Walking

Walking is such a good, easy way to exercise, but if we don't make it a habit we sometimes start skipping days and then we start skipping more days until we are only walking when the weather is perfect or the time is right. As you know, we must make our exercise a habit so that we don't have to think about the weather or the time of year or whether we really have time.

I will tell you about how I have made my daily walks a habit just to give you an idea, but, of course, each of you will have to make a habit that fits with your life.

I have dogs to walk. That is a very good motivator as they need exercise as much as I do. As their 'mother,' I must keep my 'children' healthy. As soon as I get up, I put my walking clothes on. Some days, I may have to set the alarm for 5:00 A.M., if I have someplace to go that day. I have just learned that if I don't do it first thing, I will tend to skip it. So, walking first thing in the morning has become a habit seven days a week. Of course, if it is raining hard I can't risk getting those poodle haircuts ruined, so we don't go. :)

However, that doesn't really happen too often. The only other variable is the length of our walk. Some days we only have time to do a 20-minute walk, whereas other days we can do thiry or forty minutes.

Whenever my granddaughter stays with me, she knows that we have to walk the dogs. When she was very small, I would push her in the stroller and hold 3 leashes. It got to be a little complicated, but we would do it. As she got older, I would hold her hand and one dog leash with my left hand and hold on to the other two dogs with my right hand. This also was complicated, but we would do it. Now that she's five, she can walk beside us and will keep up, especially, if I promise her a stop at the neighborhood park or a special cartoon while we eat breakfast.

Because I now have only two dogs to walk, it has gotten much less complicated and I have pulled out my i-pod. I have found if I download a motivational talk or a workshop, I will walk longer because I am so interested in listening to the talks.

I hope you can find ways to make your daily exercise an enjoyable habit. Leave me a comment as to how you have done that in your life.

Rest in Peace My Sweet Doodle Bug

Doodle Bug was a very special dog who was born on Halloween, 1994 and died on January 27, 2009 at the age of 14 years and 3 months.

"Run, run as fast as you can;
You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man."

This is how Doodle Bug came into our lives in October of 2001. He had gotten out of his yard and he took off running as fast as he could. He had run for 3 or 4 blocks right into our garage. The only problem was it was getting dark and he didn't know where he was. Since he had no collar on we didn't know where he came from so couldn't contact his owners.

We took his picture and posted signs around our neighborhood.When no word came from his owners I took him to the vet to get checked out. He had cataracts (but he could still see) and bad periodontal disease, and, in fact he lost 2 teeth right away. His owners did eventually see a sign and came to claim him. When I exclaimed how much I already loved him, they consented to letting me keep him.

Doodle Bug joined a large family... there were his new brothers, Pogo and Blue and his new cousin, Molly. Walks were quite exciting!



Doodle Bug's favorite pasttime was looking out the window and barking at school buses, golf carts, and motorcycles. He was going to keep us safe!

He loved his evenings with the family. He also loved family trips even though it got a bit crowded in the back seat between Pogo and Blue. He did have his own special seat between the big dogs so he could look out the front window. We went to Austin many times and to the beach a couple of times. He was such a good traveler.

Melinda was always using him for a model for the numerous photo courses she took and I think he really loved posing.

This was a fun assignment as he got to ride with his head out the window!

The pictures below reminded me of the times when Doodle Bug could still see. There was a knothole in the fence that he would look through to see what was going on in the outside world. Other times he would sit and look at the flower beds. Then when I wasn't looking he would scramble in and find a turtle. He'd scoop it up in his mouth and then run into the house through the doggie door. Because he never went in without me, I was puzzled. Then I discovered that when he found a turtle he would sneak in and I could find him in a corner of the house somewhere watching his little pet.


By Christmas this year, Doodle had slowed down quite a bit. Kendall decorated him as he rested in the corner so he wouldn't feel left out of the festivities. He was such a sweetheart and we will surely miss him.

Food Stamps

I recently read an article in our local newspaper which featured interviews with our community Food Bank officials. The article really made me think, as one statistic stated that Food Stamp benefits equal about $96 per person per MONTH. If you count 30 days in a month and 3 meals in a day, that's $1.00/meal per person. Wow... is there a way to eat in a healthy way with that small amount of money?

During my grocery shopping and cooking, I have been thinking about that number. I bought a potato wrapped in plastic ready to microwave for my granddaughter and that cost $1.00. I guess that could be a quick meal for someone. Of course, there would be no extra side dishes or even condiments to put on top of it. But, a plain baked potato can actually taste good.

