works for me wednesday: keeping kids safe online

Works for Me Wednesday is back! I know everyone has been eager to get back to our weekly tip extravaganza so we’re all happy that the WFMW break is over.

While this might come across as shameless self-plugging, what I wanted to share for this week’s WFMW happens to be my day job. Not because it’s what works for me (which it does, as in it pays the bills and keeps milk in our fridge), but because I think it’s something everyone in the blogosphere should be aware of (especially since I’ve seen some recent discussion on the topic, like Michelle at scribbit’s post on Internet Privacy issues and Sheri at Unexpected Bliss’s post on Internet Addiction). And because I’m proud of my work .

I’m a content developer and designer for an educational Web site and game that teaches cybersecurity for kids. The target age range is 4th-6th grade, but the content can easily work for younger and older ages. We offer a variety of web resources for kids and parents, including a downloadable Flash-based game, a Web site for kids, and an information portal for adults. (In keeping with good cyber safety practices, I’m not including the names of the products since I’m not eager to have my personal blog show up in a Google search for them, but I am including links so you can find them and a picture, and I’ve put a link in my sidebar to the kids site). Everything is completely free as well.

In the game, players become cadets in a cyber defense training program and complete missions that teach fundamental skills such as how to spot spam, how to keep personal information private, and how to identify Web site dangers. We are developing another mission right now that will focus on cyberbullying, it should be available in the spring (ooh, insider knowledge!). You can download and register an account for the game from the kids Web site. The game is being used by a number of schools, even as far away as Thailand, as part of their technology curriculum as well.

Our Web site for kids is one of the most comprehensive cybersecurity sites out there, covering topics like cyber crimes, safe online communications, computer maintenance, effective Web research, and (new as of this semester) environmental issues related to computers. Characters from the game have their own blogs on the site so you can follow the storyline more, and we also have tons of mini-games and desktop wallpapers. The site is updated every week with new mini-games becoming available about once a month. There is also a parents and educators section on the kids Web site that gives tips for how to use our materials in a classroom and has a printable Teacher’s Companion with sample lesson plans and activities and the NETS standards alignment (also free!).

Our information portal offers comprehensive cybersecurity information for adults and parents and also includes RSS feeds, case studies, and comprehensive encyclopedia of terms. It offers information based on your level of Internet expertise so everything is approachable.

I know I’ve certainly modified my Internet behavior just from everything I’ve learned working on the game and Web site. These are great resources for anyone with any sort of Web presence, and especially if you have kids who are getting online. The biggest factor in keeping kids safe online is their parents’ involvement, both by setting boundaries and by also being a trusted source to come to when they have a problem. No one wants their kids to get hurt or lied to or taken advantage of, and unfortunately the Internet can be an easy way for that to happen. But it’s also a great place to build community and keep in touch (as all us blogging fanatics know so well). So I’m sharing the knowledge so that we can all be a little bit safer and save the kids together .

Also, if you want to know more about the game or the kids Web site, or if you have any ideas for new content we can cover, or if your interested in using the game in a classroom environment, or even if you just have cybersecurity questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me! You can even contact me if you’re having trouble with the game or kids Web site or you’ve found a bug, and I promise I’ll get on it right away.

Pop by Rocks in my Dryer for the rest of this week’s tips too!

3, 2, 1…blast off!

Well ladies and gentlemen, it’s finally official! The Game, the ARG web site, and all the bonus materials that have been my life for the last three years are finally, officially, live and online! As of Friday, October 26 (National Cybersecurity month, btw), the Game was officially launched with an endorsing visit from the Atty. Gen. of PA. I’ve been taking a little break from the Internets hence it being Tuesday, and praying that the world doesn’t come crashing down around my ears and thankfully, it hasn’t! In fact, there’s all sorts of news articles popping up all over and even some footage of me on the local news (oh dear), trying to sound all smart n stuff (but really nervous out of my mind, I think they used the only articulate clip).

