Karen’s Opinion

I have to tell you a funny story.

Tonight, while eating out at a restaurant, a pesky fly kept buzzing in front of my face. He landed on the ketchup bottle and was so close that I took a swing at him with my napkin. I killed that sucker, dead as a doorknob. Only thing bad about that dead fly was that my swing pitched him right into my husbands plate. He landed right in the gravy on my husbands mashed potatoes. Ooops!

After going around and around with our cable provider, I am right on the edge of switching to a dish. The price of cable just keeps going up and up. They will reduce the cost if I call every six months and re-negotiate our plan. Why should I have to do that?

Dish Network offers several packages that can keep the price affordable. If you want more channels you simply choose the package that offers those channels. The introductory level package offers over 100 channels! Dish Network offers a package that starts at $9.95 per month and with select packages, you can have free HD programming for 6 months!

We live in a rural area and were used to only having basic channels available. Now that we are able to have more channels it allows us to be choosy with what we watch. Satellite service enables you to get not only your favorite television programs; you’ll get to see the best movies too.

When you order Dish Network from authorized dealer, Let’s Get Dish, you get a bonus gift. Check out the offer to see how you can get an Apple iPod, digital camera, and other great gifts depending on which offer you choose. Don’t settle for cable. Check out Dish Network.

Does it bother anyone else that President Obama felt he had the time to appear on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno? It bugs me to think that he has time to jaunt around the country at the tax payers expense when so many people are worried about losing their jobs. He should be working with our congress men and women. Maybe if they took the time to really work on their proposed stimulus plans, they wouldn’t be full of loopholes that only help the businesses who are failing because of greed.

Another thing that really sticks in my craw is what was said on Leno. Our dear Mr. President, who should know first hand about stigmas and prejudices, should be more considerate of all our citizens. That includes the citizens with special needs. My friend Val said it better than I could ever blog. You can read her post at An Apology Isn’t Enough.

As a leader, President Obama needs to set an example. Sure, mistakes are made. He made a big one and he needs to publicly apologize.

As we age, we often find that our bodies work against us. I know how important exercise is to my health. I have to do impact exercises to keep my bones strong. Impact exercises are those where your feet hit the ground. I don’t know how it works but somehow it makes the bones stronger.

There are some things that even exercise cannot cure. Exercise can help RA but not cure it. There are different treatments for Rheumatoid Arthiritis. Different treatments work better for different people. That is why it is important not to give up if the first one you try doesn’t help. When fatigue sets in, it is difficult to feel like getting out of bed let alone making another doctor’s appointment. It is important to NOT GIVE UP.

For myself, I have heard awful things about Prednisone and less about Celebrex. The commercials make it sound like you totally get your life back when you try THEIR medication. We have to use good judgement and understand that the pharmaceutical companies need to make money. If I were to make a commercial about any type of medication, I would present the facts and remind the patient to do their homework and talk to their doctor. I would not put it on television but would list it in a magazine where it could be studied.

Do you find that a certain medication has helped you. I would be interested in hearing your story.

A ding dong of a robin is trying to drive me crazy. We have 10 windows in our lodge room and it is going from window to window, slamming itself against the glass. Why?

I tried to find information on why it is doing this and how to stop it but found no results.

Since I have started seeing Robins the past few days I thought to myself that I really don’t know very much about them. So I did some research.
Did you know?

The American Robin is 25–28 cm (10–11 in) long. It weighs about 77 g (2.7 oz). It has gray upper parts and head, and orange underparts, usually brighter in the male; the similarity between this coloring and that of the smaller and unrelated.

During the breeding season, the adult males grow distinctive black feathers on their heads; after the breeding season they lose this eye-catching plumage.As with many migratory birds, the males return to the summer breeding grounds before the females and compete with each other for nesting sites. The females then select mates based on the males’ songs, plumage, and territory quality. The females build the nest and lay three or four blue eggs in the lined cup. Incubation, almost entirely by the female is 11-14 days to hatching, with another 15–16 days to fledging. Two broods in a season are common. The adult male looks after the fledged chicks while female incubates her second clutch.

Some people enjoy the Robin’s presence, and want to protect the chicks; they do this by building nesting shelves for the Robin’s use. Bird banders found that only 25% of young robins survive the first year.
Robins are frequently seen running across lawns, picking up earthworms by sight. In fact, the running and stopping behavior is a distinguishing characteristic. When stopping, they are believed to be listening for the movement of prey. Without showing symptoms, the American Robin is sometimes a carrier of the West Nile virus in the Western hemisphere. This is the state bird of Connecticut, Michigan and Wisconsin.