Inland Empire Family Debbie's Hot Topics

Shame on Sea World? Death of a trainer.

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 08:32:00 GMT

It’s sad. It’s awful. And let’s not let trainer Dawn Brancheau die in vain. All the facts are still coming in, but, to me, it sounds like the animal went mental. I say that not to be flip, just to be frank. By no means, am I saying the trainer got what she deserved—as it’s horrific; I only wonder when we will put an end to the animal circus.

Reported facts say people saw the whales agitated, playing or fighting with each other and refusing to obey commands to splash the crowd before the attack. Those watching the killing, while eating at the "Dine with Shamu," show (do you see the silliness of those three words by the way?) saw the female trainer petting the whale when it grabbed her and plunged into the water. It reappeared on the other side of the tank and leaped up holding her, her face bloody. “The whale circled round and round, turning her over and over,” they said.

Now if you know me, you know have a big heart for animals (have been a Veggie for 20 yrs.) and don’t support the life of tricks many of these captive animals are forced to live. A 12,000-pound, 22-foot long force of nature trapped and forced to swim in circles day after day whose only purpose is to splash on command is inhumane. It’s mind-numbing. It’s flat-out greed on the part of parks. And it's something bad waiting to happen.

Yes, it’s important to learn about these animals, and to show kids their vast beauty, but we can do it other ways. Many other ways: on Alaskan cruises (I’ve been, it’s awe-inspiring), on TV, on local whale watching trips and more. No, I’m not a fan of zoos; I really only go to The Wild Animal Park, as I respect their open terrain. Do I take my kids to the circus? No. Do I support Barnum & Bailey and the likes? HELLA no. And have I been to Sea World? Of course. But I don't go often. I'm not saying there should be no zoos or aquariums, but it's a fine line of what animals are okay in captivity, in their enclosures, in their forced habitats. It’s a fine line for sure, but a 12,000-pound animal trapped in such a torturous space goes way over the line.

If we stop supporting these shows and cheering in the splash zone, the demand will die and the animals can live free. Too holier-than-thou? Too PETA-speak for you? Sorry, but animals don’t have a voice, so I speak up where I can.

What say you?

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

You can keep up with me here at IE Family, at my site at PeaceandMom.com, on Facebook, Twitter or DebbieLavdas.com

Michael Pollan and his blasted food rules

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:41:00 GMT

Is it just me, or is the whole world talking about the don’t-eat-anything-that-rots Food Guru God, Michael Pollan and his new book Food Rules? Did you catch him last week on Oprah, or ever other news outlet in America? And are you taking it to heart or do you get a headache just thinking about all you’re doing wrong?

I say "blasted" food rules, 'cause the guy and his easy-breezy rules are causing me stress. Take this morning, I just grabbed for my whole grain Trader Joe’s oatmeal, thinking I was doing my body good, but then flashed to his "eat only foods that rot" rule. Packaged oatmeal? I think that ranks up there with MRE’s. Ugh, I ate it anyway, but kind of kicked myself with every bite.

I know he’s right. I shouldn’t eat foods my grandmother wouldn’t recognize. And fat-free hasmade us all fat. But I have no more room for guilt in my life, and want to run for a Reese cup and Hershey bar when I think of all I’ve got to change.

His philosophy is summed up in those 7 simple words now heard around the world: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants."

How can 7 little words cause me such deep-set wrinkles? (Which btw, I’d so get botoxed if I didn’t think it’d rot my body and give me the Hurricane 5 Facelift look.)

A few of the other rules he lives by:

#11:Avoid food products advertised on television.

Avoid food products that contain high fructose corn syrup.

#37 The whiter the bread, the sooner you'll be dead.

#17:Eat food cooked by humans, not corporations.

#19:If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.

Pay more, eat less.

#36:Don’t eat breakfast cereals that change the color of the milk.

#58:Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.

Are you on board with Pollan? Did you see Food Inc? Do you think America will possibly change its fast food, processed, oversized ways?

More Hot Topics, and sometimes random rants, ahead from me here at Inland Empire Family. I'm also always online at my site at PeaceandMom.com,on Facebook, Twitter and DebbieLavdas.com

Sassy Cindy McCain. And Foxy Sarah Palin.

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:43:00 GMT

What do you think of these moxie media ladies? Did you see Cindy’s NOH8 subtle statement? And are you watching Sarah on Fox?

Personally, I love Cindy’s move of xoxo to all, as we happen to near this Valentine’s Day. Wow, what a gutsy act, and I feel like it got a little lost in the media, so I wanted to call it out.

The usually quiet and reserved Cindy recently posed for this NOH8 Campaign with this loud-and-clear, silent vote for Marriage Equality. Turns out, Cindy contacted the campaign to pose, following in the steps of daughter Meghan. Love that the mom-daughter duo took such a public stand in spite of hubby and daddy John McCain’s opposing position. It brings the “stand by your man” message into 2010, I think. And I dig that John handled it well, respecting their opinions, but held firm on his. “We are family,” but we aren’t issued to drink the kool-aid. Cheers to that.

And as for the other recent right wing media move, Palin on Fox, well it’s not as much of a lovefest from me. Go figure (code for: see my Palin on Newsweek post), but I’m open to watching. Are you? I do think it was another gutsy move on her part, as she put herself in the spotlight with a big bullseye target for those who love to hate her and are just waiting for her to trip up. And of course, it's savvy, as Palin fans are thrilled that she now has her own media platform to speak her mind regularly and clear up any matters instantly.

Because I surf all the stations, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, I tuned into watch her debut a few weeks ago. Her banter with O’Reilly was okay, I think he went a little soft on her, I think she totally dodged some questions and overall I think she blatantly used the platform for Pres. vs. Commentary. I expect more hardball hitters from Bill or I’m out. And as for Palin on Beck, I watched that too, and almost did that throw-up-in-your-mouth thing from the creepy love-to-love ya hour of “the world’s gonna blow if you aren’t President, Sarah!” Really, Beck, why didn’t you just fall to the ground, bow three times and kiss her feet (or suck her toes, seriously, what was going on there?).

FOX will get ratings, advertisers will be thrilled, but the whole Fair & Balanced tag is getting a little watered down now with Palin, Huckabee etc. O’Reilly better deliver or they are so gonna need me to write a new tag for them soon. Have you watched lately? Catch me up.

What do you think? Love or hate Cindy and Sarah's latest? Right on to the right wingers or still no way and left all the way?

Sucker for more? Keep up with me here, on my OC e-zine site, peaceandmom.com, or on Facebook and Twitter (@DebLavdas). And if you're the client-copy kind, hit me up at DebbieLavdas.com

It’s alive! 10 surgeries & Heidi says give me more.

Sat, 16 Jan 2010 09:20:00 GMT

Somebody just dubbed her the "Frankenstein of the iPod generation," great line. For the love of Jesus, what was she thinking? Here's Heidi Montag on the cover of People with her newest new nose, bigger boobs, tucked ears, sucked neck, higher brows, smaller chin, fatter cheeks, new hips, butt and "more."

The 23-yr. old reality "star" from The Hills just dropped 30k on her new extreme nip-tucked self. She admits she's addicted to plastic surgery (uh yea) and can't wait to get more.

Oh Spencer, why didn't you stop her? Strike that. Heidi's mom would have stopped her I'm sure, but she didn't get the chance, as she wasn't even told. (Imagine being her mom and seeing your all-new girl.)

So ... the post-Heidi? She’s got that Jennifer Grey thing—you know she's in there somewhere, but can't quite figure it out.

And ... the new fab Heidi hits just as her new album drops. Well played. Hey, that's fame. And we may all now remember her name, even if we can’t quite recognize her face.

Sorry Heidi, but boob move, bad message, and, really, you told the world you got a new vajayjay?

Funniest take on Speidi's Heidi is still Anderson Cooper’s shot last year after her Miss Universe performance, saying. “She tweeted she had so much fun, and she also thanked God. I don't think God had anything to do with this production." Click the video below for more.

Oh, and speaking of AC, who's in Haiti of course, imagine if the holy-rolling Heidi would have used her Hollywood cash for the true down and out's of the world instead of her continuous how-hot-am-I makeovers? Can I get an amen?

Gotta go give my girl an extra "you're great just the way you are" hug and smooch.

Sorry, I know there are more important matters in the world as mentioned above, but a little levity helps me keep going.

Profile, profile, profile. Enough of the PC nonsense.

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 10:42:00 GMT

After flying over the holidays, I’ve decided that I’m over all of our politically correct American ways. I say profile like El Al. How about you?

On December 21st, I was against profiling as I leisurely headed to Florida--more worried about forgetting all my kids’ video games than I was remotely preoccupied with Nigerian Al Qaeda accomplices. That was the departing flight.

The return flight, post December 25^th underwear bomber whackjob, was a different story. I was spooked. I profiled with my eyes, kept my ears open and honestly wished the US would be watching my back more and protecting my kids more, so I didn’t have to think about where the exits and fire extinguishers were if the side of the plane went up.

Another thing that stuck with me on my airport travels home were images of our soldiers all over at all gates … in their fatigues, with fresh crew cuts and backpacks in tow. They were all well-mannered, but expressionless mostly. You could tell they had heavy hearts. And with every camo’ed uniform, I got a little more PO’d and much less PC; wondering why 30,000 more of our guys had to be sent off to fight these crazies, yet we had to be all proper and PC and couldn’t even profile characters that might fit the bill standing next to us in the airport.

