Congratulations to Michael Redhill whose novel Bellevue Square was named the winner of the 2017 Giller Prize last night.
And, as many of you probably already know, Bellevue Square was also the winner of the 2017 Shadow Giller. If you're interested in finding out how we came to our decision, you can read about it here.
To see a replay of the Giller event, as well as a video of Michael Redhill's speech visit CBC Books.
That's the end of the Giller Prize season for another year. We hope you've enjoyed following our Shadow Giller proceedings, reviews and tweets over the past two months. We've had a brilliant time doing it and read some wonderful books in the process. Thanks so much for your support! See you next year.
Which book would you like to see win the prize?
Trucks play a big part in this story of a rural Acadian couple who have been together for almost 20 years. The only thing Réjean seems to love more than his wife, Agathe, is his black Chevy Silverado.
Agathe noticed that Réjean had been acting out of character lately, but she had just thought he was planning a surprise for their 20th anniversary. To Agathe, and to the reader, they appear to have a solid marriage. In fact, they feel so close to each other that they choose to hole up alone in their out-of-the-way cottage, holding onto their French language, despite the fact that they are now living in an English town.
When you're that close for that long, what do you do when one half of you disappears?
The story alternates between the past and the present. In the "now" we follow the story of Agathe after the sudden disappearance of her husband; her bewilderment, her hurt, her grief, and finally her need to carry on.
In the "then" we follow the story of Réjean and what happened to him on that fateful day, and the events that led up to it.
Réjean meets Martin at the Chevy dealership where Martin works. Martin sells Réjean's new trucks to him every year when he goes in for the newest model. Réjean is loyal to Chevy trucks and assumes this is something the two of them have in common. He comes to enjoy going by the dealership from time to time to share a rum and chat with Martin; and, as a shy and awkward man with no friends, Martin looks forward to it. Being his only real friend, Réjean's disappearance has a profound effect on poor Martin… who secretly drives a Ford.
When riding in the truck together, Agathe always let Réjean listen to his French folk music. It was fine, but she longed for "something loud to release the strap of tension in her jaw". When Agathe meets Debbie, after the disappearance of Réjean, Debbie introduces her to rock and roll. And Agathe loves it. They play it loudly on their way to work, singing along on the radio. Debbie also teaches her to drive and takes her out to the pubs. Despite her grief, and her longing for Réjean to come back to her, Agathe's life was opening up.
Rock and roll had a way of putting itself on you, so that you were wearing whatever was being sung. All the abandon and rage and torment and heartache. Everyone here was wearing it. Réjean's music didn't do this.
I Am a Truck explores identity, how we define ourselves in relation to others, and how that definition can change when the the ones around us change.
To see this review in full, visit Consumed by Ink.
Our Shadow Giller winner is in the process of being decided… stay tuned!
We're getting closer to the big day. In the meantime, while Kim and I are finishing up our reading and reviews, here are two more from the longlist.
First, another review of Next Year, For Sure. You can read Kim's review of it here. Second, a review of Brother, which I'm thrilled to say is the winner of the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize!
For a book about open relationships, this story is not as steamy as you might think (or at all, really). Instead, Peterson focuses on the psychology of it all. What does this kind of relationship look like, how do the characters feel about it, what are their long-term hopes, and how did they fall into it in the first place?
This was a fast-paced read for me. From the first page I was completely absorbed in the unconventional situation Kathryn and Chris got themselves into, and hoping for the most painless outcome.
It all starts when Chris mentions to Kathryn that he thinks he has a crush on Emily. Well, we all get crushes, right? We just don't act on them, and they usually fade away. But instead, Kathryn thinks there must be something Chris needs that she's not able to give him. And if she loves him, shouldn't she do everything she can to make him happy? So she tells Chris to ask Emily out on a date.
He needs something. Is Kathryn going to be the person to stand in his way?
Love isn't I love you so much that I need to possess you and control you and be the source of all your happiness. Love is I love you so much that I want you to have everything you need, even when it's hard for me.
Kathryn's heart seems to be in the right place, but things don't go as easily as she thought they would. She feels jealous, but pushes through and urges them on. She even becomes friends with Emily herself.
She isn't being exactly fair, she knows, snapping at him like this. The date was Kathryn's idea. And she wasn't going to be this way. She was going to be cool and evolved, like a Joni Mitchell song. She was going to be magnanimous.
Who is she to sit here with pie in her mouth and say life is miserable? She has everything. She has more than anyone needs. And yet she is jealous? Greedy and grudging and unwilling to share? No, that must stop.
To read this review in full, please visit my blog, Consumed by Ink.
To read the review in full, please visit Consumed by Ink.
What about you? How is your Giller reading going? Any preferences?
This review was originally posted on my blog, Consumed by Ink. Please visit for further reading suggestions.
Right off the mark, Kim wants to make something clear about both Outline and Transit.
Let me get one thing out of the way: when Rachel Cusk's Transit was named on the 2017 Giller Prize shortlist my heart sank. That's because I'd read her previous novel, Outline, when it was shortlisted for the same prize in 2015, and I didn't much like it. Knowing that this was a follow-up, I expected I probably wouldn't like this much either. I was right.
There's no real plot. The narrative revolves around a series of interludes or interactions that the narrator makes with other people — a varied cast including an ex-boyfriend, a builder, one of her students, an unmarried friend and her hairdresser — as she goes about her day-to-day life as a creative writing tutor. This lends Transit more the feel of a collection of short stories, rather than a novel.
This unusual structure does achieve one thing: it slowly builds up a picture of Faye, a passive character who doesn't shy away from casting judgement on other people. She's often full of cod philosophy and is (wearily) opinionated, but she's not particularly endearing.
She finds the main character to be "aloof" and "passive", and the writing feels "contrived". Did she like anything about it?
Despite this, I did enjoy specific chapters (the one set in the hairdressing salon was strangely engaging), but overall I found Transit to be a chore to read and I came away from the entire book feeling mostly ambivalent about it.
The title for Minds of Winter comes from The Snow Man by Wallace Stevens, which I thought was fitting. Most of the characters in this book are drawn to the polar regions of the world. No sooner have they gotten back from an expedition and they're off again, despite the very real dangers. Many press on even after near-death experiences. I can't help but admire them, and is perhaps one of the reasons I enjoy reading about them.
Minds of Winter is filled with information on polar exploration; the who, what, when, where, why, and how. The amount of research must have been incredible. The book is divided up into sections, starting with Sir John Franklin and Captain Crozier in Van Diemen's Land in the 1840s, and ending with Captain Hugh Morgan at an airforce base on Baffin Island in the 1950s. Other non-fcitional characters include Charles Francis Hall, Joseph Bellot, Robert Scott, Lawrence Oates, Roald Amundsen, and Cecil Meares. And of course the Mad Trapper of Rat River, "Albert Johnson". There's also a chapter narrated by Ipiirviq/Ebierbing/"Eskimo Joe", a widely traveled Inuit guide and explorer.
Interspersed with the historical accounts of the explorers is a present day thread. Nelson and Fay have come to Inuvik, NWT for different reasons; Nelson to visit his brother, and Fay to look for clues about her vanished grandfather. They meet accidentally at the airport, and soon discover that there may be an historic connection between them.
I have no problem with Nelson and Fay's part of the story. It definitely needs to be there. But I couldn't help but feel like they were just tokens. As characters on their own, they weren't interesting to me; they were only useful as ways of discovering new information. But I did enjoy reading about the setting of Inuvik and surrounding area. Take a look at this community greenhouse!
Each section of the book is fascinating and informative on its own (as well as the maps provided at the beginning of each), but together they make up part of an even more satisfying puzzle of a story. At times I found it hard to keep all the characters and story-lines straight, and often found myself flipping back to previous chapters. (I found it worked best to read each section without interruptions.) But it's well worth it for readers who enjoy a challenging read, or who are interested in historical fiction.
Amundsen, who had dreamed all his life of claiming new lands for his new country, had been dreaming of something that did not exist. This was his last expedition, and he spent it sitting on a chair and staring out of a plastic window. Another first for Amundsen, thought Fay, turning away from the computer screen: that's how we all do our exploring now.
While I was reading, two very different books kept coming to mind. The first, most obvious one, is The Voyage of the Narwhal by Andrea Barrett. Barrett's story takes place shortly after the tragedy of the Franklin Expedition, when ship after ship were being sent to the Arctic to find clues/survivors/remains.
The second is Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien, the 2016 Giller Prize winner. Both books cover an impressive amount of material, and I've seen the words "scope" and "ambition" used to describe both. Also, in both books, the historical parts of the book are anchored by the thread from the present. However, Minds of Winter doesn't pack the emotional punch that Thien's book does. I didn't feel as attached to O'Loughlin's characters as I did to Thien's. Minds of Winter feels more information-packed, and like putting together a puzzle. One that I'm still not sure I have figured out.
The little town of Stromness turns its back on the harbour from which it was born. Grey stone houses face a single long street, showing blind gables to the sea. Bewteen the houses, narrow alleys sneak down to the private piers and slips that are hidden behind them, as if the sea were a family secret which everyone knows but no one acknowledges.
And it brings to life the people who have risked their lives for the opportunity to increase our knowledge and expand our maps.
No one replied to him. And in that silence Bellot was seized by a queer kind of vertigo, an inward spinning and trembling. He saw at last that this journey might prove treacherous in ways he had not previously understood. Well, he would chart his islands carefully. He would check and recheck his instruments, take diligent temperatures and bearings, be doubly and trebly sure of his path by ship and boat and sledge. And he would resist in himself and in others that siren's lure of empty fame, the lust to have one's name attached to some cape or frozen sound. His journal would be his scientific Bible, his instruments his Redeemers. They would guide him through the dark.
This review was first published on my blog, Consumed by Ink. You can find a short list of other reviews of the book, if you're interested in reading more.
Transit seems to be the most well-known book on the Giller shortlist this year. Yet it was the one I was least looking forward to.
When I read Rachel Cusk's Giller shortlisted novel Outline two years ago, I had a luke-warm response to it. In fact, I returned it to the library after reading only half the book. So when Transit made it onto the list this year, I felt a little… apprehensive.
Well there is something to be said for low expectations, because I liked it. "Love" might be too strong a word, but "like" will do.
So I asked myself : what's different? (And I know I'm not the only one who didn't get along with Outline.) I think my issue with Outline was that I couldn't connect with the characters. I didn't care about anyone in the book, so there was no reason to keep reading.
The structure and style of writing in Transit is the same, but in Transit Faye is closer to home. The people she runs into and speaks to and shares stories about are closer to her own life. For this reason I think there is more opportunity to get to know her.
Rachel Cusk is good at getting details right; the kind that make you think "Yes!". For example, have you ever spoken back to the voice that is mysteriously or magically able to give you directions when you're driving?
A friend of mine, depressed in the wake of of his divorce, had recently admitted that he often felt moved to tears by the concern for his health and well-being expressed in the phraseology of adverts and food packaging, and by the automated voices on trains and buses, apparently anxious that he might miss his stop; he actually felt something akin to love, he said, for the female voice that guided him while he was driving his car, so much more devotedly than his wife ever had.
In the interview at 49th Shelf, Cusk says that she is surprised "that there hasn't been more awareness of its central theme, which is children and the false morality that is displayed in so many of our dealings with them. I think I would point to the last chapter of the novel as the expression of my own views about the true nature of responsibility." I wouldn't have picked up on that myself.
To read my review in full, and find out what I thought of the book overall, please visit my blog.


