*Brown rice contains a compound that works similarly to blood pressure-reducing drugs?

*Preschoolers in home-based day care watch an average of 2.4 hours of TV per day!?

*World Health Organization experts say that exercise and weight loss could prevent 25 - 30% of breast cancer cases?

*Marinating meat in citrus or vinegar or using a rub that contains rosemary reduces carcinogenic compounds formed during grilling?

source: Dr. Julian Whitaker’s Health & Healing

1. Worst place to keep your toothbrush — the bathroom sink
There are 3.2 million microbes per square inch in the average toilet bowl, and all of those germs are propelled out every time you flush, settling on the floor and the sink. Keep your toothbrush behind closed doors in the medicine cabinet or a nearby cupboard. (Eeeewww! Who knew your old toothbrush could double as a toilet brush? Recycle and reuse!)
2. Worst place to stash sneakers and flip-flops — the bedroom closet Shoes track in allergens and contaminants and other nasty stuff. Leave your shoes by the front door. (Ha! I’m a “no-shoes-in-the-house” freak! And for good reason, it seems.)
3. Worst place to fall asleep — under piles of blankets
Being overheated can keep you from sleeping. Let your feet stick out from under your blankets. (Well, I can think of lots of far worse places to fall asleep, personally. Like at a job interview, or while operating a chainsaw, or while sitting for afternoon tea with the Queen. No, that wouldn’t be cool, and besides, you’d end up missing her dish about Fergie.)
4. Worst place to cool leftovers — in the refrigerator
Placing hot leftovers directly in the fridge can cause uneven cooling and possibly food poisoning. Leave food to cool on the counter for up to an hour after cooking, or divide it into smaller containers that can cool faster before refrigerating. (Use glass containers, not plastic.)
5. Worst place to sit on an airplane — the rear
The tail of the plane is where you’ll get the bumpiest ride. Sit as close to the wing as you can. (Geesh! Everyone knows that sitting next to the bathroom is the worst place to park your rear on an airplane.)
6. Worst place to set your handbag — the kitchen counter
Tests have showed up to 10,000 bacteria per square inch on purse bottoms! Put your bag anywhere except where food is prepared or eaten. (Accidentally placing your Coach bag on a cooling stove burner would bug you more than the 10,000 bugs per square inch would.)
7. Worst place to use a public bathroom — the stall in the middle
The center stall has more bacteria. Pick a stall all the way left or right. (They didn’t say why. More people gravitate to the middle? The microbes shoot over to the middle from the left and right? Bacteria just prefer middle stalls? Why?)
8. Worst place to keep medicine — the medicine cabinet
The temperature in a bathroom can get well above the recommended storage temperatures for many common drugs. Keep medicine somewhere cool and dry, such as the pantry. (Yeah, and then guests can randomly open your cupboards and play “Name that Embarrassing Ailment.”)
9. Worst place to use headphones — on an airplane, train, or subway You’re probably turning the volume up too high if you’re listening to headphones in a noisy environment. Listen wherever you don’t have to blast your music to enjoy it, or consider using noise-canceling headphones. (On that note, Greta once sat on an airplane next to a girl who put her bare feet with chipped toenail polish onto the back of the seat tray, and then decided to give herself a little pedicure to while away the time. So, worst place to give yourself a pedicure…?

Good luck!

Lacey and I were nonchalantly walking down a particularly narrow part of the path when all of a sudden I could see in the distance two crazed, wildly cackling geese, flying low and really fast along the path like airplanes coming in for a landing. Or more like an attack! They came straight for us, beaks open, intent on…beaking us! And they were huge, honkin’ geese! My first instinct was to duck, but since it was a goose, I dove sideways off the path and into a mucky, icky bog (wrecking my brand new Merrell hiking shoes that I just got on sale at Mountain Equipment Co-op). Then I screamed at Lacey Lou to “Run, Lacey! Run!” And she did. Only the dive-bombing lead goose flew faster and bit her right on the bum! Thinking the cookoo twenty-pound goose was going to pick my tiny, nine-pound Jack Russell up by the collar and drop her into the lake, I made a screeching fuss, arms waving, muck flying everywhere, until the goose got the message that I was NOT to be messed around with now that my new hiking shoes were ruined. And the bird flew. Phew!

I must have looked like a truly crazy person, but thankfully, no one was there to witness us getting goosed. I guess the geese were probably just protecting their babies or something, but gosh, why all the drama? Such trauma over flying geese. Now I know how Chesley Sullenberger must feel!

Now that we’ve gotten our feet wet with our first official cameo, I’m confident that more offers will come rolling in. For instance, I would seriously consider playing the role of the mysterious, dark-eyed Polish intern who becomes the new love-interest of Patrick (McDreamy) Dempsey on Grey’s Anatomy. Perfect! And for my night-time gig, I could see myself happily taking over for Simon Cowell on American Idol when he leaves after this season. I mean…like…I HAVE seen every single solitary episode for the last six years, after alll. And you should see me play Name that Tune! No one can touch me! Oh, and being the new Bachelorette might be fun, too. Geez! I’ll be one busy girl. Who has time to write cookbooks?

