Worthy Battle

Big Boats

Another Fascinating Read

An Excerpt from the New Yorker -

Thresholds of Violence

How school shootings catch on.

BY MALCOLM GLADWELL

But Granovetter thought it was a mistake to focus on the decision-making processes of each rioter in isolation. In his view, a riot was not a collection of individuals, each of whom arrived independently at the decision to break windows. A riot was a social process, in which people did things in reaction to and in combination with those around them. Social processes are driven by our thresholds—which he defined as the number of people who need to be doing some activity before we agree to join them. In the elegant theoretical model Granovetter proposed, riots were started by people with a threshold of zero—instigators willing to throw a rock through a window at the slightest provocation. Then comes the person who will throw a rock if someone else goes first. He has a threshold of one. Next in is the person with the threshold of two. His qualms are overcome when he sees the instigator and the instigator’s accomplice. Next to him is someone with a threshold of three, who would never break windows and loot stores unless there were three people right in front of him who were already doing that—and so on up to the hundredth person, a righteous upstanding citizen who nonetheless could set his beliefs aside and grab a camera from the broken window of the electronics store if everyonearound him were grabbing cameras from the electronics store.

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/10/19/thresholds-of-violence

Bee Sanctuary

From Upworthy - An excerpt:

The Chicago O'Hare Airport ground crew is used to dealing with nature. They de-ice planes in the winter and roll over steaming hot runways in the summer.

As hearty Chicagoans, they felt ready for anything nature might send their way — that is, until a swarm of honeybees decided to perch near a flight gate one sunny afternoon.

The crew mulled over a few ideas for dealing with the buzzing mass of bees, including spraying them with a hose or dousing them with pesticides. But before any of these ideas could be put into action, the Sweet Beginnings team arrived, scooping up the swarm and its queen bee and whisking it away to be installed in a new hive.

The Sweet Beginnings team maintains 75 beehives in a remote field on the O'Hare property.

The program was initially created as job training for individuals returning from incarceration or with other barriers to employment.

The Sweet Beginnings team unveils hives on the grounds of O'Hare Airport, the largest airport apiary in the U.S. Photo provided by Sweet Beginnings, used with permission.

Aided by a local beekeeper and several environmental and social organizations, the North Lawndale Employment Network (NLEN) launched Sweet Beginnings in 2004. Their clientele began learning how to care for honeybees, extract and package honey, and infuse the honey into soaps and lotions.

By 2014, the enterprise had 131 hives throughout Chicago. 

Better yet, the program had trained 383 people in beekeeping, honey production, packaging, distribution logistics, and marketing.

Sweet Beginnings trainees learn everything from beekeeping to packaging, food safety to ecological awareness. Photo provided by Sweet Beginnings, used with permission.

In 2014 alone, Sweet Beginnings added 50 new hives, harvested over 1,600 pounds of honey, and employed 19 individuals (all of whom avoided reincarceration). That last measure, called the recidivism rate (or a relapse into criminal behavior) is a key performance indicator for Sweet Beginnings.

http://www.upworthy.com/theres-a-big-beehive-at-ohare-airport-its-keeping-people-out-of-jail?c=upw1&u=6861cbea6edfdfe5a709ee39ad3c14b64135e61f

Jump for joy: a wearable Made in the USA

Kinda steep at $125.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/vert/id750050884?mt=8

Sacramento Love!!!

From USA Today Travel -

Made in Sacramento: 30 flavors only found in the Capital City

by Anne Roderique-Jones, Special for USA TODAY | Published on October 12, 2015

Sacramento wasn't always known as a destination that offered trendy bone marrow starters, haute southern cuisine or craft cocktails. The Capital City once steered away from its deep agricultural roots — but that's becoming a thing of the past. Today, the region's chefs are taking full advantage of the 1.5 million acres of farmland that surround the city. Here, chefs can jump in the car and be within a five-minute drive of the farmers who are responsible for their produce, dairy or meats. Hops are grown just outside of downtown, and the area is home to more than 35 craft breweries. One can find a tony "carvery" or a notable hot spot serving zubaton — and that barely scratches the surface of the burgeoning food scene. Browse the gallery above for food and drink experiences you can only have in Sacramento, Calif.

Follow the link below to check out the slideshow.

http://experience.usatoday.com/food-and-wine/story/best-of-food-and-wine/2015/10/11/sacramento-homegrown-food-drink-experiences/73508522/?csp=travel

African-Americans + Rocket Science = Awesome

From The Root - 

This article features a slideshow that I couldn't figure out how to copy it.  Take a minute and check this out.  It's great news to start your day.

