A Event That Changed My Life

BRAINSTORMING: 1. )Moving away to a different state. Positives: a. )started college b. )stayed out of trouble Negatives: a. )had no family to turn to b. )had a lot of trouble finding a place to stay 2. )Being a troubled teen. Positives: a. )learned from experiences I had Negatives: a. )had a lot of trouble with the police b. )didn’t go to school c. )ran away Final Draft: OK so basically I have decided to tell you about me being a troubled teen. Everybody I am sure has either had some kind of trouble as a teen or been in some kind of trouble as a teen. Well some has been worse than others right. Well mine started off when I was 14. I thought I could do what I wanted to do when I wanted to do it and knew everything. Needless to say it didn’t happen that way. When I was 14 I got into a lot of trouble. I didn’t listen to my mom, I would sneak out the house, and I got into a lot of trouble with the police for fighting a lot, and always skipped school. I never hung out with people that did anything good. The people I hung out with where negative. Well one day I went to school and got into a really bad fight and ended up in a juvenile facility over it. I was there for about a month went to court and the judge put me on probation for 3 years. Well I still thought I could do what I wanted to do. So I still kept doing the same behavior I was doing before then. Needless to say I ended up violating probation when I was 15 and they locked me up. I was in a juvenile facility for 3 months then went to court and they put me in a program for 1 year. Well when I got to the program I thought it was going to be easy. But I ended up finding it was actually very difficult. Well after I got out of my program I decided that was something I had never wanted to experience again. So still to this day, and am 21 now, I have not been back in jail or nothing. I have been abiding by the laws and actually I am doing really well for myself. But before I could realize that’s not the life I wanted to live anymore I had to make a change, and not for anybody but myself. Narrative essay:

Baderman Island Resort: Mission and Vision

Baderman Resort provides its guests various options to relax and entertain themselves at their prime location situated at the shores of the Kelsey river. The resort is self contained with many restaurants of different types, three hotels namely Baderman Main Hotel, The Tenney and Melancon Convention Center and Hotel. Apart form this there is a botanical garden, fairway, recreation center, and a spa. Apart from this the island boasts various shopping and eating locations. An art gallery tops the list with in-house collections and exhibits borrowed from other collections around the world.Baderman being an island resort has services oriented totally towards customer needs. The prime concern for Baderman is to offer its customers a place to relax, be entertained and enjoy their time alone or with their families. With this defined, Badermans mission statement should be as follows: ‘We are in the business of leisure and tourism through providing world class services to our clients in the form of a peaceful, serene environment with the best service and calming atmosphere.We provide scenic views, relaxation and enjoyment for our clients, their families and business colleagues all the while keeping in mind the interests of our stakeholders being owners of restaurants and hotels within the island as well as business partners. ’ This mission statement covers all aspects that a mission statement should cover namely the type of business, service offered to customers and benefit to stakeholders.The statement highlights the right target market being any one who wants to have a good time and quality service at Baderman whether alone, with families or whether to conduct business. Baderman offers everything for any of the above types of customers. Vision: Baderman’s vision should be to keep its scenic views unadulterated and increase the quality level and amount of services that it offers to its customers. It should in the near future train all its employees in hospitality and customer care.It has two choices, either it expands to offer more locations and thus increase its capacity as well to accommodate a larger amount of customers or it finds a niche and attracts a specific set of customers and to do so adds more elements to its current plans. Whatever the route it takes, it will have to make a few changes in the current setup it has and training employees in the long run. It should provide a helipad, a private airstrip, more restaurants with various cuisines, more spas and saunas, sports facilities etc.It can also provide season specific amenities to its guests. In the end it should exercise strict quality management. In the leisure industry, if anything slightly goes wrong, it spreads all over and leaves the resort with a bad name. Bad service to accidents can all be the cause for a bad name. Due to this reason the staff should be properly trained and strict controls will need to be put in order to maintain the highest quality stand ard possible for the targeted market.

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE 8 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE 8 - Essay Example (New World Encyclopaedia) EPA is the most comprehensive regulatory agency for environmental concerns. There are several legislations such as Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, United Nations Environment Programme, Energy Policy Act etc. for tackling the environmental issues. Climate change is caused due to imbalance between the incoming solar radiation and the outgoing heat of the earth. Human influences, Orbital variations, Solar Output, Volcanism, Plate tectonics and Ocean variability are the causes of climate change. Climate change can be prevented from reaching dangerous levels by reducing emissions through efficiency, substitution and sequestration. Conservation of energy, habitat, water, wetland, wildlife, marine life and soil helps restore ecological balance. The costs associated with loss of biodiversity is high and can lead to deteriorating ecological balance, hence sustainable development and consumption can help to conserve biodiversity. Non-Point Source Pollution is the sour ce of water problems and to mitigate this we must achieve zero discharge of pollutants as per the Clean Water’s Act.

Breastfeeding in Public or in Uniform Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Breastfeeding in Public or in Uniform - Essay Example However, this is difficult for military mothers to follow because of the strict conditions their job entails. The military must hold to a certain standard, which is acceptable, but denying the basic human feed to breastfeed goes against all understanding and compassion. Women in uniform should be allowed to breastfeed because almost every other occupation affords a mother the right to breastfeed. Breastfeeding is thought of as impolite by a large percentage of the population because it goes against common decency. Because of this, a certain stigma has been attached to mothers who breastfeed in public. Some mothers choose other means to feed their baby, and that is all well and good, but shouldn’t women have the right to choose whether to breastfeed or not? Military mothers should be treated no differently from breastfeeding women of any other occupation; actually, they should be given more rights because of the important job that they are doing. Allowing military women to breastfeed, where appropriate, would help them to feel safe in their job because they would know that their baby would be looked after and cared for. We now live in the 21st century, so there is no excuse for being kept back in the dark ages. In fact, it was in the 1990s that activism regarding breastfeeding led to women becoming aware of their rights to be able to breastfeed in public, and a number of laws were passed that protected this right (Terry). Why should breastfeeding military mothers be treated any differently? Military women should not be able to breastfeed because it would take away from the important jobs that they are involved in. The military is no place for a baby due to the high demands and pressure that is placed on almost everyone involved, and adding a baby to that mix would only worsen the situation. Also, the military is

French Bread Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

French Bread - Research Paper Example It consists of water, yeast salt and wheat flour. These are the ingredients that people in France, and indeed all over the world, have been suing to make bread for millennia. These are the same ingredients that Arabs use to make flat bread, Chinese use to make boiled dumplings and Italians use to make raised pie dough. So it is clearly not the ingredients that make a loaf that is recognizable as French bread. So when did these simple ingredients become identifiable as making a loaf that is distinguished as â€Å"French†. One of the things that makes French bread â€Å"French† is the distinctive shape. The baguette is a long thin loaf. It is usually is five inches in diameter and is approximately three feet long. Size does vary, but in general, but French bread loaves are in the long, thin baguette shape. This shape has been around since at least the mid-18th century in Paris. Personal diaries and published works detailing travels through Europe make mention of seeing servants walking through the streets of Paris in the early morning carrying long loaves of bread that resembled crowbars (Elson, 1896). So the baguette shape was popular long before the invention of modern machines that were used to knead, cut and shape dough. One theory that points to today’s popularity of the baguette shape points to a law that was passed in the early 20th century (Asaff, 2006). Since the revolution, France has tried to ensure that workers are treated fairly and that the state or their employers do not exploit their labor. As a result, France has some of the most labor friendly laws in the world. They enjoy a short workweek as mandated by law and overtime beyond a certain point is prohibited. One of these laws that was passed prohibited workers in the bread making industry from working between the hours of 10:00 PM and 4:00 AM. This made the baking of normal loaves of bread very difficult. The dough would not have enough time for the processes of

