Big Dave's Party Barn

Bloody mess

2023-03-17T08:31:00.002-07:00

A follow-up. I've been following a low fodmap diet for 4 weeks now. I'm still bleeding. Maybe that's from oatmeal. Maybe it's from all the lettuce I've been eating. It could also be from the chicken noodle soup. I'm going to have a donut when I go home. I bought donuts for Hazel's birthday after playing basketball this morning. I would like to start eating wheat again. Since I don't think that's my problem, I'll reintroduce it. This morning I came in for a follow up visit with a nurse practitioner. Apparently there was a mix-up and I was only supposed to come in after my endoscopy and colonoscopy. So, I'll schedule both now. The endoscopy is to check my throat to see why I have trouble swallowing sometimes. That will go through my stomach and into the upper part of my upper intestine. The colonoscopy of course will go into the lower part of my upper intestine. They'll probe me from both ends. If I'm lucky, it will be at the same time. I am supposed to be taking citucil but I remember now why I didn't want to. If is citrus based, it will to right through me. I'm going to not have soup for a couple of days and just have salad. I had a couple of days where I ate oat squares or cheerios for breakfast, then Sunday made a smoothie with mandarins in it. I've been heavily bleeding bright red with some clots since then. If I can figure out how to stop the bleeding, I think I can just avoid lactose in the future and be all right.

Bloody shite

2023-03-14T19:33:00.002-07:00

Okay, here goes. A few years ago, 25 to be exact, I started getting hemorrhoids. I was in the missionary training center in Provo, UT, and eating as much as I wanted the times a day, then sitting most of the rest of the day on class. Pretty much after each meal, I'd spend some time in the bathroom. I've been known my whole life to take a while in the bathroom defecating. So, I spent about 20 minutes after most meals in the bathroom for 10 weeks. During that time was the first time I remember having blood occasionally in the toilet. Come to find out, it was from the lack of fiber and all the creepy food I was eating. Were there better choices than what I always ate? Most likely, but I was taking an opportunity to eat what I typically want able to eat growing up because we just didn't have those foods. It was good food. Later on, I started getting hemorrhoids again, while in Peru. I wasn't sure why. I spoke with my mission president's wife, who had been a nurse before retiring. She told me to not strain, don't hold it, and eat more fiber (maybe that last part, not sure). Why had the hemorrhoids flared up again? I'm not sure. It could have something to do with stress. It could have been because I was finally eating well again - avocados every meal for about a month along with cheese and bread. I gained 40 pounds in 3 months. It was awesome. I say awesome because I had lost 30 pounds in the previous couple of months from a gastrointestinal bug. The place we had been eating our meals had been giving us water straight from the tap, no boiling. All 4 of us, Peruvians and North Americans were dying. We all had diarrhea. We all had to go all the times. Very sick. Anyway, I don't know what caused the flare ups. When I returned home, off and on, I would have flare ups. Over the next 15 years, the times I would end up with diarrhea and/or blood in the water, would increased in frequency. In 2017 or so, I created a sourdough starter, made sourdough waffles and/bread each weekend. After a few months of this, I had broken out with zits on my arse and thighs. I also had a bad itchy butt with a rash. I finally went to the doctor. He prescribed some cream and antibiotics then send me to a proctologist or whatever butt doctors are called. She gave me a colonoscopy, and I made her laugh by having Heather draw a scream face with my hole being the mouth. My butthole is now apparently famous as a picture on their office wall. Anyway, nothing was found other than some polyps that were ligated and fell off after a few days. I don't really want to have to do that again anytime soon. So, last year, when I decided to take care of my allergies and get allergy shots, I asked the allergist about my reactions to citrus and oatmeal. He referred me to talk with a gastroenterologist. Almost 1 year later, I talked with one. Oh, I almost forgot, over the past two years or so, I realized what foods make me bleed or have explosive or violent diarhea. Every time I ate too much oatmeal, pretty much in any form, it rips through me. Any time I have any citrus, especially mandarins, I bleed, quite a bit. Citrus is worse than oatmeal. I realized this after two different backpacking trips where I took a bag of cuties. I love oranges and citrus, but after spending too much time squatting over a cat hole and using wet wipes to take care of any diarhea and blood, I came to realize what they were doing to me. So, I no longer eat oatmeal or oat whatever if I can help it unless it's in small quantities and infrequently. I also don't have citrus. Except for the other day. I'll come back to that. Back to the enterologist. He said I most likely have Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). He gave me a list of foods to avoid and some to try. 6 week cleanse and elimination diet. It's pretty difficult and I'm not following it completely because I just can't avoid spices as much as I'm supposed to. It's basically a low FODMAP diet. The other day I decided to make a smoothie for the whole family using some rice dream "milk" (I don't like it as it tastes like oil, which is a main ingredient, Yuck!). I added some frozen mandarins in there as they kids love to have orange juice concentrate in their smoothies or else they don't drink it. They didn't drink it anyway as they didn't like it and I did. The next day I spent too much time in the bathroom losing lots of blood. Luckily(?), because the blood is bright, it's from the colon or lower intestine area, not from above or in the stomach. No ulcers, people! In just a few days, I'll go for my follow-up appointment with the gastroenterologist and we'll talk about a few things. I have been keeping a food and poop journal again the last 3-4 weeks. I'll share this with him on Friday. He also gave me some antibiotics to clean everything up and start over. Another thing that happened was they did some labs and I had really low levels of iron and B12. Shocker! Iron deficiency comes from not being able to absorb (if you are ingesting enough foods with iron) because of low B12. B12 deficiency comes from not being able to absorb it in the intestines. This is what we have to figure out, why can I not absorb it? I figured I was iron deficient because of fatigue and blood loss, so I have been taking iron. This is no fun. I don't know when I'll be able to eat citrus or oatmeal again, but I want to get fixed so that I can. That's it for now. Will update later.

