Superintendent Paul Hogan, Evanne Cahill,Ciaran Byrne, Michelle Hickey, Ann Mc Hugh, Billy Porter, Fionnuala Britton european cross country champion, Dr Brendan Cuddihy chairman of the wicklow hospice foundation, Bernie Burke and Sandra Doyle.
Dr Brendan Cuddihy chairman of the Wicklow Hospice Foundation receives a cheque for €10,000 from the half marathon and 10K which was held in Avondale House Rathdrum in February and was organised by the Wicklow Hospice team 100.
At the event, Fionnuala Britton, Olympian and two-time European Cross Country Champion, was named as a patron for Hospice, joining other sporting greats such as Katie Taylor and George Hamilton as spokespeople for the foundation.


text:
Q: lambda calculus question - concrete I have the following
(f.x.f(f x))(y.y+1) = x.(y.y+1)((y.y+1) x)
= x.(y.y+1)(x+1)
= x.x+1+1

I don't understand why is it ok the last transformation?
Shouldn't it be x.(y.y+1)(x+1)= y+1? Why can he get rid of the y

A: (y . y + 1) is applied to its argument (x + 1), so it's substituted for y to give ((x + 1) + 1).
I don't see how you come up with x . (y . y + 1)(x + 1)= y + 1. y only exists in the scope of the inner function.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Your favorite archeologist from Planet of the Apes gets an adorbz-able makeover! The Planet of the Apes Cornelius Dorbz Vinyl Figure measures about 3-inches tall and comes packaged in a window box. The Cornelius Dorbz Vinyl Figure finds the ever-inquisitive and intelligent chimpanzee looking just as he did in the original Planet of the Apes movie from the late 1960s in his earth-toned outfit.


Neuberger Berman Euro Opportunistic Bond Fund is an open-end fund incorporated in Ireland. The Fund's objective is to achieve an attractive level of total return. The Fund invests in a diversified mix of Euro-denominated fixed and floating rate debt securities.


Otis W. Bertrand, 69, of Cherokee passed away unexpectedly on Christmas Day at Cherokee Indian Hospital. He had lived in Cherokee for many years and was an employee of the Harrah's Cherokee Casino. He was a veteran of the US Navy and had servied during the Vietnam era.
He is survived by his significant other, Frances Smith of Cherokee; a sister, Arlene Owen of Birmingham, Alabama; three sons, Michael Otis Bertrand of Louisiana, James Olen Bertrand of Columbia, SC, and David Ohm Bertrand of Texas; close friends, Curtis and Stephanie Arneach of Cherokee; and many freinds and co-workers who knew and loved him.
The funeral service will be held on December 29, 2011, at 3 PM at the Yellowhill Baptist Church. The Rev. Foreman Bradley will officiate. No visitation is planned at this time.
He was a good man. A good father,a good friend.
He will be deeply missed by all.
May God bless and comfort the family at this sorrowful time.
sorry for your loss , praying for all of your Family .
My sympathies go out to all the family,Especially Frances.
Otis was a good man,He was a good father to my husband James and his brothers. James always spoke highly of Otis. He will be missed.
Have you lost a loved one in death? The pain, the grief, and the feelings of helplessness can seem unbearable. At such times, we need to go to God's Word for comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3, 4) The Bible helps us to understand how Jehovah and Jesus feel about death. Jesus, who perfectly reflected his Father, knew the pain of losing someone in death. (John 14:9) When he was in Jerusalem, Jesus used to visit Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, who lived in the nearby town of Bethany. They became close friends. The Bible says: "Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus." (John 11:5) Though, Lazarus died. How did Jesus feel about losing his friend? The account tells us that Jesus joined Lazarus' relatives and friends as they grieved over this loss. Seeing them, Jesus was deeply moved. He "groaned in the spirit and became troubled." Then, the account says, "Jesus gave way to tears." (John 11:33, 35) Did Jesus' grief mean that he had no hope? Not at all. In fact, Jesus knew that something wonderful was about to happen. (John 11:3, 4) Still, he felt the pain and sorrow that death brings. In a way, Jesus' grief is encouraging to us. It teaches us that Jesus and his Father, Jehovah, hate death. But Jehovah God is able to fight and overcome that enemy! Let us see what God enabled Jesus to do.


Kandi Burruss' most recent Instagram post is really heart melting. She's showing her fans how much things have changed in a few years by comparing a photo from 2014 that featured herself and NeNe Leakes to another one from 2018. Take a look at the lovely post below.
'I really like this pic! It shows that time & an open heart can fix anything. Make sure to tune in to tonight's episode of #RHOA reunion part 3! Unfortunately, I'm not sure if time can heal the drama from tonight's episode… #BravoAndChill' Kandi captioned her post on Instagram referring to the third part of RHOA reunion that aired yesterday, April 22.
Fans adored Kandi and NeNe, and as expected, they slammed Kim Zolciak.
'@kandi did Wig ever pay you the rest of your $$ & do you get $$ for her show because of the name of it? I remember she stole the name Cash from you, which of course she denied' someone else asked Kandi.
'I think what Kandi meant was, Kim wasn't on a lot of RhoA seasons and came back, so for her to go from not being on the show a couple of seasons to coming back, and she came back with negativity didn't sit well with the other girls…I don't think she was coming at her actual friends' love' another commenter said regarding what Kandi stated about Kim and the show.


Due to many events and circumstances in my life, I find that I am now 51 with barely a start on my retirement planning. I am trying to design a strategy that will allow me to retire in 10 years or less and would like to here any thoughts and suggestions on ways to do so.
I am fairly new to investing and would welcome any thoughts or tips on how others, who started late, have are successfully building for their retirement.
I am making around $90k+/year but at this time I have only $8,000 in my 401k. I just increased monthly additions to about $900/month. $1500 in savings and am paying down my credit card balance of $15k by about $1000 per month.


text:
Q: Tensorflow Keras error when calling .fit() method - ValueError: 'outputs' must be defined before the loop I was trying to design a model for probing (if sentence length is encoded in encoder representations). However, I am getting an error after I execute the fit() method. I used a pre-trained model to make a new one (probe_model). So that I can check if any information about the sentence is encoded in the representations output by the earlier model.
I have searched on how to resolve this problem before and removing the steps_per_execution=32 parameter doesn't solve this issue.
It gives the following error:
ValueError: Layer model_2 expects 2 input(s), but it received 1 input tensors. Inputs received: [<tf.Tensor 'replicated_input_1:0' shape=(None, 15) dtype=int64>]

*

*Probe model summary

*Base model summary
def get_model():
        model = tf.keras.models.load_model('../input/sentlen/NLI_model.030-0.793.h5')
        layer_name = "encoder_layer"
        probe_intermediate_layer = tf.keras.Model(inputs=model.input, outputs=model.get_layer(layer_name).output)
        probe_intermediate_layer.trainable = False
        probe_input = tf.keras.layers.Input(shape=(None,), dtype="int64")

        p = probe_intermediate_layer(probe_input)
        p = tf.keras.layers.Dense(200, activation = 'relu')(p)
        p = tf.keras.layers.Dropout(0.3)(p)
        outputs = tf.keras.layers.Dense(5, activation = 'softmax')(p)

        probe_model = tf.keras.Model(inputs = probe_input, outputs = outputs)
        return probe_model

# detect and init the TPU
tpu = tf.distribute.cluster_resolver.TPUClusterResolver.connect()

# instantiate a distribution strategy
tpu_strategy = tf.distribute.experimental.TPUStrategy(tpu)

# instantiating the model in the strategy scope creates the model on the TPU
with tpu_strategy.scope():
        probe_model = get_model()
        probe_model.compile(optimizer='rmsprop',
              loss='sparse_categorical_crossentropy',
              metrics=['accuracy'],steps_per_execution=32)

probe_model.fit(task_train_1,task_train_labels, epochs = 30, batch_size = 1024)

Error stack:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ValueError                                Traceback (most recent call last)
<ipython-input-20-af206ebfdc18> in <module>
----> 1 probe_model.fit(task_train_1,task_train_labels, epochs = 30, batch_size = 1024)

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/keras/engine/training.py in fit(self, x, y, batch_size, epochs, verbose, callbacks, validation_split, validation_data, shuffle, class_weight, sample_weight, initial_epoch, steps_per_epoch, validation_steps, validation_batch_size, validation_freq, max_queue_size, workers, use_multiprocessing)
   1098                 _r=1):
   1099               callbacks.on_train_batch_begin(step)
-> 1100               tmp_logs = self.train_function(iterator)
   1101               if data_handler.should_sync:
   1102                 context.async_wait()

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/def_function.py in __call__(self, *args, **kwds)
    826     tracing_count = self.experimental_get_tracing_count()
    827     with trace.Trace(self._name) as tm:
--> 828       result = self._call(*args, **kwds)
    829       compiler = "xla" if self._experimental_compile else "nonXla"
    830       new_tracing_count = self.experimental_get_tracing_count()

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/def_function.py in _call(self, *args, **kwds)
    869       # This is the first call of __call__, so we have to initialize.
    870       initializers = []
--> 871       self._initialize(args, kwds, add_initializers_to=initializers)
    872     finally:
    873       # At this point we know that the initialization is complete (or less

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/def_function.py in _initialize(self, args, kwds, add_initializers_to)
    724     self._concrete_stateful_fn = (
    725         self._stateful_fn._get_concrete_function_internal_garbage_collected(  # pylint: disable=protected-access
--> 726             *args, **kwds))
    727
    728     def invalid_creator_scope(*unused_args, **unused_kwds):

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/function.py in _get_concrete_function_internal_garbage_collected(self, *args, **kwargs)
   2967       args, kwargs = None, None
   2968     with self._lock:
-> 2969       graph_function, _ = self._maybe_define_function(args, kwargs)
   2970     return graph_function
   2971

