Monday, February 11, 2008

Almost a Month

It may only be a month
since our love has been recognized,
but this love is more than love.
Attraction is easy to explain.
Lust is more than a deadly sin.
This is one that is more complex.
It’s like a breath after suffocation.
It’s like a drink after a mouth sewn shut.
This love is more than human nature.
This is a web of feeling tied together.
So many elements; God, time, love, and a need.
A need of care, honesty and soulful connections.T
his is something that has to be more than described,
its my love for you.

Petition Strikes K-12

High Schools in Florida adopted the idea of a ‘Senior Project’. The project is for English, if one doesn’t pass the project, one doesn’t graduate. Yes, there are other components, but the project is worth a large portion of the English class. It consists of; a poster, mentor, 8-10 page research paper, 70 source cards, a letter to judges, thank you letter to mentor, portfolio, and an 8-10 minute speech.
Many seniors are against the project, and rebel forcefully. One student, Brandon, began a petition (over 220 signatures). Brandon says “12 years of education shouldn’t count on one senior project”. Brandon claims “The project was too difficult for myself and others, I didn’t like how the school-board kept making us change our topics, there were many complaints from it”. The reason behind his idea (Brandon commented) “It shows the high school grade levels they have rights and can change anything for the better”.
In contrast, Mrs. Christie, a freshman English teacher, explains “This project should be seen as a benefit, that it’s college preparation.” She also adds “Yes I believe this much work is necessary for the real world”.
The project seems too challenging, but as Mrs. Christie commented, “The decision has already been made. All through life you will experience obstacles you won’t enjoy, but will have to face them”.

Child Abuse In Fla.

‘A simple child that lightly draws its breath, and feels its life in every limb, what should it know of death’?-William Wordsworth (1770-1850). There have been many cases in Florida that have been submitted as child abuse and/or child neglect. According to The Florida Child Abuse Death Review there have been 35 children who have died in 2003 because of either neglect or abuse. The review also published that the cases of neglect arose to 52%, in contrast, abuse was 48%. The numbers are gradually rising and the deaths are becoming numerous all throughout the state of Florida. Male deaths are up to 60%, while female deaths are up to 40%. 63% were white, 34% were black, 2% were Asian Pacific, and 1% was multi-racial. 42% of children were under the age of 1, 29% were 1-2 years old, and 15% were ages 3-5. Some risk factors in children that have died in child abuse cases are; one or more children in the family that are younger than 4, a pattern possibly in incidents of abuse or neglect, inability for caretaker/parents to provide immediate needs for children, and limited community visibility. Also, other factors include caregiver’s age, mental health, alcohol or substance abuse, affects ability to care. Those individuals may have a criminal history; conditions in home are hazardous to the child, parent/caregiver unwilling to protect their children, other children in home show neglect or abuse, and unrealistic expectations of the child or children.
The Florida Child Abuse Death review has announced that a majority of the child related deaths in Florida are never reviewed. A continuation of that information the deaths that are related to abuse can never be stopped, or future cases prevented from happening. In the Review’s website it explains that the parents/ caretakers have already had prior reports of abuse or neglect. If people could track down the people that are doing this, people can prevent more children from dying when the children are completely defenseless. What people need to do, according to the Review, is to hire multi-disciplinary staffing in any case that involves a child that is under five where the parents/caretakers have had more than 3 prior reports of abuse and/or neglect. Another way that people can help is to convince the Medical Examiner’s Commission to participate in sudden unexplainable infant deaths. Law enforcement agencies should also include a drug testing component with the researching of child abuse cases. Law Enforcement and the Training Commission should band together in finding a suitable protocol for investigating child abuse cases. Law enforcement and Florida’s Drug Endangered Children Alliance should form together to enforce that illegal drugs in a household can be charged for child abuse. Within the investigation, the Department of Children and Families will help further the investigation to see the parents/caretakers history of cases against them to help pin point what should happen next in abuse cases. The state of Florida should increase funding for the Healthy Families Florida (a proven prevention program for abuse and/or neglect in children or families). Continued public awareness should be performed, education and drowning prevention seminars should be released, especially for parents with children in risk. When a parent/caregiver threatens to neglect or harm a child, the case should be considered ‘High-Risk’. Florida should also help fund more in the program called Coping with Crying, which helps parents understand the risk they hold by shaking a baby when it cries endlessly. The Department of Children and Families should be more consistent through the state and should review their procedures and policies to make sure they are as thorough in investigations. The state committee should inform more people of the importance in placing their children to sleep on their backs, American Academy of Pediatrics and Back to Sleep programs, suffocation during sleep also proves to be a high possibility of death.
Everyone needs to band together as a whole and prevent these tragedies from reoccurring. The children of Florida are dying from aggravated death just for crying, needing attention, of being involved in domestic violence. For example, a father of a 9 month old baby placed her in the bathtub while he was waiting for the water to fill. He went to lie down and fell fast asleep while the baby was still stranded in the bathtub for nearly half an hour. The father awoke, and found the baby floating in the bathtub with the water still running. He was charged with aggravated manslaughter. Another similar case is where a mother and her 11 year old child were living in their house, mother and father separated. The father came to the house trying to move back in but the mother wouldn't allow him. He then proceeded to shoot the mother and the child. Cause of outrage was his blood alcohol level, and the father had a history of alcohol abuse.
If parents or teenagers truly care about children in their area they need to follow the recommendations and make the proper procedures to help these helpless children, if no one does, then who will? This is a tragedy not only for the state of Florida, but for families in general. Contact the Florida Child Abuse Death Review with any questions concerning this matter, http://www.flcadr.org/.

