Daily Dose of Mercury?

Yikes! Here's yet another compelling reason to eliminate high-fructose corn syrup from your diet, in spite of the fact that it is an ingredient in so many foods we know and love--or maybe even more so, because it is in so many of the foods we know and love. A study has shown that HFCS contains mercury!

The industry is running scared as people are wising up to how bad for you HFCS really is. The Corn Refiners Association is paying the big bucks for television spots and major magazine ads that claim HFCS is "nutritionally the same as table sugar" (which is also not good for you, but I digress...)

To read the article from Taste For Life Magazine click here
or read it below:

Study Finds High-Fructose Corn Syrup Contains Mercury

Sunday, February 01, 2009

Related : bran dairy product breakfast health review ingredient snack chemical plant tea children meat environment lunch

Almost half of tested samples of commercial high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) contained mercury, which was also found in nearly a third of 55 popular brand-name food and beverage products where HFCS is the first- or second-highest labeled ingredient, according to two new U.S. studies.

HFCS has replaced sugar as the sweetener in many beverages and foods such as breads, cereals, breakfast bars, lunch meats, yogurts, soups and condiments. On average, Americans consume about 12 teaspoons per day of HFCS, but teens and other high consumers can take in 80 percent more HFCS than average.

"Mercury is toxic in all its forms. Given how much high-fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a significant additional source of mercury never before considered. We are calling for immediate changes by industry and the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply," the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy's Dr. David Wallinga, a co-author of both studies, said in a prepared statement.

In the first study, published in current issue of Environmental Health, researchers found detectable levels of mercury in nine of 20 samples of commercial HFCS.

And in the second study, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), a non-profit watchdog group, found that nearly one in three of 55 brand-name foods contained mercury. The chemical was found most commonly in HFCS-containing dairy products, dressings and condiments.

But an organization representing the refiners is disputing the results published in Environmental Health.

"This study appears to be based on outdated information of dubious significance," said Audrae Erickson, president of the Corn Refiners Association, in a statement. "Our industry has used mercury-free versions of the two re-agents mentioned in the study, hydrochloric acid and caustic soda, for several years. These mercury-free re-agents perform important functions, including adjusting pH balances."

However, the IATP told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that four plants in Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio and West Virginia still use "mercury-cell" technology that can lead to contamination.

IATP's Ben Lilliston also told HealthDay that the Environmental Health findings were based on information gathered by the FDA in 2005.

And the group's own study, while not peer-reviewed, was based on products "bought off the shelf in the autumn of 2008," Lilliston added.

The use of mercury-contaminated caustic soda in the production of HFCS is common. The contamination occurs when mercury cells are used to produce caustic soda.

"The bad news is that nobody knows whether or not their soda or snack food contains HFCS made from ingredients like caustic soda contaminated with mercury. The good news is that mercury-free HFCS ingredients exist. Food companies just need a good push to only use those ingredients," Wallinga said in his prepared statement.

Funeral for a Fish/ How to Not Be Eaten By a Leopard

Little Paula was in the garden filling in a hole when her neighbor peered over the fence. Interested in what the cheeky-faced youngster was doing, he politely asked, "What are you up to there, Paula?" "My goldfish died," replied Paula tearfully, without looking up, "and I've just buried him." The neighbor was concerned. "I am so sorry for your loss but that seems to be an awfully big hole for a little tiny goldfish, isn't it?" Paula nicely patted down the last heap of earth on the grave and then replied, "That's because he's inside your horrible cat."


A wealthy old lady decides to go on a photo safari in Africa, taking her faithful aged poodle named Cuddles, along for the company. One day the poodle starts chasing butterflies and before long, Cuddles discovers that she's lost. Wandering about, she notices a leopard heading rapidly in her direction with the intention of having lunch. The old poodle thinks, "Oh, oh! I'm in trouble now!" Noticing some bones on the ground close by, she immediately settles down to chew on the bones with her back to the approaching cat. Just as the leopard is about to leap, the old poodle exclaims loudly, "Boy, that was one delicious leopard! I wonder if there are any more around here?" Hearing this, the young leopard halts his attack in mid-strike, a look of terror comes over him and he slinks away into the trees. "Whew!", says the leopard, "That was close! That old poodle nearly had me!" Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the leopard. So off he goes, but the old poodle sees him heading after the leopard with great speed, and figures that something must be up. The monkey soon catches up with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the leopard. The young leopard is furious at being made a fool of and says, "Here, monkey, hop on my back and see what's going to happen to that conniving canine!" Now, the old poodle sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his back and thinks, "What am I going to do now?", but instead of running, the dog sits down with her back to her attackers, pretending she hasn't seen them yet, and just when they get close enough to hear, the old poodle says: "Where's that blasted monkey? I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another leopard!"

