Country Cousin

Calendars...

Hi Folks!

Happy New Year! Yesterday we tore the final page from our 2012 calendars, and now we’re working on 2013. May it be peaceful, prosperous and happy for everyone!

CALENDARS

Speaking of calendars, the human race has been using them for a long, long time. According to the envelope my latest one came in, the oldest known calendar is an engraved bone plaque found in the Dordogne region of France. Estimated age? 30,000 years!

The ancient Mayan calendar that had so many of us expecting the end of the world last month began on Aug. 11, in the year 3114 BC, and because of its linear nature can extend to any date in the future. Parts of the calendar that had been written - actually, cast in stone as it were - ended in December, 2012, which led to the end of the world predictions.

We’re told the ancient Chinese calendar, also ended in 2012, which added strength to that belief.

The ancient occupants of South America may have lacked use of the wheel, but somehow, without the aid of computers or calculators, they were able to determine the passage of time accurately. Many of their Asian and European counterparts did fairly accurate computations, but had to adjust things regularly to keep dates in sync with the real seasons, much like we now add an extra day in February once every four years.

According to the old Hebrew or Jewish calendar, which is based on the moon and sun, the the current year is 5773. By our reckoning that would probably mean the first entries were calculated 3,760 years before Christ.

The old Persian/Iranian calendar, based on the Babylonian lunar calendar, had 360 days per year, with 12 months of 30 days each. They added a 13th month every six years to keep the calendar lined up with the seasons.

The old Celtic calendar known as the Coligny calendar, dates from the 2nd Century. Made of bronze fragments fastened together into a huge plate, it is divided into a bright and dark half, reflecting the moon cycles. The Celts in those days added an extra month every two and a half years to keep aligned with the lunar and solar year.

Stonehenge, which many believe to be a giant neolithic calendar, has huge stones aligned perfectly for the sun to bisect the circle perfectly each year on the summer solstice, June 21, the longest day of the year, which surely was an important event for those folks who made their homes in the frozen northland.

Incidentally, Dec. 21 or 22 each year offers the fewest hours of daylight. We’re already on an upward swing for this year, gaining about two minutes a day, so by the end of January there will be 30 more minutes of daylight than we enjoy now.

Our current calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XII in 1582 to correct time discrepancies from the earlier Julian calendar, and is now the standard for most of today’s world. The popes had a great deal of power in those days. There were two Thursdays during one week in 1147. Pope Eugenius III had traveled to Paris and decreed an extra Thursday so he could arrive in time for a special Friday fasting celebration.

Incidentally, our days of the week are named after Saxon gods, except for Saturday, which is named after Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture. Sunday is named for the sun, Monday for the moon, Tuesday for the pagan god Tew, Wednesday for Woden, Thursday for Thor, and Friday for Frige or Friga. Didn’t try real hard, but haven’t been able to find out if Pope Gregory assigned those names, or if they are English names assigned to a Latin calendar.

FOOD VS FAT

Lots of us are now struggling to keep our New Year’s resolutions, and for many of us, that means a resolve to lose some pounds and inches. Easier said then done, but sometimes a few simple changes can help a lot.

Researchers tell us that certain foods and environmental chemicals encourage the body to hold on to belly fat, which most of us would like to get rid of. Other foods encourage the body to shed the fat in the most crucial places.

Harmful chemicals known as “xenoestrogens” or “estrogenic chemicals” can be caused in our bodies by things like pesticides, herbicides, and certain petrochemicals from foods, air and water pollution, household cleaners, plastics, cosmetics, etc. The estrogenic chemicals can react with hormones, both male and female, to make your body store excess abdominal fat. They also increase cancer risks.

Cabbage-type (cruciferous) vegetables help prevent this reaction. They help the body get rid of excess abdominal inches and prevent certain types of cancer as well. Those health-packed veggies include broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale, bok choy, cabbage, etc. For maximum health, eat a serving or two every day, raw and/or cooked. Your hair and complexion will benefit too.

That may be why the Cabbage Soup Diet works so well for so many.

MORE ON RESOLUTIONS

Some of us make resolutions year after year, only to see them fall by the wayside, so we make new, revised ones on the same subject for next year.

One fellow says he resolved last year to lose weight and gain stamina by working out at a gym at least three times a week.

This year he’s more realistic. He’s resolved to drive past the gym at least three times a week on his way to the fast food joint. Thinks he’ll be able to keep that one.

