Best of the West: 10 top monuments

Found on http://www.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/06/28/ten.places.life.list/index.html?hpt=tr_c1 By Peter Fish, Sunset

June 28, 2011 5:08 p.m. EDT

(Sunset) -- The West's top national monuments: Build a great vacation around a spectacular island, forest, cliff dwelling, canyon, fossil bed, tower or volcano.

1) Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico

Bandelier has been entrancing people for nearly 1,000 years -- from when the Ancestral Pueblo people first began building homes in the cliffs of Frijoles Canyon.

They're easily seen on the monument's Main Loop Trail; more ruins can be glimpsed in Tsankawi Canyon to the north.

Travel Snapshots: Share your national park photos

But archeology isn't the only reason to come here -- the monument is stunningly beautiful, with dramatic mesas and broad views across Northern New Mexico. All this only a 45-minute drive from Santa Fe.

2) Admiralty Island National Monument, Alaska

Everything you want from Alaska is here. Deep green old-growth forests (thanks to 100 inches of rain a year), rushing streams alive with salmon, a rugged coastline, and the largest collection of brown bears -- AKA grizzlies -- anywhere in the world.

In fact, one of the best places to see brown bears anywhere (from a safe distance) is at Pack Creek, on the island's northern shore.

Admiralty Island is wild but it isn't remote, just about 15 miles west ofJuneau and reachable by boat and floatplane. Tongass National Forest even has cabins you can rent; there are also wilderness lodges.

Top 10 national park beaches

3) Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona

Canyon de Chelly in northern Arizona is one of the longest continuously inhabited places in North America. But it's no mere living history museum -- t's still a vital part of life on the Navajo Nation.

You can see White House Ruin from the canyon rim, or take a 2-hour hike to see the ruin up close. And a number of Navajo outfitters lead Jeep, hiking and horseback trips into the canyon backcountry. Nearest hotels are in Chinle.

4) Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho

Who needs NASA when you can come to theCraters of the Moon monument about 90 miles north of Twin Falls, Idaho?

This eerie lunar landscape is the product of volcanic lava flows that stopped only about 2,000 years ago. (Geologists say they could start up again, although no one seems too worried.)

You can see it all on a 7-mile loop drive or if you want to feel boot on lava, hike the North Crater Flow trail.

5) Devil's Tower National Monument, Wyoming

Sure, moviegoers know Wyoming's Devil's Tower as the place where mankind met friendly aliens in Steven Spielberg's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind."

But nothing prepares you for the real thing: the 1,300-foot chunk of granite rising out of Wyoming badlands is bigger than even the widest of wide-screen attractions.

It's a sacred site to Crow and Cheyenne peoples; once you see it (say on the Tower Trail, which circles the rock's base) you will understand why.

33 perfect summer trips

6) Grand Staircase National Monument, Utah

The "staircase" in the name is a vast series of rock terraces. The "Escalante" is Father Silvestre Velez de Escalante, the 18th century Spanish explorer who started the habit of being awed and amazed by the landscape here: cliffs and hoodoos and the sinuous canyons of the Paria and Escalante rivers.

In Southern Utah due east of Zion National Park, Grand Staircase National Monument is so big -- 1.9 million acres -- that it would take a lifetime to discover it all.

Explore it by car on Utah Highway 12 and Hole-in-the-Rock Road; even better, get out and hike to Calf Creek Falls or Devil's Garden. Numerous outfitters lead jeep and hiking trips into the area; for creature comforts, you'll find good food and places to stay in Boulder and Escalante.

7) John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon

Elephants! Tigers! Rhinos! All here in Eastern Oregon. Well, not the living animals -- their ancestors, preserved in rock for eternity at theJohn Day National Monument northwest of Bend.

John Day's beautiful badlands contain some 50 million years worth of plants and animals; you can get all that ancient natural history straight at the excellent Thomas Condon Paleontology Center.

