Miami Beach here I come!

I won't be blogging for the next 10 days.

I am headed to Miami Beach in the morning!

Sun, surf, sand and (hopefully) cabana boys!!!!

Take care all. See you when I get back.

If I come back :)

Benzene and my son...part 2

In my previous post I wrote about the phone call from my son telling me he had been "gassed" at work.

Benzene.

The following is taken from the CDC's website:
"Breathing very high levels of benzene can result in death, while high levels can cause drowsiness, dizziness, rapid heart rate, headaches, tremors, confusion, and unconsciousness. Eating or drinking foods containing high levels of benzene can cause vomiting, irritation of the stomach, dizziness, sleepiness, convulsions, rapid heart rate, and death.

The major effect of benzene from long-term exposure is on the blood. Benzene causes harmful effects on the bone marrow and can cause a decrease in red blood cells leading to anemia. It can also cause excessive bleeding and can affect the immune system, increasing the chance for infection."

It took hours and hours of research on the internet to find anything that would tell me how long the affects of his "gassing" would last. One site - one - told me if a person is sensitive to chemicals, etc, that it could last a few days. My son is still feeling the affects.

And today he went to the ER - he had a small abcess on his lower back. In the last 2 days it has doubled in size and began extremely painful. The doctor told him that with the gassing it shot his immune system to hell, and that could cause the major infection. He is now restricted to bed until Wednesday (except for doctor visits).

My son is angry. He is impatient. He is only 23. His life the last few days has been turned upside down. Sweats so bad he has had to change the sheets on his bed a few times a day, a horrid headache that doesnt stop and he said he is just so tired.

He called me tonight after he had gotten up from a four hour nap. He is finally starting to sound like my boy again. I even got him to laugh. (We were both watching America's Funniest Video's.)

I have emailed a couple of Government agencies already and will do more tomorrow. I have found where websites about Zug Isand seem to have been removed from the web. Hmmmm...

Sorry US Steel and Ford. I will spread the word. Too many people work there and risk their lives each day. How many families have had their worlds turned inside out due to the illnesses the workers have developed later on in life due to the toxic fumes at that plant?

I am not saying the Union isn't at fault here either. The Union and the companies need to communicate and work together. They have human beings working for them that they need to take care of and give them a safe and secure workplace.

My son is lucky. And so am I. He is alive. That might not have been the case had the man working with him not noticed the sudden changes in his behavior.

Thank you sir. From the bottom of my heart - thank you.

Benzene...and my son

My son called me yesterday around 5pm....

"Mom, I got gassed today".

You got WHAT?

My son is an apprentice pipefitter. He is currently working in a hell hole in the Detroit area. No one wants to work there. Camera's are not allowed there.

OSHA SHOULD be there.

He tells me that his supervisor gives them new cartridges for their respirators every TWO weeks... Excuse me? Two freaking weeks? He is working in a highly toxic area.

OSHA requirements say they are allowed:
"concentrations of benzene exceed or can reasonably be expected to exceed, the permissible exposure limits, either the 8-hour time weighted average exposure of 1 ppm or the short-term exposure limit of 5 ppm for 15 minutes. "

My son was sick to his stomach, didn't quite know where he was, said he thought his head was going to explode.

They took him to a clinic...not a hospital (grrrrrrr). Luckily his boss went with him. He MADE the doctor take blood samples. He called last night and this morning to check on my boy.

This, taken from a Detroit News article in 2005: "The home to US Steel, Zug Island is so full of toxins that, 40 years ago, it was considered the most polluted square mile on Earth."

You can go to the EPA's website, put in Zug Island and get pages and pages of penalties, etc.

And my son works there.

My son could have died there.

US Steel and Ford? I am doing my research. You will hear from me.

US Government? You too will hear from me.

Vacation!!!! (yes again!)

A week from tomorrow I will be on a plane to Florida...Sunny Isles Beach to be exact! :) <--see the smile there, its a big one.

We found that instead of going to Phoenix we can probably get three trips out of the price of the airline tickets.

The view in the picture above was taken from the balcony of the hotel where we stayed before - and will be staying again.

I can't wait!!!

