HoundsGood: Chronicles of a Virtual Volunteer

When I was a kid, I took to the water like a fish.  My parents made sure, even though we lived in the city, that I knew how to swim just in case anything were to happen.  We went to the metro parks on occasion, and had relatives who had cottages, and it gave them peace of mind that we would be able to right ourselves if we slipped or fell in.  The other important thing is not panicking.   Even if you know a little bit about swimming, if you panic, you can sink like a stone.   Actually, I think I took it all for granted.

There were kids that lived near us that had never been swimming before outside of a small wading pool.  I just thought it was a given that other kids could swim.   MidwestSportsFans.Com and DallasSportsFans.Com, in partnership with Generational Equity, have donated money to the YMCA to bring swimming lessons to low income areas.   Each group of children is given eight weeks of basics and survival skills.   Many children drown each year, and sometimes it is due to panic, and even having parents who cannot swim themselves.  The groups involved want to make sure the children not only have a fighting chance, but they learn a new activity that is fun, and will benefit their health as well.

 You have probably seen the commercials on daytime tv, encouraging you to find a Mesothelioma Lawyer if you have the syndrome or were exposed to asbestos. I used to shut it off, thinking it sounded like some really rare condition or something that could be avoided. After all, don’t people wear masks when it comes to asbestos exposure?

Sadly, that is not always the case. In fact, when people work in older buildings, they may not be aware that there is a problem with asbestos. I remember working in a theater once, and myself and my coworkers were not there to handle construction or asbestos. We found out the hard way when one day, some of material from the ceiling tile covered the stage like snow when things were being renovated. The theater was closed for a whole year to remove the asbestos that was in the duct work and in the soundproofing.  Untouched, it was not a hazard, but once things started to break down, it was highly dangerous to inhale or touch. I also knew someone who decided to remove asbestos by themselves, and is no longer with us. He passed away with his adventure as a big contributor.

What items have asbestos in it?  Among the culprits are: Home insulation installed in the 1930s-1950s, soundproofing materials, asbestos shingles and ceiling tiles, old duct work.   There are more, but these are the most common.

Mesothelioma is most common to people in construction or ship building. While it poses not as big a threat now if you are working with newer materials, in decades past, manufacturers knew about the dangers long before the public did. Until asbestos is eradicated in every structure where someone may accidentally disturb it, it is something to be cautious about. Luckily, the problem is now well known and there is compensation for individuals with this condition. I don’t believe in a “sue happy” society, but the money granted to those afflicted by it goes a long way in helping them and their families with medical bills and care.  If this is you, please take care of yourself and know that there is definitely assistance out there.

When I used to live in the Northeast, I brought my dog just about everywhere. Everyone in the little shops new him. One day, I had to go to the post office. Because he was with me, I opted for the outside drop. There was a mailbox in the post office’s driveway with a special chute that supposedly prevented you from having to reach awkwardly out the car window. For some reason, I just wasn’t in the right car. It seemed to have been tailored to SUV’s and the slot hit at the top of my window. I backed up, opened my door so i wouldn’t hit the mailbox and did the “lean” (one foot in the car, one on the ground, and sort of leaning over the car door.

A lady ran up to me and yelled at me for “leaving my dog in the car” on a hot day. At first I wanted to slap her in my mind.

1) The a/c was on and the key was in the ignition.
2) The driver’s side door was 1/2 open (don’t worry, my dog was in seatbelt.
3) I was within 2-3 feet of my dog

For some reason, I censored myself that day. I was glad that she cared, as it is a serious issue, but she so didn’t know she was barking up the wrong tree. I was actually ready to thank her for her concern, and that I had the same concerns as she did. That’s why my a/c was on and my car was running.

She replied that it may be so but my car LOOKED like the type of car where the a/c didn’t work. Huh?

My car wasn’t a luxury car, but it wasn’t a total wreck either. At the end of her speech, I was half expecting her to pull a Dodge AC compressor out of her purse. She assumed that because I was young and drove an economy car at the time, that it must have a neglected a/c.  It wasn’t a Dodge, either, but she assumed it was.

