March 10, 2010

Admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 06:01:06 +0000

Greetings, Quotaholics:

I had all my baby shots. I got vaccines like others around me. During my toddler years, a polio vaccine was finally available and this killer was stopped in its tracks. Polio didn’t kill all its victims and one of my dear childhood friends was afflicted before the vaccine came out. She and her sister suffered lifelong repercussions from the ravaging disease.

My sons were given all their childhood vaccines. They were born in the 1970s and our pediatrician gave me a little cardboard booklet to enter all the data. It was about the size of 3 x 5 index card and held a graph, similar to a spreadsheet, where dates could be added. Only one side of the card - one 3 x 5 inch area - was sufficient to hold all the information.

Today, there are so many vaccines for children in the US it takes two different PDF documents to list them all. There is a third document for adult recommendations. The first lists all the vaccines a child "needs" up until the age of six. The second lists "needed" vaccines to age 18. While trying to find one nice neat little list for the readers at RGQ, I went to my "go to" place and tried Wikipedia. There I learned a different story.

Well, it is not really a different story, but perhaps it is a more well rounded story. It included the globe. Other countries, even industrialized countries, have different schedules and different recommended vaccines.

Because it was felt diseases such as polio (No cases; No deaths last year in either the US or the UK ) were far more risk intense than the vaccines created to wipe the disease out, something needed to be done to help the overall society rather than the individual patient. In the US, in 1986 a law was passed creating a "vaccine court" where cases concerning individual claims against a vaccine were heard. This was to ensure a reliable, steady supply of the drugs by reducing the threat of lawsuits against the pharmaceutical firms.

According to CNN, the US Supreme Court will hear a case concerning the safety of the vaccine supply. Hannah was a healthy infant until her third in the series of DPT shots was administered. She has had a seizure disorder since 1992. Hannah’s parents say Wyeth Laboratories (since purchased by Pfizer) failed to warn them of the risks associated with the vaccine. The vaccine court rejected the claim and the family has since attempted to revive the claim in the federal courts. Their lawyer says the 24 year old law does not protect drug manufactures if side effects were avoidable.

Wyeth and other drug companies say their drugs are generally safe, but side effects can occur in rare cases (although it isn’t clear what the term "rare" actually means). They claim their vaccine industry is not a lucrative part of the business and they need to be protected in order to be able to provide the health benefits to society.

A second case has been presented to the high courts but the outcome has not yet been decided. A child who was vaccinated with drugs from Wyeth and GlaxoSmithKline suffered severe neurological damage. His family claims the mercury-based preservative thimerosal was the cause. The preservative has since been taken out of most standard vaccines.

There is a vaccine war going on among parents of young children. Some believe in the goodness of the drug manufacturers and the need for social responsibility. They feel their children should be given all the recommended vaccines.

The opposing side claims drug manufacturers are simply out to make a buck and have not done enough to make sure the drugs are safe individually and certainly not in the cocktail stew in which they are handed out to very young, very small newborns. They decline any and all vaccines for their children.

There are some middle-of-the-road parents who are picking and choosing among the huge list of vaccines and only having their children vaccinated with the necessary, rather than recommended vaccines.

Did you know there were different recommendations for vaccines depending on where you live? If you have young children, are they getting the entire schedule of vaccines, none of them, or only some of the listed vaccines? Do you know which vaccines continue to contain the mercury based preservative? (Mercury is toxic and can lead to a number of neurological problems in large enough doses.)

The CDC is thinking of recommending all adults, regardless of risk factors, get a yearly flu shot. Do you think this is something you would do? Do you believe the drug manufacturers aren’t making much money off the vaccine side of their business?

Healthily,

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“Those too intelligent to get involved in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber.” - Plato

“Any writer who knows what he’s doing isn’t doing very much.” - Nelson Algren

Parking Problems
[Thanks Bonnie]

A minister parked his car in a no-parking zone in a large city because he was short of time and couldn’t find a space with a meter. So he put a note under the windshield wiper that read: “I have circled the block 10 times. If I don’t park here, I’ll miss my appointment. FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES.”

When he returned, he found a citation from a police officer along with this note. “I’ve circled this block for 10 years. If I don’t give you a ticket, I’ll lose my job. LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION.”

“One ends up relying on pure musical inspiration, and failing that, the music won’t lead to anything good, or it will alienate all but the most die-hard fans.”

“There are only two things: love, all sorts of love, with pretty girls, and the music of New Orleans or Duke Ellington. Everything else ought to go, because everything else is ugly.”

“The three great moments of my life had to be the concerts of Ellington in 1938, Dizzy in ‘48, and Ella in ‘52.” - All from French writer and musician Boris Vian born on this date in 1920

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Inside Geocaches

As mentioned, most geocaches have a container you must find. Most are containers so small, the only thing they can contain is a log to verify your find. These are the nanos, small pill bottles, and 35mm film canisters, but, there are a wide array of containers. One geocacher uses small plastic centrifuge vials, as one example. Some cachers have drilled out bolts they removed from a guardrail, then replaced, complete with log.

