Our weekly short term hire is the perfect solution when you need mobility equipment quickly, for a short period of time, and don't want the hassle of dealing with it when you're finished with it. We provide hire equipment on an urgent basis for up to a maximum of 12 weeks. What you need, when you need it, gone when you don't. Convenience at it's best.
We ask you to estimate how long you think you will require the equipment when you hire from us. If it's going to be more than a few weeks, it's likely to be more cost effective to purchase any equipment you need, and we will advise you honestly if that's the case.
Your initial payment is taken at the time of hire and consists of your first week's hire, a refundable security deposit, and any fees for delivery.
Every week we will take the next week's payment from the card provided until you advise us that you are finished with the equipment, at which point no further payments will be taken. Collection of the equipment at a convenient time will be arranged, and your security deposit will be refunded.
Our short term hire solutions offer you the ultimate in convenience, and are not designed to be a cost effective long term solution. If you are looking for a long term solution, or a way to afford equipment by spreading your payments over a period of time, we have companies we work with who can offer you credit facilities. Please contact us for a chat if this is what you are interested in.
If you are looking to use your DLA or PIP payments to finance your scooter or powerchair, we are happy to be able to offer the "Here to Help Mobility" scheme.


Working with a new client earlier this week, I was reminded of my feelings of guilt and frustration when I worked at a big international law firm.
At the time, I had two children under the age of 5. I was working long hours, juggling work and family life, always exhausted, feeling guilty when I was at home and not listening properly to my children because I was taking sneaky looks at my BlackBerry, while worrying that my children thought their childminder was more fun to be with. I was often away for a week or more. I didn't feel that I was a good mum and struggled to overcome my feelings of guilt and frustration.
This is how it was for my client too. She was feeling guilty about not spending enough time with her children; guilty about not spending enough time at work; guilty about not paying enough attention to her clients. She is worried that her children love their nanny more than they love her and guilty that all of this is damaging the long-term relationship with her children because she is trying, and failing, at multitasking emails and bed-time stories. Being a working mum was not what she had expected. Does this sound familiar?
I asked her "What is the most important thing to you about being a mum?" For some mums, it might be really important to be at home on time every evening for the bedtime story; for others being at the school Easter bonnet parade could be most important; or spending time creating a home-made bonnet for the parade. This exploration helped my client decide to make some small changes – one of which is going to be turning off her BlackBerry between the hours of 7pm and 8pm every night. It's a small change, but small changes can make a big difference. Next time, we'll explore how this has worked out in reality and what other small changes could she make.
I have worked with literally 100s of new mums in my work as a family practitioner. Being a working mum is hard for all of us, not just lawyer mums. Juggling to find the right balance between family, work, and clients.
If this has struck a chord with you, please share what small changes you have made to help you get your working mum balance right.
And if you would like a free 20 minute strategy session to explore what small changes you could make, please call me on 07905 826267.


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Office of the Leader
Week in Review for August 10, 2018
New law brings hundreds of state jobs back to Sangamon County. Gov. Bruce Rauner followed through with his promise to bring state jobs back to the capital city with the signing of House Bill 4295 Thursday. The legislation moves hundreds of state jobs to Springfield.
"It is a matter of state pride," Rauner said. "This bill preserves the heritage of Springfield as Illinois' capital city while boosting our local economy. It promotes Lincoln's hometown and his vision as one of the original lawmakers who advocated for making Springfield the capital of Illinois."
The bill codifies into law that Sangamon County is the default location for most state jobs, unless there is a specific reason the job needs to be in a different location.
"For all of my time as state representative, I have made it a priority to push state agencies to identify positions within state government that can and should be located in Sangamon County," said Rep. Sara Wojcicki Jimenez, the legislation's chief sponsor. "A recent report identified nearly 400 jobs that could potentially be relocated to the capital city. By making Sangamon County the default location for state jobs in state law, it sends a clear signal that state jobs should be in the capital city, unless they need to be located somewhere else in the state to best serve our residents."
The bill requires the director of Central Management Services (CMS) to work with other agency directors to relocate all state positions under the Personnel Code to Sangamon County — with some exceptions. It also requires that all new positions be in the Springfield unless there is a valid, constituent-based reason for the position to be elsewhere. The director of CMS will specify the geographic location for each job and, when a job is located outside of Sangamon County, the CMS director will provide the reason for the exception.
"I want to thank Gov. Rauner for signing this important measure, and I want to commend Rep. Sara Jimenez for her steadfast leadership in bringing this measure forward and for shepherding it through the General Assembly," said Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady, who sponsored HB 4295 in the Senate.
"Returning state positions to the state capital is not only about jobs here in Sangamon County, but also about improving efficiency and generating cost savings for taxpayers statewide," said Rep. Tim Butler. "It's a common-sense change, and I was proud to sponsor it in the House."
Praise for Illinois high schools. 14 of the top 100 public high schools in the U.S. are located in Illinois, according to an annual ranking by "Niche." High-ranking Illinois public high schools include the Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora; Walter Payton College Prep in Chicago; and the Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire.
The "Niche" website provides reviews of schools across the U.S. Their 2019 report, which uses data compiled by the U.S. Department of Education and its user base, ranks the Illinois Math and Science Academy as the top public high school in the U.S. More than half of the data used to generate the rankings was generated from academic numbers and competition, including SAT/ACT standardized test scores.
Illinois high schools made up five of the "Niche" top 20 and eight of the top 50. Students from schools such as Northside College Prep High School in Chicago were highly ranked for their ability to move from high school graduation into attendance at America's finest colleges and universities.
Rural electric project brings in $15 million in federal money for Southern Illinois. The grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will help the construction of a new 21-mile-long transmission line from the Marion power plant to a new Southern Illinois Power Cooperative in Carrier Mills, Illinois.
Construction of the line will buttress the infrastructure that transmits electricity to customers of rural electric co-ops in far southern Illinois. The Southern Illinois Power Cooperative is an affiliative joint venture of seven rural electric co-ops that together serve approximately 100,000 customers in 35 Illinois counties. The Electric Infrastructure Loan Program announcement was made on Monday, August 6.
New law authorizes police to take action to protect pets. Many Illinoisans have been saddened to see companion animals trapped in overheated vehicles. SB 2270, which became law this week, authorizes law enforcement to take temporary custody of a dog or cat if the companion animal is exposed to extreme temperature conditions for a prolonged period of time. The new law is worded so as to apply not only to companion animals trapped in motor vehicles, but also to animals forced to stay outdoors in conditions of extreme cold.
SB 2270 was co-sponsored in the House by Reps. David Olsen and Allen Skillicorn. After unanimous House passage, the measure was sent to Gov. Rauner for his signature. The bill was signed and became law on Tuesday, August 7.
Illinois State Fair underway. The Illinois State Fair opened on Thursday, August 9, and will continue until Sunday, August 19. Fair events will include concerts, races, carnival rides, judging competitions, children's events, and festival food. Grandstand concerts will kick off with Boy George and Culture Club on Friday, August 10. Other events will fill every night of the Grandstand's Fair schedule. The State Fair has drawn as many as 350,000 visitors in recent years. The State Fairgrounds, located on the north side of Springfield, have been the headquarters of the State Fair since 1894.
ILLINOIS BICENTENNIAL
Rep. Tim Butler appointed new co-chair of Illinois Bicentennial Commission. Gov. Bruce Rauner announced he has appointed Illinois Rep. Tim Butler to serve as co-chair of the Illinois Bicentennial Commission. Butler joins fellow co-chairs Gloria Castillo and Lori Healey.
"I would like to thank Gov. Rauner for this tremendous honor," said Butler. "For me, the Illinois Bicentennial is personal. I'm proud that my family's roots extend to the very beginning of our state and I look forward to continuing the Bicentennial Commission's work as we celebrate all that is Born, Built, and Grown in Illinois throughout 2018."
Butler symbolizes the Bicentennial theme. A Peoria native, he is the great, great, great great-grandson of Lewis Barker, who was elected in 1818 as the state senator from Pope County and who served during the first four Illinois general assemblies.
Butler is currently serving his second term and represents the same district Abraham Lincoln represented during his time in the Illinois House of Representatives.
"Tim wears his pride for his home state on his sleeve," commented Stuart Layne, executive director of the Illinois Bicentennial Office. "He has been an incredible asset to the Bicentennial Commission, and he has enthusiastically worked to create a successful Bicentennial celebration."
Butler also has sponsored several Bicentennial-related bills, including adding Dec. 3 to the Illinois Commemorative Dates Act to ensure that Illinois Statehood Day is celebrated annually across the state.
"Tim has been an outstanding member of the commission, bringing a terrific perspective and point of view," said Lori T. Healey, CEO of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority and co-chairwoman of the Illinois Bicentennial Commission. "As we enter the final months of the celebration, we welcome his increased leadership and involvement as co-chair."
Butler fills the commission spot vacated by Randy Dunn.
ABOUT ILLINOIS BICENTENNIAL
On Dec. 3, 1818, Illinois became the 21st state in the union. The Illinois Bicentennial is a yearlong celebration of what has been BORN, BUILT & GROWN in the state and a reminder of why we are #IllinoisProud. Citizens are encouraged to participate in the celebration by visiting www.illinois200.com and using the hashtag #IllinoisProud.
Free State Museum admission this weekend in honor of 200th birthday. The Illinois State Museum, on Saturday August 11 and Sunday August 12, will offer free admission for the new exhibition "Bicentennial and Beyond!" There will also be extended Sunday hours to accommodate visitors. The exhibition will include a variety of artifacts displayed in the context of Illinois' approaching 200thbirthday in December 2018. Heritage items will include a trans-Atlantic trunk brought by German immigrants to Illinois in 1852 as they carried treasured possessions from their homeland and prepared for a new life on the American prairies.
The Illinois State Museum is located in the Capitol Complex in Springfield. In addition to "Bicentennial and Beyond!," the museum include exhibits celebrating the legacy of Illinois's natural ecosystems and cultures.
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Code Club helps kids in years 5-8 get a jump start into IT. This class is run by Code Club Aotearoa. Please bring your own laptop.
Come along to Albany Village Library and try your hand at coding!
To help Kiwi kids get a jump-start into modern IT and the new Digital Technologies curriculum, a group of IT professionals have formed a not-for-profit called Code Club. Code Club is offering free basic software training to children in years 5-8.


