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Summery! Sort of…
June 22nd, 2012 by: cheyenneThe monkey grows; observe the evidence.
Last year we spent most of our home-owner energies making the inside of the house pleasant; this year, we've been focusing on the outside. I dreamed up the elaborate and non-standard fence situation you see in the back in exchange for a rusty, ivy-encrusted old chain link nastiness, which we ripped out and drove to the scrapyard for real cash money. It's a mad world. Joshua nay-sayed my fence every step of the way but I prevailed and I think it turned out pretty nice looking. He even helped build it. Best part is I got a table saw out of the deal.
If fence building wasn't making my spring awesome enough, I personally excavated a giant hole and leveled a large area for some garden beds. I decided we could turn the hole into a dry well, but it turns out that it held water too well and we had to fill it back in. But not before we terrified all the neighbors' kids with tales of falling into the hole; Hans' dog Otto actually fell into the hole and Ronin got hit in the head with a rock while standing in the hole. I'm not sure what it is about a yawning abyss in one's backyard that creates such a focal point.
To make up for all the back-breaking labor I was missing out on by not finishing the dry well, I removed sod from an area the size of a small house and then excavated the rotting cinder-block foundation of an ancient garage. It was super fun. We even got some Craigslist crazies to come take the foundation blocks away! One guy even came back for seconds.
At long last, garden beds were erected, retaining walls retained, and a quaint brick walkway assembled around everything to keep the mud at bay. The walkway is comprised of bricks I got for free from some dude dismantling his chimney; they were all crusted with 90-year old mortar that I had to chip off with a really big screwdriver. Because nothing ever can possibly be simple. Or easy.
Finally we got a load of nice clean nice composty dirt (six yards!) and wheelbarrowed it all over the place. We now have a garden with tomatoes (five different ones!), cucumbers, zucchini, yellow and green patty-pan squashes, asparagus, rhubarb, peas, lettuce greens, arugula, and fennel! Yay!


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You've heard of Chicago beef sandwiches. You've heard about the Philly cheese steak. Now prepare yourself for the sandwich that combines the best of both and takes it all to a new level. It's called The Broken Brisket Dip sandwich (more on this below), and the only place you can find it is at the Broken Barrel Bar, 2548 N. Southport. It's just one of the resident chef's innovative ideas for bringing good old every day bar food to new heights – and making gluten-free and vegetarian souls smile.
The Broken Barrel Bar is a brand new Lincoln Park spot that promises to become a favorite destination for those who love to eat, drink and watch sports. Owner Luke Johnson of Wine Not Hospitality said making people feel comfortable is what it's all about. From the extra-large, well-padded U-shaped booths inside, to the stepped natural-wood booths and stadium seating in the outdoor space, the arrangements are perfect for big parties, yet relaxed for smaller groups and couples. Another thing Luke does to enhance the bar's spacious yet cozy ambiance is partner with local artists to create whimsical wall art. The whole restaurant/bar is ideal for large groups – family, friends, or work pals – to hang out together. Game day, let's-get-crazy day, or just relaxing time, you and your whole gang will feel welcome.
Broken Barrel Chef Bryant Anderson is all about presenting his unique take on smoked meats and pickled accompaniments that lift the barbecue bar a notch beyond the ordinary. That Broken Brisket Dip sandwich is stuffed to overflowing with perfectly tender chunks of pot roasted beef (not paper-thin slices) studded with tiny pepper slices in the house-made giardiniera and sitting atop of a generous layer of cheese melted onto both sides of a good-sized hunk of Italian-style bread. All of that is bathed lightly in the chef's smoked meat juices and served with a side dish of same for dipping. And, oh, you're going to wanna dip. I mean, I seldom eat beef – and almost never Chicago's Italian style beef because that razor-thin-sliced meat's too dry for my taste once it's reheated in the sauce – and yet I nearly finished this big sandwich. And I made sure I took home the small chunk I had left, too. It was delicious even straight out of the refrigerator the next day.
Another standout sandwich is the Guajillo Lamb taco – guajillo-pepper-marinated hickory-smoked lamb shoulder chunks, served in warm corn tortillas and topped with house-made, sweetly pickled red onions and dollops of super creamy, just-sharp-enough goat cheese. Again, though I'm neither a lamb nor a taco aficionado, this sandwich was mouth-wateringly good. I'm kind of embarrassed to admit I ate this whole thing, too.
Some of the sides are right up there, as well. The crinkle-cut sweet potato fries ($4) actually taste like and have the mouth-feel of real sweet potatoes; my companion could not stop eating them. The medium thin regular French fries ($5) are nicely browned and not greasy – and I AM a French fry aficionado. Chef says since Lincoln Park has a high percentage of vegetarians, they've chosen to honor that eating style by offering dishes like the Nachos, interlaced with roasted brussels sprout leaves, pickled onions, pickled radishes – all house-made – plus jalapeños and a jalapeño cheddar sauce on top of the sprinkled cheese. We had asked for the sauce on the side, but the dish would have come together better with it on top – and with even more of it, 'cuz it was good!
Then there's a selection of wings – gluten-free, by the way, because they are fried crispy but not breaded – that come with your choice of dry rub or several unique BBQ sauces: Buffalo, Garlic Buffalo, Honey Habanero, Chili Maple, Sticky Curry, Hell Raiser Hot, or their biggest prize winner, Bourbon BBQ. Try these with a side of Mac & Cheese with smoked cheddar and two toppings ($15), Fried Plantains, a Cheesy Cauliflower Gratin ($6 – could have used a bit more cheese intensity), or a side of nicely roasted Brussels Sprouts ($6).
The mini donut dessert was exceptional. Freshly made, hot-out-of-the-fryer donut puffs, placed in a pretty circle around a dish and interspersed with puffs of whipped cream, all drizzled with chocolate sauce and served with a dish of house-made triple berry sauce in the middle. Big enough for two and irresistible – even if you've already chowed down on your main dishes.
The wine list is a truly carefully curated selection that includes a couple of whites, a single Cabernet, a single Tempranillo, Malbec and so on. These are obviously well chosen to appeal to a range of discerning palates, and the ones we tasted were more than satisfactory. Wine glass prices range from $9 up. Well chosen, delicious wines. And for beer lovers of tappers, tall boys and bottles, you've got choices. And of course, there is a full bar and a nice selection of custom cocktails.
I suspect that if I lived in walking distance, this place would become a regular haunt. It's so friendly and cozy, even with the dozens of TV screens that will keep you company even if you're alone. And which, by the way the night we were there, we noticed they kept turned down until the Chicago Cubs (next year!) game came on. Go here and get your game on. Drink and eat. A nice example of the best in Food and Drink in Chicago.
P.S. They start serving weekend brunch on Saturday November 3! Check these options out:
- SMOKED LAMB BENEDICT. Fresh baked biscuits, slow-smoked lamb shoulder, creamy hollandaise sauce, two over easy eggs, maple-sriracha drizzle & micro cilantro $14. OMG, that lamb from the tacos is FABulous.
- HANGOVER BREAKFAST SANDWICH. Hickory brisket, fried egg, Merkts cheddar, arugula, chipotle mayo, crispy onions, toasted pretzel bun, choice of side $13. Oh, my. It's lunchtime as I write and I think I need one of these right now.
- CROISSANT FRENCH TOAST. Orange-buttermilk batter, homemade triple berry sauce, fresh croissant, whipped cream $12. Dessert for breakfast!!!
- And what's brunch without the booze?! Broken Barrel Bar will be pouring their house-blended BLOODY MARY, served with Hank's Vodka and chef-pickled vegetables $9. Or try "WE'LL TAKE A BOTTLE" – a bottle of bubbles with fresh orange juice $30.

subset: commoncrawl


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Suite 400
Alpharetta, GA 30022
Tel : 800.251.0441
Fax: 404.446.4220
Contact: Alice Dickerson
With more than 200 subsidiaries and affiliates, AGC is the global leader in glass. We've earned the #1 position in many of the markets we serve by collaborating with our global partners to create new glass innovations – enabling our customers to develop products that make life easier, safer, quieter, and more comfortable.
For the architectural market, AGC offers a broad range of low-e coated glass, decorative interior glass, and fire rated glass and framing systems. We focus on providing products with the performance to meet code in a every region, and the aesthetic options that bring the architectural look to life.
Product Categories:
08050 Door + Window Materials
08400 Entrance Doors + Storefronts
08411 Aluminum, Steel + Glass Entrances
08500 Windows
08590 Window Restoration + Replacement
08800 Glass, Glazing, Films + Mirrors
08810 Blast Resistant + Protective Glazing
08812 Decorative Glazing + Stained Glass
Commercial + Residential
Market | International |
Founded | 1956 |
Showrooms / Distributors:
Showrooms / Distributors: As a value-added solutions provider, AGC delivers direct or through a network of fabricators.
Visit our Contact Us web page for information about our North American operations, or email us at email@example.com to locate a
distributor or fabricator in your area.
Contact us.
Glass, Clear and tinted glass, coated low-e glass, patterned glass, reflective, digital imaging, heat-treated glass, insulated glass, laminated glass, impact-resistant laminated, spandrel glass and fire-rated glass and framing systems.
Stopsol - reflective glazing with solar control
Heat-treated Glass - the glass for optimal resistance
Matelux - acid-etched glass
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AGC's new Energy Select™ product family includes a wide range of neutral and reflective low-e coated products, making it easier for architects to select the best product based on the energy code requirements and desired aesthetics. In addition, Energy Select 25™ombines the new coating technology witha variety of tinted glass colors to achieve maximum performance values.
AGC's new Comfort Select™ product family provides an array of new passive solar and solar control low-e coated glass for residential applications, allowing window manufacturers to
choose the product that best meets or exceeds the Energy Star requirements for each region.
AGC's new LUXCLEAR Protect™ anti-corrosion glass. This permanent coated glass product is designed to protect the surface of the glass by preventing corrosion due to contaminants related to water, heat and high-humidity that ultimately cause the glass to "age" and become dull and dirty in appearance.
Energy Select™
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Green Statement/Products:
The emphasis on daylighting [natural light] continues to increase in step with the movement toward greater sustainability. The benefits of daylighting include reduced energy consumption and increased indoor
Environmental quality. As such, the merits of daylighting are recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council and its LEED certification program.
Solar Control and Thermal Insulation
AIA, CSI, Energy Star, GANA, USGBC


