Subclinical long COVID

As reiterated here, COVID19 could leave a sequel called long COVID at small but definitely certain number of patients. SARS CoV2 could damage neurogenesis at hippocampus, which results in neurological as well as psychiatric symptoms as posted earlier.

Here is another paper, preprint one, that depicts there could be subclinical long COVID. They have tested the patients with negative control with NIH Toolbox, which offeres comprehensively neurological, psychiatric and developmental tests. The COVID19 patients without subjective complaints of long COVID could suffer subclinically from long COVID. 

The prognosis and course of long COVID is not well known yet. Dependent on the diathesis for senile dementia, a part of those cases could develop dementia when they get older.

Nothing is better than prevention of COVID19 and taking the vaccine. In our country, long COVID is intentionally ignored by the government/MHLW.    

https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.22.22280222v1

An old photo and garden work around equinox

My sister has sent me another copied photo. It shows a group of people, about a dozen of people, a few working at and some visiting from a certain city to the sanatorium, where I was born and grown up for the first few years. It was early '50s. My sister told me we were called to let one of the visitor take a photo. We might have gathered there. I could not recall that situation. But, on the backgrouund of us, the pine trees standing at regular interval with cottage like tiny houses for the patients lined among them look very familiar to me. I was around 4 years of age while sister around 6 or 7 and younger brother in toddlerhood or infancy. We were all poor. My sister told me she had envied the white sandal a visitor's daughter wore. She was naked feet.

I could not help smiling at my father. He must be abruptly called from working in the farm. He was sunburnt with his face getting dirty, possibly, with soil. He also wore very simple trousers and white shirt with one or two lower buttons not fastened. A big straw hat was on his head. That clothing and outlook is exactly the same as I have had in the summer. 

Again, we were poor. But everyone looks hopeful and brilliant. 

Having scanned that copy, I could not covert the pdf file to jpeg etc. The computer program of scanning compulsorily leads to a software which I could use only after paying some money to the software company A****. No thanks. So sorry but I could not post the photo here.

On the equinox day, with a typhoon gone, it is getting quite cool. My mother used to say "The autumn sun sets as quickly as a bucket dropping into a well". Yes, she has grown up in the days when they were using underground wells drawing out the water with buckets. The bucket was set at one side of a balance made of bamboo. They drew up the water with that balance. The bucket fell quickly into the water in the well when the balance was freed. 

Her saying also means not only how fast the sun set in but also how fast the fall season progressed into winter. As a farmer, I feel that fast transition of seasons now. Seeding and planting the winter vegetables as well as harvesting the summer veggies keeps me quite busy.

Cosmos is coming out. They are swaying elegantly from breeze.

              

                             

In close up. They are growing from spontaneously sown seeds.

A flower of clustger amaryllis. There used to be a lot of them at a corner of the garden. Intentionally or unintentionally, most of them were removed. My wife doesn't like its artificial outlook. It's still a precious flower telling the arrival of equinox season.

Fall potatoes. Growing only with a small amount of fertilizer. The fruits will be the material for cooking until next spring.

Radish baby plants. Should be care for any insects eating the leaves. Growing pretty fast.

So things go on in the same way. My sister said she was happy that I was still here caring for the plants etc at the very same place all of us were born and grown up. I replied to her I sometimes asked myself how long I go on working here at this place. A bit too large property for a 73 years old goat. Writing that complaint to her, I still realize things will go beyond our thoughts. In decades, everything will not keep the same outlook as it is now. It is beyond our responsibility. Just doing own duty to care for the land. Without anxiety for the future, it turns to be a pleasure for me.  

 

Season for chestnut cooking

The season of falling chestnuts has started. Chestnuts themselves or in burrs are falling on the ground. It sounds like thudding. I am sometimes surprised at that low pitched sound. Now I have realized it was that season.

It is almost 40 years old chestnut tree which bear so many fruits in fall. As I already told elsewhere, my father liked trees bearing fruits. This chestnut tree, two persimmon trees, three ume trees, one japanese apricot and others. They are still growing in the property. Fruit bearing trees are told not suitable for garden. But since he experienced the days of food deficit after WWII, he has still planted those trees at his home here. 

