Mechanical failures. That’s been our lives lately in this household. First our dvd player broke down, then a potato caught on fire in the microwave leaving a burnt smell every time we use it, and about 3 weeks ago our wide-screen Visio television went on the brink. All that can be seen is a ‘red X’ in the middle of the screen. Oooh….that does not look good. So it sits – this big blank black screen – useless and taking up space.

At first I was pretty upset about it, even though I don’t watch much TV, and even though we downgraded to the most basic cable, which I didn’t realize at the time meant that we would be losing the channels that we enjoy the most; MSNBC and the Discovery Channel. Thankfully, I have my computer. We have now resolved to watching movies on my Mac, and the news, my only source of getting information these days. I decided to try and leave the radio off when driving. It is my time for peace and quiet, and whatever reflection I can fit in, in the drive between home and work.

So…while perusing my one source to the outside world, :) the net, this morning…the screen still splashes with news on Haiti. I think it is so wonderful how the world has come together to help support the people in Haiti. Every time I read on-line, there is something new being done to raise money. It’s amazing how we can all come together in time of need.

As grateful as I am that people come together, as they have and do, in circumstances such as Haiti, I just wish that people didn’t have to be dying or near death from a terrible disaster for our world to reach out and become one. The power of the people is truly amazing.

My mind questions. Do we have to witness devastation, the shock & awe drama of it all, before something drastic is done? We have so many deaths daily, here, right here in the United States, from lack of health insurance. Because people aren’t bleeding and dying, crying and homeless in the millions, all at once, doesn’t mean they aren’t experiencing their own personal disaster, their own living hell, in the solitude of their own homes, or out in the ‘camps’ of Darfur, or the Congo, or…where millions have already died, and will continue to die unless something is done.

I do not make this statement lightly or without sympathetic thought toward the Haitians. This is not to downplay the recent disaster in Haiti – it is truly horrific. My point is that I am so moved by the amount of money and provisions that are being donated to help…so moved by people: The flood of money from individuals. The focused fundraising events that are organized in record time to assist the Haitians. The urgency that is created. Like I said, the power of the people is truly amazing.

My wish is that it didn’t have to reach that level before people came together, before people respond in such a huge way to help. I wish that this type of urgency to give, this camaraderie that is created so instantaneously, could sweep the world in support of health reform, in support of women, in support of equality for all, in support of global warming, in support of…

Do you know what I mean?

I got a little sidetracked  in my passion and thoughts. What I really wanted to share this morning is a little article that I found….speaking of people being amazing. A young boy in London was so upset by the disaster in Haiti, that he decided to raise money by taking a 5-mile bike ride around his local park.

LONDON — A young British schoolboy has raised nearly 100,000 pounds ($160,000) for Haiti’s relief effort.

Seven-year-old Charlie Simpson was so upset by the devastating images of Haiti’s deadly earthquake that he asked his mother if she could help him set up a sponsored bicycle ride around his local park in west London.

Charlie originally hoped to raise 500 pounds ($800) for UNICEF’s Haiti appeal with Sunday’s 5-mile (8-kilometer) bike ride, but his Internet page was flooded with donations.

He raised nearly 50,000 pounds in a single day and money is still flooding in after Charlie’s story was splashed on the front page of Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper Monday.

His mother Leonora Simpson says she can’t believe the public response.

Peter: I ran out of time the other day but I wanted to respond to your comment. I can feel your angst and I believe it is totally warranted. It doesn’t take much for the whites, nor very many, to infiltrate your beloved island and take over. Your fear is justified. What to do?

Peace out…

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the ‘Donate’ button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my ‘Donate’ page)

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It was really difficult pulling myself out of bed this morning. It is rainy and blowing up a storm here in the Bay Area with high winds gusting at who knows how fast. I would’ve much rather stayed in bed and dreamt a bit more of. Not an option.

So…what to talk about this morning….

I am sure by now that all of you are well aware of the turnout for the crucial Massachusetts Senate election. Republican Scott Brown’s win replacing the late Ted Kennedy in the senate, leaves the Democrats no longer holding the majority in Congress.

Now this morning all, I seem to read about is the fingering pointing of who blew it in the campaign? Who do we blame?….Coakley? Obama?, A toxic political landscape?

Arriana Huffington believes this loss to the Democrats could be a ‘blessing in disguise for President Obama and Democrats if they actually use it to course correct before 2010.’  I love an optimistic attitude. There is always something good that comes out of, what at first doesn’t seem so.

