fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Downer trials blockchain technology to improve customer experience
By: Statecraft Tech
Tags: Blockchain, Construction, Management, Customer Experience, News

Image source：Statecraft

【 Published by Mining Technology| Editor: Mining Technology 】

Engineering and construction company Downer Group has announced that it is trialling new blockchain technology ‘to manage complex shutdown’ as well as ‘turnaround maintenance work’.

The company claims trialling this technology is the first-of-its-kind in Australia for the asset services industry.

Downer’s ‘Asset Services’ business performs over 130 shutdowns and turnarounds every year for customers across the industrial sectors. It is currently trialling the use of blockchain technology.

Blockchain can enhance efficiency and security, as well as create transparency in contract management. The technology benefits both delivery partners and customers.

Downer is trialling the blockchain technology to manage complex shutdowns. / Source: Downer Group

Downer’s Asset Services business executive general manager Pat Burke noted that the trial is one of the ways that the engineering firm is looking to improve its customer experience.

Burke added: “A key factor in the successful management of large maintenance outages is having real-time information regarding asset condition, time, cost and schedule that allows fully informed decision making during the actual execution of major and minor works.
The Great and Powerful Pause
Tags: Self Care, Mindfulness, Mental Health, Meditation, Life

The Great and Powerful Pause

Spend a magic minute with me

Photo by Christopher Campbell on Unsplash

Okay, so you’ve been around the block a few times and you already know all about the benefits of calming your mind, am I right?

Well, here’s a quickie refresher just in case:

~Lowers stress and anxiety ~Improves focus ~Improves self-awareness ~Improves self-confidence ~Slows you down a bit, allowing you to appreciate the moment fully

I’ve been a meditator my whole life and a daily yogini for several years now. I’ll write more on the subject in the future, but for now, I just want to let you know that I’m speaking first hand when I say, getting to a place where you can live in harmony with your active minds and not let it lead you around like it’s the boss of you, well, that is a beautiful place to be. I want that for you.

“Knowing yourself is to be rooted in Being, instead of lost in your mind.” ― Eckhart Tolle

I made this video a while back. I use a glitter jar in this but you don’t need one to join me. The video is only 3 minutes and the meditation is only 1.

So, let’s take a great and powerful pause together, what do ya say?

I mention my old website in this video — dogoodstuff.org — I don’t have that anymore. I moved it over to a Facebook page.

Thanks for breathing with me.

💌 Sign up for Annie’s monthly newsletter, What I Liked, Wrote & Drew
How to set up your own newsletter for free
By: Gianmarco Ebeling
Tags: API, Programming, Newsletter, Web Development, MailChimp

Newsletters are a powerful marketing tool to promote a product, articles, or just to attract traffic to your website. In this article, I will show you how to build a newsletter web application for free! If you get stuck, don’t worry! I will provide you with the whole code at the end of each section.

Before we get started

Our application will be composed of a sign-up page that will be connected to Mailchimp’s servers via their API. For those readers who are not familiar with it, Mailchimp is a marketing automation platform and an email marketing service. To create an account navigate to Mailchimp’s signup page and click on ‘Sign Up Free’.

Enough talk… let’s code!
Pretend
By: Saugat Acharya
Tags: Haiku, Smile, Poetry, Love, Relationships

Six Years of poetry-only publishing, PoetsUnlimited was a diverse, engaging and authentic poetry magazine. For most of that time a daily publication, it was always diverse and original, and free-to-read by all.

Follow
The toddler started daycare today, so I get my life back… right?
By: Tiffany Antone
Tags: Humor, Motherhood, Productivity, Anxiety, Parenting

I have an article due, a script to work on, laundry to wash, and books to read. I have a bedroom wall to paint, and weeds to pull. I have groceries to buy, and recipes to experiment with. I have boxes to unpack and a syllabus to write. I HAVE SO MANY THINGS TO DO…

Which is why, when we decide to start our son in daycare a few weeks before starting our new teaching jobs, I was flooded with an exhilarating combination of elation and optimism. It was going to be the beginning of a Productivity PARTAAAYYYYY!!!!

I mean, after 2.5 years of basically being a SAHM while also being a part-time professor, while ALSO being a working artist, I was going to have an entire day off from parenting!

Which means, being the super task-master I am, I was SUPER pumped about the sheer number of tasks I was going to check off my to-do list!

But… something… went… sideways.

It’s like, I walked out of the daycare and suddenly the extra appendage I was excited to take a wee break from was ALL I COULD THINK ABOUT.

We had a breakfast meeting that took my mind off the little person not poking me in the ribs as I ate my bagel for a little while… but not long enough. We tried to run some errands, but all I could think about was “Is Finn having fun? Is he eating his lunch? Will he sleep alright without me there to snuggle him? IS ME REAL WITHOUT BAB-AAAAAY AT MY SIDE?”

You guys.

You guys…

I was not prepared.

I got nothing done.

I watched the clock and obsessively counted the minutes until I felt a reasonably non-obsessive amount of time had passed so I could suggest, with unconvincing casualness, “Maybe we should pick him up?” to my husband.

My husband, smart human that he is, knew that I was really saying “Let’s go get the baby NOW because I am LOSING MY SHIT!”

