Canadians will go to the polls on October 14:
[insert panicky mental calculation of the number of parties vs. the number of weeks available to finish up that series of articles over at Resolving Timeline Issues]
Our little darlings are back in school….yay for some boo hoo for others. But with the joys of beginning another school year comes the increased risk for our little precious ones being exposed to many more germs.
The common cold for one. You know our little munchkins sneeze….and rather than use a Kleenex they wipe that snotty little nose with their hand or the sleeve of their shirts. Never intending of course to pass the germs along but they do. Think of all the items they touch just after sneezing….their desk….the teachers desk….the building blocks….the books….the door handles, the list goes on.
So what can we as parents do to help minimize the spread of these germs. We can teach our children the basics of good hand-washing and why it is so important. I know this may sound so elementary to most but a lot of children don’t understand why it is we nag at them about washing their hands, not just when they finish in the bathroom, but when they come in from outdoor play, or sneeze. Most classrooms have a sink and towels encourage them to use it. Now days you can buy those small antibacterial soaps that they could keep in their desks…..or better yet insist that your child’s school installs the hand cleanser dispenser outside the classroom door and in the class room.
There are studies after studies proving how simple hand washing eliminates many of the common germs, and decreases the risk of spreading germs and other diseases dramatically. So why aren’t we insisting that the hand dispensers are provided for every classroom? If it only costs a couple of bucks to provide one for your child or have the school install(more dollars I know)isn’t it worth it? Think about all the lost days of school that occur because children are passing the cold or flu bug around? Thousands of instructional hours are lots. And what about the poor teacher who has to deal with the sniffles of every other student in the class.
This brings me to another topic….Immunization. What is wrong with people who don’t keep their child’s immunizations up to date? What are they thinking? I was shocked when I heard about the Mumps outbreak in Abbotsford. That should never happen…..people have gotten lacked when it comes to immunization. They were initiated because immunization saves lives. I know there are groups that don’t believe in them….part of me thinks that’s because they have never experienced it…and why is that…..because the rest of the population has dutifully ensured that their child’s immunization is up to date. Believe me you don’t want to see your child get the mumps….or what about Polio….something that was totally eradicated as a result of the immunization…..do we want to go back to those days? I don’t think so.
And while I’m on the topic…..please please please don’t use the school as your babysitter. If your child is sick…keep them at home…no one needs them coughing or sneezing all over them, and they will recover much faster at home rather than sitting in a stuffy not well ventilated classroom. Here are some statistics about the common cold:
“From the time a cold virus enters the nose, it takes 8-12 hours for the viral reproductive cycle to be completed and for new cold virus to be released in nasal secretions. (13) This interval is called the incubation period.
Cold symptoms can also begin shortly after virus is first produced in the nose (10-12 hours). (13) The time from the beginning of the infection to the peak of symptoms is typically 36-72 hours. (1, 2)” So what does that mean…that means we need to keep our little darlings at home during that time….don’t you think it is worth it in the long run?
You can get more information about the common cold here: http://www.commoncold.org/undrstn3.htm
Anyhow, that is my rant. Let’s try and make this a cold and flu bug free year for our little munchkins.
Good health to you all and your little darlings….
I like to think I’m a fairly astute person, not easily taken in by the barrage of “special” offers, computer spam in the form of “you have won a million dollars, now please send a cheque for processing and it’s yours” etc. and exhortations that pour into our computers, drop through our mail boxes, beseech us on our telephones all to let us know if we just respond in the next few minutes we’ll hear something to our advantage.
So it was with some degree of skepticism and surprise that I found myself actually listening to the spiel being fed me on the telephone by a very nice young man from The Globe and Mail Newspaper. He advised me that if I took out a three month subscription for delivery of the paper I would be eligible for two round-trip airfare tickets to about 40 different locations in Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Europe. The only “catch” apparently being you had to stay at a resort or hotel designated by the travel company. The tickets would be transferable and the offer valid for 18 months from receipt of the promotional package. It seemed a fair offer and I didn’t mind receiving the Globe and Mail paper for a while and it could always be cancelled without penalty if I didn’t like it, so I signed up for their “Travel Spectacular” promotion.
I duly started receiving the paper and a few weeks later the information package regarding the Two Complimentary Airline Tickets arrived from “One Stop Travel Inc.”
The first thing I noticed was that the company is based in Florida. Why not a Canadian travel company I wondered. Next, as I poured over the very small print re the rules and regulations for claiming the tickets at the back of the colourful brochure, I found that the airline tickets did not include taxes, surcharges; fuel charges etc. and we all know that these charges generally make up the bulk of the airfares!
