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Tag Archives: QLD Poetry Festival

When I Have The Body Of A Man: Collaborate with Sachiko Murakami

QLD Poetry Festival 2013, is just days away, and one of the many exciting guests about to land in our fine city, is Sachiko Murakami (Canada). Sachiko is well known for her collaborative online projects – Rebuild and Henko – so we are thrilled that she has cooked up a new online project especially for QPF.

When I Have The Body Of A Man (WHITBOAM) is a collaborative poem that you are invited to help write. It’s an exquisite corpse with a twist: it steals the form and first line of Elizabeth Bachinsky’s “When I have the Body of a Man”, from The Hottest Summer in Recorded History, (Nightwood Editions, 2013). Let’s call this a formal hijacking of Elizabeth’s poem.

In WIHTBOAM, you are invited to contribute a line to a poem, that is prepended by a “When” clause (i.e. ‘When I have the body of a man’). Your line then becomes the leading “When” clause of the next contributor’s line. After adding a line, you may view the whole poem. Or, if you really are too shy to contribute, you may sneakily view the poem here.

The collaborative poem WIHTBOAM, created for the 2013 Queensland Poetry Festival, opens on Friday, August 23 at 12 AM Brisbane time and closes on Sunday, August 24 at 11:59 PM. People can play around before then, but the poem OFFICIALLY opens on Friday – all lines added before then will be deleted.

So, no matter where you are in the world, be sure to be part of When I Have The Body Of A Man. Projects like this strengthen our global poetry community.

[WIHTBOAM was created for the 2013 Queensland Poetry Festival by Sachiko Murakami under the tutelage of Bill Kennedy.]

WHITBOAM will also form part of the Poetry Unbound workshop with Sachiko Murakami, Friday 23 August, 10.30am. There are a few precious places left in this workshop, so check out the details below!

Poetry Unbound with Sachiko Murakami

Poetry is a living artform – one that adapts, adjusts, can be renovated, extrapolated. Canadian poet Sachiko Murakami has been doing just that with her online collaborative sites Project Rebuild and Henko. Join Sachiko for a three-hour demonstrative workshop that explores in greater depth the various forms of poetry unbound – collaborative poetry, constructed poetry, found poetry, interactive poetry. Explore further at powellstreethenko.ca and www.projectrebuild.ca.
When: Friday 23 August, 10.30am
Where: Room 1.A, State Library of Queensland
Cost: $40
Booking: limited spaces so BOOK ONLINE NOW to secure your place!

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An Accident That Thinks: Lee-Anne Davie interviews Nathan Shepherdson

Nathan Shepherdson has won the Josephine Ulrick Poetry Prize twice (2004, 2006), the 2005 Arts Queensland Thomas Shapcott Award, 2006 Newcastle Poetry Prize and 2006 Arts Queensland Val Vallis Award. His first book, Sweeping the Light Back into the Mirror (UQP 2006), won the Mary Gilmore Award in 2008. In 2008 also he released what marian drew never told me about light (Small Change Press) and in 2009 Apples with Human Skin was published by University of Queensland Press. In 2012 Nathan collaborated with print-maker Julie Barret to produce the limited edition, concertina fold book, clouds in another’s blood (light-trap press) and in 2013 he will release his fifth collection, The Day The Artists Stood Still (volume one).

Nathan will be launching The Day The Artists Stood Still (vol. 1) @ QPF 2013 in the session, Dancing in Abstract (Saturday 24 August, 4pm. Shopfront Space).

I was introduced to you, Nathan, in 2010 following the success of your third work, Apples With Human Skin, and I am amongst many who are in awe of the talent you have for giving words their own breath. The use of space and suspension around your words just adds to the physical and philosophical dimension of your poetry. Where have you drawn your creative inspiration?

In the simplest sense poetry is a form of thinking. Things occur and the decision is whether to write it down. Even unwritten it’s still poetry. The choice pertains to its physical form. It’s a big question, and not easy to elaborate. It’s a bit of a mantra, but essentially it’s a reductive art, so the elaboration is part irony, part head scratch. For better or worse my brain seems to operate in a visual way. So as the images form as words the words also become another set of images. So your allusion to space and suspension is very important to me. Mostly reading is a silent act, but the physicality is internal. One breath invites the next – and reading what you’re writing or what others have written can transform you into a machine for language. I want to be used as fuel for this process. For all the minimal aspects of its language, poetry makes the highest demands on the space within the page. This space allows the thoughts to approach the words, almost as objects – a few words can jell together as a static object holding a magnetic field. You take your bearing then turn the page. So in some ways the smaller poems demand more space. One face instead of the crowd. In Apples I was fortunate that my editor Felicity Plunkett backed this idea of one poem per page. It was questioned by UQP, but I convinced them of the physical punctuation of turning the page. Obviously this is not always possible, and I was very grateful to UQP for the latitude I was given. As to the philosophical dimension, I guess there’s something going on, but it’s difficult to say what. Perhaps it’s a quest for perfect self-contradiction. The consistency rests in being at odds with yourself. Where possible remove the ego and then try and re-trap it by direct confrontation, sleep or even sabotage. With any art what is attempted won’t necessarily be what is achieved. Things can come about via different gradients of failure. I accept failure as part of the process. After all you need to be defeated to complete a work. I know when a work is finished, but sometimes it’s just as much relief as satisfaction. So when you look at the words on a page, it’s like a photograph of the wreckage. Does that mean the editor is a mortician? Octavio Paz said something like “we are an accident that thinks”. I can’t do better than that really. To be there you can’t be here. Thinking is somewhere else.

Currently, on the QPF website, is a conversation with Rachael Briggs, winner of the 2011 Val Vallis Award followed by the 2012 Thomas Shapcott prize, and her feelings of winning back to back prestigious prizes.  How did you feel Nathan having also won both literary prizes back to back in 2005 and 2006, but in the reverse order of Shapcott followed by the Vallis?  How has your success in these poetry competitions influenced your poetry to date?

I was very lucky for a few years there. The ball (or full stop) started rolling in 2004 when I was fortunate to win the Ulrick Prize. (One of the judges was Tom Shapcott in that year). My work had never appeared in journals. I’d probably sent out two things in 20 years. I’d never given a reading. My mother died in 2003, so I guess that jolted me into taking work out of folders and doing something with it. I think that was a subconscious yardstick. The manuscript awarded the Shapcott Prize was Sweeping the Light, which consisted of 72 elegiac poems about my mother.  Of course without the vehicle that is the prize, those poems may still be in a folder. For a poet who had no idea how any of it worked, I ended up with a book in the pipeline, and with Bronwyn Lea as my editor at UQP. I was naïve, but that experience was invaluable. Bronwyn was very generous with time and ideas given my lack of pedigree. She is very astute, and unsurprisingly has a delicate editorial eye. The book was all the better because of her involvement. As a result of that period I got to know Tom Shapcott personally. Without doubt he is one of our finest poets.  You learn a lot in a short period through the contact and presence of someone like Tom. His knowledge not just of poetry, but of music, art and life is vast. You just hope to soak a bit of it up.

The history of the Shapcott and Vallis awards is probably known by many, but is worth repeating. Matt Foley was a minister in the Goss Government. He is steeped in the poetic tradition. He came up with the idea for the two awards. The consequences in what words have seen the light of day has been palpable. The fact that the Shapcott prize is a manuscript prize cannot be underestimated. It gifts the poet a full survey of a body of work with a leading publisher. Is there a better opportunity for unpublished work in Australian Poetry? In all modesty, I’m very pleased to be on the shelf with such a quality group of poets pre and post my own success.

