[Looking for a flavorful decaf black tea]

I like Stash decaf Chai. It's warming and deep.

[Picking the Hive's brain: Would you help me evaluate this medical study?]

Scientifically, wouldn't the correct methodology be to construct a study to Disprove his hypothesis?

 

look for Alz patients with a history of great lifestyle choices (per the researcher). Or non Alz aged persons who had decades of poor health choices. In large numbers.

 

Depending on the results it could support the researcher's request to conduct a larger study or dismiss the issue.

[I just want to tell my neighbor off.....]

Is she perhaps self-medicating to treat ADHD or ADD? Nicotine treats these and quitting can be very challenging if it means giving up your mental focus. Getting treated for the adhd would help with quitting smoking.

[Possible surgery in my future. How to avoid out of network providers]

FaithManor is right. I had surgery in April at an in network facility with an in network surgeon. The anasthesiologist was out of network. Insurance denied to cover it initially. But the surgery center told me what to do. Call insurance and say I did my best to be in network by picking a facility and doctor that are in network. I had no control over the anesthesiologist but "I did my due diligence" to be in network. They had to cover it.

 

If your insurance has this coverage (Section 5, Amendment 5,.. Something like that..) they must treat it as in network. The hospital may be more forthcoming with data than your insurance company. Mine was.

[When should a woman stop coloring her gray hair?]

I voted "other." So much depends on you and your hair. Does your gray flatter your complexion? What "look" do you prefer?

 

Many women, as they age, find that a lighter hair color or highlights are more flattering than their original color. I do think that very dark colors start to look silly after a certain age. Just because you color your gray doesn't mean you have to keep a dark color. I also see darker hair color calling attention to very thin hair.

[Can we forego Cobra insurance for 2 months?]

I broke my ankle, very badly, during the 1 WEEK between jobs. Elect the Cobra coverage.

[Your best clean, healthy fish recipes]

Do you mean to freeze the fish after cooking?

 

It will be difficult to avoid overlooking it, if so.

 

Here's a recipe my Italian friend made when we were at the beach. Fillets of any fish. In a baking dish with s little olive oil, salt and pepper. Slice tomatoes on top and sprinkle with dried oregano. Bake. Add white wine, about halfway up the fish, about halfway through the cooking time. We used rockfish and it was amazing.

[Something vegan I can take to a lunch potluck?]

How about a quinoa, black bean, and mango salad with sweet oil and vinegar dressing?

[trying not to be frustrated...doggy adoptions - a long vent.]

We have had rediculous experiences with dog and cat rescue associations. I won't go there again.

 

We have had luck at the County animal shelter that is an hour south (that's 2 counties). They are a kill shelter and more than happy to adopt out an animal with just a vet reference from our current vet.

 

Closer county shelters won't. I guess they have few enough animals and more no-kill rescuers willing to take animals in. The rural county shelter has a much better understanding IMO that these are animals and not children. They are just looking for homes with food, shelter, and care.

 

We were once asked if we had consulted with a doggy psychiatrist for a previous dog that hadn't worked out!

[Teaching Textbooks USERS question please😊]

I think math skills can get rusty very, very quickly. Your Alg 1 student needs a quick review, but things he learned before should come back easily. Use the chapter tests to pin point problems and go from there.

 

You should remember that understanding of Algebra can be as much developmental as academic ability. Maybe the student just wasn't ready for it last year.

 

We are in TT Geometry this year. My policy is that all daily grades must be 80 or above to continue. Even then, a string of 3 or more grades below 86 require that I sit down, look for patterns in the missed problems to pinpoint the area that is not understood, and work through that topic and those problems together on a big white board. So far, so good.

 

I have Saxon Geometry and MUS videos as back up if necessary.

[FALL allergies???]

I wish my allergies had waited until my 30's! I take Flonase (steroid Nose spray), Astepro (antihistamine nose spray, rx) and Zrytec.

 

Also Afrin at night for up to 4 nights in a row. Then at least a week off because it is addictive to your nasal passages.

 

Benedryl is generally the most effective antihistamine but it causes drowsiness for most people. If you are really suffering you can take it at night.

 

Other helps: You may want to upgrade the filter in your hvac and run the house fan 24x7 for a while to remove the pollen currently in the house. Wash your hair before bed every night to remove pollen. Change your pillow cases often to put pollen free fabric next to your face at night. Maybe have everyone change into clean clothes at the front door to limit pollen being tracked around the house. Neti pot or similar can really make a difference, too.