As I looked at the holidays available I also saw that there was a minimum stay required depending on the departure airport and of course my being here in Vancouver, the stays were generally longer than anywhere else. Also, all the hotels and resorts that I would have to stay in were top of the range and there is no way I could afford to stay at any of those places anyway.
The most disturbing item however, was listed under “Payment Form” which stated that “All monies paid to One Stop Travel must be in U.S. dollars and the form of a cashier’s check or money order, made payable to OST Trust Account”. I found that very worrying as most vacation transactions are paid by credit card which affords you some modicum of protection.
I immediately called the Globe and Mail customer service department and requested cancellation of my subscription and told them exactly what I thought of their so-called Travel Spectacular promotion. They were sorry to hear of my dissatisfaction and would pass on my comments to their marketing department and of course they would cancel the subscription right away but I was also welcome to make use of the tickets or pass them on to anyone else who might be able to use them……so for a small handling fee, payable to me in cash of course, they’re yours!
Tags: globe & mail, One Stop Travel, scam, travel
Time to take a look up and down our directory and see what is going on with everyone!
Randomly, of course!
A Place I Call Home..which is over on Vancouver Island, was over here celebrating and taking lovely picks of a gorgeous wedding. Thank you for sharing.
Our newest ‘friend’ Tacoma Mama has a great site with lots of information about what is going on in her neck of the woods. From entertainment to shopping deals, etc. Welcome!
The Clayton Voice, provides a personal and local look at the Clayton Village part of Surrey, BC. Like many of us mom types she is talking back to school and the fall events.
For a taste of the good life in California, Left Coast Cowboys have a fun sight covering life, fun and you name it. Her coverage of her amazing trip to the Beijing Olympics was a real treat.
PLEASE help out Tanya (NetChick) with her fund raising for fighting Diabetes. She has joined Vancouver’s Buzz Bishop and the 95 Crave Team Diabetes for the big run happening in January of ‘09.
Miss604 is supporting the run too AND is making sure her blog is busting out with more social awareness and fighting for change.
Thank you Rebecca, for being able to bring all these issues and events to my attention.
The crew down at Seattle Mom’s Blog are awesome…they are working on a balancing life and blogging serious just now. Good reading for all..not just moms.
There is a gajillion of you more out there, but I gotta go pick up my daughter.
Go spread the love!
Just the other day Hubs and I decided to head over to the Mainland for the weekend.
Yes, I know. Long weekend+nice weather= HUGE ferry line ups. We decided to make a reservation. While I was plunking down my $17 to get a spot on the ferry, I decided to check the rates.
At that point I choked on my coffee and nearly needed CPR.
In the past three years, ferry rates have risen from $46 for a family of three and underheight vehicle on our route, to a whopping $72. They’re kidding, right? I mean it’s bad enough that we have to travel just to buy socks and underwear, that to get an optometrist appointment locally we must wait 6 months or more, and any specialist appointment has to be in Vancouver. To then make it almost unaffordable for many residents has some locals screaming that somehow the government should just build a bridge.
Anyway. Hubs went off to work grumbling about the craziness of it all, and then a co-worker let him in on a little secret…..
….pick up a BC Ferries Experience card.
I didn’t really believe him at first. Supposedly you get this thing, and load it online or at a terminal. You choose between passenger only savings (with a minimum balance of $40) or vehicle/passenger (minimum balance $75). Then you use the card when you board. Right, I said. It says that you get “savings when they are available.” Knowing BC Ferries, that’s like…NEVER.
I am happy to say I was wrong. Last night we boarded the ferry, and lo and behold, we had gotten a discounted rate from using the Experience Card. How much? About $20. I’m sure every route is different, but if you take the ferries a lot, they are definitely worth checking out.
After all, that $20 comes in handy to cover the gas.
While BlogHer DOES have a good representation of Canadian Women Bloggers, I think the majority of the fine ladies are from the Eastern side of the Rockies.
With exception of the GREAT mention of NetChick and her cause…thanks for that!
Since I started out primarily as a mommy blogger, I found I was reaching out to mom bloggers across the net and subsequently all over Canada and the States.
It has only been recently that I have really noticed and realized how big the blogger world is in Vancouver and how many women are running the whole Social Media show and so on.
