In keeping with our “Safe Shopping Philosophy”, Barbara Scott and her Teams at Five Star Seminars, Colorado Safety Educators and AwarenessIndex.com are thrilled to present in the way of safety for shoppers ( not only in Colorado but all over the World)…Five Star Boutique. 

Barbara and her Team have a total of 16 children.  They all understand the joys and challenges of going shopping with and without all or part of their children.  Shopping Safely is ever present on our minds and we all know your safety and the safety of your children is top priority for most of you.

Take a look up at the top menu of my Home Page.  Five Star Boutique is our new and exciting Market Place created to help all of you in several different ways. 

Many of the top safety concerns of women of all ages are:  falling, being followed, being attacked, how to defend themselves and their children, theft, and identity theft.  We feel that by offering a positive solution to these shopping challenges, we are giving you all another option as you look into safely shopping from home.

We are truly grateful to one of our own, a former fashion department manager, from a well-known national company.  She knows quality, knows designer brands, knows how to choose safe internet market places, and knows what women want, AND she is helping us bring you opportunities to purchase high quality for low pricing.

Please Welcome…

Five Star Boutique

Coming to you this week, 9 December 2009, will be these Designer Brands:

• Abercrombie & Fitch

• Disney

• H&M

• LAUNDRY by Shelli Segal

• Michael Stars

• Tahari

• Talbots Petites

• Trina Turk

• and many more leading fashion designer brands of clothing

• Holiday FUN items that bring JOY to young and old this Season

Shop for these and more Holiday items at Five Star Boutique now…

We hope that this helps! 

Please Be Safe this Holiday Season!

Most sincerely,

Barbara Scott

NOTE:  If you are reading this blog because a friend of yours referred us, and you would like to join our Safety Newsletter List, please click here to keep yourself educated and informed.

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About the Author

BARBARA SCOTT, is a Colorado safety and self-defense speaker, trainer, educator, and author.  Barbara writes about a wide range of topics, but has a particular focus on safety and awareness.  In 2005, Colorado entrepreneurs challenged Barbara to create a platform which would offer superior public awareness campaigns on behavioral safety and personal security.  As Founder and CEO of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators, Barbara Scott continues to gain attention because of her positive, solution-oriented safety presentations  and expert entrepreneurial and marketing skills.

 

Being “Aware of your surroundings” is not as easy as it sounds.

There are many medical and mental reasons why many children and adults are not physically nor mentally able to be observant, to pay attention, or even to really care about their surroundings.  People with conditions like ADD, ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Diabetes, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and Panic Attacks come to mind.

They are very much at risk when it comes to personal safety.

Colorado Safety Educators, Five Star Seminars, and Barbara Scott, are pleased to share with you some of our favorite online websites that help us understand why there are certain medical and mental conditions that automatically put some people more at risk than others when it comes to their personal safety.

Here is our Recommended Website List of Medical Conditions and Mental Disorders, plus much more.  The “Video of the Day” feature on some of these websites are excellent and definitely worth  your time to watch.

AwarenessIndex.com is an online resource and reference portal.

This is our favorite Online Directory for medical conditions, mental disorders, plus much more.  This Index is constantly updating and expanding, so feel free to bookmark it, and to come back often.  We do!

Go to http://www.AwarenessIndex.com

We hope this helps!

Barbara Scott

NOTE:  If you are reading this blog because a friend of yours referred us, and you would like to join our List, please click here to keep yourself educated and informed.  

United States and Canadian Store  

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About the Author

BARBARA SCOTT, is a Colorado safety and self-defense speaker, trainer, educator, and author.  Barbara writes about a wide range of topics, but has a particular focus on safety and awareness topics.  In 2005, Colorado entrepreneurs challenged Barbara to create a platform which would offer superior public awareness campaigns on behavioral safety and personal security.  As Founder and CEO of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators, Barbara Scott continues to gain attention because of her positive, solution-oriented safety presentations.

Five Star Seminars, Colorado Safety Educators, Jamba Juice, Barbara Scott, and others, have joined together to help sponsor a wonderful dance production called “momentum /mo-’men_tum/” at the Lakewood Cultural Center, in Lakewood, Colorado, at 7:30 pm on Friday, 15 May 2009.

I am about to introduce you to four wonderfully talented dancers who are the co-founders of Choreology Productions.  They have a dream, a vision, a very bold plan, and they have taken action to bring a marvelous group of superior dancers together to perform for us here in the metro-Denver area.

This is a treat that you do not want to miss!

Choreology Productions presents:

momentum /mo-’men_tum/

Strength or force gained by motion or through the development of events.

Momentum happens when drive and determination make the unthinkable happen.  Theater meets dance, and reaches out to the community.

The momentum has begun.

Lakewood Cultural Events Center

470 Allison Parkway (Alameda & Wadsworth)

Parking is FREE.

