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Volume 3 Number 5 |
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Natural Health Techniques Dr. Denice Moffat |
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May, 2007 |
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In This Issue: *Does Plastic Affecting Fertility? *Women Born with Aspirin Shortage? *Purchase of Camcorder *Preparing rough drafts of more pages *Making Nutrition Work Seminar notes are now posted. *Basic Tongue Diagnosis *AM/PM Menopause Formula by Integrative Therapeutics, Inc. Media Reviews: Book Review: *Better Off—Flipping the Switch on Technology by Eric Brende *Long Lists of Questions—How they are handled. Tips and Tricks for a Healthier Life: *Seek to feel Joy for best health results. *Migraines better, but gas and bloating still persist. *Almond Milk *If Thou Hath Cow Story *Vet Clinic is no more *Mushrooming *Breakfast with friends *Tree donation blunder *Composting *June 1st Reiki Circle with Jim Johnson *June 2nd Arboretum Plant Sale *June 9th Free Yak Burger Samples *Yoga and EFT class update with April Rubino Health in the News: Does Plastic Affecting Fertility? Week after week when I perform the spays and neuters down at the Animal Shelter I am noticing an increase in reproductive problems. I often wonder what could be done to prevent them in both animals and humans. I’m talking retained testicles, ovarian and uterine cysts, misshapen organs and once even a full hermaphrodite (this cat had both a full female and male reproductive system.) Could plastics be part of the cause? Or polluted water? One website I recently ran across, www.environmentcalifornia.org reported that BisPhenol-A (BPA), a chemical in plastics that mimics estrogen, causes reproductive problems in animals at far lower doses than most people are exposed to every day. Polycarbonate plastic contains BPA and is found in many products including baby bottles and the inside coating of food cans (especially tomatoes). Heating and repeated washing of these cans and bottles can cause leaching of BPA into the product. BPA also is thought to cause hyperactivity (ADD and ADHD), altered immune function and early sexual maturation (called precociousness). Efforts continue to ban BPA’s in children’s goods, but I think we also need to look at banning it permanently. Moving on. . . American Heart Association claims that women were born with an aspirin deficiency! In the latest issue of Dr. Bruce Bond’s Health Alert (May 2007/ Vol. 24, Issue 5) Dr. Bond writes that the new American Heart Association guidelines are out, claiming that nearly all American women are in danger of heart disease or stroke and that they should be aggressive about lowering their risk with daily aspirin! I don’t know about you, but as a young girl I had achy knees. When I went to the doctor, he told me to take a couple of aspirin every 4-6 hours up to four times a day. It only took a couple weeks of that protocol to achieve a total gut ache. I now cannot take any Non Steroidal Anti Inflammatory Drug (NSAID) without getting a strong pain in my stomach. The weirdest thing is that it also causes a subluxation in my thoracic spine necessitating a chiropractic adjustment. Yikes. These days the strongest painkiller I take for headaches and mild joint aches and pains is White Willow Bark. Aspirin (and any NSAID) can be dangerous when taken in large doses. Aspirin causes thousands of deaths annually from overdose and intestinal bleeding. Maybe if one just at the right diet with more whole, raw foods, less saturated fats and more fiber there would be no aspirin deficiencies? Hmmmm. Novel idea. Case of the Month: Basic Tongue Diagnosis On April 28th, 2007 I attended a Tongue Diagnosis seminar at Bastyr University given by a wonderful author, Dr. Giovanni Maciocia. I had read his book several years ago and had been looking at tongues (both human and animal) for years, but it seemed that there was SO much to know and try to understand. It seemed overwhelming. This seminar helped me quite a bit on understanding some of the disease processes I see in my client’s tongues. I don’t know if its’ just another entire way of viewing things—and maybe because I was not born in the East, I don’t comprehend it all—but it seems to me that I still have to have more pieces to the puzzle than just a tongue, some fingernails and feeling the pulses to give accurate recommendations. I still believe that using the best of all worlds is the most accurate. It’s common to see thick tongues, purplish tongues, tongues with teeth marks in them and tongues with cracks in various places. I also have noted tongues with coats both white and yellow, sticky and thin coats. A few of my clients have what is called Geographic tongue. But what do they mean? Here is some of what I learned at the seminar: Before examining the tongue, make sure the patient has not eaten pickles, cayenne pepper, curry or other hot things. These will temporarily turn the tongue red. It also takes a few hours for the tongue to get its normal coat back after the person has scraped it. And smoking turns the coat yellow. Ask what medications the patient is on, because they affect the tongue.
