Collectors Weekly – Great Fun!

On this site you can explore the world of antiques, vintage, memorabilia, and collecting.

      For example, if you were committed to a psychiatric institution, unsure if you'd ever return to the life you knew before, what would you take with you? Find out HERE.

Did the CIA's Experiments With Psychedelic Drugs Unwittingly Create the Grateful Dead?

The Unfiltered History of Rolling Papers, Plus Tommy Chong's Big Fat Jamaican Vacation

Want to know about antique and vintage signs? Want you know about old records and recording artists?  Want links to a gallery of cigarette magazine advertising from the 1940s and 50s, photos of antique porcelain prewar signs (enamel), read an impressive collection of over 7,000 ads printed in U.S. and Canada, mid-century automotive advertising illustrations, view a gallery of early 20th Century American package designs or an extensive collection of 20th century vintage advertising?

If none of that interests you, you can check out postcards, toys, games, dolls, movies, guitars, instruments, hats, pins, watches, radios, and on and on goes the list. A must visit when you need some information about the old days or just want to browse.

Mega-Vitamin Dangers

      Megavitamin therapy is the use of large doses of vitamins, often many times greater than the recommended dietary allowance in the attempt to prevent or treat diseases. Megavitamin therapy is typically used in alternative medicine by practitioners who call their approach "orthomolecular medicine", but also used in mainstream medicine for "exceedingly rare" genetic conditions that respond to megadoses of vitamins. 

     Nutrients may be useful in preventing and treating some illnesses, but the conclusions of medical research are that the broad claims of disease treatment by advocates of megavitamin therapy are unsubstantiated by the available evidence. It is generally accepted that doses of any vitamin greatly in excess of nutritional requirements, will result either in toxicity or in the excess simply being metabolized - evidence in favor of vitamin supplementation supports only doses in the normal range. Critics have described some aspects of orthomolecular medicine as food fadism or even quackery. Research on nutrient supplementation in general suggests that some nutritional supplements might be beneficial, and that others might be harmful.

     That's MEGAVITAMIN therapy, but what about claims that optimum doses that should be used in both prevention and treatment should range from very small to very large, depending on what is being treated. The same is true for ANY medication...larger doses aren't always better! One thing that IS known is that vitamins may have effects which appears to be unrelated to their properties as vitamins. For example, see this report from the National Cancer Institute on Vitamin C.

      Also worth reading is a report from a University of California, Berkeley biochemist that high doses of some vitamins could play a big role in the treatment of disease and perhaps slow the effects of aging.

     There are the toxic side effects of megadose vitamin therapy, usually self-prescribed regimens taken by individuals and sometimes they wind up sick. It's estimated that only about 7 percent of the estimated 40 million Americans who regularly take vitamins do so under the guidance of a physician.

     Toxic effects of megadoses have been discovered for most vitamins, including some, like vitamins A and C. Even some of the water-soluble B vitamins, commonly thought to be nontoxic in any amount because they are rapidly cleared from the body, are now known to cause devastating effects in megadose quantities.

     Further, in some patients who are under drug treatment for an illness, taking megadoses of vitamins can interfere with their treatment. By the way, megadoses a re defined as 10 or more times the recommended daily amount.

     The problem is that many times some nutritionists speak of hidden vitamin deficiencies that could cause a wide range of common symptoms and for chronic or incurable problems, they make extravagant promises. People with arthritis, diabetes, heart disease or cancer are, because of their condition, are often easy targets of such claims. As a result, it is always best to avoid megadoses unless prescribed by a physician. It's also a good idea to tell your physician if asked about medications about any supplements you are taking.

     Although excessive amounts of water soluable vitamins quickly leave the body they can sometimes cause adverse effects. For example, Niacin megadoses are associated with side effects that include flushing of the face, neck and chest, abnormal heart rhythms, itching, headache, cramps, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abnormally low blood pressure, fast heart beat, and elevated blood sugar. In large doses niacin can cause dry skin and abnormal skin pigmentation, aggravate peptic ulcers and damage the liver.

     Large doses of Vitamin B6 have been known to produce severe neurological problems including numbness, difficulty walking, sharp pains and loss of normal reflexes. Fortunately, the symptoms usually disappear after megadoses were stopped, but in some cases complete recovery took more than a year. Vitamin B6 can also interfere with therapy for Parkinson's disease and people who take as little as 200 milligrams a day may become dependent on the vitamin, with deficiency symptoms resulting if it is withdrawn too abruptly.

     If Vitamin C in megadoses are abruptly stopped, scurvy can result because the body has become dependent on the high dose and large amounts of Vitamin C can interfere with lab tests for blood glucose and make a person appear to be diabetic. It can also interfere with uric acid and cholesterol tests. A megadose of Vitamin C is defined as 1,500 milligrams a day for 10 weeks and it could cause anemia.

     Vitamins A, D, E and K are stored in the body in fatty tissue and can accumulate to toxic levels if excessive doses are taken on a regular basis. Vitamin A has resulted in a number of vitamin poisoning cases.

