Month: October 2024

Today’s Poem: The Real and The Ideal by Owen Suffolk

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The Real and The Ideal

Owen Suffolk

I feel I have – and who has not?
An inner and outer life:
The one may be a dreary lot,
With sorrow and with suff’ring rife;
While in the other may be found
A magic world of fancies fair,
Where brightest dreams of joy abound,
And never enters dark despair.

The life I live may seem to those
Who gaze upon it outwardly
A drear existence, full of woes
And never-ceasing misery;
But in the mystic life of mind,
Abstracted from earth’s things of sense,
Oblivious to my grief, I find
A joy exalted and intense.

My outward life is prison-gloomed,
My life of dreams is fancy free;
The one is ever care-consumed,
The other tranquil as can be.
Existence that is sternly real
As mine would crush the heart with grief,
Were it not that the bright ideal
With visioned joy imparts relief.

There’s not a joy the world can give,
There’s not a bliss the heart has known,
But in the spirit life I live
I have the power to make my own.
I care not what my actual lot
While thus sustained my soul can be;
My sorrows shall be all forgot
In fairest dreams of poesy.

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Health Facts: What’s the Skinny on Whiskey?

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The relationship between drinking whisky (or any alcoholic beverage) and cancer is well-established in scientific research. Here are some key points that explain this connection:

  1. Carcinogenic Properties: Alcohol, including whisky, is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), meaning it is known to cause cancer in humans. Ethanol, the primary component in alcohol, gets metabolized into acetaldehyde, a toxic compound that can damage DNA and interfere with the body’s ability to repair damaged cells, leading to cancer development.
  2. Increased Risk of Certain Cancers: Regular alcohol consumption has been linked to an increased risk of several types of cancer, including:
    • Mouth, Throat, and Esophagus: Alcohol can irritate the cells lining these areas, increasing the risk of cancers in the upper digestive tract.
    • Liver: Chronic alcohol consumption is a major cause of liver cancer due to the damage it causes to liver cells over time.
    • Breast Cancer: Studies have shown that even moderate alcohol intake can increase the risk of breast cancer in women, likely due to alcohol’s effects on hormone levels, particularly estrogen.
    • Colorectal Cancer: There is evidence that alcohol consumption increases the risk of cancers in the colon and rectum.
  3. Synergistic Effect with Other Carcinogens: Alcohol can act as a solvent, helping harmful substances like tobacco-related carcinogens penetrate the cells lining the mouth, throat, and digestive tract. This is why the risk of cancer is significantly higher for those who both drink alcohol and smoke.
  4. Dose-Response Relationship: The risk of developing alcohol-related cancers increases with the amount of alcohol consumed over time. In other words, the more whisky (or alcohol in general) a person drinks, the higher their cancer risk. Even light or moderate drinking can elevate the risk, though heavy drinking poses the greatest danger.

Avoiding or limiting whisky consumption can help reduce the risk of these cancers and contribute to overall health.

Source: ChatGPT

Today’s Thought: Why Did You Do That?

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It’s nearly impossible to know why we do what we do. We may know why we do something some of the time. Other times, we may have no clue why we’re doing it. Are we doing it because we’ve always done it that way? Are we doing it because we’re fearful of what might happen if we don’t do it? Is it something we picked up by watching an alpha leader, aka mom or dad? Questions we can ask ourselves are, “Why am I doing this?” Is what I am doing no longer useful to me or others? Are there better alternatives? If we want to be free, we have to begin to question ourselves and our actions and be willing to change to something more beneficial.

Can You Solve this Anagram? 

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Daily anagram challenge! Sharpen your brain with today’s anagram puzzle. Unscramble the letters to reveal the hidden word or phrase, and submit your answer to see if you’re correct. Happy puzzling! 

Today’s Anagram:  

QUIZ START

Today’s Quote: Lessons to Live By

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“Touch the earth, speak of love, walk on common ground.” ~ Steven Van Zandt

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Today’s Poem: At Sunset by Olivia Ward Bush Banks

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At Sunset

Olivia Ward Bush Banks

I stood in the doorway at evening,
And I looked to the hills far away
Where the sun’s last rays seemed to linger,
Ere they faded in brilliant display.

Yes, lingered in beautiful splendor,
And the scene was rare to behold,
A pale blue sky was its back-ground,
With stretches of pink and gold.

What wonder that Nature’s rare beauty
So inspires the soul and thrills
Our beings with tender emotions,
As we look far away to the hills!

To the “hills” of which “David” has spoken,
“From whence comes my help,” said he,
And we have the same blest assurance,
As we gaze on their majesty.

And we think of the Power who formed them,
They seem like a tower of defence
To protect and to ward off the evil
Until we depart and go hence;

Where the sunlight fades not, but lingers,
And to-night my waiting soul thrills
As I stand in the doorway at sunset,
As I look far away to the hills.

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Health Facts: Two Important Reasons to Include Garlic in Your Diet

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Here are two important but lesser-known facts about the health benefits of including garlic in your diet:

1. Supports Gut Health by Promoting Good Bacteria

Garlic acts as a prebiotic, feeding beneficial gut bacteria and promoting a healthy gut microbiome. A well-balanced microbiome is crucial for digestion, immune function, and even mood regulation. Garlic’s natural compounds can enhance the growth of Lactobacillus and other good bacteria, contributing to overall gut health.

2. Helps Detoxify Heavy Metals from the Body

Garlic contains sulfur compounds, particularly allicin, which can help detoxify heavy metals like lead, mercury, and cadmium from the body. These sulfur compounds bind with heavy metals and support their elimination, reducing damage to organs like the liver and kidneys, particularly in people exposed to environmental toxins.

These benefits add to garlic’s better-known uses, such as improving heart health and boosting the immune system.

Source: ChatGPT

Today’s Joke: Joe Had a Bad Breakup

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Joe: “I broke up with my girlfriend and texted her, “You can take me off of speed dial.”

Pete: “Did she respond?”

Joe: “She text back, “Who is this?”

Today’s Thought: When Destiny Knocks, Open the Doo

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Sometimes the answer to the question, what am going to do with my life comes as a flash and we know in that instant what we are going to do with our life. Other times the answer to the question of what am I going to with my life slowly unfolds and is more like peeling an onion one layer at a time. It really doesn’t matter how or when we recognize it, what is matters is that we recognize it when it knocks on our door. It’s not something that keeps returning or will wait for us until youvwe feel you are ready. When destiny knocks leap and grab hold of it. It is your chance to do and become what you were to do and become.

Can You Solve this Anagram?

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Daily anagram challenge! Sharpen your brain with today’s anagram puzzle. Unscramble the letters to reveal the hidden word or phrase, and submit your answer to see if you’re correct. Happy puzzling! 

Today’s Anagram:  

QUIZ START

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