HodgePodgeInk

Check out our new site for New York tshirts!

2010-11-23T22:03:00.003-06:00

We just opened a new site dedicated to New York tshirts. We are putting up new designs all of the time. We have designs dedicated to all five of the boroughs of New York City. We also have Niagara Falls shirts. Check it out: New York Tshirts.

Awesome Wi-Fi Bathroom Scales

2009-12-20T21:13:00.004-06:00

I finally have found a set of bathroom scales, that automatically logs my and my family members weight. They are called the Withings WiFi Body Scale and they measure fat mass, BMI and send the data via Wi-Fi to the Withings website. There the data is stored for viewing. There is also a free iPhone app that will show you the data in a very convenient format. The data can even be exported to csv format if you want! If you want to truly loose or gain weight and maintain a healthy weight, this can help. One of the first things you need to do is set up some accountability. And let me tell you, the graphs don't lie! :) I had actually thought about making something like this in the past, but I really didn't want to put that much time into it. I am glad someone else did. I really haven't been able to find any flaws other than the $159 price. I will say that they seem very well made, and are indeed very luxurious (as bathroom scales go). They look like something I would expect to see in a high end hotel room in Las Vegas or possibly in the master bathroom of an Internet start-up mogul. If you want your own set, you can purchase them here.

Think Pink

2009-06-20T14:17:00.001-05:00

This is a time of year when Breast Cancer Awareness takes off. We have plenty of t-shirts , mousepads , mugs and more available to show support . Cancer sucks . The good thing is, we can beat it. Awareness and support will help to cure this awful disease .

Change We Can Believe In

2009-06-16T17:07:00.002-05:00

Here at HodgePodge Ink, we're all about change. Of course, our change might differ from yours. We also care about the environment. We take it seriously. Seriously.

HPI News

2009-06-07T16:23:00.003-05:00

We've been hard at work over the last few months, so if you haven't been by in a while, be sure to check out all the new t-shirts, bumper stickers and mugs we have added. We've added an extensive Twilight section for all you fanpires out there. We have Team Edward and Team Jacob shirts as well as other gifts. Support our military by wearing any of these armed forces inspired designs and show your pride! Don't forget to stock up for Independence Day. It's just around the corner, so bring on the fireworks!

New Switzerland Designs

2009-03-11T21:01:00.009-05:00

Here is a new Switzerland design we just made:

And for you "Twilight" fans:

New "Twilight" Designs

2009-01-17T20:01:00.002-06:00

For all of you fans of the movie "Twilight," check out our new designs at:

http://www.hodgepodgeink.com/store/tv/twilight-tshirts/twilight.cgi

Raw Milk as a Psoriasis Treatment?

2008-12-14T21:18:00.003-06:00

As a big fan of natural, whole food and an interest in nutrition, I've recently been researching raw milk. As a mother of a child with psoriasis, I am constantly looking for natural, wholesome treatments for my son. I'm happy to report that at this time, he is completely without any active psoriasis, and has been clear and off all medications for a couple of months. Back to raw milk. I was surprised to find that Dr. J. R. Crewe, one of the founders of the Mayo Foundation, forerunner of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, used a treatment of raw milk as a cure for psoriasis. The following is from an article he wrote in 1929. That's right- 1929. How many people could have been helped in the past 70 plus years if this information was given the voice and importance that it deserves?

Interestingly, diseases that have no similarity respond equally to this treatment. For instance, psoriasis clears up beautifully. The improvement in tuberculosis or nephritis is equally interesting but there is no similarity in these diseases. I once heard a very distinguished medical man discussing a case of psoriasis. He said, "This was the worst case of psoriasis I have ever seen. This boy was literally covered from head to foot with scales. We put this boy on a milk diet and in less than a month he had a skin like a baby's." To me, this means that there was evidently some nutritive substance or vitamin or glandular secretion lacking, that was furnished by the milk.

For more information, see the Weston Price Foundation or the Campaign for Real Milk.

New Stonehenge Design

2008-10-11T12:23:00.006-05:00

After many hours of work, I finally have my new Stonehenge design done. It is available on a variety of items including t-shirts, posters, prints, mugs, etc. You can see them here. I hope you like it!

How to Share a Virtual Machine (VM) with VirtualBox Between Two Mac OS X Users

2008-08-18T20:54:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, VirtualBox seems to want each user to have their own VM setup. This is not an ideal situation. My wife I wanted to share a VM of Windows XP. Not at the same time, but at different times. That way it would take up less space, and I would only have to maintain one machine. From what I could tell, VirtualBox assigns a unique ID number to a VM and disk from the GUI front-end. That number is different when each user sets up the VM from their account. This causes errors in VirtualBox. I could find no way of importing an existing VM from another account, so here is what I figured out. If you want to share a VM, first delete the /Users/Library/VirtualBox for one of the users, then using Terminal, symlink the folder to the other user using the "ln -s" command. This worked quite well. Other than that little caveat, I have been quite happy with VirtualBox. Best of all, it is free.

Switching to Mac and OS X

2008-08-18T20:51:00.001-05:00

I have been a die hard Windows / DOS fan since the early 1990's. In 1992 I was first introduced to UNIX, and I liked it as well. Over the years, various people have tried to get me to think about switching to Mac. After reviewing a lot of material, I didn't take any of them seriously until a couple of months ago. A friend who had switched over a couple of years ago asked me to take another look when I mentioned in passing that we would be buying a new laptop sometime in the next year. Out of respect for my friend's opinion, I took another look. I am glad I did. I hadn't really looked at Apple products for several years. They have come a long way since then. My wife and I bought a MacBook Pro 15.4” 2.5 GHz., and we are very happy with it. I have played around with the various flavors of Linux over the last few years, and I wanted to make the switch to it for our household. However, my wife was not too keen on the idea. She did really like the looks and feel of Apple's products. She, Vista, and my friend convinced me to give Apple a try. I am so glad I did. I have been delighted with the "Apple" way of doing things. It is a nice blend of the things I love about UNIX and the things I like about Windows. I will be switching my desktop over as soon as I can. If you haven’t looked at Apple computers ever, or you just haven’t looked at them in a while, I encourage you to do so. You may be glad you did.

