Inside the Tortured Mind of the Man Who Killed American Sniper Chris Kyle

http://www.newsweek.com/inside-tortured-mind-man-who-killed-american-sniper-chris-kyle-397299

The VA records note that during a follow-up visit five days after his discharge, Routh exhibited no signs of hallucinations or delusions. It was an encouraging snapshot, but it only captured Routh’s state of mind on that particular day. The hospital evaluated Routh to see if he qualified for Mental Health Intensive Case Management, which would have provided him with a host of resources, including regular at-home visits from a caseworker. But the hospital concluded he did not meet the criteria for the service. Despite the knife incident and his history of homicidal and suicidal thoughts, he was not considered a high enough risk.

The doctor did increase the dosages of Routh’s medications, but the new prescriptions, the records state, weren’t sent out until “on or about Feb 2, 2013,” the day Routh went to the shooting range with Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield…

Nut Roll Heaven

Nuts are expensive, and with my TMJ, I’m not supposed to eat them. (I really miss nuts, especially chocolate-covered ones.) The holidays are a good reason to treat myself, so yeah, I bought some nuts. 🙂

I’d like my nut rolls to look like this:

http://beautifulmess46.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-best-nut-rolls.html

But the great thing about nut rolls is that no matter what you do, they always taste good. 🙂

Can you smell the yeast?

Needs more powdered sugar.

Crumbs 🙂

For breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

If I add too much filling before baking, it spills over, so…

I use the leftover filling on the finished product.

I know, I know, stop playing with my food.

Now, let’s hope that Daffy the Duck (and my local squirrel) like my nut roll.

(Photos taken yesterday.)

In my search terms:

when can i purchase another box of psudoephdrine after my yearly limit is reached?

It looks like I’m not the only one having this problem. I’m guessing the answer to that question is January 1, 2016. I’m also guessing that I’ll have this same problem at the end of next year.

The other question is “where can I purchase another box?”  I thought about looking for an online Canadian pharmacy that would sell me some Claritin-D, but it just sounds like too much trouble. But if anyone knows where one might buy decongestants in some underground market, perhaps you’ll share that information in the comment section.

Do you have a shopping hangover?

Maybe you’re looking for a little distraction?  For my new followers, here’s something to take your mind off your troubles:

Who do you write like?

Wholesale Cannabis Prices Sky-High in Colorado, Dampening Fears of Crash

Wholesale Cannabis Prices Sky-High in Colorado, Dampening Fears of Crash

In early 2015, a number of Colorado’s longtime marijuana industry insiders predicted an impending price crash for wholesale cannabis.

But the crash failed to materialize this summer as feared. In fact, the opposite trend is playing out: prices have skyrocketed in recent months.

In October, the online marijuana wholesale marketplace Cannabase saw recreational product being moved for as much as $3,000 per pound at one point. That’s up from a maximum price point of $2,200 per pound in January and February, Cannabase CEO Jennifer Beck said, and an average sale of about $1,900 early this year…

These are wholesale prices, from $187.50 per ounce ($3,000 per pound) to $118.75/ounce ($1,900/pound). That’s about $6.70 per gram and $4.20/gram.

Now, how much do you pay per ounce/gram? We’re looking at a pretty hefty mark-up from the wholesale price to the retail price. What kind of profit margin are we looking at? For comparison, Apple’s profit on an iPhone is estimated to be around 60% (although I’ve seen a percentage as high as 75%):

http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/iphone-cost-what-apple-is-paying/

Sorry, I digress, back to the article…

Cecelia Gilboy, a longtime wholesale operation based in Boulder, said she’s seen the exact same trend. She chalks it up mainly to a new microbial testing requirement that went into effect Oct. 9 for recreational cannabis…

The microbial testing rules are so strict that Gilboy heard secondhand from growers that 70% of the wholesale rec product in the state was knocked out of the market because it couldn’t meet the new requirements…

New Mexico’s program is also facing new testing rules, but not all the dispensaries have implemented them. While most of the producers have been promising a price reduction (almost since the program’s inception, 8 years ago), that has never materialized. Since the testing requirements are hard to accomplish with only one authorized testing lab (the last I heard), the effect of the new regulations on pricing has yet to be seen.

But the supply and pricing issues really began well before the new testing requirements took effect in October, and the medical side of the market has experienced supply issues too.

There was a medical cannabis shortage in Colorado Springs – one of the state’s largest MMJ markets – over the summer, Beck said. Faced with that challenge, a lot of dispensaries in the region bought up most of the wholesale product that was available at the time.

When the standard “dry season” of August to October hit in Denver, there was even less product available than usual.

“In July, we had record high consumer sales,” Beck pointed out. Since then, she said, prices on average have increased 35% for recreational cannabis and 33% for medical…

For example, Cullen said the quality of cannabis grown outdoors near Pueblo that has already hit the market is “pretty mediocre.” …

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/oct/19/pueblo-colorado-legal-marijuana-industry-migration

Painkillers as bad as alcohol and tobacco?

http://www.freeabq.com/2015/11/23/stopping-the-revolving-door/

Franklin questions how the government decides which drugs to make illegal, because the numbers show that legal drugs such as alcohol, tobacco and painkillers kill far more Americans than illegal drugs do…

I don’t know if there are any circumstances where alcohol or cigarettes could actually be deemed to be beneficial, but I don’t have any questions about opioids providing significant benefits to those who are in pain.

Cannabis advocates like to compare bud to alcohol — it’s an obvious look at immense hypocrisy. They also like to bad-mouth opioids, because when you compare bud and painkillers, bud usually comes out on top. After all, bud has never killed anyone.

But I don’t think opioids, themselves, are responsible for all these overdose deaths. I’m positive that these drugs actually save lives, every single day. In fact, opioids provide much more benefit than harm, just like bud.