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Cautious contractors grow wary of bidding

Some projects are now struggling to attract sufficient bids from contractors

These are difficult times for the construction industry. Four years of lower oil prices have starved the market of cash and, for projects that were already being delivered on razor-thin margins, the result has been financial losses for contractors, stalled projects, and a growing mountain of disputes and litigation.

Scarred by the experience of the recent past, contractors are becoming more wary. Resigned to the fact that the prevailing market conditions are here to stay, the only real option for contractors is either to stop working or become more selective when choosing clients and projects.

If there were only a few construction companies, this approach would have an almost immediate impact as clients would quickly notice a lack of contractors prepared to bid for their contracts.

That is not the case in Dubai, however. There is a vast number of local and international construction companies operating, and new firms are established and enter the market on a regular basis.

The result is that contractors that are selective and choose not to tender are simply replaced by other players. This allows clients to proceed with their projects and continue with the behaviours that in the past have caused other firms to stop wanting to work for them.

Single bid

While this remains the overarching theme in Dubai, there are now examples of projects struggling to attract sufficient interest from contractors. One example is the tender for the contract to build a bridge that will take Al-Khail Road over a new waterway connecting Business Bay and Meydan.

The local DBB Contracting was the only company to submit an offer for elevating Al-Khail Road on 20 September, and the Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) returned the bid without opening it.

It is understood that the RTA will now set a new tender closing date and invite other contractors to submit offers.

While the RTA is managing the tender process and the project, it is backed by Meydan. In the past, Meydan has been locked in high-profile disputes with contractors, and firms say they are wary of working for the real estate developer.

If the tender was for building work, it well have received sufficient bids as there are far more firms that can complete general building work. The competition is more limited for roads and infrastructure because contractors complete a higher percentage of the work themselves and there are greater barriers to entry for new players.

As the market conditions for contractors remain challenging, there could be more examples of clients failing to received sufficient bids for their projects. This will likely be for large and complex projects where the competition is limited.

For general building work, competition will remain fierce and it will continue to be a buyers’ market.

17 October, 2018 | .By COLIN FOREMAN


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Texas Medical Assoc. Chooses Houston Physician for President-Elect

Diana L. Fite, MD
Diana L. Fite, MD

Mega Doctor NEWS

Houston emergency physician Diana L. Fite, MD, is elected the new president-elect of the Texas Medical Association (TMA). The TMA House of Delegates policymaking body today elected Dr. Fite to serve in this leadership role for one year, before she assumes the presidency. Delegates elected her during TexMed, the association’s annual conference.

“It is my honor to serve as president-elect of TMA, the largest state medical association in the nation,” she said. “I feel like God has given me the opportunity to be in the position of president-elect and then president for a reason, and I accept the challenge to work to make a positive difference to help physicians take care of our patients as we were trained to do.” She hopes to draw on the power of TMA’s nearly 53,000 members to effect positive changes in medicine.

Dr. Fite points to outside interferences getting in the way of physicians’ time caring for patients, a common refrain among doctors.

“Most physicians are used to working long hard hours and just want to take care of patients and be left alone from wasteful bureaucracy and excessive paperwork,” she said. Government, private health insurance companies, and even hospitals have added layers of bureaucratic demands to physicians’ routines. Rarely do those demands benefit patients, Dr. Fite and her colleagues believe, but they often interfere with the precious patient-physician relationship.

“How did authorizations for medications and for procedures and for radiology studies get out of control? This has become a nightmare for a physician’s office to adhere to,” she said, referring to health plans’ common practice of demanding to approve a procedure or medication the doctor prescribes, before they will authorize it for that patient. “If a physician states that his or her patient needs the medicine or the procedure or the study done, then that should not require any authorization at all. This practice needs to be stopped immediately,” she said. Doctors often say such practices delay their patients’ necessary care. (Legislation to rein in prior authorization limits is winding through the Texas Legislature this session.)

The drive to whittle away at these external distractions motivate Dr. Fite to lead in organized medicine. “One of my associates early on, Dr. Leo Criep, made me understand that it was my duty to be involved in organized medicine to protect physicians and our patients from this outside interference.” (Leo H. Criep, Jr., MD, retired from practicing internal medicine and emergency medicine in Houston.)

For 40 years, Dr. Fite has been an active member of TMA and the Harris County Medical Society (HCMS). She has served on 17 different boards, councils, or committees. She most recently chaired the TMA Board of Trustees, the association’s governing body. She also served as its secretary, and as liaison to the International Medical Graduate section, chair of the Educational Scholarship and Loan Committee, and member of the TMA Task Force on Balance Billing.

Dr. Fite also has represented HCMS as a delegate at every meeting of TMA’s House of Delegates policymaking body since 1986, including through the arrival of seven of her eight children. In addition, she has represented doctors from her home state in the Texas Delegation to the American Medical Association since 2003.

Dr. Fite has attended many TMA First Tuesdays at the Capitol lobby days each legislative session since the program began in 2003, to advocate for health care legislation to improve patient care. She also supports TMA’s political action committee, TEXPAC, as a Capitol Club member and charter Patron member.

Dr. Fite also has served as president of HCMS, the Houston Society of Emergency Medicine, Texas College of Emergency Physicians, and the American Association of Women Emergency Physicians.

Having chaired multiple hospital committees and served on medical executive committees at three different hospitals, Dr. Fite is board certified in emergency medicine. She has practiced in Houston for 39 years.

The emergency physician also has received great recognition for her work, including the 2013 James D. Mills Outstanding Contribution to Emergency Medicine Award from the American College of Emergency Physicians, and the 1996 Toby Myers State Leadership Award from the Texas Council on Family Violence.

Dr. Fite is the mother of eight children, and has more than a dozen grandchildren.

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Mr. X's Castle,[1] known as the X Foundation Headquarters (エックス財団本部ビル Ekkusu Zaidan Honbu Biru)[2] in Japan, is the fortress used by "Mr. X" in Mega Man 6. Mr. X's Castle consists of four parts, called Mr. X Stages (Mr.Xステージ Misutā Ekkusu Sutēji). The final part of the fortress ends with a battle between Mega Man and Mr. X.

Mr. X Stages

MrX Stage1

Mega Man being attacked by two Cannopellers in the first Mr. X Stage.

Mr. X Stage 1

The first level, Mega Man begins outside of the castle, attempting to break inside. A lot of the level involves climbing up, avoiding spikes and an abundance of Cannopellers.

Mr. X Stage 2

MrX Stage2

The opening area of the second Mr. X Stage.

The second Mr. X stage, it has an outer space feel, with large windows that give the player a view of the night sky. The level contains a large amount of Mets, as well as Skull Walkers in the later parts. There is also no vertical scrolling at all, making this level like a hallway of the fortress.

Mr. X Stage 3

The third Mr. X stage, a boiler area.

Mr. X Stage 4

The fourth and last Mr. X stage, an area that seems to be used for robot production.

Other media

New Metropolis attacking a city.

Rockman 6

In the Rockman 6 manga, the X Foundation Headquarters is located in the center of a giant flying city named New Metropolis (ニューメトロポリス Nyū Metoroporisu) that is hidden in space. When Mr. X's eight robots are defeated, New Metropolis descends and attacks a city with its weaponry. Mega Man invades New Metropolis and fights against its defenses, including Rounder II, an army of Mets, Power Piston and Metonger Z.

When Mega Man destroys the X Crusher, Mr. X reveals he is Dr. Wily and escapes, setting the New Metropolis to fall on the city. To save everyone, Mega Man rushes to the city's control room, but to his surprise, New Metropolis stops falling and goes up. When he enters the control room, Mega Man sees the Metall that was piloting Metonger Z, who stopped the fall and sacrifices himself by taking New Metropolis high in the sky and exploding it after Mega Man leaves with the Jet Adaptor.

