Chocolate and beer...

Don't scoff. According to a lot of my foodie news sites, that is the new "it" combination. Think about it. The same countries - Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Holland - known for their beer production also produce some pretty good chocolates. Really, though, how can you go wrong?

Yahoo! News reported on the new analysis of a range of beers. The study concluded beer is a good source of dietary silicon, which is good for bone density. The researchers tested 100 commercially available brews and came up with the recommendation to drink in moderation to improve bone density. Apparently "hoppier' beers are better for your bones, as they contain more silicon. So maybe kick back with an IPA the next time you turn on ESPN?

CNN.com posted a video interview with Tom Aspirino, a New England-area mortgage-banker-turned-candy-peddler. Sick of the mortgage field, he went into business producing Rhode Island Rocks - chocolate-covered pretzel clusters. This is an excellent example of a small business succeeding in a recession. Aspirino seems to be following a passion, so good for him.

Time Magazine has an article on the new revolution in Peru - chocolate. Previously known as a major producer of cocaine paste, Peruvians increasingly have been turning to producing cocoa beans. Peruvian chocolatiers even earned a prestigious aroma certificate from the Salon du Chocolat in Paris. Peru is the second-largest coca producer after Columbia, but the Andean nation increased cacao exports over 400 percent in the past decade. This year the output will be around 35,000 metric tons, which would make Peru among the top ten cacao producers in the world.

(Photo courtesy of Time)

Who dat sitting at her desk all sleepy?...

So, like 90 percent of the country, I am beyond tired this morning. I debated calling in sick, but I couldn't justify it as I'm more anti-Colts than pro-Saints. However, I am very pleased for the city of New Orleans and the Saints franchise.

As a former advertising copywriter, I usually look forward to the Superbowl ads since the are really the pinnacle of that industry's yearly body of work. However, this year I was less than impressed. The Doritos ad above turned out to be my favorite, followed closely by the e*Trade baby commercials.

I promise tomorrow I will be back with actual news stories, but today I just couldn't be sure of being coherent...

Superbowl Sund-, er, Friday...

Since I don't post on the weekends, I thought I'd do a football-themed entry today. My friend B mentioned this morning it doesn't feel like it's time for the Superbowl. I'm not going to lie, I actually forgot it was this Sunday. I've been in a baking frenzy, trying to assemble 120 iced cookies into 40 baby shower favors, so I'm not really sure what day it is, much less what's on TV. However, I shall spend the weekend on the other end of my apartment from the kitchen, parked on the couch, watching as much TV as humanly possible. : )

I will, in fact, be rooting for the Saints. Not that one of the highest-powered offenses in football is an underdog, but somehow, a franchise's first trip to the big game (despite the ridiculous numbers put up by that team all year) do not compare with a four-time league MVP and multiple trips to the Superbowl in the last few years. (PS - This is one reason for the dearth of Colts stories in today's post...The other is I'm from Baltimore.)

The following Reuters article is fun to read for its educational tone alone. Aimed at explaining the hoopla to non-Americans, the story nicely juxtaposes the Saints' success with the struggles of New Orleanians post-Katrina. Pay no attention to the Danny Downer somewhere in the middle of the story; focus on the "Saints Salve."

The Saints have been a big part of helping to rebuild New Orleans from the inside out, particularly in terms of education and the well-being of the city's children. As this story on www.NOLA.com tells, New Orleans teachers are returning the favor. Schools of all levels throughout the area are teaching their children through football-themed lesson plans. Some of the more creative ideas include third-grade math students learning how far $4000 goes for people attending the game, music students wrote lyrics to a Saints mambo, and one class of fourth-graders will Skype with their counterparts in Indianapolis.

This last little one isn't necessarily Superbowl related, but it's a nice thought (and good excuse to get on Facebook during a slow day at the office). St. Jude is partnering with Target and Facebook to help the kids at the hospital. Target is giving away $1 million to St. Jude's and other charity partners via its Super Love Sender app. Facebook users have until Feb. 14 to send football-inspired, customized video cards to family and friends (up to 10 per computer per day), and St. Jude will get one vote for every card sent which designates the hospital as the sender's charity of choice.

Citius, Altius, Fortius...

I have been assured the 2010 Vancouver Olympics are coming. I'm not entirely sure when they will invade NBC, but judging by the repeated (and curious) Michael Phelps Subway commercials the attack is imminent.

In anticipation, or failing that preparation, I've come up with three stories connected to the upcoming Olympics. Remember the Jamaican bobsled team? The one that inspired the Disney movie "Cool Runnings"? Well, this year's unlikely hero may just be Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong. He is Ghana's entire Winter Olympic team. According to Yahoo! Sports, Nkrumah-Acheampong will compete for the small African nation in alpine skiing events. He is the first Ghananian in the Winter Olympics and only picked up skiing six years ago after taking a job at a ski resort in England (of all places).

The New York Times highlighted an American bobsledder who will be competing in the Games despite some incredibly long odds. Steve Holcomb succeeded in driving a bobsled at speeds over 90 mph regardless of the fact his vision factored in at 20/500 due to a degenerative disease called keratoconus. But two years ago, when his vision reached its nadir, Holcomb feared he'd have to retire. His coach, Brian Shimer, connected him with a surgeon who was able to correct Holcomb's vision back to 20/20. Now he is back, ready to compete and take aim at the German favorites for the gold medal.

Dorothy Hamill earned the nickname "America's Sweetheart" after winning a gold medal in figure skating at the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria (and started a fad with that hair...). She turned professional shortly after her triumph, and remains active in skating to this day, despite a bout with breast cancer. Hulu.com has a video from the Today Show that highlights Hamill's latest venture - I-Skate. The program helps children with cerebral palsy, brain damage or paralysis receive therapy through ice skating. It's a short video, so I really hope you watch it. The grins on these children's faces throughout the feature cannot fail to make you smile.

