So How Does YOUR Garden Grow?

KimB

Soon as we all cook sweet potatoes...

It's getting to gardening time again and I figured I should bring folks up-to-date on my potato obsession. Last year I tried sweet potatoes.

When the time came to harvest I stuck a finger, then 2 fingers, then a hand into the pot and got "nothing". Not even a rock pretending to be a sweet potato. Sigh....

So I decided to put something else in the pot and upended my container into a big garbage can I use for this and you won't guess what was hiding AT THE BOTTOM of the pot!

SWEET POTATOES! LOTS OF THEM!

They didn't grow like the taters at the surface, they burrowed right down to the bottom of the pot and even threw roots out the drain holes. There they were, neatly stacked one on top of the other!

We had enough big ones to eat stand alone and I had more than enough to make mashed sweet potatoes for the holidays. I still have enough to cook up for another meal or two.

The big ones I baked normally, the small ones I covered in water with their jackets still on, so they wouldn't dry out, and cooked them in the microwave. Once they were cooked and cooled a bit the jackets slid right off.

And you can certainly guess what's going into the garden this spring ...

Nearly all "sweet potatoes or yams" sold in the US are just "sweet potatoes". The orange flesh colored sweet potatoes are marketed as "yams" but are not "real yams" which are totally unrelated to sweet potatoes. There are more than 6,500 types of sweet potatoes and the sweet potato flesh comes in all colors from white to deep red. Lighter colored sweet potatoes are less "sweet" than the deeper colored varieties.

Sweet potato leaves can be eaten and are a delicacy in some parts of the world. The leaf shapes vary depending on the variety and are generally heart shaped, ranging from a leaf with a single point to leaves that have 5 points. Last year, I had the heart shaped single point leaf type but the batch I have starting for this year, turned out to be the heart shaped 5 pointed leaf type.

Regardless color or leaf shape: they all taste delish!!!

Sweet Potato Harvest 2014

Our Privacy Policy

[note: Editor's Post]

Nearly every website now has a privacy policy statement and not to be left behind, here's ours. It's simple:

We don't do anything directly to track or collect your information.

However, that doesn't mean you aren't being tracked and your data collected. So, now for the unpleasant truths of the internet:

There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. aka: TANSTAAFL.

If it's a "free service" then YOU are the commodity being sold.

Your data, your photos, your life, your kids lives are all bundled, shopped, and sold to the highest bidder: Internet Marketing Slavery.

There's not much you can do about it and new laws coming "SOON(tm)" will make it nearly impossible to opt-out of anything. Even if the new laws claim to provide opt-outs, rest assured there won't be any that are meaningful.

So here's what we can tell you about our site.

KimB Editor

Topics:

• Google Hosted
• Front Page Map
• We don't monetize our site
• Pictures, Videos and Other "doodads"
• Anonymity
• We do not track you
• Suggestions on how to minimize the intrusion
• Option 1: Break your browser
• Option 2: Turn off cookies
• Option 3: Create your own White List/Black List
• Exceptions: A Note on Special Interest Groups.
• Sample Black List

Google Hosted

The site is hosted on Google's BlogSpot service. There are Google analytics running on these sites all the time. They track your access, dates, times, operating system, your geolocation and your IP Address and much more. This is collected and stored by Google and they sell this to the highest bidder.


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Front Page Map

There is a map showing the geolocation of users on the front page. This is provided by a 3d party site which provides the map. It collects page views, geolocation (hence the map part) and you can presume they are collecting the same sorts of data that Google collects for the same purposes.


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We don't monetize our site

Google provides an incentive to bloggers to allow them to gather more information by placing ads on their sites. For a kick-back payment, the site holder allows the ads to display. Google selects the ads. The ad companies pay Google for this and Google charges them plenty. The ads themselves have more data trackers and predictive algorithms to see which ones you watch or click on, so they can put more of the same on your site.

Again, we don't monetize our site, but Google is still tracking your visits and passing this on to their advertisers.


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Pictures, Videos and Other "doodads"

We try to use our own pictures or those that are in the public domain or have un-restricted licenses. We don't embed "web bugs" or "1 pixel by 1 pixel web beacons" on the page or in the pictures.

This does not mean there's nothing bad in the images as these things are manipulated on the back side of the blog beyond our control.

Google harvests the pictures similar to Facebook and it's the Google backend the shoves the picture out on the page. Google and others can and do embed "web beacons" in pictures and can place "web bugs" on pages too. This is all out of our control but you can expect it's being done.

YouTube Videos are the property of their creators and many have ads and trackers. Watching the videos embedded in the blog or by clicking on links taking you directly to YouTube may attach more trackers and harvest more information from you.

There are some links to other sites that may have trackers or have advertising. We try to minimize these sorts of links but generally you can expect that clicking on any link that the click will be tracked.

We have one script: the Google Translate drop down box on the front page. This is provided by Google and we added it to allow people from other countries to read the blog in their preferred language. There are other scripts that run as part of the blog service.

At times we have the "fish tank" header or other similar "doodad"; we no longer have these for technical reasons. It can be expected that your data is being harvested from any and all of these add-ons.


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Anonymity

The contributors to the blog have their own "signatures" which can identify them to family members. We don't harvest or collect your personal names or other information.

However, both contributors and viewers are assigned Universal Identifiers by Google, ATT and many other corporate entities as the data rolls back and forth on the internet. These UIDs are designed to remove your anonymity and advertising companies maintain massive databases with cross references just to de-anonymized you.

You can pretty well assume that by now your personal name, address, SSN, phone number, your marital status, your family make up and friends along with a lot of other identifying items are stored in these massive corporate databases. These entities just "want to get to know you better".


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We do not track you

We don't know who you are and we don't care. Our only purpose is to share the history and stories of our family with other family members and with friends both old and new. We publish the stories so that anyone who wants to, can read them. We hope you enjoy the stories about our family and activities. We enjoy getting feedback but it's not necessary. If you get a chuckle or a grin reading about our adventures that's payment enough.

Google and nearly every other corporation with an internet presence, do track you. It's pervasive tracking: 24x7x365.


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Suggestions on how to minimize the intrusion

There are upcoming laws that will prevent you from opting out in any significant way. There are opt-out services you can subscribe to but these are basically reverse-tracking companies and are not much help. There are millions of websites and millions of companies invested in tracking you and they won't make it easy.


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Option 1: Break your browser

Break your browser by turning off things like JavaScript which will break a lot of pages. Nothing better than seeing where they put the trackers when you get that "blank box" effect.

Tracking companies spend a lot of money developing JavaScript to track you and line their pockets with your information. By turning off JavaScript you will limit what they can do. They can still do plenty but you can block much of it.


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Option 2: Turn off cookies

There are cookies you can turn off and there are pervasive/super cookies you cannot. You can adjust your browser settings to block all cookies and allow the ones you select. Turning off cookies will generally prevent you from logging in to websites but it also makes it harder for those websites to track you.


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Option 3: Create your own White List/Black List

A White List is a listing of sites you allow or consider safe. A Black List is a listing of sites you consider unsafe or have policies you don't agree with. Creating this list is daunting but you can block an awful lot of sites in short order. Most people visit a handful of sites on a regular basis and these sites are easily identified by checking the webpage itself for the names of advertisers. There are millions of possible names but you might only need 20-50 for your normal browsing habits.

All browsers have the ability to block sites or allow sites. You have to put the Black List ones in the block column and the White List ones in the allow column.

All browsers have a "developer" option. In Internet explorer it's F12 or click the Gear Icon and select Developer Tools. From developer tool window you can see much of the HTML and JavaScript code running on the page. It's tedious but you can go through the script on the HTML, Script and Console tabs to find the names of "suspicious" characters to place on your list.

