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Below is our interview with Amy Nelson, an astronomer turned software engineer. She writes software for Disney's online virtual worlds, manages a small team, and is very satisfied with her work-life balance within a family-friendly environment. If you have questions, suggestions, advice to share, etc. about this career path, please leave a comment below.
For access to all our Career Profile Project interviews, please visit http://aas.org/jobs/career-profiles. We plan to post a new career profile to this blog every first and third Thursday of the month.
What field do you currently work in?
What is the job title for your current position?
Staff Software Engineer Architect. I implement core software components for our online virtual worlds. Manage a small team of software engineers.
What is the name of your company/organization/institution?
Disney Interactive Worlds
What city, state, and country do you live in? Work in?
live - Los Angeles, CA. work - Glendale, CA.
What is the highest degree in astronomy/physics you have received?
What is/was your ultimate/final academic position in astronomy/physics?
What has been your career path since you completed your degree?
Instructor at University of California - Santa Cruz (2001).
Earned a certificate from UCLA Extension in C/C++ (2002).
Employed at Mass Media Inc/THQ as Associate Software Engineer (2002 - 2008).
Employed at Disney: Flash Engineer (2008)
Senior Flash Engineer (2009-2010)
Senior Software Engineer (2011)
Staff Software Engineer (2012 - present)
What were the most important factors that led you to leave astronomy and/or academia?
I left the field of astronomy primarily because I found, after doing it for a few years, that I didn't enjoy research enough to want to make a career of it. I also wasn't thrilled about reading and writing peer-reviewed journal articles, writing grant proposals, and other administrative tasks.
Secondary, yet still important factors, were:
~ amount of hours you're expected to work (especially for postdocs and young faculty)
~ amount of research you're expected to produce (especially for postdocs and young faculty)
~ little to no say in where you live
~ low pay
~ having to put your life on hold until you have a secure, tenure-track faculty position.
If you have made a career change, what was your age at the time?
I made a career change from astronomy to video game programming at age 29.
What have been particularly valuable skills for your current job that you gained through completing your degree?
Problem-solving! ** Learning and working independently - how to find answers yourself, knowing when to ask questions and to whom to ask them, not being afraid to tackle problems with which you have little to no experience.
Computer programming - In grad school I used Fortran, which wasn't a directly transferable skill whatsoever. But understanding programming and scripting fundamentals helped me pick up an object-oriented language (C/C++) quickly.
What, if any, additional training did you complete in order to meet the qualifications?
Earned a certificate in C/C++ programming from UCLA Extension. (5 - 6 extension classes, I think.)
Describe a typical day at work.
- Daily morning scrum (Agile development) meetings -- 15-30 min.
- Various meetings throughout the day to discuss: planning and allocation of resources, feasibility and architecture of game systems, assorted managerial meetings -- 1 - 2 hrs
- Coding -- 4 hr.
- Mentoring, answering questions, code reviews -- 1 - 2 hrs
Describe job hunting and networking resources you used and any other advice/resources.
I got into the video game industry because my girlfriend's father was the game designer at the first company I worked for and he and I talked about video games and the work he did. A PhD in astronomy, without any other experience, simultaneously over-qualifies you for some jobs and under-qualifies you for the rest, thus making it virtually impossible to get past the automated sorting/filtering of job applications. Therefore, my experience was that it was very difficult to get a foot in the door in any other industry besides academic astronomy, unless you know someone.
Once in the door, however, I found that while I had a very steep learning curve because I had almost no direct knowledge of how to make games, I picked things up quite quickly and wasn't afraid to just dive right in. My advice is to stick with the program and finish your degree! You'll feel good about yourself, continue to learn indirect, but valuable skills, and demonstrate to future employers that you finish what you start.
See if you can take advantage of your university enrollment and take a class here or there that will help prepare you for your new career. Spend whatever time you can spare gaining new skills or be prepared that you might need some time after you finish to do that. However, don't let either of these things steal your focus of finishing your degree.
From what I've seen, most fields have trade organizations, shows, meetings, online communities, etc, so get active in them and start meeting people! Remember that university extension classes are usually taught by people who actively have jobs in that industry and therefore are great places to learn new skills and network.
Out in the 'real world' PhDs in astronomy have quite a 'wow' factor. People like knowing a 'rocket scientist' and companies like to brag about having one on their staff.
What advice do you think advisors should be giving students regarding their career path?
They should be:
- honest about the positives and negatives of an academic research position.
- approachable, so that students feel they can talk to them without fear of reprisal, disinterest, or disdain. - knowledgeable and willing to discuss alternative careers path.
- willing to introduce their students to professors in other fields.
- able to help their students get in contact with former students who have alternative careers.
How many hours do you work in a week?
40-45 hours. All hours are @work, although my company is flexible and I can work from home as needed and/or desired.
What is your salary?
$100k - 150k.
What is your level of satisfaction with your current job?
Very Satisfied.
My job is a wonderful combination of coming up with ideas to solve technical problems and executing on those ideas. I work in a creative, social, interactive, and collaborative environment, which I enjoy. I also get to mentor less-experienced engineers which satisfies my desire to teach and work with others.
My company takes very seriously the issue of a healthy work/life balance. We do work extra hours at 'crunch time,' but that is infrequent, particularly for the games industry.
I am quite satisfied with my pay, benefits, and perks. I really like my coworkers and look forward to seeing them at work, as well as in our spare time.
My job is pretty low stress, but engaging. I rarely find myself 'taking my job home with me,' unless I happen to be working on something particularly interesting and then I'm too excited to stop thinking about it after work!
What are the most enjoyable aspects of your job? Least enjoyable?
I love working in a creative, collaborative field with smart, talented people who are passionate about games. I really enjoy problem-solving with my co-workers and listening to their ideas. The least enjoyable aspects of my job are attending too many meetings (this has gotten much better, though, after we complained), not having full control of my projects (executives make the ultimate decisions), and working for a business which means market forces and profits are the guiding forces (less R&D or risk-taking).
What do you like most about your working environment? Dislike most?
I like that it has structure, but is still fairly flexible. I dislike the lack of job security - people in corporate America seem to get hired, laid off, hired by a different company, etc. Luckily, this hasn't happened to me yet, but you have to be ok with that cycle.
What opportunities does your job provide to be creative and/or to take initiative?
Engineers are given the opportunity to design and implement their own technical solutions and are also free to contribute game ideas in brainstorming sessions. Employees are encouraged to take initiative and ownership of their work and are actively rewarded for it (promotions, awards, shout-outs, etc).
How satisfied are you with your work-life balance in your current job?
Very Satisfied.
My company places an emphasis on work-life balance, which is really important to me. We do work extra-hours sometimes during 'crunch time,' but that happens infrequently and they try to keep the additional hours to a minimum.
How family-friendly is your current position?
Very family friendly.
We have flex-time, where you can (with supervisor approval): - telecommute (work from home) - shift your schedule early or late, as long as you're here during the 'core hours,' so that you can drop kids off or pick them up, etc. Paid maternity and paternity leave. A company-owned and operated daycare across the street (although it is very full and has a long waiting list, but I believe they are building another on). Good benefits and a company-sponsored Flexible Spending Account. Family-friendly work functions/parties.
What advice do you have for achieving work-life balance (including having a family)?
Make having a healthy work-life balance a priority when choosing your position and ask the company/institution direct questions about their policies towards it. Once you start working, set boundaries and stick to them. No matter where you work, if you're seen as the person who will always pick up other people's slack, stay late, and work extra hours, that will become expected of you and you're setting yourself up for failure. You do not have to be a workaholic to be successful!
Do you still interact with people who work (directly) in astronomy and/or are you still involved in astronomy in some way?
Yes. My best friend is an astronomical lecturer at Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. He also still does some research with colleagues at UCLA and UC Santa Cruz.
There is a worry among those considering careers outside of astronomy or academia that you can't "go back" and/or that you feel that you betrayed advisors, friends, colleagues. Have you felt this way?
Yes. I do believe that it would be difficult to re-enter the field of astronomy after leaving the rather strictly prescribed academic career track. Also, the field moves at a very rapid pace, so it's easy to get left behind. While I was in grad school and grappling with my decision, I worried that I would disappoint my professors and colleagues by leaving the field, especially since I didn't have a clear idea of what I wanted to do instead. In the end, though, it's your life (and hopefully a long one!) so you need to put yourself first and do whatever you think is best for you.
What do you do for fun (e.g., hobbies, pastimes, etc.)?
I love to walk my dogs, read, garden, and play - video games, music, nerdy board games, pinball. I also enjoy volunteering and have been a crisis counselor on LA's suicide hotline for the past ten years. Having time to do all these things was a major factor in deciding not to stay in astronomy.
I love to walk my dogs, read, garden, and play - video games, music, nerdy board games, pinball. I also enjoy volunteering and have been a crisis counselor on LA's suicide hotline for the past ten years. Having time to do all these things was a major factor in deciding not to stay in astronomy.
May we include your email address for people who might want to contact you directly about your career route?
public [at] sugarego.com


