Mary Soderstrom's Blog, page 66
February 19, 2014
Paris, Because Mavis Gallant Loved the City
The recent death of Mavis Gallant reminds me of how deeply seductive Paris is. After Montreal, it is a place I'd like to live.What a pleasure that we have Gallant's stories about the two cities to enjoy. That is the legacy of writing, particularly when it crosses to line and becomes literature.
February 18, 2014
Big Money to Fight Elections against Climate Change Nay-sayers
I remember back in the 1970s when the environmental movement was beginning around here and I realized that it was going to be a long row to hoe to get 1) better water pollution control, 2) air quality emissions standards, 3) recycling and 4) everything else that was necessary to make the world liveable.
The problem was that the eco-guys and gals (not that we/they were called that then) just didn't have the money to get their message across. The companies that stood to profit from pollution could advertise their spin on things in every media, but we had to slog it out in the trenches. This meant that even when there was a victory (as in the fight to remove phosphates from detergent) it could be subverted by clever campaigns. (See my post about this from 2007.)
But maybe some of the big money has wised up. The New York Times has a very interesting story to day about hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer who has set up a huge fund to fight elections against climate change nay-sayers.
The NYT reports that he "is rallying other deep-pocketed donors, seeking to build a war chest that would make his political organization, NextGen Climate Action, among the largest outside groups in the country, similar in scale to the conservative political network overseen by Charles and David Koch.
"In early February, Mr. Steyer gathered two dozen of the country’s leading liberal donors and environmental philanthropists to his 1,800-acre ranch in Pescadero, Calif. — which raises prime grass-fed beef — to ask them to join his efforts. People involved in the discussions say Mr. Steyer is seeking to raise $50 million from other donors to match $50 million of his own.
"The money would move through Mr. Steyer’s fast-growing, San Francisco-based political apparatus into select 2014 races."
A good thing, maybe, although the question of how big a role money should play in a democracy looms behind. Certainly worth following. And certainly would be interesting to see if any big money in Canada would be interested in following Steyer's example here.
The problem was that the eco-guys and gals (not that we/they were called that then) just didn't have the money to get their message across. The companies that stood to profit from pollution could advertise their spin on things in every media, but we had to slog it out in the trenches. This meant that even when there was a victory (as in the fight to remove phosphates from detergent) it could be subverted by clever campaigns. (See my post about this from 2007.)
But maybe some of the big money has wised up. The New York Times has a very interesting story to day about hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer who has set up a huge fund to fight elections against climate change nay-sayers.
The NYT reports that he "is rallying other deep-pocketed donors, seeking to build a war chest that would make his political organization, NextGen Climate Action, among the largest outside groups in the country, similar in scale to the conservative political network overseen by Charles and David Koch.
"In early February, Mr. Steyer gathered two dozen of the country’s leading liberal donors and environmental philanthropists to his 1,800-acre ranch in Pescadero, Calif. — which raises prime grass-fed beef — to ask them to join his efforts. People involved in the discussions say Mr. Steyer is seeking to raise $50 million from other donors to match $50 million of his own.
"The money would move through Mr. Steyer’s fast-growing, San Francisco-based political apparatus into select 2014 races."
A good thing, maybe, although the question of how big a role money should play in a democracy looms behind. Certainly worth following. And certainly would be interesting to see if any big money in Canada would be interested in following Steyer's example here.
February 17, 2014
Advice from Pete That Should Be As Unforgettable As He Was
Too often we don't say what we think to people we expect won't agree with us. But that's a mistake, as Pete Seeger used to say.
And just for good measure, here's a song about talking.
And just for good measure, here's a song about talking.
February 15, 2014
Saturday Photo: Snow Removal
The picture was taken a while ago, but that's what we're doing these days around here. A long winter, but made bearble by some lovely sunny days, and frequent sbowfalls that make everything lovely.
February 14, 2014
Well, What It Was, Was Herpes Zoster...
This morning I started a regime of cortisone type and anti-viral, anti-stomach upset drugs. Seems those excruciating pain and the rash that I thought were back-related and due to a reaction to acetominophen were actually due to shingles.
Not your typical shingles--the resurgence of the virus that causes chickenpox decades later--because the rash didn't itch, and the nerve where the virus attacked were was in my hip and leg, not my torso. Neverthless it all is a drag, literally. My left foot is numb and I'm not using it properly: the hope is that with the drugs, the nerve function will return quickly.
The pain is still there, but not as intense, thank goodness And thank goodness for physio Christine Gibson who told me I should have a doctor look at what was going on in my body. It's not a case for exercise, she said in effect.
One of the drugs has excitability as a possible side-effect, and I'm almost looking forward to that after two weeks of feeling the pits.
Not your typical shingles--the resurgence of the virus that causes chickenpox decades later--because the rash didn't itch, and the nerve where the virus attacked were was in my hip and leg, not my torso. Neverthless it all is a drag, literally. My left foot is numb and I'm not using it properly: the hope is that with the drugs, the nerve function will return quickly.
The pain is still there, but not as intense, thank goodness And thank goodness for physio Christine Gibson who told me I should have a doctor look at what was going on in my body. It's not a case for exercise, she said in effect.
One of the drugs has excitability as a possible side-effect, and I'm almost looking forward to that after two weeks of feeling the pits.
February 13, 2014
Cold Day: Warm Food: Chili
As I wait to go to the doc (may not have been an acetomiophen reaction I had last week, but shingles) I'm thinking of what might taste good for dinner.
Chili sounds just right, but I don't have any cooked red beans. Never fear, though, T he New York Times says today, real Texas chili doesn't have beans. Just a mixture of various meats, spices and peppers.
Don't know abou that, but here's a good recipe on this morning when I don't feel up to thinking of much else.
1 pound lean beef, chopped into small pieces
6 slices of bacon
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
5 cups of dark red kidney beans, cooked until soft
1 number 2 can of tomatoes
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Directions
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook meat until evenly browned. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Add vinegar, beans, chili powder and vinegar.
In a slow cooker, combine the cooked beef, kidney beans, tomatoes, celery, red bell pepper, and red wine vinegar. Season with chili powder, cumin, parsley, basil and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to distribute ingredients evenly.
Cook for one hour over low heat on stove, or bake in oven from 2-3 hours at 300 F.
Serve with tortillas
Chili sounds just right, but I don't have any cooked red beans. Never fear, though, T he New York Times says today, real Texas chili doesn't have beans. Just a mixture of various meats, spices and peppers.
Don't know abou that, but here's a good recipe on this morning when I don't feel up to thinking of much else.
1 pound lean beef, chopped into small pieces
6 slices of bacon
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
5 cups of dark red kidney beans, cooked until soft
1 number 2 can of tomatoes
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Directions
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook meat until evenly browned. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Add vinegar, beans, chili powder and vinegar.
In a slow cooker, combine the cooked beef, kidney beans, tomatoes, celery, red bell pepper, and red wine vinegar. Season with chili powder, cumin, parsley, basil and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to distribute ingredients evenly.
Cook for one hour over low heat on stove, or bake in oven from 2-3 hours at 300 F.
Serve with tortillas
February 12, 2014
That Routinue Mammogram Could Be Not What the Doctor Needed to Order
Eight years ago, just about now, I got a call telling me that a routinue mammorgram had showed suspicious tissue, and it looked like I had ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS.) By the end of the summer, I'd been biopsied, excised and radiated, and was telling people how important mammograms were.
Since then I've become more skeptical, Even then it was clear that DCIS the majority of time doesn't into real cancer, and there was a big question whether tamoxifen should be given as a follow up. One study reported in The Lancet of North American women said yes, but another, also in The Lancet , of women in Australia, New Zealand and the UK counseled against giving the drug to post-menopausal women because now benefit was found. (Had a fight with my surgeon about that, and changed doctors, actually.)
