Most Important Things Hurricane Irene Can Teach Us About Reunions

Most of the people I know are either talking about Beyoncé being pregnant or Hurricane Irene. My inner circle and I are talking about the latter diva: Hurricane Irene. As a businesswoman who helps people connect and reconnect through games and activities I was surprised that this storm taught me to appreciate my work much more. For that reason, I want to share the 3 things Hurricane Irene taught me about appreciating reunions.

During the weekend the news (television, print, internet and radio) and social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) gave their projections of what this category 3 storm would leave behind. We all paid close attention to these updates so we would know what to expect and how the people we cared about would fare. As an adoptive Eastern North Carolinian from Bronx, NY, many of my family and friends still live in New York City-another region that was affected by the hurricane-so, naturally I was concerned.

My phone was full of activity. There were various text messages, Facebook messages, and phone calls. I was worried about my family, both those in the North and the South, and they were worried about me. We were lucky--we lost power for less than 6 hours, no one was hurt and we only had a small leak in the ceiling. However, some weren't so lucky. I saw pictures of fallen trees in the middle of person's living room, a flooded mall parking lot and heard about a few deaths related to hurricane Irene.

How many of you were thinking "Wow when was the last time I saw (fill in the blank)?" Society as a whole takes living for granted. We tend to assume that we will be afforded time to do things at a later date. Unfortunately, this passing Hurricane teaches us that this is untrue. No excuses about being too far, too busy, or too tired because none of those excuses mattered during the hurricane...did they?

Listed are 3 things we should all learn from Hurricane Irene.

1. Be Proactive-Not Reactive: Why wait for them to make the first move? Reconnect and restore relationships that you have been putting off, NOW. Appreciate, love and play with those most important to you. Make plans to see each other. It's never too early to plan your next get together. Planning in advance lets everyone involved know when your next reunion or event will take place and gives THEM time to plan and gather their resources to attend.

2. Don't wait for a Tragedy: A reunion (family, class, or military) is a great way to enjoy one another. Many times we don't realize, or appreciate the family and friends we have until something bad happens. Sadly, too many people reconnect at funerals. It is then that we meet extended family members that we do not know. Let's decide, today, to see the ones we care about on better circumstances!

3. Make Time: Make visiting with family a priority. Coincidentally enough, my Aunt Hazel, who I hadn't seen since 2008 was visiting us in North Carolina the week before Irene hit. I was so happy to reconnect with her again, but realized that we went too long to without seeing her. She had been waiting for us to visit but we had not had the time. Decide that spending time with your family and friends is just as important as your child's sporting event, an intimate relationship, school or promotion.

We all could take a lesson from my aunt. She knew and followed all three of the lessons mentioned above. #1: She was proactive, she came to us. She decided not to wait until we had the time to get to her. #2: She didn't wait for a tragedy to occur and #3 she decided that seeing her family was important to her.

While hurricane Irene was a tremendous storm that bought fear into our hearts, ruins to some of our homes and ripped us down to our bear minimum, Irene taught us that life is precious. She made us take stock in our family, to spend time with those we see every day, but without the power to use the television as a distraction. Irene made us reach out to those we have not seen or spoken to in years. So while Irene was a tragedy for some, let's also recognize the lessons she taught about the value of THEM.

Why People Retire Early ?

What would, or could be considered a retirement age in today's world of employment? The age set years ago, summarised that the age of sixty-five constituted a retirement age. Is this still a standard maintained today?

The workforce, world-wide, is requiring that employees accept an earlier retirement age, so that the unemployment status be reduced. The now early retired people, no longer considered unemployed and now not an encumbrance on the government. Are they now not unemployed? Sure, they will receive an income from a source set up by their employer, but this is a loss of experience now expected to entertain themselves at home.

The fact is, there are reasons for taking early retirement, the first being your health. This is probably the most serious decision requiring investigation. Is the health deteriorating quickly, is it a reason for possible boarding and is there sufficient funds available to continue to live life at a reasonable standard? Insurance payouts for disability, contributions made towards retirement policies as well as employer contributions; all items requiring investigation. The resulting health problems may need an extra income to insure Doctors and follow-up treatment is financially viable.

Early retirement for health reasons, an out for an employer foreseeing possible man hour loss due to sick leave being taken by an employee, could be construed as illegal in some countries. Be advised to investigate all these facts before signing an agreement to retire early.

A business, finding itself in a financial down swing, seeking answers for relief, may consider retrenchment. The normal first step of retrenchment is to find employees nearing the age of retirement, offering them a financial package to accept early retirement. This a serious consideration for any employee. The first investigation must include the resultant loss of growth expected from early termination of a retirement policy. The financial package offered, if invested, will this result in the same expected payout. The second step, if far below pensionable age, is there a sufficient possibility for re-employment within the area.

