I was visiting some other blog sites and found a book recommendation that I am going to pass on. The book, Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from Its Cultural Captivity by Nancy Pearcey, is reminiscent of How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture by Francis A. Schaeffer. Francis Schaeffer was a major part of my syllabis for a class I took my Senior year in college titled Christian World View. That class was probably the most memorable of all my college studies. Schaeffer can be very heady and it takes a bit of stick-to-it-ivness (not a word I know, but it works here) to read, but it is well worth the effort. I ordered Total Truth this evening and from the few excerpts I have read I am sure reading her book will be just as rewarding. I'll let you know!
At the suggestion of another fellow blogger, Lisa, I have started reading Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell. My response has been mixed. On the one hand I find his style and questions freeing. For the first time, it seems I have been given permission as a Christian to not have all the answers. He is asking some of the same questions I have pondered and been afraid to ask. At the same time, his questions unhinge me and give me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. Because he intimates that we never can have all the answers. I come from a pretty black and white church background. If there is a question, there is an answer and the Bible has it. But I love the fact that Rob Bell's musings point out the fluidity and aliveness of the Bible. Of course it is alive and relevant and full of hope, the author is alive and relevant and full of hope.
Those are my thoughts thus far. Again, I'll let you know.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
New Bed
Matthew finally graduated to a full size bed. I would often here him in his toddler bed at night banging up against the sides so we figured it was time. Here are a few pictures of both boys enjoying the comfiness.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Cool Kidz!!
Matthew and Tyler and their sunglasses. Tyler got really mad when I tried to put his on so they became something to cut that first tooth on. 
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Grandma Lives in Washing Machine!
I was at work today heavily engrossed in my spreadsheet of numbers when my phone rang. I was expecting a client call so braced myself for a compaint to deal with. Instead I heard the voice of my babysitter. Of course I feared the worst, then thought.... I know I packed diapers. Instead Nancy asks me, where does Matthew's Grandma live? I mentally shook my head to readjust my thinking and said he has two, one lives in New York and the other in Washington State. Nancy started laughing and told me she asked Matthew where his Grandma lives and his response was..."My Grandma lives in washing machine." We were both lost in laughter for a few moments before hanging up. Oh the brain of a three year old!
Friday, February 09, 2007
Kilarious
Matthew thought that it was "kilarious" (his version of the word) that he was stuck in the chair.
Tyler, Jump Up!
Tyler loves his new toy. Of course I have to keep telling Matthew not to bounce his brother. :-)Wrestling Hat
Matthew loves to wrestle with his Daddy. Steve's hat got turned into a "bad man" hat as soon as Matthew discovered it.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Is it about the coffee or the cup?
I found this on another blog site and had to share it.
A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.
When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases it is just more expensive and, in some cases, even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups... And then you began eyeing each other's cups.
Now consider this: Life is the coffee; -- the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of Life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us.""God brews the coffee, not the cups.... Enjoy your coffee!" The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.
""Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God. You are the miracle, my friend. Your life either shines a light - or casts a shadow. Live Simply, Love Generously, Care Deeply, Speak Kindly and Leave the Rest to God.
A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.
When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases it is just more expensive and, in some cases, even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups... And then you began eyeing each other's cups.
Now consider this: Life is the coffee; -- the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of Life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us.""God brews the coffee, not the cups.... Enjoy your coffee!" The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.
""Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God. You are the miracle, my friend. Your life either shines a light - or casts a shadow. Live Simply, Love Generously, Care Deeply, Speak Kindly and Leave the Rest to God.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Ruined Budget
I've decided that office depot and all the companies who make all the new toys and gadgets sold there, are to blame for office supply budgets that have gone through the roof. I can't go into office depot without finding some new notebook, pen, or gadget that just looks too fun to be without. The fun part is that I sometimes get to buy stuff for work with someone else's money instead of my own. But since my co-worker Tammi and my boss are both fans of the store too it gets hard to control costs.
Whatever happened to simple three ring notebooks and manila folders?
I've always been a sucker for a great report cover, but now I have to keep myself out of that store or I'll be color coordinating my desk the same way I do my closet!!! :-)
Whatever happened to simple three ring notebooks and manila folders?
I've always been a sucker for a great report cover, but now I have to keep myself out of that store or I'll be color coordinating my desk the same way I do my closet!!! :-)
Monday, February 05, 2007
Serious Concern
Colorado legislaters have joined other states in their desire to mandate the new HPV vaccine for little girls. As with many vaccines the facts seem to be left out of the discussion when proponents get talking. So, I thought I would post some of them. I listed my questions on this issue at the end.
These bullet points are taken from the Alliance for Cervical Cancer Prevention:
http://www.path.org/files/RH_natural_history_of_cc_fs.pdf
• Human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted infection, is the primary underlying cause of cervical cancer.
• Preventing HPV transmission is very difficult. Barrier contraceptive methods are only partially effective because the virus can exist throughout most of the anogenital area (including areas not covered by male condoms) and can remain infectious for years.
• Although HPV cannot be treated, in the majority of cases, the infection becomes undetectable. In a small percent of women, however, HPV infection persists and leads to precancerous lesions, called dysplasia. Immunocompromised women may be at particularly high risk of persistent infection.
• Detectable HPV infection is most common in younger women. Although prevalence varies among regions, it generally reaches a peak of about 20 percent among women aged 20 to 24, with a subsequent decline to approximately 8 to 10 percent among women over age 30.
• Of the small percent of women whose HPV infection develops into dysplasia, the majority likely will develop only mild dysplasia, which usually regresses or does not progress, particularly among women under age 35. Few women who develop dysplasia will progress to cervical cancer.
• Progression to detectable, precancerous lesions can take as long as 10 years. One study estimates that the risk of progression from moderate to severe precancerous lesions is 32%within 10 years.
• Women aged 35 or older with identified moderate or severe precancerous lesions are at highrisk for developing cancer.
• Cervical cancer most often develops in women after age 40 and is most frequent among women in their fifties and sixties.8,9,10
• Tobacco use, young age at first birth, use of oral contraceptives, and the hormonal and physical implications of high parity appear to independently increase a woman’s risk of cervical cancer.
• Clinical impressions of increasing cervical cancer rates among younger women may reflect apopulation’s age structure or screening patterns rather than a shift in age-specific rates.
• Infrequent screening and associated follow-up of women in their thirties or older is an acceptable, cost effective approach to preventing cervical cancer, assuming that the screening approach is effective, coverage is high, and there is a reliable link to treatment.
• Women with at least one previous negative cervical smear have low rates of invasive cancer for ten or more years.
• Modeling of data from South Africa suggests that even screening women just once in their lives, at age 35 could reduce cervical cancer mortality by 26 percent.
These next two paragraphs are taken directly from the CDC website.
http://www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/STDFact-HPV-vaccine.htm#hpvvac1
All types of HPV can cause mild Pap test abnormalities which do not have serious consequences. Approximately 10 of the 30 identified genital HPV types can lead, in rare cases, to development of cervical cancer. Research has shown that for most women (90 percent), cervical HPV infection becomes undetectable within two years. Although only a small proportion of women have persistent infection, persistent infection with "high-risk" types of HPV is the main risk factor for cervical cancer.
A Pap test can detect pre-cancerous and cancerous cells on the cervix. Regular Pap testing and careful medical follow-up, with treatment if necessary, can help ensure that pre-cancerous changes in the cervix caused by HPV infection do not develop into life threatening cervical cancer. The Pap test used in U.S. cervical cancer screening programs is responsible for greatly reducing deaths from cervical cancer. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2006, over 9,700 women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer and 3,700 women will die from this cancer in the U.S. Most women who develop invasive cervical cancer have not had regular cervical cancer screening.
And from the Merck website (the drug company to profit from mandatory vaccination):
http://www.merck.com/newsroom/press_releases/research_and_development/2005_1006.html
"It is estimated that approximately 20 million men and women in the United States are infected with HPV. In most people, HPV goes away on its own. In some, however, certain high-risk or oncogenic types of HPV can lead to cervical cancer. The virus is also associated with abnormal Pap tests and genital warts. Each year, about one million women in the United States are told they have "an abnormal Pap" - which may trigger additional testing, anxiety, and in some cases fears of cancer. About 30% of cervical cancers will not be prevented by the vaccine, so it will be important for women to continue getting screened for cervical cancer (regular Pap tests). "
From the National Library of Medicine:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&list_uids=16950013&cmd=Retrieve&indexed=google
"Many questions remain concerning long-term efficacy, correlates of protection, age of vaccination, and delivery. As vaccination makes inroads as a cancer control strategy, screening practices must be reformulated to maximize the synergy between primary and secondary prevention. Research on how to achieve an efficient combination of these modalities is yet to begin, but mathematical models have provided a useful road map for field-testing of promising algorithms. Daunting questions loom large concerning delivery of vaccines to those populations that need it the most. The field of HPV and cervical cancer prevention has never been so multi-disciplinary. A new era has begun and the challenges are many."
So my questions:
- Shouldn't the money being spent on this vaccination be used to improve the PAP Smear and detection of the HPV viruses that are most likely to cause the cancer so there are less false positives?
-Of the 3,900 women who died of cervical cancer in 2005 how many of them were 50 or over? How many followed a faithful yearly PAP test schedule? How many were immunocompromised? How many used Oral contraceptives or tobacco,?
- The 5,000 girls/women world wide who participated in this study were only followed for 18 months to two years after receiving the vaccine. Is that long enough?
- Should citizens be injected against their will with biological agents that can injure and kill for what the state has defined as the common good? From the National Vaccine Information Center "more than $1 billion [has been] awarded to vaccine casualties under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986."
- Why do so many American citizens succumb to fear instead of looking for the facts and claiming responsibility for their own lives by making informed decisions? Physicians and drug companies bank on fear. From Merck "Each year, about one million women in the United States are told they have "an abnormal Pap" - which may trigger additional testing, anxiety, and in some cases fears of cancer."
- How many girls who recieve this vaccine will feel "safe" and "protected" from Cervical cancer and so put off getting a PAP test done annually? From the CDC "About 30% of cervical cancers will not be prevented by the vaccine, so it will be important for women to continue getting screened for cervical cancer (regular Pap tests)."
- Why a vaccination for HPV when the #1 killer of women is heart disease? Shouldn't the greater focus be on preventing heart disease? Or can't the drug companies benefit from that - yes that is sarcasm.
- Why are we vaccinating young girls when the highest rate of occurance of cervical cancer is in women over 50?
-Since when does refusal to receive HPV vaccine become cause to keep a child out of school? What are they going to legislate next; that boys with jock itch can't shower? Sorry if that sounds crass, but that is how illogical this bill sounds to me.
That's my 2 cents.
These bullet points are taken from the Alliance for Cervical Cancer Prevention:
http://www.path.org/files/RH_natural_history_of_cc_fs.pdf
• Human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted infection, is the primary underlying cause of cervical cancer.
• Preventing HPV transmission is very difficult. Barrier contraceptive methods are only partially effective because the virus can exist throughout most of the anogenital area (including areas not covered by male condoms) and can remain infectious for years.
• Although HPV cannot be treated, in the majority of cases, the infection becomes undetectable. In a small percent of women, however, HPV infection persists and leads to precancerous lesions, called dysplasia. Immunocompromised women may be at particularly high risk of persistent infection.
• Detectable HPV infection is most common in younger women. Although prevalence varies among regions, it generally reaches a peak of about 20 percent among women aged 20 to 24, with a subsequent decline to approximately 8 to 10 percent among women over age 30.
• Of the small percent of women whose HPV infection develops into dysplasia, the majority likely will develop only mild dysplasia, which usually regresses or does not progress, particularly among women under age 35. Few women who develop dysplasia will progress to cervical cancer.
• Progression to detectable, precancerous lesions can take as long as 10 years. One study estimates that the risk of progression from moderate to severe precancerous lesions is 32%within 10 years.
• Women aged 35 or older with identified moderate or severe precancerous lesions are at highrisk for developing cancer.
• Cervical cancer most often develops in women after age 40 and is most frequent among women in their fifties and sixties.8,9,10
• Tobacco use, young age at first birth, use of oral contraceptives, and the hormonal and physical implications of high parity appear to independently increase a woman’s risk of cervical cancer.
• Clinical impressions of increasing cervical cancer rates among younger women may reflect apopulation’s age structure or screening patterns rather than a shift in age-specific rates.
• Infrequent screening and associated follow-up of women in their thirties or older is an acceptable, cost effective approach to preventing cervical cancer, assuming that the screening approach is effective, coverage is high, and there is a reliable link to treatment.
• Women with at least one previous negative cervical smear have low rates of invasive cancer for ten or more years.
