No Envelope Needed

     A young man is about to graduate from high school. Over the past year he has been working at an internship; going to school half a day and the internship the other half. The last day for his intern ship was close. His mother happened across a Thank You Card displayed on the top of his notebook.
     "This is a really nice card son. Who is it for?" she remarked to him.
     "It's for Mr. Jones, my internship mentor," the son replied.
     "Where is your envelope?" the mother asked.
     "I did't purchase one," the son responded.
     "Son, the envelope is included with the card," the mother replied.
     "Oh, I didn't know," was his response.
     "I have extras somewhere. I will get you one that fits your card," the mom offered.
     "I don't need an envelope. That's why I didn't get one," he responded.
     "You do need an envelope. You can't hand him a card that's not in an envelope," the mom informed her son.
     "But mom, when you hand someone a card, they know a card is inside. They take it out of the envelope, read the card and throw the envelope away. So now when I hand it to Mr. Jones he will see the card right away. So, why do I need an envelope?"
   

     
   

HIM by Brigitta Moon

The Diamond Couple now available at amazon.com
http://tinyurl.com/ondnjrh

The Day of Surgery

The day of surgery usually begins at 12 midnight. You will be asked not to eat or drink anything after midnight. Your stomach will need to be empty for at least eight hours prior to surgery. This means nothing should pass your lips. No gum, hard candies or smoking. You may brush your teeth but don't swallow the water.  This is to avoid your stomach from producing increasesd gastric juice for the digestion of food that is not coming. It is also an attempt to ward off postop nausea and aspiration (ingestion of emesis into the lungs). You should take certain medications with as little water as possible to get the pills down. Especially of note are blood pressure medications as long as it does not induce diuresis (an increase of urine production)and seizure control medications. You will need to find out from your doctor how to manage your Insulin or Diabetic pills. If your surgery will be late in the day you may be told to have a light breakfast eight hours before your procedure. All these points will need to  be discussed with your doctor.

Many people are now marking their own surgical sites prior to arrival to the surgical area to prevent surgery on the wrong limb, eye or site. To prevent wrong surgery site medical facilities have instituted controls against this, namely the time out.  Prior to making any incisions the surgical team will stop everything and verify identity of the patient, surgery to be done and surgical site as well as surgical side, right or left. Prior to surgery the doctor may have verified site with the patient and placed a mark on it.

Once you arrive at the surgery center you will be registered and asked to fill out a medication reconciliation form. This will ask for the names, form and doses of all medications as well as any allergies. You will have a band placed on your arm with your identifying information on it. Anytime an employee approaches you to perform any produres, give any medications, etc. he or she should verify your identity to be sure you are the correct person to receive the procedure, medication, etc. You may also be given an additional armband if you have allergies.

Once you enter the preop area you will be asked to remove your clothing and don a hospital gown. You will be asked to remove any removable false teeth, jewelry, and hairpins. You should keep glasses, contact and hearing aids in place until you have signed all consents. These things should then be removed and will be give back promptly after surgery as soon as appropriate.

Now you will be asked many questions in usually mutiple interviews to be sure it is safe to proceed. You will speak to the preop nurse who will be interested in how you prepared for surgery, last time you ate or drank, medications taken and allergies. Be prepared. You will be asked  these questions many times over. Everyone wants to know, the preop nurse, the operating rooom nurse, the anestesiologist and the surgeon. This is for the safety of the patient. After the preop nurse interviews you she will insert an IV catheter if indicated for administration of fluids and medications. 

You will speak with the Surgeon who will verify the procedure with you, give information about the procedure-benefits and risks as well as answer all questions you may have. The surgeon will then have you sign a consent for the procedure with the presense of  a witness. The surgeon will also mark the surgical site.

You will speak with the Anesthesiologist. This will be a doctor or a nurse. You will be asked a lot of the same questions. A mini physical will be done to evaluate your airway, lungs, heart, blood pressure and diabetic issues to name a few.  You will be given information about what type of anesthesia is planned, benits and risks. All your questions will be answered. You will be asked to sign a consent for administration of the anesthesia.

The operating room nurse will also  come out and make an introduction. You will be again asked about allergies and to verify your identity and surgical procedure and site.

It's almost time to enter the operating suite so you will now need to remove your glasses or contacts. Your doctor may want you to keep the hearing aid a while longer if you have a tremendous hearing deficit without it.

The anesthesia person and nurse will now escort you to the operating suite either by stretcher or walking. See you after your surgery.

