This blog is fictional in nature, based on the stories and the references in the books from Leichelle. Though from time to time I will post current events and discussions. All material used is referenced to its respective authors and owners. The opinions, views, and comments expressed on this site are of the individual's making them. The fictional content might not reflect the views of Leichelle.
Showing posts with label interracial romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label interracial romance. Show all posts
Hey My Favorite Knowledge Gourmets!
Well I know I am not the first to say it and I won't be the last...but humans have definitely lost the art of original creativity. I guess the years of MTV and reality shows have made every brain dead and forgotten what true entertainment is. Did we just talk about entertainment people not taking risks just a few weeks ago?? Well the death by sequel and remake seem to be on the up rise. Now I am not downing all remakes....some of them need to be done. The top ones on my list
1. The Firm
2. The Matrix Reloaded (though I LOVE the freeway sequence)
3. For the Roses/Come Spring (based on J. Garwood's awesome books)
4. Dune
5. Starship Troopers
Remakes or Sequels that we could have done without or are not necessary
1. Clash of the Titans
2. Ghostbusters
3. The Matrix Revolutions
4. Point Break
5. Honey We Shrunk Ourselves
6. Avatar 2 & 3 (I mean really?)
That's my short list off the top of my head while sitting here trying to not be too critical since I am not a movie maker or script writer...but people please. Does the industry think we are all stupid? Really! If you are going to charge me $15 at least let me come away with good memories and something I might recommend or even buy when it comes out on Blu-Ray. I am sure that if you do a search on the internet you'll find plenty of lists of what should be remade and what should be touched since its a classic. Of course bring a movie into the current times isn't always bad...I do find myself getting a great laugh when I see old technology that many are scratching their heads over what is that.
With that said, I am actually looking forward to the remake of the Magnificent Seven!!! Yes sir and Yes ma'am! Check out the trailer and tell me what you think!! Magnificent Seven Trailer Click Here
Another remake, especially for those of use who read the books is Tarzan! Here's another Wow oh Wow trailer! The Legend of Tarzan Click Here Alright people let's get cooking and be creative and imaginative today!
The Chef
Hello Everybody!
Whew...what in the world happened to April!?! Did someone accidentally hit the fast-forward button? Some get their foot off the gas pedal and slow things down a bit, please!! I am just not quite ready for summer...yesh!
Today Autism in on the table. I always believed it was all those crazy pregnant women that wouldn't give up their coffee that caused autism. I never believed that faker that said it was vaccinations, boy was that a fiasco! Any way here some more information to keep you in the know.
Until next time my knowledge gourmets,
The Chef
To Vaccinate or Not: Calming Worried Parents
Arthur L. Caplan, PhD; Paul A. Offit, MD
Close Up With Paul Offit
Arthur L. Caplan, PhD: Welcome
to Close-Up With Art Caplan. I am very excited today to have as my
guest Dr. Paul Offit, Head of Infectious Diseases at the Children's
Hospital of Philadelphia. Thank you so much for coming. Paul A. Offit, MD: Thank you, Art. Dr. Caplan: It's
fair to say that, in my view, Paul is the leading advocate and has done
more for promoting vaccination than anybody else I know in the world.
He has been a staunch advocate of helping kids receive necessary
vaccines and has been a pioneer himself in vaccine research.
Calming a Parent's Vaccine Fears
Dr. Caplan: In
your experience, what can be done to calm parents who are worried and
hear such things as, "My child got sick after a vaccination"? Putting
aside the lack of merit behind some of those fears, how do you calm a
parent down? Dr. Offit: A fear was raised originally in
the late 1990s and early 2000s that vaccines caused autism. Fair enough.
From the parent standpoint, my child was fine, he or she got a vaccine,
and now my child is showing signs and symptoms consistent with autism.
Could vaccines have done it?
The good news is that this is an
answerable question. It has been answered in a scientific venue. Tens of
millions of dollars have been spent by public health and academic
professionals to try and answer this question: If you receive a vaccine,
are you at greater risk for autism than if you don't receive a vaccine?
