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Straight to your stomach, waist, hips, belly and thighs! Yes, during the holiday seasons people who spend so much time dieting and exercising during the year trying to keep excess weight off, completely go overboard in stuffing themselves during this time of the year with all the wrong foods that will put that weight right back on. Especially during the upcoming Thanksgiving Day feast. This is a typical American all you can eat Holiday. It is even sometimes called: “Turkey Eating Day”. Most people who celebrate the traditional Thanksgiving Day even don’t know what it means or when it began. It has become a general Holiday now, rather than the giving of thanks after which it was named.

But why was it called Thanksgiving Day?

Thanksgiving Day, presently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November, has been an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. It did not become a national federal holiday until 1941. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to Almighty God. The pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving out of appreciation to God for helping them survive the brutal winter, and finally reaching the United States. The feast lasted three days providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Indians.

The modern day traditional Thanksgiving menu often features turkey with stuffing, sweet potatoes, corn bread, and pumpkin pie. But on the first Thanksgiving the pilgrims didn’t have these traditional foods back then. They hunted and ate any kind of fowl, duck, geese, venison, fish, lobster, clams, and swan. They ate berries, dried fruit, pumpkin which was boiled because there were no ovens for baking food or bread. There was also squash, and other kinds of vegetables.

The Pilgrims were thanking God

for survival to the United States

So the traditional stuffed turkey dinner today, the stuffing made mostly from bread, accompanied by more bread or corn bread, pumpkin pie, and candied sweet potatoes all very high calorie foods, were not part of the original thanksgiving that the pilgrims celebrated. These poor immigrants were just thankful to God for bringing them alive to the United States and celebrated this by eating a simple meal of meat and vegetables.

As the modern world evolved Americans became more affluent, people now had ovens for baking meat and bread. The face of agriculture changed, and supermarkets were selling more processed foods. So people didn’t have to hunt for food anymore, they could walk into a supermarket and buy any pre-packaged meal or processed food in a can, box or bag.

Their diets changed, and many of the new additions to the Thanksgiving meal were added, and so did the very meaning of the Day, “A Giving of Thanks to God”. How many young Americans and modern immigrants to the United States really remember that this was the real meaning of Thanksgiving? With all the supermarkets selling discounted turkeys, and all the Thanksgiving sales taking place it has become just another Holiday for family reunions, to overeat and for sports fans to watch football. 

But why a stuffed turkey for Thanksgiving?

This was no doubt another start in the modern traditional celebration. There is no record that the early settlers had turkey at their first meal. They certainly didn’t have bread for stuffing. And in our modern times no where does it say that this was the only day to eat stuffed turkey, or any of the other side dishes that comes with the traditional Thanksgiving Day. Turkey is a big bird, and can provide a lot of food for a large crowd especially when stuffed. Probably this was one of the reasons why turkey became the traditional meat instead of other fowls.  As families gather together to eat, they needed a lot of meat to go around to everyone present.

I love turkey, and I eat it all year round. It is such a delicious bird, whether stuffed, plainly baked, ground up or cut up for other recipes, it can be a healthy protein food source any time of the year. And I certainly don’t believe that we should give thanks to God only one day of the year, but everyday for the food we have for each day. This was no doubt the custom of the early settlers, they were accustomed to giving thanks before each meal and just this particular day became special to them because they were also thanking God for their survival and for reaching their final destination, the United States.

For some couples this might be their first Thanksgiving Day together, or some others might have another special reason for celebrating the day. Most people though are simple following the tradition.  But if you are watching your weight and have health problems, you might want to consider what you are stuffing that turkey with. A lot of the prepared package stuffing I see on the supermarkets shelves are made mostly of white dried bread with some artificial seasonings added to them, not very nutritious.

You might be able to find some healthy stuffing mixes at some of the health food stores, but for me I love making my own from scratch. Growing up in the Dutch Caribbean as the oldest girl in a family of eight I learned to cook very young. I never use any pre-packaged or processed foods when cooking, but prepare and cook everything myself, even making up my own recipes according to what I know is healthy and nutritious.

So if you are a new bride or anyone whom may be stuffing that turkey for the first time this year and want to keep watching your diet or health here are one of my own created and tried turkey stuffing. (You can also it to stuff chicken and as a side dish):

 You will need:

1. Eggplant, carrots, green and red bell peppers, mushrooms, scallions, onions, garlic, and celery. A package of wholegrain ziti. First boil the wholegrain ziti until medium soft and set aside.

2. Cut up the eggplant into medium square cubes. Chop the bell peppers, carrots, onions, garlic, scallions, and celery in medium size pieces. Slice the mushrooms.

3. Heat a large frying pan or skillet and pour some olive oil into it. When hot pour all the cut up vegetables into the hot olive oil. Simmer while stirring constantly.

4. Add seasonings: I use  “Goya Adobo All Purpose Seasoning with pimiento”.  But if you can’t find this you can use the same ingredients in that seasoning: which is salt, black pepper, thyme, oregano, turmeric, garlic powder. Add a dash of hot pepper sauce, a large tablespoon of tomato paste, and some ketchup.  Stir into the simmering eggplant and vegetable mixture. Add more seasoning until satisfied with the taste.

5. Add the boiled ziti small portions at a time. By now the eggplant should be soft and you can mash it together with the noodles and other vegetables. If you cook too much ziti just save for another occasion. You don’t want the ziti to overpower the other vegetables, but to only hold them together. Cook until soft and sticking together.

6. When slightly cooled stuff into the cavities of the turkey that you should have seasoned well the night before with the same seasonings you used for the stuffing. Rub the seasonings inside and outside of the bird. 

 7. Mix some of the seasonings with water and tomato paste or ketchup and pour over the bird letting the rest fall into the bottom of the baking pan. The bird will be baking in its own gravy, and you can keep basting it with this gravy to keep it from drying out. Cover with foil paper or special turkey bag and bake in a moderate hot (350) oven for several hours. 

of Cancer fighting Antioxidants

Keep checking and sticking with a fork to feel if the meat is soft. Keep the bottom of the pan well covered with gravy from the droppings of the baked bird and that you made yourself with some of the tomato paste along with the seasonings. After feeling soft remove the foil and let it bake uncovered some more until the outside is brown. When cut the flesh should be well seasoned, soft, juicy and fall easily from the bones. Also the stuffing will be healthy and delicious, not only from its own seasoning but from absorbing the juices from the baking bird. Unlike the customary bread stuffing you will be eating stuffing that is nutritious, fat free, full of cancer fighting antioxidants, high in fiber, and very low in calories.

Did you know eggplant is also a great breast cancer fighter?  With such a healthy alternative to traditional turkey stuffing you may not even need all the extra side dishes. But if you must have sweet potatoes which are also good for you, just don’t use any sugar on them, leave them plain or make the dressing from honey instead. Add some green salads or broccoli and there you have a delicious turkey meal that can be eaten not just for the holidays but anytime of the year. And don’t forget to give Thanks, this will make it truly a real Thanksgiving meal! 

Written and illustrated by: Glenda Brill (C)

 Who else is getting the Swine Flu??

Fear of catching the Swine Flu is on the minds of everyone these days. Many Medical Centers offer vaccinations against this strange flu. I heard of some hospitals running out of the Swine Flu shots already and people being put on a waiting list until more comes in. One of the precautions for people whom feel like they are coming down with the Swine Flu is to stay home. This is in order not to be around other people and infect them with the disease. Nobody thought then that if you stay home and have pets around that they to can be infected. Most of the time when we are sick we like curling up in bed with our cat or dog. They become our closest comforting companions at this time since we can’t be around other humans.