From Cartoons to Shot in The Head

     The writing project assigned by the seventh grade health teacher was for the students to focus on safety and write a short story. I read the story written by 13 year old Ari and  had to wonder what our society has come to when a child does not even feel safe on a playground? The fear was not even being physically beat up by other children, but gunned down. Read her story below and voice your comment. By the way she told me there were copyright infringements I was violating and permissions I needed to get to print her story.

         Wooh Wooh Die

     One afternoon Christopher was at the park with his friend Riley.Christopher and Riley were at the park on the swings for hours and hours until suddenly, you could hear three gunshots being fired. As people were fleeing the park, Christopher fell backward off the swing. Riley looked over and started screaming at the sight of her best friend with two holes in his shirt and one on his temple.

     Riley was so scared, that she thought she was going to get shot, but she had to help her friend. She stopped screaming and called 911, not wanting to look at her best friend. Riley thought for sure that Christopher was dead, but she still had to help. After she called for help, she took off her jacket and wrapped it around Christopher's stomach and held it tightly. Then she screamed as she had to rip off a piece of her jacket to apply pressure to the side of Christopher's head. She felt so sick. She tried to stop herself from throwing up and failed, crawling away as the liquids shot out of her mouth. Riley kept crying and crying, knowing she was going to loose her best friend.
     Riley remembered that the lady who picked up the phone from emergency services told her to check her friend's pulse and see if he was breathing. As Riley checked to see if Christopher was breathing.  She was so surprised that he was actually breathing. Christopher was barely breathing and his pulse was very slow. Riley quickly jumped at the sight of police cars and ambulances, she began screaming and crying even more.
     It seemed as if days went by as Riley sat in the hospital waiting room, hoping for the best. She refused to call anyone, not even Christopher's parents. She knew that they would already know. After what seemed like three days, although it was only about eleven hours, a doctor came out and called for the family of Christopher Williams. She ran to the doctor bombarding him with questions as the doctor told her, "We couldn't save him. Christopher is dead." Riley had never been so upset as she fell on the hospital floor in shock and sadness, knowing that her best friend was dead.

The End

By: Ari M.

The Bat Update

        It's been almost two weeks since having the bat men over to handle our situation. Surprisingly we didn't need any one-way doors. The bats were not entering through our house or exiting to the outside from our house. This is not one of the joys of a townhome; you share your neighbor's problems. In the attic unbeknown to us was an open connection in the wall between the homes. The bats entered through the roof of the neighbor's home and migrated to our attic. So, they, in fact, were hanging around in two homes rent-free.
      The opening was filled in. I am happy to report our bat problem seems to be behind us. Our uninvited guests who just hung around have been evicted. Our next hurdle is cleaning the attic. All the insulation needs to be removed and replaced. Essentially the attic needs to be sterilized. We have been quoted a price of no less than $1000. The price depends on the square footage of the attic.      So, before you hire your bat person, be 100% sure of what services the price includes. Don't rush into anything. Get quotes to compare. If you can be patient, you can get it done for free. Check your state's site for a list of companies. Hopefully, my long nightmare will shorten yours.

Unlimited Data For Your Smart Phone ?

 

