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Saving Dice in Warhammer 40K

Because I’m a geek for the Warhammer 40000 universe fiction, I sometimes come across the Warhammer 40K tabletop game.

Now, this is a game of dice. Lots of dice. More dice than an Ork Nob can shake a bashin’-stick at.

File:Ork slugga nob.jpg
Ork Nob screenshot from

And lots of dice-altering stats, too:

Stat sheet from

In the battles that take hours, dozens of dice are brought to bear. Me, a nerd, thought of only one thing:

What can we do to streamline the game?

Here’s what I found:

The Game Right Now

Warhammer 40K is a game of tiny model soldiers and monsters. A group of models is a “unit”, which is what acts on the battlefield.

A unit has these stats:

  • Name – easily distinguishes what you’re talking about.
  • Power – the level of the unit. Counts towards how large an army comprised of units may be.
  • Movement (M) – how far a unit may move on the board in a normal turn.
  • Weapon Skill (WS) – chance of hitting a target in melee combat. (Really, “Melee Skill”.)
  • Ballistic Skill (BS) – chance of hitting a target by shooting at it.
  • Strength (S) – how hard a unit hits in melee.
  • Toughness (T) – how difficult it is for an attack to do damage to the unit.
  • Wounds (‘W) – health points per model; 0 is the death of the model.
  • Attacks (A) – how many melee attacks the model may make.
  • Leadership (Ld) – how likely a unit is going to keep fighting after taking losses. (Losing models in a unit can cause the rest of the models to ‘flee’, AKA die.)
  • Save (Sv) – what a player must roll to not have their models die when attacked.

Units also have special abilities and weapons. While weapons have Range, Armor Piercing (makes it harder for a target to Save), Strength (in melee, use this or the unit’s Strength, whichever is higher), Damage, and a special effects, these are self-evident in what they might do.

A single player turn is defined by phases:

  • Movement – if a unit can move, it may do so.
  • Psychic – special to only certain units in the game. Like shooting, but with your mind.
  • Shooting – ranged units fire.
  • Charge – units can move again. If they do, they get shot at.
  • Fight – all units close enough to enemy units use their melee weapons.
  • Morale – for any unit that lost models in the turn, they roll against their Leadership. Failure here can collapse the rest of the unit. (Heard you liked taking losses, so here are some losses for your losses.)

Shooting and Fight are the dice-heavy portions of the game and will be our focus here.

Pile of White Dices on White Surface
Dice from

How It Works

Let’s look at the similarities of the Shooting and Fight in how they make models die.

Both phases start by using Ballistic and Weapon Skill (respectively) multiplied by the number of Attacks that can be made in the form of numbers of dice. A success here is when set A of dice roll equal to or greater than the Skill, becoming subset B.

Next, an attacking player must check the Strength of their attacks against the Toughness of the target. What subset B needs to be or greater to changes when Strength is the same or different to the Toughness. Subset B will become subset C.

Finally, the player owning the target units will roll for their Save. The number of dice in subset C is how many dice must be rolled, their face value needing to be equal to or greater than the Save of the target. The number of dice that fall below this value are the number of models to apply the Damage of the attack to the model’s Wound (or “taking a Wound”).

TLDR; An attacker must see if they hit, then see if they harm a target. The target gets a chance to save themselves. If not, models take Wounds.

Clear so far?

My Turn

Looks like we have some formulas to crunch, starting with combining the attacking player’s “did I hit” and “did I harm” rolls.

The Attacker

We’ll ignore the differences between Shooting and Fight phases, instead focusing on only the hit/harm cycle.

For that, the hit roll is determined by the chance of Skill passing a value roll times the number of Attacks.

To Hit = chance Skill * Attack

To harm, it gets tricky. We ought to compare the Strength stat of the attacker to the Toughness of the target.

To Harm = (Variable, given Strength compared to Toughness)

This marriage of stats means we can’t have one nice roll for the attacker as it changes every time they pick a different target.

Let’s get a divorce.

If we only consider the Strength of the attacker, the Strength ought to also be considered as a chance roll. Say, for a five Strength, it’s two (five or greater, six) divided by six (six-sided die D6), or 33%.

We’ll need to do something with chance Strength. How about combining it to Skill and Attack?

For that, we can put the passing chance of Skill and Strength together, forming a percentage. This percentage will be low because we’re multiplying percentages, so take 100% minus the low chance we got, thereby betting   Let Attack be the number of dice to roll:

To Hit and Harm = 100% – (chance Skill * chance Strength), per #D6, # from Attack

We’re forgetting the Armor Piercing stat of some weapons. Originally, this would apply to the Save roll of the target. Since we’re trying to divorce the stats of two different units as much as possible, Armor Piercing should apply to the hit-and-harm combination roll:

Single Hit and Harm Roll = ((100% – (chance Skill * chance Strength)) * 6) + Armor Piercing

If a unit can roll dice greater than or equal to the value from the formula above, the attacker has successfully struck.

How does this work? Take an Intercessor Squad, armed with a Bolt Rifle, as example:

Datasheet from

One model in the unit is going to fire at a target. Thus, it’s chance of success for a single die (ignoring that it could make multiple attacks) is:

Success >= (6/6 – (4/6 * 3/6) * 6) – 1

>= (1 – (.333)) * 6) – 1

>= (.667 * 6) – 1

>= 4 – 1 >= 3

This example shows we have a 67% chance to succeed on any roll. People like succeeding, so this high chance is perfect for an attacker’s immersion when they get to keep dice on the table. No problem there!

We see how what would normally be multiple rolls of dice distills into a single roll per attack for either ranged or melee combat. Time savings, huzzah!

The Target

We have to keep our target from dying. From the previous section, Toughness is on its lonesome. We also took care of the Save vs. Armor Piercing. Thus, pairing Toughness with Save, we get something like:

Get to Live >= (100% – (chance Toughness * chance Save)) * 6, per successful attacker die

Any failure here will cost Wounds from the Damage of the attack.

Using the Intercessor Squad above and for a single successful die, we get:

Get to Live >= (6/6 – (3/6 * 4/6)) * 6

= (1 – (.333)) * 6

>= .667 * 6 >= 4

If we don’t get a four on our dice, our own Intercessors will die. Sad day 😥

Still a good day, though, since we can provide a base stat to our unit on what it must roll to survive being attacked!

So we’re looking at a 3+ to attack and a 4+ to live. The numbers boil down to a 33% chance of Wounding a model (66.7% chance of a successful attack roll multiplied by a 50% chance to fail a saving roll).

But again, only two rolls are needed to determine an outcome from end to end, compared to three previously, and with a lot less mental math of comparing attackers to targets.

So Where Do We Go From Here?

I have a confession…

I didn’t playtest this system.

It’s a shame, I know. You know. Playtesting would be the next step. This could be done with Excel simulations, seeing what the typical outcome of this system is compared to the actual game.

There’s a concern already that we aren’t removing enough models, the chance of Wounding being a little low. That, and how can we leverage the Power of a unit? Can it be added to rolls or the difference between attacker and target be applied? I don’t know yet. Merely, it wouldn’t make a lot of sense for a tiny bug (yes, these are in the game) to survive being stomped on by a giant robot.

Doing research for this post, I also found fun numbers and percentages when using a D20 (20-sided dice). The result made calculating roll value requirements a lot easier when different weapons were applied to different units. An article here could be forthcoming with a proper investigation.

Finally, consolidating the stats of a few units is in order. That’d allow for a few examples of simpler, streamlined play.

That’s it! What have you done to improve games in your life? I hope this mod is an inspiration to look at things through a lens of “how can this be made into something new, maybe better?” Cheers for now!

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APSSDC Recruitment 2020 Job Notifications

Looking for the Latest APSSDC 2020 Job Notifications, you have come to the right place. You can apply online for latest jobs released by the Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation.

Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation or APSSDC, under the Department of Skill Development, Entrepreneurship and Innovation (DSDEI), Govt. of India, located in Tadepalli, Guntur.

Its vision is to make Andhra Pradesh among the three best states in India by 2022 when India celebrates its 75th year of independence and to achieve the status of a developed state by 2029.

The institute offers skill courses for a various number of sectors include Life Sciences, Hydrocarbons, IT/ITES, Non-Technical, Beauty & Wellness, Domestic Workers, BFSI, Food Processing, and others.

Led by Managing Director & CEO, APSSDC comprises Board of Directors headed by Chairman.

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3 days old

JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Columbus, OH 43215
  • Job Code

Robotic Process Automation Manager

Job Description

About Chase:

Chase is the U.S. Consumer and Commercial Banking business of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.5 trillion and operations worldwide. Chase serves nearly half of America's households with a broad range of financial services, including personal banking, credit cards, mortgages, auto financing, investment advice, small business loans and payment processing. Customers can choose how and where they want to bank: 5,200 branches, 16,000 ATMs, mobile, online and by phone. For more information, go to Chase.com.

The Team:

Chase Data & Analytics Team unifies data and analytics talent across Chase to responsibly leverage data to build competitive advantages for our businesses with value and protection for customers. The Auto Data & Analytics organization utilizes data, analytics, visualization and advanced analytics to drive meaningful impacts for our customers, dealers and partners. The team provides expertise in big data, machine learning, business intelligence, visualization, web analytics, campaign/program analysis, experimental design, A|B testing, process automation, and optimization.

