Broccoli Wins Battle, Loses War

I really thought I had won with the broccoli sprouts.   I rinsed them and drained them for a few hours in the dish drainer, and the rest of the time I kept them in the refrigerator.  I went to the extent of rinsing them with chilled, distilled water for a while, but then switched to filtered, chilled water. Finally I was happy to see I had a crop of broccoli sprouts.  I ate some of them.  

This morning when I got up I ran to see how my broccoli sprouts were doing.  They had not been put in the refrigerator overnight because I had forgotten.  I thought it would be OK because the weather was cooler and it was night.

I took some broccoli sprouts out, thinking I was going to eat them.  

And then.  Pandemonium.  

There was a centipede in the broccoli sprouts.  My first reaction was to scream.  Then I decided it must die.  As you can imagine, it sensed trouble and managed to escape.  

I am getting upset about the broccoli sprouts.  It has occurred to me that I left out something.  Did I pray for my sprouts?  No.  I forgot.  

This made me think.  One day I saw a video about protecting your property from evil.  The message was, "Walk around the perimeter of your property and pray over it.  As you walk around and pray, take olive oil with you and anoint the ground." I thought, "Why not?"  I had a gallon of olive oil and I walked around the whole edge of my property and prayed for God's protection.  I also anointed my car and prayed for it.  

Is there evil lurking in the bushes?  I actually think there is.  One day I was sitting on the back deck, reciting verses.  

Suddenly I saw a man in a hoodie directly before me.  He was turned to the side so that I couldn't see his face.  Weird.  

It was in the fall, and a lot of the leaves were brown, but it wasn't a chilly day.  Even if it were, who would show up standing in front of me with his hoodie up apparently trying to hide his face?  

I stared at the man and he began to very slowly walk away, as if he were trying to move slowly enough that I wouldn't notice.  He made no noise as he walked on the dead leaves, even though he was only a few feet away.  

Who was he?  Why was he standing in front of me?  Could he not have noticed me there?  I had been reciting verses aloud not far from him.  How long had he been there?  I was very unsure about the wisdom of approaching him, so I watched carefully to see where he went.  I couldn't think of a good explanation for him, or the strange way he moved ever so slowly, as if he were a cloud drifting across the sky.  

Eventually, he approached the far edge of my yard, still though, not very far away.  Then...poof!  The man was gone.  Where did he go?  It looked like he became less and less distinct until he wasn't there at all.  

Was I frightened?  I was a little spooked, especially after his weird way of leaving.  

But if it were actually a ghost or spirit, I did notice that it never came on my property.  It walked along the property line where I had walked and prayed for protection.  

Therefore, there is some reason to believe that evil lurks in the bushes.   And also that it can be warded off with prayer.  

So if evil lurks in the bushes, maybe it is after the produce.  

Oh??  I'll pray for my broccoli sprouts.  

UPDATE

I am still puzzling over the man in the hoodie.  He was very strange and hard to explain.  I told the neighbors about him.   They explained that he was probably a hunter.  Well, it wasn't hunting season, and hunters don't wear khaki.  They usually wear orange so no one mistakes them for a deer.  And he didn't have a rifle.  Besides that, his appearance in front of me, and then his disappearance as I watched made me wonder if he was a ghost.  Or maybe an evil spirit.  

But wait.  One final possibility.  He could have been an angel.  I was reciting verses from Scripture when he appeared.  I saw an angel story recently of an angel that came to help a man in a car accident that walked out of the woods dressed in a hoodie, and climbed into the car and assisted the man.  The man never saw his face because of the hoodie.  That's a similar MO to my experience.  

Why would an angel walked slowly along the perimeter of my yard?  Hmmm.  I don't know.  They are mysterious.  Maybe he was guarding my property.  That would be nice.  Besides that, evil spirits are averse to Scripture, so it wouldn't make sense for an evil spirit to appear when one is reciting verses. Then was the man an angel?  That's one explanation.  That's the one I like.  

The other explanation is that it was my neighbor wearing a hoodie and wandering around near my yard.  Maybe he just didn't notice me. Maybe when he walked off his clothing made him harder to see.  Or was I just imagining this?  No, this wasn't my imagination.  

Maybe he was a clown playing head games with me. 

Who was that man anyway?

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and the Four Beasts of the Apocalypse Part One

Revelation 6 Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)

6 And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. 2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. 4 And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.

5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and seethou hurt not the oil and the wine.

7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10 and they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Are these the days of fulfillment of the prophesies in the Book of the Revelation?  There is reason to believe so.  One of the intriguing events described is the coming of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.  

Sometimes overlooked in this discussion are the Four Beasts, or "living creatures," described in Revelation 4:7, that introduce each of the Four Horsemen.  I'll make this easier to refer to with a chart:

Beast 1  A lion                 Horseman 1  A conqueror

Beast 2  An ox                 Horseman 2  War  

Beast 3  A man's face      Horseman 3  Famine

Beast 4  An eagle             Horseman 4  Death and Hell

It all begins with the Lamb opening the first seal in the Throneroom of God.  The Lamb is Christ. What are these seals?  The Book of the Revelation is about the judgments of God on the earth.  The judgments are divided into Seven Seals, Seven Trumpets and Seven Bowls.  The first four seals are the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, which are each introduced by one of the Four Beasts.  

Do the Horseman arrive individually or concurrently?  The text introduces them individually, but they may arrive all at the same time.  I would guess they are not far apart. Who are these Beasts?  Who are these Horsemen?  The Beasts are cherubim that stand before the Throne of God.  The Horsemen are earthly entities.  

When I say the Horsemen are earthly entities, I mean that they are personifications of either literal people who will be in the world, or else of categories of earthly events.  For example, when we speak of the Grim Reaper, do we speak of a literal person?  Most of us understand the Grim Reaper to be a personification of death.    And while many commentaries struggle to identify the Rider of the First Horse, is a literal person even being referred to?  I don't know.   Not so much ink is spilled trying to identify the Rider on the Second Horse - War.  No one asks, "Who is War?"  "How can War ride a horse?"

Why is prophesy so hazy, like dreams?  This is a mystery.  




















The First Beast is like a lion.  He introduces the First Horseman, who rides a white horse and holds a bow.  He wore a crown and went forth conquering and to conquer.  A lion introduces  a man with a crown, military weapons, and is a conqueror.  Who is he?  Why does he ride a white horse?  Does he speak of an actual person?  He could be a literal person, or he may represent the political theater of the time.  He could even represent the final empire.   Why is the horse white?  I'm working on that.  

The Second Beast is "like a calf."  Why did I use "an ox" on my chart then?  Because the translation of the original text could mean calf or ox.  More on that later.  The Second Horseman rode a red horse and carried a sword.  The power to take peace from the earth was given to him.  Is he a literal person?  He is usually thought to  personify war.   Why is the horse red?  I would guess that the color represents the color of bloodshed.  

The third controversial figure is the Third Horseman riding a black horse.  He is introduced by the Third Beast, who "had the face of a man."  The Third Horseman is usually said to be famine.   He holds balances in his hand, and a voice is heard saying, "A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny, and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine."  A measure of wheat would be what a man would usually eat in a day.  A penny would be the amount a man would earn in a day.  Connecting the dots, one sees that food is expensive, because it would cost all one could earn just for food.  On the other hand, does this Rider represent famine because food is mentioned?  Money is also mentioned.   This may be the personification of economic turmoil.  While there may be food, it may become exorbitantly expensive.  Why is this horse black?  Is he somehow juxtaposed with the white horse of the First Horseman?  

The Fourth Beast was "like a flying eagle."  He introduces the Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse, Death and Hell, riding a pale horse.   Why a pale horse?  I think this suggests a corpse.  This whole quartet describes the atmosphere ushering in the earth's darkest days.  

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.  

to be continued.  