And that little moppet was having so much fun, so much FUN… he immediately asked when he would get to come back.

Which is the moment I was finally, thankfully, able to breathe.

Photo by Fabian Møller on Unsplash

It’s also the moment I realized that I had been holding my breath all day long…

But it’s the moment I realized I can indeed get started on that to-do list, without guilt and anxiety, tomorrow. Because my little dude is so ready for daycare.

Even if I’m emotionally a little less than ready myself.
The Blue End
By: Eden Kunter
Tags: Poetry Writing, Poetry, Poetry On Medium, Poetry Sunday, Poem

The Blue End

Poem

Photo by Fuu J on Unsplash

Algae’s scream

In the pillar of my soul

As sounds moved by

To my shores

Children of the blue

Know it like the back of their hand

That is running away

Is just returning in another way

When it falls on my last day

In the coyest wave

“How would you know her?” Father will ask

“She was the blue “

Answer with line one true.
Travel to the Mountain and Shout
By: Brenda Mahler
Tags: Poems, Poetry, Covid 19, Coronavirus, Faces Of Covid

Travel to the Mountain and Shout

A poem that places a Face on Coronavirus #5

Photo by Alfred Aloushy on Unsplash

I met Glyn on a Facebook page for retired teachers. She volunteered to participate in a project to put a face on COVID. These are her thoughts formed into a poem.

Click her to read the poem in its entirety.
AI Forum 2018 in San Francisco[Sep 21st, 2018]
By: Federico Gobbi
Tags: AI, Deep Learning, Marketing, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning

AI Forum 2018 in San Francisco[Sep 21st, 2018]

ORGANIZED BY #ZILLOWGROUP

JOIN THE AI FORUM 2018 AT THIS LINK: http://events.zillowgroup.com/aiforum2018

WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

A collection of AI thought leaders for a full day of learning and networking. This intimate gathering will explore what’s new in the field of AI and deep learning. Learn from experts representing some of the nation’s largest and most cutting-edge tech companies, including Airbnb, AI2, Amazon, Kaggle, Netflix, Uber, and Zillow.

Breakfast, networking lunch and a happy hour are all hosted by Zillow Group. The Zillow Group AI Forum 2018 is a free event, but space is limited. Please register today.

There will be some door prizes and awesome swag. Do not miss this exciting and innovative event!

WHERE?

Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center

505 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA, 94105

AGENDA

Please check back for periodic updates as speakers and session details are released.

8:00–9:00am

Breakfast and welcome from Zillow Group executives in Gallery

9:00am — 12:15pm

AI morning sessions in the Gallery

Digital Marketing and AI — Mario A. Vinasco, Marketing Analytics, Uber

Deep Learning in Predicting Ad Click Desires — Hayden Liu, Author

- AI Organizations and Job Titles fireside chat with:

Dr. Elena Grewal, Head of Data Science, #Airbnb

Jasjeet Thind, VP, Artificial Intelligence, Zillow Group

Vasi Philomin, GM, #AmazonAI

- Recommendation Systems — Jaya Kawale, Sr. Research Scientist, Netflix and Fernando Amat, Sr. Research Engineer, Netflix

12:15–1:15pm

Networking lunch in the Innovation Hub

1:15–4:30pm

AI afternoon sessions, and fireside chat in the Gallery

- Semantic Search and NLP — Khalifed Al Jadda, Lead Data Scientist, CareerBuilder

- Chatbots — Andy Mauro, CEO and Erdem Ozcan, Chief Scientist, Automat

- Voice AI — Vasi Philomin, GM Amazon AI

- The Future of AI fireside chat with:

- Oren Etzioni, CEO, AI2

- Anthony Goldbloom, CEO, Kaggle

- Stan Humphries, CAO, Zillow Group

4:30–5:30pm

Happy hour and conversation in the Innovation Hub

SPEAKERS
10 Websites That Pay You for Your Writing
By: Maryam Merchant
Tags: Freelancing, Marketing, Inspiration, Writing, Creativity

10 Websites That Pay You for Your Writing

Write articles and get paid for your writing

Photo by Daria Shevtsova from Pexels

As a writer, we can’t always rely on one platform. We all want to surf and get used to the competitive world. As every article I read about writing from top writers of Medium says, don’t put all eggs in one basket.

It means we need to look for other freelance writing platforms as well. So if you want writing as a career or as a side hustle, then you need to mold yourself and, side by side, start looking at other freelance writing gigs that pay you.

As a newbie, I found Medium two months back, and it’s one of the best platforms, which I am in love with. But I still want to try something outside of this platform, so I found these ten websites that pay a writer for writing articles. I just want to help you with that.
Flash Fiction Friday: “The Number of the Sexy Beast”
By: Joe Garza
Tags: Humor, Horror Fiction, Short Story, Horror, Flash Fiction

Flash Fiction Friday: “The Number of the Sexy Beast”

In this inaugural installment of The Snickering Skull’s Flash Fiction Friday, I take a crack at writing a humorous horror story that, in all honesty, kinda sucks. But at least it sucks in 50 words or fewer.

Anyway, enjoy!