text:
Join us for 'Letter-of-the-Week' drop-in stories, crafts, and activities on Tuesdays & Fridays at 10 AM! Sessions begin September 20, 2022, and will run most weeks through Spring 2023. Dates are subject to change; visit our website/social media for the most up-to-date information.
- This event has passed.
November 29, 2022 @ 10:00 am - 11:30 am EST
|Recurring Event (See all)
An event every week that begins at 10:00 am on Tuesday and Friday, repeating until April 29, 2023


text:
Packing a travel emergency kit for your car will help you stay safe and minimize the inconvenience of an unexpected breakdown. Keep the following items in your trunk for everyday travel and extra insurance during longer trips.
Flashlight: If your car suffers an electrical malfunction, a flashlight may be the only light you have on a dark highway. Invest in a good one for your travel emergency kit and make sure the batteries are fresh.
Jumper cables: Dead batteries are common, so a good set of jumper cables is a must to get you out of a jam and back on the road.
Flares: As many as one-third of all highway deaths are the result of pedestrians, so making yourself visible in the event of a breakdown is very important. Buy a few fresh road flares for your travel emergency kit, and store them in a waterproof container.
Reflective triangles: Reflective triangles are another means of bringing attention to your location if your car breaks down, and they have the advantage of being visible day or night.
Fire extinguisher: Fire extinguishers are rated using a letter system that identifies what kind of fire they can fight. For your car's emergency kit, you'll need a "B-C"-rated extinguisher, which means it's good for both flammable liquids (like grease or gas) and electrical fires. These kinds of fires are common with cars and can be tough to put out.
First aid kit: Look for good-quality first aid kits stored in a waterproof box. If you already have one, make sure all items have been restocked.
Water: Bringing water along to drink is more important than food. Most roadside emergencies can be resolved within a couple of hours, but that's still enough time to become dehydrated.
Cell phone: Make sure you've got a phone on board in case you need to place a 911 call, reach your roadside service provider or make other emergency contacts.
Tips for Safe Travel
With your travel emergency kits packed in your trunk, you'll be prepared for surprise developments and safer on the road. Here are some additional tips for being safe and getting help quickly in the event of a breakdown:
Get far off the road: If your car breaks down, don't panic. Grab the steering wheel firmly and immediately look for a safe place to pull as far off the road as possible. Avoid blind curves or parking below the crest of a hill where another car won't be able to see you until it's too late. If the engine dies, remember that the car's remaining momentum is all you may have to get to a safe place, so brake only if necessary and use whatever power the car has left to get well off the road.
Mark your location: Once you've pulled off the road and before trying to figure out what's wrong with your car, use emergency triangles light sticks or flares to mark your location. Place the first one well behind where you've stopped and place others every 50 feet from the first. Use caution and watch for traffic while setting up these markers, because other drivers aren't expecting to see a pedestrian on the road!
Raise the flag: If you need assistance, tie a white cloth to your car where other motorists can see it. A white flag is the universal signal for motorists in distress, and once it's posted, other drivers will stop to help or call 911 from their cell phones. Good places to display your white flag include the antenna, door handle or between the top of a window and the doorframe.
Stay in your car: Though staying in your car is a judgment call, most experts say inside your car is the safest place to be. Pedestrians wandering on highways are walking targets for other drivers and are at high risk of being hit. If you've managed to get your car to a safe place, stay there until help arrives. However, if the car has come to rest in a dangerous place like the middle of traffic or an area where crime is a concern (such as a desert highway at night), you might want to leave your car and get out of sight. When police arrive, you can reveal your location and ask for help.


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Want to make your driving experience even more exciting? Then enhance your stock paddle shifters with larger aluminum paddle extensions!
A perfect modification for any Camaro equipped with an Automatic Transmission. In stock form, the paddle shifters found on the back of the steering wheel are very small, flimsy, and can be difficult to locate during spirited driving. A great solution is these replacement paddles that will easily solve that issue and look great at the same time. Available in your choice of different finishes that offer an anodized appearance - Black, Red, Blue, and Silver. All made out of high-quality billet aluminum.
- High-Quality Aluminum Construction
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- Drastic Improvement in Shifting Accuracy
- Highly Visible "+" and "-" for Upshifts and Downshifts
- Easy Installation (3M tape) that Requires NO Permanent Modifications (fully reversible).
- Available in Black, Red, Blue, and Silver
ATTENTION: Heat up the 3M adhesive tape before sticking the item, then press and hold for at least 1 min
Fits the following models: 2012-2018 Chevrolet Camaro
Please provide the year, make, and model of your car to ensure you receive the correct paddle shifter extensions.


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Windows: Equalify offers a little more control over the way your music sounds in Spotify. When installed, you'll see an equalizer in the top-left part of the Spotify player that allows you to change the bass, mid, and treble in real-time while the music is playing.
Equalify only works in the Windows player, but once installed you have the freedom to tweak the settings to find a balance that works for you, or you can select from one of the pre-configured EQ settings in the utility already. Once you've set up Equalify with the settings you like, save them so they're applied to all of your music. For more Spotify tools, check out our list of essential Spotify tools.
Equalify | via Addictive Tips
You can reach Alan Henry, the author of this post, at [email protected], or better yet, follow him on Twitter.


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More than 70 bills have now been signed into law as we begin the 5th week of the 2021 Regular Session.
Another bill now making its way to the Governor's desk is SB99. This bill, which regulates "step therapy" protocols, passed the House by a vote of 96-0.
Health benefit plans are increasingly making use of step therapy protocols. The protocols often require patients to try one or more prescription drugs before coverage is provided for a drug selected by the patient's healthcare provider. SB99 does not ban the use of step therapy but instead requires insurance providers to set reasonable timelines for requests and appeals.
If implemented, it will ensure that step therapy will be based on medical and clinical guidelines and not require patients to fail on medicines they have already taken or are not in their best interest.
The House also passed the following bills on Monday:
HB1193-This bill increases the amount of time a school board has to fill a vacancy in the event of a death of a board member. It extends the time from 30 days to 60 days.
HB1188-This bill allows technicians the ability to install home security devices that you can purchase in a retail store, such as a smart doorbell, without obtaining the same licensure as a private security agency.
HB1355-This removes licensing requirements for a motor vehicle salesperson and a recreational vehicle salesperson. This bill also creates the Automotive Technologist Education Grant Program. The Division of Career and Technical Education may then award grants for training in the field of automotive repair and technology.
HB1159-This bill allows members of the General Assembly to defer jury duty to a later date if they are called to serve during a legislative session or the 30 days before and after the session begins.
This bill also allows a person who is 80 years of age or older to voluntarily exempt himself or herself from participating in jury service at any time.
The House will reconvene on Tuesday at 1 pm.


text: Hey guys and gals, I'm taking a tactical shotgun class in a few weeks. I can't wait. I hear tell it's 4 days of bloody knuckles and band aids... We're running 500 rounds in 4 days, that's a lot of shooting. I hope my shoulder is still next to my head at the end. We go through 300 rounds of 7 1/2 or 8 shot bird shot, 100 rounds of #3 buck (I shoot a 20ga) and 100 slugs. The guys with 12ga shottys will have 00 buck shot I'm sure. I reallt can't wait to get in the mountains and canyon, shooting steel all day. I'll tell ya'll about it when it's over and I'm healed up enough to type... Peace all


text:
Speak truth to Power. Or at least ask it questions. Since I came of mindful age after JFK & RFK and during the Nixon administration, it was near impossible to have anything resembling a hero in the world of American politics. But one of the first people who made me both interested in and […]
for Helen Thomas — 1920 – 2013
July 20th, 2013 · 8 Comments · Politics
Tags: Helen Thomas memories·Helen Thomas tribute·heroes of journalism·historic American women·JFK to Obama·journalistic giants·lady in the front seat·legends of journalism·reporter who covered most presidents·White House reporters


