Every Tuesday, the Church of the Epiphany in downtown Washington has a free (donations requested) classical music concert. I used to go on a fairly regular basis, but when the programs had been canceled during the pandemic, I got out of the habit and now rarely seem to go. But I did yesterday and her a wonderful concert of Chopin by young Koren born pianist Jiin Kim, now working for her Ph.D. at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore. It was a refreshing break at a fraught time. And it was nice to get some fresh air on a beautiful December day. (Yes, I know the calendar says it’s April.)

Oh, and to prove it’s April, look at this, just down the street.

Changing the subject…..

I recently received a gift from an old (yes) friend and law school classmate, now living in New Mexico. Three old publications, including this one:

Yes, “Watson on Cod-Liver Oil”, published 1868. Dr. Watson was writing about the effectiveness of treating tuberculosis with cod-liver oil, a remedy first used in England in the 18th century, but which seems to have been forgotten in America in the 19th. According to Watson, cod-liver oil, when used with other recognized treatments, helped stabilize or cure the disease.

I knew that must be Robert F. Kennedy-like nonsense, but I googled it and discovered that it is again today recognized by some as effective.

You don’t hear much today about cod-liver oil, but it is readily available, I think, and used as a source of Omega 3, among other things.

And I learned quite a bit about it from the article. I learned that there are gradations of cod-liver oil, and you only want to take it is it is a clear yellowish color, with no trace of red or orange. I learned that cod is related to haddock and pollock, but that the liver oils of these related fish do not have the same properties as cod-liver oil, and should be avoided. I learned that there are unscrupulous folks who purposely mislabel the oils. I learned that one other fish oil is as effective as cod-liver oil, and that is shark-liver oil, which is (no surprise) harder to get. I even learned that combining the oil with orange juice makes it more palatable.

The two other old publications were the 1864 report of the National Academy of Sciences made to Congress by Professor A.D. Bache, and a Discourse on the Objects and Importance of the National Institution for the Promotion of Science from 1841. I don’t plan to tell you anything about either of those.

It’s been a busy morning. It’s about 12:30 and I don’t even know how the stock market is doing. Back up to 45,000?