About Us

2008-08-01T23:23:00.000-05:00

HodgePodgeInk is a collaboration of Slush and Leonardo. We are married and have two wonderful children. Hatchling is our precocious 4 year old, and H2 is the baby (though he's not so much a baby these days). We adopted H2 from Guatemala and brought him home forever in April of 2007. When Slush wanted some special things to wear for she and the baby, she accidentally started a design business (we're not complaining!). Nearly two years later we are not only going strong, but are expanding into new areas. We hope you like our designs and thanks for looking!

Great Pictures of Mars

2008-07-27T12:18:00.002-05:00

Here is a link a friend sent me to some great pictures of Mars: http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/06/martian_skies.html If you enjoy these, check out our "Space" section: http://www.hodgepodgeink.com/store/space-gift-shirt/space-t-shirt.cgi

Free, Open Source, TextPad Replacement!

2008-07-08T19:31:00.001-05:00

I have been searching for a replacement for TextPad for a LONGTIME now, and I think I have finally found it. It is the Scintilla based SciTE. My criteria was a little tough. I wanted a free, preferrably open source, multi-platform (Linux, Windows, & Mac), light weight text editor to replace Notepad that comes with Windows that could highlight code in a lot of languages. I also wanted something that was highly customizable and scriptable. ScitTE meets all of those I think. It natively comes as source code that needs to be compiled. However, I downloaded a pre-compiled Windows executable wrapped in an installer from the download page (the one "contributed by Bruce Dodson.") Another nice feature is that it can be run from a single executable file if need be. I have been using it for a couple of days now, and I haven't run across anything that it can't do that I was used to doing in TextPad. It's learning curve is a little steeper than TextPad, but it is well documented. It's options are contolled by four different options files. This may seem a little daunting, but it is really a clever way to have a hierarchy of options in more complex situations. From a cursory glance it seems to be a very intelligent approach. I wasted no time in setting several preferences in the "User Options File". One nice thing about this is that it is easy to port your preferances from machine to machine. The only thing I have found to be hard was associating my file types to SciTE in Windows. This is the only thing that seemed to do the trick: Go to Start Menu -> Control Panel -> Folder Options -> File Types (tab), highlight or add your extension. You may or may not have an "Advanced" button on the lower right side of the box, if you don't have one, click the "Restore" button. Then you should have an "Advanced" button. Click it. Under "Actions" click "edit". In the box labeled "Application to perform action:" paste (or whatever your path to SciTE.exe is in double quotes followed by the "%1" again in double quotes): "C:\Program Files\Scintilla Text Editor\SciTE.exe" "%1" (include all of the double quotes in the above string) That should do it. It is the only solution I could get to work. I have been loving SciTE for the last couple of days, and best of all it is free!

Poor Pluto...

2008-06-24T11:58:00.004-05:00

Pluto's Identity Crisis Hits Classrooms, Bookstores

Tuesday , June 24, 2008

By Jeanna Bryner

Pluto was once a planet. Then a dwarf planet. And, as of this month, a plutoid.

The fall from grace has teachers, parents and educational publishers struggling to keep up, while kids remain loyal to their favorite, the ninth planet. Underscore "planet."

On June 11, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) announced Pluto should now be called a "plutoid," two years after the organization voted to demote Pluto to "dwarf planet" status.

Meanwhile, many kids are nearly certain Pluto is still a planet.

"I think it's a planet. But me and my friends, we talk about it sometimes and we go back and forth," said Natalie Browning, 9, sitting in a park in Manhattan with her family.

"Right now, I'm not 100 percent. I'm just 75 percent" sure that Pluto is a planet, she added.

Natalie's mom, Bobbie Browning, said, "You've got kids with textbooks saying that Pluto is part of the solar system and a planet, and teachers have to say it isn't [a planet]."

Science teachers and publishers already worked to update their resources to read "dwarf planet." And now, boom, that category is out of favor among astronomers.

"Students who have just learned about the concept of dwarf planets must now be taught the new concept of 'plutoid,'" said Janis Milman, who teaches Earth Science at Thomas Stone High School in Maryland. "This will lead to confusion in the classroom and resistance to learning the new terms, because the students will question, 'Why learn something that might change again in a year or so?'"

A cursory survey at a large chain bookstore here revealed three out of four books published in 2006 or later were updated, with Pluto designated as a dwarf planet and the solar system said to include just eight planets.

Chronicles of Pluto

Discovered in 1930 by Clyde W. Tombaugh at Lowell Observatory in Arizona, Pluto was always considered an oddball of sorts, with its tiny size (smaller than some moons) and eccentric orbit.

During its 248-year trek around the sun, Pluto swings from its farthest point from the sun at 49.5 astronomical units (AU) to as close as 29 AU from the sun.

One AU is the average distance between the Earth and sun, or about 93 million miles (150 million kilometers).

More than 70 years later, in August 2006, 424 astronomers at an IAU meeting voted to demote Pluto to "dwarf planet" status.

