ODD CON

Archive for the ‘Miscellaneous’ Category

Diets are extremely varied throughout the world but one thing that is becoming more common is the lack of variety within the diets of the first world nations. With many people turning to prepackaged foods as well as many other processed foods, white flour, sugar, sodium, and fat have become staples, eliminating or at least drastically cutting the amount of multi-colored vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains from their diets. What fruits, vegetables, and meats that are being eaten are genetically modified and hormonally injected. Modern food is not the same today as it was many years ago. Even a common apple is much larger, and more “perfect looking” than a predecessor from 40 years ago, but many people will tell you that the modern apple probably has half the flavor as well. As such, many vital nutrients are lacking from the modern diet.

With malnourishment being an issue, especially among people who are anything but undernourished, changes are appropriate. There are plenty of ways to increase the nutrients you intake. Drastic, major changes are not the only way to supplement your diet either. Baby steps are easy ways to incorporate change without feeling like you have turned your world upside down. You may find that you won’t only enjoy some of the changes, but you will feel infinitely better physically, emotionally, and mentally as well.

Vitamins are a great place to start. A daily multivitamin can fill in a lot of nutritional holes right away. It is easy to pop one pill in the morning with your breakfast and feel the boost right away. The more nutrients in your breakfast, the better your vitamin will be absorbed as the nutrients will “piggyback” their way into your system.

Juicing is another painless way to start packing more nutrients into your system. High quality juicers can be found online and in stores starting in the one hundred dollar range. Fresh juice is not only delicious, but you will feel the pep immediately. If you don’t want to buy a juicer, many grocery stores and juice counters have great options available too.

Listening to modern trends is natural, but what about considering the different thoughts of the past? Is there any credence to combining what different forms of “common sense” were and are? Being a larger woman was considered beautiful by many cultures but as Europe evolved, possessing an hour glass figure was considered more and more attractive and desirable. From China to the Pacific Islands to Europe, “Rubenesque” (or full figured women) represented fertility and an abundance of resources. Women who were fuller figured were most often the wives or consorts of the most powerful and wealthy men, which meant that they were representations of never having to go without.

Today, being slender represents abundance and beauty throughout most of the modern world. In some parts of the world like Africa and with many different tribes of native islanders, being fuller figured is still what is considered physically desirable in a woman. As most health professionals prescribe, gaining a bit of weight is healthy for a woman who is pregnant or who is nursing.

Today’s standards and the extreme route that are taken to be or appear slim despite natural circumstances have a debilitating mental and emotional effect on women who are doing what is naturally healthy. With modern fads are aligning with being of a lesser weight, there have been many other methods that have sprung up in the last century and particularly the last few years in the quest of thinness. From no fat (totally lean proteins and free reign on carbs) to low carbs (fats being fine, just no sugars or starches no matter how natural), what’s a person to do with today’s advice? Common sense dictates that one should eat a diet with a good balance of healthy fats, proteins, and carbohydrates and include vegetables as a major dietary contributor. Having a plate full of food that is as unprocessed as possible is a good indicator of its health. Many colors in the contents (unprocessed of course) is also a good meter. Fads come and go but being balanced will keep you running happily for years.

If you’ve been trying to shed a few pounds, you may feel like you’ve hit a brick wall. Everyone knows that what you eat and how active you are can have a huge impact, but there are other factors in play as well. One can feel very lost when trying to find a balance and type of diet that feels appropriate. Perhaps the knowledge of what is in your personal best interest, lies within you.

Some people eat chicken wings with bleu cheese dressing and celery sticks and drop loads of weight (as long as they avoid the carbs). But as soon as they find their ideal weight, they balloon back up to their original weight or even higher. Some people monitor every calorie and keep it under a certain number, regardless of the actual food they eat, and have the pounds shed themselves that way. Others seem to eat what they want when they want to, and the pounds either come off or they maintain their weight. Those are just a few of the current standards and it is not even accounting for vegetarian and vegan diets, organic diets, macrobiotic diets, and the like. Even researching a single, supposedly healthy ingredient online will pull up many different studies that completely contradict one another. Looking around at people you know who have successfully taken some weight off can be confusing as well, as their diet plans will seem contradictory too. What is a person do to?

More people are beginning to experiment with getting more in tune with their bodies. Many are finding great success in looking and feeling the way they want to while not experiencing such struggle and emotional turmoil. What if you body is craving an item because it contains chemicals, nutrients, minerals, or complexes that your body needs to run its best? It’s easy to assume that our scientific and medical community has reached its highest pinnacle possible, but when in centuries past when demons were held responsible for physical ailments, the same was thought then. Perhaps we can’t prove scientifically what our bodies innately understand.

There are several crazy diet fads out there, but there are also some tips that celebrities and every day people have come up with to help them get through their day. Healthy diets are important, but everyone can use extra help sometimes. Here are a few diet and exercise “cheats” that can give you an upper edge without going to extremes.

When do you feel most energetic? When does your energy drop? Do you take a coffee break at 3pm only to crash at 4pm? Perhaps you need to tweak your rhythm. Eat healthy, full meals that appeal to you. You need to be comfortably full and satiated, but not stuffed. You will move more throughout your day and your mood will be higher.

