Friday, January 31, 2014

Inspirational Thoughts!

That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already is; and God seeks out what has gone by.—Ecclesiastes 3:15

Quiet times soothe my soul. As I turn my attention away from doing, I receive the gift of being. I release concerns about accomplishing tasks and affirm that what is mine to do is already done in the mind of God. As I let go of anxiety, I remember the truth that I am enough.
I may take a stroll, sit on a park bench, or simply close my eyes to the activity around me. However I choose to step away from busyness, time seems to expand. I have time to accomplish my tasks as I slow my pace.

My body, mind, and spirit are refueled as I reconnect with God in me. My heart appreciates the moments in which I allow myself to simply be. I am in God; I am enough.

February Birthdays And Dates To Remember!

Ali & Whalyn - Feb 4th

Wayne H. - Feb 6th

Wayne (Trey) & Summer - Feb 11th

Jackie - Feb 13th

Taivion - Feb 17th

Candice - Feb 18th

Reggie II - Feb 26th

February 2nd

February 14th

February 17th

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Cool Sites!

www.biblegateway.com/resources/audio/?book=1&source=1

http://scn.sap.com/community/business-trends/blog/2014/01/18/welcome-to-the-smarter-side-of-super-bowl-xlviii

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Angel and Alijah In Wrestling Tourny! Saturday, January 25th!

Alijah and trophy

Angel (standing w/Carolina Panthers hat) and Alijah (sitting front left) participated in the Greater Middlesex County Small School Tournament. Angel was 1st seed in his weight class and Alijah was 2nd in his. They both made it to finals. Alijah pinned his opponent and won 1st place. He gets the GOLD!!! Angel won 2nd place. Alijah is officially the 2014 Greater Middlesex County small school 72pd Wrestling Champion!!! He moves on to the Tournament of Champions on Monday. Congratulations to Angel and Alijah!

Sunday, January 26th

Alijah won 1st place today at the Hazlett Mat Rat Junior Wrestling Tournament

2014 GMC Small School Champions: Frankie, Alijah, Muavia, Antoran & Demetrius

Random Photo!

Wallace in 37 Plymouth

Yes, Daddy would love seeing you in this car. :)

Thursday, January 23, 2014

News On H1N1- 2013/14 Season!

*

Note from Kaiser Permanente

Everyone 6 months and older should get vaccinated, even healthy people.

What you should know about the flu:

The flu shot is the best way to prevent the flu.

The flu shot cannot give you the flu.

The flu is serious. It can lead to hospitalization and even death.

If you get the flu, you can give it to people around you.

Kaiser Permanente members can get the flu shot at no charge.

This year's vaccine includes protection against the H1N1 flu virus.

The flu is more serious than a common cold. Symptoms include fever, chills, and muscle aches, and can last more than a week.

* Be sure to see your physician for guidance on getting flu shots or treatment for any symptoms. Rikki

H1N1 Flu Spreading in South-Central U.S.

This flu strain tends to hit younger adults harder than older adults, CDC says

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Dec. 26, 2013 (HealthDay News) -- This year's flu season may be off to a slow start nationwide, but infection rates are spiking in the south-central United States, where five deaths have already been reported in Texas.

And the predominant strain of flu so far has been H1N1 "swine" flu, which triggered the pandemic flu in 2009, federal health officials said Thursday.

"That may change, but right now most of the flu is H1N1," said Dr. Michael Young, a medical officer with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's influenza division. "It's the same H1N1 we have been seeing the past couple of years and that we really started to see in 2009 during the pandemic."

States reporting increasing levels of flu activity include Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, he said.

Young noted that H1N1 flu is different from other types of flu because it tends to strike younger adults harder than older adults. Flu is typically a bigger threat to people 65 and older and very young children and people with chronic medical conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, he said.

"This year, because it's an H1N1 season so far, we are seeing more infections in younger adults," Young said. "And some of these folks have underlying conditions that put them at risk for hospitalization or death. This may be surprising to some folks, because they forget the population that H1N1 hits."

The good news, Young said, is that this year's flu vaccine protects against the H1N1 flu. "For people who aren't vaccinated yet, there's still time -- they should go out and get their vaccine," he advised.

Flu activity is expected to increase nationwide during the next several weeks, Young pointed out. "We usually see flu activity peak in January and February," he said.

The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months of age and older be vaccinated against the flu.

Over the 30 years from 1976 to 2006, estimates of deaths from all strains of flu in the United States ranged from a low of about 3,000 to a high of about 49,000 people, according to the CDC.

Young said it's doubtful that the H1N1 flu will reach a pandemic level like in 2009. There are several reasons for optimism, he noted.

First, millions of people have already been vaccinated against H1N1 flu, and millions of others have been exposed to it since 2009, he said.

In 2009, the new type of H1N1 flu appeared in the United States for the first time, according to health officials.