I could not help being sometimes embarrassed to have so many chestnuts at one time. I still collect them on the ground and would peel the outer skin to be preserved. It has been a hard procedure to peel it as you may know. I was taught about a peeler named Kurikuribouz, shown in the left picture, which stands for a boy peeling the chestnut skin in a kind of humorous sense in our language. I have got it and found quite useful to do the procedure by myself. Smooth and safe.  

This amount of chestnuts have become a material for chestnut rice shown as below.

I believe it is one of the best rice cooking. However, it seems too sweet for my wife. And I am the main consumer of this cooking.

How many times should I go on peeling them and storing them in the refrigerator? And how to cook them. It is the problem. Being boiled, they taste great. They might be used for confection as well. It is a source of high caloric food anyway.

Collecting the fallen fruits on the ground and then sweeping the fallen leaves beneath the tree. 

Fall is being deepened in this way here. 

My wife will turn to be 70 years tomorrow

My wife will turn to be 70 years of age tomorrow. It is like a dream. It's been 51 years since I saw her first at the orientation of the medical university. She was a shyfaced country girl in miniskirt. I barely thought she would be my wife then. No one should think of our future, I believe. There have been ups and downs for ourselves. More downs maybe for her. She finally decided to retire next spring. She has been trying to find out someone who would take over her practice. It turned out to be too difficult financially and practically. I believe it is a right decision. She has the right to live leisurely for herself all after hectic days at work.

She might get angry if she knew I have posted this photo taken in the days of engagement with me. Now it is over the period of the right of portrait for now.

I would support her by any means. As I promised her to in our engagement days.

Grow old together believing in better days ahead. I will celebrate the day tomorrow with sushi and a piece of cake.

Long COVID and Neurogenesis

This is an impotant article regarding neuropsychiatric sequelle of COVID19, the most important symptoms of long COVID. 

SARS CoV2, the pathogen of COVID19, disrupts the blood brain barrier. Then inflammatory cytokines cause inflammatory lesions at various sites of CNS. One of the targets is the neuronal stem cell at the hippocampus. It is the stem cell destined to differentiate to neuron; that is, the process of neurogenesis. This seems to be the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric symptoms long lasting after the acute infection. 

The symptoms caused by this mechanism are typically cognitive dysfunction and depressive disorder. For elderly, it might be a predisposing factor for dementia.  

https://academic.oup.com/brain/advance-article/doi/10.1093/brain/awac270/6672950

In our country, the long COVID is not well recognized yet even though it occurs in 10 to 30% of cases. The epidemiological data in the US and the UK tell that 1 to 2 % of all workers could not go on working due to the long COVID. I suspect our government intentionally ignores of that sequelle which could be a serious problem for the patient as well as for the burden to social security in the future.

At present, Omicron variants seem to overwhelm in the Eastern Asia area like Japan, Korea or Taiwan while they are not so ominous in the Western countries. Most of the cases are mild and the fatality rate is not very high. But with its dramatically high infectiousness, the surge could be really big and could cause collapse of medical system as we have experienced for the past few months. This could be explained with immunogenetic standpoint of view. It reminded me of the drastic epidemic in the Western counries at the beginning of this pandemic while it was of limited range and severity in the Eastern Asia. No one knows there could be another surge with a new variant with different infectiousness and immunological evasiveness.  

One more personal impression on this issue. When I was a student, we were taught the neuronal tissue won't be regenerated or even newly generated in adulthood. Since 1990s, it seems the concept of stem cell, that is, neurogenesis, was applied to certain phenomenon as that in the hippocampus. In animal model, it was observed in olfactory system. Reading the paper quoted above, I was even moved to know the stem cell system works in adulthood brain. When I was working as a resident, the stem cell concept was found in differentiation of blood precursor cells. That neurogenesis is involved in memory function. Cognitive disorders could be elucidated as the disorder of this neurogenesis, if not all. I am sure researchers must be excited at this perspective open to them now. 

My own neurogenesis is being deteriorated year by year. But I should stir the neuronal stem cell to follow such exciting new knowledge.

Harvest in fall and menace to food deficiency

Summer vegetables like pumpkins, sweet melons and so forth have almost been all harvested for now. Vegetables in cubercutaceae requires large space, I have again learned this summer. They have elongated their vines enormously in rainy weather when I could not check them. Some of them have become like jungle. Some pumpkins are growing in the hedge like this or in the other bushes of trees.

