HEALTHY LIFE ESSEXBLOG

I’ve always avoided being part of a women’s collective. I’m not a feminist, never been tempted to burn my bra or grab a placard. So I was apprehensive about attending the International Bazaar on 6 March.

Boosted by my friend’s enthusiasm, we swept into The Atrium at South Essex College. We’d missed the opening address from the Mayor, a performance by Aygifrika Dance and the African Fashion Show. But there was still plenty to keep us occupied for the three remaining hours as we toured the light airy space which Laura compared to “a low budget version of the Sydney Opera House.” Though she did admit its functionality as the Blossoms on the Oasis Belly Dancers performed a myriad of rainbow movements under the red bulbous growth that shelters the café.

My eyes strayed to a poster board behind the stall of the Westcliff branch of the WI as I half listened to President and founding member Sarah Mills enthuse with pride. Phrases “formed in the autumn of 2009,” “our books have closed” and “with 180 members, we could be the largest in the country,” jostled with a quote from Janis Joplin: “Don’t compromise yourself. You are all you’ve got.”

Continuing our semi-umbilical trail round the arena, we were dazzled by wirework jewellery and the Community Mosaics East initiative: invigorated by the infectious enthusiasm of Pippa Simpson, Project Manager at The Dove who was pleased this year’s turnout was bigger than 2009; recognised women from the Women’s Environmental Group where I reminisced about an evening spent making cosmetics from cucumber and milk and appreciated the well represented balance of ethnic diversity.

As usual I became a kleptomaniac with leaflets and goody bags and launched questions and enthusiastic praise to every stall holder. But never once did I feel intimidated and it was good to see women accompanied by partners and children.

On our way out Laura revealed her discussion with Pippa about belly dancing. We thrashed out the dichotomy of the dances traditional meaning in the Turkish harem and its assimilation into Western culture as a social exercise.

As we embraced the cold afternoon air sweeping the concourse, I flashed my henna wrist tattoo. It was my first and probably won’t be my last. The event was an inspiration in more ways than one.

“Do you know,” said Laura “I think women operate collectively.” I agreed. We’ve come a long way from the days when women living in communities were branded as witches. “And I’ve just realised” she continued, “I forgot to put my bra on this morning!”

Between sputtered laughter I suggested a visit to Claire’s Accessories to look for an adhesive nose stud. It may be a while before I commit to having my nose pierced, but it’s a start.

International Women’s Day takes place every year on 8^th March. 2011 will mark the global centenary of the event. For more details log onto:

www.internationalwomensday.com

Residents of Southend are being encouraged to dig out their wellies and help get involved with a beautiful wildlife garden on the Mendip Estate.

The Mendip and Treecot Residents Association need help with planting and support on the reserve. The area, formally an unused waste land is being transformed into a wildlife garden, which has already seen badgers, rare black foxes, slow worms, toads and a rare species of spider called “Signature”.

Hayley Allen, Resident Involvement Manager said;

“The residents of the association so far have done a great job in transforming the area, but there is still some work to do, so we encourage anyone who has an interest in nature to get in touch, in whatever way they can help – its all makes a difference.

The project has secured £45k of funding to improve the area, and we are planning on opening the area officially in August, which will be open for visitors from dawn to dusk for anyone to visit.

We would like to thank all of the organisations that have supported the project and we hope it will become a place people will use and enjoy for years to come!” 

Please contact South Essex Homes for more information on 01702 236137

Calling all senior citizens – your community needs you!

Southend-on-Sea Older People’s Assembly is electing new trustees at its Annual General Meeting on March 3 and wants more of the borough’s residents to get involved in its work.  There are 11 million pensioners in Britain but new recruits are needed at local level to help change things for the better for older Southenders.

Established in February 2008, Southend OPA’s 15-member panel aims to ensure the views of the town’s older people are taken into account by local policymakers. Assembly members believe a radical change of perspective is needed if public services are to meet the needs of our ageing society. Subjects the Assembly has been canvassed for its views on in the past include bus passes, bus timetables,  social care provision and environmental issues.

