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***********PARSLEY, SAGE, ROSEMARY AND THYME*********
Herbs have long been used for both their culinary flavor and their medicinal qualities, these among many others; are both: PARSLEY, SAGE, ROSEMARY AND THYME.
(1)
Parsley is believed to be indigenous to Sardinia, Turkey, Algeria, and Lebanon, where it still grows wild. Sardinian coins, until recent times, were minted with a parsley imprint. A member of the carrot family, there are more than thirty-seven different varieties, including broad-leaved, curly-leaved, Hamburg, and Neapolitan (Italian) parsley. The mild curly-leaved is prettier as a garnish, but the flat-leaved (Italian) is more tender and has a stronger, more intense flavor.
Parsley has a tangy, sweet flavor that helps bring out the flavor of other herbs and seasonings, particularly in soups and stews. The stems have a stronger flavor than the leaves; both are used to flavor sauces, soups, salads, omelets, and stuffings and as a decorative garnish for virtually any dish. Because of the high vitamin C and iron content of this herb, it should be added to foods whenever possible. Parsley's high chlorophyll content works to absorb odors and thus makes an effective after-dinner breath mint. Parsley is also available in the form of dried flakes, although these are lacking in both flavor and color compared to the fresh.
Raw parsley facilitates oxygen metabolism, cleanses the blood, dissolves sticky deposits in veins, maintains elasticity of blood vessels, facilitates removal of moderately sized kidney stones and gallstones, stimulates the bowel, treats deafness and ear infections, benefits the sexual system, and stimulates adrenal sections. Chewed after eating a meal heavy in garlic, it will eliminate halitosis (bad breath) because of its chlorophyll content. Parsley tea strengthens the teeth and makes a face lotion to increase circulation and bring color to the skin. Stir one teaspoonful of parsley leaves in a cup of hot water; cool, stir, and strain before drinking or using as a wash.
(2)
Sage is indigenous to northern Mediterranean regions, where it prefers the arid soil of hillsides, especially if it is chalky. Sage finds its most representative natural habitat in Dalmatia - on the chalky, practically bare, and very stony lands overhanging the Adriatic. It probably crossed the Alps along with the monks on their travels. Another member of the enormous mint family, this aromatic woody evergreen shrub has violet-blue flowers and woolly, gray-green leaves. Like many other foods, sage got into the pantry via the medicine chest. Its health-protecting advantages have been forgotten by many, but along the way most people have learned to like its flavor. The French produced so much sage at one time that they exported it in the form of tea; the Chinese became so fond of sage tea that they traded four pounds of their tea for one pound of sage.
Sage is available as fresh or dried leaves, the dried being generally preferred over the fresh leaves. The flavor of sage may be described as warm, pungent, slightly bitter yet lemony, with just a hint of camphor. Chopped fresh or dried leaves are added to salads, kebabs, stuffings, squash dishes, beans, pickles, and cheese. The most popular use of sage is as an ingredient in stuffing at Thanksgiving, but it should be used throughout the year.
Sage is one of those herbs that has been used to cure a multitude of ills. One of its properties is to aid in the digestion of heavy, greasy meats, preventing their oxidation, and thus sage is a common ingredient in pork, sausage, and duck recipes. Its action focuses on the mouth, the throat, and the female reproductive system. It increases estrogen and helps treat menopausal sweats. It has long been regarded as a tonic that keeps the stomach, intestines, kidneys, liver, spleen, and sexual organs healthy (although it may temper sexual desire). Sage is stimulating and cleansing to the skin and scalp, soothing to sore muscles, and restorative to aging skin and hair, encouraging hair growth if the roots have not been destroyed. Its stimulating qualities increase circulation and relieve headaches, break fevers, and help reduce respiratory congestion and other cold symptoms. For sparkling teeth, rub them with fresh sage leaves; this will not only whiten and clean the teeth, but also strengthen the gums and make the breath pleasant. Because sage contains sclereol, which stimulates the body to produce its own estrogen, it may nutritionally support the body during the childbearing years and menopause. It may also help us in coping with despair and mental fatigue.
(3)
In addition, rosemary is a valuable culinary herb. It is a member of the mint family, which includes other popular seasonings such as basil, oregano, sage, and thyme. Rosemary is a common ingredient in French and Italian dishes. It can be used to flavor stews, entrees, soups, and casseroles, and may be added to various dressings. It is a component of the popular Italian seasoning.
Rosemary can also be tastefully added to dishes that feature potatoes, squash, tomatoes, peas and carrots. When used sparingly, rosemary adds an interesting flavor to cakes, baked apples and biscuits. The flavor of rosemary is at its best when the leaves are harvested at the time the plant is in bloom. The youngest stems contain the leaves that are the most fragrant.
The fresh or dried leaves and flowering tops of rosemary are used for a variety of medicinal benefits. In traditional European medicine, rosemary has been used internally as a tonic, stimulant, and as a carminative to treat flatulence. It is also used to treat dyspepsia, mild gastrointestinal upsets, colds, headaches, and nervous tension. In India and China, rosemary leaves are used to treat headaches.
