Saturday, September 30, 2023
Friday, September 29, 2023
Animals Resistant to Prion Disease
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7461849/
Dogs, pigs, horses, and rabbits are resistant to prion disease.
Chicken and other fowl, and fish, are not susceptible since it is a disease of mammals.
Mad Mooey
Much ink has been spilled over Mad Cow Disease. Even so, I didn't really know much about it until the last few weeks. This most likely is at least partly because the news was downplayed, if not actually a pack of lies. Maybe also willful ignorance on my part.
I had stopped eating beef a year ago. Nothing to do with fears of Mad Cow Disease. I had spent big money on Angus burgers, because I had had so much trouble tolerating most of the other hamburger or even steak. They were, and maybe still are, putting "pink stuff" in the beef, that really turned me inside out. "Oh, get Angus," said Mrs. Billingsley. Weeeeell... My Angus experience took gross to a whole new level. I've even tried to eat beef since then and just can't force it down. So, I gave up on beef. If what I saw that terrible day was true, and it was, I knew that there was trouble in the meat industry.
Then what? Eat chicken, pork, fish. I began to practically live off barbeque. The next thing to go was dairy. This was also due to my own intolerance of dairy. Nothing mooey in my diet.
So why is it that swine seems to be immune to prions? Well, they are resistant, not quite immune. There are no known cases of naturally transmitted spongiform encephalopathy in swine. They are partially immune to meat industry shenanigans. The hogs aren't a source of milk, since that just doesn't work very well. The Mad Cow Disease started because our cousins in the UK decided to feed dairy cows meat renderings of all sorts in the form of feed pellets. This included sheep carcasses with scrapie, since scrapie was not thought to be contagious. Bad idea. Meat protein had been found to increase the weight of cows, and also increase milk production. However, this feed was not usually given to hogs because hogs didn't need much encouragement to gain weight, and they weren't used for milk. But when the contaminated feed was given to hogs, there was still no known transmission of prion disease.
Oh, Mad Cow wasn't and isn't a problem in the US. Really? In 1985 a mink farm in Wisconsin had an outbreak of a prion brain disease, "Mad Mink Disease," in 4,400 mink. The farmer had been a careful keeper of records, and documented that the mink had been fed meat derived from downer cows from neighboring dairy farms. At about that time, Chronic Wasting Disease became a nationwide epidemic among deer and elk. Two hunters in their twenties died of CJD. "Nothing to do with hunting or hamburgers," it was found. Just an unfortunate sporadic event that happened twice. Somehow, in Kentucky, folks developed prion disease after eating squirrel brains, which was considered "a delicacy." The same thing happened in Texas. In Georgia, brain sandwiches made from cow brains are still eaten. OK, another bad idea. And only a month ago, a 21 year old woman in Arizona died of CJD. This was diagnosed as sporadic, and just a one in a million fluke. Some experts have even gone so far as to assert that CJD can't be transmitted by eating infected meat. In addition, it was recently found that up to 13% of autopsied Alzheimer's patients were victims, not of Alzheimer's, but CJD. Some experts have set the percentage as high as 25%.
Surely we've learned our lesson? No, we still feed dogs and cat food containing renderings from cows, and I suppose sheep with scrapie. What could go wrong?
So, I guess I need to let this subject go. I'll let you know if I come down with CJD.
Thursday, September 28, 2023
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Rapamycin in Paradise
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
New Microwave Gadget
I know. I already had this egg cooker for the microwave. I somehow became warped, and since it had been so useful, I decided to replace it.
While I was shopping for it, another microwave cooker caught my attention.
What am I hoping to do with this beauty? I hope to find some way to cook bacon in a way that is easier than my current method. I am hoping to toast bratwurst and hot dogs in it, which seems like it should work. It actually shows roasting chicken in it in their ad. I will believe that when I see it. I think it may be adequately cooked to make into chicken salad. I have trouble believing it will make a juicy piece of chicken with a crispy, brown skin. I would like to try to make a Chef Boy R Dee pizza in it. This I really can't imagine I would be satisfied with, because it just doesn't seem like the crust would be any good. It would turn a crust into a cracker. But, I plan to find out if it will really do these things.
