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11/30/07 - NNHS Newsletter
- What'll I Do?
“Alone, alone, all, all alone, |
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Dear Friends and Schoolmates,
I had really wanted to use "Prisoner of Love" for today's Newsletter theme to offset all the recent Frank Sinatra with a bit of Perry Como, but I was unable to find a midi file for it. So I naturally immediately chose Irving Berlin's "What'll I Do?" instead.
No, of course that doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I never made any such outlandish claims.
BIRTHDAYS:
A Big Happy Birthday
today to
Rip
Collins ('65) of TN AND
Sandi Bateman Chestnut ('65) of VA!
Many Happy
Returns to you both!
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/Happy-Birthday.html
From Dear Abby - 11/26/07 - "HOLIDAY BLUES CHASED AWAY BY REACHING OUT TO OTHERS":
Thanksgiving dishes are back in the china cabinet, and the last of the leftovers are finished. The party season is starting, and Christmas carols fill the air. While this is an exciting and joyful time for a lot of us, for many individuals the holidays can be an intensely difficult time, triggering feelings of stress, loneliness and loss.
If a person is prone to depression, these feelings can be magnified.
How can anyone feel depressed at this time of year, you ask? The reasons are many: People who are separated from their families often feel isolated because they are unable to celebrate in the traditional way. Families who have lost a loved one during the year often feel his or her absence especially at this time. Others become depressed because they imagine that everyone else is enjoying a warm, idealized family experience, while they are on the outside looking in.
Even people who enjoy the holidays can find them stressful. At this time of year people are stretched for time, energy and money - - particularly the latter. They may feel embarrassed because they can't celebrate the way they would like to, or celebrate in the style they have in years past.
Some ways to ward off the holiday blues:
Keep expectations reasonable. Do not take on more activities than you can comfortably handle -- financially or otherwise.
Don't overspend. Plan a holiday budget and live within it, regardless of the temptation.
Do not run up credit card debt, or January will be like a serious hangover.
And speaking of hangovers: Watch your
alcohol intake. Remember, although alcohol appears to be a mood elevator, it
is actually a depressant. If you have a problem with alcohol, get whatever
support you need to make it through the holidays.
And finally, if you are feeling down and in need of an instant "upper," the
surest way to accomplish it is to do something nice for someone else. Call
someone who lives alone and invite that person to dinner. Better yet, say,
"I'm coming to get you, and I'll see that you get safely home." (Some older
people no longer drive at night, and those who do might prefer not to be
behind the wheel after dark.) Give it a try! You'll be glad you did.
And another reminder: We have so much for which to be grateful -- our health,
our sanity, our freedom. For those of you with a little time to spare, how
about showing our gratitude to our wounded veterans by visiting a veteran's
hospital and raising the spirits of those who have served our country? As I
said before, the quickest way to lose those holiday blues is to extend a hand
to someone who could use one. Try it and you'll see what I mean.
Love, ABBY
From My Niece, Shari, of VA -
11/29/07 - "Happy Winter Time and No More With Me ":
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Have a great weekend,
The Great I Am.
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Thanks so
much, Shari, this is a great reminder to us all!
From Eva Ellis Madagan ('61) of FL - 11/29/07 - "Blind horse":
Just up the road is a field, with two horses in it.
From a distance, each horse looks
like any other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will
notice something quite amazing....
Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner
has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him.
This alone is amazing.
If you stand nearby and listen, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking
around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller
horse in the field.
Attached to the horse's halter is a small bell.
It lets the blind friend know where the other horse is, so he can follow.
As you stand and watch these two friends, you'll see that the horse with the
bell is always checking on the blind horse, and that the blind horse will listen
for the bell and then slowly walk to where the other horse is, trusting that he
will not be led astray.
When the horse with the bell returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, it
stops occasionally and looks back, making sure that the blind friend isn't too
far behind to hear the bell.
Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we
are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges.
He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are
in need.
Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of
those who God places in our lives.
Other times we are the guide horse, helping others to find their way....
Good friends are like that ... You may not always see them, but you know they
are always there.
Please listen for my bell and I'll listen for yours.
And remember...
Be kinder
than necessary-
Everyone you meet is
fighting
Some kind of battle.
Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,
Speak kindly....
Leave the rest to God
Thank you,
Eva, this is beautiful!
From Johnnie Bateman ('67/'70) of VA
- 11/29/07 - "Sandi's Birthday":
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Carol, Sandi's Nephew Johnnie III was born on her birthday, I had to get permission from her prior to his delivery! Love Y'all! Johnnie Jr. HAPPY BIRTHDAY SANDI!!!! |
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Thanks, Johnnie!
