Monday, January 20, 2014

THE PYRAMID


A lie was told to hide a deed,
And as the days went by
There came a sudden powerful need,
To hide that spoken lie.
And then the whole thing tumbled flat
And there was no excuse,
So friends, don't try to build like that,
There isn't any use.

This ancient poem still fits into many present day circumstances and worthy of note today. My older sister Helen, age 92, became a dental missionary in Ivory Coast in Africa. She was so happy to inform me that our two nearby nieces were planning to become medical doctors and she was donating most of her savings and able to send them $2,500.00 for each of them. It meant so much for Helen as she reminded me that Canada is so short of doctors because they are importing doctors who had graduated from the university in south Africa who then moved to Canada. They are wonderful doctors but that leaves a serious shortage in Africa. So I agreed to help out by loaning these two "doctors to be" $30,000.00 interest free to help out. I asked their mother, my niece to not mention my name to them so they would be encouraged to try hard. "Oh no Auntie because they think so much of you and they will try even harder to succeed with their hopes and dreams.

Last July brought my 90th birthday. My eyesight is failing and jobs for people my age with failing sight have great difficulty. The two students say they do not want to be doctors anymore and my loan to their parents is all spent. Both students are no longer interested in being doctors. With one more year at university they could become nurses which are in short supply here. I contacted the Vernon courthouse about this debt and the responsibility of their parents in connection with the money their mother had received from my account at Dominion Securities. The Judge was very nice but said he would exit the court room and let all four of us talk it over. Both of these students have found husbands and have been busy with vacations during the years, including flying to tropical islands during Canada's winter months. So far the parents have been unwilling to help their daughters. It may be just the mother since their father may not have known about the loan but he did come with her to the court hearing and knew the money had been received from my account at Dominion Securities.


My own son Ken graduated as the top student from the University of Victoria and has helped me out. He put himself through that university with no help from us and did it with summer jobs and scholarships. With his ability and knowledge my husband was a top student during his lifetime also but died in 2003 from harmful materials used to developing computers which were later found to be harmful in development of them.

Monday, January 13, 2014

TAPPING THE POWER OF PROTEIN


"The essential power of protein builds strength,  normalizes weight and boosts energy," says Barbara Rolls, Phd,,"  and Helen A. Guthrie, chair of nutritional Sciences at Pennsylvania State University.  But  there is one important exception, women 70 and older, may not be getting enough protein that may be partly due because the intake of food declines with age, which could harm their health. 

The question arises, How much protein should I eat?  Since protein is the main building block of our cells the  body requires, we need about 210 grams daily.  While the centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other nutritional agencies recommend that 10 to 35 percent of our calories are required for building blocks, there is some confusion that requires clarity.  There is an old adage that says, "If you are not contented where you are after many moves and changes, you will not be content wherever you are." 

For a protein example, "Multiply your  weight by 0.4 percent if you are 180 pounds, aim for at least 72 grams of protein daily.  A sandwich with three ounces of chicken, along with one cup of 1 percent milk is about 40 grams of protein.  Over age 65 multiply your weight by 0.6   percent  to reach your protein daily dose.  Vary your diet with generous amounts of green salads and other greens like kale and lettuce.