Two weeks ago, the IAU Executive Committee reclassified Pluto as a plutoid. The other object in the plutoid club, Eris, is larger and more massive than Pluto.

Astronomers expect to find hundreds of Pluto-sized objects. And so the fate of Pluto will determine how these worlds are classified.

For instance, new computer modeling suggests an object up to 70 percent of Earth's mass is lurking beyond Pluto. This "Planet X," if confirmed, would be called a plutoid under the IAU's scheme.

No matter what the scientists say, many kids won't let go.

"It's a planet," said fifth-grader Emily Mitchell, whose mother Laurie agreed, saying, "I grew up learning it was a planet."

"It's the smallest planet," said Liam, a 4-year-old who is "about to be 5."

Liam's teacher Rachel Kaplan said, "I was really sad when Pluto was declassified as a planet, because I've studied astrology for a number of years."

Aileen Wilson said her 7-year-old son is interested in Pluto's label. "He's interested in why it was a planet and why it's not a planet anymore."

"I know that it was demoted and it's not a planet. But I don't know what it's called," said Erin Kelly, a pre-school teacher sitting on a park bench with her students in New York.

In the classroom

Even as scientists are arguing over the "plutoid" designation, with some saying they won't use the term, educators are already latching onto it.

Change is the name of the game in science, according to Gerry Wheeler, the executive director of the National Science Teachers Association.

"Basically, it's a teachable moment for science teachers, because it shows the dynamic nature of science," Wheeler told SPACE.com.

He added the NSTA will spread news of the plutoid category to science teachers in the fall.

Elementary school science teacher Lucy Jensen agrees: "Pluto has made it interesting studying our planets this year." She teaches at Joliet Public School in Montana.

"Our only problem we now have is buying new material, such as posters, videos, DVDs and game/study materials that need to be updated," she said.

Jensen added that while her fourth-grade students were more upset than the third graders about Pluto's demotion, the parents were the most upset.

"It is hard to teach old dogs new tricks, and we like what we know," she said.

"Time has always been taken in the classroom to ponder the origin of Pluto. When Pluto became a dwarf planet, along with Eris and Ceres, it made it easier to explain why an object of Pluto's small stature could be classified," high-school teacher Milman said. "Now we will just need to teach them more new definitions."

Milman added that "dwarf planets" is an easier term for students to grasp compared with plutoids.

"Objects of Pluto, Eris and Ceres' size are too small to be called planets so they were called dwarf planets. That was easier for the students to understand," she said.

Yet many students are still unaware of the change made in 2006.

"My fourth graders still consider Pluto a planet," said Bev Grueber, a science teacher at North Bend Elementary in Nebraska. "We do extensive oral reports on the planets to meet a state standard, and everyone jumps for joy when they get Pluto. Last year, I left Pluto out of the draw and they asked where it was, so they still consider it a planet regardless of what the space scientists tell us the definition of that planet is."

Aram Friedman, who founded Ansible Technologies Ltd. in New Jersey, travels to schools to teach about astronomy using a portable planetarium. In a typical fifth-grade class, he teaches students the features of the inner planets and the outer planets.

Pluto, he says, doesn't fit into those categories. That makes sense to kids.

Publishing lag

Many science textbooks have only recently caught up with the dwarf planet concept.

For publisher McGraw Hill Education, the 2008 elementary and secondary school science textbooks describe Pluto as a dwarf planet.

Middle schools with the current Holt Science and Technology textbooks would see Pluto defined as a dwarf planet. McDougal Littell Science took a slightly different approach.

"We didn't say how many planets there were, so we didn't have to make a lot of changes. We explained, historically, that it had been classified as a planet when it was discovered," said Dan Rogers, vice president and director of Holt McDougal's science and health product development.

McDougal's teacher's edition included a detailed explanation of Pluto's dwarf planet status.

"One of the reasons we were cautious is because we thought the whole thing was unresolved and was going to change again," Rogers said. "We're in the process of developing a brand new program, a new set of books."

In "Traveler's Guide to the Solar System," an astronomy book published in 2007 for kids age 8 to 10, the author notes, "Earth is the third of nine planets (some say eight, some say ten, but nine is kind of traditional), orbiting our local star, the Sun."

Starry Night, astronomy software that includes educational resources, refers to Pluto as a dwarf planet, according to content director Pedro Braganca. (Starry Night is a division of Imaginova Corp., which also owns SPACE.com.)

And soon, educational publishers may need to re-update material. Word has it astronomers are vowing to pursue a reinstatement of Pluto as a planet.

Dear Earth, You Suck

I believe in Pluto

I miss Pluto

Breast Cancer Petition

2008-06-13T08:44:00.002-05:00

This came to my attention via someone who's 26 year old friend had to have an outpatient mastectomy because that is all her insurance would pay for. That seems a little ridiculous to me.

