Don’t Forget Dad!

 

Father’s Day is this Sunday, June 19th.   What was the best advice you ever received from your Father?  Share it with us!  We’d love to hear it.

 

Or just enjoy some of these pithy quotes about our favorite dads:

 

"A new father quickly learns that his child invariably comes to the bathroom at precisely the times when he's in there, as if he needed company. The only way for this father to be certain of bathroom privacy is to shave at the gas station." -- Bill Cosby

"A father is always making his baby into a little woman. And when she is a woman he turns her back again." -- Enid Bagnold

"A father is a guy who has snapshots in his wallet where his money used to be." – Unknown

"My father always told me, 'Find a job you love and you'll never have to work a day in your life.' " -- Jim Fox

"A father is a banker provided by nature." -- French Proverb

"My father said, 'Politics asks the question: Is it expedient? Vanity asks: Is it popular? But conscience asks: Is it right?'" -- Dexter Scott King

"When I was a kid, I said to my father one afternoon, 'Daddy, will you take me to the zoo?' He answered, 'If the zoo wants you, let them come and get you.'" -- Jerry Lewis

"Small boy's definition of Father's Day: It's just like Mother's Day only you don't spend so much." – Unknown

"By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong." -- Charles Wadsworth

 

Check out more quotations here.  And here’s an anecdote from America’s favorite dad:

Emory Explores the Realities of X-Men

 

Have you seen the latest X-Men movie?  If you have, or if you’re a fan, you should check out this article from Emory University.  Ethics professor Paul Wolpe argues that given today’s advancement in biotechnology, creating X-Men-like human being is entirely plausible.  What holds us back from using these technologies are the ethical questions and pragmatic concerns behind them.  What do you think?

The debut of the movie “X-Men: First Class” this summer is one more chapter in America’s ongoing fascination not only with science fiction, but with the ethical issues that result from humankind’s pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, says Paul Wolpe, director of Emory’s Center for Ethics and an expert on bioethical issues.

“’X-Men’ is the story of a reviled minority,” says Wolpe, in this case, a minority with genetic mutations that give them extraordinary powers. Of course, genetically, X-Men make no sense, he adds. There’s no way that even dramatic genetic mutation would result in a normal human being giving birth to a human being with wings.

“On the other hand, X-Men are completely plausible as biotechnological developments, and we’re already developing some of the kinds of powers that the X-Men illustrate,” Wolpe says. “There are genetic engineering possibilities for human beings that would increase things like memory, perhaps attention, and maybe even strength, not to super-human levels, but perhaps to mimic the best achievements of the species.”

And although “we still don’t know how to create muscles that exceed the muscles of the strongest creatures on earth,” says Wolpe, “it’s when you combine natural ability with technology that you can talk about truly extraordinary types of powers.”

Check out the whole article here, or just watch the interview:

Have a Safe Memorial Day!

How are you planning to celebrate/ honor Memorial Day weekend?  Is the occasion a chance to barbeque and hang with friends, or is it a more solemn occasion as you remember a loved one?  Share with us!

But no matter how you choose to spend your weekend, we want you to stay safe.  Here are some tips for grill safety this weekend:

 

• Keep food covered or refrigerated until ready to be cooked.  Cook meat to 170 degrees Farenheit as a minimum. 
• Cooking meat (particularly red meat and chicken) until surface charring occurs can cause cancer causing substances (Heterocyclic Amines (HCA)) to form.   To avoid this, use marinades and turn the meat frequently.
• Inspect your grill before you ignite to ensure everything is in working order.
• Don't use a grill indoors including garages, overhangs and canopies.
• When using a grill, you should use a 10-foot perimeter from anything combustible, including your house.
• Do not allow children and pets to play near a grill.
• Only use approved ignition fluids – don't use gasoline to ignite a grill.
• Keep a fire extinguisher, garden hose or bucket of sand nearby to douse a grill fire.

Read more here.

Decatur Arts Festival

If you have missed some of the opening acts of the Decatur Arts Festival, don’t worry.  The Festival kicks into high gear next week!  On Friday, May 27th, local shops, retailers and restaurants host Decatur’s Art Walk with city-wide art show openings and receptions that are free and open to the public.    The Performing Arts stage will host a variety of musical acts beginning at 11am.  Be sure to visit the Silent Auction adjacent to the stage beginning at 10am.  Walk through the  Artists Market Saturday, May 28th and Sunday, May 29th featuring more than 160 artists selected through a competitive jury process. The market is known for its high quality of artwork and attracts artists from all over the southeast and beyond. 

And these are just some of the highlights of the event!  For a complete program, check out the Decatur Arts Festival website.

Don’t Forget Mother’s Day

 

 

 

Mother’s Day is this Sunday, May 8th!  Haven’t gotten her a present yet?  Here are a couple of last minute ideas to help you out:

 

1) Take her on a picnic.

2) Make a basket filled with her favorite things.

3) Write a journal to give to her that includes “My Favorite Times with Mom.”

4) Make a scrapbook for Mom that includes “My Favorite Pictures of Mom.”

5) Cook her favorite dinner instead of just taking her out.

6) Give Mom a coupon book with special chores or favors you will do for her. Mom can redeem her coupons whenever she needs your help.

7) Plant her a garden. 

8) Spend the day with her and take lots of pictures so she can have those memories forever.

9) Wash her car.

10) When in doubt, CHOCOLATE!

 

Here are some interesting facts on Mother’s Day and moms!

Go to Zoo and Help a Child

It’s all happening at the zoo this weekend!  This Sunday, May 1st, The 20th Anniversary Big-To-Do at Zoo Atlanta, benefiting Visiting Nurse/Hospice Atlanta’s Children’s Program and CampSTARS. This afternoon of family fun includes a delicious barbeque dinner, an African band, interactive zoo exhibits, orangutan feeding, cotton candy, snow cones, face painting, crafts, rides on the zoo train and carousel, and climbing wall.  The fun starts at 4pm and lasts until 9 at night. 

Happy Easter!

Hoping everyone has a peaceful and candy-filled Easter/Passover weekend.  Here are some fun facts about the season: 

• When taking a bite into a chocolate bunny, 76% of Americans prefer to bite off the ears first. 5% eat the feet first and 4% eat the tail first.
• During the Easter season, Americans buy more than 700 million Peeps - making Peeps the most popular non-chocolate Easter candy.
• Ham came to be the traditional favorite for Easter dinner because in pre-refrigeration days, hogs were slaughtered in the fall and cured for six to seven months. Just in time for Easter dinner.
• Each day throughout the year, 5 million marshmallow chicks and bunnies are produced in preparation for Easter.
• 16 billion jelly beans are made specifically for Easter which is enough to fill a plastic egg the size of a 9-story building.
• Eggs, like rabbits and hares, are fertility symbols of antiquity. Since birds lay eggs and rabbits and hares give birth to large litters in the early spring, these became symbols of the rising fertility of the earth at the Spring equinox.
• The most famous decorated Easter eggs were those made by the well-known goldsmith, Peter Carl Faberge. In 1883 the Russian Czar, Alexander, commissioned Faberge to make a special Easter gift for his wife, the Empress Marie.
• 57% of kids get up super early on Easter to see what the Easter bunny has brought them.
• 80% of parents carry on the tradition of the Easter bunny by preparing a surprise Easter basket filled with goodies for their children and 90% of adults hope for their own Easter treat.
• The first chocolate eggs were made in Germany in the 19th century and remain one of the most popular Easter candies today.
• In the old days pretzels were associated with Easter because the twists of the pretzel were thought to resemble arms crossing in prayer.
• The name Easter comes from Eostre, an ancient Anglo-Saxon goddess, originally of the dawn. In pagan times an annual spring festival was held in her honor. Some Easter customs have come from this and other pre-Christian spring festivals. Others come from the Passover feast of the Jews, observed in memory of their deliverance from Egypt.
• The Easter egg roll on the White House lawn has been a tradition since 1878.
• After Halloween, Easter is the biggest candy consuming holiday.

 

You can read more Easter Fun Facts here and here.