Now we can comfortably say to parents that those 2 things are not
causally associated. Vaccines don't cause autism. Dr. Caplan: So we have a mountain of evidence? Dr. Offit: Yes.
The problem isn't that parents have the questions. It's fair that they
have the questions. Nor is the problem that people haven't responded
with millions of dollars to answer the question. They have answered the
question. So, what now? Why, with all that information on hand, can't we
convince people?
I don't think it's a lot of people, but some
people simply have the fear, and it's hard to make the fear go away. In
part, it is because we haven't identified a clear cause or causes for
autism. We don't have a definitive cure for autism, so that keeps the
fear running.
Consider diabetes in the 1800s, when people didn't
know what caused it. There were many thoughts about what caused it, and
many thoughts about what could cure it. When Banting and Best discovered
insulin and we knew the cause of diabetes, and how to cure it, all of
the myths disappeared. For something like autism, that may be what it's
going to take. Dr. Caplan: Do you think that it would help
to say to a parent that there are suggestions that older parents are
more likely to have a child with autism, or that environmental toxins
might be associated with autism? I have seen these things explored as
causes of autism. Would it calm their fears to say that there may be
other factors that we are chasing besides vaccines as causes of autism? Dr. Offit: You
can certainly say that, with respect to environmental factors, vaccines
are clearly the best studied, and many factors have been looked at in
autism research that make sense and are confluent. Clearly, there is a
genetic predisposition for autism. If you look at the proteins that
those genes make -- the so-called developmental proteins -- they are
often expressed in the first or early second trimester. Environmental
factors, such as valproic acid, thalidomide, or rubella virus, increase
the risk for autism because they affect the child in utero.
Eric Courchesne and colleagues[1]
at the University of California, San Diego, showed that there are
folding abnormalities in the brain. You can actually see the foldings in
utero by looking at the child's brain, so it's all consistent.
When you have autism, you are born with autism. There is no changing that, and to some people, that is helpful to know.
Responding to "That's Too Many Vaccines"
Dr. Caplan: What about parents who are worried about their child receiving too many vaccines at once? How do we handle that concern? Dr. Offit: I
don't care how sophisticated you are about virology or microbiology or
immunology -- when you watch your child lie down on that white paper and
receive as many as 5 injections at once, it looks like it's too much.
When
you are in the womb, you are in a sterile environment. When you enter
the birth canal and the world, you are not, and very quickly there are
trillions of bacteria on the surface of your body. I'm not trying to
sound like Carl Sagan, but you have about 100,000 trillion (1014)
bacteria on the surface of your body. You actually have more bacteria
on the surface of your body than the number of cells in your body.
We
have a way of carrying bacteria from one place to the next, and to
which you make an immune response. Adults typically make as much as 5 g
of secretory immunoglobulin A and immunoglobulin G daily to make sure
that those bacteria stay at the mucosal surface.
One
single bacterium out of the trillions of bacteria on your mucosal
surfaces has between 2000 and 6000 immunologic components. If you add up
all of the immunologic components in vaccines that are given in the
first few years of life, it comes to about 160. It's literally a drop in
the ocean of what you encounter and manage everyday, but you don't see
that. Dr. Caplan: When the parent comes in and says, "I'm
worried about too many vaccines," and then goes home and lets the child
crawl on the floor or lets the dog lick the child, is that worth
pointing out to them? They are not exposed only to what is there
naturally, but they are exposed to lots of agents in the ordinary course
of wandering around the house. Dr. Offit: And that is
good, because it educates the immune system away from this Th2 response
toward the so-called Th1 response. It makes you less likely to be
allergic as you get older. That actually helps, but if people really
want to scare themselves, they should take a cotton swab and swab the
inside of the child's nose, put it on a wet-mount microscope slide, and
look at it. If it's teeming with bacteria to which your child makes an
immune response, that's a greater challenge than what you ever receive
in a vaccine. Dr. Caplan: So those metaphors could help. Dr. Offit: I think so, yes.