Outdoor Movie Calendar

2022-06-11T16:54:00.005-07:00

webcam home surveillance

2012-09-03T10:31:00.002-07:00

http://www.ilovefreesoftware.com/05/windows/5-best-free-webcam-surveillance-software.html

Mittleider gardening method

2012-09-03T10:17:00.004-07:00

www.growfood.com

Straw bale and adobe homes

2012-09-03T10:17:00.000-07:00

Here is your straw bale house supplier

I thought you'd like this:
http://soc.li/qBsfpAM

Organization builds straw bale homes, replacing dilapidated houses | ksl.com
In Moab, a new program is taking a unique approach to affordable housing that cuts heating and cooling by 80 percent.

http://inhabitat.com/

http://www.strawbale.com/

http://www.deepgreenarchitecture.com/adobe.html

These are the starting blocks for a good house design and build.

Here you go. Interesting sites.

http://www.papercrete.com/home.html

Check out a Walipini, google it. Then, check out these websites. This is right along the lines of what you are doing.
www.growutahfirst.com

These people have straw bale house plans and much experience building with them. I don't think I would build like this if there were a chance of flood where I lived, though.
www.strawbaleplans.com

Tomato Problems

2012-09-03T10:10:00.002-07:00

http://www.maine.gov/agriculture/pesticides/gotpests/diseases/tomato-problems.htm

Problems I've had

Tomato leaf Spot
Blossom End rot - too frequent watering
Sunscald - too few leaves
Catfacing - caused by cold weather at the time of blossom set

http://askville.amazon.com/blossoms-tomato-plants-falling/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=2543700

Blossom-drop - caused by irregular temperatures (pollination can only occure between 55 and 90 degrees.

Water deep once a week, mulch heavily, establish windbreaks, don't use excessive nitrogen

tomato leaf curl

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_causes_leaf_curl_on_tomato_plants

Leaves curl naturally when too hot, too dry, to windy, when conditions are not optimal
Curling with no other problems is natural
Sever pruning will do it, but they will recover soon

Harvesting and Storing Onions

2011-11-12T12:20:00.001-08:00

I got the following from a reliable source (noted at bottom).

Since I was told by my wife recently (today) that the basement storage area was beginning to smell like onions and she thought some were sprouting, I went down there to check it out. I guess it's still not cold enough down there for storing the onions or maybe I didn't let them dry out sufficiently or the tops were too thick. I'm not sure. Over half of them had sprouted and I wish I could plant them in the garden again right now (except she already won't use/eat the ones we have).

