“It’s nothing,” he assures one of his patients who complains of pain in her wrist. “It’s a sprained wrist. You did not break anything. Take it easy,” he orders brusquely. The lady he is talking to is well over 70. She says she did not do much of anything except lift baskets of wet laundry.

Another patient complains of a sore throat. A swab is clear. “It’s a virus. Stay home and it will go away. There is nothing I can give you. Antibiotics don’t help here. You can’t kill a virus,” he tells her. She explains that they are short staffed and that she has to go back to work. He looks at her sternly: “And I am telling you to stay home. Be kind to yourself and to those around you. Do what you must.” She asks if it is contagious and he waves his hand. “Of course it’s contagious.”

Dr. Dapena is the only physician on Grand Manan, an island off the coast of New Brunswick. That for 36 years this 74-year-old Spaniard has alone served the island’s 2700 residents is a reflection of the almost impossible task remote and rural communities face: finding and keeping family physicians.

For 36 years islanders of Grand Manan have been able to count on Dr. Dapena to treat their ills and listen to their complaints. But retirement is looming. At the very least, Dr. Dapena would like to work fewer hours. But how to find a replacement?

That few of today’s family physicians are willing to work the demanding hours of old-style physicians like Dr. Dapena is readily acknowledged by the Dean of Medicine at Memorial University in St. John’s Newfoundland, Dr. James Rourke.

“[In a rural setting] you get into a lot more involved medicine It’s very dynamic and very challenging,” he said.

For that reason there aren’t many medical students graduating today who plan to work in rural areas.
Forty years ago Dr. Dapena certainly had no plans of staying on Grand Manan for the rest of his life. “I planned to stay for one year,” he recalls with a chuckle.

Dr. Dapena arrived in North America in the sixties as a young medical doctor. He opened his practice in New York, but in 1967 he accepted an offer to work in Fredericton. After two years he obtained his Canadian license. Almost immediately, he was asked to practice on Grand Manan for a year.

“Then I met my future wife on Grand Manan. I got married and from then on...”

The islanders, who pronounce his name with a long e (Da-peen-a) instead of the open Spanish version (Da-pen-a), speak with affection of their only doctor for almost forty years. But the relationship between islanders and their only doctor can sometimes be ambivalent. “He might not be my favourite doctor, but he is loyal to the island and that is a lot,” says Burt Green, lobster fisherman and patient.

The line that separates a doctor’s work and his personal life in a remote area is thin: Dr. Dapena rarely leaves the island for longer than a day at a time; he can recall the medical history of virtually every person who lives on the island.

“I know everybody here. As a matter of fact, I have all sorts of charts on every person, but I think I have everyone in my mind,” he says. “You see everything here. Everything that you would see in a big city. All kinds of traumas, accidents, everything.” He is thoughtful for a moment and than he adds: “In a big city, let us say New York - when I saw somebody in New York, I never met the man or the woman, never met them before. I saw they were sick, but it did not mean anything. Here you know everybody. You know their families. It’s always... It’s trauma. My goodness. It’s really hard.”

There was the day Dr. Dapena left. His son’s best friend, Julian, had an accident, leaving one of his wrists slashed wide open. Debbie Charters, Dr. Dapena’s secretary of 18 years recalls the day vividly; Julian is her son.

“He [Dr. Dapena] was away that day. He never goes away for more than a day, because there is nobody else here. His son Desmond, [and Julian] were playmates, they played together. Desmond was absolutely horrified that his father wasn’t here to stitch [his friend] up,” she recalls. “Six hours had not transpired, so he did stitch him up, but his son Desmond was very upset that his father was not here to help [his friend] at the time.”

Stories such as this one illustrate why it is so difficult to find doctors to serve in remote places such as Grand Manan.

But, says Dr. Rourke: “Some of the good things about practicing in a small community are also the difficult things. The good part is that you get to work in a place where people go to vacation. But then, knowing everybody, you still have to be able to do things you need to do as a doctor and be friends with some of the people you are treating. You have to be what I call an omnipractitioner. You have to be an expert in a variety of areas. You get to use so much of what you learned in the medical school.”

The Faculty of Medicine at the Memorial University has the highest percentage of graduates in Canada who decide to work in a rural setting. As much as 40 percent of family medicine program graduates end up working outside of major urban centres, mostly in Atlantic Canada. Dr. Rourke believes that reflects the composition of their students as well as the school’s focus on serving the communities of the Atlantic provinces.

Replacing a doctor in a more remote area like Grand Manan is difficult, he concedes. There are, he says, legitimate reasons for young graduates to stay away from rural practice.

“Medicine has advanced so much so the amount of knowledge is increasingly complex and it is increasingly difficult to be a jack of many trades,” he says.

Adding to that pressure is a patient population that is more knowledgeable than ever about health issues, a population that expects to receive the same treatment wherever they happen to live.

That can be difficult to offer in a small community.

Dr. Dapena works out of a small hospital with ten beds. He is also in charge of a 30 bed nursing home facility, which he claims is too small for the island’s needs. The hospital, however, is as good as it’s going to get, he says.

