Another Reason To Eat Curry

Not wanting to jump onto the bandwagon here since medical research tends to require a bit of time to "digest" {pun intended} and be verified, but new research suggest that the tumeric in curries may fight against esophageal cancer cells.

Researchers at the Cork Cancer Research Center in Ireland treated esophageal cancer cells with curcumin -- a chemical found in the spice turmeric, which gives curries a distinctive yellow color -- and found it started to kill cancer cells within 24 hours.

The cells also began to digest themselves, they said in a study published in the British Journal of Cancer.

Previous scientific studies have suggested curcumin can suppress tumors and that people who eat lots of curry may be less prone to the disease, although curcumin loses its anti-cancer attributes quickly when ingested.

They don't have to sell it to me, since I love curries and indian food anyway. I just wish that the curries that I like don't have that much salt and that much calories and fat. So yeah, they fight cancer, but they make you obese! So not sure if this is fair trade-off!

But all this blogging about curries makes me crave for indian food....

Zz.

Suburbs Here I Come!

I first lived in Chicago in 1985. I'd say it was love at first sight, even though back then, the Loop was NASTY, especially after dark. I mean, it wasn't mean and nasty like Times Square before it turned Disney, but still, people try to get out of the Loop as soon as work is done.

Now, the city is marvelous, and there's life in the city even during off-hours. And I've lived within the city limits ever since. So it is with quite a bit of trepidation that I decided to buy a house out in the suburbs. Yes folks, I'm one of those people who finally decided to take advantage of (i) the $8000 tax credit for first time home buyers (ii) the "historically low" mortgage rate and (iii) the very attractive house prices. We bought a house, and will close this week.

But oh the anxiety! And not just due to the burden of owning a house and almost emptying out my savings. It is the anxiety on life in the suburbs. I wanted a sizable house, with ample storage, a family room, a spacious kitchen, and more importantly, a nice backyard that's quiet, where I can spend many days outdoors. To get that, and within a reasonable price, I had to leave the city limits.

I plan to move out in mid November. I'll miss the city, but plan on being back many times, especially when I crave for good Vietnamese food, or good Ethiopian food, or good Korean food.

Zz.

Your Poo and Piss Are THAT Heavy?

So, the All Nippon Airways of Japan (a very well-respected airline, I might say, so this is not some rinky-dink airline) wants you to go to the bathroom before you board one of their planes. They do not want you to use the airplane's washroom during the flight, if you can. Why do they want you to do that? Is it because they have limited bathroom facility? Because they want minimal disruption to the in-flight service?

NO! They want you to go so that you'll make the plane LIGHTER! Your poo and piss are heavy! I'm not making this up!

"Asking passengers to go to the toilet (before boarding) is just a small part of the program," said spokeswoman Megumi Tezuka, which includes using recycled paper cups and plastic bottles instead of glass.

"We are making these items lighter -- and making the passengers lighter, a little bit," Tezuka said.

The airline estimates that if 50 percent of passengers relieved themselves before boarding, it would reduce carbon dioxide by 4.2 tons a month.

I suppose this may make sense in Japan where on average, people are smaller and not overweight. Here in the US, if everyone just stay away from that doughnut, why, all the airlines would make a huge profit from using less fuel in a year, with or without that pre-board bathroom break! :)

Hey, I just had a thought. Maybe they'll have a toilet seat and a urinal right at the gate and make passengers relief themselves before they board! :)

Zz.

2016 Olympics Bid

So many people here in Chicago are paying a very close attention to today's vote on the city that will host the 2016 Olympics. Being a Chicagoan, and knowing how much I love the city, of course I have a vested interest in the decision. Am I rooting for Chicago to win? Hum..... good question!

On the one hand, of course I am! It would be a tremendous honor to host the Olympics. I'm proud of the city and hope more people can come and visit and discover all the amazing things about the city itself. It can be as big, as busy, and as hectic as New York, but without the attitude and with pedestrians still obeying the pedestrian traffic signal (well, most of them anyway). Many first-timers to the city are always surprised at how friendly and how beautiful the city is, especially if they get to Grant Park and the lakefront.

But on the other hand, I'm dreading the traffic gridlock. While this may not be a factor for me by 2016 (I'm in the process of buying a house and moving out of Lakeview and into the near 'burbs), I can only imagine how it might work out, especially in the downtown area. And I still want to know how the public transportation (with the CTA trains and busses) are going to handle all the heavy volume of people. Riding the CTA trains, for example, can be a frustrating experience.

Oh well, we will know in a few hours if Chicago gets the bid or not. I think Rio makes a very strong case that it is time for the Olympics to make its first visit to South America.

Zz.