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/function.py in _maybe_define_function(self, args, kwargs)
   3359
   3360           self._function_cache.missed.add(call_context_key)
-> 3361           graph_function = self._create_graph_function(args, kwargs)
   3362           self._function_cache.primary[cache_key] = graph_function
   3363

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/function.py in _create_graph_function(self, args, kwargs, override_flat_arg_shapes)
   3204             arg_names=arg_names,
   3205             override_flat_arg_shapes=override_flat_arg_shapes,
-> 3206             capture_by_value=self._capture_by_value),
   3207         self._function_attributes,
   3208         function_spec=self.function_spec,

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/framework/func_graph.py in func_graph_from_py_func(name, python_func, args, kwargs, signature, func_graph, autograph, autograph_options, add_control_dependencies, arg_names, op_return_value, collections, capture_by_value, override_flat_arg_shapes)
    988         _, original_func = tf_decorator.unwrap(python_func)
    989
--> 990       func_outputs = python_func(*func_args, **func_kwargs)
    991
    992       # invariant: `func_outputs` contains only Tensors, CompositeTensors,

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/eager/def_function.py in wrapped_fn(*args, **kwds)
    632             xla_context.Exit()
    633         else:
--> 634           out = weak_wrapped_fn().__wrapped__(*args, **kwds)
    635         return out
    636

/opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/framework/func_graph.py in wrapper(*args, **kwargs)
    975           except Exception as e:  # pylint:disable=broad-except
    976             if hasattr(e, "ag_error_metadata"):
--> 977               raise e.ag_error_metadata.to_exception(e)
    978             else:
    979               raise

ValueError: in user code:

    /opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/keras/engine/training.py:811 train_function  *
        for _ in math_ops.range(self._steps_per_execution):
    /opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/autograph/operators/control_flow.py:414 for_stmt
        symbol_names, opts)
    /opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/autograph/operators/control_flow.py:629 _tf_range_for_stmt
        opts)
    /opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/autograph/operators/control_flow.py:1059 _tf_while_stmt
        body, get_state, set_state, init_vars, nulls, symbol_names)
    /opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/autograph/operators/control_flow.py:1032 _try_handling_undefineds
        _verify_loop_init_vars(init_vars, symbol_names, first_iter_vars)
    /opt/conda/lib/python3.7/site-packages/tensorflow/python/autograph/operators/control_flow.py:193 _verify_loop_init_vars
        raise ValueError(error_msg)

    ValueError: 'outputs' must be defined before the loop.


Welcome to San Diego, California.
We are Bill and Kay Poindexter, your hosts for the 2004 Reunion.
We and our family invite you to the 2004 gathering of the Poindexter Family. We have prepared an agenda that is full of fun and learning as well as shopping and reunion activities. Be sure to register for the reunion today! And don't forget to reserve your hotel room!
San Diego is full of history and culture from old Mexico to the U.S. Marines, read all about it here. And while you're here, plan some side trips and visit all that we have to offer. Get the details here.


If you wish, bring something you are already working on: give yourself the time and space to linger over it and let it develop. A perfect opportunity to work, in peaceful surroundings, on a second or third draft. Or come with an open mind and see where the week takes you.
Each day there will be a different stimulus for your writing which you can either engage with, or choose to do your own thing. After writing in the morning you may wish to borrow a bicycle and enjoy an afternoon ride through medieval villages, or go for a walk on your own or with others on the retreat. Or rest, sleep, read – or write.
There will be opportunities to read your work to the rest of the group. There will also be guidance to help you read 'in public'.
The program cost will be 595€ (475€ for shared occupancy) and includes, 5 nights' accommodation, meals, (all but one lunch) and some sight-seeing transportation. The optional days are 92€ (68€ shared) per day and includes accommodation, breakfast and dinner. They can be used to attend market day in the medieval village of Sommieres, or to visit sights such as the Pont du Gard or Provencal attractions. Enjoy walking, cycling, bird watching, etc.
All are welcome, Friends and friends!


text:
New Jersey Disability Discrimination Laws May Protect People with "Long COVID"
Employment laws in New Jersey and around the country protect workers from discrimination by their employers on the basis of disability. Both state and federal law define "disability" broadly to include a wide range of conditions, including injuries, illnesses, and congenital conditions. After nearly two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are learning more about the long-term effects of the disease on some people. These conditions, often known as "long-haul COVID" or simply "long COVID," can include symptoms affecting people's respiratory, neurological, digestive, and reproductive systems, among others. Laws addressing disability discrimination in the workplace may protect people suffering from long COVID. Not only would employers be barred from disparate treatment due to long COVID symptoms, but they would also be obligated to provide reasonable accommodations for those symptoms.
The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of disability. The NJLAD's definition of "disability" includes a "physical…disability…[or] infirmity…which is caused by…illness." The statute lists many specific conditions across a broad range, such as visual or hearing impairments, paralysis, autism spectrum disorder, and HIV infection or AIDS. The initial language regarding "illness," however, suggests that the long-term impact of disease also qualifies as a disability.
The ADA specifically states that courts and others should construe its definition of "disability" "in favor of broad coverage of individuals…to the maximum extent permitted by the" statute. It defines the term, in part, as a "physical…impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities," including "walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, [and] breathing."
The statute also requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for employees or job applicants with disabilities, unless the employer can show that it would impose an "undue burden" to do so. Accommodations might include shift schedules that take doctor appointments and other medical needs into account, lifting restrictions for employees with respiratory or neurological symptoms, and bathroom breaks for workers with digestive issues.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that people can continue to exhibit symptoms related to long COVID weeks or months after recovering from the illness. Some people who did not have serious COVID symptoms have shown long COVID symptoms long after seeming to recover. It remains unclear how long these symptoms will persist. In some cases, the CDC reports that they now appear to be chronic conditions.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has stated that long COVID may qualify as a disability under the ADA and other statutes. It notes that many of the symptoms are the result of the disease causing damage to the lungs, heart, kidneys, and other organs or systems. Not every case of long COVID will necessarily meet the standard of "substantially limit[ing] one or more major life activities." HHS suggests that "individualized assessments" are necessary to determine whether an individual's symptoms constitute a disability. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has stated its agreement with the HHS guidelines and published its own guidance.
The employment lawyers at the Resnick Law Group advocate on behalf of workers in New Jersey and New York, fighting for their rights in claims for unlawful employment practices. Please contact us today online, at 973-781-1204, or at 646-867-7997 to schedule a confidential consultation to see how we can help you with your case.
Posted in: Discrimination and Employment Discrimination

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Attorney James R. Pratt
Assault and/or Battery
Drug Related Crimes
Kidnapping & False Imprisonment
Resisting Arrest / Assault on a Police Officer
Post-Conviction Relief
United States v. Hall
Case Number 08-10208-MLB, ___ F.Supp.2d ____, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 131466 (D. Kan. 2010). Complete dismissal of mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and other charges on vagueness grounds. Case involved complex allegations of fraud, involving Kansas cigarette distributors selling cigarettes to tribal retailers in the state of Oklahoma. Prosecutors claimed cigarette tax losses of $ 25 million, and "gross proceeds" of $ 110 million. Government appeal dismissed following review by the Department of Justice and the United States Solicitor General.
United States v. Diaz
Case Number 08-10100-01 MLB (D. Kan. August 1, 2008). Federal drug case resulting from an I-70 car stop in Thomas County, Kansas, involving 1 pound of 98% pure methamphetamine. Case dismissed following successful Motion to Suppress.
United States v. Dang
Case Number 06-10212-JTM (D. Kan. September 19, 2006). Federal drug case resulting from an I-70 car stop in Ellis County, Kansas, involving 1.8 pounds of methamphetamine and 11 pounds of cocaine. Case dismissed following vigorous pre-trial motion practice.
State Cases
State of Kansas v. Rexroat
(99,432, Kan. Ct. App. November 21, 2008) (unpublished). Appellate Court affirmed district court's dismissal of charges based on the impermissible stacking in inchoate offenses (i.e. a defendant cannot be charged with an "Attempted" Indecent Solicitation of a Child).
State of Kansas v. Wade
Kansas (Kan. 95,649, July 13, 2007). Kansas Supreme Court's reversal of client's First Degree Murder Conviction and life sentence and ordering of a new trial due to trial court's erroneous amendment of the charges to conform with the client's testimony during trial. Supreme Court held this violated the client's rights of due process and prohibited him from preparing and presenting a defense.
State of Kansas v. Manbeck
Allen County Case No. 01 CR 302, trial counsel for client charged with Involuntary Manslaughter DUI. Argued the sentencing court could not enhance client's sentence as the language of the statute required a finding that the client was under the influence of alcohol and drugs at the time of the offense, and client was only found to be under the influence of alcohol ordrugs at the time of the offense. Client's enhanced sentence reversed by the Kansas Court of Appeals in 31 Kan. App. 2d 618 (2003). Court of Appeals reversal affirmed by the Kansas Supreme Court in 277 Kan. 224 (2004).
Tell us about your case *
Highest Possible Rating in Both Legal Ability & Ethical Standards
State of Kansas v. Beaman
Allen County Case No. 01 CR 19, jury verdict of not guilty of aggravated assault with a firearm upon a law enforcement officer. Client's Motion to Dismiss kidnapping charge for lack of probable cause sustained following preliminary hearing.
State of Kansas v. Spellman
Crawford County Case No. 99 CR 490 G, Successful Motion to Suppress 2.65 grams of methamphetamine based on deputy's illegal "ruse" entry into home. Entry followed Sheriff's deputy allowing client to believe her children had run away or been kidnapped, even though the deputy knew the children were safe at the Sheriff's Department.
Olson v. City of Independence and Klars Jewelers
Montgomery County Case No. 96 C 106, civil jury verdict of no liability for Klars Jewelers following plaintiff's slip and fall in front of jewelry store. Judgment affirmed by the Kansas Court of Appeals, Case No. 1999-80700 (Kan. Ct. App. August 6, 1999)(unpublished).
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Disrespect and abuse (D&A) of women in health facilities continues to be a prevailing public health issue in many countries. Studies have reported significantly high prevalence of D&A among women during pregnancy and childbirth in Nigeria, but little is known about women's perceptions and experiences of D&A during maternity care in the country. The aim of this study was to explore: 1) how women perceived their experiences of D&A during pregnancy, childbirth, and in the postnatal period in Benue State, Nigeria; and 2) how women viewed the impact of D&A on the future use of health facilities for maternity care.
Five focus group discussions with a sample of 32 women were conducted as part of a qualitative phenomenological study. All the women received maternity care in health facilities in Benue State, Nigeria and had experienced at least one incident of disrespect and abuse. Audio-recorded discussions were transcribed and analysed using a six-stage thematic analysis using NVivo11.
The participants perceived incidents such as being shouted at and the use of abusive language as a common practice. Women described these incidents as devaluing and dehumanising to their sense of dignity. Some women perceived that professionals did not intend to cause harm by such behaviours. Emerged themes included: (1) 'normative' practice; (2) dehumanisation of women; (3) 'no harm intended' and (4) intentions about the use of maternity services in future. The women highlighted the importance of accessing health facilities for safe childbirth and expressed that the experiences of D&A may not impact their intended use of health facilities. However, the accounts reflected their perceptions about the inherent lack of choice and an underlying sense of helplessness.
Incidents of D&A that were perceived as commonplace carry substantial implications for the provision of respectful maternity care in Nigeria and other similar settings. As a country with one of the highest rates of maternal deaths, the findings point to the need for policy and practice to address the issue urgently through implementing preventive measures, including empowering women to reinforce their right to be treated with dignity and respect, and sensitising health care professionals.
Disrespect and abuse (D&A) of women in health facilities continues to be a prevailing public health issue in many countries that violates the human rights of women to be treated with respect and to be free from harm . Disrespectful and abusive maternity care can be experienced in various forms such as being ignored, shouted at, and slapped by healthcare providers, and abandoned to deliver a child alone in health facilities [2–4]. Disrespectful and abusive care has broadly been categorised into seven domains as physical abuse, discrimination, non-consented care, non-dignified care, abandonment or neglect, non-confidential care, and detention in health facilities . Globally, women tend to experience D&A during labour and childbirth at health facilities regardless of their socio-demographic characteristics such as age and level of education [5, 6]. Some groups such as adolescents, unmarried women, women with Human Immunodeficiency Virus / Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome and those from low socioeconomic status are, however, more vulnerable to experience D&A compared with their counterparts .
Numerous adverse consequences of D&A on women's health and wellbeing have been reported including increased risk of birth complications ; poor self-rated health, sleeping problems, and signs of post-traumatic stress disorder ; and the reluctance to use health facilities . Many factors have been identified to contribute to D&A in health facilities such as poor communication between women and healthcare providers; inadequate healthcare policies; prejudices from healthcare providers; and demoralisation of healthcare providers in poorly performing health facilities [2, 5, 9, 10].
Although there are variations in prevalence, reports of high prevalence rates of D&A among women during facility-based childbirth have been documented in several countries [8, 11, 12]. For example, approximately 13–28% women who accessed obstetrics and gynaecology services in Northern Europe experienced some form of abuse in healthcare centres . Another multi-country study found that 1 in 5 women who attended antenatal care in maternity health facilities had at least one episode of abuse in six European countries – Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Estonia, Iceland and Denmark . Considerably higher prevalence rates are recorded in some of the African countries [6, 13, 14] including Nigeria, with the prevalence rates among women during childbirth in health facilities ranging between 23.7–98% [15–17].
Qualitative studies have reported women's subjective experiences of D&A during childbirth in some countries. A qualitative study, based on a Danish sample of postnatal women who had previously endured abuse, found that abuse in health care may have profound consequences on the reproductive lives of the women including adverse impact on sexuality, the desire to have children, and the expectations of the mode of delivery . While describing their childbirth experiences, some women in Tanzania reported abusive events such as verbal abuse, discriminatory treatment, and being ignored . Non-confrontational measures such as returning home and bypassing certain health facilities and/or healthcare providers, or accepting the mistreatment, were reported by women in response to the abuse [4, 19]. Four scenarios in health facilities - verbal abuse, slapping, physical restraint and refusing to help- were used to understand the acceptability of mistreatment among service providers and women in Guinea . The findings showed that women did not always accept the scenarios of mistreatment except when the actions of the healthcare providers were perceived as intended to save the mother and child . The service providers accepted mistreatment when they felt women were uncooperative, disobedient, or the lives of their unborn children were at risk during childbirth.
In Nigeria, very few qualitative studies have explored women's experiences of disrespectful and abusive maternity care. Two of such studies have explored how mistreatment occurred and its acceptability among service users and providers [10, 20]. One study identified four scenarios of mistreatment in two health facilities in Abuja - verbal abuse, slapping, physical restraint and refusing to help a woman . All the participants perceived the scenarios as acceptable and appropriate measures to make mothers comply with healthcare providers' instructions for the safe birth of their child . In the other study, both healthcare providers and women reported how they had either witnessed or experienced verbal and physical abuse and detainment at health facilities . Beyond these studies, there has been little investigation into women's experiences of D&A in Nigeria. This study, therefore, aimed to develop an in-depth understanding of women's perceptions and experiences of D&A in maternity care facilities in Benue State, Nigeria. Based on the first phase of a qualitative study, this article specifically explores: 1) how women perceived their experiences of D&A during childbirth, antenatal and postpartum care; and 2) how women viewed the impact of D&A on future use of health facilities for maternity care.
This paper presents findings from the first phase of a two-phase qualitative phenomenological study to understand women's experiences of D&A in maternity care. Phenomenology as a qualitative approach enables the study of people's 'lived experiences' of a social phenomenon [21, 22]. Its application in this study enabled the researchers to obtain an in-depth understanding of women's experiences of D&A in maternity care. Interpretivism is the research paradigm adopted because it allowed the use of qualitative research methodology to understand the meaning of an individual's subjective experience of a phenomenon [23, 24].
This study was conducted in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. Two health facilities - the Benue State University Teaching Hospital and the Epidemiological Unit, Benue State Ministry of Health - were selected because of their central location in Benue State's capital and easy accessibility.
Participants were recruited using purposive sampling methods. In order to identify women who had experienced D&A during their maternity care, a screening tool was developed based on a review of the literature and the types of D&A outlined by previous studies . The screening tool was used to determine if women have experienced at least one type of D&A or any other subjective experiences perceived as D&A during their maternity care. Women who reported as having experienced at least one incident of D&A on the screening tool were invited to participate if they were aged 18 years and above; had received antenatal, childbirth and postpartum care at a health facility in the last two years; and have had a normal vaginal birth. Women who have had caesarean sections or stillbirths were excluded.
After obtaining permission from the Head of Obstetrics & Gynaecology departments and the Chief Medical Directors, the first author (JO) approached the participants in person during their visit to the health facilities for the immunisation of their new-borns or for postnatal care. Potential participants were first briefed as a group while they were waiting for their appointments, and all the interested participants were taken to a separate room where detailed information was given about the purpose of the study, the eligibility criteria, and the ethical considerations. They were also given the participant information sheet and the screening tool described above. Eligible women willing to participate signed a consent form to confirm their approval. While providing consent, all the participants were given a brief questionnaire with a set of demographic questions including age, tribe, marital status, religion, level of education, employment status, and number of previous births. Among forty-eight women who were given the screening tool and participant information sheet, thirteen women did not meet the eligibility criteria, and three declined participation. Thirty-two women were finally recruited for the focus group discussions (FGDs).
A total of five FGDs were conducted with 6–8 participants per group involving a total of thirty-two women. The discussions were moderated by the first author (JO) and were conducted in a room at the health facilities where privacy was assured. The discussions were audio-recorded with permission from participants and were later transcribed verbatim. The moderator also kept a diary during the period of data collection with field notes and reflections.
A topic guide was used along with prompts as necessary for conducting the FGDs. The topic guide was developed based on the objectives of the study. The participants were first prompted to describe their maternity care (antenatal care, childbirth, postnatal care) experience at the hospital; what they liked and disliked about the care received; and the interactions with healthcare providers. This was followed by questions on any perceived factors that may have influenced the care received and the effect of this on their future use of health facilities for maternity care. All the FGDs were conducted in September and October 2016.
All the audio-recorded discussions were transcribed by the first author (JO). The second author (SP) reviewed the transcripts and the audio-recordings to confirm consistency and credibility of the data analysis process. The analysis was conducted based on a thematic approach (Braun and Clarke, 2006). All the transcripts were read repeatedly for familiarisation and to develop an in-depth understanding of the data. Using NVivo 11, themes relevant to the research objectives were identified, categorised and interpreted . The application of an interpretive paradigm enabled the researchers to focus on understanding the meaning of women's subjective experiences of D&A in maternity care [23, 24]. Extracts from the FGDs are used to illustrate the emerged themes. Numbers were used to denote participants to protect the participants' identities and anonymity in the transcripts .
