Posted on April 22, 2019 by Barbara H.
A friend and I were discussing the two half-sisters in The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. Marian Halcombe is gracious, smart, strong, and capable, but ugly. Laura Fairlie is pretty and sweet, but somewhat weak and fragile. You can guess which one gets the guy.
That discussion led to thinking about other women in literature. Dora, the first love of David Copperfield, was pretty, sweet, and charming, but childish and totally inept as a household manager. She even told him to think of her as a "child wife." After failed attempts to strengthen Dora, David had to just accept and love her as she was. But Agnes, his friend whom he later came to love after Dora's death, was steady, capable, strong, and mature, and they could support and help each other. Lucie Manette from A Tale of Two Cities came up in the aforementioned discussion as a Victorian ideal of the weak damsel in distress, but I disagreed. I think she had to be very strong to take in a father who was mentally disabled after so many years locked up unjustly in the Bastille and and nurse him back to health. Then she traveled to France at the height of the French Revolution to find out what had happened to her husband when she feared he was in danger. Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility is another strong literary woman. She was steady, had to manage the household frugally even when the rest of the family complained, had to reign in her emotions to do the honorable thing, as opposed to her sister, Marianne, who gave free reign to her emotions and whims. Ma Ingalls is another: I honestly don't know how she dealt with the sheer hard work of her life as well as the loneliness of being away from other people so much.
I am not a feminist by any means, but I do like to see a female protagonist who does have some umph to her, who adds more to the story than a pretty face.
Besides literary examples, we have a plethora of strong women in the Bible. How could Mary, the mother of Jesus, endure all she did without His strength? Other strong biblical woman are Jochebed, Moses' mother, who defied Pharaoh to protect her son; Rahab, who took a great risk to hide the Hebrew spies because of her faith in their God; Deborah, a judge who went to battle; Hannah, in grief over her barrenness, yet knowing to whom to turn; Esther, who risked her life to intercede for her people before the king; Priscilla, who helped her husband in business and in discipling; Mary and Martha, strong in different ways; Joanna and the other women who ministered to Jesus's needs, and so many more.
She is strong in character: excellent, or virtuous in some versions (verse 10), trustworthy (verse 11), does her husband good (verse 12), kind and compassionate (verses 20, 26), characterized by honor (or dignity in some versions) (verse 25), praiseworthy (28-31).
She is strong in industriousness and initiative: She "works with willing hands" (verse 13), she gets up early to start work and serve others (verse 15) – she's not still in bed late in the morning waiting on someone to serve her (except maybe on special occasions), she weaves and knows her products are good (verse 18-19), she works into the evening (verse 18), she makes nice clothing (verse 21-22, 24), she makes products to sell (verse 24), she looks well to the ways of her household and is not idle (verse 27).
She is strong mentally and intellectually: she seeks good products and prices (verses 13, 14, 16), she plans ahead for bad weather (verse 21), she is wise (verse 26).
She is strong spiritually: she fears the Lord (verse 30).
We can sometimes get discouraged just thinking about this epitome of womanhood, but as I like to say, she didn't do all of that in a single day. And I don't think we have to take up weaving, plant a vineyard, or have a home business to become virtuous women. But taken as a whole, the tenor of her life is that of strength, industry, and honor. She is definitely not a "damsel in distress," but she doesn't need to assert her strength by challenging her husband or stepping into his role.
Admittedly we all experience times of weakness, tiredness, and weariness, and there are times we do need rescue. I've so appreciated the times my husband has come to my aid when I've gotten stuck or over my head in a project, behind in getting ready for company, overwhelmed with a ministry activity, etc. As a family we all pitch in and help wherever needed rather than standing back and saying, "That's your responsibility, not mine." There is nothing wrong with a husband helping and serving his wife: if he loves as Christ loves the church, Christ helps and serves us. But I did struggle in early marriage with wanting my husband to help me in every little thing and having to remember that I am supposed to be a help meet for him. We don't depend on our husbands instead of the Lord, but we do depend on their God-given assets and strengths. Our husbands also need to depend on us to be able to stand strong in the Lord's strength. And God enables us to minister to others and give of ourselves even when we feel depleted.
We don't usually step up to the brink of adulthood or marriage strong in all the ways we need to be. Strength of character has to be developed just as physical strength does. When you first start exercising physically, the first thing you notice is how weak and out of shape you really are, but starting to exercise even in weakness is the first step to developing strength. Often God develops strength in us by putting us in situations where we are totally weak. I could not have endured my husband's many travels without learning to lean on the Lord for strength, but I was pretty much a basket case at first. I can remember the dismay of realizing as a young mother that I couldn't just take to my bed when I was sick when I had little ones to take care of. I was probably overly dependent on my husband at first, but had to learn how to make decisions and take care of things while he was at work and out of reach.
It was while I had a large family of little children about me and mission work was pressing heavily upon me, while feeling burdened and that strength was insufficient, I sought to find in God's Word whether there were any conditions to be fulfilled for the receiving of divine strength. The result of this study was a surprise and joy to me, and later a blessing and help to many to whom I passed it on, for every condition the weakest could fulfill!
Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (II Cor. 12:9-10).
If leaning hard on Thee.
May you "be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might" (Ephesians 6:10) today.
Update: I discovered this afternoon that Dr. Michelle Bengtson's post, 10 Scriptures for When You Need Strength, shared even more from God's Word to strengthen us.
Posted on April 15, 2019 by Barbara H.
We've probably all experienced this: someone needs time, attention, affection, ministry, or something else from us right when we feel we have nothing left, yet we don't feel we can refuse.
I'm not talking about a people-pleaser who is drowning in obligations because she doesn't want to disappoint anyone. We can't say yes to everything. We all have legitimate limitations, some more than others due to physical conditions or other obligations.
But sometimes you're a mom with three sick children, and you can't stop giving them what they need. Or you're looking for a few minutes of quiet respite after a busy day, when your poor husband, who is supposed to come first and has been sadly lacking in the attention department, needs you. Or you've been pouring into a work or ministry project, and the other person on the project falls ill or forgets or just doesn't do their part. Or you've prayed about something someone requested of you, and you have every reason to say no, but you just can't shake the feeling you're supposed to say yes.
Recently when I was in one of these situations, God did give me grace to say yes and blessed my efforts. And as I thought over the whole situation, the Macedonians came to mind. What Macedonians? The ones in 2 Corinthians 8. Paul had been raising money to help the believers in Jerusalem. The Macedonians, though in "extreme poverty . . . overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part" (verse 2). They gave not only "according to their means," but "beyond their means." They didn't have to be coerced; in fact, they were "begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints" (verse 4). They gave with abundant joy (verse 2). And, perhaps the secret to it all, they "gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us" (verse 5).
God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, "He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever." He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God (verses 8-11).
Though Paul is talking about financial giving, I have found the principles to apply in other types of giving as well. I think of the poor widow of Zarephath who was about to make the last meal for herself and her son and then prepare to die. Just at that point, the prophet asked her for food. She could have said, "Are you crazy?" But she did as the prophet asked, and "The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah" (1 Kings 17: 16). I remember a preacher sharing an experience when he got into a taxi after an exhausting stretch of traveling and preaching. He just wanted to enjoy the quiet and rest. But the driver wanted to chat, and the preacher was able to listen and then share truth from God's Word. I think of the apostle Paul, who said at one point, "We were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death." But, he said, "that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again" (2 Corinthians 1:8-10).
There are times God wants us to say "No." There are times when we need to step back, perhaps to let another lead the way, perhaps to rest and recuperate. But when God calls us to do something, even when we feel depleted, we can lean on Him for grace and provision to give to others.
Posted on April 8, 2019 by Barbara H.
Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.
Many verses speak of God giving us understanding as we read His Word. I often pray for Him to do so just before I start reading the Bible. And I knew the Bible instructed us not only to read, but to study and meditate on it. But this is the first time I noticed both God's part and ours so clearly and closely working together.
Paul exhorts Timothy to make the effort to think and meditate on what Paul has written; as he does so, God will give him understanding in everything about which Paul has instructed him. The believer's efforts and God's empowering work together.
By contrast, just one chapter over, in 2 Timothy 3:8, Paul speaks of men who are "corrupted in mind." The ESV notes say: "False teaching is cast in terms of deficient thinking . . . this is why divine aid is necessary for coming to the "knowledge of the truth" (2:7, 25-26)" (emphasis mine).
Bible study is . . . absolutely a skill. And so we need to go into it expecting, not that it will be easy – that the Holy Spirit is just going to dump truth on us just because we were faithful to sit down and flip open the covers – but rather, that if we obey just some simple reading tools that we would use with any book, that the Bible will begin to yield up treasure to us.
When people speak of meditation, what usually comes to mind is emptying the mind or concentrating on one's breathing. But what is Biblical meditation? It's cogitating, reflecting, thinking about something, turning it over in your mind.
What does the Bible tell us to meditate on or think about?
The result of meditation on God's Word is often faith, hope, and praise.
There are times for overview reading of larger parts of God's Word, and times for camping out on a smaller section. Either way, we need to remember the object isn't just to get through a certain amount of material or to check off our duty for the day. We need leave space to turn God's truth over in our minds. Perhaps we need to allow for thinking time while reading and studying. Perhaps we need to turn off the constant noise while we go about our day's duties to have time to think.
Of course, we have to be careful that our thoughts involve the text and what it says and how it applies. Some peoples thoughts stray far from Scriptural truth, yet they claim to be teaching Scripture. We don't need to insert our thoughts into the Bible: we need to insert the Bible into our thoughts.
In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word (Psalm 119: 14-16, ESV).
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night (Psalm 1:1-2, ESV).
Posted on April 1, 2019 by Barbara H.
So often when we want to minister to someone, we think we need to start a program or do some thing. And often we do. James warns against wishing someone well without taking the steps to meet their physical needs. Programs can be a good way to organize ministry efforts efficiently.
But programs without heart, without a personal touch, can be just a going through the motions. God is the One who touches and changes hearts. He doesn't "need" us, but He often chooses to minister to others through His people. Paul said, "I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls" (2 Corinthians 12:15, ESV). He speaks of being "poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith (Philippians 2:17). He didn't just run through a program. He gave of himself.
I visited my mother-in-law almost every weekday during her five-plus years in various care facilities. I often felt more "useful" if I could do something – straighten her room a bit, bring her some mail, change her hearing aid battery, etc. – rather than get caught in the same conversational loops repeatedly. What she needed most, and what was hardest to give, was just one-on-one time and attention.
Some years ago our ladies' group wanted to do something for the elderly ladies in our congregation. We decided to make little gift bags and then divide them up among us to deliver to the older ladies' homes. Though they enjoyed the gifts, what they loved most were the visits. Some dear folks in one church would make little gifts or cards for my mother-in-law when she lived in our home, but they would send them home with us or someone who lived near us because we lived a distance from the church. Though we appreciated that they thought of her, a ten-minute personal visit would have been so much more effective. Even if she didn't know the person, even if she forgot within the next hour that anyone had been there, for those few minutes she would have known that someone was interested enough in her to come and see her.
I've read blog posts directed to pastors about what to do when visiting members of their church who are ill. Some of the instructions urge having an agenda of talking, sharing Scripture, and praying. Those are all fine. It does help to have some idea of what to share so your mind doesn't go blank. But from the times I have been seriously ill, I can tell you that working through an order of service or script was not what most ministered to my heart. What did minister to me was the personal looking in the eyes, empathizing, listening.
Even in our families, we often have wonderful talks while driving, cooking, etc. But sometimes we need to put everything aside and just look each other in the eye and listen.
Jesus often ministered to crowds. But then He would take a moment for a personal encounter with one person. Once He was stopped by one lady while on his way to minister to a father's dying girl. But He had time for all of them, even though it might not have seemed that way to the father, Jairus, at first. Once He stopped a whole crowd in response to a blind beggar.
It's easy to get overwhelmed with everything we need to do and with all the needs we need to meet. We can easily feel depleted. But we seek His filling, His strength and grace, not our own. And we minister to the person given to us in each moment, without worrying about everyone and everything else. We trust Him for His guidance and provision as we share Him with others. When we're filled with Him, we bring a sense of Him to others.
Programs, gifts, etc., are all fine in their place. I've been ministered to via each of those means. But we mustn't forget to give of ourselves.
His love has no limit; His grace has no measure.
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again!
Posted on March 25, 2019 by Barbara H.
But when is the last time we thought about our need for wisdom just to live our everyday lives for God's honor and glory? We often pray that He will guide us, provide for us, forgive us. But do we pray for wisdom? Do we value wisdom as the Bible does?
Or do we plunge ahead with our day and our plans, thinking we know everything we need to and can make our own choices?
Our church has been reading through Proverbs together the last few weeks. If you're familiar at all with Proverbs, you know it is all about wisdom. I don't think there is a chapter that doesn't mention it. And since we've been camped out there, the need for and value of wisdom have been emphasized repeatedly and in varying ways.
A full-scale study of wisdom would take more space than a blog post allows. But what struck me most during this reading is the humility of wisdom.
It takes humility to understand that we need wisdom, that to go our own way often leads us astray.
It takes humility to search for wisdom, to acknowledged that I don't have it, and no matter how much I have, I need more.
The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise.
Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence.
By insolence comes nothing but strife, but with those who take advice is wisdom.
If someone tries to correct us, is our first response, "I better take heed: I might gain some wisdom from this?" No, our first response is anger with thoughts of "Who do you think you are?" and "Don't judge me!" But the Bible says the wise person listens and learns. By contrast, "A scoffer does not listen to rebuke" (Proverbs 13:1) and "He who hates reproof is stupid" (Proverbs 12:1).
It's scary to think of the personal consequences of rejecting reproof: it's even more scary to realize that my lack of listening to instruction can negatively affect others. "Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life, but he who rejects reproof leads others astray" (Proverbs 10:17).
I wonder if this lack of realization of our need for wisdom is behind our subtle ageism, even in the church. Once when visiting a new church, someone was showing us where the various classes were, and as we passed one door, our guide said, "Oh, you don't want that one. That's where the older folks are." One younger lady told me she didn't come to our ladies' meetings because she thought only older ladies attended – even though at that time most of the attendees were just in their forties. Instead of deeming older people as worthy of our time and drawing on their wisdom, we label them out of touch, too slow, not "with it." Proverbs honors older saints and the value of listening to authorities.
For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. Colossians 2:1-4.
May we continually seek Him and His wisdom through His Word.
Posted on March 18, 2019 by Barbara H.
There is a tension in life between satisfaction with where we are and the need to grow in various areas. Coaches encourage and applaud athletes' efforts and milestones while still pressing them to do more and do better. Parents celebrate and reward good grades and bolster their students for the next test or project. Performance reviews acknowledge an employee's strengths and successes, but they also note areas where the employee needs to grow and improve. A wise coach, parent, teacher, supervisor, or mentor has to constantly seek balance, avoiding the stance of a slave-driving task-master who is never satisfied with anything less than perfection on one hand and that of the indulgent grandmother who never sees a fault on the other hand. And we need to seek that same balance with ourselves.