For a flu strain like H1N1 to become pandemic it has to "find a group of people that has never seen anything like it before. We don't have that population anymore," he added.

During the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, there were 17,855 cases of infection and 45 deaths, according to the CDC.

Besides vaccination, Young recommends frequent hand washing and covering your mouth when you cough as ways to help prevent getting or spreading the flu. Also, stay at home if you're sick and keep children with the flu out of school, he said.

"The season hasn't peaked yet. There is still going to be a lot of flu activity. Vaccine takes two weeks to really kick in, so the sooner people get their vaccine the better," Young said.

The number of Americans who get vaccinated against the flu hovers around 40 percent to 45 percent, Young said. "That's short of what we would like to see, which is 70 percent. That's our 'Healthy People 2020' goal. We are not there yet."

More information

For more on flu, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Southern Cali
Flu Cases and Deaths Continue to Rise - Los Angeles Local News | FOX 11 LA KTTV

Texas
Texas is one of several states seeing widespread flu activity, and health officials say younger adults are taking the hardest hits from the virus.

Local hospital officials say that while influenza's harshest effects generally are seen in children and the elderly, most of the patients hospitalized for severe flu have ranged in age from their 20s to their 60s. That mirrors a national trend that shows about 60 percent of patients hospitalized for the virus fall roughly within that age range, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Texas Department of State Health Services last week reported that about 37 percent of patients who visited a health care provider for flu-like illness were between 25 and 49, the largest number out of the agency's five listed age groups.

Experts said the trend may have to do with the strain of flu prevalent this season in Texas and nationally, H1NI. Formerly known as "swine flu," the strain first emerged in 2009, causing a pandemic that killed thousands of people across the country. (a complete story from Houston below)

http://www.chron.com/news/health/article/Flu-hitting-young-adults-the-hardest-5154216.php

http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2014/jan/20/swine_flu_death/ (a story from Texas)

Northern Cali

Flu takes 45 lives so far in California; Sacramento County counts 11 deaths locally

By C H. Craft

ccraft@sacbee.com

Published: Friday, Jan. 17, 2014 - 10:47 am

With weeks to go in a peak influenza season that lasts through February, the flu is bearing down hard on Sacramento County, where public health officials announced Friday that 11 people aged 18 to 64 have died. Last year at this time, the county had reported four deaths.

Usually, flu fatalities are more likely to occur in people over 65 or in young children and babies who are considered the most vulnerable populations, county health officials said.

But the current predominant strain of the flu, H1N1, a version of the virus that sparked a pandemic in 2009, tends to strike even otherwise healthy people who are young or middle-aged adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Statewide, the number of flu deaths reached 45 as of Jan. 11, according to a state tracking system that can run a week behind what counties report. Still the state’s numbers are ahead of last year’s pace of flu fatality reports, state officials said, and they are investigating an additional 50 deaths.

Several counties were reporting more flu deaths than the California Department of Public Health had accounted for, including Sacramento County with six more fatalities than were listed in the state report.

But state officials were not downplaying the surge in flu deaths, which grew by 38 from seven throughout California in just one week. (For complete story, copy and paste link below)

Rad more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/01/17/6081098/flu-takes-45-lives-so-far-in-california.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.sacbee.com/2014/01/17/6081098/flu-takes-45-lives-so-far-in-california.html

Story Learned By Anthropologist From African Children!

Fantastic story learned by an anthropologist from a group of African children

This is a true, very touching story occurred in Africa. An anthropologist asked ...a group of children in Africa to play a game. He placed a basket full of fruits close to a tree and told the kids, that whoever gets there first will win the delicious fruits.

The moment he told them to run, they all took each other’s hands and ran together. They then sat one next to each other and shared the fruits.

The anthropologist asked them why did they do that, and they replied: “UBUNTU, how can one of us be happy if all the other ones are sad?”

In the Xhosa culture, the meaning of the word ”UBUNTU” is: “I am because we are”

Say Happy Birthday to Aunt Mary!

For those that want to call, Aunt Mary’s birthday is today. I think her number is 510-483-1841.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Snow Pics!

Angel drinking hot chocolate in his little snow made hut

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

New Jersey News - Week of 1/21/14

http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2014/01/super_bowl_2014_fan_guide_things_to_do_tips_travel_recommendations.html#incart_hbx#incart_best-of

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2014/01/nj_snowstorm_county_offices_closing_roads_slowing.html

http://www.nj.com/middlesex/index.ssf/2014/01/middlesex_county_traffic_snowstorm_causes_major_delays_before_afternoon_rush.html

http://www.nj.com/middlesex/index.ssf/2014/01/winter_storm_watch_middlesex_school_prepare_early_dismissals_ahead_of_snow_on_jan_21.html#incart_river

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2014/01/nj_schools_closing_early_ahead_of_foot_of_snow_-_jan_21.html#incart_river