Bitch magazine review - Lost & Found Issue

Please note that I started to write this review in early January and just now had the time to finish it. But it's a really good issue, so go get it!

Goodness was I lucky! The day before we headed out for our holiday vacation the latest issue of Bitch magazine came in the mail. So one day when my dad had my daughter, my husband was taking a nap, and it was warm & sunny enough to grab a drink and sit on the porch, I dove in. Heavenly!

Love it/Shove it covers the humiliation of Miss South Carolina and dissects in the context that no one else did - that she was an 18-year-old young woman on a national stage being asked a question that most people couldn't answer on an open book exam. They also cover how gay is the new black for the Democratic candidates, Nair for pre-teens, when rape isn't rape, the Catholic Church evicting nuns in LA, a real diverse TV show...in Canada, and how in the world Teri Hatcher still looks like her Lois & Clark days. What really was awesome is the interview by Anne Elizabeth Moore of Christine Harold. Both study & write about the infilration of corporations into our lives, but from different perspectives. It's part interview, part debate. It's awesome. Oh, yeah, I already said that.

Sarah Seltzer takes on the hard cold fact that girl geeks on TV and in the movies get beautfied and they can't find love in all their geekiness, unlike the geeks in "Can't Buy Me Love" and the new CBS geek TV show. I wonder if Jordan from "Real Genius" is the exception? Anyone?

There is also a nice piece on radical unschoolers and how being a hard core radical feminist just might equal homeschooling and yes, gasp, opt-out of one's career to stay home with the kids.

Even though the diy approach may appeal to progressives who identify with the anti-establishment ethos of the punk movement, homeschooling still raises tricky questions for progressive mothers. Namely, this one: Can women trade their careers for their families without sacrificing a few of their feminist values—the very values that inspired many of them to homeschool in the first place? It’s no wonder that punk feminist moms like Kim Campbell, who has homeschooled her kids for seven years, occasionally feel like walking oxymorons.

Normally I wouldn't even bother reading the feminist analysis of the Spice Girls, but when there's a chart comparing them to Xena, Buffy and the Powerpuff Girls, I gotta read it.

A few issues ago, Bitch started to feature an interview called, "cool activists, good causes." This issue's cool activist is ShinJoung Yeo, reference coordinator for Standford University's Green Library. Yup...she's a librarian, a feminist, and an activist. Plus she has to read for a living! She has the perfect job.

The interview of Susan Faludi is the best piece of the issue:

Q: Did you intend for The Terror Dream to come out in advance of the 2008 election?

A: [...]I was utterly dismayed watching what unfolded in the last presidential election, where we were served up a contest of who could be the Davy-Crokett-in-chief who had killed the most pheasants or chopped down the most trees or had most extoic firearms in their closet. And women were presented as if they just wanted President Knows Best to protect them.[...]

This issue has been out for some time now, so if you haven't snatched it up, head out to your local (independent if possible) bookstore and gobble it up. Especially since a new issue should be just around the corner!

Technorati tags: Bitch Magazine, feminism

Feminism at its Finest February 2008

February's round up of the "best feminist posts" is out and I'm in it. More linky love for my write up of Dr. Susan Wicklund's visit to Chicago.

Now for any newbies reading (ahem, WMG) don't think that I'm all that hot or that my write-up was so popular that the carnies are all linking me.

Just head on over to the Blog Carnival site, search for a carnival that fits your post's theme and submit your post. Wa-la! It's not a guarantee that you'll get in, but most of the time I get in. Of course, the trick is to REMEMBER to submit to these carnivals so that you can increase your blog traffic.

For new readers visiting from FaiF, welcome. Stick around, comment, and come on back. Thanks for visiting.

Technorati tags: feminism, Feminism at its Finest, blog carnival

Whose your favorite woman blogger?

Well of course it's me, but seriously. The Women's Voices Women Vote site is asking people to nominate their favorite blogger and then they will list the top 10 and then there will be voting. So head on over and vote for some awesome bloggers, K?

Evidence-based Medicine Podcasts from Cochrane Library

The Cochrane Collaboration produces systematic reviews of healthcare interventions and promotes the search for evidence in the form of clinical trials and other studies of interventions. It is a key resource in evidence-based medicine.

The Cochrane Collaboration has a podcast page with audio summaries of selected reviews from The Cochrane Library.

Click here to subscribe to the feed.


Video: Cochrane Library Tutorial from Lake-Sumter Community College Libraries.

References:
(Greatly improved) Cochrane and CINAHL Tutorial Videos. DavidRothman.net.
Image source: The Cochrane Collaboration.

The Problem with Pro-Choice

Many feminists, especially feminists of color, have made excellent platforms of why we, feminists/progressives, need to stop saying pro-choice. The bottom line is that pro-choice usually focuses just on abortion rights and maybe birth control. In reality, we should be fighting for reproductive justice - abortion, artificial fertilization, having healthy babies, and the right to birth where we want and with whom.

One reason why I have a problem with pro-choice is that it is often used as short hand for a candidate's stance on women's health. And oh how wrong that can be!

Example 1: Peter Roskam, IL-6th District (R)
He was elected to office in 2006 over a woman war-veteran. She had the backing of many women's organizations especially pro-choice organizations. It was recently brought to my attention that he brought home the bacon! Specifically $243,000 for Access Community Health for mental health treatment and chronic diseases. I was seriously floored when my friend told me that he brought home this much money for health care, especially chronic care which effects women more.

Example 2: Cook County President Todd Stroger (D)
Two years ago his father fell ill from a stroke and never recovered. Of course, Todd & Co. (family & party) kept saying he'd be ok. Pappa won the primary from his hospital bed. As soon as it was too late for a replacement to be democratically chosen, the Stroger family said that Pappa was too ill to run for re-election and Pappa named Todd as his successor. Todd ran a hard race against right-wing Tony Periaca. Again the pro-choice organizations came out in force and I even recall one mailer that put the fear of Roe in me. What does it matter if the country president is pro-choice? Cook County runs one of the biggest hospitals for the poor in the country AND does free abortions. *DING*

Today I get an email from the Chicago Foundation for Women:

What happened? The Cook County Board of Commissioners last night rejected a budget amendment to reduce the backlog of mammograms at Cook County Hospital, by a vote of eight to nine. At least 6,800 women could have received mammograms if the amendment had passed.

What did the amendment say? President Todd Stroger’s proposed 2008 budget gave each commissioner an extra $60,000 for their staffs’ salaries, more than $1 million in total. Last night, commissioners Quigley, Claypool and Schneider proposed redirecting that money to pay for mammograms at Cook County Hospital. Unfortunately, a majority of commissioners put their “staffs over women’s health,” as the Daily Herald reported on its front page today.

I'm not saying that I wish Periaca had won or that I'm glad that Roskam did. What these two instances show is that being pro-choice is not always pro-woman. We need to ask candidates more questions, even if our most trusted organizations say they are ok.

BTW - Click on the CFW link above and send a than you to your Cook Co. Commish if he voted the right way. Shame on all the women of Cook County for voting AGAINST women's health. Considering that the late-Pappa Stroger didn't go to Cook County when he had a stroke, something tells me that none of the women on the board go there for mammograms.


