Thursdays 78 - Boo Bash!

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Originally posted by catland
I'm only aware of the mini-bottles because The Daily Show did a story on them. Apparently bars in S. Carolina are not allowed to serve booze out of regular bottles. If you order a drink there, it comes out of a mini-bottle just like the hotel rooms.

and I thought Oregon was goofy

You're kidding!!! OMG, that must cost a bundle and just think of all the garbage it creates! So, are they getting rid of this law or are then enacting it?

Sorry, but I guess since I'm from Wisconsin where the bigger the bottle the better, I just can't fathom that they would be restricted to those tiny things.

Oops, thanks for the slushy Richard, hope the booze part of it came out of a nice biiiiig bottle.

[RICHARD]

David,

DONE!!

Welcome back to the work force.

T&P,

No little bottles here...


And for Mario....

Are cherries the new wonder fruit?
Science suggests they're good for more than just pies


By Bob Trott

For decades, cherries slid by on reputation only. The tangy little orbs of deliciousness have been credited with an array of health advantages, from soothing gout and arthritis to helping with a good night’s sleep.

Without hard data, though, such claims were dismissed as proverbial old wives’ tales.

Well, sometimes old wives know what they’re talking about.

“It was always anecdotal, but it’s been reported so frequently, by so many different people, that you have to think there may be something to it,” says Dr. Russell J. Reiter, professor of neuroendocrinology at The University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.

Reiter recently put some hard science behind the cherry folklore. He conducted a five-month study and found that tart cherries contain significant amounts of melatonin — a hormone produced in the brain’s pineal gland that has been credited with slowing the aging process, and fighting insomnia and jet lag. It’s also being studied as a potential treatment for cancer, depression and other diseases and disorders.



The findings mark the first time melatonin has been pegged as a naturally occurring substance in food, although trace amounts are evident in bananas, corn and other foods, Reiter says.

“The combination of antioxidants in cherries can be very beneficial,” Reiter says.

Feeling fruity
While Reiter’s study gave cherries some health bonafides, Patricia Leischner already knew the fruit was making her feel better.

Leischner, 63, lives on a farm about 25 miles north of Springfield, Ill., and has suffered from back trouble — she had surgery in 1996 — and arthritis for years.

“My problem was I couldn’t get my hose on, my husband always had to help me with my hose,” Leischner says. “In the mornings I’d awaken with pain in my back. If I tried to clap with my hands, I couldn’t because of my big arthritic knuckles.”

Last year, a friend recommended CherryFlex, soft gel tablets made from tart red cherries. Leischner, who plows the fields in a tractor, says the results were quick, and significant.

“The pain is not there like it was before,” she says. “The natural melatonin helps my sleep pattern, too.”

CherryFlex is manufactured by Flavonoid Sciences, a company in Traverse City, Mich. — the heart of America’s cherry country — founded by Bob Underwood, a cherry farmer for four decades who is credited with creating tart cherry pills for daily use.

“There is such a huge push now in our health system, not only how long you live but also the quality of your life while you’re alive,” says Underwood, 67. “I firmly believe that there’s absolutely no doubt the compounds in these cherries, if taken on a daily basis, definitely have an impact on joint inflammation. And the amount of antioxidants is good for the immune system and other things that don’t have anything to do with that kind of pain and gout.”

The key is the fruit’s skin and pigmentation, where antioxidants called anthocyanins are found. A 1999 study at Michigan State University found that the antioxidant activity of tart black cherries is greater than that of Vitamin E, according to the Moss Report, a cancer treatment and referral service.

Not the pits
Cherries have been popular snack for centuries. In America, French settlers planted pits near the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes as they settled there, eventually founding Detroit and other cities in Michigan. A Presbyterian minister, Peter Dougherty, planted cherry trees near Traverse City, and the state’s first commercial tart cherry orchards were established near that spot at Ridgewood Farm, in 1893.

Underwood says cherries have been associated with pie and other deserts long enough, and “now it’s time to take a look at the other side, the healthy side.”

For Leischner, the fact that she’s using a natural product, and not a medicinal remedy that “gives you a druggy feeling,” is a big plus. “Natural” is a top selling point whether you’re using cherry concentrate or just grabbing a bunch of cherries to munch, says Andrew Lapointe, director of marketing for Traverse Bay Farms, which sells Fruit Advantage tart cherry juice concentrate and capsules under a “The Art of Healthy Eating” banner.

“It’s certainly a better alternative than fast food, for example,” Lapointe says. “There’s more interest in living a healthy lifestyle, and that can mean grabbing cherries by the handful for a quick snack. There’s a definite trend in society where people are wanting to eat healthier, and this fits right in with what folks are looking for.”

