HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BEETHOVEN!

“England is the paradise of individuality, eccentricity, heresy, anomalies, hobbies and humours.” George Santayana

Today is a noteworthy day as it is the birthday of a whole variety of interesting persons:

• Catherine of Aragon, 1st wife of Henry VIII (1485);
• Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer (1770);
• Jane Austen, English novelist (1775);
• George Santayana, writer (1863);
• Zoltán Kodály, composer (1882);
• Noël Coward, playwright/musician (1899);
• V. S. Pritchett, writer (1900);
• Margaret Mead, anthropologist (1901);
• Arthur C. Clark, writer (1917);
• James McCracken, tenor (1926);
• Liv Ullmann, actress (1939);
• Elayne Boosler, comedienne (1952).

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) is the German composer who is widely recognised as one of the greatest composers who ever lived. Mozart and Haydn acknowledged Beethoven’s talent while he was still young. His remarkable piano virtuosity and astounding compositions won him the generous support of the Viennese aristocracy despite his boorish manners. In 1801 he started to realise that he was becoming deaf, a condition which worsened progressively and was total by 1817. His creative work was never restricted and some of his greatest compositions he never heard while they were being played.

Beethoven's early works, influenced by the tradition of Mozart and Haydn, include the First and Second Symphonies, the first three Piano Concertos, and a many piano sonatas, including the Pathétique. From 1802, his work broke new ground, leaving behind the formal conventions of classical music. This most productive middle period included the Third Symphony (Eroica); the Fourth, Fifth (Fate), Sixth (Pastoral) Seventh (Dance) and Eighth Symphonies; his one Violin Concerto; and his only opera, Fidelio.

Beethoven's final and most mature period, dates from about 1816. It was productive of works of greater depth, including the Hammerklavier Sonata; the lofty Ninth Symphony (Choral), with its innovative choral finale (based on Schiller’s Ode to Joy); the Missa Solemnis; and the last five String Quartets. Beethoven also produced many smaller works for a variety of instruments and groups. His work terminated and epitomised the classical period and initiated the romantic era in music.

Here is Freddy Kempf playing the second movement of the Pathétique piano sonata (Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, op. 13).




The 1820 portrait of Beethoven above is by Joseph Karl Stieler.

Preparations for Christmas are well under way and we decorated the house all day today. The holiday mood is already infecting people. I guess this is the time to finish writing the last of the Christmas cards. Such a tradition that it has become. The Victorians are responsible for most of our Christmas traditions. They seem to have elevated Christmas from a religious/family holiday to one of general celebration and communal merry-making. The crass commercialism of Christmas today is thinly veiled in sentimental Victorian traditionalism. Rather difficult nowadays to find a place in the world where Christmas still means something spiritual. But I guess anything is what each of us makes of it, Christmas included. If one wants to make Christmas something else than what the big shopping centres tell one, something else than what is blasted out of the TV screen, then it is in one’s heart that one should search.

ON WINGS OF SONG

We should not let our fears hold us back from pursuing our hopes. - John Fitzgerald Kennedy

How easy it is to destroy, how difficult to create. We criticise easily, to praise is much harder. Any idiot can hate with a passion, but it takes a special person to love. We demolish with such facility but to build takes great trouble and effort. War is a game any moron can play, but peace how demanding a state and seemingly an impossible dream to make into reality. I am constantly disappointed by all the negativity around me, all the instances of people being nasty and horrible to each other and I have great misgivings about humanity and its future.

And then I witness a simple inconsequential kindness of one human being to another, a friendly gesture, evidence of love and take heart. I look at the products of artistic creation, I read a book, I listen to some music and I dare to hope…

For Music Saturday, hopeful and sweet sounds, composed by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809-1847). Here is his Op. 34, No. 2 “Auf Flügeln des Gesanges” on a poem by Heinrich Heine (1797-1856). It is sung by the incomparable Victoria de Los Angeles.





Auf Flügeln des Gesanges,

Auf Flügeln des Gesanges,
Herzliebchen, trag ich dich fort,
Fort nach den Fluren des Ganges,
Dort weiß ich den schönsten Ort;
Dort liegt ein rotblühender Garten
Im stillen Mondenschein,
Die Lotosblumen erwarten
Ihr trautes Schwesterlein.
Die Veilchen kichern und kosen,
Und schaun nach den Sternen empor,
Heimlich erzählen die Rosen
Sich duftende Märchen ins Ohr.
Es hüpfen herbei und lauschen
Die frommen, klugen Gazelln,
Und in der Ferne rauschen
Des heilgen Stromes Well'n.
Dort wollen wir niedersinken
Unter dem Palmenbaum,
Und Liebe und Ruhe trinken,
Und träumen seligen Traum.

On Wings of Song
English Translation by Marty Lucas

On wings of song,
my love, I'll carry you away
to the fields of the Ganges
Where I know the most beautiful place.
There lies a red-flowering garden,
in the serene moonlight,
the lotus-flowers await
Their beloved sister.
The violets giggle and cherish,
and look up at the stars,
The roses tell each other secretly
Their fragant fairy-tales.
The gentle, bright gazelles,
pass and listen;
and in the distance murmurs
The waves of the holy stream.
There we will lay down,
under the palm-tree,
and drink of love and peacefulnes
And dream our blessed dream.

OILS AIN'T OILS

“Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is.” - Mary Anne Radmacher

Call me a kill-joy if you like, call me a spoil-sport, call me a wowser, but today for Food Friday, I’d like to have a chat about dietary fats. It seems particularly apt at this time of the year when people overeat seriously on an almost daily basis. Christmas foods are traditionally full of fats and our intake of fats and oils around this time of the year can be excessive.

