Monday, December 15, 2008

Well, Now I Know.

by Teresa

I have to admit, I’ve never understood why anyone would really need to drive a Hummer in Rhode Island.

But on Saturday, at the Warwick Mall, in the parking lot, I heard an engine roar, just behind my car, and then I saw a Hummer screech out into the oncoming traffic lane (luckily, no other cars were traveling in that lane at that moment).  The huge truck then cut a sharp turn up over a section of curbing, crashing onto a median that separated the travel lane from the parking space.  It launched up over the curb, and lurched into a parking spot on the other side of that median, slamming to a stop right in front of another car whose owner had been waiting patiently to get into that spot, as another vehicle pulled out.  (Thankfully, that other car wasn’t close enough to get crushed by the gigantic, gas-guzzling behemoth.)

So.  I guess.  Now I know.  Some people apparently need to drive enormous, pseudo-military-assault vehicles… in order to cheat other people out of parking spots when the mall is crowded with Christmas shoppers.

Happy Holidays.

Thursday, December 04, 2008

Discouraging News about College (Un)Affordability

by Teresa

How’s this for a disheartening headline?  In the New York Times: “College May Become Unaffordable for Most in U.S. “  

And, from Babble.com (a great site for parents who want to kill a little time reading stuff online, by the way), check out this list of The 3 Most Common Mistakes in Saving for College .  I’m guilty of at least two out of the three.. especially the third one: Getting Discouraged.  My oldest kid is only in first grade, the youngest only in preschool, and I already feel like it will be impossible to pay for a good college education for either of my children.  Stories like the NYT article above are not helping me feel any more optimistic. 

Monday, November 24, 2008

Except Your Local News, Of Course.

by Teresa

A new study evaluated the things happy people do versus the things unhappy people do.
They found one major difference: TV watching.  Happy people watch LESS TV than unhappy people.
Check out The New York Times article about the study.
If you’re an avid TV watcher, however, take heart: there’s a “chicken and the egg” aspect to this story.  It’s not a clear cause-and-effect.  Study authors weren’t sure whether watching TV made people more unhappy, or whether unhappy people just ended up sitting at home watching TV.  They did note that happier people spent more time on social activities, visiting people and participating in group activities.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Hallelujah!  Product Packaging That You Can Actually Open.

by Teresa

This is a true story: We actually have a gift someone gave us for one of the kids, years ago, that we’ve never used, that is still in its packaging.  The contents are delicate, but the plastic around it is practically impenetrable.  My husband and I have both tried to open it.  We’ve both cut our hands on plastic shards.  But we’ve only made a small hole—not big enough to get the object out.  We don’t want to do something really rough with it, for fear of breaking the object inside. 
We talked, at one point, about bringing the hedge clippers in from the garage to finish cracking the darn thing open, but ultimately, we just shelved it.  And there it sits.  Three years later.
That’s one reason why I was so happy to read this article in the New York Times.
The story also talks about the tiny wire twisty ties, and their insidious counterparts, the clear elastic bands, that secure every single teeny tiny part of every toy that comes in a box with a clear platic front.  The tiny plastic pets my daughter likes, for example.  They come in sealed plastic bubbles attached to cardboard backing.  Clearly, the toy is not going anywhere until you get it open.  Still, the cute little things are each strapped in with a half-dozen elastic bands that have to be twisted, untangled, pried off or stretched and cut before you can actually hand the toy to the child.
I think it’s a great idea to simplify the packaging on toys and other products.  As an added bonus, if manufacturers get on board with this idea, they’ll also be kinder to the environment.  Fewer packing materials = less garbage going to landfills!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Christmas Confession

