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Swimming Pool Blog
by Rob Cox, October 13, 2012
Leaves in the Pool: How to Deal
Plant deciduous trees around a pool, those that lose their leaves annually, and you'll spend some time getting the leaves out of the pool. Leaves and other debris in your pool affects water balance, consumes chemicals and can stain your pool surfaces.
Having no trees around the pool also has drawbacks like reducing your pool privacy. Trees also provide nice shade on a hot summer day, and a place for birds to perch and sing.
Here's some ways to keep leaves out of the pool, how to skim leaves from the surface quickly and effectively, and how to remove leaves from the pool floor.
How to Keep Leaves out of the Pool
Leaf Nets are normally used over top of a solid winter cover, and are removed easily, after all of the leaves have fallen - but they also make great fall and spring covers for pools in warmer regions or for pools that are kept open late into autumn. Leaf Nets are laid over the pool, loosely or tightly. For spring and fall use, leaf nets can be secured with a few bungie cords or twine connected to the grommets, or weights like planters or cover water bags.Click the swatch to see a close up view of the Leaf Net mesh material.
Pool leaf nets are very lightweight and easy to work with. One person can install or remove a leaf net from an average pool. Leaf nets are perfect for the southern pool that doesn't winterize, because it keeps the pool clean and reduces the amount of sunlight that reaches the pool water.
Landscaping is either part of the solution, or - part of the problem. A substantial trimming to your surrounding trees every few years, in addition to pruning the dead branches every fall, will keep your work load down. Trimming back the length of very long and heavy branches, may prevent an unexpected break due to it's size, especially in heavy wind or ice storms.
Pool friendly plants and trees around the pool will reduce your workload. A good choice are small-medium size trees, (15-30 ft mature height), large leafed, tropical, non-fruiting and non-flowering. Some trees like the sycamore have invasive root systems that may harm the shell of your pool, and some, like eucalyptus will shed leaves and bark all year long.
You may have the wrong type of trees planted around the pool, or too many trees. Younger trees tend to be more manageable, but as they mature, the amount of litter can become overwhelming to your skimmers and pool cleaner. Good trees around the pool would include magnolia trees, myrtle, dogwood and most evergreen trees. Bad trees to have around the pool include pines, cottonwood, oaks, elms, and my personal nemesis - the Tulip Poplar.
Pool Covers are an obvious solution to your leaf problem. In addition to the Leaf Net mesh cover mentioned above, Automatic pool covers will keep your pool clean while also conserving heat energy in the pool. Cleaning the auto cover is a bit of a trade-off, but is easier than cleaning the pool. To clean an automatic cover, pump most water off, and use a leaf blower or garden hose to clean the cover as it rolls up. When you are left with only 5-6 ft of cover still over the pool, use a leaf rake on a pole to scoop the leaves up.
Mesh safety covers can also keep a pool clean during fall. I know some people who put their mesh pool cover on the pool in September and keep the filter running a few hours daily during October. When they want to use the pool, they just remove 2/3 of the springs, and fold the cover on top of itself, on one side. They use a blower beforehand to blow all of the leaves off of the cover and from the pool deck.
Solar blankets will keep the pool cleaner, but if you've ever had to clean one full of leaves, you may put it away earlier next year. Solar blankets don't usually come over the edge of the pool, and with rain or pool water on top, become hard to clean. If you use a solar reel however, the Cover Catch accessory makes it easy to catch the leaves falling off a solar blanket as you roll it up. Cover Catch is a floating net, approximately 2'x4', that slides under the edge of your solar blanket. As you roll up the blanket, use the hose to spray the cover clean, then spray the leaves to one end where the Cover Catch will catch 'em!
Leaf Blocks - hedges and bushes, low fences, storage boxes and retaining walls - set up to block the prevailing wind across the pool, can help keep leaves out of the pool. If trees are shedding a lot of litter around your pool, bushes, ground covers and decorative fences can help keep the leaves up against a barrier and away from the pool.
How to Skim Leaves in the Pool
Adjust the Flow. By reducing the suction from the main drain of the pool, you will increase the flow to your skimmers. Close your main drain valve halfway to improve your skimmer draw. If you don't have a separate main drain valve, rotate your skimmer diverter, under the skimmer basket, to full skimmer action.
If you have two skimmers, you can also adjust the valves to equalize the suction from each. For example, open the far skimmer fully, while opening the near skimmer only 75%, to adjust for the closeness to the pool pump. Optimizing your skimmer flow to draw more leaves in faster, will keep the leaves from sinking to the floor.
Skimmer weirs - is yours in place - that flapper door thingy? Skimmer weirs speed up the water flowing into the skimmer, creating a waterfall into the basket. When the pump shuts off, the skimmer weir floats to a vertical position, which traps the leaves inside the skimmer, and prevents them from floating out back over the pool.
Skimmer Extension - If you have a vinyl pool, using a skimmer diverter arm, also known as a skimmer extension, will help direct leaves into the skimmer basket. These are very popular with inground vinyl and aboveground pool owners, especially those with only one skimmer in the pool. Clips on easily to your skimmer faceplate, and keeps leaves from just blowing by the skimmer.
Circular flow patterns are best to keep sending the leaves in front of the skimmer. Aim your return fittings so that there is a slight ripple on the surface, to keep the leaves moving. Sync your eyeball return fittings so that they are both pointing in the same direction, creating a slight ripple that continues around the pool. The surface disruption should fade as you get closer to the skimmer, or else the leaves will blow right past the skimmer.
Water level - Keep your water level in the middle of the tile so that the skimmer can do its job. If the water level is too high, the leaves will just but up against the top of the skimmer, and not be skimmed. Of course if the water is too low, the skimmer sucks air, and you may lose prime or even damage the pool pump.
Last year, we replaced the skimmer baskets at my cousin's pool. He had a continuous problem over the years with his skimmer baskets getting packed so full of leaves that it would split out the sides of the basket. We tried several basket brands and they all broke the first year.
Finally, we tried the Skimpro pool basket. This basket, which is made for only the 3 most common types of inground pool skimmers, has a central tower which allows pump suction to continue, even when the basket becomes full. This "tower" also makes a nice handle to pull the basket out. It's now survived two seasons without splitting the sides. Great skimmer basket for pools with heavy leaf problems.
How to Remove Leaves in the Pool
Removing leaves from the floor of the pool, especially when there are deep layers of leaves in the pool, can be challenging, but not impossible. Here's some of my favorite tools for removing piles of leaves in the pool.
Leaf Rakes are my favorite tool for removing leaves from the pool. Leaf Rakes have a bag or a deep pocket. This allows it to be used as a "drag bag" pulling it behind you, or you can push it across the surface for faster cleaning than is possible from the flat, dip & flip type of skimmer nets.
Scooping leaves off the floor is where a leaf rake is really effective. After some practice with a leaf rake, you can become very skilled in its use. Even pools filled with a foot deep layer of leaves can be cleaned in about an hour with a good leaf rake.
How to Use a Leaf Rake: The technique is to feel the bottom with the leading edge of the leaf rake, slowly pushing forward across the floor. Bounce the net just slightly to create a very small current in front of the net. Extend your pole and work across the pool in rows. As you reach the other side of the pool, make a quick flip-over of the net with a short and sharp pull backwards (towards you) to create a counter current.
Be gentle, you can make too much current as you scoop, which sends leaves to the surface, but not enough current and the leaves will come out of the bag. Similarly, as you pull a full bag up to the surface, do so quickly, to keep the leaves in the bag. Keep a trash can on pool deck to dump the leaves into, or use the technique of flipping the net over the fence.
In Line leaf trap. If your pump is large enough to vacuum manually, but you're tired of stopping every 5 minutes to clean out the pump basket, an in-line leaf strainer can be the answer. Attach your vacuum hose to the incoming port, and a short 3 ft piece of vac hose that attaches into the skimmer or vacuum port. Some in-line leaf traps are very large, and can be a large time saver. They can also be used with suction side automatic pool cleaners.
Swivel Skim - If lower back strength is not your strong point, the Swivel Skim has mounted two rope floats on a swiveling axis inside the supersized net. Used on commercial pools or large pools with a lot of area to cover, the Swivel Skim relieves you from holding the leaf rake level with the surface - and, also no spine twisting quick-flip needed when you reach the other side. Just push and pull the Swivel Skim. Unfortunately only effective on surface leaves, you can't use the swivel skim to dredge leaves from the floor of the pool. The floats keep this skimmer net floating on the surface.
Leaf Bagger - connects to a garden hose and to your telescopic pool pole. It has a very large mesh bag attached to the top, and the pressure from a garden hose sprays a dozen water jets upward into the bag. This creates a venturi effect, and as you roll the Leaf Bagger over leaves, they are sucked up into the bag. The more hose pressure you have, the faster it will vacuum.
Indispensable tool in any leaf removal arsenal, the Leaf Bagger, (also known as the Leaf Master, or Leaf Eater, in some areas) can be used on aboveground pools with small systems, not powerful enough to vacuum with a standard hose and vacuum head.


