text:
Welcome to the podcast show notes and transcript for Episode 6: Travel Tips from 27+ Trips To France. In this episode Rachel Heller and I speak with Francophile travel blogger, Janice Chung, who writes an everything-related-to-France Travel Blog at France Travel Tips. Janice loves France so much that she has made 27+ trips to France (with no signs of stopping anytime soon). So you figure this lady knows what she's talking about – including tips on must see France, where to take the best French immersion course and the best active holidays in France such as cycling and running. Janice's love for France is contagious. Listen and see if you catch the Francophile bug, too!
- 1 Time Stamped Show Notes
- 2 Listen
- 3 Reviews and Subscriptions
- 4 Transcript
- 4.1 27 Trips To France And Counting
- 4.2 Janice's Must See France
- 4.3 Why French Women Don't Get Fat
- 4.4 Tips on French Faux Pas To Avoid
- 4.5 Running Marathons in France
- 4.6 Staying in a Hotel versus Renting an Apartment
- 4.7 French Immersion Courses
- 4.8 Join our growing community of readers!
- 4.9 More from my site
Time Stamped Show Notes
00:42 27+ Trips To France
1:56 Janice's Must See France
- 2:00 I love Paris In The Springtime (… and Summer, Fall and Winter)
- 3:22 Provence Makes Three In This Love Affair
- 6:37 Cycling in France (With Pitstops at Wineries)
8:35 Why French Women Don't Get Fat
12:22 Tips on French Faux Pas To Avoid
16:27 Running Marathons in France
21:23 Staying in a Hotel versus Renting an Apartment
23:21 French Immersion Courses
Go here to listen to Episode 6 of the 1001 Travel Travels Podcast.
If you don't use iTunes, you can listen by clicking on the link below.
[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/311584101″ params="auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%" height="450″ iframe="true" /]
Reviews and Subscriptions
Now if you like the podcast then it would be a HUGE help if you subscribed and left a rating & review.
——-> Episode 6 of the 1001 Travel Tips Podcast <——-
It might seem insignificant, but it helps more than you might think.
This is a transcript of 1001 Travel Tales Podcast: Episode 6: Travel Tips from 27+ Trips To France (Transcript). The text has been lightly edited for clarity and readability.
A conversation with Shobha George (Just Go Places Blog), Rachel Heller (Rachel's Ruminations) and Janice Chung (France Travel Tips)
RH: We'd like to welcome today Janice Chung of Francetraveltips.com. We asked Janice to come and talk to us because of her particular obsession with France. She doesn't just keep a blog about France but she has visited a lot. Tell us about that Janice, how many times have…
27 Trips To France And Counting
JC: Yeah one of my best friends actually coined the term, it's a made up term is called Frenchcentric and this is even before I had done a ton of trips. So I just completed my 27th trip to France.
JC: I went with one of my friends who's been 10 times. It was quite the journey because I think we covered too much ground. Just after Christmas, we visited Paris, took the train down to Bordeaux and saw the brand new museum La Cite du Vin which is the Wine Museum. We headed to Toulouse and Cotes de Ciel and then onwards to Marseille. So one of the things when I travel to France I like to see new places and or I like to see places that I've written about that I'm dying still to see. To everyone's surprise, you know there's so many places in France I still haven't seen. Well it's so big and so different all around.
RH: Now you have established that you've seen a lot of France but not all of it. I assume the goal is to see everything?
JC: Yeah, I mean I guess the time will come when I've run out or I don't have the ability to travel physically anymore.
Janice's Must See France
RH: Of all the places you actually visited what would you say are your must-sees?
I love Paris In The Springtime (… and Summer, Fall and Winter)
JC: Well definitely Paris. I love Paris. There's something about it. There's so much to see. First of all, I know it like the back of my hand so I don't need to use a map. I mean I do for little things but for the major things I don't.
SG: Do you always stay in the same area? Is there a particular neighborhood you love?
JC: The Left Bank in the 5th, 6th, or 7th arrondissements so that's on the South side of the Seine. And I really like it because it's so accessible. Not just walking somewhere but there seem to be Metro stops or Metro connections that are most accessible.
On our last trip with this friend of mine, we stayed near the Eiffel Tower. Great hotel but I probably wouldn't stay there again because I found that we were traveling much further distances on the Metro than usual to get to places. Nothing wrong with where we stayed very safe and everything. Certainly close to the Eiffel Tower which was great because the Christmas markets were going on.
Don't like the Right Bank as much because there didn't seem to be as many restaurants that were in my price range which is like not cheap but medium. Because the Right Bank has the Champs Elysees part of it. So you're talking about a more expensive area.
RH: 12 Euros glass of wine I remember the last time I was there.
Provence Makes Three In This Love Affair
JC: Exactly. So after Paris my heart is in Provence. My very first trip when I was 19 I went with one of my sisters and my parents and we did Paris. We took the train down to Provence to visit friends of ours that had a house. I fell in love with that area. In particular, the hilltop towns like Gordes, Menerbes, Roussillon that kind of thing.
RH: What is it about them that's so special?
JC: First of all, smaller towns. There's something I don't know. I don't even want to say friendlier because I do find Paris to be friendly maybe because I can speak enough French to get by. It's a slower pace, it's not go, go, go. I can actually relax.
SG: I find the light in the South of France amazing. And it's quite gentle and it falls and kind of bathes everything in a happy glow.
RH: Well, Van Gogh certainly loved it down there.
SG: True, that's a good point.
JC: I think another thing is the wine. I love Chateauneuf du Pape. We were staying in Gordes which is not too far from Chateauneuf du Pape. As a 19 year old who did not like wine at that time, that's when I started… Boy, that's a high bar.
SG: I know, you started with Chateauneuf du Pape?
JC: We were drinking it like water because it was so cheap. So it's my favorite wine now.
RH: France was the first place I ever drank wine out of a box.
The people that I lived with everyday at lunch had a whole meal – you know several courses which I cooked. They had a box of Cotes du Rhone they would always want to open. We would have Cotes du Rhone. That was where I learned to drink wine. It was having wine everyday at lunch and everyday at dinner. It was just part of the routine which you think would be bad but it wasn't.
JC: No, because you're right. The first time I rented a house in Provence we bought a big thing of wine and the quality is really good. It's like at most restaurants their house wines in restaurants anywhere in France are quite good.
RH: Yeah it was like a milk carton. Like one of those long-life milk cartons but it had a little faucet of sorts on the bottom.
RH: And you perch it on the edge of the counter and pour from that. First trip there was when you were 19. Is that what made you such a Francophile or that happened gradually later?
SG: When did you learn to speak French?
JC: Oh yeah. In Canada in Toronto we start learning in grade 4 so when you're 9 years old. So I took it through high school. In university actually I didn't take French. It was after that I'd take it as continuing education. Then I've done a few immersion courses in France for weeks at a time.
SG: Getting back to Rachel's question so you were pretty fluent already.
JC: So what happened was it wasn't that first trip. I was 10 years old and there was a movie and it was called [easyazon_link identifier="B000AP04MO" locale="US" tag="jg20-20″]Two For The Road[/easyazon_link] with Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney. And it's about a couple who are traveling from England to the South of France and that's when I fell in love with France.[easyazon_image align="none" height="500″ identifier="B000I9YXKG" locale="US" src="https://www.justgoplacesblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/513ho5Cw4iL.jpg" tag="jg20-20″ width="386″]
RH: Wow, before you even got there.
JC: Yeah. I remember going through travel brochures thinking I got to go to France. I need to see these places.
RH: In fact, your must see list. We've got Paris, we've got Provence.
Cycling in France (With Pitstops at Wineries)
JC: The Loire Valley is known as the Valley of Kings so we have a lot of Chateaus from the, 17th century and probably even before 15th [century]. There's Chateau du Chenonceau which you see usually in photos, travel mags that kind of thing.
RH: That's the one that's built our over the river, right?
JC: That's right the River Cher.
RH: It's funny that you mention the Loire because that was what made me fall in love with France. I went when I was 11 with my family. It was my parent's first trip ever overseas and I don't know how many of those castles we visited but I just couldn't get enough of it. I just loved it.
Amazing, they're just beautiful and each one is so different from the one before and they're also from different periods. Like Blois is older – it's from the middle ages at least parts of it. I was 11 and I just loved them and always will.
JC: And unfortunately I have not done a bicycle trip in that area but for listeners, that's certainly one of the most popular areas to do a bike trip because it's all flat.
I've done 2 bike tours, 3, I've lost track. My very first one was the Dordogne and Bordeaux and parts of it were very hilly but you compensate that with stopping at wineries. Having a little wine and you have a van that takes your luggage,
SG: I really do hope the wineries are at the top of the hill because then you can just skate on down.
JC: It was tough and you know sometimes when you're taking a bike tour if it's a summer in France it can be extraordinarily hot. That trip was wonderful.
I hadn't been to the Bordeaux area the Medoc and it was a lot of fun. Then I did another one with a friend in Burgundy and that was also hilly at times. Going to wineries and you know fortunately you wear off all the great food that you're eating. You're biking for a big chunk of the day.
Why French Women Don't Get Fat
RH: This is the other thing about France is the food. Which is so extraordinary I mean even just any hole in the wall place will just have amazing food. And just a loaf of bread for breakfast is so much better than bread pretty much anywhere else.
JC: Yeah, rumor has it that the bread or the flour that they're using is so different from the flour that they use in North America or I'll just say Canada. Like people who say I can't eat bread in Canada, they go crazy when they're in France
SG: It's like why aren't French women bigger because I would be ODing on the butter, the cheese, and the bread.
JC: Mireille Giuliano wrote the book [easyazon_link identifier="0375710515″ locale="US" tag="jg20-20″]French Women Don't Get Fat[/easyazon_link]and they don't snack, they eat smaller portions. There is the question of the wine paradox you know the red wine or actually, it could be white wine too.[easyazon_image align="none" height="500″ identifier="0375710515″ locale="US" src="https://www.justgoplacesblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/51ITGr6aPKL.jpg" tag="jg20-20″ width="325″]
SG: What's the red wine paradox, I don't know it?
JC: But it's very healthy for you drinking wine.
I think that it's just that they eat high quality, small portions. In North America, we do the reverse we eat high quantities, low quality.
SG: And then when you go elsewhere it's hard to switch the quantity out. In France I would eat large quantities of really good food.
RH: Exactly, when I lived there as an au pair I was in college. I was taking a term off college and working as an au pair. And that's where I learned how to cook actually. I didn't know how and they taught me.
Which was nice but yeah, the portions were just tiny and we had biftek – steak essentially. It was tiny. One serving was less than a playing card size and very thin as well. It was really small. But the meal that I would make for them at lunch would have several courses. There'd be a soup and there'd be the steak bleu I never could make it blue enough. Bleu means really rare. No matter how quickly I cooked it they would say no it's not bleu enough. It was amazing.
JC: Yeah the French really love their rare.
RH: And there would be a vegetable course or salad course and there'd be a dessert. I mean there'd be 4 or 5 courses at lunch everyday. That sounds like a lot of food but for each course, the portions were tiny. So yeah, they just don't overeat.
JC: I think the other thing too is they walk everywhere. That's why you'll see even in hotels (or especially in hotels) stairs. You won't find elevators.
I remember reading some reviews on travel websites and people are complaining and there was no elevator. Yeah, I can imagine it would be hard if you're carrying this gigantic suitcase up 6 flights of stairs. I don't carry a gigantic suitcase over.
Anyway, I really like the culture and how they live. They really like at lunchtime you were talking about all the courses. They really do spend at least an hour eating lunch, You don't walk down the street eating your burger.
RH: Yeah, the people I was working for, the father would come home at lunch time everyday, I'd prepare a meal for him. The mother was bedridden which is why they hired me. So she taught me how to cook without getting off the sofa you see. So it was great for all of us. But we would sit down and have a proper meal at lunch everyday. It was a social occasion and it included wine. Then he went back to work.
JC: What I've read to is that Sunday lunches where families would get together are really, really important. I don't know if that still a tradition in France where Sunday family meals happen.
Tips on French Faux Pas To Avoid
RH: Yeah, I don't know either. It's been a long time since that au pair experience. That was back in the 80's. But let me ask you another question? Have you ever sort of committed a faux pas in France that you'd like to tell us about?
JC: Okay, I haven't done it maybe because I've been over so many times. I've read so many books for example. If there's any book written about someone's experience in France I've read it. One of the most common mistakes tourists make when they're in France, if you enter a store or an establishment hotel or whatever the first thing you should do is say bonjour. You don't go "where can I find the tea or the scarves?". You say bonjour madame, bonjour monsieur. It's just a way that the French behave. If you don't do that you're frowned upon and you could be treated differently.
SG: It's very polite. Good manners.
JC: It is and they're very big on rules and procedures. That's why there's often this criticism about the bureaucracy in France. If a person, for example, wants to move to France the red tape that they have to go through is extraordinary.
RH: Well I think these things are true in most places.
JC: Yeah. So I think that would be one of the biggest things is to say bonjour, mercy. You know when you're traveling to France, particularly if it's your first time, learn a few phrases. It's like going anywhere. I went to Bhutan back in October and it's a difficult language but I learned one phrase and every time I went to say it to a Bhutanese person they'd giggle. I think they were giggling because well she's trying.
SG: Yes. What was your one phrase thank you or hello?
JC: It was hello.
RH: You know the stereotype especially about Paris is that people are so rude. What's your take on that?
JC: They're not. You know maybe I'm the exception because I speak French.
I've only had one bad incident and what happened was a bought a sweater at a very well-known clothing store and I realized no, it was either a bigger size or a different color that I wanted. So the next day I went back and the woman said you've worn it. It's all wrinkled. I said I haven't worn it. So I decided to argue with her and she backed down.
And that's very common from what I've heard. You will be argued but, if you stand up for yourself, they'll back down. And it was fine. But I don't find the French rude if you make the effort to speak French and you follow the customs.
RH: And that's absolutely the key because I've had people say oh but people were rude to me there. I said did you speak French did you at least say bonjour? No, they didn't they started right in in English. As soon as you say bonjour what I found is that I'd go ahead and say a whole sentence in French. I used to actually speak French and hearing my accent they'd switch to English with me. Then it was no problem at all.
JC: I think the worst thing anyone can do is to say parlez vous Anglais? No, no, don't say do you speak English as the first thing that comes out of your mouth. I agree with you, first thing bonjour. The other thing I've heard about Paris (and I agree with this is) if you want to learn French don't stay in Paris. The reason is they get such an influx of tourists speaking English that you'll inevitably meet people who speak English. You won't learn your French.
SG: Just about everybody I've met in Paris has spoken English well. Better than my French whereas outside of Paris you definitely could speak French more.
JC: And it's more fun! What you're really, really trying to speak the language and using sign language and making mistakes. And one thing the French love to do is (and I don't mind this at al)l is they will correct you if you say something wrong. I don't mind it.
Running Marathons in France
SG: So when's your next trip to France planned?
JC: May and I'm having a great dilemma.
SG: Why's that?
JC: So the dilemma is I have been to Mont Saint Michel with just the cathedral on the island. There's water that separates it from the land and then when the tide goes out you can actually walk across. I'm doing a half-marathon race there. And then I thought well I'll tour around Brittany. I haven't been West of Mont Saint Michel to Dinan to all those places. I'm torn to go back to the South of France.
RH: But back up and tell us about this marathon? I'm picturing Mont Saint Michel here, right. You know then you go across the causeway and you sort of wind your way up on the Island up to the church at the top. Does the marathon go up that or do you start at the top and then go down?
JC: No, this is a half-marathon so it's 21.1km. It starts East of Mont Saint Michel in a town called Avranches. And you start there and you run towards the Mont Saint Michel. I assume it ends right in front. My guess is it just stops in front. As for the marathon, I can't remember what the route is. I think they start at Mont Saint Michel and they do a loop. They go West and then they come back. Training isn't so good lately but anyways we'll see.
SG: Are you a marathon runner as well?
JC: I used to be. I've done the Paris Marathon. I've done a whole bunch of half marathons.
I've also done the Marathon du Medoc which I have to tell you about. This is a marathon that is a big party. You don't go for your best time. This one is 42.2 km and there are 22 water stations so basically every 2km. And at the water stations there's water, there's raisins, there's cookies, granola you name it and there's also wine. So…
RH: I love it.
JC: This is what I did. I would stop I'd have a little sip of wine, I'd eat something and drink some water and then I'd run on to the next water station. And I think I did that for 21 of the 22 water stations. One water station was so packed with people that I thought I'm not waiting.
There was grilled beef, there were oysters, there was ice cream, like little ice cream bars on a stick. There were cookies, there were chips and then there was the typical stuff that you find at water stations besides water. Sugar cubes, I know it sounds weird they don't do it in Canada.
RH: So basically you run a marathon and by the end of it you're drunk and you've gained weight.
JC: You don't gain weight actually because you run. I think I burned 2800 calories maybe more. You don't get drunk because everybody wants to cross the finish line so you just have a sip. Because you're mixing it with water and food you just don't.
When you cross the finish line you're handed a medal, a knapsack, a wooden box containing a bottle of Bordeaux wine and a cup on a string that goes around your neck. So you can go to the beer and wine tent where there's more free beer and wine and food.
RH: So you get drunk after.
JC: Yes. Remember I said Marathon du Medoc? People dress up in costumes so the theme when I did it which was 2013 was science fiction. So there were people dressed in different costumes.
Then there were these, there must have been 8 guys dressed as Flash Gordon. So they were wearing the red suit with the big Z or the lightning flash. I said can I have my picture taken with you? Not only did they say yes, they picked me up. It's probably one of my favorite photos.
And that was at the oyster line after we had eaten oysters. It sells out very quickly and it's usually the first, second weekend in September.
RH: That's a great tip. Talk about off the beaten path. They do things with style.
JC: They do. It's not just a race. It's a whole event and that's why it's so much fun. Yeah, there are people who love marathons but actually I met 3 people from England and it's very easy, right. You just hop on the Eurostar and you take a train down to Bordeaux. Actually, the race took place in Pauillac which is just outside of Bordeaux. Lots of foreigners run because it's a very famous race.
Staying in a Hotel versus Renting an Apartment
RH: Tell us about you particularly as a traveler. When you first arrive in a place what's the first thing you do?
JC: So often I will rent an apartment for a week or a house or whatever I probably would go grocery shopping. I know that sounds so boring but going to a French grocery store is amazing, I love it.
It's so different from in Canada or I would say anywhere in North America. For example, if you want yoghurt, good luck. I remember bumping into some Canadians in the grocery store. I was just staring at the yogurt because there were so many different types. Even the wine. Their grocery stores will sell wine and the quantity, quality but especially the price. You can get an amazing bottle of wine for like 3 Euros which is like $5 Canadian.
So I have great fun in the grocery store and of course, I'll stock up, load my refrigerator. By the way, it's a very, very small refrigerator so you can't buy too much. You just won't find enormous fridges in French apartments.
RH: So you rent an apartment when you're there. You don't stay in a hotel.
JC: A mix or I will get an apartment that has a kitchenette if I can. But I still do eat out, I just won't eat out as frequently as you know one would. But you know I do like to try out some local places that might be recommended.
So after I do that then I just start wandering. I love to walk and wander around often I will rent a car. The one time I didn't was when I went to Montpelier. I took a one week course and stayed there because everything is in the town. Then I flew back to Paris and stayed there a week.
French Immersion Courses
SG: If you're interested in doing an immersion course in France to improve your French what's the best one that you've been to?
JC: Best experience I've ever had and I been twice and I would go back again is called Ecole des Trois Ponts. School of the 3 points literally. It's in Roanne which is west of Lyon.
It's a total immersion so you stay on the compound which has rooms with private bathrooms. I really can't remember it's not a lot of rooms. I would say maybe 8 to 10. You have breakfast, lunch, and dinner together. You have classes in the morning and perhaps in the afternoon depending what package you take.
The first time I look it I had classes in the morning and then I think 2 evenings and breakfast, lunch, dinner. It was just a week. And you're speaking French all the time and so that's what made it so special. You know really a positive experience where I got a lot out of it.
The other thing was it's student learning. They basically cater to your needs. Yes, they have a plan of how they're going to teach you. If you start talking about food they might go in that direction. So it's really good. It's not so structured that you know oh, I've got to follow exactly what they're doing.
RH: Is this one-on-one lessons or in small groups?
JC: No small groups. So at one time I think there were 4 of us in the class and then the second time there were 4 again. So the second time I did it, I had classes in the morning and then cooking in the afternoon.
It was unreal but all the cooking instruction was in French. Oh my Lord! And that's a whole different vocabulary. These were not you know just one course. It was like French cooking, of course.
RH: Funny how we keep circling back to food.
JC: Exactly. And I've stayed in touch now with the couple and this other lady who I met back in 2011. It was fabulous. I can't say it enough about this school because I really, really did improve my French and learn. I mean to the point where you're making jokes in class.
That's how the comfort level improved. And they do evaluate you. It's not like it's just a free for all. They show you how you've progressed and that's what you want. You want to see that there's been some improvement.
RH: Why don't you live there if you're so crazy…
JC: Well my father's 91 almost 92. It's more kind of like I want to be close to home. So that's why. But yeah my heart is in France.
RH: I think we're going to wrap this up then. I'd like to thank you, Janice Chung for talking to us. It's been really fun talking to you.
JC: And thank you to both of you for having me on. I get so excited talking about France.
RH: Tell that. But Janice writes for France Travel Tips that's one word Francetraveltips.com. So you should go and check out her site.
SG: Thanks very much bye bye.
JC: Thank you so much. Thank you. Bye.
{End of Transcript}
This article contains affiliate links for which the fully disclosure policy may be found here.