Mega Man Megamix

The New Metropolis appears briefly in the beginning of "The Strongest Enemy to Date". When Mr. X attempts to conquer the world, Mega Man goes to New Metropolis and fights against Mr. X's eight robots, Doc Robot, Picopico-kun, Cockroach Twin, Big Pets, Mechazaurus, Tank CSII, and other robots before reaching Mr. X's Castle (Mr.Xの居城 Mr. X no Kyojou). Mega Man quickly takes down Mr. X, who reveals that he is actually Dr. Wily and asks for forgiveness. When Mega Man turns around, Dr. Wily tries to crush him with the Wily Machine 6, and as it is easily destroyed, Wily begs for mercy again, but this time he is shot in the head. However, that was a fake Wily robot, and the real Wily escapes. It is later revealed that at one point, Mega Man fought against an evil copy of himself before facing the eight robots, and the copy took his place, believing to be the original.

See Also

Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.


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By Eddie Cox

Having the correct amount of purchase on your mainsheet and hold on your mainsheet block can make a big impact on your sailing. More purchase on your mainsheet will make it significantly easier to trim, while more hold on your mainsheet block will make it easier to stay trimmed.

In the MC and Melges 14, having the proper mainsheet tension is key. We often see sailors under trimmed with the top third of their mainsail luffing. This is mainly a factor of not having enough hold on their mainsheet block but can also be due to not having the proper amount of mainsheet purchase. Being under trimmed reduces the load on the leach of your main and thus reduces your ability to point.

At the MC Blue Chip this fall, I switched my mainsheet block to a new 2x Grip Ratchet Block to facilitate trimming my mainsheet harder and keeping it trimmed. The benefits of this upgrade were even more apparent in heavy air; the 2x block drastically reduced the load on my mainsheet allowing me to maintain a tighter trim. This gave me superior height compared to the fleet while reducing muscle fatigue.

If you have an older MC, you may also need a ratchet extender. The ratchet extender raises the level of your mainsheet to prevent it from rubbing on the hiking straps and deck. The ratchet extender also serves as an adapter between the older Harken swivel bases and the new Harken ratchet blocks.

In the E Scow, C Scow, and X Boat, mainsheet block holding power is also extremely important. Holding power is the amount of load your ratchet block takes versus the amount of load you have to hold in your hand. Keeping mainsheet load out of your hand allows you to keep the mainsheet out of the cleat – something that is easier said than done. It also reduces fatigue allowing you to sail harder, longer.

Melges offers purchase upgrades for the MC Scow and the E Scow. The 5:1 mainsheet upgrade kit will make it easier for you to trim your mainsheet on your MC. On the E-Scow, 3:1 purchase is what is standard on all new models. If your boat has a 2:1 setup, it’s time to upgrade – your bow person will thank you.

Ready to upgrade? Shop Melges today at! Free shipping on all blocks and cleats.

Harken Grip Ratchet Blocks
Click to View All Ratchet Blocks
Melges 14: 57 mm T2 Soft Attach Ratchamatic Block – 2x Grip, Harken 2170
MC & E Scows: 75 mm Ratchet Block Swivel, 2x Grip, Harken 2176
C: 75 mm Ratchet Block – Swivel, 1.5x Grip, Harken 2174
X Boat Main: 75 mm Ratchet Block Swivel, 2x Grip, Harken 2176
X Boat Jib & Opti: 57 mm Ratchet Block – Swivel, 1.5x Grip, Harken 2166

Sheet Upgrade Kits
MC Scow: 5:1 Mainsheet Upgrade Kit
E Scow: 3:1 Continuous Jib Sheet Upgrade Kit


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Single Touch Payroll is here!

Single Touch Payroll (STP) is an added reporting requirement designed to streamline reporting to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

Each pay cycle, you’ll be sending employees’ tax and super information direct to the ATO from your payroll provider.

20 or more employees

If you and your software are ready, you need to start reporting through STP. If not, you’ll need to apply for your own deferred start date.

Fewer than 20 employees

You have until 1 July 2019 (subject to legislation being passed), but if you and your software are ready there’s nothing stopping you from starting right now.

The ATO’s Single Touch Payroll factsheet has all the details. There’s also a handy checklist. Take a look.

Click here to find out more about Energy Super.

Electricity Supply Industry Superannuation (Qld) Ltd (ABN 30 069 634 439, AFSL 336567) is the Trustee for Energy Super (ABN 33 761 363 685). Energy Super is an authorised MySuper product provider (Product Number 33 761 363 685 380). USI: 33 761 363 685 001


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Currants-400g AAO
Currants-400g AAO
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Peter and Helen Kamvissis have been
Growing grapes in the mildura region for
Over 30 years, working 27 acres (10 hectares).
Their crops comprise mainly of fresh table
Grapes, dried fruit and wine varieties.
Being second generation horticulturalists,
They have seen many changes in the industry
And now all their produce is 100% certified
Organic, grown under the clear
Blue sunraysia skies.

Certified Organic by ACO.


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How much will Samsung be spending on Galaxy Note 7 recall?

Samsung Galaxy Note 7

Friday saw Samsung announce that it will indeed be issuing a global recall of all Galaxy Note 7 phablets. So how much of a dent will it be making in the Korean firm’s pocket?

According to estimates by Bloomberg, Samsung is expected to pay roughly US$1-billion for the recall of all Galaxy Note 7 devices on the market right now. Samsung hasn’t confirmed the estimate, only saying that the costs would be “heartbreaking”.

However, financial losses should be the least of Samsung’s concerns, an expert told the publication.

“The potential damage to reputation is far greater than short-term financial losses,” said Chang Sea Jin, a professor at the National University of Singapore.

Samsung is expected to shell out US$1-billion for the Galaxy Note 7 recall

Another expert said that Samsung’s release date advantage over the iPhone has all but “evaporated” as a result of the recall.

Friday’s move comes after just over 30 devices caught fire due to faulty batteries.

“To date (as of September 1) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note 7,” Samsung wrote in a press statement confirming the recall.

“For customers who already have Galaxy Note 7 devices, we will voluntarily replace their current device with a new one over the coming weeks.”

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Johnny Marquez

Johnny P. Marquez

June 10, 1963 - April 25, 2020
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In Memory of

Obituary for Karen Suzanne Handlogten (Herzog)

Karen (Herzog) Handlogten of Grand Rapids, Michigan, age 83, passed away on September 29, 2019.

Karen was born on February 19, 1936, in Kokomo, Indiana to Bill and Dorothy Herzog. In her professional life, she worked as a private secretary for the president of the Sherwin Williams Paint Company, and later served in the same role for Kelvinator appliance company in Grand Rapids.

Karen dearly loved her grand kids, her sisters, and her cats, and she will be remembered for her laugh and her spunky personality.

She is survived by her sister Judy (Herzog) Hilbert, her son Lance Handlogten, and her grandchildren Connor, Aiden, and Skyler. Karen was predeceased by her parents and her sister Shirley (Herzog) Hamann.

Karen will be interned at the Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens in Grand Rapids, Michigan.


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Facebook Hoax 2013: Philippines First Recorded Snowfall

I saw this from my Facebook News Feed.

<Image capture from my facebook.com news feeds>

It was shared by some FB friends of mine. Wow! “Philippines’ First Recorded Snowfall“, and some my friends are asking if this is true. So out of curiosity I did some basic checking: OK Video is on YouTube, let’s see the text description from YouTube:

A bizarre highly unusual phenomenon shocked the southern Philippine residents as of this 8:00 am (UTC+08:00) there were confirmed reports that a 3 straight hours of heavy snowfall was reported to certain areas in the Southern region.

Wow 3 hours of heavy snowfall in the Philippines and yet Menard did not know anything about it (Menard FTW, he hid inside a cave somewhere along Ortigas avenue all-day again!!!)

And then I watched the video and with a replay I know it was TOO HOAX(ie) TO BE TRUE. Why? Read on..

OK some disclaimer first: I am not a video expert or a weather expert. I’m a normal IT-dude who is exposed to malware, social engineering and social media (read more about what I do full time here). So I will try to approach this Philippines First Recorded Snowfall issue from my areas of expertise and I will  try to make some sense out of it.