Technorati tags: Cook County, Todd Stroger, Personal PAC, pro-choice, feminism, abortion

Attending rounds: How to use acetazolamide to correct hypercapnia in OSA and COPD?

A 68 yo CF with morbid obesity, OSA and hypercapnia is admitted to the hospital. ABG is shown below:


ABG

What is the abnormality on ABG?

ABG shows chronic (compensated) primary respiratory acidosis, with metabolic alkalosis. Click here for MedCalc: Acid-Base Calculator.

The patient refuses to wear her BiPAP at home and in the hospital. She has episodes of confusion with elevation of PaCO2 which resolve when PaCO2 is decreased with BiPAP.

Will she benefit from acetazolamide (Diamox)?

A therapeutic trial of acetazolamide is probably indicated in attempt to control hypercapnia in this patient.

Acetazolamide, an inhibitor of carbonic anhydrase, stimulates the ventilatory drive by inducing metabolic acidosis.

Patients receiving who are able to increase their ventilation will decrease their PaCO2 because their increased ventilatory drive will surpass their impaired excretion PCO2. In contrast, patients who are unable to augment their ventilation (eg, those with severe COPD) may develop a severe acidosis on acetazolamide.

Acetazolamide reduced the AHI and destaturation index but the effect is modest. It can not be recommended for the routine care of patients with OSA.

Acetazolamide may play a role in the treatment of acute metabolic alkalosis caused by diuresis or steroids in patients with hypercapnic COPD. A short course may correct the underlying metabolic alkalosis that may be the cause of worsening hypercapnia. Acetazolamide has not been demonstrated in large controlled trials to have significant benefit for the long-term management of hypercapnia in COPD patients.

When used used as respiratory stimulant in COPD and OSA (unlabeled use), acetazolamide dose is 250 mg twice daily. It may induce agranulocytosis and monitoring of CBC is needed with prolonged use.

References:
Acid-base Balance Cases and Calculators. Clinical Cases and Images - Blog.
Use of Acetazolamide in COPD Patients. Medscape.
Disorders of ventilatory control. UpToDate, 15.3.
Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors for hypercapnic ventilatory failure in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Cochrane Reviews.
Google Books: 1 and 2.

Related:
A challenging ABG: question and answer. DB’s Medical Rants, 02/2008.

Updated: 03/07/2008

School "Choice" in CPS

Saturday ushers in March and the hope that spring will overcome winter, some televised spring training games, Shamrock shakes, and of course, notification from the Chicago Public School lottery and all those privates & parochial schools on whether or not your child was selected. All of this is because Chicago Public Schools have school choice. It's a nice slogan. It lulls you into the belief that you, the parent, has control over where your beloved offspring will be learning their three R's. In fact it is a madness that pushes parents into an annual emotional marathon.

The Chicago Tribune points out the intense competition to get into not just CPS schools, but religious and private schools:

Statistically, it's more difficult, for example, to get into Drummond Montessori, a public magnet school in Bucktown, than it is to get into Harvard University. About 995 children applied for the 36 openings at Drummond next school year, a 4 percent acceptance rate. Harvard accepted about 9 percent of its applicants last year.

At Sacred Heart, an independent Catholic school in Rogers Park, the competition is so fierce, parents are applying now for "early admission" for 2009-10.

And at the private British School, which just last month opened a $25 million, five-story schoolhouse in Lincoln Park, the preschool and kindergarten classes for next year already are full, with a waiting list. Annual tuition: about $18,000.

Of course, we could chuck it all and head into the suburbs where school choice is much more limited and honestly, people buy in suburbs based on what school they want and can afford. And that right there is what is so wrong with the school system in general.

For the record, my husband & I sent in at least a dozen magnet school applications, had our daughter tested for both gifted programs, and applied to one independent/private school. We are both products of public schools in the suburbs and had vastly different experiences. Heck, my sisters & I had vastly different experiences! But we fled the suburbs for the city and fell in love. We love being surrounded by different people, having the choice to hop on the el to go to a Cubs game, and how different neighborhoods are just a few blocks down. We want her to grow up in an environment that might be a bit more forgiving of difference than the suburbs (sorry suburbanites, I lived it, I know what I went through).

Also for the record, I lived in a working poor suburb. My parents chose a house for us that was barely in district for one of the top high schools in the state. I am not a trust fund baby who lives in Lincoln Park who wants a prep school for my child inside a Chicago Public School. What I do want is for every child to have access to quality education, inspiring teachers, and the ability to make friends of all types - that includes academic. While I was in honors classes most of my school career, I had friends in average classes as well as friends who were far more smart than I was. Diversity of thought is important for everyone.

While touring some of the tuition-based preschools, I saw exactly what John Kass tongue-in-cheek suggests - almost total separation of the neighborhood kids from those whose parents are writing a check:

Now, a so-called gifted academy will be saved, to reopen in a building of non-gifted (or is that regular students?) school on the Northwest Side. Parents of the gifted are worried that the non-gifted parents may try to squeeze new kids into the gifted program. Happily, the school bureaucrats have come up with a plan.

They'll keep the children separate, so they don't mingle, perhaps with fences, as if the non-gifted are diseased with cooties. I suggest a moat filled with ravenous crocodiles, to keep the non-gifted in their place. Just wondering, but surely the gifted parents must consider themselves Democrats, as their gifted children are in "public school," right?

I live in the city FOR the diversity. I'm not going to pay thousands of dollars to keep my Latina daughter away from others like her. I say that because I rarely saw other people of color on these school tours. I suspect because tours are during the day so we can ooh and ahh over the darling children while they learn algebra in 2nd grade. Thankfully magnet schools have to keep a certain racial breakdown. While the one independent we did apply to isn't full of racial diversity, it is one where we feel very comfortable with in every other aspect - outside the tuition bill, of course.

Why don't I just stop complaining and send her to our neighborhood school? If we need to, we will. But again, my main thesis is that we shouldn't have to choose whether or not to send our kids to a school 30 minutes away from home just because they have recess or art or new computers. In magnet schools they can keep a handle on classroom size while neighborhood schools have to take everyone. I firmly believe that classroom size is one of the biggest factors in a student's success. It just makes sense.

School choice lets us believe that every child has a shot at being in a top school. That blind lotteries are fair, no peeking at the parents bank account, no play parties to see if the kids fit in, and no testing. In reality it's not as even of a field as we would hope. Not even the gifted schools are safe. On Super Tuesday the voters around the South Loop school voted in favor of a non-binding referendum to ask CPS to remove the gifted students because their commuting was causing too much traffic. Ah, yes...traffic trumps the education of our children. I have no idea what CPS will do with this request, but I'm happy that we didn't apply to a school where outsiders are clearly not welcome.

In the end, my husband and I have to choose the best school for our daughter. Gifted, private, neighborhood, or magnet, we just want a school where we know that she can learn and be respected. I'm grateful that we had the time to visit open houses and fill out applications. I'll continue to work and agitate so that kids can go to school with their neighbors & not worry that they aren't missing out on fresh air, Beethoven, or science fairs.

