Vaccinations: A Tough Decision

In the April issue of Northern Connection magazine, I stated the conversation about the tough decision facing young parents in the medical vs. rumor debate and asked what you think about the touch decision itself.

One of the most intriguing facts I found in my research was that parents need to do their research and weigh the odds: "The measles vaccine, for instance, can cause a temporary reduction in platelets (which control bleeding after an injury) in 1 in 30,000 children, but 1 in 2,000 will die if they get measles itself. The DTaP vaccine can cause seizures or a temporary "shocklike" state in 1 in 14,000 people, and acute encephalitis (brain swelling) in 11 in 1 million. But the diseases it prevents -- diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis -- are fatal in 1 in 20 cases, 1 in 10 cases, and 1 in 1,500 cases, respectively."

Here's the rest of the article: http://www.parents.com/health/vaccines/controversy/vaccines-the-reality-behind-the-debate/

Also, here's the link to the CDC site on vaccines: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/

In Starting the Conversation, I mentioned that my theory about the debate is that young parents haven't witnessed the diseases, the effects and the death tolls, but what's your theory? Do you have any advice?

Please leave comments below and let's Continue the Conversation:

Coping with an Empty Nest?

This month it all about letting go. Never an easy thing especially when it’s a loved one and a loved one who has been dependent on us and, truth be told, who we have been dependent on, as well, dependent for companionship, sense of being needed and so much more.

Once, I was volunteering as a marshal for the PGA and one of the main organizers came up to me and said – “How do you all raise children here in Pittsburgh? We LOVE having events here – the teenage volunteers are GREAT! They show up, they work hard, they do what is asked of them and take it seriously. They’re just GREAT!”

I said, “It’s not like this in the rest of the world?”

He said, “Heck no! Everywhere else, especially in California, they’re lazy, spoiled, mean, entitled, and irresponsible – nothing like here in Pittsburgh – the exact opposite, as a matter of fact.”

“Well,” I said, “I don’t have children myself but I can tell you that Pittsburghers don’t raise children, we raise adults. And parents take a great source of pride in how their children turn out and that is to be hard workers, responsible citizens and great parents themselves.”

In talking with this PGA professional, I was so incredibly proud of being a Pittsburgher and the wonderful job all the parents do in raising their children and young adults.

Do you have any advice or experiences to share? How do you cope with being an empty nester?

Please leave comments below!

What's the Fad with Fad Diets?

I started the conversation in Northern Connection magazine about the alluring fad of fad diets, exercise machines and the like and asked, “Why do you think we find them alluring?” Each definitely brags about their success stories from no carbs to hill-climbing machines.

Of course, at least for me, I know there are some excuses that I love to make – my favorite is that I’ve lost over 100 pounds – I’ve just lost the same 10 pounds 10 times. A friend of mine says that “there are two kinds of people in this world, those that eat to live and those that live to eat” – I most definitely fall into the latter category but still, I would like my clothes to fit better, etc. I think my biggest problem besides the scale,  is that I just love to enjoy eating out, new recipes and I love to make recipes that friends and family really gobble-up and just love to savor.

Everyone says that the key is to find something you love to do – I love to play golf but it isn’t having any real effect on the waistline. But, that’s probably my fault as I should walk the course rather than rent a cart. Is there any diets or exercise that you have experienced that you have found that works – any for those of us over 40 and closing in on 50 – just doesn’t seem to want to move.

But what do you think? What have you found that works to take it off and keep it off? Please feel free to comment in the section below:

Should Students Dress for Success?

In our special January Education issue of Northern Connection magazine, I started the conversation on the whether students should be required to “dress for success” whether that be adhering to a dress code or wearing a uniform.

As I mentioned, I loved the ease of wearing a uniform at school. My sister also loved wearing a school uniform because it made everyone (especially all the girls) even – no status of high fashion and expense, no competition. At least not in that regard.

