After doing some research I discovered a page with instructions at http://tutorials.zen-cart.com/index.php?article=190, but it took me awhile to figure out how to implement them for the specific situation I was targeting. After reading the instructions a few times I realized that I had to really create an extra read-only text attribute to make my “special shipping” attribute be selected (as a single radio button) by default. Here’s what it looks like in the admin panel:

And here’s what it looks like on the product page (the radio button is selected by default now, check it out at http://peacemonger.org/zencart/beatles-for-sale-22-x-33-poster-p-25626.html):

Though I just realized that the order is the opposite of what I want, even though I specifically set the order as noted above. Does anyone know why I can’t set the order in this way?

Update: I found a thread which helped me get the attributes sorted at http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=87470. The specific change I made which worked was to set the sort order for the attribute names, under Catalog -> Option Name Manager (they were all set to sort order 0 on that page before).

Related posts:

1. My Easy Button
2. The Essence of AJAX - How I learned it in an hour

Then I began training with the mushroom top on the floor, but after a week or two I hit a barrier at 39 circles and realized that my inflexible wrists were preventing me from keeping my legs straight.  Because of this, I decided to stop doing circles and focus on my wrist flexibility.  I decided that I would be ready to do circles again when I was able to hold a handstand for a minute or two, so that was my goal and today I did a press handstand, got it on film, and posted my first video on Youtube:

Related posts:

1. My Gymnastics Mushroom
2. My Training Plan for a 2010 Gymnastics Competition
3. The Key to Flexibility is Untimed Stretching

I was inspired by the movie and attracted two different experiences that same day which emphasized the miraculous emotional healing that empathy can provide in relationships.

My wife Candice had been outside in the heat (yes heat, this is Phoenix in Nov) with one of our kids at a field trip with 47 1st-3rd graders that day (during her moon cycle), so she was a bit out of sorts. All the kids seemed to be asking her for things at once while she was getting dinner ready and she was trying to tell me about her frustrating day.

I really didn’t want to hear about it, but I made a conscious decision to show empathy by repeating what she had said in my own words - “You’ve been through a lot today and you just want a break, with some peace and quiet.”

Candice instantly lit up and gave me a big hug, then she didn’t say anything more about it - I was amazed!

Later while eating dinner Nickalus (who is 2) came to me crying:

“Bupaheay!
Bubahed!!
Bupaheyad!!!”

Finally I got the idea - “Oh, did you bump your head?”
“Yeaaah…” (as he nodded emphatically).
“That’s a bummer.” I replied, at which point he promptly calmed down and walked away.

It was as if I waved a magic wand and mended broken hearts with my words! Incredible!

I found an interesting book yesterday which uses empathy as part of the initial steps in the advice given to help people get their ex back. If you watch the first video on the page describing the Magic of Making Up, you’ll see how empathy is used in that situation - though it goes a bit further in agreeing with the other side of an argument, but the essence of showing an understanding of their position is really empathy at work - like magic.

Related posts:

1. How to Make a Wall-E Costume
2. My Easy Button
3. How to recover from too much Halloween Candy

Candice took the older three kids trick or treating for the first time this year, and they had a great time. Luckily it was on a Saturday so we had family over and they all went together, then watched a Scooby Doo mystery movie afterward (it goes with the spooky theme).

Of course during the movie they had their candy “loot” spread all over the floor in the TV room, and were happily gorging on assorted chocolate and sugar sweets. Near the end of the movie Kayin began doubling over in pain, screaming that his stomach hurt. So I put some nutmeg in a cup of water and gave it to him to drink. He said it helped and stopped screaming, and said he was fine as long as he had the cup with him. He was about to resume his feast when I reminded him that he already had too much and took his basket away for the night.

The next day Demitri broke out in a rash of little red bumps all over his skin so we felt good about putting away (not quite throwing away yet, but we’ll get there!) the rest of the candy in all three baskets. Demitri needed some rest so we put him to bed early that night after Candice gave him some herbs to help clear the toxins from his body.

Related posts:

1. Stopping Hiccups
2. Relief for Sinus Infections
3. Healing Paste for Bruises

That semester I didn’t get to compete on the gymnastics team either, but I did spend time in the gym, mostly stretching. Once I was able to workout again I was more flexible than before, which was great. I learned a great deal about how to improve flexibility from the times I was injured in college and could only stretch.