Friday, May 15th 2009 at 7:30 pm

Come on, sit back, and thoroughly enjoy the talented dancers that will be performing for your enjoyment:

• The Aspen Ballet
• Choreology Productions
• to name drop just a few…

Did I hear you ask how you can order tickets?  Yes?  I thought that I did!

Option #1:  Click this link at DenverPost.com.  http://calendar.denverpost.com/lakewood-co/events/show/86865295-momentum-momentem  (Please pause long enough to scroll down their page to read about the “Performers at this Event”)  You will see:  “For tickets:  Please visit our website below”  Click on “Event Website”.  That will take you to http://recreation-lakewood.org/tickets/dept.asp?pfid=597  .  I am not sure if the DenverPost.com ticket site is stable until the Performance, or comes and goes…

Therefore:

Option #2 for you to purchase your tickets to this wonderful Dance Theater Production if the DenverPost.com ticket links fail:

Go directly to http://recreation-lakewood.org/tickets/dept.asp?pfid=597  Click on L0515E-09.  That takes you to the Lakewood Cultural Center’s Ticket order forms.

Did I read your thoughts?  Were you thinking how you or your company could help sponsor this outstanding local Event where “Theater meets dance, and reaches out to the community”?

I thought so!

Five Star Seminars is helping the Choreology Productions Dance Crew by accepting sponsorship checks and donation checks.  But we are not selling the Tickets ourselves online…see above to order your tickets online, please.

Please make your sponsorship or donation checks out to Five Star Seminars.

Please mail your sponsorship or donation checks to:

Five Star Seminars, 17011 Lincoln Avenue # 215, Parker, Colorado  80134 

If you have any questions, please call us at 1.800.405.0160 and we will connect you with Choreology Productions .  You can always contact me by looking up at the top menu of this blog and filling out the contact form.

How many of you readers are dancers, or were dancers, or dearly wanted to be dancers, or have dancers in your family?  Dancers as well as artists are usually not wealthy ( as in the phrase, “starving artists” ).  Without support from the community and donations of any amount, Choreology Productions will be paying the bill to the Lakewood Cultural Center themselves.

Please help.

Again, please decide to attend, and plan to enjoy talented dancers that will be performing for your enjoyment:

• The Aspen Ballet
• Choreology Productions
• to name drop a few again….I KNOW that many of you have heard of The Aspen Ballet… 

Let me introduce you to our hosts and principle dancers of Choreology Productions:

Stephane Eaton:  Dancer and Co-Founder

Dancing for about 5 years, Stephane has done several productions including “Malaise” and “Obskurious Kirkos”.  She has studied several different types of dance including ballet, modern, jazz, and lyrical.  She got her start as a drummer in high school and continued on to Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps where she performed for thousands with percussion and movement.  Moving to Red Rocks Community College and taking dance, she continues her education through pursuit of finding different venues and teachers throughout the community.  Completing work as a choreographer, she created “Connections in Humanity” which was performed last Spring, and she continues to create as a beginning choreographer.  The greatest success will be to have Choreology Productions as a new place for those like her who got a start later in life in dance.  Hoping to give back the same as those who gave her the opportunity. 

Christopher Meis:  Dancer and Co-Founder

Dancing for about 5 years also getting his start at Red Rocks Community College.  He helped to create Choreology Productions from the ground up.  He has also done several pieces from “Malaise” to “Obskurious Kirkos” and performed along side some of the best dancers and choreographers.  He participated in the American Dance Festival in 2007 located in North Carolina where he met several other dancers with the same passion and commitment as he had.  With all the different styles he has studied, his start came from theater as an actor and martial arts and went off into modern, hip hop, salsa and ballet.  A good, strong performer, Chris creates with his mind and heart and always wants to find new ways of bettering his life as a dancer and performer.  This company is a vision from many years ago and he hopes it will bring light to the artistic community and to those who create without judgement and without bias to what is “dance”. 

Yarrow Spitzfaden:  Dancer and Co-Founder

Yarrow is a very talented dancer with a background in several types of movement and dance.  She has been dancing for about 10 years studying all genre’s from classic to international forms.  She has been involved in several dance companies and has created several pieces as a well versed choreographer.  She has been focusing more on hip-hop the last few years and is creating more and more in every different style blossoming outside of typical “dance routines”.  She loves to move and is enthusiastic about every opportunity that comes her way.  Choreology Productions is home for her even as she branches out to an outstanding education that may take her abroad someday.  Yarrow also shares that same passion though, and hopes to create works of art through dance that catch the eye and challenge the body.

Lisa Malone:  Dancer and Co-Founder

Lisa has been dancing all her life and is a very talented mover and an amazing dancer.  She had gotten her start in tap, jazz, and ballet and does mainly lyrical based partner forms.  Very open to anything that comes her way, Lisa has been dancing in “Obskirous Kirkos” with us for only 3 months now and has caught every bit of dance involved.  Very commited to movement and the creation of dance, Lisa has been working hard to also create a place for dancers that have gotten their start later in life.  A dedicated mother of 4, she likes to involve her family in art and hopes to continue finding places to perform and contribute to the never ending cause of the importance of art in schools.  She is one of the best additions to the new company!