The changes witnessed during his career are staggering. He no longer has to transport patients in the back of a station wagon borrowed from a fellow islander; today he can have a patient airlifted and has access to digitized x-rays which can be instantly interpreted by a skilled specialist in Saint John. He used to hire taxis almost daily to run blood samples to Saint John on a ferry and return with the previous day’s results. Today, he can perform basic blood tests at the facility on Grand Manan and the detailed reports are available three times a week through a specialized team that visits the island on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

“What they have now is almost perfect. It’s ideal. I don’t think that in Saint John and here you get any different quality of medical care. If you live in Saint John it might take you half an hour or 15 minutes to get to the hospital. I can put you in there in a hour. That’s not bad either. And in that time we are already beginning the care,” he says.

He loves his work. But, at 74, he would like to work less. Not retire, but work less.

“What would you do if you had nothing to do? It’s too much or nothing. You don’t have choice of something in between. I want something in the middle. It’s too much work or no work at all. I mean, that is no good at all,” he says.

That a new doctor will come to the island late this summer on a two-year-contract is a victory not only for his semi-retirement plans, but for the islanders, who feared that they could find themselves without a family physician.

Yet the change will be a difficult one, says Dr. Dapena’s secretary.

“I think that there may be a sense that the place is his. But, obviously it isn’t. Of course it’s not. When you have that long attachment to the place it is a matter of having to let go and, I am assuming, that is not so easy, but it’s obviously something that has to be done. He loves his work. He loves his work and it is his life,” says Ms. Charters.

It will take time for a small community to adjust to the new doctor. Yet, there are no guarantees that Dr. Dapena’s new colleague will decide to stay on the island long term.

“Rural practice can be isolating. Most physicians want to work hard but want some balance with their family life,” explains Dr. Rourke. The practice on Grand Manan is very much a 24/7 cycle with annual five weeks of vacation.

Dr. Rourke believes that there are four ingredients necessary to build solid rural medicine practice in Canada. He insists that we need more students with rural backgrounds in medical schools because they already understand and love the lifestyle and the environment they will be working in in the future. The second component, according to Dr. Rourke, that will attract more physicians to the rural practice are adequate facilities, probably along the lines of community health clinics that are collaborative and team oriented in their nature. Teamwork is the third ingredient in the mix.

“Everyone wants to work as a part of a team. We need colleagues to share challenges, joy, difficulties. We all need a supportive team,” he says.

The fourth ingredient is most often talked about - financial compensation. “There needs to be additional compensation for extra night and weekend work and to make it possible to keep up to date with the developments in medicine,” says Dr. Rourke. He adds that there should also be financial compensation for those working in geographically isolated areas. He is careful to emphasize that not all rural places should be classified as isolated because many of them have excellent access to major urban centres.

There are other countries that have made a conscious decision to invest in rural medicine, Australia, for example. Canada should do the same, says Dr. Rourke. He is encouraged by the developments in rural practice in Ontario where he and his wife worked as physicians for 25 years.

“Rural health is all about access. We can and should do better,” he says.

Dr. Rourke does admit (with a laugh) that there is another thing that has proved the most effective way of keeping a physician in a rural setting. “When they buy a house and meet a spouse you know you have them.”
For that very reason, what should have been a one-year detour turned into a lifetime commitment for Dr. Dapena. He would not change a thing. “I am very satisfied. I don’t regret staying here. If you look for money, the bigger the place, the more money. There is no question about that,” he says. “But there are rewards. I love the people here.”

Today's picture was not taken by me. Sadly, I didn't get the chance to take a lot of photos today because I started out to run errands. This image was pilfered from Flickr and the account of a very capable photographer who goes by the name -sou-, who's photostream you can find by clicking his name.

I also want to say that I've been told that some of the material that is posted on this blog has been causing certain members of my family some serious worries, and that these worries could be the cause of some serious health issues to said members of my family. So it is at this point that I'd like to run a short disclaimer

DISCLAIMER
Yes. I actually did rob a bank today. I was not caught, and I did give it all back anyway. I carried no equipment, no weapons, no forged documents, and not a single piece of electronic hardware with me. The entire maneuver went completely unnoticed, no one was even remotely close to being hurt or in any danger, and I am personally just fine, even the jitters and chills are gone. If you don't want to hear about it. Stop reading now. If you want to know how it happened and can assure yourself that it won't cause any undue distress then read on. If you're a brainless adolescent reading a casual blog looking for more ways to cheat and beat the system and have a high capacity for mischief and think that after reading this you might actually try it: I also recommend you STOP READING NOW. I expect you to make the right choice.
END DISCLAIMER

A long time ago a good friend of mine and I were talking about robbing banks because we were young and fearless and we lived in Missouri which is a complete economic sinkhole with nearly no future outside cash crops and barn-building. Neither of which we were especially interested. My good friend was at the time and arguably still is a complete maniac who couldn't see past the uzi's in those days. He decided the most awesome way to do it would be to go in guns blazing and take it down hero style. While that may be the most awesome way I said it was also the method most likely to piss people off and get you caught and eventually executed. Probably violently.

I said if I were going to rob a bank I'd want to find the way that no one would even know they'd been robbed for at least three days, if at all. We had a good laugh then. And today I did it. I found that method, and I nailed it.