Studies across the country have proven time and again that students behave better and performance increases when wearing a uniform or adhering to a strict dress code. As in this report from education.com points out regarding a dress code policy in Long Beach California:

“Long Beach Superintendent Carl A. Cohn reported that during the first year suspensions decreased by 32 percent, school crime by 36 percent, fighting by 51 percent, and vandalism by 18 percent (Cohn). At Whittier Elementary, attendance rates have risen each year since the policy went into effect, reaching a high of 96 percent (Caruso). Schools in Chicago, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, and Virginia have made similar claims (Caruso).”

(Visit http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Student_Dress_Codes/ to read the whole report.)

Of course, some students (and their parents) have rebelled against dress codes citing everything from freedom of expression to civil liberties, in spite of the positive data from study after study that proves otherwise.

To learn more about student rights and dress codes, visit http://education.findlaw.com/student-rights/school-dress-codes.html.

So what are your opinion, thoughts and experiences? Do you think dress codes should be stricter? More lenient?  Should they be mandatory, better enforced? Have you ever heard of a case that was taking the rules a bit too far?

Be sure and leave your comments below and let’s Continue the Conversation:

 

How Do you Put The FUN in Dysfunctional?

It’s that holiday season again and when was the last time it was filled with rest and relaxation? For me, I think it was elementary school but perhaps I’m just remembering a gentler time. In the December issue of NorthernConnection magazine’s ‘Starting the Conversation’, I asked for much needed advice on how to put the FUN in “dysfunctional”. How do you create a balance among everyone who wants your time? Do you eat two dinners? Do you take annual turns? What have you found that works for you and yours to make the holidays "fair"?

The NFL is Tax-Exempt? Pardon Me?

A reader of Northern Connection sent me the following video of Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and his quest to eliminate the tax-exempt status of the NFL:

https://screen.yahoo.com/nfls-tax-touchdown-sports-league-000702495.html  

And another reader sent me this link to CNN that gives the details:

http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/22/us/nfl-nonprofit-taxes/

 

In the CNN article, they mention that the NFL employs a team of lobbyists:

“According to a CNN analysis, the NFL employed 20 lobbyists in 2014 and spent more than $1 million in efforts to sway lawmakers…Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, which runs the transparency website Opensecrets.org, says the NFL's lobbying team is "all pro," and almost all are "former government employees, former Hill staffers. So they have good access by buying the help of people who know how to navigate Congress."…Nineteen of the 20 worked for Congress, largely in the offices of House and Senate leaders, according to a CNN review of lobbying disclosures…If the NFL were to lose its tax exemption, there's precedence for it. Major League Baseball gave up its nonprofit status in 2007, and the National Basketball Association never had one.”

Call me naïve, but why in the world does the NFL need so many, let alone any, lobbyists? Do you think Coburn has a chance to get the NFL tax-exempt status removed? Do you think it's okay for the NFL to be tax-exempt?

Looking forward to hearing from you, so let me know your thoughts in the Comment section below:

Do You Believe In Ghosts?

Halloween is just around the corner, so in the October issue of Northern Connection magazine, I asked if you believe in ghosts and shared a personal encounter that I witness on occasion between my pets and something only they can see:

"What we all, including my husband, would observe was not so much the ghost as how our pets would interact with something that they could most definitely see, that we could not. Just as a dog can hear a high-pitch whistle too high for humans to hear, our pets could see something that wasn’t there. Dogs visiting this home would be lying in the living room panting – when something would catch their eye and they would stop panting, and stare at a certain spot in the room near the ceiling – no shadows, no cob webs – just the corner. Cats and kittens would jump onto the top of the chair and try to paw at whatever it was they were seeing. We’ve all seen the pets, alone and in groups, interacting with something only they can see.

Actually, we think there may be more than one ghost because sometimes, when you are in the home alone, you can hear a whispered conversation going on in the living room that stops as soon as you enter the room.”

So what do you think? Is this house haunted? Have you ever experienced something supernatural, visited a haunted place where the unexplainable took place? I hope you’ll share your encounter with us in the comment section below: