Author: annemariedemyen

Wife, mother, grandmother dogmother - lover of nature, peace and tranquility. RETIRED. Life is good!

October 29th – Paternity Leave

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Today’s news story, coming from CTV News, can be found here. This story touches on the subject of paternity leave.

Joe Rogan, who works for Spotify, posted a tweet bashing US Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, for taking six months of paternity leave to care for his newborn twins. Joe Lonsdale, co-founder of Palentir Technologies Inc., responded by calling any man “in an important position” who took six months of paternity leave “a loser”. He went on to say that “In the old days, men had babies and worked harder to provide for them…”

IN MY VIEW:

  • Joe Rogan and Joe Lonsdale are in no position to judge anyone for how they use legitimate employment benefits or how they should prioritize their career and their family.
  • Joe Lonsdale is in no position to decide if one’s ‘position’ is important or not. If you are employed, it is because what you do is important enough to warrant a position.
  • “In the old days, men had babies and worked harder to provide for them…” In the ‘old days’ a lot of men worked at home – with their wives. (Ie Family farms, family businesses with living quarters). Even those who worked out of the home, did not face the commuting times that exist today or the amount of travel away from home that is part of employment nowadays.
  • Many fathers today are far more hands on than they were years ago and many mothers are employed outside of the home. It makes sense for both parents to spend as much time as possible with their newborn.
  • As wonderful as infants are, and parenting is in general, transitioning from being a couple to being a family is challenging. A challenge that has often ended in divorce court. If a few months of paternity leave helps to make this transition successful, it would be beneficial to the child, the parents, their community, and society in general.
  • Work to live, do not live to work. Golden advice that becomes more obvious as life goes on.

That is it for today, folks! As always, feel free to comment below. You don’t have to agree with me to comment, but I will appreciate it if you keep it respectful.

Son Dan enjoying some time with his son Cason.

Thanks care and have a great day! 💞

October 28th – Muscle Cramps

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

This morning I went searching for information on muscle cramps and it led me to an interesting news story, here.

Most people suffer occasional, if not frequent muscle cramps. I have certainly had my share, so I am familiar with that excruciating “kill me now!” pain that they cause. Most of my muscle cramps affect my toes or my calf muscles. My previous boss would get cramps in his hands that looked brutally painful. My husband Dan generally experiences his worst cramps in his thigh muscles.

Last night, Dan’s right thigh muscle cramped. I heard him let out a moan/groan/scream cuss word. By the time I got to the kitchen, he was clutching the back of a chair. By his facial expression, I was convinced that he was suffering a heart attack. Quite possibly one that could turn fatal at any moment. Through clutched teeth, he mumbled that he had a cramp in his thigh.

Having no idea what I could do to help, without risking making the situation worse, I started to gently massage his thigh. The muscle felt like twisted steel rope. The pain went on, and on, and ON! I don’t know how long it lasted, but it seemed to go on for ages. Gradually the cramp eased to the point where Dan could move. He slowly and cautiously walked (shuffled) across the kitchen and livingroom until the pain ramped down to a dull ache.

This morning, I set out to determine what could be done to diminish the frequency, severity, and duration of muscle cramps before one of us lost a toe or a leg to one of these insidious events. I expected to read about the prevention of dehydration, or the need to take supplements such as magnesium or calcium. I did not know what, or if, I would find anything to ease a cramp that was already in progress.

Amazingly, I found a number of articles, from credible sources that suggested PICKLE JUICE as a quick and effective means for releasing a muscle cramps. While a number of theories have been tested as to how pickle juice alleviates muscle cramps, most research that I came across pointed to the same conclusion. If one is suffering from a severe muscle cramp, tossing back a couple of ounces of pickle juice triggers a reflex in the back of one’s throat that shuts down the misfiring of neurons in muscles throughout the body, effectively releasing the muscle cramp.

Apparently this is not news to a lot of athletes, who have been using pickle juice to ease muscle cramps for years – and who totally swear by it.

Personally, I have not tried it – yet! But the next time Dan gets a muscle cramps – I will be ready. Maybe I will tell him that it is vodka, just in case he is not into the whole pickle juice experiment. 😏

They are even Hungarian pickles! 👍

That is my news for today! If anyone has tried pickle juice as a muscle relaxant, I would love to hear about the results in the comment section below. 😊

Take care and have a great day! 💞

October 27th – Parenting

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Today’s news story, found here, is on a subject that I did not expect to touch on this month. But here it is and well worth the time to read it.

This article from Today’s Parent magazine was written by an actual mother struggling to get her child introduced to a variety of foods. It could have been written by any mother getting a child to do, or not do, anything over the course of a regular day. That is what makes it such a refreshing, enjoyable, and valuable article.

As a young mother, I read articles and entire books that promised perfect parenting. I was a mother for about two days before I realized that my children were obviously not perfect. They were children – adorable, precious, unique little human beings who had obviously not read any of these articles or books. Likewise, and just as obviously, these articles and books were not written by anyone who had ever raised, or seen, an actual child.

My Three – Mark, Jen, & Dan

I have checked out a few parenting articles in recent years, since becoming a grandparent. While the articles today still tend to spew the ‘one size fits all’ rules for perfect parenting, they seem to have gotten more obnoxious over the years. Many push young parents to embrace their updated parenting skills while rejecting any ‘well-meaning’ advice from grandparents or like. Seriously 😒

If you are, or are about to become a parent, chances are you will read up on the subject. Here are a few of my own personal tips on parenting – take them or leave them, ignore them at your own risk. ☺️

  • Do not believe everything you read – if it sounds wrong, it probably is.
  • Every child is unique – and every grandchild is unique. They are meant to be that way. Do not frustrate yourself or them by trying to shape them into something they are not. 🙄
  • What works once for one child, will not necessarily, or generally, work for another child, or even the same child.
  • Worry less. Never worry about what may or may not worry your child. If it is really a problem for them, you will know. If it isn’t a problem, don’t create one.
  • Good parenting doesn’t have to be serious to work. Have fun! It might not seem like fun when your little one is power puking across the Christmas tree, or shooting their new panties up into a neighbour’s tree, or putting a dead hamster on your pillow, but someday those times will be priceless memories (to be recounted at graduations and weddings). Then, if you are very fortunate, you will graduate to grandparenting!
Granddaughter Maddy

That is it for today! Take care and have a great day!💞

October 26th – Camp Marjorie

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

These days, the  news in Regina features articles such as this one found in the Regina Leader Post.

Upwards of a  hundred nylon tents have been set up in a small park at the centre of town  to shelter the homeless in our city.    Sleeping bags, food and other necessities have been donated and secured.  Kitchen areas  and  port-a-potties have been set up.   A windbreak has been built to surround this make-shift community.   Those who are homeless continue to arrive at  ‘Camp Marjorie’ and the camp expands to meet the growing need.

I certainly applaud the efforts of the volunteer organizers and the community groups who have worked to provide assistance for the homeless in our city.   But, this is Regina, Saskatchewan and this is the end of October.   Our temperature is drifting above and below freezing.   Frigid winds whipped through Regina yesterday, followed by rain.    Snow is in the forecast.  I cannot imagine nylon tents supporting the considerable weight of  snow – or giving much protection from the wind and the rain for that matter.

‘Camp Marjorie’ is not a permanent solution for the homeless crisis in Regina, but it is bringing much needed attention to the situation.    The local police and fire department are attending regularly, doing what it is within their jurisdictions to do.   Social service care workers are attending and doing what they can to resolve issues – ma y of which have been created by their government employers.   Some of the needy have been placed in hotels temporarily , while permanent arrangements are being made.   Others wait.

Housing and feeding the vulnerable  in our community is a start – and it is a good start.  But hopefully this is just the start. There is so much that needs to be addressed before our homeless can experience the security and quality of life that they deserve.    There are so many support programs that would provide a hand up to those who have virtually nothing and nowhere to go. And there are those who are, and will always be, incapable of proving for themselves. Our city and our province need to do better to help those who are in need, regardless.

‘Camp Marjorie’ in Core Community Parker

That is my sad, but hopeful, news story of the day.

Take care and have a great day. 💞

October 25th – Breaking News in 1955

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Being at a loss for anything newsworthy today, I flashed back to the news headlines of 1955. See here.

1955 was a very prolific year, news wise. According to The People’s History website, these were some of the top headlines.

  • The St. Laurence Seaway opens
  • Rosa Parks is arrested for refusing to give up her bus seat for a white passenger
  • The first McDonald’s was erected
  • TV dinners, featuring fish sticks, went to market
  • James Dean killed in auto accident in California
  • Coca Cola, previously available in bottles only, was now sold in cans
  • The average minimum wage in the USA reached $1.00 per hour
  • 7 out of 10 US families owned a car
  • USS Nautilus, the first nuclear powered submarine, was launched
  • The original Salk polio vaccine was introduced
  • The Mickey Mouse Club debuted
  • California Disneyland opened
  • The Baghdad Pact was formed to unite the Middle East
  • The Warsaw Pact was formed to unite eight Communist countries
  • USA begins involvement in the Vietnam conflict
  • Great Britain declared a State of Emergency due to National Rail Strike
  • Great Britain also affected by winter storms causing road and rail problems for food and medical supplies deliveries
  • Inventions of 1955: Pocket transistor radios, atomically generated power, Hovercraft, Lego, Velcro, polyurethane

1955 saw Rock and Roll hit a frenetic pace with the likes of Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and the Platters. Families gathered around their television sets to watch the debut of shows like Gunsmoke, Lassie, and The Lone Ranger. Theatres were packed for the showing of hits such as Oklahoma, Rebel Without a Cause, To Catch a Thief, and The Seven Year Itch.

1955 celebrated the arrival of Whoopi Goldberg, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Bruce Willis, Kris Jenner and Yours Truly. That is right, my mother gave birth to me in July 1955 as the parish priest filled the hospital with his live and apparently very loud rendition of Bill Haley’s ‘Rock Around The Clock’ – the Number One hit in the USA at the time.

Me & my Mom

That’s it for today, folks!

Take care and have a great evening! 💞

October 24th – The Cost of Food

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Today’s news story, found here, relates to the ever rising cost of food. The gist of this article, is that the federal government is supposedly underestimating inflation in Canada by how they track the cost of groceries.

The federal government determines their average cost for specific products based on information received from three national grocery chains on a regular basis and compares it to previous data reported from the same chains. Melanie Morrison of Better Cart Analytics in Saskatoon, Sask. is saying that this is not as effective as the system that her company uses. Better Cart Analytics tracks product at thousands of chains and independents across the country.

Since most people do their shopping at larger chain outlets, I am not sure how including pricing from smaller, independent outlets or specialty shops would be any more accurate. The only thing this article seems to show is that the large national chains are not being as affected by inflation as the independent outlets – based on their rate of inflation.

One thing that does seem to be obvious, is that the cost of groceries are increasing and that is not good news for a lot of people.

Food cost is a major part of every household budget.  Fortunately,  it is also one of the most flexible. There is room for improvement in almost everyone’s shopping habits. Here are a few tips for grocery shopping that we have found to help keep our food budget in line.

  • Compare pricing for products sold in bulk and/or smaller packaging. We have at least one chain here that often sells larger size (bulk) packages at a higher price per unit than the price per unit of smaller packages. (Especially meat but other products as well).
  • Compare displays of same product. This same chain will often have a large display of chicken breasts, thighs or wings at a high price. Follow the path that most shoppers take and you will find another display – exactly the same packaging and best before date – at a much lower price
  • Check discount pricing compared to regular pricing. I have seen slightly damaged goods go on sale for higher than the same regular priced goods. (Not just at food stores)
  • Do the math Two for $5.00 instead of One for $2.00 is never a good deal but stores will offer it.
  • Check package weights Some chains sell entire displays of product (especially cheese) at so much per package. The weight is shown on the package and can vary substantially. I don’t check every package, but I no longer grab the first one I see.
  • Note the price of products (Dan is much better at this than I am) and make sure it rings in at the correct price. Most stores have a generous policy if an item rings in higher than it should – and it happens frequently!
  • Check product for damage – especially, fruit, vegetables, and eggs. There is no point in spending top dollar on poor quality product.

Of course, there are countless other ways to save money when it comes to food costs – watching sales fliers for good deals, buying ‘in season’, avoiding wasteful food habits, cooking tasty and cost conscious soups, casseroles, and stews, and avoiding impulse buying.

I know it is really hard to revise one’s shopping habits when one is working, raising a family, or just dealing with life’s issues. But, even small changes can make a big difference to one’s food budget. After a while, the only thing you notice is the money you save.

That is it for today! On a personal note …

Saving money for the things that matter – Happy 3rd Birthday, Cason!

Take care and have a great evening! 💞

October 23 – Elephant Evolution

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

My  news story of the day comes from CBC News.  It is a piece about elephants and being a lifetime elephant fan, I naturally had to check it out.

Unfortunately this story turned out to be sad and shocking.

The first shock came from how fast elephants are evolving in some areas.  Elephants in Mozambique are rapidly losing the beautiful tusks that they have historically used to dig for water, strip barks from trees for food, and joust with other elephants.  These tuskless animals are all females and they now make up two-thirds of live elephant births in that area of the world.

The second shock is that, the reason  this elephant evolution became necessary, was to avoid extinction at the hands of  illegal ivory hunters.  These hunters were decimating the elephant population in Mozambique to finance both sides of a war effort there.

The third shock was a little side note.  When authorities in Sri Lanka seized a massive amount of ivory tusks from these illegal elephant hunts, they ultimately destroyed them!   I cannot believe they could not be turned over to some historical agency to be preserved or  sold  for a legitimate purpose.  The funds from such sales could have provided financial help (medical assistance, food, housing, etc) for people in Mozambique.  Surely that  would have been far better than just destroying these tusks!

Altogether a sad news story today.   It is hard to imagine that humans can be so greedy, bloodthirsty,  and destructive.   It makes one wonder what else the warmongers around the globe are destroying.  Obviously,  countless innocent human victims are just the beginning.

That is it for today! Take care, take care of each other and our vulnerable animal population, and have a great day. 💞

October 22nd – Fractions

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Today’s news story was just too good to pass up. 😲 Sometime in the 1980’s, fast-food chain A&W introduced a 1/3 Pounder to compete with the McDonald’s 1/4 Pounder. Selling it at the same price as McDonald’s was selling their smaller burger, they thought it should be a sure winner! It was not.

Decades later, they decided to figure out where they had gone wrong with their genius marketing promotion. They used focus groups to find the answer to their dilemna. The focus groups got right to the heart of the problem. 50% of the geniuses in their focus groups believed A & W was ripping them off because they thought 1/4 pound was larger than 1/3 pound. Seriously?

If focus groups are an accurate representation of the general population, we are in some trouble.

In all of my sixty-six years (two thirds of a century there abouts), I have run across one person who had zero concept of fractions. He honestly had no idea how to cut a pie in half or how far to go if I told him that a certain shop was half a block away. He just could not wrap his head around fractions.

The rest of the people I have know, could tell the difference between 1/2 , 1/4, and 1/3 by the time they were three. Some struggled with adding 3/16ths to 5/32nds, but how often does that come up outside of the construction industry?

I could possibly understand if these focus groups were twenty year olds from Canada (where we use the metric system a good part of the time), but these were Americans. They must have been taught fractions in school. What is the deal?

Anyway, to turn this promotion debacle around, A&W has decided to offer a limited time 3/9 Pound Burger. If sold out, one can buy a 2/6 Pound Burger for the same time.

I may be wrong, but I think that half of their customers may flock to Burger King to avoid the math madness.

Prim & Maddy – long before the math controversy made headlines 💞

That is it for today! Take care and have a great one! 💞

October 21 – Shortages

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Today, the news story that caught my attention comes from Bloomberg.com.    In this article, food shortages are discussed at length.

According to this article, the three main forces driving these shortages are labour shortages at food processing plants, transportation issues/getting products to store shelves, and hoarding by consumers.

I have seen a number of articles discussing goods shortages, gas and oil shortages, and the like.  They go into detail about how and why these shortage occur, how long these shortages will last, etc.    Most seem to suggest that they will, in time, return to pre-covid supply levels.

I can only speak for how things are in Canada, specifically in Saskatchewan.   So far, we have had limited shortages and not so limited price hikes – which of course are most detrimental to those who can least afford them.

In my view…  We need to adapt permanently! – personally as well as retailers.   In Canada we waste an obscene amount of food, product, and fuel.   Suppliers encourage this waste by their packaging and by their promotions.

There are some things that Dan and I have done for ages.  When it comes to vehicles, furniture, appliances, electronics and the like – we do not buy, or trade up, unless we have to and we do everything possible to keep such things out of the landfill.  

Mother-in-law’s rocker that Jen reupholstered. (I love this chair – I live in this chair 💞)

Since this pandemic started and I retired, we have gotten way better at being purposefully less wasteful. A number of the things we do now –

  • We shop way less frequently – saving gas, wear and tear on our vehicle and avoiding a lot of impulse buys – food and otherwise
  • We are getting way better at watching expiry dates and using up food before it gets tossed
  • We are way better at using our leftovers
  • We take better care with our food – preparing vegetables before putting away helps keep them fresh longer. Freezer packing our meat in usable portions before storing in the freezer also helps.
  • Buying condiments, etc. in smaller bottles so they get used up before being tossed out
  • We did way better at using and processing (for later use) our garden produce this year
  • Using REAL dishes instead of paper plates (mostly).
  • We are doing way more to weather-proof our house this fall to save on energy and to save my lungs and sinuses from the effects of forced air heating this winter
  • Buying better quality clothing and home linens – less often!
  • Using rain barrels to water our garden this summer
  • Giving grandkids money for gifts in lieu of ‘things’ that they may or may not need or use. Especially now that they are getting older, they would rather have the money to do something that they will enjoy.

It is little things – but they all help. It definitely helps with me being home all of the time, especially when Dan has days off. We have time to get things done together. That is not a luxury that everyone has. But if everyone who could, did a bit more it would take the pressure off of supply chains and make life a bit easier for others. We could actually be helping instead of hoarding.

We don’t really do that much, it doesn’t seem like that much, but I cringe to think of how wasteful we were before the pandemic.

Retailers could also do so much more to help control waste – especially food stores. Some perishables you simply cannot purchase in smaller quantities (like Bok Choy) or they are price prohibitive in smaller quantities. Many current promotions are only for quantities of two to four units at a time. Anything perishable – from salad dressing, to crackers, to cereal is impractical purchased in multiples for a small household. But, the price per single unit is rediculous, compared to the multiples price.

That’s it for today! My views were rather wordy compared to my news, but if you got this far ‘Thanks for listening!’

Take care and have a great day! 💞

October 20th – Full Moon

by annemariedemyen, posted in News & Views - October 2021

Today’s news story was an easy choice. As I have said in the past, I am no expert when it comes to astrology in general. I am however somewhat of an expert when it comes to the chaos and drama of a full-moon.

Full Moon

Personally, I become a walking disaster to anything mechanical or electronic during a full moon. Copiers jam, random bits and pieces fly off of my vehicle, radios and televisions go silent as I pass by, and computers cringe when I enter a room. I do not understand why. I just know this is how it is. 😟

I am hardly the only one affected by full moons. Over the years, I have dealt with the teary, the weary, the cranky, and the outright idiocy of others in the light of the full-moon. Years ago, I worked the night shift at a small motel and quickly learned that the full moon would bring out the weirdness in many – and for whatever reason, many of the weirder would get an overwhelming urge to strip down in front of me. They were all harmless but I did have the police on speed dial – just because. 😳

The full moon today, is promising to be an exception! For some time now we have been bumbling and fumbling under the influence of SIX planets being in retrograde. This full moon marks the ending of retrograde cycles for four of these planets – Jupiter, Mercury, Pluto, and Saturn. Definitely an ending that many are ready for. In retrograde, each of these planets are troublesome in their own way. Jupiter retrograde brings hard work without expectation. 😟 Mercury in retrograde brings difficulty to travel, communications, and technology. 🥺 Saturn, always known as the taskmaster, goes karmic in retrograde. 😧 Pluto in retrograde brings out hidden energies of the subconscious mind, power dynamics, control issues, and structural shifts. 😳 Anything that marks the end of that sh–show has to be a good thing!

The two planets that are still in retrograde, Neptune (until December 1st) and Uranus (until January 19th), are benign enough. Neptune highlights honesty. In retrograde one tends to see themselves and those around us as we truly are. 😇 Uranus in retrograde brings confidence and calm. 🤗 Neptune and Uranus have obviously been holding us together for the past few months so they should positively shine now that the troublemakers have turned around.

There were a number of interesting and informative articles regarding the current full moon to be found online. I chose the one that I did because it presents many options for how to make the best of this day. Any good day can be made better and any bad day can be made tolerable, with the right attitude and effort. This article would help anyone to do just that. 💞

Playing Peek a Boo with a full moon.

That is it for today. Time to go turn my life around while the planets are in my favour. Take care and have a great day! 💞