I learned that holding a stretch for 30 seconds or a minute during group stretches (where everyone is doing the same stretch) is much less effective than settling into a stretch and just relaxing and letting the world go by as if you weren’t there. Reading a book, talking to a friend, or even watching TV while stretching is great, so you can take your mind off it and relax.

These days, as I am doing circles on my mushroom almost everyday, I stretch for awhile soon after doing circles when my heart slows down a bit, and I also stretch at night before going to bed. I was just stretching at night, but since I’ve started doing circles again I know that I need to stretch my wrists right after working out in order to not tighten up. That way my nightly stretching can be helping me get more flexible instead of just catching up from the workout of the day (working out tightens muscles in general, so stretching is good to do after any type of workout).

So the next time you workout and feel the rush of endorphins, take the time to stretch and enjoy the natural, relaxing, good feelings of a healthy body. It will help you keep the good vibes going longer. If you want to gain flexibility, also pick another time in the day when you can either relax and meditate, or engage your thoughts in something else (like a book, homework, tv, or talking with a friend) while you stretch.

Related posts:

1. My Gymnastics Mushroom
2. How to Hold a Handstand
3. My After Workout Drink

I often get asked about how to overcome mental blocks by gymnasts or their concerned parents over at allexperts, so I thought I would write a thorough post about the subject here that I can refer to.

Fear is a very powerful emotion that takes a little while to overcome.  On the emotional scale where feeling empowered is at the top (love, joy, and appreciation are all empowering), fear is at the bottom.  The following list of emotions is taken from page 114 of the book Ask and It Is Given (see amazon link below):

There are over 20 powerful processes detailed in that book which can help you move up the scale of emotions, and I’ve tried most of them successfully.  It is a wonderful reference for practical mind games you can play to help you feel better about any subject.

I remember going hiking with my ASU gymnastics teammates about 10 years ago in Oak Creek Canyon.  There was a waterfall at one point of the hike and we stopped to take a look.  Some of the guys decided it would be fun to jump off the ledge right next to the waterfall (about 30 feet up) into the pool down below.

I looked over the edge and was gripped with fear, so I sat back on a rock several feet away while others jumped off and climbed back up a few times.  I gave no indication that I was going to jump, so eventually people stopped egging me on.  I sat very still and calmed my breath, focusing my attention on the ground beneath my feet.  After awhile I had calmed down and was able to focus on the fact that the others were jumping and safely landing in the water below, and I worked my way up to feeling hopeful that I could do it too.

So without any warning, when there was no one getting ready to jump or getting out of the water I stood up and quietly walked off the ledge.  My teammates were freaking out when I re-emerged because they didn’t expect me to jump and I had barely missed the rocks on the way down (because I didn’t jump I just walked off), but I didn’t care because I had done it and I was done.

I remember having several other mental blocks with specific gymnastics skills (like every release move I ever tried on high bar!), which are actions to take over and over (not just once with the cliff jumping example above).  The most success I had overcoming these mental blocks happened over periods of time when I could “play” with different aspects of the skills (either in my mind or on the equipment) but not really focus on them or bring attention to the fact that I was playing with them.  Just like in the example above, I had to remove myself from the situation and work my way up the emotional scale on my own (without the pressure or attention of anyone else) before I could approach it from a different perspective.  Then once I felt better about it I would try it on my own (or ask for a spot or a belt if I was ready for that), but without much fanfare.

Regarding specific gymnastics skills (like backwards tumbling, cartwheels, kips, jumping from the low bar to the high bar, release moves, etc.), I believe that when a mental block is developed a break is needed from whatever skill it is to focus on others that are easier and very comfortable.  Recently I’ve been skateboarding for fun at a skate park near my house, and it helps me to do something like that which is totally different from my work or family life in order to gain a fresh perspective on whatever I’m stuck on, whether it’s a programming issue or a parenting one.

The length of the break really depends on how long it takes to feel better.  In the example above I was able to feel better about jumping off a cliff in a matter of minutes, but when fearful thoughts are practiced over time about a given subject it may take some time to believe different thoughts that are more hopeful and empowering.

