TempletonnewsletterDec2011

“Dedicated to Excellence” Vol. 11, Issue 141 December 2011

Templeton Christmas Party

Dec. 15, 2011

Dec 3, 2011

www.templetonstrokerecovery.com

Templeton Newsletter Mailing Address:

204– 2929 Nootka Street, Vancouver, BC V5M 4K4 Canada

Published every month, if possible. Contributions are always welcome. The articles should be in, not later than day 25th day of every month.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in Stroke Recoverer’s Review newsletter: articles, submissions and spotlights are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of Templeton Stroke Recovery or the editor of Stroke Recoverer’s Review. Editor reserves the right at any time to make changes as it deems necessary. It is the purpose of this periodical to share a variety of viewpoints mostly from stroke survivors.

December 2011 Contributors: Loy Lai

Ollie Stogrin Deb Chow Charlie Brincat Jim Walmsley

Werner Stephan Jose Suganob

Production of SRR:

Jose Suganob

Email: [email protected]

Printing Pick-up Person: Ollie Stogrin

Inside this issue:

Recipe– Turkey Corn Chowder Encouragements

2

Healthy Substitutions Paraprosdokian

2

Last Month’s Happening Stroke Survivors BLAST Christmas Message - Be Safe!

3

Jose’s Notes My Travels ….Oops!

4

Food and Drinks English Language

5

December 2011 Volume 11, Issue 141

Page 2

“There’s life after stroke”

RECIPE: Turkey Corn Chowder

The reason people find it so hard to

be happy is that they always see the

past better than it was and the

present worse than it is.

Life is short, Break the rules, Forgive

quickly, Kiss slowly, Laugh uncontrol-

lably, and never regret anything that

made you smile.

Don’t make your voice loud, to make

others listen to you; Make your

attitude so loud that others beg to

listen to you.

You can’t start the next chapter of

your life, If you keep re-reading the

last one.

—submitted by Loy Lai

Templeton Stroke Recovery

PARAPROSDOKIAN:

Figure of speech in which the latter

part of a sentence or phrase is

surprising or unexpected, frequently

used in a humorous situation. For

example: “Where there’s will, I want

to be in it.”

Light travels faster than sound.

This is why some people appear

bright until you hear them speak.

A bus station is where a bus stop.

A train station is where a train

stops. On my desk, I have a work

station…

Women will never be equal to men

until they can walk down the street

with a bald head and a beer gut,

and still think they are sexy.

I didn’t say it was your fault. I said

I was blaming you.

ENCOURAGEMENTS

Ingredients:

3 .............................. Potatoes, peeled & diced

2 .............................. Smoked turkey legs

1/4 cup ................... Butter

1 .............................. Large onion, chopped

3 tbsp...................... All-purpose flour

1 (32 oz) carton ...... Chicken broth

1 (16 oz) package ... Frozen corn

1 quart .... ............... Light cream

Salt & ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1.Place the potatoes into a pot and cover with

salted water; bring to a boil, reduce heat to

medium-low, cover, & simmer until tender,

about 20 minutes. Drain & allow to steam

dry for a minute. Cut the meat from the

turkey legs, discarding the bones & tendons.

Chop the turkey meat & set aside.

2.Heat the butter in a soup pot over medium

heat; cook the onion in the butter until

translucent, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle the

flour over the butter & onion; stir constantly

until the butter & flour form a paste. Allow

the paste to fry for about 1 minute. Whisk in

the chicken broth, potatoes, turkey meat &

corn; stir until the mixture comes to a low

boil & thickens, about 5 minutes. With a

potato masher, slightly mash the potatoes &

vegetables until the potatoes look rounded

off. Pour in the cream , bring soup to a

simmer, & allow to cook without boiling for

5 minutes, stirring constantly. Season to

taste with salt & pepper.

3.Serving for eight and Enjoy!

Here we are again!

It’s almost year 2012!

What ever happened

to 2011?

At Templeton, it has

been a rough year.

I hope, 2012 will be a

better year for many of our people.

Mainly, our coordinator, Valerie, who

has been in hospital since August.

Having 3 surgeries, finally is able to

come home daily but not perma-

nently so far.

Also, Olga (our kitchen queen) had

her third hip surgery and now

recuperating in Holy Family Rehab.

Then, there’s our member, Lina, that

has had eye surgery, we haven’t seen

her over the Christmas season.

Ooops! I almost forgot, I was on the

surgery list also in October. Seems

like Templeton has had it’s share of

hospital stays for 2011. Year 2012 is

going to be all better…

We did have a busy year, with being

in: Strides for Strokes in Port Moody,

Having our picnic in July at Trout Lake,

Attending Coquitlam Branch luncheon

and entertainment; there was Easter

BLAST (a first in many years) which is

being worked on for April 6-7, 2012.

Hopefully, again, it will be a success.

