So long and thanks for all the dish
While the title to this post is an allusion to a sequel to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (So Long and Thanks for All the Fish), as the Grand Forks Herald has discontinued the women's magazine, I must acknowledge the many kind words and phone calls I've received over this weekend.
Thank you for your support and continued interest in the concerns of women in the greater Grand Forks area. I thoroughly enjoyed my position in serving you, the readers, and will continue to strive to improve the lives of women and girls by serving the North Dakota Women's Network as a board member and the Community Foundation's Women's Fund as an advisory committee member.
As requested, you may continue to follow my interests on my personal blog: A Writer's Retreat.
Thank you to all of you whom have shared your inspirational stories. I am a better person for having known all of you. If we should ever meet on the street, don't be a stranger!
Posted by: Kristin Garaas-Johnson on 3/16/2009 at 3:28 PM | Comments (6) | Permalink
Thoughts from the couch: birthdays, doctors and frog kebabs
Still serving as editor from the confines of my couch. I'm going a little stir crazy now that I haven't gone anywhere other than the doc's office in nearly a week. It was my husband Craig's birthday yesterday and I thought about ordering him a cake from Hugo's and having it delivered, but I thought about it yesterday morning and realized that it wouldn't be delivered until today--weather permitting.
So Craig didn't get to eat cake for his big 3-5. I had to order his gift online too--at least that was easy. Amazon.com is great for making recommendations, and after Craig had already ordered a ton of ninja movies (those directed by Kurosawa or films that feature Toshiro Mifune) it wasn't hard to figure out which ones he didn't have and would like.
One thing I am enjoying is the ability to watch the news while I work--I like to have background noise because it helps me zone-out, sort of like meditating, and the words I'm writing come faster. Occasionally, an interesting story will come on and I'll stop for a minute and get back to it--sometimes it will give me a good story idea.
Which brings me to the other benefit of living on the couch for a week. You learn a lot about trashy TV. I thought I would turn on a show I'd seen a number of ads for--The Doctors--and see if they had any stories that I could consider on a local perspective.
Instead, it's just really watered down info that people usually know juxtaposed with shocking stories about men who have pimples in nether regions--stories that are designed to get more ratings (at least that's what I'm thinking the TV executives thought, figuring they're targeting homemakers). They actually showed a doctor lasering off bumps on a cucumber to give the audience an idea of what they were going to do to this poor guy. Reality is, the bumps were normal and that he really didn't need the treatment if he didn't want it.
Of course, I'm sure the show gets a great number of viewers simply because it features the former Bachelorette hunk Dr. Travis Stork. And yes, he's a real doctor, as are the other three doctors. Which makes me wonder, why aren't they practicing their profession in a hospital somewhere? Do they make more money working for the show?
Then again, they don't have to pay for malpractice insurance.
One cool (no, make that gross) thing they have on their Web site is a list of procedures that you can view--one of which is a virtual X-ray of a brain that you can flip around to see it from different angles. Yep, I think the way the body functions is really interesting--I just don't like viewing it.
I'll never forget the day in 7th grade when my science lab partner and I had to disect a frog. He had a lot of fun by making "frog kebabs" with the disecting needle. I on the other hand, was trying not to vomit from the smell of formaldehyde.
P.S. So I dug around on YouTube and found a couple of segments from The Doctors that seemed a bit more noteworthy than the sensationalist stuff I saw today. I guess the jury is still out on this one for me.
Posted by: Kristin Garaas-Johnson on 3/11/2009 at 2:42 PM | Comments (3) | Permalink
UPDATE: foot is fine, head not so much
I just returned from Dr. Lo's office--I had a post-op checkup. He took off my bandages, showed me the before and after x-rays and mentioned that despite how swollen my foot is, it's looking just fine. I watched him do all this, checked out my stitches, watched him clean my wounds with iodine and felt fine.
Then Craig mentioned how Lo's comment about shaving off bone got to him. I laughed and said that I could tell because his face looked as though it was turning green...
Then, while Dr. Lo was bandaging me up again, I started to feel hot and light headed. Lo had me lie back and put a damp towel over my forehead and it quickly subsided.
I've never been one to handle blood, guts and gore well, but I thought I could handle it. In fact, I did--it was the rebandaging part that got to me--or maybe Craig's comment subconsciously sunk in.