It can help to talk about the subject if the people you talk with can help you reach for thoughts that feel better, but it is not necessary and will hinder progress if the person you talk with is frustrated about the situation.  When I was training in gymnastics I learned how to block out my coach or teammates at times when I was ready to try something again after taking a break, because they were usually still frustrated about my previous attempts.

Related posts:

1. Learning a Glide Kip - it’s all about the Swing
2. How to Hold a Handstand
3. My Training Plan for a 2010 Gymnastics Competition

“This is why you don’t put cake on the counter!”

While Candice was on the phone, Hani had come to her holding the cake upside down (luckily it was in a plastic container he couldn’t open) and shaking it, saying “Cake!  Cake!” - apparently he had moved a chair from the table across the room to the counter right where the cake was in the back corner, then just climbed up and retrieved his prize.

Hani’s middle name is Fungasa, which means “liberate yourself”.  I took his picture (above) a few days ago while he was practicing his Harley style of freedom.

You can get help finding your own freedom here.

Related posts:

1. How to get your kids to clean the kitchen table
2. Free MDB file to MySQL Conversion
3. My Gymnastics Mushroom

The kip can be tricky to learn, but the trick is to use your body to your advantage.  Here are the 3 key movements I think it helps to think about:
1)  When you scoop your feet under the bar just above the floor (depending on your height), you want to get your feet as far up as you can and extend your body as far as you can from the bar before you change direction.
2)  As soon as you feel yourself coming back down, you want to get in a tight pike with your feet about a tennis ball away from the bar (and your hands) while your nose is almost between your knees
3)  As you swing back, you’ll want to start pulling the bar towards your hips (after you pass under the bar) but keep the bar right next to your straight legs while pulling it.

I’ve tried it on a trapeze before and actually hit my head with the bar the first time because I was used to a stationary bar!  After a few tries I was able to do a kip on the trapeze, though I had to adjust my swing and keep my arms straight in order to get up without hitting my head.

But on the playground or in a gym, the proper swing will take you up to a hip support on top of the bar, which is fun and feels very satisfying for me even after 24 years.

Related posts:

1. How to Hold a Handstand
2. My Training Plan for a 2010 Gymnastics Competition
3. My Gymnastics Mushroom

For exporting large databases you can use the mysqldump command from a prompt (unix shell or dos prompt).  For exporting large tables, I login to mysql and use a query with the syntax “SELECT column1name, column2name, column3name, … FROM myDatabaseName.myTableName INTO OUTFILE ‘/path/to/outfilename.csv’ FIELDS TERMINATED BY ‘,’ ENCLOSED BY ‘\” ESCAPED BY ‘\\’;” - this gives you a csv file in the location you specify with the fields surrounded by single quotes, separated by commas, and escaped by a backslash.  The only thing that needs to be escaped in this context is a single quote.

For importing large databases created from mysqldump or phpmyadmin, I save the sql dump file into a local directory, cd to that directory (in unix shell or windows dos), login to mysql from the command line, then type the following command: source dbdump.sql (or whatever the dump file name is with your db data).

For importing large tables that were exported using the export syntax I mentioned above, I login to mysql and then type something like “LOAD DATA INFILE ‘/path/to/outfile.csv’ INTO TABLE myDatabaseName.myTableName FIELDS TERMINATED BY ‘,’ ENCLOSED BY ‘\” ESCAPED BY ‘\\’;”

Related posts:

1. Free MDB file to MySQL Conversion
2. How to enable SOAP on a LAMP server
3. Source Control Feels Good

If you look at that code, there are 3 javascript functions used - get (this is called from clicking on a button in the form on the page), makePostRequest (this is the function which calls the url and sends parameters to it via the post method), and alertContents (this function is called from the makePostRequest function when the response is received from the url).

The get function just creates a string with parameters to pass, defines an url, and then passes them to the makePostRequest function.  Here are the main lines of code in the makePostRequest function and what they mean:

• http_request.onreadystatechange = alertContents; - this says when the http_request.readyState changes, then call the alertContents function.
• http_request.open(’POST’, url, true); - this defines what url is going to be called and what method is going to be used
• http_request.send(parameters); - this sends the parameters specified in the post array to the url requested

There are a few other lines specifying a the header of the request, and a bunch of lines in the beginning that setup the http_request object to work for different browsers.