What do you think about Arriana’s optimistic outlook?

There is the possibility that the Republicans with 41 votes, will now filibuster, blocking the health care bill. This just can’t happen.

I know the health care bill isn’t anything like it started out to be. I know that we fought for so much more to be included in the bill. But so many Americans who presently don’t have health care insurance, will now have it. That is huge in itself, as I have said before.

Do you know how many lives will be saved just because people will now be able to go to their doctor and receive care?  We have no idea what life or lives will be saved because of this health care bill passing. And of those lives saved, how many of these individuals will have the chance to do something great for our country, that they may never have been able to do before simply because….well to put it bluntly, they would be dead, if this bill doesn’t pass. We have no idea what individuals are out there waiting to blossom into doctors or scientists-to-be. What individuals are destined to great leaders and heros…All they need is a chance to live.

I think in those terms. We have to think in those terms, because they are a reality.

Why would anyone, any person, whether they be a Republican, a Democrat…whatever, want to deny anyone their right to health care…their right to live and prosper and make something of themselves? When it is put so simply, I don’t see how anyone can say no. Do you?

Lastly, It is Obama’s first year as our president.

Obama warned us this wasn’t going to be easy:

…In his inaugural address, one year ago Wednesday, that all of the nation’s problems would not be solved so quickly. “They are serious, and they are many,” he said then. “They will not be met easily or in a short span of time.”

Nevertheless, most Americans skipped past that section of the speech, and focused instead on Obama’s promise to end the bitter partisan divide in Washington on the way to shaking up the system. That goodwill from the early days evaporated quickly, and the president’s approval ratings have dipped as disappointment has grown among the very independent voters who helped elect him in 2008. That’s why he very deliberately tried to recalibrate expectations at a Washington church this Sunday as he delivered remarks celebrating the birthday of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

“There was a hope shared by many that life would be better from the moment that I swore that oath,” Obama said. “Of course, as we meet here today, one year later, we know the promise of that moment has not yet been fully fulfilled. Because of an era of greed and irresponsibility that sowed the seeds of its own demise, because of persistent economic troubles unaddressed through the generations, because of a banking crisis that brought the financial system to the brink of catastrophe, we are being tested — in our own lives and as a nation — as few have been tested before.”

-CNN January 20, 2010

Readers: We can not give up. Comments? Blog me.

I’m out of here. The rain is flooding into our bedroom and duty calls.

Peace out…and stay safe and dry.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the ‘Donate’ button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my ‘Donate’ page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2010

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning.

One of my sources sent me this article and I wanted to share it with you. Vitamin D has been a popular subject here, and in conversations with friends. I love the sun as you all know, but is it giving me enough Vitamin D? Who Knows. I take a liquid Vitamin D3, but how do know if I’m getting enough? And according to this article, even having your Vitamin D levels tested may not give you the answer.

Vitamin D dose myths – 6 fun factoids

As the mountain of vitamin D research (showing its importance) grows to Everest heights, you may be wondering about some statements that are thrown around as “truth.” Here are some fun vitamin D myths to pass along (by email, twitter or facebook) to friends, family and loved ones, because, when it comes to vitamin D, you want to get your dose (even of information) JUST RIGHT:

1) Just go out in the sun, already. That will fix everyone’s vitamin D levels. Right? Is it true that you can get enough vitamin D from the sun? Um, well, that depends on who “you” is. For example, our media tends to assume we’re all Nicole Kidman pale – hence the widely cited recommendations that 10-15 minutes of daily sun can suffice. If you’re darkly pigmented (whatever your ethnic background), studies show that, if you live north of L.A., you would need to be out, at minimum, from November to May, fully naked, for TWO SOLID HOURS at midday to get enough vitamin D. Yikes…talk about a recommendation being far off the mark! For many working, non-Nicole-Kidman Americans, it would be actually physically impossible to get enough vitamin D, using the sun only.

2) Okay, I hear you, but I get a lot of sun – that should do it, right? See, the stinker is that you can get so much sun, you’re sunburned, and STILL not get enough vitamin D. How exactly, is that? Vitamin D is blocked by sunscreen, by glass, by shade, by fog (I’m talking to you, San Francisco!), and even by tall buildings. That means you can get sunburned through a car window and still make almost no vitamin D. In fact, once your skin begins burning, it starts to actually off-load and break down the vitamin D it just made! Even if you’re low!