A normal tongue is pink in color, medium thickness, no cracks, ulcers, no teeth marks and with a light white moist coat (with root) on it. It has a look of aliveness and is supple (not stiff). There is no movement to the tongue including quivering, trembling, side-to-side motion, curling or shifting to one side. A healthy tongue looks like a piece of freshly killed meat. (Nice, eh?) In general the tongue is divided into three regions called burners.
A systematic analysis of the tongue should be performed. Dr. Maciocia says that the color is the most important, and then shape and coating come next. Moisture and vitality (called Shen) are also important. Shen can also be seen in the eyes, the walk and the way the patient communicates (talks/ barks/ vocalizes) and is an important indicator on the ability to recover from imbalances. Color of the Tongue:
Coating of the Tongue: (Coating is related to Stomach function.)
When you look too far back you will see the circumvallate papillae (larger round, raised bumps which are taste buds.) These have no significance in a tongue reading and beginner tongue readers often get alarmed when they see them (especially if they don’t know basic medical anatomy.) Shape of the Tongue:
Tongue Cracks:
Stomach Yin Deficiency may present as a lack of appetite, or unidentified cravings for food of some kind, an achy, uncomfortable feeling in the stomach and/or epigastric region, dry lips, mouth and tongue and either lack of a tongue coating or a patchy coat that is easily removed (especially on the center of the tongue). The most common cause of stomach yin deficiency is eating late at night. Other bad eating habits exacerbating this deficiency eating at irregular times, skipping meals, eating while working, or eating too quickly. It's best to sit, relax and chew your food well so the Stomach qi can go in the right direction: downward instead of up to your head! When the very tip of the tongue is red this means that there is a major emotional cause of whatever the rest of the tongue indicates as dis-ease. I didn’t know enough about Chinese medicine (or the language!) to be able to decipher how to treat the body (with Chinese herbs) once you figure out what is wrong with it. It appears there are hundreds of formulas and combinations of formulas and “exceptions” to rules. I guess I have my job cut out for me going through my herb books and figuring out which are heating, cooling, yin/yang herbs and finding the American names for the Chinese herbs because I’ve been known to order “Chinese” tinctures from herb companies before only to receive something I’d already had on my shelf! Overall, it’s all about finding what areas are stagnated, which need to be nourished, which are getting too much circulation or too little circulation, too much energy or too little, and how to balance out the body so that everything is in harmony. There are lots of ways to do this. What's New on the Website: I cranked out a few rough drafts of some pages I want to put up on my website, but have not finished them yet. Look forward to helpful information on clay packs, castor oil packs, hot flashes and night sweats and flatulence! I also purchased a camcorder so I can take some videos of some of the techniques I try to explain to my clients which would be better exemplified visually. I purchased the camcorder on-line with my credit card. It took 8 emails and several verifications along with three calls to the company to confirm that I was not using a stolen credit card. After the first few interactions I became kind of freaked out and called to cancel the order. I just could not comprehend that “all day long they have to deal with people using stolen cards to purchase their equipment because we have such low-quality customers that want to purchase our products because they are so cheap!” I wondered what kind of a client he thought I was. “Is that the vibration you really want to attract to your business? I’ve never had a client yet who has used a stolen card to pay for services.” I said. He had no idea what I meant. I was happy to be in Idaho. He upsold me an extended battery pack. Product of the Month: AM/PM Menopause Formula by Integrative Therapeutics, Inc. I had been experiencing quite a few hot flashes this week, then remembered I had forgotten to add the above supplement to my daily protocol. I determined, once again, this formula really works!