Harvesting and Storing Onions

Many varieties of onions can be grown in the home garden.

Note to media editors: This is the Garden Column for the week beginning July 31.

7/27/2009

By Richard Jauron
Extension Horticulturalist
Iowa State University
Onions are a staple in the kitchen. They’re also easy to grow. If properly harvested, cured, and stored, gardeners can enjoy homegrown onions through much of fall and winter.
Onions should be harvested when most of the tops have fallen over and begun to dry. Carefully pull or dig the bulbs with the tops attached.
After harvesting, dry or cure the onions in a warm, dry, well-ventilated location, such as a shed or garage. Spread out the onions in a single layer on a clean, dry surface. Cure the onions for two to three weeks until the onion tops and necks are thoroughly dry and the outer bulb scales begin to rustle. After the onions are properly cured, cut off the tops about 1 inch above the bulbs. As the onions are topped, discard any that show signs of decay. Use the thick-necked bulbs as soon as possible as they don’t store well. An alternate preparation method is to leave the onion tops untrimmed and braid the dry foliage together.
Place the cured onions in a mesh bag, old nylon stocking, wire basket, or crate. It’s important that the storage container allow air to circulate through the onions. Store the onions in a cool, moderately dry location. Storage temperatures should be 32 to 40 degrees F. The relative humidity should be 65 to 70 percent. Possible storage locations include a basement, cellar, or garage. Hang the braided onions from a rafter or ceiling. Since the temperature in an unheated garage may fall well below 32 degrees F, an alternate storage site will be needed when bitterly cold weather arrives.
The storage life of onions is determined by the variety and storage conditions. When properly stored, good keepers, such as Copra and Sweet Sandwich, can be successfully stored for several months. Poor keepers, such as Walla Walla and Sweet Spanish, can only be stored for a few weeks. If the storage temperatures are too warm, the onions may sprout. Rotting may be a problem in damp locations. Inspect the stored onions on a regular basis in fall and winter. Discard any that are starting to rot.
On a cold, snowy day, it’s nice to be able to go to the basement or cellar and grab an onion and prepare a pot of stew or chili. That and numerous other culinary delights are possible when onions are harvested and stored properly.

-30-

Contacts :
Richard Jauron, Horticulture, (515) 294-1871, rjauron@iastate.edu
Del Marks, Extension Communications, (515) 294-9807, delmarks@iastate.edu

De Quervain's Syndrome

2011-10-13T19:24:00.001-07:00

Video

Welcome to the jungle!!! Mid August in the garden

2011-08-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

I took a couple of pictures of the garden today to show the growth of some of the plants. The beans are too tall for Heather to pick now. The cucumbers and squash are hiding out to where we can't see them until they're huge (I may need to space things out a little more next year). The beans are too close together also because the beans are just a little too sparse.

I have a couple of tomato plants that aren't doing so well. I don't know if they are diseased, aren't getting sufficient water, determinate, or something else. I'm not very good at diagnosing problems yet.
Without further explanations, here are the pictures. Comparing them to last month's, I can definitely see some major growth. Remember, the cross members on my trellises are at least 8' high (I just measured to double check).

Straight shot down the two tomato rows.

Side view of the tomatoes. Two of the plants on the left side aren't doing so hot. See the three empty rows in front of the tomatoes? I pulled the onions and peas up and put sweet potato slips in the onion row and salad stuffs in the peas' rows.

This is our fence of pumpkin. Kind of difficult to see, but there are two large pumpkins (princess pumpkins) tied up to the fence with row covers for support. See the trellises for corn and beans on the left? Very tight squeeze to pick them.

Here's a bad shot of the okra we have growing with the sweet potatoes and Tigger Melons.

Our fence of cucumbers on the left, watermelon on the right with Tigger Melons and other winter squash creeping in on the right. On the left in front are purple potatoes of which I dug up a couple of plants to create access to the cucumbers. They were awfully small still.

Our corn and beans with the okra in the foreground.

How my garden grows!

