Our Break Room

Generally I don’t like to travel during the Summer months as there are so many things to attend or participate in during that time.. Grandchildren’s sports events, BBQ’s with family and friends, weddings, graduations…. you know, you’ve been there I’m sure.

My dad and step-mom visit during the Summer months and as they are getting up in age the time spent with them is more precious than ever. With their visits usually comes more family get-togethers with out of town siblings visiting as well. It’s just one party after another…

Fall however is a different story. Kids are back in school, grown-ups get back to work, and we all fall back into a routine. It’s also a great time to visit a few popular summer destinations, since their prices, crowds and temperatures have dropped.

I recently came across an article in the U.S.News where with the help of travel experts and reader votes, U.S. News pulled together a list of ideal travel spots for Fall.  Perfect for enjoying foliage, autumn activities and affordable hotel rates.  (I’ve been to Savannah and that definitely would be one on the top of my list)

After looking at the list, I better get “booking“….. and I mean air tickets and hotel reservations… unlike the definition in the Urban Dictionary.

For a list of the Best Fall Geataways read the full article here: Best Fall Getaways by US NEWS

Living in the Midwest my entire life, specifically Wisconsin, I’d have to say Wisconsin in and of itself is a beautiful state in the Fall with the leaves changing colors creating a vivid landscape.

Of the eleven scenic drives highlighted in the article below I can say I’ve done the Marinette Country Waterfalls Tour and it is magnificent. Dress in layers and be prepared to hike over some rough terrain if you want to see them all. Good hiking shoes and bug repellent are a plus.

Kettle Moraine, Black River Falls Forest and Lake Geneva are all favorites of mine too. The rest are on the bucket list

For Wisconsin Fall Travel visit: 11 Scenic Drives During Fall in Wisconsin

Have you ever wondered what you should or shouldn’t do in writing and sending an email?

Have you ever felt like someone is shouting at you instead of merely talking to you in a normal tone of voice?

Does the subject line confuse the situation?

These are just some of the concerns that come to mind when dealing with 200+ emails on a daily basis.  Processing emails in these quantities can be time consuming and overwhelming at times.  If you want to be heard and understood, composing a good email might just get a faster response.

Here is a link to an article in regards to Email Etiquette.  I have to agree with quite a few if not all of them.

And…. PLEASE DON’T YELL AT ME!

I recently stumbled on an article about Matcha Tea and the great benefits it provides.

I found the Matcha Tea in tea bag format at our local Fresh Market and thought I’d try it.  The Good Earth brand is very tasty.

While searching online to learn more I found an article at Dr. Andrew Weil’s web-site.  [LINK]

While it’s a little too soon to see if I’ve reaped any benefits from it, I wanted to share this article I found so you could see for yourself.

Having become more health conscience over the past decade and becoming more aware of the health concerns sugars cause in children, I began to look for a different approach to the traditional passing out of candy for this Halloween. I stumbled upon an article put out by the Green Halloween Organization that put it into perspective and solidified my concern to make a difference in promoting a healthier life style for the little ghouls this year.

GMOs or genetically modified organisms are not something new, yet we often times fail to think about them and how they affect our health when it comes to a holiday such as Halloween and all the fun candies we traditionally pass out to all the costume wearing children that ring our door bells.

Many common GMOs are found in the favorite trick-or-treat candies on the market today. Genetically modified organisms are plants or animals created through the gene splicing techniques of biotechnology (also called genetic engineering, or GE). It is an experimental technology which merges DNA from different species, creating unstable combinations of plant, animal, bacterial and viral genes that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding.

Picture The Mad Scientist in the lab mixing varies potions(GMOs) to create monsters(candy) and then feeding it to your children and/or grandchildren.

Listed below are 10 GMO ingredients found in Halloween Candy.

1. Sugar (GMO sugar beets)
2. High fructose corn syrup (GMO corn)
3. Corn starch(GMO corn)
4. Soy lecithin (GMO soy)
5. Soybean oil (GMO soy)
6. Modified food starch (GMO corn)
7. Fructose, dextrose, glucose (GMO corn)
8. Cottonseed oil (GMO cotton)
9. Canola oil (GMO canola)
10. “Other” ingredients: isolates, isoflavones, food starch, vegetable oil.

The number one reason to avoid GMOs as listed on the Institute for Responsible Technology is that they are just plain unhealthy. The article states: The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) urges doctors to prescribe non-GMO diets for all patients. They cite animal studies showing organ damage, gastrointestinal and immune system disorders, accelerated aging, and infertility. Human studies show how genetically modified (GM) food can leave material behind inside us, possibly causing long-term problems. To read the full article go here [Link]

Chiropractic has known this information for years and has always promoted an organic or unmodified diet for a healthier lifestyle in addition to getting adjusted regularly.

Studies show some of the most common illnesses linked to GMOs are. Is this what we want for our children or grand children? I don’t think so.

1. Rheumatoid arthritis
2. Inflammatory bowel disease
3. Osteoporosis
4. Atherosclerosis
5. Various types of cancer
6. Allergies
7. Lou Gehrig’s disease

With at least 10 GMOs found in Halloween Candy, you ask yourself what can I do to provide a healthier treat selection for the ghost and goblins at my door this year? As a grandma wanting a better life style for my grandchildren I ask myself, what can I put in their trick or treat bag that will make me feel better about the choice I’ve made and still be as enjoyable to them.

