I had lived in Miami for exactly 85 days when Hurricane Andrew struck South Florida. That’s not much time to commit a landscape to memory. It was my first hurricane. To this day, my friends from other parts of the country continue to tell me that I am mad to live here. They, of course, live in parts of the country where there are floods or tornadoes or earthquakes. I guess you pick your poison. But the things about Miami that I loved before the storm were still here after – many of them just weren’t in the right places: boats were in the streets, trees were on the ground, and people’s roofs were nowhere to be found. But the luminous quality of the light was unchanged, as was the impossibly blue color of the ocean not far from my apartment. And even though the multilayered canopy of trees and vines and plants in a multitude of greens was gone – ripped apart and decaying to a sodden muddy brown everywhere that you looked – the nocturnal sounds of insects and animals, sounds that I remembered from my childhood visits to family, still rang out in the dark, humid nights.

The day before Andrew, I remember packing up a few things and piling my cat into my Jeep as I evacuated my apartment eight blocks from the ocean and headed to the relative safety of a family member’s home on the mainland. A 16-foot storm surge had been predicted for my neighborhood; we could not stay, evacuation was mandatory. But I also remember driving down Ocean Drive for one more look before I left. One last look at the pastel colored deco hotels, lined up like so many petit fours next to the sand and the palm trees and the sea. I just sat by the side of the road and tried to commit it all to memory, because I knew that in a day, everything would be different. Even with only 85 days in Miami I knew that after that day, I would have a before and an after.

So how on earth can the folks in the Gulf cram a lifetime of memories into their heads while they wait for the inevitable? The fishermen and oystermen whose families have plied the Gulf waters for generations, the fish houses and packing plants, restaurants and motels that all depend on the the Gulf of Mexico for their livelihood – what will become of them? How do you find that spot where everything is stored for safekeeping? Is it even possible to capture the smells and tastes and sounds of a life in jeopardy? All of them are waiting, waiting and watching. Surely the bayous and back bays and seagrass beds and small town life that is the Gulf will survive. Maybe. Or maybe not. Sullied oyster beds and ruined beaches, oil encrusted birds and other wildlife may be their version of my stripped-to-the-bone South Florida landscape. Are those folks taking one last look? Are they allowing themselves a quick drive to a lighthouse or a fort or a favorite fishing area or beach one last time before the oil changes every part of their world into before and after?

Here in South Florida, before Hurricane Andrew, we all were mesmerized by a giant orange blob on our television screens – a blob that relentlessly plowed across the Atlantic Ocean and straight into our living rooms. But then it was gone. However, for the residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the panhandle of Florida, it isn’t one blob they are watching, but thousands. And they just keep coming with no end in sight.
How can we help, what can we do, when will it end? When will they get their “after”?

“The noontide sun, call’d forth the mutinous winds,
And ‘twixt the green sea and azur’d vault
Set roaring war.

- William, Shakespeare, The Tempest -

Note: I started to write this piece a few days after the spill when it seemed as if a quick solution would be forthcoming. But my mind was jumbled with unease and fear and sadness, and the piece went nowhere. About two weeks ago I took another look and refined the piece to what you just read. Although still numb, I retained some small measure of hope in regards to this horrific occurrence. Today, when I heard that one of BP’s robotic machines had jostled the cap on the pipe, forcing its removal, and that oil was once again flowing full force into the Gulf, I decided that there was nothing more that I could say. And, for now, that there is nothing else that I can do. June 23, 2010.

Skin diseases such as for example eczema, is  known in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as shi zhen or damp rash and are generally either chronic or acute conditions.  In TCM diagnosis and treatment is based on what is called pattern discrimination; the disharmonies, stagnations, deficiencies, wind, pathogenic influences, Heat or etc. within the body that affect the whole body health.  The assessment establishes whether there is a pattern of Damp Heat or a pattern of Blood Dryness as seen from the TCM perspective.  A Damp Heat pattern will include red, weepy skin lesions that are itchy, plus other signs and symptoms the TCM practitioner establishes.   With Blood Dryness the lesions are dry and may also be itchy.  The lesions may be more or less red or perhaps even pale plus other signs and symptoms established by the practitioner after a thorough examination of the patient. 

Eczema may have a basis in other allergies.  In dogs, some breeds seem also to be more prone to skin diseases than others; for example golden retrievers, terriers, poodles, Dalmatians, schnauzers.   In dogs the cause for eczema can be internal and/or external parasites, fungus, yeast, fleas, chemical substances and drug reactions and others in addition to dietary and environmental allergies and sensitivities from a western perspective.  Therefore thorough pattern discrimination is important. In TCM no health issue is seen in isolation, but always on the background of overall health.  Once a TCM diagnosis is established the practitioner writes a treatment option for either herbal formulas or acupuncture or both, as well as dietary recommendations, which directly correlates to the specific person or animal’s TCM diagnosis.    The herbal formulas for the two types of eczema will be different and may include topical treatments.   If the condition has elements of dietary allergies, the diet must be checked and changed.  If there are external causes for the eczema, these need to be eliminated not only on the animal, but also in the animal’s environment for treatment to be successful.

 While an acute condition is easier and quicker to treat than chronic, enough time needs to be allowed for the treatment to work and to bring harmony back to the body.

So there are a lot of elders out there who LOVE apple cider vinegar and feel it is the tell-tale cure for a number of maladies. Well I have to say I too am a convert……. Let’s talk indigestion that hits you without warning. I cannot stand taking OTC drugs and will not subject myself to the little purple pill, but let me have a teaspoon of Apple Cider Vinegar in a glass of water and the symptoms subside, as if by magic. When my partner started to suffer with this her naturopath suggested this wonderful inexpensive cure and it works! So that started me thinking about what other things it is used for……….

Vim & Vigor

We know that many herbalists use this as a base for herbals and tonics, and one of my favorites is carried by the Mennonites in Maryland, called Vim & Vigor. One shot of this a day and I think you could take on Godzilla……..we love stopping in Flintstone to pick up this wonderful elixer.

“Our Indiana based product combines extracts of wild mountain-grown Gingseng Root, Goldenseal Root( also known as yeller root), Black Cohosh Root, Black Walnut Leaves, Star Anise Pods, Echinacea, Chamomile Berries, Licorice Root, Chickweed, Cinnamon,Fenugreek Seeds, Cloves, Ginger Root, and Valerian with aged apple cider vinegar and then flavored with concentrates of apple and grape juices, resulting in a unique elixir which, according to our customers, has produced some interesting results.”

Even WebMD has scientific evidence to back up some of the claims made about the health benefits of this simple fermented apple juice.

I started thinking about all of this while at dinner, listening to a young man at the table next to me talk about how bad his acid reflux was, and what he could not eat (including some great foods) because of it. Boy did I wish I had some Apple Cider Vinegar to hand to him So go on, grab a teaspoon and perhaps you will find this a good habit to form!