Monday, March 24, 2025

My Travel Through Alzheimer's Disease #2

In theatrical jargon, 
what follows is  know as an aside.
You might prefer "down the rabbit hole."

I apologize for the weird font type and size changes. I can't figure out how to control them because they all look good now.


My first teaching assignment was a 3/4% contract at Monte Vista in 1973. I graduated from Monte Vista. While I was in college, I was a paid assistant in the Monte Vista science department while doing half of my Student-Teaching assignment there. At the end of the 1973 school year, the principal of Monte Vista wrote a note to the person in charge of hiring new teachers saying he wanted to hire me without a district interview. 

The first time I interviewed for a job in education was my hiring at Point Loma Nazarene University. I got that job.
 The only other job I interviewed for was Great Oak High School in Temecula in 2004. I got that job, too. I retired from high school science teaching from there in 2012.

I continued to teach extension courses in for Azusa Pacific University's teacher credential program in San Diego and Temecula until 2019. 

I worked part-time, teaching the required upper-division writing class for PLNU's School Of Nursing, until I had a lacunar stroke on December 31, 201 at 3:30 PM 9. I stopped teaching for Azusa Pacific at the same time.

The hardest result of the lacunar stroke to live with is the feeling that there is a constriction brace on my right foot and ankle. 

I began writing stories when I worked at Monte Vista. One story won an award in a competition for teacher-writers. I kept writing when I was at Point Loma Nazarene University. A different story was published in a book produced by the PLNU. I also had different stories published in anthologies of science fiction stories in 2018 and 2019.


What's your point, Chuck?


I like to write. 


I'm going to continue to write as long as possible. I'm hoping it's a long time. That hope is based on the massive amount of research being done on Alzheimer's disease. Some of the work now in clinical trials is getting dramatically positive results.

I was accepted into a study whose main purpose is to determine how safe the study drug is and the degree to which it works to alleviate symptoms when given to people with mild to moderates Alzheimer's disease. 

I start the study on April 2, 2025. 

BTY: I chose the symptom "social isolation" referred to last week. That's what I've found myself doing over the past two years. It's not social isolation from me by those around me.

More about Alzheimer's disease next week.   


* * * ** * * * * * * * *
Amazon's Author's Page: http://tinyurl.com/CRD-Author
Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/CRDowningAurhor?ref=hl

My Blogs

Life as I see it: Topics range from general interest to lovers of life: authors, teachers, etc,
http://crdowning-aurhot.blogspot.com/?alt=rss
My Christian Context: Periodic posts on Christianity
http://my christiancontext.bloggspot.com/

Website: www.crdowing.com

Friday, March 21, 2025

My Travel Through Alzheimer #1

 

Figure 1. The physiological structure of the brain and neurons in (
a) healthy brain and (b) Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/25/24/5789 brain 

Two of my father's brothers and several cousins on that side of the family died of Alzheimer. 

I wasn't worried. After all, my father was fine. 

I'm not fine.

What is Alzheimer?

Alzheimer’s first damages the parts of the brain involved in memory. It later affects areas responsible for language, reasoning, and social behavior. Eventually, the disease damages many other areas of the brain.

A hallmark feature of Alzheimer’s is the buildup of abnormal clumps of protein. These Amyloids form plaques, piles of proteins, held together by Tue tangles, think of it as a glue. These disrupt the usual functions of brain cells.

The loss of connections between nerve cells (neurons) is another change that happens with the disease. Neurons send messages between different parts of the brain, and from the brain to muscles and organs in the body. With Alzheimer’s, many neurons stop functioning properly, lose connections with other neurons, and eventually die. Many other complex brain changes are thought to play a role in the disease as well.

What causes it?

Lists like these abound.

  • High blood pressure after the age of 40
  • High cholesterol after the age of 40
  • Obesity
  • Diabetes
  • Lack of exercise
  • Lack of sleep or poor sleep quality
  • Excessive alcohol consumption
  • Smoking and secondhand smoke
  • Air pollution
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Depression
  • Lower levels of education
  • Social isolation
  • Untreated hearing loss
  • Untreated vision loss

The two in red are the only ones that apply to me. I marked social isolation, but I don't think so. Some I know disagree, hence their inclusion in my list.

Enough for today. I think is a good start.

