Aphrodite is known to be the Goddess of Love and Beauty. Well, this is true according to the Theogony of Hesiod. She was born from Paphos in its foam waters. This was directed towards Cyprus. Many said she just suddenly arose from the foam. This happened when Titan Cronus was seen slewing his father, Uranus. He was even seen throwing his genitals being thrown in the sea. There are still many facts about Aphrodite. What are these?

Knowing Aphrodite

Based on Homer’s Iliad, Aphrodite was the daughter of Dione and Zeus. According to many Greek deities, there were still other stories which are related to the mentioned goddess. What are these?

There are gods out there who believed that the beauty of Aphrodite was the reason behind the war of gods. Since this was the case, Zeus asked Aphrodite to marry Hephaestus. This was done because he believed that he will not be a threat for he was deformed and ugly.

During her marriage, Aphrodite still entertained lovers. These lovers were not just gods, but also men. The popular ones she got involved with were god Ares, and Anchises who is an immortal. Aphrodite was also linked in the story of Psyche and Eros. This occurred when the known admirers of Psyche ignored, and even neglect Venus. Instead, they focused their attention on Psyche. As this unfortunate incident transpired, Aphrodite plotted a revenge against Eros or Cupid. However, the tables were turned because he fell in love with her instead.

There was also a time in the life of Aphrodite when she became the lover of Adonis and his surrogate mother. This fueled a fight and feud against Persephone. Zeus had to go in the way by decreeing Adonis. Adonis was tasked to spend half of the year with that of Persephone.

The Basics

• Aphrodite was known as the goddess of beauty, fertility and love.
• There were two different stories explaining her birth. The first one was that she was the daughter of Dione and Zeus. The other one was that she rose from the sea foam.
• Aphrodite was asked to marry Hephaestus. However, she did not become part of the union in accordance to her own will.
• Ares and Aphrodite later convinced Harmonia to marry Herodotus.
• Her union with Hermes resulted to Hermaphroditus.
• Aphrodite planned a scheme with her own sun Cupid, or Eros, so that they could make Zeus fall for Europa, a human.
• Aphrodite fell in love with Adonis. She was there when the latter was born. Ever since, she was determined to make the boy hers. With this, Persephone was assigned to the care of Adonis. However, Persephone fell in love with him. This was the time when Zeus had to do something for mediation.
• A swan-drawn car was utilized by Aphrodite so that she could glide easily through the air.
• Ever since, Hera and Aphrodite were not friends.

There were times when Aphrodite was symbolized by Rose, Scallop Shell and Dolphin.

Whenever you see an earthworm, your instinct would surely tell you to crash it to death with your foot. This is the initial reaction most especially during winters. This is really sad because earthworms are not merely pests. Gardeners will definitely agree to this. Most of the time, these worms start their migration outdoors as the said season comes to close. They do this because they want to be in real contact with harbingers. There are just the common earthworm facts that most people are accustomed to seeing. They are really far beyond the surface.

A person who works with soil is aware of the earth exposing wigging, shiny and pinky-brownish tubular life form. Up until now, there are still debates. Are earthworms a friend of farmers, or not? Here are the points to ponder.

Earthworms – earth friendly or not?

Here’s the thing – the use of an earthworm would really depend.

Up to date, there are infinite variations of Earthworms. All over the world, they are almost of 6,000 species. There are familiar ones to humans of course. These are the typical kinds which you may walk on in your garden. This is called the night crawler. This would surface right after the dark. Another is the angleworm. This is famous because it is utilized as a fishing bait. The last one is called the rain worm. This would always leave a soil waterlog. This is going to take place after most storms.

In Canada and United States alone, there were 180 earthworm species found. Almost 60 of these are said to be invasive. This included the aforementioned night crawler which was obtained from the Old World.

Earthworms do not have enough lungs in them. This is one of the reasons why they only breathe with the use of their skin. For most of the time, their skin is responsible in exuding fluid. This lubricates. As this happens, it is easier for them to move underground. This also keeps their skin moist all throughout. Through their skin pores, there an earthworm specie in Australia that can shoot fluid effortlessly.

Every earthworm is both female and male. They can produce both sperms and eggs. Their mating take place on the earth’s surface. There is a clitellum, this is considered a collar-like organ which would go around the worm’s body, which can produce a ring all around the worm. The worm in this juncture would just crawl out of the ring itself. It would then have the ring filled with eggs. The same is also true with sperm. Afterwards, the ring would drop off. This is the perfect time to shut the seals. This is when they turned out to be a cocoon. Eggs are to be developed this way.