More Insane Parcels of Ginger Ale

This is what is ordered.  What I received is a priority mail parcel that I haven't opened.  It was soaked with ginger ale that had been bashed to pieces in shipping.  The box had been opened and torn to bits and taped back together high and low.  The cans had been removed, then replaced, with all the ginger ale cans opened and poured out into the box.  

Why?  As I have said before.  It says ginger ALE.  This is a dry county.  It has been impossible of obtain ginger ale or root beer at this address.  

The tattered remains of the box had a label, "Received Damaged."  Really?  I would never accept a parcel in this condition.  I found the parcel outside.  

That's how crazy it is here.  

Oh, it's "Not eligible for a refund."  We'll see.   Anyway, I don't like ginger ale anymore.  I like  Orange Crush.  

My Lettuce Arrived Over at the Aquatic Center

I made my rounds today at the Aquatic Center and the Post Office lobby.  

I have never seen so much lettuce in my life!!  I was ready with my brown bag and took six heads.  

Besides that there was an amazing amount of cauliflower.  I went home and put away the lettuce and came back for the cauliflower.  I really have never seen so much produce.  There was a woman there who left empty handed.  "Don't you like cauliflower?" I asked.  She said it had been out since yesterday evening and wasn't fresh.  I was horrified to realize my timing was off.  I could have gotten my goodies yesterday evening.  Well, good to know for future reference.  But she didn't want this cauliflower.  Really?  It looked like Walmart cauliflower.  True.  "Where do you like to shop?" "Kroger." "Me too."  Walmart really should go to Kroger and see how it's done.  

But I was thrilled with the cauliflower.  It was in big plastic milk crates, well, twice that size.  I toyed with the idea of loading a crate in my trunk, but besides the fact that I think they wish I wouldn't do that, I'm not sure I'm that strong.  So I staggered away with all the cauliflower I could carry.  Another lady was there, just ecstatic over the gift of cauliflower.  She told me she loves cauliflower.  

I'LL NEVER BE HUNGRY AGAIN!!!!   😊😊😊🥦🥬🥒🍅🌶

My New Mailbox Has Been Screwed Onto the Post

The big mailbox day has arrived.  It should be declared a holiday.  And how did it go?  Well, I guess I meet Post Office code.  I managed to screw the screws into one side.  When two of them were about halfway, that little voice in my head started saying, "Start two screws on the other side before you screw those in all the way."  Ignore this voice at your peril.  But I ignored it.  

One side was secured and I went over to the other side.  Uh oh.  The little shelf didn't reach all the way to the other side.  Did I start over?  No, I tried to screw the screws in on the other side anyway.  They went in about a third of an inch.  I tested the door and the latch.  It was working.  

It looks pretty good.  Yay!

The Broccoli Wins

First, I'll admit, I've been puzzled with my many broccoli sprout successes over the summer.  There's nothing broccoli hates more than hot weather.  Was it the quality of the seeds?  I don't think so.  They were seeds I've had for a long time and had lots of trouble with.  Was it the number of cosmic rays?  The broccoli grew like weeds all summer for no good reason.  

But suddenly I realized I had a crop failure.  Why?  I have read what others think.  I didn't rinse them often enough.  How often?  Hourly.  Get up twice at night and rinse them.  Grow them in the refrigerator.  Drain them endlessly, which they will need because you keep smothering them with water.  Even suggestions that you speak words of encouragement to them.  I'm afraid to do that.  They might get sassy and rebel.  

They have rebelled in fact.  You don't want that.  If you've ever decided not to clean out the refrigerator because you can't face what you might find, you'll know the sort of dread I faced when the broccoli decided to head south.  

So I puzzled over quelling the broccoli rebellion.  Meantime, more broccoli sprout triumphs in the war they have decided to wage against me.  

What to do?  I took them into the bedroom once and tried to grow them there.  The bedroom filled with gnats.  I put them in a clear plastic bin with a lid.  The gnats loved it.  