Then in the alertContents function (which is actually called several times, whenever the readyState changes), once the readyState of 4 is reached (you can read more about readyStates at http://www.yaldex.com/wAjax/DiggingdeeperintoHTTPreadystates.html) the http status is checked.  If the status is 200 (and not 404, 501, 301, etc. - see http://www.w3.org/Protocols/rfc2616/rfc2616-sec10.html for a full list with explanations) then the result of that http request (like what you would get if you put that url into a browser address bar and sent the appropriate post parameters in the header - done through a script, not a browser - then checked the page source) is stored into a javascript variable and you can do whatever you want with it.

In that example they just stick it into a span element on the existing page, but you can do many other things.  If you invoke an url which takes as parameters the values of certain form elements on the page, you could return a list of values to populate another dropdown with, etc.  So you can take the example and modify the parameters passed, what the invoked url does, and what is done with the results - then you will have your own ajax function!

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1. How to allow up and down arrows to navigate your form fields
2. Source Control Feels Good
3. How to enable SOAP on a LAMP server

Nickalus got some on his face and decided to try and lick it off - luckily his tongue is not long enough to reach. He must have gotten into some leftover pizza before breakfast that day, which explains the red sauce all over his face.

Then Demitri had the great idea to wash his hair with the shaving cream - which is fine since then we didn’t need to use shampoo later

Then Nickalus wanted to be like Demitri - or was it Nickalus who started it? I can’t remember. But Nickalus’ hair is so fine that he didn’t need any water to make suds.

Finally, after about half an hour of “cleaning” the table and subsequent baths in the sink for at least a couple of the kids (the ones with shaving cream in their hair also got their hair washed), we wiped up the table and it was so clean you could see your reflection in it!

Related posts:

1. Born to be Free
2. How to Soothe a Crying Baby
3. The 15 Year Hair Cut!

Here is a picture of Kayin standing up in the costume. This is like when Wall-E is riding around on his treads exploring the world. Candice used some electrical tape to keep the edges of the holes from tearing more and it’s a nice border. With these colors it is a little like a pumpkin costume, but we didn’t have a dirty yellow colored one (which would match Wall-E’s paint better).

In the next picture (to the left) Kayin is showing how the costume looks when Wall-E closes up into a box, to protect him when he is scared or when a dust storm is passing through. This is a rather round box, but that’s ok - some things are easy for children to imagine.

Finally, below Kayin is demonstrating the front door into which all sorts of treasures can be collected and deposited.

This version of the costume has no “floor”, so anything placed into the compartment will just fall to the ground, but that could be an improvement in version 2. The front flap is made from a piece of cardboard that is attached to the opening with electrical tape (or maybe black duct tape, I don’t remember). Like many of the best toys, this costume was home-made.

Related posts:

1. How to recover from too much Halloween Candy
2. Empathy is the First Step in Making Up
3. Born to be Free

The kids had been coughing on me for a while due to illnesses being passed around at school (and our ear infection episode), and finally I felt my throat getting sore and my sinuses began to hurt.  One morning I woke up early with extreme sinus pain and couldn’t get back to sleep.  I decided to mix up some of my natural nasal decongestant, and that felt like it burned up the infection in my sinuses - it was great, there was much less pain!  But I was busy at work that week, and the next day I stayed up until midnight finishing a project.

That intensity brought the infection back, much stronger, and the ginger mix didn’t help as much (though it did some, I took it twice the next day).  The pain was so bad the next night that I couldn’t even go to sleep, so I stayed up watching Jackie Chan movies to try and distract myself.  In between movies I would sit still and try to meditate for a little while until the pain became my focus again.  I also drank some water and ate some corn tortilla chips (I hadn’t eaten much that day except for some soup, and corn is drying so I hoped it would help reduce the mucus drainage).  I also ate a few ginger chews that night (a candy made of basically sugar and ginger, with the consistency of taffy).  Candice bought those ginger chews for me a few months before but they were too strong for me then, that night they went down easy.

