All About Pat [entries|friends|calendar] kline04 [ userinfo | livejournal userinfo ] [ calendar | livejournal calendar ]

Former CBS Anchor Cronkite Dies [Jul|17|2009] [ mood | calm ] [ music | "I'm Taking My Chances" by The Click Five ] (CNN) -- Walter Cronkite, the CBS anchorman known as "Uncle Walter" for his easygoing, measured delivery and "the most trusted man in America" for his rectitude and gravitas, died Friday night in his New York home, CBS reported. Cronkite was 92. "Walter was always more than just an anchor. He was someone we could trust to guide us through the most important issues of the day; a voice of certainty in an uncertain world," President Obama said in a statement Friday. "He was family. He invited us to believe in him, and he never let us down. This country has lost an icon and a dear friend, and he will be truly missed."

Caffeine: How Much Is Too Much? [Mar|24|2009] [ mood | okay ] [ music | "Apologize" by One Republic ] If you rely on caffeine to wake you up and keep you going, you aren't alone. Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, alleviating fatigue and increasing wakefulness. When to consider cutting back For most people, moderate doses of caffeine — 200 to 300 milligrams (mg), or about two to four cups of brewed coffee a day — aren't harmful. But some circumstances may warrant limiting or even ending your caffeine routine. Read on to see if any of these apply to you. 'Grande' is your middle name Though moderate caffeine intake isn't likely to cause harm, too much can noticeably affect your health. Heavy daily caffeine use — more than 500 to 600 mg a day, or about four to seven cups of coffee — can cause: Insomnia Nervousness Restlessness Irritability Nausea or other gastrointestinal problems Fast or irregular heartbeat Muscle tremors Headaches Anxiety Even a little makes you jittery Some people are more sensitive to caffeine than are others. If you're susceptible to the effects of caffeine, just small amounts — even one cup of coffee or tea — may prompt unwanted effects, such as anxiety, restlessness, irritability and sleep problems. How you react to caffeine may be determined in part by how much caffeine you're used to drinking. So, people who don't regularly consume caffeine tend to be more sensitive to its negative effects. Other factors may include body mass, age, smoking habits, drug or hormone use, stress and health conditions such as anxiety disorders. Sex may even play a role: Research suggests that men are more susceptible to caffeine than are women. You're not getting enough sleep Most adults need seven to eight hours of sleep each night. But caffeine can interfere with this much-needed sleep. Chronically losing sleep — whether it's from work, travel, stress or too much caffeine — results in sleep deprivation. Sleep loss is cumulative, and even small nightly decreases can add up and disturb your daytime alertness and performance. Using caffeine to mask sleep deprivation can create an unwelcome cycle. For example, you drink caffeinated beverages because you have trouble staying awake during the day. But the caffeine keeps you from falling asleep at night, shortening the length of time you sleep. Caffeine can also increase the number of times you wake up during the night and interfere with deep sleep, making your night less restful. You wake up tired the next day and reach for your morning jolt of Java. The best way to break this cycle is to reduce the caffeine and add more hours of quality sleep each day. Try to avoid caffeinated beverages eight hours before your desired bedtime. Your body doesn't store caffeine, but it takes many hours for it to eliminate the stimulant and its effects. You're taking certain medications and supplements Certain medications and herbal supplements negatively interact with caffeine. Here are some examples. Some antibiotics. Ciprofloxacin (Cipro) and norfloxacin (Noroxin) — types of antibacterial medications — can interfere with the breakdown of caffeine. This may increase the length of time caffeine remains in your body and amplify its unwanted effects. Theophylline (Theo-24, Uniphyl, others). This medication — which opens up bronchial airways by relaxing the surrounding muscles (a bronchodilator) — tends to have some caffeine-like effects. Taking it along with caffeinated foods and beverages may increase the concentration of theophylline in your blood. This can cause ill effects, such as nausea, vomiting and heart palpitations. If you take theophylline, your doctor may advise you to avoid caffeine. Ephedra (ma-huang). This herbal dietary supplement increases your risk of heart attack, stroke, seizures and death. Combined with caffeine, it becomes especially risky. The Food and Drug Administration has banned ephedra because of health concerns. The ban applies to dietary supplements but not herbal teas, which may still contain this herb. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about whether caffeine might affect your prescription. He or she can say whether you need to reduce or eliminate caffeine from your diet. How to curb your caffeine habit Whether it's for one of the reasons above — or because you want to trim your spending on pricey coffee drinks — cutting back on caffeine can be challenging. Too abrupt a decrease in caffeine can cause caffeine withdrawal with signs and symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, irritability and nervousness. Fortunately, these symptoms usually resolve after several days. To change your caffeine habit more gradually, try these tips: Keep tabs. Start paying attention to how much caffeine you're getting from foods and beverages. It may be more than you think. Read labels carefully. Even then, your estimate may be a little low because not all foods list caffeine. Chocolate, which has a small amount, doesn't. Cut back. But do it gradually. For example, drink one less can of soda or drink a smaller cup of coffee each day. This will help your body get used to the lower levels of caffeine and thereby lessen the withdrawal effects. Go decaf. Most decaffeinated beverages look and taste the same as their caffeinated counterparts. Make it quick or herbal. When making tea, brew it for less time. This cuts down on its caffeine content. Or choose herbal teas, which don't contain the stimulant. Check the bottle. Some over-the-counter pain relievers contain caffeine — as much as 130 mg of caffeine in one dose. Look for caffeine-free pain relievers instead.