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A hacker apparently broke into the computer system of Santa Clara University to change the grades of more than 60 current and former students, the California school announced on Monday.
The school's breach came to light after a 25-year-old electrical engineering student named Mark Loiseau announced on Twitter that FBI agents appeared at his off-campus apartment on Monday morning to question him. He said the agents were brandishing copies of his cell phone records, which they had obtained from Verizon.
"Three federal agents just came over to my apartment and grilled me about some hacking scandal at SCU," Loiseau tweeted. "They had my phone records!"
The university, located in Silicon Valley and run by the Jesuit Order, acknowledged later on its website that it had called in the FBI to investigate after a female student came forward in August to report that one of her grades had mysteriously changed on a recent transcript she had obtained.
After school officials failed to find an explanation for the change, they launched an investigation to look into the grades of tens of thousands of other students at the school, going back decades, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
School protocol requires signatures, a review and a software audit of approvals before a grade can be changed. But officials found evidence of unapproved grade changes going back to 2006. In all cases, the grades were improved — some subtly, others more dramatically, such as morphing an F into an A.
The hack appears to have occurred between June 2010 and July 2011 and affected a "handful of current undergraduate students and approximately sixty former undergraduate students," according to the school's statement.
The school contacted local police first, and then the FBI.
"We have treated this intrusion with the utmost seriousness because of the threat to our academic records and to our integrity as an institution of higher learning," University President Michael Engh wrote in his blog post announcing the breach and investigation.
The FBI agents who appeared at Loiseau's door apparently considered him a suspect, asking him if he had noticed that about 18 of his grades were changed from F to A and also questioning him about why he had deleted a series of voicemails from his Google Voice account around the time the hack was committed.
Loiseau said he told the agents he had never received 18 F's. He later checked his transcript and discovered that it recorded him receiving an A in a freshman political science course. He told the Mercury News that he recalled actually receiving a lower grade in the class, but didn't indicate what that grade had been.
He told CNET that the FBI agents asked to search his computers, but he declined, given that they didn't have a warrant.
Photo: mstinas / Flickr