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About Mike
Wow, thanks that was really informative (it was long but I watched the whole thing).
Actually, what I wondered, is: How is he going to serve Alan Cooper?
I think I have to disagree w/ Mike's conclusion about the publisher's response.
While I think that the copyright on Calvin and Hobbes should have expired by now (the current copyright law being way too long) (because the 1st C&H was published in 1985 and the last in 1995), given Watterson's wishes and the fact that he still does have the copyright on C&H the publisher's response was the best response possible.
I also agree w/ Mike that having to go to court to affirm that your use is fair use is hurting the creation of new "culture".
I disagree w/ those who say that we should respect Watterson's desires, other than possibly granting a limited copyright (in my opinion somewhere from 5 to 20 years max) the creator has no inherent right to control how others use his creation. For example I find C&H makes great bathroom reading, if Watterson doesn't like that, too bad.
Thank you, that's what I was about to say. I read the quotes above and nothing suggests that Boris is excusing the actions of the journalists, he is merely pointing out one potential explanation. At no point does he say that because the internet is eating into the traditional business that justifies the actions of the journalists, in fact he still refers to that behavior as "disgraceful".
I know patents like this get approved all the time, but I still don't understand. I thought that a patent was for an invention which someone in the field should be able to duplicate/build based on the information in the patent?!
detection facility 104 may analyze the received data utilizing one or more motion capture technologies, motion analysis technologies, gesture recognition technologies, facial recognition technologies, voice recognition technologies, acoustic source localization technologies, and/or any other suitable technologies to detect one or more actions
I'm still not clear on why something being "digital" makes a difference. How is digital information inherently different (in the realms we're discussing) than analog information?
Is the information on a CD different in some legal way from the information on a vinyl record or cassette tape (for example)?
Actually not at all. Your thoughts and memories of a copyrighted work are unauthorized derivative works not exact copies!
Thanks for the last couple of posts that were (for the most part) just a point w/ supporting facts, and a nice reasoned response to a question.
I could have done w/o your extra dig at Mike, but everything else was informative and interesting.
you know, these discussions would be much more interesting w/o the personal attacks included (on both sides, btw). The AC started it, but responding almost always seems to make things worse.
I think the points raised are interesting enough w/o the attacks, and while neither of you may convince the other, w/o the attacks, perhaps you'd convince a lurker, or at least we'd be better informed.
Writing and taking notes is one of the major ways people learn. Just reading text is one of the hardest ways to actually retain anything.I disagree w/ this, and I think in some ways this is the type of generalized thought that is what the article was warning against. I personally learn better just reading and not taking notes. Although again, different subjects will need different types of reinforcement.
Thanks for that! It was very funny, Carlin was a comedic genius.
And I do still believe in voting. And sometimes my individual voice added to others does make a difference, just not as often as I would like. (see the defeat of SOPA for 1 instance, I'm less sure about my vote for politicians).
Actually, I think you've got it wrong.
If you really want to make it known that you deliberately didn't want to vote for any candidate, you have to go to the polls and do just that.
Deliberately not voting for any candidate in an election counts for a lot more than not showing up.
OK, I've wanted to do exactly what you've described for quite a while.
I've just never had the energy/time to figure out what I needed to implement it.
It does seem that I would need a router that is supported by one of the alternate router software projects such as Tomato, dd-wrt, others I can't think of. And then I have to make sure that all the original features of the router that I need are still supported (in particular 1000Base-T routing).
If there were a site that walked through the various options to do this on different routers it would be great!
The biggest difference between the cop running a plate and the scanner IS the database.
The cop runs a plate, and either it is "of immediate interest" or not. If not the data (where that plate was when the cop ran it) is discarded probably pretty much immediately, but almost definitely it is not stored in a database.
The entire point of the scanner is to create the database and not to find a car "of immediate interest" because the scanner can't really do anything about that "immediate" interest.
I am strongly against the idea of a database of locations of cars, and I agree that it is a large invasion of privacy and I feel it is unconstitutional.
I haven't seen anyone here arguing that "we should" hold 3D printer manufacturers responsible, only that it is possible that "we will". In that I think it's a worthwhile point as I mentioned above, rational doesn't always enter into it (see all the crazy product disclaimers, such as trimming hedges w/ a lawnmower).
Thinking and discussing this now may help us avoid this w/ 3D printing.
Actually while I hope we avoid them, I think his concerns are valid and good to discuss. While I agree w/ the rational arguments against his point, remember lawnmowers have a disclaimer against using them to trim hedges.
What is rational and what people sue (And remarkably win?!!) about are very different things.
Somehow those numbers didn't seem to add up.
If $2 goes to the retail store and the material cost is $1 that leaves $12.
According to howstuffworks royalties are typically 8-25% of the retail price, which is $1.20-3.75. Also promotions and other expenses come out of the artists royalties, so that means the rest is the label's profit. That says the label is getting $8.25-10.80 profit from the sale of a $15 CD.
fooled about what?
Umm, folks, while I don't agree with ANYTHING this post says, it does not deserve to be "reported". It is making the "counter" case and it deserves to be read and responded to.
This is not an inflammatory name calling post. While his post may not change my mind, and the counter posts may not change his, this is the type of post from those I disagree with that I would like to read on techdirt.
I am tempted to mark it as "insightful" because I think it should be read, but I can't quite do it because to me "insightful" just implies that I find the points made a reasonable interpretation of the facts, and I don't.
The article above doesn't say, so does anyone know what domain the "I am not a virgin" trademark is registered in, and what domain(s?) the "Virgin" group's trademark is registered in?
Does Virgin sell clothes?

subset: commoncrawl


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Kosovo Is America's War, America's Pain
A visitor to London today makes a remarkable discovery about the events in Kosovo. Far from being "Madeleine's war," as suggested by many American observers, the British media present the war as an almost exclusively British affair, with responsibility for strategy firmly located in Downing Street. Prime Minister Tony Blair wins huzzahs for his fulminating calls for "his generation" to stand up to tyranny. The reality, of course, is very different.
As shown by historian Niall Ferguson in his new book, Pity of War, World War I was the last European war in which the Europeans put more men into the field and deployed greater financial assets than the United States. In Kosovo there are fewer than 50 British aircraft in theater. Without the U.S., the British and wider European ability to deliver a punch is nil.
The imbalance on military inputs is an open scandal. What is less noticed is that the actual and potential downsides of the Kosovo operation accrue disproportionately to the U.S. This is because, unlike the United States, Europe no longer has global strategic interests. Take China, for example, in the wake of the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade. Now that there are virtually no European forces in Asia, Europe's relationship with China is confined to commerce. What is important to Europe is how many shirts, tractors or power stations can it sell to what by the mid‐21st century will be the world's largest economy. Whether China is politically pro‐ or anti‐European makes little difference for this basic traffic in goods. As a European, therefore, NATO Secretary‐General Javier Solana can content himself with an apology for NATO's mistakes and think nothing more of it.
The situation for the U.S. could not be more different. Of course, the U.S. also has a pressing interest in trade with China, but its interests extend far beyond this. As what former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski has called the "balancer of the last resort in Eurasia," the U.S. has a vital stake in how it is perceived in China. If the Chinese authorities adopt a strategically benign view of the U.S. and its intentions, then the way is open to peaceful resolution of such potential conflicts as Taiwan and the South China Sea. If they take the opposite view, then not only will these problems become more acute, but there are plenty of other ways for China to extract a price from the United States. Intensification of nuclear cooperation with Pakistan or North Korea, mischief‐making in Indonesia, strategic cooperation with Russia, an anti-U.S. rapprochement with India–the Chinese are subtle strategists who plan for the long term. All these possibilities are open to them. And all would be very damaging to U.S. interests.
The same is true of Russia. Despite the current fashion in Washington to scoff at Russia's financial hard times and thus to deride Russian retaliation capabilities, there are several pressure points available to Russia. Caspian oil, defense technology cooperation with Iran, assistance to the Kurds in Turkey, fanning the flames of nationalism in eastern Ukraine and the Baltic republics–the list is not insignificant. Finally, if the Russians conclude en masse that America's word cannot be trusted, then Europe may be headed for a new Cold War. Good friends of the U.S., such as Russian reformer Anatoly B. Chubais, have warned of a growing wave of anti‐Americanism in Russia.
Which brings us back to our entry point. Advocates and opponents of the Kosovo war can agree that, for every day that the war continues and the mistakes multiply, the geostrategic damage to the U.S. grows exponentially. The hemorrhage to the United States' moral credibility is palpable. The war party disregards this wider damage and focuses narrowly on Kosovo, arguing that, despite all the mistakes, now is the time to "stay the course." This is the message borne by British Foreign Minister Robin Cook in his visit to Washington. But American decision‐makers need to remember that while the European interest is provincial, theirs is global. If Blair and company feel so strongly about Kosovo, let them take the lead.
The U.S. cannot afford a "win" in Kosovo that sows the seeds of new geostrategic conflicts a few years down the road–particularly as it is sure that these conflicts will be fought exclusively by the United States.


