Just like I'd done yesterday with my recycled Friday the 13th post, I'd hoped to recycle an old post with a Valentine's Day theme, but I quickly realized there wasn't one. I managed, however, to dig up two related posts: the first on White Day, when men in Korea and Japan (and Taiwan?) buy romantic gifts for the target of their affection; and the second on Black Day, a concocted Korean holiday when those who received nothing on Valentine's Day or White Day commiserate by eating noodles in a dark sauce. The former is entitled "Beware the Ides of March," which is a delightful coincidence since I've lately been watching the HBO series "Rome."
By the time you read this, if you were supposed to get your beloved a Valentine's Day gift but didn't, you're screwed. Best to convince your loved one that you are waiting until White Day, which could be a tough sell if you're a woman.
Having somehow avoided having girlfriends on or around February 14 while living in the United States, I haven't gotten anyone anything for Valentine's Day since Jerry Brown was governor, when unwritten social custom in elementary schools was that you got Valentine's Day cards or gifts for everybody, regardless of gender. That's right, kids: even in the 1970s and 1980s, the Democrats were trying to undermine family values by foisting same-sex relationships on an unsuspecting public school-going populace. This is why we need school vouchers — now!
So I've been one of those people who dated people who recognized White Day, including North Americans and New Zealanders I dated in Korea. For someone like me who was painfully shy* about telling girls in whom I was interested that I was interested in them, this was a safe way of avoiding any embarrassment by going out on a limb and giving a gift to a girl who was not going to reciprocate.
This year nobody gave me anything for Valentine's Day, which can mean only one thing: the past year has really taken a toll on me and I've finally crossed the threshold from adequately handsome to unattractive. I was hoping I'd manage to age as gracefully as Harrison Ford, but I guess it's all downhill from here. I will die sad and alone unless I adopt several orphans who will be forced to love me.
[left: I was hoping someone would greet me at my door dressed like this. No such luck.]
Maybe I can reverse this. I've been reading a lot about resveratrol, a particularly potent antioxidant found in red wine that some scientists are cautiously referring to as a potential fountain of youth. The idea is that a daily dose of this stuff, can help you live 30 to 40 percent longer, like a lab rat.
Resveratrol has been isolated as the salutary compound of red wine by researchers who have studied how the French can smoke and eat fatty foods as much as they do without turning into Americans.
Up until the resveratrol breakthrough, the best recommendation doctors could offer was to go to France and live a French lifestyle, but the downside of that was living amongst French people, a deal-breaker for most of the world.
So since last week I've been taking my daily ounce of resveratrol. It tastes mediciney, like diluted cough syrup (which one of my high school classmates would regular consume in order to get buzzed). If all goes well, this guinea pig will still be blogging well past the year 2109.
Of course, by then the guardians of the K-blogosphere may have figured out that "Kushibo" is in fact an entity rather than an individual: a series of people connected with Korea who have been anointed with this venerated title for a period of no less than three years, after which they can choose to continue writing with the Kushibo nom de guerre or find another suitable pundit to take up the proverbial pen in their stead. Basically like Zorro, but with a blog.
Either way, I'll see you all at the Kushibo Fest 2110. Cheers! (And in honor of an anonymous presbyter-turned-saint of ancient Rome whose deeds and reason for martyrdom are "known only to God," Happy Valentine's Day!)
* People tell me I'm full of crap when I say that I was (and still am) painfully shy about telling girls I like them. Hello? Anonymous figure hiding behind a computer screen, right here!
Bo: I, too, was hopeful this Valentine's Day would be different and I would be greeted at the door by a beauty in some very sexy garment. Instead, my beauty (and beautiful she is) was tired from dealing with three kids and a whole bunch of laundry. So, I was pleased to find her greeting me in her usual flannel jammies [but wasn't smart enough to surprise her with anything that didn't require more exertion on her part].
ReplyDeleteBut rather than discuss my wife's sleepware etc, I wanted to offer you a better tasting resveratrol drink. It's called Vital Fruits and tastes a lot like your standard grape juice. Lots of antioxidant value - some 4,100 ORAC units and 100 mg of resveratrol in each oz, which makes it very cost efficient, too! If you'd like to try it, let me know [I feel like I've already pushed the limits with the "commercial" so I'll sign off saying I enjoy your blog. My sister in law is from Korea as are my next door neighbors. Your blog has been excellent fodder for conversation].
We need more Valentine's Days.
ReplyDeleteResveratrol was big last year, the focus of researchers has moved to Glutathione. It's the master antioxidant, detox, immune booster your body requires. Doctors are confirming optimum ways to peak performance.
Read the latest.
http://max4me.blogspot.com
Gordon Hunt wrote:
ReplyDeleteInstead, my beauty (and beautiful she is) was tired from dealing with three kids and a whole bunch of laundry. So, I was pleased to find her greeting me in her usual flannel jammies.