Whether or not you are someone who would be in favor of it, you have got to admit that one thing is true - healthcare reform is probably not going to happen in the US anytime soon.
While our Canadian neighbors to the north and our European friends on the other side of the Atlantic enjoy universally accessible and affordable medical care, millions of Americans are being left with nowhere to turn when they eventually fall into dire straits.
According to statistics from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), nearly 5 percent of all American patients failed to obtain medical care due to cost last year. This means that for every twenty Americans that entered a hospital, one person was turned away due to lack of funds.
(yeah right...) others have chosen to take a more realistic approach. Across the country, attempts are being made to circumvent America's broken healthcare system, and get healthcare to those people who need it most. Many are turning to technological innovation to do this.
In today's digitizing world, technology is progressing fast, and our lives are being improved on a daily basis as a result. What's more, bitcoin and other cryptocurrency prices are soaring, and our economy is being decentralized - and made more transparent - as a result.
Robotics, AI algorithms, and neural networks are increasingly being used to automate just about everything. Data can now be gathered and processed with ease, taking the information age just one step further since the rise of the internet.
Each of these technologies has been applied to medicine before. Estonia is integrating blockchain technology into its entire healthcare system. Robotics are increasingly being used in prosthetics. Private medical practices and hospitals have been digitizing the data that is patient records, and saving it to hard drives - or even to the cloud - for ages.
Clearly, these three key trends in technological advancement can be used to make healthcare more accessible on the national - and even on the international - level. One new startup - eHealth First - is bringing all three of them together to do just that.
Physicians and other medical professionals have, for as long as the necessary technology has existed, been amassing a wealth of data concerning their profession. Huge databases have been accumulated to include the latest and most accurate information in every field of medicine.
This data - its own kind of "big data" - is extremely useful in its own right when accessed by individual physicians. If properly processed using AI algorithms, this data could revolutionize healthcare.
Just as 2018 began to draw to a close, a group of physicians, medical scholars, and computing experts gathered to bring this fascinating proposition to fruition. They are developing eHealth First, an IT platform for personalized health and longevity management, based on the blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing.
eHealth First may just be the fix that America needs for its healthcare accessibility and affordability woes. As a mobile and desktop based platform, eHealth First will consist of two applications.
The first, meant for the average consumer, offers a way for people to get a personalized diagnosis, as well as treatment recommendations, from the comfort of their homes. While not a replacement for a trained physician, this user-friendly application will make it easy to track certain key health indicators, such as biological age, frailty, and metrics for the various body systems. These services will be offered for free or at a low cost.
AI algorithms will analyze the collected data, and look at databases of medical knowledge to find a treatment recommendation for the user. If the situations turns out to be complicated, the system will recommend further tests, or suggest medical consultation with a physician.
The second application, intended for use by physicians and healthcare workers, will make healthcare more affordable in that it will make the research phase of a doctor's work more efficient - and therefore less expensive. At its core, this application is a database combined with data processing algorithms. Essentially, the application will allow for quick analysis of the medical literature. Doctors who are working with patients will be able to access this information quickly and easily to provide their patients with better care at a lower price.
One of the most innovative aspects of the eHealth First platform is its use of distributed ledgers to secure data, and of the blockchain to make transactions safe and transparent.
When a patient or professional user of the platform submits data on either app, it is encrypted and distributed on the blockchain. This means that patient data is not stored on some central server that can easily be hacked or corrupted, and that only authorized individuals can ever access it.
Of course, certain monetary transactions will occur on the platform. For example, users will be able to order additional diagnostic modules for a fee. These fees will be regulated and recorded using the blockchain network. The blockchain ensures that patients only have to pay a minimal commissоion for their diagnostics, and that transactions can occur with almost no risk of fraud.
EHF is headed by Nickolay Kryuchkov, a physician entrepreneur and expert in public health, data science, and biomedicine. Other star team members include Arnold Mitnitski, who is known for having made the foundational research in the study of the biological processes of aging, the well-known public intellectual Aubrey de Grey, and healthcare management expert Nick Guldemond.
The blockchain side is headed by Denis Rysev, who has been involved in some of the most successful cryptoprojects. Artificial Intelligence and Software development is directed by the outstanding researcher and computer engineer Eray Ozkural, as well as by Keith Comito, an expert in health related software and mobile applications.
For more information visit eHealth. The platform is currently seeking initial investments during a closed presale/private placement event.


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Farewell, Ken Forbes
Nicholls & Clarke has announced the passing of Ken Forbes, who served as chairman of the group from 1991. Below, the company celebrates some of Forbes' accomplishments.
"It is with great sadness that we need to inform you of the death of Ken Forbes, who passed away on the 28th July 2022 peacefully at home.
"Ken Forbes joined Nicholls & Clarke in 1956 at the age of 18 as an accounts clerk and worked his way through the business, spending 14 years as a sales representative before being asked by Sam Nicholls to join the Board of Directors. He became chairman of the Nicholls & Clarke Group in 1991. During his period as chairman, he oversaw the modernisation of the business into the diverse business it is today.
"Many of the existing team were personally recruited and promoted during his tenure. Ken was greatly respected throughout the industry. The Nicholls & Clarke Group will always be indebted to his vision, drive and leadership.
"After 63 years of service Ken retired in 2019. He was a much-loved father, grandfather to seven grandchildren and recent great grandfather and will be missed by everyone who knew him.
"A private family cremation will be followed by a Thanksgiving Memorial Service, on Wednesday 31st August to remember and celebrate Ken`s life."


