A new look on quitting smoking

Chicago and many other areas have been taking a different approach when it comes to quitting smoking. They are changing the way that the message hits people by having a different type of commercial air and show people that there really are some serious consequences when it comes to smoking. I am an occasional smoker myself and I have to say, while the previous commercials never really made me think too much about quitting, these new ones seemed to really hit home. I’m sure that many would agree with me by saying, when the commercial is stuck in your head- it’s not as easy to pick up a cigarette without thinking about the devastating effects.

These commercials show the effects that smoking has had on real people. It shows people who have throat cancer and need to use a voice box. They tell you of how different your life is even if you fight the cancer, but must use a voice box for the rest of your life. The commercials show people in the hospital who are really dying from cancer. One man that really had me thinking, stated that he was only smoking for 3 years and he developed throat cancer. This made me wise to the myth that smoking only has these types of effects if you’re a smoker for many years.

I do have hope that these commercials may hit home with the younger generation- as they are starting up this habit at such young ages. Maybe it will help us smokers to see the reality of what smoking will do to us and how much risk we face when lighting up a cigarette.  

Lady Gaga has been silenced - No more interviews, please.

One of the most popular stars among many of the younger generations recently announced that she will no longer be doing interviews of any type. Yes Lady Gaga, who recently appeared on Oprah for her last interview, announced during her talk with Oprah that she will no longer be involving herself in the media at all.

Lady Gaga stated that she never reads any of the media that is written about her. Now, she plans on keeping herself out of the media as much as possible by taking a stance on silence. She stated that she will not even talk to her own mother about anything regarding her public and media life. Not only does she not want to read anything the media has to say, she also doesn’t want to hear about it. This stance of silence took place immediately after the Oprah show and Lady Gaga doesn’t plan on ending it anytime soon.

Apparently Lady Gaga announced that she is trying a new approach aimed at reaching the youth. Many of her fans love the fact that Lady Gaga is different and strives towards reaching the younger generations in a positive may. She feels that staying out of the media will show the youth a new way of independence, self-worth and self-respect. She also wants to show them bravery, respect for self and empowerment. So, for those of you who look for the latest Gaga update, she won’t be appearing on television, for interviews or in anywhere else until if, she decides to end this stance on silence. 

Apple new product debut set for next week!

Apple has recently decided to hold an event that will feature the iPad and many more items for users to choose from. Many people have been waiting eagerly as best both and other similar stores have recently lowered the price on the current iPad dramatically. From what we have gathered so far, this product price drop is because the stores are trying to clear out the iPad’s in order to make room for the new inventory they will be receiving from Apple as of next week.

We are all curious as to what will be released during this debut, as the new apple devices have been a popular topic among many for a very long time now. So many predictions and guesses about what the product will feature, has us all counting the seconds until the product is released. One thing is for sure- its sure to clear the shelves just as quickly as it is placed there.

Apple has not made many comments about the product and has not responded to the questions asked. All that Apple has told us so far is that the product will have 4G and it will also feature Long Term Evolution technology. Of course there are many rumors going around online and some people claim to know exactly what the product will feature, but truth be told- we honestly won’t know much until the product hits the shelves next week. Until then all we can do is wait and check for any further updates in the Chicago Tribune newspaper. 

U.S postal service getting rid of 35,000 jobs!

 

As if the economy couldn’t get any worse and we couldn’t have less jobs available, things are about to get worse. The Chicago Tribune announced today that the U.S postal service plans on eliminating up to 35,000 jobs. A lot of people are taking this really hard because of the fact that’s its truly difficult to find a job these days. Especially, a job that has a decent wage and offers benefits such as medical. So here we go with another whirl of bad news.

The postal service plans on closing 233 facilities as a way to ‘cut costs’. So while they will be saving money, those who are let off from their job will be back to trying to find something with a decent pay- which is almost impossible. They wonder why so many familiar have to rely on the low payments from government assistance to kind of survive. If things keep going like this, more and more familiar are going to be out on the street with foreclosed homes and lack of pay on bills.

Not only are they cutting facilities and jobs, the postal service plans on eliminating next day mail in order to cut the amount of workers needed for these quick jobs. So if you are expecting something in the mail, expect to get it only in standard. The postal service has already gotten rid of over 140,000 jobs over the last 5 years. They plan on having this plan come into action sometime around the end of May of this year. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see the effects this will have on our economy as well. 

Another infant Tylenol recall!

A few months ago infant concentrated drops Tylenol was recalled because so many children were overdosing on the medication. The dosage from the concentrated drops is less than a quarter of the liquid drops and many parents were following the wrong dosage information when giving the medicine to their babies.

So, everyone felt calm and assured that their baby would be okay when all of the concentrated drops were recalled and we were given these liquid suspension drops that had a safe dosing system. Well-come to find out, the dosing system is not safe at all! J&J just recalled over 574,000 bottles of grape flavored liquid infants Tylenol because the dosage was off for the product! While no adverse effects have been reported yet, the previous suspension recall resulted in serious harm and even death in some infants. If you have any of this product, dispose of it and look into another brand us moms can actually trust. 

It honestly disgusts me that Tylenol would release yet another product that could cause harm to these babies. If the dosage is too high, the baby will have severe liver damage and possible failure. I’ve officially crossed Tylenol off my list of brands I trust. I don’t feel comfortable giving my 7 month old son medicine to begin with, but when your child is teething and in pain what else can you do when all else fails? Turn to a medicine you trust-right? Well not so much. Tylenol has failed us parents again with a faulty product and I personally would encourage all parents not to take the risk by giving the children Tylenol infant products at any cost.  