And the monument offers more than just looking at bones; it's also great for hiking, particularly in the Painted Hills area, which explodes with wildflowers in spring and summer.

8) Mount St. Helens National Monument, Washington

Kaboom! In 1980, nearly 4 billion cubic yards of mountaintop blasted skyward in an instant. Nearly 230 square miles of forest blown down or buried beneath volcanic ash and mud.

Even now, decades after an eruption that impacted nearly all of the Pacific Northwest, Mount St. Helens is ranked as the most famously unstable mountain in North America.

The geology here is fascinating, of course, but so is the quieter spectacle of forests and meadows gradually reclaiming the mountain's scorched slopes. Must-sees include Johnston Ridge Observatory and Blowdown Forest and Spirit Lake Viewpoints.

10 great one-night escapes

9) Muir Woods National Monument, California

It seems that something so beautiful shouldn't be this easy to reach. John Muir's favorite woods lie just across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, but step onto its trails -- especially on a quiet weekday -- and you are in another world.

The coast redwoods (sequoia sempervirens if you want to get Latin about it) grow 300 feet tall; beneath them spread lush carpets of ferns and mosses. With most trails paved and relatively flat, this is a great place to take kids.

10) Pinnacles National Monument, California

Only 90 minutes south of Silicon Valley, Pinnacles proves that California geology is just as creative as Facebook, Google and Apple.

The larger-than-life rock formations here were shaped both by ancient volcanoes and by the San Andreas Fault, which runs through the monument.

Along with wild rocks, Pinnacles has bragging rights to some of the state's best spring wildflower displays. Look sharp and you might even see a California condor: This is one of the endangered bird's release sites.

How To Meet Women In A Bar

Found on http://manofthehouse.com/relationships/single-divorced/how-to-meet-women-in-a-bar-6a on November 11, 2010, By David Mott

As a middle-aged single dad on the dating scene, I’m not exactly out there at happy hour hitting meat-markets, trying to meet women. Bars and clubs may have been fun spots to chat women up, share a drink and a laugh, hit the dance floor, swap numbers (hopefully not fake ones), and go out on a date the following week – when I was in my twenties.

These days, in my forties, I’m not nearly as footloose and fancy-free. Other concerns have taken center stage in my life – like raising my kids, paying my mortgage, co-parenting amicably with my ex-wife. Any woman I date won’t be able to mold me; I’m already man of the house, and she has to fit in.

While being a divorced parent has limited my dating options, it hasn’t killed my night life completely. I don’t go clubbing, but I do still have my favorite bars where I like to relax over a drink. And I still meet women when I’m out and about.

Here are some tips from a single father on how to meet women in a bar.

1. Eat at the bar of a nice restaurant. Any businessperson traveling solo knows it’s no fun to eat by yourself. Eat at the bar, and you have built-in conversation partners. Even if the bar is empty, you can talk the bartender’s ear off about pretty much anything you want. And by eating at the bar, rather than just drinking, you can stay longer without looking like a drunk.

The key to meeting women at the bar is for you to talk – to anyone and everyone. Ask the guy next to you what’s good on the menu. Ask the women next to you whether their drinks are only for girls. Ask the bartender whether her best margarita recipe is better than yours. Just get the conversation rolling. Ask questions. Don’t brag about yourself. The more people you talk to and engage in laugh-inducing conversation, the more you come across as a good guy to know. And women tend to like meeting good guys. This conversational approach takes the pressure off of “the pick-up,” and you can swap phone numbers when you both realize you’d like to get to know each other more.

2. Don’t hit on the waitress or female bartender. Trust me, if your server is pretty and nice, she probably gets hit on a million times each night. What are your chances? Better to focus on other bar patrons.