by Teresa

I have a confession to make.  There are holiday music CDs in the CD player in my car right now.
This represents a 180-degree turn from my attitude on the subject, at Halloween time.  The night of Halloween, after the trick-or-treating was over, when I went to pick up something at my neighborhood CVS, I was appalled to see that most of the Halloween candy and decorations were gone from the middle aisles, and workers were already stocking those shelves with stacks and stacks of candy canes, bags of Christmas candy, and Christmas ornaments.  I was further astonished when I stopped at Wal-Mart the following day, and there was Christmas music playing over the speakers.  On the day after Halloween?  Really?  Isn’t that just a bit too soon to be thinking about the holidays?
Many of our viewers felt it was, indeed, too soon, as we discovered when we posted a “Question of the Day” on turnto10.com asking people to weigh in on a local radio station’s decision to switch over to its “all holiday music, all the time” format.  2,388 people, 87% of those who responded, said it’s too early!  Just 366 people, 13%, thought it was a good time to start listening to Christmas carols.  ( The program director says B101 wants to “spread some cheer” during these tough economic times.  Click here to see more about B101’s Christmas programming. )
I don’t know exactly what happened to change my mind, but a “holiday” sort of mood crept up on me last week. 
I resisted the impulse for a while, but now I am confessing: I have Christmas music turned up nice and loud, and I’m singing along as I drive. 
I watched “Frosty the Snowman” with my kids over the weekend. 
And that’s not all: I also found myself gazing, longingly, at the illuminated reindeer and brightly colored lights on display at various stores.  I’ve found myself wondering how much longer I need to wait before I start decorating.
So, there you have it!  I’m officially in the “holiday spirit.“  Bring on the jingle bells, boughs of holly, and cups of hot chocolate.  I’m ready.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Guns & Common Sense.

by Teresa

Let me be clear: No, I do not believe all guns should be illegal.  Yes, I steadfastly support people’s right to own guns, and to hunt animals for the purpose of feeding their families, or even just for sport (PETA probably hates me).
However, there needs to be some level of common sense applied to the rules about the types of guns that people can own… and to what sort of activities are allowed at gun shows, and to the age at which children are allowed to participate in those activities.
There is no argument in the world that can convince me that average Americans need the “right” to own Uzis.  Or that people need Uzis to hunt.  Or that they ought to be sold at gun shows.  Or that children should be allowed to fire Uzis at gun shows (the NRA probably hates me as much as PETA does). 

So.  Why am I risking the wrath of the NRA?
Because this story saddened me so much that I couldn’t stay silent. 
From the Associated Press today, a story about a gun show in Westfield, Massachusetts (quoting here):
“An 8-year-old boy died after accidentally shooting himself in the head while firing an Uzi submachine gun under adult supervision at a gun fair…  The boy was with a certified instructor and ‘was shooting the weapon down range when the force of the weapon made it travel up and back toward his head, where he suffered the injury,‘ a police statement said. Police called it a ‘self-inflicted accidental shooting.‘“
Here’s a link to the full article from the Associated Press.

I will only say two more things: first, I offer my condolences to the family of that little boy who died so tragically, so needlessly.

And secondly: there’s no such thing as being “too careful” where guns are concerned.  Even when safety measures are followed (as they were, by all accounts, in this case), gun accidents happen. I’m not telling anyone what to decide, but I do hope anyone planning a family trip to a gun show in the near future will read this article, and think about this little boy’s death, and thoughtfully consider the risks. 

Greenspiration

by Teresa

I can’t remember where I read it, but there was a little blurb, not a full article, just a single sentence, in the corner of a page of a magazine.  It said a recent survey showed that college students are pretty “green”—mindful of the environment, consistent with recycling, etc.—but can you guess which group is even “greener?“  Moms.
Since I can’t remember the source, Google hasn’t been able to help me find out more.  So I don’t know if the survey had any questions about WHY moms are so “green.“  If I had to guess, I would say it probably has something to do with us wanting to make the world a better place for our kids.