I started out today for two primary reasons. To pay the phone bill and to buy some pancake syrup because about a week ago I ran out of pancake syrup and started craving pancakes this morning. I also had to get some more contact solution. (You think it's for cleaning contacts now don't you? ... Ha. Some people should just not read this blog...)

I amassed the few items I'd needed and went to the bank. I will not name this bank nor will I tell you where I was when I visited this bank. It was a bank. I did not go to the bank to rob it. I went to this bank to open a savings account.

Step 1: Go to a bank to open a savings account.

I told the attendant what I came for today and after a polite smile and a nod I was escorted to a private desk with an accounts specialist of some kind who began to review with me exactly what I needed. I said I wanted just a savings account. I was immediately offered a complete package, checking and savings accounts with automatic overdraft protection and a slightly higher interest rate in the savings account. I turned it down but after a little pressing and the lie that my savings account would glean no interest without a checking attached to it I conceded to opening a checking account with the minimum opening balance. The minimum opening balance today at this particular bank was 25 dollars.

I'm going to explain now that at this point, I still had no intention of robbing the bank. In fact the exact moment I saw how I could rob this bank was the split instant before I decided to rob it and was again only a second before the robbing took place. It was kind of impulsive honestly. I'm rarely impulsive.

My accounts attendant took my information, my license and a bank card from my other bank where I hold my primary checking. I assured her that I didn't intend to spend any money from this account, just drop in a percentage of my check every month until I left the country. We had a pleasant chat about Australia during which at some point she turned the screen so I could see it and correctly explain the fact that I have three first names and to tell her what order they go in. She got it wrong anyway. I didn't bother over it.

It was here that something incredibly happened. She set up both accounts and took the check I'd brought in with me, a measly paystub worth $537.15. I allowed her to put the minimum required amount in the checking she'd created and the rest to go in the savings. I watched her key in 25.00 for the first account and 512.15 for the second in the starting balances box.

She then gets up and tells me she'll be back in a minute and is going into the back to get my checkbooks for each account which I had told her twice I would not be needed because, as I'd said "I will not be spending money through this account." She leaves. I let my eyes wander for security cameras. This has also aways been kind of an automatic past-time of mine.

Either this bank has used holographic mirroring technology to hide their cameras or there WERE NO CAMERAS pointing at this little desk. The room we were in was private, which makes sense. The only view in or out of it was through the doorway that led to the short hallway and was lined with rows of highly frosted glass, again, for privacy, which makes sense. I had been thinking the entire time about how casual the entire affair in this room had been. How I didn't ask for two accounts and was given two anyway. How I twice explained my name and it was keyed incorrectly anyway. Even the fact that I said I wanted no checks nor debit or credit cards from either account and she'd selected those boxes anyway. I was reminded of what I already knew. "Nothing here is concrete. It's whatever they put in that computer. If only I could hack in there..." I thought. If only I could find that outside gate in and...

And I was sitting right across from the desk with the monitor still pointing at me. The information input page was still on the screen. I saw numbers. I blinked. I reached my hand across the desk, moved the mouse, clicked once, and hit one key on the keyboard. I moved the mouse away and waited patiently.

I was given plenty of time to sit and it was the greater part of my wait after I'd moved the mouse, giving me plenty of time to sit and think. I wasn't that shaky. I knew exactly what I had just done. And I knew that nothing could ever pin me to what was about to happen. If anyone noticed... it would be cleared immediately as a harmless mistake on the part of the bank.

My attendant returned and handed me my checkbooks. I took them and asked which was for which as she sat down again at her chair. She explained, clicked the next button on the screen and my accounts were created. She immediately took me through online banking, opened the bank's website and had me create a login. She slid the keyboard to me so I could create a password and I made sure that I could get my finger on the single keystroke I'd hit a minute ago. I logged and listened to her talk about online bill pay and direct deposit and checking accounts online and the tremendous waste of trees it was for people to get their statements mailed to them.

I listened. Waited. And got my receipt for the deposits I'd made in the new accounts. We shook hands and I stood up. I was now able to walk out of this bank completely free and no more noticeable than the plant on her desk. The only difference being that I walked into this bank to make a deposit of $537.15 and I'd be leaving with two accounts holding a combined sum of $3037.15.

I took a deep but subtle breath. Smiled as I was walking out and then stopped. "Hey wait." I said. "Look at this." I turned to my attendant again. "I think you forgot to put the period in here. This account says $2,500. Not $25."

I showed her my receipt and the woman went so white I think I must have drained every drop of blood from her face. I received thanks ad naseum for catching her slip. She returned to accounts and corrected my little adjustment, and all was set right.

What happened? If not already obvious, here's the explanation: When she was keying in my opening account balances she input two-five-dot-zero-zero for the opening balance of my checking. The minimum amount. The only thing I did, was delete the dot, that center period: the magic pixel. With one keystroke 25.00 became 2500 and the account balance increased by 100 times. When I was creating my online login I spelled my name wrong the first time purposely so I could get my finger on the delete key again. I think that was just my paranoia about fingerprints.

If I'd not called attention to the missing period... such a subtle little thing. I'd have successfully walked out of this bank with more than five times the amount I'd brought into it. However... I am no where near that desperate. Yet.

41 days...