Now it looks like the tool used to find my DCIS is really unnecessary. A new, very large Canadian study shows no benefit to mammography. It "found that the death rates from breast cancer and from all causes were the same in women who got mammograms and those who did not. And the screening had harms: One in five cancers found with mammography and treated was not a threat to the woman’s health and did not need treatment such as chemotherapy, surgery or radiation."
Interestingly, Enbridge, the questionable pipeline and fossil fuel group, is sponsoring a benefit concert for cancer research in Montreal Feb. 28. Who's going to really benefit?
Since then I've become more skeptical, Even then it was clear that DCIS the majority of time doesn't into real cancer, and there was a big question whether tamoxifen should be given as a follow up. One study reported in The Lancet of North American women said yes, but another, also in The Lancet , of women in Australia, New Zealand and the UK counseled against giving the drug to post-menopausal women because now benefit was found. (Had a fight with my surgeon about that, and changed doctors, actually.)
Now it looks like the tool used to find my DCIS is really unnecessary. A new, very large Canadian study shows no benefit to mammography. It "found that the death rates from breast cancer and from all causes were the same in women who got mammograms and those who did not. And the screening had harms: One in five cancers found with mammography and treated was not a threat to the woman’s health and did not need treatment such as chemotherapy, surgery or radiation."
Interestingly, Enbridge, the questionable pipeline and fossil fuel group, is sponsoring a benefit concert for cancer research in Montreal Feb. 28. Who's going to really benefit?
February 11, 2014
Important Interview with Elizabeth Kolbert
This is an interview worth reading and a book that might have a big impact.
Elizabeth Kolbert on the Sixth Extinction, coming up whether you like it or not.
Elizabeth Kolbert on the Sixth Extinction, coming up whether you like it or not.
February 10, 2014
Saturday Photo: Mile End's Secret Forest
I know, I know, this is not one of my photos, and it's Monday, not Saturday. But this morning was the first in a week that I've been out walking, so I went ot check out the lovely "Secret Forest" that some Mile End residents put up a couple of weeks ago.The idea was to liberate Christmas trees put out for recycling by "planting" in the disused space near the railroad tracks in Mile End that has become an very special sort of urban park. For a while I thought our tree, put on Jan. 6 and gone the next morning a week before the regular recyclers came around, might figure among the trees which line a desire line across the space. But they were all too small (and besides one of my contacts says that they went tree rustling after Jan. 6) The result is quite delightful, and I'd like to think that there is perhaps a really "secret forest" somewhere in which our trees is spending the winter.
February 7, 2014
Careful with Acetominophen...
Okay everyone, back at work after several days away from the computer because of back/leg problems. Physio seems to have help a lot, as it has in the past. But I also took too much acetominophen it seems, and have developed an allergic reaction. Not the end of the world, but a reminder that there are no free lunches, and no drugs without occasional side effects.
And it seems that acetominophen can have serious ones. Here's a link to the FDA warning about taking too much/possible reactions.
It reads in part:
"Although rare, possible reactions to acetaminophen include three serious skin diseases whose symptoms can include rash, blisters and, in the worst case, widespread damage to the surface of skin. If you are taking acetaminophen and develop a rash or other skin reaction, stop taking the product immediately and seek medical attention right away."
My consult with 811 says to take Benedryl and to go to a doctor if things don't get better in 48 hours. Just checked in our medecine chest: yep, we had some, with an expiry date of 2007. Obviously we don't get this kind of thing very often!
And it seems that acetominophen can have serious ones. Here's a link to the FDA warning about taking too much/possible reactions.
It reads in part:
"Although rare, possible reactions to acetaminophen include three serious skin diseases whose symptoms can include rash, blisters and, in the worst case, widespread damage to the surface of skin. If you are taking acetaminophen and develop a rash or other skin reaction, stop taking the product immediately and seek medical attention right away."
My consult with 811 says to take Benedryl and to go to a doctor if things don't get better in 48 hours. Just checked in our medecine chest: yep, we had some, with an expiry date of 2007. Obviously we don't get this kind of thing very often!