With the Vallis Prize I guess it was a kind of reverse order to what might be expected. Perhaps (as in Rachael’s case) you would think an individual piece might pick up a prize before a manuscript. But naturally I have no cause for complaint. The piece awarded the Vallis prize was very different in content and context to the Shapcott material. That work ended up in my second UQP book so there’s a circular relationship of sorts there. I never met Val Vallis, but he lived to a great age of 92. He went blind in his later years. Again I feel fortunate – because Paul Sherman made a point of reading the winning work to him each year while Val was still alive. My poems in that sequence are perhaps a bit baffling, but for their part they were given due consideration and credit as part of a ritual designed by Paul. Paul very kindly related this process to me in a letter, with a congratulatory notation from Val. I’m very pleased to have this, something that provides connection however small. Poetry is the perfect vehicle for tenuous connections, that’s where the capacity in its imagination resides.

So you can see how anecdotally none of the above could exist without those awards. However the writing was about the writing. With or without the awards those poems would still exist. The awards allow the passage of the internal to the external.

You never cease to be evolutionary with your poetic projects, having produced four collections with a fifth on the way, and enjoy collaborating with spoken word artists and artists of other mediums.  Can you tell the readers about your concertina fold book, clouds in another’s blood, and how the complement of collaborating with other artists has worked for you?

Clouds in another’s blood was written at the invitation of Angela Gardner. In the year I won the Vallis, Angela won the Shapcott; that’s how we met. So there’s another tangible between the two awards. Angela and her partner Kerry Kilner had formed light-trap press. Their idea was (and still is) to produce very high quality poetry publications in very limited numbers, built around the idea of putting the work a particular poet and artist together. She asked would I be interested? After a long deliberation of half a second I said yes. (Angela is also an artist, so has both streams flowing as a matter of course). There is a wonderful tradition between the two art forms. With any project of that sort I prefer to produce new work that at least attempts to cater to what is being proposed. However this is an inexact science, so you just hope that something lands in the right field. I see it as three-way collaboration. No such thing as a two cornered triangle. The artist Julie Barratt and typesetter Janine Nicklin did a wonderful job. It’s beautiful to hold in the hand; and its concertina format allows the 32 poems to roll around like a horizontal spinning wheel when you read it.

David Byrne said something to the effect of “there’s no point in collaborating if you end with what you would’ve done anyway”. I agree with this idea. You either have to stretch or contract your usual self to be at the service of what you’re doing within a shared context. A few years ago I wrote some micro pieces for Arryn Snowball which he absorbed into a series of paintings. Arryn pushed this to the point where the words are almost illegible. But they work. Whether you can read the words or not, they’re still there. It’s an open process. Subvert or illuminate. It goes the way it goes. Whether the result ends up as a diagram or deepest abstraction, the trick is to wear a blindfold and let intent be the driver.

In 2010/11 I produced a series of works for Alun Leach-Jones, six of which we chose for use as the basis for a suite of screen prints entitled The Philosophy of Objects (printed by Marnling Press in Sydney). I was amazed with what he came up with. The text and images are side by side on the same sheet of paper. Yet the images he produced were not illustrative at all. Alun went about it all in a very meticulous way, injecting his own responses into the words. A bit like slicing a psychological onion as fine as possible. The pungent translucence. We were both surprised with what the other came up with. Without Alun’s invitation neither poems nor images would exist. They become each other. Alun is a massive reader of poetry. It’s a primary tenet in his make-up as an artist. It goes beyond the thought. He believes in the inherent capacity for art and poetry to fit together. I agree with him totally.

While I’m more comfortable with the art/poetry collaboration, I’ve also done some work as writer and reader that involves music. Sometimes in a more casual way with people such as Leighton Craig, Sandra Selig, Eugene Carchesio and Ian Powne. Then at other times in a more structured way with Pascalle Burton and David Stavanger in the Outlandish Watch project (from QPF in 2011). I’m not quite as confident in this area, but really enjoy the process. If the opportunity ever arose it would great to work with a composer on a song cycle. In general collaboration is rewarding because it gives you the opportunity to break down the singular self.

You’re about to release a new collection, The Day The Artists Stood Still (vol. 1).   What has been your inspiration for this particular work and what are your plans for more volumes?

Again as good fortune would have it this book will be published courtesy of an invitation from Graham Nunn via his press Another Lost Shark. As a by-product of what I’ve been talking about above; I written a dozen or so sets based on different artists I know. (Some as friends, some as acquaintances). The poems are mostly short, what I call lingual drawings. They were produced between 2008 and 2013. In a way they’re discourse based; with many coming from an overflow of energy after writing the collaborative pieces for Alun.  My conversation is with the ideas within their work, rather than direct interpretation. Given that they’re written for each artist, I hope that something of their work is discernable, but as poems they also need to be able to stand by themselves. For reasons practical and aesthetic we decided to split the pieces over two volumes. The first to be published this year, with volume 2 coming out in 2014. There’s a wide range of artists, different ages, early to late career. The personal connections, or at least respect for the work of each artist evolves into a silent curatorship of words. Which is interesting for me, because I can’t imagine these artists would ever end up in the same exhibition with the way the contemporary art world operates under certain aesthetic, economic and intellectual camps. I was not trying to address that idea in writing these poems, but it’s an intriguing aside. They’re part dialogue, part homage, and maybe part collaboration – although ironically without consent from the other party. If readers have made it this far into the interview, they’ll no doubt realize I’m an art obsessive. There is no surprise really as my father Gordon is a highly regarded painter. He has been a very powerful influence on the shape of my creative thought. It’s a pleasure to know artists of a certain generation like Gordon, Alun Leach-Jones, Madonna Staunton and of course on the word front Tom Shapcott. Art itself may come from or be about the moment, but for the artist it’s a long haul process. These artists keep milking their minds and skills in order to continue living in their work. As people and as artists they’re wonderful examples. No matter what the fashion – a blank piece of paper will always be a blank piece of paper. Whether the line is written or drawn doesn’t matter.

Nathan, I’m really looking forward to your performance at this year’s Queensland Poetry Festival.  Can you give the readers a teaser of what we’re likely to expect from you?

QPF is always an event. I feel part of it. I’ve had some great experiences there – with reading my own work, launching my first book, and being able to listen to and discover the work of others. It does alternate between exhilaration and exhaustion, (which I know you understand better than I as a former director of QPF). It’s an important point on the calendar for our somewhat marginalized art form.  My focus will be on the launch of the day the artists stood still. Generally the poems are sparse. The language is concise, with elements bordering on the aphoristic. Hopefully the words and images float off the page. In reading poetry to an audience, it’s about trying to wake the moment. It would be good if a few people are standing around the bed when that happens. Even in our own language we’re in a constant state of translation. Here’s one poem from the sequence absent landscapes written for Peter Hudson. It taps in to what the book is about.

if birds

ever learn to paint

painter’s hands

will be found in cupboards

Interview with Lee-Anne Davie first published on www.queenslandpoetryfestival.com

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Book Launch: The Day The Artists Stood Still

Another Lost Shark is excited to announce the launch of its latest release, the much anticipated first volume of The Day The Artists Stood Still by multi-award winning poet, Nathan Shepherdson.