The Position:

We are seeking a passionate Robotic Process Automation leader to be part of our Auto Intelligent Automation team. In this role, you will focus on making processes more efficient by deploying robots or â€˜Botsâ€™ to lessen the burden of tasks that are highly manual, repetitive and business rule driven. Youâ€™ll be part of a passionate, data driven team where diversity, teamwork and collaboration reign.

You are passionate about RPA, are current on emerging trends and appreciate its enabling potential for critical but repetitive manual tasks. You enjoy putting innovation to work in real applications, getting real results and continuously improving organizational practices. You will steer and influence the adoption of RPA. You will select the appropriate tools and features for automation, ensure the alignment of the solution with enterprise guidelines and adhere to all information technology security protocols and procedures.

You will regularly interact with diverse group of stakeholders, helping determine which tasks could be automated, translating business requirements into specifications that will be used to guide the development of bots and supplemental tools, including required databases, user interfaces, reports and dashboards. You will design and develop production-grade bots that are resilient, efficient, and easily maintained. You will track business processed before and after the automation, measuring the effectiveness of the bot.

You will own all aspects of the development life cycle including the architecture, requirements gathering, development, testing, training, implementation and support for applications as well as reporting. You will code and configure automation process components from low-level design (LLD) to technical design documents (TDD), making sure that they meet defined requirements. You will validate automations by carrying out unit testing and assist in quality control, validation processes and testing efforts, providing guidance and supervision to end users to ensure adequate and thorough testing.

  • Bachelorâ€™s degree, in a math, science, or technology, Master+ degree preferred

  • 6+ years of developing, deploying and overseeing strategy & tactics around RPA, creating vision, operating model, product roadmap, and managing automation backlog. 2+ years people management or project lead experience.

  • Experience working with business leaders to assess processes and identifying opportunities for automation that increase efficiencies and reduce operational risk

  • Demonstrated ability to interpret and share concepts clearly & unambiguously. Being able to discuss topics with both business & technical resources. Comfortable creating and presenting recommendations to senior management

  • Experience providing clear & logical requirements. Ability to identify key decision points, variations and exceptions within the flow. Create solution design documents

  • Demonstrated ability to interview process owners and quickly understand new concepts. Ask appropriate probing questions to build full picture

  • Ability to create As-Is / To-Be Process Flows. Identify changes to workflow / impact to workforce. Document â€˜Solution Design Documentâ€™, including process flows, business & technical requirements, and exception handling rules

Technical Requirements

  • Ability to build robust decision trees and state machines. Include appropriate Exception Handling & Logging rules. Proficiency with developing and implementing workflows that include documentation, error checking, logging, security, and recoverability

  • Ability to write clear and concise technical specifications. Provide appropriate annotations and comments within workflow

  • Experience manipulating different types of data; ability to work with variables including Strings, Integers and Data Tables. Ability to perform core operations (split strings, convert, SQL Queries, etc.)

  • Strong conceptual and analytical skills, demonstrating outside-the-box problem solving skills. Ability to troubleshoot and identify the root source of bugs. Be able to isolate and test each portion of workflow.

  • Deep understanding of core testing concepts. Ability to identify necessary test conditions to perform while unit testing, including positive, negative, variations and exceptions that should be tested

  • Understanding of core coding principles (For Loops, If Statements, etc.). Experience in programming languages such as C#, Python, ASP.Net, PL/SQL, JavaScript, VBScript, SOAP / REST Services, VBA or Java

  • Hands on experience developing, deploying, monitoring, reporting and auditing RPA software such as Automation Anywhere, UiPath, Blue Prism, Xceptor, etc.

  • Business process mapping such as Visio, Lucidchart, etc.

  • RPA Certification and or technical training a plus

Req #: 190114290_1
Location: Columbus, OH US
Job Category: Data & Analytics
Employment Type: Full Time
Potential Referral Amount: US Dollar (USD)

Keyword: card%20services

Posted: 2020-01-14 Expires: 2020-02-13

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Job Description

  • Requisition ID
    Location : Address
    5005 Kalamath Street
    Location : City
    Location : State/Province
    Location : Postal Code
  • Summary and Essential Duties

    The Account Representative is responsible for learning and demonstrating all necessary skills and knowledge in preparation to become a full-time Account Executive. To accomplish this, (s)he is responsible for regularly assisting and supporting Account Executives in representing products and services for Shamrock Foods Company to restaurants, resorts, hotels, and other institutional establishments through face-to-face interactions. The Account Executive is responsible for maximizing sales growth profitability.

    Essential Duties:

    • Learn and support in prospecting new customers and building a territory to grow the customer base
    • Learn and assist in maintaining the current customer base and growing the share of the customer’s business
    • Contribute to customer success through:
      • Entering new customer data and current customer data into computer database
      • Learning and supporting customer menu engineering
      • Learning and supporting food cost analysis to ensure waste reduction and improve customer profitability
      • Learning and supporting product demonstration and comparisons by taking product to customer’s restaurant or facility
      • Learning and supporting demonstrations to support the customer
      • Consuming and sharing market intelligence and industry trends
    • Learn and assist in keeping accounts current by optimizing sales, service, and delivery and collecting past-due balances from customers
    • Keep Account Executives up-to-date with any information pertaining to their customer base
    • Participate in all sales functions and on-going training to continuously develop skills
    • Other duties as assigned

    • HS Diploma and/or GED required; Associate or Bachelor’s degree a plus
    • 1+ years’ experience in culinary, restaurant operations, foodservice, or other related experience preferred
    • Previous successful sales experience a plus
    • Current driver’s license and auto insurance required
    • Comfortable using technology and analyzing customer data
    • Expertise in Microsoft office (Word, Excel, Outlook)
    • Must be flexible and willing to work the demands of the department which are subject to evenings weekends, and holidays

    Physical Demands:

    Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

    • Regularly lift and/or move up to 40 pounds
    • Frequently lift and/or move up to 60 pounds

    Corporate Summary

    At Shamrock Foods Company, people come first – our associates, our customers, and the families we serve across the nation. A privately-held, family-owned and -operated Forbes 500 company, Shamrock is an innovator in the food industry and has been since being founded in Arizona in 1922.

    Our Mission

    At Shamrock Foods Company, we live by our founding family’s motto to “treat associates like family and customers like friends.”

    Why work for us?

    Benefits are a major part of your overall compensation, and we believe offering them at an affordable cost is not only the right thing to do, but it helps keep you and your family healthy. That’s why Shamrock Foods pays for the majority of your health insurance, allowing you to take home more of your paycheck. And it doesn’t stop there - our associates also enjoy additional benefits such as 401(k) Savings Plan, Profit Sharing, Paid Time Off, as well as our incredible growth opportunities, continued education, wellness programs, and much more!

    Equal Opportunity Employer

    Shamrock Foods Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other basis protected by applicable law.

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Senior Software Engineer - Android at Leanplum
Sofia, BG
Leanplum is a mobile engagement platform that helps forward-looking brands like Grab, Tinder, and Tesco meet the real-time needs of their customers. By transforming data into an understanding of users’ needs and wants, our platform delivers unified experiences that are timely, tested, and relevant — building the customer loyalty that fuels business growth. Founded in San Francisco, Leanplum has offices across North America, Europe, and Asia, and has received more than $98 million in funding from leading Silicon Valley Venture Capital firms. Leanplum has also been recognized as Fortune’s Best Companies to Work For and Entrepreneur’s Best Entrepreneurial Companies in America. Download the media kit and learn more at
About The Team
Our End-user Experiences team is responsible for the channels by which our customers communicate with their end users e.g. push notifications, in-app messages, app inbox, variables, etc. We own these channels all the way from the composition experience to the underlying backend delivery infrastructure, through to the SDKs that deliver messages and in-app experiences to users. We aim to provide the most stable, reliable, performant, and simple tools for marketers and their developer partners, to integrate with Leanplum and to communicate and interact with their customers in ways that engage and delight them in the most effective and seamless ways across multiple channels.
About The Role
As a Senior Android Engineer you will be a technical leader on your team. You will have the opportunity to scope technical solutions and drive a project from beginning to end. You will develop secure and efficient features into our Android SDK in collaboration with our Product Development teams. You will also have the chance to suggest improvements, contribute to finding and solving problems in your team and supporting broader initiatives. You are expected to be collaborative and possess excellent communication skills - you will have the opportunity to mentor your teammates both technically and culturally.