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Controller Danny Werfel has spent much of the past year dealing with sequestration.
President Obama has named top financial management official Danny Werfel acting commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, the White House announced Thursday.
Steven Miller stepped down as acting commissioner Wednesday amidst a scandal involving the targeting of conservative political groups that had applied for tax-exempt status.
Werfel, currently the controller of the Office of Management and Budget, joins the IRS after spending much of the last year preparing for and implementing sequestration. Werfel was appointed to his post at OMB by President George W. Bush and was confirmed by the Senate in October 2009.
"Throughout his career working in both Democratic and Republican administrations, Danny has proven an effective leader who serves with professionalism, integrity and skill," Obama said in a statement. "The American people deserve to have the utmost confidence and trust in their government, and as we work to get to the bottom of what happened and restore confidence in the IRS, Danny has the experience and management ability necessary to lead the agency at this important time."
Obama highlighted Werfel's accomplishments in financial management, financial reporting, accounting standards, improper payments and financial systems. Werfel has worked for 15 years in various positions at OMB. He has also served as a trial attorney in the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
Werfel helped to oversee and implement the Recovery Act in 2009 and 2010 and has helped lead an effort to crack down on improper payments to program beneficiaries. He has also served as a champion for consolidating federal real estate and using data and analytics to make smarter decisions across government.

subset: commoncrawl


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Performance Assessment
- Suitable for musicians of all levels and ages
- Completely free choice of repertoire
- No scales, sight-reading or aural tests
- Objective, independent evaluation with no pass or fail
Available to musicians of any age or grade, the Performance Assessment is an opportunity to have solo work assessed by a professional musician, where performers receive constructive comments about their playing or singing written on the certificate that they receive at the end of the assessment.
Performers play or sing a short programme of music of their own choice lasting no longer than 15 minutes in total. Suitable for musicians of all levels, the assessment is delivered by a professional musician providing an objective, independent evaluation with no pass or fail and without marks awarded.
"I enjoy doing Performance Assessments because I can walk into the exam room without worrying about whether I'm going to pass or fail. Instead I look forward to showing the examiner what I can do in a supportive situation which allows me to achieve the best of my ability." Nicola Clapp
"I enjoyed the journey of preparation as much as the destination. It was wonderful to dedicate time to getting my three chosen pieces to the best standard I could, and to get to a stage in playing them where I knew the notes so well I could truly focus on other aspects of playing the music. The experience gave me a great focus and renewed motivation to continue playing the piano." Elaine Marriott


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Hey hey hey Did you miss me tons or what
Well hello again.
Hey Mtnman. We're a couple short for the Broncos Forums League run by Chidoze (League of Loonies). Closing date 12a.m pacific today if you fancy joining.
Quite possibly. If so, better find someone in your timezones
Funny you should message me, I was actually thinking about the League the other day and missing it.
Only thing is I'm already signed up for four lol with a couple of drafts this weekend, one end of the month and another not yet determined.
When were you thinking about doing the draft and what time is it likely to be? I'm hopeless at staying up late and an eleven p.m start BST (6p.m EDT) is the latest I can manage as a start.
This has been an awesome week for me too. I would love to make it out there for opening night. I'll have to see how life is then.
Glad to be around a little more.
I have to say this has been probably the best week of being a Bronco fan since Elway retired. I wish the season would start next month. BTW glad you are back all the time. You are pure class my friend and if you are going to the Pats vs Broncos game let me know as I am going for sure. My brotherinlaw has season tix and I told hime that I want that game, please.
Hello my friend. Today I finally feel that we can rid ourselves of the last of the McDaniels fiasco. It is nice to feel
that we can move on now. I hope that this is good and we at least go 10-6 and make a run. No luck next year. The sched is tough.
I think opening night will be in NE on Sunday or Monday night. I am already going to that game. I cant wait. I hope you can go and I can meet the legend of Mtn Man
Hey buddy!
Great to hear from you. Thanks for the good word.
Life's been interesting, but things will be better in 2012. I hope all is well with you too.
I hope that life is treating you well my friend. I love to see you back on here. You have ALWAYS been one of my favorites. Hope your New Years was great as well.
4-2-09 = McDaniels D Day!
Step Up or Shut Up!
Lets Go Broncos
Go Broncos!
Madam Jaws
Tried&true, Orange&Blue
yes, sensei!
Balla, Shot Calla


