Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/151335
Wednesday, August 14, 2013 – Daily News 3B FEATURES Dumpster diver questions stigma eaten or long past Dear Annie: the expiration date. I've found a new And while we way to get free know some folks food: dumpster do this for economdiving. Several ic reasons or as a times a week, a protest against the group of us go ''system,'' most through the superpeople find it dismarket dumpster tasteful and at night to see We what they've Annie's demeaning. think the owners of thrown away. groceries and Sometimes there's nothing, but other by Kathy Mitchell restaurants are entitimes, there's great and Marcy Sugar tled to earn a living, too, and we would stuff. One night, I found nine hope that still-edible food ears of corn. Another time, is donated to food pantries it was 23 packs of chicken. whenever possible. Dear Annie: I don't I've found honeydew melons, cherries, grapes, pep- know how to get rid of my pers, tomatoes, potatoes pest of a neighbor. I moved and all sorts of other good- to this community three ies. I thoroughly boil the years ago, after my divorce. meat and poultry before I befriended ''Joyce,'' a eating it, and I wash the woman in her 70s who fruit and pour boiling water lives two doors down. Joyce won't leave me over it. It loses some color, but still tastes sweet. I cook alone. When I entertain my fiance or friends, she is sure all vegetables. The problem is, there's a to walk over uninvited and stigma to this. People give interrupt us. On several us dirty looks. We're very occasions, I've given her careful not to make a mess. my business card and asked We leave everything spot- her to call first to make sure less. But the store manager I'm not busy. It hasn't hates us. And if my mother worked. She also drinks my knew about this, she'd wine, and even though she has an extensive wine colthrow a fit. I can't figure out why lection, she never offers to this is so despised. Why replace the bottle she conshould I have to pay all that sumed at my place. At times, I've had to money for food when I can get it for nothing? — New shut my curtains and hide in my bedroom until she is York Dear New York: Most gone. Help. — Prisoner in people aren't willing to go My Own Home in Souththrough someone else's ern California Dear Prisoner: Joyce is garbage in order to find edible food that isn't contami- lonely and either clueless nated, rotten, partially or deliberately obtuse. It is Mailbox a kindness to include her when you can, but you also are entitled to entertain without her. So you will need to be a bit more assertive and willing to upset her. The next time Joyce comes over unannounced and unwanted, stop her at the door and say, ''Joyce, I have company. You will have to come back another time.'' If she gets teary, outraged, pushy or anything else, simply repeat that she will have to come back another time. Don't let her walk beyond the threshold. Dear Annie: This is in response to ''Need To Know in Saskatoon,'' the woman who disliked her dentist referring to her as ''dear.'' I am a busy ob-gyn. I often call my patients by some such all-purpose term of endearment when I blank out and cannot remember their given name. It only means that I am busy and forgetful and have a lot on my mind. But at the same time, I want the patient to feel closer to me than she would if I did not address her at all. Your dentist only wants you to feel relaxed and comfortable. — Little Doctor Dear Doctor: That won't work if the patient finds it offensive and condescending. Some people don't mind the endearment. Those who do need to inform the doctor, and the doctor needs to take the objection seriously. Avoid heat stroke with these common sense precautions ture rises to 105 degrees DEAR DOCTOR K: My Fahrenheit or higher. This can brother and I are planning a cause confusion, staggering, long bike trip this summer. I'm faintness, hallucinations, agiworried about the heat. What tation or unconsciousness. It can I do to prevent heat stroke? can affect internal organs and DEAR READER: Normally, lead to coma or death. the human body does a good If you or your brother expejob of regulating its temperarience symptoms of heat ture. As you'd expect, your Dr. K stroke, seek emergency help body tends to heat up more easby Anthony L. immediately. ily when it is surrounded by hot While you wait for help, air. It also heats up during exer- Komaroff, M.D. cool the person's body from cise, since hard-working muscles generate heat. When you exercise the outside. Remove tight or unnecesin hot weather, your body is particu- sary clothing, spray the person with larly challenged to get rid of excess water, blow cool air on the person or heat so that it can maintain a normal wrap the person loosely in wet sheets. If you have ice packs, place them at body temperature. A part of our brain is constantly the person's neck, groin and armpits monitoring how hot we are. When our to accelerate cooling. During your bike trip, do the folbody temperature starts to rise above normal, the brain sends signals that lowing to help you stay cool and avoid cause the blood vessels near our skin heat illness: — Drink lots of water throughout to open wide, which in turn causes us the day. to sweat. — Stay indoors in an air-condiHeat leaves the blood vessels and enters the air around us. Evaporation tioned area whenever you feel too of the sweat pulls even more heat warm. — Wear lightweight, light-colored from the body. Spending too much time in the heat clothing. — Avoid strenuous activity in the without drinking enough fluids can hamper the body's cooling system. As hottest part of the day (between 10 a result, body temperature can rise a.m. and 4 p.m.). If you must participate, take frequent breaks. high enough to make a person sick. — Limit the time you wear a helThe first symptoms of heat illness are called heat exhaustion. They met by taking it off between activities. — Drink less caffeine and alcohol, include headache, nausea, vomiting, muscle cramps and fatigue. If you which can contribute to dehydration. If you take these precautions and experience these symptoms, get out of the heat immediately. Seek out air- stay alert for early symptoms of heat illness, you should have a fun — and conditioning. Drink water. If possible, take a cool safe — bike trip. shower or use a hose to soak yourself. Dr. Komaroff is a physician and If you don't take steps to cool yourprofessor at Harvard Medical School. To self, heat exhaustion can worsen into send questions, go to AskDoctorK.com, heat