Minnow’s Five Things
1. I’ll begin with some final words on the Olympics. I’m sorry they are over. I miss them already. I loved watching the athleticism and courage of the amazing athletes from all over the world. I loved judging their behaviour (to cry or not to cry) when I was in no position to do so and I loved reading the commentary from other media channels. An example of this is the outstanding investigative reporting exhibited above.
2. On a more serious and heartwarming note, my favourite story from the games was about Elijah Porter, the 10 year old boy from Newfoundland who sent the Canadian men’s 4X 100 relay team his own bronze medal (his only medal ever won). Porter understands adversity and the importance of fighting back. He wrote, ‘We’re Canadians. We persevere.’ That’s the message from a boy with Asperger’s syndrome who is homeschooled and rarely writes but was able to capture the hearts of the Canadian track team and an entire nation with his own words. ‘I saw all the people were crying and realized how much it meant to them. I thought it would make them feel better if they got something,’ said Porter. It reminds us that we need to listen to our children more than we do.
3. But now it’s time to turn our attention to back-to-school season, which is in full swing here at Savvy HQ. Our Back to School Gear Guide was filled with great ideas for backpacks, lunch bags and other essentials, but my favourite is the Optari Backpack. This water-resistant bag looks like you could easily hose it down after a long day of housing old lunch items and smelly sneakers. I also made note of the O3 Kids Cooler Backpack, a lunch bag and backpack all in one—just right for kids who know snack time is the most important part of the day.
4. Speaking of snacks, I heard some interesting news about one of our favourites—popcorn. As a child growing up in the eighties, I was no stranger to microwave popcorn or even margarine. As an adult, I am no stranger to the delightful flavour that can be enjoyed in a glass of Chardonnay. So you can imagine my horror when I learned that diacetyl, the flavourant used to produce the delicious (but fake) buttery taste in all of these items, may be linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Scientists found that the architectural make up of diacetyl is similar to a substance that makes proteins clump together in the brain. That clumping (also referred to as plaque build-up) is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. I’ll be watching for more on this study but in the meantime I’m air-popping my corn and using butter on the kid’s sandwiches. As for the Chardonnay…I’ll keep you posted on that.
5. In other shocking news, the story of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart’s breakup just won’t go away. He’s a victim. She’s a homewrecker. Has the director gone back to his wife? It’s good Hollywood stuff. Our own Kelli Daisy has been covering it in SavvyStories. I watched Robert on Jon Stewart’s show Tuesday night, eating ice cream and carefully avoiding the questions being fired at him. At the risk of over analyzing The Daily Show, I will say that Jon’s comments at the end were well put: When you are young and you break up, it is powerful and it feels the like world is ending. This is the first time I have seen the whole world actually act that way. Here is my wish for you: that you get to handle your business in private. Unfortunately, I don’t think the world will allow that because, for some very sad and frightening reason, so many people care deeply about this breakup. Are you one of them?
