Summer Heat

In summer, the song sings itself. ~William Carlos Williams.


However, even as the song sings itself, we have to be careful not to be swept away by the sirens call.

Summer brings vacations, barbecues, swimming, golf, football and baseball games, mowing lawns, gardening, and doing many other outdoor activities. Many hours of sun and warmth bring people out of their homes to work and play. It is a very active and fun filled season, but summer can have negative effects as well, if one is not careful. When it comes to summer heat, there is such a thing as having too much of a good thing.

Temperatures can rise beyond comfortable levels for days, and sometimes weeks. Humidity can be oppressive, making it feel hotter than it actually is. The once glorious summer season soon becomes unbearable, making every outdoor activity a chore. Shade trees and a summer breeze become welcome treasures.

Many people retreat to the comforts of their air conditioners and fans. The fact remains that the heat cannot be avoided totally. If one does not take proper precautions during these sweltering conditions, the result could be serious, even deadly.

Each year, an average of 175 Americans lose their lives due to their bodies not being able to compensate for the tolls that excessive heat and humidity take on their bodies. This does not include the casualties in which heat accelerated the symptoms of disorders already present. Because this has become such a serious problem, the National Weather Service has devised a system to calculate how hot it really feels when air temperature is combined with humidity. It is called the Heat Index. Using this system gives weather forecasters a way to warn people of dangerously high heat levels.

There are various heat related illnesses/injuries that people need to be aware of so that they may 1) try to prevent them from occurring, 2) watch for signs and symptoms when individuals are exposed to extreme heat levels, and 3) know how to treat these illnesses/injuries should they occur. These illnesses/injuries include sunburn, heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke.

Heat Disorders	Symptoms	First Aid
Sun Burn	Redness and pain. In severe cases, swelling of skin, blisters, fever, headaches.	Ointment for mild cases if blisters appear. If breaking occurs, apply dry sterile dressing. Serious, extensive cases should be seen by a physician.
Heat Cramps	Cramps Painful spasms usually in muscles of legs and abdomen possible. Heavy sweating.	Firm pressure on cramping muscles, or gentle massage to relieve spasm. Give sips of water. If nausea occurs, discontinue use.
Heat Exhaustion	Heavy sweating, weakness, skin cold, pale and clammy. Pulse thready. Normal temperature possible. Fainting and vomiting.	Get victim out of sun. Lay down and loosen clothing. Apply cool wet cloths. Fan or move victim to air conditioned room. Sips of water. If nausea occurs, discontinue use. If vomiting continues, seek immediate medical attention.
Heat Stroke (Sun Stroke)	High body temperature (106°F, or higher). Hot dry skin. Rapid and strong pulse. Possible unconsciousness.	Heat stroke is a severe medical emergency. Summon medical assistance or get the victim to a hospital immediately. Delay can be fatal. Move the victim to a cooler environment. Reduce body temperature with cold bath or sponging. Use extreme caution. Remove clothing, use fans and air conditioners. If temperature rises again, repeat process. Do not give fluids.

 To function properly, the body must maintain a core temperture of 98.6 degrees. The body's natural response to a deviation from this is perspiration to cool the body, should it get to warm, and shivering, should it get too cold. When it is very hot and humid, the body's natural defense is to sweat profusely (The release of water by the body onto its surface, which cools the body as it evaporates.). When this happens, an individual loses not only water, but also sodium. If this goes on for long enough without replenishing the fluids and electrolytes lost during perspiration, the body will become dehydrated, and the individual may start having symptoms of heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke. Should a person also suffer from sunburn, these reactions could manifest more quickly, due to the skin's decreased ability to regulate the body's heat.

Framing is important

Two stories about the same subject, caught my atttention both were published on the same day. The first story came from Bloomberg.com and I think it was aimed at investors. The story started as follows:


Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, Canada’s third-biggest retirement-fund manager, posted an 11 percent return on investments in 2011, led by fixed income, private capital and infrastructure assets.


Performance was especially impressive given the market volatility and economic uncertainty that accompanied the Eurozone debt situation, and was compounded by last year’s natural disasters,” Chief Executive Officer Jim Leech said in the statement.


Ontario Teachers’ results beat the 0.5 percent return of Canadian pension funds last year, as estimated in a Jan. 23 report by RBC Dexia Investor Services Ltd.


