BE POWERHOUSE SAFE ON HALLOWEEN!

The origins of Halloween is dated back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when they celebrated their New Year on November 1.  This marked the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture and the beginning of winter.  It was also believed that on October 31, the ghosts of the dead returned to earth.  The word Halloween is an abbreviation of All Hallows’ Evening.

The Samhain festival involved huge sacred bonfires, where crops and animals would be sacrificed to the Celtic gods.  The people would wear costumes and masks and would tell each other’s fortunes.

By 43AD the Roman Empire had ruled the Celtic lands for four hundred years, at which time they combined their Roman festivals with the traditional Samhain festival.  This was known as Feralia, where the Romans commemorated the passing of the dead.
In 609AD Pope Boniface IV dedicated the 13^th day of May to all Christian Martyrs, but it was Pope Gregory III (731-741) that expanded the festival to include all Saints and moved the observance from May 13 to November 1.  In 1000 AD the church made November 2 ‘All Souls’ Day’ in honor of the dead.

Trick-or-Treating is one of the main traditions of Halloween today.  It is socially expected for children to knock on a door and shout ‘Trick-or-Treat’. Trick-or-Treat can be traced back to the early All Souls’ Day festivities in England.  During these festivities the poor would beg for food and were given pastries known as ‘soul cakes’ by families, in exchange for prayers for the family’s dead relatives.

As we approach Halloween, children all over the world are getting excited about dressing up in their costumes to go trick-or-treating, in the hope that they collect even more candy than they did last year! The candy buckets get larger and larger each year! While the focus is on racing around to as many houses as possible, it is extremely important that while having fun, SAFETY must be taken seriously! Not just for the Trick-or-Treaters, but for the motorists as well.

TRICK-OR-TREATING

-          All children under the age of 12 should be accompanied by a responsible adult.

-          Children need to be instructed to ONLY go to well-lit areas and to avoid trick-or-treating alone.

-          Children should NEVER enter a stranger’s home.

-          Give your child a flashlight, or glow stick, so they can be seen and can see others.

-          If possible, use face paint or make-up on your child.  A mask can obstruct a child’s vision.

-          Make sure you are able to communicate with your child, by having them carry a cell phone.

-          Avoid crossing the road too often.  Walk down one side of the street, then the other. DO NOT dart back and forth across the road.

-          Always walk on sidewalks and walk facing oncoming cars.

-          When crossing the road, look left, right and left again before crossing.

-          Do not allow your child to take their electronic devices with them. ONLY cell phones.

-          Agree on a time when you expect children to return home.

-          Children should not eat their treats until they return home.

SAFETY TIPS FOR MOTORISTS

-          Slow down when driving through a neighborhood.  Children are unpredictable when excited.

-          Enter and exit driveways slowly and carefully.

-          Do not use your cell phone while driving, and eliminate any other distractions inside the car.

-          Trick-or-Treating typically takes place between 5.30pm – 9.30pm, so be especially alert during these hours.

-          Discourage teenagers from driving on Halloween, as they are inexperienced and there are too many distractions.

HAVE FUN!

BE SAFE! BE VIGILANT! BE AWARE!

 

The POWERHOUSE Program is designed to increase your self-esteem and provide the confidence that heightens your sense of awareness! RISE UP! SPEAK UP! POWER UP!

Take the first step towards your personal safety TODAY by contacting us at POWERHOUSE STRONG!

PowerhouseStrong@gmail.com
http://powerhouseselfdefense.com

"THE WHISTLE OR NOT THE WHISTLE? THAT IS THE QUESTION!"

Acorn Tops Used by the Ancient Chinese

 

The whistle has been used since ancient times as a way to attract attention to potential threats and danger.  In 3^rd century China, Night Watchmen used the top of acorns as their whistles.  They would blow into the tops to alert the towns to invading Mongolian forces.

The Ancient Egyptians on the other hand would use two blades of the papyrus plant as their whistles.  They would hold the blades together in between their palms and blow into their palms to make a very loud sound. Ingenious!

Blades of the Papyrus Plant

 However, it was around 1875 that the first brass whistle was designed by Joseph and James Hudson, from Birmingham, England.  This was the first whistle to be used by football referees.  Before this, handkerchiefs would be used to signal the players.

It was in 1884 that the Hudson brothers introduced their whistle to Scotland Yard (the Metropolitan Police Service responsible for policing London). The whistles were used to call for back-up in threatening situations. Its shrill, piercing sound was loud enough to attract attention and get help.  They were so successful that they were quickly adopted by Police Forces around the United Kingdom.

British 'Bobby' on his London Beat

Being born and raised in London, my image of a typical British ‘Bobby’ was of a uniformed man, wearing a helmet, carrying a truncheon and a whistle, walking his beat around London Town, protecting the citizens.  No tasers, no guns, just a simple, basic truncheon and whistle.