From a nurse: I'll never forget the look in my patients eyes when I had to tell them they had to go home with the drains, new exercises and no breast. I remember begging the Doctors to keep these women in the hospital longer, only to hear that they would, but their hands were tied by the insurance companies. So there I sat with my patients, giving them the instructions they needed to take care of themselves, knowing full well they didn't grasp half of what I was saying, because the glazed, hopeless, frightened look spoke louder than the quiet 'Thank You they muttered. A mastectomy is when a woman's breast is removed in order to remove cancerous breast cells/tissue. If you know anyone who has had a Mastectomy, you may know that there is a lot of discomfort and pain afterwards. Insurance companies are trying to make mastectomies an outpatient procedure. Let's give women the chance to recover properly in the hospital for 2 days after surgery. It takes 2 seconds to do this and is very important .. Please take the time and do it really quick! Please send this to everyone in your address book. If there was ever a time when our voices and choices should be heard, this is one of those times. If you're receiving this, it's because I think you will take the 30 seconds to go to vote on this issue and send it on to others. You know who will do the same. There's a bill called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act which will require Insurance Companies to cover a minimum 48-hour hospital stay for patients undergoing a mastectomy. It's about eliminating the 'drive-through mastectomy' where women are forced to go home just a few hours after surgery, against the wishes of their doctor, still groggy from anesthesia and sometimes with drainage tubes still attached. Lifetime Television has put this bill on their Web page with a petition drive to show your support. Last year over half the House signed on. PLEASE!! Sign the petition by clicking on the Web site below. http://www.lifetimetv.com/breastcancer/petition/signpetition.php This takes about 2 seconds. PLEASE PASS THIS ON to your friends and family, and on behalf of all women, THANKS.

Fight Like a Girl Real Men Wear Pink Don't Let Cancer Steal 2nd Base

The Evolution of Religious Bigotry

2008-04-23T16:02:00.001-05:00

From the Los Angeles Times Evolution of religious bigotry The cowardice and intolerance of slapping a Darwin fish on your car bumper. Jonah Goldberg I just watched "Fitna," a 17-minute film by Geert Wilders, head of the Dutch Freedom Party, which takes a hard-line stance against Muslim immigration. Released on the Internet on Thursday, "Fitna" juxtaposes verses from the Koran with images and speeches from the world of jihad. Heads cut off, bodies blown apart, gays executed, toddlers taught to denounce Jews as "apes and pigs," imams calling for global domination, protesters holding up signs reading "God Bless Hitler" and "Freedom go to Hell" -- these are just some of the powerful images from "Fitna," an Arabic word that means "ordeal." Predictably, various Muslim governments have condemned the film. Half the Jordanian parliament voted to sever ties with the Netherlands. Egypt's grand imam threatened "severe" consequences if the Dutch government didn't ban the film. Meanwhile, European and U.N. leaders are going through the usual motions of theatrical hand-wringing, heaping all of their anger on Wilders for sowing "hatred." Me? I keep thinking about Jesus fish. During a 1991 visit to Istanbul, a buddy and I found ourselves in a small restaurant drinking, dancing and singing with a bunch of middle-class Turkish businessmen, mostly shop owners. It was a hilariously joyful evening, even though they spoke nearly no English and we spoke considerably less Turkish. At the end of the night, after imbibing unquantifiable quantities of raki, an ouzo-like Turkish liquor, one of the men came up to me and gave me a worn-out business card. On the back, he'd scribbled an image. It was little more than a curlicue, but he seemed intent on showing it to me (and nobody else). It was, I realized, a Jesus fish. It was an eye-opening moment for me, though obviously trivial compared with the experiences of others. Here in this cosmopolitan and self-styled European city, this fellow felt the need to surreptitiously clue me in that he was a Christian just like me (or so he thought). Traditionally, the fish pictogram conjures the miracle of the loaves and fishes as well as the Greek word IXOYE, which not only means fish but serves as an acronym, in Greek, for "Jesus Christ the Son of God [Is] Savior." Christians persecuted by the Romans used to draw the Jesus fish in the dirt with a stick or a finger as a way to tip off fellow Christians that they weren't alone. In America, the easiest place to find this ancient symbol is on the back of cars. Recently, however, it seems as if Jesus fish have become outnumbered by Darwin fish. No doubt you've seen these too. The fish symbol is "updated" with little feet coming off the bottom, and "IXOYE" or "Jesus" is replaced with either "Darwin" or "Evolve." I find Darwin fish offensive. First, there's the smugness. The undeniable message: Those Jesus fish people are less evolved, less sophisticated than we Darwin fishers. The hypocrisy is even more glaring. Darwin fish are often stuck next to bumper stickers promoting tolerance or admonishing random motorists that "hate is not a family value." But the whole point of the Darwin fish is intolerance; similar mockery of a cherished symbol would rightly be condemned as bigoted if aimed at blacks or women or, yes, Muslims. As Christopher Caldwell once observed in the Weekly Standard, Darwin fish flout the agreed-on etiquette of identity politics. "Namely: It's acceptable to assert identity and abhorrent to attack it. A plaque with 'Shalom' written inside a Star of David would hardly attract notice; a plaque with 'Usury' written inside the same symbol would be an outrage." But the most annoying aspect of the Darwin fish is the false bravado it represents. It's a courageous pose without consequence. Like so much other Christian-baiting in American popular culture, sporting your Darwin fish is a way to speak truth to power on the cheap. Whatever the faults of "Fitna," it ain't no Darwin fish. Geert Wilders' film could very, very easily get him killed. (He's already guarded around the clock.) It essentially picks up the work of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, who was murdered in 2004 by a jihadi for criticizing Islam. "Fitna" is certainly provocative, yet it has good reason to provoke. A cancer of violence, bigotry and cruelty is metastasizing within the Islamic world. It's fine for Muslim moderates to say they aren't part of the cancer; and that some have, in response to the film, is a positive sign. But more often, diagnosing or even observing this cancer -- in film, book or cartoon -- is dubbed "intolerant" while calls for violence, censorship and even murder are treated as understandable, if regrettable, expressions of well-deserved anger. It's not that secular progressives support Muslim religious fanatics, but they reserve their passion and scorn for religious Christians who are neither fanatical nor inclined to use violence. The Darwin fish ostensibly symbolizes the superiority of progressive-minded science over backward-looking faith. I think this is a false juxtaposition, but I would have a lot more respect for the folks who believe it if they aimed their brave contempt for religion at those who might behead them for it.