Yes, It Is Rocket Science, and African Americans Are Doing It

These 11 African Americans are leaders in their STEM fields, from video game technology to space exploration, setting an example for the kind of professional achievement that is possible.

http://www.theroot.com/articles/lists/2015/10/_11_african_americans_who_are_at_the_top_of_their_stem_fields.html?wpisrc=newsletter_jcr:content%26

Hope This Doesn't See the Light of Day

New Airbus Patent Would Stack Passengers on Top of Each Other

http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2015/10/09/airbus_files_patent_to_stack_airline_passengers_on_top_of_each_other.html

There is Power in Forgiveness

I know.

I know.

You've heard it all before.

I keep harping on it because I'm a living witness to the power of forgiveness.

I'm experiencing things I've never dreamed of, and I know, without a shadow of doubt, it's because I let go of all the nonsense, and made a decision to forgive and see the good in people.

If I could/can do it (Grudge Queen that I was), so can you.

~~~~~~~~~~

From The Huffington Post -

Six Considerations on the Road to Forgiveness
So what can you do to make that seemingly impossible step towards forgiveness and the better health and aging that comes with it?

1) Choose to end the negative effect of what happened. The transgression has occurred. But it's over only when you choose to forgive and move on. You have the power to keep the wound alive and make the negative event even more negative and destructive.

2) Realize that the transgressor most likely felt there was a good reason to do what they did. Yes, it may have been misguided, wrong or even insane, but it made sense to them at the time. Think about things you have done that hurt others. You can find compassion there.

3) Know also that you are the one who benefits most from forgiveness.Your health, your relationships, your life ... are rescued from certain decline.

4) If you're having trouble forgiving someone, try forgiving them just for one day at a time. This small taste of what forgiveness feels like will most likely lead you to more.

5) Remember to forgive yourself. Guilt and self-loathing are destructive, self-induced villains.

6) Realize life is filled with curve balls ... some deliberate, some not.Whether you strike out or stay in the game is up to you.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roger-landry-md-mph/steps-to-help-you-forgive_b_8245096.html

Minimum Wages Around the World

From Headlines & Business Insider - 

http://www.businessinsider.com/minimum-wage-around-the-world-2015-5

Cat Lover

Coffee

Today at our admin meeting, we were served Turkish Coffee, which is very thick and has a grainy texture the closer you get to the bottom of the cup, where the grinds have settled.  It's served in expresso-size cups, which is about half the size of a standard cup.  No sugar or cream is added.  It is very bitter.

Turkish Coffee

Arabic Coffee is different in texture and taste.  It looks like a cup of tea.  Brown in color.  About my complexion.  It's also served sans cream and sugar, so it's bitter as well.  The difference is, it's usually served with something sweet, like dates, cookies, candy, etc., so you're not left with a bitter taste in your mouth.  The serving size is about half of an expresso cup.  Really it amounts to a swig.

Arabic Coffee

The other coffee we have is Instant Nescafe.  American coffee is not brewed here, so you're outta luck unless you're fortunate enough to live near a Starbucks.  Thankfully, they're in most of the malls.  A cup of joe from there is truly a treat . . . a taste of home.  The most popular version of the coffee we do have is Nescafe 3-in-1, where the cream and sugar is already added for you in single serving packets.  We also have the original version, where you add your own cream and sugar.

A favorite of most folks.

Original flavor.

What was really interesting was a sidebar conversation a colleague and I had where he shared a tale about the discovery of coffee centuries ago.  According to legend, coffee was discovered in Yemen by a shepherd who noticed his goats stayed awake when munching on the coffee shrubs.  So, he tried munching on them, too.  First raw, then roasted and boiled.  Eureka!  Coffee as we know it was born.

I looked it up, and there seems to be a good measure of truth to this tale.

http://www.ncausa.org/About-Coffee/History-of-Coffee

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_coffee

Sisters Hanging Out

Zadie = 4 yrs old; Theia = 4 months old

Help With HUGE Problem

Welcome assistance is here now with this issue that greatly impacts student achievement.  I could've used this help at my last principalship where on any given day half of the 350 kids were absent.

~~~~~~~~~~

From Essence - 

White House Launches Initiative to Increase School Attendance Nationwide

Taylor Lewis

The White House has announced a new approach to slashing the nation's dropout rates.

Earlier today, officials launched Every Student, Every Day, a new campaign aimed to increase schools' attendance rates and combat the chronic absenteeism.

"Great teachers matter, great principals matter, but they can't work their magic if our babies aren't in school," Education Secretary Arne Duncan said at a press conference.

