Jan 12, 2011
Jan 11, 2011
Home Remedies - Part 2
Home remedies have been passed down for generations. Sometimes they’re helpful, sometimes they’re down right outrageous. This series is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to home remedies. And it goes without saying that the remedies in this series are for entertainment purposes only.Asthma
Take the roots of skunk cabbage, dry and pulverize them and give three doses per day until cured. Give at a dose what will lay on the end of a pen knife. – John Stoner’s Sympathy, 1867
Honey is one of the most common home remedies for asthma. At the time of asthma attack a jug full of honey should be placed under the nose of the patient, within a few minutes the patient would start breathing easily. One can also mix 1 teaspoon honey in a glass of water and have it 3 times a day.
Indian gooseberry has proven valuable in asthma. Five grams of gooseberry mixed with one tablespoon of honey forms an effective medicinal tonic for the treatment of this disease. It should be taken every morning. Lemon is another fruit found beneficial. The juice of one lemon, diluted in a glass of water and taken with meals, will bring good results
String a line of crickets on a silk string and wear them crickets around the neck. Kentucky Superstitions, 1801
The roots of the bitter gourd plant have been used in folk medicine for asthma since ancient times. A teaspoon of the root paste, mixed with an equal amount of honey or juice of the holy basil leaves, given once every night for a month, acts as an excellent medicine for this disease.
A soup prepared from drumstick leaves, and taken once daily, has been found beneficial in the treatment of asthma. This soup is prepared by adding a handful of leaves to 180ml of water and boiling it for five minutes. After being allowed to cool, a little salt, pepper, and lime juice may be added to this soup.
Dip a brown paper the size of two hands in strong saltpeter water and burn the same in the room before going to bed. It will give great relief.
Farmer’s Directory and Housekeeper’s Assistant, 1851
A teaspoon of fresh ginger juice, mixed with a cup of fenugreek decoction and honey to taste, acts as an excellent expectorant in cases of asthma. The decoction of fenugreek can be made by mixing one tablespoon of fenugreek seeds in a cupful of water. This remedy should be taken once in the morning and once in the evening.
Garlic is another effective home remedy for asthma. Ten garlic cloves, boiled in 30 ml of milk, make an excellent medicine for the early stages of asthma. This mixture should he taken once daily by the patient. Garlic cloves boiled in milk or steaming ginger tea with two minced garlic cloves in it, can also help to keep the problem under control, and should be taken in the morning and evening.
Get a Mexican hairless (Chihuahua) dog and keep it nearby. The asthma will go from you to the dog. You can not use someone else’s dog. – Texas Folk Medicine, 1825
The herb bishop's weed has been found valuable in asthma. Half a teaspoon of bishop's weed should be mixed in a glass of buttermilk and taken twice daily. It is an effective remedy for relieving difficult expectoration caused by dried-up phlegm. A hot poultice of the seeds should be used for dry fomentation to the chest twice daily. The patient can also inhale steam twice a day from boiling water mixed with carom seeds. It will dilate the bronchial passages.
Safflower seeds are beneficial in the treatment of bronchial asthma. Half a teaspoon of powder of the dry seeds, mixed with a tablespoon of honey, can be taken once or twice a day in treating this disease. This acts as an expectorant and reduces the spasms by liquefying the tenacious sputum. An infusion of five grams of flowers mixed with one tablespoon of honey, taken once daily, is also useful in this disease.
Jan 10, 2011
Musal Monday
musal ~ of, like or pertaining to poetry or the Muses
I thought Musal Monday was appropriate because I’m reviving my poetry forms for Thursdays starting this week.
Last week was . . . strange. There were a lot of weird things happening - some good, some bad. I got derailed and side-tracked more than I would have liked, but I still managed to get a goodly amount of writing done. After several false starts and re-writes of Friday’s serial post, I not only got it finished and up in time I’ve also just about finished this week’s installment.
If I didn’t get as much done as I would have liked I blame Christine Feehan. I started reading Hidden Currents and had a hard time putting it down. Now I’m having a hard time resisting Water Bound.