I thought my toaster oven was going to solve some of these problems, but during the summer when the temperature was over 100Âș, it would turn itself off. Why? I don't know. I had liked the way that I could set it, and after the time was up, it turned itself off. I didn't like the way it starting turning itself off whenever it felt like it. Also, it has become very messy with use. The clean up is almost impossible. And, it smells like burning rubber when I use it, that makes me think there may be a fire hazard problem. This is the reason I quit using it.
So, we'll see.
Monday, September 25, 2023
An Open Letter to My Salmon Friends
Tonight I made salmon patties for dinner. I know this must be hard for the salmons to hear. I think maybe it was soy salmon substitute.
Orange Man Has a Bad Day
Ever since the disturbing day when I rejected Orange Man's advances, I had not seen Orange Man. I figured he was out in the woods sulking.
This morning I found Orange Man in the yard, appearing to have fallen over. I went up to him, but he didn't hear or see me, and I spoke to him. He then looked up at me in horror and ran terrified into the bushes. OK.
I had come out the back door, and since the front door was still locked I had to go back in that way. So I checked the mail and tossed out the trash, then headed back to the house. Orange Man had staggered to the open door, and turned around and began hissing at me. He never did that before. I stood outside, supposing he would go in the kitchen to eat his goody, which was already put out for him, even though I haven't seen him in eleven days. Eventually he went in, but now I had the problem that he was blocking my way into the living room. I found a broom, and used it to shield my legs as I tried to get by. This seemed to frighten him.
Well, he's a wreck. His left ear looks half torn off, his left eye is somehow injured, and he's been scratched and bitten to ribbons. He looks like the cat mafia got hold of him. I didn't pet him because he was scaring me. He seemed to think I should pet him but he didn't want me touching him anywhere he was injured.
After he went outside he stood on the back steps, probably waiting for me. I spoke to him as kindly as I could, and took out some broth from dinner last night. Nothing will cure a cat like broth. He wasn't much interested.
Boy, is he rabid? Well, I can't get him to the vet because I would have to handle him to get him into a kennel. I'm not going to shoot him. Mrs. Billingsley said David would, what? Dispatch him? I suppose he needs a few days to recover. Hopefully.
I looked up rabies in cats to try to figure out what the signs are and some idea of what to do. I read an article that said, "Take your cat to the vet." My cat? A stray/feral cat. They mentioned changes in behavior, aggressiveness, and the furious form of rabies, and if you see that, just grab the kitty and throw it in a kennel? There were no words of caution. Anyway, I'm going to leave him alone a while.
Sunday, September 24, 2023
My Rapamycin Experience
The package arrived in about two weeks, shipped from Hong Kong, although the box states that it's made in India. How long before I decided to try the first dose? Maybe five minutes. The only hesitation was that it was afternoon, and some say it can make one hyper causing some trouble with sleep. I only took 1 mg. I would say, from what I've heard, that the usual dose is 5 or 6 mg once a week. I thought it would be good to use at least some caution.
In around two hours I felt a tingle, I would say in the bone marrow of my forearms. My arms seemed happy about getting Rapamycin.
Then what? Once a week I took another dose, increasing the dose by 1 mg a week. Finally today I took 5 mg.
So what is my experience? Two big changes. Rapamycin has several areas it does a nearly miraculous job at. One of them is autoimmune disease, like rheumatoid arthritis. Watching Youtube, I've heard several people say their joint pain went away, usually after a couple of months. I noticed an improvement in joint pain right off the bat, but it has continued to improve. What else? I've had a lot more energy. I don't say to myself, "OK, get up and do chores." I just find that I have spent the past two hours doing chores without giving it much thought. I've begun to go for short walks that I wasn't able to do at one time.
I asked myself if this was the placebo effect. I don't think the pain relief is a placebo effect. I don't really think the increase in energy is either, but I'm not sure. It could be that the decrease in pain has made it easier to keep going.
At first I had no medical supervision, but when I went to the VA, my doctor decided to monitor my condition. So I'll be getting the results of my Sirolimus test, which is the generic name of Rapamycin, to check the levels.
Saturday, September 23, 2023
Friday, September 22, 2023
Thursday, September 21, 2023
At the Doctor's Office.
