cool - News - The Coastal Star2024-03-28T10:46:13Zhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/coolHealth & Harmony: A few tips to keep you cool during the sweltering seasonhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/health-harmony-a-few-tips-to-keep-you-cool-during-the-sweltering-2019-09-01T15:47:30.000Z2019-09-01T15:47:30.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p class="p1" style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960894300,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960894300,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="7960894300?profile=original" /></a><em>Bright, happy colors can have a cooling effect, Kathie Orrico says. ‘It's hard to feel miserable when you're smiling.’ <b>Photo provided</b></em></p>
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<p class="p1"><strong>By Joyce Reingold</strong></p>
<p class="p1">Fans twirl on the sidelines and from ceilings, supporting the work of A-list air conditioners that chug, chug, chug 24/7. We have breathable clothing, wicking fabrics and cooling towels for our necks. There are nerdy misting water bottles and geeky wearables like Embr Wave bracelets, touted to help you feel 5 degrees cooler at the touch of a button.</p>
<p class="p3">We have all this and more and yet sometimes, it is still not enough — especially come September. By now, we’ve had it with the heat and the humidity.</p>
<p class="p3">Northern friends and family yammer on about fresh apples, the first crisp-air mornings and forecasts for optimum leaf-peeping. Here, we’re studying cones of uncertainty and wondering, in language often NSFW, when is it ever going to cool down?</p>
<p class="p3">Nine months into the Florida year, staying cool is a mental game. An attitude adjustment. It’s the harmony, in Health & Harmony. And it’s in that spirit that we offer these keep-your-cool ideas:</p>
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<p class="p5"><span class="s1"><b>Vitamin sea</b></span></p>
<p class="p3">Add Jay Magee to mad dogs and Englishmen, the only two groups Noel Coward believed were foolish enough to brave the midday sun. The quasi-official “Chairman of the Beach” is found most days, from noon to 4, at Oceanfront Park with a group of semi-regulars.</p>
<p class="p3">“The best way to beat the heat is to sit down by the water, have a good umbrella and bring water. A nice breeze doesn’t hurt,” the Ocean Ridge resident says. “We are rarely hot at the beach, maybe once in a blue moon. There’s usually a nice sea breeze off the water and it’s pretty comfortable. I always have a couple of bottles of frozen water that I end up drinking during our stay. To be honest, the only time I usually go in the water is during my morning swim. I just don’t go in during the afternoon. Crazy, huh?”</p>
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<p class="p5"><span class="s1"><b>Retail therapy</b></span></p>
<p class="p3">When you experience heat-induced ennui, shopping lighter and brighter may lift the spirits.</p>
<p class="p3">“Nothing cools you down like bright, happy colors,” says Kathie Orrico, “because it’s hard to feel miserable in the heat when you’re smiling.” She and sisters Casey and Colleen are the joy-sparkers behind the C. Orrico boutique on Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach. </p>
<p class="p3">“Dresses are our No. 1 go-to for summer,” she says. “Put them on and you’re done, you’re chic. Bohemian off-the-shoulder is popular in tropical prints. I can’t tell you how many girls come in for that look because they think that’s what Stevie Nicks would wear, or Linda Ronstadt. If you’re timid about color, add a splash of color with hoop or beaded earrings and you’re rockin.’”</p>
<p class="p3">Guys are jazzing it up, too. At FSB Mens on Ocean Avenue in Boynton Beach, proprietors Giovanni Marquez, his wife, Grace Marquez, and his sister, Gloria Ciongoli, offer a color palette that includes French blue, Amalfi yellow and tea green.</p>
<p class="p3">“How you beat the humidity in South Florida is cottons, or linens,” Giovanni says. “And now, what they’re doing with the cottons, is they might give you a 97 percent cotton and they’ll give it like a 3 percent stretch fabric. This way, the garment is going to move with you as well, and it’s nice.”</p>
<p class="p3">(Comfort is another cooling coping mechanism.)</p>
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<p class="p5"><span class="s1"><b>Supplemental hydration</b></span></p>
<p class="p3">Staying hydrated is one of our most important jobs as heat-beaten Floridians. “Drink more water than you’re used to — and don’t wait until you’re thirsty,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urges.</p>
<p class="p3">There are lots of suggested ways to calculate how much water you should drink. The best idea is to ask your doctor.</p>
<p class="p3">When you’re fully hydrated and looking for a recommendation for a late-summer cooler, ask a beer maker. We asked Justin Rick, head of brewing at Saltwater Brewery in Delray Beach.</p>
<p class="p3">“People tend to enjoy refreshing beers with a lighter taste, light body, lighter color, and lower ABV during the summer,” he says, referring to alcohol by volume. “Our most popular summer beer is Passion Pit, a 4.2 percent fruit ale made with real passionfruit. It is light, drinkable, with a slightly tart, slightly fruity flavor that isn’t overpowering.”</p>
<p class="p3">Autumn beers drop in October, when fall seems a notch, maybe two, closer to reality.</p>
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<p class="p5"><span class="s1"><b>Soul survival</b></span></p>
<p class="p3">Air-conditioned homes, cars, offices, malls, movie theaters … really, what are we even complaining about? September may not be the best month to spend outdoors, but it’s a great time to get outside ourselves.</p>
<p class="p3">Become a mentor and inspire children from underserved communities at the Milagro Center in Delray Beach. And watch them inspire you.</p>
<p class="p3">Sign up for a training session at the Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County to learn how to help adults and children improve their reading skills. You can also volunteer to read to a preschool or kindergarten class.</p>
<p class="p3">Call 211 Palm Beach (or visit online) to find out more about the Sunshine Daily Telephone Reassurance program, and how you might volunteer.</p>