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Ain't no mountain wide enough: To keep Crozet from tunneling a new attraction
Claudius Crozet is more than a name on a neighborhood park or a tiny town. Although he's been dead for 138 years, he's a hero in engineering circles.
"He was ahead of his time," says Howard Newlon, a civil engineer and UVA faculty member. "We need more of those."
If a group of tourism boosters and outdoor types has its way, Mr. Crozet might soon be a hero in recreation circles. There's a plan afoot to turn Crozet's masterpiece– an unused railroad tunnel stretching nearly a mile through Afton Mountain– into a hiking, biking, and horseback trail. That effort got a major boost with the recent announcement that the state was awarding $300,000 to help reopen Crozet's antebellum masterpiece.
Ironically, the fact that his mid-mountain thoroughfare ceased its task in 1944 hasn't dimmed Crozet's reputation. The great engineer's body lies under an elaborate stone memorial at Virginia Military Institute, which he helped to found. And every year, a consortium of engineering groups presents the Crozet Award to an outstanding state engineer. What did Crozet do to deserve all this?
To get the Railroad through the Blue Ridge, Crozet actually built four tunnels. But none could compare with the fourth and the longest. Four-fifths of a mile long– 4,281 feet– this aptly named Blue Ridge Tunnel was by far the longest railroad tunnel in the world.
On the western, or Waynesboro, side of the mountain, Crozet's tunnel appears like a fairy-tale castle, albeit one shaped like a L'Eggs pantyhose egg and surrounded by an overgrown landscape.
"When I first saw it 25 years ago, it was the most enchanting, mystical place I'd ever seen, and it still is," says Suzanne Gandy Akers, one of the planners of the reopening. "The rush of going through an abandoned tunnel is the greatest thrill of all."
Walking through this portal, one shudders to imagine the awesome task that Crozet undertook. The elliptical entrance draws one closer with an air of anticipation and mystery. Inside, utter blackness shrouds the details until banished by flashlight beams.
Three-foot-thick brick walls (several patches have fallen down) keep the looser rock in place. According to contemporary sources, such shoring required 150,000 bricks, but only within the first 1500 hundred feet of the western entrance. From then on, however, it's all rock. Painstakingly carved, blasted, and chipped.
Before the advent of nitroglycerine, dynamite, and the pneumatic drill, Crozet's men used black powder and hand tools to do their work. Evidence of crude chip marks remains, and the clearly audible drip of unseen water must echo in some small way the chink, chink of chisels.
Standing inside gives the impression of walking into an auction house after the bidding has just ended. It seems as though the frenetic activity of building might have stopped only moments before. To complement the picture of the raw energy that hundreds of workers, many of them Irish, expended in digging the tunnel, Dan Mahon, Outdoor Recreation Planner and Greenways Coordinator for Albemarle County, pulls out a tin whistle and blows a soulful lament.
"I want to bring home the memory of those Irish laborers cutting through rock day after day, sweating, coughing, and cursing," says Mahon. "I play to that memory." Before the tunnel was finished in 1858, there'd be plenty of sweating, coughing, and cursing.
Claudius Crozet was born in France in 1789 and quickly rose through the ranks at France's famed Ecole Polytechnic and then in Napoleon's army. After the Little Corporal's final defeat in 1816, Crozet and his wife emigrated to the United States. A stint at the newly founded United States Military Academy in the chilly Hudson Valley soon had him scouting for warmer climes. A letter to Thomas Jefferson requesting a professorship at UVA was well received– except that the University had yet to open.
But through Jefferson's prompting, in 1823 Crozet was offered the post of principal engineer at the Virginia Board of Public Works, a post he eagerly accepted. There, his chief responsibilities consisted of road-building and map-making. But Crozet always favored railways as the way to transport goods past rivers and mountains. Opposing him was a man distrustful of new ideas and partial to his own, powerful State Senator Joseph Cabell, who dreamed of a canal system that would reach the Ohio River, then still a part of Virginia. In Crozet's words, Cabell was "a lion in my path."
Crozet resigned and waited while Cabell's canal project failed miserably. Invited back, Crozet began extolling the possibilities of rail commerce. From 1837 to 1849, Crozet crusaded. Meanwhile, the Virginia Central Railroad reached from Gordonsville through Charlottesville as far west as Mechums River. Crozet said he could continue the line over the mountain.
That would take big money, and since the railroad would improve the entire state's economic welfare, the Commonwealth agreed to fund the 17-mile Valley connection, dubbed The Blue Ridge Railroad.
That's how it happened that in 1850, at 60 years of age, Claudius Crozet came to face the greatest challenge of his career. The construction company had invited several hundred Irish workers from New York and New England. Immigrants who hailed from County Cork in southern Ireland, the workers and their families settled at a hastily built shantytown in Afton. Unbeknownst to these Protestant families, a similar number of northern (i.e. Catholic) Irish were already living across the mountain in Fishersville.
Before the first pickaxe was hefted, the Irish discovered each other, and mayhem erupted, culminating in the shooting of an Irish worker. While editors of the local papers hinted at a "holy war" between Protestants and Catholics, the historical record gives no evidence that one ensued.
Work began in March 1850, on opposite sides of the mountain with picks, hand drills, and black powder. Progress averaged just one foot per side per day. Tools often were dulled and broken before any perceptible dent had been made in the hard rock.
According to Claudius Crozet: French Engineer in America, by Robert F. Hunter and Edwin L. Dooley, loose rock at the west side caused so much fear among workers that they walked off the job. A worker named Michael Curren lost his hands in a black powder explosion and then was denied pay while under medical care.
As dissent among the men continued to simmer, strikes occurred, and many men headed north in search of higher pay and less danger. Daily wages, which began at 75 cents a day, started to climb. According to the book by Hunter and Dooley, a higher offer from a disgruntled former contractor lured away dozens of workers to Cincinnati, so Crozet prepared to offer $1.12 and 1/2 cent a day.
By 1853, workers doing the most dangerous work were getting $1.37 and 1/2 cent per day. A cholera outbreak in 1854 killed 35 workers: 28 on the Augusta side and seven from the Afton side.
Although slaves were hired at a dollar a day, their owners were allowed to keep the money. Because of their intrinsic worth, the slaves were forbidden to work anywhere near the blasting. Unlike the Irish, though, slaves could not strike, observe religious holidays, or take a two-day break when a friend died.
No evidence of where the slaves camped has been found, but the crews must have had little contact since not one black slave contracted cholera in the epidemic. However, two died when a runaway flatcar hurtled them down Afton mountain toward a parked train engine in Waynesboro, according to the book.
Crozet faced woes of his own, not least of which was the general idea that the tunnel would never be usable. The nearly impenetrable rock, the constant threat of landslides, a national financial crisis, and continued attacks from local editors plagued him constantly. The fact that his own salary was the then generous sum of $3,000 opened him to criticism from a chorus of critics including the Lexington Gazette, whose editor opined that he was "stupid."
Undaunted, and freed perhaps by the fact that his tunnel broke so much new ground– er, featured so many innovations– he pushed the men to work around the clock in three eight-hour shifts. While weather posed little problem (the tunnel remains a cool 52 degrees year round), constant seepage was an aggravation that provided opportunity. Crozet devised the longest siphon then on record, an 1,800 foot-long iron pipe that discharged water at the voluminous rate of 60 gallons a minute.
Crozet had cleverly sloped the tunnel 56 feet from end to end so that water would always drain out the lower Afton side, while smoke would float out of the higher Waynesboro side. But until bore-through day, the smoke was trapped. So Crozet supervised construction of a machine made of inverted tubs and pipes to usher the smoke out– powered by mules on a treadmill.
Did he really know what he was doing?
"Absolutely," attests engineer Newlon. "He thought in terms of facts and quantitative measures."
But scant support in the 1850s kept tongues wagging, and many bets were wagered on the eventual outcome of Crozet's project.
At 16 feet wide and 20 feet high, the egg-shaped tunnel looks too narrow to accommodate a steam engine. Crozet picked this elliptical form because it conforms to the outline of steam trains while diminishing the quantity of earth that needed to be removed. It also provided escape room for any man who might be working in the tunnel when the train came through, as well as allowing some ventilation and draft space when steam engine smokestacks belched their thick black smoke.
On December 25, 1856, the east and west bores met up. In what would become part of the most celebrated fact of Crozet's legend, the two bores were just half an inch from the center line Crozet had plotted.
A victorious day of celebrating roused the journeymen. But the battle wasn't quite over. Rumors began to circulate (prompted in part by those pesky editors) that the bore wouldn't be big enough. The Lexington Gazette smugly derided the tunnel as "too small to admit the passage of a single car, much less a full train."
Crozet, though, had the last laugh. Rails were laid, and on April 13, 1858, a mail train passed through, marking the beginning of nearly 90 years of Blue Ridge Tunnel use.
The Virginia Central Railroad was eventually acquired by the C&O, and today the tunnel property still belongs to CSX, its successor corporation. And while official railroad policy is that trespassers can be prosecuted, the edict doesn't seem to have stopped revelers, drinkers, and curiosity seekers from exploring the inner recesses of Afton Mountain.
On a recent visit, beer cans, convenience store junk food wrappers, and a smattering of graffiti littered the hallowed interior. When the bank of Afton was robbed in the spring of 2001, members of the Nelson County sheriff's department, armed with automatic rifles, immediately headed for the tunnel, surmising that that destination would make an obvious hiding spot. The alleged perps were apprehended elsewhere. Nearly a mile from Route 250, the nearest highway, the tunnel might have been too hard to find.
Because the tunnel is still beautiful, one naturally assumes that some hapless individuals would think of using it as a sheltered abode or open air port-a-john, but the cool interior smells of nothing more offensive than dank air.
When this tunnel officially closed in favor of the newer, wider version in 1944, an idea germinated to store natural gas in the dark confines of the central part. Although two poured concrete walls constructed for that purpose now prevent walk-thru passage, actual storing of gas never materialized.
Albemarle greenways expert Mahon says he's climbed through the hatches in the concrete walls and seen leftover gallon buckets, rubber boots, and sealants left from the days when the experiment was considered viable.
Re-opening this tunnel as a trail enhancement project will take a colossal amount of support, but The Whitesell Group, a Roanoke landscape architect/planning firm that currently leads the charge in the tunnel preservation, says that's not going to be a problem.
"People have been coming out of the woodwork to offer help, assistance, land, easements, whatever it takes to make it possible," says firm principal Gene Whitesell. Hired in 2001 by the City of Waynesboro to implement a fledgling downtown revitalization and Greenways trail system, Whitesell and partner Suzanne Gandy Akers suggested continuing the trail system to incorporate the Blue Ridge Tunnel.
Waynesboro gave the thumbs up, but since then, even more exuberant support has come from Nelson County. The Board of Supervisors ushered a grant proposal through federal red tape in January. In May, word came that the project had been selected as worthy of a $300,000 grant under the "T-21" program, which funds alternative ideas in transportation.
While the Whitesell Group estimates that reopening the tunnel and improving adjacent trails will cost a total of $1.8 million, organizers seem confident that the federal money– like a freight train puffing through the tunnel– will keep on rolling.
Nelson County Administrator Steven Carter evinces an infectious enthusiasm that sweeps everyone around him into a similar kind of fervor. The tunnel project will add noticeably to Nelson County's already lengthy list of eco-friendly tourist destinations, and he's behind it 100 percent. "Of course, I'm very prejudiced," he humbly admits.
Opposition hasn't been quite so vocal. Attorney Bruce Tyler, who lives and works in Afton, has spoken out against the proposal at meetings. A lone voice, Tyler says his concern revolves almost solely around the position of the trailhead.
"I'm all for the project; I just don't want any buses," he says. Standing where he thinks the trailhead will be located, it's easy to see his concern. The old rail bed– eyed by planners as part of the trail system– is his driveway.
First item on the agenda is acquiring the land from the railroad. CSX has helped by writing a letter of intent to donate the tunnel. That will constitute the 20 percent "local matching funds" required under T-21.
While Augusta and Nelson are the counties at the portals, the trails proposed on the eastern side fall largely in Albemarle County, which has been a leader in designing Greenway trails. With Albemarle officially endorsing the project, the tri-county collective has the makings of a coherent network.
But what about safety? Even when Crozet himself toured the tunnel in 1857 with a geology class from UVA, "Daylight did not shine through the Blue Ridge," according to a 1951 story in Virginia Cavalcade. The cavity runs for such a long distance encased by its black granite that towards the center, even with the aid of a dozen lamps, the students were barely able to make each other out.
Ten feet inside, without the aid of artificial light, each gingerly planted step feels ominously like the last. All perspective quickly disappears in the darkness, sounds bounce off the walls with strange reverberations, and flashlight beams reveal a few brown bats curled up tightly in the crevices.
Protecting this ambience has captured the imagination of all parties involved. Speaking to representatives from Nelson County, the Whitesell Group and Albemarle's Mahon each reiterated that they do not want the cavern lit up like the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. That's understandable except when one thinks of perceived and real threats from unsavory characters possibly lurking in the middle of this almost mile-long passage.
Four-fifths of a mile is roughly the distance from the east end of the Downtown Mall to Starr Hill. Now consider that you are 400 feet below ground and several miles away from civilization; for earth-bound trekkers, it's a stone's throw from heaven, but for other more car-oriented travelers, it might be a frightening proposition to explore this deep vein into the earth's belly.
Violent crimes in natural areas are rare, but when they occur, they usually send seismic shock waves.
In August, 1998, after hiking along the nearby Appalachian Trail, a 22-year-old Austrian traveler named Rita Haider decided to spend the night in a tent in Waynesboro's Loth Spring Park, a popular stopping point for hikers. During the night, she was attacked and stabbed multiple times by a homeless man. Fortunately, she survived.
A year earlier, Darrell David Rice of Columbia, Maryland, attacked a Canadian visitor biking in the Shenandoah National Park. Now imprisoned for that crime, he awaits a federal trial in Charlottesville for allegedly killing two female hikers in the same vicinity in 1996.
All proponents of the tunnel's plans quickly claim that Greenways systems decrease crimes rather than encourage them, and that avid trail users are the best protection, not just for the trail but for each other. FBI statistics show that a person is more likely to be the victim of a crime in a parking lot or garage, on the street, or inside of his/her own home than in a park, field, or on a playground.
Even better news in tunnel safety is that there's already a much longer trail tunnel being used quite successfully in Washington State. The 2.3-mile Snoqualmie Tunnel, open to hikers and bikers since 1994, has become a mecca for tourists, but not for crime, according to a 2001 study by the Rails to Trails Conservancy, a non-profit group that advocates conversion of unused railroads into recreational trails. All the while, according to the report, the Snoqualmie Tunnel is "perpetually pitch black, cold and damp."
The Whitesell Group's Akers says that possible safety options include a round-the-clock maintenance and patrol unit, gated entranceways that can be lowered at dusk, and vehicular access. Suggestions for ambient illumination include runway lights along the ground that would cast light upward to keep the pathway visible without scaring away the bats.
All conversations and meetings at this point remain in the preliminary stages they will begin in earnest when the money arrives from VDOT in early January.
According to a faded Richmond Times-Dispatch newspaper clipping, in 1976, a crew from the American Society of Civil Engineers clambered over weed and vine to visit and celebrate Crozet's handiwork as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. Other sites on this prestigious list include the Roosevelt Dam, the Erie Canal, and the Mormon Tabernacle.
"Crozet's example of character, persistence, and professional competence is worthy of emulation by succeeding generations of engineers," the society announced. "His use of novel methods of drainage and ventilation during construction of the tunnel was a contribution to the development of the civil engineering profession." That's how Claudius became known as the unofficial "father" of VDOT.
Keeping this monument hidden in a frame of lush greenery, inaccessible to history buffs and walkers, seems like the worst kind of insult, so perhaps this recreational conversion won't have Claudius Crozet rolling over in his grave. After all, celebration of his talents is part of the plan. Keeping the tunnel's historical integrity intact now moves forward on the list of priorities. But to what extent, nobody knows.
Maureen Corum, Director of Tourism for Nelson County, notes that from today, it will probably take five to seven years to complete the planned trails and tunnel re-opening... almost the same amount of time it took Crozet to build the tunnel.