3) Hey, isn’t sun bad for you? The interesting thing is that vitamin D, sun, and that worst of all skin cancers – melanoma – appear to be nastily snarled together in a three-way physiologic tug-of-war. What does that mean? Turns out that LOW vitamin D levels are associated with INCREASED risk of melanoma (even when you control for lifetime sun exposure), but that more sun (especially burns) means more risk of melanoma. All together, the paradox between vitamin D and melanoma may explain why sunscreens (which block vitamin D) have been shown, in several studies, to actually INCREASE the risk of melanoma. So what do you want for optimum health? Probably, to have a great blood level of vitamin D, and (if you’re Nicole-Kidman-pale), as little sun as possible.

4) Just drink milk, already. All this talk of supplements is clearly a ruse to make money. Right? First, no one should be sucking down lots of full-fat milk – not for optimum health. Second, even if you go the non-fat-milk approach, how many glasses would a non-pregnant adult need to drink to get the generally acknowledged 1,000 units a day for vitamin D maintenance? Any guesses? Try 10 (count ‘em – 10!) glasses a day! Urk. The amount of vitamin D put into milk was chosen so that small toddler-kiddies would NOT be overdosed on vitamin D. Unfortunately, lactose intolerance is also very very real – and much more common among African Americans (estimated at 70%). Which means that, in our infinite idiocy, we, as a nation, chose to put vitamin D additives in the ONE place where the population that needs it MOST couldn’t get it…sheesh.

5) So if my blood test is normal, that means I’m okay. Right? For all those of you who are staying up with your vitamin D checks, congratulations – you’re taking a simple, cheap and side-effect-free way to promote your health. However…you may want to find out what “normal” means to your lab. Even your personal doctor may not be aware that almost all labs report “normal” based on the average (or median) of all that lab’s test results. With as many as 80-90% of African Americans vitamin D deficient, your lab’s “normal” may actually calculate out to “low.” So what is “normal”? For one thing, it’s higher than almost all lab cut-offs. How do we know that? First, some studies looked at how high a human’s vitamin D level needed to be to block your body from sending out a distress-type hormone (called PTH). That blood level was way higher than a lab’s calculated “normal.”

Second, studies that looked at how high a vitamin D level needed to be to stop some of the problems of low vitamin D (like receding gums – yes – that’s a well-studied result of too-low a vitamin D), found that blood levels had to be much higher than (you guessed it) a calculated lab’s “normal.” Finally, researchers went to the source – when they checked the blood levels of equatorial agriculture workers in Third World countries (who still live the way almost all humans did only a few generations ago), they found, as you could predict, levels that are much higher than our labs’ “normal.”

6) Vitamin D prevents fractures by strengthening bones. Right? One of the best things about vitamin D is that it can reduce the number of fractures in the elderly. But what was a shocker to researchers was that it achieved this result, weirdly, by preventing falls from ever happening in the first place. Vitamin D is crucial for normal muscle function, and when it gets really low, people can get something called a hip girdle sway – if you’re wondering what that looks like, imagine that slow, painful-looking, Frankensteinish, entire-leg-hip swing a frail elderly person in a wheeled walker does to take a step. Replacing vitamin D allows muscles to repair and function so that people actually don’t fall.

Bottom line? You CAN overdose on vitamin D. There are reasons, despite all the mountains of encouraging research, why no one, officially, has said (yet) how much every person should take every day. The first reason is that no public official wants to step forward and be the one to say that, in order to be “normal,” vast numbers of Americans need to take a supplement…for life. The second, better, reason is that (as the sun discussion, above, shows), we’re not all the same. Personalized vitamin D replacement and maintenance is the way to go. Get your blood level tested, get good advice on your result and replacement, then make sure it’s re-checked (and re-checked again) to verify you stay in a healthy range.

What do you think? Do you think vitamin D is all it’s cracked up to be? Is it a vast supplement conspiracy, or, instead, a failure of modern medicine to care for those most affected? Share in the comments section – and keep up on the latest health issues in the news, and healthcare reform insanity/hilarity by signing up for a Doc Gurley RSS feed with the tiny orange button at the top. Look for future weekly Dodging Death articles here at Doc Gurley – discover the weird, the wacky and the everyday symptoms you want to know about, as well as practical expert tips on staying well. And do you want to be on the inside, fast track of news and tips? Get on the Twitter bandwagon and follow Doc Gurley! Also check out Doc Gurley’s joyhabit and iwellth twitter feeds – so you can get topic-specific fun, effective, affordable tips on how to nurture your joy and grow your wellth this coming year.

