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1 in 3 Americans “Near Poor”

Teatime
Teatime
This is shocking at first, then, not so much when you think about friends, neighbors, and others in your circle.

Times are, indeed, hard.

Here’s an article about the reality of living paycheck to paycheck and just what that means, demographically, for the United States of America. Census data tell the tale.

“Nuff said. I’ll let you read it for yourself here at the New York Times.

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Update 11/20/11: Just came across a related article at CBS News.

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(originally published elsewhere 11/19/11)

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Pillowsonic Pillow Speaker Great Nighttime Solution for Audiobook and MP3 Fans

Teatime
Teatime
Love to listen to audiobooks or music at night without disturbing your partner? Here’s a quick review I did of one of my favorite finds this year, the Pillowsonic Stereo Pillow Speaker at Amazon (under $20):


I’m pleasantly SURPRISED By How Well This Works; GREAT for Audiobooks, MP3s & more. This little speaker exceeded my expectations; this is one of my top Amazon finds this year.

Here’s why I like it:
1. Amazingly, I can comfortably listen to audiobooks, movies, or music MP3s without disturbing my husband, just as other reviewers noted. I was skeptical, but they’re right. The speakers funnel the sound directly to your ears without disturbing your partner.
2. I use it on TOP of my pillow, just positioning it at the base of my head for full stereophonic sound, even with binaural subliminal MP3’s. Soft, cushiony material keeps it comfy.
3. Cord’s the right length–I leave my tablet on the bedside table & still have plenty of “working room” without excessive extra cord.
4. No ear pain! The longer I wear earbuds, the more my ear canals hurt. Not so with this; I can comfortably listen to anything for as long as I like.
5. The sound quality exceeded my expectations; great performance for music AND audiobooks. No, not equal to Sennheiser headphones. But terrific for their price point.
6. I also like being able to hear all ambient noise while listening with this speaker system. With earbuds, all I could hear was the tablet. Now, if the phone rings (or my husband talks to me) while I’m using this, I hear it (or him) right away.
7. I can keep the volume setting LOWER than I could with earbuds. Good news for averting future MP3-related hearing loss.

Highly recommended; I’m REALLY glad I bought this & use it daily (& nightly).

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Are Metal Hip Replacements Endangering People’s Health?

Have a family member with an artificial hip?

Then you need to read this article from the New York Times, detailing some serious concerns patients are facing.

Metal-on-metal hip replacements are failing at an alarming rate and surgeons who are replacing these failed hip prostheses are finding that the flaking metal is biologically active, causing muscle and tissue damage in the surrounding area (leading to muscles that can no longer contract and other very serious complications).

Many patients are experiencing pain, but some are not; read more here: A Scramble for Solutions as a Hip Device Fails.

UPDATE: A very quick Google search also shows that DePuy (a division of Johnson and Johnson) recalled its ASR XL Acetabular metal-on-metal hip replacement device on August 24, 2010.

Page quote: “DePuy identified reasons for the failure of the hip replacement system as component loosening, component malalignment, infection, fracture of the bone, dislocation, metal sensitivity and pain. Additional complications from the DePuy ASR XL Acetabular hip replacement system may include increased metal ion levels in the blood, bone staining, necrosis, swelling, nerve damage, tissue damage and/or muscle damage.”

More info here.

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Originally published elsewhere 10/2/11