Trailer park fight became a poopy situation

Once again I found myself strolling through tons of news articles looking for one that was unusual and just right for my blog. I came across an article about two trailer park residents who are suing each other. According to the article, trailer park resident and tattoo artist Ryan Fitzjerald is being sued for $100,000.00 by his ex-girlfriend, Rossie Broven, who had originally attempted to have him charged with assault but was unable to do so because she signed a consent form prior to having the art work done. She claims that he had disregarded her request that he tattoo a scene from the movie Narnia, and instead had tattooed a picture of a pile of feces with flies buzzing around it. When I first read this article , I thought to myself that the ex-girlfriend got exactly what she deserved, but on further reflection, I redirected my negative energy toward the tattoo artist.

Now, I have two tattoos of my own. I have a deep appreciation for tattoos. I enjoy getting them. I think that when they are done correctly, tattoos can be beautiful pieces of artwork. However, because tattoos are forever, one has to have complete faith and trust in the tattoo artist.

According the article, Fitzjerald had found out that his girlfriend had cheated on him with an old friend. Broven states in her complaint that Fitzjerald had tricked her by getting her drunk of a bottle of cheap whine and tequila shots and then gotten her to sign the consent form. My first thought was that she should have known better than to get drunk with an ex-boyfriend. I don’t care how much alcohol I have in me, I certainly wouldn’t let my ex-boyfriend tattoo on me, even if he knew how.

I found it horribly disappointing that this tattoo artist had violated that trust. To me, it doesn’t matter if she cheated on him or not. He should have used his professionalism and not agreed to give her a tattoo when she was drunk or when he was having anger issues with her infidelity. As I said, tattoos are forever, and she has been marked for life, or until she goes through the pain and expense of having her tattoo removed or covered. Hence, the lawsuit for $100,000.00.

Tattoo artists already have to go against predisposed stereotypes and this guy does not help. If I had found out that my tattoo artist took out his revenge on his ex-girlfriends by marking her for life with a damning tattoo, I wouldn’t go to him. It would make me wonder what he would do to me if I angered him. I believe what he did was a shameful act and I hope the court awards the ex-girlfriend.

Save the Fairy!

InSt. Charles, Missouri residents and business owners are banding together to save a fairy’s job. Since it is the Christmas season and I enjoy off beat articles, when I found this article, I was pleased with the human outcry to “Save The Fairy.”

As you probably already know, one of the most known ballets is Peter Tchaikovsky's famous Nutcracker Suite. This wonderful ballet is usually preformed during the holiday season. One of the characters and one of the most sought-after roles is that of the beautiful Sugar Plum Fairy who welcomes young Clara to the Kingdom of Sweets and dances the famous "Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy." 

According to the article, Laura Coppinger, who made this role "larger than life," had played the Sugar Plum Fairy for five years before she was fired for violation of her professional code of conduct. Apparently, Coppinger had uttered a curse word when she accidentally flushed the toilet after a drug test that was required for her job. Before she was able to retake the test, she was informed that she had been fired for cursing. As word spread about the termination, a movement grew to “Save the Sugar Plum Fairy.” A Facebook page was started and hundreds of people have clicked on the "Like" button in order to show their support.  A like-minded group has also decided to take this issue to the St. Charles City Hall.

 

The article led the reader to assume that she was dedicated to her job. She never denied saying a curse word out of frustration with herself and she is willing to apologize for cursing. This shows integrity and character.  I can’t believe that the public official who was performing the drug test was hateful turn Copinger in for violating the “Christmas traditions code of conduct” which states that “Christmas characters don’t know naughty words”. Now, I am pretty sure that Copinger wasn’t in character when she was taking the drug test. If she curses in the privacy of her home, is she still in violation?  

 

Unfortunately, it was wise of the officials who oversee the Christmas Traditions hiring to state that “they’re unable to comment about personnel matters.” If they had commented on it. Coppinger would be able to have a case on her hands. If the city officials had stated anything, then this would probably have been a privacy issue and Coppinger would have been able to sue the city for violating her privacy.  

 

As it is, Coppinger is very grateful for all the support that she has received and would like the city to reverse their decision. It is hard to find a job right now and I hope they do rehire her.

Non traditional student non traditional Thanksgiving

Judging from the articles that I have read about “normal” Thanksgiving dinners, my family's Thankgiving dinners are very unusual. I have been very lucky so far, because my kids get along, so they usually don’t fight, not even on non-holidays, and none of us are big drinkers.  In fact, the only time that my family gets rowdy is when my kids drink too much soda and get hyper, which means that nobody is screaming and fighting with each other and airing long-dormant grievances.  

We have small and relatively quiet family gatherings that consist of my mother, my sister, my husband, my two kids and me.  I don’t have a grandmother in town who comes and pinches anyone’s cheeks, and thank goodness for that too. I wouldn’t know what to do if some crazed elderly lady came at my children trying to rip their cheeks off.  Everybody else who is genetically-connected to me lives in New Jersey, Mississippi and Florida, and they don't come out to Missouri to visit, which is a good thing because, between my mom’s house and mine, we have a limited amount of space  and it’s bad manners to put your family up in a hotel. Because of this lack of extended family, my kids are the only kids so far, so there aren’t tons of young ones running around, screaming, fighting and knocking things over, which my mother definitely considers a blessings, since we usually gather at her house.  And since no one in my family likes watching football, we aren't distracted by a bunch of men yelling at the television.  

Even though my family consists of only six people, we make enough food to feed a small army, and we all contribute something to the feast.  Because of my busy schedule, my husband and children usually prepare and provide the hors d'oerves, a few side dishes, and the sodas, and my mother and sister make the entrees and the desserts.  We usually eat at my mother's house, where we eat, discuss current events, what is relevant in our lives and talk about the Thankgivings of the past, like the time our '67 Chevy Nova wagon died at the bottom of a steep hill and we had to walk all the way up the hill and halfway through town in order to get to our house.  There is usually a movie on in the background, which nobody really pays attention to, and after about four hours, my family and I drive the whole two blocks back to our home. 

When my children get older and begin to have their own families, it is going to be interesting  to see how our family dynamics will change. I wonder if I will become that crazed grandmother who gets thrilled at the idea of pinching her grandchildren’s cheeks. Once my children have their own families, will our quiet little family Thanksgiving dinners become "normal" and therefore full of football, screaming kids, rowdiness, drunkenness and aired long-dormant grievances, or will they be the quiet, cooperative and friendly little family gatherings that I have come to know so well? Only time will tell, but one can only hope.

My Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving was going to be an exceptional one. Even outside of the holidays, I enjoy spending time with my children, my mom and my sister. We have a close family.  After 14 years of talking on the phone, the plan was that my father was going to join us for our festivities. He was going to drive from New Jersey and spend this Thanks Giving with me. To most of you this may not sound like a big deal. But to me, this was going to be a monumental.

I only have two memories of my birth father. When I was five, the only thing I remember was his legs and that he and my grandmother gave me a doll that wore a blue pock-a-dotted bikini.  Then several years past, when I was eight he came around a couple of times. He brought over my step brother once, but they didn’t stay very long. That year he did give me a couple of good Christmas gifts.