text:
My team and I will be doing a 12 week SUMMER ENERGY program. With all of our summer activities, we could all benefit from additional energy. Here is the deal- you will get Peppermint, Lemon, and Grapefruit oils at my cost. You can choose to either ingest them daily or use them topically (or both) and You will drink lots of water. You will be put into a private Facebook group for check in, tracking your energy levels, and to get directions on how to use the oils. The cost is $60 for 12 weeks. I promise you this combination gives me unbelievable energy, NATURALLY , and it may even give you and added side benefit of healthy weight management (think pounds gone!). Join me! My order goes in June 15th and We will start June 29th.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Join the Energy Boost challenge!
Posted by Tricia at 5:36 PM
No comments:
Links to this post
Labels: Ylo
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Loving me some Bo Bunny!
There is a beautiful kit available with these goodies AND MORE at the Birds of a Feather Kit Co. store!
Posted by Tricia at 7:20 PM
No comments:
Links to this post
Saturday, November 22, 2014
November Kit Projects!
Have you shopped at the boutique at Birds of a Feather here?
The November kit was SUPERBLY full of so many goodies and great textures!
Posted by Tricia at 7:49 PM
No comments:
Links to this post
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Memories of Florida!
Posted by Tricia at 7:07 AM
No comments:
Links to this post
Sunday, April 20, 2014
My Easter Treasures!
Posted by Tricia at 8:12 PM
1 comment:
Links to this post
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Some Goodies to share!
I am loving how quickly Project Life pages can come together. Yesterday I whipped over to Hobby Lobby and picked up some theme packs and VOILA! A basketball spread and a Halloween spread!
Birds of a Feather Kit Co.where they debuted the new Tweet Life kit, a pocket page system of products. Here are my first reveals on this design team:
Posted by Tricia at 10:43 AM
No comments:
Links to this post
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Creating For Faith Hope and Love has a great challenge on the blog, FHL#1. After everything Jen has been through, I was feeling encouraged to participate so I did! The challenge was to quote scripture on your card. This is what I came up with! TFL!!
Posted by Tricia at 9:40 PM
1 comment:
Links to this post
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
The last of the Winterfest Challenges!
Posted by Tricia at 8:57 PM
No comments:
Links to this post
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Winterfest 2014: Cyber Crop Weekend for Me!!!
Posted by Tricia at 7:39 PM
No comments:
Links to this post
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Recent SharePoint and Office 365 update changed title of required input columns by adding Required Field. This may break your code and give unexpected errors exceptions.
Redirect or navigate user to different link from SharePoint site or site collection page using content editor web part and window.location.href
Facebook shows a message when you logout from the website - Thanks for stopping by! We hope to see you again soon.
reCaptcha : Verification expired. Check the checkbox again.
How to create a large dummy file using Mac OS X Terminal Command.
How to see complete SharePoint error instead of unexpected error occurred Correlation ID by editing web.config attributes customErrors mode=off and SafeMode CallStack=false
How can be change the default theme color for Android FAB FloatingActionButton icon in Android Studio.
Facebook planning to launch a new app called NOTIFY for real time breaking news by end of October 2015, which will be in competition to Twitter Moments.
How to resolve : java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError: java.awt.Toolkit in Android Studio.
How to remove Floating Action Button Android Studio Blank Activity Template.
How to transfer photos, music and other files between Mac OS X and your Android device using usb cable.
No Android device found : Please connect your Android device with a USB cable to get started (Android File Transfer App on Mac OS X System).
How to redirect SharePoint user to another custom page after submitting NewForm.aspx, EditForm.aspx or DispForm.aspx after the list item is created added
MTNL Broadband now provides Static IP service available for Rs. 200 per month.
How to resolve Android Studio Error when running App on Device : The selected device is incompatible.
Code2care is one of the most popular website among Mobile App & Web developers. We share knowledge in technical
and non-technical areas gathered during day-to-day learnings and development activities. Technical posts might
include Learnings, Tutorials, Video Tutorials, Code Snippets, Tips-n-tricks, e.t.c. on various platforms
(like Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Mobile platforms, etc) and technologies/languages (like C Programming, Java,
Objective-C, PHP, .Net, Android Programming, SharePoint, jQuery, HTML, CSS, etc).
Follow us : Facebook - Twitter - Google +