This was cross-posted from The Red Thread at Chicago Parent

Technorati tags: CPS, kindergarten, school, Chicago Public Schools, education

54th Carnival of Feminists

The 54th Carnival of Feminists is out and yours truly is in it!

Here are some of my favorite selections from this issue:

• Penguin Unearthed on identifying as a mother: "This blog does not have any real focus. But if it had one, it would be the intersection of parenting and work - how the world of work should change, and how to make that happen. So maybe that’s why I identified as a mother - it seems obvious to me that I’m in the world of work, but it’s easy for the world of work to forget my life as a mother."
• Julie Fairey's hilarious look at becoming a mother: "My days and nights used to be mine to command. Now I live at the beck and call of a tyrant, one who insists on using a foreign language that I am slow to learn...His tyranny extends to determining when I sleep and when I wake, even sometimes when I can eat, and the dictates of the Holidays Act and other relevant labour legislation simply do not apply in this area of employment."
• Karnythia at Angry Black Woman is considering breaking up with feminism over this Obama - Clinton debate that puts women of color, especially Black women, in the middle. "I’m a black woman. I’m a feminist that’s voting for Obama. I was on the verge of ceasing to call myself a feminist since it’s become quite obvious that many white feminists think I’m too stupid to notice them saying nigger under their breath after every call for sisterhood. But then it occurred to me that there’s no reason to let them be the face of the feminist movement."

Each blog listed is fabulous, so check them all out.

Technorati tags: Carnival of Feminists, feminism

RSS Feeds and Podcasts from American Academy of Family Physicians

American Family Physician (AFP) is the official journal of the American Academy of Family Physicians and although it does not publish any original research, the journal is a good source of review articles and practical advice.

I had used a Pubmed workaround to get RSS feeds for the new articles from AFP but recently noted that the academy website has started offering RSS and podcast feeds:

RSS Feeds from AAFP News Now

Available Podcasts from the AAFP

The Continuing Medical Education (CME) podcast seems the most useful one among the 3 podcasts offered currently.

References:
Make Your Own "Medical Journal" with iGoogle Personalized Page
Share iGoogle Tabs with Medical Journals, Podcasts and Gadgets
Get RSS Feeds for Any Medical Journal from Pubmed

Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents increase risk of death and blood clots in cancer patients

Widely used erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) for anemia treatment raise the risk of death among cancer patients by about 10%, according to a new meta-analysis published in JAMA. The study also found a 57% increase in the risk of venous thromboembolism, a known side effect of ESAs.

The findings raise concern about the safety of ESA administration to patients with cancer in addition to the concerns we already have about ESA use in CKD and ESRD patients.

In 2007, the FDA added a black box warning to the labels of all currently available ESA due to increase in serious side effects and greater number of deaths in patients treated with these agents.

References:
Correct Anemia in Chronic Kidney Disease Up To a Point
Death Risk Found From Anemia Drugs. NYTimes.
Venous Thromboembolism and Mortality Associated With Recombinant Erythropoietin and Darbepoetin Administration for the Treatment of Cancer-Associated Anemia. Charles L. Bennett at al. JAMA. 2008;299(8):914-924.
Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

Upcoming Events in Chicago

I'm taking a mental break from a proposal that I must finish today. It's almost done and I hope my sanity can be regained. Thus in lieu of a real post, today you get invitations to some awesome events in the next week:

• OK, not an event, unless hitting the bookstore is an event (for me it is!), but the Chicago Foundation for Women is Women & Children First's organization of the month. Just print out a coupon and present it when you make a purchase and CFW gets 10% of your purchase total. Easy!
  
  
• Thursday, February 28th - T's Bar & Restaurant - Fundraiser
  Please support “Revolutionary Expressions: A Celebration Commemorating International Womyn’s Day” by joining Latinas Organizing for Reproductive Equality, Mexican Students of Aztlan, Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, F.I.R.E., and Young Women’s Empowerment Project at:
  
  T's Bar
  5025 N. Clark St
  Thursday February 28th
  7:30p – 11p
  
  **Portion of the proceeds from food and drink sales as well as ALL proceeds from purchase of raffle tickets and jello shots go to “Revolutionary Expressions” conference**
  Sadly I can't attend as it's my husband's night to be out on the town. Buy a jello shot for me!
  
  
• REVOLUTIONARY EXPRESSIONS:
  A Celebration Commemorating International Womyn’s Day
  
  Thursday March 6, 2008
  9:30 am – 3:00 pm
  
  UIC’s Student Center East
  6th Floor (Student Center Tower), Rm 605
  750 S Halsted St
  Chicago, IL 60607
  
  For additional information please contact
  latinalore@gmail.com or (312) 479 – 2464
  
  I am going to try to pop in and out of this, but I have to attend a work training/meeting.
  
  
• Status of Women in the Workplace
  
  A symposium sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League and the Chicago
  Foundation for Women
  
  Work/Life Balance, Pay Disparity, Equal Opportunity and Other Issues
  that Follow Us to Work
  
  Monday, March 3, 2008, 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM
  
  McDermott Will & Emery
  227 West Monroe Street , Chicago
  
  To RSVP, call (312) 577-2801 ext. 229 or follow this link (online registration will open on
  Feb. 18) :
  
  http://www.cfw.org/NETCOMMUNITY/Page.aspx?pid=863&srcid=863
  
  Advance RSVPs are required for security reasons.
  
  Speaking at the event:
  
  · Doris Moy
  Manager, Equal Opportunity Workforce Division, Illinois Department of Labor
  Ms. Moy oversees the administration and enforcement of five of the agency’s 28 labor laws including the Illinois Equal Pay Act, Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act (VESSA), Displaced Homemakers Assistance Act, Private Employment Agency Act and Nurse Agency Licensing Act.
  
  · Melissa Josephs
  Director of Equal Opportunity Policy, Women Employed
  Ms. Josephs conducts research, develops recommendations, directs advocacy campaigns, and monitors implementation of policies on a range of employment issues such as paid leave, sexual harassment, fair wages, and enforcement of equal opportunity laws and affirmative action policies and practices. She also conducts federal- and state-level lobbying on workplace issues. Josephs directs WEI’s Job Problems Counseling Service which advises women regarding unfair and illegal workplace issues and currently leads a growing statewide coalition whose goal is to pass paid leave legislation in Illinois.
  
  · Carol M. Sladek
  Principal, Talent and Organization, Work-Life Consulting, Hewitt Associates
  Ms. Sladek specializes in work/life and time off strategy, issues, and developments. She works with clients around the world helping them to attract, motivate, and retain employees through strategic design of time/work/life solutions. Sladek’s recent publications include Work/Life: It’s All About Time,” “Developing a Work/Life Strategy,” “A Guide to Offering Work/Life Benefits,” and “Integrating Work and Family Needs Into a
  Flexible Benefits Plan.”
  
  Moderated by Andrea Kramer
  Partner , McDermott Will & Emery
  
  This program is graciously hosted by McDermott Will & Emery’s Women’s Leadership Group & WLMA: Women's Leadership & Mentoring Alliance.
  
