Friday, November 13, 2009

Weather? SNOW. W. W . w. .w . .


Good Morning Idyllwild and those lower,

The weather is fall with a whiff of an approaching winter. We had rain in Strawberry Valley last night, but up high, probably above 10,000 feet, certainly above the Saddle, we can see white stuff — snow.

To lifelong SoCal'ers, the white stuff is not sand, no kicking the face, because it's density is to low. It's snow and melts at the beach.

so come on up and vist for the holidays, enjoy a warm fire, good meals, a great paper and a stupendous Christmas Tree lighting next weekend.




Hemet HS Girls' Volleyball

Congratulations to the Hemet High School Girls' volleyball team. They were very good this season and with a nucleus of Idyllwild raised athletes their prospects appear very high for the 2010 season.

They went to the CIF tournament quarter-finals this year, There they encountered an imposing team from Troy Fullerton. They were beaten 3-0.

On Tuesday, they won the first round in the playoffs, but the trip ended quickly last night.

Next year, returning players include Gina Drell, Hayleigh Friemoth and Rosie Robinson who all learned skils at Idyllwild School. In addtion, power player Taylor Griner will make an impact, too.

Below are some photos from Tuesday's game, taken by Michael Drell, Hemet High School and soon the world beyond.

Gina preparing to receive serve.

Hayleigh preparing to block a return.

The Volleyball team's rooting and cheering section! Go Dawgs!!


Saturday, November 7, 2009

Photography

It's very helpful when taking action shots to have someone with you who understands the procedure. This morning at the Health Fair, I was trying to get a pic of Supervisor Jeff Stone giving a flu shot.

My wife, Rita, stopped a gentleman from walking in front of the camera and I was very appreciative for her help. Photographers have their eyes attached to the viewfinder and peripheral vision is liimited.

So how do you like this shot? And guess who is in the middle of the foreground! She's beautiful and always will be, thank you Joshua Kadsen.





Conor O'Farrell

Did you see Monday's LATimes?

Local blogger Conor O'F, noteworthy associate, of the esteemed Frank Ferro, was mentioned in a review of his latest, hope not last, stage performance.

The good news is Conor's future is probably unlimited. The LAT review noticed his talents as many of us have also, "O’Farrell betrays middle-aged disappointment in curmudgeonly sternness". As long as filmdom and the theater needs a grouch, Idyllwild will be well represented.

The play goes for a few more weeks, so rush on down and pay to see the local misantrope. Otherwise, you can communicate with him directly on "
• Frank & Conor: Bad Advice in the Morning"

I also want to mention, that I saw a preview of Steven Speilberg's and Tom Hanks' follow-up to the "Band of Brothers". "The Pacific" will be out in the spring. But the preview starred Conor O'F. He's ubitiquous. I won't reveal anymore "Doc Con".

Sunday, November 1, 2009

High cholesterol medicine may fight flu

Here’s some interesting and, perhaps, beneficial news for those you, like me, who take cholesterol lowering statins. They may improve your odds against the flu.

The results of a recent study, “Role of Statins in Preventing Death among Patients Hospitalized with Lab-confirmed Influenza Infections”, were presented Friday at the annual Infectious Diseases Society of America conference in Philadelphia.

The researchers said, “There is growing evidence that statins have anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects that could reduce the risk of mortality from severe infections.”

They examined the role of statins in reducing mortality in adults hospitalized with lab-confirmed influenza. They analyzed data collected via chart review of patients ≥18 years for two influenza seasons to evaluate the association between receiving statins during hospitalization and death.

Patients who received statins were more likely to be older, male, white and Asian, to have underlying health conditions such as cardiovascular disease and to have been vaccinated against influenza that season. Age and cardiovascular disease were associated with increased odds of death, while administration of statins during hospitalization was significantly protective.

They concluded “Statin use may be associated with reduced mortality in patients hospitalized with influenza.”

Well, we’ll see what future research produces, but maybe there’s a two for one benefit here.