When my mother died, I withdrew from loved ones. I was barely able to go through the motions. My doctor prescribed me an antidepressant, but I didn’t want a pharmaceutical fix. One Sunday morning over coffee, one of my girlfriends told me her son was headed to Venice Beach to attend the weekly Drum Circle they have out there. She told me she had went once with him, and it was heaps of fun, and therapeutic as well. Though skeptical, I decided the following week I would check it out. That following week, as I walked through the sand towards the immense circle that had formed on the beach, I began to FEEL the percussion throughout my body. Hundreds of people all in a circle, all playing together.. The different rhythms uniting into one. Someone offered me a drum, and after a few minutes, I really got into it. I found myself growing happy in the moment, and I carried that off of the beach with me. Now, I drum every week in Venice, and the results are amazing.
Here is a video showing the Venice drum circle (Not taken personally, but gives you an idea of what I’m talking about!)

My nephew works as a lifeguard in Malibu, and we were talking over dinner. He brought up some interesting things that he has to deal with out there, and I decided to dig a little deeper.
Between strong currents and menacing marine life, it’s no wonder that more than 74,000 beachgoers had to be rescued last year. Fortunately for you guys, I grilled my nephew for some simple measures to ensure that your next seaside vacation is safe.

When stuck in a rip, swim along the shore
“I once saw three teenage girls get sucked into a strong rip current,” Recalled James, my nephew. “As they struggled against the fast moving belt of water, my crew raced in and got the trio back to safety. If you find yourself getting dragged out in a rip, don’t fight it. Instead, swim parallel to the shoreline to escape the seaward pull. Also to avoid rip currents, steer clear of areas where marine debris is moving outward and the water is dark and choppy”.

The sand can hide still-hot coals!
“Beachgoers often bury blazing-hot coals in the sand after finishing a cookout or bonfire, but since the briquettes can retain intense heat for up to 24 hours, this creates a major hazard. I once a young girl for first degree burns on the soles of her feet after she walked across sand that was covering coals. To protect your feet, avoid walking near old firepits and wear flipflops or water shoes while traversing the beach. Also, if you have a cookout, extinguish coals with water and discard them in a designated receptacle.

Schools of small fish portend predators
“Although sharks don’t actually hunt for swimmers, they can be dangerous while chasing prey into shallow waters. One beach where I worked, a nearby fishing boat released live bait, attracting a shark to the area. As the shark pursued the baitfish, it swam near the shore and collided with a man who was bodysurfing, biting him in the aftermath. Luckily, all the man needed was a few stitches. But I learned it’s best to swim away from schools of fish- you never know what might be following them.”

Even dead jellyfish are able to sting
“I was paddling on my surfboard one day, when suddenly I suffered an excruciating jellyfish sting,” James recounts. “Such stings are common because dead jellyfish are as dangerous as live ones. Their tentacles can release venom long after they die- even when they’re washed up on the beach.” To be on the safe side, always carry a small amount of vinegar with you to the beach. This neutralizes pain-casing jellyfish toxins on the skin.

Diving into waves can cause serious injury
“I’ll never forget this guy who wanted to take one last dip in the water before leaving the beach. He just charged into the water and dove head first into a wave. Unfortunately he didn’t account for the waves counterforce- diving into one can be like running into a wall- and ended up with a hairline fracture in his spine. It’s probably best to save your diving practice for the pool.”

My girlfriend’s baby shower was tonight and she asked that I bring a dip of some sort. Was paging through a magazine I read, and found this recipe. Ended up being a hit with the ladies, so I figured I’d share with you guys too!
Makes 16 servings.
Ingredients:

1 pkg. (10 oz) sharp cheddar cheese, like Kraft, shredded.
1 pkg. (8 oz) Neufchatel cheese, softened.
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce
1 clove of garlic, peeled.
1/2 cup finely chopped roasted peppers

In bowl of food processor, puree cheddar cheese, neufchatel cheese, mayonnaise, tabasco and garlic for 1 minute. Stir in chopped roasted red peppers. Transfer to a serving bowl, Serve cheese spread with assorted veggies, like sugar snap peas, yellow squash and carrots. Can also garnish with some red pepper curls if you’d like (I did, and it looked great!)

If any of you make this, let me know how ya liked it!

So says Lisa Strohschein, Ph.D. Her research overturned previous beliefs that fractured homes don’t (or can’t) function as healthy havens for kids. In fact, divorced parents scored equally as well in the areas of the study- nurturing, consistency and discipline- as those who were married.

I believe many of you parents out there have experienced this. You have a daughter (or more than one) and you have a son. At some point, he starts idolizing his sister or his mother and acts like them to some degree. I was speaking with my cousin around Easter time and he was complaining about his little boy acting like a girl, so I watched him during our time together.

He loved dancing – not the kind of moves that we see male dancers make. He wanted to float around and prance as if he were a ballerina. He’d ask for dresses and ribbons and even went as far as to say “I am a princess!”

Understandably, my cousin was alarmed by all of this. Should he be, though? As I watched my nephew more, I noticed that behind his little princess act, the young boy was still there. Sure, he’d dance around but he couldn’t resist trying to frighten the girls with scary moves. When they would all play with Barbies, he’s be gentle with them, then all of a sudden his inner boy would come out and a head would pop off of poor Barbie, inciting cries from his siters.

I told my cousin this – some boys do go through this stage, especially if the role model in their life is a woman (or girl). There was a kid in our neighborhood who acted exactly like this when he was 5 or 6. Now? He’s the toughest guy on the block.

I don’t think you should discourage boys when they start acting like this, as it could potentially be a good thing. Will help to keep them in touch with their feminine side, but of course, you’d have to have talks that will help him distinguish gender. What do you guys think?