Top Heart Blogs!

Just found a list of Heart Blogs and ranking of the top heart blogs!  If you are bored, this page will keep you BUSY!!!  I haven't checked out many, but the few that I viewed seemed interesting.

The top ranking blog was The Heart Scan Blog.

The blog for September 2 was:  Do you eat wheat?  I thought so.  Dr William Davis, has written a book called "Wheat Belly".  It really attacks the use of wheat in out foods.  Need do do some more reading and research, but in the meantime it makes sense to keep track of my wheat intake.

Another blog I found fascinating was:  Healthy Hearts & Bodies with Heartstrong

The article that I read was, "Color Code Your Vegetables". The article ranked the veggies into 6 categories:

Here are the 6 categories:

1. Dark leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables such as spinach & broccoli
2. Red/purple vegetables such as tomatoes, beets and eggplant
3. Yellow/orange vegetables such as carrots and pumpkin
4. Green herbs such as basil and rosemary
5. Allium vegetables such as garlic and shallots
6. Other vegetables such as artichokes and zucchini

So, eat your veggies!  The fresher, the better!

And Another Way to Heal a Heart -Friday Night Football!

This week has been a great way to heal the heart!  Yesterday it was a total stranger that made my heart swell with the healing of helping someone else that had Open Heart Surgery.  Tonight is was an OLD ritual!  One that goes way back for me!

As an elementary school student I started by going to Cornwall Miner games in the 1950's & 1960's.  The I had a chance to play and feel the excitement of playing in Falcon Football games against our big rivals from Catholic High!

And then as a coach, coaching my first high teams at Central Dauphin & then at Hempfield.  I stepped down as a football coach to watch my own sons play on Friday nights!  The both scored more touchdowns than their Dad every did and made me a very proud Pop!

And now in retirement, running the scoreboard for another great Friday Night Football night!  The memories explode!  All the feelings, playing myself, coaching, watching my kids & just sitting up in the press box watching an American traditions - High School Football!

The "Heart" took another leap forward.  Healing in a way that medicines & heart healthy diets could NEVER DO!  The band playing, the cheerleaders cheering, and a smile across my face that is connected directly to my heart!

To heal a heart, do what makes you feel good inside!!!  High School Friday Night Football does that for me!

Make My Day - Recovering From Open Heart Surgery!

Today when I checked my blog I had a comment from a new follower!  Someone that I have never met face-to-face!  With the magic of the internet, you are able to communicate with the world!

Today I thought I would take the time to review what I think are some of the keys to recovering from Open Heart Surgery!  Here we go......

Keys to Recovering From Open Heart Surgery

1 - STAY POSITIVE! - Easier said then done!  Surround yourself with positive people.  Find people that have had Open Heart Surgery and talk to them about their recovery.  Call & visit people that uplift you.  NOT those people that complain, moan & groan about life!
2 - OPEN HEART BUDDIES - this is really a follow-up on #1 (make sure they are positive!)  These people have had open heart surgery and can tell you how they battle through the recovery period.  I would meet my buddies (Shuman & Engleman) for lunch and we would sit & talk - Heart, families, life, retirement, sports, &  many other topics!
3 - STUDY THE HEART - Learn as much as you can about the human heart!  The internet has a wealth of information!  Also, medications, healthy diet, exercise, and other topics.
4 - RETURN TO NORMAL! - Try to get back to what is a "normal" routine.  I went back to work, coaching, mowing the grass, cleaning, and other activities.  BUT, eliminate the BAD habits - BAD diet, LACK of exercise, STRESS!  This is very difficult!  One of my problem was I was too busy & did not focus on myself - diet & exercise!
5 - FAITH - this is difficult for many.  First, do you attend church.  Do you have a relationship with God?  And devote time each day to you faith. I remember before my surgery trying to relax and enter the surgery in a positive manner.  Visually, I tried to picture God's hands guiding my surgeons hands!

There is not a simple answer to this question.  But, so much is your ATTITUDE!

Taking Care of the Heart in Many Ways

In previous blogs I mentioned things I want to do when I retire from education.  Today I had an opportunity to try one of those ideas! And along the way, heal my heart with something I enjoy doing!

I have always enjoyed history.  As a student I tried to take many history courses.  As an adult I would read about people that helped mold history, Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, Lincoln,.......

Today, I had a chance to begin another road in my life, history of my childhood home, Lebanon County (if you are from there it is pronounced - Lepnin Caunty)  And what made it even more fun, it was with a bus load of retired people from Willow Valley!  Sue is the activities coordinator, and one of her jobs is providing bus trips for her retirees.  My first idea was Fort Indiantown Gap, in northern Lebanon County.

