An Appreciation Post for Feral Cats

An appreciation post for feral cats...

How many of you know about the Floods of 1937 that drowned Cincinnati for a whole month? I remember learning about the flood through pictures that used to be on the walls of the old IGA as a child. Northside, Camp Washington, & Cumminsville were affected drastically by the floods due to proximity to their Mill Creek. It led to the Mill Creek being invaded in concrete and other levies & dams being built to control water levels in the future. A little talked about after effect of the flood was an influx of rats, mice, and rodents. To help combat the infestation, people started bringing in cats to the neighborhoods. 

Feral cats can minimize rodent problems and are a “green” alternative to pest control. Feral cats keep rodent populations in check and discourage new rodents from moving into the area. While some people feel that cats (feral or domestic) attract rodents because of uneaten cat food, the opposite is true. An established, vaccinated, and sterilized colony of feral cats will deter other stray and feral cats from moving into the area. This actually decreases the chances that people will encounter an unvaccinated cat, and will virtually eliminate problem behaviors like fighting, yowling, spraying and roaming.

Did you know that the City of Cincinnati consistently has ranked in the top 25 for most rat infested cities? As developers continue to build more apartments and situations were people live closer together and create more waste, the rodent population will increase. So appreciate your local feral cats, they're helping keep Mickey & Minnie out of your cupboards

 https://digital.cincinnatilibrary.org/digital/collection/p16998coll11

Keeping Simone Biles in my Prayers

I have never been able to do a cartwheel, roundoff, backflip, or any type of flip. Even when I determined inwardly and told my brain to run fast, bend toward the ground with my hands, then with my own arms supporting my body into an upside down vertical position, flip myself forward, to land upright. NEVER. BEEN. ABLE. TO. DO. IT. I was a cheerleader in high school... I could jump decently, do splits, kick high, pick up and catch people who weighed 100+ lbs, even could do a full 10-15 minute dance routines several times a day... BUT... even with practice and workshops and coaches... I could never somersault or tumble. NEVER. BEEN. ABLE. TO. DO. IT. As a child, I participated in karate competitions. I won several medals and trophies for katas. And because I was of a few females who participated in the sport, I would have to spar with males. I only placed once in sparring with boys... but I always beat the girls. Even in junior high at Schwab, I got into a fight with a boy. I left with a scratch on my face and my dignity; he left embarrassed. BUT! I NEVER WAS GOOD AT GYMNASTICS! NEVER EVER! AND NEVER WILL BE!

I'm writing this to say... my simplistic novice ideal of doing a bare minimum cartwheel has been insurmountable at every point in my lifetime. It's not because I never wanted to or that I didn't work hard to attain the goal. I just was never physically able to do it.  So I can't even imagine how it feels emotionally for Simone Biles to not feel the mental connection between her brain and her physical body. Because it is something she should know how to do like breathing air, right? Just 5 years ago, we were watching her break records, create new moves, and win medals. She is The GOAT! A lot has happened in those 5 years though. I don't think as human beings we realize how integral  the health of our brains, our thought process, and our mental well-being along with life experiences affect our entire body. It's not as simple as we believe. If it was that simple, I'd be an Olympian too! 

Stress & trauma have major affects on the brain. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) not only affects soldiers after war, but people who have survived childhood traumas. Miss Biles has experienced much in her young life. And I'll just keep her in my prayers for her peace of mind. 

Stop Saying You're Going to Get "Natural Immunity", That's Not How Bodies Work!

NO ONE IS BORN WITH A FULLY DEVELOPED IMMUNE SYSTEM! There are only 2 ways the human body develops a "natural immunity" to disease Passive Immunity and Active Immunity. 

Passive immunity happens immediately and occurs when from mama to baby through the placenta or through a blood transfusion. Passive immunity only lasts for a few weeks or months. 

Active immunity means that you have been exposed to a disease and your body triggers the immune system to develop the antibodies to fight the disease. This means you actually have to be INFECTED in order for the signal to spark the immune system to start making antibodies to fight sickness. 

Active immunity does not mean you will not get sick in the future! It means that your immune system now has the information to fight a specific disease or illness in the future. Active immunity is takes a few weeks to grab a hold but it is long lasting and in most cases, lasts a lifetime.

Your personal immune response can be strong or weak. It's strongly based on genetics and your current physical condition. The genes that are passed on to us from our parents and those before play a great deal in our immune response when our bodies are introduced to new illnesses & diseases. If there's a history of your family battling with a certain sickness, you need to do the things needed to build your immune system so it can have a strong immune response. 

How do you boost your immune system?

(https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-to-boost-your-immune-system)

•Don't smoke.

•Eat a diet high in fruits and vegetables.

•Exercise regularly.

•Maintain a healthy weight.

•If you drink alcohol, drink only in moderation.

•Get adequate sleep.

•Take steps to avoid infection, such as washing your hands frequently and cooking meats thoroughly.

•Try to minimize stress.

•Keep current with all recommended vaccines. Vaccines prime your immune system to fight off infections before they take hold in your body.

I know y'all won't like that last one... but unless you're willing to take the chance of getting infected... you're not going to get "natural immunity".

You can have "supernatural immunity"...but I'm reminded of a man named Job.