Can YOU survive diabetes?

So, are you up for a challenge? 

My son Jacob was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes November 9, 2007, at the age of 3 years, 4 months.  Since then, there has not been a single day when Jacob did not require specific treatment and care to survive until tomorrow.  Type 1 Diabetes doesn’t kill immediately, but it also never takes a day off.  For Jacob, and for his family, it is a way of life.  

Now to the challenge:

The Morning After

Like so many others, we woke to a clear, bright day that morning ten years ago.  We got ready quickly; the movers would arrive soon.  Looking around our small half of the duplex, on our Mister Roger’s Neighborhood street, I saw the boxes stacked everywhere.  On the table with our wallet and cell phone were the airplane tickets for this evening: Pittsburgh to Boston. 

Corporations are people, too!

On Thursday, Mitt Romney was quoted as saying that "Corporations are people."  While the DNC has chosen to make fun of the statement, it is actually quite insightful.  In fact, the insight is one that I hope Congress members keep in mind as they attack the deficit over the next few months.  No, I don't mean they should keep in mind that corporations are people and should not be taxed.  I mean that they need to think past the obvious, and realize the implications of their actions and decisions.  Our government has a long history of missing the "unintended" consequences -- we can't afford that now!

NON-random acts of kindness

Most of us have read about, or perhaps been involved in, a "random act of kindness."  We hear of someone paying the bill for the car behind them in the drive-thru, or putting coins in expired parking meters.  Many people contribute to overseas efforts to feed the poor, or provide health care to the sick.  All of these are great acts of charity, and certainly contribute to helping improve others' lives.
Sometime in the effort to do the charitable acts for "random strangers," we miss great opportunities to assist someone closer to home.  In fact, there are things you could do today, right now, that would make a difference, and will inspire others as well.  AND it will only take you about 10 minutes!  How is that for a chance to change the world?

"I cannot live without books" - Thomas Jefferson

On July 7th, 2000, I had just finished watching the news.  Nightline came on, and they were live at a bookstore.  In every scene, I saw hundreds of kids and teenagers, many dressed in costumes.  As the reporter conducted interviews, 11 and 12 year-olds described lemonade stands, mowing lawns, and babysitting to save up dimes and quarters and dollars.  All of them were waiting to buy copies of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. 

Liars and Taxes and (Medi)cares, oh my!

Are you constantly amazed by our elected officials in Washington?  It is like watching a bunch of Kindergartners throwing temper tantrums and pointing fingers at each other.  Nobody seems to understand the real issue, and everyone is blaming someone else.  Obviously, the issue is just too complex for our simple politicians.

Here is your chance to make a difference!!  Just print out the letter below and send it off to your Representative or Senator.  Don't worry, it has lots of pictures so they can understand.  (And besides, they all have staffers who are literate and can read the letter to them.)

Don't you have something better to do?

All it takes is a few minutes listening to talk radio, watching the news, reading the paper, or even having a conversation with coworkers -- the conclusion is inevitable.  The world is going to hell in a hand basket, and seems to be in a big hurry to get there!  Wars and economic crises, abuse and crime, lousy jobs, inconsiderate "friends", lazy husbands, undisciplined children, nit-picking wives, noisy neighbors -- everyone has something or someone to complain about.  It is no wonder half of the US population will suffer from anxiety, depression, or other mental illness during their lives (according to NIMH).  And it is no surprise that half of US adults consider themselves "regular" drinkers (from CDC).  (No report seems to study the correlation between those two sets of people.)  Our world is really a mess, right?

Nobody that knows me has every confused me with an orphaned Hayley Mills playing the "glad game". But...

I'm open! Give me the ball!

The NFL labor talks are stalled as the lock out continues.  The NBA lockout started this week, and both sides are digging in their heels.  (The Round-Mound-of-Rebound has said repeatedly that he doesn't think there will even be a season this year.)  It is almost 90 degrees outside (120 degrees according to the photos from my Arizona Facebook friends), so I can't force myself to think about hockey right now.  True, baseball season is reaching its midpoint, but does anyone care?  If you are like most fans, you love going to the stadium... for the food.  (A good friend once described the price of a baseball ticket as the cover charge to eat stadium food.)  Do you really want to watch baseball on TV in July?

What is a sports fan / addict / junkie (pick the most appropriate term) supposed to do?!?

Go to your room, Mr. President

If you have ever watched children argue, you can tell which side is losing the debate.  First, the losing side shifts the blame - "but it's not my fault".  Then, the whining starts - "I have been doing all this work, and you won't play nice with me."  Finally, it sinks to straight-out personal attacks - "Well, you're a stinky poo-poo head."  About that time, just before it comes to blows, a parent has to step in and send everyone to time-out.  

This week, we got to see that there is not that much difference between the average seven-year-old and our sitting president.

Hold the sugar please

The Lancet, a British medical journal, published the results of a new global diabetes study by the World Health Organization and the Gates Foundation. According to this new study, almost 350 MILLION people worldwide now have some form of diabetes. In the US alone, close to 25 million people are currently diagnosed as diabetic. In a separate report, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that diabetes killed more Americans in 2009 than AIDS and breast cancer combined. These are sobering statistics for the parent of a diabetic child. However, the reports also raise more questions than answers... what is diabetes? what does it do? how prevalent is it really? how do you get it?

Does that ceiling come with a fan?

If you have listened to the news in the last month, you have probably had flashbacks to the story of Chicken Little. The stories about the debt ceiling sound a lot like "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!" Unfortunately, this problem can't be blamed on an acorn (or a tile from the bottom of an alien space ship).

If Congress takes no action, in six short weeks, the United States Government will no longer be able to pay its bills. Whether we reach this debt ceiling, and how we address it could have an enormous impact on both the national and global economy. Why isn't it easy to fix? To explain, picture a single household trying to manage their budget. (Yes, it is an over-simplification, and it misses some key points, but as they say, "it is close enough for government work.")

We are gathered here today...

It seems appropriate to start this blog by talking about why I am starting this blog. (Think of this as those few pages at the beginning or end of an actual book -- the foreward, dedication, acknowledgements, etc. I personally like to read those and understand what inspired the book. If you don't, you might want to skip this post.)

Has this ever happened to you? You are in the car alone, and the voice on the radio is expressing (ranting?) an opinion about whatever story is dominating the day. Suddenly, you find yourself talking to the radio, telling the talking head they don't have the slightest clue? For the rest of your drive you keep thinking about how simple the answer is, wishing you had the chance to explain your point of view?

Or maybe you were struggling with something around the house (a new recipe, a stubborn stain, a parenting dillema) and found the perfect solution. Didn't you want to tell everyone you knew about the answer?

Well, it happens to me all the time. I get excited about something I learned, or some story in the news, and I want to share it with others. And so this blog was born.