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SA Journal of Industrial Psychology
versão On-line ISSN 2071-0763
versão impressa ISSN 0258-5200
SA j. ind. Psychol. vol.35 no.1 Johannesburg Jan. 2009
Organisationally relevant variables and Keyes's Mental Health Continuum Scale: an exploratory study
Deo J.W. StrümpferI; Anneli HardyII; Joan S. de VilliersIII; Susan RigbyIII
IDepartment of Psychology, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
IIDepartment of Statistics, University of Cape Town, South Africa
IIIDepartment of Human Resources Management, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
In an exploratory study on a sample of convenience (n = 165), 11 self-report variables with presumed organisational relevance were related, as predictors, to the three subscores and summed score of the Keyes (2005a, 2005b; 2007) Mental Health Continuum Scale (long form). Keyes's scale was administered five to seven days after the first set of scales. The predictor scores were reduced to three factorial scores, labelled positive orientation, negative orientation and positive striving. When classified thus, the predictor variables showed significant and meaningful relationships with some or all of the Keyes subscores and the total score, although few reached medium effect sizes.
Keywords: flourishing; languishing; psychosocial health; Keyes's Mental Health Continuum Scale; psychosocial illness
How would one construe psychosocial health? In the not too distant past (and is it 'past' yet?), it meant the absence of psychosocial pathology; it was there or it was not. Subsequently, psychosocial illness and health came to be viewed along a continuum, placing complete illness at one extreme and complete health at the other. Antonovsky (1979; 1987) developed an example: a bipolar continuum of dis-ease-health ease. More recently, questions arose about the possibility of two separate continua. For one, Keyes (e.g., 2002; 2005a; 2007) proposed - and found empirical support for - a continuum representing mental ill-health and another representing mental health.
Keyes's measure of the mental health continuum is the criterion in this paper. The continuum stretches between flourishing and languishing. In Keyes's (2007, p. 396) view, 'mental health, like mental illness, is a syndrome of symptoms of subjective well-being'. Complete mental health consists of the absence of diagnosable mental disorder and the presence of flourishing. Purely flourishing individuals experience high levels of emotional well-being and function well both psychologically and socially; they show enthusiasm for life and are actively and productively involved. Pure languishing, on the other hand, manifests in individuals' being mentally unhealthy (though without diagnosable mental disorder), with low levels of emotional, psychological and social well-being. They experience emptiness, stagnation and quiet despair; they 'describe themselves and life as "hollow", "empty", "a shell", and "void"' (Keyes, 2002, p. 210). Keyes (2003, p. 296) noted that such a condition may be present even among, for example, women who have all the 'trappings of success - good marriages, great children, good jobs, and nice homes in good neighborhoods'. Though they may be towards the bottom end of the psychosocial well-being continuum, languishers would still be functioning in psychological and social contexts to an extent that cannot be described as mental illness. They are thus neither mentally ill nor mentally healthy.
Keyes (2005a) construed mental illness in terms of psychiatric morbidity and operationalised it by means of a structured interview measure based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM). The continuum of mental health was operationalised by means of self-descriptive scales on emotional well-being, psychological well-being and social well-being. Using data from the MacArthur Foundation National Study of Successful Midlife Development, Keyes compared confirmatory factor models that tested four different theories of the latent structure of the measures of mental health and mental illness. The best-fitting model was a two-factor (orthogonal) model representing the independence of the two conditions, from which Keyes concluded that mental illness and mental health constituted two distinct but significantly negatively correlated axes (-0.53: 28% of common variance). He also used the presence of four mental illness conditions, viz. a major depressive episode, generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder and alcohol dependence, as well as their comorbidity (two to four disorders during the past 12 months) as criteria; flourishing individuals were at the lowest risk of any of these five conditions. In addition, the languishing-flourishing continuum was related to occupational and psychosocial malfunctioning, which was lowest among adults with complete mental health.
Adults who were diagnosed as completely mentally healthy functioned superior to all others in terms of the fewest workdays missed, fewest half-day or less cutbacks of work, lowest level of health limitations of activities of daily living, the fewest chronic physical diseases and conditions, the lowest health care utilisation, and the highest levels of psychosocial functioning.
(Keyes, 2007, p. 100)
This group was, furthermore, characterised by the lowest level of perceived helplessness, the highest level of functional goals, the highest level of self-reported resilience and the highest level of intimacy. They generally functioned better than moderately mentally healthy adults, who, in turn, functioned better than purely languishing adults.
A confirmatory factor analysis on the short form of Keyes's questionnaire by Keyes et al. (2008) supported the hypothesised two-continuum model of mental health and mental illness found in the USA in a Setswana-speaking South African sample. The study also replicated the three-factor structure of emotional, psychological and social well-being found in US samples. Confirmatory factor analyses by Robitschek and Keyes (2009) also supported the three-factor model in two samples of US college students.
Mental illness, languishing and flourishing are not stable or permanent conditions. It could, therefore, be hypothesised that people could move up and down along the continua due to both subjective and external conditions. With respect to the first continuum, people who have previously been well become mentally ill, and people recover from a pure form of a mental illness to an absence of such illness. Along the other continuum, people could theoretically move from pure languishing to pure flourishing or vice versa.
It could be surmised that a variety of personal and social experiences are behind the moving upwards or downwards along the languishing-flourishing continuum. In a work and organisational context, self-directed work experiences (e.g. Kohn & Schooler, 1982) and participation in socially valued decision making (Antonovsky, 1987) as well as coaching, some forms of training and some small-group experiences could all contribute to growth towards flourishing. Similarly, a range of untoward experiences in the workplace could result in downward movement, for example negative work experiences from which there is no escape, physical violence, injury, disablement, discrimination and unemployment; these processes are not, however, inevitably irreversible - eventually a person could start climbing back up again. It is, for example, not uncommon for persons who experienced a traumatic retrenchment that the experience eventually turned into a 'kick start' towards a successful new career.
Keyes (2005a) reported on mental health measured by his methodology and human resource criteria, such as absenteeism. To explore the methodology further, the present study expanded in that direction by relating a variety of psychological variables that were presumed to be organisationally relevant to Keyes's psychosocial well-being measure. It was an exploratory study and measures were chosen to represent diverse characteristics in terms of the constructs operationalised as well as in terms of their reported reliability and validity information. The first group of variables was operationalised by means of what could be described as personally linked measures: They allow one to describe how one feels about one's work and how one perceives oneself as a working person. The second group was operationalised by means of what could be described as organisation-linked measures: They represent one's reactions towards the organisation or towards how the organisation is perceived to function. This grouping is not without overlap. All of these measures, like that of Keyes, provide self-reports.
The research question was whether the chosen measures could predict Keyes's psychosocial well-being scores obtained five to seven days later.
Research procedure
Data were collected by the third and fourth authors. They briefed human resource managers in various companies and obtained their cooperation in identifying potential participants who fulfilled the selection requirements. These managers then informed persons about the study, explained its purpose, indicated that participation was voluntary and assured them of confidentiality. If they were willing to participate, they were handed the first paper-and-pencil questionnaire, which started off by repeating information on the study, voluntary participation and confidentiality. It contained the scales measuring the organisationally relevant variables. The second questionnaire contained the Keyes (2005a) Mental Health Continuum Scale (long form). It was administered to the same participants five to seven days after the first one had been collected, in an attempt to reduce the effect of random error variance that results from concurrent administration. The aim was also to obtain a short-term prospective criterion, thus perhaps reducing the plausibility of a reverse direction of causality.
Research participants
A sample of employees was obtained from a variety of companies in the southern Cape and Gauteng parts of the country; the sample was not stratified or random. Participants all had to be permanently employed in organisations with at least six employees, between the ages of 18 and about 68 and (in view of the reading requirement) with an educational level of Grade 12 and above. Of the sample of 165 persons, 90 (54.5%) were female. The participants' mother tongue was Afrikaans 84 (50.9%), English 65 (39.4%) and an African language 15 (9.1%) (of which 12, or 7.3%, were isiXhosa speakers). Approximately half of the organisations represented were small to medium size and half of them large, according to participants' estimates.
Measuring instruments
Organisationally relevant measures
Questionnaire 1 contained six personally linked scales (example items appear in parentheses). 'Overall Job Satisfaction' was measured by Eisenberger, Cummings, Armeli and Lynch's (1997) scale ('All in all, I am very satisfied with my current job'), which consists of four items from Quinn and Sheppard's (1974) Job Satisfaction Index; the authors reported a Cronbach alpha of 0.85. In an attempt to reduce response set, one item of this scale was reversed by adding 'not'. 'Job-related Self-efficacy' was measured by Jones's (1986) eight-item scale ('My job is well within the scope of my abilities'), for which the author reported an alpha of 0.71; items were edited from describing a newcomer, as in the original, to describing an incumbent. 'Performance (or 'Approach') Orientation' ('I feel most successful in my job when I am the best') and 'Mastery Orientation' ('I feel most successful in my job when I improve on particular aspects') were measured by Van Yperen and Janssen's (2002) scales, for both of which the authors reported an alpha of 0.86; the first scale contains eight items and the last three items of Mastery Orientation were deleted to reduce the number of items to eight too. 'Proactive Personality' ('I excel at identifying opportunities') was measured by Bateman and Crant's (1993) and Crant's (2000) 10-item scale; Bateman and Crant reported three reliability estimates from 0.87 to 0.89. 'Fatigue' ('At the end of a working day, I feel really fatigued') was measured by Van Yperen and Janssen's (2002) English translation of an 11-item Dutch scale; the authors reported an alpha of 0.90.
Questionnaire 1 also contained five organisationally linked scales. Oreg's (2003) 'Resistance to Change' scale ('I generally consider change to be a negative thing') contains 18 items, with an alpha of 0.92; four factors are represented and the items of these were rearranged to alternate the factors. Three organisational commitment scales by Allen and Meyer (1990) were used. 'Affective Commitment' ('This organisation has a great deal of meaning for me') and 'Normative Commitment' ('I think that people these days move from company to company too often') were each measured by eight items; Allen and Meyer (1990) reported alphas of 0.86 and 0.73 for these two scales, respectively. 'Continuance Commitment' ('Right now, staying with my organisation is a matter of necessity as much as desire') reflects the employee's considerations about the costs of leaving; Allen and Meyer (1990) reported an alpha of 0.82 for this scale. In the present study Continuance Commitment was measured by five items (see explanation in Results section). The eight-item short form of the Perceived Organisational Support scale ('My organisation really cares about my well-being') of Eisenberger et al. (1997) was used; the authors reported an alpha of 0.90.
In assembling Questionnaire 1, the response scales of the authors were retained but the sequence of response formats was varied systematically: Semantic differentials with just the end points labelled, five- and seven-point Likert scales with anchors described differently for different scales, numbered responses (five and seven) to be circled at the end of items with anchors described differently for different scales and numbered responses to be written in spaces at the end of items. The purpose was to avoid response sets by requiring participants to shift between different formats.
Psychosocial well-being
Keyes's (2002; 2005a) Mental Health Continuum Scale contains three components. The first section, Emotional Well-being, has two components. The first is measured by six items that enquire, on a five-point scale, how much of the time during the past 30 days an individual felt cheerful, in good spirits, extremely happy, calm and peaceful, satisfied and full of life. Keyes (2002) reported an alpha of 0.91 for this component. The scores on the six items are averaged to obtain a 'symptom' score. The second component is a single item on avowed quality of life: 'Using a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 means "the worst possible life overall" and 10 means "the best possible life overall", how would you rate your life overall these days?' These two components are each standardised and then summed to obtain the Emotional Well-being score.
The second section of the questionnaire contains an 18-item form of Ryff's (1989; 2001) and Ryff and Keyes's (1995) Psychological Well-being1 measure, divided into six scales, each represented by three items: 'self-acceptance' ('I like most parts of my personality'), 'positive relations' with others ('People would describe me as a giving person, willing to share my time with others'), 'personal growth' ('For me, life has been a continual process of learning, changing, and growth'), 'purpose in life' ('Some people wander aimlessly through life, but I am not one of them'), 'environmental mastery' ('In general, I feel I am in charge of the situation in which I live') and 'autonomy' ('I have confidence in my opinions, even if they are contrary to the general consensus').
The third section contains Keyes's (1998) 15-item measure of 'Social well-being', which operationalises how much individuals see themselves thriving in their public, social life. The five three-item scales are 'social coherence' ('I try to think about and understand what could happen next in our country'), 'social integration' ('I feel close to other people in my community'), 'social-acceptance' ('I believe that people are kind'), social contribution ('I have something valuable to give the world') and 'social actualisation' ('The world is becoming a better place for everyone').
The Psychological and Social Well-being scales are responded to on a seven-point Disagree-Agree scale. Ryff and Keyes (1995) and Keyes (1998), respectively, reported alphas of 0.81 for both the Psychological and Social Well-being scales. The three scores were investigated separately and a total score (Total Mental Health) was obtained by summing their standardised scores.2
Statistical analysis
The properties of the obtained scores were examined through descriptive statistics. Alpha coefficients were calculated and scales were examined by means of factor analysis where appropriate. Measures were intercorrelated and the correlations were finally assessed in terms of their effect sizes. Scores on the Keyes scales were factor analysed, as were those on the 11 organisationally relevant scales. Factorial scores were calculated to represent the latter group; these were intercorrelated with the three scores of the Keyes scales and the sum of their standardised scores.
Table 1 presents descriptive data and coefficients alpha for the different measures used. An initial item analysis indicated an unacceptably low coefficient alpha for the Job-related Self-efficacy scale; two items ('My job is well within the scope of my abilities'; 'Professionally speaking, my job exactly satisfies my expectations of myself') showed negative corrected item total correlations, which reduced its coefficient alpha to 0.49. When these items were deleted, the alpha increased to 0.63; this is rather low but, according to Clark and Watson (1995), still acceptable.
McGee and Ford (1987) as well as Hackett, Bycio and Hausdorf (1994) concluded that Continuance Commitment should be divided into High Sacrifice and Low Alternatives scales, each containing three items. Item analyses of the present data showed these subscales to have coefficients alpha of, respectively, 0.56 and 0.41; hence they were combined into a single Continuance Commitment scale. However, subjected to a further item analysis, the combined scale still showed a coefficient alpha of 0.64. An item ('I enjoy discussing my organisation with people outside it') showed an item-total correlation of 0.20, and deleting it resulted in a marginally better alpha of 0.66; the present Continuance Commitment scale thus contained five items. All other coefficients alpha ranged between 0.73 and 0.89.
With respect to biographical variables, only in the case of Mastery Orientation did a two-tailed t test for independent samples show a significant difference between female and male subsamples (female M = 36.34, s = 3.53; male M = 35.04, s = 3.89): t (89,74) = 2.24 (95% CI = 0.15 to 2.44; d = 0.351). This difference in a single instance was not considered large enough to warrant separate analyses for gender differences in all main results.
Table 2 presents the correlations between all of the variables as well as their levels of statistical and practical significance (effect size), in terms of Cohen's (1988) suggestions. According to Cohen (p. 91, Table 3.3.4), with n = 160 and α = 0.01 for a twotailed test, the power of r = 0.30 is 0.90 and of r = 0.50 is greater than 0.995. Correlation coefficients of less than 0.30 were not marked in Table 2 but only those with medium to large effect sizes. When an effect size is small, the finding concerned probably requires replication; a medium effect size could be of practical significance, whereas a large effect size is considered to be of practical significance.
Table 3 presents the results of factor analysing the 11 personally and organisationally linked variables together. Three initial eigenvalues larger than one were found and indicated that three factors could explain 55.46% of the variance. Table 3 contains the obliquely rotated pattern matrix. The correlations between the factors were 1-2 = 0.11, 1-3 = 0.03 and 2-3 = 0.00. Factorial scales were constructed to measure each of the three factors.
A principal axis factor analysis of the three components of Keyes's (2005a) measure of psychosocial well-being produced a single factor that explained 52.60% of the total variance. The loadings were Social Well-being 0.65, Psychological Well-being 0.64 and Emotional Well-being 0.34.3
The factorial scales that represented the personally and organisationally linked variables were correlated with the three components of Keyes's measure and the sum of their Z scores (to represent the single factor reported above). These results are shown in Table 4.
In an exploratory study on a sample of convenience (n = 165) self-report variables with presumed organisational relevance were related, as predictors, to Keyes's Mental Health Continuum Scale (long form). The latter measure was administered five to seven days after the first set of scales; it provided three subscores and a summed score that represent criteria of psychosocial well-being. The predictor scores were reduced to three factorial scores.
The correlation coefficients between the separate organisationally relevant variables and the psychosocial wellbeing scores are not being discussed, since the factors reported in Table 3 were subsequently correlated with the criterion variables. Nevertheless, the rows of correlations relating these predictor variables to the three components of Keyes's measure and their sum contain enough significant coefficients (though with low effect sizes) to have warranted the further investigation. The correlation between Resistance to Change and Psychological Well-being is high enough (-0.35) to have a medium effect size. It implies that persons who are high on Psychological Well-being are likely to be open to change, an important orientation in a world where change is an ever-flowing, ever-present part of reality (McMillan, 2004). It should be noted that the last three coefficients in Table 2 are part-whole correlations. Age shows a marginally significant negative correlation with Mastery Orientation (the older the participant, the less likely to be mastery orientated) and another positive one with Continuance Commitment (the older the person, the more likely the commitment to stay, a finding also reported by Hackett et al., 1994). Age and educational level show the to-be-expected marginally significant positive relationship. Educational level correlates significantly and negatively with Resistance to Change and Normative Commitment; in other words, the more educated a person is, the less resistance to change and the less feeling of an obligation to stay the person experiences (the latter finding was also reported by, e.g., Allen and Meyer (1990) and Iverson and Buttigieg (1999)).
Turning to the factor analysis of the organisationally relevant variables in Table 3, Factor 1 could be interpreted as indicating a positive orientation. The measures that loaded on this factor all convey an impression of being positive towards the organisation and the job. Affective Commitment represents an emotional attachment, meaning that the employee enjoys membership of the organisation, identifies with it and is involved in it; Normative Commitment represents an employee's internalised feeling of obligation to remain with the organisation and be involved in meeting its interests and goals (Allen & Meyer, 1990; Hackett et al., 1994). Perceived Organisational Support represents 'a general perception concerning the degree to which the organization values [employees'] contributions and cares about their well-being' (Eisenberger et al., 1997, p. 812; also Lynch, Eisenberger & Armeli, 1999). Overall Job Satisfaction is 'influenced by the favorableness of job conditions, largely independent of whether those conditions resulted from the employer's free choice' (Eisenberger et al., 1997, p. 814).
Factor 2 (Table 3) reflects what could be viewed as a negative orientation. The measures that loaded on this factor seem to reflect an overall negative, corroding mindset of rejecting change, a superior attitude towards coworkers, a feeling of having a tiresome job, yet perhaps a feeling of not being able to escape. Considering the four factors found in Resistance to Change (Oreg, 2003), viz. routine seeking, emotional reaction, short-term focus and cognitive rigidity, it clearly has a negative connotation. Van Yperen and Janssen (2002, p. 1161) described Performance Orientation as reflecting 'an individual's having the goal of establishing his or her superiority over others', that is, a competitive and ascendant attitude. As indicated above, Continuance Commitment contains negative considerations of not wanting to change on account of too high sacrifice and/or too low alternatives, in other words, a cost-induced commitment. Fatigue provides an indication of how fatigued employees feel at the end of a workday and their need to recover.
Factor 3 (Table 3) could be interpreted as reflecting a positive striving. Overall, the scales that loaded on this factor seem to project an image of proactive functioning, of striving to perform competently and of a self-efficacious belief in one's capability of striving positively. Bateman and Crant's (1993) Proactive Personality scale describes a person who effects environmental change by identifying opportunities and acting on them, showing initiative, taking action and persevering. Van Yperen and Jansen (2002) viewed Mastery Orientation as a mindset whereby an individual pursues development of competence, gaining skill and doing his/her best. In developing his Job-related Self-efficacy scale, Jones (1986) quoted Bandura (1977, p. 192), who wrote that self-efficacy consists of people's expectations that 'they can successfully execute the behavior required to produce the outcome'; in the case of Jones's scale, this implies mastery of job and organisational requirements (the low internal consistency of the scale should, however, be kept in mind).
It is clear that the initial classification of the organisationally relevant variables as psychologically or organisationally linked was not meaningful, in view of the presumed psychological constructs they represented. Subsequent factor analysis classified them differently.
The correlations of the factorial scales with the three components of Keyes's measure and the sum of their Z scores, reported in Table 4, present the concluding validation information of this study. They tend to provide an affirmative answer to the research question: Could the chosen measures predict Keyes's psychosocial well-being scores obtained five to seven days later? The positive orientation factor correlated significantly with Keyes's Emotional Well-being, Social Well-being and Total Mental Health. The negative orientation factor, in turn, correlated significantly and negatively with both Keyes's Psychological and Social Well-being and with Total Mental Health; these were, however, the only instances where the correlations were high enough to be of medium effect size.
Lastly, the positive striving factor showed correlations with Keyes's Psychological Well-being and Total Mental Health. Most important are the consistently significant correlations of all three factor scores with Total Mental Health.
The reported findings tend to signify that when classified in terms of their construct validity - as positive orientation, negative orientation and positive striving - the presumed organisationally relevant variables selected for this study showed meaningful relationships to Keyes's Mental Health Continuum Scale (long form). Each of their factorial scores showed significant correlations with some or all of the three Keyes components and the Total Mental Health score, although few reached medium effect size. Although the five-to-sevendays lapse between the administration of questionnaires 1 and 2 was rather short, it also held a marginal promise of predictive validity.
These findings (and to some extent, the correlations of the separate scales with Keyes's measure in Table 2) suggest that further research to investigate the nomological net of the languishing-flourishing continuum would be warranted. Since the number of organisation-related variables was small - just a tiny selection from a vast pool - further study using different variables chosen on theoretical grounds seems worthwhile. Relating 'hard', real-life organisational variables, such as those reported by Keyes and Magyar-Moe (2003), to Keyes's measure could also evaluate its potential utility as an instrument in an organisational context.
Keyes's measure used in the present study is not the final word on measurement in this area; he noted that some may think the scheme he presented to be 'crude and preliminary' (2005a, p. 546). The scoring procedure is somewhat laborious and Keyes (Personal communication, 25 September 2007) has indicated that he, therefore, prefers using the simplified 14-item short form that he has developed subsequently. The short form could be useful in situations where participants' time is a concern and, after appropriate validation, perhaps even more useful in an organisational context than the long form.
Even though cross-validation is required, the general purport of the present findings is that the concept of psychosocial health, as reflected by Keyes's questionnaire, tends to have an effect on personal and organisational orientations such as those that were represented in the present study. To the extent that the findings suggest further study, they suggest serious involvement of industrial/organisational psychologists in psychological and social health considerations of organisation members too.
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Correspondence to:
Deo J.W. Strümpfer
Postal address: PO Box 285, Stanford, 7210
South Africa
e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Received: 31 Oct. 2008
Accepted: 14 July 2009
Published: 04 Sept. 2009
This article is available at: http://www.sajip.co.za
© 2009. The Authors. Licensee: OpenJournals Publishing. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.
1. Juxtaposing 'emotional' and 'psychological' is somewhat confusing, since the latter could embrace the former. In various publications, Keyes equated 'emotional wellbeing' and 'positive affect', which is less confusing but does not juxtapose the three kinds of well-being.
2. In order to make his mental health data comparable to his mental illness data, which were in DSM format, Keyes's (e.g., 2004, 2005a, 2007) diagnostic scheme also used a categorical approach with respect to psychosocial well-being: The prevalence of items in the continuous measures was counted to diagnose individuals into the categories of pure languishing, moderately mentally healthy and completely mentally healthy. Since categorisation reduces the amount of information and since there was no need to do so, the present study used only the continuous measures.
3. Keyes (2005b) reported confirmatory factor analysis findings that a three-factor model of the psychosocial well-being measure was the most tenable of models to fit the data. In a personal communication (25 September 2007) he commented on a 14-item short form that it included three emotional well-being items 'so that I could identify confirmatory factor models that tested the structure... (confirmatory models require at least three indicators to identity that latent construct)'. Since the form used in the present study contained only two such items, confirmatory factor analysis could not be performed. Using the three component scales separately, nevertheless, served a similar purpose.