I used our spiffy new ION turntable to record four of my classical albums to CD. Although it records to iTunes, you don’t need to set up your own account for the process to work and it’s really easy to pick and choose the tracks to burn if you want. I ran out of CDs, otherwise I would have recorded more of them.
One of my nieces gave me a really neat fountain for Christmas – it has a submersible light that changes colour and gives off a cool mist effect. I finally put it together and it’s even neater sitting in the corner of the living room. The cats were a little freaked out by it, but hopefully they’ll leave it alone.
This Week’s Goals:
Tuesday: Part two of my series on Home Remedies will feature cures for Asthma. I think my favourite part of the research for this series is the old time remedies which I’ve set in italics. Some of them are a real hoot!
Wednesday: Another Hump Day Hunk for your viewing pleasure. There was a complaint last week that the hunk was wearing pants. Rest assured, this week’s hunk isn’t. ;-)
Thursday: The revival of my series on poetical forms will start with the Canzone.
Friday: Chapter 6 of Fire. Finally, they’re on their way back to the village.
Elsewhere in my week:
Writing and editing, editing and writing. ;-)
I need to make the final decision on the poems for my poetry chapbook. Then I need to settle on the design. I’m still waffling on the traditional saddle stitch versus one of the more unique Japanese or side-stitched methods.
It’s looking to be another quiet week this week, which makes me a little nervous. It’s like the calm before the storm, only there’s no knowing what the storm might be. Guess I should be knocking wood to avoid drawing bad luck.
And that’s my week, such as it is. How about you? What are you up to this week?
I thought Musal Monday was appropriate because I’m reviving my poetry forms for Thursdays starting this week.
Last week was . . . strange. There were a lot of weird things happening - some good, some bad. I got derailed and side-tracked more than I would have liked, but I still managed to get a goodly amount of writing done. After several false starts and re-writes of Friday’s serial post, I not only got it finished and up in time I’ve also just about finished this week’s installment.
If I didn’t get as much done as I would have liked I blame Christine Feehan. I started reading Hidden Currents and had a hard time putting it down. Now I’m having a hard time resisting Water Bound.
I used our spiffy new ION turntable to record four of my classical albums to CD. Although it records to iTunes, you don’t need to set up your own account for the process to work and it’s really easy to pick and choose the tracks to burn if you want. I ran out of CDs, otherwise I would have recorded more of them.
One of my nieces gave me a really neat fountain for Christmas – it has a submersible light that changes colour and gives off a cool mist effect. I finally put it together and it’s even neater sitting in the corner of the living room. The cats were a little freaked out by it, but hopefully they’ll leave it alone.
This Week’s Goals:
Tuesday: Part two of my series on Home Remedies will feature cures for Asthma. I think my favourite part of the research for this series is the old time remedies which I’ve set in italics. Some of them are a real hoot!
Wednesday: Another Hump Day Hunk for your viewing pleasure. There was a complaint last week that the hunk was wearing pants. Rest assured, this week’s hunk isn’t. ;-)
Thursday: The revival of my series on poetical forms will start with the Canzone.
Friday: Chapter 6 of Fire. Finally, they’re on their way back to the village.
Elsewhere in my week:
Writing and editing, editing and writing. ;-)
I need to make the final decision on the poems for my poetry chapbook. Then I need to settle on the design. I’m still waffling on the traditional saddle stitch versus one of the more unique Japanese or side-stitched methods.
It’s looking to be another quiet week this week, which makes me a little nervous. It’s like the calm before the storm, only there’s no knowing what the storm might be. Guess I should be knocking wood to avoid drawing bad luck.
And that’s my week, such as it is. How about you? What are you up to this week?
Jan 6, 2011
Famous Poets - Part X
Yosa Buson (1716 - 1784)
Yosa Buson was a Japanese haiku poet and painter. He was born in a suburb of Osaka, Japan, and lost both parents while he was still young. In 1737 he moved to Edo (now Tokyo) to study painting and haiku poetry in the tradition of Basho. After the death of one of his poetry teachers in 1742, he toured northern areas associated with Basho and visited western Japan, finally settling in Kyoto, Japan, in 1751.
