There really is an "Upside of Being Down"... if u

[green-girl]

HA HA Well I seem to have been thrust into doing better for the environment all at once instead of as gradually as I had planned!

I've just come out of hospital after an asthma attack/flu/infection bout (yeehah NOT)..... I'm still extremely sensitive to different things and terrified of a relapse - I can't be out in the cold so I'm stuck inside, I can't use 'modern day' cleaning agents because they affect my asthma... and to top it off, I have amazingly run out of gas so I have no hot water and no stove!

So it's back to 'old days' for me for a while until I can get the gas refilled, and I've got to use the good old home made cleaners for fear of sparking another attack.

About the only thing that has gone the opposite direction to my ultimate goal has been my 'insides'. Obviously, your chances of getting organic hospital food are next to zero ... and I'm on a multiple of steroids, antibiotics and other bits and pieces for a while until I'm back on my feet. I hate doing it to my body, but hey, I like to breathe too and it wasn't happening 'naturally' last week I can assure you that!

I'm also not allowed to return to work until I see a doctor on Tuesday and get clearance... so I've been more or less sitting here twiddling my thumbs.

.....I guess there is a good side to all of this stuff - it ultimately saves me money - and because I'm a temp worker I've earnt NOTHING for the last week while I've been in hospital, but have unfortunately exhausted most of my savings in order to cover medication and bills while I've been off. HMPH.

It's just funny that it's when you're thrown in a complete spin that these ideas and 'techniques' for saving money and getting by seem to come out - and it's never so bad - like the hot water... I mean, everyone things "gee it'd kill me to not have hot water"... but it's not really that much of a bother to be honest!

Anyway, I'm dosed up on meds and waffling... so I'll go now!! HA HA HAH A

[pureportugal]

hi green girl, hope you're feeling better soon. eat lots & lots of live natural yoghurt while you're on the antibiotics and especially for at least a couple of weeks after you come off them - it'll replace all the healthy bacteria in your stomach that the antibiotics will have destroyed. there's a topic on here somewhere about how to make yoghurt, really easy and really cheap too!
best wishes, sophie

[shiney]

Hi Greengirl,

I do hope you are feeling better soon. What an unfortunate situation you are in. I do feel for you greatly.

But...there's always an upside as you say and you'll come out of this a better and more aware person.

I agree with Sophie, 'hit the yogurt eating big stylie'. I eat tonnes of yogurt and feel so much better for it. (I cut down on my bread eating as it made me sluggish!)

Here's to a speedy recovery! 8)

[Andy Hamilton]

Yep I triple the yoghurt thang. I had to go on antibiotics a few weeks back and boy did I get bloated.

I just had a quick look on this page http://www.selfsufficientish.com/nature.htm do a page search (apple key and f on the mac) and I honeysuckle and cabbage are supposed to be good to help against asthma.

Nettles and Onions are also thought to help as is a glass of carrot juice a day. Also chewing garlic cloves, not sure if I would reccomend that

Have you thought about getting food for free or something similar from the library? THere might be plenty of food growing wild around you, be very carefull though. I had a cup full of poisions berries that I thought were sole berries for a few days. I waited until a mate verified what they were before doing anything. (thankfully)

[green-girl]

Thanks for all the tips guys *thumbs up* The yoghurt is on the way! LOL

The one good thing about my food is that due to having a week in hospital, I still have plenty of food left over from the week before (my delivery was actually made while I was away!), and I have found that the organic food I buy doesn't spoil NEAR as fast as foods bought at the convenience store- so it should only be very basics to buy this week - milk, yoghurt (unless I make it of course - which I will check out shortly!)... that's about it to be honest!

[green-girl]

Yep I triple the yoghurt thang. I had to go on antibiotics a few weeks back and boy did I get bloated.

I just had a quick look on this page http://www.selfsufficientish.com/nature.htm do a page search (apple key and f on the mac) and I honeysuckle and cabbage are supposed to be good to help against asthma.

Nettles and Onions are also thought to help as is a glass of carrot juice a day. Also chewing garlic cloves, not sure if I would reccomend that

Have you thought about getting food for free or something similar from the library? THere might be plenty of food growing wild around you, be very carefull though. I had a cup full of poisions berries that I thought were sole berries for a few days. I waited until a mate verified what they were before doing anything. (thankfully)

Hey Andy... what are honeysuckle and nettle?? I mean, I've heard of them... I think... but what are they??? How would you eat them?? Cabbage and Onions are easy done - thanks for that advice... and yeah... might skip the chewing on garlic cloves thing for a while

[Millymollymandy]

If you don't have stinging nettles in Queensland then you are very lucky! Honeysuckle is Lonicera but I'll let Andy tell you more because I didn't know it was edible!

Sorry to hear about your stay in hospital but I'm glad you are out now and on the mend. Using home made cleaning stuff is something I ought to do. I don't use too much of the fancy stuff - all the disposable swiffer type of things (those throwaway impregnated with lord knows what type dusters and floor mops) as its more landfill isn't it. I wash my floor the old fashioned way, a bucket, a cloth and on my knees (just not very often! - maybe that's better for the environment, eh?)

[wulf]

If you don't have stinging nettles in Queensland then you are very lucky! Honeysuckle is Lonicera but I'll let Andy tell you more because I didn't know it was edible!

Neither did I - it's gorgeous to look at but I didn't know you could eat it. I did try nasturtium petals for the first time yesterday though - they remind me of rocket (peppery!). Does anyone know if the leaves are also edible?

Wulf

[pureportugal]

yes, nasturtium leaves are also edible, and peppery!

[Andy Hamilton]

sorry yep you don't eat it you make an infusion with the flowersmixed with cowslip or mulberry. I forget that you have different plants over there! Don't think you have the same nettles and I would not want to see them introduced as they can be pretty invasive.

[Millymollymandy]

I have nibbled nasturtium but never really fancied putting it in a salad because it is always covered in black fly! (yes I know, wash it first, but....yuk!)

[Wombat]

According to those who know, stinging nettles are naturalised here and are weeds (obviously!) but I have never seen any that I knew to be nettles. Plent of scotch thistles though!

Nev

[Magpie]

We had nettles in Victoria when we lived there, and lots of them here in Otago, NZ. I hardly think of them as weeds now, they are so useful. Just have to point them out to visitors though, to save nasty incidents!

[green-girl]

Well just to be safe, I've decided to steer clear of ALL nettles!

Knowing me, I'll do something stupid and end up sick as a dog!!

I've got a whole other week off work now ... but I guess it's giving me time to really get over this and hopefully it won't drag on for too much longer

And thanks to Nev, I have some great reading materials. I've been laying there looking at the 1 & 5 acre plans and dreaming away! Cheers to you Nev!

I've also just gotten myself motivated enough to get back into a little bit of work - I'm a rep for an organic company, and I've thought of a good bunch of productive things I can do that will help business while I'm at home - in between naps

So hopefully that will keep me going, and if I can generate some sales from it, it may make up for my not being able to work at the moment. 8)

[shiney]

Good to know you are on the mend GG.

My partner and me are both suffering from nettle stings. We have had a bit of a weed bashing session and got stung lots!

They were real vicious ones at that. I am still stinging from yesterdays de~weeding.

I am still thinking about making soup with some in the future, but today I just wanted to see the back of them.

MMM, I clean the floor on me knees with a cloth as well. Like you, this is not often, but with kids around dragging in the dirt, it's a must.