Simon Morton, chair of the Southend OPA, said: “March 3 is an ideal opportunity for older people in the town to declare their views and aspirations through the Assembly’s elections. “From its inception the OPA has managed - with the help of the public, our partners and our trustees - to play a beneficial role in the way Southend is serviced for older people.”

Anyone wishing to stand for election as a trustee should apply via the OPA website at
www.southendopa.org.uk or contact the secretary Victor Tassell on 01702-510316.

Southend Together Partnership is teaming up with Britain’s biggest supermarket chains to support ‘The Big Swap’ as part of Fairtrade Fortnight.

Fairtrade is about establishing better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. Offering a fair price for goods enables them to improve their position and have more control over their lives.

The campaign, which runs from February 22 to March 7, aims to raise awareness of how shoppers can make a difference to the developing world by purchasing Fairtrade products.  By swapping just one of your usual purchases for a Fairtrade alternative you can show your support for producers in the developing world through what you buy.

Councillor Andrew Moring, a member of Southend-on-Sea Borough Council’s Fairtrade Steering Group, urged the town’s residents to support Fairtrade Fortnight. He said: “As a partnership Southend Together understands the importance of Fairtrade on both a local and global scale.

“Recent research commissioned by the Fairtrade Foundation shows that recognition of the Fairtrade brand is increasing. More people understand how the Fairtrade mark is helping to make a better deal for producers in the developing world.”

Information about Fairtrade products will be available at the following venues where Southend Together Partnership will be encouraging shoppers to take part in ‘The Big Swap’:

• Asda, North Shoebury Road, Shoeburyness - Tuesday 23rd February
• Sainsburys, Southend High Street - Thursday 4th March
• Waitrose, Eastern Avenue, Southend - Saturday 27th February
• Tesco, Prince Avenue, Southend - Monday 1st March

For more information on Fair Trade, see the Healthy Life Essex Article:  ‘Fair Trade Principles’

There is a history of epilepsy in Simon Papendick’s family, but the sufferers all try to live as normal a life as possible.  Simon is just about to embark on a new challenge and explains:

“The reason behind doing this sailing challenge is to highlight that having epilepsy does not stop you from living a full and active life and take part in sports and other active pursuits.  That just because you are diagnosed with epilepsy should not make you feel your life is over , it is NOT !!! This is why my wife is taking part in this Sailing Challenge to highlight this point and to show what can be done when you put your mind to it. ”

The course of the up and coming Three Port Sailing Challenge will take Simon, a very experienced Yacht Skipper of 30 year sailing under his belt - or should I say under his sea boots -  and Tricia  his wife who has had Epilepsy since childhood, from Fox’s Marina in Ipswich in Suffolk England to Ostend in Belgium,  then to Den Helder Holland and to return to Fox’s Marina in Ipswich.  When the sailing challenge as finished the boat will be used to promote that living with epilepsy does not stop anyone from living a full and active lives.  Any money raised from the event will be used by the local Epilepsy Action group to continue their work helping people with epilepsy in the Tendring area of Essex.

Simon and Tricia will be setting off between mid-May and the end of June depending on the weather and the voyage should take about a week. If you would like to support them with this fundraising challenge, please go to www.justgiving.com/threeportsailingchallange

The good news is that product placement of junk food will not be allowed in UK-made television programmes. But, as Christine Haigh and Jackie Schneider, Children’s Food Campaign Co-Ordinators say:

“We’re outraged that Kellogg’s, a partner in the government’s Change4life health campaign, has adverts suggesting to children “ever thought of Coco Pops after school?” Coco Pops are 35% sugar, and are therefore classified as “high in sugar” according to the Food Standards Agency.”

Christine and Jackie are encouraging other outraged adults to e-mail Kelloggs to complain about the adverts at corporateresponsibility@kellogg.com. you could copy the Deartment of Health into your e-mail: dhmail@dh.gsi.gov.uk.  There are tips for writing your email at www.sustainweb.org/childrensfoodcampaign/coco_pops.

