper or to taste
water, combined in a 10 oz glass.

extrapolated make 4 quarts:
2 cups lemon juice
2 cups maple syrup
fill with water to 4 quarts total

NO OTHER FOOD IS TAKEN!

Hard to believe…but all the calories and nutrients you need are supplied by the maple syrup. Living off lemonade for 10 days (or longer) takes some courage and will-power, but the benefits are great. It alkalizes your system, and eliminates toxins and congestion that have formed in any part of the body. It can also be a reducing diet, but it does a lot more.

This is the time of year to do it, lemons are plentiful, and we got all the free lemons from friends with lemon trees. The maple syrup is what costs the most – $20 a quart, from Whole Foods. You need to use the real stuff, not artificially flavored high-fructose corn syrup. Actually it tastes good………………………………………………………………………..so far.

Here’s a picture from Whole Foods market – they even had a set up for it in the produce department.  Good timing!

Blue and red

Sedona Boyton Canyon

Milkyway

Sedona framed

Potash pools, near Moab, Utah

City of Rocks State Park, NM

City of Rocks State Park, NM

Radio telescope at the VLA, NM

California

White Sands Natl. Monument, NM

White Sands Natl. Monument, NM

Sabino Canyon, Tucson, AZ

San Xavier Del Blanc Mission, AZ

San Xavier Del Blanc Mission, AZ

San Xavier Del Blanc Mission, AZ

Max, died this year. Age 15 1/2

Jet and sunset

contrails at sunset

Milkyway self portrait, Zion Natl Park, Utah

The Narrows, Zion Natl Park

N. Rim Grand Canyon Sunrise

Las Vegas

Slot Canyon, AZ

South Mtn Park, Phoenix

Phoenix

Natural Bridge Natl Monument, Utah

Bougainvillea, at home

St. Louis Arch

Farm Pond, Illinois

Mom after successful tandem paragliding flight

Oceanside, California

Family surfers, Oceanside, California

The Pier at Oceanside, California

First trip to the ocean

A family photo, my Dad’s funeral

Near Lee’s Ferry, AZ

stars on the N. Rim Grand Canyon

Fun at Zion Natl Park, Utah

horseshoe bend, Arizona

cut it out

Grandmother, granddaughter

Fox on frozen pond, Beardstown Illinois

Barge on Illinois River, Beardstown, Illinois

in honor of Todd Harmeyer

family fun

Beardstown Illinois, shadow self portrait

big chicken

Dead man and gunslinger

Desert Church, ghost town

Tracks, Monument Valley

Crow, Monument Valley

The Mittens, Monument Valley

Photographers in Monument Valley

Monument Valley Balloon Festival

Rock and Running Boy, Puerto Vallarta

Sunset in Puerto Vallarta

Sunrise at Mesa Arch, Canyonlands Natl Park

Orion, Jupiter, and Balanced Rock, Arches Natl Park, Utah

I arrived at Arches National Park near sunset. It was cloudy, and I hurried to get my little tent set up before dark. Nice thing about visiting the parks in the winter….no crowds, plenty of campsites. After some cold leftovers and a cup of hot chamomile tea, it was dark and I was in bed by 7pm. I checked the sky at 2am, still cloudy with the 1/2 moon glowing thru the clouds. No pictures of stars tonight. At 5am, still dark, I heard the faint patter of raindrops on my tent fly. I was packed up within 15 minutes and on the road before the rain really started. I took some shots of landscape in the rain, holding my umbrella in one hand, over my camera. Nothing too great.

Well, hotels rooms are plentiful and less expensive in the winter, so I got a room for the next night, and with no waiting, I was able to check in and get a hot shower at 9 a.m. Off to explore the parks. The day cleared, with blue skies so I was hoping for a clear night. I set the alarm for 2am the next morning, and was back in Arches N.P. by 3am and headed to Balanced Rock. The 1/2 moon provided some light, and allowed some stars to show, but the clouds were coming in again. But, I got a picture…..one of my new all-time favorites.

At 5am I headed off to Canyonlands N.P. and Mesa Arch for the sunrise shot. With some clearing on the horizon, I was hoping I would get the photo that so many other people already have. In the middle of the excitement of the sunrise I just stopped and stood back, just to take it all in.  Spectacular.

If you eat meat, and drink milk, watch this:

Best speech you well ever hear

OK, did you actually watch and listen? It’s about an hour long. Don’t get all defensive, don’t say you don’t have the time. Just watch it. Many of you will just blow it off. Some will say he’s just radical, trying to convince you of something that isn’t true. Some of you may think about it. Some may be touched and feel something resonate, or feel some emotions about it. And some may actually change their way of life a little bit. People always want to argue their point, and there are always two sides to every thing, but are there really two sides to this? Or only one……

did you watch it? what did you feel? what do you feel?

The potential side effects far out-weigh any benefit in my opinion. Just 2 days ago, working an urgent care shift, I treated a woman with a sore throat, that had just had a flu shot the week before. And then she said her daughter had also gotten ill after her flu shot. True, it is an anecdotal story, but I see lots of anecdotal stories of people coming with some illness, and mentioning that they got a flu shot in the past couple weeks. The big one for me was a woman who happened to be in a wheelchair. Although unrelated to the problem she was being seen for that day, I inquired as to why she was paralyzed and needed the wheelchair. Transverse myelitis. She said “I’m that one-in-a-million”. “It happened after I got a flu shot many years ago, and I’ll never walk again.”  Wow.

Package insert for this year’s vaccine

It’s true that the flu is not life threatening for most people, and they recover in 10 days with no treatment. If you take an antiviral drug, 3 times a day, you’ll recover in 9 days. If you take a homeopathic remedy, you can recover in a day, or two. The latest Cochrane Collaboration Study on the Flu Vaccine does not paint a pretty picture about the flu vaccine, read it for yourself.

If you are dying of the flu, homeopathy could save your life. It saved thousands in past flu epidemics, using the same remedies that are available today at your local health food store that carries homeopathy supplies. Read what happened during the 1918 Flu Pandemic. For more information on how homeopathy was used for influenza as well as many other epidemics, before antibiotics were available, click here. If you are just miserable and not dying, it will shorten your suffering.

Homeopathy can actually cure the flu faster than any allopathic drug, (and there is no drug to cure the flu.) So why suffer the side effects of the vaccine, that may really not have any benefit?

If you get the flu, just read the different remedies listed here and their descriptions. Pick the one that most fits your symptoms, and cure your self with a few doses of a well-selected remedy.

Remember, there is a place for allopathic medicine, and a place for homeopathy. But getting the flu in most cases is not an emergency. Try some Vitamin D. A clinical study showed it can actually prevent the flu in school children! Just try to heal yourself in a day or two, you can do it.