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Theosophy and Rosicrucianism
[ Lecture: S-1564: 29th June, 1907 | Kassel | GA0100 ]
On-line since: 30th September, 2010
FURTHER STAGES OF ROSICRUCIAN TRAINING.
Yesterday I described to you the Rosicrucian Initiation up to the third stage the Knowledge of Occult Writing. We therefore learned to know what is designated in the Rosicrucian meaning as Study, then the Acquisition of Imaginative Knowledge, and then what is termed as the Penetration into the Occult Writing into that writing which is taken out of the laws of Nature themselves. [Note 1] Now it behooves us to proceed to the fourth stage of Rosicrucian Initiation, to the one which is called The Preparation of the Stone and the Wise. We should realise that only in the present time has it become possible to say something about that which the Rosicrucians really meant by the Preparation of the Stone of the Wise.
By that name were known certain rules for the entrance into the higher worlds, and these rules have existed ever since the founder of Rosicrucianism inaugurated this movement in 1459. You must bear in mind that this spiritual current has always been handled with the greatest precaution and has always been kept secret.
Towards the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century, certain secrets of Rosicrucianism leaked out in an unjustified manner, owing, to a kind of treason; at that time several things connected with these secrets were printed, but from these publications one could gather that the, people in question had an inkling of these secrets, but did not understand them; never the less they at least heard the right words or picked them up so to speak, also in regard to the "Stone of the Wise". At that time a series of communications appeared even in the "Reichsanzeiger" on a society whose task it was to prepare the Stone of the Wise; among these communications there is also one which can only be understood by those who know what it is about. It states: "Yes, the Stone of the Wise exists; it is known to almost everyone; indeed, most people have even held it in their hand; it is not at all difficult to find it, — but most people do not know this!"
The idea of the Stone of Wise was connected with the meaning that little by little it enabled one to know man's immortal part, which cannot decay after death, for it leads one up into the higher worlds. If a human being realizes that this immortal part cannot fall a prey tOo death, he acquires an immortal life through the possession of the Stone of the Wise, and thus he overcomes death. This had been interpreted as meaning that one would never die. But it means instead that thereby one learns to know the world where man lives after death. Moreover one saw in the Stone of the Wise an elixir of life. All this rendered the Stone of the Wise extremely desirable. Those who knew the true meaning of these things must have found these words strangely correct; for they are true — but those who do not know the secret cannot do much with them.
Let me now show you quite briefly what these words really mean. If you wish to understand them, please follow me in the contemplation of a plain, natural-scientific fact: — You must be clear as to the relation existing between the human being and the vegetable kingdom. It is a fact that all those who breathe as man breathes, could never exist if there were no plants. Now try to become acquainted with the process which takes place between you and the plants.
You breath in the air and use the oxygen of the air. You could not live, if there were no oxygen. When you take in the air and work upon the oxygen in your organism, you breathe out carbonic acid, a combination of carbon and oxygen. You must therefore say: Man continually takes in oxygen which maintains his body, and he breathes out carbonic acid; consequently he continually creates a poison which could kill him. You continually fill your environment with a poison. — What does the plant do? In a certain way it does exactly the contrary! It takes in carbonic acid, keeps the carbon, and sends out the oxygen which it does not need. Thus you give the plant what it needs and the plant gives you oxygen in return. What does the plant do with the carbon which it retains? To a certain extent it uses the carbon to build up its own body. You therefore give the plant, so to speak, the opportunity to build up its body out of carbon. — And after thousands of years, when you dig the plant out of the earth in the form of coal,you have it in the same substance.
The plant gives you oxygen, You breathe it in. You give the plant carbonic acid, it retains the carbon, uses it to build up its body and returns you oxygen. This is a wonderful alternating process, which thus takes place. This is what happens to-day. But man is developing, and in the future, the human body itself will have the organ which transforms carbonic acid into oxygen, retaining the carbon.
Here I am indicating a future state of development of man, a different condition from that which I pointed out to you yesterday, when speaking bf the Rosicrucian path of training. In the future man will have a passionless body of a higher order, a body which you may find to-day upon a lower stage in the plant; man will be able to build up a body which will be plant-Like upon a higher stage. In the organ which now constitutes his heart he will have an apparatus which will be able to do that which the plant does to-day. Now. the human being and the plant belong together; one could not live without the other. If there were no plants, all the beings who breathe in oxygen would have to die in a very short time, because it is the plant which supplies us with oxygen. We cannot imagine life without plants. But what the plant now does outside, will in the future be done by that organ into which our heart will develop when the heart shall have become a muscle which we ourselves control. We spread out our consciousness over the plants; we grow together with the vegetable world, so that in the future that which the plant now does outside our being will take place within our being. Then we shall also retain the carbon which we now discard, and build up our body with it. We shall be like the plants upon a higher stage of consciousness.
From primeval ages, occultism weaves all this into a wonderful legend. It is the Golden Legend. And what I have explained to you to-day was imparted to the pupil of occultism in the form of an image. The legend was more or less as follows: —
When Seth, the son whom God gave Adam and Eve in place of the murdered Abel, once entered Paradise" he found the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life inter-grown; their branches intertwined. From this tree Seth took three seeds, following the command of the Angel who guided him. He kept the three seeds and when Adam died, he placed them into Adam's mouth. And a tree grew out of Adam's grave; to those who knew how to look upon it in the right way, this tree revealed a writing in flaming letters — the words: "Ejeh Asher Ejeh. I am He that was. He that is, He that shall be." Now Seth took some wood from this tree and many things were made out of it: among them the rod which became the magic rod of Moses. And this tree multiplied; from its wood the portal of Solomon's temple was made, and later on, when it had passed through many other destinies, it became the Cross upon which the Savior hung.
The legend thus connects the wood of the Cross of Golgotha with the tree which grew out of Adam' s grave from the seeds of the Tree of Paradise. [Note 2]
This legend conceals the same mystery which I indicated to you to-day. It meant to say: In primeval ages the human race had not yet sunk down to the flesh with passion; it was pure and chaste like the plant which stretches out its calyx to the sun. The human beings then descended through the "fall into sin"; their flesh was filled with passion. But everything which the human being once possessed in the state of innocence will be regained if he succeeds in forming through knowledge a body devoid of passion, the body which he once had before acquiring knowledge. Bear in mind the origin of the Ego. That the human being no longer possesses that innocent body, is connected with the fact that he began to breathe through the lungs and was able to form his red blood. Man's present form, and the fact that this form is the bearer of knowledge in the present meaning, is therefore connected with his breathing and the circulation of the blood.
Now transfer yourselves into the human body of to-day. You can imagine the oxygen streaming into it and stimulating the red blood, you can look upon the blood as a tree with many branches reaching into every part of the body, and you can see the blue blood streaming back filled with carbonic acid.
You have two trees within you: the tree of the red blood, and the tree of the blue bl00d. Man, as the bearer of an Ego, could not exist without these two trees. He had to take in the blood in order to have an Ego, and that is how our modern knowledge arises; this forms its foundation. But death was connected with this development, for you constantly transform the red blood into blue blood filled with carbonic acid! The occult teacher of the Old Testament therefore said: "Look upon your own being: you have within you the red tree of blood; without this tree you would never have become a cognitive human being. You have eaten of the Tree of Knowledge; but this gave you at the same time the possibility to give life."
That which was once a Tree of Life became a death-bringing tree; the blue blood-tree within-us is therefore the Tree of Death. This is the present state of things. But the initiate sees a future state, when the human being shall have the plant-nature within him, when the heart-organ shall transform the blue blood into red blood in a direct way, within the human being. Then the Tree of Death shall have become the Tree of Life and man shall have become an immortal being. What man once was upon a lower stage, he shall once more become upon a higher stage, and he will have within him the apparatus which now exists in the plant.
Paradise thus shows us a final state of humanity. Seth' s mission, so the occult teachers explained, was that he saw that which comes at the end of the times: the balancing of the two principles within the human being. Thus the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge intertwine in Paradise; but in man they can only exist if he seeks aid from the plant. But how can he acquire the faculty through which the two trees intertwine within his being? By developing within him the three higher members of human nature.
We have learned that the human being consists of physical body, etheric body, astral body, and Ego, and we have seen that when the Ego works upon the astral body it produces the first higher member; when it works upon the etheric body, the second higher member; and when it works upon the physical body, the third one. The future human being will therefore consist of seven parts, for he will also have the Spirit-Self, the Life-Spirit, and the Spirit-Man.
When the human being thus transforms his lower nature, he will have the Tree of Life within him. At the beginning of his development man has therefore been predisposed through his Ego for the unfolding of his three higher members.
Seth took three seeds and the first Ego-man, Adam, let these seeds grow into a tree. This tree contains that which passes through every incarnation. During your first incarnation your Ego was upon a very low stage, but from incarnation to incarnation it reaches ever higher stages. What grows out of it is the symbol for the eternal part in man. which will reach its greatest perfection at the end of the Earth. But we shall only attain to this if we connect ourselves with everything that is highest along the path of the Spirit. Everything which leads humanity upwards along this path — the rod of Moses, Solomon' s Temple, and finally the Cross upon Golgotha — helps us to unfold fully the higher trinity within us. The Cross of Golgotha indicates the path leading to the highest fulfillment of man. At the beginning the seed from which that Tree grew was laid in Adam's mouth (this cannot be expressed more beautifully than in this Legend!), it was the seed which Seth had gained in the manner described. Here you have the path of humanity throughout the ages, the path of humanity through Time. And in future, man will have to attain that which the plant can do to-day: the transformation of his being, the capacity to produce carbon within himself, through his own power. Man will in the future master the alchemy of the plant.
The alchemistic preparation of what I have just now described to you was reached by giving the Rosicrucian pupil certain indications on the way in which he had to regulate his breathing process. This can only be grasped if we bear in mind the proverb: The steadily falling drop hollows out the stone. But the Rosicrucian pupil works towards this future goal. Even as the drop, small as it is, after a long time achieves hollow in the stone, so the progress of the human bodies is brought about by this regulation of the breathing process. The indications given to the Rosicrucian pupil enable him to prepare, even to-day, a condition in which the Ego acquires the faculty to contemplate the future state of being in the higher worlds. The Rosicrucian pupil therefore does two things: In the first place he helps to prepare the future of humanity, and secondly he himself acquires the power of looking into the spiritual worlds; he sees that which will later on come down into physical reality.
Now you will be able to understand the indications which were published by that strange man, though he did not understand them. The Stone of the Wise is the ordinary black coal; but you must learn the process enabling you to elaborate the carbon through your inner forces: this constitutes the future of mankind. The present coal is a prototype of that which will one day constitute the most important substance of the human being. Bear in mind the clear diamond: also the diamond is nothing but carbon! This was called, the "Preparation of the Stone of the Wise" in the Rosicrucian world-conception. It conceals a process of transformation in the human being and the call to work upon future conditions of humanity,. All who work in this way help to prepare the human bodies of the future, the bodies which will in future be needed by the human souls.
There is a saying which expresses very beautifully this work upon future states of being, and we shall be able to understand it after having made a clean distinction between the development of souls and of races.
In the past, all of you were Atlanteans, but these Atlantean bodies presented an entirely different aspect, — as I have already explained to you. Within your present body lives the same soul which once lived somewhere in an Atlantean body. But not every body has been prepared, as yours are being prepared, today, by a few colonists, who at that time migrated from the West to the East. Those who remained behind, those who connected themselves, aS one says, with the race, decayed, whereas those who had progressed, founded new cultures. The last stragglers along the path leading eastwards, the Mongolians, have preserved something of the Atlantean culture. They have not progressed; they remained within the race. In the same way, when a new age dawns, the bodies of those who do not progress, will become the Chinese of the future. Also in the future there will be decadent races. In Chinese bodies live souls who had to incarnate again within the Chinese race, because during the Atlantean time they were attracted too strongly by their race. The souls that dwell within you to-day will in the future incarnate in bodies proceeding from those who are now working in the manner described, producing the bodies of the future, in the same way in which the first colonists of the Atlanteans prepared the bodies of coming ages. And those who cling to everyday things, who do not wish to connect themselves with that which the future holds in store, will melt together within the race.
There are people who wish to remain within traditional things, who do not wish to know anything of progress and who do not listen to those who can lead them beyond the race to ever new forms of humanity. The myth has preserved this tendency in a wonderful way; for it can not be described more appropriately Than by pointing to one of the greatest, who spoke the words: "Those who do not forsake father and mother, wife and child, brother and sister, cannot be my disciples", and by setting forth the tragic aspect of a man who says: "I do not wish to have anything to de with such a guide!, and who rejects Him. How can this be expressed more clearly than by the image of him who rejects the guide and who cannot progress! This is the legend of Ahasver, the Wandering Jew, who sat at the feet of Christ Jesus and rejected the greatest of all Guides, who did not wish to know anything of the course of evolution and must therefore remain with his race and always return within his race. [Note 3] These are myths which are given to humanity as a perpetual reminder, so that it may know the gist of things.
This fourth stage of Rosicrucian training must therefore be looked upon as something of immense depth, and humanity thus gradually develops the "Preparation of the Stone of the Wise."
The fifth stage is the correspondence of microcosm and macrocosm. The whole complicated human body, such as it exists now, has arisen in a special way. My lectures have led you through the Saturn, Sun, Moon and Earth conditions; Upon Saturn, only the first foundations of your sensory system existed; only this existed of everything which now constitutes your physical body, and it was embedded in the Saturn-substance, even as crystals are now embedded in the earth-substance. Your eye was like a crystal of quartz. Upon the Sun, the glands which were your highest organs were constituted in such a way that they covered the surface of the Sun. And upon the Moon the organs which form your nervous system were spread over the Moon's surface. The Moon had a nervous system in which the men-animals who lived upon the Moon had a share. Upon the Earth, man acquired his osseous system; this was not possible upon the Moon, for it had no mineral kingdom.
This shows you hew wonderful is the structure of the human body. The organ of sight, the eye such we have it now, was once spread over the whole of Saturn; and what was once spread out in the great cosmos outside, entered our being in regard to each organ, occult science can tell you how it is connected with the macrocosm, with the great world outside, for something in the external world corresponds to the liver, the spleen, the heart, etc. Spiritual science can also tell you what had to take place in the external world so that these organs might arise. The Rosicrucian schooling enables us to immerse ourselves in our sense-organs, to penetrate from within into our eyes and ears, and to gain a clairvoyant knowledge of the development of these organs.
I have led you back to an epoch in the Atlantean evolution when the etheric body still emerged so far above the physical body that it could not coincide with a point in our head which is just above the root of the nose. We have seen that the etheric body then gradually penetrated into the physical body and that tile physical body took on its present form. Now there is one method of immersion, connected with a certain formula which can only be communicated by word of mouth. When you thus concentrate yourself upon that point where the physical part of the head coincides with the above-mentioned point of the etheric head, then you learn to know what the earth was like at that time, when the etheric head began to enter the physical head. In a similar way you may enter every part of your body, of your microcosm, and thus gain knowledge of the forces which hold sway in the macrocosm. Man is the most complicated of all beings, and even as the message contained in a telegram enables you to identify the sender, so the immersion in this or in that organ of your body enables you to gain knowledge of the creative powers which gave rise to it.
This leads us on to the sixth stage, which is called the Immersion in the Cosmos. Those who have learned to know, in the manner described above, the relationship between microcosm and macroc0sm, have gained a knowledge which embraces the whole world. This fact is concealed behind the ancient motto: "Know thyself!" But a very harmful influence has been exercised by theosophists who say: Within you lies the whole godhead; the highest principle is contained within your being. Thus all you need to do is look into your being , to look within yourself, and this will enable you to know the whole world.
Yet this inner brooding is the most foolish thing we can do, for it only leads to the knowledge of our lower self, which we have in any case. Self-immersion never shows us more than we have already have. Real self-knowledge only arises in the complicated manner described above, and then it is at the same time world-knowledge.
A genuine theosophical teaching does not make things easy for us, but it must say: Calm, earnest meditation should lead you to the knowledge even of the most complicated Beings. You cannot recognise the Godhead otherwise than by learning to know it piece by piece in the world outside. Patience and perseverance are needed for this. Calm, slow progress leads you to a knowledge of the world. Theosophy cannot give you a universal formula supplying knowledge all at once; it can only indicate the path long which you can gain self-knowledge and world-knowledge. This will lead you to a knowledge of God.
On the sixth stage of Rosicrucian schooling we do not attain to a dry, intellectual form of knowledge, but to one which is intimately connected with the world, with the universe. Those who have this knowledge, are intimately connected with everything in the universe; it is a connection which a modern men can only understand by bearing in mind the mysterious love-relationship between man and woman, which is based upon a secret knowledge of the other's being. The contemplation of the macrocosm leads not only to an understanding of the world, but to an intimate connection with every being, resembling that of lovers. In that case you will have an intimate relationship, a kind of love relationship with the plant, with the stone, with every creature in the universe. You will develop a specialized love for every being; to each one you will say something which you would not have said had you not reached this deeper understanding.
Animals eat the substances which suit its constitution and do not touch those that might harm it. This is based on a sympathetic relation towards certain things and an antipathetic one towards others. Man had to lose this direct connection with things in order to reach his present form of knowledge, but he will regain this connection upon a higher stage. What enables a modern occultist to know that the plant's blossom has another influence upon the human body than the root? And how does he know that the influence of an ordinary root differs from that of a carrot? Because these things speak to him, as they do to animals upon a lower stage. Animals do not have a conscious understanding of such things, but man will regain this direct connection with the substances and beings of the universe, upon the highest stages of consciousness.
The seventh stage of Rosicrucian schooling naturally follows the sixth one. Everything which I have told you so far will have shown you that the knowledge involved is chiefly connected with soul-impressions and feelings. No knowledge which we attain along this path does not at the same time move the heart in the most living way, so that a clear distinction should be made between an idea logical, intellectual and a spiritual knowledge.
The occultist does not mean to touch your feelings, and to tell you all manner of beautiful things. He simply relates the facts of the spiritual world and he would consider it as shameless to appeal to your feelings in a direct way. But he knows that when he tells you the truths of the spiritual world, these truths themselves speak; these spiritual facts should stir your feelings. A Rosicrucian therefore never takes into consideration the person of a teacher, for the teaching is in no way connected with the person. The teacher is the instrument through which the truths themselves speak to men. Those who still believe or have "views of their own" are not fit to be occult teachers. For if we judge through feeling, instead of judging objectively, we might even say that twice two is five!
This shows you how the Rosicrucian gradually penetrates into the knowledge of the higher worlds by developing various things within him. He needs guidance in this, but all those who earnestly seek this guidance will find it at the right moment.
We cannot say, however, that the Rosicrucian successively passes through these seven stages of training under the personal guidance of a teacher. The occult teacher chooses what is more suited to the one or to the other. I have already given you a description of the preparatory stages. Let me now emphasize two things in in this preparation, in order to show you that other things must be developed before proceeding to the stricter exercises.
There is one thing which must be practiced from the very outset, and that is concentration, concentration of thought. Consider how your thoughts ramble about from morning to night! They came from this or from that direction and draw you along with them, A rosicrucian pupil must choose a time in which he is master of his thoughts; he should take an object as uninteresting as possible and reflect over it. The length of time employed for this does not matter, essential are energy, patience, and perseverance.
The other thing is what we call "positivity", which consists in going in search of things in life which are characterised best of all by a Persian legend relating to Christ Jesus.
One day, when Christ Jesus was walking along with his disciples, they found on the road's edge the carcass of a dog, in advance stage of decomposition. The disciples who were not so highly developed as Christ Jesus, turned away from this horrid sight, but Christ Jesus thoughtfully looked upon the animal and said: "What beautiful teeth it has!"
No matter how ugly a thing may be, there is always some beauty concealed in it; in every lie there is a grain of truth, in everything evil a grain of goodness. This does not mean, of course, that you should abstain from criticism! You misunderstand positivity if you think that you should no longer find anything bad, ugly, etc., but positivity means that you should see the grain of beauty in everything evil. This develops the higher forces of your soul. All this forms part of the preparation.
To begin with, I wished to give you some idea of the Christian-Gnostic path of training. In the Rosicrucian schooling you will find the deepest and most genuine Christianity. If you are a Rosicrucian, you can be a Christian in the deepest meaning of the word, in spite of the demands of modern life. In the past, one could be a good Christian by withdrawing from the world; this was possible so long as man was not influenced by those forms of thinking which now render it so difficult for him to be a Christian. For the thoughts which have developed out of the natural-scientific way of thinking render it difficult for us to take in Christianity in its original form. The noblest men are those who honestly say: "To-day I cannot connect anything real with Christianity".
The spiritual world indeed lives round about us, but within us live the thoughts produced by our materialistic age. We are incessantly surrounded by these thought-forms of materialistic life. A conscientious person must therefore say: In the present time we need a remedy which can cope with the ideas that continually stream into us, a remedy which enables us to hold our own and to remain upright in the face of everything which streams into us from the world outside.
Spiritual science offers us this remedy. We are egoists if we reject it, if we refuse to take it. Spiritual science feels that it is the executor of that which also constituted the will of medieval theosophy. Everyone can understand spiritual science; even-those who are acquainted with the justified objections raised against it by natural science. The Rosicrucian direction of theosophy enables everyone to find that which leads to a knowledge of the universe, and to peace within the soul, to be sure, a steady attitude in life. The theosophy of Rosicrucianism is not a merely theoretical knowledge which can give rise to polemical discussions, but a living knowledge which must flow into our whole modern civilisation. Theosophists who have passed through the Rosicrucian schooling know every objection which can be raised against spiritual science and are well acquainted with every counter-argument.
A polemical treatment of theosophy would produce the same result as, for instance, the polemical treatment of Eduard von Hartmann's. "Philosophy of the Unconscious". Eduard von Hartmann published this book and made certain statements in it which appeared like a higher standpoint in the face of the materialistic views of natural-scientific research. All the scientists rose up in arms against hin and a flood of criticism was poured over the "Philosophy of the Unconscious". Eduard von Hartmann was called "the greatest amateur". Among the many writings which appeared against this book, there was an anonymous pamphlet which brilliantly opposed the "Philosophy of the Unconscious", drawing in every possible argument available to a scientist who has a thorough knowledge of the natural sciences of his time. This writing was greatly admired and applauded. Oscar Schmidt, the famous zoologist, said for instance: "What a pity that we do not know the author of this excellent pamphlet, for he stands at the very summit of modern science." And Ernst Haeckel wrote: "Let him come out of his anonymity, and we shall welcome him as one of us." In fact, this pamphlet created quite a sensation! Then a second edition appeared, with the name of the author: Eduard von Hartmann! Now the scientists did not say a word and the matter was hushed up. This really took place.
You see those who adopt a higher standpoint, are themselves able to advance counter-arguments, for they only need to descend to another standpoint. We might also bring forward a few counter-arguments; if we had sufficient time at our disposal. [Note 4] But in the brief time available it was essential above all to communicate some of the facts which spiritual science can proclaim to-day concerning the higher worlds.
The chief point to bear in mind is that spiritual scientific truths should exercise a healing influence upon men. Occult science can show that these truths are able to permeate every sphere of human life and to fructify it. And when spiritual science will have exercised this healing, fructifying influence it will have justified its existence in the best possible way. This, is the proof which spiritual science seeks. Theosophists therefore do not grow alarmed when people come and say: "This is pure fantasy!" Everything which has become a blessing in human civilisation has at first been regarded as pure fantasy. In the history of the last forties of the 19th century; we could cite many examples in support of this statement.
If spiritual science is to become a reality in life, it must penetrate into that which constitutes our ordinary environment. When spiritual science has become a force which gives wings to our whole life, permeating our daily actions, it will have stood the test. This is the standpoint adopted by the Theosophy of Rosicrucianism, and from this standpoint you should view the lectures which I have delivered to you. Spiritual science will one day develop into something which will influence humanity and bring new impulses in art and science, in medicine and education. Its forces will stream into every sphere of life, animating it.
This is the standpoint of these lectures, which should be accepted in this light.
Note 1. See: "The Path of Knowledge and its Stages. The Rosicrucian Path" "Imaginative Knowledge and Artistic Imagination"
Note 2. See: The Xmas Thought and the Mystery of the Ego. The Tree of the Cross and the Golden Legend. Also: The Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge. The Mysteries of Art (Paths of Spiritual Knowledge and the Renewal of an World-Conception).
Note 3. See: Rudolf Steiner's Five Easters by Anasthasius Grün.
Note 4. See: Wie widerlegt man Geistesforschung (How does one oppose Spiritual Research) and Wie begrandet man Goistesforschung (What is the Foundation of Spiritual Research), double volume no. 1/2 of the series Ergebnisse der Geistesforschung (Results of Spiritual Research), Lectures by Rudolf Steiner, publd. by Phil. Anthropl. Verlag in Dornach, Switznrland.