Particularly active as a painter between 1756 and 1765, Buson gradually returned to haiku, leading a movement to return to the purity of Basho's style and to purge haiku of superficial wit. He married about 1760 and had one daughter, Kuno. In 1771 he painted a famous set of ten screens with his great contemporary Ike no Taiga, demonstrating his status as one of the finest painters of his time.
The poetry group that he formed published its first book in 1772. His haiku poems show a more objective, pictorial style than Basho's humane, wide-ranging work. While Basho taught, "Master technique, then forget it," Buson's technique is less transparent and his poems more consciously composed. He was a poet of enhanced sensibility and evocation.
In 1776 his group built a Bashoan (Basho house) for gatherings. Also, his daughter married that year, although this unhappy marriage grieved Buson. Despite his poetic brilliance, Buson was remembered more as a painter until essays by modern Japanese writers Masaoka Shiki and Hagiwara Sakutaro revived his reputation. Besides haiku, he wrote longer verse influenced by both Chinese and Japanese classics.
Buson's major contribution to haiku is his complexity and his painter's eye. His technical skill as an artist is reflected in the visual detail of his poetry.
Lighting One Candle
Lighting one candle
with another candle--
spring evening.
Harvest Moon
Harvest moon--
called at his house,
he was digging potatoes
Before The White Chrysanthemum
Before the white chrysanthemum
the scissors hesitate
a moment.
Calligraphy Of Geese
Calligraphy of geese
against the sky--
the moon seals it.
The Willow Leaves Fallen
The willow leaves fallen,
the spring gone dry,
rocks here and there.
Evening Wind
Evening wind:
water laps
the heron's legs.
The Spring Sea Rising
The spring sea rising
and falling, rising
and falling all day.
Yosa Buson was a Japanese haiku poet and painter. He was born in a suburb of Osaka, Japan, and lost both parents while he was still young. In 1737 he moved to Edo (now Tokyo) to study painting and haiku poetry in the tradition of Basho. After the death of one of his poetry teachers in 1742, he toured northern areas associated with Basho and visited western Japan, finally settling in Kyoto, Japan, in 1751. Particularly active as a painter between 1756 and 1765, Buson gradually returned to haiku, leading a movement to return to the purity of Basho's style and to purge haiku of superficial wit. He married about 1760 and had one daughter, Kuno. In 1771 he painted a famous set of ten screens with his great contemporary Ike no Taiga, demonstrating his status as one of the finest painters of his time.
The poetry group that he formed published its first book in 1772. His haiku poems show a more objective, pictorial style than Basho's humane, wide-ranging work. While Basho taught, "Master technique, then forget it," Buson's technique is less transparent and his poems more consciously composed. He was a poet of enhanced sensibility and evocation.
In 1776 his group built a Bashoan (Basho house) for gatherings. Also, his daughter married that year, although this unhappy marriage grieved Buson. Despite his poetic brilliance, Buson was remembered more as a painter until essays by modern Japanese writers Masaoka Shiki and Hagiwara Sakutaro revived his reputation. Besides haiku, he wrote longer verse influenced by both Chinese and Japanese classics.
Buson's major contribution to haiku is his complexity and his painter's eye. His technical skill as an artist is reflected in the visual detail of his poetry.
Lighting One Candle
Lighting one candle
with another candle--
spring evening.
Harvest Moon
Harvest moon--
called at his house,
he was digging potatoes
Before The White Chrysanthemum
Before the white chrysanthemum
the scissors hesitate
a moment.
Calligraphy Of Geese
Calligraphy of geese
against the sky--
the moon seals it.
The Willow Leaves Fallen
The willow leaves fallen,
the spring gone dry,
rocks here and there.
Evening Wind
Evening wind:
water laps
the heron's legs.
The Spring Sea Rising
The spring sea rising
and falling, rising
and falling all day.
