text:
- "China and Russia conduct 'relentless targeting of the private sector, not for military information, but for reasons having just to do with technology. 'This is not the cold war, revisited,' he said. 'These are not diplomats, they are every day business persons. This is a different world than any of us grew up with.'"
- "Law firms, especially large international shops, and public relations organizations, are frequent targets for systematic attacks, said Brenner. 'Lawyers are attacked at work, at home, while traveling, and it's embarrassing to have to tell clients,' he said. At issue is confidential data, especially for negotiations. 'Lawyers who have clients doing business in China, or lobbying, are hardest hit. They worry about losing information.'"
- "Law firms and their clients need to change their mindset about secrecy, and focus more limiting access than preventing access, he said. 'Secrets are like isotopes, they have half-lives. Our job in the information security business is to prevent and slow the degradation of those half-lives. We are talking about managing secrets,' he said -- differentiating the things that are not very important, or short-lived, from more important information."
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Hacking Risks Facing Law Firms (More on Chinese and Russian Attacks)
Law Firm Risk Factor: China, Russia Cyberspies" summarizes key themes from keynote speaker Joel Brenner's address. Brenner is of counsel at Cooley LLP, and formerly held roles including: senior counsel at the NSA, head of US Counterintelligence, and NSA inspector general.
Posted by Dan Bressler at 6:44 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Associate's Searches Through Firm DMS Prior to Filing Lawsuit Not Grounds for Professional Discipline
Legal Ethics Forum, for sending in the following disciplinary decision from the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers: "RE: Bar Counsel . Petitioner v. Kamee Beth Verdrager. Esq. . Respondent. BBO File No. C1-2008-0271"
The fact pattern here -- Before leaving the firm, an associated harvested and removed a number of documents from the firm's document management system:
This is an important data point for those looking to balance open internal access to information with the need to manage confidentiality controls. We've commented previously on the role technology can play in both enforcing restrictions and alerting management regarding suspicious or abnormal document access by law firm personnel.
The fact pattern here -- Before leaving the firm, an associated harvested and removed a number of documents from the firm's document management system:
- "She believed she was about to be fired by the firm after she had claimed to be the victim of sex discrimination. Anticipating that she would file suit against the firm, she searched for documents maintained in that sector of the firm's computer document management system that was open to any lawyer or other staff member in the firm and was referred to as "public" at the firm."
- "She accessed, copied, and e-mailed to her home a number of documents that she thought might support her claims against the firm, After the firm notified her that she would be laid off, she disclosed one of the documents she had copied and advised that she had more firm documents to buttress her discrimination claim."
- "The firm then terminated her employment on the grounds that she had violated privacy rights and breached her duty of loyalty to the fiim by accessing and copying firm documents for her own purposes. The firm also filed a grievance with the Office of Bar Counsel, which later filed a petition for discipline."
- "Lawyers in the firm were encouraged to review public documents posted by others. Such review was a widespread practice among the firm's lawyers, whether in search of a template for a pleading or even to discover how many hours other partners and associates were billing. Given such a policy and practice, and the highly competitive environment it reflects, it follows that no one who failed to secure documents he or she did not want other lawyers to review should be heard to complain that others took the fmn at its word regarding the public nature of its unsecured documents. If documents were not secured they could - and in such a milieu there was a very good chance they would - be read by any interested person with access to the system."
This is an important data point for those looking to balance open internal access to information with the need to manage confidentiality controls. We've commented previously on the role technology can play in both enforcing restrictions and alerting management regarding suspicious or abnormal document access by law firm personnel.
Posted by Dan Bressler at 6:55 AM 0 comments
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
New Jersey Supreme Court Says "No" to Unilateral "Side-Switching" Lawyers
New Jersey Supreme Court Clarifies Analysis of Former-Client Conflicts in 'Same' Matter," which is says: "Almost completely closes any escape hatch in New Jersey for lawyers to switch sides in the same dispute."
- "In an opinion by Justice Helen E. Hoens, the court made clear that when a lawyer has previously represented a client in a matter and later represents the client's adversary in the same matter, the conflict is not analyzed under the two-part test announced in Atlantic City v. Trupos, 992 A.2d 762, 26 Law. Man. Prof. Conduct 282 (N.J. 2010), for evaluating whether matters are substantially related."
- "The plain language of Rule 1.9 make clear, Hoens said, that if the prior and the subsequent matters are essentially the same, the representation is prohibited absent the former client's informed consent, confirmed in writing."
- "As other evidence demonstrating that the matters were the same, the court pointed out that in his certification opposing disqualification, Meller noted that he advised his new client, PB Americas, about the former representation and the work he had performed for FKSB in 2004."
- "But that was not his obligation under Rule 1.9(a), the court said. Instead, having realized that he had previously represented the client's adversary in the same matter, Meller was obligated to reach out to former client FKSB and affirmatively seek that client's permission before undertaking the new representation. Not having done so, the firm must be disqualified, the court concluded."
Posted by Dan Bressler at 7:07 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Cloud Storage, Mobile Devices & Information Risk
"Not just a paper trail" -- Describes how two large Australian firms are approaching these issues:
- "A document management system needs to balance the competing interests of ensuring lawyers can access and retrieve documents easily with the need for certain information to remain off limits to certain groups of people."
- "Corrs Chambers Westgarth is one firm that is looking to use modern technology to reduce the reliance of its lawyers on paper. Late last year, Corrs rolled out an iPad app which allows lawyers to organise, transport and review thousands of documents outside the office."
- "An important part of protecting the security of online documents at Corrs has been to eliminate the risk of documents getting lost in the cloud. To ensure this, Corrs has in place security measures to stop documents being stored in the cloud in the first place. 'Absolutely no documents kept by the firm are stored on the cloud,' says Borskjaer."
- "A novel approach to the security risk posed by the cloud has been taken by Clayton Utz. It has developed an internal cloud as part of a "whole-of-firm" approach to document management."
- "IBM soon realized that it had no grasp of which apps and services employees were using on their personal devices and set forth guidelines of proper use. It banned, for example, the use of such popular services as Dropbox cloud-based storage. The well-justified fear was that employees would put IBM-sensitive information in their personal Dropbox accounts and forward internal email to public Web mail services, or use their smartphones as mobile Wi-Fi hotspots."
- "...before IBM will allow an employee to access its networks with his or her device, it must make adjustments."
Posted by Dan Bressler at 6:49 AM 0 comments
Monday, May 21, 2012
This Week's London Risk Roundtable Near Capacity
- Client Audit Trends
- Open vs. Closed DMS (Approaches & Considerations)
Posted by Dan Bressler at 5:36 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Conflicts of Interest -- Is "Playbook" Information (aka "Special Insight" into Former Client Thought Patterns/Strategies) a Basis for Disqualification?
Playbook Information and Conflicts of Interest." Discussion focuses on the attempt to apply a poker metaphor (tell) to the question:
Some highlights of the exchange between Monroe Freedman, Professor of Law at Hofstra Law and John Steele, publisher of the site and legal ethics specialist:
Some highlights of the exchange between Monroe Freedman, Professor of Law at Hofstra Law and John Steele, publisher of the site and legal ethics specialist:
- Monroe Freedman: "Abbe and I discuss playbook information in connection with COI in ULE at p. 259. The idea originated in a discussion by Richard Zitrin at a Hofstra Ethics Conference. Richard is both an experienced litigator and avid poker player, and talked about the importance of the tell – information about how a player reacts in critical situations. He then related this to information gained in a former representation about how the former client reacts in negotiations and litigation, e.g., a disposition to settle (and for how much) rather than litigate. The idea was endorsed, also at a Hofstra conference, by Chuck Wolfram, who referred to it as playbook information. "
- John Steele: "We've had some California cases squarely reject the idea -- and a recent federal case out of California that appeared to accept it too. My sense is that the doctrine is neither fully accepted nor fully rejected right now."
- John Steele: "But, just to test the idea, let's suppose we give it credence. Henceforth, if you've ever represented a party on any matter, you are disqualified from ever being adverse to it on any matter (substantially related or not), because you have gained the ability to read and decipher poker tells. Is that the new "poker tell" rule that you favor, Monroe? Or perhaps you'd favor a rule where the party moving for disqualification needs to show that it has a poker tell that can be read by opponents?"
- John Steele: "Notice that none of these strategies are unique and that every decent lawyer anticipates strategies of this type being employed by the opponents. Every one of those strategies has been described countless times in PLI articles and CLE conferences. Many of those litigation strategies originated in outside law firms, and it is erroneous to think of them as being uniquely the property of any particular client... When you read a motion premised on the playbook theory, ask yourself how specific the supposed strategy and techniques really are. I can't rule out the possibility that there could be someday, somewhere, sometime, a valid use of the playbook theory to capture something that isn't fully captured in the existing formulations of the former client conflict rules. But in the matters where I see it being asserted, it's just a weak rhetorical crutch that's being used because the movant lacks any sound basis for seeking disqualification."
Posted by Dan Bressler at 6:51 AM 0 comments
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Risk News and Updates (Insider Trading, Recommended Rule Updates, Malpractice News + UK Developments)
- SEC Charges Montana-Based Paralegal and Father with Insider Trading -- "The Securities and Exchange Commission has sued a former paralegal at a Kalispell, Mont.-based semiconductor company and her father after they have traded on confidential information about the 2009 acquisition of the company."
- NYC Bar: Lawyers Must Tell Opponents If Documents Are Mistakenly Sent, But May Be Able to Use Them -- "An opinion released Monday by the New York City Bar Association attempts to provide a clear pathway through an ethical thicket concerning a lawyer's duties when he or she receives material from an opponent that was sent by mistake... lawyers must now decide for themselves how to deal with a gray area that has been created by the new ruling: Whether it is ethically permissible to use the material..."
- ABA Ethics 20/20 Commission Publishes Final Resolution and Reports -- ""The ABA Commission on Ethics 20/20 respectfully submits to the House of Delegates the accompanying Resolutions and Reports. They are the product of a three-year study of how globalization and technology are transforming the practice of law and how the regulation of lawyers should be updated in light of those developments."
- No malpractice coverage for lawyer who failed to mention ethics investigation -- "An insurance company can rescind a malpractice policy because a now-disbarred lawyer didn't disclose on a renewal application that a bar association was investigating him, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled."
- Law Firm Identity Theft? (SRA acts over identity fraud after series of bogus law firms) -- "The SRA has issued six warnings about bogus firms or branch offices of legitimate firms in the past six months, and last week also highlighted a fake website of a real practice... SRA executive director David Middleton said: "Any firm that discovers its identity has been stolen should contact us and their insurers and also consider legal action such an injunction either to stop misleading statements or to freeze assets if money has gone missing." [See also: SRA under fire for "failing to act" on bogus law firm warning.]
- SRA in new compliance deadline setback -- "The Solicitors Regulation Authority is set to push back the date for approving compliance officers by two months. The SRA Board will vote tomorrow on extending the grace period for approving the new appointments to 31 December... All firms must appoint compliance officers who are responsible for recording and reporting any failure to comply with SRA regulations."
Posted by Dan Bressler at 7:12 AM 0 comments
Monday, May 14, 2012
Conflicts & Malpractice: When Law Firms Represent Themselves
Viewpoint: When a Lawyer Needs a Lawyer." Richard Zitrin, professor at UC-Hastings and of counsel at Carlson, Calladine & Peterson explores the question: "What happens when a lawyer may have committed malpractice? May the offending lawyer confidentially consult internally within in his or her firm with— the "loss prevention" partner, the ethics committee, or the managing partner — and may those others then consult confidentially about the situation among themselves?"
- "This California rule makes simple common sense. After all, if a law firm starts giving advice to client No. 1 that is adverse to ongoing client No. 2, the conflict of interest is self-evident. When the advice relates to the exact same facts for both clients, the problem is even more obvious. Viewed in this context, the argument that somehow if the law firm itself is client No. 1 those consultations magically remain confidential and privileged strains credulity, especially considering that these consultations are designed to protect the firm against its existing client's claim. Not surprisingly, the majority of the existing decisional law strongly supports this view, including two recent federal cases in Massachusetts, two more in Pennsylvania, and elsewhere, including Louisiana and Washington State."
- "But this common-sense view is not unanimous. Recent cases in Ohio and Illinois both hold that on the specific facts presented, a law firm is not required to disclose its internal communications about loss prevention even if it was still representing the client asserting the claim. The Illinois case, while acknowledging that the law firm violated its fiduciary duty to its client, noted somewhat counterintuitively that the fiduciary violation does not create an exception to the privilege under current Illinois law. Notably, however, neither case analyzed the law firm's ongoing duty during the "dual representation" to candidly communicate with its third-party client, including about its own malpractice, an issue the California courts wisely recognize."
Posted by Dan Bressler at 7:02 AM 0 comments
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Risk Survey Update -- High (and Growing) Participation Levels
At this point, a week into the process, well over 100 organizations have participated (and counting).
As a reminder, the incentive for qualified firms and stakeholders to participate is access to a copy of the final published report for their geography (this year, separate exercises are underway for Australia, Canada, US and UK).
By participating, you will gain visibility in the priorities, policies and practices of your peers across the industry.
Posted by Dan Bressler at 6:46 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Conflicts Clashes -- Law Firm Sues 150 Lawyers/Firms
Law firm Cassels Brock sues 150 lawyers" --
- "Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP is suing close to 150 law firms and lawyers across Canada as it faces conflict-of-interest allegations in a closely watched lawsuit. The suit alleges that Cassels advised both the auto dealers' association and the Canadian government on the matter, as Ottawa was allegedly pressuring GM to cut its number of dealerships to receive a bailout and avoid bankruptcy. The allegations have not been proven in court."
- "In response, Cassels has filed a claim against almost 150 lawyers and law firms across Canada."
- "Cassels' claim targets the lawyers from whom the individual GM dealers were required to seek independent advice when they were given just six days, over the Victoria Day weekend in May, 2009, to accept their "wind-down agreements" from General Motors."
- "The way the profession deals with conflicts has been a source of contention for years, especially as law firms merge into larger entities more likely to end up with clients with opposing interests. David Sterns, a Toronto class-action lawyer with Sotos LLP acting for the GM dealers in their lawsuit, calls Cassels' move to sue nearly 150 lawyers unprecedented."
Posted by Dan Bressler at 7:35 AM 0 comments
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Upcoming Webinar: Law Firm Information Security Trends
Designed for both IT and risk stakeholders, this webinar will explore law firm information security trends, developments and emerging themes, including:
- Client audits
- Industry reviews of the pros and cons of "open" vs. "closed" DMS models
- Date: Tuesday, May 29
- Time: 9 am Pacific / 12 pm Eastern / 4 pm GMT
Posted by Dan Bressler at 7:06 AM 0 comments
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Report from Last Week's Risk Roundtable Meetings
Risk Roundtable Compliance Consortium, delivered a presentation updating attendees on current risk issues and trends, and moderated group discussion. He was joined by John Steele, publisher of the often-cited Legal Ethics Forum.
Brian kindly sent an update summarizing some of the group discussions at each event:
Brian kindly sent an update summarizing some of the group discussions at each event:
- We recently held two educational and animated Risk Roundtable sessions in Los Angeles and San Francisco. And we were pleased to be joined by a mix of risk and IT representatives from many firms.
- In Los Angeles, we spent our first hour discussing current risk trends and news in the US and the UK, including lively discussion regarding the challenges associated with laterals and mergers. Healthy interaction all around as participants discussed their specific challenges and, in some cases, provided potential solutions for others. It proved once again to be an excellent forum for exchanging ideas and viewpoints. John Steele, legal ethics and risk management expert, walked us through a discussion of the hazards associated with non-standard terms and conditions (a/k/a Outside Counsel Guidelines). He reviewed a number of recent court decisions that highlight the power of effective contracting with clients. Many thanks to John for showing us the implications of defining the "client," delineating scope and jurisdiction when multiple firms and vendors are involved, and the reach of exceptional terms.
- In San Francisco, an excellent session brought together new and familiar faces. Brad Hise, Assistant General Counsel at at O'Melveny & Myers spoke about the challenges of lateral hires. John Steele was on hand again to discuss client contracting and how the Dupont Model has organized in-house counsel to generate common approaches. He encouraged law firms to come together and do the same. Finally, Rebecca Buchanan at Cooley shared some of their approaches with engagement letter management and other risk mitigation strategies
Posted by Dan Bressler at 6:56 AM 0 comments
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
2012 Law Firm Risk Surveys Underway (US, UK, Canada & Australia)
This year we're running four separate exercises, inviting risk and IT stakeholders at participating mid-sized and large firms in each of four geographies – US, UK, Canada and Australia.
The surveys explore several topics including risk priorities, risk policies and education, intake and conflicts management practices, lateral hiring and departures, confidentiality/information security management, and compliance tracking.
As with past surveys, all who participate will receive a copy of the final published report.
Invitations are going out this week. Please watch your inbox.
Posted by Dan Bressler at 7:42 AM 0 comments


