The big day brings big stress
Anyone who has ever been involved in a wedding knows it is not an easy task, especially for the bride.

Last summer, Erin Crum, of Washington D.C., accepted her fiance's proposal on Sugar Loaf Mountain, one of their favorite places to go.

"In the beginning, I really wasn't stressed at all, and I found a great dress pretty quickly," said Crum 32.

The couple decided on a date relatively quickly and found a location for the reception. They chose a location in Delaware near Dewey Beach. The ceremony itself will take place on the beach right near the water.

Now that the wedding is just about three months away, the bride to be is starting to feel the pressure.
"I'm slowly realizing how much I have left to do." Crum said. "I also just found out that I might be loosing my job."

With the added stress she has been trying to take her days one at a time.

She has been trying to get in touch with her bridesmaids, making sure they are getting fitted and ordering their dresses. She has given her fiance the task of talking to the groomsmen and deciding on a wardrobe, which she will approve of course.

"I'm still incredibly excited, I just need to take a step back and not get overwhelmed," she said.

Lets hope for good weather on the big day.

Writing Assignment 4

A 10-day-old child was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital Monday where he was treated and released after a wall fell onto his crib due to an explosion in his neighbor's apartment.

Frederick Turner of the Housing Authority of Baltimore responded to a complain from the two hundred block of North Ausquith Street. Firefighters arrived to extinguish the one alarm fire, officials said.

Arnetta Sands, 36, was spraying insecticide in her kitchen from an aerosol can when it ignited from the heated stove. Sands was received first degree burns to her back and arms and was taken to Church Home and Hospital where she was treated and released.

The child, Andre Henderson, was sleeping when the wall between the two apartments collapsed. Firefighters removed the portion of the wall off of the crib, officials said.

Henderson was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital for possible smoke inhalation but is okay. The child's mother, Renee Henderson, 23, was uninjured. The fire investigator said the fire was accidental.

Writing Assignment 3

Provident Savings on the 300 block of Greenmont Avenue was robbed Monday, September 15.
Three male suspects entered the bank, one was armed with a .22 caliber rifle. One ordered everyone to lie down on the floor while two others ransacked the teller stations.
There were four employees and two customers in the bank at the time. The suspects stuffed an undisclosed amount of money into two white pillowcases and fled the area.
The men were lost from sight and there were no injuries or arrests.

Overworked and Underpaid

Wendy Fonger has been a registered nurse for more than 23 years.

"I switched to a managerial position several years ago because I didn't want to be on my feet all day, every day and the hours are more flexible," said Fonger, 58, of Sykesville Maryland.

Over the years she has seen and felt the changes in nursing homes and hospitals. Nurses are overworked and underpaid, she says, making it difficult for many facilities to give all of the residents the care they deserve. Fonger also says that while the money in a managerial position is better, it is less rewarding than floor nursing.

"I enjoyed working one on one with residents on a daily basis; helping them learn how they can help take care of themselves, speaking up for them when something needed to be changed, definitely more satisfying," Fonger said.

While nurses are essential, the field is still feeling the effects of the economic crisis.

Assignment #1 (post2)

President Obama released information Wednesday, February 18, on his proposed foreclosure prevention plan. The program places more than 75 billion dollars towards stopping a large cause of the economic crisis. The three main elements of the plan include a program to refinance 4 million to 5 million homeowners into cheaper mortgages, a 75 billion dollar program to keep 3 million to 4 million homeowners out of foreclosure, and doubling the government's commitment to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Many believe that the plan would be of great benefit to the Nation's flailing economy, but o thers are less optimistic. Because the plan is an optional program for companies there is no guarantee on whether or nor a homeowner will benefit. It does not include a plan for dealing with second mortgages of distraught homeowners. Other critics say that the plan is too costly and wonder if spending more than 75 billion dollars would hurt more than it would help. I am curious to know how much of this money would be coming from tax payers or other sources.

President Obama maintains that his plan aims to rescue families who have been responsible and played by the rules. I think that while the proposal sounds like it could help, I think it would be more beneficial if the program was made mandatory rather than optional. There are incentives for lenders of up to $1,000 for each loan modification and a $1,000-a-year reductions in princple balances of homeowners who stay current with their mortgages. It seems a little crooked to me that lenders should be rewarded for helping conusmers. The millions of homeowners on the brink of forecsloure are not the only ones who need this economy to improve. The incentive money could be put to better use if the plan were simply made mandatory.

Assignment #1 (post1)

President Obama released information Wednesday, February 18, on his proposed foreclosure prevention plan. The program places more than 75 billion dollars towards stopping a large cause of the economic crisis. The three main elements of the plan include a program to refinance 4 million to 5 million homeowners into cheaper mortgages, a 75 billion dollar program to keep 3 million to 4 million homeowners out of foreclosure, and doubling the government's commitment to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
While many think the plan is a step in the right direction, some critics say it is only a temporary solution and could cause more problems. The proposal does not include a plan for dealing with second mortgages and would be voluntary. Not all lenders would be willing to make the adjustments necessary to help suffering homeowners.
The proposed plan has some parts that could be enforced by government regulators and some that require approval from congress.