REMEMBERING SEPTEMBER 11TH

There are a few days in your lifetime that you remember forever, in great detail.  Where you were, who you were with, and how you felt.

For me, that first huge memory was Nov. 22, 1963, when Kennedy was shot.  My firstborn was one month old, and I can remember the sun shining in our apartment window in Evanston, Illinois. My husband was at work in downtown Chicago.  I know I was wearing a black sweater, and my son had on a little white sleeper.   For about an hour, I simply sat and listened and watched, too stunned to move.  Suddenly, the stay-at-home moms  came out of their apartments and onto the sidewalk, and finally gathered in my apartment because it was the largest and could hold the most people.  And we talked and watched TV,  and no one had any thing to eat or drink for hours.

On 9/11, it was a different story.  My husband was able to take walks then, and he had a radio plugged into his ear.   It was a warm , sunny day and we were both wearing sleeveless shirts.   He heard it right away, of course, but when he told me what had happened, I thought at first it was a hoax, or he was mistaken.  Even then, we had no idea how extensive the damage, or how many people had been killed.  Finally, we passed a house where a young man whom we had never met came out from his doorway, and asked us if we had heard what happened.  So it was true.  We shook our heads, and mutely turned away, too stunned to reply.

Looking back, it seems strange that we were at war, but war was never declared (how did that differ from the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor?)  and life went on pretty much the same for those who lived far from New York & DC. 

DOCTORS WHO DON'T LISTEN

A visit to a  doctor can be a dehumanizing experience, which is why I usually try to avoid them. But lately, I had an issue with vertigo, and called for an appointment with a specialist affiliated with a teaching hospital.

Upon making my first appointment, I was coldly informed I would  have to wait three months before I could be worked into his busy schedule.  That should have told me something, but I thought it best to wait, rather than going to one of those walk in clinics where a twenty something, just out of med school, would misdiagnose my problem.

The doctor introduced himself, and asked about my symptoms.  I began to describe them in detail,  but after about 15 seconds he seemed to lose interest.  When I stopped talking, he ordered some  tests.  After they were done, I waited about half an hour before my doctor returned, accompanied by a young intern.  That was when I began feeling like a guinea pig, as he calmly informed me I should probably have an MRI of my head just to rule out something very ominous. Being somewhat claustrophobic & loud noise averse, I didn’t like that idea, so he prescribed some OTC meds and said to come back next month..

The medication was helpful, but I was still having some symptoms .  On the second visit,  I waited a full hour in a freezing cold room until he showed up. This time, he had another intern who stood mutely at attention as the doctor tried to find me on the computer and determine  just exactly why I was there.  I wondered if my case would be interesting enough for a case study—probably not.  But I definitely felt less like a human being than a “patient,”  He asked how I’d been getting along, but when I tried to ask him some questions and carry on a conversation about my symptoms, he lost interest.  The poker faced intern stared at me as if I were a specimen under a microscope.  There was no mention of an MRI, so perhaps the doctor decided not to waste  any more time  with a person who balked at having an expensive, unpleasant test.  Okay, I get it. He doesn’t do simple.  At any rate, he told me to continue with the meds, and suggested I come back in six months.

Finally,  I got on the internet and found some simple ways to alleviate my problem.  The internet cares about you! Key in a word or a question, and you’ll get a whole list of links that tell you everything you want to know and answers all your questions.  

In defense of physicians, and especially surgeons: psychologists say that doctors gradually become less empathetic as a defense mechanism against the painful procedures they must perform.  And, too much empathy could make a doctor less objective when making a diagnosis.   Last but not least, if they got too emotionally involved with each and every patient, they’d be worn out. And so, at the end of the day, patients are seen not as persons, but as part of an overall system.

see my new blog @ livingwellafter80.com

STUFFED PEPPERS ARE COMFORT FOOD

Have you seen the size of green peppers this season?  This hot, humid summer has produced the largest, shiniest peppers we’ve seen for a long time.  And their superabundance this time of year means they are bargain priced.  So what are you waiting for?  This is one of the most people pleasing entrees you can imagine.  Yes, it’s going to take some extra pans and a little more time than usual, so pick an afternoon when you’ve plenty of  time to spend in the kitchen.  And if you know someone who’s having a tough time, you  might make an extra batch and bring them this farm fresh comfort food.

Most recipes don’t itemize the pans and dishes you’ll use, but you will need:

One or two large pans for steaming the peppers.

A smaller sauce pan to cook the rice.

A 10 inch skillet.

An 8X8X2 in. baking dish  

This is going to take up a lot of room in your kitchen, but it’s a labor of love, so clear the counters, and go for it!

STUFFED PEPPERS

6 large green peppers

1 pound lean ground beef

2 tablespoons chopped onion

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 cup cooked rice (see package directions)

1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce

¾ cup grated cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon salt (cut this in half if you watch  your sodium intake)

Cut a slice from the stem end of each pepper. Remove seeds and membrane. Cook peppers in enough boiling water to cover for 5 minutes; drain.

Cook and stir the crumbled ground beef, onion and garlic in skillet until beef is light brown. Stir in rice, salt,  ½  the tomato sauce and grated cheese. Pour remaining sauce over peppers. Cover dish and bake in 350 oven 45 minutes. 

Uncover; bake 15 minutes longer. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.  6 servings: 290 calories per serving.

Enjoy!

SHOULD GIRLS WEAR SHORTIES THAT SHOW THEIR UNDIES?

The security guard at a mall  the other day kicked out a young girl who was wearing shorts so high on her legs that he could see her underwear.  Most people my age would probably support that action.

I suppose I might have agreed, until yesterday. My husband and I have Sunday brunch at a college hangout, and since school just started, we got to see what current styles are popular these days.  I think I wrote last spring about nose rings, but this new crop of college girls seem to be going minimalist.  No nose rings, sometimes not even earrings.  And yes, they’re wearing those shortie shorts that look like they have on  nothing but underpants beneath those long tee shirts. 

First, I’m really glad that wasn’t the style when I was in college.  I have skinny legs and knobby knees, and I think that would not have been a good look for me.  And they definitely are not flattering to women who are overweight.  But when you’re in college, you want to dress like everyone else in order to fit in.  That’s why you see so many girls on the beaches during spring break wearing bikinis that do absolutely nothing to cover up their less attractive features.  Oddly, I don’t find this new look particularly sexy.  It’s sort of a little girl look, like kids emerging from a sleepover. If they were on a beach, they would appear normal, and no one would be shocked. 

Times change, attitudes change.  A couple of hundred years ago, a lady showing her ankles was thought to be indecent.  They even built houses with separate his and hers stairways , so that a gentleman would not follow a lady up the steps and get a glimpse of her ankles.

So I’m thinking, if that’s the look this year, it really won’t hurt anyone, and short shorts are a pretty cheap wardrobe item.  See, they’re saving money to pay off their student loans!

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