text:
Apple is separating the new smartphones into its usual low-cost versus high-cost categories, with big differences between the two models coming down to the camera, display, and battery life.
iOS 13 & watchOS 6 Now Available
Apple's Lightning Cable Contains TI Chip 'Likely' to Have Security Features
One other aspect of the Lightning connector that has generated interest is whether Apple has also incorporated some sort of authentication functionality into the handful of chips found inside the Lightning connector assembly in order to inhibit third parties from manufacturing unlicensed cables. Scattered reports have indeed indicated that Apple has included authentication features in its cables, but companies have reportedly already cracked the security feature.
Chips inside Lightning connector assembly
Chipworks has now taken a closer look at the chips found inside the Lightning to USB cable, highlighting a Texas Instruments (TI) chip that seems "likely" to include a security feature. While the exact "BQ2025" chip used in the cable is not documented in TI datasheets, four other chips with very similar part numbers are documented.
These four chips are cataloged on TI's website as battery fuel gauges, but they are not identical, with three of them being serial EPROMs and one of them being a battery monitor IC.
However, all four do have some common characteristics. All use a single wire SDQ interface (TI's proprietary serial communications protocol), and all have some basic security features such as CRC [cyclic redundancy check] generation. So, it is certainly likely that the BQ2025 does have some security implemented on it. It would also seem likely that it includes an SDQ interface.
Die photo of TI's BQ2025 chip
Further investigation of the layout of the chip is consistent with a communication chip employing some "simple security features", and Chipworks notes that this seems to be the first time the firm has found such security features in a cable. CRC does not, however, serve to authenticate connections and is instead primarily used to check for errors in data transmission.
The security does not come close to the herculean approaches that are used in (for example) today's printer cartridges, but resembles the level of effort that cartridge manufacturers used to implement in the olden days. This is likely a calculated decision by Apple to keep costs to a minimum knowing that their core customer base prefers to shop in Apple stores or for brand name peripherals. In these places, piracy is not a concern. In other words, at this time the security is "just enough."Many users have been frustrated by Apple's tight control over the Lightning standard, a grip that has slowed accessory companies as they are still waiting to receive instructions from Apple and to have their facilities certified by Apple under the Made For iPad/iPhone/iPod (MFi) program. In the meantime, unauthorized third-party manufacturers are likely to begin filling the void.
Top Rated Comments(View all)
A chip is simply necessary to make a reversible cable with adaptive pins. Please stop perpetuating this "authentication chip" ********. Apple is clever enough to know that a hypothetical "secret chip" would never prevent third party manufacturers from producing copies.
So what if some company makes their own cables?
CRC is not "authentication" or "DRM." CRC is a simple checksum. It makes sure that data doesn't get corrupted during transfer.
A chip is simply necessary to make a reversible cable with adaptive pins. Please stop perpetuating this "authentication chip" ********. Apple is clever enough to know that a hypothetical "secret chip" would never prevent third party manufacturers from producing copies.
Apple...you know you are welcome to contribute(or create) an open standard...
Not everyone has forgotten Microsoft's $150 million "investment" to you some years back. Don't forget who helped keep you around.
Sometimes a cable just needs to be a cable and not a small freak'in computer!!!
All I want is someone to crack it and sell me $3 cables!
The biggest complaint I'm hearing is paying $19 just for a second cable to keep in the office or car to charge your phone.
I could see someone making a cheap "charging only" cable. That would solve a lot of problems.
The Apple Store here is limiting purchases of the Lightning to USB cable to 1 per person, as they had trouble keeping them in stock otherwise. Seems like the price is not a concern.
Price is never a concern to an Apple customer.
[ Read All Comments ]