Creating a new handgun registry

 

Many handgun owners were appalled at the mayor’s recent request to create a state-wide handgun registry. The mayor stated that he felt the registry would add to all of the positive things that have been happening in the state, but local residents of the state were more than angry. The residents claimed that the new registry would punish those who were responsible gun owners by requiring them to pay a fee. The fee for the gun registry would be $65.00 and many felt this was unfair. Those opposing the new law stated that gun owners are just trying to catch criminals and refuse to pay the gun registration fee.

Regardless of the opinions of those local, the mayor feels this registration will prevent shootings and allow police to track down the user of a gun in an illegal situation. One of the main concerns was that the criminals who do not use their weapons properly would not register their guns; therefore this new law would do nothing.

There is a lot of debate going on when it comes to the new gun registry proposal. So far, the mayor has stated that he will go ahead the proposal regardless of the concerns the locals have on the issue. The mayor feels that this will be an extra measure of safety for the entire state. He also said that the guns would have to meet the right specifications when being registered and those registered must provide 2 forms of identification, their address, phone number and keep their registration information up to date at all times. We won’t know what happens until everyone votes on the proposal, but it may be the best thing to happen to the state of Chicago. 

The eagles are back in Elgin

The library in Elgin, Chicago had some news they wanted to celebrate today. It has been a long time since anyone in the area has really seen any eagles. A few weeks back, 2 bald eagles were spotted and patrons of the area were amazed at the sight. Well recently it seems that flocks of eagles have returned to the area and are in the best location for viewing!

While sitting in the reading area within the library, locals can get a great look at the birds while remaining comfy and cozy. Officials said they believe the eagles are in that are, flying while hunting for small rodents on the ground. None-the-less, the locals are more than thrilled that the birds decided to hunt in an area that provides on lookers with a fantastic view.

The eagles are located on the Fox River valley and a local environmentalist has said that it is a very good thing that they are seeing an increase of eagles in the area. When they seldom appeared many people began to worry, but all can rest assured that the eagles in the area are continuing to go strong. The have been seen either on the river line, looking for fish, or soaring in the air hoping for another type of prey.

One local stated that is so great to have the eagles back in the area, because everyone knows the eagles and they are a symbol of our country. I hope more eagles continue to come through the area and delight the locals and the season progresses.  

Beer choices

One of the most interesting stories in the Chicago Tribune today was in my opinion, the extensive wait that customers had in line in order to get their hands on a new beer that was released as of Friday. Many beer collectors- from doctors to parents, waiting for the box to get ripped open as of 10am so that they could get their hands on one of the beers.

The beer is called Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout and it was released as one per customer- no exceptions. The beer is a mix of rare coffee beans and bourbon as is said to have a delectable taste. Many of those who obtained one of the bottles said they would be saving it for a very special occasion, when the kids are long asleep.

So far this year, with the new release, beer festivals have been more popular than ever. They are selling out almost immediately. The only thing that concerns me about this type of beer is the speedball effect. Remember when Loco was released on the market? Well having a beer bring you down while the caffeine brings you up- is said to be very dangerous. The beer was quickly pulled from the market and replaced with a non-caffeine version of the beer.

None-the-less, this beer trend continues to grow in popularity. Hopefully they’ll continue to come out with more great releases for all of the gourmet beer lovers out there. I’m sure there will be many more exciting releases to come this year. 

Snowy owl recovered from injuries!

One thing I tend to do when I open up the newspaper, is look for something positive among all of the negative, sad stories within the paper. I am usually able to find something that makes me smile, after many terrible tragedies have broken my heart with my early morning coffee. While reading the Chicago Tribune today, I was quite excited to find a positive story and better yet, one that involved animals! This story did not start out positive at first, but it quickly became a happy day for this little owl.

A lovely snowy owl, who was currently migrating, was hit by an SUV and caught on the grill of the vehicle. The driver and a local police officer removed the owl from the grill of the vehicle and quickly brought her to Willowbrook Wildlife Center for treatment. The owl was examined upon arrival and it turned out she had a fractured collar bone, fractured ribs and damage to one of her eyes. Because she is naturally from the Tundra, this is the first time the owl has had any time of human contact and was very frightened at first.

After receiving the necessary medical treatment, she was placed in the raptor flight facility at Willowbrook- a large open area that is ideal for birds during their healing process. Thanks to the wonderful people at the wildlife center, she has healed quickly. She is able to fly, her eyes have not been damaged and she will be released back into the wild once again. 

Return of the Irish Parade

So today we learned that a very old tradition may be coming back to the city of Chicago. The papers released information that they city has issued a permit, allow the South Side Irish parade to return. This is exciting news to the many who would celebrate this parade on a yearly basis.

In 2009 the city had shut down this yearly Saint Patrick’s Day parade because drunken fights were occurring and the city was getting out of control during this time of the year. However, the city has decided to issue new security methods to take place during the parade, allowing the city to hold this yearly tradition once again.

The Irish parade became a tradition for the city of Chicago in 1979. Since then, it became a bonanza for local taverns and businesses throughout the area. Owners of these business stated that they lost a large amount of money they look forward to during this time of the year. They are becoming excited about the business gain they’ll that will finally return.

This permit will be issued for the city, but a few things must be done before the permit will become official. The city must create check points, to prevent drinking and driving from occurring the parade time. Bus services must also be set up, but only for a short trip. They don’t want the busses to become a hangout for drunken parade-goers as they have in previous years. Hopefully, all measures will be met and we’ll be able to continue or tradition, problem free from now on.

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