stroke. Heat stroke is serious and poten- or write: Ask Doctor K, 10 Shattuck St., tially life-threatening. Body tempera- Second Floor, Boston, MA 02115. Fun at the Mud Run Team Psycho competed crazy incline and the air was at the Volcano Mud Run at so thin from the altitude, I Mt. Shasta Ski Park on July doubt anyone at that run 27. It was just a 5k (3.1 mile was able to run the whole run) with around 10 obsta- thing. I was a bit disappointed cles. I've done several 5ks in my perforand do lots of mance, but I was strength training able to pick up at my gym. I run the pace again hills when I can. I and start runclimb ropes. ning. The obstaHeck, I even just cles were pretty fought a 5 round easy. I can climb fight in a high altilike a monkey, so tude. So, I was not the cargo net was worried. I didn't a piece of cake, train very hard to crawling through prepare for this. I a tractor tire was barely ran the easy, running month leading up Avery across the log in to it. I would jump the pond was a rope at work on bit challenging, my lunch hour and teach my Fitness Buff trudging through an oatmeal pit. classes and pretty Yes, you read much figured that that right — one obstacle would be good enough. We got our team togeth- was a waist high length of er the morning of the run, water filled with raw oatgot to Mt. Shasta Ski Park meal - thank goodness it and got signed in. I doubt wasn't cooked. that would any of us was too nervous. have been hard. I breezed There were people of all through all the obstacles shapes and sizes and ages except one. I came up to a there. I watched the first medium sized cement drum wave of people go. I noticed that was partly buried. You that a lot of folks seemed to were supposed to run at it, be caught behind some slow bounce on the wooden pokes. I hate that. I hate it plank, hop up on it and slide when I'm running, and I over it. I ran, hopped and hit hate it when I'm driving. So my gut right in the middle I figured I'd start at the front of it. I tried a few times, of the pack. The race started very unsuccessfully. Then and we all ran up the first the nicest thing happened. incline. About 1 minute up Another racer offered me that hill, I started gasping his hands to step up on to for air like a fish out of get over the top. He did this water. I could not shut my for several other ladies also. mouth and breath through Whoever you are, thank you my nose like my awesome so much. You, sir, are a true running coach, AnnElyse gentleman. The torture of all the Hays, taught me. I had to slow down and let people uphill of the run was finally pass. I was the slow poke over for me, and now I was holding folks back. Not a at the downhill part. Typicomfortable spot for me. I cally, I hate downhill rungot passed by several good ning- it has bothered my runners. Then I did some- knees or ankles in the past. thing that I swore I wouldn't On this day, however, I was do, I walked. I had to. I feeling good. I started runnoticed that everyone did at ning downhill, and I some point. It was such a employed an exercise I have Vilche If you're tired of potholes and dusty roads HOW ABOUT CHIP SEAL! The Affordable Alternative to Asphalt For Private and Community Roads Hourly rates also available on: • Grader • Truck & Transfer • Loaders • Dump Trucks • Grading Tractor • Water Trucks • Backhoe • Oil Truck Family owned & operated since 1975 Lic. #911130 275-2195 my students do. I started galloping. I may have looked like a dork, but it worked like a charm. I was able to jam down that hill, excusing myself to get around the slower folks. I got to that last obstacle, the waist deep mud puddle that you had to run through. I did this as fast as a could, slid over the mud hill and started making a mad dash for the finish line. I keep hearing AnnElyse (in my head- yes I hear motivational voices) telling me to run as fast as you can- get the best time you can get. So I did. I ran so fast (for me) I almost tripped a couple times. But dangit, I made it. I was greeted by my buddies, Zoeanne, Cheryl and Jovita, cheering me in that last leg of my journey. My own personal cheerleaders. Thanks, guys. It was my turn to cheer on the rest of the team. I saw Shannon shortly after. She was making her way down the last leg, and I screamed at her, "Go, Shannon! Sprint! This is a timed event- kill it!" She broke into a sprint and nearly dropped two girls that she split up as she ran between them (narrow path). Next up was our husband and wife teammates, Brad and Donelle were heading for the finish line. I screamed the same thing to them. They picked up speed and lit up that last stretch. Bringing up the rear was Courtesy photo Team Psycho is pictured — Donelle Chox Lazott, Brad Lazott, Shannon Gonczeruk, Avery Vilche and Ruth Ann Merkle. our fabulous photographer, Ruth Ann. Again, I yelled at her to kill it- and, sure enough, she raced through the last part. We were all done, all exhausted, sharing horror stories of the lack of air and terrible inclines. None of us expected we'd even placed and were ready to head back home. Then, just for giggles, we checked the stats (they would update them as each new chunk of folks made it across the finish line). It had me at #2 for my age bracket. I was pretty excited. By the time it was all over, it had me at #5 overall for women and #20 overall for everyone (there were around 300 or so participants). I was thrilled, and ended up getting a sweet log trophy for 1st in my age division (the other 40ish year old woman got first place overall, so that earned me the 1st in my division). Everyone on our team did great, and I was so proud of them for leaving it all out there. We are now preparing for the mother of all mud runs, Tough Mudder, which is a 12 mile run with all kinds of horrid obstacles in Tahoe next month. You can bet your sweet bippy that I'll be training my keester off. In fact, most of our team ran/walked Brokeoff Mountain on Saturday and plan on doing something like that every weekend. I'm still going to try to have the self defense trainings once a month in the midst of this. Please come, ladies, bring your daughters. I offer it at my gym this Saturday at 8 a.m., and it's free. I cannot stress the importance of you and your kids knowing how to get out of holds and be more aware of your surroundings. Again, I will have Damsels in Defense there, and they will have stun guns, pepper spray, and all kinds of fun stuff for sale. I picked up a few goodies last time and am eying the lipstick pepper spray this time. Hope to see a lot of you there.