Cross-Country Trip -- September 30, 2021

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Cross Country Trip 

It wasn't quite across the whole country, but it was a ten-hour trip, straight through, stopping once for gasoline. 

It was 688 miles.

Google maps said it would take ten hours four minutes.

I left at 12: 20 p.m. and arrived at 10:32 p.m. (same time zone). 

There's nothing like a ten-hour drive to clear one's mind. I drove alone. 

I'm at my destination and will be here for three days. 

I used to take long bicycle rides to clear my mind but not so much any more. I used to take many cross country trips; not so much any more. 

It was great to be on the "open road" again. 

It's now too late to record my thoughts; I will do that over the next few days. 

A teaser: I had an "a-ha" moment and will post it later. There's a chance I will disappoint most of my readers but that's fine.

Warfarin -- September 19, 2021

From wiki:

In the early 1920s, there was an outbreak of a previously unrecognized cattle disease in the northern United States and Canada. Cattle were haemorrhaging after minor procedures, and on some occasions spontaneously.[85] For example, 21 out of 22 cows died after dehorning, and 12 out of 25 bulls died after castration. All of these animals had bled to death.

In 1921, Frank Schofield, a Canadian veterinary pathologist, determined that the cattle were ingesting moldy silage made from sweet clover, and that this was functioning as a potent anticoagulant. Only spoiled hay made from sweet clover (grown in northern states of the US and in Canada since the turn of the century) produced the disease.

Schofield separated good clover stalks and damaged clover stalks from the same hay mow, and fed each to a different rabbit. The rabbit that had ingested the good stalks remained well, but the rabbit that had ingested the damaged stalks died from a haemorrhagic illness. A duplicate experiment with a different sample of clover hay produced the same result.

In 1929, North Dakota veterinarian Lee M. Roderick demonstrated that the condition was due to a lack of functioning prothrombin.

The identity of the anticoagulant substance in spoiled sweet clover remained a mystery until 1940. In 1933 Karl Paul Link and his lab of chemists working at the University of Wisconsin set out to isolate and characterize the haemorrhagic agent from the spoiled hay. 

It took five years before Link's student Harold A. Campbell recovered 6 mg of crystalline anticoagulant. Next, Link's student Mark A. Stahmann took over the project and initiated a large-scale extraction, isolating 1.8 g of recrystallized anticoagulant in about 4 months. This was enough material for Stahmann and Charles F. Huebner to check their results against Campbell's, and to thoroughly characterize the compound. Through degradation experiments they established that the anticoagulant was 3,3'-methylenebis-(4-hydroxycoumarin), which they later named dicoumarol. They confirmed their results by synthesizing dicoumarol and proving in 1940 that it was identical to the naturally occurring agent.

Dicoumarol was a product of the plant molecule coumarin (not to be confused with Coumadin, a later tradename for warfarin). 

Coumarin is now known to be present in many plants, and produces the notably sweet smell of freshly cut grass or hay and plants like sweet grass; in fact, the plant's high content of coumarin is responsible for the original common name of "sweet clover", which is named for its sweet smell, not its bitter taste. 

They are present notably in woodruff (Galium odoratum, Rubiaceae), and at lower levels in licorice, lavender, and various other species. The name coumarin comes from the French pronunciation of coumarou, the Indian name for the tree of the tonka bean, which noteably contains a high concentration of coumarin. However, coumarins themselves do not influence clotting or warfarin-like action, but must first be metabolized by various fungi into compounds such as 4-hydroxycoumarin, then further (in the presence of naturally occurring formaldehyde) into dicoumarol, in order to have any anticoagulant properties.

Over the next few years, numerous similar chemicals (specifically 4-hydroxycoumarins with a large aromatic substituent at the 3 position) were found to have the same anticoagulant properties. The first drug in the class to be widely commercialized was dicoumarol itself, patented in 1941 and later used as a pharmaceutical. Karl Link continued working on developing more potent coumarin-based anticoagulants for use as rodent poisons, resulting in warfarin in 1948. 

The name "warfarin" stems from the acronym WARF, for Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation + the ending -arin indicating its link with coumarin. Warfarin was first registered for use as a rodenticide in the US in 1948, and was immediately popular. Although warfarin was developed by Link, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation financially supported the research and was assigned the patent.

After an incident in 1951, in which an army inductee attempted suicide with multiple doses of warfarin in rodenticide but recovered fully after presenting to a Naval Hospital and being treated with vitamin K (by then known as a specific antidote), studies began in the use of warfarin as a therapeutic anticoagulant. It was found to be generally superior to dicoumarol, and in 1954 was approved for medical use in humans. An early recipient of warfarin was US President Dwight Eisenhower, who was prescribed the drug after having a heart attack in 1955.

The exact mechanism of action remained unknown until it was demonstrated, in 1978, that warfarin inhibits the enzyme epoxide reductase, and hence interferes with vitamin K metabolism.

It has been posited that Lavrenty Beria and I. V. Khrustalyov conspired to use warfarin to poison Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Warfarin is tasteless and colourless, and produces symptoms similar to those that Stalin exhibited.

