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From Merrian-Webster:
guide·line (noun): an indication or outline of policy or conduct
U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs:
A guideline is a statement by which to determine a course of action. A guideline aims to streamline particular processes according to a set routine or sound practice. By definition, following a guideline is never mandatory. Guidelines are not binding and are not enforced.
These definitions are very important. What I am listing here are my guidelines, a set of items that usually drive my particular style of coding and engineering. They are not rules. As someone once wisely pointed out (no references, sorry):
"guidelines account for judgement, rules don't"
They are also my guidelines. It is ok if they do not fit in your case, I am not trying to describe the definitive way of writing, maintaining and operating software. Most of the items here should be obvious for many people, but I hope this helps you think about your own guidelines and understand more others.
After a quick disclaimer, let us go to the list. There is a lot more I would like to publish someday, but I will try to not make this too long and painful.
There is a big chance that ying-yang is in my blood; my father is Chinese. One of the most important lessons I learned so far is that extremism is bad, everything needs balance.
This is at the top of my list, mainly because it nicely applies to the other items as well. I consider them to be good ideas, but I will not just blindly apply them to every situation. I usually do, unless I can come up with a very good justification not to.
The recursiveness of this item is also beautiful. It means that you can even be extreme (passionate?) about something, as long as you can give a damn good reason for it. You should not be extreme about not being extreme.
Take for example my deep hate for inheritance (in the OO context): there are good reasons for it. But it is not true that I would never use inheritance: the fact that it should be avoided is something to keep in mind, not something to block you from delivering software.
While we are on the topic, I really like how Go approaches inheritance.
Enabling vs. Directing
I took this very important lesson from some good discussions I had with my friend Tiago many years ago, back when we were coworkers in Germany.
Enabling means that something can be used in many different ways. Even in ways that we have not even considered yet. Humans are creative and will come up with different ways of using and applying an enabling idea. Directing however, means something that is designed to be used in a particular way, or an specific action.
A good example is how to design Java annotations. Here is how we could annotate a class to define that its objects need to be saved to a database (i.e. they are persistent):
@Save public class Person { // ... }
This is an example of a directing implementation, it specifically tells that objects of this class need to be saved. Using that information for anything else would be awkward.
Here is how the Java Persistence API (thanks to Hibernate) defines it:
@Entity public class Person { // ... }
This information could be used by many different components on a system. For instance, a logging component could read and use it to determine that some of its fields need to be filtered from logs (such as passwords), just because persistent entities usually contain sensitive data. A formatting component could use different colors for entity objects. There are all sorts of different uses for that information and creative people will come up with even more.
It does not mean that all of those uses will be correct, but that enables more from your code and makes it potentially more flexible.
This concept applies to almost any decision we need to do related to software development. Think about shipping a new feature, designing a component, planning an api, coding styleguides, people and project management styles, technology (framework?) choices, etc. There is probably a more enabling than directing way of doing them all in each context, which would empower people more.
In practice, it can be very hard. I have experienced many cases where it was really hard to tell if we were directing or enabling people. Keeping this in mind already helps a lot though.
Premature Optimization
This has been discussed a lot already, no need to talk too much about it. We all know that "Premature optimization is the root of all evil".
However, quoting Albert Einstein:
"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."
Do not use premature optimization as an excuse to be lazy, or irresponsible about what you ship. Keep it in mind, but balance it up with your previous experience and feedback from others. There are times when you just know it is going to bite you soon.
Which leads us to the next item…
I have learnt a lot of this over the past years running large production services (both at Locaweb and now at Heroku).
From the beginning, think about how your code is going to run in production. Do you understand the platform (runtime) it is going to run on? Are you confortable in troubleshooting hard problems? While we are on the topic, how are you planning to debug those problems?
Are you collecting metrics of how it is being used and how it services its requests? Even if you do not officially publish a SLA, understanding your service times is invaluable to dig into issues that will come with production load. Remember to track not only mean values, mean alone is useless. Always mix it up with variance, or rather with percentiles. Try to target for high percentiles – 95th and 99th are good targets, depending on what your scale is.
Last but not least: are you confident that you can notice (and be notified of) problems before your customers start complaining about your service on twitter? Metrics and automated monitoring are very important to run production services.
It does not really matter if automated or not. Yes, I said it. I have seen successful software (for whatever that means) both ways. Testing what you ship is just being responsible about it. And that includes having the proper infrastructure to do it: staging environments, gradual rollouts, feature flagging, etc.
Do not get me wrong. Automated testing should be usually preferred, but it is not the ultimate goal. I have seen many "evangelists" speaking hours about how automated testing is important, while the kernel of the operating system they use prefers a more traditional approach with lots of manual (or semi-automated) tests, Q/A testing teams and not many (or even zero) automated tests in its codebase.
Quick note about test (or behavior) driven development: it has more to do with software design methods than with the tests themselves. IMO it is a good practice, which works for me sometimes, but not always in every project, everyday.
Dependency Inversion
I am really proud of what some of my heavy Java development days have taught me.
Designing loosely coupled components is a big one. Dependency Injection, Dependency Inversion Principle and Inversion of Control are all related topics that to me mean a simple thing: design for single (or few) responsibilities.
It means that when you are writing that piece of code (be it a method, function, class, module, script or whatever), focus it on a single responsibility, and keep it small. If it gets to big, break it. If it needs resources to do its job, do not go after the resources it needs there, receive (inject) them instead.
In summary: instead of going after your dependencies, inject them. When a component needs to go after a resource it needs, it usually means that:
- The component is now responsible for its dependency lifecycle: this adds more responsibility. Now that it opens that damn connection to your DB (or your queue service), it needs to decide when to close, and needs to know how to do it. Also, what happens when you need to share the same connection in other parts of the system?
- The resource needs to be globally accessible: if the component did not create the resource it needs, or if that resource is shared in many parts of the codebase, it needs to be globally available. Hiding the resource creation behind factories does not help when the factory objects themselves need to be globally reachable. I hope I do not need to talk much about how globally accessible things are bad, but it is usually hard to test components using them, and it leads to tighter coupling. Changing that global resource gets harder with more stuff using it.
When you invert control and inject dependencies instead, you have the opportunity to centralize resource management in a single place. That single place centralizes the (single) responsibility of deciding where to inject that resource and how to share it. In more fancy environments, something like this can be called Dependency Injection Framework, but it does not need to be a big bloated framework once you understand the mechanics. In fact, this does not require a framework at all, it is just plain old method/function/constructor invocation with proper parameters.
All in all, let us please not forget about balance. This is not a rule, there are times when what you need is just a goddamn simple function.
Do Not Block The Event Loop
Evented programming (or event-driven programming) is very popular these days and one of the side effects is that some projects will want to be evented without careful consideration.
Going evented or not is one of the big decisions involved in writing code, with big implications. Things blocking the event loop are usually very hard to debug. When you go that route, all code called (including external libraries) needs to be aware of the event loop and not to block it.
There are many advantages though, notably it leads to much more lightweight servers which support much higher concurrency levels. When I am deciding if I should do event-driven code or not, here is what I consider (feel free to add a comment below with your own thoughts):
- Is it an event-driven runtime/platform? Nodejs, for example, has been designed from the ground up to be evented. Meaning that all libraries and code written to run on it are already aware of the event loop. If the platform was not designed to be evented (like Ruby with EventMachine) much more care must be taken to not call code which will block the event loop. It is hard to control all the code in libraries included in your project. Take that into consideration.
- Consider evented if the piece of code you are writing is mostly a data multiplexer, meaning that it just takes data from one side and sends it to another, acting like a pipe, distributor, load balancer, or router. This type of component is usually I/O bound.
- Avoid evented if the piece of code you are writing is CPU bound and does a lot of processing. The chance it will block the event loop is much higher. I have seen projects having to resort to threads (or external processes) to move that part out of the event loop, often leading to spaghetti concurrency very hard to follow. Part evented, part threaded.
There Is Always Something To Learn
As I learn more, I expect this list to change, but I would say that it currently contains the factors influencing my development style the most. It was a very healthy exercise to think about what defines me as a programmer. I hope it is for you too, try it out!