My father has always had a problem with fallow through. He makes empty promises. To me the promises of money or gifts are different. I never really expected those things from anyone, anyways. This time, he promised he was coming out. The past 14 years he has never promised to visit. I was trying very hard not to get my hopes up that he would actually show up, but I had a glimpse of weakness and I believed him.

 Now I haven’t heard from him in several days. He isn’t answering my texts. My hope is that maybe he will show up at my door tomorrow. But the chances are very slim. I know what’s going to happen. We have done this dance before when he thinks he has disappointed me. In a couple of month I will hear from him again. He will act like nothing happened. No apology no nothing. So what do I do? Do I confront him? Or do I just blow it off, because it is my fault for letting my guard down anyways. I know how he is and know this is what he does and I should know better.

No matter what happens, I am still going to enjoy my thanksgiving with the people who truly love me. And I know that I can always depend on them. I am very thankful to have a wonderful mother, sister and children.

My friend and HPV

Couple years ago, when I was working at Freeman Hospital one of the other Tech’s and I really hit it off and we have been good friends ever since. We never run out of things to talk about. We laugh and joke a lot. I would consider her one of my best friends. Last week she called me crying. She found out that she has cervical cancer from HPV and they wanted to do a biopsy and see how bad the cancer really is. I tried my hardest to keep my composure as I told her I would go with her to this appointment.

Almost every day this week, she has called me asking several different questions. Normally I am very up front and honest with her. But now I find myself having to sugar coat everything I say and I try very hard to make everything into a joke. This may sound cruel. But as I see, she needs someone to help her with the depression that comes along with being diagnosed with a deadly cancer. I have found that laughter is the best medicine. She asked me if her bladder was going to fall out if she got a hysterectomy. Without hesitation I replied with a “no and if it does we will just shove it back in”. Some how this made her feel better. I love sarcasm. She asked me if she was still going to be beautiful if her hair falls out. She knows that I do have a somewhat twisted sence of humor when I stated simply “yes and we will buy you the best wig money can buy and supper glues it to her head”.  She rolled in laughter and told me I always know just what to say to make her feel better.

After the biopsy, the hansom doctor informed us that the results won’t be back for another 5 days. That’s a long time to wait when you think your going to die. One thing I have to say to any woman reading this blog is please protect your self. HPV is nothing to mess around with. My friend now has to deal with the possibility of dying at a young age all because one guy told her that he didn’t have any diseases. Life is precious, so please take care of yourself and use a rubber.

Breat feeding in the court room

A Michigan judge considered breast feeding in court as an inappropriate behavior. Natalie Hegedus Natalie Hededuswas breast feeding her sick 5-month old baby in the back of the courtroom completely covered when a bailiff noticed what she was doing. He then passed a not to the judge informing him on what was happening in his court room. The judge then called the woman to the bench and asked her if she believed it was appropriate to be breastfeeding in court. Natalie’s response was that her son was hungry and it’s not illegal so therefore her behavior was fine.

Being a mother of two this article stuck a special interest in me. I breastfed both of them for over a year and I found myself in similar situations as Ms. Natalie Hegedus. I found that this article has some holes in the story and left me curious.

The article never states why she had to go to court in the first place. After fallowing the BabyCenter link, I found out that this article was partly based on a post that Ms. Hegedus wrote on a parenting web site. On her post she never mentioned why she had to go to court. It did state that she was filing a complaint against the judge and possible file suit against him. When clicking on the WoodTV link, I found that they talked to the Chief Judge of that district. He stated that it is difficult to deal with possible lawbreakers.

To reiterate my earlier statement, I breast fed my children. I am not against breast feeding at all. I believe that not only is it cost effective, it is natural and the best form of nutrition that a mother can give to her child. A bond is created between mother and child that is not the same as it is with a bottle fed child. But there is a time and place for breast feeding. When you do breastfeed, be discreet and modest. If you know your going to court have enough respect for yourself and the situation and bottle feed. Would you breastfeed during a funeral or a church service?

55 at risk of AIDS

The article that I was reading in order to fulfill the requirements for this blog quickly got my attention when I noticed that on the same page, there was a smaller article entitled Bungle puts 55 at risk of AIDS. This article states that 53 patients and two staff members of one of Australia’s largest private radiology companies were all stuck with the same needle when they received a Pet Scan, which checks blood sugar, and it was recommended that they all be tested for HIV and Hepatitis B and C. The Accu-check Multicix, which is used for Pet Scans, contains several needles in a replaceable drum and the needles are switched manually. In this incident, the needle wasn’t switched from November to January of the following year.

At first, this article seemed surreal. After all the checks and double checks that we have in the United States, it is hard to imagine that something like this could even happen. This was clearly a case of miscommunication and lack of training. Unfortunately, everyone in the nursing field knows that miscommunication happens more often than a non-medical person would really like to know.

PET scans are used to determine the severity of cancers, neurological conditions and heart disease. Even with an apology letter, this kind of accident does not make up for the fact that these patients could now have AIDS because a nurse did not know proper procedures when operating the equipment. Because of her lack of training, these people, who have possibly lowered resistance anyway, have now been potentially exposed to even worse diseases. It is horrifying to think that this nurse didn’t even realize that what she was doing was incorrect until a staff member with diabetes told her. According to the article, the risk to the people stuck with a used needle is very small because, as it turned out, none of them had any communicable diseases like AIDS or Hepatitis.

Unfortunately, something like this can and does happen here in the United States. The article didn’t state how much training the nurse had, but to me, it sounded like she had a poor orientation. How can anyone be expected to do their job accurately without the proper training? Nonetheless, the nurse was probably fired and may have lost her license because she did not educate herself on something as simple as an accu-check machine by, say, reading the instruction manual or the side of the machine before she began to administer tests. We are all working so hard for our degrees but few of us realize how easily our licenses can be taken away because of bad training, miscommunication or simple negligence.

Lil Dragon

I was doing my usual morning routine, drinking my green tea and searching through news.yahoo.com news, when I came across an article that included one of my favorite subjects- Art.  A sculptor, Chen Fomg-Shean of Taiwan, uses unusual items like rice, sand and dental floss to create tiny little sculptures no larger than a thumbnail. His latest creation is a dragon that was sculpted out of gold foil and resin, and included such intricate details such as claws, open jaws, and whiskers.

I grew up in a bohemian section of San Diego and was raised by an amazingly artistic mother, which gives me a certain appreciation for the arts. I think this gentleman is amazing in his ability to do such tiny intricate artwork.  According to the badly-written article, Chen, who is a retired plate designer, began creating miniature sculptures as a hobby and has been working at it for thirty years.  I think that it’s remarkable that this 72-year old man has the steady hands and the patience to make miniature sculpture when I can’t even color inside the lines of my daughter's coloring book.

As I said, I feel that this article was poorly-written. I wish that the author had gone into more depth, shown us more examples of Chen's other work, had told us where they were on display, and explained how his work was "an example of high-end Chinese art thousands of years old.”  In my opinion, considering the amazing artistry involved, the article certainly did not do justice to the beauty and intricate details of Chen's work.