Swine Flu spreading to house pets

Now with the swine flu, we can’t let our pets be around us anymore. There are a few reported cases of dogs and a cat, pets in the home catching  the Swine Flu. With the name Swine Flu which is believed first began with a pig and later transmitted to humans, it sounds ironic that just the opposite now is happening, that humans can transmit the flu back to other animals. It is like what comes around  goes around.

In the case of the cat that became sick, when its owner took it to the veterinarian, and discovered that it had the swine flu, the owner then remembered sneezing on the cat. So for those of us whom have pets, dogs or cats, if you have flu like symptoms, instead of letting that pet curl up with you in the bed, you better keep it out of sight under the bed if you are going around sneezing and coughing. That might be the best cover for the little creature right now, to keep it covered from your flu germs. Unless you have a special little dog or cat house where you can keep it away from you until you get better.

Young children can also give or catch the flu from pets

But what about young children? It would be the same if you have young kids at home. They to can get the infectious disease from you or other children, and again since children love playing with their pet animals can also spread it back to them. So keep them away from each other. Humans and children can be vaccinated, but so far there is no vaccination for animals.

How can you tell if you are coming down with the Swine Flu? In humans some of the symptoms are: coughing and sneezing, with fever sometimes, vomiting, and much the same symptoms like the regular flu. Some people may feel worst than others. It also helps to keep your immune system healthy so that you can resist the flu. And we are constantly warned about washing our hands several times a day. This may be one of the safest ways of protecting ourselves against the virus.

Take advice to wash hands often very seriously

Some people don’t take this serious, but our hands are the easiest way of catching and transmitting germs. Whether we work in a restaurant, office, store, hospital or any other business, we use our hands to handle paper or other documents that came from other people. We use cash to buy lunch or groceries that passes through the hands of thousands of different people each day. I read once that money is one of the biggest transmitters of all kinds of bacteria. We handle money every day, and we just don’t  know who else has been holding those same dollar bills we are now counting.

Also using office restrooms or public restrooms, just touching the door knob can be another way flu viruses get on your hands. Again there is where washing our hands before and after we use the restroom can be helpful advice to follow. Those same hands you use to put your makeup on or touch your face, eyes or your skin, eat your meals, and if your immune system is weak then any transmitted viruses can start growing and make you sick.  Make sure we get the flu shot to keep the Swine Flu virus away.

Keep your pets away from you,

there is no flu shots for them

And if you are worry about your little pet at home, and you happen to come down with the Swine Flu, you may want to follow the advice above or find some other way to keep the little creature away from you. Please don’t sneeze on it. It has been said that a sneeze can travel very far into the air. So somebody in a different location can pick up a virus from another person sneezing out of sight several feet away. And if you must sneeze in the present of your pet or anyone else, don’t sneeze into your hand, as you might use those same hands to touch your pets and this can spread the infection to them.

Sneeze inside your elbow, this stops the sneeze from getting into the air, and prevents anyone else around from picking up the virus. So a rule of thumb should be when we are sick with the flu treat our pets like we would treat anyone else. Stay away from them, certainly don’t let them be in the bed with us, keep them away until we are well again.

Written by: Glenda Brill (C)

It was the night before Halloween.  Before going to bed I usually like to drink some skim milk as it helps me fall asleep.  I turned off my computer and walked to the kitchen. I switched on the light at the entrance, and the sight at what I saw next froze me in my tracks. I was shocked since I had never seen this before. There on my kitchen counter were Roa and Ches lying on top of each other, shamelessly making out, on my clean kitchen counter!

I couldn’t believe it! How did these bastards get in here? Completely uninvited and have the nerve to use my kitchen counter for their gratification? I can understand now why she is always giving birth to another baby. They were so into what they were doing that even when I turned the light on, they didn’t move or stopped, or saw me standing there.  I felt anger rising in my body, and before I explained what I did next, I want to tell you a little about the family of Roa and Ches.