TDTASS circle sml

Here’s a preview of what Felicity Plunkett (poetry editor, UQP) had to say about the book:

Here in Nathan Shepherdson’s dazzling gallery of the impossible, a single thought can rip the nails from the floorboards. The poet curates an assemblage of the exquisite and uncanny, imagining the harvested wings of angels alongside ribs sucked and discarded, and splashes from a poetics of painting.

The launch will be held as part of the QLD Poetry Festival session, Dancing in Abstract, alongside Felicity Plunkett and Jon Paul Fiorentino.

Date: Saturday August 24
Time: 4:00pm – 5:00pm
Venue: Shopfront, Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts

Copies will be available at the QPF Bookstore on the day and at anotherlostshark.bigcartel.com following the launch. We would of course, love to see you all there! This book will make your shelves much richer…

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Tickets on sale for QLD Poetry Festival 2013

While QLD Poetry Festival prides itself on keeping the majority of the festival free and accessible to all comers, there are three hot tickets on sale right now.

Poetry Unbound Workshop w/ Sachiko Murakami

Poetry is a living artform – one that adapts, adjusts, can be renovated, extrapolated. Canadian poet Sachiko Murakami has been doing just that with her online collaborative sites Project Rebuild and Henko. Join Sachiko for a three-hour demonstrative workshop that explores in greater depth the various forms of poetry unbound – collaborative poetry, constructed poetry, found poetry, interactive poetry.

When: August 23rd, 10:30am – 1:30pm
Where: QLD Writers centre, State Library of Queensland
Tickets: $40 available here

Anthony Lawrence

Thinking Poetry Workshop w/ Anthony Lawrence

Poetry is an engagement of the senses, triggering the imagination into seeing the world anew. Join widely published and acclaimed poet Anthony Lawrence for this masterclass designed to flex your poetic muscles. Over the course of three hours you will engage in close readings of great poems, explore a series of practical exercises designed to spark new thought processes, and have your first-draft collectively workshopped by the group. Come away with a finished poem and some new spells of the trade to refine your poetic eye.

When: August 23rd, 10:30am – 1:30pm
Where: Room 1A, State Library of Queensland
Tickets: $40 available here

Bertie Blackman

And the main event… Set Fire To The Air

Shane Rhodes, the 2013 Arts Queensland Poet in Residence. He is the author of five collections of poetry, including The Wireless Room, Holding Pattern, The Bindery, and most recently, Err. His poetry has numerous awards, and has been featured in national and international anthologies. Shane is the poetry editor for Arc, Canada’s only national poetry magazine.

Jacqueline Turner back for her third visit to QPF! She has published four books of poetry with ECW Press: The Ends of the Earth (2013), Seven into Even (2006), Careful (2003), and Into the Fold (2000). She reviews for the Georgia Straight and lectures at Emily Carr University of Art + Design. She was the inaugural Arts Queensland Poet In Residence.

TT.O. born in Greece and raised in Fitzroy, Melbourne. A retired draughtsman, his latest book is BIG NUMBERS (new and selected poems). He is a founding member of Collective Effort Press and the Poets Union, and has represented Australia at various international festivals. By disposition and history TT.O. is an Anarchist, and is currently editor of the experimental magazine Unusual Work

Bertie Blackman whose latest album, Pope Innocent X, has been described as adventurous, thrilling, and undeniably unique. The long-awaited follow-up to 2009’s Secrets and Lies, Pope Innocent X is 11 tracks of visual, evocative storytelling. It’s a mix all Blackman’s own, as she forges into brand new musical territory yet again, with stunning results.

When: August 23, 2013 @ 7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Where: Theatre Space, Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts  420 Brunswick Street  Fortitude Valley QLD 4006  Australia
Cost: from $15
Tickets available here

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Spoken In One Strange Word 2013

qpf 2013 see me at badge-1

On Tuesday night at Riverbend Books, I had the great pleasure of MC’ing the official launch of the 2013 QLD Poetry Festival: spoken in one strange word program. The night kicked off with Rob Morris and Sheish Money who by mid set had everyone smiling and stomping their feet; Rob weaving tales of Ram Chandra, Old Sailors and countless other characters into Sheish’s floating piano notes. And from there, every artist that stood up to the mic – Pascalle Burton, Nathan Shepherdson, Rhyll Tonge & Fern Thompsett and Sue Ray – added  another layer of joy.

It was a showcase of what makes QLD Poetry Festival the most exciting poetry event in this country… a celebration of the strange words poets make.

And now, the 2013 program is available online, and it is quite possibly, the most exciting program I have seen in my 10 year involvement. Artists that have my blood racing are Sachiko Murakami (Canada), Tao Lin (USA), Jacqueline Turner (Canada), Π O (Australia), Aidan Coleman (Australia), Bertie Blackman… and this is just the names on the tip of my tongue. To check out the full program, visit the QPF Website. Spend some time with it… there is so much to get excited about!

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Support A Poet

Queensland Poetry Festival believes in bringing the poetic arts onto the cultural main stage and this year they are celebrating 17 years as Australia’s finest poetry festival. From August 23 – 25 QPF will light up the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts with poetry, spoken in one strange word. Local poets take the stage alongside performers from across the seas in an entire weekend of free poetry, performance, and collaborations exclusive to QPF audiences.

But they couldn’t do all of this without you. The support of the poetry community enables QPF to support the creative and professional development of Queensland and Australian poets, it helps keep the festival free and accessible for everyone, and it allows QPF to continue to deliver exciting, innovative, and world-class poetry to Queensland, Australia, and the world.

Along with the warm fuzzy that comes from supporting a poet and a wonderful grass roots organisation, all donations are tax-deductible. And all Support-a-Poet donors will be acknowledged on the QPF website.

QPF is pleased to be working with Creative Partnerships Australia to enable our supporters to make tax-deductible donations, and as the end of the financial year approaches it is a great time to show your support. Choose from one of the options below, or donate to the amount of your choosing. Donations of any size will make an enormous contribution and all donations over $2 are tax deductible.

So here’s how you can support a poet:

$25      Support poetry publishing and help produce a limited edition QPF Anthology
$75      Support an aspiring poet by giving them a place in a masterclass
$130    Support an emerging poet by supporting their feature performance
$240    Support the development of a new poetic artwork
$350    Support regional poets by taking QPF on the road

Donations can be made here… I’m off to make mine now!

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On Joy and Sorrow

QLD Poetry Festival’s ‘Artistic Director’, Sarah Gory, recently invited a number of Australian poets to respond to a handful of questions that explore the wild landscapes of Joy and Sorrow. This interview series, named for Kahlil Gibran’s famous poem in which he artfully says that joy and sorrow are two sides of the same coin, was inspired by the ‘on beauty‘ series that Lemon Hound are currently running.

On Joy and Sorrow

In inviting us to participate, Sarah has encouraged us to open up about how we as poets interact with the emotions we are often accused of ‘evoking’. Living with and responding to these questions was a genuinely moving experience, so I hope there is something in these responses to carry with you… So here I am, talking ‘On Joy and Sorrow.’

And while you are reading, I recommend exploring the responses of Betsy Turcot and Matt Hetherington; there is much to revel in.

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There is this thing that lives in my chest. It’s been called depression and anxiety. It’s been called unresolved grief and avoidant personality disorder. It’s been called bullshit and self-absorption.