* * * ** * * * * * * * *
Amazon's Author's Page: http://tinyurl.com/CRD-Author
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CRDowningAurhor?ref=hl

My Blogs

Life as I see it: Topics range from general interest to lovers of life: authors, teachers, etc,
http://crdowning-aurhot.blogspot.com/?alt=rss
My Christian Context: Periodic posts on Christianity
http://my christiancontext.bloggspot.com/

Website: www.crdowing.com



Monday, March 4, 2024

2024 Elections Comments - Part 2

 DeWine signs voting bill for 'election integrity' | WKBN.com


California's primary is March 5 this year. 

This is the second of two parts on the upcoming election. Part 1 was posted on March 2: 

https://crdowning-author.blogspot.com/2024/03/2024-elections-comments-part-1.html

* * * * *

How does a church live and thrive in a place where the culture is in such a stark contrast from the Gospel message and the call of God? What the Apostle Paul shares with the Philippians Church is much like what we face today. That's not just my assessment. I have spoken to many of you about this very issue. There is a cultural revolution happening here in America where our language, history, and values are changing, and these changes are pushing the norms of our society and culture father and father away from a life worthy of the Gospel. 

The primary foundation of “Canoeing the Mountains” by Tod Bolsinger is

"The world in front of you is nothing like the world behind you.

The analysis is: 

". . . that pastors are in uncharted terrain, trying to lead dying churches into a post-Christian culture that now considers the church an optional, out of touch and irrelevant relic of the past.” 

Our culture is changing at warp speed. Because our language, history, and values have changed, so has morality. Culture and society must have a moral code or standard to live by. That provides healthy boundaries because we are in relationships with each other and a relationship with God. 

When values and morality change, it impacts everyone because we are in a relationship with others. We see the tension of this when generations gather together. The strain of this cultural revolution is multiple generations come together in homes and churches.  

The world is doing all it can to indoctrinate the younger generations into conforming to values in conflict with Biblical truth. In our world, race is such a divisive issue. But with Colossians 3:11 in our Christian life, we have much in common with others. Regardless of skin color, we all share the same biology. Two eyes, ears, arms, and legs are examples. We also share the same emotions and spirituality because we are all created in the image of God. 

It is no wonder that Colossians 3:11 reads:

"There is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and is in all." 

In the Church, we believe that all people matter to God and all people are saved the same way, by faith in Jesus through the gospel message.

Another cultural revolution is the confusion the world is trying to teach that gender is fluid. Individuals can choose their gender identity instead of accepting the biological fact that people are born male and female. God's plan for humanity in marriage, sex, and gender is clearly presented in Genesis 2:21-24:

"So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

We find God's plan in v.24. 

Before Adam and Eve became parents,

Before there ever was a father or mother,

Before Adam and Eve had their first child,

God gave the plan for men and women to be married and Fathers and Mothers to raise their children and carry on this divine plan.

However, although our culture changes, God's message remains the same. 

The gap between what is accepted by culture and what is biblical grows wider. 

The tension of that gap increases. 

This culture war seeped into the church, and we are seeing separation and tension grow between parents and their children.  

Take a short and sweet moment to remind yourself of Paul's prayer for the Philippian Church (and our churches today) in 1:9-10. 

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ."

* * * * *

Paul's prayer was for the Church's love of the Gospel to abound and grow more and more by holding true to the saving and transforming message of Jesus Christ. That is our only way forward.

If we do not love the Gospel and tether ourselves to it, it will be impossible to live our lives worthy of the Gospel. There are warnings in the Bible not to add or subtract anything from what the Bible says. 

"Now, Israel, hear the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you." 

Deuteronomy 4:1-2 

and 

"I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll." 

Revelation 22:18-19. 

When we move the goalpost, it causes confusion and frustration. The church must hold true to the entire Gospel. 

"I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.

Philippians 1:27-28

Paul calls the Church in Philippi to stand firm in the Gospel and not allow the prevailing Roman culture to influence them, to shape them, or even to scare them to conform. Paul calls the Church to find unity around the Gospel, even if persecuted for it. 

Remember that the Apostle Paul is in prison for preaching the Gospel. So He is not calling the Church to do something He was not willing to do.

He closes Chapter 1 by encouraging the church: 

"This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have."

Paul circles back to v. 21

"For to me, to live is Christ. and to die is gain."

