Everyday Life

Categories Work

The Calculations I Make

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One of the most routine parts of my daily life is pulling out my calculator and determining someone’s energy and protein needs.

The process I use most frequently looks like this:

1.) Determine person’s BMI
To do this, I need to know their weight in pounds and height in inches. I divide their weight in pounds by their height in inches, then divide that number by their height in inches again. Finally, I multiply this number by 705.

To use myself as an example (which is why I’m doing this anyway), I would take my weight (142#) and divide it by my height (70″).

142/70=2.02857 (don’t round at this point)

This number needs to be divided by my height again:

2.02857/70=.028979 (still no rounding)

Now I multiply this by 705:

.028979*705=20.4 (now is where I round to one decimal place).

2.) Use BMI to determine whether a person is underweight, normal weight, overweight, or obese

This can be easily done using the following schema:
–BMI <18.5 is underweight --BMI 18.5-24.9 is normal weight --BMI 25.0-29.9 is overweight --BMI >30.0 is obese

By this categorization, we can see that with a BMI of 20.4, I am in the “normal weight” category.

3.) If the person is obese, determine their ideal body weight and develop an “adjusted body weight”

To determine an ideal body weight, you need to know whether your person is a woman or a man.

Women get 100 lbs to start with and then add on 5 lbs for every inch in height over 5 feet (60 inches)–or take away 5 lbs for every inch in height less than 5 feet.

Since I’m 70 inches tall, I get 100# for the first 60″ and add on 10*5=50 for the final 10 inches. So my ideal body weight is 150#.

Men start with 106 lbs and get 6 lbs for every inch in height over 6 feet.

Which means that if I was a man, I’d get 106# for my first 60″ and add on 10*6=60 for my final 10 inches, making my ideal body weight 166#.

Now, I can make an “adjusted body weight” for my obese residents. I take their actual body weight and subtract their ideal body weight to get the approximate pounds of fat on their bodies. I divide this by four and then add that number to their ideal body weight. This is their adjusted body weight (I do this because fat requires fewer Calories to keep it going–and I don’t want to overfeed the fat!)

Because I’m not obese, I can’t do this for me for real, but I can pretend that I’m only 60″ tall, with an ideal body weight of 100#.

Then I’d take my actual body weight (142#) and subtract my ideal body weight (100# in this example)

142-100=42

I’d take this answer and divide it by four

42/4=10.5

Then I’d add it to my ideal body weight

10.5+100=110.5

And there we have it–my adjusted body weight (if I were 60″ tall) is 110.5#

4) Convert the person’s body weight (or adjusted body weight, if the person is obese) into kilograms.

This is pretty easy. Just divide by 2.2.

So my weight in kilograms is 142/2.2=64.6

5) Finally, multiply the person’s body weight in kilograms by a defined factor to determine an estimate of daily energy needs

Generally, the factors I use are as follows:
…if the person is underweight, multiply actual body weight in kg by 30 to 35 (30 is lower range, 35 is upper range)
…if the person is in the normal range, multiply actual body weight in kg by 28 to 30
…if the person is in the overweight range, multiply actual body weight in kg by 25 to 28
…if the person is in the obese range, multiply adjusted body weight in kg by 25 to 30

Thus, if I were underweight, my energy needs would be 64.6*30=1938 kcal/day to 64.6*35=2261 kcal/day

Since I’m in the normal weight range, my energy needs are actually closer to 64.6*28=1808 kcal/day to 64.6*30=1938 kcal/day

If I were overweight, I’d calculate my needs at 64.6*25=1612 kcal/day to 64.6*28=1808 kcal/day.

And if I were obese, using the adjusted body weight determined above, I’d need 50.2*25=1255 kcal/day to 50.2*30=1506 kcal/day

Of course, the above factors are simply generalities. I would adjust them further if, for instance, an individual had a disease that increased or decreased energy needs or if an individual had recently lost a lot of weight (or gained a lot of weight). And even once I’ve calculated all this, I still have to monitor other indicators (such as weight) to make sure that what I’m providing is sufficient.

While it looks complicated when all typed out like this, this process is about as natural to me as breathing. I make these calculations at least a dozen times a day–with hardly any conscious thought.