Ethical approval was obtained from the Institute for Health Research Ethics Committee, University of Bedfordshire (IHREC681), Government of Benue State Nigeria (MOH/MED/261/Vol.II/707), and Benue State University Teaching Hospital (NHREC/08/11/2013B/2016/0020). Permission to access and recruit participants was obtained from the Head of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Benue State University Teaching Hospital and the Chief Medical Director of the Epidemiological Unit, Benue State Ministry of Health. Verbal and written consent was obtained from all participants. Any identifying information was removed from transcripts prior to analysis to ensure anonymity.
The sample comprised of 32 women aged between 18 and 37 years. All the women were married; 93.8% (n = 30,) were Christians and 6.3% (n = 2) were Muslims; 84.4% (n = 27) had post-secondary education; 15.6% (n = 5) had secondary education; 65.6% (n = 21) were unemployed and 34.4% (n = 11) were employed. Nearly half of the women (n = 13) had one child; 37.5% (n = 12) had two children and 21.9% (n = 7) had three or more children. All the participants described at least one episode of D&A during their last maternity care in health facilities. The FGDs lasted between 40 and 75 min. The socio-demographic characteristics of each of the participants are presented in Table 1. Four main themes emerged in the women's accounts: (1) 'normative' practice; (2) dehumanisation of women; (3) 'no harm intended'; and (4) intentions about the use of maternity services in future. The main and sub-themes are presented in Table 2.
"…the nurses at that antenatal [clinic] were not friendly at all; they were quite abusive... they use very harsh words and even be insulting women. Sometimes there is even no reason for the abusive language but it is a common thing at the hospital" (FGD5, P2).
"They treated me in a way that was not always good but that's how they always behave during our antenatal [appointments]. It's normal for them to behave like that anyway" (FGD3, P3).
"They shout at women... in fact; we are used to it" (FGD3, P4).
"For me, they were always too harsh, and this is common especially in government hospitals" (FGD3, P2).
"When you ask them a question, they will just be shouting at you for nothing... but I just manage them till I finish antenatal [care] because I know I will soon go home" (FGD 5, P4).
"What she was saying plus the pains I started crying again and all I wanted is to endure everything so I can go home because that is how she was saying that to other women too" (FGD3, P1).
"They will not even give you chance to talk. They will just shout at you, but you have nothing to say or to do than to manage" (FGD1, P1).
"So, what you just have to do is that you will endure anything you see or anything that happens to you" (FGD2, P6).
"I just endure and pray to God that it will not happen again when I go to the hospital" (FGD5, P5).
"So, some of them [health care professionals] can be very rude at times but it's just God that will help us to really cope with them and manage how badly they treat us" (FGD 2, P3).
"The nurses there will be shouting at you as if we are not human beings" (FGD1, P1).
"It is bad. They make you feel like you are not human being. It's like they just like to shout and quarrel [with] pregnant women…" (FGD2, P7).
"They make you feel like you don't matter when they talk to women in a rude way and sometimes that can make a woman feel like she doesn't mean anything to them" (FGD3, P6).
"They talk to women in a rude way, and it is bad because they are women like us, but they cannot even treat women well" (FGD3, P6).
"You know I was thinking they will at least be nice and try to understand, especially now that the baby was coming but they just didn't care. They were just angry and quarrelling [with] me" (FGD4, P6).
"I like the care but as I was pushing, the nurse was shouting that I should stop disturbing her and when I did not push well, she slapped my leg and said that I will kill my baby if I close my leg and because of that, I open my legs. So, she help me to [give birth to] my child safely" (FGD1, P5).
"…when I was tired and not pushing, she was angry at me that I want to kill my baby and I was like trying hard to push. [The midwife] was okay, but when I don't push, she will get angry and quarrel [with] me to push" (FGD3, P5).
"At times we women we do close our legs. We know that that's the only thing that will help us. Then they will shout at us, say open your legs madam, why are you closing your legs? Do you want to kill the baby? Then, you will come and open your legs" (FGD1, P7).
"I was like it's not my fault it's when the baby wants to come out, but he said I was not pushing well, so he got angry and induced me like that without my permission. That was the annoying part!" (FGD1, P3).
"The other one was very harsh on me, that, I was like, I want to kill my baby, I don't want to… she even slapped me at a point, but the doctor said she shouldn't do that next time" (FGD3, P3).
"Sometimes there is even no reason for the abusive language, but it is a common thing at the hospital" (FGD5, P2).
"They shout at you, for just no cause…" (FGD2, P5).
"I'm not going to deliver there again; though I like their antenatal [care], but the delivery…I will not go there" (FGD4, P5).
"Where I go for antenatal [care], I don't think I can deliver from that hospital and even this one too, as I was going there for antenatal [care], I change my mind I deliver somewhere else" (FGD2 P2).
"So, for delivery, I would choose to go to any other private hospital, no matter how they treat you, but I think their treatment will still be preferable to Federal Medical Centre" (FGD2, P3).
This paper presented an exploration of women's perceptions of their experiences of D&A and the perceived impact on their future use of maternity care facilities in Benue State, Nigeria. The women in this study reported several instances of D&A, but mostly in the form of verbal abuse at various stages of their maternity care – antenatal, childbirth and postpartum care. The findings suggest that D&A, especially in the form of verbal abuse, is a phenomenon commonly experienced by pregnant women using healthcare facilities in this study. Overall women perceived these incidents as devaluing and dehumanising to their sense of dignity. Nevertheless, it did not prevent their intended use of health facilities for maternity care because they felt they have no other choice for maternity care. Furthermore, they acknowledge the role of facility-based childbirth in reducing risk to themselves and their unborn child. While some women reported one or more episodes of D&A during their antenatal and/or childbirth, others experienced it during antenatal and postpartum care. However, only a few women reported any experience of D&A during postpartum care as it appeared that most of them did not receive or seek any form of postpartum care upon discharge from the health facilities. It may be that women were put off from seeking postpartum care because of their experiences, but this was not fully explored in this study. As reported by previous studies, the responses from women in our study suggested that the experience of D&A was more severe during antenatal care and childbirth at the health facilities .
Women perceived their experiences of D&A as dehumanising as they expressed feeling devalued and worthless from the actions perpetrated by healthcare providers during maternity care. This violates women's right to be free from harm and maltreatment as highlighted in the Respectful Maternity Care Charter developed within the context of the human rights perspective . Dehumanisation has been described as denying people of their human attributes; thereby, equating them to animals . It is often characterised by humiliating and degrading behaviour or a lack of empathy and indifference towards people . The perception of D&A as dehumanisation has also been reported women who were treated without respect and dignity in other studies. The lack of respect made participants feel vulnerable, as well as dehumanised and worthless .
Another common theme that emerged from women's responses in our study is their perception of D&A, for example, the use of abusive language and shouting as 'normal' behaviours from healthcare providers in health facilities during maternity care; therefore, such practices were expected and not necessarily seen as a violation of human rights. Previous studies have also reported that women tended to view D&A as normalised behaviour in health facilities in some countries [4, 10, 13, 28]. For example, women in Tanzania often expected disrespectful and abusive care to occur because they regarded it as the standard of care . The Tanzanian women in the study initially reported being satisfied with the care they received at the health facilities, but on probing further, they came up with detailed accounts of their experiences of D&A. . Women who have become familiar with disrespectful and abusive care during childbirth were not likely to regard it as a crime against women's rights to health [1, 5]. The normalisation of D&A among women may be the underlying reason for most of the women in our study to feel that they had to accept and endure disrespectful practices. Such notions of D&A could also be the reason for it to remain underreported and unchallenged.
Further, some women regarded D&A as actions from healthcare providers that were not intended to cause pain or harm. The intentionality behind D&A in maternity care has remained a controversial topic in the literature [10, 19, 29]. Freedman et al. (2014) have referred to D&A as any deviation from the acceptable standard of good quality care, conditions in the health facilities, and actions by healthcare providers that are intended to or perceived as humiliating women . The perceptions of women about D&A as actions necessarily well- intended from professionals in order to save both their lives and their unborn children also highlighted the acceptability of D&A in maternity care among women in this setting. Another study from Nigeria has described how women who experienced physical abuse in the form of slapping and beating did not get upset because they considered it as a measure to ensure the safe birth of their children . It has also been argued that D&A could be seen as a deliberate act from healthcare providers to exert control on their patients .
The women in our study reported that they would continue to use the existing health facilities in future for maternity care regardless of their experiences of D&A as they accrued considerable importance to receiving care. Contrary to our findings, other authors have reported that D&A in healthcare may limit the use of facility-based maternity care [18, 30, 31] as the experience could potentially reduce women's confidence in the health facilities [5, 31]. Although D&A may not have deterred the use of health centres for participants in our study for antenatal care or during childbirth, they tended to view the future use of health facilities with a sense of helplessness to avoid complications or loss of life during childbirth, with some women reporting intentions of using other hospitals they felt may provide more respectful maternity care.
This is one of the few qualitative studies that have explored women's experiences of D&A in maternity care in Nigeria, and the first such study to be conducted in the Benue state. The women who participated in the FGDs represented a range of socio-demographic characteristics and had attended both government and private health facilities for maternity care. The use of FGDs enabled participants to discuss their experiences of D&A in health facilities interactively with the participants stimulating each other to express their views. However, the use of FGDs may have prevented some women from fully disclosing their experiences within a group. In the next phase of this study, individual interviews will be conducted to explore women's experiences in depth. The FGDs were carried out in the health facility premises. Although privacy was ensured and the researcher explained the independent nature of the research and her role, courtesy bias or the feeling they should give "positive" responses so as not to compromise their future care, may have influenced women's responses. During recruitment, the first author (JO) addressed the women in a group; those who were willing to participate were screened and their eligibility assessed. The information sheet, screening tool and the consent form were provided in English as this is the official language in the region and the country. However, this may have led to the recruitment of women with better English language skills and a more formal education, and a possible exclusion of women with lesser education and poor communication skills. Another limitation is the use of qualitative research methodology, which, due to the relatively small sample sizes and the unrepresentative nature of sampling techniques, does not seek to generalise findings to the population as a whole. Therefore the findings may not be representative of all the women in the region or in Nigeria.
Our study provided an understanding of how women perceived their experiences of D&A and its perceived impact on their use of maternity services providing valuable insights for maternity care policy and practice in the country and other similar settings. The normalisation of D&A among the women along with the feeling that they had to accept and endure practices that they found dehumanising, coupled with the perceptions of helplessness in their future use of maternity services are all key issues to consider towards tackling the issue. The evidence from our study points to the urgent need for sensitising women and other family members about right to respectful care and empowering them to report and challenge disrespectful and abusive practices. It also reflect the importance of sensitising and training healthcare providers on the importance of providing respectful care.
Large scale studies with a representative sample size are needed to determine whether women's views of D&A reflected in this study can be generalised to the region and Nigeria as a whole as well as to other similar settings. Future qualitative studies should focus on examining the experiences of vulnerable women such as those with no formal education. Studies covering health care professionals' views will also be of immense value towards developing a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon.
We are grateful to the staff of Benue State University Teaching Hospital and Epidemiological Unit, Benue State for their support during the data collection. We would like to thank Mrs. Nwanadi from Benue State University Teaching Hospital and Mrs. Tsua from the Epidemiological Unit, Benue State for their support in recruiting the participants. Special thanks to all the participants for their time and participation, without which this study would not have been possible.
Qualitative data extracts are presented in the article to support the findings. The original transcripts are not available to the public as they may contain information that could compromise the confidentiality and anonymity of the participants.
JO conceptualised the study, moderated the discussions, and wrote the preliminary draft of the manuscript. SP contributed significantly to the conceptualisation of the study, closely supervised the data collection and analysis, and substantially revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. RD and BB contributed to the development of the study tools and the analysis of the data. All authors read, commented on, and revised the different drafts of the manuscript. All the authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Ethics approvals were obtained from the Institute for Health Research Ethics Committee, University of Bedfordshire (IHREC681) on 15 September 2016, Government of Benue State (MOH/MED/261/Vol.II/707) on 5th September 2016, and Benue State University Teaching Hospital (NHREC/08/11/2013B/2016/0020) on 28th September 2016. Written consent was obtained from all participants in the study.