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When Jan Pogue hands authors the first bound copy of their book, she watches their eyes as they gently take hold of it.
"It's like getting a baby handed to them; here it is, here is this beautiful, amazing thing they did," Ms. Pogue, the editor and publisher of Vineyard Stories, said one morning this week. "Every time I get to hand over a book I feel like I've been gifted."
Vineyard Stories is a book publishing company that helps bring to life the untold tales of the Island, helping new and seasoned writers evolve ideas into published works. Children's books, history, novels, cookbooks, memoirs—Vineyard Stories looks into every corner of the Island and unearths a story never heard before.
At her Edgartown home this week, Ms. Pogue admitted the process is tough, but the journey is worth it.
"You beat [the authors] up a lot," she said. "A writer's ego is very fragile, so you never want to say, 'oh this stinks.' You say, 'I know we can do a lot better, we can do this.' I've never had a client who said 'this isn't what I thought it would be.' They always say, 'this is far more than I thought it could ever be.'"
Vineyard Stories began in Ms. Pogue's living room in 2005, when she and her late husband John Walter invited friend Art Smadbeck over for dinner. Ms. Pogue announced the couple's plans to begin publishing books.
"Art [stands up] and says, 'you know how to do this?' I said yes. He said, 'you really know how to do this?' I said yes. He got up and went to the door...and he said, 'I'll be back.'"
Mr. Smadbeck returned the next day with a series of columns his mother wrote for the Amsterdam News, the leading African American newspaper of the day.
"My husband was a real journalist and historian, he looked at this stuff and said no one knows this story, and that was book number one," Ms. Pogue recalled. "We thought there would be three books; we thought we'd be in business for two years because how many books about Martha's Vineyard can you write or publish?"
In August, Vineyard Stories will publish its 25th book.
This summer alone, Ms. Pogue is publishing five books including; the Chappy Ferry Book by Tom Dunlop; To the Harbor Light, a book about the lighthouses of Cape Cod; Nantucket and the Vineyard by Alison Shaw; Home Bird: Four Seasons on Martha's Vineyard by Laura Wainwright; Where the Horses Fly by Jacqui Boulter, a children's book about the Flying Horses carousel; and My Blue Butterfly by Mercedes Alvarez Rodman, a bilingual book in both English and Spanish about an El Salvadorian music program.
Ms. Pogue's favorite, and possibly most challenging project to date, was Edo Potter's memoir, Pimpneymouse: The Last Farm on Chappaquiddick. At first Ms. Pogue was skeptical of the manuscript, which came to her as a large stack of anecdotes.
"I was asked if I would look at them, and I said 'no, memoirs don't sell and I'm not going to deal with something that doesn't sell,'" she said. "But I looked at it, and said, 'man this is a story.'"
"The company's mission is to tell the story of the Vineyard, both past and current, the real story of the Vineyard, and to capture the culture. This book was right on target."
After a year of editing, Mrs. Potter's book took shape.
"She worked so incredibly hard and the story...became stronger and stronger," she said. "Her story was so powerful and her approach to rewriting it was so strong."
A good and successful book goes beyond a beginning, middle and an end, Ms. Pogue said. It comes at life from a different, unexpected angle, so different that even the author may not realize what he or she has.
"I like quiet authors who really don't know what they have," she said, "and the best stories are not necessarily the expected stories. It's the ones that come from the side and hit you and make you realize that Martha's Vineyard is way beyond what you can possibly know."
Ms. Pogue spent 20 years as a newspaper reporter and editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer and USA Today, among other places, before writing 12 books on authorized company histories at a small niche publishing house in Atlanta. She moved here with her husband in 2002, when Mr. Walter became editor and publisher of the Vineyard Gazette for a year and a half. A few years later, Vineyard Stories was born.
There have been two books that changed the company "pretty drastically," Ms. Pogue said. The first was Allen Whiting: An Artist at Sixty, which was a retrospective of the painter's works. Ms. Pogue said the book showed the company "what a beautiful book could be" while introducing Vineyard Stories to the Island. The second was Morning Glory Farm and the Family that Feeds an Island, which weaves the story of the largest farm on the Vineyard owned by Jim and Debbie Athearn, with recipes and mementos.
It was bound to be an instant hit, with glorious photographs by Alison Shaw and text by Tom Dunlop, but one month after work began on the Morning Glory book, Mr. Walter died unexpectedly in 2008.
"I didn't know what to do," recalled Ms. Pogue. "I went to the Athearns and I said there are a couple of choices here. We can stop this now, I can turn it over to my [old publisher in Atlanta] who was willing to finish it for them, or we can go forward with me not having any idea of how to do this. We published the book nine months later, and it's now in its third printing."
The Morning Glory book remains the largest printing in the company's young history. There was an intial run of 6,000 copies but just a month into sales Ms. Pogue had to order another 6,000 copies to finish out the summer season.
"That changed the company forever because it went viral, it really moved off the Island very quickly," she said. "It was an extremely high quality product and a very different kind of product and it opened up the doors for a lot of people."
When she's not coaching authors, Ms. Pogue writes a popular blog on the Vineyard Stories Web site, where she documents Island life and the people behind the stories that define the Island. She works in a treehouse office that once held outdoor furniture but was converted last year into her work space among the birds with skylights, art from around the world, and books by Vineyard Stories. A small picture of Mr. Walter hangs in the window.
In the ever changing world of the book publishing industry, Vineyard Stories continues to thrive.
"Niche [publishing] is allowable now because the publishing industry has changed so much," Ms. Pogue said. "Big publishers are not interested in small books or small runs. I am."
For more information on Vineyard Stories visit vineyardstories.com.


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As I meditated on these words from Jesus in the Gospel reading assigned for the Eucharist today, I compared them to the parallel passage in the Gospel according to Matthew: "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:13-14).
All of this reminded me of a chapter in C. S. Lewis' Mere Christianity entitled, "Is Christianity Hard or Easy?" Paradoxically, the answer is "both."
Here's what Lewis writes about this paradox in that chapter:
Christ says, 'Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don't want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down. I don't want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked - the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will you Myself: my own will shall become yours.'
Both harder and easier than what we are all trying to do. You have noticed, I expect, that Christ Himself sometimes describes the Christian way as very hard, sometimes as very easy. He says, 'Take up your Cross' - in other words, it is like going to be beaten to death in a concentration camp. Next minute he says, 'My yoke is easy and my burden light.' He means both. ...
The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self - all your wishes and precautions - to Christ. But it is far easier than what we are all trying to do instead. For what we are trying to do is to remain what we call 'ourselves', to keep personal happiness as our great aim in life, and yet at the same time to be 'good'. We are all trying to let mind and heart go their own way - centred on money or pleasure or ambition - and hoping, in spite of this, to behave honestly and chastely and humbly. And that is exactly what Christ warned us you could not do. As He said, a thistle cannot produce figs. If I am a field that contains nothing but grass-seed, I cannot produce wheat. Cutting the grass may keep it short: but I shall still produce grass and no wheat. If I want to produce wheat, the change must go deeper than the surface. I must be ploughed up and re-sown.
So what is the point of it all? Here's how Lewis puts it:
... the Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose. It is even doubtful, you know, whether the whole universe was created for any other purpose.
And again: "Every Christian is to become a little Christ. The whole purpose of becoming a Christian is simply nothing else." And yet again: "God became man to turn creatures into sons: not simply to produce better men of the old kind but to produce a new kind of man." Lewis continues: "It is not like teaching a horse to jump better and better but like turning a horse into a winged creature. Of course, once it has got its wings, it will soar over fences which could never have been jumped and thus beat the natural horse at its own game."
Much of the fourth book of Mere Christianity resonates with the Eastern Orthodox idea of theosis or deification, "the process by which a Christian becomes more like God" (The Orthodox Study Bible). It is a process that is both hard and easy. It's hard because we have to strive to enter through the narrow door. We have to work and not be lazy. We have to submit completely to Christ by dying daily to our "natural" selves and its inclinations (which can sometimes feel so much a part of who we really are that we couldn't imagine a life worth living without them).
As difficult and painful as all of that can be, Lewis insists that it's easier than "trying to remain what we call 'ourselves'" - the kind of persons enslaved to our inclinations and desires - while simultaneously trying to live morally virtuous, holy lives. It just doesn't work. Surrendering to Christ, letting go and letting God, is easier than going it on our own. And, according to Lewis, in this total surrender we find our true and lasting happiness. He writes:
He said (in the Bible) that we were 'gods' and He is going to make good His words. If we let Him - for we can prevent Him, if we choose - He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, a dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we cannot now imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly (though, of course, on a smaller scale) His own boundless power and delight and goodness.
"The process," Lewis acknowledges, "will be long and in parts very painful." But the end of that process is what it means to become little Christs.