Jesus is the reward. That is why, more than anything else in this world, we must lift Christ in our lives, seek Christ, and love Christ above all things. If you don't love Christ, you won't be willing to experience the joy of suffering for Christ. Paul is in prison, and he invites the Church to follow his example because you only suffer for what you love. 

* * * * *

I close with the words of Jesus. 

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 

"Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."  

Matthew 5:10-12 

Special thanks to Pastor Gordon Wong, my pastor at Mission Church of the Nazarene in San Diego, California, for allowing me to share the above. 

What follows is my commentary. All opinions are mine alone.

Since 2020, the United States of America has been far from united. 

    Businesses on La Mesa, California,'s main street and two bank buildings close to the main street were ravaged. Busloads with another state's license plates full of people unloaded and were instructed to pick up bricks, throw them through windows and doors of stores, and loot those businesses. Both banks were blown up by what the fire investigator reported as "military-grade devices." Only the vaults were left standing after the fires.

    Hundreds of statues of military men were pulled down or broken. The purpose of the statues was to act as reminders of our past. Taking them down did not change that past. 

     While hundreds of church members meeting outside and wearing masks were forced to stop worshiping, THOUSANDS of protesters, often including local elected officials instigated the mandatory use of masks and "social distancing." At least one young woman sitting on an otherwise empty beach was told to vacate the beach or be arrested.

    Masks were mandated. It was an example of the use of lies to get people to conform. https://crdowning-author.blogspot.com/2020/09/covid-19-what-scientific-studies-show.html Try Orwell's Animal Farm or 1984 as examples of what can now be considered warnings of those tactics.

California's "governor" pushed the state's elected representatives to give him unlimited power. Then he, and other California elected officials, chose to ignore their own mandates. 

The election of the President of the United States isn't until September. Consider these results of the last election before you cast your ballet.

A major conduit was shut down soon after the election. Gasoline prices skyrocketed. Prices of oil used by homes and businesses for heating and cooling skyrocketed.

Ships carrying food, cars, and other items in supply chains were kept from loading their cargo. Prices of those items skyrocketed if you could find them.

Enormous increases in United States government debt are so far out of control that some pundits aren't sure our economy can recover. The dept is still increasing. The US Dollar is no longer the standard for comparing the health of currencies around the world. 

Finally,

Since the decision was made to open our borders by presidential decree, more people have crossed our borders than occupy several STATES. There is no plan to handle the huge influx. Some states are forced to move money already part of the pre-influx budget into dealing with these border-crossers. When you consider that and add it to the budgets of those states, the losers are residents of those states.

California's Primary Election is tomorrow, March 5. Because of the loss of population and businesses and because of irresponsible budgeting, California now faces a $58 billion state budget deficit in the 2024–25 fiscal year and deficits of about $30 billion after that. (https://tinyurl.com/mtzwva79   Feb 13, 2024)

The outcome of this year's elections should clarify the direction our country is headed

Please vote in your state's elections.

C. R. Downing 
Good writing fosters great thinking! 
Award-winning author of Science Fiction and Mysteries
                                                                         
Websitehttps://www.crdowning.com/ 
Amazon’s Author’s Pagehttp://tinyurl.com/CRD-Author

BLOGSIrregular posts
Ph619.708.8865                                           San Diego, CA 92110

Saturday, March 2, 2024

2024 Elections Comments - Part 1


DeWine signs voting bill for 'election integrity' | WKBN.com


California's primary is March 5 of this year. 

This is the first of two parts on the upcoming elections. Part 2 will be posted on Monday.


 BACKGROUND

"Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have."

Philippians 1:27-30

Paul challenges the Church in Philippi to remain faithful to Jesus and live in a manner worthy of the Gospel. In this passage, he is calling for unity in the Spirit and the Gospel, to have courage, and not be afraid. This last part of Chapter 1 has much to unpack, so let's dive in.

Located at the bottom of a mountain that produced valuable minerals such as silver and gold, the city of Philippi was a strategic location for Rome both geographically and culturally. Citizens enjoyed a prosperous economy as a result of this. In addition, Philippi was located along the Ignatian Way, the primary East-to-West road in this part of the Roman Empire. 

Philippi was a hub for traveling like Las Angeles or Atlanta. Travelers on chariots had layovers. But, what made Philippi stand out was its connection to Rome. Philippi was a Roman colony patterned after the city of Rome. 

