Month: April 2020

Get a little crazy …

  1. Create out of boredom — Lockdown may not be the “introvert’s paradise” as once thought according to a recent MIT technology review. Since librarians tend to be more introverted, they actually took the time to put all these books in order … wow, that’s crazy !
  2. Transform our lives — Some think it’s crazy to “live” more from our internet connections than be “in touch” with the real world. A lot can be said about this… it seems the Matrix is becoming a closer reality. Scary. Several articles are written about how things will be “different” and how we need to transform our thinking (see April VOX article featured in Apple News). Though I did like the idea of change in the context of young people building resilience by building educational partners, presented by Harvard Professor Gil Noam who represents the PEAR Institute.
  3. Dreams — It was just a dream. I thought I was losing my mind when I was holding and reading an upside down newspaper written in hieroglyphics, while all these cars were leaving a parking lot quicker than I could count to ten. It is as if Walmart or Public were having a sell-out. I woke up realizing that this was a lucid dream and it is not unlike what people have been reporting they experience due to Covid19 (see National Geographic article)
  4. Health illiteracy — I realize how much people follow their leader but to the point of over 100 people calling in a hotline in Maryland (US) asking for the medicine that Trump prescribed? That is absolutely nuts, …see article in Business Insider. Definitely shows how health illiterate and outright dangerous people can be. Guess what people ? They’ve cut the chloroquine studies short due to safety concerns so please don’t go there!
  5. Funny dances in home. I mimicked something from this Fortnite character called “Deadpool”. Well at least Fortnite is trying to promote physical activity! or how about doing a line dance or better yet a “line” dance as you are on hold for those 30 minutes waiting to get your order in… the experience can be exhausting and then when it arrives the quality is questionable….
  6. Business and socializing — two sides of the coin. It turns out that constant online work is exhausting . However if you space things right you’ll be less crazy and more happy as it’s a “coping” tool. I had TWO online friend meetings in one day. Coffee ☕️ by day and Champagne 🍾 by night! Hey it might be one of my only Friday eves I actually “found” time. Yes we know our brain is tired from those little screens …. use Zoom to your benefit! We had a friend’s meeting with champagne or wine in our favorite crystal glasses. Time zone difference did not matter. One friend was baking her awesome cookies while another celebrated her teen son’s birthday (mind you he was having another party with his friends on-line I’m the room next door). Then there are those ZOOM parties and how to host them…..
ZOOM Trivia, crazy stuff!
Like tulips in the Springtime…. FLOWERBAR in Alimos

Caution Caution no health literacy alert! Be careful what you drink….

No Trump Cocktail for me …thank you

“Oh we’re never gonna survive unless we get a little crazy “… lyrics of SEAL “Crazy” hit me every day as we are almost at almost 2 months of lockdown.
Some crazy 😜 tips to help your days …like
we did and still more to come . Oh yeah my fish “Tiko” has a new bodyguard in the form of a nutty bird …

In all seriousness now. It is almost two months later in Lockdown. We are doing our best despite the long-term economic “slaps” we have been given, especially by the EU! This latest Bloomberg article talks about the “humbled Greeks” teaching the world about lockdown and Covid19. OR is it a bit of “learned helplessness”? Despite constant “punches” resilience building dictates that for us to survive we need to have health literacy!

The country’s HLS-EU data dictates that half of the people are considered health literate though there are declines in the over 50 years old groups and those less educated groups (no surprise). Thus why reading about aging and caretaking can take it’s toll….. check out the book chapter in the International Handbook of Health Literacy!

AntigoneD with “Cousteau”… her hair even matches with the flowers 🌺, crazy!

LOVE THOSE PETS, The flowers, the hair! I am in with the creative genius Antigone D… thinking of some good stuff to share with you in the near future…

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Roses are red, poppies are too…

Roses are red, the Poppies are too
It’s not just the red Easter eggs But also what you intend to do.

Red eggs tradition for Eastern Orthodox Easter
Poppies at Zeus sanctuary in Theision (Athens, GR). Courtesy of N. Pavlikaki, Arhchaeologist, Art Historian & Tourguide

Thank you to all the hospital 🏥 staff, RED Cross & Red Crescent. The majority are women. A reminder and thank you to our friends & family who continue to donate blood 🩸vital to emergency medicine. And yes we keep missing blood.