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I do not feel like I have the type of all-encompassing, spirit-filled relationship with Christ that the evangelical subculture lauds. And many days–more often than non–I think I want it. I want that full intimacy and all-consuming communion with God. I want to be fulfilled with the presence of God, not his absence. I want my days lit with God's brilliance, and my nights blanketed by his infinite mysteries. When I see, I want to see nothing by God. When I hear, I want to hear nothing but God. I want to touch nothing but God, think nothing but God, and speak of nothing but God.
I don't have these encounters with God, and I do not know why. I sometimes believe it is because I am a human, and a condition of my human-ness is sin, an unavoidable separation from God. But then I am reminded of other men and women who encountered God. Abraham, for instance. And Moses. Paul. The disciples. The saints. The desert fathers. The mystics. If humanness is a condition that separates us from God, it's one that has been overcome on many occasions. Being a man does not have to block a full communion with God.
Sometimes I attribute my separation from God to my skepticism of experiences. I do not want my feelings to be the metric of "closeness to God" because I am easily influenced by other stimuli. If I feel close to God, does that mean I truly am close to God? Or does it mean I am particularly healthy or happy for non-supernatural reasons? Numinous encounters can be manufactured; experiences can be manipulated; beliefs can be exploited. If I encounter God, I do not want it to be because I willed it.
I want what I do not trust myself to perceive. I want full communion, which I am fully convinced is possible, but I want it external from my own perceptions. I don't trust my eyes to see God. I don't trust my ears to hear God. I don't trust my brain, my feelings, or my voice to encounter and commune with God.
So I live out my faith in a way that does not privilege encounters with God. Rather, it privileges encounters with others. I cannot see God, but I can see the needs in my neighbors' lives. My worship becomes more directed toward service instead of transcendent intimacy.
It'll have to do. For now.

subset: commoncrawl


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Employees were still trying to save the animals when the water reached their chests. They scrambled to stack crates and put dogs up on tables.
Most of the 85 cats were able to get up high on perches, they learned later. But about half of the 190 dogs died.
"I just can't imagine the terror that they felt, and I'll never get over that," Elizabeth "Tip" Burrows, the shelter's executive director, told The Washington Post on Monday.
"It was brutal," she said — like every aspect of the hurricane that has devastated the Bahamas. The storm has killed at least 50 people as of Monday, bulldozed neighborhoods and turned thousands into refugees struggling to get off the affected islands.
The Humane Society staff are reeling from that human toll, too, as they mourn their animals. An employee's cousin is still missing, Burrows said. Some of their homes are destroyed or underwater. Trying to reconnect one of their surviving dogs with the married couple who dropped it off to weather the storm, employees learned the owners had died.
Crews in the Bahamas keep finding bodies. The official Hurricane Dorian death toll is rising more slowly.
Last week, though, the Humane Society staff had lives they could save.
Burrows was at home Monday when the flooding hit. The shelter was prepared for a storm, but nothing like the destruction that Dorian brought that day; the shelter had never flooded in previous hurricanes, and their buildings were elevated to better endure high waters.
Employees thought at first that the water had stopped at the steps.
But then "it just kind of thundered in," said Burrows, who heard the details later from her staff. It was the same story all over the island, she said — areas without mandatory evacuations were flooding, and badly.
An employee called as staff realized they would have to leave the dogs and cats to the flood.
Burrows texted them advice, but the messages stopped going through. The staff spent hours in the crawl space cut off from communication, she said, eventually swimming out to higher ground and getting picked up by a bulldozer.
"Animals are still alive," staff told Burrows when they called her, exhausted. But they hadn't been able to get to the kennels.
On Tuesday afternoon, Burrows returned to the shelter with a dump truck and volunteers. She could hear the dogs barking as she arrived.
"We opened the kennel doors and they came pouring out," she said. She was amazed to see that almost all of the cats had survived.
The Humane Society employees were not alone in working to save animals during Dorian. One Bahamian woman took 97 dogs into her home to protect them from the storm.
The aftermath of the flooding was hard, Burrows recounted. She had to deliver grim news to owners of the pets that were "boarding" with them for the storm.
"I can't help feeling responsible in a way, but we couldn't have known," Burrows said. "If we had had any idea this would happen, we would never have accepted boarders. We could have tried to move our animals out."
The remaining dogs and cats are still being sent to the mainland, where they'll stay in other shelters and hopefully be adopted, Burrows said. The dogs are headed for Florida, the cats for New Jersey.
The shelter is working to replace everything that went underwater: the vehicles, the digital X-ray machine, the laboratory blood analyzers, the microscopes, the ultrasound equipment. Burrows estimates the ruined materials are worth $250,000. She doesn't know what it might cost to fix up the buildings.
Two aid groups are helping the Humane Society regain its footing, and a GoFundMe had raised more than $150,000 as of Monday night for the shelter's recovery.
That recovery will be long, Burrows said.
Read more:


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This Week at the 326 Community Market! Suriname Spinach! Hot Peppers For Your Fall Garden!
|Photo credit: Cathy Snyder
We had another wonderful week last week with lots of friends popping in to say hi. If you haven't stopped by yet... what are you waiting for?
In my last newsletter I mentioned this exciting vegetable. In Latin it's known as Talinum fruticosum... on our homestead, it's known as delicious. Small pots are $2.00 each... larger pots are $6.00.
I started a bunch of hot peppers for everyone's fall gardens. They're $2.00 a pot... but for some reason I'm not selling any. What's up with that? C'mon, make me a deal or something! These guys are lovely and they need to get in the ground so they can start making you some salsa! I've got about 100 in the nursery, both jalepenos and cayennes. There's no way I can plant and eat all these myself... but if they don't sell I'm going to try. Hehhehheh.
Pick some up for your fall garden and learn to grind your own red pepper. The taste of homegrown peppers is unbelievable!
Let's see what else I have today at the 326 Community Market...
I've got JUST two peach trees left at $20 each!
I picked up some olive trees this week - come on down and get your own Arbequina olive and plan on some tasty Mediterranean dishes. Only 2 left!!!
Goji Berries
I still have some. Small goji berries are $4.00 a pot... pick up a few and discover this weirdly flavored lycopene-loaded superfruit.
I have small Illinois Everbearing trees for $12.00 each. Don't worry about the size... mulberries grow FAST! I also have some dwarf ones back in stock for $8.00 a pot. Plant a mulberry hedge!
Chinese Water Chestnuts
Do you have a pond? A swampy spot? A kiddie pool? Chinese water chestnuts are a delicious root crop that loves the heat and will produce abundantly. It's also perennial! Give 'em a try!
Japanese Persimmons
Simply one of the best fruit trees for this area. Sweet, luscious, non-astringent fruit... and my price of $29 per tree is really hard to beat.
I've got a limited amount of potted cassava plants for sale again... grab 'em before they're gone! I've also got a few of the pretty variegated type... you'll love the way they look, though they're better for leaf production than for roots.
Visit the 326 Market in Ocala today and go shopping. There's a lot going on in the nursery and I'm finding more rare edibles each week.
Some of my other wonderful selections include:
GINGERS (Various): $6.00
ROSEMARY: $2.00 a small pot
LAVENDER: $2.00 a small pot
FIGS (Various): $20.00
JAPANESE PERSIMMONS (Various non-astringent): $29.00
MUSCADINE GRAPES: Red, Green and Bronze (various) $9.00
Coming soon: herbs, moringa, katuk, edible-leaf hibiscus, Suriname spinach, white mulberries!
The 326 Community Market runs every Thursday from 3 - 7PM and is really easy to find.
Google map is here. Their Facebook page is here (with lots more photos and info):
My prices are good and my gardening advice is free.
Beyond what I carry, there are also folks selling melt-in-your-mouth Florida peaches, goat milk cheese and soap, handcrafts, recycled pallet wood furniture, fresh lemonade, chickens, delicious ice cream (from actual hand-milked cows), crafts, vegetables, baked goods, homemade jams and jellies (really good), local raw honey, ornamental plants, homemade birdhouses and more.
It's a great group of people and very friendly... the way a local market should be.
Come on down!
Labels: 326 community market


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LONG TERM PARKING, the sci-fi bounty-hunter thriller, which is adapted from the novel of the same name, films in Texas in late August.
I am currently casting.
Synopsis: The hero, Boston Nightly, is shot by a mafia torpedo in the first five minutes of the movie. He morphs into heaven and goes to work cleaning up the thugs left on earth by bouncing between the two dimensions. Boston meets a woman in each world, both of whom want to drag him into bed and then kill him. To throw a quirky twist into the mix, the first time he morphed he was sent with a loveable dog and acquired a long bushy tail that wags furiously when he gets excited. It's a wild, funny movie.
- Marlene, female, mid 30s, seductive, sophisticated, enchanting.
- Chel, female, mid 30s, sensuous, sassy, overbearing, big-boned.
- Bail Bondsman, male, mid 40s, haggard.
- Carlucci, male, mid 50s, chain-smoker, weathered facial features.
- Mickey, male, 20's, easy-going surfer type.
- Joey Sacs, male, 50s, mafia boss.
- Lou Freida, male, 50s, mafia hitman, large build or overweight.
Please submit headshots, resumes and actor reel links to firstname.lastname@example.com
Submissions must be received by June 14, 2013 to be considered.
We will be filming in Dallas, Austin and San Antonio depending on cast and location requirements.