For breakfast you could purchase a large box of Shredded Wheat for $4.00 and a half-gallon of soy milk for $3.29. If you ate a bowl of cereal every morning, that would be $1.04 per breakfast.

I've got a recipe for some good and easy bread that you can make with self-rising whole wheat flour and a tablespoon of olive oil. The small bag of flour costs $1.69 and you could probably get 5 or 6 loaves from that bag. The olive oil costs $8/bottle. One loaf of bread would be about fifty-eight cents. Add an apple for fifty cents and you have a lunch. To add a tablespoon of peanut butter would put you over the top.

If you purchased a tub of spinach for $4.29 and steamed a small portion every night, you could get the cost down to sixty-one cents a meal. Add 1/4 box of spaghetti ($1.59) and 1/4 can of tomato sauce for another fifty-one cents and those dinners would total $1.12.

A can of beans costs ninety-nine cents and a bag of beans costs $1.15. If you cooked the bag of beans with an onion (thirty-five cents) and a bag of carrots ($1.39) and made it last for 3 meals, that would be ninety-six cents a meal.

This gets really hard and most of us would definitely lose weight if that's all we had to eat. As we gather around a full table this Thanksgiving, let's be extremely grateful for what we have and let's be very sympathetic for the plight of those on food stamps. Don't begrudge them their $1 meals.

Sign up to receive new blog posts directly to your inbox.  Just fill in your name and e-mail address in the gray box to the left and hit the "submit" button. You will then get an e-mail asking you to confirm your e-mail address.  Once you do that, you will be signed up to receive new blog posts.

© 2007-2015 Melinda Coker

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: “Melinda Coker, health coach and author of the book, Diet and Cancer: Is There a Connection?, teaches men and women around the world how to develop a healthy lifestyle.”

Skin Care

Have you ever been "suckered in" by a salesperson? There is nothing better than a good salesperson... as long as that person is someone of integrity who has a sincere desire to help you get something you want. As with most "older" women, I am concerned with the lines and wrinkles that are showing up on my skin and I would like to use natural treatments and products to help minimize them as much as possible. Just because I am getting older doesn't mean I no longer want to be as beautiful as I can... to a certain degree anyway... as I am currently too fearful of having surgery.

A couple of weeks ago I had some errands to run at our local mall. I managed to get past the first booth of skin care products by rushing past and saying "no" to the plea to try a new hand cream.

At the other end of the mall, I noticed a chair massage site set up in the middle of the concourse. My shoulder had been bothering me and when I saw that you could get a 10-minute massage for $12, I had to stop. It was a good massage and it was quick. However, as I was leaving and not paying attention, a salesman at the skincare booth near the massage pad starting asking me about my massage experience, and, because Southern women are "polite," I visited with him and then he had me on a stool so he could show me his new skin care products.


He was trying this product and that product and then showing me the results in a mirror telling me that my droopy skin was firming up and my lines and wrinkles were clearing up right before his eyes. It's a great ploy! As an older woman, I couldn't believe someone was actually pointing out my sagging and lines and wrinkles, but then showing me the amazing results. Of course, I wasn't wearing my glasses and he wasn't holding up a magnifying mirror, so I just had to take his word for it that my skin was now amazing! Oh, what vain fools we can be. :)

After I got home with my purchases, because I had spent so much money, I decided that I had better not put these products on the shelf with the many others I have bought over the years, so I read and reread the directions and made myself a chart as to which product to use when. That salesman had talked me into buying THREE different masks, so I had to make sure I knew when I was going to use each one. I was somewhat excited because I knew I would begin to look much younger.

I'm sure there is a little improvement after using this skin care regimen for the past two weeks and I will continue to use my masks, creams, serums, and lotions. However, what has really upset me is after "googling" the products, I found that I paid nearly 3 times the amount I could have gotten them for on the web. That HURTS and could almost cause some of those lines and wrinkles to come back!

Switched to SuperSlow

At a charity "silent auction" this summer I noticed one of the bid items was a package of personal strength training sessions at SuperSlow. My son was going to be in town soon and he had talked many times about the benefits of a SuperSlow workout. I bid on the package and "won."

I have been working out at a local gym with a personal trainer for the past year and a half so thought this workout would be very similar. It wasn't.

I walked in and was met by my slightly overweight trainer who was dressed in street clothes and lots of jewelry. I worked out on several machines while she explained the SuperSlow concept. This was not a race to see how many reps I could do, but I was told to go very slowly for 3 minutes on each machine and to do as few reps as possible. The temperature was very cool, the gym was small with no more than 2 trainers working at the same time and no separate cardio machines. There is no loud music... in fact there is no music at all as you are to concentrate on your workout. The total workout only took 30 minutes.