Blog Entry Praises Church Welfare Program

Yeah! I'm always happy when I read positive things being said about the LDS Church. I found the following on Dr. Laura's Blog:

Blessings in Disguise

December 18, 2008 on 8:00 am | In Charity, Economy, Marriage, Mormons, Relationships, Values Email This Post

"I have always been impressed with the mentality of the Mormons with respect to the issue of charity. I had a tour of their main charity facilities, and was amazed at what I saw and learned. There are absolutely no handouts – they barter!

Here’s how it works: if you could lose your home, or if you need food, clothing, medicine or toys for your children, the Church takes financial care of your needs. In exchange, you provide services to the very mechanism that rescued you. This means that folks in the bakeries are people who have benefited from the charitable services; those helping in the stores that sell thrift clothing, housewares and food are those who have benefited from the charitable services, and so on.

The basic concept is to preserve a sense of dignity and pride in those who have temporary need by giving them an opportunity to use their skills in the service of others. Walking around the premises, I felt the uplifted attitude of all who were there: smiles, waves, and straight backs.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints provides for people all over the world – not only with goods and goodwill, but with the opportunity to not lose a sense of self when “things” are lost.

I probably sound like an advertisement for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I am not a member of their religion, but I am impressed with their charitable philosophy, because I believe it teaches our children their real value, while motivating and uplifting them at the same time.

Their young people who graduate high school are expected to go on two-year “missions,” reminiscent of the Peace Corps. These young people come back much more mature, as they’ve experienced the pain and need of others, and have sacrificed two years of their own comfort to be of service to others.
Other youngsters just don’t want to skip a beat in their acquisition of iPods, cell phones, and other “Internet in your hand” gadgets.

I believe that the economic disaster our country is in right now is a kind of blessing in disguise with respect to values. Without values, life just provides us with “things,” but not necessarily with any profound meaning."

Be a fountain, not a drain.

Can I just say how RUDE I think it is when I am talking to someone, and their significant other stares off into space with a look of utter boredom on their face, as if they are barely tolerating the inconvenience?!

More than once recently, I have seen an old friend with their girlfriend/boyfriend/husband/wife who I don't particularly know. Rather than that person making eye-contact, or listening, or even--gasp--participating in the conversation, they hang on the arm of their other half, and watch the grocery checker ring up customers, instead of talking to me. It's as if they say to themselves, "Oh, it's Schnookem's friend, nobody important, not one of my friends, I guess I'll just have to stand here and wait until they stop talking, I do wish they'd hurry it up." How ungracious is that? In fact, I consider it a sign that my friend is dating/married to an idiot. An immature idiot who is grossly lacking in social graces. By contrast, I'm always delighted to discover a friend whose significant other is friendly and engaging.

Call me old-fashioned, but I actually want to get to know the friends and family of those who I date. Odd, huh? I have really appreciated the in-laws in my family who make an effort to have a relationship with me and find out a little bit about what's going on in my life. The in-laws who are not very friendly are sort of metaphorical drains rather than fountains at family functions. And they too have that expression of detachment, and seem to tug at the sleeves of their spouse, as if to say "Can we pleeease go yet?" They don't seem to have very much fun, and they aren't much fun to be around, which is a pity, because it doesn't have to be that way.

So there you have it! If your honey passes the "I am polite/not self-absorbed enough to converse with my sweetie's friends, family, and acquaintances" test, it doesn't guarantee that you're not dating an unmannered egotist, but if they fail the test, at least I think it's a pretty good indicator that they might be...

Mary's Little Donkey and The Flight to Egypt

When I was a about nine or so, my aunt gave my mom a book called, "Mary's Little Donkey and the Flight to Egypt" by Gunhild Sehlin, a Swedish author. It is a wonderful Christmas story to read to young children! I loved it as a kid, and I just pulled it out again to read to the little boy I tutor-- he loved it as well! This is a great book to add to your collection, or give as a gift. It is a bit difficult to find, since it is a "foreign" book, and the English translation is mostly sold in the UK, but I found several places where it could be ordered online. It's a little late for me to be posting this for Christmas, but it's really a story that could be used at any time of year. The story is interesting and sweet, and it was all I could do not to cry three or four times as I was reading it out loud. (I wonder if my pupil noticed the crack in my voice each time.) I highly, highly recommend it as one of my favorite Children's books.