Fort William, UK (June 2, 2016) — Steve Peat and Crankbrothers have enjoyed a long history together, dating back to the original Mallet pedals in 2003. Now, Peaty and Crankbrothers have teamed up to offer a limited edition Steve Peat Signature Mallet DH. The signature pedals not only pay homage to Peaty's legacy in the sport, but also pay it forward by contributing to the next generation of riders.
The signature pedals, individually numbered and limited to one thousand pairs, will be available for purchase at the Fort William World Cup 3-5 June 2016. Peaty himself will be on-hand to sign autographs and share stories with fans. Following the event, the remaining pedals will be available exclusively through dealers in the United Kingdom.
A portion of proceeds from each pair sold will go to establish the Steve Peat Syndicate Scholarship Fund under the Crankbrothers For Others program. The scholarship fund will enable the SPS to offer support, training, and equipment to exceptional young riders who do not have the financial resources to buy into the program.
"It is great to have such support from Crankbrothers for my SPS riders. We try to give them the best advice and training, so it's only right to give them the best equipment. These pedals are a great way to help support the program," said Steve Peat.
The Mallet DH dominates the UCI World Cup Downhill circuit and is the pedal of choice for seven of the top ten racers. The Steve Peat Signature edition features a special double-anodized black and red colourway, with Peaty's autograph and limited edition serial number laser-etched on one side, and a Union Jack and pint-raising "cheers!" motif laser-etched on the other. The design reflects both the performance-oriented and fun-loving nature of Peaty himself.
The Steve Peat Signature Mallet DH (£134.99) will be released at the Fort William World Cup 3rd-5th June 2016, and available exclusively though dealers in the UK.
Crankbrothers creates products to reinvent the riding experience. Tested and proven by world-class athletes, crankbrothers engineers mountain bike components that deliver superior function through disruptive design.
The Steve Peat Syndicate is a new concept for downhill and enduro mountain bike racers, headed up by none other than Steve Peat. The SPS presents a unique opportunity for riders of all ages to enjoy the very best support, training and equipment needed to take their racing to a higher level. Now operating in its 6th year, based out of the UK but with a global reach, the SPS is dedicated to helping riders reach their full potential.


Each Bureau draws its membership from a wide cross-section of industries in each of the relevant sectors, though on occasion there is some cross-over between the disciplines.
In order that companies get the most relevant and very best services to meet their needs, it is therefore important that each prospective client join the most appropriate Bureau. We are ready to offer advice to help with this decision.
For a more detailed listing of the various membership packages, please follow the links to the individual membership pages, alternatively contact CCS or fill in an online application form.


One thing I repeat consistently is that no two lives look the same. Minimalism, homesteading, simple living – it all looks different for everyone, which is why I feel we all learn from each other. When Craig, from Green and Growing, reached out to me to share with you about forest gardening, he introduced an entirely new perspective to me.
Typically, gardening is thought of as tilling the ground to plant and/or planting in raised beds or pots, but I doubt you think about utilizing the woods on your property as well.
Better yet, I am sure you are thinking what kind of plants can I utilize that grow in a forest garden setting. Thankfully, Craig is explaining the how, what, and where for us!
Be sure to tell me which forest garden intrigues you the most in the comments below this post!
The basic, egalitarian idea behind forest gardening is the ability to create a long-lasting and sustainable garden that works with the environment rather than working over the natural landscape. Forest gardening takes time and dedication, but the end results are more than worth the effort. Keep reading to see a few helpful tips and tricks on how to grow and maintain your own forest garden.
Before you can begin planting, you must make sure that the soil in your garden is healthy and nutrient-rich to facilitate better growth and longevity in your forest garden. Healthy soil is also better able to hold water, which will help keep your plants happy and growing tall.
To create a good base soil for your garden, consider starting a compost heap and get your hands on a variety of mulches and whatever other kinds of nutrients the soil of your garden's location might be lacking. Once you have your soil ready to go, you can begin planting with confidence.
One of the greatest benefits of a forest garden is its ability to grow a diverse population of different plant species. When you set out to start planning your forest garden, keep in mind that it is just as important to have a variety of plants in addition to multiples of the same variant.
Luckily, a forest garden offers plenty of space if you plan your garden right, so you should have all the room you need to accomplish this task.
Diversity in your garden should extend throughout the seasons, so that the garden is consistently and continuously growing a wide variety of fruits, nuts, herbs, vegetables, mushrooms, flowers, fibers, etc., over the course of the year. Eventually, the forest garden will become its own, self-sustaining ecosystem, so long as you provide it with the tools it will need to grow properly.
Find a good area to start that gets plenty of sunlight (and at different levels so all plants, from the tallest to the shortest, receive the light they need) and is protected against strong winds.
It is also best to not start your forest garden too close to a body of water, as the occasional flooding will damage your crops and the water itself will cause your garden beds to erode more quickly.
The perfect balance is to find a location that can withstand extremes in temperature on both ends of the spectrum. You want your garden to be as low maintenance as possible; let the forest do what it does best. So make sure your garden is well lit, well watered, and generally stable where you decide to start growing.
Depending on the type of forest that you are working with, make sure that you are choosing the proper plants that will flourish in that specific climate.
The plants that thrive best in a rainforest are those that can withstand a great deal of rainfall and moisture. This include tall, broad-leaf trees, orchids, coffee plants, etc.
Mosses, ferns, wildflowers, maples, oaks, and birch trees do best in a deciduous forest, among others.
Evergreens are the most common type of tree in coniferous forests, particularly catering to large trees and low-growing shrubs.
The soil in a boreal forest is very thing, and growth is limited to primarily evergreen varieties of trees and shrubs.
Remember that a forest garden, while highly rewarding in the long run, is a big commitment that will take time to see ample results. If your first harvest is not as lush as you had hoped, don't get discouraged; the ecosystem will always provide, and your garden will bloom before you know it. Practice patience, and see your forest gardening efforts come to life.
Craig loves to spend all the time he can outdoors and finds every excuse to leave the house. He writes about everything about our planet and edit even more of it. He hopes you'll join him in making the Earth a cleaner and greener place! Follow Craig at the Green and Growing Blog, and on Facebook!
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At least four teams, two courts and 20+ great attitudes is what it takes to make a FANTASTIC 3 on 3 Basketball League and that is just what we have at West Midland Family Center!
A WMFC 3 on 3 league was born out of the interest shown from the WMFC Winter Basketball League players in early April 2012. In May 2012, Players came together with Recreation Director, Stacey Urbani to discuss the possibilities of WMFC hosting a 3 on 3 style league over the summer and fall. The group met, determined the appropriate playing time, rules/regulations and day of the week to launch the league.
The summer 3 on 3 League included 5 teams that played a total of 3 games each and every Thursday night. The players called their own fouls, worked through rule discrepancies and, in partnership with Urbani, tweaked the players manual to perfect everything for the fall league.
"Coming together on the rules/regulations was valuable to me as a director because the buy in from the players was there from the beginning", commented Urbani. "For six weeks in the summer the gym was filled with great athletes modeling positive leadership and attitudes, " continued Urbani.
The last Tuesday in September was the beginning of the second 3 on 3 Basketball League season at WMFC. The league played on Tuesday nights and welcomed teams to one round robin tournament each week. During the final, sixth week of play, WMFC hosted a seeded bracket tournament to determine the league champions.
"Playing 3 on 3 ball is harder than 5 on 5...there's no time to rest," commented one player when asked how he liked the league. "It's a great workout and it's fun!"
Throughout the fall league, the players continued to play with great sportsmanship while having a lot of fun. The evidence of the positive attitudes continued to be displayed even on the last night when the final two teams played one another in the league championship title game. Fouls were called by the players fairly, teams worked together, and in the end the players didn't just want a "winners" photo, but they wanted a photo where both teams were photographed together!
"Everyone played hard and we had a lot of fun," commented several of the players from the first place team, "could we all be in the photo?"
The deadline to join the WMFC Winter Basketball League is fast approaching. For more information please contact Stacey Urbani, 989-832-3256.


text:
Creating Abundance
Higher-Self Therapy
Essence Chart
Multi Name Essence
Universal Years Chart
Posted 2020-09-13 2020-09-25 Laureli
Jack Hope
Diana Spencer Chronology
Nov. 5, 1981: The palace announces Diana is pregnant with her first child.
January 1982: Diana falls down a staircase at Sandringham at the end of hefirst trimester, which she later admitted was a deliberate cry for attention from Charles
June 21, 1982: The couple's first child, Prince William Arthur Philip Louis, is born at London's St. Mary's Hospital, where his own children would be born three decades later.
March 1983: Together with Charles, Diana and 9-month-old son William embark on their first royal tour together to Australia and New Zealand.
Sept. 15, 1984: The couple's second son, Prince Henry Charles Albert David, aka Harry, is born.
Nov. 9, 1985: First lady Nancy Reagan orchestrates Diana's memorable dance with John Travolta at the White House.
April 1987: At the peak of homophobia and fear of AIDS, Diana visits and shakes hands with man with the disease without gloves on.
1989: During a 40th birthday party for Camilla Parker Bowles' sister, Diana dismisses her husband and confronts Camilla about her ongoing affair with Charles. "I would just like you to know that I know exactly what is going on," Diana tells Camilla, warning her not to treat the princess "like an idiot."
March 29, 1992: Diana's father, John Spencer passes away.
Aug. 20, 1991: Diana cuts short her annual royal family summer holiday at Balmoral to return to London to be at the bedside of longtime friend Adrian Ward-Jackson, who dies of AIDS-related illness two days later
May 1992: Journalist Andrew Morton publishes Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words. Begun a year earlier, it consisted of no face-to-face interviews because she couldn't risk being seen as openly participating. Morton sent written questions via her friend Dr. James Colthurst, who recorded the interviews and ferried the tapes back to him.
December 1992: Prime Minister John Major informs Parliament of the official separation of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
January 1993: The "Camillagate" tapes surfaced, audio recordings of phone conversations between Charles and his lover.
December 1993: Diana announces her plan to retire from public life, and dramatically pares down her list of charity patronages.
Fall 1995: Diana meets Dr. Hasnat Khan, the Pakistani-born cardiac surgeon overseeing her acupuncturist's postoperative care and begins a secret, two-year relationship. He breaks up with her in the early summer of 1997
Nov. 20, 1995: BBC's newsmagazine Panorama airs Martin Bashir's bombshell interview with Diana at Kensington Palace, which had been planned and carried out in secrecy. Her most famous quote was "Well, there were three of us in the marriage so it was a bit crowded."
August 1996: The terms of the royal divorce are finalised. Diana is awarded a lump-sum settlement of $22.5 million in cash, as well as about $600,000 a year earmarked to maintain her private office in addition to receiving permission to continue living in their Kensington Palace apartment. She agrees to give up any future claim of being queen. However, she is stripped of the title Her Royal Highness and is henceforth referred to as Diana, Princess of Wales, seen as a petty move on the part of the palace.
Jan. 15, 1997: Diana walks through minefield in Angola to support the Red Cross' call for a ban on landmines and to showcase the de-mining work being done by one of the ch
Aug. 30, 1997: A few months after her split with Khan, Diana and her new beau, Dodi Fayed, depart Paris' Ritz-Carlton Hotel after dinner to spend the night at his apartment.
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Laureli Blyth And The ©Blyth Centre

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Show Related Q&As Clinical Pharmacist: Career and Salary Facts What is Required for Earning a Clinical Nutrition Certificate? What Does a Clinical Scientist Do? What Does a Clinical Psychologist Do?
A masters degree program in Clinical Research Administration teaches students how to test and develop patient care products and protocol. This program is designed for students who have already earned a bachelor degree in a health care field. Although program length can vary, most masters degree programs in Clinical Research Administration can be completed within one to three years.
Most of the students who earn a masters degree in Clinical Research Administration obtain work as a clinical research administrator. Job responsibilities often include conducting clinical research trials and developing products that meet current medical regulations. Experienced clinical research administrators can also work as managers or research analysts.
Although doctorates in clinical research administration are not available, you can earn a master's degree in the field, or a doctorate in clinical research. Find out course topics you will study in these programs.
A master's program in clinical research administration represents the intersection of medicine, business and law. This article will show you the variety of programs offered, typical classes, and career options in the field.
Research what it takes to become a clinical research associate. Learn about the educational and certification requirements, job duties and salary information to find out if this is the career for you.
A career in clinical research involves investigating the causes of diseases and working to find new treatments. Get information on the types of degree programs offered, see what you'll study, and learn about professional certification opportunities.


text:
Q: PyAudio OSError: No Default Input Device Available I'm using PyAudio to make a speech recognition application with the SpeechRecognition library in Python 3.9.6, but when I try and execute the takeCommand function it gives me this error:
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:\Users\trevo\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python39\lib\tkinter\__init__.py", line 1892, in __call__
    return self.func(*args)
  File "c:\Users\trevo\Google Drive\OmniPhi - TetraSystemSolutions\src\MainProgram\OmniMain.py", line 56, in activateOmni
    querycommand = om.takeCommand()
  File "c:\Users\trevo\Google Drive\OmniPhi - TetraSystemSolutions\src\MainProgram\OmniBot.py", line 24, in takeCommand
    with sr.Microphone() as source:
  File "C:\Users\trevo\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python39\lib\site-packages\speech_recognition\__init__.py", line 86, in __init__
    device_info = audio.get_device_info_by_index(device_index) if device_index is not None else audio.get_default_input_device_info()
  File "C:\Users\trevo\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python39\lib\site-packages\pyaudio.py", line 949, in get_default_input_device_info
    device_index = pa.get_default_input_device()
OSError: No Default Input Device Available

I wasn't able to find a whole lot on the problem I was having specifically. I have tried looking on posts such as <https://stackoverflow.com/questions/53058689/oserror-no-default-input-device-available>
and <https://stackoverflow.com/questions/59013743/oserror-no-default-input-device-available-on-google-colab>
but the former is related to Linux and not related to Windows and the latter is related to Google Collaboratory. I have also tried using other methods like getting the microphone device by using a function but that has failed as well.
Here is the main code with the two scripts, one with the takeCommand inside of itself and the other with the main class named OmniPhi:
import wolframalpha as wolf
import wikipedia as wiki
import pyttsx3
import speech_recognition as sr
from tkinter import *
import time
from OmniSecondMain import *

engine = pyttsx3.init('sapi5')
voices = engine.getProperty('voices')
engine.setProperty('voice', voices[0].id)

def omnispeak(audio):
    engine.say(audio)
    engine.runAndWait()

def takeCommand(ask=False):
    r = sr.Recognizer()
    with sr.Microphone() as source:
        if ask:
            gaiaspeak(ask)
        print('Say something')
        sr.adjust_for_ambient_noise(source)
        audio = r.listen(source)
        voice_data = ''
    try:
        voice_data = r.recognize_google(audio)
    except sr.UnknownValueError:
        print('Sorry, i did not get that.')
    except sr.RequestError:
        print('Sorry, my services are down.')
    return voice_data

script 2: OmniMain.py
from tkinter import *
from tkinter.font import Font
import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import ttk
import os
import sys
import sqlite3 as sq
from PIL import ImageTk, Image
import wolframalpha as wolf
import OmniBot as om
import time

class OmniPhi(tk.Tk):
    def __init__(self):
        super().__init__()

        self.title('Welcome to OmniPhi!')
        self.geometry('1280x700')
        self.topFrame = tk.Frame(self, bg='#303098')
        self.topFrame.place(x=0, y=0)
        self.topFrame.config(height=700, width=1280)
        userText=tk.StringVar()

        userText.set('Weclome to Omni! your personal labratory assistant.')
        self.userFrame = Message(self, textvariable=userText, bg='#303098', fg='white')
        self.userFrame.config(font=("Century Gothic", 24, 'bold'))
        self.userFrame.place(x=500, y=200)
        self.startButton = tk.Button(self, text='Start Omni', bg='#303098', fg='white', font=('Century Gothic', 12, 'bold'), bd=0, command=self.activateOmni)
        self.startButton.place(x=600, y=500)
        self.loadButton = Button(self, text='Load Experiment File', bg='#303098', fg='white', font=('Century Gothic', 12, 'bold'), bd=0)
        self.loadButton.place(x=560, y=530)
        self.quitButton = Button(self, text='Quit', bg='#303098', fg='white', font=('Century Gothic', 12, 'bold'), bd=0)
        self.quitButton.place(x=625, y=560)
        #self.title = 'database'
        #self.create_database(self.title)
    def create_database(self, title):
        conn = sq.connect(title)
        c = conn.cursor()
        #c.execute("""CREATE TABLE""")

    def om_introduction(self):
        om.omnispeak(self, 'Hello my name is Omni! I will be your personal science testing robot, Lets get started.')
        qt = GaiaText(self)
        qt.pack(side='top', fill='both', expand=True)
        self.protocol("WM_DELETE_WINDOW", qt.onClosing)

    def activateOmni(self):
        om.omnispeak('Hello, I am Omni a robot who can test science experiments.')
        querycommand = om.takeCommand()

