Fresh baked bread smells very good, but really, it's just a vehicle for the fat (butter, cheese, lunch-meat, mayo, bacon, or whatever).

"Give us this day our daily bread" is an example of how much humankind has depended on it ever since the day we became agrarian. But that doesn't mean it's good for us.

There are some zero or one carb bread substitutes out there, and I admit I occasionally will enjoy a serving, but it's definitely not a daily staple.

And when people used to ask me how I lost 50 pounds, or more recently when the subject of diet comes up, most people can't imagine a life without bread, macaroni, rice, spuds, fruit and other sugars or starches.

I am a musician, I play a lot of private parties. I admit the cakes that offer me look delicious, but I don't indulge. I say "No thank you." If they insist, I simply reply that I'm not allowed to eat sugar. That satisfies the person offering me the cake. After all, offering food is offering love, and I don't want to insult them.

They will also often ask us if we would like dinner. Since we don't take breaks and play straight through, we ask them to box up a dinner for us. If the food is verboten for our diet, we bring it to our neighbors the next day who are usually delighted with the gift (remember, offering food is giving love).

More often than not, unless it's a buffet and we get to box our own, the neighbors get the food. The leftover food at condominium parties can't be given to charity (health laws) so it ends up getting thrown away. We'd rather give some away than let the seagulls eat it at the dump (oops! landfill).

On the side of the masses (including ourselves). With so much conflicting opinions out there, some with good intentions or some with a profit motive, it's really difficult to know what to believe.

Eggs are good, eggs are bad, eggs are good again, eggs are bad again, eat less fat, sugar is bad, meat is bad, grains are good, and on and on and on.

It's no wonder the general population is confused. We're betting on low carb, think we are right, and I hope we are right.

I found what works for me. I'm 73, on zero prescriptions, other than catching a mild cold every 15-20 years, I don't get sick. My doc says inside I'm over 20 years younger than my chronological age.

Why? I listen to my body. It will tell me what works and what harms. I just have to pay close attention. For me low-carb combined with the anti-inflammatory arthritis-bursitis diet works. It should work for many others but perhaps not for everybody.

On helmets: Yes I definitely believe in helmets for bikes, and anything else where you might accidentally impact your head. But I don't believe in putting a helmet on to intentionally play football or any other activity where you are sure to get your brain bounced around in your skull.

To me there is a big difference between protecting yourself the best you can for something unexpected, than deliberately putting yourself in harms way and using something to lessen the damage.

Of course, we are all different. My risk : pleasure ratio is mine personally, and not necessarily yours.

Bob