According to tradition it is considered that its name from the nymph Egina, mother of EAC, who was born on the island and was its king.

Aegina has a total surface of 90 square kilometers about, the island is located about twenty kilometres south-west of Athens.
Aegina is shaped like a triangle, with the peak to the south. His greatest length from north-east Cape Tourla to south-east Cape Perdika, is 18.5 km. The island is divided into three regions: a mountain of limestone to the north, a coastal plain to the west and the most fertile area of the island, and the rest of the island to the east has a volcanic geology, The pumice stones were ones the main exports of the island. Methana, a peninsula of Peloponnese is nearby.

The highest peak of Aegina, is Profitis Ilias 531 m with a conical shape.

Apart from the port of Aegina in the west, port of Souvala and Aghia Marina Bay to the north, the island is not perfect for anchorage.

Its vegetation is typical of the Mediterranean scrubland (lawn dry thorny plants pillow), called in Greek phrygana. The old pine forests have almost disappeared to be replaced by oaks, wild olive and cypress trees.

The climate of Aegina is east Mediterranean with mild winters and hot and dry summers.The rainy season in spring is short.

Sam tells me that the police admired their work, too... that is, right before they told them to put all the picnic tables back where they got them.  (grin)

Some highlights were...

Photos from our private beach in front of the cabin

Puzzles, puzzles and more puzzles

We forgot the dogs "doggie prozac" (don't ask) so we had to stop at the Whidbey vet and have a temporary prescription filled...and while at the vet I saw on the wall a weight loss program for animals! Which included a BMI calculation for cats...and healthy recipes for animal treats...and a sad article about a dog that was fed a diet of beer and donuts.

At the dog park

Goodbye double chin!

Campfires on the beach

And - I'm leaving Thursday night for a 4 day weekend at the cabin. Ahhh - life is too good!

Beberapa pulau di antara ribuan pulau Indonesia (foto: arie saksono)

Berdasarkan data Departemen Dalam Negeri Republik Indonesia tahun 2004, jumlah pulau di Indonesia tercatat sebanyak 17.504 buah. 7.870 di antaranya telah mempunyai nama, sedangkan 9.634 belum memiliki nama.

JUMLAH PULAU di INDONESIA tahun 2004
No.	Provinsi	Jumlah Pulau		Total  Jumlah
		Bernama	Belum bernama
1.	N. Aceh Darussalam	205	458	663
2.	Sumatra Utara	237	182	419
3.	Sumatra Barat	200	191	391
4.	Riau	73	66	139
5.	Jambi	16	3	19
6.	Sumatra Selatan	43	10	53
7.	Bengkulu	23	24	47
8.	Lampung	86	102	188
9.	Kep. Bangka Belitung	311	639	950
10.	Kepulauan Riau	1.350	1.058	2.408
11.	DKI Jakarta	111	107	218
12.	Jawa Barat	19	112	131
13.	Jawa Tengah	47	249	296
14.	DI Yogyakarta	22	1	23
15.	Jawa Timur	232	55	287
16.	Banten	48	83	131
17.	Bali	25	60	85
18.	Nusa Tenggara Barat	461	403	864
19.	Nusa Tenggara Timur	473	719	1.192
20.	Kalimantan Barat	246	93	339
21.	Kalimantan Tengah	27	5	32
22.	Kalimantan Selatan	164	156	320
23.	Kalimantan Timur	232	138	370
24.	Sulawesi Utara	310	358	668
25.	Sulawesi Tengah	139	611	750
26.	Sulawesi Selatan	190	105	295
27.	Sulawesi Tenggara	361	290	651
28.	Gorontalo	96	40	136
29.	Maluku	741	681	1.422
30.	Maluku Utara	125	1.349	1.474
31.	Papua	301	297	598
32.	Irian Jaya Barat	956	989	1.945
Total		7.870	9.634	17.504

Sumber: Departemen Dalam Negeri Republik Indonesia

Hello Patty! Andy! Karen! Mark! and Alll!!
How are you all?!
I am always fine! I am at DayDream Island with Yula and Jason.
Even though I have spent great time here at DDI, I always miss Caloundra which is my second hometown. Actually it’s my first one in Australia and I feel sorry for not contacting with my teacher Patty and my homestay parents Mark and Karen.
Say hello to everyone
I’ll be there someday, It won’t be long!

(by mt aus b, who we hope has not spotted us passed out on one of our vacations)

Spring is melting into the summer with only a few more drizzly rains that keep getting blasted away by sunlight day after day. The sunlight is finally winning more battles than it's losing and the rains and the chills are receding. It feels good.

The short shift today gave me some extra time to drive out to Jones Beach, a lot of the reason for going was to take the pictures. But the main reason was just to see it. The beach wasn't open yet. At least they weren't charging for entrance at any one of the thirteen toll booths straddling the road running along the coast. The area is perfectly coastal. If it weren't for the incredible amount of wind (seriously... like you cannot walk into it you will fall down) I might have stayed longer and gotten some sun. I had the entire thing to myself. There was no one there for at least a mile. The only two other people I saw were indeed nearly a mile away and I snapped a photo of them with my super-awesomest-zoom lens.

