Friday, January 8, 2010

MERCURY

Sister-

I found the packing slip for hair testing thing.
Metamette is the name of the place.
I called them. They said the results were sent back December first?

-Charlie

_______________________

Charlie-

Garry just called me, your results had gotten lost in his office. He gave me a brief overview:
Very high in Mercury, high in barium, copper, calcium, and magnesium.
The major problem is mercury, important to have dental fillings removed which you have already done. Chelation is the next step, 10-15 sessions of IV chelation at $100-$150 a session, one every 1-2 weeks. You can also do oral chelation, but this requires years. Apparently mercury poisoning can mimic MS and ALS.

Garry is going to look into sources of increased barium. Copper does not cause neurological symptoms. The increased calcium and magnesium are not a problem.
Call him tomorrow morning at 10A Just wait for someone to pick up at the end of the voicemail options, and tell them that he is expecting your call.

xo &;-) Sister
__________________________________


John, thank you for your past help. I have another question.

Okay, I had my fillings removed. Whew!
Now, I got the test results back on my hair.

Turns out (according to this test) I have high levels of toxic mercury in my system. I have 2.36 per gram. I am in the fifth quintile...toxic!
(I'm also high in copper and nickel)
So... I guess chelation is next? I don't see Chelation down as procedure you've had.
Any thoughts about hair testing, mercury, and chelation?

Charlie

______________________________________________

Hi Charlie

Yes, I have had hair tests and chelation. Both DMPS and EDTA. I am on a program of natural oral chelation. Since your levels are so high, best go with IV chelation to quickly bring the toxins out. After your levels are reduced, you can then look at oral options to continue the cleansing.

John

____________________________________

Mike Hussey
September 18, 2007

Mercury is a very dangerous poison. Basically, there are three forms of mercury: metallic, inorganic and organic. Although there is considerable debate as to which form is the most harmful, there is abundant evidence that indicates the inorganic form (also called ionic mercury) is the most dangerous. Ionic mercury is also the most difficult to remove from the body and in particular from the brain. Fortunately, few people are exposed to ionic mercury directly - most exposure is indirect. Unfortunately, a number of studies have shown that the other two forms are converted into ionic mercury within the tissues, especially in the brain. Therefore, any and all mercury exposure should be regarded as basically having the same potential.

Many people have suffered and died from mercury poisoning. The following are two incidents of mercury poisoning that gained the attention of the media:

* Mercury was dumped into Minamata bay in Japan from 1932-1968. Over 5,000 people suffered from mercury poisoning and 456 died. Children were born severely deformed and mentally retarded.

* In 1971 50,000 people in Iraq were poisoned and 5,000 died after they ate bread contaminated with mercury.

Although these were dramatic and tragic events the largest sources of mercury poisoning are:

* Dental fillings

* Contaminated fish

* Vaccines

* House paint

Almost 50% of dental fillings are the metallic form of mercury. The American Dental Society, until just recently, covered up the evidence that the mercury was released in vapor form and that 80% of that mercury vapor was absorbed into the body. Several studies have shown that blood levels of mercury rise several times when people with amalgam fillings chew or drink hot liquids. This is significant. Consider that in 1990, the EPA outlawed the use of mercury-filled interior latex paint because studies found that people living in houses covered in this paint had dangerously high mercury levels in their bodies. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) set the safety limit of mercury in the air at 50 ug per cubic meter (50 ug/m3). Measurements of the air in the mouths of people with numerous amalgam fillings have exceeded this level (reaching as high as150 ug/m3). This has particular implications for pregnant and breast feeding women.

Fish and other seafood are contaminated by waste from coal burning furnaces and pesticides and herbicides containing mercury. The sea floor also produces natural sources of mercury. As a result, a large number of previously safe seafood are contaminated with mercury. The mercury enters all sea creatures, but some are more toxic than others. Fish that eat other fish have the highest levels and in general the larger the fish, the higher the concentration. Certain fish should never be eaten, because of their extremely high methylmercury levels. These include:

* shark,

* swordfish,

* king mackerel and

* tilefish.


Select fish and other seafood that are low in mercury, such as salmon (from the Pacific) or pollock, or shrimp. However, Gulf shrimp is contaminated with a number of industrial chemicals as well as mercury, especially since Hurricane Katrina. Although most vaccines had their mercury removed as of 2001, the flu vaccines and the Rho immune globulin vaccine still contain mercury. Vaccines contain a special form of mercury called ethylmercury, which is found within the preservative and antiseptic thimerosal. Recent studies have examined ethylmercury and found that in fact it is much more toxic than methylmercury (the form found in fish). In the brain it is readily converted to the more toxic mercury ion. Vaccines containing mercury are strongly link to autism.

Toxic Effects of Mercury

Mercury is fat soluble and it accumulates in fat containing tissues such as the brain, heart, kidneys and liver. It reacts with a number of important structures and chemicals in the organs. Mercury concentrates in cell nucleus, and in even low doses it can cause damage to DNA. Damaged DNA can lead to cancer and degenerative brain disease. Changes, or damage, to DNA can be passed on to subsequent generations, so any children you have after the damage can inherit the problem or risk it produces.

The heart is especially sensitive to mercury toxicity. One study of people with an often fatal disorder called idiopathic cardiomyopathy found that their heart muscle contained a level of mercury that was 22,000 times higher than that seen in hearts of other people the same age. This disorder causes heart failure and people with the problem can require a heart transplant. The elderly with pre-existing heart disease, who receive yearly flu vaccines, are particularly at risk as the flu vaccines still contain mercury.

The brain is another organ that is particularly sensitive to the accumulation of mercury. Most of us have heard the old saying mad as a hatter. This saying originated from the felt hat industry during the 17th through the 19th centuries. It was commonly observed that people who worked in the industry walked as if they were drunk. They were also quite irritable and exhibited bizarre behavior. It was discovered that a form of mercury used in the manufacture of felt hats was to blame.

Mercury can alter how the brain functions, particularly the memory, concentration, motor control and behavior. Depression, memory loss, moodiness, irritability, a lack of interest in events, a desire to be alone, shyness and outbursts of anger are all signs of mercury poisoning. Low doses of mercury, even for short periods, can cause changes to brainwaves observed on an electrocortigram.

High mercury levels in the brain, blood or spinal fluid has been found in people with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer s and Parkinson s disease and Lou Gehrig s disease. Studies have found that people with Alzheimer s disease have blood mercury levels twice as high as those who were free of the disease. This would also explain the 10-times increase in Alzheimer s disease observed in elderly people who get annual flu vaccines for five years. Several studies have shown improvement in MS patients who had their amalgam fillings removed and subsequently went through chelation to purge them of mercury.

What You Can Do

* Try to avoid mercury as much as you are able, including in atmospheric pollution, dental fillings, contaminated seafood and avoid vaccines that contain mercury.

* If you have concerns you can have your urine, hair and stool checked for mercury levels. If the levels are high (above 10 ug/g of creatine) you can use a chelation agent to remove the mercury.

* Perspiration removes mercury. Exercising will increase the perspiration, but a new study found that exercise redistributes the mercury and this concentrates the mercury in the brain and heart muscle.

* Garlic extract neutralizes much of the toxicity and removes a great deal of the mercury from the brain over time. The advantage of this natural substance over drugs is that it can be taken all the time.

* A purified extract of the Chlorella plant have been shown to chelate mercury, and they can be taken daily.

* Vitamin and mineral supplements are useful. In particular, vitamin E protects DNA against mercury damage. Also alpha-lipoic acid, zinc and selenium have proven roles. Zinc and selenium play a major role in protecting the brain against mercury toxicity. It is thought that selenium protects fish from the damage caused by mercury.

* You need cleanse your body of toxic material, including mercury, so that everything is able to work effectively.

Conclusion Mercury is a dangerous toxin that should be avoided as much as possible. Avoidance is not impossible but does require attention to the sources of mercury discussed above. If you believe you may be suffering from mercury toxicity, possibly because you realize that you have had significant exposure and recognize that you have several relevant symptoms, I recommend you consult a naturopathic doctor who will be able to assess your condition and if necessary, order some tests and recommend appropriate treatment.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

DISPARATE FUNNY ARCHETYPES










I haven't been to the Cup Cake in months.
It glitters with post holiday lights and gold garland strung lazily from the tin ceiling.

I like the Cup Cake and the block of stores that surround it. It is old timey America. There is community here.

It reminds me of Preston Sturges' "Miracle at Morgan's Creek". I just rented it. When I watched it, I luxuriated in the assortment of the American archetypes. I love films (and plays) that embrace the cultural mix in the United States, films and plays like "It's a Wonderful Life", (or recently) "Superior Doughnuts", (Judd Apatow's) "Forty Year Old Virgin" and even "I love You Man". They celebrate disparate, funny, archetypes, united by a chance (at having a go) in this country. It is heartwarming twee (to me).