    • Develop features to support Leanplum’s Android SDK using Kotlin and Java
    • Work with designers and product managers to deliver best-in-class customer and user experience
    • Work closely with other mobile and backend engineers to drive cross discipline products to completion

    • CS degree or equivalent
    • 4+ years of experience with Android development using Java and/or Kotlin
    • Experience in mobile SDK development is a plus
    • Practical experience working with different data models, mobile storage and caching
    • Experience with Android performance tools and optimization techniques
    • Experience with client-server protocols and security models

Benefits & Perks

      • Iconic Office location in Sofia
      • Lunch & dinner provided
      • Eligible for a Health Insurance
      • Sport and physical activities membership
      • Peer bonus system
      • Travel opportunities to meet your peers (business trips & retreats)
      • Company retreats
      • Cell phone bill coverage
Build more than a Career. Create Meaning.
Leanplum is an equal employment opportunity employer for all applicants and employees.  We do not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including  pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender identity, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, legally protected medical condition, family care status, veteran status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, or any other basis protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws. When necessary, we also make reasonable accommodations for disabled employees and for pregnant employees who request an accommodation, with the advice of their health care providers, for pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.


text:
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Oldest Native American

Chippewa Indian Gaa-binagwiiyaas eyes have seen so much

Oldest Native American thanks to Wayne Nowazek

At the age of 137, White Wolf a.k.a. Chief John Smith is considered the oldest Native American to have ever lived (1785-1922)

We can get all the Indians we need at the reservoir. - Samuel Goldwyn

I'm Irish and Cherokee Indian. I can't faint. - Lynn Collins

Native ability without education is like a tree without fruit. - Aristippus

Lisa, vampires are make-believe, like elves, gremlins, and Eskimos. - Homer Simpson

Vegetarian: an old Indian word for "doesn't hunt well." - Paul Harvey

Yancy is actually a Native-American name, but I'm Irish. Go figure. - Yancy Butler

Are you Indian or Pakistani? I can never tell the difference between you chaps. - Prince Philip

When my friends and I played cowboys and Indians, I was always the Chinese railroad worker. - Robin Williams

That's what Columbus said to the Indians just before he gypped 'em out of Manhattan. - Archie Bunker

Few Indians only had breech cloths, most being wrapped in buffalo robes, otherwise quite naked. - Zebulon Pike

As a child, I was subjected to a lot of spaghetti Westerns and hated them. I wanted the Indians to win. - Kara Walker

We took pictures of the native girls, but they weren't developed.
But we're going back next week. - Groucho Marx

The Eskimos had fifty-two names for snow because it was important to them: there ought to be as many for love. - Margaret Atwood

They're picking bananas in Brazil and them Indians down there, they don't care about what you look like. - Archie Bunker

If Aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans. - Stephen Hawking

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text:
A very simple idea to take care of one another better

Mother and child cross the street. [By junpizon, depositphotos, non-commercial use]

By JoeAm

Filipinos are very self-contained. Haha, that’s my polite way of putting it. More direct would be to say most Filipinos are “totally self absorbed”. There is not a lot of other-awareness here. Not a lot of courtesy, kindness, or giving. There is a whole lot of taking.

Ach. What’s going on here? It is not my job to judge Filipinos. It is to discuss ideas. After all, Americans have lost their way, too, so who am I to stand on the hill looking down across the Philippines.

But maybe you, as Filipinos, would care to do the looking and the judging?

Do you feel that you are among people who are generous with their outreach to others? Do you cross the pedestrian crosswalk knowing drivers are looking out for your well-being? Do you go to the fish market and believe the weighing scales are set accurately? When you buy something from a local vendor, do you count your change carefully? Does your doctor go out of his way to schedule an appointment for you? Do voters vote to build a better nation? When you visit a government office, do you get served courteously? Do you feel respected most of the day, or is it rather a desert of appreciation, a battleground of people angling for advantage?

Well, I am a very wary fellow, myself, but then I’ve been shot at here, had my house robbed by relatives, my trees cut down by neighborhood pranksters, unkind rumors spread about my wife by neighbors, and cheated on the tin I donated for the local church roof (the contractor ordered about 30% more than necessary). I cross the crosswalk as if prey for attacking drivers and steel myself to be humiliated whenever I visit a government office. I hold onto my wallet in crowded places and leave the shopping to my wife so my blood pressure is not challenged. I am aghast at how much trash gets dispensed across the landscape, even in 2019 when we ought to be more ‘woke’. I drive like an aggressive maniac because it is the only way to get through the host of other drivers fully willing to claim my right of way if I pause to blink. I notice the people cutting into lines here and there, but don’t say much. I once objected to a woman cutting into the line ahead of my young son at the ice cream kiosk and if she had had a gun, she would have shot me.

It’s not worth it.

So I’m guessing that if you are an objective observer of goings on in the Philippines, you might agree with me, Filipinos aren’t doing a lot to take care of Filipinos.

I have in mind a simple way to change that. I hope you do not think it silly.

My idea? Do a better job using signs for road enforcement. The government has spent a lot of money in my area on roads, and so we have four lane highways where there used to be narrow rural roads. But there are no signs. Motorcycles drive right down the line between lanes, blocking both. I am flabbergasted, but because so many do it, I’m thinking I’m the one who is wrong to believe it would be safer if they got in either the left or right lane.

I think the city or province or national government, whoever manages the highways, ought to post signs here and there along the highway that say “slow vehicles keep right”.

And before major pedestrian crosswalks, they should put up signs that say “Yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk”. Not that funny cartoon sign with a stick figure striding in a crosswalk.

And near schools, scrap the signs that say “slow, school zone” and replace them with “school zone, keep our kids safe”.

Do you see the underlying message there?

Think about others.

On buses “don’t kill our oceans, put trash in a bin”.

Then have some bins at the major bus stops.

I’m sure there are hundreds of ways to inject “thinking of others” into the lives of everyone. Small ways, little easy thoughtful ways. Just a sign here, a reminder there.

That’s my idea. Make a national commitment to taking care of one other better.

Maybe it will feel good to be kind.

I hope so.

41 Responses to “A very simple idea to take care of one another better”
  1. Wilfredo G. Villanueva says:

    I hope you don’t think I am “nagbubuhat ng sariling bangko” or self-promoting. It’s like this: drive in Quezon city and know the meaning of rudeness. Drive in Las Piñas city and be blessed. Pedestrians are given way and they say thanks with a wave of a hand AND a smile. Pedestrians are king in my mind and I have had this attitude for a long time. Is courtesy contagious? Go figure.

  2. You’re right Joe. I’m a former jeepney driver and I really hates those motorcyclists who waves in and out in front of your vehicle or overtakes on the right side, even on the curbs which endangers the pedestrians and themselves too if and when the vehicle they’re overtaking on the wrong side stops to unload their passenger/s. And also those tricycle drivers who keeps driving on the middle/fast lane though they’re too slow, causing a traffic. And some private or public vehicles who doesn’t have courtesy to give way to crossing pedestrians even on pedestrian lanes. Some filipinos are really self-centered and selfish. Always in a hurry to be prioritized first.

    I hope all of you that will read this comment can understand my “english”. 🙂

    • Your English is terrific, and thanks for validating my remarks in the article.

    • madlanglupa says:

      If you thought ours are bad, no way I’ll try to drive on the streets of Ho Chi Minh City — too many motorcycles.

      We have absolutely no driver discipline because we don’t have formal public driving schools.

      • That possibly contributes, yes. But also the need to get around. I’d estimate that over half the drivers in my area are unlicensed and some are as young as 12 or 13. The only rules they know are to avoid checkpoints.

        Hi Chi Minh City was already a zoo in the ‘70’s when I’d drive my jeep there, and it was known as Saigon. But rules were straightforward. You yielded right of way to bigger vehicles, faster vehicles, vehicles in which the driver was honking incessantly, and vehicles in which the driver was waving an arm out the window. At intersections, motorcycles did not stop at the back of the jam, but moved to the front, creating a kind of bulbous collection of bikes at the front that took off in a riot of drag racers when the light changed. It was amazing to behold.

        • I’d add that about 25% wear a helmet as required by law, and overloading is common. The city generally looks the other way because jobs don’t pay much, people have to get to them, and schools are a long way away. Helmets cost money. There are no school buses because to operate them would take hundreds of low-paying jobs away. It is rather an economy of need.

  3. karlgarcia says:

    You can’t even cross the street without assistance from an enforcer nowadays, because no one will stop.

  4. John D Dyte says:

    Light topic!! Wonderful!! I got an idea to stop people from crossing when they should not. Set up electronic sensors to shoot water when some one enters a zone they should not. For cars, water soluble food grade dye. I know water is scarce but I am talking squirt. Non-harmful but inconvenient creative Pavlov solutions are great! On the cutting in business, I always wondered by vendors who have lines don’t use the “first class” method. Three times the price, no line!!!

    • Creative ideas all, John. But I might quibble a little on the punishment routines. Although they might indeed cause different behavior, I’m driving for something a little deeper that can carry into all phases of life, even voting. The will to be kind has to be seated within the emotional core of every Filipino.

      Still, that food grade dye would be fun to see! ahaha

  5. Icoy Mercado says:

    Hello, Joe. Thank you for this piece. Many say that if you want change, it should come from you first. But…

    • I don’t counterflow but when I assert my lane, these kamote drivers fume at me as if I’m the one breaking the law; same as when I blow the horn on those jeepneys stopping even 5 meters or so to load/unload passengers;
    • I slow down and stop for pedestrian crossings but other motorists don’t! To which I may be the cause of slowing down the traffic or which may even be fatal for the pedestrian;
    • we earnestly try to segregate our trash but when I go out, passers-by liter the outside of our house!

    Yes, I agree with you, there is a lot of taking.

    Anyway, while I’m here, just commending the staff of the DFA at SM City San Pablo. So very polite, courteous, composed, and sincerely smiling. Unlike their Dept. Sec. :p

    • Point 1. Ah, yes, try to exercise reason and you’ll be met with a rant. So true.

      Point 2. I don’t stop often because I think I would be driving outside of people’s expectations, and thereby CREATING risk.

      Point 3. Sigh.

      Cheers to you, Icoy, and to DFA San Pablo.

