juliav1

Travel Size Medications and Pain Relievers

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I’m not a big medication user, in fact I can barely swallow what I guess most human beings would consider regular sized pain relievers. This is not a new phenomenon for me. I’ve always had trouble and would have to use the dispersible painkillers when I was younger or suffer in silence.

However, if like me you have trouble swallowing pills you may be interested in a few different options that can help you feel better quicker and without all the hassle of the ‘choke factor’ and the gallon of water you have to swallow. Compare that scenario to other people who barely swallow a teaspoonful of water, if any at all – no-one likes a smarty pants 😉

You may even be that person so congratulations or if not I can sympathize and I’m sure you know the kind of person I’m talking about. They effortlessly look at you without moving their head an inch as well as looking like they are barely swallowing – is that you – how do you do that?

It’s certainly not me. I end up doing a special balancing act in my mouth and then attempt to encase the pill in a bubble of water which I hope manages to go down my throat. What normally happens is I swallow the water and the pill stays firmly in place in my mouth melting into a gooey horrible tasting mess. If I’m really lucky it will stay perfectly in shape to give me another chance…or I give up.

Horse
Why do we say it’s the size of a Horse Pill?

It is certainly not my imagination…pills really have increased in size. When you are faced with a ‘horse-pill’ the size of a small cocktail sausage and that horrible feeling of it stuck in the back of your throat going nowhere fast…what can you do to get some relief?

First of all get yourself a pill crusher. There are many different sorts on the market. It’s easy to pop into your bag so that you can crush your pills on the go should you need to. Adding the powder to a flavored drink or apple sauce makes the whole experience much more pleasant.

Not all pills can be crushed so check with your Doctor or Pharmacist for advice or alternatives.

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Travelling Banana Site Icon

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WordPress have just released version 4.3, also known as “Billie”.

One of the new functions of this release, which I’ve already implemented, is the Site Icons feature.

Site icons represent your site in browser tabs, bookmark menus, and on the home screen of mobile devices. Add your unique site icon in the customizer; it will even stay in place when you switch themes. Make your whole site reflect your brand.

So if you are looking at this post (or anything on my website) whilst on your computer or laptop you should now see a mini banana just left of the travellingbanana.com url in the browser.

Can you see it?

If you are on your mobile device such as an iPad or iPhone you can add me to your homescreen using the Add to Homescreen feature.

You will now have a funky smiling banana as an icon. It should look something like this:-

Now you can have a useful visual identification to help you find one of your favorite websites :-)
Now you can have a useful visual identification to help you find one of your favorite websites 🙂 and a convenient link on your mobile device.

If you are visiting from an Android device, let me know the options you have and I will add those instructions here too?

You can find out more about this new WordPress release here

Witch Fingers Grapes

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Whilst in the supermarket the other day I noticed an interesting bag of grapes called Witch Fingers.

Could be a lot of fun to eat at Hallowe'en
A spooky shaped grape. Could be a lot of fun to eat and have around for Hallowe’en

What a uniquely shaped grape! I’ve never come across this variety before.

Apart from the obvious use at Hallowe’en – can you think of any other uses they would be good for?

Have you tried them? Let me know what you think.

The Rose

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My husband bought me a beautiful rose yesterday and being the fragile flower that they are I quickly snapped a few shots to preserve it. It’s holding up well now it’s inside out of the heat and it smells amazing – shame I can’t post the smell here either – maybe one day.

A picture of my sweet smelling rose
A picture of my sweet smelling rose

I was so pleased how the photo turned out. I only had my iPhone 4S with me but it did a great job – or maybe it was the photographer 🙂

Rose perfumes are made from attar of roses or rose oil, which is a mixture of volatile essential oils obtained by steam distilling the crushed petals of roses. An associated product is rose water which is used for cooking, cosmetics, medicine and in religious practices.