subset: commoncrawl


text:
"We live in India and are proud to be Indians," all of us are used to of saying these words since our childhood. But, today I don't feel so proud of being an Indian. Today there has been a bandh called by the opposition party in the name of hiked diesel prices, reduced number of gas cylinders, FDI in retail and so on. There has been a bandh few months back in May too. But still I am not able to understand this way of showing the protest. Is it the correct way to show our anger? I don't want to discuss here which party is correct or which party is wrong. But these lonely roads in the city haunt me even in my dreams.
I am not someone who gets deeply affected by the bandh or any of the hiked diesel prices, reduced number of gas cylinders or FDI in retail. I am just a common young guy who travels in the bus when required, had to rush to his hostel canteen when he feels hungry and no matter whatever the retailer charges, he will pay the price. Then, why am I mourning? I am mourning because I think about millions of young kids who woke up early this morning and rushed to their schools but had to return after seeing a big lock on their school gate. I think about that passenger among those thousands of passengers of the trains whose train was stopped by some protestor and he could not reach home on time where his mother was still ill and looking for him before she takes her last breath. I think about millions of laborers who could not go to work because of this bandh and will starve with hunger. I think about millions of shopkeepers who are forced to close their shops by some party. I think about millions of those auto rickshaw drivers who would still be looking for passengers and so on. And, I feel so sorry because I can't do anything for any of them. I am writing this article because once somebody told me that pen is mightier than sword and I believe if at least one of you understands my reason to write this article, the goal is achieved.
I don't say that we should not protest against evils prevailing in the society, we should and we must. But, I believe that bandh is not the correct way to do it. We can always opt for better ways. Maybe, we should try to protest in front of the Constitution. Maybe we should stop the vehicles of those politicians who are behind these steps and not the poor auto rickshaw-walas. Maybe we should not try to affect our daily meals but of those politicians who fill their belly to its maximum capacity before coming out for a bandh. I think then we would be able to show our protest in a better way and we all could call ourselves- "a proud Indian."


text:
For the past two months I've been staging with Restaurante Martin Berasategui, documenting, organizing and saving all kinds of photos, videos and e-data like it's my job. Now the opportunity has finally come to do something with it all besides blog. It all happened because of powerpoint. My good friend from college, ppt. At 9am on a Friday morning, Miguelito ran into the choza and asked me if I had ppt on my laptop and if so, could I spare the next hour to sit with Martín and review his powerpoint presentation he had to give later that afternoon in Barcelona. Of course I had no choice, but I eagerly marched to the King Arthur's jefe's table in the kitchen because I was curious to see this ppt.
Una Biblioteca Electrónica


text:
Matt Fletcher wrote: > If this sort of nesting behavior for > > links was resticted to > > just <a> then it would give a reason for <a> to > > still exist besides > > historical sentiment. > > Why restrict it to just <a>? I still see no > reason for keeping <a> when any other element > could be nested and linked from? A restriction to just <a> might be of benefit in that it might make it easier for user agents to implement (or it might not, I haven't written a browser this week :) Unless some aspect of hyperlinking is restricted to the <a> element, I agree that there is no reason for maintaining <a> as an element in XHTML2. I do wonder if the extremely orthogonal attribute model (where almost all attributes are used on almost all elements that XHTML2 is using will prove to be too much of a burden tho. The Hypertext attributes could be restricte to just <a> and <link> while the embedding attributes could be restricted to just <object> and equivalent documents with the same functionality could be obtained. A comparison with RISC and CISC would be apt I think, but I can't think of a good one to make just now.Received on Thursday, 10 April 2003 12:51:19 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Wednesday, 7 January 2015 15:06:03 UTC


text:
Coffee Grit
Sometimes dreams can suck.
Have you ever had a passion or dream but felt it was too unreasonable to actually pursue it? Maybe you felt as if you could give it a go as a hobby, but you didn't let yourself pursue it beyond that due to the unreasonability that the unction contained. I feel you.
My wife and I are at a place right now where we both work 40 hours a week at jobs that we love. And we have this dream on the side that we are able to get a glimpse of usually 10-15 hours a week. And we would love one day for this dream to be something that we can live off of completely. We want it to change others' lives for the better. We want it to change us.
We are in the here-now. We are in the murky middle stage of having a business that is growing, that people enjoy, but at the same time, we have our responsibilities that we need to take care of. We like our day jobs...and we are both pretty good at them. So, at least one of us per week ends up working 60+ hours (sometimes reaching closer to 80). We get very little sleep. We don't have much play time. We don't have much rest.
We get tired. We get aggravated. We think about giving up.
But, then sometimes these little inklings occur. A customer comes up and tells us that its the best cup of coffee they have ever had. A mother comes up whose daughter in Tennessee told her that she saw we were open on facebook and that she must go out and partake for her. A engaged couple is excited with the idea of us being at their wedding reception. We are told that we have made someone's day by giving them a free drink. It all becomes worth it.
It all comes down to grit. For us, coffee grit. Its one thing to be on the grind, working tirelessly to try to keep a business afloat, pushing forward through exhaustion. But, the grind usually is motivated by $. (Coffee) grind isn't enough for us to pursue this dream and passion. A little extra money isn't enough for us to push through the days we want to call it quits. But, (coffee) grit is.
Every time we get to see a smile on someone's face after putting 100% into each cup of coffee we make, it is fulfilling the reason why we decided to start Nomad. It gives us hope and determination that the next step is possible in our current situation. It gives us the strength to press on and figure out a wonky way to adjust our schedules so we can open up more to serve people, to meet new friends, and to try to make the best coffee that we can.
For those who don't know about our story, Nomad started off in a cup of french press in a dorm room. I wondered where coffee came from - who picked the fruit that the "beans" came from that ultimately were exported and then roasted? What were their families like? What about their communities and cultures? Then, it was a dream on paper. The original name of the company was going to be "Acacia Coffee Company", coming from the Acacia trees in Africa, which are symbolic for love and immortality.
Then, I met Jeanne and somehow she got on board with my weird passion and hobby. Next thing you know, I am working at a local coffee shop on top of my full time job, just to learn. Next, I get a job with a coffee roaster, learning more about the technical aspects of coffee while being a sales rep and explaining coffee to potential customers. Then, a big step occurs - Jeanne and I have an opportunity to scrape up our money and purchase equipment that will allow us to dabble into the coffee business for ourselves. We purchase an espresso machine, grinder, and other ins and outs that would be what we need to start something small.
We hold on to this stuff not knowing when we would really get to use it. In the meantime, I received an opportunity to roast coffee at a local shop for a short season while Jeanne worked there and became a respected barista. And then we took a leap of faith and decided to raise money to go on a business as mission trip to Rwanda, Africa to hang out with coffee farmers - to learn from them, to love them, and to see what our dream could be expressed as reality. Then, it happened: Jeanne Beans Espresso Catering was formed.
We got our first gig by a reference from a coffee shop that wasn't available to do a wedding. So, we got the additional needed supplies and threw them in my Jeep, and we had a coffee shop on wheels. And it was a success. It was the first part of living the dream. And it was the birth of our coffee grit. We did only weddings for about a year.
A couple of years ago, we decided to take the next big step and we formed Nomad Coffee Company, LLC. A few months later, we decided to take out a business loan and get a coffee trailer. To my knowledge, we are the first completely mobile coffee shop in the model of trailer/food truck in Virginia. Whereas other coffee companies may have had their hands in catering or even had a trailer to accommodate their storefront, we started with only catering and then added a completely mobile unit. This year, we decided to take out a couple more business loans to invest in our business and get an awesome inverter generator and a state of the art espresso machine (Slayer). To Slayer's knowledge, we were the first company to use one of their machines in a business setting in Virginia. Through time, hard work, and determination, and the fuel that we receive when we see a happy customer or meet a new friend, we continue to raise the stakes and push more and more chips to the center of the table.
We have developed something we are proud of. We have also been exhausted and devastated at times. We have even felt like giving up (on multiple occasions). But, its the dream that keeps us going. Its the belief that there is something in this life that we are all meant for. It is the understanding that success is possible for anyone who works hard enough for it. It is the thought that you can make a difference in your world if you put your spirit, heart, and mind to it. It is the seemingly unreasonable belief in grit. But hey, if everything were easy and reasonable, this life would be boring.
And that my friends, is our story of coffee grit. What's your grit story? What's your dream? What inklings or glimmers have you seen with your dream becoming a reality?