     Beta-carotene can give people an orange or yellow skin color, but it can be confused with jaundice and has been reported to cause loss of menstrual periods.

     Vitamin D in megadose quantities can cause toxic effects such as abdominal pain, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, excessive urination and thirst, dangerously elevated calcium in the blood, calcium deposits in soft tissues, bone pain, weakness, mental confusion, cataracts and kidney failure and these symptoms can continue for a year or more after the megadoses are stopped.

     Vitamin E is recommended in megadoses for everything from alleviating breast discomfort to warding off the ravages of old age and preventing cancer. Side effects could cause fatigue, nausea and blurred vision, but the most serious possibility is the destruction of vitamin K and enhancement of the effects of anticoagulant medications, which could result in hemorrhage. Patients taking anticoagulants should not take vitamin E supplements.

     Another problem with taking megadoses is the accumulated ''inactive'' ingredients: fillers, flavors and coloring agents.  By Federal law, all vitamin and mineral formulas that contain 50 percent or more of the United States Recommended Daily Allowance for any nutrient must list all ingredients on the package label. However, some manufacturers, knowing that the Food and Drug Administration has more than it can handle in dealing with safety issues, ignore the law.

Scientifics Direct

This interesting mail-order site sells unique science related items. 

They offer items related to: Alternative Energy, Anatomy, Astronomy, Chemistry, Geology, Magnetism, Microscopes, Optics & Lasers, Physics & Electricity, Project Components, Robotics, Science Fun & Discovery, Science Kits, Weather.  Visit site     

Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion

     The heavy-lift helicopter of the Marine Corps can carry a 26,000-pound Light Armored Vehicle, 16 tons of cargo 50 miles and back, or enough combat-loaded Marines to lead an assault or humanitarian operation; but perhaps what's most amazing about the largest military helicopter in the U.S. is what it achieves despite its size. Though powerful enough to lift every aircraft in the Marine inventory except the KC-130, the CH-53E Super Stallion is compact enough to deploy on amphibious assault ships, and has the armament, speed and agility to qualify as much more than a heavy lifter.

     The Super Stallion is the largest and heaviest helicopter in the United States military. It was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor and canting the tail rotor 20 degrees. It was built by Sikorsky Aircraft for the United States Marine Corps.

     The Super Stallion is used to transport personnel and equipment, lift heavy loads and conduct minesweeping missions. The Air Force version, equipped with sophisticated electronic countermeasures systems, is used for long-range delivery and resupply of special operations forces and combat rescue missions.

     The helicopter is capable of lifting 16 tons (14.5 metric tons) at sea level, transporting the load 50 nautical miles (57.5 miles) and returning. A typical load would be a 16,000 pound (7264 kilogram) M198 howitzer or a 26,000 pound (11,804 kilogram) Light Armored Vehicle. The aircraft also can retrieve downed aircraft. The 53E is equipped with a refueling probe and can be refueled in flight giving the helicopter indefinite range.

     The helicopter seats 37 passengers in its normal configuration and has provisions to carry 55 passengers with centerline seats installed. With the dual point hook systems, it can carry external loads at increased airspeeds due to the stability achieved with the dual point system.

Politics and the Rape of General Porter

     While looking for material on hot air ballooning during the Civi War I came across the interesting story of General Fitz John Porter.

      Porter (August 31, 1822 – May 21, 1901) was a career Army officer who served during with the Union during the Civil War and is best known for his performance at the Second Battle of Bull Run (aka Second Manassas to Southerners) and his subsequent court martial. 

     His career was ruined by his political rivals when they called for his court marshal and after the war it took him 25 years to restore his reputation and get restored. Major General Fitz John Porter was found guilty of disobeying a lawful order and misconduct in front of the enemy and removed from command.

      Porter came from a family of famous naval officers, including his cousin, David Farragut, the first United States admiral. He graduated from West Point in 1845, eighth in his class, and served with great distinction as an artillery officer in the Mexican War. After the war, Porter served in various posts, including a stint as an instructor of artillery at West Point, where he became good friends with both George B. McClellan and post adjutant Robert E. Lee.

      As tensions increased in 1860, Porter traveled to locations in the South in order to prepare for the upcoming conflict, including Charleston, South Carolina, where he advised Major Robert Anderson be placed in charge of the defenses at Fort Sumter. When war broke out, he served as a staff officer, but when his old friend McClellan was asked to take charge of the Army of the Potomac he was transferred to command a division at McMlelland's request. McClellan trusted old friends more than the other corps commanders and wanted subordinates he considered loyal. He relied, in particular, on Porter, who often acted as his surrogate on the battlefield during McClellan's frequent absences. One such instance, the Battle of Malvern Hill, especially cemented Porter's reputation as a superb commander on the battlefield.

      After McClellan was relieved of command Porter's corps was reassigned to Major General John Pope. Porter intensely disliked Pope both personally and professionally. 