Without further ado, the *Officially Live* site, where you can download the game, read the character’s blogs, and play some awesome mini-games made by my wickedly awesome animator.

Here’s just some of the news coverage too (I feel Internet exposed now).

warm and fuzzies

The lovely lady WorksForMom over at What Works For Us has very sweetly been visiting my blog regularly and she has delightfully given me my very first award, a Nice Award!

I feel so warm and fuzzy. And honored! Thank you!
If it’s not against the rules, I’d like to pass it right back atcha!

I’m passing the award on to:

Rocks in My Dryer - for all the laughs, and for Works for Me Wednesday, I’m addicted to it
scribbit - the very first blog I subscribed to, I guess she’s responsible for getting me hooked on all this blogging
WorksForMom - because us geeks should stick together!

50 pounds…that’s a bag of dog food!

A lot of people start to comment when you’ve lost 50 or so pounds, and the number one comment is always “How did you do it?” Well, my rockstar gal Jen deserves *the* crown of awesomeness for being my enabler in this. Last year around May she brought SparkPeople to my attention, she and some co-workers were already members and invited me to join in.

SparkPeople is a *free* Web service for helping you become fitter and healthier (and lose weight if need be). What I loved about this service was that it had a strong focus on my well-being, rather than my weight. As a member, you can track the basics, like food, water, and exercise, you can set your own goals (like Walk the dog 3x a week) and track those too, you can join the forums and chat with other members, you can join a group and accomplish your goals together, and you can sign up for emails with articles and tips (these were particularly useful to me as a constant reminder). The site is full of awesome articles about making healthier choices and lots of healthy recipes. And if you spend a lot of time at the computer every day (ahem), the tracking easily melds into your daily routine.

In all honesty, when someone asks me “How did you do it?” I can’t really nail down just what I did. It was so many little things that added up to a lifestyle change that is now so much a part of me that I’m still losing weight and I don’t consider it a diet in any way. SparkPeople fed me facts and tips to live a healthier life, not a “diet,” which is why it worked for me and why I think it would work for other people (if they too spend inordinate amounts of time on the Internet). Here are 10 things I learned along the way that have made a huge impact on my health:

1. Drink those 8 glasses of water every day.
Water is extremely important for our bodies, even when you’re not trying to lose weight. By not drinking the 64 ounces a day your body needs, you actually cause it to store more water because it thinks there is a drought! Drinking those 8 glasses a day will both make you have to pee a lot more often (yay) and also help your body shed excess water (yay!). Water: The Wild Card of Weight Loss

2. Don’t skip breakfast!
I know this can be tough, I neither have the time nor the appetite most mornings to stomach more than a large coffee. But skipping breakfast can actually lead to eating more later in the day. A healthy breakfast of complex carbs, proteins and fats will rev up your metabolism to start burnin’, help regulate your appetite the rest of the day, and keep you on an even blood-sugar keel. And it doesn’t have to be huge, a fruit-and-nut granola bar is enough for me. Learn to Love Breakfast

3. More fiber at every meal.
Fiber is awesome. Not only do you get all sorts of health benefits from eating fiber, but it is not digested or absorbed into the body when eaten so it therefore contains no calories. Say what?!? That’s right, fiber goes right through you, so not only does it keep you regular (ahem), but it helps fill you up so you don’t overeat and then doesn’t even get added to your hips! And it’s in all kinds of yummy things like berries and beans and oats and whole wheat bread. Figuring out the Facts on Fiber

4. Portion awareness and control.
American restaurant portions are out of control and our home meals are quickly following suit. Knowing how many calories there are in 1/2 cup of rice is good, but do you know how large a 1/2 cup of rice is? (about the size of a hockey puck). It really helps to have a healthy awareness of how much food is on your plate and how balanced your meal is, and SparkPeople even recommends carrying around measuring cups for a while. The Portion Distortion Guide