  6. edgar lores says:

    1. When I first arrived in Oz, I was impressed by the consideration for people and for others. I guess this consideration was most evident in the rules of the road and the provisions for disabled persons.

    o Pedestrians are king.
    o Traffic poles at street corners are equipped with signal buttons that, when pressed, shortened the waiting time for the pedestrian walk light to turn green. More amazing, the signal boxes emit a tick-tock sound that speeds up when the walk light came on. This was, I was told, for blind people to know when it was safe to cross.
    o There is no honking of horns.
    o There is parking nearest the entrances to malls that are reserved for disabled persons and for mothers with prams.
    o The sidewalks have gentle declinations at street corners for people on wheelchairs.
    o Most buildings have permanent ramps for wheelchair access and train stations have lifts (elevators) and portable ramps.
    o The floor number buttons on lifts are marked in Braille.
    o There are many parks which have picnic and toilet facilities – and garbage bins.

    2. Coming from Manila of the 80s and 90s, these practices and amenities were a revelation to me. I understand that some of these amenities have been incorporated in Philippine life.

    3. When you come to think of it, these are simple ideas as the blog points out. But the ramifications are enormous.

    3.1. For one, there is the premise that there is a recognition by the government that it has a duty of care and service to its citizens.

    3.2. For another, there is encouraged a mutual understanding among citizens that the consideration of others makes for a genteel society.

    3.3. For a third, special consideration must be extended to people with disabilities or encumbrances, like mothers with young children.

    3.4. Finally – and perhaps most importantly — people absorb the idea that there are limits, boundaries, and mutual obligations that must be observed in a civil society.

    4. These simple ideas outline the social contract that finds its final form in the written Constitution and the unwritten cultural memes. When practiced, they form the ties that bind. Ties that should not be so easily severed as they are now in an uncivil society led by a wayward government and followed by a lost citizenry.

    4.1. In the country of the blind, the blindest man may be king.

    • 3.1 and 3.2 would be wonderful first steps. Government accountability and mutual understanding among citizens that raise taking care of others to a patriotic duty. Maybe it would also end the practice of leaving stray telephone poles in the new lane on the highway.

  7. Thanks for your insights. Here’s what I think: most people are hesitatingly courteous because they suspect the act wouldn’t pay dividends. The golden rule is distorted immensely.

  8. QuietPoetic says:

    Light topic indeed. Big change is rooted from small changes like the one stated in this article. PSAs are helpful tool to educate the masses. I can vividly remember the “no loitering” and the “MAD” (mad about drugs) campaigns I’ve seen as a young girl in the 90s. This is clearly anecdotal but it has stick with me til today.

  9. Ancient Mariner says:

    Joe Am, well said. As a long term expat married to a wonderful Filipina I agree with all that you said. I experience it daily here in Pampanga. It is as if you read my mind.
    My assessment of the average Filipino/a is that they do not care about the effect of their actions on those around them. They live in a “me bubble”.
    However, I’m glad to say that there are many exceptions and that I am privileged to have some of them as friends.
    Wouldn’t the world be a better place if texting was banned whilst walking in crowded places?

    • It would be. Maybe we need mall signs. “Kindly put your cell phone away and care about someone.”

      Your point about there being a lot of people who are aware of others is indeed true. It would be nice if they could get into leadership jobs and those who are so self contained would recognize the importance of what they do.

  10. Pablo says:

    Funny…. Best joke of today.

    Or was it sarcasm?

    More signs? Like the ones they place in the middle of the road telling you to drive carefully just before you almost crash into them?? Or the guys who use the additional lane to dry their rice, protected with stones around their patch? Or use the lane to set-up their food stalls and force the pedestrians onto the single remaining lane in the dark of night?
    Or not to throw away their stuff in the sea? You are welcome to help me every saturday morning when my mate and me take about 7 big bags of garbage from the beach and the passers by look with contempt at this crazy foreigner. Mostly shoes, bottles, fishing gear but sometimes a gem like a container with blood samples or an already full waste bag thrown overboard from a ship. Nobody even pretends to follow the example.
    Or trust each other in the shop where the cashier checks first, the bagger second and then the guard at the door has the guts to ask me for the receipt to check it again?
    Or the ‘trusted’ foreman who worked for 3 years, who’s kids were send to school and skimmed off 20% of the workers’ salaries and threatened them so they would not tell their boss?
    Or the caretaker who sold my trees while I was working abroad?
    I did the CLUP for the municipality and had to go through a lot of laws and at the end was not surprised anymore that not a single law was applied as intended, not even half. I found NONE. Not on drinking water, not on waste, not on health, not on traffic, not on fisheries, not on land-use, not on taxes, not on education and not on service to their constituents. Not even on auditing (although here, they needed to pretend a bit better that they made an effort).

    As I said, best joke of today.

    • Okay, you have identified the problem elaborately. What is your solution? Sneer at people? Mine is not intended as a joke. It is intended to begin gently instilling thoughtfulness into people’s daily acts. You can’t just SAY be thoughtful. It has to be internalized. And, yes, agencies responsible for road signage and safety SHOULD be told to get their act together.

    • edgar lores says:

      The level of cynicism is soul crushing.

      Ok. Let’s grant that this is the present reality. The fact remains that other societies have forged better realities.

      Are Filipinos so fundamentally different that we cannot aspire, rise, and attain to a higher reality?

      I believe this question must be answered earnestly at the individual level.

    • chemrock says:

      I have no suggestions to contribute only this to share not as cynicism but to add to Pablo’s list that show how difficult the situation really is.

      I did a bit of consultation for a foreigner who tried to do some real estate development. He bought a huge piece of land in Cotabato. His first deal and he was snooked because there is no simply no buyer for the houses he will build there. So he left the land idle, 30 years now. He got a caretaker just to keep an eye on it. Once he got a small town mayor as caretaker. Now what could anyone possibly steal from him? Useless land with forest. Well the mayor stole the land literally. Or rather he stole the earth of the land. He has been selling the earth to other developers who needed back-fillers. This tops all the stories I have heard .

      On a serious note, Joe your suggestion is good but it can only have a slight chance of success if it’s a sustained campaign aimed at junior school kids. Sustained and collaborated by all agencies. The adults are gone, you can’t change habits.

  11. Pablo says:

    Same here with local friends who make the place great for us. But from the mixed couples who have lived abroad for a long time, it often is the wife who is most agitated when she gets bypassed, ignored, cheated etc.etc. Would this maybe indicate that Filipinos would be able to make this place into heaven if some enablers would flip? Could this indicate that it actually is not impossible to make this into a functioning & caring society?
    But then……. It also often is the wife who tells the husband not to try to change things because “This is Philippines”…

  12. Rules in Germany:

    (First article is to not endanger or harm other visitors or the park itself, and to behave as to avoid harrassing or blocking others)

    Filipino rules are “I have power”:

  13. karlgarcia says:

    Panelo is really taking care of Duterte and Duterte is taking care of the Marcoses.

  14. karlgarcia says:

    There maybe lots of bad Samaritans but there are good Samaritans out there.

    Sure many just watch people get beaten to death, mugged, even raped, but for those who lived to tell I am sure most of them will have a good samaritan story.

    Also the way we help each other after natural disasters or storms is noteworthy and commendable.

    Philanthropists are seen by some as hypocrites, tax dodgers, etc.
    But they still make a difference.

    • Good points, all. I think most of the moral “rats” have found their way into government. People broadly are decent, church-going people who just have needs, and as the economy produces more jobs, the small-ticket bribes and cheating will likely go away.

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000000 3F320F 844800 99A100 CF8E00 EEBF3D F5C109 F6D375

Ramaria stricta

Posted by
Johan Dierckx (Wijnegem, Belgium) on 28 January 2013 in Plant & Nature and Portfolio.

Ramaria stricta (NL: Rechte koraalzwam / EN: Strict-branch coral, Upright Coral / DE: Steife Koralle / FR: Clavaire étroite) is a coral fungus or genus Ramaria. It has a cosmopolitan distribution, and grows on dead wood, stumps, trunks, and branches of both deciduous and coniferous trees. Its fruit body is up to 10 cm tall, made of multiple slender, compact, and vertical parallel branches. Its color is typically light tan to vinaceous-brown. All parts of the mushroom will bruise when handled. There are several lookalike corals that can usually be distinguished from R. stricita by differences in coloration, bruising reaction, or microscopic features. The fungus is inedible due to its unpleasant odor and bitter taste.

Image: Schilde (BE) – 25/11/2012

Canon EOS 7D 1/30 second F/5.6 ISO 200 150 mm

© Johan Dierckx

The photos on this site are copyrighted, which prohibits anyone to use them to sell, give away, use in email or newsgroups, use in a homepage or otherwise showing to the public without my explicit, prior, written permission. Please feel free to use the "contact"-button below to contact me with any questions.

All species are photographed in their natural habitat, without cutting or capturing them, and with maximal respect and the least possible disturbance to the environment.

(To see species in the same taxonomic rank (Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus), please use the tags provided with the image. The last tag is the Iso-code for the country where the image was taken. Image-date in DD/MM/YYYY format.)

Please feel free to visit my personal website http://www.diversitasnaturae.be/

aaanouel from Heredia, Costa Rica

You have show us a whole new and interesting world around fungus with Xcellent captures Johan.

28 Jan 2013 12:42pm

Ana Lúcia from Leiria, Portugal

Really nice detail and color in this.

29 Jan 2013 12:19am

omid from mashhad, Iran

very nice & amazing!
so beautiful colors, lights & detail!

30 Jan 2013 10:27pm

Canon EOS 7D
1/30 second
ISO 200
150 mm


text:
I learned my MRI results this week. My brain is clear of any lesions (tumors). Except for the resection (the cavity from my brain surgery), my MRI looks like a typical brain. In doctor-speak, this is a complete response. In August, my MRI was a partial complete response. I’ve been upgraded. There was little else to talk about for my appointment. We set the next scan for 4 months out.