3. Keep expectations low. While something like 11% of recently married couples met in bars or at social events, those people didn’t meet their prospective spouses 100% of the time they went out. Think about it – you might go to hundreds of bars and meet scores of women in the years leading up to finding the right person to be your wife. Why put pressure on yourself to meet “the one” every time you order a drink? With the pressure off, you might find yourself to be more accepting of people for who they are. By not judging their looks or social status, and instead allowing yourself to just talk and flirt, you can end up making random friendships with really interesting people.

4. Go for the kill. Make it a practice to swap numbers whenever you meet someone you share an interest with. You may not end up dating, but you could become activity partners or even fast friends. Expanding your social circle is always a good thing. And it might just lead to a dinner party or bar-b-que down the road where you end up meeting the one. This time, through friends. 

Play It Cool After A First Date

Found on http://manofthehouse.com/relationships/single-divorced/call-girl-after-date on April 09, 2011, By P.K. Lassiter

You’ve checked the clock three times in the last six minutes. No--make that four times now. It’s still 11:28 PM and nothing is going to change that. The text or call or email or any other form of contact, electronic or otherwise, is just not going to happen tonight.

We’ve all been there. Watching the water, waiting for it to boil. Except now the water is the woman you really like, and you can’t turn up the burner. The waiting game royally sucks. 

But I've found that you really don’t have to play it.

Step 1: Watch What You Say

If you’ve sent a message or left a voice mail or emailed her, and you are expecting some type of answer, you’re already dead in the water (and this pot is boiling). If you were in the relationship you wouldn’t be playing the waiting game…so you’re clearly reaching out, blanketed by anticipation.

Don’t. Fight the urge. Keep it light. You will know when the time has come to take the next step, and I am always an advocate of doing that in person. So don’t load up on the bullet points, selling yourself as if you’re in a job interview. Don’t be disingenuous. Don’t throw bouquets into a tree grinder. Just try a simple hello. It works.

Step 2: Don’t Overreact

So you’ve said hello. Now you’re playing again. Soon enough the suspense will end. You’ll hear back. If you don’t, try again in a few days. But when you do hear from her you should have an idea about how she feels about you. And if that response isn’t exactly what you’re looking for (there’s that boiling water again) do not overreact. Deleting her number and vowing never to contact her again doesn’t do you a bit of good--unless that's what she asks you to do. If that’s the case, see step one.

Don’t read too much into it. If it’s just a hello back, this may not be the time to ask her to marry you. And if the response is really good, by all means don’t plan a date via text message. Pick up the phone. It was invented for talking--before anybody thought about the concept of texting.

Step 3: You Win Some, You Lose Some

If you’ve shaken the 8-ball of this game and all signs point to yes, then you’re well on your way. But if you keep getting the “ask again later” or “cannot determine now” in the little window, it may be time to walk away. Do it gracefully, with as little fanfare as possible. You don’t need proclamations about your unbelievably busy schedule, your huge trip to Rio or your immersion in a project to save the indigenous Spider monkeys of Costa Rica. Just walk away silently and see what happens. There is a game to this, and you might be able to turn some of those losses into wins.

So stop checking the clock. Stop watching the water. It will boil soon enough. And when it does, make sure you’re properly equipped to handle it. The waiting game sucks. But you don’t have to play it to win. Careful…it’s hot in there. 

Beginner’s guide to Facebook privacy settings

found on http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_technews/20110623/tc_yblog_technews/beginners-guide-to-facebook-privacy-settings/print  By Tecca Thu Jun 23, 4:34 pm ET

Within just a few years, Facebook has grown to be one of the most popular destinations online and the most popular social networking site. Sharing personal stories, photos, and news with friends and family members is great, but what about all those other people on Facebook? Maybe your privacy is important to you and you don't want to share every aspect of your personal life with everyone on Facebook. Here's how you can make (and keep) your Facebook profile secure.

Navigating to the settings hub
The first place you need to go once you've signed into Facebook is the account settings page. You can navigate to your account settings by left-clicking on the Account tab at the top-right corner of your browser page. In the drop-down menu, select the third option down: Account Settings. From the Account Settings page, you can manage and edit almost every facet of your Facebook profile.

