400 Life June 2022

400 LIFE JUNE 2022

ATLANTA HOBBY

Take family time to new heights Local hobby shop gives patrons opportunity to learn, explore and create a bond

Plus: High school teacher using his passion to prepare students for the world of film ALSO: Library’s communications manager offers 10 sneaky ways to prevent summer slide.

Stay healthy in the summer heat | Lawyer: Risks associated with sharing office space

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contents from the editor

My dad was always a kid at heart.

He loved to play board games, shoot off fireworks, decorate for holidays, or just make us laugh.

There is no shortage of happy memories with my father. He would have loved Atlanta Hobby. He would have had a blast with the remote-control cars, planes or boats.

Atlanta Hobby’s owner, Cliff Whitney, has been sharing his inner child with residents for years. Parents and their children can find some unique toys and create memories that last a lifetime. And there’s lessons to be learned. Real opportunities for parents to teach children how to build and maintain a model car or fix an RC one. You can even get a DIY planetarium. The possibilities are endless.

Another local man is also making a huge impact on students through the Central Film Academy at Forsyth Central High School.

Jason Hanline helped create the A/V program when former principal, Mitch Young, decided to bring it back to the school. And he set the standards high. He and the other teachers in the academy work with students to give them a well-rounded education in film.

And Hanline himself keeps learning, keeps educating himself, to be the best he can for his students.

Now he’s going to be working with the Georgia Department of Education and A/V teachers to help revise standards for film programs across the state.

“People are noticing what we’re doing,” Jason said.

This month, we introduce Leslie Marinelli, the Forsyth County Public Library’s communications manager.

She has some great advice for parents whose children struggle to maintain gains in reading and math during summer break. Check out her list of 10 easy ways you can make memories with your child this summer, while helping them stay on track for school in the fall.

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads and mentors out there!

— Tracie Pike

4 Families can play, learn with Atlanta Hobby The products Atlanta Hobby offers are ones you can share, no age or height requirements. You get the chance to learn together, explore together, and that creates a bond unlike anything else.

10 Teacher shares passion for film with students Jason Hanline works as the A/V tech and film teacher in the Central Film Academy at Forsyth Central High School, one of the state’s only dedicated high school film programs, where he gets to spend his time preparing students to take on their own passions in film.

16 400 READS:

contributors Publisher Stephanie Woody

Advertising Tim Anderson Stacy Clark

Managing Editor Tracie Pike

Photographer Vicki Alsup Photography

Special contributors Jennifer Colosimo Sudie Crouch Leslie Marinelli Alexander Popp

This magazine is a product of the www.ForsythNews.com Sign up for daily newsletters at ForsythNews.com

Library’s communications manager offers 10 sneaky ways to prevent summer slide.

13 KNOW YOUR

RIGHTS: Risks associated with sharing office space.

18 HEALTH: Stay healthy in

the summer heat.

20 WORLD’S BEST ADVENTURES:

Backpacking Street tacos to taco bout.

June 2022 | 400 LIFE | 3

Flying into Summer

Atlanta Hobby has products to get you off screens and into family time Story by Jennifer Colosimo | Photos by Vicki Alsup Photography

I

still remember the time spent with my dad at the dining room table — hours on the weekend dutifully toiling away at a 3D puzzle.

We built a Big Ben that nearly touched the chandelier, we constructed Notre Dame, too, and I am sure if I thought harder, I could name a few more international landmarks that we brought to miniature life on that table. What we did with them, I have no idea, but what’s important in my memory is that dedicated time with dad creating something together.

In recent years, moments like that have been more rare. Families often don’t have time or the will to choose doing puzzles together over screen time in their respective rooms. Many kids play video games instead of building things.

They can look up answers on Google, rather than tinker and problem solve for themselves.

What they don’t know is how much fun they’re missing doing it the old fashioned way, but thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic (bet you never thought you’d see those words), they’re discovering it now.

They’re discovering it much in part to the relocation of Atlanta Hobby just before the pandemic set in. It’s been about three years since the hobby shop moved into its storefront location on Ronald Reagan Boulevard, but you’d assume they’d been here forever.