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The United States Postal Service has long lived on the financial edge, but it has never been as close to the precipice as it is today: the agency is so low on cash that it will not be able to make a $5.5 billion payment due this month and may have to shut down entirely this winter unless Congress takes emergency action to stabilize its finances.
"Our situation is extremely serious," the postmaster general, Patrick R. Donahoe, said in an interview. "If Congress doesn't act, we will default."
In recent weeks, Mr. Donahoe has been pushing a series of painful cost-cutting measures to erase the agency's deficit, which will reach $9.2 billion this fiscal year. They include eliminating Saturday mail delivery, closing up to 3,700 postal locations and laying off 120,000 workers — nearly one-fifth of the agency's work force — despite a no-layoffs clause in the unions' contracts.
The post office's problems stem from one hard reality: it is being squeezed on both revenue and costs.
As any computer user knows, the Internet revolution has led to people and businesses sending far less conventional mail. more


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Following her recent appearance on Dancing With The Stars, it seems Bristol Palin isn't slowing down anytime soon.
According to Popeater, Bristol, 20, is set to release a 304-page memoir during the summer. The PoliticalWire first spotted the currently titled 'Untitled Bristol Palin Memoir,' earlier yesterday on Amazon's website (Amazon has since deleted the page) with the release date of June 21.
How many pages is Bristol's memoir you ask? Just a mere 304 pages! Apparently getting pregnant at age 17, capitalizing of her famous mother Sarah Palin to appear on DWTS, and her custody battle with baby daddy Levi Johnston has given Bristol a lot of material to write about.
Bristol also spoke to E! News yesterday during which she discussed her close friendship with MTV's Teen Mom star Maci Bookout.
Bristol told E!, "When you are having babies at my age, you can't really connect with the same friends you had. But I do have a friend that had a baby a few months after I had Tripp. So we've become really close friends because of that. Yes, it's Maci! She's become a really good friend."
And despite being rumored to have moved to Arizona to be closer to her new beau Gino Paoletti, Bristol revealed the two are taking things slow. "We are taking it really slow, we are not in a rush, where i was with Levi." She added, "We've been friends for a really long time, he is just a good guy, he is Christan, we have a lot in common."
It also seems Bristol has had a change of heart since the last interview she did begging ex Levi to give up his parental rights. "I would love Levi to be part of his life, but I know with Levi's lifestyle right now its pretty hard for him to see Trip right now," she said adding that when Tripp wants to see his daddy, she will take him home to Alaska to do so.