I see some of this same tension in the Bible, particularly Paul's epistles.
Paul prays that the Philippians' "love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment" (Philippians 1:9).
In Colossians, Paul proclaims: "To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me" (1:27-29). Christ is in those of us who believe in Him, yet there is a sense in which we grow in maturity in Him.
In Philippians 3, Paul acknowledges that he's still in a state of growth and hasn't reached perfection yet. We often use his statement in verse 13, "But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead," as an encouragement to forget the sins and failures of the past. But what Paul is setting aside in that passage is his past laurels (verses 4-11).
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:7-11, ESV).
Our righteousness comes by faith in Christ, not our efforts. Our own efforts could never measure up. Yet there is still a "straining forward" toward growth in maturity.
Sometimes perfectionists can be thoroughly discouraged that no matter how much progress we've made, we'll never get to the point where we don't have something to work on. But we won't be perfect until we reach heaven. Part of Paul's prayer in Philippians 1:11 is that we may "filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." Galatians 5:22-23 speaks of the fruit of the Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." That fruit comes from God. But fruit also conveys the idea of growth. And growth takes time.
On the other hand, some of us are prone to inertia. "Good enough" is sufficient for some ares of life. I once heard of someone who boasted that when she made the bed, the sheets were stretched so firm and tight that a quarter could bounce off them. And I thought, "Whatever for?" I'm all for a neatly made bed, but a good-enough made bed falls far below quarter-bouncing standards for me. But "good enough" isn't sufficient for spiritual growth. We need that prodding to keep pressing on.
In recent years it's become common to read of our "mess" in an effort to be transparent and authentic. We're not perfect and we shouldn't try to put forth a false perfect image, so we need to pull back the curtain and let people see our flaws and failures. And there's truth in those thoughts. We can more readily identify with someone who doesn't seem to have it all together all the time. Yet it's easy to go so far as to glory in our "mess" instead of progressing.
Or we can feel that the progress we're making in most areas offsets the areas we're struggling with. We all have our besetting sins, after all. One son once got upset that I pointed out the one area of his report card that needed attention instead of being satisfied with the rest of commendable grades. While I needed to remember to acknowledge the good grades, I couldn't overlook the bad one.
While fruit in our lives comes from God, He also calls us to pursue wisdom (Proverbs), love (1 Corinthians 14:1), righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness (1 Timothy 6:11), peace (2 Timothy 2:22, 1 Peter 3:11).
Hebrews 10:14 says, "For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." We're made perfect in Christ when we believe on Him for salvation. But while we live here on earth, we still have our old nature, which fights against the new one we received at salvation (Galatians 5:16-17). That process of growth toward Christlikeness is called sanctification. Romans 12:2 tells us we're transformed by the renewing of our minds, and one way we do that is by changing our thinking, lining it up with what God's Word says, putting specific Scriptures in our minds that the Holy Spirit can then use to remind us.
The standard the Bible continually points to is Christ. We'll never be Christ. But we don't rest in self-satisfaction with how we've grown over the past ten years or how far we are compared to others: we grow towards His likeness. Yet we will stumble and fall, and we extend grace to ourselves while still making progress. II Corinthians 3:18 says, "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." As we behold Him in His Word, He changes us to become more like Him.
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:12-14, ESV).
Posted on March 11, 2019 by Barbara H.
A few years ago I asked Facebook friends, "Why am I awake when I should be asleep and sleepy when I should be awake?" One responded, "Welcome to middle age." I can be dragging and nodding off before getting into bed, and then wide awake after.
I usually keep everything conducive to sleeping: lights off, soft music playing. Reading usually keeps me even more awake. One friend responded to my Facebook query that sleeplessness is an excellent time to pray. True. Sometimes I do pray then. But I also get frustrated when I can't seem to dig in and get much done in the daytime because I need a nap because I am so groggy. It just seems like it would be so much more efficient to sleep at night and work during the day.
Still, I know that stewing about it only makes it worse. I remind myself in the night that even if I am not asleep, I'm resting. I can enjoy the quietness and freedom to just relax without any demands on my time. I breathe deep and slow, sometime pray, sometimes think, until eventually I drift off. And I catch a nap in the day time if I need to, but I try to keep it short so as not to perpetuate nighttime wakefulness.
Several nights ago, though, was one of my worst nights ever. I don't think I slept more than an hour the whole night. And what's worse, I had a three-hour drive the next morning and meetings all afternoon and evening. I wasn't feeling particularly nervous about the trip. Last year I had made the same journey for a writer's conference, and I was much more on edge then because it was the first time I had traveled alone or attended anything like a conference in years. But God got me through that, and I knew a bit more what to expect this time. So I had a bit of apprehension, but nothing like the year before. Perhaps underlying nerves were the problem, even though I wasn't consciously feeling nervous at the time. I tried all my usual tactics, to no avail.
Then I had to fight worry. How was I going to drive and stay awake in meetings for a conference my husband had paid good money for without sleep? Some of my health issues get worse without sleep. What if they flared up? I knew these thoughts and concerns would only drive sleep further away, so I tried to give them to the Lord and stay relaxed.
On top of everything else, I was intensely uncomfortable. Hot one minute, cold the next. The sheets irritated my skin. I got up and went to the couch in the living room, thinking a change of venue might help. It didn't. Maybe I was coming down with something?
I went ahead and got up at 4:30 a.m. and took my shower. But I was sad and frustrated and even a bit hurt because God had not answered my prayer. He knew I needed sleep. He made me to need sleep. He knew everything on the schedule this day. Why had He let me go most of the night without sleep when I earnestly begged Him for it?
I didn't know. I sent a quick text to a friend letting her know what was going on and asking her prayers. I decided to just keep getting ready for the trip and see what happened. I felt like I was moving through molasses or walking like a zombie (to mix metaphors). I couldn't eat much and began to feel nauseous.
I couldn't remember if I had actually prayed about whether to go to the conference. Was this God's way of telling me no?
After I got everything ready to go, I knew I could not drive safely in the condition I was in. I decided to try to take a nap in my desk chair and see what happened. I asked God to direct me and help me know whether to go or stay. I asked Him, if He wanted me to go, to multiply whatever sleep I could get in my nap like the loaves and fishes and make it enough. And I fell blessedly asleep for maybe an hour.
When I woke up, my stomach still wasn't feeling 100% well, but all grogginess was gone. I left for the conference. The night before I had made a sandwich for lunch so I didn't have to look for a restaurant first thing when I got to town: since I was running late, I was able to eat a few bites on the way. I got to the conference just after the first introductory meeting ended. Though I would have liked to have gotten there in time for it, it wasn't entirely critical. I had enough time to peruse the schedule to choose which of the workshops to attend that afternoon. I attended the rest of the conference and had a wonderful time. I had no trouble sleeping in the hotel room that night.
Still I pondered why God had not answered my prayer for sleep the night before. One of the truths that had sustained me on a recent family trip was "Your heavenly Father knows what things you have need of" (Matthew 6:8). One by one He met each of my needs on that trip. Why did He seem to withhold one this time?
Perhaps one reason was to increase my dependence on Him. I thought I already was depending on Him for a number of issues relating to the conference and travel! But maybe He wanted to take me to a different level.
Philippians 4:11-13 came to mind: "Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." I can't say I have totally learned that contentment, but I am in the process.
God may have any of a number of reasons to allow us to suffer a need of some sort. He's not being cruel or unkind: all of His Word and years of knowing Him testify to that. God told Israel that He let them suffer hunger in the wilderness to humble them, to test them, and to turn their focus from their physical need to the spiritual. Unanswered prayer can cause us to examine ourselves for any hindrances on our part. Sometimes He cuts off something we need to produce more growth, to bring us to maturity.
I still don't know why God didn't answer my prayer for sleep on a night when sleep was critically needed. But He did meet my need, even though not in the usual way. Even in the face of a sleepless night and a full day, "God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work" (2 Corinthians 9:8).
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Barbara H.
Imagine a defendant going to trial. He's told his story to his lawyer and worked with him to lay out all the proofs of his innocence. As the trial begins, the prosecutor introduces just one piece of evidence: a seemingly incriminating photograph. The judge calls for the verdict without giving the defense a chance to say anything. The jury convicts the defendant and the judges sentences him.
Imagine the same scenario, but the evidence is one statement the defendant is known to have made without any context as to its meaning.
"Ridiculous!" you might say. "How can anyone judge a case without hearing both sides?" And you'd be right.
Once one of my son's friends who had never met me thought that I must be pretty grouchy. The reason? Another son had posted pictures of a family outing, and one photo caught me looking quite irritable after waiting outside in the heat for seats in a restaurant for what seemed like an interminable amount of time. Someone else assumed in another group photo that there must have been some underlying hostilities because a few people were sitting with arms folded. Yet the conversation had been as amiable as could be. But these are minor misunderstandings compared to the way people tear each other apart on Twitter with as little substantial cause.
"A picture is worth a thousand words," the saying goes. Yet a picture captures just one moment in time, not the whole story. It doesn't give context, the events leading up to or coming after, the circumstances behind the scene.
That's true whether the picture seems bad or good. There are multitudes of articles about people feeling depressed after viewing other peoples' seemingly perfect lives on social media. We see the perfectly decorated cake, but we don't see that it has been turned so the best side faces the camera. We see the beautifully redone room, but we missed the part where the clutter was cleared off to the side before the picture was taken. We see the adorable family Christmas photo, but we don't see the several pictures taken and rejected to get just the right poses and expressions. When we think other people on social media have such perfect lives, we don't realize that those captures of perfect moments don't tell the whole story. Nobody has a picture-perfect life all day, every day.
Depending on the context, saying "I'm going to kill you!" might be perfectly innocent, though maybe not very wise to say. Other contexts make the statement more realistic or sinister.
In addition to the folly of rendering judgment based on pictures or individual statements out of context, we can also misjudge scenarios. Imagine a parent hearing a loud crash, running into the living room, and seeing her son with a baseball bat standing by a broken window. Before launching into a tirade based on what seems to have happened, the wise parent calms herself down to ask questions and assess the situation further.
Proverbs 18:13 says in the ESV, "If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame." I am not familiar with the Holman Christian Standard Bible, but I like their translation of this verse: "The one who gives an answer before he listens– this is foolishness and disgrace for him." We agree it is foolish, unjust, and harmful for a jury to convict a man over just one photo or statement. It's just as foolish, unjust, and harmful to play armchair prosecutor, jury, and judge over situations we know little about; it's even more foolish to do so publicly.
James tells us, "Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God" (1:19-20, ESV). Jesus said, as well, "And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise" (Luke 6:31, KJV).
This is true whether our judgment is good or bad, condemning or helpful. When we rush to "help" someone by pouring forth the benefit of our wisdom and experience without first hearing them out, we do more harm than good. Why? Because the person is wounded and alienated due to feeling misjudged and unheard, and our advice is off base because we've misdiagnosed the case.
We're quick to pull out the "Judge not" card (often out of context) when anyone misjudges us, but we too often rush to judgment of others. Instead, we need to consider first of all whether it's even our business to judge a particular situation. Then, in Matthew 7:1-5, Jesus admonishes us to take care of any "planks" in our own eyes before we try to take a speck out of someone else's and to remember "with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you." Then we need to hear all the facts and consider carefully and fairly. Withholding judgment due to not knowing all the facts would wipe out the great majority of public judgments on social media and in our persona lives.
"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment" (John 7:24, ESV).
Posted on February 18, 2019 by Barbara H.
Perhaps you've heard this old illustration, as I often have. When metalworkers need to refine metals, they melt them down and then have to skim off the dross, impurities, and other metals until the product is pure. The actual process has changed over the years, but it still involves smelting, separating, and removing impurities. We're told that the way the refiner knows that his product is pure is when he can clearly see his face reflected in the liquefied metal.
All my Christian life I have heard this refining process as an illustration of God's sanctifying us.
The refiner's skill in applying just the right temperature illustrates God's skill in adjusting our trials at just the right level. Too little "heat" might upset us but not purify us: too much might discourage or destroy us. The impurities or mixtures of other metals speaks of our need to be cleansed and purified from various sins and divided loyalties. The melting liquid shows our need to yield to the process. And since God's goal in our sanctification is that we become like His Son, the refiner's seeing his reflection in the melted metal is a beautiful illustration of our God's refining and purifying us until we're conformed to the image of His Son.
These parallels have been a blessing in considering the process and end goal of God's sanctifying work in my life.
But one particular aspect that I had not considered much before blessed me in a big way last week.
I've mentioned before that I am sometimes discouraged at my lack of love, my innate selfishness, and I often pray to be more loving. I know that the struggle between the Spirit and our flesh is a lifelong one that won't end until we're in heaven. Yet it seemed like, after around 45 years of being a Christian, I should be further along than I am now, and it should be less of a struggle.
But since that struggle doesn't end until heaven, we're going to continue to have our impurities brought to our attention. And that's a good thing – not that we have them, but that they come to the surface so we can deal with them by confessing them to the Lord and seeking His grace to overcome them.
When I first became a Christian, I was convicted of a lack of love and a need to be more unselfish in some areas. But they were probably big, obvious areas. The more I grow in the Lord, the more He makes me aware of smaller, deeper areas, like a harsh thought as well as harsh words.
The refining process is an answer to my prayer to be more Christlike and more loving. I can't be more loving until I see the ways in which I am unloving. I can't turn from selfishness until I see the ways my selfishness displays itself. I can't grow more like Christ until I see the ways I am not yet fully like Him.
So instead of being discouraged that God continually shows me the ways in which I fall short, I can rejoice that He is continuing to refine me. And I praise Him for the grace that washes away all sin.
Posted on February 14, 2019 by Barbara H.
Valentine's Day vies with Christmas as my favorite holiday. I've shared before why I think it's worth celebrating and compiled a list of some of my favorite quotes, songs, etc. for Valentine's Day.
Of course, everyone is free to celebrate or not celebrate the day according to their own preferences. And though I love the fun and even silly aspects of the day, today I want to take a different tack.
One of my ongoing struggles in my Christian life is learning to love as Jesus did, and my biggest obstacle is my own selfishness.
I was just discussing with a friend earlier this week how we often hear that Christian love is not just a warm fuzzy feeling: rather, as one professor used to put it, it's a "self-sacrificing desire to meet the needs of the cherished person." I think of a mother being awakened at 2 a.m. by her baby's cries. She might not feel lovey-dovey right at first: in fact she might feel a little irritable. But she knows her baby needs her, and often, some time during their nocturnal meeting, that warm, loving feeling rises up again.
However, the opening of the great love chapter in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13, warns us that we can make substantial sacrifices without doing so in love.
In my ongoing quest to understand what Christian love is and to grow in it, I compiled Bible verses which specifically spoke of praying to love. I sometimes use them for my own prayers.
Of course, it helps to remember that love is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, and I can only be filled with love as I am filled with Him.
Those verses don't enlighten me as to the "feeling" part of love, but they show that God loved first, He loved people who were enemies to Him, and He made every provision, at the highest cost to Himself, to redeem them.
The more I think about the myriad ways He has shown His love to me, the more His love will fill me and overflow to others.