My observations:

  • Too many missing elements to be real news/newsworthy event. No exact location (Southern Philippines/Southern region only?) Is the news outfit reporting that lazy enough (or incompetent enough)  not to give the exact location? C’mon name the Province and City or Town, so that we can verify its authenticity.
  • Is news agency reporting legit? RB News and their logo, sorry haven’t heard of them :p
  • Exaggerated? Or is Media (Conventional and Social ones) in the Philippines that slow? 3 straight hours of heavy snowfall? 3 hours??? Social media (twitter, FB) isn’t that slow to pick up Bizarre events like this and I believe that the rivals biggie News/Media outlets (GMA,ABS-CBN,TV5,Inquirer,Rappler,etc) will catch the story and will make a big fuzz of it in all media.
  • Vague Details. Too many vague details in the video reporting
  • CC and Copyright Infringement. YouTube video text description got some copyright infringement warning then mixed it up with Creative-commons. Hehehe nice combo!

I originally tried to ignore this Facebook Hoax and  tried to get some sleep but seeing another barrage of Philippines First Recorded Snowfall: Is this true? via my FB timeline and 1 friend of a friend commenting that “this may be Malware, blah blah blah”

Screencap of my Friend’s Facebook Timeline showing her friend’s “may be malware” comment

I just smirked and said to myself: maybe I missed that malware from my breakfast menu (Thanks Ian for letting me use the screencap).

Given my observations above, I am giving a wild-guess that the people or group behind this video just wants to make it viral. Why? I’ve heard that viral videos in YouTube are good source of moolah, cash, kaching-kaching so #alamna. Wild guess lang naman ok?

Sorry I am still _NOT_ buying it. I will _NOT_ embed the video here at menardconnect.com. My reason: by embedding or re-posting the video I might just contribute to making it viral.

So this Philippines’ First Recorded Snowfall => Too Good to be True =>  HOAX for me OK 🙂

My advice to my FB Friends and readers: Do Not Share/ Do NOT Repost That Philippines’ First Recorded Snowfall video in FB. Let’s help remove some of the clutter in Facebook!!!

If you haven’t seen the video and want to contribute to make it “viral” you can cut and paste the link below

(FYI: my 1st viewing showed 200K+ views, now it got some 300K+ views already before posting this article)

Please feel free to repost/share this blog post/article to your timeline to help on the awareness campaign.

If you like this Snow in the Philippines hoax post, kindly view my other Facebook Hoax 2013 posts.


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Exhibition views
1 of 8

Kevin Francis Gray

09/04 2011 – 07/05 2011

Mendes Wood DM is pleased to present London-based artist Kevin Francis Gray’s first solo show in Brazil. The exhibition will feature new sculptures in resin and bronze. Gray’s sculptures etch out at once vivid and blank portraits of contemporary punk and urban subculture in a masterfully executed neoclassical style. Throughout his work formal tensions between shape and shapelessness, excess and restraint, naturalism and idealism aspire to notions of the sublime and of the real.

The artist’s work takes up a stylistic space between the Neoclassical and Gothic styles – seamlessly fusing the naturalism and melancholy of the Gothic [1] with the heroism and purity of the Hellenistic. His subjects are drawn from countercultural sources – adolescents, masochists, punks and poets – and recollect the Byronic hero (or antihero). Proud and flawed, morbid and beautiful, Gray’s sculptures remind the viewer of the affinities between death and the erotic, the sensual and the finite.

Kevin Francis Gray (b. 1972, Northern Ireland) received his BFA from the National College of Art & Design, Dublin, and an MFA from the Art Institute of Chicago as well as an MFA from Goldsmiths College, London. Gray has exhibited widely in the United States and Europe. Gray’s work has recently been exhibited at the Daejeon Museum of Art, Korea, the Musee d’art Moderne, Saint-Etienne, France, the Museum of Contemporary Art of the Valde-Marne, Paris, France and the Riso Museo d'art Contemporanea, Sicily, Italy. He has also exhibited a the Musée National des Beaux-Arts de Québec, Canada, the ARTIUM Centro-Museo Vasco de Arte Contemporáneo, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade, MAMA Rotterdam, P.A.N. Museum, Naples and the Royal Academy, London.

[1] In The Stones of Venice, John Ruskin characterizes the Gothic in 6 ways: “1. Savageness; 2. Changefulness; 3. Naturalism; 4. Grotesqueness; 5. Rigidity; 6. Redundance.”


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Course Status

Course Status

Last Updated: Fri 07 Aug

The golf course is open to members and visitors working within the Government COVID19 guidelines. All booking for golf online

Course open
Range closed
Buggies yes
Electric Trolleys yes
Trolleys yes

Guide to golf

We are delighted that our golf courses are once again open for play.

We also recognise that COVID-19 is still with us and therefore some sensible and practical precautions are required to ensure all golfers can enjoy their sport in a safe and controlled environment, whilst still enjoying the mental and physical health benefits to support their wellbeing.

The guidance, that can be viewed via the button below, has been prepared in consultation with industry bodies, government and medical guidance. For golfers, the measures cover each step of the journey from home to 1st tee and back home again and adherence at all times is a condition of play, for your safety and that of everyone else at the club.

Information and guidance is under constant review, updated as the advice from government, health authorities and the sport’s governing bodies evolves and in line with the gradual lifting of social restrictions. As is normal practice, each golf course will have local rules in play which will be communicated at the check-in point and should be adhered to as directed by the club team.

View guide to golf

Merrist Wood Golf Club In Pictures

Explore Merrist Wood Golf Club through the eyes of our players and guests. Upload your own pictures to Instagram using the hashtag #merristwoodgolfclub to get yours shown!

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Current local time in Monterey Park (United States)

7 August, Friday

Time zone: GMT -8

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/ Day length: 13:39

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electrican,Meyer Electrical Services
Written by Walt Meyer

How Installing a Standby Generator Raises Home Value

A residential standby generator will offer much to your home and family by improving safety and security whenever a power outage occurs. A home unit will ensure the entire house will still have power the moment electricity from the utility is lost.

Its automatic transfer switch means the homeowner will not have to lift a finger to activate it. Devices, appliances, lights, electronics, and the security system will continue to be powered by the standby generator, which runs on its own supply of natural gas or propane.

Installation will be a significant investment, costing $4-$10K. However, while considering how expensive it will be to install a standby generator, homeowners should also factor in how much it will raise their home’s resale value.

Increased Home Value

The expenses from a standby generator installation will usually be justified. Several studies have found that a unit will at least return its purchase cost when the home is sold. On average, a generator investment will return anywhere from 56% to 84% of the cost when a home sells if it is in proper working condition.

Perceived as Luxury Home Feature

A residential standby generator is perceived as a luxury home feature according to an article by the Wall Street Journal. It is a definite plus for prospective home buyers, and it may make a difference. Real estate agents attest how important a generator can be for closing a sale in regions that experience power outages due to weather events.

Associated Savings

Residents of the Chesapeake Bay region will be subject to the Atlantic hurricane season that begins on the 1st of June and ends November 30th. This period will bring storms that may cause power outages.

Whenever there is a loss of electricity, a standby generator will help save money because you will avoid eating out, losing food and beverages to spoilage, renting hotel rooms, getting flood damage from an inoperable sump pump, and damaged frozen water pipes.

Electrical Services You Can Trust

Meyer Electrical Services is an authorized Generac and KOHLER Sales &
Service Dealer serving Maryland, Virginia, and D.C. We provide custom standby generator installations and are trained and licensed to perform the regularly required important factory service and maintenance. Receive a free consultation today by calling (301) 941-1400.


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#RecoverLent – Vulnerability and Ash Wednesday

Six months into my sobriety, there was a moment that rockedme. It may have been the moment I came closest to drinking again. I had justcompleted my first year of seminary and was beginning Clinical PastoralEducation (CPE)—an intensive (and intense!) experience in which someone hopingto do ministry serves as a chaplain of a hospital, nursing home, hospicefacility, or correctional facility to gain exposure and to practice pastoralcare in an intentional and reflective space. CPE is normally undertaken with apeer group that is going through the same experience, and together we process theexperience with a supervisor.

A few days into CPE I disclosed to my peer group that I was in recovery. I had only recently begun to be more public and vulnerable about my recovery process, and I knew that CPE, confronting me with so much of death, life, tragedy, loss, joy, and the mundane, could push me to my limits. So I told my group as early as I felt that I could. I was proud of my recovery and how far I’d come, and I wanted it to be respected.

The group was supportive of me. They rallied around me and told me that they were proud of me and that they hoped I could trust them if I ever needed to talk about the challenges I faced. I was moved. But when I looked over at my supervisor, I could see that something was wrong. After our meeting ended, I approached her to ask her what was the matter.

And she rocked me to my core. She said, “You only have six months of sobriety! You didn’t tell me earlier? Do you know how hard this will be?”

I wish I could tell you that I was calm and assured, that I told her I was going to be okay and God would lead me through.

I wish I could tell you that I stood up for myself, assertive and strong in my own recovery.

But the truth is: I was terrified.

Those six months had been the hardest months of my life.

For six months I had experienced emotions like happiness, joy, anger, frustration, sadness, sorrow, pain, and depression at levels I had not felt in over 6 years.

I had struggled through the depths of winter without a substance to get me through. I was still struggling with stress without a drink to help me relax. I was tired because my body was trying to learn how to digest normal foods. My stomach was often in pain because I had caused so much damage to it with my drinking and odd food consumption.

I can’t remember what I said to her. I think I tried to defend myself, but all I really remember is that I was crushed.

Crushed, because it felt as if all the strength I had built up in those months drained away with just a few words. Crushed that she couldn’t understand how much those months meant to me. Crushed that, even thoughI was working to be healthier and more whole, I was still able to be broken so easily.

My heart was broken, my brain fractured. I just wanted to leave… and get a drink.

As I drove home, I had a decision to make: home, drink, oran AA meeting.

By the grace of God, an hour later I was in an AA meeting. For most of the meeting I listened, hearing others talk but unsure whether I had the voice or the courage to say what had happened to me just a couple hours earlier.

Then, after someone had finished speaking, I found my hand in the air, and I was called on.

“My name is Micah and I am an Alcoholic.”

Anger and frustration came out of me. Fury, fear, and release poured from me as I related what had happened. How she had used the words “only six months” like a weapon. How broken I felt after all I had worked on.

They were the perfect support group. They gasped when I told them what she said. They got upset with me and wanted to curse her out in unison. They shared in my frustration. They shared in my struggle. They urged me to continue on the road and affirmed how far I had come.

They put me back together so I could make it through the night.

When the meeting ended, many came up to talk to me and say again that they were on my side and that if there was anything I needed, all I had to do was call. It was heartwarming.

And then came the conversation that would change my life.

One of the older members of the AA group came up to me. He had been at almost every meeting that I had attended at this place and definitely had the trust and respect of everyone in the room.

He came up to me and thanked me for sharing. Then he said:

“It’s terrible that she said that to you. But… you only have six months.”

My heart sank.

Then he continued:
“But… you did everything right tonight. When the earth crumbled beneath your feet, you came here. You found your support. You opened yourself completely. Sharing your pain, your brokenness. You did everything right tonight. And that’s what I want you to take from this experience. Whether you have six months, six years, or sixty years, there are moments in our life that can cause the earth to crumble, that put our sobriety and our lives in jeopardy, and it is important to know that we all have our limits. We all are powerless. But when we know where to turn—when we know where to go and can share and be vulnerable—you make it through the day and live to take the rest one day at a time.”

It may be the most important lesson I have ever learned.From the support of the rest of the AA group, I could have convinced myself that I was strong and powerful and that I’d conquered this night. I could have owned and gloated in my self-righteousness. I could have led myself down the slippery slope of ego. Instead, I found that there is a huge difference between a group that only serves to build you up and a group that both supports you AND holds your brokenness and limitations with you.

We need to turn to the places and people who seek not to fix us but to support us, to help us hold the pieces of our brokenness. In our vulnerability, we let others help us see our limitations. They can help us to see that we can’t control everything. Others can help us to see that we are cared for and loved for our brokenness and not because of how put together we are.

The words of a wise AA member helped me see the true beauty of that night—that, when we are broken, there is a place we can go to hear that brokenness is okay.

As an alcoholic, that place for me is AA. And, as aChristian, that place for me is the cross.

“Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

On Ash Wednesday, when the sign of the cross is traced in ash on my forehead, I hear this phrase. As a Christian, and as an alcoholic, it reminds me of an important and life-saving truth:

We are finite. We have limitations.

I want to be able to tell myself that I have it all together.For many reasons. As a person who has moved out of a chaotic lifestyle and into a sense of calm, I do not want to admit that I’m not in control. And as an alcoholic, I desire to control everything: my pain, depression, happiness. ButI am finite. I have limitations. I have bad days.

When I can turn to my supports and share openly and vulnerably, I can embrace my brokenness. I can ask for help—knowing that evenGod invites us into that space.

Jesus displayed the ultimate vulnerability on the cross. It is both a beautifully and a painfully permission-giving image. God exposed. God broken. God crying out. God choosing vulnerability. The cross is an image that reminds us that God is found in the broken places. God is present in the broken places of our lives. Listening to our cries, our hurt, our vulnerability.Helping us to hold the broken pieces.

As I begin this Lenten journey, I am committing to engage more deeply with vulnerability. I commit to sharing about my struggles in this journey more openly. I want to be open about my life, my beliefs, my ideas, my struggles. I want to listen to others in their vulnerability. I want to hold their pieces and offer that space.

I invite you into that space as well, whether you’re in recovery or not. I invite you to remember that you do not need to have it all together, and it’s okay to be vulnerable. I invite you to acknowledge your own broken pieces and maybe help someone else hold theirs.

I’m not going to lie, vulnerability can be hard. As I learned with my CPE supervisor that day, vulnerability can get you hurt. But, as I experienced with my AA group that night, vulnerability can also save your life.

Remember that you are dust. Remember that you are broken.

Remember that you are not alone.

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text:
Crossfit Open 2019

Cover image

In 4 to 5 days, we will be finding out what our first workout called 19.1 will be. This will be my third year going into the open, and I'm not nervous. The open workouts are just a way for me to see how I stack against my previous self and those within my box. It is nothing more than a benchmark, and I'm sure it's the same for a lot of people. It's always exciting to see athletes compete on top form and they always seem to make it look so easy. I used to think that I could do it like them, but I've learnt I'll never be as good as they are.

This is because I simply don't have the time. If I had the time and money, then sure I would definitely train like them. My goal would go from training for health to training at a competitive level. However, this isn't the case and I'm here to enjoy myself, my training and the competitions I enter.

The atmosphere in each box during this time can be incredible. It can be the most supportive experience anyone will ever witness. Crowds spectating and encouraging their fellow athletes to push through each workout. To truly reach the pinnacle of their fitness during a workout. It's simply amazing, wonderful and exhilirating all in one.

Are you entering the open? If so, what are your reasons, and what are you most looking forward to? Sound off in the comments below. Also, if you enjoyed reading this post, please consider following me, I would greatly appreciate it.


text:
Journal Entry 327 – Christmas Shopping / Low Fiber

The end of the year is approaching quickly. It has been a very busy year for sure, but a good one. I’ve done a lot more Christmas shopping this year than in years past. I decided to buy something for each member of my team (6 people) and also have the family to buy for as well. I got a nice Amazon Gift Card recently though, so that should come in handy.

