My brother sent me the link to this video that shares the stories of several young people effected by texting & driving. Some are still alive, some are not. I know I am guilty of doing this sometimes, though I’ve really made an effort to stop. However, after watching this for ten minutes, I’ve realized how stupid even one text is when you’re in the driver’s seat. I am an ortho/trauma nurse, I know what can happen. But we all like to believe things that happen to other people won’t happen to us…but these kids in the video are normal kids, and it happened to them. Please watch, it’s worth your time. <3

I just spent nearly an hour of my life on the phone, first with my doctor’s office and then with BCBS, repeating everything I told them in February. Let’s see if anything happens this time. What a waste…and what a shame that we can’t seem to move our country forward.

I am heading to the gym now to burn off some steam, to get the exercise I need, and to take care of myself. Preventative measures are more important now than ever, because dealing with insurance companies regarding a routine, healthy medical visit is impossible enough. I cannot imagine fighting it out with them over a major illness or injury. Yikes.

Today began another attempt to curb the spill, and I am anxiously awaiting the results of this one. I can only hope the results will be positive and successful for once. I am floored, flabbergasted, sad, worried. I don’t really think there are words for this situation. I wonder what the long term effects will be? Scary.

I believe that every child in America has the right to fresh, nutritious school meals, and that every family deserves real, honest, wholesome food. Too many people are being affected by what they eat. It’s time for a national revolution. America needs to stand up for better food!

You live in an amazing country full of inspirational people and you have the power to change things. With your help, we can get better food into homes, schools and communities all over America and give your kids a better future. Sign the petition to save America’s cooking skills and improve school food. It could be the most important thing you ever do for your family. America’s health needs you now!

America is plagued by obesity. This is a national issue, not so much a global issue. It was astounding to return home after spending several weeks in the UK, only to be quickly reminded that obesity is a raging problem here. You can almost forget about obesity due to lack of exposure to it in other places.  Jamie Oliver shared some footage collected at an elementary school in West Virginia that shows kids being fed pizza for breakfast (?!), followed by greasy chicken nuggets and french fries for lunch. He makes excellent points that the food revolution has to start now, and with the children. The future of America. First Lady, Michelle Obama, is also very in tune with the alarming childhood obesity epidemic. She has launched the Let’s Move campaign to bring attention to this rising problem in order to support parents in making healthier, more educated choices for their families. The philosophy:

Let’s Move will give parents the support they need, provide healthier food in schools, help our kids to be more physically active, and make healthy, affordable food available in every part of our country.

Join First Lady Michelle Obama, community leaders, teachers, doctors, nurses, moms and dads in a nationwide campaign to tackle the challenge of childhood obesity. Learn more and join us.

Both Michelle Obama & Jamie Oliver are onto something big. It’s called PREVENTION. And it needs to start at a young age. People tend to forget that if we make healthy choices now, there will be less need for corrective surgeries, blood pressure medications, and diabetic diets in the future. Prevention is much cheaper than correction or treatment, and it would greatly reduce the strain on healthcare. Talk about reform! We, as Americans, should take responsibility for ourselves: put down the cigarettes, stop eating ourselves to death, and engage in some regular form of physical activity. Jerry and I know how expensive it is to buy fresh and healthy foods at the grocery store. We know that it takes dedication to get up and get moving. We know that the common culture is based around potato chips, burgers, and fries. It’s easier to watch TV and chill on the couch than it is to run on the anti-pedestrian streets and sidewalks.  But it’s worth it. We only get one body and one chance at living the best life we possibly can.

I am inspired, and I hope you will be too.

The movie Stand and Deliver was based on his story, and I’ve been meaning to watch it one of these days. But, like blogging, things easily fall to the wayside with the end of a semester creeping in. Especially since I played & partied all weekend under the cherry blossoms. (Why does spring have to make it so hard to be productive? I just wanna frolic outside in the sun!) But I am making up for it this week. It’s crunch time!

Granted, this picture I am painting is naive (partially intended that way because it’s my imagination), because in the world we live in information can be bought & owned…remember that John Mayer song? And because we are human…it is impossible to be entirely impartial, and we’ll always break off into groups with similar ideas…it is human nature and a sociological function. However, I think we could all be a lot smarter about they way we absorb and use the facts around us…it scares me to think that people don’t think. If Glenn Beck or Obama says it, they just do it. And while I clearly favor one of those well-known figures, I do still use my brain to evaluate the motives, the ideas, and the motions set into action that come from him. Thinking critically does not mean I don’t like him, trust him, or support him. It means I am exercising a basic right, I am an educated individual, and I want to make good choices that will affect my life and the lives after mine in a positive way.

Watching Capitalism: A Love Story last night got the wheels turning in my head, and really did an excellent job of highlighting a lot of scary, crazy shit that is going on in America. Stuff that started years before I was even born…if these actions were in place then, one could argue I never had a chance to achieve that “American dream”. What, then, can we say for children today, those being born, and those not yet conceived? The economy is in bad shape, and no matter how much people try to not focus on money, it is the backbone of a civilization. You cannot have cities, entertainment, or any abundance of food without money. Money, trade, and free time led the industrial revolution, and remains what molds the world’s priority list today, whether wealth be calculated in dollars, chickens, or acres.

Back to my issue with labels…I suppose I am a moderate, because I can see good on both sides, and I can see corruption on both sides. But the world is too vast to be viewed in only two sides. However, we’ve been crippled by two main party labels in America, and it’s become as ridiculous as rooting for opposing football teams. Certain networks are more hell-bent on this, and it makes me sick to my stomach. I like to think people can be reminded how to think for themselves, that this disease can be slowly righted, slowly nursed back to some state of mental health. But reading sad articles like this one today makes me think it might never happen.

Still, I am an optimist…and perhaps a rambling one.

By now you’ve most likely heard all about it — the anti-choice group Focus on the Family is spending millions to run an ad during the Super Bowl featuring football player Tim Tebow and his mom talking about a deeply personal medical decision she made years ago. She decided to continue her pregnancy against medical advice, due to what had been diagnosed as a high-risk pregnancy.

People have been asking us at Planned Parenthood what we think about the ad and Mrs. Tebow’s decision. It’s simple. Planned Parenthood respects the right of every woman to make important medical decisions for herself.

Mrs. Tebow weighed medical and moral considerations and decided what was right for her. She made her choice in private, and without government interference. That’s exactly what we want every woman to be able to do.

The truth is, the Tebows’ experience is completely consistent with what Planned Parenthood doctors and nurses have learned from the millions of women they’ve served over nearly a century. Women take decisions about their health very seriously. They consider their doctors’ advice, they talk with their loved ones and people they trust, including religious leaders, and they carefully weigh all considerations before making the best decision for themselves and their families.

That’s the way it should be. And that should be our shared goal — on Super Bowl Sunday and every day.

I couldn’t agree more. The end.

Here’s a picture of me on my first day of school, just like my mom used to take of us every year <3

I always feel some sort of urge to spill words, memories, and thoughts on the closing chapter  about this very time each year. Like I need some physical documentation somewhere, lest I ever forget any events that happened in a certain year, & as a giving of thanks to a deserving family of days, weeks, & months that made up a year of my existence. Either way, I shall share a few personal highlights here, though I have been a lazy, bad blogger for most of the year. Here’s a small snapshot of my 2009:

~Traveled the globe, from Ft. Lauderdale in March, New Orleans in April, Savannah & Charleston to celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary in May, ventured to San Antonio in June to co-host a baby (!) shower for my best friend, July offered a beautiful couple of weeks to drink in London & roam around England (Liverpool!York!Durham!The Lake District!), spent some time in the Smoky Mountains with family over Labor Day weekend & again for Thanksgiving, returned to TX in September to meet the baby boy that my BFF birthed, and finally experienced Las Vegas in October. Yeah! Long live the travel bug!

~Celebrated my honey’s milestone birthday, as he entered his 40s. I love him more & more each year, and 2009 set the bar high. <3

~Witnessed the lives of my best girls each grow by one – Felicia welcomed her son Robert Carlisle Goodman Floyd into the world in Septemer, and Kelly married her love Jeremy in November. Beautiful babies were also brought into the lives of my good friends Lisa, Sarah, & Christy, when Tripp, Amelia, & Isabella were born happy & healthy.

~Successfully trained with the Couch to 5K app on my iPod & completed my first 5K on October for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Loved it! Glad to welcome running back into my life after drifting apart, and I look forward to pushing myself through many more miles & fitness goals in 2010!

~Became the proud owner of a spiffy new Amazon Kindle, which is hands-down an all-time favorite toy. It’s changed my reading life forever, and to date I’ve completed 5 books since it was gifted to me from J & my mom just before Thanksgiving.

~Officially made the commitment to further my career & education by going back to school in pursuit of my BSN, and got everything in place to start classes on the seventh day of the new year.

~Celebrated a milestone birthday of my own by making the transition from early 20s to mid 20s with the arrival of my 25th birthday. Strange feeling to graduate to an entirely new age bracket in the world of surveys, and to have someone point out that you’re a quarter of a century old (har har). But, 25 feels fine & I am happy to rock&roll on!

~Impressively witnessed my little brother declare himself PreMed, transfer to UGA, and gracefully transition into a full-fledged university student, live on his own, learn to clean, wash, & to cook some serious food. Go you!

~Watched my baby brother grow by leaps & bounds, become a great guitar player in an awesome band, and turn into a driver with a license. Can’t believe he’s more man than boy these days!

~Witnessed a strong marriage bond further as my parents weathered an extremely dry economic year through their self-employment struggles in a city that suddenly stopped building houses. While making smart choices & cutting corners where needed, they also maintained a grip on hope, love, reality, and life – very effectively as to keep calm & carry on. They’re amazing. <3

~Participated in a community-wide curbside recycling program that unfolded into a successful bi-monthly pickup schedule after helping to collect pledges from neighbors last year through the VNA. Also in the process of switching all our home lighting to fluorescent, energy efficient bulbs and making our lives more green.

~Supported our President through his first year, as he faced & still faces much negative opposition that tries to spotlight the strife, rather than the real issues at hand. Looking forward to seeing some changes in healthcare as someone who is surrounded & involved firsthand in it daily. Hoping improvements for education are next, and proud to be part of a household that upholds the importance & necessity of these two cornerstones of humanity.

~Continued my education through my career at MCCG, and worked extra hard as my floor grew big enough to splint into two complete levels of care. Thankful for my good job in a time where many people cannot find a job at all.

~Learned to make really good half-sweet tea, memorized the recipe & put my own spin on it! I now make it often, and get compliments regularly. This is a big deal for a Georgia girl, ha ha.

~Thankful for all the days before, after, & in between the ones noted above, and for another year of health, happiness, and love.

Goodbye, 2009. Welcome 2010 – may you be a beautiful year of prosperity, happiness, and adventure. Happy New Year to you & yours!