Got a thingie on your doohickey? Or are you pondering how to tell your doctor he’s a jerk? Send your burning healthcare questions to Doc Gurley by emailing docgurleyatgmaildotcom. Doc Gurley cannot answer every question, and she cannot practice medicine through a keyboard (not even with her stethoscope pressed firmly against the monitor) but be assured – your questions will be kept strictly confidential and identifying traits are changed.

Posted By: Doc Gurley (Email) | January 09 2010 at 01:26 PM Read more: Click here.

***********

Readers: Anything you want to share in regards to this?

Hi Ruth: Good to hear from you again. It sounds like everyone has been pretty busy with the holidays and now ‘just life’. I understand about the posting. No worries. It is frustrating for me too when I know my readers have a lot to say on a subject and they can’t get in. I know I am busy and if I were in your shoes, I probably would not have the time to continue to repeat my entries either.

I was excited to hear that the girls are interested in everything -Nice. I’m sure being in their new home, and with you, exposes them to all…and unfortunately all is not a bed of roses, but that is life, as you say.  However, there is enough challenges in life as it is. I was just sorry to read that racism has now entered into their lives. Please give the girls a big hello from me.

Janet, Mike, Peter, Anna: Thanks for continuing to post your very informative and interesting articles. I appreciate you all taking the time to keep us informed.

Hey Zen Lill: I am sorry that we haven’t had the chance to catch up again like we had talked about. Where did the time go? Thanks for checking in here. It is evident your health advice is missed. Speaking of…

…I just wanted to say that I take resveratrol – have taken it for the past two years. I have never been a big drinker and I can no longer drink red wine so I decided to start taking this for its antioxidant benefits. First in a capsule form from Dr. David Williams; Here’s the link just in case you or my readers are interested. And now I take it in liquid form. I really like it. I hope that your biz trip goes well.

Thanks Evelyn: How are you doing?

Donna: Hmmm…a serious education? Maybe. There are many topics discussed on my blog, so stick around. You are sure to learn a lot. I certainly do. :) Oh…and I wouldn’t take the ‘dumb’ remark to heart from a 6 yr-old. Not knowing something does not mean you are dumb. But I certainly would’ve taught her a thing or two about being disrespectful. Rude behavior is just not acceptable.

Irene: No response from the men yet.

Urte: Hello. Is there any more you can tell us?

See ya later…

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the ‘Donate’ button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my ‘Donate’ page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2010

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

I can’t believe how long it has been since I shared a  scam with you. And now with so many people donating to help the residents of Haiti, I thought this would be a good one to post. Sadly, there are people out there who take advantage of tragic situations such as the earthquake in Haiti. They don’t see the people suffering and displaced; all they see is an opportunity to scam the public and make a lot money off the detriment of others.

I know that I gave you a list a few days ago of where to donate your money, so I feel quite assured that none of my readers will get scammed. However, just in case you come across another relief effort not on my list, that sounds like it is doing some good, you might want to take some measures to check up on them.

This scam is called: Badge Charity Scams. Tricksters claim to be raising money on behalf of the emergency or armed services (the people who wear badges). Read this article for tips on charity donations.

How to know that charities are legitimate

Here are nine tips to ensure your money goes to worthy causes:

They publish their standards for rating charities, and then rate over hundreds of different charities using these standards.

On a side note: I may have posted this website before but it is worthy of mentioning again. I have this website bookmarked as a favorite on my computer. When I donate any money to a charity, I always check them out first by looking them up on this website. Number 2 below is a big reason.

2. Don’t give to charities where most of the money goes to executive salaries, administrative costs and fundraising. The website we just recommended, Give.org, presents a pie chart that shows the percentage of money going to programs vs. administration and fundraising.

3. Always find out the exact name of the charity before you send a check. Many fraudulent organizations select names that sound very similar to a legitimate charity.

4. Make sure the charity is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (again, for US subscribers). Otherwise, you won’t be able to deduct your contributions on income taxes.