Services Project Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Services Project Management - Essay Example This can also be recognized as a total lack of transparency between the bidders, and that suits the client perfectly. The disadvantage in public projects is the often insufficient perception of potential pitfalls and showstoppers during the procurement process, as interaction and discussion prior to bidding is discouraged. As a result, some public projects fall prey to extensive and numerous design and specification changes, ruining their original time and cost estimates. Such projects are allowed to meander along as all involved tend to keep within the strict purview of their job description within the overall governmental framework, not willing to say or do anything to either rock the boat or to steady it. Such projects are orphaned very quickly, with a chronological propensity towards non-accountability. On the other hand, private sector procurement is made with a firm eye on deliverables, and technical vetting of bidders and a bidding process is less important than the need to get a contractor who will deliver in time to spec. Transparency is variable, especially if the contract is negotiated, as the ability and competence of the contractor is beyond dispute, and educating him about the project adds value. Private sector procurement also goes the open tender route, depending on the most suitable procurement mechanism for the particular project. The strongest case for open tenders is made by case for equal opportunity and enhanced transparency in such procurement, whereas a deeper understanding of the project and a stronger tendency to adapt to change characterizes the negotiated tender, making it popular with the private sector. A solution that offers is a hybrid of both styles of procurement, and works across the board for projects of any scale, complexity and ownership, is the process of procurement that consists of competitive tendering in one or two stage, followed by negotiations with the chosen / lowest bidder. However, such a technique is effective only if the chosen bidder is not aware of his status as the lowest, so as to keep him willing to negotiate. This technique is followed in public as well as private sector projects. Stage 1 is known as technical bid (open tender stage), followed by Commercial bid (negotiation stage). 2.2 The process of procurement is a series of exchanges between the client and the contractor, with an increasingly high level of exactness and clarity on conditions of contract, culminating with the actual execution of the contract. A contract consists of three parts, Offer, acceptance and consideration. Although Estimate, Quote and Tender are terms commonly used, there are distinct differences between the three. An estimate is the contractor's perception of the cost or a particular amount of work, and is approximate. It is prepared after taking a preliminary look at the work that is required to be done. An estimate may be prepared by a contractor or by the client on the basis of the bill of Quantities, to arrive at a rough cost of the project. It is not technical in nature, and is based on

Review of Capital State Arena Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Review of Capital State Arena - Coursework Example The theatrical lighting system needed for the arena was important because it would be installed in a way that it would light different events; hence, displaying different moods. The committee involved in the lighting of the arena understood that there was a need for the lighting console of the new facility. Therefore, they had to come up with a plan that would make the arena sell during the off-season where no sports were being held (Moser, 2006). However, a lighting console that can change moods, and accommodate different event was computer controlled and the lease rate was at $2,000per day in addition to the operator expenses. The products that were available for the committee were from three different companies. They included the CAE who manufactures Leprecon LP-3000, ETC manufactures of ETC Obsession II and Strand who manufactures Strand 520. The service providers provided a dealer network information, specific information about each console and a warranty repair station list. Therefore, with this information the committee had the expertise of choosing the correct lighting console for the arena. Various features were identified in the three consoles that seemed similar. However, to help in the decision-making process a list was provided to indicate how the committee should select the console. Where the console should be user friendly in the sense that, the programming of the console should only have few keystrokes; hence, eliminating the need to have a technician employed on retainer to keep the system on. It should be accessible to the theatre department where it can be used a teaching aide, especially when it is not in use. The console should be inflatable and the software should be upgradable. This is because today the consoles are computer driven and for that reason, they should be flexible to ensure that they accommodate upgradability. The console should be manufactured in the United