I think I may have mentioned this before, in this blog space, but at my house, we DO try to do what we can to be mindful of our consumption and of recycling.  I long ago switched to making coffee at home in the morning, partly because it’s cheaper than hitting the drive-through of the big coffee-and-donut chain each day on the way to work, but ALSO because I felt guilty about the sheer number of styrofoam cups I was throwing in the trash. 
And we recycle everything we can. 
I’ve also recently started shopping with those re-usable bags instead of plastic bags.  (Though I will admit there are certain things at the grocery store—meat & chicken, for example—that I still put in plastic bags, every time.) 
And, we switched this year to re-usable water bottles in the kids’ school lunches instead of the disposable kind. 
I think I probably fall somewhere in the middle in the spectrum of “Green” Americans.  I care enough to make an effort, but I readily admit I COULD be doing more. 
There are a lot of people out there who are really going to extremes to live sustainable lifestyles.  Their stories have been my “greenspiration” for some of the smaller, less dramatic things I do.
Here’s one example:  this guy, David Chameides, has pledged to NOT take out his trash for an entire year, in an effort to illustrate how much trash one person generates in 365 days.  He keeps it all in his basement after recycling and reusing everything he can.  Each day he tallies up what’s left over.  Check out his blog, “365daysoftrash”; it’s really interesting.  Or, just read this New York Times article, which profiles Mr. Chameides and a few other people with similar “green” goals.  After reading his blog, I decided to adopt one of his tips: I’m now keeping a set of reusable silverware in my backpack and my car, so that I don’t have to take disposable plastic knives, forks, and spoons, when I get food “to go” or fast food during the week. I know it’s a small thing, but little things DO add up, over time.
I’ve been “greenspired” by some other websites recently, and I’ll write about some of them soon.  Today’s post is already long enough!
However, I’d be remiss if I wrote about this topic without pointing you all toward NBC 10’s own “Green” blog: “It’s Your World: Welcome to It” by environmentalist Chip Young.  He has some great “green” information there, specific to Rhode Island.  Check it out, if you haven’t already seen it!

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Everything Old is New Again.

by Kelly

A while back, I found an article about how everyday people can green-up their lives. It was so long ago that I forgot to copy it for the purpose of this blog.

This article endorsed a website called www.freecycle.com.   Through this website, you can get rid of things that would otherwise fill up landfills, or you could pick up things that are of no use to someone else, that you may need. I was intrigued and set up an account so I could give you all a report on the process. Did I mention that all items are FREE!!

Note: This site is run through Yahoo.com and you have to register for Yahoo to use the site. You must register with the Freecycle community closest to your geographic location. Items you post are to be given away for free, just as items wanted are also for free.

Through Freecycle, I successfully found homes for a washing machine, large toys my kids outgrew, and a dresser. The moderators were great at guiding me through the posting process. It was a great alternative to calling for large item pick up from my town. I felt good about not contributing to the trash pile with my stuff. There are a couple of things you do need to know once you begin to use the site – more annoyances than anything else. Every time someone posts a wanted or offered item, you get an email notice. You are also notified when an item is taken. Typically I’ll get 4-10 email notices per day. On rare occasions, I’ve gotten up to 20 in one day. If you don’t mind your inbox filling up, I guess it’s not a huge deal. I am a compulsive deleter so it makes me a little crazy sometimes.  Also, the wanted items became super repetitive – lots of folks looking for travel vouchers to Disney theme parks and free baby formula coupons. I’m not sure these things help as much in terms of reducing landfill – after all, coupons can be recycled or donated to area women’s shelters. For all of my items offered, people committed and didn’t show up to pick up the item. In the case of the washer, it went to the fifth person who responded to my listing. A healthy dose of patience is needed in these cases. The other items were picked up within a day of posting. 

It’s much like an online flea market. You have to move fast if you think you may want something offered, and pictures of the items help. It can also save you huge amounts of money. If you need something, ask for it, and you may get it for free. If you’re not fussy and don’t mind gently used things, this is really the way to go.