Yesterday I had an appointment at the doctor's office. Uh oh. Here we go. It was raining and I considered cancelling because I'm afraid to drive in the rain. I mentioned this to Mrs. Billingsley. She said, "Well, drive 100 miles an hour and the raindrops will miss you," OK. I told her I had an appointment with the doctor, but I was afraid to go. It was raining and I was dreading dealing with the doctor. I had been planning out for days how I was going to explain the situation with headache pills. That had taken a strange turn. I got ready to leave and she bid me farewell. It had been nice knowing me. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm just going to sit out in the car and pray."
I drove to the next county. There were raindrops everywhere. Blood was successfully drawn in the lab. So one hurdle was jumped. I was subjected to having my weight and blood pressure taken. Then, in to see the doctor. Somehow I feel I have finally found a relatively sympathetic doctor which I don't want to screw up. The main conversation was about prescriptions. Was there balm in Gilead? He was focused mostly on the computer screen which gave me a chance to study him a little. His hair was a bit of a wreck. How old was he? I wondered. Had he put on weight?
After some discussion about a lotion for a rash, I made my request. "Have you ever heard of Rapamycin?" I asked. I figured he wouldn't want to admit to any area of lack of knowledge. Basically, I wanted a prescription for Rapamycin. He looked it up. "It says that's for organ transplant patients to prevent rejection," he told me. "Have you had a kidney or liver transplant?" "Yes, all of them." I wanted Rapamycin because it has been found to have anti aging properties that cause rejuvenation at the cellular level. But this was not when taken at the level of a transplant patient. It was when it was taken only once a week, about 5 mg. He actually thought it was reasonable but the VA wouldn't allow him to prescribe it. I told him I had supposed it would be that way. I had brought a box of it with me, and pulled it out of my purse to show him. "I got this from India," I said. "I found it on the internet." I had gotten it at a very low price and I was thinking of stocking up on it. I asked him if I could have a blood test for Sirolimus, which is Rapamycin, to gauge how potent this brand was, and if it was working. I toyed with the idea of asking for a prescription for it that I could fill somewhere else. I decided not to muddy the water with that at this time. He looked over the box curiously. "Sure, we can do a blood test for Sirolimus levels." Yay!
Soon I was back in the lab, and then I was off. My day had just gotten better.
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Tuesday, September 19, 2023
Sunday, September 17, 2023
Saturday, September 16, 2023
Thursday, September 14, 2023
A Walk in the Vineyard
I decided to walk down to my vineyard again. Orange Man wanted to go too. I walked around and checked it out more thoroughly. I had never expected to see it again, and here it was. It's in pretty good shape.
Orange Man does the usual zig zag in front of me when he walks with me. I petted him a few times. Then he went wild. Well, he is wild I guess. I picked him up, which I've never done, not knowing how he might respond. He was OK for a moment, but it was after that that he seemed to imagine our relationship had taken the next step. What step is that?
Orange Man kept wrapping his paws around my legs and leaping up in the air for my arms, and giving me love nibbles. Finally I found a stick to keep him at bay. That also helped with the zig zagging.
Wednesday, September 13, 2023
Taking a Break
I have been pondering how to keep Miss Laura and her sort off my property. I know. I ordered a custom sign saying, "NO SCUM ALLOWED."
This morning I knew that I needed to go to the post office. And get gas. "Tomorrow," I thought. No, let's go. It was 10:30 am. Then what? My day was complete? No. I had to take out the trash because it's that special day when they collect the trash. I took out one bag and got covered in ants. So I took out another bag along with ant spray. Anyway, the trash collectors don't like ants either.
Were any of those chores all that much to do? No, but it took an hour and a half. Time for a break.
Tuesday, September 12, 2023
Monday, September 11, 2023
More Bee Drama
I saw heavy equipment in my backyard where the beehives are. Uh oh. I supposed it was David doing some chore back there. But, I actually thought it might be Miss Laura and Dr. Brian staging another assault. Given what they've done to me in the past with violations of every boundary, I thought they might go ahead and bring heavy equipment over onto my property and load the beehives and cinderblocks before I caught them at it. And so I thought I had better go see about it.
