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Bethesda, MD
A staunch believer in recovery, this newsletter provides consumers with the opportunity to express themselves both creatively and intellectually. We welcome your feedback! Please leave us comments :)

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

HAIKU


Love Haiku

Walking along path
just minding my own business
noticed a diamond

The jewel is stunning
bigger than the hope diamond
and is colored red

There is a problem
the diamond is in a bush
bush has pointy thorns

I reach for the jewel
tearing up hands in process
hands bleeding like mad

I got the jewel now
it has great beautifulness
I’ll prize forever

by Raymond J

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

TERPS

Terps Men's Basketball

Now that the Maryland Terrapins football season is winding down and the weather is starting to turn colder it is time to move inside to the Comcast Center.  The Mark Turgeon era officially got underway on Sunday night, November 13th against UNC–Wilmington.  Maryland would prevail in Turgeon’s Terrapins head coaching debut 71-62.  Turgeon comes to College Park after spending the past four seasons as the head coach of the Texas A & M Aggies where his record was 97–40.  He was also named the Big 12 Coach of the Year in both 2010 and 2011.  However, taking over for Gary Williams who both played and spent the past twenty two years at the University of Maryland as the head honcho isn’t going to be easy.  Making matters worse for Turgeon is the fact that he only has eight scholarship and six walk-on players at his disposal for this season.  Things didn’t start well when projected sophomore starter Pe’Shon Howard suffered a foot injury and is expected to be out approximately the first ten to twelve weeks of the 2011–2012 campaign.  The team did get some good news when 7’1” Ukrainian center Alex Len was declared eligible by the NCAA.  However, he will be suspended for the first ten games of the regular season.  Some schedule highlights include the San Juan, Puerto Rico Shoot–Out, a home game against the University of Illinois in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, and home and home games against both Duke University and the University of North Carolina.             
by Kris L.

Friday, November 11, 2011

CHANGES

Huge Changes, One Year at a Time

       This past year was one of the best I’ve ever had.  However, at its meager beginning, all my doctors pleaded with me to lose fifty pounds.  At first, I turned a deaf ear, saying to myself, “Happiness should be my only goal in life; eating whatever I want makes me happy.”  Finally, though, their complaints wore me down.  I decided to try healthier eating just one day and re-evaluate again tomorrow.  So began my remarkable year-long journey filled with new discoveries about myself and eating.
My psychiatrist points out that all my medications cause weight gain.  Nonetheless, I have managed to lose forty-seven pounds!   I attend a group where we share what worked that week and areas where we still struggle.  We applaud each others’ small changes even if they don’t result in weight loss.
For me, with past anorexia, I have watched for extreme measures such as not wanting to eat or over-exercising.  They haven’t surfaced and I’m ecstatic!  In fact, I exercise only moderately and relish all the new foods I’m eating!
The biggest change in me is that I’m more assertive, not hiding timidly inside big clothes.  I get inspiration at work from other exercisers and read inspirational books.  Friends, family, and my cats all benefit from my enthusiasm.
In just one year, my life changed immeasurably.  Imagine, by making one small change at a time on a goal you have, how yours could change, too!

By Susan K.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

DIGNITY

Dignity

My father was at the doctors
Prayer has been a facet
In my life
Give me my pills
I’m ok
No more worries
Till my dying day
Come whatever may
People say everything is energy
Anger runs quite deep at times 
Tahoe cigarettes   
King Jeremy aint wicked
But more in context, entities are very powerful
I believe indeed her
Compassion will guide me anywhere
I have to create my energy everywhere
And let it be my guide

By Darren V.

MURPHY'S LAWS

Murphy's 14 Laws of Operating a Motor Vehicle 
  1. Whenever your car arrives at a signal light, the light will be red
  2. Roads are not built to simulate the way the crow flies
  3. If your vehicle is low on gas then there will not be a gas station nearby
  4. When you pull into a gas station, that particular gas station will have the most expensive gasoline
  5. If you commit a traffic violation then a policeman will be present
  6. If your car is involved in an accident with another motor vehicle then the other motor vehicle will be a large truck
  7. If your car is involved in an accident with another motor vehicle then your car will suffer more damage than the other vehicle
  8. Your car will always break down at the worst possible moment
  9. If you must drive on a particular day then the roads will be treacherous due to the weather
  10. Traffic will be heaviest on the road that your vehicle is traveling
  11. You will always choose the route in which the traffic is heaviest
  12. If you commit two or more traffic violations then you will be charged with the most serious violation
  13. If you are not the guilty party in an accident then nobody will witness the accident; and through accident recreation, fault will be impossible to determine
  14. If your car is involved in an accident then you will be at fault
 
By Michael K.

Monday, November 7, 2011

HOT OFF THE PRESS

Vol. 7 Issue 4

CONTENTS:
My Favorite Movies (Paul H.)
Employment (Tom L.)
Fresh Veggies (Soheil S.)
Learning into Action (Beth W.)
Job Coaches (Susan K.)
What I Know (Anna H.)
Coin Central (Robb W.)
Book Review: The Artists' Way (Shaun L.)
Budgeting (Juanita M.)
Beautiful Animals (Efrem A.)
Celebrating America (Noah K.)
Bowling (Jessica L.)
Letters (Peter R.)
Comic (Bill W.)
Friends of the Library (Michael K.)
Back in the Saddle (Kris L.)
Coping with War (Kyle G.)
Summer Cinema (Reed P.)
Vacation (Marcos P.)
Parallel Universes (Mark B.)
Frog, Hog & Dog (Tony W.)
Betsy, A Warrior Tale (Raymond J.)

When commenting, reference which article you are referring to.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

BUDGETING

Budgeting

Budgeting is a skill that could help almost anyone.  As long as a person’s income is finite and a person’s enjoyment is increased by his spending of additional money; budgeting can help that individual to spend his limited money wisely; therefore, maximize his enjoyment of life.  Budgeting is essential whether a person’s income is extremely high or extremely low or whether or not a person has extravagant tastes.  The key to budgeting is to choose between different consumption goods with a person’s limited income.  Successful budgeting is spending a percentage of one’s income on fixed costs which refer to costs that can’t be avoided; consequently, to spend the remaining income on variable costs; costs that must be rationed by the budgeting individual.  A person does not have to spend all of their income in the present:  He can save some of his income for future time periods.  Furthermore, a person can borrow money in order to consume more products than his present income would otherwise allow; with the assumption he would pay back the borrowed finances in a future time period along with a certain amount of interest that depends on the interest rate.  The interest rate can be assumed to be positive.  Nobody would loan money if the premium was greater than the accumulated return.

Essential living expenses must be included as fixed costs, because a person must pay these expenses in order to reach the following time period.  Food items are definitely necessary consumption products.  However, there is some flexibility among substitute essential consumption costs.  For example, a person could either spend some of their fixed expenses on turkey or beef; furthermore, a person could choose to spend on grilled or rotisserie chicken.  Transportation expenses are certainly essential expenses; however, the type of transportation is flexible.  The cost for riding the bus is a fixed expense; whereas, the additional price to take the subway or a taxi is variable; therefore depending on the budgeter’s desires.  Whether or not an expense is fixed or variable depends on how broadly a category is defined.  The consumption of food is a necessity; whereas, the quantity of turkey consumed varies from individual to individual.  Effective budgeting includes making choices on variable expenses; expenses that can be controlled. Wealthy individuals certainly spend a larger part of their income on variable costs than less wealthy individuals.  However, they still are constrained by their limited income. 

All individuals should attempt to have some margin for error when constructing a budget.  It is better to have money left over after spending than to run out of money before accumulating additional income.  Poor budgeting can lead to utility shutdowns, hunger, and loss of independence.  Income can be in the form of social security payments, unemployment benefits, pensions, loans, and wages.  It can be predictable or it can be unpredictable.  Obviously, it is easier for an individual that is budgeting from a predictable source of income to budget than one who is budgeting with unpredictable income sources.  For this reason, employers must pay an additional salary to an individual if the employee’s income is unpredictable.  Budgeting takes time and energy; therefore, more difficult budgeting requirements must be compensated for by additional salary.  Those individuals that live month to month on limited government assistance lose much of their independence to choose their form of consumption.  In reality, this decreases their need for budgeting rather than increasing it.  The only choices they must make are between substitute goods such as pork, beef, or chicken.  They have no need to decide what percentage of their income to spend on food as a whole.  The same applies to transportation:  All government subsidized individuals must rely almost exclusively on public transportation.  They lose the ability to choose between different alternative expenses.  Budgeting varies depending on the location:  Individuals living in rural and urban areas must consider their location when constructing a budget.  Consumption in the present is always preferred to consumption in the future.  This discrepancy is known as the discount rate.

By Michael K.

BEACH


Overnight Beach Trip

On Monday September 12th I was one of several clients that went on an overnight beach trip to Ocean City, MD with Megan Flynn and Eric Gordon.  Upon arriving at Southport at approximately eight o’clock in the morning we loaded the van with our bags and started out on our trip.  Upon arrival at Harrison Hall we checked in and went up to a room and checked for bed bugs with the help of staff.  Our hotel had a porch with rocking chairs and it overlooked the ocean.  Each individual was given a roommate ahead of time and then assigned to a room.  We were scheduled to have a picnic on the beach but the Dough Roller provided us with a free lunch.  After eating, other clients and I spent the rest of the afternoon laying out on the beach and swimming in the ocean.  Megan went and bought buckets so she, Eric, one other client, and I could build sand castles.  For dinner we went to the Captains Table across the street from our hotel and picked from a seafood menu that was specially prepared for us.  Once our bellies were full Eric took some of us on a one dollar bus ride to the end of the boardwalk and we walked back to our hotel.  The next morning we got up and loaded for the return trip home and went to a diner for breakfast before heading back to Southport. 

In order for this trip to take place the clients participated in a car wash one Saturday in August to help pay for their hotel expenses and going out to eat.  This was suggested by Bill West who put a petition up on the soda machine in the kitchen for clients to sign if they were possibly interested.  We had to budget our money in advance so that we could afford to help pay for our hotel room.  Clients also had to be in the general residential program to qualify for this trip.  I got further proof that it is possible for me to go on a group outing overnight without my parents which would not have been possible in years past.  In conclusion, this was a very fun trip for me and I hope we can do it again sometime in the future.    

By Kris L.