The first thing to note about dietary fat is that there is a minimum requirement for fat (not for total fat), but only for the fatty acids linoleic acid (a so-called omega-6 fatty acid) and alpha-linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid). These are the so-called “essential fatty acids”. The best way to understand what they do in the body is to see what happens when we do not include them in our diet.

Deficiencies of these two fatty acids have been seen, for example, in hospitalised patients fed exclusively with intravenous fluids containing no fat for weeks. Symptoms of deficiency include a dry skin, hair loss, and impaired wound healing. Essential fatty acid requirements (a few grams a day) can be met by consuming approximately a tablespoon of polyunsaturated plant oils daily. Fatty fish also provides a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids. Even individuals following a low-fat diet generally consume sufficient fat to meet requirements.

However, in the vast majority of the industrialised world, quite the opposite is the problem! Too much fat is consumed in the diet and if this fat is rich in cholesterol (particularly the “bad” cholesterol LDL and other saturated fats) it is linked to obesity, and an increase in heart disease risk. It is widely accepted that a low-fat diet lowers blood cholesterol and is protective against heart disease. Yet, the situation is complicated by the fact that different fatty acids have differing effects on the various lipoproteins that carry cholesterol. Furthermore, when certain fats are lowered in the diet, they may be replaced by other components that carry risk. In general, saturated fatty acids, which are found primarily in animal foods, tend to elevate LDL and total blood cholesterol (and hence risk of fat disease).

When saturated fatty acids in the diet are replaced by unsaturated fatty acids (either monounsaturated or polyunsaturated) LDL and total blood cholesterol are usually lowered, an effect largely attributed to the reduction in saturated fat. However, polyunsaturated fatty acids tend to lower HDL cholesterol levels, while monounsaturated fatty acids tend to maintain them. The major monounsaturated fatty acid in animals and plants is oleic acid. The good dietary sources of this monounsaturated are olive, canola, and high-oleic safflower oils, as well as avocados, nuts, and seeds. Historically, the low mortality from CHD in populations eating a traditional Mediterranean diet has been linked to the high consumption of olive oil in the region, although the plentiful supply of fruits and vegetables could also be a factor.

The two types of polyunsaturated fatty acids found in foods are omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids. Linoleic acid, the primary omega-6 fatty acid in most diets, is widespread in foods (major sources being vegetable oils such as sunflower, safflower, and corn oils). Low cardiovascular disease rates in Eskimo populations eating traditional diets high in omega-3 fatty acids initially provoked the speculation that these fatty acids may be protective against CHD. The primary lipid-altering effect of omega-3 fatty acids is the reduction of blood triglycerides. Omega-3 fatty acids may also protect the heart and blood vessels by lowering blood pressure, reducing blood clotting, preventing irregular heart rhythms, and acting as anti-inflammatory agents.

The long-chain omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are derived from alpha-linolenic acid, a shorter-chain member of the same family. Fatty fish such as salmon, herring, sardines, mackerel, and tuna are high in both EPA and DHA. Flaxseed is an excellent source of alpha-linolenic acid, which the body can convert to the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. Other sources of omega-3 fatty acids include walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, canola oil, soybean oil, dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach, and egg yolk. A diet high in polyunsaturated fatty acids may increase LDL lipid oxidation and thereby accelerate atherosclerosis; therefore, it should be accompanied by increased intakes of vitamin E, an antioxidant. Fish oil supplements are not advised without medical supervision because of possible adverse effects, such as bleeding.

The safety of trans (as opposed to naturally occurring cis) unsaturated fatty acids has been called into question because trans-fatty acids in the diet raise LDL cholesterol to about the same extent as do saturated fatty acids, and they can also lower HDL cholesterol. Trans-fatty acids are found naturally in some animal fats, such as beef, butter, and milk, but they are also produced during the hydrogenation process, in which unsaturated oils are made harder and more stable. Certain margarines, snack foods, baked goods, and deep-fried products are major food sources of trans-fatty acids.

So what is the moral of this story? Eat as little fat as is practicable. Eat foods with low saturated fat content and consume more of the omega-3 fats. A diet that is low in fats, varied in terms of seasonal fruits and vegetables, high in fibre and low in red meats is a healthier diet. But you didn’t need me to tell you that, you knew it all along. It’s just that we need to put it all into practice. Maybe after the festive season, what do you think?

LUCIFER & LUCID LUCIA

“Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” Robert Heinlein.

December 13th is the Feast Day of St Lucy. St Lucy was a virgin martyr who lived in the 4th century in Syracuse, Sicily. She was martyred by having her eyes taken out and these are often depicted in her images on a platter that she carries. Her name, Lucia, means light and she is the patron saint of oculists and optometrists. She is invoked against all eye diseases. In Sweden, St Lucia’s day is celebrated with special brilliance. As her name suggests, the Swedes celebrate her day with numerous lights, especially candles that are thought to dispel the dismal Northern winter darkness. The eldest daughter of each family dressed in a long white dress and crowned with a garland fashioned of pine boughs on which are balanced lit candles brings coffee to her parents in bed. The whole family then go down to a special breakfast feast served in a brightly lit room. The daughter is given the place of honour.

