Midweek Musings

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Ah, these supplements. They can cost as much as, or more than, medication. In the case of the pictured things, it’s IB Gard, a natural supplement that helps with irritable bowel syndrome. Actually, there’s a companion supplement called FD Gard, which (a) has the same ingredients and (b) cost more. I tend to take this in the winter when my SAD acts up. It’s nothing new. When I was a teenager they called it a “nervous stomach.” “Functional Dyspepsia” sounds far more medical than “nervous stomach” (which sounds like a punk rock band name ). The good thing is, in my old age I’m finding ways to reduce or eliminate the problems. Friday is the anniversary of my mom’s death, so my stomach would normally be in knots right now. Thankfully, the IB Gard does help a lot. That’s one of the things we learn as we get older: “living with” something. I think @LouAvul mentioned the other day that she has her phototherapy light out to help with her SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). I don’t like November and December, and my stomach starts hurting like clockwork on November 1. (That’s how I know it’s somatic.) I’ve gotten used to it, and now I take this IB Gard to help. Your results may vary. I saw an interesting ad on one of my games last night. It’s an app that “pays cash instantly for gift cards.” Apparently you photograph the barcode on the gift card, and give them your account information, and you’re paid! Yeah, what could go wrong with THAT. Cue the P.T. Barnum quote! I’ve been in a rabbit hole lately, dealing with the West Virginia Mine Wars. I want to go see these places next year when it warms up! (Not now, though: I spent enough time going through West Virginia in December when I was stationed in Norfolk.) A little history, lest you think that we as a nation have just gotten nasty and violent in the last ten years or so: coal companies weren’t too keen on their workers joining the United Mine Workers union, and they would stop at NOTHING to keep the unions out. Yes, including murder. The coal companies had “security” working for them that sounds like Hedley Lemarr’s “mugs, pugs, thugs…AND Methodists!” list in Blazing Saddles (well, except the Methodists…don’t think any churchgoing folk would’ve been involved in that). While this generally went on anywhere there was the “threat” of unionization, it seemed to be most pronounced in coal mining regions. It’s a terrible part of American history, and one that you don’t hear very much about. The Battle of Blair Mountain, the “culmination” of sorts in the West Virginia Mine Wars in 1921, was the biggest armed conflict on American soil since the Civil War ended! I’ve been reading this and thinking how on earth do people get this notion that America was such a great, sweet, righteous nation until the “Summer of Love” came along? It’s quite the stereotype, even referenced in Elton John’s “Texan Love Song”: “our American home was clean ‘til you came.” I guess that just calls to mind that oft-repeated quote of George Santayana’s, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Anyway, have a great evening! And here’s the great Harvey Korman reading off the list of villains he wants for his army in Blazing Saddles: