text: Personalised Silver Plectrum Key Ring by IndiviJewels £90$155.85€106.19$119.31 Made to order £6.95$12.03€8.20$9.21 delivery to United States Receive this item 5-10 working days from dispatch International delivery available Favourite Favourite View your favourites front plectrum message (required) message on reversemessage on reverse (required)Yes (please enter message in box below)No (please proceed to checkout)message on reverse (required)Yes (please enter message in box below)No (please proceed to checkout)message on reverse (required)Yes (please enter message in box below)No (please proceed to checkout)message on reverse (required)Yes (please enter message in box below)No (please proceed to checkout) reverse plectrum message quantity by IndiviJewels Location: Leicestershire, GB read seller's profile see seller's complete range more items from this seller Personalised Silver Collar Stiffeners by IndiviJewels £75$129.87€88.49$99.42 Personalised Silver 'Love Daddy' Cufflinks by IndiviJewels £75$129.87€88.49$99.42 Handmade Personalised Silver Cufflinks by IndiviJewels £75$129.87€88.49$99.42 Personalised Silver Secret Heart Necklace by IndiviJewels £75$129.87€88.49$99.42 Personalised Silver 'Love You' Heart Necklace by IndiviJewels £55$95.24€64.89$72.91 Personalised Silver Heart Key Ring by IndiviJewels £95$164.51€112.09$125.94 view all you may also like PRODUCT DETAILS DELIVERY RETURNS Made in Britain can be personalised ask seller a question save for later Unique personalised handmade sterling silver plectrum key ring, Give Dad a wonderful keepsake he can take everywhere and cherish those family memories. A sterling silver plectrum will be etched with the message of your choice in a child's writing font which is perfect for messages from little ones to their daddy/dad. The silver plectrum is suspended from a gorgeous solid silver screw type key fitting. Each plectrum is cut out by hand, skillfully etched and hand polished to make this a truely unique British made gift. The silver plectrum key ring will be handmade in the UK especially for you and beautifully wrapped in tissue paper and packaged in an IndiviJewels gift bag. Messages up to 40 characters (which includes spaces) can be accomodated on the silver plectrum and we will add the music notes as shown on the product images unless you request otherwise. All our pieces are designed and made to order in our workshop so if you would like a custom design made or a little change to this design then please just contact us and we will see what we can do for you. * PLEASE NOTE * The key fob is made of sterling silver and is a soft metal so please be aware that you do not have to over tighten the screw lock as it may damage the system. All Key fobs are tested before being sent out. made from: All components of this keyring are sterling silver. dimensions: The plectrum measures 4cm in length and is approximately 3cm at It's widest point and is 1mm thick. product code: 176326 This product is dispatched to you by IndiviJewels. MAINLAND UK order now and receive this item by price Free Delivery Thursday 8 September FREEFREEFREEFREE NON-MAINLAND UK estimated delivery price Highlands & Islands of Scotland 2-5 working daysfrom dispatch FREEFREEFREEFREE Northern Ireland 2-5 working daysfrom dispatch FREEFREEFREEFREE Other UK Islands 2-5 working daysfrom dispatch FREEFREEFREEFREE INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY estimated delivery price Western Europe 2-5 working daysfrom dispatch £5.00$8.65€5.89$6.62 Rest of Europe 5-10 working daysfrom dispatch £5.00$8.65€5.89$6.62 USA & Canada 5-10 working daysfrom dispatch £6.95$12.03€8.20$9.21 Asia & Australasia 5-10 working daysfrom dispatch £7.25$12.55€8.55$9.61 Rest of the world 5-14 working daysfrom dispatch £7.25$12.55€8.55$9.61 You have 28 days, from receipt of cancellable goods, to notify the seller if you wish to cancel your order or exchange an item. Please note: goods that are personalised, bespoke or made-to-order to your specific requirements, perishable products and personal items sold with a hygiene seal (cosmetics, underwear) in instances where the seal is broken are non-refundable, unless faulty. Read more about our returns policy.Should you choose to return or exchange your order you will need to deliver the item(s) to the UK, where this seller is based. IndiviJewels's return policy Please see notonthehighstreet.com's returns policy.


text:
Posts in this category
- The Fun of Running a Public Web Service, and Session Storage
- CPAN Pull Request Challenge: A call to the CPAN authors
- Iron Man Challenge - Am I a Stone Man?
- Correctness in Computer Programs and Mathematical Proofs
- Why Design By Contract Does Not Replace a Test Suite
- Doubt and Confidence
- Fun and No-Fun with SVG
- Goodby Iron Man
- Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
- Introducing my new project: Quelology organizes books
- iPod nano 5g on linux -- works!
- Keep it stupid, stupid!
- My Diploma Thesis: Spin Transport in Mesoscopic Systems
- Why is my /tmp/ directory suddenly only 1MB big?
Thu, 01 Jan 2015
CPAN Pull Request Challenge: A call to the CPAN authors
Permanent link
The 2015 CPAN Pull Request Challenge is ramping up, and so far nearly two hundred volunteers have signed up, pledging to make one pull request for a CPAN distribution for each month of the year.
So here's a call to the all the CPAN authors: please be supportive, and if you
don't like for your CPAN distributions to be part of the challenge, please
send an email to
neil at bowers dot com, stating your PAUSE ID and the fact
that you want to be excluded.
How to be supportive? The first step is to act on pull requests. If you don't have time for a review, please say so; getting some response, even if it's "it'll be some time 'till I get around to reviewing this" is much better than none.
The volunteers have varied backgrounds; some are seasoned veterans, others are beginners who will make their first contribution to Open Source. So please be patient and encouraging.
If you have specific requirements for contributions, add a file called CONTRIBUTING or CONTRIBUTING.md to your github repositories where you state those requirements.
And of course, be civil. But that goes without saying, right? :-)
(And to those CPAN authors who haven't done it yet: put your distributions on github, so that you're not left out of the fun!
Happy New Year everybody, and have a great deal of fun!
Sat, 15 Feb 2014
The Fun of Running a Public Web Service, and Session Storage
Permanent link
One of my websites, Sudokugarden, recently surged in traffic, from about 30k visitors per month to more than 100k visitors per month. Here's the tale of what that meant for the server side.
As a bit of background, I built the website in 2007, when I knew a lot less about the web and programming. It runs on a host that I share with a few friends; I don't have root access on that machine, though when the admin is available, I can generally ask him to install stuff for me.
Most parts of the websites are built as static HTML files, with Server Side Includes. Parts of those SSIs are Perl CGI scripts. The most popular part though, which allows you to solve Sudoku in the browser and keeps hiscores, is written as a collection of Perl scripts, backed by a mysql database.
When at peak times the site had more than 10k visitors a day, lots of
visitors would get a nasty
mysql: Cannot connect: Too many open
connections error. The admin wasn't available for bumping the
connection limit, so I looked for other solutions.
My first action was to check the logs for spammers and crawlers that might hammered the page, and I found and banned some; but the bulk of the traffic looked completely legitimate, and the problem persisted.
Looking at the seven year old code, I realized that most pages didn't actually need a database connection, if only I could remove the session storage from the database. And, in fact, I could. I used CGI::Session, which has pluggable backend. Switching to a file-based session backend was just a matter of changing the connection string and adding a directory for session storage. Luckily the code was clean enough that this only affected a single subroutine. Everything was fine.
For a while.
Then, about a month later, the host ran out of free disk space. Since it is used for other stuff too (like email, and web hosting for other users) it took me a while to make the connection to the file-based session storage. What happened was 3 million session files on a ext3 file system with a block size of 4 kilobyte. A session is only about 400 byte, but since a file uses up a multiple of the block size, the session storage amounted to 12 gigabyte of used-up disk space, which was all that was left on that machine.
Deleting those sessions turned out to be a problem; I could only log in as
my own user, which doesn't have write access to the session files (which are
owned by
www-data, the Apache user). The solution was to upload a
CGI script that deleted the session, but of course that wasn't possible at
first, because the disk was full. In the end I had to delete several gigabyte
of data from my home directory before I could upload anything again.
(Processes running as root were still writing to reserved-to-root portions of
the file system, which is why I had to delete so much data before I was able
to write again).
Even when I was able to upload the deletion script, it took quite some time to actually delete the session files; mostly because the directory was too large, and deleting files on ext3 is slow. When the files were gone, the empty session directory still used up 200MB of disk space, because the directory index doesn't shrink on file deletion.
Clearly a better solution to session storage was needed. But first I investigated where all those sessions came from, and banned a few spamming IPs. I also changed the code to only create sessions when somebody logs in, not give every visitor a session from the start.
My next attempt was to write the sessions to an SQLite database. It uses about 400 bytes per session (plus a fixed overhead for the db file itself), so it uses only a tenth of storage space that the file-based storage used. The SQLite database has no connection limit, though the old-ish version that was installed on the server doesn't seem to have very fine-grained locking either; within a few days I could errors that the session database was locked.
So I added another layer of workaround: creating a separate session database per leading IP octet. So now there are up to 255 separate session database (plus a 256th for all IPv6 addresses; a decision that will have to be revised when IPv6 usage rises). After a few days of operation, it seems that this setup works well enough. But suspicious as I am, I'll continue monitoring both disk usage and errors from Apache.
So, what happens if this solution fails to work out? I can see basically two approaches: move the site to a server that's fully under my control, and use redis or memcached for session storage; or implement sessions with signed cookies that are stored purely on the client side.
Mon, 31 Dec 2012
iPod nano 5g on linux -- works!
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For Christmas I got an iPod nano (5th generation). Since I use only Linux on my home computers, I searched the Internet for how well it is supported by Linux-based tools. The results looked bleak, but they were mostly from 2009.
Now (December 2012) on my Debian/Wheezy system, it just worked.
The iPod nano 5g presents itself as an ordinary USB storage device, which you can mount without problems. However simply copying files on it won't make the iPod show those files in the play lists, because there is some meta data stored on the device that must be updated too.
There are several user-space programs that allow you to import and export music from and to the iPod, and update those meta data files as necessary. The first one I tried, gtkpod 2.1.2, worked fine.
Other user-space programs reputed to work with the iPod are rhythmbox and amarok (which both not only organize but also play music).
Although I don't think anything really depends on some particular versions here (except that you need a new enough version of gtkpod), here is what I used:
- Architecture: amd64
- Linux: 3.2.0-4-amd64 #1 SMP Debian 3.2.35-2
- Userland: Debian GNU/Linux "Wheezy" (currently "testing")
- gtkpod: 2.1.2-1
Thu, 23 Aug 2012
Correctness in Computer Programs and Mathematical Proofs
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While reading On Proof and Progress in Mathematics by Fields Medal winner Bill Thurston (recently deceased I was sorry to hear), I came across this gem:
The standard of correctness and completeness necessary to get a computer program to work at all is a couple of orders of magnitude higher than the mathematical community's standard of valid proofs. Nonetheless, large computer programs, even when they have been very carefully written and very carefully tested, always seem to have bugs.
I noticed that mathematicians are often sloppy about the scope of their symbols. Sometimes they use the same symbol for two different meanings, and you have to guess from context which on is meant.
This kind of sloppiness generally doesn't have an impact on the validity of the ideas that are communicated, as long as it's still understandable to the reader.
I guess on reason is that most mathematical publications still stick to one-letter symbol names, and there aren't that many letters in the alphabets that are generally accepted for usage (Latin, Greek, a few letters from Hebrew). And in the programming world we snort derisively at FORTRAN 77 that limited variable names to a length of 6 characters.
Sun, 26 Jun 2011
Introducing my new project: Quelology organizes books
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For about half a year I've been working on a website called quelology, which collects book series and translations.
It is intended to answer questions of the form: I've now read "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", which is the next book in that series? or What's the name of the French translation of that book?
The website and data mining behind it are written in Perl, and it is based on book meta data by isfdb, amazon and worldcat.
I'm working on importing data from more sources, next up will be the Swedish National Library.
After completing the data mining stage, I'll add an interfaces that allows the visitor to edit the book, series and translations data, so that users can extend the data body.
Tue, 14 Jun 2011
Why is my /tmp/ directory suddenly only 1MB big?
Permanent link
Today I got a really weird error on my Debian "Squeeze" Linux box --
a processes tried to write a temp file, and it complained that there was
No space left on device.
The weird thing is, just yesterday my root parition was full, and I had made about 7GB free space in it.
I checked, there was still plenty of room today. But behold:
$ df -h /tmp/ Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on overflow 1.0M 632K 392K 62% /tmp
So, suddenly my /tmp/ directory was a ram disc with just 1MB of space. And
it didn't show up in
/etc/fstab, so I had no idea what cause
After googling a bit around, I found the likely reason: as a protection against low disc space, some daemon automatically "shadows" the current /tmp/ dir with a ram disc if the the root partition runs out of disc space. Sadly there's no automatic reversion of that process once enough disc space is free again.
To remove the mount, you can say (as root)
umount -l /tmp/
And to permanently disable this feature, use
echo 'MINTMPKB=0' > /etc/default/mountoverflowtmp
Mon, 22 Nov 2010
Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
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What if Harry Potter had been raised by a loving stepmother? What if his stepfather was a scientist? What happens when somebody tries to analyze magic with scientific methods? What happens if an eleven year old boy is too smart for his own good?
A piece of fan fiction, Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality by "Less Wrong" answers those questions - and makes quite a good read. If you are into fantasy books and science, you might really love it. I did.
But be warned: only read this if you've read all seven Harry Potter books by J.K.Rowling, because the fan fiction piece contains lots of spoilers.
So far 60 chapters for varying length have been published, and just a few more to be written before the first year ends. I look forward to the final chapters.
Tue, 08 Dec 2009
Keep it stupid, stupid!
Permanent link
How hard is it to build a good search engine? Very hard. So far I thought that only one company has managed to build a search engine that's not only decent, but good.
Sadly, they seem to have overdone it. Today I searched for tagged dfa. I was looking for a technique used in regex engines. On the front page three out of ten results actually dealt with the subjects, the other uses of dfa meant dog friendly area, department of foreign affairs or other unrelated things.
That's neither bad nor unexpected. But I wanted more specific results, so I decided against using the abbreviation, and searched for the full form: tagged deterministic finite automaton. You'd think that would give better results, no?
No. It gave worse. On the first result page only one of the hits actually dealt with the DFAs I was looking for. Actually the first hit contained none of my search terms. None. It just contained a phrase, which is also sometimes abbreviated dfa.
WTF? Google seemed to have internally converted my query into an ambiguous, abbreviated form, and then used that to find matches, without filtering. So it attempted to be very smart, and came out very stupid.
I doubt that any Google engineer is ever going to read this rant. But if one is: Please, Google, keep it stupid, stupid.
I'm fine with getting automatic suggestions on how to improve my search query; but please don't automatically "improve" it for me. I want to find what I search for. I'm not interested in dog friendly areas.
Sat, 05 Dec 2009
Doubt and Confidence
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<meta>From my useless musings series.</meta>
As a programmer you have to have confidence in your skills, to some extent, and at the same time you have to constantly doubt them. Weird, eh?
You need some level of confidence to do anything efficiently. Planning ahead requires confidence that you can achieve the steps on your way.
As a programmer you also need some confidence with the language, libraries and other tools you're using.
If you program for money, you also have to assess what kind of programs you can write, and where you might have problems.
In the process of programming you make a lot of assumptions, some of the explicit, some of them implicit. If you want to write a good program, it's essential that you are aware of as many assumptions as possible.
When you find a bug in your program, you have to challenge previous assumptions, and that's where doubt comes in. You not only suspect, but you know that at least one of the assumptions was false (or maybe just a bit too specific), and you know that you did something wrong.
Sometimes programmers make really stupid mistakes which are rather tricky to track down. That's when you have to question your own sanity.
One example (that luckily doesn't happen all that often to me) is when I edit my program, and nothing seems to change. Nothing at all. Depending on the setup it might be some cache, but something it is even more devious - for example I didn't notice that the console where I edit and the console where I test are on different hosts - and thus the edits actually have no effect at all.
After having done such a thing once or twice I adopted the habit of just
adding a
die('BOOM'); instruction to my code, to verify that
the part I'm looking at is actually run.
These are moments when I question my own sanity, thinking "how could I have possibly done such a stupid thing?". Doubt.
The same phenomena applies when doing scientific research: since you usually do things that nobody has done before (or at nobody has published about it yet), you can't know the results beforehand -- if you could, your research would be rather boring. So you have no external reference for verification, only your intuition and discussion with peers.
Sat, 10 Oct 2009
Fun and No-Fun with SVG
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Lately I've been playing a lot of with SVG, and all in all I greatly enjoyed it. I wrote some Perl 6 programs that generate graphical output, and being a new programming language it doesn't have many bindings to graphic libraries. Simply emitting a text description of a graphic and then viewing it in the browser is a nice and simple way out.
I also enjoy getting visual feedback from my programs. I'd even more enjoy it if the feedback was more consistent.
I generally test my svg images with three different viewers: Firefox 3.0.6-3, inkscape (or inkview) 0.46-2.lenny2 and Opera 10.00.4585.gcc4.qt3. Often they produce two or more different renderings of the same SVG file.
Consider this seemingly simple SVG file:
<svg width="400" height="250" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:svg="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" style="background-color: white" > <defs> <path id="curve" d="M 20 100 C 60 30 320 30 380 100" style="fill:none; stroke:black; stroke-width: 2" /> </defs> <text font-size="40" textLength="390" > <use xlink:href="#curve" /> <textPath xlink:href="#curve">SPRIXEL</textPath> </text> </svg>
If your browser supports SVG, you can view it directly here.
This SVG file first defines a path, and then references it twice: once a text is placed on the path, the second time it is simply referenced and given some styling information.
Rendered by Firefox:
Rendered by Inkview:
Rendered by Opera:
Three renderers, three outputs. Neither Firefox nor Inkview support the
textLength attribute, which is a real pity, because it's the only
way you can make a program emit SVG files where text is guaranteed not to
If you scale text in Inkscape and then put it onto a path, the scaling is
lost. I found no way to reproduce opera's output with inkscape without
resorting to really evil trickery (like decomposing the text into paths, can
then cutting the letters apart and placing them manually). (Equally useful is
dominant-baseline attribute, which Inkscape doesn't support
The second difference is that only Firefox shows the shape of the path.
Firefox is correct here. The SVG specification clearly
states about the
use attribute:
For user agents that support Styling with CSS, the conceptual deep cloning of the referenced element into a non-exposed DOM tree also copies any property values resulting from the CSS cascade [CSS2-CASCADE] on the referenced element and its contents. CSS2 selectors can be applied to the original (i.e., referenced) elements because they are part of the formal document structure. CSS2 selectors cannot be applied to the (conceptually) cloned DOM tree because its contents are not part of the formal document structure.
Sadly it seems to be a coincidence that Firefox works correctly here. If
the styling information is moved from the
path to the
use element the curve is still displayed - even though it should
not be.
Using SVG feels like writing HTML and CSS for 15 year old browsers, which had their very own, idiosyncratic idea of how to render what, and what to support and what not.
Just like with HTML I have high hopes that the overall state will improve;
Indeed I've been told that Firefox 3.5 now supports the
textLength attribute. I'd also love to see wide-spread support
for SVG animations, which could replace some inaccessible flash
Tue, 04 Aug 2009
Goodby Iron Man
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<update> (from 2009-08-23) It turned out that my disappearance on the ironman blog feed was due to a broken RSS feed. Matt S. Trout tried to inform me by blog comment, my blog marked it as spam and swallowed it.
So now we talked on IRC, clarified things, and I'm back in the game. </update>
So I accepted the Iron Man blogging challenge a few month ago. And last week I discovered that my blog was gone from their feed. For the second time. Without any notification.
Image: rusty iron man, by courtesy of artvixn, available under a create commons non-commerical by-attribution license.
The first time they had a good reason: the date tags in my RSS feed were goofed; still I'd thought it would be nice to at least notify me of such a removal. After some mails back and forth I was able to fix it; after the second removal without any notification I'm simply fed up and don't want to investigate any more energy into this.
Still I'll continue to follow the collected RSS feed, there are still many interesting blogs to be read there.
Tue, 23 Jun 2009
Iron Man Challenge - Am I a Stone Man?
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Gabor asked what I'm missing from the Iron Man blogging challenge. Gabor focused on the contents of the blog posts, I'll talk about the challenge itself.
I'm missing the things announced on their website: a way to find out to which level you made it, a monthly selection of best blog posts, and all these other things that were designed to create some competition, and more fun.
Don't get me wrong, I like to read the blog of my fellow Perl programmers, and it motivates me to write more often myself. But that's not all that was promised to us.
One thing I'd like to add about the content, though: So far most of what I read was very good and informative, but it was all text. I know it's not easy to find nice on-topic programming pictures, and use.perl.org doesn't even allow the inclusion of pictures in posts, and I don't do it often myself, but having more picture or charts would be nice.
Mon, 01 Jun 2009
Why Design By Contract Does Not Replace a Test Suite
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"Design By Contract" (DBC) usually refers both to very sophisticated assertion systems (for example in which assertions are inherited along with the methods to which they belong), and to the practice of using such assertions extensively, not only for quality assurance but also as a form of documentation.
When I was mostly programming in Eiffel some years ago, I liked DBC very much, and I still think that it's a very good idea, and that more programming language should offer good support for it.
However there's one comment that I've seen frequently on the web, in blogs and on IRC. Often DBC evangelists say something along these lines: "We have DBC, we don't need a test suite". I find such comments incredibly stupid, and here I want to write down why.
Code needs to run
If you want to verify that the code does what you want, you have to actually run it - otherwise the assertions won't be triggered, and are worthless as a verification tool.
You don't have to just run it, but should, when possible, cover every code path - just like you'd do it when you write tests. Doing that manually requires much work, so you still need a test suite that you can run to verify that some changes didn't break anything.
Examples are easy, general rules are hard
Test cases are just example input, paired with the expected output. Usually it's pretty easy to come with examples, so writing tests is also easy, even for corner cases.
On the other hand assertions are rules that have to hold for all possible input data, so to formulate them, you have to consider the general case - that's usually rather hard, so the lazy programmer leaves out the hard cases.
A simple example: suppose you've written a subroutine that adds two numbers (for example for a bignum library). Writing assertions for the general case of addition is quite hard if you can't trust your subtraction routine; so the only things you can really do is to check the signs (positive number plus positive number is positive etc.), but that won't catch any off-by-one errors.
So you should also write tests; tests like
add(3, 4) == 7 are
trivial to come up with, and catch potential errors.
Design by Contract and testing should go hand in hand so that the tests exercise as many code paths as possible, and should cover those areas that are hard to validate with assertions.
DBC should not be viewed as a replacement for tests.
Thu, 18 Dec 2008
My Diploma Thesis: Spin Transport in Mesoscopic Systems
Permanent link
Sometimes people ask me what I'm doing right now, and I tell them "I'm writing my diploma thesis on mesoscopic spin transport", and they know just as much as before. So here I want to explain what that means.
Mesoscopic systems
A mesoscopic system is one that is larger than a few nanometers, but still small enough that you have to care about quantum effects.
That's not a very precise definition, so I'll try again: Consider a metallic wire. For macroscopic systems (ie the ones that we are used to in day-to-day live) you might know that the electrical resistance of such a wire increases linearly as you increase its length, and decreases linearly if you increase its cross section.
This is very intuitive, because electrical resistance describes how hard it is for an electron to travel through our wire. If the wire is longer, it sees more obstacles, so the resistance is higher. If the wire has a larger cross section, it's easier for the electron to find a way that's not blocked, so the resistance is smaller. That's called Ohm's law.
These relations aren't true anymore for rather small systems. If you have a very thin wire, say 20 nanometers, and increase its diameter by another nanometer, the resistance might not change at all. Then you increase its diameter by another nanometer, the resistance suddenly jumps down by a few percent.
All these systems that are too small for Ohm's law to apply are called mesoscopic. All mesoscopic effects have to be explained with quantum physics, at least at some point.
Electron Spin
Electrons have something called Spin. Everybody knows that it has a charge, and it acts as if it rotated around its own axis very fast. So it looks like a current which runs in a circle, and that creates a small magnetic field.
If you try to measure the magnetic field of one electron, you will only ever get two possible values, which we call spin up and spin down.
Spin Optics
In a semiconductor, one can split up a beam of electrons into two beams of spin-up and spin-down electrons, just like in optics with polarized light. That splitting can be influenced by an external voltage, like a classical transistor.
The topic of my diploma thesis is to figure out how such spin polarized electron beams behave in certain semiconductor systems.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
100s of London jobseekers sanctioned daily
Published by Anonymous for 24dash.com in Communities and also in Finance
Government announces new measures to tackle worklessness
A daily average of 356 Londoners claiming Jobseeker's Allowance saw their benefits sanctioned in the year to September 2013, government figures have revealed.
The statistics, compiled by London Assembly Green Party member Jenny Jones, reveal that twice as many were sanctioned last year than in mayor Boris Johnson's first year in office.
In the past year:
• 361 lone parents lost their benefits for between three months and three years, the toughest level of sanction that can be applied.
• 19,000 disabled jobseekers were sanctioned.
• 47,000 young people aged 16-24 were sanctioned.
Jenny Jones said: "The government must stop this appalling and inappropriate use of sanctions that is causing hardship and poverty for so many Londoners. I'm worried about lone parents unable to feed their children without food banks, and vulnerable people getting into debt and misery because they have been pushed through the social security safety net.
"The mayor must stop supporting their use in his own workfare scheme, and speak out on behalf of hundreds of constituents losing their benefits every day for stupid, absurd reasons."
Login and comment using one of your accounts...


text:
Bellarmine-San Jose shoots for its 30th straight Central Coast Section boys swimming and diving title this weekend at Santa Clara International Swim Center. The boys diving final is set for 9 a.m. today with swim trials commencing at 2:30 p.m. The girls diving final is on Saturday at 9 a.m. with swim finals and consolation races beginning at 2:30 p.m.
St. Francis-Mountain View swim coach Terry O'Donnell isn't about to award the Bells their 30th consecutive section crown just yet. The Bells won the recent West Catholic Athletic League championships with 475 points to St. Ignatius-San Francisco's 420 points. The Lancers were third with 396 points.
"It may not happen that Bellarmine wins CCS," O'Donnell said. "But, if they did, I wouldn't be surprised. They don't have the depth they have had. More importantly, other teams have gotten better. That's why (today's) trials are so important."
O'Donnell expects Palo Alto to challenge the Bells, along with SI.
"Paly is fantastic," O'Donnell said. "SI is very good."
The Lancers have two of the best swimmers in the nation in breaststroker Curtis Ogren and backstroker Ben Ho. Ogren and Ho were part of a 200-medley relay team that broke the WCAL mark on Saturday in a time of 1:34.39. On that relay were Gautham Bommannan and Sean Elmurib. David Ren joined Ho, Ogren and Elmurib in breaking the 400-free relay mark at the WCAL meet, the time 3:08.81.
Mitty won the WCAL girls swimming and diving meet with 502 points. St. Francis was second with 483.
"We have strong relays with the girls, but we aren't in the title discussion for CCS," O'Donnell said. "Looks like Mitty and Monta Vista are the top two favorites, but it should be wide open."


text:
Maintaining a healthy environment, a stable climate and prosperous communities requires collaboration, evidence-based decision making and innovative solutions.
That's what the Pembina Institute is about.
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I previously wrote a post about Market Wizards: Interviews With Top Traders. This post is the second in a series of curated interview questions and responses from the notes that I took while reading the book.
Who is Bruce Kovner?
New York magazine refers to Bruce Kovner as the most powerful New Yorker you've never heard of. Jack D. Schwager writes in Market Wizards that Bruce Kovner may be the world's largest trader in the interbank currency and future markets. He is the founder of Caxton Associates, a global macro hedge fund with an estimated $14 billion in assets under management – one of the world's largest hedge funds.
Bruce Kovner struggled to find a direction in his career early in his life. After dropping out of his Ph.D program from Harvard, he took jobs as a political campaign manager, a pianist, and a cab driver before entering the world of commodities trading. He is also intensely secretive, shy, and humble. There is surprisingly little information about his personal life (the New York magazine's piece contains the most detailed information that I found), but what little I found was extremely high praise for Bruce Kovner's intellect. His interview in Market Wizards was one of the more insightful interviews in the book and is a must read for students of financial markets. The notes that I took on this section are longer than others.
On making mistakes:
October 19, 1987 – the week of the stock market crash. I closed out all my positions on October 19 and 20 because I felt there was something happening in the world that I didn't understand. The first rule of trading – there are probably many first rules – is don't get caught in a situation in which you can lose a great deal of money for reasons you don't understand.
You have to be willing to make mistakes regularly; there is nothing wrong with it. Michael taught me about making your best judgment, being wrong, making your next best judgment, being wrong, making your third best judgment, and then doubling your money.
You are one of the most successful traders in the world. There are only a small number of traders of your caliber. What makes you different from the average guy?
I'm not sure one can really define why some traders make it, while others do not. For myself, I can think of two important elements. First, I have the ability to imagine configurations of the world different from today and really believe it can happen. I can imagine that soybean prices can double or that the dollar can fall to 100 yen. Second, I stay rational and disciplined under pressure.
When you compare the trainees that made it to the majority that did not, do you find any distinguishing traits?
They are strong, independent, and contrary in the extreme. They are able to take positions others are unwilling to take. They are disciplined enough to take the right size positions. A greedy trader always blows out. I know some really inspired traders who never managed to keep the money they made. One trader at Commodities Corporation – I don't want to mention his name – always struck me as a brilliant trader. The ideas he came up with were wonderful; the markets he picked were often the right markets. Intellectually, he knew markets much better than I did, yet I was keeping money, and he was not.
So where was he going wrong?
Position size. He traded much too big. For every one contract I traded, he traded ten. He would double his money on two different occasions each year, but still end up flat.
On the importance of technical analysis:
There is a great deal of hype attached to technical analysis by some technicians who claim that it predicts the future. Technical analysis tracks the past; it does not predict the future. You have to use your own intelligence to draw conclusions about what the past activity of some traders may say about the future activity of other traders. For me, technical analysis is like a thermometer. Fundamentalists who say they are not going to pay any attention to the charts are like a doctor who says he's not going to take a patient's temperature. But, of course, that would be sheer folly. If you are a responsible participant in the market, you always want to know where the market is – whether it is hot and excitable, or cold and stagnant. You want to know everything you can about the market to give you an edge. Technical analysis reflects the vote of the entire marketplace and, therefore, does pick up unusual behavior. By definition, anything that creates anew chart pattern is something unusual. It is very important for me to study the details of price action to see if I can observe something about how everybody is voting. Studying the charts is absolutely crucial and alerts me to existing disequilibria and potential changes.
On sustainable market moves:
The Heisenberg principle in physics provides an analogy for the markets. If something is closely observed, the odds are it is going to be altered in the process. If corn is in a tight consolidation and then breaks out the day the Wall Street Journal carries a story about a potential shortage of corn, the odds of the price move being sustained are much smaller. If everybody believes there is no reason for corn to break out, and it suddenly does, the chances that there is an important underlying cause are much greater.
Let's say you do buy a market on an upside breakout from a consolidation phase, and the price starts to move against you – that is, back into the range. How do you know when to get out? How do you tell the difference between a small pullback and a bad trade?
Whenever I enter a position, I have a predetermined stop. That is the only way I can sleep. I know where I'm getting out before I get in. The position size on a trade is determined by the stop, and the stop is determined on a technical basis. For example, if the market is in the midst of a trading range, it makes no sense to put your stop within that range, since you are likely to be taken out. I always place my stop beyond some technical barrier.
It would appear that you have reached a size level that impedes your trading performance. Since you have substantial personal funds, did you ever consider just trading your own money and avoiding all the related headaches in managing money?
Yes, but there are several reasons why I don't. Although I invest a great deal of my own money in my funds, the portion of my funds that is managed represents a call. I don't say this to be flippant, since my reputation among my investors is extremely important to me, but a call is a much better position than a symmetrical win/lose position.
Can you talk about your fundamental analysis methodology? How do you determine what the right price for a market should be?
I assume that the price for a market on any given day is the correct price, then I try to figure out what changes are occurring that will alter that price.One of the jobs of a good trader is the imagine alternative scenarios. I try to form many different mental pictures of what the world should be like and wait for one of them to be confirmed. You keep trying them on one at a time. Inevitably, most of these pictures will turn out to be wrong – that is, only a few elements of the picture may prove correct. But then, all of a sudden, you will find that in one picture, nine out of ten elements click. That scenario then becomes your image of the world reality.
On analyzing current events:
Forgetting trading for a minute, one of the reasons I am in this business is that I find the analysis of worldwide political and economic events extraordinary fascinating.
The way you describe it, you make the whole process sound like a constant game, rather than work. Do you really look at it that way?
It doesn't feel like work, except when you lose – then it feels like work [he laughs]. For me, market analysis is like a tremendous multidimensional chess board. The pleasure of it is purely intellectual. For example, it is trying to figure out the problems the finance minister of New Zealand faces and how he may try to solve them. A lot of people will think that sounds ridiculously exotic. But to me, it isn't exotic at all. Here is a guy running this tiny country and he has a real set of problems. He has to figure how to cope with Australia, the U.S., and the labor unions that are driving him crazy. My job is to do the puzzle with him and figure out what he is going to decide, and what the consequences of his actions will be that he or the market doesn't anticipate. That to me, in itself, is tremendous fun.
You talk about both the importance of risk control and the necessity of having the conviction to hold a position. How much risk do you typically take on a trade?
First of all, I try very hard not to risk more than 1 percent of my portfolio on any single trade. Second, I study the correlation of my trades to reduce my exposure. We do a daily computer analysis to see how correlated our positions are. Through bitter experience, I have learned that a mistake in position correlation is the root of some of the most serious problems in trading. If you have eight highly correlated positions, then you are really trading one position that is eight times as large.
On good trades:
The general rule is: The less observed, the better the trade.
What advice would you give the novice trader?
First, I would say that risk management is the most important thing to be well understood. Undertrade, undertrade, undertrade, undertrade is my second piece of advice. Whatever you think your position ought to be, cut it at least in half. My experience with novice traders is that they trade three to five times too big. They are taking 5 to 10 percent risks on a trade when they should be taking 1 to 2 percent risks.
Besides overtrading, what other mistakes do novice traders typically make?
They personalize the market. A common mistake is to think of the market as a personal nemesis. The market, of course, is totally impersonal; it doesn't care whether you make money or not. Whenever a trader says, "I wish," or "I hope," he is engaging in a destructive way of thinking because it takes attention away from the diagnostic process.
On being wrong (this passage is from the New York Magazine article):
Marcus would tell another Commodities Corp. alumnus, Jack Schwager, author of Market Wizards, Interviews With Top Traders, that Kovner's objectivity made him great. "If you can find somebody who is really open to seeing anything, then you have found the raw ingredient of a good trader—and I saw that in Bruce right away." Weymar told me that one of the most important qualities of a trader is ego strength, the self-confidence that allows a person to acknowledge his mistakes and not fall in love with his ideas. "The biggest risk in trading is hubris." This is because being wrong is actually an integral part of success. A successful futures trader makes many more losing trades than winning ones. The key is to recognize and concede the mistakes and cut losses. And ride the winners.
Interview questions and responses are from Market Wizards: Interviews With Top Traders by Jack D. Schwager. If you enjoyed this post, follow Curated Alpha via Email, RSS, or Twitter . You can also purchase Market Wizards at Amazon.
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Ho'oilo House
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TravelPod Member ReviewsHo'oilo House Lahaina
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Historical Traveler Reviews Ho'oilo House Lahaina
Rest and relaxation abound!
We recently had a 2 night stay at the lovely Ho'oilo House in Lahaina for our honeymoon. After a hectic week of family entertaining during our Maui wedding, it was a treat to come to this special place for some much needed rest and relaxation. Once you walk through the imported Balinise doors and see the sweeping Pacific views your know you're in a special place. The rooms were nicely fitted with beautiful bathroom fixtures, the softest sheets, great ac, a private lanai and an incredible(!) outdoor shower. Everything was nicelyappointed thoughtout; the rooms were even outfitted with volume controls to bring the soothing music into your room when you wanted it. We also loved the proximity to Lahina, and the ability to be removed for the hectic pace of the town when you wanted to be. After staying at 5 different places on the island, this one was a definite favorite. Thanks to our hosts for making our stay a memorable one! Mahalo!
A fantastic experience
my husband and i went on our honeymoon beginning in late may. we stayed for 5 nights at hoo'ilo house and it was absolutely wonderful.
the decor: a very relaxing balinese style that is meticulously maintained.
the owner: a very chill, nice, laid back guy who will leave you totally alone if you want, but will offer plenty of suggestions if you ask.
the atmostphere: very romantic -- there are these cute little tables for 2 where you can sit and watch the sunset every evening.
the breakfast: delicious and simple, with juices, tropical granola, fruit, eggs, and some kind of fresh baked muffin or bread every morning
the location: close enough to lahaina that it's easy to get there, but far enough away that you feel removed from the crowds.
we absoluatley loved staying there and would do so again in a heartbeat! one recommendation i have is to get a massage while you're there -- they do them outside on your private lanai and the massage is wonderful (thank you, amy!)