It was also tricky to decide when sweet melons should be harvested. Some of them were overmatured. Five fruits were harvested while a few are still in the farm. They used to be eaten by crows. But no damage from them this year. Maybe, our cat, Hikaru has successfully surveyed them not to come. They are too many for us to eat as dessert every evening. One will be brought to a friend of mine while the other will be given to an employee at my wife's office. Hopefully, they turn out to be well ripened.  

Pumpkins are like in festival. I have not counted them all yet. Maybe, around 2 dozens. 

I have tried all the recipies with these pumpkins. Simmered pumpkin for a few times, which is a common family menu in Japan. One of them was fried. And a few other menus. This pumpkin soup was new to me. Rich flavored delicious soup. Even though I won't repeat it so often. It is different from our tradition.

Now I am getting ready for fall/winter vegetables. Using compost, but least fertilizer, I plow a series of tiny farms in the garden. The main species is potatoe. The brassica family would follow soon. Onions should not be forgotten. 

The global warming and the occurence of war are threatening the production of farming foods world wide. Our country is one of them threatened in the worst way. For the people in our country, worsening inflation is another critical issue since the food self sufficiency rate is only 37%. Our country is told to suffer more than African countries if world wide deficiency of food is realized. In this situation, our government is eager at military expansion. They are manufacturing more than 1000 of middle ranged missiles which will be deployed in the southern islands aiming at China. Most of the people aren't aware of this crisis, either.

I could do only little against that crisis. All I could do is just plowing the ground and seeding vegetables there.

 

A few additions

I was pleased to hear a lot of sympathy to me having decided to quit radio. Especially from old friends. But I am afraid it has caused a disturbing emotion in some of them. Possibly, I should have quit it keeping the saying in mind that old soldiers just go away. Anyway, I appreciate all the comments and mails to me.  Recollecting the long period I have shared with them, I read them with most gratitude.

It might be superfluous to add a few more things to the previous post. It is still what I have thought about CW for the past years and often mentioned about them in this blog. I would gild the lily even though I am not sure the previous post was a lily at all. 

Regarding the scientific elucidation of Morse Code reception. I am regretful I haven't finished summing up researches of Morse Code reception process and proposing my own idea. I dreamed to bring it written in scientific words. I am not a researcher or even a scientist any longer. Just an amateur for science or psychiatry necessary to depict it. Since I have devoted to Morse Code communication for such a long time, I still would like to continue paying efforts to materialize it. The importance of expectation in Morse Code reception has been reported in psychological research by a group in Spain recently. It was comparable to my analogy between Morse Code reception and listning to music. But it seems the researchers are not CW operators, or proficient in Morse Code reception by themselves. I wish someone proficient in CW as well as in brain science/psychology would be involved in this field of research. Without grammar, Morse Code is not a language itself. Comparison of Morse Code is often claimed by some CW operators, but it is just a system of simplest codes for communication. It must be investigated in epistemological as well as scientific term. Even if it is extinguished in practical communication like ham radio, it could survive as an object for that purpose, I believe.

It takes us much energy and time to master CW. If new comers believe the pleasure of communication with CW surpasses the amount of efforts to master it, they would carry it on. I guess, without that, they won't be interested in conversational CW. CW operators should verbalize what makes them enchanted with. It may help conversational CW to survive in ham radio. It may make young fellows feel it's worth paying efforts to become proficient with CW. If old timers talk about CW from their nostalgia, I am afraid, it won't move young fellows. In this respect, I should have put more effort in it. It is another regret for me. I hope CW proficient and conversation oriented operators to talk concretely about their pleasure in CW. It is not easy but worth doing. 

So that is it. I may return to the garden farm, where I should plant fall/winter veggies for now. It is not the time of my funeral yet!

Farewell for now, at least, at present

It's been a couple of weeks since I have my ham radio station licence lapsed. I have been wondering if I should renew it or not for the past months. I made up my mind not to renew it sevral weeks before its expiration.

Ham radio has been an essential part of my life since I started it in 1963. Except for during '70s when I was a med student and, later, a resident, it has always occupied a large part in my mind. I have known a lot of good friends through it and have had exciting time together with them. Why have I decided to quit it? 