So after a few movies the sun came up and so did everyone else.  Candice suggested I try using a hot/cold compress to help with the pain, so I did and I felt so much better that I was able to sleep (sitting up) for 4 hours!  Here is how that works (we learned this from a Naturopath in Oregon a few years ago):

Take 2 washcloths and get them both wet.  Put one in the freezer and one in the microwave for 30 seconds to one minute (or if you don’t have one - like us - you can put it in a pan with some water on the stove and heat it up).  You want to get it hot enough so you can barely touch it but not so hot that it burns your skin.  Then put the hot wet washcloth on your face where it hurts (sinus area or forehead if you have a headache).  Hold it there for about 2 minutes (if it doesn’t stay warm you may need to heat it up again during that time), then put it back in the hot water or in the microwave while you grab the cold one from the freezer and put that on your face (I usually stand up straight and press on the painful areas through the washcloth to focus the heat/cold on them).  After about 30 seconds, put the cold washcloth back in the freezer, make sure the other one is heated up, and repeat the process one or two more times.

So after I had a good nap, I felt much better and was able to eat some more that day and get to sleep that night (after using another hot/cold compress before bed).  I was feeling even better the next day and life got back to normal a bit, but I still had some drainage in my throat and I was still coughing up some mucus in the mornings.  The mucus had become clear and my sinuses felt much better (though they were still a bit tender) so I thought the infection was over.

However, when Candice took a look at my tongue a couple days later she said there was still an external pathogen in my system (which made sense because the mucus became colorful again the next day).  She told me to take some triphala, so I took about half a teaspoon mixed with some water twice a day for 2 days.  On the third day I had a loose stool, so that’s when I knew I needed to back off with the triphala (it has a laxative effect).  Candice suggested I cut back on the triphala and add a pinch of trikatu, only once a day.  So I did that for a couple days and then stopped.  By then I had no sinus pain (not even tenderness), my bowels returned to normal (after being loose for a couple days), and the mucus drainage had stopped altogether.  Life is good

Here is a before and after picture of Nickalus eating some of my home-made nasal decongestant - he actually seemed to like it, he had four bites before spitting any out!

Related posts:

1. Natural Home Remedies to Heal Ear Infections
2. My Natural Nasal Decongestant
3. Turmeric and Salt for a Strained ankle

Apply a Healing Paste. Make a paste out of 1/2 teaspoon turmeric and 1/2 teaspoon salt, with enough water to form the paste. Use cool water. Applying it to the injury will help reduce swelling.

Almost immediately the throbbing pain subsided, and now (a day later) the swelling is completely gone and my finger is not even tender!

Related posts:

1. Turmeric and Salt for a Strained ankle
2. Stopping Hiccups
3. Warm salt water really does reduce swelling!

We all had a wonderful holiday break from school and gained more first hand experience in healing ear infections then ever before. When the fevers and coughing turned into earaches and fluid draining from the ears of both our babies, we knew we had to do something. It came to a head when Hani refused to eat and was too weak and in pain to do anything but cry and be held (I think that was the day after the fluid started draining from one of Hani’s ears and both of Nickalus’ ears, as well as their noses). We had started putting garlic and mullein ear drops in their ears the day before but it wasn’t getting better, so we pulled out all our books, did some more research and came up with the following remedies that we used to help both our babies heal from their ear infections:

External Applications (in the ears, using cotton balls and Q-tips):

• Turmeric, Hing (Asafoetida), Neem oil, Colloidal Silver with Tea Tree oil spray, and ear drops (Garlic and Mullein in an olive oil base). First, the colloidal silver with tea tree oil spray was used to sanitize the Q-tip that we used to clean the fluid out of the ear. Colloidal silver and tea tree oil are natural antibiotics and antiviral. Once the ear was clear of any noticeable fluid, we moistened a small cotton ball with the Garlic/mullein oil and with neem oil. Garlic and neem are well known for their antibacterial properties. Mullein is very soothing and takes away inflammation. After the cotton balls were slightly moistened with the oil, we rolled them in a mixture of turmeric and hing. Turmeric is antimicrobial plus has properties that heal skin tissue and decrease inflammation. Hing works like the garlic with its pungent smell to kill infection, but it also is very drying and helps to dry out the inner ear. We put these on cotton balls and put them in both babies’ ears, securing them with body tape.