 

Unfortunately, allergy management is a lifestyle here.

 

I hope you feel better soon! Winter is coming! :)

[Anyone want to play food detective?]

Do you eat out often? If not, then almost anything there could be a trigger, even the salt.

 

If so, then I don't see anything unusual for restaurant food. Maybe your headache is allergy related? Check your local pollen and mold counts.

[Surgery for Sinuses? Please?]

There is a relatively new sinus surgery that uses a ballon to widen the opening to the sinus. It is an in-office procedure.

 

My cousin had it done a couple years ago and said she had great results.

 

Your do really needs a CT to figure out which treatments to pursue.

 

I'd also get him allergy tested.

 

If only major sinus surgery is an option then I'd try eliminating common allergens from his diet, in rotation, to see if that helps.

 

My father had the big sinus surgery plus tonsils and adenoids removed. He said the pain and the results weren't worth it.

[How much GMO food do Americans eat?]

That's going to be tough to find. The makers of Commercial products don't like to advertise that any of their ingredients are GMOs. Most soy produced in the U.S. is modified. I think Canola, too (rape seed). Some corn is but I think not the fresh eating type.

 

The anti-GMO websites may have more data.

 

Do you want to count animals that eat GMOs? I suspect most do. They are fed corn and soy based diets.

 

If you find good data, can you please link to it?

 

Thanks

[Help me with some discipline please]

They are ignoring you because you have taught them that it works. In other words you have not been providing consequences that they understand. Or there are new stresses in their lives.

 

Assuming no new stresses I'd recommend taking time off academics to work and play together to build family ties. At the same time reduce your requests of them but provide consequences for noncompliance. Don't be too harsh but find the level of consequence that works.

[Some kids need to de-school...I think we need to de-piano lessons]

We generally take August off from piano and voice lessons every year. I do think it is beneficial. Dd still plays but she plays what she wants to play.

 

Also, if your teacher won't budge, why not add some fun music independently? Fun as defined by your kiddo.

 

We are not going for music scholarships or winning competitions so we are perhaps a bit laid back. However, if you kill your kiddo's love for the music she won't be winning scholarships or competitions either.

[My MIL Spoils Me....]

Amazon has a tool that lets you clip items from other sites and add them to your wish list.

 

Perhaps you can use it to add some theatre tickets or something?

[ADHD Med and appetite suppression?]

One idea is to get the short acting meds. They are generally 3 ish hours. Have a big breakfast. Do school work. Have lunch when the morning dose has worn off. Then take an afternoon dose.

 

For us this did not produce the same appetite as there would have been without meds but it was better than the longer doses which killed all lunchtime appetite.

[Ketogenic diet??]

I think folks here are confusing the real, medical ketogenic diet that is used to treat seizure disorders with the high fat low carb (HFLC) diet which is sometimes called a ketogenic diet. They are not the same. The medical version is much more extreme. The HFLC is more like primal/paleo with the high carb veggies thrown out and a limit on fruits and dairy.

 

HFLC is a diet I have followed. All my blood work improved. I lost weight. And once spring arrived, with its in-season strawberries and then all the other fruits, I found it to be impossible.

[Need good recipe for lacto-fermented SWEET pickles]

I have made lactofermented bread and butter pickles from the recipe in " Eat Fat Lose Fat" and they were not as sweet as I wanted. I simply added more honey after the fermentation was finished and that did the trick.

 

Maybe you could try that?

[What to do with large quantity of pears]

I think this recipe was my inspiration for pear, ginger, and cardamom jam. I'm sure that I seasoned to taste, though. I like strong flavors in jams.

 

http://www.thegardenofeating.org/2011/12/pear-preserves-with-cardamom-ginger.html?m=1

[Broken Bone Help?]

It takes 10 weeks for breaks to heal according to my ortho. I think you probably don't need to worry, but I'd go ahead and call the ortho to see if you can get in earlier.

[What to do with large quantity of pears]

I made pear preserves with ginger and cardamom. They were amazing! The whole family loves them.

[Planning this school year's menu plan - DF, EF, GF, PF recipes appreciated.]

Spaghetti Squash is easy to grow and freezes well. Do you have room to garden? It can be grown vertically to reduce its space needs.

[Do you have a Roomba or similar for your bare floor kitchen? Talk to me.]

I found it too noisy to run during school time, but I have an open plan house without carpets or curtains. It does a decent job, but you have to clean it out regularly.

 

I'd advise purchasing one from Costco and trying it out. They are a 100% return policy so you can return it if you don't like it.