29-Year-Old Picked To Head Illinois State Police [Mar|22|2009] [ mood | calm ] [ music | "Line Up" by Aerosmith ] Gov. Pat Quinn on Sunday appointed a 29-year-old war veteran who finished in the top 1 percent of his West Point class to direct the Illinois State Police. "I will work tirelessly," Jonathon Monken said. "My ultimate goal is to serve with distinction." During a news conference Sunday afternoon at the Thompson Center, Quinn praised the former U.S. Army captain's leadership on the battlefield. Monken led more than 100 tank combat missions in Iraq without losing soldiers or equipment, Quinn said. He also has served in Kosovo and as a recruiter for the Illinois National Guard. The increasing role of the state police as the local liaison to the federal Department of Homeland Security makes Monken's military experience even more important, Quinn said. Monken said not having a law-enforcement background should not affect his credibility within the state police ranks. He has not yet decided whether to wear a state police uniform. ( Read more... )

Siena Cindrella? [Mar|21|2009] [ mood | impressed ] [ music | "Spies" by Coldplay ] Siena beat Ohio State in the first round of the NCAA tourney. Could this be the next Cinderella team? I know it's only the first round, and they needed 2 overtimes to beat the Buckeyes, but Siena could be something special. Where the heck is Siena, anyway?

Body Language Reveals Wealth [Feb|13|2009] [ mood | tired ] [ music | "So Damn Lucky" by Dave Matthews ] A flashy handbag or Armani suit can signal a person's wealth, but so can their body language, according to a new study. People of higher socioeconomic status are more rude when conversing with others. Psychologists Michael Kraus and Dacher Keltner of the University of California, Berkeley, videotaped pairs of undergraduate students who were strangers to one another, during one-on-one interviews. In total, 100 undergraduate students participated. The researchers then looked for certain gestures that indicate level of interest in the other person during one-minute slices of each conversation. They found that students whose parents were from higher socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds engaged in more of what he called "impolite" behaviors, such as grooming, doodling and fidgeting. Lower SES students showed more "I'm interested" gestures, including laughter and raising of the eyebrows   ( Read more... )

Phelps Feels Backlash Of Drug Picture [Feb|6|2009] [ mood | calm ] [ music | "Wonder" by Nine Days ] Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps was suspended from competition for three months by USA Swimming, the latest fallout from a photo that showed him inhaling from a marijuana pipe. The sport's national governing body also cut off its financial support to Phelps for the same three-month period, effective immediately. "This is not a situation where any anti-doping rule was violated, but we decided to send a strong message to Michael because he disappointed so many people, particularly the hundreds of thousands of USA Swimming member kids who look up to him as a role model and a hero," the Colorado Springs-based federation said in a statement. "Michael has voluntarily accepted this reprimand and has committed to earn back our trust," the statement said. Phelps won a record eight gold medals in Beijing and returned to America as one of the world's most acclaimed athletes. He made headlines of a different kind, however, in the wake of the photo, published Sunday by News of the World, a British tabloid. Earlier Thursday, cereal and snack maker Kellogg Co. announced it wouldn't renew its sponsorship contract with Phelps, saying his behavior is "not consistent with the image of Kellogg." The swimmer appeared on the company's cereal boxes after his Olympic triumph. "Michael accepts these decisions and understands their point of view," said one of his agents, Drew Johnson. "He feels bad he let anyone down. He's also encouraged by the thousands of comments he's received from his fans and the support from his many sponsors. He intends to work hard to regain everyone's trust."

Scientists Decode Set of Cancer Genes [Nov|8|2008] [ mood | optimistic ] [ music | "Politik" by Coldplay ] For the first time, researchers have decoded all the genes of a person with cancer and found a set of mutations that may have caused the disease or aided its progression. Using cells donated by a woman in her 50s who died of leukemia, the scientists sequenced all the DNA from her cancer cells and compared it to the DNA from her own normal, healthy skin cells. Then, they zeroed in on 10 mutations that occurred only in the cancer cells, apparently spurring abnormal growth, preventing the cells from suppressing that growth and enabling them to fight off chemotherapy. Mutations are genetic mistakes, and the ones found in this research were not inborn, but developed later in life, like most mutations that cause cancer. (Only 5 to 10 percent of all cancers are thought to be hereditary.) The new research, by looking at the entire genome — all the DNA — and aiming to find all the mutations involved in a particular cancer, differs markedly from earlier studies, which have searched fewer genes for individual mutations. The project, which took months and cost $1 million, was made possible by recent advances in technology that have made it easier and cheaper to analyze 100 million DNA snippets than it used to be to analyze 100. The study was done at Washington University in St. Louis and is being published Thursday in the journal Nature. It is the first report of a “cancer genome,” and researchers say many more are to come.   ( Read the rest of the NYT article )

Texting Banned On California Trains After Deadly Crash [Sep|18|2008] [ mood | calm ] [ music | "Dress Me Up As A Robber" by Paul McCartney ] The California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday banned texting on the job after it was shown that a Metrolink train engineer involved in last week's deadly collision near Los Angeles sent text messages from his cell phone. It was unclear what 46-year-old Robert Sanchez was doing at the time of the crash this past Friday. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating claims he was sending text messages on Friday when his commuter train slammed into a Union Pacific freight train in Chatsworth. Two dozen people were killed and at least 130 were injured. ( Read more... )

Phelps Wins Eighth Medal In Beijing [Aug|16|2008] [ mood | bouncy ] [ music | "Neon" by John Mayer ] He did it!  Michael Phelps did it!  Winning his eighth medal with a relay, he has now won more medals than any other athlete in one Olympic game. All of his races were awesome.

Doors [Jul|12|2008] [ mood | blah ] [ music | "Born On A Different Cloud" by Oasis ] What Your Front Door Says You are bold, brave, and easily excited. You are passionate about what you believe. And you're never afraid to tell people exactly what you think. You're picky and particular. It's sometimes hard to meet your standards. The Front Door Test

Tim Russert Dies [Jun|13|2008] [ mood | surprised ] [ music | "Futures" Jimmy Eat World ] Tim Russert, who was moderator of NBC's "Meet the Press" television show, has died of an apparent heart attack.  He was 58. ( Read about it on AOL )

It's So True [May|31|2008] [ mood | good ] What Your Fridge Says About You You aren't greedy, but you don't really deprive yourself either. You strike a good balance with the stuff you buy. You are a very thrifty person. You don't like to waste money... or food. You are a very adventurous person. You love to try new things, and you get bored very easily. You are responsible, together, and mature. You act like an adult, even when you don't feel like it. You are likely single - and a workaholic.

Flip Flops [May|16|2008] [ mood | bored ] [ music | "Never Meant" by Alien Ant Farm ] What Your Flip Flops Say About You You are an outdoorsy person. You feel most comfortable in nature. Beautiful scenery and good weather always brighten up your day. Being outside allows you to feel calm and connected to the world. Problems don't seem so big when you realize how small you are in the scheme of things. Your ideal warm weather place: Costa Rica The Flip Flop Test

Michael Johns Voted Off Idol [Apr|10|2008] [ mood | bitchy ] [ music | "Change Your Mind" by The Killers ] I'm pretty pissed with American Idol right now, or at least the elimination tonight.  How can Michael Johns get voted off?  He's awesome!  How unfair is it that he's gone, and Kristy Lee Cook is still on the show?

Relations [Mar|25|2008] [ mood | hungry ] [ music | "Pink" by Aerosmith ] I don't know how accurate this is, but it's certainly interesting.  Researchers at the New England Historic Genealogical Society found some remarkable family connections for the three presidential candidates - Democratic rivals Obama and Clinton, and Republican John McCain.  Lets just say it involves Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. ( Read all about it )

Green Beer Tonight! [Mar|15|2008] [ mood | bouncy ] [ music | "With Or Without You" by U2 ] We went to the St. Patrick's Day parade today, which was a first for me.  I gotta say, it was pretty cool.  I'd do it again.  Tonight we're meeting up with people at  Mix to drink green beer and celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  It should be fun.  I'm looking forward to it.  It's my chance to bust out my St. Patrick's Day t-shirt, and I can't do that but once a year.

Illinois State Basketball Team Suffers Blowout [Mar|9|2008] [ mood | disappointed ] [ music | "It's Over" by Vertical Horizon ] My alma mater Illinois State played for the Missouri Valley Championship today...and lost badly.  It seems that they never even had a chance against Drake, who ended up winning by 30 points. My theory is that they were just too tired.  They beat Missouri State in a close game on Friday night (63-58) and then had to turn around and play Northern Iowa 22 hours later.  By the time they got to Drake, they were just gassed.

Tango? [Mar|4|2008] [ mood | contemplative ] [ music | "Permanent Daylight" by Radiohead ] Went with Colby out to eat yesterday after work, just the two of us.  David was supposed to come too, but he ended up needing to get home for...something.  I don't know.  Colby and his girlfriend have been taking tango classes, and Meredith wants us to give it a try.  This should be interesting if she talks me into it.  Colby seems to think I should give it a try.  Guess I don't have any allies on this one.

My Love Number [Mar|1|2008] [ mood | ditzy ] [ music | "Crooked Teeth" by Death Cab For Cutie ] Your Love Number is 6 Who you fall in love with is all about who you trust. Loyalty is important to you, and you want the most faithful of lovers. In return, you never let your heart or eyes wander. Open and honest, your relationships tend to be free of secrets. What Is Your Love Number?

I Want My Life Back [Feb|26|2008] [ mood | cynical ] [ music | "Growing Up" by Fall Out Boy ] Just finished watching the awful Music and Lyrics.  This is what I get for letting my girlfriend pick the movie.  Ugh.  It was predictable.  It was way too much of Hugh Grant in his usual Hugh Grant role.  I hated it.

navigation [ viewing | most recent entries ] [ go | earlier ]