Women's Running Shoes

I've been thinking a lot about womens running shoes, which seems kind of weird since we have over two feet of snow on the ground right now, but they've been on my mind. In high school I hated running. It was just never my thing, but from time to time during my adult life I have been tempted to give it another chance. Most recently this past summer I got into actually running outside. I was only going a mile each time but it felt like an achievement for me to make that change from hating running to actually liking it. I had even started running at intervals in between walking on our treadmill.

There are so many different kinds of shoes out there that I wondered how people go about deciding which ones to buy. There are even videos on youtube to help make that decision. I have to admit that along with all the many components of the shoe itself I look for two main things in a sneaker, is it comfortable and do I like how it looks. I have managed to get away from the looks aspect a bit. This summer I bought a pair of Curves sneakers with the rounded soles, similar to the Sketchers ones. I feel like they help my muscles get a better workout, but that they look a bit orthopedic. I know I never would have worn them in high school but I guess I am a bit less vain now! That said the pair of sneakers I picked before that were pink and on sale. I guess on sale rates up there for me too.

There are so many different names for Running_shoes. Some people call them sneakers, other trainers, others tennis shoes, and the list goes on. Believe it or not sporting shoes have been around for over a hundred years, starting at least in 1907 when Spalding came out with shoes designed for basketball. Since then many inventions have gone into the shoes we use today and when you go to the store they are broken down into what sport they are made to be used for. I always wonder though if that makes that much of a difference. I both run and walk in mine, but are there people out there who buy one just for walking and one just for running? I understand the need for specialized shoes for sports that require cleats (like football,soccer, softball and baseball) and for wrestling. But what about cheer leading? I know there are shoes for it, I bought my daughter two different pairs this year alone, but is there anything different about the interior of the shoes or is it all exterior cosmetics that make these shoes?

I guess I've been thinking about shoes in the hopes that spring arrives and we will be able to go out and enjoy a walk or run in nature. But until that time comes I am going to smile at our snow and walk on my treadmill. I wonder if there are shoes designed just for treadmill walking?

Stem Cells

Lately I have seen a lot of information in the news about stem cells. It seems like a lot of research is starting to make some new headway and gaining ground. Stem cells are cells that are able to replicate themselves through cell division and are able to make cells with special functions, like red blood cells. They are often thought of as a way to replenish or replace diseased cells. I found a lot of general information about stem cells .

When I was reading the news on CNN recently I came across a study currently underway with patients who suffer from ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Researchers injected stem cells from an 8 week old fetus directly into the spine of a 60 year old man with ALS. There are plans to replicate this procedure with at least twelve patients. The injections were into the lumbar region of the spine since the first muscles affected are usually in the lower body. CNN did a really good job reporting on the study.

MSN had a story about looking for ways to grow stem cells without needing embryonic tissue. Stem cells are present in adults as well so researchers have started to use skin cells to grow stem cells. While they have had some success so far, these cells do not tend to live as long in the lab as ones obtained from embryos. This research sounds promising.

Taking my back to high school science classes I watched some videos on you tube like this one to get a better idea understanding of stem cells.


The New York Times also ran a very informative article about the legislation currently being used to govern the use of stem cells . This legislation is very informative.

Stem cell research seems so promising to people suffering from many disorders such as ALS, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and more. At the same time there are a lot of questions and ethical issues about the ways that stem cells are obtained. When I read the article on CNN the first time I somehow had in my head that they had taken the cells from the spine of an 8 week old baby which seemed cruel, when I looked back I saw it had been obtained from a fetus instead. As a mother my first thought was sadness for the baby that will never be. Now I have no idea why that fetus did not have the chance to grow to maturity, it could have been left over from fertility treatments, grown in a tube for the purpose of research, miscarried, or aborted. How do we weigh this issue? I can’t see there ever being a point when everyone will be happy with the way it is treated. The lives that can be made better and possibility improved in large ways for patients who are suffering and dying have to be balanced with the lives that did not get to be for one reason or another. A whole new can of worms is opened with this.