Facebook Ads settingsOn this page, you want to left-click on the last tab to the right — "Facebook Ads." The Facebook Ads tab has two sections: Ads shown by third parties and "Ads and friends."

Under "Ads shown by third parties," there is a brief explanation of Facebook's terms of service regarding third party advertisements. Click "Edit third party ad settings" and you'll see a drop-down menu under the next paragraph that will allow you to chose "Only my friends" or "No one." While this setting isn't active yet, by making your choice now you'll be ready just in case Facebook decides to let third-party sites use your activity info and profile picture for social advertising. Click Save Changes, then click the Facebook Ads tab again.

The "Ads and friends" section deals with social advertising: "find products and services you're interested in, based on what your friends share and like." Click "Edit social ads setting." Below the explanatory paragraphs you'll find "Pair my social actions with ads for" and another drop-down menu with the same options as the last page ("Only my friends" or no one). This is where people end up seeing advertisements with their friends' profile picture. Ever wonder how that happened? Select the "no one" option to prevent your profile pic from adorning someone else's advertisement.

Sharing privacy options
Next, navigate to the Privacy Settings page. Just like accessing Account Settings, you'll go to the top-right corner and click Account. This time, select the Privacy Settings option from the drop-down menu.

The Privacy Settings page controls exactly that — privacy. The first section, "Connecting on Facebook" isn't displayed right off the bat, so let's take a look at the second section first, which is displayed. It's called Sharing on Facebook, and this is where you set exactly who you can see your various types of information.

The default settings by Facebook are pretty general. Your first three types of information are shared with everyone (yes, visible to anyone on Facebook!), the next three are friends and friends of friends, and the last three are friends only. You can set these however you like, but let's take a quick look at which ones are probably the ones you'll want to customize.

The first one listed is status, photos, and posts. These are your day-to-day items that you'll share most often. That being said, if you're concerned about your privacy, these are probably the ones you'll want to limit to friends only, or at the most, friends of friends. Other items in this category of concern would include photos and videos you're tagged in, birthday, places you've checked into, and contact information.

You can change any of these settings by left-clicking on the Customize Settings link located just below all of the options. You'll also see a check box for the option to let friends of people you've tagged in your photos and videos see them. This is just like using the friends of friends setting mentioned above, but goes one step further when you tag people in your own photos and videos.

Connection privacy options
Now, let's take a look at your connection privacy options. On the same page (Privacy Settings), left-click the View Settings link under the Connecting on Facebook section. This will bring up a new page with seven more privacy areas for you to control. Each privacy area has a short description next to it that will help you decide which option is best for you. The drop-down menu options for each setting are the same as the previous page: everyone, friends of friends, and friends only. Once again, let's take a look at some of the options that can help you keep it "all in the family."

The ability to "see your education and work" and "see your current city and hometown" is something you probably don't want to grant to strangers on the street. These are things you will want to keep to friends only or friends of friends. "See your likes, activities and other connections" could also fall into this category, depending on your level of comfort online. The first four areas are commonly set to Everyone, especially if you're looking to connect with old friends, acquaintances, or if you just want to network in general.

Micro-manage, post-by-post
One final (and really neat) option is one that allows you to change your sharing options for any individual post. Here's how it works. Simply go to your Facebook home page and left-click the "What's on your mind?" text box like you are going to share a status update, link, or whatever. You'll notice a small drop-down arrow (possibly with a lock, depending on your settings) next to the Share button. Clicking on this arrow gives you the same "Everyone, Friends of Friends, and Friends Only" options. Changing the option here will only impact this post, rather than your entire profile settings.

Keeping the ball in your court
Facebook has been changing its privacy settings on a regular basis as of late. Some changes have been in response to advertisers wanting more customization and control over targeting their ads, other changes have been in response to the website's users decrying encroachment of their privacy. Make sure you read and take note of any notices that legitimately come from Facebook.