Exceeded Expectations
My husband and I visited Ho'oilo House for six nights in May. We stayed in Honu the entire time and loved every second of it. The house is beautiful and it is such a pleasure coming back to it every night after a long day exploring the island. It really feels like you are coming home. Dan and Amy were great hosts and were very helpful in terms of recommending things to do during our stay. The room was amazing. The outdoor shower was a vacation in and of itself. I really can't do justice how relaxing it is to take a shower under the stars with the cool island breeze rustling the palm trees overhead. Everything about our stay was perfect and I can not wait to go back. If you are considering staying in a hotel, please consider giving Ho'oilo House a chance instead. You will not be disappointed. It is an easy 10 minute drive to Lahaina, and if you are like us, you will appreciate not feeling like one of a thousand other tourists flocking from tourist trap to tourist trap along one of the many Hotel Rows on the island.
Loved the Kohola Room
I originally won a 3 nights stay at the Ho'oilo House on eBay and I wasn't sure what this place was going to be like from just the pictures, but once we arrived I couldn't believe my eyes. The magnificent elevated location and view was out of this world. We had the Kohola Room which is the room that overlooks the ocean view and faces Lana'i. From the outside shower you have an open view of the Pacific Ocean. Dan & Amy (the house host and hostess) are fantastic people and Dan even took time out to play golf with me. My wife and I can't wait to revisit this paradise in Hawaii.
Heavenly Ho'oilo House
It is difficult to articulate just how divine our stay at Ho'oilo House (HH) was. But we'll try.
We were in Maui for our honeymoon and stayed at HH for 7 nights, 5 in Nalu and 2 in Kipuka. As this was our first visit to Maui, we weren't sure we wanted to risk a possibly awful B&B and almost stayed at a large hotel in Wailea. We are so relieved we went with our gut feeling and only stayed at Ho'oilo House. The experience was so perfect, so peaceful and unique, we can't fathom ever staying at a large hotel in Maui.
Our rooms: We arrived at HH at night and quickly settled in for a wonderful night's rest. My husband woke me up at some ungodly morning hour and told me to look outside. I lifted my head, looked out the window and saw the ocean, bathed in the sunrise. After the stress of wedding planning, I finally exhaled and relaxed. Nalu is intimate, without being too small, and extremely calming and quiet. The outdoor shower was simply fabulous and the huge tub was wonderful as well. The ocean-facing lanai was great for afternoon reads and naps and mindless gazing.
Our last 2 nights were in Kipuka, which is more spacious than Nalu, and definitely has a "master bedroom" feel to it. Kipuka was also very quiet and peaceful, though we preferred Nalu for some reason. I'd say if a large room is important to you, Kipuka is the room for you. We are small people and liked the scale of Nalu and the ocean view.
The hosts: In a perfect world, all B&B hosts would be like Dan and Amy. Never intrusive or smothering, yet always warm and helpful we felt very well cared for. Coffee is very important to my husband and they were somehow always instantly aware of an empty carafe and quickly filled it. Maui experts, Dan and Amy have recommendations for luaus, surfing lessons, restaurants, anything.
The house: Walking in HH's door at the end of every day was just like coming home (our fantasy home of course!) Music playing and all of main room's doors open, gentle and fragrant breezes welcoming us...
Honestly, I can't even think of anything HH lacked. And the thought of staying at the Grand Wailea, Westin, or anywhere else just does not seem imaginable at this point. Ho'oilo House was just heavenly.
Thumbs Up For Ho'oilo House
My boyfriend and I just got back from spending six nights (March 19-24) at Ho'oilo House (HH) and we were extremely pleased with everything.
The location is great. HH sits in the hills above Lahaina in a new residential development. There is very little traffic in this development and there are speed bumps located throughout. HH is set back far from the road and is accessed by a long private driveway. This means that HH is very quiet and peaceful. Like HH, all the houses in the development are beautifully landscaped and have views of both the mountains behind the development and the ocean in front. Although you are closest to Lahaina, Kaanapali and Kapalua in terms of driving distance, Wailea, Kihei and other places to the east and south are not prohibitively far.
The common room is breathtaking. It is decorated with Balinese furniture and is open on three sides. Breakfast is served here and you can eat inside or at small tables set around the pool outside. The 6 guestrooms are located off of two small hallways leading out from the common room. Each of these hallways is lined on both sides with small Japanese gardens and koi ponds.
We stayed in the room called "Kipuka". You enter the room through small Balinese inspired wooden double-doors. Before entering, a sign asks you to take off your shoes. If you heed this request, you will be rewarded with the feel of your bare feet on the softest, most plush, carpeting you have ever felt. Inside, there is a large king bed set on a low wooden platform with top rate linens. There is a private lanai that looks out onto the nicely landscaped backyard (I read here every morning). The room is air conditioned but there is also a ceiling fan. TV/VCR combo too.
The highlight of the room is clearly the bathroom and the outdoor shower. The bathroom floor and bathtub are marble. The over-size sink appears to be made from a blend of marble, coral and sea shells and is very unique and beautiful. The outdoor shower is really a room unto itself; I'm not sure of the exact dimensions, but it must be 4x8 feet at least. You access it through sliding glass doors from the bathroom. Its floor consists of soft pebbles but there is a wooden platform underneath the water spout for you to stand on. The water comes out of a sculpture set into the 6 foot high walls that surround the shower. What makes the shower so great is that you can see the mountains and the ocean, and feel the wonderful Hawaii weather, while performing what is usually a mundane activity. There is a roof over the shower area so you can shower even in the rain; also, since the weather in Maui is always warm, being cold in the shower is not an issue.
HH serves a nice continental breakfast every morning. Great coffee, fruit salad, muffins, etc. The best part of breakfast is a granola made with coconut, dried fruits, and macadamia nuts that HH gets from an organic market in the nearby town of Paia.
The owners, Dan and Amy, are wonderful and friendly hosts. They are glad to help you plan activities and make recommendations if you ask. If you are a gay couple (like my boyfriend and I) you will feel welcome here.
One last point. I would recommend staying here over one of the resorts on Kaanapali, Kapalua or Wailea (several of which I have stayed at before). Many of those resorts are beautiful and have great amenities and convenience (huge pools, spas, restaurants, beach access). However, you pay an arm and a leg for a tiny cookie-cutter room, you have to endure throngs of kids and families fighting for space at the pool everyday, you have to put up with the noise even when you're in your room, and you tend to get stuck at your particular resort without exploring all that the island has to offer.
HH is 100% quiet and unique. The rooms are about half the price of what you pay at the Four Seasons, etc., and are much nicer. At HH, you feel like you're staying at a rich friend's Maui home.
Staying at HH also forces you to get out (since there is no on-site restaurant) and explore the island. Although this was my 4th trip to Maui, I had never before seen places like Paia, Makawao, Wailuku, and Makena, because I was "stuck" at the particular resort where I stayed. It's fun to try a different beach everyday rather than just hanging out by the resort pool or Kaanapali/Wailea everyday. It's also fun to try different restaurants for lunch and dinner rather than the handful of overpriced restaurants available at most resorts.
Just my opinion, hope this is helpful.
We loved everything about it
We booked this awesome B&B for our belated honeymoon b/c we weren't happy with the hotel reviews of some of the other supposed "luxury" properties on the island. We wanted a secluded, elegant and restful place to relax and unwind and this was it! Breakfast was always on time and perfect- the hosts were nothing but fantastic and the property, rooms, views and spa treatments were just exactly as described. I loved the outdoor shower! This was our first trip to Maui and after having stayed at Ho'oilo House- I don't think we could stay anywhere else on the island. After each day of exploring and visiting other resorts we always talked about how lucky we were to be returning to Ho'oilo House. I just hope as their popularity grows that we'll be able to book it in the future!
Perfection in paradise
This was such a breathtaking place with hosts that will knock your socks off as far as how well they take care of you. My husband and I recently had the perfect anniversary getaway at Ho'oilo House. I took more pictures of the grounds and rooms than I did of anything else on Maui. Extremely romantic, absolutely stunning house with five beautiful rooms to choose from. Every room has a unique and gorgeous bathroom with indoor bathtub and outdoor (but totally private) shower and very relaxing lanai. The views are stunning. Breakfast is healthy and delicious. Worth every penny for what you get. They have recently been recognized by USA Today and Fodors and it is very well deserved praise. We are already planning another visit next year - our new favorite place to stay!
Fantastic Bed and Breakfast
We had the very good fortune to stay here at the end of a 3 week trip to Maui-and its a good thing it was at the end, cuz it would have been a hard act to follow! Everything was just right-a lovely room, great outdoor shower, wonderful view, charming hosts and sweet patio. The breakfast was basic but quite ample and fresh. We will certainly come back-it was expensive but worth it! Great snorkling at mile marker 14, very near by. The only downside is being hostage to traveling into Lahaina for lunch and dinner, a traffic clogged nightmare at certain hours of the day. The day we flew home, USA today had a review of places to stay on Maui, and give Ho'oilo House a great review-which we concurred heartily with!
Simply Amazing!
***Winner: TripAdvisor's Best Photos of a Hotel With No Photos Contest***
My wife and I spent 7 nights on Maui celebrate our 5yr anniversary. We stayed the first five nights at Ho'oilo House in the "Honu" room and it was simply amazing. From the moment you walk though the large hardwood doors into the Balinese style interior you can feel the peace and relaxation set in. The best way I can describe the look and feel of this place is "understated elegance". The rooms are incredible with large, comfortable beds, deep soaking tubs and private outdoor showers. The innkeepers, Dan and Amy, are so warm and friendly and do such an incredible job taking care of the guests. The breakfasts are delicious, consisting of tropial fruits, fresh baked breads or muffins, locally made "Maui" granola (YUMMY!), juices, etc...not to mention some of the best coffee we've ever had!
The grounds and pool are so beautiful and the views of the ocean and surrounding mountains are simply breathtaking. We had side by side massages arranged in advance on our private lanai...aaaaahhhhh. Highly recommended! Even with guests staying in the four other rooms the layout of the house offers a real sense of privacy and seclusion. The location is the perfect balance of being close to lots of great beaches, shopping etc. without being surrounded by hordes of annoying tourists. The inn is tucked away in an upscale residential area just south of Lahaina, about a mile up the road from a public beach park.
After being less that satisfied with our accommodations in Hana where we planned to spend our last 2 nights on the island, we ended up calling Amy to see if our room was still available. Luckily it was open and we were able to go back the next day and spend our final night on Maui in PARADISE.....Ho'oilo House! It's the only place we would ever consider staying if we venture back to the island.
TripAdvisor Reviews Ho'oilo House Lahaina
Travel Blogs from Lahaina
Desayuno y charla con Dan... Es de Washington state y llevan en Maui 12 años regentando Ho'oilo House. Ahora han decidido venderlo y buscar otro reto, el precio es de 4.5m $... nada caro para lo que es... Una tentación, es lo que nos gustaría !! Al irnos ya con todo, gran sobresalto... No encontramos la llave del coche, nervios …
Honolua Bay and Mokuleia Bay
We started the day with free time to recover from yesterday's hike. We were hoping to sleep late, but we had to go do laundry. I didn't mind too much, considering I had no clean clothes left and my internal clock woke me up at 8 anyways. We got to ...
Sideshow Rob and The Pod
Every now and then it is nice to wake up early to catch the rarely seen sunrise while on vacation. I'm sure we would do it far more often if we didn't have so much damn fun every night while away. Completely forgetting why we had set it in the first place, the alarm clock violently disrupted our sweet slumber around 6am. "This had better be worth it.", I muttered to my still very much asleep wife. Contrary to the protesting mind and body, dragging yourself out of bed at such an ...
Diving and the Road to Hana
Catching up with our Adventure on Monday and Tuesday
Monday was our second diving day and we were able to dive at Kapalua Bay for the first time (we have snorkelled frequently). We had another great dive, seeing lots of Moray Eels, Turtles and our friendly reef fish. Our dives are getting longer as we get more relaxed with this days dive lasting over an hour.
We spent the rest of the morning relaxing on the beach. We met up with Deb ...
Rest & Relaxation in Polynesia
... along the lines of "I have a ton of black friends, so I can say this, but ....." and said something that I'm sure none of his black friends (if they do exist) would advocate. When Oscar was telling me the story in the car on the way back from the hotel I thought that next time someone hears someone say that ("I have a lot of black friends, but...") they should let them finish the comment and then say "That's hilarious. Let's call one of them now and see ...


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Welcome to my
inaugural post as a blogger! I am excited to document and share my past and
future experiences as a budding nurse practitioner. First things first, I will
introduce myself. Ten years ago, I would have first announced that I was a
pre-medical student with big aspirations to become a family physician. Nine
years ago I would have proclaimed that I was a medical student on track to earn
my MD. Seven years ago I would have said that I am a student researcher
studying developmental and reproductive biology and teaching college anatomy
and physiology. And just one year ago, I would have told you that I was
preparing to start an osteopathic medical program. Today, I will tell you that
I am a 32-year-old wife and mother of two who has finally found my true career
fit as nurse practitioner.
Why the change in "who"
I primarily identify myself as? Why has it taken me so long to figure out what
I want to become? Will this new venture in my life also be transitory as the
others may seem to be? These are all very profound questions that I may attempt
to address in future posts. For now, I'll say that I believe the paradigm shift
of who I consider myself to be has come with age and maturity. And dumb luck.
Time has molded my
outlook on happiness and purpose. When I was 21 and first starting graduate
training, getting into medical school may have been the end goal in itself. Did
I figure that once I was a doctor of medicine I would be automatically happy?
Did I assume that I would naturally find fulfillment in my contributions to
society and as a woman? Did I think that once I was a physician that all would
fall into place and I would rule the world? Well yes, of course I did. I also
never would have thought I would be a nurse, and I am more than embarrassed to
admit, that I thought I definitely didn't want to be one. Then I gained
experience and forged relationships that have taught me to question my
assumptions and to gain a realistic view on the life that I want to lead.
Now, I am about to
start a graduate entry nursing program this fall. Although some may assume that
nursing was my "plan B" or the less desirable option after medical school, this
is not the case. Just last year, I was accepted into multiple allopathic and
osteopathic medical schools and submitted an intent to enroll form at one of
them. What did happen I consider a stroke of luck; I caught a YouTube video
about nurse practitioners that initiated a full-blown quest to learn as much as
I could about being one.
Within three weeks, I
withdrew my acceptance to medical school and started working on my application
as a nurse practitioner. The very first thing I did was to Google 'nurse
practitioner' and found the ADVANCE
website where I spent hours learning about the role. Now, having been accepted
to the competitive program, I am able to share my story and future experiences
in hopes that I will engage at least one reader enough to test their
assumptions in life and to ask tough yet important questions, and then act on
them. And, for the record, I still do think I will rule the world.
Debt is the burden of America, its people, and large debt is a reality for those who strive to obtain advanced degrees. Once that degree is obtained a large portion of your lifetime is spent paying for an education that does not always pay off financially. I am well aware that when I finish school I am likely to make less than I do now as a floor nurse. I find it funny when I tell people what I am going to school for and they say "Well that's where the real money is." Often there is no "real money" in advanced education, or least it can't be seen until the piles of loans are paid off. It seems we don't streamline opportunities for advanced education or ways to pay for it. Meanwhile, Obama passed new legislation to attempt to make paying your debts a little easier. At the same time, we have companies found guilty for misleading people about their loans and pulling in 100s of millions in fees every year collecting on student loans.
It seems that a shift is needed when it comes to education. Less time spent on collecting and more time spent on making education affordable. In the meantime, I hold my breath hoping I can get my application completed and turned in and that the dice will roll in my favor and I receive the funding. I hope that as I go through this process I can learn and pass this knowledge on to others so they too may find some assistance for their education. You can be assured down the road I will write how the process went, ways to make it easier, and if approved how the process is in action. Good luck to all those out there striving to better themselves!
As nurses we know what havoc inflammation can do to the body. Studies show not only does it increase S/S in existing disease process but lead to such things as Alzheimer's. While I am sure I am not telling you anything you don't know about, the question is what are you doing about it? Are you making time for yourself? You want to do better in school, work, and home, so you push and push. You drive hard like the little voice in your head tells you to do (or if you're like me, the big booming voice). In your desire to do better though, you're often doing the opposite. The stress wreaks havoc on your body and often leads you to be lacking in some areas, especially when it comes to mental function.
There are all kinds of studies out there talking about what you can do to "relieve stress." I am not going to cite sources and make you use your brain even more, reading how to relieve stress. What I am going to say is MAKE TIME. You know what makes you happy. You know what relieves stress for you. Last night I allowed myself a few minutes of reading some fiction and I was about to put my book down and I just changed my mind and allowed myself to finish the book. It was amazing and ended with a sense of accomplishment as my head hit the pillow. The beginning of April I am taking a one night stay in Nashville to see a concert. It's not a long vacation, but it is for me, and it gives me a chance to let go. I haven't been to a concert since before my son was born; this is ME TIME. I find myself taking time away from review CD's and jamming my favorite song in my headphones as I walk into work, getting myself ready for the day.
It is evident that I am not the only one who feels the stress, even just from the responses on my blog and the people around me, I can feel it. You can be sure those people around you that you desire to be there for can feel it too. If you want to truly be there for them then take the time for yourself. I am positive they will appreciate you for it and your mind and body will to! I look forward to hearing about your time you took and what you did for yourself.
I sit here tonight staring at my computer wondering how to start talking to a potentially large group of people who are going through the same thing I am. I am just finishing my first class as a Family Nurse Practitioner student. Is my IQ higher? Do I feel smarter? Am I ready to take on the world of primary care? The answer to all these I am sure is NO! I just spent my first class writing papers about the difference between a nurse educator and a nurse practitioner. Yes that is correct, I gave up most of my social life, time with my kids, and what use to be my spotlessly clean townhome now has a spot or two. And yet, I feel no better prepared to be a NP.