A Recession Birthday

My mom put it perfectly when she said I had a recession birthday. Before class on Friday, which was my actual birthday, my husband and I went to Furniture Factory Outlet, and unless you have lived in a hole for the past few years, you know that they sell cheaply-made furniture at low prices. So my husband decided that he was going to get me a new recliner for my birthday. Luckily, I found one very quickly and we bought it for a fraction of the retail price and saved over $150.

After class, we drove back home to pick up my children from school. The simple little town of Lockwood is half-way to Joplin and half-way to Springfield. I love the town of Joplin, but it doesn’t have my new favorite restaurant, Hu Hot, which is a wonderful Mongolian barbeque. Now, when I hear the word "barbeque," I always think of warm summer days spent with the family surrounding the grill, and the wonderful aroma of steak wafting in the air, but Hu Hot is not that kind of place. This is a buffet-style Chinese restaurant where you pick your own meats, vegetables, and sauces, and several young men behind a circular grill cooks your meat right in front of you. Sometimes they do tricks with eggs by throwing them as high into the air as they can and then crack them with their spatulas as the eggs come down. They also juggle those same spatulas, tossing them to the worker on either side of him or the person across from him. It’s not just dinner, but also a show. To make this fantastic dinner even better, I had a birthday coupon and I got my meal for free.  

After Hu Hot, we waddled with full bellies into the mall. As we lazily sauntered through the promenade, I found a shoe store that was having a sale. I am a typical girl and love shoes, and when they are on sale, I love them even more. I was able to buy two incredibly lovely pairs of shoes for under $20.

Alas, all good things must come to an end, and this exhausting birthday was no exception. But before we left Springfield, we needed to get gas for our vehicle. I pulled into the station and was amazed when I saw the price, which was twenty cents cheaper per gallon than in my town. Such a deal I could not refuse!  And the blessings did not stop there, because on Saturday, my son shot his first deer (free meat!) and my mother invited me and my family over to her house for a nice tuna casserole, peas, salad and homemade cheesecake, the whole of which cost less to make than one piece of cheesecake at a restaurant.  It may have been a recession birthday but it was also a really great one, and being able to spend quality time with my family was the best part. 

Jake the airport cat

I originally read about this poor cat several weeks ago. Today, I came across the follow-up story regarding Jake the airport cat. Karen Pascoe flew from New York to California on American Airlines and checked her cat in the baggage center. Somehow her cat, Jack escaped from his carrier and was lost for two month in the New York Airport when he fell out of a loose ceiling tile and into the airports customs office. The beloved pet had to be put to sleep because he was unable to recover.

I am an avid animal lover. I have three dogs and a cat and I was very moved by this article. I feel for the family who lost their pet and for the poor animal that had to suffer for so long.  However, the airport's disregard for life absolutely infuriates me.  Can you imagine Ms. Pascoe reaction when they told her at baggage claim that her pet wasn’t there?  Can you imagine her panic, her outrage, her sense of loss?

It is equally horrifying to think about this poor pet roaming around the airport lost looking for his owner. According to the article, he suffered from malnutrition and had several wounds on his back that were getting increasingly infected and unable to heal. It was a mixed blessing for Ms. Pascoe that her pet was euthanized because at least the cat was found and the owner can have closure. Thank goodness she was able fly back to New York to be with her beloved pet one last time and I hope that American Airline paid for that plane ticket.

I believe that they should be held responsible for the animal’s death, that a full investigation should be done and that the owner should receive some kind of monetary compensation for the incident. You hear all the time about the baggage handlers who mistreat baggage. This makes me wonder what really happened with the cat carrier. Did some ignorant jerk fling the carrier or bump other luggage on to it? Was the cat mute and unable to call out for help?  Did no one see or hear this poor cat as it prowled the airport or hid, scared for its life, in pain, hungry and alone? Airports are full of cameras. So why didn't Security check them when the cat first went missing?

I think the airport employees could have handled this situation better, because just because it’s a cat doesn't mean that it is a less valuable form of life or a less-loved member of the family.

Man vrs White Castle

In Nunuet, New York a man is suing White Castle fast food restaurant for their small table booths.  Martin Kessman is filing suit because he believes the small booths violates his rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and that the difficulty of getting into the booth-style seating was simply demeaning in a busy restaurant situation. Kessman states that after he complained to White Castle about the seating the restaurant promised him they were going to put more space between the bench and the table but never did. And any changes to accommodate the larger customers were never made. Also, after Kessman complained he stated he got three letters that were patronizing. Since he filed the lawsuit Kessman refuses to set a single foot in White Castle, so instead he makes his wife get the burger and fries he orders.

            This article made me quite sad for future generations. Today’s society is consumed with some of the most ridiculous lawsuits. I believe that nowadays suing somebody has been made into one of the quickest ways to make some cash. It is quite ridiculous to think that you can sue over how much space you have at a booth. What is next being able to take someone to court for bad service or if your fries are too salty? Where does it stop? When is an enough enough?

            This also makes me quite disappointed is White Castle. This nation’s waist size is unfortunately growing. Fast food chains are on of the major causes of obesity in the United States. From this article it shows me that fast food chains are making no effort to accommodate the heftier community in any way. Still this business concentrates their energies towards insuring that they get the most out of their budget and disregards any comfort towards the customer. Seems to me, that it would make better business sense to gear its efforts towards the larger consumer?  Since they do eat more wouldn’t it make since that they would in turn by more food? Kinds sounds like White Castel is cutting of its nose despite its face.

I want a Tattooed Barbie!

With Pink hair, dragon tattoo across her shoulders and neck, Mattel's latest collector's edition Barbie doll was released earlier this month online and was quickly sold out. This Barbie is not the first to have tattoos. In 2008 and 2009, some stores had Mattel's Totally Stylin' Tattoos Barbie and a Harley Davidson Barbie both were pulled off the shelves due to parent disapproval. The magazine U.S. News & World Report asked in a recent headlines if this new tattooed Barbie was inappropriate for children.

This article sparked my interest. I remember playing with Barbies as a child. And as an adult, I have continued my love for Barbie’s by becoming a collector. I have several unusual Barbie’s. I think that it is silly that this made for the adult collector’s Barbie has become “controversial”.

According to the article, there was mixed feeling amongst Barbie consumers. Some feel that Mattel is promoting something that most parents don’t feel is acceptable as a role model. I agree with one of the people interviewed for this article. I am raising my children not the toy companies. I don’t feel that a tattooed Barbie is going to change my daughter’s self image. I hope that I am raising my daughter to think for herself. I believe that children are naturally smart and won’t do something just because a childhood toy influenced her. If that were true, then I would be wearing cut off jean shorts, have huge muscles, a bad temper, paint myself green, and you wouldn’t like me when I’m angry.