 The family of Roa and Ches

This is a family of Scum Bags. And they are international. You can find them in almost every country and city. Some more so than others. They are freeloaders, homeless bums and don’t care where they hang out. Since they are always looking for free food and drink some of them live around sewage systems, and garbage dumps.

It doesn’t matter whether you are rich or poor if there is a colony of these nasty beings in the neighborhood, you can expect to somehow cross their paths, or see one or two of them around. They try to find shelter into people’s basements and that is how they manage to get into other people’s home. They have been caught hiding even in Restaurants and food establishments ofcourse because these are places where they can find food. Also in unoccupied apartment buildings, as these provide protection from the cold outside.

They are very fast reproducers of their kind, the females are always pregnant and their small children follow in their parents footsteps. This has resulted in a good thing for our economy inspiring many to become entrepreneurs in developing products and providing services to help curb their reproduction. Today you can find entire supermarket aisles full of products designed specifically for the Roa and Ches family. All kinds of can foods, bottled drinks, and specialty foods to keep these freeloaders out of people’s homes. There has even been special hotels and motels built just for them. 

Some young men make a good living by selling their products and services one on one to different families that had trouble with them. But no matter what has been done some of them continue to remain on the loose, to bypass their own hotels and foods while preferring to remain homeless and sneak around, steal and find ways into people’s homes, eating whatever they can put their dirty hands on. Because they hang out in dirty areas like sewages, and around garbage dumps they are full of diseases and can infect others. Can you imagine these nasty scummy dirty beings nibbling on your food and drink?

I couldn’t help thinking on all the little children whom might be eating goodies on Halloween night that Roa and Ches may have been nibbling on.

As I stood there frozen at the entrance of my kitchen I couldn’t help thinking on all the little children that will be tricker treating around the neighborhood on Halloween night accepting candies and different kinds of goodies from complete strangers.  Many of them not even knowing whether Roa and Ches have been sneaking around in their homes and putting their germy hands on these goodies. This can make those children sick and their parents will never know what caused their illness.

With all these thoughts going through my head, my anger rising, and Roa and Ches disrespectfully continuing to make out on my kitchen counter, I carefully grabbed my big heavy straw broom, and banged them both into their heads, several times until I was sure they were dead. After that I had the horrible task of removing their remains and disposing of them.

I know I had committed murder, but I felt justified and relieved that I had done so. If anyone in the neighborhood and the Police Department finds out, they would all thank me for helping them in removing one more pair of these disgusting scum bags from the neighborhood. After cleaning up my kitchen counter with bleach disinfectant, I drunk a small glass of milk and went to bed.

I felt no shame over what had just happened, as a matter of fact I felt happy instead that I had at least helped some families in the neighborhood and the city of New York in getting rid of another pair of disgusting ROACHES.

Why roaches are bad for us, and you should do everything to get rid of them if you see them around

According to the National Pest Management Association, there are nearly 33 different kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens carried by cockroaches. Cockroaches walk through sewage and decaying matter and transmit bacteria into your home.

Cockroaches have been shown to transport a number of pathogenic bacteria and viruses on their legs and bodies. They carry the pathogens that cause tuberculosis, cholera, leprosy, dysentery, and typhoid, as well as over 40 other bacteria (like salmonella) or viruses that can cause disease.

Cockroaches will eat almost anything: left-over human food, wood, leather, cigarette butts, tooth paste, milk, sugary materials, coffee grinds, glue, so if any of the above is left open and we use them we can get sick from their left over germs.

Tips to help keep Roaches away

 Even though I do all these tips below myself somehow some roaches still manage to get into my apartment. Usually if there is a colony of them in the neighborhood, they can get into even clean apartments. So if you have not seen any in your home yet, it is good to try the below tips if you are not already doing so, to help keep them away.

• Always sweep your floors at night, making sure no crumbs or any food at all is left on the floors. Make sure all garbage is put out at night. Vacuum your carpets if you have such often. Vacuuming sucks up any eggs that roaches lay, and stop their reproduction. 

