How are you today?

[BlueBells]

(I was a bit scared to eat seeds when I was younger in case I grew flower's in my stomach

@Auriel , that made me laugh The common reference to a stomach was breadbasket, and for the longest time when a child, I really pictured a cane breadbasket in my tummy

canola oil, which I'm not happy about because it's synthetic

@MissNeverWell I'm not sure what is synthetic about canola oil. To my knowledge, it is just pressed from canola (rapeseed) and that is just a crop like any other. Mind you, I do not trust it, and somehow it has infiltrated pretty much any sort of food that can remotely have an oil in it somehow. In Australia, it is not always listed as canola, but often 'vegetable' or 'blended oils' or such.

It has changed over time, back in the 1990's I'd have a sort of asthma reaction to foods cooked in it, and also if the seed got crushed while handling it. I don't seem to have those reactions now, but I still don't trust it as a foodstuff.

We had two brands that were a combination of sunflower and safflower, but even those brands now have canola in them, so I am back to butter, as it's the only canola free one I have found, when I have looked, anyway.

 

[sunkacola]

@MissNeverWell , Canola oil is not a synthetic oil, but is from a grain called canola also known, as BlueBells says, as rapeseed. It's grown as a crop like any other.

 

[Auriel]

I've never heard the term breadbasket for tummy, that's a new one on me @BlueBells

 

[JayCS]

On eBay, note that postage is extra, and if they are interested, you can tell them the postage rates. That would work, yes?

If I understand "note" correctly you're asking(?) about particulars how to sell via eBay best?
You always need to state the postage before, most professionals use "free", amateurs use the actual (lowest) rate, and best also to keep it to your own country (make sure to opt out), foreign countries should be left to professionals or risk.
As usual, packaging incl. time doesn't come extra, if you'd put that into the postage pricing you'd likely not get anyone interested.
Does that help, or did you mean something different?

 

[JayCS]

canola oil, which I'm not happy about because it's synthetic

I'm not sure what is synthetic about canola oil

Canola oil is not a synthetic oil

MissNeverWell's post is from November, but no matter, still interesting....

"Synthetic" isn't quite the correct term, it's just strongly "bred", and its genes aren't necessarily engineered, just commonly so in N.Am.

Rapeseed itself is hardly edible due to erucic acid content of up to 50% making it bitter, it's also green from chlorophyll.
Canola, originally a trademark, meaning "Canada oil" was derived from a cultivar (originally in Canada), bringing that fatty acid down to <2% in the 70s, and near 0% in the 80s (other sorts up to 55% for cosmetics and more).
Almost all canola in the US and Canada is genetically modified as well (Roundup Ready), but in Australia only 7%(?)

Also as I've probably already said it has too much omega 6 compared to omega 3. That'd be the main reason I've reduced the use of my organic non-GMO canola oil.

However just cos something has been bred into a new strain doesn't make it bad or dangerous, all of our fruit & veggies have been bred from wild sorts: carrots only started being bred orange in the 17th century, here we can get older sorts too, coloured, they were originally white, in Europe cauliflower has been bred white, you apparently have different colours, easier to cultivate, watermelons, bananas, eggplants, corn, peaches are all totally different now, see comparison pictures on sciencealert fruits-vegetables-before-domestication-photos-genetically-modified-food-natural.
I just don't like it when people pretend breeding has the same quality as what we mean with "genetically modified", there's a difference to actually changing DNA with technical engineering.

And most food in North America seems genetically engineered nowadays, as opposed to here, where a lot of us in Germany are still fighting and hoping to keep out of that carelessness as much as possible.

I think it's the artificial and originally trademarked English name Can-o-l-a that made me most skeptical about this form of rapeseed at first. We in Germany call it, as before, Rapsöl. Possibly also cos the previous rapeseed was used for technical purposes like lamps, lubricants, soaps, and now has become a fuel, which may seem a bit strange.

 

[BlueBells]

@JayCS @sunkacola @MissNeverWell @Auriel

I think Australia is up around 30% GMO now, there was a lot of resistance to go with GMO crops for many years, I've lost touch with it now.

It was originally a biofuel, well, machinery oil before "biofuel" became such a catch phrase. Somehow it still doesn't sit easy to consume what was originally intended as a lubricant.

One story ( I do not know if factual) I heard back in the 1980's was that there was an overproduction of rapeseed oil and how does one get rid of an oversupply? Change the name and call it an health food !!! I don't know how much truth is in that, but it can be hard to find truth. I also heard that it was linked with cancer, pre GMO at least.

As I said, facts can be difficult to find, but I do know that it is an annual crop, and although it smells like dead sheep, the yellow fields look quite stunning at times !

 

[BlueBells]

@JayCS

What I meant was to let the buyer know what the postage rate would be to Australia, or whatever country they are from, and that postage is on top of/added to the purchase price.

 

[JayCS]

I think Australia is up around 30% GMO now, there was a lot of resistance to go with GMO crops for many years, I've lost touch with it now.

Just looked up 2017: 21%...

1980's was that there was an overproduction of rapeseed oil and how does one get rid of an oversupply? Change the name and call it an health food !!! I don't know how much truth is in that, but it can be hard to find truth.

Canada started and came to the forefront with rapeseed 1940, when Europe needed it in WWII as a lubricant.
After the war they needed something new for those fields, and thought rapeseed might be adapted for human consumption (Japanese were already using it) and so also exporting, which as we can see was and still is very successful. Just it wasn't a change of name and label, it was a pretty big development or even change of the plant.

I also heard that it was linked with cancer, pre GMO at least.

That'd be from oxidation of its unsaturated fats due to heating it above 200°C. But it's now been proven better than butter in this respect. Their antioxidants, such as vitamin E, can counteract.

 

[JayCS]

What I meant was to let the buyer know what the postage rate would be to Australia, or whatever country they are from, and that postage is on top of/added to the purchase price.

Well, a seller has to let the buyer know before buying, shown separately for each area of the world, e.g. A) own country, B) own continent, C) rest of the world.
Best for private/amateur sellers is to exclude all other countries than their own, cos it's extremely tricky, not just the price, but also whether the seller is scammed by the buyer or not ("I didn't get it, money back please").
If you don't exclude other countries, the seller has to sell it for the price + postage shown, which may be that for the own country, which can be a real bummer for many reasons, like additional paypal costs, etc.
Only in the case of likely pricey auctions may it make sense not to care about all that, cos people may be fired up for it wherever they are.
That help?

 

[Badger]

I wonder what topical treatment I might be able to use for chronic left bicep pain? I've tried hot / cold compress, Ibuprofen gel, tiger balm amongst others. I had looked at CBD cream online but there's so many it's hard to know which to trust. The pain stops me from holding a mobile phone to my ear for example.

Not sleeping much with the general pains and some stress but looking to take it slowly.

 

[BlueBells]

Hi @Badger

The pain stops me from holding a mobile phone to my ear for example.

I've had that issue for years, even pre mobile phone days. I just keep swapping hands until I have to hang up as the phone falls from my hands.

Speakers on phones are such a blessing

 

[Badger]

Yes definitely quite helpful, for years now on the odd occasion I do make a call I use the speaker phone. It takes time brushing my teeth but I keep switching hands and take a few rest breaks.

 

[sunkacola]

@BlueBells ,
You might try an arnica cream; that seems to help some people.

Also, consider that the pain might actually be originating in your shoulder, and is felt in that bicep muscle. I have tendonitis in one shoulder and was told by a physical therapist that the bicep muscle, which of course attached at the shoulder, is so painful because it is sort of a "messenger", telling the body that there is something wrong in the shoulder. You might benefit from physical therapy, if you can get it.

 

[Auriel]

Hi @Badger on occasions I use my speaker phone (if the person other end can't hear me properly or my hands are in too much pain) but I have a really comfy set of headphones (not the stick in the ear kind, I don't like them, sooo uncomfortable) have you ever thought about seeing an holistic practitioner? (If I lived nearer to you I'd help with things in the house/garden)

 

[MissNeverWell]

Your positive attitude towards all weather in general is a really nice balance for me right now. Here in Southern Ontario it has been snowing, a mix of rain, rain and now heavy rain for about a week or more straight. It has been gloomy since January, if not before, and while I am not normally terribly affected by the weather, this continuous unstable pattern creates anxiety and melancholy in me, particularly around climate change. It also generates a sense of emptiness, almost tangible, like being lost in outer space; probably my body's take on atmospheric pressure, lol. I like your perspective of the beauty and vital role in all kinds of weather, especially wind - high winds frighten me and make me physically tense, particularly my neck.