CONCERNING THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, DID YOU KNOW...?
Here's an op-ed in today's NY Times that has some interesting information on the month about to depart from us for another year, February.  It was of interest to me because my birthday is in this month.  But did you ever wonder why February is shorter than other months?  Read on:
"I WAS born on the last day of February, the runt month of the year. I’ve always felt sorry for February, squeezed between the big months of January (named for the Roman god Janus, keeper of gateways and entrances) and March (after Mars, the god of war).  February, with only 28 days and no powerful gods to advocate for it, commemorates a pagan fertility and purification festival celebrated by flogging women with animal skins. The reason February is an abused month is found in its origins as the clean-up month that was shrunk or stretched so the calendar could keep pace with the sun’s progress through the seasons.
The first Roman calendar, legend has it, had 10 months and no February. Beginning at the vernal equinox with March, it ended with December. In an agricultural society, winter was of little importance, and thus went undivided.  January and February were added about 700 B.C. by the second king of Rome, Numa Pompilius. He made all the months 29 or 31 days (the Romans were said to be suspicious of even numbers), but shorted February, the last month of the year, by giving it only 28."

Read the whole thing.  At the end, the author makes an interesting proposal concerning February; he suggests shortening both January and March, and adding the days to the February calendar, to make the month equal to all others.  Interesting...

SPRING IS COMING...
And for some that can mean allergies and "itchy" eyes.  What can you do if this affects you, too?  Read on:
" I see a lot of patients who suffer from allergies at the first sign of spring. In fact, seasonal allergies are reported to affect at least 20% of the population. Some people have sneezing, runny nose and congestion while others complain more of itchy eyes or a scratchy nose or throat. Oral medications can help counteract all of these allergy symptoms, but if you have only itchy eyes, there are some treatments that may help you that won't make you drowsy.  First, try to avoid environmental allergens by keeping the windows of your home and car closed, and consider the use of an air filter. Refrain from rubbing your eyes and instead use a cool washcloth compress to soothe the itching.  Over-the-counter lubricating eye drops may relieve itchy eyes, or your doctor may recommend OTC or prescription drops containing an antihistamine and/or other anti-allergy medications. There are also some nasal sprays that can treat eye discomfort along with nasal symptoms.
Finally, people with severe symptoms may benefit from allergy shots. Please be sure to talk with your doctor about the best treatment for your specific situation."

"Whoever gossips to you will gossip about you." -Spanish proverb

AT THE 2012 MOEBIUS SYNDROME CONFERENCE IN PHILADELPHIA...
The guy who heads this orgnization...

(His name is Rick Guidotti, and he's done amazing work)...
...will be the closing speaker for the conference, and I'll bet he will have a lot to say.

Check out the link above; and you can learn more about Mr. Guidotti here.  No wonder people are already looking forward to the 2012 conference.

YET ANOTHER MOEBIUS HERO
And this time it's 2-year old Dylan Gentry.  You can read and see the whole story here.
I especially liked this excerpt:
"Dylan’s mom had never heard of it until her son was diagnosed. Knowing Dylan will likely never blink or smile back at his brother or sister is heartbreaking for her.  “You take a smile for granted. You take your blinking for granted. And you look at other people and you look at yourself smiling and sometimes I feel guilty,” Andrea Gentry said. “I have to admit I do feel guilty sometimes, being able to smile and being able to show that expression.”  But the emotion that’s most powerful for her these days is fear; fear that her child will be misunderstood and mistreated. That’s why she’s going public for the first time about his condition.
“I want people to know what it is and not to judge people just by the way they look,” Andrea Gentry said. “Because he doesn’t smile, he doesn’t frown, he doesn’t have any facial expression. And you’ll look at people and you’ll think that they’re being rude or there’s something wrong with them. But there’s not, they’re just the same as you and I.”....It’s why Andrea Gentry wears a purple wristband at all times.
“This band here, it says ‘Our smiles come from our heart’ and that’s the motto of the Moebius Syndrome Foundation. You can’t smile on the outside, but our smiles come from our heart,” she said. “Dylan has a bigger smile than mine. It’s just in the heart.”