9. Never give your credit card number to door-to-door solicitors, or in response to a bulk email. In fact, don’t give your credit card number unless you are completely confident about the authenticity and good intentions of the charity. Otherwise, you may find yourself the victim of credit card fraud — or even worse — identity fraud.

Readers: I would also refer to these 9 tips when donating to any charity for any reason. If you want more information on this particular scam, click here.

Oh..By the way, are you making a file and storing all of these scams that I am warning you about? It might be a good idea to keep them on your computer desktop for quick reference.

In regards to yesterday’s one and only comment, (where is everyone?) I hope that you read what FYI posted. We have used Zicam before, and were told to throw it away but I had no idea about this permanent side effect. I did a little research on the net and checked it out on Snopes. Snopes says that the side effect is ‘undetermined’.  But in regards to my health, I always err on the side of caution. For the most recent release from the FDA, click here.  If what happened to FYI happened to you or someone you know, there is a class action lawsuit that I discovered. If you want the info for that click here. And FYI:  Thanks - Good luck – I hope that your sense of taste and smell returns.

Okay, I am done for the day.

I wish you are good health, peace and love….

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the ‘Donate’ button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my ‘Donate’ page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2010

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning.

It’s very early, and this Friday like every Friday, I need to get out of the house earlier than the rest of the week. I slept good last night, and this morning I  woke up in my cozy, warm, comfy bed. How well did you sleep last night?

As I was laying warm and safe in my bed, the first thing that I thought of this morning when I woke up was the Haitians and residents of Haiti…and especially all of those that are displaced. I am sure that even if you didn’t sleep well last night, it was ten times better than the sleep of so many of the people in Haiti. Many are not waking up in the comforts of their own beds…they aren’t even in their own homes. And they may not even be in the presence of their loved ones, nor even sure if their loved ones are alive.

This thought left me with a pit in my stomach…I can not imagine how these people felt waking up this morning, if they indeed slept…waking up in a strange room, if any…wishing that this disaster was just a terrible nightmare…wanting to shake the images, the sounds, from their heads. But unfortunately it isn’t a nightmare, and sadly they can not.

I’m sure many of you received this letter from our president in your e-mail. I know that I asked yesterday for donations, but after seeing the news and watching videos of the disaster in Haiti, I can’t help but be compelled to ask you again to donate, if you haven’t already. I made a donation last night.

I know many of you are struggling to make ends meet. We too are financially challenged. But even a few dollars from each one of us can make a huge difference to families that are displaced.

A letter from Obama:

On Tuesday, a catastrophic earthquake struck near Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The full extent of the damage is still being assessed, but the death toll — already in the thousands — is climbing fast.

This is the worst earthquake to hit the area in more than 200 years. Entire communities have been ripped apart and as many as 3 million people have been directly affected, including tens of thousands of American citizens who are in Haiti.

Our neighbors in Haiti are racing to confront the enormous devastation — and the OFA community can help.

Click here for more information about essential relief efforts and ways you can help today.

Footage is pouring in of homes collapsing, Haitians carrying injured family members, and hospitals being overrun in what was already the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.

I have directed my administration to respond with a swift, coordinated, and aggressive effort to save lives. Personnel from the United States and our partners in the international community are on the ground in damaged areas right now, working side by side with the Haitian people. They’re providing much-needed food, water, and sanitation supplies, saving lives and helping local communities start to rebuild.

Despite the fact that we are experiencing tough times here at home, I encourage those who can to reach out and help. It’s in times like these that we must show the kind of compassion and humanity that has defined the best of our national character for generations.

Click here to find out what you can do:

http://my.barackobama.com/Haiti

As this story continues to unfold, I hope you will continue to keep the people of Haiti in your thoughts and prayers, as well as the many Haitian-Americans who have done so much to enrich our country and who are worried about friends and loved ones in this time of need.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

************

Readers: Thank you again, for everything and anything you can do to help. May the Haitians and the residents of Haiti receive as much support as is needed, and some sort of relief and comfort soon.

Marsha: PS. I need to make a correction in my comment about the movie ‘Avatar’ yesterday. I know you know what I meant but my sentence: ‘Being an animal lover, the connection that the Avatars not only had with their environment, but with the animals that fed and clothed them was especially moving to me’, should have read:   ’Being an animal lover, the connection that the indigenous people not only had with their environment, but with the animals that fed and clothed them was especially moving to me.’ Thanks.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

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