What do you know about Niacin? Like most people, probably not much! Niacin (Vitamin B3) is one of the most underrated players in the B Complex Vitamins. Your body gets niacin through food but also makes small amounts from the amino acid *L–tryptophan. Every part of your body needs Niacin to function properly.
As a supplement, niacin is vital, especially for ‘mental health’,balancing emotions, and dealing with good and bad news. Niacin may help lower cholesterol, ease arthritis, and boost brain function, among other benefits. Let’s focus on the brain function part first. As you are reading this, your comprehension is related to how much Niacin is circulating through your nervous system. Niacin is water-soluble, so your body doesn’t store it very well. This also means that your body can excrete excess amounts of the Niacin if it’s not needed. (more…)
There’s no replacement for exercising and eating high nutrient-dense food, in other words food that is bountiful with vitality and life force. Did your cereal offer you that? Unfortunately, today’s modern diet falls very short of delivering the nutrition we need. I’m not a fan of taking supplements, but I have found this Lifelong Vitality threesome to be the most noticeable of supplements I have ever explored. This is why I’m including a blog/review on this pack.
Frankly, LLV (Lifelong Vitality) can take up the shortfall. This is not to say that other supplements cannot be used on a regular basis, but these specific supplements are meant for anyone to use on a daily basis. (more…)
If you are anything like me, you are probably thinking and even singing that song when you see those words… ‘All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!’ You were singing it, weren’t you? Here’s a little warning, I’m not going to write much about Christmas I feel a need to express more here in this blog.
You and I know, Christmas will come and go, and we will be into another year before you know it; right now it’s October, and we are thinking about simpler human basics, like ‘when are things going to settle down?’ Will we ever see our relatives and friends down south again?
Those that have booked flights overseas or interstate and had their flights canceled, will they ever see that refund (myself included)? Will we be able to fly overseas by choice without being forced to have some sort of vaccine (which I won’t be part of)?
Will we be reduced to video conference calls and zoom calls for our Christmas gatherings? Rules like no touching, no hugging are becoming part of our new norm, this ridiculous ‘elbow tapping’ or ankle tapping, it’s driving us all nuts! I’m not buying it! How much of what is being reported is true?
Let’s get into it: In other words, what’s the fine print??? You may be managing your busy head wonderfully, or you may find that you get to the end of the day, and you have exhausted your mental capacity and need a little bit of calm around you! Either way, you will benefit from these selected essential oils and blends.
Some people unwind with wine (nothing wrong with that), others drink coffee or the like to keep stimulated when a gentle change of appropriate ‘scents’ and essential oils could enhance your human experience and help you to experience a deeper more restorative sleep at night with ‘NO’ side effects. Okay, you may still want the wine!!!
Annie’s suggestion for ‘Bedtime Bliss’ and a ‘clearer head’ during the day is as follows: (more…)
Some people like to jump out of airplanes, fly in Balloons, go all out to celebrate a milestone like turning ’60’. Others would avoid celebrating this birthday because they don’t want anyone to know how old they are!
For me, it’s something that I consider a great privilege to arrive at ’60’. To be alive and to acknowledge the one who brought me into the world, my dear mum of course, oh, and some acknowledgment to dad who had a little to do with it!
So for my birthday, the big arrival into this world needed some sort of ‘da dah!’I’ve turned 60. So I chose to settle a score that ‘I only half completed several years back.’ 18 years ago to be specific I tackled the ‘Walshes Pyramid’. I got halfway up this beautiful mountain (just out of Gordanvale, North Queensland) and had to stop and reluctantly return to the base, due to a lung infection which wasn’t exactly nourished by my desire to climb in the first place.
All those years ago, I attempted the mountain with some Kuranda friends who lived around the corner from me. They were a brother and sister, competent walkers, climbers, cross-fitters - they were ‘young’, ‘fit’, and ‘fast movers’.
Back in 2002, I was fit enough to do this climb, however, because we had to leave so early, I was anxious about sleeping in, so I was on tenderhooks, wide awake from 1.00 am then 2.30 am I’m tired again, but keeping myself awake for the pickup!