Even this level of diligence may not be enough. Some changes have been implemented in the past without any real notification other than a change in the Terms of Service. We recommend following a good tech news source (such as Tecca!) in order to keep up with all of the changes surrounding Facebook. You can do that right on our Facebook topic page. We'll keep you posted on all the changes and what you can do to keep your private information safe.

Peru; between a rock and a hard place, or finally on course?

After a stressful and well-commented double election round played out under the eyes of the world, Mr. Ollanta Humala was elected to be Peru’s next president. Since I am a former resident (I lived in Peru from 1997-2004), and because an important part of our business still takes place there, I was and still am very interested in Peru’s political well-being. I followed the election process, initially with growing concern, but recently with a tiny flicker of hope.

The people inhabiting what today is called the Republic of Peru have lived in various states of occupation over the past 600 years. Initially conquered by the Incas (for about 100 years, from say 1400AD) and subsequently suppressed by the Spaniards as their crown colony until way into the last century. Peru ‘s political reality in the more recent past has been characterized by the Roman “Panem et circenses”, basically coming down to corrupt governments keeping the majority of the Peruvian people poor and uneducated in order to more easily exploit them as a cheap force of labor. This is in many ways still the case, and in my honest opinion what has happened in Peru this month has more to do with the current government not doing its job correctly - in terms of making sure all Peruvians have an opportunity to share in the riches of their land (education, job creation, etc.) - than with the populist, mass-manipulation of which the upcoming president and his team are currently being accused.

As a matter of fact, to a certain extent, what has happened in Peru shows that the democratic system actually works. A majority (albeit a small one) of the Peruvian people did not agree with the way the current government handled its power (and the country’s wealth) and they chose to go in another direction. A direction they hope will eventually give them and their children a better chance to become equal, well-educated citizens with similar opportunities to their fellow country-men.

This is not to say that I have faith that Mr. Humala will do a better job than Mr. Garcia. That still needs to be proven and it is definitely not my place to predict anything. Sadly it is difficult to find an exemplary president in the country’s past, and neither Mr. Garcia, nor Mr. Humala really fit the bill. I tried to read Mr. Humala’s plan (If you read Spanish and feel like it, please give it a try: http://especiales.rpp.com.pe/elecciones2011/2011/01/21/conozca-el-plan-de-gobierno-de-ollanta-humala/) and all I can say at this point is that if he really can stick to most of what is outlined there, then he could actually make a good president.

However, his past does not speak for him. He allegedly supported a coup by his brother Antauro in 2005 against then president Alejandro Toledo, and apparently circulated a bi-weekly paper calling for the Peruvian people to rise-up against the Toledo government. Both while in active duty as lieutenant-colonel of the Peruvian Armed Forces. Also, his recently hidden friendship with, and support for, Venezuela’s Mr. Chavez do not inspire the trust that one would expect a people to have in a candidate they just elected to represent them for the coming 5 years. The fact that a couple of months before the elections he switched his allegiance to Brazil’s former president Ignacio “Lula” da Silva and hired some of his former executives to help him reshape his campaign can, up to this point, only be seen as a smug move to throw his competitors off course and win the elections. Ms. Keiko Fujimori, daughter of one of Peru’s former presidents and Mr. Humala’s closest contender, unsuccessfully tried the same approach to shed some of her more right-wing public image.

n the end it does not really matter who thinks what. Mr. Humala was chosen democratically by the same people that chose his predecessors, so like it or not, he is the man for the job. Hopefully he will be held accountable by these exact same people if he fails to keep his promises.

