a peek inside the fishbowl

The federal government has approved the swine-flu vaccine and our country’s largest-ever immunization campaign is ready to go. (Here’s a CBC piece about vaccinations rolling out on Monday for priority groups.)

I have to admit, I’m not sure if I’m going to get it. I am pretty sure I will, but have to be honest and confess that I’m hesitating. I have a mild distrust of Big Medical and this is something Mark and I really need to figure out, fast. In the meantime, I’ve been thinking a lot about how our public schools are handling H1N1.

If there’s a case of H1N1 in my daughters’ schools the parents are not notified.  But if there’s a case of head lice in my daughter’s class a note comes home …  alerting parents to check their kids and watch for signs of itching and scratching. Makes sense, right?

I looked at the Ottawa-Carleton district school board website and they didn’t have any info about notifying parents, although they do have a pandemic plan and other info in PDF format. (Scroll down to the subhead which reads: “The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board continues its proactive preparations both internally and with external partners to plan for the potential spread of H1N1.”)
 
The City of Ottawa website had the info I wanted. (Someone emailed this to me recently but it is also from this page.) Bolding is mine.

Will I be notified if there is a confirmed case of novel H1N1 flu in my child’s school, daycare or camp?

On June 1, Ottawa Public Health sent a letter to parents and guardians of children in all elementary and secondary schools in Ottawa to inform them that we were aware of novel H1N1 flu cases in several schools across the city and to advise them about what they could do to protect their children. As is the case with the regular flu season, we do not send a letter to parents each time a case is confirmed in a group environment, nor do we notify individual schools/daycares/camps for sporadic cases. The main point to remember is that we have community spread, and the virus is likely already present in most schools and children and youth’s group environments.

Okaaay, sure. But why not notify the parents anyway? I know they don’t want parents to panic and pull their kids out of school, but shouldn’t tell us if there are confirmed cases in our school? Especially given this (also from the City of Ottawa website):

“While the majority of confirmed cases in Ottawa to date have been relatively mild, and only a few individuals required hospitalization, the pH1N1 flu has tended to affect children and youth more than any other age groups.”

I’m not asking for the names of the sick children to be revealed, but if they notify parents for lice why don’t they do it for H1N1?

My kids are already washing their hands and sneezing into their antecubital regions (a.k.a the crook of your elbow donchyaknow), but shouldn’t we be notified if someone in the school has H1N1 so we can be extra vigilant about handwashing and watch for signs of fever and flu?

What do you think? Should parents be told if there’s a case of swine flu in the school or not? I would love to hear your thoughts.

The other night I had a craving for something sweet. I’ve been trying to watch what I eat so I chose an apple; cored, sliced, sprinkled with a bit of cinnamon and sugar and nuked for 1.5 minutes. It was like apple pie without the pie and totally did the trick.

The same thing happened yesterday and an apple just wasn’t going to cut it. BUT I didn’t want to make a whole pan of something rich and cake-like either. So I whipped up an easy no-bake treat that is DEAD SIMPLE at the best of times, but I made a quicker and easier version and the best of all I figured out a way to make four small servings.

I know, I should get to the point.

I made Rice Crispie squares in the microwave and they are the BEST THING EVER.

Here’s how:

Put some butter or margarine in a microwave-safe bowl:

Nuke until melted. Add four large marshmallows and stir to coat. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Microwave for another 30 or so until it looks like this:

Then take one cup of crisped rice cereal:

And mix:

Spray a clean bowl (preferably one with a wider bottom) with cooking spray. (I used a soup/salad bowl). Scrape marshmallow/cereal mixture into bowl. Press down with the back of a spoon which has also been sprayed with cooking spray.

Let cool.

Cut into quarters for four servings. I like making small batches like this, because it prevents me from eating them the whole pan. Mark said he prefers these ones to the “regular” way of making rice krispie squares. For some reason they tend to turn out a little lighter.

This is a great little recipe it truly is. The problem is that it might be a little TOO quick, and a little TOO easy, if you know what I mean. ;)

We have a winner! Thanks for you entries! There will be other giveaway in the coming weeks, so please stay tuned.

Let me give you some background before I give you the details of this giveaway.

As part of a large-scale marketing initiative to encourage Canadians to visit Syracuse and its surrounding areas, the Syracuse Convention & Visitors Bureau invited me and my family to visit the Greater Syracuse area for a weekend getaway in the fall. You can read about my visit here.

I am happy to be able to offer one of you (and your family) the opportunity to check it out for yourselves!

This giveaway includes:

• One free night accommodation (the family fun package) at the Holiday Inn Express Syracuse Airport, redeemable between now and December 31, 2009. Your accommodations include one free game of bowling for up to five people, one free in-room movie, chips and soda, free breakfast, and late checkout of 1 p.m. (You are going to need that late check out. Trust me.)
• Admission for four to the Rosamond Gifford Zoo
• Admission for four to MOST
• Admission for four to the Everson Museum of Art

Please read this next part carefully.

• This giveaway is open to Canadians residents only
• You must provide your own transportation to and from Syracuse, NY
• Please note, you need proper documentation to cross the border. (i.e. passports for each member of your family)
• Winners will be chosen by me via Random.org
• One entry per family please
• Please ensure you leave a valid email address
• Once a winner is chosen I will give his/her email address to my contacts, who will then help make whatever arrangements are required.  
• Any other costs associated with this trip are the responsibility of the giveaway winner.

Please leave a comment below if you are interested. I’ll draw the winning name on Tuesday October 27th at 12 noon (EST).

For more information about Syracuse NY do check out www.VisitSyracuse.org.

So. Who wants to go?