After almost 100 years in use by the Police Force, the last operational whistles were phased out in 1974/75, when hand-held personal radios were introduced to call for back-up.  However, the police whistle has made a return to the City of Cambridge, England, after 35 years.  The reason behind its reintroduction was to deal with cyclists who abuse the cycling laws around this university city.  If a cyclist ignores a ‘no entry’ or ‘no cycling’ sign, one blow of the whistle will stop them in their tracks.

People have been conditioned to know that when they hear the loud, sharp, shrill sound of a whistle, it is a call for action and it gets immediate attention.  The human ear is sensitive to high sounds.  So even though shouting loudly will attract attention, it does not have the same intensity as the sound of a 120 decibels whistle.  In this respect, the whistle can be an effective form of self-defense.

The whistle can be seen as one of the safest forms of personal protection. Unlike many other personal safety products, like pepper spray and stun guns, a whistle cannot be turned on you.  As a high-pitched sound will attract attention, it is likely to deter a criminal, as they do not wish to be caught.  Here are some other reasons why the whistle can be the best personal safety product:

Whistle designed by Festivity Designs

 

       1.      Children of ALL ages can use them.

2.      If you do not have a loud voice, or are unable to use your voice, the whistle can become your voice!

3.      You can carry a whistle in your pocket, or wear it around your neck or wrist.

4.      You can travel with it anywhere, including going through airport security.

5.      If misused, whether intentionally or not, it will not harm an innocent person, though likely to cause some discomfort to the ears!

However, all this being said, NO personal safety product, including the whistle, is a substitute for reliable personal safety training.  A serious attacker may ignore a whistle and snatch it away from you.  The same is for pepper spray or a stun gun.  The POWERHOUSE Program is intended to change the mindsets of participants about using full strength and physical force in order to defend themselves.  It is the reason the POWERHOUSE Program is designed to build up confidence and courage before training the physical component of personal safety.  A lot of females are conditioned not to shout and to shy away from physical confrontation.  The dangerous result of this is that they may freeze and not respond to a potential threat, and therefore not use their voice, their whistle, or any other personal safety product.  Proper education, which the POWERHOUSE Program provides, is essential, in order for everyone, especially children and young adults, to learn how to effectively use their whistles if they are under some kind of threat, or even being lost.

The POWERHOUSE Program is designed to increase your self-esteem and provide the confidence that heightens your sense of awareness! RISE UP! SPEAK UP! POWER UP!

Take the first step towards your personal safety TODAY by contacting us at POWERHOUSE STRONG!

PowerhouseStrong@gmail.com
http://powerhouseselfdefense.com

REALTORS BEWARE!

The recent murder of a Real Estate Agent in Arkansas has caused much concern about women’s safety around the USA.

Beverly Carter, 49 years old, vanished on September 25 after showing a home.  A few days later her body was found in a shallow grave, 25 miles away from where she was last seen.  Arron Lewis was arrested and charged for her murder.  When asked why he had targeted Carter, he said, “Because she was just a woman that worked alone – a rich broker.”

According to the National Association of Realtors, the number of assaults on Real Estate professionals is on the rise, with the attacks becoming more violent and sometimes fatal, as in the case of Beverly Clark.

WHY ARE REALTORS ‘EASY’ TARGETS?

Realtors are in an occupation that allows them to meet with strangers on a daily basis. They meet with people one-on-one!  Their hours of work vary and include evenings and weekends, when typically less people are around.

We warn people who meet others online, for example, online dating, to ALWAYS have the first few meetings in a public place, where there are lots of people around and NEVER at their own homes. This should be after spending a good amount of time getting to know this person online.  It is not the nature of a Realtor’s job to meet a prospect a couple of times before showing them a house. Even if a potential buyer is asked to meet at the Realty Office first, that person is still a complete stranger.

Realtors also use Social Media, like Facebook, Twitter and websites to give out all kinds of personal information and to announce their Open Houses. Some even advertise how successful they are in either selling a house, or finding you that perfect home. We all know that social media is accessible to EVERYONE and ANYONE, including criminals. In giving out too much information, Realtors are easy prey for these criminals. They know your name and your contact information!  They know that you are financially successful! They know exactly where you will be and exactly what time you will be there!

There is another factor as to why Realtors are ‘easy’ targets. In the Real Estate profession you do not get paid until you make a sale! This means Agents are tempted to meet a potential buyer in the hope that they will make that quick sale.  Imagine you are the breadwinner in your family.  Or that working as a Realtor is your only source of income. Bills are piling up and you are struggling to pay your mortgage or rent. Then you receive a call from someone who is in town for just a day and wants to see a particular listing. They think this could be the perfect house for them. It is likely you will put the chance of earning some money ahead of your safety! This can be very risky!

