def read(*parts):
    """
    Build an absolute path from *parts* and and return the contents of the
    resulting file.  Assume UTF-8 encoding.
    """
    with codecs.open(os.path.join(HERE, *parts), "rb", "utf-8") as f:
        return f.read()
def is_active(self):
        """
        Returns True when the start date is today or in the past and the
        task has not yet been completed.
        """
        start = self.start_date()
        return not self.is_completed() and (not start or start <= date.today())