Tell your son Happy Birthday from all of us here!
From Elaine Wilkinson Bracken ('61) of VA - 11/29/07 - "Ramblings of a Retired
Mind":
"Enjoy Your Days & Love Your Life"
because:
"Life is a journey to be savored"
GIGGLES! Thanks,
Elaine!
From My Niece, Shari, of VA -
11/29/07 - "Just One Rose":
I would rather have one rose and a kind word from a friend while I'm here than a whole truck load when I'm gone ..
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THESE ARE FOR YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Happiness keeps you
Sweet,
Thank you again,
Shari!
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From Sydney Dearing ('56) of TN - 11/29/07 - "Alumni Page":
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Hi Carol,
I wonder if you could add my mother's
name and class picture (attached) to the Alumni page. She was Lena
Mae Scruggs (Dearing) 1917-1979
NNHS
class of 1936. She was always
proud to be an NNHS alum. This would have made her smile.
Thanks,
Sydney Dearing
NNHS class of 1956
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Certainly, Sydney!
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/SITE-MAP.html
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/alumni-list.html
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/alumni-1959-n-before.html
From Renee Helterbran Benton ('59) of VA - 11/29/07 - "Five ways to avoid
medication mistakes":
Wu knew immediately that something was wrong.
The nurse's antibiotics were pills. He remembered that just a short time before, another nurse had given his wife the exact same antibiotics, but intravenously. He feared his wife was about to get two doses of the same medicine.
"I told the nurse, and she said, 'Oh dear. We'll check that,' " says Wu, a professor at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. "Had I not been there to intercept the error, she would have gotten both doses."
The newborn twins of actor Dennis Quaid were reportedly the victims of medication errors earlier this month when they were given doses of a blood thinner that was 1,000 times stronger than what was prescribed.
Outside the hospital, the situation is not as clear. But the IOM report says roughly 530,000 medication errors occur among Medicare recipients in outpatient clinics -- and that this is most likely an underestimate.
"The numbers really are staggering," says Wu, who helped write the IOM report. "Medication errors happen every day."
Wu says his experience with his wife shows patients really can prevent some -- but not all -- medication errors. Here from him and other experts are tips for avoiding medication errors.
1. Get in your doctor's face
The first step to preventing medication errors is to know exactly what your doctor is prescribing, how often you should take it, and at what dosage. Don't walk out of the doctor's office confused. "If you don't understand something, you should ask," says Wu. "This may seem like you're getting your doctor annoyed with you, but we doctors should get used to it."
Also, when your doctor writes a prescription, make sure you can read it. "If you can't read the doctor's handwriting, your pharmacist might not be able to either," according to a list of tips from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. "Ask the doctor to use block letters to print the name of the drug."
2. Get in your pharmacist's face
At the pharmacy, don't just take the prescription and walk away. Check the name, make sure it's what you were prescribed, and show the medicine to the pharmacist to double check you have the right one. For more tips on avoiding pharmacy errors, click here.
3. In the hospital, get your meds in writing
Ask for a list of all the medications you're supposed to be given, what they look like, and when you should get them. Then, when a nurse comes around to give you your medications, you know if they have it right, says Hedy Cohen, vice president of the Institute for Safe Medication Practices.
Cohen, a nurse, says she's seen patients get the wrong medication. "If you're supposed to get an orange pill at noon and instead you get a blue one, you can say something," Cohen says.
4. Make sure this is really YOUR medicine
Especially if your name is "Smith" or "Jones." "I personally saw a mom say to a nurse, 'Hey, the IV bag you're about to give my son has another child's name on it,' " Cohen says. She recommends showing the nurse your ID bracelet every time you're given a medicine.
Of course, it can be tough to notice mistakes when you're sick. That's why researchers who specialize in medical errors say it's very important to have someone with you in the hospital.
5. Get dramatic if you have to
Wu says when his friend's daughter was in the hospital, his friend realized a nurse was about to administer the wrong medicine. When Wu's friend told her this was not the medication the doctor had ordered, the nurse didn't believe him. "He threw himself across the bed until they realized the medication was for the next patient," Wu says.
A stern verbal request might work, too. "You could say, 'Just to be safe, could you please check with the doctor,' " Wu says. "Say, 'I don't want anything bad to happen, so please check.' "
Thanks so much,
Renee!
