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On The HomeStretch

Posted by coffeemates | 08/31/08

Dear friends,

Exciting News!! For those of you who follow my "Coffee Mates" blog, you may be interested to know that I will be a guest on a live daily internet radio talk show based in Brentwood, Tenn. on September 5, 2008

The show is called On The HomeStretch ™ and is hosted by veteran broadcaster Debbie Alan.

About the show (from publicity material):

It’s about making the second half of your life better than your first. It's about mid-life living; honestly grappling with the good, bad and ugly.

The show takes a real approach to the life and health of today's over 35 crowd...

CATEGORY: News & Media

TAGS: On the HomeStretch, Debbie Alan; Susan S. Cheung, Internet radio talk show

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Chocolate Cake and Fried Green Tomatoes

Posted by coffeemates | 08/30/08

I’m battling my arch nemesis, strep throat. Whenever I’m run down, my throat is my first line of defense. It probably stands to reason as I love to talk!

In fact, the whole family has been struck by this nasty bug. Let me tell you it’s no fun to beg a five- and three-year-old to drink shockingly bright pink medication. And I have another five days to go. Somebody give me strength…

Being sick makes you crave strange things (or maybe not so strange) like double, nay triple, chocolate cake and fried green tomatoes.

Chocolate is the cure-all of many ills. Fried green tomatoes are tasty; they’re sort of tangy, salty and sweet and appeal to my struggling taste buds...

CATEGORY: Culture

TAGS: moving between states, regional culture, Nashville, southern hospitality, making new friends, culture shock

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Back seat Olympian…

Posted by coffeemates | 08/20/08

We’re six weeks into living in Nashville, Tenn. – actually Brentwood, a suburb of Nashville – and still unpacking boxes; now, very slowly as I’m completely absorbed by the Beijing Olympics. I’m staying up far too late.

The joy and wonder of great achievements – I’m left speechless by Michael Phelps’s triumphs in the pool and by the 100m dash performances of Jamaican newcomers, Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser. STOP PRESS: Bolt has won the 200m dash with a new world record.

I’m proud of the successes of the British cycling team – the likes of Hoy, Wiggins, Romero and Pendleton – to win 14 road and track medals. It’s unusual for us Brits to hear the National Anthem played so many times, but it’s getting quite addictive...

CATEGORY: Olympics

TAGS: Beijing Olympics, Olympics and identity, favorite moments of the Olympics

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On the move

Posted by coffeemates | 08/07/08

Relocations are stressful, but hundreds of thousands of people take the plunge every year.

By SUSAN S. CHEUNG

Published in Spotlight Newspapers
Lifestyles in the Spotlight
Aug 6, 2008
Page 20
Trends & Technology

After eight years in Guilderland, the writer has relocated to Nashville, Tenn., to experience Grand Ole Opry, southern hospitality and her husband’s exciting new job. Comment on this story at her Coffee Mates blog on spotlightnews.com. Catch her final Coffee Mates posts in August on acclimating to southern culture.

There’s a song from one of my favorite movies, “The Sound of Music.” The lyrics go “So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night./I hate to go and leave this pretty sight...

CATEGORY: General Society

TAGS: relocation, relocation stress, moving, moving trends 2007 & 2008

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Web worries: As younger children spend more time online, parents need to learn how to set limits

Posted by coffeemates | 07/07/08

Published in the Spotlight Newspapers
Lifestyles in the Spotlight
July 2, 2008
Page 13
Trends & Technology
Susan S. Cheung

As a parent, I can’t bury my head in the sand when it comes to social networking. Although, as a “digital immigrant” – anyone over 28 who grew up before the digital age – I want to.

Social networking – think MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn – has become a way of life for many people. In the United Kingdom, 49 percent of all those under 18 online said they used social networking sites regularly; part of the findings in an Office of Communications’ report...

CATEGORY: General Society

TAGS: webkinz, tween, social networking, club penguin

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Lean times in the land of plenty: How to keep the grocery bill in check as food prices soar

Posted by coffeemates | 06/05/08

We have to eat, but what if you had to choose between gas for your car and extra food for your family? With soaring prices, that’s the reality faced by some lower- and middle-income families.

Daily you hear about the credit squeeze, foreclosures, lost jobs and stagnant wages. The economic forecast is gloomy, and as I pick up the paper or watch news reports, I feel gray and gloomy, too. Even as my favorite season – summer -- is around the corner, who can afford to go anywhere with gas hitting $4 a gallon?

It’s inconceivable there is hunger in the United States in 2008, yet government officials project 28 million Americans (1 in 10) will receive food stamps by the end of the year...

CATEGORY: General Society

TAGS: rising food prices, soaring food prices, high cost of staples, grocery money-saving ideas, hunger in the U.S., localvore

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Oh, You’re Just a Mom

Posted by coffeemates | 05/20/08

A Not So Straightforward Request:

One of my friends recently got his dream job in another city and in the process of moving was updating his contacts. I got an email from a certain social networking site for professional contacts inviting me to join my friend’s list of contacts.

A straightforward request stirred up some not so straightforward feelings.

I’ve been a stay-at-home mom for over four years now. How professional do I consider myself?

Social Pariah?

Why is it I’m reluctant to introduce myself as a stay-at-home mom, full-time mother or housewife?

I’ve been in social situations where people have asked me what I do and I see them visibly switch off, glaze over or turn away when I tell them...

CATEGORY: Commentary & Debate

TAGS: Stay-at-home moms, Working moms, Child-free women, Mommy Wars, Value of Motherhood

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