Early in American history rosemary was used as an antispasmodic, to stimulate the appetite and improve digestion. Today, rosemary is recognized for its ability to stimulate bile secretion and for its anti-inflammatory properties. People gargle rosemary tea to help heal mouth ulcers and canker sores.
(4)
A delicate looking herb with a penetrating fragrance, thyme is a wonderful addition to bean, egg and vegetable dishes. Both fresh and dried thyme is available in your local supermarket throughout the year.
Thyme leaves are curled, elliptically shaped and very small, measuring about one-eighth of an inch long and one-sixteenth of an inch wide. The upper leaf is green-grey in color on top, while the underside is a whitish color. Along with fresh sprigs of parsley and bay leaves, thyme is included in the French combination of herbs called bouquet garni used to season stock, stews and soups.
Thyme has a long history of use in natural medicine in connection with chest and respiratory problems including coughs, bronchitis, and chest congestion. Only recently, however, have researchers pinpointed some of the components in thyme that bring about its healing effects. The volatile oil components of thyme are now known to include carvacolo, borneol, geraniol, but most importantly, thymol.
Significant Anti-Oxidant Protection of Cellular Membranes
Thymol - named after the herb itself - is the primary volatile oil constituent of thyme, and its health-supporting effects are well documented. In studies on aging in rats, thymol has been found to protect and significantly increase the percentage of healthy fats found in cell membranes and other cell structures. In particular, the amount of DHA (docosahexaenoic acid, an omega-3 fatty acid) in brain, kidney, and heart cell membranes was increased after dietary supplementation with thyme. In other studies looking more closely at changes in the brains cells themselves, researchers found that the maximum benefits of thyme occurred when the food was introduced very early in the lifecycle of the rats, but was less effective in offsetting the problems in brain cell aging when introduced late in the aging process.
Thyme also contains a variety of flavonoids, including apigenin, naringenin, luteolin, and thymonin. These flavonoids increase thyme's antioxidant capacity, and combined with its status as a very good source of manganese, give thyme a high standing on the list of anti-oxidant foods.
As for me, I stay healthy with my 1/2 raw, fresh veggie diet, lots of fiber, very little meat [only chicken or fish], I stay active and use CellPower™
because for one thing it does have lots of digestive enzymes in it, also it helps to balance the pH levels and is antibiotic, anti-viral-and anti-fungal AND IT PACKS THE CELLS WITH LIFE-GIVING OXYGEN, AND ENERGY.And:SELENIUMhelps immune system,fights infection and aids circulation
~MAGNESIUMhelps to relax you, aids stress and muscle relaxing
~CHROMIUMimproves insulin sensitivity, and helps lower blood sugar.
~ZINC especially to help you heal.
I also eat, one of the best fats for the Omega-3~6 balance and losing weight.
~coconut oil
*************************************
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Natural herbal remedies
blessings
-----THE GARDEN GNOME
~~~Jokes And inspirations/quotes~~~
It is said that power corrupts, but actually it's
more true that power attracts the corruptible.
The sane are usually attracted by other things
than power.
-- David Brin
Joel: That's the movies, Ed. Try reality.
Ed: No thanks.
-- Ellen Herman, Northern Exposure,
Only You, 1991
Walking isn't a lost art: one must, by some
means, get to the garage.
-- Evan Esar
~~~
You are not superior just because you see the
world in an odious light.
-- Vicomte de Chateaubriand
There is still a difference between something and
nothing, but it is purely geometrical and there
is nothing behind the geometry.
-- Martin Gardner, "The Mathematical
Magic Show"
One's real life is often the life that one does
not lead.
-- Oscar Wilde,
~~~
Mujibar was trying to get a job in India.
The Personnel Manager said, "Mujibar, you have passed all the tests, except one. Unless you pass it you cannot qualify for this job."
Mujibar said, "I am ready."
The manager said, "Make a sentence using the words Y ellow, Pink and Green."
Mujibar thought for a few minutes and said, "Mister manager, I a m ready"
The manager said, "Go ahead."
Mujibar said, "The telephone goes green, green, and I pink it up, and say, 'Yellow', this is Mujibar."
Mujibar now works as a technician at a call center for computer problems.
No doubt you have spoken to him. I know I have!
~~~
I work in a central reservation office of an airline. After more than 130,000 conversations -- all ending with "Have a nice day and thanks for calling" -- I think it's fair to say that I'm a survivor.
I've made it through all the calls from adults who didn't know the difference between a.m. and p.m., from mothers of military recruits who didn't trust their little soldiers to get it right, from the woman who called to get advice on how to handle her teenage daughter, from the man who wanted to ride inside the kennel with his dog so he wouldn't have to pay for a seat, from the woman who wanted to know why she had to change clothes on our flight between Chicago and Washington (she was told she'd have to make a change between the two cities) and from the man who asked if I'd like to discuss the existential humanism that emanates from the soul of Habeeb.