It is actually snowing here pretty good today. We are expected to get around 3 inches or so, so maybe working from home tomorrow. I only had a 1.5 day weekend, since this was my long work week. However, this was the last long week I will ever have as our hours have shifted back to Monday thru Friday. 🙂 No more rolling weekends.

I plan on shifting to somewhat of a Carnivore / low fiber diet for the time being. My diet has been good for the most part, but somewhat too chaotic for my liking. I tend to overdo it on fiber sometimes and rely too heavily on green vegetables and beans. These foods taste good, but it leaves a weird sensation of having a full stomach (and bloated stomach), but not really being satisfied in terms of hunger. I’ve been eating a very high fiber diet for a long time and I think the low fiber will act as somewhat of a “Gut Reset.” I plan on keeping the carbs low as well, however, I really don’t think white rice or low fiber bread will cause much of a problem if I did eat it. For example, a good Chipotle order would be a bowl with white rice, chicken, veggies, and salsa. No beans. The fiber would be pretty minimal in this meal. For meals made at home, I’m shooting for half a bag of greens max. The rest would be meat. I also plan to minimize Quest Bars and other “Low Carb Products” that tend to be jacked up with excess fiber. Coffee, jerky, hard-boiled eggs and protein powder during the day.

The main reason for trying this is sometimes when I go long periods without food, I really like the way I feel. I feel light and my stomach is super flat. However, when I eat a lot of carbs or fiber after (this is often for me), I lose that feeling. It takes a long time of no food to get rid of that “heavy” feeling. I noticed if I keep the fiber low, especially low carb, I can eat without the feeling. This diet is definitely worth a shot. The low carbs also flush excess water weight and inflammation that too many carbs can bring. It’s also minimalist in nature, which suits me well.

Costco steak jerky is where it’s at. Very good value tastes great and it has much lower sugar than other brands. I also got some Bison from Aldi which was $7.99 a pound. That is about as cheap as it gets.

The Giants almost blew it again last week, but we managed to get the win. Although it still probably doesn’t matter at this point as we have lost too many games. I’m also playing Uncharted 4 on PS4. So far so good!

Journal Entry 296 – Too Much Fiber

So I’ve been hitting a calorie deficit for about 2-3 weeks without really cheating in awhile. I’d have a day where I would eat more, but not really a cheat day. Yesterday I decided to have a large cheat meal of whatever I wanted. I decided on Cheese Fries from Kickback Jacks along with a Chicken Ceasar Salad and some wings. I woke up this morning looking much fuller than I have in awhile. I actually look like I lift again! It’s amazing what flat looking muscles can do to your physique and mind when cutting. Not fun.

I was really pumped to get back into a higher protein / lower carb way of eating, but realized I was overdoing it on high fiber / low carb food items. This really can wreck your digestion and make you bloated. I always love how Nutritionists latch on to certain ideas like “Fiber is the best thing you can eat” or “It’s almost impossible to get too much fiber, because it’s good for your gut bacteria.” Um yeah, actually it’s extremely easy to get too much fiber and getting too much can literally wreck you. When you add in high fiber tortillas/bread on top of fruits and vegetables and high fiber protein bars (almost all of them in today’s world), then you have just very easily hit well over 50-60 grams. I think I even hit 80 grams one day. I swear it felt like it took me 3 days to clear my bowels and just to feel like I didn’t have a full stomach all the time. After it finally was clear, I decided to go on a very low fiber diet and I felt very good and I looked even better. My stomach was consistently flat all day. I used to wake up with a flat stomach and go to bed looking like buddah. With low fiber, it’s always flat. It’s easy to overlook factors in your diet that you associate with being healthy when in reality they can be a problem. High fiber leads to almost constant distension and a not very aesthetic appearance.

Some foods I have found to be very beneficial to this way of eating AKA non-bloat:

  • Wings
    • I’ve really been into wings recently. A little bit higher fat, but I always save some room for fattier items in my diet.
  • Peanut Butter
    • Doesn’t bloat me at all.
  • Meat
    • Mainly eating Tyson chicken strips, but digests well.
  • Egg Whites
    • Can make you a little gassy, but not overly bloated.
  • Berries
    • Small handful. Berries don’t bloat me like other fruits.
  • Green Vegetables
    • Well cooked and only small amounts at once.


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The Word Turned Upside Down. The strange death of the Left’s opposition to the EU

If the Labour Party had accepted the referendum result, had embraced it, we would have left the EU by now and might also have a Labour government. There would also be less social division abroad than is currently the case. But they have reneged on their election promise of 2017, perpetuated and fed off the social division and set their teeth against Brexit from the Momentum foot soldiers up to the leadership. They now campaign for a second referendum, against a no deal option and there isn’t a deal they would vote for save their own which would leave us in the customs union and the single market, i.e. in the EU. In doing so they have not only betrayed their overwhelmingly working class leave constituency but democracy itself. And it’s a historic betrayal, not only in the sense of its magnitude but also in the narrative of the wider labour movement’s struggle for universal suffrage beginning at the Putney debates and spanning the centuries to the suffragettes. It is a rejection of the principle that ordinary people should strive to exercise political authority through the vote. We have now a Left in Britain that likes to toddle off to see Mike Leigh’s film Peterloo and then despair in the pub afterwards at the poor of 2019 who voted for political independence.

In the Labour movement that I was part of from the late seventies until a few years ago opposition to pan European economics and government was mainstream. Now it is extremely marginal, virtually extinct. By the very definition of the term (see the French Revolution) the Left side of politics is about widening access to political power and the Right is about the narrowing of authority. The EU by definition is a project of the Right. At my final Labour Party branch meeting I was roundly booed for saying I had voted leave and was called ‘Tory scum’ by a member who looked to be in the midst of retaking his A levels. Many in the room were completely unaware of the social democratic case against the growing power of the EU, nor were they aware that until very recently Corbyn had been an opponent of the EU for all of his career, hanging on to the coat tails of Tony Benn. I went to see Corbyn at Leeds during his first leadership campaign. Half way through he told the more than 2000 assembled, ‘…if the EU isn’t delivering for ordinary working people we will consider our membership.’ I wasn’t the only one who stood up to clap. Now the serial rebel is imposing the whip on MPs to stop Brexit. So how did he and the rest of the labour movement learn to love the oligarchy?

In Corbyn’s case it is because he has become increasingly opportunist and sees frustrating the Brexit mandate as a means to force a general election. It seems obvious to him to put party above country, above democracy. The Left has always been a curious cocktail of principled stands and popular posturing. I joined the Socialist Workers Party at the time of punk and the Anti Nazi League, a lot of teenagers did. Initially I didn’t understand why thereafter ‘the party’ made a virtue of unpopularity. But Corbyn wants power. To his credit he is far more serious about it than Miliband was. He and his shadow cabinet appeared so intoxicated by the scent of it during the 2017 general election that the following morning he repeatedly proclaimed Labour had won. What was darker was his response to the atrocity of the Manchester bombing which took place during the campaign. I was in Sydney at the time and was aware that the Prime Minster had called a halt in campaigning. We switched on ABC to see Corbyn proselytising to reporters that Britain’s foreign policy was to blame for the murder of 22 mainly teenage girls at the Manchester Arena. The fact that the bomber was the son of a refugee taken in by Britain is only part of the point here. What I saw was a politician so desperate to make ground he was prepared to exploit an atrocity before the names and scale of the victims were even known, during the nearest this country ever gets to mourning. Corbyn has put in a shift on the back benches and now at last he feels cometh the hour. The 2017 manifesto was an un-costed utopian basket case that had students queueing to have their debts written off. Now he is mapping every move back and forth across the Brexit board game. A former comrade said to me “Jezza is playing a blinder on Brexit.” The most radical domestic political event of our lives isn’t something Labour leaders should be playing with.