I took my last steroid pill this morning. Tomorrow will be my first day in 8 weeks with no steroids. I’m already feeling very good. I think by the end of the weekend I’ll be feeling even better.

I have a PET scan at the end of the month and I find out the results in the first week of December. I’m going to hold off on the weekly updates until then. Things have calmed down considerably. It feels forced to give weekly updates during long periods of inactivity. No news is good news.

I’ll still keep the main blog going and write weekly. Initially, I set the goal writing once a week for 1 year. I’m still aiming for that.

All of this good feeling has me basking in the awe of feeling put back together again. I feel like I was broken, and broken for a long time. It’s only through the love and grace of my family, friends, and professionals (medical and otherwise) that I became functional first, and now exceptional. I am not worse for the wear- my past has become wisdom, and the scars I bear show the power of love and community. I find the Japanese art of kintsugi tells a small part of the journey I’ve gone through in becoming a New Man.

Kintsugi consists of taking broken pieces of a ceramic and pasting them back together. Gold or silver paint is used to highlight the cracks, not hide them. I don’t want my cracks to go away. I want them to be highlighted and I want to be a part of that community that helps put someone else back together again.

There is a powerful sequences of scenes involving kintsugi from a show called The Man in the High Castle. There is a lot of background to what’s going on during these scenes but I’ll only stick to what’s critical for understanding the youtube link I’m providing.

An older Japanese man, Tagomi, finds himself in an American west coast city, his son grown and married, and he has a newborn grandchild. But Tagomi’s actions have distanced his family. While the family still all lives under one roof and is functional, the father and son wage their own cold war of sorts. Tagomi, the father, is disappointed in his son’s embracing of American culture and lack of interest in his Japanese roots. In turn, the son has refused to let him hold his grandchild. Further, Tagomi’s wife wants to divorce him but he refuses to sign the divorce papers. The son’s wife, an American named Juliana, quietly holds things together with a genuine warmth and kindness.

Tagomi walks into a room to find his son and his friends setting up for a protest rally in the house. Tagomi’s large and formal presence is interpretered by his son as cold, rigid, and disapproving. Tagomi is trying to make sense of the new world and foreign culture that he’s a part of, but he shows no emotion.

Rummaging through his own keepsakes, Tagomi finds a broken ceramic baby’s cup. Tagomi’s memory is fragmented (part of the overall character arc of the show), but he pieces together that it’s his grandson’s baby cup and that he broke it in a fit of rage during an argument with his son over marrying an American woman. Juliana, the American woman, clasps his hand, kisses him on the check, and walks away.

Later Tagomi tries to tell his son that he thinks his wife is very special, but the son brushes it off.

Tagomi sits down to begin the practice of kintsugi. I urge you to watch the video I’ve attached. Look at the tools and the layout. How methodical and precise! He glues the ceramic baby cup for his grandson back together and then finishes the cracks with gold paint.

When finished, he crosses the house silently and approaches the baby. The family, alarmed, question him and his son rises to stop him. Tagomi bows in his head in complete humility, and offers his son the repaired cup. Tagomi keeps his head bowed while his son, surprised, examines it. The imperiousness and bitterness are gone! And so is his son’s resistance.

His son then picks up the baby and lets Tagomi hold his grandchild for the first time.

The video below captures these scenes with some added music.

And this is how I feel. Put back together again. The doctors, family, and community glued my pieces back together. But my Juliana is the Spirit, which inspires the healing and paints my wounds golden.

(Hat tip to Pastor Jackie, who used kintsugi in one her sermons recently. Thank you.)

Author: johncatoe

Recovering from brain surgery. Dealing with metastatic melanoma. Hoping to build some community and maybe help people out in someway.

3 thoughts on “Kintsugi”

    1. Thanks eternalflight2019! I am seeing more and more of your stuff pop up. It looks like you found Johann Hari before I did but I’m working on a piece connecting to him and his findings. To quote someone wise, “Steady on the path forward friend!”

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About & Contact

Hi There!

Since 1993, I started a new life journey. After my very first visit to a naturopath, I found out that I had wheat and dairy sensitivities. Something amazing happening from that day onward. Eliminated them from my body….all of a sudden I had mental clarity, clear skin, no more mood swings, more energy, grounded and happier days.

If just one small tweak could change the way I felt and thought, what more could be out there? Hence the beginning of my journey of health and planetary wellness. I was living in Nelson BC at the time which was a haven for eco/health consciousness. I read everything on the subject and through learning, curiosity, listening and testing, I was living it.

I’ve spent a good part of my life outdoors, hiking, wilderness camping and sea kayaking. My traveling adventures are always focused on spending time in the energy and splendor of nature. My rewards have been raising my vibration, animal connection and realizing the incredible miracle our home that we live upon.

Since 2003, I’ve dedicated part of my life to real estate. With my green attitude, I’ve been able to help a lot of clients green-up their homes. For the health of their family and knowing that they are making a global impact on preserving the planet.

Jennifer Lynn Walker

Educator & Mentor on Eco-Sensitive Living

Building a community & enriching lives

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BB Ford Roller Cam Bearings

Category: . Tag: .

Product Description

These low-friction, roller camshaft bearings only require oil “splash” lubrication. Oil feed holes can be totally blocked off, to reduce oil aeration and windage losses. Engine block must be machined to accept bearing size shown in chart. NOTE: The 351 cam journals are NOT production dimensions. The 429-460 dimensions are production. These roller bearings require an SAE 8620 steel camshaft.


text:
Sunday night and now heading back to London, my plan is to get this post done on the train so tomorrow morning when I wake up everything is done and ready to go. Its been a really good weekend and enjoyed the little break but now I’m ready to get back to London and prep for next week.

Today started off with a breakfast at this place called Back to the Garden which is this café place in Holt, Norfolk where they basically serve up proper food that’s all locally sourced, with in the Café they have like a mini super market that’s got all the goods and the place to get hold of the legendary Stokes Ketchup. Trust me once you get hold of Stokes you’ll never see Heinz the same again. Its literally a different class of condiment.

For some reason I feel pretty ill, I’m not sure if that’s the Hangover talking or if its got something to do with how bad my diet has been recently but next week I’m going to up my game and start to eat healthy again, no more Pringles and cheese bagels for breakfast, its going to be all about the porridge and fruit. I really haven’t felt good this afternoon and to be honest I don’t have time to be ill. So I think ill keep this one short and sweet, I need to try and sort myself out.

But my plan for the week ahead also includes getting my Christmas presents sorted, its starting to scare me how much shopping everyone else seems to have done and Im no closer to having it sorted. If I can just get 80% of the presents sorted this week ill be a happy man. I really don’t want it to be a last minute amazon prime thing!

Here’s my photos from today.

– the face of someone who just wants to go back to bed –
– a proper norfolk country shop and Cafe –
– I think we all can tell who comes first in this relationship –


text:
Famous Last Words: Don’t Forget Your Mother

For the First Word, click here.
For the Second Word, click here.

John 19:25-27
Jesus’ mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene stood near the cross. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, here is your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

The Third Word Jesus speaks from the cross is about his mother. Near the cross, Jesus sees his mother and the disciple whom he loved (I talk about who this might be in this past Sunday’s teaching at MCC. Go here to listen). In his waning moments he commits the care of his mother to this Beloved Disciple. I think this touching moment works on two levels.

First, as a son, he is concerned for his mother’s future. If she were a widow, as it is traditionally assumed, her options in a patriarchal society, without someone assuming her care, wouldn’t be good. So, Jesus commits her to the care of his most trusted disciple.

On another level, is we allow these two characters to also play a symbolic role, we can see the larger point Jesus is making. If the mother of Jesus represents the Jewish tradition, the faith that gave birth to and shaped Jesus, and if the Beloved Disciple represents the emerging Christian tradition, then Jesus’ intention is clear: as this movement expands, don’t forget where you came from. Honor your mother, the faith that brought you into the world.

Too often, we wrongly assume that Jesus came into the world for the purpose of founding a new religion. This is not so. Jesus’ work was that of a reformer, calling his tradition to be true to the God he called ‘Father,’ to love their neighbor (which for Jesus, is everyone), and to participate in the repair of the world. Christianity actually began in the synagogue. Those Jewish men and women who believed Jesus to be the fulfillment of their hopes and dreams worshipped alongside their Jewish brothers and sisters who did not see it that way. Eventually, however, the tension between the “Mother” tradition and the burgeoning Jesus movement came to a head. There was a split between these two groups.

Yet, from the cross, Jesus reminds his followers, “Don’t forget your mother.” Honor and acknowledge the soil in which your roots have been planted. Sadly, Christian tradition is stained with many, many instances in which we have done the opposite. Crusades and Holocausts serve as stark and painful reminders of how we have failed to honor our Mother.

God, forgive us!

3 Comments on “Famous Last Words: Don’t Forget Your Mother

  1. Pingback: Famous Last Words: Why Have You Forsaken Me? – Joshua Adam Scott

  2. Pingback: Famous Last Words: I Am Thirsty – Joshua Adam Scott

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NCR Quad-intel force to provide Bucor with rogues’ list

October 13, 2019

AS part of its effort to help the Bureau of Corrections address drug trafficking and other illegal activities in the New Bilibid Prisons, the National Capital Region’s Quad-Intel Force will be providing the agency with the names of erring prison officials and guards as well as convicts who are in their watchlist, Metro Manila police director Major General Guillermo Lorenzo T. Eleazar said yesterday.