I use to picture it as a hole or a vacuum, but lately it has definitely made its presence known as a living creature. It’s soft and smudged at the edges. It’s almost comforting to feel it. But it bites.

It chews on my ribcage when I walk towards my car or look at my phone or pick up a course syllabus. It’s hurting me now. It’s so alert to any kind of attention. That wakes it right up every time.

I don’t think it means any harm, even when it keeps me awake all night. It looks out for danger. It fights so hard because it wants to keep us safe. The difficult question is, where is safe? What is safe? Who?

There are days when the answer is, no one and nothing. The world outside my apartment is an intricate network of traps, big and small, endless threats to my thoughts and my feelings and my very life. Sometimes it actually fades into pure abstraction. My thoughts are real. My cats are real when they curl up next to me and meow for attention. Everything else is some kind of haze, or some kind of trick.

I barely left my apartment last week. The thing in my chest had my very heart in its jaws.

I’m better right now. I don’t know why. Sometimes it just relaxes like that.

There are good days and bad.

This entry was posted in Anxiety, AvPD, Being Crazy, Depression, Uncategorized and tagged , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

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text:
(Trigger warning: If you have phobias related to being institutionalized, you may not want to read this.)

There are some topics I may orbit forever. I can hardly stand to land on them, but I can stare for hours from a distance. It’s like using those boxes you made in elementary school to watch a solar eclipse.

For about a year after I got out of the hospital I couldn’t read a book or watch a movie set in a psych ward. They set off some kind of automatic lock in my brain, the uncomfortable sensation of dullness in my chest that means I am refusing to feel something. They made me feel isolated and small.

Gradually the situation reversed. First I was able to tolerate these stories, then I began seeking them out. I read The Last Time I Wore a Dress and I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, practically drenching the pages with my highlighter. I watched and re-watched the two episodes of House that the main character spends in a mental hospital. I even saw Girl, Interrupted more than once, even though on multiple levels it is a terrible movie.

Hell, I’m watching American Horror Story: Asylum in a separate window as I write this.

These stories still make me feel isolated and small. Even the outlandish or inaccurate ones can bring back the fear of a door closing and locking behind me. Some of them (usually the movies and TV shows) make me feel like a crazy person – not like someone who is mentally ill, but like an isolated, strange and frightening crazy person.

And I subject myself to it over and over. There’s something underneath the discomfort, an almost pleasant feeling of contact. It helps that none of the stories match mine exactly, which provides the distance I need. These stories are not about me, so I can examine them in ways I could never stare directly at my own past.

I’m not sure what I am looking for. Some kind of insight, some kind of reassurance. We all want to see our reflections in the world, however distorted, right?

Maybe I’m over-thinking it. Maybe that sensation of touch is all I need, the faint surprise of a familiar face across light-years of truth and fiction.

This entry was posted in Being Crazy, Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

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text:
NIH GUIDE, Volume 21, Number 29, August 14, 1992

P.T. 34

  Drugs/Drug Abuse

  Mental Disorders

  Clinical Medicine, General

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

National Institute on Drug Abuse

National Institute of Mental Health

Application Receipt Dates:  February 1, June 1, October 1

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the National

Institute on Drug Abuse, and the National Institute of Mental Health

provide Scientist Development Awards for Clinicians to eligible

applicants early in their careers who need additional supervised

research experience to develop into independent scientists.  These

awards are intended to make it possible for investigators to engage in

alcohol, drug abuse, and/or mental health related research on a

full-time, long-term basis, and to stimulate recipient institutions to

maintain and expand existing research programs or to establish new ones

for studies in these areas.

Each funding component has different program goals and initiatives;

therefore, potential applicants must contact the appropriate Institute

office, listed below, prior to preparing an application to obtain the

full Program Announcement (PA) and current information with regard to

the Scientist Development Award.

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the health

promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2000,"

a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas.  This PA,

Scientist Development Award For Clinicians, is related to the priority

areas of mental health and disorders and alcohol and other drugs.

Potential applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2000" (Full

Report:  Stock No. 017-001-00474-0 or Summary Report:  Stock No. 017-

001-00473-1) through the Superintendent of Documents, Government

Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325 (telephone 202-783-3238).

Eligible applicant institutions include public and private, non-profit

and for-profit organizations and institutions engaged in alcohol, drug

abuse, and/or mental health research that are located in the United

States or its territories and possessions.  These institutions apply on

behalf of a qualified candidate who holds an earned doctorate.  Women

and minority candidates in particular are encouraged to apply.

An individual who has been a Principal Investigator on a Public Health

Service (PHS) research grant or who has had equivalent research support

is not eligible for this award.  Recipients of PHS Small Grant Awards

are an exception to this restriction and are eligible to apply.

Persons who hold a position with firm salary support for full time

research, or those with endowed chairs, are not eligible.

The mechanism of support is the Scientist Development Award for

Clinicians (K20), which is intended for persons trained primarily as

clinicians who show great promise for becoming researchers, but need

supervised research experience to develop into independent

The essential elements of the K20 are the qualifications and potential

of the candidate, an individualized, well thought-out career

development and research plan, a dedicated, capable preceptor, and

commitment on the part of the applicant institution to the development

of the candidate. Documentation concerning each of these essential

elements must be included in the K20 application.

The candidate must be a citizen or noncitizen national of the United

States, or must have been lawfully admitted to the United States for

permanent residence and must possess an Alien Registration Receipt Card

(Form I-151 or I-551) at the time of an award.  The candidate must have

had no more than three years of research training or experience in the

aggregate and must have had at least two years of postdoctoral clinical

training or experience by the time the award is made.

Period of Support:  The K20 is limited to a single period of five

Salary Support:  The salary proposed must be consistent with the

established salary structure for full-time, 12-month appointments at

the grantee institution.  The funding components' contribution to

salary support is geared to the institution's base as follows:  up to

$45,000 - 100 percent of institutional base; $45,001 to $60,000 -

$45,000; $60,001 and over - 75 percent of institutional base, up to

$75,000.  The grantee institution may supplement the contribution of

the funding component up to a level consistent with the institution's

salary scale.  Fringe benefits are paid out of grant funds in the same

proportion as the salary contribution.

Allowance for Support Costs:  In addition to salary support, funds up

to $50,000 in the aggregate may be requested for each year to support

research and/or career development activities.  Applicants may request

up to eight percent of direct costs for indirect costs.

The NIAAA, NIDA, and NIMH provide an integrated Scientist Development

Award Program that is made up of three types of awards:  the Scientist

Development Awards (K20, K21), the Research Scientist Development Award

(K02), and the Research Scientist Award (K05).  Together they provide

a continuum of support for scientists at several stages of their

careers.  The K20 is designed for beginning individuals trained as

clinicians showing great promise as researchers but requiring further

supervised research experience to become outstanding independent

The K20 candidate should address a program of research relevant to the

mission of the funding component.  The trajectory of the candidate's

development as a research scientist is of paramount importance in this

program, and the intent is to assist a person with great potential to

become an outstanding scientist, fully able to function as an

independent investigator.  An individual who holds a K20 grant is

expected to apply for a small grant award, a First Independent Research

Support and Transition (FIRST) award, a traditional research grant, or

any other appropriate grant, providing that eligibility criteria for

the other award(s) and terms and conditions of the K20 are met.