Thanks to all the street artists who help us stay positive and strong with inspiring artwork. Let’s fight this little bugger Covid19 and be grateful for all that we have learned.

Thanks to our hardworking parents and loving grandparents who manage to make us all happy with their oral histories and their special contributions.

Thank you to Ms. Penny who slaves away each year to make her Sweet Easter bread and cookies. She actually had the strength to give one of her baked goodies to our alcoholic neighbor in the midst of his yelling randomly (loneliness my friends is a human’s worst experience…..as we are social creatures). Guess what? It worked and he finally quieted down.

This my friends is “the way” and why we need guidance and light no matter how “dark” our days and nights are. We hope they all stay healthy and strong as we push forward to a cure .

The importance of light

One month in quarantine. There is light at the end of the tunnel with the Covid19 insanity and seemingly as some experts say there are some medications in the works (see Vox post). There are many side effects with some people, and individual differences with treatment (I do not want to talk vaccine as the nature of this disease transforming into subtypes is very concerning), and confusion of symptoms see blog post by Paleohacks.

Until then it’s important to keep up with keeping healthy in these seemingly “dark” hours, remember to follow the rainbow after the storm. Keep building immunity, walk daily at least 20 minutes in your home (loved this 15 minute video), on sunlit days at a distance, in your neighborhood away from that screen! With or without your pet or kids. Slow or fast, just keep it up!

You can see, learn, and run into amazing nature! Even people you know !

I am running-walking more despite the fact I have more online work staying up later, as we all lose our patience, gaining a few pounds /kilos! As each year we picked our chamomile — that wonder herb that can be even used as an antiseptic eye compress (see Spring pickings). This time closer to home as all are cleaner due to less traffic! It’s amazing to see how nature should be. We all need to do immunity building and social (physical) distancing.

A Poppy for your thoughts…

Sunlight makes our world function as it is important for plant photosynthesis, it increases our melatonin (the brain hormone Serotonin goes up and is important for mood and sleep), increasing doses of vitamin D for better health! Those of us who suffer from seasonal affective disorder understand this well. Some who do get enough light may need special lamps in darker winter months. And as experts recommend it’s the “blue light” that matters in light therapy.

Do you also know that sunlight disinfects? It is a Greek term called heliotherapy so it’s a good idea to hang out your clothes (even your shoes sole side up), sleep blankets, comforters, and pillows for a natural “bug killer”. My good ER doctor friend in the frontlines (🙏we pray for her!) and also has her own site healthyselfhealthyworld, uses it for her gear as we know those are sometimes scarce and it can be a risk.

I find myself doing leg exercises as I’m on hold for a half hour or more for calls or online purchases — it doesn’t work people, and no I cannot wait for one week for supermarket orders ! So take the risk with your “gear” (mask and gloves, antiseptic!) …. in the evening listen to immune building music 🎵 as it seems to work for many and that light from your candle can be a great source of inner peace and a “heavenly place” to pray or meditate.

Find your inner peace


These two weeks millions around the globe celebrate(d) Easter (Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox one week apart). As Jesus once said “I am the Light of the World” at no other time have we needed our faith — regardless of one’s religion — as prayer and meditation are beneficial to the brain and the development of neural synapses and emotional stability and expression.

Absolutely loved my friend Isabelle’s photo inside her apartment in Austria for Easter! It reminds me how city living especially needs strategic placement of real or artificial light.

One blogger talked about her experience in quarantine with a view of the NYC Empire building lit up red to symbolize the heartbeat 💗 of the city and keep people going in this Covid19 pandemic (Beautybeyondbones Easter post for 2020 on NYC’s Beating Heart).

Keep writing my friends to spread that light to the world.

Bacalao, and that little ‘bugger’ Corona gave me an opportunity!

Who would have thought the post about the outbreak of Coronavirus last January would have quickly lead to our social distancing and obsessive cleaning, and toilet paper hoarding. Our sense of trying to make sense of economic disaster, among other conspiracy theories, are all seemingly science fiction now come to life and talk of an Orwellian “1984”. All because of microscopic Coronavirus CoVID-19. And this my friends is NO JOKE.

March was national month in the U.S. for Colorectal Cancer, Kidney Disease, Nutrition, and Tuberculosis, and on the mental health side, awareness for self-harm. In the U.K. this was the month for Ovarian and Prostate Cancer. And internationally, March was Red Cross Month… a critical need at this point in time. Around the world we are seeing short-staffed, overworked healthcare workers, hospitals, and we wonder what about us? Can we follow the rainbow, as we continue to build on building health literacy about disease, pandemics, and help people reduce complications to disease through health education such as continued ‘smoke free’ efforts?