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Listen to the podcast. Find it on iTunes/iPod and Podcast.com. Download the transcript. Sponsor: The Open Group.
Dana Gardner: Hi, this is Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions, and you're listening to BriefingsDirect.
Today, we present a sponsored podcast discussion in conjunction with The Open Group's Enterprise Architecture Practitioners Conference held in Seattle, the week of Feb. 1, 2010.
We've assembled a panel to examine service-oriented architecture (SOA) and cloud computing -- the relationships, the inter-reliance and the realities. Three years ago, the IT transformation poster child was SOA, and now we're well into the hype curve around cloud computing, but has one actually given way to the other? Are they linear in their relationship, or perhaps mutually dependent in some ways, and to what degree?
We'll explore today whether SOA has found new value and relevance as a foundation and perhaps catalyst for cloud computing, especially for so-called private clouds. And, we'll see how the emergence of SOA and cloud may be happening in different places inside of enterprises. Shouldn't one hand get to quickly know what the other is up to and perhaps even work together?
There are a series of podcasts from The Open Group conference: on cloud computing, enterprise architecture, business architecture, Archimate, and cloud security.
Here with us now, however, to plumb the depths of how SOA and cloud computing do or don't come together, are a SOA expert from the Open Group, as well as an Oracle expert on architecture, and a Salesforce.com executive on cloud computing.
We're here with Dr. Chris Harding, director of the SOA Work Group at The Open Group. Welcome to the show, Chris.
Dr. Chris Harding: Thank you, Dana.
Gardner: We're also here with Stephen G. Bennett, Senior Enterprise Architect at Oracle. Welcome, Stephen.
Stephen G. Bennett: Thank you. Happy to be here.
Gardner: And, we're here with Peter Coffee, Director of Platform Search for Salesforce.com. Hello, Peter.
Peter Coffee: Hi. Good to be with you all.
Gardner: Let me take our first question to you, Chris. You've been working with SOA for some time with a work group at The Open Group. Has the SOA conversation changed in the last several years due to the interest in cloud computing?
Harding: Well, Dana, the conversation has changed in that, five years ago, when we started getting into SOA, there was a huge amount of excitement and a great deal of buzz about it. Now, we can see that the hype cycle has run its course, but we're still seeing a great deal of technical interest in SOA and we're also seeing that companies are using it and are increasing their use of it. So, there is a steady uptake in the use of SOA, although the excitement about it has died down.
Gardner: That's an interesting effect, where the interest seems to be less, but the actual implementation is more. Peter Coffee, do you have any sense of how SOA is working or not working in your efforts around cloud computing?
Considerable upside
Coffee: I've been covering SOA for a long time. Before I was at salesforce.com, I was with the industry journal eWEEK, so I had a lot of opportunity to talk with people who were in the evaluation and adoption phase. I'd say the people who adopted SOA in the previous decade got considerable upside, but those who did not didn't really suffer any penalty for not doing so.
In the situation we're in now, where the economics of cloud computing are becoming quite compelling, the downside of not having a SOA is becoming quite apparent. If you don't have a service environment, then your ability to extend your current assets and integrate them with cloud services is going to be somewhat hampered.
So, people are realizing now that the wait-and-see option is more perilous than it used to be. This is accelerating the actual adoption of what we would call SOA, except that's no longer the label du jour.
Gardner: Stephen Bennett, from an architecture perspective, do you also see that the SOA activities are no longer a nice-to-have, particularly if you're interested in working towards grid, cloud, utility types of computing models?
Bennett: It's definitely a necessity, and the majority of large enterprises today are doing SOA in one fashion or another at different levels of maturity, whether that's from the quite immature approach of seeing it as a pure integration play all the way up to seeing it more as a business agility kind of play.
So, it's becoming a norm and, therefore, we don't need to keep hyping it or pushing it. We need to use the characteristics it offers with other supporting technology strategies such as cloud.
Gardner: Back to you, Chris Harding. When we think about how to approach SOA and about some of the business models that seem to be attractive around cloud computing, do you think that they're happening in different places. Is there a dissonance of some sort in some of the enterprises? That's to say is one hand doing SOA, the other doing cloud, and they're not necessarily coming together very much.
Harding: Enterprises are complex organisms, and often different parts of them aren't completely in sync. It's very interesting that service orientation is very much a business concept, and SOA has been about the application of that business concept to the technology. Cloud computing, on the other hand, is very much a technical concept. It's about what you can do with technology over the Internet.
It is a technical concept, but it has had really a big impact on the business structure. So you can see them as complementary. SOA has been the application of business principles into the technology. Cloud is a technical concept, which has had a huge impact on the business. So, yes, there probably are different parts of the organizations looking at cloud and looking at SOA, but there is a big dynamic that says they should be working together on both of them.
Gardner: How about from your perspective, Peter Coffee? Do you see different cultures, priorities, or efforts at work that haven't quite matched up or connected yet?
Two perspectives
Coffee: I certainly do, and I'd like to look at that from two perspectives. First, without actually disagreeing with Chris, I see things slightly differently. It seems to me that SOA very quickly became a label of products that vendors wanted to sell. So, you saw a lot of things like enterprise service bus (ESB) products and so on.
It became dangerously easy to think that you were doing SOA, if you were buying the tools and failing to appreciate how much of a cultural and management achievement it was to get people to think of themselves not as owners of and the gatekeepers to an IT asset, but instead being publishers of and supporters of a service to other parts of the business.
The second point goes back to what was said just a moment ago by Steven. It's absolutely critical to understand that you can view SOA as simply a way of integrating the stuff you have, or you can move to the next level and start to think of it as the way you do your business. The way your business units interact with and support each other with the technology is just the enabler for that.
The same is true of the cloud. It's possible to take the existing IT model of isolated applications, each with their own data stores, and replicate that model in the cloud with elastic scalability of capacity. That would be the level of the cloud industry that's typically called infrastructure as a service (IaaS).
Or, it's possible to use the cloud as a much more interesting and fluid medium for interaction among much more granular and business-oriented services at the level that's traditionally been called in the industry either platform as a service (PaaS) or software as a service (SaaS). It depends on the level at which you choose to consume other people's application work, instead of doing new application development yourself.
So, it's really important to realize the orthogonality between the technology you're adopting and the manner in which you are using it. It's possible to do SOA without the cloud. It's possible to do better SOA with it. It is also possible to do an isolated silo-oriented architecture locally and also to do that in a cloud environment. Neither one necessarily implies or impels the other.
Gardner: But, they certainly seem to have a mutual reinforcing benefit for one another.
It's a combination of technologies that are finally ready for prime time, and an ecosystem that's ready to support those technologies well.
Coffee: Exactly. As I said earlier, the economics of being able to have elastically scalable capacity to be able to handle peak loads without needing to own the peak capacity and wind up with very low utilization rates on your capacity are becoming so compelling that people are asking how they're going to take advantage of this opportunity of this cloud environment.
It's a combination of technologies that are finally ready for prime time, and an ecosystem that's ready to support those technologies well -- providers of services and providers of expert assistance in using those services.
That's a very important enabling ware, when your major system integration firms begin fully to understand how they can incorporate cloud services into the portfolio of technologies that they make available to their customers. When you put that all together, the downside of not moving to an SOA becomes an embarrassing lack of ability to take advantages of these incredible economies.
Gardner: Stephen Bennett, we've been working through maturity models and technology and adoption patterns, but we also had a major recession globally, perhaps the worst in 75 years. One of the things that many people thought derailed the adoption of SOA was the lack of funding for added-on expense or discretionary IT spending.
At the same time, we had cloud come in and say, "We can do more for less, increase your productivity, and perhaps add more capacity into your data centers, preventing you from having to invest in additional ones." It seems that cloud has given SOA an economic boost in terms of the rationale for investing in SOA. Does that make sense to you?
Pragmatic and realistic
Bennett: It definitely makes sense, but we also have to be pragmatic and realistic here. Any disruptive approach or technology such as cloud and SOA -- backing up what Peter said -- is not a pure product or technology play. There are other considerations. You have to take the people and process into account. That will require investment and time, investing in your people to acquire the new skills, to address the change management, and to invest in and review your existing IT processes.
Unfortunately, while from the marketing perspective it sounds great, investment and time need to be put into place to support this trend and roll it out.
Gardner: Let me address for just a second. If we're in a recession and if you're no longer fighting the fires at the gross edge of the curve, which is to say, you are just trying to keep up with demand in your IT adoption patterns, but you've had a little bit of a lull in how much demand there is for products and services in your organization, wouldn't that be the perfect time to invest in your people and processes to elevate them to service orientation?
Bennett: Definitely. I actually see recession as an opportunity within IT, because it gives you opportunity to reset thinking and reset IT's approach to actually delivering IT to the business.
I completely agree that the availability of the cloud is a platform for doing this kind of thing. It's a very fortuitous coincidence with the business needs of enterprises that are short on capital.
Coffee: That's particularly true for the cloud, because you can do development without major capital investments. You can build systems, conduct pilot projects, and have solutions that are ready to go. They've been tested with the appropriate stakeholders, and when business conditions improve and create the opportunity to use those at larger scale, you can scale very rapidly to larger capacity, without needing to go through another round of capital budgeting.
So, yes, I completely agree that the availability of the cloud is a platform for doing this kind of thing. It's a very fortuitous coincidence with the business needs of enterprises that are short on capital.
Gardner: So, not only do you fix your roof when the sun is shining, but you can re-factor or modernize your roof while the sun is shining as well.
Coffee: Very much so.
Gardner: Chris Harding, what's going on in The Open Group's work group, when it comes to this skills and process level? Do you see that the recession and/or interest in cloud has increased the demand for people with architectural skills and perhaps certification that is a part and parcel with SOA?
Harding: It's difficult to measure the effect of the recession on education. You could say that if people aren't being required to do productive work 110 percent of the time, then they will give more thought on training and education.
But, also as far as SOA goes, we've gotten past the hype. We're into the steady take up deployment of SOA, and that's precisely the time when companies will be looking for people who can demonstrate their ability, professionalism, and qualification with this particular way of doing things.
Allocation of time
And, it's within the SOA Work Group. You can see that at our conferences. We spend a lot less time on presentations on how SOA is evolving and what the new things are, because really there isn't a lot that's new coming up. We spend a lot more time putting together assessing tutorials on SOA practice and on the how the standards that the SOA Work Group is producing should be interpreted and used.
So, yes, we're moving very definitely into the period with SOA where establishing skills and certifying skills is going to be more important than developing new ways of doing things. We have those ways and we need to consolidate them and ensure that people can use those skills in their work and do so in a beneficial way.
With cloud, it's too early to do that yet, because we're still looking at the new developments when it comes to cloud.
Coffee: Dana, I'd agree with everything that Chris just said, except the statement about it being too early. When I talk with systems integration firms in India, like Tata and Infosys and Wipro, in Hong Kong with people like IBM, and in Europe with people like Accenture, all of them tell me that they are now actively engaging with customers on cloud-based options, as well as either on-premise based options or combinations of the two. So, I would say that we're well into the practitioner phase and not merely the conceptual phase.
It's very dangerous to oversell any of this as a proposition of cost reduction, when really it's an opportunity to reallocate resources from relatively low-value tasks, like administering a software stack, to higher-value tasks like reengineering a business process.
But, in every other respect, I completely agree with Chris. Chris and Steve have both talked about investments we'll be making in training and the development of new skills. This might make some people say, "Wait a minute, I thought this was about reducing my costs."
It's very dangerous to oversell any of this as a proposition of cost reduction, when really it's an opportunity to reallocate resources from relatively low-value tasks, like administering a software stack, to higher-value tasks like reengineering a business process.
If you want to have cheaper IT, you can have cheaper IT, but your company won't be competitive with all of the performance and service that the industry has come to expect. Over time, IT budgets rise because the return on investment (ROI) is so compelling.
The combination of SOA, which makes your various business units able to cooperate more effectively, with cloud environments which allow you to handle very bursty workloads and conduct very cost-effective pilot projects and scale the ones that work very rapidly, increase the ROI of IT spending. Therefore, over time, IT budgets are going to continue to rise.
Bennett: From what I see, I agree with both of you. I see that there are a number of crossover skills, especially the non-technical skills. Both SOA and cloud heighten the need and importance of existing skills, such as governance, good design, portfolio management, and, more importantly, business architecture.
What people are talking about is the opportunity to redirect costs to area such as business architecture, and business architecture is part of enterprise architecture (EA). That's not purely IT focused, but the wider concern -- investing stuff like business capability maps to understand exactly where I should utilize SOA and cloud with my organization -- is going to be key.
Gardner: Now, on this economic issue, many of the executives I see aren't necessarily interested in reducing the IT budget dollar for dollar, but they are interested in reducing the percentage that IT consumes as a function of overall revenues and perhaps also profit. So if we are going to make things more productive, more efficient, even as we grow IT, what is it about SOA combined with cloud computing that could help do that?
Coffee: The sell with SOA very early on was that by making the IT environment more modular, it became more reasonable to have a business process owner be more intimately involved in the implementation of the technology that would execute that process.
You saw a decentralization, to some degree, of functions that had previously been monolithic development of massive applications, which was clearly the IT department's charter, to more of a decentralized business-process construction task, which also included some development but now that became more exfiltrated out into the business units themselves.
So, the IT budget, as a line item, is not conspicuously bigger. In fact, it may actually shrink, because the IT department now is a composer and integrator of stuff that may now be getting done with the operating budget by personnel, who are on the payroll as members of a business unit, instead of members of an IT organization.
Gardner: As we also move culturally and organizationally, we'll probably see more adoption of shared services and management around the different economic models of how consumption is charged back. Therefore, with market forces as they tend to go, we'll see higher efficiency. That is, you only pay for what you consume and you only consume that which you're interested in paying for. If cloud computing allows for that elasticity, then you'll only need to provision the resources required for those shared services.
This will, in turn, enable the consuming enterprises to concentrate on the things that they are particularly good at.
Now, this is a little bit of a vision, of course, but it strikes me that there is an opportunity for higher utilization, higher productivity, and therefore lower total cost. Any reaction?
Harding: That certainly must be one of the factors that will enable cloud computing to make enterprises more efficient -- the elasticity and the take-up effect. It also has a major effect on the risk that an enterprise needs to take on. But, there is a bigger factor, which is meant to drive down cost, and that is competition.
If you take service orientation and cloud in combination, you're seeing the ability of people to buy services from different suppliers, for those suppliers to compete, and for those suppliers to concentrate on the services that they are particularly good at. This will, in turn, enable the consuming enterprises to concentrate on the things that they are particularly good at.
So, you don't need to dissipate your efforts on running an inefficient IT department, which is not your core business. You can outsource that, get a specialist to do it much better, and concentrate on what you're good at. That is the real dynamic that will improve things economically.
Gardner: Do you think that a general adoption of services orientation will allow for those services to be procured based more on the service-level agreements (SLAs) and the requirements, regardless of who is actually sourcing them and building out the data centers? I think this makes a great deal of sense. How does that sit with you?
Harding: I don't think that people will be switching from supplier to supplier to supplier on a per-transaction basis. They'll be establishing long-term business relationships and partnership with their service suppliers, and it will be in that context that they go out and get more services. But, the fact that they have a choice of suppliers to partner with will mean that those suppliers will be able to provide more efficiently, because they specialize in providing those services.
Now, from an Open Group perspective, there is a danger that you may become locked into a particular supplier. Part of our role in promoting open systems is to push for the standards to be in place so that that doesn't happen. Provided we can prevent that locking, it's altogether a very healthy situation.
Gardner: Peter Coffee, I'm sure you have some thoughts on this. It's sort of the ecosystem question, and the ability to procure based on the differentiation of core and context services.
Granularity is surprising
Coffee: Certainly. The granularity of this marketplace is quite surprising to many people who haven't looked at it closely. We see already people building applications, in which they have shopped the marketplace and found a cloud storage proposition from one provider, a cloud application development platform from another, social networking algorithms and facilities from yet a third provider and have built some really interesting strategic business solutions.
Starbucks is an example. They built applications that drew information from existing public service directories of community service opportunities, wrapped that in an application shell constructed with our Force.com facilities and packaged that in such a way that it'd be dropped into people's Facebook pages to create community momentum around projects. They then built a site where, if you did five hours of community service, you could go to your local Starbucks and get a cup of coffee.
This was all implemented in matter of weeks to support President Obama's call for renewed commitment to public service. It was very strategic from a marketing point of view, lovely from a technology point of view, and dirt-cheap, because there was no capital hardware involved. It was all a composition and integration of existing services from multiple providers. It's quite startling to many people to realize what a supermarket of services has already come into being.
Gardner: This takes us to another level here, which would be not only thinking about how SOA and cloud come together to do things you had done in the past better, but perhaps be able to do things that you could not have been able to do at all before. We'll have to have this as our closing concept. I'd like to go around the panel. Chris Harding, what is it about SOA and cloud coming together that enables entirely new types of innovation and business benefit?
Harding: I don't know that there is necessarily anything special, but maybe it's because when you solve one set of problems you're able to turn your attention to other things and new things that pop up. It's very difficult to foresee what new developments there will be, but you do get them, and it's good news.
Those basic principles are going to allow us to take evolutionary technologies and approaches and probably revolutionize the way that IT actually interacts with the business.
Gardner: At least we move from "if you build it," the productivity, services, or innovation will come to "let's just go and do the innovation" and we'll find a way to do it without having to build very much or anything at all.
Harding: Right.
Gardner: Stephen Bennett, how about you? Do you see an opportunity for SOA and cloud to come together to enable entirely new ways of doing business?
Bennett: I won't say new ways of doing business, but ways that we were trying to achieve probably over the last 5-10 years. The combination of cloud and SOA obviously brings together kind of speed and modularity. Those basic principles are going to allow us to take evolutionary technologies and approaches and probably revolutionize the way that IT actually interacts with the business.
So, in terms of IT being siloed -- "please develop and look after this application" -- it's going to be more a move towards collaboration of how we can actually deliver business solutions to the ever-changing business dynamics.
Gardner: That really integrates IT more deeply into the business, I suppose, right?
Bennett: Exactly. It's being invited to the table at long last.
Gardner: And, Peter Coffee, the last word to you. What is your perception on being able to do things that hadn't been done or been able to be done before with this unique combination and interplay between SOA and cloud in its various forms?
Coffee: Steve is exactly right that many of the concepts that are now receiving tremendous attention are not new concepts. I distinctly remember discussions almost 30 years ago about modular applications composed of various components, developed by different parties with different expertise, coming together for the first time in a connected environment. This was going to be one of the things that object-oriented modules of development were going to bring to us.
Very resilient
Finally, we have an environment in which connectivity and real-time linkage and integration of data and function instead of being costly, brittle, and time-consuming are now nearly free, very resilient, and can be done almost more quickly than they can be described.
This means that people are going to be doing more challenging work and working more closely with business units instead of having their time consumed by arduous, necessary, but relatively low-value tests of infrastructure maintenance.
So the ROI will rise. The relevance to the business of IT will increase. The sophistication of the skills of the person who does IT for a living will be greater 10 years from now than it was 10 years ago or even today, but we'll all be pretty happy with the results.
This means that people are going to be doing more challenging work and working more closely with business units.
Gardner: It strikes me that perhaps the perception of IT itself might benefit in that IT could be perceived as the enabler of innovation that others will actually do rather than IT being perceived as a bottleneck of innovation that IT needs to have enabled themselves.
Coffee: I've also heard it suggested that we should evolve the title of Chief Information Officer, which refers to a relatively static asset, to the title of Chief Process Officer, which suggests someone who is much closer to the present and future of the business.
Gardner: Or we could go Chief Innovation Officer and we won't have to change the stationery.
Well, thanks so much. We've been listening here to a panel of experts talking about the interplay between SOA and cloud computing. I want to thank our panelists Dr. Chris Harding, Director of the SOA Work Group at The Open Group. Thank you, Chris.
Harding: Thank you, Dana. It's been a pleasure.
Gardner: Steven G. Bennett, Senior Enterprise Architect at Oracle. Thank you, Stephen.
Steven G. Bennett: Thank you very much.
Gardner: Peter Coffee, Director of Platform Search for salesforce.com. Thanks so much, Peter.
Coffee: Enjoyed the conversation, thank you.
Gardner: You've been listening to a sponsored BriefingsDirect podcast that's been done in conjunction with The Open Group's Enterprise Architecture Practitioners Conference held in Seattle the week of February 1, 2010.
This is Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions. Thanks for listening and come back next time.
Listen to the podcast. Find it on iTunes/iPod and Podcast.com. Download the transcript. Sponsor: The Open Group.
Transcript of a BriefingsDirect sponsored podcast on the intersection of SOA and cloud computing recorded live at The Open Group's Enterprise Architecture Practitioners Conference in Seattle. Copyright Interarbor Solutions, LLC, 2005-2010. All rights reserved.
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Watch Looney Tunes Golden Collection Season 4 full episode online free thekisscartoon.
Storyline: The cartoons included on the set are uncut, unedited, and digitally restored and remastered from the original successive Technicolor film negatives (or, in the case of the black and white shorts, the original black and white negatives). However, some of the cartoons in these collections are derived from the "blue ribbon" reissues (altered from their original versions with their revised front-and-end credit sequences), as the original titles for these cartoons are presumably lost.