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Sharron McElmeel
College College of Education, Hospitality, Health and Human Sciences
Department Teaching, Learning and Leadership Department
Email mcelmeels@uwstout.edu
Office Vocational Rehabilitation Building
Sharron McElmeel is a nationally known children's and young adult literature specialist and literacy advocate. She has authored more than 35 books for parents and educators, and has published more than 100 journal articles, in addition to having contributed more than 300 book reviews to professional journals. She has provided keynote or featured presentations at over 50 national and state conferences. She served on the 2007 Caldecott medal nomination committee. She received a BA in Elementary Education from the University of Northern Iowa, and received an MA in Library Science from the University of Iowa. She has completed post-graduate work in educational administration and reading and holds certificates in both areas. She has taught at all levels from elementary through the university level. She continues to contribute to professional publications and maintains several blogs with reviews and articles. She has an active social media presence. She was honored as Iowa's Reading Teacher of the year, and for her contributions to literacy (Iowa's Celebrate Literacy Award), and nominated as Iowa's Teacher of the Year. Her research papers are housed in the University of Iowa Special Collections (MSC0991).
Teaching Interests: Literature for young readers (children's literature and literature for young adults)
Research Interests: Impact on reading proficiency by read aloud time in the classroom and home environment; motivation and choice as it impacts reading proficiency; and the use of children's literature and young adult literature in curriculum content areas.
Professional Interests: Developing a literacy environment within my community.
Reading Teacher Certification, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
MA - Library Science, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
BA - Elementary Education, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA
Sharron McElmeel CV
Personal Site: http://www.mcelmeel.com/