I have a beautiful backyard. It's so huge it's unbelievable. I was surprised to see that David had mowed all the way back to the back fence. Wow. So I walked over to see the cinderblocks and beehives. There were more beehives than I realized, six altogether. Why did I think there were two? One of them was an adorable, brand new hive, painted blue and yellow. Oh, how cute! That was David's new hive, I thought. There were twenty five cinderblocks. Maybe a few more here and there, and at least two under each hive. I could hardly believe Miss Laura claiming those cinderblocks were hers. I suppose she took us all for a pack of dunces. I have lectured poor Mom over and over about how she needs to beware of some of the people that befriend her to haul off all her belongings. The backhoe was actually parked next door near the property line, so there was no threat from it.
I did receive a call from Janet today. Poor Janet. The call was blocked because she joined forces with the enemy. So that's how it had to be.
I was astounded to see that my vineyard had been rebuilt by someone, all the trellises replaced. That was a mountain of work. Not only that, the vines had grown back from the roots that had been left in the devastated ground, and even had grapes on them. I went back to the house and told Mrs. Billingsley about it, and she wept. Orange Man had met me on the way, and came running in with me. It was a lovely moment.
What's For Breakfast?
I've been torturing myself about what to make for breakfast. But wait. It's 10:00 am. Breakfast? It's practically suppertime.
I'm going to do it anyway. Bacon? I did that two days ago. Eggs. Again? Cottage cheese? Plus what else? A Danish. You're getting warm.
The problem is, what is there? Hey, I know. Polish sausage. And eggs. Sunny side up.
Saturday, September 9, 2023
Ambien Miracle
I have gotten in the habit of taking Ambien for sleep. Well, not so great. But it is what it is. About two weeks ago I upped the dose from 10 mg to 15 mg. I know, also not so good. So I ran out of Ambien.
I really thought I had more on the way, but checking with the pharmacy, no, it would be a while. About 10 days after I was out. I began cutting back with what was left, and spoke to the pharmacist, trying to convince her to send those pills NOW! "Well, why are you out?" I admitted to taking extra on a few difficult days. "Why don't you ask the doctor to increase your dose to 15 mg a day and then we can send a new prescription right away." Well, he wasn't going to do that, but I spoke to his nurse anyway. She sounded very doubtful.
So the bitter end had come and I was out of Ambien. Brace yourself. I went to the mailbox. Before I opened it I prayed for Ambien. There was no Ambien.
Fine. I was looking for a letter that fell under and shelf later today, and what did I see? A bottle of Ambien. This seemed curious. I checked when it was filled. 2021. Strange. A whole unopened bottle of Ambien. That's a relief.
Propionate
What is propionate? It is a food additive used as a preservative. In what? Dairy, baked goods, processed meat, in particular. Is it safe? Well, more or less. It raises insulin levels. So? When insulin levels are elevated one is not able to use energy stored in the cells as fat until the levels go down. "Normal" people, who seem to be a minority anymore, experience elevated insulin levels when eating meals. The insulin levels stay elevated for maybe an hour and a half. During that time the body, and the brain, are using the energy from the food that was just eaten for fuel. Then the insulin levels go down to the level they were before the meal, and the body switches to using fat stores for energy. This happens for people that are not necessarily fat. Everyone has body fat, and the purpose is to tide you over between infusion of energy from food. Therefore, in a perfect world, one eats a meal, uses the food for energy and maybe some fat storage, and then uses the fat stores of the body between meals. This would happen maybe and hour and a half after eating. In this perfect world, the person would feel pretty satisfied until the next meal.
But for those that don't live in the perfect world, insulin levels may not return to the pre meal levels for eight to twelve hours. After the energy from the last meal is used, this imperfect individual would be getting signals from the metabolism via chemical messengers activated by the brain. These would be messengers strongly encouraging this screwed up person to eat. And so, between the eight and twelve hour window from the last meal when insulin levels are, sad to say, abnormally high, the person would need infusions of food every couple of hours to quell the alarms being sent by the brain and metabolism. Otherwise? Otherwise they will feel hungry and like their blood sugar is crashing, and cranky and not so good. But then another meal or snack will cause the cycle to start all over, so there will only be a time when one isn't overproducing insulin during sleep. Probably the insulin doesn't normalize until sometime the next mornings. And the person never utilizes fat stores.
What to do? Number one, I would say, is the ketogenic diet, since it would cause a much smaller insulin spike with meals.
But wait! Sometimes that doesn't work completely. Why? I have puzzled over this. I am now turning my suspicions toward propionate, for one thing. What caused me to believe this?
