Juba II (50 BCE-23 CE), king of Numidia (North Africa), and friend of the Roman Empire, had a very high regard for his botanist doctor, Euphorbus. When his Roman friends named a plant for their doctor, Euphorbus's brother Musa, Juba immediately in recognition of his own physician gave a medicinal plant the latter's name: Euphorbia. That plant had apparently been useful to him when he'd suffered from constipation. Indeed, down through the centuries Mediterranean Spurge has been used as a laxative. But to be handled with care: the white 'milk' which exudes from its broken leaves and stems can cause allergic skin reactions.

Our tiny Black Garden Ant, Lasius niger, is not out for a laxative but rather for Sweet Oozings from Euphorbia's flowers.

A most delightful scene in the Hortus Botanicus of Amsterdam!

Memories of Brambletye Boys Preparatory School 1967 – 1971.

 

When I went to Brambletye at the age of nine, in September 1967, it was my fifth school in the last four years. As my parents were routinely being posted within the Army, they felt a boarding school would give me a more stable education. I vaguely remember touring the school with them and Mr Blencowe, the Headmaster, one summer before term and being asked if I would be happy there for the next four years, to which I obediently replied, "Yes".

 

The school seemed to be based on many military methods. Each boy was allocated to one of four Houses named after great British military heroes: there were Nelson, Marlborough and Drake, and I was in Wellington. Many boy's fathers had been to Brambletye when they were young and it was not unusual for them to insist their son followed in the same House. Instead of prefects we had Officers. As just one part of the overall military discipline we had to march everywhere!

 

We had no first names even though all our parents may have thought long and hard about choosing a name that would either continue the family line, please a grandfather or uncle or be one of the "in" names in the 1960’s. Despite this being formalised by Christening we were only referred to by our surnames. The list of boarders showed a proliferation of double-barrelled surnames, and one poor boy was even blessed with a triple barrelled title. If you had the same surname as someone else, the older and more senior added "1" to his name, the junior adding "2". You had Smith 1 and 2 because they were common. They did get as far as Sommerfelt 3 but no other parents managed to produce four offspring within the four year scope of preparatory school life (fertility treatment had not been developed at this time!).

 

I remember the first night, going to bed later than it should have been at 6.30pm, and a few of the other sixteen or so boys in the dormitory sobbing into their pillows. They were comforted by the matrons in their starched white uniforms. I had the benefit of a few months on the majority of them as I was a Spring baby born in March, while there were still others born later in Autumn of the same year who were in the same intake. Whether this classified me as "retarded" because there were younger and cleverer boys in the same class, I shall never be sure, but I do know I didn't cry on the first night.

 

The dormitory was a long room with nine steel framed beds down one side, seven down the other. One side had deep windows stretching from the high ceiling down to near the floor, overlooking the shallow valley below. To the right you could see a lake or reservoir that glistened in the sun. It appeared only a few miles away. To me it symbolised "freedom" as on nice sunny days you could see yachts sailing on it. But between the shimmering water and me was a gulf that might as well have been a thousand miles wide. I never ever did reach its shores, and be able to look back across to the school.

 

Winter terms could be dark and huge curtains were drawn across those high dormitory windows. In summer time even they couldn't make it dark enough to sleep until late. But at least in summertime you could find the enamelled tin potties which were strategically located around the dormitory. These could get rather full and smelly over night and were a disgusting trap for little feet as boys sneaked around barefoot in their pyjamas after lights out. There was many a time when a toe stubbed a potty in the dark. There would be a stifled shriek either followed by the splashing of urine onto the wooden floor or the crashing of an empty tin potty skidding across the dormitory. If it crashed into the steel frame of a bed you had about 10 seconds to run back to the other end of the dormitory in pitch darkness, find your bed, leap under the blankets and "be asleep" before simultaneously the lights came on and a Master strode into the room. Anyone caught out of bed was in for a whacking!

 

Actually this only happened rarely. Dormitory raids were the exception rather than the rule. Mind you it was difficult from the juniors dormitory. The dormitory door led into a magnificent hall, very much the Headmaster's part of the school, with offices, and staff rooms to the right. A huge skinned tiger with his stuffed head, bared teeth and glass eyes, lay star shaped on the parquet floor, ready to rip into your ankles if you dared pass. To the left lay a wood panelled corridor leading to Mr Blencowe's room. Ahead, past the tiger, rose a magnificent wooden grand staircase. Above it a huge portrait of a very stern gentleman stared down forbiddingly towards the dormitory door. Access to the other dormitories could only be gained across this hall and up the staircase. With doors to left and right from which a master might appear at any moment, the staring, watching eyes of the portrait, and the risk of a master or matron appearing on the landing above, it was incredibly risky in a Colditz sort of way left to venture upstairs after lights out. If a number of you were caught, wielding pillows, tip toeing upstairs, there was only one outcome. A quick march down the panelled corridor to the left took you to Mr Blencowe's office. Normally being there was not good news, but it always gave me the chance to see the two black cast statues of Charles I and Henry VIII(?) that stood in his hallway. I was always impressed by these 3ft tall figures and thirty-five years later was quite upset to hear that they ended their lives thrown in a rubbish tip.

 

There were a number of strange procedures for First Years. One peculiar rule was that juniors had to line up outside the toilets every morning. A junior officer held a book – perhaps it should have been called a log book. According to the order of name in the book each boy would enter the toilet as a cubicle became available, do what he could and return to report to the officer with either a "1" or a "2" to confirm which bodily function had been completed. A twelve or thirteen year old officer then had the medical responsibility when noting a certain boy had not reported a "2" for several days, to tell him to go back in and try harder. Serious cases of constipation were referred to the school nurse.

 

After lunch we were required to rest. This meant returning to our dormitory to lie fully clothed in our uniforms on our beds and in silence. Of course at our age this was the last thing we wanted to do. Sleeping was difficult at this time of the day; after all lights out was at 6.30pm every night. You could take one book to read, but if you had made a poor choice you were stuck with it. Fidgeting was not allowed, even if you were bored!

 

Apart from the above two additions to the day's routine it didn't really matter which year you were in, the routine Monday to Friday was the same.

 

We got up on the alarm bell, dressed and washed. Then all 120 or so boys marched by dormitory into the Dining room to sit on wooden benches down the sides of long wooden tables topped by either a Master or Matron at each end. Grace was said in a silent room to immediately be followed by the din of scraping of chairs and benches, clattering of china and cutlery and 120 chattering boys. The food was always prepared and brought to the ends of the tables in large aluminium trays by some curious little Spanish couple called Angela and Manuel. I was never sure where they lived but it appeared to be in a large cupboard at the end of the dining hall!

 

The Master or Matron served the food, helped by the boy on the end of the row. We all moved round one place each day. As each plate was filled with food it was passed from boy to boy down the line to the end. Breakfast was always cornflakes in the summer term followed by bacon, egg and plum tomatoes. Sometimes the egg was scrambled in a watery pale yellow mush of nothing. For variety it was fried into flat discs of rubber. In winter it was porridge poured out of a massive jug - every day. Sometimes I ate a few spoonfuls, but despite a rule that you sit there until you eat it, there was always a hungry chum nearby that preferred to eat my porridge than have a dose of scrambled egg. Once I sat in the dining hall whilst the rest of school had morning inspection, chapel, prep and the first lesson, before Angela took pity on me, gave me a smile, and removed the solid, cold bowl of porridge from in front of me. I would have sat there all day, but I think she had been waiting to go shopping!

 

After the meal we returned to the dormitory to make our beds. This was a precise science recalling military traditions of the 45 degree hospital tuck and razor sharp folds. Points were attributed to the house for clean and tidy dormitories. We then had a short time to brush up our shoes and present ourselves for inspection in the main hall. This was to all intents and purposes a military parade with the Captain walking up and down each line to give a head to toe examination of brushed hair, tie knot, clean knees and polished and tied shoes. We always faced one side of the hall and your eyes naturally rose up to some huge ornate wooden boards listing the names of all the old School Captains who had gone on to better things. I was always struck by this board as it listed boys all the way back to the time of the Great War. I never thought my name would be on this board and I was proven right!

 

Next came chapel. A short march took us into a beautiful little chapel. I still remember there was so much wood in it and some lovely religious frescos. As a "non-singer" chapel during the week was quite straightforward. You stood up, sang, sat down, knelt, stood up, sang, knelt, sat up, listened to the lesson………..the routine was the same every day. I once was told to read the lesson. I was given a week to prepare for it, and fretted every day over it. Shaking in my shoes I read it in front of the whole school and apparently missed a whole verse out of it, but next to nobody noticed.

 

We had a short spell of "prep" until nine o'clock (time to do the home work you didn't do lastnight) before it was full steam into lessons.

 

Colonel Molesworth, was our French teacher. He was so regimented in everything he did, at lunchtime he would disect a rectangular tray of rice pudding with skin, into 24 precise portions using a knife to gauge the proportions. Then he would take the knife and try to cut a rectangular block of rice pudding! I tell you what, he had some knack! I detested rice pudding, porridge, semolina or tapioca, and still he always managed to give me the same sized portion as everyone else!

 

He was even more amazing at French. He taught us Franglais, a language quite unknown to the Gallic people of France, so that even after finishing at Brambletye, and continuing it at High school, I still could not speak French after nine years.

 

He would have left today's England's football team in tears with his rules. In the days of wingers on each side, inside left, centre forward, inside right, with right, centre and left halves and a left and right back you could not move out of your "box". As a right back, cross an imaginary line between the goal and the centre spot into the left half and the whistle would blow and you would be sent to run a quick circuit of the four pitches on the lower playing fields. Colonel Molesworth approved of the shoulder barge whereby a four stone weakling on the ball could be shoulder-barged with the force of a charging rhinoceros and no foul given. Similarly Henniker–Heaton's clod-hopper boots, which were built of half inch thick leather coming up to the middle of his shins, tipped on the sole with half inch steel studs and re-inforced toe caps, could quite legitimately be used to separate an opponents leg from his foot at the ankle without any thought about the need to take time off sports through injury, physiotherapy or scans.

 

Colonel Molesworth: clipped moustache, highly polished brown shoes: what did he do in the war? (Mmm; he was prisoner. That seems appropriate)

 

Mr Trevanion was hard. Oh yes!!! He taught Maths. You didn't say much to Mr Trevanion, you just answered his questions as directly as possible. You tried not to meet eye to eye with him either: his stare was deadly! Sometimes you would have to stand by the desk and wait whilst he marked your work. I noticed his hands then. They were hard!

 

Scripture was taught by Mr Jones, definitely a man to respect, and whilst he could be strict, I did seem to do well in his classes gaining a few "A-"s, "B+"s and "Satis" all over my work. He made me Form Captain. It was my job to let the class know what their Prep was for the next day so I must apologise to the whole class, now for the first time in thirty-four years, that one day I gave them the wrong details. This meant that the majority of them were in trouble with Mr Jones the next day for doing the wrong work. Protest as they did it was proven I couldn't have given the wrong information as there were a number of boys who had completed the same work as me. They naturally kept quiet because these were the ones who had copied off me!

 

Mr Ogle taught Geography which I liked. I was good at locating the Amazon mouth, the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, the Nile, etc, on a blank map of the world with pinpoint precision. Is this why I later qualified as a Navigation Officer in the Merchant Navy twelve years later? But Mr Ogle was an arty-farty type of teacher into music and art as well. He seemed to swan around in his black gown and couldn't be taken too seriously.

 

English and Latin were taught by Mr Glanfield (Glanners). I'm not sure why I don't remember much about him. I suited Latin as it was very regimented, but unfortunately being good in Latin at Brambletye proved completely useless for any application in the rest of my life. Mr Glanfield lived in a room at the end of the dormitory corridor, up a short flight of stairs. I only got whacked by Mr Glanfield once with a hair brush (and I deserved it for being an irritating little shit in the dormitory after lights out). It was he who also developed the "sitting in" form of punishment. For minor mis-demeanors you could get a 15 minute "sit in" for each offence up to a maximum of an hour's worth. When the rest of the school was free to play, anyone on a "sit in" was required to sit upright, in silence, facing forward, in a classroom for just you, a Master to watch over you and any other miscreants doing their "sit in". If you accrued more than an hour's worth of "sit in", you not only had to do your time, but were sent down to see the Headmaster for a bit of serious talking, and maybe a whacking too!