Assuming that "your beauty" is your wife and not your nanny, housekeeper, or babysitter, I hope that when I eventually get married and have kids, I still feel the same about my wife after she produces three kushibitos.
But rather than discuss my wife's sleepware etc, I wanted to offer you a better tasting resveratrol drink. It's called Vital Fruits and tastes a lot like your standard grape juice.
To be honest, I was a little harsh with the "mediciney" comment. It doesn't taste exactly like grape juice, but it is quite tolerable.
Lots of antioxidant value - some 4,100 ORAC units and 100 mg of resveratrol in each oz, which makes it very cost efficient, too!
The stuff I'm been buying is what they sell at Sam's Club here in Hawaii. I know it has the 100 mg of resveratrol, but I would have to check about the other stuff, and I'm too lazy to get out of my chair and go upstairs to the dorm fridge and look.
If you'd like to try it, let me know [I feel like I've already pushed the limits with the "commercial" so I'll sign off saying I enjoy your blog.
Good save! Now I won't delete the comment. ;)
No, seriously, if someone comes on and clearly has read through the post and doesn't randomly attack anyone, I'm inclined to leave it up.
Is the Vital Fruits available in Hawaii? You'd be surprised how many things folks on the Mainland take for granted are not available here. We're going to get our first Target only next month.
One of my guilty pleasures, Olive Garden, is nowhere to be found, even though they run commercials here. There's no Trader Joe's, and Whole Foods opened up only last fall.
And then there's the cost of shipping. Oy vey! Hawaii being one of the freak states (a Simpsons reference, by the by), they use that as an excuse to tack on $10 or $20 for shipping. As if going 2000 miles west of California costs more than going 2000 miles east of California.
My sister in law is from Korea as are my next door neighbors. Your blog has been excellent fodder for conversation].
Well, I hope no violence has come about over anything I've written.
Peter Kroesche wrote:
ReplyDeleteWe need more Valentine's Days.
Peter, yours is one of those that came dangerously close to being deleted as an advertisement. But since you made reference to Valentine's Day, that means you either took the time to read the post, or your blogbot has a very powerful artificial intelligence-generated blogging function that may one day take over civilization, so I'd better be nice.
Resveratrol was big last year,
Well, I'd like to think that the validity of a supplement's salubrious qualities is not based on a mere fad of scientists. If resveratrol is "the big thing" last year and glutathione is "the big thing" this year, then neither really is "big."
the focus of researchers has moved to Glutathione. It's the master antioxidant, detox, immune booster your body requires. Doctors are confirming optimum ways to peak performance.
Well, despite this blatant bit of self-promotion, Mr Kroesche, I did in fact learn something. I must admit that I hadn't heard much about glutathione, except some obscure passage in a cell biology textbook back in 1990-something.
Your comment prompted me to take a look again, and it was enlightening. WebMD had something, though WebMD's own corporate sponsorship guidelines leave me wondering if I can trust their advice on new/newish goods and services.
The Mayo Clinic had nothing on glutathione (a long-time family connection with the Mayo Clinic makes me biased toward trusting them), and Dr Koop had a few articles (I'm equally concerned about Dr Koop's corporate sponsorship circumstances).
I'll have to keep an eye out for stuff on this antioxidant. In the meantime, I'll keep eating my oatmeal (the real stuff — five-minute cooking, with fresh apples or raisins or bananas, with cinnamon and ground flaxseed — my fresh fish, yogurt, fresh fruits and vegetables when I can get them, and doing my daily three-mile jog. Hopefully that will account for something.
Awesome post! Have you had a chance to watch 60 Minutes, Fox News, Oprah or Barbra Walters segments last weekend about it?
ReplyDeleteBasically, it shows promise in mice. For mice, has shown major health improvements including blood sugar control. Keep in mind that 6 out of 10 major drug successes in mice - fail in humans. But the limited human trials showed promise and there are some patients that claim it helps. However, this could be the 'placebo effect,' and only empirical data under controlled experiments can tell for sure. It will take a few years for these clinical trials to conclude.
You can get supplements of the extract right now. While it is safe, it is not guaranteed to work. Before making a decision, you should watch all the videos. Here's the a recap from all the trustworthy shows:
http://resveratrolcertifiedsupplements.com/?page_id=4
I did some research and learned the following: You can only get 1-2mgs of it in a single bottle of wine. So, white, it's a good excuse to drink wine, but you really won't get much benefit. There are resveratrol supplements on the market - but many do not have the required strength and they don't work for everyone. The only way to know for sure is to try the supplements. Hope you find this interesting... its a future hope for the fountain of youth and treatments (not cures) for countless diseases.
-Linda, the Good Nurse.