Poll: Labor up, but Beazley popularity still plummets

I’m sorry but I think that the only one geared to take on Johnny Howard was Mark Latham. He seemed to be the only one with the balls to actually take on the Liberals, but as usual got stabbed in the back by his peers. Seems Labor is only interested in in-fighting instead of taking on the Libs. Beazley ain’t got it.

Outback artist dies, aged 77

THE family of Pro Hart has paid tribute to a "remarkable" Australian after the artist’s death today at his Broken Hill home.

I’ve had some weird dreams lately.

One was someone asking me about a story called "Harry Potter and the underpants-removing spell". I said it was a good one to use on girls.

The other one was I had been promised a back massage……. by Natalie Portman. How bizarre. She didn’t do it though. Someone else was going to substitute.

Does this mean I have some unknown hidden desire for Natalie? Perhaps I want to use a spell to remove her underwear. I had no idea, but it looks that way. Not that I’m complaining mind. Could be all the TV advertising getting into my head.. like showing all the new episodes of Star Wars over the last few months on TV .. and Harry Potter coming out on DVD this week. It all gets mixed up!

Then again I also had a weird dream about some guys going to bash me up because of what I did while dating their sister or daughter or something. I had to run to dodge them and somehow got into a car and had a car chase to get away from them. Can’t remember how it ended up though.

Interestingly enough he has read half of the book I was recommended:

The Wisdom of Florence Scovel Shinn

Florence Scovel Sh…

Best Price $1.60
or Buy New $11.20

This one which I have (above) is all her four books in one. He has read 2/4 of the single books.

He recommended a book to me to read:

The Purpose-driven Life

Rick Warren

Best Price $1.74
or Buy New $11.99

I might get it and check it out one day soon. He was nice to chat to. He asked if I am a spiritual type person. He guessed it from my personality.

The link I was telling you about before is this one: DON’T SIGN ANYTHING! Neil Jenman- Approved

The Real Estate agency I’m using to sell is Jenman-Approved. Hit the link to find out what that means. The house is on sale as of tomorrow and they are coming around to take photos to put on the website.

Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you respond to it.

On Saturday morning I took Sienna to the Real Estate agency I wanted to =
sell the house through. I rang them all Friday but could not get through as =
the phone was always engaged. Coincidentally, the very same agency had put =
a letter in my mailbox just over a week ago. They had sold a home nearby =
and were looking for other homes in the area. I want to use them as they =
are Jenman Approved. Google for Neil Jenman and his book “Don’t sign =
anything!”. They have tons of buyers fighting over homes in our area so =
that’s promising. He said he will ensure a quick sale.

I took Sienna to the kids indoor playground for some fun. Normally she gets =
tired after two hours but we were there for nearly three hours this time. =
It could be her last visit there since our home will be sold soon.

When we got home I put her to bed and Googled for information on removing =
crayon from painted walls. I found eucalyptus oil can do it and luckily I =
had a bottle in the cupboard. I tried it out and it works like magic!!! I =
cleaned the hallway, bedroom, kitchen and dining room walls. By the end I =
was exhausted but now I have less walls to get painted. Yay!

Sunday I took her to the shops intending to buy some stuff for the house =
then put Sienna on the train and merry go round as usual but could not find =
everything I wanted and Sienna was getting bored with sitting in the =
shopping trolley. I decided to buy what I had and take Sienna back to =
Rebecca. I dropped her off and went shopping at the nearby shopping centre. =
I found all I needed and headed home. I stopped in at Bunnings to get a =
step ladder and some drawer knobs.

When I got home I had a phone call from Striker. He rang the minute I =
walked in the door. We chatted for 20 minutes or so then he had to go so I =
got busy.

I pulled down the horrible vertical blinds in the main bedroom and replaced =
them with some nice curtains. There’s also a small window to the side and I =
could not find short curtains anywhere. I even looked in Spotlight but it =
was only useful if I were going to make my own curtains so I bought a =
couple of roller blinds and installed them instead. It looks very nice in =
the bedroom now.

