Why Family Rituals Are So Important For Living Safer

Rituals are those repeated actions done again and again in the interest of things like focus, grounding, tradition, cultural symbolism, predictable life rhythms, and feeling a part of something.  The current world of today leaves family times together in person less frequent and less personal.  Technology allows one to be able to communicate with family at the touch of a screen quickly and right now, but at the same time relationships can be less touchy feely and personal, and more readily available but short and more black and white.  In such a society, the family needs its own personal rituals more than ever to insure its survival in a fast-paced, dog eat dog world.  

Rituals can ground a family and help it focus in and have been found by psychological research to actually have a causal impact on people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.  In terms of the family unit, the American Psychological Association (APA) indicates that family rituals are associated in families today with marital satisfaction, adolescents’ sense of personal identity, children’s health, academic achievement, and stronger family relationships.  Rituals are more symbolic than simple to do’s and actions, as they can bridge the generations of a family and ground the entire unit in something meaningful and unique to that particular family.  They can be born out of the family’s values and goals for its perpetuation.

When thinking about family rituals that can be at risk of extinction in today’s busy world, one may come up with family meals as one of the big ones.  This used to be a ritual performed every night by most families without distractions such as television, cell phones, and the like.  Today, for the health of the family, it is still important to have that family meal time for sharing and communicating, but it is often more realistic to reserve certain meals of the week to being family time.  Perhaps a family can closely guard certain meals, such as a weekend breakfast, Sunday meal, and at least one dinner during the week.  One can even reserve a ritual of once weekly meals for extended family and bring meaning to the entire family and pass on traditions and values from generation to generation.  Members not only get valuable relationship and tradition within a single-family home, but also when family comes together for interaction between grandparents and grandchildren, uncles/aunts and nieces and nephews, siblings with siblings, cousins, with cousins, and parents with grown children.  The effects will impact how each family member interacts out in the world with others as well.  

It is important to keep in mind the day to day real life and demands of families when planning such rituals like the family meal, so that making them happen is not a stress filled ordeal.  Family rituals can involve even simpler things than family meals with things such as family walks once a week, family game night once a month, family activities every other weekend involving interaction, or even family holidays and birthdays done together at a certain time every year.  Rituals do not always have to be those things thought of as “fun” activities either.  Family chore time once per week or once per day can be meaningful rituals, as can goodnight rituals and family meetings held at laid out times to allow members to give input and appreciation for one another.  Whatever the family ritual, it is vital that people have some sense of routine and predictability in a world that is often unpredictable and uncertain.  Such rituals allow each member to feel like a part of something and grounded in something real and safe.  

For the health of the family, it is important to decide on family rituals that bring each member of the family a sense of belonging and validation, while being consistent and stable.  If a family takes on rituals that are too complicated or never fit in to the schedule, the family will find themselves losing them.  While it is necessary to be mindful of carrying out family rituals, they should also feel rhythmic, natural, and positive for each individual and unique family.  Get the family together and figure out what is important and safe for each member and go from there in identifying the best family rituals to fit your life.

 

   

Safety Concerns with Online Market Stay & Homestay Networks

Online marketplace and homestay networks are extremely popular right now, as they allow travelers to rent great residential places in which they can feel at home wherever they go.  These residential properties have been known to be very reasonable pricewise when compared with hotel stays, as well as very comfortable and convenient.  While the renter is benefited by this new phenomenon in travel, so is the individual residential property owner wanting to list or rent out their residential properties for some extra income.   More companies are branching out into this industry, including the giant, Airbnb, as well as Expedia’s Home Away, with its newly acquired VRBO.  With their overwhelming popularity and the availability of residence rentals to benefit owners and travelers, there also comes concerns with problems, that include safety and scams.  Right now, an issue rearing its ugly head is that while Expedia’s HomeAway is trying to go head to head with Airbnb with its acquisition of VRBO, the company is being accused of rolling over its loyal property owners in its quest.  New service fees, matching algorithms, and guarantees are causing property owners to cry foul.  Many feel the company is going back on its original intent and trying to put its success over the rental and guest relationship.  Operations are being switched up to the point that property owners feel like they are working for the homestay network company rather than the network working for the owners and renters.  A class action suit is even in the works with Expedia’s HomeAway being accused of “bait and switch tactics which have materially damaged Plaintiff and hundreds of thousands of other vacation home owners and managers.”   When property owners are taken advantage of, and losing income, this unfortunately gets passed on to the renter as well and damages owner and renter relationships greatly.  It is important to add that, while owners might feel things are at a disadvantage to them in changes like those of Expedia’s HomeAway, matching features, guarantees and the like can also be protective and security measures for both the property owners and especially renters.  