In Russia's seafaring regions, pizza chefs often use toppings like sardines, salmon, mackerel, herring and tuna — sometimes all on the same pie! San Francisco natives are not ones to shy away from seafood, but that pizza combination could be a little over the top.
Japan also has inspired some amazingly fishy pizzas, including hugely popular eel and squid pizzas. Japanese chefs also make liberal use of land-based toppings. Consider one popular dish that features a bacon, potato and mayonnaise mash up that the Japanese call Mayo Jaga.
Down under in Australia, they take the concept of "wild" pizza toppings to the next level by cooking pies with kangaroo, crocodile, and emu meat!
India also serves curiosities, such as sheep and pickled ginger pies.
In France – the birthplace of many exotic and exquisite egg and cheese centered cooking – you can find pizzas with all sorts of egg-y toppings, including hardboiled eggs, eggs baked on top, sunny side up eggs, etc.
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Ikea finally opens first store in what CEO calls a 'more open India'
Justina Crabtree
Ikea finally opened its first store in India on Thursday, targeting the country's growing middle-class in an environment that Chief Executive Jesper Brodin has described as "more committed to progress."
The expansion had been on the cards for over a decade. Speaking to CNBC's affiliate TV18, Brodin characterized the delay as being down to domestic "uncertainty some decades ago (whereas) today it's a super-strong commitment throughout India for progress."
"Today, it's a braver India and it's a more open India that is more committed to progress," he said, although Brodin warned that it could take years for the economics of scale to pay off in the company's new market.
The maiden 400,000 square foot (37,000 square meter) store is located on the outskirts of the southern city of Hyderabad.
The Swedish furniture retailer has already invested 4.5 billion euros ($5.2 billion) into India, Brodin said, adding that this would continue as the firm moves into new cities and e-commerce.
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According to its website, Ikea currently has 48 suppliers with approximately 45,000 direct employees already in India. "The commitment that we make is not short term, it is long term," Brodin said.
Ikea's next store is planned to open in Mumbai in the summer of next year, followed by another in Bangalore in 2020. But, the firm has been shifting its strategy in more established markets towards city center showrooms to support the rise of online shopping — a tactic that may also be brought to India.
Ikea aims to provide e-commerce to Indian consumers in 2019, Brodin told CNBC.
The firm has also lowered its prices to adapt to the Indian market. A thousand items will be priced at less than 200 rupees ($2.91), Reuters reported.
India presents businesses with one of the world's largest consumer markets. Its 1.3 billion citizens means that it is the world's second most populous country after China. But, gross domestic product (GDP) per capita remains less than a quarter that of its fellow Asian giant.
Nonetheless, India is expected by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to be the world's fastest-growing major economy in 2018. The country's household furniture market is expected to be worth $2.7 billion by 2022, according to The Economist Intelligence Unit.
Indian consumers are unused to traveling to stores to buy self-assemble furniture, Reuters reported. Instead, furniture is usually delivered to customers fully built. To solve this problem, Ikea has set up a 150-strong in-house team to help customers put products together.
According to one analyst, Ikea's latest venture into India is likely to be a success — and this is not just down to the country's economic fundamentals. "With high real estate prices forcing more and more Indians to live in small apartments, Ikea's minimalist and multi-purpose furniture will be expected to register strong demand," Barsali Bhattacharyya, deputy lead companies analyst at The Economist Intelligence Unit, told CNBC via email Thursday.
Chicken and vegetarian variations of Ikea's famous meatballs are sold in the Hyderabad store to account for India's prevailing religious beliefs.
© CNBC is a USA TODAY content partner offering financial news and commentary. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.