Either way, after a good (fattening) lunch at Taco John's I'm feeling 100 percent (sans a swollen foot, so maybe 90 percent would be more accurate).
Back to work! :)
P.S. My considerate co-workers sent me flowers--how thoughtful! It really made my day.
Posted by: Kristin Garaas-Johnson on 3/10/2009 at 12:00 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Super Tax Saturday March 21
I just received a press release from Carrie Resch from the IRS Media Relations Office who wanted to get the word out about a special service for North Dakotans who are struggling with their finances this tax season.
Read on:
March 21 is a “Super Saturday” to Get Tax Help – IRS Reaches Out to North Dakotans Experiencing Financial Hardship
IRS Offices Open in Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks
ST. PAUL, MINN – The Internal Revenue Service and community partners nationwide will open hundreds of locations on Super Saturday, March 21, in an effort to reach Americans who may be struggling through difficult financial times and low- to moderate-income taxpayers who need help preparing tax returns.
In North Dakota, IRS offices will open their doors for Super Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Bismarck at 2911 N. 14th St., in Fargo at 657 Second Ave. N. and in Grand Forks at 102 N. Fourth St. A few volunteer tax preparation sites will also be open throughout the state.
More than 250 IRS offices nationally will be open on Super Saturday to help taxpayers earning $42,000 or less prepare basic federal tax returns. IRS employees can also answer basic tax law questions, resolve tax issues and help establish payment agreements for qualifying taxpayers struggling to pay their taxes or assist those having a hard time keeping up with tax payments.
“We want to go the extra mile to help – especially for taxpayers who have been compliant in the past and may now be experiencing a hardship situation,” said IRS Spokesperson Carrie Resch. “These are tough times for a lot of people, and we want to provide services when it’s more convenient for people who are working or busy during the week.”
On Super Saturday, taxpayers also can learn if they qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit. Difficult times may mean more people than ever could qualify for the EITC because of changes in their income last year. The EITC could mean as much as $4,824 for some families, but people need to file a return to get it, even if they aren’t normally required to file. Single filers, grandparents caring for grandchildren or taxpayers without children also may qualify. Nearly 39,700 workers in North Dakota received nearly $70 million in EITC last year, but the IRS estimates that one in four households eligible for the credit never claims it.
Some Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) sites also will offer free Super Saturday services to low- to moderate-income (generally below $42,000) people and seniors. Trained community volunteers help taxpayers prepare returns. Most sites also offer free electronic filing. To locate the nearest VITA or TCE site, call 1-800-906-9887.
“What makes this Saturday ‘super’ is the large-scale effort to help people experiencing hard times,” said Resch. “We are opening far more IRS locations than are typically open on any other weekend and combining that with our partner sites which are also opening their doors.”
Super Saturday services:
· Federal tax return preparation including free electronic filing that can speed refunds within 10 days
· Payments or payment arrangements
· Assistance with letters, notices and levies on your wages or bank accounts
· Copies of tax returns and transcripts
· Basic federal tax forms
Whether taxpayers visit an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center, a free income tax preparation site or a professional tax return preparer, they should bring certain documents with them, including:
· Valid driver's license or photo identification (self and spouse, if applicable)
· Social Security cards and dates of birth for all persons listed on the return
· All income statements: Forms W-2, 1099, Social Security, Unemployment, or other benefits statements, self-employment records and any documents showing taxes withheld
· Dependent child care information: payee’s name, address and SSN or TIN
· Routing and account numbers for direct debit or deposit
· Prior year tax return (if available)
· Any other pertinent documents or papers
Posted by: Kristin Garaas-Johnson on 3/10/2009 at 11:24 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Foaming from my soap box: women's stereotypes
As an editor of a women's magazine, I often receive national press releases that promote everything from new books to great ways to get organized. While RRVWT is a magazine that focuses on regional women, I will occasionally get a great story idea. However, there are times when I receive a press release and think, "What were they thinking?"
I thought I would share with you one of those press releases that I received this morning. Now, I think the information actually is relevant, but the way it's marketed to me I find patronizing. It's not that I don't find the economic crisis as debilitating and depressing for Americans, it's that I'm disgusted at the way this message is directly marketed toward women--as in "get a grip of your emotions, you stereotypical poor-me-childlike-type woman."