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We have said it over and over, we'll say it again. For all those who for one reason or another would like to boycott the broken markets, yet trade gold in paper form, please understand that all the invested capital is at risk of total loss and can and will be lost, commingled and rehypothecated, not necessarily in that order, with little to zero recourse and the residual claim on liquidating assets pushed to the very end of the queue. Because if Lehman, MF Global, Peregrine, and countless other examples were not enough, here comes Amber Gold: a gold-based investment ponzi scheme out of Poland, in which it is likely needless to say that the gullible investors never had actual possession of the gold. And when they tried, it was gone. All gone.
From the WSJ:
This week's collapse of a gold-derivatives business that Polish regulators say was a Ponzi scheme has hit tens of thousands of customers, shaken confidence in the effectiveness of the nation's financial regulation, and is roiling national politics in the European Union's largest emerging economy.
On Monday, the company, Amber Gold, Sp. z o.o., which sold a gold-indexed investment of its own design and offered higher interest rates than banks, said it was halting operations. It pledged eventually to repay about $24 million it said it owed to roughly 50,000 clients in Poland.
Amber Gold's 28-year-old founder, Marcin Plichta, who has publicly acknowledged past convictions for misappropriating funds, couldn't be reached to comment. Amber Gold representatives were also unreachable.
Despite three years of warnings by Poland's financial authorities that the company was operating without a license, it continued expanding and spent heavily on marketing. Among its businesses, the company launched a budget airline this year to compete with state-owned LOT Polish Airlines SA on domestic and European routes.
The airline, OLT Express, ceased flights last month and the gold fund unraveled this month after renewed government warnings prompted commercial banks to close Amber Gold's accounts. The company said "the liquidation process will be spread over time," without specifying when people might get their money back.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Donald Tusk referred to Amber Gold as "a scheme" and said he ordered his finance minister to convene top financial authorities—including the central bank and consumer protection office—to discuss the company's demise and the effect on customers. "All signs on heaven and earth suggest that people who put their trust in that company have been cheated," Mr. Tusk said. He said it is the duty of the state "to move fast enough to protect people from those schemes."
"I'm shocked at this point and I don't know what to do," said a woman in her 40s, who didn't give her name but said she was an Amber Gold client. "The boss of this company is a very wealthy man and I don't know who will have the authority to block his wealth so he doesn't escape."
Amber Gold has said it has $45 million in assets, including 100 kilograms of gold. For years it hasn't issued required financial statements, a lapse that draws a small penalty.
What can be said here: same sad story, different day. People preying on the "get rich quick" euphoria (we would call it laziness but the word is just slightly off color) of others, throwing in a symbol of stability (gold), and laundering proceeds to "baffle everyone with bullshit" all the while the regulators confirm that regulation is meaningless, by not doing their job (and in America would have likely been part of the ploy - apparently in Poland they are amateurs). Said prey also thought that if things turned sour they would be able to pull all their "gold" which just has to exist, because someone else has certainly checked, right, after all there are tens of thousands (of confused lambs part of this), ahead of everyone else.
Alas, as with every Ponzi, this "strategy" never works. It didn't work for the original Ponzi, it didn't work for Bernie Madoff, and it won't work for the global capital markets, which are increasingly perceived by everyone as merely the largest and most comprehensive thoroughly legitimized by their broke host governments and corrupt regulators Ponzi scheme ever conceived.
And so, as we said in the beginning, anyone who puts any amount of money in the market should expect to lose all of it. The US government and the Fed may believe that have eliminated risk but instead they have merely magnified it to a point when even a 10 point drop in the Dow Jones Industrial average feels like the imminent advent of armageddon.
Want to play in a rigged, broken casino? Go ahead - and but don't expect to recovery anything.
For everyone else for whom preservation of capital is more important than gambling, buy precious metals. And get immediate delivery. Because holding a symbolic representation of a flight to safety "asset" via Cede & Co is simply said, idiotic.


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There they go again.
Don't U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer and her Republican challenger Carly Fiorina know anything? Don't they know that campaigns are supposed to be about trivia and avoidance of real issues? Why do they keep having disputes over, gasp, substance?
The latest Boxer-Fiorina back-and-forth may not have been polite, but it was about something important: the financial reform bill and the new consumer protection agency that's part of it. Boxer voted for it. Fiorina criticized her for doing so, saying the bill doesn't do enough to prevent the country from getting into another crisis like the one we saw in 2008. Boxer didn't back down, noting the consumer protections in the bill and the strong support for the bill from a coalition of groups, from the AARP to Consumers Union.
U.S. & World
Whatever you think of the bill, the good news is that these two candidates are giving Californians a real debate about crucial issues. This conversation about the financial reform bill comes on the heels of a series of exchanges about the federal stimulus package. Perhaps they'll talk next about health care reform, unemployment insurance, or something else that's important.
The only bad news: this race isn't getting the attention it deserves. Instead, the almost meaningless Jerry Brown-Meg Whitman contest, featuring two candidates who have yet to have a real substantive exchange on issues, gobbles up times on the air waves.