In Iceland, this day marks the beginning of the visits of the Yuletide Lads. These are 13 impish creatures that are bent on making mischief, one each day until Christmas Eve. Their individual names suggest the pranks they get up to: “Pot Scraper”, “Window Peeper” and “Sausage Sniffer”. In Icelandic mythology they were sons of Gryla the ogre and they started out as being horrible cannibals. As they became absorbed into the Christian tradition they became rather more benign and are considered to be mere pranksters and friends of children to whom they bring presents. The Yuletide Lads are reminiscent of the Greek folk tradition of the Christmas Imps, the kallikantzaroi, who cause similar havoc around home around Christmastime.

Seeing that today is also Heinrich Heine’s (the great German poet’s) birthday, here is a poem of his:
New Spring (1)

Sitting underneath white branches
Far you hear winds are wailing;
Overhead you see the cloudbanks
Wrap themselves in misty veiling,

See how on bare field and forest
Cold and barren death is seizing;
Winter’s round you, winter’s in you,
And your very heart is freezing.

Suddenly white flakes come falling
Down on you; and vexed and soured
You suppose some tree has shaken
Over you a snowy shower.

But it is no snow that’s fallen,
Soon you see with joyful start –
Look, it’s fragrant almond blossoms
Come to ease and tease your heart.

What a thrilling piece of magic!
Winter’s turned to May for you,
Snow’s transmuted into blossoms,
And your heart’s in love anew.
Heinrich Heine (1797-1856)

The word of the day is:

lucid |ˈloōsid| adjective
1 expressed clearly; easy to understand: A lucid account | Write in a clear and lucid style.
• showing ability to think clearly, esp. in the intervals between periods of confusion or insanity : he has a few lucid moments every now and then.
• Psychology (of a dream) experienced with the dreamer feeling awake, aware of dreaming, and able to control events consciously.
2 poetic/literary bright or luminous : birds dipped their wings in the lucid flow of air.
DERIVATIVES
lucidity |loōˈsidətē| |luˈsɪdədi| |-ˈsɪdɪti| noun
lucidly |ˈlusədli| adverb
lucidness |ˈlusədnəs| noun
ORIGIN: late 16th cent. (sense 2) : from Latin lucidus (perhaps via French lucide or Italian lucido), from lucere ‘shine,’ from lux, luc- ‘light.’

And related to this as far as etymology is concerned:

Lucifer |ˈloōsəfər| noun
1 another name for Satan. [ORIGIN: by association with the [son of the morning] (Isa. 14:12), believed by Christian interpreters to be a reference to Satan.]
2 poetic/literary the planet Venus when it rises in the morning.
3 (lucifer) archaic a match struck by rubbing it on a rough surface.
ORIGIN Old English , from Latin, ‘light-bringing, morning star,’ from lux, luc- ‘light’ + -fer ‘bearing.’

KEEPSAKE

“Because I remember, I despair. Because I remember, I have the duty to reject despair.” - Elie Wiesel

A poem written quite a few years ago, remembered tonight only because I just drove past the very place that inspired it.
Life is a prankster, a jokester, a jester. It loves to toy with us and play its games and we move according to its rules like pawns on a chessboard. No matter how dark and dismal life seems one minute, the next it catapults us into the seventh heaven where all is light and laughter.

Keepsake

A flashing neon sign illuminates
The few dead leaves spinning aimlessly
In endless circles,
And dead paper carried in the whirls of the wind eddies.
The night air – cold, sharp, clear,
While in the empty street
Only my hollow steps resound.

A snatch of melody
Brought to me by a gust of wind.
A few familiar notes,
Just enough to remind me of you.
It hurts me to remember how
That song always used to make me cry,
But now only a couple of half-heard notes
Of just another love song,
Carried pointlessly by the wind...

Acrid smoke stifles my bitter breath
Bringing with it solace;
An opiate to soothe away the pain
Of your remembrance.
I used to love you with such fire,
Now only ashes and wisps of smoke
From a dying cigarette.
The song that’s drifting in the wind
Meant all that you had silently confessed
But now only a faded keepsake
Pressed tightly between the pages of my closed heart.

A song of love.
An empty street.
A frozen heart.
A never-ending night.
And as always, my footsteps only
Resounding hollow on the dreary cobbles...


After the night, daylight, after the darkness light!

With many thanks to Sans Souci who is the gracious hostess of our Poetry Wednesday!

A BOOK OF WORDS

The finest words in the world are only vain sounds, if you cannot comprehend them. - Anatole France

I have been very busy in my spare time lately working on the dictionary project that I have written about it before here, and those of you who read this blog may know what it’s all about. It is a monumental project and the work involved is quite demanding and exacting. This is on top of my normal daytime job, so I manage to work on the dictionary every night for a couple of hours and obviously spend more time on it at weekends.

Fortunately, since my fellow editors and I worked together on the first edition, we have a good working relationship and much of the foundations of what we are doing now we set down a couple of years ago. At this stage we are reviewing the lists of “headwords”. What is this? Well, all of the words contained in the dictionary have been subdivided into topic areas. Overall we have 47 topic areas in the dictionary. There are three of us editors-in-chief and we each look after 15-16 topic areas. The headwords are the lists of words that must be included in the dictionary. The number of headwords that we have to work with in this medical dictionary is over 40,000. The dictionary has over 2,000 pages and 2,400 illustrations. Each topic area must be reviewed to ensure that the headwords are in their proper topic area.

My editing topic areas include Anatomy, Haematology, Autoimmune Disease, Laboratory Diagnosis, Pathology, Rheumatology, Computers in Medicine, Urology, Radiology, etc, etc. Each of these topic areas is “farmed out” to a specialist consultant. The consultant is in charge of the entries and actually writes the definitions. I have to liaise with each consultant in these areas I look after, and follow through the process of headword checking and cross-referencing, as well as checking the definitions as written by the consultant.