—especially for mild symptoms hot flashes, night sweats and mood swings of menopause and perimenopause. AM/PM Menopause Formula is my product of choice that helps relieve all the common menopause symptoms experienced during the day and at night. The package recommends that you take one (white) AM tablet in the morning and one (purple) PM tablet approximately 30-45 minutes before bedtime. It also state that it may take four to five weeks to achieve full benefits. Continue use to maintain benefits. I noticed that it does take a few weeks to become fully effective. The AM formula (the white pill) contains standardized ginseng and green tea for daytime energy. PM Formula (the red pill) has theonine and valerian to help you sleep better. Valerian doesn’t work for some people. The valerian in the PM formula doesn’t work at all for me for the perimenopausal insomnia, but it sure works wonders for mild hot flashes. It also seems to work for hormonally-caused migraine headaches. I muscle-test how many to take each day. I need only one tablet per day (so alternate one day of white with one day of red tabs taken any time during the day.) Other women need up to three tablets daily for starters to help with headaches and hot flashes. Both colors include time-tested Black Cohosh for relief of hot flashes, night sweats, and irritability. Contains No: sugar, salt, yeast, wheat, gluten, corn, dairy products, artificial flavoring, preservatives or ingredients of animal origin. All colors used are from natural sources. Product Number: 77206 #60 Tablet Box ($21.50) *This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Ask Dr. Moffat: Answering one question at a time (each with a separate subject line) is so much easier for me. That way it doesn’t seem so overwhelming time-wise. I can answer the easy ones first and save the more involved questions for later, but often I will get a litany of questions like in this email. To make sure I don’t miss anything, I usually answer each question in a different color. Here’s and example: Hi Denice,
I am trying SO hard to be the "ideal patient", but I have so many questions that
keep popping up during this fast. Today is day 9 of the fast. I originally
started out wanting to play it by ear for the number of days, all the while
hoping for either 7 or 10 days. I made it past 7 and so I think 10 it is. I
really wanted to go until I could correct the issues I have been having for
so long. The liver lines on my fingernails have all faded, the left hand is
still a tad brighter then the right, but I hope with continued juicing and
better eating that will completely resolve. They will,
but it will also come and go depending on how many toxins you are exposed to. A frustration with the fast has been the enemas. As we discussed, I have been constipated for the past few years. I figured the enemas would produce a lot of stuff, but they have not. I have had only a minute amount of very small pebble stools per elimination along with a bit of mucous. And, I was able to hold the enema for up to 20 minutes in the beginning. Now I can only hold them for a few minutes. Seems like it should have been the other way around. The other day I had to stop after a few minutes to eliminate only to eliminate water and then I resumed the enema. Yes, I did that too during my own 40-day fast last summer. . .until I switched to coffee enemas then, blam! I could never hold any of the different fluids I tried for 20 minutes either. I was able to retain them for a few minutes only while I massaged my abdomen. The first enema I did Epsom salt and garlic and the rest have been plain water other than yesterday day when I did Epsom salt again for the last time during this fast. I don't know why, but I get creeped out with stuff unless it's just water. I know everyone is different, but does this seem to fall into the "norm" category? I think you need to work through that and do a coffee enema. Each person is different and each has their own little idiosyncrasies. You’re fine. Pyrantel Pamoate--As of last night after the enema, my gut has been gurgling up a storm. The gut flora is shifting. Is it okay to take the Pyrantel Pamoate while fasting? Yes, and it would be more efficient that way as well.
At
what point do I start adding the good flora back in orally and via enema? Two
days before you quit the fast--but I've done it both ways (sometimes adding some
prior to quitting and sometimes not adding any probiotics). Add a few capsules
of a good-quality probiotic into the enema solution. Then, when you start eating
solid food, take the probiotic capsules or liquid orally. Also get a bottle of
FOS and take 1 tab/day as it helps the good gut flora to grow. It seems that the
flora rebalances more quickly by taking both FOS (Fructo Oligo Saccharides) and
probiotics together. Continued in column 2 |
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cont.
from column 1 Media
Reviews:
Book Review: Better
Off—Flipping the Switch on Technology
I’m always looking
for lifestyle changes that will help people deal with everyday stress. Less
stress means a longer life and fewer disease processes, so when my son-in-law
gave us the book as a Christmas present it piqued my interest. I liked it. I’m
always in the ongoing process of getting rid of all my “cows” (see Inspiration
and Perspective this month) to simplify things.