Bobby crept into his teenage son’s bedroom late one night, ready to prove that he wasn’t the offspring of promiscuous demons.

Bobby gently scoured his son’s scalp for the “mark” until he felt several bumps.

He pulled them back to reveal a birthmark.

In the shape of the number “69”.
Sunset Boulepod
Tags: Humor, Cartoon, Movies, Celebrity, Comics

Written by

Almost famous cartoonist who laughs at her own jokes and hopes you will, too.
Our KYC Process Has Been Simplified
Tags: Announcements, Stably, Cryptocurrency, Fintech, Kyc

We are excited to announce that our KYC process has been simplified to make it easier for individuals to onboard with Stably. As of March 1, 2020, individuals no longer need to provide a valid proof of address for KYC verification. This means that any government-issued photo ID (e.g. driver license, passport) will be sufficient enough for you to open a free Stably account and start enjoying borderless stablecoin payments today!

To learn more, please visit: www.stably.io

— — — — —

Follow our Medium blog to stay up to date with all of our latest announcements.

Website | Twitter | Facebook |Telegram

Contact:

Legal: legal@stably.io

Press: marketing@stably.io

Exchanges or Market Makers: exchanges@stably.io

Partnerships: Amiya Diwan, CPO — amiya@stably.io

Investors: Kory Hoang, CEO — kory@stably.io
6 Costly Numpy Mistakes to Avoid in Python
By: Mohammad Ahmad
Tags: Tech, Python3, Python, Technology, Data Science

6 Costly Numpy Mistakes to Avoid in Python

Let’s learn from each others mistakes

Photo by Timothy Dykes on Unsplash

Numpy is one of the most central libraries to Python but we all make simple mistakes, or we even make those mistakes that we know we shouldn’t make but still haven’t really figured out how to broach the subject.

I’m a pretty average programmer and even now, I still fumble around with many problems that I face in Python . So with that in mind, I decided to write down what common problems we face and how to go about them.

It’s embarrassing to have lived through these: but here we go!
There Is No Noise in a Covid-19 Emergency Room
By: Camille Scribner
Tags: Health, Covid 19, Healthcare, Coronavirus, Hospital

There Is No Noise in a Covid-19 Emergency Room

Somehow I expected a pandemic to be louder

Ambulances lined up outside NYU Langone Health hospital on April 23, 2020. Photo: Noam Galai/Getty Images

Somehow I expected a pandemic to be louder. Explosions, screaming, sirens — dramatic sounds to let everyone know that Something. Bad. Is. Happening.

But this pandemic is silent.

The streets of New York are eerily quiet. I hear the sounds of birds chirping as I make my way to work — I am a doctor in the NYU emergency department. The subways are nearly empty. I look around at the remaining passengers and note that few are wearing masks or other protective clothing. They sit quietly, almost serene.

People who are struggling to breathe do not talk. They do not make noise.

I arrive at the hospital and am again struck by the lack of noise. Gone are the crying children and loud sounds of chatter. The usual trauma, headache, and abdominal pain patients have virtually disappeared. No one who can avoid the emergency room comes here now. Only the respiratory patients come. One after another — all with the same symptoms.

“Fever and respiratory distress.”

People who are struggling to breathe do not talk. They do not make noise. Each day more of the emergency department is converted into respiratory isolation units to care for them. The remaining patients with broken bones or chronic illness get shuffled to smaller and smaller sections of the department to make space for the expanding colony of those with respiratory distress.

The doctors and nurses caring for them quietly discuss whether and when to intubate. The sickest among them get quickly sedated, intubated, and sent to intensive care. Transport teams whisk them away in silence. There are no family members to talk with or comfort them. Visitors are not allowed in the isolation units.

The medical staff who get sick develop symptoms after they’ve gone home — invisibly. I hear about who is ill from the remaining nurses and doctors. We whisper about it at the work stations. We hear rumors of which colleagues have been admitted to the hospital for “fever and respiratory distress.” We scroll through the boards and remark in hushed voices about which of the patients admitted yesterday are still there and which ones have been taken off the ventilators.

It is now spring.

The sky is blue, trees are budding, and the parks fill with blooming flowers. As the weather gets warmer, I am reminded of years ago when I first learned to recognize a person who is drowning. Drowning is silent. There is no splashing. No cries for help. Every breath is precious. None can be spared.

This pandemic is silent.
Binance Academy
Tags: Binance, Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, News

Are you just as passionate about helping the progress of cryptocurrency and blockchain as we are? If so, join the Binance Education Initiative.

Binance strongly believes in the importance of free access to education.

With our upcoming educational platform, Binance plans to bring accurate, neutral, and entirely free information to the world.

To start things off, we’re putting out an open call to our users to participate. Create and submit your own educational video from the topics listed below and your video may be displayed on www.binance.com!
The Sound Just After
By: Many Roads
Tags: Nature, Poetry, Awareness, Karma, Spirituality

An irregular collection. Sometimes haiku, sometimes my own photos
Embrace the Editors
By: Samantha Lazar
Tags: Editors, Writing, Productivity, Publishing, Feedback

Embrace the Editors

Five Ways to Get Comfortable with Feedback

Photo by Adam Jang on Unsplash

We all know, as working writers, rejection is part of the business.

