GorillaOffTopic, Everything But Gorilla Trades

In a thriving economy, it is tough to resist the luxury of an expensive cup of java, but in a struggling economy, it’s one of the first things people give up. After all, it’s a discretionary item.  In a recent poll, a large percentage of adults reported that they will no longer be drinking Starbucks. Well that is certainly no surprise; after all, a latte is considered an expensive treat to most. Most of you know what a huge fan the Gorilla has been of Starbucks, but quite frankly, the news of the company’s plans to close over 600 stores, after a rapid-growth expansion, is not really all that surprising.  Walking down the streets of New York city one night, the Gorilla and his wife passed by a Starbucks, which was overflowing with patrons. Within a few seconds it was decided that a cup of coffee sounded just great, but instead of turning around and going back, there was another Starbucks within a few feet of the last one, on the very next corner! This went on and on for miles, from corner block to corner block.  Wasn’t it Starbuck’s original intention to have a location on every street corner in America? It was only two years ago that company executives bragged about how the company could have two outlets in one building. In the mall near the Gorilla’s home, there are actually three stores. The company has been so visible that it was never quite out of “reach,” so to speak. It seemed a little too good to be true that Starbucks stores were virtually everywhere- and a little too accessible. It seemed a little too indulgent, and we all got a little too spoiled- especially Starbucks itself.  So it’s time for the coffee giant to “cool it” for now, and it comes at the worst possible time, adding thousands of job losses to an already flailing economy. Many people have already made the switch from the expensive Starbucks concoctions to the less expensive Dunkin’ Donuts or McDonald’s coffees to save some money during these tough economic times. So, will those people come back to Starbucks once the economy gets better?  “When things were better, I think people preferred Starbucks. The environment is so much better than Dunkin’ Donuts,” Howard Davidowitz chairman of the national retail consulting firm Davidowitz & Associates Inc. said. “But right now,” he added, “what I see in the retail numbers consistently is that pricing has become a more important priority.”
Okay, okay, so yes, the Gorilla is of course biased, but he feels that Starbucks is, by far, the superior product as compared to the others. Besides, the Gorilla had a gourmet Cappuccino at McDonald’s the other day and guess what he found? At $3 and change, the coffee was almost as expensive as a Starbucks coffee and not nearly as good! Wasn’t McDonalds supposed to be the lower price alternative? Hmmm.

The Gorilla has been hearing a lot of talk about more and more celebs going “green” in Hollywood- and that’s a good thing! If Hollywood can be good for something other than spouting off their political views, (the Gorilla can do without celebrity opinions on politics), then why shouldn’t they use their clout to get others to be environmentally conscious?  So what exactly are celebrities doing to change their lifestyles and go “green”?  Well some are changing their own personal habits and some are creating products to help change the world. For example, Leonardo DeCaprio, has bought an apartment in Riverhouse, an eco-friendly building overlooking the Hudson River. The eco-friendly Prince Charles has just purchased and Aston Marin that runs on biodiesel made from wine! And the beautiful and environmentally active, Kate Hudson, is collaborating on a line of cruelty-free, good-for-the-Earth hair-care products that she hopes will eventually expand into a skin care and color cosmetics. Although these examples may be extreme and limited to those who are financially successful, the examples are being set to help us be aware of changes we call all make (even small ones) that can change our carbon footprints and make all of us greener.  So how can you make simple changes to your own daily life to be more “green?” Many people say they started small, but even small changes can be meaningful. Here are a few examples of things each of us can do in our daily lives to help us be gentler to our environment. Adjust your water heater: Did you know that if you lower your water heater’s temperature from 145 degrees to 120 degrees, not only are you saving energy, but you will save a little money too?   How bout’ riding a bike instead of driving? When the Gorilla only has to go a short distance, he tries to ride his bike or walk instead of using his car. With gas prices being ridiculous anyway, is this really a hard thing to do? You are killing 3 birds with one stone here: (Pardon the pun!) You are saving on gas, you are reducing carbon emissions, and you are getting exercise to boot!  Stop printing so much! Many people are using much less paper and toner by simply keeping their information stored in their computers, rather than printing it out. If at all possible, try to do this. Another option is to switch to a laser printer; it uses much less paper and toner. Use biodegradable or organic products: There are more and more products to choose from that are kind to the environment. These are products that in addition, are not tested on animals. They are better for the environment (less harsh chemicals), healthier, and animal friendly. They include everything from shampoo to food. Look for products with the “Green Seal.” Use Energy Star Products: With the help of ENERGY STAR, people saved enough energy in 2007 alone to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 27 million cars — all while saving $16 billion on their utility bills. The Gorilla doesn’t have to tell you how important it is to recycle, recycle, recycle!  That is the most basic of environmentally conscious efforts. And everyone can make a difference in this world. If you think your individual efforts alone are insignificant, consider this: Individually, all alone, as a single human being, you can decrease production of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases by thousands of pounds each year. So get out there and go green…everyone’s doing it!