The production technique originated in Persia then spread through Arabia and India, and more recently into eastern Europe. In Bulgaria, Iran and Germany, damask roses (Rosa × damascena‘Trigintipetala’) are used. In other parts of the world Rosa × centifolia is commonly used. The oil is transparent pale yellow or yellow-grey in colour.

‘Rose Absolute’ is solvent-extracted with hexane and produces a darker oil, dark yellow to orange in colour. The weight of oil extracted is about one three-thousandth to one six-thousandth of the weight of the flowers; for example, about two thousand flowers are required to produce one gram of oil.

Rose water has a very distinctive flavor and is used heavily in Persian and Middle Eastern cuisine—especially in sweets such as nougat, gumdrops, raahat and baklava.

Rose petals or flower buds are sometimes used to flavor ordinary tea, or combined with other herbs to make herbal teas.

In France there is much use of rose syrup, most commonly made from an extract of rose petals. In the United States, this French rose syrup is used to make rose scones and marshmallows. In the Indian subcontinent Rooh Afza, a concentrated squash made with roses, is popular, as well as rose-flavored ice cream and kulfi.

Rose flowers are used as food, also usually as flavoring or to add their scent to food. Other minor uses include candied rose petals.

Rose creams (rose flavored fondant covered in chocolate, often topped with a crystallised rose petal) are a traditional English confectionery widely available from numerous producers in the UK.

The Local Dog Park

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There are quite a few dog lovers who live in Miami Beach and we also have a number of Bark Parks.

Here are a few furry friends making the most of the sun and green spaces. Not a bad place to exercise and meet the locals!

A Dog and his owner taking a stroll
A Dog and his owner taking a stroll
Chilling with friends in the bark park
Chilling with friends in the bark park
Checking out the green stuff
Checking out the green stuff

Seagulls on the Beach

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Sometimes the seagulls on the beach are interested in what you are doing but are still too nervous to really trust you…unless of course you are carrying food and then they suddenly lose all their fear and become your best friend and slightly possessed!

Seagulls flying mid-air on Miami Beach
Seagulls flying mid-air on Miami Beach
Seagulls in flight
Seagulls in flight
Capturing the Seagulls wing movement
Capturing the Seagulls wing movement
Catching Food
Seagulls catching food scraps
Seagulls
Seagulls

Trees by the Bay

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A selection of trees by the bay that looked interesting in the sunlight. I thought the long grass underneath the trees looked very wispy where the sunshine was coming through.

Trees by the Bay with the sunlight shining through the long grass
Trees by the Bay with the sunlight shining through the long grass
Palm Trees by the Bay
Palm Trees by the Bay
The palm tree fronds shelter you from the hot sun.
The palm tree fronds shelter you from the hot sun.

Raccoons

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Whilst visiting Matheson Hammock State Park, three cheeky Raccoons wandered by to investigate some nearby trash cans.

Raccoons possess amazing dexterity that allows them to open doors, jars, bottles and latches. They are also great climbers, which allows them to better access food and shelter.

 

Three Racoons out for a stroll in Matheson Hammock Park, FL
Three Raccoons out for a stroll in Matheson Hammock Park, FL

Fun Raccoon Facts

  • The raccoon’s scientific name, Procyon lotor, means “washer dog” although it is a closer relative to the bear family.
  • On the mammal IQ scale raccoons rank higher than cats and just below monkeys.
  • The raccoon has the ability to rotate their hind feet a full 180 degrees to allow for their ability to climb down from trees head first.
  • The word raccoon, derived from the Algonquin Indian word “arakun” means “he scratches with hands”.
  • The baby raccoon’s eyes do not open until 20 days or so after birth. It won’t have rings on its tail, or a mask around its eyes, until it’s older.

Activity: Nocturnal in nature, raccoons are mostly active at night. They are most active in spring, summer and fall, and will sleep in their dens for most of the winter.

Social Interaction: Raccoons are independent after 12 – 14 months of age. Adults live in loose knit communities of 4 – 5 raccoons for better protection against predators.

Communication: Raccoons communicate with each other using over 200 different sounds and 12 – 15 different calls.