I put them in the refrigerator.  I turned up the air conditioning.  Grow lights?  No.  More sunlight?  No.  Less sunlight? No.  Take them out to the shed?  Pamper them?  There is no amount of pampering that will satisfy a broccoli sprout. Build them their own little climate controlled house?   Someone is selling a tray for about $200 with little replaceable pads ($35 each) for growing "delicious, nutritious" broccoli sprouts.  Has it come to that?  Maybe a regular old plastic tray with paper towels on the bottom to anchor the roots.  

If it weren't for all the cauliflower the health food charities gave me, I would have gotten no sulforaphane at all yesterday.  

The broccoli won again today.  The alfalfa is growing like weeds. 

Mailbox Houses

I would never have thought the mailbox issue could get so complex.  I used all the tender loving care in the world getting my post ready for its marriage to the new mailbox.  Yes, it's beautiful.  OK, the post is cockeyed.  It occurred to me that when it was put in the ground, no concrete was used to ensure its stability.  I'm pretty sure I'm correct on this because I've scrutinized it and there just isn't any concrete holding the post in place properly.  

But that's not the worst of the way the job was originally done.  I guess I can live with a cockeyed post except for the thought that concrete would have protected the part in the ground from the elements.  

But the real mischief was seeing the way the mailbox was attached to the post.  It definitely wasn't screwed on or nailed on, even though someone had put predrilled holes in the little shelf to attach the box with.  No, no.  It was glued on.  The glue was still to be seen on the bottom of the box and the top of the shelf.  Probably just Elmer's glue. It's hard to wrap your head around.  

And so I've been left to figure out the installation of mailboxes on my own.  What an education.  

Driving around the local roads I've been more aware of the mailbox efforts around here.  Desperate little nods to the Post Office.  Mostly no one goes to very much trouble with them.  To speak plainly, they are pathetic eyesores, unworthy of the US Mail.  And maybe this explains some of the strangeness that happens to mailboxes at night, around the witching hour.   Sooner or later one goes out to check the mail and finds the mailbox smashed to pieces with a baseball bat, maybe by someone who just couldn't take the scruffiness of it another second.  One might wonder if it was someone that was angry with them.  Was it a message from an enemy? Usually it is blamed on "kids." Did I ever bash up any mailboxes as a kid?  Goodness no.  If I had I would have been torn limb from limb by my parents.  

But once your mailbox has been taken out with a baseball bat, it makes you think.  And that's why you'll sometimes notice that some of the mailboxes have little mailbox houses built just for them.  

Hey.  Nice.  Try taking that out with a baseball bat you little witches.   I wonder what new level of terror they'll come up with to defeat this fortress?  Someone put a squirrel in a mailbox once.   There was a panic when the mailman opened the box and the squirrel lunged at them.  This is illegal btw. 

I've turned the whole problem over in my head.  How to protect my mailbox.  Well, at the whack of a bat, the top of the mailbox flips off springing a hidden giant mousetrap.  Or maybe the whack trips the pit next to the mailbox to open causing the "kid" to plunge into the abyss as a net tangles him up and ensnares him.  Heh heh heh. You come out to get the mail, notice a baseball bat lying in the road and a whimpering voice saying, "Help me. Please. Help me."  "Do you swear by all that's holy never to hit my mailbox with a baseball bat again?" you ask.  "Yes, anything..."  

I hope in a day or two I'll be back in the good graces of the Post Office and have my mailbox installed on the post.  I tried already to screw it on, but I haven't been able to get the screws in.  Mother wants to try to do it.  I just can't seem to get them started.  I know, there are predrilled holes, but they aren't in exactly the right place for this box.  I imagine a hammer would start the screws better.  

More pretty mailboxes:  

Fasting Update 6

Some may have realized that the fast has ended.  For now.  I have to rethink this.  

I am really happy with my results.  The main purpose was to heal a leg injury because it was painful.  Is it all healed?  I am happy to say that for several days I am to the point of at least 65% improvement.  Maybe 70%.  I am unbelievably encouraged with this.  

Some people have told me that only the "gullible" believe the studies about the effects of fasting on health.  OK, color me gullible. 