While it can break your heart to get your hard work denied, it is not the end of your writing career. I have had my fair share of rejection, and it always stings a little bit, but then I know that writing is my passion. It’s MY passion. Not everything I put out into the world will be received, nor liked by everyone.

So, thank the editors! There are many ways to think about being rejected.

The word reject comes from the Latin: rēicere, meaning “to throw back.” Yes, the word rejection brings up so many negative connotations. (Oy! The break-ups and the ghosters!) But throwing back can also mean: it’s back to you. The ball is in your court. Do something else with the writing. If a publication’s editor tells you the piece is not right for their readers at this time, it just means they are tossing your writing back to you.

If your work is denied, it could mean that it needs some grammar fixes. No big deal. Read your work OUT LOUD. Pay attention to your readability.

If you get some feedback about the wording or the organization of your ideas, thank your editor! This means they spent time really focused on your work. Even if it does not end up getting published, you got a teacher for a little while. Teachers are golden. They show up just when you need them. (At least that’s what I tell my students.)

Take the chance to ENJOY revision. Change things around and resubmit- or submit it to a publication where it might fit better!

You know already that failure is the best way to learn. Success happens when you keep trying. I am telling myself this. It’s hard. But you already know this. Keep writing!

Study the writing in the publications you love. If you want to publish there, spend the time getting to know your audience, and engage with the authors. Be humble and READ the requirements for submission. I know I have violated a publication’s SAME RULES more than twice. Some day I will learn. Ask for help. A lot of people are super supportive. I would not have been able to navigate this platform without the help of my writing tribe and the authors on Medium who make it easier to understand.

BONUS: There is room for us all! Our ideas are important. You never know what will inspire another person in this world.
Day 16: Intro to jQuery
By: Dylan Thorwaldson
Tags: Jquery, Learning To Code, JavaScript, Coding, Software Development

No, not you, Jake

First thing this morning we all presented our Pixel Art Makers. It was interesting and fun to see everyone’s different approach and different code, especially when we were all tasked with making pretty much the same thing. It goes to show you that in life, and definitely in programming, there is more than one way to skin a cat.

Hey little guy, it’s just an expression. Anyway, I presented my Art Maker first, which I was really thankful for because that meant I got to be the first to share all the struggles that most of us went through, and I got to ask questions about how to solve different issues that I hadn’t yet solved. I wouldn’t say my art maker was polished by any means, but I can honestly say I am proud of what I built. And it was so fun. Nerveracking, but so fun.

A little later into the day, our instructor Zubair took us through some slides on jQuery and introduced us to some of the power of the jQuery library.

We did an activity the rest of the afternoon where we attempted to build a calculator using jQuery. This seemed like a really good way to immediately put into practice the things we had just gone over in the slides. Luckily all the CSS and HTML was already done for the calculator, but none of the functionality had been added. That’s where we/jQuery comes in.

I’ve made some good progress on the calculator, but I’m also really glad it’s not due until Thursday.
What Recharge is to Consumers, Accepting Payments is to Merchants!
By: Sampad Swain
Tags: India, Payments, Ecommerce

Let me take you back to 2009–2010.

From 2009–10 onwards, we saw the meteoric rise of online mobile recharge companies. They gave the very impetus needed for consumers to try digital payments since the risk was low (avg. transaction was around Rs 100–150), existing ways to recharge a phone was cumbersome and it was a frequently repeated activity (2–4 times a month). Hence, convenience mattered.

This alone contributed to adding millions of transacting users who earlier were on the Internet browsing content, videos, news, music, networking etc. Once these set of users got used to paying online, they eventually graduated to making higher purchase across e-commerce, travel, food ordering etc websites with higher price-points as paying online became more predictable, reliable & convenient.

We are seeing same trend continue in case of small & micro merchants who are coming online to grow their business. Many get started on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest etc to showcase their catalog or offerings and use it their primary web-store.

Facebook advertising data shows that 5Mn small business owners are active in India out of 64Mn+ in total worldwide.

But accepting payments is still the biggest pain-point that one faces today since accepting online payments require you to manage a website or app, have technical ability to integrate APIs, physical paperwork — and that’s just the beginning.

At the same time, consumers are moving towards digital payment mechanisms with credit/debit card, net-banking, wallets etc. Hence, small & micro merchants can’t find a scalable way to accept digital payments.

Hence, our belief is that enabling small & micro merchants to accept online payment is analogous to consumers making an online recharge in India — more like a foot in the door. And that’s just a starting point…
How Examining My Website Stats Helped Me Overcome My Project Procrastination
By: Cathy Clarke
Tags: Work, Life Lessons, Productivity, Education, Leadership

How Examining My Website Stats Helped Me Overcome My Project Procrastination

“I’ll Do It Later” is no longer acceptable — here’s the mindset I’m using to get the project done

Stop Punting the Problem To The Future | Photo: Malvestida Magazine/Unsplash

In 2018 I decided to enter into the world of formal leadership by levelling up my qualifications. Over the course of year, I engaged with a variety of diverse, life changing, professional development. At the end of the formal courses, there was one more task to complete: the leadership inquiry practicum. No problem, except the fact that the timeline is flexible to accommodate the different projects.