“We will be providing the BuCor with the names of their personnel who are in cahoots with convicted drug lords who continue to run their illegal drug activities right inside the New Bilibid Prisons,” the official said.

Eleazar has assured BuCor Director General Gerald Bantag that they will furnish them with the names of rogue prison officials and guards as well as the suspected drug lords they are working for in order for him to craft security measures aimed at arresting their illegal activities even inside the national penitentiary.


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Anikin, L. P., Institute of Volcanology and Seismology FEB RAS , Russian Federation

Issue Section Title Abstract File
No 5 (2019) ARTICLES Mineral-phase paragenes in explosive products of modern emergencies of Kamchatka and Kuril volcanoes. Part 1. Diamonds, carbon phases, condensed organoids Abstract PDF

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Audio Enthusiasts – ana(dia)log.

I first found ana(dia)log via The Walkman Archive blog, even if sometimes I don't agree with this Italian gentleman I felt the need to reach out to him privately and interview him. We both share a deep love for music and in that we agree in most things. I'm without a doubt someone who enjoys the digital... Continue Reading →

Audiophile hype is necessary.

If you are a stressed commuter, the tree in the photo will make you curse specially in rainy days. Not only it hides the time of arrival panel but also the incoming bus. Now let's say there's an car accident and the same tree saves the lives of the commuters, will they still hate the... Continue Reading →

Hello! What is your stance on the digital vs analog sound? Also, I totally agree with you in the fancy cables, conductivity is conductivity. Good reads though. Thanks!

Hi there! Thanks, its always nice to have some feedback! 🙂 About my stance on the neverending digital vs analog sound wars, I enjoy digital sound….I shall now put my shootgun over the shoulder and wait for the analog lovers! XD Let them come! In a more serious way I think (and I said this... Continue Reading →

The CD bashing and vinyl fanboys.

Audio CDs are old digital technology, in fact more than 30 years have passed since the first CD players hit the market. Most audiophiles live by the vinyl analog motto; “digital sucks la la la”. Digital did suck, audio mastering methods of the first audio CDs were based in vinyl and most audio engineers didn't know how to work with the new digital medium. Join... Continue Reading →

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I am in Love – With Eastern Cambodia

Kompong Cham Cambodia

Photo Flashback Friday

I am in love with Eastern Cambodia.

With the small towns, the kind people, the Mekong River, and the amazing sunsets that set over it.

And so much more.

It is a place of few foreigners, many children, and intense curiosity about anyone who arrives, especially a solo anyone with pale skin, eyes, and hair.

Small children will run after you, the foreigner, shouting their one word in English –

– and many other words in a language that you cannot understand, while smiling broadly, and likely not wearing any clothes. The kindness and joy are forever pressed into my memory, and I can feel it the same as I can see the smiles and hear the laughter.

It is a place of poverty. Where many children do not have shoes, though thankfully the ground is soft. Where many children do not have much clothing, though thankfully the sun is bright and the air is warm.

It is a place of poverty, but,

it is so much more.

It is a place of honesty and helpfulness. It is a place where you can forget your passport (your American, worth thousands of dollars on the black market, passport) in a Kampong Cham guesthouse with no phone, and not realize it until you get hours away.. and a few phone calls from a helpful manager sets a whole village into searching for and finding it.

It is a place of selflessness and giving. When you arrive back to the tiny town, to retrieve what you had lost, the young woman who spent a few hours asking around unnamed guesthouses (though she has never met you and doesn’t know you) for your passport will give it to you. And expect nothing. And refuse any money offered, until you ask again and smile and insist that it is a gift. And shyly, slowly, smiling, she will take it.

What is the kindest act you have experienced while traveling?

A short vacation in Thailand turned into a life abroad with a canceled ticket home. 6 years later and after living in Bangkok, Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, and Puebla, Steph is on to her next adventure and living in sunny Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. She is traveling and living around the world to find the beautiful, inspirational, and interesting while sharing it with you!

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The Joys of Waiting.

Wait may seem like such a simple word but context is everything.  Being told to wait at Starbucks might be frustrating but it probably isn’t life altering.  However, in the course of preparing for ministry or other life changes, the word wait is fully loaded.  I have many friends who have been told to wait or forced to wait when preparing to leave for overseas work.  This in-between time is usually filled with frustrations and unexpected joys.  I know this first hand because I too was told to wait when preparing for Papua New Guinea and currently, as I prepare for the next step, I find myself once again in a place of waiting.  This post is written with prayers and empathy for all those who have ever been told to wait.

In September 2007 I wrote a newsletter talking about having been told to wait and what I had been learning through the process.  Here is an excerpt from that letter: Everything seemed to be in order and I was ready to move forward, raising support and finalizing plans to be on the field in January 2008…Then they recommended that I postpone my field work for an entire year…I was told, “This is not ‘no’, this is wait.”…During this time I contemplated many options but no other direction seemed even remotely satisfying.  Through silence, prayer, good counsel, and a myriad of Christian literature, I began to see glimpses of something outside of myself…Ever since I graduated high school my life has been in warp speed… I have never taken the time to stop and listen to the One who ultimately created the universe that I enjoy.  Being told to wait was difficult to accept, but it has forced me to take the time and capitalize on an opportunity to closely examine myself and my motivations…The past two months have been frustratingly wonderful.  I am now even more confident that I have a heart and passion for working  in PNG.  My excitement has been renewed and I am ready to actively wait…Ralph Waldo Emerson once asked “How much of life is lost in waiting?”  In response I say: although there is much to be lost, there is more to be gained and good things are worth the wait.  I am on my journey with a better idea of where I am and a willing spirit to go where I am called.

As I read this letter, I see a hope and an innocence in myself.  I am so thankful that my plans were put on hold so that God’s plans could take over.   I had no idea what was before me in PNG and I remember many tears and frustrated days because I was “ready”.  But looking back at my first 6 months in PNG, I was so far from ready.  Even as it was, I struggled through the first three months of training and without the amazing support of others probably wouldn’t have made it through my first assignment that failed miserably.  And as it turned out, arriving when I did made my first two years fit perfectly with the STEP training course.  It also allowed me time over Branch Conference to still serve while sitting behind the scenes and healing from the failed working relationship.  I can see each piece of the puzzle now that fit because it was placed there with a purpose in God’s perfect timing.

I like to think of this world as God’s orchestra.  He is both composer and conductor.  He’s already written the entire piece, history from the beginning to the end, and yet he still stands before us, directing us as we play.  Each of us has our own instrument, a part of the whole.  Sometimes we wait while others play, sometimes we play melody, sometimes harmony, sometimes we have a solo and all together it makes something beautiful.  We can’t always hear everything because of where we sit but he can and we have to trust his ear and his direction.  This metaphor may not be appealing to a lot of people because it shows us giving up a huge amount of control.  But I am under no allusion that I can control everything.  Who would I rather have making decisions?  The One who knows everything, past, present and future?  Or my mortal, shortsighted self?

For me, giving up that control is what makes the waiting bearable.  If I trust only in my own wisdom and knowledge, I can never be sure about the decisions I make.  However, there is great freedom in saying that I can trust that He knows the future, He knows me and wants what’s best for me.  As His creation, I can rest in His goodness and who He is, even when I can’t see past myself.

In my letter from 2007 I declare at the end that I am ready to actively wait.  I am very pleased with my 23 year old self who recognized that there is a difference between just letting things happen to you and actively pursuing a path while waiting on God’s timing.  I still love the idea that waiting doesn’t have to be passive.  At this point, I am waiting on God for wisdom and direction but I am actively waiting.  Each conversation I have, each presentation I do, each place I stay, each day I spend reading, each trip I take, is all part of the journey.

Psalm 27 is a beautiful reminder of the emotional ups and downs, and the frustrations and joys of the Christian life.  David is in a dangerous place, surrounded by enemies and yet he is asking for wisdom and seeking God’s face.  He finds comfort in the Lord’s presence and in the act of worshiping Him.  But even David knows the power in waiting as he declares, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”

For all my friends who have ever been told to wait, seek refuge with the One who has already written the end of the story.  Open your eyes so you can see the unexpected joys and blessings that come with obedience and being in a place you wouldn’t have chosen for yourself.  Look back at His past faithfulness and rejoice in what He has already done.  Know that some days will be frustrating but channel that emotion into worship.  When it doesn’t make sense, trust in the character of God because He is perfect and unchanging.  Be strong and let your heart take courage.  Wait for the Lord!

With so many good things happening, it is hard to keep up.  The course is great but I spend 7 hours a day at the computer room/literacy office just for class time, not including the extra prep time and meetings, set-up and clean-up.  Then at home I am constantly fiddling with our course schedule and planning for my teaching lessons which include things like making a final test over this weekend.  And in addition to the course, my two Onobasulu colleagues are here.  I want to take advantage of having their undivided attention so while there isn’t time during the course; we have work meetings on the weekend.

Onobasulu work also continues with more than just meetings because we are still working on transferring the various files and data from my computer to theirs.  This means I am the supply line for their work during computer lab times so that we can better keep track of the most up-to-date versions of documents.  And I’m typing up and cleaning up their curriculum work that they produce during the work times.  I also have little projects that I am trying to work on and ask them about now so I can print final copies and have it ready when we go out to the village.  Some things are just easier to ask in person rather then over the radio.