2011-08-01T20:26:00.000-07:00

I went all out this year with my tomatoes and beans since last year the cages, the towers, the poles, the nylon trellis, and the 10 foot stakes weren't enough. So, I have posted some pictures of what my garden looks like and what I did to alleviate the lack of space I have and the super tall, long plants I tend to grow. I'm not sure whether it is the watering scheme, the soil, fertilizer, or something else, but they seem to grow very well.
The garden is 12x40 and this spring I put in 3 yards of compost (about 4 inches deep) and 7 yards of very poor clay-like topsoil. When I tilled the garden, the tiller didn't get quite deep enough to mix up the compost with the topsoil and then I made mounds which made the topsoil even deeper where the plants were. It took everything about a month of growing before it hit the compost I think.
All right, here are the pictures. These were taken last week. I will post some more in another month probably.

This is a shot straight down my two rows of tomatoes. The vertical studs are 10 ft stuck in the ground about 2 feet and the spanners are 12 ft. The spanners are located on the cross members with wooden dowels just to hold them in place.

Here's the side shot of the tomatoes. The cross members are only there for support on the bottom and stability. The top cross members are there to rest the spanner on. The spanner, as you can see, has the twine tied to it. The twine was tied to the spanner and left to hang.

These are some of the glads we grew in the flower bed by the back fence. Note the fence is a 6' tall fence.

This is a close up of a tomato plant with the clips in place. I bought the clips from Amazon I think, 100 for $26. They clamp onto the twine and support the tomato plant stretching the twine and bringing the tomato plant straight up. It requires training and clipping all side shoots from the tomato plants. For some plants I let one shoot near the bottom grow. With 18 plants, I have now 30 or so vines.

I have four rows of corn and pole beans. The beans are using the corn and the twine to get vertical. These are also 10 ft studs stuck in the ground about 2 feet. It may be difficult to see, but there are pumpkins, spaghetti and butternut squash behind and kind of intertwined with the corn and beans.

This is straight between two rows of beans and corn. I obviously planted my rows too close together again as I can barely walk between the rows. The difficult part about harvesting will be to reach the top of the vines.

Gospel Questions and Answers

2010-10-24T16:59:00.000-07:00

Key Text
"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people," Revelation 14:6
(courtesy of http://www.finalevents.com/Event3/america-in-prophecy.asp)

I'm not sure whether to post these here or in a totally separate blog, but for now, I think this will work. I have a friend, Travis, who a few years back, posed some questions to me about the gospel of Jesus Christ, or about the Church. I answered his questions to the best of my ability at the time, but not to my satisfaction or evidently to his either. Some of the questions led me to ask questions which in turn helped me to learn more. At the time, I really couldn't delve very deeply into answering all his questions or taking the time to really search out all the answers that he wanted. I was starting graduate school, a new job, marriage and the like. Now that I'm finished with school and I've read a little more, I think it's imperative I revisit these questions.

This means that for a while, on this blog and perhaps on a different blog in the future, I will post the questions he asked me and reply to the best of my ability as well as I can.

Just problems with Blogger

2010-01-09T21:27:00.001-08:00

You know when you say, "here, let me drive for a minute. I want to try something," and the next minute you click on something and "poof," everything disappears? That's what happened. Trying to get rid of the message from pyzam.com at the top of the blog, I basically deleted the template, or tried to change it. I only clicked ok after I read the message that I could retrieve the settings if I didn't like the changes....
That was a lie. After that, there were no options for changing settings, layout, etc. No more widgets, sidebars or favorite sites. No more baby countdown. Let's just say a total meltdown.
When all was lost, I went online and searched for, "I changed my template how do I retrieve it." Can you guess what site I found that way? Check this out: http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/blogger/thread?tid=214da3255f15510f&hl=en.
These people were all having the same problems we just experienced, all the way back in November of 2009. But, it seems that blogger got right on top of things and fixed it. It only took a little while.

How did we fix it? Heather clicked on the link that said, "upgrade your template" or settings or something like that. This time the message stated you would probably lose a lot of settings. Well, she figured, what's to lose after I've already lost this? So she clicked. Problem practically solved. All options for layout were back. The only thing missing...some of her profile??? Why I don't know.
All in all, all's well that ends with me not in the dog house, and my wife actually coming to bed before midnight in a good mood.

First post

2010-01-09T20:58:00.001-08:00

This is my first post. I just ruined, so it seems, my wife's blog. Now I am testing out things with this blog. So I don't ruin hers again in the future.