Hi There Safety Stuff Subscriber,

I hope you're smiling and loving life.

Today, I'm at a meeting in Philadelphia preparing for a leadership conference for ExxonMobil in Calgary on May 12th.

Also, I'm getting ready to start offering some webinars and other digital presentations. I'll give you the details in future issues.

Yippee for Bill Conger CIH from CSP Xcel Energy! He is this week's safety and health meeting/promotion idea winner.

Safety & health meeting/promotion idea winners get 25 Safety & Health Puzzles on CD which they can copy and give out to their employees. They also get a copy of Spice It Up! 52 Easy Ways to Turn Your Safety Meetings From Bland to Grand! If you'd like to purchase these helpful products just go to: www.makesafetyfun.com or click on the picture of the product on the left.

If I publish your idea on how to use a prop to make a point, or some way to get your audience involved in a safety & health meeting, or an innovative way to promote safety & health on and off the job you'll win the puzzles and booklet.

Send your ideas to me at richard@richardhawkinc.com or click on the link at the bottom of this message.

Okay, let's move on to Bill's idea:

In 2005 the publicly funded Mental Health Foundation of Britain did a year-long study on the psychological reasons behind alcohol use. Conclusion: People drink because it makes them feel better.

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After studying overweight children playing with weighted and unweighted blocks, researchers at Indiana State University concluded that lifting weights burns more calories than not lifting weights. (They had to do a study to figure that out!?) The scientists plan to use the findings to help fight obesity by manufacturing teddy bears with three-pound weights inside.

Hi Hawk,

I was at the NSC conference in Anaheim and I attended your presentation on "Creating a Vibrant Safety Culture" and was VERY IMPRESSED! Your style of presentation was the best I have ever seen. I was scheduled to attend a second session that day by another presenter, but chose to stay for your "Spice It Up" session. I made a good choice.

The techniques that you shared will definitely make a difference in my upcoming training sessions. I particularly like the info that you give on how the mind works with the adult learner and your encouragement to move towards the "crazy & out there" line in trying new ideas.

Thank you Soooo much for your help. It is very evident that you spend a lot of time in preparation. You are a Master at what you do.

Thank you for blessing my day of training and the training of those who I will train in the years to come! For me you were the highlight of the NSC conference.

Gene Orris Jr.
Health, Quality & Safety Manager
FlagshipPDG

If you'd like the same kind of results at your next convention or employee day (or are looking for ways to improve your safety & health culture) contact Michele Lucia (972-899-3411 michele@richardhawkinc.com) or click on the link at the end of this email message.

If you'd like to see a video of yours truly go to my safety website www.makesafetyfun.com

Underground nuclear testing, defoliation of the rain forests, toxic waste . . . let's put it this way, if the world were a big apartment, we wouldn't get our deposit back.

--John Ross

Because we take weather so personally, there are many folk saying about it. Some are absolute hogwash; others are scientifically explainable. Here are some traditional examples, for better or worse:

• Geese (and other migrating birds) fly higher in good weather. True! The higher you go, the lower the air pressure, and migrating birds need altitude.
  
  
• Cow's tail to the west, weather the best; cow's tail to the east weather the least. Say what? Cows can't read a compass. But this old proverb is based on science. Animals tend to graze with their backs to the wind. Since an east wind is more likely to bring rain, and a west wind good weather, the cow's tail acts as a furry weather vane.
  
  
• The higher the clouds, the better the weather. In general, this has a scientific basis in the fact that clouds float higher when dry air and good barometric conditions prevail--both conditions associated with fair weather.
  
  
• When ants run straight, rain is coming; when they scatter, good weather is in store. What? No scientific evidence supports this loopy notion.
  
  
• Bees will not swarm before a storm. This is largely anecdotal. Experience shows that bees will swarm whenever they feel like it.
  
  
• Crickets chirp faster in warm weather. Unlikely, but true. These little guys, who chirp by rubbing their legs together, are fairly accurate thermometers. Formula: count chirps for 14 seconds, add 40, and you have the local temperature in Fahrenheit. Imagine--someone bothered to figure that out.
  
  
• When leaves are backward in the wind, bad weather is coming. Absolutely true. Trees grow in the prevailing (fair-weather) wind. In cyclonic (non- prevailing) wind, leaves are blown against their natural pattern and show their backsides.

Source: Discover's 20 Things You Didn't Know About Everything