Individuals must devote full-time (at least 80 percent) to career

development activities, supervised research, developing skill in

research methods, or other research-related activities relevant to

their career goals.  Providing health care is acceptable only when it

is necessary to maintain and enhance skills required for the conduct of

research.  Remuneration for clinical practice, consultation, or work

related to the awardee's research program must be assigned to the

grantee institution and may not be retained by the awardee.

Use of PHS Research or Training Grant Funds Freed by a K20: Funds

budgeted in PHS-supported research or training grants for the salaries

or fringe benefits of individuals, but freed as a result of a K20

award, may not be rebudgeted.  Questions regarding leaves of absence,

change of institution, or transfer of award should be addressed to

appropriate staff of the PHS funding component.

Concurrent Application:  The candidate for a K20 may not concurrently

apply for any other PHS grant, nor may there be another application

pending funding.

Applications that involve human subjects are required to include

minorities and both genders in study populations.  This policy applies

to all research involving human subjects and human materials, and

applies to males and females of all ages.

Prospective applicants are advised to contact the relevant contact (see

INQUIRIES) for a copy of the complete PA and for information regarding

preapplication consultation and the application process.  The research

grant application kit form PHS 398 (rev. 9/91), is to be used in

applying for the K20.  These forms are available from institutional

offices of sponsored research or their equivalent and from the offices

listed under INQUIRIES.

Special instructions prepared for the K20 are included in the complete

PA.  The title and number of this PA, Scientist Development Award for

Clinicians (PA-92-98), must be typed in Item 2a on the face page of the

application form.  Applications will be accepted on February 1, June 1,

and October 1.  Applications received after these receipt dates are

subject to assignment to the next cycle or may be returned to the

applicant, if so requested by the applicant.

An original and five copies of the completed and signed application are

to be submitted to:

Division of Research Grants

National Institutes of Health

Westwood Building, Room 240

Bethesda, MD  20892**

Review procedures of K20 applications will be the customary system of

dual review:  evaluation for scientific and technical merit by an

initial review group of the appropriate funding component consisting

primarily of non-government scientific experts, followed by evaluation

for policy and program relevance by the appropriate National Advisory

Council.  Only applications recommended for approval by the Council

will be considered for funding.  Applications will be reviewed for the

candidate's potential to develop into a productive alcohol, drug abuse,

and/or mental health researcher.  Reviewers will consider:  (1) the

qualifications of the candidate including the suitability of the

candidate relative to the eligibility criteria and purposes of the K20;

(2) the soundness of the proposed career development plan; (3) the

preceptor and institutional environment including the institution's

commitment to the candidate's career; (4) the nature and

scientific/technical merit of the research plan; and (5) the

appropriateness of the budget.  Detailed review criteria are listed in

the full PA.

The responsibility for award decision resides solely with authorized

program staff of the funding components.  The following criteria will

be used in making award decisions:  (1) overall merit of the

application; (2) relevance of the application to the research

priorities of the awarding component and program balance; and (3)

availability of funds.

The full PA, which includes the Special Instructions for preparing K20

Applications, up-to-date policy guidelines, and the application forms,

may be obtained from any of the following offices:

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

OSAP National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information

P.O. Box 2345

Rockville, MD  20847-2345

Telephone:  (301) 468-2600 or 1-(800)-729-6686

National Institute on Drug Abuse

Grants Management Branch

5600 Fishers Lane, Room 8A-54

Rockville, MD  20857

Telephone:  (301) 443-6710

National Institute of Mental Health

Grants Awards and Operations Section

Grants Management Branch

5600 Fishers Lane, Room 7C-05

Rockville, MD  20857

Telephone:  (301) 443-4414

Inquiries regarding grants management may be directed to the National

Institute of Mental Health address given immediately above.

This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

No. 93.271, 93.277, 93.281.  Awards will be made under the authority of

Section 301 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 U.S.C.

241) and administered in accordance with the PHS grants policy

statement revised October 1990.  This program is not subject to the

intergovernmental review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or

Health Systems Agency review.

Return to 1992 Index

Return to NIH Guide Main Index

Office of Extramural Research (OER) - Home Page Office of Extramural
Research (OER)
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and Human Services (HHS)
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winter light …oil painting

Posted in art, landscape, painting, poetry with tags , , , , , , , , , , on 2018/01/19 by greenteadoodles

Winter Light (8″ x 10″)

Another painting from a walk in Stanley Park in later December. The low slanting sun lit up some branches and tree trunks with a bright luminous glow – one of those sights that stays with you. Like the last painting, this one was painted alla prima. I think when the painting is being completed in one session, I put fewer expectations of perfection on myself and the result is freer and more full of life.

Tom was inspired to write a playful poem for the imagined wildlife of this scene.

Burnished branches standing in the dark
of taller trees, so jealous of the light
that warms the winter chill from broken bark,
reminding passers-by of summer’s bright
seductive evenings. Once not long ago
beneath spring skies two squirrels ran about
chittering while running to and fro
each ignoring all the other’s shouts
of joy and anger, frustration and love
until their dance completed in a tangle
in the branches far and high above
wherefrom a tail might be loosely dangled.
Now in the winter’s chill they’re safe and warm
Curled and sleeping far from winter storms.

image (c) 2018 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2018 TJ Radcliffe

day’s end …oil painting

Posted in art, painting, poetry with tags , , , , , , , , , on 2018/01/17 by greenteadoodles
Day's End

Day’s End (8″ x 10″)

A walk in Stanley Park towards the end of December was full of inspiration for me. The low sun gave a special glow to the sky and water. I included some people walking along the seawall give a sense of scale to the piece. Back to a small alla prima piece …so happy!

Tom wrote an especially wonderful poem for this one. It may make you think of Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”  but is really very different.

Stopping by Water on a Winter Evening

Winter light on silhouettes,
reflecting pools of evening dark,
standing here without regrets
as the sunset lights a spark
drifting down the cooling air
across the water calm and fair
toward the mystery of the shore:
trees will stand forevermore
upon these mountain slopes so steep
plunging down into the sea
as the future waits for me
in the silence, dark and deep,
for I have miles to go and yet
here I stand, without regret

image (c) 2018 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2018 TJ Radcliffe

evening koi pond …oil painting

Posted in art, haiku, painting, poetry with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on 2018/01/15 by greenteadoodles

Evening Koi Pond (20″ x 20″)

I decided to paint a larger work using the earlier small koi pond paintings as inspiration. As the size of a painting increases, the challenges can become exponentially greater. When paint starts drying, my usual alla prima techniques won’t work and it can be a struggle to keep the brushwork loose and fresh. Still, I hope I captured the feeling of the cool autumn evening watching the drifting willow leaves and lazily swimming fish.
Next time, I will try for the same feeling with a greater economy of brushstrokes!

Here is Tom’s haiku – he always uses just the right number of words 🙂

crooked branches bend
koi following time’s long curve
down straight water paths

image (c) 2018 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2018 TJ Radcliffe

Otter! …ink studies

Posted in animals, art, drawing, poetry with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on 2018/01/08 by greenteadoodles

Otter studies

First art of 2018! Here are a couple of drawings of river otters. These are on watercolour paper starting with a fountain pen and finished with a Chinese brush and ink wash. It’s imperative that the ink I am using – carbon black – is quite water resistant otherwise all the details would have been lost.

Tom likes otters too! Here’s his poem celebrating their mischievous character.

As changeable as summer light
when thunderstorms go by
flashing rain and lightning bright
then clearing blue the sky

So is Otter in the sea
and by the river banks,
embracing change in changeless glee
engaging in such pranks

As to cause most mischief for
least effort: that’s the fun!
And when a human comes to roar,
far off has Otter run!

Another otter sketched on rice paper. I like how smug he is!

Tom wrote him his own poem …Otter is quite sure he deserves it!

“If you don’t want me coming ‘board
you shouldn’t leave the hatch
open, unlocked, not dogged down,
just captured by a latch

that will not stop the likes of me
so clever with my feets
from opening up and wandering
around your cotton sheets

that once were free from otter-prints
but now are signed quite well
with muddy water, algae too,
and sorry ’bout the smell!

Yet I’m sure we both agree
’twas worth it in the end:
my joy was mighty, don’t you see,
so thank you, my dear friend!”

images (c) 2018 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2018 TJ Radcliffe

autumn pond…

Posted in art, haiku, painting, poetry with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 2017/12/27 by greenteadoodles

autumn pond

Another painting from my visit to the Sun Yat-sen Garden in Vancouver. This one focused on the lily pads and reflections from the shore and sky.

Tom’s haiku for this one is …just perfect.

another world waits
through the water’s weathered glass
koi pass bare branches

And if you have a taste to see what this garden looks like …and feels like, check out this short film commissioned by the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Garden Society of Vancouver. Tom wrote the screen play and it really captures the place in a special way.

image (c) 2017 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) TJ Radcliffe

the cardinal and the chickadee…

Posted in art, painting, poetry with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on 2017/12/23 by greenteadoodles

the cardinal and the chickadee

Holiday greetings! May the peace and joy of the season be yours!

Here is Tom’s adorable poem!

The Cardinal and the Chickadee
were sitting on a branch.

Said the Chickadee to Cardinal,
“It makes me want to blanch
to think that I’ve forgotten
that thing I can’t remember.”

“Do you know,” the Cardinal said
“It’s almost gone December?”

“I know! I know!” said Chickadee,
“Yet still I have forgot
a thing to do with joyous times
and presents that we’ve bought!”

“Perhaps a visit from a bird
all dressed in Santa-red
might jog your brain, you poor old thing,”
was all the Cardinal said.

“Of course! That’s it!” said Chickadee,
then sang a happy song.
“It’s Christmas, yes, it’s Christmastime!
I knew it all along!”

image (c) 2017 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2017 TJ Radcliffe

raccoon in ink – 2

Posted in animals, art, drawing, poetry with tags , , , , , , , on 2017/12/22 by greenteadoodles

eyes wide

Today’s raccoon is a young’un with no worries …adventuring without a care!

Tom’s poem for him wonderfully captures that mood.

Some days a little beast must wander
here and there and over yonder
wide-eyes watching everything
wondering what time will bring.
All the world is new and bright
glowing in the morning light
dripping dew and rising mist
Earth by Sun is gently kissed
as I go off exploring wide
down the beach where ebbing tide
reveals a world that’s strange a new
and full of tasty things to do!

image (c) 2017 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2017 TJ Radcliffe


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Making the Grade

The recent school year has long been over, but the echoes of learning, striving, and achieving persist. We may, if we choose, apply these remembrances of ourselves when we were in school to the circumstances of our health and well-being. We all want good health for ourselves and the members of our families, but most of us are uncertain as to the actions we need to take to attain this goal. For example, it's easy to get caught up in the notion of "perfect health." Such a misconception may have dire consequences, as the image of being "slim and trim" or being able to sport a set of "washboard abs" may actually prevent us from getting started on developing healthy lifestyles. The impossibility of obtaining an idealized result is discouraging and actually prevents us from taking any action. If we perceive the road to climb as too steep, we may never even begin the journey.

But as in school, although achieving an "A" is the highest goal, those who earn other passing marks are able to continue on to the next grade as well. If students stopped themselves from persisting in their educational programs owing to failure to obtain top marks, they would have failed to observe that they had gained substantial benefit via their efforts in reading, studying, and doing assignments. Plenty of learning can be accomplished even though the student doesn't earn an "A." The real benefits are not so much in earning top grades but rather in participating in the process. Ultimately, the grades you earn matter less than the results you obtain by having applied what you've learned.

Similarly, our goals when we initiate a new healthy eating program or a new program of regular vigorous exercise are not to achieve an ideal weight or an ideal "look." Being "skinny" or even "slim" may not be possible for many people with certain genetic predispositions. "Packing on muscle" or developing a "six-pack," as well, requires specific predispositions of metabolism and genetic makeup. For everyone else, appropriate and effective goals consist of simply becoming healthier than we are at present. For example, losing 5 pounds by maintaining a new healthy diet is a significant accomplishment. Having done that, we might be able to lose 5 pounds more. Walking 15 minutes a day, too, represents progress toward improved health if we haven't done any form of exercise for a while. Having done that, we could progress to walking 30 minutes a day and even begin going to the gym and lifting some light weights.

Any efforts one makes in the direction of achieving optimum health and well-being will be supported by regular chiropractic care. Whether you're designing a new exercise program, enhancing your healthy nutrition plan, engaging in a new mindfulness activity, or all of the above, regular chiropractic care helps provide your body with the means and tools to derive the most benefit from your upgraded healthy lifestyle choices.

Limitations to the gains we can make are often caused by nerve interference and spinal dysfunction, two physiological roadblocks to achieving high levels of health and wellness. By analyzing, detecting, and correcting the sources of nerve irritation and altered spinal mechanics, regular chiropractic care frees your body and enables your cells, tissues, and organ systems to become revitalized as a result of your new lifestyle activities.  In this way, regular chiropractic care itself becomes an important healthy lifestyle choice.

By becoming healthier, many other aspects of our lives improve. We begin to notice that we're sleeping more restfully and have more energy during the day. We may even find that new ideas are coming to us regarding our work and other projects that are important to us. Overall, we begin to find that we're happier and deriving greater satisfaction from our daily tasks and interactions with friends and family. By beginning the various processes of improving our health and well-being, we find that we are winning. What we are actually able to accomplish is what counts.

  1. Schuch FB, et al: Exercise improves physical and psychological quality of life in people with depression: A meta-analysis including the evaluation of control group response. Psychiatr Res 241:47-54, 2016
  2. Cramer H, et al: Yoga for improving health-related quality of life, mental health and cancer-related symptoms in women diagnosed with breast cancer. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2017 Jan 3;1:CD010802. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD010802.pub2
  3. Veronese N, et al: Adherence to the Mediterranean diet is associated with better quality of life: data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative. Am J Clin Nutr 104(5):1403-1409, 2016

Community Content


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Update: Judge James E. Boasberg of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia announced on Wednesday afternoon that he would postpone his decision on the Dakota Access Pipeline until September 9, to allow time for further consideration.

By the end of the year, there will be a new 1,172-mile oil pipeline snaking its way across the Midwest. That is, unless a Native American tribe wins its case that the Army Corps of Engineers failed its due diligence to consider violations to laws like the Clean Water Act and the National Historic Preservation Act.

On Wednesday, August 24, it will be up to a federal court in Washington, D.C. to effectively determine the pipeline’s fate.