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This is a post that I have been meaning to write for quite a while. But I kept on hesitating for a lot of reasons. For one thing, its a sensitive subject in many ways. After all I am about to talk on the case of sexual harassment that was filed against the Chair of the Civil Service Commission Mr. Mohamed Fahmy Hassan during June last year. Furthermore, I am an employee of the said commission, which made it difficult for me to come out and say all that I wanted to say without "violating" any unwritten rules there might exist. And then there's the point that this is an issue that deals with a colleague of mine who was so very brave in standing up for her rights from the many women who have faced similar situations of sexual harassment but never having had the sort of support required to come out, had stayed silent all throughout the years; a topic that is still brushed under the carpet most of the time. And then there's the part of me that believed in the due process taking care of Fahmy, him being voted out in a no confidence motion against him which indeed did happen, but then I guess I should have known better than to believe in a system that has failed on us on so many levels.
I believe that I coincidentally got "involved" in this situation because the Almighty wanted someone whose conscience wouldn't let her stay silent on this as many seem content to do so. The big fish i.e. the political figures at the forefront are more concerned with the political gain this situation would bring their way or the loss they would face if Fahmy were to be removed from the position of CSC Chair because it would mean power lost at the Judicial Service Commission itself. On top of that Maldivians are a bunch who have become desensitized in so many ways that it just shakes me to my very core to learn about some of the very pressing social issues that this country faces, many of which go unaddressed which is going to be the reason for the imminent collapse of this nation as a whole.
Though I've heard many accounts from my fellow colleagues of incidences where Fahmy has more than acted inappropriately towards them, its not my story to tell. Since I don't hold any power over any of them coming forward with their stories, which I believe if they had or do even now would have changed this whole scenario from what it is right now, i.e. Fahmy finding it so easy to return back to work as he pleases even after being voted out by the Parliament twice. I am not going to talk about those incidences but rather the one "small" incident that marked him in mind as a man unfit to be in a position as such, a position that oversees the rights of around 20+ thousand employees of this country.
It was in the year 2008, when members were first appointed to the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and discussions were being held at different levels between the Public Service Division (PSD) of The President's Office where I worked back then and the newly formed CSC under the Civil Service Act. That day was actually the very first day that I met Mr. Fahmy, who back then was just a member of the Commission. Since myself and a Director General were the focal points assigned to streamline the process of transferring the designated tasks from the PSD to CSC; I found myself at this meeting with Mr. Fahmy sitting right next to me.
I will deviate now into a little history lesson where I am concerned, just to lay out the background of my career. I was employed at the PSD in the year 2001 and went off for my higher studies in 2002. After returning to work in 2006, I had been working for around 2-3 years in the government by the time this meeting was to happen. Even then, verbal sexual harassment was commonplace, most people I don't think even realized what they were doing because simply put there were no regulations or laws in place that protects an employee from any such incidences that they might encounter. Nevertheless, I had never been on the receiving end of such remarks from any of my coworkers, mainly maybe because I am someone who tends to keep to myself. The point that I want to drive home is that up until then I had never found myself in a situation even remotely like the incident that took place in that meeting. There was this point where everyone was fake laughing as if one of the members present at the meeting had just revealed the most hilarious joke in history and Fahmy while laughing, casually placed his left hand on my thigh as we were sitting right next to each other.
Maybe because my brain didn't register at that moment what had actually taken place, I didn't say anything then. It wasn't until we walked out of the meeting and the Director General who was with me remarked angrily on Fahmy's behavior that I realized what had happened. For those who think that, "Oh bullocks! It was just your thigh; what does it even matter? I'm sure it must have happened by accident." etc. etc. the point that is of importance here is the fact that 1- he is a member of CSC, 2- there is no need for any form of inappropriate touching on anyone's body part at work, and I am not talking about two people who get touchy-feely because they want to and out of mutual consent and 3- yes, it was way out of line and completely inappropriate. If the point of working in a mixed environment is to fall laughing into the lap of every employee of the opposite sex that sits next to you; oh well, then we would be better off with engaging in an orgy than turning up at work.
From that day onwards, I have always been leery of Fahmy; someone who cracks jokes that doesn't bring a smile out of me because most of the time it is sexist in one way or the other and mostly I just had an inherent distrust for the man himself. I am certain some people are going to be clearly pissed off at me for writing this but then, high time don't you think?
When the incident that propelled Parliament to take action against Fahmy happened, it was again by accident that I found myself entering the toilet where I found my colleague on the phone, crying. This was right after THE incident had happened in which Fahmy had caressed her tummy and commented on her body weight, which is yes again, highly inappropriate and wrong on so many levels. Since I wasn't someone that close to her, I didn't stop and ask her why she was crying, mainly because I had the feeling that she'd rather I didn't at that moment. But I did later message a mutual friend of ours who said that something had happened and that she had gone home. I didn't let it bother me overly much until I began to see Facebook statuses from some of my colleagues, most of them seething with anger and disgust, some of whom had been on the receiving end of such 'tender' unwanted affection from him. It didn't take long for me to put two and two together and come up with what had happened which was soon revealed to the whole country; a case that in my opinion was a long time coming.
Ever since I was summoned to the Independent Institutions Committee of the Parliament regarding this issue because my name appeared in the timeline of events that took place that day, I have never looked back. My family and especially my father advised me that standing up for what's right can never be wrong and that's where I always find my source of strength whenever I find myself in despair over how casually people treat this incident and whether I should be worried about the fact that I cannot let this go. I was appalled at the level of apathy that most of the colleagues displayed. Some were disgusted because the one who stood up was ruining CSC's image, others were of the mindset that she shouldn't have made such a HUGE fuss and then there were those who thought and still thinks that Fahmy sports two wings and a halo over his head.
I was summoned to the Maldives Police Service as well as the Human Rights Commission (HRCM) to provide testimonies on what had happened, the HRCM being the agency that actually did the most thorough interviews to-date after being "harassed" by reporters as to why their investigation was being stalled for so long. They collected so many testimonies from different employees and thus it was a slap on the face to read their decision that there investigation hadn't been enough to prove or disprove that the incident in question had happened; and this too rather helpfully right before the Parliament was to vote Fahmy out after giving him a grace period in which to resign and exit without making a fuss. But as the events that unfolded have shown, he didn't, not surprising when he actually doesn't believe that he did anything wrong!
November 20, 2012 was a day that I was proud of the members of the Parliament, a rare enough occurrence that deserves a mention. PPM was the only party that voted against the motion; not surprising when Fahmy is one of the founding members of the People's Alliance registered as a political party on August 4, 2008, whose former leader is Abdulla Yameen, PPM's current Presidential candidate. If you ask me, Fahmy deserves a thousand times worse than being voted out of his position for abusing his position of authority a million times over. If someone were to really probe into what happened; even write an investigative journalistic piece on him, they would find a lot of details that would really put this whole nation staying silent on this issue to shame. The relief felt by that those who believed he had done something wrong was short-lived as the tables once again turned around when on March 18, 2013, the Supreme Court totally proved themselves to be the hypocritical bunch they are and overturned the case of Parliament's dismissal of the Chair of CSC. Thus began the "war" between the Parliament and the Supreme Court of the country. March 23, 2013 saw Fahmy resume office and later, on April 10, 2013, Fahmy was again voted out, this time the Parliament voting to replace Fahmy as a member of CSC. The bitch slap in the face was to hear that he had resumed coming to work again last week, a news that brought to home just how utterly shameless he really is.
So today, out of my frustration with everyone who was keeping silent and furthermore rallying behind him, for the very first time in my life, I joined the May Day rally (this is the first rally/protest that I have ever joined ever) which was organized by MDP. The last push needed came mainly with the news that the walk organized by CSC to commemorate CS day which coincides with Labor Day was led by Fahmy himself, a walk that was supposedly about the rights of the civil servants of this country. But what better way to mock the rights of the said employees than to let a man like himself lead the rally? But alas, no one seems that bothered about "trivial" issues such as this one. And whether you believe in coincidences or not, I was the one who ended up holding up the placard that says "Fahumy…OUT" (that's a shot of myself holding the banner right after the rally ended) which if you think about it, is funny in one sense and then again exactly the point I want to drive across. The disappointing factor about the rally was that there was no chance to really vocally call out for his resignation and I think the rally was more focused on the upcoming elections than about labor rights apart from the short speeches that were delivered at the end. In the end I had to satisfy myself with the fact that at least MDP's rally provided me with an opportunity to become more proactive in a cause that I believe in and helped me at least put the message across to those who have already forgotten.
Consequences for writing this post and participating in the rally is something I anticipate, but if anyone were to take steps against me because I stood up for something I believe in and wrote about the truth and nothing but the truth here, then Fahmy ought to go first. I'm willing to walk away from the position I hold at CSC because its an utter disappointment to work with people who actually have no qualms about him returning to work and resuming office like nothing ever happened. Its as if he went on a short leave of absence and returned to work. It shamed me to see my colleagues walk behind him and rally behind him today, holding up banners that called out for the rights of civil servants. But then again, I guess I shouldn't expect a desensitized society to really care about the other person and truly empathize, because after all we are the people who would rather watch on a person being beaten to death than move in to help. We are after all the society that kept looking while police brutality rained down from left and right. Says it all doesn't it?
If women want equal rights at the workplace and to be able to report to work without the fear of falling prey to some perverted male employee who isn't getting enough; then its time to become proactive. I'm glad that MP Rozaina has put forward the Sexual Harassment Bill which is a direct effect of what happened with Fahmy playing peekaboo with the Parliament's decision. I call out on women to stand up for your rights. Do what's right. Doing what's right now means you ensure the security and future of your own children who would tomorrow lead this nation. Nightmares wouldn't be the only thing that would visit you when your own child grows up and walks out into a world filled with sexual predators left unchecked; and that's the legacy you would leave behind if you don't act now. If no one acts now, whatever leverage that we have on this issue will just disappear into thin air, never to be seen or heard of ever again.
42 thoughts on "Labor Rights & Sexual Harassment; Enough Is Enough"
To express the truth and firmly standing on it is a most blessed deed in the sight of Allah.sadly in our society sexual harassment isn't recognise as an indecent or inappropriate behaviour in many families.the very reason that very often we hear that the stepfather sexually abused his stepdaughter hence knowing it to her mother. Yes, we are 100% Muslim country but in practical life we don't follow this beautiful religion.
You have written a true fact of the sexual harassment done by one of the most respectable person to be like CSC president Fahmy. He's a well known person of misbehavior and misconduct everywhere he worked.it was not the first he committed this indecent immoral act. It's an honorable deed to give witness where it's to be given with truth. I don't find anything to be worried about what you called the "consequences" for writing this page. Don't worry nothing will come.The Sustainer is Allah.You are young you will have a bright future indeed by the Grace of Allah.This is not the "golden era" of MAG where we had every kinds of injustice. It was yesteryear. Fahmy will be out and even legally is out now too. What this shameless person doing is digging his grave. He's backed by Dictator MAG who's destroying this country after the majority said NO to him and his policy in 2008. Fahmy and his family got a lot of illegal benefits from MAG's time. Fahmy was in 100% opposition during President Nasheed's presidency to execute the policy of the democratically elected government first time in the history of Maldives. His opposition to Nasheed's government awarded by then the opposition controlled by MAG the post of CSC President. Fahmy is cursed by the people.
hats off to you
Thank you for voicing against sexual harassment! Well written.
Glad to see the article n hope more ppl will come out n rise their voice to stop sexual harrasmemt. Together we can n together we stop w
It takes a great deal of courage to express one's opinion in a conflict, especially in the very disturbing situation you're in. — very brave and I am genuinely proud of you.
Sadly, it is known that pleasing the boss by all means is a mentality a lot of people practice around here; even worse, expected. Unfortunate yet exists in every organization, thankfully not to this extend.
I hope for those in similar situations elsewhere will gain courage from this, to bring a compete stop to such episodes.
Your father seem to be a man after my own heart — "the good will always prevail."
Thank you for writing this. I understand these things are never easy to write about – as you rightly pointed out the workplace environment and repercussions that can always be expected with people like this.
I fail to understand how any civil servant – especially women – can turn a blind eye to this man's behaviour, and walk behind him during the May Day rally. Perhaps not everybody's conscience is as pricked as yours. Unfortunate.
I respect you for having strength to come out and raise your voice against this sexually starved animal, Fahmy.
I salute your family, especially you dad's support he is providing you when you needed it most.
I had worked helping victims of gender based violence, and the stories they narrated me were many years of abuse from home to work place. Sadly not surprising in a male dominated society, Maldives
Thank you very much for voice against workplace harassment, you could be the leader who would help everyone in future.
It was not a suprise when PPM backed Fahmy and President's office sent a letter to CSC to reinstate FAHMY. As I worked at different organizations in the government, came across situations in which i have slapped on many faces. it was a part of "culture" and part of " personality" of some seniors and they believe that it is a privilege given by almighty that they get this chance to touch woman out of formality. some sheik's also believe that. shame on FAHMY.
Much respect to you. It takes courage to be one of the first to stand up against such atrocities.
Thank you for this. Great article. I'm also a witness to that particular culture, when I worked in the public sector back in the late 90's-mid 2000's. It was so commonplace that the victims themselves were not aware if they CAN actually voice it out, if they had been harassed. I was once told to accompany the Minister's entourage to go on some trip (which mostly involved fishing and spending the nights at resorts), under the guise of inspecting some projects. My department was not involved in any of the said projects and nor were my immediate bosses informed that I was to go with them. I was just summoned to the Admin. I refused to go. They made a huge deal, i remember several crying episodes in the office, feeling pressured and feeling that something else was going on. Finally they made me sign an "inzaaru" where I was warned that I should ALWAYS go on the office "trips" whenever they demanded. Apparently they liked to take different young, unmarried girls on such trips.
Not many people in our society has the courage to come out and say what you have said. Great work :)
The thing is those in power, the judiciary, the security forces, the very people who were supposed to protect the rights of the citizens anticipate such behaviour. Hell, they like being like that. they like doing what they do. Look into any office, any! and tell me of one that doesn't have a boss that's trying to put his hands in his secretaries panties! Be it CSC or MNDF! Most maldivians are a bunch of self-righteous do nothing type of monkeys! what the regular or normal people should realise is GABRIEL aint gonna come down to save their ass! so stand up for the sake of your mothers,sisters,wives,daughters and all the rest of women! and if judiciary and security dont work for your benefit… well then i guess its time for "Self appointed vigilante Judges" one thing for sure is if Maldives keeps lingering like this, its becoming fertile each day more than ever for radicalism! and when that happens civil war aint gonna be far!
My best of everything, for your courage as well as your colleagues' who stood and let the public know on this sordid affair.
Fight on !!!
Hat's off to you! Our society needs people like you so badly. And you are absolutely right when you say sexual comments are common place in our work places and are brushed under the carpet. As a woman who has worked outside of the Maldives for most of my professional life, I can still tell you that during the short time I have worked in the Maldives, I endured a lot more harassment of this sort than what I have had to endure throughout my professional/ working life abroad.
Excellent! Much respect for your courageous post. Keep fighting the good fight!!!
These things have been happening for a long long time. Atleast now people are coming forward and exposing the actions of these perverts. But the majority is just stupid and they ignore EVERYTHING which is so frustrating.
Anyways, great article, very well written!
Great article..speechless! so proud of you for being the person you are today.
When I first moved to the Education Ministry, I found out that a lot of high ranking civil servants behaved like the women was dirt. When you asked them, 'tholhelee' and 'samaasaa kollee' were their excuses. Fahmy was the worst one! It was even worse with the women themselves, many of them giggling at highly inappropriate remarks and touching they so forced to go through. A few women were disgusted at the men but there was nothing that they could do (it was in the 1990's). So, bravo for getting the news out there. Women would no longer be afraid to take sexual harassment cases to the top. Fahmy or not Fahmy, I'm sure a lot of men who have learnt to curb their tongues and hands to themselves by what you did.
It is very brave of you to write this blog. I hope more victims of this sexual harasser will come out and show that he is so.
Not that this is related….but I knew Fahmy's son in school. He was a perv too. I guess it runs in the family.
Great post.


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Solved No DHCP Response on Eth0
bartont126 last edited by bartont126
Hi All,
So I am setting up fog on an isolated network here at my office at work. I am using an old dell server and an old cisco switch. I have fog set up on 192.168.1.1 with no router, no dns and letting fog use DHCP.
My Web interface opens great, I plug in another computer through the switch and get a 192.168.1.10 IP so I know my server is giving out IP addresses, I can connect to the fog management console through 192.168.1.1 on both PC's also.
However, once I boot to pxe I get the fog screen, I click deploy image, click the image I created within the fog management console, and then I get this error message.
The sever I am using has 4 network ports on it and I am using the first one, or ENO1. It looks to me like fog is only trying to scan for eth0 instead of everything including eno. How can I fix this to where it's sees the eno1 and the image can pull from the pc to the sever, and vice versa (pulling an image)
@bartont126 I'm glad you have it all worked out. I checked in on the other threads and it looks like you found out about the dirty bits and shutting windows down properly and how to add additional storage to your fog server. well done.
@george1421 Thanks for all your help, boss! My boss also appreciates it
@george1421 I actually just posted another thread as that's what I thought the moderator wanted me to do. however, I will look into these few things and look for your thread on adding more space. My networking guy is taking a look into the rstp on the switch so hopefully we can get this enterprise switch up and going to increase our speeds.
@bartont126 If you are getting 3GB/min right now that is acceptable. I may have your thread mixed up with another one with a similar issue.
Adding a second hard drive is a topic for another thread. But there are a few ways to go about it.
- If your system uses lvm, just add the new disk to the lvm pool and your done.
- Add the new disk as a second storage node on your fog server
- Mount the new disk over /images to place all of your images on the new disk while the original disk is just used for the OS and FOG.
If you look in the tutorial section of the forums you will see many of my posts, some discuss adding additional space to your fog server. The easiest I my say is the LVM route.
Sebastian Roth Moderator last edited by Sebastian Roth
@bartont126 Great to hear you got most of your issues solved. Thanks to George who's been of great help. I'd ask you to try and keep topics together in one thread and separate unrelated issues in different threads. There is no restriction on how many threads you open and it's way better for everyone to follow!
I'll mark this solved now.
@george1421 So stp mode needs to be changed to rstp or whatever to fix the spanning issue? I'm using some cheap tenda switch I'm getting around 3gb/sec right now. Obviously the enterprise switch would be ideal. I'm definitely going to run into an issue with space. my Ubuntu is imaged on a patrician of only around 150gb. I have about 70gb of free space left on it. I have another drive on the server with 1.7tb of space. is there a way for me to direct the images folder to another drive on the server to maximize my space without having to re set up the whole sever?
@bartont126 well now don't forget your original issue with spanning tree. Make sure you get that bit fixed on your enterprise switch so you get the best deployment times. Ideal times for deployment are around 6GB/min according to the partclone screen. Capture times will be less of course. Less rates to just under 2GB/min are typically seen, but 6GB/min is ideal with a typical SSD dual or quad core target computer. I have seen speeds as high as 10GB/min with a new 7280 and 7285 Dell laptop with nvme drives. Just so you are aware the target computer has a bigger impact on deployment speeds than the FOG server.
@george1421 George, looks like it was the firewall the whole time. It's now copying the image.
@george1421 I just disabled the firewall. Trying to enable Selinux right now and set to permissive. Running Ubuntu desktop 16.04.3
What OS did you use for the FOG server?
@george1421 ls -la /images/dev
total 16
drwxrwxrwx 4 fog root 4096 Feb 12 19:06 .
drwxrwxrwx 4 fog root 4096 Feb 12 16:06 …
drwxrwxrwx 2 root root 4096 Feb 12 19:06 54e1adc29063
-rwxrwxrwx 1 fog root 0 Feb 12 16:06 .mntcheck
drwxrwxrwx 2 fog root 4096 Feb 12 16:06 postinitscripts
ls -la /images
total 16
drwxrwxrwx 4 fog root 4096 Feb 12 16:06 .
drwxr-xr-x 27 root root 4096 Feb 12 16:30 …
drwxrwxrwx 4 fog root 4096 Feb 12 19:06 dev
-rwxrwxrwx 1 fog root 0 Feb 12 16:06 .mntcheck
drwxrwxrwx 2 fog root 4096 Feb 12 16:06 postdownloadscripts
I also did not disable the firewall and setting selinux. I'm unsure of how to do that so I will look it up.
@bartont126 can you also run these commands? (hint if you connect to your FOG server using a terminal program like putty you can copy and paste outputs a bit easier).
ls -la /images/dev
ls -la /images
@bartont126 those settings are correct. You have 2 shares. /images and /images/dev. (I assume the missing slash in front of /images was a type-o).
I'm still a bit confused why your target computer is reporting "Unable to locate image store". Did you do the prerequisites of disabling the firewall and setting selinux to permissive?
@bartont126 Any ideas what might be causing the issue from the showmount -e?
@george1421 Hi George. I did the showmont -e and the two lines i'm getting says
Export List for 127.0.0.1
/images/dev/ *
images *
@george1421 No worries. I just got home from work. I will give this a shot in the morning and respond with my findings. Thank you George!
@bartont126 ok on the FOG server, will you key in the following command
showmount -e 127.0.0.1That will show the NFS share on the fog server. It should present two lines one for /images and one for /images/dev I'm traveling right now so I don't have immediate access to a fog server to give you an example.
@george1421 Kernel Variables and settings:
bzImage Loglevel=4 initrd=init.xz root=/dev/ram0 rw ramdisk_size=127000 web=192.168.1.1/fog/ consoleblank =0 rootfstype=ext4 mac=54:e1:type=up
@george1421 Try this. Sorry it's always sideways. It's straight on my computer until I upload it.