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Home > Published Ahead-of-Print > Recovery From Malnutrition Among Refugee Children Following...
Recovery From Malnutrition Among Refugee Children Following Participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program in Massachusetts, 1998-2010
Smock, Laura MPH; Martelon, MaryKate MPH; Metallinos-Katsaras, Elizabeth PhD, RD; Nguyen, Thinh; Cochran, Jennifer MPH; Geltman, Paul L. MD, MPH
Journal of Public Health Management and Practice: April 05, 2019 - Volume Publish Ahead of Print - Issue - p
Objectives: (1) To examine patterns of catch-up growth and anemia correction in refugee children younger than 5 years after participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program, and (2) to identify factors associated with recovery from growth abnormalities.
Design: Records on 1731 refugee children younger than 5 years who arrived in Massachusetts between 1998-2010 were matched to WIC program records and then restricted to 779 children who had at least 2 WIC visits. Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine how sex affected time to recovery from malnutrition and anemia. Factors associated with recovery were analyzed in SAS using multivariate logistic regression.
Setting: Massachusetts.
Participants: Refugee children younger than 5 years on arrival, who visited a WIC program at least twice between 1998 and 2010.
Main Outcome Measures: (1) Proportion of children who recovered from low height-for-age (stunting), low weight-for-age, low weight-for-height (wasting), and anemia; (2) odds ratios for factors associated with recovery; and (3) Kaplan-Meier curves showing recovery over time from low height-for-age, low weight-for-age, and low weight-for-height.
Results: The number of WIC visits was associated with recovery from stunting, wasting, low weight-for-age, and anemia; results reached statistical significance for stunting (odds ratio [OR] = 8.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.25-33.19), low weight-for-age (OR = 5.28; 95% CI, 1.35-20.73), and anemia (OR = 6.50; 95% CI, 2.69-15.69). Female sex was associated with recovery from stunting, wasting, and low weight-for-age, whereas male sex was associated with recovery from anemia; the associations were statistically significant between female sex and stunting (OR = 9.14; 95% CI, 1.93-43.29), wasting (OR = 14.78; 95% CI, 1.57-138.85), and low weight-for-age (OR = 4.29; 95% CI, 1.09-16.79).
Conclusions: Children who remained engaged in WIC may recover better from malnutrition than children with fewer WIC visits, although there are limitations to the available data.
These findings suggest that those working with refugee families should prioritize outreach toward initiating and maintaining WIC program enrollment for eligible refugee children.
Division of Global Populations and Infectious Disease Prevention (Mss Smock, Nguyen and Cochran, and Dr Geltman) and Office of Integrated Surveillance and Informatics Services (Ms Martelon), Bureau of Infectious Disease and Laboratory Sciences, and Division of Nutrition (Dr Metallinos-Katsaras), Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Nutrition, School of Nursing and Health Sciences, Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts (Dr Metallinos-Katsaras); and Franciscan Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts (Dr Geltman).
Correspondence: Laura Smock, MPH, Division of Global Populations and Infectious Disease Prevention, Bureau of Infectious Disease and Laboratory Sciences, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 305 South St, Boston, MA 02130 (laura.smock@state.ma.us).
This project was supported by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Strengthening Surveillance for Diseases Among Newly-Arrived Immigrants and Refugees (CDC-RFA-CK12-1205). The authors thank Rachel Colchamiro, Jane Dvorak, and Judy Hause from the Massachusetts WIC Program for their collaboration on this project.
Journal of Public Health Management and Practice., Post Author Corrections: April 05, 2019
malnutrition, refugee, WIC
Articles in PubMed by Laura Smock, MPH
Articles in Google Scholar by Laura Smock, MPH
Other articles in this journal by Laura Smock, MPH
Refugee Children's Participation in the Women, Infants, and Children Supplemental Nutrition (WIC) Program in Massachusetts, 1998-2010


March 2016 - This week, we will be opening up a brand new play area for Barwick in Elmet Church of England Primary School near Leeds.
On Friday 4th March, our very own John Danby will be visiting Barwick in Elmet Primary School for the grand opening of their recently refurbished outdoor area by Playscheme. This glorious event will be attended by children of the primary school and their parents, as well as members of Barwick-in-Bloom, who manage the school grounds and gardens.
The background to this fantastic new playground is somewhat special, as it was designed through a competition that we hosted. Ashleigh and John visited the school to launch the brief for the competition in February of 2015, where they ran a presentation to gain ideas for what the children wanted to include in the Active Learning Zone.
The entire school was involved in creating the design for the play area, which was an exciting project for the pupils to get involved in and let their imaginations run wild on. Teachers at the school then considered each and every design and explored the many ideas that were suggested with the children, who had become budding designers almost overnight! One design from every year group was chosen from the exercise, and the children that were selected had an exciting opportunity to visit the Playscheme offices in Elvington, York, to present their brilliant ideas to the team.
The designs were all submitted in PowerPoint presentation form and they were all fabulously created. It was during their presentations that they described to us the rationale behind each, speaking about how and why they had imagined up each element of their designs, this really was incredible to listen to and all the children were fantastic.
During their visit, the pupils from Barwick in Elmet Primary School were taken on a tour of our offices and we even let them take over our design department to try out the software, as well as showing them how to put their designs into a CAD drawing. After all the hard work was over, we then took the children to Elvington Play Area to enjoy one of our local designs, which they absolutely loved!
It was extremely difficult to select an overall winner, as you can imagine, but we decided which was the most impressive design of them all, and they will be presented with a plaque for the playground and proudly cut the ribbon to officially open the area.
The chosen design was interpreted into SketchUp, which is the specialist design software that we use, and it was then sent off to the school to tweak. We were then honoured to be able to help Barwick in Elmet Primary School raise £10,000 through the Awards for All scheme to contribute towards their new active learning zone.
Making use of the school's existing pond area, they now have a large wooden shelter, slip-resistant decked dipping platform and an adventure trim trail. The area has also been beautifully landscaped and looks fantastic.
The design was installed over the Christmas period of 2015 and is now ready to be opened this week. We can't wait!
For more information on our products and services, or to arrange a consultation to begin your new playground process, visit our website – www.play-scheme.co.uk, call 01904 60767, or email mail@play-scheme.co.uk.


text:
package org.jhaws.common.batch;

import java.io.Serializable;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.Date;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.stream.Collectors;

import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;

import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
import org.jhaws.common.lang.CollectionUtils8;

@XmlRootElement(name = "step")
public class BatchStep implements Serializable {
    private static final long serialVersionUID = -1875030147272862554L;

    private transient BatchStep parent;

    @XmlAttribute
    private String id;

    @XmlAttribute
    private String name;

    @XmlAttribute
    private BatchState state = BatchState.waiting;

    @XmlAttribute
    private int total = 0;

    @XmlAttribute
    private int progress = 0;

    @XmlAttribute
    private Date start;

    @XmlAttribute
    private Date end;

    @XmlAttribute
    private String info;

    // @XmlElement(name = "step")
    // @XmlElementWrapper(name = "steps")
    private List<BatchStep> steps;

    public BatchStep() {
        super();
    }

    public BatchStep(String id) {
        this.id = id;
        this.name = id;
    }

    public void progress() {
        progress++;
    }

    public BatchStep add(BatchStep step) {
        if (steps == null) steps = new ArrayList<>();
        step.parent = this;
        steps.add(step);
        total++;
        return step;
    }

    public String fullId() {
        List<BatchStep> stepsUp = new ArrayList<>();
        BatchStep current = this;
        while (current != null) {
            stepsUp.add(current);
            current = current.parent;
        }
        return CollectionUtils8.reverse(stepsUp.stream()).map(BatchStep::getId).map(s -> "[" + s + "]").collect(Collectors.joining("."));
    }

    public String getId() {
        return id;
    }

    public void setId(String id) {
        this.id = id;
    }

    public String getName() {
        return name;
    }

    public void setName(String name) {
        this.name = name;
    }

    public BatchState getState() {
        return state;
    }

    public void setState(BatchState state) {
        this.state = state;
    }

    public int getTotal() {
        return total;
    }

    public void setTotal(int total) {
        this.total = total;
    }

    public int getProgress() {
        return progress;
    }

    public void setProgress(int progress) {
        this.progress = progress;
    }

    public Date getStart() {
        return start;
    }

    public void setStart(Date start) {
        this.start = start;
    }

    public Date getEnd() {
        return end;
    }

    public void setEnd(Date end) {
        this.end = end;
    }

    public List<BatchStep> getSteps() {
        return steps == null ? Collections.emptyList() : Collections.unmodifiableList(steps);
    }

    public String getInfo() {
        return info;
    }

    public void setInfo(String info) {
        this.info = StringUtils.isBlank(info) ? null : /* StringEscapeUtils.escapeXml10( */info/* ) */;
    }

