Today's history lesson compliments of Roy!

If you were in the market for a watch in 1880, would you know where to get one? You would go to a store, right?  Well, of course you could do that, but if you wanted one that was cheaper and a bit better than most of the store watches, 

You went to the train station!  Sound a bit funny?  Well, for about 500 towns across the northern United States, that's where the best watches were found.

 

Why were the best watches found at the train station?  The railroad company wasn't selling the watches, not at all.  The telegraph operator was.  Most of the time the telegraph operator was located in the railroad station because the telegraph lines followed the railroad tracks from town to town. It was usually the shortest distance and the right-of-ways had already been secured for the rail line.

 

Most of the station agents were also skilled telegraph operators and that was the primary way that they communicated with the railroad.  They would know when trains left the previous station and when they were due at their next station.  And 

It was the telegraph operator who had the watches.  As a matter of fact, they sold more of them than almost all the stores combined for a period of about 9 years.

 

This was all arranged by "Richard", who was a telegraph operator himself.  He was on duty in the North Redwood, Minnesota train station one day when a load of watches arrived from the East. It was a huge crate of pocket watches.  No one ever came to claim them.

 

So Richard sent a telegram to the manufacturer and asked them what they wanted to do with the watches.  The manufacturer didn't want to pay the freight back, so they wired Richard to see if he could sell them.  So Richard did.  He sent a wire to every agent in the system asking them if they wanted a cheap, but good, pocket watch.  He sold the entire case in less than two days and at a handsome profit.

 

That started it all.  He ordered more watches from the watch company and encouraged the telegraph operators to set up a display case in the station offering high quality watches for a cheap price to all the travelers.  It worked!  It didn't take long for the word to spread and, before long, people other than travelers came to the train station to buy watches.

 

Richard became so busy that he had to hire a professional watch maker to help him with the orders.  That was Alvah.  And the rest is history as they say.

 

The business took off and soon expanded to many other lines of dry goods.

 

Richard and Alvah left the train station and moved their company to Chicago -- and it's still there.

 

YES, IT'S A LITTLE KNOWN FACT that for a while in the 1880's, the biggest watch retailer in the country was at the train station. It all started with a telegraph operator: Richard Sears and his partner Alvah Roebuck!

Training update

Good afternoon all,
What a great turnout! We had the WSB auditorium rocking with folks today! A special thanks to all who worked to make this a success: Earl, Helen, Bob, Johnye, Krystal, Barbara and our new volunteer, Izzy. More hands make it much easier for me.

Don't forget that next Saturday is our Thanksgiving Celebration. Please plan to join us at 11 for some of Helen's holiday cooking. Her menu was the major topic today.....!! I just thought it would be ipad training! Please call Krystal Monday or Tuesday for your reservation. We have to know how many turkeys we need....
Until tomorrow,
Dr. Janet

Happy Halloween!

Good spooky morning to you! Hope your day is filled with treats and not tricks....
Remember we have ipad at the Center tomorrow at 10. I am expecting s large group so please be on time. Call Krystal if anything has changed or if you can't make it.
Until tomorrow,
Dr. Janet

Fun facts about spices

Healthy benefits of allspice and nutmeg

 By Chris Kilham 

Published October 29, 2014

 During the long holiday season from Halloween to New Year's, various dishes and recipes call for spices that mostly get their moment in the sun at this time of year. Herbs and spices that get relatively little play during other times of the year find themselves in the kitchen spotlight. But spices not only add flavor and aroma to favorite foods- they also add healthy benefits. Most spices are also traditional medicines, with modern science to back their efficacy. Among these holiday stars are allspice and nutmeg. Known variously as newspice, Jamaica pepper or myrtle pepper, allspice is native to several Caribbean islands, Mexico and Central America. Looking similar to dried peppercorns, allspice is the fruit of an evergreen shrub. Christopher Columbus encountered allspice during his second voyage to the New World, and the flavorful condiment was named by ship's physician Dr Diego Alvarez Chanca. 

Employed in sausages, various meat dishes, pies, cakes and a variety of desserts, allspice imparts a somewhat sharply sweet and aromatic flavor. As a traditional medicine, allspice is used to relieve digestive complaints, notably intestinal gas, abdominal pain, and indigestion. Rich in aromatic compounds, allspice contains cineole, eugenol, alpha pinene, alpha terpene, limonene, and many more agents which collectively possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, cancer-fighting, sedative, antiseptic, antiviral and antifungal properties. 

An intriguing study published in the August 2013 issue of the journal Carcinogenesis shows that allspice contains a novel compound called ericifolin, which helps to fight prostate cancer. Virtually all effective chemotherapeutic agents are derived from natural sources. Allspice may prove useful in the battle against this common cancer. 

Another sweet and aromatic spice, nutmeg, is the seed of a tree deriving from the spice islands of Indonesia. This egg-shaped spice comes wrapped in a red elastic material that is the spice mace, which is sold separately from nutmeg itself. Grated nutmeg features somewhat prominently in Indonesian, Penang and Indian cookery, but is also popular in European cuisine as well. The powder is used variously to flavor meats, baked goods, vegetable dishes of various kinds, soups, mulled wines and cocktails. This spice enjoys a long and colorful history, dating back to medieval cuisine. Arab traders dealt in nutmeg during the middle ages, relying on the sole supply of the spice, from Indonesia's Banda island. The trade was subsequently dominated for a time by the Dutch during the 17th century. Eventually the British gained control of Banda island, and spread the cultivation of nutmeg far and wide, thus breaking the Indonesian monopoly. Nutmeg is a source of essential oil, containing geraniol, saffrol, limonene, and other aromatic compounds. 

Collectively these provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and other protective activities. Used in pharmaceuticals and in cosmetics, perfumes and toiletries, nutmeg essential oil is found in a broad variety of products. Nutmeg enjoys a long history as a traditional medicine, for indigestion, as a sleep aid, to enhance blood circulation, to protect the liver, and as an anti-microbial agent used in oral care products. Applied topically, essential oil of nutmeg helps to soothe sore muscles. Published studies show benefits for protecting the liver, and for fighting leukemia. A word of caution- in very large amounts, nutmeg can be psychoactive. This is due to the presence of the natural chemical myristicin. The amount required to get high on this is about 20 grams, so a very big amount. In this quantity, people can experience palpitations and delirium. Not really recommended. Stick to the healthy lower amounts. At the very foundation of modern pharmacy, herbs and spices play important historic and modern roles. Traditional remedies are now typically backed by modern science, thus bridging the gap from antiquity to current times. 

Allspice and nutmeg, two traditional seasonings and medicines, maintain their place in both the kitchen and the medicine cabinet. 

Chris Kilham is a medicine hunter who researches natural remedies all over the world, from the Amazon to Siberia. He teaches ethnobotany at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he is Explorer In Residence. Chris advises herbal, cosmetic and pharmaceutical companies and is a regular guest on radio and TV programs worldwide. His field research is largely sponsored by Naturex of Avignon, France. Read more at  MedicineHunter.com . 

The Dreaded Time Change

5 ways to deal with the end of daylight saving time 

By Michael Gollust 

Published October 28, 2014 

 If you've been starting your day in near-total darkness each morning, relief is in sight: November 2 marks the end of daylight saving time (in most of the country) and the day when your clocks "fall back" an hour. That means you'll get a bonus hour of light in the morning, but lose an hour in the afternoon. Although the prospect of leaving work when it's dark out may be depressing, sleep specialist and clinical psychologist Michael Breus, reminds us to count our blessings.  "Believe it or not, people have an easier time adjusting to this time change than to the one in March," Breus said. "That's because we gain an hour of sleep in the fall, but end up losing an hour when we 'spring ahead.'

 Here, how to make the transition to standard time as seamless as possible, plus some silver linings to the time change. Don't change your routine on November 1 The night before the time change, just go to bed when you usually do, Breus advised. "Most people are already sleep deprived, so in all likelihood you could use the extra hour of sleep you'll get," he said. "Think of it as your own little hour-long staycation. 

Use it as a sleep hygiene checkup 

You can use the time change to diagnose your sleep habits. Before bedtime on November 1, set your clock back an hour (cell phones will be updated automatically at 2am), and keep your alarm set for your regular wake up time. "If you find yourself sleeping for the entire extra hour in the morning, that's a sign you're sleep deprived," Breus said. If, on the other hand, you wake up before your alarm goes off, that's your body telling you that you're getting enough sleep. "The fall time change is a once-a-year opportunity to calibrate your ideal bedtime.

After the time change, maximize your sun exposure... Even after the fall back, it's not uncommon to feel out of sorts the first few days of November. It doesn't help that the sun will start setting close to 5 p.m. So what should you do? While your afternoon mood might take a hit because of the looming darkness, Breus advised taking advantage of the extra sunlight in the morning, which can give you a mood boost to start the day. 

If you tend to work out in the evenings, switch your routine to the morning. At the very least, make an effort get outside during your lunch break, if only just to take a walk around the block. ...and maybe boost your indoor light If you're still feeling draggy in the afternoon after a few days, consider investing in a light therapy box, which can counteract your brain's inclination to start producing melatonin when the sun goes down. Just be sure to look for one that provides alertness-promoting blue light. "Blue light mimics sunlight and tells the brain to stop producing melatonin, the chemical that starts your brain's sleep engine," Breus explained. 

If you need a little burst to get over that 4 p.m. hump at work, click on the light and let it shine for no more than 20 minutes. "That amount should be enough to make you feel more alert for a couple hours," Breus explained. If you want to get to bed at a reasonable hour, be sure not to use the light after 7pm; any later than that can interfere with your sleep. Breus likes the Philips goLITE BLU ($137, amazon.com), but Amazon has a range of light therapy box styles and sizes. Don't want to buy another gadget? Definity Digital by LightingScience makes alertness-promoting bulbs you can install in most household fixtures ($70, amazon.com).

 And if you have kids... The downside to falling back is that small children, already allergic to spending extra time in bed, may actually start waking up an hour earlier. (I foresee this gloomy prospect in my own household, where my 5-year-old and 2-year-old, already attuned to a 6 a.m. wake up, will go right on waking up at the same time, which will actually be 5 a.m. come November 2.) Here's how to get them to get with the program. "Starting about a week or so before the time change, every two days put your kids to bed 15 minutes later, in a stair-stepping pattern," Breus said. In other words, on October 25, put your kids to bed 15 minutes later. Then again on October 27 and October 29, so that by October 31, they're going to bed an hour later. (Added bonus: an extra hour of candy-fueled capering on Halloween!) When November 2 arrives, they'll be acclimated to going to bed an hour later, and-in theory, at least-waking up an hour later that morning, which will wash out when the clocks reset. And if the bedtime rollback plan doesn't take? Breus suggested making the morning of November 2 a special occasion. The night before, lay out books or games the kids can play with quietly when they wake up. Set an alarm in their room(s) for when you'll wake up and tell them it's bonus playtime and they don't have to bother mom and dad! If the thought of your kids quietly reading and biding their time until the sun comes up sounds preposterous, don't hesitate to bring out the big guns. "Even setting your kids up to watch a video in the early morning is okay in this instance," said Breus. "In all likelihood, the parents could use that extra hour of sleep, so do whatever it takes to take advantage of it. 

This article originally appeared on Health.com. 

iPad training Saturday, November 1

Good morning friends,
 I am loving the cool, dry weather. What a relief for our aching allergies! Remember, we are having ipad training at the Center on Saturday. I have been promised additional access points and super connections!

If you live on a Links accessible route, please call and use Links for your ride. We have more folks to pick up than Van seats and it makes a very long ride for our clients if Earl has to double route.

We will be learning about email, setting up accounts and downloading apps.

Looking forward to seeing everyone Saturday! Call Krystal and let her know you are coming!

Until tomorrow,
Dr. Janet

More opinions on coffee

Coffee not always a good thing for introverts 

By John Johnson 

 If you're an introvert, here's what may happen if you drink coffee. Introverts preparing for a big meeting might think that coffee beforehand will give them a needed jolt in performance. In fact, the opposite may be true, reports New York mag. The insight comes from a newly released book by psychologist Brian Little, who writes in Me, Myself, and Us that extroverts may indeed benefit from a 'cup' or two of joe ahead of the meeting, "whereas introverts perform less well. This is particularly true if the meeting is about "quantitative" matters, say budget projections or data analysis. 

So what gives? In an interview with New York , Little explains that researchers have shown that the brains of extroverts and introverts respond differently to their environments. Extroverts are typically "under the optimal level" of alertness in regard to their surroundings, and the caffeine nudges them up to the perfect level. Introverts, however, start out above the optimal level, and the caffeine sends them even further away from it. Hold the coffee for later in the day, Little advises. Or if you must fill the mug, "maybe stick with a nice 'cup' of non-caffeinated tea instead," suggests  jobs.aol.com . (You can blame your coffee craving on eight specific genes .)