Month: October 2020

How to Stop Sugar Cravings Once and For All

Why do we crave sugar?

The first step in regaining your power over sugar is understanding why cravings happen in the first place — and there are a number of factors at play. “We crave sugar for a variety of reasons, from hormones to habits to the psychological impact of simply seeing a decadent donut or a drizzle of caramel,” says Marisa Moore, M.B.A., R.D.N., L.D., a culinary and integrative dietitian. “The preference for sweet-tasting foods is innate.” That means sugar cravings are drilled into our bodies at an early age. “The presumption among scientists seems to be that sweet tastes exists as a way to identify sources of digestible carbohydrates and importantly, glucose-based energy,” adds Moore. That evolutionary drive to nourish your body is strong and hard to overcome so don’t beat yourself up if you’re struggling to cut back on your sugar intake — and know that completely eliminating sugar from your diet isn’t worth it.

How to stop sugar cravings

1. Listen to your body.

Webster’s Dictionary defines a craving as “an intense, urgent, or abnormal desire or longing.” Synonyms include yearning, hankering, wish, want, and lust. However, just because you’re having a craving or want something sweet doesn’t mean you have to eat sugar — or even pop a sugar replacement, such as a piece of fruit — on impulse. Take a minute to understand what’s really going on in your body. Do you have a headache? Are you stressed out? Do you feel physical hunger? Are you bored? Do you need an energy boost? Or do you really want a sweet treat?

2. Buy yourself some time.

Drink a glass of water, take five deep breaths, or go for a short walk. If you are truly hungry, it’s okay to reach for a snack. Your best bet for stamping out a craving may be to have a snack that includes protein or a healthy fat. Prepping your own at the beginning of the week will enable you to be proactive and prevent trips to the vending machine for sugar-filled packaged foods.

3. Pay attention to patterns.

If you notice that a sugar craving hits you at 3 p.m. daily without fail, that’s a good sign you should add a protein-filled snack at this time to power through the day. Not only will this make you feel better instantly, it also sets you up for a better evening with fewer cravings around bedtime.

4. Balance your meals.

Make sure every meal you eat (including breakfast and lunch!) contains protein, veggies, or other healthy carbs and healthy fats. This will keep you fuller for longer and stabilize your blood sugar.

5. Spice things up.

We sometimes get stuck in an eating rut, sticking to the same simple meals every day because we know they’re “safe.” But as they say, variety is the spice of life — and spice is a savior when you’re swapping out sugar. Some of the most unique flavors are derived from easily accessible spices that don’t contain any added sugar, such as red pepper and cinnamon.

6. Identify your faves.

Figure out what you love to eat so that you feel satisfied — not deprived — at the end of a meal. It might help to keep it simple and pick two go-to breakfasts, two go-to lunches, and two go-to dinners and have those ingredients on hand so you can stay consistent.

7. Be adventurous.

While it helps to have enjoyable staples to turn to, getting curious in the kitchen can provide a fun outlet and instill healthy eating habits. Explore recipes, eat some new fruits and vegetables you’ve never tried before or combine different ingredients to create new dishes. By switching up what you’re eating from day to day, you might find a new delicious dish that gets you excited about dinner.

8. Dodge sugar pushers.

While most people will support your get-healthy mission, there will be a few who try to derail your efforts. At a birthday or holiday dinner, you might notice your mom trying to persuade you to eat dessert or your friend’s eye-rolling because you turned down a cocktail. Even your spouse can morph into a sugar pusher when he or she wants to hit that all-you-can-eat pasta joint. While you should definitely tell your friends, family, coworkers and significant other what you’re trying to accomplish, you need to go the extra step and actively ask them for their encouragement and cooperation. Stick to the plan, and they will likely stop trying to lead you astray. Better yet, your compliance could inspire them to make some positive changes of their own.

Craving something sweet? Try:

  • Sliced apple with nut butter
  • Fresh berries with a handful of nuts
  • Whipped ricotta with roasted cherries
  • Baked cinnamon apple
  • Herbal tea that has a sweet note such as vanilla

By Michele Promaulayko and Kaitlyn Pirie for Good Housekeeping©

Graphic by Pinterest

Dexter Revival Won’t ‘Undo Anything,’ But It Will Make Things ‘Right,’ says EP.

SPOILER ALERT AHEAD

If Dexter ‘s original series finale didn’t quite cut it for you, the newly announced revival hopes to make things right.