• Always wash your dishes, never leaving dirty dishes in the sink, and after drying put them away. Leaving them out somehow still attracts roaches, looking for food and water. 

• Never leave any food or drink uncovered, either in your refrigerator, on the stove, or kitchen counter. 

• Find some sort of roach bait, I use the small black baits, and put them around in different areas of your kitchen and under the sink, in corners of cabinets, under the stove, and around any cracks in the walls. Also in the bathroom, remember they are always looking for water, so the kitchen and bathroom are their favorite places.  Don’t eat in your bedroom as this might also attract them into that room. 

• If you have small children, be careful about leaving them on the bare floor, put them on a blanket or something. You never know if roaches were crawling on the floor unknown to you. Children pick up germs faster than adults.   As a general rule always make sure your home is clean and free of clutter. Disinfect often as this kills germs.  

• And if you happen to see any in sight like I did, kill them on the spot. Sometimes I see one or two crawling on the bottom of my bathtub. I kill them by turning the hot water faucet on and blasting them to death with hot water.

Yes, if you think about all the little children that could be eating roach infected candy on Halloween night you will also be happy that I killed Roa and Ches on the night before. Who knows if they were planning on going somewhere else to nibble on some goodies and those were later given to these children to eat?

 Written and Illustrated by: Glenda Brill ©   

As the summer heat reaches its peak we need to be aware of the damaging effects to much sun can cause to our skin. Growing up in the hot Caribbean sun and beaches in St. Maarten Dutch Antilles, I had no knowledge back then of how damaging the sun was to our skin. I remembered my mother telling me of how my father used to take me for walks on the beach when I was a baby during the early rising of the sun, because it was during the very early part of the day that it was the safest and most beneficial for getting the necessary vitamin D that we need. 

 But when I grew up I didn’t pay attention to that anymore, I loved the beach and sea and spend many of my youthful years in the scorching sun and water. Believe me all this news about sunscreens with UVB and UVA protection I had no idea what they were when I was younger growing up in the hot sun, so you can imagine how much damage I was subjecting my bare skin to. Now I have learned and seen the damaging effects the sun can have on our skin. Those harmful UV sun rays are highest between 10am and 4 pm.

Most women in the hot climates use broad hats, parasols or umbrella’s to protect themselves from the hot sun during these hours of the day.  I remember my mother always wearing a gorgeous broad hat to protect her face from the hot sun.

We need a measure of sunlight for Vitamin D in the body which is so vital for our health and disease prevention.  Scientists now say that at least 30 minutes of sunlight is sufficient to get our daily dose of Vitamin D. Also sunlight affects our mood, a nice sunny day can lift our spirits and drive depression away. The best time to get this is early mornings or before noon as I learned from my father and most nutritionist also recommend. During the early part of the day the UV rays from the sun are lower and less damaging to the skin.

 It is good to let the sun hit your back, rather than your face. Sunlight shining on your back is absorbed into the spine and distributes vitamin D throughout the body which aids in bone formation. People whom lack complete sunlight which leads to a Vitamin D deficiency usually suffer from bone loss and other back, muscle and health problems.  But to much sun exposure is not good. But what kind of damage can the sun cause?

 To much UV rays can damage the eyes, the body’s immune system, and causes changes in skin texture and can lead to skin cancer. And it is not true that only caucasians need to worry about sun damage, the sun damages all skin types and colors. I have met one dark skinned African American woman whom was suffering from skin cancer, and read also of other black people in other parts of the tropics that have gotten skin cancer from the sun. Caucasian people or lighter skinned ethnic groups because of their lighter skin show the visible signs of skin damage quicker than those of darker skin. Ofcourse most of them spend time in the sun to get a tan which looks great, but in reality a tan is a sign of damaged skin, which later turns into wrinkles. 

