You, Sir, Are A Douchebag...

I came across something today that really got my blood boiling...I came across this particular article in my Facebook newsfeed which was shared by a wonderful page I am subscribed to called The Autism Grant. I was thoroughly disgusted by what I read there. Before I continue, let me clear something up for those of you who don't know me in real life...

This is MY passion...

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a topic that I am VERY passionate about. I should start by saying that this is not a "biased" passion, since I don't have any family or friends who are on the spectrum, but I have worked one on one with children who are. For some reason unknown to me, I just "click" with these youngsters and I love every minute of working with them. Due to this discovery (I had never had the pleasure of knowing anyone on the spectrum before working at this particular daycare center) I changed my major in college. I plan to work with children on the Autism spectrum (once I can get my loans paid off so I can finish my degree but I digress...again) and I tend to keep up with the news related to this "topic of passionate interest". Everything about the topic intrigues me from possible causes to new treatments to just plain old awareness techniques to try.

Now that that is out of the way, I should begin. This is my letter to Mr. Joe Scarborough, a.k.a Douchebag, in response to his unfounded conclusions between Autism and being a murderer. Yes, you did read that correctly. So, here goes:

Dear Mr. Scarborough,

You sir, are an idiot. Not just any kind of idiot either. You are the kind of close-minded, open-mouthed, idiot that really should never be in the public eye. I am thoroughly disgusted to see that despite having a son on the spectrum, you believe that many "shooters" commit these crimes because they are on the spectrum.

Just because some of the anti-social behaviors of those on the spectrum (though, keep in mind that many are friendly and fully functional in social settings) mimic those of a person who is rather mentally unstable (psychopath, sociopath, etc) DOES NOT mean that there is a link between the two. While I do have to commend you for acknowledging that you know NOTHING about the Colorado shooter, I just can't fathom how you drew that conclusion.

And while we're already here, what's to stop you from saying that rapists, pedophiles, thieves, and serial killers are also this way because of some "undiagnosed spectrum disorder"? I am being serious. Is this where your comments are hinting to? Is this what you really think of people on the Autism Spectrum as a whole?

SHAME. ON. YOU.

For someone who has a child on the spectrum, you should be advocating awareness of the disorder and not drawing false conclusions about the "link" between Autism and murder. That makes you look like a horrible (not to mention ignorant) person and a terrible father. How do you think it makes your son feel to know that his daddy thinks that Autism disorders lead to murderers? Do you treat him differently, perhaps less kind or empathetical, because you think this way (I'm sure your kid is wondering this too now)? How are you going to justify these conclusions and remarks?

These kinds of comments are what breeds discrimination, hate, and lies. These kinds of comments only make the world a harder place for those on the spectrum to navigate through and succeed in. Already you are setting your own child up for failure with these kinds of comments and conclusions.

I believe that you owe the Autism Spectrum community (which is a VERY large one by the way Mr. Scarborough) one hell of a big public apology. Go ahead and do it the same way you told the world you believed this conclusion, on your talk show. I also believe that you should freshen up on your knowledge of mental disorders, because drawing conclusions without facts just makes you look like a douchebag.

Sincerely,
The Mouthy Bitch

I also have to share this wonderful video that was posted after Joe stated his conclusions on public television. This young man, Kerry Magro, is also on the Autism spectrum and calls Scarborough out on his conclusions.

I also encourage everyone to sign this petition demanding Scarborough to retract his unfounded statements and apologize to those on the spectrum and those who love someone on the spectrum. I sure did and I hope you do too!!

I Have a Rockin' Blog :D

What a lovely surprise to find another award given to me when I got home from work this evening. I have to give a very big and gracious thank you to the wonderful Lily over at The Incoherent Ramblings Of A Moose! for this terrific award!!

Doesn't it look just wonderful??!! Oh come on, you know it does!! :D Thanks again Lily!!

I think it is a lovely addition to my awards page!! I hope to keep on rockin' and hope y'all keep on enjoyin'!! I don't have much else for tonight, but keep your eyes out in the next few days...I plan to have at least one or two rants coming your way!! Hope everyone has a bitchin' day!!

Over-The-Counter HIV Rapid Testing Kit: Is It Worth It, Yet?

July is National HIV Awareness month. Until recently I had no idea when it was. This is probably information I need to know. The only reason I became aware of this fact is because of a blog post I happened to come across on the Women's Health magazine website. While this post isn't exactly spreading HIV awareness in the sense of tons of stats, it is introducing us to a new testing product.

I am one of the 80+ million Americans who has never been tested for HIV. This is not due to some fear of the results or from being lazy (at least not outright LoL), I just simply never think about it when I am at the doctor. With so much going on in our day-to-day lives, this (I imagine) is the case for most of that estimated number of people not being tested. Life today is just so....hectic. Who has time for this kind of thing??

There are already over-the-counter (OTC) home test kits for HIV out there on the market. Many of them require taking a blood sample and then having that sample shipped to a laboratory for the actual testing to be done. A few take a quick finger-prick amount of blood onto the testing device, a short wait (about 15 minutes) and then, viola, your results. If you are anything like me, however, the idea of having to "draw" your own blood in any fashion may just make your skin crawl. 

The makers of OraQuick, OraSure, have made this a little bit easier for you. Just follow these 3 easy steps as outlined from the product's instructions:

1. Gently swab your top and bottom gums (front sides).
2. Place swab in vial of solution on stand.
3. Wait 20 minutes and read results.

While previously this product has only been available to health care providers, OraSure has won the battle to get their product on the shelves of drugstores all across America. Come this October you will be able to find this nifty little product on the shelves of your local Wal-Mart, Walgreens, RiteAid, or CVS/pharmacy--or you can simply order this product off the internet here and have it delivered to your door!!