I would like to see more research done with cord blood, blood that can be obtained from the umbilical cord after birth. It can be obtained from the cord attached to the placenta and in no way takes anything away from the baby. While removing the cells from the embryo destroys the embryo taking cells from the cord after birth does not hurt anyone, neither the baby or the mother. While I was pregnant I received a lot of information about banking cord blood, but little about donating it. I asked numerous times and tried to find a way to donate it and eventually just gave up because everyone tries to steer you towards paying to have it banked. Why not harness the possibility of using cord blood as well as stem cells to look for cures and ways to improve the quality of life of people who are suffering?

Vegas Games

VegasGames

There are a lot of thoughts about gambling and casinos. I know many people who enjoy going to a casino for entertainment. They go to sit at a slot machine or a table game, to see a show, eat at a restaurant or visit one of the other attractions offered by any given casino. My view of casinos and gambling may be different than some other people because for seven years Las Vegas was my home. My husband and I owned a house and had jobs in the area. I taught elementary school and half or more of the parents of my students were employed by casinos. The funny thing is people can picture the Las Vegas Strip or Freemont Street with its casinos and light shows but have trouble picturing that there are people who live there year round, with homes or apartments, mortgages and jobs. We drive by the billboards daily with the toll free number for people suffering from gambling addiction and forget that in other places in the country there is such a thing as last call.

When we first moved to Las Vegas we loved to go to eat at the casinos, this was eleven years ago and the buffets were really reasonable and full of fun food. Suffice it to say those first few months we both put on some extra pounds. We got used to walking by slot machines to pay for gas at the gas station or to go to the movies, a restaurant or a museum. So many casinos had extra attractions to entice people to visit and stay longer. We saw 3-D Imax movies at the Luxor, sharks at Mandalay Bay, dancing fountains at Bellagio, gondoliers at the Venetian, pirate shows at Treasure Island before the show was changed, rode a roller coaster at New York, New York and looked at the town and rode rides at the top of the Stratosphere. While we loved all of the attractions after the second month we never gambled again. Those bells on the slot machines lost their luster and I have never in my life sat down at a table game. Since we moved a few years ago new casinos have been build with even more attraction like the Wynn .

I recall one night going to dinner with friends and one of them stopped at a table game at the Mirage and bet $20 each on two hands of black jack. He lost both and kept walking like it was nothing. The friend I was next to turned to me and pointed out how that would have paid for the boots she had considered at the mall the week before and he had just gambled it as if it were nothing. I share a similar line of thinging. While I know there are a lot of people who get enjoyment and consider gambling to be entertainment I always thought more along the lines of, “What else could I be spending this on?” I would rather spend money on going out to eat, seeing a show or movie, going on vacation and staying at a hotel or visiting an amusement park. To me the money that went into a slot machine felt like I was throwing it away since the chances of winning are so unlikely. I know they post great returns on big signs in lots of casinos, but in the long run how many big winners do you really know? How many people who win big one day actually lost way more than what they won if you were to tally up the days they didn’t win?

I have conflicted feelings about online gambling. The laws about online gambling are a bit confusing. Depending on how it is done some sites may be illegal and rules vary from state to state. One of my first objections was that it is available 24/7 but then so are casinos in Las Vegas and other locals so I guess that concern may be unfounded. More than that though my biggest worry is that people will overdo it. The same people who are susceptible to the lure of a big win in person are just as likely to hope for the big win online. In writing this I looked at some web sites that offer online gambling and they do manage to make it look fun. I guess if you are able to be realistic in your expectations and responsible in what you risk, playing online may be a good option for people who live far from a casino and still want to enjoy taking a chance. It may not be for me, but that doesn’t mean it might not be just right for someone else. One site that I looked at was VegasRed. It offered games like black jack, roulette and slots. I guess with a lot more people doing staycations rather than vacations this might be a way to visit a casino from home.