Whether you’ve been following closely or this is your first time hearing about one of the biggest battles since Keystone XL, here’s what you need to know:

What is the fuss in court over?

The Dakota Access pipeline (DAPL) would carry 570,000 barrels of oil per day from the Bakken region of northwest North Dakota to a refinery in Illinois. There, the oil would be refined and sent to markets along the East Coast and down to the Gulf of Mexico.

The Army Corps of Engineers gave DAPL permission to build in late July, despite pending lawsuits and active local resistance. One of those lawsuits, filed in federal court by the Standing Rock Sioux tribes against the Army Corps of Engineers, is the one being heard in federal court in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.

The suit claims the pipeline will cause “irreparable” damage to sacred lands at the confluence of the Cannonball and Missouri Rivers. “Industrial development of that site for the crude oil pipeline has a high potential to destroy sites eligible for listing in the National Register,” according to the lawsuit. It further alleges that Dakota Access LLC failed its responsibility to adequately consult with tribes before construction, in violation of the National Historic Preservation Act. The Missouri River (Standing Rock’s only water source) and “water” itself is of vital cultural importance, the suit adds.

If the court rules in the tribe’s favor, stop-work orders will be issued on construction all along the route.

Who is unhappy?

DAPL’s route crosses agricultural land, protected wildlife habitats, and three major rivers: the Missouri, the Mississippi, and the Big Sioux.

This has a lot of different interests on edge and in the trenches.

Faced with eminent domain, property owners in Iowa are fighting their own legal battle. Nine landowners requested an emergency stop to pipeline construction on the grounds that the Iowa Utilities Board, which granted Dakota Access its construction permits, had done so outside of its jurisdiction. (The board’s application of eminent domain, they argued, would only be legal if Dakota Access were a public utility.)

That legal battle isn’t going so well: On Monday, a district court denied the emergency stop, reports the Des Moines Register.

The pipeline is also bad news for the Standing Rock Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota Nations, for whom Missouri River is a sole source of water on the prairie and who worry that construction will disrupt certain historical sites.

What are the stakes for the environment?

Pipelines, as we know, spill. One of DAPL’s stakeholders, Enbridge Energy, was responsible for one of the worst, preventable oil spills on land in recent memory: more than 1 million gallons in the Kalamazoo River in Michigan.

For climate change activists like Bill McKibben, stopping DAPL construction is another major battle in their campaign to keep fossil fuels in the ground. DAPL, as Mother Jones notes, is just seven miles shorter than the defeated Keystone XL pipeline.

What are protesters doing about it?

An hour south of Bismarck, protesters have gathered since April near Cannon Ball, N.D., where Dakota Access plans to lay pipe under the Missouri River. In recent weeks, the ranks of protests swelled from several dozen to more than 800.

The heavily-policed scene has not been without incident. More than 20 people have been arrested in the last few weeks, and a roadblock guarded by state police established on Highway 1806, which leads to the protest site and the Standing Rock reservation.

Officials pulled state emergency resources like water and trailers from the protest camp on Monday, after the Morton County Sheriff’s Department claimed officers had been threatened with physical violence and pipe bombs (an allegation that protest organizers adamantly denied to Grist and other outlets).

What’s next?

At the protest site, hundreds of protesters plan to continue to occupy the area near Dakota Access’s entry point into the Missouri. Regardless of the outcome of Wednesday’s court date, activists have no plans to back down, organizer Tara Houska told Grist in a phone call last Friday.

“I think it goes without saying that the camp is committed to not have the pipeline put under the river,” she said.

If Standing Rock prevails in D.C. court on Wednesday, construction will halt across the pipeline’s multi-state path, pending more rigorous tribal consultations. The Army Corps of Engineers may also be required to conduct an environmental impact assessment for the pipeline as a whole.

This court battle is one of protesters’ last, best hopes for halting DAPL’s start date. They plan on making a whole lot of noise on Wednesday, and in coming weeks, to make sure they’re heard.


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the Gnomes in the terrarium…

I first envisioned fairies living in my terrarium and ordered a fairy garden kit that included a trellis, birdbath, fence, watering can, and a fairy.  When they arrived, none of the components seemed to be in proper proportion with each other, and few were the proper size for my garden….

I was fairly obsessed…why would the fairy have a knee that was the size of the birdbath?  Why was the bench smaller than the watering can?

I can’t very well reject a fairy, but I will have to use her in a larger, perhaps outdoor, scene.  I shopped at our local craft stores and finally found some small fairies, but they were not nearly as charming as the gnomes… (and were twice the cost).

So I brought home the Gnomes:  Tyrone, Jerome, and Ramon…hard-working earth spirits who are working their magic even as we speak…

Since these elementary beings are earth spirits, they preferably work the soil and tree roots, to which they grant power.  (from

I like gnomes better, really—they aren’t as temperamental as fairies.  I have several that spend summers in our garden;  Larry Garcia Gnome  (so-named because of his strong resemblance to both our County Ag Agent and magician, Larry Caplan, and the late Jerry Garcia, a musical magician)  keeps watch over our garden year-round:

Larry Garcia Gnome

I certainly do hope that Tyrone, Jerome, and Ramon keep my terrarium growing powerful, and I’m counting on Larry to do some magic for me every season.

It’s only 23 more days until Spring, and only 25 until Spring Break…  The temps that soared to the upper 60’s over the week-end are now a memory..and a hope.  Soon, despite the cold, the crocus and snowdrops will pop up, followed closely by the daffodils and tulips…  I’m going to start some seeds by the new moon this week-end…it’s going to work this time (she says with fingers crossed).


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Saturday, 21 May 2016

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Important Notes:[*] Take a Backup of your personal data before flashing or installing the firmware on your smartphone. As this helps you to recover the personal data whenever any thing wrong happens.

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The best AIO

Of all the cloth diapers I've used, these are my favorite! They are super absorbent and fit great. Also, they are so well made and have such great patterns/colors. We generally use pocket diapers for the fast dry time and the simplicity. I've tried other AIO diapers but wasn't really sold. But after using these I wish I could replace my entire stash with these diapers! This is my second go round with cloth diapers after cloth diapering my last baby until potty training. I was so excited to get back to cloth diapering with this baby because I really felt like I had worked out all the kinks last time and was super happy with my diapers. However, I wanted to try something new for overnight because the new baby hates feeling wet. So I found these diapers and am so glad that I did!

Let me explain why:

1- the fit : Our baby is a chunk (I'm talking bunches of leg rolls!) and as a result, we have issues with getting diapers to fit well around the legs. If the diaper doesn't fit well we have leaks around the leg holes. The double gussets around the legs guarantee no leaks. They have great elastic which makes the fit perfect!

2- the charcoal lining - I love diapers with charcoal lining! you don't ever have to worry about staining or discoloration. They always look great!

3- the absorbency - Even after the longest naps, baby's bum feels dry. Generally with cloth diapers, there is some moisture. It's just part of the cloth to have a little dampness if the diaper has been on for awhile. But we don't have that with these diapers.

4- the price - The price of these diapers is excellent, especially for the quality. If you check their website, they have clearance deals and specials that make the diapers even cheaper.

Aside from the diapers, the charcoal bamboo inserts that you can get to go with them are phenomenal! I haven't had to use them in these diapers yet but I use them in my other pocket diapers and they work great. Super absorbent and no odors.