The larger caches are usually stocked with some swappables. Small items are put in small containers, and larger things are placed in the larger caches. These things are meant to be traded. There is but one caveat, however. "Trade Up." What this means is, if you decide to take something from the cache, replace it with something of equal or higher value. No matter what, always trade. Never take. It gives the future finders some possibility of "treasure".

A lot of people who place the caches will place something special for the first person who finds it. It is a reward for the accomplishment. This is the one time where a trade is not expected.

Some cachers have "signature items" that they will leave in a cache regardless if they take anything or not. I try to leave a "GOOHF card". It’s a whimsical "Get Out Of Hell Free" card that is similar to the Monopoly "Get Out Of Jail Free" card. I’m just silly. What can I say?

Others leave pins or magnets that they get from work. Some have things they find at a store that matches their geocaching name. Things found at "dollar stores" and "party favors" are commonly used. Surplus toys from children who have grown up and moved out find their way into caches. But, usually, they are inexpensive trinkets, no matter what their source.

On rare occasion, there are some interesting or more valuable items in caches. They are usually in caches that are more difficult to find or more difficult to get to. Even though it is a "reward", the expectation of "equal or better" still applies.

Here’s your quiz:
If you were to place a cache, what would you put in it?
What would you consider your "signature item" to be?
Would you put out a cache large enough to contain trade items?

Inside Geocaches - Hopefully, It’s Dry
Cliff (the High-Tech Redneck who doesn’t rate a fancy ’signature pic’)

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Submit Your Date From Hell | Submit your Kids Weird Words | Submit your Crazy Way You Met Your Mate

Email Kirsten

“Misfortune tests friends, and detects enemies”
~ Unknown ~

Tuesday morning started off like any other. I woke up feeling healthier than I had for weeks, and I was feeling happy just because I was actually well enough to go to work. My younger son - not generally a morning person - was unusually cooperative as I got him up and ready for school. Michelle, my carpool friend, arrived and we enjoyed a stress-free drive to work. The lid on my take-out coffee even worked. When I got to work everyone was glad to see me after I had been away for over a week. The planets were aligned, and the day had a positive, upbeat feel to it. I settled into my work and Michelle disappeared into a meeting.

When I had been at work for about half an hour, a shadow crossed my desk. Actually, it didn’t. The lighting in the office and the matte quality of the work surfaces does not lend itself to shadows. It sounds dramatic though, so I’ll go with it. A shadow crossed my desk. I looked up to see Michelle’s manager, John. I assumed he was looking for her and opened my mouth to say that she was in a meeting, but he spoke first. Michelle just got let go, he said.

Well, that was enough to instantly shatter the positive vibe that had prevailed up to that point. The look on my face must have mirrored the shock I felt at that moment, because John looked at me curiously and asked if I was OK. I told him I was fine. Why wouldn’t I be fine? I’m not the single mom with a sick child who just unexpectedly lost her job.

In truth, though, this turn of events has affected me to a surprising extent. There’s the obvious impact to employee morale. When you see someone in your immediate seating area being let go, it does have an impact. In the immediate aftermath of Michelle’s departure, people kind of sat around in a state of stunned silence. The usual buzz of the office was conspicuously absent for the remainder of the day.

When I first started carpooling with Michelle, she was just a nice lady who drove me to and from work. As we got to know each other, though, we became close friends. We discovered that we have a lot in common. The unexpected end to our twice-daily chats will be hard on me, and I suspect, on her too. My first subway ride home without her was a sad occasion indeed. I could not focus on the book I was trying to read, thinking instead of how my friend was coping with everything.

The morale at work will recover, fairly quickly, I suspect. I will adjust to commuting by subway again. I will see Michelle soon, and our friendship will continue despite the fact that we no longer work together. And Michelle, being a strong-willed and proactive person, will survive. Life will go on. What’s hard for me is knowing what Michelle is going through now. In the past, I have experienced all of the feelings of desparation that go with losing a job. I remember feeling sad, worthless, and lost. The feeling of not knowing what to do next. And to think of a friend going through that is unspeakably sad.

This is one of those times when friends and family have to rally around a person in need and lift them up so they can fly again.

Kaleidoscopically yours,
Kirsten

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Uses For Coffee Filters
[Thanks Deborah]

Use coffee filters as blotting paper for pressed flowers. Place the flowers between two coffee filters and put the coffee filters in phone book.

According to E. Cole Aye I’ve used that line before. I must really like it! Sorry..

