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I've mentioned in the past that my patron is St. Macarius the Great. He was a Desert Father who lived between the years 300 – 390 AD. He went into the desert when he was thirty years old, became a priest when he was 40 years old, was accused of adultery, and when he was proved innocent, he fled and headed to a place in the Egyptian desert called Scetis.
I probably went right by Scetis once or twice and never even knew it when I took a trip up to the battlefield at El Alamein when I was stationed in Cairo.
I also made a trip up to Alexandria too, and may have passed it by again in my ignorance. I was young and more interested in the human history of the battlefields in North Africa at the time. If I only knew then what I know now.
How did I choose Abba Macarius's name for my confirmation name? I've written about that before, but I left out one little thing. It's silly actually because it makes no sense at all. I confess that selfishness is one of the reasons. I figured that when I needed a little help from my patron, if I chose one of the well known saints, the line for my prayers to wait in would be long and winding. My solution? Choose a saint no one has heard of and the prayer line will be short! See? I'm always thinking.
A more serious reason why I chose Abba Macarius was because of the homilies attributed to him. I found out he wrote twenty-two homilies, but it turns out it's more like fifty. Did he really write them? Or did someone else write them and use his name (much as the writer of Ecclesiastes leads us to believe he was King Solomon)? I don't know, and I really don't care. But having them available accomplished several things for me. First, they give a viewpoint of early Christianity that is very Catholic. Secondly, they help me by giving me access to my patrons' wise council whenever I need it (which is often!).
The saints point us to Christ and His ways. These homilies do just that. They are powerful and I'd like to share a couple of them with you,
Homily 7: How the soul ought to demean herself in
holiness and purity, towards her Bridegroom Jesus Christ.
If a glorious prince should take a liking to a poor woman that has nothing, and have her brought home to him for his spouse, she ought ever after to show all good will to this husband, and retain a constant love for him. But if she transgresses the bounds of decency and duty, then she is turned out of doors with disgrace and reproach, and is full of sorrow; reflecting from how great wealth she is fallen, and what glory she has lost. Thus also the soul, which Christ, the heavenly Bridegroom, shall espouse to himself, ought to please Christ, her lover; carrying herself in the house of this heavenly Spouse with a fair deportment, and a grateful sense of the grace bestowed upon her. Lo! such a soul is actually invested with the full command of all her Lord's goods, and her body becomes the glorious tabernacle of his Godhead.
But if she does not the things that are pleasing to him, and is not perfectly observant of his will, then with reproach and disgrace is she disrobed of all her honor, as no way proper for the communion of the heavenly King. And after that, there commences an universal grief and lamentation over that soul among all the saints and intellectual spirits: angels, powers, apostles, prophets,and martyrs, mourn for her. For as "there is joy in heaven," as the Lord has said, "over one sinner that repenteth," so is there great grief and mourning in heaven over one soul that falls from eternal life.
We must therefore strive, and with the utmost prudence take care to "work out our salvation with fear and trembling." Whosoever therefore you are, that have been made partakers of the Spirit of Christ, look upon yourselves in no case whatever, whether small, or great, to be above advice; neither do any despite to the Spirit of grace, that you may be never excluded from the life which you have been made to partake of.
Let us therefore beg of God, that we, as many as have been partakers of his grace, may minister acceptably in the service of the Spirit, according to his will; that thus serving him according to his will with a spiritual service, we may inherit eternal life.
But can a man fall that has the gift of grace? Answer: If he grow careless, he certainly falls. For his enemies are never idle, or backward in the war. How ought you then never to desist from seeking after God? For the damage which you sustain by your neglect is exceedingly great, though you may seem to be even established in the mystery of grace.
Are the perfect liable to affliction or war, or are they entirely free from care? Answer: An enemy never respites any from the war. And Satan is perfectly void of mercy: wherefore neither is he backward to set upon any man whatever, though he does not attack all in the same measure and degree.
But there is need of much pains and labor, that a man may seek and lay the foundations, till such a time as the fire shall come into the hearts of men, and purge away the thorns. And thus do they begin to be sanctified, giving glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, for ever. Amen.
Homily 8: That spiritual men are liable to temptations and fictions.
As the experienced husbandmen, in a year of plenty, expect a time of dearth; and on the other hand, when dearth and difficulties overtake them, they are not dejected; as knowing there will come a change. So in the spiritual state, when the soul falls into divers temptations, it is not surprised as at a strange or unusual thing, neither does it despond, because it knows that they come by permission, that it may be tried and disciplined by the evil that befalls it. Neither again, when it abounds in wealth and ease, is it free from apprehension, but expects a change.
For when a man is rich in grace, there is yet a remnant of corruption with him: he has one however that takes his part, and that comes to his assistance. Whenever therefore any one is in afflictions, and the storm of corrupt affections thickens upon him, yet ought he not to quit his hope. For then sin gains ground. But when a man retains his hope in God, sin crumbles as it were, arid, and dries away.
As a well that runs, and has all about it nothing but moist grounds, when the heat comes on, both itself and its adjacent bogs are dried up; thus it is with the servants of God, in whom grace abounds; that dries up the concupiscence, not only that which is from the wicked one, but that also which is natural; because (of) that, now the men of God are greater than the first Adam.
Christians therefore belong to another world, are the sons of the heavenly Adam, a new generation, the children of the Holy Spirit, the bright and glorious brethren of Christ, perfectly like their Father, the spiritual and glorified Adam, of that very city, of the same kind, and of the self-same power. He himself says, "Ye are not of this world, even as I am not of this world."
Yet a fear they still have upon them, not indeed that of novices, that live in a dread of wicked spirits; but a fear and concern how they may best employ the spiritual gifts they are entrusted with. And such a one as this looks upon himself to be despicable beyond all sinners. This reflection is as deeply rooted in him, as if it were his very nature. The more he advances in the knowledge of God, so much the less is he in his own eyes. And though he learns never so much; he is still as one that knows nothing. But these things are wrought in the soul by the ministration of grace.
The case is not unlike that of an infant in the arms of a young man; the bearer carries it about whithersoever he pleases: so does grace also carry the mind about, and bear it upwards into the very heavens, to the perfect world, and eternal rest.
Continue to have confidence, since the reward is so great. You will need endurance to do God's will and gain what he has promised.—Hebrews 10:35-36
Abba Macarius, pray for us.