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The mystic's perspective cannot be held by anyone who has an interest in the furtherance of the business agenda. The vice presidents of product development, sales, marketing, finance and so forth are concerned with analysis, planning, control, and manipulation. This is neither good nor bad; it simply is. Their perspective is a function of their commitments within the business context. It is frightfully easy to rationalize anything in order to actualize our primary commitment. If the primary commitment is the furtherance of either a personal or a business agenda, then it is quite possible to discredit or deny evidence that would disrupt those plans and desires. Can people in the wireless telecommunications industry really evaluate research on the potential effects of radiation emissions from their technology? Can pharmaceutical executives fully admit the health risks of a new drug whose profitability promises hundreds of millions of dollars? Can the executives of tobacco companies ... well, enough of that.
It is also true that while people live from self-images defined within a business context, they are prone to view situations as opportunities to enhance their own personal career agendas. They may be seeking power, position, status. They may have many desires that will distort their ability to see clearly the impact of their actions. The vice president of consciousness would balance this because they would have no personal agendas: they derive their sense of worth and meaning from purely internal factors.
Certain executive teams with a values-based operating philosophy or an interest in spiritual principles might ask transcendent questions. They may wonder at the environmental or social impact of their proposals and plans. They may even modify something in light of these questions and deliberations. Many people in the business community are awake, others are awakening. Explorations of inner reality and consciousness occur in executive boardrooms as well as in retreat centers. An awareness of the spiritual underpinnings of life is emerging within corporate America.
Still, to push the issue, can anyone give their full allegiance and attention to listening and feeling and seeing from a place outside the business context? Can anyone who is invested in any way whatsoever in the outcomes of the business be an oracle of silence, communion, grace-the mystical Oneness of transcendent consciousness? Should this be the territory of monks and swamis and saints alone? We often consult with these experts, but often we have to change masks first to protect our reputation; so we do it on the sly and hope we won't be caught. Should we not begin to groom and promote from within the corporate ranks people of this rare and refined capacity and proficiency in consciousness and wisdom?
The vice president of consciousness would be as simple, clear-eyed, and uncluttered as anyone would be after years of silent contemplation in the high mountains; this is their achievement. While others with different agendas might be obscuring the past or fantasizing about the future, the mystic is anchored to the shock-absorbing rebar that girds the Earth's core. Nothing moves them from a clear and mindful seeing beyond rationalizations into the undistorted present. Their affirmation of the sacredness of life is not a pose, belief, or value: it is a fact of their experience and perception. This person does not care about, probably does not even understand, phrases like market share or maximize profit or public relations spin or ROI.
These corporate mystics would be concerned exclusively with representing the seamless interconnected sacredness of all living things. Their vision, unclouded by expediency, would have the clarity of hindsight. When they sense pollution or degradation, another way must be found. Their interest is to safeguard the ecosystem of living beings. This executive is an open conduit for the consciousness that, when experienced, gives rise to profound love and spiritual insight. They want nothing other than to refract that light of supreme consciousness into the pot. They will say what no one else can say, and then fall silent in order to listen and sense from within the very center of wholeness.
So, why not be the first to go out and hire a mystic? Better still, promote from within.
May everyone be at peace, in love, and know their most perfect Self.
Robert Rabbin is an author, speaker, and advisor. He can be reached via e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.com, or by writing: 2629 Manhattan Ave., Ste. 192, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254. His new book, The Sacred Hub (The Crossing Press, ISBN: 0-89594-837-0), is available in bookstores or from the publisher at (800) 777-1048.
His books include Echoes of Silence: Awakening the Meditative Spirit, The Sacred Hub, and Invisible Leadership: Igniting the Soul at Work, available through bookstores nationwide. Rob can be reached via e-mail at email@example.com.


