PSoTD

It must take a while. I've been going to the YMCA 4-5 days a week now for about a month and can't say I have any more friends because of it.

Or maybe it's just me.

Since I take this medication, I'm interested in this story, although late getting to it. There sure doesn't seem to be much followup in the press.

A Barron's newspaper article Monday cited physician concerns that Abbott's cholesterol medicine TriCor might cause kidney and heart problems. But Abbott disputed the report on its fourth largest selling drug, and investors shrugged off the article.

Barron's referenced a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association earlier this year by Dr. Steve Nissen that raised questions about the drug's safety. The small study found that levels of creatinine, a substance produced by the muscles and eliminated by the kidneys, can be elevated in patients taking fenofibrate, marketed by Abbott as TriCor.

The concern is that the increased levels could be a sign of kidney function decline, according to Nissen, chairman of the department of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. Such a decline could lead to plaque buildup in the arteries that in turn could increase cardiac events, according to another cardiologist quoted by Barron's.

by William Bonilla

I painfully prepare, my deep Hot Tub
Adjusting the hottest water
I could stand
To soothe my achy body

That just recently
Greeted the morning sun.

With an achy body
Last night
I laid, to sleep
Hoping the sandman
Would have mercy on me
As he dusted my eyes
I seek relieve.

Too many interruptions
In my dreams
As I constantly wake
For several short journys
To drain the lizard.

In my Hot Tub I dream
Dreams
With open eyes
As my thoughts travel
Through
My youthful memories
Where pain was unknown
Unless you broke a leg.

Days when pain
Was, but a challenge
Of endurance
Pain was seek then
Not wanted
As every sunrise
Has for me.

I seek not pity
I blame non
The cards have been dealt
In a game of no return
As I accept, my hand.

For I am, but a man
Of flesh
My soul is energy
Slowing down.

My heart
Used to host a flame
Which in time has trickled
To a glowing ember
Waiting a slow demise
As it flickers dim.

The Reaper stands
At the edge, of my infinity
To gallantly gather
My ashen dust
I pray, he scatters them
Into the four winds.

May my seed, root deeper
As a tear may escape
While memories of me
Travel through their
Blest thoughts.

The whole chore seems pretty mellow to me, I must be doing it wrong.

Even though raking does not utilize power tools or sharp blades, it can still cause injuries. According to 2006 U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission statistics, more than 76,000 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms, doctors' offices, clinics and other medical settings for injuries related to non-powered garden tools, including rakes.

"Many people consider raking just another chore, but it requires a lot more reaching, bending and lifting than most odd jobs," says Daryll C. Dykes, MD, PhD, orthopaedic surgeon and spokesperson for the Academy. "Raking should be treated like any other vigorous exercise. People should pay close attention to their arms and backs, being careful not to reach or stretch too far."

Seriously, though, there are good recommendations to warm up before raking to prevent such injuries.