It is extremely important that ALL Realtors go through Personal Safety Training, in order to prevent becoming a victim of an attack.  This training should include awareness on personal marketing and how to limit the information given out to the public. It should include information on how to prepare for a showing or open houses. Most importantly, the Personal Safety Training should include learning about and identifying unusual and potentially harmful behavior. In other words, the red flags and warning signs.

Although this latest murder of a Real Estate Agent has shaken the Realty profession, it has also caused a great deal of concern to any woman who works ‘in the field’ or is traveling alone, as any one of them is a potential target! Don’t ever think it will never happen to you!

Education and awareness are key in preventing tragic stories like the murder of Beverly Carter. The Powerhouse mission is to educate and empower ALL girls and women to live safe, healthy and active lives. In order to do this our Program includes the very important component of Emotional Self-Defense.  We teach skills in Prediction, Recognition of danger signs, Observation and understanding and being in tune with your Intuition.

Take the first step towards your personal safety TODAY by contacting us at POWERHOUSE STRONG!
PowerhouseStrong@gmail.com
http://powerhouseselfdefense.com/index.php

YOU'RE A VERY FINE SWAN INDEED!

"There once was an ugly duckling, with feathers all stubby and brown, and the other birds said in so many words, Get out of town."

 

“The Ugly Duckling” is a fairytale written in November 1843 by the Danish Author, Hans Christian Andersen. The story is about a little swan who is born into a family of ducks, but is teased and ostracized by his brothers and sisters because he neither fits in nor looks like the rest of them.

The mother and her ducklings head for the pond, leaving the ‘ugly duckling’ all alone! However, he quickly follows and discovers that he can swim faster than his brothers and sisters. He just loves to swim! Perceived as ugly and different, he is quickly cast out of the pond.

"And he went with a quack and a waddle and a quack in a flurry of eiderdown."

Wherever he goes, the ‘ugly duckling’ is rejected by other animals for the same reasons. He finds himself on a farm, where the cat and the hen tell him that he must behave in a certain way if he is to be accepted by others. Instead of the loud, deep ‘honking’ sound that he makes, he needs to learn to ‘quack’!

 

Feeling yet again rejected, he leaves the farm and returns to the pond, where he encounters a group of elegant white birds. They look so majestic! The ‘ugly duckling’ aspires to be as beautiful as them one day. As his love of swimming is so great, he decides to ignore the negative comments of the other birds and animals and spends a long, cold winter on the pond all by himself.  In the spring, the ‘ugly duckling’ happens to see his reflection in the water. What he sees greatly surprises him! He was never a duck after all.  He has grown into a beautiful, majestic, white swan!

 

"Not a quack, not a quack, not a waddle or a quack, but a glide and a whistle and a snowy white back. And a head so noble and high. Say who's an ugly duckling? Not I!"

This classic tale tells us that despite rejection and obstacles, that with sheer determination and perseverance we can achieve our goals and desires and finally find our place in society!
Hans Christian Andersen is said to have structured the story based on the challenges he had to deal with in his life. He had a very tall, awkward, body structure and was constantly mocked for it. Born in Odense, Denmark in 1805, he traveled to Copenhagen in 1819 to find work as an actor.  Throughout his short acting career, he faced many challenges and was eventually rejected from the theater, because he just did not fit in, just as the ‘ugly duckling’ was rejected from the pond! Hans Christian Andersen was perceived as clumsy and with little talent by other actors.

Andersen returned to school and started to write. Though he was discouraged by his teachers, he ignored their comments and continued writing his stories. He quickly became a promising author and won a grant from the King of Denmark that allowed him to travel across Europe to develop his writing. In 1835, Andersen began producing his fairytales.

It seems our society is filled with ‘ugly ducklings’ and cats and hens.  Many people tend to compare themselves to others, instead of just accepting who they are and working to reach their full potential. Many people dream of being like someone else, hoping to be treated as well as others, and in doing so they try to live up to other peoples’ standards, instead of their own.

The popular music hit by the American Pop Band, Echosmith, “Cool Kids”, is exactly about this. The song is about a boy and girl who just want to be noticed – “I wish that I could be like the cool kids, cause all the cool kids they seem to fit in!”

The message behind The Ugly Duckling, and indeed ‘Cool Kids’, is to NEVER give up on following your own dreams and passions, despite rejection and obstacles. It is about having the confidence and courage to find your true self. In doing so you will find your beautiful, inner swan!

The Powerhouse Program is designed to transform you from an 'ugly duckling' to a 'majestic, beautiful swan' by building your courage, increasing your self-esteem and providing the confidence to heighten a sense of leadership and level of performance.  In doing so, people find it easier to overcome obstacles instead of avoiding them. RISE UP! SPEAK UP! POWER UP!