Short Synopsis from Floris books:
"The stubborn, dirty little donkey who is of no use to anyone in Nazareth becomes a quick and willing helper under Mary’s care. The other animals in Mary's stable like him and together they wait for the birth of Mary's child.

But Mary and Joseph have to leave Nazareth obeying Caesar's decree, and the donkey carries Mary to Bethlehem where the child is born.
The donkey hopes to carry Mary and her son quickly back to Nazareth but instead they have to flee to far-away Egypt. Willingly, the donkey makes this journey through the desert. Only after a long time could they return home where the other animals in Mary's stable welcome them.

An engaging alternative to the traditional Christmas story, to be read to children age 6-8, or for children age 8-10 to read to themselves."

"There goes your first date..."

My favorite M&M commercial. I get a kick out of my name being used in it. ;)

Humanitarian Opportunities

A couple of weeks ago I got a World Vision humanitarian catalog in the mail-- they use donations to (among other things) purchase animals for families in poverty-stricken countries. I thought it was a great idea, but was a little disappointed at the prices involved-- and discovered that not all of the money went directly to helping the people in need. A portion of the donations pay for fund-raising and administration costs... certainly it is still a very good cause...but I discovered that perhaps one of the best humanitarian efforts to support is Latter-Day Saint Charities.

I was curious if Latter-day Saint Charities had any similar programs to those of World Vision, or if they were limited to emergency relief, and a few special projects. I was happy to discover that they work with many other agencies to provide a wide range of humanitarian services. To see a list of worldwide projects click the link here. I'd recommend browsing through; it's quite interesting! Because other Church funds pay for administration and fund-raising, 100% of any donations to the Humanitarian Fund go directly to purchasing items or services for the needs of individuals. Through the web-site ldsphilanthropies.org you can donate online, and may even specify which program you would like your contribution to go toward. Neat, eh?

Another interesting web-site to look at is Kiva.org --Rather than giving money, a short-term loan enables people in need to invest in their livelihood and lift themselves out of poverty. For example: a woman could use a small loan to purchase a sewing machine and some fabric--an initial investment that would allow her to sell her work for a profit, repay the loan, and continue to have an income. Loan increments can be as small as $25, and you can chose who will benefit from the loan. When the loan is re-payed (generally within a few months), you can loan again to a different entrepreneur, or you may withdraw your money.

Trivia by Fives.

Tagged again! (I admit tags are somewhere between cheesy and fun ;) )

5 Fears:
1. The dark. I have an "active" imagination, and I scare kind of easy. When I was a young teenager I once watched my first and last episode of the X-files; it was so freaky I asked my mom sleep in my room for a couple of weeks. It was a really evil episode-- I'll never watch another one again. Bleeeck!

2. Driving on roads that have a cliff on one side, and shear mountain face on the other. Or cliffs on both sides, or shear mountain on both sides.

3. Deep water. Wind-surfing sounds like fun, but I don't think I'm likely to ever get on a surfboard.

4. Wolves. Ok, well I'm not really afraid of them anymore, but they were my big fear as a kid. Not the boogie man, or a monster in my closet, wolves. (You'd be amazed how much knot holes in a wooden fence can look like glaring wolf eyes.) I blame a few "children's books" for this. (I don't recommend "Lon Po Po" for kids, I don't care if it won a Caldecott.) I still am not especially fond of the animals.

5. Inflation/rising costs.

Collections/Obsessions:
1. Collection: Books-- I have 5 bookcases of various sizes, and they are now all full!

2. Collection: Blue and white pottery. I love that so many countries of the world have a variation of blue and white pottery. I started this collection when I went to Italy. Happily, my treasures all made it home in one piece. Eventually I'd like to visit and bring home pottery from England, Ireland, The Netherlands, China, Denmark, Belgium, etc.

3. Collection: Snoopy stuff.

4. Obsession: Jane Austen.

5. Obsession: British accents and the men who have them.

Surprising facts:

1. I was 22 before I flew for the first time. (In an airplane--I'm not actually Superman's sister.)

2. I was an English major, but I've never read any Harry Potter, or Twilight, in fact, whenever there is anything that excites mass hysteria, I tend to be repelled. I usually go for the stuff off the beaten path-- I don't like most box-office hit movies, and I don't keep up with trends.

3. I don't particularly like shopping, unless I'm just browsing and not looking for anything in particular. Clothes and shoe shopping are the worst! I like cute clothes, but I HATE looking for them.

4. I assisted officers in a marijuana bust.

5. My earliest memory is from a few days after I turned two.

I Give Obama a 100% Approval Rating*

*Some terms and conditions apply, limited-time offer, read blog for details.