Bottom line: if you have something that isn’t broken and you simply want it gone, post it and help the planet! Your trash really could be someone else’s treasure!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Muppets Making a Comeback?

by Teresa

We have some DVDs of the old Muppet Show that, perhaps, many other parents remember like I do, from childhood.
There’s something really great about watching my kids laugh at the Muppets’ antics with guests like Steve Martin, Carol Burnett, and Gilda Radner.
Recently, after the death of Jim Henson, ownership of Kermit and Miss Piggy and Gonzo and all the rest changed hands several times, ending up in Disney’s possession.
Now, according to this New York Times article, Disney’s planning a big marketing push to lead up to a new bunch of specials and movies.
I’ll be honest; I’m not really encouraged by the fact that Disney plans to launch the comeback by having the Muppets appear with High School Musical stars and the Jonas Brothers.  But I’m still holding out hope they may be able to ressurect some of the goofy, old magic of the original shows.
I guess we’ll have to wait, and watch to see what happens!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Another Round Fired in the Autism/Vaccine Debate

by Teresa

A new editorial in the New York Times evaluates the newest evidence (or lack thereof) in an effort by scientists, to reproduce the results of a study that suggested a link between vaccines and autism.  Researchers can’t validate or replicate the findings of that study.  Quoting the editorial: “The new study adds weight to a growing body of epidemiological studies and reviews that have debunked the notion that childhood vaccines cause autism. The Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, the C.D.C. and the World Health Organization have found no evidence of a causal link between vaccines and autism.“  (I added the italics.)

I don’t have much to add, except this: parents who do NOT intend to vaccinate their kids should read this report from the Centers for Disease Control and give it some serious thought.  As I always say when I write about vaccines, the answer’s not the same for every kid; do talk to your own pediatrician.

But there’s no denying reality, here: In increasing numbers, kids are being hospitalized for measles—a fully preventable, possibly fatal disease.

Unvaccinated  kids. 

Right here.  Right now. 

In the United States.  In the year 2008.

And I’ll leave it at that.

A Storm of Fun?

by Kelly

I am awesome! I am truly, utterly and awesomely awesome! I am so awesome, in fact, that I must share my awesomeness with you. Last Saturday when Tropical Storm Hanna came through, I ruled the universe. At least to my kids.

You see, my young sons were less then enthusiastic about the prospect of losing power to the storm. My superhero husband and I tried to assure the boys that there wasn’t really anything to be nervous about. We explained the reality that we may indeed lose power but that they would be fine. It would just be dark, but we were going to survive a night in darkness. It went well and the fellas calmed down. We had a wonderful dinner. We played the Spiderman 3 version of Sorry! (why am I always assigned to be Sandman?). The kids’ favorite pajamas were fresh from the dryer. It was a truly great family night. The boys were feeling confident, secure and sleepy.

Then it happened.

The power blinked.

In an instant, our peaceful environment was shattered by screaming. It blinked! It didn’t go out! Blinked! But still they freaked out, big time. My husband scooped the boys into a bear hug and I struggled to find the solution to this issue, fast.

Transcript of my thoughts:

OK. OK. OK.

Think, Mommy.

Something batter-powered? Flashlights! Aha!

But we only have one! NO!!!!

Give flashlight to 5-year-old who is still screaming.

What else makes light?

Then it hit me - the stroke of genius that created an “Awesome Mommy Moment.“ You know, those moments of parental clarity that will solve the problem at hand, and be a fun memory-making experience for your kids? They’re rare (for me at least), but when they happen, there’s nothing like it. It’s like a runner’s high for parents.

The magic answer: glow sticks. GLOW STICKS!!!!! Beautiful in its simplicity isn’t it? ?

We stock up on these every May and replenish the supply in July. You see, we use them in the kids’ birthday party guest gift bags. With so many little guests, and some with allergies, glow sticks are perfect. We use them through the summer at night. We attach string to the loop and the kids swing them around for hours.

Glow sticks make the dark fun!

Glow sticks were the answer.

We strung them up and turned off almost every light. With the lights almost totally out, the absence of the rest would hardly be noticeable. The boys were over the moon with delight. The house looked so cool too! Like the first time you turn on the lights on the Christmas tree. It was beautiful.

Needless to say, this experience has taught me a couple of things, like I should actually pack an Emergency Supply Kit.

The most important thing I learned was that the boys need to see certain situations as an adventure of sorts, rather than a really scary, uncontrollable event. We can control how we, as parents, react to things. As long as we are out of physical harm’s way, it’s ok to make riding out the storm a fun event. And we did.

To quote my sons, “It was AWESOME!“

Oh! And we never lost power. Go figure.