Flexible Deadlines = My Achilles Heel.

As a theatre artist, there is always an opening night, a curtain that has to go up, and a grant deadline that is due. Flexibility is in my vocabulary for the creative process, not usually for deadlines.

At the time of writing, it’s May 2020. The practicum project was completed in June 2019. There is a three year window to complete the write-up, which means that I have until July 2021 to complete the final report.

And, it’s not like I don’t have the material. In fact, it’s all in a folder, ready to go. Reflections, done. Research, analyzed. Data, collected. Action plan, complete. It’s just the report, flexible deadline, and my tendency to procrastinate that is standing in my way.

I have decided that I need to apply my theatre training to complete the practicum report and combat my procrastination. Here’s how I’m going to do it in five steps:

Step One: External Motivation

Over the past week, I noticed a trend with the traffic statistics on my website. There have been consistent visitors to the practicum page over the past month, pushing the practicum material to be number two in visited content on the website.
2018 虛擬貨幣、比特幣投資懶人包
Tags: Cryptocurrency, Ethereum, Bitcoin, Investment, Tools

in Both Sides of the Table
The Art of Escaping Potential Death
By: Keno Ogbo
Tags: This Happened To Me, Life Lessons, Advice, Driving, Fear

The Art of Escaping Potential Death

A Tiny Life Moment of Escape

Image by pasja1000 on Pixabay

The Moment

Jesus, help me, save me. Get me off this motorway. Jesus spare my life. I am afraid. I cannot handle this.

I started off muttering to myself, the music blaring. Then the music became a distraction. I turned it off and prayed. This time aloud. Death if it happened would be a relief. If I survived an accident, it would be with life-altering injuries. The traffic on the road was way too fast, that dark rainy night.

I continued praying, this time loudly. Shouting in my car.

Jesus, help me, save me. Get me off this motorway. Jesus spare my life. I am afraid. I cannot handle this.

The Reflection

The four-lane motorway had no lights for the stretch between the A12 and the M11. Unlike American roads, the lanes were narrow. The outer lane had the usual queue of large international transporters (huge 16 wheeled lorries and low loaders). But wait, it was not the usual queue. It was very fast-moving red lights in the heavy rain.

Two minutes on the motorway, and I knew I was in trouble. The lorries in front of me sprayed the rainwater too fast for my wipers. I slowed down to avoid the spray, then looked in my rear window to see a fast-approaching lorry. I sped up, took my courage in my hands, and tried to overtake the lorry.

Couldn’t. It was speeding and the spray was too heavy. And lorries in front were pulling out in front, as drivers disregarded the rain overtaking slower lorries.

The fast lanes were empty.

So I pulled out into the lane closest to the central reservation far away from the lorries and stepped on my accelerator. Visibility was not great, and I could not risk crashing into the concrete separator, so I drove as fast as I possibly could.

Fast approaching lights. How could anyone be driving so fast on a dark motorway in the rain? But yes, they were.

Within seconds, cars furiously approaching, overtaking from the left (the UK is a right-hand drive). I glanced at my speedometer — 60 mph (96kph) the speed limit was 70mph (112kph). No wonder they were irate, I was way too slow for the fastest lane. I had to get off, or I could cause an accident.

I tried to get back to the slow lane, but they were not having it. The cars came fast and furious, the lorries kept speeding, the rain became heavier, no exit in sight. I was trapped.

That was when I started praying.

I kept praying until the next exit, about 12 minutes. It was not my exit, but I was leaving that death trap of a motorway. As I left, the lorries roared past. I did not care, I quit.

Lessons Learnt
My friend
By: Vidya Kasarla
Tags: Haiku, Birds, Friends, Poetry, Sunset

Haiku is a form of poetry usually inspired by nature, which embraces simplicity. We invite all poetry lovers to have a go at composing Haiku. Be warned. You could become addicted.

Follow
Troll
By: Drizia Bolaños
Tags: Pluma Manila, Poetry, Tagalog Poetry, Tula, Poem

This article is published by Pluma Manila, a Creative Platform for Everything Filipino. If you’re Filipino or Pinoy at heart, Be part of our team and share your craft with us. Maraming Salamat!

Write for us! Send us an Email: plumamanila@gmail.com
Quote Of The Day
By: Davide Metrangolo
Tags: Blog, Apple, iOS, Senza Categoria, Iphone7

We, as a species, are hooked up to focus on the short run, and we’re hooked up to seek popularity and avoid criticism. Choosing to do what you know will be unpopular in the short run but you believe will prove correct in the long run takes courage. Courage of one’s convictions, not courage running into a burning building to save a life, but courage nonetheless.
The Outlier
By: Robert Carlson
Tags: Blizzard, Snow, Cold, Winter, Pittsburgh

The Outlier

I was the outlier on my Oakland street in those 1960s. Of three boys who lived there I was the one of the right age, the right temperament and properly provisioned one to do all the chores and errands the adult residents needed to be done. Martin was too young to yield a snow shovel and David was older and too scholarly to bother. David was the prep school type whose father was a professor who published physics textbooks which I would years later use in my high school physics classes.