I'm afraid I may have gotten some sand into the lens because by the time I left the rain was just starting to sprinkle and I had sand in every part of me, not because I'd been rolling in it, but because the wind was so fierce one got the impression that the beach itself was rolling in you. Waves are a pain to shoot from the shore because the angle is wrong unless you're... well... not on the shore and in the water instead. I did get a little wet catching one shot which I'll surely post when the internet isn't being so spotty. It's current fidelity only allowed me to upload one. The one you see at the top.

I'm back at Jack's now and I haven't seen him. I haven't talked to anyone today. I haven't gone out. I haven't seen anyone at all...

I wonder about Connie.

43 days...

Moth Moon Dance (mixed media on canvas)

There was a moth in there, and it still had its wing crumpled up,

and it was just starting to pump its wings up.

Life continues in lots of places, and life is a magical thing.

~Laurel Clark

This piece is another one from the Drayton Island series. These are trumpet vines and they are in beginning to bloom on island now. The bees, butterflies, humming birds, and moths love the sweet nectar of the trumpet flowers. As in all of these in this series, the moon is the light source you see. I zoomed in on the bottom of the piece. Here is a thumbnail of the entire piece. (click on image if you wish to enlarge it).

Enough about Moth Moon Dance for now....it's been a while hasn't it! Before I say anything else I want to thank ALL of you for your kind words concerning my family situation in my last post. I put an update post note on there and some of you read it. For those that did not..all is fine with my sister and I thank all of you for your encouraging words, candles, and prayers!

Yes, all is good again, I dare say better than ever for me! All of you know that I was already madly in love with life..well be forewarned I am even more so now!! Can you stand it/me? :) In my last post I said to LIVE.....to seize the moment in love, light, and laughter. Well, I am really embracing the message too...in big things and small!! You know what..the health scare with my sister liberated my spirit even more!

When I first started this blog I was very careful about what I said because I did not want to offend anyone or scare anyone off. Especially since I have some very conservative people in my own family that read my words. Alas, as time went on I started being more and more my self. I even changed the name of the blog. :) Now I will be more so in little things and big things (at least they are to me).

So here it goes....sort of Monday confessions, I guess.

In little things....I mentioned before that I had the side of my nose pierced four years ago . I did it when I turned 50 to celebrate a half century (yes, I am 54...ageless and LOVING IT!). I was nervous about some in my family seeing what I did, such as my BELOVED but conservative daughter. :) All of this time I have worn a very, very tiny little crystal stone...so tiny that I've had people tell me that I have a piece of glitter on my nose. :O Well, last week I bought a slender silver nose ring, and I am going to wear it! You never know maybe I'll post a picture to show you. hehehe  Now I know a nose piercing may seem like a silly little thing to you, but for me it was not (especially if you knew my history). Anyway, my Grandmother (the one mentioned on my about page) is having a 101 birthday celebration next month (lots of family and friends expected) ..and I am thinking of wearing it to that. I'll keep you posted. :)

The second thing I am going to tell you is a big thing to me. I don't talk about it much, but today I'm saying it here

In dreams, mediation, and in real life

I have seen

~~spirit beings~~

(many times)

There I've said it! I know some of you may think I am crazy and some of you may not come here anymore. 'Tis the truth though and it is one of the reasons I am a seeker (as I confessed to you...again found on my about page).

I chose this quote because not too long ago I lived with crumpled wings...No need to go into a long story about the whats and whys of the box / cage I felt I was in. Let's just say an inherited religion was the main reason. Need I say more? A place where such things as nose piercings and spirit beings were not allowed. All behind me now....like a long past dream (possibly a nightmare..eh?)

What now?

Oh my god dear ones...count me among the winged creatures now...I am free like the butterflies, moths, bees, humming birds,.....dancing in the moon light!!

My wings are expanded again and my heart is soaring...

ah, the sweet nectar of life!

If you decide to come back we have much to talk about for...

~~life is a magical thing~~

Love, light, and laughter to all,

~gypsy-he♥rt

Ps I am coming around to see all of you in a bit!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As you approach Samui Island from the air, one landmark that won’t escape your attention is the Big Buddha, a 12-metre tall golden ico sitting on a high platform at the edge of a beach.

Venerated by locals and Thai visitors, the Big Buddha is also visited by foreign tourists who come to marvel at the sheer size and beauty of the image. Built in 1972 by a local society as a place of worship, the mammoth-sized sitting Buddha is within the compound of the Phra Yai temple on the island’s northern shore.

At night, the towering image, brightened by floodlights from the base of the platform, looks like a giant sentinel to the island. In fact, superstitious locals look up to the image as the island’s guardian.

Even the temple and the meditation center at the foot of the Buddha are an attraction by themselves. Their architectural design is characterised by Buddhism, Brahminism and animism.

Within the temple grounds is a gaudy bazaar where visitors can buy not only religious souvenirs but secular items from T-shirts, hats to amulets. Indeed, spiritual concerns and everyday life tend to overlap in Buddhist centres more than they do in some other religions. And a touristy area like this won’t be complete without those small Thai-style restaurants catering to both devotees and tourists alike.

Beyond the temple, of course, is the Big Buddha Beach, named after the famous landmark which you can see from the whole length of one of the island’s longest beaches, from Bophut to Samui Airport. The beach itself is very quiet and peaceful and the waters are calm.