A Lose/Lose Situation for Clinicians
Dr. Caplan: Here
is another issue. Many doctors and nurses have had people come in and
say, "I don't want to vaccinate." What can we do with them? Should we
say, "Stop coming here," or should we try to work with them? Should we
say, "We will stretch out the vaccine schedule"? What's your view about
that? Dr. Offit: I feel
sorry for the private practicing clinician, my wife being one of them.
It's a lose/lose situation. On the one hand, the doctor can say, "I'm
going to do the best I can to give this child whatever vaccines I can,"
knowing that you are sending the child away less than fully vaccinated,
and knowing that this is going to be a progressively more dangerous
world where there is a greater incidence of measles, whooping cough, and
bacterial meningitis. Dr. Caplan: We have had outbreaks of all those diseases in the past year. Dr. Offit: Now,
you know you are practicing substandard care. You know you are putting
the child at risk, and so it's hard for doctors. But on the other hand,
they can say, "If I don't at least try and play it the parent's way,
where does the person go then? Do they just go to a chiropractor who is
perfectly willing to not vaccinate their children, or to another doctor
who is willing to give them no vaccines?"
I
have seen my wife progress through this, and she has gone 180° toward
the opposite view. She is far more passionate. She says, "Let me love
your child. Don't put me in a position where I have to practice
substandard care. Don't put me in a position where I'm sending your
child out into this world that is becoming progressively more dangerous,
where they can get pneumococcal disease or varicella and suffer that.
Don't put me in that position. It's like coming to me and saying, 'I
love my child, but I don't trust car seats.'" Dr. Caplan: I like that "let me love your child" angle. It
makes an alliance with the parents. What about when a child who hasn't
been vaccinated comes to the clinic? Do you say, "Don't mix with the
other patients in the waiting room"?
Do Parents Have a Responsibility to Others?
Dr. Offit: That's a good question: Do you have a responsibility to the waiting room?
In
the measles outbreak in San Diego that occurred a few years ago, that
is exactly what happened. The mother didn't vaccinate her children, and
she took her children to Switzerland. The 7-year-old got measles, came
back, and was sitting in the waiting room. The mother didn't know what
it was. She had never seen measles before.
The
child had fever and a rash, and was exposing everybody else in the
waiting room. Three of the children in the waiting room were less than 1
year of age and hadn't yet been vaccinated. All were severely infected
with measles, were admitted to the hospital, and one almost died. The
mother of the child who almost died said, "She made a decision for me."
Did she have a right to make that decision? Dr. Caplan: Ethically,
it may be important to let people know you vaccinate not only to
protect your own child, but also to protect your neighbor, and I don't
think people understand that clearly. Sometimes it seems that it is all
self-interest. Dr. Offit: Do we have a responsibility to
our neighbor? Is it our inalienable right to catch and transmit a
potentially fatal infection? I would like to think that the answer is
no. Dr. Caplan: Pushing
that a little further, there have been movements in several states --
Rhode Island, for example -- mandating flu vaccines for pre-kindergarten
and daycare, saying that children can't go to these places unless they
are vaccinated. I think it includes the teachers now as well. Is this a
good idea? Should we push harder for that kind of requirement? Dr. Offit: You
are seeing what has happened. Before the 1970s, there were medical
exemptions to vaccination, but no philosophical or religious exemptions.
Those were established in the 1970s and 1980s, so now 41 states have
religious exemptions, and 20 states have philosophical exemptions to
vaccines. Dr. Caplan: "Philosophical" just means "I don't like it." Dr. Offit: I'm not sure. It never made much sense to me. Dr. Caplan: As a philosopher, it seems to me it is a deep philosophical objection. Dr. Offit: Philo means love, and sophia means wisdom. Where is the wisdom that says not getting a vaccine is better than getting one?