I remember when Julia Roberts, the Dixie Chicks, and other celebrity figures said of George W. Bush, "He's not my president." It's easy to feel that way when the candidate you supported was not elected, and when you dislike or disagree with the candidate who won.

Recently on Glenn Beck's conservative talk show, a Georgia man called in to say that he refused to accept Barack Obama as president. I really thought Glenn's response was insightful. He said, "How very un-American of you. He is the American president. ... this is the way our system works."

Speaking along a similar vein, Rush Limbaugh said, "Barack Obama is my president of the United States. I couldn't care less where he was born, what his name is, how old he is, or the color of his skin. He's not black. He's not white. He's not Asian-American or Mexican. He's not Chavez's brother or Islamic. I don't see Americans as members of groups. I see individual human beings. It is his ideas I am terrifically, tremendously worried about."

Stu Burguiere is the exec.-producer for the Glenn Beck Program. On Stu's blog, he wrote that he thinks the incoming president ought to be given a chance (a courtesy that wasn't extended eight years ago.)

I agree with Stu's way of thinking, "...Today, I give Barack Obama a 100% approval rating. If and when he screws up, I’ll deduct points. Let’s make it a maximum of 10 points for each individual annoying event. If he does something great—I’ll add points. I’m that kind of guy. Let’s see how long he stays above 50%.

I don’t think Obama will be a good president. But I HOPE for a CHANGE in that opinion. I hope he’s the greatest president in history. I hope the pre-election promises of perfection are realized. [Boy, I'm not sure I'd want the fulfillment of all of his pre-election promises, but that's just me.] I doubt they will be, but I want to at least give him a chance to screw it up before I say he screwed it up.

Regardless, he’ll be my president until he leaves office---even if his nationwide approval rating is zero (which will be impossible unless the on air staff of MSNBC is left out of the sample.)"

Like Stu, I've got my score-card ready, but it's a clean slate.

Now that the election is over...

I just can't help myself, this is too funny not to post. With profound apologies to my friends who think Obama is the cat's meow...

World's Worst Teacher

This would be an instance where a teacher's personal bias went WAY out of control in the classroom. This clip comes from a Finnish made documentary about the American Presidential election. No matter who you voted for, this is an outrage.

Cell Phones

I've read about cell phone health hazards for several years. Here are the basics for reducing your risk:

*Don't believe that cell phones "can't hurt" or think that it's hoakey to be concerned. (As a side note, I once held up a cell phone to each of my ears at the same time and immediately felt dizzy and weird-- and I got a bit of a headache. After that experience I was convinced that they could adversely affect health.)

*Don't let children use cell phones (if you must, use an ear piece-- research has shown detrimental effects that children are especially prone to because their brains are developing.

*Use an ear piece or speaker phone yourself.

*Don't carry your cell phone on your person as much as possible. Particularly avoid wearing it on your hip (where bone marrow is produced.) Don't carry your cell phone in your pocket especially if you are a male, as cell phones-- I am not making this up-- can cause the production of abnormally shaped spermatozoa.

*Don't sleep with your cell phone in your bedroom at night. It can interfere with your quality of sleep. Charge your phone in another room of the house.

* Purchase an electromagnetic chaos protection chip for your cell. Purportedly these chips will neutralize the negative emissions from your cell.

*Don't walk around with a bluetooth on your head. Bad for your health. Bad for your social life.

*Pay attention to your body. If you think you feel an unwanted stimulus from your cell phone- don't use it, or switch to a phone model you are less sensitive to.

For further information that reiterates the information I have written, read the following recent article from KSL.com:

New warning about possible link between cell phones and cancer

November 7th, 2008 @ 6:37pm

By John Hollenhorst

The cancer risk from cell phones is unproven, but Dr. Devra Davis, with the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Environmental Oncology, says new studies in Europe are raising fresh concern.

"If these projections are true, we could have a massive global epidemic of brain cancer, and we can't afford for that to happen," Davis says.

She's a leading expert on environmental causes of cancer. She spoke at the University of Utah's Institute of Human Genetics. She said, "Let me be clear about something. I can not tell you that cell phones are dangerous, but I have very good reasons for concern."

A worrisome study by the University's Dr. Om Ghandi found that phone signals are absorbed very deeply into the brain, and they are absorbed much more deeply into the head of a 5-year-old than they are into the brain of an adult.

She asked, "Now, would you allow your child to smoke? Would you allow your child to play Russian roulette?"

She said precautions are in order until science has answers. She said use a speaker phone or an ear-piece and don't keep the phone on your body all the time. She said that keeping the phone on your hip was a concern because that's where bone marrow is made...

