Jan 5, 2018

Six Benefits of Parsley

Parsley is full of vitamin C, an essential nutrient and best known for giving the immune system a boost.

Parsley can actually improve kidney functionality by helping the human body do away with excess fluids. It is a diuretic and according to Livestrong.com, it plays an important role in the process of removing unnecessary fluids from the body.

Parsley contains ample amounts of folic acid and research from Harvard Medical School shows that foods high in folic acid can help the body regulate blood pressure and produce and maintain new cells.

Parsley Contains Vitamin K an important nutrient in helping the body respond to injuries. It helps in the clotting process, giving the body a chance to stop the damage and begin the healing process. Vitamin K has also been shown to help reduce the risk of bone damage and build bone durability.

Parsley contains compounds that can aid in digestion, according to research from WebMD,

Parsley contains anti-inflammatory properties that can reduce inflammation around the joints and ease the pain associated with conditions like osteoarthritis.

Wordology, Obdormition

It is pronounced ob-dor-MISH-uhn. It means numbness in a limb, usually caused by pressure on a nerve. Also known as falling asleep. From Latin obdormire (to fall asleep), from dormire (to sleep). Earliest documented use: 1634.

Incidentally, there is a good word that comes after obdormition: paresthesia, known as pins and needles.

Cord Cutters

Cord cutters are people who have decided to give up cable TV and find another way to watch TV and movies. The main alternatives have been streaming TV over the internet (OTT) and subscribing to services, such as NETFLIX, YouTube, Amazon Video, etc.

Another alternative gaining a growing following is using a TV antenna. The antenna technology is much better than the traditional antenna service and is extremely cheap, with no monthly fees. Recent studies have shown that over 90% of the US population is within range to stream free over-the-air HD television. Antennas do not lose stations like satellite subscribers suffer from during bad weather. In addition the signal is not compressed, so there is a noticeable improvement in picture quality vs. cable and satellite. In addition, usually there are 30 to 60 free channels available. Many find that an indoor antenna is sufficient, so no need to climb up on the roof for installation.

As of November, the latest analysis by Kagan indicates that another 1.2 million Americans cut the TV cord during the past quarter, lured away from expensive traditional cable TV bundles and by the rising availability of cheaper, more flexible streaming alternatives. The losses once again broke records for the industry, contributing to a net loss of 2.9 million traditional pay TV subscribers so far during 2017, after a loss of another 2 million during 2016.

Since 2015, TV watching growth has been in the number of antenna-equipped homes with broadband access. These increased 36 percent.

Quick Food Tip

It is safe to eat the stickers on fruit, both the paper and glue are food grade.

Free TV Trials

Now you can try some of the streaming deals for free, before or after you cut the cable cord. Sign up for any or all of the following. Some require a credit card, but do not bill unless you go past the trial period. Many begin to automatically bill at end of trial, so it pays to be diligent and watch the end date of your trial period.

Amazon Prime Video: 30 days (Movies and TV shows)
Amazon Channels - As a Prime member, Amazon Channels has additional services with free trials from 7 to 30 days (includes HBO, Showtime, and Dove Family Films)
CuriosityStream: 7 days (Documentaries & Educational)
DIRECTV NOW: 7 days (Live TV)
Fubo TV: 7 days (Live TV with sports)
HBO NOW: 30 days (Movies & TV shows)
Hulu: 30 days (Movies and TV shows)
NETFLIX: 30 days (Movies and TV shows)
PlayStation Vue: 5 days (Live TV)
PureFlix: 30 days (Family-friendly Movies & TV shows)
Showtime Anytime: 30 day (Movies & TV shows)
Shudder: 7 days (Horror movies)
Sling TV: 7 days (Live TV)
Sundance Now: 7 days (Independent movies)

Browser Honey

Honey is sweet, especially when it can save you money. Honey is a browser add-on that automatically applies coupon codes at checkout, and now it also finds better prices on Amazon immediately.

Honey brings the best final prices to the forefront after automatically comparing every top-rated seller in the Amazon marketplace.

It also lets you know if you can save money just by waiting a couple of days for delivery. Quick shipping is awesome, but so is having options, especially if those options save you money.

Shop on Amazon as usual. If Honey finds a better deal, a little tag will appear showing you how much you could save by buying the same item from a different seller. It takes into account the final price of the item (including sales tax and shipping), seller rating, delivery time, and Prime status , so you can still get Prime deals. Here is the link to add it to Firefox. LINK  and Chrome LINK.

Dec 22, 2017

Happy Friday

It is not possible to have too much happiness.

Grab all you can, wherever you can, especially on a Happy Friday!

Christmas Carol Origins

Phillip Brooks was an Episcopalian preacher, he earned a Doctorate of Divinity from the University of Oxford, and taught at Yale University. During 1865, he rode on horseback from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, where he participated in the Church of the Nativity's five-hour long Christmas Eve celebration. After returning home he wrote "O Little Town of Bethlehem." Its first public performance was held three years later, performed by the children's choir of his church.

