Donating…..

Updated 3/2017 -- photos and all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active. and it was easier than checking each one.


The earth quakes.  Haitians suffer. 
The world tweets updates, texts donations, waits anxiously wanting to do more.
The woman extends her arm willingly, squeezing a fist in gentle rhythm as the life giving blood flows.



*** Found in my blog drafts, decided to go ahead and publish it. 

Shout Outs

Updated 3/2017-- photos and all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active. and it was easier than checking each one.

Dr. Rob,  Musings of a Distractible Mind, is this week's host of Grand Rounds.   It is the Groundhog Day edition. You can read this week’s edition here (photo credit).

It happens every year.

I try to get a little shut-eye, but then these guys in hats come around and yank me out of bed.  They proceed to parade me around a huge throng of people (most of whom are not wearing hats), obsessing about the presence or absence of stratus clouds.

What a strange group of people.  I seem to be the center of attention for the day, though, and that’s not all bad.  It’s my day on February 2nd, and nobody has ever taken that from me.

Until this year.

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Have you seen the National Library of Medicine’s exhibit “Changing Faces of Medicine”?  One of the physician’s mentioned on the site as a “local legend” is Dr Betty Lowe (photo credit) who was head of the department of pediatrics at Arkansas Children’s Hospital when I was a medical student.

“I like science; the idea of doing something that isn't always the same. And life as a pediatrician is definitely unpredictable!”

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From Peter Lipson, White Coat Underground:   Why you should read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (photo credit)

This is a special shout out to the doctors and scientists out there. Everything we do in our fields has repercussions, often unexpected ones. Because of this, we strive to practice ethically to help prevent or minimize negative repercussions.

This discussion comes up specifically as an epiphenomenon of the release of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (my full review can be found here.) How one reacts to this book would, I suppose, depend on your perspective. A neighbor of the Lacks's might react quite differently than a 22 year old doctoral student. And that's really the point.

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Voting continues at MedGadget for the medical blog awards. Polls will close 12 midnight on Sunday, February 14, 2010 (EST).  Vote here. 

The categories for this year's awards are:

-- Best Medical Weblog
-- Best New Medical Weblog (established in 2009)
-- Best Literary Medical Weblog
-- Best Clinical Sciences Weblog
-- Best Health Policies/Ethics Weblog
-- Best Medical Technologies/Informatics Weblog
-- Best Patient's Blog

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The need for help to Haiti continues. Anyone wishing to donate or provide assistance in Haiti is asked to contact the Center for International Disaster Information. Here is a list of organizations who need your help in providing care to Haiti:

• Clinton Foundation -- Donate online or Text "HAITI" to 20222 and $10 will be donated to relief efforts, charged to your cell phone bill.
• American Red Cross International Response Fund – Donate
• Doctors Without Borders
• The International Rescue Committee
• International Medical Corps
• Mercy Corps Haiti Earthquake Fund (1-888-256-1900)
• Partners in Health
• UNICEF (1-800-4UNICEF)
• UN World Food Program
• National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (SDF)
• The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)

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If you are a physician and would like to do volunteer work in Haiti, then check this out:  Help Haiti: AMA registers physician volunteers

The registry -- launched Jan. 26 -- is open to all licensed doctors and requests information such as specialty, language skills, availability and previous disaster medicine experience.

The registry is available online (www.ama-assn.org/go/haiti-volunteer).

An in-depth Webinar on how medical responders can prepare for working in Haiti is available, along with other resources, at the AMA Web site (www.ama-assn.org/go/haiti-earthquake).

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H/T to @NHPCO_news  Noted researcher Joan Teno MD shares her family's hospice experience on public radio's "This I Believe" http://www.wrni.org/content/hospice.  It is an interesting listen.

Death.  It's not a pleasant subject, of course, yet all of us know of its inevitability, in our own lives and those of the people we love.  Sadly, for many the end of life is filled with a toxic mix of pain, suffering, and an agonizing loss of control.  But, as Dr. Joan Teno notes, life does not have to end this way.  Indeed, we know better.

Dr. Joan Teno is the daughter of Doris Teno, who died on October 15, 2008.  She is professor of community health at The Warren Alpert School of Medicine of Brown University and Associate Medical Director of Home and Hospice Care of Rhode Island.