LuLu Designs

2008-03-20T09:41:00.001-05:00

I have a friend (shocking, I know!) who has started a business making custom photo cards, mommy cards (like business cards, but for mommies!), birth announcements, shower invitations, etc. You can see her stuff here. Below is a selection of some of her work. Now if I just had another baby so that I could order some cute announcements... anybody think L will fall for that? Yeah, me neither.

Link Found Between Vegetables and Decreased Risk of Breast Cancer

2008-03-11T15:07:00.003-05:00

(originally found at medicalnewstoday) When your mother told you to eat your vegetables it appears that maternal wisdom had a scientific basis. Researchers with Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center and the Shanghai Cancer Institute in China have discovered a possible link between a diet rich in certain vegetables and a decreased risk for breast cancer. The study appears in the March issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Corresponding author Jay Fowke, Ph.D., assistant professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt-Ingram, said 3,035 women diagnosed with breast cancer were identified through the Shanghai Cancer Registry. They were closely matched with 3,037 women randomly chosen from the general population there. The women filled out questionnaires about their diet, including consumption of cruciferous vegetables like Chinese cabbage, bok choi and turnips. Americans typically eat more broccoli, kale and cauliflower in the cruciferous vegetable family. "Cruciferous vegetables contain some compounds that may have a cancer-inhibitory effect," explained Fowke. "Here we were able to identify a group of women who seem to particularly benefit from a high intake of these vegetables." While there was only a small positive relationship between a diet high in these vegetables and a reduction in breast cancer risk for the overall study population, there was a striking risk reduction 50 percent among women with a certain genetic profile. Researchers identified three forms of the GSTP1 genotype among the cancer patients: Ille/Ile, Ile/Val and Val/Val. "Women who consumed more of these cruciferous vegetables and who also had the Val/Val genetic polymorphism had a lower breast cancer risk. So we cautiously interpreted this as diet being a factor that may reduce the impact of genetic susceptibility in overall breast cancer risk," said Fowke. The Vanderbilt-Ingram researchers focused on cruciferous vegetables because they contain two chemicals called isothiocyanates and indole-3-carbinol which may affect carcinogenesis by triggering cell death or by shifting estrogen metabolism. Studies by other researchers have suggested cruciferous vegetables may reduce the risk of lung, stomach, colorectal and bladder cancers. "We have known for some time that certain foods, like soy foods, appear to interfere with the development of breast cancer because they contain plant estrogens," said Fowke. "The protective effect from cruciferous vegetables in this study was certainly suggestive of a risk reduction, but researchers need to replicate this finding in other studies." Scientists were able to isolate the specific genetic profile linked with a positive dietary impact because the women in the study submitted DNA through blood and cheek cell samples. Wei Zheng, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt-Ingram is the principal investigator for the Shanghai Breast Cancer study. "The Shanghai Breast Cancer Study is one of the largest and most comprehensive epidemiological studies conducted to date for this common cancer," according to Zheng. "We have published over 100 research papers in this study addressing a large range of significant issues related to the etiology and survival of breast cancer. The results reported by Dr. Fowke may have significant implications in breast cancer prevention." While women in this study answered questionnaires about their diets, researchers want to measure more precisely the intake of cruciferous vegetables. To aid in future studies they are collecting urine samples which contain biomarkers for the beneficial chemicals. Authors for this paper include: Sang-Ah Lee, Wei Lu, Chuangzhong Ye, Ying Zheng, Qiuyin Cai, Kai Gu, Yu-Tang Gao, Xiao-ou Shu and Wei Zheng.

Breast Cancer Support Best Friend Shirts

GIRL FIGHT pink ribbon

UniqueMystique's BC Awareness Collection

Breast Cancer Survivor Shirts

Winter Penguin 1 (BC Awareness)

Chemo Smilie

Finding a cure (BC)

Pink Ribbon

for my sister

I Wear Pink For My Aunt

The chemo made me do it

Breast Cancer Awareness

Not Real, But Spectacular!

Happy Gardener Cards

Oncolojolly!

I Wear Pink For My Mom

Help Save Second Base!

Pink Ribbon Tree

Free Enfamil Coupons!!!!

2008-02-22T09:44:00.001-06:00

I don't' use Enfamil, but they are nice enough to send me formula checks every once in a while. Normally, I would sell these on Ebay. However, since Ebay got a new CEO and went completely insane, I'm joining the seller strike and giving these away FREE!!! If you would like 2 Enfamil checks good for $3 off any Next Step Lipil formula (total savings of $6, expires 4-30-08), please leave a comment with your email address. At the end of 7 days, or 100 entries (whichever comes first), I will put all the names in a hat and have one of my lovely children pick one! If you don't want to leave a comment, you can email me at slushturtle@gmail.com. In case you are wondering what Ebay is up to, let me tell you!

While promoting "fee reductions", what Ebay is really doing is lowering listing fees, but raising final value fees by as much as 33-66%. Ouch! That makes that 5 cents saved up front not look so good anymore, doesn't it?
Ebay is removing the ability for sellers to leave feedback on buyers. So buyers can say anything they want to about sellers, and the seller has no recourse. For people with gazillions of feedback ratings, this might not hurt them that much. For little people like me with 150 or so ratings, this is going to kill us.
If a seller has below a 95% satisfaction rating on Ebay, Ebay will not display your auctions in the search engine. So once you get a negative rating, it is nearly impossible to recover because no one will ever see your new auctions as they will always be on the last page. Not cool!
There will be a new 21- day freeze on some funds in PayPal.

Dear Ebay, why the hate? Love, Slush

Lost is back!

2008-02-04T14:44:00.000-06:00

There was much rejoicing in our household over the long-anticipated return of Lost last week. We were inspired to make some designs too!

A name for the new baby polar bear!

2008-01-28T21:30:00.000-06:00

Germany names new polar bear cub Snowflake

Fri Jan 18, 12:45 PM ET

Germany named its latest furry superstar "Flocke," or "Snowflake" on Friday, sending the media into a frenzy which echoed "Knut-mania" in Berlin last year.

A naming competition for the nearly six-week-old polar bear cub launched by the city of Nuremberg received 50,000 emails, causing a server meltdown at the zoo as entries flooded in from around the globe.

Nuremberg mayor Ulrich Maly said the jury had received suggestions from India, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and New Zealand as well as from all over Europe.

"I'm amazed by all the interest in our little bear!" said Maly at a packed news conference.

"It wasn't a romantic naming process just a logical one. It's the name the keepers gave her and we are going to keep it."

Other popular names for the cub were Sissi and Knutschi but keepers at the zoo, who are hand-rearing Flocke after her mother rejected her, are more than happy with the final decision.

The cub's keeper had last week given her the nickname Flocke, saying she was as white as snow, but the city decided to hold a naming competition in response to public demand.

"Flocke just suits her and I'm happy with that," said zoo director Dag Encke. "But we should remember she's not a cuddly toy. She's a wild animal that the zoo is protecting."

Flocke, who weighs about 3 kg, is due to make her first public appearance at the southern German zoo in April.

(Reporting by Sarah Roberts, editing by Paul Casciato)

I love Snowflake Jr. Raglan Flocke Rocks! Women's Dark T-Shirt Flocke Rocks Fitted T-Shirt

How to get crayon off of your new 52" LCD TV

2008-01-21T22:04:00.000-06:00

**Cross posted from my personal blog, SlushTurtle. It gets so many hits (and I'm so sorry for you if you are surfing in looking for this information!), I thought I would make it easier to find- and don't worry, I do tell you how to get it off!**

This morning I threw a bowl of cheerios on the table, turned on Little Einsteins, and left Hatchling on his own while I went to brush my teeth and get dressed for the gym. Big mistake. A few minutes later, as I was wandering around the house looking for something or other, Hatchling informed me that "Daddy's TV was dirty, and I needed to clean it." Now I don't know about your kids, but mine can't seem to help touching the screen with sticky, gooey fingers- so I wasn't too concerned. And then I spotted the TV. There were blue circles and curlicues all over the thing. My initial response was to send Hatchling to the corner, while muttering that I was pretty sure his daddy was going to kill him. He stood in the corner and wailed that he didn't want to be killed whilst I tried out glass cleaner (didn't work) and the glass wipes we get at the car wash (also didn't work). Then I called L with the news. We both felt like crying. Did I mention we just got our TV a month ago? Yeah. I turned to google, and after some searching was able to find a post from some cat who claimed to work for a high end electronics store. Apparently mine isn't the first child to do this (this is only mildly reassuring). He recommended using warmed peanut oil to clean the screen. After another consultation with L (in which we discussed chemistry and why we thought this might work), I went to work. For anyone who has landed at this post via a web search of "how to clean Crayola off of your LCD TV," here's what I did: Warm some peanut oil in a bowl (I put some in the microwave for about 45 seconds). Take a soft cloth (I used old cotton dish cloths), dip in oil, and gently rub on TV screen (TV should be off!). After you can see that the crayon marks are gone, clean screen with some sort of glass cleaner and those microfiber glass cloths you get with glasses. Be sure not to spray any cleaner directly onto the screen, put it on the cloth and then clean the screen. Also you are not supposed to rub hard, it can damage something, so be careful. After this episode, I made Hatchling throw his crayons in the trash- he can't have any more until he's 10 or so. Then I put a pull- up on him and we headed to the gym. I'm happy to say that I have finally learned an important lesson- trouble follows trouble. While he normally wears big boy underwear without incident, I had a feeling today was going to be a trial to my already shaky sanity, and sure enough, Hatchling pooped in his pants THREE times while at the gym. We had to leave with him stinky because we were out of pull ups in his bag, and here's the pretend phone call he had on the way to get my allergy shot that nearly had me running off the road because I was trying not to let him see me laugh: "Hello, Santy Claus? Yes, this is Hatchling. I've been pretty bad today Santy. I was playing school with all my [imaginary] friends, and I colored all over Daddy's TV. Mommy cleaned it up, but Daddy's gonna spank me when he gets home, and he might kill me. Mommy says so. Then I pooped in my pants at the gym. I sure am stinky. Now we gotta go get Mommy a shot and everyone is gonna smell my poop and think I'm yucky Santy Claus. I've been pretty bad today, but I sure want that bird workshop* Santy Claus. Ok? Bye bye!" Goodness, it's hard to stay mad at that boy... *It wasn't nearly that expensive at Sam's.

Check and Checkmate

2008-01-16T08:07:00.000-06:00

We spent last night working on our chess section, which you can see here. We hope you'll like it! Also, here is a great article about some 11-year old twins from Pennsylvania who started playing in tournaments in 2006.

01/16/2008

Local twins hold big chess titles

Melissa Brooks , Staff Writer

Eleven-year-old twins Jay and Jessica Regam of Blue Bell began playing chess when they were 5. At the time, enrolling her children in lessons was not a serious move, Nina Regam said.

