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bunrabThe weather is actually pretty hot today in Catonsville, MD: it's 88 degrees there, 92 here, about the same humidity. The difference: here, the 10-day forecast says it will be getting hotter every day this week, and overnight lows will be in the 70's. There, it will be getting cooler, down to 80 degrees by Thursday and overnight lows in the 60's even after today's high.
House whining: no one whatsoever came to see the house this past weekend. C'mon people, this is a great house.
Today's chores: picked up medical and dental records. Need to: find candelabra/regular light bulb adapter, for kitchen; get cardiologist's NOTARIZED signature on forms for ERS, pack stuff, clean cages, bring stuff to Quilt Guild meeting, pack stuff, mop floors, pay a few more bills, pack stuff.
Reprinting more old entries from my CHF blog on another site, probably of interest to only a rare few people:
7/8/2003
Well, I spent an exciting afternoon at the Texas Textbook Hearings. The TEA is considering adopting new biology textbooks this year, and there are many people who want all textbooks to "present evidence against evolution" and to include "alternative theories" such as so-called Intelligent Design. What, you may ask, does that have to do with heart failure? Well, although I don't have word-for-word of my testimony, here's roughly what I said:
"Hi, I'm _____ ______ and I teach at St. Edward's University. You've already heard from many of my academic colleagues, so I'm not going to repeat their testimony. Instead, I'm going to speak about why I have a very, very personal interest in making sure that Texas science teaching doesn't get weakened by watering down evolution or including intelligent design in biology textbooks. I have congestive heart failure. I just got a pacemaker a few weeks ago. The latest research on heart failure is being done on zebrafish, because they can regenerate damaged heart muscle, and this research is propelled by a full understanding of evolutionary biology. As far as I have been able to find out, intelligent design theorists and the Discovery Institute have contributed nothing to medical research, not even any testable hypotheses which could be the basis for future medical research. If Texas high school students are taught only the "weaknesses" of evolution, and/or are taught intelligent design, they are going to be at a severe disadvantage in getting admitted to medical schools. In fact, they'll be at a disadvantage in getting admitted to veterinary programs or even two-year college programs for medical lab technicians. I need good doctors. So if any of you are considering demanding that intelligent design be added to Texas textbooks, I want to ask you to ask yourself a very personal question: 'Am I contributing to medical research, or am I contributing to ______'s early death?' Thank you."
P.S. Today's recipe:
Roasted Steak Fries.
Buy one large baking potato per person. Scrub them. Peeling is optional, according to your taste.
Slice each potato into 8 wedges lengthwise.
Pour a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil (the kind with the good fats in it please!) onto a baking sheet. Rub all sides of each potato wedge in the oil, and lay them out on the cookie sheet. Now sprinkle a spoonful - somewhere between a teaspon and a tablespoon - of your favorite no-salt seasoning mix over each set of wedges. Some ideas: any Mrs. Dash's seasoning; Chef Paul's Cajun Seasoning, no-salt version; "Italian Seasoning" which is usually a blend of thyme, oregano, basil, and other spices; even liquid garlic steak sauce without salt. Bake the wedges on the cookie sheet in a 350° oven until they are fork-tender, anywhere from 30 to 50 minutes depending on how big the original potatoes were and how large the wedges are.
Other places to order the Mr. Spice salt-free, fat-free, garlic steak sauce- and other terrific salt-free stir-fry sauces and meat marinades - include:
Peppers.com
Hot Shoppe
Healthy Heart Market
7/11/2003
I'm not feeling very creative today (or rather, yesterday; I haven't gone to bed yet, but it's really tomorrow already). My spousal unit has been sick the last few days, and it's been a bit wearing on me, too. Friday I don't have to work, but I do have to go to school to help a student out this afternoon, and then I have to go by Austin Heart to have them change the programming on my pacemaker a bit.
I got the pacemaker put in 4 weeks ago today. There's still this big lump there - even when the last of the swelling goes away, there will be a bulge; it's not going to sink beneath the skin. Right now, it's part scar and part scab; I am not allowed to go swimming until it's all scar, no scab.
These days, getting an ICD/pacemaker put in is outpatient surgery. I wound up staying overnight, though, because they finished later in the day than expected. That was because this particular kind of pacemaker has three leads, instead of two, and they couldn't get the third one in. My veins were too "tortuous" to quote my doctor. So I don't have the advantage of bi-ventricular pacing they had hoped to get with this particular unit. It still does plenty for me, but not as much as we had hoped. If I get worse later on, they can go in through a different kind of incision, a keyhole incision in my chest rather than the one below the collarbone, and get the third lead in that way. That kind of surgery, although still not as drastic as open-heart, still requires several days in the hospital, so the doc says let's put it off until you really, really need it.