Next opening line…
They say that "All’s well that ends well"…

Hints: Here’s a great new rhyming/composition tool. http://www.writerhymes.com/
There’s also a great rhyming dictionary at http://www.rhymezone.com/
Limerick rules. http://freespace.virgin.net/merrick.sheldon/limerickrules.htm

Submit Opening Line
Submit Limerick

There was a young fellow named Dice Who really seemed very nice He got him a date And came home irate It seems he had a really bad vice. - Bonnie	There was a young fellow named Dice Who was deathly afraid of ice No trips to the rink None even in drink And dreamed of a climate so nice - Maria in Illinois
There was a young fellow named Dice— who unfortunately, had lice— He scratched through the day and couldn’t get a lay the whole situation wasn’t nice. - Cassandra in New York	"There was a young fellow named Dice" You’ve used this opening line now twice Since this one we have done We’ll submit a rerun And hope you don’t use this thrice! - E. Cole Aye
There was a young fellow named Dice Who folks said was not very nice. At weddings he did choose To throw boots with the shoes Instead of the traditional rice. - Anne Onimous	There was a young fellow named Dice Who at archery was most precise He said with no conceit, "At three hundred feet I can put out the eye on a lice." - Anne Onimous
There was a young fellow named Dice After fixing his finger he did slice Got a bill for the care And said, "I guess that’s fair At least an arm and leg’s not the price." - Anne Onimous	There was a young fellow named Dice Who found metamorphic rocks entice. When he was asked why He’d not bat an eye When he’d say, "I find them to be gneiss." - Anne Onimous
There was a young fellow named Dice Who would put his member on ice. "The women do faint Because mine’s so great Ice shrinks it to a size that does suffice." - E. Cole Aye	There was a young fellow named Dice Where gambling with "bones" was his vice He bet some chick her clothes And won all his throws Soon she was showing her pair-a-dice. - E. Cole Aye

Re: Charging For 911

What I don’t understand is that here in Kalifornia we are already charged a fee on our phone bills to support the 911 calls. Why is Tracy charging an additional fee just to use the system? If they want to charge someone for making a 911 call because Burger King didn’t make the hamburger "their" way, I can understand that.

I know recently I faced the dilemma of should I call 911 or not when something heavy fell on my hand. It splayed the flesh. I opted not to call the ambulance because I wasn’t bleeding profusely so I drove myself in to the emergency room (I’m less than 10 minutes from a hospital and it would have taken at least that long for an ambulance to arrive). I know what happened would have constituted an emergency. But I would have hated to have added to my worries the cost of just making the call.

The real trouble that I have seen with the 911 system is when I have traveled in Canyon Country (SR-14 road between Los Angeles and Lancaster). There have been a number of times that I have seen accident or even road hazards. I have placed calls to 911 on my cell phone. Many times I have been on hold — once I was on hold for over five minutes ("If this call is an emergency, please remain on the line…") and finally hung up because someone else finally got through to report it. - Kalifornia Ken

remember the song " A Town Without Pity?"

This must be a town named "Stupid!" - Niteowl

This is a too frequently used strategy by the political powers that be… reduce funding for a highly useful or highly demanded service of government (911 service, firefighting, school transportation, etc) while overfunding questionable government programs (decorative water fountains, bike trails, sports stadiums, take your pick of thousands). People will demand that funding be provided for the highly useful service and will submit to tax increases to keep this service. This has been played out thousands of times across the country. - Doug (Plymouth, MN)
[Doug, Doug, Doug…. What a skeptic… My kind of guy! Thanks for the comment.]

Paying for 911 calls reminds me of homeowners having to pay a fee to rural fire departments. I’ve heard of the fire department letting houses burn down because the homeowner had not paid their fee that year. This 911 situation is even more serious because whereas the homeowner had the responsibility of paying a fee, whoever needs the 911 help and can’t call may have actually paid their fee but yet are depending on others who may not have paid a fee. Seems very unfair. - Noella

This is absolutely ridiculous. What cretinous imbecile of a soul-dead penny pinching [insert expletive of choice] came up with this idea? Some corporate accountant with absolutely no concept of an emergency?

"But there are a couple of options. Residents can pay a $48 (31.72 GBP) voluntary fee for the year which allows them to call 9-1-1 as many times as necessary."

I can’t help feeling this is a misuse of the word voluntary. People pay more enough in phone fees anyway, no matter how much the various companies try to pretend they’re offering you ‘a special deal’.

I’m all in favour of fining or even imprisoning people for deliberate or malicious misuse, but…

Here in the UK we have a separate number for non-emergency calls to the police, because they claim they are being overwhelmed by calls which aren’t really emergencies, but 999 (emergency) remains free. I’ve made a couple of dozen calls over the years, some for family, some for outsiders, and the need for any of them has never been questioned.

Cost should never come into it.