Not to say that we women can't be emotional from time to time (men can too), but something in the tone of this press release just struck a nerve. (In fact, as I'm writing this, I'm watching Rachel Ray who just freaked out because she touched a lip implant that is made from cadaver skin, ugh.)
However, I do think the book's author has some excellent points for men and women who need to see the light at the end of the tunnel when facing financial troubles.
Here's the release:
Make the Conscious Choice – Create a Better Life
Take Control Over Your Emotions and Really Be Here Now.
How are you getting through the present economic crisis? What are you doing to keep it together at work and at home?
The answer is that you need to stay alive and focus on the here and now. You must be mindful instead of merely living on “auto-pilot” and relying on old repetitive childhood patterns of behavior.
“There’s a way to end mindless, reactive and destructive patterns,” says New York Psychologist Dr. Karen Sherman. You can learn to stay calm and in control of your emotions. But being able to stay present and stay centered doesn’t always happen easily. You’ve got to choose to take control and then rewire your brain.”
“Many people can hold it together at work and stay cool, calm and collected but when they get home, they turn into a crazy person, exploding, losing control and hurting the very people who are most important to them. And this happens without their knowing why!
Dr. Sherman, author of the book Mindfulness and The Art of Choice: Transform Your Life, said, “I know first hand what it’s like growing up in a dysfunctional family. To get control of my emotions, I had to reach through the depths of despair, choose to face the pain, heal the wounds, and then recreate my life. I realized that mindfulness is a choice. I developed the tools to change how people can get in the now and have better relationships.”
Dr. Sherman offers up some of the simple ways you can get control of emotions:
• Pay attention to your body. If you body is tense or tight, you are feeling emotion. You can’t make changes unless you are more aware of yourself.
• When you get excited, learn to relax. Take a long, slow, deep breath and exhale slowly to create relaxation. Pretend that you’re blowing on lit birthday candles, but you don’t get to blow them out.
• Take a time out. If you see that you are reacting and taking your reactions out on someone else, try to take a “timeout.” Move away out of earshot for a minute or two until the energy subsides. You can acknowledge that you got grabbed. People are usually forgiving if you take responsibility for your actions.
• Write it all down. Get some paper, get a notebook. Whenever you are upset, start to write. Write as fast as you can and don’t worry about spelling or grammar. But keep writing! This will allow you to release your feelings. Then, when you’re done, read what you’ve written. It will help you gain insight as to what was bothering you.
• Imagine yourself as a child. Allow that child to communicate feelings with you. Allow these old feelings to be expressed to yourself as an adult who is unconditionally loving. This will help to heal and create a new brain connection.
• Recognize your feelings. Say how you feel out loud. Know that these feelings are from the past. Do not be afraid of them. They will pass. The more you accept them, the easier the process is.
• Focus on people you care about and express sincere interest in them and appreciation of them. Spend quality time with them. Doing so as well as noticing the small positive things in life will help to give you a positive perspective.
With all the craziness and stress that goes on, it’s so easy to get caught up, or get busy with the toys and technological distractions.
“Put away the PDA for a while, ignore the TV, don’t get busy on the computer,” she says. “It’s really important that you spend quality time and pay real attention to the people at home and not be distracted. It doesn’t have to be a lengthy amount of time. But it does have to be quality. When someone at home is talking, pay attention.”
And since I'm on my soap box this morning, I want to say that I am sick of hearing about "Octomom." The way the press references her it's as if she's an evil villain from a comic book! Yes, she may have a number of kids--but so do Jon and Kate (+8)--it's just that she isn't married and decided to have children with the help of in-vitro fertilization. Women have been having children out of wedlock since the beginning of time (recall the story of Leda and the Swan?).
Think what you want about this woman, but seriously--we should be more concerned about these kids. People have graciously given supplies and gifts to Jon and Kate, but because the public perceives this woman who had another 8 babies as unethical, it seems as though people aren't as willing to help out these children.
Kids never have a choice about the families they are born into. I just hope everything works out for her and her kids and that she finds emotional (I heard there was a 911 call that she made when her son went for a walk and she thought she'd lost him) and financial stability during these hard times.
Posted by: Kristin Garaas-Johnson on 3/10/2009 at 8:57 AM | Comments (4) | Permalink