Just one (tiny) piece of what it means to be a Registered Dietitian.

(Of course, this is just one of many ways to estimate nutrient needs. I could use others, but feel that this is one of the simplest and most effective for adjusting to the needs of a mostly elderly, long term care population–many of whom are overweight or obese.)

Categories Everyday Life, Reflections

Romancing the Sun

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I drive west in the morning, the sun rising behind me.

In the evening, as I drive home, the sun sinks until at last I see it in my rearview mirror, bidding me farewell.

I am blessed to never have the sun in my eyes, to not have to squint into its unrelenting gaze.

But sometimes I feel as if I were running from the sun, turning and fleeing instead of chasing it, embracing it as I would like.

I’d like, for just once, to stop my car, to stop my purposeful retreat from the sun’s glare.

I’d like to step into a cornfield and dance with the sun’s warm touch on my face.

I’d like to play hide-and-seek with the sun, dashing through the trees that line the river.

I’d like to read a book as the sun peeks over my shoulder, reading a few sentences ahead.

Romantic thoughts, perhaps, dreams of me and the sun both quitting our day’s work to merely play.

But in the wistful thought of such an idyllic day, I cannot forget the quiet romance of this, our day-to-day.

The sun’s soft hand upon my shoulder as I drive to and fro. His gentle kiss to my cheek when the road’s curve let’s us speak.

The kind service he offers me in illumining my way. And the fiery, passionate, sometimes wistful way he waves goodbye until at last we fade from each other’s view.

Categories Family & Friends, Following Christ

Tie-Dye Faith: A Metaphor

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Tie-dye can be a frightening proposition.

Folding fabric, dying sections, waiting hours before you can see how it’ll turn out.

It’s no wonder the girls were so wary. It’s no wonder they felt more comfortable free-hand drawing their designs.

Freehand dyed shirt

Tie-dye takes faith–seeing the finished product in your mind’s eye even when what you’re looking at has little in common with your intended result.

I believed in tie-dye and started using the technique from the get go.

Why?

Because I’d read a book of instruction. I’d seen illustrations of how to fold and what the finished result was supposed to look like. I’d had a friend show me his finished product and describe how he’d gotten it.

The girls hadn’t seen this yet. They didn’t have the evidence I’d seen to support my faith.

They were skeptical.

They’d stick with what they could see.

I forged on in faith, evangelizing my little brood liberally. “How about you try a real tie-dye on this next one?”

They made slow steps–little scrunches tied here and there. Still mostly sight.

But as they saw me walking out my faith, as I continually brought my book and its illustrations to their minds, they started to believe my witness.

Tie-dyed pants, in progress

They chose to act on their fledgling belief.

They folded, dyed, and left their shirts–still folded and tied–with me.

When I rinsed out their shirts, seeing the first fruits of their faith, I was in awe.

Bullseye Tie-Dyed shirt

My own faith strengthened, I determined to tie-dye even more, to convert more to tie-dying.

And so their faith and mine mutually strengthened one another.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
~Hebrews 11:1

Categories Family & Friends

Snapshot: Tie-Dye Party

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I can officially check one more item off my list.

I’ve thrown a tie-dye party.

Girls at Tie-Dye Party

It was just four of us–Esie, Krystal, myself, and Taylor (left to right in the photo above)–but we had a blast!

We made ourselves custom smocks out of trash bags, we folded and drew on and dyed our shirts (and my pants and skirt), we laughed over the unfortunate placement of a certain bit of yellow dye and the new-tire smell of the black vat of dye.

And we drank tie-dyed Koolaid.

Tie-dyed Koolaid

Here’s to accomplishing goals–and to getting to know some great girls!

Categories Everyday Life

Snapshot: Money Envelopes

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The envelope system of money management is wonderful, particularly if you’ve made yourself some snazzy money envelopes from old grocery bags.

Money envelopes

Disadvantages of the envelope system?

Figuring out which envelopes to use when purchasing loads of tie-dye stuff for the dozen(?) or more girls (you don’t know) who are coming to your house to have a tie dye party next weekend.

I’m over-the-top excited to get to know Highland Park’s teenaged girls.