Once again, I invite you and your friends to come for a lovely evening of live dance performances. 

Tickets are very inexpensive:

• $10.00 for Adults
• $  7.50 for Seniors ( 65 and over )
• $  7.50 for Students ( 13 thru 21 with a Student ID )
• $  5.00 for Children ( 3 thru 12 ) 

Choreology Productions presents:

momentum /mo-’men_tum/

Strength or force gained by motion or through the development of events.

Momentum happens when drive and determination make the unthinkable happen.  Theater meets dance, and reaches out to the community.

The momentum has begun.

Lakewood Cultural Events Center

470 Allison Parkway (Alameda & Wadsworth)

Parking is FREE.

Friday, May 15th 2009 at 7:30 pm

If any of you, my readers, would like to sponsor this Dance Production, again, I encourage you to contact me, Barbara Scott.

Now, I know, many of you are wondering why a safety and self-defense instructor is so involved in a Lakewood Cultural Events Dance Production.

I will let you in on a secret…

During a very happy and fun part of my life, I owned the Tri-Lakes Youth Company in Monument, Colorado.  I was a cultural arts specialist, a director, a dancer, a choreographer, a singer, a professional pianist and accompanist.  My children were my partners and we put on community programs, such as a Jazz Festival, which involved the entire community of Monument ( to the best of our ability ), and we even had dancers from Colorado Springs join us.

My youngest daughter ( at the time), Lisa, was an organizational wizard and an exceptional dancer.  As the years have gone by, she continued to dance, excelled at choreography and dancing, singing, and the theater arts.  Today, as a wife and mother, Lisa Malone, my daugher, is Chairman of the Advisory Boards for Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators.

I am so very proud to now be able to help my daughter, Lisa Malone, a Co-Founder of Choreology Productions, turn the tables on her Mom, and now be able to hear her say to her mother and community, “Let’s Put On A Show!”

The momentum has continued…

To my Lisa, I love you, and am so very proud of you.

To my readers,Ya’ll Come!

Barbara Scott

NOTE:  If you are reading this blog because a friend of yours referred us, and you would like to join our list please click here.

United States and Canadian Store

          ____________________________________________________________

About the Author

BARBARA SCOTT, CEO and Founder of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators, is a safety and self-defense speaker, trainer, and author.  She writes awareness articles about safety issues, as well as business, and marketing strategies.  In her safety classes, she addresses personal self-defense strategies, behavioral safety, as well as situational awareness and security. 

Five Star Seminars is a major promoter and sponsor for Colorado Safety Educators’ self-defense and personal safety seminars, training classes and workshops for men, women, and children.

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Ads by AwarenessIndex.com              Safety Seminars              Gas Shut-Off Wrench

Colorado Safety Educators’ personal safety and self-defense trainer, Barbara Scott, is continuing to document her own personal emergency preparedness and disaster plan progress.

Today is Friday, 10 April 2009.

Yesterday, another tornado hit the Arkansas town of Mena.  Two people were killed and more than 100 homes were damaged. 

What if this was your town?  Or my town? 

My husband has been teaching me yet another life lesson called, “How to shut the gas off going to our home.”  Not only did I not know how to shut it off, I didn’t even know where the gas main and shut-off valve was!

One of my goals in documenting my journey from not being prepared as a family for emergencies, to being prepared, is by exposing my omissions to the world, that you, my readers, might start thinking about a plan and begin to take your own action as well. 

I must make a disclaimer here.

This plan is for the Barbara Scott family.  You will need to adapt my ideas to fit you and yours.  How my home was designed and built, the gas and water lines, and the electrical set-up, will be different from how your home or apartment is designed.  I asked my husband to show me where things are and how to turn them off.  I recommend that you ask family members, neighbors, property managers, or even the utility companies, to come and show you where emergency shut-offs are and how to shut them off in case of an emergency, if you do not know.

I am blessed to have a very handy husband.  I also now realize that if my husband is not at home when an emergency might strike, I have to be handy as well…

Five Star Seminars has recently created an important survey.  It is called, “Do You Have A Personal Emergency Preparedness Disaster Plan?”

You know what?

Most of the people surveyed ( thus far) do not have a plan.  A good friend of mine recently told me that he and his family do not even have a “Meet at the Mailbox and Count Noses Plan”, should there be a fire. 

To quote Benjamin Franklin.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

The following pictures are worth more than an “ounce” to me.   My husband is showing me and all of you what we are looking for.  Jon is using a gas shut-off wrench.  You could also use a pipe wrench or pliers.  The key is that whatever tool you select needs to be readily available if you need to shut off your gas at the gas valve. 