Case study analysis Nike sweatshops and business ehtics

Analysis Nike sweatshops and business ehtics - Case Study Example The sells a number of their products per year but the company lacks a production unit and thus contracts other companies to manufacture for them all around the world. It is estimated that over 900,000 million people are employed in these different companies around the world to produce Nike based products alone. A large number of these companies are based in Asian countries like Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan and Indonesia where critics have accused Nike to offer poor working condition for the workers as opposed to the United States’ labor laws. The company has been accused on several occasions for exploiting the sweatshop labors upon which its operations are based to increase their profitability while exploiting the locals and rewarding them poorly. Nike had total revenue of $16 billion in 2007, a slight improvement from what the company posted in the previous years. Introduction This paper provides a detailed case study of Nike sweat shops as they are curren tly operated and managed across the globe. As part of the analysis, the business model adopted by Nike shall be analyzed in this paper, providing a comparison with other business models that do exist. The core mission, values and visions of the company will also be discussed to ascertain their relevance in the progress of the company. This paper will adopt the five porter analysis technique to describe the strategic plans and approaches adopted by Nike sweatshops. Porter five force analyses is a framework developed to enable consultants conduct critical industry analysis and business strategy development. SWOT analysis of the company will also be conducted to help form a clear basis upon which their success and/or failure will be weighed. Ethical issues in Nike sweatshops have been a major topic both in the United States and in other countries where the company’s goods are manufactured. This case study will also seek to provide a detailed analysis of the ethical conduct and m isconduct of Nike sweatshop to ascertain the relevance of the claims. Finally, recommendations based on the results obtained from the analysis will be provided emphasizing on the legal requirements that guide such recommendations. Existing business model Business model provides an in-depth analysis of the practices of the business that seeks to create, deliver and capture value for the products being handled. In this section, the core operational aspects of the business, strategies employed organizational culture and structure and trading policies will be evaluated. The business model adopted by any organization contributed to a larger percentage its ability to succeed and deliver value to its consumers. Nike has a value proposition that translates into nothing is impossible if you put the right effort and practice into whatever you want to achieve. This has been a marketing strategy adopted by the company for long to enable it retain its sport consumers who require motivation in th eir daily endeavors. The creation of innovation and inspiration to all athletes in the world the company’s core target and this has enabled Nike to maintain its traditional customers in the sporting fraternity (Drago 117). Nike has for long adopted the franchising business model to enable it produce large volumes of products that can meet the demands of its large consumers spread across the world. Franchising is defined as a practice of using other

E-Business strategy Essay Example for Free

E-Business strategy Essay Grandmas Treats, a newly owned family business dedicated in selling bakery items and wishes to go online for achieving awareness and catering its services to a large group of consumers. The various reasons for which it would derive online benefits can be summarized as follows: †¢ Visibility is the largest accomplishment one aims in an online business. †¢ Its local brand can be promoted internationally to achieve a strategy for business continuity. †¢ Networking with several international brands and suppliers would create international links and would generate large scale opportunities for various upcoming suppliers and vendors. Consumers and customers would be able to access the store at their free will. †¢ Secure payment options would entail greater compliance on the part of the company to arrange online purchase options and security associated with it. †¢ Competitiveness with the online established brands would take them to reengineer their products better so that one is able to focus more on quality. †¢ The enhanced marketing for the website would make them sell to a large number of other businesses and consumers enabling their B2B and B2C models. The customers would be able to compare the products and services with others so that they are able to decide upon the choices provided. Technology: The technology required to get online and take care of the display of products and services would be focused on three aspects namely front end design, middle level architecture and database. The front end design would compose setting up the website and would require HTML and client side technology for getting the job done. The creation of the static pages would take HTML and JavaScript or VBScript must be used to validate the web site and its form entries and data storage requirements. The advanced technologies would make sure that data is represented well and connected for getting the usability right for the website. The usability features must be taken care so that one is able to acknowledge the look and feel, consistency of content, navigation patterns, anytime-anywhere traveling within the website and many more (Usability. gov, 2007). It also allows user to understand and reciprocate information, their current path and content for the website. The client side features enables the user to take the correct action and guide them all along. The middle level architecture takes into account the business logic that is driving the front end and all the operations that the user is supposed to perform to accomplish a certain amount of their job. The business processes are the payment modules, generating the online dynamic content, tracking one’s order, tracking the online cart or basket requirements, handling the database operations and making sure that they get everything they want. Several application severs like IBM Websphere, JBOSS can be used for the purpose. The database for the website is composed of several tables which record data and information from the users of the system which comprise of several individuals, institutions and several other businesses. The data is stored and fetched when required to view the information. Databases of RDBMS nature such as Oracle, DB2 and others can be used for widespread storage of data and information. Privacy and security measures: The privacy of the customer information and the transactions that are required to be made must be safe in all respects so as to prevent eavesdropping and tapping of the message. The use of TLS (Transport Layer Security) and SSL (Secure Socket Layer) protocols can be used to facilitate transmission and transfer across a secured channel to prevent the misuse of customer’s personal and financial data for their wide applicability and to perform online purchases IETF (2007). It takes care of the privacy of the information and makes sure that all communication is completely safe and abides by the privacy laws of the organization. The use of security measures like firewalls and antivirus software’s can help a long way to facilitate preventing of websites from intruders and malicious content and programs. The firewalls would prevent the website from any malicious programs and take care of the safety of the website.