So I'm in old timey New York. The cafe is often filled with writers, funny looking actors, and languid tourists.

I hobble through the entrance using two canes and greet Oliva who is already here.
We quickly get tea and coffee and sit on a wooden bench facing the large marble table.

Olivia looks lean and fashionable. Look at her graceful motor neurons as she attends to my tea.
(Maybe) she's nervous to see me. It's been six months. I have remained scary and anonymous, me and my fickle blog.
I'm not nervous. My system rarely experiences adrenaline, unless I'm about to fall.

We talk.

I'm having speech problems.
I wonder if this is disconcerting to Olivia but I don't let it stop me from blabbing away.
My thick articulation is kind of intriguing. (Look what happened to me!)

Olivia is busy in her life, full of projects and ideas. A food co-op, some writing, her house and family.

We talk about NYU. (We both worked with the playwriting department) Olivia as a director, me as an actor.
The department seems to be going through a down time, teachers not talking to each other, boring students.

I feel completely removed from the headiness of the striving theatre world.

Theatre is collaborative - cooperative - but it's also a power thing - who's got the ball?
I've tried to pay attention to that - but now - from where I'm sitting - I think - process wins over acclaim. I'd rather "do" than attend to who's got the ball. I've always felt I was a gifted performer. I did try to make my own work but mostly felt like I needed approval to move forward. I should have created my own work. My own writing. I wanted to be part of a collaborative group of artists. This can be joyful but ultimately disappointing. I worked toward that. I waited for that. I have regrets (now).

I tell Olivia that if I could do my life over, if I could get a "do over", I would do MORE, I would never wait for permission and I would steer clear of obstacles.

Olivia is surprised by my regrets.

"I've never know you to be like that. That's not how I've known you to be. "

(It's what I advised ... but not what I've done) I think.

We sip our tea and latte.

Olivia asks me questions about this blog.

"Why didn't you just lock up your bike and get a cab home (referring to a recent entry) instead of walking all that way?"

I try to remember that that entry but instead of thinking of myself, I think of Charlie, of poor Charlie Roberts.
I realize putting it in in a more fictional context makes it easier to elucidate.

"You mean why didn't CHARLIE just lock up his bike and get a cab home? Charlie couldn't lock up the bike and leave it there. The bike meant too much to Charlie. It was cold and he was tired. And he wasn't thinking clearly (maybe)."

We talk for nearly two hours. The cupcake is ideal for losing track of time. It's time to go.

We agree not to let another six months go by and then Olivia disappears out the front door onto the stagey street, the painterly backdrop off Port Authority behind her, her exit down ninth avenue, clearly visible from where I remain on the wooden bench.

I stare into space. The person sitting nearby notices my frozen gaze and offers her newspaper.

"I'm good. I've got a book... somewhere."

I dig out my brand new Kindle and read Middlemarch.

When I walk to the bathroom, Mike (the Cup Cake owner) watches me hobble past his expresso station.

"Whadja do? Break both your feet?"

"I would be thrilled If I had broken both my feet."

Mike laughs, "There's a guy who came in here every day for six months on crutches. Sat in the back with his laptop. Wrote a play. They produced it around the corner and he's in DC right now with a production of that same play."

"Cool".

This is what I will do (I think). I will cab to the Ninth Avenue, hobble my way into the Cup Cake and write... (a play? some story? this blog?) and luxuriate in the the cast of disparate, funny, archetypes.

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

INSOUCIANT

I am weary to bathe, to dress, to find my hat and gloves. I am reluctant to leave the safety of my apartment.
I'm off to the Cupcake.

I know the outside world can reshape my dismal outlook.
I have learned it's good to get out. My troubled thoughts, my cranky body, my withering energy ... are not me.
(The busy city can be medicinal). I order myself to leave. I'm going to meet Olivia at three at the Cupcake.

Jackie is over from down the hall playing Thelma Ritter to my Jimmy Stewart. She gathers my coat, my keys, my messenger bag.

"I feel terrible."

"You'll feel better once you get out."

"How's my hair, Jackie?"

"It's good. It looks nice in the back. Did you wash it?"

I rake my hands through it like it's a full and thick.

"How's that?"

"Good!" says Jackie.