 

Learning the dates of births and deaths of every English King and Queen, major battle and historical event from 1066 until the 20th Century by heart, now doesn't seem such a waste of time when you bump into a foreign tourist who knows British Empire history better than you do. But I couldn't trust the History teacher (whose name I conveniently cannot recall) who showed slightly too much favouritism to certain boys.

 

Science was a mix of chemistry, physics and biology taken by Mr Blencowe, a very mild man, who as headmaster had to be all things to the school. Not only did he have to lead the school in prayer and hymn in chapel, but conduct daily inspections, administor the whole school and invariably fill in for any teacher who was "away" for whatever reason. Science was fun. Apart from the effects of burning sodium and magnesium we had everything from breeding locusts to hatching chicks and copulating Xenopus toads. I remember Mr Blencowe saying something about injecting the toads to make them breed. I know at the time I thought the whole matter strangely peculiar: why was the male, scrabbling franticly at the top of the tank and the female lying completely breathless at the bottom? There were eggs everywhere! This was not mating as I knew it. Normally it is the male that is exhausted! It's taken 34 years for Mr Blencowe to admit he was supposed to give the female a larger dose, but he gave it to the male by mistake!

 

Music lessons were the worry. Singing was not my strength but I learned, as a matter of self-preservation, to mime quite well. Mr Sharpe didn't just have a sharp tongue; his hand could to do some damage too. This didn't just happen in music lessons, but more memorably in chapel rehearsing for the main Sunday service. We would have to sing all the hymns and psalms selected for the next day's service. Mr Sharpe would sit in the organ pit, fingers and feet bouncing off the organ keys and pedals. With back to us, suddenly he wouldn't be happy with what he was hearing, leap out of the pit and race to the pew where he thought the wrong sound was coming from. Miming was no good at this point: you had to start singing quickly – and in tune too! Without the rhythm and backing of the organ it was doubly difficult and we had to continue to sing as he would come along our row, ear cocked to what we sang. If he heard the wrong note a hand would flash out so fast: "Whack!" right across the face!

 

I distinctly remember the row of five classrooms partitioned off from each other by wooden folding doors. At prep or when letter writing on Sunday the doors were folded back to allow one teacher to oversee everyone as they worked in silence. With the partitions closed during the day, we sat in cast iron framed desks with a flip up seat. There was an ink well filled regularly with a jug of the blue stuff. It was often spilt and some boys had significant indelible stains on various parts of their school uniform. Ink was used as an offensive weapon too, either flicked from the nibs of fountain pens or launched as a sodden ball of blotting paper into the front rows of the classroom. In one English lesson I remember a classmate taking several thick rubber bands, placing them over the tip of forefinger and thumb to form a catapault, and then placing a pellet of folded card into the "V", pulling it back, until the elastic would stretch no more before firing it into the bare neck of the boy immediately in front of him. Five minutes later he dared to do it again, but this time his aim was slightly out so that the hardened pellet richochetted off the back of the boy’s head, thudding into the wall of the classroom above Mr Glanfield's head, before falling to the floor near his feet! All hell broke loose then and I had to quickly withdraw both hands from under the desk lid where I had been constructing a Concorde shaped aeroplane out of a felt tip pen body, some paperclips and a folded exercise book cover.

 

There were regular intervals in the day to run off energy, shout and run about. These were often five or ten minute spells between chapel and lessons, tea and chapel, prep and bed along with morning breaktime and after lunch –unless you were a junior of course.

 

In the winter and spring term we changed into our sports gear after lunch. We only played football in the winter term, and rugby in the spring term. In summer, games were played after the afternoon break and we always played cricket.

 

Playing football and rugby in the colder, wetter months, every day was not particularly pleasant. Apart from being hacked to death by Hennicker-Heaton's boots, it was normally wet and cold. Being in the lower league playing fields and being refereed by Colonel Molesworth meant a long trudge from the playing fields up to the school. I hated how his military precision required us to play until the second hand of his watch hit the hour when some of the younger masters, watching the rain clouds gather, would blow the whistle early. Two hundred and forty hot, sweaty and wet boots were taken off and hung up in the small lean-to boot shed which stank like a giant mud wrestlers armpit, before the boys went up to shower. Colonel Molesworth's troop, coming from the furthest field, always arrived last to find the changing rooms awash with muddy water and clods of grass, the wooden duck boards barely allowing you to change into dry clothes only by hanging yourself on the clothes hooks, and reaching down to pull your socks on.

 

If it was too wet to play games, we had to don our macintoshs and "gum" boots and walk up and down the school drive. Normally after two laps from one end to other you were allowed back inside out of the rain! Colonel Molesworth would call out, "Left, right, left, right"………c'mon chaps!"

 

Afternoon tea comprised of filing past to pick up your Marmite sandwich (jam on Sundays) and third of a pint of milk bottle. These were consumed whilst each boy sat on his allocated locker surrounding the main hall. Every day we would pass the crates of milk on the way to breakfast. In summer they sat in the sun and were still there at 3.30pm. Sometimes you could barely press the bottle top to remove it because the pressure had built up so much, and when you could, you would find the top half of the milk completely solid, curdled and sour. Some would clamp a hand over the bottle, shake it vigorously and swallow the lot in one. Some would put it on the floor, and whilst sat on the locker, "knock it over by mistake". This normally resulted in them being given another one to drink!!!

 

After games it was back into the classroom for more lessons until teatime. Too often it was bland macaroni cheese - just macaroni cheese on a plate which was abhorred by every boy. Still were to come "Prep", our homework session of homework carried out in silence in the classroom another parade and chapel service before we normally had half an hour or so of play before bed. With juniors tucked up in bed by 6.30pm, the second years were despatched by 7.00pm, third years at 7.30pm. Even the oldest boys had to be in bed by 8.00pm!

 

Saturday was a "half-day". Lessons and chapel Sunday service rehearsal (watch out for Mr Sharpe) in the morning followed by freetime in the afternoon. Freetime could be spent in many ways. There was a boating pond. Electric boats were rare then, and there was certainly no radio control. Most boats were either free sailing yachts or clockwork powered. We could play rounders, fly model planes, roller skate, do woodwork or pottery, go in the monkey-climb or into the woods. There were marionettes and a steam engine Club too. There were great Chestnut trees so the school went conker mad in October. The school drives were lined with rhododendron bushes and you could in places climb through the bushes without touching the ground for up to 200 yards or so in places. Amongst these boys had dens as they did in the bracken filled bushes of the woods. We had khaki coloured jackets that made us quite camouflaged and apart from the dens there were caverns dug out of the sandstone. These could have been dangerous, but despite having fires in them, the odd roof collapse and "wars" between different groups I'm not aware that there were any casualties.

 

Sunday was different. Instead of lessons we had the full service in the chapel lasting 75 minutes. This sometimes seemed quite interminable, especially when the sun was shining outside, but you couldn't relax because the headmaster's wife, teachers and matrons filled the pews behind you.

 

And then it was to letter writing. We had to write one letter every week. I nearly always wrote to my parents in Germany. It tended to get a bit repetitive although the scores and names could normally be alternated on a regular basis. "I got A minus in Latin. The First Eleven played Ashdown House and we won 5 –2. The Second Eleven lost 2-0. Crompton and Wallis 2 have got German measles and have gone to the sick bay for three days. Only 62 days to go until the end of term and I am looking forward to seeing you (for the first time in 3 months)". Normally we had to bring writing pads to school with us at the start of each term. The trick was to get a small one with widely spaced lines so that Colonel Molesworth's demand for all letters to be two full pages didn't require too many words. Whether it was censorship or not, we had to take them to the front of the class for the teacher to read before we could "finish" which normally on a Sunday meant escape into the woods.

 

Young as we were, the confines of the school were exactly that. There were areas you would never go in. In the woods there was only a small fence that marked the limit of where we were allowed to go. It might only have been a two strand barbed wire fence but I never crossed it. It was as if there was a hidden Nazi watchtower ready to machine gun you if you touched the tripwire. The limits were marked by a two bar metal fence or the drives in other directions, easily enough crossed, but like the shimmering lake, in four years that I was there, what lay outside was not part of my world.

 

But apparently there were two escapes in my time at the school. All of a sudden there were rumours that someone had done a runner, but shortly afterwards the school propaganda system kicked in and the "hero" became someone taken out of school urgently to visit a dying grandmother.

 

I think we bathed twice a week. We lined up in the bathroom, with three tubs, where we would take turns to leap in. I don't think the water was changed, and matron would wash our hair. Every week we had a "sock" night or a "pants" night when everyone would throw that item in big baskets to be washed. Jumpers, shirts and trousers were washed less frequently. Only seniors, and only if they were over 5ft, could wear long trousers. At least once a term we were weighed and our height was recorded. Presumably the details helped our parents to recognise us when they next saw us! “Oh yes, darling, this one’s 4 ft 5 inches and about 5 stone, just like Timothy’s report says: this must be our son!”

 

I do remember a few "special" events. We occasionally were shown a film in the library. Apart from Treasure Island and The Robe these normally frightened me, especially the one of the headless horsemen attacking people in the dark! I only saw television a few times. There were some very basic " watch and learn" type physics programs in black and white but the only other thing I saw on TV was a fuzzy grey, live, image of the some men walking on the moon, for the first time.

 

We had some Spanish guy with long, horny nails come and play classical guitar, which seemed extremely tedious for us and him, and some cowboy who came and shot some balloons in the main hall.

 

Every year there was a school play. I was too young to be in Oliver. Just as well, as I was scared of the Bill Sykes character played by Jonathon Hughes De'Ath. Without girls in the school female parts had to be played by boys. It was whispered that one master reputedly quite fancied Cadicott-Bull who played Nancy. On the same basis I was quite glad I wasn't too attractive in my blonde pigtails, pink dress and Bo-Peep hood as a sailor's girl in the Pirates of Penzance. Playing a black cannibal in HMS Pinafore was much less dubious!

 

There were visitors to the school. Unfortunately one of these was the school dentist. Once a week we got sweets. A table was set up on the main hall stage and class by class we were taken to line up and chose our sweets. We each had a shilling with which you could get two handfuls of packets of sweets. Then decimalisation came in 1971 and we were robbed! Our shilling had become 5p. Straightaway we could only get about half as much. If we weren't robbed here, there were other chances to take advantage of us.

 

Every so often a long haired traveller we called the "Swindler" parked near the school. He had a Commer van. It was stacked with miniature chess sets, models, pen-knives and games. Since leaving the school I've never understood why he was given access as he must have obtained his name and reputation from somewhere. But the knives were the most frequently bought items either for activities in the woods or for playing "splits" where two opponents face each other, with two knives. Each in turn throws their knife into the ground, the opponent having to stretch one foot to the knife leading to them eventually doing the splits. Whilst everyone had a knife (and some might come close in this game) I was never aware of any knives being used as weapons. Anyhow, if in any sort of confrontation all you had to do was raise a hand and shout "Pax" (meaning "Peace" in Latin) and for some mysterious reason you were safe. Similarly if a prowling Master was spotted when boys were doing something they shouldn't, the warning word, "Cave" (pronounced "K.V" and meaning "warning" in Latin) was urgently passed from boy to boy.

 

There was also a barber who visited a school. Everyone got a cut and there was never any discussion over which style would suit. We all got the same. Strange that we sat in a small room having our hair cut next to a large glass case of British stuffed birds. I wondered if we would turn out the same.

 

There were tennis courts and a swimming pool at the school. I didn't take tennis, but one summer a keep fit regime was started. At about 7.00 am we were taken to the tennis courts where we did press-ups, star jumps, and lots of exercises in the dewy, cool morning air. I remembering it lasting a week or so, and then strangely we never did it again.

