At the Schnarr’s Hardware store in Ladue, Missouri today we hosted a live broadcast by 550 KTRS radio. Our boss Frank was interviewed along with some other guests. Watch videos here on the Schnarr’s blog!
Here is our press release:
Displays That Pay Announces MyCare Displays Healthcare Solution
Designed to Scale and Support Caregiver Communications and Provide Peace of Mind
ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI (PRWEB) NOVEMBER 16, 2016
Displays That Pay® today announced the pre-release of their newest display solution, MyCare Displays, at the Startup Connection Conference being held today at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo. MyCare Displays is a display service cloud solution that allows skilled nursing/extended care facilities, assisted living facilities, and hospice organizations to manage the display of patient care information at the patient’s location. MyCare Displays provides a simple user portal for family caregivers, home health workers, nurses, therapists, hospice personnel and even patients to dynamically update and share patient information.
“Providing affordable displays at the point of need for patients reduces confusion, stress and dependence,” said Mark Rice, CEO/founder, DisplaysThatPay. “Patients can enjoy peace of mind as they view care messages that include reminders and updates for medicine, office visits, therapy, and family activities.”
Untethering Caregivers with the Right Technology Helps Strengthen Connections Between Caregivers and Patients
The AARP recently published a report that indicates there are over 40 million caregivers providing unpaid care to an adult. Almost half of these caregivers are made up of people under the age of 50. Almost two thirds of these caregivers are seeking effective uses of technology to help them untether and free up time they must devote to providing caregiving activities. The AARP also projects an increase of only 5 million caregivers by the year 2020. At the current rate that means a gap of 72 million caregivers required to support 117 million adults requiring care.
Caregiving consumes a lot of time and resources that can sometimes put undue stress on relationships with family, friends and co-workers. MyCare Displays simplifies caregiver communications and provides peace of mind so that caregivers can be in touch without having to be present 100% of the time. Of course this depends on the patient’s needs, but for many caregivers and patients, having the connection 24/7 can take the place of a caregiver being present all of the time.
The MyCare Displays solution helps strengthen the relationship between patients, medical care teams, caregivers and families. It is projected that caregiving is going to personally affect you or someone you know in the next few years. MyCare Displays is a solution designed to meet the challenges of caregiving.
MyCare Displays will be available in the first quarter of 2017. Keep up to date on progress or be an early adopter. Visit http://mycaredisplay.com/peaceofmind
About Displays That Pay
Displays That Pay helps companies be more efficient with their time and resources when planning and exhibiting at trade shows and customer events. Our unique dynamic and interactive display solutions, let customers leverage their multi-channel content and boost attraction, interaction and transaction of lead capture. Our display service cloud solution transforms flat displays into, dynamic and interactive, social, mobile and video walls that enable businesses to tell their company story, connect with customers/prospects and capture leads. Fortune 500 to small businesses have deployed and enjoyed our display solutions to provide easy management and display of multi-channel content.
I’m writing this from the Displays that Pay booth at the Innovation Showcase are of the Mumuration festival. We’re demonstrating a vertical display divided into two sections, each with a different stream of images.
I made a couple of slide images on the spot with my laptop to add to the image stream. We are encouraging people to Tweet photos of the festival or any photos they want using the hashtag #murmuration16.
I used the Twitter application from my laptop to Tweet the slides, but you can also use the Twitter app on your phone. The picture below shows Mark from Displays that Pay working with a representative from Scopio, an image search engine and licensing platform. They are curating the images submitted with the hashtag #murmuration16 to make sure the content is acceptable.
After they approved my images, I received messages in my Twitter Notifications.
I clicked the link in each message and granted permission to use my images by entering my email address and pressing submit. Once I did that, the images were available for viewing on our display. I received an acknowledgement message from Scopio in my email with more information about their service. The two links below lead to the top and bottom image streams, if you want to see what has been submitted.
It’s fun to make your event more interactive with Displays that Pay!
We’ll be at the Murmuration festival on Sunday, September 25, 2016 at the Innovation Showcase. The Murmuration festival is a 3-day event that explores the intersection of art, music, science, and technology. It’s named after a flock of my favorite bird – the European Starling!
Stop by the Displays that Pay booth to see our display service cloud application (SHOWCloud). Add your Murmeration pictures to the display at our booth and see applications for health care, retail, hospitality, trade shows and education.
Scan the QR code for a free 14-day trial or go to myshowcloud.com/startmeup.
I saw a notice for an event called Creative Arts Fellowship, an event for Christian artists to share art and faith. Both my faith and my art needed some help so I decided to attend and see what it was all about. Besides just being curious I was ready for some spiritual and emotional healing. When you’ve been emotionally abused by someone who puts themselves out there as a Christian, it can really shake your faith. I don’t want to let one person ruin how I feel about God any more than I want one person to make me look down on myself or lose faith in the possibility that some people are capable of being good to you.
We watched some short inspirational and musical videos. Some of the participants joined in with a form of dance. We heard some very good preaching which was on topics that I really needed to hear about. For someone like me used to a more formal style of worship it was refreshingly different. The content is from a non-denominational Christian perspective. We did some discussion and sharing, both about personal issues and about art issues. I believe the arts are inherently healing and sharing art in a kind and supportive atmosphere is even more so – the art world in general can be pretty unkind as any artist knows. All forms of art are encouraged here, participants shared visual arts, crafts and poetry. The art shared does not have to have specifically spiritual content.
I was treated with love, understanding and acceptance at the event and I made a lot of progress in how I feel about my faith and other human beings. We all need a reminder that there are people who want us to succeed and won’t put us down for trying to use our creative gifts. This past summer a person I loved tried to destroy my self confidence by attacking me for just that reason. He knew me well enough to know what would damage me the most. Right after that the studio I was renting closed (it was extra frustrating because my hard work over the last several months was just staring to pay off financially) and I didn’t need that when I was already feeling worthless and like a failure. When you’re in a state of heightened emotions it’s easy to see everything as being a personal attack on you even when it’s not. Sometimes it’s just life. I believe creativity comes from God. The God I believe in would not give me creative gifts if he didn’t want me to use them. I got some affirmation that it’s ok for me to use my gifts and some ideas for outlets where they might do the most good. As I get stronger I believe I will be led to opportunities to help others heal through art. Art therapy is not a new idea to me but art ministry in the form of this meeting kind of is – I want to learn more!
Future dates for Art Fellowships are on selected Monday evenings from 7:00 – 9:00 pm at DaySpring School of the Arts at 2500 Metro Blvd, Maryland Heights, MO 63043.
September 19, 2016
October 3, 2016
October 17, 2016
November 7, 2016
December 6, 2016
I’m planning on coming back for more fellowship nights! DaySpring School for the Arts also has classes for adults and children in the fields of Music, Theatre, Dance, Visual Art, Crafts and Design. They have space for rent for special events and parties. I didn’t see all of the facilities but what I saw of the building looks very modern and stylish. For more information go to: dayspringarts.org.
For those recovering from emotional abuse, these links have helped me – they might help you too.
http://liveboldandbloom.com/11/relationships/signs-of-emotional-abuse – recognizing the signs takes awhile sometimes – it can creep up on you slowly and it can happen to anyone
https://www.psychopathfree.com/articles/10-simple-things-you-can-do-to-support-a-survivor-of-emotional-abuse.335/ – send this link to your friends and family
http://www.dbtselfhelp.com/index.html – emotion regulation
https://www.psychopathfree.com/articles/stages-of-grief-from-a-psychopathic-relationship.138/ – understanding the stages of grief might help you avoid beating yourself up for taking too long to get over it
The Lower Meramec River, which runs from Sullivan, MO to the Mississippi River, is not one of the most popular sections to paddle. If you enjoy lake paddling or exploring large rivers, you might want to take another look at the Lower Meramec. I paddled two sections recently and enjoyed it tremendously.
On August 27, 2016 I joined some other volunteers to participate in Operation Clean Stream, sponsored by the Open Space Council. On this day there were several locations we could pick from. I brought my own kayak this time so I chose a route that was not serviced by an outfitter.