What is happening in Peru today seems similar to what has happened, is happening and will probably be happening for quite some time, throughout the rest of the continent. After centuries of Spanish/Portuguese rule and a series of make-believe republics followed by, or mixed with, military dictatorships, most Latin American countries have only seen modern democracy very recently. Action causes reaction and sadly many of Latin America’s democracies do not really function the way they should. This is simply because large parts of the population do not receive sufficient education to be able to make up their minds about which presidential candidate would best represent them. It takes a people choosing a president who will invest in their education to get that ball rolling. Depending on the outcome of Mr. Humala’s upcoming presidency we will see if this time that choice was right or not. It will depend on Mr. Humala’s decency; will it be his wish to go into history as the man that saved his people, or will he turn out to be just another charlatan lying to his people in exchange for an easy squeeze? I guess we’ll see soon enough.

Mr. Ignacio “Lula” da Silva has become an icon in Latin American politics and it is not strange that Mr. Humala and some others have chosen to want to be seen more like him than, for example, Mr. Chavez. Even though Brazil has seen a series of “lucky” events form part of its current boost to becoming one of the world’s super powers, Lula has still managed to stay on top of things and realize what in many other neighboring countries has not yet been achieved – how to combine strong macro-economic growth with proper transformations of the actual functioning of society, giving a large portion of the country’s poor the opportunity to grow and become part of the middle class. This may seem trivial at first glance, but until the “Lula Miracle” this had not happened in most of South America. The social changes in Brazil over the past 10 years are the biggest in its entire history.

I do not pretend to be a political analyst, nor do I want to share my personal political opinions here, but I do want to try to figure out what is happening in Peru and why politics in general seem to have become more and more about the well-being of the politician instead of that of the people he/she is chosen to represent. Peru sees similar factors to Brazil at the base of its economic growth of the past 10 years, and if managed well, could potentially follow this example on a social level. In my eyes, Mr. Humala has a chance here to wipe the slate clean and be remembered as the president Peru never had before. If he sticks to his word and really manages to combine Peru’s economic growth with sufficient education and job opportunities for its people, he might not only be remembered as Peru’s favorite president, but as the one that helped a new Latin American socio-political model come into existence.

Now, let’s keep our fingers crossed, our eyes closed and pray for rain…

Last Video!

Hoi

 

Hier de  laatste video van onze vakantie.

Onze foto dvd is al wel klaar, maar in de video kan ik nog geen zin maken! er staat ruim 16GB aan film materiaal op de harde schijf….. dus veel werk.

Groeten

Anthonie

Last Part……………………

Nog wat filmpjes.

Cruise Kissimmee.

 

.

Hoi

 

Ik had een paar mooie filmpjes in elkaar geknutseld, maar helaas dacht you tube anders over de muziek dan ik.

Weer overnieuw gemaakt, en nog niet gelukt! Grrrrr….

Binnenkort de laatste film.

 

Groeten
Anthonie

Childhood Asthma 10 Surprising Triggers

Found on http://www.lifescript.com/Health/Conditions/Asthma/Childhood_Asthma_10_Surprising_Triggers.aspx?p=1 on 5-12-11  By Linda Wasmer Andrews, Special to Lifescript Published May 12, 2011

If you have a child with asthma, you’ve probably noticed certain seasons or settings set off symptoms. But thunderstorms, pet turtles, dried fruit and Facebook? The darnedest things can bring on asthma attacks. Read on for more surprising childhood asthma triggers, and how to avoid them. Plus, test your asthma IQ with our quiz…

One night 1-1/2 years ago, Kathleen Olowin was vacationing with her family in New York State when severe thunderstorms rolled in. 

“There was a lot of lightning with thunder that rattled dishes,” Olowin recalls. The storm also brought high winds and torrential rain. 

Then, she heard an odd noise from the bedroom where her three sons were sleeping. There, she found her youngest, 4-year-old Tristan, who has asthma, “gasping for air with a terrified look on his face,” Olowin says. 

In the past, Tristan had occasional mild asthma symptoms when pollen levels were high or he had a cold. But this time the attack was so severe that he was rushed in an ambulance to an emergency room.

The trigger for Tristan’s life-threatening asthma attack? The thunderstorm. 

Common asthma triggers include respiratory infections, allergy-causing substances, irritating gases and particles in the air. 