We had a great time!  Half the bus were veterans.  And our "step-on" guide was a retired Sargent Major, who was based at Fort Indiantown Gap - he was awesome!  This was our itinerary:

1 - Start in a repair shop that repairs armored vehicles, Abram Tanks, Bradley's, Stryker's  etc.  The personnel show us all the vehicles in their yard. 
2 - Visit Monuments on the base.
3 - Lunch
4 - PA National Guard Museum - great memories from years ago!
5 - The Indiantown Gap National Cemetery - this is incredible, clean, very organized, patriotic, and is not far below Arlington!

So it begins!  A study of the History of Lebanon County!  One was to heal the heart is to relax it & relieve the stress.  Do this by doing something you love!  For me it will be to study my roots, my County, my Hometown!

Fattening Foods for the Summer

OK, summer is almost over and there are a few more picnics to attend, so what should foods should we avoid?  Checkout another one of my favorite web sites - Web MD.

Web MD - Fattening Foods for the Summer

OK, I did cheat a few times!

1 - Red Meat - I was good here, usually in the summer I grill steaks, mostly chicken & fish this summer!
2 - Mayonnaise-Based Salads - I slipped here a few times - SMALL PORTIONS!
3 - Mixed Drinks - here I was a good boy!
4 - Thirst Quenchers - Turkey Hill Ice Tea (I did cut back & was drinking more water, but need to avoid!)
5 - Frozen Treats - ICE CREAM - agin, I did cut back on this - only created a couple times!
6 - Fattening Fair Food - No fairs this summer!
7 - Salad Toppers - The only thing I used that was bad was Croutons!
8 - Mindless Munching - No mindless, but a couple rainy days, overall good.
9 - Finger Licking Chicken - NO KFC, when my Mom was alive she loved this stuff!


So, for my summer eating, NOT BAD!  It is real easy to cheat, but if you don't buy it, you can't eat it!

Top 10 Myths about Cardiovascular Disease

It has been some time since I have visited the American Heart Associations website - check it out at
http://www.heart.org/

The article that got my attention was - Top 10 Myths about Cardiovascular Disease.
Below are a few the ten myths.  Visit the website to get more detail about each one of the myths.

1. “I’m too young to worry about heart disease.” 
2. “I’d know if I had high blood pressure because there would be warning signs.” 
3.  “I’ll know when I’m having a heart attack because I’ll have chest pain.”
4. “Diabetes won’t threaten my heart as long as I take my medication.”
5. “Heart disease runs in my family, so there’s nothing I can do to prevent it.”
6. “I don’t need to have my cholesterol checked until I’m middle-aged.”
7. “Heart failure means the heart stops beating.” 
8. “This pain in my legs must be a sign of aging. I’m sure it has nothing to do with my heart."
9. “My heart is beating really fast. I must be having a heart attack."
10. “I should avoid exercise after having a heart attack."

Missing My First Day of School in 51 Years!

Today the students will be showing up a school, but not me!  After 12 years at Cedar Crest, 4 years at Millersville, 3 years at Dauphin County Vo-Tech, and 32 years at Hempfield (51 years total), Albright will not be at SCHOOL!  It is an amazing feeling!

But I will be learning, today I will be at Gettysburg!  One of my favorite places of ALL time is the Gettysburg Battlefield!  Just like going to school, I have been at Gettysburg many times!  Each time I go, I learn something new!  I am always amazed by the commitment of these soldiers!  By the courage of these men!  By the leadership!

So, Albright will go to school today!  Not a typical school that people thing of, but a school that should never stop!  You never stop learning and wanting to learn more each day!  Today I am learning more about the "human heart" then arteries & veins, blood & cholesterol, PVC's & heart beats!  Today I will be learning how the human heart changed our country & who we are today!

Hurricane Irene & Family Time

One thing people say after any battle with severe medical issues is they are thankful for the little things!  This weekend was one of those times!  As hurricane Irene cruised up the eastern coast, our older son Jared left Washington DC with his new wife Erliza to spend the weekend with us in Lancaster.  On the way, they picked up our nephew Billy, who started a new job in DC.

Saturday night our younger son Josh was opening for a national act at the Chameleon Club.  So, family and friends ventured into town on a windy & rainy Saturday night to enjoy the music! (Also, test the new heart with the loud music!)  As a bonus, the national act canceled (Was afraid to brave the hurricane), so Josh is now the BIG MUSIC GROUP!

So, great night, awesome music (I'm biased), great crowd (lot's of friends & family) and another reason to be thankful for that "new & improved" heart!  And thankful that hurricane Irene was not as bad as all the news people were saying!

New heart, family & friends, great weekend!  Thankful for the little & BIG things!