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


This day is about more than treats and gifts. It's about genuine connection and intimacy.
When was the last time you said, "I love you," to someone? Actually, when was the last time you looked in the mirror and said, "I love you" to the person staring back at you? How does it feel when someone tells you they love you? So often, we say the words, but don't feel them, or don't let them in. Love is a gift whether it's romantic, familial, or platonic. And it's especially powerful when you give it to yourself.
I recently had a client with a vision for a custom piece she wanted to make for herself. She wanted to create a necklace using the wedding rings from her parents and aunt, who have all passed away, as links in the chain. We included her yellow gold baby ring and her own repurposed baroque pearl pendant as a reflection of her in this piece, too. Instead of melting the metal down, we left the wedding rings intact to express her desire to have a partner in a loving marriage. Love was the catalyst to weave together history and intention in this very unique one-of-a-kind necklace.
Today is an invitation to do the things you love, or spend time with people who make you feel loving and loved you love. Write a love letter to yourself and open it next Valentine's Day. Write a love letter to your partner telling them what you love about them. Send flowers to a friend. Send them to yourself!
I'll be treating myself to one of my favorite indulgences – a nice, long bubble bath.
I hope you can feel my heart reaching out to yours, whispering, I love you.
How can you share love today?


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Orange County Timmy Awards Selects Jonathan Clarke of Bitcentral as a Best Tech Manager Finalist
Tech in Motion names top 40 local leaders in tech, opens voting to the public to help decide winners
Irvine (August 30, 2017) – Tech in Motion Orange County announced Jonathan Clarke, of Bitcentral, Inc. as a finalist for "Best Technology Manager" at its Third Annual Timmy Awards, which recognizes the top workplaces for tech professionals. Clarke, VP of SW Development & QA at Bitcentral, Inc. a software technology company that provides efficient media workflows to maximize the value of media for the broadcast industry, was chosen from a field of more than 275 nominees and joins the ranks of past notable finalists including Jim Plush of CrowdStrike, Mike Selberis of Glidewell Laboratories and Nick Newsom of Ytel.
"As an excellent team leader, project manager and developer, Jonathan deserves this honor. He and his excellent team of experts are helping Bitcentral remain #1 in news production in the U.S., as well as support our work in the automation, OTT, and linear streaming new ventures," states Camille Jayne, President, Bitcentral, Inc.Mr. Clarke has proven experience motivating teams to deliver software through developing a common understanding of products being developed and removing roadblocks that are encountered. His excellent technical skills and knowledge of emerging technologies, combined with the ability to dive deep into architectural decisions and assist teams in making sound, scalable platform choices allow for Bitcentral to provide solutions that maximize the value of media.
"The Timmy Awards aim to celebrate the companies and managers that make that technological innovation possible," says Mandy Walker, Director of Marketing at Tech in Motion and Motion Recruitment Partners. "Since the Timmy Awards were created in 2015, over 400 finalists have been celebrated for creating work environments that enable growth in the technology of various industries."
The local community can vote online through September 8th to help choose who represents the best of Orange County tech. The winners will be chosen through a panel of expert judges and community votes. A complete list of 2017 Orange County finalists for the Timmys can be found here for all four award categories, highlighting tech work culture, workplace diversity and management as well as startups.
Award winners will be announced live at Orange County Timmy Awards on September 21 at UCI Applied Innovation in Irvine, where members of the Orange County tech community can attend for free and meet the finalists. Previous winners have included innovators such as LearnVest, Venmo, Trip Advisor and many more. For details on the event, past winners, or the Timmy Awards in all 10 cities they take place in, click here.
About Tech in Motion Events & The Timmy Awards
Tech in Motion is a North American events series that brings local tech community professionals together to connect, learn, and innovate. What started as a collaborative project between IT recruiting firms Jobspring Partners and Workbridge Associates in 2011, grew into an organization of over 85,000 members across 11 chapters in North America including Boston, Dallas, New York, Philadelphia, DC, Chicago, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, LA, Orange County, and Toronto. Please visit www.techinmotionevents.com for more information about our notable speakers, sponsors and events.
With corporate headquarters in Newport Beach, CA and Latin American headquarters in Mexico City, Mexico, Bitcentral is a software company provides efficient and customized software solutions that maximize the value of media workflows. Our Core News solution is #1 in U.S. News Production, with over 255 TV stations going to air every day. Bitcentral is dedicated to helping traditional broadcasters evolve in a world where content is coming from anywhere and going everywhere. Our products transform media operations with tools that enable content producers to deliver exceptional programming to their viewers and help their organizations grow each day. We're proud to deliver the most outstanding customer satisfaction in our industry for over 20 years.
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The Challenge is the UK's leading charity for building a more integrated society. Working on a local level to connect people together across all ages and walks of life through running a variety of youth and community programmes that mix diverse groups of people together. The National Citizen Service is one of the programmes The Challenge delivers to connect people and encourage social integration. It is a government-back scheme, open to Year 11 and 12 students, that helps them build skills for work, life and the transition to adulthood.
One part of the National Citizen Service (NCS) summer programme focusses on local business and providing an insight into the world of work. NCS believe it is important to work closely with businesses that provide a valuable experience to teams of young people, all of which are local to that borough.
The NCS already work with many amazing organisations who provide this experience.
Metro Bank – a member of West London Business– are one of the most valued and widespread partners, hosting 1-hour visits across Hounslow, Ealing, Hillingdon and Kingston, as well as other parts of London. They are part of a list of corporate partners to NCS that include Heathrow, BSkyB, British Airways, IBM, Rackspace, and Starbucks. NCS are looking to connect with more businesses across West London to take part in something similar. Visits take place in July and August.
Can't host a visit but want to make a difference to the lives of local young people? NCS also have opportunities to volunteer as Dragons to provide feedback to youth-led campaigns based on a charity's cause.