If you have a craving for sugar or are just munchy without being actually hungry, try chewing some gum if appropriate. If you have an office or private working space, bubble gum is even better. Choose a sugarless variety that is beneficial for your teeth. People who chew gum actually get higher test scores as it sharpens your mental faculties. The burst of sweetness, the fun and pep of blowing some bubbles, and the sharpness of mind will give you a pick up. If you are attending a setting where there is a lot of food being served and you don’t want to overeat, eat what you have decided to eat, and then discreetly pop a piece of chewing gum. Having the gum in your mouth will help you from inadvertently grazing and the taste sensation will help you feel like you aren’t being deprived. It will also freshen your breath, clean your teeth, improve your digestion, and burn more calories!

For your afternoon slump, pack some almonds and a banana. You will get a great energy burst from the banana’s B vitamins and natural sugars without a candy bar’s crash. If you can, take a brisk walk or do some jumping jacks. With oxygen in your system, you will be alert and alive. You could even take a quick dancing break to bring back your mojo!

Millions of Americans rely on prescription drugs to keep their bodies healthy and well. The cost of prescription medications has gone through the roof lately, and many suspect it will continue to climb. Some manufacturers have raised medication costs to offset lost income due to the recession. While it seems a vicious cycle, there is light at the end of the tunnel. By following a few pointers, you can get the prescriptions you need for free or for a much lower price.

At your next doctor’s visit, ask for free samples of your current and any new medications. When your doctor writes a prescription, ask him to allow for a generic medication in place of a name-brand one. Often times, generic products will cost you considerably less and work just as well. Some physicians and clinics have financial assistance programs to help you obtain the medications you need.

Many drug manufacturers offer programs to help patients who were laid off or who don’t have medical insurance with free prescriptions for up to a year. Pfizer offers some of its most commonly prescribed medications like Lipitor, Lyrica, Viagra, and Celebrex on its program. You must apply for the programs, and the company may ask for proof of employment termination, insurance availability, or income, dependent upon which business you work with. Manufacturer programs don’t usually apply to new prescriptions and are no longer in effect if you start getting health insurance coverage.

Some retailers offer a large amount of generic drugs for a very low amount. You can find prescriptions as low as $4. Check with your local pharmacies, even locally-owned, smaller pharmacies, as they may be competing with national retail programs, reducing the cost of some medications. When you do a little extra work, you can get the medications you need without breaking the bank.

When you are getting mortgage rate quotes, one of the biggest things that will factor into the quote you get is your credit score. It doesn’t matter to banks if you are an honest hard working person. In today’s world that isn’t enough. Your credit report has to be good.

If you currently struggle with bad credit, know that you are not alone. Millions of people struggle with bad credit. Poor credit can affect your ability to purchase a home. If you need to clear up your credit quickly, there are ways to do it.

First thing you need to do is track down your credit report. This can be done through a variety of ways online. There you can see what is being reported about your credit. One of the things people don’t always realize is that there is often false information on your report. It happens a lot and people don’t do what is necessary to clear it up.

If you find that there is false information on your report, then what you need to do is write a letter to whichever of the three major credit bureaus is reporting the false information. Write the letter and include a copy of your drivers license and your social security card so they can verify your identity.

The credit bureaus will contact the places reporting the false information and those companies will have 30 days from that time to prove that the information is correct. If they cannot, it will be taken off your record.

Understand that this process is not an overnight fix. It could take a few months for it to be cleared from your record, but the result of that will be a credit report you can feel good about when heading to purchase a new home.

Today, the price of silver plays is integral to Judaic law. The lowest amount that can be tried at Beth din – Jewish court – is 1/8 of a gram of silver at market price. However, silver has had a long and entwined history with Jewish culture that reaches far beyond measure.

A Pre-Historical Tradition

Many artifacts, such as utensils, ornaments and even clothing are found to have contained silver. During pre-historical times, jewelry was also predominantly made from silver goods. Religious artifacts at the time were generally made out of silver because of its malleable quality and its relative durability. Accordingly, silversmithing was a boon industry at the time.

The Middle to Dark Ages: Craftsmanship Spreads Across the Continent

During the 5th Century, Jewish slaves were brought to Europe, bringing with them their expertise as silversmiths. In fact, Jewish silversmiths are recorded to have been the original minters of currency during the 6th Century. During the Middle Ages, Jewish culture expanded their traditions out east toward Poland. During these times, Jewish silversmiths were revered. However, as the Dark Ages followed, so did oppressive laws. Jewish silversmiths were forbidden through much of these times. Despite these laws, it has been found that because the quality of Jewish made silver was so high, many of them continue to work in secret. In fact, historians have found that the Catholic Church, responsible for some of these laws itself, hired Jewish silversmiths throughout that era for their own religious artifacts.

These oppressive laws continued into the Seventeenth Century. Despite the Church using Jewish silversmiths, non-Jews constructed the majority of Jewish religious artifacts. Accordingly, many of those artifacts from that era contain mistakes in their Hebrew inscriptions. Thankfully, these laws have been long abolished today. Silversmiths continue to make Kiddush cups, Hanukkah lamps and other traditional objects out of silver; however, today, the inscriptions are accurate and legible.