I think the only downside to these diapers are the drying time. That's the general issue with any AIO. It's not much of a downside for me, I just run them through the dryer once turned inside out and then lay them out to dry on top of the dryer. Yes, it does take a little longer but the extra absorbency is so worth it!

You should definitely try these diapers! They are the best.

~Geni D.


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Home » About Us » Our Process

Our 5 Star Retirement Plan is built on 5 key pillars.
See below the five things you can do right now to help improve your retirement outlook:

1. Make an income plan.

As a financial advisor, the number one question we hear is, "How do I build a plan so that I won't run out of money for myself or my spouse during our lifetime?”

Start by noting how much money you'll need to cover your expenses, including fixed expenses (mortgage or rent payments, insurance premiums, etc.), variable expenses (clothing, car maintenance), debt (outstanding student loans for yourself or your children, credit cards) and any one-offs (a new roof, for example, or a big vacation you plan to take).

Next, determine your guaranteed sources of income, such as Social Security or a pension that will be used to pay those expenses. If they aren't enough, your adviser can help you find others.

2. Make a protection plan.

You probably wouldn't consider going without fire insurance for your home, even though the odds of your house burning down are low—about 3%.

Similarly, it's important to hedge against risks that can "burn down" your income plan. For one example, the chances are much higher than in the past that you'll have some kind of long-term care need that is expensive and ongoing, especially considering we are all living longer. As a result, you'll want to be prepared for this very real risk.

Some estate planning is also in order to protect against taxes—particularly in states that have an estate tax, as the exemptions levels are usually much lower than the federal level. And you'll want to make sure that if one spouse passes away, the other will have enough income to last the rest of his or her life.

3. Make an appreciation plan.

Now that those first two pillars of your retirement plan are taken care of, it's time to determine how to continue growing your money.

Whether it's conservative or aggressive risk, it's up to you, because these are the dollars you will have left after you've built your income and protection plans.

4. Make a tax plan.

The goal, of course, is to keep your taxes as low as possible. (Two advisors on our team are also Certified Public Accountants and former IRS agents. So tax efficiency is important to us.)

There are a variety of ways to do this. One example is to use separately managed accounts as opposed to mutual funds. Both are managed by professional portfolio managers, and they may even contain some of the same holdings. But owners of separately managed accounts have more flexibility to buy and sell securities in ways that have favorable tax consequences.

5. Make a legacy and estate plan.

To put to rest any concerns about taking care of loved ones in the future, consult with an attorney to be sure to get all the legal documents necessary to ensure the efficiency of your estate, including a health care power of attorney, financial power of attorney, health care directives, wills and trusts.

Smart strategizing also can help reduce estate taxes, so if you didn't address this in your protection plan, get to it during estate planning.

Perhaps you've already begun pushing the pieces of your own five-pillared retirement plan into place. Typically, five years prior to retirement is a good time to sit down with a financial adviser to prepare your retirement goals.

If you would like to learn more on how we can help you, call us at (800) 782-2136 to schedule a no-obligation meeting with one of our advisors.

We are an independent financial services firm helping individuals create retirement strategies using a variety of investment and insurance products to custom suit their needs and objectives.

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Pulau Perhentian Kecil, Malaysia

A week ago I had never even heard of the Perhentian islands now I’d like to move there and open up a beach bar. There are two Perhentian islands, Perhentian Kecil and Perhentian Besar, we were drawn to Kecil as it’s a better fit for backpackers as opposed to families and honeymooners.

The island has two key spots, Long Beach and Coral Bay separated by about a 1 km walk. Long Beach has stretches of alabaster sands with azure, gentle waves perfect if you are an “ocean bobber” not so great if you like to go mano-a-mano with a killer riptide. Coral Bay is a calm bay with lots of coral (the clue really is in the title) and all marine life that accompanies it. The bay is so still you can swim laps in it and is as clear as glass, perfect for snorkeling.

Finding accommodation appeared challenging at first but turned out to be rather simple, when looking online there are approximately four options available, do not be fooled by this, there are closer to twenty they just don’t have an online presence. Your best bet is to get a ferry from Kuala Besuit (60RM return) and find somewhere when you land. I can highly recommend Senja Bay Resort on Coral Bay 70RM per night for a beach front chalet, the room is basic but perfect for this island. From your front deck you have an uninterrupted view of the bay and it’s many inhabitants.*

The marine life is striking, plentiful and in one case quite belligerent.

Countless species of damselfish are spotted gliding around the bay getting on with whatever it is fish get on with however, the bowtie damsel upon sighting you locks eyes, takes a swim up and repeatedly body slams or nips you as hard as it can. This is not particularly painful but is slightly unnerving, similar to being mauled by a Teacup Chihuahua.

The easiest way of spotting where these fish are in the bay is to look for other people hurriedly swimming backwards with a bewildered look on their face.

Wanting to explore more than coral bay we booked ourselves on a full day snorkeling trip and for the princely sum of 30 RM where we were taken to six different areas around both islands  – coral garden, shark point, turtle bay, romantic beach, the lighthouse and the fisherman village.

As with coral bay shark point and turtle bay were very aptly named, shark point yielded a small, 1 metre shark, a stingray and some large cuttlefish. Turtle bay was the big win of the day, as we pulled up in the boat a 1 1/2 meter green turtle was grazing on sea grass, shortly joined by another three smaller turtles.
Fun fact – a group of turtles is referred to as: a bale of turtles a dule of turtles a nest of turtles or a turn of turtles.

Good reference site to help identify the marine life you will most likely see Common Coral Reef Fish

Here are a few do’s and don’ts for the island.

  1. Do take cash! Imagine, if you can, a long gone era where MasterCard and Visa didn’t exist that is what it is like on Perhentian Kecil. There is not a single ATM on the island and we only found two places that accept card, watching the pitying look of a vendor as you attempt to pay by Visa for two beers from a cooler on the beach is not fun. We did manage to find one place that would exchange money however their exchange rate was from over a year ago so it was a ferry ride back to the mainland for us.
  2. Do stock up on water, snacks and alcohol before you leave the mainland. Most of the bottled water is treated tap water and alcohol is relatively expensive, 10RM a 330ml beer, 28RM a cocktail, 28RM a glass of wine and 20RM for a whiskey soda making it quite easy to plough through cash – see point 1
  3. Do try the beach BBQ from Mama’s Restaurant on Coral Bay, 18 RM for a huge fresh fillet of fish (ranging from kingfish, tuna, barracuda to lobster), side, fruit and dessert. Service moves at a glacial speed but hey where else do you have to be
  4. Do go on a snorkeling trip, every second place on both beaches advertise 25RM for a short trip and 30RM for a long one.
  5. Try and take a backpack, both landing points are jetties that turn into beaches, wheels and sand don’t mix very well

  1. Don’t wander more than 300 meters away from the beach without mosquito repellent. The island has a lot of jungle containing stealth bomber mosquitoes that should not be underestimated in their blood thirsty sneakiness
  2. Don’t plan your trip during monsoon season (November – March) this isn’t like other parts of the world with a large variety of things to do, if you don’t have the beach you don’t have anything here. In addition to which pretty much all hotels, restaurants etc. close for about three months and a tent on the beach won’t last five minutes once a storm there gets on its dancing shoes

*Other animal sightings include large monitor lizards, squirrels with red tipped tails and pet cats pouncing on the front deck to regale you with their days adventures.

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