[wolflady]

Yay! I just love Halloween! Slip me one of those mulled ciders, Richard! Good job decorating, Mario! I brought some pumpkin pie and my pumpkin carving kit and a pumpkin, so I'm ready to go! I don't know what I will do this year. Last year's pumpkin was just too cute, so I'm not sure how to top that one!! LOL Sergei helped me...

[momoffuzzyfaces]

Originally posted by david p
Hey, Connie! did he miss me and hit you?! I'm sorry, do want me to give you a hand takng those out? OH BOY!! here he comes again and he'e covered with REAL spider webs!

He only landed one seed in my hair, that I've found any way.

Looks like Mario has been dusting the wine cellar again! He wears cobwebs so well!

[RICHARD]

Originally posted by wolflady
Yay! I just love Halloween! LOL Sergei helped me...

Would you consider carving one for the bar....You are talented!

Mulled cider?

Done!

MOFF,

I saw another seed in your hair...I thought it was an earring....Stupid me!!! On your left side....

[dukedogsmom]

Did Mario happen to bring up any wine with him? We might as well add that to the mix. If we had to survive on mini bottles, we'd all be in big trouble! Guess they would cause a mini hangover. Wolflady, that's a cute cat and pumpkin. I've never tried to carve one other than the traditional face. I love all the fancy ones I've seen here.

[slick]

When I was at dinner last night with the crew, Veegan ordered onion rings and couldn't finish them all.

First thing I did was get out the camera........

The doghouse follows me everywhere.

[momoffuzzyfaces]

Originally posted by RICHARD

MOFF,

I saw another seed in your hair...I thought it was an earring....Stupid me!!! On your left side....

Yep, there it is. It got lost in all this long hair!

Mario is going to really be full of himself now that they've discovered cherries are good for you! He'll think he invented them!

That reminds me, Mario, did you bring up a bottle of cherry wine? You what? No! You didn't drink the entire bottle? Oh, it was a mini bottle. Thank goodness!
No wonder you can dance the Monster Mash so well!!!

[momoffuzzyfaces]

Originally posted by slick
When I was at dinner last night with the crew, Veegan ordered onion rings and couldn't finish them all.

First thing I did was get out the camera........

The doghouse follows me everywhere.

ONION RINGS! HOW COULD THEY ABANDON YOU? SIGH!

I would have eaten them first!

Now I'm hungry for some. It's supper time here!

[wolflady]

Thanks for the cider, Richard...one bar pumpkin coming right up!!! I think I'll do a....Mario face! What do you think??

[slick]

Hey Karen, we are having a dressup at work this Friday. I wasn't going to do anything this year but then I spotted the "conehead" that I bought at Dizzyland. It's this big foam orange cone that you put on your head. Purrfect, wouldn't you say??

[QueenScoopalot]

Knock...knock...can I come in? I can't get the door open!

[slick]

Originally posted by QueenScoopalot
Knock...knock...can I come in? I can't get the door open!

Sorry Jan, I was out back watching the lunar eclipse. Grab a drink and chair and come on out and join us. It's the show of a lifetime.

[Logan]

Debbie! I need to answer your question about the mini bottles.

I think it was in 1973 that SC finally allowed bars and restaurants to serve liquor (used to have to bring it in yourself). But, they placed restrictions and said that they could only serve it out of minibottles (like you would have in a hotel room or on an airplane). At the time, the bottles were 1.5 oz (still way more than is normally put in a mixed drink). Then, the manufacturers changed it to 1.7 oz. So, right now, if you go to a bar or restaurant and order a mixed drink in SC, you get one full mini bottle (1.7 oz). That's a pretty strong drink!!!! If you happen to order a drink that uses two different types of alcohol, you get a double dose!!!!

And you're so right! There is a huge garbage issue with the current system.

The proposed change to our state's constitution would adjust to allow for bars and restaurants to do as they choose, and if they would rather use the large bottles, then they will be able to. That is all dependent on the change passing in next week's election. From what I understand, in the "free pour" states (all 49 other states), a mixed drink would contain around 1 oz of alcohol. MADD is supporting the change, as well as many other groups. I think it is absurd that we would still have this regulation in our state when no other state has it! Plus, we have the highest fatality rate in the country due to alcohol related accidents!

Hope this explanation helps! I'll let you know what happens next Tuesday.

[gini]

Wow, I just came over from that other thread of Richard's where everyone is catching something in their zippers, and scratching things in public like no one is watching. Pheww! Got out of there just in time.

What is the deal with the cherries? All of you are eating them like crazy?

I hear Karen is working on a pumpkin for the bar...........what a great idea! I can hardly wait to see it.

We have a WINE CELLAR? Now you tell me! Spiders or no spiders, I am going down there. I just hope that Mario didn't open all of the bottles. Where is the cork screw anyway?

MARIO, GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!

Good group here today, Logan, Richard, Slick, Moff, QSalot, ddm, t&p,david.............let me go mingle for a minute or two and then I will come back and order something absolutely outrageous!