The resorts around the area tend to be laid-back, well-spaced beachside affairs attracting long and short-term quests alike. They’re also a great place for a party, as Secret Garden proves with its weekly festival and there are an increasing number of find (and reasonably priced) dining options here too.

If it’s your first visit to the island, make the Big Buddha your first stop. Countless others do it not only for good luck but because it is one of the best things to see on the island.

There has been nothing but silence coming from the embattled Staten Island congressman, Vito J. Fossella, regarding his plans to run for re-election this year. And that uncertainty has caused waves of concern not only among Republicans in New York City, but in Washington as well.

All signs indicate that Mr. Fossella, a Republican who was arrested in Virginia on May 1 on a drunken driving charge and then admitted to fathering a child out of wedlock, is leaning toward running for a sixth term in November. He has been telling friends and advisers that he thinks he can win. And though he canceled a fund-raiser scheduled for this past weekend, he has five or six events planned for the coming month, his spokeswoman said.

And on Saturday, he marched in the Memorial Day Parade in the Great Kills section of the island. He was greeted warmly while marching and while sitting on a platform with other politicians at the end of the route.

But for all his popularity on Staten Island, long a Republican stronghold, Mr. Fossella, 43, faces daunting obstacles. If convicted of drunken driving, he would have to serve a mandatory five-day jail sentence. His acknowledgment of an extramarital affair — he has three children with his wife, Mary Pat — has clearly upset many voters in his conservative-leaning district.

He also confronts what many political analysts and Republican strategists view as Democratic momentum going into the fall elections. Three times this year, Democrats have defeated Republicans in special Congressional elections, most recently last week in a staunchly Republican district in Mississippi.

This year, said Guy V. Molinari, the former borough president and dean of the Republican Party on the island, “is a bad Republican year, politically, and that doesn’t help matters.”

For all those reasons, the prospect of a scandal-tainted Mr. Fossella on the ballot in November has caused more than a little apprehension among Republican leaders in New York and Washington, though they decline to speak publicly about Mr. Fossella’s problems.

Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, the Republican minority leader, has contacted Daniel M. Donovan Jr., the Staten Island district attorney, to discuss the possibility of his running should Mr. Fossella resign or decide not to seek re-election.

William J. Smith, Mr. Donovan’s spokesman, said that there was little use speculating on what the district attorney might do, while Mr. Fossella remained silent on his plans.

Julie Shutley, a spokeswoman for the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee, sought to put the best face on the situation. “The 13th Congressional District has continually sent Republican representation to Congress,” she said, adding that it was a district that believed in “lowering taxes and a strong national security.”

But when asked about the party’s prospects should Mr. Fossella decide to run, she declined to comment. And John S. Friscia, the chairman of the Republican Party on Staten Island, did not return repeated calls seeking comment on the party’s prospects.

Even Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who has been a reliable source of campaign money and support for Mr. Fossella in the past, said he was uncertain whether he would support the congressman in a re-election campaign.

Many Republicans on Staten Island, however, seem to be sticking with Mr. Fossella for the time being. Mr. Molinari, who has feuded with Mr. Fossella on and off in the past, says he will support him if he runs again. The congressman, he said, “has made mistakes, and everybody now knows about those mistakes.”

“If he chooses to run, I think he can win,” Mr. Molinari said. “It would take an all-out effort and a substantial amount of money. But there are a lot of people pledging support for him.”

The congressman has declined repeated requests to be interviewed on the topic of his re-election plans and the events of the last few weeks.

But over the past few days, Mr. Fossella has re-emerged, if gingerly. On Friday evening, he surprised many politicians by stopping by the Conservative Party banquet on Staten Island. He apparently did not tell any of the party’s leaders that he would attend. He arrived after the formal program had ended and did not speak. (James P. Molinaro, the Staten Island borough president, is a longtime official of the state Conservative Party.) Then he went to the parade on Saturday.

Mr. Fossella, the only New York City Republican in Congress, represents a district that includes Staten Island and parts of southern Brooklyn. It is the most conservative-leaning district in the city. And he has portrayed himself during his years in politics as a Republican moderate who exemplified traditional family values.

As a result, many politicians on Staten Island initially expected that he would resign shortly after the revelations of an extramarital affair and a daughter born from that relationship — or at least not run again.

To be sure, Mr. Fossella has been popular in the 13th District since he won the special election that sent him to Congress in 1997. At the time, he was a 32-year-old city councilman and a darling of Staten Island politics; a Democrat-turned-Republican who was an ardent supporter of Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.

Paradise aka St. John

Originally uploaded by bermudafan8

Well today started out sunny, then the clouds became rather dark and dramatic. Now, it's simply cloudy. So I will gaze at this photo and imagine being in such a tropical paradise. St. John is part of the USVI and around 2/3 of it is Virgin Islands National Park. It is a gorgeous place to visit. The land had been owned by one of the Rockefellers and was donated around 50 years ago.

SUN-MING CHO (REPORTER): She is about to make it towards the top. Scarborough-native Fefe Dobson is getting ready to promote her self-title debut album which was released back in December. Many people think that she is the next Avril Lavigne. I’ve decided to interview her on a one-on-one session with Newswatch. [Cut to reporter interviewing the singer] So what do you think about the fans believing in you that you are considered to be the next Avril Lavigne?