Jan 5, 2011
Jan 4, 2011
Home Remedies - Part 1
Home remedies have been passed down for generations. Sometimes they’re helpful, sometimes they’re down right outrageous. This series is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to home remedies. And it goes without saying that the remedies in this series are for entertainment purposes only.Acne
Take half a quarter Pound of Bitter Almonds, blanch, stamp them, and put them into half a pint of Spring-water, stir it together; and strain it out; then put to it a pennyworth of the Flour of Brimstone. Shake it well when you use, which must be often. Dab it on with a fine rag.
~The Complete Family Piece and Country Gentleman and Farmer’s Best Guide, 1741
Pound an orange peel with water on a piece stone and apply on acne affected areas. Orange peels are mildly acidic in nature and help to cleanse the skin of excess sebum.
You can make a face scrub out of gram flour and orange peels. Dry a few pieces of orange peel and grind them lightly so that you get a coarse powder. Mix this powder with an equal amount of gram flour and then add enough water to this powder to make it a thin paste. Massage your face with this paste and then leave it on for five minutes before rinsing it off with lukewarm or cold water.
Apply lemon juice and rose water in equal amount with a cotton ball and leave for half an hour, then wash. Repeat this remedy for 20-25 days. Lemon juice is acidic in nature and also contains Vitamin C which is beneficial to overall skin health.
If you have very sensitive skin, you can dilute the lemon juice with an equal amount of fresh mint leaf juice as this will help to reduce inflammation. This is also one of the popular home remedies for blackheads. Mix 3-4 drops of lemon juice in 1 tablespoon of sour cream, 1 tablespoon of yogurt and 1 tablespoon of grind oatmeal. Apply on face, leave the paste for 10-15 minutes and wash.
Garlic has been used successfully to heal acne. Rub with raw garlic several times a day. Garlic is known to have cured the toughest of acne problems. The outside use of garlic helps to clear the skin of spots, pimples and boils. Acne can be further cured by eating three seeds of raw garlic once on a daily basis for a month. This purifies the blood stream and ensures basic purification of blood keeping acne away. Garlic contains Allicin which is a natural antibiotic agent and this helps to prevent the spread of acne. If you have sensitive skin, you could add garlic juice to a spoon of yogurt and apply this mixture to your face. Yogurt contains several vitamins and healthy fatty acids and helps to moisturize your skin without making it oily.
Grated cucumber applied over the face, eyes, and neck for fifteen to twenty minutes has been found useful. It is the most excellent boost for the skin of the face. Its usual use prevents pimples and blackheads. Grated cucumber applied over the face, eyes, and neck for fifteen to twenty minutes has been found effective. It is the best tonic for your complexion. Its regular use prevents pimples and blackheads.
Cut a bean in half; place half of it on the pimple and bury the other half. The pimple will be gone in the morning.
~Cosmetic Recipes, 1759
Take small amount of ground almonds and honey and make a fine paste. Gently massage this paste on your face with a hot washcloth and then rinse with cold water.
Mix 1/2 cup mashed apple, 1/2 cup cooked oatmeal, 1 slightly beaten egg white and 1 tablespoon lemon juice into a fine paste and apply to your face for at least 15 minutes to 20 minutes and rinse with cold water.
Mix honey and cinnamon powder into a fine paste. Apply on the acne pimples before sleeping and wash it next morning with warm water. Repeat for 2-3 weeks, pimples will disappear forever.
A teaspoon of coriander juice, mixed with a pinch of turmeric powder, is an additional effective home medicine for pimples and blackheads. The combination should be applied to the face after carefully washing it each night before retiring. Mint juice can be used in a similar mode as coriander juice. This is one of the best home remedies for acne.
Fenugreek is a new useful therapy for acne. A paste made of the leaves of this vegetable, applied over the face each night before bed and washed with hot water in the morning, prevents pimples and blackheads.
Jan 3, 2011
Monism Monday
monism ~ belief that all things can be placed in one category
So, did everyone have a good New Year’s celebration? We had take-out pizza and watched the Boris Karloff DVD set the hubby got for Christmas. Real exciting stuff. :-)
I didn’t get nearly as much writing done over the holidays as I’d hoped, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Things just kept getting in the way. *shrugs* Such is life.