The title says, “Two
People, One Year, Zero Watts” written by Eric Brende © 2004. Eric is a Yale and
MIT graduate and critic of modern technology who volunteered to give up
technology by living with an Amish group out of St. Louis Missouri for 18
months.
I’ve always been one
to eat simply, grow my own stuff, and preserve for the winter months. Eric
Brende married Mary and they had a baby during their stay with the Amish. They
had no electric stove, refrigerator, running water, telephone, TV, computer or
anything else that makes our lives easier.
As a visitor, he was
allowed a car, but they drove it only rarely during the 18 months he was there
(once when his wife was in labor and in need of the midwife who lived five miles
away and another time when they went in search of a home to move to after they
left the community were to times discussed in his book.)
The Amish had some
very ingenious ways of converting appliances to horse-power or hand power. Mary
loved sewing so learned how to use a treadle machine. I remember sewing on one
of those as a child once. It was hard work and it really worked some interesting
leg muscles.
They learned how to
till fields with horse-driven equipment and hand-threshed the wheat they
produced. They also built barns and houses without power tools while they were
there. They heated their house with wood, learned how to can foods, store meat
in an ice room by harvesting the ice from a local pond, used a wringer washer,
grew crops (pumpkins and sorghum), and sold what they grew to subsist with
minimal technology within a community of loving people who barter for services.
I have a friend in
Albion,
Washington
who purchased a new wringer washer machine just a few years ago through the
Cumberland Store. I couldn’t believe it.
I enjoyed his
writing skills and reading about Amish politics, their religious beliefs and the
differences they have between communities. This particular group of Amish people
Eric labeled as “minimalists.” This community had a telephone booth (for
emergencies and arranging the sale of crops) and allowed flashlights (because it
took too long to light the kerosene lamp when wild animals were chasing the
livestock.) Other Amish communities allow some additional technology. Some use
power tools.
Eric currently is a
rickshaw driver, soap maker and rents his basement out as a bed-and-breakfast.
I would have liked
to have heard more about how the women thrived in this community. At several
points in the story, I was wondering how Mary’s pregnancy was coming along and
how she survived all the heat and hard labor which was completed almost up to
the very last moment of birth.
I don’t think I
would ever willingly give up my hot showers or electricity, but we are seriously
thinking about a future home with solar power and alternative energy sources. It
also makes me want to be a part of a community that is kind to the earth, uses
alternative energy sources and has innovative and natural ways of farming.
Tips and Tricks for a Healthier Life: This is an
Abraham Quote. I often utilize this concept and explain it to my clients. The
theory is that joy increases endorphins in the body which help it to repair
damage and deflect toxins. Very important. “Every cell in
your body has a direct relationship with Creative Life Force, and each cell is
independently responding. When you feel joy, all the circuits are open and the
Life Force or God Force can be fully received. When you feel guilt or blame or
fear or anger, the circuits are hindered and the Life Force cannot flow as
effectively. Physical experience is about monitoring those circuits and keeping
them as open as possible. The cells know what to do. They are summoning the
Energy.” From
www.abraham-hicks.com daily quotes.
Client Testimonials:
Dr. Denice,
I just thought I would touch base with you. I just wanting to tell you I have
gone over a month without a migraine. I can't believe it. The last one was after
eating out last Sunday and it really wasn't all that bad. Some days I'm still
having a stiff neck and a little pressure in the head, but no migraines. The
main problem is that I'm still having bloating, constipation and feel tired a
lot. I'm doing the Blood Type Diet faithfully with about 1200 - 1400 calories a
day. I should be easily losing weight, but I feel like I keep gaining weight. I
do strength training and some cardio every day, depending on my energy level.
I'm trying not to get too tired.
Dear Deena:
One challenge down, a few more layers to go. Talk to you next week and we’ll set
up a recheck appointment (unless you want just supplements for awhile.) The body
releases its toxins little by little, layer by layer. It often does not release
the weight until the toxins have been cleared. Don’t give up hope and keep at
it. I’ve noticed that sometimes the body goes in spurts where there is quick
progress then slow, big progress then small. Going in a positive direction and
doing the steps will not fail you.
