Boy Scout Popcorn For Sale

Am I crazy or am I crazy? As if I don't already have a lot on my plate, I volunteered to be the den mother for my son's Tiger cub scouts this year. Yeah, the den meetings are only once-a-week, but I don't simply attend with my son; I also have to facilitate the meetings, plan for and coordinate their activities week after week and attend meetings of the planning committee.

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Scouting is powered by popcorn sales. Every year, we have to sell certain amount of popcorn to support our scouts. And every year, we've been buying these popcorn ourselves. I'm not the best salesperson; no, I am a horrible salesperson. I am not very good with harassing people into buying boy scout popcorn (or anything, really). It doesn't help that I work in medical clinics where my encounters are with the elderly and chronically ill patients. It won't be ethical if I ask them to buy popcorn in exchange for medication samples. Or is it?

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Last year, we only had one scout in our family. We bought $300 worth of popcorn. This year with both of

Class reunion: ready or not!

I knew it's going to be just a matter of time before someone would post a photo of me online -- that photo of me, with my thick unruly hair -- a photo in high school that I would much rather forget.

*****

Thanks to online social networks, I'm now able to see photos, and read "status" of old flames, friends, acquaintances and even arch-rivals. My curiosity has led me to find out who my old boyfriend is married to; that the unattractive, skinny, acne-ridden boy who pursued me and I constantly avoided is now a wealthy successful businessman; that the overweight girl that I constantly picked on became a TV commercial model.

*****

Everyone I knew back then would describe me as loud and obnoxious. Just like any teen, I wanted to be

The Nurse Practitioner

So I wrote so much about NP's or nurse practitioners but haven't really explained what they are. I'm sure in your navigation of the healthcare system in the US, you have already bumped into Nurse Practitioners. Maybe there was a time that you went to see your family doctor and it was a NP who came into your exam room and checked up on you. Or that last trip to the ER, you were treated by someone with the title "NP" after their name instead of "MD". Or when you woke up in the hospital, you were treated by a NP.

Nursing in the US has a long history and it's still evolving. Most nurses are Registered Nurses (RNs) who have an Associate's Degree or a Bachelor's Degree in Nursing. There are also licensed practical nurses (LPNs) or licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) who have one year of nursing training in vocational or technical schools or community colleges, who work under the direction of physicians and RNs.

So what are NPs or Nurse Practitioners? NPs are advanced practice nurses. They have graduate, advanced education and clinical training beyond their RN preparation. Most have master's degrees and many have doctorates.

Another RN vs NP job description

When I first came to the US, I worked in a nursing home as a Registered Nurse. As the RN on the floor, I usually had about 20 to 30 elderly patients to take care of, with four to six certified nursing assistants or CNAs to help me.
While my primary duties were patient assessment and medication administration, I also had to delegate the task of bathing, grooming and feeding of patients to my CNA's. Like any other health care facility, it was not uncommon for us to be understaffed. In fact, there were many days that I ony had two CNA's to help me with thirty patients! So, on top of my professional nurse duties, yes, I also had to clean up patients, give them baths, wipe their bottoms and change their diapers.

Islam is not the enemy

As we remember 911, let us keep in mind that Islam is not the enemy. We are not at war with Islam.




Much controversy has hovered around the mosque planned to be built close to ground zero. And most recently, a Christian pastor of a non-denominational church has threatened to perform a public burning of the Muslim's Holy Book of Quran. It is one thing to burn books you do not care about, privately in your own backyard. But to make a public spectacle about it makes it a form of protest. In this case, against Islam, a religious faith the Pastor hardly knows anything about.



There is no denying that there is a growing anti-Muslim sentiment in the US.

Summer in Michigan

Summer days are dwindling down fast. Daylight is getting shorter. Mornings are cooler. Trees are changing colors. While I look forward to the kids going back to school (and saving me some money for childcare), I'm not really looking forward to going back to a hectic schedule- school, work, driving the kids for after-school extra-curricular activities, doing home work and school projects.




No, I'm not ready to say goodbye to summer. But we have a ton of memories to look back to: fishing, catching frogs, running barefoot on the lawn, running through the neighbor's water sprinkler, catching fireflies at night, blowing dandelions, playing hide and seek, strolling at the beach, digging our toes in the sand, throwing frisbees, watching fireworks, riding the ferris wheel, grilling hotdogs and burgers, reading a book under the tree, taking a nap in the hammock, swinging high on the swing, camping and sleeping in a tent,