And I figured out the money envelope thing eventually–how ’bout a little from household, a little from clothing, a little from toiletries, and what’s left of mad money?

Categories Everyday Life

PSA: Regarding Headlights and URIs

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PSA #1: Regarding Headlights

Some of you are lucky enough to own cars that sense available light and automatically turn on their own headlights.

Perhaps you’ve grown so dependent on said mechanism that you don’t even know how to turn on your headlights manually.

Well, please pull out your car’s manual and let’s review.

Because I’ve got a public service announcement for YOU:

Darkness is not the only reason to turn on your headlights.

Other circumstances that make headlights necessary include conditions of low visibility due to falling or blowing snow, fog, or sunset.

While you might not need your headlights to see the road, the drivers opposite need your headlights to see you.

Please, think through whether you need your headlights this winter–and drive safely!

PSA #2: Regarding Upper Respiratory Infections (URIs)

While a doctor was rounding in one of our Grand Island facilities, I overheard a bit of information that might be useful.

This doctor said that she hasn’t seen too many cases of influenza yet this year, but EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM occurred in individuals who had received the flu shot.

This suggests that this year’s strain of influenza is not covered by the shot–which means we all need to be cautious to prevent the spread of the virus.

So…

If you or someone in your family develops symptoms of an upper respiratory infection (coughing, sneezing, head congestion, etc.) accompanied by a fever (generally >100 degrees), please do everyone a favor and STAY HOME.

Be especially cautious about exposing children, pregnant women, elderly individuals, and those with compromised immune systems (people who have AIDS or are on chemo, for instance) to this.

When you go to your doctor with symptoms of influenza, you’ll probably be asked to put on a face mask immediately when entering the building in order to guard against infecting others.

Please pay attention to these precautions.

Other than that, as always, wash your hands thoroughly after sneezing, coughing, using the restroom, or changing diapers and before preparing food or eating.

When one line of defense (the flu shot) breaks down, we all have to do our part to keep our overall defenses high.

Please, for your sake and that of your friends and neighbors, do your part to prevent the spread of influenza.

Categories Books, Everyday Life

The Closing Bell (L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge)

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Carrie has official sounded the closing bell for the L.M. Montgomery reading challenge–declaring that it’s time for everyone to link up.

The bell caught me by surprise, with plenty left unfinished.

Despite frantically reading a bit more this afternoon, I am still not through with Anne of Green Gables.

Anne of Green Gables

I did, however, read and review Much Ado about Anne by Heather Frederick Vogel. I also wrote some reflections on a quote from Anne of Green Gables.

But I did not complete the first piece of the project I had hoped to unveil at the end of this challenge.

I’ll share it anyway.

A bit of background…

When I was young, the American girl dolls were all the rage (I guess they still are in some circles). In those days, the company that made them was called “Pleasant Company” and the only dolls you could get were the historical ones that had short chapter books that went along with them.

I got “Addy”, a young girl who escaped slavery via the Underground Railroad (chronicled, of course, in Meet Addy), when she first came out.

And I spent hours poring over the Pleasant Company catalog, with its outfits and accessories that matched the books.

I was simultaneously in love with Frances Hodgson Burnett’s A Little Princess. I adored how Sara Crew and her indulgent Papa went to pick out the doll “Emily” and outfit her in the very fanciest of clothing.

I dreamed of a wardrobe for my doll, a complete set–and one that matched a book.

But the Pleasant company outfits were much to expensive for my (or my parents’) budget, and I had little patience to do any quality sewing in those days.

So I made do with the clothes Addy came with–and the few garments Mom made for her.

But I still dreamed of a complete wardrobe, based on a book.

I grew up a bit and decided that I wanted it to be based on a REAL book–not books that were written in order to sell doll clothes.

The Anne series.

It was perfect. Anne was the right sort of age, Montgomery goes into detail about her clothing and accessories, and I just happened to love the series.

I would make a complete wardrobe for Addy using the Anne series as a starting point.