     Porter sent a number of telegrams to Major General Ambrose Burnside complaining about Pope's poor leadership and handling of the army and Burnside, who also had a low opinion of Pope, forwarded the letters to McClellan, General-in-Chief Henry Halleck, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, and President Abraham Lincoln. Halleck, Stanton, and Lincoln were upset because Pope was there man when they dumped the uncooperative McClellan. Lincoln was especially displeased because Pope was a personal friend.

      On August 27, part of the Army of Northern Virginia under Stonewall Jackson seized Pope's supply depot at Manassas Junction. Pope became panicked and sent a flurry of orders including a confused telegram to Porter ordering him to join Pope by morning.

      Porter consulted with his commanders about the feasibility of marching that evening, but they were against it even though Pope wanted to move. Finally, they were able to convince Porter that it was too dark and they were unsure of the location of the Confederate forces. As a result the orders to move out in the dark at 1:00am were disregarded.

      The next morning Pope got into battle with the Confederates under General Stonewall Jackson. Pope and General Irwin McDowell's troops joined forces and repulsed an attack by the Confederate cavalry division under Major General J.E.B. Stuart. Porter and McDowell then received another confusing order from Pope. In short, the order was unclear about what Porter and McDowell were supposed to do. Pope did not explicitly direct them to attack and he concluded the order with "If any considerable advantages are to be gained from departing from this order it will not be strictly carried out." The result was confusion on the part of everybody involved and it resulted in Porter's court martial.

      At the court martial the prosecution obtained testimony from officers under Pope that sought to clear their own names after the disaster of Manassas. For example, McDowell was answering his own court of inquiry regarding his actions at Manassas that led to his banishment from the army. It didn't help that during the trial, Pope supplied his own maps that substantiated his version of the story.

      The defense argued that Pope was incompetent and that Porter's actions had saved the army from an even greater defeat. General Ambrose Burnside even left his command to testify on behalf of Porter. In addition, it was testified that the majority of the Union Army agreed with Porter about Pope's poor leadership. The defense also pictured Porter as having been wronged by a petty, incompetent former commander who happened to be friends with the President.

      Porter was found guilty and ordered dismissed from the army and he was forever disqualified from holding any office of trust or profit under the Government of the United States.

      Porter immediately set about attempting to overturn the conviction. He set about surveying and mapping the battleground to develop a map of every tree, bush and hill in the vicinity of his corps. Then he recorded the testimony of anyone he could get to cooperate in order to record exact positions during the battle. With the help of his friends, especially the increasingly powerful McClellan, he began petitioning famous figures to write letters on his behalf. They used their influence to try to get state and local lawmakers to pass resolutions condemning the government for dismissing Porter.

      He also tried to draw attention to the make-up of the court. They were Republicans,as was the President, and had fixed a court to rule against him in order to protect its own interests. The government refused to re-investigate and officers who spoke out in support of Porter were punished.

The newspapers were also controlled by Republicans and they said that Porter was a traitor who had escaped the punishment he had deserved. The New York Times even wrote that he ought to have been executed.

      When the war ended, Porter wrote to both Lee and General Longstreet asking for their assistance. Both Lee and Longstreet replied, Longstreet in great detail, and Porter used the evidence to garner supporters to send petitions to President Andrew Johnson asking for a new trial. He also had supporters in Ulysses S. Grant, William T. Sherman, and George H. Thomas. President Johnson had no power to hold a new trial and, despite his support for Porter, he was unwilling to revisit the decision. Finally, in 1878, President Rutherford B. Hayes commissioned a board to investigate.

On March 19, 1879, the commission issued a report recommending that the court martial be set aside and Porter be restored. The report found Porter guilty of no wrongdoing and credited him with saving the Union Army from an even greater defeat.

      No matter though. Political opposition still prevented Porter from obtaining reinstatement because of Republican presidents. Finally in May of 1863, a bill passed Congress to restore Porter to his regular army rank of Colonel but with no back pay. Two days later, vindicated, Porter retired from the army, but he would not receive an official pardon until Grover Cleveland took office in 1885.

      About his balloon trip...one early April morning in 1862 General Porter hopped into a balloon basket and took off. The retaining cable snapped and the observation flight, at the mercy of the wind, floated over the Confederate lines. Porter, not knowing where he might end up reckoned to be captured when he finally came down. Fortunately for Porter, the wind shifted and the balloon was blown back toward the Union lines and he pulled the valve and descended to the ground.