Juniper Networks and IoT Institute Survey: As IoT Deployments Collide with Multicloud Ecosystems, Where Does Security Stand?
SUNNYVALE, Calif. and BILLUND, Denmark, Nov. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The World Robot Olympiad™ Association plus joint sponsors LEGO® Education and Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR), an industry leader in automated, scalable and secure networks, today announced this year's global finals are due to take place starting this Friday, November 16, in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Four-hundred and eighty-four teams, comprising over 1,200 individuals from 63 different countries, are due to participate across eight age- and task-based categories. The teams will demonstrate their ability to problem-solve and innovate using LEGO-based robots they have designed, built and programmed themselves.
This year's event has a theme of 'Food Matters', around which some of the competitive challenges are based. The challenges are known in advance so the teams can prepare their approach, but they must also deal with a 'surprise rule' announced at the start of the finals, testing ability to work as a team, think quickly and adapt both hardware and software unaided. They must also begin with their robots disassembled, having limited time and size constraints to deal with to build from scratch and without instructions or adult intervention.
Robots must be built using only specified elements, including LEGO® MINDSTORMS® and LEGO® Education WeDo 2.0, depending on the category.
World Robot Olympiad Association (WRO) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to inspire young people around the world to take an interest in STEM. WRO robotics competitions are popular worldwide and each year the WRO international final brings together young people from around the world to present their solutions to the season's challenges. Additional information can be found at our website (www.wro-association.org). Follow WRO on Facebook.
LEGO® Education offers playful learning experiences and teaching solutions based on the LEGO system of bricks, curriculum-relevant material, and physical and digital resources to preschool, elementary, middle school and after school.
From early learning to middle school and beyond, LEGO® Education provides hands-on learning solutions that engage every student's natural curiosity, and helps them develop the skills and confidence they will need in the future. Follow us on Twitter @LEGO_Education.
Juniper Networks, the Juniper Networks logo and Junos are registered trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
LEGO®, the LEGO® logo, and MINDSTORMS® are registered trademarks of The LEGO Group. © 2018 The LEGO Group. All rights reserved.
For additional information about Juniper, visit our about page.
For contact information, visit our contact page.
For general inquiries/breaking news, email press@juniper.net.


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"How John Updike was so Totally Clueless about Stupid Ernest Hemingway," THE KING'S ENGLISH, Winter 2005
The Garden of Eden, Ernest Hemingway
How John Updike was so Totally Clueless about Stupid Ernest Hemingway ▪► Colleen M. Payton [Acrobat PDF] ▪ [Table of Contents]I think far too much about Ernest Hemingway, and not enough about John Updike. I am too young for Hemingway to have scrambled my brains very much, and too old to have successfully avoided Updike for such an unreasonable length of time. I have some good excuses. I was educated in grammar and mechanics in the sixties, so that by the time I fell into the hands of the public schools, the long arm of Hemingway's influence on literary style was pared down to an exclusive attitude toward commas: to eliminate them by every means. By the seventies, even the reading of his novels had fallen out of favor in high school English classes; so I waited to read him in college, with the same bored inattention, I might add, as I read The Rime of the Ancient Mariner or "The Emperor of Ice Cream", or Dos Passos' Three Soldiers. What had any of it to do with me? The answer, of course, was: nothing.
Updike, on the other hand, was new in those days, too new to make it on many college reading lists, but not so new that we hadn't a scornful name for him. Updike was, along with his contemporaries Phillip Roth and Saul Bellow, a dick novelist, by which we meant his characters' anxiety about their penises was the sole subject of his fiction, and his plots, settings, characters and symbols, even his breath-taking scholarship, were but gilding on the lilies of this laughable theme.
My attitude helped me avoid for years both the pleasure and the work of reading Updike except in the most factitious way, as a species of party game. I played "find the dick in Updick" in somewhat the same way Father Guido Sarducci used to "finda the Pope inna the pizza" on Saturday Night Live. But Hemingway, the dick novelist par excellence (but perhaps not the original dick novelist; there's Moby Dick, for example), bothered me in the years between the completion of my thesis and the publication, in 1986, of The Garden of Eden. The truth is, I was reading him. He had insinuated himself into my consciousness; he was my hip flask at the church picnic, my secret vice. And what I fretted over most, what I found to be Hemingway's most crazy-making and wonderful quality was his mastery of conversation, not of what's said, but of what's never said. What was he really talking about?
He had me.
Naturally, when Charles Scribner's Sons published The Garden of Eden, I rushed headlong to buy it. I would like to say I slept on the pavement in front of Barnes & Noble the night before it hit the shelves, though of course I did nothing of the kind – the word headlong is a metaphor for the way I read the book the first time; I actually don't remember how I bought it. I do remember entertaining normal trepidation about what posthumous and unfinished might mean for the text. But as it turned out, this was no Islands in the Stream, with its infuriating beating about the bush (Speak up, damn it! Shit or get off the pot!) — I threw that 3-volume waste of wood pulp against the wall. No, Eden was Hemingway grown young again, his character, David Bourne, innocent, raw, and conflicted, and the writer himself ready at last to have it out, wise in his acceptance of contradiction as natural to our condition, and knowing, once again, when to be quiet.
Updike, too, was impressed. In "The Sinister Sex," his critique of The Garden of Eden, Updike notes its apparent naiveté with some awe. "Hemingway's own innocence, even into his fourth marriage, enabled him to reach back from his workroom in Cuba, through all the battles and bottles and injuries and interviews, into his youth on another continent, and make mythic material out of his discovery that sex can be complicated." Updike goes on, however, to make the tedious connection between the characters in The Garden of Eden with Hemingway's his real-life wives, Hadley and Pauline. Forget for a moment the heresy of biographical interpretation. Allegory tempts us all to folly. If we can assign specific identities to the elements of the work (L is for Lucy; S is for Sky; D is for Diamonds) we can allow ourselves to be stupid; we can comfortably miss the point. How glorious it is not to have to think, and Updike wallows in this glory.
But good allegory always offers something more. Yes, the character Catherine Bourne is both Eve and Lillith, sexual helpmeet and death-dealing temptress. Marita, whom Catherine introduces to David to form their love triangle, is serpent but also fruit. She is the font of feminine generosity that makes all men knowing. She comprehends good and evil, while offering the clarity David dreads as a sort of Fall, but that he needs in order to work.
The elements of the Genesis setting and plot are all there for us. The couple has tarried for an extended honeymoon on the utopian French coast. Ever present amid the beauty and peace of their existence is the sense of the temporal, and death is foreshadowed from the beginning: "He held her close and hard and inside himself he said goodbye and then goodbye and goodbye." Bourne (the name is a pun on the idea of first man, or Adam) masters the natural world when he hooks and subdues a wonderful fish. He and Catherine delight, and Hemingway's narrative delights with them, over the pleasures of fresh, simple foods, and light, clear vintages. Interestingly, as the relationship sours, their drinking becomes both more ineffective and more numbing, and culminates in two ghastly scenes when Catherine, drunk on absinthe and later on champagne, attacks David's writing. Also, they are naked and unashamed ("[S]in is what you feel bad after, he told himself, and you don't feel bad") as their sexual games evolve into gender switching. Catherine penetrates her husband anally: "He lay there and felt something and then her hand holding him and searching lower and he helped with his hands and then lay back in the dark and did not think at all and only felt the weight and the strangeness inside and she said, 'Now you can't tell who is who can you?'" He is transformed and feminized, for the moment becoming "Catherine," while she becomes not "David" but "Peter".
David and Catherine are both contented with the experiment, which he calls the "devil things," as long as it is carried out without witnesses, and they protect their innocence with a covenant. Catherine promises not to "let the night things come in the day". But she breaks this promise almost immediately when she brings home Marita, whom she sleeps with herself, and then insists David sleep with as well.
I can't think of a stupider excuse in literature than, "The woman thou gavest to be with me did tempt me, and I did eat." Hemingway himself calls it stupid by analogy, and is careful to use this word to draw attention to shifts in the narrative. We encounter the word first when David receives from his publisher an envelope of clippings, critiques of his new book. Catherine says,
"'Then write, stupid. You didn't say you wouldn't write. Nobody said anything about worrying if you wrote. Did they?'
But somewhere something had been said and now he could not remember it."
It is the first hint of Catherine's jealousy about what she views as David's status as favorite (like Adam's) of the gods. Catherine is jealous, and perhaps Eve was also jealous, and for the same reasons. Certainly Catherine is controlling, and she asserts her desire to curb David's independence at every turn. "I'm happy now because you're going to do it." Her overriding of his self-respect is a consequence of her sincere inability to recognize her husband's real merit as a writer. She calls his stories "illiterate," "disgusting," "horrible," "bestial," and "worthless," and the act of writing a "solitary vice."
"He writes in those ridiculous child's notebooks and he doesn't throw anything away. He just crosses things out and writes along the sides of the pages. The whole business is a fraud, really. He makes mistakes in spelling and grammar, too. Did you know, Marita, that he doesn't really know grammar?" This is a brave passage for Hemingway to have recorded, exposing his own foibles as well as the folly of choosing a mate who can't distinguish good writing from poor. Hemingway clearly believes that men (even stupid men, like Adam and like himself) are superior by nature, that giving in to a woman is weakness (David calls himself "wet" and a "slob" when he does so), and that the Eves of the world (but not the Maritas – make of that what you will) are willfully incapable of recognizing it.
Although Catherine cannot appreciate it, the story David writes is good, and we know it is good because Hemingway tells it to us, weaving it into the narrative of the frame as David takes up his pen each morning. It is set in Africa; a young David Bourne hunts a grieving, elderly elephant with his father, and learns about love, hate and responsibility. Like the adult Bourne, he makes a mistake and must bear the wages of his sin. This complicity in his own destruction, his tasting of the fruit, is the pride-motivated, attention-seeking remark that leads the hunters to their prey, and to a killing he learns to abhor. In the frame story, David's error in judgment — his agreement to dye his hair to match his wife's — is flagged with the word stupid. Catherine says, "'[W]e're damned now. I was and now you are…' [A]nd he began to realize what a stupid thing he had permitted."
So the Genesis story is here, along with interpretation, or analysis of cause: jealousy, willfulness and stupidity. Catherine's inevitable death is thoroughly foreshadowed – we expect her to drive her car over a cliff at any moment – although Updike doesn't see it. He entirely misses the point of Catherine's use of the term "heiress." Marita will inherit the marriage to Bourne, and she will also, on the allegorical level, inherit the consequences of sin, an aftereffect David will also succeed to. There are lots of discussions of money and how David's writing is supported; he is now certain to receive a "wage" (giving us an interesting view of where Hemingway thinks writing comes from).
But what makes The Garden of Eden meaningful is not that Hemingway can retell the tale of mankind's fall from grace. Likewise, what is important about the characters is not what we can identify about them in relation to his experience in Europe as a young writer, or about his marriages. What we must understand (and this returns us to my old question, "What has all of this got to do with me?") is that the characters are not individuals as much as they are aspects of the self. Their relationships and interactions are the systems of David Bourne's mind, and by extrapolation of Hemingway's and the reader's. Catherine says (and remember that David is also "Catherine"), "Anyway I am you and her. That's what I did it for. I'm everybody. You know that don't you?"
David Bourne knows and we know, so why doesn't John Updike know? I think it's because he is distracted by his search for the dick: "It is possibly a pity," Updike notes sadly, "that Hemingway's own inhibitions, if not those of the changing pre-war times, prevented him from telling us exactly what the 'devil things' are."
But Hemingway does tell us, as demonstrated, that his character's subjugation to the woman, of which the sexual penetration is a symbol, is the corruption that permits no salvation, the devil thing. Updike can't find it because he is predisposed to find something else, "assertiveness and expertise." Therefore, he collapses lazily upon a cliché, citing Bourne's "feminine side," and mourns his inability to get into bed with the characters. In doing so, he tells us quite a bit more about himself than he intends, and less than we would like to know about The Garden of Eden.
Updike's nervousness with Hemingway's silence about sexual details also prevents him from recognizing the importance of the novel's presentation and discussion of the writing process. More than any other aspect of this work, David Bourne's sitting down to write, and Hemingway's sitting down with him and with us to show us how it's done, is the most significant and interesting part of the novel. Here he is voluble rather than reticent, here willing to get naked. We see him address the blank page and subdue it. We see him plan and complete. And when the work is lost (Catherine burns it because it's not about her), we work through the satisfaction of its reconstruction with him.
This is the redemption of the creative process revealed, and it has everything to do with us.
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Cañada Homes is situated in a privileged location in Marbella. The locality of La Cañada, in the north of the city and at the foot of the Sierra Blanca hills, overlooks Marbella. Its proximity to the La Cañada shopping centre is a combination of a peaceful location and the heart of the commercial universe of Marbella. Its direct access to the main motorways (N-340 and AP7) means that you are only a few minutes drive away from the exclusive area of Puerto Banus and numerous golf courses, and give easy access to the main airports in the area: Málaga and Gibraltar.