Are my fasting days over?  Am I content with my level of improvement?  Well, I think things happen in stages. I was having too many problems with the fast to keep going for now. It's not my first experience with having to stop a fast early.  The length is just a guesstimate anyway.  

After fasting the body in its wisdom starts to proliferate stem cells to regrow some of the areas it had weeded out in the fast.  This is the point where amazing things start to happen.  It's called the refeeding period.  Be careful if you fast.  Refeeding is also when one can run into trouble.  Refeed slowly.  

Besides reduction in pain to a wonderful degree, I have noticed that my blood pressure is down to perfection:  111/72.  This has happened for more than a week now, in that vicinity.  

My weight?  Oh well.  Maybe a little improvement.  

For the time being I'll probably go on one day fasts about once a week and let it go at that.  

New Mailbox Nears Completion

The mailbox recovery program has moved  along.  Astonishingly rapid progress has been made.  

I don't remember how the mailbox ever arrived when it was first put up.  I remember it was somehow put on the opposite side of the road and the Post Office ordered us to move it across the street.   

I really thought that was the end of the mailbox journey and I would have a mailbox indefinitely.  It was not to be.  

Since I was not involved in erecting the mailbox in the first place, I was not aware of the difficulties one faces making them happen.  

The old mailbox was hauled away on Monday and a new mailbox bought at Walmart with the stickers you need for your address.  

Fine.  The post was a wreck.  The area is so shady it was covered in algae and damaged some in places from cracks and the start of decay.  Well, might as well clean it up.  

Yesterday I sanded the whole post with sandpaper and then took a gallon jug of Clorox/water and scrubbed it with that.  It looked much better.  It was ready for paint as soon as it dried overnight, which I thought would keep it in good shape for a while.  

Sanding didn't seem easy.  I had planned to hire someone to sand it and paint it, but the man that was going to do that somehow was too injured and wouldn't be able to help.  Oh no.  So I got the sanding done.  That took me most of the afternoon yesterday.  Yuck.  That's no fun.  

Surely help was on its way today.  Nope.  Oh no!!  So I got some dark green paint with algaecide in it and painted it.  Then I waited for it to dry and gave it a second coat.  Oh it looked pretty.  Christmasy.  

I was exhausted but I was content in the knowledge that mine was the most beautiful mailbox in the neighborhood jungle.  I really couldn't believe how much work it was to paint the mailbox post.  

I drove away and looked at the neighbor's mailboxes as I left.  Oh, they were grim, almost shabby old things.  Boring grey metal boxes on posts that looked like black fence posts.  Then my post, and the soon to be crown of a beautiful new mailbox.  The joy of Christmas.  Ho ho ho. Was the post not quite straight?  I didn't care.  It was beautiful.  

I drove down the road and just before I passed the fire department my heart stopped.  What was this?  Why hadn't I noticed this before?  Competition with my glorious mailbox.  On my right was a lovely home, a newer home, white, with a stunning red metal roof.  And?  On my left a brand new white mailbox with a nice perfect address and and......  a gorgeous red newly painted post.  It was as pretty as pretty could be.  

Well, I comforted myself that I was in an elite club of those with Christmasy mailboxes in the neighborhood and hopefully the other neighbors will come up to speed and do something about their frumpy mailboxes cluttering the road.  Maybe I should put notes in their mailboxes.  

Maybe I'll discretely include images of mailboxes that would improve the local drive down the road, rather than the embarrassment that is.   Anonymously.

  

The Return of Post Office Day.

Every day is Columbus Day for me!  Every Wednesday at least.  Time for the Post Office haul.  

It was Wednesday and I rushed to the Post Office lobby to see what St. Christopher brought me.  Chayote, tamarind, and radishes?  I recognized the radishes, and since I am a salad lover, I took a few.  I went ahead and took a chayote and a basket of tamarinds our of curiosity.  

My dear mother showed up a little while after that with a head of lettuce.  She likes to go swimming, and said they give away produce on Wednesdays at the "aquatic center."  I rushed off to the aquatic center.  