Yodeling

    
 Yodeling had its origins in the call from mountain to mountain, the communication from Alp to Alp. It is a form of singing that involves singing with repeated changes in pitch from the chest register to the head register without using words that mean anything. It was in mountainous and inaccessible regions that natural yodeling communication forms developed in order to communicate from one hill to the other or to bring in the cows. 
     Alpine yodeling was a longtime rural tradition in Europe, and became popular in the 1830s as an entertainment in theaters and music halls. In the United States, traveling minstrels were yodeling in the 1800s and in 1920 the Victor Recording Company listed 17 yodels in their catalog. Music historians credit the first country recording to include yodeling to Riley Puckett in 1924. 
     In 1928, blending Alpine yodeling with traditional work, blues, hobo, and cowboy music, Jimmie Rodgers released his recording "Blue Yodel No. 1". Rodger's Blue Yodel created an instant national craze for yodeling in the United States and, according to a black musician who lived near Rodgers in Mississippi, everyone, both black and white alike, began to copy Rodgers. The popularity lasted through the 1940s, but by the 1950s it became rare to hear yodeling in Country or Western music. 
     Human voices have at least two distinct vocal registers, called the "head" and "chest" voices. Most people can sing tones within a certain range of lower pitches in their chest voice and tones within a certain range of higher pitch in their head voice. Falsetto is an "unsupported" register forcing vocal cords in a higher pitch without any head or chest voice air support. Experienced singers can control their voices in this range, easily switching between registers. Yodeling is a version of this technique in which a singer might change register several times in only a few seconds and at a high volume. Repeated alternation between registers at a singer's passaggio pitch range produces a very distinctive sound.
     Bart Plantenga, author of Yodel-Ay-Ee-Oooo: The Secret History of Yodeling Around the World, explains the technique: It is thought that yodeling was first introduced to the United States by German immigrants in Pennsylvania in the early 1800s. As the new settlers traveled south through the Appalachian Mountains and beyond into the Deep South they came into contact with Scots-Irish immigrants, Scandinavians (practitioners of a unique yodeling called kölning), and other nationalities including African slaves who communicated with "field hollers"...a long, loud, musical shout, rising and falling and breaking into falsetto.    
     In 1839, the Tyrolese Minstrels toured the United States and started an American craze for Alpine music. During the 1840s, dozens of German, Swiss, and Austrian singing groups crisscrossed the country entertaining audiences with a combination of singing, yodeling, and Alpine harmony. The success of the European groups led to the formation of many American family singing groups as well. The most popular was the Hutchison Family Singers who toured, singing harmony and yodeling. Minstrel shows parodied the Hutchison's yodeling with their own, calling it "Tyrolesian business". 
     In 1853, Christy's Minstrels mocked the Hutchinson Family singing We Come From the Hills With Tyrolean Echo. Other traveling American minstrels were yodeling in the United States as well. Recordings of yodelers were made in 1892 and in 1920 the Victor Recording Company listed 17 yodels in their catalog, many of them by George Watson, the most successful yodeler of the time. In 1897 Watson recorded the song, "Sleep, Baby, Sleep" which was later recorded in 1927 by Riley Puckett as the second yodeling record ever made (the first was Rock All Our Babies to Sleep). 
     Sleep Baby Sleep was also the first song ever recorded by Jimmie Rodgers, the man would eventually come to be known as the father of both country music and American yodeling when he combined the yodel with southern African-American blues. By the 1880s the minstrel show had been replaced by Vaudeville and American Burlesque. By around 1905, more than 20 years before Jimmie Rodgers introduced his blue yodel, African Americans were touring the country singing and yodeling. 
     The most noted yodelers of that time were Monroe Tabor, known as The Yodeling Bellboy, though he was not a bellboy. Known as The Jolly Hendersons, Beulah Henderson toured with her husband Billy from 1905 through 1910. Billed as "The Classy Colored Comedy Pair", Beulah was featured as "America's only Colored Lady Yodeler". Black performer Charles Anderson began touring with a vaudeville show in 1909, singing a combination of blues and yodeling. In 1923 and 1924 Anderson recorded eight sides for the Okeh label which gave a summary account of his vaudeville repertoire during the previous decade. Five of the recorded songs were yodels. 
     Another famous early yodeler was The Singing Brakeman Jimmie Rodgers, who recorded dozens of popular songs in the late 1920s and early 1930s. While working on the railroad he learned blues techniques from African American gandy dancers, and eventually created his characteristic sound - a blend of traditional work, blues, hobo, and cowboy songs and his trademark "Blue Yodel." According to a black musician who lived near Rodgers in Mississippi, everyone, both black and white alike, began to copy Rodgers. 
     Jack Guthrie, the cousin of Woody Guthrie, performed in the thirties and early forties. Known as "Oklahoma's Yodeling Cowboy", he developed a style of singing and yodeling influenced by his idol, Jimmie Rodgers, and his experiences as a bucking-horse rider and rodeo performer. Hank Snow was one of the great country legends of the 1950s, but he had actually been singing in Canada for years where he was known as "The Yodeling Ranger". He admired Jimmie Rodgers as well, and learned to yodel by listening to his records. 
     The DeZurik Sisters were two of the first women to become stars on both the National Barn Dance and the Grand Ole Opry, largely a result of their original yodeling style. Singing cowboy Roy Rogers yodeled, as did his box office competitor Gene Autry.
     Yodeler Bill Haley of Bill Haley and the Comets has one of the strangest histories of all. Bill Haley zoomed to fame as the "King of Rock and Roll" when his song "Rock Around the Clock" was featured in the popular film Blackboard Jungle. But it is little-known that Haley and his band had been around for years doing Western swing music with Haley featured as a yodeler. At one point in the 1940s, Bill Haley was even awarded Indiana State Yodeling Champion for his skill, perhaps something that his skillful manager Colonel Tom Parker felt not important to mention to his screaming teenage rock 'n' roll fans. 
     Slim Whitman performed for over 60 years. Whitman avoided the "down on yer luck" songs, preferring instead to sing laid-back romantic melodies about simple life and love. Critics dubbed his musical style "countrypolitan," due to its fusion of country music and a more sophisticated crooner vocal style. 
     Want to learn how to yodel? You can learn how HERE.