I think that people should be worried about other things that Barbie is teaching our children. Barbie does not have a stable income. She is always changing jobs. With all the mansions, cars, trains and planes she is living way past her means. Don’t even get me started about her measurements. Instead of focusing on Barbie, what about Ken? What jobs has he held? ,Barbie is working and he gets the benefits from it.

God I'm old!

It’s amazing to me how one’s focus and priorities change as one grows older. When I was 18, I just wanted to graduate high school and was looking forward to my path towards college. Shortly after turning 19, I became a certified nursing assistant and enjoyed my job working on a psychiatric unit. At that time my focus was on work. When I was 22, my center of attention was turned towards tending to my new husband and his needs. Since then, my focus has been my children, their education and being a good employee.

All this reflection is due to the fact that this Friday is my birthday. For some odd reason, I have decided to focus on all the changes that are occurring in my life. This past Monday was a day of enjoyment mixed with a bit of sorrow. Like a rite of passage, this was my 13 year-old daughter’s last time trick-or-treating. It sadly reminded me of when she found out that I was the tooth fairy, the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus. The innocence of being a child is now lost, only to be passed to the next generation. It is exciting yet sad to see my daughter transition to adulthood and blossom into a wonderful young woman.

My daughter is not the only one transitioning into adulthood. This past week, my son had his first date to his first school dance. I was so proud of my 11 year-old son when I found out that he had slow danced with his date four times. Then, on Saturday, my son will go hunting for the first time and become my little man.

The irony of all this reflection is that, as I am writing this blog, my son is busily playing with his Star Wars action figures and my daughter is drawing pictures of some kind of “Neo pet character”. This reminds me that even though they are growing up, they are still very much children and we are just at the beginning of the transition process. I still have some time in which to enjoy their innocence.

Eathquake in Turkey

While doing my regular morning routine of drinking green tea and watching the “Today show”, I saw a brief segment that I had to further investigate.A 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit eastern Turkey on Sunday. The death toll is now up to 370. Approximately, over 2,000 buildings have collapsed and rescuers continue to attempt to pull out survivors from the wreckage. In Ercis, the hardest –hit city, a 2-week old baby and her mother were pulled out a live two days after the quake. It is still unclear if the father had survived.

I thought it was rather interesting that at the beginning of this article and the news stations focused on the mother and child surviving but they neglected to state that seven other people were pulled from the rubble Tuesday and more bodies were discovered, raising the death toll.

Although hundreds of rescue teams from throughout Turkey have come to the area to assist with relief, the aid is not going to the area’s that need it. How horrible to think that people are trying to benefit from other peoples misfortune. They are taking tents and stoves leaving the earthquake victims without shelter and the ability to cook and feed their families. There were reports of fists fights in front of aid trucks. This is a time for people to work together and yet they are left to fight over aid? It sounds to me like there is a desperate need for more police and soldiers to make sure that the aid gets to the people who need it. Even though the government states they would set up temporary homes and plan to rebuild the destroyed areas, how is that going to help the immediate need? Nights get really cold without shelter. 

Reading this article makes me realize how amazing the people of Joplin are. The people of Turkey could really learn from them. Yes, we did have some looting. But all and all, the resident’s stuck together, helped each other when in need and they continue to help each other out.

Away to Cadbury

     While the sun and all of god’s creatures were still sleeping, my children and I woke up early last Sunday morning. Like mindless little zombies, we got into our medieval garb. My daughter and I wore our white chemise, black bodices, and long cotton skirts that dragged on the floor. As my son got dressed, he began to look like someone out of the movie, Robin Hood. We piled into my metallic motorized carriage and picked up my sister from our fair Mother’s house. My sister was dressed as a medieval elf.
     We had traveled past several other kingdoms and our stomachs did not growl until the sun began to rise, ever so slightly in the distant horizon. On the way to Cadbury, we stopped at a local eatery, called Sonic. A magical voice from a strange pictured box asked us for our order. I spoke to it and gave our order to the polite young wench. I was in dire need for caffeine, so I ordered a coffee latte along with whatever my kids and sister desired. We waited twenty agonizing minutes for our small order. When we finally received the peasant sized feast, I looked down at my ¾ full cup of coffee, which only had a small dollop of whip cream. Without hesitation, I laughingly asked the poor young serving wench if she had sipped my drink before it came and was it good?  My sister was taken aback by my bold statement and was slightly embarrassed. The girl very sweetly informed me that no one drank my drink but the whip cream simply melted.

     We got to Cadbury and the Festival was already underway. Once we paid the toll- keeper, we came across some gypsies and was mesmerized by their dancing and death- defining performances. The kingdom was flooded with scores of travelers from many different kingdoms. Luckily, the pirates were not in their usual unruly selves. While at the festival, we were able to watch some plays, and visited many shops. We were all graced by the presence of the King and Queen of Cadbury. Before the day came to an end, my son was enlisted in the Kings Army  in order to defend the kingdom against barbarians. Thankfully, my son came back to me with all his limbs intact. After this, we traveled back to our own little village and left Cadbury with wonderful memories of the Kansas City Renaissance festival.

San Jose man used at target practice

I love looking for unusual article for me to blog about. Today I came up with this one;www.sfgate.com
Javier Gonzales-Guerrero, 25 year old of San Jose, Ca was dressed in medical scrubs for a Halloween party when he brandished a fake gold gun and was shot by police. Officers found the intoxicated man either passed out or sleeping in a hotel stairwell. When the officers woke him up, Guerrero, then man reached for the “gun” that was in his waistband. Four officers shot at the man, hitting him numerous times. Guerrero injuries were non-life-threatening. The incident is under investigation.

This article infuriates and frustrates me. I believe that the situation was miss-handled.

I don’t think that it was right that the San Jose officers used this man as target practice. I would love to find out how bad his injuries really are. What kind of residual damage did the gun shot wounds cause? His injuries maybe non-life threatening, but will he be able to walk? Will he have to go through years of physical rehabilitation? I don’t agree that one should get so drunk in public that one passes out, but I feel for Guerrero. The incident happened at 8 am.  He probably had been in the stairwell all night and was now was sober. Can you imagine how that poor guy felt? You passed out in a hotel after a party. Then, before you know it, you are being awakened by four police officers screaming at you. And then, you remember you have a toy gun, and you put your hand on it to see if it was still there and hoping that it was gone, almost immediately you feel the stinging of the bullets as they hit you. What if that were a child? Would the police do the same? Would they have shot that child numerous times because he had a gold gun? I understand that a gun is a gun. But I know for a fact that they had other options, like a stun gun. I wonder if this is part of racial profiling, and all they saw was a Mexican man with a gold gun, instead of evaluating the situation. 

The four officers who shot their weapons at Guerrero have been with the police department served for 13 and 20 years. Since, This is the seventh San Jose officer-involved shooting this year, I hope that they will get some kind of education on way to apprehend a suspect without using deadly force.

Crazy Ohio Man

According to the news-leader, Terry Thompson, the exotic-animal owner who committed suicide in ZANESVILLE, Ohio was deeply in debt. Court records show that he and his wife owed at least $68,000 in unpaid taxes to the IRS and the county, two federal tax liens, and Terry had gotten out of prison last month for possessing unregistered weapons.  Sheriff’s deputies had to shoot and kill nearly 50 animals that were set free by Thompson.

Sheriff Lutz, stated that, Terry Thompson, had opened the cages at his animal preserve and then killed himself. Not only did his body appear to have been dragged a short distance, his head had a huge bite mark on it. Perhaps, the bite is from one of his exotic cats.

I found this article very disturbing. I felt sorry for Thompson’s wife and the animals that were destroyed.

The deputies killed 48 animals. This includes 18 rare Bengal tigers, 17 lions and eight bears. These are all very dangerous animals that can kill people. It is troubling to think that this man who was obviously unstable was able to buy dangerous and exotic animal. That he chose to kill himself, instead of selling the animals to zoo’s shows he was indeed unstable. It is unclear whether he acted out of desperation or vengeance against his neighbors, police or his wife. And now his wife has to clean up the mess he left. She has to deal with all the financial worries, legal issues, and dealing with her husbands name run threw the mud. It’s sad to thinks that all those exotic animals had to be put to death, because of what her husband had done.

I really hope that law makers realize that something needs to change and there needs to be stricter laws against buying exotic and dangerous animals.

New Family Member

I worked in the nursing home in my town for over six years before I left. I enjoyed my job and enjoyed my residents in the Special Needs unit. This locked unit contained Alzheimer's residents. It was very hard for me to leave. Besides my love for the residents, there was on particular person I was really going to miss. It wasn't a resident or a staff member. It was the therapy dog,Casey.

I briefly held a position as the Activities Coordinator in 2006. On my first day as director, The administrator had me make a huge decision. She had brought a dog that formally lived in a shelter. I was to decide if this dog had the qualities needed to live in the unit. Casey and I immediately bonded. This was a very strong bond. Casey knew several tricks and the residents at the time enjoyed and loved her tremendously.

 When I no longer held the Activity Coordinator position, Casey became my buddy on the night shift. She would do bed checks with me. We would check on the residents together. She was always by my side. If she heard one of the residents get up in the middle of the night she would let me know. If  one of the residents were sick or about to pass, she would not leave their side. She was an amazing dog and great for the unit. This meant I had to leave my buddy.

It only took four months after I left for the new administrator to get rid of the dog.Fortunately, a friend of mine contacted me before she went back to the shelter and was destroyed. We now have a new addition to our family. I have two other dogs and they instantly accepted her into our family. I am so happy to have Casey part of my life again.She is amazing dog .Now my family feels complete.

Sacred Streaker

I was looking at my face book, like I do every night. I was reading my friends status updates and the news things that they placed on their wall. I noticed  one of my friends had posted an news article, www.koco.com. I clicked on the link and it brought me to a page about, in Oklahoma city a naked man caring a bible and a bottle of gin was arrested on suspicion of public indecency. According to police reports Antonia Larray, 22 stated he was going to church. The man was taken to the Oklahoma County Jail and was booked with charges of public indecency.

Of Course, the reason why I had to further investigate was because the title grabbed my attention. I think that his situation was amusing. And I continued to chuckle as I read the short article.


This man must have been very drunk. I have a very vivid imagination. I pictured a naked young man waving a bible and a bottle of gin at the cars that passed by. I think that is funny. I think it was rather obvious that he was heading to church since he did have a bible in his hand. Perhaps, he was on his way to being baptized and didn’t want his clothes to get wet. I hope to god that he was a Baptist because he would never fit in one of the little basins that they use in the Catholic or Episcopal church. After all, wasn’t his actions scriptural? Doesn’t the bible state that we come naked into this world and naked we shall leave it?

 

A long Night

The night was still young when I went to bed on Monday night, but I already knew that Tuesday was going to be a busy day for me. The darkness of my room surrounded me as I lay in my warm and cozy bed.  I could hear the soothing sound of my fan as I began to list all the things that had to be done the following day.  Then, after what seemed like an eternity, I looked at the clock and thought, “Great! It’s already midnight. Now I will only get four hours of sleep!”  I took some deep relaxing breaths and slowly began to feel myself drift off to sleep.

Suddenly, I was jolted awake as my Great Dane bashed against my bed, which was her way of telling me that she needed to be let outside. Thank God, the shaking bed woke my husband up as well and he sweetly decided to let her out for me. As I lay there trying to fall back to sleep, I could hear him yell at the dog to hurry up, and then, finally, he and the dog came back inside. I turned to the clock once again and wondered if this night would ever end. With only an hour left before I had to be up, I decided to give it one last try to get some sleep, because at least a little sleep is better then none at all.

My alarm went off entirely too soon. After two cups of green tea and a shower, I felt slightly refreshed. Then I realized that I only had forty-five minutes before I had to clock in for work. I rushed out the door, hopped in my van and headed down the highway. To my surprise, there was a scheduled farm equipment parade down the highway. Time was ticking and so was my time clock, none of which was helped by the slow-moving parade, but I did manage to make it to work with five minutes to spare.

Being a Certified nursing assistant in a nursing home has its limitations since CNA responsibilities differ from one hospital to the next. The Senior Nurse Technician class I took was interesting. I learned how to do an intermittent catheter, change-out the inner trachea cannula, and to do G- tube feedings. These were skills that I could use at my present place of employment, but not at my last one.  Although the class was interesting, it was rather long, so I didn’t get home until late afternoon and I still had a ton of homework and grocery shopping to do.  And since I’d had only a few hours of sleep, I can only imagine what the  clerk thought of me with my bright red, glossy, sleep-deprived eyes stared at her blankly as I  attempted to pay for my groceries with my MSSU student ID card.

            At this point of time, I only had one thing on my mind: I knew that I had a warm and cozy bed waiting for me. I couldn’t wait to hear that wonderful relaxing sound of my fan, and once I had finished all I'd had to do that day,  I was glad the day was over and I fell quickly to sleep.

Topeka hates women

My mother and I often discuss current events. She told me about an article that she came across, topeka to consider decriminalizing domestic violence to save money/. This idea of decriminalizing domestic violence came to light during a recent city council meeting where the city was trying to figure out ways to balance their budget. City leaders and the district attorney agree that even though domestic violence is wrong and shouldn’t be tolerated; there isn’t enough money in the budget to put these cases through trial. According, to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence one in four women will be victims of domestic violence.  The U.S. spends $5.8 billion a year on health related issues brought on by this type of abuse

My initial response was disgust and bewilderment.  Upon further reflection, I continued to be outraged and will discuss the stupidity of this proposition.

I think that it was outrageous that such an ordinance was even being considered. What kind of monster would approve this? With the statistics of one in four women being victims of this type of violence, and most women who are murdered are murdered by someone they were dating or were married to, it seems to me that this ordinance would make it open season on hunting women. This ordinance, if passed, would put hundreds of woman’s lives at risk. I believe that the laws maybe the only thing that prevents domestic violence from being more common then it already is. With the possibility of decriminalizing this type of violence, there exists a strong possibility that there will be an increase on domestic violence or even homicide.

