Risk @ MindSay 
tomorrow I won't be online as friends from seattle are coming down. she is surviving stage four breast cancer and has turned her life into a walking blessing. so here are my thoughts on memorial day one day early.
having grown up in a beach town on the north shore of long island, memorial day was a big deal. this meant school was over and the official beach season opened. The day was marked with a morning parade, where veteran's marched ( some from WW1) and we all wore red paper poppies and waved small flags. It seemed uniquely american and small town wonderful as afterwards there were back yard barbecues before we hit the beach. Braving the frigid water of long island sound was an ordeal and even when we turned blue and our teeth chattered we insisted we were not cold when admonished by the adults to come out of the water and warm up. It also meant lightning bugs were not far away in time and that the barefoot days and late nights playing kick the can or "spud" were right on the horizon.
We didn't think about the people maimed or killed in war. we just thought about a lot of very well postured old guys talking about their war buddies. and of course at ten years of age none of it really sank in. But looking back to the trivial markers we , as children, put on that weekend seems to strengthen my faith in being an American even when our government gets it all wrong. So while I intensely dislike Bush and his fascist cronies, I thank all the men and women who served our country, gave limbs and lives and eyes and marriages and peaceful sleep for our country and people and I take a moment of silence and deep reflection about the human capacity to help, forgive, rebuild and prevail. And I hope Flander's Field is covered with poppies. I know mine are growing and doing well.
Directing traffic may be the least understood or ignored risk/hazard facing emergency services professionals? Consider the threat posed by today's distracted driver, and the aggressive tendencies of immature drivers. All too often, these kinds of drivers are responsible for a majority of traffic collisions. Today's public safety officer while directing traffic must be at their best, keenly focused and aware of what is around them, and never turning their back on close by traffic. When you least expect a problem, along comes the out-of-control DUI or a speeding, reckless driver and you're life could be over. Since 1998, 31 law enforcement officers in America alone have been hit and killed by motor vehicles. Do you believe we may have a safety problem for our personnel during traffic control?
much as I feel the horror and misery of those family members who wait for more news of the climbers who left for a difficult climb up Mt Hood, I also have to ask why such behavior is permitted? The risk to the hundreds of people who have been aiding the search is enormous and yet the focus is on the sometimes irresponsible sport die hards who must leave others to risk their lives but also cause enormous financial costs, money that could be spent on keeping the less fool hardy safe while they exercise ordinary
caution.
I am married to a climber and he admits there is always a danger that rescues may have to occur. But to knowingly advance up the most difficult face of Hood, when record snows and blizzards are approaching is asking for a thrill at many other people's expense: their families, the rescuers, the tax payers and of course themselves.
If it were my husband up there in the snow wouldn't I want everyone doing everything they could do? yes. But wouldn't I also put my foot down and tell him that there is a limit tp what people do for fun, and blizzard climbing along possible avalanche fields is not the sort of fun he needs right now. How much nicer to have a cozy fire safe at home, talk about safer adventures come warmer weather or maybe a great day at Timberline Lodge or cross country skiing and a picnic at lost lake. Then they can relax with their loved ones and know that the vital resources spent on a thrill seeker don't have to be spent today.
Curvier women 'will live longer'
Catherine Zeta Jones is famed for her healthy figure.
Curvy women are more likely to live longer than their slimmer counterparts, researchers have found.
Institute of Preventative Medicine in Copenhagen researchers found those with wider hips also appeared to be protected against heart conditions.
Women with a hip measurement smaller than 40 inches, or a size 14 would not have this protection, they said.
The researchers say hip fat contains a beneficial natural anti-inflammatory.
Narrow hips 'detrimental'.
They said this anti-inflammatory, called adiponectin, prevents arteries swelling up and becoming blocked.
Fat on hips is different than fat on the abdomen.
Dr Berit Heitmann, Institute of Preventative Medicine.
The hourglass figure has been made famous by women ranging from Marilyn Monroe and Sophia Loren to Kelly Brook and Catherine Zeta Jones today.
The Danish researchers examined almost 3,000 men and women aged between 35 and 65 from 1987 to 1988.
They measured height, weight and body mass index - calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by the square of your height in metres.
They then looked at Danish health registers up until the end of 1998 to look at how many of the men and women had cardiovascular problems, and up to 2001 to see how many had died.
Compared to the group of women with the smallest hip circumferences, women with the biggest were found to have an 87% reduction in deaths.
They also had an 86% reduced risk of having coronary heart disease and a 46% reduction in the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, according to the researchers.
Previous studies have found both men and women with small hips are at an increased risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure and gall bladder disease.
However the study, which has been published in Obesity Research, found a wider hip circumference was not linked with better heart health in men.
'Apple-shape' risk
Professor Berit Heitmann, who led the study, said: "It seems that the protection is not a matter of wide hips, it's the detrimental effect of narrow hips with a lack of muscle fat, or bone or a combination of both.
She added: "Fat on hips is different than fat on the abdomen. If you do not have enough of this fat you may risk heart attacks."
Carrying excess fat around the stomach, being 'apple shaped', is already known to be potentially damaging to health.
Fat cells in this part of the body pump out chemicals that can damage the insulin system, raising the risk of diabetes and heart disease.
Belinda Linden, of the British Heart Foundation said: "It has been widely reported that if you are apple-shaped, your risk of developing cardiovascular disease is likely to be greater than if you are pear-shaped.
"This study provides additional evidence of the association between hip circumference and cardiovascular protection among women."
But she added: "It is important to consider both your body weight and shape in tandem. Controlling both by eating less and being more active is the best way to reduce your risk of heart and circulatory disease."
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