They still serve their original customer base, but have an entirely new set of customers, now, who see their wild, graphic-coated doors and get curious enough to pop in (or spend their Saturday here), not to mention the 30,000-something cars that drive by every day.

“Well, we’re the neighborhood drug dealer, and you can publish that,” joked Cliff Whitney, owner of Atlanta Hobby. “Wives say they hate me, but then they admit that what we do here does keep the family busy.”

And it’s the good kind of busy. People are amazed at what they see, from the moment they

Continues, Page 6

My favorite thing is watching a kid’s eyes light up at the chance to race a car, and you wouldn’t get that if everything was still in the box.

– Cliff Whitney, owner of Atlanta Hobby walk through the doors, the simple magnitude of inventory. They’ve most likely never seen anything like it. And that’s how Whitney likes it.

“We’re not your average section of a department store,” he said. “We’ve got toys everywhere, something for everyone from babies to old guys, and we have it out, ready to get your hands on, play with, even break it. My favorite thing is watching a kid’s eyes light up at the chance to race a car, and you wouldn’t get that if everything was still in the box.”

Among the race cars, the plethora includes airplanes of all shapes and sizes covering the ceiling, remote-controlled cars and boats lining the walls, shelves of puzzles (from flat to 3D, mind twisters, and anything in between), science experiments, model trains, and interactive toys pack the room. An entire floor section shows off giant telescopes and intricate binoculars, drones and robots. And that’s just what I could see from a 360 view at the desk.

“Moving over here has allowed us get more involved with the kids these days,” he said. “The stuff we’ve got now, they’re not just models that you build and put on a shelf. You can play with them. They actually work, they run. A model car actually has pistons that move up and down. The train can run along the track.”

Also outside the toy-store norm, they stock DIY planetariums, kits to set up your own weather station, toys that study astronomy, even a mineral science kit.

“Most kids today don’t even know anything about this stuff,” said Whitney. “And it’s about getting them to learn stuff, even when it seems like it’s just fun. RC cars are fantastic, for example, because they break.

If you bought it somewhere else, you’d probably just trash it, but with these, they learn to solder, learn to change a tire, real things. Of course, they can also bring it here, and we can fix it with them. We’ve got a whole department back here to help with that.”

That’s another reason you can’t quite find a place like Atlanta Hobby anywhere else — everyone that works here is an

Continues, Page 8 6 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

The things Atlanta Hobby offers are things you can do together, no age or height requirements. You get the chance to learn together, explore together, and that creates a bond unlike anything else.

expert in everything they do. And it shows. That passion is contagious — especially if you’re here on a Saturday, or if you’re a student.

They partner with Alliance Academy here in Forsyth County to sponsor many parts of their aviation program, Whitney a licensed pilot and Atlanta Hobby being one of the biggest drone-pilot training programs in the country. They also train pilots for recreational flying, too, host camps in the summer, and invite students to come try out some of the equipment in real-time.

“One of my favorite stories is when we’ve taken out a group of kids at night to get the chance to look through some of these big telescopes,” Whitney said.

“This one group we took, it was a church group. There was a huge line of kids waiting their turn, but this one guy just stood off to the side, totally uninterested. His parents said he really isn’t into this kind of stuff. It showed. But when it was his turn, he took one look and yelled, out, ‘holy s%^&!’ We laughed, and his parents were impressed. You just don’t know what kids are going to be into if they aren’t exposed to it.

“I love that,” Whitney continued. “That look in their eyes when the light bulb goes off, when they figure out how something works.

You don’t find that on a screen.”

His hope is that those light bulbs don’t die out when the generation of hobby-loving adults disappears (the average age for hobby-

8 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

ists is late 60s). Simply the number of hobby shops, now, versus 20 years ago is drastically diminished.

Perhaps the answer lies beyond simply resurrecting the interest in cool ways to play, but rather showcasing how this type of fun can blend with modern day stimulators for something better than both.

“You can come in here and buy a telescope that you can mount your iPhone to, and know exactly what you’re looking at via an App,” Whitney said.

The same goes for binoculars, drones, you name it.

“This kind of play is interactive, and different than just looking at a screen,” said Whitney. “It’s something you can touch. It’s reason to cause and effect. It makes you ask why does the vehicle go when you pull the trigger. You can look inside something and see those parts working. You just can’t get that handeye stimulation from a screen.”

Whitney also believes it sets kids up for something greater in life when they can discover things like that from an early age. His own son grew up hanging out in and working behind the scenes at his store. He loved helping Whitney and his staff run a podcast, playing with the audio mixing boards when they weren’t on air. That stuck with him, and after high school pursued a degree in musical theater. He wasn’t going to act or sing, but he wanted to run the soundboard. Now, he travels all over the world running audio for Disney on Ice. It also sets kids up for the drone industry — one that’s booming. Atlanta Hobby trains those pilots and sets them up for a long career, from real estate, to journalism, to filmmaking. That’s modern stuff, and that stuff is from right here in Cumming.

“You know, we have simple things, and we have really, really complex things,” said Whitney. “Tyler Perry is one of our best customers, but so are the families that come in here for hours on the weekend to play in the simulator or race cars. We serve bird watchers and astronomers alike. We’re a different kind of store, and you don’t really understand what we mean until you get in here and see it —touch it — for yourself.”

Of course, the biggest takeaway from that is that a few hours spent here mean even more quality time as a family. The things Atlanta Hobby offers are things you can do together, no age or height requirements.

You get the chance to learn together, explore together, and that creates a bond unlike anything else.

“Families today are more separated than they’ve ever been before. Covid kind of forced us back together, and we want to be there to help with that.

We can provide ways to have fun together, again,” Whitney said.

Of course, it also makes shopping for dad a little more fun. And since Atlanta Hobby runs a strict “no ties allowed” policy, you can bet it’ll be something that’s a little more fun for him to open, too.

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Contact information Where: 1220 Oak Industrial Ln Suite A, Cumming, GA 30041 | Contact: (678) 513-4450, atlantahobby.com June 2022 | 400 LIFE | 9

Creating future filmmakers

Jason Hanline works as the A/V tech and film teacher in the Central Film Academy at Forsyth Central High School, one of the state’s only dedicated high school film programs, where he gets to spend his time preparing students to take on their own passions in film.

How this Forsyth Central High School teacher is using his passion to prepare students for the world of film Story and photos by Sabrina Kerns

J

ason Hanline always knew he wanted to be a filmmaker in some way.

From binging his favorite movies to making his own low-budget pieces, he has had a passion for film since he was a kid. But when it came time for college, the Forsyth County native realized he didn’t have many options for getting into the film industry.

“It was one of those things that was if you really want to get into it, you were going to have to move and go up to New York or over to California,” Hanline said. “It would have been really tough to try to do something [here] because it just wasn’t really happening in Georgia.”

At the time, Hanline said that huge lifestyle change was just not something he was able or willing to do. Instead, he started looking at classes available in the state.

10 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

He ended up at Gainesville College first where he graduated with his associate’s degree. At the time, he said they had some new film classes, but they still did not have a program to support a major or minor in film. Of course, Hanline took every film class available, but he eventually decided to major in English and go into teaching alongside his wife.

Since then, the film industry in Georgia has taken off, with major pictures being filmed all over the state and in studios across metro Atlanta. And the industry continues to grow significantly, with film programs now being housed in many colleges in metro Atlanta including the University of Georgia, which offers a master’s degree in film.

Hanline said if he were graduating from school now, he would probably decide to go to film school and pursue filmmaking in the state. But at the same time, he said this boom in the industry

Continues, Page 12

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You can’t do it all yourself. That’s one of the things I’m hoping we can establish with other programs in the state is the expectation of work with the other resources that you have.

– Jason Hanline, A/V Tech and Film Teacher at Forsyth Central

has afforded him a new passion from which he can’t turn away.

He now works as an A/V tech and film teacher in the Central Film Academy at Forsyth Central High School, one of the state’s only dedicated high school film programs, where he gets to spend his time preparing students to take on their own passions in film.