Sounds great right?? I thought so too until I came across this bit of information over on the blog post I read:

"How effective is it [OraQuick]?

The test is pretty reliable at detecting the virus, with a 99.98 percent rate of accuracy, a false positive in just one in 5,000 tests. However, its false negative rate is one in 12, meaning many people infected with HIV could remain undiagnosed if they don’t follow up with further testing."

Seriously?! While I commend the fact that it accurately detects the HIV1&2 viruses with a 99.98% rate, I happen to find the fact that there is a 1 in 12 chance of the viruses NOT being detected very alarming!! Isn't that part of the point to being able to do this kind of thing at home?? I mean, I would be ecstatic to get a negative result (who wouldn't?!) but then the anxiety of whether or not it was a false-negative would set right in. Then I would be compelled to make an official appointment (which my busy life doesn't have time for) to get a "more professional" test done to ease my mind. If I wanted to go that route, I would have just made the appointment to begin with instead of buying the at-home kit.

Now, don't get me wrong. This IS a big step forward in HIV/AIDS prevention and I can acknowledge that completely. I just hope that OraSure can work out some of the kinks with the high number of false-negatives. I think I would be more inclined to use the product if I knew that it could more accurately give me a negative result and I'm sure most people can agree with me on that, at least to some degree.

The idea is a novel one. Taking the "creepy" out of HIV testing by simply swabbing your gums would be great.....if it were as accurate as a blood sample. So, at least for now, I think that the "creepy" and slightly more traditional blood testing kits (send away or rapid-result) is the way to go for a more definitive, as well as more private and less stress-inducing, testing results.

Two Awards in Two Days :D

I was thrilled (and super surprised!!) to find out yesterday that I had received an award from Cheryl over at Crap That Bugs Me!, I couldn't believe it!! My very first award!! And from a blogger I LOVE to read!! Part of my daily, morning routine :) I'm kind of an addict LoL

Thanks again, so very much, Cheryl!! I do appreciate it!! :)

This blog is awarded to up-and-coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. I only have 4, so I suppose this made me a terrific candidate!! I am glad that she happens to like my writing enough to bestow such an honor unto my little piece of sanity :D

So, you can imagine my surprise when I logged on today to see that I had received ANOTHER award!!! :D I did my very own happy dance!! (Too bad the honey wasn't here to see it!! LoL He loves it when I do it!!) This second honor was bestowed upon me by Becky over at Just Passing Through. This is another one of my favorite blogs to read!! Every. Single. Morning. I can't get enough :) So I was more than flattered to have received yet another award from a favorite fellow blogger!!

I appreciate this little beauty from Becky more than I can explain :) Thanks again!!

Aren't they beautiful?? I think they look just lovely here on my blog :) I set them up their own page *Hint, Hint ;)* I was thrilled to follow the rules that come with each award (even though some of the rules are still works in progress for me) and you can see all the details over on the page--see, now you have to check it out!! This is where you can see whom I've passed these beauties along to, and I suggest you check out these awesome fellow bloggers!!    **These lists will be updated as soon as possible. I have 3 left to award for the Liebster award and 2 left to award for the Sunshine award. I will let you know when those lists are updated/complete**

I'm going to take my excited self off to bed now. It's going to be a long morning tomorrow....I feel a rant is probably in the works....Thanks for reading!

Interview Anxiety

Well, I have an interview on Monday morning at 10 am. While this isn't a glamorous job, it is a job nonetheless (and these days we all know how hard they are to come by). I am rather excited about this prospective new job for a few reasons:

• It is guaranteed the shift I want (swing shift like my honey). 
• Guaranteed, every other weekend off. This is great because we only get to see little man on the weekends. Also, this is when my honey has his days off from work. That never changes (almost LoL).
• I get to see my honey more often during the day this way than I do now. Right now it feels like we hardly see each other at all--though a few friends/coworkers have pointed out to me that my honey and I spend more time together than most.
• It gets me out of my overly-stressful current job situation and into a slightly more relaxed environment. Couldn't we all use that every now and again??

 This isn't my first interview at all. However, I am always rather nervous about having to sit in front of a complete stranger and talk about myself to them. More times than not, I am so confused on what it is that they are asking me exactly. And I am always afraid of saying something incredibly silly like Jen did over at PIWTPITT (No offense Jen!! I love your blog and this post was hilariously good!!)

Almost......

While I don't recall ever being asked what animal I would most be like and why, the one question that always trips me up is, "What is one example of how you have handled a tough situation/customer/coworker in the past and how effective was this?"

I'm sorry. Am I suppose to pick ONE of THOUSANDS of examples of dealing with the idiots that walk this planet on a day to day basis?? This is always a tricky question for me because I tend to mouth off sometimes without really thinking about what I am saying. I always want to answer with something along the lines of, "I let them continue to breathe oxygen. They were satisfied customers and returned." Seriously. I have such a low tolerance for ignorance and it surrounds me daily in many, many forms. I pat myself on the back at night for not ripping people's heads off all day.

I know that is not an appropriate response, however, so I almost always come up with one mostly crappy example. If I can't think of an example quick enough without looking like I'm grasping for anything, I usually just say something about doing the best I can to rectify the problem and take the matter up with my manager if I cannot. I am never satisfied with my own answer to the question and yet I can't bring myself to lie a little and jazz it up a bit.

The other question that bugs me the most is, "Why do you want to work for us?" Hmm....I need a job to pay my bills and feed myself? This, apparently, is not the right answer to this question. So, if being honest is not the right answer to the question at hand, then what is? I think this picture says it all:

I think that about sums it up......

For the next week, my stomach will probably be in knots with anxiety over this interview. The funny thing is that I usually rock my interviews and get the job. I usually stress myself out for nothing. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for this new job. New opportunities await me :)