It has been because of nice and non women (gasp!) like Raul of Hummingbird 604, who has been more than helpful in introducing me to the local scene and also Gary of BlueFur.com who, for a man busy running a webhosting company, really keeps his hand in what is going on in the local scene as well as all over the place.
Gary actually invited me to speak at WordPress Camp Fraser Valley..an amazing opportunity that I totally blew due to having an insanely bad day and it being RIGHT before BlogHer.
I am still upset about that.
What I have learned from these people AND from a truly busy and right in there lady, Miss604 herself, Rebecca Bolwitt, is that Blogging and Social Networking is not something that just happens on your computer.
Blogging is truly a social thing.
Not that I haven’t figured that out yet through things like BlogHer and the Conference…what an amazing bunch of women and all people who I consider REAL friends.
I do realize that I have to get better at getting to know everyone in the Vancouver area….for friendship AND networking opportunities.
There is a LOT going on here.
There is a massive group of Bloggers formed on the Meetup.com site. I have yet to attend a get together and really should.
In May there was the Vancouver International Digital Festival. This looked like a really interesting event.
Northern Voices is big blogger conference that I DO plan on attending next year.
And there are many many other events that take place that I sadly am totally unaware of.
For my own interests and for my Wet Coast Women…I need to be far more aware of all these events and opportunities.
If you peruse the directory on Wet Coast Women, I have a FEW of the many women from the West who are taking the blogging/social media/internet by storm.
Many women are using the media to push for help with various charities, and other social endeavors. These are women who are proud of where they live and want to make their world a better place for all.
I am humbled by these women.
It has made me realize that I have to work a lot harder with my little WCW site..I have to make it worthwhile to these busy people to even bother with. I have to ‘network’…not just sit back and hope for the best.
I have to make friends with these people..get myself out there…learn from the masters!
I also hope that BlogHer takes note of all that is going on over here. Vancouver WOULD make a great spot for a REACH OUT TOUR location.
Check out the links, check out my directory on Wet Coast Women and use it as a jumping off spot to explore what is happening over here and who are the movers and shakers.
I would also love to hear about any causes or blogging and or social media networks that Bloggers from up and down the coast are involved in. Let’s hear from Washington, Oregon and California too!
With the rain cutting short my camping adventures, I returned home to watch the Olympic Closing Ceremonies.
Apart from the weird Logan’s Run bit with the glow in the dark floating guys….RENEW RENEW!!!…it was very entertaining…very colourful and again indicative of what we expected from them.
I don’t even want to talk about the London ‘preview’ apart from the fact that it made OUR preview at the last Winter Games look good. Hur hur.
I was glad to see the end as I had watched the beginning and stayed tuned to a bunch of events too.
While we all commented on the tiny Chinese gymnasts and I boggled at BMX’ing being part of the games….the whole thing seemed to be quite flawless.
And that is what got me. It was too perfect. It felt less than human. Robotic.
The corruption bothered our own Gus Greeper more than it did myself this year.
I think I am so ‘done’ with the Olympics now….corruption, in my opinion, is now par for the course.
I was actually surprised to not see MORE obvious signs of judgmental “errors” and so on.
The Olympics that we now watch have NOTHING to do with young athletes trying their best..it has all to do with politics and media and money. It was lost to me the moment they started letting Pro’s into things like Basketball and Hockey, and have us watch Beach Volleyball in their teeny bikini’s.
What is next? Ultimate Frisbee???
And no money for the Canadian athletes…a bitter complaint heard throughout the games.
Canada does not fund their athletes the same way many other countries do.
We do not have as many affordable programs as other countries do.
China starts most of it’s gymnasts at very early ages…they live and breathe their sport. Through government run programs.
We don’t really stand a chance against that. I still think they did a fantastic job….they were a great representation of us….a good example. Even with the hideous outfits.
The Chinese also created a gorgeous venue for the event. I LOVE the stadium and the swimming ‘cube’ is amazing.
But at what cost. We heard about people’s homes being demolished around their ears to make way for the new venues. Migrant workers were kept very busy and then sent home. There was no sign of poverty or homelessness.
Everything was very controlled and orchestrated. Would we expect anything less from such a regime?
No.
Does the Olympics make China look better to western eyes? Not really. Not to the average person or the person who sees past the glitter.
It does however make them look better to businesses and other governments.
The cash was shining brightly in the light of the fireworks.
And in less than 17 months, we have the Winter Olympics right here in Vancouver.
I am sure VANOC was watching the Beijing events very carefully…too carefully in my opinion.
Look at the similarities between the Beijing Mascots and ours??
I am still trying to figure out how cutesy anime characters represent CANADA and BC.
But I guess they can’t please all of us.
I do worry though.
I was dead against us having the Winter Olympics for many many reasons.
I don’t think we can really pull it off.
I look at the venues and the locations and wonder. How will it all look? How will you make Vancouver in February look good? The neighbourhood around BC Place and GM Place isn’t exactly full of Olympic feelings. Dodging cars on the Georgia Viaduct and rubbing shoulders with all the cold glass towers stuffed around there.
It just doesn’t scream community or WORLD CLASS.
Not to me anyway.
We don’t have an attractive city. We have a city in an ATTRACTIVE location.
Friday’s Vancouver Courier is looking at the career of Bing Thom architect extraordinaire and the architecture of Vancouver. I had to laugh.
While we may have the odd building of interest….or community area that stands out….there is no cohesiveness to Vancouver. Design has gone to the highest bidder, the richest developer.
Hence the attention to areas like Yaletown and UBC..while the rest of the city is largely ignored or worse, becomes the focus of ‘densification’ or our annoying Mayors fave…ECO DENSITY.
Our false creek water front is a barren cold zone of glass towers and the odd jogger.
There is no sense that this is a waterfront city. That entire area should be filled with stores, cafes, and coffee shops….our waterfront should be a draw not just to the people willing to pay for their condos in the sky but for all the visitors who bizarrely flock here.
Where is the vibrancy? Where is the life?
Cross the east/west boundary and take a long drive up Kingsway…probably one of the UGLIEST stretches of road in existence.
What does that say about the character of Vancouver?
Or is that part of the things that will be hidden from the media during the Olympics?
Will we put barricades along the roads? Wall of the Downtown East side?
I really think snow conditions and rock falls will be the least of our worries.
The most I pray for (in my atheist ways) us that we will stay away from the cheese for our ceremonies.
That we will focus on the beauty of the COUNTRYSIDE, the perfect skiing that Whistler and Blackcomb has been blessed with…and let nature do the talking.
Tags: Beijing, Corruption, Olympics, Politics, Vancouver, Winter
Or subsidized or something?
My kids really enjoy going to Science World (Vancouver). We usually go when we have acquired some sort of coupon. It is really expensive.
It is $19.50 for adults and $14.50 for kids. Not including the Omnimax Theatre shows.
All I keep thinking is that any families who SHOULD be taking their kids their..for the educational stand point and all that….won’t be able to shell out that sort of money.
This was dreadful. I am still wondering what the point was.
Rare artifacts that comprised of maybe four cases….very little visual stuff for the kids to see at all and really very little of interest to kids who wanted to see stuff about DISNEY. The little videos were more for adults too.
And the activities…..My daughter sat down to draw an ‘album’ cover for the music being played on the headphones. First….do kids even know that word nowadays? Second….it was Indiana Jones and then Superman music being played. Not Disney stuff.
My daughter drew Indiana Jones.
They enjoyed the green screen Magic Carpet ride and the sound effects stuff..but wow.
Not impressed.
But back to the free thing…Science World and places like it are designed to give kids some ENJOYMENT and interest in all things revolving around science. To show that the world and fun things and interesting things all have some sort of SCIENCE involved..therefore go to school and learn about how things work…way cool.
Especially cool if your kids are so so about school or are disadvantaged by finances and family situations.
Or by crummy schools.
It is supposed to be EDUCATIONAL…something that our GOVERNMENT usually takes an interest in….So wouldn’t it be nice if it was able to receive more government funding in order to help reduce their pricey entrance fees at least for those that $14.50 would be a luxury?
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was incentive to take your kids to a place like Science World instead of say a movie?
Yes..I am a day late..I was out all afternoon at Science World and too tired to think by the time we got home yesterday.
Anyway….with the help of my able assistant…we did a fancy hi tech draw for the winner of the Tiny*Prints Gift Card.
And with a drum roll and squinting at my scrawl…the winnah is…
Yes…Procrastamom is our winner! Yay.
Congrats!!
If you can email me at Crunchycarpets at yahoo dot ca and let me know your mailing address, we will get all that to you asap!
Tiny*Prints will be very happy!
Cheers all!
I should have more of these here and there down the road…
If you like them, that is.
Cos I can’t read a calender… I JUST realized the 15th really wasn’t enough time..right?
So I will extend the date to win the gift card till the 19 -Tuesday…I am hoping to go Camping that day…
Anyway…enter now..will draw names soon!
Kerry