• Modeling of data from South Africa suggests that even screening women just once in their lives, at age 35 could reduce cervical cancer mortality by 26 percent.
These next two paragraphs are taken directly from the CDC website.
http://www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/STDFact-HPV-vaccine.htm#hpvvac1
All types of HPV can cause mild Pap test abnormalities which do not have serious consequences. Approximately 10 of the 30 identified genital HPV types can lead, in rare cases, to development of cervical cancer. Research has shown that for most women (90 percent), cervical HPV infection becomes undetectable within two years. Although only a small proportion of women have persistent infection, persistent infection with "high-risk" types of HPV is the main risk factor for cervical cancer.
A Pap test can detect pre-cancerous and cancerous cells on the cervix. Regular Pap testing and careful medical follow-up, with treatment if necessary, can help ensure that pre-cancerous changes in the cervix caused by HPV infection do not develop into life threatening cervical cancer. The Pap test used in U.S. cervical cancer screening programs is responsible for greatly reducing deaths from cervical cancer. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2006, over 9,700 women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer and 3,700 women will die from this cancer in the U.S. Most women who develop invasive cervical cancer have not had regular cervical cancer screening.
And from the Merck website (the drug company to profit from mandatory vaccination):
http://www.merck.com/newsroom/press_releases/research_and_development/2005_1006.html
"It is estimated that approximately 20 million men and women in the United States are infected with HPV. In most people, HPV goes away on its own. In some, however, certain high-risk or oncogenic types of HPV can lead to cervical cancer. The virus is also associated with abnormal Pap tests and genital warts. Each year, about one million women in the United States are told they have "an abnormal Pap" - which may trigger additional testing, anxiety, and in some cases fears of cancer. About 30% of cervical cancers will not be prevented by the vaccine, so it will be important for women to continue getting screened for cervical cancer (regular Pap tests). "
From the National Library of Medicine:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&list_uids=16950013&cmd=Retrieve&indexed=google
"Many questions remain concerning long-term efficacy, correlates of protection, age of vaccination, and delivery. As vaccination makes inroads as a cancer control strategy, screening practices must be reformulated to maximize the synergy between primary and secondary prevention. Research on how to achieve an efficient combination of these modalities is yet to begin, but mathematical models have provided a useful road map for field-testing of promising algorithms. Daunting questions loom large concerning delivery of vaccines to those populations that need it the most. The field of HPV and cervical cancer prevention has never been so multi-disciplinary. A new era has begun and the challenges are many."
So my questions:
- Shouldn't the money being spent on this vaccination be used to improve the PAP Smear and detection of the HPV viruses that are most likely to cause the cancer so there are less false positives?
-Of the 3,900 women who died of cervical cancer in 2005 how many of them were 50 or over? How many followed a faithful yearly PAP test schedule? How many were immunocompromised? How many used Oral contraceptives or tobacco,?
- The 5,000 girls/women world wide who participated in this study were only followed for 18 months to two years after receiving the vaccine. Is that long enough?
- Should citizens be injected against their will with biological agents that can injure and kill for what the state has defined as the common good? From the National Vaccine Information Center "more than $1 billion [has been] awarded to vaccine casualties under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986."
- Why do so many American citizens succumb to fear instead of looking for the facts and claiming responsibility for their own lives by making informed decisions? Physicians and drug companies bank on fear. From Merck "Each year, about one million women in the United States are told they have "an abnormal Pap" - which may trigger additional testing, anxiety, and in some cases fears of cancer."
- How many girls who recieve this vaccine will feel "safe" and "protected" from Cervical cancer and so put off getting a PAP test done annually? From the CDC "About 30% of cervical cancers will not be prevented by the vaccine, so it will be important for women to continue getting screened for cervical cancer (regular Pap tests)."
- Why a vaccination for HPV when the #1 killer of women is heart disease? Shouldn't the greater focus be on preventing heart disease? Or can't the drug companies benefit from that - yes that is sarcasm.
- Why are we vaccinating young girls when the highest rate of occurance of cervical cancer is in women over 50?
-Since when does refusal to receive HPV vaccine become cause to keep a child out of school? What are they going to legislate next; that boys with jock itch can't shower? Sorry if that sounds crass, but that is how illogical this bill sounds to me.
That's my 2 cents.
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