In addition to the above business issues arising for property owners and renters working with the big online homestay networking companies, there is of course safety and security issues that can cause injury and even death.  With each property rented through the online marketplace network being unique, rather than the cookie cutter accommodations of the hotel industry, comes the challenge of each property having unique safety and security issues that are less than predictable.  The online marketplace homestay networks do not do much in the way of guaranteeing safety other than stating safety is of utmost importance and then giving disclaimers of their liability or responsibility for safety issues.  The industry is not regulated like the hotel industry with health and safety rules or inspections.  The safety and security risks range from sexual or physical assaults to physical injuries, with no guarantees that renters or property owners will not suffer harm.  One example of safety going awry is the story of a man killed in 2013 by a fall he took when he tried to sit on a charming rope swing an Airbnb network rental offered.   Unfortunately, the tree trunk was rotten, so it broke and came down on the man, causing massive brain injuries that were fatal.  Yet another horror story involves a story of a 19-year-old male being locked into a room he rented through the Airbnb network in Madrid to be sexually assaulted by the property host.  Although the young man desperately tried to get help by texting his mother over and over, Airbnb would not give the mother any information about the property due to privacy issue concerns.  Now, at least, Airbnb added a spot for individuals to list an emergency contact while booking properties.  Yet another sad story is that of a Canadian woman dying of carbon monoxide poisoning in Taiwan in 2013 due to improper ventilation and a water heater with a leak.  Safety and security are certainly volatile issues in an industry in which properties and renters are global and very different.  In addition to the above tragedies, there are also many reports of rental properties being completely damaged and trashed, used for highly illegal purposes (such as temporary sites for brothels, parties, violence, or drug use), as well as property owners being accused by neighbors of their renters disturbing the peace or ruining the neighborhood.

If this litany of problems with the online homestay networking industry has brought vows to never utilize it, take heart, as there are things property owners and renters can do to be proactive in safety and security.  When traveling and utilizing Airbnb, VRBO, or other homestay rentals, it is important to alert others about details relating to one’s stays, with emergency contacts and services at the ready.  It is wise to also research the area where the rental is located and make decision on whether it might be better to stay in a hotel with 24-hour on-site management.   It is also wise to look for reviews or testimonials and to look through the online FAQ section that describes safety and security issues, as well as being willing to be part of an online community in which members give real life recommendations and bad experiences. Renters should not be afraid to be picky when narrowing down possible rentals, looking for properties willing to cite safety and security factors, and also messaging with the hosts of properties to ask thorough questions about things like the property, safety, security, rules, and cancellation policies.  At the same time, owners should not be afraid to check out possible renters and ask their own questions.  Other protective measures against being taken in by fraud can be simple things like checking listed phone numbers to assure they are valid and know that it is recommended to confirm things with property owners by phone before paying.  Watch out for property owners, or renters, who want to do everything through e-mails like Gmail, yahoo e-mail, or Hotmail. Property owners that take payment methods that are reversible, such as PayPal or credit cards, are preferable and immediately seen as more professional and secure for both parties.   