When I got to the general vicinity of the aquatic center, I realized I didn't know where it was.  

I drove around a little and saw an imposing structure on a hill.  Well, let's go see.  The sign said, "County Senior Center."  I wasn't sure, but I went in.  I saw a big room that looked liked a cafeteria, and several ladies "of a certain age" sitting at one of the tables.  "Is it lunch time?" I wondered.  I wish I had asked.  Instead, I was relieved to see boxes of produce on one table and asked if I could have some.  They all looked at me curiously, and their leader said yes.  

I wasn't seeing lettuce.  I saw celery, cauliflower, and radishes. 

I took one celery, two cauliflower, and one more radish to add to my Post Office collection.  I tried to take one more celery.  They had quite a bit, and no takers around.  And plus I'm selfish.  Suddenly the leader of the ladies at the table said, "You're only allowed one." "OK," I answered.  "Do you have any lettuce?"  "No sorry. Just what you see."  "OK THANK YOU!" I smiled and waved and dashed out with a brown paper bag of goodies. 

Wow.  This is great.  

I took the goodies home and asked my mother where the aquatic center is.  It seems she didn't know about the goodies over at the senior center.  She told me it was next to the senior center.  So I drove to the aquatic center and found out that the lettuce was gone! Oh no!!!! 

I'm happy anyway. 

Fasting Update 5

Today I started again with my mother.  She said, "Have you ever seen anyone sitting around talking to themselves?"  OK, maybe.   For these people there are blogs.   

"What is the most dangerous thing about fasting?" I asked her.  Some will say you could faint and knock your head off in a fall.   She said, "Starvation!"  I said that you probably won't starve but you could die of other problems.  What I had in mind was electrolyte imbalance.  "Do you know why I have fasted?" I asked her.  "Uhhhh."  What is the reason?  Because it's fun to alarm your mother.    

I have fasted because of leg pain.  It usually feels better in a day or two, but not all better.  Why?  I don't know.  Autophagy and then new stem cells which fix everything. A doctor actually recommended that I fast for thirty days about ten years ago.  I didn't get to thirty days, but I did try.  I hadn't realized you could safely stop eating for that long.  I was extremely pleased with the improvements.   

The problem is that fasting is uncharted territory and you're sailing away alone.  How long would it take to fix anything?  No one even knows when autophagy in humans starts.  The main question is when to stop.   I have been startled to read stories about people who have killed themselves accidentally after reading books about how it's entirely possible to live on air alone, not only not eating, but not drinking.  It's in the Bible!  Moses went to Mt. Sinai and didn't eat or drink for 40 days.  I saw on a Youtube channel a video by a man on his intention to stop eating or drinking for 10 days.  That was the last post.  

So the only indication that the fast should end is when strange things start to happen to your body.  And especially when you ignore strange things and the volume ramps up.  Mostly the strangeness is feeling horrible.  Things like insomnia, feeling weak.  That's just for starters.   Next your head feels like it's full of ice cubes and you're wobbling when you walk.   After that what I could only describe as freefall.  I don't think it's a good thing to ignore.  But what is going on?  

Someone did a Youtube video about "the Carnivore Diet."  It was fantastic!  I had tried the Carnivore Diet and quit after a while because of ice cubes in my brain and wobbly walking, and I posted a comment to the video about it.  I thought there might be a comment about that remark about how crazy that was. I was truly surprised when someone answered me and said, "Helene, your problem is an electrolyte imbalance. You need sodium, potassium, and magnesium. Maybe iron."  I decided to try it and took a half a tsp of each, and an iron supplement.  I did this twice a day.  Wow.  Magic.  

So the electrolyte imbalance is critical to address on a fast or diet.  There is one man that calls himself "The Fasting Fatman," who fasted for 150 recently.  He was under medical supervision and told people not to do this without taking electrolytes "or you will die."  Well, that was a little strong.  But I think that is likely to be what is the most dangerous thing about fasting - electrolyte imbalance.  