She's calling on cell-phone companies to release billing records so scientists can do proper exposure studies but, instead, the companies offer a two word response: trust us.

Davis said, "I trust in God, but all others have to provide data."

She said right now, in this country, there are no studies being done. She says that's unconscionable.

She believes the industry can design safer cell phones but, so far, it hasn't felt enough pressure to do it.

Celebrities, Politicians Answer that Classic Question:

Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

SARAH PALIN: Before it got to the other side, I shot the chicken, cleaned and dressed it, and had chicken burgers for lunch.

BARACK OBAMA: The chicken crossed the road because it was time for a change! The chicken wanted change!

JOHN MC CAIN: My friends, that chicken crossed the road because he recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the other side of the road.

HILLARY CLINTON: When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken to cross the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure right from Day One that every chicken in this country gets the chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn’t about me.

GEORGE W. BUSH: We don’t really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road, or not. The chicken is either against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here.

DICK CHENEY: Where’s my gun?

COLIN POWELL: Now to the left of the screen, you can clearly see the satellite image of the chicken crossing the road.

BILL CLINTON: I did not cross the road with that chicken. What is your definition of chicken?

AL GORE: I invented the chicken.

JOHN KERRY: Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against it! It was the wrong road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken’s intentions. I am not for it now and will remain against it.

AL SHARPTON: Why are all the chickens white? We need some black chickens.

DR. PHIL: The problem we have here is that this chicken doesn’t realize that he must first deal with the problem on this side of the road before it goes after the problem on the other side of the road. What we need to do is help him realize how stupid he’s acting by not taking on his current problems before adding new problems.

OPRAH: Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why he wants to cross this road so bad. So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I’m going to give this chicken a car so that he can just drive across the road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN: We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed access to the other side of the road.

NANCY GRACE: That chicken crossed the road because he’s guilty! You can see it in his eyes and the way he walks.

PAT BUCHANAN: To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American.

MARTHA STEWART: No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer’s Market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information.

DR SEUSS: Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, the chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I’ve not been told.

ERNEST HEMINGWAY: To die in the rain, alone.

GRANDPA: In my day we didn’t ask why the chicken crossed the road. Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough.

BARBARA WALTERS: Isn’t that interesting? In a few moments, we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time, the heart-warming story of how it experienced a serious case of molting, and went on to accomplish its lifelong dream of crossing the road.

ARISTOTLE: It is the nature of chickens to cross the road.

JOHN LENNON: Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together, in peace.

BILL GATES: I have just released eChicken 2008, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your checkbook. Internet Explorer is an integral part of eChicken 2008. This new platform is much more stable and will never crash or need to be rebooted.

ALBERT EINSTEIN: Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the road move beneath the chicken?

COLONEL SANDERS: Did I miss one?

(I found this on Dr. Laura's Blog; she received it as an e-mail forward)

Prescription for Disaster

I don't mean to be insensitive to people with depression, keep that in mind as you read.
Lately I've seen magazine and television ads for a new prescription drug called "Abilify." It is a drug to take in addition to an antidepressant such as Zoloft, Prozac, Paxcil CR, etc. Why? Because people who are taking these and other antidepressants are still having symptoms of depression!
(No kidding, really?)

Could it be because hormones primarily drive your sense of emotional well-being, and prescription drugs, and a diet of processed, artificial, non-nutritional "food" disrupt your body systems, including your hormones?

The second greatest factor in mood and emotion is brain chemistry-- again, if the chemistry you put into your body isn't good (poor food, drugs, chemicals) then it is to be expected that the internal chemistry will be messed up as well!

Depression is one of the most naturally treatable ailments. To begin to balance the hormones and adrenal system: eat natural, healthy foods; take Omega-3s; exercise-- everyday; get sunlight; look at your life stressors and possible solutions or resources; and do something to feel good about.

When I was sick as a teenager, I had my own bout with depression-- my body was out of whack, including my hormones. The M.D.s didn't know what to do to help me recover from feeling sick and exhausted all the time, but they offered antidepressants to help with the feeling like crap.
I'm happy to say (no pun intended) that I never took any. As I started doing healthy things for my body, the depression was alleviated and then gone. I think most people on antidepressants continue to have problems if they stop taking the drug. Obviously taking an antidepressant is not a cure, it's a symptom cover-up. Sometimes it doesn't even treat the symptoms! According to Abilify's own ad, 2 out of 3 people have unresolved symptoms of depression when taking an antidepressant.