In 31 BC, Octavius, later known as Augustus, was the first Roman Emperor. He expanded Rome's influence and power. When he defeated Roman General Mark Antony, he took control of the empire after years of civil war.  

After the war, he rewarded his soldiers with plots of land in Philippi. He also showed goodwill to Mark Antony's soldiers by giving them land in Philippi and won their favor. 

After Octavius made Philippi a Roman colony and populated it with patriotic and dedicated citizens. When they rebuilt the city, they used Rome as their template, Roman architecture, and Latin as their official language. Even the citizen's clothing was Roman, with togas common sites. 

Philippians worshiped the Greek gods. In every way, this was a place that was pro-Rome. They flew Rome's colors when raising their flag. The city of Philippi's faith and culture were patterned after Rome's. 

The dynamic that this new Jesus community finds itself in is neither a favorable nor hospitable place for a Christian Church. That put the church out of place. 

There was pressure for this new church to conform to the faith and culture of Rome, but the Gospel's message was antithetical to the life and culture of Rome. Thus Paul's encouragement. 

“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.”

Philippians 1:27

This admonition has been the hallmark of Christianity from the earliest days until today. That our faith and culture be rooted in the Word of God, not the changing cultural norms of society. 


Monday's post will deal with the importance of this election.

Special thanks to Pastor Gordon Wong, my pastor at Mission Church of the Nazarene in San Diego, California, for allowing me to share this.


C. R. Downing 
Good writing fosters great thinking! 
Award-winning author of Science Fiction and Mysteries
                                                                         
Websitehttps://www.crdowning.com/ 
Amazon’s Author’s Pagehttp://tinyurl.com/CRD-Author

BLOGSIrregular posts
Ph619.708.8865                                           San Diego, CA 92110

Monday, September 21, 2020

#COVID-19 Who's line is it, anyway? Episode 3 - How do you define essential?

I first posted this last September. Many closures happened since then.

SUPPORT YOUR REMAINING SMALL BUSINESSES!!


Who’s Line Is It Anyway? was/is a television show first hosted by Drew Carey. The show’s ensemble cast was gifted at improv humor. 

 

Drew’s favorite line was something like:

 

“Welcome to the show where everything’s made up, and the points don’t matter.”

 

Several parts of the United States’ response to the current pandemic remind me of that line. Today I focus on one such situation:

 

Episode 3: Actually two lines…

 

During the course of the “pandemic,” two descriptors were used as excuses to wreak havoc on society as a whole. 


Essential and non-essential

  • Essential businesses, jobs, and surgeries were allowed to continue with little, if any, disruption. 
  • Non-essential iterations of those same categories were shut down, some of them for months.

 

There are problems with this abuse of power by our governmental agencies at all levels.


First Line

No surgery is essential. All surgery is elective.


Several types of surgery are performed so often that they seem essential. If any surgery was genuinely essential


every human being 

would require that surgery to live.


There is no such surgery.


Some surgeries listed as non-essential are probably considered that by most people. 

  • Plastic surgery might sound like a non-essential procedure until you consider that many plastic surgeries are not for the perceived enhancement or refinement of a healthy body. 
  • Amputees and burn victims usually require several to many surgeries to increase, improve, or allow physical activities. 

Postponing cancer surgeries or other surgeries intended to improve the condition of patients led to dire consequences for many.

  • However, as unfeeling as this sounds, even if a person died as a result of postponed surgery, that doesn’t mean the surgery was essential. 
  • Every human life ends in physical death.

When a government decides who deserves immediate surgery and who can wait, they far overstep their boundaries.

 

Second line

No job is non-essential. Every job is critically important to someone.

  • If a person’s job provides money for her/his family to live, how can that job be considered non-essential? 
  • To that person, her/his job is essential to living as a productive member of society.

Imagine your job was declared non-essential and you were laid off or your business was shut down. (I apologize to those reading this who don't have to imagine that situation.)

  • What does that imply? 

More importantly, what was shown to be the reality of such arbitrary designations. According to a YELP survey

  • 60% of businesses that shut down in the US from the start of the pandemic as of August 31 won't be reopening,  Yelp said Wednesday.
  • As of 31 August, 163,735 US businesses have shut down, a 23% rise since mid-July. 
  • Yelp said the restaurant industry was most heavily affected with closures totaling 32,109 as of August 31. 
  • Fortune magazine reported 100,000 small businesses shut down permanently by September 28, 2020.