I suppose the place I arrived at on this fast is past the place I've gone from other fasts.  This is Week 13.  Forty six days of actual fasting since the end of June.  I thought this was going to go on for six months which would be 26 weeks.   

Yesterday was a fast day.  This morning, after not eating yesterday, my fasting blood glucose was 110.  Usually it's about 95.  I truly truly believed that my metabolism was going to do better than it's been doing after an aggressive fast.   But worse?   Still, while my numbers are going the wrong direction, I don't think the doctor would be concerned.  Yet.  

Is the fast over?  A voice whispers in one ear, "You need more stem cells!  You were going to go on fasting four days a week until you were healed!" In the other ear a voice tells me, "This is too dicey! You can try again later."  This is confusing.  

I think I'll probably just do around 700 calories a day instead of fasting.  Maybe back to the shiratake noodles.  Those are good.  

Does Fasting Cause Diabetes?

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321864.php

Type 2 diabetes: Intermittent fasting may raise risk

Published Sunday 20 May 2018

By Ana Sandoiu

Fact checked by Honor Whiteman

New research suggests that intermittent fasting may raise insulin levels, damage pancreatic cells, and increase the amount of abdominal fat.

Intermittent fasting may be a popular diet, but it may also harm our metabolic health, suggests a new study.

The so-called intermittent fasting diet has been gaining more and more traction among people who want to lose weight quickly.

This popular diet consists of "fast" days, where one drastically restricts their calorie intake — to a quarter of the daily dose or less, for instance — and "feast" days, where the person dieting can eat whatever they please.

Sometimes referred to as a dieting "fad," intermittent fasting has become popular in recent years, due to its suggested benefits of increasing lifespan and staving off cancer.

Indeed, some animal studies have indicated that intermittent fasting may lower the risk of cancer, while observational studies have shown that people whose religion has them fasting regularly live longer than seniors who do not fast.

But could there also be downsides to intermittent fasting? Research presented at the European Society of Endocrinology annual meeting — which took place in Barcelona, Spain — suggests that the dieting practice may have serious consequences for a person's metabolism.

Specifically, the new study — led by Ana Cláudia Munhoz Bonassa, a researcher at the University of São Paulo in Brazil — suggests that intermittent fasting may impair the normal activity of the pancreas and the production of insulin, which may, in turn, raise the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Intermittent fasting may lead to diabetes

The researchers were prompted in their endeavor by older studies suggesting that fasting for a short period of time increases oxidative stress and the production of free radicals.

Oxidative stress and excessive levels of free radicals have been suggested to speed up the aging process and to damage our DNA, raising the risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegeneration.

To find out whether intermittent fasting does indeed generate free radicals, Bonassa and her colleagues placed healthy, adult rats on the diet for a period of 3 months.

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During this time, the researchers measured and monitored the rodents' insulin levels and function, their body weight, and their free radical levels.

At the end of the dieting period, the rats had lost weight, as expected. However, the distribution of their body fat changed unexpectedly.

The amount of fat tissue in the rodents' abdomen increased. Belly fat has been shown by recent studies to be deeply linked with type 2 diabetes, with some research even suggesting a molecular mechanism through which the former may lead to the latter.

Additionally, Bonassa and colleagues found damage in the insulin-secreting pancreatic cells, as well as higher levels of free radicals and signs of insulin resistance. 

The study's lead author comments on the findings, saying: "We should consider that overweight or obese people who opt for intermittent fasting diets may already have insulin resistance."

"[S]o," Bonassa continues, "although this diet may lead to early, rapid weight loss, in the long-term there could be potentially serious damaging effects to their health, such as the development of type 2 diabetes."

"This is the first study to show that, despite weight loss, intermittent fasting diets may actually damage the pancreas and affect insulin function in normal healthy individuals, which could lead to diabetes and serious health issues." 

Ana Cláudia Munhoz Bonassa

In future, the scientists plan to study in more detail the damaging effects of intermittent fasting on the normal functioning of the pancreas and the insulin hormone.

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