News and Events, Prices and Popular Culture - 1890 to today.

I love this site! The People History 

Well dressed men in 1945

     What happened in 1945, the year I was born? The major news stories included the sinking of the USS Indianapolis by a Japanese submarine. Sometime in the early 1960's I was with the US Marines and we were crossing the Atlantic on a ship (I don't remember which one) and I was reading a book about the sinking of the Indianapolis. It turned out that the Navy Master Chief Hospital Corpsman aboard the ship had survived the sinking. 
     The war in Europe ended on May 7th a couple of months before I was born and Harry S. Truman became the US President following the death of President Roosevelt. The war in the Pacific ended a little over a month after I was born. 
     The average cost of new house was $4600 which was slightly over twice the average annual wage, but you could rent a house for about $60 a month. A new car was a little over $1000, men's shirts were $2.50 each and if you wanted to buy your daughter a doll house, it would cost you $3.19. Gas was $0.15 a gallon.  Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra were the popular singers of the day.
     The site is a lot of fun to visit!

Males Start Out As Females...Who Knew?!

     A nipple is a structure from which a fluid emanates. More specifically, it is the projection on the breasts or udder of a mammal by which, in females, breast milk is delivered to a mother's young. From conception until sexual differentiation, all mammalian fetuses within the same species look the same, regardless of sex.  
      Why do men have breasts and nipples?  It's because men start out as women. The human fetus is initially female. At six weeks' gestation, the outlines of eyes, arms, legs and a face appear and at about that time the fetus begins to take on the biological aspects of its gender. If the fetus has a Y chromosome, testosterone will turn the buds for sexual organs into testes which produce more testosterone and a penis appears. So, breasts and nipples are already in place before testosterone shows up and cells form into male organs.
     In humans, this lasts for around 6 weeks, after which genetically-male fetuses begin producing male hormones such as testosterone. Usually, males' nipples do not change much past this point; however, some males develop a condition known as gynecomastia, in which the fatty tissue around and under the nipple develops into something similar to a female breast. This may happen whenever the testosterone level drops. Gynecomastia, although not as severe, may occur in pubescent boys undergoing physical changes due to the rapid and uncontrolled release of hormones, including estrogen. The heightened levels of estrogen in pubescent male bodies leads to the swelling of the nipple and surrounding tissue – this can often look similar to a female human nipple – and may cause slight discomfort.  Gynecomastia is a hormonal imbalance that usually occurs in teenage boys and treatment is not usually necessary. Things are likely to return to normal around the age of 18 or 19.
      Most men are distressed if their breasts begin to enlarge. I would have thought all men would be, but judging by the picture, apparently not. Fortunately, the problem can be gotten rid of fairly easily. Most men begin to develop excess fat deposits when they reach their late twenties and their metabolism slows down, especially if the have a sedentary life style. Fat gathers in different places for different people. Women are most likely to see fat in their buttocks and thighs. Men tend to see fat in their stomachs and mid-sections. Man boobs are just the result of bad luck.    
     Man boobs (moobs) as shown in the picture come from being overweight. They're composed of fatty tissue stored over the pectoral muscles. The only way to get rid of them is to lower your weight overall because you can't pick and choose the location from which your body is going to decide to dump its excess weight. You need to engage in a cardio and strength-training workout program and follow a proper diet. Or, you can get one of these...

Acetaminophen and Alcohol, etc.

 

     While writing a post for my chess blog on a young chess player who reportedly died after taking a couple of shots of alcohol and four Tylenol tablets for his cold, I was prompted to do some research on over the counter drugs and alcohol, especially pain remedies containing acetaminophen.

      It turns out that combining acetaminophen pain relievers and even light amounts of alcohol can more than double the risk of kidney disease according to new research. Taking the recommended dose of acetaminophen, combined with a small to moderate amount of alcohol, produces a 123 percent increased risk of kidney disease according preliminary studies. There appears to be a harmful interaction between the drug and alcohol even in small amounts.

      Chronic acetaminophen use and chronic alcohol abuse both have been separately linked to kidney and liver disease, said Dr. Martin Zand, medical director of the kidney and pancreas transplant programs at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York, so combining the two can be very dangerous.

