So, someone asked me if I was panicking over the whole swine flu thing and is that why I put the widget up. No, I'm not in panic mode over this, I put the widget up since the whole purpose of widgets is to disseminate information and since that is the main reason why I started this blog I guess it's fitting that I put it here.
Why am I not panicking? First off, these are my opinions and not the opinions of anybody that I work for, secondly, I'm not a virologist so this is also not the opinion of an expert in the field. There isn't enough known about this virus to begin to really panic, no one knows exactly how it's transmitted (probably like other influenza by the respiratory route) but in the past hand washing and awareness of where you hands of been (okay, get your mind out of the gutter-and you know who I'm talking too....) is probably one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of any disease. So, hand sanitizer and good old soap and water is the first line of defense. Secondly, no one knows why it is only fatal in Mexico but my guess would be the standard of care in the other locations where the disease has been confirmed may be different. Mexico in the end is a very rural nation with great health care in the cities and not so great health care in the rural areas. So before I panic I want to see what happens else where. What does worry me about the possibility of a global pandemic you ask? The economic ramifications of this are staggering and probably what most of the world governments are more worried about. Mexico City is a ghost town, what would happen to the global economy if New York, London, Hong Kong and Tokyo all shut down?
So, am I panicking about catching swine flu? No, but the far reaching consequences of a global pandemic are pretty scary....
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
FYI
Some of you will notice I put a widget up from HHS/CDC about swine flu (yes, it was also unfortunately juxtaposed to the picture of Tiger Lily with a gas mask on for awhile). They want the correct and most current information disseminated. Knowledge is power and one consequence of pandemic flu is the potential it has to disrupt our day to day life both by the spread of misinformation as well as the actual disease.
It is interesting to see what we have talked about and prepared for actually come to fruition (and saddening too). Even with all we know about human diseases we still are always one step behind evolution. The scientist in me is fascinated, the mother in me just put hand sanitizer on her grocery list, and Tiger Lily’s ferret she named last week just became more important (ferrets are used by researchers to study human influenza).
It will be an interesting few weeks I think.
It is interesting to see what we have talked about and prepared for actually come to fruition (and saddening too). Even with all we know about human diseases we still are always one step behind evolution. The scientist in me is fascinated, the mother in me just put hand sanitizer on her grocery list, and Tiger Lily’s ferret she named last week just became more important (ferrets are used by researchers to study human influenza).
It will be an interesting few weeks I think.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Tiger Lily speaks
Hi it’s Tiger Lily, I’m so happy to be talking to you. I’m here to talk about bring your child to work day in these next paragraphs.
First I went to something called Healthy Kids. We were divided into two groups, I went in the second group. What I did first was learn about fitness. The second thing I learned about healthy drinks, it was very delightful because I learned about how many calories the drinks I drink have in them. Did you know the Big Gulps from 7-eleven have 800 calories and I got to hold the bag with all the sugar in a Big Gulp and it was heavy.
The next thing I did was I saw all these cute little animals. First I saw the mice, they were so cute when they were running around. Next I went to go see the rabbits and three of them were named after Twilight characters. Then I saw Guinea Pigs and we got to feed the Guinea Pigs lettuce and they went crazy. I also saw ferrets and I named one of them Po-Po and our tour guide said she would tell everyone in the building the name since she didn’t have one before.
Then I saw a magic show! His name was Magic Mike, he was a total magician. His first trick was he stuffed a ribbon in his hand and it was nowhere to be seen. Then, he did the coloring book trick where there were pictures then we said the magic words and they were colored, then he started singing a song and there was nothing in there. And, he didn’t believe us when we told him. His last trick was my favorite. He called up my mom’s friend’s nephew and another girl and he had a little bag, took a wand and we said the magic words and a bird came out. But, my mom’s friend’s nephew was scared of the bird so Magic Mike called me up and the bird came onto my hand, it was soooo cute. My mom says it was a pigeon and it was disgusting but I don’t believe that (she still made me wash my hands).
That was mostly the funnest part of my day, then I had a taco for lunch, it was pretty good. It had lettuce and pulled pork, it was delicious. Then I put sauce on it that I thought was BBQ sauce on it but it wasn’t so I didn’t eat my third taco.
So, before this I was scared of police, they are so tall and big and they carry guns so I was scared. But not after bring your child to work day. We went to something called the K-9 show. I saw all the weapons they use, I got to sit in the cop car and speak on the loud speaker. I got to pick up the battering ram which was so much fun, I got to put on a gas mask (see the picture), then I K-9 show. Those K-9s were sooo smart. The officer put something in the boxes and the bags, they sniffed it out and they were right every time, Wow.
Then I had a softball game to go to and I left. I had fun that day, you should think about working there.
Love from Tiger Lily to all.
