Month: November 2020

November 30, 2020

by drplasticpicker

I really like Retireby40’s recipes. I had seen this recipe and watched his video a few months ago. Click here to read his recipe or watch him cook in the original https://retireby40.org/sahd-cooking-pad-thai/. If you want “authenic” pad thai, cook it Joe’s way. What I loved about this blogpost was when he explained “Pad Thai requires quite a few specialty ingredients. It might be hard to cook a 100% authentic Pad Thai. But Pad Thai is an adopted dish anyway so I think it’s perfectly fine to use local ingredients.” And with that blessing from the financial blogger who is authenitically Thai-American, your pediatrician felt at liberty to experiment. I’ve now made Modified Pad Thai three times, and yesterday it turned out really well. The kids were very happy.

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November 29, 2020

by drplasticpicker

I’ve been asked this question many times in clinic. I have relented at times and given parents the correct doses and timing for melatonin. I think I know more about melatonin than most pediatricians just because I’ve read two articles on it, and I used to work in a sleep research group. Being an endocrine research fellow in a sleep research group gave me more confidence to give advice on sleep.

Here are two articles I recommend you read on melatonin before you even consider giving it to your child. One, is from HealthyChildren.org and the American Academy of Pediatrics https://healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/sleep/Pages/Melatonin-and-Childrens-Sleep.aspx and one is from Dr. Craig Canapari, my old friend from residency and a Nationally Recognized Pediatric Sleep Expert and Pediatric Pulmonologist https://drcraigcanapari.com/should-my-child-take-melatonin-a-guide-for-parents/. Here is the scientist that I worked with on sleep research, he is currently the chief medical officer at the FDA Office Division of Metabolism and Endocrine Products https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Giovanni_Cizza2 . That’s actually a really important position.

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November 28, 2020

by drplasticpicker

I am always eager to get up in the morning (its 4:44 AM, yes three 4s in a row) to write to you. This morning I got up trying not to wake Mr. Plastic Picker or irritate the 12-pound poodle fur ball that sleeps with us as well, But very little will deter me from sitting in front of the computer tapping away on my laptop. I turn on the electric hot water kettle, check on my vinegar projects (which sits on the shelf under the coffee station) and give it a quick stir, and then settle down to write. Literally this morning I woke up and thought, “what nonsense can I write about this morning?”

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November 27, 2020

This is the second year we cooked on this National Holiday. Last year we cooked our first Thanksgiving Turkey and had the resulting yumminess of turkey broth and turkey soup afterwards https://drplasticpicker.com/cooking-a-turkey-saved-money-used-less-plastic-and-finally-felt-at-home/. The entire home-made feast cost us $22 with plenty of leftovers for my parents house and our large household of six.

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November 26, 2020

by drplasticpicker

I’m nominally a Physician Personal Finance Blogger. I’m on Crispydoc’s blogroll. Let me check to make sure I’m still there. https://www.crispydoc.com/physician-finance-bloggers/ Yep, still there. I like how CrispyDoc describes me, ” Dr. Plastic Picker is a self-described ‘wannabe financial blogger’ aiming to FISE (Financial Independence, Save the Earth). Written by a pediatrician and mom, this half of a west coast dual MD household is passionate about saving money and the planet.” That’s me. I’m actually a wannabe financial blogger because I don’t think physicians are the best equipped people to give other physicians financial advice. Did I just say that? Yes I did! You can listen to Dr. McFrugal. He gives solid advice. https://www.drmcfrugal.com/ I don’t like the travel hacking part of his blog, because this encourages folks to spew carbon into the air. But the minimalism and plant-based eating is point on. No one is perfect, not even Dr. McFrugal. His family is pretty adorable though.