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Monday, 5 March 2012
Following the rules.
I only had one story to relate but I've just remembered another, lucky you.
I work in a large open plan office, parking is crap, there are never any spaces left or, I should say there are never any designated spaces left. This is an important point in fact, the term 'designated'. You see, that word is invaluable to the kind of people who enjoy making and/or enforcing intensely moronic rules. For example, there are showers in all four corner toilet block thingies in our office (its square, so we have four on each floor) only not all showers are actually showers. There is a cubicle and an electric shower, in fact all the accoutrement one requires to have a shower (bring your own towel and Vosene though.) Some time ago, I decided I'd cycle into work (a trend that lasted as long as it took for me to realise what a shit idea it was.) I'd arrive, clock in (a bit cheeky) then go and have a quick shower. They were always busy, people here like cycling (the lunatics,) so I asked 'Facilities' why I couldn't use the shower in some of the other toilet block thingies, (some didn't have a shower hose and head.) The reply I got was thus: 'It's not a designated shower.' Well what the fuck is it then, it looks like a shower to me, what possible reason other than this arbitrary 'designation' could there be for not having it as a shower, especially given that it is a fucking shower cubicle with everything required except the hose and head.
No other answer was forth coming, not even a lame attempt at some health and safety issue, like we can't run all the showers at once because the combined force of all power showers running means the building would take off, or something. It just wasn't a designated shower.
Anyway, I digress. What was I talking about? Parking. Or rather designated parking, I arrive at 9:55am (flexi-time: its a fantastic thing) and see no parking spaces, indeed I can see ahead some jammy sod just got one, which is odd given there aren't usually any at all. I watch with envious eyes as he exits his gleamingly polished Rover 75 (a shit car, lets be honest.) Meanwhile I switch on the four wheel drive and park the car in some bushes. I can see him now standing at the corner of the building with a look on his face that was either a) awe at my inventiveness or b) horror at my total parking rebellion. Can you guess which one it was? Of course it was b, the latter, he was horrified. Even although I wasn't blocking anyone in, nor blocking the road his mouth as a distended O of aghast shock and surprise, and no; I'm not exagerating. (Well maybe a wee bit.)
I think to myself, who cares but, he produces a pen and note pad and proceeds to write down my license number while I'm walking towards him. We've made eye contact, he knows that I know what he's doing and I know that he knows, indeed we both know everything about our actions and motives. I'd parked in a rather adventurous manner and he didn't approve, even although its not his job to monitor the car park (he's a web design twat) but he's going to daub me in anyway. Seriously, what total fanny.
Later on in the afternoon sure enough an email arrives from 'Facilities', they who designate what is to be a 'designated' thing. "You have parked in an undesignated space, please move your car immediately to a designated space." I decide to ignore it.
Later on though I do go out with a friend (my fake girlfriend in fact.) We'd hatched a plan (well I had,) since I saw him park up and knew what kind of car he drove (the shitty old Rover 75, I mean who drives those shitbuckets anyway?) We thought, wouldn't it be funny if there was a space next to his carefully parked and polished turd- I mean car. And do you know? There was. On the drivers side and everything, needless to say, I parked my car about a millimetre from his drivers-side wing mirror (and no, I don't care if my car gets scuffed or dented but he clearly did.) I leaned out and asked my 'girlfriend' (who later denied any involvement) if I was close enough, she shook her head.
Now I don't like to think of myself as a petty person although it is possible that I am, I don't do this often but when I do, I take even more pleasure in not being there when the trap (such as it is) is sprung, its enough for me that I know. I left the office a good deal later and his car was gone, mine was untouched and I knew then he would've had to have climbed over his pristine upholstery to get into the drivers seat.
It gave me pleasure, although I appreciate both our actions could be classed as petty but, and this is the main thing: I won.
Anyway, that wasn't what generated today's vomiting of words. I'm involved in a large youth organisation (only one person reads this so you know that given you're also in that organisation.) I had to fill out a PVG form (its stands for Protecting Vulnerable Groups, which is interesting because the kids don't have to fill one out and they frequently turn the leader team into a vulnerable group.) I've been involved for years, almost twenty as it happens, I did fill a similar form out years ago but since then haven't bothered, none of the kids have been that attractive... I'm joking, no seriously. The point is, its an invaluable tool (so to speak) in ensuring we don't get any pedo's on the team. I sent it away but got an email saying I'd need to show a fellow leader three forms of identification. Understand, my beef is not with the system per se because if I was a new person, the fellow leader wouldn't know me from Adam, however, I've been there for twenty fucking years! He insisted he'd need to follow the rules, I'd need to show him the ID. 'But its me!' I said, 'You've known me for 15 years! I couldn't live in such deep cover for that length of time masquerading as a fucking Scout leader and hiding my secret life as a kebab shop proprietor at the weekend' (bare with me, I look a bit swarthy and foreign.) To no avail, he went on to say, his own son, now grown up and helping out occasionally also had to show him three type of ID.
Yes, you read that right: he ID'd his own son! There's only one word for it: Absurd.
Now I know we're supposed to take this seriously, 'what about the cheeeeeeldren' etc. But this is flawed, if I was a new volunteer it would be eminently practical but I'm not, I've been volunteering for years, if anything its dangerous because at this stage my identity is not in question so there's no point in an ID check (my criminal record is another thing entirely,*) I mean If I felt someone up (which I bloody haven't by the way) 21 years ago and had been living in deep cover as someone else ever since keeping my hands to myself... Its just too far fetched and totally pointless. Its dangerous because if there was any sort of collusion amongst leaders (God forbid) this is a massive hole in the system, dirty leaders could give the OK for other dirty leaders.
Beyond that, the other leader ID'd his own son.
Its just stupid. What I'm going to do is take my forms of ID to the area secretary (who looks after such things) because she doesn't know me, it just seems more sensible and redolent of an activity that has a point.
I think that might have been three instead of the promised two points I wished to get across. A three for two deal, not bad value really, if you ignore the content...
* I should say I have no criminal record, I mean to say I'm the first person to admit I'm not a great role model for the young people who come along of an evening but to date, I've managed to not shag any of them. If I'm being honest, it's not been much of a challenge to contain myself on account of how ugly they all are... There, I'm joking again...
Reading that last paragraph back, I hesitate to click on the 'PUBLISH POST' button, under this window...
Ah dear, the register beckons...
2 comments:
- Anonymous10 April 2012 at 13:27
ha ha ha ha... brilliant!ReplyDelete
I had to leave working for the big public sector place... I was paid off, thank god, but I was already desperately looking for something else. I just couldn't stand all this "designated" garbage. rules, forms (in triplicate), blah, blah. I discovered I'm just NOT an organised/organisable person.Replies
I'm going that way myself, I'll probably end up being disciplined out the door, I can't help myself.Delete
I recently did an Equality & Diversity Course which goes on our permanent training record, apparently potential employers can look at it if they ask. In the record they ask how we'd deploy this new training in our roles going forward. I said I wouldn't be nasty to minorities any more.
Never realised it was permanent. ;-/
Thanks for comment as always and I apologise if you have to jump through any hoops to do so. Its just that, I'm still being spammed by organisations who are certain I can't get it up or when it is up its not big enough or that I don't have anyone to get it up for.
Who knew blogging could be so bad for ones self-confidence?

subset: commoncrawl


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Apex Legends characters (Season 4): abilities, hitboxes, and tips for all characters
A new Season, a new Legend
The ever-expanding roster of Apex Legends characters has been carefully crafted to give you the most colourful personalities and the most varied roles to play in Season 4. Our Apex Legends characters and abilities guide will help you figure out what to do in the shoes of each of the 12 Legends on offer. We'll go over every character in detail, from their backstories to their hitboxes and abilities – including the all-new Revenant, the latest Legend to grace the Apex Games!
Apex Legends characters (Season 4) – abilities, hitboxes, tips
We've got a lot to cover with each of these Apex Legends characters, and we know you're likely after information on one character in particular. So to that end, you can click on any of the links just below to be brought straight to any particular section in this guide.
- Apex Legends characters overview
- Apex Legends hitboxes
- Revenant abilities & tips
- Crypto abilities & tips
- Wattson abilities & tips
- Octane abilities & tips
- Bloodhound abilities & tips
- Gibraltar abilities & tips
- Lifeline abilities & tips
- Pathfinder abilities & tips
- Wraith abilities & tips
- Bangalore abilities & tips
- Caustic abilities & tips
- Mirage abilities & tips
Apex Legends characters overview
Apex Legends is, at its core, a squad-based battle royale. You enter each match with two teammates, and you must all work together if you want any chance of succeeding. This means you must pick your Legend based on what would best synergise with the rest of your team. If you lack a healer, pick Lifeline. If you need some tankiness, pick Gibraltar. Let your team's choices guide your own.
Though each of the Legends on offer in Apex Legends share the same health, movement speed and damage statistics, they all work very differently from one another thanks to their unique abilities. Each Legend has one passive ability which is always in effect; one tactical ability which can be used whenever it is not on cooldown; and one ultimate ability, which is their strongest power and which must be powered up over time.
Apex Legends characters & hitboxes
One thing which quickly became clear after the release of Apex Legends was that some characters have a larger hitbox than others, and therefore were easier to hit. It didn't take long for this phenomenon to be properly tested; take a look at the below image, created from the findings of YouTube creator "SookieSpy".
Hitbox size and accuracy plays an enormous part in the overall success of a particular character, because the smaller you are, the more difficult you are to be hit; and there's no drawback to having a smaller hitbox.
By now, however, Respawn have taken multiple steps towards addressing the enormous discrepancies in hitbox sizes with two extra Passive abilities shared among multiple Legends:
- Fortified – applies to Gibraltar and Caustic – reduces incoming damage by 15% and grants immunity from gunfire slowdown.
- Low Profile – applies to Wraith, Lifeline, Pathfinder, and Revenant – increases incoming damage by 5%.
Apex Legends characters – abilities and tips
Bearing this information on hitboxes in mind, let us now turn to each of the Apex Legends characters' abilities and roles, to give you an idea of where their strengths and weaknesses lie.
Revenant abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Synthetic Nightmare
- Passive Ability: Stalker/Low Profile
- You crouch-walk faster and can climb higher than other Legends
- Incoming damage increased by 5%.
- Tactical Ability: Silence
- Throw a device that deals damage and disables enemy abilities for 10 seconds
- Ultimate Ability: Death Totem
- Drop a totem that protects those who use it from death for a set amount of time. Instead of being killed or downed, users will return to the totem
Revenant is an absolute game-changer, and a strong contender for the overall strongest Legend in the game as of Season 4's release. Each of his abilities lend themselves to the most aggressive playstyle we've yet seen – surpassing even Octane's or Pathfinder's predilection for initiating fights.
Without a doubt the strongest of Revenant's trio of abilities is his passive, Stalker, which allows him to crouch-move as fast as regular walking. This can be very easily abused during firefights by continually crouch-strafing while firing, which – especially when combined with Revenant's Low-Profile-worthy hitbox, makes him by far the most difficult Legend to hit with your shots.
His other abilities are very nearly as deadly: Silence allows you to throw a device that deals small damage and silences all enemies in its radius for 10 seconds, while Death Totem will protect allies who interact with it from death for 30 seconds, instead transporting them back to the Totem with 1 HP when they would otherwise be dealt a killing blow. Both abilities are very time-sensitive and force both Revenant and his teammates to be very aggressive with pushing and hunting down enemies to take advantage of these marvellous new powers.
Revenant is available for purchase for 750 Apex Coins or 12,000 Legend Tokens, just like the other locked Legends. For full details and tips on making the most of Season 4's new killing machine, check out our Revenant guide!
Crypto abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Surveillance Expert
- Passive Ability: Neurolink
- Crypto and his teammates see what the Surveillance Drone detects up to a 30 meter radius
- Tactical Ability: Surveillance Drone
- Deploys an aerial drone. 40 second cooldown if destroyed
- Ultimate Ability: Drone EMP
- Charge up an EMP blast from your drone. Deals 50 shield damage, slows players and disables traps
One of just two Recon Legends currently in the Apex Games (the other being Bloodhound), Crypto is all about situational awareness. His bread-and-butter ability is his surveillance drone, which allows him to pilot and see through the eyes of the drone, scouting freely about a startlingly large radius around Crypto himself.
All three of Crypto's abilities revolve around this central Drone, much like Caustic's Nox Gas or Mirage's Decoys. The drone wouldn't be nearly as useful without his Neurolink passive, which means any enemies seen by the drone are automatically highlighted for all teammates, even through walls – an exceptionally powerful skill for a team to have, which can completely change the outcome of an encounter before it begins.
Add to this his Drone EMP Ultimate, which strips all enemies near the drone of 50 Shields, destroys all nearby traps, and slows the hit enemies as though they had just been Arc Star'd – and this is a Legend with some very strong synergistic and team-oriented abilities. He's certainly one of the most interesting characters we've yet had – and possibly one of the most useful, too.
For tonnes more info on how to make the most of the Surveillance Expert and his unique skillset, be sure to check out our brand new Crypto guide!
Wattson abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Static Defender
- Passive Ability: Spark of Genius
- Instead of charging a bit of your Ultimate, Ultimate Accelerants fully charge it, and standing near interception pylons boosts your Tactical Ability recharge
- Tactical Ability: Perimeter Security
- Connect nodes to create electrified fences that damage and slow enemies
- Ultimate Ability: Interception Pylon
- Place an electrified pylon that destroys incoming ordnance and repairs damaged shields as long as it stands (Max: 3)
The new Legend to be added with Season 2, Wattson – or rather, Natalie Paquette, the 22-year-old daughter of the Games' chief electrical engineer – is a defensive support character with a focus on positioning, turtling, and countering the common tactics of aggressive enemy pushes. Armed with her electrified fences and her Interception Pylons, she presents a completely different style of play to any Legend we've had so far.
Wattson is another character who, like Bloodhound or Caustic, has some extreme synergy going on with her abilities. Her Passive, Spark of Genius, quite simply boosts the speed with which you can use your other two abilities – and the fact that your Interception Pylons boost your Tactical recharge speed means you should always focus on using your abilities as much as possible. Don't be frugal, because Wattson cannot excel unless you take full advantage of her powers at every opportunity.
Her Interception Pylon Ultimate is a fantastic counter to the standard tactic of throwing grenades or using Gibraltar's or Bangalore's bombardment abilities to initiate a fight. As long as you're near one of these Pylons (and you can have up to 3 active simultaneously), all grenades and ordnance will be destroyed mid-air before it can deal any damage to you or your team.
Pair this with the supreme flexibility of her Perimeter Security Tactical, which allows her to place down series of nodes that turn into electrified fences at the press of a button (damaging and slowing enemies that pass through it but doing nothing to you or your allies), and you can start to see why Wattson is such a formidable turtler. She is designed to push back against the ever-present meta of constant third-partying and rushing recklessly towards the sound of gunfire. However, it takes time and an aware mind to set up her abilities, which can lead to periods of vulnerability. She's very much a team player, rather than one such as Pathfinder, Wraith, or Bangalore, who can conceivably head out their own ahead of their team.
Wattson is available to purchase for 750 Apex Coins or 12,000 Legend Tokens. For full details on this new Legend, be sure to check out our Wattson guide.
Octane abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: High Speed Daredevil
- Passive Ability: Swift Mend
- Automatically restores health over time.
- Tactical Ability: Stim
- Move 30% faster for 6 seconds. Costs health to use.
- Ultimate Ability: Launch Pad
- Deploy a jump pad that catapults teammates through the air.
One of the most mobile Legends out there, Octane – the high-risk, high-reward speed demon introduced with the Season 1 update – is all about speed and acrobatics. His Ultimate allows him to place down Launch Pads like the ones outside Market near the centre of the map, which persist for the rest of the game and send anyone who steps on them careening through the air (even higher and further if they jump as they do it!).
But Octane's real bread-and-butter ability is his Tactical, Stim, which allows him to trade 10 Health for a 30% movement speed buff for 6 seconds. This makes him an incredibly scary and hard-to-pin-down foe who can slide and dance around at a greater speed than any other character in Apex Legends. It's also on just a 2-second cooldown, which means if you want to, you can spent the majority of the match at 130% speed.
Of course, you have to balance the risk of taking Health damage each time you Stim, but this is mitigated by your Passive, which slowly restores your Health over time whenever you're not under attack. All in all, Octane is an incredibly fun Legend; easy to get to grips with, but with a high skill ceiling that takes time to master. Octane can easily be played wrongly by being over-cautious or by activating your abilities at the wrong time, and if you land yourself in a sticky situation you likely won't last long against a team. But in skilled hands, there's not much deadlier than a Stimmed Up, Peacekeeper-touting Octane rushing towards your team.
If you need help getting to grips with this high-speed Legend, take a look at our Octane guide, which we've packed with practical tips and tactics to help you survive and rack up kills heading into Season 4.
Bloodhound abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Technological Tracker
- Passive Ability: Tracker
- Foes leave behind clues for you to find.
- Tactical Ability: Eye of the AllFather
- Briefly reveal enemies, traps, and clues through all structures in front of you.
- Ultimate Ability: Beast of the Hunt
- Transform into the ultimate hunter. Enhances your senses, allowing you to see cold tracks and move faster.
Bloodhound is an aggressive Legend who seeks to equip the player with as much tactical information as possible. Their passive and tactical abilities both allow the player to track down and/or get the drop on enemies, while Beast of the Hunt, their ultimate, gives them massively increased speed for a short time and allows them to easily see enemies and their tracks.