In addition to being an editor-in-chief I am also a consultant and I am in charge of the three following areas: Laboratory Diagnosis, Computers in Medicine, and Pathology. So I write the definitions that pertain to these areas. The process is then checked by another editor-in-chief so that there are always two people looking at each headword and its definition. Some terms are then given to reviewers who check the entries as a final quality control process.

The process is time-consuming and quite laborious, there is constant checking and cross-checking and if one is consulting one has to be very familiar with the topic area that one is looking after as inevitably there are new headwords to include and occasionally headwords to be deleted. An enormous responsibility rests on consultants, reviewers and editors as one has to be punctilious about the precision and accuracy of the information that is included in the dictionary. It is a reference work that will be consulted by health professionals who are are looking after the well-being of patients and it is vital that the dictionary is a reliable source of up-to-date information.

So now you know why I have not been able to visit your blogs as much as I would like to. I am trying to keep up with the writing of my own blogs (which is fun and relaxing for me, providing a sanity break from work and more work), but to visit each and every one of my friends’ blogs is an impossible task.

MOVIE MONDAY - MOSTLY MARTHA

"A converted cannibal is one who, on Friday, eats only fishermen." - Emily Lotney

We watched a delightful German movie yesterday and we enjoyed it very much, even though the genre was described as belonging to the “romantic comedies”. It is Sandra Nettelbeck’s 2001 film, “Bella Martha” (“Mostly Martha” its English title). Firstly, this is not a shallow romantic comedy as defined by Hollywood and if you are in search of belly laughs, slapstick humour and grating, shallow, sexual innuendos, this film is not for you. Instead, there are scenes that are amusing, that will make you smile, perhaps laugh, but also scenes full of pathos and emotion that is straight from the heart.

The film title’s Martha is a successful head chef in her 40s in the plush (and expensive) Lido Restaurant in a dreary German port city. Martha is a perfectionist and her whole life revolves around food and cooking. Her uncompromising and precise art in cooking is carried over to her home life which appears she has structured it in such a way so as not interfere with her job. Martha’s existence is regulated, predictable, clinically controlled. Her boss and restaurant owner, Frida, compels Martha to see a therapist as the chef has problems dealing with customers who will not appreciate the food she prepares for them (one of the funniest scenes in the movie is the “this-steak-is-overcooked” scene…).

Martha’s clockwork-like existence is thrown into disarray when she has her 8-year-old niece thrust into her care. The girl is headstrong and deals with huge emotional and psychological issues, and to Martha’s consternation, the niece will not eat, anything! Add to that the new chef that has been employed by Frida (contrary to the agreement she had with Martha that only Martha would employ kitchen staff!). This new chef is Mario, an Italian of sunny disposition and quite the opposite in his approach to cooking compared to Martha’s clinical precision.

I found the movie extremely involving, even though the story-line was very simple, even predictable. As Martha says in one of her monologues about food: “To test the mettle of a good chef give them something extremely simple to prepare. The way they cook that dish will prove how good they are…” The dialogue and acting were extremely good, the gamut of emotions displayed by the characters sensitively portrayed and so real – no overacting, no clichés, no histrionics or hamming it up.

Martina Gedeck who plays Martha is a fantastic actress and she acts with every cell of her body. When she is on the phone listening to some bad news and she appears dumbstruck, her hands do the acting and a quiver of her little finger and the clouding of her eyes is enough to immediately make us aware of exactly what she is hearing. Young Maxime Foerste, who plays Lina, Martha’s niece is a great choice and so is Sergio Castellitto, playing Mario, the new chef. Add to that an excellent supporting cast and you have great material with which to tell your story. Sandra Nettelbeck (who also wrote the screenplay) does a sterling job directing the movie and her touch is light but incisive.

See this movie if you can get your hands on it, it is an excellent offbeat and understated movie. The acting is great, the emotions portrayed rich and genuine, the message uplifting and the humour even though understated and gentle, quite wonderful. Another bonus for me was the soundtrack, selected by Manfred Eicher (founder of ECM, the successful modern-jazz label) and it ranged from German lieder, classic vocal jazz, through to instrumental pieces by Keith Jarrett and others. Besides all of that, you get some wonderful advice about food, some recipes and a terrific feel-good ending!

ART SUNDAY - VISUAL DIARIES 6

Fishy Fishy

Fishy, Fishy in the Creek,
Come a-swimming quick, quick, quick,
Daddy's been fishing all the day
While you been swimming the other way,
Fishy stories he must have to tell,
Or he'll be mad as old Billy Hell...

Anna Archibald

ART SUNDAY - VISUAL DIARIES 5

Extract from:
Lost in Translation

Out of the blue, as promised, of a New York
Puzzle-rental shop the puzzle comes —
A superior one, containing a thousand hand-sawn,
Sandal-scented pieces. Many take
shapes known already — the craftsman's repertoire
nice in its limitation — from other puzzles:
Witch on broomstick, ostrich, hourglass,
Even (not surely just in retrospect)
An inchling, innocently-branching palm.
James Merrill

ART SUNDAY - VISUAL DIARIES 4

“… Look deep into my eyes, dear Bride, and see what you have not yet seen. For a stranger I have become, and a stranger I am indeed. The one you have forgotten, my dear, is Me. I am your Beloved, your first love. Remember how we loved to be together? Why did you not call upon Me in your time of woe? Why did you not call My name aloud? My love for you is sweeter than wine. Why did you not run after Me?”
George Davis

ART SUNDAY - VISUAL DIARIES 3

The Hateful Colour

I'd like to go out into the world,
Out into the wide world;
If only it weren't so green, so green,
Out there in the forest and field!

