Ultradian Rhythm

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Ultradian Rhythm

Do you wake up, chug some coffee, and fling yourself into a nonstop day of meetings, classes, pick ups and drop offs and before you know it you’re too tired for yoga class, order a pizza on the way home, eat dinner in a haze and at bedtime you’re too wired and tired to sleep, much less have sex? Did you use the bathroom today? Do you remember?

The human body is designed with a 90 to 120 minute attention span, called our Ultradian Rhythm cycle and when we ignore it and override our circuits, we get tired, thirsty, foggy, hungry and cranky.

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Often we reach for Coffee, sugar or carbs for a lift, when what we really need is to STOP. Ideally we should be taking a 15 to 20 minute break in the morning and afternoon. The best case scenario is to lie down in a dark room. At the office? Try tilting the chair back and wear a pair of blue glasses to stop the overstimulation of the lights. Ok maybe I’m stretching, but did you pee this morning? How about a trip to the bathroom and a glass of water. Grab a healthy snack like nuts or nut butter and an apple. Or call, or Skype a friend, call not text, I’m talking about heart connection here, stepping away resets your brain. Leave your to do list alone. Go sit in your car and close your eyes. Your brain will thank you and you will perform better for it. Some employers are creating dark break rooms, because the rewards are that great. The funny thing is children do this naturally, watch your kids, sometimes that’s when you get the best hugs.

The all new Braun MQ777

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I live by design and beautiful delicious food makes me happy. My first Braun Hand Mixer made a batch of hummus just before mother’s day, then lay down and died. I got that mixer as a wedding gift in 1993. It was part of my family. 

Braun had taken a rest from the US market. The De’Longhi Group acquired the perpetual license of the household division in fall 2012 and now….Braun is back! The New products are in keeping with the Braun tradition started in 1921 by Max Braun for product design founded on simplicity, purity and functionality that makes the user experience completely intuitive. 

After tasting an entire brunch from Eggs Onsen Style with hollandaise to the Viennese Iced Coffee created on site under the watchful eye of Chef Eduard Frauneder made with the new collection was so delicious I could hardly wait to test drive the MQ777 (So James Bond!!) myself.The only struggle to set up required two foodies with advanced college degrees to remove the paper and the rest was a breeze. Papaya, ginger, lime, jalapeno smoothie followed up with a fava bean and spring pea hummus to accompany a chopped chicken salad with shredded, beets, carrot, fennel, radicchio and endive, dressed with miso vinaigrette and topped with toasted slivered almonds was a dream to prepare. 

The new Braun hand blender is built to give the user more control, featuring a brand new Smart Speed variable control technology inspired by German automotive engineering – allowing you to intuitively change the speed and power of the hand blender using just your touch. The more you squeeze, the more power you get, making it easy to regulate speeds with just one hand. Braun also developed and applied an exclusive PowerBell Technology for the Multiquick hand blenders, combining durable stainless steel blades, super easy to use, change and clean, and a unique bell-shaped blending shaft for fast and finer results – pushing your mixture inside the bell instead of toward the edges of your mixing bowl. 

The Braun Multiquick 7 Hand Blender (model MQ777) comes complete with five attachments, along with the anti-splash shaft – including a whisk, masher, food processor and 20 fl. oz. beaker and the EasyClick system, ensures that all attachments can be removed in one simple click
The Multiquick Hand Blenders, PureMix Countertop Blenders and BrewSense Drip Coffee Makers are available at national retailers and online from 69.95 to 159.99

FDA Healthy Food Guidelines

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Today, the FDA says its going to need a few more years to get a grip on what’s healthy and what’s not. Like Frosted flakes are ok but the jury is out on salmon, nuts and avocados. Really? How many times does the clue phone have to ring? We are responsible for our own bodies and everybody’s body is different. Now hear this: Frosted Flakes, much as I love them, and I do love them and Tony The Tiger too, are not healthy food. Corn, GMO Corn and sugar are going to make you fat, cranky and sick. That’s the real truth. Somebody has to tell you and that somebody is ME.

My private clients are well aware that we must take charge of our own health. National statistics declaring we are a sick society, and getting sicker, are skyrocketing and if you have been waiting for the US government to tell you what to eat, you will get, be or stay sick. Your brain wont function as it should, you will get fat, depressed and ultimately sick. We are talking obesity, heart disease, diabetes and Cancer, just for starters.  Then you will be subjected to the medical system of medications that mask your symptoms, don’t make you well and feeds the fatcat salaries of Big Pharma.