So, in lieu of anything more interesting, here's a meatloaf recipe. Not only is it low in sodium, but it's higher than most in potassium, because of the "secret ingredient." I guarantee that when you serve this meatloaf, no one will guess that there is a banana in it; it just tastes like a nice, moist meat loaf.
Banana Meatloaf
1&1/2 to 2 lbs of extra lean ground beef (95/5 or 96/4)
1 cup bread crumbs, low-sodium variety
1 egg, beaten to even consistency
1 banana, average ripeness, mashed
1 small onion, chopped into small pieces
1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning (or any mixture of spices you like in your meatloaf- some people like a teaspoon of chili powder, some like a teaspoon of curry powder...)
You can add a teaspoon of minced garlic if you'd like.
Mix everything together in a bowl, thoroughly. Place in non-stick loaf pan and bake in 350 degree oven for 60 to 70 minutes; check with fork to see if inside is cooked, and if you still see pink, cook another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before trying to slice. Serves 4 to 6, with a slice left over for a sandwich the next day.
Got the pacemaker adjusted; I don't feel any different. I could bore you stiff with the settings AIR-R vs. DDD-R vs. just DDD but that would be more than anyone would want to know. I also got my permanent plastic pacemaker ID card to carry in my wallet at all times, replacing the temporary pasteboard one. Yeehah. I had already ordered, and received, several different forms of medical alert jewelry to wear. What I find most convenient is this small lightweight charm which can be hung on a chain around the neck, attached to a watch band, or for that matter hung from a hoop earring. It is very, very lightweight. Cheap, too.
What should be on your medical alert ID? That you have an implanted defibrillator and/or pacemaker; what cardiac meds you take (and for some of them, the dosage - while there's a wide safe range of how much Diovan or Lasix one can take, and Coreg only has 2 strengths, based on total weight, digoxin has a vary narrow range and switching dosages and even just switching brands can be harmful. So emergency personnel need to know that sort of thing.); any other meds you take that aren't optional. That is, while seasonal allergy medications are optional- you'll still live without them - you wouldn't want to suddenly have your thyroid medication or your diabetes medication or your anti-depressants discontinued without notice, so list them. List, of course, any allergies to medical products, and any really bad food allergies, as well (penicillin, peanut butter... I suspect you don't have to worry about allergies to shellfish though; I really doubt they're gonna feed you shellfish in a hospital :-)
Many people get medical alert bracelets, but I find them too large and heavy, particularly in the Texas heat, and bracelets in particular tend to be not a good thing to wear when one rides a motorcycle. Probably a heavy metal bracelet also wouldn't be a good idea for anybody who works with machinery all day, or for that matter at a computer keyboard all day. So I prefer the necklace. I did get a waterproof bracelet, though, to wear when I go swimming - the "charm" is not waterproof, really, and most silver necklaces don't take well to water; even gold isn't that fond of swimming pool chlorine. And having a necklace flapping around in the water probably isn't that safe, either. So that's one occasion where you'd want an alert bracelet, and not a metal one either, unless maybe it's stainless steel or titanium. Here's one with a quick-drying nylon band and a stainless steel tag; it's also velcroed, which makes it easier to fasten than some. And here's another place that sells lightweight fabric and/or plastic "pleather" velcro bracelets and titanium tags for medical ID's.
Our friend Liz is a vegetarian, and she's horrified when we occasionally eat meat. Usually, it is easier to make low-sodium foods if you are sticking mostly to vegetables, but there's that protein issue- tofu, the main vegetarian source of protein and meat-like substitutes, is chock full o' sodium. But there are some nice well-balanced meals that can be made without tofu.
Here's one of them. It's possibly the world's stupidest recipe- scarcely deserving of the word recipe- but hey, it works. It is great for those days when it's your turn to cook, and you're exhausted, but your spouse is also exhausted and therefore in no shape to complain about what gets served. It's got complete protein, vitamins and minerals, fiber, all that good stuff; its only flaw is that it seems too easy to be good for you.
The easiest vegetarian entree
1 can no-salt-added (NSA) diced tomatoes (if you like food spicier than bland, try diced tomatoes with green chilies)
1 can NSA black beans
1 can NSA kernel corn
1 tablespoon of whatever-your-favorite-no-salt-seasoning-mix-is (e.g., Italian seasoning, or chili powder, or Mrs. Dash)
Open and drain all three cans; toss contents and spice into a microwave-safe casserole dish and nuke until warm, about 4 minutes depending on the shape and height of the dish. Stir and turn the dish 1/4 of a turn halfway through.