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Victorian Mitts Progress
Finished one mitt and I'm halfway through the second. They seem to be a bit large around the palm and tight around the wrist. The ribbing came down over the hand further than I'd thought it would. I've only seen these things on drawn hands rather than in photographs so I have no idea how long they're supposed to be. The pattern only said to knit for so many pattern repeats rather than to knit to such & such part of the hand or to work for so many inches. The length isn't bad, I'm just not sure if that's how long they're supposed to be.
Easy project. Cheap and nasty thrift store yarn but they might get reknitted in some nice handspun yak with silk trim. Or alpaca maybe.


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Radio Control (RC) Gift Buying Guide / Ideas for Christmas, Birthdays, etc.
Radio Control hobby products make great gifts for birthdays, Christmas, Father's Day and other special occasions. They are gifts that help get your kids and teens get outside and away from the TV and their internet devices. They are a great gift for hard to buy for dads, husbands, nephews, and boyfriends. They also a great Father –son/daughter bonding activity as it is a hobby they can do together.
The most common RC products include RC cars, trucks, buggies, rock crawlers, airplanes, boats and Drones, which are controlled and operated by a radio-based controller. The key things that distinguish a hobby-class RC product from their toy equivalents are:
- Much better quality
- They are repairable (and parts are available) versus throw away
- Much higher performance and capability
- Up-gradable and customizable
- More challenging and more enjoyable
So the next thing to figure out, is what kind of RC product may be best gift.
These considerations include:
o Many RC products are also available with nitro gas engines, but these are more suited for someone with a mechanical aptitude ( see article the pros and cons of nitro gas versus electric). Although nitro gas powered vehicles are not difficult to operate, - if the person is mechanically challenged, it is best to purchase an electric motor powered RC product.
o If they will want to operate the vehicle on the grass or on a dirt track, purchase a RC 1/10 or 1/8 scale buggy or truck. RC on –road Cars work best on smooth surfaces, and vehicles smaller than 1/10 scale , may not have enough ground clearance to drive on grass.
o It will take longer to learn how to fly RC airplanes, Drones , Quadcopters well, and they will need a large open space to learn, perseverance, and require good eye –hand coordination. For RC airplanes, they may need to join a local flying club
The most popular products have been RC trucks , RC Buggies, RC Drift Cars and RC Rock Crawlers, although all products make great gifts depending on the interests of the recipient.
If your budget allows, you may also want to consider an extra battery for electric RC products for more play time, or a Nitro starter kit for Nitro gas powered vehicles.


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3 years transformation to become an analytics driven company
Sanoma Group is the leading European media group with operations in over 10 European countries. To respond to the changes in media consumption, advertising and media industry overall, Sanoma established a global, multi-year transformation program to become an analytics driven company.
Project targets
- To build a 360 degree customer view
- To build a portfolio of analytics products to enable corporate transformation
- To build an organization and organizational culture to become analytics driven
BIGDATAPUMP has worked with Sanoma Group for several years creating a digital transformation strategy and driving the transformation as the outsourced Program Management Office. During this versatile and large project we have conducted multiple analyses about the existing architecture, strategy and provided consultancy on the digital transformation. We have also managed the actual work including development of several data analytics solutions.
Our responsibilities
- Conducting multiple analyses about the existing architecture and proposing the target architecture landscape
- Setting up customer centric KPIs and dashboards
- Leading the development of advertising performance optimization tools including attribution modeling and ad performance measurement for mobile and video channels
- Conducting Visualization and BI tool Proof of Concept processes to support tool selections, and ramping up the selected new BI platform
- Establishing processes to manage the data asset and related privacy processes for Sanoma Group
We continuously support our customer's push for a data-driven culture.
Customer value
- Data driven media products development enabling the company transformation
- New B2B advertising products for sales
- Improved CRM capabilities to improve bundle sales, lift and reduce churn
About Sanoma Group
SANOMA GROUP is a leading European media group based in Helsinki with operations in over 10 European countries and turnover of over 2B€. Sanoma is among the top five European magazine publishers and it is running leading digital services in Finland and the Netherlands.


text: Allison Arieff, a founder of DWELL magazine in 2002 (among other accomplishments) believes we need to " . . . stop thinking about the home as decorative object and begin considering it as part of a larger whole." Her opinion piece on this topic appeared in the New York Times on October 2, 2011. The article and the more than 150 comments that it stimulated raise some interesting questions about the potential for changing the way we design and implement suburban development in the USA.


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Yummy Plants: a vegan lifestyle website and community. We can help you start a vegan diet!
Are you looking for high-quality, fashionable, sustainable, non-leather accessories? Try Compassion Couture! The online site – created by sisters Jill and Tracey – showcases vegan shoes, handbags, and accessories.
This week's Accidentally Vegan feature is Alter Eco Fair Trade Organic Dark Chocolate Almond Bar!!! Alter Eco's single source vegan chocolate bar is OMG good. Just one taste and I was in love… But aside from the satisfying creaminess and crunch, this chocolate bar also helps to accomplish good things in the world. My purchase of this vegan chocolate actually helps to benefit 800 families in the Bolivian part of the Amazon!


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Produced in conjunction with the thematic exhibition of four artists whose "…work refers to the subject and the condition the subject exists in, and only secondarily to the existence of art ojects". Contains a text by Ron Martin.
Art Metropole is a non-profit artist-run centre incorporated in 1974. We'd like to thank the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council, as well as our donors for their support.
Your donation assists in the development of contemporary art practices and programs for the general public.


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Here at Le Marché St. George it becomes quite clear quite quickly that Janaki has a not so subtle infatuation with her linens. Now this isn't any sort of criticism. I personally think that our shop is better for it; the linens you see through out and for sale at the shop come from a small family-run linen mill originating in Eastern Europe. After attending design school in London, the daughter of our linen manufacturer decided on promoting her country's rich but sadly forgotten art of linen making. We currently stocking her family's table cloths ($119.00-$146.00), runners ($32.50), towels ($ 49.95), shower glove ($14.95), napkins (Set of four $45.00) & dish towels ($29.95).
Photography & Discourse | Luis Valdizon


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This is first in what I plan to be a series of posts about the steps of making in photographs.
This first in the series is this one of me making some Highlight studs.
The cube studs are constructed from silver and gold. The silver cubes are first cut out out from stock and the gold is soldered into place on the edge. They are then cleaned up using files and emery paper. The post is then silver soldered into place and the stud back is made. Finally it is all cleaned up. Simple.
The photos start at the finished object and work their way back in time.


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News Releases
Indium Corporation announces the promotion of David Sbiroli to Manager of Technical Services for the Americas region. In his new role, Dave is responsible for the training and management of Indium's Technical Support Team. In addition, he will focus on expanding the capabilities of Indium's Advanced Materials and Process Development Lab and work with Indium's product managers to launch new products. Dave joined Indium Corporation 12 years ago. He has a BS in Mechanical Engineering Technology from SUNY Institute of Technology. Dave achieved one of the highest scores on the SMTA Process Engineer certification exam and earned his 6-Sigma Green Belt from Dartmouth College. Dave is based at Indium's global headquarters in Clinton, NY, USA. Indium Corporation is a four-time Frost & Sullivan Award-winning supplier of electronics assembly materials, including solder pastes, solder preforms, fluxes, Pb-Free solder alloys, underfill materials, die-attach materials, and more. The company is also the world's premiere supplier of commercial grade and high-purity indium. Factories are located in the USA, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and China. Founded in 1934, the company is ISO 9001 registered. For more information on Indium Corporation visit www.indium.com or email firstname.lastname@example.com.
For comments or questions about the content on this page, please contact:
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Recent controversies over transgender bathrooms and whether or not people should be expected to behave in accord with the gender of their birth are reminders of the pivotal questions of our times:
- Does truth exist?
- How does it apply to all people?
- Are there universal moral truths applicable to every one?
Continue reading


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DisclaimerThe content of this site has been prepared by the members of the thematic network "S2S - A Gateway for Plant and Process safety". Since the conditions of use are beyond our control we disclaim any liability, including patent infringement, incurred in connection with the use of these products, data or suggestions.
The thematic network S2S is a European Community Project carried out in the "Competitive and Sustainable Growth" programme and funded in part by contract number G1RT-CT-2002-05092.
Chemical compatibility
The ability of chemicals to be mixed and stored without showing reactive behaviour with each other.
See also Adiabatic calorimetry (AdC) and Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).


