Rhiannon's blog

Is the United States of America headed in the right direction?

What I don't know: Is our country's overall economic situation overcoming the proper hurdles that stand in its way?

What studies show: A recent poll conducted by CNN shows 8 out of 10 Americans say the economy is in bad shape.

"Have you gotten a tattoo in the past year?"
"No."
"Have you been tested for syphilis or gonorrhea?"
"No."
"Have you been in juvenile detention, lockup, jail or prison for more than 72 hours?"
"No," I replied again.

Busted. If stereotypes had speakers, mine would be busted (get it? stereos? speakers?). For the past three years, I’ve had the opportunity to work for the one of the largest nonprofits in the nation with the role of helping people put out an unhealthy, expensive (even more expensive as of April 1st), potentially fatal habit. Addicts. Nicotine addicts. Smokers. Prior to working for this organization, the term “smoker” always lit up images of weak-minded, dirty, broke, uneducated outcasts who had no willpower and didn’t care about their health; people who had some kind of oral fixation that somehow seemed to be satisfied by sucking on some “little white stick.” I didn’t make that phrase up. I once had a caller tell me –in an exasperated voice- how desperately she wanted to quit and how she was tired of “worshipping these little white sticks.”

Sugar Coat It

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Never met the man. Never shook his hand.

Or had coffee with him.

Though I would have liked to.

It was nice bumping into you

My props for person of the year go to a man who could have potentially saved me (and you) 81 million dollars in 2009: Harold A. Fenner, Jr., M.D.

So who is Harold and how can you get his number? Before we veer off into that topic, consider this: More than 46.3 million Americans cruise around without health insurance everyday according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s latest reports.