 

We had rehearsals for Sports Day, practising marching onto the fields, when we would line up in front of the parents in white shorts, T-shirts and rubber plimsolls. We had to compete in at least two events. Not a natural runner I actually surprised myself by getting into the heats of the 100 yard hurdles one year. I couldn't jump consistently high enough to ensure I could clear the hurdles, so I developed a technique to deliberately hit the hurdle but make sure I never tripped on it. I was glad when they introduced a new sport called, "Throwing the cricket ball". Requiring one to take a short run and throw the ball as far as you could in the general direction of "away from you", it was a shame they never introduced this at national level as this might have been something I could have done reasonably well at

 

I had a garden. Those that wanted one were given a six by six plot to till. That's six feet by six feet. Almost everyone who had one turned them to carrots, radishes, lettuces and nasturtiums, which we were persuaded we could eat. Some added these into their Marmite sandwiches and gave mixed reviews.

 

Swimming at Brambletye was definitely to be avoided unless you were a frog or a newt……..and despite the name I was not one of the latter. Fed by a stream, this "pit" was filthy for all but a week of the year. It might have been natural, for it was full of the flora and fauna of East Sussex, but it was icy cold even in the middle of summer. Forced to swim its length as a test I would willingly have covered the distance at the fastest possible speed if it hadn't been for the heart seizures and cramps I got when first entering the water. Fortunately I never showed enough promise to get in the swimming team. How some boys could enthusiastically take up diving I shall never know.

 

In quieter times I enjoyed playing billiards in the library. Also there was a reasonable selection of books but it was Hornblower and the World War Two escape stories I enjoyed most. This was partly lived out in the upper reaches of the school. Removing some of the wood panels in the bathroom, we found we could climb into the roof space and travel extensively throughout the length and breadth of the school at night, above the dormitories and master's bedrooms. If this had been Colditz we would have built a glider up here and escaped to freedom!

 

Some of the fixed steel ladder fire-escapes added to the Colditz feel. Forbidden to use them unless there was a fire practice or real emergency, they were actually so dangerous it was only very rarely we went down them even in a drill.

 

Some steep stairs led to the sick bay in the highest part of the school. Catching something highly contagious was quite desirable as long as it wasn't too life threatening. This meant you were isolated in the sick bay, totally exempt from the normal routine, far from the reach of masters and officers and safely tucked up in the motherly care of the matrons. This was the place to have a good time! An outbreak of measles and chicken-pox was of little use to me as I had reasonable resistance to most diseases and only fell to them when most of the school had already got it. This meant the sick bay was already full and I usually ended up confined to my dormitory back under the gaze of the masters and officers.

 

On the return to each term posted on the notice board there would be all the important dates: start and finish of term, half term, Easter holidays, etc. the holidays were so short, and the terms seemed so long. When I first started at school we were all boarders – day pupils didn't start until 1971. A half term or Easter seemed such luxury. You got a Saturday, Sunday AND Monday off, all together. Normally I went to my grandparents who lived nearby. Once there were about four of us who had nowhere to go. We got to watch television and have jam sandwiches in Mr Ogle's bungalow as compensation! I used to fly unaccompanied to my parents in Germany each holiday or to Wick when they moved to the north of Scotland. Once my brother and I were caught up in the effects of a strike at Edinburgh airport.

 

From time to time they added cut outs of certain articles from the daily newspapers and I remember regular features on the Vietnam War and Cassius Clay who would fight any man in the ring with his fists, but refused to fight in a war.

 

Mail used to arrive regularly and was handed out after breakfast. Seeing my parents only in between terms, I felt particularly lucky having such loving parents who ensured I was always well supplied with very regular, long letters every week. Other boys, some sons of diplomatic staff based in Embassies around the world, saw their parents very rarely, not even going home in the holidays sometimes. Some were lucky to even get a card on their birthday. But most received a parcel from home on their birthday. These were handed out on the matron's landing where they had to be opened in front of the staff. Food, sweets and money were immediately confiscated to be saved and supplied to the individual on a rationed basis.

 

The school changed quite a bit towards the end of my time there as Mr Fowler-Watt was phased in as Headmaster. He had an aggressive look to him and the style of the school became more progressive. Unlike Mr Blencowe who had more of a pained look on his face when a boy's behavior frustrated him, Mr Fowler-Watt could explode in rage. The Scots breeding in him meant the songs of Gilbert & Sullivan were out for the school play and in came the ghouls, witches and blood letting of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Extensions were built to the school, and new Portacabin classes positioned on the ground that was once my garden. And then another class of boy arrived; the day boys, namby pambies who went home to their Mummies every night, and arrived by car, freshly washed and dressed each morning. There was even talk of girls joining the school soon! What was the place coming to?!

 

Having laboured through the Common Entrance Exams to Public School, I left Brambletye to join my parents and brothers now living in the far north of Scotland near John O'Groats. The difference could not have been more extreme. I passed into the comprehensive school with girls (!), straight into the highest stream without need for examination. This was a lucky streak as they were all sons and daughters of nuclear physicists, doctors and engineers imported from the higher echelons of the fast breeder nuclear industry, the Royal Navy and Rolls Royce. Even though I was always towards the lower end of the class, as each year went by, I was dragged along by the very high standards so that on finishing some 30 of the 32 in the class went on to University. Each night I would endure a journey involving two buses taking an hour and a quarter, sometimes battling through blizzards in the dark to deposit my brother, the cattleman's son and I at the end of the mile and a half farm road. We had the freedom to drive our own cars from there to the house even at the age of thirteen.

 

Which type of school was best for me? Both were best. Brambletye undoubtedly taught me self-discipline and respect, kept me fit and healthy. But without life at the comprehensive school I could have been scared of the outside world, completely institutionalised by the limits of the school boundaries and routines. But perhaps I should thank Brambletye for making me want to explore more, starting me on a journey in life that has so far taken me to almost 60 countries. Married now for twenty-five years, with three fine children and director of a highly respected business at Manchester airport I look back on life so far with no regrets and fond memories of my years at Brambletye. I am what I am much because of Brambletye. It's not all good: my wife still has to tell me to change my socks and underwear more frequently!

 

My name never did get on those big boards in the main hall, but featuring in four separate photos in Peter Blencowe's history of the school makes me realise that even though I never made the First Eleven, Second Eleven or even Third Eleven in football, it was the mix of characters and abilities that made the school what it was and every boy can be very proud to have been part of its history.

 

I was surprised, in 2008, to discover Brambletye Preparatory School had risen to become the most expensive prep school in the country.

 

Or maybe constipation! Who knows!

 

Crabapple fruits are a good source of malic and tartaric acid. These acids, which lend the fruit its sour flavor, are responsible for the apple's healing reputation. Crabapple fruits have been used for gout, indigestion, inflammation, constipation, and fever.

*Information taken from Google

20T takes to the passing siding to run around a dead 120 train parked on the mainline at Dawson, IL.

 

All day long 120's carcass served to impede traffic flow as trains sat for an hour and half at either Iles and Harristown waiting for opposing traffic to pass. Then, once they were let loose, they had to negotiate the 25 mph gauntlet at Dawson as they ran into and back out of the passing siding. Movement Planner my butt. More like Constipation Planner.

 

24 hours later, as I posted this photo, 120 is still sitting dead at Dawson blocking the main road crossing. And the Class I's wonder why people are getting angry.

 

NS 8011 - ES44AC

NS 4426 - AC44C6M

 

Old Route 36 - Dawson, Illinois

February 5, 2022

114 in 2014 #4 Obsolete

 

And for Macro Monday's theme "good health". Circa 1890's Smith's Chamomile Pills - for headaches, dizziness, biliousness, a torpid liver, and of course, constipation! Sounds like they will cure pretty much all that ails you!

 

Nikon FT

New West Scotland's somewhat haphazard approach to recruiting means that infantry squads tend to be an eclectic bunch. The Wootton Bassett Irregulars are a typical example.

Clockwise from top left:

Lieutenant Smiley gives the orders from his half-track command sled - he needs the megaphone to be heard over the sound of his engine...

Ralph T. Overkill never takes 1 rocket launcher on a sortie when 2 will do.

Squad medic Philbert Potts is a re-educated gardener; who needs modern medicine when you've got nature's bounty and knowledge of herbal remedies for everything from contusions to constipation?

Ralph's twin brother Vincent Overkill is the squad's scout and demolitions expert.

'Radio' Jack Jackson found a simple solution to his myopia - make the equipment bigger. Now he can see the buttons to call back to base for a hot bath.

Last but not least, Colin Smith is a devotee of all things big and shooty. He is rather easily distracted though.

This morning in Colonia Güell, near Barcelona.

1 texture by Kim Klasse

www.flickr.com/photos/kimklassen/

 

Cichorium intybus L. (Asteráceas) CHICORY

PROPERTIES

Diuretic, depurative, stomachic, tonic, bacteriostatic. The toasted root can be used as a coffee substitute.

INDICATIONS

Anorexia, dyspepsia, biliary dyskinesia, constipation, hypertension, oliguria.

 

Bach flowers: www.bachflower.org/chicory.htm

Repainted ghost sign for Carter's Little Liver Pills, seen in Brattleboro, Vermont. Carter's Little Liver Pills (Carter's Little Pills after 1959) were formulated as a patent medicine by Samuel J. Carter of Erie, Pennsylvania, in 1868. The active ingredient is bisacodyl. The pills were touted to cure headache, constipation, dyspepsia, and biliousness.

I have been Tagged, and requested to share 11 things about myself that people do not know. Hmmmmm. (Photo taken with the Panasonic DMC-Fz-28)

 

1) If I were born 35 years later, I would have been heavily medicated as a youngster for ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). Thank God for Sports and growing up in the country and chasing horses and playing in the woods (and loving adults including some great teachers).

 

2) Baked Goods I absolutely adore. A cinnamon bun with frosting knows no greater fan.

 

3) I worked for approximately 10 years in higher education; Teaching a number of courses and specializing in Community Building, Human Sexuality, and Human Health Behavior.

 

4) I find nearly all things regarding the bathroom and body noises Humorous…just ask Dale and Gracie.

 

5) My Higher Power often comes to me in the form of 4 legs (Dogs).

 

6) I am in Recovery from addiction. I recently celebrated 11 years clean and sober. Prior to this 11 years I had nearly 8 years of recovery before I thought I was cured and went back to using alcohol. I was wrong!!!

 

7) I really don’t mind being bald…it’s just a pain keeping my ears clean.

 

8) I love to cook and eat. One of the main reasons I stay active so I can follow the 80-20 rule; I eat Healthy 80% of the time so I can Eat Cinnamon buns the other 20% (or cream sauces, or ice cream, or Chips and Dip, or Cheese Burgers etc.,).

 

9) I cry easily over sentimental and joyful things. And that is one of the ways I know I am OK. Emotional “constipation” is no good for this guy.

 

10) Ten years ago a good man told me I needed a hobby – so I learned how to repair and build computers and networking systems. I have built a few hundred machines since and love the Geeky side of me. Really allows me to charge my batteries from all the social interaction I love so much.

 

11) I am a sneaker and dress shoe Freak. I have more dress shoes than my honey Dale; we call each other “DIVA”.

And the bonus...I am 10 days away from being "Fartie Five years old".

Another long day, waiting outside a Chinese medicine store...

 

"便秘丸 constipation pills" (i)

 

Rollei 35 S, Kodak T-Max 400

 

單眼佬涼茶 (one eyed man herbal tea), Saigon Street, Yau Ma Tei, Hong Kong

 

Doka Estate Coffee has a small section growing other food bearing plants like these banana.

 

BANANAS IN COSTA RICA:

20 Mar 2014

Fresh Plaza - Global Fresh Produce and Banana News:

 

Jorge Arturo Sauma Aguilar, manager of CORBANA

Costa Rican bananas competing in a saturated world market:

 

Although more famous for its pineapples, Costa Rica devotes around 44,000 hectares to the cultivation of bananas; less than 1% of the country's territory. 48% of the business is in the hands of small producers and the rest in those of companies such as Chiquita, Dole and Del Monte.