Shoveling snow in November through April in Oakland was my bread and butter enterprise in those years. I could start at the top of the street and work my way down to the bottom and make a dollar per house, maybe two if I were lucky and the snow was exceptionally deep.



Not everyone was open to paying for the luxury of having me clear their sidewalk for a dollar and their driveway for 2 dollars more. In actuality there were precious few driveways on that street and those that were were usually shared between two houses. That was always an exercise in diplomacy for collecting my fee.



Then there was the mean old woman at the bend of the street who never interacted with me or any other child other than when irrevocably encountered. My first Halloween on that street initiated my interaction with Miss Cranerd. Fully outfitted in my costume I bravely rang her door bell. She emerged in her horrific presence asking what I wanted. “It’s not Halloween. Go away.” I was scarred for life with that. Even my 1st Grade faux pas of showing up in costume a day early did not come up to the trauma of Miss C. telling my it was not Halloween. Twice now I had had Halloween guilts to live down.



Usually when I was prepping to go out for snow shoveling my mother told me to do Miss Cranerd’s sidewalk and she would pay me instead. I did not want to do it but mom explained that Miss C was all alone and really would appreciate having her walks cleared even if she would not pay for it.



In January of ’64 we had a really heavy snowfall and the digging was particularly strenuous. Most neighbors were happy for my services and paid well for the act. Miss C. was just as aloof as always and my dad handed me a Fiver. Doing her walkway and sidewalk became an every time affair even if I did not get paid. It made me feel good.
How To Survive Your First Traveling Experience
By: Reece Barclay
Tags: Culture, Travel, Life Lessons, Self Improvement, Life

Don’t do what I did.

Going traveling for the first time can be a nervous and adrenaline rush fueled experience. At least it was for me in 2016 when I started my journey in Bangkok. It all happens so fast when you touch down at the airport, flag for the taxi and then hope that the driver is friendly and the traffic isn’t to bad (the traffic was awful and the driver was a maniac). And then you get to your hostel/hotel and hope that everything goes smoothly (it rarely does).

Your life changing journey has begun.

But things never go as planned and they certainly did not for me. I jumped in head first, went to a busy hostel, partied with the first people I met and drunk far too much alcohol. I was trying to do everything at once and I wanted to be friendly with everyone, not making time for myself.

I remember, coming back to mainland Thailand after a quick couple days on an island called Ko Samet being hungover, burnt to a crisp and completely drained of all life. I felt like my traveling dream had been crushed and all I wanted to do was run home!

Why did I feel like this?

I had rushed into this experience way to fast because I was both excited and nervous and did not want to waste a single moment. This is a common mistake among travelers who are just starting out.

Learn to take it slow

It may feel like, because the world is at your fingertips, you have to go at a million miles per hour. But you really don’t. In fact, your probably missing out and letting things pass you by because you are not aware.

Taking it slow allows you too:

Engage with locals Learn the culture Discover new friends Discover yourself

If you are feeling anxious, stop and take a breath. Take a look around and remember that you are in another culture experiencing things that most people only dream of. Sit back relax and soak in the atmosphere. Don’t be afraid to chill out with a coffee and let time pass you by for a moment.

Don’t move on too quick

If you find a place you love then stay there. Don’t move on too quick. Sometimes plans have to be changed to accommodate taking it slow, because that is how you will most enjoy a place. You won’t regret staying too long but you may regret moving on too quick.

But still, definitely go traveling!

If you have that deep lying passion to go traveling then get out there and do it. It has changed my life and radically opened my mind to new ideas and possibilities in this world. Don’t waste any more time not preparing for your trip. Time can be wasted when you are at your destination, drinking your coconut on the beach.
Hot Tea, No Sympathy
By: Louise Foerster
Tags: Mother, Tea, Poetry, Children, Life

It’s tea or go to school.

Photo by David Mao on Unsplash

She never said “pull up your socks” — she was too kind to declare

A phrase she’d never heard, gentle her who never intended to be here

Doing this strained, strange life in a foreign land that never made sense to her.

What she did instead was serve steaming, hot tea — not tea so much as a noxious brew of milk-lavished black tea with jaunty tag dangling on the side

Daring us not to drink, exhorting us to do as we’re told or else.

I faced the tea and the tea faced me.

Once again, the not-really-sick faker was revealed by steaming horror

With a side of lightly toasted, barely margarine-spread white bread.

I sat on that kitchen bench, swinging miserable legs, and taking small sips

Wishing I had the nerve to spill it, to refuse to drink, to go back to bed

And hide from wrath, retribution, and return to wasting-my-time school.
New Year’s Resolutions
By: Virtual Mosque
Tags: Years, Resolutions, New

People make large resolutions at the new years, only to forget them a few weeks later. The Holy Quran tells us that even if we do an atom’s worth of good we will see a reward for it. So, if we make a small resolution and keep to it that is much more achievable and useful. We will benefit from it.

But a Muslim makes a resolution every time he prays and at the next prayer he checks how far he has succeeded in achieving what he resolved. So small changes which are possible are constantly reviewed are better.
Silhouette
Tags: Poetry, Poetry On Medium, Love, Dreamers, Literary Impulse

Silhouette

A free-verse poem

Vino Li on Unsplash

I feel you in my dreams, of that

I am certain.

I see you there,

Or Do I? Maybe only in fragments?

I hear you —

Your voice, which ebbs and comes back.

There — I could almost tell you would now say

Something funny,

And then hear your familiar laughter.

I am sure I smile a lot through these dreams.

Some other times, I see your hand, strumming

your guitar.

I feel I could almost touch your arm as you do so.

And you

Stealing a glance to see if I am

Still looking at you.

And in those dreams

I wish in desperation

To not lose the silhouette of you.

I wish that my eyes do not open,

Quite yet.

Because the only respite, I’d have afterward

Is to try and find you in my poems.

~ A big Thank you to the editorial team at Literary Impulse.
Xmas Morning Blackout
Tags: Music, Christmas

Xmas Morning Blackout

A Christmas Poem

Listen along.

It’s a 6 am morning on December twenty-five

And I’m barely alive

Late-night drunk debating

We were waiting

For the fat man

to hurry up and arrive.

And the little shits are screaming

At my door, they’ve been scheming

But they know —

It ain’t present time

Til daddy says…

I SAID!

Til’ daddy fucking says so.

Insane from the pain in the brain

Gotta clear the fog

Need a nip

Just a little tiny clip

Of the hair from last night’s dog.

But ho! Say hello!

On the bedside table,

With the black and white label,

Sweet whiskey brown

Slam it down

And now let’s…

Let’s fucking do this thing!

Another slug

And then the sweater

And I’m feeling so much better

And my halls are getting decked

And now the shampoo effect

And now I’m Christmas morning wrecked.

And now I’m blacking out

Christmas morning blacking out.

Under the tree we attack

Stacks and stacks

Rip the paper undone

Cause its your day,

And fuckin’ my day!

So let’s…

Let’s have some fuckin’ fun.

And the kids all squeal with joy

As we throw

Every shitty toy

From every aunt we hardly know

From the second floor window

Into the

Soft

White

Inviting

Snow.

The last thing I recall

Was a perfect snowball

Taking flight

Morning light

At my uptight

Asshole neighbor’s head.

He said:

“Joyous Noel and salutations!

Ha-ha

Gonna finally finish

putting up

those Christmas decorations?”

What I heard was the bird was stuffed

But the stuffing wasn’t nothing you could eat

Fucking shit

I thought that turkey stuffed with sweater

Would have tasted

So much better!

I told the mom-in-law to cheese it

Because the little baby Jesus

Was NO WAY born in December

They changed the date — I remember.

So let’s get pagan!

Where’s your sister?

Mistletoe, I tried to kiss her

Missed her,

Hit the floor

Rolled it through the guest room door

Like a drunken pile of bricks

That’s exactly where I woke up

On December twenty six.
The Toils of Software Development
By: Bob Roebling
Tags: Problem Solving, Programming, Failure, Education, Software Development

Fatigue

Mental fatigue is my worst enemy, probably more than any other toil of development. When you face fatigue, it’s hard to get started on new projects or complete existing projects because of the technical debt you’ve created for yourself that you now need to fix.

This kind of fatigue also comes about from working on many different projects, working in many different languages on the same project, or just working on a project in a language you don’t know. You overwork your thinking cap, and development slows to almost a grinding halt.

The best way to take care of fatigue is to do something else not related to development, better yet, computers period. Go outside and walk around the building for 15 minutes with someone else. It helps keep you distracted for a while and, if they are a developer, you can bounce ideas off of each other about how to solve an issue one of you might have.

When I’m at home, I might fire up a game I don’t have to think too hard about and play for about 30 minutes.
Protest or Demonstration — Which is it?
By: Jacquelyn Lynn
Tags: Grammar, Writing, Life Lessons, Protest, Creativity

There’s a lot of discussion about politically correct language these days. How about dropping “politically” and just using correct language?

Something that’s been bugging me in particular of late is that reporters and commentators need to learn the difference between a protest and a demonstration when they are covering large groups of people who gather together in response to events.

According to Dictionary.com*:

Demonstration: (noun) A public exhibition of the attitude of a group of persons toward a controversial issue, or other matter, made by picketing, parading, etc. Protest: (noun) An expression or declaration of objection, disapproval, or dissent, often in opposition to something a person is powerless to prevent or avoid.

When I originally wrote this for my blog in 2015, I used the following then-current events to make my point that what most reporters call “protests” and “protesters” are actually, in many cases, demonstrations staged by demonstrators.

After Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced that six officers would be charged in the death of Freddie Gray, people gathered to celebrate the news. Most of the people I saw on television supported the decision, so they weren’t protesting, they were demonstrating. Yet reporters kept referring to them as “protesters.”

Closer to home for me, the same thing happened during the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman saga. People who gathered to peacefully show support for one side or the other were frequently called protesters when in fact they were demonstrators.

It’s still happening in 2020, as protests, demonstrations, and riots occur almost daily across our country. My issue is not with the events — that’s a completely different discussion — it’s with how they’re described.

When I see news reporters making a mistake that is so simple and basic, I have to wonder what else about their report is flawed.

