Dark chocolate

When the media reports that something is good for you that was previously thought not to be good for you, like alcohol, people who use, or abuse, that substance tend to get a little excited. Much has been written about the antioxidant power of red wine, for instance. But the amount of flavenol or reservatrol, or whatever the substance in the skin of a grape is called that would deliver the high dose of antioxidants needed to boost peoples' health is equivalent, I heard, to 90 bottles of wine. A day.

There are, of course, other sources of antioxidant riches. Broccoli apparently has some. But broccoli is not that exciting to eat. Yogurt even has some stomach-balancing property in it. But yogurt, too, is nothing special.

Chocolate, now, has some potential. "Dark" chocolate, as opposed to milk chocolate, also been shown to have some antioxidant properties. When I heard this a year or two ago, I bought some dark chocolate M and Ms. And ate the whole bag - in, I think, two nights.

Over the last three weeks or so, we've (I've) bought some dark chocolate candy bars. Far and away, Whole Foods swiss dark chocolate is the best. Newman's, not so good. Hershey's dark chocolate, decent. Whole Foods, at $1.99 a pop, is outstanding.

The trick is to make it last more than one night.

Powell for President

Colin Powell, the decorated war hero and former secretary of state, told Tom Brokaw yesterday on "Meet the Press" that he is supporting Barack Obama for president, which is better, in my opinion, than supporting John McCain. Obama, despite his relative inexperience, understands that the country must look forward, and as cliche-ridden as it sounds, change. McCain, I'm sorry, just isn't convincing about leading us out of the recession, war, health care crisis, environmental and climate woes, etc. And Obama has a better plan for the middle class, which is helpful to me.

But what sort of troubled me about the announcement was the idea that Powell, who has essentially sworn off public service, or people like him, isn't running for the nation's highest office himself. While Obama is articulate and visionary, Powell is that and so much more. He's seasoned, he's tested, he's accomplished. Obama's intelligent, but Powell is a classic novel to Obama's short story. (McCain would be a letter to the editor...)

It's understandable that Colin Powell does not want to serve his country as president - he's already done so much. But it's depressing that the presidential race never truly garners the best possible candidates - only the candidates who are willing to run, can get their party's backing, raise millions, and are generally popular.

The Leader of the Free World is an awfully powerful title, but a salary of $400,000 a year (which is what a U.S. president makes) seems a touch low, and the toll, physically, emotionally, on the president and his family, isn't always good.

Still, it'd be nice to see a truly intelligent, talented, creative, innovative, tough, and sensible leader - a modern day Rennaissance Man (or woman) - in the White House. For now, I guess, Obama is the best we have.

When you look at who's there now, it's clear to see that it could be worse.

58 degrees just isn't right

My quest to not have to turn on the heat until November came to a reluctant end tonight when I set the upstairs thermostat to 63 degrees, clicking on the oil burner, which you can now hear shuddering in the basement.

The daytime temperature upstairs today dipped to 58 degrees, which may be the reason why noses are running for everyone in my family. It was an act of mercy -- I felt a little guilty when the kids' cheeks were cold in the morning -- and to avoid co-pays at the pediatrician.

But, mostly, I felt a little stubborn.

Let's see how long 3/4 a tank of oil lasts us.

Note: Tomorrow morning, once everyone's up, the heat goes off.

Breaking News!

Well, it's not really breaking, but Education Week, the fine weekly (not daily) paper of the education industry, published my new essay/commentary, titled, "How My Three-Year-Old Taught Me About Education."

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/10/08/07polochanin.h28.html

We're all influenced by corporate giants

I don't know what the economic term is for what I'm trying to say - I just searched briefly on Wikipedia and have come up with nothing - but today, I played a part in the sad financial portrait of the common man when I bought a Dunkin Donuts coffee at Stop and Shop.

This was the first time I've done this, and I detest the idea that Dunkin' Donuts stores are proliferating like mushrooms in my backyard. There are Dunkin' Donuts stores, not only in Stop and Stop, but also in Home Depot. Not to mention D and D stores exist about every two miles, closer than that in some towns.

But I didn't have a coffee with breakfast this morning, and I was craving one. I was grocery shopping with both kids by myself, and was seeking a quick source of pleasure.

The coffee tasted good, but I'm embarrassed to admit having made the purchase in the first place. It's another example of how places like CVS, Stop and Stop, and Dunkin' Donuts - which on are on every corner here in New England - govern our actions and behavior.

Turning on the heat

I'm personally determined to not turn on the heat in our house until October. Today's Sept. 21, and last night and the night before were chilly, quite chilly.

(The thermostat upstairs dipped to 58 degrees both nights.)

We sent the kids to bed wearing layers and everyone slept until 7 a.m., which is later than usual. We broke out extra blankets for everyone's beds.

We have about 3/4 of a tank of oil. It would be nice to not need oil until November, maybe even December. Unfortunately, we're on Automatic Delivery, so I have a feeling the oil company will come when they're scheduled to come. Also, it will get colder soon. I don't think we'd be classified as good parents if the inside temperature dropped to the 40s - that's cold!

The good thing is, today was warm, the outside temperature reaching the upper 70s, and the thermometer got up to 68 degrees upstairs, plenty warm. We closed the windows to seal in the heat after the kids' naps this afternoon. Yesterday, we did not take advantage of the warm daytime temperatures.

It will be a slight defeat when we have to turn on the heat - which we will only do upstairs, for naps and sleeping times. Let's hope for some warm nighttime temperatures!

Last game at Yankee Stadium

I'm watching the last game at Yankee Stadium tonight (Damn, Damon just hit a homerun) because:

1. It's a sad thing for Yankees fans and I like to see Yankees fans sad.

2. If they lose, they will not make the playoffs, and it would be great to see the Yankees clinch their "tragic number" on their home field, playing for the last time there. (Red Sox already won today.)

3. I'm a little intrigued about all the attention that is made of Yankee Stadium, given that it is the pit that it is.

I have been to Yankee Stadium twice this year, and the visits have confirmed for me that the place lacks charm, character, a general feeling of safety, a location in an actual neighborhood, and the excellent close-to-the-field seats and sightlines that Fenway has.

The monstrous, concrete structure that is being built beside Yankee Stadium looks just like the current facility. Looks like not much will change next year for the Yankees when they play home games - they'll be in another uninspiring, soulless excuse for a ballpark.

I'm sorry, was that mean?