I did get the books set up for my business – it wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d anticipated. In fact, it was embarrassingly easy. Shouldn’t be any problem to keep them up to date either.
I also got the USB turntable set up, although not without a few . . . um . . . glitches. Now the big headache is, where to keep it when it’s not being used. It’s very light weight, so I’m all for putting up a shelf above the printer and putting it there so it can stay plugged into the computer. My husband thinks we should put it on the shelf up in the closet and just bring it down when we want to use it. My husband is not the one who will be hooking it up and unhooking it constantly.
Hey! Anyone want to read the beginning of a great thriller? Check out Angel Eyes by Alex Westhaven. New chapters are posted every Wednesday and Saturday. If the first chapter is any indication, it promises to be an exciting read!
This Week’s Goals:
Tuesday: I’m starting a new series this week, this one on herbal remedies. I think everyone has a favourite remedy or two, maybe even passed down from generation to generation.
Wednesday: Another Hump Day Hunk for your viewing pleasure.
Thursday: Part X , the final part, of my Famous Poets series will feature Yosa Buson, the Haiku master.
Friday: Chapter 5 of Fire. I think it’s time to get these two out of the cave and on their way.
Elsewhere in my week:
First meeting of the year – it being the first Monday of the month the Northumberland Scribes meet tonight.
Okay, I’m sure there’s more than just that going on this week, I mean besides my usual writing, editing, and reading (please note the order), but I can’t think of anything right now.
I’ll probably try recording a couple of my record albums, which also means I’ll be figuring out iTunes. Apparently there’s a way to set up a home account for different users in a family to access and I’d like to look into that. My husband and I will be sharing a computer for the music stuff and I’d like to keep our accounts separate (he already has his own iTunes account). Plus I have a $50 iTunes gift card to use. :-)
So, how about you? Any big plans for the first week of the new year?
So, did everyone have a good New Year’s celebration? We had take-out pizza and watched the Boris Karloff DVD set the hubby got for Christmas. Real exciting stuff. :-)
I didn’t get nearly as much writing done over the holidays as I’d hoped, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Things just kept getting in the way. *shrugs* Such is life.
I did get the books set up for my business – it wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d anticipated. In fact, it was embarrassingly easy. Shouldn’t be any problem to keep them up to date either.
I also got the USB turntable set up, although not without a few . . . um . . . glitches. Now the big headache is, where to keep it when it’s not being used. It’s very light weight, so I’m all for putting up a shelf above the printer and putting it there so it can stay plugged into the computer. My husband thinks we should put it on the shelf up in the closet and just bring it down when we want to use it. My husband is not the one who will be hooking it up and unhooking it constantly.
Hey! Anyone want to read the beginning of a great thriller? Check out Angel Eyes by Alex Westhaven. New chapters are posted every Wednesday and Saturday. If the first chapter is any indication, it promises to be an exciting read!
This Week’s Goals:
Tuesday: I’m starting a new series this week, this one on herbal remedies. I think everyone has a favourite remedy or two, maybe even passed down from generation to generation.
Wednesday: Another Hump Day Hunk for your viewing pleasure.
Thursday: Part X , the final part, of my Famous Poets series will feature Yosa Buson, the Haiku master.
Friday: Chapter 5 of Fire. I think it’s time to get these two out of the cave and on their way.
Elsewhere in my week:
First meeting of the year – it being the first Monday of the month the Northumberland Scribes meet tonight.
Okay, I’m sure there’s more than just that going on this week, I mean besides my usual writing, editing, and reading (please note the order), but I can’t think of anything right now.
I’ll probably try recording a couple of my record albums, which also means I’ll be figuring out iTunes. Apparently there’s a way to set up a home account for different users in a family to access and I’d like to look into that. My husband and I will be sharing a computer for the music stuff and I’d like to keep our accounts separate (he already has his own iTunes account). Plus I have a $50 iTunes gift card to use. :-)
So, how about you? Any big plans for the first week of the new year?
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