Ocean, sand, surf....life guards :)

Nine days of sun (please please...ohhhh please let there be sun!) and warmth. (Anything will be warmer than Ohio!)

I have five more days in the office (yes, dummy me is working next Monday - or part of it....maybe). I just know the time will pass slowly.

But it will be worth it...I just know it :)

Written Elevator Rage....

Yes elevator!

ARGHHHH!

People can be so rude! Did no one have parents teach them any manners?? Does anyone know what manners are anymore??

Our offices moved recently - from a 24 floor building to a 4 floor building. Its wonderful. At the old place we had to stand and wait forever for an elevator and when you finally got one so many people would get on that they would step on your feet - shove you to the back etc...

I thought those days were over....until today.

Now we park in a large parking garage...12 floors. Tonight I took the elevator instead of the stairs...and I was shoved to the back.

Ok, so I pushed myself against the back glass so as not to have my feet stood on...but I was the first to get out.

Door opens..."Excuse me"....(no movement)

"Excuse me" (again, no movement)

"I'd really appreciate being able to get off this damned elevator."

Two women parted...sort of like the red sea, only not as far.

What happened to stepping OUT of an elevator (you can put your hand on the door so it doesnt shut)?? If someone behind me wants off, I step OUT of the elevator and give them room to escape.

I swear...next time I will stand there and start talking to myself. I will mumble things about head lice or body crabs...I will draw a circle on the floor and tell them to stay out of my space....I will tell them, not so politely, to move their ass!

Arrrgh!

Kids! Just when you think you have them figured out...

They do and say things so mature that you just totally freak...

Totally.

Ok, so you know I have this 23 yr old son. He's not perfect (thankgod). How could he be? He was raised by me! Yep, he lived with me alone from the time he was 15 months old till he was going on 20...and then he moved to that northern state...the one with wolverines.

Anyway...he called the other night all excited. His friend had called him about a house that is sitting empty - the previous owners lost it to foreclosure. He talked so quickly about it having 5 bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths on a 1/2 acre lot - WITH LAKE ACCESS!!! The house is currently available for about 1/2 or so of what it could sell for (houses in the area are going for over $300,000). He could have a couple roomies to help with the mortgage...and it has LAKE ACCESS! He would have a yard of his own, a huge kitchen...and LAKE ACCESS!

In case you don't understand...my son sorta kinda loves to fish.

So, here is my not perfect son....growing up, thinking of buying a home!

He called tonight about it again. He spoke with his Dad and they are going over Thursday to look at it closely.

I have teased him that now he even has room for me :)

He agreed! :)

But, I wouldn't do that. It's time for my boy to have his life. And he is well on his way...he really is.

Full Figured????

Ok, I hardly ever watch those nighttime entertainment shows - but tonight was different. I saw a commercial about a young girl modeling for a national magazine. And (insert valley girl voice here) ohmygod! she was a size 10 and they called her FULL FIGURED! ohforgodssake!!!

What the hell is wrong with this world anymore?? People blame the magazines and movies for girls wanting to become pencil thin..what the hell? This was a "news magazine" show! They called this beautiful young girl who has a SHAPE full figured! Since when did having curves become taboo?

Now I know you are probably thinking I am some short round 51 yr old woman..yadayada... Wrong. I used to be a very large woman. I was a very large young woman. In high school I weighed 230 lbs. I lost 100 lbs my senior year and kept it off. Yes, I gained a lot of weight when I was preggers for my boy...but I took that off too. I wear a size 4/6.

But that doesn't matter...I just get so pissed off at people who put such pressure on these young women to look like lollipops! Straight, no shape and these big heads on their shoulders. There is a commercial for some weight loss program that has a woman stating she used to be a size 10 and now is a size 2! She makes it sound like she weighed 50,000 lbs before! She was a freaking size 10! People treat a size 10 like they used to treat a size 20 or 24! (I wore a size 20, I know!)

ARGHHHHH!

The young woman in that magazine was gorgeous! She has a shape, she is absolutely beautiful! She is NOT a big girl! She is NOT full figured!

She HAS a figure!

Ok, I'll get off my soapbox now. I have a bowl of pretzels calling my name. :)

OHIO STATE BUCKEYES!!

Enough said :)