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This unique handcrafted Classic Sunflower Single Switch Cover is great to liven any little space.
These switchplates are handmade to fit all standard North American electrical covers. They are ceramic and sturdy but please take a few pre-cautions.
Do not over tighten the screws when you install them. Our ceramic is sturdy but it can crack. We provide complimentary nice looking off-white nylon screws with each switch plate cover. They look good and do not scratch the artwork!
When cleaning use a mild soap and warm water. Avoid anything abrasive on the switch plates as it will scratch the surface.
- Measures: Singles : 3.25" x 4.75 - Doubles: 5.25" x 4.75" - Triples: 7" x 4.875" - Combo: Combo 5.25" x 4.75"


text: Some things just can't come quickly enough and that's especially true for messy Divorces. Collectively we haven't had any messy Divorces in our office. However, we've sure had eight catastrophic ones! Whatever your situation, this Countdown to Your Divorce will make the pain a small fraction less intense. Simply set your projected date and! wait. We're here to help you deter focus from the more difficult things in life and make you focus on the Stupid. Go all the way and get 2 Countdown clocks! *Considerate it a parting gift. - One Clock per package. - Functions as a Countdown or regular Clock. - Easy to set using included instructions. - Uses 2 AA batteries (not included).


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Yogurt Dill Chicken Salad
Vintage Recipe Box 200 Overview
There are lots of fun recipes to read in the box this recipe for Yogurt Dill Chicken Salad was with.
Click here to view all of Vintage Recipe Box 200 recipes from Langhorne, Pennsylvania and to learn more about the history of the recipe box.
Start your own recipe box for your family or friends. Click here to view New and Vintage Recipe Boxes.
Once you have your recipe boxes, you will need recipe cards. Click here to view Recipe Cards and Templates.
Want to protect your recipe cards from splats and splatters in the kitchen? Click here to view Recipe Card Protectors and Sleeves.
Recipe Card Details
Yogurt Dill Chicken Salad Recipe Card Front
A newspaper clipping from an unknown newspaper for Yogurt Dill Chicken Salad.
Vintage Kitchen Tools, Dishes, and Cookbooks
I love vintage dishes and kitchenware and on the weekends I can often be found in a thrift store poking through the shelves to find vintage treasures to use as props for our photography for the site. Click here to view Vintage Kitchenware on Etsy.
You can always find treasures on sites that sell used items such as Vintage Cookbooks on eBay and Vintage Cookbooks on Etsy
Every once and a while you can find a good cookbook with Vintage Recipes on Amazon. I don't have any recommendations as I haven't bought any as I prefer the handwritten recipes that you see on our site.
Yogurt Dill Chicken Salad Recipe
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Today, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross announced the 2017 Regional Fishery Management Council (RFMC) appointments and has shown that recreational fishing and boating are important to the Trump Administration. The appointments of Steve Heins of New York to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council; Chester Brewer of Florida to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council; and Phil Dyskow of Florida, Dr. Bob Shipp of Alabama, and Dr. Greg Stunz of Texas to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council are a solid affirmation that the Administration is taking federal fisheries management and conservation in the right direction.
"Today's appointments to the Regional Fishery Management Councils are exactly what the recreational fishing and boating community needed from the Trump Administration," said Jeff Angers, president of the Center for Sportfishing Policy. "America's 11 million saltwater recreational anglers have been an afterthought for too long, but thanks to the leadership of President Trump and Commerce Secretary Ross, the tide is changing. It is clear the Administration is committed to making sure America's public resources remain public and that healthy natural resources are available for future generations."
"The recreational fishing community along the Gulf Coast has found itself at a severe disadvantage in recent years due to an unbalanced Gulf Council," said Patrick Murray, president of Coastal Conservation Association. "The Administration heard our calls for action and they have delivered. We look forward to the progress to come and better access to healthy marine resources for America's recreational anglers."
"The Trump Administration understands the need for balance in our fishery management system because they care about jobs," said Mike Nussman, president of the American Sportfishing Association. "Saltwater recreational fishing in the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico is the backbone of our industry and supports almost twice as many jobs there as the commercial industry. Creating more balanced Councils in these regions in particular was absolutely the right thing to do."
"Today's appointments demonstrate that Secretary Ross understands that recreational boating and fishing are critical components of the U.S. economy," said Nicole Vasilaros, vice president of federal and legal affairs for the National Marine Manufacturers Association. "We look forward to our continued work with the Secretary and Administration to advance our shared priorities."
"The Trump Administration continues to demonstrate they only want the best and brightest," said Jim Donofrio, president of the Recreational Fishing Alliance.
Heins is a life-long angler who has worked fairly and skillfully with both sectors of New York's fisheries. After 29 years of service, he recently retired from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. Heins has a proven track record of working with the New York fishing community to build consensus and achieve management and policy decisions that are in the best interest of fisheries resources and the people who depend on them.
Brewer is well qualified for this position with more than 35 years of experience with recreational fisheries issues. As a current member of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) and Chairman of the Advisory Panel Selection Committee, he has broad knowledge regarding the fisheries in the Southeast region and brings with him valuable experiences from the recreational fishing sector. In addition to his work on the SAFMC, he currently serves as Chairman Emeritus for the Florida state chapter of the Coastal Conservation Association, a board member of the West Palm Beach Fishing Club and a member of the board of the Palm Beach County Fishing Foundation. Previously, he served 10 years as Recreational Advisor to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna – U.S. Section.
Given his diverse knowledge of marine fisheries issues and proven business leadership, Dyskow will be a balanced, educated, and effective Council member. Now retired following a successful career with the Yamaha Marine Group, culminating in his 13 year tenure as President, Dyskow has now devoted much of his free time toward fisheries conservation and management efforts. He has served on the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee and on the National Boating Safety Advisory Council.
Dr. Shipp is an exceptionally well-qualified candidate to represent Alabama on the Gulf Council, as he is considered one of the foremost experts on red snapper, triggerfish and other species of concern to Gulf Coast anglers. He has admirably served on the Gulf Council for 18 years, including as Chairman of the Council, and has also served on the Council's Science and Statistical Committee. As Chair Emeritus of the Department of Marine Science at the University of South Alabama, he brings a scientific and pragmatic perspective to difficult fishery management issues that is very much needed at the Gulf Council.
Dr. Stunz is one of the foremost authorities on Gulf of Mexico marine science and he brings a much-needed, balanced perspective to federal fisheries issues. Dr. Stunz is the endowed chair for Fisheries and Ocean Health and executive director of the Center for Sportfish Science and Conservation at the Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies. He is also a professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi College of Science and Technology and is an author of more than 40 scientific papers in national and international journals. With more than 20 years researching marine fisheries, he is well-versed with the issues facing the Gulf Council.


