Retired pharmacist, professional writer, artist, reader, gardener, birdwatcher, living in Oregon.
303 followers 106 following 4,470 posts
view profile on Bluesky Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Many health conditions cause inflammation, such as arthritis or auto-immune disease. High protein diets, especially high meat intake, increase inflammation and atherosclerosis (hardening of vessels in the body, from buildup of fatty deposits). Important read from Dr. Topol: #inflammation
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
For many years, my veggie/fruit backyard garden saved us $1000 a year, got the charts to prove it.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
You don't know what you got til it's gone, chapter 912: tarriffs and economic chaos mean layoffs. Opinion from the owner of aluminum foundry, on this Labor Day: reader.theoregonian.com/i-didnt-vote... #tarriffs #layoffs
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Gardening is tied with painting the walls, for making rapid changes in your surroundings, a great reason to get out there! Patio cuke went crazy thus summer
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
And impatiently waiting for the last 90 degrees days to be over!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Reasons why we don’t get “the perfect shot”: we’re too busy pulling weeds or taking a nap on a perfect day, to take a pic. Or our hands are muddy!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
From seedlings to jungle, in a few short months!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Your mom must have always been a farmer at heart. ❤️ Many people finally get the time to pursue a life’s ambition when they retire. I am covering my walls with paintings.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Oh yeah If you get tired of cooking sauce on stove, roast them chopped on cookie sheet in oven with oil, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, adding herbs after they’re done and buzzing in blender when cool. I leave skins on too (vitamins!)
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Full of antioxidants too
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Have a great visit with your son 😃
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Lantana, clematis and geraniums maybe? Nice
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Hey I plan my garden planting in excel, track donations, create charts…great visual organizer
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Maybe they love the (cement) bird that’s always there, welcoming them
New Mexico has issued a public health order that removes federal restrictions to COVID-19 vaccine access so that pharmacies in New Mexico can vaccinate people of all ages and risk profiles. Every state need to do this!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
O to be a bird! Great capture
Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon? 🦦 #InOtterNews
Unafraid to speak truth to power, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics Dr. Susan Kressly joins @vinguptamd.bsky.social on Meidas Health for a powerful discussion on truth, conviction, and her deep commitment to ensuring optimal childhood health for the nation amid chaos at the CDC.
Night sky on northern Minnesota's Gunflint Trail. #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #nightsky #milkyway #minnesota #reflection
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Since mega fire in 2020, fish and amphibians in Oregon streams are showing hopeful resilience. Story from OPB news: www.opb.org/article/2025... #wildfires #oregon @opb
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Lovely detail on those wing feathers
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Great menu up there! We had somebody feeding peanuts nearby, years ago, and squirrels got so tubby they’d try to climb bird feeder poles and keep sliding down. Also stray cats and rumors of a coyote picking off cats nearby, so no cat food. My nice calm dog camps out there, and “keeps the peace”.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
The little snots are such show offs
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
We won’t ask, whose….
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Yep, gotta go where the docs go @jamacardiology.com
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
I still meet people who say “the birds find enough food in the summer”—used to be the case. We did have lots of bugs this year, which helped, but providing water, seed cakes and food made a big difference, just like donating more to food banks (for people), does too. It’s all one big world.
Robert Hopkins Jr, MD, medical director of the @nfidvaccines.bsky.social discusses what his patients are asking about with regards to the vaccines and what the general public should continue to know about their medical value. #IDSky #Medsky @aradultimmdoc.medsky.social
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Love it!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Despite late, cold, wet spring, and probable loss of first nests of bird babies, birds rallied later. We even saw second, small batches of ducklings as late as last month. Migrant black-headed grosbeaks here; later, their teenagers 😁. Many well fed babies of all kinds, doing well, encouraging.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Maybe it think’s it’s Super Turtle…”I can fly….!”
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Folks, head to your health system’s pharmacies for vaccines (some are open to all comers), or your doc’s office if you get static from commercial pharmacies. And stay tuned, state health depts. may scale up too.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
It is a “Hitchcock-ian” kind of year, hence the thought. We’re having lots of flapdoodles here too, since we’ve been feeding and providing plenty of water sources during our very dry summer. We’ve never seen so many extremely late broods of baby birds, and their tired parents.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Yes, good sources. Also follow Megan Ranney MD @meganranney.bsky.social
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
This has a bit of an Alfred Hitchcock vibe to it….”The Birds”…
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Governors are tasked with protecting citizens of their states. Here’s an important new project being explored by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker: buy the damn vaccines and beef up distribution by state health departments. @tinakotek.bsky.social @cidrap.bsky.social #medsky
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Still simple, still inexpensive, still works! Repair the air inside with this DIY air filter system! @corsiaq.bsky.social
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
And other quaint terms like “the moral majority”, “compassionate conservatives”.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Oregonians, listen up: here’s a big reason why cuts are coming to staff at many Oregon schools. The PERS investment mess, from the Oregon Journalism Project: www.oregonjournalismproject.org/private-equity #investments #publicpensions #pers #stateoforegon
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Absolutely everyone read this! Courage in the face of stupidity, and the attempt to destroy scientific integrity. Then start calling, emailing your Republican Senators, over and over.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Yes but did she get her choice of weapons? 🤣
The #1 cause of death in women is heart disease. A new report makes the case for treating women with statins who have a high inflammation marker (hs-CRP) but no traditional risk factors academic.oup.com/eurheartj/ad...
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Essential to close the gap in diagnosis and prevention of heart disease in women.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Some Senate Republicans may—may—be waking up to the realities of horrible “leadership” in HHS and CDC.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
If you’re a cancer survivor, read this: get your Covid vaccine as soon as possible and mask up. Covid -19 may fire up your immune system and spread remaining cancer cells rapidly. Exceptionally clear writing in JAMA: #cancer #covid
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Follow Dr. Ranney. Some of her posts are to MDs, many others are public health topics. She is often interviewed. She is a great communicator, MD and public health leader. You can trust what she says.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Venus Williams, partnered with Leylah Fernandez, wins doubles match at U.S. Open. Still got it! pages.pagesuite.com/7/5/7519fac0... #tennis #venuswilliams
Sen Patty Murray (D-WA): “If there are any adults left in the White House, it’s well past time they face reality… We cannot let RFK Jr. burn what’s left of the CDC and our other critical health agencies to the ground—he must be fired.”
Vaccines are safe and effective. RFK Jr. isn’t.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Amen, brother.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Follow Megan Ranney MD for frequent doses of reality, actionable plans, and an ever present eye to the future:
Senator Murray Calls for Immediate Firing of RFK Jr.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
I stirred up a hornet’s nest in the ground years ago, and they got me all over the scalp. Thank God for steroids! Wishing you a speedy resolution, and lots of cartoon bandaids you can proudly show your patients today
Trump's use of red state National Guards in DC is really about viciously turning Americans against each other, about stoking hate and violence *among Americans.* JB Pritzker's response is so good because it lays *this* bare. Me and @brianbeutler.bsky.social on this: newrepublic.com/article/1997...
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Essential reading for anyone with a brain! #medsky
Juvenile brown pelican on the pier. 🪶
We need a lot more Dr. Jessica Steiers to pull a body of evidence together like this @unbiasedscipod.bsky.social 👏 theunbiasedscipod.substack.com/p/how-a-gove... www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Over 200 million birds were on the move last night. 1/2 #migration #birds
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
So very sorry. I can only hope that you are helping great kids who will someday run this country, after we adults find a way to end the current madness.
An Osprey parent with a striped bass for the family dinner 🐟 🍽️ 🧵 #birds #raptors
Wondering what vaccines to get this fall or whether they will even be available? Most will be, but maybe for the last time. Make sure your family is up to date while you still can. open.substack.com/pub/rasmusse...
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Beautiful colors!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
I calculated calories burned from daily dog walks, year round, all kinds of weather, temps. 10 lbs a year equivalent! And seriously, as we “mature”, we need more activity—beyond lifelong DIY, home improvement, yard work, dog walking. Like…coaching from a PT.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Thanks, will look around
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Thank you Janet! I didn’t have compost for strawberries and other plants this spring and…what a pathetic difference. Nothing is better!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Seems to be the consensus. Maybe I need to search through Mother Earth news and find a good plan to build one.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Um gee, lemme see….tinfoil hat, conspiracy theories, or professional MDs with collectively thousands of years of experience, who have treated millions of patients millions of times. Really tough call
Aphrodite(?) fritillary on smooth aster - a classic Saskatchewan late summer partnership 🦋🌿 #invertebrates #wildflowers
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Wonderful capture
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Glowing purple.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
So cool that you would do this! Hope you write this up for a PT journal or at least a letter to editor.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Anyone know of a good compost bin design? Or one someone sells? We had a heap in backyard (covered, as required) but our backyard bird habit means lots of bait for other critters too, and the dog is curious and might dig into it. Most manufactured bins are klutzy, fall apart, etc.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Swallows cruise a few inches over golf courses, grabbing bugs, bit getting a good shot would require flopping on your belly on the fairway!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Stunning shot
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
@phileil.bsky.social
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Not all American journalists pages.pagesuite.com/6/f/6fb9d0df...
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Nice moody shot
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Gorgeous
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Why of course, they’re secret native bees, out to pollinate the world. 🐝😁I keep reading about bees, and apparently, many native bees have never been formally identified and named. What a nice hopeful surprise!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Good golly, that’s a bunch!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Our 30 yr old hardy hibiscus, also has volunteer shoots (probably from root stock of this hybrid? From its own seeds?) in different colors, so now it’s tri-color, instead of the original beautiful violet blue:
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Actually enough is too much and has been since day one. Good to see major medical groups stand up for medical science and their patients. #medsky
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Thise pictures of the forest in flames….😥
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Trump will not last forever, while children can live an 80 year long life or more. Imagine a child growing up with a disability that lasts a lifetime, all because they didn’t get a vaccine.
Public Health Initiatives Deliver Big Returns on Investment Data analysis shows that every dollar spent on such efforts saves about $14 in medical and societal costs www.pew.org/en/research-...
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Mine “forever potatoes” came up again and who knows what is down there. Apparently you only need to plant them once in a lifetime
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Hopeful! Einstein said, if we lose the bees, we’d only have about five years left.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
And how animals react to them 🐕🐈⬛ He looks really comfortable with people as well and so do they
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
This describes lots of formerly pleasant people who have become internet experts on everything
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
😁about like our recent rain
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
This is SO cool...like a giant pelican. It's a boat. It's a hydrofoil. It's a plane....it's not Superman, it's Paladin: Story by Matt O'Brien with the Associated Press: reader.theoregonian.com/ferry-that-g... #aircraft #commuting #watercraft
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Money. Already. Spent!
Surely RI conservatives who yell about the state's unfriendliness to business will be up in arms about this.
Anyone with a brain recognizes that the massive growth in data centers requires massive growth in electric power supply but not one Republican has a brain so they're all on the warpath against solar and wind, which are literally the only ways we can possibly meet that rapidly growing demand.
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Yup. Get your vaccine advice from a dedicated Pediatrician (or your kids’ pediatrician): #medsky
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
About zero tomatoes here (Western OR) but the current week of hellish heat may change that!
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
Wired is leading with gutsy reporting, well deserved: @wired.com
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
#medsky
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social) reply parent
Actually microwaving is kinda like screaming at food, so scream softly might be another way of saying it
Retiredrph (@retiredrph.bsky.social)
For all of us who were never destined to scuba…underwater tango, sound up!