To explain the wider Left’s opposition to leaving the EU, even after the referendum result, you have to go back to the Thatcher years, from 1984 onwards. After the defeat of the miners and a second Tory election victory the Left had to reconcile themselves to the fact that the emancipation of the working class was not an act of the working class itself, but was something that the council might do on their behalf. Then Thatcher’s legislation and Kinnock’s purge put paid to that so they looked to Brussels instead. Whilst in Britain workers were reading tabloids, crossing picket lines and buying Filofaxes, the French and other continentals were electing socialists. Europe was cool and was providing European law to protect workers in Britain in place of the unions. There was TUPE for when you were privatised, the working time directive when you needed a break from your VDU. I was a shop steward during this period and was sent on day long courses by my union to gen up on European health and safety law. I became a full time irritant to management not because I had a militant workforce behind me but because I had a handbook of progressive regulations to quote from. A Bleak House version of Scargill.

In the face of declining working class support the Left became managerial in outlook and the Labour Party increasingly a party of managers in spirit if not in occupation. Fast forward to Corbyn’s Labour Party and the influx of numerous ex Trots in mid-life, a lot of young people and an aggressive form of identity politics. Prioritising and defining all things by race or age or gender etc is inherently managerial and undemocratic. It is not hard to see how the party membership gets behind the House of Lords, John Bercow or Gary Linekar to support what is in effect an anti-democracy movement.

Democracy has never been something the Left has valued for its own sake. The very idea has always been viewed as a sham. Believing instead that the real contest lies in the power relations of capital or as Corbyn refers to it ‘a rigged system’ doesn’t lend itself to respecting the result of plebiscites. Furthermore one is taught early on that the voters are rigged as well, that they possess a ‘false consciousness’. In short everyone who disagrees has been brainwashed. Politics for the Left and the managerial classes is not a matter of opinion, of real and perceived interest, it is a matter of right and wrong. Throw in the Left’s new Stalinist handbook that states unless proven otherwise white working class people are racist and leave voters are obviously nothing more than malign and stupid. A discussion with them regarding the merits or otherwise of the EU goes nowhere. If you want to end the free movement of labour because it suppresses the wages of those in unskilled work, you’re a racist. If you’re concerned about unprecedented and unsustainable population growth in the UK, you’re a racist. If you think people should be governed by consent, you’re a Tory. In many ways the contemporary Left bear many of the hallmarks of the far Right. They are censorious to the point of banning speech, books and removing paintings; they make a virtue of segregation based on race and gender and many loathe and fear the working class. The Guardian ran an article in the wake of the referendum arguing that voters should pass an intelligence test; the very same strategy that was used to disenfranchise black people in America.

“Intellectuals are more totalitarian in outlook than the common people. Most of them are perfectly ready for dictatorial methods, secret police, systematic falsification of history, etc. so long as they feel that it is on ‘our’ side.”

George Orwell.

The vilification of the leave constituency has been unprecedented and the vast majority of the barrage, indeed the worst of it comes from the Left. In many of the missives if one replaced the words leave voter with Jew, Muslim or Gay there would quite rightly be outrage. But there isn’t. A colleague of mine who works in arts production was hounded out of work when he spoke up for Brexit. I know others who work in the media, including the BBC, who realistically fear being sacked if management find out they voted leave. Some remain voters I speak to think this is fine. My impression of much of the wider remain vote is that it was based on fear of economic catastrophe. Much of the Left’s motives boil down to a matter of self-image, of virtue signalling as being anti-racist, pro-immigration for its own sake rather than any analysis or understanding of how the EU operates and what it means for democracy across the continent. For if Britain cannot leave the EU, a wealthy island with a commonwealth, then how can the landlocked?

Corbyn will lose votes in Leave constituencies, he may well lose constituencies. He knows this but has decided to throw his lot in with the pro EU middle classes. Brexit was a working class revolt. Labour’s betrayal of its election promise feels like a watershed but there is a much greater schism upon us. Millions of us have come to the conclusion that the UK is no longer a democracy. The system is rigged and it is Labour who have helped to rig it. They have run to the House of Lords to Macron and to the EU to prevent Brexit. The Speaker of the House, a man who has a Bollocks to Brexit sticker on his car bumper has today found a caveat from 1605 that says we can’t leave the EU. Corbyn happened because of Iraq; Brexit happened because of Iraq. The electorate do not trust parliament, politicians are self-evidently not people of their word and they are impossibly remote. I predict a riot and I predict a sharp fall in turnout at the next election, if as it seems, we don’t leave the EU. If voting doesn’t change anything, why vote? People will find other ways to make their point.

The hope here for me, as Winston Smith put it, lies with the proles. Despite approaching three years of EU propaganda from the political class and the state broadcaster, the leave constituency hasn’t buckled, if anything it has grown as many who voted remain have become disgusted with the behaviour of the establishment. I suspect that increasing numbers of people want to leave the EU, want the House of Lords abolished. All the advances toward universal suffrage were as a result of demands by the people. It may be that we will have to revive the struggle once more. But while I no longer think politicians can be trusted I still think the people can.


text:
WELLS, FLORENCE E. - Branch County, Michigan | FLORENCE E. WELLS - Michigan Gravestone Photos

Florence E. WELLS

Dayburg Cemetery
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Contributed on 12/15/13 by romney12
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text:
I Corinthians 7 Part 1–Fidelity and Intimacy

The Corinthians were passionate people. The issues around sexual relations were significant. Paul taught that if it were possible, celibacy was an amazing way to focus on spiritual things.  But, as that was not feasible for most, he made clear that sex was a part of marriage and husbands and wives needed to honor the commitment to intimacy by being faithful and not using sexual relations as a tool or weapon.  Couples need intimacy. So Paul made clear to couples that except for times of spiritual fasting–be intimate.  Do not cheat.
In modern times, the opportunity to escape intimacy is easy. Busy lives, pornography rampant, fidelity considered passe. The ideas of both marriage and family have been reduced to a chaotic former version of what the Lord intended.  Still, in our lives, we need to hold sacred the principles of marriage especially intimacy and faithfulness. They are the cornerstone of a healthy family and society.  The church must pray and preach fidelity and family to the world so that those most critical pieces of society are not crumbled into a chaotic mess.
God Bless You

Now for the matters, you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. I say this as a concession, not as a command. I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.

Now to the unmarried[a] and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do.But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

10 To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband. 11 But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.

Author: Michael Smith

This is an amazing Journey. I hope you will hear from the Lord, as you seek Him with your heart. Matthew 6:33

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text:
Mike Green's thoughts on landscape photography

Musings on: meeting my own expectations

About a year ago, thirteen months to be precise, I wrote about my ‘need’ to return to the Atacama Desert and the Bolivian Altiplano. To grossly summarise that article: I went there two years ago, before I’d started making images in any way which could be described as ‘serious’. Then I learnt a lot more about photographic image-making and felt that – it being an entirely spectacular location – I needed to return armed with my new knowledge about things photographic. To some extent I meant that in terms of technique but, far more importantly, I shall return with a different and, I hope, improved vision.

So, I booked myself a trip which will take me to all the same places that I’ve been to before, but with the specific, primary intention of capturing images, rather than general tourism. Not only that, but it’s in winter, so things should be different (notably, about 50C colder, it seems…. ). That trip is now imminent and, over the last couple of months, I’ve had a few fears of the journey failing to meet my expectations; I’ve had doubts about what I can bring back from South America in terms of images.

I’m pleased to say that those feelings are now resolved; at least, they’re not noticeable, so either I’ve resolved them or they’re now reassuringly suppressed :-) This article is about how I removed the anxiety.

Layered sunrise

So what was the problem?

When I went to the Altiplano a little over two years ago, I was just wandering about playing with my then-new, first, dSLR camera. I was merely travelling, looking at things, and pointing a camera at them. Yes, I was certainly trying to point the camera at interesting things and operate it properly, but essentially I wasn’t ‘a photographer’ at the time, simply a tourist with a camera. This time, I’ve set myself up to go there as ‘a landscape photographer’, with the specific intention of making images which improve on the first set I captured.