First I went to something called Healthy Kids. We were divided into two groups, I went in the second group. What I did first was learn about fitness. The second thing I learned about healthy drinks, it was very delightful because I learned about how many calories the drinks I drink have in them. Did you know the Big Gulps from 7-eleven have 800 calories and I got to hold the bag with all the sugar in a Big Gulp and it was heavy.
The next thing I did was I saw all these cute little animals. First I saw the mice, they were so cute when they were running around. Next I went to go see the rabbits and three of them were named after Twilight characters. Then I saw Guinea Pigs and we got to feed the Guinea Pigs lettuce and they went crazy. I also saw ferrets and I named one of them Po-Po and our tour guide said she would tell everyone in the building the name since she didn’t have one before.
Then I saw a magic show! His name was Magic Mike, he was a total magician. His first trick was he stuffed a ribbon in his hand and it was nowhere to be seen. Then, he did the coloring book trick where there were pictures then we said the magic words and they were colored, then he started singing a song and there was nothing in there. And, he didn’t believe us when we told him. His last trick was my favorite. He called up my mom’s friend’s nephew and another girl and he had a little bag, took a wand and we said the magic words and a bird came out. But, my mom’s friend’s nephew was scared of the bird so Magic Mike called me up and the bird came onto my hand, it was soooo cute. My mom says it was a pigeon and it was disgusting but I don’t believe that (she still made me wash my hands).
That was mostly the funnest part of my day, then I had a taco for lunch, it was pretty good. It had lettuce and pulled pork, it was delicious. Then I put sauce on it that I thought was BBQ sauce on it but it wasn’t so I didn’t eat my third taco.
So, before this I was scared of police, they are so tall and big and they carry guns so I was scared. But not after bring your child to work day. We went to something called the K-9 show. I saw all the weapons they use, I got to sit in the cop car and speak on the loud speaker. I got to pick up the battering ram which was so much fun, I got to put on a gas mask (see the picture), then I K-9 show. Those K-9s were sooo smart. The officer put something in the boxes and the bags, they sniffed it out and they were right every time, Wow.
Then I had a softball game to go to and I left. I had fun that day, you should think about working there.
Love from Tiger Lily to all.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
take your child to work day
Today was take your child to work day and so Tiger Lily came to work with me. The program is well supported and they had activities planned all day. We walked all over the campus and our feet hurt when we left. I'm not going to go into details today since Tiger Lily has requested the opportunity to post what she did here. Unfortunately it'll have to wait until tomorrow or Saturday since we just got home from softball and it's too late.
Softball season has officially started and it's always funny how it starts out cold and by the end of the season we're all complaining about how hot it is. I have to admit that since I lost all my weight I'm actually looking forward to warm weather for the first time in years--I stay cold most of the time now days. Tiger Lily is sitting at the table in summer pajamas and I'm in jeans, two t-shirts and a fleece pullover.
Our weekend is booked already which is not a big surprise. We have soft ball practice and a movie date tomorrow night, a softball game on Saturday, friends coming for dinner Saturday night, and will probably head into the city on Sunday. In between I'm sure things will change and be added--I'm enjoying the fact that my life has become much more flexible in the past few months. I like to know what I'm doing but I have never been much of a "we have to do this now and this later and nothing else inbetween" type of person.
Have a great weekend and check back later to see what Tiger Lily has to say...
Softball season has officially started and it's always funny how it starts out cold and by the end of the season we're all complaining about how hot it is. I have to admit that since I lost all my weight I'm actually looking forward to warm weather for the first time in years--I stay cold most of the time now days. Tiger Lily is sitting at the table in summer pajamas and I'm in jeans, two t-shirts and a fleece pullover.
Our weekend is booked already which is not a big surprise. We have soft ball practice and a movie date tomorrow night, a softball game on Saturday, friends coming for dinner Saturday night, and will probably head into the city on Sunday. In between I'm sure things will change and be added--I'm enjoying the fact that my life has become much more flexible in the past few months. I like to know what I'm doing but I have never been much of a "we have to do this now and this later and nothing else inbetween" type of person.
Have a great weekend and check back later to see what Tiger Lily has to say...
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
TV turn off week
Well, it's TV turn off week and so far we seem to have survived just fine. Of course, we're always so busy that I don't think we watch that much TV during the week anyways. We were all ready to go on a short hike today to celebrate Earth Day and it started pouring so that put an end to that idea. Hopefully it will clear out soon and we may actually get to play a softball game on Thursday.
Our past weekend was packed with activity as the Friday night sleep over ended up with a few extra people and dinner out at Ledo's Pizza with friends. Everyone left about 4:30 on Saturday afternoon and Tiger Lily left at 5:00 for another sleepover so I hardly saw her until Sunday afternoon when we went to get pedicures before our big night out at the Melting Pot for dinner. I skipped lunch just so I'd have enough room to do the meal justice and I still was so full I could barely walk. I did get some yard work done and planted a few trees along the side of the house so it was a productive weekend! I even managed to sort of repair the wall where I hit it with the trailer (thank you to everyone for not telling Ted...).
