Riding a Segway

Last week I had the opportunity to take the Around the World at Epcot Segway tour. I've been fascinated with Segways since they first came out but I had not had an opportunity to ride one until this trip. It looked so easy and fun that I figured once I hopped on it would be a breeze to ride and zoom around. As it turns out, it takes about 45 minutes to really learn how to safely operate and ride a Segway. Here are some thoughts on my Segway experience:

- What's the hardest part of riding a Segway? Staying still. Once you're on a Segway, it responds to your body movements as you shift your weight on your feet. It's impossible to remain perfectly still, so you tend to drift back and forth when you're not activiely moving.

- What's the second hardest part of riding a Segway? Getting on and off. The Segway is very sensitive to your body movements so getting on and off requires you to step up on it with one foot, balance, and then step on it with your other foot. Getting off requires the same coordination, but you also have to ensure that you hold on to the Segway handles as you step off so the Segway doesn't roll back over your feet.

- Once you've mastered getting on and maintaining your balance, maneuvering the Segway is easy. On the model I rode, all you do is shift yout body weight on your toes to move forward and shift the handlebars in the direction you want to go. To stop, you shift your body weight towards your heels (no leaning involved). Our Segways would only go 6mph, which was fast enough. Before we went outside, we had to practice maneuvering around cones and up and down hills.

- The tour itself was fantastic and I would recommend it to anyone visiting Epcot. There were only 10 people in our group and 3 guides, so there was enough help for everyone. The tour books up months in advance, so plan ahead.

I loved riding a Segway and I would love to take other Segway tours in different areas. If you're considering a Segway tour, it's a fantastic way to see new places.

Cold Remedies

After enjoying a wonderful vacation last week, I seem to have come down with a cold this week. This one hit rather quicky and I have a feeling it will stick around. Instead of pumping myself full of DayQuil and Robitussin, I'm going to try a more traditional approach this time around: rest and fluids. I don't like the way I feel on cold medicines, and they really don't help you get better quicker. So far I'm drinking lots of water, juice, hot tea (orange spice tea is my pick right now), and soups. My other favorite cold remedy is a nice Hot Toddy before bed. The recipe I use is:

1 1/2 oz. Whiskey
1 oz. Honey
1/3 oz. Lemon Juice
3 oz. Hot Water

- Heat water, pour into mug
- Stir honey and lemon juice in
- Allow to cool slightly
- Add whiskey
- Drink, and sleep well

Any other recommendations?

Six Things I've Learned

I decided to tag myself on the meme I saw over at Pursing Titus 2. I'm supposed to list 6 things I've learned in the past month, and then tag 6 friends.

1) I've learned that are 7 levels of "gloss" when it comes to paint. We're currently painting the trim in our house and I told my husband to get high gloss paint, never imagining that high gloss was so, well, shiny! After the first coat we realized that we didn't need our trim to be quite so reflective, so we're going to switch to a lower number of glossiness.

2) I've learned that there's a great name for when I'm feeling depressed and overwhelmed. I'm not crazy and hormonal, I just have a case of the "emotional flu". Luckily, the emotional flu doesn't last too long.

3) I learned that Barack Obama got a D in 8th grade French and that John McCain has a stuffed dancing hamster on display in his Senate office.

4) I've learned that my Great Uncle Henry is a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans and that my grandmother taught school when she was 14

5) I've learned that some foods and vegetables have more pesticide levels than others, and now I shop with this knowledge in mind

6) I've learned that you really shouldn't substitute canned cranberry sauce for this cake. It doesn't turn out as good and the taste is a bit off. Use fresh cranberries.

I tag Holly, Kelli, and the "D.I.N.K."

Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin alive, stayin alive....

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. doctors have found the Bee Gees 1977 disco anthem "Stayin' Alive" provides an ideal beat to follow while performing chest compressions as part of CPR on a heart attack victim.

The American Heart Association calls for chest compressions to be given at a rate of 100 per minute in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). "Stayin' Alive" almost perfectly matches that, with 103 beats per minute.

CPR is a lifesaving technique involving chest compressions alone or with mouth-to-mouth rescue breathing. It is used in emergencies such as cardiac arrest in which a person's breathing or heartbeat has stopped.

CPR can triple survival rates, but some people are reluctant to do it in part because they are unsure about the proper rhythm for chest compressions. But research has shown many people do chest compressions too slowly during CPR.

In a small study headed by Dr. David Matlock of the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria, listening to "Stayin' Alive" helped 15 doctors and medical students to perform chest compressions on dummies at the proper speed.