With gas prices rising, the economy in dire straits, and people losing jobs and money, depression is all too real for so many suffering Americans today. It seems that at any moment people could just go crazy and start running in the streets and jumping out of windows! So what is the solution? How do we all get past it? How do we get out of it? IS there a way out of it?  There is no right answer but there are ways to get your mind off of your problems. Sitting at home or work dwelling on all of your problems is not going to help. Doctors and therapists often recommend volunteering. They say that one of the best things a person can do to overcome depression is to volunteer their time with someone else who really needs it. Once you do, you will realize that your problems are probably not nearly as bad as those you are volunteering with. The Gorilla could not agree more, and as someone who is actively involved with his own community outreach programs, he knows firsthand just how great it can make you feel to hang up your own worries and just give of your time.  And it isn’t just the wealthy housewives with plenty of time on their hands doing it either- actually the statistics are quite diverse. So many types of people of all ages volunteer their time to help others. Approximately 60.8 million people volunteered in this country in 2007. Were you one of them? Perhaps you are one of those people who thinks, “oh they have plenty of help, they don’t need me!” Well, you’re wrong.  They- meaning just about every non-profit help-based organization- relies on people just like you to be there and to offer their help! There are many organizations that are in constant need of “bodies,” and not just money (although that’s always needed). Organizations such as the Red Cross and the Salvation Army always need able-bodied people to organize, plan, and sometimes for some light manual labor (loading and unloading trucks of supplies, re-stocking etc.). If you are confused about where to start or which organization to become involved with, don’t be. The Gorilla believes that it is always good to defer to that old adage “charity begins at home,” and he takes that to mean in your own community.  

There is a fantastic web site that can help you find your local non-profit organizations called www.volunteermatch.org. It is a great way to match yourself with an organization that is local, and the site even tells you how far from your zip code they are located. That is exactly how the Gorilla got involved! It lets you know exactly what is out there and what they are looking for. So stop dwelling on how bad the economy is, and how bad your personal finances are, or how high gasoline prices have become, and GET OUT THERE and do some good for others. Remember folks, no matter how bad it gets (and he knows how bad it gets), in many instances, someone always has it a little bit worse than you! How’s that for humility?

It is Monday. You are up and about getting ready for your usual commute to work. On your way out, you look in the mirror by the front door to check your appearance, as you always do. Tie is straight…check! Hair is neat…check! No food in the teeth…check! You are on time- no, you are early, in fact. You think to yourself, “This will be a good day.” Suddenly, just as you are opening your car door- BAM! A flash of light hits you out of nowhere. It happens to you every so often so you are no stranger to its sneakiness, and its brashness. It is a migraine-or at least the familiar beginnings of a migraine and you dread what you know will be the inevitable pain and misery that will surely abound within the hour.  For those of you who don’t know about them, a migraine is not just a bad headache, it is much worse, and unless you have personally experienced one, you cannot imagine just how badly they can hurt. They are painful. They are disruptive. They can sometimes be debilitating. But now, a new device is on the horizon that may just zap the pain away.  A recent study revealed that a device, which delivers a therapy known as transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS, may be just what the doctor ordered. This cool little device sparks a magnetic pulse, that when held against a person’s head, creates an electric current among nerve cells to the brain. In turn, the migraine is disrupted in the “aura” phase, which is experienced by many people at the beginning stages of a migraine and causes visual disturbances and tingling and numbness. A new study, which included over 200 patients, randomly selected some of the patients to use the TMS device and the others to use a “sham” product. Of those who used the TMS device, 39% of the TMS patients were pain-free two hours after treatment, versus 22% of patients using the sham device.  

Dr. Yousef Mohammad, of Ohio State University in Columbus, said “This is very significant. This is a much better response than is achieved with any other method or medication that we have.” If this incredible device becomes available, it means that the misery migraine sufferers have to endure may be soon be a thing of the past. So let’s rewind, shall we? With the TMS device in your pocket, you walk to your car feeling ready for the day, and when the migraine strikes, you whip out your little headache blocker and BAM! Within a short period of time, you are back to Monday morning in great shape and the day isn’t an entire loss. Well, isn’t technology and science a wonderful thing?

The Gorilla talks a lot about different issues regarding animals simply because he considers himself an advocate for them, and he wants to draw attention to animal rights. The Gorilla, being a primate himself, knows well that the animals cannot speak for themselves and cannot defend themselves and so we have been appointed as their advocates, their defense, and their voice. It is our duty as humans (and primates!) to take action when animals are being abused, hurt, or exploited.  The Gorilla would like to draw some more attention to the continuing saga playing out in Japan over the massive number of dolphins that are being brutally killed for their meat. When we think of dolphins, we think of a beautiful caring creature- one that has been a caretaker of sorts of its human counterparts. It is an animal that is considered to be as intelligent as any of the higher primates (such as gorillas) and as compassionate as some humans. We think about Flipper, and many of the fun, funny, and intelligent creatures we see at Sea World. A dolphin is a creature that is eager to please humans, is completely harmless, and deserves our respect and protection.  Unfortunately, in Japan, these wonderful creatures are regarded to many as food and only as food. To the fisherman in Taiji, Japan, dolphins are a business; a way of making a living and something to be hunted and slaughtered for meat. After all, it’s a 400 year-old tradition in that country. Who are any of us, to come into their lives and their home, and tell them to stop? Actually, who are we NOT to? Just because something is a tradition, should that make it somehow acceptable?  There are many barbaric “traditions” that have existed for hundred, even thousands of years in different cultures, such as burning women at the stake who were considered “witches” or genital mutilation in women in some cultures. In the present day, we know better, and much like these unacceptable traditions, there is no need or excuse for the slaughtering of dolphins. In the small town of Taiji, there are only about 3,000 people and many of them eat dolphin meat. The dolphins are hunted daily there. The fishermen drive them into bays or alcoves and then hook them with a large barb and let them bleed to death. The fear they feel is apparent and the screams and cries can be clearly heard form a distance, as the entire alcove turns red from the blood. These are intelligent creatures. They know what is happening before it happens. It is cruel and inexcusable-not to mention extremely unhealthy to consume the meat.  Dolphin meat contains extremely high levels of mercury, making the meat a health risk to certain individuals. Thankfully, that may be the one saving grace for these creatures. Ric O’barry is a retired dolphin trainer from Miami and has worked with the animals his entire life. He now resides in Taiji, where he has regularly borne witness to the daily slaughters. He often disguises himself so that he doesn’t appear to be a Westerner so that he can film the hunts to draw attention to them for groups like PETA and for the Japanese government. ”This here is ground zero for the largest slaughter of dolphins on planet Earth,” says O’Barry, who trained five dolphins to play “Flipper” on the TV series of that name. “It’s absolutely barbaric and it needs to stop. It takes a very long time to die. They bleed to death. And some of them are dragged in the boats with hooks while they’re still alive,” he says. “Many of them are gutted while they’re still alive.”    Unfortunately, there are larger questions of culture and perspective. It is not just about how inhumane it is. Many Japanese are puzzled at the Westerners’ outlook on the hunting. They don’t understand how Americans could slaughter a chicken or a cow and give them a hard time about killing dolphins. Japan has been feeling the heat for many years regarding its massive whaling industry as well, so they are no strangers to controversy when it comes to the fishing industry.  The new President of Australia is outraged by the industry and is trying to make changes in the laws that protect whales from slaughter. Meanwhile, although most Taiji city officials defend the right to slaughter dolphins due to an age-old tradition, many Japanese citizens are opposed to the practice and are steadily fighting the battle to have it stopped. One of Taiji’s local city councilman is trying to put a stop to the consumption of dolphin meat in local schools- after all bottlenose dolphin meat contains 12 times more mercury than blue fin tuna — high levels of mercury in fish can cause health problems in pregnant women and young children. The councilman even plucked one of his own beard hairs to have it tested for mercury and found that it contained seven times as much mercury as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers safe. Could this be the saving grace for these wonderful creatures? Let us hope that it is!

Time is THE most valuable commodity. Yes, it is of the essence- and in fact- it is the essence of a life of peacefulness, and low stress. That is if, in fact, you have some to kill. Most of us don’t, and that is why many people are “outsourcing” there lives so to speak. Ever wondered what it would be like to have some of your most tedious errands taken care of for you? Or maybe you have menial tasks, like making plane reservations, or even dinner reservations, but simply don’t have the time to do it. Nowadays you don’t have to be the CEO of a big company or a celebrity to have a personal assistant, no sir.  Today’s personal assistants can be found online in the form of a “virtual assistant” and are relatively affordable for anyone making at least $30,000 per year. The Gorilla heard about this concept and thought “how cool!” Now, you understand, the Gorilla doesn’t want to compare himself to a “celebrity,” but it sure would be nice to have someone at his beck and call, when he needed a little help with those tedious things, such as calling American Express to get that erroneous charge off of his account. You know how long they put you on hold for- right? Well, wouldn’t it be nice to have someone else perform this time-consuming little task for you, so that you could continue to be productive at your workplace?  There are a number of web sites that offer services just like these and much more. They do virtually everything you could imagine from ordering a birthday cake to sending out “thank you” notes on your behalf. Some even have messenger and courier services if a delivery is needed on very short notice. You’d think the prices on services such as these would be simply outrageous, but they are in fact, quite reasonable depending on the need, and which services you plan to use.  For example, one interesting site the Gorilla visited, AskSunday.com, charges about $29 per month for up to 15 “requests.” Another site, GetFriday.com, offers pay-as-you-go and monthly plans in increments of 10 or 15 minutes. The monthly plan starts at around $120 for 10 hours. Not bad, at all! Many working people can afford it-even in this wilted economy. The point is, most of these tasks take up our valuable time, which can make us less productive, and therefore cost us time- which is money. These virtual assistant services seem to counteract that fact, so the cost is completely relative to what you might lose if you had to perform all of these tasks yourself. And the critics agree.  

They say if you look at the type of people who use these sites, they are most likely not going to stop because of inflation. Demand for personal assistants, for businesses and personal reasons, is climbing. According to research firm Evalueserve, which estimated revenue from such sites last year at $250 million, they anticipated it would grow to $2 billion by 2015. Wow! It makes sense in a such a harried world to outsource some of your little day-to-day errands. The Gorilla is a big fan of the virtual assistant and loves the services they provide. (Not to mention- Mrs. Gorilla is currently his personal assistant…so she loves the idea as well!)  It sure gives a whole new meaning to “multi-tasking!”

What if you were paralyzed and unable to walk? One can only imagine how a lifetime spent never being able to walk would affect a person, but now, new technology can let those who are paralyzed walk- at least in the virtual world. Technology is an amazing thing and recently, a 41-year-old paralyzed man used only his brain waves to manipulate a virtual Internet character to take a walk and chat with another person on the popular Second Life web site.

The man, who has suffered paralysis for more than 30 years, can barely move his fingers due to a progressive disease, which affects his muscles, so he has been unable to use a keyboard or a mouse. But a new experiment allowed him to wear special headgear, which contained electrodes that monitored the brain waves related to his hands and legs allowing him to walk and move freely. All he had to do was imagine that he was walking and voila! Walking was exactly what he did! 