Not only that, but this time I’ll be using a better camera and lenses, I’ll be on a trip designed for photographers, and I don’t expect to see anything, in the big picture sense, that I haven’t seen before. All of that can add up to a combination of high expectations and a modicum of self-induced pressure to ‘perform’.

My niggling concern – I’d not go so far as to give it the title of a real worry, but it was certainly something which had come to nag at the back of my mind over the last few weeks…. my niggling concern was that I’d come back with the same shots, or even shots which aren’t as good as the first set. Bolivia from the UK is a fairly long way to go to reproduce something you’ve done before ;-)

And how did I resolve it?

Let’s assume that I have resolved the issue and that I’m not simply suppressing it. I’m sure the latter wouldn’t be a good thing, though that knowledge admittedly comes from watching films and television where ‘suppressing stuff’ is generally not seen as desirable!

The best aspect of this is that I sorted out my worries by re-reading a few of my own blog items!

Firstly, I read the Altiplano one to remind myself why I’d been so committed to going back. It re-established in me the feeling of just what a spectacular place I’m visiting. In that context, I actually don’t care if I fail to produce any new images: even if I had no camera, I’d still be more than happy to go on the same trip and watch the light change in those stunning locations. This time, I’ll be in the same places as before, but at dawn and dusk; the light will be different from last time, and it will change (unlike the previous visit, when it was effectively bright, unmitigated sunshine all the time, with very few exceptions). I’m entirely happy to sit and watch varying light in beautiful surroundings, whether or not I also use it to make images. That said, if it’s as cold as it might be then it’ll be more of an ‘experience’ to be there, rather than unequivocal ‘fun’, I suspect!

Secondly, I read my several Lofoten and US South-West desert ‘Locations for photography:…’ articles. For each location, I was reminded that I came back with shots which were, for the most part, markedly different from those I’d expected. True, I’d not been to either of those places before, but the point is that, once you’re in a place, what you see is generally different from your expectations and is affected by all sorts of factors; things like your mood, what you’ve seen photographed before and how it’s been photographed, the particular weather conditions, the time of year, and doubtless many other things. I’m confident that ‘vision’ is one of those factors, and since my vision has developed, so should the images I make from the Atliplano landscape.

Thirdly, I read a handful of my own ‘musings’ and could see how my thinking on image making has developed in the last couple of years. I’m not the same person now, in terms of my attitude to capturing light and making images from it, as I was in Chile and Bolivia in March 2010. Whether those changes which have occurred are for the better or not is irrelevant: I’m different as a photographer now and hence what I see in the landscapes of the Altiplano and Atacama can safely be expected to be different too.

Finally, it doesn’t really matter if I produce identical images. If I were professional, reliant on making new, saleable images to live on, then I think I’d quite rightly be somewhat trepidatious. I am, however, at a stage with my photography where I’m still very much developing the skills and attitude that are required: I can’t be certain of going to a place and making worthwhile images. Yes, I do expect to, but there’s no guarantee. Not that there ever is, but I suspect that many people can be more confident than I have a right to be at this stage!

Salar de Uyuni at dawn

And the point of this post really was?

This piece started out as a musing on performance anxiety (of a sort!), but my more significant, personal, learning point is that writing this blog is genuinely useful to me.

I said about eighteen months ago, when I first started putting my thoughts out in this form, that part of the idea was to have something to refer back to; to enable me to see how I’d changed. Re-reading those few articles I have, I can see that there are certainly developments over the period.

There’s more to it than that though: by reading my past thoughts I’ve been reminded of various things which have all fed into my experience as a photographer and which have proved specifically useful right now in allaying the minor ‘fears’ I had. Doubly useful then, and perhaps next time I go back and read some of this I’ll find another broad category of usefulness?

A suggestion

I’d therefore like to suggest that the activity of writing a web journal / blog, or even just keeping a personal diary of thoughts and attitudes to photography as you progress, is a really rather good idea, if only for the wholly selfish, but compelling, reasons that it can serve as reassurance, as reinforcement, and as a record of development. Only the last of those things was more than a vague concept when I started, and this is the best instance so far to prove to myself both that the original idea was valid and that there are other benefits too. And if anyone else finds value in these musings and location commentaries, then that’s even better!

The images in this article are, of course, from my first trip. I’m now looking forward to seeing how different the next set will be!

Shadowed peaks

5 Responses to “Musings on: meeting my own expectations”

  1. kevinallan

    Well, those “first trip” images are a pretty good starting point from which to develop, Mike. For myself, I do wonder whether it is possible to take the best images you can on a first trip to any location. I feel that it helps to spend some time in a small area in order to work out what’s really special about that location, and let it “soak in” before making images. The “soak time” might vary from a few hours to a few decades …

  2. Bev

    impressed Mike ~ stunning pictures that really must reassure you that you are gifted with an eye for beauty of the world around you, in particular here of course ! sometimes it is good to return to a location and take more pictures and of course having gained more experience with photography make “better” pictures, I think as with changing light there is a change in what we see at different times as with the seasons of the year and so I think you
    can return to these places and be inspired all over again to capture the magic that first
    captured your eye and imagination ~ I loved reading your thoughts here and viewing the
    beautiful images ~ bev ~

    • Mike Green

      Thanks very much, Bev; that’s very kind. I’m pretty sure I’ll come back with something different, even if it’s largely the same base material at different times of the day and year, with different light. Either way, I’m happy to be going back to such a beautiful place!

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The Harvey/Woodruff family is in store for another round of surprises as the Military Makeover team adds the final touches on the home. In partnership with major brands and local volunteers, we’re counting down the days until the big reveal!

Before we dive in, it’s important to note our makeovers go far beyond the renovations. That’s why we’re honored to help this incredibly inspiring family. Learn more about Luke and Natasha’s story.

During these long, stressful days of construction over the Harvey-Woodruff family home, our dedicated volunteers and construction team need to cool off. That’s where Lipton comes in!

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Don’t move! We’re here with Rayno Window Film, taking a look at one of the most special rooms in the makeover just for Luke’s adorable monkey.


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Bar Mitzvah

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Welcome to Bar Mitzvah!

If you have already purchased this animation, it will only cost $ 20.

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The animations purchased in provide you one license to display it in one device and will only be used along with Mirror Me and Photo Booth services.

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FX Comic Set

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Welcome to another set!

Have fun with these awesome animations!

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Fia Backström

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    Fia Backström

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District 51 has announced phase one of their reopening plan for the school year. Here's what you need to know about District 51's Safe School Reopening Plan.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected a lot of things, including going back to school. District 51 has announced phase one of its Safe School Reopening Plan and here's what you need to know. The first day of school for preschool will be Monday, August 24, kindergarten will be Wednesday, August 19 and the first day of school for grades 1-12 will be Monday, August 17.

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We must avoid the risk of sleep-walking into another violent conflict in Gaza

19/10/2016 1 comment

On 19 October I briefed the UN Security Council on the situation in the Middle East. Although international focus on the Question of Palestine may have been overtaken by the tragedy in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East, but it cannot be allowed to be relegated to a secondary problem.

Sadly, settlement announcements, outbreaks of violence and terror, and the absence of visionary leadership continue to define the conflict. The inability to see beyond the horizon and grasp the benefits of resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict, of ending the occupation, of establishing a two-state solution that meets the national aspirations of both Palestinians and Israelis alike, is a historic loss to the region as a whole.The absence of progress has led to growing anger and frustration among Palestinians and profound disillusionment among Israelis. It has strengthened radicals and weakened moderates on both sides.

On October 9th, a Palestinian opened fire, killing two Israelis and injuring six others in a terror attack in occupied East Jerusalem. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims. Deplorably, Hamas and many others chose to justify and glorify the attack and its perpetrator.

This tragic incident once again underscores an undeniable truth – if Palestinians genuinely hope to reach the long-overdue goal of statehood and an end to the occupation, this will not be achieved through violence, but must be reached through negotiations. In separate incidents, during recent clashes in East Jerusalem, a 20-year-old Palestinian civilian died after being shot by Israeli security forces. Separately, an unarmed 12 year old girl was also shot in the legs by security guards while approaching a checkpoint.