Let’s get serious. El Al airlines has had the world whacks after them for years, yet remained terror-free on flights since they started profiling 30 years ago. We aren’t even stopping all-cash, no-luggage, one-way travelers from Yemen after their family members alert us.

I know the system is always going to fail in some ways, so let’s take all the extra reasonable precautions possible and pull aside those who fit the profile. If you’re Arab, male, 18-30, etc., and we want to question you because people from your part of the world are trying to kill us everyday, it is what it is. That comes with the territory when you want to come here. And if you don’t like it, pick another country.

Harsh? Perhaps. But I didn’t like sitting in 21 A on the way home, and wondering if I should leap over the seats if I see 18A’s underwear light up. And you never know what a Mama Bear might do. Thank God for that guy who took down the Nigerian, thank God for US soldiers I had on my plane, and shame on Janet Napolitano/Homeland Security for saying the US did everything right and that the passengers and crew acted together to take on the terrorists December 25^th. That’s your job, lady, and you all should have never let him through in the first place.

Let the profiling begin.

(No, I’m not ready for the body scans yet; unsure of the radiation, etc. Let’s see how backroom "sitdowns" go first.)

More holiday hot is Disney on ice

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:57:00 GMT

If you’ve got time to chill over the holidays, a hot pick is Disney On Ice. I hit Media Night last night for a first look at the ice spectacular. And it was pretty icy spectacular.

You can get a skate-by-skate in my Whrrl photo story (by clicking anywhere below) to see a little Lightning McQueen, Little Mermaid, Lion King and the flying Tink finale. The show was like all things Disney: done right, done big and jam-packed.

It was cute to see my kids lost in the magic, see 'em on the edge of their seats with some of the theatrical drama and simply just see them really enjoying themselves.

I loved everything except … those aisle vendors! Ah, my kids wanted every- and anything, of course. Snow cones. Popcorn. Mickey spinners! So, advice: go full, go with a pre-agreed item on your kiddo’s wish list and walk fast past the merchandising … and you’ll have a perfect night.

The show runs in LA through this weekend, moves to Anaheim next week, then onto Ontario and Long Beach through Jan. 10^th.

It’s for sure a hot show to catch (was all over the news today)—and I think it would probably be a very fun surprise gift for the kids, if you don’t already have tickets (coupon code in my whrrl btw).

But enough of what I thought, here’s the skinny straight from a kid, my little “boo,” who jumped in my live AudioBoo last night talking about Simba skating. Just click play below for the short 1-minute listen.

Listen!

Stay tuned for more of what's hot always ahead.

Hot for the holidays, wild animal fun

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:08:00 GMT

Nothing says holidays like a 500-lb. lion rippin’ open his Christmas loot.

Hot on everyone's lips is what to do over the break. I reco the good times at the Wild Animal Park. And you’ve got three weekends left to soak up the gifting and watching of antelope and other species at play.

During the park’s "Wild Holidays 12 Days of Enrichment," kids get to hand-paint presents for lions, gorillas, elephants, vultures and meerkats. And if you’re lucky, you’ll get a peek at them “opening” their present-pretty boxed goods of popcorn and insect-tubes throughout the day.

2009 marks the first year for these wild holiday happenings. I love the idea and inclusion and kindness to our furry friends this time of year. I’ve always been a big fan of the Wild Animal Park and their natural, wide-open habitat, and their holiday spirit didn’t disappoint.

Other kid enrichment activities going down through January 2nd at the Park include creating mazes for meerkats and making tacos out of hay and food pellets for the elephants. Yum, Chipotle, get on that.

There’s also centers for kids to craft presents for their own cats and dogs, slime time and more. A black light puppet show wraps the night and later evening hours get you your money’s worth (all activities are all free with admission).

Here’s a look at my press preview at the Wild Holidays opening weekend. It rained cats and dogs, but like that was gonna stop us. Click anywhere on the whrrl below to see the photo story and get a taste of the fun:

More stories at San Diego Wild Animal Park

And here’s a quick 1-minute listen from our singing tram guide Molly. Rain or shine, it's all good:

Listen!

Happy holidays. More hot happenings and topics ahead.

Hood rats. And the men who love 'em.

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:32:00 GMT

Sorry I just can't let this one go. The count is up to like 13. Seriously?! Tiger, what up? You got the Swedish model and go for the Hoot Rat, Hoochie Mamas in Vegas?

What is it with men who gotta go for sloppy seconds off Las Vegas Blvd. when they've got the hot mama at home?

I admit it, at first I was pulling for Tiger when the saga broke, I even kinda took his side with the news of his lacerated, semiconscious status. And it's still totally uncool if she roughed him up, but as the drama oozes like a bad case at a public health clinic, I'm left dumbfounded at my clean-cut, collared, all-American Tiger.

