Halloween

“I bet living in a nudist colony takes all the fun out of Halloween...                                                                                                                                                            ~ Author Unknown

Halloween – Have FUN, but be safe out there

Halloween is for the young (and the young at heart). Kids of all ages get to dress up and go beg for free candy. What could be better than that (not counting the cavities and elevated blood sugar... just kidding J)? Then there are the Haunted Houses and hayrides, all culminating in trick or treating. You can give your kids some fantastic Halloween memories that they'll have for a lifetime by having them follow some simple safety tips. As a classic, popular TV cop show, Hill Street Blues used to say “be safe out there”.

Most kids already know many of the things you can do to ensure safety, like how to cross the street correctly, looking both ways, and to not talk to or go anywhere with strangers. But with the excitement Halloween brings, be sure to make a point to remind them anyway.


Here are some common sense tips that we have for you to communicate to your kids to help keep them safe on Halloween night. Most actually apply to everyday life also, so they’re important to review:

	Never go into a stranger’s house, (or even knock their door) for treats unless parents are present and give kids the thumbs up. As a rule, make sure that an adult always within sight when you go out trick-or-treating. Check the candy when you get home if you have any suspicions at all.
	Be careful when you cross the street. Make sure to look in both directions, hold hands with your group and help the younger kids get across the street safely. Use cross walks when possible, still obeying all the same rules.
	If you have an older kid or teen, and they are going out with friends, make sure you know where they are going and who they are going with.
	If your son or daughter is old enough to drive and is taking friends to a party, make sure that they have enough gas to get there and back.
	Give your kids (older) a curfew and make sure they adhere to it. It builds trust between you and them as you are doing it for their own safety. Know the parents and even contact them if your kid is going to a party!
	Emphasize to your kids that vandalism is not cool! Throwing eggs at cars and houses is not right. It’s a good way to have get arrested and be punished as a juvenile.
	Hurting animals is never acceptable behavior! For some reason, some kids use Halloween as an excuse to hurt cats and that is just wrong. Not only is it illegal in most places to hurt or torture animals and punishable by law, it needs to be reiterated that you should never hurt a helpless living thing.

Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better

Halloween is fun for most of us, especially the kids and those young at heart. I know feel young at heart and I’m a big fan of Halloween as it energizes me. In addition, it feels like and signals the start of the Holiday Season with Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Years Eve soon to follow. Regardless of our feelings toward Halloween in general, safe Halloweens get a unanimous ‘like’.

There is an adult analogy hidden in here, with the dressing up and masks and all on Halloween, one that we may take a small lesson from. The truth is that we all wear masks, every day, as our way of ‘walling up’ to shield our vulnerabilities from the world. To the degree we can limit this masking practice to Halloween only, is the degree to which we learn to accept and present our authentic selves to those we love. As the quote indicates:  

      “There is nothing that gives more assurance than a mask.”                                                                                                                                                          ~ Colette

PS: Let’s gain our self-assurance from a deeper place, shall we...have big fun, but be safe out there!

The Case of the Emaciated Mannequin

UP Beauty Online

         
“You are imperfect, permanently and inevitably

                       flawed. And you are beautiful.”
                                                                  Amy Bloom

What would life be like if we only believed the truth in this quote? What if we only could remember the wisdom inherent here? How different would our day-to-day operations be if we weren’t constantly assaulted with the made up, made over, touched up, cosmetically enhanced, sickly thin and unrealistic marketing images based around our fashion and jet set icons, especially in the female world, relentlessly broadcast our way in the thousands every single day?  

The Case of the Emaciated Mannequin

The latest target of criticism for this unhealthy message is a clothing store for women, Glassons, in New Zealand that is using mannequins that have prominent, protruding ribs. The message here seems to scream, “Purging is in this year”. Not cool at all.