 

Costa Rica's most common bananas are the Gran Enano Valery and the famous Cavendish, "which is considered the world's best banana," says Jorge Arturo Sauma Aguilar, manager of CORBANA.

 

The banana market is becoming increasingly saturated:

"Banana production has expanded without control in recent years and this is leading to an increasingly more saturated market. Considering the market's global status, all producing countries should hold off a little if they wish to continue making a profit. First it was Ecuador, now also the Philippines, Guatemala or Cameroon, whose produce stands at considerably lower prices," he explains.

 

"The wages of a Costa Rican labourer are not the same as those of an African or Filipino and we cannot compete with that. That is why we need to do as much as possible to let consumers know about the value added by ethical social and environmental policies. We are currently working with the EU for the designation of a Protected Geographical Indication to Costa Rica's bananas."

 

The European Union and the United States are the two largest markets for Costa Rica's bananas, and Sauma Aguilar believes that, despite the oversupply, there is still room for growth.

 

"I think we can still grow in the North American market, and our supply volumes to some EU countries could also increase. We are also really interested in entering markets in the Middle East, like Dubai or Saudi Arabia, where healthy eating habits are being strongly promoted by their governments."

 

Race 4 Fusarium: the greatest threat to Costa Rican bananas

Competition with other countries is not the only obstacle for Costa Rica's banana sector. "The greatest threat to our produce is the Race 4 Fusarium virus, which has yet to affect us, but if it did, it would cause incalculable losses.

 

At the latest congress organised by Corbana we recognised it as a real threat, and we determined that a joint effort from all Latin American nations, as well as the exporting countries, is required to prevent such threats."

 

Fairtrade and organic in Costa Rica:

Even though not many Costa Rican companies are Fairtrade certified, Sauma Aguilar believes that Corbana is fundamentally a Fairtrade producer, as "great efforts are carried out for the protection of the environment, with assistance from the Environmental Banana Commission (CAB), and for improvements to be made to the labourers' social structure. There is still a lot of work to do, but most of our producers are certified by Global Gap, ISO 14001 or Rainforest Alliance."

Regarding the organic market, "it is harder to grow organic bananas in Costa Rica than in other places like Piura, in Peru. Temperatures are very high here and we need some phytosanitary control mechanisms."

 

All three forms of trade likely to prevail:

In what concerns banana trade, Sauma Aguilar believes that, despite the latest trend among large supermarket chains, like Walmart and Tesco, of working directly with producers, the other two forms of trade are also likely to prevail.

 

"I think that there will still be producers working through large distributors, as well as others exporting the fruit themselves. All trading forms are acceptable as long as growers are able to make a profit."

 

About CORBANA:

The National Banana Corporation (CORBANA) is a non-state, public entity, founded with the goal of promoting research in Costa Rica's banana industry and improving the situation for producers. "The Costa Rican government hands over all research and technological transfer issues to CORBANA. We also offer assessment to the government in matters of trade and treaty development, such as the latest one signed with the European Union," concludes Sauma Aguilar.

  

BANANAS - GOOD or BAD??

 

by Amy Margulies, lead registered dietitian for Retrofit

"why-is-everyone-so-terrified-to-eat-bananas-a-dietitian-peels-back-the-truth":

You’ve probably heard people talking, or read articles online, about why eating bananas is bad for you nutritionally and can impede weight loss. While some people insist that bananas are just fine, others are convinced this is a fruit you should stay away from if you’re trying to lose weight – and many do, just in case the rumors are true. But what’s the real deal with bananas? It’s time to peel open this myth.

What the critics are saying

The controversy started with Dr. Susanna Holt, an Australian researcher who developed the Satiety Index, a way to evaluate how full different foods make you feel. “We found that bananas are much less satisfying than oranges or apples,” Holt stated at the conclusion of the satiety study.

Bananas are generally higher in calories from carbs than most fruits. So for those who are counting calories, this may seem like a poor choice for a snack. People have also observed that bananas cause a “binding” effect, or put more simply, they cause constipation. That’s something you don’t want when you look to the scale for signs of progress.

Another side to the story

While the above claims may be true, there are more positive attributes to eating bananas. It turns out that they also contain resistant starch, a dietary fiber that the body can’t actually absorb. As a result, you feel full without absorbing additional weight in the long term. What’s more, according to Dr. Janine Higgins at the Colorado Clinical and Transitional Sciences Institute, research indicates that resistant starch can increase the rate of fat burning your body does after a meal.

Combined with potassium and other vitamins and minerals that occur naturally in bananas, there are some serious benefits that the banana-mashers tend to ignore. It’s no surprise we see stories from people like Loni Jane, who lost weight and improved her health significantly when she made bananas a major part of her diet.

What’s your take?

Some people will always believe the hype, despite the facts. But the truth is that the science is in favor of bananas being part of a healthy, weight-loss friendly diet. To get the most benefit, eat bananas that are still a little bit green – that’s when there’s more resistant starch. As a banana ripens, the starch breaks down and becomes less resistant to absorption.

We’re not recommending that you eat 10 bananas a day like Loni Jane, but eating them in moderation as part of a weight loss diet and active lifestyle will bring you nothing but positive benefits – so peel away!

Also Read:

 

Read more at www.dietsinreview.com/diet_column/07/why-is-everyone-so-t...

 

With its fragrant, bright yellow blossoms, the jonquil flower (Narcissus jonquilla) has long been a favorite mid-spring

bloomer. A native of Spain and Portugal, jonquils — sometimes called narcissus or rush daffodils — are associated with the Greek myth of Narcissus. Here we’ll take you through everything you need to know about Jonquil flower meaning and symbolism, their history and origins, uses and benefits, plus learn about their cultural significance around the world today.

Jonquils are tied to the Greek myth of Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection. In the Victorian language of flowers, a gift of jonquils symbolizes forgiveness or a desire that affection is returned. The lovely blossoms have other meanings across cultures, such as creativity, inspiration, vitality, forgiveness, success, rebirth, and renewal.

N. jonquilla belong to the Narcissus, or daffodil, genus. A member of the Amaryllidaceae, or amaryllis, family, there are about 50 species in the Narcissus genus. Many are spring-blooming perennials.

Jonquil plants can grow to be about 1.5 feet tall, with narrow, linear leaves that clump around upright stems. Each stem may have one to three yellow flowers.

 

Blooms are fragrant, with a scent that’s been described as heady, sweet, and even musky. Each flower has a cup-shaped corona in the center, surrounded by a ray of five, flat petals.

 

History & Origins of Jonquil Flowers

In 1753, botanist Carl Linnaeus identified several species of Narcissus, the jonquil among them. Their history stretches back much farther, though.

 

It’s been found in graves from ancient Egypt and painted on the walls at Pompeii. The flowers feature prominently in Greek myth, as well as many poems and works from ancient Greece. Some historians think that Roman soldiers may have introduced the plants to England during the Crusades, where it’s been cultivated for centuries.

N. jonquilla is prized in European and North American gardens for its spring blooms and heady scent. There are more than 25,000 registered Narcissus cultivars. Some popular varieties include:

 

‘Baby Boomer’: A miniature variety that blooms with an abundance of small, yellow blossoms with an orange corona

‘Baby Moon’ produces small, golden flowers in late spring and thrives in warm climates

‘Bell Song’ has white petals with a pink-orange cup and a strong fragrance

‘Pipt’ is a long-blooming cultivar with lemony blooms that fade to white

‘Pueblo’ has showy white petals surrounding a soft, yellow corona

‘Quail’ blooms with a profusion of highly scented yellow blossoms

‘Sailboat’ boasts swept-back ivory petals around a pale lemon corona

‘Trevithian’ grows up to 2 feet tall and has large yellow blooms

Etymological Meaning

Narcissus comes from the Greek word for “numbness” or narke (also the root of the word “narcotic.”) It’s thought that the flower’s intoxicating scent or the toxic nature of their bulbs and blossoms may be the connection.

 

“Jonquil” comes from the Spanish junquillo, which comes from the Latin for “rush,” or juncus. This refers to the jonquil’s rush-like foliage.

Jonquil flowers are native to Spain and Portugal. Over the years, this perennial has naturalized across many regions of Europe, Canada, and the U.S.

 

When is Jonquil Flowers in Season?

Jonquil flowers bloom in late April through May.

What is the Difference Between Daffodils and Jonquils?

The Narcissus genus has the common name of “Daffodil.” Essentially, this means that all species within the genus are casually referred to as “daffodils”, the March birth flower.

 

Jonquils are often called “daffodils,” but they’re really just one of many species with very similar characteristics that most associate with daffodils. Both bloom with six flat petals, surrounding a central, cup-shaped corona.

 

But jonquils differ from N. pseudonarcissus, also known as the trumpet or wild daffodil. The trumpet daffodil blooms earlier in spring than the jonquil and only has one flower per stem, while the jonquil may have up to three.

 

Jonquil foliage also differs from trumpet daffodils. Jonquil leaves are narrow, long, and reed-like, with rounded tips. Daffodil foliage is pointed and tends to be a lighter green than jonquil foliage.

Jonquils contain alkaloids that are toxic for humans, dogs, cats, and livestock. While this makes them deer- and gopher-resistant, ingestion may cause gastrointestinal upset, convulsions, cardiac arrhythmia, and tremors. The bulbs contain the most toxins, but flowers are also poisonous.

Though jonquil’s toxins rule out culinary uses, they’ve long been used in some folk medicine traditions. the legendary Greek physician Hippocrates recommended the oil as a treatment for tumors, while Pliny the Elder applied the flowers topically.

 

Several cultures, from China to North Africa and the Arabian peninsula, also used the flowers as anti-cancer treatments. Modern scientific research lends some support, finding that an alkaloid extracted from the plants may have promise in slowing the growth of cancer cells.

 

Other traditional uses include as an emetic agent, an anti-spasmodic, to treat constipation, a decongestant, and to treat dysentery. It’s even been used to treat baldness and as an aphrodisiac.

 

Jonquils are generally grown for ornamental uses. As one of the most aromatic members of the Narcissus genus, they are cultivated by the perfume industry for their fragrant oils. They’re also grown for floriculture.

These lovely blooms appear in shades of yellow or white, with a few cultivars boasting orange or apricot-hued coronas. Jonquils hold many different meanings across cultures.

 

Jonquil Flowers in Chinese Folklore

In Chinese folklore, the flowers represent the new year. They may signify rebirth, renewal, and vitality. To the Welch, the flowers are a sign of good fortune, as anyone who spots the first flower in spring will experience success.

Of course, the flowers have long been associated with the story of Narcissus. In this Greek myth, young Narcissus was handsome… and he knew it. The young man spurned the advances of the nymph Echo, who pined for him in the forests and valleys until only her voice was left.

 

As punishment, the Goddess Nemesis led Narcissus to a pool of water, where he encountered his own reflection. He was so enamored with his own beauty that he stared at his reflection for days. Eventually, he tired, fell in, and drowned, leaving only flowers growing where he once sat. From this myth comes jonquil’s connection to ego and self-absorption. Some say that the way jonquil stems droop toward the ground represents Narcissus looking into the pool.

Jonquils make an appearance in art and advertising, such as in paintings by Georgia O’Keefe.

With the heady fragrance and cheerful blossoms, jonquil flowers are an ideal gift to celebrate accomplishments, cheer someone up, or in a get-well bouquet. Associations of vitality and renewal make them a good choice for new baby gifts, as well.

 

Jonquils add a happy touch to birthday bouquets, too. They’re a great choice for any occasion when you want to wish someone success and good fortune or celebrate an accomplishment.

Jonquil flowers are prized for their fragrance and striking blossoms. Long associated with the Greek myth of Narcissus, these lovely flowers don’t just stand for self-absorption, but also signify creativity, inspiration, forgiveness, success, renewal, and rebirth. Easy to grow from bulbs, jonquils add fragrance and color to the mid-spring garden.

www.petalrepublic.com/jonquil-flower-meaning/

  

"From suffering ... to joy!"

This photo is copyrighted and may not be used for publication without permission.

 

Broadway/Oceana show at the Ramada Celebration Resort.