Internal Applications (mixed with almond milk or water in a bottle):

• Tea made by boiling water with goldenseal powder, hing, turmeric, trikatu, and honey in it. Goldenseal, although expensive is a very powerful natural antibiotic. It can be used both externally and internally in small amounts. Hing and trikatu (an Ayurvedic herb) works by increasing the body’s digestive activity to help boost the immune system. And turmeric again works like an antibiotic in the body. For every 2 cups of water or liquid, we used 1/8 to 1/4tsp of each herb. It is important to add the honey to this mixture when putting it in the bottle (don’t heat the honey). All of these herbs are very bitter and pungent (they don’t taste very good). We used Vanilla flavored Almond Milk bought at the store, so there was some sugar in this. If your child is under a year old and you do not feel comfortable using honey, you can substitute stevia or molasses. This tea or mixture helps heal the infections from the inside out and can be given when ever they want a drink.
• Honey and Trikatu on a spoon is an ayurvedic home remedy for runny noses or productive (with mucus) coughs. Mucus builds in the digestive system first, before it shows up running out of a nose or rattling around in their lungs. Trikatu is a powerful herbal formulation that helps stimulate the digestive fire and dries up mucus in the digestive tract, boosting the immune system and enabling the body to get rid of the mucus. Adding a small pinch of trikatu to a spoon full of honey is an effective and quick way of getting rid of mucus in the lungs. The honey is essential, not only for taste (trikatu tastes like chilli pepper mixed with black pepper), but energetically honey brings the healing power of the herb to the lungs and upper body region. They work together to clear the digestive system and the lungs of mucus. Trikatu should not be used long term in children. Only for acute conditions and never longer than 5 days in children, the elderly, and pregnant women. The trikatu and honey combination can be given up to 3 times a day as needed.

Below is a picture of all the items (except the honey, I forgot to put that in the picture) we used to address the ear infections. We have access to the ayurvedic herbs - neem oil, goldenseal, and trikatu - because Candice is a medical herbalist. And if you want help locating these herbs, feel free to contact Candice through her website at phxherbs4kids.com. All these items are not necessary, but we had them on hand so we used them all:

Food:

• Cut up Figs and Dates - figs are excellent for children, and dates promote health and vitality. They are also good during teething, as their texture helps massage the gums. During ear infections, the movement of the jaw chewing also breaks down mucus in the inner ear and allows it to drain, breast feeding also does this.
• Almond Milk - we switched from raw goats milk to almond milk in their bottles to help reduce the amount of mucus involved during this time. If your child has lots of mucus, in the ear or lungs, it is important to avoid mucus producing foods; such as dairy products, cold foods and drinks, processed sugar, fried foods, and berries.
• Rice Porridge made in a similar fashion as my oatmeal

The morning after putting all those herbs in the babies ears on cotton balls taped to their heads with body tape, we were excited to see them acting more like themselves again (see picture to the right). This was very encouraging, they began eating again and wanting to play. A couple days later we got rid of the tape (and some of their hair, we cut some to make the tape removal less painful) but kept using turmeric and hing to keep reducing the fluid that was still draining a bit from their ears (as well as the ear drops to ensure the infections get totally resolved).

As you can see below, they are recovering very nicely - their ears are a bit orange because of the turmeric, but that’s okay. We used these remedies religiously for 5 days. It is important to be consistent with this treatment. As we found, stopping the remedy for a day or two resulted in increased drainage from the ears, specifically from Nickalus. We are back to using the turmeric and hing on a Q-tip that had been sprayed with the colloidal silver/tea tree oil rubbed in the ear two times a day. We will continue to treat them until there is no sign of fluid.

For plenty more home remedies which will empower you to take control of your own health, click on the book pictured to the right.

The picture of Hani shows the molar he pushed through in the back during this episode - he’s also working on the molar on the other side and an eye tooth - sickness often comes during teething due to the stress on the immune system during that time.

Related posts:

1. Relief for Sinus Infections
2. My Natural Nasal Decongestant
3. My After Workout Drink

Grammy Knows
by Candice Davis

“Grammy Knows…”
She says to me.
Brown eyes determined.
Brow crinkling up with aging wisdom.
Warm full lips smile
A heart filled with Love, Laughter, Life.

“Grammy Knows”
I ponder it.
Knows the love of one man for 50 years.
Knows that burnt first suppers turn into
Finger smacking-fried chicken
And pots of shrimp fried rice.

“Grammy Knows”
I ponder it.
Knows the joy that labor brings.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6…no 7 beautiful beings
On wings of love sent from above.
Knows the tears.
The fears
The prayers
The cheers
When all is said and grown.