Showtime’s serial killer drama wrapped its eight-season run seven years ago by — SPOILERS ALERT, AND I AM NOT KIDDING — killing off this main character and then sending Michael C. Hall’s titular vigilante into fake death-imposed exile in the middle of nowhere. AKA the infamous Lumberjack Ending.

But with the 10-episode revival picking up in real time, so many years later, “We basically do get to start from scratch,” returning showrunner Clyde Phillips told the Oct. 16 episode of THR’s always entertaining TV’s Top 5 podcast.

“We want this to not be Dexter Season 9,” he continued. “Ten years, or however many years, have passed by the time this will air, and the show will reflect that time passage. So far as the ending of the show, this will have no resemblance to how the original finale was. It’s a great opportunity to write a second finale.”

Given the lukewarm reaction to the September 2013 series finale, from both viewers and even series lead Hall himself, “This is an opportunity to make that right,” Phillips said. “But that’s not why we’re doing it.”

As for righting/retconning any specific perceived wrongs, “We’re not undoing anything,” Phillips maintained. “We’re not going to betray the audience and say, ‘Whoops, that was all a dream.’ What happened in the first eight years happened in the first eight years.”

Michael C. Hall, sharing his own take on the original series finale, told The Daily Beast in 2014, “Liked it? I don’t think I even watched it,” adding: “I thought it was narratively satisfying — but it was not so savory…. Just inherently because of how long we’d done it, because of the storytelling capital we’d spent, because our writers may have been gassed… Maybe some people wanted a more satisfying-maybe they wanted a happy ending for him, either a happy ending or a more definitive sense of closure.”

By Matt Webb Mitovich for TVLine©

What Happens When You Eat Avocado Every Day

© istock

Your cholesterol improves

While avocados may have gotten a bad reputation for being high in calories and fat—half contains 113 calories and 10 grams of fat—they mostly give you monounsaturated fat, which is healthy in moderation. The good fat boosts your levels of good HDL cholesterol while lowering the bad LDL cholesterol.

You have better digestion

Half of an avocado contains just under 5 grams of dietary fiber (depending on the size). Nutritionist Megan Ware, RDN, reports that adding avocado to your daily dietary regimen can help prevent constipation and maintain healthy digestion. Another benefit of this high fiber fruit is that you will feel full longer. By adding avocado slices to your toast, sandwich, or salad, you can stay satiated for up to three hours.

You get protection from disease and infection

Avocados are a great source of B vitamins, which help prevent disease and infection, reports WebMD. They are also loaded with vitamins C and E, plus natural plant chemicals that may help prevent cancer. Because they’re high in antioxidant phytochemicals (such as lutein and zeaxanthin), avocados may help prevent cataracts and macular degeneration, reports Ware.

You’ll sleep better

Not only do avocadoes taste great, but they’re also loaded with magnesium (19.5 milligrams for half of an avocado), which experts consider an anti-stress nutrient, says nutrition expert Elise Museles. Just make sure to wash your avocado before eating it.

You’ll have a natural glow

Glowing skin, bright eyes, and shiny hair are added perks from eating this amazing super food. This is because of its fat-soluble vitamins and monounsaturated fats. While these benefits come from eating avocados, there are also advantages from using them topically, reports Medical News Today.

Source: Reader’s Digest article by Dianne Bright

Conversation Starters: Halloween

sayingimages.com

What day of the month is Halloween?
Why is Halloween celebrated?
Can you explain the history of Halloween?
How is Halloween celebrated in your country?
Do you believe in ghosts?
What makes you afraid of ghosts?
What are some of the symbols of Halloween?
What kind of costume are you going to wear to the Halloween party?
Is your pumpkin still out ?
Are you still eating Halloween candy?
Why do you like to celebrate Halloween?
Do you believe in magic?
Did you know there were real ‘witch trials’ in the seventeenth century?
Why do you think they happened?
Do you think there are really witches and monsters and creatures living amongst us in the real world, or are those things just from our imagination?
If you could choose to be any monster or creature, what would it be?
What is your favorite magical story?

