Coronavirus . . .
From the common cold, to the
fear of much, much worse
Having been around a while, and having been told repeatedly that the sky was falling due to the latest . . . (earthquake, tornado, flood, hurricane, mudslide, riot, choose your own emergency scenario) . . . I have learned to take it all with a grain of salt.
Does this mean that I think all the hype is unwarranted?
No, not exactly, I simply think that, as usual, "if it bleeds it leads," so our international media is currently talking about little else, and the likelihood that the worst case scenario will come about is not extreme, in spite of our current administration's interminable lying, inaction, and aggravated incompetence.
I'm personally not that worried, for several reasons, starting with the fact that I have some medical knowledge, and learn easily from reading, so I am better armed with information than many.
Further, since I have taken personal responsibility for my own health since my late teens, and largely distrust the medical establishment, I'm not likely to fall for their fearmongering, regardless of what is going on.
Although I might seem at first glance to be in a high risk category, being over sixty and already having immune system issues, I am in a rural area, work from home, and most days, only speak to other souls via telephone and internet.
In essence, I've been largely self-quarantining in place for the past eight years, as my regular contact with the outside world has long been restricted.
As a night person, yes I go to the store, but I'm more likely to do so at 2 AM than during daylight hours, so my risk of exposure is fairly low. (Update: no longer possible, as even our local 24-hour stores will be closing at 8 PM for the foreseeable future).
Additionally, I do my best to eat well, to take antiviral herbs and supplements on a daily basis, and to otherwise bolster my immune system, such as by drinking structured water and staying well hydrated.
So I know that, even should I be exposed, the likelihood is that I will not contract the virus, and even if I should, my symptoms will likely remain mild.
I have gone months and years not contracting the illnesses that were thriving in the people all around me, simply by making certain that my body has all it needs to heal and to protect me, and by seeing myself as well and whole.
One lovely turn of events, coinciding with our warmer weather, is that our hens have finally started laying consistently again, and we are averaging four eggs per day from our five hens. Not bad, and the protein boost from fresh eggs, from chickens given only non-GMO feeds, resident insects and fresh grass clippings, will definitely help us to stay healthy.
For whatever reason, our Muscovy duck hens are still not laying, but c'est la vie, I prefer chicken eggs anyway.
Our chicken enclosure had a weather event this winter, when our second and last snow left approximately two inches of snow on the bird netting covering the top of the enclosure, leading to the T-stakes providing support being bent inwards.
This means that rather than the original 4'6" head clearance, which at 5'2" means that I was already bending over while feeding and watering our animals, is now closer to 3'6" clearance in some parts of the enclosure. Yikes! What was a minor discomfort has become a serious pain in the ass.
So it is now even more imperative that I raise funds to rebuild our enclosure, using 2x4 framing to a height of at least 6'6", which will allow both of us to work inside the enclosure with full headroom.
Meanwhile, I've been busily restocking my own favorite antiviral remedies, including putting up several ferments and making my spiced honey and magic elixir, which I've covered in previous posts.
I'll cover making the magic elixir again soon, with better step by step photos showing what to expect, as it goes through some obvious phases that some people have wrongly taken to mean that something has gone awry.
Meanwhile, I've also been replacing store-bought foaming hand cleaner with my own DIY version, although it was already pretty much nontoxic as it was from Melaleuca. But, in creating my own, I'm adding antiviral essential oils, which should help keep any bacteria or virus we're likely to encounter at bay.
Having wanted to make my own foaming hand soap for years, I was entertained to learn that not only did I already have everything I needed on hand, but that it is super easy, and took me less than five minutes, including adding the oils.
The basic recipe couldn't be easier, providing that you have an old container from foaming hand soap, because the container is the "real" magic. A regular pump bottle won't do the trick, as the bottles for foaming hand soap are engineered to create copious amounts of lather.
To refill, add a small amount of Dr. Bronner's liquid 18-in-1 hemp pure castille soap, which I have loved and used for decades. I already had three bottles of it on hand; lavender, peppermint, and baby unscented. I chose the latter for this purpose, and filled the container roughly 11/8 to 1/6 full, then added hot tap water until nearly full.
I then added the essential oils, which in this case, for our bathroom, included about twelve to fifteen drops each of frankincense, myrrh and turmeric, plus about four drops each of nutmeg, clove and black pepper, then shook until well blended.
I had planned on adding ginger as well, but couldn't find it, so I will add it once I do. All of these spices (and their oils) have been used for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine.
I chose frankincense, myrrh and turmeric because of their longstanding use in preventing and healing illness: many herbalists, and not a few historians, believe that the legendary gifts of the Magi, brought to celebrate the birth of the Christ child, were actually turmeric, frankincense and myrrh, rather than the element gold, frankincense and myrrh.
This makes excellent sense, as "gold" was the slang term for turmeric in ancient times, and it was so valuable that it was long worth as much as real gold, and sometimes far more.
All of these essential oils have been used traditionally and historically to ward off disease, all are antibacterial and antiviral, most are also antifungal, and I am far more confident in their ability to keep me well than in any alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
I also made an earlier version of the foaming hand soap for my kitchen, using lavender, rosemary and lemongrass oils, which is still antiviral, and has a light and lovely scent.
When I first made it, I had no idea how much of the Dr. Bronner's castille soap to add, and so erred on the side of caution, figuring that I could always add more if needed. It wasn't.
By using just a small amount, topped off with hot water, you can make it for pennies as compared to the original foaming soap you purchased, with none of the potentially toxic chemicals that are often present.
I have yet to find a source for empty foaming hand soap bottles, but since I already had several on hand, I didn't spend much time looking.
In any case, I hope that this helps everyone to save some money during our frequent handwashing to come, and gives you a better quality foaming soap that will help to keep you healthy, while being good for your skin at the same time.
Praying for all of our health and well-being in the days to come.
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art and flair courtesy of @PegasusPhysics