Florida Gaming Convention.

 

Contact Me

 

for more pics from the show:

www.flickr.com/photos/moriahmadness/

Here is one of our adorably cute kittens from a litter where all the females was orange-black-white and the only boy grey and white...

 

Look at those huge ears to that sweet little face :)

 

--------------------------------------------

Café Frequenters episode 176

--------------------------------------------

 

Hey and Hello! Guess where we are, yeah well I know that you know already, we are at Bornholm...

 

Still I wanted to tell you, we are four lads in one room at the hostel, Heartlieb, White, Gallix and me, Heartlieb is farting all the time and Galluix has got constipation since he refuses to do the crappy thing on any WC other than his own, so he is mostly reading comics and laying about in the bed...

 

White and Heartlieb hasn´t showered since we arived, but the do brush their teeth because our teacher controls it every morning...

 

Imagine this tiny island has even got Garbage pail kids (those stickers I collect)!

 

I bought 1 kilo of Bassets sweet on the ferry here, but half a kilo got lost on the boat already, since Maria wanted a free sweet and when I didn´t give it to her she pulled the bag and rip, half of the packs content ended up on the floor on the boat and people were treading all over them and got them stuck under their feet...

 

Me and While have found a place among the rocks where some fishermen must have had a smelter in the past, since we find a lot of lead , White found one huge one that looked like a zombie brain... tomorrow we are gonna go by but and first see the famous gravity anomaly then we are gonna go to their oldest church but no more time for writing since I gotta go to our free evening meal, that is me and White the other two will stay here and fart in the room, so if this letter stinks they are to blame...

 

Bye Bye!

/ Johnny the grandchild

 

P.S; say hi to Granny too!

Gameboard containing a circle comprised of 30 spaces surrounding advertising text and an image of the devil. Spaces marked with baseball rulings and plays, including Strike, Ball, Out, Foul, and Single Hit 1 Base. Circle surrounded by a "baseball diamond."

Fowey, Cornwall UK.

 

Tuesday, March 11, 2014.

Fowey councillors remain in deadlock with Cornwall Council over a deal to take over the town’s four public toilet blocks.

 

The town council is keen to run all the facilities – but is narked that the unitary authority has only offered a yearly maintenance grant of £26,000 when it estimates the bill could reach £50,000

 

It has suggested Cornwall Council hands over the lucrative Caffa Mill car park so it can make up the short fall with income generated from pay and display machines.

 

Town councillors have even said they would hand back any extra profit to Cornwall Council.

 

But so far the two sides have failed to strike a deal, although Mayor John Berryman said on Monday that everyone was trying hard to find a solution to the impasse.

 

(Could this be political constipation ?)

 

Explored 12th March 2014

 

So explicate

.

██████ Try ARRRRT on PICSSR

I edit my photo after a long absence..

  

I'm Constipation.....-_-

I was in the restroom for one hour...orz

Noooooo!!!!!!　Somebody Help me!!!l ><

 

Anyway thanks so much for your comment!!!XD

 

BG: DEVIANT ART

Guitar IMG: DEVIANT ART

Sim : By me

 

Dr. Morse's Indian Root Pills were once found in most Australian households particularly from the late 1890s to 1940s. The pills claimed to purify the blood and cure rheumatism, indigestion, constipation, kidney and liver disorders, headaches, pimples, boils and even “female ailments”.

 

In fact, one advertisement claimed that the pills could slow the ageing of women (which seemed to happen after marriage) by flushing the body with rich red blood that gave the “skin a beautiful and clear appearance”!

 

The elixir was first manufactured in America in the 1850s by father and son Edwin and William Comstock who had a patent medicine business in New York. There was never a real Dr Morse but a cleverly crafted story around a doctor who had discovered the ingredients while living with Native Americans. The once secret ingredients were required by law to be revealed in the 1930s and were aloe, mandrake, gamboge, jalap and cayenne pepper.

 

The pills gained particular popularity in Australia during the 1919 Influenza Pandemic. In February alone more than a ton of pills was sold with one business selling 5000 bottles across the counter.4 The popularity of the product, and other patent medicines, declined in the 1940s as science began to play a greater role in medicine.

 

Before billboards lined our roads, advertisements were painted on sides of buildings, sheds and fences.

 

Penfolds is an Australian wine producer that was founded in Adelaide in 1844 by Christopher Rawson Penfold, an English physician who emigrated to Australia, and his wife Mary Penfold. It is one of Australia's oldest wineries.

The only thing that comes to mind is constipation.

AYMO, CPF477, QS Cabin, Crescent, Waite Road. October 24, 1998

 

The lead unit was recently scrapped by CSX in Waterville which caused widespread consternation (and likely constipation) amongst the Facebook mavens.

Toilet visits can take a while when all your craps are like concrete...

Another long day, waiting outside a Chinese medicine store...

 

Fujifilm Cardia mini Tiara, Fujicolor Industrial 400

 

單眼佬涼茶 (one eyed man herbal tea), Saigon Street, Yau Ma Tei, Hong Kong

Click to view in Lightbox.

.

 

The city of Damghan [...] trades in pistachios and paper almonds (kaghazi = paper in Persian), with very thin shells [easily removable by hand], which are famous throughout the country.

 

Almonds are rich in almost all the elements needed by the body. The thin-skinned known as the ‘kagzi badam’ is the best for use. Almond is an excellent source of Vitamin E, which is a potent antioxidant. Almond is rich in copper, iron and calcium and therefore proves nutritious for both children and older women. It is a laxative and can help relieve constipation.

  

See series below re. local buyers and sellers of almonds and other nuts in and around the Damghan bazaar and on the outskirts of the city.

 

.

The almond is surrounded by a shell and, until the nut matures, this is surrounded in turn by a hull. The hull splits at maturity to reveal the nut. There are three sorts of almonds according to the shell type:

 

Paper shell: easily rubbed off by hand

Soft shell: firm, but easily removed by hand

Hard shell: similar to other nuts

 

www.sturmsoft.com/Writing/guide_to-gardening/almonds.htm

 

.

The name of this nut is supposed to be derived from the word amysso, meaning to lacerate, on account of the prominent, sharp, knife-like margin of one edge of the nut. The English name is from the Latin amandola and from the Greek amaygdale. [...] Theo-phrastus, who wrote the history of plants three centuries before the Christian era, mentions the almond as the only tree in Greece that produces blossoms before the leaves."

 

chestofbooks.com/food/ingredients/Guide-For-Nut-Cookery/A...

 

Have a nice day and thanks for stopping by.

11x14.

Four major parts of the agave are edible: the flowers, the leaves, the stalks or basal rosettes, and the sap (called aguamiel—honey water).

 

Each agave plant will produce several pounds of edible flowers during its final season. The stalks, which are ready during the summer, before the blossom, weigh several pounds each. Roasted, they are sweet and can be chewed to extract the aguamiel, like sugarcane. When dried out, the stalks can be used to make didgeridoos. The leaves may be collected in winter and spring, when the plants are rich in sap, for eating. The leaves of several species also yield fiber: for instance, Agave rigida var. sisalana, sisal hemp, Agave decipiens, false sisal hemp. Agave americana is the source of pita fiber, and is used as a fiber plant in Mexico, the West Indies and southern Europe.

 

During the development of the inflorescence, there is a rush of sap to the base of the young flower stalk. Agave syrup (also called agave nectar) is used as an alternative to sugar in cooking. In the case of A. americana and other species, this is used in Mexico and Mesoamerica in the production of the beverage pulque. The flower shoot is cut out and the sap collected and subsequently fermented. By distillation, a spirit called mezcal is prepared; one of the best-known forms of mezcal is tequila. In 2001, the Mexican Government and European Union agreed upon the classification of tequila and its categories. All 100% blue agave tequila must be made from the Weber blue agave plant, to rigorous specifications and only in certain Mexican states.

 

People have found a few other uses of the plant aside from its several uses as food. When dried and cut in slices, the flowering stem forms natural razor strops, and the expressed juice of the leaves will lather in water like soap. The natives of Mexico used the agave to make pens, nails and needles, as well as string to sew and make weavings. Leaf tea or tincture taken orally is used to treat constipation and excess gas. It is also used as a diuretic. Root tea or tincture is taken orally to treat arthritic joints.

 

- From Wikipedia

There is a superhighway between the brain and GI system that holds great sway over humans

"There is a muscle that encircles the gut like a lasso when we are sitting… creating a kink in the tube," Giulia Enders explains in Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body's Most Underrated Organ. She calls the mechanism "an extra insurance policy, in addition to our old friends, the sphincters" (you have two sphincters – keep reading) and cites studies showing that squatters, with their unkinked guts, are less susceptible to haemorrhoids and constipation.Enders, a 25-year-old student at the Institute for Microbiology in Frankfurt, inside an underground public lavatory in central London. "Is there a toilet in this toilet?" she asks when she arrives. There is not, a barista tells her. The Victorian urinals, abandoned in the 1960s, have been converted into cafe with booths and stools, and no room for anything else.After a dash to a pub loo above ground, Enders talks with infectious energy about the wonder of the gut. She has been delighted to discover how many people share her fascination with a subject that can suffer for being taboo. "Even today in the taxi, I told the driver what I was doing and within about two minutes he was telling me about his constipation," she says in perfect English, which she owes to a year of study in the US. "And it's not just him. It's ladies with chic hair at big gala dinners, too. Everyone wants to talk about it."Enders first got noticed after a self-assured turn at a science slam in Berlin three years ago. Her 10-minute lecture went viral on YouTube, and now, weeks after completing her final exams as a doctoral student, she is a publishing sensation. Her book, called Darm Mit Charme ("Charming Bowels") in Germany, has sold more than 1.3 million copies since it came out last year. Rights have been sold to dozens of countries.

 

Her way into the gut is a lightness that some reviewers have found too childish or lacking in scientific rigour to be taken seriously. But there is something compelling and refreshing about her curiosity and popular approach. "When I read the research, I think, why don't people know about this – why am I reading about it in some paper or specialist magazine? It's ridiculous because everyone has to deal with it on a daily basis." After she explains the inspiration for her fixation (the suicide of an acquaintance who had had severe halitosis, and her own teenage skin condition, which turned out to have been caused by a wheat intolerance) Enders starts at the end of the digestive tract with what she calls the "masterly performance" that is defecation. "There is so much about the anus that we don't know," she says, reaching for a gluten-free chocolate chip cookie. "The first surprise is the sophistication of our sphincters… you know about the outer one because you can control it, but the inner one nobody knows about."

This inner opening is beyond our conscious control, releasing waste material into a sort of anal vestibule where, in Enders words, "a small taster" hits sensor cells that tell the body what it's dealing with and how to respond using the outer sphincter. This opening, and our mouths, are the recognisable and controllable ends of a system that, stretched out, would be almost as long as a bus. But it's the bits in between, and their link with the rest of our bodies, including our brains and emotions, that really interest Enders.

 

"Medical diagrams show the small intestine as a sausage thing chaotically going through our belly," she says. "But it is an extraordinary work of architecture that moves so harmonically when you see it during surgery. It's clean and smooth, like soft fabric, and moves like this." She performs a wavy, pulsating motion with her hands. Enders believes that if we could think differently about the gut, we might more readily understand its role beyond basic digestion – and be kinder to it. The great extent to which the gut can influence health and mood is a growing field in medicine. We speak of it all the time, whether we describe "gut feelings", "butterflies in our stomachs", or "pooing our pants" in fear, but popular understanding of this gut-brain axis remains low.

 

A primal connection exists between our brain and our gut. We often talk about a “gut feeling” when we meet someone for the first time. We’re told to “trust our gut instinct” when making a difficult decision or that it’s “gut check time” when faced with a situation that tests our nerve and determination. This mind-gut connection is not just metaphorical. Our brain and gut are connected by an extensive network of neurons and a highway of chemicals and hormones that constantly provide feedback about how hungry we are, whether or not we’re experiencing stress, or if we’ve ingested a disease-causing microbe. This information superhighway is called the brain-gut axis and it provides constant updates on the state of affairs at your two ends. That sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach after looking at your postholiday credit card bill is a vivid example of the brain-gut connection at work. You’re stressed and your gut knows it—immediately.