I find it ironic that the side effects of antidepressants can include being more depressed, and suicidal. In violent crime cases such as the Columbine High School shootings, the perpetrators were on antidepressants. What most people don't realize is that studies are suggesting that the antidepressants can actually cause these incidents. (See Ann Blake Tracy's book, "Prozac: Panacea or Pandora.") You see, the anti-depressants aren't smart enough to distinguish "good" emotions from "bad" ones. They may block feelings of sadness, but they can also block feelings of joy, love, and empathy for others.

In a 2002 study (Penninx and others) depression patients were told to do aerobic walking exercise, and they were given a tricyclic antidepressant. Another group did aerobic walking exercise only. The study found that the treatment that included the antidepressant was no more effective than exercise alone. And there were no side effects!

As for the side effects of Abilify, it can effect behavior, create uncontrollable movements that may become permanent, cause seizures, and impair judgment and motor skills. It increases the risk of high blood pressure, high blood sugar, stroke, coma and death. More than 10% of Abilify users experienced nausea, vomiting, constipation, headache, dizziness, an inner sense of restlessness, anxiety, and insomnia. Hmm... I mean, this is all in the fine print right on the ad! Somehow we still think this is an ok thing to have on the market? Then again, I guess it's about the same as all other prescription drugs. As a society we've come to accept these effects-- I shouldn't call them side effects, they are effects.

I understand myself the discomfort and fear of being sick, and of having depression. There are times that a prescription drug may be necessary, even life-saving-- but I think that 95% percent of the time, we as a nation are popping pills rather than taking responsibility and doing something for our own health. ("Effort-- waaaahh!") We put our trust in medical doctors who may be well-meaning, but also get a kick-back for each Rx they write up, and seem to either not know or not care about what makes the body function at its best and heal itself.

Illness is not fun whether is is physical, mental, or emotional, but there are things we can do to truly be cured with nature, not just to be "treated" with bad science.

Wielding Influence

Earlier this week I went to the library to vote early. The line was longer than I've ever waited on election day, so I ended up just coming home. Too bad I couldn't get a sticker that said, "I Tried to Vote." ;) Anyway, whilst I was there contemplating whether or not to stand in a line longer than a wait for a Disneyland ride, a book on the display caught my eye. It was called "Save the World On Your Own Time." Since I'm all about world saving, I thought this might be a clever book about doing good in the world, even with a busy schedule, or something like that.

When I read the inside jacket however, I discovered that it was a full-length complaint about university professors who pontificate their politics or their morality or their pet causes to their students. I have mixed feelings on the subject. While I don't appreciate heavily biased slants in the classroom, I have also appreciated my professors bringing up issues or perspectives that I may not have been previously aware of. Sometimes I have agreed with my professors, and sometimes I have disagreed, but it has interesting to hear their own views. In fact, usually their philosophies would either validate my own, or remind me why I beg to differ. I subscribe to the idea that "those who do not know their opponent's argument do not completely understand their own."

I admit that if I ever become a secondary English teacher, I don't necessarily want to tell my students what to think, but I want to give them some things to think about. Here's a moment of honesty on my part: what is this blog really, if not my soapbox? (After all, I don't have any cute kids to post pictures of just yet.)

Teachers/Professors can go overboard, that's for sure. When their agendas interfere with learning the subject, or threaten to prevent their classroom from being a safe place for different opinions, then there is a real problem. (English classrooms can be an especially interesting platform for indoctrination. I had some English professors who made their tenants especially clear.) I feel cheated as a student when a teacher either presents their ideas too adamantly and too often, or when they don't share them at all. It's a balance. The author of the book I mentioned may or may not have taken the "balance" view, I don't know.

The word "discrimination" has become as filthy as a brown banana peel at the bottom of a smelly dumpster, but it's not always a bad thing! It's also means "the power of making fine distinctions" -- distinctions that are necessary, and help define who we are (and aren't) and what is important to us.

It seems to me that we tend to appreciate educators who teach "values" when they are our values, and hate them when they aren't. (Was that grammatically correct? Oh well.)
While it is possible (and good) to teach with minimal bias, it would be impossible and even unfortunate to attempt to teach without any bias at all. The politically correct way of thinking is that because we don't all have the same values/ideas, we should avoid teaching or talking about them as much as possible. I disagree. Maybe we should be careful about teaching values, but we should not be so absurdly PC that we are afraid to talk about them. We don't want to teach religion in the classroom, for example; but we should certainly be able to talk about religion. The freedom to talk about moral issues, political issues, values, etc. is a right that is afforded to teachers in law, but many educators still shy away from those discussions out of fear. I think it's unfortunate. If teachers were trained a little to be able to mediate and facilitate meaningful class discussions, etc. with confidence, I think that would be more worthwhile than training teachers to drill their students in cold, unhuman facts and figures.

In some ways I agree with the author who urges "save the world on your own time," but in other ways, I see education as a good venue for "saving the world" if we can appropriately, and openly talk about the concerns and topics that affect us.

What the fruit?

Now that it's early voting season, I realize that I know next to nothing about the candidates who are running closer to home. Trying to figure out who I do and don't want to vote for is a little frustrating, and leads me to express (as my British high school teacher would say,) "What the fruit?!"
Happily, there is VoteSmart.org again. Enter your zip code and see who's running. On the right side of each candidate's profile are helpful links including the"Issue Positions" link. Some candidates have provided information about what they would support if elected. Other candidates, such as those running for re-election, have not provided information, but may have voting records for you to view. If a candidate has not provided issue information and doesn't have a voting record to see, there is usually at least a campaign web-site for you to peruse. It's still not as easy as it ought to be to find out about the candidates, but it's a start.
Other good sources of information are county web-sites, and Voter Information booklets, with overviews of the candidates and the proposals-- these can usually be viewed PDF, or are available at county libraries.
Go forth, informed citizens, and cast your ballot!

"Federal Arithmetic and Reading Test"

Alright, if you aren't interested enough about educational issues to read my ramblings, skip to the second part of this entry for a parody of standardized tests and "No Child Left Behind." Rated PG for mild potty humor. (No, I didn't write it.)

STANDARDIZED TESTS
They are hated by students and teachers alike, and with good reason. Standardized tests take up considerable time in classrooms, and the tests and their scores are largely inconsequential as far as good instruction or assessment of learning are concerned. I wanted to shout hallelujah when Alfie Kohn, an author/former educator/education critic/lecturer, choose to speak specifically about the problems of standardized tests and the mentality associated with them when he spoke at this year's UEA (Utah Education Association) convention. To read Alfie's position, click on "The Case Against Tougher Standards" when you reach the page linked here. It's worth reading.
I might post my own comments about these tests later, but for now I just want the word to get out that in many cases students do not have to take these tests. Parents can deny their permission for their student to participate in testing. (Teachers can facilitate this by not giving "points" for taking the test.) Politicians and federal government officials tend to listen to parents more than educators about educational practices. Frankly, neither Republicans or Democrats seem to have it right on the issue of improving education. If enough parents send out the message that they don't appreciate these tests, then policies and practices will have to be changed.
I hope that the following parody on standardized tests won't be considered too crass. I didn't write it, but I laughed so hard I cried when I first read it.

Federal Arithmetic and Reading Test

In response to President Bush's Federal "No Child Left Behind Act" (NCLB), it is proposed that students will have to pass a test to be promoted to the next grade level.
In the hope that this proposal will be uniformly adopted by all of the states, the new test will be called the Federal Arithmetic and Reading Test (FART).
All students who cannot pass a FART in the second grade will be retested in Grades 3, 4 and 5 until they are capable of passing a FART score of 80%. If a student does not successfully FART by grade 5, that student shall be placed in a separate English program known as the Special Mastery Elective for Learning Language, or SMELL.
If, with this increased SMELL program, the student cannot pass the required FART test, he or she can still graduate to middle school by taking another one-semester course in Comprehensive Reading and Arithmetic Preparation, or CRAP.
If by age fourteen the student cannot FART, SMELL, or CRAP, he or she can earn promotion in an intensive one-week seminar known as the Preparatory Reading for Unprepared Nationally Exempted Students, or PRUNES.
It is the opinion of the Department of Instruction for Public Schools (DIPS) that an intensive week of PRUNES will enable any student to FART, SMELL, or CRAP.
This revised provision of the student component of the House Bill 101 should help "clear the air" as part of "No School Left Standing."

Quirky, moi?

It took me a while to notice I had been tagged by Tawni (see "blogs I read" for Tawni's link) for the personal weirdness confession blog. I had a hard time thinking of quirks at first (that may come as a shock, I know.) But after a while I discovered I'm more strange than I realized. ;)
Not many of my posse are fellow-bloggers, and those who are have probably already done this, so I'm going to break the rules and not tag anyone. Except for Erica; I don't think I've read about her quirks yet. :)

Here are the rules I am breaking/loosely following:
- Link the Person who Tagged you.
- Mention rules on your blog.
- Tell about 6 quirks of yours.
- Tag 6 fellow bloggers to do the same.
- Leave a comment to let them know.

