American Idol-aholic

Hello, my name is Deb and I'm an Idol-aholic. Yes I'm too old to watch it, yes it's junk food for the brain and yes there is plenty of other things I should be doing, but I can't help it. It's the only television show I watch routinely, so I guess that means I'm hooked.

I hate to admit it, but last week I even called in to vote. It's free, so no guilt about wasting money unless you're one of those that believes time is money, in that case it costs be about an hour to get through. It's amazing to me how many of them can't believe how crappy they sing. Is seems everyone they know has told them how great they are their entire lives and they swagger into the audition to do their thing and WHAM...they suck! They seem stunned and in total denial of what the "judges" say about their talent. How could that be? Well, that would mean everyone's been lying to you or you just suck less than they do. Ha-ha, that's entertainment!

Although I do enjoy watching the show, I must say that music is more than just a lead singer, it's about being a musician. If Mick Jagger was on Idol, I doubt he'd get far. He'd probably be cut during auditions for being too skinny with big lips. I also doubt that Aretha Franklin would make it through auditions because Simon couldn't get past the fact that she isn't model thin. Do we really need another Brittney Spears? I'd say one is quite enough. I like to LISTEN to music not just watch it being performed. Who cares what they look like, how do they SOUND?

So, the show must go on and there I'll be three nights a week, wasting my time but cheering for my favorites.

What happened to Physical Education?

I have a son in elementary school. He attends PE class once every other Wednesday alternating with Art class.

What is going on here? There are stories every day about kids battling adult onset diabetes, high blood pressure and other debilitating diseases usually only found in adults. Everyone stands around scratching their heads on how to address the problem. How about reinstating PE every day for 30 minutes?

Kids need to be kids....not that PE should replace Science, Math, English and History. These are just as necessary to the childs growth. However, I feel that children would be much more attentive if they've also had a chance to work off some energy. Exercise has been proven to increase your ability to think clearly, also known as a benefit to your mental health. Here are just a few of the benefits of exercise:

Reduces the risk of premature death
Reduces the risk of developing and/or dying from heart disease
Reduces high blood pressure or the risk of developing high blood pressure
Reduces high cholesterol or the risk of developing high cholesterol
Reduces the risk of developing colon cancer and breast cancer
Reduces the risk of developing diabetes
Reduces or maintains body weight or body fat
Builds and maintains healthy muscles, bones, and joints
Reduces depression and anxiety
Improves psychological well-being
Enhanced work, recreation, and sport performance

Any of these problems sound familiar?

Maybe I'm just more sensative to the issue because I have boys. Boys just naturally have tons of energy. Ever notice how many boys are diagnosed with ADD or ADHD these days? Parents are told to medicate their children, (often by teachers themselves), to assist them in concentrating and focusing. Since when is a teacher also the family physician? Now they are finding that some of these drugs cause depression in children. If your teacher and parents are telling you something is wrong with you, you believe them because you're a kid.

What are the excuses for little to no PE? Buget cuts? No time in the school day? I don't believe that! I lived in a very small town when I grew up. Times were much tougher then on everyone, yet even our small elementary school had the money and the time to squeeze in 30 minutes of PE every day of the week. ADD & ADHD were unheard of as were children as old as 9 being diagnosed with adult onset diabetes and obesity.

What happened to the Arts? Don't get me started.

Banana-rama

I love bananas. As my favorite brand Chiquita's advertising campaign states, they are, "quite possibly the world's perfect food". They're compact, portable and when you're done eating them the peels are bio-degradable. I dare to say there aren't many people in the world who don't love bananas, not to mention monkeys and apes of all sizes. Even Elvis loved bananas.

Recently I brought one of my fruit friends to work. Chiquita, of course, my favorite brand. I noticed the particular fruit I had picked had the small blue Chiquita sticker still attached. "Brain Fuel" it said, in large white letters. Hmmm..I like it. Thanks Chiquita for giving me the ability to re-fuel my brain. Heaven knows I need it. I removed the sticker and stuck it to my desk, for future reference.