I haven't any vanity (or not much). I don't look in the mirror. I shave in the tub, (once in a while).
I use organic "Dr. Bronner's for everything. I wear what's easiest ... the clothes on the floor. (I wore a bathing suit for two days straight). I can't suck in my stomach, or stand up straight. I can't pull off confidence or cockiness. (I've always liked the word "insouciant"). Insouciance is not possible for me.

But I am determined. So I'm out the door, on the elevator, in the lobby. I'm outside flagging a cab with my cane.
(I can't ride my bike. It's too cold).

Spiro (my doorman) tucks me in a cab. He lifts my legs into into the cab (without asking) and shuts the door.

"You're welcome sir, have a good day, sir" he sings in his (Irish sounding) Albanian accent.

We drive three long blocks and take a right on ninth.

The driver feels sorry for me. (I can tell). The implicit hostility between driver and passenger quickly becomes undoable with my Tiny Tim posturing. The rude cabbie is undone by my dear convalescent. When we pull up to the Cupcake (at 39th and ninth) the driver gets out of the car to help me out of the cab.

As I swing my legs out of the cab, my pant leg gets hiked up above the leg brace I wear on my lower right leg exposing the black carbon splint that holds me up. I ask (with improbable immodesty - I am getting insouciant with my disability - there! I CAN be insouciant! - I ask the cabdriver to roll down my pant leg before I land on Ninth Avenue. There is some small embarrassment for the driver, but I am too insouciant to care.

Monday, January 4, 2010

CUPCAKE CAFE

WORK IN PROGRESS - Taliah Lempert

NEW YEAR'S EVE BIKE RIDE

Sunday, January 3, 2010

BIG TOP

Jackie comes over to help change Aroo's litter box.
I sit on the couch with a ballot, a ball point pen, and a list of the Screen Actors Guild award nominees.

My voice is garbled (tonight). Sometimes, in mid sentence, I sound like a phantom is strangling me.

"Jackie, okay listen, I'll read the nominees and you then say which one you think should win."

"Charlie, I haven't seen any movies this year. You pick."

"Jackie, I haven't seen any of the movies either. We'll just have to guess."

Jackie sits in a blue toile chair with Aroo. I'm on the couch.

I read...

"Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role,

"JEFF BRIDGES in CRAZY HEART" - but through my troubled larynx it sounds like I'm saying... "Jeff Bwidis in Cwazee Harr".

"GEORGE CLOONEY in UP IN THE AIR" becomes "Jor Klune-nee in Op in the Air"

"COLIN FIRTH in A SINGLE MAN" is "Colin Firtha in a Single Man"

"MORGAN FREEMAN in INVICTUS" is "Morgan Freeman in En-vih-tis".

and "JEREMY RENNER in "THE HURT LOCKER" sounds like "Jear-a-meee Renna in The Urt Lochh-er".

I plough through the names like a determined drunk. I'm not frightened of my degeneration. I'm curious.
It's like I'm saddled with a difficult accent for a cool new role.

(Listen to my weakening articulation! Isn't it heart-rending? Isn't my vocal disintegration compelling?)

Vocal articulation, speech, the melody of the voice, is marvelous entertainment.
It deserves the Big Top of physical attractions not the side show.

"Which one Jackie? Wadda ya think?"

Jackie suggests Beau Bridges.

"He's not on the list Jackie, it's Jeff Bridges!"

"Well then Jeff Bridges, I choose him, he's a very good actor. Very serious."

"Well, I'm going to pick Collin Firth (which I pronounce Collin Foouth). "It's his time and I read the book and this movie needs attention."

After we're done with the ballot, Jackie helps me change the sheets on my bed. (I haven't changed them in weeks).

I say to Jackie (as I order her around my bedroom "Get the blue bedspread from the top shelf, flip the feather mattress and then lets put the mattress pad OVER the feather bed, otherwise the feathers poke through the sheets... whoever thought I'd need help making my own bed. Who could have ever predicted that?"

Saturday, January 2, 2010

The "F" Word

The morning before New Year’s Eve Jackie walks into my apartment.

“Hi Jackie.”

“Good morning Charlie! It’s a beautiful day out there. You gonna get on your bike? Look at the flags out there? The flags in front of the building? They’re not waving. No wind. That's good! Where’s Aroo? How’s Aroo?”

“He’s bored Jackie. He’s been waiting for you. All he thinks about is himself. It’s all about Aroo, Jackie."

“What?! Where’s his brush. He needs a brush. Aroo?”