I have been told that I am allergic to dairy. Not just lactose intolerant. That too. Outright allergic. It began to cause enough trouble that dairy just had to go. So for the past year I have cut out dairy.
But strange magic happened. With no effort or reduction in calories especially, I began to lose weight, until I had lost more than 30 lbs. Nice. Why? I wondered.
Then anti magic happened. I didn't regain the weight, but I stopped losing. About this time I had begun to eat processed meat at meals because it was so easy to prepare. Even though my calories still didn't increase, the weight loss was over. Weird.
Then I happened upon an article (link above) about the use of propionate as a food preservative. Baked goods have a lot to prevent spoilage. I was surprised once that two slices of bread that I was testing to see how long it would take them to spoil, looked fresh two months later. Probably due to propionate. I have heard people say that a McD hamburger left in a coat pocket was still fresh looking a year later. Propionate? Maaaaaybe.
And what other uses has the food industry found for propionate? Dairy and processed meat. That might explain the lose of weight when I quit eating dairy, and the stall in weight loss when I began eating more processed meat.
That's crazy! I don't know. I'm going to restrict processed meat and see what happens.
Friday, September 8, 2023
Thursday, September 7, 2023
Janet Goes on Call Block
Janet had been the only member of her family that was not on call block. She has abused this privilege.
Janet specifically asked to speak to me yesterday. She said Miss Laura had tried to call, and she had explained to Miss Laura that she was on call block. Then Janet called on Miss Laura's behalf. This is an abuse of call privileges.
I spoke to Mom today about the "bee equipment." Janet seemed to imagine that Miss Laura actually had a right to be on my property because her bee equipment was here. Well, really? She owes me $100 a month in rent then. I explained to Janet that the beehives had rotted and the bees had left, because they needed tending they didn't get. Janet said my mother had sold Miss Laura cinderblocks that she wanted back and was almost ordering me to relinquish the cinderblocks. All four of them???
"Where are the bee suits and the fogger?" I asked Mrs. Billingsley. "I gave them to Miss Laura." "So why did you let me turn the house upside down looking for them when David asked for them?"
Was this about cinderblocks? I had not allowed any member of Miss Laura's family to call or visit because Miss Laura had used the entire force of the law enforcement of the county to raid my home and cause serious injury with no warrant or legitimate reason. They had attempted other ploys to gain access to my property, like offering to mow the lawn. This was refused, since they aren't allowed over here. Now she imagines that she's going to have me put in prison for stealing cinderblocks?
My impression of this entire family is that they suffer from senile and/or early onset dementia. Plus severely inflated egos. I don't talk to people with severely inflated egos.
Mom sold Miss Laura the bee business for $200, including beehives in good repair. And full of honey. The honey alone was worth $200.
Wednesday, September 6, 2023
Miss Laura Causes a Mega Eruption
More than three years ago, Mrs. Billingsley sold her beekeeping business for a song, $200, to Miss Laura, a local dentist married to Dr. Brian. However, Miss Laura never tended the bees, and after a while the beehives deteriorated and the bees left. Recently my step brother told me he wants to put new hives there and start keeping bees. He asked for my permission, since it's my property. Sure. I'm not afraid of the bees since I've had experience around them and at most been stung once or twice. Usually I can walk near the hives and not be bothered.
Miss Laura hasn't been allowed to call here anymore because she and Dr. Brian sent eleven police cars over here to arrest me one evening without a warrant. Why? I had fallen asleep in my room, being exhausted. So therefore my mother called Miss Laura because she decided I must have taken her drugs. Well, my mother had no drugs. I was just sound asleep in my bedroom. The entire man power of county law enforcement raided my room without bothering with a warrant and I was dragged outside, in a hysterical way that wound up breaking bones in my left foot. They began putting me in handcuffs when I reared up on my hind legs and resisted, not having any idea what was going on. Lights and sirens were everywhere. At that point I was in danger of being killed. One perp started shouting at me that I was being arrested on drug charges for stealing my mother's Tramadol. "I didn't take any of my mother's Tramadol. I did drink a couple of shots of vodka. Is that illegal?" Suddenly the reality of the situation dawned on the crowd of law enforcement, which was every deputy in the county, and they just stopped in their tracks. The handcuffs were put away and they helped me back inside.