        #master = tk.Tk()
        #qt = om.GaiaText(master)
        #qt.pack(side='top', fill='both', expand=True)
        #self.protocol("WM_DELETE_WINDOW", qt.onClosing)
        #master.mainloop()

if __name__ == '__main__':
    phi = OmniPhi()
    phi.mainloop()

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


OceanWise are proud to receive the Bronze Award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS).
The scheme has been established to encourage employers to develop and maintain an armed forces-friendly environment and we have been successful in achieving a bronze certificate in reflection of our attitude and actions towards members of the military, both current and retired, and their families.
The ERS encourages employers to support defence and inspire others to do the same. The scheme encompasses awards for employer organisations that pledge, demonstrate or advocate support to defence and the armed forces community, and align their values with the Armed Forces Covenant.
The ERS is designed to recognise private sector support although public sector organisations such as the emergency services, local authorities, NHS trusts and executive agencies are also eligible to be recognised.


text:
Wonder Women Columnists
Going solo: the shrinking face of the family
The only child is a growing phenomenon all over the world. But is the China syndrome desirable for parents and offspring?
(Clockwise from top left) Tiger Woods, Theresa May, Benedict Cumberbatch, Maria Sharapova, Elton John and Condoleezza Rice
By Victoria Lambert
8:27PM GMT 26 Mar 2013
The British nuclear family is in meltdown. Given that new research shows nearly half of all families are one-child affairs, you could even say that we've fallen victim to China syndrome. According to the Office for National Statistics, the number has increased by almost 700,000 in 15 years to 3.7 million, and one-child families are likely to be in the majority within a decade.
Are we to become a nation of little emperors and empresses? If so, we're certainly not making the demographic change alone. In the US, there are now 20 million only-child households, representing 22 per cent (and climbing) of American families. In Canada, 43 per cent of families now have singletons.
In Spain and Portugal – which have traditionally celebrated the large family – a third are now one-child units. India, too, is following the trend: the Delhi-based National Council of Applied Economic Research reported that 10 per cent of households are opting to have only one child, and nearly a quarter of college-educated women say they would prefer to have a singleton.
Ironic, then, that China, where the one-child policy has been law since 1978, is at last softening its stance. Two weeks ago, the government body that ran the country's population control policy was stripped of its power; a move, Sinologists say, that signals a phasing-out of the much-criticised scheme.
So why do so many other nations appear to be instinctively reducing the size of their families? The ONS points to financial pressures; larger families, it warns, face "the greater challenge of combining work with childcare with three or more children compared with one or two". Bear in mind, too, that the cost of bringing up a child to the age of 21 has reached £222,458, according to a report from insurer LV earlier this year. To that can be added rising household bills, wage freezes and recent cuts to child benefit, as well as the mixed message sent by last week's Budget, which proposed to make childcare more affordable for women who go out to work but did nothing for mothers who want to raise more children in the home.
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Yet in New Delhi it is not recession that is driving the trend, but economic explosion. Researcher Sonalde Desai of the University of Maryland explains that competition for jobs in a fast-growing economy is the greatest determinant there. In the drive to attain white-collar jobs, single children benefit from more education expenditure, are more likely to be enrolled in private school, and by the time they reach 11 are more likely to be able to do basic arithmetic.
In Britain, another factor influencing the trend is women marrying and starting families later. "Those who wait until they are older often face infertility or secondary infertility," says Susan Newman, a social psychologist. "Age limits for parents can be a significant impediment to adopting a second child, too. And adoption costs and infertility treatments are expensive." It is also true that while IVF used to be a ticket to twins (or more), IVF doctors increasingly offer a single embryo transfer as being safer to mother and child, and just as successful.
Only two groups buck the trend: those curious bedfellows the very rich and the very poor. On one side are the "superwomen" – the bankers and lawyers whose salaries enable them to pay for the childcare to support multiple children; on the other are those families who, in the words of Iain Duncan Smith, fail to "cut their cloth", and continue to have children they can't afford to support without the help of the state.
But log on to the mothers' forum Mumsnet, and the reasons for having only "the one" sound simple. Mothers talk of first-borns so boisterous that they couldn't face a second (surely an evolutionary trick all babies use). Others talk of feeling naturally complete with one child. "Given the many pressures on parents today, more and more feel that they can be better parents to one," Newman says. "For them, one child is the desired, happy choice and is fast becoming the new traditional family."
For green groups, this propensity towards smaller families should be a good thing. Long-time campaigner Jonathan Porritt points out on his blog that a larger population "means a lot more overcrowding, a lot more pressure on housing, on water supplies, on our trains, on our already congested roads and so on". Sir David Attenborough, who is patron of the Optimum Population Trust, turned hairs when he warned: "Either we limit our population growth, or the natural world will do it for us."
But if the 86-year-old naturalist were living in Beijing, he might feel differently. There he might be part of the "4-2-1 problem" – one of four grandparents, and two parents, supported (often financially as well as socially) by one child. It is hard to correlate this overworked generation of only children with the "Little Emperors" of legend, who are always thought to be over-indulged due to their lack of siblings.
Economics aside, should we worry about British mothers turning out a generation of spoilt singletons? Everything comes down to the quality of parenting, says Sue Palmer, author of Toxic Childhood and a mother of one. "If children are growing up without siblings, they need more opportunities to go to nurseries and to mix," she explains. "Otherwise they don't learn sharing or other social skills."
Holding on to your singleton tightly can be detrimental to their development, too, she says. "All parents are reluctant to let children out of their sight these days or allow them any independence. That's even truer when your child is the only egg in the basket. Children need freedom."
Palmer points out that, like all children, singletons need "unproductive" playtime, too – not the extra piano lessons and maths coaching that can be the lot of the only child who is the sole repository of two parents' aspirations and hopes. "There can be a lot of pressure for the only child to do well, and to make their parents happy."
But would a nation of only children be so bad? Many seem to thrive, like youngest children, as performers – think of Robert De Niro, Daniel Radcliffe (not to mention Harry Potter), Natalie Portman or Frank Sinatra. And they don't need to grow up in a snake's nest of sibling rivalry to develop a competitive edge – look at Tiger Woods, Maria Sharapova and, however flawed, Lance Armstrong.
Psychologist Catherine Salmon, co-author of The Myth of the Middle Child, who has studied the effect of birth order, suggests that only children tend to be responsible as well as mature. "Many grow up more quickly than kids with sibs, thanks to how much time they spend with adults," she says.
"Only children get lots of time and attention when young, which is terrific for social, linguistic, and emotional development," Sue Palmer says. "There is a good chance of them being confident and secure, and of doing well at school."
And then, perhaps, of getting a good job and earning enough to support their doting but impoverished parents, doomed to live until 100 on an inadequate pension.
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text:
Review - The Precinct #1 (@DynamiteComics)
"We'll always keep our monsters hidden in the dark. It's just the nature a' things."
Steampunk technology is a great literary device, as it taps into a bit of history and spins it with some more fanciful trappings. It's a great setting for some works of fiction--works such as The Precinct #1 from Dynamite Comics. The issue is written by Frank J. Barbiere, illustrated by Crizam Chisthian Zamora, colored by Dinei Ribeiro and lettered by Troy Peteri.
In the sprawling, steampunk metropolis of the big city, it's up to one group to keep the peace and uphold the law—the officers of The Precinct! Mortimer Hill is a veteran officer who has busted his fair share of criminals, but when mechanical monsters start causing trouble he'll need to use all his wits (and brawn!) to get to the heart of the mystery. Along with his new partner—a representative from the enigmatic Alchemy Academy—Mort will face the biggest case of his career—and the most dangerous!
There are broader issues that Barbiere explores in The Precinct #1, the most prevalent of which is the age-old conflict between technology and magic. Much of the world in The Precinct #1 is powered by steampunk devices and technology, so the appearance of Acolyte Josephine Winters and her reliance on alchemy is an interesting contrast. Bringing together Mortimer Hill and Josephine Winters is a mysterious rash of murders throughout the city that forces them to reconcile their disparate beliefs in order to find the culprit. Barbiere does a good job of blending together their two philosophies, even offering a handy primer on how the two exist within the universe of The Precinct. The society's reliance on both aspects drives the universe, but the detective case aspect is what drives the narrative of the story itself.
The look and feel of The Precinct #1 effectively taps into the steampunk style. Zamora's characters all feel unique and have their own personalities, which further underscores the differing "opinions" on what makes the world go round. Gears pepper backgrounds while steam-powered trains travel on tracks above the city, giving the reader hints that the city heavily relies on the steampunk technology. There's an effective juxtaposition by Zamora though that highlights the alchemy focus as well, with massive libraries standing against the cityscape that eschews gears for books. Much of the book is highlighted by an array of browns and blacks (with some alchemy greens peppers in) by Ribeiro, all of which effectively captures the spirit of steampunk.
The Precinct #1 has the feel of Jules Verne writing a Hellboy book. There's a great detective story hidden amidst the city rife with steampunk technology and musings on alchemy. Barbiere cleverly sets up the future of the series by methodically introducing the key players and different approaches to investigating. Zamora's illustrations are adventurous and offer a city teeming with technology and wonders. The Precinct #1 is a great first issue that sets the table very effectively, asking that its readers settle in for a good meal.
The Precinct #1 is in stores now.


