BlogHers ACT Canada

National Sun Awareness Week: June 14 - 18

June 14 to 18 is National Sun Awareness Week, a joint campaign between the Canadian Cancer Society and the Canadian Dermatology Association to raise awareness of skin cancer and the importance of sun safety.

You can never be too sun-smart and there are some great tips and information on the Canadian Cancer Site site on how to avoid the most common cancer among Ontarians between ages 15 and 34 - melanoma - which is also one the EASIEST cancers to prevent.

gossip oh

Can you believe that? Her husband..... The voices trail off as I come around the corner, and there's an almost palpable silence as I try to focus on anywhere else than the knowing eyes focused on my face.

I end up staring at the wall. 'Um, here's your papers' I say, brandishing an armload and praying I don't go beet red. Inside, different parts of my personality are warring - the reserved teenager I once was is duking it out with the more-confident late-thirties woman I am now, one who would like to be judged on her own merits, thank you very much. No matter what (inaccurate) thing you think my husband did.

Icky Green Bins and Your Health

Many communities in Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) have finally begun to adopt the green composting bin initiative which has been great for decreasing the amount of food waste which has needlessly been shipped off to the landfill sites.

As wonderful and easy as the program is, I have to tell you. I have beef with it.

Brain Injury: How to Protect Yourself and What to Look For

At one time or another we've all bumped our head harder than normal, fallen or obtained some kind of injury to our heads and just carried on after taking a short rest, a good cry and maybe some ice, but did you ever spot to consider just how significant that injury *could* be?

With warmer weather on the horizon people are venturing outdoors more frequently to partake in those summer activities of their liking. Rollerblading, biking, skateboarding, riding a scooter or even swimming are all activities which can pose risks for acquired brain injuries.

A brain injury can be caused by such things as a blow to the head, whiplash, a fall, seizure disorder, an infectious disease or substance abuse, which may not show 'typical' symptoms as one may expect.

Educating yourself about brain injuries can assist you in knowing if a fall was far more detrimental to ones health than originally thought.

Where do you live again?

Is your house number posted?

For years now, organizations have used schools to target our children and educate and prepare them for the dangers that we worry they’ll all face.

Firefighters tell children every year to make sure the smoke detectors are working in their homes and that they have fresh batteries. (And then they get to play on the Beeg Red Truck. With the Beeg Water Hoses.)

School bus safety is reviewed every fall with the help of Busby, the Department of Transportation’s Robotic Miniature School Bus. This is a great hit with the kiddos.

Domestic Violence: Celebrity, Media and Our Children

Oh the heels of Chris Brown's court date and his arraignment on April 6th, the media is buzzing with chatter about Rihanna's return to his side.

What does this reconciliation mean to our youth? Young women, who look up to their celebrity idols, see a beaten and battered young lady return to the side of her abuser. They potentially see that this behaviour is acceptable and tolerable which couldn't be further from the truth.

Maybe those leftover pills could have helped someone

  We've all done it - started to feel better after that bout of whatever and tossed the last few pills. Or maybe the bottle just got pushed to the back of the cupboard, and is sitting there, gathering dust.

What is those pills  - the ones lingering in the bottom of the drawer - could make a difference in someone's life?

saving a life

Have you had first-aid classes? Beyond the Infant Resuscitation course I think we all took back when the wee ones were brand-new and helpless?

How about your kids? Nah, they're too young.

Or are they?

there's a stick in my pocket

My four-year old -  in addition to discovering princesses. And pink. And anything Barbie-related - has noticed something lately. Something I never thought she'd pick up on so early.

Rosey wants makeup.

Where this came from is kind of a mystery. I'm pretty close to being a wash-and-wear girl myself, so this sudden fascination with lipstick came right out of left field and ambushed me.

I...um...don't own a lipstick.

What I do have, though, is sixty-gagillion tubes of Chapstick and Lip Smackers, and so I shared the wealth, and she trotted happily off, and I didn't think any more about it until I caught her eating the berry-flavoured one.

all red in the face

This morning I woke up with a funny feeling about my head.

Clearing the cobwebs as I went, I snorted and coughed my way to the bathroom, where I was confronted with something I'd never seen before....

I had a fat lip.

Really, I looked like a poster child for What Not To Do With Collagen.