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Fiji: Grave threats and false charges against human rights lawyer
STATEMENT by P. Imrana Jalal, Human Rights Lawyer, on fabricated FICAC charges. Suva, Fiji Islands, 8 January 2010: On 1 January 2010 I was served by Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) officers with seven charges alleging breaches of the law. I categorically deny these charges and will mount a robust defence against them. I am a human rights lawyer with a long record of public opposition to all unlawful, undemocratic regimes and my stance against Fiji's 2006 military takeover is public knowledge. FICAC was established to investigate and prosecute corruption but instead has been used to also persecute persons not supportive of the military regime. The charges levelled against me at this time constitute part of this second strand of activities. FICAC has initiated various actions against myself and my husband in order to harass and intimidate us. I will continue vigorously to resist and challenge these efforts and to uphold the principles of democracy and the rule of law for all Fijians.
I am a member of several international rule of law and human rights organisations including as: a Commissioner on the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), Geneva; a Board Member of the International Council of Human Rights Policy (ICHRP), Geneva; a member of the Asia Pacific Forum for Women Law and Development (APWLD), Thailand ; a member of the international network, Women Living Under Muslim Law (WLUML), Pakistan and France; a Board Member of Greenpeace Australia-Pacific (GPAP), Sydney, Australia; and am a Co-Founder and Board Member of the Fiji Women's Rights Movement, Fiji. I have a close association with Amnesty International and was also a Fiji Human Rights Commissioner.
On 1 January 2010 while breakfasting with my family at a hotel in Denarau, Nadi, Fiji, I was served by two officers from the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) with seven charges alleging breaches of the Public Health (Hotels, Restaurant and Refreshment Bars) Regulations, the Food Safety Act and the Penal Code. The charges relate to a business operated by a company , Bottomline Investments. I am a director of this company but have not been involved in its day to day operations. The restaurant charges normally attract a penalty of FJD20.00 (USD10.00) and are Suva City Council offences. A large number of businesses in Suva operate without a licence, whilst their applications for licences are being processed. The allegations are categorically denied and the charges will be strenuously defended.
These charges are part of a continuing strategy by the current military regime to target, persecute and silence critics, including myself. I am a human rights lawyer with a long record of public opposition to all unlawful (military and non-military) undemocratic regimes, including that of Sitiveni Rabuka, George Speight and now, Voreqe Bainimarama. Since the coup d'etat in December 2006 I have regularly called the current military regime to account for the violations of human rights in Fiji. In December 2006, after my published opposition to the military takeover, I was threatened with rape, in graphic detail, via an anonymous call to my mobile. I was warned to shut my mouth or "they" would shut it for me. That call was traced to a phone booth just outside the gates of the Queen Elizabeth Barracks, home of the Fiji Military Forces. Twenty minutes prior to the call, Colonel (now Brigadier) Mohammed Aziz had asked Major Davina Chan to call my office to get my mobile number. I made a police complaint about that threat of rape and included this information. The Police Statement is a matter of public record.
FICAC, as with most significant government bodies, is headed by a military officer. FICAC was established to investigate and prosecute corruption but instead has been used to also persecute persons not supportive of the military regime. The basic import of the charges against me is that the business was run without a licence – not a corruption matter – nor one which FICAC is legally permitted to prosecute. Such prosecutions are normally commenced by the Central Board of Health or the Suva City Council. The maximum fine prescribed is FJD20 (approx USD20). The Penal Code charges allege a failure to obey a lawful order. No lawful (nor indeed unlawful) order has been issued against myself or the business. FICAC's remit seems to be flexible and growing, despite its limited, defined legal powers.
The method of service chosen by FICAC appears to have been a deliberate attempt to humiliate and embarrass me in a public place with my family. I live and work in Suva, where the offices of FICAC are located, and where service would be a simple matter. At the time of service we were on holiday with friends and staying in their private villa, part of a hotel complex 200 km away. We were not registered at the hotel thus making it surprising that FICAC was aware of my whereabouts.
Fiji's Military Forces Land Force Commander Brigadier Pita Driti, was reported in the media on 5 January 2010 warning Fiji citizens that they should remember "who is in control." He went on to threaten any dissenters "...there are only a few people who [we] could term as adversaries - but I would discourage them from doing anything and I would like to tell them to keep low and try to cooperate with us in trying to maintain peace otherwise they will be in for something really hard in terms of how we will treat them this year."
This current targeting of me by the regime follows legal action taken against my husband. He has had numerous charges presented and later withdrawn by FICAC. Similar charges relating to running a business without a licence were served on my husband prior to me, again in a manner designed to maximise humiliation and harm. When my husband's charges were raised in the Magistrates Court on 29 December 2009, Magistrate Mary Muir queried the basis on which FICAC was prosecuting minor local authority misdemeanours. She suggested that it was outside FICAC's jurisdiction and a matter for the Suva City Council. There was an altercation between the FICAC prosecuting lawyer and the magistrate. It has been reported in the media on 5 January 2010 that shortly after this matter was first raised in court , the magistrate had her contract terminated. This is not an isolated incident. Other magistrates have had their contracts terminated after making decisions contrary to the submissions of FICAC.
It appears that the strategy of FICAC in the various actions taken against myself and my husband is not to go to trial, but to keep the matters pending in order to harass, intimidate, persecute and to wear us down. My professional training and ethics prohibit me not only from acting against the law but to stand against the undermining of the rule of law by others. I shall defend the charges raised against me and will continue to seek a better, more just Fiji for all.
FIJI – JUDICIARY: RNZI PACNEWS 1: Thurs 07 Jan 2010
Fiji Law Society notes fresh purge of judiciary
07 JANUARY 2010 SUVA (RNZI) --- The Fiji Law Society president, Dorsami Naidu, says the Fijian administration is further purging the justice sector of people who don't toe the line.
Three magistrates and several public prosecutors have been sacked this week without the public being given an explanation.
The Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) has broadened its operations, charging a member of the International Commission of Jurists, Imrana Jalal, and her husband with operating a restaurant without a licence.
Ms Jalal denies the charges.
Mr Naidu said anti-corruption organisations usually deal with corruption matters involving public bodies.
"FICAC should not have become involved. This is dealt with by the municipal council and if a person does not pay their business licence fee and if they have operated, the municipal council can take them to court and claim that money. I can't call it corruption."
Mr Naidu said he doesn't understand why FICAC has become involved, but adds the Commission seem to single out people who are critical of the regime.
He said the administration seems tough on those opposing its agenda.
"It's in regards to the views the magistrates have on certain charges being laid by FICAC, which are not within their powers and the magistrates have told them so. That's one reason and certain other views they have on certain cases brought by FICAC. They are probably not toeing the line."
Mr Naidu said little is known about the sackings of the prosecutors….PNS (ENDS)
Ficac mum about Jalal case
Posted at 03:33 on 05 January, 2010 UTC
Fiji's Independent Commission Against Corruption has declined to confirm or deny reports that it laid charges against a prominent human rights lawyer.
Imrana Jalal has reportedly been charged on seven counts on New Year's Day, including operating a takeaway restaurant without a licence, failing to display a licence, and disobedience to an order to disclose the licence.
The restaurant is believed to have been sold last August.
Her husband, Ratu Sakiusa Tuisola, has already been taken to court over the same issues.
The presiding magistrate, Mary Muir, had criticised the Commission during his court hearing, describing the case as a Suva City Council matter.
Ms Muir has since been sacked.
News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand
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Here's Why You Close Your Eyes When You Kiss Someone
Ever wondered why we automatically close our eyes whenever we kiss someone? Well, it's something scientific!
According to a group of psychologists from Royal Holloway University in England, it has something to do with concentration. They found out through an experiment on vision and tactile sensory that it's impossible or difficult for us to process something when we get distracted by another visual stimuli. (via RadioOne.fm)
They found that this is the case when they asked a group of people to search for letters while their hands received vibrations. The result? The eyes are working more so the tactile responses were less felt. So when you kiss someone, it's difficult to open your eyes. And when someone opens their eyes while kissing someone? It just means they're not into it. Yikes!
Read interesting studies you want to share with us? Let's talk in the comments or via Twitter @candymagdotcom. We always love hearing from you. :)
Candy Bulletin
What're you up to today? Submit your OOTD, fanfic, essay, school project, org event, a pic of your latest hobby, or anything you want to be posted on the Candy Bulletin page!
Outdoors Danielle Flestado @artdkf | May 1, 2020 "I miss the outside world. The last time I went outside of our house was on my birthday. We just bought coffee across our village and went back home immediately. This painting made me feel that I'm in a field, just appreciating the beauty of God's creation. Can you imagine the green grass and pink flowers?"
When everything around you suddenly turns dark, the first thing we'd prolly do, as humans, is to find and grab anything that is closest and nearest to us. We'll hold onto them for as long as we can, trying to collect ourselves and gather courage to adjust our eyesights to the pitch black environment that's consuming us minute by minute. And then you'd hear nothing. Your sense of hearing would somehow go off after not seeing anything for quite awhile. You'll let loose. Cry. Panic. You'll be exhausted for fighting your way out. Then just when you're about to stop and give up, you're no longer afraid. There's only this deafening silence and pithole of darkness that's gonna eat you up alive. And surprisingly, you'll make a home out of it.
You'll make a home out of the darkness that when a ray of light suddenly hits you, you'll try to avoid it. You'll try to cover your eyes. You'll try to cover your ears from the voices trying to help you get out of it. You'll try to hide because your mind and body will go against your will to come out and live. Because the darkness that used to scare you, now comforts you in a way you thought has helped you survived life. And you'll try to live. Day by day. In the darkness. Not knowing where to go. Not knowing where to start. Not knowing who is with you. You will try to live until the darkness that once surrounds you is now within you. And everyday, it's gonna be a cycle of subtle torture. But let me tell you a secret. The darkness won't make you whole.
You'll be broken. And in those hair-like cracks, the light will stubbornly fight its way through until it warms you up. Until you realize to check the switch and turn it on. Until you allow other people to help you find your way back in the light. Until you realize you're ready to live in light again. There's a light at the end of this long and dreading tunnel. The only question that matters: will you let them in?
I always thought of life, like a bead where each piece makes it worth sewing together with other piece of beads to make a stronger bond and to create a beautiful result. Today, how do we bond well with different people especially this difficult time? As this day challenges us to a new normal, may we continue to bead along positively with our life.


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Scott Vander Hart
created Jan 12 2017
updated May 19 2020
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I have a 6 year old English Bulldog named Lola. She is spayed. We've had her since she was 8 weeks old, and she's been a great, calm, sometimes stubborn, mostly submissive dog. I've noticed over the last year or so that she's started barking at other dogs when she used to mostly ignore other dogs.
She's never shown aggression to any people until recently. The first time happened recently when she pooped in the house. I was scolding her and making her walk over to the poop so she'd remember what she'd done (I didn't find the poop until a couple hours after she'd done it), and she started growling and snarling at me. The most recent incident happened over food. We have a 15 month old daughter. She eats in a high chair, and the dog typically cleans up whatever she throws on the floor. My daughter was walking around one day, and my husband gave her a marshmallow. The dog went over to her and started trying to eat the marshmallow out of her hand. My daughter started crying because the dog wasn't being very gentle, but I don't think the dog was trying to hurt my daughter; just being too excited about the marshmallow. My husband walked over and tried to stop the dog by pushing her head away. The dog snarled at my husband and bit his finger, causing him to bleed. We yelled at her, and you could tell she felt bad. I'm becoming concerned because I feel like my dog is starting to get more aggressive as she gets older and I don't trust her like I used to, especially with my daughter around. It's like she loses her mind for a minute. How can I prevent the aggression? We've started locking the dog in another room when my daughter is eating so she can't eat any of the spillage on the floor, but I can't always prevent the dog from being around my daughter when she has food, especially as she gets older and grows out of the highchair. I would feel awful if my child got bit in the future, but I don't want to get rid of the dog if I can train this behavior out of her. What can I do?