Amen!  We keep raising awareness...one story at a time.

MOEBIUS SYNDROME IN THE NEWS
Thanks once again to our friend Kelsey Ferrill, from Canada:http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110223/CGY_syndrome_moebius_110223/20110223/?hub=CalgaryHome:

"A young woman is trying to raise awareness about a rare syndrome that affects her ability to move her facial muscles.  Kelsey Ferrill has Moebius Syndrome which is a neurological disorder that affects cranial nerves. She is unable to move her face and finds it difficult to communicate using non-verbal facial movements.  "Usually to contact people I don't know, I usually email or stuff like that,' said Kelsey.
Moebius Syndrome is present at birth and those who have it are unable to smile, frown, suck, grimace, blink, or move their eyes laterally.  Each person with Moebius is affected in a slightly different way. In Kelsey's case, her face is paralyzed and so is half her tongue.
Other complications may include hand/feet anomalies, respiratory problems, speech and swallowing disorders, visual impairments, sensory integration dysfunction, sleep disorders, and weak upper body strength.  Kelsey says because of the way she looks people judge her immediately and even her friend Samantha admits she assumed Kelsey was mentally challenged.
"I feel bad, really bad because I spent 10 years down the street from her, knowing that she lived here, and never saying hi," said Samantha Adair.  "Just because you might look different doesn't mean you're any different inside than anyone else," said Kelsey."

Through sharing our stories, one by one, awareness is being raised, all over the world.


"Your past is not your potential. In any hour you can choose
to liberate the future." -Marilyn Ferguson

GETTING MORE EXERCISE AT WORK
Having a hard time getting enough of a workout during non-work hours?  Want to squeeze in a bit more exercise on your lunch break or something?  This piece has some good ideas--for example:
"To build up your leg endurance, the wall squat hold is the perfect solution. For this one you want to find an empty wall somewhere in your office and then lower yourself down into the squat position. Once your knees are at a 90-degree angle with the lower back pressed into the wall, hold for 30-60 seconds.

Come up to rest, and then repeat a second and third time through."

Read the whole thing--there are lots of other good ideas there.

SHE NEVER LED WITH HER LOOKS

Check out this interview on cnn.com today with actress Lauren Graham.  She has some interesting things to say about her body and the way she looks, among other things:

"Q: If you're ever feeling down about your looks, how do you get the body confidence you need?
Well, part of my job is pretending. And I've honestly never led with my looks. I've always thought my strengths were I'm smart, and I have a good sense of humor.
I definitely struggle with feeling confident. We went to a party last night, and I always still feel like I'm in high school: "Did I wear the right thing? Do I look OK? Did I walk funny?" Like, I never feel comfortable, but I've done this for so long that I just know I'm not going to feel comfortable. That's not the real me, you know?"

See?  We know we look different, we know we have a "facial difference", and so some stare at us.  That's not always fun to go through.  It can cause confidence issues.  But one thing to remember is that even successful television stars struggle with their confidence, and worry that they don't look right or that they wore the wrong thing.  You're not alone; and I bet you that people who truly know the real you...like you.  You know I'm right. :+)

"A man can be short and dumpy and getting bald but if he has fire,
women will like him." -Mae West

EXERCISE WITH YOUR KIDS
And here's how:

• Be informed about physical activity. Know how much is enough: The current recommendation for kids aged 6 to 17 is 60 minutes of activity every day.

• Understand that every little bit counts. "That 60 minutes might seem like a lot," says Lee, "but it can be accumulated throughout the day. So look for opportunities wherever you are, whether it's at home, at the mall, anywhere."

• Try to hang out more. Make a point of having more family meals together. Think of activities to do, even if just for a few minutes. "No need to make a big deal about it," says Lee. "Consider scheduling a day or two each week, or an evening, where you get some together time."

• Establish habits early on. "One thing we found was that co-physical activity time went down as child age went up" says Lee. "The 9-year-olds were significantly more likely to spend more time being active with their parents than the 13-year-olds." At the younger age, kids are more likely to want to hang out with you, she says. So take advantage of that and get them in the habit of exercising for fun.