Character in a book?
Film?
Legend?
If you could use a magical spell, like a love spell, on somebody, would you?
What other countries celebrate Halloween?
Can you describe the best costume you’ve seen?
Is your pumpkin still out?
Are you still eating Halloween candy?
How long does it take for a pumpkin to rot?
Are you going to have a Halloween party?
Would you go out and trick or treat? Who would you go with?
Do you know any Halloween legends?
Do you think Halloween is dangerous?
What do you know about the history of the holiday?
Do you think it is appropriate to celebrate it still today?

http://iteslj.org/questions/

Winter’s Coming: When To Stop Mowing Your Lawn


By: Julie Martens Forney for HGTV©

Fall ushers in a host of yardwork, with the No. 1 chore being leaf raking. As leaves tumble and planting beds beg for clean-up, lawn mowing is the task that seems most out-of-season. The truth is, in regions with cool-season turf, fall is the time when grass grows readily and quickly. The combination of cooler air and autumnal rains give lawns a jump start that sends them into rapid growth. The reverse is true for warm-season turf, which tends to go dormant in regions where fall brings frost.

To figure out when to stop cutting the grass, pay attention to these seasonal signals.

Soil temperature—Warm-season grasses go dormant when soil temps remain consistently below 55 degrees Farenheit. For cool-season grasses, the soil temp that triggers dormancy is 45 degrees F. You can track soil temps for your area online (search “soil temperature map”), or simply observe grass growth, which slows to a crawl before slipping into dormancy. You know grass is growing more slowly when the time between mowings stretches from every two weeks to once a month.

Leaves—Falling leaves signal the arrival of cooler air. Usually by the time trees are at least 50 percent bare, grass growth should be noticeably slower. But even when grass is dormant, you still need to keep leaves off the lawn, and the easiest way to do that is mulching with the mower.

Frost—Following a few hard frosts, warm-season grasses go dormant. Depending on soil temperature, cool-season grasses can keep growing and may still need mowing. Never mow a lawn when it’s covered in frost, though. It’s best to stay off frosty grass to protect turf crowns.

Fall Mowing Plan

Embrace autumn with a lawn mowing plan that prepares grass for winter. In regions where the snow flies, the goal of your final mowing is to leave grass as short as possible without scalping it. For many turf grasses, that’s a height of 2 inches. Gradually step down mower height through fall until you’re cutting grass to that short length. With each mowing, remember not to remove more than one-third of the total blade length. If grass is actively growing, you may need to mow twice in the same week to reduce grass blade height.

Why Cut Grass Short?

Prevent disease—Long grass is more susceptible to winter fungal diseases known as snow mold, which can kill grass.

Deter voles—Long grass gives voles a place to hide from predators as they munch a ready food source: healthy grass plants and roots. If snow cover is absent, voles are less likely to venture into short grass, which provides no cover from cats, hawks, foxes or owls.

Reduce winter kill—Longer grass is more likely to experience winter kill, especially when snow is present. The snow folds grass blades over the plant crown, which can lead to fungal disease and rot.

In spring, short grass offers several advantages:

Faster green-up—Short grass doesn’t shade soil, allowing sunlight to reach soil and warm it. This leads to earlier growth, also known as green-up.

Less debris—Most leaves skip across short lawns in winter winds, but get bogged down in tall grass.

Less snow mold—Snow mold can occur even in regions without significant snow cover. Winter rains can also mat long grass and allow this fungus to grow and harm grass. Short grass blades stand up to winter rain and snow.

Electric Battery Powered Lawn Mower

Julie Martens Forney

When to Stop Cutting the Grass

The right time to stop mowing the lawn is when grass stops growing. You may still need to run the mower to mulch leaves on the lawn until as late as December, depending on weather. An early snowfall that doesn’t stick around isn’t a signal to stop mowing. It all depends on grass growth and leaf cover on the lawn. A good rule of thumb is to keep mowing and mulching leaves until roughly 90 percent of them are down. At that point, drive your mower to the shed and give it some post-mowing-season TLC.