But sometimes – as it was with Tristan – sources aren’t easy to identify. 

“Unusual things can sometimes be triggers,” says Asriani Chiu, M.D., a pediatric allergist at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. 

That’s why parents should “keep a journal of their child’s asthma symptoms to watch for patterns, Chiu advises.

From violent storms to boisterous laughter, here are 10 often-overlooked triggers of childhood asthma and tips on how to manage them:

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #1: Thunderstorms The connection between the storm and Olowin’s son’s asthma attack wasn’t as farfetched as it sounds. Over the past 25 years, several studies have linked an increase in serious asthma attacks with thunderstorms.
When a 2008 Emory University study published in Thorax, a leading respiratory medicine journal, looked at emergency room visits in the Atlanta area over 12 years, it showed a 3% increase in asthma-related ER visits on days after thunderstorms.

“One hypothesis is that the heavy rains and winds that come with thunderstorms may increase levels of pollen and mold in the air,” says researcher Stefanie Sarnat, Sc.D., an assistant professor of environmental health at Emory University in Atlanta.

That can cause an allergic reaction and set off asthma attacks in people sensitive to these substances.

Another theory: Lightning leaves higher levels of nitrogen dioxide and ozone in the air, and these gases can irritate lungs.

Smart solution: You can’t control weather, so watch for symptoms of labored breathing or wheezing in your child with asthma when a storm’s brewing.

Also, “limit outdoor time to the day after a thunderstorm” Sarnat advises, especially if they've triggered asthma in your child before. 

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #2: Play ClothesKids love to play outdoors when the weather’s warm, but they pick up a lot of pollen on their clothes in the process.

In early spring, pollen from trees is the main culprit in seasonal allergies and asthma. Later, it’s from grasses, and in late summer and autumn, weeds.

 Smart solution: “If your child has pollen allergies, take off their play clothes as soon as they return inside,” Chiu says.

Do this in a bathroom to keep pollen-covered clothes out of your child’s bedroom. Also, brush off shoes and rinse eyeglasses, and then have your child hit the shower to wash away pollen clinging to skin and hair.

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #3: Hamsters, Parrots and TurtlesYou probably know cats and dogs can be asthma triggers in kids with pet allergies. But other animals can be a problem for children with asthma too. 

That’s because small furry animals – hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits and mice – have proteins in their urine that can set off allergic reactions. (Mouse allergies also can be triggered by pests.) 
Sensitivity to these animals isn’t unusual. In a 2004 study of more than 200 suburban children with asthma, 12% tested positive for mouse allergy, compared to 11% for dog allergy.

Feathered friends can be a problem too.

“Birds have mold and mites in their feathers, so every time they flap their wings, they’re throwing these allergens into the air,” says Raoul Wolf, M.D., medical director of asthma medicine at La Rabida Children’s Hospital in Chicago.

Even turtles and snakes aren’t a safe bet.

“Turtles are covered in mold,” Wolf says. “Snakes may have mold and mites in their tank too.”

Smart solution: Don’t get a pet in the first place – or find it another home, if you already have one. 

What if Johnny can’t bear to part with Tweety? 

Then, “don’t have your child clean out the cage,” Wolf advises. 

And keep the pet out of your child’s bedroom.

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #4: Dried FruitA handful of dried fruit seems like a healthy snack for children, right? Not if your child has asthma.

“The sulfites added to dried fruit can create asthma triggers in people sensitive to this additive,” says John Winder, M.D., an allergist in Toledo, Ohio, and chair of the Nationwide Asthma Screening Program. 

That’s because sulfites, which help keep dried fruit brighter and fresher, emit a gas called sulfur dioxide. It’s inhaled when your child eats the food, and can irritate lungs and set off an asthma attack. 

Smart solution: Buy sulfite-free dried fruit.
Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #5: Third-Hand SmokeYou know it’s a bad idea to smoke around children – especially those with asthma – and that secondhand smoke increases the frequency and severity of asthma attacks. 