We all know economic times today are tough. Tougher for some of us than for others. The same guy said in 2006 he resolved not to spend his money frivolously. In 2007 he resolved to pay off his bank loan promptly. He kept that one, but in 2008 resolved to pay off his bank loans promptly. The 2009 resolution was to make a strong effort to be out of debt by 2010, and the 2010 resolve was to be totally out of debt by 2011.

Unfortunately, more bad luck struck, and his next resolve was to pay off the debt interest by the end of 2012. Unfortunately, that didn’t work either. This year he’s resolved to be out of the country by the end of 2013.

TAX TIMES

As this goes to press our legislators and the president are still struggling to keep us from falling off the fiscal cliff. They’re predicting all sorts of dire things if that happens, but sort of wonder if that would be any more dire than what will happen to us anyway, what with our nation’s continued crazy spending and the spiraling interest on our horrendous national debt.

Maybe we ought to just go over that cliff and start over!

That said, on a happy note for the day, as of Sunday, Jan. 7 we will be just 100 days away from that fateful income tax filing date. And Jan. 31 is the deadline for paying first half property taxes without penalty.

Glad to put your minds at ease on that.

THE MAGIC OF PEROXIDE

Back in the day, our family dentist advised brushing our teeth with baking soda and rinsing daily with hydrogen peroxide. Said if we’d do that we’d have no cavities and never get periodontal disease. Wish I’d listened to him.

That said, in recent years several products guaranteed to whiten teeth have appeared on the market, at some shockingly high prices.

A friendly reader recently advised the same effect can be accomplished with plain old three percent hydrogen peroxide, better known to most of us simply as peroxide. Buy it for less than $1 a bottle. Simply brush teeth with baking soda and rinse well. Then take a capful of peroxide (the little white cap that comes on the bottle) and swish it around in your mouth. Then hold it there for 10 minutes. She says she does this while showering. Says it whitens teeth and prevents canker sores.

Then clean tooth brushes by soaking them in peroxide.

Also, if you have a terrible toothache and cannot get to a dentist right away, it helps greatly to swish some three percent peroxide and hold for 10 minutes several times a day.

Cannot imagine doing this, but she says if you have a cold and plugged sinuses, tilt your head back and spray nostrils with peroxide mixed half and half with water. Says it bubbles and kills the bacteria. Then blow nose into a tissue. Maybe. If I was desperate enough!

Also, and this I would do, she says spraying on a 50/50 mixture of peroxide and water twice daily helps rid the feet of nail fungus infections and athlete’s foot.

HOUSE CLEANING TOO

Not only that, peroxide is invaluable as a laundry and household aid, and doesn’t weaken fabrics like bleach can. She uses spray-on peroxide to clean mirrors without smearing, to disinfect and deodorize dish rags, sponges, cutting boards and counter tops.

Pour some straight onto the fabric to remove blood stains, and add half a bottle to a wash load of whites to get rid of leftover grunge and restore like new whiteness.

COOKIN’ TIME

Soups are the perfect food for winter. If your resolution involves dieting, and even if it does not, try this delicious soup from the Cabbage Soup Diet. The whole diet is included, reprinted from about seven years ago, or use the soup as the basis for a healthy low carb diet, in which case leave out the carrots and add whatever kind of meat strikes your fancy. Hamburger goes great. You can substitute fresh vegetables for any of the canned ones. Make huge pots and freeze it. Keeps well.

6 large green onions

2 green peppers

1 to 2 cans of tomatoes (or large can V-8 juice)

1 bunch celery

1 large head cabbage

1 package Lipton onion soup mix

1 large can beef or chicken broth

2 pounds carrots

2 cans green beans

Dash or two of cayenne or hot sauce

Black pepper to taste

Cut veggies into small and medium pieces and cover with water. Boil fast for 10 minutes, turn heat down to simmer and cook until the veggies are tender. The soup can be eaten any time you are hungry, as much as you want. Fill a thermos in the morning if you will be away for the day. For this, be sure the soup is very, very hot so it doesn’t spoil.

For the original cabbage soup diet , eat no bread, pasta, cereal, alcohol, or sugar of any kind. No carbonated drinks, even diet ones. Drink only water, black and unsweetened coffee, tea, fruit juices, cranberry juice and skim milk. No fried foods. You can substitute fish on one of the beef or chicken days. No skin on chicken. Have at least one bowl of soup before every meal.