I spoke of the fact that during the past month Israel has continued with settlement planning, including the recent promotion of an initial 98 out of 300 housing units in Shilo, located deep in the occupied West Bank. If implemented, this plan will drive a wedge between north and south in the West Bank and jeopardize the contiguity of a future Palestinian state. Israeli officials have defined this move as an attempt to relocate settlers from the illegal Amona outpost, which has been slated for demolition by the Israeli Supreme Court.
I once again reiterated the position of the Secretary-General that settlements are illegal under international law and undermine the two-state solution.
Adding to this troubling overall picture, I noted that Palestinians have again been unable to exercise their democratic rights after local council elections in the West Bank and Gaza were postponed. The political bickering, mutual accusations, legal challenges and counter-challenges that followed have left the people of Gaza and the West Bank feeling more apart.
I also stated my concern at recent calls by Hamas legislators in Gaza for the Hamas led government to resume its work in Gaza. Such a step would seriously undermine the Palestinian Government of National Consensus and would also make the reconciliation almost impossible.

In a previous breifing in August, I raised UN and international concerns about the steady continuation of Israel’s policy of expanding its presence in the occupied West Bank. Today, I focused on another impediment to a negotiated solution — the security, humanitarian and political situation in Gaza. Three deadly conflicts in the past eight years have eroded both Palestinian belief that Israel wants anything more than Gaza’s destruction and Israeli conviction that their Palestinian neighbours desire peace. Fueling Israeli fears is that Gaza is controlled by a de facto authority whose overtly anti-Semitic Charter equates resistance with violence, rejects peaceful solutions and aspires to the obliteration of Israel.

Israel accuses Gaza militants of continuously seeking to obtain money and military matériel, including by smuggling in civilian boats, concealing components for the production of rockets inside commercial shipments and diverting construction materials from needy beneficiaries. The United Nations has been informed by Israel of at least 41 serious smuggling attempts which have been intercepted since the beginning of 2016. Although the UN lacks the capacity to independently confirm the smuggling accusations, if accurate, they show the intention to continue attacks against Israel.
Last week, I travelled to Gaza where I witnessed warehouses, empty of construction materials, as the reconstruction process is significantly slowing down. And this is due to limitations of imports. No new residential reconstruction projects have been approved since March. In the recent days the approval of some 80 projects – some of which had already been started – has been revoked by Israel.
I saw residential buildings half built. I met with families whose projects have been cleared for reconstruction, yet have not received any cement for months. I heard from those that have tried to navigate the web of rules governing the import of materials considered ‘dual-use’ with no luck or response. I stand with the people in Gaza who have suffered through conflicts, closures and continue to face unimaginable suffering.

At current rates, it will take more than one year to catch up on the backlog of approved projects and years to address the full housing and reconstruction shortage in Gaza. These trends are worrying and I call on the parties to the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism to recommit once again to ensuring its smooth operation. Failing to do that will put in question the viability of the mechanism and undermine the precarious calm in Gaza today.

According to some estimates, in the last decade, militants in Gaza have fired nearly 16,000 rockets and mortars at Israel. Some 200 projectiles have been fired since the end of the last conflict. While since 2014 there has been little damage or injury, there is an ever-present risk of a potentially catastrophic escalation that neither wants nor needs.
During the 2014 conflict, Israel discovered and destroyed 14 tunnels crossing into its territory and, in May of this year, detected and destroyed two more.
I reiterated the joint position of Russia, the United States, the European Union and the Secretary-General of the UN as stated in the Quartet report: the illicit arms build-up and militant activity in Gaza must be terminated. Such actions increase the risk of a new escalation of hostilities, keep thousands of people on both sides of the border under constant threat of attack, and undermine the reconstruction process. The militant threat, however, should not serve as an excuse for Israel to indiscriminately harm civilians in Gaza. In addition to the continuing severely restrictive closures, I am concerned by persistent incursions and the almost daily firing and shelling by Israeli forces into Gaza along the fence and at sea.

The vicious cycles of conflict in Gaza must end.

To do so, control of Gaza must return to the Palestinian Government of National Unity committed to the PLO principles. The closures on Gaza must also be lifted in line with Security Council resolution 1860. Palestinians and Israelis both deserve the right to lead a normal life in freedom and security, with their human rights respected. Since Hamas’ takeover of Gaza in 2007 40 per cent of Palestinians living in the occupied territory are beyond the control of the legitimate Palestinian government. Israel’s closure policy and severe restrictions have brought social, cultural and economic interaction between Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza to a virtual standstill. The widening chasm that has emerged between both parts of the occupied Palestinian territory undermines the national state-building enterprise and threatens the very viability of establishing a unified Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution. Unity is, therefore, critical.

I encouraged Hamas to pursue reconciliation with Fatah in line with the PLO principles and to consider redefining its political stance.

Turning briefly to the Golan I stated my continuing concern by the volatile situation which undermines the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement and jeopardises the ceasefire between Israel and the Syrian Arab Republic. It remains critical that the parties to the Disengagement Agreement maintain liaison with UNDOF in the first instance, exercise maximum restraint and refrain from any action that could escalate the situation across the ceasefire line and the already volatile regional environment.

In closing, I issued two warnings.Firstly, to those who believe that the people of Gaza can be punished by closures or by imposing restrictions on the entry of construction materials that are vital for the economy. They should know that the temperature in Gaza is rising. Secondly, to those who build tunnels, fire rockets, smuggle military materiel, profit from the black market or seek to create confrontation. Their actions are dangerous and irresponsible. They are stealing from their own people and risk the lives of Palestinians and Israelis alike.

We must all avoid the risk of sleep-walking into another violent conflict at a time when the region as a whole needs moderate forces to unite and stand up to the radicalisation that we see across the Middle East. Gaza’s future is inextricably linked to the future of the Palestinian people and their goal of establishing an independent state. But the longer its population continues to suffer under the intolerable weight of Gaza’s current dynamics, the further Palestinians are from realizing that objective, and the closer we are unfortunately to the next major escalation.


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Not so fast: Jose Valverde hasn’t signed with the Diamondbacks

UPDATE: Heyman now says Valverde has not signed and remains a free agent, adding “I miss-interpreted a text” that led him to believe it was a done deal.

Man, talk about getting the band back together.

Jon Heyman of reports that one day after trading for White Sox closer Addison Reed the Diamondbacks have signed Jose Valverde to a minor-league deal, reuniting with the reliever who saved a league-leading 47 games for them way back in 2007.

Arizona traded Valverde to Houston after that season and now he returns trying to save his career following a season in which he pitched just 19 mostly bad innings before being released by Detroit at age 35.

Valverde is just one year removed from saving 35 games with a 3.78 ERA for the Tigers, but even then his secondary numbers had deteriorated and Papa Grande’s odds of succeeding as more than a middle reliever seem pretty slim at this point.

Apparent roster snafu changes Blue Jays pitching plans

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ATLANTA — An apparent roster snafu forced the Toronto Blue Jays to change their pitching plans for Thursday night’s game at the Atlanta Braves.

After Nate Pearson gave up three runs in five innings, manager Charlie Montoyo brought in right-hander Jacob Waguespack to open the sixth.

As Waguespack walked to the mound, he was greeted by home plate umpire Alan Porter, who apparently delivered some bad news: The right-hander wasn’t on the 28-man active roster for the game.

The Blue Jays optioned Waguespack and infielder Santiago Espinal to the team’s alternate training site on Thursday to reach the 28-man roster limit.

Montoyo told reporters before the game Waguespack had been recalled when right-hander Trent Thornton was placed on the 10-day injured list with right elbow inflammation. That move apparently was not processed, leaving Waguespack off the active roster.

Waguespack walked to the dugout and Montoyo brought in Rafael Dolis as the official replacement for Pearson.