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| Giraffes on a dirt road in Marloth Park. |
“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”
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| These birds are southern masked weavers. We took this shot at Rita and Gerhard’s veranda last Thursday night at their temporary Ngwenya condo. They’ve since moved back to the Hornbill house. |
As I prepare today’s post offline due to another power outage, I remind myself of the wonders the bush provided us over the past year, and we have little cause for complaining.
It’s been challenging when many of the power outages had occurred in the past month when the holidaymakers came to stay in the park. Concurrently, with the summer season in progress, the heat has been at its highest peaks of the year, creating a somewhat trying situation.
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| A lone giraffe was perhaps looking for the remainder of her tower. |
Fortunately, we had power last night, and with the help of the now-working aircon and over-the-counter sleep aid, Somnil (aka Unisom in the US), I was able to sleep through the night for a total of six hours.
No, it wasn’t eight hours, but who’s to say eight hours is what we all require? Our requirements may vary, and with a straight six hours, I feel pretty good.
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| A dazzle of zebras in an open field. |
I’m not convinced that the dictates passed down by governmental agencies are necessarily accurate. Haven’t they recently changed some of their former directives, such as fat is bad for you to “now fat is good for you?”
No, I won’t get into a political discussion here. I avoid that course whenever I begin steering down that slippery slope. Finally, it’s becoming popular “press” that a high carb diet may not be suitable for everyone after all and that a low carb sugar-free diet is best.
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| Zebras and warthogs have returned to our garden, although not in the numbers before the holiday season. Soon it will return to normal. |
If the medical professionals and governmental organizations continue to change their minds, what are we to believe? The bottom line? What works for us!
No, I don’t drink eight glasses of water a day. I wouldn’t say I like drinking plain water. Instead, I drink tea, iced tea and, a big glass of room temperature purified water with freshly squeezed lemon each morning upon awakening. It works for me in the same way six or seven hours of sleep works for me.
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| A hippo on a bit of island in the Crocodile River. |
I eat lots of fat, and even now that I’m back to my former slim self again. Tom does the same and is at his lowest weight in years, feeling so much better without the bulging belly.
As for using over-the-counter sleep aids used on occasion…the medical profession bashes these products as unsafe. And yet, they’re willing to prescribe dangerous and addictive sleeping pills that may cause sleepwalking and outlandish behavior during the night. It’s all about pharmaceuticals and “lining the pockets” of those parties and the companies involved.
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| Waterbucks on a dry patch of sand on the Crocodile River. |
Please understand, I am not a medical professional of any sort, nor am I “prescribing” what you should take or do for yourself. I take three prescription medications for hereditary conditions I acquired as I’ve aged, hypertension, and hormonal issues, all the lowest doses possible. And, they work for me. Pharmaceuticals can be of great value in certain circumstances.
It was recommended I take statin drugs at one point, but after beginning this way of eating in 2011, my lipids are fantastic. I was pre-diabetic (hereditary) at that time, and now those numbers are also normal, based on dietary changes.
When Tom began this way of eating, he lost 20 kg (42 pounds) and got off of six pills a day. He takes no prescription medications at this point and feels excellent. He had three kidney stone surgeries three years ago and hasn’t had a recurrence since he began taking Vitamin B6 when the urologist flippantly suggested B6 may help prevent stones (after his third surgery). Why not tell him this after the first such incident?
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| Two distant hippos on an island in the river bed. |
I’m not saying the medical profession is incompetent as a whole. They work wonders under many circumstances, saving lives and improving the quality of life. But, what I am saying is, we need to do our research (from reliable resources) and decide what may work for us individually.
There are no “magic bullets” out there but there are magical lifestyle changes that can dramatically improve the quality of our lives and the quality of our longevity. We’re suspicious of many new products on the market that promote and promise good health and well-being.
But, we’ve learned over the years that taking charge of feeling well can be determined by how we live our lives; through diet, activity, state of mind, stress reduction, and general personal care of every part of our bodies.
Speaking of personal care of our bodies, I’m off to the dentist again as I continue to get every possible issue with my teeth resolved before we leave Marloth Park in a mere 36 days.
Be well.
Photo from one year ago today, January 9, 2018:
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| What a view from our upcoming Connemara, Ireland vacation/holiday rental for 89 nights from May 12, 2019, to August 12, 2019. For more photos and details, please click here. |