  I will be at this one! Please look out for me and say hi.
  

I am working to find the best calendar for this blog. I get a lot of event invites and want to share them with my readers. I can't make them all, but I want you to know about them all. And please feel free to report back on whether events were good, bad, or whatever. Guest bloggers are welcome.

Clinical Case: Diabetic Myonecrosis

A 42 yo male with poorly controlled DM type 2 came was admitted with a one-month history of worsening pain in his left thigh and calf associated with inability to walk. There was no history of trauma or intramuscular injections.

There was swelling and tenderness in the left distal quadriceps area and calf with limited range of motion of the knee. Peripheral pulses and sensation were normal.

MRI of the left knee is shown below. What are the changes?



Read more in Diabetic Myonecrosis: An Unusual Suspect on ClinicalCases.org.

The author of this case is Moises Auron, M.D. from the Department of Hospital Medicine, Cleveland Clinic.

Bitch on Bitch - Again

Due to Tina Fey's endorsement and the onslaught of "Bitch is the new black" ware on the internet AND some women being uncomfortable with the B-word, I point y'all back to Andi Ziesler's essay on "bitch."

JFTR - When I first got online, one my earliest email addys was bitchgoddess@domain.com. Of course, now you can't do that because Yahoo, et. al don't like swear words in your email addy.

Technorati tags: Bitch Magazine, Andi Ziesler, bitch, Leonard Pitts, John McCain, feminist

Fibromyalgia is not a rheumatological disease but a central pain syndrome

According to a Medscape video editorial:

In 1990, The American College of Rheumatology established diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia based on the scoring of 18 potential tender points (pain on palpation with a 4-kg force, pain at 11 of 18 sites is necessary to meet the criteria). "It turns out, however, that these tender points have nothing to do with fibromyalgia. Biopsy of the tender points shows no pathologic changes, and numerous studies have not shown any abnormalities in the musculoskeletal tissues that are painful.

Current evidence points to a neurologic disorder of central pain processing. We will no longer need to refer our fibromyalgia patients to the rheumatologist."

Some doctors doubt if fibromyalgia truly exists but the patient symptoms are real and should be addressed. Duloxetine (Cymbalta) and pregabalin (Lyrica) have been used with some success to treat this disorder. Lyrica is the first and only FDA-approved medication for fibromyalgia therapy.

References:

Fibromyalgia Is Not a Rheumatologic Disease Anymore. George T. Griffing, MD. The Medscape Journal of Medicine. Webcast Video Editorials.
Pharmacotherapy of Fibromyalgia - Medscape review, 2011.
Treating Fibromyalgia. AFP, 2000.
Fibromyalgia. eMedicine, Aug 15, 2007.

Fibromyalgia: Slideshow. Medscape.

Tai chi may be a useful treatment for fibromyalgia - NEJM, 2010.

Sexual dysfunction is common in patients with fibromyalgia - reported by 87% of females and 76% of males http://goo.gl/EsVTx
Image source: Wikipedia, Gray's Anatomy, public domain.

Sea Lion at Cleveland Zoo Dies of Pancreatitis

Huck, one of the Cleveland Zoo two sea lions, enjoyed interacting with visitors, as you can see from the video below at minute 2:01:


Sea Lion at Northern Trek, Cleveland Zoo. See another video here.

The 5-year-old California sea lion, died of of pancreatitis and acute enteritis, according to the zoo press release: "Huck had shown no clinical signs of illness or abnormal behavior until the day he died.

Huck arrived at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in 2003 from Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo in Nebraska. He was one of two sea lions residing with five harbor seals in the Northern Trek area of the Zoo."

This post ads to the list of animals with very "human" diseases like:
- Gorillas with CHF
- A tortoise with CAD

References:
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo sea lion dies. The Plain Dealer.
Northern Trek in the Spring at Cleveland Zoo. Hit the Road - See America and the World.

Tina Fey Returns to Weekend Update

Technorati tags: Tina Fey, Hillary Clinton, Campaign 2008, feminism, Weekend Update

IT Advice: The Ultimate Student Resource List

The Ultimate Student Resource List from LifeHack.org. The list includes:

10 Free Applications Every Student Needs
11 Online Tools Students Should Check Out
15 Websites for Students
30 Pieces of Advice for Students
7 Online Research Resource

Related:
How to Study. Clinical Cases and Images - Blog, 05/2007.
Image source: Wikipedia

Obama's a witch, Clinton's a bitch

Of course the ever subtle Sun-Times political cartoonist Jack Higgins thinks that Hillary is both with this incredibly sexist cartoon.

But Starhawk, a real witch, writes a beautiful piece that isn't pro-anyone other than pro-us. Not US, but us, you and me, working together to make this country and this world a better place:

As for me, I do believe, as Obama urges us to—not in his or any politician’s ability to make change, but in ours. If we as a people find our own vision, and speak, march, lobby, write, push for it and enact it in every way we can, then this moment of fear and crisis can become a turning point. We face huge losses in the years to come, and to get through them we need trust and connection in one another, courage, creativity, and compassion. None of that arises out of cynicism and despair. All of it comes only when we begin by believing, “Yes, we can!”

Starhawk also outlines why many of us are falling under the spell of Obama:

Obama evokes some powerfully appealing archetypes. Think of all those myths and fairy tales about the humble-seeming outsider who turns out to be the true king, throwing out the corrupt rulers and restoring health and healing. We’re a contradictory people—we love underdogs, while we despise losers—but there’s nothing we love more than the little guy who comes from behind and beats all the odds to win the pennant.

She also offers some wonderful advise to Clinton on winning this race. Starhawk found Hillary's voice:

In the contest of archetypes, women are at a disadvantage, facing a deep, unconscious sexism that limits our collective imagination. We so easily turn into Mom, either Nagging Mom, or Bitch Mom who doesn’t really love us, or harried, responsible but dull Mom, complaining about how she does all the real work while sexy, divorced Dad just takes the kids to Disneyland. My personal sympathies lie deeply with Mom’s cause. She does do all the diaper changing and the homework while Dad breezes in for Ski Week and holidays. But if I were Hillary Clinton’s campaign advisor, I’d tell her, stay away from that archetype. Responsible Mom is not going to win over Aragorn the Exiled King. Instead, I would urge, be Joan of Arc. Find your vision, and be so passionately driven by it that you would stand forth and challenge kings and armies. Show us your courage, which we know you have. Tell us “I stood forth and went into realms where few women dared to go, because I care so deeply about the welfare of all of us.”

Whatever you do, don’t attack Obama on issues of faith and trust. Doing so will be just as effective as warning your teenage daughter that the sexy biker she’s fallen in love with has no history of gainful employment. (bold is mine)

To that I have to chuckle. Do you recall that after the 2000 election so many people tried to figure out how Dubya beat an established leader like Al Gore? The answer? People identified with him. Guys wanted to have a beer with him. Women wanted to date him. Of course, women seemed to say they would marry Gore, but only after a tryst with Dubya.