American Airlines Essay Example for Free

American Airlines Essay Situational Analysis: Internal factors: Strengths: Joint Venture with Japanese Airline Partnership with JetBlue Member of oneworld alliance International Flies to North America, the Caribbean, South America, Europe and Asia Number of routes AAdvantage frequent flyer program Weaknesses: Older airplanes Unstable chairs on their airplanes Current financial situation External factors: Opportunities: Merge with another airline Reorganization of their company Successful retrenchment strategy Increase profits Update planes Purchase new aircrafts Satisfy consumer needs Threats: Company filed for bankruptcy in November 2011 Competition with competitors low cost strategy Price of fuel has increased Labor costs have increased US economic slowdown Problem: American Airlines is struggling with higher costs, mainly, higher fuel costs and labor costs. These costs became so excessive, that American Airlines had to declare bankruptcy. Alternative 1: American Airlines needs to emerge from bankruptcy as a profitable company, which would enable them to explore the possibility of a merger with another airline provided that the two airlines combined would provide efficiencies and higher profitability. Strengths: Potential increase in profits Opportunity to eliminate duplicate costs Potential to enhance brand recognition because now they will have more routes and more to offer Weaknesses: Always potential for disruption and disorganization as the merger takes place The cost of the merger (usually underestimated) Miscalculation of the difficulties of merging two corporate cultures Alternative 2: They must use the bankruptcy process to lower their labor cost, both by wage concessions and more efficient work roles. Strengths: Lower costs More efficiency of workers Potential increase in profits Lead to lower flying inconveniences Help exit bankruptcy Weaknesses: Resistance from the employees Disruptions could cause cancelations Alternative 3: Use the bankruptcy to lower other employee costs such as medical insurance and pension. Strengths: Lower labor costs Help exit bankruptcy Decrease debt Weaknesses: Resistance by employees Weaken relationships among employers and employees Recommendation: My recommendation would be alternative two: They must use the bankruptcy process to lower their labor cost, both by wage concessions and more efficient work roles. I’m assuming that this alternative will lower costs the most. American Airlines needs to use the bankruptcy process to implement this alternative effectively. They need to go before the bankruptcy court asking them to cooperate to seek wage concessions and more efficient work roles. A combination of the legal department and the finance department need to be in charge of implementing this alternative. This is a legal matter but the finance department must explain to the legal department what is needed in terms of financial relief. This needs to be implemented as soon as possible. It must start in the bankruptcy court. This can be evaluated by examining if this alternative does lower cost without completely destroying employee to employer relationships. The finance department needs to evaluate their financial numbers (examining costs) on a monthly basis.