I am rethinking where I will keep my gas shut-off wrench…Some suggest attaching the wrench to the meter or to the wall behind the meter. 

In the event of a disaster, we may be instructed to shut off the utility service to our homes.

CAUTION - If we turn off the gas for any reason, a qualified professional must turn it back on. 

NEVER should we attempt to turn the gas back on ourselves.

In these pictures, my husband is pointing to the “lock bar”.  This lock bar is in line with the pipe and the gas is flowing properly.  The shut-off valve runs parallel with the pipe.  In case of emergency, we would be taking our wrench and turning the valve a 1/4 turn, until the valve is crosswise to the pipe.

The last two pictures show how Jon would use the gas shut-off wrench to turn off our gas.  Remember that you need to find the specific guidance for proper shut-off procedures for your meter, as we all have different gas meter configurations.

 Five Star Seminars  and Colorado Safety Educators have sponsored very successful safety and self-defense seminars over the years. 

I believe that as we expand into the personal emergency preparedness and disaster planning seminar arena, great good will come from these as well.  As our survey is showing us, interest is there for families to make emergency plans.  I think, we are just so busy that we sometimes forget that there were reasons for the old adages. 

As the Bible says, “If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.”

I hope this helps!

To life!

Barbara Scott

About the Author:

Barbara Scott is a Denver, Colorado area based safety, self-defense, and emergency preparedness speaker, trainer, and author.  She is the CEO and Founder of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators.  Her popular personal safety and self-defense seminars and training classes, address personal self-defense strategies, behavioral safety, as well as situational safety and security. 

Barbara writes awareness articles about safety, as well as business, and marketing strategies. 

Five Star Seminars and Boulder, Colorado’s OX & CO are major sponsors and promoters for Colorado Safety Educators’ safety seminars for men, women, and children throughout Colorado.  For information about how to book Barbara Scott and her Team at Colorado Safety Educators for personal safety training seminars in Colorado, go to:  http://www.coloradosafetyeducators.org/booknow.htm

Ads by AwarenessIndex.com

Disaster and Emergency Preparedness      Emergency Survival Kits

Colorado Safety Educators is continuing to document safety and self-defense speaker, Barbara Scott’s, new personal emergency preparedness plan for her family. 

This is a unique series that is being created to help not only Barbara Scott’s family, but everyone who reads these blog posts and has not yet created their own personal safety plan for whatever emergency that could come their way.  Five Star Seminars is already promoting a new personal safety series which now includes emergency preparedness. 

Today is 1 April 2009 and the flooding and personal loss and grief are still making the news.  Once again, news articles feature that people are trying to retrive their photos and keepsakes from their flooded homes.

Tonight I spent about three hours scanning in pictures from a precious family photo album into Googles’ Picasa3.  I mentioned to one of my children afterwards, that if I lost the originals in that album, I would now be ok.  The whole family could go online and download the pictures and start the album all over again.  Nothing really lost, but time and effort of recreation.  I really felt a peace come over me with the last picture of my parents scanned in. 

We acquired a new piece of furniture this week which made me unbox some books that have long been abandoned in a closet.  After finally placing the books into a bookcase, I took pictures of those things and uploaded that into a picture file for proof of ownership for our insurance company (if ever the need arises, be it through theft or fire, or… ).

Back to the 72 Hour Emergency Kit Ongoing Project…

As you can see in the above picture, last December, I laid out all the backpacks that I had found at Thrift Stores onto a bed in a spare bedroom ( where they took up residency until March 2009.)  As an avid researcher, I found many great Preparedness Lists.  (Too many, actually.)  I really learned alot about emergencies of all kinds and what we should purchase, gather from around our homes, and put together in an organized “Kit” to grab if any kind of emergency should happen.  I also am one to print off everything that I think is important, or that I will need later…  So, I found myself armed with many different “Lists” to try to consoladate into a personalize plan for our family.  ALL THE LISTS WERE GREAT!  Kind of like being in an ice cream parlour and trying to decide which two flavors to put together into one cone from such a vast, delicious assortment.

Shopping was really an eye-opener.  With my multiple lists in hand, I wiped out different sections of several Walmarts and Targets.  I was still short on many items and the stores didn’t restock very quickly…like not at all…in front of Christmas. 

My husband loves to camp!  He was also an Eagle Scout.  He could survive on the basics.  In case of any emergency, I would follow this man anywhere.   After watching me work on this project for weeks, he ordered a very basic survival 72 Hour Emergency Kit from online.  He is happy.  He is set.  It came packed in a 5 gallon bucket. 

I want more.