Come on, be your own person. Get your head out of the sand. Take charge of your health. The human body is designed to heal itself. Every time you put something in your mouth you have the opportunity to feed your body, mind and soul. That’s what makes and keeps you well.  Food is meant to stimulate your brain. Anticipation triggers your nervous system. Smelling and seeing a beautiful plate of food stimulates your digestive juices. Chewing your food well breaks down the fibers and allows your digestive juices to do their job, so your body can absorb the nutrients and process the wastes, giving you the proper amount of time to feel satiated and satisfied.

If you are waiting for the Government to tell you what’s right for your body, you could wait a very long time and given the state of our political system and the current election dog and pony show…. well, I think I’ve said enough!

Samsung Family Hub

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On May 4, 2016 Samsung announced the arrival of the Samsung Family Hub™ refrigerator.  A 21.5 inch full HD LCD screen is the refrigerator’s digital command center connecting to your iOs or Android smart phone. Now you can share calendars, photos and notes; and see the inside of your fridge with your smartphone while grocery shopping. The Family Hub™ has speakers; you can listen to your favorite music and never miss a moment of Cookie Lyons on Empire again, just because you have to baste.

Freud suggests the kitchen is the womb and so the fridge becomes the center of our universe and food is a metaphor to fulfill and gratify our hunger for love and desires.  The Samsung Family Hub™takes our already complex relationship with food and comingles it with technology.

In the movie HER, Theodore Twombly/Joaquin Phoenix falls madly in love with his computer, Samantha/Scarlet Johanssen knowing that everything he loves about HER was made in a factory.
I get it. This fridge can keep track of schedules, photos, artwork, tap into the Internet, check news and weather and connect you to:
Instacart – The leading national online grocery delivery service, delivering groceries from your favorite stores straight to your door in as little as one hour. 
Groceries by MasterCard – Order groceries online from leading retailers like Fresh Direct and ShopRite and pay for them through a simple, single check-out with any U.S.-issued credit or debit cards
Allrecipes – Access recipes rated and reviewed by millions of cooks, as well as cooking advice tips and how-to videos.
Shopping List – Compile and keep track of your grocery lists, which seamlessly sync between fridge and smartphone.
Food Reminders – Use the Family Hub™ screen or your smartphone to drag and drop expiration dates to the image of items inside to know what needs to be used, and by when.
Fridge Manager – Easily control the refrigerator and freezer temperatures, and check the status of the water filter.

I’m feeling an attachment already. For my 6K and an Amazon Prime delivery of fingerprint cleaner for the stainless or black stainless finish, what I really want to know is, can someone hack my fridge and have it squeal on who took the last cupcake? Will my fridge support me in my latest diet regime?  Is this refrigerator really my friend?
What about privacy? Under the guise of when will the milk expire will I have to put a security lock on my notes and calendars? Have I gone too far? Never mind what could happen to our relationship if the power goes out. Who will I get to fix it? Only Theodore Twombly knows for sure.

Michael Feinstein - Delightfully Unexpected

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Did you ever go somewhere expecting to do or see something and have a completely unexpected experience? Recently a friend called with a last minute invitation to see Michael Feinstein at Carnegie Hall. I love Feinstein. I love Gershwin. It had been a hectic time and I blurted out a "Yes", without thinking about how tired I was until I found myself in a taxi in yet another New York City snowstorm.

Shana Alexander

Shana Alexander

We got settled in our seats and Feinstein did as only Feinstein can do. He sang, taught, cajoled, mesmerized and entertained us. I found myself swaying to the music and so true to Gershwin and Astaire; I journeyed back to my first wedding. It was East Hampton, in the garden of Shana Alexander. A woman who helped shape my very soul. Shana was the first female journalist on CBS 60 minutes Point/Counterpoint with James J. Kilpatrick. And she wrote the book 'Very Much A Lady' about Jean Harris, my first mother-in-law. Hers was an extraordinary career. But always, she was the daughter of Milton Ager, who wrote the songs, 'Ain't She Sweet' and 'Happy Days Are Here Again'.

Shana had known Michael since he was a teenager and introduced me to him many years ago when we all made the pilgrimage from East Hampton to see him at The Regency with Jean for her birthday. After the Carnegie Hall performance we were fortunate enough to go backstage for a brief moment. I had a chance to share with him a special someone we had in common. Our eyes met and we both drifted to a place we hadn’t expected to go that day. 