Like Candyland or Chutes and Ladders, chess was just another board game for the youngsters to play. Six years later, the fifth-graders have competed in tournaments across the country. Jay, a student at Chestnut Hill Academy, recently placed third at the 38th annual National Chess Congress in Philadelphia, a non-scholastic tournament in which he beat "a college guy." Jessica, who attends Springside School, holds the title of 2007 fourth-grade Pennsylvania chess champion, along with two other students she tied in the state. And the twins have only been competing since summer 2006, when they joined the U.S. Chess Federation. Jay said he and his sister "practiced and practiced" until their coach at the U.S. Chess Academy in Huntingdon Valley told them they were ready to compete. Jessica described tournaments as "really quiet." They take place in a big ballroom with "special chess clocks," she said. She and her family have traveled to different states for about 13 tournaments so far, both scholastic and non-scholastic, in which she and her brother compete against adults, she said. When the Regam twins became competitive last year, they joined a chess club at the U.S. Chess Academy. They meet once a week, in addition to their weekly lesson. Sometimes the twins play chess on the computer, Jessica said. But practice does not include "playing chess." Individually, they work on "certain positions" their coach gives them as homework. They each have their own boards, which travel with them to tournaments. They also own a family board, which has been around since chess entered their young lives. "I believe the first tournament was when they really got the feeling of it," Nina said. Now, Jessica's games last three to five hours and Jay's can extend to two hours long. Jessica, one of few girls at the tournaments they attend, has a higher skill rating. After his recent third place win, Jay is catching up to his sister's rating, Nina said. While Jay said everybody in his class plays chess, Jessica said not many of her classmates know the game. She taught some of her friends "but they thought it was kinda boring," she said. "It's a lot of strategic stuff - all combinations - but really cool." The twins, however, find chess to be anything but boring. To sum it up, Jay said chess is "fun." Jessica called it a "very unique game." "[Chess] helps develop our minds and helps us think more and analyze," she continued. Jay agreed. "Especially in math," he said. When asked where their love for chess and their game skill came from, if it was, perhaps, passed down from a family member, Jay said, "My dad can play, but he's not that good." The twins agreed they could definitely beat him.

May I have a drumroll, please?

2008-01-15T21:38:00.001-06:00

L and I have been hard at work over the last few weeks to get our new t-shirt site, HodgePodgeInk, up and running. Our children have been ignored and our house is getting pretty dirty, but we finally have a (mostly) working site. We hope you'll think it was worth it! If you do visit, and happen to notice any errors, please let me know so that I can kick L in the shins and make him fix them! And if you have any suggestions for stuff you'd like to see, let me know that too!

The NWA Naturals Name Their Mascot

2008-01-12T23:41:00.000-06:00

I have to admit it- two days ago, I would have proclaimed (loudly) from any soapbox I happened upon that there was nothing, NOTHING, the NWA Naturals could do to make me care about their team, their season, and most of all their game. And their new ball park is literally a stone's throw away from my front door. I'm sorry, I know baseball is supposed to be the national past time or something, but I assume that is only because it was popularized in a pre-internet era country and some people are still nostalgic. Then they (back the Naturals now) went and named their mascot. Have you seen him? That's right, he's a sasquatch. Suddenly, I'd even consider buying tickets for the chance to see this big hairy guy. Stupid marketing genuis' and their stupid brilliant plan.

Cryptozoologist Ancient

Shagomatic's Crytohumorous

Bigfoot 'I believe'

Believe

Sasquatchewan

BLUFF CREEK ARTS

blobsquatch

Sasquatch Quote

UNDOCUMENTED NORTH AMERICAN PRIMATE

Messin with Sasquatch

Sasquatch Watch of VA Online Store

Damn Sasquatch

Yeti

Bigfoot Protection Services

Damn Sasquatch

Big Foot Crossing

Skunk Ape security services

Bigfoot Is My Boyfriend

Bigfoot

Bigfoot believes in Santa Claus

Bigfoot

Michigan sees fewer gun deaths- with more permits

2008-01-12T12:04:00.000-06:00

From freep.com

January 6, 2008

By DAWSON BELL

FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

Six years after new rules made it much easier to get a license to carry concealed weapons, the number of Michiganders legally packing heat has increased more than six-fold.

But dire predictions about increased violence and bloodshed have largely gone unfulfilled, according to law enforcement officials and, to the extent they can be measured, crime statistics.

The incidence of violent crime in Michigan in the six years since the law went into effect has been, on average, below the rate of the previous six years. The overall incidence of death from firearms, including suicide and accidents, also has declined.

More than 155,000 Michiganders -- about one in every 65 -- are now authorized to carry loaded guns as they go about their everyday affairs, according to Michigan State Police records.

About 25,000 people had CCW permits in Michigan before the law changed in 2001.

"I think the general consensus out there from law enforcement is that things were not as bad as we expected," said Woodhaven Police Chief Michael Martin, cochair of the legislative committee for the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police. "There are problems with gun violence. But ... I think we can breathe a sigh of relief that what we anticipated didn't happen."

John Lott, a visiting professor at the University of Maryland who has done extensive research on the role of firearms in American society, said the results in Michigan since the law changed don't surprise him.

Academic studies of concealed weapons laws that generally allow citizens to obtain permits have shown different results, Lott said. About two-thirds of the studies suggest the laws reduce crime; the rest show no net effect, he said.

But no peer-reviewed study has ever shown that crime increases when jurisdictions enact changes like those put in place by the Legislature and then-Gov. John Engler in 2000, Lott said.

In Michigan and elsewhere (liberal permitting is the rule in about 40 states), those who seek CCW permits, get training and pay licensing fees tend to be "the kind of people who don't break laws," Lott said.

