April , and the Slim Chef

 

April is usually the month when I try to shed the pounds accumulated during winter with its irresistible 'comfort food' and holiday treats.  If I don't do that, my knees will start 'screaming' and my mobility will get affected.

We all know that we gain weight quickly but lose it slowly and gradually. The interesting thing with me is that no moderate sport activity  is of any help in carrying out this annual project. So, I could be lying  on the coach all day doing nothing, but if I eat a carefully planned low calorie menu and sleep the recommended 7-8 hours, I will achieve my goal in approximately 4-6 weeks, depending on how many pounds I have to get rid of.

This time of the year, usually reminds me of a famous israeli chef , once an overweight person who gradually became a slim guy.  He used to tell  anyone interested in his metamorphosis, that it was his intensive gym workout behind it.

One day, the police arrested a drug dealer. The latter 'blew the whistle' on his celebrity clients,  our chef being among them. The chef got away without punishment as he managed to prove minimal purchase of marijuana for personal use only (meant to maintain his normal body weight, according to his claim).

Judging by his slim figure, he probably uses marijuana to this day.  Well, if he's got the money for it, and is not afraid of addiction, so be it.  However, I remember feeling a bit angry at him for somehow misleading people sweating at the gym in an effort to lose weight. (He could not, of course, be honest about his own way, as marijuana was considered then illegal stuff).

 

 

Good Things That Might Happen in 2019

According to the Media, tiny Luxemburg is to become the first country in the world to make its public transport - free.  That would be a very smart move, worthy to be followed by other small countries with  limited territory and lack of natural resources.
The advantages of such a move are enormous: it would ease congested traffic and make the roads safer,  improve ecology, and above all - improve people's health. 

Cannabis is gradually getting legalized in various parts of the world. It's a positive direction, and it should include as many countries as possible. I'm in favor of legalization of this plant which is said to have the potential of easing the suffering of the sick (cancer/ parkinson patients and others). They say, it is not addictive like alcohol, and not harmful like smoking.

Egypt's president, El-Sisi, has recently launched a rhetorical 'attack' on the overweight in his country and told egyptians they should take better care of themselves. Opposition to his words is loud, invoking poverty, junk food, faulty health care, and the other usual slogans; but his clear voice on the matter is a start, a good one, even though he might do nothing practical about it.
It seems El-Sisi is the right guy  in the right place who might bring about significant changes in his country (including the issues of obesity and the alarming birth rate), setting an example to the other countries in his continent.

Scientific researches  of the last couple of years might give us, in 2019, a clue as to the workings of the human mind. It's quite a mystery when a person who has it all: career, family, money, love,  - takes his own life (recent case in my country), and leaves family and all around him utterly devastated and grieving. We need some more insight into that super computer - the brain- to be able to prevent, perhaps, this kind of tragedy.

Happy 2019!