                                              

Figure 1:  Mannequin in New Zealand with protruding ribs

This is not the first time, nor will it most likely be the last. Not long ago in the States, a lingerie store called La Perla had the good sense to take down their super skinny dummies after a tweet ripped their judgment on the matter. American retailer JC Penney is even taking the offensive by making a line of more robust, realistic mannequins more in line with our national proportions. I get this, but I happen to be more on board in setting a healthy example with this approach:

       “A fit, healthy body—that is the best fashion statement”
                                                                  Jess C. Scott

Glasson’s, ironically, has not only defended its use of the mannequin, but also refuses to take them down, suggesting that the rib cage only sticks out because of the angle of the pose. In addition, Glasson’s CEO has been quoted as saying that the mannequin’s BMI (body mass index) puts it within a healthy weight range. This is preposterous, as a BMI is based on a height/weight ratio, something a mannequin cannot provide! Oy!

It is especially perplexing because Glassons is a store aimed at young women and teenagers, with the average size woman in New Zealand being between a size 12 and 14. Talk about alienating your target market. But in accordance with the laws of karma, ignorance of this proportion deserves the economic retributions it should ignite!

Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better

As you wander through life, be sure to stop occasionally to make sense out of the madness that ensues. While being blasted with innumerable false images and marketing lies, make sure you don’t allow your logic and intuition to be saturated and overruled. If you are foolish enough to compare yourself to the unattainable, you will set yourself up for a life of chasing the Holy Grail and the Fountain of Youth, with both as fictional as the very images that sent you there in the first place.

           “This is a call to arms, a call to be gentle, to be forgiving, to be generous with yourself. The next time you look into the mirror, try to let go of the story line that says you are too fat or too sallow, too ashy or too old, your eyes are too small or your nose too big; just look into the mirror and see your face. When the criticism drops away, what you will see then is just you, without judgment, and that is the first step toward transforming your experience of the world.”

                                        Oprah Winfrey

 

Think Pink

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           “Cancer is NOT a death sentence, but rather

             it is a life sentence; it pushes one to live.”

                                                                             Marcia Smith

It’s unfortunately almost inevitable that if you live on this earth, and have ventured out from underneath your rock lately, you know someone whom has had a life touched in some way by the big C, cancer. The results of which are variable at best, from lives that were enriched and uplifted, even with a passing as the end result, to family/personal disasters even when the cancer victim ended up a survivor. The end game is not always an indicator of the experience.

They say money simply enhances a person’s general personality and character attributes, as it can make a good person that much better and a bad person even more degenerate. Cancer, like many serious diseases has a similar effect as it can actually take a person (and the surrounding support system group) either way, depending on many factors.

Early Detection, Prevention and Support

October is our pink month, Breast Cancer Awareness Month to be exact, and organizations from the behemoth, male dominated NFL to small feminist groups, and everyone in between come together to raise money and awareness for Breast Cancer research, education and general support.

How can you, the individual, participate in Breast Cancer Awareness Month? Some women still don’t know the steps to take in the prevention off their chances to avert breast cancer, or at least experience early detection. Taking the PLEDGE is your key to supporting the movement as well as protecting yourself.

The PLEDGE is a six-step system by which women are encouraged to learn more about breast cancer as well as spread their knowledge to friends and family. The six steps are:

·       PREVENTION: Ask your doctor what steps to can take that could reduce your risk of breast cancer.

·       LEARNING: Arm yourself with knowledge about your own risks.

·       EXAMINATION: With your doctor, find out when you should get screened for breast cancer, and how often.

·       DENSITY: Have a conversation with your doctor to see if you have "dense" breasts, and which screening approach is right for you.

·       GENETICS: Discuss with your doctor your family history - both mom's and dad's side - of breast cancer, to see what it might mean for your level of risk.

·       EDUCATE - Once you've put these steps into action, "pay it forward" by encouraging friends and family to do it as well.

Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better

Participation and support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month can take the form of wearing or adorning yourself in pink (the pink ribbon is the classic symbol), but a deeper connection can be made through volunteering, donating and/or participating in a local event throughout October.