Early retirement in the case of retrenchment, is possibly unavoidable and serious consideration of the future necessary. Part time employment or opening a small business considerations needing attention.

Some business, controlled by changing committees, selected annually, can apply pressure on employees they feel too old for the occupation for which employed. These include Golf Clubs, Sports Clubs and others where the club owned by the members. An unsafe environment, not from the nature of the work but because of the unstable managing structure. Each new member of a committee will want to stamp his authority, to show the selecting members they chose correctly.

On occasions this has been the demise of an employee or two. A committee of younger members may consider the employee base too old and wish to replace the old with the new. This is the third reason for considering early retirement. This consideration is the easy one. Do you wish to stay and fight the suggestion, possibly facing termination on trumped-up charges? Will your stance not be the cause of traumatic mental anguish? If this is the case then take early retirement and consider the options after.

All forms of early retirement, unless you're independently wealthy, will have their unforeseeable pit falls. Inflation, an unpredictable economic process, can change a good living income into a difficulty of making ends meet. Devaluation, a decree your government can declare, could have devastating consequences. Your standard of living is going to change, economising, a new word of operation to your spending.

Should this stop you from taking early retirement? I do not think so, plan and plan wisely, consider all the options and decide based on investigated fact. Consider the possible opportunities available for supplementing your income in the early years. But enjoy your retirement, make time for yourself, after all, the past years spent enriching your employer, now over.

At a younger age, consider your retirement; how to supplement your retirement income. Invest in a proven reliable source, buy property known for increasing in value, invest with insurance banks or companies and even, if confident enough, invest in stocks and shares. Do something to insure that your time of retirement is a pleasant experience and not a struggle to survive.

Tips for Teaching Your Own Children - Homeschooling

Tip #1 Short, Frequent Sessions Are Better

Two or three short lessons during the day are better than one long one of the same amount of total time. If, for example, your child is struggling with multiplication tables, one way you can help is by selecting one to three facts. Throughout the day review these three facts in different ways. Always come back to the same ones but then move onto the next item on the agenda. Make it like a game. Try the same thing for spelling. Students can benefit from short breaks, but also try changing activities frequently. Many times even a change from one kind of activity to another kind can provide the break that one needs. Plan your schedule so that the child concentrates well on a reading assignment for no more than fifteen to twenty minutes and then play a math game for the same amount of time. Follow the math activity with a reading or writing activity.

Tip # 2: Give Choices When Possible

One year, I home schooled a foster son who I will call John. He mastered the art of manipulation and avoidance of responsibility and SCHOOL WORK. Depending on the time of the year and John's unpredictable whims, Math was either his favorite or least favorite subject and correspondingly, best or worst. I had three or four strands of Math planned for John so I could give him a choice of which Math to do. Also, I wrote a list of all the items he needed to do that morning on the white board. He would choose what he wanted to do and erase as we went along. At one point we even had to limit Math to a "Vita-Math". I took a problem out of the book that had grown unbearable for John and wrote it on a card. I put all of these "Vita-Maths" in a container. I only required him to take one "Vita-Math" a day, but it was so fun he did several. Soon he was able to swallow a longer assignment. These simple techniques greatly reduced his reluctance and avoidance.

Tip #3: Teaching Math Facts

Learning math facts remains a huge challenge for many children. To help your child to face this challenge, isolate it from other math learning. Do not slow down learning math computation by expecting the transfer of knowing math facts automatically, though that is the ultimate goal. Throughout the day alternate between visual input and auditory input of a few selected facts. Finally, a timed fact drill can assess progress. I have students reach a goal to complete the drill in 2 minutes. After going through all of the facts, we return to do them with the goal of doing it in a 1 and ½ minute and so on to reach the age appropriate speed for those facts. Rapid Recall System of LGS Educational Services is an excellent program teaching the math facts in this way. Calculadders of The Providence Project also provide fact drills with recommended times.

Tip #4 Provide As Much Practice As Needed

Each child will need a different amount of practice on a given math concept. Just as you do not want to bore the child who learns it after doing it three times, neither do you want to go on before a child has mastered it. Saxon is known for its "spiral curriculum." After a short practice set, the main set of 25-30 problems is review. This is good for a child that learns a new idea quickly. If your child is doing well with Saxon, there is no reason to change. A Beka is a fast-moving math curriculum and is generally believed to be about a year above grade level. Bob Jones and Addison Wesley provide more practice for the child that needs more. If you have a text that does not provide enough practice, find supplementary material or make more problems yourself.

Those needing even more practice would benefit from Calculadders, and the Keys to... series (Measurement, Fractions, Decimals, Percents, Algebra, Geometry) Also, Garlic Press has a series of supplemental workbooks on different topics that are very inexpensive. Hayes Mastery Drills in Mathematics and Hayes Problem Solving also provide practice in mathematics at a low cost.