MY SUN DAY NEWS
June 28, 2012
Every cell in the body contains cholesterol, and without it, you would die. The blood serum cholesterol reading 30 to 40 years ago used to be 250 to 300 and considered normal. Seniors, especially over 70 years of age, live longer, healthier lives with this amount.
A number of weeks ago, I gave you my creation, a variation on a traditional apple pie that included bananas sautéed in butter, brown sugar, and caramel sauce. I called it “Banapple Caramel Pie.” Later, I got the idea that this same combination could be made into crepes. So I took the idea to my friend, Konstantinos Drivas, the owner of Burnt Toast restaurants.
As I watch my big dogs run around, I laugh at how goofy they are romping, falling, and rolling in the grass for pleasure. They are so full of life! I often forget that one of them is a senior at seven years old and the other is middle-aged at three-and-a-half years old. No one told them they weren’t young anymore.
This week, I’m writing about a new Algonquin eatery called Rainbow Restaurant & Pancake House. The restaurant is located in Algonquin on Rt. 31 about a mile south of Algonquin Rd.
I have heard lately from several people that there is a problem on some Sun City houses with mold, moss, mildew, and algae stains on the siding. The problem only occurs on the side where the sun doesn’t shine on the house, primarily the north side.
130 million Americans swallow, inject, inhale, infuse, and spray on prescribed medications every month. They buy more than any country in the world. The number of prescriptions has increased by 2/3’s over the past decade to 3.5 billion yearly. Rising ranks of doctors, researchers, and public health experts say that Americans are overmedicating themselves.
Next up is one of my favorite jazz vocalists, seven-time Grammy Award-winning American jazz singer, Al Jarreau.
While sitting at the table last Sunday morning during breakfast, I browsed through the stack of ads for sales at various retail establishments. I didn’t really have any specific item or product in mind. I just flipped through page after page until something caught my eye. This is a ritual that I have performed faithfully every Sunday morning for years. I have my favorite stores for hardware, food, electronics, office supplies, clothing, etc.
Over lunch today, my children and I discussed our travel plans for the Fourth of July holiday. We usually try to set out for a travel adventure for a few days around our favorite summer holiday.
Four high school boys afflicted with spring fever skipped morning classes. After lunch they reported to the teacher that they had a flat tire.
This week I’m pleased to tell you about a sub shop that knocked the socks off my lunch guests and me. Bubs Subs is located in Algonquin, in front of Home Depot on Randall Road, just south of Algonquin Road.
Next up is one of my favorite big band leaders, pianists, composers, and arrangers, Music Hall of Famer Stan Kenton.
Q. I hear the terms hospice and palliative care used, and I am not sure what the difference is. Can you clear up the confusion?
We should be very careful using a credit card to pay for merchandise on the internet. One way help us do this is through PayPal, a service that enables you to pay for products and services purchased on many internet shopping sites, as well as send money to others and accept payments for items you sell on eBay or on other websites–all without revealing your financial information.
I read a recent article in Forbes magazine entitled: “Top 6 credit score misconceptions.” I’ll provide a brief summary of the six misconceptions reported in the article.
Lifelines. Who do you call when…? Besides the obvious answer: (Ghost Busters), who do you call when you need help? On a picture perfect day in the summer of 2006, my then 6-year-old daughter was picking flowers in our yard. She was simultaneously stung by seven bees. Who did I call?
There are hundreds of things you may want more information on when it comes to home repairs. The answers to many questions are right on your computer if you know how to find them. Two sources are Google and YouTube.
I get asked all the time if certain behaviors are “normal.” Is it normal that my dog chases his tail incessantly? Is it normal for a dog to eat his poo? Or is it normal that my dog barks at anything that moves? My favorite was, I think my dog has a screw loose. Can you tighten it?
Vince (Chuck) Maniscalco is my personal cooking guru. When we met in Sun City, we learned that both of us had grandparents born in Sicily, the island a short distance from the southern coast of Italy.
Grandpa was celebrating his 100th birthday and everybody complimented him on how athletic and well-preserved he appeared. “Gentlemen, I will tell you the secret of my success,” he said.
Experienced observer. I write this column not as a gardening expert or guru, but as one who has extensive experience observing gardening and landscaping successes and failures. As only a brother can, my brother Jim pointed out years ago that I garden by pointing.
If your 911 light switch – the one that flashes the outside light to help the 911 responders find your house – stops working, it may not be broken.
Today’s recipe comes from Carolyn Schachtner.
A young man saw an elderly couple sitting down to lunch at McDonald’s. He noticed that they had ordered one meal and an extra drink cup.
I am always looking for new frugal ideas. Sometimes the ideas come from conversations with friends and neighbors or from students in one of my classes at the university. But it never hurts to expand your horizons and keep looking elsewhere. Surfing the web is a pretty efficient way of finding what you are looking for.
In spite of what has been said about the need for sunshine, people will not choose it for various reasons. These people will need to depend on a supplement. This needs to be D3, the same as getting sun.
Next up is one of my favorite vocalists and songwriters, Michael Franks.
How can you prevent ticks from getting on your dog? The truth is that you can’t, but there are ways to minimize the risk.
Q. I miss doing some of the gardening I used to do when I lived in my own home. I can’t move like I used to, but I’d don’t want to give up working in the garden. Any suggestions?
One only needs to hear the 5/4 strains of “Take Five” to immediately recognizes it as this group’s signature tune from their most famous album by the same name. For those non-musicians, the time signature of 5/4 simply indicates that there are five beats to every measure instead of the most commonly used 4/4 time.