Vitamins & Diet

When children are growing up parents continually tell them to eat healthier, eat their vegetables, and drink plenty of water and milk. Even if people follow what their parents say, they still end up needing more nutrients as they grow up. So, with teenagers being nearly adults, how do they know what they need to take? Or even why when there are so many choices to choose from?
A teenager’s personal situation with body problems, such as diseases or eye issues, affects how they choose which vitamins are the correct ones to take. Before making any judgments or alterations in your vitamin intake, one should always speak with their doctor or pharmaceutical representative. Remember; do not make any changes without doctor recommendation.

Vitamin A:
Helps your vision, promotes immunities, increases growth and development, and increases your red blood cell production.

Vitamin B
Helps regulate nerve cell activity, affects your mood, control amino acid excesses which can lead to heart disease, stroke, osteoporosis, and possibly Alzheimer’s disease.

Vitamin B6
Builds proteins, makes antibodies, hormones, red blood cell production, and helps your digestive system.

Vitamin B12
Makes red blood cells, maintains nervous system with protective coatings, and helps digestion. Regulates mood, sleep and appetite.

Vitamin C
Serves as an antioxidant that protects your body from heart disease and cancer.

Vitamin D
Maintains normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus, protects against brittle bones, and osteomalacia.

Vitamin E
Serves as an antioxidant, protects from cell damage, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and lowers blood pressure.

Vitamin K
Helps with blood clotting, produces proteins, and helps with strong bone development.

Sources:
Vitamin A
http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/vitaminA/index.html#function
Vitamin B
http://www.satisfied-mind.com/drugstore/B12.htm
Vitamin B6
http://www.shapefit.com/vitamin-b6.html
Vitamin B12
http://www.shapefit.com/vitamin-b12.html
Vitamin C
http://va.essortment.com/vitamincbenefi_rqrf.htm
Vitamin D
http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/982088787.html
Vitamin E
http://www.mamashealth.com/nutrition/vitamine.asp
Vitamin K
http://www.shapefit.com/vitamin-k.html

Life In The Fast Lane

Life in the fast lane, surely make you lose your mind. Life in the fast lane, everything all the time". He said, "Call the doctor. I think I'm gonna crash." "The doctors say he's comin', but you gotta pay him cash." They went rushin' down that freeway, messed around and got lost. They didn't know they were just dyin' to get off, and it was life in the fast lane. ‘Life in the Fast lane’ By ‘The Eagles’“The national amount of alcohol related deaths in 1998: females 3,642 and males 12,332. In the year 2000 that number drastically increased. Females increased to 3,838”, (5% increase), “and males amplified to 12,685”, (3% increase). “In Florida alone the number of alcohol related deaths in 1998 was 1,039. Then in 2000 the number rapidly increased to 1,277. That’s a 23% intensification.” (Statistics provided by MADD.com). Some of the deaths from alcohol can be quick and painless, but others can become very graphic.Mandy heard a phone ringing and didn’t want to get up at two in the morning, so she let the answering machine take the call. What she heard next took her breath away: Mandy heard the sheriff’s department telling her family that her sister, Misty, was in a car accident and to come to the hospital immediately. The wreck occurred just east of a beach. Mandy awoke her parents with frightening thoughts running through her head. Mandy and her parents listened again to the message, but it wasn’t the sheriff’s department, it was one of Misty’s friends, Shannon.
Shannon was behind Bryan, another one of Misty’s friends, when Shannon said she saw Bryan hit a curb and flip over the median with Misty in the rear seat of the car. The car flipped over a guard rail landing in a heavy marsh area. Misty was ejected from the rear side window of the car and landed in a large tree. Upon reaching consciousness, she fell from the tree and landed on the ground, which was very swampy, near her cell phone that was glowing, still active. Misty immediately called the police and tried to walk over to the wreck site. Misty could hear her boyfriend, David, moaning in pain from his immense wounds. She limped along, and then fell into a ditch filled with water up to her chest. Luckily she was nearer to the road, and a man driving by saw what happened. He stopped and helped her as he also called the police. When Misty got to the wreck site, David was trapped in a metal case of the car; Bryan was beneath him, barely alive. Bryan and David flipped over a bridge and Misty landed farthest from the original accident, atop a great tree. Misty was taken to the hospital, David was Bayflighted to another, more intensive, hospital, and Bryan was reported dead on arrival.Misty was diagnosed with a torn knee ligament, many scars, and numerous gashes on her side. Her right arm had broken tendons and skin torn away. Her boyfriend, David had his right side torn up, a punctured lung, and all ribs on his right side were broken except for one. He says “That rib, it’s for Misty.” Bryan’s cause of death was determined to be from the immense wounds he received and impact he felt from the crash. All of Bryan’s ribs were broken, which pierced both his lungs and over a short amount of time lead to suffocation.Misty has been gradually recovering after twenty eight hours in the hospital. David is still recovering after being in the more intense hopsital for close to six days. Bryan is resting in peace. The funeral was somber, but it gave a certain peace to everyone. Drunk driving is not a joke. Bryan, Misty, and David were all impaired and chose not to get a ride from someone sober. They usually got a ride home from the owner of the bar, but that time they didn’t. They thought it would be okay to drive. It wasn’t, and it ended with another person dead from the poisons of alcohol.