A few days later, I brought another fruit friend....again with the blue Chiquita sticker. This sticker read, "Place Sticker on Forehead. Smile." I remember doing just that as a child. Not only that but fighting for the sticker with my brothers and sisters...the winner, wore the blue Chiquita sticker proudly on their forehead while marching around to the sour looks of the fallen sticker head wannabees. Thanks Chiquita.

Read all you ever wanted to know about Chiquita and the history of their stickers. Did you know they still place each sticker on by hand? www.chiquita.com

Au Revoir, Old New Orleans

The St.Amant, DuCote and Hyde family of Old New Orleans, LA
I have visited the old New Orleans many times as my oldest and dearest friend lived there, until Katrina. In the old New Orleans you could sip coffee and eat beignets at Cafe Du Monde without a second thought about the levee holding back the river. You could watch the street performers and artists in the French Quarter, catch a ferry boat to cross the river, or just stay home and order a daccarri from your local drive-thru daccarri store. (Yes, I said drive-thru.) The city and the people of the old New Orleans were tightly woven together, one seemingly dependent on the other.

My friend and her entire family lived in the same neighborhood in St. Bernard Parish. They left the old New Orleans the day before Katrina hit, except for her husband who decided to remain behind and ride out the storm. He was found four days later by a Good Morning America news crew and featured on the program the next day as "The Last Man Standing". His story is harrowing to say the least. They have since relocated to Indiana, which is just about as far away from a coastline as you can get.

Last week they returned to the new New Orleans, to salvage what remained of their homes and lives. She called me as she travelled back to Indiana. She told me she had started crying, uncontrollably when she was two miles from what was her home. She spoke with a sadness in her voice about ordering a po' boy and how they asked "How you want it dressed?", how she saw an old friend who asked, "Where you at?". She misses this familiarity and feeling of home. It was a place like no other.

If you never had a chance to visit the old New Orleans, you're too late. Yes, in the new New Orleans, you can still sip coffee at Cafe Du Monde and I'm sure the French Quarter, which sustained minimal damage, has returned to life post Katrina. My friend even mentioned that she found a drive-thru daccarri store open. But the soul of the city has left, at least for now, for Indiana.

Stop to Smell the Roses

As with most working mothers my life can get very hectic. There is the two + hours per day I spend commuting to and from work, then dinner, homework, baths and finally sleep only to get up and do it all over again. It's a treadmill sort of existence that forces me to take a lot for granted and often makes me more than a little irritable.

I was in this frame of mind one night recently when my son asked me to take a look at a web site for kids that he likes. My job requires me to stare at a computer screen all day, so when I'm not at work, looking at a computer ranks right up there with cleaning up dog poop and scrubbing toilets. So, I put him off and told him "not now I'm busy". He shrugged his shoulders and I went about whatever it was I was doing at the time. An hour or so later he asked me again...again I put him off..."maybe later" was my response. Just when I thought he'd totally forgotten and given up, he asked again. "OK" I replied, "but make it snappy."

He began explaining that his friend had shown him how to create a profile for the web site so that they could send messages to each other. There were several questions that he'd had to answer when he created the profile, favorite foods - pizza and maccaroni and cheese, favorite cartoon - Foster's Home and something called Bobo bo bobobobobo (whatever, don't ask), favorite color - red, etc. At the bottom of the list of questions he read, "Favorite Role Model". His answer, "Mom and Dad".

To Sis, with love on Valentines

My sisters and I rarely see each other anymore. They both still live in the state where I grew up. My husband and I moved away several years ago when our kids were still young. Yesterday I received an e-mail from one of them.."I'm bloggin" was the subject. I've heard of blogging and read some blogs created by journalists in Iraq, but never thought of actually creating one myself. This particular sister has always had a natural ability to create art in many forms. I immedately clicked the link attached to her e-mail. The blogs are perfectly written and beautifully displayed, a testament to her years in marketing and journalism. Some of the entries made me smile. There were poems and links to other sites of interest. They are a small glimpse into what my sister might be thinking about or feeling on that day. I immedately signed up to create my own blog site. I think my sister will be pleased. Immitation is the finest form of flattery.