400 Life spoke to Hanline about the Central Film Academy, what he loves about teaching film to students and how he still stays active in the industry today.

How did the Central Film Academy get its start?

Hanline explained that when he graduated from the University of North Georgia with a degree in English, he immediately came to Forsyth Central to teach the subject. But he noticed at the time that there was no longer an A/V program at the school.

“Somehow, I was approached by a group of kids to start a film club,” Hanline said. “And I said, ‘OK, let’s do it.’ We got together to watch films, and I tried to give them film assignments.”

Eventually, Forsyth County Schools Deputy Superintendent Mitch Young, who was Forsyth Central’s principal at the time, said he wanted to bring the A/V program back.

They were the only school in the county that no longer had one, and he believed it was a great opportunity to create a more unique program.

12 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

“He wanted it to be something that stood out from the other high schools,” Hanline said. “He wanted it to just be film, so he started asking around, ‘Who do we got that could do this?’ And everybody kept saying, ‘Go talk to Jason.’

“And now we have this program,” he continued.

School leadership worked with Hanline to create the program in a way that went along with the school’s other STEM and Humanities Academies, meaning it is a four-year pathway students take in a cohort throughout their time in school. Suddenly, Hanline found himself handling cameras, setting up lighting and helping to create films on a regular basis again.

“It’s crazy how that happens,” he said. “ You never know where [life] is going to take you.”

What were your thoughts when Mitch Young came to you and said he wanted you to start the film academy?

“I didn’t even hesitate because as soon as I heard movies, I said, ‘I’m in!’” Hanline said. “But I will say after I committed and said yes, I went home and thought, ‘What did I just do? I don’t know how to do a lot of that stuff.’”

Continues, Page 14

400 legal

Risks associated with sharing office space Sharing an office space with another can be completely beneficial to any business owner endeavor. However, there are some guidelines to consider when sharing space with an unrelated party.

One of the most significant risks when there is shared space is that others may reasonably believe that the other person or company is in partnership with that business or even is a component of that business.

Unless measures are taken to differentiate that space, there is a risk that the general public could bring a claim alleging a theory of general partnership, making a claim against all who share that area. Possible claims can be made against you based on the conduct of anyone else sharing that same space. Courts typically look at this issue from the perspective of what a reasonable person could believe.

To avoid any misconception, those in a shared space should make it clear that they are separate, and independent.

The failure to differentiate could increase the risks of a claim and perhaps the loss

of their insurance coverage for that claim.

Indeed, the language of an insurance policy may not provide coverage for a claim brought on by a theory of another’s liability, or the insurance company could even accuse a person of omitting facts indiSteven Leibel cating there was a clear intent to be independent of the business they are sharing space unless there is differentiation.

To help minimize these risks, businesses should consider using disclaimers in correspondence (or displaying signs in the office) clarifying the businesses are separate.

Another way to outwardly demonstrate to the public that the businesses are not affiliat-

ed in a partnership is to use signage. There could be signs in the physical space that confirm that there are, for example, two separate business offices operating out of the space, and are not affiliated with each other.

Other steps to ensure include separate persons handling mail or other communications including separate access to online systems or networks that store client information.

Adhering to these precautions can help those in coworking spaces enjoy costsaving benefits while minimizing risks of lawsuits that may arise from entity confusion.

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As a film teacher, Hanline said he must know how to edit, operate a camera, understand different types of lenses, camera theory, audio, lighting and more. But to better teach his students about all these different aspects of film, he started to bring professionals from the industry into the classroom.

It started with one filmmaker who came in to shoot a video about the film academy who ended up spending the day working with the students, helping them set up lights on their set and talking with them.

“That was when it dawned on me that I can’t rely on learning it all myself to teach them,” Hanline said. “I have to go find other people to do it, which actually ties right into how the film academy works.”

Within the film academy, Hanline said he and the other teachers all work together to make sure students are learning all of what they need to. He doesn’t teach the students how to write scripts or act in front of the camera. Instead, they learn from a dramatic writing teacher for a separate English credit and from a theater teacher for a fine arts credit.