From Dave Spriggs ('64) of VA - 11/29/07 -
"Daniel School":
| A recent
purchase on EBAY. It is unused, so the date cannot be known. However, the
caption "New John Daniel High School" dates it after 1910 (when the school
was renamed Daniel School) and prior to the construction of
NNHS. Note the shadows cast by the trees. We will assume that these were not added by the publishers. The shadows place the sun behind the camera, which means that we must be looking north. Thus, we are looking across 31st Street. Congratulations, David! It's a beautiful addition to your collection - and to our own archive here: |
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| John Daniel High School | ||
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/SITE-MAP.html
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/our-schools.html
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/daniel-school.html
Thank you, Captain!
From Frances Goodson Wang ('65) of MD
- 11/29/07 - "The Teaching Company Free Holiday Lectures":
http://www.teach12.com/ttcx
WOWZERONI!!! This is sooo cool!
Thanks so much, Frances!
But don't y'all dawdle, or you'll miss them:
"You may access your free lectures online between now and January 31, 2008. Please feel free to send the lecture links to any friends of yours who might also enjoy them. They are free for them as well."
From one
of my Famous
Marines,
Herb Hice
of MI,
who served in the Pacific Theater during WWII
- 11/29/07 - "Dear Carol / Dimples, Sick pets, life and death choices -
CNN.com":
(LifeWire) -- Amy Breyer spared no expense to save her cat, Bob, when he was diagnosed with cancer, traveling about 1,700 miles and spending over $10,000 to ensure he received the best treatment available.
"Bob was like a child to me, so I was absolutely heartbroken when he was diagnosed," says Breyer, who has an animal law practice in Chicago. "It was never a question that I would try to get treatment for him."
Bob had nine months in remission. After a second round of surgery and radiation therapy, he enjoyed another four months of health before the disease returned.
"When it got to the point for me where it looked like he wasn't enjoying anything anymore, we opted to put him down, which to this day I have conflicted feelings about," Breyer says.
'Sweet goodbye'
In caring for ill and aging pets, quality of life should be the priority, says Alice Villalobos, a founding member of the Veterinary Cancer Society. Well-meaning owners can put their sick pets through procedure after procedure, but if quality of life isn't restored, the result is overtreatment.
If quality of life is the goal, decisions about treatment, care and euthanasia become clearer, though no less difficult to make.
Villalobos cited surveys saying one-third of people who euthanize a pet are haunted by the decision to do so. She sees this as a failure of the veterinary community to counsel pet owners and affirm their decision.
"Medical euthanasia is a sweet goodbye," Villalobos says. "It's literally helping a pet leave before they (go) through the throes and anguish of natural dying. It's a gift that we can give to our pets, but some people feel very reluctant to make the decision."
High costs of care
Another factor that comes into play when deciding how to care for an aging or sick animal is economics. Sometimes owners make the painful decision to euthanize a pet because medical care is simply too costly.
When David Neilsen of Tarrytown, New York, found out his 17-year-old cat Betty had a thyroid condition and a large lump that was probably cancerous, finances were a factor in deciding how to care for her. The initial checkup for Betty and her sister, Veronica, cost over $800, and further tests and treatment could easily have run into the thousands.
"It was a bit of sticker shock for me to see that," Neilsen says.
Neilsen decided to put Betty to sleep. He says he would have treated her if she were younger, but it wasn't worth it for a cat her age. Betty had lived a long, happy life.
While Neilsen was certain about the decision, euthanizing Betty was still painful. "It was very emotional, very difficult," he says. "When it was over, I couldn't stop petting her."
Knowing your options
Expensive treatment and euthanasia are two ends of a spectrum, and it's important that veterinarians inform people of other options for end-of-life care treatment that still provides comfort to the pet.
"Pet caregivers need to be offered more options for palliative treatment and programs," Villalobos says.
One such option is a pet hospice program. Organizations like the Argus Institute at Colorado State University, Angel's Gate in Fort Salonga, New York, and Pawspice, founded by Villalobos for terminally ill pets in the Los Angeles area, provide hospice care to animals to ease symptoms and minimize pain.
At Pawspice, for example, custom care plans developed by vets can include medical treatments, pain management techniques, nutritional advice and hygiene routines. They also may address how to handle euthanasia to avoid a sudden, emotional decision when the time comes. Depending on an animal's condition and treatment options, costs can run into the hundreds of dollars, although some programs take into account how much treatment an owner can afford.
Animal hospice in action
Trakr, a 14-year-old German shepherd, has been a Pawspice patient for about a year. The retired police search-and-rescue dog -- one of the first on the scene of the September 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center -- has a condition called degenerative myelopathy and has lost the function of his hind legs.
"Pawspice provides the support I need to properly care for Trakr at home while preserving his dignity and quality of life," says retired K-9 officer James Symington of West Hollywood, California, Trakr's owner.