In comparison, Canada’s biggest pension-fund manager, Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, on Feb. 23 reported an annual return on investments of 4 percent. Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, a Toronto-based pension fund manager, said Feb. 24 it had a 3.2 percent return last year.


Near the end of the report Bloomberg said the following about the shortfall:


Canada’s benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 11 percent and the MSCI World Index declined 7.6 percent in 2011.


Ontario Teachers’ estimated funding shortfall narrowed to C$9.6 billion, from C$17.2 billion a year earlier, as persistent low real interest rates and changing demographic trends affect the plan.
=======================================================================


The second story on the same subject, was from the Globe and Mail. This story aimed at the general public, started as follows:


The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan had a $9.6-billion funding shortfall at the start of this year, despite recent contribution increases, benefit cuts, and solid investment returns.


The funding gap is symbolic of struggles across the pension sector, as plans grapple with low interest rates and lacklustre markets at the same time as the baby boomers hit retirement.


But Teachers’ announcement comes a week after Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan made it clear that the province’s appetite for helping pensions climb out from under their shortfalls has decreased. He signalled that gaps will increasingly have to be addressed by contribution cuts as opposed to any aid from taxpayers.


Near the end of the article the Globe reported:


Mr. Leech emphasized to reporters in a press conference Tuesday morning that the plan is still funded to the tune of 94 per cent.


“This is not a crisis,” he said. “This is our tenth year that we have faced a preliminary deficit.”
The plan’s sponsors – the Ontario Teachers’ Federation and the provincial government – are required to bring the plan into balance every few years. They did so this past year, solving a deficit of more than $17-billion, and are not required to do so again until 2014. However, the government has signalled that it would like to tackle this year.


Which of the two stories would make the average person more nervous? 


The conservatives and their supporters love to spread fear and make people feel anxious, so they can provide a solution. It is never a good idea to settle for one source when reading the mainstream media, always when possible find another source.

The light turned amber

The light turned yellow, just in front of him. He did the right thing stopping at the crosswalk, even though he could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the intersection.

The tailgating woman was furious and honked her horn, screaming in frustration, as she missed her chance to get through the intersection, dropping her cell phone and makeup.

As she was still in mid-rant, she heard a tap on her window and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer.

The officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up. He took her to the police station where she was searched, fingerprinted, photographed, and placed in a holding cell.

After a couple of hours, a policeman approached the cell and opened the door.

She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects.

He said, "I'm very sorry for this mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, flipping off the guy in front of you and cussing a blue streak at him. I noticed the "What Would Jesus Do" bumper sticker, the "Choose Life" license plate holder, the "Follow Me to Sunday-School" bumper sticker, and the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk, so naturally; I assumed you had stolen the car."

Trouble sleeping revive old habits

I have  trouble sleeping,I wake up in the middle of the night sometimes for half an hour, sometimes for an hour or so. I thought I might have sleep apnea as a friend of mine has, so I did some research and found that the sleep pattern I was experiencing was more normal than not.

More than one-third of North American adults wake up in the middle of the night on a regular basis. Of those who experience "nocturnal awakenings," nearly half are unable to fall back asleep right away, and rather worry about this aspect of my life now I accept that I have fallen into old human habits so I still get a good night sleep.

Mounting evidence suggests, however, that nocturnal awakenings aren't abnormal at all; they are the natural rhythm that your body gravitates toward.  References to "first sleep" or "deep sleep" and "second sleep" or "morning sleep" abound in legal depositions, literature and other archival documents from pre-Industrial European times.   Until the modern age, most households had two distinct intervals of slumber, known as "first" and "second" sleep, bridged by an hour or more of quiet wakefulness

The dominant pattern of sleep, arguably since time immemorial, was biphasic," Roger Ekirch, a sleep historian at Virginia Tech University and author of "At Day's Close: Night in Times Past" (Norton 2005), said. "Humans slept in two four-hour blocks, which were separated by a period of wakefulness in the middle of the night lasting an hour or more.

Usually, people would retire between 9 and 10 o'clock only to stir past midnight to smoke a pipe, brew a tub of ale or even converse with a neighbor. During this time some might stay in bed, pray, think about their dreams, or talk with their spouses. Others might get up and do tasks or even visit neighbors before going back to sleep." Others remained in bed to pray or make love. This time after the first sleep was praised as uniquely suited for sexual intimacy; rested couples have "more enjoyment" and "do it better," as one 16th-century French doctor wrote.