In five years, I've received more than a boot camp education regarding the astonishing lack of awareness of our American citizenry. This lack of awareness encompasses every region of the country, economic status, ethnic background, and level of education. My battles have included everything from a man not knowing how to spell the name of the town he was from, to another not recognizing the name of "Iowa" as being a state, to another who thought he had to apply for a foreign passport to fly to West Virginia. They are the enemy and they are everywhere.
In the history of the world there has never been as much communication and new things to learn as today. Yet, after asking a woman from New York what city she wanted to go to in Arizona, she asked "Oh...is it a big place?"
I talked to a woman in Denver who had never heard of Cincinnati, a man in Minneapolis who didn't know there was more than one city in the South ("wherever the South is"), a woman in Nashville who asked, "Instead of paying for my ticket, can I just donate the money to the National Cancer Society?", and a man in Dallas who tried to pay for his ticket by sticking quarters in the pay phone he was calling from.
I knew a full invasion was on the way when, shortly after signing on, a man asked if we flew to exit 35 on the New Jersey Turnpike. Then a woman asked if we flew to area code 304. And I knew I had been shipped off to the front when I was asked, "When an airplane comes in, does that mean it's arriving or departing?" I remembered the strict training we had received -- four weeks of regimented classes on airline codes, computer technology, and telephone behavior -- and it allowed for no means of retaliation. "Troops," we were told, "it's real hell out there and ya got no defense. You're going to hear things so silly you can't even make 'em up. You'll try to explain things to your friends that you don't even believe yourself, and just when you think you've heard it all, someone will ask if they can get a free round-trip ticket to Europe by reciting 'Mary Had a Little Lamb'."
Well, Sarge was right. It wasn't long before I suffered a direct hit from a woman who wanted to fly to Hippopotamus, NY. After assuring her that there was no such city, she became irate and said it was a big city with a big airport. I asked if Hippopotamus was near Albany or Syracuse. It wasn't. Then I asked if it was near Buffalo. "Buffalo!" she said. "I knew it was a big animal!"
Then I crawled out of my bunker long enough to be confronted by a man who tried to catch our flight in Maconga. I told him I'd never heard of Maconga and we certainly didn't fly to it. But he insisted we did and to prove it he showed me his ticket: Macon, GA.
I've done nothing during my conversational confrontations to indicate that I couldn't understand English. But after quoting the round-trip fare the passenger just asked for, he'll always ask: "...Is that one-way?" I never understood why they always question if what I just gave them is what they just asked for. Then I realized it was part of the hell Sarge told us about.
But I've survived to direct the lost, correct the wrong, comfort the weary, teachU.S.geography and give tutoring in the spelling and pronunciation of American cities. I have been told things like: "I can't go stand-by for your flight because I'm in a wheelchair." I've been asked such questions as: "I have a connecting flight to Knoxville. Does that mean the plane sticks to something?" And once a man wanted to go to Illinois. When I asked what city he wanted to go to in Illinois, he said, "Cleveland, Ohio."
After 130,000 little wars of varying degrees, I'm a wise old veteran of the communicating conflict and can anticipate with accuracy what the next move by "them" will be. Seventy-five percent won't have anything to write on. Half will not have thought about when they're returning. A third won't know where they're going; 10 percent won't care where they're going. A few won't care if they get back. And James will be the first name of half the men who call.
But even if James doesn't care if he gets to the city he never heard of; even if he thinks he has to change clothes on our plane that may stick to something; even if he can't spell, pronounce, or remember what city he's returning to, he'll get there because I've worked very hard to make sure that he can. Then with a click of the phone, he'll become a part of my past and I'll be hoping the next caller at least knows what day it is.
Oh, and James..."Thanks for calling and have a nice day."
~~~
Circle Flies
A Republican cowboy from Texas attends a social function where
Hillary Clinton is attending, and trying gather more support for her
nomination. Once she discovers the cowboy is a Republican, she starts
to belittle him by talking in a southern drawl and single syllable
words.
As she was doing that, she kept swatting at some flies that were
buzzing around her head. The cowboy says, "Y'all havin' some problem
with them circle flies?"
She stopped talking and said, "Well yes, if that's what they're
called. But I've never heard of circle flies."
"Well ma'am," the cowboy replies, "circle flies hang around ranches.
The y're called circle flies because they're almost always found
circling around the back end of a horse."
"Oh," Hillary replies as she goes back to rambling. But, a moment
later she stops and bluntly asks, "Are you calling me a horse's ass?"
"No, ma'am," the cowboy replies, "I have too much respect for
citizens of New York to call their Senator a horse's rear end."
"That's a good thing," she responds and begins rambling on once more.
After a long pause, the cowboy, in his best Texas drawl says, "Hard
to fool them flies though."
~~~
May you be blessed with the knowledge of making your food your medicine, of staying healthy despite all of the dangers out there and be able to enjoy that health for many years to come.
SOURCES
(1) http://straightfromthegarden.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=SFTG&Category_Code=N
(2) ibid
(3) http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=77
(4) http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=77
. But in truth it has really accelerated my recovery, I've never felt this good, this happy due in large part to the 
for my colon, but of course 