Source: https://www.hgtv.com/outdoors/gardens/planting-and-maintenance/when-to-stop-mowing

Fennel, Rosemary, Apple & Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin

Fennel, Rosemary, Apple & Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

2 Honey crisp apples (cut into 1-2-inch pieces)

6 carrots (if desired, optional)

6 new potatoes (cut into 1-inch pieces, if desired)olive oil salt freshly ground pepper

1 boneless pork loin (2-2 1/2 pounds)

1 Honeycrisp apple (finely diced)

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary (chopped)

1 teaspoon fennel seed (crushed)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/3 cup bourbon

1/3 cup honey

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon dijon (or to taste)

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the apple pieces in an oven-proof casserole dish. Add the carrots and new potatoes (if using), toss with a bit of oil and season generously with salt and freshly ground pepper. Set aside.
  2. Butterfly the tenderloin. Lay the tenderloin down on the cutting board and make a cut down the length of the tenderloin with your knife parallel to the cutting board; do not cut all the way through. Open the loin like a book (or think of it like unrolling a carpet). Continue to cut through the thicker part of the roast, keeping 1/2 an inch from the bottom of the meat, cutting and unrolling to lay flat. If uneven, use a meat pounder to pound to an even thickness.
  3. Sprinkle the loin with the rosemary, fennel and apple. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Tightly roll and tie with twine at 1-2-inch intervals until the entire tenderloin is tied up.
  4. Season the outside of the loin with salt and freshly ground pepper. Rub with brown sugar. Place in the roasting pan on top of the vegetables (if using).
  5. Roast the loin for 45-60 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 135°F.
  6. While the loin is roasting, make the glaze by combining the bourbon, soy sauce, honey, brown sugar and dijon in a small pot. Mix well and bring to a simmer, stirring, over medium heat until thick and syrupy, set aside.
  7. When the internal temperature of the loin reaches 135°F, brush with the glaze and let roast for 5 more minutes. Remove from the oven, tent with foil and let the pork rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing. The internal temperature should reach 140°F after resting.
  8. Remove the twine, slice the pork into 1/2 inch rounds and serve with the remaining glaze and vegetables.

Source: https://www.yummly.com/recipe/Fennel_-Rosemary_-Apple-_-Brown-Sugar-Pork-Tenderloin-2098789?utm_medium=email&utm_source=ocm&utm_campaign=octrecipe&utm_term=btn2&utm_content=btn

Budget Landscaping Tips for Your Yard

1.Take Cuttings. They’re free. You can grow some new plants from stems, some from roots.  Some plants root much better than others.  This is a great time to get friendly with neighbors…as you exchange cuttings with others, you can get gardening tips too.  I found this great tutorial on propagation from the Missouri Extension website.

2.  Join a gardening club. Even if its for a short time, you’ll learn a lot and find a bunch of zealots who are willing to share.  Tasker’s Chance Gardening Club has a nice website.

Join a Facebook garden group or like a page. There are many! If you can find one that is local or regional, all the better. Here are just a few local Maryland groups I found:

  • Green-Walled Garden Club
  • Master Gardeners of Frederick County Maryland
  • Federated Garden Clubs of Maryland
  • Mt. Airy Garden Club

3.  Choose plants that fit Maryland’s (or your state’s) climate and your soil type. Plants that are native to Maryland are much easier to care for, and they endure the conditions much better. An easy-care garden is also more appealing to today’s buyers. Local plants are less fussy, resistant to disease and more reliable.

4.  Choose Pest resistant bulbs. Bulbs are very economical because they are perennial. The only problem is that some of them are like candy to deer and rodents. There’s nothing worse than watching your investment be the supper of the neighborhood bunnies and squirrels.

5.  Choose bulbs that multiply. Watching your bulbs multiply is the way to get the most bang for your buck if you are patient. Small bulbs tend to do this better than larger ones.

6.  Choose self-seeding plants. Gotta love those volunteers! Forget-me-not’s are my favorite on this list. Morning Glories aren’t on the list but they are great volunteers.

7. Think outside the box. Use found and repurposed items for planters and garden art. With a few skills you can create stepping stones out of cement, planters out of broken china, or a trellis out of discarded wood or cheap bamboo sticks.

8.  Container Gardening is a great choice if you are short on time or space. You can bring them inside during the cold months and extend their life. You can also get creative when it comes to pots and containers, using items that you have on hand. Don’t forget to scout out thrift stores and refuge stores like Habitat for Humanity’s Home Store in Frederick.

Five Great Resources for budget Landscaping

1. The Best Source Ever is the DIY Network Gardening website. You can find just about any tutorial you want, as well as lots of videos. Understanding plant types and what they need is a good start to a successful landscaping plan.

2. Research and Plan Ahead. Make a plan. Keep it flexible, but have a plan. Creating a visual of what you want to accomplish is helpful. If you like to go old school, subscribe to garden magazines and clip the pictures that you like. You can create a collage to make sure you like the color combinations.

