Friday, May 13, 2022

Friday links: 13 May, 2022

Good sunny morning! It’s going to be another hot one today, but I wouldn’t care if it were a zillion degrees or even snowing, because that good thing I said might happen on Friday, happened yesterday! I’ll get into it in my Monday post, but I’m one happy camper this morning. : )

With that said, let’s get right into it! Here’s what I found interesting online this week:

 

The Children Left Behind by Long Covid

Oof. Kids get long COVID as well, and the effects can be devastating. And our kids, who are only 28% vaccinated  (which provides some but not 100% protection against long COVID), are really vulnerable to this – to say nothing of our under-5’s, who have no protection, and the youngest of this group can’t even wear masks! The number of families I’ve seen announcing they all have COVID for the second, third, or fourth times is really high. And how does an 18-month old tell you they’re dizzy and they’ve been dizzy for weeks, or that they’re having trouble coming up with words and that their brain feels fuzzy? Some of these doctors who are trying to treat long COVID patients are seeing kids who have been sick for half their lives…but I guess that's the sacrifice that kid just has to make so that Bob from Texas doesn’t have to wear a mask. (Can you feel my eyeroll?) I’m so sad that this is a thing.

 

Goodbye to grass? More Americans embracing ‘eco-friendly’ lawns and gardens

Yes! Goals! I would *love* to do this with our front yard so we don’t have to mow anymore. I have no vision when it comes to things like landscaping (or decorating, for that matter), so I’m going to have to do some serious research. We don’t water our lawn anyway, but I’ve always felt grass is a waste of space and that space could be better dedicated to growing food or pollinating plants. Definitely something to think about.

 

The perfect example that you do not have to sacrifice any part of your life to go Tiny.

My current obsession is tiny homes. I’ve followed a few pages on Instagram and have several books checked out from the library about them. It gives me such a feeling of peace to look at the pictures of them and imagine paring down everything I own to the bare necessities. I’ve got plans to go through my stuff this summer and do a massive purge thanks to everything I’ve been learning. Could you ever live in a tiny home?

Speaking of which…

 

Downsizing and Decluttering: The Irreplaceable Pleasure of Purging Your Stuff

And here we go! I’m not going to live on houseboat, but I could definitely stand to go through my clothes and get rid of things that no longer fit or that are no longer my style. We’re going to take a little bit of time off from school after the 27th so we can get a few of these types of projects done, and I’m *really* looking forward to it. More space, fewer things to clean or worry about, it’s going to be amazing!

And finally, in other amazing news…

 

Researchers Pinpoint Reason Infants Die from SIDS

This. Is. INCREDIBLE.

How many of us had a constant low-level panic when our kids were babies because we knew that SIDS was always a risk, that all those horror stories we heard from bereaved parents and saw on TV shows could be our terrible reality? One doctor, who lived that reality and turned it into the world’s gain, has solved this mystery. An enzyme called butyrylcholinesterase, which helps do things like rouse babies from sleep, was present at lower levels in babies who died of SIDS, and the idea is that when their breathing becomes compromised, babies with normal levels would wake up, but these babies wouldn’t, leading to their death. My hope is that this leads to newborn screenings and treatments or supplementation for babies with lower levels of this enzyme, so that no other parent ever has to live through the horror of losing their baby to SIDS ever again.

 

And that’s all I’ve got this week! It’s gearing up to be a decent weekend around here, hopefully a relaxing one. My husband and daughter are going backyard camping likely on Saturday night, so I have a few things planned for that evening. And I might get some potting soil and some plants this weekend; all our garden centers are open and I have some pots in need of things that grow!

Wishing you all a relaxing, peaceful weekend. Shalom, friends. : )

2 comments:

  1. Hi Stephanie,
    ...this is the first time I've been able to post in over a week...because there's something wrong with my google account and it won't capture the reCaptcha code properly...so I'd type a comment only to have it give me an error...it's been so frustrating...arghhh...anywhooo...we watched a documentary about all of the covid orphans and it is so sad and tragic really...so when I here around people say that covid is no worse than the flu...I'm like...well for the MILLION of people who died...it probably was worse than the flu...arggghhhh again...
    ...I remember going through all my clothes years ago before we left for North Dakota...and it really is liberating to get rid of all that stuff...I seriously need to do it again too...
    ~Have a lovely day!

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    1. Oh no! I've had that same problem from time to time. I'm sure it's a problem on blogger's end, but who knows when it'll get worked out! So frustrating.
      That documentary sounds absolutely heart wrenching. It's unreal how many people this virus has wiped out, and we're still pretending like it's completely over. We are maybe not as smart of a species as we like to think...
      Wishing you a wonderful week ahead! :)

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