Starting last March to the beginning of this year I was working with a past dental student to educate 5th and 6th graders about not starting to smoke, becoming smoke-free communities, appropriately talking about health benefits including healthy teeth (April is Oral Health month). This year it will be very different, as we will offer a similar lecture via e-learning.

On the bright side, it has given me the opportunity to tie-in the COVID-19 issue with people quitting now, for healthier outcomes. I am giving a lecture “Are you Ready to Quit?” to a group of over 50 participants, and I could not possibly find so many participants to ‘make time’ under normal living situations…sad but true. That little critter ‘corona’ virus has made us slow down….. so much so that we will all be at least 3 kilos overweight this summer for lack of exercise (even walking)!

Last March 2019 in a grammar school

So now for my opportunity to educate you about increasing your Omega-3s with some good fish (not just vitamins) as that Nordic favorite, Bacalao. Love that vowel-filled word “bakalao” (Bakaliaro – μπακαλιάρο in Greek) a salt-preserved fish. Now that we are all on lock-down, we are going in for those freezer reserves.. we pulled our salted friend from the freezer and de-salted it by emerging it into water overnight, just in time for the traditional meal for Independence Day in Greece March 25th. Baked in a “plaki” style dish [Recipe sample] or fried with a milky type dough [Argyro’s recipe], are great for Bacalao… but of course be mindful of any food allergies you have.

This year we added some extra spices in preparation including cayenne pepper, paprika, wild oregano (antiseptic qualities fight disease!)

Last year we were free of disease, and posted about free-floating flags and community health as signs of “allegiance” which is good and needed to survive in times of crisis. Living it now with COVID-19, a semi-unknown “enemy”. Little Coronavirus or COVID-19 caused a “butterfly effect” where we are forced to STOP and take a good look at ourselves, and for some of us plunge into our fundamental Maslow-type need for basic necessities. An article on what would Freud say about our hoarding of toilet paper in The New Yorker is priceless.

Two sides of a coin?

Sure we are all losing money, but think, some are making money (OK you can start on the conspiracy theories and the pharmaceutical industry!).

Too much screen time and kids in the house gaming all day. Also an opportunity to try something new, even something old like play cards or checkers, keep your distance.

Be vigilant about cleaning and leaving our shoes at the door. But also an opportunity to “gather within” and DO your Spring cleaning or go a bit beyond Spring cleaning….

Worries about having enough, but what about Less is more ? You can finally clean out all the food from your cabinets and freezers to make space for more. And if a neighbor doesn’t have spaghetti how about lending a hand? oh yes. And learning a new recipe online !

“I have nothing to do”, really ? All this off- or online stuff just makes for a brief adjustment. Maybe we all NEED to slow down. Busy streets are silent and we can actually hear the birds and see more fish 🐟 in non-murky waters now.

Take care of your plants. Try talking to your plants, walking up and down your balcony or a quick jog around the house …. note: if your plants talk back to you, then it is time to call in that mental health hotline!

Those poor pets are exhausted during lockdown…. dear Sylvie here had her daily fill of walking, she’s not even my dog! All animals teach us that they love unconditionally. She does not care if we pet her WITH or without our gloves …and yes it is important during this time to at least walk in open spaces at least 2 meters away (about 6.5 feet) for 30 minutes at least 4 times a week on good days (for many of us living in lockdown, SMS is required).

You will always be free, a temporary situation will not take that away. Most people get angry because they are inconvenienced or stuck in old patterns of thinking. They are impatient. Maybe it’s time to LEARN to adjust to change. Try Participating in Zoom or TEAMS e-platforms. On the other hand, get away from the screen and read some poetry about those little things that matter.

Your loved ones will make it through and better care for themselves during this time. So, you won’t be in perfect shape this summer or maybe you will with strengthening exercises like yoga and meditation. Self-care is vital and this includes getting support!

Take care of our personal health, as our governments try to adjust to constantly changing data, and the unknown. Enjoy that wine or beer in moderation (Mind the Cup!). Why not have it be a Corona a great Mexican beer as we don’t want them losing business! Do we?

Why not a Corona beer? To your health!