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This is not just a mission for writers and strategists.
It's one that every agency head, designer, developer, project manager etc should embrace wholeheartedly. If you care about quality experiences and results, you can't afford to shy away from the importance of content. It's that simple.
This post isn't about how to create content — it's about how to foster a company culture that actively appreciates the role that content plays everyday. Make a decision today to champion the content cause, be that advocate that your team, clients and audiences desperately need.
This advocation doesn't mean you need to get on your soapbox and start slamming content-lazy competitors. And it certainly doesn't mean demanding that your team become killer content creators themselves. Instead look at how you talk about content, the people you feature in that conversation and the company-wide attitude to this illusive asset.
Uncover the knowledge/interest status quo.
The best advocates feel things out before they start spreading the word. If you're thinking of fighting the good fight you first need to scope out your team's attitude to content. What's their knowledge level when it comes to content creation, editing, strategy? Do they see content as a necessity, influence or burden to their ability to do a good job?
Tap into the general content consensus and cater your championing approach to your potential followers. Don't advocate blindly.
Get back to basics.
Good content can't exist without solid foundations. Stellar research skills, consistent collaboration, usable internal systems, all directly influence the effectiveness of content. There's no point getting serious about re-approaching your culture's relationship with content if you don't have the understanding and resources in place to support that shift.
Fostering a content-loving culture takes time and proper commitment so don't stint momentum by having lacklustre resources in place.
You'd be surprised how many see their knowledge as their property. When it comes to shaping or enhancing a culture you can't be greedy. Remember, culture goes beyond what happens under your roof. If you can influence a sector and community, you can tap into that wealth of experience and insight to further your own value.
Writing isn't a talent reserved for a special few, with the right knowledge and context anyone can create functional content. This doesn't mean the copywriter (me) becomes replaceable, it just means that there's a more succinct understanding of meaning, messages and audience experiences out there in the world. Feed into the 'good content' community, share your resources and expertise with fellow studios, industries, employees and all.
Personal and then internal.
As an advocate, get personal with the content cause. Practice what you preach on a personal level before you try to roll it out across a team. Do you as an individual have a blog where you speak honestly and passionately about this subject? Do you go out of your way to really get to grips with new ways to inject content's importance into your culture? Do you network with other writers, agencies, creatives in the same boat? If you can illustrate a passion and conviction personally then you can breed more enthusiasm when it comes to introducing it internally.
Feedback training.
How do your team engage with content? Do they know what makes content relevant and effective? Content needs to be critiqued, reviewed, edited, adapted on a loop and this doesn't need to/shouldn't be the responsibility of one sole person. Train your team on how to study and improve content. Show them what usable content feedback looks like and actively illustrate how those changes are implemented. Offering feedback shouldn't be an exclusive task, everyone on your team should engage with as much content as possible.
Essentially it's about educating and empowering. Make content a consistent deliverable across the team board. Learning as a group is the best way to really advocate that change, be open and tell your fellow students that this will be a long-term culture project.


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As of right now, Tea-rrific! Ice Cream has seven flavors that are available throughout the Midwest, Northeast and parts of the Mid-Atlantic in major retailers like Whole Foods and Shoprite. The different flavors available are: ginger matcha, masala chai, matcha green tea, chamomile, London mist, chunky London mist and lavender's blueberry.
Tea-rrific! Ice Cream founder and president, Mario Leite said, "Consumers are looking for new flavor experiences and there is a strong trend in floral, savory and tea-infused foods." He also added, "I could see chai taking over the mantle of salted caramel as the new hot flavor in the ice cream market."


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November 20, 2008
This week on Smart City we talk to two people who want you to get out and get to know your neighborhood. Shawn Micallef is an editor with Spacing magazine. Spacing is an innovative publication about public space in Toronto. Shawn will tell us about Toronto's unique city structure, and how he wants to turn city planners into rock stars.
And we'll speak with Mark Hinshaw, architect and author of the book True Urbanism. In it, Mark describes how to create neighborhoods, what you need to sustain a small business, and replaces the clean lines of New Urbanism with the messy vitality of "True Urbanism."
Plus, a special treat this week: We'll hear a piece from the fictional urbanism of The City Desk.
Themes: Arts and Culture Sustainability Economic Development
Charter Schools and Eating Locally
This week on Smart City: Both Barack Obama and John McCain embrace…
Tall Buildings and Public Spaces
This week on Smart City: Public space is important in both cities…
Architecture and Design
Veolia Survey and The Vine
Building smarter, more humane cities is the aim of all of our…
Language, Race, and Taxis
Barack Obama's candidacy has raised a host of issues surrounding…


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Reporters on the Job
• The Militia Way of Advertising: The sheer number of billboards in the center of Basra paying tribute to Mahdi Army fighters killed in fighting the British was, for correspondent Sam Dagher, sufficient evidence of their influence in the city (see story). "You see the billboards in busy public squares, in front of government buildings, and next to police checkpoints," Sam says. One even replaced the Lion of Babylon, a landmark statute in the historic center, Ashar, that was blown up by militias a month ago because it was considered idolatrous, according to a strict interpretation of Islam.
Sam notes that some were simple and slick, showing images of the "martyrs" clutching machine guns next to an image of militia leader Moqtada al-Sadr. "Others went a bit overboard with too many images, like the one showing a masked fighter, Imam Hussein on a horse and brandishing a sword, images of Sadr and his father, Muhammad Sadeq al-Sadr, a group of 'martyrs,' and images of tropical birds holding red roses fluttering overhead."
• Almost Like Crickets Chirping: The Lebanese residents living around the Nahr al-Bared camp have grown accustomed to the sound of explosions and shooting over the past three months, says correspondent Nicholas Blanford (see story). "Although the intensity of the fighting has died down, Fatah al-Islam militants still fire rockets into areas surrounding the camp, and local residents still have to avoid sporadic sniper fire," he notes. "Everyone I spoke to said they were glad that the battle was almost over and hoped that Fatah al-Islam would be crushed. The one exception was an old man. 'I have gotten used to falling asleep at night with the sound of shelling,' he lamented, adding that the silence when it was over would be unbearable," Nick says.
– Amelia Newcomb
Deputy World editor


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Saturday, October 20, 2018
DCP Thanks Triangle Owner for Donation and Continued Support
For quite a few years now local property and business owner (The Triangle Dance Club), Kelly Wilson, has allowed the Park District to park their Prairie Days visitors in their parking areas for free. The Park District then contracts the Greenville Transit to shuttle people to the Prairie Days event. Park District Director, Roger Van Frank stated, "Without this assistance the Park District would never be able to serve such large numbers of people at this very popular event as our parking is so limited at Shawnee Prairie Preserve." The Darke County Park District would like to thank Kelly Wilson for the Triangle's gracious donation and their long-time continued support of the community!
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Thinking of applying for law?
Universities don't usually require law applicants to have studied particular subjects. If applying to study law then it's a good idea to choose at least one subject which involves essay-writing, as universities will be looking for evidence of strong writing skills such as English literature, history or government and politics.
• Some law courses require applicants to take an admissions test:
o There are 8 universities which require applicants to take the LNAT. The LNAT is an aptitude test, designed to test not your educational achievement but to test relevant skills. Although it is an aptitude test it is still helpful to practice. Practice tests can be found at: http://www.lnat.ac.uk/lnat-preparation/practice-tests.aspx. You cannot register for the LNAT until you've completed your UCAS application. You should check with universities to find out their individual LNAT deadlines, and then register for the LNAT as soon as possible
o Cambridge university requires prospective law students to sit the Cambridge Law Test. Specimen questions can be found on the website: http://www.law.cam.ac.uk/admissions/cambridge-law-test-specimen-questions.php
How can I start making sure I'm prepared to make an application for law?
• Spend a morning or day at the local Magistrates' Court
• Visit the Old Bailey
• Get work experience with a solicitor and/or barrister if you can
• Get involved in public speaking & debating and mock trial competitions such as MUN.
• There are 2 radio programmes that are very good & and available as podcasts on iPlayer –Law in Action & Unreliable Evidence.
• Suggested (non-exhaustive) reading list:
o The Justice Game - Robertson
o Getting into Law - Lygo(ed.)
o The Search for Justice - Rozenburg
o Understanding Law - Adams & Brownsword
o Law & Modern Society - Atiyah
o On Evidence - Murphy
o The Rule of Law - Bingham
o Bonfire of the Liberties : New Labour, Human Rights - Ewing
Interviews for Law
• Most universities don't interview for law, although a few do. If you do have to attend an interview as part of the application process then it is likely to be a competency-based interview. This means that it won't be aiming to assess your legal knowledge, but rather the skills needed to study law (such as your analytical skills and your ability to reason)
Want to find out some more?
• www.lawstudent.tv
• www.lawcom.gov.uk
• There are some great TED videos on law: http://www.ted.com/topics/law


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Daina Mike Me 3 dogs
Last minute decision to go somewhere during our 5 day Staycation. We have seen this campground in Long creek SC advertised on facebook. We decided to give it a try and do some waterfalls on Sunday. We called Daina and she was game. We picked her up in Clemson around 3:30. Long creek is about 40 minutes from her.
We have been to Long Creek many times for music and a sorority event. It's in Oconee County and there are 30 or so waterfalls around here.
We pull in to the campground. On one side of the street is RV sites and on the other tent sites. Their tent sites have a raised shelter at them that you can camp in. We picked a site not far from the bathhouse. We didn't have any neighbors.
Mike set his tent and chair in the shelter. I got the car emptied and ready to sleep in. This campground has park at sites, walk-in sites, group sites. Some with Shelters some without. It also has a kitchen area, band stage, ropes course, fitness trail, horse shoes and sparking clean bathrooms. They will even shuttle you to whitewater on the Chattooga River.
The campsite has a picnic table and a big fire pit.
We made a fire, cooked some hotdogs and just chilled. Just up the hill is the Chatooga Belle. It is an awesome venue that has beautiful views, a distillery, restaurant, apple, peach and grapes growing. Daina's sorority had a parent cocktail there last year. Daina and I decided to go there and wIt for the sunset. It was closed but they allow foot traffic.
We didn't wait for the sunset and went back to the camp. The owner came by to say hi. He said that these orange mushrooms were good to eat. They were everywhere. Of course Mike had to cook some. He put them in some butter and heated them over the fire. He said they were pretty good. He never did start tripping so I guess they were fine!
I brought a bottle of wine. I didn't have an opener so I walked around the RV site and found a nice couple from Jacksonville who had one. We didn't have glasses either so we drank it from plastic water bottles!
Then Daina made us s'mores.
Daina and I turned in around 10. Mike sat up at the fire. It was the longest night. Daina and i were car camping at first. I thought it would be more comfortable than a tent in the shelter. Nope. It was warm. These 3 dogs made it hard to sleep. Riley was panting super hard so I moved him to mikes tent and traded him for cooper and tucker. I tossed and turned and went in the tent then I got up early started a fire and tried to sleep in the chair.
In the morning we broke down camp and headed to Riley Moore Falls. It's a 2 mile walk most of which is down a rough dirt road. Instead of parking at the top I drove down this road. It was a bit hairy but I made it to the bottom! From here it's less than a mile. We got the dogs our packs and towels and headed down. This is a great swimming hole. When we got there 2 people were leaving that camped out and 2 older people were down there. For a bit we had it all to ourselves. The dogs loved it!
Riley loves the water and was swimming out there! Cooper chased the ball. They had a blast. People started showing up. I'm sure it gets pretty crowded here.
We decided to pack up and go to opossum falls which is on my challenge list. It was a 5 mile hike. Mike said he'd wait for us but that would be a couple hours so we decided to go to Chau Ram Falls. It's was a beautiful park on the Chang's River. There were lots of people near the Falls.
Then there are a couple loop trails that go along the river. This park had a campground, lots of secluded picnic areas. It was nice! There was a suspension bridge and a beach.
We walked the dogs along the river. It was a nice rocky river.
We started up the trail and it went up! Mike and tucker went back the other way. I didn't realize there was so much elevation in the middle. It took Daina and me forever to get to the top! We met Mike back at the bridge.
We decided to go back to the car and take Daina back to Clemson and head home. That was a 24 hour trip. The Long Creek area is so nice! We had a great 24 hours!


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I'm not quite feeling myself these days with writing or blogging. I made a promise (to myself)to post and to write something every single day but that's not happened for several days. Essentially my brain has wandered off and taken my motivation with it!
Consider the 30 day challenge a fail as I have no desire to go back to it and it was probably a bit unrealistic to do with only a couple of hours to spare in the evenings.
I hate knowing my thinking, my drive has changed and hopefully it'll only be a temporary thing but I just wanted to update you as there's been no activity on my blog for a couple of days which isn't like me at all.
Keep on writing readers, will check in again soon.


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Logline: Human First Contact with aliens manifests as genocide on the colony planet Vapor. Throughher ingenuity, intellect and more than a little smart-assery Vapor's heroine switches from blade fighter to railgunner and leads the resistance to victory.
Genre: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Narrator: Allison Kampf
Dylan: Esther Teeboo
Ernesto: Manny Pacheco
Emma: Val Cole
Zophar: Gary Wheeler
Businesswoman: Danielle Nicole
Richard: Geoff Mays
Visual Design & Editor: Kimberly Villarruel
Produced by Matthew Toffolo


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KELVIN® believes the virtual world should not take over a student's need to learn to use hand tools to cut and drill the material used for construction.
Using KELVIN®'s Beams and Triangles™ System students plan, design, construct, measure and test their products. Construct designed houses, vehicles or other type of structures. In addition they saw, glue, drill and build their working models from wood beams, triangles wheels and glue. Advanced students can motorize prototypes with motors and batteries. Learning connections are made through mathematics science, research design, construction and manufacturing processes. No Computer Required.


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I have been helping people in Tucson buy and sell homes since 1988. University of Arizona Graduate. Licensed Associate Broker and former part-time Community Education Instructor at Pima College. I enjoyed teaching home buying and home selling classes there for years. Tucson resident since 1979. Specially trained in Corporate Relocation and Buyers Representation. Rigorous coursework completed to become a Certified Residential Specialist, a designation obtained by only 3% of licensed real estate professionals nationwide. My main focus is to look out for your best interest when buying or selling a Tucson property. Please review my testimonials below. I am anxious to serve you!
Warmly, Jeffrey Zimet Long Realty Company


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tribute to beverly sills
- the fans and the lines outside
Dr. Nancy Guy, professor of ethnomusicology at the University of California San Diego, flew from the West Coast to attend the Sills Tribute at the Met. She joined the ticket line outside at 6 am (for the 12 noon ticket distribution), documenting the experience in photographs while she waited. We thank Nancy for her permission to share these photos.
For more about Nancy, click here
For more about Nancy, click here


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My introduction to Jane Austen didn't occur until I was an adult. Even my husband had read Pride and Prejudice before I had. It was a different story for my two older girls. When JJ was about 12 years old, she was bemoaning the fact that there was nothing to read, even though we have wall to wall books, and Dad, upon hearing this, suggested she read Pride and Prejudice. She wasn't keen at first because the title suggested to her some sort of morality tale about avoiding pride but my husband set her right and told her it was one of his favourite books.
Zana was fortunate in that the BBC production of Pride & Prejudice came out when she was at an age to enjoy it and that was her first introduction to Jane Austen.
I probably have good reason to dislike this movie. A number of years ago six of our seven children became sick with chicken pox. I was house bound for about six weeks by the time it went through everyone. The 13 and 15 year olds were absolutely miserable and one night Zana, the younger one, came out of her room crying because she felt so terrible. We were just about to go to bed and I didn't know what to do with her, until Dad suggested that I watch P & P with her to help take her mind off her misery. Six hours later, I felt disgusting but Zana was a bit better so we both went to bed.
When she was about 14 years old I discovered Presenting Miss Jane Austen by May Lamberton Becker, which was originally written in 1952 and re-published by Bethlehem Books in 2006. By this time she'd read and re-read just about everything Jane Austen had written but this biography, written for ages 12 and up, was another link to Jane Austen's world and she found it very interesting and enjoyable.
Miss Becker's biography gives us a lively and intimate account of Jane's childhood, her closely knit family and the literary atmosphere that enveloped them and which was such an influential part of her life.
Through poetry new and old Jane's father guided her reading; better still, he read aloud to the family – history, travel books, lively essays…
The whole family read The Vicar of Wakefield…whose people were spoken of in the family as if they lived just around the corner – as Miss Jane Austen's people are spoken of now.
Quotations from Jane Austen's correspondence with her beloved sister Cassandra and other family members give us an insight into her personal life and the background that formed the fabric for her novels. Her immediate family were as familiar with the various characters in her writing as though they had been real people.
For the people in this blessed book did not come to life on the first page and dissolve on the last. They were alive before Chapter One, and they went on living after the book left them, and Jane knew very well what they were doing, before and after. She knew what Mr. Collins was like in his clumsy school days, long before he made his pompous, peerless proposal to Elizabeth, and where he had picked up, on the way towards the patronage of Lady Catherine de Bourgh, that, "mixture of pride and obsequiousness, self-importance and humility" that makes him so great a comic character. I am convinced that she knew what Lady Catherine de Bourgh looked like in her perambulation, though she spares us that grim sight.
No one outside of her family knew of her writing ability, let alone that she had already published a book, until her brother let the cat out of the bag and her secret was uncovered. Her nephew, James Edward who had read and enjoyed the earlier novels, unaware that his Aunt was the author, wrote to her when the secret was revealed:
No words can express, my dear Aunt, my surprise
Or make you conceive how I opened my eyes,
Like a pig Butcher Pile has just struck with his knife,
When I heard for the very first time in my life
That I had the honour to have a relation
Whose works were dispersed through the whole of the nation.
This book is a perfect introduction for anyone who is interested in Jane Austen's background whether they've read her novels or not. The age 12 recommendation is certainly suitable content wise but some children might enjoy it more when they are around 14 years of age and have a bit more maturity to appreciate the minutiae the author includes.


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Me: Up ahead we'll need to turn right.
My Pete: Turn right? Up ahead?
Me: Yep.
My Pete: Is it the real right?
Me: Ummm…. noooo? No, it's left. It's the real left.
My Pete: So up ahead we'll need to turn left?
Me: Yep.
We have successfully navigated over 2500km from our home in Townsville to Canberra, our nation's capital. We have a week of exploring here. Ashy will join us in a few days. It feels like ages since we saw her!


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What are the benefits of distance learning?
Have you heard about the benefits of distance learning?
It'd be surprising if you hadn't, as distance learning is becoming more and more popular in recent times.
And it's no surprise with the amount of benefits that it provides.
Let's start with the basics:
What is distance learning?
If you don't know, you're not alone. There are a few people who aren't familiar with distance learning; people that we still need to try to convert.
Distance learning means undertaking and engaging with a course, studies or class from home. Instead of attending classes or lectures at a bricks and mortar college, all materials are provided by an establishment and sent directly to you.
What are the benefits of distance learning?
Well… where do we start?
- Flexible timetable
As you learn from home, you are in control of your own learning hours. Choose when and where you wish to study and at a pace that suits you.
- Award-winning tutor support
You will be provided with one of our tutors to support you through your study journey to ensure you make the most of your studies. This includes our award-winning bookkeeping tutor, Caroline Wren.
- Recognised qualifications
Some of the courses we offer are provided by recognised organisations that employers will love; such as CACHE, Active IQ, A Levels and GCSEs (and yes, they are the same as the ones you would study in school!) We even offer university level courses!
- Range of courses
With over 450 courses there is something for everyone. Our courses range from Beauty Therapy and Child Care to Accounting and Business. In addition, there are various levels and certifications to suit your career needs.
- Great value for money
With distance learning, all you pay for is the course. There are no added fees to cover the cost of establishment hire, and you don't need to worry about travel costs. PLUS, from time to time we offer great discounts on some of our courses to save you even more pennies!
So, if that's not enough to convince you, why not call our Student Adviser team on 03300 563100.
But if you're already sold, head over to our website to see which course is perfect for you.
Interested in our courses?
Use the search box below to find your course.


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This post was co-authored by Lucía Oliva Hennelly, EDF's Tom Graff Diversity fellow, Rachel Shaffer, EDF's Research Assistant, and Declan Kingland, National Health Programs Coordinator for the League of United Latin American Citizens.
Today in the United States, Latinos are three times more likely to die from asthma than other racial or ethnic groups. Latino children are 40 percent more likely to die from asthma than non-Latino whites, and nearly 1 in 10 Latino children under the age of 18 suffer from this chronic respiratory illness. Addressing the dangerous indoor and outdoor air pollution that is linked to asthma is critical for the health of Latino communities – and for all Americans.
Latinos are one of the poorest demographics in the United States, with roughly 1 in 4 Latinos living under the poverty level. Many Latinos also face challenges due to limited English-language proficiency, and in some cases, low levels of education. These issues can lead Latinos, particularly new immigrants, to low-paying jobs, often in the fields of agriculture, construction, and service. Too often, these jobs expose workers to serious respiratory hazards from both indoor and outdoor air pollution, yet they frequently provide no healthcare benefits. For example, the toxic chemical formaldehyde, which is linked to asthma, can be found in glues, insulation, and wood products to which construction workers are disproportionately exposed. Asthma-related toxics can also be found in paints, cleaning products, carpets, and foam cushions. Read More


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In the art and writing community and beyond, October heralds the beginning of a lot of fun challenges. There's Inktober, where you make an ink drawing every day of October. There's Goretober, where you write or draw something that follows the daily gory themes. Then there's 31 for 31, where you commit to watching a horror... Continue Reading →
Cishet Boy: a poem
If you don't tell me what women are like, I won't tell you about men. It isn't that you're good "even though you're male," and I don't date you "even though you're straight." I date you because you're just plain good. Braver than me, kinder than them. Can't we hold hands - can't I say... Continue Reading →
3 Best Books I Read This Summer
With summer comes lazy, hot evenings. And with lazy, hot evenings, comes books. Lots of books. I didn't read a crazy amount this summer, but I did read enough to pick a few favorites. And boy are these favorites worth the read. The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub The Talisman is a story... Continue Reading →