“Grammy Knows”
I ponder it.
Knows holding loved one’s hand till the end.
Knows Popsicles make stitches remove easier.
Knows band-aids and bicycles are mother’s Best friends.
Knows when to let go
And when to let God.

“Grammy Knows”
I ponder it.
Knows that love comes in all
Shapes.
Sizes.
Colors.
Races.
Religions.
Whether you be
A plant.
A dog.
A husband.
A child
A adopted great-grandson
A daughter-in-law
A creature of this Earth.

GRAMMY KNOWS…LOVE.

“Grammy Knows…”
She says to me.
Brown eyes determined.
Brow crinkling up with aging wisdom.
Warm full lips smile
A heart filled with love, laughter, life.

“Grammy Knows.”
I ponder it…
That I may know it too
One day.

No related posts.

Dr. Lad prepared Chai Tea for everyone on Saturday morning and I reacted badly to the milk in it.  I was willing to try it because he spoke about the spices in it (cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg if I remember correctly) and said they reduce the mucilaginous properties of the milk.  But unfortunately it didn’t do the trick for me.  So I mentioned this during the class, and Dr. Lad took my pulses and gave me a few ginger slices with lime juice and salt on them to eat, in order to stimulate my agni (this is the name for the digestive fire in Ayurveda) and burn up some of the ama, or toxins, that were the cause of my sinus issues.

I had a hard time with the ginger slices, but the cooking class was continuing so it wasn’t really the time to address it.  Recently I discussed it with Candice and she suggested I try adding some coconut flakes to help relieve some of the shock of the strong mixture.  I tried that and now I have some every morning before breakfast, and it’s an instant relief every day for my sinuses and helps get rid of nasal drip also.  I have been using ginger paste from a jar because we have it, but I may start buying the actual ginger roots once I empty the jar.

A few years ago I purchased a book which detailed another process to help relieve nasal congestion. The focus of the book was asthma, but I was able to use the techniques (developed by a Russian doctor) to help provide much needed sinus relief for myself. I wasn’t able to find that same book recently when I looked for it, but I did find a similar one, called Dramatic Asthma Relief.

Related posts:

1. Relief for Sinus Infections
2. Natural Home Remedies to Heal Ear Infections
3. Stopping Hiccups

“1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 cup milk
1/4 cup water
Mix all ingredients and heat to boiling point. Continue to cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until there is 1 cup of liquid left.
*This is good for pharyngitis, laryngitis and hoarseness of the voice. It is also effective for acute tonsillar congestion and acute kapha-pitta conditions of the lungs. It is a natural antiseptic.”

When I prepare it I don’t use that much water and I cook it on high since I have an electric stove (unlike Dr. Lad who insists on gas stoves, even in the cooking class). I also put the pot into a larger pot or bowl of cold water after cooking to cool it down faster while I keep stirring to prevent a skin forming on the surface.

I was amazed when I tried it for the first time, it actually helped reduce my allergies.  I used raw goats milk from a local farm, which we happened to have because we wanted to give Nickalus something better than commercial formula (he joined our family last year when he was 4 months old).  I’ve tried pastuerized milk from the store and I reacted badly to it, so I stuck to the raw milk (see www.realmilk.org for a source near you).

Related posts:

1. How to Hold a Handstand
2. The Key to Flexibility is Untimed Stretching
3. My Natural Nasal Decongestant

One day last week our four-year-old son Demitri had the hiccups when we were getting everyone ready for bed. I remember reading about a recommendation for hiccups in my ayurvedic-cooking book, so I decided to give it a try. Here is the recommendation:

“To stop hiccoughs, eat 2 chopped bananas mixed with 1 teaspoon of ghee, ½ teaspoon of honey and 2 pinches of ginger powder.”
-Ayurvedic Cooking for Self Healing by Usha Lad and Dr. Vasant Lad, page 189

I already had half a banana left from one of my children on the counter so I put it in a little bowl, cut it up with a butter knife and fork, used a spoon to put in a little bit of ghee, used the knife to add a little bit of honey (the honey we use has never been heated so it is semi-solid), and added one shake of ginger powder. Then I mixed everything up and gave a spoonful to my son. Although it tasted sweet to me he was in a sad mood and said he didn’t like it, but after one bite he didn’t have any more hiccups! He hasn’t had any hiccups since then, but I won’t forget this remedy – it brought us great relief, since hiccups at bedtime can keep everyone up late.