    @Override
    public String toString() {
        return "BatchStep[" + id + ":" + (total > 0 ? progress + "/" + total : "") + ":" + state + (steps == null ? "" : ":\n\t" + steps.stream().map(Object::toString).collect(Collectors.joining("\n\t")) + "\n") + "]";
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Pilli Pipa has being running dhow safaris since 1989. It is a small family owned company run by Selina and Harm Lutjeboer. Limited numbers and a safe, personal and professional service to its guests.
The owners of Pilli-Pipa, Harm and Selina, are both qualified PADI MSDT Dive Instructors and First Aid Instructors with numerous specialities. Selina has a BSc. Hons in Marine and Freshwater Biology and a Masters degree in Aquaculture from Stirling University. They have both worked as diving instructors in many countries including Jamaica, Thailand, Malta, England, Holland and Kenya before settling on Wasini Island. Harm speaks fluent Dutch, German and English while Selina speaks in French, German, Italian, Spanish, English and Kiswahili.
Harm takes care of the maintenance of engines and equipment, but still enjoys diving and on the odd occasion will lead dives. Selina dives more often and has a keen eye for spotting those difficult to see weird and wonderful creatures.
Snorkel with qualified marine guides who will teach and guide you along the reef whether you are a complete beginner or experienced snorkeler.
Limited numbers and personal service: For certified divers normally less than 3 divers per guide and maximum 6 divers per dive. Fun dives offered for those without certification or diving for the first time.
PADI and NAUI world recognised instruction. We teach PADI (Professional Association of Dive Instructors) courses from Open Water to Assistant Instructor.
We are a NAUI (National Association of Underwater Instructors) IDC (Instructor Development Course) centre and teach courses including NAUI Instructor and Instructor Trainer.
Kisite Marine Park is home to Dolphins and sightings occur on average 6 days out of 7.
Sumptuous sea food, fresh crab and fillet fish, or delicious grilled chicken or vegetarian all prepared Swahili style with a touch of finesse. All at Selina and Harm's private home.
The price includes transport to and from hotels, all equipment including fins, Kenya Wildlife Services Marine park fees, use of up to date snorkelling equipment, trained marine guides to assist, mineral water/tea/coffee and snacks on the dhow, a wonderful seafood lunch served with wine, beer, soft drinks.


SUPERSTAR names filled the Manchester United line-up against Burnley - but it was one of the lesser known faces who has come in for praise.
United started Romelu Lukaku, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba in the 2-2 draw with the Clarets.
Yet it was the display of Ashley Barnes, who led the Burnley line, which stood out most for the Match of the Day pundits.
Kevin Kilbane singled out the striker and paid tribute to his part in the match.
Kilbane said: "he's come in for Chris Wood - Chris Wood, of course, got injured against Tottenham - and I think there's two things that centre-forwards needs to do, particularly with the way Burnley do play at times.
"His hold-up play was excellent in tight situations as well and creating chances for others off the back of it.
"But the way Burnley do play, the way they defend so deep, you're relying on your striker to get hold of the ball and take a few touches to bring team-mates into play.
"I think he did it absolutely brilliant today - every single time making himself available.
"At times they weren't easy balls to control under pressure from centre-halves keeping hold of it."
"He then had the awareness to flick it on when he saw runners around him.
"His overall game today was very, very good - especially in the first half.
"It was an excellent display, a brilliant performance."


