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Entry bubble International Women's Day

By: Colleen | March 04, 2009 | Category: General

March 8th is International Women's Day (IWD)- a time intended to spread the word and awareness on women's issues across the globe.female

This day has been observed since the early 1900's and is an official holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzebekistan, and Vietnam. Traditionally in these places men honor their mothers, wives, and girlfriends etc. with flowers and small gifts. In some places it is the equivalent of Mother's Day. In the U.S., Women's History Month was chosen to be in March to coincide with IWD.

While there is no one overall theme for IWD, each year organizations, governments, and women's groups choose different themes to reflect global and local gender issues. This year the United Nation theme is: Women and men unite to end violence against women and girls.

For a list of IWD events, click HERE.

What women's issues do you think are most important? What do you do to celebrate IWD?

| Post a Comment | View Comments [0] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: colleen   international_women's_day   iwd   march   women's_history_month   women's_issues  

 

Entry bubble Save Your Vision Week

By: Joanne | March 03, 2009 | Category: Health

eye chart and eye glassesI know that good vision is something I take for granted, but it really is a precious gift. This week is Save Your Vision Week, a time to think about what you need to do to protect your vision.

I recently had my annual eye exam along with a glaucoma test. I always have a glaucoma test because my dad had glaucoma, so I’m thought to be at a higher risk. The bad thing about glaucoma is that it makes you blind – the good news is that there are medications that can stall its progression, so the sooner you catch it the better.

For the test, the doctor used drops to dilate my eyes, which made everything look blurry for the rest of the afternoon. The tricky thing was that I needed to get back to work and when I sat down, I realized that I couldn’t see the words on my computer screen. “Hmmmm,” I thought to myself, “now I’m in the shoes of our visitors with low vision.” At USA.gov we’ve got tools that allow our visitors to change the font size and once I made it bigger I was able to see the site. I was also able to use my browser tools to enlarge the text on other websites. I’m glad that these kinds of tricks and tools are available and that we design so that people with low or no vision can access the site. My temporary disability reinforced the importance of doing that.

So remember that conditions like macular degeneration, diabetic eye disease, and glaucoma can creep up on you and regular eye exams will help to protect your vision. Other advice is to eat a healthy diet, wear sunglasses with UV (ultraviolet) protection, and use protective eyewear when your eyes are at risk for injury.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [0] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: doctor   eye   joanne   vision  

 

Entry bubble What Happens to Recovery.gov Email?

By: Jake | March 02, 2009 | Category: General

American FlagLast week I mentioned that the White House had created a website to get feedback on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. One commenter asked if someone would actually read your email or if it would go into a "black hole." If you send an email to Recovery.gov you will be redirected to a web page that says:

"Thanks for contacting us. As we work towards economic recovery, we're counting on you to stay involved. Over the next few weeks and months, we'll be adding more and more information to Recovery.gov, so please check back often."

I asked someone who works on Recovery.gov what happens to the email people send. My contact there said people are reading the email submitted and it's their goal to respond to email submissions in the future. By the way, the White House website allows you to comment on other legislation like the DTV Delay Act of 2009 and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

Have you noticed the White House blog? I've been watching and it's updated multiple times a day, and White House personnel have even live blogged during the first Middle Class Task Force meeting and the President's trip to Canada (which included photos). There is no comment feature on the blog. I know from personal experience that comment maintenance can be time-consuming, but most blogs have this function. The White House may have plans to add a comment section and perhaps they don't have the personnel for maintenance yet. It will be interesting to see what they do.

If you send an email to the White House do you expect a response? Would you like to see the White House allow comments on the blog? Tell us what you want.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [4] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: jake   recovery.gov   white_house_blog  

 

Entry bubble Remodeling: Do It Yourself or Contract It Out

By: Ginger | February 27, 2009 | Category: Home and Family

Before I get into my topic, I want to thank the folks who read my blog about the “shower/toilet brush incident” and expressed their concerns by sending 57 toilet brushes, 92 bottles of shower gel, and 131 shower brushes.  Kidding! Instead, I got a bunch of bad puns and some razzing from my co-workers.   I did get a bottle of shower gel and a new shower brush from a concerned co-worker which will come in handy when our bathroom renovation is completed.

Person about to hammer a nailWe are giving our 70’s bathroom a facelift.  Normally, my husband and I are “do-it-yourselfers.”  Over the years we have done quite a few renovation projects.  Because we are already working on a kitchen project for my husband’s mother, we decided to contract out the work this time for our bathroom.

When considering doing-it-yourself home improvements versus contracting out there is a lot to think about.  The labor portion of any project is the most costly aspect. By doing home renovations yourself, you can potentially save a lot of money, but don’t forget to figure in the cost of tools and other supplies you may need to purchase.  If you make mistakes during the project, they are on you to fix and it may cost you more than you planned.

The outcome of a project depends a lot on the amount of skill that went into the work.  If you don’t have the correct skills or tools, you may end up with work that is less than satisfactory.  My tip for building your renovation skills: find people with professional-level skills (friends of friends willing to barter or work small projects for extra cash) who are willing to let you work along side them as they teach you.  You can use those skills in future projects.  

Working with a contractor may require a lot of schedule juggling, and nothing is more frustrating than taking time off from work only to have the scheduled contractor not show up.  The down side to doing the work yourself is that it may take you a lot longer to finish than a professional.

If, after considering all of these factors, you think it would be best to find a contractor, here are some helpful links that can guide you:

The contractor just finished the bathroom and while I am pleased with the result, my final word on the subject is that I think we will go back to doing-it-ourselves.   What can I say?  I have a sledge hammer and I like to use it!   So, how about you?  Are you a do-it-yourselfer?  How do you feel about home contractors?  Have you had good experiences or bad?

| Post a Comment | View Comments [5] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: do it yourself   ginger   home   home_improvement   remodeling   renovation  

 

Entry bubble An Unhealthy Need to be Skinny

By: Jess | February 26, 2009 | Category: Health

Scale in trash

(Writer's note: What follows is a short excerpt from an article I wrote for my college paper about a young woman who suffered from an eating disorder. I'm posting part of it here in honor of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. If you're interested in reading the entire story, you can find it here.)

As the petite young woman knelt on the bathroom floor for more than three hours, holding her shoulder-length blond hair away from the toilet bowl and retching up the remains of a night at Cornerstone Grill and Loft, she had only one thought in her mind: "At least I'm getting my dinner up."

For the sophomore business major, who shared her story on the condition of anonymity, this was as low as it got. Sitting there in a drunken haze, she reached for her cell phone and, without thinking, speed-dialed her boyfriend. She told him everything - how she lamented every calorie, how she could go for days on end without eating and how she hid it from everyone.

While that night may have been an all-time low, it proved to be a turning point by bringing her anorexia, a disease suffered in secret, out into the open.

The young woman I interviewed was brave enough to share some of the thoughts that swirled around in the mind of a person suffering from a terrible eating disorder. She felt comfortable telling me how there were days she ate nothing, but how on days when she ate only a single cracker and a diet soda, she felt fat and ugly. Unlike this young woman, many people who suffer from similar disordered eating patterns will never share their thoughts with anyone and may never reach out for help.

National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, which runs February 22 to 28, exists to encourage people to embrace their body no matter what its shape or size. It exists to raise awareness of eating disorders and bring light to resources available both for those who suffer and for their friends and family.

It never hurts to familiarize yourself with the warning signs of an eating disorder. The National Eating Disorders Awareness organization provides additional information for teachers and coaches as well as information on counseling and other help options.

It's been a few years since I wrote that story, but in the time that's passed, I'm happy to say the young woman found a counselor, put on much of the weight she had lost and seems to be more comfortable in her own skin. She's also happily engaged. She was one of the lucky ones, who had supportive friends urging her to get help and was brave enough to admit she needed it.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [1] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: anorexia   bulemia   eating_disorders   food   health   jess   national_eating_disorders_awareness_week   risks  

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