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April 8, 2019 8:30AM
The Pentagon's Accounting Problem
The Pentagon's inability to pass an audit, after years of outright stonewalling, followed by many more years of foot‐dragging, is suddenly a hot topic. A few weeks ago, Rolling Stone featured a scathing exposé highlighting the Pentagon's inability to count.
Writer Matt Taibbi explains
Ahead of misappropriation, fraud, theft, overruns, contracting corruption and other abuses that are almost certainly still going on, the Pentagon's first problem is its books. It's the world's largest producer of wrong numbers, an ingenious bureaucratic defense system that hides all the other rats' nests underneath.
These and other stories seem to have prompted House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D‑WA) to deliver a stern message to officials in the Department of Defense. The Trump administration has requested $750 billion for the Pentagon, but, Smith noted, "We literally don't know where a chunk of that $750 billion is going to go. We can identify some of it here and there, but by any normal accounting measure, you can't tell us where you're spending your money, or how much inventory you have."
Taibbi continues:
If and when the defense review is ever completed, we're likely to find a pile of Enrons, with the military's losses and liabilities hidden in Enron‐like special‐purpose vehicles, assets systematically overvalued, monies Congress approved for X feloniously diverted to Program Y, contractors paid twice, parts bought twice, repairs done unnecessarily and at great expense, and so on.
Enron at its core was an accounting maze that systematically hid losses and overstated gains in order to keep investor money flowing in. The Pentagon is an exponentially larger financial bureaucracy whose mark is the taxpayer. Of course, less overtly a criminal scheme, the military still churns out Enron‐size losses regularly, and this is only possible because its accounting is a long‐tolerated fraud.
Judging from the response of DoD's senior leaders, however, there is absolutely no cause for alarm. Acting Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan explained last year that they "never expected to pass the audit." When a reporter asked him why taxpayers should trust the Pentagon with their money if it can't even "get their house in order and count ships right or buildings right," Shanahan quipped, "We count ships right."
Taibbi explains: "This was an inside joke. The joke was, the Pentagon isn't so hot at counting buildings. Just a few years ago, in fact, it admitted to losing track of '478 structures,' in addition to 39 Black Hawk helicopters (whose fully loaded versions list for about $21 million a pop)."
This cavalier attitude is pretty maddening. It's almost as though the DoD sees public scrutiny as not much more than a bothersome distraction. As I explained when we discussed Taibbi's article in War on the Rocks' latest "Net Assessment" podcast, I had Colonel Nathan R. Jessup's courtroom monologue from the movie A Few Good Men running through my head.
While on the stand, Jessup (played by Jack Nicholson) tries to deflect questions about his immoral and unethical actions: "I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather that you just said 'thank you' and went on your way."
DoD leaders may not have the inclination to explain their shoddy accounting, but they do have a responsibility to the American people who pay the bills; and our elected representatives have an obligation to get to the truth. There are reasonable doubts about the Pentagon's ability to be a responsible steward of the vast sum of money shoveled its way every year. So long as these doubts persist, we shouldn't expect that Americans will want to spend even more.