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November 25, 2020

by drplasticpicker

My thesis in life now is that we can figure it out. We can figure this climate crisis out, and how to live a rich and meaningful life within the limits of what our climate can withstand. Indeed, we can live a regenerative life. I have been reading more about the circular economy versus a linear economy. I think it’s all the Story of Stuff Videos that keep on popping up on my facebook feed. But it’s true, we can be part of a circular/closed-loop/no waste economy and life. John Kerry has now been named as the special presidential envoy for climate as CNN writes “underscoring Biden’s commitment to tackling the global crisis.” John Kerry is a former presidential candidate and former secretary of state. To name a senior stateman like him means a lot. I rewatch Greta Thunberg’s UN speech periodically to remind myself of the fear that our children have and she said “You have to speak clearly.”

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November 24, 2020

by drplasticpicker

Flaxseed and Raisin Muffins. I have ground flaxseed that I needed to use up. We also have too much wheat flour and organic raisins. I offered Dr. Dear Friend a new 2 lb bag of Organic California Grown Sun-Maid Raisins, but I discovered that Dr. Dear Friend does not like raisins. She also does not like mushrooms, but loves cucumbers. We were going on our walk around the HMO parking lot, visiting the three wild rosemary bushes, the guerilla composter project soon to be succulent garden, and the new breezy shaded nature path I found. This is when I learned about how she does not like raisins. So with that excess of ingredients, I was inspired to make muffins today. I Ecosia (not Googled) a recipe and modified a recipe from Diabetes Forecast http://www.diabetesforecast.org/2009/feb/recipes/flax-seed-and-raisin-muffins.html and opted out of the splenda and just put in real sugar and honey.

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November 23, 2020

by drplastipicker

Everything is on the internet. My father taught me that. If you can wade through the disinformation, you can just about Ecosia (not Google) anything. Supplementing it with real-world advice from friends and experts is good. The reason you can learn everything and anything on the internet, is that the internet is just a virtual echo of us.

I’ve tried to do yoga in the past, and it just didn’t work. I would open my eyes and peak at the others around me. I can’t exercise in a group. I just can’t. This is why I’ve always been a solo runner and a solo beach cleaner. If I do group workout sessions or group litter-picking sessions, I don’t feel restored. Fundamentally being with others depletes my energy. I’d rather be alone. I’m fundamentally an introvert. This is the polar opposite to my younger sister. This all makes sense now. I blog in the early morning and in the silence of my kitchen. She started a podcast at her kitchen table chatting with her neighbor, and is rejuvenated from this.

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November 22, 2020

by drplasticpicker

Isn’t that picture above pretty? It’s a collection of my container gardening project. The picture at the end of the post is the 2nd picture of my container gardening project. My mother-in-law and mother are avid gardeners, and I have never been able to grow anything in my life. But these new adventures through blogging have made me excited to try new things. I realized that I could learn new things, and I ventured into gardening. My sister is a very insightful and a thoughtful person, and she said that this is common for accomplished people. You reach a point in your career where you reach mastery, and embracing a new venture or trying to acquire a new skillset is important for that personal renewal. I think this is why I became Dr. Plastic Picker in my 40s.

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November 21, 2020

by drplasticpicker

We watched Ocean’s Eleven yesterday. It was the Friday night after finishing the trimester, and the kids wanted a typical Friday movie night which we hadn’t done in a while. I didn’t take any photos or post on Facebook and Instagram, which made my tween daughter happy. She’s suspicious of my social media postings. We had her 2nd pizza from the dough she made last week, and again it was so fluffy! It had been a busy clinic day. I haven’t been monitoring most people’s schedules which I need to do sometimes as Assistant Boss, but gosh I’ve been busy. I wasn’t able to get to my 330pm virtual appointment until well after 5pm because I had lots of teen physicals and put in an implantable birth control in a patient. When I got home at 615pm or so, which is not bad but it’s so dark these days, the family had just started eating. So I got to have a slice of homemade pizza which was simply the most fluffy piece of pizza deliciousness and some salad. We moved onto movie and bagged carmel and chedder Costco popcorn we had purchased in bulk. The movie was really good with only a couple of scenes where Mr. Plastic Picker had to stand in front of the TV waving his arms at inappropriate parts. I actually did watch the whole movie and didn’t fall asleep. It was fun to see Brad Pitt and George Clooney is their hey-day.

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