ExecutiveMom's Safety and Self Defense Blog

Cleaning Poem

Sunday is my day of relaxation and fun - church, time with kids - no TV, no phone calls...just fun and no worries UNTIL 8pm.  Then they all start winding down for bed. Even the puppy gets tired and it's the cats and I... time for the dreaded laundry and house cleaning chores as everyone moves upstairs to read a book and quiet down.

Tonight, just as I started my ritual (I guess if I do it all on a Sunday, I feel like my house is at least clean for the start of a new busy week) of un-fun activities my dear Aunt sent me a wonderful email...oh so like me...Just thought I'd share for a laugh before work begins again in the morning....Enjoy!

Cleaning Poem

 I asked the Lord to tell me
 Why my house is such a mess.
 He asked if I'd been 'computering',
 And I had to answer 'yes.'
 He told me to get off my fanny,
 And tidy up the house.
 And so I started cleaning up...
 The smudges off my mouse.
 I wiped and shined the topside.
 That really did the trick....
 I was just admiring my good work.
 I didn't mean to 'click.'
 But click, I did, and oops - I found
 A real absorbing site
 That I got SO way into it -
 I was into it all night.

Have a SAFE Monday.

Spying on Your Neighbors - neat tidbit....

Here's a little tidbit I got in my e-mail this morning. I think it's perfect.

A young couple moved into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they were eating breakfast, the young woman saw her neighbor hanging the wash outside. "That laundry is not very clean," she said. "She doesn't know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap." Her husband looked on, but remained silent. Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments. About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband, "Look, she has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this." The husband said, "I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows."

And so it is with life. What we see when watching others depends on the purity of the window through which we look. Very cool message, I think...  any other good, positive words to start the weekend with?

Have a wonderful and SAFE weekend - keep those "windows clean".

Letterman - Where is the Outrage or is this Tolerable?

Pedophile, via Dictionary.com:

an adult who is sexually attracted to young children.

The bruhaha of the week seems to be the lack of any genuine comedic talent of David Letterman and at first glance I figured that, as usual, his stand-up routine or his top ten list was just as idiotic as it was every time I have had the misfortune to see it.

I was wrong, this is worse.

This is what bothers me as I fight for people to "open their eyes" and realize the silent epidemic that is destroying the fabric of our families world wide.  Child Sexual Assault (CSA) is something that is taboo, something we don't want to talk about, something we pray never affects our families and when it does: many still turn a "blind eye" and put their head into the sand in disbelief and pretend it never happened.

As I fight to make people aware of the devastating effects of CSA, to bring a perpetrator who lives freely among us to justice - to find some punishment for his actions and years of abuse of multiple victims, Jokes like Letterman's are aired.  This is beyond "bad-taste".  It's this type of behavior that feeds on the beliefs of our society.  How is it that on one hand we can joke, and make laws that are hardly ever enforced while real families struggle with the destruction left in the wake of abuse?  (I can't tell you how many times my state representatives have said: I'm sorry your child was abused for 3 years but that's not my department or I can't help you or it's "all in the family" or...one excuse after another and then have the nerve to do TV ads and state speaches endorsing how much that are against child abuse and do everything in their power to help - the unfortunate list of survivors asking to join me in my fight for justice in our state is growing way too quickly for me to help because even as a group our voices are being ignored!) Again, statistics?  1 in 3 and 1 in 7 boys are abused - that is nothing to joke about.

I guess my point is - the type of behavior displayed by Letterman is so distasteful I truly can't put a feeling on it - no word is "good enough" to explain my anger at what was supposed to be humor ?  I honestly don't care if the joke was meant for Palin's older or younger daughter.  It is a pretty crappy joke to make about anyone's kid, no matter how much you disagree with the parents' politics (or mere existence, apparently).

Today:

In an e-mailed statement, the Republican governor said: “Laughter incited by sexually perverted comments made by a 62-year-old male celebrity aimed at a 14-year-old girl is not only disgusting, but it reminds us some Hollywood/N.Y. entertainers have a long way to go in understanding what the rest of America understands — that acceptance of inappropriate sexual comments about an underage girl, who could be anyone's daughter, contributes to the atrociously high rate of sexual exploitation of minors by older men who use and abuse others.”