According to the latest WHO data published in 2017 Lung Cancers Deaths in Estonia reached 703 or 5.18% of total deaths. The age adjusted Death Rate is 26.44 per 100,000 of population ranks Estonia #29 in the world. Review other causes of death by clicking the links below or choose the full health profile.


Travel without the kid is hard. I just got back from a week in California and I have to tell you, it was rough on both the parent going away and the parent staying home. There are good days and bad days trying to raise a baby by yourself, but the problem for the parent away from home is more than that. There is a feeling of helplessness when you call home, you can't pick up your kid, you can't comfort your wife, and you can't give your teenager a well deserved whipping. It seems like it would be easier to just not pack the phone, to take a few days off from being a husband and a father. But I'll tell you, round about 8 pm, the evening gets long. You watch some tv, play on the computer, hit the gym, get a beer. All right! You made it till 10 pm! Now you can lie down and get some sleep. I swear, you really miss doing some laundry to pass the time. You call home, because even helpless, you get to hear their voices. It is the only thing getting me through the day.
1) Pick a bag that can hold all your Requirements.
2) Use that bag till the handles fall off.
The first couple times you'll screw up. Did you bring purified water for the formula? Did you bring burp cloths? Spare outfits? (Spare shirt/bra for mom?) After you know what you need, then you have to learn to to bring too much. Bags only get [ — THIS — ] big, once you start packing [ ——– THIS MUCH ———] You're going to think you need a second bag, or a bag for special occasions, or … don't. On the same page, when you are just going to Krogers, you think you only need [this] and maybe nothing. This is a lesson you don't want to learn the hard way. Examples abound. Don't be one of them.
3) Learn to field strip your bag. Formula, Water, Burp Cloths, Changing pad, diapers, wipes, baggies, spare outfit, spare t-shirt, teething ring, pacifier (with a child that likes them – spare pacifier), small blanket. Most everything else can wait till you get home. If you bought a bag big enough, maybe you add in the med kit, tweezers and nose gunk removal.
4) Spending the night somewhere? Don't repack the bag. This is important. The kid gets a suitcase like everyone else, some stuff has to go in there that wouldn't go in YOUR suitcase, but don't try to re-do the diaper bag to make it work. As soon as you are at the hotel/house, start building your staging area baby cleaning and for re-loading the diaper bag. I won't say that it ever gets routine for 1 baby, because the baby needs evolve constantly. But after 3 kids (my new co-worker has 5) you know what to pack.
Update: Didn't even get this loaded before a co-worker added his story. 6-month old, run to the store for (beer) icecream. Poopy diaper and screaming kid. Took off his shirt and put it down in the child seat, because he didn't know how to clean the child seat, but surely knew how to get poop off his t-shirt. Had to drive with the windows down, baby screaming all the way home.
Sorry for the long delay between posts. I was up at Vandenberg Air Force Base… doing an audit. Really it was my co-worker's audit, I was lucky enough to be invited along to carry the (very heavy) electronics. Had to get a crane to drop some of it into the test area. I got trained on the experiments, so I'm happy. I now know how to do some fairly simple electronics audits, that I didn't know how to do last month. BUT, it kept me busy. Now I'm back from California and ready to get back into science. SO – what is up on a Monday.
I was looking around at Solar Ham – http://www.solarham.net/ – and I saw this film. Very nice view of a solar prominence.
"What am I seeing here?" you ask.
Ok, this is an MHD channel. The twisted magnetic field encourages electrons to jump from one spot on the surface to another. Protons are also encouraged, but the electrons go so much faster, the protons are left behind and you get a mostly negative arch. The (mostly) proton gas on the sun's surface (on the South side of the sun) is seeing a negative charge at the end of a tube of magnetic field. So it climbs the tube. Now on the more Northerly side, the right side of the screen, there is a return stream. The protons are returning to the sun. Now, you can see that there is more going in than coming out. (actually, all the cold stuff is leaking out without us seeing it, so we're only looking at the hot gas which is getting hotter.) But there is this big "balloon" of hot gas. Sooner or later, the protons on the surface of the sun stop seeing a negative charge in this prominence. They start seeing the balloon of protons more than the force and charge of the bent magnetic field that makes up the prominence.
At that point, the hot protons start escaping more than following the magnetic field and that breaks the chain holding the prominence to the sun's surface. It leaves.
Ok, so I have several friends who are solar/plasma physicists and they will probably tell me I got something (or everything) wrong. But, first view, that is what this looks like to me. But mostly, this is beautiful. This is (wild guess) like a million kilograms of hot gas at a temperature like (less wild guess) 10 million degrees Celsius, total energy contained in that magnetic field could run every electrical device on the Earth for years. But it is just like a campfire, a blaze of fire that lights the infinite night. Burn baby, burn.


text:
NFF paid part of my salary arrears – Agu
in Metro, Sports
Super Eagles goalkeepers trainer, Alloy Agu, on Tuesday confirmed he's been paid part of the 22-month salaries owed him by the Nigeria Football Federation.
President of the NFF, Amaju Pinnick, promised that Agu would be paid along with Eagles head coach, Gernot Rohr, who was owed five months.
Pinnick told The PUNCH on Saturday that the federation had paid part of the arrears of both coaches.
"We paid Rohr two months salaries on Friday, we also paid Alloy nine months. Last December, we paid (Joseph) Yobo three months wages," Pinnick said.
"Nobody wants to owe. Things weren't like this before, because our premium sponsors Aiteo paid the bills and on time, but they too are feeling the financial strains of the pandemic."
When our correspondent asked Agu if he had been paid by the NFF, the goalkeeper trainer said, "Yes, I was paid part of the money but I don't want to say more than that. A lot of things were involved but I don't want to talk about that."
Forgive me if I insulted you: Sunday Igboho begs Ooni
World Cancer Day: Every year, over 72,000 Nigerians die of cancer


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text:
#include <aws/ec2/model/Reservation.h>
#include <aws/core/utils/xml/XmlSerializer.h>
#include <aws/core/utils/StringUtils.h>
#include <aws/core/utils/memory/stl/AWSStringStream.h>

#include <utility>

using namespace Aws::EC2::Model;
using namespace Aws::Utils::Xml;
using namespace Aws::Utils;

Reservation::Reservation() :
    m_reservationIdHasBeenSet(false),
    m_ownerIdHasBeenSet(false),
    m_requesterIdHasBeenSet(false),
    m_groupsHasBeenSet(false),
    m_instancesHasBeenSet(false),
    m_responseMetadataHasBeenSet(false)
{
}

Reservation::Reservation(const XmlNode& xmlNode) :
    m_reservationIdHasBeenSet(false),
    m_ownerIdHasBeenSet(false),
    m_requesterIdHasBeenSet(false),
    m_groupsHasBeenSet(false),
    m_instancesHasBeenSet(false),
    m_responseMetadataHasBeenSet(false)
{
  *this = xmlNode;
}

Reservation& Reservation::operator =(const XmlNode& xmlNode)
{
  XmlNode resultNode = xmlNode;

  if(!resultNode.IsNull())
  {
    XmlNode reservationIdNode = resultNode.FirstChild("reservationId");
    if(!reservationIdNode.IsNull())
    {
      m_reservationId = StringUtils::Trim(reservationIdNode.GetText().c_str());
      m_reservationIdHasBeenSet = true;
    }
    XmlNode ownerIdNode = resultNode.FirstChild("ownerId");
    if(!ownerIdNode.IsNull())
    {
      m_ownerId = StringUtils::Trim(ownerIdNode.GetText().c_str());
      m_ownerIdHasBeenSet = true;
    }
    XmlNode requesterIdNode = resultNode.FirstChild("requesterId");
    if(!requesterIdNode.IsNull())
    {
      m_requesterId = StringUtils::Trim(requesterIdNode.GetText().c_str());
      m_requesterIdHasBeenSet = true;
    }
    XmlNode groupsNode = resultNode.FirstChild("Groups");
    if(!groupsNode.IsNull())
    {
      XmlNode groupsMember = groupsNode.FirstChild("item");
      while(!groupsMember.IsNull())
      {
        m_groups.push_back(groupsMember);
        groupsMember = groupsMember.NextNode("item");
      }

      m_groupsHasBeenSet = true;
    }
    XmlNode instancesNode = resultNode.FirstChild("Instances");
    if(!instancesNode.IsNull())
    {
      XmlNode instancesMember = instancesNode.FirstChild("item");
      while(!instancesMember.IsNull())
      {
        m_instances.push_back(instancesMember);
        instancesMember = instancesMember.NextNode("item");
      }

      m_instancesHasBeenSet = true;
    }
  }

  return *this;
}

void Reservation::OutputToStream(Aws::OStream& oStream, const char* location, unsigned index, const char* locationValue) const
{
  if(m_reservationIdHasBeenSet)
  {
      oStream << location << index << locationValue << ".ReservationId=" << StringUtils::URLEncode(m_reservationId.c_str()) << "&";
  }
  if(m_ownerIdHasBeenSet)
  {
      oStream << location << index << locationValue << ".OwnerId=" << StringUtils::URLEncode(m_ownerId.c_str()) << "&";
  }
  if(m_requesterIdHasBeenSet)
  {
      oStream << location << index << locationValue << ".RequesterId=" << StringUtils::URLEncode(m_requesterId.c_str()) << "&";
  }
  if(m_groupsHasBeenSet)
  {
      for(auto& item : m_groups)
      {
        Aws::StringStream groupsSs;
        groupsSs << location << index << locationValue << ".item";
        item.OutputToStream(oStream, groupsSs.str().c_str());
      }
  }
  if(m_instancesHasBeenSet)
  {
      for(auto& item : m_instances)
      {
        Aws::StringStream instancesSs;
        instancesSs << location << index << locationValue << ".item";
        item.OutputToStream(oStream, instancesSs.str().c_str());
      }
  }
  if(m_responseMetadataHasBeenSet)
  {
      Aws::StringStream responseMetadataLocationAndMemberSs;
      responseMetadataLocationAndMemberSs << location << index << locationValue << ".ResponseMetadata";
      m_responseMetadata.OutputToStream(oStream, responseMetadataLocationAndMemberSs.str().c_str());
  }
}

void Reservation::OutputToStream(Aws::OStream& oStream, const char* location) const
{
  if(m_reservationIdHasBeenSet)
  {
      oStream << location << ".ReservationId=" << StringUtils::URLEncode(m_reservationId.c_str()) << "&";
  }
  if(m_ownerIdHasBeenSet)
  {
      oStream << location << ".OwnerId=" << StringUtils::URLEncode(m_ownerId.c_str()) << "&";
  }
  if(m_requesterIdHasBeenSet)
  {
      oStream << location << ".RequesterId=" << StringUtils::URLEncode(m_requesterId.c_str()) << "&";
  }
  if(m_groupsHasBeenSet)
  {
      for(auto& item : m_groups)
      {
        Aws::String locationAndListMember(location);
        locationAndListMember += ".item";
        item.OutputToStream(oStream, locationAndListMember.c_str());
      }
  }
  if(m_instancesHasBeenSet)
  {
      for(auto& item : m_instances)
      {
        Aws::String locationAndListMember(location);
        locationAndListMember += ".item";
        item.OutputToStream(oStream, locationAndListMember.c_str());
      }
  }
  if(m_responseMetadataHasBeenSet)
  {
      Aws::String responseMetadataLocationAndMember(location);
      responseMetadataLocationAndMember += ".ResponseMetadata";
      m_responseMetadata.OutputToStream(oStream, responseMetadataLocationAndMember.c_str());
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The amazing story of the 15 year old boy who stowed away on a 5 1/2-hour flight in the frigid wheel well of a jet that flew from San Jose to Hawaii recently caused me to think about the need for Oxygen.
How does one survive a trip like that when the temperature would have dropped to more than 50 degrees below zero and the air would have been thinner than that at the top of Mount Everest?
Well, as it turns out there have been cases of such survival before, and there's a theory about why the stowaways lived. The body temperatures drop so low that their metabolism drops and their need for oxygen is diminished – thankfully for the stowaway. I heard one commentator say that in the last half century there have been roughly 100 stowaway attempts on airliners. However – only 25 have survived. That's 25% – not bad when you compare it to the number of businesses that are begun every year and wind up failing.
There are a number of reasons why business fail including bad advice from family members, going into business for the wrong reasons, lack of market awareness and a lack of focus. I am fortunate to see lots of different business – on average one deal a day. They are mostly tech deals – and the overwhelming reason they fail is due to lack of Oxygen – ie Capital. The importance of capital in building your business cannot be overstated.
No business can adequately survive without healthy sources of cash.
And yet – so many are reluctant to raise the cash they need. Typically their reasoning is their desire to maintain a very high percentage of ownership. They also are fearful of bringing in people that will provide oversight to the business. Stated another way, they want to "maintain control." They also dislike the proposition of bringing in a "vulture capitalist." They tell me that they have heard horror stories about how a VC will get in and destroy a business.
I am here to tell you that my experience is NOT THAT.
But they also bring access to potential strategic partners, introductions to customers, advice on allocating company resources, and overall accountability.
This may surprise some, but I welcome reducing my ownership in a given business if it means I can access the capital I need to build my business quickly. In my world of High tech, it is often the company that gets into the market first or second, driven by VC investment, that wins the game..
Stated another way, in the end, I would rather have a small piece of a very large pie than a really big piece of a small pie.
Let's say I go into a business and I own 50% of an entity. Sounds pretty good- huh? But let's also say I decide I want to maintain my majority ownership so I can "keep control." So I make the conscious decision to not raise institutional funds. Now let's say that, despite my lack of capital, the business grows and we create a valuation of $10 Million dollars for that business. That means—on paper at least—I am worth $5 Million bucks.
But my preferred mode is this: Bring in substantial portions of money so I can grow the business quickly and secure our position in the market. As I do that from Venture Capital folks, over a couple of years, my ownership percentage may drop to 10%. But if I have done the right things with that business and the money that has been invested by my funding sources, the valuation of the company might well be $100 Million or more.
So from a pure dollars and cents perspective, I would rather have 10% of a 100 Million dollar business (i.e. 10 million) than 50% of a $10 million dollar company.
My advice to entrepreneurs is this: Don't be greedy about maintaining a high percentage of ownership. Don't be penny-wise and pound foolish. Of course, there are instances (but I would say they are rare) where people in the tech space have built out high valuations for companies without the help of outside financing. If people can pull that off, great. But the odds are against you.
If you want your business to survive at 38,000 feet where the competition is fierce and only a few will survive, take that capital and secure your market position, ensure the long-term health of your business and don't be afraid to lower your percentage ownership to help ensure you are a winner in the market.
What do you think? I'd love your thoughts in the comments section below.
There is a balance to be maintained, but what might appear at first as a sacrifice to stay afloat, is in the end a blessing. At least it was for me. I took on investors in one business, and it was the best thing I did. In the end it did 13x ROI. I was reluctant at first, but it became clear there really was no other way.
Great advice! We are currently right at the stage of how much longer do we wait to bring real capital to the table. The toss up with us is if we are patient and give it another month or two we can show a lot more results to an angel investor or VC as opposed to taking money now, giving away a large majority of the company with minimal numbers to show forth.
I could not agree more, David. The only way to grow is to have access to capital or to be so lucky that you "find" great channel partners that will grow your market in spite of your capital starved position. I prefer to leave "luck" out of the business equation and to go after capital that will allow you to survive and then thrive. It does take money to make money and for a tech company it is marketing and innovation (R&D) that produce results – everything else is cost (paraphrased from Peter Drucker). The past several years have created an oxygen deprivation environment for many tech companies and I look forward to brighter times in the near future. Not being willing to share a piece of the pie is not just short sighted it is opportunity limiting. Great application from a life event to business reality. Thank you for sharing!
I agree that cash is king, But I don't know the percentages of companies funded by VC or angels that make it to $100 million in your example. While the chances, provided the company had the market saavy and focus to make it to $10 million in your example, (otherwise why would the VC invest?) that further growth at that level could be purchased by the $10 million dollar company without loss of equity are much better. In my experience, its not the control that makes the vulture capital misnomer, it's investors taking long looks at deals that would not only survive without their capital (gumming up growth) until they had just the right formula to give them low risk equity in already successful business models. Too often my clients have heard about so called expertise that was no greater than those already present and too often growth strategies were criticized enough to carve out larger portions of equity in the name of "risk" when, in fact, the only risk was the speed of growth not the question of growth. Gone are the days I fear of venture and angel money taking greater risks than perhaps factoring receivables since most bullish VC want to make money the moment they write the check not 6 months later. While capital is king, I agree, it is a disservice to always take the capital since the costs can be varying and often result in needless dilution. It takes money to make money but I favor organic growth over investment––if the business model is good enough for investors it should be good enough for organic growth.I'll take money for sustained marketing but rarely do I find investors willing to take that risk, they want to see sales and traction first before investing–so all things being equal If my clients are already making the same effort to demonstrate sales and getting that reference application before injections of capital, then why should they part with equity unless its accelerates that process in a leap frog effort to get to revenues that would make their dilution–according to your math example ––worth it? And who says $100 million is where most entrepreneurs want to be? Most of my clients would love a $20 million family business that is sustainable over time and not fret with the complications that come from having to grow to $100 million just to "break even" on their investment choice.
I agree. In an ideal world, we'd all like to fund our own business and maintain control. Success is its own undoing though. It is the rare case (almost unheard of) that can grow to any significant size without outside cash. It is nearly impossible. The bigger most companies get, the more cash they need. It seems backwards, but it is true. Narrower slice of a larger pie CAN equal more pie for you….as long as you can get that pie big enough. Don't fear partners–just pray you get the right ones. Its as serious as getting married.