Often, people might simply have lain in bed ruminating on the meaning of a fresh dream, thereby permitting the conscious mind a window onto the human psyche that remains shuttered for those in the modern day too quick to awake and arise.

For most of evolution we slept a certain way,' says sleep psychologist Gregg Jacobs. 'Waking up during the night is part of normal human physiology. The idea that we must sleep in a consolidated block could be damaging, he says, if it makes people who wake up at night anxious, as this anxiety can itself prohibit sleeps and is likely to seep into waking life too. Russell Foster, a professor of circadian [body clock] neuroscience at Oxford, shares this point of view. ' Many people wake up at night and panic,' he says. ' I tell them that what they are experiencing is a throwback to the bi-modal sleep pattern.' "  


Source: Stephanie Hegarty, “The Myth of the Eight-Hour Sleep,” BBC News Magazine, February 22, 2012


So if you wake up in the middle of the night, relax and enjoy the time and recognize that you to may have fallen into an old human habit--but if it does cause you worry, do seek help from a professional. 

Federal Government censorship challenged by Vancouver Actors

Will the prime minister sue a group of Vancouver actors asks the Vancouver Sun, in an attempt to gain readers and to intimidate the artistic community in Vancouver who have decided to challenge Steven Harper and his censorship of the arts. The following is from the Vancouver Sun story and  Google news


David Bloom, who's directing the Vancouver reading of the controversial play Proud, which features (Tom McBeath, John Cassini, Quelemia Sparrow and Gaelan Beatty), says the idea of a libel suit is a red herring, but he understands why artists might be afraid of offending the government.


"Obviously companies who depend on Heritage Canada - have reason to be nervous about upsetting a sitting government - The federal government can withdraw funding from an-body it likes. Would they do something punitive because of this script? Who's to say?" This would sound like paranoia if not for a few recent controversies where artists with an anti-government bent have had their federal funding pulled.


Summerworks, a Toronto theatre festival, lost its annual funding the year after a spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office expressed "disappointment" that Heritage Canada funded a festival that presented a play about terrorism.



For more information on the event link here: Staged Reading of PROUD, July 22, 8 PM 

Tickets are general admission, and by donation. For ticket reservations, email proudvancouver@gmail.com .


Vancouver artists stand in solidarity with Toronto colleagues by mounting a staged reading of Michael Healey’s controversial new play, Proud on Sunday, July 22 (8:00 pm) at PL 1422.


Michael Healey wrote Proud during his 11-year tenure as Playwright in Residence at the Tarragon Theatre in Toronto. When the company chose not to produce the play as part of their 2012-13 season, Healey resigned from his post. The play – a comedy – features an unnamed character called “The Prime Minister” and is about Canadian social and political values. The Tarragon Theatre denies that programming choices are effected by political pressure, but only last year Toronto’s Summerworks Theatre Festival had funding cut by Canadian Heritage after choosing to present a play that allegedly portrayed a homegrown “terrorist” sympathetically. Healey is mounting an independent production of Proud in Toronto this fall.


Vancouver’s reading of Proud is directed by David Bloom, Artistic Director of Felix Culpa, and features Tom McBeath (Death of a Salesman), John Cassini (God of Carnage), Quelemia Sparrow (August: Osage County), and Gaelan Beatty (Xanadu).


Director Bloom says, “We are producing Proud for two reasons: it’s an intelligent and provocative piece of theatre about our current political landscape, and because the greatest threat to the arts is self-censorship and fear.”


He continues, “The fact is we will never know for certain why Tarragon decided not to produce Proud. Here’s a question worth asking though: why is it so easy for us to believe they feared some kind of retribution for producing a play critical of the Harper Government™? Is it because theatre artists are innately timid, or is it because the government’s attacks on their perceived enemies have become so flagrant and outrageous? If they can set aside 8 million dollars to attack charities that disagree with their policies, surely anybody can be a target.”


Vancouver theatre companies supporting Proud include Felix Culpa, Neworld Theatre, Touchstone Theatre, Arts Club Theatre, Playwrights Theatre Centre, Ruby Slippers, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, Compassionate Bone, Leaky Heaven Circus, and Pi Theatre.