SUMMER VACATION TO-DO LIST

When the last beach towel was loaded, the family pulled out of the driveway and headed on vacation. That’s when an unsettling moaning noise caught their attention. Chances are the moaning noise was a result of low transmission fluid. But without a professional technician to check it out, how could the travelers be certain that topping it off would fix it? A pre-trip review is the smart way to begin a vacation or road trip. Long before the dog goes to the sitter and the neighbors are asked to pick up the newspapers, it’s important to schedule an appointment with your repair facility to examine the vehicle. Fluids Fluids are an important part of any vehicle checklist. Expect your technician to check and perhaps replace or top off the following: antifreeze/coolant, transmission, engine oil, brake fluid, washer fluid, power steering fluid and gasoline. The transmission fluid, oil and gasoline also have filters that will need to be examined. Air filter Another importan [Read More]

published July 12, 2010 at 7:53pm EDT

SUMMER SAFETY: KIDS AND HOT CARS DON'T MIX

It's that time of the year again. Warm summer temps make going to the pool, beach and parks a lot of fun. But those higher temps can be deadly inside a parked car. So far this year, twenty child deaths can be attributed to heat stroke and#40;hyperthermiaand#41; from being left in a hot vehicle and#40;sourceand#41;. About half of the deaths over the last ten years can be attributed to a caregiver forgetting the child in the car. Another third is from kids playing in an unattended vehicle. Think it can't happen to you? Leaving your child in the car for even a few minutes with the windows cracked can be fatal. A car left in the sun for 10 minutes can reach a temperature almost 20 degrees higher than outside temperatures. Wait 30 minutes and that number goes up to almost 35 degrees. Wait an hour and temps can soar to 45 degrees above outside. On a 90 degree day, your car interior could reach 135 degrees! And cracking your windows has little effect on temps. Children's bodies heat up 3-5 times [Read More]

published July 12, 2010 at 7:36pm EDT

NEW TRAILER FOR EAT PRAY LOVE

The excitement is building. andlt; pandgt; [Read More]

published July 7, 2010 at 6:04pm EDT

GIVING VICTIMS A VOICE: THE MISS LANDMINE PAGEANT

Morten Traavik wasn’t expecting much from his trip to Angola in 2003, but what he found there would change the future for women across the world. During his time in Angola with his then girlfriend, Traavik immediately recognized two very important things: women everywhere that had been maimed by landmines left over from the country’s 27-year-long civil war were outcast from their fully functioning citizen counterparts, and that the people of Angola loved performances - even if it was humbly held in a narrow back alley. This got him thinking about ways to convince the Angolan government that they needed to stop overlooking people with disabilities, and last year he created the Miss Landmine Pageant to show that every woman has the right to be beautiful. Traavik’s manifesto for the Miss Landmine project seeks to create both female and disabled pride and empowerment, establish global and local landmine awareness, replace the passive term “victim” with the active term “survi [Read More]

published July 5, 2010 at 6:02pm EDT

FIVE TIPS FOR PREPARING FOR SUMMERTIME CAR TRAVEL

Summer vacation times are nearly here! Whether you're planning for long distance summer travel, or just running errands on a hot day, you don't want to be left stranded in the summer heat.  Now is the time to "summerize" your car and make sure the entire family is ready for any journey.Jody DeVere, President and CEO of AskPatty.com, knows what it's like to take a road trip with the kids buckled up in back. "If you've ever driven more than a few hours straight with kids in tow, be prepared for anything that can happen on the road. To help reduce the stress of summertime travel, here are some planning tips to help you get organized ahead of time." 1and#41; Plan your route. Especially when trekking new territory, use an online mapping service to find the best way to get there.. There is often more than one route to most destinations. Do you want to take the longer, more scenic route? Or do you want to get there quickly via the most direct route? Before you depart, check with local traffic [Read More]