I have my sister, Greta, to thank for my latest and most potent addiction ever. A couple of months ago I was at her house and was hankerin’ for a little something crunchy and perhaps salty to snack on. She nonchalantly reached in her cupboard and produced the most crispy, crunchy, satisfying, irresistible, “can’t-possibly-stop-eating-til-the-entire-box-is-gone” treat: “Nut-Thins Rice & Nut Crackers.” Has anyone tried these stupid things? I wish I hadn’t! I can’t stop eating them! Why, Greta? Why’d ya do it??

I love, love, love the pecan flavoured ones. The ingredients list is pretty clean, and they’re backed by the Celiac Disease Foundation, being gluten-free and all, which I appreciate. The label states that a 30 gram serving (16 crackers) is a mere 130 calories, so you can grab more than a handful. Oh yeah? Well how ’bout 1600 crackers, because that’s about how many (give or take a few thousand), that I’ve downed in the last couple of weeks! Seriously. Crack cocaine might be safer than these crackers. Maybe it’s just me. Perhaps I have no willpower whatsoever. Perhaps I am a willpower weakling? Or perhaps I am so tired of hibernating through these winter months that I’m just drowning my sorrows with salty snacks. I dunno. All I do know is that for the last couple of weeks I’ve had to bump up my workouts at the gym to two-hour, cracker-calorie-incinerating sweat-a-thons, thanks to Greta and her so-called “hospitality.” When I said I wanted crunchy and salty, why couldn’t she have offered me a dill pickle?

Like I said, it might just be me, but if you want to try them for yourself, I found Nut Thins at Loblaws in the natural section. Manufacturer is Blue-Diamond Growers. Good luck to you.

Anway, I can’t wait for FRED’s show, Dan for Mayor, to premiere tonight at 8:30 pm EST. Don’t forget, Janet and I make an appearance in the 4th episode, slated for March 22nd.

The show is from the writers of Corner Gas, and it’s called Dan for Mayor. Remember dumb Hank in Corner Gas? He was played by the non-dumb and very cute Fred Ewaniuck, who now stars in Dan for Mayor. I love the premise of the show (I’m quoting this from an interview with Ewaniuck that was published on the Macleans magazine website): “Dan is an aging slacker who snaps into reality when his ex-girlfriend announces she’s getting married. Stunned by the news, Dan, a bartender, announces big plans of his own: he’s running for mayor. Dan recruits his best friend to manage his campaign—Ewaniuck describes it as ‘the blind leading the blind’—and sells his beloved Pac-Man arcade game to pay the electoral deposit.”

The show looks really cute and funny. I can’t wait to start watching it, and not just because Janet and I are in it, either! You’ll see us in episode #4, which is schedule for March 22nd. I’m sure you’re wondering what the heck we could possibly be doing in this sitcom, right?? Well, I won’t give it away, but let’s just say we look really “dreamy” in it.

Thank you so much for your support of our burgers. More J&G products to come!

3. Nature’s Path Optimum Cereal with Blueberries and Cinnamon (YUM!). I don’t think this tastes like a healthy cereal at all. It has everything I like in a cereal: crunch-power, texture, little itty bitty blueberries with a hint of cinnamon, and just a touch of sweetness. I love cinnamon enough to marry it, so when it’s in cereal (did I mention I love cereal?), it’s divine! Bonus: 7 grams of fibre and only 9 grams of sugar per cup. More info on Optimum Cereal here: http://www.naturespath.com/products/cold%20cereals?tid=5&brand=All&nutri=All

2. Kashi Go-Lean Crunch. I’d describe these crunchy clusters as a combination of Sugar Crisp cereal (again, from my sugar-coated youth) and granola. They aren’t kidding about the crunch part (not recommended after recent dental work) and this cereal doesn’t get soggy in milk. It’s filling and keeps me feeling satisfied for a long time, likely because of the dynamic dietary duo of high fibre (8 g per cup) plus high protein (9 g). The sugar content is a bit higher than the Optimum Cereal above (13 g vs 9 g), but it’s still respectable. More info on Go-Lean Crunch here: http://www.kashi.com/products/golean_crunch_original

1. Drum roll, please!! My ultimate favourite could-eat-it-every-day-and-usually-do healthy cereal? Kashi Cinnamon Harvest. Think Frosted Mini Wheats without the “frosted” part, since the Kashi folks tucked a little hint of sweetness, in the form of organic cane juice, throughout (not just on top of) these tasty little pillows of warm, spicy cinnamon and organic whole wheat. Not only do I love it for breakfast, it’s the perfect bedtime snack when made with warm milk…and just what’s recommended when your stomach’s growling at night—a blend of whole-grains and protein! I do have one complaint about this cereal though, and I know I’m not alone. There seems to be quite a variation from box to box in the cinnamoniness (I know, not a word) and sweetness. I wish it was more consistent. The cinnamon fairies were definitely snoozing when my last box of Cinnamon Harvest was produced…I could barely taste the spice (so I sprinkled some on myself! Not ON MYSELF, like on my pyjamas, but on the cereal ALL BY MYSELF
More info on Cinnamon Harvest here:
http://www.kashi.com/products/kashi_whole_wheat_biscuits_cinnamon_harvest

I’ve found all three cereals mentioned above in the health-food aisle of my local grocery store. Please give them a try and let me know what you think!