Leaded Toys!!

Yesterday, hubby came home and said that one of his friend's sons had a high level of lead in his blood. They came to know about this when they went for an annual check up for the kid.

The truly disturbing thing is that the kid got the lead because of the toys that he has. It seems the toys that have been sent here (mostly from China) have a high level of lead in their paints. When the kids put these toys into their mouths, it gets ingested into their bodies and enters the blood stream.

Millions of toys from many big brands, which were made in China, have been recalled here.

You better be careful when you buy toys the next time. It is better to altogether avoid buying toys if they have a particular label. You never know, the toys might all get dumped there since they have been banned here!

Here is a link that gives more details on the effects of lead in the blood stream

Apple Picking @ Apple Charlie's

Fall has come in a little late this year. That’s what the folks out here say anyway. I have to believe them since I don’t have any personal experience. One of the major fall activities out here is apple picking.

 

It was one of our first fall time activities :).
It works this way. These folks have apple orchards. They convert part of their orchards into a visitors' area. They have animal shelters, one or 2 rides, shops that sell all apple related stuff like Apple Cider Juice, Apple Pies, Cakes etc.

 

They also convert a small portion of their orchards into apple picking areas. The trees are very short almost like shrubs and they are full of apples. They throw this area open to the public to come and have fun.

 

They charge you a fee (about 15 Dollars for one cover or a basket). You take what you pick is how it goes. It is a fun activity to pursue once in a while. It feels good to eat the apples that you have plucked yourself from the trees.

 

It's really good for these farmers too. They kind of eliminate the middlemen and sell their stuff directly to the end users. They surely make much more money than if they had sold it to a middleman.

Mathadu Mathadu Mallige

First there was Lagaan , which was adopted as part of their curriculum in a premier business school for the study of leadership.

Then there was Lage Raho Munna Bhai which inspired the NRIs in the US to protest peacefully during the Green Card controversy.

Now, there is a Kannada movie Mathadu Mathadu Mallige which has inspired farmers in Nandagudi town in Karnataka, to protest against the SEZ that is being planned in their area. I haven't watched the movie yet. But will definitely do so when it is released here!

Way to go people. Way to go!!!

My First baseball game

We had been to the Tiger’s (they are the local Detroit team) baseball game. We bought the tickets in black (I must admit that I was happy to know that such things happen here also :)).

Since we were in early, we looked around the stadium, got our pictures taken, watched the players practicing and chatted with people next to us.

Just before the game started, the electronic boards were advertising that we could get Pizzas that usually cost about 8 dollars for just 1 dollar if the Tigers scored 8 or more runs. That was really something to look forward to!

They served beers and cocktails inside the stadium. As the game progressed, people were sloshed and became wild and rowdy. The F and B words were being uttered every time the players botched things up!

The best part was, whenever things became a little quiet, the electronic boards would display things like CLAP CLAP or MAKE NOISE or ROAR ROAR or MAKE A MEXICAN WAVE and people would immediately start doing those things!!!

It was more interesting to watch the people and their antics than the actual baseball game (I didn't understand the game at all).

The tigers won the game but scored only 5 runs. We didn't get the 1 Dollar Pizza that I was wishing we could get :(.