“You can’t do it all yourself,” Hanline said. “That’s one of the things I’m hoping we can establish with other programs in the state is the expectation of work with the other resources that you have.

Because if it’s just one person trying to do the whole thing, it’s not going to be what it could be.

“I’m really lucky to be here because that support is already in place,” he continued. “We’ve got kids learning about art, acting, writing, construction and filmmaking, and it’s all different teachers that are coming together in the film academy to make that happen.”

Do you believe this type of program and collaboration better prepares students for college and their careers?

Hanline said the film academy is meant to prepare students to step directly onto a film set as they graduate from high school, and he has already seen the talent and experience in his students that they will need going into a career.

Recently, he took some of his students planning to go to the University of North Georgia in the fall on a tour of the campus to learn more about the programs there, and he said the teachers and university leaders saw that his students are ahead of the curve.

“Before we left, Dr. Parker said to me, ‘Your kids were asking awesome questions. I cannot wait …. You’re doing something right.’

It felt amazing to hear that from him. It’s silly, but when you hear somebody who knows what they’re doing say ... you’re doing something right, it is validating. I don’t need much, but validation is … one of those things that helps.”

14 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

How do you stay active in the film industry?

Throughout his time teaching, Hanline said he never stopped making movies. His friends from high school and college would reach out from time to time for help with a project they were working on, and he found he could never say no.

Now, he finds room to meet others in the industry and take classes wherever he can because he knows anything he learns makes it back to his students in the classroom.

He started taking classes at the Atlanta Film Society, reading books on film and finding opportunities through the Georgia Film Academy.

“I hung around the Georgia Film Academy long enough that they kind of just put me to work and got me helping with training other teachers, and now I’m running a summer camp for high school [students], which is also really cool,” Hanline said.

Over time, he said he believes all the work he has put into learning more and getting into the industry has really paid off.

“It’s opening all sorts of doors,” Hanline said. “I’m going to be working with the Georgia Department of Education, coordinating with A/V teachers. I’ve been asked to help with revising standards.

People are noticing what we’re doing.”

But Hanline has also started to push himself to create more outside of work.

To show himself and his students that he still has the edge he needs to be a filmmaker, Hanline made a goal for himself to make a small film this summer. Though he loves his work in the classroom, he said he wants to give himself time to work on his projects and be regarded not only as a great teacher, but also as a great filmmaker.

What has been your favorite part of teaching film?

“Seeing them do it without requiring me to help them,” Hanline said. “That’s really the coolest thing.”

At times, he said students rush into the classroom with new ideas and creative ways of tricking the light or building a scene that continue to impress him. At that point, he said they really know what they want, how they can do it and how to make it look like a movie made for the big screen.

“They say, ‘We want to try this. Let’s figure out how to do it,’ and they try it and it works,” Hanline said. “It takes a while to get there, but they get there.”

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400 reads

10 Sneaky Ways to Prevent Summer Slide

By Leslie Marinelli | Forsyth County Public Library

P

arents, you’ve probably heard about the dreaded learning loss known as summer slide. Many children struggle to maintain gains in reading and math during summer break and studies have shown that without regular reading and learning activities, students can actually lose roughly one month of school-year achievement over the summer.

Fortunately, summer slide is preventable through enriching activities and daily reading. Here are 10 easy ways you can make memories with your child this summer while helping them practice important literacy and math skills. They’ll have so much fun, they won’t even realize they’re learning!

1. Visit your library.

4. Sneak a science lesson into other activities.

I’ve seen enough smiling children and parents holding stacks of books at Forsyth County Public Libraries to know beyond the shadow of a doubt that spending time at the library helps kids fall in love with reading.

There is something magical about being surrounded by all the books and other people excited about books that makes people want to read more.

Plus, our helpful librarians can give you and your child personalized suggestions about all the materials, resources, and activities available at the library. And everything is free!

Practice creative chemistry by making an ice balloon and conducting experiments. Learn about ecology and biology by planting a vegetable patch. Discover why the seasons change on Earth by building a model of the solar system.

