Today is Earth Day!

Posted on April 22, 2015 by Patricia Thao

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“April 22, 2015, marks the 45th anniversary of Earth Day ― a day intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s natural environment. The day came from reaction to a massive oil spill in waters near Santa Barbara, CA. in 1969.” – (http://www.census.gov/)

Time to show the Earth a little appreciation and do something good for the Earth. The more we can help out with out environment, the more it will help us back in return. Here are 10 facts to know about how people are trying to conserve resources, how energy is consumed, and how people help the Earth:

1. 5,456 = The number of employees in wind electric power generation, the most among the industries using renewable energy in 2012.

2. 56.8 million = Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country heated by utility gas in 2013, which is 49.1 percent of all homes.

3. 4,000,459 = Estimated number of people who walked to work in 2013. This comes out to about 2.8 percent of the American workforce.

4. 52,906 = Number of workers employed in nuclear electric power generation (NAICS 221113) across the U.S. in 2012.

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5. 2,598 square feet = The average size of a single-family home completed in 2013; 59,000 had two or fewer bedrooms and 251,000 had four bedrooms or more.

6. 8.4 billion = Product shipments value for recycled paperboard in 2013.

7. 1.5 billion = Estimated revenue for “waste collection – hazardous waste management collection services” in 2013 for estimated sources of revenue for U.S. employer firms. This was up 16.4 percent from 2012.

8. -32% = The drop in the consumption of coal in the U.S. manufacturing sector from 2002 to 2010, going from 1,956 trillion Btu in 2002 down to 1,328 trillion Btu consumed in 2010.

9. 25.8 minutes = Estimated average time for workers age 16 and older across the country spent getting to work in 2013, up from 25.7 minutes in 2012 and 25.5 minutes in 2011.

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10. 9.8 billion = Revenues in 2012 for electric power generation industries that use renewable energy resources, such as hydro, wind, geothermal, biomass, solar and other electric power generation. This figure is up 49.0 percent from $6.6 billion in 2007.

National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness

Posted on April 20, 2015 by Patricia Thao

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On April 10th, it was the National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day. Social media, news, and all sorts of media posted about how it is “an opportunity to learn about HIV & AIDS and how young people are affected” (https://www.aids.gov). But it is still great to pass on knowledge about these issues and to learn more about current updates and research. Here are some links to more information about HIV & AIDS.

Blog posts:

Additional resources include:

Take Advantage of Beautiful Spring – Go Out for a Walk

Posted on April 17, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Walking meditation is a form of meditation in action. In walking meditation we use the experience of walking as our focus. We become mindful of our experience while walking, and try to keep our awareness involved with the experience of walking. Actually, there are several different kinds of walking meditation. –http://www.wildmind.org/

Meditate is defined by to engage in mental exercise (as concentration on one’s breathing or repetition of a mantra) for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness. – http://www.merriam-webster.com/
It is best done outside where you can fully pay attention to yourself. Do it without worrying about other things. A good walk would be from 15-20 minutes. But even if it’s just 5-10 minutes that you have to yourself each day, it can help you meditate.
Meditate while you are walking. It’s about walking without worry, time, and space. Take as much as you need for yourself to meditate while walking.
It helps you to slow down, think about yourself, and reflect on a deeper level. It can help decrease stress, improve your mental health, and at the same time allow you to be physically active.

So while the weather is getting warm, take advantage of it and try practicing walking meditation. It may take some time getting used to, but it can help with practice or even naturally. But remember that any form of meditation is always helpful for your mental health.

Season Change – the things you need to watch for

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Spring is quickly arriving and with the new season, there are some things to do. For every season, we all need to prepare for it. Here are some ways that you can help prep yourself for the new season:

More cleaning? Sadly, yes we all need to clean our yard every year. Whether it is pulling out weeds, raking leaves, picking up pine seeds, planting new garden plants, or trimming the grass, it can help prep the yard to allow new things to grow. Also, it’ll help make the yard look cleaner.
How to properly dispose garbage and recycle? Depending on where you live, the city will tell you how to organize your recyclables and dispose garbages based on the city rules. It will help make it easier for the waste service to handle them and prevent you from paying any fees.
Experiencing warmer (or colder) weather? Time to put away your clothes that are not suited to the weather. Whether it is warm or cold weather, dress accordingly so that you can fully enjoy the warm weather (or protect yourself from the cold).
Food is a major part of the seasonal change! Check out your local farmer’s market and groceries to get fruits and veggies that are in season. As a bonus, having a garden can help you get outside, stay active, and grow your own produces!
There are many activities that you can do each season. Spring and summer is great for fishing, camping, walking, running, bicycling, swimming, and more. Fall and winter is great for harvesting, skiing, sledding, walking, and more. So it really depends on what you want to do during the season.
New season means other holidays are coming near! Usually, people get work off as well as students. It is a great way for families to celebrate with great food, entertainment, and bonding with others.
Season positions? Summer is the prime time for internships, summer jobs, and youth employment programs. It is a great way for many youths to earn a few buck while having time to spare for personal fun.

There are many things to do each season so make sure you enjoy each of them while they are still here! Have fun, stay active, and experience new things.

Bicultural Post Cards of the Week

Posted on April 9, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Bicultural Birthday Party Ideas

Posted on April 6, 2015 by Patricia Thao

There are fun ways to make parties multicultural. It allows adults and kids to share experiences from different aspects of other kinds of cultures. Also, it is one of the best ways to introduce others to new kinds of things. Here are a few how-to:

Cater different kinds of food. Whether it is American, Asian, French, Indian, or Spanish food, everyone will enjoy it. The best part is that everyone will get a taste of something that is not usually from their own culture. Variety is the key to allow other to discover what they may or may not like.
Incorporate different fun activities! For example, a piñata is very popular in the U.S. for birthday parties. This type of activity can be found among many Hispanic cultures and has been adopted into other cultures as well. Other games and activities are pin the donkey tail, musical chairs, charades, bingo, thumbs up, and more, etc.
Dress up parties are another way for people to physically experience a culture. Whether it is formal, traditional, or a theme color, it can allow creativity and participation from all the guests.
Music is a big part of all cultures and usually, parties have a playlist, a dj, a live band, or some form of music to entertain the guests. Some of them is to allow just for hearing, entertainment, and group dances.

There are many other ways to make parties fun and innovative. The more ideas and activities that a party can have, it will encourage more participation and entertainment for the host(s) and the guests. The main part is to make sure everyone have a great time!

Quality of calories

Posted on April 4, 2015 by Xian Ping He

Once you have learned your calories consumption every day, you may begin to notice your decreased weight, but it is only the beginning step of right step.

As the picture shows, the fuel produced to your body by 2000 calories of gingerbread cookies is not as same as 2000 calories of meat, vegetable, and fruit.

Your body digests different types of nutrients differently. There are basic bodily functions of all sorts of nutrients: building muscle, transporting nutrients, storing energy as fat for later use, fueling various muscle. Below are how a person compose a basic meal:

Protein: When you exercise, your muscles are broken down and then use protein to rebuild themselves stronger while recovering. Protein absolutely NEEDS to be a main component of every meal. Aim for one gram per pound (two grams per KG) of lean body weight, or just do one gram per pound of body weight if you don’t want to do the math – with an upper limit of 200 grams. Sources of protein include chicken, eggs, beef, pork, fish, nuts, legumes, quinoa, and most dairy products.

Carbohydrates: When you eat carbohydrates, they get converted to glucose (sugar) in your system, which is then used to provide energy for all sorts of body functions to take place. Vegetables and/or fresh fruit are quality sources of carbohydrates, with grains being less so in my opinion…but we’ll get to more grains later. There are certainly bad carbohydrates (processed carbs, refined grains, and more), and those are the ones we want to avoid. Unless you’re a marathon runner, you can function with WAY less carbs than you’re probably consuming now.

Fat: Fat is easily the most misunderstood macro-nutrient in your diet; long story short: fat is absolutely critical to your body and should make up a BIG portion of your daily calories. Things like avocados, almonds, olive oil, walnuts, and almond butter are great sources of healthy fat (polyunsaturatured and monounsaturated). If you would like to take saturated fat, then full fat milk, coconut milk, and fatty cuts of meat will provide you with sources of saturated fat.

Daily Health Tips

Posted on April 3, 2015 by Patricia Thao

The start to a healthier lifestyle is starting out with small steps. These are the steps that can help gradually help you reach your goal. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, maintain your body weight, trying to eat healthier, or what you may want to achieve, it is better to set a plan with realistic approaches.