Nationally, the rate of CCW permits being revoked is very low, he said. State Police reports in Michigan indicate that 2,178 permits have been revoked or suspended since 2001, slightly more than 1% of those issued.

Another State Police report found that 175 Michigan permit holders were convicted of a crime, most of them nonviolent, requiring revocation or suspension of their permits between July 1, 2005, and June 30, 2006.

But even if more armed citizens have not wreaked havoc, some critics of Michigan's law chafe at how it was passed: against stiff opposition in a lame duck legislative session and attached to an appropriation that nullified efforts at repeal by referendum.

Kenneth Levin, a West Bloomfield physician, was one of those critics. In a letter to the Free Press in July 2001, he referred to the "inevitable first victim of road or workplace rage as a result of this law."

Last month, Levin said he suspected "it probably hasn't turned out as bad as I thought. I don't think I was wrong, but my worst fears weren't realized."

But the manner in which the law was enacted was nevertheless "sneaky" and "undemocratic," Levin said.

Other opponents remain convinced that it has contributed to an ongoing epidemic of firearms-related death and destruction.

Shikha Hamilton of Grosse Pointe, president of the Michigan chapter of the anti-gun group Million Moms March, said she believes overall gun violence (including suicide and accidental shootings) is up in Michigan since 2001. Many incidents involving CCW permit holders have not been widely reported, she said.

The most publicized recent case came early in 2007, when a 40-year-old Macomb County woman fired from her vehicle toward the driver of a truck she claimed had cut her off on I-94. Bernadette Headd was convicted of assault and sentenced to two years in prison.

Hamilton said that even if gun violence has ebbed, it remains pervasive, tragic and unnecessary. At the least, a more liberal concealed weapons law means there are more guns in homes and cars and on the street, she said, and more potential for disaster.

Advocates for the law argue that there is nothing equivocal about the experience of the CCW permit holders who have warded off threats and, in a few instances, saved themselves from harm.

In September, a 36-year-old Troy man killed an armed 18-year-old assailant who, with three other suspects, attempted to steal his car outside Detroit Police headquarters.

Michelle Reurink, 40, a consultant in Lansing, got her CCW permit last year, not so much because she felt an imminent threat to her well-being, she said, but because she's a strong believer in the Constitution's Second Amendment -- the right to bear arms.

"The primary reason I got it is because I feel like I have the right to have it," she said.

Still, she doesn't often carry her gun during her daily routine, though she takes it when she and her husband go on their boat, she said.

Having the license and a handgun makes her feel more secure in her home (where no one needs a CCW license to have a gun), she said. She also feels more secure because of the required training, including self-defense lessons, she took as part of the license application.

Mark Cortis of Royal Oak, who conducts concealed weapons license training and sits on the Oakland County gun board, said he believes the benefits of an armed citizenry are evident in small ways almost every day, as permit holders deter trouble and live more confidently.

"The police just can't protect you," Cortis said. "If you have to call 911, it's probably already too late."

Guatemala Adoption

2008-01-11T12:50:00.001-06:00

It seems only right to show off some great Guatemala adoption designs since, as you know if you have read our 'about me' section, that is what got us into this business in the first place. The first two designs I made were for me and the baby. I wanted a Guatemama shirt. Here's what I made (and it's still one of my favorite shirts):

Guatemama (salmon) Women's Light T-Shirt

The other design I was originally interested in was a "Brand New American Citizen" onesie for the baby. When we were finally able to bring our little one home, I had this on under his shirt, and when our plane touched down on U.S. soil (which was when he became an official citizen since we had visited him earlier in the process), I whipped off his shirt so he could proclaim his new status as we went through customs and immigration. I looked forward to that moment for months and it is still such a sweet, happy memory for us!

New American Citizen Infant Bodysuit Here are some more great Guatemalan adoption designs!

The Original Homeland Security

2008-01-09T20:09:00.000-06:00

We're big advocates of gun rights- which leads to the following designs. First, the minuteman, America's original Homeland Security.
America's Original Homeland Security Organic Cotton Tee

Second, a witty (but oh so true) little saying about outlaws and guns... If guns are outlawed Fitted T-Shirt

(Some of) Our Favorite Scrubs Shirts

2008-01-09T15:25:00.000-06:00

Those crazy doctors at Sacred Heart have had us laughing for years! We are (in case you couldn't tell) avid fans, and have enjoyed coming up with designs devoted to one of our favorite TV shows. We especially love the shirts that reference the games that Turk and J.D. play, such as Find the Saltine and Steak. "The first person to finish their steak is the winner of steak."

Ketchup is for winners

Do you play?

Sacred Heart Hospital

hooch is crazy

Vanilla Bear

Chocolate Bear

Future Mrs. Dorian

Let's play steak

I love Cox

Dr. Acula

Dr. Jan Itor

There are no rules in bedpan racing

Why so sad, Marshmallow?

It's floating wicker

The Worthless Peons

So's your face

newbie

blond doctor

scrubs

Man not caring

I like sports

Respect your elders- or be eaten by bears...

2008-01-09T14:49:00.000-06:00

This is one of my favorite designs, based on the story of Elisha in 2 Kings 2:23-24. As Elisha was going up the road near the city of Bethel, some youths from the city mocked him, calling him "baldhead." He turned around and pronounced a curse on them in the name of the Lord, and two she- bears promptly came out of the woods and mauled 42 of them. Yikes! Don't mess with a prophet of God!!! For more information and a great article on this passage of scripture, go here!

Respect your elders Hooded Sweatshirt

Hello World!

2008-01-08T21:55:00.001-06:00

Coming soon!!!