Me…my idea of camping is a very nice hotel with a comfy, cozy king size bed plus a small refrigerator in the room.  I realized that a good portion of my problem in making a “Perfect List” for my family was that I don’t want to just survive an emergency.  I want to be as comfortable and regret-free as possible before, during, and after, a personal emergency.  As an acknowledged control-freak, I want to keep it all one way or another.  The Cavalry arrived in the form of a friend who sent me his 72 Hour Emergency Kit List.  George’s list was on an Excel spread sheet.  Now, we were talking!  George’s list made sense and it was organized.  George’s list was created for him and his wife, but I finally had a way to integrate all the great ideas from all the great lists, into just one, perfect list for the Scott Family.

With my “Perfect List” in my computer, I began to pack up the backpacks.  YES!!  Shopping for the missing items was easy, whether I went online or into a brick and mortor store.  I, of course, printed off each adjusted list from my “perfect” master list for each member of the family, as their backpack was organized and filled up.  The bed was clearing.  The children were seeing progress and faith was renewed in their mother and grandma.

As the children have echoed for months now, “Are the 72 Hour Emergency Kits ready yet?”  I must admit, that they are not filled with everything that I want to have in them.  All of this stuff costs money, and there must be a monthly budget with a plan.  But…ALL of the backpacks are filled with something from each person’s master list.  We are in a far better position than we were last November to come through an emergency in better than basic comfort. 

I am still working on it and it feels good.

Our personal emergency preparedness plan is becoming more clear, the more I do.  The family is becoming more confident the more they see the packpacks come together.  The children are becoming more helpful the more they see sleeping bags appear for each of them.  The children are offering more suggestions the more they taste the food and approve of what we have purchased for them to eat if an emergency should befall us.

The Scott Family Disaster Prepared Plan is unfolding in a very good way. 

Life is Good!

Barbara Scott

About the Author:

Barbara Scott, is the Founder and CEO of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators.  She is a Denver area based safety, self-defense, and emergency preparedness speaker, trainer, and author.  Her popular personal safety and self-defense seminars and training classes, address personal self-defense strategies, behavioral safety, as well as situational safety and security.  Barbara writes awareness articles about safety, as well as business, and marketing strategies.  Five Star Seminars and Boulder’s OX & CO are major sponsors and promoters for Colorado Safety Educators’ self-defense, personal safety, and emergency preparedness seminars, training classes, and workshops for men, women, and children throughout Colorado.

Colorado Safety Educators is expanding its’ safety training and personal security mentality of self-defense into another vital area, namely, personal emergency preparedness. 

Today is 26 March 2009, and this is pretty much the beginning of a new year. 

Last night I read news stories about the flooding in North Dakota and showed pictures to my children and grandchildren, of people in boats, homes flooded up to the roof lines of two-story homes.  These  people are dealing with freezing waters, and it was snowing.  Today, I showed my children and grandchildren pictures of the damage done from a tornado in Mississippi.  Residents of Magee, Mississippi were collecting family keepsakes, and beginning clean-up efforts before another storm was expected.  Neighborhoods lost power and water services.

I have been struggling with a family preparedness plan for my large family for months. 

If a disaster should hit our home and our neighborhood, I want our family to walk away from the mess and rubble in the best shape possible to continue our life and our business.  I am doing as I am documenting what I am putting together for my family. 

I have a GOAL.  I am on a MISSION. 

If I do not hurry up and get this project off the ground ( or in my case, off of the bed ), it will only be a desire, or a wish, for an emergency preparedness plan with 72 hour emergency kits for all of us.  I actually thought that I could get all this accomplished for Christmas 2008.  Obviously, I didn’t make it for Christmas Day gift giving.  Did I fail?  I don’t think so.  I keep working on this project and each month I get closer and closer.  I will only fail if I quit. 

My goal is for my family to be safe.  My goal is that this series of blog posts will help many of you to come to grips with the fact that you do NOT have an emergency preparedness plan either.  How about we do this together?

 Would it be easier to just buy a prepared retail disaster package for everyone in my family? I thought of that.  I researched that avenue.  I have a very large family and I also need 72 hour emergency kits for all of our vehicles as well.  Do I want to survive or do I want a PREPARED, personalized plan.  I am buying things that I hope I NEVER have to use.  The cost would be stagering for our large family to just purchase everything at retail.  We have to go the creative route.

I went to Thrift Shops to find coats, windbreakers, pants, boots, sleeping bags, blankets, and backpacks for everyone.  It is always Time vs. Money.  My safety seminars and speaking schedule for Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators’ Events end for the year by mid-December.  I have several weeks every year to shop ’til I drop.  And shop, I do…Last Christmas’ focus was completely on 72 Hour Emergency Kits.

In case you think Thrift Shops equal “junk”, let me assure you that does not have to be the case.  The “emergency” clothing that I found very inexpensively, claim brand names such as OLD NAVY, GAP KIDS, LANDS’ END, Eddie Bauer, ST. JOHN’S BAY, NIKE and REI….just to name a few.  I LOVE Magellans.com for travel supplies and clothing.  In Thrift Stores, I found comparable Explorer Vests and Cargo Pants.  With all of those pockets, plus fanny packs and backpacks, we should be able to carry out (walk out) a lot of important necessities in an emergency situation.