Again...disclaimer...I love Obama BUT...How can people NOT see that we're going thru the same "cool kid" versus "smart kid" scenario in this primary? How many times has Hillary been dissed for acting like Lisa Simpson? Always wanting to show that she's right? Christine Stansell says it best:

How many of us have heard brilliant and resourceful women in the workplace dismissed or devalued for "detail-orientation" in contrast to a man's supposed "big picture" scope? How many of us have seen what, in a man, would be called "peerless mastery," get called, in a woman's case, "narrowness"? How many women have we known -- truly gifted workers, professionals, and administrators -- who have been criticized for their reserve and down-to-earth way of speaking? Whose commanding style, seriousness, and get-to-work style are criticized as "cold" and insufficiently "likable"? These prejudices have been scandalously present in this campaign.

In last night's return episode of "Saturday Night Live," Tina Fey goes on the offensive for Hillary (damn that writer's strike!!) and let's loose of gawd damn funny retorts to why voting for Obama is better. Her bottomline was something like this (damn no immediate transcript!!):

Is Hillary a bitch? YES. And you know what? Bitches get things done. This one does.

I have many girl crushes, but if I ever come face to face with Tina Fey, I am giving her one hell of a kiss. Her feminist rants on SNL are brilliant and SO needed. Why can't she do the ABC World News Tonight or have her own political talk show ala Bill Maher?

I blog this not to diss Obama and his followers, but to diss the many issues people have with Hillary. I wanted this campaign to be about issues not inspirational talks or whether taking back a cheating spouse automatically disqualifies you from the Presidency. If so, I think FDR might owe this country a few terms. War votes? Let's get to them. Health care reform? Depends on what the meaning of "universal" means.

But since that's not where this primary has ever lived, I'll just head on off to bed where I can dream of what could had been - The perfect moment for the Democratic Party to show this country that it and not the GOP cares about the overall welfare of the citizens of this awesome nation, not how much money their consultants can talk the candidates into spending.

PS: You can send some feedback to the Sun-Times about the sexist cartoon Higgins drew and they published.

Technorati tags: Starhawk, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Campaign 2008, pagan, wiccan

Too many feeds to read? Time to trim down RSS subscriptions

Web feeds readers have truly become an "inbox for the web." Until recently, I was subscribed to about 600 web sites, blogs, medical journals, podcasts and persistent searches. With so many feeds to read, information overload became a real issue, and I trimmed down the number of RSS subscriptions significantly this month.


Image is licensed under Creative Commons.


Video: RSS in Plain English

Related:
Dealing with Information Overload. LifeHack.org
Best Web Feeds Reader for Medical and General Information
How to Read Blog Articles Written Only By Your Favorite Bloggers. Digital Inspiration, 02/2008.
Troubleshooting RSS addiction: a blogger finds freedom in a world without feeds. Download Squad, 04/2008.

Check the series "What I Read" by different people in The Atlantic (scroll to the bottom of the page to see other links) http://goo.gl/xWUb

Updated: 04/23/2008

Feminism is good for boys & men

I vividly recall being in a meeting maybe six years ago trying to figure out what committees should exist for a feminist group. There was the usual call for a "diversity" committee, but I said that we needed a men's issues committee instead. I was quickly yelled down by a few key leaders of said group.

So when I read Jeff's post at Shakesville about gender and boys, I said a little thank you to the Goddess! Thank you for showing me another sign that I wasn't insane for suggesting that feminists reach out to men in an attempt to bring down the patriarchy, to find new/more partners in our fight for reproductive freedom, and to end gender roles in society.

That "acceptable femininity" has expanded in scope is unquestionably a good thing, and while we're not there yet, one can see the day coming when girls are considered girls simply for being girls, no matter their dress, interests, hair length, or sexual orientation.

The same cannot be said for boys. Boys are still, to large extent, expected to fit into a very narrow range of "acceptable masculinity." Boys are supposed to like sports, rasslin', "kinetic activities." They're supposed to show toughness, supposed to show little interest in emotion or caring for others. Quite simply, boys are supposed to be boys, and any boy who dares step outside that box is going to be called a girl or a homosexual, not just by his peers, but likely by his own parents.

The quote from Orenstein is heartbreakingly accurate: boys are as likely to want to play at parenthood as girls are to want to kick a ball. Boys are as likely to want to read quietly as girls are to roughhouse. Boys are, quite simply, no more likely to "be boys" as girls are to "be girls."

But while we as a society have recognized that girls can and should want to be made of more than sugar and spice and everything nice, boys are still supposed to be all snips and snails and puppy dogs' tails. That this is a problem for boys is obvious; that this is a problem for girls should be.

Thanks Jeff.

Technorati tags: gender, boys, tagname, girls, Shakesville

Attending rounds: How many "organ"-renal syndromes are recognized?

There are 3 "organ"-renal syndromes:

- Hepatorenal Syndrome (HRS) - development of renal failure in patients with advanced chronic liver disease, occasionally fulminant hepatitis, who have portal hypertension and ascites; 40% of patients with cirrhosis and ascites will develop HRS.

- Cardiorenal Syndrome - presentation of combined cardiac and renal dysfunction.

- Pulmonary-Renal Syndrome (PRS) - presentation of combined alveolar hemorrhage and glomerulonephritis.

Pulmonary-Renal Syndrome is the least well-recognized among the 3 syndromes. For example, it is not even listed under this name in the current edition of the "universal textbook of medicine" UpToDate (version 15.3). There is an old proverb: beware the man of a single book (homo unius libri).

Pulmonary-renal syndrome (PRS) is diffuse alveolar hemorrhage and glomerulonephritis occurring simultaneously. It sound like Goodpasture's syndrome which is logical since Goodpasture's is the prototype cause of PRS. Pulmonary-renal syndrome can can also be caused by SLE, Wegener's granulomatosis, microscopic polyangiitis, and other connective tissue diseases -- see the Merck Manual for a full list of causes of PRS.

References:

Acute decompensated heart failure: The cardiorenal syndrome. CCJM (PDF).
The Clinical Challenge of Cardiorenal Syndrome. Circulation, 2004.
Are You Dependent on UpToDate for Your Clinical Practice?
Cirrhosis - JAMA Patient Page, 2012.
Image source: Wikipedia, GNU Free Documentation License.

What We Think

See this banner? It's for my book. OK, it's not MY book, it's Adele's, but I do have an essay in it. It's entitled "Occupation: Professional Feminist." Obviously it goes over why I call myself a professional feminist and explores a bit of how feminist careers go far beyond what is generally thought - domestic violence center director, women's health clinic director. All careers that are awesome, but are just the beginning of the universe of careers that feminists can hold that are feminist careers. In reality, I think almost any job can be feminist if feminist ethics and morals are used.

I don't know exactly when the book will be out, but don't fret, I'll let you know. I also believe that part of my sweat equity for the book is to do some events as well as publicize the book. So yes, my friends, you may need to come out and buy the book at a signing. HAHAHA!! The idea of me at a book signing is just too funny for me to contemplate right now. I wonder if the campus bookstore will stock me next to the books from PhDs. OK, now I'm gonna pee my pants from laughing too hard.