Taking actionable steps may also dictate, to some degree, your exposure to breast cancer risk. Did you know that breastfeeding is not only beneficial to babies, but it also reduces your chances for breast cancer? For every month you breastfeed, you get additional benefit. The risk of breast cancer can be reduced through exercise – as little as 2.5 hours per week of brisk power walking can reduce your risk by 18%. On the contrary, women that consume more than 3 alcoholic beverages a day are 51% more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer than those who don’t drink. And finally, do your self-examination monthly and commit to your yearly mammogram!

        “It has been estimated that if every woman over the age of 50 had her yearly mammogram, breast cancer deaths in this age group could drop by 25% or more.”    
                     Source: American Cancer Society                                                

The Hidden Curse

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Domestic violence is a shocking and horrific part of our society, as some of us witnessed through the video mass distribution of Ray and Janay Rice’s violent altercation in a casino elevator. Most of us had either heard or read about it, and perhaps had even seen video of the aftermath, as had the NFL and Baltimore Ravens organizations in dolling out their initial punishments. But to SEE the actual act with our own eyes, to witness the punches thrown by a muscular, fit athlete as the predator and aggressor towards a basically helpless female in a closed space was undeniably disgusting and gut wrenching. And both organizations reacted accordingly.

I find it fascinating how our brains work. I can remember reading “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” book trilogy years ago and being totally enthralled with the series, consuming them all as an addiction, even though there was a lot of violence in each. I was so into this story line that I couldn’t wait to see the movie.

The first version of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” available was the European cut, which unbeknownst to me was much more graphic than the upcoming American version. Long story short, as I witnessed this thriller complete with the violence I had read about, I actually had to look away. I learned an interesting lesson in that moment about the impactful difference between hearing and reading versus actually seeing something with one’s own eyes.

The Hidden Curse

We rarely have video footage, as so much of domestic violence occurs behind closed doors, with the descriptions of said abuse typically only available through the verbal testimony of the victim for law enforcement and the court systems. Even then, the victims, who for the record all play their own part in these co-dependent dysfunctional relationships, rarely tell the truth about what has happened, as well as often choosing to not press charges against their mate. While I’m not meaning to place blame here, the reality is that the acceptance of a situation, for whatever the reasons, becomes a functioning part of the problem as a whole. Hopefully this video footage, with all its alarm value, as well as the resulting shock waves reverberating across our nation, will bring the reality of domestic violence to the forefront of our collective consciousness. Only when the video truth peeks out from behind the closed curtain of private lives do we fully get to comprehend the graphic brutality in high-def reality.

Deep Reaching Ramifications

Nearly as disturbing as the act itself is the apparent mishandling of this entire fiasco by the NFL, specifically the Commissioner and his office, from potentially bungling the receipt of the initial video copy of the incident inside the elevator, or possibly worse, intentionally burying it to save face, as well as a PR nightmare. Add to this the lag time of both the NFL and other teams (Carolina, Minnesota and San Francisco have players with current domestic violence legal woes) in disciplining domestic violence cases pending against their players in some fashion. Minimally a team can de-activate a player, who still gets paid by the way, but isn’t eligible to play on Sunday, if they are in limbo over enacting an eventual penalty.

It seems this violent, male driven league likes to talk out of both sides of their mouth. But when their money and image are on trial, the actions seem to be inadequate and not match the supposed company line of zero tolerance. In the NFL, as in most big business, profit and image often win out over morals.

Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better

The complexity of this story is big, ranging from the act itself to the additional players with current legal charges pending from spousal abuse to child abuse; from the NFL launching a complete, independent investigation into how they handled the receipt of original video and the validity of the claim that no one in the NFL had seen the video before TMZ released it last week; to who’s head rolls as a result, and what kind of a major Public Relations hit the NFL and the Commissioner may take as a result.

                  “Domestic abuse, also called intimate partner violence, is the systematic suffocation of another person's spirit.”

PS: Stay tuned, this story is evolving perpetually – much more to come!

PPS: The mounting media pressure and scrutiny of this story has caused both the Minnesota Vikings and the Carolina Panthers to “deactivate” the players on their teams with domestic charges pending for Sunday’s games, 9/14/14.

Photos courtesy of the National Football League.