"Have you ever been in a situation that was getting out of control and you were able to calm it down before it escalated further? What was the situation and what did you do or say?" As senior members of a Boy Scout Troop, other adults and I had to instruct two younger member on how to recognize and control emotions in the context of conflict. These two guys had a history of conflicts and I knew people won't always be present to control them. They had to grow up and be self-sufficient. On one camping trip they yet again had another heated argument over something trivial that kept escalating. Rather than jump in, I wanted to see how they deescalate the situation on their own. Suddenly, one of them pulls out a pocket knife and says "[insert demand here] or I'm gonna [insert some action with a knife to a person]." The situation has clearly escalated too far. Immediately I rushed in and yelled, "STOP! DROP IT, NOW!" He immediately dropped the knife, sat down, and began crying. What happens after that is irrelevant. Perhaps it's due to my quiet nature and sudden outburst that produced the shock effect. But more importantly the use of straight-forward, succinct commands can control the situation because all parties involved are automatically in natural fight-flight mode where elaborate, long explanations aren't going to be interpreted correctly by listeners for the purposes of deescalating the situation's climax. The long talk comes when the immediate conflict is temporarily resolved. * IMPORTANT NOTE: This incident is not a reflection on the Boy Scout of America, its spirit, or the use of such tools. The pocket knife is commonly used throughout camping trips. We have a set of rules and responsibilities set to the users so that they are used for the camping purposes. As an Eagle Scout myself, I am proud of the values promoted. Question: Who was at an Eagle Scout rank? === The answer to the above question is
OPTIONS:
- The author
- Other adults.
- The author and several other adults.
- not enough information
The author

Being prepared for the unknown is something most people know we should do, but the majority of us don't take time to actually do it! We have lived in a state prone to hurricanes for eight years and didn't really have anything ready in case of a natural disaster. Recently, we moved closer to the coast in this region which forced us to make a hurricane emergency kit. If you don't feel like putting together your own kit, you can order one from Amazon! Here's an affiliate link to one that's for four people. (Four Person Perfect Survival Kit Deluxe) They have several variations to choose from. Preparing a Hurricane Emergency Kit I will walk you through a few things to consider when preparing an emergency kit. Saving Money I would be lying if I didn't say that I was financially driven to prepare a kit. The state of Virginia has one three-day sales tax holiday weekend beginning the first Friday in August. Yes, saving on tax pushed me to buy a bunch of stuff that I just may need one day. In addition to saving taxes on emergency preparedness items, customers can save tax on clothing, footwear, school supplies, and Energy Star and WaterSense products. For complete details on qualifying items and more, please go to Virginia's Government Tax Page. Not in Virginia? Search "your state" + "emergency preparedness" or "emergency kit." You can replace "hurricane" with "earthquake" or "tornado" or any other applicable term for your area. Depending on how much you purchase, the saving on taxes can add up pretty quickly. Be Prepared Before Preparing Heading out on a tax-free shopping spree won't save you much money if you're buying items that don't qualify for the tax-free holiday, or you buy a bunch of items you don't actually need or won't use. The National Hurricane Center offers supply lists and emergency plans, along with a ton of resources to help you gain focus. Question: How long did it probably take to prepare a hurricane emergency kit? === The answer to the above question is
OPTIONS:
- eight years
- not enough information
- three days
- August

Answer: three days

Question: The two basic things you have to do to have a successful weight-loss journey is consume fewer calories (eat less) and exercise more. It is a pleasure to report that it is possible to do both of these things without feeling deprived or overwhelmed. Just add these two little extras for help with weight-loss success. Add a Little Extra Exercise to Your Daily Routine A simple way to increase the level of exercise during your week is by adding a little more effort into your daily activities the things you are going to do anyway. For example, we all have to do housework right? So, that is an easy one! Instead of taking your time and working at a leisurely pace, work faster. As you sweep and mop the kitchen floor, put some oomph into it. Work at a steady, brisk pace. Stretch your arms and use your muscles. This will definitely increase your heart rate, and burn more calories. When it's time to clean the windows, reach up as high as you can stretch to the top of the windows and be sure to get into the corners. Then, buff the glass to a high sheen, which will involve a little more elbow grease than normal. When you scrub out the tub and the shower, do it with energy and a song make those tiles shine. Play fun music and dance when you sweep, mop or vacuum. Work for longer periods of time 20 to 30 minutes of active cleaning is much better than 5 minutes here and 5 minutes there. It gives you more time to get your heart rate going and a better boost to your metabolism. These are things you can do to keep your house sparkling and build the new you. So, start throwing in an abundant amount of gusto for extra calorie burning and body shaping. Question: Why should we put some more oomph into housework according to the author? === The answer to the above question is
OPTIONS:
- we can make our home inviting
- we can make our houses beautiful
- we can get our heart rates going and boost metabolism to lose weight
- not enough information
Answer: we can get our heart rates going and boost metabolism to lose weight

I'm going to take something that happened to my daughter for this answer. Billie Jo (our daughter) was probably around ten years old when it happened. We had a young Black Labrador dog who had become quite smitten with chewing things up that she wasn't supposed to. The list grew longer as the months passed. Looker, our black lab, had chewed up and eaten a $10 bill, my VCR remote control (probably around 1987), and a sticker-filled blackberry vine my wife had planted. How she did that one without serious repercussions is beyond me. She also had a habit of grabbing the mail as it slid through the slot that was in our front door, taking it out back and 'sorting' it for us. So what happened really came as no big surprise. My daughter was a very diligent student, never wanting to let down her teachers by not turning her homework in as soon as she got to school (at least until she hit 14). One morning our daughter was trying to find the math homework that she knew she had completed the night before. My wife assisted in the search and soon found a partially chewed up piece of our daughter's homework page. Our daughter was devastated! How could she possibly walk in to school and publicly announce, "My dog ate my homework!" without becoming the laughing stock of the school? Like this: Mama Bear (my wife) storms into the classroom and vehemently upholds our daughter's "dog ate my homework" bit, showing the teacher the half eaten paper. Funny thing was, the teacher would have never doubted our little girl for one minute. Back then, Billie Jo was the sweetest, cutest, most polite and well mannered child a parent could possibly hope for. And her teachers loved her. So, if you have partial proof, it can be a valid excuse. Question: After Mama comes to school Billie Jo feels === The answer to the above question is
OPTIONS:
- not enough information
- much better
- smitten
- sick
much better