Now I really want to get my hands on my piece for edits. I have an image to craft baby.

Technorati tags: feminist, book

Attending rounds: How to start insulin therapy in diabetes mellitus type 2?

See Figure 3. Algorithm for the management of type 2 diabetes from AFP (http://www.aafp.org/afp/20040801/489.html).

For patients who have been inadequately controlled on oral antidiabetic medications , the initial dose is typically 10 units/day or 0.1 to 0.2 units/kg/day. Initially, basal therapies are usually administered as a single dose in the evening. Where necessary, NPH insulin also may be given in 2 doses: 1 dose in the morning and 1 dose in the evening. The dose can be titrated in 1-, 2-, or 3-unit increments until target FPG levels are achieved. When initiating insulin, it is best to start low and increase the dose gradually until the target is reached (http://www.ispub.com).

If intermediate insulin is chosen, the amount can be calculated by dividing a patient's body weight in kilograms by four and using that number to determine the starting dose (resulting in one fourth of the regular dose) or by figuring the dose according to a ratio of 0.5 U/kg and using 25% to 30% of that amount as the initial dose. Patients who have insulin resistance often need between 0.75 and 1 U/kg and tend to tolerate the larger increases (http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/2003/06_03/3cooppan.htm)

In subjects with type 2 diabetes who are poorly controlled on oral antidiabetic medications, initiating insulin therapy with twice-daily BIAsp 70/30 was more effective in achieving HbA1c targets than once-daily glargine (Lantus), especially in subjects with HbA1c >8.5% (http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/28/2/260).

The INITIATE (INITiation of Insulin to reach A1c TargEt) study provides guidelines for twice-daily initiation of insulin (aspart premix 70/30). Begin with 6 units twice a day if the FPG is 180 mg/dL or greater, and 5 units twice a day if the FPG is less than 180 mg/dL (http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/567952).

References listed in the text above.
Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

How Barack and Bill -- Yes, Bill -- Can Create Real Change

My latest column at Work it, Mom!

The Presidential campaigns have been raging for just over a year now. The GOP has their candidate, even if a certain former Governor hasn’t gotten the memo, and the Democrats are still in a horse race. What has been most intriguing to me during this primary is how Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton have been seen in the media.

I was a senior in high school when Bill and Hillary were on the path to the White House the first time. I was proud and quite surprised that the country was embracing this strong feminist of a woman. It seemed odd to me that so many people were embracing the idea of having a hands-on First Lady. Of course, I knew that she wouldn’t be the first. In the fourth or fifth grade I was obsessed with First Ladies. I even made a zine of them and highlighted my favorites: Abigail Adams, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Jackie Kennedy. Having grown up with some pretty wimpy First Ladies – Barbara and her books and Nancy and her guest appearance on Diff'rent Strokes telling us to “Just Say No.” I was more than ready for a First Lady who looked like she was ready to change the world with the platform she would inherit. I still kick myself that I never got my hands on any of the “2 for 1” or “Vote for Bill, Get Hillary for Free” T-shirts that I recall seeing on the news.

Fast forward 15 years (dear goodness! It’s been 15years since high school?) and we working moms find ourselves in a rather odd situation. The woman that many of us heralded as our second President is now running for President herself. We witnessed Hillary Clinton attempt to reform our health care system, attend the 1995 United Nations 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing under a very feminist mother banner, and try to raise Chelsea away from the media’s prying eyes. She redefined the definition of working mom. The wife of her main opponent is also a working mom, one about whom I’ve heard many women say, “I wish she were running!” If Michelle Obama does have time for baking cookies, my money is that the Pillsbury Dough Boy is helping, too.

Michelle sat down with Katie Couric last week and Katie asked her the big question for First Ladies: What will be her cause?

read the rest at Work it, Mom!

Interesting Articles: A Weekly Review of the "Big Five" Medical Journals

This is a collection of articles I have found interesting in the weekly editions of the "big five" medical journals: NEJM, JAMA, Annals, Lancet and BMJ (a few more journals are included occasionally). The review is a weekly feature of Clinical Cases and Images - Blog. Please see the end of the post for a suggested time-efficient way to stay up-to-date with the medical literature.

Surgical versus Nonsurgical Therapy for Lumbar Spinal Stenosis. NEJM, 02/2008.

Surgery led to significantly more improvement in all primary outcomes than nonsurgical treatments. NEJM also published a review article in the same issue.

Aprotinin during Coronary-Artery Bypass Grafting and Risk of Death. NEJM, 02/2008.

Aprotinin use on the day of CABG surgery was associated with a higher mortality and a larger increases in serum creatinine compared to aminocaproic acid use. Aprotinin (Trasylol) is used to control bleeding during CABG but accumulating evidence suggests that this practice increases mortality. Trasylol was withdrawn from the U.S. Market in November 2007.

Survival From In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest During Nights and Weekends. JAMA. 2008;299(7):785-792.

Survival from in-hospital cardiac arrest was lower during nights and weekends. See Dr. Wes' comments on the study.

Effect of Glucosamine Sulfate on Hip Osteoarthritis. Annals of Int Med, 02/2008.

Glucosamine sulfate was no better than placebo in reducing symptoms and progression of hip osteoarthritis during the 2-year study period.

Meta-analysis: Effectiveness of Drugs for Preventing Contrast-Induced Nephropathy. Annals of Int Med, 02/2008.

The good: N-Acetylcysteine is more renoprotective than hydration with saline alone. Theophylline may also reduce risk for contrast-induced nephropathy but the association was not statistically significant. The bad: Furosemide increased the risk for contrast-induced nephropathy (relative risk, 3.27). And the indifferent: The remaining agents in the study -- fenoldopam, dopamine, iloprost, statin, mannitol -- did not significantly affect risk.

An audio summary on the topic is also available from the journal.

Perspectives, The art of medicine: History as a medical tool. The Lancet 2008; 371:552-553.

A new generation of medical historians argues that an applied history of medicine can serve as an important tool in medical research.

Body-mass index and incidence of cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective observational studies. The Lancet 2008; 371:569-578.

According to this meta-analysis, increased BMI was associated with increased risk of malignancies.

Reviews from American Family Physician

The AFP has a history of publishing review articles that are practical, simple and useful. I like most of them.

Chronic Shoulder Pain: Part I. Evaluation and Diagnosis
Chronic Shoulder Pain: Part II. Treatment
Diagnosis and Treatment of Testicular Cancer
Reducing Tobacco Use in Adolescents
AHA Releases Updated Guidelines on the Prevention of Infective Endocarditis

A time efficient way to stay up-to-date with medical literature

"How do you eat in elephant? In small bites." The same rule probably applies to staying current with the ever expanding avalanche of medical literature. One can try the following approach:

1. Subscribe the to the RSS feeds of the 5 major medical journals (NEJM, JAMA, BMJ, Lancet and Annals) plus 2-3 subpecialty journals in your field of interest.


Medical Journals tab: A screenshot of iGoogle with RSS feeds from the major medical journals.

