TAXI VAMPIRE

I might posit that the 3 biggest health threats that confront an average cabbie are smoking, bad diets and lack of exercise, in my case, working the graveyard shift will be lower levels of vitamin D. Which,besides bone growth,seems new studies link deficiency to colon cancer and heart disease.

Long hours sitting and driving around to make a living certainly has its rewards but there are some serious opportunities to fill in the voids with a series of self-destructive behaviors.

Smoking cigarettes can be a huge health detriment and with, at times, the nightly doldrums, it is easy to smoke a pack or more a day. Quitting is brutal, and though there is not much data on vaping, it must be less a detriment to your well-being. Your dentist will applaud your smoking and sugar cessation. Bad gums, periodontal disease is a very expensive non-reversible condition that has also been linked to heart disease. Giving up tobacco products has an immediate beneficial impact on all aspects of health. And with the adherence to a better diet and exercise regimen a much-improved outlook on life, a more solid footing in terms of mental health.

The next mouse trap to avoid are fast food places. I will not name them; for what I think and believe about them, is most unkind. The obesity and diabetes rates: especially in our young are abhorrent, and these purveyors of poison bear much responsibility. Parents are not providing happy meals they are promoting child abuse in my view and what drives this and and the tobacco industry is just straight up immoral and unadulterated greed. Thank goodness we have Big Pharma to provide expensive drugs for high blood pressure, high cholesterol and valium so we don’t give a crap! So please try to eat healthier and consume less sugar. We could look at this sugarcane industry in Florida and deduce the dying wildlife on our beaches might be a by-product. Be smart! Live longer! Be happier!

The one thing we have more control over would be exercise. I just sit in a cab all day and do find that going to a gym is a hard choice to make. So, after I stopped smoking and changed my diet to a much healthier one,I still was not really losing any weight. My blood work came back up mostly okay. Low on Vitamin D and a bit high on a thyroid test. So, first thing I try to do here in sunny Saint Augustine Florida is to find a spot to meditate and absorb the rays. This I believe turns the cholesterol on the skin, the largest organ we have on our body, into”D”; hence its nickname the sunshine vitamin.

Depending how things go eventually I might venture over to the amphitheater where I try to do a bit of jogging and some simple exercises. Jury is still out but I do need to lose weight, so my blood pressure drops a bit. I would rather not contribute to Big Pharma, tobacco, fast food or the sugar cartels. Unfortunately, I am still beholden to the oil companies, but we are trying to work on that.

Some other health obstacles a cab driver might face will be drugs, alcohol, gambling and hookers. If you are a highly addictive personality having cash daily can breed some very expensive and unhealthy habits. Be smart and manage your addictions wisely if you find yourself in any of these mouse traps.

The job itself can be addicting. Cash every day, some of the seedier and tastier side of life. Just like in anything we do: moderation is the key.

The American Culinary Federation “ACF” national headquarters is in the World Golf Village section close to Saint Augustine and this organization certifies the many layers of the cooking industry. From nutrition to bakers to chefs.

Many years ago, I made it to Certified Executive Chef took some pastry courses worked hard in hot kitchens ate a plethora of sauces from the Hollandaise/Béarnaise/Maltese, Béchamel, Beurre Blancs and my all-time favorite Espagnole or brown sauce. Working in fine dining restaurants have many delicious options most of which are deadly. I used about 12 cases of butter and about the same heavy cream a week. We had Prime rib, Veal chops, lobster, shrimp, grouper, blue and Dungeness crab, stone crab claws, Tournedos<tiny filet> Americaine<lobster and Hollandaise> and Tournedos Rossini<filet with force fed goose liver pate, mushrooms, brown sauce and Béarnaise. I was a cholesterol pumper of food but it sure tasted good.

Anthony Bourdain had it right. Addicting conditions can lead to addictions. Highly competitive, alpha dog mentality, tough job but extremely rewarding when done well. Sui-Generis individuals striving for Arete!

Even with the copious amounts of beer and alcohol consumed perhaps because of the amount of liquids we lost sweating in these incredibly hot boxes called kitchens I was never too overweight. But now that I seldom drink and never consume illicit narcotics, quit smoking, eat healthy though I grow fat in my cab. Perhaps it is age?

So, exercise is my next step and will soon put in a basketball court for some high impact workouts and a swimming pool for lower intensity fitness and perhaps help attract the hookers.

Life changes are good but do not always go as planned. However; we all need to take our health much more seriously. The more we try the less we will need to rely on doctors, hospitals and pharmaceuticals. Moderation is the key.

Now go out and get shitfaced, do a few lines, get a few crystal meth burgers, smoke your coffin nail, maybe a joint. Please don’t drive, call a cab if you want to get home safely. But if you really need to gamble:try an Uber!