I would like to pluck all the green leaves
From every branch,
I would like to weep on all the grass
Until it is deathly pale.

Ah, Green, you hateful colour, you,
Why do you always look at me,
So proud, so bold, so gloating,
And me only a poor, flour-covered man?

I would like to lay in front of her door,
In storm and rain and snow.
And sing so softly by day and by night
One little word: farewell!

Hark, when in the forest a hunter's horn sounds -
Her window clicks!
And she looks out, but not for me;
Yet I can certainly look in.

O do unwind from your brow
That green, green ribbon;
Farewell, farewell! And give me
Your hand in parting!

Wilhelm Müller (1794-1827)

ART SUNDAY - VISUAL DIARIES 2

The Sick Rose

O Rose thou art sick.
The invisible worm.
That flies in the night
In the howling storm:

Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy;
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.

William Blake (1757-1827)

ART SUNDAY - VISUAL DIARIES 1

“The will to do springs from the knowledge that we can do.” - James Allen

I keep a “visual diary” and have done so for several years; I have now collected many of these little journals and it is always interesting to look back into them and recall the times I documented there. These diaries are sketchbooks that I keep at hand and whenever the fancy strikes me, I scrawl some sketches, draw with coloured pencils, or markers, write little snippets here and there, or cut and paste interesting things that I have seen and would like to keep. So for Art Sunday today, I’m sharing with you some of my visual diary pages.

“It is good to be without vices, but it is not good to be without temptations.” - Walter Bagehot

BACH & GOULD

“I worked hard. Anyone who works as hard as I did can achieve the same results.” - Johann Sebastian Bach

Today I shall let two great musicians talk for me using music rather than words to say what is in my heart. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) is my favourite composer, and what better interpreter of one of his keyboard pieces than Glenn Gould? I immerse myself in such music and words become superfluous, unnecessary, redundant.

Glenn Gould is playing here the Bach Partita No.6 in E minor for keyboard, its first movement titled: Toccata. Luxuriate in it and let the beautiful sounds wash over your soul.





Enjoy your weekend!

OF PHYTOESTROGENS, SOUP & PRIMOGENITURE

“Every autumn, when the wind turns cold and darkness comes early, I am suddenly happy. It's time to start making soup again.” - Leslie Newman

You may have heard a lot about phytoestrogens in the news, on TV, or your reading in newspapers and magazines. Phytoestrogens are natural compounds that are found in plants, which when consumed may act somewhat like oestrogen, the body’s own hormone (found in females in high concentration, and in males in low concentration, in the blood). Foods high in phytoestrogens include soy products (soy milk, tofu, tempeh and soy yoghurt), flaxseed, legumes (lentils, beans, peas, etc) and whole grains. The phytoestrogens in soy foods are also known as isoflavones.

As phytoestrogens have a very similar chemical structure to the body's own oestrogen hormone, phytoestrogens can bind to oestrogen receptors on the surface of body cells. The effects of phytoestrogens on the body are not fully understood, but it is believed that phytoestrogens may act like weak oestrogen in some situations, or also block the actions of oestrogen in other situations.

Phytoestrogens have the ability to interact with the actions of sex hormones (oestrogens and androgens –female and male sex hormones respectively) in the body. Phytoestrogens have become a topic of interest for the possible prevention of hormonal cancers. High levels of sex hormones (oestrogen in women and androgens in men) over a person's lifetime are believed to be associated with an increased risk of hormonal cancers such as breast and prostate cancer.

Lower rates of breast and prostate cancer in some Asian countries, where soy is very common in the diet, have led scientists to investigate if there is a link between eating soy foods and protection against breast and prostate cancer. It is important to remember that people in these countries also differ from Westerners in many other aspects of their diets: For example, they eat more vegetables and fish, and less meat. They may also have different risks for these cancers because of genetic factors. So it is not completely clear whether it is the soy in the diet, or some other factor, that is responsible for the lower rates of cancer in these countries.

Animal and laboratory studies do support the hypothesis that phytoestrogens have a direct anti-cancer effect. Overall in large studies on people it seems like a high consumption of soy foods may lower the risk of breast and prostate cancers, but only a little. There is no association between soy foods and the risk of other types of cancers. More studies are needed to examine if phytoestrogens have a protective effect against breast and prostate cancer. From the current evidence, it is believed that a moderate consumption of soy foods (eg 1-2 serves of soy foods/day) along with an overall healthy eating plan is unlikely to have adverse effects. This is consistent with The Cancer Council's recommendations and dietary guidelines to eat a diet rich in plant foods. There is no evidence supplements that contain high doses of soy or soy isoflavones are effective in preventing cancer, and are therefore not recommended.

At the same time, it is important to mention, that it is not known whether a diet high in phytoestrogens for women who have breast cancer is safe. Tamoxifen is a common treatment for women with oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer. Tamoxifen works by blocking the actions of oestrogen, and therefore stopping or reducing tumour growth. For women with oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer who are taking tamoxifen, it is still unclear whether eating soy foods or taking soy supplements will block or enhance the actions of tamoxifen. The results of scientific studies are contradictory, and unfortunately there are no clinical trials to definitively answer this question. A moderate consumption of soy foods, as part of an overall healthy eating plan, is unlikely to have any harmful effects.