Then I’ve been trying to sort through the papers from the Edolo and Kaluli curriculum workshop that happened while I was in the village but that still involves quite a bit of typing.  I haven’t had time but it needs to happen sooner rather then later because I want to allow time for the expat advisors for those groups to make comments and suggestions before we go out to the village.  In addition there is also the funding paperwork and questions I have since my proposal changed midcourse do to unforeseen complications with the original plan for the Curriculum Translation Workshop.

If that isn’t enough, the store currently has had some greater-than-normal trouble keeping certain things in stock.  So we (Beverly and I) are already planning and doing some village shopping an extra month ahead of time.  Of course this doesn’t just involve going to the store but also making detailed lists to follow so that we know what we’ve bought, what we still need and how to keep within our weight limits for the flights too.  The flights are another beast entirely so I won’t go into that.

The course doesn’t end until Thursday of next week but on Tuesday my new housemate in coming in from POC.  I am very excited to have someone else living with me but this is also extra work trying to clean things up and make space for her.  I had used the extra room as a packing stage with my things for the village and an office too for my printer and such.  However, I figured she would probably want/need her own room and closet so there has been clean-out and consolidation going on here as well.

I’m sure there are probably other things I’m forgetting that I am suppose to be doing now but maybe I have enough going on.  Look for my May newsletter next week:-)  However, don’t feel too sorry for me because when my head gets completely full and cottony, I do take the time to just lay on the couch and watch an episode or two of Castle, or curl up in bed with a Lois McMaster Bujold book from the Miles Vorkosigan series.  You have to be able to escape somehow and a crime fighting book writer or the Barrayaran space world are just the ticket.

Feeding on Faithfulness

“Trust in Jehovah, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on his faithfulness.”  Psalm 37:3 ASV

Simon Savaiko knows what it means to feed on God’s faithfulness.  It is this constant grazing, meditating and remembering that has kept him working in literacy and translation for longer then I’ve been alive.  Starting in the late 70s Simon began working in literacy for his own language group, the Barai in Oro Province.  Then after a few years he joined the translation team to help work on the Barai New Testament.  And finally went back to literacy in the mid 90s where he has continued to work in literacy training ever since.  Although Simon’s heart and passion is for his own language group, he serves many others and assists with training and support throughout PNG.

I have been blessed to work with Simon at the STEP course in 2008 and 2009 and now he is part of the STEP in-service.  He also attended STEP as a student in one of the earliest intakes.  And now has great wisdom and insight for these guys because he has done exactly what we are asking them to do.  He has worked through all sorts of challenges, bringing literacy and education into his area.  Today Simon shared some of the things that worked and some of the things that didn’t work.  We expats can talk until we are blue in the face but it doesn’t ring true because no matter how long we work in PNG, we are still outsiders.  Simon is one of them.  And despite all the trials and hardships, he has remained faithful.  His testimony speaks to all of us and he would be the first to tell you that he didn’t do it on his own.  It is because he meditates, grazes, feeds on God’s faithfulness.

The Unknown- Jello

In STEP we have a learning principle that states, “Teach from the known to the unknown.”  This is one thing that we try to drill into the participant’s heads because it is important when teaching to start with something the students know before moving onto something completely new.  Adults and some other audiences can sometimes handle a bit more unknown but as a general rule it stands.

Today we went straight to the unknown in the form of jello jigglers.  Jeffery (in the background) likes to tell me about his first experience eating jello when he thought his teeth were going to fall out and laughs as he describes how it felt in his mouth.  Hauwo and Jeffery have both tasted jello but I figured most of the other guys hadn’t.

There were lots of different reactions.  Some of the guys were afraid of it.  Others compared it to sago which has a jelly-like consistency when prepared a certain way.  Still others slurped it down happily and asked for bigger pieces.  It was definitely something new for them but a fun all around experience.  Do you remember the first time you ate jello?

Literacy Program Consulting and Computer Repair

For those of you who didn’t know, a couple months ago I stupidly stepped on my computer cracking the screen.  It wasn’t too bad at first but the blackness kept growing from a spider web to a bamboo tree and finally to a large black bat.  This blackness splashed across the screen made it rather difficult to work and watching movies became very inconvenient.

But thanks to a mix of great people, my screen is now back to normal.  Thank you to those who provided the funds to buy and ship the right part from the US and to the amazing CTS (computer technical services) people who ordered the part and then replaced the screen in just a couple hours today.  These guys are amazing technicians.  I am truly blessed.

Meanwhile back in the classroom, we had a morning with literacy consultants.  I invited the other literacy consultants who are currently in Ukarumpa and we split the guys into groups and gave them extra personal attention.  This was a good learning experience for all of us.  I enjoyed interacting with the guys and being able to focus more directly on their needs and wants.  It was also great to come back together and talk through the collective wisdom since all of the consultants have such varied experiences.

Some of the consultants also took the time to look through our literacy archives and find materials for the guys as well as go on mini field trips to book distribution (another archiving center in Ukarumpa) and the Scripture Use office where there are more resources available.  It was a productive day and another step forward as we try to give the participants resources and direction that will benefit them even after they leave Ukarumpa.

Curriculum, Cycles and Computers

My job these past couple of days has been to help these 19 participants analyze their own literacy programs and get themselves to a point where we can actually help them move forward with adding to their curriculums and producing materials. This is challenging because they are all in such different places.

One of the challenges is working with the various educational systems that exist here in PNG.  There is community school, primary school, tok ples prep schools, elementary schools and I’m sure others that I have forgotten.  These are all remnants of old systems mixed with the new system.  Because PNG is so diverse, it has been difficult to change from one system to another so each change brings about more factions that continue working with what they have when they can’t easily change to align themselves with the newest government policy.

We spent a long time discussing STEP’s way of producing curriculum as compared to the new Elementary reform way.  I made sure to emphasize the similarities, especially the superficial ones and try to explain how to deal with the differences in a reasonable way.  This is not to go against the system but instead to equip these men to adapt the materials they do have instead of just throwing everything out each time a change happens.

I think the biggest challenge these men face is the lack of materials.  They can’t just buy a book ready-made off the shelf.  Each book, set of flashcards, and chart in their language has to be made by someone who speaks their language.  But this isn’t always easy and so we reviewed the Writing/Editing cycle as well as the Book Production cycle.  The cycles are not perfect but the visual helps to reinforce that this is a continual process.  To get the best product you don’t just edit once.  Hauwo and Jeffery are editing stories that have already been edited many times but they are still finding mistakes.  This is especially true because the spelling systems in many of these languages are still evolving and will probably continue to change.

We really do want these men to develop their computer skills and be able to benefit from technology but part of that is being able to type well.  This afternoon we spent a long time with a computer typing tutor.  As we were discussing the proper method of typing, I had to laugh because I am not the world’s best typer.  But I’m not horrible because I learned to type on IM (instant messenger).  In high school IM was a typical means of communication and you had to type relatively fast to keep up with the conversation.  Computer history makes me laugh too.  Some of these guys are typing for the first time on a little Netbook with a Windows 7 operating system and the first computer I remember was a huge tan box with a green screen.  I’m thankful for the advances in technology that make courses like this a reality.


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Category Archives: Photos of babies

Life and Death at the Beach

Life and Death at the Beach

With babies, every day is an education. This little story was acted out when we went to Tenacatita beach for the day. Down the beach, a tragedy was being enacted as a group worked to resuscitate a drowned man.  Seconds after I viewed this touching scene as two mothers deal with the interaction between their babies, we realized what was happening in the background and we went down to see if we could be of aid.  The oxygen I’d gone back to the house to get at the last minute before we left for the beach was of no aid to them, however, as though they worked diligently on the man and got his heart beating again, they never were able to get him to breathe on his own.  One tragedy, one story of new life.  This cycle is never more obvious than on the beach, but never before so graphically as depicted on this day. To see the happier story, you must click on the first photo.  All photos will enlarge and be presented as a slideshow, complete with words.

The prompt word today was baby.

It was some day, that day when light came into my world.
Reaching out my arms and legs as they came uncurled,
so many lovely colors bursting into sight.
All this brilliant pigment where formerly was night.

All the parts familiar still attached to me—
my ankle and my navel, my elbow and my knee.
But no longer together, curled into one tight ball.
I never knew that I could be so wide and tall.

Stretching out to fill this square I wonder when
I will be forgetting the curved world I’ve been in.
My mother now beside me instead of all around.
At other times she’s simply nowhere to be found.

My father’s arms around me—arms brand new to me.
All the other others coming to see what I may be.
Scratchy things now touch me—dry things and things with fluff.
Everything a new thing until I’ve had enough.

Then I find my power and make some kind of noise.
Soon I’m joined by other infant girls and boys,
and the whole room fills with sounds of our distress.
Very satisfying, I fear I must confess.

The nurses all come running, the fathers and the sisters.
The orderlies and doctors, the misses and the misters.
And when they lift us up, each one in different arms,
all our cries desist as they cater to our charms.

“Some day,” they’ve been saying, and now we are all here—
a fresh new crop of humans arrived for them to rear.
Once more we exercise our lungs and make each father cower.
Fresh to this new world, we have already found our power.

The prompt today was someday.

Made by Human Beings, for sure!!!

Isn’t it amazing what we can create? Click to enlarge photos.

For Cee’s “Made by Human Beings” black and white prompt.

