Milk Really Does Suck!

Dairy lover’s: I’m sorry to spoil the fantasy that our tasty dairy products (hey, I love ice cream, cheese, and biscuits and gravy of course, too) are nutritious, forgive me for being a spoiler, but I think this is one of the biggest hoaxes played on the American people. Props to my Mom who has taught me this since I was a kid, making me the subject of derision whenever I brought it up to anyone. Mom, looks like you were right!

I decided to post this since I’ve had a couple of debates about whether milk has any viable health benefits recently. We were discussing it at work since we teach the nearly worthless food pyramid to the kids as a nutritional guide and as you will see with a minimal amount of research milk does NOT do a body good.

Yep, you heard right. Milk is not only not good for you, it poses serious health risks to you, especially if you’re a woman. Read more about it at milksucks.com or notmilk.com. There are many links to scientific research from reputable sources on both sites.

Harvard School of Public Health, on the Consumption of Dairy Products (2005): “The recommendation to drink three glasses of low-fat milk or eat three servings of other dairy products per day to prevent osteoporosis is another step in the wrong direction. … Three glasses of low-fat milk add more than 300 calories a day. This is a real issue for the millions of Americans who are trying to control their weight. What's more, millions of Americans are lactose intolerant, and even small amounts of milk or dairy products give them stomachaches, gas, or other problems. This recommendation ignores the lack of evidence for a link between consumption of dairy products and prevention of osteoporosis. It also ignores the possible increases in risk of ovarian cancer and prostate cancer associated with dairy products.”

New Job! Whoops, no new job.

This post was originally going to be the announcement of my new job working with James and Gage for Cascadia, out at the men’s prison.

It was going to be an expression of grief at the loss of my job leading the Awakenings group and my excitement about the new prospect of a job that would offer more money, the CADC (certified alcohol and drug counselor) classes that I want to take, a daytime work schedule, and a fantastic benefits package.

The decision to leave my current position was difficult and was based more on logic than my heart. I didn’t really want to do it, but my friends that work at Cascadia patiently persuaded me that it would be a great opportunity for me, so I put in my resume figuring I would leave it up to fate. If I got the job I’d quit, if not I’d stay.

Well, I was hired, put in my two weeks at Northwest and began working out a school schedule that would work with the new job. I had my orientation on Mon. of this week, came home and called my new employer to get my schedule. Here’s how that conversation went:

“Hi Matt, I’m calling to find out when I can come in and start work.”

“Well Paul, I don’t know how to tell you this, but I just came out of a meeting with my team where I had to tell them that the state has cut our funding and our program will be shut down. I know this kind of leaves you in limbo and I’m really sorry, there is a chance that we could find you something else in our company but no one really knows what’s happening right now.”

I ended the conversation and sat in shock for a few minutes and then I made a decision to try to keep my current job. Luckily, they were open to that idea and we‘ve worked out a new schedule so I can attend school and my CADC classes (although I have to pay for them).

Today I should have been starting my first day of work at my new job and I’m thinking about why this happened and trying to sort out my feelings about it. I’m feeling a lot of excitement and re-commitment to the Awakenings group, I’m going to create some new groups and evolve the group through these next few months, and that inspires me. I can’t help but feel the loss of the opportunity to work for Cascadia and all of the included benefits. I was really looking forward to working with James and Gage and starting to have a little more of a social life since I’d be working days instead of swing.

I was feeling that sense of loss at work yesterday but I was calmed at the end of the day as I sat talking to one of the clients that I’ve connected with. Realizing that I get to play some part in the lives of those beautiful, young, souls and I get to hear their ideas and their awakenings every day makes me feel like it’s OK and I’m where I’m supposed to be.

About 30 years late!

I recently discovered this D.C. kid’s show called Pancake Mountain. The show features live music from some of the best acts out there and it teaches kids to rock out in a positive way. No commercials (except some fun spoof ads) either. Check it out:

http://www.pancakemountain.com/