We are hoping it will be bigger and

better! As, it takes a lot of volunteers

to bring BLAST together. Then, we

had our Christmas dinner/raffle,

which was a challenge for a while, ‘till

Key brother, Tak saved the day! By

being the cook! As, both Valerie, Olga

and I, all weren’t carrying our share of

the cooking this year. We did survived



Page 3

LAST MONTH’S HAPPENING by Ollie Stogrin

CHRISTMAS MESSAGE—BE SAFE!

I would like to share an experience

with all of you, about drinking and

driving in this festive season.

As you well know, some of us have

been known to have had brushes with

the authorities on our way home

from the odd social session over the

years.

A couple of nights ago, I was out for a

few drinks with some friends and had

a few too many beers and some

rather nice Shiraz. Knowing full well,

I may have been slightly over the

limit, I did something I’ve never done

before - I took a bus home.

I arrived home safely and without

incident, which was a real surprise, as

I have never driven a bus before and

am not sure where I got it from!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New

Year 2012!

—Charlie Brincat

Sydney, Australia

and our members had another Christ-

mas dinner on the 15th of December..

Except 6 of our members: Wanda,

George, Lina, Lilia, Olga and Valerie

that didn’t make it.

Katelyn has been a big help filling in

while Valerie is away. We have

Trevor, that has given us the much

needed help with the tables, chairs

and likes, to be a all around helper.

Along with Lorraine that made won-

derful soup for our members, a

couple of times plus yummy baking!

One thing about Templeton group,

we never starve, ahhhh!

I hope, all our members enjoyed the

pocket 2012 calendars that Jose’ put

together...compliments of Templeton

group. They are great for one’s pocket

with birthday dates and telephone

numbers of every members.

Again, before I forget, I wish to Thank

you for: Gina and Umeka for helping

out at our Christmas Dinner/raffle;

Gina for playing the piano at our

Christmas Dinner…….JoAnn, Lorraine

and Sue with ticket sales….also, Hailey

and her friend...Bryan, Sue, Brad,

Maraka and above all, Tak...Key, too.

Thank you everyone!

See you all next month!

—Ollie Stogrin

Templeton Stroke Recovery

“Many people look forward

to the New Year

for a new start

on old habits.”


Stroke Survivors B.L.A.S.T.

“Building Life After Stroke Together”

Good Friday to Easter Monday

April 6th - 9th, 2012

www.TurtleTalk.ca

Dual camper households may apply for $100

discount. The fee for BLAST has been set at

$225. Ask your loved ones to give the gift of

BLISS (Better Life In Stroke Survival)

For more information: Go to TurtleTalk.ca

604-943-3206 Days

604-253-2390 Evenings



Page 4

When I started this newsletter,

almost two decades ago, I had two

options. Just to further my speech

improvement, or try to create the

best newsletter possible and I was

just new in computer world. I thought

i f I could entice other stroke

survivors, caregivers and friends

to write s omething about their

s troke experience, some jokes,

recipes, etc. A newsletter that might

actually make us feel good about

ourselves.

The world is a big place and has

stroke survivors of all abilities, every

one of us trying hard to reintegrate to

the community we belong to. We

were all beginners once and we too

hungered for the knowledge that

would unleash our talents.

Our newsletter articles are written

with the express purpose of providing

stories that the readers will become

glued to reading.

A big “Thank you” our regular

contributors; Loy Lai, Ollie Stogrin,

Werner Stephan, Deb Chow, Carol

Roycroft, Margaret Hansen, Kiyoko

Akeroyd, J im Walmsl ey, Sue

Chalmers, Charles Brincat, Martha

Hutchinson and those I can’t remem-

ber.. And, photos sent by Victor Toy,

Karel Ley, Sue Chalmers, Ray East…

And, to our readers, Thank you...

—Jose Suganob

One Simple Rule in Life:

“If you do not ask, the answer will always be NO.”

JOSE’s NOTES:

One of my favorite places to be is in

Suspense! It really gets the adrenalin

flowing and pumps up the old heart!

At my age, I need all the stimuli I can

get!

And, sometimes, I think, I am in

Vincible but life shows me I am not!

I have been in Deep Stuff many

times; the older I get, the easier it is

to get there.

“The more you praise and celebrate

your life, the more there is in life to

celebrate.”

—Oprah Winfrey

OOPS! jokeonly

Jane and Arlene are

outside their nursing

home, having a drink

and a smoke, when

it starts to rain.

Jane pul ls out a

condom, cut off the

end, put it over her

cigarette, and continues smoking.

Arlene: “What, in the hell, is that?”

Jane: “A condom. This way, my

cigarette doesn’t get wet.”

Arlene: “Where did you get it?”


MY TRAVELS

I have been in many places, but I’ve

never been in Cahoots. Apparently,

you can’t go alone. You have to be in

Cahoots with someone.

I’ve also never been in Cognito. I hear

no one recognizes you there.

I have, however, been in Sane. They

don’t have an airport; you have to be

driven there. I have made several

trips there, thanks to my friends,

family and work.