Also, watch out for third-hand smoke: The tobacco byproducts that cling to clothes, hair and household surfaces – can harm babies and young children. 

“If you smoke all day at work, then come home and pick up your baby, you’re holding their face in the remains of cigarette smoke,” Wolf says. 

Smart solution: If you smoke, quit. At a minimum, make places where your children hang out – your home and car, for example – smoke-free zones.

And if you’re exposed to a smoke-filled environment, change your clothes and shower before coming into contact with your kids.

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #6: Indoor PoolsSwimming is often considered the ideal exercise for children with asthma, because exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) is less likely to flare up when they’re breathing warm, moist air. 

But there’s the catch. 

“Around heavily chlorinated indoor pools, there’s often a high level of chlorine in the air that’s very irritating to the airways,” Wolf says.

Smart solution: If possible, kids should swim in an outdoor pool, where chlorine isn’t trapped within a confined space.

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #7: Laughing and CryingLaughing, crying or yelling may trigger an attack of coughing and wheezing in children with asthma. They have a physical effect on airways much like exercise does. 

Of course, laughter, tears and the occasional tantrum are a normal part of every child’s life.

“You want your child to be able to laugh!” Chiu says. 
Smart solution: Talk to your child’s doctor if yelling, laughing or crying hard sets off symptoms. It may be a sign that your child’s asthma isn’t well controlled and the treatment plan needs to be adjusted.
 
Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #8: FacebookIf just thinking about what your teens are posting on Facebook makes you hyperventilate, imagine the effect it might have on them. 

The stress triggered by social media sites might also set off asthma attacks, according to a case report published in The Lancet medical journal last year. It described an 18-year-old Italian man, whose mother noticed that his asthma worsened when he checked his ex-girlfriend’s Facebook page, where she was “friending” other men.

Smart solution: There’s no need to cut off access to Facebook and other social media sites, advises Chiu. Children with asthma, like all kids, will hit rocky patches. 

That's why parents should "teach children ways to manage stress and calm themselves, such as taking deep breaths,” Chiu says.

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #9: Stuffed AnimalsYour child’s teddy bear may look cuddly, but it’s probably a reservoir for dust mites. These microscopic insects are the No. 1 trigger of allergy-related asthma, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI). 

Smart solution: Deep-freeze Teddy to kill off dust mites. 

“Enclose stuffed animals in a [plastic zip] bag, put them in the freezer and leave them there overnight,” Chiu says.

Repeat once a week.

Also, wash blankets and bedding weekly in hot (130˚F or higher) water and dried in a hot dryer to get rid of dust mites. 

Surprising Childhood Asthma Trigger #10: SportsRegular physical activity is healthy for everyone, including those with childhood asthma. However, some kids have EIB – asthma symptoms brought on by exercise. 
Activities that involve sustained running, such as soccer, are particularly likely to trigger EIB. With soccer, kids are also exposed to pollen and mold on the field. 

Once temperatures turn brisk, there’s another problem: “Kids with EIB tend to be particularly sensitive to exercise in cold air,” Chiu says.

Smart solution: To prevent asthma attacks, your child might be advised to use an inhaler 15-20 minutes before exercising. 

“Your child should also do a warm-up beforehand,” Chiu says. 

Although research has shown that a 10- to 15-minute warm-up may decrease EIB symptoms, the reason is still being debated. One hypothesis is that mild exercise during a warm-up triggers the release of catecholamines, hormones that help relax and widen the airways.

Limit outdoor activity when pollen counts are high, temperatures are low or your child has a respiratory infection.

Sports that require shorter bursts of energy – such as baseball and short-distance track events – are less likely to trigger asthma symptoms. Activities in which it’s easy to vary the intensity and slow down as needed – such as leisure biking, walking and hiking – are also good choices for kids with EIB, according to the AAAAI.