text:
Peters & Love Pop Quiz: Unrealistic Expectations
How good are you at spotting someone else's unrealistic expectations?
Question 1:
Susan had macular degeneration and was considered legally blind. Despite her visual limitations, she was very independent. She wanted a large, sunny apartment located close to an elevator. After working with her for over 9 months, Jill finally had the perfect place for her: an east-facing 2-bedroom apartment with a unique floor plan and two patios. It was located a very short distance from both of our elevators. Her children talked her out of it. Why?
a. They thought she needed Assisted Living.
b. They didn't like the view.
c. They thought it cost too much.
d. All of the above.
Answer: Really, only "c" could be considered a reasonable objection, since she didn't need Assisted Living and couldn't actually see the view, but "b" is the correct answer.
Question 2:
James was tall, tan, and dashing. He came in one day with his beautiful (much younger) girlfriend on his arm. Leslie showed them the largest available apartment in Independent Living, but he just wasn't ready to make a move. A couple of years later, James called and asked Leslie to meet with him in his home. Instead of a girlfriend, he had a male caregiver on his arm. No longer able to walk, James was in a wheelchair. Why did he want to meet with her?
a. To see if Leslie was still single.
b. To find out whether or not the Independent Living apartment he had seen two years earlier was still available.
c. He wanted Leslie to take his name off of the waiting list because he was moving to Hawaii.
d. None of the above.
Answer: In spite of the fact that he was incapable of living independently, the correct answer is "b".
Question 3:
Louise, a divorcee, had enjoyed the good life and loved to ski, play tennis, and entertain her friends. She lived rent-free for many years in her daughter's spacious and elegant second home. When the house went on the market, Louise had to find an alternate living situation Her only source of income was her portion of her ex-husband's Social Security check. With financial support from her children, she could afford to live in a studio apartment at the community. What did she do?
a. She took them up of their offer and moved into a studio.
b. She insisted that she couldn't live in anything smaller than a 2-bedroom apartment, and stormed out.
c. She moved in with her son and his family.
d. She moved into a low-income housing apartment that she could afford on her own.
Answer: Louise couldn't bear the degree of downsizing that her financial constraints dictated. The answer is "b". Her children were not amused.
Score Yourself
0 Correct – Uh-oh. Your eyes must be closed!
1 Correct –The lenses in your glasses are still a bit too rosy.
2 Correct – You must know someone with unrealistic expectations.
3 Correct – You've been through this before!
These are all true stories of people we met while working at a continuing care retirement community. We unfortunately have no idea what became of Susan, James, or Louise. However, their stories are good examples of how unrealistic expectations and denial can prevent us from making wise decisions.
As we consider the needs of our parents – and ourselves – it's important to think realistically about how best to meet them. If it's too difficult to set emotions aside, get a neutral third party involved. A strong, compassion-filled dose of reality is in everyone's best interest. (That's our specialty.)