Monday, September 08, 2008

New Trend in Parenting?

by Teresa

More single men, straight and gay, are choosing to become parents, according to this new article in the New York Times.

The men in the article say they sometimes get dubious reactions to their decisions, or face a lot of extra questions from friends, strangers, or family members.
I say, bravo to them for taking it all on.  Children need loving homes, whether the home has one parent or two, straight or gay, grandparents, moms or dads, or one of each. 

It’s all about the love.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

What do you MEAN, we’re neurotic?!?

by Teresa

In the latest issue of Newsweek, science columnist Sharon Begley has a piece entitled,  “The Geography of Personality.“  
In it, she discusses studies that looked at some general personality types, and the regions in which those types tend to gather.  In other words, what kind of person lives in Alaska?  Or in Wisconsin?  Or Utah?
And wouldn’t you know it: our tiny little Ocean State merits a mention.
So, what type of people are we?  What are Rhode Islanders like?
Quoting now: “...West Virginians and Rhode Islanders rank highest on neuroticism.“
The article got me thinking about what, exactly, “neurotic” means.  I found that thinking about the word brought me a mental picture of Woody Allen, and a vague idea of a person who’s nervous, or tense.  But I couldn’t really settle on a precise definition for the term, so I did what most of you would probably do: I Googled it.
Here are some of the definitions I found:
From Wikipedia: “NEUROTICISM is a fundamental personality trait in the study of psychology… defined as an enduring tendency to experience negative emotional states. Individuals who score high on neuroticism are more likely than the average to experience such feelings as anxiety, anger, guilt, and clinical depression.“
From Merriam-Webster: “NEUROSIS: : a mental and emotional disorder that affects only part of the personality, is accompanied by a less distorted perception of reality than in a psychosis, does not result in disturbance of the use of language, and is accompanied by various physical, physiological, and mental disturbances (as visceral symptoms, anxieties, or phobias).“
From The Free Dictionary: “NEUROTICISM- a mental or personality disturbance not attributable to any known neurological or organic dysfunction.“
Hmm.  Those definitions seem a bit more ominous, and a little less “Woody Allen,“ don’t they?
Then, Google found an article from the The Boston Globe, from earlier this year, which touches on the same theme. 
This article was accompanied by five helpful and interesting maps! 
It’s all fun reading, actually, but for what my two cents are worth here… I’ve lived in five different states—in all, nine different cities or towns, although it bears mentioning that four of those were in Rhode Island.  And I really can’t tell you whether more neurotic people live here, or not.  I don’t think so.  I’ve found people to be much the same in most places I’ve lived; the accents changed, but personality types?  I don’t know if I am buying the theory.  As a professor of mine used to tell me, there are heroes and scoundrels alike, in every group.  And there’s no use trying to force everyone into one category or the other.  I believe people are far too complicated to fit into such neat and tidy boxes; complex individuals can’t be explained by such basic labels.
Then again, maybe I just don’t like being called “neurotic.“

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

View from Town Beach, 8-8-08

by Teresa

Here’s a photo I took on August 8th down in Narragansett. 
Some surfers were out in the waves, and there was a light, misting rain. 
Then, we spotted this rainbow. 
I just think it looks amazing there, with the clouds, over the water. 

Cool RI Story in the New York Times

by Teresa

There have been several stories in the New York Times recently that focus on subjects right here in Rhode Island!  I always enjoy finding something about our little state in the nation’s greatest paper.  One of the articles that caught my attention is called “The Old House and the Sea.“ It’s about Clingstone… a mansion on a rock in Narragansett Bay that’s more than a century old.  The owner maintains the home by allowing people to stay there during the summer while they make repairs and help out according to their special skills; some do plumbing or wiring, and others clean, cook, or paint, to earn the right to stay there.  There are some great photos, and it’s a really interesting article about a landmark in our area; I have to confess I hadn’t known any of the history behind this fascinating home, until I read about it in the NYT.  It makes me wish that I had some sort of valuable contracting skills just so I could stay there for a while and check out the old mansion for myself!