Using a microphone he was also able to have a conversation with someone else (another character). The researchers at Japan’s Keio University said that it is the first time that a paralysis patient has succeeded in meeting someone and having a virtual conversation in an Internet virtual world. In addition, Junichi Ushiba, associate professor at the biosciences and informatics department of Keio University’s Faculty of Science and Technology says that researchers are also now studying a system that would let patients create text messages by mentally selecting the letters. ”In the near future, they would be able to stroll through Second Life shopping malls with their brain waves… and click to make a purchase,” Ushiba said. 

Second Life is an increasingly popular virtual world in which people can navigate a character called an avatar (on their own behalf) through a whole world of activities such as social activities and even shopping. It is always tough for those who are rendered immobile due to any kind of debilitating disease or condition, so it is a wonderful innovation that can allow those individuals to at least have the feeling of being able to control their movements- even if it’s just in a virtual world.

We all know how summer vacation can last and last, and by the end of the 12 weeks or so, our kids finally go back to school. It reminds the Gorilla of the Staples commercial. You know, the one in which the dad is pushing a cart and running through the isles singing ”It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year,” as his kids hang their heads and stagger behind him miserably, pondering the fact that it’s “back to school” time. Yes, the summers are a wonderful time of togetherness and relaxation for families all over America, but by the time August ends, enough is enough, and parents are usually relieved to send their kids back to school at last! But what if summers only last about 4 weeks total, and your kids had to go to school for 11 months of the year? Would you consider it a good thing or a bad thing for your kids and for yourself? Well, that is what many schools are doing, and many more school districts are considering the idea. You might think this news is from the “are you kidding me” department, but the Gorilla assures you, it is true.  Currently, approximately 3,000 schools throughout the United States, have only one month off during the summer, and then it’s right back to school again. When the Gorilla heard this, he thought it was simply ridiculous- after all, our kids work so hard throughout the school year so that they may enjoy a couple months or so rest each summer. But experts have now been looking to the trends of the Japanese and other cultures, in which school children attend school for 11 months out of the year, with a break for the month of July. The goal is to prevent kids from forgetting what they have learned during the previous year.  “Tests given to kids in the spring and fall show children generally slide in math and reading during the traditional summer break lasting 10 to 12 weeks”, says Harris Cooper, director of the education program at Duke University. Still, there hasn’t been much research into whether students at schools where summer breaks are short do better than kids attending other schools. Since it is the goal of the “No Child Left Behind” law make sure that all students are reading and doing math at their grade level by 2014, there has been enormous pressure on schools to make sure this happens, even if it means reconfiguring the calendars. Currently, it is mostly elementary schools that are using the new calendars, but many school districts are hoping to get all schools on this calendar. The number of schools using the modified calendar has doubled in the past 15 years. Today, 46 states have schools operating on these calendars — up from 23 states in 1992. And now the entire Hawaiian school system is on this calendar as well, with a 7 week break during the summer.  Ron Fairchild, executive director of the Center for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins University, says that this new calendar makes perfect sense. ”You would expect an athlete or a musician’s performance to suffer if they didn’t practice,” said Fairchild, whose organization advocates for educational summertime opportunities for kids. Many coaches of high school athletic programs are outraged at the thought of the switch. “It would have put a vacation in the middle of the football season,” said Chris Newland, a father of two and a psychology professor at Auburn University, who fought the change. “You don’t touch football here.”  As for the Gorilla, he has mixed feelings about the change himself, but many parents he spoke to really like the idea, as long as it’s uniform throughout the school district for all levels including, elementary, middle and high school alike, so that everyone is on the same break and schedule. What do YOU think?