Cris Ramis of Phoenix Health and Fitness is one of our regular contributors. We would like to congratulate Cris on Phoenix’s 5th birthday on 1st February.

Cris had just set up Phoenix Health and Fitness when we were producing the magazine Healthy Life, Mind, Body & Soul, the predecessor to www.HealthyLifeEssex.co.uk  and we have worked together ever since.

Cris says:

“What makes me different is I take a holistic approach to each client, reviewing their lifestyle, diet and current exercise plan to address all aspects of their health and fitness, and then I create a new programme and achievable goals for them – and go through it with them, every step of the way. With me you don’t get tied into a year-long contract, spend just 30 minutes with someone being shown how to work the machines and then abandoned to your fitness fate.”

Cris’s studio is based at the Seedbed Centre in Shoeburyness. Cris continued:

“The Seedbed Centre has given me a great opportunity to create my own gym and space that is flexible in terms of what I offer. Clients are able to come here for their sessions, knowing that they can totally focus without the usual distractions you’ll find in a busy gym.  It’s private and clients can feel at ease here as they don’t have to share with anyone else. I am passionate about quality and aim to show this through the service I provide to my clients – that’s why I intend to make the next five years even more successful than the first five.”

Visit www.phoenixhealthandfitness.co.uk to find out more about Cris and have a look at the following fitness articles:

CHEK your health and fitness

Fat burning and weight loss

Flabby upper arm syndrome

Getting in shape for summer

The importance of good posture

The express home workout

Slow down the ageing process

It is 2055. Pete Postlethwaite plays a lone man living in a futuristic archive of the world’s history. He muses about how humans could have disregarded the warning signs of climate danger.

Director Franny Armstrong tries to provide the hindsight that might enable us to see more clearly. Much of the film is a collection of recent news clips and reports, which are compiled to illustrate that climate change is already happening.

The film only debates the science briefly. However, I think its purpose is more to explore how, once events become politicised, inaction and competing interests can lead to disaster. It is provocative and it names guilty parties.

Is it our responsibility to take action? In the film, French mountaineer Fernand Pareau says, “when you’re in the mountains you’re roped together. The risk is the same for you as it is for me.”

It’s true that there is plenty we can do to limit our impact on the environment. But we know many of the ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ of green living. I feel ‘The Age of Stupid’ misses a trick by focusing on the negative aspects of human activities and the global nature of the problem. There is plenty of positive action we can take to improve our local environments, as well as erasing our past impacts.

> To search for local environmental volunteering opportunities, have a look at the Greengrid Taskforce or try the links on the University of Essex website.

> For more information about the film, which was released in March 2009: www.ageofstupid.net

New Government procedures to cut underage drinking have been welcomed with open arms by the boss of Basildon Council, Bala Mahendran. He said: “We welcome the new legislation from Government to tighten the law. We work hard throughout the year to tackle underage drinking with campaigns and initiatives, such as the current Challenge 25 scheme.” The underage drinking scheme being put into place, changes the challenge age from the current 21 to 25, with 108 retailers out of the 146 across the Basildon area having signed up so far.

As of Friday 29th January, police can now seize alcohol from youths, who are believed to be under 18. But, unlike previous legislation, the police do not have to prove the culprits intended to consume the alcohol themselves. Previously, police were only allowed to send youngsters 16 and above home, when causing trouble, but this has been dropped to the age of 10 along with the scheme. Under new measures a new offence has also been created for children under the age of 18 who can now be arrested for persistently possessing alcohol in a public place. Any shopkeepers caught selling booze to anyone under 18 twice in three months will automatically lose their licence.

This quotation was provided by Baiju Solanki of Performance Coaching and Training Ltd. www.performancecoachingandtraining.co.uk. 

” All my growth and development led me to believe that if you really do the right thing, and if you play by the rules, and if you’ve got good enough, solid judgement and common sense, that you’re going to be able to do whatever you want to do with your life.

Barbara Jordan was the first African American woman to become a Texas Congresswoman.