The important thing with Bloodhound is to make full use of your extra sensory power by alerting your teammates regarding anything you discover. If you find tracks leading to an enemy, let them know by pinging the tracks. If you can see an enemy through a wall with Eye of the AllFather, ping them immediately. Bloodhound's 35-second-long ultimate is also excellent not just for offensive flank attacks but also for evasion and retreat, so it's sometimes best to save your ultimate in case things go downhill and you need to make a speedy exit.
Bloodhound is a surprisingly versatile character, who can be played at a very high skill level but who also is excellent for beginners due to their enemy positional awareness and the escape provided by their ultimate. Just be aware that Eye of the AllFather also gives away your position to nearby enemies, so use it with caution.
Be sure to check out our Bloodhound guide for further details and tonnes of tips and strategies for this powerful Legend.
Gibraltar abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Shielded Fortress
- Passive Ability: Gun Shield/Fortified
- Aiming down sights deploys a gun shield that blocks incoming fire.
- Incoming damage reduced by 10%.
- Tactical Ability: Dome of Protection
- Throw down a dome-shield that blocks attacks for 15 seconds and allows teammates inside to consume healing items faster.
- Ultimate Ability: Defensive Bombardment
- Call in a concentrated mortar strike on a position you mark with smoke.
Gibraltar is Apex Legends' equivalent of Overwatch's Reinhardt – a big protection-focused Legend whose shields provide an extra layer of defence not just for himself but for his teammates as well. And that's good, because even after Season 1's hitbox changes, Gibraltar's hitbox is the largest of all the Legends, so if it weren't for his shielding abilities and his Fortified Passive, he would be very easy to kill.
Gibraltar's abilities have actually always been top-tier. His Passive, Gun Shield, effectively gives him an extra 75 Health against attackers in front of him while ADSing, while his Tactical Dome of Protection can completely change the pace and outcome of an encounter when used properly (or improperly). In skilled hands, these abilities enable him to dramatically extend the survivability of his teammates and himself – especially now that the Dome will enable teammates inside it to consume healing items more quickly, like a localised Lifeline passive.
Gibraltar's Defensive Bombardment ultimate ability is incredibly powerful and easy to use, dealing damage in a smaller area of effect than Bangalore's Ultimate but in a much more immediate manner. Just remember that Gibraltar's passive shield takes a moment before flickering on, so it's not responsive enough to save you from the quicker sharpshooters out there.
Our Gibraltar guide is packed with further details and tonnes of tips and strategies for this Legend, so be sure to check it out.
Lifeline abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Combat Medic
- Passive Ability: Combat Medic/Low Profile
- Revive knocked down teammates faster while protected by a shield wall. Healing items are used 25% faster.
- Incoming damage increased by 5%.
- Tactical Ability: D.O.C. Heal Drone
- The Drone Of Compassion (DOC) automatically heals those near it over time.
- Ultimate Ability: Care Package
- Call in a drop pod full of high quality defensive gear.
Apex Legends' quintessential support class, Lifeline and her abilities revolve around healing and reviving teammates, and equipping everyone with enough gear to hopefully survive until the end of the match. What's nice is that unlike many support classes in similar games, Lifeline's passive also helps herself, allowing her to use healing items faster and therefore spend longer in the fight.
She can hit as hard as anyone, but due to her reviving strength she should aim to be the last of the team left standing, so don't use Lifeline as the tip of the spear. Use Care Package as often as you can to provide high-quality gear for everyone, and save your D.O.C. for encounters with enemies in order to keep your team standing as long as possible.
Check out our Lifeline guide for further details and tonnes of tips and strategies for this Legend.
Pathfinder abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Forward Scout
- Passive Ability: Insider Knowledge/Low Profile
- Scan a survey beacon to reveal the ring's next location.
- Incoming damage increased by 5%.
- Tactical Ability: Grappling Hook
- Grapple to get to out-0f-reach places quickly.
- Ultimate Ability: Zipline Gun
- Creates a zipline for everyone to use.
Pathfinder is a versatile Legend with a very high skill ceiling that is still being discovered by the playerbase. His passive ability is very situational and not all that useful apart from situationally at the very end of a match; but his low-cooldown Grappling Hook is absolutely marvellous for initiating, escaping, and getting unexpected angles on enemies. For this reason Pathfinders make for great snipers, but also excellent close-range combatants. Not only that, but the Grappling Hook can pull other players towards Pathfinder, which opens up a wealth of new clutch combat opportunities for players with quick reflexes.
The Zipline Gun ultimate is a quick and useful way of travelling longer distances as a team, though bear in mind that the zipline stays forever and anyone can use them. You can also jump and turn around in order to change directions will on the zipline, and – very importantly – you can aim and shoot while travelling. All this combines into a complex class with great potential that can slot into nearly any team without too much trouble.
Pathfinder's main drawback heading into Season 4 is that he's squishier than many of the other Legends in the arena thanks to his Low Profile passive, which increases incoming damage by 5% to make up for the hitbox size discrepancies between characters. So you'll have to learn how to take advantage of his Grappling Hook and Zipline Gun to keep moving and never let your enemies get an easy shot on you.
Our Pathfinder guide goes into much more detail about this complex Legend and how to take advantage of his abilities, particularly his versatile Grappling Hook.
Wraith abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Interdimensional Skirmisher
- Passive Ability: Voices from the Void/Low Profile
- You hear a voice when danger approaches. As far as you can tell, it's on your side.
- Incoming damage increased by 5%.
- Tactical Ability: Into the Void
- Reposition quickly through the safety of the 'void' space, avoiding all damage.
- Ultimate Ability: Dimensional Rift
- Link 2 locations with portals for 60 seconds.
Wraith's "interdimensional skirmisher" tag is right on the money. Her abilities are very mobility- and evasion-focused, with her main strength being the tactical ability which allows her to enter a state where she becomes (mostly) invisible and moves faster for a short while – though be aware that you cannot fire and also can't see enemies while this effect is active. But this, combined with her passive, which whispers when you are being aimed at, allows her to easily reposition herself to counter incoming threats ahead of time.
Her Dimensional Rift ultimate takes some planning to use effectively, but it can be used to great effect, allowing an entire team to quickly re-position themselves for a devastating surprise attack on an enemy team or to escape a difficult situation with ease. Overall Wraith is an excellent initiator and escaper, and if you were to pick any class to play as a solo without a team, it would be Wraith. She also has by quite a margin the smallest hitbox of any Legend, which makes her even more difficult to pin down and deal with.
For full details on this powerful top-tier Legend, take a look at our focused Wraith guide, which we've packed with in-depth info and advanced tips and strategies.
Bangalore abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Professional Soldier
- Passive Ability: Double Time
- Taking fire while sprinting makes you move faster for a brief time.
- Tactical Ability: Smoke Launcher
- Fire a high velocity smoke canister that explodes into a smoke wall on impact.
- Ultimate Ability: Rolling Thunder
- Call in an artillery strike that slowly creeps across the landscape.
Bangalore is actually less of a damage-dealing tank than you might expect, though her abilities give her some excellent support and utility power, and she can slot into any team without too much effort. Her Double Time passive is just really nice to have, allowing you to escape further damage that much quicker; and you can synergise this with a well-timed Smoke Launcher shot to quickly flank an enemy or escape from a difficult position.
Her ultimate is another slow-use and situational area-of-effect power which is actually better for defensive plays and zone control than outright damage-dealing. But if correctly placed it can turn the tide of a battle and allow your team to come out on top with a well-executed flank attack or reposition.
For full details on this aggressive and mobile Legend, give our in-depth Bangalore guide a read, and you'll gain everything you need to know on one of the strongest characters in the current Apex Legends meta.
Caustic abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Toxic Trapper
- Passive Ability: Nox Vision/Fortified
- You gain threat vision on enemies moving through your gas.
- Incoming damage reduced by 10%.
- Tactical Ability: Nox Gas Trap
- Place up to 6 canisters that release deadly Nox gas when shot or triggered by enemies.
- Ultimate Ability: Nox Gas Grenade
- Blanket a large area in Nox gas.
Caustic is one of the few Legends which must be unlocked using in-game resources or currency in order to play with them – 12,000 Legend Tokens or 750 Apex Coins to be precise. He is of course immune to the effects of his Nox gas (he'd be pretty useless if not), and his abilities all revolve around spamming an area with gas to sow confusion and force enemies into or out of specific areas.
For this reason he is a great flanker and initiator in fights, though his canisters can also sow confusion amongst your own team members, so it's important that you communicate everything you see with your Nox Vision passive. He used to be one of the lowest-tier Legends on offer in Apex Legends, but the 1.1.1 update gave him some much-needed buffs, supplying him with the Fortified Passive just like Gibraltar to compensate for his larger frame, and dramatically increasing the damage that his Nox Gas Traps deal to enemies when they are initially set off. And with the release of Season 2 the slow effect of his gas was lessened for his teammates, at long last making him a little less awful to play alongside.
Be sure to check out our Caustic guide for tonnes of tips, tricks, stats and strategies on this complex and unique Legend.
Mirage abilities & tips – Apex Legends characters
- Role: Holographic Trickster
- Passive Ability: Encore!
- Automatically drop a decoy and cloak for 5 seconds when knocked down.
- Tactical Ability: Psyche Out
- Send out a holographic decoy to confuse the enemy.
- Ultimate Ability: Vanishing Act
- Mirage deploys a team of decoys to distract enemies, while he cloaks.
Mirage is another Legend locked behind an initial in-game paywall, requiring 12,000 Legend Tokens or 750 Apex Coins to purchase, but once unlocked he is unmatched at distracting and confusing enemies. All his abilities revolve around stealth and holographic decoys, each of which can be used in specific ways. His ultimate can be saved either for escaping from difficult situations or for aggressive initiates on enemy teams using the ability's cloaking effect.
Season 2 attempted to bring Mirage's skillset (which always was quite lacking) more in line with the usefulness of the other Legends, by providing him with the ability to cancel out of his Ultimate's cloak effect at any time, greatly increasing the practicality of Vanishing Act and allowing him to be played more aggressively than before.
Our Mirage guide will help you get to grips with this character once you've unlocked him, offering lots of useful tips and strategies to employ for each of his abilities.
That should be enough to get you better acquainted with all the Apex Legends characters as we head into Season 4; but as time goes on we'll be sure to update this and all the other pages with the latest strategies and stats. So check back soon! In the meantime, why not check out one of our many other Apex Legends guides?