STEP ONE in my 72 Hour Emergency Kit and Disaster Plan:  Time vs. Money.  Make a decision whether to buy everything pre-packaged and/or new at retail, or take the time to find high-quality items at Thrift Stores for less.

STEP TWO:   Decide which member of your family gets which coat, which backpack, and so forth.  

STEP THREE:  Find a place where you can spread all of these items out and be able to leave them there until you are finished purchasing your emergency necessities and then packing the backpacks.  Wash all of the clothing items first.

We are all familiar with the traveling phrase from the kids, “Are we there yet?”  Since I didn’t get this project finished by Christmas 2008, the never ending phrase around my home is, “Are you finished with the 72 Hour Emergency Kits…YET?”

No, but I AM working on it.

I asked my youngest daughter what she would think if there really was a tornado, and we raised the lid of our crawl space to find open air and rubble, AND I had not finished the 72 hour emergency kits for everyone of us.  To quote my young daughter, “You would have blown it, Mom.”

I hope this helps all of us.

Barbara Scott

About the Author:

Barbara Scott, CEO and Founder of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators, is a Denver area based safety, self-defense , and emergency preparedness speaker, trainer, and author. In her popular personal safety and self-defense seminars and training classes, she addresses personal self-defense strategies, behavioral safety, as well as situational  safety and security.  She writes awareness articles about safety issues, as well as business, and marketing strategies.  Five Star Seminars is a major promoter and sponsor for Colorado Safety Educators’ self-defense, personal safety, and emergency preparedness seminars, training classes and workshops for men, women, and children.

As a personal safety and self-defense speaker, trainer, and educator, I am asked constantly “What to do IF this…or IF that… were to happen to me”, in a myriad of circumstances.  As I am not a police officer, attorney, nor an animal control enforcement officer, I always ask those in the know about legal questions.

“Randy” sent me a very important question and this blog is my answer to him.

“Hi Barbara, I recently was attacked by a neighbor’s dog on the way to my mail box.  I live in a rural area, one neighbor has already been bitten.  Sometimes the dog has his shock collar on sometimes he doesn’t.  He also will come out on the street with it on.  My question is?  Is it legal to spray the dog if he comes to the edge of their driveway with pepper spray, which I have bought?  There is only a ten foot right of way from drive to street.  I feel I might not have enough time to spray him if he rushes me again.  What would the punishment be if I did spray him on their property?  The owner I did call and is complete denial.  The Dog weights 85 pounds and could do some damage.  Thanks, Randy”

 Randy, I made several telephone calls to Colorado local law enforcement offices to answer your questions.  This reply to you comes from a Deputy Sheriff with Arapahoe County as well as an Animal Control Officer with unincorporated Arapahoe County.

The immediate question to me was, “Where does he live?”  This entire answer has to be based on where you live to get the correct answer from your specific jurisdiction.  You said you live in a rural area, but does that place your residence in an incorporated or an unincorporated city and/or county of……….., in Colorado?

First point:  Pepper Spray is considered a long-distance weapon, but that translates to a reasonable range of 6-8 feet.  You did not mention what kind of pepper spray you purchased.  Is it a wide spray or a regular spray that comes out in a garden hose-type of spray?  Is it the personal size that is meant for attaching to key chains or a much larger canister size?

Second point:  You mention that this 85 pound dog has already bitten a neighbor, as well as attacking you. 

As I read your questions to the Colorado, Arapahoe County Deputy Sheriff and the Animal Control Officer, the following were their responses.

• It was recommended that you call your local Sheriff’s office and start a “history” on this large dog.  The other neighbor who was also bitten could be invited to do this same thing. 
• “Articulation”.  You need to “articulate”, or explain yourself, in a very detailed manner, what has occurred.  Where was this dog?  Where were you?  What happened that you were bitten?  We all agree that you should not be concerned or afraid to go outside to your mailbox over anything, let alone, your neighbor’s dog.
• Every jurisdiction has different and specific ordinances.  You are entitled to “reasonable means” to defend yourself.  Are you in “imminent danger” from this animal?

The Animal Control officer that I interviewed, mentioned that you could go online and look up County Ordinances on Animal Control.  An example of where to look would be something like this website:  http://www.co.arapahoe.co.us/Departments/PW/AnimalControl/index.asp for Arapahoe County, Colorado.  They also mentioned looking up Colorado State Statutes for animal control issues.

You cannot just pepper spray this dog (or anyone) for giggles, just because, or through goofing around.  If you just pepper spray this animal “because”, then you could be charged a Class 1 misdemeanor for cruelty to animals.  Obviously, you wouldn’t fall under this category.  You have explained that you are really worried, with good reason.

The dog has rights.