Switch out unhealthy foods with healthier alternatives. For example, do you have a sweet tooth for sugary drinks, snacks, deserts, and candies? It is better for you to switch it out with sweet fruits, organic juices, and have fruits become your snack.
Drinking too little of water? Maybe you don’t realize that you are not drinking enough water. Although there are tastier options out there, water is the best source of hydration for your body. After all, your body is made up about 65% of water! The recommended amount of water to drink is up to 2 liters a day.
An active lifestyle is always a plus and beneficial to your body, physically and emotionally. It helps reduce stress, burn extra calories, and maintain your body. It doesn’t mean that you have to work out according to a schedule. But trying to incorporate work out sessions (even if it it’s short or long) into your daily life is a great start.
Dieting isn’t always the answer to an healthier lifestyle. Everyone’s body are different biologically and sometimes, you lose or gain weight with a diet plan. Make sure to experiment and find out what works best for you.
Getting enough sleep is a very important part of the body regulation and recovery. If you find yourself being hunger many times, having mood swings, gaining weight, stressing out, and more, then maybe you need a break. Putting stress on your body by not getting enough sleep results in more stress. So make sure to sleep on a time schedule (if possible) and take naps whenever you are exhausted.

Remember, it’s not our external appearances that defines us, but what we think about ourselves internally. Don’t value yourself based upon what you see, it’s about how you respect and know that you’re worth. It is important to maintain one’s lifestyle physically and emotionally.

The Truth About Bullying

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Bullying

Created by AMA youths, this chart shows the reality about bullying. Bullying is universal problem and can range from all ages. It is very prevalent in younger ages where children and teens are more likely to be targeted. To resolve bullying, we should always ask for help, consult with trusted adults, and don’t take part of bullying. Here are some tips of what to do if you’re a bully victim and how to avoid it:

If someone or a group of people are bullying you, make sure to take immediate action and consult with your parents, teachers, or anyone that you trust. They will be your support and help you with your situation.
Avoid negative peers, conversations, and anything that will affect you negatively. The last thing anyone needs is to be surrounded by negativity as it only promotes bad feelings, thoughts, and stress.
Don’t take physical assault lightly if it happens to you or anyone else. It is something that needs to be addressed right away for your, another person’s, and other people’s safety. It is because it is likely for physical assault to be dangerous and occur frequently.
Realize that there is people out there who are willing to help you or a friend or anyone that is a victim of bullying.
Lastly, it is very important that you, your friend, or anyone else do not take part of bullying. Bullying is an endless cycle and to prevent it, we must try to stop it happening.

Planning for Bicultural

Posted on March 27, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Bicultural awareness has come a long way to spread correct and informative information of all kinds of people. It involved in many active programs, campaigns, community involvements, and organizations to spread positive cultural awareness messages. There are still many goals to reach and many of them involves planning. Here are some ways that bicultural awareness has changed society:

Language is a huge part of any culture. Schools used to offer limited language programs for students and the two most typical languages are Spanish and French. Although both of the languages are spoken by many people, it is great to see schools adapting with time and are offering a wide variety of language classes. There are even classes available to native speakers who needs more of a writing or speaking focus.
Food is another major part of cultures. All kinds of ethnic ingredients has been available for a long time, but it took a while for other people to explore them. Through new ways of technologies such as social media, all kinds of food are being promoted, consume, and are more accepted than to be seen as ‘weird’.
Any art form is a major opportunity for people to participate in a culture. Popular dances such as salsa, tap dance, hip hop, and more, has allowed all kinds of people to enjoy and share experiences and similar interests. And other artistic forms such as singing, painting, and
Exchange, study abroad, and international schools have become more prevalence compared to the past. Students are able to learn in another country or attend classes with international students. This is a great way for encouraging diversity among peers, bilingualism, active bicultural living, and hearing from different perspectives.

These are just a few great changes that bicultural awareness and influences has helped shaped society to become more accepting and adaptable to other kinds of people. Although there are still many improvements and goals to achieve, it has come a long way to help people realize that our differences should be embraced and celebrated tother.

Bicultural Healthy Living

A Balanced Approach to a Bicultural Healthy Life