text:
Do You Have Hope?
What is the High Hopes Fund?
The High Hopes Fund is central to the success of all we do. This critical source of immediate, unrestricted support ensures excellence and scientific rigor at every turn.
High Hopes dollars are deployed where they are needed most, when they are needed most, making this important resource one of the most powerful and nimble of Joslin's philanthropic options. We invite you to give as generously as possible. Exceptional gifts drive discovery and at Joslin, every gift is exceptional.
Please make a gift today to the High Hopes Fund – and give the gift of hope.
Did You Know?
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognize diabetes as the 7th leading cause of death in the U.S.
- At least 7 million Americans have diabetes and don't even know it.
- The risk for stroke is 2 to 4 times higher among people with diabetes.
- Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults aged 20–74 years.
- Women who have had gestational diabetes have a 35% to 60% chance of developing diabetes in the next 10–20 years.
- If current trends continue, the diabetes prevalence rate in the general population, currently 1 in 10, will spike to as many as 1 in 3 by the year 2050.
Source: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Related Links
- A Taste of Ginger
April 9, 2018
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Philanthropy Team
Page last updated: February 14, 2018


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Item Added To Bag
Jenni Kayne Gladiator Flat in Black Patent
Color: Black
Qty: 1
Gladiator Flat
Jenni Kayne
Jenni Kayne
- Patent leather upper and leather sole
- Strap at ankle
- 1" platform footbed
- Revolve Style No. JKAY-WZ1
- Manufacturer Style No. 8512
Jenni Kayne's eponymous collection shows a sophistication and wearability that are the staples of classic American design. Irreverence, underscored by taste and restrain, dominates collections consistently filled with luxurious must-haves and modern yet timeless pieces. Sequins in the day, white for winter, and fur for everyday are signature concepts that exemplify the Jenni Kayne mentality.
If an item you would like to purchase is out of stock, you can place a Special Order Inquiry. REVOLVE will then check the availability and obtain an approximate arrival date for the item, if available. Typically, it takes up to 3-4 weeks to verify this information.
Placing a Special Order Inquiry is absolutely free and there is no obligation to follow through with a purchase.
- You will be notified by email once we receive the item.
- You may cancel at any time without penalty
- Your card will ONLY be charged when your order is shipped.
- Availability is not guaranteed.


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New Year's Day ServiceCalendar View
This event has passed.
- Start:
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All of our services are open to everyone and no prior knowledge or experience with Buddhism is necessary.
The services are conducted in English with the exception of some chanting.
Service books are provided so that everyone can participate in these traditional, centuries old chants.


text: Compiled of individual case studies of the nuclear programs of thirty countries, this book provides a detailed assessment on the state of global nuclear power in 2008. It presents an overview of nuclear power in nuclear renaissance countries, nuclear phase-out countries, and industrializing countries, grouping each country studied in one of those categories. The introductory chapter offers a comprehensive summary of findings and data. Chapters contain Individual studies as well as country-specific data in graphs and tables. The evidence points to a decline of overall use of nuclear power globally. The papers included were drawn from those presented at the annual meetings of the REFORM (Restructuring Energy Systems For Optimal Resource Management) group of energy economists at Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg Austria, since 2002; REFORM is an informal group of scientists who focus on analyzing the political transformation of energy systems and energy policy. Additional papers from other experts were included to cover countries not studied by the group.


text:
Dizzee Rascal 16 Bars Freestyle (Off Lil Wayne's Fireman Beat)
Dizzee Rascal Lets Loose on the Microphone in NY Studio. AOL 16 Bars Freestyle&IP=220.127.116.11
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


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icy wrote:Hmm, about the no dates.
Does Adam realise there was more to Freddie than his mustache and accent? Why not speak about the lyrics, the fans, but to focus on those 2 things, and what he is going to wear .
He said his focus is on the songs and being respectful of freddie rather than focusing on being a mimic, who try to sing freddie's songs and who's main attire for the evening is a mustache!! If you got out of that article what you just did all your trying to find is negativity.
He likes to dress up, have an outfit, just like freddie did. There's nothing wrong with that.