Not a single one of those businesses considered itself non-essential...

BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T NON-ESSENTIAL,

 AND NOW LIVES AND COMMUNITIES 

 ARE CHANGED FOREVER.

 

Sadly, “Welcome to the show where everything’s made up…” fits governmental ignorance and arrogance in their treatment of both this week’s lines perfectly.


Even sadder, the points did matter in these cases.


 

SEO: News, journalistic errors, misinformation, pandemic, COVID

 

Follow me on 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CRDowningAuthor

 

My website is: www.crdowning.com

Email: crd.author@gmail.com

 

My Blogs

Life as I see itTopics rotate between those of general interest to lovers of life,  authors, teachers—probably you, too.  Posts on Tuesdays and some Mondays.  http://crdowning-author.blogspot.com/?alt=rss

 

My Christian Context. Posts M/W of discussion questions. Thursdays - Timeless Truths. Fridays - Expressions of Faith. https://mychristiancontext.blogspot.com/  

 

I appreciate your feedback on Blogger!

Monday, September 14, 2020

#COVID-19 Who's line is it, anyway? Episode 2-Geography


Who’s Line Is It Anyway? was/is a television show first hosted by Drew Carey. The show’s ensemble cast were all gifted at improve humor. 

 

Drew’s favorite line was something like:

 

“Welcome to the show where everything’s made up, and the points don’t matter.”

 

Several parts of the United States’ response to the current pandemic remind me of that line. Today I focus on one such situation:

 

Episode 2: Geography?

 

I use California as the source for many of my examples because I live in that realm of unreality.

Recently, California’s governor unveiled a new, color-coded four-tier program to track state-wide progress in the COVID-19 pandemic by new cases and positive tests for the virus.

Purple, or Tier 1, indicates that the virus is widespread in the county — with more than seven cases per 100,000 residents or more than 8% of test results reported positive over seven days. Red (Tier 2) indicates “substantial” spread of the virus, while orange (Tier 3) indicates “moderate” spread, and yellow (Tier 4) indicates “minimal” spread of the virus in the county.
If one of the two metrics is higher than the other, the state will assign the county to the color associated with the highest rating. For example, if a county reports six cases per 100,000, but a 9% positivity rate, it will be rated purple.

I couldn’t find a rationale for the amounts of new cases or the percentage of positive tests that led to those values. I wasn’t surprised by that.

“Welcome to the show where everything’s made up…”

ASIDE
Riverside County is purple.
(County’s Status Map as of 9/8/20) - Map will update


  • Palm Springs is in Riverside County. The city’s demographics do not match the majority of the county, and their demographic has high numbers. 
  • Imperial County is directly south of Riverside County. Imperial County has high numbers, too. People crossing the border from Mexico to find diagnosis and treatment for COVID-19 overwhelmed their medical facilities. Many patients were relocated from Imperial County to Riverside County. 
These situations ensure that Riverside will be purple for a long time. But the vast majority of the county is nothing like the inclusive data reflects.

Back to Episode 2
On 9/9/2020 in a sub-headline, front page, above the fold, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported “County now on brink of case rate that could put it back to lowest tier. [sic]” The article is about the impact of 400 positive tests at the San Diego State University campus.

There are currently about 2000 students going to classes on the main campus that covers 288 acres. 
  1. San Diego County covers 2,897,000 acres.  SDSU makes up approximately .0001 percent of San Diego County’s physical size. 
  2. San Diego’s current population is between 3-4 million people. SDSU’s current on-campus population makes up approximately .0006 percent of the total population.

Including isolated population anomalies without consideration of their isolation… 
sounds a lot like an improv theater move to me.

Until next week…

SEO: News, misinformation, pandemic, COVID

Follow me on 
Twitter: @CRDowningAuthor

My website is: www.crdowning.com
Email: crd.author@gmail.com

My Blogs
Life as I see itTopics rotate between those of general interest to lovers of life,  authors, teachers—probably you, too.  Posts on Tuesdays and some Mondays.  http://crdowning-author.blogspot.com/?alt=rss

My Christian Context. Posts M/W of discussion questions. Thursdays - Timeless Truths. Fridays - Expressions of Faith. https://mychristiancontext.blogspot.com/  

I appreciate your feedback on Blogger!