We
are seeing the consequences of those exemptions. When we see such
outbreaks as measles or whooping cough, invariably they are centered on
groups of people who have chosen to not vaccinate their children. Not
only do they serve as a reservoir for the children to become infected,
but they infect members of the surrounding community, so now we are
starting to see pushback. There was an article in JAMA Pediatrics[2] on this topic, and we are seeing legislation not for expanding those exemptions, but for contracting them. Dr. Caplan: It
seems to me that it still can be respectful of somebody's right to
choose if you say you have to watch a video program about vaccines or
certify that your doctor discussed the risks and benefits with you. I
don't think those requirements are too intrusive into somebody's
liberty. Dr. Offit: My problem is this: Is it your right
to choose to put your child at risk and those who are going to come in
contact with your child? On the one hand, we are trained as physicians
to be open to all attitudes and beliefs. On the other hand, we watch
children come into our hospitals. Every year, at least 1 will die of an
infectious disease, and when you watch that happen -- when you watch a
child get flu, for example, and come into the hospital initially on
face-mask oxygen, and go onto a ventilator, and then an oscillator, and
then a heart/lung machine, and then die -- you see those parents slowly
watch their child fall off a cliff. When another parent comes to you a
week later and says, "I don't want to give my child a flu vaccine," it's
very hard to be passionate and say, "It's your right to choose." I just
don't feel that way.
Expand Vaccines for Pregnant Women
Dr. Caplan: We
have spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to manage resistance,
fears, and doubts. Where are we going? What is coming down the line?
Are we going to continue to give vaccines through needles? Are we going
to have the same array of vaccines, or are new ones imminent? What does
the future hold with respect to vaccination? Dr. Offit: I
predict that the next great platform will be the pregnancy platform.
You are already seeing it to some extent. We now give the whooping cough
vaccine in the third trimester of pregnancy to try and prevent the
deaths of 20-30 children every year from whooping cough, all of whom are
less than 2 months of age. That is the only way to prevent that. Dr. Caplan: And they die because they don't have any immunity to it? Dr. Offit: That's
right. They are too young to have developed an active immune response,
and too young to be vaccinated. The first vaccine is given at 2 months
of age, so that is why we give pregnant women a pertussis vaccine. We
give the flu vaccine primarily to protect the mother who is pregnant and
who has a 7-fold increased risk of developing pneumonia and dying of it
than if she was not pregnant. We could have a meningococcal vaccine in
pregnancy to avoid the need for the meningococcal vaccine that is given
in the first year of life. I would like to think that down the line, we
will have a respiratory syncytial virus vaccine that is given during
pregnancy. Dr. Caplan: Those are disorders that people often mistake for the flu. Dr. Offit: Another
disease is group B streptococcus. All of those would be reasonable
vaccines to give to pregnant women, and they would benefit the newborns. Dr. Caplan: There
is more to be said here, but hopefully we have provided some useful
information, solid tips, and maybe even some management strategies to
those in the field who are trying to engage vaccination.
Thank you
for all of the work you have done to promote vaccination and grapple
with these questions in public. You have been a great example to
physicians who say to me often, how do I engage? What do I do? You
write, you speak, you go toe-to-toe with critics on national television
or at a local high school assembly. You have shown a clear-cut path as
to how that should be done.
So the email from the concerned mom basically states, "If you have a penis, pee in the bathroom with the urinals. If you have a vagina use the appropriate bathroom. Urinating according to how you "feel" is not something I should be teaching my impressionable children. Of course when our sons start getting sodomized and our daughters raped we'll see what our fellow transgenders have to say then."
From Concerned Mom
So there you have it ladies and gentlemen. Concerned mom is in support of North Carolina and is asking others to help her with this ever evolving issue. Maybe we don't need public restrooms anymore....maybe the route to go is making sure you go before you leave the house will become the new norm.
Also remember we are to treat everyone fairly. We should never discriminate, even if we don't agree. You might think all penises should be with other penises and the same for the female genitalia but we are living in a world where the fight against labels and people with evil hearts and intentions, so we must all be careful. Arm yourself with knowledge and information. Below I have put the ACLU has to say. Decide for yourselves.
Alright people keep those Hot Potato Topics coming! And if you're looking for something new to add to your blog listing, check out Finances Are Us and stay informed. This week they will discussing retirement.