FEFE DOBSON: Well [Laughs], I really loved Avril Lavigne’s CD, “Let go” and I think her songs are quite okay in my humble opinion, but based on my great music senses, I would believe that I have a great connection on listening to Michael Jackson, one of my greatest influences.

[Cut to one of Fefe’s music videos, “Take my away”]

SUN-MING CHO: Fefe Dobson has spent almost a year or two on recording demos and showcasing herself at many various places. But during her encounters, a record label wants her to follow the pop-star formula which Fefe briefly followed. [Cut back to reporter interviewing artist] So why did you decided not to go with the pop-star formula?

FEFE DOBSON: I really wanted to have more guitar-oriented and have my own terms to incorporate my own songs that I write. What happened is that Jive Records, my initial label decided that they don’t like my terms so as a result, I have to kiss myself goodbye to Jive.

SUN-MING CHO: So then you decided to record in your way and with your own will?

FEFE DOBSON: Exactly. It wasn’t until then when I was discovered by one record label executive. I suddenly sang to myself one morning until one lone person stand up to me holding a briefcase on his right arm. He told me that, “I’m from Island Def Jam Records and I really like the way your vocal talent really is. I really want to make you very famous.” By the time I hear the announcement, I was smiling and very excited with joy.

SUN-MING CHO: With Fefe signed to Island Def Jam, she constantly record new songs that really fits her image and after spending almost months in the recording studio, her dream has finally become a reality. [Cut back to the interviewer] So, by the time the fans listen to your music, how do you feel about it?

FEFE DOBSON: Well, they were pleased on the work I had done. They were dreaming on when I was in their hometown performing for a concert or maybe an acoustic performance. MTV and MuchMusic even aired my music videos. They all faired very good.

SUN-MING CHO: So what are your future plans for yourself?

FEFE DOBSON: My future plans? Hmm…..promote myself on an international scale. I want to visit countries and perform myself to places that I never been. Japan, Thailand, The UK, France, Mexico, the entire continents. As for the south pole – [laughs] no comment….[laughs]

SUN-MING CHO: Fefe Dobson will embark on a tour across Canada this summer. For Newswatch, I’m Sun-Ming Cho reporting.

REPORTER: Dobson had planned to release a follow up to her debut self-titled album “Sunday Love” back in 2006, but unfortunately her album was never released thanks to the fact that her former record label, Island Records had disliked her image change forcing her to re-record and then suddenly, dropping her music career days. Almost a year later, Fefe decided to start from scratch – but this time on her own ways. Her new album will be slated to be released this summer. Next Week on Flashback, The two communities of Ajax and Pickering merge to form one inter-local transit system. See you then.

Monkey Island, Port Antonio, Jamaica, 2004

Olive Garden Houses with its 2 houses villas and 4 apartments are located in residential are of Afandou and hence, a suitable place to live in. The houses villas are suitable for families and group, where as the apartments are suitable for small families or couples. With large private garden, olive trees and spacious area for the children to play the apartments and the villas are secured place for family vacations. Every minute detail regarding the comfort for the guests is taken care of. Starting from the room amenities, soap, shower cream to bed, wardrobe, TV- you can get everything to make you feel the convenience of being at home. Hygiene is maintained with daily towel change, weekly twice linen change, weekly twice cleaning. You can enjoy browsing the internet that is free of charge.

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Rhodes : http://www.olivegardenhouses.com/ is the largest island of the Dodecanese and the fourth largest of Greece. It lies in the south eastern corner of the Aegean Sea, only 20km from the coast of Asia Minor.

info@olivegardenhouses.com

]]> http://katanablue.wordpress.com/?p=20 Sat, 17 May 2008 06:07:01 +0000 mdy001 http://katanablue.wordpress.com/?p=20 By Nicki Joy

History shows that over the years the island of Kefalonia, situated off the western shore of mainland Greece, has been victim to many invading forces. These include the Romans, the Venetians, the Turks, the French, the Russians, the English and the Germans and Italians during World War II, to name but a few.

The island herself is said to owe her name to Kephalos, or Cephalus, the first ruling King of ancient times. It has been populated since the Stone Age, as significant finds of axe-heads, cleavers and arrow-heads have confirmed. The king was said to have founded four main cities on the island, which he then named after his four sons, Sami, Pahli, Krani and Pronnoi. The Mycenaeans, however, were the first organized civilization to occupy Kefalonia during which time the island prospered. At some point trade came to a halt and little is known of events over the next several centuries. Some believe that the devastating eruption of the Santorini volcano may have destroyed much of the island; others merely term this period Kefalonia’s Dark Age.

During the 11^th Century BC the island had various rulers - then came the first major invasion. The Roman colonization of Greece had started and Kefalonia soon fell under the Empire’s yoke. The Romans had a great interest in this small isle due to its strategic potential, and Kefalonia was soon turned into a naval base from which the Romans commanded the surrounding seas. Kefalonia suffered much during this rule and was also under constant threat of invasion from pirate raids, the worst of which were perpetrated by the barbaric North African Saracens. By the end of the Byzantine era the island was consecutively conquered by a number of foreign agents including the Normans, the Orsinis, the Andeans and the Toccans.

