Fractal

My mother refused to eat chicken because when she was a kid, she used to see her mother grabbing chickens in the back yard, wringing their necks, and fixing them up for dinner. My mother had to help her mother pluck the feathers off them before they got cooked. Turned her off chicken majorly...

I read an article bemoaning the fact that not enough young teens and pre-teens are getting the HPV vaccine that protects them against cancers caused by the sexually transmitted virus. According to a survey done by CDC, in 2013, only 57% of girls and 36% of boys ages 13 - 17 had received one or more doses of the vaccine (three doses are recommended). Supposedly, with girls in particular, if they get one or more doses by their 13th birthday, 91% of them would be (somewhat) protected from cancers caused by this virus. Apparently the biggest obstacles to getting the kids vaccinated is that pediatricians aren't pushing the vaccines and / or parents are objecting that their children are not sexually active. My kids are grown, so I don't personally have to wrestle with this dilemma, but it's a big one... While I'm not totally anti-vaccination, I think I'd need a little more convincing on this one.

I think research such as this is extremely encouraging. It opens up the possibility that one day (perhaps in the not too distant future) there may be help for those who are developing dementia. In the meantime, it is a subject I would watch closely.

What I'm curious about is what was the rationale behind the behavior? I wonder what this kid was thinking. Did he think he was going to get high? Of course, now that he's dead, we'll never know.

So many of you have made excellent points. I fully agree with Racoon's rhyming suggestions, and that's a technique that's served me well over the years. Arissa, I often mix up my kids' names and to my chagrin, I find myself calling my son by my brother's name more times than I care to admit. Like Deepwater6, I do a lot of puzzles hoping it will help keep my mind sharp --- and lately, I've taken to watching Jeopardy, which I have to admit, makes me feel like a total frikken idiot... My developmentally disabled brother was recently diagnosed with (vascular) dementia / brain atrophy and my very aged mother has it, too. It scares the living daylights out of me.

I remember when my kids were growing up, I did not have cable TV. It was a choice I made. When they complained, I told them something to the effect that "free" TV was bad enough and I wasn't going to pay good money so they could watch another few dozen of channels of crap.... (Can you tell I was totally anti-television?!!) Of course, they watched crap TV --- er, I mean cable --- at friends' houses, so it's not like they were never exposed. As an aside, I never let my kids have toy guns or knives, either. I know, I know.... totally unrealistic these days.

Is it possible she doesn't want to form friendships because she knows once she gets her Masters she'll be leaving that city and she doesn't want to get attached emotionally? If not, perhaps she could start with simply suggesting to a classmate they go out for coffee after class or some similar non-threatening activity. At least she'd have a little social interaction...

I almost choked on my coffee this morning when I came across a news story on the internet about a teenage boy who died from an overdose of caffeine. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/teens-death-by-caffeine-highlights-deadly-risk-of-common-supplement/ Apparently you can buy pure caffeine powder online -- something I never heard of. According to the article, just one teaspoon of the stuff equals the caffeine found in 50 Red Bulls and if taken all at once results in cardiac arrhythmia and seizures, which is what happened to this kid. Oy vey!

I started a "scheduled on the calendar" walking routine of 20 minutes per day and actually surprised myself at how easy it was to implement, once I'd scheduled it! Under the Rose, I also started parking further away every time I go to a store. You're right -- every little bit helps.

I think the most important thing is to set a schedule and stick with it. Actually write it down on your calendar, just like you would any appointment, and honor it as it is an appointment with yourself. I agree with Thinking, you can break it down to 15 minute segments, if that works better for you.

My brother "H" will be going in for an all-day psychoneurological assessment in early July. While I want to know what's really going on with him, I am also dreading the potential diagnosis of dementia. Thinking, emotionally, my brother is young for his age. Physically, not so much. And mentally? Apparently not at all....

Respectfully, I don't think these possible risk factors necessarily apply to the mentally retarded population in general, or to my brother in particular. "H" is --- or used to be, prior to his fairly recent decline -- an easygoing, affable, sociable gentleman who is well liked by staff and fellow residents of his group home and sheltered workshop. He is not alone, nor is he lonely. He does not smoke (or drink, for that matter). His primary care physician told me that it appears that the mentally retarded population ages faster than the normal population, but he couldn't tell me why.

My 65 year old brother is mentally retarded with an IQ between 50-90 (if I recall correctly). His primary care physician, house supervisor (he lives in a group home) and psychiatrist all suspect he has dementia, and he is scheduled for a full-day testing session next month. I have tried to do some research on this subject but see no studies that have been done more recently than the mid to late 1990s. I am having trouble wrapping my mind around the possibility that my brother, who's not much older than me, has dementia. While I admit he seems to be aging "faster" than I, I don't understand why this is so. Why would a mentally retarded individual be at more risk for developing dementia than a similarly-aged "normal" individual?

I can't even imagine a life without writing. Maybe that's because I have been keeping a handwritten journal for decades. I like choosing different colored pens to record my daily thoughts. I also sketch in these journals. I wonder what kind of disservice we are doing to our children, particularly the artistic, creative ones, by denying them the opportunity to learn cursive. I don't know about anyone else, but I can retain information better when I write out the words rather than keyboard them in.

From some preliminary research I've gathered on the web, there seem to be many valid reasons for teaching cursive in schools. I've read that cursive helps kid develop motor skills, for one thing. Maybe even more important, some research suggests learning cursive is very beneficial for kids with dyslexia, and can even decrease their dyslexic tendencies.