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Nearly a year ago to the day, Rockstar's long-awaited Max Payne 3 debuted to nearly universal acclaim. Price at the time: around $50, same as most new PC games.
Nearly two years ago to the day, Rockstar's L.A. Noire debuted to nearly universal acclaim -- but only for consoles. A PC edition arrived later in the year, bundling all five of the cases that had been released as DLC for the consoles. Price at the time: you know.
Be glad you waited. For a limited time, Amazon is offering L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition and Max Payne 3 (PC) for $9.99. No rebates, no discount codes, just 10 bucks out the door for two of the top games of 2011 and 2012.
For those unfamiliar with it, L.A. Noire is an action-adventure game set in late-'40s Los Angeles. Think Dashiell Hammett and Humphrey Bogart, but with you in the role of the hard-boiled detective working to bring justice to gritty city streets. I haven't played this one myself (yet), but it racked up a fair number of awards back in 2011 -- including a 9.0 rating and Editors' Choice from GameSpot.
Same goes for Max Payne 3, sequel to the games that introduced "bullet time" to shoot-'em-ups. It raised the bar over its predecessors with blistering action sequences, great use of narrative, and a terrific multiplayer mode.
I will say I found some of the dialogue pretty corny, but overall it's a seriously fun run-and-gun game and a steal at this price.
Indeed, this is one of the best game deals I've seen: two big-name, award-winning games for about the price of a movie ticket. And trust me: You'll get a lot more than two hours' worth of entertainment for your sawbuck.
By the way, you'll need a Steam account to download and activate the games.
Bonus deal: Speaking of incredible game deals, today only, GameFly has Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition (PC) for $5.99 when you apply coupon code GFDMAY20 at checkout. One of my personal favorites, this is another top-rated game that previously sold for around eight times the price. Crazy!
Bonus deal No. 2: There's a new tablet getting a lot of attention right now: the Hisense Sero 7 LT, which Walmart sells for $99 (plus tax). It's a 7-inch model that looks pretty ideal for young kids or first-time tablet owners, as it offers a dual-core processor, Android 4.1, and 4GB of storage (expandable via microSD cards). I'm hoping to get some hands-on time with one soon, but on paper it looks pretty amazing.
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The approach of an Olympic Games normally has a positive influence on activities in the host country and this is proving to be especially true of the Finn class in Brazil.
The approach of an Olympic Games normally has a positive influence on activities in the host country and this is proving to be especially true of the Finn class in Brazil.
Just over four years ago we reported on the joint initiative between Brazil, Pata Boats of Hungary and the International Finn Association to import a mould into Brazil to start building boats there for the first time in more than three decades.
The success story of that initiative continues and the class recently held its most successful National Championship in many decades. While numbers are still small compared to some European countries, it attracted 26 boats, out of a total of 36 Finns actively racing in the country, to three days of competition on the Guarapiranga Lake, in Sao Paulo.
The strength of the class was underlined by fact that most of the boats being raced were new boats built in Brazil on the back of the 2008 initiative. While there are still some imports from Europe, the sheer cost – in terms of duties and transport charges – and complexity of this has meant the unmitigated success of the home build project. Before 2008 the class had very little growth because the cost of importing a boat was almost the same as the cost of the boat itself.
The fleet at Guarapiranga included boats from the three centres of Finn sailing in Brazil. There were boats from Rio, Sao Paulo, and from the fledging fleet growing in the capital Brasilia.
There was a complete mix of conditions over the three days, but favourite, the 2012 Olympian Jorge Zarif, took the title from the returning Bruno Prada. Andre Mirsky ended up third after Prada sailed a great last day to snatch second place.
Zarif took six race wins out of the seven races (Prada took the other race win) to dominate the competitive and expanding fleet. Further growth is expected over the next three years as the country and the fleet prepare for the Olympics.
New boats
The man behind the 2008 project was Jorge Rodrigues, though most of the new boats were built by the local boatbuilder Holos under his guidance. Jorge is now the new National secretary of the class as well as being involved in 'Apoio Rio 2016', a training support organisation for sailors and federations wishing to locate in Rio.
After the first dozen of so boats were built Jorge felt that the boat could be improved, so set about designing and building a new boat. Because the cost of Holos doing the work was so high, he started work himself and the first boat has recently been launched.
"I started to work by myself to develop this new boat last year. It took me 10 months of hard work to complete the job, but right now I have a new set of moulds for this new model."
"I built a single hull to test it as a prototype. The new boat was sent to sail in the windiest region in Rio for a good structural test, and the boat went without any problem and without a single drop of water inside the hull. I am right now working with the class to see how will we measure and approve the new boat to allow me to sell it to our market."
"We also built a few masts here and we are still working to have a competitive mast for sailors in all weight ranges. We produced good masts for light or heavy sailors, but we still need to produce a mast with good numbers for the average sailors, from 90 to 100 kg."
"The first mast built here was very soft and only performs well for light sailors and in light winds. The second mast, after some fine tuning, sanding some areas and reinforcing in others was very good, and this mast won a local regatta in Rio with four races and nine boats competing."
"After this we went to Brasilia to race there and a local sailor, Juliando Camargo, liked the mast performance and decided to buy it. Some time ago Juliando also bought the first boat that we built and is the first helmsman to compete with both a boat and mast nationally built for a long time. He went to compete at our nationals and he got the best race position of all the boats we have built."
"Unfortunately, on the last leg of the first race of our Nationals, a very strong wind caused many sailors to capsize or rip their sails, and Juliando lost his precious sail that was perfectly matched to his mast. He finished fifth in the race but the sail was not usable, though he had proved the mast was fast."
Jorge says the mast project is a bit behind schedule, but a new mould is being planned, maybe built by Holos, and masts should be readily available in Brazil soon.
As for sails, one local sail builder tried to develop a sail but most sailors prefer to buy their sails from North Sails Argentina.
Brazil has a long history and tradition in the Finn class. Its most famous Finn sailor was Jorg Bruder who was tragically killed in a airplane crash in 1973 while travelling to Brest to defend his world title for the third time. The country has twice hosted the Finn Gold Cup, the last time in 2004 when Ben Ainslie famously equalled Bruder's record of three consecutive wins that had stood for 30 years.
The current big name in the class is Jorge Zarif, and for anyone with aspirations to represent Brazil in the Finn class in 2016, Zarif is currently the one to beat.
The recent return of former Finn sailor and double Olympic Star medalist Bruna Prada has added a new ingredient to the mix, and though he won the opening race in January at the ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, has yet to make a final decision on a full campaign. Though the numbers were low, it was a competitive week that gave Zarif the bronze, while Prada finished in seventh. On their return to Brazil, Zarif was again dominant at the Brazilian Sailing Week in Rio, winning nine of the ten race series.
Zarif said on his performance in Miami, "It was good in general, and I was happy with the bronze. It was hard because I was always coming from behind, so you have to work harder in the free pumping to win positions. We always had the same guys in the front, one point was super important."
"The downwind was nice, so I gained a few positions in critical moments, but the upwind was not so good. We are working to improve that for Palma."
He has not been full time since the Olympics saying, "I had some surgery in my knee after the Olympics, so I have been training for just two months. The downwinds are much better than before.
"I am training with Bruno Prada and coach Rafa Trujiillo in Rio. It's been great for us. Neither of us likes to lose so the training has been very hard. He has experience and he knows very well what you need to do to have good results, so I am trying to learn from him. We are having good times training and we are good friends. It helps a lot."
Prada commented, "I am happy to be sailing the Finn again. After just starting to sail the Finn two months ago I am happy with my upwind, and very impressed with the free pumping downwind, but I need to train a lot."
Since he last sailed a Finn at the 2004 Finn Gold Cup in Rio, he has only sailed Stars and big boats. Was it hard to come back? "I felt old...most of the sailors are at least 15 years younger. The biggest change has been the downwind free pumping for sure. A nightmare…"
While his Star helm Robert Scheidt has already been making his mark back in Lasers, was there an agreement between the two to try different classes for 2016? "Robert needs to eat a little bit more to become a Finn sailor...he is 80kg. He told me that he will try the Laser again. As I was nine years without sailing dinghies, my plan is to do one year of hard sailing, and then evaluate if I am able to go ahead." However, of course, both are still hoping for another chance in the Star.
"Jorge and I are training together. He is a big, young, talented sailor and with a lot of motivation. It is very good training with him. Rafa Trujillo is coaching us. He is a great coach and he is helping a lot."
Olympic training
To help sailors, both Brazilian and from overseas, familiarise themselves to the conditions both inside and outside Guanabara Bay, the class is running its next three National Championships in Rio.
Rodriques said, "The class decided that we will have the next three Brazilian Nationals in Rio de Janeiro as a way to encourage all Finn sailors to get to know the racing area for the Olympic Games of 2016, in Guanabara Bay."
"We are also interested in hosting the 2015 Finn Gold Cup here in order to provide the Finn sailors some regattas and training for those who will compete in 2016. The idea would be to hold State Championships, Brazilian Nationals, South Americans and the Gold Cup in sequence, to provide various opportunities for sailing here."
He is also involved, together with fellow Finn sailor Colin Reed, with the Apoio Rio 2016, (literally 'Help Rio 2016'), initiative which offers help to sailors and national authorities looking to train in Rio prior to the Olympics. He said, "Apoio Rio 2016 has been set up to work in conjunction with FEVERJ (Rio de Janeiro Sailing Federation) and other established Brazilian sailing federations, to provide the operations side of team training support."
Describing some of the problems they will face, "At present training facilities do not exist, but there are resources available. It will also be virtually impossible to find space for team containers on site in any of the host clubs. All clubs have very little spare space. It's the one thing they don't have."
Logistics is the major problem but hopefully the solution is in sight, with Apoio Rio 2016 in negotiations to provide the required facilities. The initiative offers a wide range of services to visiting sailors and federations. A full presentation document, including detailed Rio weather information and contact information, is available on the Finn website.


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Free Family Art Classes – Ashland
November 3, 2018 @ 10:30 am - 12:00 pm
|Recurring Event (See all)
An event every week that begins at 10:30 am on [day], repeating indefinitely
Explore the unlimited possibilities of your own creativity! This fun art class for kids of all ages has something for everyone – we're going to have a blast making art!
Saturdays, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
For children and families (ages 6 and younger need a supervising adult present).
Drop in anytime during the session.
FREE! Includes materials.
Creative projects change per week. Please see below for ways to discover your creativity!
- 1st Saturday of the month: Assemblage
- 2nd Saturday: Felting
- 3rd Saturday: Get your art on, painting, collage, stamping
- 4th Saturday: Drawing
- Any 5th Saturday in the month will be one of the above
Ashland Art Center
357 East Main Street
Ashland, OR
Website: www.ashlandartcenter.org
Related Events
What to expect at a Family Connection events: learn more


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Anypoint Platform Development: DataWeave 2.0 (Mule 4) on Jun 8 Online - US Eastern Time
When is this training taking place?
This class is confirmed to run over the following day(s):
Monday, June 8, 2020 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday, June 9, 2020 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
All times are based on the following time-zone: Eastern Daylight Time
Is this class confirmed to run?
Yes! If it is not full, we encourage you to register now and reserve your seat.
Frequently asked questions
Where is this training taking place?
This training is taking place in Online - US Eastern Time.
United States
What is the maximum class size?
This class allows up to 12 participants.
In general, we strive to have an optimal class size, such that:
- Instructor(s) can provide adequate attention to participants' questions and concerns as well as assist with the lab-work.
- There are enough participants in the class to create an engaging group-dynamic, which facilitates learning.