Yours in the Kitchen,
The Chef
Open Letter to Schools about Restroom and Locker Room Access for Transgender Students
This open letter to principals and superintendents explains why
public schools have a legal obligation to allow transgender students to
use restrooms and locker rooms that correspond with their gender
identity.
Re: Transgender students’ access to sex
-segregated facilities
Dear Principal or Superintendent:
You have been presented with this letter because at least one of your schools may be denying transgender students access to the same restrooms and facilities used by other students that correspond to their gender identity. The school’s decision to exclude transgender boys from the boys’ facilities and transgender girls from the girls’ facilities harms transgender students by
stigmatizing them and impairing their ability to participate fully at school and to enjoy a safe learning environment. I write to in form you that allowing transgender students to access restrooms and other sex-segregated
facilities that correspond to the gender they live every day not only is in the
best interest of the students, but also is required by federal antidiscrimination
law.
Background
A transgender person is someone whose gender identity is different from the
sex they were assigned at birth. For example, a transgender boy is a person
who was assigned the sex female at birth, but his gender identity is male.
Gender identity is a person’s deeply held sense of their own gender.
Medical opinion is unequivocal that gender identity is not a choice.
Many people in school or even before they reach school age have and express a clearly established gender identity that is different from the sex they were assigned at birth.
Requiring transgender students to use the restrooms that correspond with the sex they were assigned at birth, instead of the gender they live every day,
or requiring them to use separate single user restrooms, is profoundly harmful.
Excluding transgender students from the same restrooms used by other students that correspond to their gender identity sends a message to transgender students and their peers that transgender students
should be treated differently and that their mere presence in
the same facilities used by their peers is unacceptable. When transgender students are required to use separate facilities, it does not go unnoticed by other students. Being separated from other students in this way would be damaging to anyone, but it is especially harmful for transgender children. Transgender children are at heightened risk of stress and victimization by other children and adults, and those stressors can lead to problems in adulthood including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and suicidality.
2
In addition, requiring transgender students to use single user restrooms can cause a host of problems because those facilities may be far from classrooms, causing students to be late for class after using the restroom. Students often try not to use the restroom even though they need to leading to painful urinary tract infections or other problems to avoid being tardy or being forced to use restrooms that do not correspond to their gender identity. Your school or school district’s refusal to allow transgender students to use the appropriate facilities harms their health and well being and disregards widely accepted standards of medical care for transgender people. It also violates federal antidiscrimination law, as explained below.
Legal Analysis
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”) prohibits
discrimination based on sex in any education program, such as a public
school, that receives federal financial assistance.
3
Federal courts have ruled that Title IX’s prohibition on discrimination “on the basis of sex” protects students from discrimination based on their gender identity, gender nonconformity, or transgender status.
4
Likewise, many courts have also recognized that discrimination against transgender people is sex discrimination under other federal laws.
5
Additionally, many states explicitly prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
Read entire letter at
https://www.aclu.org/letter/open-letter-schools-about-restroom-and-locker-room-access-transgender-students
Hello Beautiful People!
So what are you currently reading? What is weighing down your night stand? What is keeping you from sleeping or making you rush through your day to get to your favorite spot in your home? From page turning pie burning, wee hour epics to what-was-I-thinking when I selected this title we all have something keeping our interest. Sometimes a Book Club is a great way to find a great read and meet new people. Don't knock it till you try it!
The Chef
You and your friends love to read and have thought of starting a book
club. Well, that's a great idea! But, although it's a fantastic idea,
it still requires a bit of planning. No worries, though. Just follow the steps outlined below and have a blast exploring new novels and genres!
Steps
1
Figure out what your book club will read, for both your first novel and in general.
Will you be a general adult book club reading anything? A teen mystery
book club? Deciding on a theme (or no theme, in the case of the first
example) will help you keep you group motivated and supplied with
reading ideas.
2
Find a core group of people with a passion for reading.
They could be friends, family, or acquaintances you know through
various activities, but they should all love to read. Also, make sure
that this core group of members can commit to meetings on a regular
basis. You don't want your entire group flaking out on you!