The Qingming Festival

The Qingming Festival The Qingming Festival, Clear Bright Festival, Ancestors Day or Tomb Sweeping Day is a traditional Chinese festival on the 104th day after the winter solstice (or the 15th day from the Spring Equinox), usually occurring around April 5 of the Gregorian calendar (see Chinese calendar). Astronomically it is also a solar term (See Qingming). The Qingming festival falls on the first day of the fifth solar term, named Qingming. Its name denotes a time for people to go outside and enjoy the greenery of springtime (TÃ  qÄ «ng, treading on the greenery) and tend to the graves of departed ones. Qingming has been regularly observed as a statutory public holiday in Taiwan and in the Chinese jurisdictions of Hong Kong and Macau. Its observance was reinstated as a public holiday in mainland China in 2008, after having been previously suppressed by the ruling Communist Party in 1949. Tomb Sweeping Day and Clear Bright Festival are the most common English translations of Qingming Festival. Tomb Sweeping Day is used in several English language newspapers published in Taiwan. Qinming Festival originated from Hanshi Day (literally, Day with cold food only), memorial day for Jie Zitui (or Jie Zhitui,). He died in 636 BC in the Spring and Autumn Period. He was one of many followers of Duke Wen of Jin before he became Duke. One time during Duke Wen of Jins 19 years of exile, they didnt have any food, and Jie prepared some meat soup for Duke Wen of Jin, who enjoyed it a lot and wondered where Jie got the soup. It turned out Jie cut a piece of meat from his own thigh to make the soup. Duke Wen of Jin was so moved, he promised to reward him on day. However Jie was not the type of people who sought rewards, instead, he just wanted to help Duke Wen of Jin to return to Jin to become Duke. Once Duke Wen of Jin succeeded the throne of Duke, Jie resigned and stayed away from the Duke. Duke Wen of Jin rewarded the people who helped him in the decades, but for some reason, he forgot to reward Jie, who by then had moved into the forest with his mother. Duke Wen of Jin we nt to the forest, but couldnt find Jie. Heeding suggestions from his officials, Duke Wen of Jin ordered to set the forest in fire to force out Jie, however, Jie died in the fire. Feeling so remorse, Duke Wen of Jin ordered the 3 days without fire to honor Jies memory. The county where Jie died is still called Jiexiu (literally meaning the place Jie resting forever). Qingming has a tradition stretching back more than 2,500 years.[4] Its origin is credited to the Tang Emperor Xuanzong in 732. Wealthy citizens in China were reportedly holding too many extravagant and ostentatiously expensive ceremonies in honour of their ancestors. Emperor Xuanzong, seeking to curb this practice, declared that respects could be formally paid at ancestors graves only on Qingming.[5] The observance of Qingming found a firm place in Chinese culture and continued uninterrupted for over two millennia. In 1949 the Communist Party of China repealed the holiday. Observance of Qingming remained suppressed until 2008, when the Party reinstated the holiday. The Qingming Festival is an opportunity for celebrants to remember and honor their ancestors at grave sites. Young and old pray before the ancestors, sweep the tombs and offer food, tea, wine, chopsticks, (joss) paper accessories, and/or libation to the ancestors. The rites have a long tradition in Asia, especially among farmers. Some people carry willow branches with them on Qingming, or put willow branches on their gates and/or front doors. They believe that willow branches help ward off the evil spirit that wanders on Qingming. Also on Qingming people go on family outings, start the spring plowing, sing, dance, and Qingming is a time where young couples start courting. Another popular thing to do is fly kites (in shapes of animals or characters from Chinese opera). Others carry flowers instead of burning paper, incense or firecrackers as is common. The holiday is often marked by people paying respects to those who died in events considered sensitive in China. The April Fifth Movement and the Tiananmen Incident were major events on Qingming that took place in the history of the Peoples Republic of China. When Premier Zhou Enlai died in 1976, thousands visited him during the festival to pay their respects. Many also pay respects to victims of the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 and the graves of Zhao Ziyang and Yang Jia in areas where rights of free expression are generally recognized, as in Hong Kong; in most areas of China such observances are suppressed and all public mention of such subjects is taboo.[4][6] In Taiwan the national holiday is observed on April 5 because the ruling Kuomintang moved it to that date in commemoration of the death of Chiang Kai-shek on April 5. The holiday is nevertheless observed in the traditional manner, with families gathering to honour their own ancestors, visit and maintain their family shri nes, and share traditional meals. Despite having no holiday status, the overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asian nations such as those in Singapore and Malaysia take this festival seriously; deep in heritage, rituals and strict decorum. Qing Ming in Malaysia is an elaborate family function or a clan feast (usually organized by the respective clan association) to commemorate and honor their late relations at grave site and their distant ancestry of China at home altar, clan temple or a makeshift altar in a Buddhist or Taoist temple. For the oversea community, Qing ming festival is very much a family heritage and at the same, a family obligation. The overseas Chinese see this festival as a time to reflect, honor and give thanks to their forefathers. The oversea Chinese normally visit the graves of their late relations at the nearest weekend of the actual date. According to the ancient custom, grave site veneration is only feasible 10 days before and after Qingming Festival. If the visit is not on the actual date normally veneration before Qingming is encouraged. Qingming Festival in Malaysia and Singapore normally started early in the morning, with the ancestral veneration at home altar- paying respect to the distant ancestors from China. This would be followed by visiting the graves of their close relations in the country. Some would take the extent of filial piety to visit the graves of their ancestors in mainland China. Traditionally, family will burn paper money (paper have imprint of money) and paper replica of some material good such car, maid, home, phone, and etc. In Chinese culture, even though a person died, he/she may still need all of these in the afterlife. There should always an even number of dishes put in front of the grave and a bowl of rice with incense stick upright. Then, family members start taking turn to bow before the tomb of the ancestors. Bowing will go in order, which starts with the most senior member of the family and so on. After the ancestor worship at the gr ave site, the whole family or the whole clan would be feasting the food and drinks they brought for the worship at the site or nearby gardens in the memorial park, signifying family reunion with the ancestors. Hanshi, the day before Qingming, was created by Chonger, the Duke Wen of the state of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period. The festival was established after Chonger accidentally burned to death his personal friend and servant Jie Zhitui (or Jie Zitui) and Jie Zituis mother. Chonger ordered the hills they were hiding in set on fire in hopes that Jie Zitui would return to his service, but the fire killed Jie and his mother. On Hanshi, people were not allowed to use fires to heat up food, thus nicknaming it the Cold Food Festival. Eventually, 300 years ago, the Hanshi celebration was combined with the Qingming festival, but later abandoned by most people. The Qingming festival holiday holds significance in Chinese Tea culture since this specific day divides the fresh green teas by their picking dates. Green teas made from leaves picked before this date is given the prestigious pre-qingming or mingqian designation which commands a much higher price tag. These teas are prized for having much lighter and subtler aromas than those picked after the festival.(I download the last two paragraph from the internet)

