welcome to the organic green doctor blog

i am a family physician who was diagnosed with
early mild cognitive impairment(mci) amnestic type on december 21, 2010
this is a precursor to alzheimers disease
because of this diagnosis i have opted to stop practicing medicine
this blog will be about my journey with this disease
please feel free to follow me along this path
i will continue blogging on organic gardening, green living,
solar power, rainwater collection, and healthy living
i will blog on these plus other things noted to be interesting

Thursday, December 21, 2023

organicgreendoctor: garden news-from texas to southern califonia

organicgreendoctor: garden news-from texas to southern califonia: GARDEN NEWS-FROM TEXAS TO SOUTHERN CALIFONIA this is a picture of our charlie brown christmas tree that we have used for several years i thi...

garden news-from texas to southern califonia

GARDEN NEWS-FROM TEXAS TO SOUTHERN CALIFONIA

this is a picture of our charlie brown christmas tree that we have used for several years
i think my wife she got it at a thrift store not long after we moved here
our grandkids decorate it each year for us
how it looks can be variable based on how much they decorate

this year i told my wife she 
this is all i want for christmas
you dont even have to wrap it
what is that you say
well
that is about 500 onion plants that i order each year from dixondale farms linked here from texas
the plants are half texas super sweet and half texas early white

when we first moved here i went to order onions from a well known local seed company from southern california that i used even when i lived in texas
there were the onions i liked to plant plus it appeared they got them from dixondale
so i just direct ordered them from dixondale and have done so for the last 5 years
i have not been disappointed
i also get my leeks from them

here i plant the onions right after thanksgiving
in texas i planted them in january

this year after 8 months of having all my personal garden plot covered with plastic sheeting and a thick layer of mulch and growing my veggies on raised beds on top of this
i started removing all the plastic sheeting
the plastic sheeting was placed to kill off the invasive bermuda mint and cane berries 
so far they have mostly been eradicated


each of my 8 garden beds are a 3ft x 7ft frame
i did this below to all 8 of them

i removed all the soil down to about 1 ft 
then added a box made of galvanized gopher wire that fits in the hole which is heavily stapled to the wooden frame
then i do layers of soil etc  back into the bed
i told my wife she it looks like im digging a grave or something
yea for gophers i said

first i put in a layer of the original soil then a layer of mulch then a layer of unfinished compost
i repeat that layering until i have a bed that is raised about 10 inches above the ground level
do the math
thats about 2 ft of good soil depth

my top layer is good original rich soil and a 4 inches of good organic compost and a dusting of a good organic fertilizer 
this is then all forked in and raked smooth
i then add a soaking of medina garlic plus juice which is mainly fish emulsion and molasses and seaweed and apple cider vinegar
the drippers are added back on then a layer of pine straw is added on top
i like to do my beds a few weeks before i plant them so they can sort of cure if you will

then when i got my christmas present onions i planted them in my new raised beds
the onions are planted 4-6 inches apart and an inch deep
i do a hook up sign and use my forefinger and little finger to make the holes
thats about 6 inches
i say hook up each time i plant an onion

i was able to plant around 80 onions in this raised bed 
we will pull some for green onions as we need them and let the rest grow into big onions
the size will be determined by how our weather is in the spring
we usually put up most of these onions by chopping them up and placing in a freezer bag 
if we have a good season we can have onions unitl this time next year
fingers crossed
i always say im glad i dont do this for a living


then after planting onions in my garden i ventured into the main garden where we planted around 400 onions in our garden beds
this bed is about 35 ft long and 3 ft wide
it was prepped 2 months ago with a good 4 inch layer of organic compost then a dosing of a good organic fertilizer

this was all broadforked in and raked smooth
then it was covered with a layer of straw until we were ready to plant
at planting we raked back the straw and planted the onions one hook up sign apart
we planted around 300 onions in this bed and another 100 in another bed

again we will harvest green onions first by harvesting every other onion
later when the onion bubs finishing bulbing we will harvest let them dry and donate them
all to those in need and the underserved

thats another great christmas  present this year that will keep on giving for months

i want to thank those of you that donated to our seedmoney.org fundraiser linked here
we raised $4000 when you count the grant money that got added to our total that will be placed in our general fund to help raise these organic veggies so that we can continue to grow almost 5000 pounds to donate to those in need

just know your donation is appreciated by all we serve

a christmas gift that keeps on giving

the organicgreen doctor

Wednesday, December 20, 2023

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #195-last day revisited

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #195-last day revisited: MY STORY REVISITED #195-LAST DAY REVISITED each year about this time i go back and read what i wrote that day 13 years ago a month before i ...

my story revisited #195-last day revisited

MY STORY REVISITED #195-LAST DAY REVISITED

each year about this time i go back and read what i wrote that day 13 years ago
a month before i wrote it i knew i was done 
i had volunteered to be in the adni 2 alzheimers study in the normal control group
i had mild short term memory loss that showed up on the memory testing that lead them to a recommendation i see a neurologist
i wrote this the day i went to see her
i knew i was done

i got my official diagnosis when i saw her and a prescription for the alzheimers drug aricept or donepezil

i spent the last month of my practice getting ready to have to stop after i saw the neurologist
i knew i would be done for good
i was right

yesterday i saw the picture of the last patient i saw in my practice
an employees child a 2 year old who needed his 2 year check up
he is now a high school handsome teenager

i must say we had a grim christmas that year

i knew what that diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment due to alzheimers disease meant having seen my mother and my younger brother go through the final stage of the disease 
my father probably had it when he died

but here i am 13 years later
writing this blog
playing with my grandkids and knowing it and enjoying it
managing a large community garden as the volunteer garden manager
blogging on a regular basis
still doing all our business and financial stuff 
doing all the shopping
i am a cheaper shopper than my wife she
i follow a list and she doesnt

in 2016 i was accepted in the biogen aduhelm study where i received over 50 infusions 
the first 18 were placebo then the last 34 or so were the real drug

the drug should have removed all the measurable amyloid plaque from my brain
that should slow down the disease some for me
hopefully it will slow down the tau migration in my brain and some of the inflammation

i am after more time arent we all right
i feel like i have been granted that extra time
im thankful everyday that i have
__________
12/22/2010