3
Decide where to meet. When you first begin, especially if the members are friends or you plan to serve alcohol, meeting your own home
is a great idea. Later, different members could "host" different
meetings. If there are members that you are not quite as familiar with,
or don't want to meet at your house, ask your local library about using some of their space for a book club.
4
Set meeting time length. An hour is a good start.
Eventually, two hours or an hour and a half may work better if you add
more members to your group. Don't exceed two hours, because when
meetings get too long people get bored. When people get bored, they quit
coming to meetings. Your club could end before it even begins if it
gets a reputation of being boring.
5
Poll members of your club. Ask what books they have been reading and what times and dates work best for them to meet.
6
Announce your first meeting. Set the date at least
two weeks in advance, to allow for people to have time to read the book.
Three weeks is even better. Send out e-mails a week before the meeting
to give people a written reminder.
7
Start thinking of a cabinet. For instance, vote for
president, vice president, secretary, and get a few people for a club
newsletter. This step is optional for smaller groups, but is very handy
for very large groups of over ten or fifteen people.
8
Make a list of about five books and bring it to the meeting.
Get ideas for books from the internet or library recommendations. Let
everyone discuss and vote upon what book to read for the next meeting.
After deciding, let everyone get to know each other and discuss their
reading tastes.
Along with buying a house, paying for college can be one of the
biggest investments you will make in a lifetime. If you don't have
access to college financial aid, then paying for your education will
take some careful planning. Fortunately, there are alternatives to
financial aid that can considerably reduce the economic burden of
college. You can apply for scholarships, earn college credit in high
school and save money for college from a job.
Part 1
Applying for Scholarships
1
Find some scholarships that may be a fit for you.
There are many types of scholarships to help you pay for college, and
not all are based on academics. For example, you may qualify for a
scholarship based on your ethnicity, your gender, or your parents'
military background.[1]
Other scholarships relate to your hobbies and interests, or your area of study.
There is no limit to the number of scholarships you can use toward paying for college.
Many scholarships renew each year that you are in school. If your
funding renews each year, you don’t have to search for other funding
sources to replace a scholarship that has ended.
2
Work with an expert who can help you locate scholarships that may be a fit for you.
Both your high school and all universities have staff that can direct
you toward scholarships. Applying for scholarships can be
time-consuming, but it’s worth making the effort.[2]
If you are in high school, sit down with a guidance counselor to
discuss your scholarship options. Many organizations that offer
scholarships will reach out to contacts at high schools. These
organizations want qualified candidates to apply.
Ask an administrator at your college of choice about the
scholarships the college offers, as well as qualification and submission
requirements. If the college administrator helps you find scholarships,
there is a higher chance that you will attend their school.
Many scholarships are given by organizations to advance a particular
mission. You may be required to write an essay, or demonstrate service
to the community as part of your application. If you apply for a
scholarship from a non-profit, for example, you may have to document how
you’ve volunteered in your community.
3
Search the web for scholarship opportunities. Keep in
mind that some scholarships are not publicized by the organization that
provides them. If you perform a search on the web, you may find
opportunities that other students miss.[3]
Search scholarship websites like FastWeb and Sallie Mae's
Scholarship Search for programs where you can apply. Through these
sites, you can get the information required to apply for the
scholarships, as well as what it takes to be approved.
Check your locate community newspaper. Many local charitable
organizations grant scholarships to students in the community. You may
find information about these opportunities in your local paper.
Review your local library’s website. Library bulletin boards often
have postings of local scholarship funds operated by private parties and
area businesses. The library may also post that information on their
website.
Part 2
Deciding On A College
1
Earn college credit in high school. Your high school
counselor can also help you find courses that allow you to earn college
credit. Those credits will reduce the amount of course work you need to
take in college.[4]
In addition to your high school, you may be able to take courses at
your community college while you are in high school. Those credits can
also transfer to a 4-year university.
When considering a university, make sure that they accept the
transferred college credits from your high school or community college.
If they don’t, consider a different university that does accept the
credits.
Some four year colleges will accept the credit hours, but not the
grade you earned. This can still help you, since the credit transfer
will reduce the hours required to graduate.
2
Use AP courses and CLEP exams to earn additional college credit.
Both of these programs are offered through the College Board. If your
high school does not offer certain AP courses, you can take them online.[5]
You can take AP (or Advanced Placement) courses in a variety of subjects, including math, science, history and social studies.
After taking an AP course, students sit for an exam. If you score well enough on the exam, you can earn college credit.
CLEP offers 33 exams in 5 subject areas. If you pass a particular CLEP exam, you can earn 3 or more college credits.[6]
3
Analyze the type of college you want to attend. The
tuition between colleges can vary greatly, based on the type of school
you choose. You can select a public or private university. Your school
may be near your home or out of town.[7]
A private university can be twice as expensive as attending a public
(or state) university. To keep your costs down, narrow your choices to
public colleges.
If you decide to attend school near your home, you can live at home
and commute to school. This eliminates the need to pay for room and
board.
You can attend a community college for two years then transfer to a
university. The credit hours you pay for at a community college will be
cheaper than the rates at a university. You may earn up to half of your
university credits at a cheaper community college.
4
Use a work-study program or the ROTC. Many colleges
meet the financial needs of students by offering work-study programs.
You may also consider a Reserve Officer’s Training Corps (ROTC) program
to pay for college.[8]
A work-study program normally involves working a certain number of
hours on your college campus. In exchange for your work hours, your
tuition costs are reduced.
The Reserve Officer’s Training Corps (ROTC) program trains college students for future careers in the military.
The ROTC offers scholarships that cover the cost of your college
education. In exchange, the student commits to active duty service in
their chosen branch of the military.
Part 3
Using Savings And Work Income
1
Start a savings plan for college at an early age. Parents can plan for college expenses when a child is very young. The savings they accumulate can be used for college expenses.[9]
Consider a 529 Plan for your college savings. These plans may allow
the investor to invest pre-tax dollars into an investment, like a mutual
fund.
Because the dollars have not been taxed, more money goes into the
investment. Say, for example, that you want to invest $100 a month on a
pre-tax basis. The entire $100 gets invested. If you had to pay taxes on
the $100 first, you may only invest $80.
Set up a family budget. Include an amount of college savings in that
budget. When you’re paid each month, move funds into the college
savings plan immediately. That self-discipline will help you keep your
investing plan on track.
2
Get a job. Even students who do get college financial
aid often have to find employment to make ends meet while they go
through school. You may need to work full time and attend school part
time.[10]
Alternatively, you may be able to work part time and go to school full time.
Look into alternatives to traditional shift-work, like multiple
part-time jobs. Part-time jobs give you more flexibility to fit in your
courses at school.
Check your school's website for alternative sources of income. You
may find small tasks that pay you something and don't take much time.
For example, nearly all colleges need people to take research studies.
Consider taking more classes online, if they are available. Some
colleges offer degrees completely online. An online program can provide
the flexibility that can allow you to work while you’re in school.
3
Look into tuition reimbursement. Some employers offer
to reimburse their full-time workers for the cost of tuition. These
costs are covered when an employee attends college while they work at
the firm.[11]
Employers want their workers to increase their skills. A business
may offer to pay for college degrees that increase your value to the
firm.
If you pursue tuition reimbursement, the company may require you to
stay with the firm for a period of time after your courses are
completed.
If you leave before the time required, you may have to repay the tuition costs to your former employer.
So I got a side email asking me where are the recipes if this is a kitchen of sorts...so ever at the service of my readers, once a month we'll highlight a different recipe, food group or in season food item. Sorry in advance to my vegan and vegetarian friends. We will start with something safe and fun, like avocados. We'll see how this little experiment in the kitchen goes!
The Chef
After
all, these green fruits are jam-packed with minerals that help fight
infection, support our heart and also protects our cells, according to
the Washington Post.
They're also good sources of fiber and protein, while being low in
cholesterol and sugar. Avocados also have a reputation as being full of
those good fats, which help our bodies take in all those other
good-for-you nutrients.
But don't put baby, aka avocado, in corner, aka just a guacamole recipe. They're actually great cooking and baking substitutes.
Don't believe it? Well, here's some avocado ice cream.
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To eat as dessert after some avocado fries.
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Or
maybe you don't know if you want hummus or guacamole. Why not add
avocados right into the hummus recipe for creamy deliciousness?
Instead of heavy and unhealthy cream and butter in your pasta sauce, substitute avocado.
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Maybe instead of potato skins, you top some avocado halves with chili and cheese?
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Or bake avocado into a healthy little muffin!
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Or use the creamy texture to create an indulgent chocolate dessert.
Or spread some avocado love on a hot dog.
Here's an idea: Bake brownies with av in them. (Then maybe add some avocado ice cream on top?)
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But if chocolate isn't your thing, try out this avocado cheesecake.
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Avocado also really enhances already delicious risotto.
1Figure out what your book club will read, for both your first novel and in general. Will you be a general adult book club reading anything? A teen mystery book club? Deciding on a theme (or no theme, in the case of the first example) will help you keep you group motivated and supplied with reading ideas.
2Find a core group of people with a passion for reading. They could be friends, family, or acquaintances you know through various activities, but they should all love to read. Also, make sure that this core group of members can commit to meetings on a regular basis. You don't want your entire group flaking out on you!
3Decide where to meet. When you first begin, especially if the members are friends or you plan to serve alcohol, meeting your own home is a great idea. Later, different members could "host" different meetings. If there are members that you are not quite as familiar with, or don't want to meet at your house, ask your local library about using some of their space for a book club.
4Set meeting time length. An hour is a good start. Eventually, two hours or an hour and a half may work better if you add more members to your group. Don't exceed two hours, because when meetings get too long people get bored. When people get bored, they quit coming to meetings. Your club could end before it even begins if it gets a reputation of being boring.
5Poll members of your club. Ask what books they have been reading and what times and dates work best for them to meet.
6Announce your first meeting. Set the date at least two weeks in advance, to allow for people to have time to read the book. Three weeks is even better. Send out e-mails a week before the meeting to give people a written reminder.
8Make a list of about five books and bring it to the meeting. Get ideas for books from the internet or library recommendations. Let everyone discuss and vote upon what book to read for the next meeting. After deciding, let everyone get to know each other and discuss their reading tastes.
1Find some scholarships that may be a fit for you. There are many types of scholarships to help you pay for college, and not all are based on academics. For example, you may qualify for a scholarship based on your ethnicity, your gender, or your parents' military background.[1]
2Work with an expert who can help you locate scholarships that may be a fit for you. Both your high school and all universities have staff that can direct you toward scholarships. Applying for scholarships can be time-consuming, but it’s worth making the effort.[2]
3Search the web for scholarship opportunities. Keep in mind that some scholarships are not publicized by the organization that provides them. If you perform a search on the web, you may find opportunities that other students miss.[3]
1Earn college credit in high school. Your high school counselor can also help you find courses that allow you to earn college credit. Those credits will reduce the amount of course work you need to take in college.[4]
3Analyze the type of college you want to attend. The tuition between colleges can vary greatly, based on the type of school you choose. You can select a public or private university. Your school may be near your home or out of town.[7]
4Use a work-study program or the ROTC. Many colleges meet the financial needs of students by offering work-study programs. You may also consider a Reserve Officer’s Training Corps (ROTC) program to pay for college.[8]
1Start a savings plan for college at an early age. Parents can plan for college expenses when a child is very young. The savings they accumulate can be used for college expenses.[9]
2Get a job. Even students who do get college financial aid often have to find employment to make ends meet while they go through school. You may need to work full time and attend school part time.[10]
3Look into tuition reimbursement. Some employers offer to reimburse their full-time workers for the cost of tuition. These costs are covered when an employee attends college while they work at the firm.[11]
