Saturday, July 17, 2004

The League of Women Voters is an incredible organization that champions women's sufferage and helped women land the right to vote in the 1920s.  LWV is still alive today, and it has teamed with Smart Women (they produce those cute cups, plates and mugs you've seen if you've ever had tea with me) and have launched Smart Women Vote.com, a fun and very informative site that is promoting voter registration and non-partisan views on the upcoming election. Remember, your vote counts, no matter who you vote for!  Smart Women Vote.com has a great kit for sale (about $13) that has buttons, stickers, pens, a voter registration guide, and a resusable zippered plastic bag. It's available at Smart Women Vote.com  as well as other cute items like tees and more mugs. The kit is also available at the BUST Magazine's Boobtique, in the Feature and Sale Items.
 
 

Friday, July 16, 2004

The BBC reports  that the 2004 U.N. Human Development report found some scary yet probably not surprising facts about the spread of HIV and AIDS in African nations. HIV and AIDS have basically dropped life expectancy in countries like Zambia and Zimbabwe to less than 33 years old. Because people are dying during what would usually be productive years of study and work, not only the nation's healthcare and the quality of life of it's infected citizens is affected, but also the economic status as well.
 
I've updated the "Nursing" section of the links to include the U.N. AIDS website, in case you're like me and want to know how the U.N plans to assist these countries during this rather horrifying epidemic. This links section will now be known as "Nursing and Health Care Sites" to incorporate more informative sites under one section. 
 
In other HIV-related health news, the FDA has recently approved a rapid HIV test kit, that uses a patient's saliva to test if HIV+ antibodies are present. The patient wipes an absorbant pad along his/her upper and lower outer gums. The pad is attached to a plastic stick, and if HIV antibodies are detected, two reddish-purple lines appear in a window (it sounds almost like the same apparatus as a home pregnancy test). The results appear in about 20 minutes and are 99% accurate. Anyone who tests positive will then take the traditional ELISA HIV blood test as a follow-up. Right now, the test is being used in labs, but the FDA is expected to approve it for wider use pretty soon.   
    
 






Tuesday, July 13, 2004

Prince recently was quoted in an interview that he was "too spiritual" to vote in this November's election.

Now, I love Prince. The man wrote "Rasberry Beret," for feck's sake. But I must say that I can't be that spiritual as His Royal Purpleness. Therefore, FiFi and I are pleased to announce our very small, minimally significant voter registration drive. We call it Bark The Vote. FiFi is very disappointed that as a dog, she cannot partake in our nation's democratic process, but she is pleased to help.

Here at Bark the Vote, we're hoping to help register voters. I'd like to see 10 people so influenced by our effort, that they will register and vote in the upcoming election. Remember, if you don't vote, you have no right to complain. So there.

BTW, if you're worried that by registering, you put yourself at risk for jury duty selection, fear not: you're already at risk for jury duty selection. Jurors are now being selected via driver's licenses, not voter registration.

Although this website officially endorses John Kerry for President (Nurses for Kerry, gimme a "whoot-whoot!"), don't let that stop you. I also include links to the campaign sites for Bush-Cheney and Nader-Camejo, as well as Rock The Vote.

If you are reading this, and you decide that you want to register to vote, I'd like to hear from you. Drop us an email. I won't print your name, comments, or email, nor will I send it to any email list. Good luck, make it count, and have fun!



Monday, July 12, 2004

I've been wanting to do something different with this blog for a while now. I recently came out of a funk related to work. I'm happy with my job, but for a while my heart simply wasn't into it. Things are better now, although self-evaluation is still a day-by-day process. Leafing through nursing journals helped tremendously. These magic mags contain not just the latest critical research, but also anecdotes and advice, tricks and timesavers. Having a bit of a validating refresher when you're stuck in a rut always helps. It re-opened my eyes to the privilage I have each day. I like my job and I want to do it better.

I also like my life and I want to do it better. Therefore, this site is going to transition out of autobiographical mode. It will still be my input and insight, but will instead feature information about things I consider important. I would also like to use it as a tool to help others in various ways, not just health care. Links to blogs and live journals will not change. I hope that Corner readers will continue to support the site through the changes.


Tuesday, July 06, 2004

I was feeling very negative recently, due to an unpleasant experience with a patient's family. My productivity dropped to the point Leslie called me into her office, concerned. Yoga and some on-the-job therapy helped a little bit, but I found what I needed most was closure. Yesterday, the family called me and asked for my assistance. I stayed with them for a while, making an effort to help console the patient's daughter. At the end of my visit, she put her arms around me and squeezed my neck in a big bear hug. It felt damn good.

Penn and Teller's Bullshit is a very interesting DVD series. For those of you who are unaware, Penn and Teller are magician/comics who perform in Vegas, etc. They are very tongue-in-cheek, and sometimes reveal how they perform their tricks. They also have a weekly show on Showtime called Bullshit. Mainly their targets are anything that claims to be scientific, but has no scientific evidence of existance- feng shui, magnet therapy, alien abduction, communication with the dead, etc. Funny as hell. So far my favorites are the alternative medicine episode and the environmental hysteria episodes (P&T circulate a petition to ban hydrogen dioxide [h20, or water!] in a crowd of dorky "environmentalists" at a rally in D.C., to see how many of these geniuses actually sign it, meaning they know dick about the enviroment and simply wanna join something that sounds kewl).
But P&T are very sympathetic to the people who fall for these gimmicks, and are very critical of people who sell the crapola to them. Very very good stuff.


Sunday, July 04, 2004

Cool movies I have seen this summer:

1) Farenheit 911- Amazing. I saw it on my birthday, it was part of my gift from Big. He bought the Skittles, and held my hand during the really scary parts.

2) Spider Man 2- Excellent. We saw it last night. I think it's better than the original.

3) Saved!- Really good as well. We saw it today. Very good performances by Mac Culkin and Mandy Moore.

Today to celebrate our nation's birth, Mr. Big and I are watching our newly purchased Family Guy DVD. We also picked up Penn and Teller's Bullshit, and Big found the DVD of all the 1967 Spiderman. Screw fireworks, it's friggin hot out there.

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?