I checked in at Castlewood State Park in Wildwood and met a great group of people at the put-in point on the beach. This fun and hard-working group of volunteers and I headed downstream toward our eventual takeout point at Green Tree Park in Kirkwood.
At one point I had to paddle upstream for awhile to go back to that sandbar because I thought I had lost an item there. It turned out I hadn’t lost it but I did learn one thing – it’s pretty easy to paddle upstream (perhaps up to Route 66 State Park?) so it’s possible to go for a solo paddling outing from here without worrying about a shuttle. Just paddle upstream for awhile then downstream again to get back to your vehicle.
Taking photos like those above could be hazardous to your safety if you are not careful! The current is pretty swift here so I probably should have concentrated on steering the kayak. It was pretty awesome to see all the logs stuck in and on the bridge from the Flood of 2015 which was of historic proportions – can you believe the water got that high? This bridge is not far from Simpson Lake, where I participated in flood cleanup in February.
I’m pictured at the left with Eric and Kim. On the right are Simon and Tim at the takeout point at Greentree Park, displaying part of our haul. It’s only about a six mile float from Castlewood State Park to Greentree, but it took us a good part of the day because we stopped a lot for trash. Trying to retrieve trash from a boat in a current will really test your paddling skills – you have to be able to maneuver in and out of tight spots, enter and exit frequently without tipping, be able to approach and dock alongside obstacles safely and have a good idea how far over you can lean to grab something. You’ll exercise different parts of your body than you’re used to – a great workout!
Stay tuned for Part II – Minnie Ha Ha Park in Sunset Hills to Arnold City Park.
Links to more information:
Operation Clean Stream’s September Newsletter with news of the cleanup – Includes news of a matching grant to benefit the Meramec Route 66 Bridge at Route 66 State Park.
My article about the August 14, 2016 cleanup
Here is a photo of my Dad at the cleanup at North Riverfront Park
Make an Antique Key Necklace
Decorate an antique look key with faux pearls and crystals! I’ll show you how to select and assemble components and attach your key pendant to a chain or cord. Suitable for beginners. All materials are included and jewelry tools are available to borrow. Each class attendee will receive a printout with a written tutorial for that class so if you forget anything we learned you can refer back to it later.
NEW! At each class, there will be at least one door prize randomly awarded to an attendee – probably a craft supply item of some type that relates to the theme of the class. Past prizes have included a necklace kit, a polymer clay frame kit and a craft stencil. That’s my way of saying thank you for coming!
What to bring
It’s not necessary to bring anything, but if there are any special beads and charms you want to add to the necklace please bring them.
What will be provided
Antique look keys, faux pearls, crystal beads, chain, jewelry findings, jewelry pliers.
Make an Antique Key Necklace
Date: September 24, 2016
Time: 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Location: Strange Folk Festival
Lafayette Square, Space TBD
St. Louis, MO, 63104
On August 14, 2016 I joined a number of other paddle sports enthusiasts at Ozark Outdoors Riverfront Resort in Leasburg, MO for a day of cleaning trash from the local streams as part of Operation Clean Stream. We had our choice of different route lengths. I selected the 9 mile route which placed me with a few recreational floaters on the Bluffs section of the Meramec River. Other volunteers who opted for shorter routes were taken to put-in points on the Courtois and Huzzah rivers. Ozark Outdoors provided breakfast, trash bags, vessels, paddling gear and transportation. At the end of the day we dropped off our trash and equipment on the beach at the resort. Since I was the only volunteer to choose the long route, I was one of the last if not THE last to finish.
It rained for nearly the entire day, which I didn’t find to be a bad experience at all. My nylon rain poncho eventually soaked through but it was warm enough for me not to get cold and my torso was warmed by my life jacket. The rain was quite soothing and beautiful and it’s nice to see the river in different conditions. Rainy weather proved to be no impediment to picking up trash, in a way it made it a little more pleasant because at least the trash was fairly clean! Every time I stopped to clean up a sandbar I had to bail out the canoe with a Gatorade bottle that I found but that was no big deal. I didn’t bring my phone because it doesn’t hold a charge very well these days so my only photo of the day is of the trash pile (at the end of this article) when I was able to recharge the phone enough to get a picture. The Ozark Outdoors Facebook Page has some photos of the event.