published May 31, 2010 at 5:48pm EDT

A CHICK’S GUIDE TO STUDYING ABROAD

If there is a single person whom absolutely no one would ever suspect to study abroad, that person is definitely… me. But come September, I will be boarding a plane to London, where I will be learning to navigate the Tube and#40;the transportation system, that isand#41; and better understand British English, and also where I hope I will fatefully run into Robert Pattinson or Daniel Radcliffe. Yep, I’m scared out of my mind. But at the same time, I couldn’t be more grateful for my sudden epiphany that this might be my one and only chance to travel before I gear up for the “real world.” So, Chicks, if you haven’t already considered spending a semester abroad, I suggest you start now! Why should I study abroad in the first place? Saint Augustine once said, “The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.”  I’ve never heard a truer quote. Honestly, I’ve never been out of the US before, but I can’t believe how ignorant I was about the rest of the w [Read More]

published May 17, 2010 at 9:00pm EDT

MOUNTAINS AND MOUNDS

After the Easter trip to Mississippi, I ended up first in Sarasota, FL, at the Hermitage, then home to NYC for a minute, then back to Montalvo to retrieve my car and kayak and bike, and then I drove to northeastern Wyoming, where I am spending May at an artist’s colony at Ucross. I was here once a long time ago, and since then, they have built the most perfect composer’s studio ever. I really really love it here. Wow. On Saturday I took a hike up to some teepee circles that are on a hill overlooking the tiny intersection that forms the town of Ucross and#40;population 25.and#41; It turns out that the name teepee circle is misleading: archaeologists do not find evidence of encampments or any domestic life at these sites, and seem to think the circles have something to do with religion or vision quests. And they are very old, at least 1000 – 2000 years old, maybe more. What I found deeply striking, and the reason I am writing about it on this RiverBlog, was that the location of thi [Read More]

published May 17, 2010 at 6:52pm EDT

PLANNING THE ULTIMATE CHICKS-ONLY GETAWAY

Summer is quickly approaching and chicks in colleges across the country are getting ready for the upcoming months of internships, jobs, and, in some cases, summer classes. However, just because a chick’s summer schedule may not be as flexible as it was in the past, it doesn’t mean she can’t steal away for a little time for fun in the sun.And what better way to spend her time off than with her best girlfriends? The chicks-only vacation, featured in films like Crossroads and Sex and the City, has become a summer staple and a rite of passage for many chicks. While they do take a little planning and saving, these trips are bottomless well of opportunity for bonding, memories and the birth of traditions. First, decide whom you would like to go away with. This is probably the most crucial element of your girls-only weekend. Make sure to invite people who get along well and have no ill will towards each other. The last thing you want is for the fun to be spoiled by conflict and argumen [Read More]

published May 3, 2010 at 4:50pm EDT

VACATION PLANNING FOR CHICKS ON A BUDGET

For most college students, the end of the school year comes early. Luckily, there is usually a pretty decent gap of time between the conclusion of final exams and the beginning of summer jobs or internships. So, Chicks, you know what this means: time to start planning one of those cheap-but-unforgettable vacations to help forget the stress of the past eight months. For those of you who have never been on a cruise, I strongly recommend it as the ultimate relaxing getaway. Last Minute Cruises is a well-known website specifically geared toward aiding a couple of people-or a group of people-in finding a few open cabins on a cruise trip only a few weeks before the trip. Some of the cruise lines offered include Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Princess Cruises, and Royal Caribbean International. It’s so easy to book a cruise: just a few clicks of the mouse and you can fill in your summer calendar with three or four days of cinemas, wave pools, and night clubs all in the middle of [Read More]

published April 29, 2010 at 1:26pm EDT

A CHICK’S GUIDE TO CLEVER (OVER)PACKING

I’ve become a notorious over-packer amongst my family and friends. My bags are usually hovering on the edge of overweight when I fly and#40;or sometimes just blatantly too heavy, like when I went back to school in August this year with 3 suitcases, 2 of which were around 75 pounds eachand#41; and I always travel with multiple bags… even if I’m only going away for the weekend. I’m always scared of not having what I need, even though you can usually find anything anywhere you are now-a-days, and I like being prepared and secure and#40;Small handbags? Not even an optionand#41;. Despite my efforts - and I really do try - I can never seem to achieve the art of packing lightly. I just can’t get around my need to be prepared and#40;and I wasn’t even a Girl Scoutand#41; and even when I think I’m packing well, I always end up with a lot of stuff. I have gotten better though and#40;practice makes perfectand#41; at making it seem as if I’ve packed less - and sometimes actually doing it. I’m [Read More]

published March 25, 2010 at 5:51pm EDT