The most important reason is that ham radio, especially my having beloved mode of communication, that is, CW, has undergone drastic change for the past one or two decades from my point of view. I have been interested in ragchewing on CW as you may know. I used to enjoy every aspect of CW, from contesting to ragchewing. As I get older, my interest has been focused in "tell me your story" type QSOs. I believe CW as a communication mode gives us a pleasure when expectation of the message sent to me turns out successful. It is comparable to the pleasure in music which we feel rewarded in the same expectation. Unfortunately, year by year, such operators have been decreasing in number. CW has become a mode for quick and instataneous QSOs. Every evening, taking a glass of beer, it was a habit for me to call CQ on 40m expecting such a "tell me your story" type QSO, which was quite common back in '80s through '90s. Lately, I found myself turning off the switch oftener in despair.     

I should add that most CW QSOs have become two way monologue these days. I won't humiliate any person at all but believe I have often become one of those two way monologue operators. This may reflect aging in the CW operator population. i have enjoyed any long story from friends if I knew them well. But it was, I should admit, a torture for me to be forced to listen to stories from anyone whom I have not known well. This might be a subtle but prevailing issue among CW operators.

Maybe, ham radio has undergone a drastic change which I could not catch up with. It has made me inclined to quit this hobby. For the few winter months this year, I have been quite active on the bands to ascertain whether my decision to quit ham radio was right for me or not. I have concluded my decision was right and was not due to a temporary mood.

The other reason for quitting radio was the mess in licencing system in our country. I won't repeat it here. This is an event typical for such dysfunction or corruption in administration widely observed in various aspects in our country. It is inactivating our society in bad manner, I am afraid. If you should be interested in such a problem, pay a look to this previous post in this blog.

http://nuttycellist-unknown.blogspot.com/2020/11/ham-radio-licensees-are-steadily.html

Later, I heard the administration office has postponed or withdrew that ridiculous regularion. It has not changed my mind. When I heard of this concession story for the bureaucrats and the related organization/manufacturers, I have firmly made up my mind not to be involbed in this system any more.

I have been active in the garden outdoor in the daytime and in the evening, I occupy the kitchen preparing dinner while taking a glass of beer as usual. Not much difference and change in my life since I quit radio. But a few days ago, I have had a strange dream. It was that I had talked to an operator in a club station unknown to me, possibly certain school station. Funny enough, it was on 40m phone. Just like when I started radio with a tiny set up of 6AQ5 transmitter with a 5 tube receiver and a low dipole fed with ladder line. It might be only a recollection of such old days or still could be a desire to come back in subconsciousness. I don't know. If the licence system is deregulated to the level of most other countries or I sure would like to come back to it, I might set up a smaller set up and return to this hobby again. So I would say it is only an intermission even though I don't know when it will be finished.

I have hesitated to post about my decision to friends. It might be an unpleasant and even upsetting news to some of them. But, in belief that I should inform you expressing my gratitude for your friendship with me for decades, I have finally made it. We might get in touch with through this internet, which has replaced our hobby away, or by traditional post mail. Time still goes on. We should get ready for the end of our lives. 

Of course, I would carry on activities in this blog or in Facebook. Any news from you will be appreciated there.

Growing old

A few flowers of Marie Gold in the garden are starting to wither to change to seeds for the next season. Not only at night but also in the daytime, the breeze feels cool and comfortable now. These changes might usher in the arrival of fall soon. 

When working hard in the garden, as I might have already written, I feel I have become "myself" without any acquired positions in my life. I could be free from desire or yearning for anything then. 

It might be a blessing in life when we could achieve in aged years. When we get older, we are apt to lose our capabilities which we have fought for in young days. But there is still such a blessing in elderly.

Recently, I was deeply moved by the fact recently that the 1st music of St. Matthew's Passion by Bach, a music of the largest scale ever among the prologue musics in Passions in the history and summarizing the content of the music, had been expressed as realization of the Song of Solomon. It shows the drama of Passion that Jesus would be crucified for our sin. I have known of this fact as a knowledge since young days. But the comparison of crucification of Jesus with the Song of Solomon sounds poignantly realistic to me. It is an absurdity and absolute paradox in life. Being able to understand it might be thanks to my age. 

Growing old is sometimes a hard thing but not necessarily always.

Hurrying up planting the vegetables for the fall and the winter upcoming soon.