This time I didn’t have any leftover bananas and Kayin said he was hungry so I used one whole banana, broke it into pieces, then added half a spoonful of ghee, half a spoonful of honey, and a few shakes of ginger powder. After mixing it up I gave it to Kayin. He liked it and dug in, but halfway through he stopped and said he was done eating and done with hiccups, and proceeded to go lay down and go to sleep. I got to eat the rest, it was Yummy!

Related posts:

1. Cooked Apples for Diarrhea
2. Healing Paste for Bruises
3. My Natural Nasal Decongestant

But for some reason, Candice happened to hear about the Body for Life program and she was inspired by it (see the book on the left, that’s the one we got). She wanted me to do it with her so I agreed and read the book. In the beginning after taking stock of where you are, you decide where you want to be in 12 weeks, in terms of health, fitness, etc. We started this in October of 2000, after I had not worked out for more than a few minutes at a time for six months. I remember thinking about the program for a few days before I came up with a goal that was exciting to me. I decided I wanted to be “in shape” enough to compete again during the spring season. I wanted to be able to make the team in January, 12 weeks after starting Body for Life. What this means is I had to be able to perform well enough on at least one event to be able to score within the top six members of the team, since only six people compete on each event per team.

I did not discuss this goal with the coach, I hadn’t been in the gym for six months and didn’t even know how many people were on the team that year since I hadn’t met the freshmen. But I was excited about my goal and had fun imagining the surprised looks I would get when I first got back into the gym.

Looking back on it now with an understanding of the Law of Attraction, it makes sense how everything sort of fell into place to manifest the exciting goal I set for myself. I tried out for the team on parallel bars, pommel horse, and the still rings (my favorite events). I just wanted to compete in the home meet that year, but the coach told me I couldn’t do that unless I would commit to go with them to Nationals (I can’t remember where that was, maybe California). So I did, and I remember working on my masters thesis in the hotel the day before the final individual competition of the 2001 collegiate championships.

I learned that you don’t need to workout 20 hours a week (like I had done in high school and college before getting married) to be in great shape. The exercise methods taught in the Body for Life book are very efficient at building strength and endurance, and the eating plan is very supportive of that as well.

So considering all of this, here is my training plan:

• First and foremost, I will do exercises that are fun and feel good when I do them
• I will continue to practice on the mushroom at least once a week, doing more circles in a row each time. In order to feel good doing this I will spend 10-15 minutes warming up with dips, pull ups, sit-ups, pushups, and jumping rope (our three oldest kids each got a jump rope free from a booth at a children’s health expo last week, so I will borrow one).
• Once I get up to 50 circles in a row, I’ll take the top off the mushroom, put it on the floor, and do circles on it there
• Once I get up to 75 circles I’ll post a video of it on YouTube
• A few times a month I will swing on the steel parallel bars at the park nearby - I like to swing, it’s a little bit like flying:)
• At some point I’ll either make or buy a set of parallettes I can use for presses, handstand push-ups, and playing with my kids
• I’m also going to finish raking the leaves before next year, once I get a new rake - the rake I had broke in half while I was trying to rake wet leaves

I’ve also done some research recently about good foods to eat for developing muscle tone and stamina according to Ayurveda and Chinese medicine (we have dozens of books on these subjects that Candice studied from during her apprenticeship to become a medical herbalist), but I’ll save that for another post.

Update Aug 15, 2009:

• I didn’t quite get on the mushroom once a week, but I did get up to 50 and put the top on the floor (see my related post about that).
• We’ve moved twice so far this year, including once across the country, so our life routines have changed several times.  I don’t live near a park with metal “parallel bars” anymore, but we do live in a house with a pool now.
• I did finally finish raking the wet leaves (it may have been February by then), after breaking two rakes.
• My latest good feeling exercise is swimming back and forth across the pool with my 4 year old daughter hanging on my neck while being chased by my 7 year old son.

Related posts:

1. My Gymnastics Mushroom
2. How to Hold a Handstand
3. The Key to Flexibility is Untimed Stretching