text:
Earlier this week Nintendo issued some statistics about it's Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, the online service used for playing against friends over the internet.
"Nintendo's Wi-Fi gaming service has seen users skyrocket, with more than 20 million connections to the service and over 850,000 unique users worldwide in just over two months since it launched in November 2005."
Not to shabby my fellow DS users. The popularity of the dual-screened handheld seems to be getting stronger all the time, but from the widest of reasons. Japanese craze for Brain Training is just the latest smash hit thats surged DS sales.
Whats more, Nintendo release information about partnerships with European Wi-Fi companies to offer 20,000 hot spots across the continent.
"As part of its ongoing drive to provide free Wi-Fi access to Nintendo DS owners Nintendo has signed deals with major Wi-Fi providers across Europe giving users access to over 20,000 free Nintendo Wi-Fi access points."
Companies such as BT Openzone, The Cloud, Telefonica and T-Mobile are all on board with the handheld revolution.
[via nintendowifi.com]


text:
August 4, 2009
Angie Zapata's Murderer Has A MySpace PageFiled by Guest Blogger | August 04, 2009 | 7:00 PM |
Editors' Note: Guest blogger Autumn Sandeen is a transgender activist living in San Diego. She is a regular barista at Pam's House Blend where she covered the Angie Zapata trial at length. Tomorrow would be Angie Zapata's 20th birthday. I'm...Read More
Indiana Black Pride is this weekend!Filed by Bil Browning | August 04, 2009 | 6:00 PM |
You are going to Indiana Black Pride, right? It doesn't matter what skin color you are, you know you should be there to support the community. This is the 5th anniversary of Black Pride; I haven't missed one yet and...Read More
Obama's classy birthdayFiled by Bil Browning | August 04, 2009 | 6:00 PM |
Happy Birthday to President Obama. The leader of the free world took a moment today to also honor veteran journalist Helen Thomas as well. What a class act. Aren't you glad to have a President who's willing to honor a...Read More
Lu's Womyn-Born-Womyn-Only Policy: The Ongoing DiscussionsFiled by Mercedes Allen | August 04, 2009 | 5:00 PM |
On July 6th, I noted the story of Lu's: A Pharmacy for Women, operated by the Vancouver Women's Health Collective (VWHC) , and noted how the Vancouver pharmacy's policy to serve only "women who were born as women and live...Read More
LGBT Challenges: True LeadershipFiled by Phil Reese | August 04, 2009 | 4:00 PM |
Recent leadership gaffes in California have reminded me of the challenge of leadership in general--specifically LGBT leadership. What is it about our movement that seduces us to keep picking leaders that we are inevitably unhappy with? In her July 28,...Read More
¡Tenemos un nuevo contribuyente!Filed by Bil Browning | August 04, 2009 | 3:00 PM |
I have a very special new contributor to announce today. Pedro Julio Serrano isn't just a friend of mine, he's also a communications powerhouse. You might remember him from my post "Pura Política entrevista pareja gay" where he and his...Read More
If You Work for a Private Employer in DC, You Want to Know ThisFiled by Nancy Polikoff | August 04, 2009 | 3:00 PM |
If you are a District of Columbia government employee, you have been able to get health insurance for your registered domestic partner for many years. If you are a federal government employee - well, you are out of luck unless...Read More
Who cares about health care? It's just your life on the line.Filed by Alex Blaze | August 04, 2009 | 2:00 PM |
It just seems like there's so much opposition to what should be a basic right in the richest country in the world, a program that would help a country morally, economically, on a visceral level, that should have been enacted...Read More
DINKS with Drinks?Filed by Father Tony | August 04, 2009 | 1:00 PM |
Jeremy Hobson has delivered a report on NPR's Marketplace that is simply shoddy and rather offensive to at least this half of a DINK (Dual Income No Kids) couple. It begins by questioning whether or not DINKS (of any orientation)...Read More
This just in: transgender acceptance in its "trendy," "chic" phaseFiled by Austen Crowder | August 04, 2009 | 12:00 PM |
That's right, folks. If we're lucky, knowing a trans person may finally edge out that tired old "I'm not bigoted because have a gay friend" excuse people sometimes march out in the name of tolerance. Chaz Bono's transition announcement tipped...Read More
Death, Dishonesty & The GOPFiled by Terrance Heath | August 04, 2009 | 11:00 AM |
In an effort to defeat universal health care, conservatives are engaging in a campaign of lies that will ultimately cause more families to suffer needlessly at a most painful time. As someone who worked for years with end-of-life care issues,...Read More
Bart Stupak of MI: U.S. Legislator of the DayFiled by Dr. Jillian T. Weiss | August 04, 2009 | 10:30 AM |
Today's LEGISLATOR OF THE DAY * * * drum roll * * * Bart Stupak (MI-D-01) Rep. Stupak is in a very conservative District, which he wrested from the Republicans in 1992. He is one of several pro-life Democrats, but...Read More
A Supremely Ridiculous ArgumentFiled by Dana Rudolph | August 04, 2009 | 9:30 AM |
Sometimes I read something that is just so mind-blowingly irrational I don't know where to begin. Robert P. George, in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece titled, "Gay Marriage, Democracy, and the Courts," begins by stating that it would be...Read More
What Family Really MeansFiled by Ed Team | August 04, 2009 | 7:30 AM |
"I have two moms because they love each other and wanted to have a family. My sister and I were born in China. We're not blood related and all that, but we love each other and are one family brought...Read More
New MIKA video: We Are GoldenFiled by Bil Browning | August 04, 2009 | 7:00 AM |
Watch it before YouTube takes it down... The video for MIKA's new song "We Are Golden" is out and it's awesome. I love me some MIKA, but MIKA running around in his boxers is always better....Read More


text: I'm seeing some funny behavior with NTP. My setup: I have an IRIG card feeding time source to a Symmetricon XLi time & frequency system box. The XLi is intended to be the NTP server for the rest of my servers. The IRIG card is in one of the servers running Linux. As a test I had this server use the XLi as the NTP server, and they in a small program on the Linux box I compared the system time to the time on the IRIG card, to see how close the NTP can get to the IRIG reference. What I saw was very good performance of generally less than 1 ms match, however, at approximately 6 hour intervals, there was a 3 ms jump lasting about 10 minutes. I have a plot at http://home.twcny.rr.com/rkellog1/ntp5.jpg Does anyone have an explanation for this behavior? In this setup, the XLi is directly connected to the Linux server, and no one else is logged onto this isolated server. Thanks in advance. Rick


text:
Product Code: 32516530
CHEETAH-PRINT SHIRTNavy TASH CHEETAH-PRINT SHIRT in Navy
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text:
2,162 forum posts
Last September I was able to take an incredible trip out to Wyoming, the first few days of which were backpacking a section of the Teton Crest Trail. The rest of the time was spent Plein Air landscape painting in the Wind River area. I had originally planned to spend four days in the mountains, but a dear friend and mentor passed away which delayed my trip. Rebooking the flight was not cheap, but I was needed and could not leave when I intended.
Planing the logistics of this trip was quite a lot of work. Of course I had to cover all the basics: research the trail, plan out mileages and possible routes, determine food rations, confirm regulations, etc. The more difficult details were finding out where to get stove fuel, a bear canister canister and bear spray, but the most problematic was securing transportation. I planned to rent a car, but that would only get me to one trail head, and I wanted to hike a large section of the trail. I was astonished to find there are no hiker shuttle services in Jackson Hole, and all the Taxi services wanted $60-$80 to get me the six miles from the Granite Canyon trailhead to the Moose Visitor Center. From Moose I could catch the Resort Shuttle to Jenny Lake. I finally ended up locating a taxi that would take me for $35.
I flew in on the last flight to Jackson, with a number of supplies yet to be picked up. I picked up my rental car and drove into town to get some stove fuel and final provisions, then headed up towards the Gros Ventre campground to get some sleep. I decided to take the Moose-Wilson road so that I could see the trailhead where I would leave my car, as well as get a definite driving time for the morning. In all my research, I hadn't noticed that the Moose-Wilson route is a dirt road. Oh well. It was a lovely ride made positively breathtaking by the nearly full moon, with bugling elk out in the mist. Even though it was quite late, I had to stop and get a photo of the moonlight valley.
Well, by the time I got to the campground, registered, and pitched camp it was about 12:30am. Ouch.
I was scheduled to meet the taxi at Granite Canyon trailhead by 6:45am, so it was a cold and early start for me. I quickly broke camp, made some oatmeal, and hit the road.
I made it to the Trailhead a little late, but the driver was quite nice, and didn't mind. We chatted while we drove up towards Moose and got along well. I asked how much it would be to just take me on up to Jenny Lake, and he said he could do it for another $20, which was only$ 8 more than the resort shuttle, so I agreed.
I arrived at Jenny Lake well in time to register, get my backcountry permits, bear canister, and spray, and catch the 8:30 water taxi. I had been careful to confirm beforehand that the first ferry would run at 8:30, thus my early start and effort to be there by 8am. Well, dear old Murphy was at work, as someone had decided the day before to switch over to the off-season hours. This meant the first run wouldn't head out til 10:30. Fortunately, there were so many people there expecting the early ferry that they relented and took us over at 9:30.
It was a much later start than I had wanted, but I was finally on the trail by 10:15am. I was hoping to make it over Hurricane Pass that day, but I was already getting doubtful of being able to make it that far due to my late start.
I head up the trail, and quickly come across evidence of powerful avalanches from the previous winter. I had not yet figured out a way to carry my camera at the ready, do it was stowed in my pack bonnet. This required that I stop and de-pack every time I wanted to take a photo.
I continued up the main Cascade Canyon, stopping every so often to take photos along the way. Unfortunately, I lost all the photos I took from this point until the next morning due to a glitch while transferring the photos to my computer. I didn't discover there were any missing until later, and only after I had overwritten the card.
I made it about 8-9 miles up the Canyon, turning up the South Fork and climbing within a mile or so of Hurricane Pass. At this point The day was going fast, and with only a few hours of acclimation the previous night, the elevation was kicking my butt by the time I hit 8.5k. So I choose a nice spot and pitched camp as the late afternoon showers set in.
Here was my modest camp at 9,200 ft.
What an amazing sight to greet you in the morning.
The wildflowers were absolutely amazing, especially these alpine Columbine.
I spent far too much time enjoying the morning and taking photographs, but it was just so beautiful I couldn't seem to help myself. I fixed some Breakfast, eventually broke camp, and got on the trail. I knew I had about 14 miles to cover that day if I was going to keep my schedule, which I was going to tough, but doable.
Less than 1/4 mile up the trail, I stopped to adjust my pack when I caught a dark movement out of the corner of my eye. This curious little guy, a yearling Black Bear (male, I think) was about 15 feet from me, peering around from behind a clump of conifers. He was clearly as surprised by me as I was him, and we just stood staring at each other for many moments. Though I was not frightened or particularly concerned at this point, my heart was pounding. He suddenly turned and ran up the canyon side about 100 yards, then slowed to a wandering pace before stopping on a large rock. He stood there looking back, sniffing the air.
Of course, my camera was stowed away in my pack. So as soon as he started running, I madly ditched the pack, retrieved my camera and started shooting. I was not nervous at all so far. After a minute or two, the young guy turned and began coming back. At t this point, however, I am thinking something along the lines of "Oh, #$&@ No!" But even though I knew this could go badly, I was still excited to see him closer. I just hoped I wouldn't see him TOO closely ;)
I made sure the Bear spray was ready, and waited to see what he was going to do next. He came back within 30ft or so, and stood behind these trees, peering back at me for a few minutes before running away again.
At this point I decide "Screw this, I am going to figure a way to carry my camera at the ready!" After a bit of experimentation, I determined that I could hook the camera strap underneath the pack bonnet, which allowed it to hang perfectly on my chest. It was a bit tight, but worked well.
I headed on up the trail, climbing steeply up the next big step and discovered there was one last section of camping area, and really wished I had pushed on a little higher before stopping last night.
As I rounded the next bend in the trail, I became very grateful I had my camera ready:
This large Wolverine ran right out onto the trail in front of me, up the trail, then darted off into the trees. I yanked the lens up and fired away, hoping to get something in focus, as the whole sighting lasted maybe ten seconds. I was speechless, and didn't really believe that I could have just seen what I though I just saw! I pulled up the photos and about did a little dance right there with a 55lb pack on :)
I really couldn't linger, as the sun was getting high, and I still had 13 miles to go, so I trudged on.
The scenery here became quite foreign yet amazing.
There were lots of Marmots, who let forth a shrill blasting whistle to announce my arrival before I even saw them. They really made me laugh, though, as they wandered around acting as if I wasn't there, until I stopped hiking and turned towards them, that is. Once I motioned towards them they would disappear in a flash of fur and dust!
I climbed the last step up before reaching the Headwall, Schoolroom Glacier, and the Pass.
There were little patches of jewels like this all along the way.
I finally climbed up the pass and beside the Glacier, with it's astounding moraine lake. It is very difficult to get a sense of scale in these photos: those walls of talus and scree are around 100 feet high, and the lake is nearly 400ft across.
It is so astounding that the movement of the glacier creates the massive dikes.
Here is another shot that gives some context, yet it is still hard to grasp how BIG all of this is.
It was all really too much to take in competely, to be honest.
This is looking out towards the battlement-like walls of Roaring Creek Canyon.
The crest of Hurricane Pass at 10,580ft! I made it here long before the daily afternoon thunderstorms, which bring gale-force winds, lightning, sleet, and even snow.
I met this delightful couple in the pass, Barb and Steve (if I remember correctly).
Continuing on, the trail leads down into a verdant section of Alaska Basin.
It was so crazy beautiful! You really can't paint something like this because it is just too saccharin and perfect. In person, however, it is overwhelmingly real. The sweetness is tempered by an inescapable knowledge of how powerful it is and how remote in the wilderness you are.
I speed on and past Sunset Lake, which is quite lovely, but I didn't have time to linger.
The terrain takes another drop down into the rocky section where there are multiple tiny bodies of water, called the Basin Lakes.
I stopped here for a late lunch and to cool off. I had drunk the last of my water about 3/4 mile back, and was quite heated. The lake was truly crystal clear, with large trout swimming and jumping all around. I will definitely have to bring a fly rod back here someday.
Before eating I doffed my clothes (yes, all of them) and I took a quick swim. That water was powerfully cold. Manhood shriveling, skin searing, mind numbing cold. I swam out to the island and right back in short order! If I had been thinking, I would have taken some video of the insanity!
I drank lots of water and filled my camelbak before dressing and heading on. It was about 2:30, and I still had many miles of ground to cover between me and Marion Lake.
I made really good time crossing the rest of Alaska Basin, and start up the brutal Sheep Steps that climb Mount Meek Pass to 9600ft.
I met another friendly hiker as I ground my way up the pass
I quickly came upon a large snow field. Only three weeks earlier, all of the passes were still covered over with snow, and the Rangers required hikers to carry an ice axe and traction devices.
This is looking west out along the imposing Alaska Basin Shelf.
The marmots kept me entertained :) they would run and hide, but then slowly creep out onto rocks, clearly giving the impression they thought I couldn't see them. Crazy little buggers!
At this point I have made it up through the pass, and am looking back northeast at the peaks of South Teton and Grand Teton. It's about 5:45pm, and I know I am going to have to hike a couple hours in the moonlight to make it to Marion Lake.
So I press on south along the breathtaking Death Canyon Shelf.
Just wow.
Once again, the scale here is hard to grasp. The trees we are seeing are 75-100ft tall, and it is between 800 and 1000ft down from the shelf to the floor of the canyon.
The atmospheric depth of the Death Canyon Gulf was stunning in the waning light of the day.
Uh huh. I know.
There really aren't words.
The deep greens in contrast with magenta light on the rock was so compelling. The cloud back there didn't detract too much either ;)
I kept hiking on until the sun had set before I stopped for a rest. I found a stream of snow-melt as it fell down from higher elevations, so I filled up on water and changed my socks.
Now, my throat had been feeling sore for the last hour or so, but I had thought it was just induced by the cold thin air and heavy exertion. It was around this point that I began to realize it was not just the air, but that I was having some heartburn. I shrugged this off, as I have never had any problems with heartburn at all, and didn't think it was anything to worry about.
Over the next two miles, however, the burning became worse. I also had to urinate heavily, and noticed it was nearly perfectly clear in color. At this point I began to understand what was happening. Knowing that dehydration is a real risk when hiking at higher altitudes, I had been really forcing the liquids. I also naturally drink a lot when I am hiking strenuously. In an attempt to avoid dehydration, I had overhydrated. My body could not process the water fast enough, my blood was thin, and my stomach was staying filled with fluid and bile. Even without a tight backpack belt compressing my abdomen it would have been a problem, but that just made it far worse.
I still did not have the smallest concept of how severely the acid reflux could effect me. I decided I would power on through the discomfort until I made it to Marion lake, where I would fix dinner and get some rest. This was a really bad decision. I am fairly certain I would have been alright if I had stopped and made dinner then, either continuing afterword or just making camp.
I presses on into the night, hiking by moonlight. I turned my headlamp on, but only to let animals know I was coming, so I pointed it upwards so that it didn't effect my night vision. Even though my throat hurt, I enjoyed my lunar hiking immensely.
Just past Fox Creek Pass, I was waylayed for a while because the trail simply evaporated. I wasted at least 45min trying to locate the trail. It turned out glacial action obliterates the trail there every year, and evidence of it on the other side was almost impossible to see in the dark. I had less than two miles left to go, so I pressed on. Within the last mile, however, the burning became much worse. In an attempt to alleviate it, I stopped and very painfully ate a granola bar and some bread before continuing on.
At around 11:30 I proceeded on down the mountain side into the bowl around Marion lake . I made camp and fixed some food, which I tried to eat. This proved impossible, as my throat was badly burned with stomach acid by this point, and every attempt to swallow was excruciating. I tried to drink some instant cider, which resulted in such horrible pain that it took all of my will power not to scream. I then vomited, which expelled what proved to be about a quart or more of bile. I then succeeded in eating a half a piece of bread before going to bed. it was almost impossible to get to sleep, but eventually found a position that allowed me do dose fitfully.
The next morning I was greeted by this family of Moose who live there by the lake. I had actually "met" the bull the night before when I had stumbled down the mountain side in the moonlight. Daddy here DID NOT take kindly to my walking though his "house" a that hour. I got quite a fright when he came rumbling up out of the laurel thicket, thrashing his antlers and bellowing. I really wondered for a moment if my end was nigh. Death by moose: I guess I can think of less grand ways to die ;)
Fortunately he didn't know what to make of my flashlights pointed in his face, and I was able to hike backwards for about a hundred yards. He quit following me after that.
There were a couple other guys camped at the lake as well, and Papa Moose made sure to come visit and let us know this was HIS yard, not ours.
"Ok, son, they know who's boss now, we can leave."
The sunrise over Granite Canyon was the most amazing I have ever seen.
The golden morning light was enchanting.
Here two of my fellow hikers head off towards Fox Creek Pass. The thicket in the middle of the bowl was where I met the Bull the previous evening.
Fortunately, a couple other hikers had some antacids, which I ate two of, leaving the rest for later. I attempted to eat breakfast, but was only able to get half a piece of bread down, everything else was two painful. I had actually expelled another stomach full of bile when I first woke, which was none too pleasant.
So I packed up after forcing down some bread, and hit the trail
Almost as soon as I started hiking, the Bull made his way over to the trail, and would not let me pass. I am getting the distinct impression he REALLY doesn't like me. No apologies are heeded, so I must hike a couple hundred feet around him.
His lovely wife and son sit in a pool of sun above the lake.
Just before dropping off down into Granite Canyon, I take this final shot of pristine Marion lake.
Only 1/2 a mile down the trail I am nearing the corner of the canyon, where the trail doglegs back 160 degrees, when I see this massive Black Bear coming up the trail. He kept looking up at me as he walked, in a very cool-as-a-cucumber manner, not changing his pace at all. There was a small bulge of the hillside that blocked the corner of the trail from sight, and he disappeared behind it. I figured he ran for it as soon as he was out of sight, but I also wondered if I was about to meet Ol' Smoky face to face :)
Sure enough, I was correct: he had booked it up the end of the canyon!
What a lovely valley.
These are in the mint/bee-balm family, and had a pleasing smell when first crushed but had and after-smell that was extremely oppressive. Strange.
I felt quite good through this whole section, with very little throat discomfort and plenty of energy.
This female Blue Grouse (Dusky Grouse) did not seem to be afraid of me, and would only scurry away when I came within a few feet. She repeated this multiple times, until finally scampering into a copse of trees.
This section of the canyon wall was especially interesting.
I really wish I had been able to spend more time through here, but I needed to get to a store for some serious antacids and meds. I was also supposed to be in Dubois by 6pm that evening.
The trail crossed some really steep sections on the way down.
Yep, still steep!
Just after this photo it started raining, so I had to put my camera away safe in my pack. I stopped a little way on up for a rest and to try to eat some more. I fixed some oatmeal, which I was able to eat, though it was painful. I also ate a nutri-grain bar and another antacid.
I stopped again here and took another antacid and ate a little more. I was really starting to feel weak from lack of proper food intake.
These guys were really nice, and we chatted for a while. They were from Israel, and in the states on holiday before heading off to university.
Don't eat these, the Baneberry is quite deadly. It is surprising to see both the white variety, called Doll's Eyes, as well as the red ones.
I make it out into the heath of Jackson Hole, and look back towards the imposing Granite Canyon that I just left.
The afternoon was quite beautiful, with luminous clouds and sweet smells of sage and grass.
The trail leads through open meadow, sage, and Aspen groves. I arrived back at the car tired and sore, but had the best backpacking trip of my life to date.
I headed out to Moose, returned my Bear canister, picked up some food, antacids, pepto, and hit the road towards Dubois.
I was rewarded with this spectacular rainbow falling out of the sky. This is straight out of my camera, no adjustments or enhancement at all. It was actually a full double arch, but the photos of the whole thing weren't as impressive.
I continued my drive, and though I physically felt truly awful, I also had never felt better. I know it sounds nuts, but I think some of you understand what I mean.
I spent the rest of the week with a fantastic group of painters in the Wind River valley and surrounding mountains.
This is up in the Shoshone NF at a place called Double Cabin.
I can't remember the name of this lake, but it is at about 9500ft, and is almost unbelievably beautiful.
This last one is of my up at Double Cabin on another morning, trying to finish up a painting.


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Madina Lake Bassist Matthew Leone Hospitalized After Attack
June 30, 2010 by TWRY Staff
Filed under Daily Music News
According to a sad blog entry on Nathan Leone's website, his twin brother and Madina Lake bandmate Matthew is in the hospital after trying to help a woman in need and being attacked. Here's the entry:
Suffering a massive shock …
i'm afraid I have some of the worst news that has ever hit our lives. It's almost impossible to even type this update. A few nights ago, Matthew walked from my apt. a block and a half down the street to meet a friend for a drink. half way there he saw a man severely beating his wife. Being the most amazing, strong, heroic and incredible person I know.. even though the guy was twice his size, Matthew intervened. He managed to subdue this guy for a second and since his wife was beat up pretty good called the cops.. as he did so the guy jumped him from behind and beat him. This guy did things I can't even type. After words, he and his beaten wife left Matthew unconcious on the street. Matthew is in the hospital with a third of his skull removed as we wait for the swelling in his brain to go down. I'd rather not share any additional information at this time besides the fact that he acted as a hero (as he always would in any of these situations) and is paying a horrific price. Pease send all your love and good energy and vibrations to him. I've been and will be next to him throughout the entire recovery process. We don't know enough yet details about how that will develop.. but it has shocked, stunned, disgusted our best friends, family and band (which are both). The world can be evil beyond belief and as much as we want this evil eliminated, right now our hearts heads and energies need to go to my best friend, soul mate, hero, and angel, Matthew. Love you all and will be in touch as soon as I can muster up the emotional energy to reach out again. Please, be safe and peaceful as we get through this impossible time.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Matthew, Nathan, and their entire family.


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My name is Graham Hughes. I am, and always will be, the first person to visit every country in the world without flying. This is the story of that adventure. Welcome to The Odyssey Expedition.
The Odyssey Expedition spanned 1,492 days and over 220 countries and territories. It has been called "the most hilarious solo travel adventure of all time" and the first book of the unholy trilogy that I've written about my travels is now available to buy online, in book shops and round the back of the bikesheds.
Look at how excited everyone is!
As far back as I can remember I always wanted to be a backpacker. The road at my feet, a song in my heart and 500 miles to the horizon. On January 1 2009, I took a ferry boat over the River Plate from Argentina to Uruguay and thus began one of the most daring, most epic and certainly most hilarious solo travel adventures of all time.
I had been told over and over again that it couldn't be done, it was impossible, a fool's errand. But I knew it could be done – and I was determined to prove it, or else die trying.
Nobody had ever attempted this before, probably because the concept alone is quite simply insane. As well as the 193 member states of the UN, I had to visit Vatican City, Western Sahara, Taiwan, Kosovo, Palestine, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland… 201 nations by land and sea.
Needless to say, it was an adventure of epic proportions.
In the first year of my adventure I watched one of the last space shuttles blast off into space, I had to sneak into Cuba from Key West without the American authorities realising, I was arrested on the Russian border for wading across a river and I was forced to backtrack over 2,000 miles through the Sahara Desert to get a visa.
I paid a group of local Senegalese fishermen to take me on their wooden 'pirogue' over 600km of open ocean to Cape Verde… no radio, no sat phone, no distress beacon, just an outboard motor and the good will of King Neptune… and was promptly thrown in jail for a week upon arrival on suspicion of people smuggling.
I braved the Mad Max-esque freeways of Nigeria, joined a tribe of hallucinogenic tree-bark worshippers in Gabon and found myself imprisoned again, this time in Congo.
I met the Nuns of Gabarone, grabbed a beer in the highest pub in Africa in Lesotho, won on the horses in Mauritius and reached Egypt at 6 minutes past midnight on New Year.
I watched Ghana beat the US in the World Cup while drinking Asmara beer in Eritrea, I sailed around The World in Dubai and hung out with Frankincense farmers in Oman and Maoist rebels in Nepal.
I crossed the rooftop of the world into Tibet, tucked into a dish of dancing octopus in South Korea and met the Nobel-prize winning President of East Timor.
I found myself knocked for six at a cricket match in Sri Lanka, discovered the joys of Takamaka Rum in The Seychelles and was welcomed into South Sudan – a country that didn't exist when my expedition began – with sandwiches and a bottle of champagne. For my last hurrah on my way back to England (overland) I scaled the Great Pyramid of Giza under cover of darkness with three guys called Mo(hammed).
It would be 4 years, 31 days and TWO HUNDRED COUNTRIES after Uruguay that I crossed my final frontier – and entered the record books.
I did it alone, with no professional support (save that of my wonderful friends and family) and on a shoestring budget of just $150 a week.
Here at theodysseyexpedition.com you can read my raw, uncensored blog entries from the adventure and access my videos, photos, maps and the occasional wild tangent.
The Odyssey Expedition is currently being turned into a series of books which will begin hitting the shelves around September 2016. For more information, go to the Odyssey Books page.
If the adventure taught me one thing, it's that you can't judge the people of a country by the actions of their government. It also taught me that the world isn't such a bad place – it isn't going to hell in a handcart, although it might seem that way if the only experience you have of a given country comes from the media.
During the entire journey I was not mugged, robbed or even fell ill. It gave me a new-found appreciation for this beautiful planet of ours and positively restored my faith in humanity.
I hope that my journey has inspired you to go out and see the world for yourself. Yes it was difficult at times, but then so is life!! Most of the time The Odyssey Expedition was, quite simply, a bloody good laugh. Here's to all the incredible people – people from EVERY COUNTRY IN THE WORLD – who helped make it happen.


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From December 16th to the 20th, the 30th Annual Havana Jazz Festival will take place.
Among the 2014 scheduled performing artists are Chucho Valdes, Arthur O'Farrill, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Jessy J, Bobby Carcasses, Sandy Shore, Roberto Fonseca, Michael Lington, Harold Lopez-Nussa, Jorge Reyes, ZZ Top, Los Brujos, Iba Ibo Yoruba Specimen, The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra, Wayne Wallace, Big Energy Ensemble, Anton Doyle, Doug Martin, Naat Berahman, Michel Herrera, Ernan Lopez-Nussa, Habana d' Primera, Mezcla, Jesus Fuentes y Santo Tomas Conection, Oscar Valdes y Diakara, Ruy Lopez-Nussa, Cesar Lopez y Habana Ensemble, Rolando Luna and some others of the best musicians of the international and national world.
Keep track of the daily scheduled concerts through our events pages
HAVANA JAZZ FESTIVAL December 2014
From December 16th to the 20th, the 30th Annual Havana Jazz Festival will take place.


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DLA Piper in secret negotiations to outsource IT
DLA Piper is in negotiations to outsource its entire global IT department of over 1000 staff. They are reportedly talking to both Cap Gemini and Capita about stepping in to provide for the firm's IT needs.
The negotiations come after the firm gave assurances, just three months ago, that there would be no more job losses within the IT department following the huge redundancies made last year.
Read more at www.rollonfriday.com.comments powered by Disqus


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Need For Speed Underground Free Download PC game setup with single and direct download link. The town needs a driver to beat that list without getting caught by the Police.
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Boutique Senior Photography
I'm joining forces with Studio Onyx Salon and SYX Cosmetics to offer the PREMIER Boudoir and Portrait Fashion Shoot in Grand Rapids!! Please know exclusive space is limited – so guarantee your spot before we are booked!!
Join us on September 21st at the JW Marriott in Downtown Grand Rapids. Get glammed up in style in our chic Concierge Suite – champagne and refreshments will be provided. We'll get you looking your best with a Professional hair styling and makeup application. Not to mention we'll have all the fashion-forward accessories to give your images an editorial and high-end feel.
You'll get copyright images on your very own custom USB Drive. Feeling a little luxurious? Then add a Custom Black Onyx and Suede Digital Storage Box that will really impress. This is the perfect holiday gift for your husband, or if you just want to be made over and feel your best. Contact me at firstname.lastname@example.com or Kristen from Studio Onyx @ 616-836-4765 to book your spot!
Last weekend, I was so lucky to photograph Prom night for some friends whose daughter attends Rockford High School. I truly can't believe how beautiful all of the girls were – inside and out! Not too mention the boys were an amazing group of kids as well 🙂 Many of them are embarking after high school to fulfill athletic and academic scholarships at prestigious schools. The parents of this group most be so proud to have such intelligent, hard-working, and beautiful kids!
If any of you parents would like to purchase prints please let me know by emailing me at firstname.lastname@example.com. I can send you a list of my print prices, thank you!!
Have a great weekend!
Ashley 🙂
It has been a while since I have entered any contests and since I am an editing junkie I thought I would give this one a shot. I entered the Improve Photography Editing Contest, where all the entries edit the exact same photo in their own way. It was a lot of fun, although I never can stop I am always tweaking in some way! Check it out and enter yourself and let me know what you think of my edit, we'll see who wins! 🙂
(Click the image for a larger file)


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Sometimes I wonder how often we pause to evaluate the words we use on a daily basis. Especially as Christians, we use a range of terms that most others do not use in everyday life. No, it's not that we have better vocabularies. It's just that we have become so comfortable with using "Christianese" that we forget the true meaning behind the words. Unfortunately, we also forget how to evangelize without throwing half a dozen of these words into our conversations.
And let's face it; some of these words are frightening. Words like servant, sacrifice, worship, and surrender don't necessarily conjure up the warm and fuzzies, especially if you have no idea what the context is. People who were not raised in the church aren't familiar with this particular brand of Christian jargon. And honestly, I wonder how many people who were raised in the church have taken the time to break down what each of these words means to our walks with Christ.
Jarrid Wilson has written a daily devotional entitled 30 Words: A Devotional for the Rest of Us, which does exactly that.
Regardless of whether you've been Christian your entire life or you're really not too sure about this Jesus Christ guy, 30 Words is a great place to start. Challenge what you think you know about Christianity by going back to the basics. Guaranteed, by the end of each day, you'll have a lot more to think about than just elementary Christianity.
I know what you're thinking: "sounds great, but I don't have TIME to read." And I totally get it. Especially as women, we are constantly moving, planning, scheduling, picking kids up, working, studying, cleaning, cooking, creating, and relaxing (or trying to). One of the terrific elements about 30 Words is that it isn't going to take you hours to read each day's segment. You could easily read it between classes, while you wait to pick the kids up from school, or in ten minutes by yourself before the day starts.
Each day is broken into about 1 – 1 ½ pages. These seemingly small devotionals pack a punch that will give you something to think about for the rest of the day. Your spiritual journey cannot take a hit due to business.
Take 30 days to challenge your faith. Thirty small single words can alter your perspective, your attitude, and your understanding. Take the journey.


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- How Would Asian Economic Cooper...
- The Failure of Macroeconomics in America
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- China and Latin American Cooperation
Expert: Humans lived in Mogao Caves as early as Han Dynasty
Author :  ZHANG CHUNHAI Source : Chinese Social Sciences Today 2017-08-29
New evidence has shown that the renowned Mogao Caves, formerly believed to have been first inhabited in the 4th century, have a longer history that dates back to the Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE).
New evidence has shown that the renowned Mogao Caves, formerly believed to have been first inhabited in the 4th century, have a longer history that dates back to the Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE).
Ma De, a research fellow at the Dunhuang Research Academy, drew the conclusion based on remains from the Han era found at beacon towers near the later-built caves.
There is a prominent hill on a dune approximately 3 kilometers south of the Mogao Caves. On its peak stands a beacon tower from the Tang Dynasty (618-907). About 100 meters to the northeast, there is another beacon tower, which dates back to the Han Dynasty. The two beacon towers are like twins.
It is hypothesized that the Tang beacon tower was rebuilt on the ruins of a previously existing Han tower. Because the location was named Dashapo, which literally means "big sandy slope," the beacon tower site is known as the Shapodun Beacon Towers.
Coincidentally, there is another pair of beacon towers at Hongshankou in Dunhuang. The two are situated in the vicinity of the Yangguan Pass in the Han Dynasty. The location was a major thoroughfare and strategic stronghold that played a significant historical role.
The Shapodun Beacon Towers are only 500 meters away from Dangquan River, a long river in front of the Mogao Caves. Scholars said that Han soldiers who were garrisoned at the site to defend against hostile Xiongnu tribes probably lived in the river valley most of the time. The serene valley is home to such famed Buddhist sites as the Mogao Caves and Xianyan Monastery.
After the Han government started to develop the Hexi Corridor and make defensive layouts to resist Xiongnu aggression, people began to carefully guard and utilize the Dangquan River area. The garrison troops at the beacon towers were, so to speak, the first pioneers in the history of the Mogao Caves site, Ma said.
Moreover, before the caves were built, Dunhuang had provided fertile soil for the development of Buddhist culture. It is documented that in the Western Jin Dynasty (265-317), Dharmaraksa, who was later known as the "Dunhuang Bodhisattva," translated Buddhist scriptures together with his disciples.
In the 20th century, Wang Chongmin, an expert in Dunhuang studies, copied A Journey to the Mogao Caves from a Dunhuang manuscript that has been kept in a French library. According to the accounts, Western-Jin calligrapher Suo Jing did wall inscriptions at the Xianyan Monastery.
Ma has researched Suo Jing's Xianyan Monastery trip since the 1980s in the hopes of discovering clues about the ancient monastery's location. A second Dunhuang manuscript, which is numbered P.t.993, offered some evidence.
The P.t.993 manuscript is a realistic landscape painting that depicts a monastery-like building complex encircled by pagodas and trees in a valley.
After investigating the Mogao Caves and the surroundings dozens of times, Ma speculated that the present-day Chengchengwan site in the Dangquan River valley should be the Xianyan Monastery portrayed in the Dunhuang manuscripts. The temple was built some time earlier than the Mogao Caves, he said.
The Mogao Caves, also known as the Thousand Buddha Grottoes, is 25 kilometers southeast of downtown Dunhuang, an oasis at a religious and cultural crossroads on the Silk Road in Northwest China's Gansu Province. Housing the world's largest collection of Buddhist art, it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.
Interview with Wang Gungwu on significance of studying overseas Chinese
Wang Gungwu is a distinguished Australian historian who studies overseas Chinese. He currently works at the Faculty o...


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Shauneen makes the cut for children's cancer charity
A student at Southern Regional College in Newry has went for the chop by having her long hair cut and donated to the Little Princess Trust charity.
Shauneen Cunningham, a Level 2 student of Beauty, made the decision to have her luscious locks shorn to raise funds for the charity following the passing of a family member to cancer earlier this year.
"I decided that I wanted to do something on a personal level to help those suffering from cancer . When I heard of the Little Princess Trust who help boys and girls suffering from hair loss, I thought that is something that I can help with and raise funds for them at the same time," said Shauneen, who lives in Lislea.
Jane Hearty, a hairdressing lecturer at SRC, took on the task of cutting Shauneen's hair, which was shown on a live Facebook feed. Shauneen was supported by SRC Hairdressing and Beauty staff, classmates, family and friends on the day.
The Little Princess Trust charity provides real hair wigs free of charge for girls and boys who are suffering from hair loss across the UK and Ireland who have sadly lost their own hair due to cancer treatment and other illnesses.
If you would like to donate to the Little Princess Trust, Shauneen has set up a Just Giving site which can be accessed via: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Shauneen-Cunningham.


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Code of Ethics
The oral health profession holds a unique position of trust within society. As dental hygienists and oral health practitioners we are afforded certain privileges that are not available to members of the public. In return, the profession makes a commitment to society that its members will adhere to high ethical standards of conduct.
Outlining our key priorities
The Principal Objectives of the DHAA are to:
- Promote, represent and advance the profession of oral health on a State, National and International level.
- Promote access to quality preventive oral health services to all peoples.
- Promote the art and science of dentistry, and foster research in oral health.
- Establish liaison between the Association and other allied health organisations, bodies, associations and companies.
- Provide all those services usually provided by a professional association to its members including:
- Continual updating and advancement of professional development and competencies through continuous professional education programs incorporating evolving scientific knowledge and technology to meet the highest standards of care, and,
- Maintaining high ethical standards and representing the interests of the members of the oral health profession.
The Code of Ethics of DHAA Members is to:
- Provide oral health care utilising the highest level of professional knowledge, judgement and skill.
- Serve all patients without discrimination.
- Hold in confidence the details of all professional services and the confidence by or of any patient.
- Refrain from criticising the dental profession.
- Function harmoniously with all health professions.
- Comply with and support The National Law and report any breaches.
- Create and maintain a healthy and ecological work environment that will minimise risk to patients and colleagues.
- Support and participate responsibility in our professional association and uphold its objectives and policies.
- Develop co-operative relationships and exchange knowledge with other health professionals.
- Advance professional competencies through continuous learning to meet the highest standards of care.
- Hold confident all matters and details pertaining to the Association.
- Attain permission prior to any written or verbal public statement.