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Help us now to grow bigger and make a difference in 2017
This year, FSFE celebrated its 15th birthday. 15 years of empowering users, supporting communities and pushing for better legislation. 15 years to see that all activities, even if considered small at the time, can become big when we work together. 15 years to see that all activities, even if considered impossible at the time, can succeed when we stand together. Together, we sometimes succeeded even against the heaviest lobbying of large interest groups. 15 years to know that all of this would not have been possible without the continuous support of our community, contributing thousands of hours of their work time and backing us financially. Help us now to grow bigger and make a difference in 2017.
Public Money - Public Code
In the mid of next year we will be launching a new campaign to reach out into new audiences. Under the slogan of "Public Money, Public Code", we will illuminate how public money is constantly (mis-)used in countries across Europe by paying for proprietary software, vendor lock-in and dependency. Investing in Free Software, instead, will serve public needs and interest on a big scale. The campaign aims to make Free Software a mandatory requirement in public procurement by law, but more importantly, in practice too. If Free Software becomes the default in public administration, this will have massive positive impact on other areas and the empowerment of our society. We will align with other political organisations and together focus on getting this message out.
The strength of this campaign depends on your support. Every donation helps: We need to produce a lot of information material and spread it around, we like to train activists and bring them together, we want to facilitate travel costs to bring people together with local decision makers in politics and public administration. Also we are in contact with a professional video artist to create a video that explains the benefits of publicly funded Free Software in a way anyone can understand. This will help us to go viral.
Please help us get this message out with your donation before the next year starts and give our movement for Free Software in public administration the decisive boost it needs.
Challenges in 2017
Of course, running this campaign will not stop us from doing other important activities and to stand up for Free Software where necessary. If you decide to join us with your continuous support, you can be assured to found the best way to help our movement and the furthering of Free Software throughout the year and to support various activities. To mention just a few of them:
- At this moment, the European Commission is revising copyright to be more adaptable for the digital age. To get them things right, we will continue to raise awareness and address the dangerous implications of technical restrictions measures forced on users by the revised copyright rules.
- Important elections will be held in 2017 in many European countries. We will be working hard to convince candidates of the importance of Free Software and thereby improving future policy decisions.
- We will increase our efforts to empower even more users to challenge the corporations and legislations that limit their freedom. We will support booths on events all over Europe and encourage the launch of more local groups.


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Oftentimes in our lives, we wonder and come to ask ourselves, "When did I become so plain and old?" and "Why is my outfit not making me feel good?" If you are one of those who had these kinds of thoughts when you look in the mirror, you should know that age isn't always to blame for the frumpiness of your overall styling—it could be the fashion flubs you keep making until today.
Having said that, one should know that the right fashion statement is basically magic. Dresses and stuff help cover up lumps and bulges and the right outfit can actually have a few years off our age with an accurate staple. Of course, one can be a perfect fit for others while not for someone and the other way around nevertheless, the greatest you can do is to know how to properly execute a fashion statement and to no longer commit a 'fashion doesn't'.
It's basically hard to always know what's in and out but here's a list which will help you realize the common fashion mistakes you might still be making that make you look more than your age.
Overly matchy-matchy
A few years ago, we went perfectly well with styling our clothes, shoes, and handbags to bring out the beauty of styling. While the styling of matching almost everything seems to still look dated because of the evolving trends in the fashion scene, an overly matching fashion staple could actually make you look older than your usual age.
Remember the statement "before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off"? you can always replace it with an alternative "before you leave the house, look in the mirror and change one thing off". So, forget some of society's opinions about fashion that you've been living for and never be afraid to mix prints, colors, and patterns to look entirely confident and fabulous. Being too matchy-matchy can look good in your opinion but you should also think that a little extra piece of color or pattern won't hurt.
Wearing too many conservative trends
If you are more confident and want to keep having your signature conservative sense of style, you can keep doing it and not mind whatever others might think. But if you constantly feel like you're looking older and shabbier than you actually are, you should think about whether it's really your age talking or just the excessive conservative pieces you kept putting all at once that somehow give off a "matriarch" vibe.
Right, aging is a natural occurrence but looking older than your age because of fashion is a big no. Not totally shunning off your conservative fashion style, you can wear those pieces while perfectly pairing them with a little more playful and fresher items or some conservative yet contemporary versions to give a balance to your overall look.
Too much jewelry at once
Jewelry is known to be a vital part of fashion for long years. It saves people from looking so boring and makes someone portray elegance and sophistication. However, jewelry can be also tricky- wearing none is dull while wearing too much can make you look older than you are. And while trying to achieve the alluring look you wanted by adding this fashion staple, you should know that an amount of jewelry can actually dictate your overall look.
Not new to fashion, one should know that one of the biggest fashion mistakes is wearing too much jewelry or what others refer to as "jewelry overkill". This is why whenever you're in doubt if you're wearing too much jewelry that hurts your outfit and makes you look old, you can always go to the basics- the rule of thumb of sticking to pairs- not going all out with the three jewelry combos at the same time.
Your heels are chunky or aren't high enough
While a chunky or a mid-low heel feels comfortable for your feet to wear, this is the right time to leave this trend and consider going for a high heel or a not-so-chunky heeled shoe because this trend is making your legs look heavy and your muscles larger. In fashion, your 'comfortable feet' aren't really a big thing when your shoes people might be staring at, is ugly or ruining your entire OOTD.
Because of the casual shoes you kept wearing, you'll look older no matter what modern clothes you wear. Thus, if you're wearing now your chunky and not-high-enough heels which keep dragging down your look and adding up your age, swap them now with pointy-toed pumps or anything high-heeled that will both bring out the element of sexiness and class on your overall styling.
Sporting outdated glasses
Choosing the right pair of glasses is one of the ultimate fashion-saviors in a scene full of outdated fashion staples. Why? Because updating lenses whether for an eye correction or simply to complete your outfit look creates an instant and dazzling fashion makeover- people who wear glasses know this fact firsthand.
So, take a closer look and observe how your glasses actually affect your style and make you look double your age. When you realize that your frames have become outdated and are destroying the fresh and cool fashion you're wearing for a casual or professional workday, refresh your lenses and make them the ultimate accessory. Remember. The right pair of glasses is flattering, goes perfectly to almost anything, and will make you a little younger so don't be hesitant to update your glasses and make your next look absolutely different than before.
Mismatched hairstyle or hair color
Certainly, one thing that either makes you look older or younger is the style you choose for your hair that affects every time you decide to go stunning with your perfectly curated fashion statement. If You Want to rock patterned clothing, your hair can be a major help. Planning to go slay the runway with killer pumps, hairstyle and color can increase or decline your look.
Hence, build up your courage and go get that hairstyle you've been wanting to sport for a change and the changing of hair color that's long been due among your plans. Feel good and look good without your effortful fashion outfits getting destroyed with that fixed hairstyle and usual hair color- look for the best hairstyle and color that will look best on you.
Dark lipsticks to almost any outfit
Lipsticks are a necessity in our every glamming kit and our regular beauty routines. From the bold shades, we wear to achieve the standout classic look, to the earthy tones for a chic look that goes well with our everyday styling- from lightweight lipsticks to its long-lasting formulation that blends well with our lips and makes us look young and fresh.
We consider anything lip-related, and we all just love a statement lip more than anything else. However, the wrong shade of lipstick can ruin the entirety of your fashion beauty if it fails to compliment your outfit. Dark lipstick to almost any outfit? You better think twice with this one. Dark lipstick can make you stand out on some occasions but it doesn't go well with every outfit. As mentioned, you only need three lipstick hues— a nude, brown/pinkish, and while dark lipstick isn't a necessity, you can still choose to wear it but make it not often as it gives an older vibe to your styling.
Poor posture
Much of wearing anything to make you look good, having bad posture can actually make your effort of styling go in vain. Your fashion clothes stand with you when you stand confident and straight and sit on you perfectly when your back is straight while your shoulders are not slouching.
Having a proper posture is more than just making your body look poised and healthy, it also helps you to avoid leaving an impression of being "old and gray". As poor posture affects how your outfit looks once you wear them, it also unattractively appears that your clothes neither are right nor actually fit you.
Everyone would agree but fashion plays a huge role in defining our personality and making the best out of ourselves we thought were plain and dull. We are constantly reminded by the world that our style is based on what we wanted whether in front or behind any fashion staple. Thus, to refine our individual styles, we must take a closer look and observe how we can put our styling forward.
A slight mistake can turn your 'fashionable' statement into an 'unfashionable' in a fraction of time. Hence, take time to look for yourself what the common styles and fashion mistakes are that you often make that put your supposedly stunning look at stake.
Find out more of these stories at http://themindanaolife.com/ or you can visit http://politico.ph/ for the latest news and updates.