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For some reason, I felt compelled over the last few days to see if I could make sense of Romans 9 – 11. I'm not sure I've ever taught those chapters. It's hard to get to, much less past, Romans 8 in a 13-week series. And in the Churches of Christ, there's not been much demand for lessons on those famously challenging chapters.
But as I've been studying New Perspective theology and narrative hermeneutics, and have gotten more into the prophets, I thought it might be time to take a fresh look. Besides, there's a fresh movement to old-school, 5-points Calvinism among the Baptists, being led by John Piper, with some bleed over in the Churches of Christ, and Romans 9 – 11 is a central proof text — for both sides. Well, when both sides are claiming the same text, it's time to wonder if both sides might have gotten it wrong.
I am an avid reader of John Piper. In fact, I have countless books by Calvinists who've taught me a lot about the Bible and God. But I'm no Calvinist. On the other hand, I'm not necessarily committed to the antitheses of the five points of Calvinsm.
I'm neither Calvinist nor Arminian. But if I had to pick, I'd have to choose Arminianism. (I'll define these terms in a bit.) But I don't have to pick.
I actually have some sympathy for the Calvinist position. The Calvinist verses are in the Bible and have to be dealt with. But so are the Arminian and Semi-Pelagian verses. And I don't think the Calvinist position adequately deals with the totality of the scriptures. But, then, neither does traditional Church of Christ teaching. I'm not sure that traditional Arminianism does either.
To have an intelligent conversation about Calvinism, we have to cover some definitions that aren't usually covered in Church of Christ Bible classes. I do apologize for these, but before discussing Calvinism, we have to know what Calvinism is. And it's a theology built on long words. I'll try not to use these unless I have to. Maybe I won't use some of these at all — but it'll be nice having them available if I need them.
"Calvinist" refers to those who are intellectual descendants of John Calvin, one of the founders of the Reformed Church. Calvin worked in Geneva, Switzerland and was a contemporary of Martin Luther. One of his disciples was John Knox, who founded the Presbyterian Church, in Scotland. Many denominations follow some or all of his teachings.
"TULIP" or "five-points Calvinism" refers to the five points of Calvinist atonement theology that are often disputed by others. These are —
- Total Depravity.
- Unconditional Election.
- Limited Atonement.
- Irresistible Grace.
- Perseverance of the Saint.
Here are the definitions according to John Piper. Piper is a Baptist minister pushing his denomination toward 5-points Calvinism, known in many circles as neo-Puritanism, as his theology is very similar to that of Jonathan Edwards — famous for his "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" sermon (which is not nearly as bad as the title would seem to imply. Edwards actually played a major role in the First Great Awakening).
"Total Depravity" means —
In summary, total depravity means that our rebellion against God is total, everything we do in this rebellion is sin, our inability to submit to God or reform ourselves is total, and we are therefore totally deserving of eternal punishment.
Now even traditional Church of Christ teaching would largely agree with this, even though the Churches of Christ are about as far from TULIP as possible. The difference is that Calvinists are insistent on the phrase "inability to submit to God," so that a non-believer cannot come to faith on his own — even in the presence of great gospel preaching — unless God through the Holy Spirit softens his heart so that he can respond.
"Unconditional Election" means —
Election refers to God's choosing whom to save. It is unconditional in that there is no condition man must meet before God chooses to save him. Man is dead in trespasses and sins. So there is no condition he can meet before God chooses to save him from his deadness.
We are not saying that final salvation is unconditional. It is not. We must meet the condition of faith in Christ in order to inherit eternal life. But faith is not a condition for election. Just the reverse. Election is a condition for faith. It is because God chose us before the foundation of the world that he purchases our redemption at the cross and quickens us with irresistible grace and brings us to faith.
Contrary to Church of Christ and Arminian teaching, faith only comes to the elect. That is, election precedes faith. One cannot choose to believe and so become elect.
"Limited Atonement" means —
In other words if you believe that Christ died for all men in the same way, then the benefits of the cross cannot include the mercy by which we are brought to faith, because then all men would be brought to faith, but they aren't. But if the mercy by which we are brought to faith (irresistible grace) is not part of what Christ purchased on the cross, then we are left to save ourselves from the bondage of sin, the hardness of heart, the blindness of corruption, and the wrath of God.
Therefore it becomes evident that it is not the Calvinist who limits the atonement. It is the Arminian, because he denies that the atoning death of Christ accomplishes what we most desperately need—namely, salvation from the condition of deadness and hardness and blindness under the wrath of God. The Arminian limits the nature and value and effectiveness of the atonement so that he can say that it was accomplished even for those who die in unbelief and are condemned. In order to say that Christ died for all men in the same way, the Arminian must limit the atonement to a powerless opportunity for men to save themselves from their terrible plight of depravity.
On the other hand we do not limit the power and effectiveness of the atonement. We simply say that in the cross God had in view the actual redemption of his children. And we affirm that when Christ died for these, he did not just create the opportunity for them to save themselves, but really purchased for them all that was necessary to get them saved, including the grace of regeneration and the gift of faith.
I quote at length because the doctrine of limited atonement is where Calvinists and others often part ways. Yes, Jesus' death was only effective to redeem those with faith. The Calvinist says this is because God only elected a few, moved them by the Spirit, irresistibly, to have faith, and so saved them. Non-Calvinists say that Jesus died for all who choose to come by faith. The disagreement is therefore often expressed in terms of free will.
Thus, to a Calvinist God is entirely successful in saving all whom he intends to save. To a non-Calvinist, God wishes that all would be saved but most refuse the invitation as a matter of free will choice.
"Irresistible Grace" means —
More specifically irresistible grace refers to the sovereign work of God to overcome the rebellion of our heart and bring us to faith in Christ so that we can be saved. If our doctrine of total depravity is true, there can be no salvation without the reality of irresistible grace. If we are dead in our sins, totally unable to submit to God, then we will never believe in Christ unless God overcomes our rebellion.
Thus, to be saved, an individual cannot overcome his depravity on his own. Only God can do that through his Holy Spirit. If someone is among the elect, the Spirit will irresistibly change his heart so that he can and in fact will come to faith. He cannot not come to faith. If he is not among the elect, he cannot come to faith.
To a non-Calvinist, grace is resistible.
"Perseverance of the Saints" means —
It follows from what was just said that the people of God WILL persevere to the end and not be lost. The foreknown are predestined, the predestined are called, the called are justified, and the justified are glorified. No one is lost from this group. To belong to this people is to be eternally secure.
But we mean more than this by the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. We mean that the saints will and must persevere in the obedience which comes from faith. Election is unconditional, but glorification is not. There are many warnings in Scripture that those who do not hold fast to Christ can be lost in the end. …
There is a falling away of some believers, but if it persists, it shows that their faith was not genuine and they were not born of God.
(emphasis in original). Therefore, to a non-Calvinist, someone can be saved and then fall away — of his own free will. To a Calvinist, this is impossible, those who fall away were never really saved.
An "Arminian" is an intellectual descendent of Jacob Arminius, who challeged the last four points of Calvinism, but not the first. He taught T, not TULIP. In other words, a classic Arminian teaches that no one can come to faith without the influence of the Spirit to open the convert's heart to the gospel (called "prevenient grace"). An Arminian teaches that the potential convert can, as a matter of free will, accept or reject the gospel once the Spirit has opened his heart to the preaching of the word.
In contemporary usage, however, "Arminian" is often used of those who reject all 5 points of Calvinism. However, a Calvinist would refer to someone who rejects T as well as ULIP as "Semi-pelagian," as "Pelagianism" is a works based salvation, which is considered heresy by most. To many Calvinists, the idea of even having a choice is perceived as a "work of the law" and thus heresy, and so "Semi-pelagian" sometimes means "damned because you're just as works-based as a Pelagian."
The Churches of Christ have historically been Semi-Pelagian, because, going back to Alexander Campbell, we've denied the necessity for the direct operation of the Spirit prior to baptism, asserting that God works on the convert solely through the word.
The Churches of Christ have never been Pelagians, but some are three-quarters Pelagian, because they teach salvation by grace plus works — especially those who would require a doctrinally pure worship service and church organization as a condition to salvation. None deny the necessity for some grace; rather, many deny that grace is sufficient to cover certain doctrinal errors that define Churches of Christ in contrast to "the denominations."
Will God save both Calvinists and Arminians — even Semi-Pelagians? Yes. The doctrine of grace is essential, but all these fancy terms and complex definitions are not required to go to heaven or to be a good Christian. Indeed, Alexander Campbell was on to something when he counseled us to never divide on "opinions" or "inferences," and all this fits squarely in the inference camp. We have no business dividing over such things.
But when we discuss what the Bible says about election, it's helpful to know this background. On the other hand, when we turn to the scriptures, we should put this stuff out of our minds. Paul did not write Romans to resolve the Calvinist/Arminian controversy. He had other concerns in mind, and we should read in light of Paul's concerns, not ours. Only then can we address our own concerns.