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The Response to Intervention (RTI) model is quickly becoming integral to how schools determine the need for services in reading and math. Under the RTI model, many schools already progress monitor students' growth in precursor skills needed for reading (e.g. decoding, phoneme awareness, letter identification). While these skills are important in determining a child's future reading fluency, they are not adequate predictors of later reading comprehension. Early language abilities that are highly correlated to future reading comprehension and academic success include: Auditory Comprehension, Following Directions, Categorization, and Narrative Language. It is imperative that schools also assess children's development of these underlying language skills. Further, if students are not progressing in these skills, schools need to add language services to support these students.
The Kindergarten Language Benchmark Assessment (KLBA) and Pre-Kindergarten Language Benchmark Assessment (Pre-KLBA research edition available shortly) are perfect tools for measuring growth in these critical language areas three times a year.
During the past two years, Madison School in Skokie, IL has used data from the KLBA and Pre-KLBA in order to monitor student language growth. Our school has also used the data to evaluate program effectiveness.
The pre-school at Madison is a state-funded at-risk program, making it even more important that we prepare our students for academic success. During the 2013-2014 school year, we initiated two major language-related programmatic changes:
1. Earlier Starting Date for Tier 2 Interventions
During the 2012-2013 school year, our preschool program tested all children in the fall with the Pre-KLBA. At that time, the Pre-K teachers did not feel comfortable starting language intervention groups immediately, as they believed that children just needed time to grow. In the winter, all children were assessed again with the Pre-KLBA. Using this data, students were identified for Tier 2 intervention groups using the Language for Learning direct instruction curriculum available from McGraw Hill.
By contrast, in the 2013-2014 school year, Preschool staff agreed to begin Tier 2 groups immediately in the fall for students falling into the lowest quartile of scores, regardless of their native language spoken at home.
Look at the impact of 3 extra months of direct instruction on children's rate of growth who participated in this Tier 2 program!
2. Weekly Teacher-Directed Center Work
During 2012-2013, our preschool was entirely child-directed for the majority of students. Children with specific language impairments or other special needs received in-class services. However, these services were provided by pulling a mix of children with special needs and typically developing peers to the side of the room for small group instruction.
By contrast, in 2013-2014, the teachers initiated a "super center" day. All the children in the program rotated through teacher-directed activities led by a teacher, aide, SLP, or OT. The overall IEP minutes of service remained the same, so this did not require more time from special educators. However, now children received direct-language interactions with adults for more time, as the regular education teachers and aides also led groups. The additional benefit is that children without identified special needs also received differentiated instruction from specialists.
Look at how this impacted the language skills for children in the entire program!
When spending time with kids on a daily basis, we, as teachers, often don't notice language growth. This is because change is often subtle. However, stepping back and looking at data can help us determine what we are doing that is helping kids learn. Clearly, our programmatic changes have been effective this year, and the data supports continuing with the changes.
Supporting children in early language development will improve overall academic performance in later years. We've also seen the children receiving extra services become more confident speakers. Previously "shy" children are now raising their hands and contributing in class.
For more information on our RTI process for language, click here.


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The arrival of a puppy home is a place full of life and happiness time. For that reason, should not prevail anxiety and hesitation about how to do the best for the increase of the puppy. Everyone must know that a new member is coming therefore it is recommended to assign everyday jobs to unlike members of the family for care. Prepare a place for the puppy where he can find his bed to rest when required. This place must always be protected from inclement weather.
Set and teaches the puppy the place to relieve himself. This process is not as fast as we would like and this must be done with endurance and dedication. Keep fresh, clean water existing and toys suitable for their size. So have enjoyment with their toys and not with household furniture. Take it to the vet to monitor your health and set its plan of vaccines that may vary by section of the country where you are. Deforming is essential as directed by the veterinarian for one disease can affect the health of the whole family. Preserves and have on hand the vaccination card as this document is key to remember the dates on which it must get to the vet for the respective medical monitoring.
Food: It is recommended to choose the best food depending on age lifestyle and race. So keep in mind that little dogs need food for puppies up to 12 months, average dogs up to 15 months and large dogs up to 18 months as growth takes longer. The meal frequency should be 3 times a day between 2 and 8 months always at the same times and should be left for 20 minutes to get used to not eat all day. From 8 months you can start giving food 2 times a day and the recommended age adults make the transition.
At least 3 times a week for 20 min and supplemented with brief exits this routine. Do not do long walks puppies because they tire more with no trouble and do not run immediately after eating because this could cause digestive troubles. It is advisable to bathe once a month. Use special soap and warm water dog shampoo or to protect their delicate hair. If your dog has long hair comb it every three days so that he is not entangled and if you have short hair combing once a week may be enough.


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"When Drama meets the Art of Jewelry …"
From "Electra" to "Evdokia" and from "Stella" to "Antigone", women symbols, archetypes and femmes fatales become the muses to creators-masters of earth's most precious treasures.
J.A.W. Jewellery Art Workers is a group of 20 artists that attemps to outline, each on his own way, a part of Greek Cinema history.
The exhibition took place at Mihalis Kakogiannis Institute, in Athens on November 2011 and I had the pleasure to attend and photograph the impressive exhibits. It was really interesting to admire the beautiful jewelry while reading the story of the famous movies and the heroines that inspired them. Enjoy the pictures!


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Uses For Older Slower Windows Computer systems
Our division has been ranked as the quantity 1 Indian division in the area of Computer Science and Data Systems by QS Globe University Rankings for the year 2015 and 2016. Be it Linux, Solaris or House property windows operating-method, or it is a complex technology like virtualization, you will require a apparent understanding of each and every and each and every emerging technologies. My hubby removed the tough drive and place it in an external case linked to my new computer.
There is a really actual possibility that unless suitable actions are taken, many of these folks may possibly in no way obtain the kind of exposure to the ethical issues that ought to go hand in hand with the accountable use of computer systems and technology.
The Human Regenerator imitates the body's all-natural frequencies by way of quantum cell technology and longitudinal waves. There is a lot of motion and activity involved, and if you happen to be an efficiency nut like me you are going to want to make the ideal use of your technologies.
I am a teacher in a middle college setting and have utilized very a bit of this technology and agree that it genuinely does help teach the masses (meaning assists with differentiated learning types). The types of personal computer memory are: SDR, DDR, DDR2 and DDR3 standing for Single Information Price and Double Information Rate, respectively.
This helps me to remain present with computers and the computer software that is out there. The College of Engineering and Applied Science formally began as the Lawrence Scientific School in 1847. If the modernization will go beyond this, I can really say that technologies can dehumanize the society.…


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Despite paying a heavy price for a string of recent recalls, Chrysler Group reported a 16 percent increase in second-quarter earnings and the company's chief executive said he expects even stronger numbers during the second half of the year—though earnings are still expected to fall short of earlier expectations.
But Chrysler earnings would have been even stronger were it not for a major recall to address a Jeep safety issue. Even so, the Detroit maker's results were enough to provide a much-needed boost to its Italian partner Fiat which quadrupled its own net income for the second quarter despite ongoing problems in its home European market.
(Read more:Jeep Recall Smaller Than First Sought by US Safety Watchdog)