Quirky Sheryl:
1- I save my fortune cookie fortunes if I like them. I save a lot of silly/sentimental things, actually. While I’m not a total pack-rat, I do like to save memorabilia– anything that is “history”– ticket stubs, programs, stuff that reminds me of a fun event, etc. Oh, and I make a photo copy of my correspondence to someone (ie: a letter, or a card) so that I remember what I said when I hear back from them. This was really helpful when I wrote to friends on missions– by the time I got something back it would sometimes say, “In answer to your first question, yes I am.” Uh...what was my first question, again? Since I had a copy of my letter, I could find out.

2- I have to eat right away when I get up in the morning or I will be sick and nauseated. On trips, I always pack a granola bar or something in my bag, because I can't wait until people are ready to go get breakfast. Along the same line, I have to drink something with all my meals or I can't eat very much at all. If there's no milk, I'll have water with breakfast; I've gotta have something. Apparently my grandma is the same way.

3- I remember my dreams everyday when I wake up. I guess some people don't? I hate waking up to an alarm clock, and I'm slightly less likely to recall what I was dreaming if I'm awakened in this rude manner. ;)

4- I have a mental visualization of the calendar year, and of time. This is always really hard to explain. Since I was five years old or earlier, I've pictured the year as a sort of elongated oval stretched out horizontally. Here's my rough illustration:

Anyway, it works sort of like a game board in space. In my mind I spatially move around the circle during the year. (Like I said, it's really difficult to explain.) August is at the top in my mental picture, probably for two reasons: I was born at the beginning of August, and August is about where a new school year starts, which is an easier reckoning of time for a child than the actual new year.
So the circle is lying down, August is physically at the north, and December is in the south, if you will. It's also interesting to note that the months are not equal in length. (?) Don't ask me! When I hear about a future event, I put it in its place on my visual calendar. When I remember something from the past, I remember where I was on my oval. People sometimes wonder how I can remember things so amazingly well; I credit it to my brain's calendar.

When I think of several years, it is a long horizontal line in space that "begins" (kind of) in the west, and goes out forever toward the east. Now you're all going to really think I'm nuts, but it works well for me!

5- Because I was sick for four years as a teenager and the medical profession did absolutely nothing to help, I am into natural medicine and health. I think it's great, but some people might think it's quirky if they haven't studied, or been sick for an extended period of time. Some of my "wierdisms" include: not owning a microwave (I truly don't even miss it); giving up fingernail polish (the 80's are over, I don't miss it either); using natural products-- from shampoo without sodium laurel sulfate, to makeup without propylene glycol; not eating foods with nitrates or aspartame; rarely if ever drinking a soda; not using any nonstick cookware; NOT using sunblock; etc., etc. Besides the list of things I don't do, there are plenty of things I do do that may seem a little odd, but like I said, I think it's great, and I feel soo much better.

6- I am a habitual list maker and thought-writer. I can't remember a time that I haven't done this, but I've done it more especially since junior high school days. I write all the time. I have notebooks and files, and binders... hopefully I'll have a chance to put some of my ideas to good use in my lifetime.

7- Bonus quirk: I love name dictionaries. I bought my first baby name book when I was thirteen. I was checking them out of the library long before that. I think now I have four different name books.

There you go! Feel free to let me in on your own quirks, or fill me in if I have some I've failed to mention. :)

Then what ARE you?

The little boy I tutor has a five-year-old sister, Zoey, the Drama Princess. The other day she asked me,
"Sheryl, are you a mom?"
"Nope, I'm not a mom yet."
"Are you a teenager?" she said.
"No, thank goodness, I'm not a teenager anymore." I replied.
She looked a little confused and then said, "Then what are you?!"

I mean, what else is there?

My pupil discovered last week that I was 24, and upon hearing the news he dropped his jaw. (Apparently 24 is pretty old.) He asked why I didn't go to the same church as he does. "I go to a single adult ward." I told him. (What's a single adult ward?) As I explained this I found myself clearing up a misconception. "But I thought you were married to Brother Wilde." (My Dad!)
Oh, man. There's nothing like kids to keep you humble.

Happy Novemeber 4th-- Vote!

Most of us have probably already decided who will win our presidential vote, but I just found two web-sites that are great tools for verifying you're selecting the candidate who best represents your views. Both sites are politically neutral. GlassBooth features a quiz where you are asked your opinions, and then you are "matched" with the best running-mate. You can easily see how you agree and disagree with the candidates. VoteSmart allows easy access to the candidates past voting records, and other helpful/interesting information.

GlassBooth.org

VoteSmart.org