I'd love to know you thoughts and please join me in sending CBS your feedback! http://www.cbs.com/info/user_services/fb_global_form.php

To read other stories you might check out Jim Treacher's Blog he had a few good points on the topic:

That's right: A state governor went to a baseball game with her underage daughter, and a national talk show host made a joke about the girl being sexually assaulted by one of the players.

I realize I'm just an inbred backwoods moron who can't abide by any criticism of Sarah Palin whatsoever, but is this really the precedent we want to set for our politicians and their families?

After all, Samson Obama, one of the president's many half-brothers, isn't allowed in the UK because he tried to assault a 13-year-old girl. Are we to impose the Letterman standard there? Is it okay to make a joke like this?

"How come the First Family never invites Uncle Samson to visit? Because whenever Sasha and Malia sit on his knee, it takes six Secret Service guys to pry them off!"

Or how about this?

"Joe Biden keeps saying he's not really sure where all that stimulus money is going. In other news, Ashley Biden's coke dealer just bought Luxembourg."

Hey, I didn't say they were good jokes. But are they really worse than what Letterman just got away with on national TV? If so, why?

Oprah's world - risky advice?

Just to follow up in more detail on a Twitter I posted yesterday - another health issue to think about:

On June 1st, the latest issue of NEWSWEEK hit the stands, featuring Weston Kosova and Pat Wingert's smart, gutsy cover story on what one might call the Oprah Winfrey Medical Misinformation Complex.  Shorter version (though you should read the whole thing): Oprah, who has tremendous influence and credibility, promotes health "cures" that may be at best ineffective and at worst dangerous. Both media and medical bloggers took note of the story, and have been discussing its merits online. 

For example: The article really struck a nerve with Dr. Dave Gorski, ( David Gorski is a surgical oncologist specializing in breast cancer and an associate professor of surgery at the Wayne State University School of Medicine based at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute. ) a blogger at Science-Based Medicine  (bookmark it: the site is a great source of thorough, critical reviews of both the latest research and medical fads).

Her intentions may be the best in the world, but that is only why she is the living embodiment of the cliché that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. That's especially true when that same road is also paved with no mental filter of critical thinking to keep out nonsense. With great power comes great responsibility, indeed.

Unfortunately, given the infiltration of quackery into academic medicine, I'm having a hard time determining if Oprah is a symptom or one of the causes of the rise of pseudoscience and quackery over science-based medicine.

    Oprah has about as close to no critical thinking skills when it comes to science and medicine as I’ve ever seen, and she uses the vast power and influence her TV show and media empire give her in order to subject the world to her special brand of mystical New Age thinking and belief in various forms of what can only be characterized as dubious medical therapies at best and quackery at worst.

    No one, and I mean no one, brings pseudoscience, quackery, and antivaccine madness to more people than Oprah Winfrey does every week...Consequently, whether fair or unfair, she represents the perfect face to put on the problem that we supporters of science-based medicine face when trying to get the message out to the average reader about unscientific medical practices, and that’s why I am referring to the pervasiveness of pseudoscience infiltrating medicine as the “Oprah-fication” of medicine.

It's up to the people who watch Oprah's show to believe or not.  Different people have different views and it's up to them to take it seriously.  Unfortunately, there are many who listen to Oprah and Dr Oz and want a “quick fix” or an easy way of doing things.  Without knowing you, your medical history, your family history, your allergies, etc. it is hard for a TV moguel to tell you what you should and shouldn’t do for your health and which medications, vaccinations, or over the counter medications to try.  They can’t tell you if the herbal remedy can interact with a medication you are already on or if taking it might mask a more serious problem that your physician may need to evaluate.  We all have the responsibility to make our own decisions.

When watching these shows, ie. Oprah & Dr Phil’s son’s new show, you need to take what you learn “with a grain of salt” and discuss it with your physician as an option or alternative for you but don’t let their opinions become yours.  Just like the Pharmaceutical industry who influences us through direct to consumer advertising for their own purposes, so Oprah is doing a “job”.  She is a very smart business woman but not a scientist and definitely not a licensed physician with all the answers for all who watch her show.  She is on the air for “entertainment purposes only”.  As viewers, we need to remember that and realize that what she says sometimes can actually be more harmful than good.

Again, we need to be responsible, educated, skeptical consumers of our own individualized healthcare.  (not all medications, vaccines, advice are bad – we just need to do what is best for us and our body) - JMO what is yours?

Merck Publishing Scandal Widens

Here is just another reason I continue to be skeptical of an industry that I whole heartedly believed in during the late ‘80s.  With 18 years of service under my belt, I witnessed the changes of Big Pharma from information, educational and helpful to a huge money hungry and greedy entity with no regards for the patients. 

This is also another reason I have not had my daughter vaccinated for the HPV with Gardacil,  maybe it is a good vaccine but with so much skepticism over their practices and the need to make the investors on Wall Street happy, I continue to tell our pediatrician “No Thanks” - with teen deaths on the rise due to the vaccine, their money problems should not affect my daughter’s life.  It all needs to be proven and time tested first before forcing it on many.

So I have to say today....Wow, that's an ambitious little project.  22 fake journals in all!  Although these are all Australian based journals, these are the studies that the representatives use here in the U.S. (again, know this from experience as a life long rep).  Have to continue to wonder the effects it has world wide....

June 05, 2009
Merck publishing scandal widens
Pharmaceuticals giant Merck & Co. is refusing to answer questions about a growing scandal involving its publication of fake scientific journals that were, in fact, little more than promotions for its products.

Originally thought to have published six such journals, it now turns out Merck bought and paid for nine journals -- with 13 more in the works.

News of the fake journals broke in April in The Scientist when it reported that Merck had paid Australian publisher Elsevier to print Australasian Journal of Bone and Joint Medicine (AJBJM), without revealing that the publication was created and paid for by Merck.

The "vast majority" of articles in AJBJM during its 2002 to 2005 publishing life were favourable articles about Merck drugs Fosamax and Vioxx -- two medications that have been linked to dangerous side effects.

Fosamax is an osteoporosis drug that has been linked to cancer .

LegalView reports on the recent Fosamax side effects, which have caused  patients to not only consider new medications but to discuss the potential for  a Fosamax class action lawsuit as well. In January, two medical journals, The New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of the American Dental Association provided a  one-two punch against the drug’s manufacturers, Merck and Co., reportedly  linking the drug to such side effects as esophageal cancer and jaw bone  die-off. Patients of the osteoporosis drug are advised to contact a medical  professional to discuss the drug and its alleged dangers.

Vioxx, an anti-inflammatory, was pulled off the market after independent studies found a link to increased heart attack and strokes.

Merck, in what Summer Johnson calls "passing the buck" in the respected blog.bioethics.net , is refusing to answer questions about the publishing scandal, referring all questions to Elsevier -- which says it is reviewing its policies and admits the publications never should have been called journals.

Johnson is having none it:

Simply because Elsevier took the bait doesn't mean Merck is off the hook.  Elsevier is rightfully taking the heat for agreeing to create entire divisions  of publications that an Elsevier spokesperson admitted "should not have been  called 'journals'." What an admission! What to call a publication such as  these really is the question--perhaps they will fade into oblivion such that  we will not have to give them a name. Not a chance. ...

If Elsevier really wants to put this scandal behind them, they must throw  the doors open wide and disclose everything--including how much they were  paid. Eventually the facts will come out. When they do--and I'm only guessing  the figure is astronomical--Elsevier will look like they were hiding some  very dirty laundry. Merck already is passing the buck and leave Elsevier  holding the bag. Thus far it looks like they are succeeding.

The nine fake journals are: The Australasian Journal of Bone and Joint Medicine, the Australasian Journal of Neurology, the Australasian Journal of Hospital Medicine, the Australasian Journal of General Practice, the Australasian Journal of Cardiology, the Australasian Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine, the Australasian Journal of Clinical Pharmacy, the Australasian Journal of Clinical Practice, and the Australasian Journal of Musculoskeletal Medicine.

The 13 planned fakes are: The Australasian Journal of Pediatrics, the Australasian Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the Australasian Journal of Dentistry, the Australasian Journal of Infectious Diseases, the Australasian Journal of Pain Management, the Australasian Journal of Respiratory Medicine, the Australasian Journal of Sexual Health, the Australasian Journal of Psychiatry, the Australasian Journal of Asthma, the Australasian Journal of Gastroenterology, the Australasian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy, the Australasian Journal of Depression, the Core Journals in Oncology.

Just take a moment to educate yourself and be a good, involved consumer of your own health care - don't be afraid to ask your doctor questions and do your own research but remember WebMD is sponsored by the Pharma companies so take them with a "grain of salt" and check out multiple sites - we research everything else.... Be SAFE.  (for further reading on the industry check out Escape from the Pharma Drug Cartel)

Men in My Town

Online Support for Parents of victim of Child Sexual Assault

This is an older Posting of Mine from February but I just received a wonderful comment from a reader I'd truly like to share with you all - 10-15% of all sexual assault cases fall within the category of "Stranger Danger" and definitely can't be discounted.  Although our story is about Incest and it's affects, an incredible friend of mine, like this reader, was abducted, held for days and raped at the young age of 16 - unfortunately for her, 30 years later they still don't have any arrests or prospects because the police lost the DNA evidence she had taken immediately after the assault (guess times were different in the 1970s)...still she lives in constant fear like this reader.

THANK YOU so very much for sharing your story with me and best to you, your book and your web site - I KNOW you will help others with your story at www.meninmytown.wordpress.com.

As a secondary survivor of Child Sexual Assault, and as a parent suffering to understand the whys and hows, I have put together an online chat / message board with resources, books, and other information for those needed support and help and ideas for coping for both you and your children.  It has been a long hard road for us and I know the roller coaster will continue as the years pass by but since i was unable to find much help for myself I thought i'd use our experience to maybe help other parents along their journey.

Would love your input as well ...  I know there are others who have traveled this path before us and more who will follow so feel free to share what you think may help.

Thank you and God Bless -

MESSAGE BOARD / RESOURCES

OUR STORY

A LETTER TO OTHER PARENTS

My name is Keith Smith. I was abducted, beaten and raped by a stranger. It wasn't a neighbor, a coach, a relative, a family friend or teacher. It was a recidivist pedophile predator who spent time in prison for previous sex crimes; an animal hunting for victims in the quite, bucolic, suburban neighborhoods of Lincoln, Rhode Island.

I was able to identify the guy and the car he was driving. Although he was arrested that night and indicted a few months later, he never went to trial. His trial never took place because he was brutally beaten to death in Providence before his court date. 34 years later, no one has ever been charged with the crime.

In the time between the night of my assault and the night he was murdered, I lived in fear. I was afraid he was still around town. Afraid he was looking for me. Afraid he would track me down and kill me. The fear didn’t go away when he was murdered. Although he was no longer a threat, the simple life and innocence of a 14-year-old boy was gone forever. Carefree childhood thoughts replaced with the unrelenting realization that my world wasn’t a safe place. My peace shattered by a horrific criminal act of sexual violence.

Over the past 34 years, I’ve been haunted by horrible, recurring memories of what he did to me. He visits me in my sleep. There have been dreams–nightmares actually–dozens of them, sweat inducing, yelling-in-my-sleep nightmares filled with images and emotions as real as they were when it actually happened. It doesn’t get easier over time. Long dead, he still visits me, silently sneaking up from out of nowhere when I least expect it. From the grave, he sits by my side on the couch every time the evening news reports a child abduction or sex crime. I don’t watch America’s Most Wanted or Law and Order SVU, because the stories are a catalyst, triggering long suppressed emotions, feelings, memories, fear and horror. Real life horror stories rip painful suppressed memories out from where they hide, from that recessed place in my brain that stores dark, dangerous, horrible memories. It happened when William Bonin confessed to abducting, raping and murdering 14 boys in California; when Jesse Timmendequas raped and murdered Megan Kanka in New Jersey; when Ben Ownby, missing for four days, and Shawn Hornbeck, missing for four years, were recovered in Missouri.

Despite what happened that night and the constant reminders that continue to haunt me years later, I wouldn’t change what happened. The animal that attacked me was a serial predator, a violent pedophile trolling my neighborhood in Lincoln, Rhode Island looking for young boys. He beat me, raped me, and I stayed alive. I lived to see him arrested, indicted and murdered. It might not have turned out this way if he had grabbed one of my friends or another kid from my neighborhood. Perhaps he’d still be alive. Perhaps there would be dozens of more victims and perhaps he would have progressed to the point of silencing his victims by murdering them.

Out of fear, shame and guilt, I’ve been silent for over three decades, not sharing with anyone the story of what happened to me. No more. The silence has to end. What happened to me wasn't my fault. The fear, the shame, the guilt have to go. It’s time to stop keeping this secret from the people closest to me, people I care about, people I love, my long-time friends and my family. It’s time to speak out to raise public awareness of male sexual assault, to let other victims know that they’re not alone and to help victims of rape and violent crime understand that the emotion, fear and memories that may still haunt them are not uncommon to those of us who have shared a similar experience.

For those who suffer in silence, I hope my story brings some comfort, strength, peace and hope.

My novel, Men in My Town, was inspired by these actual events. Men in My Town is available now at www.Amazon.com

For additional information, please visit the Men in My Town blog at www.meninmytown.wordpress.com

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING KEITH - God Bless - together maybe our voices CAN make a difference!

This is an older Posting of Mine from February but I just received a wonderful comment from a reader I'd truly like to share with you all - 10-15% of all sexual assault cases fall within the category of "Stranger Danger" and definitely can't be discounted.  Although our story is about Incest and it's affects, an incredible friend of mine, like this reader, was abducted, held for days and raped at the young age of 16 - unfortunately for her, 30 years later they still don't have any arrests or prospects because the police lost the DNA evidence she had taken immediately after the assault (guess times were different in the 1970s)...still she lives in constant fear like this reader.

THANK YOU so very much for sharing your story with me and best to you, your book and your web site - I KNOW you will help others with your story at www.meninmytown.wordpress.com.

As a secondary survivor of Child Sexual Assault, and as a parent suffering to understand the whys and hows, I have put together an online chat / message board with resources, books, and other information for those needed support and help and ideas for coping for both you and your children.  It has been a long hard road for us and I know the roller coaster will continue as the years pass by but since i was unable to find much help for myself I thought i'd use our experience to maybe help other parents along their journey.

Would love your input as well ...  I know there are others who have traveled this path before us and more who will follow so feel free to share what you think may help.

Thank you and God Bless -

MESSAGE BOARD / RESOURCES

OUR STORY

A LETTER TO OTHER PARENTS

My name is Keith Smith. I was abducted, beaten and raped by a stranger. It wasn't a neighbor, a coach, a relative, a family friend or teacher. It was a recidivist pedophile predator who spent time in prison for previous sex crimes; an animal hunting for victims in the quite, bucolic, suburban neighborhoods of Lincoln, Rhode Island.

I was able to identify the guy and the car he was driving. Although he was arrested that night and indicted a few months later, he never went to trial. His trial never took place because he was brutally beaten to death in Providence before his court date. 34 years later, no one has ever been charged with the crime.

In the time between the night of my assault and the night he was murdered, I lived in fear. I was afraid he was still around town. Afraid he was looking for me. Afraid he would track me down and kill me. The fear didn’t go away when he was murdered. Although he was no longer a threat, the simple life and innocence of a 14-year-old boy was gone forever. Carefree childhood thoughts replaced with the unrelenting realization that my world wasn’t a safe place. My peace shattered by a horrific criminal act of sexual violence.

Over the past 34 years, I’ve been haunted by horrible, recurring memories of what he did to me. He visits me in my sleep. There have been dreams–nightmares actually–dozens of them, sweat inducing, yelling-in-my-sleep nightmares filled with images and emotions as real as they were when it actually happened. It doesn’t get easier over time. Long dead, he still visits me, silently sneaking up from out of nowhere when I least expect it. From the grave, he sits by my side on the couch every time the evening news reports a child abduction or sex crime. I don’t watch America’s Most Wanted or Law and Order SVU, because the stories are a catalyst, triggering long suppressed emotions, feelings, memories, fear and horror. Real life horror stories rip painful suppressed memories out from where they hide, from that recessed place in my brain that stores dark, dangerous, horrible memories. It happened when William Bonin confessed to abducting, raping and murdering 14 boys in California; when Jesse Timmendequas raped and murdered Megan Kanka in New Jersey; when Ben Ownby, missing for four days, and Shawn Hornbeck, missing for four years, were recovered in Missouri.

Despite what happened that night and the constant reminders that continue to haunt me years later, I wouldn’t change what happened. The animal that attacked me was a serial predator, a violent pedophile trolling my neighborhood in Lincoln, Rhode Island looking for young boys. He beat me, raped me, and I stayed alive. I lived to see him arrested, indicted and murdered. It might not have turned out this way if he had grabbed one of my friends or another kid from my neighborhood. Perhaps he’d still be alive. Perhaps there would be dozens of more victims and perhaps he would have progressed to the point of silencing his victims by murdering them.

Out of fear, shame and guilt, I’ve been silent for over three decades, not sharing with anyone the story of what happened to me. No more. The silence has to end. What happened to me wasn't my fault. The fear, the shame, the guilt have to go. It’s time to stop keeping this secret from the people closest to me, people I care about, people I love, my long-time friends and my family. It’s time to speak out to raise public awareness of male sexual assault, to let other victims know that they’re not alone and to help victims of rape and violent crime understand that the emotion, fear and memories that may still haunt them are not uncommon to those of us who have shared a similar experience.

For those who suffer in silence, I hope my story brings some comfort, strength, peace and hope.

My novel, Men in My Town, was inspired by these actual events. Men in My Town is available now at www.Amazon.com

For additional information, please visit the Men in My Town blog at www.meninmytown.wordpress.com

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING KEITH - God Bless - together maybe our voices CAN make a difference!

Pump Up Your Book Review

As an author, especially one sharing such a personal story, it is so nice to see how others respond to your story and how it has helped them out in some small way.

I was surprised and thrilled to see that Shattered Reality was mentioned as a favorite of another book bloggers...check out the review!  Thanks so much to Farrah for her confidence in our story to share it with so many (you've just got to love her attitude towards reading and her beautiful smile :). 

Each month, Pump Up Your Book Promotion chooses one blog host who has hosted our clients during their virtual book tours to win our Blog Host of the Month Award. This month’s Blog Host of the Month Award goes to Farrah Kennedy of The Book Faery Reviews!

What’s your most memorable post?

There are actually a couple…My favorites are definitely the interviews and the interactions with the authors off my blog. I got the chance to interview famous historical romance author Amelia Grey and excited that she’ll be coming back as a guest post this coming fall. Cheryl Brooks, paranormal romance author was a hoot and I’m still trying to convince her to write a sex commentary for her Cat Star Chronicles! lol And I was very touched with Kimberly Elliott’s book Shattered Reality which touched close to me and help me understand some things.

After checking out the story at Pump Up the Volume, you'll definitely want to check out Farrah's blog The Book Faery Reviews. to see if you can find a new book for your summer reading list!

Today, it's raining here, so it's a perfect day for an excuse to do nothing but read!  Enjoy your Monday, whatever your weather is and make it a safe one!

Keeping Kids Healthy, Wealthy and Wise....

As a RAD instructor myself - I can't say how incredibly wonderful this type of program is to help nurture the health and wellness of our children.  There are just so many aspects in keeping them safe and healthy.  They are our future - let's make it a good one for them (they will be choosing the nursing homes we enter one day - let's make good choices for them now so the love and care is returned when we need it one day :)

Please check this great program out by clicking HERE :

As instructors for the radKIDS Personal Empower and Safety Education Program, we have worked with hundreds of kids who have been emotionally, physically, or sexually abused.  Their stories are what drives us to participate in this event.