Five weeks after practicing with the music playing, they were asked to perform CPR again on dummies by keeping the song in their minds, and again they kept up a good pace.

"The theme 'Stayin' Alive' is very appropriate for the situation," Matlock said in a telephone interview on Thursday. "Everybody's heard it at some point in their life. People know the song and can keep it in their head."

The findings will be presented this month at a meeting of the American College of Emergency Physicians in Chicago.

Source: Yahoo! News

McCain vs. Obama on Health Care

There are a lot of issues in this upcoming election. The economy, wars, taxes, homeland security, and energy are on a lot of people's minds. The issue near the top of my list is health care. As someone who was defined as chronically ill, affordable and accessible health care is very important to me. I'm very fortunate that I currently have good health care coverage, but I know most Americans aren't so lucky. Quality health care isn't just about having a doctor to see or being able to afford medicine; it's about staying healthy so I can work and support my family. According to the National Coalition on Health Care's Facts on the Cost of Health Insurance and Health Care:

• The average out-of-pocket medical debt for those who filed for bankruptcy was $12,000. The study noted that 68 percent of those who filed for bankruptcy had health insurance. In addition, the study found that 50 percent of all bankruptcy filings were partly the result of medical expenses. Every 30 seconds in the United States someone files for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious health problem. (emphasis mine)

It's an uncertain world. One serious accident or illness could seriously effect my ability to work, pay my mortgage, buy groceries, and could jeopardize my retirement. I don't believe that any American should have to become bankrupt over a health crisis.

Consumer Reports has analysis of McCain's health plan vs. Obama's health plan. It talks about specific groups (ill and under insured, over 60, well-insured, etc.) and it's well worth the read. If anything is going to influence my vote, health care policy certainly will.

Cranberry Cake

This cranberry cake is one of my favorite cakes to make this time of year. I got this recipe out of an old family cookbook and it's been a huge hit at holiday gatherings.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 cups fresh cranberries (rinsed and drained)

Directions:
- Preheat over to 400F
- Allow butter to soften
- Cream together butter and sugar in mixing bowl
- Add vanilla extract to mixing bowl
- Sift flour with baking powder and salt into a separate bowl
- Add flour mixture to butter and sugar, alternating with milk
- Fold in cranberries

Bake for 40-45 minutes in a greased loaf pan

There is also a "sauce" you can use to top this cake (not pictured):

- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup milk

Simmer together over medium heat until thickens slightly, then pour over cake

Enjoy!

Religulous

When Passion of the Christ and Fahrenheit 911 came out I was told that I must go see those movies because they were essential to my spiritual and political growth. People looked at me strangely when I told them that I simply wasn't interested in seeing movies that told a story I already knew quite well or were extreme rantings disguised as documentary. I feel the same way about Religulous, the new Bill Maher movie about the current state of world religions (in other words, let's see how stupid Christians, Jews, and Muslims are for having spiritual beliefs). But isn't it shallow and closed-minded for me to pass judgment on a movie I haven't seen? By not seeing it am I not exposing myself to other viewpoints I should at least hear? Perhaps. However, after reading reviews and commentary on Religulous I think it's safe to say that I can save time and money and not go see a movie that focuses mostly on the more extreme sects of religious communities. As Brett McCracken of Christianity Today said:

"Honestly, it's not the hardest thing in the world to make a religion look silly when you only focus on the kitschiest, most grimace-inducing practitioners of it. Sure, we have to own up to these unfortunate (but fortunately fringe) elements within our ranks, but Maher shores up little credibility for his cause by refusing to talk with any opponent with an ounce of nuance of theological rigor....Maher's biggest problem with this movie is not that it is reckless or condescending (which it is), but that it espouses a point of view that, quite simply, is not shared by many people in the world. Maher's ideology has no room for the miraculous or supernatural. Such things are all hocus pocus to him and cannot be believed by anyone with a brain. Faith of any kind (i.e., believing in something that can't be proved) 'makes a virtue out of not thinking,' according to Maher."

Looking at non-Christian publication, The Hollywood Reporter, Kirk Honeycutt states:

"The problem, if you're going to take Maher's inquiry seriously, is whom he chooses to question and where he chooses to go. For the most part, he verbally jousts with evangelical charlatans and red-neck whack jobs. He visits a Holy Land theme park and a Creationist museum. Maher doesn't risk questioning a learned theologian or even a devote Christian or Jew who reads the holy scriptures as a spiritual guide without having to accept as literal truth stories written by men 2,000 years ago."