      What has not been well-studied until now is the link between some regular alcohol use and regular acetaminophen use and increasing your risk of kidney disease above the risk of either if they are used separately. It should be pointed out that a study conducted by the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that neither normal use of acetaminophen nor light to moderate drinking posed a potential threat to kidneys.

     Alcohol can interfere with the gene that regulates the way the body processes acetaminophen. So, to be safe people who regularly use one should not use the other. That begs the question, what about taking acetaminophen for a hangover? The conclusion was that if you are not a regular drinker, it would seem to be OK to take some acetaminophen.

      Over the counter drugs are dangerous to take with alcohol because it is possible that alcohol interaction may decrease the effectiveness or render them useless. In other cases, alcohol interactions may make drugs harmful or even toxic to the body. Even in small amounts, alcohol also may intensify medication side effects. 

     It's also important to remember that herbal remedies are not immune from the same warnings. Manufacturers of herbal products are not required to submit proof of safety and effectiveness to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration before marketing, so the adverse effects and drug interactions associated with herbal remedies are largely unknown.

      Ginkgo biloba extract has been reported to cause spontaneous bleeding and it may interact with anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs. St. John's Wort may may cause increased levels of serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine and although it probably does not interact with foods that contain tyramine, it should not be used with prescription antidepressants.

      Ephedrine-containing herbal products have been associated with adverse cardiovascular events, seizures and even death. Ginseng, widely used for its purported physical and mental effects, is generally well tolerated, but it has been implicated as a cause of decreased response to Warfarin.

      Herbal products therefore cannot be marketed for the diagnosis, treatment, cure or prevention of disease. However, these products can legally be labeled with claims about their purported effects. Also, herbal products are not regulated for purity and potency and some of the adverse effects and drug interactions reported for herbal products could be caused by impurities, batch variations, etc.

      When alcohol use is combined with some medications, it may magnify problems, especially in older adults.  Hundreds of commonly used prescription and over-the-counter drugs may adversely interact with alcohol. A list can be found HERE.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcohol Addiction offers a pamphlet on mixing alcohol with medications HERE.

While on the subject of drug interactions, did you know that many foods and supplements can interfere with blood pressure medicine? This article from the American Heart Association may surprise you.

 

The Man Behind the Shoe

      Why are Chuck Taylor athletic shoes so expensive? When I was a kid they were some of the cheapest “basketball shoes” you could get and probably cost $15 or so in today's dollars.   It appears Converse even has a no-discount policy on them these days and despite the price which is in reality cheap compared to other"athletic" shoes, people will still pay an inflated price for them. When I was a kid, you didn't demand certain shoes...you wore what your parents bought and when it came to basketball shoes as they were called, parents knew they were going to take a beating during the summer months and you'd outgrow them soon, so you got cheap Chuck Taylor's...no arguments. Some unfortunate kids with ragged clothes and hair touching their ears because they couldn't get bi-weekly haircuts actually had to wear them, along with blue jeans, during the winter.

      A hundred years ago Converse Rubber Company of Massachusetts created an athletic shoe with a canvas upper, a thick rubber sole, simple laces and a rubber toe cap called the All Star and nearly 800 million pairs later, this cheap shoe poor kids wore is still one of the most popular shoes on the market.
      But the shoe wasn't an instant success. Sales were slow until Converse signed Chuck Taylor to the first shoe endorsement deal. Taylor, a former basketball star who played for such teams as the Original Celtics and the Akron Firestones, was recruited to represent and sell the new shoe, travel the country and promote the game of basketball.

      Taylor suggested some design modifications, which were implemented in the early 1920s and sales took off and Converse rewarded Taylor by adding his signature to the shoe's trademark star patch. The overall design has remained virtually unchanged .

"Chucks," eventually disappeared from the basketball court, but during World War II they were issued to soldiers (National Stock Number 8430-00-257-3759) and they remain popular even today. 

TheHistory of the Converse All Star "Chuck Taylor" BasketballShoe 

20 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Converse All Stars

Chuck's biography 
1950's History - information, notes, pinups, etc. Fun site!

