Thoughts

Our newborn kittens

Our two cats, Trixie and Mitzi, gave birth to three kittens each — Trixie on May 16th, and Mitzi on May 20th. They each gave birth to two tomcats and one kitten, all of them adorable. They’ve been growing nicely and are starting to cause mischief, as six kittens put together will usually do.

I filmed this short video when they were about two weeks old, on June 2nd. They’d all opened their eyes by then, but were still unsure on their feet. You’ll be able to see each of them more clearly now than in the birth video posted previously.

Enjoy!

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Places

A tourism film from 1964, promoting Miami Beach, culled from the travelfilmarchive channel on YouTube.

For one who grew up in the area, it’s interesting to see how the place has changed since, and how many resorts popular then still exist (or don’t) today. Some scenes in the film are natural, some are staged and awkward, but it is fun to watch.

It’s also worth noting that the same studios that made cartoons (Van Beuren Films, Castle Films) also made travel films.

Miami Beach in 1964

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Thoughts

15 things about caffeine

I’m partial to a well-made espresso. I don’t drink them often, certainly not daily, because I’m aware of the caffeine’s effects on my body. The infographic below tells you about those effects, which are certainly worth knowing.

  • Caffeine occurs naturally in 60 different plants, not just coffee.
  • Caffeine works by increasing your dopamine levels, which makes you happy, and blocking adenosine receptors, which stops you from getting drowsy. Sadly, I can’t depend on it to do that to me when I need it. I find that when I need to stay awake, I’ll have a hard time doing so no matter how much coffee I drink, and when I need to sleep, even if I’ve had coffee at two in the afternoon and it’s now midnight, I still can’t fall asleep.
  • Caffeine is shown to temporarily increase one’s ability to learn, by increasing comprehension, memory, reflexes and clarity of thought.
  • Caffeine also improves endurance in athletes, which is why the Olympic Committee banned it in competitions.
  • Caffeine causes physical dependence. Withdrawal symptoms begin within 12-24 hours and can last from 2 to 9 days. Symptoms include headaches, fatigue, depression and irritability.

15 Things Your Should Know about Caffeine

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Thoughts

15 things about marijuana

I’m one of a growing number of people who think marijuana ought to be legalized. I don’t use it, but I just don’t think a substance less dangerous than coffee and alcohol ought to be illegal.

See the infographic below for some facts about marijuana. Here are a few:

  • It’s nearly impossible to overdose on pot. You’d have to smoke more than 800 joints, and even then, you’d die from carbon monoxide poisoning, not marijuana poisoning.
  • The American colonies grew the hemp plant to make clothing, sails and rope. Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence on hemp paper. Through the 1600-1800s, the production of hemp was encouraged and even required by law at times.
  • Studies done in the 1940s have shown that there is no link between marijuana and violence, sex crimes, insanity or addiction.
  • Marijuana is already legal in a number of countries such as Australia, Czech Republic, Finland, Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, Argentine and Belgium.

15 Things Your Should Know about Marijuana

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Reviews

Sea kelp noodles with almond and mustard seed sauce

Part of the fun of being the husband of a raw food chef is that I get to eat interesting things. For example, our lunch yesterday was this: sea kelp noodles, with a sauce made of almonds, mustard seeds and tomatoes, and with assorted sea vegetables and sliced tomatoes on the side. The taste might have been a bit exotic for some, but I assure you it was delicious, nutritious, and 100% raw, which meant that all of the original nutrients in the vegetables were left intact.

Now I feel bad that I didn’t take the plate into our studio and photograph it properly. I was hungry, so I snapped a few pics with my smartphone and dug in. Shame on me.

If you’d like to learn more about raw foods and you can read Romanian, my wife Ligia writes about the raw food diet on her website at ligiapop.com. She’s writing a book of raw food recipes (also in Romanian) and I’m photographing each of those recipes for her — much better than I photographed our lunch…

For those of you who don’t understand Romanian, don’t worry, there are a TON of resources in English on the internet. Just search for “raw food diet” or “raw food recipes” and you’ll see what I mean.

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