The one thing I agree with the PC police on is this: Words are powerful.

My message to reporters, journalists, anchors and commentators: Use words correctly so your message is clear and accurate.

*Note: both of these words have additional definitions. I shared the ones that are relevant to the point I’m making.
PayPal & Paxos Bring Crypto to Millions of Users
By: Charles Cascarilla
Tags: Bitcoin, Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, PayPal

I am very excited to announce that Paxos is powering PayPal’s new service enabling its US users to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency directly from their PayPal digital wallet. This news includes many firsts and has huge implications for the PayPal community, the crypto industry and, of course, Paxos.

For the PayPal community, today is the first time its users can purchase crypto assets directly from PayPal. PayPal is introducing the ability for its users to buy, hold and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin. To start, PayPal is offering this service to its US customers, then plans to add more geographies and features over time.

For the crypto industry, this news is significant because PayPal can drive increased awareness, education, adoption and utility for digital currencies. The PayPal global ecosystem has 346 million active accounts (including more than 26 million merchant accounts), and has the potential to significantly influence the size and reach of crypto markets in the years to come.

For Paxos, I’m extremely proud we built the platform that powers PayPal’s cryptocurrency service. PayPal shares our commitment to building an open, digital economy. We build infrastructure solutions specifically for institutions to access an open financial system, making Paxos uniquely prepared for projects of this scale. We believe what sets us apart is our turnkey, enterprise-grade technology and regulatory licensing.

Technology: Paxos Crypto Brokerage provides crypto custody and trading for PayPal. Our APIs allow PayPal to offer crypto services seamlessly within the PayPal app with its simple and intuitive user experience.

Regulatory Licensing: Paxos has pioneered a regulation-first approach in the crypto industry starting with securing the first Trust charter to custody and offer crypto- and blockchain-based digital assets. We’re achieving another regulatory first again today: through Paxos, PayPal has been granted the first virtual currency conditional license from the New York State Department of Financial Services. Our dedication to regulatory licensing and consumer asset protection directly enables our clients’ ability to provide crypto to their customers.

Blockchain technology has forever changed financial markets and the way we conceive of monetary assets, but is still in its early days. As companies like PayPal enter the space, they need a performant and trustworthy partner. We are proud to power this historic development in financial technology as we move society toward a brighter and open financial future.
With Love (A Haiku)
By: Jackie Ann
Tags: Haiku, Poetry, Poetry On Medium, Love, Contemporary Haiku

pixabay.com

Your heart will always

be safe with me. Let me fill

every scar with love.

© 2020 Jacqueline Ann
Habits For Health Are Habits For Power And Productivity
By: Christyl Rivers
Tags: Self Care, Nature, Productivity, Ecopsychology, Self Improvement

Habits For Health Are Habits For Power And Productivity

And, they help you make a better world

Habits for a Human Habitat

Psychologists recommend self-care for stress reduction. We also recommend connection to that which brings you the most contentment and calm in life. In my practice, ecopsychology, that is nature connection.

Habits that include time spent in life-affirming and sustaining environments re-energize, revitalize, and renew.

But any journey requires new habits. It often comes in the form of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, CBT, or almost any other behavioral efforts.

But what, exactly is self-care? What habits are going to succeed, what resolutions are going to stick?

The best way to make habits work for you is to make them routine. When we make every effort to tweak our routine, we are taking control, providing empowerment to self, and reinforcing a positive feedback loop that leads to productivity.

Productivity, at work, or at home, does not mean multi-tasking. It does not mean scrambling to get as many items off the “To Do” list as possible. It requires breaking everything down into manageable segments. This is best done with an assessment of your habits, and taking control of them to take control of your whole life.
Welcome to the World of Ashwin Sanghi — the Dan Brown of India
By: Shruthi Sundaram
Tags: Science Fiction, Review, History, Reading, Books

What I Loved about The book

You cannot guess the ending, and what is the connection between these two parallel stories, till the last 50 pages or so. It makes you sit at the edge of your seat, in anticipation of how the end will turn out.

The one fact I love about Ashwin’s books is his strong female protagonists. They are not the ones to be dealt with lightly, and Commander Paramjit Khurana (Pam) who is the main character of the book does not disappoint. She is roped into the investigation that is happening, and the fine balance that she gets between emotion and logic is truly amazing.

The book is packed with unexpected twists and turns, and the best part is, the author has not over complicated it — you will not get confused. It brings about the right amount of curiosity and anticipation and does not tire you out because of its complexity.

He finds a very fine balance, between science and history, which I have seen perfected only by one other author, Dan Brown. His shift between both the aspects of the book is beautiful.

The last 100 pages were the best. The author unfurls the secrets of the whole story, like peeling the skin of an onion. And every time one secret comes out, you would be like “Oh my god, really!”, because you would not have expected that at all.

The book had so many layers, in the story and the characters. That is what makes it so interesting. It was not just filled with information, but there was also emotion, politics, relationships and storyline, everything to the exact level necessary.

And as an Indian, the book made me proud. Because it made me realise that, there were reasons and science behind everything your ancestors did. My country had been so far ahead of the world in terms of research, science and development.