Smoking versus COVID deaths

I just watched my grandson online in a concert. They all wore masks and were socially distanced. When they stopped blowing their horns they quickly brought their masks up to cover their mouths and noses.  How sad that they are being forced to do these things when the number of deaths from COVID among their age group are almost non-existent. To the week ending April 3, 2021 only 300 deaths from ages 0-18 years. (If you are sick or your immunity is compromised, stay home.) 

Source: CDC. (2021, April 7). Provisional COVID-19 deaths: Focus on ages 0-18 years. https://data.cdc.gov/NCHS/Provisional-COVID-19-Deaths-Focus-on-Ages-0-18-Yea/nr4s-juj3

 

Cigarettes and Death

Cigarette smoking causes about one of every five deaths in the United States each year. Cigarette smoking is estimated to cause the following:

• More than 480,000 deaths annually (including deaths from secondhand smoke)
• 278,544 deaths annually among men (including deaths from secondhand smoke)
• 201,773 deaths annually among women (including deaths from secondhand smoke)

Cigarette smoking causes premature death:

• Life expectancy for smokers is at least 10 years shorter than for nonsmokers.
• Quitting smoking before the age of 40 reduces the risk of dying from smoking-related disease by about 90%.

Secondhand Smoke and Death

Exposure to secondhand smoke causes an estimated 41,000 deaths each year among adults in the United States:

• Secondhand smoke causes 7,333 annual deaths from lung cancer.
• Secondhand smoke causes 33,951 annual deaths from heart disease.

Source: CDC. (2020, April 28). Tobacco related deaths. https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/health_effects/tobacco_related_mortality/index.htm 

 Next week I will post an article about COVID and suicides. Did you know that in Japan more people committed suicide in the month of October than deaths in the whole year from COVID-19.

Here is the source: 

WAVE3 News. (2020, December 4). Study reveals increased suicide rates across U.S.  https://www.wkyt.com/2020/12/04/study-reveals-increased-suicide-rates-across-us/

 

Whooping Crane Migration

Platte River Valley is on migration path for Whooping Cranes

 

                                                                                                                    Photo courtesy of earth.com

Poor planning I guess, but whenever we leave on a trip it takes most of the day to get out of the house. We were exhausted by the time we got four hours from home so we stayed at the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Grand Island, Nebraska. It is off the road about 10 miles but worth the trip because it was less busy than the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Kearney. 

In the morning we stopped at the Nebraska Nature and Visitor Center which is off exit 305 on Interstate 80. The Center was closed during the pandemic. So we drove further west on the Interstate to the Rowe Sanctuary, which is about five miles south of the Interstate at exit 285. While the Center is closed, Audubon volunteers are onsite from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily and have opened blinds which allow visitors to view the Platte River and Basin, looking North. 

The Platte River is on the spring migration route for Whooping Cranes and Sandhill Cranes. Some 500 plus whooping cranes migrate through the Central Flyway during the months of April and October/November.  This is far surpassed by the number of Sandhill Cranes, which number is over a million. An endangered bird, the Whooping Crane is the tallest bird in North America - over five feet tall, with a wing span of 7.5 feet. If you get a chance to see one (we didn't), its imposing stature, angel white plumage, black mask, and red crown make it an amazing sight. The Whooping Crane nests in Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada. If you see a whooping crane, please report it to Whooper Watch (888.399.2824) or the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (308.865.5310).

When we arrived after noon at the Rowe Sanctuary, a few bald eagles were feeding on bird carcasses but the Sandhill Cranes had lifted off and were feeding in farmers' fields across from the Center. We watched in fascination as hundreds of Sandhill Cranes dropped down into the fields to feed on last fall's stocks and leftover corn.  The volunteers indicated that about 600,000 Sandhill Cranes migrate through the Platte River Basin in March and April on their way to nesting grounds on the tundra in Northern Canada, Alaska, and even Siberia. They stay in the Platte River area about three weeks, the volunteers said. 

The Sandhill Crane while flying may look a lot like, geese except that geese fly in V formations. Sandhill Cranes have a longer tail. The Sandhill Cranes are a magnificent bird, 3-4 feet tall, with 5 foot wingspan. They can fly up to 450 miles a day. They lay 1-2 eggs a year and have a lifespan of 20-25 years. Whooping Cranes have a similar lifespan and fly up to 500 miles a day.They lay two eggs a year.

                                                                                            Photo from wind-energy-wildlife.unl.edu

Chicken asparagus

Ingredients

• 2 large chicken breats, cut in half length-wise
• 16 asparagus stalks, trimmed
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• salt and pepper to taste 
• 1-2 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice and lemon zest
• fresh chopped parsley as a garnish

1. Arrange oven shelf on the middle rack and pre-heat to 400 F (200 C). Oil a casserole dish.

2. Mix together salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Arrange chicken in casserole and season with spice.

3. Combine olive oil, lemon juice, and zest. Pour 3/4 of mixture on chicken.

4. Arrange the asparagus on the chicken and drizzle the remaining juice on the asparagus. 

5. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 minute or until the inside temperature reaches 165F (75C). For the last three minutes broil the chicken on high. Eat the chicken asparagus hot.

 

Nutrition information

2 servings, 800 cal. 

Protein, 4 oz.

Vegetables, 3 oz.

Scan to Mac from iPhone

 How to scan a document on a Mac using iPhone or iPad

Step 1: On your Mac open the application you want to insert the scan into. I'm going to use MS word.

Step 2. Right click on the document where you want the scan to go to.

Step 3. Choose the device you want to use as the scanner. From the right-click menu click on iPhone or iPad.

 

 Step 4. If you chose iPhone, the camera in the iPhone opens. Center over the document and take the picture. Then crop the picture to the size you want. 

Step 5. Click Keep scan and Save.  It will appear in your Mac document. 

Sources:  

Ali, Zaib. (2019, August 9). How to scan document on a Mac using iPhone or iPad. IOS  Hacker.

https://ioshacker.com/how-to/scan-document-a-on-mac-using-iphone-or-ipad