5. Don’t deprive yourself, just be aware.
My number one reason why diets didn’t work for me? When presented with cake, I will want cake, diet or no. Not letting myself have cake makes me sad and cranky. Allowing myself a small piece of cake (since I know roughly how many calories I have remaining to consume for that day, and that the rest of my meals were healthy and nutritious, and that one piece of cake will not cause me to gain weight or fall off the wagon) makes me happy. And that’s why it worked. 4 Keys to a Smart Nutrition Plan

6. Understand why you’re eating.
Not being mindful of why you are eating (or continuing to eat) can cause you to overeat. Many people eat for emotional reasons, it can be a way of gaining control over something or a way to comfort frazzled emotions (ever found yourself gobbling chocolate when you’re stressed?). Not recognizing when your body is full because you’re eating too fast or eating while distracted, like when you’re watching TV, can also lead you to overeat. Practice being mindful of your eating, pay attention to your moods and your distractions, and slow down and enjoy the food. What is “Normal” Eating?

7. Understand what you’re eating.
Along with why you eat, it’s important to be aware of what you eat. Weight loss is a numbers game, calories in vs. calories burned, but you can make healthier choices along the way that can make a huge difference. There’s a big difference in the way you feel if you eat a 400 calorie lunch of a salad with lots of veggies versus a 400 calorie lunch of chocolate. Try making smart substitutions (try mustard -11 calories, instead of mayonnaise - 99 calories, on your next sandwich) and see if you don’t like the change! Smart Substitutions Calorie Chart

8. Plan ahead for health.
Weekends and vacations are a big downfall to most weight-loss ventures. If you allow yourself to overeat, overdrink, and under-exercise on the weekends, you can easily undo all of your hard work from the week. Not only that, you’ll get down on yourself for “failing” and it’ll be even harder to get back into your routine. Consistency is the key to weight loss, so plan ahead for days when you know you’ll be busy or tempted and look for new healthier alternatives. Surviving the Weekend

9. Start small, expect small changes.
One of the greatest things with the SparkPeople program is how it emphasizes creating new, healthier habits one at a time to add up to a healthy lifestyle. One of their tools for that is the Small Streak, in which you set a small goal for yourself in a managable chunk of time (walk the dog 3x a week for 4 weeks) as a way of jumpstarting your program or challenging yourself. When you complete the Streak, feelings of satisfaction and self-efficacy wash over you and it’s easier to take on the next one! Start a Small Streak

10. Learn about you in order to take better care of you.
What routine works best for your schedule? What foods are readily available in your area? What foods and exercises do you prefer? (yoga and dance dvds) What ones do you loathe? (running). You don’t have to force yourself into someone else’s plan in order to see results. Create the plan that works best for you and results will happen! 10 Tips for Starting a Wellness Program Today

According to my BMI, I was Obese for most of my adult life. Yikes, what a horrid word, obese. Most of my friends would scoff at that, saying there’s no way I was that big, but technically yes, I was more than 50 pounds overweight for my height. Now, not only am I out of the Obese range, but I am within the Healthy range! I feel like Atlas if someone had just plucked the world off his shoulders and said “Here, let me take that, you’ve held it long enough.” I didn’t even realize the additional emotional weight I was carrying around all those years, feeling like I would never be good enough and never be able to do anything about it. Let me tell you, you *can* do something about it and it’s not as difficult as you think. Baby steps.

done it

Here’s an interesting list I spied on The Diaper Dairies and decided to join in on just for kicks. Things in bold are things I have done. It’d be curious to come up with your own additions to the list too.

1. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
2. Swam with wild dolphins
3. Climbed a mountain (I’ve hiked up to the treeline though)
4. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
5. Been inside the Great Pyramid (and it was toasty and cramped in there!)
6. Held a tarantula
7. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
8. Said “I love you” and meant it
9. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise (usually before a deadline)
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa (they actually won’t let you, but I got as close as I could)
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper (ha!)
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon (going up and down counts, right?)
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity (I give, but I could probably afford more…)
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment (worst moment?)
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight (and won!)
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can (occasionally by myself in my car)
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse (never a total one)
34. Ridden a roller coaster (my favorites are the wooden ones)
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer (the truth is much nerdier than that…)
40. Visited all 50 states (I think I’m at around 36)
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had/Have amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country (crazy Italians…)
44. Watched whales (does the Aquarium count?)
45. Stolen a sign (someone nabbed one and gave it to me though)
46. Backpacked in Europe (I used a backpack in Europe, but not for hiking…)
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love (that’s a good one not to have bold)
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them (once again, crazy Italians…though between the birthday party and the bachelorette party we had an awesome night!)
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your cds (but usually I organize by genre)
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day (mmmmm…!)
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business (I freelance pretty heavily though)
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken (:D)
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight (now, Everquest or The Sims on the other hand…)
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie (I was in a Mr. Yuk commercial though)
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days (ha!)
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice (those canals are stinky)
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the snake river
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert” (though my boss has, along with my work)
83. Gotten flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark (at Dim Sum once I think)
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house (eeeee!)
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently (I used to be pretty good at French)
95. Performed in a Rocky Horror Picture Show
96. Raised children (we get as much nurturing in as we can when we get the chance)
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Passed out cold (at the gym, actually…woke up when my head hit the floor and only one person saw it happen)
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over (does college count? I crossed the whole country)
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge (been driven over it though)
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking (just about every day)
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication (though if you consider Game publication, then definitely yes)
106. Lost over 100 pounds (not that many!)
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart (I think maybe not broken, but probably wounded)
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a TV game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears (though my belly button is)
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild (mmm, morels!)
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery (wisdom teeth are minor surgery)
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon (just looked over the top)
122. Slept 30 hours in a 48 hour time frame (when I’m sick)
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents (I’m up to 3)
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days (not 2 days straight of canoeing, but yes to canoe camping trips longer than 2 days)
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school (didn’t take time off, really)
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach (ick)
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read “The Iliad” (nope, The Odyssey)
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read (Jack Kerouac)
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (plenty of seafood, no woodland critters)
137. Skipped all your school reunions (haven’t gone to one yet)
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language (my dog, every day)
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream (I’m glad to be doing what I do for work, and I have a house!)
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you (but hopefully this month!)
145. Had a booth at a street fair (but definitely at a conference)
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life (though I’ve changed the course of a few people’s)

I feel fairly accomplished!

in print again

This one is a bigger deal though, the Pittsburgh Tribune! We had a booth set up at the conference giving demos last Friday and we were quite the popular table (though I suspect it was because of the swag pens, people love carabiners!). I think they did an evening story on it too, thankfully I wasn’t on camera:

CMU develops Web-based kids’ game

I’m quoted too in the third paragraph, neat!

We’re getting so close to a live Internet launch (what I’ve been working towards for almost on 3 years now…) that I can taste it! But you, you privileged few, you may take a sneak peek at the site I’ve been developing since March (still working on it even today so be warned it’ll change). This site is just one component, the launch is also for the Game and all of its accompanying materials. That’s my art and design work just about everywhere, and I even coded up the CSS on the Web site!

i love games that assure me i’m a genius

took me a couple of false starts of like under 1 second, but then i annihilated the 18 seconds

are you a genius?

for she is a darning queen! hear hear hurrah for the darning queen!

i do not know what sorcery maketh this creature called mitten
and i do not know what frightful thing caused the creeping wound to said mitten
a wound that caused such bitter chill to our fair thumb

but rejoice!
with the favor of our ladies of Darning and Duplicate Stitch, i have healed the wound with the holy weapon of slightly-off color Embroidery Thread!

fear not, my people! the Unravellings shall haunt us no more!