text:
Cecilia Muñoz
2021	Speaker
CECILIA MUÑOZ is a national leader in public policy and public interest technology with nearly three decades of experience in the non-profit sector and eight years of service on President Obama's senior team. She is currently a senior advisor at New America, where she built a major initiative on public interest technology, and led locally-focused initiatives. Prior to joining New America in 2017, she served for eight years on President Obama's senior team, first as director of intergovernmental affairs followed by five years as director of the Domestic Policy Council. Before working in government, she spent 20 years at the National Council of La Raza (now UNIDOS US), the nation's largest Hispanic policy and advocacy organization. Muñoz is also a senior fellow at Results for America, a nonprofit that advances the use of data and evidence in policy making. She received a MacArthur Fellowship for her work on immigration and civil rights, and is a trustee of the Kresge, MacArthur and Joyce Foundations. She advises the Open Society and JPB Foundations, and serves on the boards of several nonprofit organizations. In 2020, she published the award-winning More Than Ready: Be Strong and Be You…and Other Lessons for Women of Color on the Rise, which shares insights from her career as well as the careers of other notable women of color. Muñoz, a Detroit native and the daughter of immigrants from Bolivia, is also a wife and mother of two grown daughters. She lives with her husband in Maryland. @cecmunoz
More from Cecilia Muñoz
Cecilia Muñoz on Raising Children While Working in the White House
For eight years, Cecilia Muñoz served as the highest-ranking Latina in the White House under President Obama while raising two daughters.... Read more...
View more content by Cecilia Muñoz >>
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I have listed a new property at 24380 103 AVE in Maple Ridge.
Well kept two storey with basement in Falcon Landing in the Albion area. Home is on one of the largest lots in the area the area (4649 square feet) and was built by award winning Falcon Homes. Open plan with gas fireplace in the living room and hardwood floors in the great room area, up the stairs and on the landing & hallway on the upper level. The kitchen has stainless steel appliances, tile floors and an island with an eating bar. Upstairs are 3 bedrooms and the main has an ensuite with a large tub and a separate 5 foot wide shower. The basement has a separate entrance and is fully finished with one bedroom mortgage helper with a 4 piece bathroom, bedroom, and large living room with a summer kitchen. Open Sunday Nov. 27th 2-4.


Cyber-attacks have increased in sophistication – not only in the technology and resources available to hackers but also with the evolution of techniques like social engineering.
Just as a galvanized steel chain is only as strong as its weakest link, the security of your business is only as good as its most vulnerable elements. And for the majority of businesses, the most consistently vulnerable element in the security landscape is the human one.
Social engineering attacks are designed on this basis – and they're meeting with considerable success. In this article, we'll be looking at how to avoid becoming another statistic in a long line of victims of social engineering cyber-attacks.
Briefly stated, social engineering is the art of manipulating people into acting without thinking. It's a technique that relies on triggering an emotional response in the victim, so that they readily divulge personal or confidential information, follow the attacker's instructions on how to proceed next, and/or give them access to funds.
It's human nature to react instinctively to threats, tempting offers, sympathetic appeals, and other powerful triggers of emotional response. Social engineering fraudsters and cyber-criminals know this and make it the foundation of their attack strategies.
And with the wealth of data available online – some of it public, other sources readily extracted from numerous locations – perpetrators can call upon chillingly accurate information on the past, current, and even planned activities and behavior of their victims. This enables them to craft bait and lures that have a high probability of snaring their intended targets.
For several years now, online fraudsters have been using multiple variants on the technique of "phishing" for victims, via email. "Account verification" letters from banks, credit card centers, or finance companies, offers of irresistible content and downloads ("Open the attached file, or click on the link below"), or opportunities to make a quick fortune by transferring an advance fee to the distressed heir to billions who sent the message (The "Nigerian Prince" or 419 scam) are common examples.
With the growth in mobile and wireless networking, the contact media available to fraudsters have increased. So SMS text messaging ("smishing"), voice calls ("vishing"), advertising ("malvertising"), in-app or in-game chat, and social media channels have been added to the mix. And as victims have become (slightly) more wise to the classic ploys, more refined and sophisticated techniques have evolved, many exploiting the potential of extracted data and account profiles, to make them more relevant and better targeted.
Information gleaned from personal websites and social media accounts, company websites, corporate networks, and company profiles can arm fraudsters with data on the identities and recent activities of friends and work-mates. This can be used to construct urgent-sounding or enticing messages prompting the recipient to take some immediate action (wire over some funds, provide an account password, etc.) in order to complete a vital transaction, or simply to get the person allegedly sending the message out of a jam.
Of course, once the funds are transferred, they'll never be seen or heard of again. And any information provided to the sender may be used to infiltrate corporate networks, take over personal accounts, or as a tool in building personality profiles for identity theft and fraud.
Threatening emails demanding immediate payment of funds owed to the regional tax authorities, or messages asking for personal identification (Social Security number, phone number, street address, etc.) to enable payment of the whopping tax refund the recipient is supposedly due to receive, are another common tactic.
Messages will often contain file attachments booby-trapped with malware, or links to bogus websites (constructed to look eerily similar to the official site of the IRS, or whatever authority is concerned), where spyware or other malicious software may be offloaded onto the victim. Variants of this technique may involve the police, FBI, criminal courts, or other high-powered organizations.
3) You've Won a Prize!!
Money, goods, or digital content may be dangled as a lure to get message recipients to click on booby-trapped links, visit malicious websites, or simply give out their names, addresses, and personal account details to enable them to collect their winnings. Nine times out of ten, the victim won't remember actually entering the competition or joining the mailing list – but the opportunity will be too good to pass up.
If the attacker has gathered information about the intended victim's shopping habits, tastes, or general browsing patterns, this empowers them to create messages that seem to come from organizations that the recipient has had dealings with in the past, or would be likely to, in the future.
There are several measures you can take to minimize your vulnerability to social engineering attacks, which we'll consider in a moment.
For corporate users, each of these recommendations should be included as part of a regularly updated program of security awareness training and a general culture of security consciousness within the enterprise.
Strong password protocols aside (eight or more characters, a mix of numbers, letters, and symbols, changed regularly), safe storage of passwords and not using the same password (or easily guessable variants thereof) for multiple accounts will go a long way toward preventing hackers from cracking your credentials.
But if you just give them out willingly at the first hint of a bogus communication from your friends, colleagues, or some high-profile organization, there's little hope of protecting yourself against social engineering attacks. So the best form of password protection has to be your own unwillingness to part with it.
Total disclosure and a lack of discretion on social media can provide fraudsters with a treasure trove of information on your background, beliefs, activities, location, contacts, and interests. These can be used to create all manner of social engineering ploys, which will be all the more believable because they draw on information that you have unwittingly provided.
So if you want to reduce your vulnerability to social engineering attacks, choosing your words carefully, limiting how much about yourself you actually reveal, and not allowing your movements to be traced on social media and the web, in general, are good strategies to adopt.
Clearing your browsing history on a frequent and regular basis.
Logging out of websites and services when you finish using them.
Not revealing every little detail about your life, in your social media and other account profiles.
Not sounding off about every little event of your day or every thought and opinion that you have on everything.
Turning off check-ins, location tracking, and other such features when browsing and on social media.
Phone calls and messages making unusual requests or unreasonable demands on behalf of known individuals or organizations should be able to withstand the close scrutiny of verification.
Your first step in due diligence should be to check out the source of the original communication. Does the email address or phone number actually belong to the person or agency it claims to come from? In most email applications, you can discover the underlying address of the sender by hovering over their name in the "From:" window – though it should be noted that sophisticated fraudsters can use spoofing techniques to make their origin addresses seem more genuine.
An independent search of the web, business directories, and other resources can reveal the list of true websites, email addresses, and phone numbers of registered individuals and business entities – as well as their physical locations. You can use these to verify whether a communication claiming to come from them was actually sent. After all, if they are who they claim to be, they should easily be able to reach you – and you should be able to reach them – using other forms of communication.
Voice calls can be a bit tricky as, without being able to see the caller's face, it can be difficult to judge whether or not they're sincere.
But if they're threatening you with jail time or a hefty fine, you'll have to fight the urge to hide under a table or flee the country and make independent inquiries (phone call, in-person visit, etc.) from the actual office or phone number of the organization or individual concerned.
The success of social engineering cyber-attacks depends to a large extent on forcing a rapid and unthinking reaction from the victim. Not giving in to this temptation and slowing down your response to the bait will play a major part in thwarting the attacker's schemes.
By taking the time to think about the implications of the message you've just seen or heard ("How likely is it, that…?", "Would the IRS really say that?" etc.), you'll give yourself the opportunity to spot the likely scam. Taking some more time to run due diligence on the communication and to verify the source could put the final nail on the lid of that scam's coffin.
Remember also that social engineering attacks can easily originate on the ground. Attackers using phony credentials (service engineer, pizza delivery, etc.) have been known to infiltrate corporate premises to do physical reconnaissance, plant malware-laden flash drives, or simply to get a feel for how things are done and what kind of language is typically used in a target environment.
So access controls, authentication procedures, and physical security barriers can provide a level of protection. Similarly, installing and running up to date anti-malware and security software, spam and email or messaging filters can extend this protection to the digital plane.
Trusting your (suspicious) instincts, and having an idea of what's actually standard practice for big scary organizations (Hint: They don't usually contact you by email or SMS) will also help in reducing your vulnerability to social engineering cyber-attacks.
Discretion, due diligence, physical and digital security measures, and using common sense are key to preventing social engineering attacks.