   Unlimited everything for our smart phones is what we all seek. Unlimited texts, calls, messages and data for one flat fee. Metro PCS came to our aid with the $40 Period advertisement. So we thought. I thought this was just the plan for my teen. After multiple visits to multiple stores I have given up on Metro PCS. I can't help but share the worst experience first.
     Let me give you a little background first. My daughter has a $15 flip phone which she uses with AT&T and an Iphone without service. I am very cautious about letting her use her sim card in the Iphone. Through AT&T she would receive 300 mb of data usage per month for $20. If she goes over her data plan I would be charged another $20 for an additional 300 mb and on and on it would go. I don't want to leave it to chance that a teen will keep an eye on her data usage.
     So, my daughter and I were traveling home from Miami, Florida. We are always seeing the sign on the Metro PCS stores boldly proclaiming $40 Period. We had been driving and shopping for hours. We were finally as far as Jacksonville when we made a snack stop. The Metro PCS was next door with the sign displayed. I complied with her plea to go in and purchase the month for her Iphone. I am still dumbfounded when I thick about the experience.
      I explained to the salesman that my daughter would like to have the $40 plan for her Iphone. He proceeded to tell me that the plan will cost a total of $70. I was stunned. My reply was, "Does the sim card cost $30.
      "No, the sim card is $10. The service is $60," he replied.
      "I don't want a sixty dollar plan. I want the $40 Period plan in the window. The one that has unlimited everything for $40," I replied.
      This man proceeded to tell me that no one is entitled to that plan the first month. You must first sign up for the $60 plan and after a month you can switch to the $40 plan.
      "Why," I asked. "That is not what the sign says. It says $40 Period," I reminded him.
      So, he continued to explain to me that it is done this way because so many people purchased the $40 plan and then complained about the horrible service. The plan is not truly unlimited. You are given a predetermined amount of data based on the plan you select, $40, $50, $60. After you use the data you paid for your device is slowed down to 2G speed. He went on to tell me that you won't be able to use many of the functions on your phone such as GPS.
      I continued my own explanation. The slowing down of the data did not concern me. I just did not want to be subjected to overage charges through AT&T. That explanation did not help my cause. He decided to tell me that he was the district manager and this is how it is done.
     "Well, it sounds like false advertising to me. I don't see anywhere on that sign telling me I have to purchase a $60 plan for the first month," was my com back.
     I tried to think this through without any success. If you bought the $60 plan for the first month, how did that help to slow complaints if each person switched to the $40 after the first month and was unhappy when they reached 2G speed? Here is what I deduced from this situation; force your customers to purchase the more expensive plan and hope they like it and keep it.
     Here is my response to him, "You won't be taking advantage of me today."
     My unhappy daughter didn't understand what happened. So, while we were sitting in the car I noticed the sign on the 7 Eleven window which read, Big Gulp 99 cents. I said to her, "If you went in there and poured yourself a Big Gulp what would you expect to pay?"
     "99 cents," she replied.
     "Okay. You get to the register and the cashier says that will be two dollars. What would you do?"
     "I would tell her the sign says 99 cents," she answered.
     "She says your first Big Gulp is two dollars. When you come back in a month you can have the second for 99 cents. Do you understand now?" I explained.
     I could see she understood the false advertisement. I told him I had visited multiple stores and that was the fist time I had heard that. That's when he told me me he was the district manager. I guess that gave him clout to take advantage of customers.
     The  differences I found in the Maryland stores were the cost of the sim card which ranged from $10-15 and being charged a fee for bringing my own Iphone to the plan. My problem is when I pass a store and go in to get the details I don't have the phone with me. When I return with the phone a different sales person is working and the fees are different.
     I would love to get my teen the $40 Period plan but, I no longer trust this company. It's not $40 Period, unlimited everything. It is nothing more than a bait and switch plan. Have you experienced this? Share it in the comments. If you know of a real flat rate unlimited cell plan share that information too.

HELP! There Are Bats in the Attic

     Just imagine sitting comfortably in you kitchen on a spring evening reading while waiting for the oven to deliver your chocolate chip cookies. Your ears perk to the sound of your usually lazy kitty running down the stairs. Your natural response is to investigate what is going on. Now imagine you run to the doorway only to see your kitty running with a bat flying overhead. Shocking, yes. The wing span was huge. The speed at which it flew was scary. What would you do? First instinct, run for cover like the kitty. Yep. Straight to the door to a neighbor's house is where I went. After some talk and planning our strategy we re-entered the house. There were no signs of the bat. According to an internet search we should look in high places, behind pictures and in folds of curtains. On high alert we did this with no bat sightings. Now what? We stood around quietly looking around. Then we heard a sound. It was coming from the window blinds. But there was nothing on the blinds or in the window. The suggestion was made that maybe it was inside the header of the blinds. As huge as that thing was, there was no way it fit in there. Armed with a flashlight  and a ladder I approached. Even though terrified I climbed the ladder to the top and shinned the flashlight. I almost fell off the ladder. It was there, stuck under the inner mechanics of the blinds. We couldn't get it to fly out and leave the house. So we took the blinds down and put the entire thing on the front lawn. The bat crawled out. It was so small. It took off into the night. All I could do was wonder how something so small could look so huge in flight and yes I was happy it was outside. That was last year.
     The spring has arrived again. I was sitting on the couch reading when I heard a noise. It sounded like it was coming from the intake vent. I looked up only to my horror to see a bat emerging from the vent. I retreated the front door to my neighbor's home. We went back armed with a broom. The bat was well hidden or gone. We didn't find it. This prompted me to cal an exterminating company.
     Here is what I learned:

• Unless the bat accidentally flew in through a window or door you have more than one.
• This is the season when bats have their babies called pups. 
• Their natural habitat is a cave which makes an attic a great place for them to roost.
• They can enter openings in your roof as small as a quarter.
• They carry rabies.
• They leave droppings and urine in your attic which can be hazardous to your health.
• You can hear them in the walls as they line up to leave at night.
• Getting rid of bats is complicated.
• In my state of Md. you must obtain permission from the state to remove the bats during the colonizing season, which is now, March 31- August 1. (Simple form printed from the web)
• Bats should not be killed but removed unharmed.
• Bats control the insect population that damage crops and spread disease.
• One bat can eat more than 1,000 insects in one night.
• Bats must be removed through a process referred to as exclusion.
• If you use the exclusion process during the season when pups are born you risk having dead bats in your attic because the pups may not be able to fly yet so they will die because the mother can't reach the pup to care for it.
• The bat population in our country is declining. 