Most of the baby worms are derived from tiny eggs. They are fully formed that way. For the first two up to even three months of their lives, they are meant to grow their sex organs. Their life span may reach 8 years.

When you have a child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), even the most mundane parts of life sometimes seem to require a super-human effort. The idea of holding down a full-time job can feel overwhelming, since raising your child and advocating for him or her already requires so much of your strength and energy.

Many parents of children with special needs do choose to stay home to devote themselves to their child and his or her care. Others may choose to continue to work or have financial obligations that require them to work full time, either for money to pay the rent or to keep the medical benefits necessary to get proper care for their family. When a child has special needs, the necessity for quality medical insurance only becomes more apparent. It’s easy to feel caught in a Catch-22.

So can it be done? The answer (as it so often is in the world of autism spectrum disorders) is “Yes, but …” Just as you modify your home environment and school environment, so must you modify your work environment.

Working from home

One good scenario is to work from home. You can get the majority of the work done while your child is at school (or while your child is involved in a project or his or her own) and be quickly available should an emergency arise. You can schedule therapy, IEP meetings and other appointments without having to worry about requesting time off. You are there when your child gets home from school and don’t have to deal with the added challenge of finding appropriate after-school care or questioning whether your older child is safe to be at home alone. This option would, however, require you to have the discipline to get the job done in spite of the numerous distractions.

Working on site

This scenario is where life start to get challenging but I can tell you from first hand experience that it can be done. I believe that it is helpful to be upfront and honest about the challenges that you face and hopefully your employer will be willing to create a flexible schedule for you. It is not, however, necessary, and an employer cannot force you to explain.

You absolutely must have a FMLA document on file. The Family Medical Leave Act allows you to take protected leave to care for an ill family member for up to 12 weeks per year without being penalized. You also retain full benefits during this time. Some companies will allow you to use sick pay or vacation pay when you take leave, and others won’t, so be sure to work with your Human Resources department and know what you are entitled to. Fill out the form to reflect intermittent leave. This allows you a certain number of “episodes” per month, and reflects the amount of time you would expect to be out per episode. You know your situation better than anyone else, so determine how often per month you might have to leave work and fill it out accordingly. Your child’s medical provider will need to fill out a section of the paperwork.

Communicate proactively with your provider so that he or she knows what information your HR department needs. Many kids with ASD have additional co-morbidities so you may need more than one form. I personally have two FMLA documents on file: one filled out by my child’s psychiatrist and intended to deal with behavioral outbursts at school and the other filled out by the pediatrician to deal with physical ailments.

If possible, request a non-traditional schedule. It is helpful to have a set day of the week to schedule ongoing appointments without having to request time off or use the FMLA. You could work four 10-hour shifts to have three days off per week, or work split shifts, or break up weekends. Other options are available as well, such as occasional telecommuting or job-sharing. I have a schedule that alternates weekends, which allows me to have Tuesdays off.

Please don’t forget to take some time for yourself. You have vacation days, use them! Schedule a quiet day off for yourself, get a massage, have coffee with friends. Sometimes it’s nice to take a vacation day here and there instead of taking a chunk of time off that you feel obligated to fill with activities. It’s easy to feel burnt out when you have so much responsibility, so make sure to recharge periodically.

After School Care

This is another challenge that must be faced when both parents work full time. Because of the impulsivity associated with Asperger’s Syndrome, it might not be a good idea to allow your child to come home to an empty house. In this case you will need to make other arrangements. Programs such as Boys & Girls Club provide a safe place for kids to go after school and they often have child care available for kids at the elementary school age. The leaders are trained to deal with a variety of social issues, and have usually seen everything under the sun. Schedule a meeting with the program director before signing your child up to discuss his or her needs.

Another option is to contact a child care referral line. As part of the interview process ask about the provider’s experience with special needs children. Be sure to explain your own child’s needs so that you can determine whether this provider is a good fit or not.

Keep a good support system around you. Ask family and friends for help and see if they can be “on call” in case your child needs to picked up or cared for and you can’t get away immediately. Many other resources are available for special needs child care. Check with your child’s therapist for local groups that can help out in this regard.