Wow. And they're ALL hoochie mamas. I mean, Tool Academy contestants? Really?

I don't know the pscyhological mind warp behind his "transgressions," I can't understand the illogical nature of thinking no one might find out, and I can't comprehend his overinflated ego and callous family detachment....but at least I learned something from this whole thing.

I now know the definition of a hood rat.

Thanks, TMZ. I'm enlightened. (And if you don't know the song, think 2 Live Crew.)

Do you get Tiger and his hood rats?

Do you think men just forgot about Lorena Bobbit?

(He's lucky Elin only had a wedge, fo' shizzle.)

More Hot Topics ahead, maybe even more classy next time.

Gotta love the tween music machine. Or do we?

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:44:00 GMT

2010 couldn’t come soon enough for me to see the end of the Hannah. Ba-bye, and don’t let the door hit ya in the mass-marketed, overhyped behind.

I mean really, how much money did we throw at that empire of ingenious PR people who whipped up the perfect image to whip our kids into a frenzy?

I’m not gonna go down the road of how that cash could have gone to feed kids in Africa or anything—but it could have been used to buy our kids instruments, music lessons, tickets to a blues concert, a Billie Holiday cd or a Kidrockers show. We all work hard for our money and, don’t have “idol” cash laying around. Or maybe some do and can't wait for the next HSM empire. Rock on.

Me? I’m over the hair, the outfits, the hype, the boy crazy, the cool kids and the gotta-fit-in/buy-me-a-lunchbox image. I don’t think my girl needs to be 6 going on 16 in awe of the likes of the next teen star who straddles the land between tweens and over 18 with stage pole props or whatever to age her up. And I don’t buy into encouraging the empires to churn out another commercial “success.” 'Cause with the next role model American sweetheart, undoubtedly comes the girl who’s eventually a heartbeat away from the boulevard of Britney. And with the exit of another talentless pop tween career, goes our money (keenly mixed in stereo) down the drain. Will any of our kids really be the next great musician because of Miley or HSM? Yea, Beyonce was pop-inspired at 5, but really, she was a single little lady and I think her mom managed her career without having to take a shower every day from selling out.

I say we say no to the money-grubbing execs and outfits who don’t really care about our kids or the crap they’re glamorizing and start supporting groups who do—and they’re out there, like that Kidrocker group I mentioned. Kidrockers is a LA (and NY) biz who books real bands with real talent—bands who normally play for adults, but take the stage for kids. The LA gigs go down at The Echo on Sunset and give kids an upclose and personal look at top Indie artists who have passion and artistry. There’s no millionbillion dollar front behind the musicians, just instruments, a few laser lights and a hilarious comic who entertains between sets. It’s simple. Real. Underrated.

So, while I won’t be hanging at any Hannah concert finale, you can find me and my kids at a bar on Sunset … or maybe a Pacific Symphony Orchestra summer concert or a musical. My money’s on the real deal.

How about you? Tween pop stars, turn it up … or turn the junk off?

Lighten up .. or enough of the deep pockets?

Hannah for the holidays … or Hella No?

Learn more about Kidrockers in my live photo look from last weekend’s show. Click anywhere on the whrrl image below.

And listen to my live ipadio audiocast with Beth and Hannah from Kidrockers (free ticket info in the audio). Just click the green arrow below to hear our chat.

"Should we stay or should we go?"

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:29:00 GMT

“This report is now complete." Gulp. Dramatic pause. “I've ordered 30,000 more troops.” Pit in my stomach.

I watched Obama's speech last night. Did you? It was no fun to hear, there were no cowboy cheers and no hoots and hollers. Just pensive looks from cadets and heavy hearts from everybody.

It’s tough stuff. My husband is a former Marine and we went through six-month deployments. It's hard on all, the soldiers, the country, the spouses--and now as a parent, I realize that it could be my little guy or any of our sweet little kiddos out there in the same war in 10-15 years. And maybe it’s our nephews and nieces now.

The country is split. I’ll admit it, I’m asking: Is this really in our “vital national interest”? Should we send 30,000 troops or more to hunt down 100 bad guys in the hills of nowhere? And, seriously, can we even help a place whose economy is whacked with fields of poppy, heroine and other crack I don’t even know about? And what about the cops over there who hide the hunted in their back rooms?

Then there’s the exit strategy. July 2011? For real? Famous last words? Or will it just be the date the bad guys wait out?

Hard to say. And hard to hear when we’re all looking for support and work at home.

Don't know that Obama sold anyone last night. I’m on the fence on this one. My heart and gut says, “No more troops.” My head flashes back to 9/11.

You? For or against? “Finish the job”? Or done with Iraq and over Afghanistan already?