"His spirit remains strong and we enjoy every minute that we have together," Symington says. Trakr still enjoys walks and playing catch on the beach thanks to a doggie wheel cart, which helps compensate for his diminished mobility.
"It's been extremely difficult for me to even contemplate the last days of Trakr's life." Symington says. "But I also have faith that I will know just when it's time and (have) the courage to do what is right."
LifeWire provides original and syndicated lifestyle content to Web publishers. Joan Shim is a freelance writer and former editor at Pet Product News.
Thanks, Herbie
Darlin'!
From Renee Helterbran Benton ('59) of VA - 11/29/07:
YUCKARONI-RINI-ROONI!!
All I've seen lately in my recent travels have been the wrapped disposable cups, but I'd strongly advise when you travel bringing your own bottled water - as well as some germicidal wipes and sprays!
Thanks, Renee!
HOLIDAY REUNION NEWS:
The NNHS Class of 1958
Holiday Gathering
The
NNHS Class of 1957 Holiday
Party
will be held Wednesday, December 12, 2007 at 6:00 PM
at
Angelo's (Route
17), Newport News, VA.
CONTACT:
Pabletz@aol.com
DATES
TO REMEMBER:1. Thursday, December 6, 2007, 11:00 AM - Class of 1955 Lunch Bunch - Angelo's Steak and Pancake Restaurant on J. Clyde Morris Boulevard - OPEN TO ALL WITH FRIENDS IN CLASS OF 1955
2. Tuesday, December 11, 2007, 6:00 PM - Class of 1958 Holiday Party - Mike O'Neal's (Warwick Village Shopping Center, Hilton Village, across from the Cedar Lane entrance to the Mariners' Museum) - NNHS CLASS OF 1958
3. Wednesday, December 12, 2007, 6:00 PM - Class of 1957 Holiday Party - Angelo's (Route 17) - NNHS CLASS OF 1957
4. Friday and Saturday, May 16 - 17, 2008 - NNHS CLASS OF 1958
From My #1 Daughter-in-Law,
Mary Bennett Harty (Litchfield HS, IL) of IL
- 11/27/07 - "Tweety -
this is sweet" (#2 in a series of 5):
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Words
from Tweety This is one of the cutest, nicest e-mails .... Enjoy!
My Tweety Bird!!! Thanks, Miss Mary!
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Y'all take care of each other! TYPHOONS FOREVER! We'll Always Have Buckroe!
Love to all, Carol
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NNHS CLASS OF '65 WEB SITE:
http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com
PERSONAL WEB SITE:
http://www.angelfire.com/weird2/cluckmeat
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Carol Buckley
Harty
219 Four Ply Lane
Fayetteville, NC 29311-9305
910-488-9408
What'll I Do?
Words and Music by Irving Berlin, 1923
(May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989)
Gone is the
romance that was so divine.
'tis broken and cannot be mended.
You must go your way,
And I must go mine.
But now that our love dreams have ended...
What'll I do
When you are far away
And I am blue
What'll I do?
What'll I do?
When I am wond'ring who
Is kissing you
What'll I do?
What'll I do with just a photograph
To tell my troubles to?
When I'm alone
With only dreams of you
That wont come true
What'll I do?
What'll I do with just a photograph
To tell my troubles to?
When I'm alone
With only dreams of you
That wont come true
What'll I do?
"What'll I Do?" midi (sequenced by Redsal / Sal Grippaldi) courtesy of http://www.smickandsmodoo.com/lyrics/what.htm - 11/29/07
"What'll I Do?" lyrics courtesy of http://www.lyricsfreak.com/i/irving+berlin/whatll+i+do_20068148.html - 11/29/07
Image of Lonely Man courtesy of http://www.candidsoul.com/?m=200612 - 11/30/07
Black Lace Divider Line clip art courtesy of http://www.wtv-zone.com/nevr2l82/bars21.html - 02/01/05
Animated Tiny
Birthday Cake clip art courtesy of
Sarah Puckett Kressaty ('65) of
VA - 08/31/05
Thanks, Sarah Sugah!
Marine Corps Seal clip art
courtesy of
Herbert Hice of MI
- one of my
Famous Marines
who served in the South
Pacific during WWII.
Thanks, Herbie!!
Navy Seal clip art courtesy of http://www.onemileup.com/miniSeals.asp - 05/29/06
Animated Ringing Christmas Bell clip art (designed by Art Holden) courtesy of http://www.animationfactory.com - 12/08/05
Purple Panther Paw Print courtesy of http://www.litchfield.k12.il.us/ - 06/23/07
Back to NNHS Newsletters - 2006