2. Read aloud.

Even children who are reading on their own can benefit from the practice of reading aloud to you, or listening as you read aloud.

When you share a story, you can talk about the characters, the action, and your child’s reaction to the book. Those discussions can encourage deeper reading, boost comprehension, and aid in recalling details. Pro tip: let your child pick the book, audiobook, or graphic novel for increased buy-in.

3. Cook with your kids.

Practice fractions with older elementary students as they measure ingredients for a recipe. Practice reading and following instructions with younger elementary students as they read the recipe and follow the step-by-step instructions.

16 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

5. Enjoy family game night.

Pull out skill-building games like Bananagrams or Scrabble to practice spelling and vocabulary or Monopoly, Jr. to practice math and money management.

6. Map it out.

Whether you’re taking a road trip or just going to a park across town, you can practice geography by giving your child a map and asking them to pinpoint your home and your destination. Then, ask them to plan a route and give turn-by-turn directions, such as “Go south on Ga. 400” and “Take exit 14 and go west on Hwy. 20” to hone their map-reading and spatial reasoning skills.

7. Practice creative writing.

Ask older elementary students to write a short song (set to a familiar tune, like ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’) to commemorate a family event or milestone, such as a vacation or a birthday. Ask younger students to write and mail a note to a friend or family member. Students of all ages can write or draw pictures to tell a story and you can help them make their own homemade book bindings.

8. Encourage creativity with unstructured play.

Beat boredom by allowing kids to make their own fun. Whether they play independently or with other children, make sure there’s time to let their imaginations run wild.

9. Learn something new.

Practice skills that aren’t usually taught in an academic setting. Younger students might practice tying their shoes or riding a bike while older students might learn to type or play an instrument.

Students of all ages can pitch in with family chores by learning to do the dishes or laundry, vacuuming or sweeping, or sorting items for recycling.

FCPL also provides a fantastic array of free summer events for all ages!

From magic shows, professional storytellers, and “explosive” STEM programs for school-aged kids, to teen workshops in cooking, writing, and improv, to bass fishing secrets from one of the South’s most experienced and skilled anglers, there is something for everyone at FCPL this summer. Best of all, every program is free and open to the public.

Sign up for our Weekly Program Planner and we’ll deliver a list of our highlighted programs for the weekend and week ahead to your inbox every Thursday: www.bit.ly/fcpl-wpp

10. Register for Summer Reading Fun! Keep your child reading this summer with our reading incentive program! This year’s theme, Oceans of Possibilities, will keep them engaged through fun, free activities, and the chance to earn incremental prizes all summer long.

Sadly, fewer kids than ever are reading for pleasure today according to a Pew Research study. Reading incentive programs “gamify” reading, making it more fun and less of a chore.

Plus, rewards and recognition of reading achievements help motivate students to keep reading. For reluctant readers, the activities element of summer reading programs can draw them in and serve as a gateway to reading.

So sign up! Track reading and activities to earn points, badges, incremental prizes, and Grand Prize entries from May 25 through July 31, 2022.

Visit forsythpl.beanstack.org to register.

Leslie Marinelli is the Communications Manager at Forsyth County Public Library where she was a children’s librarian for four years.

Prior to her work at the library she was a writer and editor who has been featured in The Huffington Post, CNN’s Headline News, Parenting Magazine, and Northside Woman. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Leslie has lived in Forsyth County for 19 years, is a mother of three, and can often be found shouting “DROP IT” while chasing her rescue pup, Birdie.

For more information about FORSYTH COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY or any of our resources or upcoming events, please visit WWW.FORSYTHPL.ORG or connect with FCPL on social media @forsythpl.

June 2022 | 400 LIFE | 17

400 health

Stay healthy in the summer heat!

By Sudie Crouch | Health & wellness columnist

M

any of us look forward to the warmer months, especially since we live in such a beautiful area. There is an abundance of outdoor activities to enjoy, whether it’s hiking, getting on the lake, or even biking.

People from all over the state love to head to our areas to get outdoors.

But, with that fun comes some cautions.