<p class="p3">Drop off water and snacks to the men and women who labor outside, rain or shine. Pay it forward. Pay it backward. (Let’s make that a thing.)</p>
<p class="p6"><i>Joyce Reingold writes about health and healthy living. Send column ideas to joyce.reingold@yahoo.com.</i></p></div>Tots & Teens: Fun back-to-school events mark summer’s endhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/fun-back-to-school-events-mark-summer-s-end2017-07-31T21:00:00.000Z2017-07-31T21:00:00.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><strong>By Janis Fontaine</strong><br /> <br /> In just a few weeks, another summer vacation comes to a close for nearly 200,000 kids in Palm Beach County. Before school begins, take advantage of one of the events planned to make the transition easier.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960732095,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960732095,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="600" alt="7960732095?profile=original" /></a><em>There was no shortage of water-related fun during last year’s Back to School Splash at Sugar Sand Park Community Center in Boca Raton. <strong>Photo provided </strong></em> </p>
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<p><strong>Here’s a primer:</strong> <br /> The sixth annual Back to School Splash at Sugar Sand Park Community Center is a final day of play for your kids ages 3 and older. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 12, the park will host water play with a 60-foot slide, a bubbles bonanza and a make-and-take craft. Giveaways and music are planned for this free outdoor event. A special area with smaller attractions is available for kids 5 and younger. <br /> BYO sunscreen, bug spray, bottled water, towels, hats and a change of dry clothes. Food and drink vendors will be on site. The event is sponsored by South Florida Parenting magazine and the Habitat for Humanity ReStore (South Palm Beach County). <br /> Sugar Sand Park is at 300 S. Military Trail, Boca Raton. For more info, visit <a href="http://www.sugarsandpark.org">www.sugarsandpark.org</a> <br /> <br /> <strong>Get ready to shop</strong> <br /> Back-to-school tax-free shopping days are Aug. 4-6, and the good news is computers are eligible, but the rules cap the purchase price at $750. Other items also have caps, including clothing and shoes (capped at $60 per item) and certain school supplies (capped at $15 per item). <br /> For a complete list of the rules and eligible items, visit <a href="http://www.floridarevenue.com/backtoschool">www.floridarevenue.com/backtoschool</a> or call 800-352-3671.<br /> You can save even more if you get the $10 off $50 coupon from JCPenney available on the county school district’s website. Find Penney stores at the Mall at Wellington Green and Boynton Beach Mall. Get your coupon at <a href="http://www.palmbeachschools.org/backtoschool/">www.palmbeachschools.org/backtoschool/</a><br /> News Channel 5 Back to School Expo will take place at the Mall at Wellington<br /> Green, 1030 W. Forest Hill Blvd., Wellington, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 5. Exhibitors will be located throughout the mall with health- and education-related information. Get the information and the supplies you need tax-free. Call 653-5628.<br /> <br /> <strong>At the Y</strong> <br /> The inaugural Big Fall Kickoff event at the Peter Blum Family YMCA takes place after school starts for many kids, but it’s still fun. <br /> From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 26, the Y will host indoor activities such as a program scavenger hunt, demonstrations of fall programs like karate, dance and basketball, plus pool activities and water slides. Outdoors, a live band and DJ will provide musical entertainment designed to get kids moving, and a bounce houses, water activities, food and treats will be available. Sign up for one of the programs at the kickoff event at a discount. <br /> The Peter Blum Family YMCA is at 6631 Palmetto Circle S., Boca Raton. RSVP for the Kickoff at 395-9622. For more info, visit <a href="http://www.ymcaspbc.org/peter-blum/">www.ymcaspbc.org/peter-blum/</a>.<br /> <br /> <strong>At Garden of the Sahaba</strong><br /> The Garden of the Sahaba Academy will host a Back to School Fun Day from 2 to 7 p.m. Aug. 20 at the school, 3480 NW Fifth Ave., Boca Raton. Hosted by the PTO, the event will feature ponies, carnival games, train rides, a bounce house, face painting, giveaways, a high school boys basketball tournament and more. <br /> For more information, visit <a href="http://www.pto.assahaba.org">www.pto.assahaba.org</a>.<br /> <br /> <strong>Brunch fundraiser</strong> <br /> The Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce will host a Back to School Brunch from 10 a.m. to noon Aug. 24 at Lakeside Terrace, 7880 Glades Road, Boca Raton. Proceeds benefit the Caregiving Youth Project, a program of the American Association of Caregiving Youth that supports children who care for ill, disabled or injured family members. <br /> This fundraiser is part of the Boca Chamber Festival Days.<br /> Tickets are $50 in advance or $60 at the door. To RSVP, call Gerry at 391-7401.<br /> <br /> <strong>Health reminder</strong> <br /> The Palm Beach County School District reminds parents that keeping students healthy is important and students are required to be up to date on their vaccinations. Proof of immunization must be submitted on a Certificate of Immunization form DH680 prior to admittance and/or attendance in school. <br /> A religious exemption (DH681) may be obtained only from the Palm Beach County Health Department. <br /> In addition to immunizations, a school entry health exam is required for all students new to the district and for all pre-K, kindergarten and seventh-grade students unless an exemption is on file.<br /> All health information must be submitted on the appropriate school district form. Physical exams must be on Form DH3040 and provided to the school within 30 days of entry. An out-of-state health exam may be accepted if it meets the same assessment requirements in Form DH3040.<br /> For information on the immunizations that are required for all Palm Beach County students from pre-K through 12th grade, visit <a href="http://www.palmbeachschools.org/safeschools/schoolhealth">www.palmbeachschools.org/safeschools/schoolhealth</a> entryrequirements/. Ú</p></div>