Both Sides Now: Nerds!

Firstly, here's the song "Both Sides Now" sung by Judy Collins in 1967.


"I've looked at x from both sides now, from up and down and still somehow, it's x's illusions I recall. I really don't know x at all."

Basically, anything can be looked at in a positive or negative way. Which brings me to the subject of nerds. Please note: The following may be a little tongue-in-cheek.

I'm a nerd. Did you notice?

Nerds: The good
1) We're single-minded & very focused. If you want something to work, get a nerd to do it. Just about every gizmo on this planet was invented, designed or developed by nerds.

2) We don't crave a partner's attention. We're not really people-people. Gizmos, on the other hand.....

3) Errrm.....

Nerds: The not-so-good
1) We're single-minded & very focused. If you want more than one thing done at a time, don't get a nerd to do it. A nerd trying to multi-task can result in unintentional hilarity. Do not talk to us when we're concentrating on something!

2) We can be socially inept. Body language=Double-Dutch. If I button-hole you in a fascinating (to me) conversation, I won't notice any of your subtle signs that you want to escape. The best way to interrupt a nerd is to hold up your index finger and say "Interrupt Request". If you're lucky, the nerd will say "Interrupt Request Acknowledged" and allow you to get a word in. This of course doesn't work for telephone conversations. Shouting "Stop talking while I'm interrupting you!" very loudly is the only option. We also "teach granny how to suck eggs" by stating the bleedin' obvious - just in case you didn't get it the first time.

3) We can be a bit obsessive. From Duty Calls:-


Finally, if you think that I'm really nerdy, see "The big bang theory" on YouTube. :-D

Positive Feedback: How a tiny push can make all the difference.

As an ex-Electronic Engineer, I'm very familiar with the effects of Positive Feedback in electronic circuits. The Schmitt trigger is a classic example of a slowly-changing input resulting in a suddenly-changing output.


While I was chatting to another visitor in mum's nursing home yesterday, I had a "Eureka!" moment. I was talking to her about my sudden mood changes when the bleedin' obvious suddenly occurred to me.

When my mood starts to fall, I start doing less. This lowers my mood further. This forms a vicious circle and my mood suddenly falls to a low value and stays there, with me lying in bed/on the sofa feeling like crap and not blogging.

When my mood starts to rise, I start doing more. This raises my mood further. This forms a virtuous circle and my mood suddenly rises to a high value and stays there, with me walking, scrumping, photographing, Zumba-ing and blogging all about it.

So, do something that you think you can't do. You'll feel better for it!

F.A.O. anyone who links to my blog: The title has changed. It's now:-

Nige's Diet & Nutrition Blog
Diet, Nutrition & Fitness Information + Random stuff.

Please update your links. Thanks.

It's Party time again!

The title is named after George Van Dusen's jolly little number.


I got an invitation to a party at mum's care home today.


Jenny Wood, mayor of Henley visited again.


Mum's hair was a little dishevelled due to her putting a cloth napkin on her head earlier, when there was a cold draught coming through a nearby window.

I was suited and booted with a dicky bow and got too hot. In retrospect, doing Zumba the night before wasn't a good idea!

During the high tea, I fed mum on strawberries & cream. She stayed wide awake and alert throughout the do. The lady to my left was overweight & type 2 diabetic but was fed sandwiches & cakes(!) Suffice it to say that she went into a hyperinsulinaemic sleep and was almost completely uncommunicative when her nephew & niece arrived.

I was bit naughty food-wise and I also had a glass of Champagne which went straight to my head, making me quite merry. I went for a walk to the local Car Service Workshop to clear my head and pay the bill for the repair of mum's car (it needed a new distributor and timing belt as the distributor was knackered and the old timing belt was nearly 13 years old).

For "supper", I gave mum a chopped banana with cream. She was not only wide awake, but talking and making some sense! I started to flag a bit and a lady told me that I looked tired and should go home, so I did. I kept myself alert during the 45 minute drive home by blasting myself with freezing air and playing "Duke" by Genesis at high volume with the window down!