And so I began to make lists of every object mentioned in the Anne series. The vivid chromo of Jesus blessing the children, the chocolate brown voile with its puffed sleeves and pintucked waist, the navy blue broadcloth jacket made by Marilla, the yellow pansy cut from a catalog that Ella May McPherson gave Anne to use to decorate her desk. I have a list of every object–and some only alluded to (the red and white triangles Anne had to work at before she could go out to visit with Dianna–what might that quilt have looked like?)

I started collecting bits and pieces of fabric that might be suitable for the project.

And, this month, I started sewing.

My first project has been a dress to approximate the dresses Marilla made for Anne to replace the dreadfully skimpy wincey:

“Well, how do you like them?” said Marilla.

Anne was standing in the gable room, looking solemnly at three new dresses spread out on the bed. One was of snuffy colored gingham which Marilla had been tempted to buy from a peddler the preceding summer because it looked so serviceable; one was of black-and-white checked sateen which she had picked up at a bargain counter in the winter; and one was a stiff print of an ugly blue shade which she had purchased that week at the Carmody store.

She had made them up herself, and they were all made alike–plain skirts fulled tightly to plain waists, with sleeves as plain as waist and skirt and tight as sleeves could be.

“I’ll imagine that I like them,” said Anne soberly.

Perhaps it’s a bit of a depressing place to start, but that is where I have started.

And this is what I have so far.

Anne's plain dress

Nothing exciting, but it’s a start to this project I’ve been dreaming of for nigh on 15 years.

L. M. Montgomery Reading ChallengeVisit Carrie’s L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge to see what others were saying/doing about L.M. Montgomery this month.

Categories Everyday Life, Technology

A Nightstand saga

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My favorite day of the month is the fourth Tuesday of the month, when 5 Minutes 4 Books (5M4B) hosts their “What’s on Your Nightstand?” carnival and my “to-be-read” (TBR) list grows by leaps and bounds.

I’ve been known to deliberately NOT schedule things for the fourth Tuesday of the month because I knew I’d be hopping around the blogosphere finding out what everybody’s reading.

I was really thinking when I decided to schedule one of my twice-weekly trips to Grand Island on TUESDAYS.

I was thinking even more when I FAILED TO RETURN a library book to the library in Lincoln when I was there last. That meant I ended up with a book overdue (the one book I had out prior to starting my new regimen.)

But I was REALLY, REALLY thinking when I figured yesterday would be a great time to take that overdue library book back to Lincoln.

It made brilliant sense in my mind. Drive to Grand Island in the morning (1.25 hrs), work 8 hours, drive to Lincoln from Grand Island (1.5 hours), have supper with my parents and little sister (it turned out my oldest little brother was there too), drop books off at the library, and then drive back to Columbus from Lincoln (1.5 hrs).

Combining the trips into a triangle meant I only added 1.75 hrs to my drive time for the day–instead of tacking on the 3 hr round trip to Lincoln some other day (and having to pay all the fines that’d accrue while I was waiting for enough time to accomplish said trip.)

So it was a smart idea.

Except for one problem.

Yesterday was the fourth Tuesday of the month.

I posted my Nightstand post, visited a couple of other posts before I left for work.

Then I was gone for 15 hours straight without internet access.

And I still had to work the next day.

Which means I am now, just now finally getting around to reading what’s on everyone’s nightstand.

That, by the way, is why I haven’t posted today.

=)

Categories Family & Friends

Snapshot: Small Town Theater-Going Girls

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Lincoln (my hometown) is a small city or a big town, depending on whether you’re calculating by US standards or by whole world standards. In Nebraska, it’s the big city.

Columbus (my current lodging place) is a small town, no doubt. A small city by Nebraska standards.

But Schuyler, Nebraska is a small town by anyone’s standards.

Nevertheless, one Sunday afternoon a group of us younger women who somehow found ourselves working and residing in and around Columbus made our way to the smaller town of Schuyler, Nebraska to enjoy a movie.

Girls at Movie Theatre

For five dollars collected by Boy Scout volunteers, we saw The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (without 3D, thank goodness!) in a tiny community theatre.

We sat about in the middle of the theatre.

Five people sat in front of us.

Maybe twelve sat behind us.

The theatre shows one movie a weekend–7 pm on Friday and Saturday, 2 pm on Sunday.

The movies are generally family-friendly, PG-13 at worst.

