Winning at my age is what it’s all about — The most recent half marathon I did was pre-Covid, June 2019, in Winnipeg. I usually do a half-marathon every few years. I ran my first half-marathon when I was 41 years old. Almost 30 years later, I have a new plan. There is a unique half marathon called the Half…

Growing and making candied ginger is as much fun as being a castaway! — This spring, I learned how to make scones from the legendary Martha Stewart. Not in person, of course, but from a recipe my son’s mother-in-law sent me. Thanks Deloree. Close enough. Scones I decided to add different things to my scones. After all, they are my scones. So instead of…

Oxalates plants, soluble or insoluble, as the writer you decide. — The first thing to know is that there are two kinds of oxalate plants. First, there are insoluble oxalates and soluble oxalates. Insoluble oxalates include Dieffenbachia, Jack in the pulpit, elephant’s ear, skunk cabbage, philodendron, and calla lily. …

Rhododendrons and azaleas are plants that contain grayanotoxins. — The toxins responsible for the poisonous effects of Rhododendron are grayanotoxins. These toxins are found in the nectar, flowers, leaves, fruit, twigs, and stem. Both rhododendrons and azaleas are considered grayanotoxin plants. Azaleas are less toxic than rhododendrons. Fatalities in humans are rare, but they will have symptoms that the…

The original heart medicine, Digitalis, was made by foxglove! — This plant contains toxic cardiac glycosides. The plant leaf from a foxglove was how the pharmacies were able to produce digoxin before they were able to manufacturer this drug. Serious toxicity is uncommon unless intentionally ingested as food or a suicide attempt. Toxic Dose The amount to cause toxicity is…

The English Yew (T. baccata) sure looks pretty with its red berries, but the toxicity is not a pretty sight. The Taxus species includes numerous yew plants. All parts of the plant are toxic except the flesh of the red berry-like fruits. The fruit contains a hard seed which is…

Atropa Belladonna is the classic deadly nightshade. — All parts of this plant are toxic, especially fruits and seeds. The alkaloids in these plants are atropine, l-hyoscyamine, and scopolamine. They all have anticholinergic activities, including dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention, bowel obstruction, dilated pupils, blurred vision, rapid heart rate, and decreased sweating. This plant likes shady, moist locations…

New research with magic mushrooms for PTSD therapy is under investigation. — Psilocybin mushrooms cause central nervous system as well as auditory and visual hallucinations. These mushrooms have effects similar to LSD. Physical dependence doesn’t occur, but repeated use can produce tolerance. A psilocybin trip is neurologically similar to dreaming. This was shown by doing brain imaging. Toxic Dose

Most of the symptoms won’t get you high. — This is the pretty mushroom. The one frequently seen in fairy tale books. It can be yellow, orange, or red and is commonly called the fly-agaric mushroom. While this mushroom contains muscimol, a psychoactive agent, the prodrug to muscimol is ibotenic acid, a neurotoxin. Fatalities are rare but have happened…