Last night I submitted my final project, what was supposed to be a twelve page paper. After ten pages I tossed my hands in the air, submitted it as is and thought "WHAT IF!" So many what ifs! In my career as an ER nurse I have heard MD's, management, and even my co-workers bad mouth the NP role. I read on a consistent basis the arguments that NP's should not be allowed to practice independently and that we (assuming I graduate) are undereducated. Putting this aside I began to think about the thousands I spent just on this class and the overwhelming debt I will have when I am finished, added like a cherry on the student loans I already had from going to a private school so I could follow my dream quickly after being laid off. Dollars spin through my head all the time. What if I chose the wrong path? What if I struggle to pay back my student loans? What if I can't be the one of the few who gets approved for the NHSC loan repayment? What if when I am done I struggle to find a job, like I have heard so many others have?
When caring for patients we are faced with many what ifs. As nurses we can't allow ourselves to be consumed by these or the care we provide for our patients will be affected. There is no doubt in my mind that I can allow my future and education to be affected by these little thoughts that burn through my head. Instead I look at the other thoughts that roll through my mind. That I can be the next voice for our profession; ensuring that we are valued as we should be. That I can provide that exceptional care, that maybe someone would not have been provided if seen by another provider. That debt although overwhelming at times, is something I am willing to assume to better myself and further provide an example for my children. That the nursing profession continues to be and I believe will always be one of the most respected careers out there.
So while I have many classes and counting to go, I hope you, like me, are excited for the next step towards our future. So, here is to the next class, lecture, paper, and post. Do you have any what ifs?
I have decided going into term three, my motto is going to be "pick your battles." That pile of laundry is not going to be the start of the zombie apocalypse. If I only spend two hours on that paper, it is okay because time was not a requirement. I can stop to cook a quick meal - one that does not include the words: stew, broth or roast.
I can no longer be the "call" queen at work. I have spent the last two weeks acquiring over 150 hours of call time on top of working the standard six 12-hour shifts. I need to learn to say "no." While I hate to disappoint, one must take their sanity into consideration. I joked at work this week; I needed a badge that said "Zombie Nurse." I had slept a total of two hours in three days - the last week of the term with projects due and getting called into work made for very little sleep.
So while I joke that I need a vacation, by the time you read this I will be off shore in the Bahamas enjoying a cruise with the family. I planned this at the start of the term as a treat for them and to preserve my sliver of sanity. So it's time for you to pick your battles and make strategic choices that can help you cope with this intensely demanding yet exciting moment in life.
In my last blog post I described the tests, StrengthFinder 2.0 and Emotional Intelligence 2.0, and shared my personal results from these tests. Today I would like to introduce you to the book, Leading with Soul: An Uncommon Journey of Spirit by Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal. This is the resource I chose to take me on a path of self-discovery of my strengths, weaknesses, and aspirations for personal improvement. In their introduction, Bolman and Deal state: "We're working harder than ever, but we're not really sure why. We feel a vague emptiness as we rush madly through life, hoping that we can escape if we keep running...The need to reinfuse life at work with spirit, passion, and zest is greater than ever."
This statement completely resonated with me, not only as a leader, a nurse practitioner, a student and employee, but also as a mother, wife and woman. Life balance is a very popular term right now, but what does it mean? How do we achieve it? It was with these questions in my mind that I chose to set out on this "uncommon journey of spirit."
Bolman and Deal describe soul as what is found when we "plunge into the depths of being, there we find soul, a bedrock sense of identity and meaning- who we are, what we care about, and what we are here to do."
They believe that once you have found your soul, it will lead you through the four gifts of leadership; love, power, authorship, and significance. Love is the demonstration of care for colleagues through honest and genuine actions. The authors postulate that when people feel cared for their actions are much different than those who do not feel cared for. This concept is applicable to every relationship and interaction we have. Showing sincere care for your partner, friends, grocery clerk, (insert anyone whom crosses your path here) allows for honest communication and a successful interaction.
In their book, Bolman and Deal compare organizations and interactions that "hoard power" and those that give it away. Productivity is low and resentment is high when there is a significant power differential. Energy is spent fighting against the power gradient, whereas, when power is released people feel a sense of ownership and ability to influence their world, which enhances productivity. The release of power also promotes authorship. Promoting authorship creates an environment where people feel they have control over their performance, they can be creative, and they are trusted to solve problems. This allows employees to see their work as meaningful and to feel responsible for the outcome of their efforts. Significance is bred from successful use of the gifts of love, power, and authorship. This final gift comes from making a difference in the world, from doing something worth doing. This does not necessarily just pertain to the world in a global sense, but to the individual worlds within which we reside and interact.
I am using the concepts in this book to further my own journey towards finding, believing in and utilizing my soul. As I achieve more in my personal and occupational lives I want to ensure that my spirit stays strong and is reflected in the choices that I make. How do you nurture your soul and spirit? Is this something new to you or something that you have incorporated into your life long ago? Have you found your life balance?
I'm sitting here at work, trying to figure out what to write about today. As I ruminate, I realize what a great team of people I work with every day and this reminds me of an assignment I recently completed for class. The question proposed for class was, "Do physicians work autonomously?"
As I wrote the assignment it made me think about nurse practitioners and our battle for autonomy in healthcare.
Each state has different laws governing the rights and practices of nurse practitioners. Some states have a collaborative agreement with a physician to practice, but there are states that ARNPs can work independently without physician guidance or supervision. This state level jurisdiction and regulation makes changes difficult and time consuming for advocates and collaborative organizations (like the American Association of Nurse Practitioners).
ARNPs are given the knowledge and training to work independently, but are limited by laws created by politicians sitting in an office. Most of these politicians have no medical training or experience. They do not understand all our hard work, education and dedication to both nursing and medicine. Does anyone in healthcare actually work independently? We learn as fledgling nurses how important each member of the interdisciplinary team is and value their input. It would be thought that physicians, at the top of the healthcare hierarchy, work independently. While physicians do make many important decisions on their own, physicians also discuss and collaborate with their peers and nurses.
It is going to take a concerted effort of all ARNPs to help our profession move forward and earn autonomy in practice. Just because we have autonomy does not mean we won't pool resources with physicians, but we can make more patient specific collaborations.
I challenge you as we move forward in this journey to become ARNPs....what are you going to do to help our profession move forward? What is your platform going to be? How are you going to make changes that will benefit the whole? What's your collaboration going to be?
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing published the "The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing" in 2006. There are eight essentials outlining the required competencies of a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) graduate. The second essential pertains to leadership and emphasizes the DNP's ability to facilitate organization-wide practice changes and provide guidance and oversight of nursing staff. I am currently enrolled in an Organizational Systems and Leadership course in my DNP program. Throughout this class we have been required to complete tests evaluating our leadership styles, strengths and weaknesses. We have explored which leadership approaches best suit our styles, personalities and organizations.
The StrengthFinder 2.0 test identifies the test-taker's strengths in four categories of leadership: executing, relationship building, influencing and strategic planning. These categories are then broken down into specific themes of strength. I showed strength as an achiever in the executive category, skills of empathy and developing in relationship building, and strategic and futuristic thinking in the strategic thinking category. I did not show strength within the influencing category. As an achiever, I excel at developing trust within a team through possession of a strong work ethic and dedication to the project. The ability to make the entire team feel like they belong and willingness to work alongside others strengthens the cohesiveness of the team. Empathy allows me to recognize and positively reinforce team members' achievements, as well as encourage others to recognize and evaluate their feelings. Strength in strategy facilitates visualization of the entire picture-potential problems and probable solutions. As a developer, I fill others with inspiration, acceptance, compassion and support. Futuristic thinking allows me to think beyond the present and strategize for the future. These leadership strengths encourage teamwork, innovation, accomplishment and reflection among the team. These strengths I agree with.
A second leadership evaluation was also completed, the Emotional Intelligence 2.0 appraisal. This test is based upon the belief that an important aspect of leadership is the possession of emotional intelligence: the ability to identify and utilize one's mood and emotions, as well as the moods and emotions of others. Strengths and weaknesses in the classifications of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management were identified. My scores indicated that although I need to work on my self-awareness, I am somewhat skilled at self-management. I agree that I am usually able to manage my emotions, especially in a work environment. I also agree that some of this perceived emotional management is due, in part, to my lack of emotional self-awareness, which for me is caused by intolerance of strong personal emotion. I believe that this trait also affects my relationship management abilities. I avoid conflict or emotionally harming others at the expense of my own emotions. While this initially serves to enhance relationships, it often ends up sabotaging them. That being said, I disagree with the low score that I received in the category of social awareness. I believe that I am aware of others' emotions, sometimes to a fault. This has served me very well as a psychiatric nurse practitioner, but it also leaves me vulnerable to burnout and emotional exhaustion rendering me unable to acknowledge my own emotions.
These assignments did not necessarily teach me anything new about myself, but did enlighten me as to how to use these personal characteristics in my leadership endeavors, especially the use of my "emotional intelligence." Although I do not completely agree with my personal results of this appraisal, as a psychiatric nurse practitioner this concept appeals to me. It is a reminder that everyone on the healthcare team is a human with strengths, weakness and emotions. Leadership is not about giving orders and micro-managing, it is about striving for change that benefits the majority of people, executing that change through promotion of teamwork supported by individual strengths, and celebrating the change on an emotional level - not just as a business transaction. Leaders have weakness, individuals have weaknesses, organizations have weaknesses, but more importantly, leaders, individuals, and organizations have strengths. It is these strengths that allow for inspirational change to happen. So just a reminder, don't take the easy route of focusing on weakness - celebrate your strengths and the strengths around you!
What is your leadership style? Do you agree with the concept of "emotional intelligence" in leadership?
(Check in next month to read how I plan to use the concepts in Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal's, "Leading with Soul: An Uncommon Journey of Spirit" to utilize my strengths and improve my weakness to become a more G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal effective leader.)
Currently, as I try to write this blog post, I have a Chihuahua under my feet and a 7-year-old leaning against my arm. One term into my journey to become a nurse practitioner and I've already had moments thinking, What did I get myself into? and, What was I thinking? Balance is not easy. Coffee has become my best friend. But a balance for dealing with school, family and life is achievable, and I have found the following to be helpful in achieving my symmetry.
When dealing with school, it helps to be organized. I try to have one space designated for studying that is clutter-free. Though not much in my life can be classified this way, it helps to eliminate distractions when studying. I make sure I have a visual of due dates and reading assignments, and I highlight my calendar in different colors. I never leave the house without a book in my hand. Even at work or a soccer game, there is always down time to read a few pages.
It may sound odd, but I try to keep my family involved with my school work. I set goals and post them where everyone can see them. If I hit those goals, I reward everyone! Go get that Slurpee or have a movie date at the $1 theatre! Rewards tend to fare well with little kids. When you tell them, "I have to finish this and then..." they tend to give you those few, precious minutes you need. To save time, I pre-make our dinners and freeze them- the crockpot will be your friend. Take a few hours on Sunday and prepare meals for the entire week. Above all… make sure you have healthy snacks on hand to avoid that 'freshman 15' again.
Remember you are part of keeping that balance: Make 'me time.' Exercise while listening to the lecture recording. Take a bubble bath and brain storm essay ideas. And sometimes I need to step away from it all for a day and just re-collect myself.
You can achieve balance while in school. Take a deep breath. Remember there are lots of us on this fun journey too. A little preparation and organization can go a long way.
After becoming a nurse practitioner and then deciding to obtain my doctor of nursing practice, I have been asked this question many times by patients, friends, family members, and even strangers. My short answer, which truly sums it up, is, "because I like the nursing aspect."
But what is the 'nursing aspect'? In 1860, Florence Nightingale defined nursing as "the act of utilizing the environment of the patient to assist him in his recovery." 106 years later, Virginia Henderson modernized Nightingale's definition and said, "the unique function of the nurse is to assist the individual, sick or well, in the performance of those activities contributing to health or its recovery (or to peaceful death) that he would perform unaided if he had the necessary strength, will, or knowledge, and to do this in such a way as to help him gain independence as rapidly as possible."
Both women describe a profession skilled in the act of caring, not just treating.
McMillan Dictionary defines doctor as "someone whose job is to treat people who are ill or injured; someone who has the highest degree given by a university." In contrast the term nurse is described as "helping someone to improve or become more successful; to drink slowly over a period of time; the act of feeding a baby."
These definitions illustrate the helping, caring, calm, thorough and nurturing nature of nursing... of a nurse. These are the reasons I don't just become a doctor. As a clinician, I do treat illness, but as a nurse I treat the whole person. I want to improve their health condition. I want to prevent future health conditions. I want to educate, empower, and encourage them. I want to know what health means to them, what they value, what they need in order to achieve their optimum physical, mental, social, and spiritual health.
So tell me, why didn't you just become a doctor?
When to find a
This leads us to where
to find a mentor:
How to know if a
mentor is right for you:
So get out there and look for your mentor. And someday soon
you may find yourself mentoring others.
As the holiday season approaches it has become clear to me that
"Yes, Linda, there is a Santa Claus." Registering for the winter
semester it was mentioned by my advisor that in May my clinical time begins.
This day has seemed to be off in a distance for so long. Honestly speaking, at
one point it was looking to be out of my reach and now only one semester
separates my journey into the next place.
Being a student over the past 1.5 years has challenged so many
areas of my life. It has seemed the entire summer went by with my head in a
book or behind a computer screen. Knowing that the end is in sight gives hope.
Each class has also been unique in its own manner and has pushed
me to apply every ounce of energy available. It would be so much simpler if school was the only task in my
life. I also am a pediatric clinical leader in my hometown hospital and have
been trying hard to get items implemented on our unit that will allow for
better assessment of the children that come in.
I have always felt the need to achieve one more thing in life. I
find not setting goals in your life is an easy way to not apply yourself. If
each day went by and didn't have direction it would be simple to accept the
status quo and go forward.
Becoming a nurse practitioner is the push forward that
drives me. I want to be able to make a difference in a person's life and know
that all of the struggles and lack of sleep have been worth it.
My mother has always been a great inspiration to me. She
obtained her LPN degree and with children she went back to obtain her ADN
degree. She always was striving to have more knowledge and become a better
caregiver. Knowing her time was coming to an end due to terminal cancer she
continued to brighten our days with stories and desires for our lives. She never
wanted any of her girls to settle for anything less that what they wanted to
My father also passed away a few years ago with terminal cancer
and even today I can still hear him talking to me about where my career will
take me. I shared with him the desire to help others and open a free clinic at
some point. I know in his own fatherly way he would be proud.
This blog was written with inspiration from my Mom and Dad,
Margaret and Harvey Spurlin, may they rest in peace.
In conclusion this month, my thoughts for you are to take some
time to reflect on why you are where you are in this journey. Each person
follows a dream, a course or a bigger aspiration for more and over the holiday
season I hope you will take some time to sit and enjoy the lights, tinsel and
mistletoe ... NO TEXTBOOKS ALLOWED.
Happy holidays to all. See you next year.
So here is a step-by-step guide to getting through the last
couple weeks of classes, final exams, Thanksgiving and the pre-holiday season.
Step 1: Sign up early
for those holiday pot-luck parties.
Always volunteer to bring the cups and plates! This is why
it is essential to sign up early. You don't need to be stuck cooking mac and
cheese or brownies when you have an exam in the morning. So sign up to bring
the disposable cutlery, plates and cups NOW! You will be thankful later when
you make the quick dash to the dollar store and to run right over to the party.
Bonus: These
school holiday get-togethers will provide you with a welcome lunch or dinner
when you most need it - right in the middle of studying.
Step 2: Save time - study now, do laundry later.
Stay focused on your work by cutting back on doing laundry. This
will yield countless found hours to devote to your studies. No need to do
laundry now - it's cold outside and everyone dresses in layers anyway. Remember
it's ponytail and sweatpants season for all students right now. Just bag it all
up in a black trash bag and bring it home for the holidays!
Step 3: Make gift
giving a snap when you procrastinate.
There are two alternate strategies here. You can either shop
early and online or you can procrastinate to the very last moment. I recommend
the latter. If you shop online you may be tempted to be distracted from your studying
while at the computer. And there are actually advantages to procrastinating
with holiday shopping! Markdowns will have already begun and the crowds at the
stores will probably be thinned out - especially if you wait until Christmas
Eve. There is a real art to this. So don't procrastinate on studying,
procrastinate on shopping and be sure to reap the benefits.
Step 4: Smile extra
You will need to perfect this step. Remember, you are
wearing dirty clothes, bringing plastic cups to a party and you have no gifts
to give (yet)! So smile big, keep your chin up, your nose in your books and
pass the cranberry sauce! There will be plenty of time for cleaning up and
shopping later.
P.S. Tell Santa Claus that you want new highlighters for
Christmas! It's never too early to stock up for the spring semester, it's right
around the corner.


text:
Safe to say, it was not an endorsement of his former boss' choice.
"I told Peter Magowan that even if I'm a part-time player, I'm still better than your everyday players," Bonds said Wednesday. "And it's a wise idea to keep me around."
It's also safe to say that the approximately 450 people who filed into the ballroom at the Hotel Nikko, where Bonds appeared in front of the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco, would second that. The setting was the stage for a Bonds love fest, complete with myriad ovations, a fawning host who asked not one newsworthy question, and, apparently, a Bay Area icon who hasn't entirely ruled out the possibility that he'll call AT&T Park home next season.
"We still have time," he said. "Things might change."
Bonds sat down with KGO radio host Ray Taliaferro for a 61-minute interview that focused primarily on Bonds' upbringing, his technical approach to hitting, his charitable acts and the love he feels for the city of San Francisco. Not one question about Bonds' alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs was asked.
Nor were any questions about the end of his 15-year relationship with the Giants posed.
It did not take a question from the audience, however, for Bonds to reveal his true feelings about his split from the Giants. That came after Taliaferro opened the conversation by reciting Bonds' most notable achievements -- among them his seven MVP awards (five with the Giants) and his record 762 home runs -- and facetiously asking if, indeed, Bonds had achieved all that.
"I did," Bonds said. "And I got fired."
Still, he said he harbored no ill will toward his former team, saying that no matter where he might play in the future, "I'll always root for them," and even selling himself as a possible owner.
"If I got the opportunity to run the Giants organization ... we'd win a World Series," he said. "I know the game so well. I can see talent. I know exactly what I'd be looking for."
As for what his future holds, Bonds had no definitive answers. By rule, teams cannot talk to him until 10 days after the World Series is over. Asked specifically by an audience member about the possibility of being a designated hitter for the Yankees, he dismissed the notion, saying the Yanks already were set at the position.
"That's a dream that's never going to happen," he said.
Contact Rick Hurd at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text: Over the past few months, we have seen a sudden and dramatic fall in the rupee against the dollar. This has only compounded the problems facing the Indian economy. A higher import bill means that the country's fiscal deficit will increase and stoke the inflation even more. Consumers are already facing the heat, dealing with multiple hikes in petrol prices.