Adobe Flash Warning

     Adobe Flash is used for creating graphics, animation, browser games, Internet applications, desktop applications, mobile applications and mobile games. Flash displays text, vector and raster graphics to provide animations, video games and applications. It allows streaming of audio and video, and can capture mouse, keyboard, microphone and camera input. Similar was Microsoft's Silverlight which ended its run in 2012. Adobe Flash came into being in 1996 and quickly became the standard but now it’s largely obsolete because most Web sites and apps use different technologies to accomplish the same thing.
     Back in July Google and Mozilla each announced that their Web browsers would be dropping default support for Adobe Flash because of Flash's newly discovered vulnerabilities to cyber-attacks. A few days earlier Facebook’s chief of security called for Adobe to set an “end of life” date for the same reason. 
     The odds are pretty high that Adobe Flash is on your computer right now and that means there is a possibility that your system and personal information at risk. As a result some are suggesting that delete it. 
     What made Flash so popular is its ability to run complex scripts from websites, but on the downside it can also be used for malicious purposes. Scripts written in Flash can access the computer's memory on your computer, which is just inviting attacks. Anytime a site is able to access your computer’s memory, it’s able to make changes. That makes it a popular platform for cyber-crooks (and it has also been pointed out just in case you don't trust them, spying governments) and it not unusual for security alerts and fixes to be put out by Adobe by the dozens. That government thing? There is an Italian company, Hacking Team,using unknown flaws in Flash to create spyware that it sold to oppressive governments in various companies. One group of hackers having association with the Russian government has been known to use a flaw that allowed them to hack into the foreign affairs ministries of different countries. 
     Also, Flash is a computer resource hog that can bog systems down. Steve Jobs wrote in an Apple Blog back in 2010 that they were aware that Flash is the number one reason Macs crash. In October 2010, Apple announced that it would no longer install Flash Player on its computers — including its Safari Web browser — although users could install it on their own if they wanted to. 
     If you are using a Windows PC, rely on an older browser, or were prompted by a Web site to install it, it's probably on your machine. 
     Adobe is trying to fix the issues on its Flash Player, but it appears to be a lost cause. Beside that, the Adobe Flash Player is currently one of the most unsecure applications around, hackers will keep searching for security loops and exploit them.
     Flash Player Security Update Available - For everyone enrolled in their auto update system (highly recommended – of course), you’ll be automatically and silently updated within 24 hours. For more details on this release, read their security bulletin and release notes. To download the updated version visit their page HERE. NOTE WELL: If you are already running an updated anti-virus program, make sure you uncheck the box “Optional Offer” box so you do not also download the McAffe anti-virus program, too. 

• Not sure if adobe Flash is on your computer? Go to their site HERE and run the check. 
• Which program can you use to replace Adobe Flash Player for a new and more secure program? Answer: There is not really a Flash player replacement if you use Windows. 
• A site called Transition Blog lists some alternative, but there's no guarantee they will work. For Ubuntu users, there is a discussion HERE.

Recuva – a Free File Recovery Program

   

   This program is a handy and user-friendly file recovery program in case you accidently delete a file. It not only can recover files from computers but also USB drives, MP3 players and memory cards from cameras.

      Select the type of file you want to recover (photos, emails, videos, etc.) and where it's likely to be (recycle bin, on a media card, etc.), run Recuva and when it's done you'll see a list of files that can be recovered. Select the one you want and that's it. Just remember, sometimes scans can be slow and results are NOT guaranteed.

      A couple of reviewers I read complained because it didn't work...and it won't all the time, especially if the file has been deleted for a while. But, the sooner you perform the recovery operation, the greater the chance of success. That's because every time you write to the hard drive, you lower the likelihood of a successful recovery. So when you realize you just deleted something by mistake, the best thing to do is use the computer as little as possible until the files are recovered.

      A good article to read appeared in PC World titled How to Recover (Almost) Anything. Just remember that even if you follow all the steps in the article, there are no guarantees.

Downloadfrom Softonic

A Rant About Facebook

     In the last several days I have seen so much fake stuff being shared on Facebook, I can hardly believe it. Photoshopped pictures, hoaxes, fake news stories, sincere Christians posting that God wants to bless me and if share a post, in a week I will come into money (God does NOT work that way), etc. 
     People post pictures of their dinner. What they don't realize is that very often food does not photograph well (that's why there exists people who make their living photographing food for commercials). What we often see is something that looks like dog puke and you want to ask if they really ate that. 
     Also, selfies. Most of the time they aren't flattering and the other day I saw two that were rather amusing. One taken in a public bathroom with urinals in the background and one with the lady's bras hanging on a door in the background. Apparently I have friends who, judging from the backgrounds in their selfies, haven't picked up anything in their house for six months. 
     There's no end to the nonsense photos and stories people re-post. What makes them believe all this crap?! 
     Consumer Reports surveyed over 1,300 households that use Facebook and produced a report on how Americans are using Facebook. What did they find? 
     Some people are sharing too much. People often say where they planned to go or posted photos from their vacation while they were actually there. Nice to know if you are a burglar. Some people have posted stuff that their employers have found out about and it's gotten them fired and some post stuff that isn't anybody's business. In reality those are probably far-fetched possibilities, but still... 
     A while back I followed a Facebook fight between a father and son over the son's girlfriend. But they aren't alone. I've seen numerous family feuds aired on Facebook. One young person even posted about an incident where her father stopped the car on a city street and peed in the gutter. I didn't need to know that. Some people go public about their health problems, too. 
     Research shows it’s easy to get people to believe fake news when it supports something they already believe. That's why I see so many posts and photos about social issues, political issues and politicians that are clearly fake. All you need is a picture that reinforces some fear, bias, presupposition, question, concern or conspiracy then just make up a story. Simple. 
     Like a recent picture I saw of a politician with an outrageous quote attached to it. I easily located the source...a person who is apparently disgruntled about a ton of things and put the picture and quote on their Facebook page. No source, nothing. Careful Googling the quote and looking for the source revealed nothing. It was made up. 