Finally, it seems so cliché to end this post with a verse, but it has to be said...

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." - Philippians 4:8

Religulous is apparently none of those things.

Hard Truths About the Economy and Personal Spending

Ramit Sethi of I Will Teach You To Be Rich is one of my favorite personal finance bloggers, simply because of his honest analysis and common sense approach to finance. His post today titled "The Truth: What Obama and McCain won't tell you about your money" really emphasizes how little we as Americans truly understand the economy and points out how we bear some responsibility for our own financial future. Some highlights:

"Things will get a lot harder before they get better. All the predictions about the recovery taking until 'at least the end of the year' are horse****. In truth, nobody knows, but it would be political suicide to admit that a recovery — whatever that means — will take a few more years. The truth is, nobody knows how long it will take. But if there’s one thing Americans love, it’s a leader pretending to know everything. And if there’s another, it’s that Americans love a quick fix…only to later complain about it not being done right."

"Not all homeowners deserve to stay in their houses. Renting is a perfectly reasonable alternative, but the idea of Americans 'losing their houses' is politically untenable. Why? Because America perpetuates a mistaken culture of homeownership. Owning your own home is the kind of BS sacred cow that got us into this mess: Our parents tell us to buy a house. Our friends are impressed if we own a house in our twenties. The government literally encourages us to own a house by offering tax deductions. Homeownership is the American Dream!
The truth is, if you’re making the largest purchase of your life, you need more than a slogan — you need to take the responsibility to do some research. (And note that you can’t advocate for increased homeownership and also argue for Americans to keep their houses. By not reducing the prices, younger people cannot buy houses at these inflated prices.)"

And my personal favorite:

"Taxes: Pandering to ordinary Americans instead of telling them to stop spending on stupid stuff. The reason Obama and McCain spent so much time talking about taxes is that most Americans are historically horrible at managing their spending. Since they make a fixed amount of money (revenue) and can control only one thing (costs), both politicans use tax breaks to pander to voters. Most people have never seriously thought about how to make more money. Fine. But what’s even more outrageous is Obama and McCain’s complete lack of honesty about what people really need to do to weather the economic crisis. Did you hear either one plainly say, 'You’re going to need to buckle down and save more?' Of course not. You might as well walk into a Dave Ramsey seminar and argue that credit cards are a useful tool. It’s a suicidal suggestion. But it’s true. "

Nujood Goes Back to School

This 10 year old girl from Yemen refused to accept her marriage to a man three times her age. After being granted a divorce, she's back at home and going to school. The full article can be found here, but I included some highlights:

"I'm very happy to be going back to school," she said, waiting in her ramshackle home for her younger sister Haifa to get ready. "I'm going to study Arabic, the Koran, mathematics and drawing. I will do that with my classmates and I will definitely make friends there."

The night before she went to school, Nujood said she dreamed of notebooks, drawings and new friends. "When I left school, I learned how to count from one to 100," she said. "Now, I am going to learn how to count until a million." Nujood said she wanted to study hard, to be able to attend university and become a lawyer like Shada Nasser, the well-known Yemeni human rights advocate who helped her get her divorce.

Only about half of Yemeni girls attend primary school. Last year, one of the school's 1,200 girls, a 13-year-old, dropped out to marry, though the legal age of consent is 15.

I'm so happy for Nujood. A story like this gives me hope in this world.

Scars

It wasn't so long ago that I started collecting my scars. I have 7 now. Some are round, some are long, some are pink and some are starting to fade. What started out as an unexpected illness turned into a year of doctor's appointments, every imaginable test, and the 3 major surgeries that gave me my scars. I considered myself chronically ill during that time as I shuffled from doctor to doctor and in and out of the hospital. I am better now but I will never forget how that year changed me, thanks to the scars. I can't miss them. They're scattered all over what was once my smooth soft belly. Some memories of that year I would like to forget. The exhaustion, the pain, the lying in bed, the missed opportunities, the anxiety of being given anesthesia, and the feelings of helplessness. Some memories are good, like when I dyed my hair dark red for one surgery and purple for another. I remember the love and encouragement from friends and family that got me through many dark days. Through it all, the scars remain. I'm trying not to look at them as reminders of pain and loss, but as symbols of survival and triumph. Sometimes I miss the look of my smooth belly and I wish none of this would have happened. But then I remember how much I've changed. How much I appreciate now. How much I've grown as an individual. How much closer I've come to God. When I begin to get depressed about my scars I remember:

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me" - 2 Corinthians 12:9