It was kind of a strange encounter, but looking back, I wish she lived near me when I lived in Florida.  More people there - the right people who are actually leaving their dogs in their cars - need to be shaken up.  If people don’t have time to get to the shop and have a car that they tinker with on their own, DiscountACParts.com has all the things they need to get it back in working order. If they have an internet cell phone, they can even order it right in front of her so she makes sure they get it taken care of.

Please, when driving with your dog at any time of the year, but especially now (it is still kind of cool but the temperature can sneak up on you in May), don’t leave them alone in the car.  They could get heat stroke, dehydrate, or die.  Plan your day with excursions where your dog is welcome or leave him/her at home.

You’ve heard of the book What to Expect when You’re Expecting, but what about a book on what to expect if you are going to Federal Prison?

Federal Prison: A Comprehensive Survival Guide, by Jonathon Richards, is the first that I have seen that specifically covers the topic. There have been other, more general books published before. I hope that you never are compelled to buy this book to prepare yourself for a new home in prison.  However, a book like this will probably come in handy if you are either a writer wishing to add some authenticity to your story, or you are in prison ministry.  There are many volunteers who visit with inmates who have no one else to visit with. Some meet with inmates in a ministerial capacity as well.  There are other books on counseling people, but this book may be infinitely more useful in giving insight on the day to day routine an inmate may be experiencing.

While surely there are scuffles and stress, television shows and movies make one believe that there are more inmate murders in prison that there actually are.  What IS true is that others will get an impression on what type of person you are by who you hang out with.   For lower security settings, however, there is not a complete void of compassion.

Before you get up, it is proper etiquette to offer anything you are not going to eat to those at the table with you. Many inmates cannot afford commissary and rely on the chow hall entirely for their food so an extra apple or can of pudding can mean a lot. As they are getting up to leave, you will see many inmates knock the table twice. This is a sign that they are finished and are headed out. This is one of the many quirks of prison culture and before long, you will likely find yourself doing the same thing.

From just the synopsis and press materials, I also learned that 70% of those incarcerated are at one of the three types of facilities:

1) Federal Prison Camp (FPC)
Typically non violent offenders sentenced to under 120 months (referred to as minimum security federal prisons).
2) Federal Medical Center (FMC)
Offenders of all security levels who have a documented physical or mental medical condition. Also, child sex offenders.
3) Low Security Federal Correctional Institute (FCI)
Typically violent offenders or those sentenced to over 120 months.

This seems like a fascinating read, and is available in Ebook form online.  If you have a loved one who will be going to prison, it may be a helpful read as well.  From the feedback and reviews, it seems to have calmed fears for many people.  I don’t think prison should be demystified in the sense of normalizing the experience, but I think that knowledge prevents people from taking extreme measures.  There are many stories about people harming themselves and others when they are about to be admitted in either in an irrational attempt to avoid their sentence, or terror.

Have you read this book yet?  If so, are you a former inmate, a counselor, or a family member, and what did you think?

(At left: baby who participated in the preservation of umbilical cord for future stem cell therapy use. Whoops. That is a picture of a baby with a stem! I need to fire the art director.  Oh.  That’s me.)

There has been a lot in the news again about stem cell research, inspired by all of the propositions and elections. There is another method that is gaining popularity, and that is taking the portion of the umbilical cord of a newborn that will normally be discarded and preserving it. Research is showing that those cells could be valuable being used as stem cells if the child or his/her sibling if a match grows up and has a genetic condition or one of the over 75 diseases else that have shown to respond to stem cell treatment. In fact, there is reason to believe the treatment is only effective or more effective if the cells are from the person being treated or a sibling who is a match.

Right now, Cryo-Cell is promoting the giving of gift cards to mothers to be, to pay for the service as a gift for their first Mother’s Day or the Mother’s Day when they are anticipating their newborn.  I would imagine it would be best for the anticipating mother, as you cannot preserve the cord in retrospect.

I don’t know quite how I would feel if I was given a gift certificate like that.  In my current state of affairs, since I have no children, maybe it would have been an awkward hint form a relative wondering what I was waiting for. However, if someone has been talking about it, maybe it is a good idea to ask permission to purchase the gift for them, as it is something that is growing in popularity but hasn’t become household knowledge yet. The giver can choose a gift certificate for the Cryo-Cell U-Cord or for the Protect Mom program which includes preserving the cord for baby, and menstrual blood cells from mom for her possible future benefit.