I have since signed up for more sessions. It's very unusual to take a shower BEFORE I go to the gym. After my 30-minute session I am free to get a few errands run and I still get home in less time than I did with my previous workouts. It's really a nice change for now.

Added Swimming to My Exercise Routine

My granddaughter LOVES to swim and at 4-years old she is quite good. Whenever she visits, she is in the pool 2-3 times a day. The last time she came, a golfer had hit a ball into the pool and no one wanted to get it out. Kendall did. She swam to the bottom of the 9-10' area and retrieved the golf ball!

I am a warm water swimmer. By the end of June our pool had gotten warm enough for me to start swimming. I love the water and I love swimming (as long as it's warm) so for about 6 weeks I have been able to swim nearly every day. As in my other sports, I am not an extremist. I usually swim laps for 15-30 minutes using a variety of strokes. It definitely adds to my aerobic exercise and really energizes me. Unfortunately for swimming, we have had a week of cooler temperatures and clouds and rain so today I won't swim. I hope it is not the end of the swimming season for me, but just a few days without it.

In Memory of Molly

Our beautiful Molly died on November 2, 2007 at the age of 6 1/2. She was way too young to die, but it seems that she ate something that destroyed her liver. We don't know if it was some dog food that should have been recalled but wasn't or if she found some molded corn or peanuts from left-over squirrel food. Whatever it was it was horrible.

Molly was my "grand" dog. She belonged to my daughter and my granddaughter. She was the daughter of my Pogo and the sister of my Blue. She was loved by all who knew her. Anytime I took her to get groomed or took her to the vet, everyone commented on how "good" she was.

Molly was a great model for my photo classes. She would hold still while I focused the camera. It was like she knew she was beautiful and didn't mind if I made a record of that beauty. :)









Molly LOVED to play. In this series of pictures she was chasing and jumping at the water Kendall was throwing to her.

WE MISS YOU MOLLY!!



Articles about aflatoxin...

Dogs keep dying by Susan Lang

Even though Diamond, Country Value and Professional brand dog foods have been recalled for containing highly toxic aflatoxins, they have caused an estimated 100 dog deaths in recent weeks, say Cornell University veterinarians, who are growing increasingly alarmed. Some kennels and consumers around the nation remain unaware of the tainted food, which may have been shipped to more than two dozen countries, and as a result, they continue to give dogs food containing a lethal toxin.

Over the recent holiday weeks, Center and her staff worked around-the-clock to try to save the 17 poisoned dogs admitted to Cornell's Hospital for Animals. "I've been working with liver disease in dogs for 30 years, and I've never seen such miserably ill dogs," said Center, noting that severely affected dogs suffer from intractable vomiting and internal bleeding. "Despite our understanding of this complex toxin, we have no direct antidote for this poisoning. This has been an immensely sad holiday and one that will leave an indelible mark on the owners that lost their cherished family members."

Of those 17 dogs, Center euthanized 12 when it became clear they could not survive, and the remaining four were released, though the Vet College continues to treat new cases. Dogs that have survived consumed a smaller amount of the food than dogs that died, Center said. "Some dogs were stealing food from the kitchen counter. Others just stopped eating the food and begged for treats. Unfortunately, some owners used gravy and other mixers to entice their dogs to consume what they thought was safe, quality dog food."

Kaytee Squirrel & Critter Mix (Can be lethal for dogs)

Our BEST SELLING Kaytee Squirrel & Critter Blend attracts many backyard visitors with a pleasant apple aroma. Designed to attract squirrels, chipmunks and rabbits. Contains Corn, Black Oil Oil Sunflower, Whole Peanuts, Striped Sunflower, & Artificial Flavors.

Understanding and Preventing Aflatoxin Poisoning

Aspergillus is a mold that infects corn when stressed, but can infect other crops in the region such as grain sorghum, peanuts and cotton. Aflatoxins are odorless, tasteless and have no color: thus, they are difficult to detect. These toxins are extremely poisonous to humans, livestock and poultry. Four major types of aflatoxins are B1, B2, G1 and G2. Though all of these toxins are usually found in grain at a minute level, B1 is typically more abundant and causes an increased protein requirement in livestock and poultry that consume it.

Aflatoxin consumption by livestock and poultry results in a disease called aflatoxicosis. Aflatoxins are metabolized in the liver of all living organisms. High concentrations can lead to acute liver disease or death within 72 hours. Lower concentrations have produced various symptoms, such as feed refusal, decreased feed efficiency, impaired reproduction, hemorrhaging in muscles and suppression of the immune system.