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Sometimes people don't realize how much work is necessary to meet, attract, and have the type of healthy, long-lasting relationship most desired.
I was very fortunate to turn my life around on my own like only a few others, including one, James Altucher, entrepreneur and best-selling author, who posted an update on Facebook about what he did to find his wife.
Within the status update below I'll insert my own comments that I hope can shed insight, perspective, and inspiration for to turn things around on your own, or hire someone to help you.
Enter James.
I had no furniture, I was 20 lbs overweight, no job, depleting bank account, owed the IRS, out of shape, I drank every night, I was separated but not divorced, two kids, depressed and maybe suicidal, and finally, I secretly wanted to be a standup comic.
I also didn't like being alone. I am the sort of person who likes to be married.
In other words, I was gross, unqualified for anything, an alcoholic, and delusional.
Probably paranoid also since I was constantly getting fired from things at that point, despite saving the world economy in my spare time (sadly, I have to refer you to my book for that story, which is a true story).
I had a table and one chair and I had a sofa. I had no plates in my kitchen. I had a mattress on the floor. That was the extent of my furniture. I had some books.
Enter Thomas: "I like how he sets the tone to make it clear he had to advantage that most men would think is necessary to meet and attract women -- another myth we can debunk right now."
I sat on that one chair and made it a full time job to find the woman of my dreams.
This worked for me. Might not work for anyone else.
I saw some article recently, "how to bang a lot of chicks". That's not what I mean by quantity. In fact, that's the opposite of quantity. If anything, if you follow that strategy you will fail.
But for me, since I had been fired by thestreet.com, CNBC was no longer using me, The Financial Times fired me, two businesses I had started were failing, and there was nothing else for me to do: I had plenty of time to sign up for lots of dating sites and send at least 100 messages a day to women.
I would arrange dates for lunch, dinner, whenever. I'd go 40 miles to go on a date. Some women wanted to talk on the phone. I'd set aside an hour or two a day to talk on the phone.
Enter Thomas: "Notice how he was willing to drive 40 miles to meet with someone. Only people who have being in a relationship with someone as their #1 priority will be willing to do this. If you aren't ready to do things like this, then it's not a priority."
But nothing really mattered until I met the person.
If you meet ten people you think you are attracted to, you might actually be only attracted to one. The other thing is: given my situation most women didn't even respond to my messages. So quantity was critical.
Enter Thomas: "The concept of quantity described here comes in two folds. For one, he assumed even though he was initially attracted to all the women he was able to connect with, after talking with them, he realized he was only really into only 10% of them. A typical guy may try talking to one woman each week and assuming that 10% of these women will connect with you and you end up being into 10% of those women, you end up with .5 women whom you may end up in a relationship with -- not even a whole person.
The second fold is that rejection is part of the process and the only way to "overcome" it (you can't actually "get over" rejection) is to get used to it. Notice James ended up rejecting 90% of the women who responded back to him." It only takes one "yes" to forget about all the "nos.""
If I liked a girl in an elevator, I would ask her out. If you worked in the phone-bill collection store, I asked you out. If I bumped into you in the street five years earlier, I would see if you were still single and ask you out. If you served me an egg sandwich, I asked you out. If I liked you in sixth grade, I would find out if you lived in the Northeast US, was single, and I would ask you out.
Dating is like war. You have to consider every angle, you have to be flexible, you can't rely on what worked for you in the past, and you have to be very open-minded.
Enter Thomas: "I have friends whom when we go out and meet women, they get right to the point and go for their number or a date -- and women love this. If you're interested in asking someone out, you might as well do it. If she says yes, who knows...maybe your life will change. If she says no, life still goes on. But if you don't ask at all, it's still considered a no and there's no shot at what could be."
I know this sounds pathetic. I don't care what people think. This is why I deliberately made this a too-long-to-read status update. Anyway, this is what I did.
I don't have a lot of masculine (or feminine) mystique. Which means I had to work with what I had.
I put up no picture on any dating site. Making use of my "nothing".
Someone told me, or I read somewhere (I forget) that mystique is a key part of charisma. I have no idea if this is true.
Most women won't consider clicking on a profile with no picture. If they did, though, then it meant I could start having a conversation with them and take it to the next level. They had already passed a significant hurdle in clicking on me (a profile with no picture) so they had something invested in me being interesting.
Then, if they said, "why no picture" I had an easy answer which was true "I'M ON TV A LOT".
Not that anyone is shallow, but they suddenly went from knowing nothing about me to knowing I am the type of guy who could be on TV a lot. And then I would send a picture right away.
My biggest rule: Saying NO when everything seemed great.
If I liked a girl, she was pretty, we went on a date, and it was all systems go, BUT I knew this was not going to be a long-term relationship for whatever reason... then I said "No" and would leave before anything would happen.
A spider can get stuck in it's own web (uhh, is this true? I have no idea) and I didn't want to spin anything I would have a hard time getting out of. This is really the most important rule.
Enter Thomas: "This is where it's important to state your intentions to set expectations for the relationship, whether it's romantic or purely sexual. Make it clear and avoid blurring the lines (do not cue Robin Thicke, please)."
Too many people go to bed too quickly. Two problems then:
- now you have a situation to deal with.
- if she goes to bed quickly with you, she might go to bed quickly with someone else.
So I liked girls who said "No" also.
Claudia said to me, after our first kiss, "I like to spend [she gave a time period] getting to know a guy." I said, "Perfect, I like to spend [insert the time she said times two] getting to know the girl."
This sounds manipulative and even like gamesmanship, and it is. I didn't want to seem like I was in a rush or anything. But the reality was, I was shy and liked to take it slow. So it was easy for me to say that. And it threw her off a bit. Mission accomplished!
Enter Thomas: "Here's it's important to know that when it comes to dating, there is a little bit of "gameplay" to make sure both people are legit and suitable for a relationship. What is horrendous is the intentional, "I'll wait 38 minutes to text her back since it took her 47 minutes for to hit me up." That kind of gameplay is stupid, unnecessary, and explains why people who do this are still single. Once you understand the importance of the cat and mouse chase that happens in the initial phase of courtship, you'll be less attached to the small, insignificant details, like what does "OMG LOL" mean."
Tea, no dinner.
I was such an idiot, always setting up dinners with women. To be honest, you know in a few seconds if you're going to be attracted enough to even consider spending the rest of your life with that person.
One time I took an hour long train out to Coney Island for a dinner with a woman who had been the Olympic swimming champion of some Eastern European country. Within two seconds I knew not for me. But there I was in a two hour dinner and then another hour long ride home on a train. No good.
When I met Claudia I pushed really hard for dinner. I knew I liked her. But she kept writing back, "No. Tea! No dinner."
So we met for tea. And she had a specific timeline. She had a 5pm train to catch. So it had to stop at a certain point no matter what.
Enter Thomas: "This is the epitome of my Perfect First Date strategy, where I explain the significance of shorter dates, especially for busy professionals."
I've already written this but when Claudia first wrote me that she was from Buenos Aires I wrote back, "Great! I've never been to Brazil." Thankfully she jumped over another hurdle to meet me by ignoring my total stupidity.
Shows you either how useless 18 years of formal education is or how stupid I was. Maybe both.
Other situations: I went on a date with someone interested in Kaballah. I read everything I could about it in a 3 hour period and was able to drop all the right terms and sound impressive. Again, this sounds manipulative and it is but two things:
- I fully admit I was in a weaker position.
The myth of manipulation is that the manipulator is somehow "stronger" than the person being manipulated.
But no manipulation ever occurs unless the one doing manipulating is weaker. That was me. Weak.
- I really wanted to see if I could be interested in the other person's interests. Particularly since at the time I had almost no interests other than surviving, drinking, and meeting someone. Oh, and I wanted to be a standup comic.
Enter Thomas: "This strategy is great to see if you could get into your date's interests both short and long-term. As someone who loves video games, I don't expect my lady to love it too -- although it would be a bonus. All I need is her support of my passion and understanding of what playing video games does for my overall mood."
I would surprise on every date. Sometimes I would buy offbeat gifts. I also had a list of carefully researched outlandish places all over the city where I could take people on dates. Hidden restaurants, all-dark restaurants, offbeat places that nobody would expect, etc.
Sometimes I would go to the restaurant the day before and pay and tip with all two dollar bills. So when I arrived there the next day with my date I would be treated differently than other customers. I know this is starting to sound more and more loser-ish but I can't help it. This is what I did. And it worked!
Enter Thomas: "Although I can appreciate this, it probably would be better to keep things simple. However, this is James' personality so it fit perfectly with showing women the kind of guy he was."
I could care less about the Federal Reserve and the economy of Greece, etc. But three things about economics are very useful in the dating world:
1) Opportunity Cost.
If you waste time with someone you ultimately won't enjoy being with then that was time you could've spend finding the right person for you.
For all you know, that was THE time you would've found someone who would've changed your life. Opportunity cost in time is a huge factor in dating that 99.9% ignore.
Always remember in life: money you can always make back. Time, once spent, is gone forever.
Enter Thomas: I agree with this when it comes to finding the right person but also investing the time to do so.
2) Supply and Demand.
By using many dating sites and opportunities I kept the supply very high.
I couldn't really control demand that much. I couldn't really do anything to increase the size of the demographic that likes me.
But I did everything I could to increase supply so my ultimate "cost" (time, stress, loneliness) was as low as possible while my value increased.
Enter Thomas: This is why it's important to integrate all opportunities to meet someone – both on and offline.
3) Statistics.
I had no interest in going for someone who would probably not like me.
And, if someone was a lot younger then chances are I would find them boring anyway. So whether it was right or wrong, I used statistics to weed through opportunities.
Enter Thomas: James used a filter in order to determine who was good enough for HIM. Notice how it's always about what or who is best for him and how he never thinks about whether he's good enough for the women he's looking for.
I was almost too honest on dates about the things that were both good and bad about me.
But I had given up on wearing masks to get people to like me so figured this would be an important part of not wasting time.
Claudia asked me immediately on our date if I could describe what was up with my separation. I had nothing to hide.
I didn't like any games at all. If people played games, I was out. For instance, if someone thought it was weird if I called the next day but then was upset if I didn't call the day after that I felt like some "rule" was being used. This was grounds for immediate disqualification.
If I didn't understand the rules, then I wasn't going to follow them.
Similarly, if I couldn't tell if someone liked me by the third date then it was over. You don't need to be a psychic to know if someone likes you in that way or not.
This is not to say it was all clinical and choreographed. On our second date I wanted to kiss Claudia. But I was really shy. I could tell she liked me. So we went on a walk. I had a spot in mind overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge from South Street Seaport. But I got scared.
Then we walked another mile or two and it was getting windy. Finally, we got to another spot and I did something embarrassing and stupid. I made fun of her teeth a little (she has tiny fangs on each side) so I could have an excuse to lean in and kiss. And she kissed back.
Later I called my friend, Dan, and told him, "Ok, the search is over."
Today it's dark and snowing, like the moon split into a million pieces and fell to the Earth. Claudia hates the cold so next week we go to Florida. Sometimes I'm desperate and scared. But sometimes I'm happy.
Enter Thomas: The best part is how we simplified the whole process of finding his match. He didn't play games, although his strategies were intentional. And even though he built up the pressure to kiss Claudia at the right time and missed it, he found a way to get over the fear of rejection and went in. And like he said, it's not hard to know if someone likes you, but you HAVE to express your interest in her FIRST.
Look at this story, learn from what James did, the investment of time and money he made, and find ways to apply it to your life. As this is year the Year of Investment, we'll be here to help you make the right investments to better your dating life.


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I am so excited about HP's new collection, just released today: Boudoir Bliss!
I love having pretty lingerie and loungewear and love sewing my own even more. I love them all so it's going to be tough to decide which one I want to make first.
I don't know why the photos are cut off on the right side. I'll try to figure that out tomorrow. If you want to see the line drawings of the patterns, just hop over to the Hot Patterns website.
I am always looking for new robe styles and I really love this one. It would be just as pretty in cotton for summer as it would be in a sensuous silk.
The nightgown is beautiful and the robe is TDF, don't you think?
This is the sort of thing I'd love to wear when I'm laying on the couch watching a good movie. It just begs for a martini!
This would be perfect for when we visit Bryan's parents over Christmas. I love a nice nightshirt when it's cool out.
Retro pyjamas. Need I say more?
I'm a sucker for anything peasant-inspired. I'd make the pyjama with shorts or make the nightie in voile to wear as a caftan over my swimsuit.
I did work on my 3rd pair of Marrakesh Pants last night. I have a couple of small alterations to make before I can attach the waistband. I should have photos up tomorrow sometime.
I have so many other things in progress but I think I'd better get my corduroy jacket cut out. It was in the 50s last night and I was once again caught without a decent jacket. I'm sure I'll be freezing my you-know-what off at the football game tonight. I do this to myself every year so I just need to push everything aside and get it done before the next cold snap.


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Frame Labelling
Rottler and Rüdiger have a suitable package for labelling spacer frames for every situation. Whether integrated in the benders or the welding blank or as a separate step in the production process. Each production has its own rules. Our solutions fit these requirements.
can be integrated in the saw or bender
online data supply possible
both coloured and black inks are available
also available as an island station


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Corned Beef Hash Made Easy is a combination of potatoes, garlic and onions, is a quick and easy breakfast, brunch, or even dinner recipe. If cooked for breakfast, it makes an excellent combination with fried eggs and toast. This recipe is simple due to using canned corned beef. You can, however, use the standard meat, and make it from scratch. This recipe simply calls for canned corned beef. Just about any type will do. I first encountered this as a Filipino dish, but it has become popular in many cultures throughout the world. Personally, I would give this two thumbs up.
- 250 grams chunky corned beef (canned)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 small white onion slice in rings
- 2 cloves garlic mined
- 1 medium potato diced
- vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup water
- salt and pepper
- Servings:
- Time:
- Level:
- Cuisine:
Recipe Rating:
(5 / 5)
- Peel potato and dice. Set aside in a bowl of warm water.
- Heat cooking oil in a pan. Pan fry potato over medium heat until light brown.
- In the same pan, saute onion and garlic until fragrant. Add in chunky corned beef and saute for few minutes.
- Pour in a little bit of water. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer to a boil over low heat. Turn off heat.
- Serve on a platter and garnish with sliced onion rings.
- Enjoy your Corned Beef Hash Made Easy.


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Lost Scene From The Fire Dancer
The things I find when I go through my notebooks! This would've never fit into The Fire Dancer, but it was a fun little exploration piece when I was figuring out Holly's relationship with Callie and Tristan. Holly travels back to the Seasons in the Sun days for this one, so this was cool for me to see how these two characters, the first I ever came up with, have grown!
(please remember this is raw and unedited, straight from the scribbles in my notebook)
Fourth of July weekend and the Vineyard was packed. I threaded through the crowds on the sidewalk, seeking refuge in a colorful coffee shop. It reminded me of my favorite café in Santa Fe, and I knew this kind of place would have some funky brew of iced tea. Never sure if it was a dream or if I was time traveling at first, I needed to find a place that would ground me.
Women swarmed around the barista station even after they'd picked up their iced lattes. Trevor George's son, Tristan, was behind the counter. My heart pounded when I saw him, he was the one who brought me here. I went up on my tiptoes to get a better look at him. Looks and charm ran in the family. Waiting in line to place my order, I was captivated. His dark eyes glittered when he spoke, his lips curled up in a slow, easy smile. The things that mouth could probably do already.
"Can I help you?" A girl too young to be working asked with enough force to make me believe it wasn't the first time she tried to get my attention. She rolled her eyes when I jumped, then shot a quick glare over to Tristan, knowing who'd stolen my attention away from her. Not in a jealous way, but a don't even bother because he's mine way. That wasn't the only reason she caught me off guard. I didn't expect to give Callie, the future mistress of the most powerful vampire clan in Las Vegas, my drink order.
No, she was the one who brought me here. She had no idea who I was, just another girl staring at her boyfriend. This was a hiccup for me, a trip of five years or so. I always had trouble in my time travels, not blurting something out that would scare the hell out of people. But this time, saying something would change everything. For me. And it was tempting.
"I'd like a large pomegranate orange iced tea, please." If I didn't get this tea I was going to explode. Traveling back to another time didn't make my fire go away. Chaos would break out on the island if I dripped even a spark here.
Waiting for my drink, I had an excuse to watch him. He was just a boy. Jailbait. No matter how good looking he was, it was disgusting to watch women old enough to be his mother flirt shamelessly with him. He took it in stride, born to celebrity through and through, smiling at each one of them like he'd come to work just to make their latte.
Callie joined him to thin the crowd. He softened when she came over. The show didn't stop, but it changed. Young as she was, she was awfully cute. Tawny skin, green eyes, honey colored hair escaping from a braid. She already had fire inside her, too. Good. She was going to needed it. I smiled as she whipped through the line.
She grabbed Tristan's arm. "Why didn't you tell me we were out of soy?" She pushed a honey curl back into her braid.
"Who drinks that shit, anyway?" The smile he gave her was like the sun breaking through the dark sky at dawn. Pure adoration, everyone disappearing around them. The other women waiting for their drinks might as well have had their picture taken with a cardboard cutout. How could they not notice that? I was actually envious of this little girl. She had everything I wanted.
"Half the island does!" Callie threw her arms up before stomping into a back room.
"Holly!" Tristan called out, still snickering from Callie's outburst. "Pomegranate orange iced tea."
Our fingers brushed as he handed me the drink. No sparks. Our eyes locked but the moment was cheapened because I knew I'd never believe his lie. He'd never be able to love anyone but her.
I wondered if I told him his future, if it would change a thing.
"Thanks." I turned and pushed past the crowd. I needed air.
Even though in many respects Tristan was already a man, with Callie he could be a boy. Their fates were already hopelessly intertwined, floating together above the earth in a bubble. When it shattered, it would rain down on everyone. And no amount of fire would alter the outcome. I needed to fight my battles in the present, not the past.
Taking a cool, fruity sip of my drink, I was glad I kept my mouth shut. Even if it wasn't what they expected, they both got what they wanted. Each other.


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Blu-ray Disc. Scarlet Storm has been working in the indy sexploitation film business for a few years now. Catch her in this double dose of indy films, including CRIPPLED BY DESIRE, where she is a woman tormented by a depraved intruder, as well as QUANTUM LEAP OF FAITH, where Scarlet shows her more comical side. (18+ to order)
*Please Note: This is a Blu-ray DVD, so it won't play in a standard DVD player.
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Monday - 1 hour cycle at the gym. This was at a high intensity and I averaged about 85% max heart rate. Quite a tough session and I wore my knee support to help. 10 minutes core exercises in the evening.
Tuesday- my knee was sore at the back (a new one for me!) and I think it was due to wearing the support whilst cycling! Ran 5x3min repeats at 90% heart rate (average 6:45 pace). Did 6miles total.
Wednesday - rest. Knee and legs feel like they have been worked hard so happy to let them recover. 10 minutes core exercises in the evening.
Thursday - 10K tempo run - 44:45 with an average heart rate of 85%. Felt really good with no knee twinges at all.
Friday - 1 hour cycle at the gym. 10 minutes core exercises in the evening.
Saturday- Brilliant 11.5 mile trail run around Cheyne Hill and Fetteresso forest. Slightly mis-timed as we ended up running off road in the dark with one headtorch between four!
Sunday- Rest
Overall pretty happy with this. I'm feeling my fitness is creeping up and my knee isn't giving me too much bother.


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Dear Megan Trainor
My nieces have long advised me that their favourite feminist chats include a taking down of music. They know too well and are actually pretty disgusted at level of sexism in lyrical content. But this time they were a bit peeved as I went to town on their current fav; Megan Trainor.
On the surface, Megs could be great. She isn't the stereotypical figure (As she explained vividly in her first hit) despite there being questionable lines in in all about that bass; I mean, your mother advising you that "Boys like a little more booty to hold at night" is something that should give you nightmares rather than a boost of self esteem, there was an attempt to claim it as the year's feminist anthem.
After the first hit, many wanted to put her on a feminist pedestal, however Megan Trainor has since been outspoken about not defining herself as a feminist (always helpful). The reality it, the bar is so low on positive messages that Megan Trainor's tracks inaccurately appears to be a feminist message. But not so much with the latest. Her current single Dear Future Husband, pedals all the stereotypes you can think of in a heterosexual relationship.
Rather than describe it, let's just do what my nieces and I did yesterday evening:
Dear future husband,
Here's a few things
you'll need to know if you wanna be
My one and only all my life
Take me on a date
I deserve it, babe – Whilst understanding that said date is not in any way a confirmation of sexual activity and respecting my right to say no. I should also advise that as a woman who can earn money, I would be comfortable to split the bill. The request is of your company not your wallet.
And don't forget the flowers every anniversary – I too will not forget the exchanging of gifts for mutual satisfaction, however the respect that one has for another in a relationship is the real gift within marriage, which is never compensated for by the purchase of commodities.
'Cause if you'll treat me right
I'll be the perfect wife – by perfect I do of course, mean, human, as it is irrational to consider someone will be any form of ideal or perfect. Society's view of perfection for women is often purposefully unobtainable and therefore not something I aspire to
Buying groceries – I am sure this is a chore we can both share, perhaps we can take alternate weeks?
Buy-buying what you need – As this is something you specifically require, and as an adult, I am sure, you are able to complete this task yourself and it is not in fact a duty bound agreement of our marriage or the grounds on which our relationship is formed.
You got that 9 to 5
But, baby, so do I
So don't be thinking I'll be home and baking apple pies
I never learned to cook – You will understand that those women who have learned to cook or enjoy it are equally independent
But I can write a hook
Sing along with me
Sing-sing along with me (hey)
You gotta know how to treat me like a lady -"lady" is such a loaded, gendered term, rather just treat me in the way that is most appropriate for my personality and how I have explained I would want to be treated; with respect, dignity, consideration and care.
Even when I'm acting crazy – I know, many believe women are "crazy", the reality of course is that we are prone to the same thoughts and insecurities as any human (including men) there will be times that you too will act "crazy".
Tell me everything's alright
Dear future husband,
Here's a few things you'll need to know if you wanna be
My one and only all my life
Dear future husband,
If you wanna get that special lovin'
Tell me I'm beautiful each and every night – and yet understand that my self esteem is not derived from your acceptance of me.
After every fight
Just apologize – provided you are indeed wrong, this is not simply to appease me.
And maybe then I'll let you try and rock my body right – again this is based on mutual consent, of course.
Even if I was wrong
You know I'm never wrong – there are times where I will be wrong and as a fair human being, who is not a stereotype of a wife, I am able to accept that.
Why disagree?
Why, why disagree?
You gotta know how to treat me like a lady – as above.
Even when I'm acting crazy
Tell me everything's alright
Dear future husband,
Here's a few things
You'll need to know if you wanna be
My one and only all my life (hey, baby)
Dear future husband,
Make time for me
Don't leave me lonely
And know we'll never see your family more than mine – well at least we are talking equals…
I'll be sleeping on the left side of the bed (hey)
Open doors for me and you might get some kisses – good manners are a quality in any gender.
Don't have a dirty mind
Just be a classy guy
Buy me a ring – how lovely of you if you would like to buy me gifts, I can of course purchase goods with my own income.
Buy-buy me a ring, (babe)
You gotta know how to treat me like a lady
Even when I'm acting crazy
Tell me everything's alright
Dear future husband,
Here's a few things
You'll need to know if you wanna be
My one and only all my life
Dear future husband,
If you wanna get that special loving
Tell me I'm beautiful each and every night – Sigh sigh sigh
Well, what a giant feminist mess. Quite frankly, Megan seems confused. The song seems to take me on a patriarchial full circle. Megan is an independent women who has her own income, but would like you to buy her things, who you will need to say sorry to constantly and yet will meet your every whim and need. That's before we even get to the video.
The lyrics are nothing more than a lazy reinforcement of every stereotype of women; obliging and domestic, "high maintenance", needy, emotionally unstable with a warped sprinkling of some form of assertiveness, that requires unreasonable demands and purchases.
Megan Trainor falls into the same trap most popular culture does when it attempts "empowerment", mistaking it for purchase power. Megan Trainor could be a role model, but the reality is, the music industry is about as interested in a positive message for women, as I am in Theresa May's choice of shoe for the Budget announcement.
Try again Megan, as ever happy to be a consultant lyricist. Until then thumbs down for you.


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A list of books for kids related to topics in the book Raising Freethinkers, suggested by readers.Read More
A Humanist Holiday Countdown
In my quest to prove that the winter holidays can be just as meaningful for us heathens as they are for the religious, I was turned on to the idea, very popular on the internet for the past few years, of the Christmas Countdown.Read More
Sunday Blues
When I was young, my father would remark on what seemed like almost every Sunday that it was "God's Day" and he'd forewarn that as a family, we would stay home and do nothing because of it. Sundays, Sabbath to Christians, were to be respected in our household when Dad was around. Yes, he'd prepare a hefty pancake breakfast for us and self-indulge in guitar-playing or song-writing, but for kids who wanted to watch television or have friends over, hanging around the house wasn't fun It took me over 20 years to shake off the stigma of that tradition. In reality, my father was most likely just providing an excuse to kick back & relax one day a week, but using the Sabbath for an excuse. He was (and still is) a factory worker, who at the time was raising a few kids, and in addition to tending to us weekday evenings while my Mom worked her part time job, he cared for us kids on the weekends, too: a 12 year old (myself), a 6 year old, and a newborn. Quite a task, I admit.
Once I grew up, Sundays came & went, and I always felt solemn on those days. I would stay home, mope around, and sometimes even relaxing to a good book wasn't satisfying. It was just a few years ago that I had started practicing trying to feel good about Sundays. Going fun places and doing fun activities rather than sitting at home alone. It took a long time for me to transition from seeing Sundays as "God's Day" to simply a second day of the weekend where I could enjoy friends and indulge in fun.
Being a Roman Catholic is a part of my past--from baptism as a baby to adult-confirmation around age 24. And unfortunately my Sunday memories aren't fond: my father pinching my upper arm really hard during Mass because I was dazing or dozing off. A priest reprimanding me around the time of my First Communion because I couldn't coerce my entire family into attending church with me. And being forced to memorize the Stations of the Cross until I wanted to pull my eyeballs from their sockets. I must be honest...I can't recall many pleasant Sunday memories. Most were just routine Sunday Blues, as I refer to them.
Today I'm very happy that neither of my children will ever be mandated by me to attend Catechism classes, nor will they be forced to go to a specific church. Sundays are a second Saturday in our house and enjoyment is to be had in one of many ways. And being that I'm one who enjoys connecting with a like-minded community, it's possible that my children will experience Sunday mornings in the Unitarian Universalist church, learning about all the religions without adhering to one specific core belief system and developing a connection to the UU's Seven Principles rather than the Ten Commandments. And hopefully become involved with humanitarian efforts alongside other Humanists.
I understand that for many, being a Catholic, or worshiping a God, is a welcomed feature of their lives. However, that's not the case for me. And I am grateful I can now say that it's okay. Part of rehabbing my former Catholic-mind involved myself attending Unitarian Universalist sermons, which brought me back into a church. I started going eight years ago. I grew to love the educational sermons led by various professional, intellectual people. I enjoyed the intellectual atmosphere and admired the values practiced. Now, I'm a public school teacher who, although an Atheist, educates high school Global History students on the various religions of the world (a requirement of the state curriculum). I'm also a member of a new, local Humanist chapter, which I see as another stepping stone in my personal journey through life as a proud, happy Atheist. Through identifying as a Humanist, I continue to believe that being a good person & having a heart isn't about honoring Jesus or connecting with God. It's about good habits, ethical practices, and being involved in a healthy future for not only oneself & those one loves, but the broader spectrum of community--those in my nation and around the world.
I will conclude on a humorous note: as I sat visiting my parents this past weekend, there was a knock at their door, which I promptly answered. A man informed me that he was there to take photographs of their home for home-owners insurance purposes--a routine procedure. After I asked him to wait and informed my parents of his request, my father seemed astonished and mumbled something while approaching the door. Whatever he said, ended with "...on a Sunday?!" I laughed to myself and thought of this blog post I had just penned. No matter how much time passes, some things never change.
Jessica is a history buff, as well as a certified New York State public school teacher and current vice president of the CNY Humanist Association. Her interests are listening to music, reading nonfiction memoirs, and both swimming and running. She has previously lived in Houston and Yonkers, and now presently resides in suburban Central New York. Her views are not those of the AHA, the CNYHA, or any other organization. In addition, her opinions are subject to change upon further reflection. Your thoughts, expressed in a polite way, are always welcome.
Life, Death & Charlotte's Web
When I finally let go of my Catholic faith - along with the religious teachings that provided ready answers to questions of death and dying - the topic often made me feel uncomfortable. I didn't have a reassuring answer to the "What happens when we die" type of question. And when my two daughters grew older and started to ask those deeper questions, I began feeling more pressure to have comforting yet truthful ways to discuss death, dying, and how to lead a meaningful life.
One answer - read lots of literature together! Children's stories offer no shortage of thoughtful fodder for conversation about death and dying - even when that isn't a topic you intended to discuss. A case in point - Charlotte's Web.
Over the past weeks, as the June evenings grew longer and longer, every night my 5 and 7 year old daughters cuddled together with me on my bed to read E.B. White's beloved novel.
Charlotte's Web is the story of a tiny runt of a pig named Wilbur who is first saved from death by young Fern Arable, and eventually goes to live on the farm of Fern's uncle, Mr. Zuckerman. There Wilbur gets to know the other animals in the barn, but doesn't make a true friend until he meets Charlotte - a large grey spider who makes her home in Wilbur's doorway.
In between giggling over my my attempts to "do the voices" of the fast-talking Goose, sweet humble Wilbur, sly rat Templeton, and calm clever Charlotte - my girls and I had dozens of deep conversations. Sometimes they were prompted by my questions.....
Do you think Wilbur should have escaped when he had the chance? Charlotte says that she "has to say what's true" - what do you think about that? Why do you think Charlotte was so calm at the end?
But more often, discussions were led by their observations.....
Templeton's not such a jerk now, but maybe he's just fooling. Why did that Goose have to tell him he's going to die? That's just mean!
And honestly, I had forgotten how intense this book really is. There is no gentle build-up to more emotional parts. The very first line of the book is "Where's Papa going with that ax?". Overall, the author is fairly matter-of-fact about death - dispassionately describing the details of Charlotte's method of trapping and eating her prey. ("I always give them an anaesthetic so they won't feel pain. It's a little service I throw in.") And Wilbur's impending Christmas-time slaughter is handled in the same forthright way. ("When a pig is to be butchered, everybody helps.")
But I had also forgotten how deeply meaningful the book can be. Yes, there is the theme of friendship, but now I noticed something else: the power of the right words to change our self perception - and even the opinions of others. When Charlotte plays her "trick" (as she calls it) and labels Wilbur "some pig", "terrific", and "radiant", he is initially uncomfortable with those terms until finally becoming inspired to attempt acting in a "terrific and radiant" way. Eventually he sees those qualities in himself and the farmhand (Lurvy), the Zuckermans and the Arables all start noticing their amazing pig.
Yes, there is some brief religious content in Charlotte's Web - but presented in a gentle, non-proselytizing way. When Lurvy first sees "Some Pig" in the web, he drops to his knees to pray. And the messages are sometimes called a "miracle" by Mr. Zuckerman who promptly drives over to consult with his minister, who advises him not to tell anyone and "I can explain it in my sermon next Sunday." (Lots of opportunity for conversation there!)
In the end, I had expected my daughters to be more moved by the story, but instead, I was the one blinking back tears as Charlotte dies alone at the fair. But I reminded myself not to expect too much at their ages. In Raising Freethinkers: A Practical Guide for Parenting Beyond Belief, Dale McGowan notes, "Compared to their parents, children have a greatly reduced grasp of death" but "...early engagement can only help to build a foundation of understanding and familiarity to ease and inform their later encounters with this most profound of all human realities."
For now, the main results of reading Charlotte's Web are a temporary halt to killing all spiders in our home and the addition of "Salutations!" to our family's vocabulary. However, even if my daughters never remember the details of our bedtime conversations about Charlotte's Web, I hope it adds another layer to the foundation of experiences they'll have to draw on later when needed.
I'll leave the final words to Charlotte:
"After all, what's a life anyway? We're born, we live a little while, we die. A spider's life can't help being something of a mess, with all this trapping and eating flies. By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heaven knows anyone's life can stand a little of that."
Corrina lives in Central New York with her husband, their two little girls, and piles of books that often threaten to take over unless tamed. She is an elementary school teacher and current president of the CNY Humanist Association. Her views are not those of the AHA, the CNYHA, or any other organization. In addition, her opinions are subject to change upon further reflection. Your thoughts, expressed in a polite way, are always welcome.