     Now I finally understand why I can't have the bats exterminated. It made my skin crawl to think there was a colony of bats living in my attic having babies. I don't even know how long they have been there. My daughter kept complaining about noises in the wall keeping her awake at night. I had not a clue what to do about that.
     Now faced with the reality that they are living in the attic I called an exterminating company. He confirmed the bats were roosting there. After an inspection he was able to locate their doorway to my home. It was openings in the roof. I gladly signed the Nuisance Wildlife Control Agreement. Although there is a list of wildlife control cooperators in the county who will do it for free, I can't wait. I want it done yesterday.  The pest control company is coming tomorrow to exclude the bats. Check back for the update.
     I found this sight quite helpful.
 http://www.dnr.state.md.us/wildlife/Plants_Wildlife/bats/batsinhome.asp

Is It Love or Is It Lust

So, have you been evaluating the relationship between you and your significant other? What makes you want to evaluate it? Is something about the relationship just not feeling right with you? Have you been thinking about ending it? Many relationships enter this phase. After the honeymoon phase is over, then what? Let's try to separate these relationships into two categories, lust and love. See where your's fit in. In the beginning of the relationship you were instant lovers. Not a lot of conversation. Maybe not even a lot of outings. But, you felt so attracted to the other person. You just could not wait to get together. The company was great. But what were you doing during your time together? Was most of it spent in the bedroom? Once you left there did you have anything in common other than the bedroom. Some couples think since we get along so well in the bedroom it has to be love. I'm here to tell you it is lust. If you can't wait to see your significant other just to head for the bedroom, it is lust. Once the relationship begins to age, you find yourself feeling unfulfilled, checking out other fish in the sea. Love is much more, starting out as friends, getting to know each other. Know likes, dislikes, what makes the other happy or sad, or sharing secrets, ups and downs. You need to spend time together, getting to know each other. That's right, the old fashioned courting. You need to see if the two of you are compatible in life and not just the bedroom. If you are truly in love, when you reach the point of heading for the bedroom, it will be an experience topped by no other. It will be genuine love making and not just lustful sex. When the relationship ages the love will still be there. The partners take the time to keep their moments together interesting.  A relationship based on love is hard work and time consuming. A relationship based on lust takes no time, no work, and is short lived. So where does your relationship fall in this scheme, lust or love?

Forgotten Blog

     How do you forget a blog? I am shaking my head. Today I was reading someone's blog. I really liked the look of the blog and decided to click on the icon to see where the blog was hosted. I could not believe my eyes. Tea With Twilight popped up. I had completely forgotten about it. Sadly I had not posted a word since 2009. That's not to say I didn't continue my writing.
     Since the inadvertent abandonment of my blog I have posted a website http://www.mjrhythm.com/
I must warn you that when you click on the link the page loads with the music of Michael Jackson (MJ). I was so shocked by the news and so sad about his passing that I created this website just to lift my spirits. I began to notice that each time I clicked on the site and the page loaded with the Man in the Mirror, I felt some happiness, hope, even uplifted. Now when I am feeling a little down about anything I click on this page and with the first note of the song I feel the urge to sway and snap my fingers. As the song progresses I'm singing with him, snapping my fingers and clapping my hands. My emotions of sadness, disappointment or whatever was weighing me down take a backseat. The music, MJ's voice and me singing and moving with the rhythm is all thats left in that moment of time.
     I have also self published 3 books on Amazon under my name of Brigitta Moon. My first book began the series of Him. This story captures the emotions of a woman tormented by her feelings for a man she believed she loved from the moment her eyes met his. Book 2, Him Again continues the story of Him.  The hopeless romantic that she is has lead her to continue her involvement in a roller coaster relationship with her love at first sight man. Her tortured soul struggles to survive as she battles her feeling of love and hate towards Him. Book three is on it's way. The third book I published is a self help book with a plan to help you get out of debt and begin to save and invest your money. This book is a quick read and easy to understand. It is packed with useable knowledge for every day life. So, welcome to the class of debt relief. Click on the link to explore these books.  http://www.amazon.com/Brigitta-Moon/e/B00D6XTDV0/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1
     It was a nice surprise to find my old friend Tea With Twilight. Stop in again and enjoy Tea With Twilight. I intend to visit as often as possible.