I grew up in Kansas City, on both the Kansas and Missouri sides of the state line and smack dab in the middle of Tornado Alley. One of my earliest memories is of my dad, my three older brothers and me scrambling to get out of our station wagon and getting down into a ditch along the side of a highway to try and protect us from a twister ...

My mother was barely 15 years old when she began her first real job working the ticket window of a theater in downtown Kansas City, MO. One day, a group of soldiers came to the window and requested four adult tickets to see the latest hit movie. Newly trained and eager to please, mom did what she was told to do and passed four tickets ...

If you haven’t been vaccinated for the flu yet, it should be on your weekend to-do list. October is the unofficial start of flu season, and you don’t want to come down with the nasty virus — or have your kids miss school because of it. Only 46% of Americans get the flu shot every year, according to CDC statistics, but there are so many reasons why ...

As most everyone knows by now, nurses have for several years been ranked the ''Most Trusted Profession'' in an annual Gallup survey of Americans. But now a new study reveals nurses are also very good at assessing the quality of care delivered in the hospital units in which they work.  In short, it turns out nurses are not only trustworthy ...

  If you are like me you are always on the lookout for fresh ideas and activities to try with our kiddos with special needs.  I have a wonderful job with the advantage of actually working for a company that sells and even develops products, so of course I might be a bit biased. So it was refreshing to come across a website awhile back ...

  Are you feeling a little rundown, like you could use a vacation or maybe a whole new career? Do you find yourself being easily distracted on the job you’re growing so tired of? Is your nursing flame flickering? You’re certainly not alone, as many studies attest. But have you considered they way you’re feeling might cause you to be a ...

It all started with a missed step. The bottom step of a stairway at my brother's house that is, which my mom completely missed one morning about 18 months ago causing her to land funny and break her left ankle.  At 75, and having fought a 30-year battle with rheumatoid arthritis, the injury took on added significance. Painful rehab ...

For the second time in the past few months, social media and the Internet are lighting up as a consumer fights a denial for healthcare services by enlisting the public’s help. In a current case, a Washington, DC-based college student started a petition on Change.org to reverse Blue Cross Blue Shield Massachusetts’ decision to deny ...

''How did it get so late so soon?  Its night before it's afternoon.  December is here before its June.  My goodness how the time has flewn.  How did it get so late so ...

It's hard to believe it's been two years since I started writing this blog.  I had read somewhere that the average blog life is about 18 months before the blog is abandoned.  This is a long time to try and think of new and interesting things to share.  I'm lucky though, I love my job and I love writing.  I feel I am ...