Clement Clark Moore was a professor of Divinity and Literature at a New York Episcopal college when, in 1822, he sat down to write a Christmas poem for his family. Moore never intended for the poem to be published. It was only at his family’s begging that it was published a year later. "The Night Before Christmas", poem became an immediate success. Moore created much of our Christmas mythology. He named the reindeer, was the first to call St. Nicolas an “elf,” the idea of Santa going from rooftop to rooftop, and codified most every concept about Santa entering your home to leave gifts. Much about the current legend of Santa was influenced by his poem.

Christmas Banned

Christmas was banned in England between about 1644 and 1660 by Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector of England. Oliver Cromwell, along with Puritan members of parliament, believed the merrymaking and festivities observed during Christmastime were acts of sin and insults to God. Celebrating Christmas became a punishable offense, and consumption of Christmas foods was forbidden. The ban in England remained in place for almost 20 years, during which people secretly celebrated Christmas. When the British monarchy returned to power in 1660, it overruled all laws passed since 1642, and lifting the ban on Christmas.

Christmas was, until recent times a purely religious festival and New Year was and still is the main holiday for Scots. Christmas was not traditionally celebrated in Scotland, because it was banned for nearly 400 years until the 1950's. Christmas was not even a public holiday until 1958. Hogmanay was the real traditional celebration. LINK

Similar laws were passed in Puritan colonies in America. Christmas was banned in Boston and Plymouth Colony from 1659 to 1681. In 1659 the Puritan General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony made it a criminal offense to publicly celebrate Christmas and declared that “whosoever shall be found observing any such day as Christmas or the like, either by forbearing of labor, feasting, or any other way” was subject to a 5-shilling fine. In New England, Christmas did not become a legal holiday until 1856.

Although outlawed in public, the celebration of Christmas endured in private homes, particularly away from the Puritans in Boston. December 25 was declared a US federal holiday in the United States in 1870.

Silver Bells

The song Silver Bells was originally titled Tinkle Bells, and first appeared in “The Lemon Drop Kid,” a 1951 film starring Bob Hope.

The co-composer Ray Evans said, “We never thought that tinkle had a double meaning until Jay, his partner went home and his wife said, ‘Are you out of your mind? Do you know what the word tinkle is?’” Referring to the fact that it is another word for urination often used with children. If that happened today, they would put him in jail, ban the song, delete any reference to it on Google, and Congress would vote to expunge the word from all dictionaries.

Alternate Reindeer Names

Dunder is variously spelled Donder and Donner. Blixem is variously spelled Blixen and Blitzen. The names Dunder and Blixem derive from Dutch words for thunder and lightning, respectively.

Finally More Sun

On a brighter note, yesterday we celebrated the Winter Solstice Thursday, December 21, 2017 at 10:27 am in Dallas. Beginning today, Dec 22 we begin to gain more sunlight, 1 extra second to be exact. Tomorrow we get 3 more seconds and each day after that more seconds of sunlight.

At risk of starting a Twitter frenzy, THE END IS NEAR. Winter officially began yesterday, so we are now counting down to the end of winter. It will get colder before it gets warmer, but we get to enjoy more sunlight each day and that is a good thing.

By the end of December, we will be enjoying 10 hours and 2 minutes of sunshine. Yea! I can feel the seasonal stress disorder slipping away already. Now I understand why Christmas and New Year's are such festive occasions, more sunshine.

Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft

He was an American voice actor and bass singer. He died May 22, 2005 at age 91. Although most do not recognize his name, almost everyone recognizes his voice - as Tony the Tiger in the Frosted Flake commercials.
He was the narrator for "The Glory of Christmas" at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California, from the early 1980s through the late 1990s.
He began his career as a singer, performing with The Johnny Mann Singers, and many major stars, including Elvis Presley. Ravenscroft sang bass on Rosemary Clooney's "This Ole House", which went to No. 1 in both the United States and Britain in 1954.
Other voice credits include, “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” in the classic cartoon adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Ravenscroft also lent his vocals to such films as Dumbo, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty, 101 Dalmatians, The Sword in the Stone, Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, Horton Hears a Who!, The Hobbit (cartoon), The Brave Little Toaster, and many more. He also can be heard on numerous rides in Disney Land and Disney World, such as the Haunted Mansion, Country Bear Jamboree, Mark Twain Riverboat, Pirates of the Caribbean, Disneyland Railroad, and Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room.

Christmas Child Car Seat Gifting

When giving or receiving a child car seat it is good to know that many fire departments will install it the correct way for free. Call first as some fire stations do not provide the service. Also, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's maintains a listing of child passenger safety seat inspection locations. There is no charge, but if you do go, cookies, doughnuts, or pizza are always welcome. Make sure the person is a certified child car seat technician. You are welcome.