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Here is the thing.
If Ray Edwards wants to date a former stripper and a former stripper wants to date a NFL player who cares. A lot of women and men have sorrid past.
Some have their past hidden in the closet while others have it for the world to see. In the world we live in now if you are well known stripper that basically makes you semi famous these days. There are videos and pictures of Lastarya out there on the internet I assume she wishes that wasn't, but it is what it is. When you make choices in life you have to deal with that and the perception people will have of you because of those choices.
Lastarya says she is retired from that life and is into booed up relationship life. Only she knows if that is true not, shouldn't be any of our concern. You may or may not believe her, but Edwards does and I am sure that is all she cares about. Does that make Edwards naive? Only time will tell.
We all have to make personal decisions in who we are going to deal with and it is ok to give opinions on others relationships.
Just remember that is all it is an opinion. If this how Edwards wants to roll, I wish him well and hopes it works out. If it doesn't it is a lesson learned for the next person who is dealing with someone going through the stripper to housewife conversion.
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This salad features cabbage, carrots, and romaine: three cool-season crops that will perk up tables and taste buds. When you're reminiscing about summer salads, this salad will remind you what fresh is all about. And cabbage and carrots make perfect additions to fall and winter soups, roasts, and more. Cabbage is an excellent source of vitamins C, B6, and K and a very good source of copper, fiber, folate, manganese, potassium, and vitamin B1. Carrots are an excellent source of vitamin A and a very good source of biotin, fiber, molybdenum, potassium, and vitamins C, B6, and K. Romaine lettuce is an excellent source of folate, molybdenum, and vitamins A and K and a very good source of copper, biotin, fiber, iron, manganese, and potassium.
Cabbage-Carrot-Romaine Salad
- Salad
- 2 cups shredded red cabbage
- 2 carrots, coarsely grated
- 1 romaine heart, rinsed, dried, and torn into bite-size pieces
- Bottled or prepared Dijon vinaigrette (made with red wine vinegar)
- 1 Fuji apple, cut into medium dice (or other sweet-tart apple)
- ½ cup raw, unsalted almonds
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon finely chopped spearmint
In a bowl, toss the cabbage, carrots, and romaine with ½ cup of prepared vinaigrette. Divide among 6 salad plates or bowls. In a bowl, toss diced apple with 2 tablespoons of prepared vinaigrette. Evenly divide apple among the plates or bowls. Evenly divide equal amounts of the almonds and cranberries among the plates or bowls. SERVES 6


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Having never seen this southern-hemisphere larid before, I promptly made arrangements to get to the East Coast! I thought I'd play it safe and wait until next weekend to drive out for this rarity - but this rarity is not your typical every-couple-of-years rarity. The only record of Gray-hooded Gull in the United States is from Franklin County, FL on 26 December 1998 - that bird was a one-day wonder, but well documented. Even if the NY bird was to stick around until next weekend, my wife began to rightfully remind me of several x-y-z commitments that would be difficult to forgo in the next few days. That was her way of saying there was no way it was going to happen next weekend whether the bird stuck around or not. "Why don't you go this weekend?", she suggested in a casual tone. Well, that was a grand idea but it was Saturday and close to midnight - it would be nearly impossible to drive to New York and back by Monday morning. I was forced to book the next flight out of Chicago. I was airborne 6 hours later, and by 10:00 a.m. the next morning I was soaking in the 'fish-eye' stare of this adult Gray-hooded Gull:
Coney Island, NY; 31 July 2011. by Amar Ayyash |
Gray-hooded Gull, or Grey-headed Gull as it is known on the other side of the Atlantic, consists of two subspecies: C.c. cirrocephalus and C.c. poiocephalus. Loosely speaking, the larger nominate race, cirrocephalus, is found locally along both coasts of South America and poiocephalus is found locally along the coasts of Africa. This species has a fragmented breeding range throughout both continents. Breeding habitat is variable, ranging from subtropical coasts to inland lakes and rivers. Olsen and Larsson estimated the world population to be roughly 50,000 pairs as of 2003; the South American populations were estimated to be around 10,000 pairs.
Figure 1: Breeding ranges and wintering limits taken from Gulls of North America, Europe and Asia by Olsen and Larsson, 2003. |
Fortunately, adults are rather distinctive in basic and alternate plumage and so this bird's identity is unquestionable. Besides its grayish hood, reddish legs, clear iris and red orbital, GHGU has a distinctive primary pattern that might superficially resemble Bonaparte's or Black-headed Gull at first glance. Unlike these two, the white leading wedge on the upperwing gives way to a prominent black wingtip with two large mirrors on the outermost primaries (P9 and P10).
Upperpart coloration is a shade or two paler than Laughing Gull although not really appreciable in full sunlight. The scapulars and lesser upperwing coverts appear a shade paler than the median and greater upperwing coverts. The underwing coverts are much different than Laughing's, showing a smokey-gray coloration which contrasts nicely with an all white body. The wings are notably broad - broader than any hooded gull I've seen.
Body size is very close to Laughing Gull's although this species stands with a notable upright posture. The mirror-band is also noticeable when the wings are closed.
First cycle GHGU are considerably more challenging to identify but should be compared to Black-headed Gull in the northern hemisphere and Brown-hooded Gull in South America.
Naturally, the concern regarding this bird's origins has been raised as it should be. From my limited knowledge, there was nothing that suggested this bird is not wild after having watched it feed, drink, fly, rest, preen and interact with the local Laughing Gulls. Here are a few of my observations and photos that will be submitted to the NYSARC. The Coney Island Gray-hooded Gull is a definitive adult that has begun the prebasic molt with P1 missing on both wings (perhaps even P2 on the left wing). This molt is within an appropriate window for certain populations from South America, specifically Peru but not Argentina, as well as some from Africa, specifically West Africa but not equatorial populations in the east or South Africa (Olsen and Larsson, 2003).
The timing of the prebasic molt is highly variable in this species due to its disjunct range. Different populations undergo different molt stages at various times of the year, but these "molt windows" should not be applied rigidly with vagrant gulls as they are known to sometimes contradict the ordinary when found out of their regular ranges. Speculation regarding the Gray-hooded's land-of-origin based strictly on molt stage could be doubtful and difficult to narrow down. I propose that behavior, habitat and morphological features be of greater importance when discussing the provanence of this bird. I will add that the fraying of some of the flight-feather tips show typical signs of wear and not those of a bird that has been in captivity.
A few plumage features that may be useful include the size of the mirrors on the outermost primaries and also the coloration of the upperparts. The nominate race is said to have paler upperparts and larger mirrors than the African subspecies. I'll leave it to the records committee to do their homework here. It will take much comparing of photographs and input from observers that have experience with each taxon to try to make a case for either continent.
Behaviorally, its interactions did not in any way strike me as unusual or unhabitual for a gull. It did not appear ill or unalert. When not coming in for chum, its flush-point was anywhere from 30-40 feet whereas the local Laughings flushed at about 5-15 feet. It was much more approachable when it took to a higher perch.
When coming in for chum (4 times in the course of 6 hours) it was usually one of the first gulls to arrive and first to depart. It allowed observers close looks but was not tame. The GHGU would get its mouthful and immediately disperse to a nearby post where it fed and rested; most of the Laughing Gulls typically stayed on the beach and waited for more chum. I found the GHGU to be more skillful than the local Laughing Gulls. Birders who were present the day before also shared this observation and felt it was more aggressive as well - this bird had the one-up on the Laughing Gulls. If it desired a post, it easily displaced the Laughing Gull that was already perched on it - adults and nonadults alike!
The Gray-hooded was seen displacing Laughing Gulls from their posts many times. This behavior is a symbol of social dominance. Photo courtesy of Ardith Bondi; 31 July 2011. |
It would readily raise and spread its wings which is a social display meant to be threatening. |
By late afternoon the beach and boardwalk were overcrowded with thousands of people (this was expected as it was a warm Sunday afternoon). Shortly after high noon, the Gray-hooded Gull preferred to stay on the roof of the bath-house on 15th Street in line with Nathan's Famous. Here, it only came down sporadically, mainly to capitalize on the finds of the Laughing Gulls when they would begin clamoring and tussling over handouts. When it did fly down to see what all the fussing was about, it rarely landed for more than a few seconds. It seemed much more at ease in the morning when less human traffic existed.
I've been asked by several friends where I think this bird originated from. One scenario that I've imagined is the possibility of it having drifted north from South America this past spring. This is pure speculation and not to be regarded as factual, but could it have moved northward about the time wintering Laughing Gulls departed north for their spring migration? This individual may have easily been undetected for months as it associated with large flocks of Laughing Gulls. Although it has distinctive features that separate it from Laughing Gull, it is not easy to pick out at a distance when surrounded by other gulls, especially when one isn't expecting a rarity. New York birders admit that Coney Island is very underbirded. I'm told that it is birded even less in the spring and summer due to heavy traffic and beachgoers. Also, many birders on the East Coast don't give Laughing Gull flocks a second look due to a lack of interest and the sheer fact that this is a very common species. I'm not at all surprised that it was found by fledgling birders who stopped to count a flock of "just" Laughing Gulls for their eBird lists. Kudos to Sara and Jacob - you two hit the jackpot! The fact that the New York Gray-hooded Gull was found 5 days (that's a long time) after the initial sighting - only after an alert was sent out - is somewhat telling.
The concern over whether it was ship-assisted should be a nonissue to any records committee as such birds are countable. Keep in mind that these ships are part of the ecology of seabirds. They're more or less moving islands that are used to feed around and also to rest on.
It should be mentioned that the two authoritative gull guides of our era, Gulls of the Americas and Gulls of North America, Europe and Asia, make no references to this species' northerly expansion along the northern coasts of Brazil where it is found wintering side-by-side with Laughing Gulls in the state of Ceara (pers. observations of Joe DiCostanzo. See Harrison, 1983; Perlo, 2009). A large sum of Gray-hooded Gulls in South America winter north of their breeding range (slightly more north than figure 1 indicates); It's quite incredible that this bird has selected to associate with Laughing Gulls this far north along the Atlantic and this should be considered when debating its provenance.
I'm hopeful that the records committee in New York will endorse this individual but would still respect their decision either way. My personal impression was that of a wild gull that was accustomed to the daily routine on the boardwalk - it was opportunistic, alert and untame. Its displays, behavior and interactions with the Laughing Gulls suggest it was socially fit and not a bird that has been in captivity. Gray-hooded Gulls are not specifically prone to vagrancy, but gulls as a whole generally are. Last winter, a young birder from Illinois asked what the "Craziest ABA Gull" record was and Gray-hooded came up. I commented that Gray-hooded exists on two different continents with a wide breeding range. I mentioned how it straying into North America was not as surprising to me, say, as a Swallow-tailed Gull. I stand by this opinion even more now that I've seen one in Brooklyn. Other noteworthy records that have been accepted north of this species' range (besides the 1998 Florida bird) include a September adult from Panama, a recent Barbados record from May, 3 spring-summer records from Eliat, Israel and one June record from Marismas del Guadalquivir, Spain. If accepted, this would be the northernmost Gray-hooded Gull record on the planet!