According to the YMCA in Topeka, this decision made some of the survivors of domestic violence afraid for their safety. I have a wonderful solution to this problem. I think that perhaps after issue a gun to every woman in the state and teach her how to use it, and teach her that she has the right to protect herself and her children. Teach the boys how to respect women. Then perhaps the domestic violence rates will go down.

Red Tide in San Diego

My mother told me about an interesting story. I did a Google search and found this article in the LA Times. Bio luminescent waves crash on to the shore of  San Diego beaches. This brownish red algae, commonly known as the red tide, glows an iridescent blue at night. This chemical reaction started in August of this year and possibly will continue for several more weeks or even months according to UC San Diego the algae has a mild toxin and can accumulate in some sea creatures. Although there has been an increase of complaints of sinus and ear infections since the algae arrived, the toxin is said to be harmless to humans.

I lived in Southern California until I was thirteen. I have very fond memories of when I was a child. It was almost an every day occurrence for me to go down to the beach and bask in the sun, watch the tide come in, and listen to the relaxing sounds of the waves as it hit the shore. After hearing about this article, my daughter and I watch the You Tube Video regarding the bio luminescent waves. We watched in amazement as the brilliant neon blue waves crashed onto the shore. The video and the article made me very homesick. I would have loved to be able to see the red tide in person. With Further thought and my own investigation my feelings changed. I didn’t have such a draw to go swimming in the waters, that’s for sure.

In the article it stated that there has been a rise in cases of sinus problem and ear infection since the appearance of the red tide. I would be curious to find out how many of those cases are truly related the algae or is it simply because of a high pollen count in the area. I ran a search, regarding if in fact it is dangerous to humans. I found that in fact the red tide can potentially be lethal. With further investigation, I found that people have passed away from eating shell fish that had come in contact with the algae. I think the writer of this article was doing a disservice to the general public by not stating all the facts regarding the seriousness of the toxic algae. The Algae releases an neuro-toxin that paralyzes. In fact, it has been proven that when red tide occurs in an area there is a drastic increase of death among bird, fish and animals.

I really don’t think that people should be swimming or surfing at the beach at this point of time. I believe that the beaches with the highest density of the algae should be closed until it has gone away. It’s scary to think that  families could be swimming in this possibly paralyzing water.

Sea Lion's shot in jaw

An injured sea lion lifted herself out of San Francisco Bay, got herself across the eight lanes of freeway traffic, and headed toward downtown Burlingame.  Motorists alerted the authorities, who, according to the San Francisco Gate(www.sfgate.com) waited with the animal until staff from the Marine Mammal Center arrived, whereupon she was brought to the Sausalito center for treatment. Veterinarians discovered a week-old gunshot wound to her jaw. However, disorientation from the gunshot wound may not be the reason why the sea lion crossed the freeway. Veterinarians believe that perhaps the sea lion may have eaten fish that had ingested a toxic algae, and that may have been the cause of her disorientation.  Test results will either verify or disprove this theory.

Growing up in California, I became an avid animal lover. I loved watching these wonderful animal sunbath on the piers or perform during animal shows at the San Diego Zoo. I have a certain soft stop for these particular animals. Therefore, reading this article gave me a variety of emotions.  I was both sad and angry and by the end of the article, I was relieved.

The Marine Mammal Center admitted nine sea lions with gunshot wounds, in 2010. Earlier this year, Santa Cruz Wharf attempted to rescue another with a gun shot wound, only to have it pass away from its injuries.  According to the article, fishermen compete with the sea lions for fish and illegally shoot at sea lions to keep them away from their nets. I think this is horrible. It saddens me to think that there are people who don’t value nature and its wild life. They see only profit and forget how valuable and precious nature is. I have to wonder how many fish the sea lions can really be taking in order to validate the fishermen’s need to massacre them? Unfortunately, there isn’t a way to find out who is shooting this protected species. There has to be a better way to chase the sea lions away from the fishing nets. With all the technological advancements that we have made within the last 20 years, one would think that someone could invent something that would help.

Fortunately, the sea lion is currently sharing a pen with two other sea lions. Although she appears fatigued, her recovery looks positive. I hope for the best for this amazing creature.

My so called Life

Moving to Missouri has been a culture shock for my husband, two children and I. We were used to drive-by shootings, drug deals, and having the police helicopters with spotlights searching for criminals as part of our daily life. Nothing prepared us for living in a small rural town in the Mid-west. Having a wild hare means something entirely different here.

It was a normal weekday for the Cunningham family. I was in the living room working on my online math class, my children were playing Xbox in the play room, and my husband was watching TV in our bedroom. Our sleek white cat used the cat-door to patrol her territory. All was quiet when my daughter Melody let out a blood curdling scream. She ran into the bedroom shouting, "Opal has something and its BIG!"

Like a super hero, my nearly-blind husband rushed into the kitchen to save us from the giant creature that my cat had dragged in from the darkest depths of the country wilderness. I closed all the doors to the kitchen to trap the beast. My husband shouted at me, "Where is it? Where is it?" he demanded with increasing agitation because he was unable to see where this horrible creature was.

I noticed that my dishwasher door was open. All one could see of my poor cat was her hind legs and her tail flipping back and forth under the dishwasher door. I picked the cat up. Then, much to my horror, the beast came out from under the dishwasher door. I knew I had to be quick and that I could not let this animal get out of my sight. I shoved the cat into my husband's arms and, like our cat, I pounced onto the creature and captured the fearsome animal. Then with my bare hands, I scooped it up and began to examine it. My tiger-like cat had given it a slight puncture wound, but it wasn't very deep and the creature would be fine. Cupping it in my hands, I walked out my front door and onto the porch to set it free.

The little baby bunny hopped away from the house and never looked back. I gave the cat a can of cat-food as a consolation price for setting her rabbit dinner free. The family went back to their activities. Just before I sat down to finish my homework I looked at my cell phone and saw I had a text message. It read: "Help! Your sister's cat killed something in her room and it's bloody". So starts another adventure for me in this crazy thing I call my life.

Young mom speaks out

Kearstain Sleeth age 20 works night shift and attending nursing school, was charged with six counts of misdemeanor child endangerment, according to the www.news-leader.com. Three small children were playing unsupervised outside of their home wearing only diapers when police where called When theauthorities arrived they found food on the front porch, the children and the home was filthy. The report stated that there was dog feces, food and trash everywhere. According to Sleeth, the incident happened when she was very sick and she had left the children under the care of their father while she rested and denied the allegations of how her house looked.

Anytime one reads that a mother is charged with child endangerment the usual reaction is to blame and have anger towards the mother. As I dove deeper into the article, I redirected that hostility towards other area’s.