Recipe of the Month: Almond Milk
I purchased a raw
food recipe book at the Bastyr University Bookstore
(http://www.bastyr.edu/bookstore/)
for
Michael when I was there taking the Tongue Diagnosis seminar. I noticed that
many of the recipes contained ingredients that I was allergic to. Michael did
his best to replace the ingredients with things I could eat (like instead of
hazelnuts he used almonds.) I asked him to do half-batches, but he isn’t
comfortable with that. Oh well.
Our first recipe was
some kind of raw fudge.
I was up for trying something a bit healthier that my favorite Fantasy Fudge.
This one was made with carob powder, Agave nectar or honey and alfalfa sprouts!
Hmmm I thought. This should taste interesting.
The first bite
wasn’t so bad. It definitely wasn’t fudge, but it was an acceptable sweet
confection—until I burped up alfalfa sprouts immediately after swallowing it. We
brought the rest of the batch to a friend’s birthday party because we knew that
there were a few people there who only ate raw foods. We learned a lot. We
learned that it wasn’t a totally raw recipe because the honey was not raw and
the carob was roasted! They said it tasted good.
Must be an acquired
taste.
The second recipe
was some kind of dehydrated seed and nut breakfast bar.
We didn’t have a dehydrator at the time, so he spread it out on the toxic-coated
cookie sheet. “Honey, that’s the wrong pans to use. The coating is coming off. I
just use those pans to set egg cartons on when I start my plants.”
He used them anyway.
When we tried taking the bars out of the pan, the rest of the toxic material
stuck with the bar. That recipe went in the trash. . .
The next recipe was
some kind of raw pie.
This recipe was a bigger stretch for me. Interesting ingredients like chopped
almonds for the crust and Gogi berries. It was the frosting that I couldn’t get
past. . .
Actually I had a
couple shots of brandy before I had the guts to taste this one.
“OK, lay it on me
babe.” (Eewwwh! I was thinking.) “Cut me off an inch slice or so. . . No, . . .
less than that.”
It actually wasn’t
so bad, but how can one tell when they are slightly inebriated? I could never
take part in a reality show. The frosting was a nice consistency—made of avocado
and carob powder. The book called it “chocolate frosting.” (Where do they come
up with these names?) I just couldn’t quite get my mind around it. Michael liked
it though.
He ate the rest of
the pie.
Then, last night he
made “hamburgers”
Yeah, right.
I did find a
dehydrator on sale for him so he could properly prepare the recipes like the
directions said this time.
These consisted of
grated leeks, carrots, ground almonds (after making almond milk with them first,
then using the pulp remains for the recipe), garlic and olive oil. You form them
into patties and then DEHYDRATE them! Sheesh.
They really weren’t
that bad, but they just were not hamburgers! And they fell apart as you ate
them. The directions didn’t say, but were we supposed to put the burger between
a bun and eat it that way? Isn’t the bread baked? Or, were we supposed to use a
couple of cabbage leaves and call it “Hamburger bun?”
This job is
sometimes difficult. You can see I sometimes don’t take it as seriously as other
health-minded practitioners.
I experimented with
flax oil and made three horrid salad dressings this month.
The Almond milk
is great though. . .Especially in mochas (with caffeinated coffee and Hershey’s
syrup!) I found the Almond Milk actually tasted better after a day or two in the
fridge. Here’s that recipe: Almond Milk
Put nuts in blender
and cover with water 1-2 times above the level of the nuts. Less water makes a
richer milk: more water makes a skimmer milk. Blend at high speed until the nuts
are chopped as fine as possible. This will take less than a minute in a
high-speed blender, longer in a regular one. Get a large colander and line it
with piece of clean, plain muslin cloth. Put the colander inside a larger bowl
to catch the liquid. Pour the slurry into the cloth a bowl beneath to catch the
milk. Gather it up and hold the bag tightly closed, gently “milk” the ground
nuts and water until most of the liquid is pressed out. Add a touch of sea salt
if you wish to make it taste more like cow’s milk, or other desired flavors.
Serve or refrigerate. Use within 4 days. Makes about 4 cups. (It was still good
after 7 days, but I froze the leftovers of the second batch in ice cube trays.)