…………………………………..

From Threads comes this article, Create Intricate Fabric With Pin Weaving, which gives clear instructions on the technique.  I’ll be adding it to my list of things to try someday, especially now that I have more leftover yarns as I am knitting more.

Pin weaving doesn’t require much equipment; you only need a padded board for a base that will act as your “loom.” The pin-woven fabric is formed over a piece of fusible interfacing. Once you are happy with your design, iron it to the fusible interfacing to hold everything together.  The result is a soft, pliable and beautifully textured fabric.
…….Pin weaving is the perfect on-the-go craft for sewers looking to use up scraps from their stashes.

…………………………………..

Dr Anonymous is back this week with Dean Brandon from Pediatric Dentistry blog.  Come join us.

Upcoming Dr. A Shows (9pm ET)
2/11 : Drew Griffin from Wound Care Education Institute
2/18 : Rhett and John from FireFighter Netcast

Shout Outs

Updated 3/2017 -- all links removed as many no longer active and it was easier than checking each one. 

Dr Val, Better Health, is this week's host of Grand Rounds. It is the inaugural Grand Rounds and can be read here at MedPageToday.  

On this historic inauguration day, I thought it fitting to dedicate Grand Rounds to the subject of healthcare reform. The medical blogosphere is uniquely positioned to provide commentary "from the trenches" and I sincerely hope that policy-makers in Washington (like Tom Daschle) will bend an ear to us on a regular basis.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could accurately diagnosing Skin Cancer without a biopsy?  Well, it may soon be possible.  Check out this video clip from Vanderbilt!  Exciting news.

Daniel Kozan is a medical student in Canada.  He is putting together a website, Plastic Student, to help with teaching plastic surgery concepts to medical students. 

PlasticStudent.com is a website designed to teach core concepts in plastic surgery to medical students around the world. Plastic surgery education in medical school is often limited, and this site intends to fill the gap by providing clinically oriented cases and reference material for students to learn from. We hope this site will help students prepare for exams, electives, and their future careers.

If you happen to be in Washington DC on February 4, 2009, you might want to attend  a lecture at the National Museum of Health and Medicine:  "Health, Illness and the Presidency"

Join NMHM as we celebrate the centennial year at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Lawrence C. Mohr, Jr., MD will discuss his experiences as White House Physician to three presidents – Reagan, Bush and Clinton – and his career at Walter Reed.

A wonderful source for information on cold water immersion hypothermia (hat tip to Dr Paul Auerbach):  Cold Water Boot Camp

Most of the water in Canada is cold year round. It’s cold water that is a major contributor to recreational drowning deaths year after year. Nine Boot Camp volunteers offered to ‘jump in with both feet’ and experience first hand what happens in 6 degree Celsius water. On this site you can:

View - video clips of boot campers’ immersions that will take you into the water with them.

Join - Dr Gordon Giesbrecht, (Professor Popsicle) in the classroom to learn about his 1-10-1 formula for survival in cold water.

Discover - information on Lifejackets...your first line of defense against cold water immersion.

Learn - about the medical and physical data related to cold water accumulated by researchers, agencies and the Coast Guard from across the country

Trauma Junkie, Surviving RT School, is a starting a new blog carnival.  I love the logo (photo removed 3/2017)! The first edition is planned for Friday, February 13th.  If you have any posts related to lung/respiratory care than I would encourage you to submit them.  You can find the instructions here.

I'm planning a blog carnival for Respiratory Bloggers: therapists, students, patients, and anyone who has anything pertaining to respiratory care, lung disease, breaking news for respiratory therapists and modern advances in equipment. Basically, anything that has do with respiratory therapy will be included in the carnival, regardless of who submits it

Stand Up to Cancer

 Updated 3/2017--photos and all links (except to my own posts) removed as many are no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

Today is Stand Up to Cancer Day. I would like to highlight Zippy the Lobster who is making the rounds of Dr Rob's blog friends. His mission is

My first mission is to see the world and experience all that a lobster can. I want to live life to the fullest and grab life with both claws. I just hope I don’t hurt life when I do that.

