![[EFC Blue Ribbon - Free Speech Online]](http://www.efc.ca/images/efcfreet.gif)
How to Escape From a Sinking Car.
Via Rebecca’s Pocket.
Posted by Amy as Health & Safety at 1:07 AM EDT
Monday 13 August 2007
Escaping From a Sinking Car
Friday 6 July 2007
Beating The Heat
Three links to some good heat-busting suggestions:
• How To Survive a Heat Wave Without Air Conditioning (via Weblog Wannabe)
• Garret Vreeland’s tips (via Rebecca’s Pocket)
• Rebecca’s own tips
Posted by Amy as Health & Safety, Daily Life at 1:24 AM EDT
Wednesday 4 July 2007
Battling Fatigue
”Your Guide To Never Feeling Tired Again”: 22 good tips.
Via dangerousmeta!
Posted by Amy as Health & Safety at 3:39 AM EDT
Sunday 1 April 2007
Storing Foods Safely
I’ve always wondered how long certain foods are good for, and now I’ve found a webpage that helps: Surprising Expiration Dates.
Here are a few of the bits of information on the page:
• Brown sugar: Indefinite shelf life, stored in a moistureproof container in a cool, dry place.
• dried pasta: 12 months
• ketchup: Unopened: 1 year (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.); Opened or used: 4 to 6 months (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)
This is one site I’ll bookmark and go back to as necessary.
Via A Sweet, Familiar Dissonance.
Posted by Amy as Food, Health & Safety at 9:09 AM EDT
Friday 26 January 2007
Avoiding Collisions With Deer and Moose
Here’s something it’s useful to know in advance: How To Avoid a Moose or Deer Collision.
In my part of the world (Saskatchewan), there are quite a few deer and lots of accidents on highways involving them. We had a car totalled a few years ago ourselves when a deer wandered onto the road at night (don’t worry—we’re fine, and I think the deer was too; we slowed down quite a bit before the actual collision, so he ran off).
Still, since then, I’ve taken an extra interest in learning how to deal with such incidents. Here are two of the tips the page offers:
• “Honk your horn when you see a deer near the road!! This is the most effective way for deer to know where the car is coming from and heading to. Their instincts should do the rest.”
• “Sometime deer will freeze in car lights as you approach even if they are not directly in the roadway and then suddenly bolt into the roadway as you drive close by them. In some instances this will result in the deer hitting the side of the car. This is tough behaviour to encounter as slowing down could result in the deer being even more likely to hit your car. The best advice for this may be to keep driving at the speed you are going without any rapid change in speed or direction and let the deer’s natural instincts take care of both of you. It obviously helps to moderate speed in circumstances where this might happen.”
I like to be prepared, so I’ll be reviewing this web page from time to time.
Posted by Amy as Health & Safety at 5:04 AM EST
Saturday 29 July 2006
Coping With The Heat
The hottest time of the year, the dog days of summer, are upon us.
The effects of the heat can range from minor discomfort to death. Suggestions are starting to pop up everywhere on the web for things people can do to take care of themselves.
Two good sources for ideas to beat the heat are Rebecca Blood’s description of how she copes with the heat and the good list of suggestions over at dangerousmeta!
Make sure you also read the suggestions in the “comments” section of the latter.
On a more frivolous note, you could also buy the latest trendy accessory for summer entertaining: ice cubes in the shape of diamonds (link courtesy of Boing Boing).
Posted by Amy as Health & Safety at 8:06 AM EDT
Wednesday 26 July 2006
The Safer Products Project
If you’re interested in preserving both your health and the environment, here’s a web site to visit: Safer Products Project: Alternatives For a Healthy Home.
The site offers information to help you choose the safest products in a variety of categories (from cosmetics to vehicles).
There is also a list of links to other sites with more specialised information (such as sites that focus on pesticides, vinyl, or cleaning products).
Posted by Amy as Health & Safety at 1:37 AM EDT
Thursday 20 July 2006
How Much Caffeine Would Kill You?
Here’s an interesting site: Energy Fiend.
Energy Fiend is a blog that discusses all things caffeinated. There are regular updates regarding news about caffeine (including a recent note on a new study that shows caffeine may protect against cirrhosis of the liver).
There’s also information on what ingredients are often found in energy drinks and a nifty caffeine database that lists how much caffeine there is per ounce of caffeinated drink.
There’s also an section that allows you to calculate how much of your favourite form of caffeine would be fatal. You enter in your weight and the type of caffeine (e.g. coffee, tea, soft drink) to get the result.
I learned that I would have to drink 357.90 cans of Dr. Pepper or 386.15 cans of Pepsi.
I don’t think I’m going to worry.
Via Yahoo! Picks.
Posted by Amy as Food, Health & Safety, Fluffy Stuff at 4:45 AM EDT
Sunday 4 June 2006
Barbecue Safety
It’s barbecue time here in Canada, and that also means that it’s a good time for us to review our knowledge of safe outdoor cooking.
There’s a good USDA fact sheet on this that provides all the information necessary to prevent food poisoning or other potential problems associated with barbecuing.
There are tips for the safest way to defrost meat, work with marinades, reheat, and much more.
Via El Dorado County Library: What’s Hot On The Internet This Week.
Posted by Amy as Food, Health & Safety at 8:36 AM EDT
Saturday 6 May 2006
For Those of Us With Older Dogs
As animals grow old, they sometimes need special care. Perhaps they’re more subject to certain illnesses, and perhaps they just need a little more help getting through daily life.
Here’s a good site that explains about the care of older dogs: The Senior Dogs Project.
There’s information here about when to consider a dog a senior (it varies depending on weight), some signs of aging to watch out for, some information on medications, and some general tips on caring for senior dogs.
There’s also information on adopting a senior dog (and information for agencies or individuals on finding good homes for senior dogs).
Finally, there are stories about senior dogs, links to more good sites, and information to help you when it comes to the end of your dog’s life.
Posted by Amy as Animals, Health & Safety at 7:56 AM EDT
Monday 20 February 2006
Dogs For The Deaf
Dogs for the Deaf sounds like a winning organisation.
The group rescues dogs from animal shelters and trains them to alert their people to “fire/smoke alarm, telephone, door knock, doorbell, oven timer, alarm clock, and name call. A dog may be trained for an eighth sound, the baby cry.”
According to their web site, “more than 1½ million of the 23 million deaf or hard of hearing individuals in the United States and Canada could benefit from a Hearing Dog.”
To read more about this organisation, see their website.
Posted by Amy as Animals, Health & Safety at 5:00 AM EST