To Walk on Flames
Jeff Donatello, D.C.
Fire is not a substance to mess with. We are taught by our parents very early in life that if you get too close to it, you get burned. Sooner or later, some children seem to gravitate towards fire and in experimenting with it, may get burned. The severe pain that results solidifies the fact that yes, your parents once again were right: Fire and skin don’t mix. Unfortunately, I learned this the hard way.
My brother and I used to play an incredibly stupid game in which we would put on a mitten, soak it in ice-cold water, then quickly place our the hand on top of the super-hot wood stove in the basement. A great steam show resulted and for about two seconds we defied physics. The cold water would protect us but only if we rapidly took our hand off the stove. One day, this brilliant game of ours backfired when the fabric on my mitten melted to the hot metal on the stove. Frantically, I ripped my hand out of the smoldering mitten but I was just a second too slow. The stove had cooked my palm resulting in a silver dollar-sized blister. I can vividly remember crying in bed that night as the blister rhythmically throbbed. I vowed then and there to never mess with fire ever again. Fast-forward twenty years. Fate was about to tempt me again.
I worked my way through school driving limousines. It was quite an exciting job for a guy in his twenties. Whether I was carting around rock stars or attempting to calm down bachlorette parties, there was never a dull moment . One day I picked up a man and his wife in Springfield, Massachusetts. I was told they were going to Long Island for the day and into the evening. The middle-aged couple seemed nice and normal until they explained to me they were attending a motivational seminar that culminated with a fire-walking event. They then asked me if I was interested in joining them for the day. I remember feeling that funny squishy feeling in my gut that only occurs when the brain realizes that the body is in danger. Unbelievably, an instant later, my mouth proceeded to sabotage the rest of my body by spitting out the words, “sure, sounds like it might be fun”.
We ended up driving to a hotel just next to JFK airport. After registering for the event in the hotel ballroom, about eighty of us were told to meet in a grassy field out back. It was here that we met “River Jim”, the leader and organizer of the event. Dressed in funky Indian garb, he was an enigmatic figure who seemed to easily attract attention when he spoke. We were each handed a piece of split hardwood and instructed to place the wood in a pile located in the middle of the field. River Jim then instructed us to all hold hands in a large circle surrounding the pile. Two men covered the wood in lighter fluid then lit the pile on fire. With flames arcing behind him, River Jim explained that in a few hours, the eight-foot high woodpile would be reduced to a pit of white-hot ashes. He then slowly peered out at the crowd and stated “most of you will be walking across the pit”. That darn squishy feeling was back again.
The time spent back in the ballroom was basically a rah-rah session intended to increase self-confidence. I participated, as not to insult the couple from the limo. At the same time, I kept telling myself there was no way anyone was going to get me to walk across flames.
A few hours later we walked out back and at the request of River Jim, reformed the original circle. He then instructed us to take off our shoes and approach the flaming pit, one by one. He said we would “innately know” if we were able to perform the walk only if we faced the fire up close. I will never forget what happened next. I walked up to the pit and grabbed a rake to push the coals around the flames. The heat was terrible. So intense that I could only manage one quick sweep of the rake and then quickly back off. Looking down at my plastic nametag, I was amazed to see it had shriveled up from the heat. There I was, standing in the middle of a field, dressed in a black tuxedo, barefoot with a bunch of people I didn’t know and a melted nametag. What the heck was I doing? Just then, I looked up and saw a man start to walk briskly across the coals. A line quickly formed behind him. Like a lemming, I somehow found myself standing in it, awaiting my fate. As the line shortened, my pulse quickened. The childhood wood-stove incident kept popping into my head. I was next, no turning back. A few quick breathes, a big prayer to the man upstairs and I scooted across. The sensation was like walking barefoot on snow or ice without the surface being slippery. Amazingly, I arrived at the other side of the pit pain free. Looking down, I whole-heartedly expected to see two chard feet. This was not the case, in fact I was no worse for the wear.
The event was exhilarating although to this day, I am not quite sure how my feet didn’t get burned. All in all it was quite an interesting day of “work”.
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Beating the Winter Blahs
One of the great things about living in New England is the continual seasonal changes we experience. Unfortunately, winter seems to last a bit longer than the other three seasons. Now is the time of year, some of us start to get cabin fever. You know you have cabin fever when the first part of the Sunday newspaper you read is the travel section. For those of us who are not fortunate enough to have plane tickets to Hawaii in our possession, winter outdoor activities here in Maine can be vitalizing. Here are a few ideas that may stimulate you to venture outside and enjoy winter a bit more.
Walk the beach! Long Sands is almost two miles long and frequently in the winter you’ll be the only one on the beach. The solitude mixed with the cold, fresh air and lack of tourists is definitely invigorating. If you do happen to get lonely, bring some crackers or bread along; the seagulls will most certainly keep you company.
Go ice skating! When was the last time you strapped on the old skates. I went skating last week for the first time in seven years and found it to be like riding a bike again. A little wobbly at first, but after a few minutes, I looked like Wayne Gretzsky (well almost). We measured the ice to be ten inches thick on the lake but this doesn’t mean that all local ice is this safe. Always know what you are skating on and beware of any running water below the ice. A rule of thumb is that ice must be at least two inches thick to hold a group of people. My rule is I do not go on the ice unless it is four inches thick.
Hit the slopes! While skiing is not exactly free, there is a local area where you can ski for five dollars. Powder House Hill in South Berwick is just fifteen minutes from York. While there is only a rope tow and an entire run takes about one minute, it’s a great place to learn to ski or snowboard. I learned to snowboard there last winter. I figured, why spend fifty dollars for a lift ticket when I could hurt myself just as easily for five dollars at Powder House Hill. Just one piece of advice; If you do go, wear thick, leather gloves, as the tow rope has a tendency to tear more delicate gloves after two or three runs. There also is a nice sledding hill just next door to the ski slope. There is no charge to use the sledding hill.
The the key to enjoying the outdoors in the winter months is to be dressed correctly. Dressing in layers has a far better insulating effect than just wearing one heavy coat. Keep this in mind as you try some of these activities and above all, have fun.
If you are a beginner triathlete, take a second and watch this video.
I was just relayed a story where a 16 year old athlete who hurt his back was given a prescription for 60 Vicodin. He took one, fell asleep and his parents threw the rest away. Dont these docs realize that 75% of population passes out but 25% get stimulated. It is so easy to get addicted to pain meds nowadays it isnt even funny. Especially when there is no followup on prescription renewals. It should be VERY hard to renew a prescription the second time. All the more reason to do your best to not put drugs into your system. It can be a very slippery slope. Remember, just because they are prescribed, nobody is stuffing them down your gullet.
Ever wonder why doctors dont perform all the tests they should? How about the accuracy of the lab results themselves. Check out this interesting video I put together. Credits go to Dr. Bryan Walsh of Apex Energetics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fNBWUmQnYE
For those of you with disc pain, check out the video I just posted on You Tube. Amazing results occur with Spinal Decompression and we are the only ones to use a unit like this in Maine.
Here is what I mean. Lets say socioeconomically, you are sitting pretty. Why cook your own food when there are hundreds of places within a quick drive that will cook for you? Not only that, but they will clean up the mess. The only problem is, these establishments, better known as restaurants, want you to come back. So what do they do???? They make the food taste great. Lots of sugar, fat and salt. Sadly, yum yum = big Tum Tum. You do not have control over what goes into the food when you eat out. Believe me when I tell you that 99% of the time you would be appalled at what goes in to make the food taste good. Eat out enough, you will gain weight.
Now if you are too poor to eat out, then you must look for the cheapest source of food out there. You will find this in processed food located in the middle of the food store. If you have to take it out of plastic or cardboard, then its is not good for you. Also, it usually has high calorie, cheap sweeteners in it like High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). This is why the poorest people in our country are the most overweight and have the highest incidence of Diebetes.
Moral of the story….be middle class 