On Day 1, eat soup and any fruits you want except bananas. Day 2, soup and any vegetables except potatoes, but at night have a big baked potato. With butter. Day 3, all the soup, fruits and veggies you want but no bananas or potatoes. Day 4, Soup plus as many as 3 bananas and skim milk. Drink as many glasses of water as you can. Your body needs the nutrients in the bananas and skim milk to lessen cravings for sweets. Day 5, soup at least once plus beef and tomatoes. You can have 10 to 20 ounces of beef and up to 6 fresh tomatoes. Drink 6 to 8 ounces water to wash away uric acid. Day 6. Feast day. All you want of beef and veggies except potatoes. Eat soup at least once. Day 7, Brown rice, unsweetened fruit juice, and veggies plus soup at least once.

You’re supposed to lose 10 or more pounds in one week. If you’ve lost 20 pounds, wait at least two full days before starting the diet again. Repeat as many times as needed but do stop before you disappear.

Personally, I have done better on the modified Atkins diet, with the soup added, except no carrots. Add meats if you like, and chopped spinach is a nice change too. Then eat whatever meats, fish, butter, mayo, eggs and green vegetables plus cauliflower (but no peas of any sort).

ANOTHER DIET SOUP

No cabbage in this one, but lots of great nutrition. Leave out the carrots if you’re on a low carb diet. Folks who keep the body’s nutritional needs satisfied often find they don’t crave as much food, or at least as much bad food. Getting enough rest also helps tremendously. Bodies (mine is one of them) often tend to confuse “tired” with “hungry”. The sad part is the more of the “bad” foods we eat the more tired we get, and the more we crave. We need to break the cycle.

5 medium carrots (or better yet, rutabaga) cut into 1 inch

slices

3 medium celery ribs, sliced

3 large onions, chopped or 3 medium leeks, cut into inch

thick chunks

1 clove garlic, minced

1 (28 ounce) can tomatoes (in juice)

1/2 medium cauliflower, cut into bite sized pieces

12 ounces green beans, each cut into thirds

3 medium zucchini, cut into 1 inch slices

2 (5 ounce) packages baby spinach leaves

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 chicken bouillon cubes

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

12 cups hot water

Coat the bottom of a large heavy soup kettle with nonstick cooking spray. (I skip the spray and melt 3 tablespoons butter because I believe in low carb, not low fat! There’s lots of evidence, but we’ll go into that some other time.) Anyway, add the carrots (if you’re doing low carb, you might want to leave out the carrots), celery, onions, and garlic. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes or until they start turning lightly brown. Stir in the tomatoes with their liquid, breaking up tomatoes with side of spoon. Add cauliflower, remaining ingredients and 12 cups or so of hot or at least warm water. Bring quickly to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. When it starts boiling, turn heat down so it simmers, and simmer about 15 minutes or until the vegetables become tender. Add more salt and pepper to taste if you like. Some like it hot. Add a bit of hot sauce, cayenne pepper or some crushed red peppers if you like.

SAUSAGE BROCCOLI CHOWDER

This is not a diet soup, but it is certainly good. Serve with a tossed green salad and hot bread sticks or crusty heated Italian bread, and some extra grated Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on.

1 pound bulk Italian sausage

1 medium onion, chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced

8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

2 cups broccoli florets

2 or 3 carrots, diced

2 cans (14 1/4 ounces each) chicken broth

1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

9 ounces cheese tortelini, cooked and drained

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

2 quarts light cream or half and half

1/2 cup grated Romano cheese (can substitute Parmesan)

In skillet cook and crumble the sausage until no longer pink. Drain and remove to paper towels to drain some more. Set aside. In the bit of drippings left in that same skillet, saut� the onion, garlic and mushrooms in butter until tender. Set aside. In a Dutch oven, cook the broccoli and carrots in chicken broth until tender. Stir in the sausage and the mushroom mixture. Add the soup, tortelini, pepper, basil nd thyme and heat through. Stir in the cream and Romano cheese. Heat through but do not boil. Makes about four quarts soup.

NO BAKE COOKIES

Make these as carry along breakfasts for rushed mornings.

2 cups sugar or no carb sugar substitute

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup milk

3 cups oatmeal

Mix sugar, cocoa, milk and butter and cook over medium heat until it starts to boil. Let cool one minute. Stir in sugar substitute if you’re using that, then add vanilla and peanut butter and stir until smooth. Stir in oatmeal. Drop by teaspoons on waxed paper and let cool.

Thought for the week: Thinking about the New Year? Think about what we might do to change this observation from Willard D. Farrell: “It says something about our times that we rarely use the word ‘sinful’, except to describe a really good dessert.”

(This column is written by Shirley Prudhomme of Crivitz. Views expressed are her own and are in no way intended to be an official statement of the opinions of Peshtigo Times editors and publishers. She may be contacted by phone at 715-927-5034 or by e-mail at shirleyprudhommechickadee@yahoo. com.)

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