Jackie finds Aroo’s brush and I stay fixed on the end of my couch, my feet inserted in my new $250 foot massager. The massager (made in China) both vibrates and grips! I surrender (bare chested in boxers-an immodest invalid)- staring at nothing, as the machine clutches, buzzes, and makes its preprogrammed "ka-chunk, ka-chunk" noises.

“Oye” I say to the void.

“Jackie... there really is no other word that can compete with "oye'. I mean what do non-jews have?
Geese?”

"There's the "F" word. People use the "F" word."

"Yeah, but everyone uses that. It's not confined to a specific culture. What Yiddish words do you know?"

Jackie brushes Aroo. "Well... there're shlemiel and shiksa?”

I try to come up with the word Mensch but I can't think of it. A guy at work used to tell me I was a real mensch. It sounded (to me) like he didn’t respect me and when he explained that it meant I was a really nice guy, I couldn’t help but think he was actutally saying... I was a pushover.

"How bout agida?" I offer.

"No, agida is Italian. It means that you've got really bad heartburn, indigestion."

(Ka-chunk, ka-chunk goes the foot massager. Purr goes the cat).

“Jackie, I’m reading a book by someone you know and love.”

“Is it Oprah?”

“No”

“Barbara Walters?”

“No. He’s very handsome and his initials are T.C.”

“John Garfield?”

“No Jackie! T.C. T.C. The initials are T.C!

"What I can't guess. I'm no good at games. What Charlie?"

Alright I'll tell you. Tony Curtis. I’m reading about the making of “Some Like it Hot.”

Oye.

Tony Curtis. I don’t know... he’s so full of himself. They slept together, he and Marilyn Monroe, during the shoot. He'd just had a baby. I don’t know. Oye. I think he was pretty full of himself.”

“A free spirit Charlie. Tony Curtis is a free spirit. You can’t fault him. He just likes to live free.”
Jackie defends Tony Curtis like we're talking about a first cousin or beloved ex-husband.

"And Marilyn? Jackie, Marilyn Monroe was a mess, the drinking, the pills...”

“Well, booze and pills will do that to you Charlie." Jackie makes a comically tragic face like we were talking about her instead of Marilyn Monroe. "She was hooked on booze and pills and ... MEN. All those men... Charlie, men can really mess with you.
Let me do some dishes. I want to do some dishes.”

Jackie moves to the sink.

“What are you doing for New Year’s Jackie? Do you have any New Year resolutions?”

“Well, I’m going to really try to live in the moment Charlie. Like that Ekhart Tollel says. I’m going to live in the now and I’m not going to do anthing that I don’t want to. There! That’s my New Year's resolution. You? What about you? Wadda you got planned?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m capable of doing. This week I'm wiped. I feel like I have the flu."

(I've felt so lethargic (this week) that my fatigue trumps any guilt of laziness).

“Well" Jackie suggests "You said you wanted to swim every day. You can put THAT on your resolution list!”

I nod sullenly, "that's true".

“And you’ll write a book. Charlie, I wish you’d write a book. You were born to write.”

“Jackie, no I wasn’t. That's not true. You got that wrong. I just started writing this year. I’ve never written anything. I’m just writing a little blog. That’s it. I’m an actor.”

“Then Charlie, you should ACT! Do a voice over if that’s what you want to do. You know all about show business. I don’t. I never got anywhere but you did. Call them up and tell them you want to do a voice over!”

“I have to focus on this illness.”

“You know what Charlie? You want my opinion?

F*ck ALS.

I think you should do what you want, and eat what you want, and drink what you want, and stop taking all of those vitamins! I don’t know anything Charlie I’m just telling you what I would do. I say F*ck ALS!"

The drama of Jackie's proclamation has induced an uninvited grin across my face. And then Jackie’s cell phone rings (or plays some fifties rock song).

“It’s Bruce my son-in-law. I gotta take this."

The foot massager "ka-chunks". The cat purrs. Jackie takes her call.

"Charlie, I gotta go. They’re going to pick me up. "NOW!" Bruce says. I really hate that. No warning. It's just "be ready". Don’t I have a life? Aren't I somebody I’m just supposed to jump like some I'm some trained animal or something!! I’ll see you later Charlie or tomorrow. Good bye Aroo- roo- roo.”

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Christmas Day 2009


Christmas Day 2009
Originally uploaded by Charlie Roberts

Monday, December 28, 2009