Throughout the Crusade against the Byzantine Empire the Venetians entered into a period of great power and influence and gained control of a number of trade routes, including the Ionian Islands. When they finally took control of Kefalonia they built the impressive Saint Georgios Fortress, now known as St. George’s castle, a favourite with modern tourists. This replaced Sami as the new capital of Kefalonia. The Venetians ruled until the late 1400’s, by which time they were entrenched in battles with the Turks (who had started their own invasion of mainland Greece).

Around 1483 the neighbouring isle of Zakynthos fell to the Turks, and some 40 years later they finally conquered and plundered Kefalonia. Much of the island was destroyed during their short stay until the Venetians, backed by Spain, regained control. During this time Kefalonia suffered a major earthquake and much of St. George’s castle was destroyed. The capital was then moved to nearby Argostoli where it remains to this day. In 1797 after a long and arduous struggle the Venetians were finally defeated by Napoleon and it was the turn of the French to take possession of Kefalonia.

However the French occupation didn’t last long, an unfortunate turn of events for the inhabitants of Kefalonia, who, at the time, had prospered under the freedom of living without the hated Venetian aristocratic ruling-system. Regrettably the French were forced to yield all the Ionian Islands to the combined might of the Russian/Turkish forces after they were beaten in the Battle of Aboukir Bay by Nelson’s Fleet. Yet again Kefalonia found herself under Turkish rule. During this time, the Ionian Islands were joined to become one nation and for a time they were acknowledged to be a part of the Russian protectorate.

In 1807 the Ionian Islands once again found themselves under French rule, but this occupation was similarly short lived. This time, the threat came from Britain. The French surrendered Kefalonia to the British soon after their successful invasion of the neighbouring island of Zakynthos. As a result, the British Empire gained yet another foothold on foreign soil. Whilst Britain reigned supreme, Kefalonia began to prosper. New roads were constructed, trade was encouraged and the educational system was markedly improved. However, the Lord High Commissioner of the time was disliked and resistance groups soon started to form. Initially resistance was focused towards the Turks who still held much of mainland Greece but during the mid 1800’s they turned their attentions to the British. By this time the inhabitants of Kefalonia were growing restless after centuries of foreign rule.

Kefalonia and her sister islands were finally ceded back to Greece in 1864 as a gesture of goodwill and the people of Greece finally embraced their freedom. It wasn’t to last. During World War II the Italians took control of Kefalonia and for the next 2 years the inhabitants lived under the yoke of war. Resistance groups fought long and hard against the occupying German forces and many lives were lost. The Italians nevertheless enjoyed a more relaxed relationship with the local people and in 1943, when Italy capitulated, Italian troops refused to leave Kefalonia. As punishment for disobeying the entrenched German command over 5000 Italian soldiers were executed, many of which remain buried on Kefalonia in mass unmarked graves to this day.

More recent historical events on Kefalonia have sparked some unexpected and thought provoking anomalies about its past. The tales of Homer’s Odyssey and Ulysee’s and the Golden Fleece originated from the island of Ithaca, which is currently believed to lie off Kefalonia’s eastern coast. However, according to a new hypothesis Homer’s Ithaca could in fact be a completely different island, namely the Palaki Peninsula, the western appendage of Kefalonia and where the town of Lixouri resides.

Archeological finds have unearthed ruins dating back to the Trojan War Era which means Odysseus’s palace may well have been on Kefalonia’s Western peninsula. It’s thought that at some point in the past the Palaki was separate from the rest of Kefalonia, and geological research is currently underway to test this hypothesis.

www.aniboom.com

The prefecture of Corfu covers an area of 641 sq km and consists of the island of Corfu, which contains 12 of the 16 municipalities as well as other smaller islands: Paxi and Antipaxi south, the north Mathraki and Erikousa and several islets.

In many places, there are olive groves that is why  during the Venetian time was given  a premium to residents who planted  olive trees. This was referred to the big Venetian need for oil. The residents have therefore on any free piece of land planted olive trees. Even today constitutes an important product olive oil in Corfu, and the advent of mass tourism was the price of the land at the island mainly determined by the number of olive trees.  The Venetian influence in Corfu is very great.  The island was occupied by the French and the British, very important is that Corfu, unlike other major parts of Greece never been occupied by the Turks. 

One of the main tourist attractions of Corfu is the Achilleion, a palace that was build between 1890 and 1892  by the Austrian Empress Elizabeth. The neoclassical building was named by the empress after her classic hero Achilles.

On weekends I own the Office Max Impress department. The entire weekend. Saturday's I am scheduled a consistent mid-afternoon to evening shift. I close the department, open it again Sunday morning, work it all day and close it again Sunday evening. I reopen it Monday mornings. There is not another employee in that department for more than 48 hours

I am the king of the Office Max Impress department.

And it's the most depressing thing in the world having nothing more to talk about than being king of the Office Max Impress department.

I've resolved to spend a night on the beach. I've been kind of edging towards the beaches lately. All the open space and the water. The air tastes different out there. It smells different. There's no car fumes, no skin oils, no smokes or steams or paints or shampoos. It's all been ove