Some of the effects of sun damage are: thickening and thinning of the skin resulting in wrinkles. Dilating of small superficial blood vessels on the skin. Yellow discolorations in lighter skin. Dark blotchy uneven skin discolorations or dry leathery look in dark skin. Pigment changes such as freckles, age or liver spots and white spots on legs and backs of hands and arms. Since the face is the first place to show age, the sun contributes to that old dry weathered look resulting in premature aging. It can also form small crusty bumps or moles and precancerous lesions especially on the face, neck and backs of hands. And the most feared of all is skin cancer, there are 3 different kinds but the most deadly of all is melanoma as this one metastasizes.

 So what is the best way to protect your skin against the sun? Since I am now grown up and know all this info that I didn’t know when I was younger and lived in the sun, I usually use an umbrella if I am going to be out in the sun for several hours. This is one of the ways most people in the tropics or hot climates protect themselves from the sun. But I noticed whenever I walk through the streets in New York with my umbrella,  some people look at me like I am crazy, and I hear remarks especially from children: “Hey, lady, it is not raining, why the umbrella?”. Once I overheard a little boy as I was passing them on the street asked his mother: “Why is she using an umbrella, it is not raining”. Then I looked at him and smilingly answered: “I know, it is my Rain Shade for the sun”. I usually use that expression so that the children can understand that an umbrella is not only for the rain, but also for the sun. 

In the USA the umbrella is only or mostly used for the rain, but I hardly ever see anyone walking in the hot sun using the umbrella here in New York. Maybe most people like those children don’t know that the umbrella was originally designed for protection against the scorching sun. It was called the Parasol. “Para” means “shield” and “sol” means “sun.” So the parasol was a canopy that protects against the precipitation from the hot sun.  The word “umbrella” on the other hand  evolved from the Latin “umbella”  “umbel” is a flat-topped rounded flower. And “umbra,” meaning “shaded.” Later the umbrella was referred to a device more suited to protect from rain. Often the difference is the material from which it was constructed.  

All during history going back to Europe, India, Egypt, and China the original use of the umbrella was for the protection from the sun. You would think that it is only in our modern age that scientists discovered the damaging effects of the UVB and UVA rays from the sun. But even back then they knew how to shield themselves from the skin damaging effects of the sun by using a shade over their heads. Even Kings and high officials had servants or maids holding umbrella’s over their heads when going out in the hot sun. It was only later closer to our century that the fabric of the parasol started to change so that it could be used also for protection from the rain. 

Today there are many types of sunscreen lotions for the protection of the skin. But according to some dermatologists, in order to get complete protection, you have to re-apply the lotion every two hours. Most people forget to do this, or may not be in a place where it will be possible to reapply the lotion that often. And remember again, it doesn’t matter what race or skin color you have, to much sun will damage your skin and contribute to premature aging, can cause skin cancer and damage the eyes and immune system.

Sure as mentioned above, a nice sunny day can make us feel happy and bring a smile to our face. But we want that face to be smooth, youthful, glowing, evenly toned and wrinkled free. Just the opposite of what too much sun will do. If it is not customary to use a parasol or umbrella in your side of the world, or you don’t feel comfortable using it for the sun, you can also use a big broad hat that will cover your face, and upper body part. Or use a sunscreen with a SPF protection of 45 or more. But remember to keep reapplying it every two hours or it will not keep protecting you from the sun. 

 After learning about the history of the umbrella how it was originally used only for protection from the sun, and in some countries it is still being used as such. I will continue to use it for my protection, even though some kids or people think I am an “Odd Ball” with an umbrella when it is not raining. Who knows, I might be starting a new trend in New York. So next time I am walking with my umbrella during the high UV peak in the sun and a little child yells out at me: “Hey lady it is not raining, why the umbrella?” I will just continue to smile and yell back:  “Yea, I know, it is my Rain Shade for the Sun”.

Written by (C) Glenda Brill