At 3.30 am my ride arrived. I was picked up from my home at the time in Kuranda, with a hint of a cough. I remember arriving at the Pyramid in the dark and being guided up by my friends, who were more than eager to climb. We got halfway, and I knew I couldn’t go on, which bugged me, I was just too sick. ‘Another day’ I told myself, ‘another day!’ I ended up with Plueracy, which went on to bother me for another 6-8 weeks, and was not helped at all by the mould in the rainforest, and stressful situations we were going through living in the forest (another story).
Fast forward to September 2020, we drove along the A1 Highway into the Northern tropical area, I thought about mountains, any mountains; I looked up at Mount Bartle Frere, the highest mountain in Queensland at an elevation of 1,611 meters and I contemplated the logistics of doing that climb, but before too long Walshes Pyramid came into our view and I realized I had unfinished business with this mountain, and so it was that the pyramid would be my conquest for a celebration worth remembering. I told myself it would be good to achieve something on my birthday. Darryl and I are not so big on gifts we like to celebrate special events with something meaningful, an experience, an achievement!
To access this mountain from Cairns to Gordonvale you will travel along the Bruce Highway (A1). Just south of Gordonvale you will cross the Desmond Trannore Bridge (Mulgrave River). You turn right a few hundred meters after the bridge and then into Moss Access Road, follow the road to the car park which is on the left and you are there.
A new friend Meredina and my husband Darryl were my companions on this climb. I met Meredina in a hair salon and she was keen to climb the Pyramid too, especially as I told her that is was on my bucket list, turns out It was on bucket list too. Meredina was kind enough to pick both Darryl and me up very early 5 am on the morning of the 29th of September, and we were at the base of the Pyramid within 30 minutes or so.
Our climb began from the car park, where we followed a trail, then had to backtrack because we were going the wrong way. We righted ourselves and began the climb. It’s a well-worn track with orange markers to help you at regular intervals. When crossing the open bolder area, we had to look well ahead for our next marker. There are signposts marking each kilometer. My legs were handling the climb no worries, which gave me more confidence to move up at a faster pace.
The walk is incredibly steep and relentless all the way up to the peak of 3.1km from the start. I found a stick and used that for a while, then passed that one on to Meredina, and found myself another stick which became my aide. As we were climbing we could see lovely views and expansiveness, however by the time we got up to the top, we were in a rain cloud, so we didn’t have the view, but we had the triumph!
In August there is an annual race from Gordonvale to the peak and back, with the winners generally taking about an hour and a half. Oh my goodness, the thought of people running up this mountain and back down again, that would certainly take some fitness, but more than that a lot of concentration and maybe just a hint of stupidity!
On the Sunshine Coast, where we live now, we have the King Of The Mountain event, in July at Mount Cooroora Pomona, our son has competed in that race twice now and I was just relieved to see him come down in one piece, no broken bones, and no blood loss. In one of the events, Jay finished 19th out of 103 runners. Very proud! The peak of Mount Cooroora is a 439 meters high intrusive volcanic plug. Mount Cooroora is relatively easy compared to the Walshes Pyramid. People get themselves into all sorts of trouble climbing the Pyramid every year because they underestimate the time it will take to get up and back, and generally their fitness level is not enough to cope with coming down. Darryl and I were very proud of ourselves for getting up and back in the morning. We allowed a little over 5 hours, so we could stop, take in the lower views, and take a few pictures. Unfinished business is now finished business!
I felt so good after this climb, calm and fulfilled, that’s a feeling I love and I know being physical is a very definite way to improve mental health, and beat the blues. In preparing for this climb, both Darryl and I used Ice Blue athletic rub on the back of our legs, a little copaiba on the neck, and at the end of the experience when I realised I was just a wee bit weary and hungry, I inhaled some Peppermint essential oil and just came to life.
As for which mountain I’ll tackle next, perhaps Mount Bartel Frerer because just like when I said I’d like to walk Kokoda Track, Darryl said I was crazy. So I love to prove him wrong. Climb a mountain and you will sleep well that night!
Doesn’t it feel good to watch the news? Said no one ever! I don’t know about you, but I feel very drained when I watch any sort of commercial TV, I’ve actually disconnected myself from it. I prefer selected movies or documentaries, or none of the above, just being outside, watching ‘nature TV! (more…)
Let’s get into it: In other words, what’s the fine print???
Climbing A Mountain To Celebrate ’60’