WP Weekly Photo Challenge: Tiny

Squint your eyes and look in the sky above the left palm tree in the photo above.  See the tiny branch sticking up from the top with a tinier knob on the end?  That’s a bird.  You can see it zoomed up to in the first photo of the mosaic of shots below, all of which depict the word “tiny” to various degrees.  If you click on the first one, you, too, can zoom in on them.

Water and Rocks

Water and Rocks

When I arrived back in Mexico two nights ago,img_7021
as I was leaving the airport in the backseat of a taxi, two events happened.

Version 2

One was the eruption of Colima Volcano, 50 miles away from my house.

The other was a waterspout that took water from the lake and dumped it on the mountains above my house. That event, added to massive rain on that night and this morning, led to the culverts becoming swift-running streams and the cobblestone streets next to my house being littered by stones brought down the arroyos, which all happen to empty into streets which become part of the drainage system.

After the rain finally ended today and the skies cleared, I decided to venture out to see what condition the world around me was in. I could hear the rushing sound that told me that water was still rushing down from the mountain. img_7036img_7038

Although the street that ran to the side of my house was littered with stones, the gardener across the street had gathered up all the stones on the street that ran horizontally across the hill, and put them in small piles, so it was passable. Luckily, no boulders had been brought down this time, for in the past boulders as large as small cars had rolled down, completely tearing up the roads.img_7042

At the end of my street, the culvert had turned into a small stream, and as usually happens after a  series of big rains, children and their parents were treating the culverts like spas––wading and sometimes immersing their entire bodies.

At every street corner they could be seen cavorting like seals and having a wonderful time, as were this grandmother, daughter and baby boy at the end of my street.

I couldn’t resist going to talk to them. The baby was just objecting to the cold water when I arrived, and the mother had set him up on a rock and was gathering stones for him to hold.

He hoarded them in each hand.

“Does he know how to throw rocks?” I asked, and when the mother shook her head no, I set about teaching him how.

After an initial reluctance to let go of the rocks,
He was a fast learner!
And soon we had trouble keeping him supplied with enough pebbles.

Meanwhile, the little stream rushed on, tumbling some of the small stones down the hill towards the Raquet club img_7059
to round the corner

img_7066and rush on down to the village and into the lake.
img_7069Those trees out in the lake were once on dry land and the chains of water hyacinths I could make out even at this distance gave testimony to the fact that in addition to the rainfall, extra water was being let out of the spillways of dams further upstream on the Lerma river. I decided it was time to drive down to the lake to take Frida for a walk to investigate further.

To Be Continued

If you are interested in seeing what happens when a tromba (super-saturated cloud or waterspout) empties out over the mountain above me after days of very hard rain, look HERE. You won’t believe this many rocks could  come down in a 15 minute period! It took a year to repair the damage.

Today’s prompt is “breakthrough,” and if these aren”t two examples of types of breakthroughs, I don’t know what is! I guess I anticipated the prompt.

Busy Hands: Cee’s Fun Foto Challege 2016/08/16

Some of these photos you have seen before, but they needed to be in the collage.  As usual, click if you want a larger view and to read the caption under two of the photos.  Enjoy.


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Gluten, Wheat and Dairy Free Birthday and Celebration Cake

Gluten, Wheat and Dairy Free Celebration Sponge Cakes

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An elegantly simple Gluten, Wheat + Dairy Free Victoria Sponge Cake filled with dairy free frosting and delicious strawberry jam then covered in rolled fondant icing and decorated in bright and funky 2 dimensional designs. A short personalised message can be included on the larger 8''cake. Ordered on line or by phone then carefully packaged and delivered nationwide by our trusted couriers these delicious and beautiful cakes make wonderful birthday or celebration gifts

For allergens see ingredients in bold

Unrefined caster sugar, vegetable oil, salt, water, Vit A, Vit D, carotenes, eggs, koko  milk, rice flour, potato flour, tapioca, maize, buckwheat flour, raising agents (mono calcium phosphate, sodium bicarbonate) xanthan gum, ground almonds, icing sugar, strawberry jam (fructose syrup, strawberries, sugar, citric acid, sodium citrates, pectin), fondant icing(Sugar, Glucose Syrup, Palm Oil, Humectant (Glycerol), Emulsifier (Mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids), Stabilisers (Xanthan Gum, Cellulose), Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Flavouring


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Bangkok | Wat Arun – Temple of Dawn

When you go to Bangkok, it is necessary that you see one of the large temples. It was my first time to visit the city, so I decided to go to Wat Arun – Temple of Dawn.

There is an entrance fee of THB 50 per person and the temple is open daily from 8:30am – 5:30pm. To enter a temple in Thailand, men and women must cover their shoulders and knees. I was very comfortable in my outfit and glad it went well with the style and architecture of the temple. Click here to read more about my outfit of the day.

Wat Arun is situated by Chao Phraya River. The tall structure was easy to walk around because it wasn’t very wide. You could go up one of the staircases and walk around the structure at a higher level. There were also stairs going up to the top of the temple, but sadly it was barred off during my visit. The stairs were steep which made the temple look more tall and narrow. Overall, Wat Arun was beautiful and uniquely made. I’d love to get up early one day before sunrise, sit across the river, and see why it’s called “Temple of Dawn”. I’m guessing it lights up beautifully by the sun. It is also nice to walk over to the Chao Phraya River, grab a boat to the other side, and have lunch or dinner at one of the restaurants with the beautiful view of Wat Arun.

IMG_5868 IMG_5584-01IMG_5841 (1)IMG_5592Maker:L,Date:2017-9-27,Ver:5,Lens:Kan03,Act:Kan02,E-ve

My boyfriend, Gui, thought we should look around to see what more we could find. We stumbled upon a smaller temple while walking through the grounds of Wat Arun. We were pleasantly surprised with rows of golden Buddha. The visual symmetry was pleasing and created a calm ambiance. There were Buddhist Monks walking around, cleaning, and taking care of the temple. The center of the temple had a large structure surrounded by statues of beasts and pillars with touches of gold everywhere.

I enjoyed our little discovery and our time at Wat Arun. I’ve always seen this temple on flight promotions and in photos of Thailand so I am happy to have visited it.

Untitled-2IMG_6016Processed with VSCO with a6 preset

Julia Quisumbing

Bangkok | Thai Tea Shaved Ice Dessert

Out of all of the desserts that I tried in Bangkok, the Thai Tea Kakigori at After You Dessert Cafe was my ultimate favorite! It was a delicious tall bowl of flavored Thai Tea shaved ice with a sweet cream on top, and a side of extra Thai Tea to pour on top.Untitled-3

The center of the bowl had gelatin making it extra unique.

If you’re going to order this, make sure you are with someone to help you finish it off. My boyfriend Gui and I had a fun time devouring this and it definitely made our evening especially memorable.

The following days, we would remind each other of this dessert in order to tempt the other to return for a second time. I am definitely going back to this cafe on my next trip to Bangkok.

After You Dessert Cafe can be found in many malls around Bangkok. I discovered it while I was walking around the 7th floor of Central World.

Julia Quisumbing

Bangkok | Renting a Motorcycle

My boyfriend Gui has been living and working as a model in Bangkok for the past month. I went to celebrate the New Year 2018 with him. His agency got him a condo in Town in Town near many studios and casting agencies. It’s a local and quiet area with a lot of cute cafes and small businesses.

Motorcycle Rental – 3,500 Thai Baht/Month

It was my first time in Bangkok and I wanted a local experience, so we rented a motorbike for a month from a small shop I found on Facebook called Motorbike Rent.

The cheapest rates for a motorbike went from:

  • Daily – 250 Baht
  • Weekly – 1,500 Baht
  • Monthly – 3,500 Baht

We rented a motorbike for a month, costing us just 3,500 Baht ($109). They also handed us 2 helmets to rent for free. For a full tank of gas it costs around 70 Baht ($2).  It definitely saved us money on transportation since I wanted to see a lot of the city. I’ve been trying to travel with a budget since I am currently renovating my 2-bedroom condo in BGC, Philippines.

Having a motorbike is a quick way to get past the traffic. At first it was scary but I got used to it in a couple of days. Gui is really skilled at driving through small spaces and in between cars. I wanted to learn how to drive so he taught me in the small streets of Town in Town, there was no way I was driving on the highway. Not only was I learning how to drive a motorbike, I was learning how to drive on the left side of the road which gets even more confusing! Every morning, Gui lets me drive to a cafe. I enjoy laughing while my hair smoothly whips him in the face. I had a lot of fun with this new experience and I was happy to hear from my agent that I can be presented for motorcycle modeling jobs since now I know how to drive!

Julia Quisumbing


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Well Said, James Brown

The video is less than 2 minutes long, and very worth while. Check it out: He. Is. Awesome.

James Brown, CBS Sports Commentator said the perfect thing regarding the domestic violence that football player Ray Rice has committed against his partner. He says, in part:

“…this problem is bigger than football. There has been, appropriately so, intense and widespread outrage following the release of the video showing what happened inside the elevator at the casino. But wouldn’t it be productive if this collective outrage, as my colleagues have said, could be channelled to truly hear and address the long-suffering cries for help by so many women? And as they said, do something about it? Like an on-going education of men about what healthy, respectful manhood is all about. And it starts with how we view women.”

One thought on “Well Said, James Brown

  1. Very well said! The timing for this goes well with the current increase in awareness of the effects of concussion and head injury in the NFL. It’s a bad combination to have poor respect for woman and poor self regulatory behavior.

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