 I couldn’t believe that a mother would leave 3 children all under the ages of three unattended as though they meant nothing to her. As I read on, my opinion changed. I found it rather unfortunate and disappointing that the father of these children did not feel any sense of responsibility towards his own children. I wondered were he was and why the article didn’t state his defense. Authorities commented about how the children were very dirty. I think this is ridiculous. Anyone with children knows how fast they can get dirty and especially if they are making mud pies or playing race-cars in the dirt. They are kids and kids get dirty. The article also stated that authorities, “referred to food left on the porch of the home, like the children were “domestic animals.” Thinking back to when my children were three and below, I remember how they loved to pretend that they were “doggies.” Many times would I find a bowl of cereal outside on the ground with a bowl of water. I believe that it is feasible that the children may have been playing and put their snacks on the porch. In regards to them being in diapers, what mother hasn’t let their children run around at home in their diapers? Furthermore, some children rather wear only their diapers and when they are home, strip their clothes off the minute they get there. It’s pathetic that the neighbors were so upset about Sleeths children playing outside unattended that they called the police on her. If they were so busy watching the children be unsupervised were they really unsupervised? Knowing that she is a single parent, why didn’t they offer to watch the kids for her? People don’t want to get involved but yet they want to hurry and call the police. I never understood that. To me that’s still getting involved.

Being a mother is hard job. Having three small children is even harder and then add nosey cop calling neighbors to the mix would make it insanely difficult. I wish the best of luck to Kearstain Sleeth and I hope she is able to move away from those horrible neighbors.

20-month old boy dies

According to yahoo! news, 20-month-old Canadian boy with an incurable neurological disorder passed away at his home in Ontario, Canada. Baby Joseph had a very rare disorder that ultimately kills patients by impairing their respiratory and kidney functions. The boy had been treated in both Canadian and the United States hospitals. Against his family’s wishes, the hospitals refused further treatment of the child. Instead, the hospitals recommended that he be allowed to die at home. Baby Joseph was discharged from a Canadian hospital, and later passed away with his parents and family at his side.

 

This article infuriated me. My feelings did not change from start to finish. If anything my anger intensified.

I think that being in the healthcare field for so long has made me jaded. In the twelve years that I have been a nursing assistant, I have seen first-hand a lot of deaths and the horrors of the dying process. There is nothing glamorous about watching a loved one gasping for air. Death is not like in the movies. There isn’t music playing in the background as a person slowly dehydrates and starves to death in horrific pain because no pain killer can relieve it. There is nothing beautiful about dying. Why in God’s or anyone else’s name would you allow your friend or relative to go through such agony? The people who would do this to a poor child anger me to no end. That’s not love. That’s control and selfishness. Love is letting that child pass on. Love is letting this poor 20- month old child be free of pain. In the article the family spokesperson stated that, “[Joseph] was not put to death at the hands of the doctors”. So does this mean this poor little boy didn’t even have the advantage of pain medicine as his kidney’s and lungs began to fail? Was it a blessing for Baby Joseph to feel like he is drowning while laying there in bed? Was it a blessing for the family to watch their son die slowly in front of them?

I am a firm believer in quality of life verses quantity. The family had extra time with their child and that was a blessing. But I really wonder about that child’s quality of life? It is not my place to judge, and God forbid that I should ever be in such a position. I only hope that I would have enough wits about me to make the right decision, one that put the welfare and comfort of the child first, for the sake of the child.

Naked protest in San Francisco

According to the www.foxnews.com, several dozen men and one woman took part of a nude protest on Saturday. In the Castro District of San Francisco California, where public nudity is allowed, nudists were upset because a city supervisor, Scott Wiener, proposed the requirement that practicing nudist cover up in restaurants and put a barrier if they took a seat out in public. According to the organizer of the protest, the intent was not to protest against the proposal but to promote acceptance of the human body no matter what size and shape. According to the article, it is proper etiquette to place a barrier on a seat therefore it was not necessary to recite that in Wiener's proposal.

The title, "No nudes is bad News" is funny, but I have mixed feeling about this article. My curiosity was killing me. As I read on, I felt a little empathy for the protesters. I even agreed with them. Once I finished reading the article, my opinion changed. I didn't agree it any longer. I was irritated and disgusted

I grew up in California. I always heard of nudist colonies, naked beaches, and naked bike races. This type of protest was not all shocking to me. I was about the nature of the protests. The area in which they protested is known for its nudism, and the government was trying to take their freedom away by placing restrictions on their behavior. In all actuality, all the proposal was doing was trying to reinforce common courtesy. However, Naturalist George David is quoted in the article as saying, "As nudists, why do we have to go to a special beach or a special resort? Why can't we just go to a park?" I couldn’t believe that he could make such a statement, and I was disgusted that this sixty-five year old man wanted to walk around naked at a park were children play. What was he thinking? There is nothing indecent about the human body but please there is a time and place for everything. I believe that we all make our choices. That gentleman’s choice of an alternate lifestyle and the restrictions of being a nudist is a choice, but the children would have no choice but to see a naked old man. If he doesn’t like the fact that he can't be naked everywhere then maybe he needs to change his lifestyle for one that better suits him.

The human body is an amazing and beautiful thing and I am comfortable in my own skin. But, there is no way I would participate in public nudity or a nude protest. I believe we all have rights. And I have to right to be able to go into a restaurant, park, beach, or walk down the street without having to see a naked person. The naturalists need to stay in their designated areas and I will definitely and defiantly stay in mine.

Boy Find 30 Year-old Jar of Fingers

      According to news.yahoo.com, a young boy found 30-year-old fingers in a jar. A seven year old French boy was playing behind the gymnasium of his school when he dug up a jar. He found that the liquid filled jar contained partially decomposed fingers. The boy’s father gave the jar to the local police. After the story went to the media, police received a phone call regarding the possible owner of the preserved fingers. The caller believed that the fingers may belong to their grandfather, a once local carpenter. According to the article, the grandfather lost his fingers 30 years ago during a work accident. He put the severed digits into a jar. He then filled it with alcohol and buried the jar near his home at the time. The grandfather has since moved away and the police are trying to contact him.

              Because I have a morbid sense of humor, at first I found this article amusing, and I had a bunch of jokes that kept running through my head as I read the article.  After all, it is not every day that a person can give the police the finger and get away with it.  I could just imagine this little boy finding the jar and running around the playground trying to scare girls with it. I could also imagine the look of surprise on the father’s face when his son showed him the jar and the disbelief in the officer’s voice when the father called to report that he had a jar of fingers and was willing to give them up.  But by the end of the article, my light-heartedness had turned into disgust. 
          The article stated that after putting his severed fingers into a jar full of alcohol, the carpenter  then buried the jar near his home. I don’t understand why didn’t he go to the hospital? I think it’s disgusting that he put them in a jar and buried them. I don’t understand why the jar was buried near his home. Why not bury the jar on the property he lived on? Why at a school? Why leave something like that for someone else to find?  All these questions have been left unanswered at this time.

            I only hope that he got out of the field of construction and into something a little less dangerous for him.

Online gamers help Scientist

     Today was a little different for me and my news article hunting. My daughter showed me an article that she found rather interesting. The title read; online gamers crack aids enzyme puzzle. It is believed that this is the first time “gamers” were used to help solve a scientific problem of this sort. According to the article,  Foldit  is a video game in which groups of competing gamers unfold chains of amino acids. The makers assisted Pharmacologists by making an accurate 3d puzzle game of an enzyme. Scientist used this ability to unfold or decipher the structure of an enzyme of an AIDS like virus.