Statistics show that a student is more likely to drop out of school when they miss 10 percent—approximately 18 days—of the school year, regardless of whether those absences were excused. Even if those students stay in school, they are more likely to struggle academically.

The Obama administration announced that as a first step, it would begin tracking and publishing attendance rates of school districts nationwide to raise awareness. Additional details of the program have not yet been unveiled.

"I really think it is about saving kids' lives," Duncan said. "If kids are missing a month of school or two months or three months, there is nothing positive that can come of that.”

http://www.essence.com/2015/10/07/white-house-launches-initiative-increase-school-attendance-nationwide

Math Bedtime Stories

From News360 -

This app, Math Bedtime Stories, has proven to be effective in reducing math anxiety, and improving math proficiency in kids.  Read all about it below.

http://news360.com/article/316063858

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bedtime-math/id637910701?mt=8

Discovering Her Toes

This is Theia, grand daughter #3, making discoveries.  She's four months old.

What a cutie!

Car Repair App

From The Root -

We’ve all been there. We’re in a foreign place and something goes wrong with our car, and we’re stuck searching for a way to fix it before any further issue can arise—without being half extorted for our money for an emergency repair.

Well, now there’s an app for that.

GreaseMonkey Mobile LLC is the brainchild of Stephan Walters, who got the idea about two years ago after having his taillight go out when he moved up to Washington, D.C., from Florida. He called his mom to ask where he should go to get it fixed. She recommended Midas. Walters, however, wasn’t buying it.

“I said if I go to Midas, the first thing they’ll do is look at me and see I know nothing about cars because I don’t even know what to ask for, and they may jack up the price on me. I told her again I wish there was some way I could find other auto shops in my area so I could easily compare prices, so I can get the best bang for my buck, without having to worry about getting ripped off. A light bulb went off, and that’s when I kind of got the idea for GreaseMonkey,” Walters explains to The Root.

Walters describes GreaseMonkey as “an automotive app that connects drivers with small businesses within the auto-maintenance-and-repair industry.”

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/greasemonkey/id922562062?mt=8

http://www.theroot.com/articles/news/2015/10/how_a_car_s_breakdown_led_to_an_app_breakthrough.html?wpisrc=newsletter_jcr:content%26