text:
Commencing then our reading of the Epistle, we find the opening
address in verses 1 and 2. To whom does he write? To "strangers
scattered" or "sojourners of the dispersion," to people who were a
standing witness to the fact that the Jew had forfeited his ancient
privileges, to folk who had lost all the earthly foothold they ever
had, though it was a big foothold as originally granted. Yet the
sojourners he addressed were not by any means all the scattered Jews of
those provinces, but such of them only as were "elect," or chosen of
Three things are mentioned as to God's choice of them, connected
respectively with the Father, the Spirit and Jesus Christ. Note the
prepositions used:-
"According to," indicating
"Through," indicating the
means employed.
"Unto," indicating the
end in view.
God's choice of them-and of us, for both Jew and Gentile come into
the same Christian blessings on the same ground, as Paul's epistles
show-was characterized by His foreknowledge as Father. What a comfort
this is! How far removed it is from the blind fate which is supposed by
some to preside over human destiny. God's election is never capricious
and the idea of a sinner earnestly desiring salvation, and yet
prevented by an adverse decree, is a nightmare of human reason and not
Scripture. God chooses, knowing the end from the beginning, and
therefore His choice is always right and justifies itself in its
His choice is made effectual "through sanctification of the Spirit."
The root idea of "sanctification" is "setting apart for God" and the
Holy Spirit is He who, by His inward life-giving work, sets apart the
one who is the subject of it.
The end in view is that the one so set apart should be marked by the
obedience of Christ-that is, obey even as He obeyed-and also come under
the efficacy of His blood to this end. The words "of Jesus Christ"
refer to both the obedience and the sprinkling of blood, but why, we
may ask, is this order observed; why not the reversed order, for do we
not need the cleansing of His blood before we can obey at all? The
answer is, because of the reference there is to Old Testament Scripture.
They belonged racially to the people who were God's elect nation,
chosen in Abraham, and sanctified, that is, set apart, as Exodus 13: 2
testifies. Now read Exodus 24: 3-8, and you will observe there the
first the obedience promised which the law demanded,
then the
sprinkling of the blood of the sacrifice in ratification. Peter,
addressing believers who were very familiar with this, carefully
observes this order, only showing that we Christians have these things
on a far higher plane in a vital and spiritual way, and the blood of
Jesus Christ instead of being like that of the sacrifices of Exodus 24:
8, which had a
penal force (that is, it indicated that death was the penalty attached to disobedience to the law's righteous demands) is wholly
purifying, and
the righteous basis of all our standing and relations with God.
Sanctified by the Spirit and sprinkled by the blood of Christ we are
committed to a life of obedience after the very pattern of Christ. With
so exalted a course set before us we certainly need the multiplication
of both grace and peace!
Verse 3 opens the apostle's message in striking a note of praise to
God, now revealed as the God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, since
He has begotten us again to a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ. As belonging to the commonwealth of Israel they had formerly
had national hopes which centred in a Messiah upon earth, but the light
of those hopes was quenched in their hearts when He died rejected,
crucified between two thieves. The story of the two going to Emmaus, as
told in Luke 24, is a telling illustration of this; but, when those two
had their eyes opened and beheld Him risen, a new hope dawned in their
hearts which nothing on earth could quench. It was a living hope
because centred in a Saviour living beyond the power of death. How
aptly the very words of verse 3 would have sprung from their lips as
they entered the upper room in Jerusalem to tell the news to the rest
after their return journey of three-score furlongs! They were like men
who had been born again into a new world of hope and expectation, in
the great mercy of God.
Israel's hopes, when brought out of Egypt, centred in the land that
was to be given to them as their inheritance. The Christian's hope also
has an inheritance connected with it, as verse 4 shows, but what a
contrast is here! Palestine as an inheritance proved a sad
disappointment. The land itself was all that a land should be, still it
was capable of being corrupted, and consequently it was speedily
defiled by those who inherited it, since they were left to their own
responsibility. Thus, bit by bit it was forfeited and it faded away.
Our inheritance is reserved in the heavens and consequently it is
beyond the possibility of corruption, undefiled and unfading; and we,
for whom it is reserved, are being kept by the power of God for it.
There shall, therefore, be no slip betwixt the cup of the inheritance
and our lips!
The power of God keeps us and not our fidelity, yet God's power
works through faith. Faith is our side of the matter. God is sovereign
in exercising His power, and we are responsible as to the exercise of
faith. Many are puzzled as to how to put these two things, God's
sovereignty and man's responsibility together, and regard them as quite
incompatible and irreconcilable. Yet here, in this fifth verse, they
are found going hand in hand, preserving the believer to the salvation
that awaits him in the last time. The salvation mentioned here is
future. It is the final deliverance that awaits the believer at the
coming of the Lord. That final deliverance is a certainty before us;
yet we cannot await it with self-confidence, for nothing short of the
power of God is needed to keep us, nor can we await it with
carelessness, for God's power is effective through faith, on our side.
How then do we await it? Why, with exultation, yet tempered with the
heaviness of many trials, as verse 6 declares. The coming glory shone
brightly before the faith of these early Christians and filled them
with great rejoicing, so that they were like ships with sails set and
filled with heaven's breezes. On the other hand they had plenty of
ballast in the shape of heavy trials. These trials are permitted in
love, for they only come
"if need be." In one way or another
we all do need them. If we try to rejoice in the world and its
pleasures we need trials to dislodge us from the world by stirring up
the comfortable nest we would fain build below. If we are exulting in
the coming glory we need them as sobering and steadying ballast, lest
our exulting should overbalance us.
The heavy trials, however, are
"now, for a season," even as
the "pleasures of sin," which charm the poor worldling are "for a
season" (Heb. 11: 25). Soon the worldling will say good-bye to his
pleasures, and the Christian to his trials.
Moreover, the very trials themselves are profitable as working in
us-in our character and lives-the qualities that glorify God. Hence
verse 7 declares that faith (which is much more precious than gold)
being tested by the fire of persecution, will come out to the praise
and honour and glory of God when Christ appears. Many a bold confessor,
suffering fiery trial-even to death perhaps-may have been tempted to
think that, their light being extinguished, all was
lost. The apostle tells them that, on the contrary, all would
be found in that day. Christ being revealed in His glory, everything to His praise and honour will come into the light and be displayed.
Then Christ will appear, or be unveiled, as the word is. At the
present time He is unseen. These dispersed exiles had never seen Jesus
in the days of His flesh for they had been driven far outside the land
of Promise, nor were they then looking on Him. Yet they loved Him, and
He was the Object of their faith and this caused them to exult with a
joy beyond words and full of glory.
We, like them, have never yet seen the Lord, but is faith as active
with us? Faith, remember, is the telescope of the soul, bringing into
the field of our spiritual vision what is unseen to mortal eyes. Then
we see Jesus as a living, bright Reality, and our joy is filled with
the glory of what He is and the hope of what He is going to be, which
is beyond all human language. Believing we
rejoice, and believing we
receive the salvation of our souls, for soul-salvation is the end, or result, of faith in the risen Saviour.
Love, faith, joy and hope are all found in verse 8, though the last
is inferred and not explicitly named. How excellent must be the
spiritual state marked by these things! Yet all produced not by being
occupied with one's spiritual state, but by Christ Himself being the
loved Object of faith's vision.
Those to whom Peter wrote were quite familiar with the idea of a
salvation which consisted of temporal deliverance, such as the
deliverance of their fathers from Egypt, and they had expected a
supreme salvation of that kind at the advent of their Messiah, as
promised through the prophets; but by faith in the risen Christ (verse
3) a salvation of a spiritual sort affecting their souls had reached
them, though they were externally still under the iron heel of Rome. Of
this salvation the prophets had also spoken, for the theme of their
testimony was twofold-first, the sufferings of the Christ, and second,
the glories that were to follow. As the immediate result of His first
advent to suffer there is a soul-salvation for those who believe. As
the direct result of His second advent to reign in glory the bodies of
the saints will be saved from the power of death and public and
universal salvation will be established for those who enter His kingdom.
Three very important things should be noted in verses 10 to 12.
(1). The reality of
inspiration, and its remarkable
character. The prophets ministered, but the source of their prophecies,
whether oral or written, was the Spirit. The Spirit
in them testified
through them,
and He was so really the source of their utterances that they had to
search diligently their own words and inquire as to their real force,
only to discover that their full meaning was beyond the apprehension of
the age in which they lived, and that they were really writing for the
instruction of saints in a coming age-even for us.
(2). Though in the bygone age Christ had not been manifested, yet
the Spirit in the prophets and speaking through them, could be spoken
of as "the Spirit of Christ." Christ was accordingly the Speaker by His
Spirit even in Old Testament days. We shall see the bearing of this
when we consider 1 Peter 3: 18-20.
(3). The strong difference drawn between the age before and the age
after Christ. The soul-deliverance, which is the common possession of
believers today, was for even the prophets of the bygone age a subject
of enquiry; it is spoken of as "the grace that should come unto you,"
i.e., it
was not come in the previous age. Further, the things now reported to
us by the apostles and others who have preached the Gospel by the Holy
Ghost sent down from heaven are the things which were only prophesied
before. Then
predicted by the Spirit; now
reported by
the Spirit. Then the Spirit was in the prophets for the purpose of
inspiration, but now the Spirit is sent down from heaven. The present
age is marked by the sufferings of Christ having been accomplished and
consequently by grace having come, soul-salvation being realized,
things that angels desire to look into being reported, and the Holy
Ghost having been sent down from heaven.
Having unfolded these great and blessed facts, the apostle turns
aside to exhortation in verses 13 to 17. The great advance which marks
Christianity as compared with Judaism entails a corresponding advance
in the character of Christian life and behaviour. We are now children
and call upon God as our Father, but we are to be obedient. On the one
hand, we are to be braced up mentally, marked by sobriety and confident
hope; on the other hand, we are to avoid the old desires which mastered
us when we were in ignorance of God, and to be holy in all our conduct
as God Himself is holy. What God has revealed Himself to be sets the
standard for all our conduct. Moreover, the One whom we call Father is
the impartial Judge of the work of each, hence, reverential fear
becomes us. He is Judge, but He is our Father, and we are before Him,
therefore, in filial fear.
These exhortations, which spring out of the truth unfolded in verses
1 to 12 (notice the word "wherefore," commencing verse 13), are
reinforced by the further details of truth expounded from verse 18
onwards to 1 Peter 2: 10, as witness the word "Forasmuch" with which
verse 18 starts.
They knew, and so do we, that we are redeemed with the precious
blood of Christ. Their fathers had been redeemed with silver and gold-a
typical redemption carried out under Jewish law. Sometimes actual money
was given as in Exodus 30: 11-16; Numbers 3: 44-51. Sometimes it was by
sacrifice, as in Exodus 13: 13-15; still, even then, silver and gold
were involved, since they were needed to purchase the animal used for
sacrifice. Silver and gold are the least corruptible of metals, yet
they are corruptible. The price of our redemption was incorruptible and
The Jewish manner of life had degenerated into a matter of mere
tradition received from their fathers. This was quite manifest in
Isaiah's day (Isa. 29: 13), and the Lord Jesus charged it home upon
them, quoting Isaiah's words, in Mark 7: 6-13. Even the right things
they did, they did not because they were enjoined of God, but because
ordered by tradition. Thus their manner of life had become corrupt and
most offensive to God. Our Gentile manner of life was pure darkness and
lawlessness, and equally corrupt. Whether, however, it were we or they,
we have been redeemed out of our old manner of life by the precious
blood of the One who was typified as the unblemished and spotless lamb
of Exodus 12: 3-6; only He was ordained not a mere matter of four days
before sacrifice, but from before the foundation of the world. Our
redemption, therefore, was according to the eternal counsels of God.
The Lamb of God was ordained in eternity, but manifested in time. He
appeared "in these last times"-the "end of the world," or the
"consummation of the ages" of Hebrews 9: 26-and that not only as the
Redeemer but as the
Revealer. God was perfectly revealed in Him so that it is
by Him that
we believe in God. We do not believe in God by the wonders of creation,
nor by the law as given through Moses, nor by visions of angels, but by
Christ, once dead but now risen and in glory. Our faith and hope repose
in God who is known to us as He who raised Christ up from the dead and
gave Him glory. How wonderfully this fits in with Paul's testimony in
Romans 4: 23-25, and Romans 10: 9.
From this it is clear that if we desire to win the faith of men for
God we must present Christ to them-Christ once dead; Christ as risen;
Christ now in glory. Every other theme is useless. We may possibly find
subsidiary matter elsewhere. Useful illustrations may abound in the
fields of creation and providence. They may be furnished sometimes by
the facts, or even the speculations of science-though as to the latter,
the greatest caution must be exercised as they are mostly
wrong, as witnessed by the ease with which the oncoming generations of speculators dispose of the hypotheses (or,
guesses) of
their predecessors. Still, the fact remains that if men really believe
in God it is by Christ that they believe in Him. Let us therefore
preach CHRIST, whether by life or lips or pen.
Redemption is, of course, a work accomplished for us. We need also a work wrought
in us. Of this the apostle proceeds to write.
The truth of the Gospel had brought their souls into subjection and
obedience in the energy of the Spirit. This had wrought a mighty work
of purification. The purifications of the law had consisted in "divers
washings" of water (Heb. 9: 10), purely external. This was a
soul-purification, a moral renovation with love as the outcome, for
love is as native to the new nature as hatred is to the old.
If verse 22 presents the work wrought in them and us as it might be
observed and described by man, verse 23 lets us into the real secret of
it all, from a point of view impossible to man and only to be known
because revealed by God. We are born again.
The necessity of this new birth for Israel was alluded to, though in
veiled terms, in Ezekiel 36: 25-27. The Lord Jesus yet more strongly
enforced its necessity when speaking to Nicodemus in John 3. Nicodemus
should have known the passage in Ezekiel, hence the Lord's words, "Art
thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?" The teaching of
the Lord is based upon Ezekiel's words, though He greatly expands and
clarifies them. Even so, the Lord did not drop all figurative language
and still spoke of "water." In the main, however, He stressed the
Spirit's sovereign action in new birth. "That which is born of the
Spirit is spirit."
Peter's epistle was written in the full light of Christianity. It
was not now the Lord Jesus on earth speaking to a Nicodemus, but the
same Jesus, risen and glorified after the accomplishment of redemption,
speaking through His inspired apostle to Christians. Hence, figures are
dropped and the matter stands out with full clearness. Here the energy
of the Spirit is only alluded to in verse 22 and the main stress is
laid on what we are born of and by.
The life of Adam's race, to which we belong, whether Jews or
Gentiles, is utterly corrupted; its nature wholly evil. We must be not
only redeemed, but purified. The Spirit of God works to this end and we
obey the truth. The real inwardness of the matter, however, is that the
Spirit uses the Word of God in such a way that we are born again of
incorruptible seed. Consequently, we possess a new nature, springing
from a divine source and beyond the taint of corruption. Here, then, is
a purification of a most profound and fundamental sort brought about
through the Spirit of God by the agency of the Word of God-the "water"
of John 3 and Ezekiel 36. It is not difficult to see how apt a figure
"water" was.
You will find it helpful to glance at 1 John 3: 9, which carries the matter a step further. The expression "born
of God" emphasizes
the divine source whence we spring. The seed of God remains in us and
is incorruptible, as Peter has told us. This is the essential character
of our new nature, as will be plainly manifested when the last trace of
the old nature is eliminated from us at the coming of the Lord.
Returning to our passage we note that the Word of God by which we
are born again is living and it abides for ever, and in this it is
directly in contrast with ourselves as the children of Adam. All flesh
is as grass which grows up and speedily withers. All man's glory is as
the flower of grass, which falls away and disappears even more rapidly
than grass itself. Man's glory speedily fades, and man himself passes
away into death. The Word of the Lord lives and abides for ever, and by
it we are born again.
How wonderful this is! That which is born partakes of the nature and
character of that which gives its birth. "That which is born of the
Spirit is spirit." It is equally true that that which is born of
incorruptible seed is incorruptible, and that which is born by the
living and abiding Word of God is living and abiding. And that enduring
Word of the Lord has reached us in the gospel message that we have
believed. We shall not be surprised therefore when in the next chapter
we find ourselves spoken of as "living stones" and as connected with a
"house" which is incorruptible and abiding.


text:
Saturday, September 27, promises to be an afternoon of food, fun and fabulous kitchens as the EMMC Auxiliary presents its 10th annual Kitchen Tour. This year's tour includes a mix of seven interesting and unique kitchens—one in Brewer, five in Bangor and one in Orono. There is sure to be something for everyone to enjoy this year! The tour runs 12:00 noon – 4:00 PM.
Join us in celebrating our 10th year of giving back to our community!
Enjoy samples from Maine vendors including food, drink and other fine products which will be present at each home:
• Oats Any Time
• The Purple Pear
• The Whoopie Pie Café
• Right Bag at 'Ya'
• Savage & Sons Coffee
• Logging Camp Comfort Food
• Tea Maineia
• Brayer Ridge Soap
• Savour Chocolatier
Proceeds will benefit the Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Services and EMMC's Raish Peavey Haskell Children's Cancer and Treatment Center in the Lafayette Family CancerCare Center in Brewer.
Tickets are $25 and will be available after Labor Day online at www.emmcauxiliary.org and at the EMMC Gift Shop, Patrick's Hallmark on Broadway, Rebecca's Gift Shop, Huckleberries, Anthony John's, the Cianchette Building and Miller Drug Westgate.


text:
Saturday, 18 December 2010
LOTV Birthday
Im entering this card into-Allsorts challenge wk 83 "free and easy anything goes"
Flutter by Wednesday # 135- open challenge
Friday, 17 December 2010
Wife Xmas Card
Beary Xmas For Stampin' For The Weekend
Entering this into- Stampin For The Weekend # 53 "Christmas"
Thursday, 16 December 2010
Im entering this card into Stampfairys first challenge # 1- sparkle.
Simon Says Stamp challenge-"silver/blue/white
Cocoa Time
Entering this in- Fab'n'Funky challenge # 53 - "Quick and Easy".
Happy Snowman
Entering this into-Paper Cutz challenge # 71-"Snow flake or snowman"
Button Wreath Xmas Card
Going to enter it into- Stamps r us challenge# 11 "Anything Goes"
Tuesday, 14 December 2010
Lilac Tilda Christmas
Entering this card into- Bunny Zoe's challnge # 7-"Sparkle and Shine"
Just Magnolia Wk 85 "Christmas Card"
Pear Tree Designs challenge-#30-"christmas"
Monday, 13 December 2010
Hedgie Posting
Made with PB Hedgie image,card stock and paper from stash- pro markers-gloss and glitter- die cut flourish-die cut icicle and snowflake-i made the holly-used CB folder.Entering this card into- The Fuzzy Wuzzy Challenge-"Something or an-otter
Creative Card Crew-"Anything Goes"
Sunday, 12 December 2010
Little Claire's Xmas Elephant stamp, used pro markers-nellie's frame-paper from stash-glitter-ribbon star and sentiment.
For the following Challenges- Pixie Dust Challenge # 52-"let it snow"
Blue/White Snowflake Card
challenge-10-"Punch it out" Papertake Weekly-"red and green must not be seen"
Lilac Christmas.
A Spoonfull Of Sugar-chall #133-"A christmas Card"
Allsorts Challenge wk 82-"Last minute Christmas"
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


text:
Privacy is very important to us. bimmeronly.com is committed to the privacy of everyone who accesses our website.
bimmeronly.com, only collects and may store personal data about you to help process your request or provide you with information.
As part of the normal operation of our services we collect and, sometimes, we disclose information about you.
We collect personal information to provide excellent service to our customers. In some cases we may require some additional personal or financial information, such as: if you are making an order online, or inquiring about a product.
Typical information we collect in these cases: credit card information to verify your name, address, and other information, as well as to bill you for your use of our services or purchases from our site.
For security purposes, we do not store any of your financial information, only your basic information such as your email address, name and address and other contact information.
We may also store some order information as well to resolve disputes, troubleshoot problems and enforce our terms and condition Agreement.
As a part of our terms and conditions, you agree that we may use some or all of personal information improve our marketing and promotions, statistic information and to improve our content and product.
We may also use your information to contact you and deliver information to you that target your interests.
As a part of our privacy policy, we do not sell or rent any of your personal information third party except when requested by law enforcement agencies and/or investigating fraud.
You agree that you are responsible to keep your user id and password safe and under no circumstances share your login information with anybody.
For added security, we suggest to change your password every often.
We (bimmeronly.com) may alter and upgrade this Privacy Policy at any time based on your feed back and to improve accuracy. An altered and updated privacy policy is in effect after it is posted on this page.


text:
Cash Rebates and Incentives for Upgrading Your Home with Energy Efficient Windows
A number of money-saving energy rebates and incentives, including loans, are available for qualifying homeowners to help them upgrade their homes with energy efficient windows. They may be offered by your state, your local energy supply company that administers the program, or a partnership between the two.
Many of the programs fall under The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) passed in 2009, which included a five billion dollar investment in the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). The Weatherization Assistance Program is the largest residential energy conservation program in the nation. The WAP funds are used to improve the energy efficiency of low‐income dwellings, using the most advanced technologies and testing protocols available in the housing industry.
When you upgrade or replace your home windows with energy efficient windows you can
- Save money on energy bills: Energy efficient windows can save you hundreds of dollars in heating and cooling costs each year.
- Make your home more comfortable year-round: Energy efficient windows help you maintain a more consistent internal temperature in your home and protect you from weather extremes.
- Increase your home's value: Upgraded windows add significantly to the value of your home and are one of the most popular home improvement upgrades.
- Do your part to save our planet's resources: More efficient windows mean you use fewer energy resources to heat and cool your home, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.
To learn about the specific rebates and incentives available in your home state, please scroll down to your state (at the end of this article) and click for details.
Qualified technicians are available in your area to help you upgrade your windows and save you money.
Some of this information can be pretty technical. Here are a few helpful terms to keep in mind.
- ENERGY STAR qualified windows: The ENERGY STAR label designates windows that meet certain energy performance criteria. Replacing old windows with ENERGY STAR qualified windows can lower your household energy bills by 7-15 percent. Lower energy consumption also reduces greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and shrinks your home's carbon footprint. The Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed the ENERGY STAR designation for products meeting certain energy performance criteria.
- Solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC): SHGC indicates the fraction of solar radiation admitted through a window or skylight. It's expressed as a number between 0 and 1. The lower a window's solar heat gain coefficient, the less solar heat it transmits, and the greater its shading ability. SHGC can be expressed in terms of the glass alone or can refer to the entire window assembly.
- U-Value: Also called U-factor, U-Value is a measure of the rate of non-solar heat loss or gain through a material or assembly. The lower the U-factor, the greater a window's resistance to heat flow and the better its insulating value.
- R-Value: A measure of the resistance to heat flow. A high R-value window has greater resistance to heat flow and a higher insulating value than one with a low R-value.
Learn about the energy rebates and incentives available in your home state. Click on your state for details.


text:
We will be looking at holding a race end of March start of April on ressurection for our 1st 09 race, there will be an entry fee, hopefully a shuttle truck and maybe some prizes ( will see) will post up in the Race forum closer to the time.
For those out of town who want to turn up we have made some mint changes to Ressurection over the past year so its a bit different to the last couple of races, so browse thru the pages in the Trail build thread to see whats changed. For those who dont know Ressurection is a fast flowing track, clay bed, with various drops and gaps with small pedally bits but all is rollable or has a reasonable bypass line so its a track for all ages.


text:
Monday, April 22, 2013
7 comments:
- Stackz O MagzApril 22, 2013 at 3:43 PM
Yep, Doplhins are truly amazing creatures. So amazing in fact, that they can have a human trained to stand on a dock and throw fish in their mouths in less than a few minutes...ReplyDelete
That's fucking hilarious.ReplyDelete
I just finished a book by one of the SEALs that was in Red Cell and said that the one facility that they absolutely could not penetrate by sea was the one that was guarded by dolphins. They gave up even attempting it.
A dolphin sexually assaulted Hank Hill. They are vicious sexual predators. That was a gang rape waiting to happen.ReplyDelete
Angel beat me to it... Google dolphin rape. Really. I'd rather take on sharks. At least they just eat you instead of raping you while you drown.ReplyDelete
Sara, I think we were separated at birth. We MUST get together sometime.ReplyDelete
- Stackz O MagzApril 23, 2013 at 9:01 AM
WC, I just finished Brandon Webb's book called The Red Circle, which was about his time in the SEALS. He said that they trained with dolphins on some of their Harbor and MAROPS exercises regularly, and those dolphins had little needle pressure devices on their heads that they could bump/stick you with that could cause an enemy diver to embolism and die in less than 3 minutes. I can't imagine nor do I want to even try jacking with a dolphin... He learned how to beat their sonar by using refracted transmission. Meaning that each layer of water depth is a certain temp. Sonar travels differently through depth and temperatures. They basically swam so far down under them that their sonar could not penetrate the cold water far enough to omit a ping back, in turn identifying their position. SMART dude..ReplyDelete
Angel, we really should! I've got family I visit down in OK, that's at least kinda close to the heat you call home. We can plot new and improved ways to piss Ken off.ReplyDelete
Wait, we can discuss pleasant ways to cook more bacon. Yeah.


text:
Bladder Seaweed necklace from Bukkehave's Bouillabaisse collection. Bouillabaisse is a French fish soup, and the inspiration for this collection is found on the Danish beaches, where children play and explore. In this pot of Bouillabaisse you'll find fishtails and crab claws, as well as bladderwrack seaweed and even the chef's finger.
Christine's work is often inspired by organic and abstract forms in nature, off late, the The Western Sea area. Christine has always been fascinated by combining classic and modern alternative materials, working with all from precious gems, sea weed, plexiglass and rubber. Various casting techniques produce the roughness that is characteristic of most of her jewellery, while also experimenting with gritty textures and structures in the metal. The rough and powerful expressions is often softened by incorporating a frail and feminine angle by adding feather light material and clean and smooth surfaces her and there.
Oxidized Silver
Pendant Size: 4 x 2 cm


text:
You are hereClassifieds / For Sale: Shimano 7701 XTR Chain 9 Speed
For Sale: Shimano 7701 XTR Chain 9 Speed
Brand New Shimano XTR 9 Speed 7701 Chain - 116 Links.
New in box - has the retailers sticker on the box with some details.
This was a spare, never used and now I've brought a new ride - could only afford XT this time so this chain is surplus to requirements.
I also have a 48 tooth big chain ring in new condition - was also a spare so not used.
- Login to post comments
- Bookmark & share


text:
Blog Archives
Book Review: The Cure
Rating: 5 of 5
Author: Douglas E Richards
Format: Hardcover, Kindle
After witnessing the brutality of a heartless psychopath on her family, Erin Palmer grows in her obsession to understand, identify and "cure" psychopathy. As with any obsession, Erin's actions become ethically questionable as she pushes the boundaries on experimentation with prison inmates. Convinced she is getting closer to a Cure but at the same time jeopardizing lives, her breakthroughs come at yet another price – the attention of powerful forces who either want to help or hinder her progress. Soon Erin learns the shocking truth – her reality is not what she believed it to be and the result of her work has implications far beyond what she would have ever imagined. On the run to protect her work and her life, she is faced with the ultimate choice.
Douglas E Richards latest novel, The Cure, is a genre mashup. It begins solidly as a thriller and about a third of the way in introduces substantial sci/fi elements which carryon throughout the rest of the novel. For those looking for just a thriller this might be a bit of a surprise, but for the reader who enjoys books of this nature, they will find it engaging and thought provoking. For me, the subject of psychopathy, its prevalence, characteristics, and degrees to which it is exhibited as well as its implications was fascinating. Questions of ethics in human experimentation – does the end justify the means, which in the abstract may seem a simple answer but when applied to loved ones, our family and friends, is quite different. The discussion and references to "trolleyology" thought experiments were intriguing and I found myself Googling and taking the various tests associated with these philosophical questions.
To me a testament to how "good" a book is dependent on a few factors – if I can't put it down, if I think about it long after the last page is read, if I do follow-up research on its themes after, and if I discuss it with others. In the case of The Cure, all of these were true. I look forward to Richards' next book.
Book Review – Amped
Amped – Another Thought Provoking Pure Fun Adrenaline Ride – I Love This Series!
Rating: 5 of 5 (RMBOA Recommended)
Author: Douglas E. Richards
Format: Kindle, Paperback
Determined to fight for a greater humanity but knowing the megalomanic side effects her IQ boosting technology can create, Kira Miller and her husband David Desh, along with their colleagues, set up a hidden organization to create their breakthroughs. Aptly named Icarus, after the Greek god who flew too close to the sun due to his hubris, Kira is careful to the point of paranoia in allowing only those who meet the strictess criteria for selflessness to become a part of their plans. So strict are her rules, that none of the original founding members including herself or David would even meet them. And when their organization is suddenly found and they are hunted once more, the only explanation is someone with enhanced intelligence is behind the plot to destroy them. But Kira knows that is impossible as she has accounted for every IQ pill there is, unless the one betraying them is from within, perhaps even an enhanced versions of one of themselves whose hapless everyday self is unaware they are the betrayer?
I have to admit, I loved "Wired" and after reading it wrote that I had no idea how one could write an effective sequel but Richards has gone way beyond what I could have imagined. Amped picks up where Wired left off and this volume is jam packed full of twists and turns, action, betrayal and plenty of philosophical head scratchers that I found myself up late at night thinking through their implications. It is these nuggets of intellectual insight that I love best about this book. One of my favorite examples, and one that still haunts me, involves a man who dies, goes to the afterlife and can pursue his wildest dreams for all eternity – but eternity can be a long time and the end of this tale is chilling. This anecdote is just one of many that are well woven and infused into Amped whose plot is rich but implications are far reaching. Some reviewers note they figured out the end, and I admit I did as well, but it wasn't until I was well into the book and at the end of the day, so what! This was a great read and one I'll be revisiting and talking about with friends and family for some time.
Great stuff. Bring on this next one!


text:
To understand Grass is greener syndrome let us first go through a story. Kalpana and Ajay were married since the last 5 years. Everything was going well between them. But then Kalpana started feeling a loss of spark in their marriage. She stared doubting her love for Ajay. It had nothing to do with how Ajay treated her. It was just that she thought that she deserved more attention and she could be happier with someone else.
Her curiosity started to get the best of her and she also started feeding into some of the flirts with the co-workers, classmates. She started liking the attention she got from everybody. Kalpana would constantly compare Ajay to her other male coworkers.
The feeling of suffocation was taking on her nerves. Kalpana finally decided to separate from Ajay. She now felt like a free bird, who was surrounded by men who made her feel excellent about herself. But after some time she felt that everybody was using her and she started craving for a serious relationship like the one she had with Ajay. She wondered why she left the love of her life for this temporary happiness.
She now realized that the "Grass which was looking greener on the other side was fake"
Cause of Grass is Greener Syndrome
'Grass is Greener Syndrome' is basically a feeling of something missing. And we can feel that missing part all around us, except in our lives. Linda Waite and Maggie Gallagher carried out a case study on marriages. They found couples from unhappy marriages who split up, were far less likely to be happy five years later than couples who stayed together. Even those who found new partners, were less likely to be happy than those who worked on their own marriages. Maybe this is the reason second and third marriage fails have a higher rate.
Grass is greener syndrome in terms of marriage and relationship is also known as "Relationship Anxiety". One of the major reasons of this anxiety is the failure to appreciate the one whom we are currently with, and living in a fantasy that prince charming/princess of dreams exists.
Fantasy and fear are the two major problems associated with this syndrome. The fear could be of being trapped in promises, fear of monotony, fear of loss of identity, and fear of domination.
Also Read: My Husband Hates Me: How Did I Find Out and How Did I Fix It?
How to identify the Grass is Greener Syndrome in your marriage
The grass is greener syndrome affects couples living in a very steady manner.
If you find following signs in your relationship than it is surely a red flag-
-There is a constant nagging thought of having a better relationship. And you find someone else's life or any other person more ideal than your partner.
-You feel that your present relationship is not capable enough to make you happy. You start fantasizing about the perfect scenarios of your life with a perfect person in your dreams.
-You find it difficult to compromise in your relationship. There is a want to have every need of yours to be fulfilled. Lack of fulfillment of your slightest need by your partner, makes you feel upset. And even if all the needs are met, you still find something is missing.
-There is a pattern in your life that you do not feel satisfied in one relationship for long. It is not that you want something better. It is you find the grass is greener on the other side, and without thinking you want to start running to that side.
-You enjoy constant change and repetition of dissatisfaction. And if you're looking to become more secure, stable, and settled, then this is an issue to look into.
Also Read: Top 10 reasons why marriages end in divorce
How to Feel Good About Your Own Grass
Focus on your relationship
No relationship is 100 percent perfect. Every relationship has some or the other issues. Maybe they are not visible from outside. It is better to solve your own issues, rather than envying for the perfect relationship. If you keep on thinking that it would be good if you had that type of spouse or married life like your friend, the you're focusing on unattainable goals.
Stay away from if's and but's
Value what you currently have. There is no ending to if's and but's. Choose to cherish your relationship. Try and look at the positive aspects which someone else might find greener in your relationship.
Water your own grass
Money cannot buy happiness. It actually comes from experiences and love. Try doing special things for your partner make them feel special and you will get a sure shot positive response in return. Paint a painting with your spouse. Watch the night sky. Go for evening walks. Nurture your relationship with love and care. You need to water your grass to make it greener.
Keep Positive Attitude
Keep a positive attitude. Do not focus on things you wished to have in your married life. Rather focus on things which you already have. This will make you feel satisfied. In mid of a stormy relationship of you find someone else who you think can make you happy. Think about your partner who has always worked hard to make you happy.
Do not play the blame game
Do not blame your partner for not keeping up with your unrealistic expectations in the relationship. The problem lies with you. Change your attitude for the betterment of your relationship.
"The grass is not, in fact, always greener on the other side of the fence. The grass becomes green when we water it. Try and nurture the grass wherever you are"
-Robert Fulghum, author of, 'All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten'
Today, as you close your day, look at your imperfect family with gratitude for all that they are. They are perfect for you.Life is a mess because it is real. If you find someone else's grass greener than yours, either you cannot see the other side or that grass is fake.
Remember, the difference between a beautiful garden and a wilderness is the time that we spend caring for it. So if your lawn is straggly, maybe instead of leaving it, you just need to care for it a little bit more. And while you're at it, fix the fence.
And if you do need professional help in fixing that fence in your marriage, do reach out to us at Askmile.com


text:
From kindergarten to 2nd year university, I never had a problem about my education. My parents are more than capable to send me to school. My mom is an OFW and every dollar she sends to me gets converted to peso so its value becomes big. My dad is a police officer so he has a steady source of income. I never had problems about having to line-up for a promissory note or whatever.
Since high school, I was able to study in one of the most prestigious high school of our region, Xavier University High School. It is known to be one of the top schools in the city. In addition to that, it is also an Ateneo school, part of the schools run by the Jesuits,. Clearly, the school is both prestigious and at the top of their game. Of course, quality education does not come cheap (in the Philippines) and so my parents have to pay a big sum of money per year. My tuition for four years ranged from Php31,000 to PhP40,000. It's a pretty hefty price but I never had problems with it. It was my parents who had to pay for my tuition and all I did was study and do good.
When I reached university, I enrolled at the University department of our school, Xavier University and entered the College of Nursing. At this point of time, I still relied on my parents to send me to school. I didn't have to pay for anything. They paid my pricey tuition fees per semester and gave me my allowance. They also gave me extra money for my extra expenses and whats-it. Nursing is not an easy course and does not come cheap.There are lots of things that we have to buy and pay but I never had problems with money.
Now that I'm in Canada, I started to realize how important education is. During my two years of University at XU, I was quite the lazy student. If I don't understand the subject, I only put like quarter of my effort, just enough for me to pass. I was not mindful of my actions and was insensitive enough to not realize how hard my parents worked for me to able to study. I almost failed some of my subjects. I was happy to get a grade of "D" for some subjects that I did not realize at that time how stupid my happiness was.
For this school year, I don't have a chance to go to school. One because the deadlines are done and two because we don't have enough money. University here is very expensive especially for us who were only here for a short time. We weren't able to save enough money to send me immediately to school. It's an awful feeling to think that what I took granted before is now what I'm yearning for.
I do hope to be back to school by next year. I don't know how but I want to. Finishing a degree is very important for me because it's something that I can hold on to for the rest of my life. This could be my only hope to succeed in the future. And how do I do that? Well, I'm planning to work for this year until before school next year to pay for my dues. Hopefully, I can go back to school next year. Hopefully.


text:
You may have some familiarity with blogging already. A blog can be a diary form on a website that is devoted to the various activities in your life or of a topic of interest to you. Blogs have a more personal flavor than other sorts of sites, and are thought to be an offshoot of social media trends. If you want to start a blog or make your existing blog more interesting, you should find these tips helpful.
Use good search engine optimization techniques when creating your blog. Since your goal is for individuals to visit your blog, you need to be sure it ranks high in search results. Pick keywords and use them in your title and throughout your blog article to increase the number of readers.
Do not copy another person's work. Never plagiarize, as it will rapidly ruin your reputation. Know that there are many successful bloggers out there who are not professional writers. There is no need to plagiarize, just be yourself and show your passion for your topic.
Making frequent and interesting comments on the blog's of other people is a great way to increase exposure to your own. Keep a folder in Google Reader for your competition and check it daily. Make sure to leave comments on them regularly, whenever you have something interesting to offer.
Invite successful bloggers to write guest blogs for your site. Such posts improve your blog's store of original, high-quality content. Additionally, you should receive more traffic when they alert their regular readers of the guest appearance. Try using more than one additional blogger to add quality content to your blog and increased page views.
Strive to add some new content to your blog every day. If you want to keep visitors coming back and attract new ones, your blog needs to be updated regularly. Without more content, visitors will stop coming to your blog. Try to aim for posting at least one time every day.
Provide easy access to social media links on your blog, so your viewers can follow you. Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter are popular and can be used to make you successful. These platforms provide many options for reaching out and communicating with current and potential followers.
Create a blog which stands out from the crowd. Unique content will draw readers. You'll get the same result by having information that is hard to locate. Share a unique experience or insight. You can give complex details about constructing a widget. This way, you give readers reasons to read your blog if they need certain information.
Do not simply try to write paragraphs and paragraphs of general content. Be sure to find a topic that suits your blog appropriately. If you write about topics that are wrong for your blog, or those in which you aren't interested, you probably won't enjoy much success. Always remember that your content is key to success.
Look for other successful bloggers to guest write on your site. Doing this will give your blog some extra quality content. You may also glean additional traffic when they let their readership know about their postings on your site. Try using more than one additional blogger to add quality content to your blog and increased page views.
Social media sites are effective tools to use when promoting your blog, but never overdo it. For example, if every tweet you post on Twitter gives a link to the blog, people will start to ignore them. Provide interesting or useful content in your tweets to keep followers interested.
Always welcome comments and feedback from your readers. By doing this, your readers will feel that they are actively involved in the site, and it will allow you to have a relationship with them. If you respond to your readers often, they are more likely to make a return visit. People like to feel engaged.
Blog Posts
Blog posts can be informally written, in fact it's beneficial to you if they are. Blogging should be social and fun. Treat the blog as an entertaining social media vehicle. This is vital to your success as a blogger. You want to connect to your reader base in a fun, informal manner so that they will come back for more.
Make sure your blog posts are relevant to rise to the tops of the search engines. Consequently, when more people are able to find your site you will instantly see a boost in your readers. If you want to exponentially increase your readership, write as many relevant blog posts as you can.
Bulleted lists grab the reader's eye. Compliment these with sections of italicized text and keywords that fit your niche. That will make your blog easier for the search engines to crawl, which will ultimately result in a boost in readership. This tip is powerful and potentially very helpful.
Bolding and italicizing keywords can be helpful. This helps to get your main focus across in a visible way, while also allowing the search engine spiders to rank your important content. If a keyword is easy to spot, more visitors will click on it, which is just what you want them to do.
Make sure you do not approach blogging on simple terms. Learn and research your topic so your blog can be businesslike. Learn from experienced bloggers, and apply some of the techniques that they are using. Learning more about the art of blogging, as well as learning specific blogging methods, will help you improve your blog.
Allow visitors to leave comments on the blog. Readers will feel like important participants in your blog if you encourage them to comment. Respond to reader comments as much as possible. This interaction will keep them interested, ensuring that they return to your blog and stay part of the conversation.
Bold and italicize all of your keywords. This is a practice that is not only helpful to search engine indexers; your readers will appreciate it, too. You want your keywords to stand out so your readers will click on it faster.
Try to discuss issues that are always going to be relevant. If you write about topics that are less time-sensitive, you are less likely to see traffic to your posts drop off as they become dated.
Social media sites offer wonderful opportunities to increase traffic to your blog site. Social media is on the cutting edge of internet technology. If you neglect it, you are missing a golden opportunity to expand your blog's reader base. Learn to use Facebook and Twitter and take advantage of the great potential that these sites have to offer.
Writing A Blog is a very social experience. The social nature of running a blog requires that you interact with your readers on a regular basis. You should also consider communicating with other people that blog about your niche. You cannot expect to create a successful blog by doing nothing. If you want your blog to be influential, you have to get out there and do something to make it happen.
Ensure that longer posts are adequately divided into paragraphs, or even multiple posts. A blog with 1000 or more words is a lot to read in one sitting. So, be sure to break your long segments into shorter ones so the average person can take it in more easily.
Catch viewers' attention quickly with your blog articles or they may not bother to read them. For example, you can use things such as eye-catching headlines or bold keywords. Including lists made up of bullet points is also an excellent strategy.
Take note of the actions of bloggers that share your niche, and outperform them at every step. It can only help to know what the blogging competition is up to. Other bloggers will also look at your blog to observe what you are doing.
Tabbed Zones
The topics you write about should be those that are in demand. Blogs that focus on timeless topics will continue to bring in traffic over the next several years, whereas pop culture blog posts will bring in traffic now but die off over time.
Take advantage of tabbed zones to link to your recommended articles. Another hot spot is the area right before the sidebars. Tailor your tabbed zones so that they include the most relevant or popular articles in your best categories. Tabs increase your page's usability and increase the probability of your reader clicking on the tabbed material.
Utilize surveys and polls in your blog entries. This allows your visitors to give feedback, leading them to believe their opinion matters to you. Post the results once the poll concludes, and let your readers know how you will act on the information you received. These surveys also help you to identify ways you can change and improve your blog.
All the best blogs and those that are most popular draw the attention of readers. Using the tips here will help to attract readers and keep your content fresh and interesting. Many people blog for fun, but others do it as their career. Regardless of what the ultimate goal of your running a blog is, make sure to have fun.
Utilize tabs for direct access to your featured posts. The area just above your sidebars is a valuable piece of blog real estate, too. Think about developing some customized tabs that take readers to the pieces you want the most people to see. This gives you an idea of what there is to find and can increase how many visitors click on your site.


