This Thursday Thought is particularly true to me right now, during the yearly visit of part of our New Jersey family.
Archive for June 30, 2016
Trying to Kill off a Granddaughter
Live and learn. My son suggested taking our visiting New Jersey grand-kids zip-lining. We all got excited about the idea.When I remembered that the granddaughter has a cast on one lower leg I asked my son if there would be someone at the end of the line to catch her and help balance her. Of course, he told me. Then he looked into it further and said he didn’t think she’d be able to walk far enough to get to it. I suggested she take Grandpa’s handicap scooter. He got a good laugh out of that. It seems to get to the zip line you must be 150 feet in the air crossing a rope bridge. He didn’t think she should try that in a scooter.
As for the granddaughter, she’s ready to give it a try.
I DON’T THINK SO…!!!
New Life for Old Beauty Products
Re-purpose unwanted beauty products. Hand-wash delicates with shampoo and use conditioner as shaving cream. Use nail polish to mark office supplies, keys, suitcase handles, etc. Use a very small dab of eye cream on cuticles, fingernails, and lips. Condition shoes, belts, and other leather items with body creams.
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A Lesson for Congress…and for Us All
Today’s Thursday Thought is Pope Francis’ advice to Congress…and to us:
“[If] we want security, let us give security; if we want life, let us give life; if we want opportunities, let us provide opportunities. The yardstick we use for others will be the yardstick which time will use for us.” – Pope Francis in his 9/24/15 address to the U.S. combined Congress
Orlando Lament
Orlando: Another sad day for Americans. More senseless deaths. Another heartbreaking example of man’s inhumanity to man.
Sage Palm & Dogs & Kids
Most places selling Sage Palm, a popular garden plant, don’t affix a warning label, and they tell a customer of any danger only if he or she asks if there’s any danger.
In fact, the whole plant is poisonous, especially the seeds.
In 2010 the ASPCA reported 1400 dog-poisonings due to this plant.
Kids under age 5–those stuff-anything-into-your-mouth years–are often poisoned by it, too.
Before you buy any plant, look for a warning label. If there isn’t one, look it up or ask someone in the garden department if it’s safe for kids and pets.
Interesting Fact re: Abuse, Children, and Mothers
According to Steven Stosny, PhD (founder of CompassionPower), research has revealed an interesting fact: Children who grow up watching their mothers being abused are not only damaged but even more damaged than if they’re abused themselves.
Seems like common sense. But maybe scientific proof will sink into the minds of abusers who love their children. And prompt more people who observe such abuse to report it for the sake of the child.
He Just “Got Some Action”
I’m not sure what I’m more livid about–Brock Turner’s 6-month sentence for 3 felony sex-count convictions or his father’s attitude toward the situation.
Ex-Stanford swimmer Turner viciously attacked a young woman, changing her life forever. (Yes. The violence of rape sticks with you the rest of your life.) Her impact statement in court poignantly and intelligently explains what she went through, how she’s feeling now, and what she expects her future to be like. The judge heard that–and still gave Turner only 6 months in jail plus probation.
His father’s reaction? That a long prison sentence for his son was not appropriate for “20 minutes of action.” To be honest, I don’t know if, as many people feel, he was saying that his son “got a little action,” thus minimizing the violence to the level of a consenting sex-game. I don’t know, either, if Mr. Turner thinks that all sentences should be based on the length of time they took (let’s see, a man takes 10 seconds to aim and shoot the gun that kills another man…). Or if he’s even using his brain at all.
I don’t wonder where Brock got his attitudes from. I do wonder if maybe the dad should serve a long stretch in prison for the 20 years of child-raising that led to this woman’s being raped.
Shouldn’t We Have Asked the Chickens?
Many groups and organizations have been working hard to be more humane toward chickens by getting them out of cramped, stacked cages and out into the open. Now we find that free-range chickens tend not to use their freedom to roam. Instead, they spend their time inside or hovering outside near the door, and when they’re outside they peck at each other.
The reason could be as simple as answering the question, “Where are the trees?” Apparently our modern chicken is the ancestor of fowl that lived in SE Asia’s jungles, among trees that gave them shade, protection from predators, and places to perch. That environment also gave them ground they could peck at to find food, plus dust that they used to clean themselves.
Oddly enough, it was McDonalds in the UK who figured this out years ago, after announcing that they’d use only free-range eggs. When they planted trees outside hen houses they found an increase in egg production and happier, healthier chickens. And they “range” (roam) more. Now the UK calls eggs produced in this way “Freedom Food.”
So, why didn’t someone consult the chickens in the first place?