I would like to go to Conclusion, but

you have to jump, and I’m not too

much on physical activity anymore.

I have also been in Doubt. That is a

sad to go, and I try not to visit there

too often.

I’ve been in Flexible, but only when it

was very important to stand firm.

Sometimes, I’m in Capable, and I go

there more often as I’m getting older.

Jane: “You can get them at any

pharmacy.”

The next day, Arlene hobbles herself

into the local pharmacy and

announces to the pharmacist that

she wants a box of condoms.

The pharmacist, obviously embar-

rassed, looks at her kind of strangely

(she is after all, over 81 years of age),

but very delicately asks what brand

of condom she prefers.

“Doesn’t matter, Sonny, as long as it

fits on a Camel.”

The pharmacist fainted. -jokeonly

FOOD and DRINKS (Werner Stephan, NSSRC - West Vancouver Group)

I admit it, I am very

partial to both. I just

read a write-up, which

claims to be a guide

to the best food and

the worst and most

d i s gus t i n g d r i n ks .

Sound intriguing?

The ‘best food’ was no surprise: lobster

steak, chocolate, drumsticks, fruit

prepared in a certain way, you get the

idea, all prepared to North American

taste. How about International cuisine?

It wasn’t easy but there seems to be an

agreement that the French cuisine is

top. Arguably, next is Indian cuisine,

Chinese-, Italian-, Mexican-, Thai-,

Japanese-, Greek-, Spanish-, Lebanese

cuisine. Need I go on? Most are a

matter of personal taste anyway.

Again, local ‘gourmets’ might disagree

with this rating, in fact, I am sure of it.

Do you like fried rattlesnake (Southern

USA)? There it is considered a favorite

food at ‘tailgate’ parties.

Now, it gets interesting. Here are the

worst and most disgusting drinks:

1. AIRAG (also known as Kumis) of

Mongolia. It is made from

fermented horse milk. How does it

taste? Imagine watery, sour

yoghurt with an aroma of pig urine.

2. FENI of India: It is a drink from

Southern Indian area of Goa. It is

not terribly unpleasant, but

alcoholic, with a fruity medicinal

taste and a hangover that makes

the traveler shudder, even after

sampling it more than three years

ago.

3. KWASS of Russia. It’s prepared with

black rye bread and is in Russia

considered a non-alcoholic and

refreshing drink. How does it taste:

both sour and salty. It is said that it

is not a taste one wants to experi-

ence twice.

4. SNAKE WINE of Vietnam. Drown a

venomous snake in grain alcohol,

keep it soaking for a few months

until the ethanol breaks down the

poison, or mix the blood of the

freshly killed snake with a shot of

brandy at the table. It smells like

one might imagine a sumo

wrestlers loincloth after a

tough fight.

5. BRENNIVIN of Iceland: It made with

fermented potatoes and caraway

seeds and is lethally strong. It is

often used to wash down

‘hakari’ (rotten shark meat) and

ram’s testicles. Because this drink is

so strong, it is probably not a bad

idea!

6. SNAKE BITE - Northern Canada/

Alaska. It is pure alcohol and it is

often served to tourists. I had heard

about it and was eager to try it. It is

served with a glass of water. The

alcohol painfully dries out one’s

throat but not if one drinks a sip of

water first. I experienced it in

Hyder/Alaska.

I read recently a review of the ‘Worst

Bar Drink Ever.’ The drinks have names

like ‘Cement Mixer,’ ‘Hobo Bile,’ ‘Ring

Wraith’ and ‘Green Chartreuse.’ The

ingredients of the ‘Cement Mixer’ turn

into a clump in your mouth resembling


Page 5



alcoholic cheese. I don’t even want to

know how to mix ‘Hobo Bile’ and the

mysterious green chemical used in

‘Green Charteuse’ is rumored to be

the disinfectant used in porto-potties.

Actually, it is herbs and roots.

Why not have a pub crawl? One could

have at the star of the evening fine

food, like frog legs or Chinese dog

meat (sorry now banned) and, to

make the evening more memorable,

have drinks with the food, Hobo Bile.

—by Werner Stephan, North Shore Stroke Recovery Center

West Vancouver Group

English Language_collective nouns

The English language has some

wonderfully anthropomorphic

collective nouns for the various

groups of animals.

We are all familiar with a Herd of

cows, a Flock of chickens, a School of

fish and a Gaggle of geese. However,

less widely known is a Pride of lions,

a Murder of crows (as well as their

cousins the rooks and ravens), an

Exaltation of doves and, presumably,

because they look so wise, a

Parliament of owls. Now, consider a

gathering of Baboons. They are the

loudest, most dangerous, most

obnoxious, most viciously aggressive

and least intelligent of all the

primates. And, what is the proper

collective noun for a group of

baboons? Believe it or not…

a Congress.

—Submitted by Jim Walmsley

Delta Stroke Recovery

TempletonnewsletterDec2011

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