    Research shows that people who prefer alternative news sources are especially susceptible to fake news stories. Researchers at Northeastern University’s Laboratory for the Modeling of Biological and Socio-Technical Systems released a study that tries to explain why some people readily believe fake news. 
     Mostly they are people who mistrust the media (really, who does trust them completely?!) and people who put stock into a conspiracy theory. The research found that on Facebook at least there is a strong connection between believers of fake news and those who frequented political activism pages and alternative news sources. 
     The study concluded that the more fake news appears online, the greater the bias people have towards believing what they want to think is true. I also read a psychological study that showed that with some people facts that disprove a story will many times only serve to strengthen their belief that the fake story is really true! If they believe the earth is flat, all the pictures in the world of a round earth won't convince them because in their minds, the round earth pictures are fake. How's that for a startling find by psychologists?! What that report told me was that when you see a friend posting something that's obviously (to you) fake, there is little point in trying to correct the situation...they won't believe you.

A site with a lot of helpful Facebook information is That's Nonsense.

Hemorrhoids

Don't write them. Today, it's a vacant lot.

     Hemorrhoids, also called piles, are swollen and inflamed veins in the anus and lower rectum. Hemorrhoids may result from straining during bowel movements or from the increased pressure on these veins during pregnancy, among other causes. 
     Hemorrhoids may be located inside the rectum (internal hemorrhoids), or they may develop under the skin around the anus (external hemorrhoids). They are common and by age 50 about half of adults have to deal with the itching, discomfort and bleeding that can signal the presence of hemorrhoids. Fortunately, many effective options are available to treat hemorrhoids. Most people can get relief from symptoms by using home treatments and making lifestyle changes. 
     When I was aboard a US Navy ship in the mid-1960's, while crossing the Atlantic we were placed on “water rations.” In order to conserve fresh water shower use was forbidden and in order to make sure nobody took a shower, the ship's Master at Arms came around with a wrench and took the handles off all the showers then he would make frequent inspections just to make sure they hadn't been tampered with. I was assigned duty in the ship's sickbay working on medical records and in one of the sickbay's compartments there was a shower from which the handles had been removed and… there was also a Sitz Bath. When he removed the shower handles, the Master at Arms had no idea what the Sitz bath was. So, every night all the hospital corpsman would grab a towel and bar of soap and announce they were going to soak their hemorrhoids. The Master at Arms came through one day and was loudly asking where were we all taking showers. After being told nobody in sickbay was taking a showers, he called us all liars and he KNEW we were showering because nobody in sickbay stunk and we all smelled of aftershave. He announced, “I'm gonna find that (expletive deleted) shower and I'm placing all you (expletive deleted) on report!” After a half hour of diligent searching, he could find no shower that had been in use and gave up.

Relief: 
1. Fill Up on Fiber Hemorrhoids are more likely to occur in people who have infrequent bowel movements. One of the easiest, most natural ways to become more regular is by filling up on fiber either through your diet or supplements. Aim to get 25 to 30 grams of fiber per day. Great food sources of fiber include: Legumes, such as split peas, lentils, black beans, Lima beans, and baked beans Whole grains, such as barley, bran flakes, oatmeal, and brown rice Vegetables, such as artichoke, green peas, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts Fruits, such as raspberries, pears, apples, and bananas 
2. Drink Water This hemorrhoid prevention strategy is simple and cheap. Adequate hydration from water is the key to having healthy bowel movements. Drinking six to eight glasses of water each day doesn't just keep your digestive system running smoothly, it benefits your entire body. 
3. Get Exercise Exercise helps keep the colon more regular and engaging in activities that increase abdominal pressure and/or straining (such as weightlifting) can lead to the formation of hemorrhoids. Activity reduces time spent sitting and putting pressure on the veins in your lower rectum. 
4. Be Careful Using Laxatives When you’re constipated, some fiber supplements, particularly psyllium capsules, have a track record of helping get you more regular, which can prevent painful hemorrhoids. The safest laxatives are those that work with your body rather than those that stimulate or simulate normal physiological activities. Some laxatives work by stimulating intestinal contraction to move the contents along and might increase hemorrhoid pressure. 
5. Don’t Fight the Urge When you have to go, go. This is one of the simplest ways to prevent hemorrhoids! 
6. Avoid Straining Straining and putting more pressure on the veins in your rectum is one of the most common causes of painful or bleeding hemorrhoids. Other situations can cause straining too, such as lifting heavy objects, a chronic cough, or even pregnancy. 

Hemorrhoid Prevention at Web MD 
25 Amazingly Fun And Gross Facts You Never Knew About Your Butt