 

The enteric nervous system is often referred to as our body’s second brain. There are hundreds of million of neurons connecting the brain to the enteric nervous system, the part of the nervous system that is tasked with controlling the gastrointestinal system. This vast web of connections monitors the entire digestive tract from the esophagus to the anus. The enteric nervous system is so extensive that it can operate as an independent entity without input from our central nervous system, although they are in regular communication. While our “second” brain cannot compose a symphony or paint a masterpiece the way the brain in our skull can, it does perform an important role in managing the workings of our inner tube. The network of neurons in the gut is as plentiful and complex as the network of neurons in our spinal cord, which may seem overly complex just to keep track of digestion. Why is our gut the only organ in our body that needs its own “brain”? Is it just to manage the process of digestion? Or could it be that one job of our second brain is to listen in on the trillions of microbes residing in the gut?

 

Operations of the enteric nervous system are overseen by the brain and central nervous system. The central nervous system is in communication with the gut via the sympathetic and parasympathetic branches of the autonomic nervous system, the involuntary arm of the nervous system that controls heart rate, breathing, and digestion. The autonomic nervous system is tasked with the job of regulating the speed at which food transits through the gut, the secretion of acid in our stomach, and the production of mucus on the intestinal lining. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, or HPA axis, is another mechanism by which the brain can communicate with the gut to help control digestion through the action of hormones.

 

This circuitry of neurons, hormones, and chemical neurotransmitters not only sends messages to the brain about the status of our gut, it allows for the brain to directly impact the gut environment. The rate at which food is being moved and how much mucus is lining the gut—both of which can be controlled by the central nervous system—have a direct impact on the environmental conditions the microbiota experiences.

 

Like any ecosystem inhabited by competing species, the environment within the gut dictates which inhabitants thrive. Just as creatures adapted to a moist rain forest would struggle in the desert, microbes relying on the mucus layer will struggle in a gut where mucus is exceedingly sparse and thin. Bulk up the mucus, and the mucus-adapted microbes can stage a comeback. The nervous system, through its ability to affect gut transit time and mucus secretion, can help dictate which microbes inhabit the gut. In this case, even if the decisions are not conscious, it’s mind over microbes.

 

What about the microbial side? When the microbiota adjusts to a change in diet or to a stress-induced decrease in gut transit time, is the brain made aware of this modification? Does the brain-gut axis run in one direction only, with all signals going from brain to gut, or are some signals going the other way? Is that voice in your head that is asking for a snack coming from your mind or is it emanating from the insatiable masses in your bowels? Recent evidence indicates that not only is our brain “aware” of our gut microbes, but these bacteria can influence our perception of the world and alter our behavior. It is becoming clear that the influence of our microbiota reaches far beyond the gut to affect an aspect of our biology few would have predicted—our mind.

 

For example, the gut microbiota influences the body’s level of the potent neurotransmitter serotonin, which regulates feelings of happiness. Some of the most prescribed drugs in the U.S. for treating anxiety and depression, like Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil, work by modulating levels of serotonin. And serotonin is likely just one of a numerous biochemical messengers dictating our mood and behavior that the microbiota impacts.

 

Most of us can relate to the experience of having butterflies in our stomach, or to a visceral gut-wrenching feeling, and how often are we told not to ignore our “gut-instinct” or “gut-feeling” when making a decision.

 

Even from our simple slang, it’s clear just how symbolically connected the gut is to our emotions. Now, there’s tangible proof to support these popular metaphors.

 

We all have a microbiome, and they are as unique as our neural pathways

Research has shown that the body is actually composed of more bacteria than cells. We are more bug than human! Collectively, these trillions of bacteria are called the microbiome. Most of those bacteria reside in our gut, sometimes referred to as the gut microbiota, and they play multiple roles in our overall health.

 

The gut is no longer seen as an entity with the sole purpose of helping with all aspects of digestion. It’s also being considered as a key player in regulating inflammation and immunity.

 

A healthy gut consists of different iterations of bacteria for different people, and this diversity maintains wellness. A shift away from “normal” gut microbiota diversity is called dysbiosis, and dysbiosis may contribute to disease. In light of this, the microbiome has become the focus of much research attention as a new way of understanding autoimmune, gastrointestinal, and even brain disorders.

 

The benefit of a healthy gut is illustrated most effectively during early development. Research has indicated just how sensitive a fetus is to any changes in a mother’s microbiotic makeup, so much so that it can alter the way a baby’s brain develops. If a baby is born via cesarean section, it misses an opportunity to ingest the mother’s bacteria as it travels down the vaginal canal. Studies show that those born via c-section have to work to regain the same diversity in their microbiome as those born vaginally. Throughout our lives, our microbiome continues to be a vulnerable entity, and as we are exposed to stress, toxins, chemicals, certain diets, and even exercise, our microbiome fluctuates for better or worse.

 

The gut as second brain

Our gut microbiota play a vital role in our physical and psychological health via its own neural network: the enteric nervous system (ENS), a complex system of about 100 million nerves found in the lining of the gut.

 

The ENS is sometimes called the “second brain,” and it actually arises from the same tissues as our central nervous system (CNS) during fetal development. Therefore, it has many structural and chemical parallels to the brain.

 

Our ENS doesn’t wax philosophical or make executive decisions like the gray shiny mound in our skulls. Yet, in a miraculously orchestrated symphony of hormones, neurotransmitters, and electrical impulses through a pathway of nerves, both “brains” communicate back and forth. These pathways include and involve endocrine, immune, and neural pathways.

 

At this point in time, even though the research is inchoate and complex, it is clear that the brain and gut are so intimately connected that it sometimes seems like one system, not two.

 

Our emotions play a big role in functional gastrointestinal disorders

Given how closely the gut and brain interact, it has become clear that emotional and psychosocial factors can trigger symptoms in the gut. This is especially true in cases when the gut is acting up and there’s no obvious physical cause.

 

The functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) are a group of more than 20 chronic and hard to treat medical conditions of the gastrointestinal tract that constitute a large proportion of the presenting problems seen in clinical gastroenterology.

 

While FGID’s were once thought to be partly “in one’s head,” a more precise conceptualization of these difficulties posits that psychosocial factors influence the actual physiology of the gut, as well as the modulation of symptoms. In other words, psychological factors can literally impact upon physical factors, like the movement and contractions of the GI tract, causing, inflammation, pain, and other bowel symptoms.

 

Mental health impacts gut wellness

In light of this new understanding, it might be impossible to heal FGID’s without considering the impact of stress and emotion. Studies have shown that patients who tried psychologically based approaches had greater improvement in their symptoms compared with patients who received conventional medical treatment.

 

Along those lines, a new pilot study from Harvard University affiliates Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that meditation could have a significant impact for those with irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel disease. Forty-eight patients with either IBS or IBD took a 9-week session that included meditation training, and the results showed reduced pain, improved symptoms, stress reduction, and the change in expression of genes that contribute to inflammation.

 

Poor gut health can lead to neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders

Vice-versa, poor gut health has been implicated in neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. Disturbances in gut health have been linked to multiple sclerosis, autistic spectrum disorders, and Parkinson’s disease. This is potentially related to pro-inflammatory states elicited by gut dysbiosis-microbial imbalance on or inside the body. Additional connections between age-related gut changes and Alzheimer’s disease have also been made.

 

Further, there is now research that is dubbing depression as an inflammatory disorder mediated by poor gut health. In fact, multiple animal studies have shown that manipulating the gut microbiota in some way can produce behaviors related to anxiety and depression. (Maes, Kubera, Leunis, Berk, J. Affective Disorders, 2012 and Berk, Williams, Jacka, BMC Med, 2013).

 

Our brain’s health, which will be discussed in more depth in a later blog post, is dependent on many lifestyle choices that mediate gut health; including most notably diet (i.e., reduction of excess sugar and refined carbohydrates) and pre and probiotic intake.

 

The brain-gut connection has treatment implications

We are now faced with the possibility of both prevention and treatment of neurological/neuropsychiatric difficulties via proper gut health. On the flip side, stress-reduction and other psychological treatments can help prevent and treat gastrointestinal disorders. This discovery can potentially lead to reduced morbidity, impairment, and chronic dependency on health care resources.

 

The most empowering aspect to the gut-brain connection is the understanding that many of our daily lifestyle choices play a role in mediating our overall wellness. This whole-body approach to healthcare and wellness continues to show its value in our longevity, well-being, and quality of life: that both physical and mental health go hand-in-hand.

 

www.mindful.org/meet-your-second-brain-the-gut/

ANNONA MURICATA

 

A natural remedy for cancer treatment with out any common side effects caused by chemotherapeutic drugs. It is ten thousand times more potent than normal chemotherapeutic drug. It have its effect on dividing cells that have cancer property but no effect on normal dividing cell.

It is commonly seen in areas of North America, South America and Caribbean and known to as by graviola, paw-paw, guanabana. Which is commonly known as soursop.

 

Now a days most of the people In Kerala planting mullatha at their home (because of awareness programmes held by doctors and several organizations) and it also is available in Lulu hypermarket, Kochi as soursop. Commonly it is known as mullatha.

 

Each part of the plant like leaves, stem, bark, seeds and fruits are used as anti cancer agent or as a cytotoxic agent. Leaves extract of annona muricata has proved to be used in breast cancer.

 

Now a days doctors prescribe annona muricata fruit for various cancer especially prostrate cancer. Seeds have insecticidal action as well as cytotoxic action. It is not only know for its cytotoxic activity but also for anti malarial, anti spasmodic, anti bacterial, anti amoebic, anti fungal, anti hypertensive, anti hyperglycemic and insecticidal action. It is also effective in Adriamycin resistant tumour.

 

For cancer patients adjuvant therapy with soursop fruit juice is most effective.

 

it also highly effective for several other health issues:

 

Benefits of Soursop for Skin:

 

Heals eczema and leprosy:

 

People suffering from eczema and other such skin problems benefit a lot by using sousop leaves. Mash these leaves and use it as a poultice to treat such problems. Taking the juice of soursop while fasting is said to cure leprosy.

 

Treatment of skin irritations:

 

If you suffer from skin eruptions, apply fresh leaves of this fruit on the skin. This helps in healing them quickly. Boils can appear on any part of your body and can be painful also. You can place soursop leaves on the affected areas and soon these boils will be healed.

 

Young Glowing skin:

 

Vitamin C and ascorbic acid are found in high amounts in this fruit. These increase the amount of antioxidants in the body, which fight against the free radicals that are responsible for the ageing of the skin, like the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and pigmentation. As a result, you will get young looking and glowing skin without any blemishes.

Benefits of Soursop for Hair:

 

Natural Treatment of hair lice:

 

Soursop leaves are very useful for getting rid of parasites. So, it is great for getting rid of head lice, which can multiply fast and affect your health. Make a decoction with soursop leaves and apply this on your scalp. Wait for a few minutes and then wash off with water. This way you can get rid of hair lice.

Health and Medicinal Benefits of Soursop:

 

Acts as Natural diuretic:

 

About 84% of this fleshy fruit consists of water. This helps in hydrating your body. Hence it is a natural diuretic and helps in the treatment of edema or retention of water.

 

Beneficial for the heart and nerves:

 

Soursop is a rich source of Vitamin B1, which is very effective for improving your metabolism and to prevent nervous disorders. It is also good for increasing the circulation of blood. Vitamin B2 in it is essential for the production of energy in the body and for the storage of fat in the body. It is also needed for the proper functioning of the nervous system and to maintain the heart muscles.

 

Fights free radicals:

 

Soursop contains ascorbic acid, which increases the amount of antioxidants in your body. Antioxidants are vital for fighting against the free radicals and thus keeping your body safe from various infections and disorders.

 

Fever Treatment:

 

Make tea with the leaves of this fruit and have it. This can lower the body temperature and cure fever.

 

Increases energy and endurance:

 

Fructose is found in high amounts in soursop. This is a simple sugar and a good source of natural carbohydrates. This can helps in keeping you fresh and regain the lost energy within minutes. It also increases your endurance power as it is rich in Vitamin C.

 

Kills parasites inside the body:

 

Presence of various nutrients in soursop like amino acids, calcium, ascorbic acid, iron, phosphorous, carbohydrates, thiamine, riboflavin and fiber make it very effective for killing the parasites inside the body and for the overall development of the body.

 

Kills cancer causing cells:

 

Soursop leaves are very effective for preventing breast, colon, prostate, lung and pancreatic cancer as it has the ability to kill 12 types of cancer cells. They attack the cancer cells without causing any side effects like nausea, hair loss, weight loss and so on, as you find in the case of chemotherapy. It is also said to be 10000 times more effective than chemotherapy and adriamycin for slowing down the cancer cell growth.

 

Boil 10 old soursop leaves in 3 cup of water till only 1 cup remains. Let the patients have it twice a day for two weeks to get any visible results. These leaves help in killing the abnormal cancer cells and also allow the cells to grow normally.

 

Osteoporosis Prevention:

 

Calcium and phosphorous are found in high amounts in soursop and these are essential for keeping your bones healthy and strong, thus preventing osteoporosis.

 

Promotes restful sleep:

 

Soursop can help in inducing sleepiness and relaxation. This is because of the presence of a chemical called tryptophan in it. This fruit is also good for maintaining proper levels of blood pressure and to control hypertension.

 

Relieves constipation fast:

 

You can get relief from constipation by having soursop fruit regularly because it is rich in soluble as well as insoluble fiber.

 

Rich Vitamin C Benefits:

 

Soursop is loaded with Vitamin C, which is a powerful antioxidant. It can improve your endurance and slow down the signs of aging.

 

Relieves from pain:

 

The leaves of soursop have the ability to get you relief from pain because they have analgesic properties. You can chew these leaves or apply them on wounds to reduce pain and heal the wound. If there is excessive pain, then you can boil 20 leaves of this plant with 5 cups of water till it is reduced to 3 cups. Drink ¾ cup of this concoction once a day and you will get relief.

 

Treatment of mouth ulcers:

 

Mash soursop leaves with water and apply this paste on the boils inside your mouth. This helps in reducing the irritation and curing the mouth ulcer.

 

Treatment of urinary tract infections:

 

Soursop is high in water contents. So it is very effective for treating Urinary tract infections, hematuria and urethritis. Having the juice of this fruit regularly can treat urethritis, hematuria and liver issues.

 

Treats hypertension:

 

The high ratio of potassium (278 mg/100 mg) to sodium (14 mg/100 mg) in soursop makes it very effective for people who suffer from hypertension.

This is photoshopped and strictly for fun. I do not want to be responsible for anyone soiling their pants because they refuse to use the park facilities. For some unfortunate reason this thought came to me and I decided to follow through with it. I want to be clear about this. At no time have I ever seen a bear using the park rest rooms. But if it did happen, I think it might be a sure cure for constipation.

 

I hope you all have a great holiday season!

Prune Juice : A warrior's drink!

 

Day 3

 

Brugmansia

Angel Trumpets --- Engelstrompeten

 

Toxicity ----/---- Giftigkeit

 

All parts of Brugmansia are potentially poisonous, with the seeds and leaves being especially dangerous. Effects of ingestion can include: paralysis of smooth muscles, confusion, tachycardia, dry mouth, constipation, tremors, migraine headaches, poor coordination, delusions, visual and auditory hallucinations, dilation of the pupil, eye muscle paralysis, and death. ------/------ Alle Teile der Brugmansia stellen eine Vergiftungsgefahr dar, wobei die Samen und Blätter besonders gefährlich sind. Folgen bei Verschlucken: Lähmung der glatten Muskulatur, geistige Verwirrung, Herzrasen, trockener Mund, Verstopfung, Zittern, Migräne-Kopfschmerzen, Koordinationsstörungen, Wahnvorstellungen, Seh- und Hörhalluzinationen, Weitstellung der Pupille, Augenmuskellähmung und Tod.

 

Medicinal Uses ----/---- Medizinische Verwendung

 

External Applications: against aches and pains, dermatitis/eczema, arthritis, rheumatism, headaches, infections, and as an anti-inflammatory. ------/------ Äußere Anwendungen: gegen Schmerzen, Dermatitis/Ekzem, Arthritis, Rheumatismus, Kopfweh, Entzündungen und als Entzündungshemmer.

 

[Source / Quelle]: Wikipedia

 

When you travel to east of Indonesia, you'll likely see them. Great natural born diver. They're able to dive for hours with bare lung. The goggles are handmade of wooden frame and clear glass.

She is gradually doing better, but is still on the medication treatment.

And one more problem: constipation...

I have to go to work, so no one will keep her company in the coming 8~10 hours. As a cat likes people, 绒绒 dislikes Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Detoxing is much more than a fad word or a trend, it is a time honored tradition that has benefitted countless generations. With modern medicine and food advances, we have discovered even more ways to detox the body, including using certain roots like ginger or fruits like lemon. Add the two together and you have a potent combination of amazing proportions. www.amazon.fr/Lose-Weight-Fast-Dan-Hild/dp/B0BQHT8R7J

 

The Lemon Ginger detox is a good starting point for anyone seeking to cleanse the body before undergoing more powerful detoxes. Natural, healthy, easy to do and quick to produce results, the lemon ginger detox should be the first stop on any weight loss journey.

 

This easy to understand and detailed guide explains every aspect of the lemon ginger water detox, from preparation to implementation. If you are looking for a way to get healthy and to lose weight, then this is the guide for you. Drinking lemon-ginger tea before bed may help improve mindfulness and hydration. It may also reduce indigestion, nasal congestion, and more.

 

If you have difficulty falling or staying asleep, you may be looking for ways to get more rest.

 

Drinking an herbal tonic, like lemon-ginger tea, could be a soothing bedtime ritual to help put the day behind you.

 

Lemon-ginger tea is exactly what it sounds like: a gentle herbal infusion of fresh lemon and ginger — with a bit of sweetener like honey or agave nectar, if you choose.

 

You might be wondering if lemon-ginger tea has any unique health benefits. While it may not make you sleepy, it might help you wind down and relax and provide other benefits.

 

This article examines six benefits of bedtime lemon-ginger tea and explains how to make it. 1. Soothes indigestion

 

If chronic indigestion or a heavy dinner keeps you up later than you would like, a cup of lemon-ginger tea may be a great tonicTrusted Source before you head for bed.

 

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is a root long used in alternative and folk medicine for its ability to alleviate the delayed emptying of your stomach.

 

What’s more, lemon (Citrus limon) contains a plant compound called limonene that aids digestion by helping move food along your digestive tract — potentially easing the uncomfortable feeling of fullness.

 

While the amount of limonene in a given cup of lemon-ginger tea will vary, you might find that the combination of lemon, ginger, and water in lemon-ginger tea calms indigestion. 3. May reduce nasal congestion

 

The steam generated from your hot lemon-ginger infusion may help open up your nasal cavities — helping clear a stuffy noseTrusted Source. Drinking something warm also soothes a sore throat from mucus buildup.

 

Although these effects are mostly anecdotal and supported by folk medicine, they may be useful to keep in mind during cold and flu season or if you experience seasonal allergies.

 

Lemon-ginger tea won’t cure you of any of these, but it may help loosen up congestion, allowing air to flow through your nose a little easier. 4. May relieve constipation

 

Constipation can result from several factors, including dehydration and a diet that’s low in fiber.

 

When constipation stems from dehydration, relaxing in the evening with a warm cup of lemon-ginger tea may help since water helps stool pass through your digestive tract more easily.

 

If you feel chronically constipated, be sure you’re drinking enough fluids throughout the day, too.

 

Speak with a healthcare professional if you have:

 

trouble having a bowel movement

less than three times a week

blood in stool

5. May help fight inflammation

 

Gingerol, one of the plant compounds found in ginger, boasts anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

 

Chronic inflammation is linked to conditions like metabolic syndrome, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and heart disease.

 

However, studies show mixed results on whether ginger has anti-inflammatory effects in people.

 

Plus, it’s worth keeping in mind that there isn’t enough research currently to know just how much gingerol is needed to achieve these effects — and how much of it you would actually get from drinking a typical cup of lemon-ginger tea. 6. Keeps you hydrated

 

When you drink lemon-ginger tea, you are, of course, drinking water — which means you’re hydrating your body.

 

This is important, because staying hydrated keeps vital organs, like your kidneys, gut, and heart, functioning properly.

 

How much water you need per day is affected by many factors, such as your medications, activities, and any health issues.

 

How to prepare lemon-ginger tea at home

 

Making lemon-ginger tea at home is easy. After all, you’re simply infusing water with fresh ginger and lemon.

 

Lemon-ginger tea

 

Makes one serving

 

Ingredients

 

1-inch (2.5-cm) piece of fresh ginger root, peeled

1/2 lemon, quartered and 1 fresh wedge for garnish

1 cup (237 mL) of water

honey or agave nectar, to taste

Directions

 

Combine the ginger and lemon with water in a small saucepan and allow to simmer on your stovetop. Let this steep for at least 10 to 15 minutes.

If you find the tonic too weak, consider grating in your ginger instead, or cutting the piece down into smaller chunks. You can also zest in some lemon peel if you want more lemony notes.

Stir in honey or agave nectar to taste, if you wish. Garnish with a fresh wedge of lemon.

You could also make a larger batch and store it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to warm it up again. To do so, multiply this recipe for a few days’ worth. www.healthline.com/nutrition/lemon-ginger-tea-before-bed

Dagga is the South African terminology for cannabis. This however is not cannabis but a beautiful wild flower (Leonotis leonorus) which flowers at this time of year and is native to Southern Africa. It is known for its medicinal and mild psychoactive properties. It attracts birds, mainly sunbirds, as well as various insects such as butterflies - and as you can see many little flying insects. Its medicinal uses include fevers, headaches, dysentery, flu, chest infections, epilepsy, constipation, delayed menstruation, intestinal worms, spider bites, scorpion stings, hypertension and snakebites. One experimental animal study suggests that "the aqueous leaf extract of Leonotis leonurus possesses antinociceptive, antiinflammatory, and hypoglycemic properties; thus lending pharmacological credence to folk usage of the herb in the management and/or control of painful, arthritic, and other inflammatory conditions, as well as for adult-onset, type-2 diabetes mellitus in some communities of South Africa."

 

Information taken from Wikipedia.

 

I do thank all of you for your kind wishes yesterday, I had a wonderful day. At present I am loaded with work which is lovely but time-consuming so I may not be around as much as I like. On the other hand I will try to sneak a peak whenever I can.

Are you a weak woman whose blood could be redder? Talk to your doctor about Dr. Pierce's Golden Medical Discovery. Side effects include nausea, indigestion, hysteria, social banishment, witchcraft accusations, being burned at the stake, death,....

 

In all seriousness, you can google this archaic medicine and find links to bottles with the following info:

Bottle embossed on sides ("R.V. Pierce, M.D." and "Buffalo, N.Y.") and back ("Dr. Pierce's Golden Medical Discovery"). Dr. Pierce's Golden Medical Discovery (or GMD) was one of Pierce's earliest products. This product was called a "vegetable alternative" tonic and was also one of the longest-lasting lines of Pierce's Proprietaries (the company that was formed sometime after the death of the senior Dr. Pierce and continued selling these items well into the 1970s). This product was to be used to help cleanse the body and blood and to "tone the system." A later booklet about the product stated the ingredients of GMD were bloodroot (sanguinaria canadensis), Oregon grape root (berberis aquifolium), stone root (collinsonia canadensis), Queen's root (stillingia sylvatica), sacred bark (rhamnus purshiana), and cherrybark (prunus virginiana).

 

OR...

For the cure of all severe, chronic or lingering coughs, bronchitis, laryngitis, weak lungs, bleeding from lungs, public speaker's sore throat, hoarseness and suppression or loss of voice. A remedy for torpor of liver (generally termed "liver complaint" or "biliousness") and for habitual constipation of the bowels. For loss of appetite, indigestion and dyspepsia, and for general nervous disability or prostration, in either sex. An alterative, or blood purifier; valuable in all forms of scrofulous and other blood diseases. For skin diseases, eruptions, pimples, rashes and blotches, boils, ulcers, sores, and swellings, arising from impure blood.

 

This barn advertisement can be seen from the Jackson Highway (formerly U.S. Route 99) a bit south of the town of Toledo, Washington.

Durian Fruit Of Southeast Asia Durian Fruit is known through-out all of China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other Southeast Asian Countries, as the “King of Fruits!” It is one of the most beneficial fruits there is in all of Asia. The Durian Fruit is believed to help relieve constipation, bloating, […]

  

exploretraveler.com/durian-fruit-of-southeast-asia/

pew pew pew

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I just couldn't stop! If I wasn't using tonights shot for the project I could have gone for days adding the smallest of details. Details that 99% of you wouldn't even catch. I swear, I spent 50% of the time at 500% zoom. I've got to say… I'm pretty damn happy with the end result of this one.

 

Back a couple of months I had done the 80's prom for Lifetime Fitness Center in Boca Raton, FL. Karen and her husband were among the fashionably un fashionable . They "fell in love with my work" and from that night on "had to have me take their christmas photos" I was honored to travel south to their south western inspired and decorated delray beach home. The general concept they had was funny, dogs and christmas. The rest was up to me. I had the idea of the dogs wreaking havoc on the tree but the National Lampoons Christmas style shot didn't come up until I was racking my brain, standing in there living room. No doubt, having that stupid look of intense concentration or perhaps constipation (its hard to tell sometimes). Out of nowhere, the lightbulb hit and my mouth just started rambling. "ok, what if you all were posing for a standard family portrait and all the sudden the dog runs, the tree tips over and starts on fire" They loved the idea and we all had an intense sense of motivation. What followed was 2.5 hours of posing and reposing, adjusting and re adjusting. I had set out to shoot this in as many separate elements as possible. This would make getting the cooperation of the dogs much easier since we could work with one at a time. Lazy as I called her was up first. From the moment I walked into the house all this dog wanted to do was flop down and get her stomach rubbed. The other one was like a rodeo bull. "play with me, play with me, play with me" "ahhh, duh, what if I rub my drooling face on your lap… will you play with me then?" he really was a bull dozer of a dog. He would also prove to be the biggest challenge of the shoot. A challenge I opted to leave for last.

 

Getting Craig to pose was a piece of cake. The face you see is the face he jumped out of the gate wearing. It was perfect and I would of guessed he'd done this before or at least practiced in the mirror over the years! Karen took a little time and that is normally to be expected with women and photography. Funny that when your arguing with them they make Ten thousand amazing expression in a matter of minutes. Yet when you want to cultivate one, you are shit out of luck! They don't want to really open their mouth wide and scream. When I want real emotion I try to get the model to really scream, it makes it look so much more believable. Karen, however, wouldn't scream but did pretty good despite.

 

Last up was the bull dozer General Lee! He worked for food but was a smart dog. He required a deposit before any work was done. At first, I instructed them to just hold the dog and let him go on my command. Karen had a treat at the other end of the living room. This worked but wasn't giving me the look I was after. Next up was Craig on the ground bench pressing the lug of a dog. You could tell that he wasn't used to lifting the dog like that as he could only do it was a minute at a time. Between the bulk of the dog and the constantly shifting, wiggling and vibrating, I'm not sure many people would be able to lift that monster for too long.

 

After about 50 shots, we finally got the one we were looking for and not a second too late. Poor Craig looked beat! Next up was random ornament shots and the grand finale… the tree tipping.

 

Karen and Craig were up till 2am getting the tree up, straight, decorated and ready for me to tip it over! They hadn't had a tree since 2005 since they're rarely home for Christmas. So all you see was for the shot! pretty cool!

 

To tip the tree was a problem I had to figure out creatively. I didn't want someone holding it as having a body intertwined with the branches would of been a pain in the ass to mask out. The solution was simple. I tied 2 pieces of string to the middle of the tree and had Craig hold one end and Shawn hold the other. they were clearly in frame but I would take a background blank plate for later use to aid in erasing them.

 

We were finally done and I knew I had some work ahead of me. I got right down to work the second I got home. Masking took no time at all as it seemed like my hand was in the mood to mask. The pen flowed around the edges like a skilled painter creating the perfect sky. 15 min and I was done with all the masking. The compositing is where I spent the next 6 hours. 82 layers later and I had to force myself to say "I'm done" I hope they like it… but I suspect they will, as I love it.

 

Time to rest up because I have to do the same thing all over again tomorrow morning. This time it will be making kids fly!!! Tough job huh!!

 

Lighting:

 

Lighting positions varied greatly but style was the same through out.

 

AB800 Med Gridded Softbox at around 10:00 and 2:00. 3/4 power

AB800 Beauty Dish Boomed over head. 1/4 to 3/4 power depending on shot.

My weekend won't be complete if I don't go out and shoot something. While my wife was busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen, I sneaked out capturing the morning scene in the nearby area.

 

Thought of calling a neighbor Apai to join me, but on second thought, I knew he wouldn't wake up that early on weekend. Then Azrul came across my mind but I quickly canceled him off knowing he has to spend time "entertaining" his constipation every morning.

 

After a couple of minutes drive, I settled at the gateway in the back entrance of our housing estate in Saujana Utama (SU) that leads to Puncak Alam and Shah Alam.

 

The early morning sun hidden behind the houses on the slope was very kind to light up the sky for me – just nice for my capture.

 

After a few shots, I then packed up and head home. The whole affair took me about 15 minutes or so, even my wife hardly noticed I went missing in those short minutes. If the trend is such, my wife is not aware of my missing, next time I'll try to have a short date with a girl and come back in flash pretending nothing happened. Wahahaha!!!

_______________________________________________________________________________

 

I would like to make special mention here on my neighbors from SU with flickr accounts that I know of. They are:-

1. Dr Zul

2. Apai

3. Jemay

4. Dbins

5. Azrul

6. Lan Rambai

7. Lanz

8. Kudin

I made an oriental plum sauce last night with these wild plums. Garlic, ginger, cayenne.... yum!

 

Health Benefits From Plums

 

Plums have a low glycemic index, making them a good choice for those with blood sugar problems. Plums contain special phytonutrients called chloregenic acid and neochlorogenic acid, which are powerful antioxidants. These compounds are capable of assisting in the prevention of damage to the beneficial fats that protect brain cells and that make up cell membranes. Plums are a good source of fiber, vitamin C, potassium, B vitamins, boron, and two pigments called lutein and zeaxanthin, which are particualry helpful for protecting vision and preventing macular degeneration of the eyes, which can lead to blindness. Plums are also a better economic value than blueberries. One relatively inexpensive plum has about the same amount of antioxidants as a handful of more costly blueberries and offers many of the similar health benefits. There are loads of health benefits from eating a single raw plum once a day.

 

Plums contain enzymes that help your body absorb more iron, which increases circulation and gives you more energy. Plums will also help to cleanse your blood of damaging free radicals, keeping your blood pressure from climbing too high, and protecting your arteries. People who eat a plum every single day are less likely to develop heart disease than people who only eat plums once in a while. The vitamin C content of plums helps your joints and lungs. Several studies have concluded that prunes, because of their boron and polyphenol content, have a beneficial effect on bone mineral density. The high fiber and sorbitol content of plums and prunes, in particular, make them perfect for softening the stool and promoting bowel movements. One word of caution, plums contain oxalates. If you have a history of calcium oxalate kidney stones, you might want to consider to eat plums sparingly.

 

Studies have shown that plums can help:

 

* Relieve Constipation

 

* Reduce Vision Problems

 

* Protect Joints

 

* Prevent Osteoporosis

 

* Improve Lung Function

 

* Improve Blood Quality

 

* Prevent Infections

 

* Promote Healthy Cholesterol Levels

 

Until next time, don't forget to grow and eat your plums!

 

EXPLORED! Rank #444, August 29, 2009

Moa nahele, Flat-stemmed whiskfern

Psilotaceae (Whiskfern family)

Indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands (Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui, and Hawaiʻi Island)

Photo: Hawaiʻiloa Ridge Trail, Oʻahu

 

The Hawaiian name Moa nahele literally means "forest chicken." Moa is chicken, referring to a chickens' comb, and reference to the fronds. Nahele is forest.

 

It is less common than Psilotum nudus in the islands, but still easy to find in the right environment.

 

Early Hawaiian children would play a simple game of moa nahele (lit., chicken vegetation). Plants in Hawaiian Culture explains how this game was played: “Two children sat or stood facing one another, each holding a branched stem of moa. These they interlocked and then slowly pulled apart until the branches of one broke. The other child, without broken branches, was the winner and announced his victory by crowing like a rooster (moa).” One of the names ʻoʻō moa in fact means "cock's crow."

 

Moa was also used in lei making by early Hawaiians.

 

Moa (Psilotum spp.) was used for kūkae paʻa (constipation) in newborn babies and elderly men and women. It was also mixed with other plants to treat akepau (tuberculosis, consumption), and various respiratory conditions. Additionally, extracts from moa were used as laxatives. The yellow spores were used for diarrhea in infants and used like talcum powder to prevent chafing from loincloths.

 

Etymology

The generic name is from the Greek psilos, naked or smooth, alluding to the smooth aerial stems without leaves.

 

The specific epithet complanatum is from the Latin complanatus, flattened, in reference to flattened stems of this species.

 

nativeplants.hawaii.edu

 

Our sweet daughter-in-law Lucy recently died of ovarian cancer at only 34 years old. Over 300 people turned up at her funeral to show respect to an ordinary loving, caring girl and over £2000 was donated to the UK charity 'Ovarian Cancer Action' (update - around £7000 has been raised in her memory at this time) Lucy’s illness was consistently mis-diagnosed as constipation, bloating, or latterly as a water infection by her family doctors’ practice. This was despite Lucy pointing out on more than one occasion that her mother had died of ovarian cancer only twelve years previous to this. Lucy’s condition was eventually detected after our son had taken her directly to the hospital accident and emergency department. Here they actually took the time to physically examine a young lady who was in pain and a simple blood test detected her condition. A similar degree of medical ignorance of text-book ovarian cancer symptoms, led to one of our friends being similarly mis-diagnosed too late for treatment, about a year previous to Lucy. I don’t mean to be alarmist, but I urge any of you who may have reason to suspect a genetic disposition to any cancer, not to be fobbed-off by a ‘trust us, we doctors know better than you' attitude. If you have any doubts at all, then please check on ovarian cancer, or other cancer symptoms on the internet and seek further medical advice. www.everywomanshouldremember.co.uk/

 

Dys

 

Michael Leans to Rock -

Indisputably, timberland is the greatest place to find magical bits and pieces. Examining in extreme an oddity I found on a leafy platter… hmm, there are three individual desserts at least from the same factory. I twiddle my thumbs idly, trying to look away from the sweet galore staring at me. “Leave us all alone,” the jiggling jellies screamed in unison. “We won’t melt in the hot weather.” What can I say? Temptation can gouge your palms more than sharp nails. Their pleas fueled my weakness until I can no longer stand. Hastily I reached out with left hand... the first spoon of mango pudding glided smooth like tofu into my tummy. Ooohhh, the pleasure they provide send me straight to paradise. The second ladle of banana custard with high-fiber prunes, my constipation in build up is loose. The third mouthful of banana cream with sliced peaches, their flavor so rich my sweet tooth grew into wisdom tooth. In a flash, every single one is gone. As soon as the madness of impulse subsides, self-reproach kicked in. Yes, I‘ve done some stupid act but no, wolfing down little egg cups of insect origin it isn’t an inhuman thing. Twenty five minutes too late, somebody in front took my pie away. That empty capsule I couldn’t get my hands on filled me with immense curiosity. What flavor was it? The remorse of slowness stains like mud on shoes and materialized behind as footprints following wherever I go.