Here are a few ideas I came up with for healthier treats:

1. Halloween themed pencils
2. Money
3. Balloons
4. Stickers
5. Organic snacks

This Halloween treat your trickers with a healthy treat that will lessen the toxins they may currently be exposed to.
More information on GMOs and additional ideas for healthier treats and snacks can be found at: http://www.greenhalloween.org/2011nongmoguide.pdf
This helpful guide is provided by the partnership of Green Halloween http://www.greenhalloween.org and Non-GMO Project http://www.NonGMOProject.com

Continuous learning is essential in today’s world.  With the kids all heading back to school why not get yourself back to school too.  A self-education can be very beneficial in expanding your knowledge within your own profession or landing a new career.  For more information on getting a free education,  check out this site for the article  “12 Dozen Places to Educate Yourself”.  Mark and Angel Hack Life.

What’s your summer plans?

Some of my favorite places to travel in the Summer time for museums and site seeing in the US are the Badlands and the Black Hills of SD, Washington DC which is full of rich history, and the great state of Wisconsin!

According to the Daily Finance the top ten Summer Vacations Spots are: To read more about each spot visit: Daily Finance

10. Dallas, TX

9.  Anaheim- Santa Ana, CA

8.  San Francisco/San Mateo, CA

7.  San Diego, CA

6.  Atlanta, GA

5. Washington, DC

4.  Los Angeles/Long Beach, CA

3. New York, NY

2. Orlando, FL

1.  Chicago, IL

Having been to 7 of the 10 vacation spots above, I would have to agree they all have something great to offer.  I might just have to put the other three on my bucket list and check out why they are the favorites.

Did you ever wonder what really is in SoBe Water and is it good for you? Well I wondered so I looked it up.  Here is the information I found.

SoBe is a young brand which started selling iced teas in the Northeast in the late 1990?s. In 2000, it was acquired by PepsiCo. Vitamin enhanced waters have been a huge growth engine in the beverage category over the last decade. And as people came to realize that they are paying for those vitamins with lots of sugar, companies have come out with zero calorie versions of the same.  Read the rest of the article here. [Link]

Social networking has become one of my favorite ways to find information quick and easy.  I don’t always have the time to research motivational and inspirational articles and often times my friends on facebook, twitter, linked in, etc.  with common interests come up with some pretty good information they have shared.

Today, a friend suggestion looking at Marc and Angel Hack Life!  While I’ve only read today’s article, I have subscribed and thought I’d share with all of you.

Visit: Marc and Angel for practical tips on productive living.

You’re life might never be the same again!

Linda

If you’d like to have a hard copy of a similar presentation click here: God’s Pharmacy

This article written by John T. McCutcheon was posted in the Chicago Tribune on September 30, 1907.

Yep, sonny this is sure enough Injun summer. Don’t know what that is, I reckon, do you? Well, that’s when all the homesick Injuns come back to play; You know, a long time ago, long afore yer granddaddy was born even, there used to be heaps of Injuns around here—thousands—millions, I reckon, far as that’s concerned. Reg’lar sure ‘nough Injuns—none o’ yer cigar store Injuns, not much. They wuz all around here—right here where you’re standin’.

Don’t be skeered—hain’t none around here now, leastways no live ones. They been gone this many a year.

They all went away and died, so they ain’t no more left.

But every year, ‘long about now, they all come back, leastways their sperrits do. They’re here now. You can see ’em off across the fields. Look real hard. See that kind o’ hazy misty look out yonder? Well, them’s Injuns—Injun sperrits marchin’ along an’ dancin’ in the sunlight. That’s what makes that kind o’ haze that’s everywhere—it’s jest the sperrits of the Injuns all come back. They’re all around us now.

See off yonder; see them tepees? They kind o’ look like corn shocks from here, but them’s Injun tents, sure as you’re a foot high. See ’em now? Sure, I knowed you could. Smell that smoky sort o’ smell in the air? That’s the campfires a-burnin’ and their pipes a-goin’.

Lots o’ people say it’s just leaves burnin’, but it ain’t. It’s the campfires, an’ th’ Injuns are hoppin’ ’round ’em t’beat the old Harry.

You jest come out here tonight when the moon is hangin’ over the hill off yonder an’ the harvest fields is all swimmin’ in the moonlight, an’ you can see the Injuns and the tepees jest as plain as kin be. You can, eh? I knowed you would after a little while.

Jever notice how the leaves turn red ’bout this time o’ year? That’s jest another sign o’ redskins. That’s when an old Injun sperrit gits tired dancin’ an’ goes up an’ squats on a leaf t’rest. Why I kin hear ’em rustlin’ an’ whisper in’ an’ creepin’ ’round among the leaves all the time; an’ ever’ once’n a while a leaf gives way under some fat old Injun ghost and comes floatin’ down to the ground. See—here’s one now. See how red it is? That’s the war paint rubbed off’n an Injun ghost, sure’s you’re born.

Purty soon all the Injuns’ll go marchin’ away agin, back to the happy huntin’ ground, but next year you’ll see ’em troopin’ back—th’ sky jest hazy with ’em and their campfires smolderin’ away jest like they are now.

Injun Summer by John T. McCutcheon.