My second mission is to help people. I am presently trying to raise money for brain cancer research. There are a lot of nice people getting sick and dying from this bad disease. I want to do what I can. I hope to have things you can buy with me on them (think of the fashion statement), ways to donate, and maybe even advertisers (probably not Red Lobster, though). Stay tuned for that one.

You can follow his travel's through his blog, Fun with Zippy. The money raised by Zippy goes to Childhood Brain Tumor Foundation - MD. You can donate money or buy merchandise with his logo on it here at MedTees (via Dr Wes's help).

Restaurant Week(s)

 Updated 3/2017--photos and all links removed as many are no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

The restaurants in my community are raising money for Arkansas Hospice. They call it Restaurant Week, but the time frame is August 15-30.

During River Cities Restaurant Week, Little Rock and North Little Rock’s finest spectacular restaurants will offer three, special fixed-price, three course dinner menus for just $35 per person (beverages, tax and gratuity not included). Some restaurants will also be offering three course lunch specials for $20 per person! Some restaurants prices may vary, so be sure to check out the menus for exact pricing per restaurant.

Modeled after the highly-successful Dallas Restaurant Week, River Cities Restaurant Week will be an annual culinary celebration that spotlights the diverse array of dining establishments. At $35 per meal for dinner and $20 per meal for restaurants offering lunch as well, this is your opportunity to try as many as you can.

The participating restaurants are many of the best in the area. A complete list can be found here.

Adventures with Zippy

 Updated 3/2017-- all links removed as many no longer are active.

Zippy the Lobster is making the rounds of Dr Rob's blog friends. He is trying to raise awareness and money for pediatric brain tumors. He was recently here in Arkansas to spend time with Rusty and me. He arrived in Arkansas after visiting the Calhoun's in Louisiana (Charming BB). We all had a great time. You can check out his pictures of his Arkansas visit here. You can visit Zippy's blog that chronicles all his adventures here. You can make a donation to his nonprofit (Childhood Brain Tumor Foundation - MD) here.

Before leaving Arkansas to visit PK in Oklahoma, Zippy helped me make a fruit basket to take to the Father's Day picnic.

Happy Father's Day to all you fathers out there!

Raising Money for Childhood Cancer Research

Updated 3/2017-- all links (other than to my own posts) removed as many no longer are active and it was easier than checking each one.

Many of you know that Dr Smak's son Henry was diagnosed with brain cancer last fall. His sister Anna will be hosting a lemonade stand July 4th. You can help. Here's how:

The Scheck house will be hosting our very own Alex's Lemonade Stand on the 4th of July.

Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation is a unique foundation that evolved from a young cancer patient's front yard lemonade stand to a nationwide fundraising movement to find a cure for pediatric cancer. What makes the foundation different is that it's model inspires people who would not be likely to donate to childhood cancer to make donations with the reassurance that "no donation is too small".

The fourth of July is traditionally in our neighborhood an insanely huge community yard sale. Since it falls on a Friday this year we expect big crowds. Our garage is packed full of yard sale fodder, proceeds which also will be donated to the foundation.

In addition to raising money from the lemonade sales, Anna is soliciting friends and family to pledge an amount of money for each cup of lemonade sold. This obviously greatly accelerates the earnings, and will hopefully motivate our "customers" to buy plenty of lemonade! If you're interested in sponsoring Anna, please email Bryan at mailto:bryanscheck@gmail.com so we can sign you up. We have donations ranging from 25 cents to a dollar a cup (!), and we have set an ambitious goal of raising $1000. Additionally, some people have felt more comfortable giving a flat donation, which we are also very grateful to receive.

There is a website designed to take the donated money here (link no longer active, 3/2017). Once the big day is over, we will call or email you to let you know what your donation is based on cups sold. You can then donate over the website.
Thank you for joining us in the fight against childhood cancer... one cup at a time!

I hope you will help them surpass their goal. I have sent my e-mail to Bryan already.

Some Shout Outs

Updated 3/2017 -- all links removed as many no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

Just wanted to link to some posts and information I found interesting.

First off Happy Hospitalist did a grand job using the Six Degrees method linking the posts of Grand Rounds 4:37 to himself. Check it out.