Miss Laura and Dr. Brian were no longer friends, either of me, or my mother. They were astonished to be put on call block and that my mother told her when she visited, "We're not friends anymore." Mom said, "This has to be a first for them."
Miss Laura stopped by following that visit and left a three page type written letter on the door explaining to us ignorant people why she had to do what she did. She tried to make it sound "official" saying Dr. Brian had initiated a "code 3" since in my "drug induced state" I would be likely to be belligerent. Dr. Brian is not law enforcement and has no authority to initiate a code 3 or any other code.
So, OK, eventually my broken bones healed and I limped on my merry way, wanting no more of Miss Laura's or Dr. Brian's medicine. Ever.
To my shock and astonishment, Miss Laura's sister Janet called me today and said Miss Laura just wanted permission to come over and pick up "her" bee equipment. The beehives rotted a long time ago, and the bees left. Anyway, she is not allowed on my property. "Well, she wouldn't be coming in your house, just going down to get the bee equipment." "No no no no nooooooooo!!!!" Janet began to emphasize that this equipment had been purchased from my mother and belonged to Miss Laura. "Well, it's not her equipment anymore. It's been forfeited." "Do you want to call her?" Is this a joke? "I will not speak to her, not now, not ever." "Can I call her then?" "It's up to you what you do." "Can't she just come in the yard?" Incredible!!! "She is not allowed in my house, in my yard or to call on my phone. I have 'No Trespassing' signs all over the yard and if she comes onto my property I will have her arrested for trespassing." "Oh..... well can she have her equipment back?" "No, she abandoned it and I gave it away to someone else." "Who?" "David." "Oh.... OK honey. I'll tell her."
It was validating to spit tacks at Miss Laura. The foolish woman probably won't take no for an answer.
Her letter stated that she and Brian knew that my mother was not evil, but they think that Helene is. OH??? Who is the one that had a bunch of thugs come over and raid the bedroom of a crippled widow? Was that a good thing to do? Have they ever read the severe warnings in Exodus 20 about what happens to evil people that do such things to widows and the fatherless if they cry out to God? Is that what they want?
Look out.
Prowler Sends A Message
It is that day of days when the trash is collected, and I didn't take out the trash last night because I was afraid the bear would come back at night. Maybe it would be better if he did. That would scare my prowler.
So I went to take the trash out the backdoor early in the morning. But the backdoor was standing wide open. I am certain I locked it, since there has been a prowler. The sheriff told me to put up security cameras and "No Trespassing" signs. The signs are everywhere. Except the backdoor. Well, also none on my bedroom window where there has been some harassment. The prowler came in July with a bat or a sledgehammer and slammed it against the walls of the house for around 15 minutes. Mom called the sheriff's office and spoke to a woman who was a receptionist apparently, and made no effort to dispatch officers. Well, why? Women who are alone are being threatened at night? No big deal.
Was I afraid? Well, since that time I have been armed with a gun at all times, including when I'm asleep, so beware. This turkey probably doesn't imagine I have a gun or would shoot him. Go ahead. Make my day.
As I toted out the trash, I saw cigarette butts stomped out on the back steps. Marlboros. Who do I know that smokes Marlboros? One shining name comes to mind. There were no cigarette butts on the steps yesterday. I'm keeping them for evidence.
Eleven Herbs and Spices. The Fried Chicken Verdict is In!
Sometimes on Tuesday there is a perfect storm that compels a trip to Kentucky Fried Chicken. And so it was yesterday.
I have wished for better from KFC. The chicken is overcooked, tasting like reheated leftovers. And way too expensive. I'll fix them.
I had gone to Walmart for a prescription and decided to go to the deli and buy the Walmart version of fried chicken. Just a couple of pieces. Then I would buy the same thing from KFC and compare the two. While I already knew the Walmart fried chicken was overcooked, it was less expensive than KFC, so if they were both the same level of taste, maybe the deli would be a better buy.
What a time I had at the deli. I ordered two legs and two thighs. "We don't sell two pieces. You have to buy six pieces." "Well, OK. Three legs and three thighs." "You have to buy six of the same thing." ???? I really couldn't figure out what the Walmart chicken buying rules were, and eventually she agreed to put chicken in a bag and charged me $7. I thought it was three legs and three thighs. Then off to KFC.
