It’s no secret that Barry McKay (the guy who offers  you plenty of 2WD musical love each weekday from 10 am – 3 pm), Don London (the guy who gets you through your stress free drive home from 3 pm – 7pm) and I (Jenna in the Morning 5:30-ish to 10 am) have known eachother for YEARS!  We’ve become great friends and definitely enjoy eachothers company…usually.

We were out to eat at Jersey Mike’s the other day (YUM!) – the stories, jokes and conversation were as fast-paced and entertaining as always – plenty of laughs (infact, I believe Diet Coke even shot out of Barry nose at one point).  And then things seemingly changed when I excused myself to step outside and make a phone call.

Upon walking back into the restaurant, I found THIS:  (gasp!)

C’mon guys!  REALLY? Fortunately, their manners got the best of them and their phones instantly disappeared, but not before I took the opportunity to  snap a picture.  Boys…

“Mommy, what’s wrong with Yoda?”  – Charlie 6 years old

Nonprescription medications in the home medicine cabinet could save a trip to the doctor. The January issue of the Mayo Clinic Health Letter lists more than a dozen over-the-counter medications that can help manage minor ailments.

Examples include:

Swim-Ear, Auro-Dri — These products can help after swimming and also may be helpful in treating mild outer ear infections that result from swimming or water getting in the ear. The acetic acid in these products helps re-establish the ear’s normal environment and discourages yeast and bacterial growth.

Debrox, Murine Earwax Removal and Mack’s Wax Away eardrops — The active ingredient in these products, carbamide peroxide, is ideal for dissolving wax in the outer ear. Wax is then flushed out using warm water in a bulb syringe.

Chloraseptic spray — This spray helps relieve mild-to-moderate sore throat pain. After the initial taste wears off, the spray can be quite soothing to the throat for several hours.

Famotidine (Pepcid AC, others) — Pepcid is one of several H-2-receptor blockers that eases stomach upset and indigestion. It reduces the production of stomach acid. Other drugs in this category are ranitidine (Zantac) and cimetidine (Tagamet). For adults over age 50, an evaluation for underlying medical conditions is recommended before using these products on an ongoing basis.

Bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol) — This medication is helpful for stomach upset, heartburn and diarrhea, including traveler’s diarrhea.

Loperamide (Imodium) — This is an excellent drug for diarrhea. Intermittent use can help those who have diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome. Loperamide shouldn’t be used for chronic undiagnosed diarrhea. Changes in bowel habits can signal an underlying health concern such as a tumor or infection.

1 percent hydrocortisone (Cortaid, others) — The strongest nonprescription hydrocortisone, this cream can soothe minor skin irritations, inflammation and rashes. It can be used almost anywhere except right around the eye.

Loratadine (Claritin, Alavert, others) — This new generation of nonprescription antihistamines generally is less sedating and causes fewer side effects than previous-generation products. For instance, urinary retention in older men with enlarged prostates occurs with older agents such as Benadryl and Chlor-Trimeton, but this is not typically seen with loratadine use.

Docosanol (Abreva) — This product may help shorten the life of a cold sore by a day. When applied at the earliest point of an outbreak, it may even help prevent the cold sore blister from forming.

Text HAITI to 90999 for an

immediate $10 donation to the red cross.

Although they are too grateful and classy to say this directly, I am not   Donations of food and clothing are appreciated, but what the International Red Cross needs right now is cash.  They need money immediately to assist in the search and rescue efforts in Haiti.  Collecting, packing, shipping and distributing clothing will come later.  This is a SEARCH AND RESCUE – time and resources are critical.

If you can’t afford to donate money, please offer up a few prayers so that those who can afford to donate WILL donate.

www.redcross.org

800-redcross

www.savethechildren.org

www.unicefusa.org/haitiquake

Taking two children ice skating is NOT FOR WHIMPS!

 It’s utterly brilliant to have those big cones available for children to stabilize themselves as they’re getting the hang of ice skating…gives them a little boost of confidence and definitely decreases the chances of a trip to the ER.

Just as brilliant (in my humble opinion) was my idea to take their Philadelphia Eagles scarves (yeah, I know, save your comments!), tuck them into the top of each cone then pull them around.  In fact, as you see above, you can then actually “sling-shot” your oldest child across the ice!  Total blast!

When I got into the station yesterday, my friend showed me these pictures he took, and I totally cried!  Big dork, I know – but it’s amazing to see how big my babies have gotten!  

Thanks for the opportunity to make more great memories with my kids MacArthur Center! 

WAY TO GO, CONAN! 

People of Earth:

In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been absurdly lucky. That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.

Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight Show into the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn’t the Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.

So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn’t matter. But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.

There has been speculation about my going to another network but, to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we can be proud of, for a company that values our work.

Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair; it’s always been that way.

Yours,

Conan

This building called the Burj Kahlifa officially opened in  Dubai, United Arab Emirates yesterday.  It is 168 stories…that’s 2,717 feet tall…that’s more than a 1/2 mile tall!  INSANE!  Here is a photo of the building (check out how ridiculously small the ’skyscrapers’ on the left appear)…and another photo of it in relation to the Eiffel Tower & other tall structures.