As you build your Black/White Lists you want to see things like this on the Console Tab:

A download in this page was blocked by Tracking Protection.

You can ID tracking companies pretty fast: They aren't the web page you are looking at.

ex: googlesyndication. com

You can bet you didn't click on that URL name to see "the news".

There is a list of companies at the bottom of this post for starters. You have to create these entries on every browser you use on every device. Currently there's no import/export option for these lists. By now you can guess why not.


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Exceptions: A Note on Special Interest Groups

Even with all the best efforts you can only limit a tiny bit of the tracking and tracing. You can only limit this from legitimate companies. If you are going to some "weird" places on the internet you will need a lot more than the above. It will not stop any tracking by any 3Letter Agency from any country on the globe. You can expect all your information is being held in Romania, Thailand, Cambodia, Philippines, Canada, Tasmania and any country that has a security service with an internet connection.

You have no privacy or freedom from this group.


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Starter Black List

*.2o7. net
*.adextent. com
*.adnxs. com
*.adroll. com
*.adstream_mjx. ads
*.akamaihd. net
*.amazon-adsystem. com
*.atdmt. com [bundled with IE / microsoft partner]
*.baynote. net
*.big-direkt. de
*.burstnet. com
*.casalemedia. com
*.chartbeat. com
*.coremetrics. com
*.criteo. com
*.demdex. net
*.domdex. com [maybe malware]
*.dotomi. com
*.doubleclick. net
*.dynamicyield. com
*.ensighten. com
*.exct. net [email target marketing]
*.facebook. com
*.facebook. net
*.fastclick. net
*.fbcdn. net
*.fetchback. com
*.fimserve. com
*.gigya. com
*.googleadservices. com
*.google-analytics. com
*.googleapis. com
*.googlesyndication. com
*.googletagmanager. com
*.googletagservices. com
*.guim. co. uk
*.insightexpressai. com
*.krxd. net
*.llnwd. net
*.mediaplex. com
*.mediavoice. com
*.meebo. com
*.msads. net
*.msn. com [not sure this will work]
*.mxcdn. net
*.networkadvertising. org
*.newrelic. com
*.nr-data. net
*.omniture. com
*.omtrdc. net
*.opbandit. com
*.openx. net [maybe malware]
*.optimizely. com
*.outbrain. com
*.perfectmarket. com
*.quality-channel. de
*.quantserve. com
*.redirectingat. com
*.refinedads. com
*.revsci. net [aka Audience Science]
*.rfihub. com [maybe malware]
*.rubiconproject. com
*.schema. org
*.scorecardresearch. com
*.serving-sys. com [maybe malware]
*.specificmedia. com
*.spotxchange. com
*.tiqcdn. com
*.troveread. com
*.turn. com
*.twitter. com
*.upsellit. com
*.w4. com
*.webtrendslive. com
*.wlxrs. com [microsoft ad push]
*.wunderloop. net

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New Year's Resolutions

Some do, some don't, but I usually make them. From my list of resolves, I actually accomplish some of them. It's a game I play with myself because I list things I "could, would and should" do and call them New Year's Resolutions. Sometimes it's a short list and, on occasion, it might number a dozen.

Of course, "the classic" resolves of loosing weight and exercising are number 1 and 2 on the list, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions. After a few days, or even a week or two, the resolve weakens and fades away.

Many of the things on my list are things I want to do but haven't gotten around to... yet. I also list things that need doing, like finishing craft projects before starting new ones. I often list things that require study, (a language), or practice, (the violin), but one resolution that I always make doesn't have a name or description.

I resolve to "do something different during the year that I have never done before". I never know what it will be until it happens. I never plan the 'happening'. It usually occurs when I make a spontaneous decision to try something new. One year it was raising chickens and selling the eggs. One year it was having my ears pierced. One year I learned how to knot pearls. Last year I knitted a lot of scarves and gave them to the homeless.

As the year progresses I forget about the nameless resolution, but when it happens, a light bulb goes on and Voila! There it is! Another resolution accomplished!


Resolution Accomplished!

An Odyssey ... of a sort - Part 6 of 6 by KimB

Over the year, I've learned a lot about myself and my health. I've lost a great deal of weight. My health has stabilized, my lab tests are good. My illnesses will never go away. I will have them until I die. I have pain too. My aches are a permanent feature of my life. I will never be 100% pain free but I can be free of some pain. I can now chose which sort of life I want to have over the next few years.

I cannot predict how the FAT war will end up. FAT is a very clever opponent and will work hard to upend all the things I have achieved. I've lost 40 pounds this year – little by little, month by month. My balance is improved and I can now keep up with much of the Zumba class. I can stretch quite a bit in Yoga too and every week I can to a little bit more. I am able to bike for the whole hour and each week I push up that gear a bit further.

There is reality to keep in mind. I'm not ever going to be 20 or 40 again. I won't be able to do so many things that were easy years ago and are now hard. They will remain hard and get harder. My health is stable but it won't stay that way. The nature of illnesses is that they progress over time. Mine are the same; delayed but not halted.

I am determined to make the effort to keep it this way as long as possible.

A few months ago my good friend told me she'd bought a new bike to ride at her ranch. Several times a day, she has to go down some dirt paths to open gates and turn on/off water values and such. She had bought herself a new bike and told me all about the way it worked. It had gears and brakes and adjustable everything.

I asked her to bring it on a visit because I wanted to find out if I could ride a real bike. I didn't know if I would be able to balance well enough to keep upright and there's a big difference in pushing pedals on a stationary bike and moving a real bike with tires and 200 pounds on it down the street.

She brought her new bike and her old bike. She helped me adjust the new bike so I could ride it. I got on and with a bit of wobble I rode down the street. It IS like the adage says: you never forget how to ride a bike. I wobbled about but we went on a short ride to a nearby park and back. I was SO excited. I never, ever thought I would be able to ride a real bike and here I was actually riding one!

I thought and figured and thought about this experience. I looked at it a hundred ways. I had fun. I wanted to do it again. I knew I could do it too.

So, I bought a bike. Not a great bike but an OK bike. I didn't really know much about bikes, my last bike was 45 years ago. I got something that worked for me. I went to the bike store and got the stuff I needed: helmet, head lights/tail lights and a bell.

The bell was a gift from MrsB, my mom, and it's my PRIDE AND JOY. I bike off the street on the local bike paths and I ring my bell whenever I meet up with hikers, dog walkers and distracted joggers listening to their iPods running along the path. They smile and give me a thumbs-up. I say good morning to everyone I meet and they reply in kind.

When my friend comes to visit, she now brings her bike too. I show her my latest trail finds and take her down the new paths. We have gone to the Big Park in the city and biked there too. We bike to the bird sanctuary and check out the wild birds as they stop on their migration routes. We are both having fun.

We have a goal for next year. We plan to bike around the valley floor at Yosemite Valley. There are loads of bike trails and we have maps and points of interest already picked out.

I've shared my plans with my gym instructors and it makes their day, to see someone like me, come in to their class and improve their health so much. My bike instructor has declared she will make sure I am READY TO RIDE in the spring time. She reminds me that a mile is a mile no matter how long it takes to bike it. It's not the speed that matters, it's the effort.

Effort is Everything.

[Editor's note: This story was written by KimB and is part 6 of a 6 part series.]