• Seek out supervised activity in your neighborhood. If you're worried about safety, consider school or club sports teams for your child. Or see what sports or activities are on offer at the local Y or community center, where there's adult supervision.

*******************

Good advice!


"Sunsets are so beautiful that they almost seem as if we were looking
through the gates of Heaven." -Sir John Lubbock (1834-1913)

FAKING HAPPINESS DOESN'T NECESSARILY LEAD TO HAPPINESS
Now this story is really kind of a mixed bag for people like us.  Because the study referenced here refers to people faking happiness by...naturally...faking smiles:

"Today’s “Really?” column reports on a study that tracked the facial expression of bus drivers, whose jobs require them to be courteous and endure frequent interactions with other people.
The scientists examined what happened when the drivers engaged in fake smiling, known as “surface acting,” and its opposite, “deep acting,” where they generated authentic smiles through positive thoughts, said an author of the study, Brent Scott, an assistant professor of management at Michigan State University.
After following the drivers closely, the researchers found that on days when the smiles were forced, the subjects’ moods deteriorated and they tended to withdraw from work. Trying to suppress negative thoughts, it turns out, may have made those thoughts even more persistent."

So on the one hand we read stories like that and say, well--trying to fake a smile is one thing a person with Moebius doesn't have to worry about.  Faking a smile is something that persons who CAN'T smile don't have to worry about!!

But, but, but...we have to think harder.  Yes, we don't fake smiles.  But of course, we express ourselves in many more ways than through our facial expressions.  I can tell what kind of mood my Moebius friends and loved ones are in; and none of it has much to do with facial expressions.  And we also know that there are times we thus can fake our moods.  One can be talkative and try to sound happy, even when one doesn't feel happy.  And I'm sure that can be just as difficult to maintain, and just as likely to lead to deteriorating moods, as it is for those wearing fake smiles all day.


"Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered
for the better designedly." -Francis Bacon

HEALTHY BREAKFASTS ON THE GO
Can you grab-and-go in the a.m. and not have it be a diet disaster?  Yes:
"Used to be, when you grabbed breakfast on the go, it was a diet disaster: nothing but fat-and-calorie bombs like butter-soaked croissants and jumbo muffins. Now, it's much easier to do right by your body: Fast-food legends like McDonald's and IHOP, as well as newbies like Cosi and Panera Bread, offer surprisingly healthy options that are filling, light, and much easier on your arteries.  The key to finding a healthy breakfast, says Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, is finding a good-for-you mix of complex carbs (like whole grains), protein, and healthy fats to keep you satisfied.
So with that in mind, we asked our team of experts to choose and rank the best a.m. grub. Here, the standouts -- and why each one made the cut."

Read the piece to see what they recommend.  Even items from Denny's and McDonald's made the cut!

LOOKING FOR THAT JOB
What do you do if you've applied for a job, but have heard nothing since?  Some ideas:
"Companies truly are glad that people want to work for them. Unfortunately, many places simply do not have the manpower to offer individualized responses.  "Given the volume of applications an HR office receives, you should not expect a response beyond an automated 'we received your application' unless they are interested in interviewing you," says Pennell Locey, senior consultant for Keystone Associates, a career management consulting firm headquartered in Boston. "In the event there was no auto-response, you can send a note via snail mail to someone in HR along with your résumé to ensure that they received it."
But is there anything one can do besides play the "wait and see" game?
"After submitting a job application, it is wise to follow up with a telephone call to the appropriate contact within a week to 10 days," says Mary Massad, vice president of talent acquisition and retention strategies for Administaff, a professional employer organization headquartered in Houston, Texas. "Some individuals might feel that following up may be perceived as being pushy, but this actually demonstrates to the employer that you are conscientious, organized and professional."  When following up, Massad recommends asking if the application was received and if any additional information is needed. (Of course, if they didn't get your application, offer to send it again.) "It also is important to restate your interest in the job, but don't be overzealous."  Locey suggests trying to stand out from the masses by seeing if you can find a contact at the company who can single you out to the hiring manager and speak to your strengths. "That can be beneficial to you (you may get an interview) and to the company (finding a candidate who someone is willing to vouch for)."

"Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths,
but the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands."
-Anne Frank