When I got home, we had fried chicken. First I opened the Walmart chicken. I couldn't figure out what it was. Three legs and three small fried mysteries. Wings? Three wing parts maybe. This was puzzling. Well, let the taste test begin.
As expected, Walmart tasted like overcooked leftovers. Still, it was probably a C-. Then we each tried a KFC leg. It tasted for all the world like the Walmart fried chicken. Either Walmart rivaled KFC, or they were both equal failures. It actually seemed that KFC goes over to Walmart and buys fried chicken, and rebrands it as KFC.
So, there's still plan C. Plan C is the Dodge Gas Station. Problem. It tastes like they change the oil once every six months. Bitter and rancid.
All of these eating establishments are a few blocks from the chicken plant. Yet, fried chicken can't happen.
When did KFC start making leftover fried chicken? It coincided with the point when they opened a buffet in the dining area. They fry chicken, haul it out to the buffet, and the next day sell what's left from the buffet at takeout. It's no secret that Walmart leaves the chicken under heat lamps all day, and sells leftovers.
I guess we've reached the bitter end with fried chicken.
UPDATE
I gave the Dodge Gas Station chicken a second chance, and this time it was delicious. They don't leave it sitting around as leftovers because they don't make much, and it was juicy and yummy. I visited the Casey Gas Station to see what the competition was doing. No chicken. They had a busy little pizza parlor.
Well, if I ever decide to get pizza I'll visit Casey Gas Station.
So that was it for fried chicken around here.
Sunday, September 3, 2023
Saturday, September 2, 2023
Matthew 5
Matthew 5
Written from memory
1. And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain, and when he was set, his disciples came unto him,
2. And he opened his mouth and taught them saying,
3. Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake.
12. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
13. Ye are the salt of the earth, but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
14. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
15. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
16. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
17. Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled.
19. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
21. Ye have heard that it was said of them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment.
22. But I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
23. Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother have ought against thee,
24. Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way. First be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
25. Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.
26. Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out thence till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
27. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery.
28. But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
29. And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
30. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
31. It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement.
32. But I say unto you that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery, and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
33. Again, it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths.
34. But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:
35. Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: nor by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.
36. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thy canst not make one hair white or black.
37. But let your communication be Yea, yea; nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
38. Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
39. But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil, but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
40. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.
41. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
42. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.
43. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy.
44. Buy I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you.
45. That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven, for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just, and on the unjust.
46. For if you love them that love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same?
47. And if you salute your brethren only, what do you more than others? Do not even the publicans so?
48. Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Friday, September 1, 2023
Burning Boxes
In the future, before I burn boxes, I will check to see if there is a burn ban in this county, which there is. It occurred to me after the fact.
There were a lot of boxes, and I didn't want to burn boxes, but I just couldn't take having them in the way anymore. And so I began to take them out to my special burn spot in the driveway. It works pretty well because the traffic on the driveway keeps the vegetation down and there aren't many plants near there. It did occur to me that we were in a drought, and I would rather burn boxes on a rainy day. However, I had a hose in the event of trouble, so I went ahead with the project.
I'm kind of disturbed about the way this burn went. The grass had recently been mowed, so there were dried clippings all over the place. But would it be better if the grass were two feet tall? I noticed the fire taking off for the front yard, and went to spray it with the hose. But the wind blew so much smoke at me that I couldn't quite get to the area. I saw that the fire had moved over a much larger section of the yard, and decided to use a five gallon bucket to douse it. But time seemed to go by so slowly while I retrieved the bucket and filled it with water, except for the time it took the fire to get to the far side of the yard. Several bushes were on fire and the flames were now four feet high. I wondered if should call the fire department, but they couldn't get here in time. And so I ran around as fast as I could filling the bucket and putting out the fire. I had just managed to get things back in hand except for a few lingering areas of smoldering, when I was buzzed by a small plane just above the trees, right on top of me. I suppose they were trying to decide if there was a wildfire. I think they felt the fire was under control and the excitement was over.
I sat on my little bench in what was left of the yard for around half an hour to make sure the fire was out. Wow. I had burned down the front yard. It actually looks neater because it had gotten overgrown.
Have I learned my lesson? Well, next time I need to burn boxes there is precious little left of the yard to burn. No more burns in a drought.
I decided to take a bath, and go lie down and drink a Coke.