We should all be like Mylyn...

Ever since I got a normal, 9-5 job, I've had Netflix. I wanted to catch up on all the TV I missed while working 80-hour weeks. Consequently my queue is constantly, like, 27 titles long. My current rotation is Eureka, NCIS and JAG.

Don't judge.

Anyway, one of the current plot lines on JAG is a character becoming an amputee after stepping on a land mine. The season I'm on is set in 2002, so obviously, they're factoring in the war in Afghanistan. The show tried to be honest but sympathetic to the Navy, and this storyline is no different. While the writers picked the most good-humored character to have this happen to, it did explore the ramifications on his career, on his marriage and with his friends. I think sometimes televised war numbs you a little. It's good to be reminded those who are injured are people, not statistics.

The Journal Gazette - Times Courier out of Illinois had a story on an Iraq war veteran's (and double amputee) new home, built by dozens of volunteers from "Homes for our Troops" and "StormHawk Construction." National Guard Sgt. Cameron Crouch suffered his injuries after falling from a roof in Iraq onto marble floors. Presumably, he was in one of Saddam Hussein's palaces. Crouch fell 70 feet and required 25 surgeries. Later this year he is set to marry his fiancee Christy.

Risks for injury do not just occur on the battlefield. EJ Poplawski was competing in the 10th annual US Telemark Extreme Freeskiing Championships when his last descent over a cliff broke one of his skis, according to the Ski Channel. He subsequently hit a tree and shattered his knee. Poplawski didn't get to the hospital quickly enough to save his lower leg. But that didn't stop him from continuing to ski and race. He recently competed in the Winter X Games and tours the country as a motivational speaker.

This next little girl should motivate all of us. One night, three year-old Mylyn Beakley, herself an amputee, saw Haitian children on TV who had also lost legs, and ran into her bedroom. The little girl retrieved a prosthetic leg she had grown out of and told her mother she wanted "to give it to Haiti." The hug she gives one of the staffers at the 1:10 mark in the NBC video is precious.

(Photo courtesy of The Journal Gazette - Times Courier)

Happy health news...

One of my favorite parts of my job is reading the thank you letters we get from former patients and their families. Hospitals are a last resort; you only end up here if everything else has failed. And that generally means you're in dire straits. So it's always nice to get notes from the people who walk out our doors well. Things do go wrong and that makes you sad, so hearing from those who had things go right makes it better.

A lot of the bad news coming out of Haiti now seems to be related to survivors' health, from crush injuries requiring amputation to the smallest of cuts turning into raging infections. The US and other countries have been helping with the injuries, but recently the US put a hold on medical evacuations due to concerns on the pressure they would put on our health care system. The Boston Globe reported on a group of doctors who went around that obstacle by flying three children with tetanus, pneumonia and third-degree burns to Children's Hospital in Philadelphia on a private plane. All were critically ill and would have died soon without the evac.

We have Haitian staffers in all of our hospitals in my health system, and many of them lost contact with family and friends after the quake. Some still have not reached their loved ones. Yahoo! News posted a first-person account of a group of TIME reporters who helped a friend send money to her 94 year-old great-aunt. France St. Fleur came out of the quake okay, but she was living in a tent outside her badly damaged house. The article details the challenges the team faced with tracking down St. Fleur when all their landmarks to her home were demolished.

One of the unfortunate consequences of natural disasters like the earthquake in Haiti can be the rampant spread of disease. Microsoft's Bill Gates has pledged through his foundation to donate $10 billion over the next decade to finding vaccines. He and wife Melinda made the announcement at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, according to a short article on MSNBC.com.

Leave it to the Globe...

Sometimes it can be feast or famine when looking for good news stories. Today happened to be a feast. I even found extra stories I can "put by" for later. The articles on today's post are only tied together by the fact I found them all on the Globe website, and they are all fun and quirky.

I know it's not cool, but I have long been a proponent of the Slanket, aka: the originial Snuggie. I have had my royal blue, fleecy slice of heaven for about four years now, and I've been made fun of for it nearly as long. However, I refuse to part with it. With the weather the way it's been for, well, ever up here in my frozen corner of hel...er, Boston, it's necessary to my survival. It appears the blanket with sleeves is finally gaining some traction. Somerville hosted the Boston-area's first Snuggie Pub Crawl this past Friday. Nearly 100 people, clad in Snuggies and the occasional piece of pirate gear, crawled their way through Union Square bars. You can view photos here.

After a long day in my cube-like office (that occasionally does not have heat - do not even get me started), I slip on the Slanket and watch Netflix. That is my version of TLC. For the turtles on the Cape, however, Dr. Charles Innis, provides his own brand. Increasingly rare Kemp's Ridley turtles migrate between New England and the Caribbean, but some of them get lost and end up tossed on shore by the tide. These turtles often end up at the New England Aquarium's marine care center where they get top-notch, state-0f-the-art care.

Julia Child never had any recipes for turtle (that I know of, thank goodness), and neither does Bubbe, the 83 year-old Jewish grandmother who is becoming an Internet sensation. Two years agao, Bubbe thought the Internet came from the air and had no idea what an email was. Now she is a YouTube star and is knowledgeable about Twitter and Facebook to boot. Her grandson, Avrom Honig, filmed her originally for a demo tape while looking for a job. Bubbe now has over 30 episodes on cooking kosher and a legion of fans who want to adopt her. Honig now has a job. : )

(Photo courtesy of the Boston Globe)