Serves 2 with a bit left over if this is all you're serving; to serve 4, you could cook brown rice with olive oil and no salt, using the amount of water it says to on the package, and cooking for the length of time it says in the package, to make 4 servings of rice. That's more work, though. You could just open 2 cans of everything canned, instead.
House whining: no one whatsoever came to see the house this past weekend. C'mon people, this is a great house.
Today's chores: picked up medical and dental records. Need to: find candelabra/regular light bulb adapter, for kitchen; get cardiologist's NOTARIZED signature on forms for ERS, pack stuff, clean cages, bring stuff to Quilt Guild meeting, pack stuff, mop floors, pay a few more bills, pack stuff.
Reprinting more old entries from my CHF blog on another site, probably of interest to only a rare few people:
7/8/2003
Well, I spent an exciting afternoon at the Texas Textbook Hearings. The TEA is considering adopting new biology textbooks this year, and there are many people who want all textbooks to "present evidence against evolution" and to include "alternative theories" such as so-called Intelligent Design. What, you may ask, does that have to do with heart failure? Well, although I don't have word-for-word of my testimony, here's roughly what I said:
"Hi, I'm _____ ______ and I teach at St. Edward's University. You've already heard from many of my academic colleagues, so I'm not going to repeat their testimony. Instead, I'm going to speak about why I have a very, very personal interest in making sure that Texas science teaching doesn't get weakened by watering down evolution or including intelligent design in biology textbooks. I have congestive heart failure. I just got a pacemaker a few weeks ago. The latest research on heart failure is being done on zebrafish, because they can regenerate damaged heart muscle, and this research is propelled by a full understanding of evolutionary biology. As far as I have been able to find out, intelligent design theorists and the Discovery Institute have contributed nothing to medical research, not even any testable hypotheses which could be the basis for future medical research. If Texas high school students are taught only the "weaknesses" of evolution, and/or are taught intelligent design, they are going to be at a severe disadvantage in getting admitted to medical schools. In fact, they'll be at a disadvantage in getting admitted to veterinary programs or even two-year college programs for medical lab technicians. I need good doctors. So if any of you are considering demanding that intelligent design be added to Texas textbooks, I want to ask you to ask yourself a very personal question: 'Am I contributing to medical research, or am I contributing to ______'s early death?' Thank you."
P.S. Today's recipe:
Roasted Steak Fries.
Buy one large baking potato per person. Scrub them. Peeling is optional, according to your taste.
Slice each potato into 8 wedges lengthwise.
Pour a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil (the kind with the good fats in it please!) onto a baking sheet. Rub all sides of each potato wedge in the oil, and lay them out on the cookie sheet. Now sprinkle a spoonful - somewhere between a teaspon and a tablespoon - of your favorite no-salt seasoning mix over each set of wedges. Some ideas: any Mrs. Dash's seasoning; Chef Paul's Cajun Seasoning, no-salt version; "Italian Seasoning" which is usually a blend of thyme, oregano, basil, and other spices; even liquid garlic steak sauce without salt. Bake the wedges on the cookie sheet in a 350° oven until they are fork-tender, anywhere from 30 to 50 minutes depending on how big the original potatoes were and how large the wedges are.
Other places to order the Mr. Spice salt-free, fat-free, garlic steak sauce- and other terrific salt-free stir-fry sauces and meat marinades - include:
Peppers.com
Hot Shoppe
Healthy Heart Market
7/11/2003
I'm not feeling very creative today (or rather, yesterday; I haven't gone to bed yet, but it's really tomorrow already). My spousal unit has been sick the last few days, and it's been a bit wearing on me, too. Friday I don't have to work, but I do have to go to school to help a student out this afternoon, and then I have to go by Austin Heart to have them change the programming on my pacemaker a bit.
I got the pacemaker put in 4 weeks ago today. There's still this big lump there - even when the last of the swelling goes away, there will be a bulge; it's not going to sink beneath the skin. Right now, it's part scar and part scab; I am not allowed to go swimming until it's all scar, no scab.
These days, getting an ICD/pacemaker put in is outpatient surgery. I wound up staying overnight, though, because they finished later in the day than expected. That was because this particular kind of pacemaker has three leads, instead of two, and they couldn't get the third one in. My veins were too "tortuous" to quote my doctor. So I don't have the advantage of bi-ventricular pacing they had hoped to get with this particular unit. It still does plenty for me, but not as much as we had hoped. If I get worse later on, they can go in through a different kind of incision, a keyhole incision in my chest rather than the one below the collarbone, and get the third lead in that way. That kind of surgery, although still not as drastic as open-heart, still requires several days in the hospital, so the doc says let's put it off until you really, really need it.