It is a stressful world we live in and health issues can often make it even more stressful. Now the Gorilla asks you, how stressed out would you be if you were a New Yorker having an HIV test at a free clinic, and when you got the initial result, you were told it was positive? Would you freak out? Would you be afraid you would die? Would you cry? That is exactly what happened to hundreds of people who were incorrectly told that they had tested positive for HIV at a New York City STD clinic this winter.  The Department of Health confirmed that almost half of the results given by the clinic were in fact, false positives. From November to April, 213 people tested positive after taking a rapid mouth swab HIV test. It was not until a second test was taken that the people found out that they did not, in fact, have HIV. Now that’s a big mistake for the maker of the test, OraSure Technologies.  Meanwhile, despite the false positives, the city continued to administer the tests. Thus, it seems they have some explaining to do. The Department of Health has stopped using the swab and it is investigating the reason for the false positives. The DOH says that a blood test was immediately administered after the swabs were done, revealing the real result. However, the psychological harm had already been done. Swab tests were introduced in 2005 as a popular test for STD’s at city clinics. The number of people tested for HIV grew 24% that year.  ”Nobody was misled or harmed,” said Dr. Susan Blank, assistant DOH commissioner and director of the bureau of STD control. Well it’s a big huge “OOPS” for the city, and even though no “harm” was done, the undue stress was not called for. Can anyone say “lawsuit?”

It’s summer folks, and you know what that means, right? A little sun, fun, and relaxation are on the way for many who intend to enjoy their vacation time with family friends, or simply alone. Many people will head out to the beach or the lake on the weekends, and that means getting a lot of sun exposure. But before you gas up the Chris Craft or jet skis just remember…put on the sun block, and put it on thick!

Skin cancer is a very real threat; probably more than you know, and the fact of the matter is, like it or not, it is something that any of us who live in the world (and are exposed to any sunlight) are at risk. Surprisingly, it is estimated that over 1 million new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States alone this year, and it is believed that of those, approximately 68,000 will be the often-deadly, melanoma. Of those, about 8,000 will result in death. Melanoma is one of the deadliest forms of cancer and if it is not caught in the earliest stages, it is almost always fatal. Currently, there is no cure for the deadly cancer, but recently, a possible breakthrough has scientists and researchers on edge, wondering if a cure is on the horizon. The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington, conducted a study which was based on an experimental immunotherapy treatment. One man involved in the study had a complete remission after receiving treatment, surprising and exciting researchers who have always believed that immunotherapy is the most promising treatment for late stage melanoma.  The 52-year-old man, who is from Oregon, was given only one year to live before he received the immune-priming treatments, but doctors who conducted the study are reluctant to show their enthusiasm at their success since the man was the only one out of nine patients who had good results. Still, the treatment, reported in Thursday’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, is being counted as the latest in a small series of successes involving immune-priming treatments against deadly skin cancers. And although he had no role in the research, Dr. Darrell Rigel, a dermatology researcher at the New York University Cancer Institute in New York, says “Immunotherapy has become the most promising approach” to late-stage, death-sentence skin cancers.  Although this is extremely good news, the immune-priming experiments have yet to yield a consistent therapy. The therapies, which have a long history behind them (20 years of research to be exact), have focused on souping up a certain kind of immune system cell — the “killer T cells” that envelop and kill foreign agents. But the new research at Hutchinson took a different approach. Scientists here focused instead on specific helper T cells that are adept at locking onto cancer cells and guiding the killer cells to their target. Researchers then drew blood from patients, located the special helper cells and then grew more of them in the laboratory. They then infused roughly 5 billion of the cells back into the patients — without chemotherapy or the other harsh drugs. “It’s a simpler and less toxic approach to melanoma than had been previously employed,” said Dr. Louis Weiner, director of the cancer center at Georgetown University.  The fourth man in the study to be treated was the Oregon man, who was treated in 2005. Two months after, treatment scans revealed no tumors, even though the cancer was in its advanced stages and present in his back, groin and lungs at the time of the treatment. Two years after the treatment, he had no symptoms at all. The good part is, there were no side-effects to the treatment, unlike other cancer therapies. In addition, an analysis showed that his immune system had targeted not only one type of protein target on cancer cells, but two others as well. It is thought that the treatment revved up his immune system’s ability to expand his cancer-fighting ability in new ways. Unfortunately, though, the longer-term effects are not known at this time because the man fell completely out of touch with researchers and has declined any further interviews, making it impossible to follow-up on his progress.  Still, it is inspiring news that we can all be excited about. But the Gorilla wants to warn you- wear that all-important sunscreen because many of us are getting to the age in which the lack of doing so earlier in life is literally biting us in the behind (and in other areas more exposed to the sun!). So have your good ole’ fun in the sun, but do it with sunscreen and a big fat hat on your head!