Fun Factoids about New Year's

The New Year is almost upon us. We welcome 2011 and all the wonderful blessings you may have in store for us! 

Did you know:

· The Catholic Church denounced any New Year's celebrations as paganism. Ironically, as Christianity rolled through the world, the Catholic community devised other types of celebrations for the "Feast of Christ's Circumcision," which is observed the same as New Year's Eve and Day.

· Black-eyed peas (usually with ham) are often consumed in certain parts of the United States. These are thought to bring good fortune in cultures around the world, not just in the U.S.

· Other foods that are eaten on New Year's Eve are cabbage because the leaves represent prosperity. Ham (or a hog) also symbolizes prosperity. In Asian cultures, rice is a hearty and lucky staple that is eaten around midnight to signify the coming year of fortune.

· Auld Lang Syne is sung at midnight to toast in the New Year. The song was composed by Robert Burns sometimes in the 1700's. The term means "old long ago" or "the good old days."

· December 31, 1907 saw the first ball lowering in Times Square.

· Stats of the first New York ball: 700 pounds; 5 feet in diameter. The ball was made from wood and iron.

· The modern ball that is dropped is made from Waterford Crystal and weights over 1,000 pounds. There are over 9,000 LED lights, but uses hardly any energy. The ball begins to drop at 11:59 and completes the journey exactly at midnight to ring in the New Year.

· The ball was not lowered in 1942 and 1943 due to wartime restrictions.

· On New Year's Eve, about 75% of American Parties are with 20 people or less.

· The tradition of setting a New Year's resolution dates back to the early Babylonians.  The popular modern resolutions include weight loss or to quit smoking.  The early Babylonian's most popular resolution was to return borrowed farm equipment.

· The tradition to use a baby to signify the new year was begun in Greece around 600 BC.  It was their tradition at that time to celebrate their god of wine, Dionysus, by parading a baby in a basket to represent the annual rebirth of that god as the spirit of fertility.

· Many cultures believe that anything in the shape of a ring is good luck, because it symbolizes "coming full circle."  For that reason, the Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year's Day will bring good fortune.

· It was once believed that the first visitor on New Year's Day would bring either good luck or bad luck for the rest of the year.  It was particularly lucky if that visitor happened to be a tall dark-haired man.

We hope that you all had safe and wonderful holidays!

Home Remedies to fight colds!

Along with getting your flu shot, there are some good ways to stay healthy through the holidays!  We at the Johnson Adult Day Program have some great Home Remedies that we thought we would share.

Get plenty of Sleep!  It is recommended to get 7 hours of sleep a night to help boost your immune system.  Using a protective pillow cover can also help to prevent a runny, stuffy nose!  If you have trouble sleeping, try some mind-calming exercises!

Be sure to get in Moderate Exercise!  If you get 30-90 minutes of moderate exercise a week it has been proven to increase immune function!  (Make sure it's MODERATE exercise!  Prolonged high intensity can actually make you more susceptible to getting a cold!)

Hot and Cold Showers actually help!  Temperature fluctuations jump start the immune system.  It is suggested that at the end of your shower, turn the temperature to as hot as you can stand it for 30 seconds, then turn it down as cold as you can stand for 10 seconds, and repeat.  Do a total of 3 times (ending on cold).  Steamy showers also help to keep nasal passages clear and prevent bugs.

Anyone want an Oyster Sandwich??  Oysters have high quantities of Zinc, which is proven to support and enhance the immune system.  If you aren't big into oysters, zinc-fortified breakfast cereals, baked beans, or pumpkin seeds might be more to your liking.  Taking zinc at the first sign of a cold has been shown to reduce a cold's duration!

Vitamin D helps regulate your immune system!  Drink plenty of milk, eat fatty fish such as salmon, or live in a sunny climate to increase the body's stores of vitamin D.  Otherwise, a supplement is a great thing to take (in addition to a daily multivitamin).

Nasal Rinses and Neti Pots cleanse the nasal passages with a salt water solution that helps push germs out.  (Be sure to clean neti pot or nasal irrigation system with soap and water after using!)

Drink plenty of water and other fluids.  It helps to loosen congestion and prevent dehydration.

Salt water gargle's help to temporarily relieve sore and scratchy throat.

Vitamin C cuts cold symptoms by 85%!!!  Drink orange juice, take a supplement, eat an orange... You'll be glad you did!

Garlic contains allicin, which is a cold-fighting compound.  Eat fresh, raw garlic or it does come in pill form.  It can help you feel better!  (Warning: might give you stinky breath!)

Honey calms a cough and helps you sleep.

Herbs such as Echinacea, Ginseng, Ginger and Elderberry and proven to be a folk remedy for cough, colds, sore throats, and even sinus infections and the flu!

Vicks Vaporub on the soles of your feet helps to kill colds!  The body will absorb the menthol through your feet and helps you to feel better fast!  (Also if you put Vicks on your toes and put a sock over, it will help to kill foot fungus!)

Stay Healthy!

What is the Johnson Adult Day Program?

The Johnson Adult Day Program provides a safe and nurturing environment with a wide variety of daily activities geared toward physical exercise, cognitive stimulation, and social engagement to individuals who have neurological changes and physical disabilities.  We strive to maintain and improve the quality of our participant's lives.  At the same time we also provide medical oversight for our participants, as well as a time-out for caregivers to rest and recharge.
JADP is "Celebration Central"!  We love to celebrate the birthdays of every participant and staff member along with the celebration of every holiday we can think of!  We have many fun and exciting events in our facility for our participants such as our annual Senior Prom, summer Luau, and Holiday Party.  We have a theme every month to focus interest to help engage our participants. 

Our Mission: To provide life enriching activities and care for adults with memory loss as well as support and respite for caregivers.

A Toast to November
As the holidays are right around the corner, we have celebrated November 2010 with our "Season of Thanks" theme of the month.  We are doing a Food Drive, so please bring in canned goods to help feed the homeless this holiday season.  We will enjoy discussing what all we are thankful for.  JADP will start with saying that I am so thankful for each and every one of you, for the love and compassion we feel every day at JADP, and for all of the wonderful support we have in serving you and your loved ones.

JADP will be Closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday November 25th, but will be open regular hours for the rest of the week.  We will have a Thanksgiving meal on Wednesday November 24th to celebrate the holiday.

Fun Thanskgiving Jokes and Riddles:

Q. When did the Pilgrims first say "God bless America?"
A. The first time they heard America sneeze!
 

Q. What are unhappy cranberries called?
A. Blueberries!

Q. What's blue and covered with feathers?
A. A turkey holding its breath!

Q. If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring?
A. Pilgrims!

Q. Why did the turkey cross the road?
A. It was the chicken's day off!

Q. When the Pilgrims landed, where did they stand?
A. On their feet!

Q. Why didn't the turkey eat dessert?
A. He was stuffed!

Q. Why did they let the turkey join the band?
A. He had the drumsticks!

Q. What kind of music did the Pilgrims listen to?
A. Plymouth Rock!

Q. What always comes at the end of Thanksgiving?
A. The letter "g"!

 

Q.  Why do Pilgrims have a hard time keeping their pants up?

A. Because they wear their belts on their hats!

 

We wish you all a wonderful, fun Thanksgiving, filled with many blessings!