It is important to know that thousands and thousands of stays occur using online homestay networks without a hitch.  However, even a handful of bad experiences and tragedies are too many.  The main safety advocate in one’s life has to be one’s self, so it is important to do the homework and research, as well as ask all the questions, before committing to rent one’s property to others or rent a home-style experience from a property owner.  The young man who was assaulted in Madrid wanted people to know about his experience so that others might be saved from something similar and stated it is important that individuals listen to their own instincts and intuitions when situations seem off.  One should understand that often the individual has to be one’s own best advocate.  Doing so could assure enjoyable, safe travels, and literally save one’s life.       

Danger: Household Products That Should Never Be Mixed

Green is a word that is used daily in our current world.  Companies are geniusly employing green methods to their marketing and practices, labeling their businesses or methods as green or green or ecofriendly.  The word green has come to mean life, renewal, natural, pure, clean, good earth, and other such adjectives to people, so using anything labeled “green” tends to be immensely popular.  Consumers decide that their entire lives, bodies and environment, be natural, healthy, and pure, so green cleaning products are often the product of choice, versus the mainstream products containing chemicals that could possibly be more harmful than helpful.  It is tempting to think that one cannot get too much of something labeled green and that there could be no harmful ingredients contained in such products.  However, there are green cleaning products that should never, ever be mixed, and that should remain in the original containers in which they are purchased, so the original labels are accessible and studied carefully for instructions and warnings concerning each product.  When using green cleaning products, ingredients contained within are often advertised or touted as non-toxic, pure, natural, and biodegradable, but are subject to very little regulation.  Therefore, the green cleaning product consumer should seek education and professional expertise when making decisions on what products are safest and what products should not be mixed under any circumstances.

Vinegar is known as a natural product that has hundreds of uses.  However, what people often fail to understand is that it is a very acidic product that should not be mixed with many other products.  Vinegar should never be mixed with baking soda, with vinegar being very acidic and baking soda being basic.  The effect of each of these products actually becomes neutralized when the two products are combined, and a dangerous explosion can also occur.  Mixing the two in a closed-up container will make an explosion every more likely.          

Vinegar should also never be mixed with hydrogen peroxide, as these two products will create something called peracetic acid.  This acid, in very concentrated forms, can be dangerous to the lungs, throat, nose, and eyes, and can cause skin damage.  Additionally, vinegar should not be mixed with Castile soap, with the vinegar again being acidic and the Castile soap basic like baking soda.  The combination of the acidic vinegar and the Castile soap will just make a muck that is white and curdled, but each ingredient on its own is useful on its own.  The Castile soap is best used alone for the wash cycle, and vinegar by itself in the rinse cycle.  Finally, vinegar does not mix well with bleach unless a toxic, dangerous gas is the goal.  Such a damaging gas could injure the lungs or eyes, and since bleach is not a chemical found in nature, and produces toxic byproducts, the green cleaning consumer should avoid bleach as a rule for the good of people and the environment.

Bleach, again not a natural product found in nature, should not be mixed with rubbing alcohol or ammonia either.  Mixing rubbing alcohol and bleach will create hydrochloric acid and chloroform, which could cause the user to pass out, while being toxic.  Ammonia with bleach will cause a toxic gas called chloramine, which could bring the user problems with breathing and with chest pain.  

Disinfectants and detergents, green or not, can create dangerous fumes and acidic reactions, and chlorine gas can be the result of mixing drain cleaners from different brand names and bottles.  The valuable lesson from all this information is that mixing green products with green products, or green products with any products, can net harmful results.  In fact, the mixture of certain products can cause unwanted symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, chest pain, eye watering or damage, skin irritation, eye irritation/burning, throat irritation, a runny nose, shortness of breath, and nausea or vomiting.  Such effects, chemical reactions, explosions, and/or damage can injury or prove fatal to a user who started with the intention of using natural, eco-friendly cleaning products for the good of their home and world.  Sticking to a green product’s intended use is the safest, most environmentally and health conscious thing to do for the green consumer, always paying close attention to the ingredient list and product labels.