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question: who is ariadoss?
ariadoss is the alter ego of danilo stern-sapad.
Hi, I'm Ariadoss aka Danilo Stern-Sapad. I'm multiracial and consider myself a citizen of the world. I'm a member of the Baha'i World Faith. As a Baha'i I believe in the oneness of humanity, equality of women and men, the elimination of all forms of prejudice, the independent investigation of the truth, and the harmony of science and religion. I'm also passionated about technology, design, marketing, story telling, and social justice.
My Profiles: Medium Articles · Twitter · LinkedIn
ariadoss is known for his tangential musings.
My Tangential Musings blog is gone but some of its content remains as I still share my thoughts on Medium.
ariadoss is a software and product leader.
I'm an expert at bridging product, engineering, and executive leadership to execute on business needs and acquire customers.
ariadoss is an experienced entrepreneur.
ariadoss is an enthusiastic storyteller.
Aside from my devout love for internet technologies I enjoy reading, writing, and analyzing speculative fiction. Some of my poetry, short stories, editorials, and essays have been published in various anthologies and magazines.
ariadoss is currently reading a book.
My favorite genre is fantasy, but I also love science fiction.
ariadoss is also staring at a screen.
My iPhone, iPad, MacBook Pro, TV, or a movie screen. The digital age has me addicted.


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Chant in praise of Virgin,sung by Orthodox monks.
Written by St Nectarios of Egina, an Orthodox saint considered
miracle worker himself here you have translation of words
Talk about divine mothers wouldn't be complete without mentioning Orthodox icons, specially those which were and are believed to be working miracles. So many of icons represent Virgin Mary, called Theotokos, with baby Jesus, that this fact amazes how much respect was, and is, given to the idea of motherhood set in most sublime concepts of faith. Theotokos is translated in a simplified way as Mother of God, but exact meaning is "the birth giver to god."
Her cult first developed in Epheus, today Turkey, where according to Eastern tradition she lived with John the Evangelist and Mary Magdalene who retired there after life of preaching, and they were visited by Paul. My apology to those of you who are St Baume Mary Magdalene enthusiasts. St Baume is a wonderful place, but I need to mention Mary Magdalene in Ephesus, as this version is so ancient, I will do no justice to it by silence. On the left is the picture of house known today as Mary's House, where it is believed that Theotokos lived. According to tradition she was preaching and teaching people about art of healing.There is also a sacred springs which water is supposed to have healing qualities: spring of love, health and happiness. Thanks Radomil for the picture. Ephesus was also the place of the council where the dogma of divine motherhood of Virgin Mary was pronounced. There is also oral tradition in a about Mary's presence there, held by Orthodox Christian village.
As for icons: those are not considered ordinary images, they are windows to the divine. For Orthodox Christians are presence of the sacred in this world. So, if the icon represents a given saint, this saint presence it there. The icon is treated with respect, can be touched and is kissed in love and honor, and given votive offerings after a performed miracle.
Our lady Vladimirskaya, patron protector of Russia, Eleusa type icon. The star patterns on her moforion symbolize her VirginityThis icon is damaged, but there is strong sense of radiance. |
Kissing in Eastern tradition was a very important gesture, honorific kissing included, it meaning was quite broad, which kissing the icons also includes.Western culture is only intimate sign of affection, of friendliness when the French kiss the cheeks to say hello, kisses between parents and children, and of course between lovers.In earlier days there was a lot of kissing, including kissing women on hand as sign of honor.It is still practiced in Poland and Vienna, the yearly opera event.
In Biblical times there were kisses between men, family members who were loved, abut also between friends, or people were kissed out of respect. For ex. kissing someones feet was a sign of very strong reverence an honor.. The same in Jesus times. Christian kiss of peace is one example. Also in Greek there were three words expressing love: eros, filos, agape. Eros is erotic love, filos is friendship as love, agape is often translated as charity, but mean unconditional love, the spiritual kind, love as the essence of the divine, love totally selfless. For example the part in New Testament, where Jesus ask Peter "do you love me more than those,"and here he was referring to his disciples. I was introduced to it by someone who studied Koine Greek, what is translated in English is love, but in Greek there are two words in questions and answers used: filos and agape. As you probably guess, the Theotokos as a mother is also example of such divine, all surpassing unconditional love.
It is an important distinction between kinds of love, and it got somehow lost, as the distinction between kisses got lost. In the New Testament at the supper in a house of a Pharisee Jesus defended the woman who washed and anointed and kissed his feet (in Orthodox tradition it wasn't Mary Magdalene) and said: "you gave me no kiss," and praised how she showered his feet with kisses and she will be remembered. This was expression of highest reverence, and the Orthodox Christians remember that. But see by yourself not in my words, why Orthodox Christians kiss icons.
But certain icons are not to available for kissing. Those are the miracle working icons set higher in the altar.
The icon above is Eluesa type of Madonna, (Our Lady Valdimirskaya, today in Tretakov
Gallery). Those graceful depictions are called Virgin of Tender Mercy, of Virgin Showing Mercy,
also found in the West. Virgin's and baby Jesus' cheeks touch, or almost
touch. Those human gestures of affection are very charming, and here is
a small list of miraculous icons in this Eluesa type .
One of miracle icons is the Black Madonna of Czestochowa, this one is not an Eeleusa, but Hedegetria, The Guide as iconograhic type. Hedegetria, called also Madonna Showing the Way, as gestures with her hand toward baby Jesus. This is the oldest and the most common stylistic type.
Black Madonna of Czestochowa, Byzantine origin icon of Hedegetria type |
The Black Madonna of Czestochowa is the regal powerful mother, who is believed to heal you when you ask for it. Many of us remember from childhood when something hurt, like for example got a bruise from falling off kick scooter, the mother kissed the bruise and felt so much better. This is not to introduce banality in the reverence of miraculous icons, it is just for reminding that the veneration also includes tender feelings which relate to very basic human experiences. Basic, not base.
She was
crowned Queen of Poland. On the walls of the sanctuary there are votive
offerings, as thanks from the donors for the miracles of healing: pieces
of jewelery, pieces of silver in shapes of parts of human body, also
you will see some real life crutches.
Those Theotokos were shown like aristocrats of Byzantine imperial court. But the icon painting, or icon-type of style wasn't limited to the areas we today associate with icons: Italy had those too. Bellow Hedegetria by Giotto. The stripes of fabric angels wear over their robes belong to a traditional fashion of imperial court in Constantinople. Even the Eleusa type has Byzantine moforion
A very imperial looking Theotokos by Giotto |


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California has some of the most beautiful hiking trails in the world. The summertime provides you with the perfect excuse to hit those trails and enjoy some high-quality hikes. Before you do, make sure you take a few minutes to consider your safety.
Be Realistic About Your Fitness
Let's face it. Most of us aren't as in shape as we'd like to be. Overdoing it and getting exhausted while on one of California's hiking trails differs from getting too tired while working out at the gym. It's far more dangerous. When hiking it's better to underestimate your stamina and fitness than to overestimate it.
Don't assume that being out of shape means you shouldn't go hiking, it just means you need to do a little more planning. Consider both the length of the hike, if there are places to sit, how shaded the trail is, if the terrain is rough or smooth, and the site's overall elevation before starting your hike. Make sure you're going to have enough energy to return to your car.
Bring Water
You're going to get hot quickly. The heat and exertion increase the odds of your dehydrating so make sure you have plenty of water in your pack. Frequently take small sips, even if you don't think you're thirsty. Dehydration and heatstroke is something that sometimes catches people by surprise.
Pack a First Aid Kit
When you're putting together your hiking pack, make sure there is a small, well-stocked first aid kit tucked into it. The first aid kit should include some topical antibiotics, band-aids, and a wrap.
Be Aware of Your Surroundings
While you're hiking, keep your head up and your eyes off your phone. You need to be aware of your surroundings. Know what people are around you, be ready for wildlife and dogs that are off-leash. Don't forget to pay attention to any stinging insects.
Let Someone Know Where you Are
Even though you might prefer hiking by yourself, you should at least make sure someone knows what trails you're going to be on and when you intend to be done hiking. Letting someone in on your itinerary helps them know if you don't return on time and helps them, direct people, to the area where they should start looking for you.
Don't assume that just because all of your past hikes have been successful that you won't get lost or hurt on your next one.
When it comes to hiking, you always want to make safety your priority.