Amongst the most prevalent electrical wiring inquiries is regarding how to wire a change. Though employing switches in your own home is fairly straightforward, wiring one might not be that straightforward for everyone. An ON-OFF switch is really quite simple to wire. You'll find different kinds of switches, but for this instance, let us say you're setting up a single-pole toggle switch, a really frequent swap (along with the easiest).
There are actually three colours of wires in a very usual single-pole toggle switch: black, white, and inexperienced. Splice the black wire in two and link them to the terminal screws - a person on major plus the other over the base screw in the switch. The white wire serves as a source of uninterrupted electricity and is generally linked to a gentle colored terminal screw (e.g., silver). Hook up the green wire towards the ground screw of one's change.
These ways would frequently be sufficient to create a standard switch function with out a challenge. Nonetheless, if you are usually not assured that you can accomplish the task adequately and securely you much better let the pros get it done as a substitute. After all, there is certainly a rationale why this activity is one of the most frequent electrical wiring queries asked by a lot of people.
For some rationale, ways to wire a ceiling fan is usually one of essentially the most frequent electrical wiring questions. To simplify this activity, you should utilize an individual change for the single ceiling fan. To wire the supporter, it is really only a subject of connecting the black wire from the ceiling fan towards the black wire from the swap. If there is a lightweight, the blue wire need to be connected for the black wire in the switch as well.
You will discover motives why these are essentially the most frequently requested electrical wiring questions. A single, a lot of consider it can be uncomplicated to do, and two, they are the widespread electrical jobs in your house. But then you really must not put your protection in danger in the objective to economize. The stakes could even be considerably higher when you try and get monetary savings and do an electrical wiring work without sufficient know-how or working experience.


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1971 Mathey-Tissot Custom-Made Watch with "ELVIS PRESLEY" on the Bezel - Gifted by Elvis to Memphis Mafia Member Lamar Fike to Commemorate Elvis' "Ten Outstanding Young Men of America" Award*
From the Estate of Eddie Fadal
Elvis was honored as a recipient of the Jaycees "Ten Outstanding Young Men of America" award in 1970. Elvis took great pride in this distinction, making this one of his more coveted awards.The awards banquet was held in Memphis and Elvis was so honored by this recognition that this was the only award for which Elvis would give a speech of thanks and accept in person. Prior to the January 16, 1971 ceremony for the Jaycees award that was given to these ten men, Elvis Presley had his Memphis jeweler, Harry Levitch, customize a number of watches as gifts for his closest friends and associates to commemorate the event. The Mathey-Tissot gold-toned watches had a special bezel added with four stars and "ELVIS PRESLEY" circling the face. Elvis was as proud of the Jaycees award as of any he had ever been given during his career, and he went to great lengths to celebrate the event with those closest to him. These watches were his way of saying thanks for all the support during his career. The watches were also given to the other nine recipients of that year's Jaycees award. The offered example was presented to Elvis' longtime friend and entourage member Lamar Fike. Lamar began working with Elvis in the mid-1950s after being introduced by George Klein and the close friendship continued throughout the rest of Elvis' life and career. Lamar introduced Elvis to Anita Wood, joined him in Germany for his military service, and stayed in Elvis' inner circle over the course of Elvis' entire illustrious entertaining career.
This handsome automatic watch is marked on the back of the case along with "Stainless Steel Back Base Metal Bezel" (likely a later replacement back). The 14 karat gold watch with day and date window on the dial has the "Automatic / Swiss Made" markings and is attached to a gold-toned expandable bracelet that has a black coating down the center. It is evident how treasured this watch was to Elvis as these timepieces were produced in very limited numbers and as such are now highly sought-after by advanced Elvis collectors. A December 28, 1970 receipt for the watches being ordered from Harry Levitch Jewelers resides in the Graceland Archives. The watch face measures approximately 1 3/8 inches (3.493 cm) in diameter and comes with a letter from Eddie Fadal's daughter and Lamar's wife, Janice Fadal, in which she describes her relationship with Lamar and the circumstances in which Lamar sold the watch to her father. Accompanied by a letter of authenticity from Graceland Authenticated.
The watch presents with moderate to heavy wear, apparently Lamar wore it quite a bit. But it is in working order. Excellent condition.


We have several options when it comes to paint and paint finish.
Delivered to you in a choice of these various finishes.
Bare - ready for priming and painting.
A 2 part paint system is used when a smooth finish is required.
We use a water based matte / soft sheen if a brush finish is required.
Also available is a colour matched Farrow & Ball palette or any RAL colour, again in a matte/soft sheen finish paint mix .
Tastes and trends change. The beauty of a painted kitchen, is that you have the option to update the colour years down the line.
Simply sand the top coat and fill any scratches or dinks which may have occurred over the years, then re paint in your desired colour.


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Home National Thousands attend national 'Black and Male in America' conference
Thousands attend national 'Black and Male in America' conference
Kevin Powell addresses Black Men during conference.
BROOKLYN, NY (FinalCall.com) – Three thousand people passed through two downtown Brooklyn churches for a three-day conference on being "Black and Male in America" June 15-17, with workshops on spirituality, education, popular culture, economics, politics and policy, the criminal justice system, physical health, mental wellness and violence in our communities.
That is according to Kevin Powell, author, activist and lecturer and convener of the conference, which he says is a follow-up to his State of Black Men Townhall Meetings and Workshops, a 10-city national tour produced in 2004.
Mr. Powell said the purpose of this conference, held between Hanson Place Central United Methodist Church and Hanson Place Seventh-Day Adventist Church, was to bring together activists, educators, scholars, policymakers, artists, athletes, writers, mental health and social workers, and many more including mothers and fathers, "who are concerned about the fate of the Black male."
Kevin Powell
"This conference was incredible–a flashback to the Million Man March–the impact of the everyday Brothers, who traveled to downtown Brooklyn to get some plans together, to redeem their lives," Mr. Powell told The Final Call. There were five-year-olds mixing with men who are 79 years old, he said. And there were moms there with their sons, who expressed thanks for having this conference, Mr. Powell noted.
"Dr. Michael Eric Dyson gave the closing-day keynote address–blew the lid off the place–but this was about Black men who attended, many with their sons, who wanted to know where to get the information they needed.
Corie Muhammad from Lansing, Mich. said, "I attended with the intent to share and learn information about being a Black man in America. I enjoyed the spirit of brotherhood that was displayed all weekend long, and I also liked the fact the conference was specifically focused on Black males."
"I enjoyed the opportunity to network with other people of diverse professions and careers, but at the same time, similar in that they are concerned about Black people," Mr. Muhammad stressed.
Shaun Neblett is a Harlem resident, an activist, playwright and teaching artist, who said he appreciated the conference because it allowed him an opportunity for some much needed self-reflection.
"While I was listening to the panelists, I caught myself thinking about who I am as a Black male and questioning what I want to do with my art, and how I can rightfully fulfill my purpose. The solutions I heard came from within and I was very happy that the Black Male in America conference motivated that for me," Mr. Neblett said, adding, "I think Black America has to be unafraid about calling the Brothers out and talking about our issues."
"This is an issue that was heard over-and-over again; Brothers must interact where the young Brothers hang. Go to a school and mentor. Go to a barbershop. Just talk to them–the young Brothers," Mr. Powell said.
Mr. Powell explains the plans for follow-up: "Our aim across the board, is to create a model for how our Black male discussions and remedies should look going forward. Secondly, we will webcast and podcast all the information gleaned during the three days. We will also launch a major website (www.blackandmaleinamerica.org). It is designed to be a comprehensive, multimedia Internet destination for any information relevant to Black male development. The site will include essays, articles, and scholarly writings; a regular Blog section; a listing of resources nationwide in the areas of health and healthcare."
"A clearinghouse of information will be created," Mr. Powell told The Final Call.
And lastly, he says that 100,000 copies of a "Black Male Handbook" will be ready for distribution in November, in barbershops, Black college campuses; and through the entertainment industries and many street teams. The handbook will be a blueprint for physical, mental and spiritual health and wellness, Mr. Powell noted. "Our goal is to ultimately get at least one million copies of this handbook into the streets of America.
(For more information on the "Black and Male in America" conference, please visit www.blackandmaleinamerica.org.)


What are the top Criminal Justice Schools in Oxford, OH?
Oxford has a general population of 21,943 and an overall student population of 16,884. Approximately 16,884 of Oxford's students are enrolled in schools that offer criminal justice programs.
Oxford's largest criminal justice school is Miami University-Oxford. In 2010, Miami University-Oxford graduated approximately 7 students from its criminal justice program.
In 2010, 7 students graduated with a criminal justice degree from one of Oxford's criminal justice schools. Tuition in 2009 at Oxford's criminal justice schools was $29,003 per year for instate students and $43,361 per year for out of state students.
In addition to tuition costs, plan on spending an average of $1,460 for criminal justice related books and supplies each year. And if you live on campus, you will face an additional expense of $9,458 per year, on average, for room and board. If you live at home, you can cut this cost down to approximately $0.
After graduating with your credentials in criminal justice, if you decide to work as a criminal justice professional in Oxford, your job prospects are not very good. In 2010, there were 31,520 criminal justice professionals in Ohio. Of these criminal justice professionals, 5,650 were working in the greater Oxford area. Oxford's criminal justice professional workforce is projected to increase by 3% by the year 2018. This anticipated change is slower than the projected nationwide trend for criminal justice professionals.
As a criminal justice professional in Oxford, you can expect to make an average salary of $23,300 per year. This is higher than the average salary for criminal justice professionals in the state.