What Did Happen To The J&J Vaccine? A Reader Wants To Know -- September 11, 2021

From a reader yesterday;

This article says it was pulled after 3 women died from blood clots post vaccine.... But, isn't that a low number? hmmm.....

Once all the rage, the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has all but disappeared

Once all the rage, the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has all but di... A little over 14 million Americans have received the J&J vaccine, but few additional doses of J&J vaccine have m...

............

You know my penchant for numbers.

So, here's what the CDC just released regarding deaths attributable to Covid vaccine:

If you have trouble reading the excerpt below - here's a link so you can go directly to the site

VAERS - Report an Adverse Event 

 

 

Anyway - here was the last report I had.  It's a week old by now, so the death from vaccine numbers will be higher, but that won't alter the point I'm making.

That's > 14,000 deaths attributable to Covid vaccine in the USA.  Why did J&J get pulled?  Why are Pfizer and Moderna still being administered?

Oh, wouldn't I like to see who the investors are in Pfizer and Moderna?  Or perhaps there are two companies that are redecorating their corporate headquarters with Hunter Biden's oil paintings (;>)

I'd love to see the death tolls broken down by which vaccine was administered.  All things equal, based on the number of shots from the chart above, 57% of deaths should come from Pfizer, 39% from Moderna, and 4% from Johnson & Johnson.

So, 4% of 14,506 deaths would be 580 deaths.  Was J&J pulled for only 3 deaths?  There was some talk that it was less effective.  What a joke.  Now the litany coming from the CDC is you need a booster after 6 months.... and that's for the shots that were purported to be 94% effective.

White Privilege -- Sources

I have the privilege of being able to read graphs which help me make better investments for my family.

I have the privilege of being able to enjoy "Blues Guitar" without taking drugs.

I have the privilege of enjoying fine Scotch and not calling it a drug. 

I have the privilege of voting for an African-American for president (and who actually became president).

I have the privilege of voting for one of the worst presidents ever in the history of the United States. 

I have the privilege of knowing how to swim and enjoy the exercise immensely.

I have the privilege of watching my diet. 

I have the privilege of reading about white privilege in YES! magazine and sharing it with others.

I have the privilege of living in a 900-square-foot apartment in a non-descript suburb rather than a McMansion in west Hollywood.

I have the privilege of shopping at Target rather than Walmart. Unless I really need something hard to find. Then I have the privilege of shopping at Walmart. 

I have the privilege of knowing how to use the US Postal Service. 

I have the privilege of not texting if I don't want. 

I have the privilege to select whom I want to follow on Twitter. 

I have the privilege of not joining the military.

I have the privilege of not getting vaccinated.

I have the privilege of dropping off the grid.

I have the privilege of knowing how to cook.

I have the privilege of knowing where to find fresh vegetables.

I have the privilege of never smoking tobacco cigarettes.

I have the privilege of never getting a tattoo.

I have the privilege of not buying a Samsung cellphone. Thank goodness.

I have the privilege of an ability to critically read essays on "white privilege."

I have the privilege of knowing how to write a check.

I have the privilege of being able to follow instructions from others. Particularly senior military officers and law enforcement officers.

I have the privilege of knowing how to read the financial pages in any media. 

I have the privilege of knowing that "global warming" is a scam and will hurt the middle class more than any other socio-economic group, though the scam will keep poor people poor. 

I have the privilege of knowing which ethnic group is most affected by abortion as a means of birth control.

I have the privilege of being able to read books written for adults. 

I have the privilege of being able to converse without using the four-letter words that start with "f" and "c" and "s." 

I have the privilege of knowing how to "blog."

I have the privilege of being able to take my car to a reputable mechanic.

I have the privilege of not having to rely on public transportation. 

I have the privilege of being able to walk outside without a chip on my shoulder.

I have the privilege of dating anyone regardless of gender, race, religious affiliation (if any), sexual orientation .... and the list goes on.

I have the privilege of turning off the television set when any politician starts talking.

I had the privilege of holding a draft card during the Vietnam War; my sisters did not.

Ode To Vaccines -- Covid-19 -- September 2, 2021

 

Metromania and carver's cabin

Came to light when I was blabbin'

Thoughts of Bakken - wells and pipe

Plus that dreadful protest hype

But, rabbit trails and bunny divots

Angels, pinheads, James Joyce pivots

Anyway, I get distracted

not diagnosed, but noggin's cracked.  It

can't find car keys, glasses, cell phones

but delights in random phenomes

Wants to veer toward Ivermectin

Look at Africa, what the heck? In

Fauci's world, the numbers scatter

but I think facts do really matter

So back to Bakken, thanks to old ones

Moms and Dads and other bold ones

Gives me time to ponder, think

Maybe I should have a drink

Hair of dog, crow of rooster

Shot of bourbon - now that's MY booster

Two shots of Pfizer, 3 Moderna

Keep believing, that'll learn ya

Wear a mask and keep your distance

Not you Nancy, just your servants

Not Obama, nor his party

Sophisticated.  Oh so hearty

The rest of us, who have no nerve

stay home for 2 weeks' flattened curve

Hunter's paintings, Russia's exports

Ignore the dope, the felon cohorts

A never-ending Sisyphus, 

The boulder's Biden, the myth is us

That's bad grammar -and I know it

Can't write as fast as Joe can blow it

Kabul, Corn Pop, basement hidden

Biden's doing someone's bidding

Got to go now, catch some winks

More to follow - Biden stinks

SCOTUS 5 - 4 — September 1, 2021

 https://twitter.com/search?q=%22Supreme%20Court%22&src=trend_click&pt=1433288334839746566&vertical=trends

Cream Cheese

From a reader:

Still haven't found Einstein's shmear info online - but next time I get their bagels, I'll bet they'll have it at the store.  I agree it's the best.

So, Philly has 5 ingredients : pasterurized milk and cream, salt, carob bean gum and cheese culture.

Lucerne, which is Albertson's house brand, has pasteurized milk and cream, cheese culture, salt, guar gum, carob bean gum and xanthan gum.  I imagine most house brands have a similar surfeit of ingredients.

.......

The order they're listed is representative of their proportion in the product.  So, Lucerne has markedly more cheese culture since it's the 3rd listed, where it's last on the Philly list.

I buy only Philly for certain things (cheesecake or lox), but I buy house brands on sale and keep them in the freezer for use in a number of cooked recipes where there are enough things going on that I can't tell the difference.  It's fine to use frozen/thawed for hot dips, casseroles, etc., but it wouldn't work for cheesecake or lox.  As it thaws, a lot of water separates and the consistency is weird.  So, if I'm going to make a cheesecake, I get fresh Philly.

Mmmm remembering cheesecake with huckleberry sauce at a restaurant outside of Kalispell - divine.

.......

I do things similarly for sour cream.  Daisy brand has only 1 ingredient - cultured cream.  Other brands add guar gum, gelatin, etc.  So, if I want sour cream to top baked spuds or blintzes (haven't made blintz in a long time - great "lady lunch" recipe) I'll only get Daisy.  If it's going in a recipe, I may grab another brand on sale.... or not!  Since you can't freeze sour cream, there's no sense stocking up, so I don't keep any more around than what I plan to use.

Ivermectin For Ranchers -- September 1, 2021

 

On a whim, I checked my formulary .... Silver Script/Aetna - I'm 65+, so it's an addon to Medicare.

Anyway, lo and behold, under "Anti-Infectives, Miscellaneous", Ivermectin is listed as a Tier 3 medication and a generic equivalent of "Stromectrol".

The Tier 3 level  is truly middle of the road.  It isn't subject to prior authorization, step therapy, limited access, quantity limits.  It's available mail order.  It's not classified as high risk.

So, it'd be under $50 bucks, but it's still a fixed cost to the patient.  The cheapest, Tier 1, are $8.  When you get into Tier 4 and Tier 5, the patient has to pay either 33% or 50% - no limit to the total dollar.

Looks like it's a 3mg tab

................

For people with "farm animals", there's no vet prescription required.  It's available in a variety of delivery systems (a concentrate to be diluted and poured on (how we'd use it on cattle), or a paste to be smeared on a horse's gums, or a vial to be injected - again typically administered in that fashion to horses.

People used to have big walk-thru vats to dip cattle and sheep.  Very prevalent when crossing livestock in from old Mexico.  There'd typically be some wooden or concrete slats for an animal to cross (cleaning their feet), then there'd be a sloped tank.  Somebody would have a pole with a big notch and as the animal finished crossing the tank, the guy would submerse the critter's head.  Then, there'd be a little set of ridges so excess dip would drain back into the tank as the animal exited.  Those big dip tanks are out of vogue.  You'd have to try to keep animals off feed for a day - no poop in the tank.  And, it is a wasteful process.  You have to keep adding juice, it's hard to keep the solution clean, and when you're done dipping you have a bunch of leftover solution that needs disposal somehow.

For awhile, people would dilute the mix in a big spray tank mounted in the back of a pickup - and they'd try to drive thru a herd slowly and spray.  That was literally "hit or miss", so the concoction was refined and now if someone has cows with scabies, they'll just pour it on.  It's somehow formulated to adhere pretty well rather than just running off.

That's cattle.  I have no idea what you'd do with a wooly sheep.

...........

Horses are not as inclined to scabies, so the use is typically for deworming.  Our horses had plenty of room to roam.  Big grassy pastures.  So, we never had to deworm.  When people keep horses in stables, or smaller pens, then worms are more of a problem.  People who haul horses to rodeos, horse shows, trail rides, etc. have to deal with many more health issues.  There's lots of cross-contact with other critters.  So, to deworm they either use that paste (some of it is apple flavored and the horses LOVE it!) or as an injection.

............

 

Every rancher I know would have a couple gallons of the concentrate for cattle and most would have a couple syringes of the paste and/or vials of the injectable.