So, in lieu of anything more interesting, here's a meatloaf recipe. Not only is it low in sodium, but it's higher than most in potassium, because of the "secret ingredient." I guarantee that when you serve this meatloaf, no one will guess that there is a banana in it; it just tastes like a nice, moist meat loaf.
Banana Meatloaf
1&1/2 to 2 lbs of extra lean ground beef (95/5 or 96/4)
1 cup bread crumbs, low-sodium variety
1 egg, beaten to even consistency
1 banana, average ripeness, mashed
1 small onion, chopped into small pieces
1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning (or any mixture of spices you like in your meatloaf- some people like a teaspoon of chili powder, some like a teaspoon of curry powder...)
You can add a teaspoon of minced garlic if you'd like.
Mix everything together in a bowl, thoroughly. Place in non-stick loaf pan and bake in 350 degree oven for 60 to 70 minutes; check with fork to see if inside is cooked, and if you still see pink, cook another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before trying to slice. Serves 4 to 6, with a slice left over for a sandwich the next day.
Got the pacemaker adjusted; I don't feel any different. I could bore you stiff with the settings AIR-R vs. DDD-R vs. just DDD but that would be more than anyone would want to know. I also got my permanent plastic pacemaker ID card to carry in my wallet at all times, replacing the temporary pasteboard one. Yeehah. I had already ordered, and received, several different forms of medical alert jewelry to wear. What I find most convenient is this small lightweight charm which can be hung on a chain around the neck, attached to a watch band, or for that matter hung from a hoop earring. It is very, very lightweight. Cheap, too.
What should be on your medical alert ID? That you have an implanted defibrillator and/or pacemaker; what cardiac meds you take (and for some of them, the dosage - while there's a wide safe range of how much Diovan or Lasix one can take, and Coreg only has 2 strengths, based on total weight, digoxin has a vary narrow range and switching dosages and even just switching brands can be harmful. So emergency personnel need to know that sort of thing.); any other meds you take that aren't optional. That is, while seasonal allergy medications are optional- you'll still live without them - you wouldn't want to suddenly have your thyroid medication or your diabetes medication or your anti-depressants discontinued without notice, so list them. List, of course, any allergies to medical products, and any really bad food allergies, as well (penicillin, peanut butter... I suspect you don't have to worry about allergies to shellfish though; I really doubt they're gonna feed you shellfish in a hospital :-)
Many people get medical alert bracelets, but I find them too large and heavy, particularly in the Texas heat, and bracelets in particular tend to be not a good thing to wear when one rides a motorcycle. Probably a heavy metal bracelet also wouldn't be a good idea for anybody who works with machinery all day, or for that matter at a computer keyboard all day. So I prefer the necklace. I did get a waterproof bracelet, though, to wear when I go swimming - the "charm" is not waterproof, really, and most silver necklaces don't take well to water; even gold isn't that fond of swimming pool chlorine. And having a necklace flapping around in the water probably isn't that safe, either. So that's one occasion where you'd want an alert bracelet, and not a metal one either, unless maybe it's stainless steel or titanium. Here's one with a quick-drying nylon band and a stainless steel tag; it's also velcroed, which makes it easier to fasten than some. And here's another place that sells lightweight fabric and/or plastic "pleather" velcro bracelets and titanium tags for medical ID's.
Our friend Liz is a vegetarian, and she's horrified when we occasionally eat meat. Usually, it is easier to make low-sodium foods if you are sticking mostly to vegetables, but there's that protein issue- tofu, the main vegetarian source of protein and meat-like substitutes, is chock full o' sodium. But there are some nice well-balanced meals that can be made without tofu.
Here's one of them. It's possibly the world's stupidest recipe- scarcely deserving of the word recipe- but hey, it works. It is great for those days when it's your turn to cook, and you're exhausted, but your spouse is also exhausted and therefore in no shape to complain about what gets served. It's got complete protein, vitamins and minerals, fiber, all that good stuff; its only flaw is that it seems too easy to be good for you.
The easiest vegetarian entree
1 can no-salt-added (NSA) diced tomatoes (if you like food spicier than bland, try diced tomatoes with green chilies)
1 can NSA black beans
1 can NSA kernel corn
1 tablespoon of whatever-your-favorite-no-salt-seasoning-mix-is (e.g., Italian seasoning, or chili powder, or Mrs. Dash)
Open and drain all three cans; toss contents and spice into a microwave-safe casserole dish and nuke until warm, about 4 minutes depending on the shape and height of the dish. Stir and turn the dish 1/4 of a turn halfway through.
Serves 2 with a bit left over if this is all you're serving; to serve 4, you could cook brown rice with olive oil and no salt, using the amount of water it says to on the package, and cooking for the length of time it says in the package, to make 4 servings of rice. That's more work, though. You could just open 2 cans of everything canned, instead.