Troll at Fairway - Broadway & 75th NYC

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"Scraggly bits hung from the Carcass"

"Scraggly bits hung from the Carcass"

I am having 'a hate on' for Fairway on Broadway and 75th. The crowd is so aggressive, 'God Forbid' you forget something in the front and have to make your way back for a pound of coffee. They should have signs like at the toll booth “do not back up”.

The produce is of mediocre quality and the refrigeration is inconsistent rendering fragile greens spoiled well before their due date from the moisture content rising in the plastic tubs. The loose greens are over refrigerated and are thus tasteless and limp.

My experience with the butcher was so unpleasant it could put me off my feed all over again. After perusing the cases of organic chicken I politely asked the butcher for a bird under 3 lbs. He pointed to the case and told me to look again that’s all the organic chickens. After receiving no help from the masked and hooded worker arranging chicken parts I chose one and asked the butcher to please butterfly it for me. His head went back down and he continued trimming a rack of chops before grabbing my bird without so much as a nod. I said I would continue shopping and be back in 10 minutes. When I returned he slapped the loosely wrapped and hastily stickered package into my hand and did not reply to my thank you.

Back home I discovered the back was snapped but the bones had not been removed. Scraggly bits hung from the carcass and the neck was hastily stuffed inside, piercing the cavity. No giblets or liver. Where I come from, butterfly means to remove the bones. I had to do it myself which is what I was trying to avoid in the first place.

When I phoned the store it took several tries to speak to a manager and he couldn’t have been less interested.

 

Women's Sexual Health

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FDA approved Viagra on March 27, 1998. On CNN's Larry King Live show, former presidential nominee Bob Dole admits he took part in experimental trials for Viagra, calling it "a great drug." In December of 1998: Pfizer announces it has hired Bob Dole as a spokesperson.

On August 19, 2003: The FDA approves Bayer Corporation's vardenafil hydrochloride, sold under the brand name Levitra, to treat erectile dysfunction in men. Cialis was the third drug for ED to receive approval by the FDA at the end of November 21, 2003. Cialis is manufactured by Lilly ICOS LLC.

In 2008, The Washington Post reports that the CIA is using Viagra to gain friends in Afghanistan. "While the CIA has a long history of buying information with cash, the growing Taliban insurgency has prompted the use of novel incentives and creative bargaining to gain support in some of the country's roughest neighborhoods, according to officials directly involved in such operations."

2011: A federal judge extends Pfizer's U.S. patent for Viagra, making sure generic brands cannot come to market until 2019, according to the Wall Street Journal.

By 2012 there were 8 million sales of Viagra resulting in $2 Billion revenue.

So, in the 16 years and billions of dollars in revenues since Viagra was approved by the FDA, how is it we women are now having a full on battle for FDA approval of flibanserin, the one drug that has the potential to help millions of women all over the world with Sexual Dysfunction. That means millions of women with no libido may once again have the option to fulfill their god given right to be a sexual being. Just like men.

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Why do women have to fight for everything? Who started the rumor that we don’t love it if we didn’t have to work for it? The general opinion is flibanserin is for women in peri menopause and menopause that may be experiencing a lack of desire for sex. News flash, this is not about boomers wondering where their next boom is coming from. The bottom line is that women between 18 and 36 that are experiencing the greater diagnoses of Sexual Dysfunction.

How is it that young women all over the world, in their sexual and reproductive prime are just plain old not interested in sex? Oh there are ever so many reasons but lets not go there right now, but lets stay focused on why we should even have to wait or wonder why we don’t have as many options as men, again.

Dig this. This drug has been tested on over 11,ooo women. Initial resistance suffered arguments at hearings such as the concern that women who use this drug most likely drink alcohol and so, might abuse the drug or be less than responsible with this prescription medication. What, like no guy has ever come back from the Pharmacy and said to his buddies, “ Hey look what I got, you want one?” or “ Hey, that was fun let's try two!”

Piffle, there is a drug for men with ED on the market that has barely 100 test cases and is slated for approval. The drug is to help those men afflicted with a crooked penis. The side effects include the possibility that the drug could cause the penis to explode.

Are you kidding me?

Really what is the old boy network so afraid of? That women of all ages will suddenly be sexually active again and that Viagra sales will fall as the heart attack rate rises putting a strain on our men of fighting age? The sheer dollars alone could eliminate illiteracy in the female population on a global level and you can rest assured that if anyone’s vagina explodes that we girls will form together in sisterhood to get her a new one.

You simply cannot make this stuff up.