Torn and Confused, but I love You Essay -- Love Letters Dating Email R

Dear Michael, Love has taught me and has changed me since we've met. I knew you were the only man I have ever really loved and the only man I ever wanted to be with for the rest of my life. From the start I could see us together and I could hear my heart say, "I am going to marry him". I was shocked, but I was happy. Then my head and ego got in the way and my false pride took over and I played games. I began to see all the things about you that I wanted to change. False pride made me feel afraid that you did not love me and this caused me to feel insecure. Then ego gave you the "love test" and of course you failed. Now I know that false pride does not trust and ego does not know true love. When my expectations grew, my egotistical, selfish personality took over and my love for you...

Robert Louis Stevenson :: essays research papers

When one reads the nonfiction work of Robert Louis Stevenson along with the novels and short stories, a more complete portrait emerges of the author than that of the romantic vagabond one usually associates with his best-known fiction. The Stevenson of the nonfiction prose is a writer involved in the issues of his craft, his milieu, and his soul. Moreover, one can see the record of his maturation in critical essays, political tracts, biographies, and letters to family and friends. What Stevenson lacks, especially for the tastes of this age, is specificity and expertise: he has not the depth of such writers as John Ruskin, Walter Pater, or William Morris. But he was a shrewd observer of humankind, and his essays reveal his lively and perspicacious mind. Though he lacked originality, he created a rapport with the reader, who senses his enthusiastic embrace of life and art. If Stevenson at first wrote like one who only skimmed the surface of experience, by the end of his life he was pa ssionately committed to his adopted land of Samoa, to his own history, and to the creation of his fiction. Robert Louis Stevenson was born to Thomas and Margaret Isabella Balfour Stevenson in Edinburgh on 13 November 1850. From the beginning he was sickly. Through much of his childhood he was attended by his faithful nurse, Alison Cunningham, known as Cummy in the family circle. She told him morbid stories about the Covenanters (the Scots Presbyterian martyrs), read aloud to him Victorian penny-serial novels, Bible stories, and the Psalms, and drilled the catechism into him, all with his parents' approval. Thomas Stevenson was quite a storyteller himself, and his wife doted on their only child, sitting in admiration while her precocious son expounded on religious dogma. Stevenson inevitably reacted to the morbidity of his religious education and to the stiffness of his family's middle-class values, but that rebellion would come only after he entered Edinburgh University. The juvenilia that survives from his childhood shows an observer who was already sensitive to religious issues and Scottish history. Not surprisingly, the boy who listened to Cummy's religious tales first tried his hand at retelling Bible stories: "A History of Moses" was followed by "The Book of Joseph." When Stevenson was sixteen his family published a pamphlet he had written entitled The Pentland Rising, a recounting of the murder of Nonconformist Scots Presbyterians who rebelled against their royalist persecutors.