The client application receives an HTTP 400 - Bad request response with the message "The SSL certificate error". This error is typically sent by the Edge Router in a two way TLS setup enabled for the incoming connection to Apigee Edge.
This issue typically happens for a 2-Way TLS, when the certificate sent by the client is expired. In a 2-way TLS, both client and server exchange their public certificates to accomplish the handshake. The client validates the server certificate and the server validates the client certificate.
In Edge, 2-way TLS is implemented at virtual host, where the server certificate is added to the Keystore and the client certificate is added to truststores.
During the TLS handshake if it is found that the client certificate is expired, then the server will send 400 - Bad request with the message "The SSL certificate error".
Log in to the Edge UI and view the specific Virtual Host configuration (Environment Configuration -> Virtual Hosts) for which the API request is being made, or use Get Virtual Host management API to get the definition of the specific Virtual Host.
Determine the Truststore reference used in the Virtual Host. In the above example, the Truststore reference name is myTruststoreRef.
Determine the Truststore pointed to by the Truststore reference.
In the Edge UI navigate to APIs -> Environment Configurations.
Select the References tab and search for the Truststore reference name.
Note down the name in the Reference column for the specific Truststore reference. This will be your Truststore name.
In the above example, notice that myTruststoreRef has the reference to myTruststore. Therefore, the Truststore name is myTruststore.
The certificate with alias client-cert-markw in the above example, shows that it's expired.
Check if the certificate is expired for the certificate alias for your truststore.
If the certificate is not expired then move to Common Diagnosis Steps for the other Causes.
Create a new truststore, for example myNewTruststore.
Upload the new certificate to the newly created truststore.
Modify the trustore reference used in the specific Virtual Host to point to the new truststore using the steps given in Modifying a reference.
In the example described above, point the reference myTruststoreRef to myNewTruststore.
To investigate this issue, you will need to capture TCP/IP packets using the tcpdump tool.
If you are a Private Cloud user, then you can capture the TCP/IP packets on the client application or Router.
If you are a Public Cloud user, then capture the TCP/IP packets on the client application.
Note: If you are taking the TCP/IP packets on the Router, then use the public IP address of the client application in the tcpdump command.
If you are taking the TCP/IP packets on the client application, then use the public IP address of the host name used in the Virtual Host in the tcpdump command.
Refer to tcpdump for more information about this tool and for other variants of this command.
Analyze the TCP/IP packets collected using the Wireshark tool or similar tool with which you are familiar.
The Packet #30 in the tcpdump (image below) shows that the Client Application (source) sent a "Client Hello" message to the Router (destination).
Packet #34 shows that the Router acknowledges the Client Hello message from the client application.
The Router sends the "Server Hello" in packet #35 and then sends its certificate and also requests the client application to send its certificate in packet #38.
In the packet #38, where Router sends "Certificate Request" packet, check the "Distinguished Names" section which provides details about the client certificate, its chain and certificate authorities that are accepted by the Router (server).
The client application sends its certificate in Packet # 41. Check the Certificate Verify section in packet # 41 and determine the certificate that is sent by the client application.
Verify if the subject and the issuer of the certificate and its chain sent by the client application (packet #41) matches with the accepted certificate and its chain from the Router (packet #38). If there's a mismatch then that's the cause for this error. Hence the Router (Server) sends the Encrypted Alert (packet #57) followed by FIN, ACK (packet 58) to the Client Application and eventually the connection is terminated.
The mismatch of the certificate and its chain can be caused by the scenarios described in the following sections.
This typically happens if the subject/issuer of either the certificate and/or its chain sent by the client application does not match the certificate and/or its chain stored in the truststore of the Router (Server).
Login to Edge UI and view the specific Virtual Host configuration (Environment Configuration -> Virtual Hosts) for which the API request is being made, or use the Get Virtual Host management API to get the definition of the specific Virtual Host.
Determine the Truststore reference used in the Virtual Host.
In the above example, the Truststore reference name is myCompanyTruststoreRef.
Determine the Truststore pointed by the Truststore reference.
Note the name in the Reference column for the specific Truststore reference. This will be your Truststore name.
In the above example, notice that myCompanyTruststoreRef has the reference to myCompanyTruststore. Therefore, the Truststore name is myCompanyTruststore.
Get all certificates for a keystore or truststore.
This API lists all the certificates in the specific Truststore.
Get Cert Details from a Keystore or Truststore.
This API returns information about a specific certificate in the specific Truststore.
Check if the issuer and subject of each of certificate and its chain stored in myCompanyTruststore matches with that of the certificate and its chain as seen in the TCP/IP Packets (refer packet #38) above. If there's a mismatch then it indicates that the certificates uploaded to the truststore are not being loaded in the Edge Router. Move to Cause: Client Certificates not loaded in the Edge Router.
If there was no mismatch found in Step #5, then that indicates that the client application did not send the right Certificate and its chain.
Ensure that the correct certificate and its chain are sent by the client application to Edge.
If you are a Public Cloud user, contact Apigee Support.
Check if the file /opt/nginx/conf.d/OrgName_envName_vhostName-client.pem exists for the specific virtual host. If the file does not exist, move to the Resolution section below.
Check the issuer, subject and expiry date of the certificate. If any of these do not match with what was observed in the Truststore in Edge UI or using the management APIs, then that's the cause of the error.
It's possible that the Router did not reload the uploaded certificates.
Re-run the APIs and check the results. If the problem persists, go to Gather Diagnostic Information.
TCP/IP packets captured on the Client Application or Router.


text:
Източносибирската кафява мечка (Ursus arctos collaris), позната и само като Сибирска кафява мечка, е подвид на кафявата мечка, който живее в района между поречията на реките Енисей и Лена.

Характеристики
Източносибирските кафяви мечки са междинни по характеристики между евразийския подвид на запад и камчатския на изток, въпреки че големите индивиди могат да имат същата големина като последните. Черепите им са неизменно по-големи от тези на евразийския подвид и частично по-големи от тези на камчатския. Възрастните мъжки имат черепи с дължина от 32,6 - 43,1 cm и ширина 31,2 - 38,5 cm при скуловите арки. Те имат дълга, гъста и мека козина, която е близка до тази на европейските кафяви мечки, въпреки че преобладават тъмноцветните индивиди.

Разпространение
Първоначално Кювие определя, че представителите на този подвид обитават района на горното течение на Енисей. На по-късен етап е определен с точност ареала на подвида. На изток разпространението достига до Становой хребет и поречието на реките Лена и Колима. На юг достига до източен Казакстан, Алтай, Синдзян в Китай и северна Монголия.

Връзки с хората
Представителите на този подвид са със значително по-богато на месо меню. Това определя и тяхната липса на страх към хората. Те нападат ловци, събирачи на мед и плодове, нападат хижи, складове и места, където има складирана храна.

Хранене
Те ловуват планински зайци и копитни животни като елени или лосове.

Бележки

Мечки

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


This is an activity I am undertaking for Open Networked Learning. A blog to reflect upon who I am as an individual in the digital age and my journey so far. I could probably begin this journey in my youth but it is hard to remember when my first encounter with digital technology started, perhaps it was a Casio electronic wristwatch in my teens or the casio calculator we had at school for mathematics. Professionally, I was a children's nurse for over twenty years, working in a number of high dependency areas, for example, paediatric intensive care, neonatal intensive care in London and then when I moved to Manchester, UK I became a Sister in a renal unit. During this time I also started to develop my academic life and enrolled on a Diploma in Nursing course at a local college. I had 2 small children at this time, one was coming up to 2 years of age when I started the course and by the time I had entered the second year of the programme I had my second daughter, sometimes taking her to class with me as she slept in the car seat. As you can imagine, most of my learning outside of the classroom had to take place in the evening and so we bought an Amstrad PCW.
Working and learning – equal measures?
I love my job. I don't always like it but I do love what I do. I always have done. The most interesting part is that I didn't choose to go into nursing. I sort of found it by accident really, but it was a fantastic journey of privilege and pride spanning twenty years, working in Liverpool, London and now Manchester. Caring for children and their families in complex situations was both humbling and rewarding in equal measures. Now I work in higher education teaching undergraduate student nurses on degree programmes in the main. But sometimes I worry about the pressures we put nursing students under today. Having to manage the theoretical components of an undergraduate course of study with the 'messy' complexities of clinical practice is hard. And recent evidence from the Higher Education Authority (HEA) suggests that the average age of student entrants for degree programmes is 25 years with 17% coming from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, so many come with multiple life experiences, they are not fresh from leaving school and they often come with caring responsibilities. I completed my nurse training in 1982 and gained both an RGN and an RSCN qualification, I was young, eager to learn but I wasn't always juggling with assessment of both theory and practice, and more often than not I only had myself to worry about. Don't get me wrong, I am not calling for a return to the days of 'learning at Nelly's knee' as I firmly believe in the development of practitioners of the future who can offer an evidence based rationale for the care that is being delivered. A degree in nursing should be earned to create these practitioners who can challenge, change and move the profession forward in all the right ways. But I do think that sometimes we lose sight of the person at the centre of the process and the larger organisational systems can take over and this is where I worry that those very students who embody those facets of caring, compassion courage, confidence and competence that the profession desperately needs but who may drop one of those 'balls' of assessment more than once, can just fall through the net and nobody hauls them back in.


text:
Charles "Charly" Guiraist war ein französischer Segler.

Erfolge
Charles Guiraist nahm an den Olympischen Spielen 1900 in Paris teil, wo er in drei Wettbewerben antrat. In der gemeinsamen Wettfahrt gelang ihm keine Zieleinfahrt, während er in der Bootsklasse 3 bis 10 Tonnen zweimal das Podium erreichte. Als Crewmitglied der Yacht Gitana erreichte er in der ersten Wettfahrt den dritten Platz, bei der zweiten Wettfahrt wurde er Zweiter. Zur Crew zählten dabei außerdem Skipper Maurice Gufflet, dessen Bruder Robert Gufflet sowie J. Dubois und A. Dubois.