An Odyssey ... of a sort - Part 5 of 6 by KimB

I could still hardly move and I considered my options VERY CAREFULLY. I knew that I needed to do more physical activity or I would just freeze up again. That POP! in my back might not last. I couldn't be sure what it was even. The doctors didn't know either. I knew that I had to do something but I had to be very careful or I might end up worse than before.

Rule #1 – Don't Get Hurt.
Rule #2 - see Rule #1.

So, I worked on the elliptical trainer at the gym in s l o w  m o t i o n. 5 minutes. 10 minutes. Done. You can't move 210 pounds very far, very fast if you want to keep Rule #1: Don't Get Hurt.

I then did something extremely brave. I joined in a class at the gym. I started doing Yoga.

I'd done yoga in the past when my weight rivaled Oprah's but it wasn't too successful. This time I determined that I would not “compete” against anyone, not even myself. I would honor Rule #1 and monitor every move and modify anything that was difficult or might be painful. I would do what was reasonable for ME to do and nothing more.

I moved my goal posts so far in that anything I did would be a “win”. Getting my gear ready. Getting in the car. Driving to the gym. Walking in to the gym. Going into the class. Staying until class was over. It was all WIN, WIN, WIN, WIN.

It's not hard to imagine what a elephant seal would look like doing yoga and that's pretty much what it was like. I didn't work myself into a lather about it. I did what I could. What I couldn't, I set aside. The important thing was I came back the next week and the next week and the next.

After a short while I could see there was improvement. The scale showed it too. Not a lot, just a pound here and there. It was slow but steady and my health was improving.

I knew I couldn't stop there. I needed to do more. I decided to try Zumba. I watched the class work out a few times and I knew that there was no way I could move the way they did. You don't hustle 210 pounds that easily. I was unsteady on my feet and my balance wasn't that great. I thought this might help and it fit Rule #1.

I went to the class and stood in the farthest back corner where I wouldn't get run over by the more agile members. When the music started I waved my hands around; when I remembered, I moved my feet too.

Zumba was amazing. At first I had a very hard time and wanted to stop. It was so intimidating to see people bouncing up and down and moving quickly. I lacked the coordination to do many of the moves and could barely stand up for the whole hour. But I didn't stop. I came back the next week and the next week and the next week.

Soon I found I could do more and my balance improved. I re-labeled Zumba: “My Agility Training Program” and realized I could make it as hard as I wanted. You do all the standard exercises standing up and moving. The first time I was able to balance on one leg for just a few seconds was an amazing experience.

Immobility gives you a perspective on something simple like that. Things were getting better and the scale was showing it.

I had my stretching and my agility programs in place but there was another aspect I needed to add: strength. I went to the cycling class.

I didn't really know much about cycling classes other than they use stationary bikes. I figured I couldn't fall off a stationary bike so that fit Rule #1. In other classes, I could see people hopping up and down on their bikes and I knew THAT wasn't going to happen but maybe I could just pedal... slowly.

So I went to my first class. I didn't know at the time; it was another moment that would change everything.

The instructor helped me adjust the bike and off we went – visually. I waited for the up and down routines to start but that didn't happen. People just hunkered down and pedaled, so I did the same, although a lot slower. Periodically, there was a call out to “add more gear” and a neighbor showed me the lever to shift the gears. I tried Gear 2 but was soon back to Gear 1. I pedaled the whole hour and was fork-tender-done by the end.

I found out that the class I was in, was a road-racing workout class. None of that up and down, hopping around stuff, just bike like you're on the Tour de France. I bought a padded seat from the sporting goods store so my derriere would fit on the bike. I learned about tempo and cadence and sprints and thresholds and climbing. I had fun, so I went back. Each week I could pedal a bit harder and longer. I could see it in the monitor on the bike. I moved from Gear 1 to Gear 2 and then on to Gears 3, 4, 5. Each week I could see my own improvement and now the scale began tilt in the downward direction.

While Rule #1 is the primary rule, I found that “effort” is an aspect that gets ignored in the equation. Effort is not the same as Pain. Effort is uncomfortable and may make you sore the next day but pain is not part of that equation. You need Effort, to get Health. You do not need Pain.

The adage “No Pain - No Gain” is false. Pain stops everything. If you get hurt, you stop. That's the end.

Effort is what makes things happen. You have to try hard things, to do hard things and make the hard things easier. It's effort that powers the bike. It's effort that moves the feet. It's effort that makes the stretch. Without effort, you are spinning in Gear 0, going nowhere; you're racing the engine but missing the staging lights.

Rule #3 = Make an Effort

[Editor's note: This story was written by KimB and is part 5 of a 6 part series.]

An Odyssey ... of a sort - Part 4 of 6 by KimB

The following is 100% unscientific.
It's my own personal rationalization of the effects of the FAT cycle.

the FAT cycle FAT => SALT => SWEET
FAT	SALT	SWEET
cheeseburger	fries	coke
pizza	bread sticks	coke
ribs	loaded baked potato	coke
sandwich	chips	coke

I like cheeseburgers, I like pizza, I like ribs and I eat a lot of sandwiches.

I like fries, bread sticks, bakers and chips too.

Coke? Hmmm... Coke?

A few rounds of regular coke or maybe a lemon-lime drink that's OK isn't it? I don't always drink the whole thing so there's not that many calories. They all have that High Fructose Corn Syrup stuff. That's OK isn't it?

STOP

LIGHTBULB

INSIGHT

It's not the coke... it's the HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP.

The cycle should really be this:

the SWEET TO FAT cycle SWEET => SALT => FAT
SWEET	SALT	FAT

High Fructose Corn Syrup is sweeter than previous sweeteners like sugar and honey. It's way sweeter. It's in everything. It's claimed that HFCS are just like sugars. Many health professionals claim that sugar, regardless of origin, is just plain bad for your health.

So, I focused on the common denominator of High Fructose Corn Syrup. I banished anything with HFCS in it. Out went the ketchup, the BBQ sauces and a whole pile of other things which had this in the ingredient list. It was surprising how much of this is used in everyday foods. Into the bin it went.

I dropped all the artificial sweeteners too. If SWEET is part of the cycle then the artificial sweeteners are part of this trigger. They may have fewer calories but they interact with the rest of the body's metabolism.

I stopped buying any drinks with HFCS or artificial sweeteners in them. If I wanted a coke I bought the kind made with regular sugar without any additives. I put my own sugar in drinks, not because the sugar has fewer calories or is better for you but because I could SEE how much I was putting in.

The first few days were a bit odd. Mostly from not running down to Mac's Drive Thru to buy the $1 ginormous sized sweetened drink but after a few days I didn't miss it.

It didn't take long for other things to begin to fall away too.

I stopped craving potato chips/french fries. There are bags of Olive Oil Chips in my pantry and I really have no desire to eat them. There's no prohibition to eating them, I just don't want to.

After the SWEET and SALT began to recede I found I had a lot less interest in eating big portions of FAT. Especially those served at Fast Food Joints. I like cheeseburgers but I can make a better burger at home and I put all the trimmings on it too: cheese, dressing, pickles, mustard, ketchup, tomatoes, lettuce ... the works. The ribs and pizza are OK but I just don't find them as tempting as before.

I can eat any of these items; I just don't have any desire to eat them.

I began to lose weight too. Just a little bit.

It took less than a month to go from nearly immobile with pain and dying from FAT, to seeing something positive happen in my life.

A pound less is a pound less.

[Editor's note: This story was written by KimB and is part 4 of a 6 part series.]

An Odyssey ... of a sort - Part 3 of 6 by KimB

I took a hard internal and emotional look at myself and my future. It wasn't a happy viewing.

I was fat; beyond fat: obese; beyond obese: morbidly obese. I was going to die from FAT.

That was how I was going to die: I was going to die from FAT.

Every day I was lifting 20, 40, 50, 100 pounds every step I made. Every day my heart struggled to pump blood into those extra 20, 40, 50, 100 pounds of FAT that was clogging my arteries, my internal organs and hanging on my belly like a boat anchor, reminding me daily that FAT was taking my quality of life and leaving me with bitter dregs of “might have beens”. FAT was dictating what I did, when and how I did it, and removed more and more options with each extra pound.

It was a tough and hard viewing.

I decided I didn't want to die from FAT.

Nearly everyone who lives in the US has dealt with FAT before. We have diets and fads and special foods and special programs to help us deal with FAT. I've been there, done that. It doesn't work. FAT wins, returns and claims more of you than before. FAT is smarter than we are, it knows you will fight for a while and then cave. Once you cave-in, FAT wins and the pounds roll back on faster and heavier than before. It's a war; one FAT always wins.

In the US, the diet food companies and anti-fat programs bet on FAT.

It seems impossible to deal with FAT but there are ways to delay, sabotage and derail the FAT inevitable re-invasion. It takes courage to start and courage to endeavor to make a change when you know that you will have to do it again, and again and again and again. If you don't want to die from FAT, this is what you have to accept: The War in never won and it's never over. The victory is every day there is less FAT than before. That's all there is: less FAT. In return you get more quality of life. Not MORE life, more QUALITY of life.

I pooled my knowledge about FAT and how it works and put my “little gray cells” to work trying to figure out something, anything, that would help me with FAT. I did more searches, I went to FAT seminars and attended FAT Medical Weight Loss program informational meetings, reviewed surgical options and generally came up with... NOTHING WORKS.

It doesn't work. FAT wins. FAT is good business.

At this point, most folks just “pick one from the list” to try to give FAT a shove out the door. I've done this too. You pick what you think you can do and you do it for a while and then you cave. I can't even think of a “turkey roll up” without gagging now. I knew I had to try something “else”, something that would work for me, that I could do without too much effort or discomfort. Something I could make happen every day.

[Editor's note: This story was written by KimB and is part 3 of a 6 part series.]

An Odyssey ... of a sort - Part 2 of 6 by KimB

I was left with knowing there was “nothing new” outside of health issues uncovered a decade ago and those health issues were not going away – ever. I was looking at a rather bleak picture of declining health, mobility, activity and freedom to do what I want, when I want.

When you have to plan an expedition to go to the market, you lose the fun of spontaneous outings.

I could barely face another day knowing that there was nothing outside of a lot of Advil, that was going to mitigate even a bit of the pain, so I decided to try something, anything, to minimize the discomfort.

I didn't know I was about to embark on an amazing journey.

Being assured by my doctors that, even though I had a lot of pain, I wasn't going to injure anything, I went to the pool at the local gym. I've been going to the gym off and on for years and like most people I would go for awhile and then stop. When I was younger, I could do a big workout but as my weight increased and health declined the workouts were less and less.

My local gym is extremely well equipped and has a lap and walking pool. I'd gone to their water aerobics classes in the past, so I decided to try to walk the pool again. I hobbled in with my cane and headed to the pool. I took my cane right up to the edge with me and began slowly going down the steps. I didn't know if I would be able to get up the steps when I was finished. I knew the gym had a disability chair lift available and that they would eventually be able to haul me out of the pool.

I did my walking routine and then headed for the steps. From the bottom, it looked like the top of Everest and the 3 steps were as difficult to me as the summit would be to a mountain climber. I put my foot on the first step and hauled on the hand rail. As I moved up out of the water I heard a loud POP! I froze in place. I wasn't sure what happened.

I took stock of my situation. It wasn't a backfire or gunshot. Everything seemed fine. There weren't any new pains. My toes and fingers wiggled OK. I stood on the step for a moment longer and realized: the pain in my back was GONE.

Getting out of the water with 210 pounds of traction, had realigned something.

I went home with no pain in my back and a realization that I COULD do something about this after all. I could make sure that this “kink” in my back did not return.

We went to Costco and I bought one of those memory foam mattress toppers. Friends had already purchased similar items for their back problems, so I knew that they had some benefit. We lugged the box home and got it placed on the bed.

The first morning was amazing. Not only did my back not hurt but the pains in other parts of my body had also decreased. Over the next few days, each morning the overall pain index was less. So much of the existing pain was inter-related that when those muscles were finally able to relax into a more normal state, the effect was instantly recognizable.

I wasn't pain-free, but I had a lot less-pain.

On a follow up trip to Costco I spotted some pillows with the same memory foam material and I threw those in my shopping cart too. I had no expectations about what such a pillow would do, as we normally use very good “health grade” style pillows.

More than 30 years ago, I'd gotten a whiplash from a car accident. The pain never really went away and over the years I'd sorted out a way to sleep to support my neck and head. On occasion, if I didn't get the pillows “just right”, I'd be in for a whole day of neck pain too.

I was taking a chance on trying these new pillows – it might not work out.

The pillows were hard as rocks and Allen tossed his right away. I didn't find mine uncomfortable and figured I'd try it for the night.

The next morning was amazing. After 30 years of neck pain – there wasn't any. The difference was astonishing. That rock hard pillow allowed some muscles in my neck to relax and after 30 years of “cramp” it was hard to believe that I could have that much pain free movement.

The amount of overall pain declined over a few weeks but didn't go away completely. I still had pain, a lot less than before, but I could deal with what I had. I made a decision that would change my views on a lot of things.

Having experienced what was coming in the future, I resolved to delay what was inevitable and heading my way, as long as possible.

More TIME is not an option in life; I had to do something NOW.

[Editor's note: This story was written by KimB and is part 2 of a 6 part series.]

Happy New Year 2015!!!

Happy New Year 2015!!!

An Odyssey ... of a sort - Part 1 of 6 by KimB

Every year I go through the somewhat obligatory review of achievements and failures of the previous year. Most often the win/loss columns are equal but in some years the columns are more lopsided and I make assertions to “do better” in the coming year.

Last year was no different... except is was.

The Greek epic poem about the end of the Trojan War, the Odyssey, reminds me of my journey this year. The story is full of adventure, romance, awe, sorrow, happiness, obstacles and surprising victories over everyday impediments. It's one that everyone experiences in different ways and continues until the last breath and the last heart beat. Mortality and the Ferryman capture us all, but before the Ferryman comes, demanding his payment, the Odyssey continues.

During the Trojan War, the Greeks and Trojans fought epic battles and the gods were divided about which side should win. The Greeks were promised ultimate victory but not an easy one. The war consumed both sides and at the end, Troy was burned, the city razed, their people slaughtered or enslaved and their heroes dead on the battlefield.

The triumphant Greeks headed home after a decade of war, secure in their victory with the spoils and riches of Troy as proof. They didn't live long to enjoy it.

Nearly every great Greek hero dies before or shortly after arriving home. Their doom is pronounced often but they ignore the warnings. One of the few that return home successfully is the hero Odysseus but not without trials and delays.

Odysseus' journey lasts another decade and there are many obstacles to his return. He is shipwrecked, attacked, delayed, held hostage. The gods fight over his fate as he persists in what seems to be a futile effort to return home. His homecoming is not without danger and he must overcome the effects of 20 years of absence to prove his identity and re-claim his lands and family.

Over the last decade my health has declined – a lot. The effects of illness and the required drugs with their numerous complications and side effects, led to a very large weight increase. Add in aging, with its increasing physical limitations, all made a recipe for “the worse”.

Oprah has nothing on me; I could beat her bag-for-bag in any cookie eating competition.

At the end of 2013, the state of affairs was on the “awful” side of the ledger. I could barely move without a cane, I was starting to seriously look at walkers and thinking of motorized wheelchairs. The pains in my joints and back made even simple tasks an Everest style challenge. I had been through more and more tests and spent hours in the MRI hoping that the doctors would find “something” and especially hoping that the “something” had a reasonable chance of being alleviated/fixed.

It didn't happen. They found nothing new.

That turned out to be “the good news”.

[Editor's note: This story was written by KimB and is part 1 of a 6 part series.]

Christmas Customs

End Homelessness by Marion 2014

A pagan tradition of using boughs of trees to decorate homes marking the winter solstice continued when Romans celebrated Saturnalia in honor of the deity, Saturn, on December 17th. Early Christians opposed the practice as pagan and Christian churches continued the opposition to the celebration of evergreens until mid-19th century.

Oliver Cromwell preached against “heathen' traditions and Puritans condemned the customs associated with Christmas- yule logs, holly, mistletoe, and carols. The Pilgrim Governor, William Bradford, a Calvinist, tried to stamp out “pagan mockery” at Christmas, and trees were not decorated during Colonial times.

Protestant Germans were the first to popularize the decoration of Christmas trees. During the 1840s and 50s, Prince Albert decorated trees for Queen Victoria. Out of love for the queen, the English began celebrating Christmas with tree decorations. In 1851, Pastor Henry Schwan of Cleveland, Ohio, was the first person to decorate a Christmas tree in a church.

The concept of trimming a tree at Christmas is world wide, but there is still opposition by fundamental religious groups as pagan observances. As late as Christmas 2000, the city manager of Eugene, Oregon, ordered no Christmas trees on city property since they are considered Christian symbols.

Hell in a Hand Basket

This is an expression often heard when people grouch about affairs of state. 'Going to hell in a hand basket' implies that the decisions made by those in charge of running and protecting the country are not up to snuff and their decisions are leading the country toward disaster. So called 'progress', paired with disapproval of policies opposite to one's own preference, also contributes to the universal complaint that the country is 'going down hill' or 'going to hell in a hand basket'.

Barbaric atrocities in the quest for religious dominance and struggles against tyrannical governments are aired on TV 24/7. These events have a cause and effect on a global scale, and forming policies that will combat such perverse behavior is frustrating. and never ending. Relationships between nations are always changing; becoming more complex as they vie for economic and political dominance.

There are no easy answers, but one can't help but ask if some policies will solve problems or create more.

• Will we ever get back to a peace time economy?
• Will all the country's adult males be veterans?
• Will all the country's young women soon be veterans too?
• Will NSA ever stop collecting data on American citizens?
• Will the internet ever be totally safe for banking or shopping?
• Will the country ever have protected borders?


• Is the country going to hell in a hand basket?

[Those people] who would rather ride to hell in a hand-cart than walk to heaven supported by the staff of industry.

Elbridge Gerry Paige (1813-1859)
Short Patent Sermons, 1841

Big Talk, Big Stick

Since the public airing of the Senate torture study, comprising details of the horrific methods used to cause human suffering, participants and those who approved the actions are defending the practice. Their hue and cry of innocence and accusations of misleading and false information in the report makes it seem as if torture is not only permissible, but standard behavior of captured enemies.

I'm astounded at the widely voiced approval of torture. To have willingly participated in actions of atrocity considered war crimes, or even having known and permitted the actions, belies what Americans refer to as our VALUES.

Writing Secret Language

I recently finished reading a novel based on the factual lives of women in China during 1820 to 1850, the years of Emperor Daoguang. The book, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, by Lisa See, describes in detail the lives of women, their relationships to each other, their superstitions, religious practices and forced acceptance of worthlessness.

The novel centers around Yao women, descendants of the Yao ethnic tribe who settled in Yongming county region during the Tang dynasty after fleeing Mongol armies in the north. The two main characters, Snow Flower and Lily, record their friendship and lives in Nu shu from ages of five, young adult hood, marriages and death.

Nu shu is a written language, used by Chinese women for over a thousand years, and kept hidden from men. It had been invented by women who were forbidden to learn to read the writing and classics taught to men. Nu shu does not represent a specific word. Characters are phonetic, representing sound. Each character may represent more than one word if they sound the same. Context usually makes the meaning clear, but much care must be taken not to misinterpret the meaning.

During the last half of the 20th century, Nu shu nearly became extinct since the reason for using it no longer existed. Few Nu shu documents, whether letters, stories, weaving or embroideries have survived since most were burned at grave sites for metaphysical reasons. In the 1930s Japanese soldiers destroyed many that had been kept as heirlooms. During the cultural revolution in China, Red Guards burned more texts.

Lisa See, author, of the book, relates an incident in her research notes about the hidden writing. One day in the 1960s, an old lady fainted in a rural Chinese train station. Police, searching her belongings in an effort to identify her, came across papers with writing they thought might be a secret code. She was arrested on suspicion of being a spy. Scholars, who deciphered the writing, quickly realized it was the written language used by women and hidden from men for over a 1000 years. The scholars were sent to labor camps.

Currently the Peoples Republic is making an effort to keep the language alive by opening a Nu shu school in Puwei, a village of Tongkou. The last remaining woman who used and spoke the language died a few years ago, but several of her students and various international scholars who are members of societies that study and preserve ancient languages are also trying to preserve and collect samples of Nu shu.

In the rules governing Nu shu: it can be used to write letters, stories, autobiographies, songs, lessons on womanly duties, prayers to goddesses and popular stories. It is written with a brush on paper or a fan. It can be embroidered on handkerchiefs, or woven into cloth. It can and should be sung before an audience of women and girls. It can also be something read and treasured alone. Two most important rules are: Men must never know it exists, and men may not touch it in any form.

The movie, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, made by a Hong Kong film maker, starring the famous actress, Li BingBing, was released in the United States in 2011.

"Nüshu" written in Nüshu (right to left).

O Columbia, Gem of the Ocean

O Columbia, Gem of the Ocean.....

Those words are all I remember of a song a teacher tried to teach us when I started school. We stood in a circle around her and repeated the lines as she sang them, but I'm not certain we ever got beyond these first few words. A song about 'Columbia' had little meaning for me in those early years, and we never sang it in the higher grades.

Many years later when I saw the Columbia River for the first time, the refrain, 'O Columbia, Gem of the Ocean', popped in to my mind. I was so taken by the river's majestic awesomeness I was spellbound. Those words, 'Gem of the Ocean', seemed apt.

Whenever watching a movie made by Columbia Pictures, their logo, a colorful depiction of a universal woman in flowing robes, standing on a pedestal, holding a torch above her head and surrounded by beautiful clouds, appears before end titles. As the graphic takes shape on the screen, I remember, 'O Columbia, Gem of the Ocean'.

When I decided to surf the net for the lyrics, I came across some interesting facts. The origin of the name, Columbia, first appeared in a 1738 weekly publication of the British Parliament. Printing the Parliament debates was forbidden, but they were camouflaged as “Reports of the Debates of the Senate of Lilliput.”. Fictional names were given to other countries; Columbia was chosen to represent America.

In 1843, an actor, David Shaw wanting a new patriotic song to sing at a benefit performance. Thomas á Becket, Sr. wrote the lyrics and melody to 'O Columbia'. The song became a popular patriotic song competing with 'Hail Columbia' and 'The Star Spangled Banner' until 1931 when 'The Star Spangled Banner' was declared the National Anthem.

In 1924, Columbia Pictures advertised for a woman to represent Miss Columbia in their film logo, making the word, Columbia, the female personification of America. Since then, various women have posed for Miss Columbia which always remains an heroic figure in flowing robes, holding a torch high, surrounded by beautiful clouds.

The song or music of 'O Columbia, Gem of the Ocean' has been featured in films such as Amistad, The Music Man, Twilight Zone, Donnie Brasco and West Wing.

Columbia Pictures logo

Michael Hayden's Dictionary by KimB

One of the more interesting aspects of the NSA and all the hooha surrounding what the surveillance agencies do, is their ability to redefine words in any language, primarily English, because it's so easy to do. If you don't like a rule that prohibits X just rename X to Y and now since Y is not prohibited by law, the spy business moves along as usual.

Some of these re-names are in the notorious category like the word games for “torture”.

“Torture” became “Enhanced Interrogation” but after a great deal of complaints, “Enhanced Interrogation” was returned to its previous definition of “Torture”. If left at “Torture”, the surveillance agencies sadists would have nothing to do, so they renamed it again and it now parades under the definition of “Coerced Interrogation”. Doesn't change what it is, it's still “torture” but since it's not prohibited by law under this name, the NSA/CIA and their American Psychological Association licensed sadistic members and un-licensed CIA sadists get to enjoy the full gamut of torture and get to write books describing how virtuous this activity is, providing you are the torturer and not the torturée. These licensed APA members get to write the operations manuals for Neophyte CIA Sadists, who haven't yet discovered how to do these sorts of things on their own. If per chance a legal complaint ensues about this new name, another suitable name will be applied to the same activities and the CIA Sadists and their Junior Sadist Helpers, will remain in business as usual.

Sadists are everywhere.

General Hayden knows a lot about these activities as he ran not only the NSA but also the CIA. He is well rounded and extremely adept as the Redefinition Game.

That's why I was somewhat surprised to see an old YouTube video of General Hayden from 2006, making what seemed to be an enormous gaff during a televised interview. It was completely out of character for him and well... the news agencies made some pointed comments about what General Hayden said.

During the interview General Hayden engages the reporter in a short discussion about the Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution. During the exchange General Hayden said that "probable cause" is not in the Fourth Amendment. But of course “probable cause” IS part of the Fourth Amendment.

Fourth Amendment (Amendment IV) to the United States Constitution
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

So, how could General Hayden make such a statement? During the exchange, he tells the reporter that the NSA is extremely well-versed in the US Constitution and that Probable Cause is not part of the Fourth Amendment. It looks to be an embarrassing moment and the newsrooms and media certainly played it that way.

But when you listen to the exchange carefully, really carefully you can hear the NSA/CIA re-definition happen. This was an important moment that all the newsrooms and media analysts missed. In 2006, General Hayden told us exactly what was going to happen and what did happen, as he foretold during that interview.

So where does the redefinition happen? It happens during the exchange over “unreasonable” and followed up by “probable cause”.

What he tells us, is the fundamental reasoning behind how the NSA deemed everything, everywhere was open to NSA collection. Everything electronic, on the internet, your phone records and every piece of information that anyone could possibly collect on you, was going to be collected and that the NSA was going to collect it all, keep it all and use it at-will without hindrances.

Here is the re-definition in nutshells:

• “PROBABLE CAUSE” is only required for “UNREASONABLE” searches.
• “UNREASONABLE” searches require a WARRANT.
• If the search is “REASONABLE”, there is no WARRANT needed because by definition, warrants are only needed for “UNREASONABLE” searches.
• If the activities are defined as “REASONABLE” they do not require a warrant. No Warrant. Period.
• If no warrant is required then the search, seizure and acquisition of all information is 100% within the law and is permitted without constraints or restrictions of any kind.

He states that there is No Probable Cause in the Fourth Amendment because the Fourth Amendment does not apply to the NSA/CIA – ever. There is no violation of the Fourth Amendment so Probable Cause is never an issue.

Not Then. Not Now. Not in the Future.

To keep the Fourth Amendment at bay, everything the NSA/CIA does now and forever more, will be redefined as “reasonable”. They work hard to get the lofty judges of the US Federal Courts to agree with this view and work with all the power brokers in the US Government, Congress and Senate to ensure that though the name may change, the activities will remain the same and the CIA Sadists and their Junior Sadist Helpers, will never be subject to prosecution for violations of the Fourth Amendment.

We can see this at work now, today with the fading hope of publication of the US Senate Intelligence Committee's Torture Report. The presumed disclosures would place a large number of CIA Sadists directly onto the low-end of the waterboarding table, shackled, saran wrapped with the water can at the ready along with exposing the re-re-re-redefiniton game.

The CIA Sadists have to protect their own. They certainly won't be protecting you.

They never really did, did they?



Veterans Day November 11, 2014

In Flanders Field

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That marks our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

This poem was written by Lieutenant Colonel John Mc Crae, a Canadian poet, physician, author, artist and soldier, at the battle front on May 3, 1915 during second battle of Ypres, Belgium World War I.

Poppies

My Window View

Outside one of my windows, a bush shields the glass with leaves. There are sprinkles of daylight or night light showing between the leaves during the hot months but in the cold months, the bush is a scrambled web of bare branches.

On summer days, when the temperature is 100 degrees or higher, the shaded green adds a psychological coolness to that of the air conditioning and brings a touch of nature into view.

Bouncing leaves amid the
Still, shade darkened green,
A momentary perch in a
Bird's game, hide and seek.

How deft the player
To remain unseen,
And a dancing twig
Showing where its been.

Green Leaves

one potato, two potato....

There are so many diverse electronic gaming gadgets that children have today, I wonder if they ever play interactive games requiring them to choose who will be 'it', or who will be 'out'?

When I was a child and a group of us played games with an 'it', or an 'out', we stood in a circle, making a fist with both hands. One of us would chant the potato rhyme and start the count and tap each fist in the circle until the word 'it' or the word 'out' made the final selection.

When a fist was counted out, it was held in back of the player and no longer counted as the chanting and tapping of fists continued around the circle . This method of counting was simple, fair, and approved. Sometimes the first person 'out', was 'it'.

1 potato, 2 potato, 3 potato, 4
5 potato, 6 potato, 7 potato more
8 potato, 9 potato, and O..U..T spells out.....

one potato, two potato, three potato, four

The Pickle Project by A. Nonymus

Recently I was asked to check out a great home made Bread and Butter Pickle recipe video found right here at the Chef John blog. After watching, it looked so easy and fun, I decided to do some pickling..

To get a better feel for the whole business of pickling, I further researched online and discovered loads of other recipes, and it became apparent that you can pickle just about any food including fruits, not just vegetables, and well, it seems almost anything can be pickled!

I got enthused and decided to take the plunge and make several batches of pickled stuffs



Pickles

1st: The classic refrigerator Bread & Butter pickles (per the video), 2nd: Corn 'Wheels' ; I found some fresh Olathe corn on sale at the local grocery, and decided to see how it might do as a pickling item, 3rd: of course a classic fave: Carrots, Peppers, Garlic & Onions (a la your favorite Mexican restaurant). Next: Apples with Pears and Grapes – the next project

I went to the store and found most of the ingredients right away, although some took several stores to find. Pickling spices and the various other spices were readily available, although the 'star anise' has been a bit tricky, but it's for the apples and fruit, so not yet needed.

I'm still planning to make the pickled apples and pears with grapes. One recipe suggested using maple syrup instead of sugar. I think maple syrup along with some classic apple pie spices ought to be quite delicious and create a tasty flavor profile; nutmeg, mace, cinnamon, star anise, all along with pickling spices. I think this'n is going to be a winner!

But now for the gory details so far – batch by batch ...

I'll describe the first attempt at the Bread and Butter pickles.

Following instructions, I sliced 2 lbs of small pickling cucumbers, and then dusted them with kosher salt. I let them sit for several hours stirring every so often. This 'salting' removes excess water and makes the pickles 'crunchy'. The recipe said to rinse well after the salting. I thought I did! I rinsed the slices quite well under running water for about 3-4 minutes per the instructions. I will give you a hint here ... taste 'em before you go any further. I didn't. I proceeded to make the hot brine and stir in the slices and soak as instructed. The smell was sensational, so much so that I couldn't wait the suggested 48 hours to try them. I selected a delectable slice to test... and I'm sure glad I did.

OMG!! The pickles were inedible... gah .. salt, salt, salt!!! egad I thought, what to do now?? I asked some professional cooks and chef friends if they had any idea how to remove the excess saltiness? Nothing concrete was offered.

Eventually I found one person – who had actually taught Betty Crocker how to cook – who suggested soaking and rinsing heavily and thoroughly over and over, and see if that would help – it certainly couldn't hurt!? HOORAY for Betty Crocker's teacher !!!

Quite to my surprise after 24 hours of soaking and rinsing MANY more times, and then putting them into a new salt free brine and refrigerating for another 24 hours, THEY WERE PERFECT!! What a journey those cukes took. Now they only have one short trip left to take – directly to the dining table !! yum yum!

Now that the first batch was 'saved', it was safe to proceed with batch #2. I followed all the steps exactly the same, except These were rinsed, rinsed, rinsed ,and rinsed some more. Then rinsed again just to be sure! This batch came out PERFECT! No doctoring needed. Dee-lish !!!

Buoyed by initial success', I turned to the corn. There was a sale on the seasons first Olathe corn at the local grocery (6 ears for $1), so I grabbed 6 really nice ears for this project.

First though, I had to prepare them and was delighted to use a wonderful trick I found on Chef Johns food blog. This is a really easy way to remove the husk and all the silk in one swoop!

Here's the trick - Put the whole un-shucked ear in the microwave for 3 minutes, then carefully take it out and cut off the butt end - through the husk and all. Then by grasping the tip end with a towel the husk and silk just slide right off the cooked corn and voila ... perfect hot corn on the cob!! - I did 3 ears at a time and it worked great !!! I ate one to 'test' it just as it came out of the microwave, and it was perfect. I don't think I'll ever boil corn again.

For the corn, I made a lighter brine – combining several recipes I liked online, and as it brewed the smell was wonderful! However, I quickly realized it would be hard to put 6 whole ears into the 2 qt. brine pot, and also getting them into a jar was problematic too. What to do? Well I cut the corn - still on the cob - into slices I call 'wheels'! Necessity is the mother of invention. This was a brilliant Inspiration!!

The corn 'wheels' now went into the brine, (These little wheels make great little finger holds to nibble the nibblets!!) I added some celery (cut into 2" pieces) to give some variety, color and a different flavor. The celery has been a pleasant surprise, and very tasty too! The corn brine was a bit different from the B&B pickle recipe, milder and less strident, less 'pickle-y', and it perfectly enhanced the lovely corn flavor. I am totally delighted at how tasty the corn and celery are!

Next batch: Carrots and Peppers, which were quite easy to make. I gave these more of a full flavored brine with about10 bay leaves added. The big job was peeling and slicing the carrots. The brine was just coming to a boil as I was done slicing. In they went, fire went off. After soaking in the brine for several hours – I popped 'em into the fridge! Wow! They turned out as good (better?) than the restaurant kind. Now I have a big jar of those which I've been enjoying with all my meals and especially good with Mexican dishes.

Pickling – what a great, fun way to do veggies and fruits. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it all was. I just suggest making one kind at a time for less confusion though. It was a bit of craziness whilst doing 3 different kinds at once.

Now I'm enjoying B&B pickles with everything. The corn wheels are great adds to salads or crudité, and the carrots work anyplace ... I've enjoyed those with my eggs in the morning or rice at dinner, and they make a nice crunchy substitute for chips whilst watching TV. A pickle for all seasons!

Well, they're not just your grandma's pickles anymore .. although maybe the flavors will awaken some old memories of 'back in the day' – try making some yourself. I only suggest you RINSE RINSE RINSE if you do the salting!!

Manga Manga – Abondanza!!

Pickles and Corn Wheels

Teaching knitting

From time to time, during my many years of knitting, I've taught others how to knit and it doesn't take long for a beginner to get the hang of it.

Knitting and crocheting is nothing more than making loops inside loops. There are only two stitches to learn in knitting, Knit and Perl stitch. Its the combination of those two that create the endless designs in knitted items such as sweaters, afghans, blankets and baby clothes.

Several times over the last six months, I had the occasion to help someone with their knitting project and more recently I've taught 4 different acquaintances how to knit. Three of those people enjoyed learning the skill, but one decided that it was not an activity she wanted to pursue.

Beginners struggle to use their thumbs and fingers to manipulate yarn and needles to make the simple loops that comprise knitting. While learning, it can be frustrating to keep the yarn from tangling while they move stitches from one needle to another, (which are really nothing more than sticks with pointed ends).

I remember my frustration when learning and promise beginners that once they know how the loops are made, knitting can be a fun and lasting skill. It's like learning to ride a bicycle, once you learn, you never forget.

As I help others with their knitting, I tell them the story my grandmother told me when I was growing up.

When she was in her 80's, she had a job teaching knitting in a department store. In those days, the yarns were basically wool, angora and silks, (modern acrylics not having been invented) and were sold in amounts for a particular project. Any left over yarn could be returned to the store for reimbursement. Knitters would bring their knitting to grandmother and she would fix any mistakes, dropped stitches or help with them with pattern instructions.

I was awed with grandmother's knowledge of knitting and crocheting and intrigued with her working in a department store when she was in her 80's. I was impressed then and I'm still impressed all these years later.

I wonder what she would think of the 'how to' teaching demonstrations on YouTube these days.



Knitting Needles

What are you worth? by KimB

Worth used to refer to personal wealth, as in: “How much money do you have?”

It consisted of items like, money in the bank or under the mattress, cars or trucks, land and homes, stocks and bonds, livestock and crops, valuables (like Picasso paintings) and other physical items called “tangible assets”.

Wealth is the abundance of valuable resources or material possessions.

Tangible property in law is, literally, anything which can be touched, and includes both real property and personal property (or moveable property).

Today, there is a newer meaning of worth, as in: “How much money can internet corporations make off of your data?”

This wealth is often cited to be divided into compartments that have an ascending scale rising in value based on how detailed the information is. Your phone number may not be that valuable as it's available to anyone using one of the internet phone directories while knowing that you are interested in buying a car, especially an expensive one, has more direct value.

Internet companies like Google and other search engines, internet stores like Amazon and on line shops for brick and mortar stores like Lowe's or Sears, use the history of your searches to derive “intent to purchase”. If you look up Porsche cars with red color that has a different value than looking up the different laundry uses for baking soda.

Intention is an agent's specific purpose in performing an action or series of actions, the end or goal that is aimed at.

Looking up specific items like stainless steel BBQs and spending time checking out the $1,000+ models has different value than if you are looking up the lower end of the price range. Time spent looking and repeatedly looking at the same items, show a greater intent and therefore are more valuable.

This data and the intention to buy, has “value” to those that collect it, sort it and separate the details and then resell these bundles of data it to other company's marketing and sales departments. Data that is collected “anonymously” is then “de-anonymized” with vigor, to identify you in real life and your physical location. This is all much easier to do than it sounds, because over time they can build very detailed profiles of your life style, your habits and your preferences and once they get one piece of the puzzle, the other pieces fall into place quickly. The old proverb: “The apple doesn't fall far from the tree” describes how easy it is to unravel even the most intimate secrets of your life.

De-anonymization is a strategy in data mining in which anonymous data is cross-referenced with other sources of data to re-identify the anonymous data source.

This is what drives “targeted advertising” and it's worth a lot of money to the internet companies and the buyers of the data. They know before you do what you are going to buy, when and where. They know your price preferences and your social status as well as your banking status. They know your favorite color and they know what types of things you like because they know what you choose to look at. They know what you do not like by reversing the logic. We even make it easier for them to know for certain by clicking the LIKE button where ever it appears.

Even some news media now use “targeted” news to sell you the news you want to hear. If you like FOX style news, you will get more of it. If you prefer PBS style interaction you will get that. If you have children's shows on, you won't get any news at all but there's sure to be a children's toy ad coming to your in-box very shortly.

To you, the cost is the loss of your privacy, for which you are given a 'non tangible token' in exchange called a "cookie", that will continue to track your activities for the benefit of these companies.

However, in all of this we are told the basic data has little direct value and that it's the smallest of details which generates the worth.

Your privacy has a value. … The basic facts? Very little. More detailed information – for example, you own a smartphone, are trying to lose weight or planning a baby – are worth much more. Big life changes – marriage, moving home, divorce – bring with them fundamental changes in our buying patterns as we seek, through the brands with which we associate ourselves, to recast the narratives of our lives.

The death of privacy
Alex Preston The Observer, Sunday 3 August 2014 guardian.com

But there is another way to determine what your privacy is worth, and that is by looking at what the internet companies make from your information. No matter what “service” they offer, their real business is “selling your data”. The offers of “free e-mail” is not the service they are providing to you, it's the means by which they capture your contacts list and the content of your email messages. “Free social media” connections with friends and friends of friends is not the service they are providing, it's method by which they can capture more details about you, who you know and what you know about them and more important, any information you know about them via “social media blabbing and gossiping” that they would not reveal themselves.

The value derived isn't just from a one time sale of the information, it's resold over and over and over. It's augmented and re-identified and re-parsed and reused. It grows in value over time as more in known to them about you. Your value to them grows and fuels their corporations and pays the employees who do the dirty work of ferreting out who you are and figuring out if they can entice you enough to buy just one more service that reveals one more detail about you, your family and your friends.

In the old days we had actual mailing lists and got loads of physical junk mail and you could track which magazine sold your name and address by inserting small typos or other changes when you subscribed. So, the idea of reselling your information is an old one but today value is far greater than we've been led to believe, because the value augments over time and the decay rate of the information is nearly nil. With the vast amounts of computing resources and cross-referencing done, the information never decays, your data is always up to date and ready to go to the highest bidder.

So what are you worth?

Your worth is the value of the corporations that trade on your information.

It's an easy calculation: Total Revenue divided by Total Customers. This number yields what you are worth to each company; today and tomorrow and the next year and the years far into the future, even beyond death.

Total Revenue ÷ Number of Customers = Your Value

You don't even have to mess with any numbers below the Revenue line because those other numbers represent how much they are willing to spend to get your data.

You can do this calculation for nearly every company on the planet today as each company will pay handsomely for the information. The Big Internet companies hold the lion share of the value and you can start adding it up from there. Toss in some of the smaller specialty companies that you may deal with and get a rough idea about what you are worth.

Next start adding in all those companies you do not deal with or buy from. Those companies that you do not do business with, will pay more for your data because they want you to “join the club”. They will send those ad-enticements to your cell phone every time you go near their product aisles in the grocery, hoping to snag you into trying their latest marketing efforts with bright colors and bold designs and the “new and improved” slogan on the box. They know if you stopped to look (WIN), if you picked it up (WINx2), if you put it in your basket (WINx3) and if you made it to the checkout stand (WINx4). If you changed your mind at (WINx3), they know they have a VERY GOOD chance at getting you to (WINx4) on your next visit. Perhaps a slightly better coupon (2 for 1) or discount (25% off if you by 3) or even (Buy 2 Get 1 free).

It's all designed to part you from your “worth”.

Total Revenues for 2013 1
Apple	171 Billion
AT&T	129 Billion
Verizon	121 Billion
Microsoft	78 Billion
Google	60 Billion
Facebook	8 Billion
Yahoo	4.7 Billion
Netflix	4 Billion

¹ Revenues as listed on Wikipedia. Data harvested, cross referenced and de-anonymized from individual corporate SEC EDGAR filings.

The 574 Dollar Flags

I don't often think of the Stars and Stripes, but the sighting of it is so common, it's as familiar as trees. I have a small one hanging on my kitchen wall near the hurricane map and a slightly larger one outside the front door near the night light. There are rules about the treatment and displaying of the flag, and its a familiar sight as it flies atop public buildings.

We learn the history of the flag when we attend school, and our family is amused over a story involving my daughter when she was in the first or second grade at school. She was taught that Betsy Ross had sewn the flag. During Christmas holidays, when Aunt Bessie was with us, my daughter asked her about sewing the flag. My daughter thought the teacher had been talking about our aunt, whose name was Bessie Ross.

Family genealogy whets my interest in American history and I recently watched an episode about the War of 1812 on television's History channel.

The War of 1812, was our second war of Independence. The visual representation of British forces, 5000 soldiers and a fleet of 19 ships attacking Baltimore on September 12, 1814 showed how desperate and dire the situation was for those defending the fort. The British had already burned the White House and readied to take Baltimore.

The commander of Fort McHenry was Major Armistead who prepared for battle by saying he wanted a Garrison flag ”large enough the British would not have difficulty seeing it from a distance” and a smaller Storm Flag. A flag maker in Baltimore, Mary Young Pickersgill, was commissioned.

In early summer 1813, she began the job with the assistance of her daughter, Caroline, her two nieces, Eliza Young and Margaret Young, a free African American apprentice, Grace Wisher, and likely her elderly mother, Rebecca Young.An additional unnamed African American who boarded in the house is also listed as helping in some sources, as were additional local seamstresses who were hired during the summer.

She made 2 flags; a large flag 30 by 42 feet and a smaller flag 17 by 25 feet. She was paid $405.90 for the large flag and $168.54 for the smaller one, totaling $574.44 on October 27, 1813.


Receipt for the Flag

The flag, a combination of cotton and wool bunting in red and white with 15 stars and 15 stripes. Each stripe was 2 feet wide and each star measured 2 feet in diameter. The stars oriented in alternating columns horizontally which was the practice at the time rather than vertically like today. The staggered row pattern was common for Naval flags until Congress standardized the design in 1818.

Bombardment of Fort McHenry began on September 13, 1814 and raged continuously for 27 hours. The shelling was constant, even throughout a heavy rain storm. Some eight miles distant, an American lawyer was held prisoner by the British on board a truce ship in the Patapsco River. As he watched the battle from afar, aware that loss of the fort would mean swearing allegiance to England, he anxiously observed the flashes of bursting bombs all during the night.

When dawn came the morning of the 14th, he saw the Garrison flag still flying, and was so moved he wrote the first few lines of a poem. He put them in his pocket to finish some time later. The Lawyer was Francis Scott Key and the poem, which became our National Anthem, was about our first Star Spangled Banner.



Fort McHenry Flag