To any athletics enthusiast throughout the world, the names of Coe, Cram and Ovett are inextricably linked to Great Britain. Once upon a time Great Britain was at the helm of World middle and long-distance running. Athletes were revered and coaches admired and respected. In the 50′s it was athletes like Bannister, Chataway and Ibbotson leading the way. In the 60′ it was Pirie, Wilkinson and Whetton. Through the early 70′s a new bred of athlete emerged in the charismatic David Bedford, a relentless trainer and fearless competitor along with Ian Stewart and Brendan Foster. Their success laid the foundations for emerging talent in Kearns, Stayings, Clement, Rose, McGuinness and Robson amongst a host of others. After the retirement of Derek Graham (refer to his interview) who firmly put Northern Ireland on the athletics map there was a need for another successful middle distance athlete. Although he is now seen casually taking photographs at the many local athletic events for the Annadale Striders website (www.annadalestriders.co.uk) for a period in the mid 70′s to the early 80′s Paul Lawther played his part in upholding the quality of Northern Ireland and British athletics.
Running in the beginning was the same for me as it is for so many people simply giving it a go at school. I went to Annadale Grammar where there was an established tradition of competition and success. Ken McEntee was an Ulster Schools' winner at intermediate level and John McLaughlin (refer to his interview for further information) had already won a few titles and he was beginning to establish himself as a prospect for the future. Although the running was casual in terms of real commitment by 2nd form I amongst others, was probably out training 5 days a week. Near the school we had a 2.5 mile trail circuit in Belvoir Park and we did a lot of training there. This was far from easy but it developed our endurance.
Certainly by 3rd form I was beginning to take the running a little more seriously and I had adopted a much more regular pattern to my training. This continued through 4th and 5th form under the direction of the knowledgeable and motivated Neill Morton. By 5th form my training was now extended to seven days a week, it was indeed serious now! Competition was quite regular then as there were many more opportunities to compete. There was a vibrant schools' league in operation as well as inter schools' races and relays.
It was while I was competing in the heats of the 1972 AAA youth's steeplechase at Kirby that I witnessed the brilliant talent of Steve Ovett for the first time. In the 400m he was 'dead last' entering the home straight and he won it at a canter in 49.1 having won it the previous year in 49.8. My immediate and lasting impression was that he was the best talent that I had ever seen. The next major competition (Along the way through the years I had won District cross country and track titles) I won was the Ulster Schools' Intermediate cross country with a certain Matt Shields finishing 3rd. Though it was not until I was in 6th form that I achieved an Ulster Schools' track title winning the 800m in 1:52.8 after a 52 odd first lap. I also won the Irish Schools' with the same tactic of a swift initial lap finishing in 1:51.8 for a new Schools' record. While representing Ulster in the Schools' Inter-Provincials I enjoyed a busy day with wins in the 800m, the 1500m and the 5000m all within an hour and a half. I believe I am still the only one to have recorded this trio of victories. Off the back of my successes I was fortunate to gain an invitation to compete in the Gamble Simms one-mile race at the Shorts ground. Again my commitment to training and my burgeoning race acumen were paying dividends, as I recorded 4:03.1, not too bad for a 17 year old on a gravel track! Winning the Irish schools' meant that I gained Irish selection to compete in the British Schools' International in Blackburn. I continued my deep vein of form with another victory and a record of 3:46.8; after a hard battle with Mick O'Shea the titleholder. Both my 1500m victories (Irish and British Schools') were excellent wins as I defeated the very talented Mick O'Shea who went on to represent Ireland with distinction culminating with an appearance in the 1980 Olympics in Moscow over 5000m.
In January of 1974 I had the fortune of trading my schoolbooks for the warmer climes of Christchurch, New Zealand as I had gained selection for the Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games Team. I was just 18years and one month old! Despite reducing my personal best to 3.43.1 in my heat and in the process establishing a new British Junior Record I failed to reach the final by a solitary place! My time is still ranked 14th in the U.K. all-time junior rankings. The occasion was incredible and to run so well when it mattered demonstrated that I had the temperament for the big occasion. I ran the best I could reaching Neill Morton's target of three laps in three minutes. Thereafter it was all about what I could do for the remaining 300m which I did in 43.1 sec. It was certainly an experience to run in the same heat as the great Tanzanian athlete Filbert Bayi as I knew that he would take it out fast. A few days later John McLaughlin and myself revelled with the masses as we witnessed probably the greatest exhibition of uninhabited front running from Bayi in the final. The noise in the stadium was incredible as we watched Bayi run aggressively all the way to Olympic Gold and a new World Record of 3.32.16. John Walker of New Zealand broke the old record but still lost.
It wasn't long until I was away again on my travels, this time it was to Milan where I went close to my junior record with a time of 3.44. As I was achieving a lot of success over 1500m I managed to get an invite into a 2000m race at Crystal Palace. I again justified my inclusion in a quality field recording a time of 5:11.65 to finish 6th but more importantly I had established a new European Junior record. Aside from the new record I knew that I had performed well as the athlete that finished right behind me was Dan Shaughnessy and he had ended up 5th in the 1974 Commonwealth Games 10,000m in 28:14. After all these foreign excursions I now had to focus my attentions on the Irish Schools', only this time it was the 1500m that I had my sights on. My preparations for the race were totally bizarre! I had to sit an A Level exam, which had been rearranged due to the Ulster Workers' Strike in the morning. After competing my paper, without any undue rush (!) a fellow competitor Linda McCurry drove me down to Dublin. I basically had to get changed in the car as we approached the stadium. Out I jumped and managed to just about make it. As the race started I tucked in for a lap or so and then shortly after I just went for it. It was very satisfying getting the victory albeit in a slow 3:50 but all the more so after the pre-race hassle.
I have to say that the win in the AAA juniors was a memorable race as it was a distinct breakthrough for me. Up until then I was successful within Ireland but to win on the mainland was important as I needed to gain the recognition from the selectors as I was striving for British representation. I knew that in winning the title I was doing well! As we all know competing in sport is all about putting in the performance when it really matters. That is why my performance in the Commonwealth Games was special. The pressure was on for a promising junior to race the 'big boys' and I emerged out of it for the better. The entire experience of a Commonwealth Games in such a beautiful country as New Zealand was something I realised then as an 18 year old that would be very difficult to surpass.
As a senior athlete with Annadale Striders I collected many a team medal but my most prized team medal won as a youth was garnered at Parliament Hill in 1973. While competing for Achilles we had a great youth team and it was decided that we would try our luck against the best that Britain could offer by competing in the National Cross Country Championships. Although we were all taking a step up in class we came through with flying colours and left with the gold medals. The other team members were Gerry Price, Peter McGorran and Harold McFaul. This quartet remains the solitary Northern Ireland team ever to win a team title at the National Cross Country Championships. Although I won many individual and team medals it is my U.K Championships medal from 1978 which I treasure greatly. A second place finish in a p.b of 3:38.8 to Steve Ovett was very pleasing. This performance placed me 4th in the British ranking for the Year and it sits at 22nd place in the Under 23 U.K. all-time rankings. Steve was absolutely flying at the time and to share the track with such an athlete and friend was a privilege. Later in the season I was in shape to lower my 1500m p.b. as a 1200m time trial of 2:52 indicated, but unfortunately I ran out of races. I can never forget the race at the Bislett Games in Oslo of 1978. In the 3000m I finished 6th in 7:49.1 which still exists as the Northern Ireland record. The phenomenal Kenyan athlete Henry Rono won the race in a new World Record time of 7:32.1. In a remarkable span of 81 days Rono also broke the World Records for the 3,000m steeplechase, 5,000m and the 10,000m. This feat still remains unparallel in the annals of world distance running. With reflection it is an honour to have raced against such a talent as Henry Rono, who at the time was an absolute superstar! The race itself remains pretty much a blare though I can vividly recall that the noise in the stadium and especially around the trackside was something I had never experienced before. In Oslo the spectators encroach very near the track and in a cauldron type arena it appears to hold and amplify the noise. I also remember the athletics agent Andy Norman on the inside of the track shouting me on but due to the noise I just couldn't make out a word. The race was a success for not only me but for others that finished in front of me as the majority of them established National Records.
Making my debut for Great Britain as a junior was an honour but to achieve my 'first vest' as a senior athlete was something else. At the time Great Britain was at the frontier of what was happening in world middle/long distance athletics and you certainly had to earn your vest. I made my debut over 800m in Saint-Maur, France were I recorded my p.b of 1:48.1. Throughout my career I managed to enjoy a few good runs at the Mary Peter's track. I won the British Universities' 1500m beating the 1972 Olympic representative Ray Smedley and in the process setting a new Universities Record of 3.42. In 1978 despite having to run isolated for the majority of the race on a wet evening over 1500m I was satisfied when the watch was stopped at an impressive 3:40. Also in 1978 I gave the steeplechase another bash. Despite running without much opposition and with a very dodgy technique (to say the least!), I had to place a foot on to every barrier but I still managed to establish a new Northern Ireland record of 8:39 mins. At the International cross country event at Mallask in 1978 I again made a gallant attempt to depose Steve Ovett. After about a mile and a half into the race I put the head down and created a gap of about 20m. I suppose it was a bit optimistic trying to run away from such a capable athlete as Ovett but I wanted to make a real race of it. With the vibrant crowd cheering me on I was able to hold the lead for about two miles before Ovett and the Scottish athlete Nat Muir managed to close the gap. Still, third place in a good field was something to be pleased about.
Although I competed in the World Cross Country Championships on five occasions I never really felt that I did myself justice. Probably my best run was in Rabat in 1975 when I finished 91st, although this wasn't my best placing. An incredible field had assembled and they didn't disappoint with a quality race. Upfront it was an absorbing battle with Ian Stewart (SCO) defeating Mariano Haro (ESP) by one second from Bill Rodgers (USA) and John Walker (NZL). Thereafter all the top athletes of the running world across distances were involved in the mix. Names such as Fava (ITA), Hildenbrand (FRG), Orthmann (FRG), Roelants (BEL), Cierpinski (GDR) Puttemans (BEL), and Shorter (USA) all toed the line and finished in the top 20. I finished one place behind Venanzio Ortis (ITA) who had finished 2nd in the junior race the previous year and who was to finish 14th the following year in Chepstow, Wales.
