Uses for dandelions

If you have dandelions in the yard you can use them for salad -= just the leaves. Slip a knife at a shallow angle into the root and the rosette of leaves comes off. They’re bitter, like endive only more so. I like them with a dressing heavy in vinegar and salt. And maybe eat them with bread for relief. They’re rich in Vitamin A.

You can also make mashed potatoes and after mashing them, stir in dandelion leaves for some colour and contrast. They don’t seem quite so bitter that way. I was told this was “bubble and squeak” but I think the traditional recipe is made with leftover cabbage.

You can go on harvesting them as long as they are young and tender. When they bloom, they become even more bitter and it’s time for your lettuce to be up.

BC highway cameras

Here’s a link to some British Columbia webcams: BC highway cams.

Swimming at hotel

Hotel pools are generally quite small, suitable for splashing aound with small children. This one is small, but I made due for about an hour of bobbing around and stretching idle muscles. I’ll upload a picture of the pool.

In memoriam

My friend called. Her friend’s husband just died of complications after an operation a couple of weeks ago for lung cancer. He seemed to be an awfully nice fellow. His wife has finally quit smoking, about the time of the operation. But maybe she’ll start again now.

Pilates for two

LotStreetWiz and I were back at Pilates today in its new location. We missed last week because he was flying in from Vancouver and I wanted to meet him. I’d progress faster if I did the exercises every day and not just at class.

I also picked up the Spring 2008 schedule.

Triathlon?

I’ve finished a set of practice sessons with the triathletes and need to decide whether to sign up for another five weeks.

One interesting factor in my decision is that I have a chance of doing a short triathlon in April. It would be 1/2 mile of swimming, 15 miles of biking, and  3 miles of running. That would certainly give focus to my training.

It would mean doing about 35 lengths of my current pool and developing some stamina for the bike. One factor is time limits: how drastic are the cut-off times? And could I do it without buying a wet-suit.

Neuter your pets

All my pets are neutered, but there’s one more to take care of. My son adopted a stray calico kitten last winter. Her name is Goldie. Tonight I picked her up so I can take her to the vet at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow to be spayed. Here’s a link about the benefits of neutering. So we accept that it’s good for animals not to suffer from overpopulation.

Pilates lesson

We went for Pilates. All those tiny little movements: arch the back from the inside of the spine, stretch the ribs down to the hips, breath this way and that, pull the hip crests together, point the sit-bones to the back wall, swing legs horizontally to the floor without changing the position of hips or slacking off the core muscles… I like it.

Stupid court!

The U.S. Supreme court has reversed the decisions of 3 district courts and 3 circuit courts and declared Bush’s 2003 ban on “partial birth abortions” to be constitutional. There’s no such medical procedure. The Center for Reproductive Rights says:

April 18, 2007: In a stunning reversal, the Supreme Court rules against women’s health and in favor of abortion restrictions. In its ruling upholding the Federal Abortion Ban case, the U.S. Supreme Court effectively overturned 30 years of precedent and announced that women’s health is no longer a paramount concern. The Center for Reproductive Rights said the Court’s decision paves the way for state and federal legislatures to enact additional bans on abortions as early as 12 weeks, including those that doctors say are safe and medically necessary.

Ouch!

I have shingles–the disease, not the roofing supplies. This week I’ve been troubled by some pain on one side of my torso, accompanying some ugly-looking blisters. I feared that a random scrape had introduced festering bacteria under my skin. I worried that it would spread, which seemed likely when blisters appeared on my front as well as my back.

I’ve been very busy with a short-term technical writing contract, so I didn’t absent myself from the office until Friday night, when I went to my local walk-in clinic. Too many people had the same idea: there was a wait of over two hours, so I went home and returned in the morning.

This morning I finally saw a doctor. He was reassuring, up to a point: I don’t have a nasty, antibiotic-resistant Staphlococcus aureus infection. I have the chickenpox virus, varicella-zoster virus. It follows the path of a single sensory nerve in the body, infecting one dermatome. It won’t spread to other parts of my body. It won’t kill me. However, more than three days have passed since the symptoms started, so it’s too late for anti-viral medicines. I’ll just have to live with it for the next month. After that, the pain will probably go away. (It lingers in some people.)

He said the outbreak was probably caused by stress. Oh, yes, I said, I’m working for the Ontario goverment. And my father died a few weeks ago. “Bingo,” said the doctor.

I might never have another outbreak; but anyone who has had chickenpox or been vaccinated against chickenpox is at risk of getting shingles. The doctor offered me a stronger painkiller, but so far Ibuprofen(TM) has been sufficient. And I’ll stay away from any little children who haven’t had chickenpox yet.

So the good news is that it will go away by itself. The bad news is, it will take its own sweet time doing so.