Second If you don't know about the SixDegrees.org, the charity charitable initiative that Kevin Bacon started in partnership with Network for Good, you may want to check it out. Either make your own charity badge (see mine on the left side-bar, bottom) as I raise money for the Arkansas Food Bank. Or add your charity to the Network for Good list.

Third Paul Levy posted "Terrorism Near and Far"

A riveting presentation today to our Board of Overseers. First was Diane Covert, freelance photographer and creator of "Inside Terrorism: The X-Ray Project". This is an exhibit which uses actual X-rays and CT scans from two large hospitals in Israel to explore the effects of terrorism on a civilian population.

Fourth Did you see this post at MedGadget on the New Luke Arm? Wow, I wish I could have helped develop this (wish I was smart enough). I always wondered if we would get to this point during my life since watching the Six Million Dollar Man as a kid. Wow!!!

Fifth Check out the x-rays of the Appendicolith over at Scalpel. I don't recall ever seeing one as large or as clear as this one. Impressive!

Sixth Dr Rob Oliver, Plastic Surgery 101, has a nice post on Malignant Hyperthermia and the recent patient death in Florida.

Seventh Fat Doctor's son had to have eye surgery this week. She shares the video of the surgery with us here.

Eighth Did you catch this "My Bloodsucking Visit to a Leech Clinic" posted May 23, 2008 by Canadian Medicine? [via Kevin,MD] Let me refer you back to my post on Leeches.

Ninth Don't forget that tomorrow night, Dr Anonymous will be hosting Dr Gwenn O'Keeffe on his Blog Talk Radio show.

Tenth And the "Peace Globe Movement" in the blogosphere. This is a simple idea brought forth by Mimi Lenox back in the fall of 2006. Mimi was even a guest on The Doctor Anonymous Show Number Eleven back on October 25, 2007.

Shadowfax is Back and BALD!

  Updated 3/2017-- all links removed as many no longer active as it was easier than checking each one.

You may recall my post back in early February -- Hair for Charity. Fellow medical blogger, Shadowfax, over at Movin' Meat was going to shave his head for charity. You can read his initial posts--"I'm a Beautiful Man" and "I get letters" that highlight his reasons. Well, he did it!!!

You can see his photos here. He raised $16,060.00, though you can continue to donate! Good work, Shadowfax!

Another QOV

I added a border to the Snail's Tail quilt top posted earlier this year (see here). It is now 60 in square. I will be sending it to the Quilts of Valor Foundation to be used for a wounded soldier. It is interesting how a border can change a quilt. I think it looks much better with the simple border than without. It is machine pieced and machine quilted.

A close-up view.

"Because I Am Able"

 Updated 3/2017-- photos and all links removed as many are no longer active and it's easier than checking each one.

Susan over at DonorCycle will be participating in the 11th Annual Hustle Up the Hancock event to help raise money for lung disease research and education. It takes place on February 24, 2008 and involves climbing 90+ stories along with her friend Steve. Steve is a double lung recipient. You can read his story here.

I like the reason Susan gives: "You may think that it's crazy to climb the John Hancock Center but I am doing so because I am able. I can breathe freely, and there are many people who are not as lucky as I."

She would like to have some help reaching her fundraising goal. If you would like to make a donation go here to her personal page.

Thank you!

Neighbor in Need Fund

Updated 3/2017-- photos and all links removed as many are no longer active and it's easier than checking each one.

One of our local radio stations, KATV, began this fund initially to help our "neighbors" to the south of Arkansas affected by Hurricane Katrina. It was then used to aid the Dumas community when it was flattened by a tornado a year ago. Wednesday, KATV announced it is re-activating the Neighbor in Need relief fund because help is needed again after Tuesday's killer twisters. No matter if it's $1, $5, $10, or more -- it will all add up. KATV kick-started the fund with a $5,000 donation. The money will help the Red Cross meet the needs of those living in Arkansas' affected areas. Our local Red Cross has been hit hard this year due to several apartment fires which has depleted their reserves. For more information on how you can contribute, click here.

If you live in one of the other states affected, Tennessee, Alabama, or Kentucky, then consider giving to your states Red Cross. There is also a need for blood donations. Consider being a part of your church's group to aid in clean up.