     The title of the article is what grabbed my attention. At first, I thought  to myself there is no way a gamer could crack a code to the AIDS virus and even slightly chuckled to myself. This had to be a joke or an advertisement for a new game. As I read on, I realized that this was reality. I was awestruck by the possibilities this.

    Before reading this article, it was hard for me to take gamers seriously. On a daily basis, I watch my son and his friends hoot and holler as they kill zombies, wreck cars, or create imaginary worlds. Never did I associate video games with science. As I read, I had several questions: What made them decide to use this particular game? How did the scientist find out about the game Flipit? Were the game developers compensated? Unfortunately, the article was unable to answer any of those questions.

    As I read on, my opinion began change. According to the article, scientist have been stumped for a decade and unable to deciphered the enzyme structure of an AIDS like virus. Once the pharmacologist and game developers got together, it took them three weeks to create an accurate model of the enzyme. This was important because knowing the structure of the enzyme will enable scientist to create a possible drug to prevent the disease.

    It is amazing to me on how much technology has advanced over the years. This seemingly small step could lead to advances in cancer research and prevention and cure for diseases other then AIDS. The future may even hold the cure for the common cold. Only time will tell.

Bio-ethicist puts bet against Bachmann

           I was browsing through usatoday.com and drinking my cup of green tea, when I found an article showing that Michelle Bachmann has made the news again. The Minnesota Republican representative made a statement during the Republican presidential debate regarding the safety of a cancer-preventing injection. During follow-up interviews, Michelle Bachmann recounted a conversation with a woman whose daughter developed mental retardation because of the HPV injection. In response to this, Sidney Caplan, a bioethics professor at the University of Pennsylvania, offered to donate $10,000.00 of his own money to charity, if the representative can prove in one week that anyone can develop mental retardation from the injection.
 
         This article gave me a mixture of emotions. After reading the title to this article I was curious, so I read on. By the end of the article not only was I irritated, I had acquired a since of disbelief.
 
         Since, Michelle Bachmann had been in the news rather frequently,  the title, “Bio-ethicist bets against Bachmann’s vaccine claim,” peaked my interest. Apparently, during a TV interview, Ms. Bachmann stated she didn’t have any idea if the vaccine really caused mental retardation or not. I believe that she should checked her facts before she attempted to suggest that the injections would have this type of ill effect. The fact is the HPV injection is a shot given to a teenage girl to protect her from a sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer. Bachmann played to the masses’ fear of the unknown and single -handedly attempted to undermine the possibility of saving thousands of woman’s lives. Unfortunately, her misleading statement could result in fewer girls being inoculated.  By the end of the article, I could not believe that Bachmann’s campaign didn’t even respond to Sidney Caplan‘s bet. Unbelievably, she didn’t even give a statement or even try to retract anything regarding this incident.
 
           I was filled with a variety of emotions when reading this article. I was both curious and irritated with Bachmann’s clam that the HPV injection caused mental retardation and I believe that she should donate $10,000.00 of her own money to cervical cancer research in order to make up for her irresponsible behavior.

   
  

Autistic boy put in protective custody

According to news.yahoo.com, an autistic boy was lost and alone in the San Bernadino mountains for more then twenty-four hours. He will not be returning to his family but will be in protective custody because of an unrelated incident. The child's family tethered him to a railing in front of a house that the were moving from.

When I first read this article I was upset with the child protective agency and the child's school. As I read on I became more and more outraged. This emotion no longer was towards the agency but towards the family.

At first when reading the article, I was slightly upset with the child protective agency and the child's school. According to the article the child ran away from the school and got lost in the mountains in CA. It is the schools responsibility to keep our children safe. The child should not have been able to run away from the school in the first place. Why weren't the teachers watching him. I was upset that the family was being punished for what the school had neglected to do, keep him safe. As I read further, I found out the reason why the boy was put into protective custody. Apparently, the family was moving out of their house due to being foreclosed on. The child protective service workers found out that the couple tethered the autistic boy to a railing so that he wouldn't run away. This outraged me. I do not understand what the parents were thinking. I have no sympathy for these people. It doesn't matter if the child is autistic or not. No matter how tempting it may be. A child should never be tied to a railing.

My emotions went from slightly upset to being furious as I read this article. I hope the best for this child and I hope that he will go to a foster home that will love him and treat him well.

Vampire in St. Pete, Florida

 I skimming through the www.news-leader.com. I was reading all the depressing headlines about Casey Anthony and 911 experiences I when came across this article.  Milton Ellis who was sleeping in his electric wheelchair in front of a vacant Hooter restaurant when he was attacked by a woman whom he had befriended on that very night. According to reports, Josephine Smith  had climbed on top of the man and had told him that she was a Vampire. She then proceeded to  bite Milton Ellis's face and part of his lip. She was then arrested and charged with aggravated battery on an elderly person.

My first response to this article was curiosity. I wanted to find out more about this case. Fortunately, there was a link to the tampabay.com.  I began reading further and was horrified by what I read.

 I was curious about if Ellis had known the girl prior to the incident. According to the article, Smith was dropped of at a nearby corner and was awaiting for relatives to pick her up. Ellis was at a nearby vacant Hooters and seen her being dropped off. He went over to her and offered her his company until her ride had gotten there. The article never says why he was in front of a vacant Hooters, why he was sleeping out side, nor why Smith was dropped of at a corner. Ellis was attacked when he fell asleep. My question is why was he sleeping outside? This seems very questionable to me. The other thing that I found questionable was that according to police report she was found half naked, covered in blood and had no recollection of what had happened. Was she was a victim of some kind of illegal drug that was possibly slipped to her by either Ellis or the people who dropped her off? The article states that Ellis had numerous charges of panhandling, intoxication, trespassing, and possession of an open container of alcohol, which calls to question the reliability of his accusation.  

Glowing cat helps aids research

 Today, I found an article I found slightly unusual in news.yahoo.com. Scientist are using florescent cats in order to find out if a certain gene therapy works fighting against the feline version of AIDS known as FIV.

 Scientist are continuing the search to find a cure for AIDS. By genetically altering cats, they hope to  find a cure. Scientist altered two different genes and inserted them into cat egg cells. The two genes used in this procedure was an antiviral gene and the other was one that produces a florescent proteins. The result from the protein was what made  florescent cats.

Initially, my response was curiosity. With further evaluation, I reflected in amazement on what the possibilities could be if this type of genetic engineering proves to be effective and what the implication could be for the future. It amazes me on how far we have come with medical research.

I found it very interesting that scientists decided to use the same gene that was found in a jellyfish was put it inside of a gene for a cat in order to make the cells glow. The scientist chose this green glowing gene so they could keep better track of the genetically engineered genes verses the FIV virus. According to the article the scientist have had encouraging results. The cat that were born with genetically altered cells had a reduced replication of the feline version of the AIDS virus when injected with the virus.

It is astonishing to think that this may be a step closer to finding a cure for AIDS not only in human but in cats too.