The Bluffs section is very scenic and I recommend it for a great float. I have floated that stretch before but did not use the same outfitter so my put in and take out points were not the same. Ozark Outdoors used land they own for both so I’m not exactly sure where the put-in point is on the map at the beginning of this article. It was at the former site of a resort called The Bluffs which no longer exists.
Ozark Outdoors is practically right across the river from Onondaga Cave State Park. If you’re camping at the park, the resort has a well-stocked store if you need to make a run for more provisions. The resort is large and has a lot of services – cabins, camping, pay showers, ample restrooms, canoe and kayak rental and more. The staff seemed to be organized, friendly and committed to promoting responsible enjoyment of our streams.
There are more water and land based cleanup opportunities on August 27, 2016 – here is more information if you want to get involved!
Operation Clean Stream August 27
Operation Clean Stream 2016 Facebook Page
Studio:art is closing and the more I sell the less I have to move!
Come to Studio:art at 7403 Manchester Road, Maplewood, MO before August 25 (the date I have to be out) and enjoy huge 50% off savings! You can pick out something for yourself or get an early start on your holiday shopping if you know someone who likes handmade things or makes art and crafts! Here is a sample of what I have on sale.
Jewelry findings, scrapbooking supplies, rubber stamping supplies and tools, paper crafting supplies!
Items handmade by Carolyn on sale: Bracelets from $5-8. Artwork from $4.50-32. Necklaces from $6-27. Earrings from $4-5.50. Ankle bracelets $4.25-7.50. Decorated wood boxes – $4.50-22. Ceramics – $6.50-27. Wood garden signs – $32. Greeting cards – $2-5. Decorated fabric bags – $3-32. Ornaments – $6-12.50. Matted 8 x 10 photos – $9.
Jewelry tools, stencils, brayers, more!
I’ll be adding more photos of sale items to my Instagram as I get them priced, but all my items are 50% off even if they aren’t marked yet – the studio manager knows to charge 1/2 price. I hope you can come and get some great deals!
What is Letterboxing? It’s a fun outdoor hobby that is kind of like a lower-tech version of Geocaching. Letterboxers hide small, weatherproof boxes in publicly accessible places (like parks) and distribute clues to finding the box in printed catalogs, on one of several web sites, or by word of mouth. Individual letterboxes contain a notebook and a rubber stamp, preferably hand carved or custom made. Finders make an imprint of the letterbox’s stamp in their personal notebook, and leave an impression of their personal signature stamp on the letterbox’s “visitors’ book” or “logbook” — as proof of having found the box and letting other letterboxers know who has visited. Many letterboxers keep careful track of their “find count”. Letterboxing is a creative way to enjoy the outdoors!
In this class you’ll get introduced to the basics of the hobby and learn to make two of the items that participants use – a hand-carved rubber stamp and a handmade log book. The skills you will learn while making these items can be used in a lot of other craft pursuits, such as art journaling, card making, scrapbooking, printmaking and much more.
Each class attendee will receive a printout with a written tutorial for that class so if you forget anything we learned you can refer back to it later. All materials are included in the class price.
You will have time for lunch and there are lots of good places to eat or pick up food in downtown Maplewood.
NEW! At each class, there will be at least one door prize randomly awarded to an attendee – probably a craft supply item of some type that relates to the theme of the class. Past prizes have included a necklace kit, a polymer clay frame kit and a craft stencil. That’s my way of saying thank you for coming!
What to bring
It’s not necessary to bring anything but it’s a good idea to wear old clothes in case you get any ink on you. You can bring or buy snacks or lunch. We have a refrigerator for storing food.
What will be provided
I will provide rubber carving material, carving tools to borrow, rubber stamping ink pads to borrow, paper and cardstock to make your logbook and all other materials needed to complete the project during class. Extra supplies will be available to purchase if you want to do more work on your own.
Introduction to Letterboxing
Date: July 16, 2016
Time: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Location: Studio:art, 7403 Manchester Road, Maplewood, MO
More information and registration: Class Signup