By Elaine Rassel
I’m going to begin with, “have you checked your furnace filter”? After two days of having itchy eyes, I asked Zachary to see if the furnace filter had anything to do with it. Yes, it was more than enough time to have it replaced. We had to go out of town to find one that was available rather than wait a week. I really think anyone in the “duct” cleaning business could make a living cleaning ducts after a dirty filter had taken over.
I couldn’t go to the City Council meeting on last Monday because of “red” eyes. I looked like I had been on a over-night drunk! So, I can blame this on a dirty furnace filter!
Now after changing a water filter, the water in the house has been shut off. Some part broke off and water had to be shut off. It is Sunday morning and nothing has been done. It wouldn’t surprise me if there will be several of the same part bought just in case it happens again.
Rick Nielsen’s wife, Joy passed away this past week. Both the Nielsen’s taught at Cleghorn for many years. Rick and daughter, Jody have our sympathy on Joy’s death. May memories of her be of comfort to her family and friends at this time. May she rest in peace until we meet again.
I have written about Smallpox so hope it finds space in this week’s edition. Smallpox did take lives of infants, children, and adults or else left them with scars or pit marks. Many years ago there was a man (now deceased) that had pit marks on his face and back of his neck. He wasn’t the only person that had these. Evidently these people had had smallpox and were left with the result. People that had smallpox were quarantined for 15 days.
Smallpox, from early on, was considered one of the worst diseases that a person could contact. When a vaccine was found, there were people just like those that question COVID vaccine. In Cherokee County, the people in charge of medicine had the cooperation of area doctors to vaccinate people. There was a charge for the vaccination but if the family couldn’t afford it, the Red Cross took care of the charge.
I often wondered about the mark on my left leg. Now I know I was vaccinated for smallpox. Some people had the mark on their shoulder. One woman I talked to said that her mother had said the daughter had to have the vaccination on her leg so it would be not seen. I don’t know why some had it on their shoulder. I still have my mark, while another person I talked to said hers was gone. Once the Iowa Department of Health and doctors agreed smallpox wasn’t going away by itself and people had to be vaccinated, it appeared that there weren’t many objections.
Will this COVID bit ever be over with? Some schools have had to shut down due to kids coming down with this. Is a five day quarantine rather than a 10 day one going to be long enough? It would appear that someone wants the COVID person to get back to work as soon as possible.
How good are masks? I was told that there was a test on masks. (the one that comes just below the eyes and down into the neck area). The person wearing one was asked to blow out a candle that was in front of the masked person. If the candle went out, so did the person wearing the mask’s germs go out and likewise, that person was able to receive germs from outside the mask.
In Sunday’s Journal, there was a writer that wrote about masks. The writer continues to be careful because of his immune-no-compromised history and continues to wear a mask when around others. He told of a person that wears a mask in public for three reasons: HUMILITY_I don’t know if I have COVID. It is clear the virus can spread before you exhibit any symptoms. KINDNESS_I don’t know if the person I am near has a child battling cancer or cares for their elderly mom. While I might be fine, they might not. COMMUNITY_I want my community to thrive, businesses to stay open and employees to stay healthy. And finishes with, “Pretty clear to me. Get vaccinated.” (When masks are required, JUST wear one and don’t argue why you have to wear one.)
There was an article on a 16-year-old boy that has a rare form of autism. He couldn’t walk without assistance until he was 4 years old. He struggled to string sentences together in first grad. He was hyperactive and impulsive but could also be social, warm and funny. It wasn’t until he was 5 to get a firm diagnosis of autism.
The parents went to St. Louis Science Center to hear a child psychiatrist, Dr. John Constantino, who is an expert on the genetic underpinnings of autism, speak on autism. He began seeing “Jake” as a patient. Five years later, a proposed genetic testing was done that revealed the missing copy of the MYTH. gene believed to cause one out of every 10,000 to 50,000 autism cases. Having an extra copy can cause schizophrenia. Up to 80% of the risk for autism can be traced to inherited genes.
The family was asked whether they’d be interested in raising money for early research. Family and friends raised $70,000 needed. With half the money, a team of researchers reprogrammed cells from Jake’s blood into “induced pluripotent stem cells,” which can be prodded into becoming various cell types. With the other half of the $70,000 a team of scientists followed the blueprint of Jake’s genome and induced his mutation in MICE using the gene-editing tool CRISPR.
Like the people they’re meant to model, mice with the mutation tended to be more hyperactive than siblings without it, running around their cages much more. The first mice were heavier but had smaller brains and a little less of the white matter that speeds communication between different brain regions. There have been 100 mice bred with Jake’s mutation. These mice have made it to the journal Neuron!
With all this research on mice, it is hoped that Constantino and his team will learn how MYTIL. functions ultimately leading to medicines or gene therapies that improve or even correct the problems the mutation causes. Findings are shared with scientists studying other autism-causing genes or trying to figure out how various genes work together to cause the condition. There are more than 100 genes that are linked to autism with a growing list of several hundred more genes thought to be linked to the condition.
Though not everyone with autism wants treatment, it could help those who do. Jake’s family is glad they went to hear Dr. Constantino speak. So, the next time you see a mouse, don’t think all mice are bad. Some have given up their life to help autism victims like Jake.
While Vogel Paint from Orange City announced their “paint color” for this year as a blue, Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, PPG and Behr, choose a different color. Some of the biggest names in paint, all chose the same hue for their 2022 Color of the Year. This year, it’s all about green. Nature’s neutral color can be used as a base for other vibrant accents in your home. Warm, muted tones like olive, sage, moss and eucalyptus are tones of the chosen color of green. So get prepared to see these tones in the kitchen for appliances, pots and pans, counter-tops. Clothes will sport the color green with jewelry and other accessories in the green color. Don’t forget the pillows in the living room. Maybe this color will send you to do some room remodeling or getting a new “green” wardrobe!
Ask Marilyn was asked, “Why do we like listening to loud music when it damages our hearing in the long run?
Her answer was that loud music captures our attention and takes us out of our individual real worlds. The positive immersion may even cause euphoria. From an evolutionary view, we find loud music intensely exciting because in nature, loudness is always associated with major events. Loud music functions like a recreational drug that requires no prescription and isn’t seen to be a serious threat. Youthful enthusiasts don’t really believe it will damage their hearing. They think such talk is just a warning from pesky elders that it might. (Wait until their hearing is really affected like some of us elders are experiencing_maybe they will wish they had listened but then it is too late.)
Remember in your thoughts and prayers those who have lost family and friends to death, are experiencing health problems that some will never get any better, are trying to make ends meet even though they are working, those who need to have their eyes and ears open to see the road they have chosen to follow, and encourage those to build a bridge rather than a wall to shorten the distancing between friends and family.
I will leave you with this quote from Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013) English leader: “Power is like being a lady…if you have to tell people you are, you aren’t