Finally, a big huge hug to a friend who had a beautiful baby boy last week!!! Hopefully she is getting rest and recovering! Tiger Lily and I loved the pictures she sent out today.
Have a good rest of the week and stay tuned, I'm sure our weekend will be just as crazy as the last.....
Oh, and, No Country For Old Men...definitely not a feel good movie but "and then I woke up" is a good closing line.
Our past weekend was packed with activity as the Friday night sleep over ended up with a few extra people and dinner out at Ledo's Pizza with friends. Everyone left about 4:30 on Saturday afternoon and Tiger Lily left at 5:00 for another sleepover so I hardly saw her until Sunday afternoon when we went to get pedicures before our big night out at the Melting Pot for dinner. I skipped lunch just so I'd have enough room to do the meal justice and I still was so full I could barely walk. I did get some yard work done and planted a few trees along the side of the house so it was a productive weekend! I even managed to sort of repair the wall where I hit it with the trailer (thank you to everyone for not telling Ted...).
Finally, a big huge hug to a friend who had a beautiful baby boy last week!!! Hopefully she is getting rest and recovering! Tiger Lily and I loved the pictures she sent out today.
Have a good rest of the week and stay tuned, I'm sure our weekend will be just as crazy as the last.....
Oh, and, No Country For Old Men...definitely not a feel good movie but "and then I woke up" is a good closing line.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Funny what you learn
It’s funny how much I used to depend on Ted to do all the “manly” things and never thought I could do them. Today I hooked up a friend’s trailer to my parent’s SUV and drove up to Damascus to pick up a lawn mower (don’t tell Ted I hit the wall he built with the trailer when I pulled into the house though). 5 years ago Ted would have done it and I would have been happy to let him. Over the last 4 years of our marriage as he pulled away it is something I would never have thought of doing. It really is true when they say necessity is the mother of invention. Once he left I found out there are a lot of things I can do and if I had enough confidence in myself I would have been doing them all along instead of waiting for him to come home. Same goes for all the computer stuff, I would have never bought my own computer, set up the new desktop we also bought, figured out how to use the easy transfer cable, loaded all the software, learned how to connect to the wireless router or even how to hook up my dad’s computer to the contraption in the LAN closet so he can have internet on his computer. As I become more and more independent I continue to discover new talents and abilities that I think were always there, I just never took the time to look.
Also have to say I’m really enjoying my laptop, I’m posting this while sitting on the deck enjoying the sunshine and watching Tiger Lily and a friend play in the yard. Life is good.
Also have to say I’m really enjoying my laptop, I’m posting this while sitting on the deck enjoying the sunshine and watching Tiger Lily and a friend play in the yard. Life is good.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Weekend is coming
As always, it's about time for the weekend and Tiger Lily is booked. Softball practice Friday night along with a friend sleeping over, Hannah Montana Saturday and a sleep over at another friends on Saturday night (Maybe I'll finally get to watch No Country for Old Men). On Sunday we're off to The Melting Pot again to celebrate another amazing report card (She got all A's except for Spelling this time--anyone who knows me well knows where her lack of spelling came from). I'm so proud of how well she's doing in school. My weekend is a little less exciting as I have tons of yard work to do and the weather is finally nice.
I'm trying to decide whether or not it's finally time to cut my hair again. Everyone who knows me knows how about every 5 years or so I grow it out for about 8-10 months and then finally just get sick of it. I started this trend in February 2008 and last fall I was so happy that I got to keep my hair that I just kept growing it. Well, now I'm starting to think about the extra sleep I could get if I went short and curly (then again, sleep is overrated...). I guess time will tell if I post a picture with short hair again you'll know I caved. Feedback is always welcome.
Lastly, I'm posting this sitting at the dining room table on my NEW LAPTOP!!! The one I took on vacation last week was from work and has too much security on it so I decided to splurge. Still figuring out everything but it has all kinds of extras (and yes, it has pink on it). Looking forward to being able to just plug in my SD card from the camera and learning about webcams...
Have a great weekend everybody.
I'm trying to decide whether or not it's finally time to cut my hair again. Everyone who knows me knows how about every 5 years or so I grow it out for about 8-10 months and then finally just get sick of it. I started this trend in February 2008 and last fall I was so happy that I got to keep my hair that I just kept growing it. Well, now I'm starting to think about the extra sleep I could get if I went short and curly (then again, sleep is overrated...). I guess time will tell if I post a picture with short hair again you'll know I caved. Feedback is always welcome.
Lastly, I'm posting this sitting at the dining room table on my NEW LAPTOP!!! The one I took on vacation last week was from work and has too much security on it so I decided to splurge. Still figuring out everything but it has all kinds of extras (and yes, it has pink on it). Looking forward to being able to just plug in my SD card from the camera and learning about webcams...
Have a great weekend everybody.
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