My best placing came in 1978 at Bellahouston Park in Scotland. The combination of a difficult course and horrendous weather conditions made the race unbelievably arduous. After being in the 30′s for a portion of the race the heavy conditions did not suit my style of running and I suffered in the later stages to finish 80th. It was a day for the mud larks as John Treacy won well from Antipov (URS) with Tony Simmons (ENG) 4th and Nat Muir (SCO) 7th two others who responded to the mud! Unfortunately for me at the Green Park racecourse Limerick, the next year the weather was again awful! I just couldn't get going and ended up in 149th place. If you think that's bad spare a though for some of the so called 'scalps' I got that day- Jose Abascal (ESP- 152nd) the future 1984 Olympic 1500m bronze medallist, Roger Hackney (WAL- 153rd) the future 13th placer in the World Cross and Olympic steeplechase finalist and Thomas Wessinghage (FRG-166th) the future European 5,000m champion. I found that in the World Cross if you had a bad run it would without doubt show in your placing, take for example Mike McLeod. He was one of the favourites for the title in 1981 and he ended up in 208th position! On the other hand if you were in shape and the course/weather suited you then you never know, just ask Greg Hannon. In the conditions that I found awful in Limerick Greg had the race of his life to finish 31st! He had such a good run that he would have been a scorer on the gold medal winning English team! If I claimed a few scalps in lowly 149th place imagine the host of runners that Greg beat!
Again on the local front I won the Northern Ireland Senior Cross country title on two occasions; 1978 and 1980. The senior title culminated in me having the distinction of winning Boy, Youth and Junior (on two occasions before they changed the rules) cross country titles. These were never easy to win with the likes of the Hannon brothers Greg and Gerry and my Annadale team-mate 'Wee' John McLaughlin amongst others who were going well at the time. Although this cannot be included as a memorable race as I did not compete I was the British reserve in the 1978 Europa Cup at Crystal Palace. I basically did everything, warmed up and so on but didn't race. I had to shadow Steve Ovett just in case he got injured or whatever. At a big competition that was a memorable occasion as although I didn't compete I was still part of the team set up.
As for disappointments I didn't really tend to dwell on them, and I just tried to forget about them and get on with things. There is though one major disappointment and it happened at the Cork City Sports of 1982. I was in the mile race which was won by Sydney Maree but it also had athletes such as Steve Cram , Wilson Waigwa and Thomas Wessinghage. I had run well and finished 9th behind Jack Buckner. Normally running is the hard bit and getting your time is a mere formality, but not this time! The photo finish broke before I reached the line and I was not given an official time but the last place time from a running watch! Jack Buckner ran 3:53.44 and I literally was a few strides in arrears, nothing substantial at all. Before it was realised about the problem with the photo finish my friends in the stadium including Neill Morton and Colin Boreham all were congratulating me on an excellent time. They believed that from their running watches at worst I would be credited with around 3:55/6 which was a new P.B. Sadly this all turned out to be mere speculation and futile as my delight turned to disappointment when I was issued with 3:59.
In the World Student Games of 1977 in Sofia, Bulgaria I could say that yes I did run well but to be 0.7 sec away from a medal I was disappointed. There was a blanket finish after a final lap tear up and it was so compact through the line that I did not have a clue where I finished. Josef Plachy (CZE) won in 3:40.2 from my team mate Mick Kearns in 3.40.9 (incidentally Mick was the British record holder at the time with 3.36.81) with Abderrahmane Morceli (ALG) running 3:41.0, I recorded 3:41.7 for 7th to miss out. I was though particularly pleased in that to make the final I ran 3:41 in my heat and then I repeated it a day later in the final in difficult conditions. Traditionally, I suffered a bit in the heat and with the temperature over 100 degrees and with the small touch of altitude I was up against it. The quality at the Games was very high with the likes of Alberto Juantorena of Cuba winning the 800m in 1:43.44, what a time even by today's standards. There was also Silvio Leonard who three years later pushed Allan Wells all the way in the 1980 Moscow Olympics winning the 100m gold in 10.08.
Locally my main rivals would have been Greg Hannon, John McLaughlin and Jim McGuinness. Greg and John specifically over the country and the road with Jim on the track. We all had many a good domestic battle, as they were all quality athletes. Jim was a very talented athlete particularly on the track. A British International he eclipsed the sub 4 minute mile the year before I did and he reached the 1978 Commonwealth Games final in the 1500m. His personal best for the mile of 3:55.0 from 1977 is still the Northern Ireland record. Within Ireland when I was a developing athlete especially at schools' level Mick O'Shea was always at my side and I had many a difficult race against him. Thereafter I crossed the likes of Eamonn Coghlan, Ray Flynn, Frank Murphy Jr, Dave Taylor, Jerry Kiernan and Niall O'Shaughnessy to name but a few on many an occasion. At this time in Ireland there was a wealth of established and emerging talent.
I remember once running a 2-mile road race in Phoenix Park, Dublin. I was going very well at the time and the distance was ideal for me. Eamonn Coghlan and myself with a few others had quickly detached ourselves from the rest of the field and the finish wasn't too far away. With about 200m remaining Eamonn blasted it and completely left me for dead, a few weeks later he dipped under 3:50 for the mile indoors! As for heroes there were many exceptional athletes around to gain inspiration from. Dave Bedford was one that many people looked up to as he set the trend in terms of training, application and attitude. Ian Stewart was another brilliant athlete who had the temperament, determination and sheer toughness to compete and succeed on the world scene. There was also Sebastian Coe, Steve Cram and Graham Williamson. There was also the New Zealand trio of Walker, Quax and Dixon, who enjoyed life almost as much as their athletics. They trained hard and played hard too. Of course there was Henry Rono who systematically dismantled the world distance records in that glorious summer of 1978.
If I really have to opt for one single individual I have to go for Steve Ovett, he was in a different class to anything that had been before. He was such a versatile athlete with a competitive range from 800m to the half marathon. I was fortunate in that we both emerged around the same time as each other and I was able to appreciate what he was achieving. He was a fantastic athlete and as a team mate it was great to know him and not the portrayed media image. When competing in Northern Ireland whether on the track or over the cross country Steve would often join myself and a few others from Annadale such as Ray Curran and Paul Younger for a run in Belvoir Park. Steve was a reliable servant to Northern Ireland athletics especially at a time of civil unrest, he really enjoyed being over here. Although Steve had tremendous natural ability I know that he also worked very hard at it. After all these years we still keep in touch though now we don't discuss training or races but more like our aches, pains and niggles!
As I have already mentioned by the time I was in 5th form I was in a regular pattern of training under the tutelage of Neil Morton. As I got older I integrated a few constants into my training. I did a 9 mile with John McLaughlin every Tuesday over a hilly course and as the tempo increased it was not uncommon for the final 2 miles along the Lagan Tow path to be well under 10 mins. There was also a regular run of 12 miles from Stranmillis with the likes of Davy Smith, Ray Curran and Paul Younger and after a few miles we didn't hang about! I liked very hard fartlek runs and short recovery intervals. I also did a lot of 5 mile runs picking it up over the final 2 miles with the final mile run well below 4.40 mins. On a Sunday I would do 15 mile and it would usually take me around 1 hour 27 mins. I experimented with 2 hours but felt that it was just too much.
When I was running at my best I was clocking around 80 miles per week and I actually experimented with 100 miles. However, I found the higher mileage didn't suit me. When I won the Northern Ireland Senior cross country I had been running around 90-95 miles per week for 10-12 weeks. People said that I was talented but believe me I trained very hard. There were occasions that I would have done 10 miles before school and then another 5 miles in the evening. Yes, I had talent but the hard training and application were fundamental to me realising that talent.
" 400M – 49.1 in a relay, never ran a 400m race.
All my personal bests were at one time or another Northern Ireland records. There was a period when I simultaneously held the Northern Ireland records for the 800m, 1,000m, 2,000m, 3,000m, 3,000m steeplechase and the 2 miles! The 3,000m and the Irish Universities' 5000m records both established in 1978 still exist. The Universities' record is unique as the race was on a square, grass track!
It's great to have no major regrets! I feel that I was very fortunate to be around at a time when British athletics was still in it's ascendancy and very much admired and envied by the rest of the world. It was without doubt the era to be in. They were exciting times and I am very pleased to have played my small part. The calibre and depth of talent was rich and to achieve British honours as I did both as a junior and senior is something that I am very proud of. Everyone was working very hard in order to try and establish themselves and to move up the pecking order for selection.
When I was around 22 year old my 'achilles heel' turned out to be my Achilles. This resulted in sporadic problems and injury. Maybe too many track sessions in spikes were to blame and maybe this should have been readdressed. However, you need to put the training into the context of the day and the mantra then was, 'more is better'. This emerged from the Bedford and Stewart philosophy for training. On occasions, I seemed to go from one season to another without a distinct break and therefore the body wasn't able to make a full, charged recovery. Hindsight is very easy for us all and at the time when you are anxious to do well you don't see the pitfalls for the successes!
I witness the standard of competition not only locally but also on the mainland and it frustrates me how as a nation we have regressed. There is clear evidence that people are simply not doing what is necessary in order to be at a respectable level whatever that may be. Nowadays there are all the necessary facilities, grants, physiologists, psychologists, nutritionists and the performances are worse now than ever before. It's hard to believe that after almost 30 years since I recorded my best times that I still would have been ranked 6th over 1500m, 2nd over the mile and 2nd over 3000m in the 2006 U.K. ranking lists, that doesn't seem right. There are difficulties but I really feel the athletes need to return to basics and to train harder. Forget about all the peripheral attachments that indeed can refine and fine tune the performances. Incorporate them after the performances are accepted and can speak for themselves. In addition specifically in Northern Ireland are we making the most of our resources? Are we tapping into the wealth of knowledge and experience that former athletes can offer?
As for me now unfortunately chronic knee trouble has meant that my running days are finally over. Maybe I should mean jogging, as latterly that was pretty much it, just keeping fit and enjoying the fresh air and scenery around the Bangor coastline. I'm no couch potato though as I now try and get out for a daily blast on my mountain bike. I still enjoy putting my body under some form of pressure but it still doesn't beat the exhilaration of putting one foot ahead of the other as fast as you can with a rival at your shoulder!


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An update on barriers to citizenship facing stateless children in the UK
Solange Valdez-Symonds (The Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC)) and Steve Valdez-Symonds (Amnesty UK)
/ 6 mins read
This blog provides analysis of recent changes affecting children's rights to be registered as British citizens with particular focus on fees and statelessness.
Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash
In June 2017, we wrote about the barriers to citizenship facing stateless children born in the UK. Five years on, there are important developments.
In this blog, we address two key changes.
The first change concerns some good news on the Home Office registration fee for children, including stateless children, to be registered as British citizens.
The second change concerns only stateless children. This is bad news. Additional hurdles have been introduced to the specific statutory right of stateless children to be registered as British citizens.
We start with some general points to help set the scene.
General points
When the British Nationality Act 1981 took effect on 1 January 1983, the UK ceased to apply the principle by which anyone born on its territory would automatically acquire its citizenship.
Many children are now born in the UK without British citizenship – if at their birth neither of their parents is settled in the UK or a British citizen.
But many of these children grow up here as connected to the UK as any of their peers.
The 1981 Act, therefore, contains several statutory rights to citizenship by registration. These are intended to ensure that children, who grow up here and are thereby connected to the country, are not excluded from the citizenship of the UK.
Among these various statutory rights is a specific provision for a stateless child to be registered as a British citizen. That provision is found in Schedule 2 to the 1981 Act and confirmed by section 36 of the same Act.
To be registered under this provision, the child must meet four conditions. She, he, or they must be born in the UK; have always been stateless; be under the age of 22 and living in the UK at the time of applying to be registered; and at the date of the application have spent the last five years living in the UK (with no more than 450 days' absence during this period unless 'special circumstances' are shown).
We explain below the new additional conditions for some stateless children to meet. It is important to remember, however, that other statutory rights of registration as a British citizen may also apply to stateless children – so if there is a barrier to being registered under the specific stateless provision, the child may still be able to be registered under another.
With that introduction, let's start with the good news…
Fee for registration as a British citizen
The Home Office fee for a child to be registered as a British citizen is £1,012. The former Home Secretary rightly described this as a "huge" sum of money – though he didn't do anything about it.
After years of campaigning work and, most importantly, a long court challenge brought by the Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC), there is finally some positive change to the fee.
Firstly, children who are looked after by a local authority have been made exempt altogether from the fee to be registered as a British citizen.
Secondly, children who can satisfy the Home Office that they are unable to afford the fee are eligible for it to be waived.
These changes each took effect from 16 June 2022. They apply to registration of any child, including children who are stateless.
The Home Office impact assessment on these changes indicates it expects the new exemption and waiver to enable thousands more children to exercise their rights to British citizenship by registration.
That is very welcome. Whether that expectation will be fulfilled will, however, depend on there being sufficient awareness raised about the changes and the rights to which they relate. It will also depend on the Home Office operation of the waiver – the length and complexity of the fee waiver form it has published is a cause for concern.
Moreover, the continued charge of £1,012 remains an unacceptable barrier to many children – a barrier that the Supreme Court has simply left for politicians to address.
No child should be subject to such a high fee – or any fee set above the estimated cost of the administrative process of registration – for their right to citizenship of the country to which they are connected and entitled in law.
But now for the bad news…
New barriers to registration of stateless children as British citizens
The specific provision for stateless children to be registered as British citizens was amended on 28 June 2022.
The provision for stateless children is now in paragraph 3A of Schedule 2 to the 1981 Act. Paragraph 3 of that Schedule now only applies to young stateless adults.
Under paragraph 3A, in addition to the four conditions summarised above, a stateless child will also need to satisfy the Home Office that she, he or they cannot acquire the nationality of one or other of their parents.
This additional condition only applies if the laws of either parents' country of nationality provide the child a right to that nationality, the child has had this right continuously from birth and it is reasonable to expect the child to take the steps necessary to acquire that nationality.
It is important that this right to the parent's nationality must be by way of entitlement. If there is only a discretion that may allow the child to acquire that nationality, this should have no effect upon the child's right to be registered as a British citizen – unless, of course, the child does acquire that other nationality.
Under paragraph 3 of Schedule 2, young stateless adults have only to meet the same four conditions summarised above. The additional condition does not apply.
It remains to be seen how many children may be subjected to prolonged statelessness in the UK as a result of this change.
More stateless children may need to exercise other statutory rights to be registered as British citizens – such as the entitlement under section 1(3) of the 1981 Act to be so registered if one of their parents becomes British or settled, or under section 1(4) if the child continues to live in the UK up to their tenth birthday (allowing for some absences).
However, it is arguable that the best interests of a child born and growing up in the UK are not met by expecting that child to acquire the nationality of another country that she, he or they have never known or visited.
A stateless child's registration application can be expected to turn on its own particular facts, but a blanket expectation that any child, who can acquire another nationality by right, should do so rather than be registered as a British citizen cannot be compatible with the duty to have regard to children's best interests in section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009.
Many stateless children – as well as children who are not stateless – should benefit from the new registration fee exemption and waiver.
However, the barriers to many children securing their citizenship rights in the UK remain and there is no consistent effort on the part of the UK Government to remove these.
As we have previously warned, this is causing serious harm to children. It also raises profound constitutional concerns regarding the inaccessibility of citizenship rights.
#StatelessKids
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One of my faves, if we only had the tropical evenings to show it off to advantage. You be breaking some hearts with that Bad Boy, Ulysses.
With all certainty my good friend, it is a scent that says: I am here! And it excels in warmer climates, like what we have had in my region lately. The temperature here has been maintained in the 30C / 35C range.
Quick spritz of Eau Sauvage tonight, just 'cause Ima feeling real Steve McQueen ! (well, if he'd used a walking stick and walked slow).
Le 3' Homme de Caron EDT.
Caron Pour un Homme EDT.
Rive Gauche Pour Homme EDT.


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Q: Seeking good file-upload app for Django admin site Im seeking file uploader for general purposes. It means that admin-backend user should be able to upload some files, preferably from any place in admin-site, and use links to this files in other apps.
Such idea might came to somebody else head too, very likely, and library with implementation of it can exist.
Can somebody give any suggestions?

A: You can use Django Filebrowser
Link Below :-
https://www.djangopackages.com/packages/p/django-filebrowser/