The dragonkin say, "Harkesh shines like gold in the sun," by which they mean it is both a treaure and a tremendous distraction from other things. The capital city is a province unto itself, and it includes most of the flatlands on the southern shore of the Mavressa Strait.
For all its warlike posturing involving continual campaigning on all fronts of the Mharoti Empire, the port of Harkesh, situated midway between the Middle Sea and the Ruby Sea is primarily a trading port, and traders and merchants are granted special Trade Permits, regardlesss of their origin. Harkesh is about ten times the size of Zobeck, with a population of 367,000 (115,000 dragonkin, 126,000 kobolds, 84,000 humans and 42,000 other).
Even within the political hierachy where lowly Jambuka are constantly mistreated, the presentation of a Trade Permit will go a long way toward dissuading random racial abuse or indiscrimate violence on the part of gangs and even some officials. Trade is essential to Harkesh, and Licensed Merchants within the city are protected by law….to a degree.
There are two seats of power in the city. The army, navy, port authorities and institutions of the Empire are ordered and controlled by the Dread Sultan Ozmir Al-Stragul from The Imperial Palace of the Eight Elements in the centre of the city, but the Province itself is actually ruled by Stardrake Satarah al-Beldestani, one of the ruling Morza, stationed in a grand palace on a hill at the eastern edge of the city, overlooking the River Sumarra. She continues to agitate for a new war with Nuria Natal but is also subject, under terms of the Morza agreement, to the will of the Dread Sultan.
The major religions in the city include the Four Winds of AZURAN, SEGGOTAN, VELES, BAAL and KHESPOTAN but there is also a Scriptorium of Thoth-Hermes, supported by priests of the Trade Emissary of Nuria Natal. This is officially a Hall of Records but unofficially also a place of worship, although it is generally considered blasphemy to worship any NON DRAGON gods or even infer that they are masks of other gods.
A walled ghetto for non-scaly folk, and where most Septime and Nuria visitors stay. The Triolan merchant houses all maintain warehouses here, even in times of war. The warehouses are occasionally looted by angry mobs of dragonkin or kobolds when a Triolan fleet commits some impertinence. The quarter was most recently attacked (and partly burned) a few years ago, when the news of the Battle of Seggotan's Tears reached the city.
The party have their home base in this sector, although their shop where they deal and sell diamonds and other valuable gems is in THE OLD WALLED CITY, just north of the river. A copy of the party's Trade Permit is on permanent display on the front door of the property, so there is usually no trouble; although such presentation is worthless in the eyes of an angry mob.
There are not many of the local Jambuka that stay here, although some merchants do keep slaves and servants taken from the local non-scaly population. As a ghetto, the Quarter is generally left alone by the authorities unless they are looking for something specifically or if there is some other need to enter. There are a couple of food supply shops and three popular taverns. Soft skinned drunkards roaming the streets are generally left to their own devices, unless they wander outside of the ghetto, in which case they are usually arrested, and quite often, disappear for ever.
The party's accommodation is a ramshackle house of three floors with many small rooms, one of which is a large lounge on the ground floor. The doors and locks are strong and the windows have strong bars to prevent intruders. The neighbours to the left are a group of merchants from Triolo dealing in rope and sailcloth, which they trade in the market for money, jewels and exotic spices. They are careful not to deal openly in weapons, although it is whispered within the ghetto that they have some of the finest crossbows available. The neighbours to the right are a group of mainly human merchants from Nuria Natal, dealing in hemp, papyrus, jewels and magical scrolls. There are four large minotuars within the house, two of which are always on guard duty at their shop in the Grand Bazaar.
The highest authority in the Quarter is Governor Vladimir Potemkin who resides in the Imperial Palace but runs offices from within the Ghetto. These offices are permanently staffed with a few Sekban and Kobaldi troops and led by one of three captains.
This distinctly inhospitable walled area in the central city near to the port is where most newcomers arriving without a Trade Permit are made to stay until their paperwork is sorted out. It is predominantly for Jambuka but foreign Kobaldi and Sekban are also made to stay here on arrival. For some, like those poor souls with no wealth, no contacts and no way of acquiring a Trade Permit, the place can become a more permanent residence.
The Ghetto has fresh water served via aqueduct and the sewers are good, but residences are small and dilapidated, rents and other services are highly priced, and access is very restricted. No passage through the gates is permitted at night. Day Passes are rare but are sometimes granted for those who need to arrange permits, travel to their ships, or attend the The Grand Bazaar or Mustering Square and these are recognised by officials in the city, but do not have the same status as Trade Permits. Generally, there seems to be an unspoken rule that Day Pass Holders are kept waiting, bullied and generally treated harshly, although not too harshly – it is also recognised by officials that many of the Day Pass Holders will soon gain Trade Permits and that some of them may yet become powerful or important traders and merchants.
There is a large Guardroom Area at the Ghetto entrance staffed with a fair number of dragonkin soldiers and administered by some of the most irritating kobolds in the Empire. Chief Official is the dragon-blooded human Commissioner, Rosa Klebb. Her Kobaldi officers are specialists at drawing out proceedures, copying pages in triplicate (slowly and accurately) and generally making sure that people go to the back of the queue at least once per visit. See Onzeen Orbeyes.
The kobolds are guarded by grumpy dragonkin guards who hate their posting and so are quite happy to take out their frustrations on unco-operative customers if need be, particularly if asked to do so by the kobold officials.
Inside the Ghetto, facilities are generally poor but there is one lowly tavern, Seggotan's Rear, a place of high prices, low mirth, poor ale, dubious company and disgusting food.
Every so often, there are sweeps through the town by bored guards who go out of their way to look for trouble and are happy to make arrests. There is a kangaroo court run by the kobold magistrate Delilah Ali, who officiates on "non serious" matters and generally hinders ghetto inhabitants from getting what they want through short periods of arrest, general confiscation of rights and properties, and of course, witholding of permits and official papers. For more serious crimes like murder, the perpetrators are either killed or turned over to the City Watch.
The Grand Bazaar is one of the most essential areas in this vast trading city and is situated in the central area near the harbour on the north bank of the River Sumarra. All manner of goods are for sale here in a busy port where Rubeshi slave-pirates rub shoulders with Nurian smiths, Bemmean apprentices and Triolan merchants.
The huge population of the city dictates that it depends on the other provinces to feed it, with huge grain shipments arriving daily from Marea and from Nuria, and herds of sheep and goats driven down from pastures in the Dragoncoil Mountains throughout most of the year. Steel, copper, gems, ceramics, straw, fodder and leather: everything comes to Harkesh in vast quantities , and even fresh water is pipes in via aqueduct to supplement the output of its many springs.
Most of the trade is to be done in the Bazaar at establishments like "Flights of Fancy", specialising in flying creatures and flying magic, "Home and Hearth", catering to the everyday needs of citizens through sales of all manner of miscellaneous mechanical appliances, "Key of the City", the foremost locksmith, and "Away in a Manger", selling farming supplies to the discerning agriculturalist.
However, most organic materials are traded at the Mustering Square near to the south wall of the city. This enormous field where the Dread Sultan and high priests bless the armies each year before the spring campaign, doubles up to offer an open-air market at all other times of the year for fresh produce, animals and slaves.
Sale of weapons is highly regulated within the city and most trade from outside of the city needs to be conducted by scrupulously scrutinised license holders, very few of which are Jambuka. Most of the weaponry of the Empire is stored in the Arsenal of Mharot on the south bank of the River Sumarra, just opposite the Grand Bazaar. This place is heavily guarded, heavily warded and never empty. The Arsenal's Quartermaster is the meticulous and cautious Berkant Sumezze, a flame dragon friend of both the Dread Sultan and Castellan Satarah.
Most of the city inhabitants will worship one of the Four Winds of AZURAN, or one of either BAAL, KHESPOTAN or SEGGOTAN. It is illegal to worship any non dragon god, and blasphemy to even suggest that any of these gods will mask themselves as one of the "soft-skinned deities". Anyone who does worship one of these had better keep quiet about it, for the penalties of discovery are heavy and may even include death. There are other regions in the Dragon Empire, for example Marea and the Islands, where worship of "soft-skinned deities" is permitted, but Harkesh is not one of those places.
Within the Scriptorium of Thoth-Hermes, secret worship of THOTH-HERMES is encouraged by The Brotherhood and even secret worship of other gods is permitted, and there are special rooms put aside to allow for this. There are even priests of Thoth-Hermes working within the Triolan Quarter, although they are not flambouyant, and keep their symbols hidden when walking through the city at large. The whole centre of the Scriptorium exists more as a library and place of learning and culture, and the veil is pretty much accepted by the authorities. Triolan Quarter Governor, Vladimir Potemkin is literally paid to look the other way, and even Captain Temujin Khitai will not dare to open that can of worms. So, unless someone openly calls upon a non dragon god in public, no action is likely to be taken within the Triolan Quarter. This may not be true in the rest of the city, however, and any priest of THOTH-HERMES would be wise to keep holy symbols and holy utterances hidden.
The names of the priests of THOTH-HERMES are kept hidden but Jambuka visiting the Scriptorum will be able to access some of the Adepts who can refer any followers to the Higher Level Priests if required. Most of these will have some kind of "dragon god" disguise if forced to work abroad in the city, especially if this occurs outside of the Triolan Quarter.
Of course, there is even worship of darker gods like MAMMON, VARDESIAN and NAKRESH THE FORTY FINGERED, but worship of such gods is even frowned upon within the Scriptorium, and it will be hard for any worshippers of such gods to find priests who will administer to them.
For further details of the Gods of the Dragon Empire, see Deities and Powers.
The League of Lizards, commonly known as "The LL" is a branch of Secret Police run by the Dread Sultan, primarily aimed at keeping the lower races under control and free from uprising. They are particularly harsh on Jambuka but they are masters of infiltration and it is said that many Jambuka are hired to work as double agents in other secret societies. The members try never to reveal themselves, so most arrests will be made at night in secret. The head of The LL is known to be Colonel Henry Bimla, a high ranking dragonkin of the Akinji caste, based in The Imperial Palace of the Eight Elements.
The Dread Sultan has many tiers of spies, but some of the tiers dedicated to keeping control in the highter caste groups, keeping watch on soldiers, and infiltrating the great royal houses, should not have much effect on the player characters, suffice to know that anyone carrying a SEAL OF THE SULTAN should be obeyed, and probably avoided, if possible.
The Cold Diggers Union is a largely kobold society, but although there are dragonkin and soft-skinned members, the society's main aim is the preservation and uplifting of kobolds. The group has a section called the Tender Wing, which runs the seedier sides of operation, where sheer profit is more of a consideration.
Cousins is the name of the clandestine group run by the Brotherhood of The Scriptorium of Thoth-Hermes in the Triolan Quarter. They are primarily brokers of information, but these erudite agents effectively also envelope a "parcel of rogues" that operate throughout Harkesh.
The Merchants of Venice is a group of rogues more akin to the usual Thieves' Guilds, like The Cloven Nine in Zobeck, or The Sand Corsairs in Siwal. It is run by a group of merchants and traders in the Triolan Quarter who prefer to remain unnamed, but contact can usually be made with the group by quoting poetry in Ye Olde Salty Snail.
The Mharoti Empire is a draconic empire: founded by dragons, run by dragons for their enrichment, vastly powerful, and focused around the scaly races, not humans. Humans are the underclass among the Mharoti. They are mostly farmers, miners, artisans on occasion, and, particularly in the trading city of Harkesh, traders and merchants, although some also serve as loyal servants within the draconic noble houses. None of them are members of ruling castes, with one great exception. The Sultanate and the system of human and dragonkin viziers and satraps was put in place because dragons considered it a tiresome administrative chore to run an empire, and because none of the dragons could trust the others to rule fairly. These humans were the public face of the empire to human kingdoms and the sultan's relatives were its diplomats, messengers, and figureheads.
The recent elevation of a dragonkin to the post of Dread Sultan seems to the dragons of the realm very little of a fuss (it's still not one of them in charge, which is what matters). To the Jambuka of the Empire, though, it is a bit chilling to see the scaled folk seize another office and position of authority. Combined with the rapacious new taxes levied by Kah-Vizier Zeki Hasan Al-Eski to fund the sultan's new fleets and armies, and greater demands from the provincial Morza for conscripts, levies and work gangs, the lower classes of the Empire are feeling "the pinch" of the Empire's greatness.
The Great Caste System is strictly adhered to and all of the city's inhabitants are expected to know their place in it: Morza, Urmanli, Timarli, Akinji, Edjet, Sekban, Kobalidi and Jambuka, with Jambuka or "soft-skinned" being the lowest of the low, unless elevated by position of Sultan or Satrap. It is worth noting that in the City of Harkesh, and it could be argued, even in other parts of the Empire, where there is great emphasis on trade, possession of a Trading Permit gives great advantage, although it does nothing to change the status of a person within the hierachy. Such Licenses create "blurred lines" when dealing with authority, because the Dread Sultan decrees that trade must continue, even over and above minor caste disputes. Generally, lower level soldiers and officers, will not interfere with the sanctity of a Trading Permit where minor skirmishes are concerned, but Higher Level Officers may not be so easily dissuaded from pursuing their own racist judgements and decrees.
There is a large building of holding cells near the gate of the ghetto, where those found guilty are imprisoned after sentencing. All sentencing is carried out by the chief official, Her Royal Magistrate Delilah Ali and sentences usually amount to extra time spent in prison, tedious labour, counting rice grains, and, in some cases, lashes; although this is usually avoided, as the primary function of the kangaroo court is to waste time and irritate people, to soften up foreigners before processing them into the system, but not to harm those who may later turn out to be important members of the trading society.


<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Pakistan.
Just a few lines. I've just remembered birthdays, so I enclose one cheque, half each for Rosie and Mum. I'm running out of cheques, that's why.
Good flight, as usual. However, I leave again in two days' time for Mogadishu. Karachi is great. I've got a film and I'll take some shots before I leave, then probably post the film to you, in case of any trouble in Somalia (they will think I'm a spy).
I've been pretty busy, as usual, though Monday night I went to see a movie at the British Consulate, 'The National Health', Lynn Redgrave, Jim Dale, Eleanor Bron. Pretty good. Funny.
Top: Karachi street scene. Second: these motorised trikes are lethal; you have to be quick. Third: really fresh spices. Bottom: me, pretending to be cool.


Looking back on Megan and Kyle's wedding from this Spring still makes us smile!
We love how this couple took inspiration from the property's natural rustic character and ran with it. From the wildflower-inspired bouquets to the lush greenery "chandeliers", every element came together flawlessly. Megan and Kyle tied the knot in the Woodland Chapel, then welcomed guests to celebrate in the tent. As most memorable weddings here at Hardy Farm do, the evening ended with a dance party in the barn.
Congratulations Megan and Kyle! Thank you for sharing your special day with us.