Weblinks

Regattasegler (Frankreich)
Olympiateilnehmer (Frankreich)
Teilnehmer der Olympischen Sommerspiele 1900
Franzose
Geboren im 19. Jahrhundert
Gestorben im 20. Jahrhundert
Mann


text:
Search for "Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone: The Essential Hunter S. Thompson Hunter S. Thompson"
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text:
Ottawa, Kansas Attorneys at Law
Providing Professional Legal Service Since 1947
Public Utility & Energy Law
Oil And Gas Law
Business & Civil Litigation
John L. Richeson
Ottawa, Kansas
John has been with Anderson & Byrd in private practice since his graduation from the University of Kansas School of Law in 1965. He served as City Attorney for the City of Ottawa, Kansas for 27 years. John has also served as attorney for several other cities, unified school districts, a university, special counsel to several Boards of County Commissioners, Rural Water Districts, Kansas Board of Pharmacy, commercial banks, agricultural lenders and many charitable and religious organizations. He has been involved in representation of many clients appearing before administrative and quasi-governmental bodies for motor carriers, applicants, protestants, landowners, oil and gas producers, taxpayers, licensees and citizens.
John has spent nearly 50 years practicing in oil and gas, estate planning, real property including examination of title to land and titles to oil and gas properties, contracts, eminent domain and general practice. He assists other members of the firm with creative ideas, research and writing. He believes the law firm works for a client as a team by comparison of ideas and approaches which best fit and suit the client.
John is a founding board member of the Franklin County Community Foundation which administers several million dollars in endowments established through donor directed trusts which fund local community needs educationally, benevolently, charitably and religiously.
He is a member of the American Bar Association, a life time member of the Kansas Bar Association and the Franklin County Bar Association. He served as President of the Kansas Bar Association Administrative Law Section. John is a Fellow of the Kansas Bar Foundation. He is admitted to practice in all Kansas state and federal Courts, U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U. S. Supreme Court. Also, John is a Kansas Supreme Court Approved Mediator. Further, he has served as an investigator for the Office of Disciplinary Administrator for more than 35 years.
In nearly 50 years of practice John has appeared as counsel of record in litigation filed in more than half of the 105 courthouses in Kansas. He has appeared in numerous appeals in the Kansas Court of Appeals, the Kansas Supreme Court and the U. S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.
John and his wife, Jan are the parents of two children. They are grandparents to eight grandchildren. John and Jan enjoy their leisure time together.
Titles to Real Property
Kansas, 1965
U.S. District Court, 1965
U.S. Court of Appeals 10th Circuit, 1974
U.S. Supreme Court, 1986
University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, Kansas
University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
Major: Journalism
Chandler v. Anchor Serum, 198 Kan. 571 (1967)
LaRue v. LaRue	, 216 Kan. 242 (1975)
Steere v. Cupp	, 226 Kan. 566 (1979)
Case Bros. v. City of Ottawa	, 226 Kan. 648 (1979)
Olmsted Electric, Inc. v. Neosho Construction, 599 F.2d 930 (10th circuit 1979)
Construction Materials, Inc. v.Becker, 8 Kan.App.2d 394 (1983)
Adolph v. Stearns, 235 Kan. 622 (1984)
City of Ottawa v. Heathman, 236 Kan. 417 (1984)
Buckle v. Caylor	, 10 Kan.App.2d 443 (1985)
Hiji v. City of Garnett	, 248 Kan. 1 (1991)
Brock v. Richmond Berea Cemetery , 264 Kan. 613 (1998)
Kansas State Bank, Ottawa, Kansas
Classes/Seminars
Undergraduate Business law, Ottawa University, Ottawa, Kansas, 1966 - 1969
Continuing Education to CPA in Estate Planning, Johnson County Community College
Undergraduate Business Law, Neosho Community College, 1995 - Present
American Jurisprudence prize for best thesis written by student in1965 graduating class from law school, topic, Judicial Administration.
American Bar Association, 1965 - Present
Kansas Bar Association, 1965 - Present
Franklin County, Kansas Bar, 1965 - Present
Pro Bono Activities
Franklin County Community Foundation
Ancillary Businesses
Lobby Kansas Legislature for 12 annual sessions 1966 to 1978 representing American Mutual Insurance Alliance, a trade organization representing 120 plus mutual casualty insurance companies.
Lobby Kansas Legislature representing Kansas School Bus Owners Association, private owners of over 400 school buses operated in Kansas not by unified school districts, religious schools or otherwise.
Fraternities/Sororities
Phi Delta Phi
CONTACT OUR ATTORNEYS TODAY
Anderson & Byrd, LLP
216 S. Hickory
Based in Ottawa, Kansas, we at Anderson & Byrd, LLP, represent clients throughout the state, including Franklin County, Douglas County, Miami County, Osage County, Coffey County, Johnson County and other areas of eastern Kansas. Over the last 67 years, we have appeared as attorneys of record in more than half of the 105 counties of Kansas.
© 2019 by Anderson & Byrd, LLP. All rights reserved. Disclaimer | Site Map


Address: Armenia 0002 Yerevan, Kentron, 86/2 Sevani str.
The Armenian-Lebanese Raffael Contini Trading Company JV LTD was established in 1998. The main activity of the company is production and sales of Rio Grande high quality ground coffee. Rio Grande coffee was first introduced to the Armenian consumer in 2002.rnCoffee Rio Grande is being produced in strict hygienic conditions and doesn't contain any additives.rnThe professional team and modern equipments make the product exceptional and loved throughout Armenian market. The company imports different types of coffee from the following countries: robusta from Indonesia, Vietnam and India; arabica from Brazil, Columbia, Ethiopia and India.rnThe assortement includes 7 types of coffee.


Now, social Media is a fundamental platform for boosting your site. If you are serious about creating a following, you need to get a presence on all of the main stations — Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and more. When you consider everything is necessary to post to each of these, respond to followers, identify and join to key influencers, it can take over.
SocialOomph is a Social media aggregator which lets you perform all of this in 1 spot. Posts can be scheduled by you in advance start following people who follow you and update multiple accounts at once — ideal for submitting a link to a blog across several platforms.
A free version Provides tools to help handle a Twitter account. But should you sign up for the paid version, the door opens to much more and Facebook, Pinterest, Tumblr, LinkedIn. You automate updates in WordPress, add RSS feeds and can centralize management of blogs too.
SocialOomph lets You concurrently handle more social media platforms and much more accounts than many of its rivals, but not each significant social media network you might use is encouraged.
Users that Gave SocialOomph significant feedback said it can be a bit pricey if you wish to receive all the attributes. They also think that dashboard and the interface are too simple. Some users complained about system glitches.
A client Who gave SocialOomph a review on Capterra said that it is among the best and simplest tools for tweets and scheduling articles. He likes he can schedule social media articles and establish the time when they should be posted. In addition, he mentioned that the software has a lot of content creation options that let him customize each type of post.
A client Who gave SocialOomph a review on Crowd stated that the system could be glitchy occasionally. He cited one instance when SocialOomph refused a scheduled post. He said that he received a rejection notification saying that it had been over 140 charactersnonetheless, the text entry area said it had been under 140 characters. In addition, he said that he finds the dashboard too basic and the machine too expensive for the features it provides.
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Extra Twitter tools Include a search feature that show you the people but this is something you'll be able to work yourself out from the keyword alert service that is free. This key word search feature will, however, let you link key words to contacts lists, and automatically adds the appropriate list should they have been tweeting about one of your topics and folks.
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Similar to the free Twitter programs, SocialOomph enables you to manage multiple Facebook accounts at once at once with choices to program wall standing and group upgrades, beforehand, along with photo uploads. You can do this out of what SocialOomph calls an'upgrade reservoir', or even a database of content, and place it to drip feed upgrades to your Facebook, and other social mediapages.
Growing An effective social media presence via posting can become daunting for bloggers. Social media tools provide a means to simplify this procedure.
Although mainly Geared toward business users, this might be a set of attributes if you run a site with others or have lots of subscribers. Any messages sent to that address will automatically be published on that feed, by linking the email address to a distinct platform. You can put controls so messages from certain people are published. The sender's name is going to be printed together with the message.
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SocialOomph functions With Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Plurk, LinkedIn, and also some other site which has one of the next remote publishing APIs: Tumblr, WordPress API (wordpress.com and self-hosted), metaWeblog API, Movable Type API, Blogger API, and Atom API.
Yes, you can Cancel your subscription anytime. If you cancel, your account stays at the amount you paid for till the end of that particular billing period.
SocialOomph lightens The load of managing multiple social media accounts. For bloggers, the top features are the capability to link as many blogs as you like to as many social media accounts as you would like, and generate social posts each time you publish new website articles. This is a superb way to conserve time promoting your blogs across your societal channels.
But for those Tools alone, SocialOomph is pricey. You have to register for the service to connect blogs and to manage social media accounts other than Twitter, and it is priced to target the company market. To obtain value from a SocialOomph subscription, then you need to be able to take advantage of a number of its characteristics, such as article scheduling as well as in Twitter investigation and link building. These are tools that will best benefit sites appearing to use social media help monetize it and to build a following.
Should you use Twitter, This free version is worth signing up for. You may register for a free 7 day trial of the service if you like what you buy and wish to test out more. A nice touch with this is, if you don't update during these 7 days, your account will automatically revert back to free, so there is no risk of having to pay for something that you don't want.


text:
Q: Determine which process sent message to given process through Binder In android, some app sends a message to systemui app to hide navigation bar, I want to determine which app sent the message..for furthur use?

A: As a 3rd party app you cannot see what requested the action through the Binder.  It is a 1-to-1 interface between the requesting process and the system framework process (typically system_server.)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange