Food for Thoughts (II)

Recently, I rediscovered a perfect snack in popcorn. For years, I have deprived myself of this simple pleasure. In addition to its nutritional value, the puffed up corn kernels are delicious and are very low in calories. No matter how the cloud-like popcorn is seasoned, it is always a welcoming treat. Moreover, a cup of plain corn kernels has only *27 calories. Corn is also a good source of fibers and many other beneficial nutrients including protein and Vitamins.

The other day, I decided to get some new crunchy snacks. So this armchair-golfer would have something different to munch on while watching the PGA competition on television. A bag of white cheddar cheese popcorn seemed to fit the bill. I do realize store-bought ones may contain too much salt and extra fats. But I am certain this healthy snack will not harm my body and spirit if I choose carefully for what I buy and I do not overindulge myself on them. Since corn is a veggie, consuming some popcorn now and then will definitely help me add more vegetables in my simple diet.

Popcorn is an inexpensive treat too. It does not break our piggy bank when we decide to pop a batch of the crunchy morsels ourselves. A half cup of corn kernels in a few tablespoons of cooking oil can yield a bucketful of the fluffed up goodies. This perfect snack has also being used in making cakes, granola bars and even Christmas decorations.

Now let us get ourselves some tasty popcorns and be aMAIZEd - Ayee

* From Frances Towner Giedt’s POPCORN!,1995

Doggie Story ( l )

This is about my neighbor’s two gentle dogs.

Skipper, a Keeshound, is the older one. His pal, Bear is a cream-color Samoyed. Their dear owners tethered them to a sail boat berthed in front of their garage. The lengthy ropes on the dog’s collar allowed the pair to wonder around the unfenced yard. There was also a homemade dog house in the yard. But their favorite spot appeared to be a cement block in the shade of the sail boat.

During the summer months, the retired couple would pitch a tent on the north side of their bungalow. To escape the stuffy heat, they lounged there with Skipper and Bear by their side. A portrait of a happy and content family never failed to bring smiles from the neighbors passing by.

Both Skipper and Bear looked very healthy and were well adjusted to each others. They, like many other dogs, barked perfunctorily when neighbors walked by. Now and then when I knew I would be passing by their house, I always remembered having a few dog biscuits for them. They seemed to know I was their friend. And our milk bones fortified relationship flourished for many years until one day I saw Skip, with Bear next to him, in great pain at the pair’s favorite spot.

On that day I was on my way to run a few errands. When I was near Skip’s house, I heard him howling. I found part of Skip’s body was covered in his own blood. Without hesitation, I alerted Skip’s owners of their pet's desperate call for help. Extremely unfortunate for Skip, because of the hefty vet bills, my elderly neighbors decided to let Skip go in peace.

Of course, I was saddened by the loss of an otherwise healthy dog. And Bear lost his long time pal. Not long after Skip died, I went by to visit Bear one day. It was hot and muggy. I saw Bear, the gentle giant, lied on his side napping on the lawn in the shadow of a camper. This time he growled at me when I pet him. I did not know if Bear was upset by the fact that I was the one caused Skip to disappear or the fact that I woke him up from his afternoon nap. I thought memory of the tasty treats would make bad feeling more tolerable. But there was a clear message from this wooly doggie that suggested "LEAVE ME ALONG OR ELSE." Tell me animals have no feelings!

I have not returned to visit Bear and his elderly owners since I moved a few years ago. But the fond memory of being friends with Skip, Bear and their dear owners always made me feel blessed for having neighbors like them. - Ayee

A Curmudgeon's Cat

Last year, I got to read a few books on cats and their people. Four of them are by the late TV Guide critic, Cleveland Amory. He, a Harvard graduate and self-proclaimed curmudgeon, had certainly ruffled many feathers as a relentless advocate for animal rights. He was not kind to his prestigious alma mater either. A few practices at this Ivy League school had appalled him.

This former newspaper editor is best known for his book about an irresistible white kitten he rescued from a New York City alley on Christmas Eve. The Cat Who Came for Christmas* made Polar Bear, the curmudgeon’s cat, an instant celebrity.

Mr. Amory’s uncle and aunt taught him be kind to animals. Black Beauty was his favorite book when he was a lad. Years later, he founded "Funds for Animals" for which he was the unpaid president until his death in 1998. He also co-founded the Humane Society of the United States, one of the most powerful animal welfare lobbies in the States. Through these establishments, they airlifted more than three hundreds burros from the Nevada desert. They exposed the corrupted and cruel practices at a government agency that rounded up wild horses. Among many other animal rescue missions, they also financed the effort of Sea Shepard, an anti-whaling ship, to disrupt a seal hunt in Canada.

In The Cat Who Came for Christmas, this best seller author chronicled what was like living with a stubborn cat. To satisfy a stray cat’s appetite, he had to keep Tender Vittles in his night stand so Polar Bear could have a quick snack in the wee hours of the day. To prevent his Christmas kitty from falling off from the balcony when birdwatching, he cordoned off half of his Park Avenue apartment balcony. He even resorted to animal psychics so he could understand sometime very disagreeable Polar Bear better. Obviously, he, like many other pet owners, would do anything to please his furry friend.

It is also noted in this best seller book that cats can jump as high as seven times of their body length. This explains why the normal six-foot fence can never keep a cat in the yard for long. In addition, according to the professions the author conferred, left-pawed cats are more perceptive than their right-winged peers.

In any case, I am sure Polar Bear would agree with his extremely accommodating human friend that all animals, great and small, deserve to be treated with respect and kindness. To do what he preached, Mr. Amory built an animal sanctuary in Texas. The Black Beauty Ranch is now home to many retired, displaced and injury animals.

Once I wrote to a newspaper reporter on the benefits of pet ownership. One of the many we agreed upon was the enjoyment we got out from reading the books on pets and animals. - Ayee

* The other three Cleveland Amory’s books are:
- Cat and The Curmudgeon
- The Best Cat Ever
- Ranch of Dreams

Feathered Apes (II)

The other day I got a pleasant surprise from a neighborhood crow.

On that beautiful sunny day, I decided to visit a friend across town. My friend lives in one of the more pleasant neighborhoods in the City. With lush mountains as its backdrop, it sits not far from an inlet by the blue sea. And there are always wild birds including crows swooping up and down around the many tall trees in the area. When I was about a couple of blocks from my destination, I could smell the fresh and crisp spring air from the sea.

Armed with good direction, I found the right street with no fanfares. But the lamp post on the corner of that street, not like the others, bears no road sign. Based on details on hand, I made a right turn on that unmarked block any way. While searching for my friend’s home, a flock of blackbirds flying noisily above me. Finally they settled down on a tree a few houses away. I also saw one lone crow perching quietly on the top of a low metal gate down the road. It was the only gate on the block had a live bird on it. And to my greatest surprise that gate opens to the house I was looking for.

After I told this nebulous incident to my friend, I learned their home is a bird-friendly one. The mistress of the house always has goodies for wild birds visiting their bountiful back yard. Therefore, there are always birds, particular crows, hanging around the house. This somewhat explained why sometimes there would be crows sitting on their gate welcome visitors! - Ayee

Mental Fatigue

Over the last few weeks there were many close-calls in the sky.

It started with a Boeing airplane losing a portion of its ceiling in midair. Then, our attention was directed to the pilots who had to land their good planes on their own while the exhausted air traffic controllers dozed off in the towers. And recently, millions of us saw an oversized aircraft side swiped a smaller commuter jet on the runway.

Luckily none of these mishaps had caused any fatalities. But these worrisome incidents, particularly the weary air traffic controllers, can bring fatal consequences. They are also wake-up calls, no pun intended, to the sleepy sky cops who had to work many shifts straight. I have since learned there were six or seven similar incidents reported so far this year. One of the offenders was on his fourth consecutive shift. Clearly this scheduling practice defies common sense. No average healthy individuals have enough stamina to work productively say a couple of eight-hour shifts continuously. In addition, we all know sleep deprivation can cause devastating harms to us both physically and mentally.

To the sleepers on the job, they, whatever their jobs are, have my personal sympathy for having to work long hours in one sitting. This practice of extending working hours can certainly undermine public safety. It also borders on slavery. So the governments are making new laws that do not allow air traffic controllers work consecutive shifts. Except I think, the law makers should also look into the scheduling practices of other service-based industries. I do not think air traffic controller is the only profession that requires working unreasonably long and uninterrupted shifts. - Ayee

Contracting Out Is A Bad Idea.

It is unbelievable that some esteemed banks had used forged documents to foreclose mortgages. Bankers are supposed to be the prudent men who are learned and trustworthy. But in this case they made themselves a costly mess that will take years of undoing. Their sloppy works also cost many unfortunate people undue hardships that can never be righted timely.

According to a story on "60 Minutes" last Sunday, millions of houses were foreclosed with invalid documents. Thanks to an observant home owner. She noticed the signatures on the legal documents were not genuine and were penned by different persons. Now many former home owners, whose homes were foreclosed wrongfully, are suing the banks on losing their homes. Hopefully, they can return to their homes soon.

This story brings to mind the perils in contracting out: One of them is losing control.

By buying out their competitors, the modern banks are getting bigger and bigger. They are getting so big to a point they farmed out the loan servicing part of the business to a third party. This explains why on occasions when we could never get hold of the original banker who financed our home. We, the borrowers, are simply becoming faceless numbers on a loan servicing company’s books. I grant this division of labor has its merits. But when the scheme is getting too large, inefficiency and malfeasance creep in. - Ayee

Integrated Medicine

Last Friday, I got a good surprise from being a couch potato. On the popular Dr. Oz’s television show, I was hearing the good doctor telling his many enthusiastic audiences benefits of three herbal teas. I remember not long ago doctors practicing western medicine would have nothing to do with the alternative medical treatments. Therefore, I was so taken aback when hearing an allopathic practitioner goes public on what sage, nettle and one African tea can do for us. What I saw on Dr.Oz's show suggests to me that the less invasive alternative medicine is no longer a taboo to allopathic doctors.

We all know the science-based allopathic medicine is indispensable in health cares. Penicillin has saved many patients from infection. Cardiac surgery has mended millions of broken hearts. Organ transplants are now common practices.

And we have also learned there are other ways to cure diseases. Some doctors prescribed high dosages of vitamins to cure mental illness. Others used acupuncture needles to manage their patient’s physical pain. It is no wonder that a new industry, nutraceutical, has emerged in the alternative health care regime. The manufacturers of nutraceuticals add healing foods into their products. Even in veterinarian cares, we can now obtain naturopathic therapies for our four-leg friends.

And I think it is a good thing that more alternative health treatments are becoming accetable therapies to the allopathic practitioners. Although the alternative ones are based on anecdotes, many of its regimes were put in use for years before the western medicine did. - Ayee