Cancer drug

I found this article Cheap, "safe" drug kills most cancers some time ago and I've kept a link around just for my own personal reference. Basically it talks about a study by the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada in which it appears as though a drug called dichloroacetate (DCA) can kill almost all cancers. According to the article, this drug has been around for years and is used to treat rare metabolic disorders. There's a website dedicated to this research at the University of Alberta. DCA Research Information.

In doing a Google search, I'm not finding any actual information about what this drug is used for and if a person can get a prescription for it in the US.  But, if I, or anyone I care about, ever gets diagnosed with cancer, I will do whatever I can to attempt to get some of this drug.  To me, it seems like if you are faced with your own mortality, you should follow through on any and all potential treatment options.

I hope the University of Alberta gets their money raised and starts the clinical trials soon.  I'll keep an eye on this topic.

my new running shoes

I got some new running shoes a couple weeks ago.  Since I'm training for a marathon and will be putting a lot of miles on them, I'd like to get a second pair so that I can wear them out equally instead of trying to switch shoes halfway through my training.  So, I looked around online to see if I could find them cheaper than I got them at the running store.  I actually couldn't find them for less, in fact, all the online places I could find the exact same shoes were selling them for at least $10 more than I paid for them, plus shipping.  I'll keep an eye out for a while, but otherwise I'll be headed back to Run26 to buy a second pair when I get some spare cash.

A photo and the details to make it easier to find them via Google:

Asics GEL-Kayano® 13 Item # 117060 Style Number: TN750-9101

Carrot & Parsnip Soup with Tofu recipe

Another recipe I modified. SparkRecipes.com is a great place to find recipes to try.  You can use it to figure out the nutritional information if you take the time to enter in your own recipes.

Carrot & Parsnip Soup with Tofu

Low cal, tasty soup to use up those root vegetables

Ingredients

2 small onions, chopped 5 cloves of garlic, minced 12 cups Fat Free Chicken Broth (could use vegetable broth to make it vegetarian) 1 block (14 oz) Extra Firm Lite Tofu, cut into bite sized pieces 2 Parsnips, quartered lengthwise, if large, and sliced 3 leeks (I use the white and a little of the green part), chopped 4 carrots, sliced 2 cups mushrooms, sliced

Directions

Spray the bottom of a large soup pot with Pam or use a little oil and grill the onion and garlic until the onions are clear. Add the chicken broth, then add in the rest of the ingredients. Let simmer until the carrots and parsnips are soft, about 40 mins. * This recipe is just a guide. I don't measure my ingredients, so have fun and play with it. Try adding other vegetables to figure out how you like it best.

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 6
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 141.4

• Total Fat: 2.2 g
• Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
• Sodium: 1,044.0 mg
• Total Carbs: 23.2 g
• Dietary Fiber: 5.8 g
• Protein: 10.8 g

Cool lego models

http://flickr.com/photos/legohaulic/

I like the Gears of War one, among several others.


And, The Brick Testament which tells the stories of the bible in legos.


Now Playing KUOW Public Radio - weekdayA 12-04-2007

Zap!

I would like my next car to be electric.  I'd be ok with a plug-in hybrid, but only if it can take me to and from work on electricity alone and only use any fuel for longer trips.  So, here's a list of the current candidates that I'm aware of.  I don't plan on buying something for a few years (unless something horrible happens to my poor Honda) so they all have time to evolve.

KUOW's Weekday had a show on electric cars in the first hour (you can download the podcast.)  A woman named Barbara called in to and gave her number on the air that you can call for more info about a class she wants to offer in June to convert your car to electric.  I called her and got on her list.  She said the class would require a specific car and she would be sending me more info about the list of cars.

Miles Electric XS500 - can top 80 mph, 120+ on a single charge.  The CEO was on KUOW's Weekday this morning and said the price point they are targeting is in the $30k range and is planed to be shipped next year.

Phoenix Motorcars available late 2009, freeway speed -- top speed 95mph, range of 130 miles, but they are working on an expansion pack extending the range to 250 miles. 220V outlet (dryer outlet)

Seattle EVA club meets once a month.

Tesla Motors -- great promise here, but the only model available in limited quantities and is WAY out of my price range.  However, they intend to design more affordable models once the Roadster gets the ball rolling.  100% electric, 200 miles per charge.  The first production car (P1) was delivered just a couple weeks ago and this means they have passed all certification requirements and will be moving forward with full production.

Zap - 100% electric, 350 miles per charge, seating for 5!! 10 min recharge (probably not full charge.)  Priced at $60k, which is a little out of my range right now.  644 horsepower and speeds up to 155mph.

Zenn -- 35 miles on a single charge, uses standard 120 volt outlet and recharges 80% in 4 hours, complete charge in 8.  So, for this one to work for me, they need to increase the range OR I need to be able to plug it in at work. 100% electric -- 25mph top speed, not usable on highways

GEM -- no models that would do highway right now, but I'll keep an eye on them

Chevy Volt -- concept car right now, hybrid only goes 40 miles without fuel, so not quite what I want just yet

REVA -- 80kms on a single charge (found buried somewhere)

Other interesting alternative fuel vehicles:

Honda Civic GX NGV -- runs on natural gas.  Gets 220-240 miles on a full tank.  Takes up to 16 hours to refill at home refueling station.  We don't have natural gas going to our house, so right now this isn't an option.

I also keep hearing rumors about cars that run on water, but have yet to actually see much.  But, here's an interesting video about the technology.

coolest gift box evar

http://lifeaslou.blogsome.com/2008/01/30/magic-boxes-a-life-as-lou-online-class/ 

Fun Band/Album generation game

1 - Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to Random quotations: http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to flickr's "explore the last seven days" http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

Put it all together, that's your first album.





For example, mine would be...

Fujian Medical University
lose your self-respect.





Although, I’d much prefer the first picture one my page. Cuz it's hot and it fits a little with the album title.

tofu dip

I tried an interesting thing yesterday.  I'm trying very hard to stick to my diet.  Although tofu probably isn't technically allowed on my diet, I know soy beans are allowed and as long as I stick to the lite tofu, I figure it should count as well. 

Anyway, I just sort of winged a dip out of a block of lite tofu.  It turned out ok, but not quite good.  Here's what I did. 

one block lite tofu
~2 Tbsp Grey Poupon
~1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced
~1.5 Tbsp Ginger, finely grated
~1 Tbsp rice vinegar

I threw all of that in a food processor and whirled it around.  I definitely used way too much ginger.  I looked online for some recipes and I had found one that used a block of tofu and said a pound (!) of ginger.  I knew that was probably wrong, but I figured I could go a little heavy handed on the ginger.  The dip came out a really nice and creamy texture, though, so if I can find the right combination of flavors, I'd bet most people wouldn't even realize they were eating tofu.

We used that as a dip for some celery that I happened to have on hand and I thinly sliced some potatoes and baked them into chips.  We ate about a third of it, so it was certainly not bad.

Hooded towel

I'm going to make one of these for each of my two nephews and the niece who is on the way.  Punkin has one that one of her Great Aunts made for her several years ago and it's really nice.


http://infarrantlycreative.blogspot.com/2008/02/kids-hooded-towel-tutorial.html

Time stops at Grand Central Station

Very cool video of a group that just freezes in place for 5 mins and the reaction of everyone around. Some of these people are in positions I don't think I could hold for 5 mins.

Link