• You cannot spray the dog on its’ owners’ property.  The dog is not in violation.  The dog is not “loose”.  You are not in “imminent danger” of the animal because it has not come off of its’ owners’ property.
• Shocker collars do not work on all animals.  There are three different levels for shock collars.  What kind of shock collar is this dog wearing?  Is it a wireless fence type or a push-button type where the owner has to push the button?

You have rights.

• Is this dog “running at large” where the owner is not with it? 
• Is the dog off of his property and not listening to its’ owner, or not responding to its’ owner? 
• Any size dog can run a 10 foot distance at full speed in a moment. 

If you choose to carry pepper spray that actually works, that you have properly tested, and you know its reliability and rating, YES, you can pepper spray the dog if you are spraying out of fear.  You are spraying the dog because it is charging you and you are in “imminent danger” from this animal.

You will need to articulate (explain yourself), to the police or animal control officer.  You will need to point out where the dog was, where you were, and that you have already made calls to the police or sheriff’s office to complain about this animal.  You have already tried to talk to the owner of this dog.  The complaints you call in will be transferred to the Animal Control unit in your jurisdiction.  The Animal Control Departments only work certain hours, whereas you can always get through to a Sheriff’s or Police Department.

I am sorry that you have this problem.  Again, I am not a law enforcement officer, attorney, nor an animal control officer.  Please call your local jurisdiction officers for ordinances and statutes specific for where you live.  

Randy, I hope that this information has helped you, as well as any others that share your same problem.

Sincerely,

Barbara Scott

About the Author:

  Barbara Scott, CEO and Founder of Five Star Seminars and Colorado Safety Educators, is a safety and self-defense speaker, trainer, and author.  She writes awareness articles about safety issues, as well as business, and marketing strategies.  In her safety classes, she addresses personal self-defense strategies, behavioral safety, as well as situational safety and security.  Five Star Seminars is a major promoter and sponsor for Colorado Safety Educators’ self-defense and personal safety seminars, training classes and workshops for men, women, and children.

Colorado Safety Educators is all about awareness, prevention, and solutions.  Even though our Colorado public awareness safety programs are very popular, we feel the need to do more.  As I mentioned in my last blog posting, the damage to the people of New Orleans in 2005, the damage from Hurricane Ike to Texans in 2008, and with our own Tornado in Windsor, Colorado, my mind began to focus on what kind of a disaster prevention plan do I have for myself and my family.

I have posted a picture of what my home office could look like if my home were hit by a tornado.  I found a suitable “disaster looking” plot of ground, then brought out piece by piece, my old computer system, my current files, my real checkbook, telephone, office desk chair and carefully set the scene of my disaster.  I call it, “Barbara’s Desk After A Tornado.”  Members of my family helped me carry everything away from my home, and I was sure that I heard low murmurings of “I hope none of the neighbors are watching….”

Do you have a plan for your personal safety and security if a disaster were to hit your area? 

I did not.  My family did not.  We did not have a “planned” plan.  We had an everybody meet at the mailbox plan.  That is not good enough. 

So… you are about to read a series of posts that recount how our Family Disaster Plan has evolved, and how we are finding solutions to successfully handle the “What Ifs” that Life and 2009’s big and little disasters, could throw at our family (and at yours).

What kinds of disasters are we talking about here?  Earthquakes, Hurricanes, Tornadoes, Flooding, Fires, Financial, Physical, Personal, Family, Deaths, and Emotional.  I began to brainstorm with my family members.  Living here in Colorado, I crossed off earthquakes and hurricanes.  That still left me with a lot to work with.  If I was worried about flooding possibilities, then things should be put up high.  If, on the other hand, tornadoes were my concern, my things should be kept on a lower level.  In case of a fire, it is the children and pets to get out of the house and we are back to meeting at the mailbox and counting noses.  The rest of the list had the great probability of sending me into overwhelm to quickly accomplish, and then that could affect my health, etc. etc.

Here is my thought process.  IF I were to lose my home by natural disaster, such as fire, flood, or tornado, my “stuff” would be gone.  As long as my family was saved and safe, we could go on with our lives.  Therefore, I addressed the “stuff”.  I have insurance to cover my stuff.  I have to prove that I had that stuff.

This is what I did.  Google has free software called Picasa.  To quote Google, “Picasa is a software download from Google that helps you organize, edit, and share your photos.  It’s free, and easy to use.”   http://www.picasa.google.com

I signed up, am using Picasa3, and began to take pictures.  I took pictures of almost everything inside and outside of this home and property.  I took pictures of our vehicles from every angle and straight shots of the license plates.  I took pictures of the outside of our home from every angle, front, back, and sides, including the yards, front, back and sides.  I took pictures of my children, my grandchildren, and my pets. 