I wonder if this is something that children’s charities who raise money to research treatments for leukemia or other diseases would eventually have programs to fund this for people if it was determined to be beneficial in a widespread way.  It is hard to say at this point, but many people are banking on the possibility. Of course, if you are like the stick figures at right, all you would need is an eraser and a pencil to cure what ails you. If only it were that simple for us, too.

There are many fake “missing child” alerts going around on the internet.  They vary from disgruntled pre-teens starting posts about themselves, to posts that people keep forwarding around even though they are several years old and the child has long been recovered, to just plain false information.    The internet can be a powerfull tool to find someone, but for the above reasons, I usually do not grant requests to post things that are circulating around unless the person requesting has some sort of direct connection.

In this case, the request came from someone who is more closely connected with the case.   It is their hope that their friend’s little boy is found  and that they at least can learn that he is alive and well.  The child is missing from a community in South Florida, but may very well be in Germany right now.

The photo poster was too large of a file to pop onto this page, but please click and take a look.

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As you gobble down another Marshmallow Peep or pick out another pesky strand of Easter basket grass from your two year old’s hair this coming Sunday, just think about how lucky you are.

Imagine living in a world where your hands might be cut off for possessing a book. This is not an imagination exercise. We are not going “back in time” to the second century A.D. This is also not a seventh grade English Lit class discussing Fahrenheit 451. It is right here, right now. Maybe not “right here,” but “right THERE.”

This blog was originally intended to show how one can volunteer from home for a variety of causes, but of course my passion, animal rescue, completely dominates. I would like to take a moment to talk about another cause.

I had the privilege several weeks ago to learn more about Open Doors. I have heard of it before, and could intellectually grasp the meaning, but meeting people and hearing stories really imprinted upon my heart just how much we take for granted and how important it is.

Open Doors was started by an extremely brave person who goes by the handle “Brother Andrew,” whose name wasn’t Andrew, nor was he a monk. He is known throughout the world also as “Brother Smuggler” or “Bible Smuggler.” In the late 1960s, he modified a Volkswagen with secret compartments in the attempt to smuggle Bibles into people behind the Iron Curtain who so much desired to own one and read one. As you know, people were not only not allowed to “assemble,” which was seen as dangerous by a communist government, but they were also not allowed to possess a Bible or other spiritual literature. Knowing that their lives were at risk, people on the inside read them and helped him.

(pictured: In the bottom right is “The Bible Smuggler” in Russian, the story of Brother Smuggler, and it sits just to the right of a Russian Bible. In the center is The Bible translated into Chinese. Also on the table are children’s Bible stories in the Kazakh language. An Arabic Bible is just out of the frame at the far left in yellow.)

Now, Brother Andrew is in his 80s, but most people half his age cannot keep up with him. There are many more volunteers now who carry on his mission. Right now, if you are living in North Korea, parts of China, and parts of the Middle East, and in a list of other places you may not have thought of, a Bible is not only forbidden but you could be tortured or killed for possessing one or reading from it, and even sometimes talking about it. Despite this, the mission just keeps on growing. No matter how many people are persecuted, the demand for them grows. Open Doors has risen to the occasion by translated not only the Bible but other related materials into over 100 language.

Despite the fact that people are routinely kidnapped, beaten, disfigured, or killed for simply having a Bible in their hand or professing their faith, the demand for them grows and grows by leaps and bounds every year.

Why do people risk their lives, and why do governments not want their people to have these books? The same reason they didn’t hundreds of years ago. The poor, the women, the weak, the old, the very young, and the widowed who are generally easy to keep one’s foot on top of feel empowered by the Word and friendship of Jesus Christ. It is said by just giving a person one Bible, at least 10 other people read it too.

I salute the brave men and women who have lost their luggage, had their passports seized, or lost their lives through their efforts.

The largest funder for Open Doors is the Christian Motorcyclists Association. Once a year, they have a Run for The Sun ride that raises funds for Open Doors and two other projects. If you are a biker interested in joining on your local ride, or you are interested in pledging a motorcyclist in their efforts, leave me a comment and I can get you the information you need.

I’ll be riding too.