Green Jello

Swine Flu

I debated on posting about this, but it's hard not to think about. I work with someone who believes the end of the world will be in 2010, so when I tried to discuss Swine Flu with her, she said, "It's starting." I need more than Swine Flu to believe we have a year left, maybe a plague of locusts. Am I worried? A little. The media is having a great time with this story; special graphics, maps, and pictures of people wearing masks. I must be evolving into a calmer person, because a few years ago this news would have sent me buying special masks that can keep out the H5N1 virus. Viruses fascinate me. I read plague books; I have one about the Pandemic of 1918 that is quite scary. It's interesting how these microbes evolve and become more sinister - moving from bird to pig to human. Did you know a virus may restrain itself and become less deadly if it is killing too quickly - because it wants to survive? Creepy.

I'm more concerned with next year's flu season, and I hope there is enough time to develop and test a vaccine for it. I also think we need honest reporting about this - don't hold back if we need to panic, but don't build it up either. 30,000+ people die each year here from seasonal flu, but it's not reported with much interest. I know this virus is different, so at this point we have to wait and see. For now, we are going to wash our hands more. My questions: Do those paper masks really work? Did we build up our reserves of Tami-flu (remember Avian Flu and how unprepared we would have been?)

Are you worried or do you think it's all hype?

bleh

Today my husband lost his job and we joined the 6 million people who have been laid-off. Good times. I suppose this should be categorized under "information not to be put on your blog," but this is my little corner to vent, and it is a form of a diary. Plus, a wealthy person could read this and adopt us. What is bothering us is the fact that the owner of this company promised this would not happen when he asked my husband to come back after the first lay-off a few years ago. No, we didn't believe he would keep his word, but some part of us did, and wanted to believe in honour and truth.

I deal with things like this with avoidance, sarcasm, and humor, but I am screaming inside. What hurt last time and will for this one is the insurance. I work part-time and fear for my own job. There isn't enough work there to increase my hours like I did the last time he was out of work. So, I cannot provide insurance and we have to pay for Cobra, which is $1,000 a month. Perhaps I could start painting Batman peg dolls and sell them for $5 a piece. I would only have to sell 335 a month to pay for our insurance or 10 a day. There is a huge demand for painted peg dolls - right? (this is the sarcasm part)

At least we can find comfort in knowing that we are not alone. We will be o.k., it's just scary and I would like to see a period of calm in my life where things are predictable, but I'm starting to believe life is not like that. Things I can do for money; beg my boss Monday to promise I have a job for at least a few months or longer, peg dolls, sell the Japanese fabric I just bought like a recession crazed fool, blog advertising - (does this work or do people actually have to read your blog?), professional fabric selector, or sell our clutter on Ebay.  Maybe this is all for the best, and because we will be stuck in the house, we will not catch Swine Flu. Hmm, positive thinking training coach! Bleh.

Going Out in Style

Remember Avian Flu? Why are they not making us worry about it anymore? I bought cans of Spam and rolls of duct tape for our family emergency supply kit and nothing happened. In case you are interested, a triage list has been established for who gets a ventilator in a pandemic. Lovely.

In case you are not lucky enough to get on the triage list, you can go in style like this gentleman, in his Pabst Blue Ribbon coffin. I swear, most of us in Illinois are normal.

All the talk of elections, gas prices and triage sent me on a spending binge for fabric, because I am a sewing maniac; Heather Ross rabbits & race cars and this owl print; which is probably going to be my new favorite fabric.

MRSA, MRSA, MRSA

I haven't posted a worry of the week for a while and since I have to come up with 30 days of posts, this is the result. MRSA seems to be replacing last year's Bird Flu scare. Now that they have sent people into a state of panic, the experts are now urging us to be calm and just wash our hands. MRSA is a very serious drug resistant bacteria that killed 19,000 people last year. Most cases are confined to hospital settings, but have been appearing in the community.

I am not a scientist or a doctor, so I don't want to get into detail here, but you can read about it here and here. From what I have read you need to keep your hands clean and if you have something that looks funky, run to the doctor. This type of information drives me crazy because I have a mild germ phobia that I try to keep under control. It became worse as my first child was born and I had to bite my tongue to keep from screaming at visitors, "Wash your hands before touching my baby, you filthy pig!" I think having boys helps you control your urge to keep everything clean, because they are filthy most of the time. In case you are a little neurotic, I wanted to share some of the weird things I do to avoid germs that may or may not work:

1. Go ahead and take your child to one of those indoor play areas if you want to spend the weekend with a sick child. If you must, go early in the morning after the equipment has been supposedly cleaned.

2. I never pick the first item on a shelf, always the one further back. I figure it's been handled less and I wash any canned food items.

3. Pick a shopping cart that is outside; the cold or the sun's ultraviolet light may have killed some of the bacteria.

4. Your local pharmacy should have a biohazard sign. My husband whispers, "stop embarrassing me" as I cover my hands with my shirt while paying and then ask the Pharmacist to throw the prescription to me while I stand at a safe distance near the humidifiers.

5. This is where things get complicated; I also avoid using harsh household cleaners because I fear the chemicals used in them.  The Green Guide has an article about more eco-friendly options, but if you have a colony of MRSA living in your house, I'm not sure if these eco-friendly options work. I read somewhere about using food grade hydrogen peroxide, but I have not been able to find it. Does anyone else have any information on products to use?

6. Schedule doctor's appointment early, especially for your children and avoid leaving your purse on the floor.

7. Run around like Captain Hook and use The Handler or just use your kid's hook from their Captain Hook  costume and really get people's attention.

