Me and Influenza

 

I've always considered climate as an important factor that affects one's well-being and quality of life. ( long before the discussions on climate change).

I don't particularly like winter.  Although our winters are short and mild, nevertheless there are days I'll rather stay indoors because of the weather elements of wind, rain and cold. This fact annoys me. I feel my freedom of choice is threatened. It's the weather that actually decides for me if I'm indoors or outdoors and the proper activities that go with it.

I don't like summer heatwaves either, but they are mostly bearable and don't affect my health, whereas the cold and rain might do that. Winter brings with it the flu (influenza), and in elderly people various joint and muscle aches.

I'm glad to admit that during the last three years , probably because of mask wearing, no flu has hit me. That's a big relief as I used to get a very nasty form of flu (sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, watery eyes, fever), despite the annual flu shot. 

Thank God I can manage it with basic remedies: undiluted freshly squeezed lemon juice for the sore throat, saline nasal spray for the nose, ice for fever - and of course, hot soup and hot tea. Within a week, it's usually gone.

However, as I advance in age, the flu symptoms make me tired and vulnerable . If the mask is the solution - so be it. As long as it keeps the flu away from me,  I don't mind to be in the minority ; most people have already abandoned  mask wearing.

My Kind Of Archeological Discovery

No bones, no skulls, no skeletons, no pottery, but silk and cotton. A few hundred pieces of exotic textile from 1300 years ago, has been found recently in a lovely place - in the israeli desert  (northern Negev) near Nahal Omer ('nahal' means river). The luxury fabrics were originally from China, India, and Sudan and meant to reach European places.

piece of fabric*

The first find in this area (considered part of the Silk road - a network of Eurasian trade routes) - came in 2018, but there was no money to start a serious excavation. Finally it became a joint project of israeli and german archeologists, and the funds were provided by the germans.

Earlier, in 2017 (during an excavation that was going on since 2013), 3000 years old purple wool fragments from king David's era,  dyed in royal purple (argaman, in hebrew), symbol of high social status , and probably first evidence of chemical dye in the area, was found in the valley of Timna, place in the desert known as an ancient copper mine.

The dry desert climate was probably the reason for the good preservation of textiles digged up in the above excavations. 

The findings have a great historical and archeological significance as they help understand the techniques of textile development in those times. Moreover, they add information regarding transfer of goods between East and West.

A bit of trivia - cotton is the most comfortable of fabrics (softness, breathability, weightlessness); silk is the strongest natural fabric in the world. Ahmadabad is considered Manchester of India for its being the center of textile industry.

* web picture

The Deserted Bench

 

One of the saddest things we witness in our third age is disappearance of familiar faces of friends, neighbors, acquaintences. Some die, some go for an assisted living facility, some move closer to their children.

 There's a certain bench which whenever I happen to pass near it, I feel a twinge. It reminds me of two women, neigbours and friends, that regularly used to sit on it talking, gossiping, laughing. Sometimes, I would join them as they were a good source of the latest news in the area.

One of them died a few years ago; after that, the other one was not seen again sitting on that bench .  She recently moved to an assisted living facility. She didn't want to. At her age (80) she was still in good condition and quite independent.

However, a divorced brother of hers who had to leave his apartment to wife and kids, came to live at her big house. She was not happy about that. After three years of having him around, she decided to sell the house. She gave him some money to find himself a place, and joined an assisted living facility.

She couldn't believe it. Leaving her house, turned out to be one of her most happy days.