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Small Projects Foundation was founded in 1988, they determined that there was a need for an organisation that would find out the needs of beneficiaries, help them to identify their priorities and work with them to plan, implement and achieve their goals in a systemic way. They also determined that there was a need for a small flexible organisation that would be sustainable over the long term by keeping a small permanent staff and employing contract staff on programmes and projects.
Small Projects Foundation approach focuses on the concept of a sunset clause in all work with communities - that after a programme or project is completed, the organisation would withdraw and allow people to continue independently with their lives and to that end, that each initiative have to build towards independence and sustainability of the people and organisations that it works with.
Small Projects Foundation (SPF) has been promoting the Integrated School Health Policy (ISHP) in schools across South Africa through the Bright Futures and Ensuring Futures programmes.
Principles of the School Health Policy
- The Integrated School Health Policy is ...
SPF has a 20/20 Vision
SPF have embarked on eye screening services in schools located in the Eastern Cape.
In South Africa, especially in the Eastern Cape Province; one in 10 (10%) school children in rural and township schools are in need of eye services. Of these ...
The aim of this project is to combat HIV/AIDS, unwanted pregnancies among young women and girls through an action orientated behaviour change and communication approach that will build the competence of adolescents and young women to have self-efficacy in their sexual and reproductive health ...
• Piloted and replicated the 1st freehold urban land tenure for 983 black families in urban areas in 1994-1999.
• Piloted and replicated community led rural water provision in 54 communities with the National Economic Forum.
• Piloted and replicated low income housing for more than 1,000 families in Potsdam, Dimbaza and Wesley.
• Piloted and replicated village water committee and maintenance teams in 54 communities with Amathole Water Board.
• Piloted and replicated community owned and built Early Childhood Development Centres in 483 communities.
• Piloted and replicated a membership based network for Early Childhood Education for 2,400 educate centres across the Eastern Cape province through the Regional Educare Centre.
• Piloted and developed a social marketing methodology with Phelophepa Health Care Train that reached 1 million patients and operates across 8 provinces of South Africa.
• Piloted the Priorities for Local AIDS Control Efforts initiative with Measure Evaluation in South Africa and Ghana which was replicated across all districts of Ghana leading to a decline in HIV in Ghana from 4.1% in 2003 to less than 2% by 2006.
• Piloted and replicated Paediatric and Mother ART support from 2005 and supported 8 000 mothers and their HIV positive children to adhere to treatment, survive and thrive.
• Piloted the Paediatric AIDS Treatment for Africa Network from 2005 and this was replicated across 495 treatment teams/sites in 26 African countries and is now serving more than 76,000 HIV positive children and their mothers.
• Piloted a retail lending institution, the Amathole Finance Corporation, for poor people and replicated it to serve 16,000 borowers to improve their houses and education from 1995-2000.
• Piloted Social Housing with Rotary and later with Netherlands Social Housing Organisations and had it replicated to become the Own Haven Housing Association with more than 2,000 units in Buffalo City.
• Piloted community health worker training and management with 970 Community Health Workers in 8 provinces and replicated this with Eastern Cape Department of Health to manage 6,450 Community Health Workers in every health facility in the Eastern Cape from 2005-2010.
• Developed the Protecting Futures and Bright Futures Programme to empower young girls to complete school with Save the Children UK from 2008-2010 and rolled this out to 870 schools in 8 provinces of South Africa as well as replicated it to schools in Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique serving more than 50,000 girls a year. (Awarded UN 1st Prize for Gender Responsive Public Service in June 2012).
• Piloted Skills to Care training and Mentor Moms clubs which were recognized as best practice by PEPFAR and the National Department of Health on 16th May 2018.
SPF has mobilized R 511 million in funds to be used to benefit disadvantaged individuals and communities since inception and served more than 2 million direct beneficiaries. It started off with base funds of R2, 8 million in 1988 and has grown its reserves to R18, 68 million by March 2018.
The total number of permanent staff are 13 with 353 contracted employees working on projects and programmes.


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Jiffy bag / Small jewellery box £15.00
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Jones & Jacob Ltd would respectfully ask that prospective buyers view Lots in person, wherever issues regarding condition are seen as important to them, satisfying themselves as to the condition, completeness and originality of any Lot on which they intend to bid.
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In these conditions references to "the Auctioneer" shall be taken to mean the firm of Jones and Jacob Ltd.


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A week with Spelt
After reading blogs of Dabrownman, Ian & Khalid in last few months, I was waiting to get my hands on whole spelt flour. Some time back, I found Bob's Red Mill's whole spelt flour in a supermarket and jumped to buy it. As it is not cheap, I wanted to make sure that every bread made from it was worth the price. So the flour had been lying in my freezer for quite some time now. Finally in the last week, I managed to make 3 breads from the whole spelt flour.
First one I tried was Hamelman's Honey Spelt Bread, with Pate Fermentee. It has 75% whole spelt flour. The changes I made from original formula were using agave nectar instead of honey and making pate fermentee with RYW instead of instant yeast. I don't really bother about results while making Hamelman's breads as there is hardly any chance of bad outcome. This one also remained true to form. A perfect bread to intoduce my household to whole spelt. Light, airy & tasty, the bread gave all the flavour of wholegrain flour, without the denseness. Here are the crust & crumb. The crumb shot is grainy, but it still shows the character of the bread.
Now that I knew we all liked spelt, the next step was to make it part of my children's daily bread. So once again I turned to Hamelman and the bread much loved by my kids - Pain De Mei. Changes I made to the PDM - Used 60% whole spelt flour & 40% bread flour, made tangzhong with 8% flour (used bread flour) and used levain made from my SD & RYW instead of instant yeast. Hydration had also to be increased from 60% to 68% to get the right dough consistency. My son ate half of this bread without anything on it. So another winner on hand.
Bread out of oven :
I was too impatient to wait, so cut the first slice within 20 minutes while still warm :
This is thelast slice after 4 days. I hid it to see how long it stays soft. Still pretty soft, with an added slight (pleasant) tang from sourdough.
After 2 very nice results from spelt, I was contemplating the next one yesterday, when I read Floyd's post about Ken Forkish's FWSY winning the James Beard Award. My choice was obvious - Harvest bread with poolish. This one uses minimum whole spelt (10%), but it still comes through. I changed whole wheat flour to whole spelt flour and used Apple Yeast Water levain instead of poolish & skipped instant yeast in final dough. I also toasted the wheat germ (5%) and oat bran (2.5%) , thanks to dabrownman's toadies. It came out of my claypot DO with a great oven spring and have just cut one slice to taste and for crumb shot.
The crumb
A bite of this bread is a testimony to the well deserved award!


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Naples, FL. 34109
Phone: (239) 919-1803
Price: $31,995
Estimated Monthly Payment will depend on final negotiated agreed upon numbers on the exact vehicle purchased. Financing offers and/or Sales offers must be Financed through NMAC at standard rates or lose rebates for financing. Prices do not include tax, tag, title, added dealer accessories, $594 Permaplate and Window tint, $799.50 dealer fee and $199 electronic registration filing fee. All offers are mutually exclusive. All vehicles are subject to prior sale. See dealer for complete details. Offers cannot be combined. It is the customer's sole responsibility to verify the existence and condition of any equipment listed. The dealership is not responsible for misprints on prices or equipment. It is the customer's sole responsibility to verify the accuracy of the prices with the dealer, including the pricing for all added accessories.$2000 - Nissan Customer Cash - National


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SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Children will dance their way to improved strength, coordination and motor skills during The Little Gym's new dance program. Dance The Little Gym Way, which is designed for boys and girls from ages 3 to 12, includes 30 minutes of ballet, tap and creative movement and 30 minutes of age-appropriate gymnastics.
Martha Moore, the owner of a Greensboro, NC-based franchise and her son, Richard, developed the dance program.


text: On a blazing summer day in 1916, a teenager named Ansel Adams first encountered the awesome beauty of Yosemite Valley. "From that day," he later wrote, "my life has been colored and modulated by the great earth-gesture of the Sierra." This youthful awakening to the sublime power of the wilderness was the beginning of a lifelong journey for Adams -- a quest in which he would discover the power of photography to reveal mankind's place in the natural world. His work was part of an extraordinary revolution in photography that sought to capture what Adams called "the continuous beauty of things that are," the landscape of the North American continent. More than any other artist of the twentieth century, Adams helped transform the meaning of wilderness in America; his greatest images of the American West changed forever what Americans thought about their own land.Source Link: More information