To see video of the storm damage done in Clinton, Arkansas as seen from KATV's chopper go here.

Hair for Charity

 Updated 3/2017-- photos and all links removed as many are no longer active and it's easier than checking each one.

Fellow medical blogger, Shadowfax, over at Movin' Meat is going to shave his head for charity. You can read his posts--"I'm a Beautiful Man" and "I get letters" that highlight his reasons.

St. Baldrick's is a fundraising foundation dedicated to raising funds for pediatric cancer research. Currently, only $1 of every $100 spent on cancer research goes to funding all of pediatric cancer research. Since the organization's inception in 2000, they have raised over $34 million for research funding. 83 cents of every dollar goes to funding, a very high percentage for a charitable foundation. Their fundraising centers around shaving the head of a volunteer, to promote solidarity with all these great kids who lose their locks to chemo. How it works: a volunteer will sponsor a child, and gets friends and family to contribute money to his fundraising efforts. There is then a public shaving to celebrate!

Well, I'm not sure that I (being female and not Britney Spears or Sinead O’Connor) will ever willing shave my head, but I have donated my hair twice for Locks of Love. They are a public non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to children under age 18 suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis. Most of the children helped by Locks of Love have lost their hair due to a medical condition called alopecia areata, which has no known cause or cure. The first time I donated, the length they asked for was 15 inches. It is now only 10 inches. Here are their guidelines if you wish to donate.

• 10 inches measured tip to tip is the minimum length needed for a hairpiece. This includes hair that is colored or permed.
• Hair must be in a ponytail or braid before it is cut.
• Hair must be clean and completely dry before it is mailed in.
• Place the ponytail or braid inside of a plastic bag, and then inside of a padded envelope.
• Fill out the hair donation form, or write your name and address on a separate sheet of paper and include inside the envelope.
• All hair donations must be mailed to Locks of Love at: 2925 10th Avenue N, Suite 102
  Lake Worth, FL 33461-3099

Please Note:

• Shorter hair will be separated from the ponytails and sold to offset the manufacturing costs. Although the shorter hair cannot be used in the hairpieces, it still greatly helps to reduce costs.
• Gray hair will be accepted and sold to offset the manufacturing costs.
• Hair that has been bleached (usually this refers to highlighted hair) is not usable. If unsure, ask your stylist.
• Hair that is swept off of the floor is not usable.
• Hair that is shaved off and not in a ponytail or braid is not usable.
• We cannot accept dreadlocks. Our manufacturer is not able to use them in our children’s hairpieces. We also cannot accept wigs, falls, hair extensions or synthetic hair.

Then there is the Wigs for Kids program. Their guidelines for hair donation are similar to the above ones for Locks of Love. The history of this organization goes back over 25 yrs:

" founder Jeffrey Paul cannot believe his incredible journey. He was a successful hairdresser with a thriving business. He traveled all over the world to work with powerful presidents and gorgeous models. But one day, his 15-year-old niece walked into his salon, crying. She tearfully begged him to stop her hair from falling out. My immediate thoughts were not serious.

But when I saw the look in her father’s eyes, I knew it was something more.” It turned out that she had just been diagnosed with leukemia. “Uncle Jeff, you know I’ve been trying to get on the gymnastics team all my life,” she cried. “My hair is going to be falling out when it’s time to try out.”

Although chemotherapy would help save her life, it would also leave her with no hair. “I promised her that she would have hair,” Paul says. “And when you make a promise to a kid, you keep it.” Read more here.

I hope you will consider making a monetary donation for Shadowfax/ St Baldwick's and maybe donating some of hair to one of the groups that make wigs. Hair, like blood, is a renewable resource. A bad haircut is only temporary.

This and That, Catching Up

Updated 3/2017 -- all links removed as many no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

We made it to the Canstruction. Here's a photo of the Simpsons I took. If you want to see the other photos I took, you can check them out here. I really liked the Big Can Bridge, but don't think it shows as well in the photos as the Simpsons.