I was tracing the faux granite strands in the countertop as he was speaking. My finger rubbed across the gash in the laminate where knife had slipped, spilling onion entrails everywhere and permanently scaring the hard-worked surface.
I remember the day well. My eyes wet with false tears from overpowering onion scent, I misjudged the slice and sent the knife flying. It caught in the countertop, thankfully, or it would have gone careening into a toddler girl and boy sitting upon the stools, watching mama prepare dinner. I caught it barely in time. As I attempted to clean up the mess, I brushed eye with hand thoughtlessly. I was blinded. My tears were in earnest now- I could not see for overactive tear ducts, upset at the slipped knife, worried by the divot in the countertop. I was overcome by the fact that one of my children brushed close with danger at my own hand. It had been a long day of overactive tempers, upset toys, and worried conversations. I lost it, slipping to floor between counters, sobbing, shoving the knife on to the oven to get it out of reach of littles' hands.
He found me there, crumpled and broken, like so many days before and so many since. He grabbed clean kitchen towel and gently dabbed at my eyes, blowing at the ducts to remove the offending allergen. My eyes began to clear, my sobs turned into airy, shuddering sighs.
His statement this morning was the same variation of the battle cry. You need to remember redemption.
I struggle in the grasp of the obvious watch care and love of both my husband and my Lord. I want to turn away, want to slump shoulders, turn tail. I do not want to go into battle this day, face my fears. It would be easier to stay in the drowning deep, head barely above water, than emerge into the glorious air of redemption, gasping at grace. Because in between the deep and the air is the wrenching wave of pain, detritus of life slamming about.
It was hard to stare at it, bald-faced like that. My husband stood in quiet, loving patience. Waiting for me to process, waiting for me to speak.
Why give in to the yellow-faced Fear? Why give in to the mangling tentacles of bitterness?
Had not my Lord and Father proved more than faithful, more than worthy of my trust?
I eyed Fear, standing off beyond my husband's left shoulder, elbow leaning casually on clock as if to say, you don't have time for this. My gaze returned to my husband, feeling for his hands as I began to speak.
Battle lines were going to be drawn this day. No going back. No retreat.
"He is good. Our Lord is good, beloved. How can I deny it? How we have seen His hand moving in our lives together over these months! The strain of new paths to mark out is difficult. I will not deny that. But you are right. I need to remember His gifts.
"First, the house and place to live. How unsettled I was when we decided to put the house on the market, four days after Christmas, with no job, no leads in sight. It felt as if I was tearing my heart right out when we did that. I trusted, trusted, big gulps of grace filled air, leap of faith, that you were right, that we were right, that it was a wise decision. I tried not to worry. What would happen? How would we provide? How could we know? And you reminded me that we couldn't know for sure, but that we would trust.
"The realtor came. She mentioned the eye-popping number that she would offer it for sale, meaning that our equity in the house had more than tripled in the intervening time. My brain could hardly wrap around this, considering the economy, the collapsed housing market, the lost jobs. How could I not consider these things, having lived the roller coaster ride this year and a half past? I remember thinking it would truly be God-given if someone actually bought the house for that price- I could not fathom the entire affair. We had a showing within hours.
"A few days after that, the phone rang. It was a normal every day sort of day. The laundry was flipping in dryer, the kids were squealing and talking in playroom, you searched out job leads on the computer as I sat nursing Josiah. We had been talking, worrisome conversation that was growing stale as we puzzled out just what we were to do with the reality we were faced with. It was the job you had interviewed for the past November. We had all but given up hope on the company, for we had heard nothing, not a peep, in the intervening time of three months. It was a job you had dreamed of doing, the reason you had gone to school; but we had despaired that you had not qualified. You quickly stepped out of the playroom into the frigid garage, so as to hear better. When you came back in the room, your face had a surprised and hopeful look. An interview, by phone, was set for later that week. We found all this strange. When the interview happened, I confess, I was upstairs, pacing floor, praying soundlessly, not daring to hope. You finally came upstairs, almost lunchtime. You were truly perplexed at this point, as was I. We had no idea what would happen- the interview process had been so different from anything we had been used to.
" It was late. The kids were already in bed, some drifted off to sleep; the phone rang and you disappeared into the depths of the basement again, after debating whether or not to answer the unfamilar phone number at such an odd hour. I could tell as soon as the basement door cracked open and you mounted the stairs. The lift of your step was all different; you fairly flew up the stairs as if they weren't even there. The joy in your face was palpable as you told me the wondrous news. It was more than we dared hoped for, more than we had dreamed. You started the new job soon, and it was just far enough away from our current house that we would have needed to move. We just sat and stared at each other for a while, unable to speak. Then the joy overcame and it was all we could do not to shout, restraining ourselves lest we woke the children.
"How could we have known that the timing of putting our house on the market would have been crucial to the new job? We simply couldn't have. Only God could have known.
" The next weeks were a blur as we had house showings about every other day. I began to get discouraged because it took so much for me to get out of the house quickly with five children; your new job schedrule was a transition and you were hardly home.
"On one of the craziest days of the whole thing, I got a call from the realty company. Could we be out of the house for a showing at 3:45? It was 2:30. The house was trashed, dirty clothes and toys strewn everywhere, dishes littering the sink, cherrios crunching underfoot. I gulped, said yes, and scrambled. We barely escaped the driveway as the prospective buyer turned in. That night, I fell into exhausted slumber, trying not to cry because I was so overwhelmed and was desperately missing you.
As I had been speaking, I had seen Fear fade slowly, sometimes holding ear as if in pain. Soon white as a sheet, then barely there. Soon, Fear disappeared from sight entirely.
My husband smiled wide, grin wrapping near around head, and I gratefully slid into his arms for a long embrace, full of grace filled remembrance.
His green-gold eyes said everything.
Hallelujah, for the battle is the Lord's and no other. I will trust in Him.
To read Part 1: And so it begins.
To read Part 2: Morning has broken.
Praise God! I love hearing the details of how He is at work.
Your picture took my breath away….. as did your post. I continue to see His hand in your life, and it is reassuring to me….. thank you for giving me a little peek into your life and heart. Hugs to you, friend!!


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Spotlight on Debbie Boudreaux
Exceptional women leaders are plentiful amongst Cook Children's more than 8,000 employees. Join us as we look at a handful of them because they truly exemplify what is so great about saying #WeAreCookChildrens.
Wherever she was needed, that's where she landed, so says Assistant Vice President of Nursing Debbie Boudreaux of her 34-year career at Cook Children's.
"We're here to care for ev?eryone, and we're here to work with everyone. It doesn't matter who you are or what you look like," she said. "I've always felt very welcomed. And I've always had someone pushing me to grow."
Through her multiple roles at Cook Children's, Debbie said she benefited from Cook Children's leaders and mentors who encouraged growth and maintained a constant open-door policy. She has applied that empowering philosophy to each leadership position she earned.
"I don't always have the right answers, but if I don't know, I'll go find somebody who does. That's where the open-door thing happens," she said, adding that it's a testament to the patient-first philosophy at Cook Children's and the longevity of many of its employees. "You put your patients first, but your staff has to feel like they're valued in order to get the care that's needed to the patients. I think our staff feels valued."
Debbie began her Cook Children's career as a nurse in 1987; then took another nursing spot with Teddy Bear Transport two years later. In 2004, she became nurse manager of the transport team, and in 2013, she took the reins as Transport director. Debbie briefly served as interim director of Emergency Services before being named AVP of Nursing in October 2017. She also maintained her role as Teddy Bear Transport director until a year ago.
Now, Debbie oversees the NICU, Respiratory Therapy, Emergency Department, Teddy Bear Transport and Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO).
"I've circled back to my home base which was the NICU," she said, adding that her career path has been filled with "constantly learning something new."
Debbie said she never felt that being a woman held her back from earning leadership roles, especially in the health care area of nursing where glass ceilings may not exist as much as they might in other areas.
"I think that's who we are as nurses. We're caregivers. And I think the leaders above me had that same mentality," she said. "I think as you grow in leadership roles, you continue to have that same perspective."
Each step Debbie has taken in her career has been a chance for her to broaden her reach and help more people, she said. Something she doesn't take lightly since she realizes the trust that families give to staff to care for their children during some of their darkest times.
"We're lucky that we have the opportunity to provide that care and comfort to those families. In my role now, I get to make sure the staff have everything they need to be able to do that," Debbie said.
"Maybe that's why I landed here. I don't know," she added. "I just think we have been given such a privilege to take care of people's children, sometimes on their very worst day. How amazing is it to be able to do that?"
Though she's no longer providing nursing care to individual patients, she said her role as AVP gives her the chance to "take care of lots of patients" by being the voice for the bedside nurses, respiratory therapists, transport nurses and others who offer face-to- face care within the hospital system. Her goal is to make sure staff members have all the support they need to provide the best care possible.
"If they need something or something's not happening the way they think it should, I can help them. I can be their voice," Boudreaux said. "I can't imagine working anywhere else. I think we're supported as nurses and we're supported as leaders to make sure we do what is best for the patient. That speaks volumes."