I put throw rugs on the lounge suite so it doesn’t look so shabby. The =
couch has a nice big one that ties at the back. The chairs are covered a =
bit but the throws were too small but it should do. The cat slept on one si =
it must be comfortable. heh

I put up a new curtain between the kitchen and lounge room. We had a sheet =
there painted by Bec in High School. I also washed the curtain between the =
lounge and hall. It’s the whitest I’ve ever seen it!

I also fixed the drawer knobs in the kitchen and removed all the kid locks =
from cupboards. All in all the place looks heaps better.

Poor Sienna was unwell Saturday night. She woke up and chucked up half a =
dozen times. I had to change our clothes and the bed sheets. She was crying =
so I gave her a cuddle as she drifted off again. I took about an hour to =
get back to sleep.

I don’t know what will happen with Symbian when I move. Hopefully he can =
come with me.

The Real Estate agency said the usual sale time is 30 to 60 days so I will =
be moving out soon.

Just found this interesting article online about Omega-3 for Depression and Bipolar Disorder.

• Infant monkeys fed baby formula supplemented with omega-3 are stronger and more alert even at less than a week than monkeys given standard baby formula.
• Depression is 60 times higher in New Zealand, where the average consumption of seafood is 40 pounds a year compared to Japan, where a person consumes nearly 150 pounds of seafood a year.
• Postpartum depression is 50 times more common in countries with low levels of seafood consumption. During pregnancy, a woman’s body becomes depleted of fatty acids, which are transferred to the fetus.
• Omega-3 seems to be critical to the growth and maintenance of brain cells, especially cell membranes.
• When omega-3 is not available, the body uses omega-6, which produces cell membranes less able to cope with neurotransmitter traffic.
• And of course the famous 1999 Harvard pilot study.

We eat far greater amounts of other damaging fatty acids. A healthy diet should provide for at least five grams daily of essential fatty acids, divided between omega-3 and omega-6.

A quick Medline search turns up several studies that show depleted omega-3 levels in the blood, cell membranes, and brains of depressed patients, suggesting that an intake of omega-3 could help reverse the process, though this has yet to be proved in large-scale clinical trials.

The Omega-3 Bipolar Disorder Study

The 1999 Harvard study that started it all was conducted on 30 patients with bipolar disorder, generally in stable condition but with a history of relapses (all had experienced bipolar episodes over the past year). All but eight of the subjects were on medications, which were left unchanged. Half the subjects were given 9.6 grams of fish oil capsules, the other half received olive oil.

Andrew Stoll MD, who conducted the study, admits the olive oil, which did not have a fishy taste, was not a perfect placebo. In one case, a person’s cat actually attacked the fish oil capsules. But, as he jokingly confessed in a session at the 2000 DBSA annual conference, "you want a flawed study. That way, you get money to do another study."

The trial was supposed to go on for nine months, but was stopped after four due to its outstanding results, with the omega-3 group staying in remission significantly longer than the placebo patients. By two months, half of the placebo group had dropped out compared to two in the fish oil group. The omega-3 group actually did less well in lowering their mania scores than those taking placebos, but fared much better getting their depression down.

 

Omega 3 fatty acids influence mood, impulsivity and personality, study indicates

DENVER, March 3 – Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids may influence mood, personality and behavior, according to results of a study presented today by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers at the 64th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society in Denver.

In a study of 106 healthy volunteers, researchers found that participants who had lower blood levels of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids were more likely to report mild or moderate symptoms of depression, a more negative outlook and be more impulsive. Conversely, those with higher blood levels of omega-3s were found to be more agreeable.

"A number of previous studies have linked low levels of omega-3 to clinically significant conditions such as major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance abuse and attention deficit disorder," said Sarah Conklin, Ph.D., a postdoctoral scholar with the Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine Program in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "However, few studies have shown that these relationships also occur in healthy adults. This study opens the door for future research looking at what effect increasing omega-3 intake, whether by eating omega-3 rich foods like salmon, or taking fish-oil supplements, has on people’s mood."