Take your plans with you when you visit the garden store so you can take advantage of sales, or pass up a sale when you know that the plants on sale won’t fit your plan.

[special tip: Don’t get dazzled by all the fancy gardening tools, unless you’re not trying to stay on a budget. They may make you look more stylish, but they won’t really make a difference in your gardens.

3. If you’re more inclined to go paperless, there are lots of gardening apps that you can use. I also love to create Pinterest boards to keep my ideas handy. Pinterest is a wealth of information and design ideas! There are some great garden boards to follow.

4. Composting makes more financial sense that buying fertilizer every year. The Frederick County Government Solid Waste Facilities has a composting class, as well as printed materials on the subject. Mixing your soil with compost will help keep your plants healthy.

5. Mulch from Local Recycling Centers is usually a better price than from a commercial company. You just have to haul it yourself..

How Much Should I Budget for Landscaping?

Many professional landscaping companies suggest spending up to 10% of your home’s value on landscaping. Wow. For many of us in Maryland that’s a lot of money. If you’re thinking about selling your home in the near future, then you may not have time for some of these cost-saving methods of creating a beautiful yard. You can, however, combine some of these tips with some more expensive solutions.

Keep in mind that most of the more expensive landscaping ideas, like hardscaping, or fountains, or permanent structures like a pergola, may not give you the best return on investment. For the average home, those projects are really for our own enjoyment.

If you just bought a new home and the landscaping is minimal, you’re probably excited to get started adding some life to your yard. The best advice I ever got when we purchased a new home in Lake Linganore was from a landscaper:  Live in the house for a while and get to know the house and the yard before you make any plans. He was right, I had different ideas after a year…better ideas.

Source: frederickrealestateonline.com

The Truth About Christopher Columbus

Was Columbus a Hero or a Villain?

Christopher Columbus in the New World

GraphicaArtis / Getty Images

Since his death in 1506, Columbus’ life story has undergone many revisions. He is vilified by Indigenous rights groups, yet he was once seriously considered for sainthood. What’s the real scoop?

Columbus was neither a monster nor a saint. He had some admirable qualities and some very negative ones.

On the positive side, Columbus was a very talented sailor, navigator, and ship captain. He bravely went west without a map, trusting his instincts and calculations. He was very loyal to his patrons, the king and queen of Spain, and they rewarded him by sending him to the New World a total of four times. While he enslaved people from the tribes that fought him and his men, he seems to have dealt relatively fairly with those tribes that he befriended, such as that of Chief Guacanagari.

But there are many stains on his legacy as well. Ironically, the Columbus-bashers blame him for some things that were not under his control and ignore some of his most glaring actual defects. He and his crew brought awful diseases, such as smallpox, to which the men and women of the New World had no defenses, and their population is estimated to have declined by as much as 90%. This is undeniable, but it was also unintentional and would have happened eventually anyway. His discovery opened the doors to the conquistadors who looted the mighty Aztec and Inca Empires and slaughtered natives in large numbers, but this, too, would likely have happened when someone else inevitably discovered the New World.

If one must hate Columbus, it is far more reasonable to do so for other reasons. He was an enslaver and trader of enslaved people who heartlessly took men and women away from their families in order to lessen his failure to find a new trade route. The practice of enslavement was common and legal in Europe at the time, and the trade of enslaved people was very lucrative. Columbus never forgot that his voyage was not one of exploration, but of economics. His financing came from the hope that he would find a lucrative new trade route. He did nothing of the sort: the people he met had little to trade. An opportunist, he captured some natives to show that they would make good enslaved people. Years later, he would be devastated to learn that Queen Isabella had decided to declare the New World off-limits to enslavers.

During his fourth voyage, he and his men were stranded on Jamaica for a year when his ships rotted. No one wanted to travel there from Hispaniola to save him. He was also a cheapskate. After promising a reward to whoever spotted land first on his 1492 voyage, he refused to pay up when sailor Rodrigo de Triana did so, giving the reward to himself instead because he had seen a “glow” the night before.

Previously, the elevation of Columbus to a hero caused people to name cities (and a country, Colombia) after him and many places still celebrate Columbus Day. But nowadays, people tend to see Columbus for what he really was: an influential man with a mixed legacy.

Source: https://www.thoughtco.com/the-truth-about-christopher-columbus-2136697