We’re considering making it a habit.

Small-town theater-going girls.

That’d be us.

=)

Categories Faith, Family & Friends, Politics

Survivors of a Genocide

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On this day in history 38 years ago, a court decision legalized the genocide which has since killed over 40 million unborn babies.

In 1973, my cousin Danny was a baby. 615,831 of his peers were murdered.

In 1974, my cousin Donna was born (I estimate). 763,476 of her peers were murdered.

In 1975, my cousin Shiloh was born. 854,853 of his peers were murdered.

In 1977, my cousin Judah was born. 1,079,430 of his peers were murdered.

In 1979, my cousins Sarah and Janalynn were born. 1,251,921 of their peers were murdered.

In 1980, my cousin Jamin was born. 1,297,606 of his peers were murdered.

In 1981, my cousin Adam was born. 1,300,760 of his peers were murdered.

In 1983, my sister Anna was protected in our mother’s womb. 1,268,987 of her peers were murdered.

In 1984, my sister Anna and cousin Ariann were born. 1,333,521 of their peers were murdered.

In 1985, I was born. 1,328,570 of my peers were murdered.

In 1986, my brother Joshua was born. 1,328,112 of his peers were murdered.

In 1987, my cousins Joseph, Vicki, and Luke were born. 1,353,671 of their peers were murdered.

In 1988, my cousin Joseph and sister-in-law Debbie were born. 1,371,285 of their peers were murdered.

In 1989, my brother Daniel and cousins Elizabeth, Becca and Christine were born. 1,396,658 of their peers were murdered.

In 1990, my brother John and cousins Matthew and Paul were born. 1,429,577 of their peers were murdered.

In 1991, my cousins Patrick, Joanna, and Jennifer, and sister-out-law Joanna were born. 1,388,937 of their peers were murdered.

In 1992, my brother Tim and cousins Joel, Jesse, Jeremy, and Caroline were born. 1,359,145 of their peers were murdered.

In 1993, my cousin Eric was born. Another cousin, Melinda, was born stillborn and grieved for by a loving family. 1,330,414 of their peers were murdered.

In 1994, my sister Grace, cousins Michael, Aaron, and Naomi, and brother-out-law John were born. 1,267,415 of their peers were murdered.

In 1995, my cousins Dominique and Kyle were born. 1,210,883 of their peers were murdered.

In 1996, my cousins Ben, Joel, Clayton, and Hannah were born. 1,225,937 of their peers were murdered.

In 1997, my cousins Caleb, Bethany, and Susannah were/was born. 1,186,039 of their peers were murdered.

In 1998, my cousin Lauren was born. Over 884,273* of her peers were murdered.

In 1999, my cousins Isaac and Tabitha were born. Over 861,789* of their peers were murdered.

In 2000, my cousins Megan and Brett were born. Over 857,475* of their peers were murdered.

In 2002, my cousin Anthony was born. Over 854,122* of his peers were murdered.

In 2004, my cousin Brooke was born. Over 839,226* of her peers were murdered.

In 2006, Ezekiel was born to my cousins Shiloh and Janalynn. Over 846,181* of his peers were murdered.

In 2008, Lexie was born to my cousins Sarah and Byron. 1,212,350 of her peers were murdered.

In 2010, Mackenna was born to my cousins Ariann and Mike, and Carter was born to my cousins Adam and Theresa. A thus far unnumbered multitude of their peers were murdered.

In 2011, my nephew or niece will be born. How many of his peers will be murdered this year?

Please pray…

and take action

to end abortion

Are you or your children survivors of this genocide? Would you like your name to be listed within these rolls? Please leave a comment or send me an e-mail and I’ll add you/them to the list. And please, please pray for the end of this genocide.

Statistics for 1973-2006 were obtained from The CDCs abortion surveillance project. Statistics for 2008 are from the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute.

*Statistics were not reported by the states of California or New Hampshire from 1998 to the present. Alaska did not report from 1998-2002. Oklahoma did not report from 1998-1999. West Virginia did not report from 2003-2004. Louisiana has not reported from 2005 to the present. The children in these states murdered through abortion remain unnumbered, but not forgotten.