Also want to remind everyone about SurgeXperiences #114. It will be hosted at Anesthesioboist on February 3. The deadline for submissions is February 1. The current edition, SurgeXperiences 113 is up over at Counting Sheep. Terry calls her edition "Operating After Hours".

And last, but not least I want to give a "heads up" to an upcoming HBO documentary that is due to air January 29, 2008. It is called "Badhdad Hospital, Inside the Red Zone". As you all may know, Chris over at "Made A Difference For That One: A Surgeon's Letters Home From Iraq" has recently returned to the United States from Iraq. He has the following to say about the upcoming show:

"I only got to see life within the rarified confines of Balad airbase, and once the 86th CSH in Baghdad, so this is a perspective of Iraq I did not have. I will say that I heard some of my patients say things very similar to those portrayed in the clips.

Clip 1: Ambulance pickup at a market after a suicide http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUMzO8x0QxM

Clip 2: Introduction in the hospital http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkVMm6AgStg I think that the clips were filmed in 2007. Hopefully we see less of thes attacks as time goes by. In the first clip when I heard the line "Only the children playing outside." I could feel a sense of a parent's worry for their own children above one's own safety, yet also a feeling of guilt in knowing they were someone's children."

Arkansas Canstruction 2008

I find it amazing that the above was constructed with cans! It is made from cans of food which will be donated to the Arkansas Foodbank after the exhibit ends. Canstruction, here in Little Rock kicked off January 17th. The teams, comprised of local engineers, architects, and construction worker, had 12 hours to build the elaborate works. This coming weekend I hope to find the time to go see the exhibit. This year it is housed at the Clinton Library.

Canstruction^® (from their web site--where you will find more wonderful photos) is the most unique food charity in the world!

A foundation of the Society for Design Administration (SDA), Canstruction^® is a design/build competition currently held in cities throughout North America. Teams of architects, engineers, and students mentored by these professionals, compete to design and build giant structures made entirely from full cans of food.
The results are displayed to the public as magnificent sculpture exhibits in each city where a competition is held. At the close of the exhibitions all of the canned food used in the structures is donated to local food banks for distribution to emergency feeding programs that include pantries, soup kitchens, elderly and day care centers.
Since its inception, ten million pounds of food has been donated to aid in the fight against hunger. Initiated by the Denver, Seattle and New York Chapters of the SDA in 1992/93, Canstruction^® now has over one hundred individual competitions scheduled to take place during the 2007-2008 cycle.

First QOV's for 2008

Here are two quilt tops and a finished quilt that I am donating to the Quilt of Valor Foundation. I finished the quilt after Thanksgiving, but never submitted a destination request until this past week. The two tops were finished towards the end of the year as well. There was a note on the QOVF website stating that no requests would be answered, due to a holiday break, until after Jan 6, so I just waited until this week to submit those as well.

This top is 51" X 74".

It is a nine-patch made up of left-over green fabrics

The figures are Elvis silhouettes.
This patriotic quilt is 51" X 68".
It is a variation of a square in a square.

Here is a closer view.

This is the Sunshine and Shadow quilt I started

after Thanksgiving. It is 54" X 68".

Here is a closer view.

Miss Bets

Updated 3/2017 -- photo and all links removed as many no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

Miss Bets is a baby elephant. She is an African elephant. Her weight at birth was 263 lbs and she is 35 inches tall. She is strong, healthy and nursing. Her mom, Amy, is a first time mother.

Amazingly, she was born here in Arkansas at the Riddle Elephant and Wildlife Sanctuary on December 8, 2007.

Riddle's Elephant and Wildlife Sanctuary was established by Scott and Heidi Riddle in 1990 on 330 acres in the Ozark Mountain foothills in Arkansas as a non-profit home for elephants needing one for any reason. It is the only internationally recognized sanctuary that accepts any elephant regardless of species, gender, or disposition. This Arkansas elephant sanctuary currently houses Asian elephants and African elephants. Elephant care and elephant management are taught at this elephant haven. Programs include Elephant Experience Weekends and an annual International School for Elephant Management. Major goals of the sanctuary include the care of the resident elephant herd, but also elephant conservation in general, helping to ensure the long-term survival of these magnificent and highly endangered species. You can visit their site to learn how you can help elephants or to "adopt" an elephant!

