Saturday 25 April 2009

It's a Purl Man Public Service Announcement

Just a quick post here with a shameless plug for one of the podcast hosts of a show I listen to regularly. Guido of It's a Purl, Man is hosting an after party for people attending Maryland Sheep and Wool. It's a mixer/cocktail party and he is trying to get the word out as quickly as possible since the party is coming up on May 2. So, if you're lucky enough to be going to MS&W, please consider hanging out with Guido and a bunch of fibre fanatics. Here's the website to check it out. He needs a headcount by Monday, so jump on it NOW!

Wednesday 8 April 2009

Now here is a dedicated crocheter...

I couldn't resist posting this after reading it on the Mason-Dixon blog a couple of minutes ago.

Life in Italy

I wonder what she was working on and how much she finished whilst waiting for rescue.

Tuesday 7 April 2009

How gullible do "they" think we are?

Every once in a while something will just hit me as totally ridiculous and today I'm going to share this with y'all.

Picture this - a gooey, sugary cheese danish in its clear plastic wrapper. The icing on it oozes sweetness that practically threatens to burst through the wrapping and attach itself directly to your thighs. It screams hyperglycemia as it tempts you in Alice in Wonderland Eat Me fashion. Do you honestly need to read anything on the packaging to know what this confection is going to do to your body?

Well, apparently, the distributors of said sugar overload feel that they need to taunt you in some way that actually makes you think it's okay to eat the killer danish. Yep, just in case you needed that little extra twist of the arm, here it is...0 grams transfat. Wow! If I hadn't known that, I might have reached for an apple or banana. But, hey, if there's no transfat, I'll bet it's good for me!

facepalm

This is why the general public buys things that aren't good for them but is deluded into thinking that it's okay.

This particular cheese danish has the following (because I read the nutrition label - and I use the term loosely): 390 calories - 140 of them from fat; 56 carbs; 16g fat. And those are just the highlights.

Hmm...a little research will tell you that even on an 1800 calorie diet, you've just about consumed most of one meal with this little gem. If you're actually dieting, you've definitely shot an entire meal in one fell swoop.

Carbs - did you know that the RDA is 130 grams a day? And this one product has about half of that - oooh, that's healthful.

Now about those fats. Boy am I glad there are no transfats in said danish. Why? Because there are 16grams of fat still there; 140 calories of fat are still lurking somewhere. Using the example of an average 1800 calorie diet, the recommended grams of fat each day that you should be consuming is somewhere between 20% and 35% - from 40 to 70 grams of fat. Do you really want to use up somewhere between 23 to 40% of your allowable fats for the day in about a half dozen bites of sugary sweetness, all the while deluding yourself by repeating the mantra "it has no transfats; it has no transfats; ad infinitum"???

Sorry, folks, but I'm from the old school where you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. If it's bad for you, accept it and either take the plunge or pass on by. But, for heaven's sake, don't let the marketing people try to make idiots of us by touting their plaudits of no trans fats whilst sending us into glucose hell.

Monday 6 April 2009

I read way too many blogs...

...and I often want to share lots of them with you, dear unsuspecting reader, but I don't for fear I will overwhelm you with the sheer numbers of what I deem "must read" posts.

I will make an exception for this one because it is about bunnies and, other than poor Anya in Buffy, most people are suckers for cute, soft, cuddly bunnies. This, unfortunately, translates into parents' impulse purchases of the little critters for their irresponsible children who get bored with them after a fairly short period of changing cages and supplying fresh food and water.

Seriously, folks, what do you expect from a couple of generations of youngsters raised by a children's program which geared its attention-span length to that of a television commercial? (Nope, I didn't make that up. I researched this well-known tv show when it launched on PBS back in the early 70's. Segments were produced to replicate commercials because they appealed to children's short attention spans.) Is it any wonder that we are now dealing with those same tots who are all grown-up (cough) and still can't sit still long enough to read a book because they are easily distracted by...ooh, shiny!

But I digress. And I publicly apologize for ever making fun of Mr. Rogers. I remember weeks they would stage an opera/operetta over a period of five episodes! Five episodes? Without chopping things up into 60-second segments? Say it isn't so...okay, stop me now before I go off on another tangent.

Anyway...back to the bunnies. I just read this post at the blog, HoundsGood - Chronicles of a Virtual Volunteer. Thank goodness it has a happy ending for Sweet. Considering my background in guinea pig rescueland, I can tell you that not all endings are so lovely.

So, before you or your friends even think about getting a darling little furbaby for a child's pet, (and I know the temptation is great with Easter right around the corner) please a)read that blog post; b)read it AGAIN and c)if you decide you really, really need a rabbit for a pet, check out the House Rabbit Society nearest you.

That was also my public service announcement for the month. Unless some other blog smacks me upside the head with something else I absolutely have to share.

Oh, yeah, I am still knitting on the toe-up socks and, much to my chagrin, the first one is finished but it doesn't have much stretch to it so it is snug...too snug. grrr... This may lead to some frogging.