We know here in Georgia, the heat can be brutal at times. When we’re having fun, especially around water, we may not recognize that we are overheating our bodies.

Overheating our bodies is just one issue, but there are other risks involved including dehydration, sunburn, and even heat stroke.

And with the heat, we don’t have to be necessarily doing something strenuous to experience them; sometimes, just doing yard work in extreme heat can cause some significant complications.

DEHYDRATION Staying hydrated is helpful on normal days as we require adequate water intake for so many of our important bodily functions, but we may need even more to stay properly hydrated when the temps are hotter.

Children and the elderly may find themselves particularly at risk for getting dehydrated. Some signs to look out for include: fatigue, lightheadedness, flushing of skin, dry tongue/mouth, and dark colored urine.

Thankfully, dehydration can be prevented, and can be corrected rather easily, if caught in time; otherwise, being dehydrated can be serious enough to require going to the hospital to receive fluids.

You can prevent it by making sure you’re drinking enough water, rather than other fluids like caffeine (which can further dehydrate) or soft drinks.

According to the CDC, drinking 1 cup of water every 15-20 minutes can help keep you hydrated when the temps are hotter. (Of course, if your medical professional has advised you to limit fluids, please check with them.) While this may feel like a lot of water, there are other ways to stay hydrated.

Eating more water-rich fruits, like watermelon, pineapple, and cantaloupe can be good choices. Making water infusions with fruit, too, can help you have a more flavorful option. Add some cucumber slices, strawberries, and fresh mint to a pitcher and fill with water and keep in the fridge to give you a refreshing treat.

18 | 400 LIFE | June 2022

Source: CDC

SUNBURN Summer can almost be synonymous with sunburn, and most of us have had at least one severe sunburn in our lifetime. While the sun is a natural source of vitamin D, too much of a good thing can be damaging to our skin and burns can also increase our risk of skin cancer. Trying to avoid direct exposure to the sun during the mid-day hours of 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. can be one way to help minimize the risk of not just sunburn but heat, and shielding yourself with light colored clothing or a hat can help, too. There have been a lot of concerns recently about the ingredients in sunscreen; since anything applied topically can be absorbed through our skin, we want to make sure it is safe. A website, ewg.org, allows you to search your sunscreen to see if it is safe or not.

If you do happen to get a sunburn even after taking precautions, you can maybe lessen the pain and duration of it by following these steps. Circling back to the above mentioned tip, stay hydrated. You may need to take some over-the-counter pain relievers, like ibuprofen or naproxen, as the sunburn causes inflammation. Keeping your skin cool, with cold compresses can help, as can applying aloe.

HEAT STROKE Perhaps the most serious heat-related concern is a heat stroke.

A heat stroke is caused by the body’s inability to cool itself

down properly. It can also come on suddenly and without a lot of exposure to heat, as it has to do with the body’s ability to cool itself. Your body temperature reaches 104 and is unable to come back down. It can be due to physical exertion in the heat (think of athletes practicing in the heat, construction workers, etc.) or it can be due to age or other health issues. It’s definitely something to take seriously, as it can lead to serious complications, including death.

In addition to being unable to bring your body temp down, some other symptoms to look for include: dizziness, changes in blood pressure, fainting, confusion, and rapid breathing with increased heart rate.

Staying hydrated and out of the sun may be steps to prevent it, but a heat stroke can sometimes even come on later, as the impact may take a while for your body to process. It would be definitely recommended to go to the hospital if you think you are having a heat stroke.

Being aware of how you’re feeling when you’re out in the heat can help you gauge how your body’s responding. In doing so, you can stay hydrated, aware of the time you’re exposing yourself in the sun, and being mindful of whether or not your body is getting overheated. And, even though we often enjoy having cocktails while on the lake or sitting by the pool, it may dehydrate us and make us less cognizant of how we’re feeling while out in the heat.

Hopefully these tips can help you enjoy the summer to the fullest, with none of the unpleasantries!

Sudie Crouch is a health & wellness coach, helping clients create healthy, attainable changes using positive psychology and cognitive behavior approaches.

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