Supplements that contain high doses of soy or soy isoflavones have not been tested for safety in women who have breast cancer or who are taking tamoxifen. The best advice is to eat soy foods in moderation as part of an overall healthy eating pattern, and not to suddenly increase the amount of soy phytoestrogens in the diet. The Cancer Council recommends that women with breast cancer avoid soy and phytoestrogen supplements.

Research is underway looking at the types of eating patterns that are protective for women who have had breast cancer. Evidence is starting to emerge that maintaining a healthy weight by eating a low-fat diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables and being physically active can improve survival and the overall health of breast cancer survivors.

GREEK LENTIL SOUP À LA PRIMOGENITURE

Lentil soup is mentioned in the Bible: In Genesis 25:34, Esau is prepared to give up his birthright for a pot of fragrant red lentil soup being cooked by his brother, Jacob. The ancient Greek dramatist, Aristophanes, mentions lentil soup in his plays and describes it as the "sweetest of delicacies."

INGREDIENTS
• ½ cup of olive oil
• 3 onions
• 4-5 cloves of garlic
• 2 ripe tomatoes
• 500 mL of tomato puree
• 250 mL of V8 juice
• 500 g of lentils
• 2 vegetable stock cubes
• 2 bay leaves
• Pepper, salt, a few leaves of rosemary, touch of oregano, some paprika

METHOD
Soak the lentils overnight in about 2 litres of water. Drain the next day and reserve the lentils until later – reserve half the water. Heat the oil and add the chopped onion stirring until golden-brown. Add the sliced garlic and the diced peeled tomatoes. Cook for a few minutes and then add the drained lentils. Stir thoroughly in order to coat the lentils with the oil and onion mixture. Add the tomato puree and V8 juice. Heat to boiling point and add the stock cubes, bay leaves and seasonings. Stir for a few minutes until the stock cubes are dissolved. Add some of the reserved water to obtain a thick soup-like consistency. Simmer for about 1.5-2 hours until the lentils are thoroughly cooked, adding water from time to time so that the lentils do not dry out or become too gluggy. Serve very hot with herb foccacia bread and kokkineli wine (Greek dry red wine).

Nice vegetarian dish with lots of phytoestrogens! You never know you may be able to trade someone’s primogeniture with it too!

HAPPY NAME DAY TO ALL THE NICKS!

“The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.” - Oprah Winfrey

Today is St Nicholas’ Day, celebrated by Catholics, Orthodox and some other Christian groups. As my name is Nicholas, it is also my Name Day, or Onomastic Feast Day, to be more precise. In many countries, and certainly including Greece, one’s Name Day (which is celebrated on the Feast Day of the saint whose name one bears) is a big personal cause for celebration, equivalent to (or even more so) importance to one’s birthday.

Usually in Greece, the person celebrating their Name Day has an open house that day so that friends and relatives may drop in and give their wishes, give presents of flowers, sweets or drinks and in turn be regaled with various treats in return. Formal dinners may also be given, but generally the celebration is an informal reception at one’s home. As everyone should know what Saint’s Feast Day falls on what calendar day, it is rather a big insult not to wish one’s friends’ celebrating their Name Day, Χρόνια Πολλά (Chrónia Pollá - “Many Happy Returns of the Day”), or not to visit.

I’ve had a very nice day already, with family, friends and colleagues wishing me well. Tonight we have a dinner party for some close friends and we shall celebrate quietly with some good food, a little wine and pleasant conversation. Fittingly, my word for this Thesaurus Thursday is:

onomastic |ˌänəˈmastik|adjective
Of or relating to the study of the history and origin of proper names.
ORIGIN late 16th cent. (as a noun in the sense [alphabetical list of proper nouns], from Greek onomastikos, from onoma ‘name.’ The adjective dates from the early 18th century.

To all my 360 friends called Nicholas, Nick, Nicky, Nikos, Nikolas, Nikolaus, Colin, Col, Klaus, Klaas, Nicolette, Colette, Colinne, I wish you Many Happy Returns of your Name Day! Χρόνια Πολλά!

HAPPY SINTERKLAAS DAY!

“A person who knows how to laugh at himself will never cease to be amused.” - Shirley Maclaine

December the 5th is a very special day in Holland (where I lived on and off for a few months). It is the day when the Feast of Sinterklaas (St. Nicholas) is celebrated. This is an annual event which has been uniquely Dutch and Flemish for centuries. St. Nicholas' Feast Day, December 6th, is observed in most Roman Catholic and Orthodox countries. But it is only in the Low Countries, especially in the Netherlands, that the eve of his feast day (December 5th) is celebrated nationwide by young and old, Christian and non-Christian, and without any religious overtones.

Sinterklaas is always portrayed in the vestments of the bishop he once was, but his status as a saint has had little to do with the way the Dutch think of him. He is thought of as a benevolent old man, who is intent on been kind to children who have been good all year, by giving them all sorts of goodies as a reward. The eve of his feast day is observed by exchanging gifts and making good-natured fun of each other. Hence the corruption of “Sinterklaas” (= St Nicholas) into Santa Claus.

The legend of St. Nicholas is based on historical fact. Nicholas lived from 271 AD to December 6th, 342 AD (or 343). His 4th century tomb in the town of Myra, in Anatolia in present-day Turkey, has even been dug up by archaeologists. Nicholas was brought up as a devout Christian by his wealthy family. When his parents died in an epidemic, he distributed his wealth among the poor and became a priest. Later he became Archbishop of Myra, and it is from here that the fame of his good deeds began to spread across the Mediterranean.

Sailors especially venerated him, as they believed he had the power to calm the stormy seas. Young children were saved by the saint from the butcher's knife and he dropped dowries into the shoes of penniless maidens. Over time, St. Nicholas became the patron saint of sailors and merchants, but especially of children. After his death, the cult of St. Nicholas spread rapidly via southern Italy throughout the rest of the Mediterranean and eventually to coastal towns along the Atlantic and the North Sea.

In the 12th and 13th centuries, Holland built no fewer than 23 churches dedicated to St. Nicholas, many of which are still standing today. Amsterdam adopted St. Nicholas as its patron saint, and Rome decreed that December 6th, the anniversary of his death, should be his official Feast Day. St. Nicholas' strong influence in the Low Countries (heavily engaged in trade and navigation) was primarily due to his role as patron of sailors and merchants.

However, his fame as protector of children eventually became more important in these countries. In the 14th century, choir boys of St. Nicholas’ churches were given a gift of money and the day off on December 6th. Somewhat later, the pupils of convent schools would be rewarded or punished by a monk dressed up as the Good Bishop, with his long white beard, his red mantle and mitre holding his golden crosier just as he is still represented today.

All Dutch children know that Sinterklaas (the name is a corruption of Sint Nikolaas) lives in Spain. Exactly why he lives there, remains a mystery, but that is what all the old songs and nursery rhymes say. He spends most of the year recording the behaviour of all children in a big red book, while his helper, Black Peter ("Zwarte Piet") stocks up on presents for the next December 5th. In the first weeks of November, Sinterklaas gets on his white horse, Peter ("Piet") swings a huge sack full of gifts over his shoulder, and the three of them board a steamship headed for the Netherlands. Around mid-November they arrive in a harbour town (a different one every year) where they are formally greeted by the Mayor and a delegation of citizens. Their parade through town is watched live on television by the whole country and marks the beginning of the "Sinterklaas season".

The Dutch are busy shopping for, or more importantly, making presents. Tradition demands that all packages be camouflaged in some imaginative way, and that every gift be accompanied by a fitting poem. This is the essence of Sinterklaas: Lots of fun on a day when people are not only allowed, but expected, to make fun of each other in a friendly way. Children, parents, teachers, employers and employees, friends and co-workers tease each other and make fun of each others' habits and mannerisms. Another part of the fun is how presents are hidden or disguised. Recipients often have to go on a treasure hunt all over the house, aided by hints, to look for them. They must be prepared to dig their gifts out of the potato bin, to find them in jelly, in a glove filled with wet sand, in some crazy dummy or doll. Working hard for your presents and working even harder to think up other peoples' presents and get them ready is what the fun is all about.

The original poem accompanying each present is another old custom and a particularly challenging one. Here the author has a field day with his subject (the recipient of the gift). Foibles, love interests, embarrassing incidents, funny habits and well-kept secrets are all fair game. The recipient, who is the butt of the joke, has to open his/her package in public and read the poem aloud amid general hilarity. The real giver is supposed to remain anonymous because all presents technically come from Sinterklaas, and recipients say out aloud: “Thank you, Sinterklaas!”, even if they no longer believe in him.

Towards December 5th, St. Nicholas poems pop up everywhere in the Netherlands: In newspapers and magazines, at school, at work and in both Houses of Parliament. On the day of the 5th, most places of business close a bit earlier than normal. The Dutch head home to a table laden with the same traditional sweets and baked goods eaten for St. Nicholas as shown in the 17th-century paintings of the Old Masters. Large chocolate letters (the initial of each person present) serve as place settings. They share the table along with large gingerbread men and women known as "lovers". A basket filled with mysterious packages stands close by and scissors are at hand. Early in the evening sweets are eaten while those gathered take turns unwrapping their gifts and reading their poems out loud so that everyone can enjoy the impact of the surprise. The emphasis is on originality and personal effort rather than the commercial value of the gift, which is one reason why Sinterklaas is such a delightful event for young and old alike.

A Sinterklaas Poem for my 360 Friends

A funny day, a lovely day,
A zany day so full of play!
To friends, with wishes sung
A happy day to old and young.

As Sinterklaas comes by again,
With Zwarte Piet from Spain,
I wish to you his gifts does bring,
A toy, a book, …a golden ring!

We all enjoy the fun, the laughter
And lots of sweets to eat straight after.
There’s cake and chocolate lots of candy,
But as for me, I’d rather drink the brandy!

Seek high and low, go out and in
You’ll find your presents with a grin:
In sawdust smothered, under beds,
In socks, in wardrobes or in bread!

The kindly saint, he smiles and blesses,
The youngsters’ heads bends and caresses.
To all who’ve been good all year,
Old Sinterklass will give good cheer.

Happy Sinterklaas Day to all!

MENTAL NOURISHMENT

“The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them.” - Mark Twain

Do you like lists? Are you a compulsive jotter-downer, lister, organiser? Do you sit there religiously writing out your shopping lists, laundry lists, Christmas card lists, birthdays lists, invitation lists to parties, weddings, funerals? I must confess that I went through such a phase and then I grew out of it. Still, I do catch myself sometimes writing one or another list. Rarely, well not often, anyway!

For our Book Tuesday today, I give you the ultimate book of lists. It is a book of books. A must for the book lover, a perfect Christmas gift for yourself of any other special bibliophile in your life. It is Peter Boxall’s “1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die”. Now just a little simple arithmetic will tell you that if you read an average of two books a week, then it will take you 10 years and three-and-a-half days to read 1001 books! There you are, I’ve solved your “I-don’t know-what-to-read-next” problem for the next 10 years!

Dr Peter Boxall is a young English academic who together with his colleagues at the University of Sussex, chose the 1001 books and wrote 300 words about each in this book of “lists”. About 70 per cent of the editors’ choices are from the 20th century, but surprisingly there is also good representation of books written originally in languages other than English. The Australian contingent was rather under-represented with only 6/1001 being by Australians (Grrrrrrrrrr!). Of course any list of “favourites” is quite subjective and it is hard to find within the list all of one’s personal favourites. However, I was delighted by this list book and I was surprised by the gems of information that the editors have crammed into it.

It really is a book for book lovers and serves to give you a brief introduction to classic and cult books and authors, that you may have heard of but know little about. It contains more than 600 photos and book covers and is a good check-list of what you have read and what you are yet to read. Obviously, one would not read all that is recommended, but it really is a piquant menu for your mental nourishment and one delights in making up an elegant reading dinner party for the next month.

The ISBN for the book is 9780733321214 and in Australia it was published in July 2007. It follows the success of “1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die” by the same author (also a good read!).

MOVIE MONDAY - MARIE ANTOINETTE

"Let Them Eat Cake..." - Misattributed to Marie Antoinette

Last weekend we watched Sofia Coppola’s “Marie Antoinette” (2006) on DVD. We had heard conflicting reviews about this movie and it was interesting to watch it and compare it with the 1938 MGM classic “Marie Antoinette”. Visually, the Coppola version is sumptuous and stunning. The cinematography, the costumes, the sets, the sweeping landscapes and the brilliant colour bring the decadence of 18th century Versailles to life. It is a beautiful movie in terms of this visual feast. Kirsten Dunst cast as the ill-fated young queen plays well, although she has to deal with a difficult script and dialogue that totters between modern slang and stilted “olde-worlde” period-speak. Good supporting performances by Jason Schwartzman, Judy Davis, Rip Torn, Marianne Faithfull and Asia Argento make the film watchable.

However, there are many problems and things that cannot be forgiven. This is definitely a movie where “Hollywood-does-history” in a self-indulgent and ultimately “box-office success” way so as to reassure the producers of a reasonable profit for their investment. The film has been made so as to appeal to a young audience. One reviewer called it “Gidget Goes to Versailles” and it was with good reason, too. The film concentrates much on Marie Antoinette’s life in Versailles on her occasional escapades to Paris, but there is nothing there to place her fairy-tale existence into context, no suggestion of how the final scenes in the film came about. One can expect a young impressionable person with little knowledge of history to see it and go away thinking: “Poor, sweet thing, whatever did she do to deserve a beheading? She was extravagant and owned lots of shoes and clothes and jewels, but she had to, didn’t she? She was a queen after all!”

I was uneasy about the other devices used to attract the young film-viewers. The anachronistic touches were heavy-handed and gimmicky. Putting in a pair of sneakers amongst the period shoes in the closet, for example? Funny? Hmmmmm. The soundtrack where modern rock alternated with 18th century music was particularly grating. It made the scenes where this occurred to look like some modern costume party. Hot pink dresses and pastries were really an eyesore, and in there obviously to appeal to the young irises that need the stimulation so that they do not wander away. I’ve mentioned already the language and slang used – perhaps the most forgivable of the anachronisms.

The other objection we had to the movie was the superficial way in which the politics of the era was handled. In the scenes where Louis XVI is having conferences with his advisors, matters of momentous national and international importance are treated in seconds and are oversimplified, as though the young things that watch the movie couldn’t possibly handle anything except “fun” and “exuberance” and “joie-de-vivre” and “pot-parties” and “love affairs”. That is really pandering to much of the youth of today, but at the same time it is making the mind-rot that has set in even worse.

The film was over-long at two-hours and there was only so much partying and extravagance and wild dancing and court parading that one could take. Contrasting scenes with what the ordinary people were experiencing in the streets of Paris would have made the movie more powerful and more engaging for me.

The earlier version of “Marie Antoinette” even though in black and white (sepia-tone) provided an equally sumptuous recreation of 18th century Versailles, but was balanced by more of the underlying sociopolitical situation in France at the time. Norma Shearer as Marie Antoinette does a good job, although there is some melodrama (but it was the 1930s, remember!) and she is complemented by Robert Morley and Tyrone Power as Louis XVI and Count Axel respectively. This version of the film was based on Stefan Zweig’s biography, as opposed to Antonia Fraser’s biography, which was the basis of the Coppola film. There are flaws in this earlier film, also (history according to Hollywood can be very patchy and flaky), but overall, I enjoyed the earlier film more.

Do I recommend seeing Coppola’s “Marie Antoinette”? Yes, I do. However, if you have not done so already do read a good history book on the French Revolution first. And watch it at home with lots of popcorn and a few members of the family and friends around so you can amuse one another when the movie starts to drag.

ART SUNDAY - MAURICE UTRILLO 4

La Butte rouge de Monthéus

« Sur c’te butt’-là, y’avait pas d’ gigolettes
Pas de marlous, ni de beaux muscadins ;
Ah ! c’était loin du moulin de la galette…
La Butt’ roug’, c'est son nom
L’ baptêm’ s’fit un matin
Où tous ceux qui montaient
Roulaient dans le ravin
Aujourd’hui, y a des vign’s
Il y pouss’ du raisin
Qui boira ce vin-là
Boira l’ sang des copains »

“La Maison Bernot” – 1924, Paris, Musée de l'Orangerie