LAST DAY-THANKS 
this my last day to work as a physician
always considered myself lucky to have been able to
do in life what i wanted to do since i was a middle schooler

in high school i was able to work in a local hospital in the
summer on weekends and during holidays
our family was poor so not only did i get financial benefit from
working but i also was exposed to a lot in the hospital setting
it made me know that i wanted to be a family physician

during college i worked as a emergency room technician
on weekends, weeknights, and holidays
this also gave me financial support but also exposed me to
different doctors and different emergency situations

i was accepted to medical school but never wavered on what
kind of doctor i wanted to be
a family physician

i was accepted to a family practice residency
after completing my residency i owed the federal government
three years to work at an approved federal underserved area

i was able to create with some help a site in  the small
town near where i grew up       i  worked there for three years
although traumatic at times it was a learning experience that i
carried through out my career

after fulfilling my three year obligation and after sustaining a
large financial hit from my involvement with the local clinic
i was recruited to the area where i am working now
thanks to my medical school friend for helping me out in
my time of need

i have worked for 25 years as a family physician
i always wanted to be one

now it is time i have to quit not because i want to but
because a genetic health problem has risen its nasty head
and because of this will have to discontinue what i like to do

i do not ever dread going to work every day
feel like i have now just gotten good at what i do

realize that patients dont necessarily need all of the new
medications we have, the new tests we can do or need
the newest treatments available

they do better if you just listen to them, pat them on the
shoulder, be kind to them and be their advocate when
they need it

i have honed my skills in taking care of kids over my career so
that many of the kids have felt comfortable seeing me and look
forward to seeing me to get a sticker or sucker, hear my
duck voice, or have me joke with them
that part i will miss a lot

thanks to all my patients in the past for allowing me to fulfill
my dream of being a family physician
i hope i have done you a good job

thanks to my wife she for putting up with me during
my quest for my career
know she found hers

love yall
the organicgreen doctor
__________
little did i know when i wrote this 13 years ago that i would be sitting here writing this today
for that
thats the best christmas gift i could ever receive

the organicgreen doctor

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

organicgreendoctor: got the last of the trifecta

organicgreendoctor: got the last of the trifecta: GOT THE LAST OF THE TRIFECTA cdc rsv   that link above is from the cdc with all the info you need about rsv the rsv vaxxine is for the young...

got the last of the trifecta

GOT THE LAST OF THE TRIFECTA

cdc rsv 
that link above is from the cdc with all the info you need about rsv

the rsv vaxxine is for the young and the old and pregnant folks

rsv or respiratory syncytial virus attacks the young babies and us older folks
its like a bad cold for some
some kids get a bad bronchiolitis with it and may require hospitalizations and nebulizer treatments for awhile
rsv is the reason hospitals fill up with sick kids during the rsv season
i spent many a night in icu with these kids
the symptoms can last for weeks to months in some cases

older folks can also get a pneumonia from rsv that requires hospitalizations
some die from it

now
its mostly preventable
pregnant moms around 32-36 weeks can get the rsv shot which protects their newborns from getting rsv after they are born
or
once born kids can get an antibody shot that will protect them for several months
then
adults like me can get the rsv vaxxine to prevent them from catching rsv from you know where
thats right
grandkids
or 
giving it to their grandkids

for older adults the rsv is part of the trifecta of vaxxines we need every year
flu 
updated covid
rsv

if i was gambling i would have a winning ticket today
at 24 hours i have no symptoms from the rsv vaxxine

even if you dont gamble you should get this trifecta
it may save your life 

the organicgreen doctor

Monday, December 18, 2023

organicgreendoctor: you go girl

organicgreendoctor: you go girl: YOU GO GIRL time article on taylor swift if you are a swiftie then you will like this article and all the pictures if you arent a swiftie th...

you go girl

YOU GO GIRL

time article on taylor swift
if you are a swiftie then you will like this article and all the pictures
if you arent a swiftie then maybe you should read this article
if you have a daughter you and well she should read this article

i admit i am a swiftie
i dont wear her bracelet since i have a watch on my left arm and 3 alzheimers bracelets on my right one
one for me one for my mom and one for my younger brother
my wife she and ms b wear swiftie bracelets

ms b mr hudson and others got to see and hear her concert in los angeles
ms b made it all 3 plus hours
mr hudson almost made it all 3 hr
they like her songs and sing them
mr n and mr kd like her also

she is a unique one or a one of a kind women

her era tours have brought billions into the economies of the cities and countries where the concerts are located
her era tours grossed over a billion dollars
the first day tickets became available it crashed ticketmaster
in some countries folks camped out for months to get tickets

one of the monday night football games she attended had one of the largest viewership ever for a nfl game
mostly watched by your granddaughters daughters wives nieces and probably your wife
all mostly new viewers
lucky advertisers that night huh

that boost to the economy is called the taylor effect by the national reserve
it was actually apparently visible on the data they collected

facebook with its algorithms has even figured out i like taylor swift
so 
i get a lot of her reels and articles on her
i watch them and read them

we need someone like her in this world
be a swiftie
and
feel good about

the organicgreen doctor