Modified from:
The Raw Food Gourmet—Going Raw for Total Well-Being by Gabrielle Chavez ©
2005
Inspiration and
Perspective:
“If Thou Hath Cow” Story
It was a story told
to us by Dr. Scott Walker, (www.netmindbody.com)
developer of the Neuro Emotional Technique. I repeat it occasionally to clients
who are stressed and wrapped up with material things and people who have so many
things in their social calendars that they have little time to breathe. It goes
like this:
A Buddhist monk
lived alone up on a hill in a small, stark, simple house. He expressed
occasionally that he was lonely, so one day, a friend brought him a small kitten
to care for.
He loved the kitten
and so, every day, he walked to town to get milk to feed the kitten. Day after
day, month after month, walking to town to get the milk.
One day he thought,
“This is too hard. Every day I must walk to town to get milk for the kitten. I
should get a cow. That way, I will have the cow right there. I can milk it daily
and use the additional milk to drink and to make cheese with.”
So he purchased a
cow to feed the kitten.
He loved that cow
and so repaired the fences and built a shed so she would be protected from the
wind and cold. He also built a milking area, made a milking stool, bought a
bucket for the milk and one to hold food in so she could keep busy by eating
while he was milking her. He purchased disinfectants and cotton to clean the
cow’s udder before each milking and some equipment to make cheese. The cow
needed wormers and vaccines. He hired someone to trim her hooves. Then he
purchased some straw for bedding, a salt block, two tons of grass hay for the
winter and a tarp to cover the hay.
After a few months
of milking the cow he thought to himself, “This is too hard. I should marry.
That way I can have a wife who will help me with some of the duties of milking
the cow.”
So he found a lovely
woman and married her. She milked the cow, did the chores, washed the clothes,
made the meals and they were happy. Life was good. They were in love.
One day she became
pregnant. They remodeled a spare room to make it into a nursery and purchased
all the things a baby would need. The pregnancy went well and they brought a
young child into the world. He started a savings account for the baby’s
education. Everyone was happy.
Then one day she
said to her husband. “Husband, I am tired of doing all these chores and cooking
without the benefit of running water and electricity. The laundry is getting out
of control. Look at all these diapers! I want some equipment to make life easier
like the women have down in town.”
Because he loved his
wife, he had electricity put in, plumbing installed and purchased a washer and
dryer. He then had to go out and get an extra job to cover the costs. He loved
his wife, his child and his pets, but would have liked to spend more time with
them, but—being a responsible husband—he continued to work so that he could
provide for his family.
Each piece of
technology came with operation manuals and instructions eventually necessitating
the purchase of a file cabinet to house all the extra paperwork. With the
additional responsibilities came extra paperwork which took extra time to
process, file and house. He built an office to house the paperwork which took
additional time away from quality time with his beloved family.
The moral to the
story is,
“If thou hath cow, thou hath care of cow.”
How do we make life
simpler and alleviate all the unnecessary drains on our resources? I often think
about this story before purchasing anything new or adding additional tasks or
responsibilities into our lives.
Do they fit in with
our lifestyle? Our life purpose? Do they bring us closer together or take more
time away from our quality time together? Do they energize and serve us? Or do
they burden us in trying to maintain them? All good questions to ask in keeping
our lives as simple and stream-lined as possible giving us the most time for our
true gifts and passions and time for the people we love.
I try to choose my
cows wisely these days or at least minimize my visits with them!
How many cows do you
have that drain your energy or resources that you can send to auction?
What's New at Our House:
We’ve given up on
the idea of a vet clinic in the basement for now. Michael has turned in the
permit application for a simple residential remodel. I’ve been madly tilling and
planting both our garden beds and the beds next door which we are taking care
of. Seedlings are starting to surface and we’ve been eating organic spinach,
parsley and lettuce from our garden for a couple of weeks now.
I went Morel
mushrooming for the first time this month. It was fun. I learned a lot about
mushroom picking etiquette, where to look for them, and when to find the best
and freshest mushrooms. I found about six, took two home to sauté in butter and
try. They were great. It did take a lot of time though, and I found I was
distracted by what seemed like a massive amount of mosquitoes. I could also see
how easy it would be for me to get lost in the woods! I actually found more
bones than mushrooms. I love finding bones.