You Never Know

From The Huffington Post - 

The following post, which was published on Craigslist Boston about two weeks ago, details the day a Vietnam veteran met a woman while wandering aimlessly in the rain.

~~~~~~~~~~

I met you in the rain on the last day of 1972, the same day I resolved to kill myself.

One week prior, at the behest of Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, I'd flown four B-52 sorties over Hanoi. I dropped forty-eight bombs. How many homes I destroyed, how many lives I ended, I'll never know. But in the eyes of my superiors, I had served my country honorably, and I was thusly discharged with such distinction.

And so on the morning of that New Year's Eve, I found myself in a barren studio apartment on Beacon and Hereford with a fifth of Tennessee rye and the pang of shame permeating the recesses of my soul. When the bottle was empty, I made for the door and vowed, upon returning, that I would retrieve the Smith & Wesson Model 15 from the closet and give myself the discharge I deserved.

I walked for hours. I looped around the Fenway before snaking back past Symphony Hall and up to Trinity Church. Then I roamed through the Common, scaled the hill with its golden dome, and meandered into that charming labyrinth divided by Hanover Street. By the time I reached the waterfront, a charcoal sky had opened and a drizzle became a shower. That shower soon gave way to a deluge. While the other pedestrians darted for awnings and lobbies, I trudged into the rain. I suppose I thought, or rather hoped, that it might wash away the patina of guilt that had coagulated around my heart. It didn't, of course, so I started back to the apartment.

And then I saw you.

You'd taken shelter under the balcony of the Old State House. You were wearing a teal ball gown, which appeared to me both regal and ridiculous. Your brown hair was matted to the right side of your face, and a galaxy of freckles dusted your shoulders. I'd never seen anything so beautiful.

When I joined you under the balcony, you looked at me with your big green eyes, and I could tell that you'd been crying. I asked if you were okay. You said you'd been better. I asked if you'd like to have a cup of coffee. You said only if I would join you. Before I could smile, you snatched my hand and led me on a dash through Downtown Crossing and into Neisner's. 

We sat at the counter of that five and dime and talked like old friends. We laughed as easily as we lamented, and you confessed over pecan pie that you were engaged to a man you didn't love, a banker from some line of Boston nobility. A Cabot, or maybe a Chaffee. Either way, his parents were hosting a soirée to ring in the New Year, hence the dress. 

For my part, I shared more of myself than I could have imagined possible at that time. I didn't mention Vietnam, but I got the sense that you could see there was a war waging inside me. Still, your eyes offered no pity, and I loved you for it.

After an hour or so, I excused myself to use the restroom. I remember consulting my reflection in the mirror. Wondering if I should kiss you, if I should tell you what I'd done from the cockpit of that bomber a week before, if I should return to the Smith & Wesson that waited for me. I decided, ultimately, that I was unworthy of the resuscitation this stranger in the teal ball gown had given me, and to turn my back on such sweet serendipity would be the real disgrace.

On the way back to the counter, my heart thumped in my chest like an angry judge's gavel, and a future -- our future -- flickered in my mind. But when I reached the stools, you were gone. No phone number. No note. Nothing.

As strangely as our union had begun, so too had it ended. I was devastated. I went back to Neisner's every day for a year, but I never saw you again. Ironically, the torture of your abandonment seemed to swallow my self-loathing, and the prospect of suicide was suddenly less appealing than the prospect of discovering what had happened in that restaurant. The truth is I never really stopped wondering.

I'm an old man now, and only recently did I recount this story to someone for the first time, a friend from the VFW. He suggested I look for you on Facebook. I told him I didn't know anything about Facebook, and all I knew about you was your first name and that you had lived in Boston once. And even if by some miracle I happened upon your profile, I'm not sure I would recognize you. Time is cruel that way.

This same friend has a particularly sentimental daughter. She's the one who led me here to Craigslist and these Missed Connections. But as I cast this virtual coin into the wishing well of the cosmos, it occurs to me, after a million what-ifs and a lifetime of lost sleep, that our connection wasn't missed at all.

You see, in these intervening forty-two years I've lived a good life. I've loved a good woman. I've raised a good man. I've seen the world. And I've forgiven myself. And you were the source of all of it. You breathed your spirit into my lungs one rainy afternoon, and you can't possibly imagine my gratitude.

I have hard days, too. My wife passed four years ago. My son, the year after. I cry a lot. Sometimes from the loneliness, sometimes I don't know why. Sometimes I can still smell the smoke over Hanoi. And then, a few dozen times a year, I'll receive a gift. The sky will glower, and the clouds will hide the sun, and the rain will begin to fall. And I'll remember.

So wherever you've been, wherever you are, and wherever you're going, know this: you're with me still.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/craigslist-missed-connection_56177218e4b0dbb8000df6d4

Celebrating Religious Diversity

From The National - 

UAE committed to bridging gap between faiths,

says Sheikh Nahyan at church rededication

ABU DHABI // Residents, ambassadors, and religious leaders gathered on Thursday for the rededication of St Andrew’s Church.

Seeing everyone together was a celebration of the country’s commitment towards development and progress, chief guest Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak, Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development, said.

“That shared commitment fosters the spirit of this country and calls for the intelligence, the talent, and creativity of its citizens and its residents alike.”

Sheikh Nahyan also paid his respects to the President, Sheikh Khalifa, for supporting different faiths.

“With his enlightened leadership, the UAE has committed itself to bridging the gap that separates people of different faiths.”

The Minister also passed on the greetings of the President and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, to the gathering.

Bishop Michael Lewis, the Anglican Bishop in Cyprus and the Gulf, who led the hour-long service, said he was pleased, as always, to visit the UAE.

“It’s always wonderful to come to the Emirates, particularly to Abu Dhabi, because Abu Dhabi and the church have always felt at home with one another.

“The presence of St Andrew’s Church is a long one here, and we’re delighted to be hosted in this Muslim majority country by the citizens and by the Ruling Family.” 

Also present was Rev Clive Windebank, chaplain of St Andrew’s Church from 2003 to 2010, who said the freedom to practise religion was very much appreciated.

The church was closed for nine months as renovations took place, said Rev Canon Andy Thompson, the chaplain.

Thursday’s rededication service had been much awaited, he said.

Built in 1984, the church has a weekly congregation of 10,000 to 15,000 worshippers.

Among the leaders present were Bishop Paul Hinder of the Roman Catholic Church, Pastor Cameron Arensen of the Evangelical Church, Rev Heejin Kang of the Korean Methodist Church, and Rev Moritz Drucker of the German Lutheran Church.

An Unlikely Canvas

http://www.upworthy.com/this-16-year-old-artist-uses-fallen-leaves-to-create-stunning-paintings?c=upw1&u=6861cbea6edfdfe5a709ee39ad3c14b64135e61f