Now for a little science--did you know that elephants don't sweat? So how do these warm blooded mammals regulate their body temperatures? One way is their ears! I think that is wonderful.

"Elephants have large ears which are packed with capillary structure through which sizable quantity of blood flows. Whenever there is excess heat that needs to be released, warm blood flows through these capillaries, while the elephant chooses a cold spot (like that of a shade) and uses the favorable thermal gradient to release the excess heat. In other words, the ear flaps of the elephant serve as an enormous convection fin - a flapping one at that - to enhance heat transfer from the elephant body to the environment."-- from Arunn Narasimhan post Elephant Ears And Thermo Regulation

Another Tactile QOV Quilt

Updated 3/2017-- all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active.

Back in June I wrote about the need for tactile quilts for blind or sight-impaired soldiers. The tactile sense training seems to help them train the brain to "see" in other ways. The reason is not fully understood, but is known as sensory substitution. This refers to the capacity of the brain to replace the functions of a lost sense by another sensory modality. The most commonly used form of sensory substitution is Braille reading which allows the blind to read by touch (somatosensory system).

For the one I am working on now, I used cottons, washable fake fur (polyester zebra print), and old denim. There are four working pockets from the black denim jeans (trouser style). One pocket even has the button-flap. I hadn't intended for it to look "Christmasy" but it does. It is black and white, red, and green in color. The backing fabric is a flannel of the same colors. I am doing a simple "out-line" quilting stitch on my sewing machine. No hand quilting for these thick fabrics (the denim and fake fur). It does have a "nice touch". I hope to finish it over this weekend between family events.

I don't have a name for this pattern. I found this "picture puzzle" in the paper and adapted it.

Here is the flap pocket.
The finished quilt size is 52" X 62".

The Gift of Life

I try to give blood a few times a year. I have no luck getting my husband to give. I hope I can convince a few of you to give. As we approach this Thanksgiving and Christmas season, there is a gift you can give that will not cost you any money--just a little time and yes a needle stick. But compared to the good it will do for someone like Dr. Smak's son Henry, what's a little needle stick.

And since most of us aren't close enough to Dr. Smak or her family to give then a physical hug or take them a casserole dish or do a load of laundry for them, this is a way that those of us who have befriended her in this cyber-world can do something for them (or another family like theirs). So please give blood this "giving season". As the t-shirt says, you'll be giving someone another birthday, another anniversary, another chance.

Humane Society Day Planner

Updated 3/2017-- all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active.

Our local humane society (Pulaski County Humane Society) began publishing a Day Planner in 2005. It has turned into a very good fund raiser for them. Last night was the debute of the 2008 seen here. I ordered several that first year to give as Christmas presents. They were such a big hit the first year, I've had to keep doing it.

The first year (2005) we put a picture of my first "true" pet--Columbo-- in the calendar. He had died in November 2002 at age 9 yrs from a strange abdominal cancer. Despite both human and veterinarian pathologist looking at the slides, no diagnosis could be given other than a malignancy. He was an extremely cool dog!

He would carry 5 gallon buckets around the yard, roll the bucket,

and toss it in the air with his head.

He loved to catch soccer balls as they bounced off the roof.

The next year (2006) we put Ladybug's photo in. I posted about her here. She died in May 2002 from osteosarcoma of her left maxilla. The "thing" in her mouth is a rolled up raw hide, not a cigar. She was quite the charmer!

This past year (2007) we had Girlfriend's photo in the calendar. We lost her this year to a canine hemangiosarcoma. I still can not make myself change my profile to say I only have one dog rather than two. I will do it someday, but not today. I still miss her too much. I keep having to correct myself when I tell someone I'm "off to walk my dogs".

This year (for 2008) we had two sets of photos put in. One for our neighbors who lost their beloved Maggie, a border collie, to old age. And the other for my brother and his wife (who live in South Carolina)--someone had poisoned several of their dogs by adding anti-freeze to some food and giving it to the dogs. In the calendar, the photos are placed on two memorial pages (didn't photograph well for me to show you).

Next year my husband says is Rusty's year. I've got to work on getting a really good picture of him. He too is a character! Check out this video of him "playing" basketball.