Move More: You are NOT going to believe this!

At 7:30pm tonight, I walked to the place below. It's in the same building as the Co-op.


I did a 45 minute Zumba session. I was the only man in the room! My pulse rate went over 100% MHR but I seem to have survived.

Before 11th December 2010 and Uh-oh! There may be trouble ahead..., if someone had suggested to me that I try Zumba, I would have told them to not be so daft. During the walk home, I phoned my ex-G/F to tell her what I'd just done, as she's very into keep-fit. My, how she laughed!

Here's a Video ad.

Variety is the spice of life.

In Half a breakfast, I couldn't finish my breakfast and it looked a bit yuk. Today, I microwaved a rasher of middle bacon, 2 sausages and 2 eggs (Full English) with Tesco Market Value Stir Fry vegetables (a colourful mix of vegetables with seasoning, 750g for £1) and a sprinkle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) on top. It looked like this.


I ate the lot!

Here's a Full English with sliced mixed peppers, a sprinkle of Losalt & EVOO on top.


Here's a Full English with sliced mushrooms, a sprinkle of Losalt & EVOO on top.


Here's a Full English with finely-chopped onions, a sprinkle of Losalt & EVOO on top.


Delish!

Chaenomeles japonica - flowering - quince, Japanese - quince (H)

This morning, while on my constitutional, I saw a bush in someone's front garden with some fruit on it and thought "I'll have one of those!" This is what the bush looked like.


When I got home, I took some photos. I nicked another Crabapple for comparison.


I then cut the fruits open.


Quinces are very sour, but the frosts had sweetened it somewhat so it was edible raw. A checkout lady at the Co-op told me that it was a Japonica Quince later in the day.

Polite Requests.

I delivered a large wad (0.25"/6mm thick) of studies with a covering letter to my mum's new GP on Monday 17th Jan 2011. Here's what I wrote in the covering letter:- Personal information deleted.

"Dear Sir/Madam,

I have some requests concerning Mrs *****.

1) Please monitor Mrs *****’s serum B12 & homocysteine. Until Jan 31st 2010, Mrs ***** was receiving 1,000ug/day methyl B12. This was stopped by the management of Lashbrook House after I complained too much. Long-term use of PPIs in old people can adversely affect B12 absorption (evidence attached).

2) Please advise the staff at Acacia Lodge to walk Mrs ***** using the 3-wheeled rollator that I bought for her as often as she is able. Prolonged inactivity results in Insulin Resistance (IR) in skeletal muscle (evidence attached). IR results in hyperinsulinaemia on eating sugars & starches. Hyperinsulinaemia results in drowsiness and stupor (which makes it more difficult for Mrs ***** to do anything).

3) Please advise the staff at Acacia Lodge to reduce Mrs *****’s intake of sugars & starches. A low-carbohydrate/ketogenic diet is beneficial for people with impaired cognitive function (evidence attached). I have recently persuaded Acacia Lodge to give Mrs ***** cooked breakfasts and have supplied Acacia Lodge with Burgen Soya & Linseed bread (12g carbs/slice). This has resulted in improved cognitive function in the mornings.

I don’t want to impair Mrs *****’s quality of life, so she can still have chips or mashed potato (not both in the same meal as happened on Fri 10th Jan, after which I found Mrs ***** asleep in her wheelchair slumped over with her nose squashed against the arm of the chair). She can also have desserts and the occasional chocolate and/or biscuit.

4) Please allow Mrs ***** to have 5,000iu/day Vitamin D3 (provided by me), as UVB cannot penetrate window glass. 5,000iu/day is much greater than the RDA of 600iu/day but it’s a safe amount (evidence attached). That amount of Vitamin D3 has many beneficial effects (rather a lot of evidence attached!) other than bone health (for which 600iu/day is sufficient).

Thank you,

Nigel Kinbrum (son & attorney)
01252 ****** (24-hr Ansafone)
07768 ******"

The GP phoned me on Friday 21st Jan. He's taking my requests seriously and has asked for a week to read all of the evidence that I provided. Here's hoping!