text:
The second health camp was conducted in Tiga Village (Kano)on 5th September 2015, at the Government Hospital Tiga. As in Zaria, a team of four government doctors and eight nurses conducted the Camp. The no. of beneficiaries in the Tiga Health Camp was more than 700. The Dignitaries visiting the Camp included, His Excellency Governor of Kano State, Secretary to State Government, Health Commissioner, DG – Media & Communication, Director – Medical Services and many senior government official and religious leaders. We are proud to have been recognized by the Kano State Governor as the first company to have thought for the local communities of Kano and taken up community development initiatives in the state.
Tag Archives: CSR
His Excellency Gov. Fashola inaugurates World-Bank co-funded Lagos Skipper Engineering Academy
Skipper's landmark CSR : LSEA, a milestone in skills development initiative
The Lagos-Skipper Engineering Academy (LSEA) was commissioned by His Excellency, Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN, Governor of Lagos State on Wednesday 26th November, 2014.
It is the outcome of a collaborative effort between SkipperSeil Group, World-Bank funded Lagos EKO Project, Lagos State Electricity Board and LASTVEB for the development of a well-equipped facility that will produce highly skilled frontline technicians in the area of power and electrical engineering.
With a vision of "Delivering Excellence Through Theory and Practice", LSEA is Skipper's flagship CSR initiative in the education and skill development area. This Academy, situated within the premises of the Government Technical College, Ikotun will complement the current three-year technical education being carried out across the state technical colleges by focusing on both practical and theoretical training relevant to current industrial and domestic needs. The Government Technical College, Ikotun has over 900 students with about 200 of them taking the electrical trade course. The Academy is fully equipped with the latest equipment training aids and draws on comprehensive curriculum drawn from best practices in technical education.
As one of the landmark initiatives by Skipper for Nigeria, we look forward to partnering with the Industry and the Government.
Skipper India CSR activity: Free Health Camp in Bhiwadi
Skipper strongly believes in playing a positive role in development of the local community where it operates its manufacturing facilities. Under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of SkipperSeil Group, Skipper Electricals India Ltd. organized a Free Generic Health Camp, to benefit the village community of Milakpur in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, a village at a distance of 5 km from Skipper's Bhiwadi Plants. The Camp was organized on 30th September, 2014 at the Office of Educational Society, Govt. School, Milakpur.
The primary objective of the Camp was to reach out to the village community in this surrounding area of the Plants and to deliver free consultation to the local population by experienced doctors. Another objective of the Camp was to provide health awareness to the community. In a span of 4 hours, around 200 patients benefited from the Camp and patients with seven to ten days' worth of medicine. Food and beverage packages were also distributed to the visitors. The village community welcomed this initiative in a big way and appreciated the continuing efforts of Skipper to take an active interest in developing the area.
Skipperites from the Bhiwadi Plants volunteered enthusiastically to make this noble event a grand success. We are thankful to the Office for Assistant Superintendent of Police (Bhiwadi) for providing us with necessary administrative support.
Skipper India's CSR Activity : Plantation Drive
Environmental sustainability has always been a key focus area for Skipper. The Company has believed in putting in efforts towards improving the environment and spreading awareness about the same. On the occasion of Sh. Vishwakarma Pooja, a day of celebration for the engineering community, Skipper India organized Pooja ceremonies at all three of its units in Bhiwadi as well as executed a plantation activity at its Unit-I(A) in Bhiwadi. As a token of contribution towards our responsibilities to make the Earth greener and cleaner, staff and workers from all Skipper Units participated enthusiastically in this environmental CSR initiative. A total of 40 Ashoka Trees were planted along the boundary wall of Unit-I(A).
This activity also made Skipper complaint with ISO 14001, in order to implement an effective Environmental Management System and address various aspects of Environment Management.
A special thanks to all participants for their presence and contribution to make this CSR activity a grand success.
Skipper Nigeria's CSR day out at Victorine Home for Children Abuja
Skipper Nigeria Limited's first CSR activity of the year involved Skipperites visiting Victorine Home for Children, an orphanage in Guarimpa, Abuja, Nigeria and spending a fun-day with orphans at the facility. This activity took on Saturday, 14th June 2014 and witnessed heavy participation from local Skipperites as well as Skipperites visiting from U.A.E.
Victorine Home for Children, an NGO based in Guarimpa, Abuja, is an initiative of the Sisters of Jesus the Redeemer. The home, The home provides shelter for children in difficulty, the marginalised and children of inmates who were delivered of their mothers in prisons. The aim of the home is to cater for the children till they are re-united with their families and take care of those children who cannot be re-united. The belief is that these children deserve the best and circumstances of their parenthood should not stop them from having the best in life. The Home also takes care of the children of the mentally challenged who don't have the capacity of taking care of them.
Among many other activities, Skipperites sang and danced with the children, played games with them and donated books, toys and educational aids to the Home's Learning Center. Food and beverages were also enjoyed by participants and extra supplies were contributed to the Home. As a special token of the event, Skipperites along with the children painted a blank canvas with their ideas and hand prints in many colours, giving all participants a unique sense of accomplishment and pride. The memory of this activity will be preserved by framing the resultant artwork which is proposed to be displayed at one of Skipper's global offices. A plan has been prepared and sent to Corporate Headquarters for approval for adopting this orphanage on long term basis.
Corporate Responsibility is in our brand DNA. At Skipper, we believe that serving the communities in the countries that we work in is not only integral to running our business successfully, but also it is part of our individual responsibilities as citizens of the world. All the CSR activities of SkipperSeil Group are managed and streamlined under Skipper Foundation, constituted primarily to carry out developmental activities in the field of education, health and environment. CSR projects are adopted and incorporated into our annual business plan and hence budget provisions are made accordingly. Our corporate responsibility initiatives center on healthcare, education, skill development, environment and community service, helping to shape policies and practices around our core operations and our community commitment.
Skipper joins hands with LSEB for the Lagos State Power Kids Program
Skipper is proud to be associated with Lagos State Electricity Board for its much lauded, innovative first edition of the Lagos State Power Kids Program, an energy awareness program initiated by Lagos State Government (LASG) as part of the Power sector development plan to help improve energy efficiency and conservation practice amongst its citizens. With Lagos State having the most aggressive energy development plan in Nigeria, it is imperative that students be taught about energy awareness and conservation practices. The program is heavily supported by His Excellency, Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, the Governor of Lagos State.
As a special award to the winning Power King and in order to motivate Lagos school children to adopt and promote the cause of Energy Conservation, Skipper organized an all-expenses paid trip to Delhi, India and Dubai, UAE for the Power King, his teacher and an LSEB staff member.
The program covers the following course topics: electricity, calculating energy consumption, energy efficiency, energy conservation, electrical hazards & safety, renewable energy and water conservation. To know more about the program, visit www.lagospowerkids.gov.ng