I am posting pictures of our pets, so that they are identifiable if they should come up missing in a disaster.  Sasha is 5 years old, and a wonderful, sweet, Momma cat.  A terrific mouser!  Bella is our beloved chihuahua, and is now two years old.  Sasha became Bella’s adopted Mother, and the two teach us many lessons on opposites getting along.  Yes…they sleep together at times in the cat tower, but usually Bella jumps up there to get a bath from Sasha.

I remember reading about what the victims of Hurricane Katrina lamented about losing when it came to their belongings.  I heard it time and time again, it was the loss of their pictures. Their photo albums. The wedding pictures.  Their art work.  The loss of memories.

You know, once I uploaded the pictures of my home, grounds, clothing ( yes, my clothes and my families’ clothing and shoes ) and all the wonderful things that I am blessed with to furnish my home, and to live my life (I even took pictures of the pictures on my walls),  I felt like a huge burden was lifted off of my shoulders. 

I felt a release and a peace.

STEP ONE in my Disaster Plan:  Take pictures of absolutely everything. 

STEP TWO:  Scan all of my mothers’ precious pictures, and my family pictures. Upload them online so that they won’t be lost.

STEP THREE:  Remember your passcodes in case your computer flies or fries in a disaster.

I hope this helps!

Barbara Scott

About the Author

Barbara Scott is the Founder and CEO of AwarenessIndex and Colorado Safety Educators.  She is a popular Colorado safety speaker and writer, addressing personal self-defense strategies, behavioral and situational safety and security.  Colorado Safety Educators provides personal safety training seminars throughout the state of Colorado.  She writes awareness articles about safety issues, business, and marketing strategies. http://www.BarbaraCScott.com is part of the AwarenessIndex family of websites.  Five Star Seminars is a major promoter and sponsor for these Colorado self-defense and personal safety seminars.

Well, I finally did it.  I cut it all off.  ALL OFF.  Like 1/4 ” left of it…off.  I love long hair and have kept it very long most of my life.  In the mid 90’s I certified as an image consultant with Color Me Beautiful.  With an executive mindset, I cut my hair short.  I was miserable.  So………back to long and my natural dark brown hair.

As the years progressed, the grey began to creep in.  My mother died in 2002 and my daughters took hold of my head before the funeral and colored the grey out.  My life continued and my public speaking life charged on at full speed until Hurricane Katrina.  Somewhere in my soul, I added the disaster and heartaches of New Orleans, 2008’s Hurricane Ike, and our own tornado through Windsor, Colorado, and I just began to wonder about values, “stuff”, what would happen IF…and what really matters in life?

I guess, like the story of the Velveteen Rabbit, I just wanted to be real.  But could I be?  Would anyone hire, or listen to a ( oh my gosh! ) GREY haired self-defense instructor?  After all the years of covering up the grey, I really didn’t know what my “real” hair looked like anymore, other than the majority of it was still dark brown.

So, one morning, armed with a huge chocolate candy bar and my hair cutting scissors, I stood boldly before my bathroom mirror and made the first cut.  ( I have saved that very long, thick, first cut of hair and preserved it in a plastic bag for some reason known only to my youthful soul.)  Once I had the courage to make the first cut, the process of cutting the rest of my hair fell into place, or I should say, fell onto the floor.   My young grandson came looking for me and with eyes wide and mouth wide open, he went yelling through the house for his Daddy that Grammy was cutting ALL her hair OFF!!!  My son-in-law came. As he stared at me, not knowing whether to laugh, cry, or cart me off in a tight white jacket, me and my 1/4 inch long head of hair didn’t look to bad ( to me ) in the mirror, looking back at him.

Some of my children cried and were livid with me. 

Some gave me permission to “grow up”.

But you know what?  My speaking engagements are at full speed ahead.  NO ONE seemed to care that I had extremely short hair instead of my beautiful, long, dark brown, hair.  NO ONE in my audiences seemed to care. 

Amazing!

As my hair grows, I will change out my professional pictures on the websites. headers, and business cards.  My vanity is still strong enough to want a bit more hair for a professional portrait. 

Throughout this whole process, I learned that my personality, teaching style, and abilities are far more important than my hair style and coloring.  We have far more testimonials coming into Colorado Safety Educators than ever before, and requests for our safety programs and seminars have taken a quantum leap.  Five Star Seminars has great plans for us in 2009 and beyond.

 I won’t lie. I still walk past mirrors and do double-takes, not recognizing myself.  But it does happen less often now.  The same Barbie is still inside, looking at her new and up-to-date model through wiser eyes.

To LIFE!

Barbara Scott

About the Author:

Barbara Scott is the Founder and CEO of AwarenessIndex and Colorado Safety Educators.  She is a popular Colorado safety speaker and writer, addressing personal self-defense strategies, behavioral and situational safety and security.  Colorado Safety Educators provides personal safety training seminars throughout the state of Colorado.  She writes awareness articles about safety issues, business and marketing.  http://www.BarbaraCScott.com is part of the AwarenessIndex family of sites.