Watching it all on TV makes it look so easy and hassle-free, scuba diving gets to be easy and all that only AFTER you get certified and trained to keep yourself safe and swimming under several feet of underwater.

So you've gotten that certificate and have spent a chunk of your last pay-check to pay for the vacation. The ext question is, have you got gear? Is it in tip top shape or you need updating on the gear? The first step to diving safety is to have working equipment to supply you a steady amount of air to sustain you while you stay submerged. Best to buy with an experienced diver friend to show you the ropes of testing and assessing between Grade-A from  third-rate gear. Or might as well buy goods at a reputable diver's shop, they usually have staff who are experienced divers.

While en route to your destination, use the time to run a check on equipment and brush up on some diving guidelines (depending on where you go, there are some things you must keep in mind).

Better to be clueless for 5 minutes, rather than ignorant for the rest of the air in your tank (life).

Before diving, chat the guide up and observe the body of water, ask about weather, the current, tides or under tows or danger zones or local limits which may have been left out of the diving brochure.

Once in the water, recall an old adventurer's adage: never be dead weight. Stick to the dive plan! If in any way you think the site is out of your training and experience, feel free to sit this dive out.  Being mindless and forgetful of all the guidelines and precautions or even drowning out the voice of responsibility is a call for danger. When you endangering yourself, you do the same to the others you're with. Be sure not to gulp a shot of whiskey before diving, alcohol and the pressure of being under several feet of water can cause impaired thinking. Stay away from underwater caves, they can run a mile long or have a cone entrance which can be easy to get into and impossible to get out of.

For the 375 or so words stress the importance of responsibility and training to make any dive fun, enjoyable and safe. Get into the practice of proper dive attitude turns into a habit that can save a life.

Most employees will be claiming vacation leave for summer get-aways alone, with family, friends or lover. For those with their noses buried in work for most of the year, it would be best to prepare yourself physically for the exertion of activity.

I recall the movie City Slickers (Billy Crystal, et al), they were a group of yuppies who bit more than they can chew by going on an adventure at a hee-haw ranch. After calloused butts and some bruises falling from horses and a bull (if memory serves me right?), they get to appreciate getting down and dirty in manual labor.

If you're a pencil pusher and have been dreaming of peace on a mountain top, be informed that not all semblance of peace comes without a fee. Remember the phrase 'blood, sweat and tears'? Well that's just the cover charge, you are bound to get 'taxed' if not acclimatized. Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) is a common effect of climbing to high altitudes too fast. When defined, this is a high altitude pulmonary edema or altitude anoxia (National Institutes of Health). A speedy climb up a mountain hastens the lessening of air pressure, as this happens air is denser and has less Oxygen to breathe up. Depending on how stubborn you are, symptoms can be just the mild kind or the life-threatening type : brain, heart, lungs and muscles malfunction.

When told by a guide or your companion to slow down, it is for your own good and not a dare o go faster. BY the way, have I mentioned that mountain climbing requires maturity and responsibility (to self and others)? Keeping pace and being aware of the importance of it keeps you safe and healthy, it also makes the trip hassle free.

Half the treat of getting at the summit is getting an eye-load of whats around you on the way up (and down). Relaxation starts on the first step out of your vehicle, keep it easy with caution and you'll have the best mountain climbing memories you can ask for.

Today I experienced nausea and a slight headache while working. The ache and queasiness isn't of the worse kind, it's just bothersome. Wanting to pop a pain reliever, I suddenly remembered that I just took something for my joint swelling. A quick search in the net confirmed that I am indeed experiencing a side effect of the drug.

Reading on, people taking the drug I was prescribed warned that ibuprofen or another salicylate or any anti-coagulant medicine SHOULD NOT be taken with medicine for my joint swelling. These are the times I am thankful for the Internet, who knows I could've ended up a 911 statistic?!

Prescription drugs have side effects since they are man-made chemicals that provides relief for a specific pain or part of the body's system. Just imagine combining several medicines into a cocktail for every pain or ache not knowing it could be deadly.

I can't help but think of several famous people who mysteriously died because of it: Marilyn Monroe, Heath Ledger, Anna Nicole Smith and Son, even the British kid show presenter. Excluding the Brit, the names mentioned had died at the peak of their lives because of mistakenly taking prescription drugs which counter-effect each other.

Like the medicine I am taking, aspirin/orphenadrine/ caffeine (genetic name) is a safe combination of: anti-swelling/ muscle relaxant / pain relief enhancer. These were combined proportionate to be effective enough, for me to take another pain reliever would destroy the balance and have a deadly outcome if done always.

For what it's worth, I wrote this as a warning to you about the medicines you and your family are asked to take.

Best to keep these in mind:

Ask the doctor what its for and what it does for the body.

Research about the medicine, your can read the paper insert it comes with.   

Buy a small bottle or just a days worth of the medicine if you are allergy-prone to medicines.

Take note of the counter-effects of some drugs with other drugs.

Take medication as advised: after eating, on an empty stomach, every 4,6 or 8 hours, for seven days, with a full glass of water etc.- these directions are so certain medicines get properly absorbed by the body.

Inform your physician of other ailments you have: renal, kidney or liver problems, diabetes, migraines, high-blood pressure, anemia etc.- some sickness prevents you from taking some drugs.

Before you pop it in your mouth (self-prescribed relief), think of the phrase “Better to be SAFE than sorry”.

 

I've read about an actor who was criticized by his former wife about having an obsession with cleanliness. He countered the accusation by saying having several dogs, cats and other pets drives him to be. Unfortunately they divorced, I'm betting he can't stand the smell and damage having too many pets cause. Don't get me wrong, I love pets! But I do have to agree that there are pet parents that give the run of the house to their furry 'kids'.

Getting pets to stay in pet zones is as difficult to impose, yet NOT impossible. Speaking from experience, going beyond the language barrier, pets eventually get the message. To have positive results takes 300% patience and adjustable safety gates or deterrents such as a Scat Mat or a Scat sensor sprayer.

Safety gates are to establish a pet's zone and the extent of his freedom within the home. These dog gates come high enough to discourage pets from going over it and keep everything beyond that boundary safe. Before installing the gates in your home, I suggest you plan ahead where it should be. A refuge for your pet at home. Once you've done that, get your pet used to that nook with its own toys and a dog bed. When you've succeeded, install the gates. Chances are he'd just ignore the gates but remember the limitation.

Invest in pet safety gates and love your dog enough to keep them safe from accidents, besides any disaster your beloved pet may cause will always be cleaned up by you.

Caring  for pets is  a continuous job, just like having a child that will remain forever young and dependent. Getting the whole family to keep pets comfy and safe would be a nice way to practice family involvement.

Take a child or the whole family for a walk with the dog on a weekend. This activity will take the necessary 20 minute walk your pet needs to keep healthy. While updating each other about work or school, your pet gets the real “pack” experience. Walking figured in a lot when wild dogs roamed the Earth, in those days it meant solidarity and paying your keep. The nomadic life of a canine pack  centered on hunting together and playing a role of a loyal follower of the pack leader.

Turn tender gestures like patting a pet or neck rubbing into purposely done massages. Daily massages, specially after a tiring playful day will help your pet relax. Even younger members of the family can share in this task. Massages help blood circulation and unknots strained muscles after a day of jumping and running. Don't forget to tell family members to give your pet a drink of water after the massage, this flushes out the toxins broken down in the body during the massage.

Another family chore for your pet dog, is training. Teaching the kids to keep control of your dog is a way they'd share an endearing bond. Keeping a pet trained needs consistency and patience.

Seeing your pet sleeping soundly or being it's loyal lovable self is no substitute for constant activity and correction.