Child abuse comes in many forms and impacts children of all ages.  Much work needs to be done to combat this problem and this is just one way we see that it can help.

These are difficult economic times for many but child abuse is a continuous difficult time for the defenseless.   Those who will be making this 20 mile trek will experience discomfort but nothing compared to the fear and pain kids feel everyday through abuse.

We are proud to provide safety education programs to kids ages 5 - 12 years of age through the radKIDS program.  We have seen it have positive results for those who have been abused through their empowerment and build up of personal self esteem.  These programs do work but not without the support of many.

Thank you for your donation to this valuable cause.  As we say in the radKIDS program, you DO make a difference.....one child at a time.

Jim and Sandra Baylor

radKIDS Instructors                                                                                                            RAD Texas Education, Inc.                                                                       www.radtexas.com

HAVE A SAFE, WONDERFUL & BLESSED WEEKEND - enjoy ....

It's Not Easy Being Green

Well, I guess I'm back after a couple week vacation and a minor abdominal surgery - Reality just kind of stinks!
After having not to cook, clean, taxi children or do laundry (my most dreaded activity), I have hit the ground running once again at 150 mph. And it's just in time for summer vacation to begin. The kids have been out a week and they are already wondering around my house bored like they can't think of anything to do. I've given them a list....but... yeah right.
     I had my youngest niece over the other night and watching the Muppets, Kermit the Frog says: "It's not easy being Green." It made me think of all the buzz words and popular activities people seem to be participating in to become "Green" and save some of our planet. 
     Now, Green campaign or not, I think a lot of what we are doing are just the "right" thing to do.  My kids and I have long been recycling - thanks to a lecture program at their school. But it is nice to have a new bin that I can take to the end of my drive instead of loading my car up with the stuff. 
     And we are conscious about turning off electronics and lights when we leave a room, we don't leave the water running excessively while we brush our teeth, we re-use containers, plastic grocery bags and tin foil if we can before discarding them when their life has run out. Yucky - but we do wear a pair of jeans twice before running them through the wash - maybe that's just my aversion to doing laundry too :) (other than the boy who we just dump him and his clothes into the wash machine at once to clean all the dirt off).
     So my point?  Here we are on this beautiful anniversary vacation - Belize, Grand Cayman, Florida Keys, Honduras - incredible places, beaches, corral, dolphins, sea turtles, huge star fish.  And stupid humans!!
     If we are doing all these things to save our planet from our destruction then why don't we honor Mother Earth and her creatures??  What in the world?  People truly are sometimes just idiots....I don't care if you are on vacation or not!  How many people a year trounce through these places?  Is that not why the ruins at Talum are no longer open to the public to walk on or explore? Because humans wanted to "take a piece home with them" or didn't respect them and now they are crumbling after thousands of years?  How destructive can we be?
     As we traveled, I watched people not only waste tons of food - because they could (on a cruise ship) but saw them throw their trash on the beautiful beaches, chase down wild monkeys in the jungle while stomping on the natural growth (and one mother wondered why her kid got bit?), people pulling off the tips of the live corral or walking on it even after being asked/told not to, humans swimming on the backs of the sea turtles they were instructed not to touch, and a couple holding a giant starfish out of water as the man with the blow horn yelled at them - they continued to hold that poor guy out of water just so they could have the perfect picture.  As tourists, why we foreigners are ever invited back is beyond me (besides the all mighty dollar) but we are destroying the Earth and her creatures and we don't think twice about it!
     Even as we drove home I noticed more razed trees in expectation of a new shopping strip mall - no renters available yet, tons of empty building down the street - yet someone wants to make money so they destroy the one thing that can help us survive - our trees and greenery. 

Nope - it's not easy being green but hey if we used just a little bit of common sense it would make a difference! Well, my welcome back rant.  Any ideas on what you can do as an individual to make a difference for our future generations??