I’m gobsmacked that such a thing should even be suggested. - Gyppo
[We really need a non-emergency number here too. That would take some of the load off of 911. When you are out you sometimes see something that you feel should be reported and your only choice is to call 911 unless you happen to know the police department’s number by heart.]

The charges for 911 calls may be a desperate response to budget cuts, but they are also a clear danger to more poor people than rich ones. This may not be such a big change. When I made my one call to 911 when my landlord was violating my rights, the cops showed up to make things worse for me. Maybe a few folks will pay their $50 and call up every day to talk about fiscal emergencies and such until reason prevails. - Bob of the North

Re: Supporting RGQ

I am a long time reader and rarely comment. But today I have a question. In reading coments about supporting RGQ…you said something about clicking somewhere and if I did, that a portion of monies I spent at Amazon would go to you. I would be happy to do that if I knew where/how. I just bought a Kindle and I’m an avid reader so I spend $40. to $60. about every 4 to 6 weeks. Plus other things I buy online thru Amazon. I don’t know what that adds up to for you but it has to be better than the $0 I’ve given so far. So if you could help me out on what to do I’ll be glad to click what ever is necessary to help out. Also, maybe if it was more clear to others on what to do more people would also do it. Thanks - Bonni (with no ‘E’)
[Bonni, on the Really Good Quotes webpage there is an Amazon advertisement on the right side. I changed it to be the Kindle just for you. Clicking on it will take you to the Kindle page, but you should be able to go anywhere from there. My understanding is that by going to Amazon from my link, any shopping you do there will credit RGQ. Let me know if it works OK. Thanks!]

Re: Limericks

To John in Oz: Thanks for your nice comments. It is nice to get some feedback.

Both Cole and I try the best we can. We encourage others to participate as we can’t hit every deadline.

To be honest, I never thought of myself as being good enough to even try. Then one day, feeling too frustrated to do anything else, I gave it a shot. With the help of the rhyming dictionaries, I’ve been either entertaining you or tormenting you ever since!

Both Cole and I encourage all the other readers to try! You never know if you have it in you until you try! (And feel free to create your own opening line to get your creative juices flowing!) - Anne Onimous
[If it wasn’t for you and Cole the section would be empty some days. A public thank you is needed for all the great contributions. THANK YOU!]

Re: Kids In The Control Tower

A few people mentioned surgeons as compared to FAA controllers and cited the seriousness of the surgical suite to the seriousness of the control towers.

I worked in OR for about twelve years. We had Career Day where kids from local schools got to choose their future career and come and see what it was like. We had kids in the OR. They usually sat with the circulating nurse (the person in the room NOT scrubbed in). I was often that person. I let them gown and glove so they could see how dang uncomfortable that is. I let them play with a set of instruments so they could see how difficult that is while wear (eventually) two pairs of gloves. I perched them up on little lifts so they could see all the innards. The surgeons, surgical assistants, and scrub nurses would tell them what was going on up at the field and the anesthetist would pipe up with what was going on at the head of the bed.

I also worked with a surgeon whose wife was his surgical assistant. They had a couple kids and every once in a while, during an on-call surgery, they brought their kids to work. Admittedly they left them in the nurse’s lounge. Usually on-call surgery for them was a craniotomy - that means brain surgery since he was a neurological surgeon. So the kids would call back to the room and want to talk to their parents. Either they handled it "long distance" or I left the room and took care of the kids and rushed back to take care of the patient. Other than me being really ticked off by this, nothing bad ever happened.

I just thought I would give a heads up to all those who were comparing this breach of good judgment to the seriousness of other life and death situations. - Patti

Re: Laptop Cameras

Tammy asked if we could stop the rule making and apply common sense.

Tammy, one of the rarest things on the planet (at least in the corner where I’ve lived) is "common sense." - Patti

Re: News Sources

I as a blind person particularly enjoy NPR news. I not only like it because they always take the time to report on both sides of the issues but the descriptions that the reporters give are just fantastic. When you listen to the news that way instead of watching it on TV you cannot help but to feel as if you are rite there with the reporters. I have been moved to anger, tears, and laughter all by their reporting style, and wouldn’t trade my experiences as an NPR news listener for anything in the world. - Tazz

Disclaimer- All quotes printed in this publication are believed to be accurately attributed, but no guarantees are made that some incorrectly attributed, or even outright false quotes won’t get in here from time to time. I assure readers that I will do my best to weed out incorrect quotes, and will print a retraction as soon as I become aware of any errors.

Click here to see the archives of past issues, or go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/reallygoodquotes/messages. If you run across something really outstanding when perusing the archives, I’d appreciate it if you’d mail me at TheBestOfRGQ@yahoo.com and point it out to me. I’m in the process of compiling an e-book called, not surprisingly, The Best of RGQ, and I’d like to hear from you which pieces impacted you the most.

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