We had a lovely
breakfast with a few friends (long-term clients) in Deary, ID this month and
spent a few hours 4-wheeling around the property of one of those friends. I did
not drive the 4-wheeler personally, but maybe I can learn to do that someday.
The tour gave me new
hope of finding a big chunk of property with a creek on it around our area for
our future plans of a retreat center, organic farm with berry and pumpkin
patches, botanical gardens, meditation areas, memorial trails and a possible
care center that serves organic foods. I figure I’ll need something like that
when I get into my 90’s. It’s good to have goals. I do think about this more
often during this time of the year when people are spraying for weeds and I can
hardly walk from all the toxic buildup. The thought of eating canned soup and
sulfite-laced sandwiches in an old folk’s home is quite distasteful to me.
I noticed my
favorite nursery in Kooskia, ID where I get my Ace tomatoes sold their green
houses, so I asked why. They said the $13,000 propane bill last season was a bit
more than they could handle. This just fortifies my belief that our own (future)
green houses need to be solar-heated! I’d have rabbit-heated greenhouses (http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/478244/)
but then you’d have to get into the meat market and I just couldn’t do that.
I had emailed our
local Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute (http://www.pcei.org/)
asking them if they wanted the hundred or so trees that I had planted a year or
so ago because I couldn’t bear to kill them. They didn’t answer, so we drove
over there and poked around trying to find someone to ask about the tree
donation. No one was there, so we decided to quietly set the trees out by their
nursery after hours. It reminded me of the Wizard of Id cartoon where a
man was telling the king there had been a break in at the local animal shelter.
“Was anything missing?” asked the king. “No, but they ended up with 15 extra
cats” said the man.
As we were
unloading, Maggie jumped into the front seat and jumped on the horn! BEEEEP!
How embarrassing!. .
.We’d never make good criminals. Who would have figured a dog would do that?
. . .Well, I did
have a dog in my practice in Oregon who drove his owner’s car through a video
store window while his owner what seeking to rent a movie for that night, but
that’s another story. He had left the car running so the air conditioning would
be on for the dog. . .He was awfully proud of that dog.
Oh, and we broke
into our 4’ x 4’ x 26’ compost pile which we created last September to turn it
over only to find that it had already composted! So the beds all have new mulch
on them for the year. We hope that will cut down on our water bill
AND
give the plants some great nutrients. Wish you could have seen all the worms in
that stuff. It was great.
Local Events:
June 1st
Reiki Circle
7-9 p.m.
at the Orchard Studio in Moscow, ID. Contact Jim Johnson,
fireheart@moscow.com for more info.
June 2nd
(Saturday) Arboretum Plant Sale
9-Noon at the Moscow Ice Rink at the Latah Co. Fairgrounds
June 9th
at the Moscow
Co-Op Free Yak Burger Samples.
Yak farmer Tammie Damiano, of Tamarack Yak Farm in Santa, Idaho, will answer
questions about yaks and provide free samples of her yak burgers from 10 a.m.
until 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 9 at the Moscow Food Co-op meat department.
The Co-op is located at 121 East Fifth Street in downtown Moscow. Yaks are a
species of bovine native to
Tibet,
with many similarities to American bison. They are exclusively grass-fed, and
their meat is low in fat and high in protein. Damiano learned about yak meat
when a friend with a health condition was searching for healthy alternatives to
beef; eventually, she quit her job to become a yak farmer. “Once you try yak,
you can never go back,” she said. Damiano currently has 67 yaks; the Moscow Food
Co-op carries Damiano’s frozen yak burger patties. She markets other yak
products as well, such as fur fiber, hides, and manure. For more information
contact Damiano at 208-245-1349.
April Rubino
emailed me this last week. She has an updated list of dates for Yoga and EFT
classes. You can see that list at
www.integrativemindworks.com
That’s
it for this Month!
Be
Healthy.
Please forward to a friend. Dr. Denice
Moffat
of The Healing Center
is a practicing naturopath, medical intuitive, and veterinarian working on the
family unit (which includes humans and animals) through her phone consultation
practice established in 1993. She has a content-rich website at
www.NaturalHealthTechniques.com and free internationally distributed monthly newsletter. © 2007 By Dr.
Denice M. Moffat |
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