8. Your kitchen sink is evil and dirty; treat it as such.

I know there is more, but now my mind is thinking of all the bacteria mocking me in the sink. Do you have any germ avoidance techniques?

Today I am thankful for; soap.

This Toad is not a Prince

Remember the special Toad train we received to make us so happy that we would forget they sold us trains coated in lead paint? That train has been recalled because it contains lead paint. Hmm..Dear Parent, so sorry...safety is our number one concern...trust us...we care...here's a free train for your trouble. Oops, that one has lead too.

Of course, I gave this train to my children because I thought it had to be safe-they couldn't be that dimwitted not to test this train before mailing it. Apparently they are quite dumb (and so am I), or the company is in such chaos no one knows what they are doing. I have read the reports that state it takes a large quantity to cause problems, but the fact is, there should be no lead in them. I do not want to mail another train back, I want to set this one on fire. Sir Topham Hatt will be quite cross when he learns there will be no new Thomas Trains under our tree this year.

China Bans Lead Paint in Toys

Since people seem a little concerned over the recent recalls due to lead paint, China has now decided to ban lead paint used in toys. Really? Gee thanks. Now we can run right out an buy up all the cheap plastic toys for Christmas this year. Because I am paranoid and I had to put my mind at ease, I had my youngest tested for lead levels. I discussed this with our pediatrician and we decided since he spends time in an older home (Grandma & Grandpa's) and has something constantly in his mouth (a red Thomas train), it would make sense to test him. I am relieved to report that he has no lead in his system. The nurse who took his blood said that they are testing a lot of kids and she said some kids do test positive for some lead, but at levels considered safe. I think zero would be a good level for all children.

We are going to scale back this Christmas and try to make good choices for our toy purchases, which we should be doing anyway. But as kids get older they want certain things and this is how I envision our discussion:

"Son, what would you like for Christmas this year?"

"I would like the Spider-man play center, made in sweat shop in China, coated with lead paint, that screams inappropriate comments at unsafe decibel levels."

"Well, I was thinking more along the lines of these nice hand sanded, dye free, sustainably harvested wood blocks, made by a local toy manufacturer that hires clean living employees for decent wages. Or maybe you should just play with this sock...oops, sorry that was made in a sweat shop too. Maybe we can put a rush on the background check for your imaginary friend."

We spent a good 15 minutes looking for toothbrushes the other day; reading each one to find one not made in China. They really wanted the Power Ranger's toothbrushes, but they were all made in China. I have to keep this to myself because my son went with his father to the store to buy a bike pump and they asked the store clerk where they would find one and my son added, "not made in China." I am not against the Chinese people or necessarily their products, but at this point if I have a choice, I will choose the other country. I believe this is all about balance and things are out of balance right now. We cannot rely on one country to supply all our goods because we want them cheap or companies want bigger profits. It will be good to buy some handmade items or from small toy companies from now on. Perhaps I can learn how to melt and mold plastic Spider-man action figures.

Arachnophobia

As the weather is getting cooler we are getting more spiders attempting to set up residence in our home. My feelings towards bugs are that as long as they are not a potential West Nile virus carrier, I leave them alone or grab a cup and place them outside. On the other hand, my husband has a fear of spiders and cannot believe it when I see a spider in the house and just ignore it - he prefers to stomp them. Our differences are more complicated now that we have children and want to teach them to be kind to all living things and not fear them.

But last night as my husband was putting my son to bed, I heard screaming and crying from his room. My husband was lying in my son's bed reading him a story when my son noticed a rather large black spider crawling on my husband's chest. In true macho form, my husband leaped out of the bed, and jumped up and down, screaming and shaking his shirt. (I must admit, that my response would be the same with a spider crawling on me in bed.) My son was crying and now afraid of his bed, so I used the technique that works with monsters - monster spray, or in this case spider spray. Fill a spray bottle with water or use linen spray- you can make a special label if needed-and spray the room while you tell the monsters they are not welcome.

So I grabbed the spray bottle and ran upstairs and asked my son if I should use the special spider spray and he said yes. I am feeling rather smug with parental ingenuity when I said, "Now this will keep all of his friends away!" and he responds, "what do you mean all of his friends...you mean there are more in here?" "Um, well, um...you know spiders are really solitary creatures and I was spraying for any new ones who might want to visit." He seemed fine with this explanation and he only woke up once last night. But tonight as I am putting him to bed, one of the spider's friends was in his room on the ceiling. Argh! We repeated the routine again, but I am afraid that if another one appears, he is not going to believe the spray is working. So to all the spiders in our home; can you please stay out of his bedroom, or I am afraid I will have to unleash the stomper-it's really better for us all.

Mattel Recall - lead paint & magnets

It seems odd that we are getting such a rush of lead paint recalls now that  Thomas the Train let the cat out of the bag. Could it be that toy companies are scrambling and finally testing for lead paint- which they should have been doing in the first place?

"Sarge" cars

Polly Pocket

Doggie Day Care

Barbie & Tanner

Fisher Price toys (last week)

If I start now, maybe I can learn how to whittle wood and make my own toys by Christmas....

More lead toys recalled

All of this is so frustrating....Fisher Price recall

Thomas Train Recall Part II

Today we received a special package from our friends at RC2 Company; a free train for our troubles. Gee thanks. For some reason the free train annoys me - not because I want a big check or the blood of the executives, but because in some meeting someone thought that all it takes to ease the mind of a parent, who worried if their child was exposed to lead from a toy train, is something free. I would have been happier with a real letter (not a copied form letter that came with the train), stating that they are sorry for not testing their product for years. Our State's Attorney was testing additional trains, so I have packed all of them away until the results are finished. The free one will be placed with the others.....and what a fitting name for our new train - Toad.