2. Read the journal on the day it is published online, for example, NEJM on Wednesdays.

3. Use text-to-speech to listen to articles you do not have time to read.

4. Listen to journal podcasts. Click here to subscribe the podcasts of the 4 major journals in iGoogle.

Related:
Make Your Own "Medical Journal" with iGoogle Personalized Page
Share iGoogle Tabs with Medical Journals, Podcasts and Gadgets
Annals of Internal Medicine Launches Podcast and Audio Summaries
Text-to-Speech Programs and Continuous Medical Education
Image source: OpenClipArt, public domain.

How to respond to angry emails: save as draft

Some useful advice from the blog Life as a Healthcare CIO:

"Every time I have responded to angry email with emotion I have regretted it. Although it may feel good to respond to a negative email with a venomous answer, emotion is never appropriate. I tell my staff that if they ever feel emotion while writing an email, "save as draft". Get someone else to review the response first. Send it after a day of rest.

Thus, keep a stiff upper lip, have a thick skin, and run each day based on your trajectory not the position of your ego. "

The same advice applies to writing blog posts and commenting.

References:
Always Look on the Bright Side. Life as a Healthcare CIO.
Image source: Openclipart.org, public domain.

How many feminists does it take to pick 6 books?

A: It's not how many feminists, but how many rounds of voting it takes!

To the left is a photo of the voting rounds from the Women & Children First Intergenerational Feminist Book Club. We meet twice a year to choose books and it's always a riot. Monday we had just five people and about 17 books up for vote.

The first round we each got 6 votes, that eliminated a few books, but then we needed another round and another...Eventually we picked all six books in 4 rounds. The funny thing is that it took so long to whittle the list down to 6 because so many of us liked the same books, but just not enough to have a clean first vote.

There are the books that made the cut. We didn't have a copy of "The Golden Notebook" so we used a sticky note as a stand in. Who says feminists don't have sense of humor.

"It's So You" is the selection for March. We figured that after this insanely frigid winter we needed to think about fashion again.

April is "The Golden Notebook" which broke our cardinal rule - the person who recommends the book HAD to have read it already. We didn't always have this rule and have had disastrous results.

May is "Hijas Americanas" for Cinco de Mayo (althou, bookclub isn't on Cinco de Mayo).

June is "Like Son." The story is about a father & son, who isn't really a son...Father's Day.

July is "Self-Made Man."

August is "The Girls Who Went Away" which I have read and cry just thinking about. A must read.

Chicago readers...Please stop by and join bookclub! It's super fun. We discuss not just the book, but the issues that pop up from the book. And sometimes we grab a beer afterwards.

Book club is held the 3rd Monday of the month at 7:30 PM. See you there.

To purchase any of these books please visit the book club's webpage. If you purchase at the store, just mention the book club and you get 10% off!


Technorati tags: books, feminism, Women and Children First

A medical student's letters from Zimbabwe: the home of the 10 million bill

Open Medicine Blog is planning to publish a series of letters from Zimbabwe. The author is a medical student from the University of Zimbabwe, College of Health Sciences.

The country has been in economic free fall in recent years and started printing $10 million bills - one of those won't even buy you a hamburger in Harare according to The Daily Mail.

References:
Zimbabwe bank issues $10 million bill - but it won't even buy you a hamburger in Harare. The Daily Mail.
Letters from Zimbabwe - #1. Open Medicine Blog.

Yup

You're lucky that I have too much other writing to do to write a long ranting post about this comic and how true it is and not just in terms of math.

That or you can curse all my deadlines for keeping me from posting. :)





H/T to Brutal Women

I'm a Body Warrior!

Head on over to Hijas Americanas today because I'm the featured Body Warrior. Leave me some love if you want.

Technorati tags: Hijas Americanas, body warrior, body image, Latina

How macho should a State's Attorney be?

My antennae are standing up.

I had read a piece somewhere and heard it on NPR that there are rumblings to reinstate the death penalty in Illinois. For those not familiar, Illinois has had a moratorium on the death penalty since 2000. It was one of the last things and the best thing former Governor Ryan did before he left office. He's since been convicted of corruption and is serving time in a Wisconsin prison.

While this new piece on how state's attorney candidates feel about lifting the moratorium doesn't quite hit the whole "you need to be for it to be tough on crime" I'm sure that it will end up like that by the time we hit November:

Democratic Cook County state's attorney nominee Anita Alvarez said Friday that Illinois must enact more reforms and allow the public a say before lifting its death-penalty moratorium.

"I believe there were a lot of reforms, and there were a lot of recommendations that I don't believe have been put into effect," said prosecutor Alvarez during a taping of the "At Issue" program, set to air at 9:30 a.m. Sunday on WBBM-AM 780.

In contrast, Republican state's attorney nominee Tony Peraica said he favors lifting the 8-year-old moratorium on executions, a view Republican DuPage County State's Atty. Joe Birkett advocated this week .

Alvarez is up against Peraica, someone not known to play nice and is eager to hold a larger office than he does now. That said, I do admire how spunky the guy is. But I won't be surprised when ads come out trying to paint Alvarez as soft on crime. She'll be battling someone who is a veteran at campaigning. I'm sure she'll have a good team on hand since she is the party candidate now. At least I hope so!

She's got to fight the image that women are soft on crime. She'll have to fight the idea that she's working against her people (aka us Latina/os) by fighting crime. She's a mom and that never seems to project bad ass law enforcement officer.

What I do think she needs to do is play up all those so-called negatives. If you've ever known a Latina Mother, you know they are NOT to be messed with. You would rather spend the night in jail with mass murderers than to call your Latina mother for bail money. Oh, yes. While I did many a thing to test my mother's will (Goddess rest her soul), I never tempted her by getting a tattoo. She swore she'd cut it out with a butter knife and I didn't put it past her. I got an in-school detention in the 5th grade and she warned me that she never wanted to get a call from school again about me. I wasn't a saint from then on, but I made damn sure that she never got a call...instead I pleaded with the Dean of my high school that *I* tell her the bad news and yes, she'll call you the times I really messed up.

So Anita, I think you need to shoot an ad that plays up the mom factor. Aren't we all afraid of our moms in some way? And while I oppose the death penalty outright, I hope you will stay strong and keep the moratorium in place for a long time.

Technorati tags: Anita Alvarez, latina, death penalty, illinois

Keep residents happy -- it is better for patients

A study in BMJ showed that depressed pediatric residents made 6.2 times as many medication errors as residents who were not depressed. The setting was in 3 urban children’s hospitals in the United States, 20% of the participating residents met the criteria for depression and 74% met the criteria for burnout. Burnout did not correlate with an increased rate of medical errors.

According to Newsweek, every year, between 300 and 400 doctors take their own lives—roughly one a day. No other profession has a higher suicide rate.

I have always suspected that happier doctors make for happier patients and a few years ago came up with a mnemonic for a set of well-being practices correlated with the feeling of happiness -- MOTORS -- because the pursuit of happiness, in its altruistic sense, can be the motor of your life.

“MOTORS” stands for:

Meaning --> find a meaning in what you do for a living but don't forget to set limits around it
Outlook --> have a positive outlook on life, be philosophical but also focused on success
Time --> spend quality time with F&F (Family & Friends)
Out of yuppie values --> don't focus on chasing money or prestige
Religious / spiritual practices
Self care practices, like sports or meditation

References:
Rates of medication errors among depressed and burnt out residents: prospective cohort study. Amy M Fahrenkopf et al. BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.39469.763218.BE (published 7 February 2008)
Image source: OpenClipArt.org

Related:
Physicians wellbeing - WJM theme issue, volume 174(1); January 2001.
Six Tips for Happiness by a Harvard Teacher. Clinical Cases and Images - Blog.
Why are doctors so unhappy? Edwin Leap.
Happiness. DB’s Medical Rants, 03/2008.
Doctors Who Kill Themselves. Newsweek, 04/2008.

Updated: 04/21/2008

Def: Mommy Bloggers

Next month I'll be attending the WAM conference and speaking on a panel about blogging, feminism, and I'll add in mommy blogging to that list.

So my question for my small band of readers is this:

What comes to your mind when you think mommy blogger?

Be honest...use the anonymous comment feature if you must. But I think that mommy bloggers are fighting a huge stereotype. I know we're not a monolith, but with all 'groups' others see us as one.

So tell me, what do you think? If you were to meet a blogger and they said they were a mommy blogger would you check out their blog? What if they said they were a feminist blogger and dropped hints about their children?

OK...off to enjoy Saturday before my daughter complains about me being on the computer too much!


Technorati tags: mommy bloggers, stereotypes, WAM

Michelle Obama on Working Moms

It's as if Michelle knew I'd be listening.

To be honest, my mommy blog collab has finally made contact with the Obama campaign and we're thisclose to having a chat with a few of their policy folks about the issues that are important to our readers & writers. Don't fret dear readers, it won't be all about mommy stuff. We're women too.

I saw this piece before I headed out to work. My husband asked me, "What do you think?" I said, "She hit all the points perfectly." Now we know why Barack calls her the closer.

It got me remembering back in 1992 when so many of us were excited to see Hillary Rodham Clinton talking about feminist issues. "If only she were running!" many of us exclaimed. I hear the same chorus about Michelle. Obviously the men in power aren't dummies about who they choose as their partners.

So what happened to Hillary? Where are all the women who were backing her 15 years ago? Is this a case of careful of what you wish for? Would she be in a better position if she had waited to run for the seat that Obama now holds so she could "stay" in Illinois and not be weighed down as a carpetbagger?

I dunno...but the venom that spews from anti-Hillary people makes me think that no matter what she does, she can't win.

If we do end up with Michelle as First Lady, I hope she follows the path that Hillary crafted as an engaged First Lady, especially in the realm of work-life balance solutions.

Technorati tags: Michelle Obama, working moms, CBS News, Katie Couric, feminism

Thoughts from a mother bear

I drove into work today with a heavy heart for my students.

First, I consider every student on campus mine. I've always thought that, it's not a motherhood thing, but I feel that it lives in the same place in my heart & soul.

The last time I felt this much dread for my students was September 12, 2001. If you recall, the cries of the terrorist attacks were from Arabs was already flying around. I believe there was already a hate crime reported from somewhere like Oklahoma. With the high number of students who identify as Middle Eastern, I felt fear for them. Would they be safe at home? On campus? Walking around town? How did they feel 'knowing' that someone who looked like them might be responsible for the attacks?

Today I drove in worried for them and how unsafe they must feel. Being at a university in the middle of Chicago and in an area where students' parents still think is "the worst neighborhood" in Chicago I feel that if the shooting that happened at NIU yesterday happened here might not be a big surprise to some.

I saw a student from NIU say on the news last night that "This isn't how it is at NIU." I doubt that this is how it is anywhere in this country.

NIU isn't that far. I know many of my students have friends at NIU. I have a good friend whose son goes there. I know at least one person from high school works t here. DeKalb feels like a world away, but when something like this happens, it's just down the street. One of the victims hailed from my hometown. I don't think I know the family, but knowing they came from the same town makes it even more personal.

I just needed to get all this out into the ether before I buckle down for a hard day at writing. I can't quite focus on mentoring networks when I have all this weighing on me.

It's days like this when I think that I feel too much. That I care too much.

Technorati tags: NIU, shooting, university

Happy Valentine's Day Texas!

I haven't checked my referrals that closely to know how many readers I have from Texas, but I want to send a quick VDay shout out to the Lone Star State. Congratulations on the recent ruling that legalizes your "personal massage" devices:

A federal appeals court has struck down a Texas law that makes it a crime to promote or sell sex toys.

"Whatever one might think or believe about the use of these devices," said an opinion written by Justice Thomas M. Reavley of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, "government interference with their personal and private use violates the Constitution."

Under Texas law it is illegal to sell, advertise, give or lend obscene devices, defined as a device used primarily for sexual stimulation. Anyone in possession of six or more sexual devices is considered to be promoting them.

In case you were a law abiding citizen and now need to stock up, I point you back to my post on Early To Bed's special holiday gift packages for you and your loved one or just you. The good part of being in this hyper-consumer society is that there's always a holiday to provide you with an excuse to buy yourself a treat. Buzz on, Texas...Buzz on.

Edited to add: While we celebrate, let's remember that we still have Mississippi to liberate.

Technorati tags: Valentine's Day, sex, Texas

Gorillas at Cleveland Zoo have heart disease along with many others at U.S. zoos

Cleveland Zoo's gorillas Mokolo, 20, and Bebac, 23, were examined at the zoo's veterinary hospital by echocardiogram and were found to have left ventricular hypertrophy and congestive heart failure (CHF), respectively.

According to the Cleveland Zoo press release:

"The zoo is participating in a national study of gorilla health, after previous research found that gorillas in captivity are prone to heart disease.

Mokolo's left side of his heart is enlarged. Bebac's heart is more enlarged, shows impairment and doesn't pump as efficiently as it should, he said.

The gorillas will be placed on beta blockers or ACE inhibitors, drugs familiar to people with high blood pressure and heart disease."

Animals die of heart disease juts like humans do. A 176-year-old tortoise, believed to had been owned by Charles Darwin, died MI and CHF in 2006.

I have a video of Mokolo below and, as you can see, he is the silverback (the boss) in the group of the 2 gorillas at the zoo.


Silverback Gorilla at Cleveland Zoo

Some studies show that depression may lead to worse outcomes in CHF and CAD. If we assume that the older Bebac was somewhat depressed by his inferior status, this could explain his worse cardiovascular condition (past MI?).

References:
Gorillas Undergo Cardiac Exams at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. Cleveland Zoo.
Cleveland zoo's gorillas have heart disease. The Plain Dealer.
Local and National Coverage of Gorilla Project. The Roar Report.

Related:
Do Gorillas have Personalities? Cleveland Zoo Blog, 08/2008.
176-year-old turtle once owned by Darwin dies of MI and CHF
Image source: Winter Visit to the Cleveland Zoo
Has anyone ever seen a photo of a happy captive gorilla? Flickr.

Updated: 09/22/2008