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Difference between revisions of "TETRIX Samantha Module"
From ROBOTC API Guide
(→Installing and Updating the NXT)
(→Connecting the NXT and Samantha Module)
|Line 81:
|Line 81:
|[[File:Network Page.jpg | 600x800px]]
|[[File:Network Page.jpg | 600x800px]]
|'''5.''' Open a program in ROBOTC, compile it, and download it to the NXT. If everything is setup correctly, the program should download and compile
|'''5.''' Open a program in ROBOTC, compile it, and download it to the NXT. If everything is setup correctly, the program should download and compile . ! You've successfully set up and connected your Samantha Module through ROBOTC.
Revision as of 18:11, 27 July 2012
TETRIX → TETRIX Samantha Module
Gather the Required Information
| Before you can use your Samantha Module with ROBOTC, you must install the Windows drivers and set the device up for use.
Note: There are many different router configurations, and many different combinations of network type, encryption type, etc. We are using a commonly used network setup (with the router in between the computer and modem with standard encryption). Your particular setup may be different, and may require additional steps to set up properly.
|1. The first thing we will want to do is download and install FTC's Field Control Software package. This can be found on FIRST's site (usfirst.org).
|2. Next, we will need the SSID, encyption type, and password for the network we wish to connect to. For testing purposes, we named our router "SamoTest1" with an encryption type of WPA (TKIP).
|3. You will also need a 4GB or smaller USB flash drive, formatted to FAT32 file format. To format the flash drive, navigate to the Start menu, select Computer, right click on the flash drive's name, then click Format. In the drop down box, select 'FAT32' as the file format, and check the 'Quick Format' box (for a faster format).
|4. Navigate to the Start menu, All Programs, Samantha Field Control System, and start the program called "Samantha Network Config".
|5. Enter all the information for your network and click. Two message boxes will pop up, the first one informing you that the password you entered will be converted to an encrypted key and the second informing you that the config file has been saved to your flash drive.
|6. Close the program and navigate to your ROBOTC installation folder (default location of C:\Program Files(x86)\Robomatter Inc\ROBOTC Developement Environment). Navigate to the Firmware folder and copy the Samantha.hex file into your flash drive. You should also see a folder named "SMRTNTKY" on the flash drive; this is where the Network Config tool saved the config file for your network.
Flash the Samantha Module
|You must now update the Samantha Module's firmware and install the config file you created using the Network Config tool; otherwise the Samantha Module will not recognize your network.
|1. Unplug the USB flash drive from your computer and (making sure the battery is unplugged) plug it into the Samantha Module. Plug in the battery while holding down the red/black button on top of the module. Release the button approximately 3 seconds after the red light appears on the module.
|2. The Samantha Module will flash the red light twice in rapid succession and then flash the white repeatedly. You may also see the flash drive's LED flickering (if applicable). This means the Samantha Module is installing the firmware. When it's done, it will flash the red, white, and blue lights in sequence, then repeat the process. Be patient; this process normally takes 20-30 seconds and as long as 2-3 minutes. When it is done it should have a solid red light and a blinking white light (meaning it is connected to the network).
Installing and Updating the NXT
|1. Like all other Windows devices, the NXT requires a driver in order to work properly. This is normally installed with ROBOTC, but if for any reason it needs reinstalled you can find it here on ROBOTC's website.
|2. Next, download ROBOTC's firmware to the NXT. To do this, connect the NXT to the computer and turn it on. Navigate to the Robot menu in ROBOTC and make sure that 'LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT+TETRIX' is chosen as the Platform Type and that 'Physical Robot' is chosen as the Compiler Target. Then, click Download Firmware->Standard File to download the ROBOTC firmware to the NXT (this should take anywhere from 10 seconds up to a minute).
|3. Navigate to File->Open Sample Program->NXT->Samantha Module->samostat.c. Compile and download this program onto the NXT brick.
|4. Navigate to Robot->NXT Brick->Communication Link Setup and change the 'Search Selection' drop down menu to "USB, Bluetooth, or Wifi". This will enable ROBOTC to search your network for the NXT once it is connected. Click close to save the changes.
Connecting the NXT and Samantha Module
References and Troubleshooting
|Samantha LED Code Guide: Very useful if you have a strange combination of LED lights.
|FTC Video Tutorial: Updating a Samantha Module Shows how to force the Samantha Module into boot mode and upload files from a flash drive. You can copy the samantha.hex firmware file from the location indicated in the video instead of the ROBOTC folder; they should be the same file.
|USFIRST's FTC Toolbox page: Has various tutorials, guides, and downloads including the Field Control System software package (which contains the Samantha Network Config utility).


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To assist donors who are interested in submitting data and/or photos to the JOWBR database, JewishGen has developed a series of "How To" screencasts (short online movies). When you watch these screencasts, you will be able to watch and hear an explanation of how to make a complete and successful JOWBR submission. (Even if you're not making a submission, the first 2 and the last screencast will give you background and a walk-through the JOWBR site.)
The screencasts cover all the questions we typically receive, from "How do I know if my cemetery is online?" to "What will my data look like when I'm done?" And of course, the majority of the screencasts describe how to properly complete the standard JOWBR excel template by making specific entries in the Cemetery Info tab and the Burial Template.
Each screencast addresses a specific topic or type of entry. You can watch the entire series or just the ones you have questions on, and like all online videos, you can pause or replay them as desired. (An alternative to watching the screencasts is the "Submitting Data to JOWBR page at http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/Cemetery/Submit.htm)
The following is a list of the screencasts available and their length:
- JOWBR – An Introduction (0:57)
- Getting Started (3:55)
- The Cemetery Info Tab (4:34)
- The Burial Template – Overview (2:12)
- Entering Names (4:48)
- Entering Place Names (2:09)
- Entering Dates (2:34)
- Entering Plot Locations and the Comments Field (1:13)
- Linking Photos to Your Records (2:41)
- Putting it all Together - Viewing Your Output (3:09)
If you have any questions, please contact me.


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Implementation Date Set for Opening New Assignments to Women
- Details
- Category: News
- Created: Thursday, 26 April 2012 08:57
- Last Updated: Thursday, 26 April 2012 08:57
- Written by Administrator
When implemented, occupations will no longer be closed to women solely because the positions are required to be co-located with ground combat units. Additionally, a sizable number of positions will be opened to women at the battalion level in select direct ground combat units in specific occupations. The services will continuously assess their experience with these exceptions to policy to help determine future changes to the assignment rules.
"The secretary of defense has said this is the beginning, not the end, of a process," said Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Jo Ann Rooney. "The department intends to continue to remove barriers that prevent service members from serving in any capacity in which they qualify."
Defense Secretary Panetta has directed the services to update him in six months on assignment implementation, to include efforts to pursue gender-neutral physical standards, an assessment of the newly opened positions, and identification of any further positions that can be opened.
"Women have contributed immeasurably to our efforts, here and abroad," Rooney said. "We simply could not do the mission without them."
The previously released report to congress can be viewed here: http://www.defense.gov/news/WISR_Report_to_Congress.pdf .
Implementation Date Set for Opening New Assignments to Women [ http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=15217 ]


text:
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Please review my feedback on ebay (seller name cheepseetz) and bid with confidence as you browse our hundreds of listings currently active on this site.
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hits at this site since September 20, 1997
In considering the unsuccessful struggle in which my brother was engaged, many are too apt to forget the evils of the time: the grinding oppression under which the people laboured; the contempt in which public opinion was held; the policy which prevented its expression and intimidated the press. The only means then existing of stemming the torrent of corruption and oppression was tried, and they failed, but the failure . . . was not without its beneficial effects.
-- Mary Ann McCracken
Before my God and my country I speak of what I myself have seen. I have seen in Ireland the most absurd as well as the most disgusting tyranny that any nation ever groaned under. I have seen troops sent full of this prejudice, that every inhabitant of that kingdom is a rebel to the British Government. The most wanton insults, the most cowardly oppression practised upon men of all ranks and conditions, in a part of the country as free from disturbance as the City of London. Thirty houses are sometimes burned in a single night, but from prudential motives I wish to draw a veil over more aggravated facts.
Lord Moira speaking in British House of Lords in 1798.
Near the town of Newry, on the 23rd of June (St John's eve), a number of people, gathered round a bonfire, were deliberately fired upon by a corps of yeomanry, many of them being killed and many wounded. When some of the more humane magistrates of the county applied to Government for assistance, they received from Mr Trail, secretary to the Duke of Richmond, an answer to this effect: -- That the Government could not accede to their request as any steps taken by them would supersede the exertions of the local magistrates. It is needless to say that no steps were ever taken, and these murderers escaped, at least from
justice. Thus did the Government evince its determination to rule through the Orange magistrates, to the entire exclusion of the Liberal Protestants.
-- Carlow Magazine, date unknown
Sean McGOLDRICK