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Kahalu'u Beach Park beoordelingen
Kwaliteit op een goede dag: 4.0
Betrouwbaarheid van de Golven: 3.5
Moeilijkheidsgraad: 2.5
Bezoekers: 4.0
Accommodatie: 5.0

Overall: 3.9

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Op basis van 2 Stem(men). Stemmen

Surf Report Feed

Kahalu'u Beach Park Wind Statistieken, June gemiddelde vanaf 2006

According to the model, the prevailing wind at Kahalu'u Beach Park blows from the SSW. If the rose graph shows a fairly circular pattern, it means there is no strong bias in wind direction at Kahalu'u Beach Park. On the other hand, dominant spokes illustrate favoured directions, and the more dark blue, the stronger the wind. Spokes point in the direction the wind blows from. Over an average June, the model suggests that winds are light enough for the sea to be glassy (pale blue) about 30% of the time (9 days each June) and blows offshore 33% of the time (10 days in an average June). In a typical June winds exceeding >40kph (25mph) are not expected, but 0 have winds on the range 30-40 (19-25) at Kahalu'u Beach Park


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Tylers Homepage Personal Injury Claims › Whiplash Compensation Claims

Whiplash Compensation Claim

Whiplash is the term that refers to an injury to the neck, which usually occurs following a motor vehicle accident or in sports such as boxing. Normally, a person with a whiplash neck sprain injury will experience severe muscle strain around the neck and shoulder areas. Most of the time the whiplash symptoms will last only for a while and ease off without having to seek any medical attention. However, if the symptoms persist, seeking medical attention is advisable, and if painkillers will work to relieve the pain, it is best they are taken at then. The best way to prevent the occurrence of whiplash is by always keeping your neck active.

How does whiplash occur?

Road traffic accidents are the commonest ways in which whiplash occurs. It happens when a vehicle is stopped abruptly or when a stopped vehicle is suddenly rear-ended by another vehicle. The impact from these two instances forces the head of the driver or passenger to violently snap forwards and almost instantly and suddenly backwards. This causes moderate to severe and traumatic injuries to the neck and shoulder region. Other than in a road traffic accident, whiplash may occur due to sports injuries such as in boxing or when a roller coaster is suddenly brought to stop. If you suffer from a whiplash injury that was inflicted upon you by the negligence of another driver, you will find it necessary to make a whiplash compensation claim against that negligent driver. This type of claim will cover both the current medical expenses you may have to pay, and other future medical treatment costs of the injury.

What do I do after the accident?

Making a compensation claim for whiplash injuries is almost the same as making any other personal injury compensation claims. The most important thing you should do in order to succeed in your claim is to prove the negligence in driving of another person.

Also, to help you make a valid whiplash compensation claim, take photographs of the accident and the contacts and addresses of any willing witnesses to the accident. You should contact the police immediately if the negligent driver that caused the road traffic accident attempts to flee the scene or if the car driven does not have a valid insurance.

As cases vary in intensity and manner, it will be difficult to state exactly how much a whiplash compensation claim will get you. However, the amount will be based on the severity of the injury and the length period you sustained the injury. Be care full not to take too long as the injury may ease away and your claim be dismissed.

What are the symptoms for whiplash?

Whiplash symptoms are not hard to read. They generally revolve around neck pain and headaches. You will know you have the whiplash when you experience severe pain in the neck and shoulder area after a road traffic accident. Other signs include dizziness, depression, ringing in the ear, blurred vision, numbness around the neck or arm, memory loss, vertigo, difficulty in sleeping and fatigue.

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At the time you don’t think about it”

Critical Incident Debriefing: A gentle and effective ‘one off’ session following any trauma.

Critical Incident Debriefing allows a person to recall and process a traumatically-stressful experience in a calm, safe and empowering way. It is being used more and more to help people overcome the effects of traumas such as: road traffic accidents, sudden deaths, PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) and violent and sexual crime.

A person who has suffered a major trauma doesn’t necessarily need ‘therapy’ in the usual sense of the word- they just need to be able to process and move on from the experience.

Critical Incident Debriefing…..   now you’re talking

Whether you have been a witness or a victim of  violent attack, are an employee within the Armed Forces, Police, N.H.S. Rescue Services or indeed any environment where exposure to upsetting or stressful events is more likely, this session could help  support you in processing negative experiences.

Critical Incident Debriefing, Grantham Hypnotherapy, Caroline Hamblin

Contact us today to discuss how we can help you

Critical Incident Debriefing


What is it that makes us think that at some point we need to stop dreaming? What obstacle could be so big that we push aside our dreams and keep doing the same old thing, day after day?  Life is short. I am of a certain age and I have never felt more confident, more sure, more willing to take risks, and more capable.  Part of that new found power comes from the knowledge that if it doesn’t work out, so what, who cares.  So let the possibilities begin and let your dreams come true.  As long as you are alive, it is never too late to be what you might have been.

xo, jan

One of my favorite motivational speakers is Les Brown and he once said something to the effect, “The graveyard is the richest place on earth, because it is here that you will find all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled, the books that were never written, the songs that were never sung, the inventions that were never shared, the cures that were never discovered, all because someone was too afraid to take that first step, keep with the problem, or determined to carry our their dream.” I sincerely hope that you will take that advice to heart and not let your dream die with you. I sincerely hope that whatever you want to do that you will not let anyone or anything stop you.  Just imagine if Mozart had never written his music, Steve Jobs had never brought us APPLE (oh god!, I don’t’ want to imagine!), Disney had not developed his park, and Shakespeare had not written his plays. Of course the list goes on and on and we can learn a lesson from every business we know. It takes determination to stay in the game. The future is up to you and you choose.  I hope you choose to share your dream with the world and help to make it a better place and a richer place.

Customer Service and Another Way to Skin A Cat

Sorry for the cat reference.  No disrespect intended.

The other night we went out to dinner with a friend to Delancey’s.  It isn’t necessarily my favorite restaurant because the service has never been that stellar, but oh how I love the vodka pasta!  So when we went the other night, I wasn’t surprised when the hostess was rude but I was dismayed when she told me we would have to eat in the bar or lounge (both were full) because we didn’t have a reservation, even though there were several tables open.  I walked around the lounge and bar looking to see if anyone was going to get up and leave soon, but no, everyone looked as though they had just arrived or were settling in for a long winter’s night.  How long will the wait be, I asked. Again.  She finally answered an hour and a half.  I went back to find my friend and shared the sad news.  He looked up at me smiling and said, “I just booked us a reservation through open table for 7:30.” It was 7:28!  For tonight?!! Yep, he said, Are you sure? I asked again.  Yes, Yes, and with ultimate delight, shared the news with the same hostess that had just told us we couldn’t get a table for an hour and one half!  Her anger was quite evident as she had to seat us immediately!  Will I go back?  I’m not sure.  Maybe I will get my vodka pasta to go next time.  But I will never ever forget that we were able to bypass their hour and one half wait!  And in a time when customer service rules, Delancey’s better watch their back.

xo, jan

Ok, so a popular little quip that’s going around these days is “what’s your number?” .  Just recently, the Celebrity Apprentice used it in conjunction with an ad campaign for a mop. Really?  A mop?  Of course the reference is to ” how many people you have slept with?” so it is a little racy, but certainly garners attention.

I’m not about to visit that subject and don’t want to know your history either, LOL!, but…… I do like numbers.  (Well, not adding or subtracting or figuring out statistical things) but I like grouping things in numbers and have a few favorite numbers I might use in selecting a lottery ticket.  This year, ONE of my favorite numbers is 12.  To help me get certain number of things accomplished, I list my top 12 things to do a day and check them off as they are DONE.  Some of them are regular things like walking, blogging, and drinking at least 57  (another favorite number) oz of water a day.  Other items on my list include phone calls, meetings, errands, emails, etc.  Listing my top 12 gives me a sense of accomplishment and organization. It helps me to see what I really need to do so that it isn’t fighting for space in my head to remember what I need to do.  Apparently Obama responds to 10 written letters each day. That sounds like a good thing to do.  Whatever your number, you decide what is reasonable and manageable, and watch your stress level go down as you check off one task after another.  What’s your number will add up to a whole lot of numbers getting done. And that makes for a happy entrepreneur!

I’m a girl that likes choices, especially when I go on a trip.  I want clothes for if the weather is cold, and if the weather is warm, then of course I need clothes that will work in that climate too. I always take my own pillow 🙂 and It probably goes without saying that I want an assortment of shoes, different bags, all my beauty products, reading materials if I’m stuck somewhere or have free time.  So on the last trip I took, I packed my suitcase with plenty of choices.

This trip was a chance to spend time with my brother, but also a chance to do a lot of sightseeing. So keeping that in mind, each morning my choice of what to wear came down to pretty much the same one or two outfits and comfortable shoes.  I realized this happens every time I take a trip, regardless of the activities. I stick to two or three outfits almost always!  So this trip, as I lugged this overpacked suitcase through long corridors and a crowded airport, I made a choice that is mine; never again will I pack “everything I own”, just so I can have multiple choices. It also got me to thinking about all the extra luggage and choices we carry in our business. The extra weight keeps us from being efficient.  Overstuffed and overpacked businesses keeps us from staying focused on what we need to focus on, as well as the extra costs we incur from all that extra baggage we may be purchasing. So think about trimming the fat, bringing into your business no more and no less than what you really need to operate. You may just find that you feel lighter, more energetic, have more money, and more success!

xo, jan

Once upon a time, a student came to math class, exhausted from working two jobs. He was a dedicated student, receiving funding based on a high point grade average, but this day he fell asleep during class time.  He awoke just in time to copy the two problems listed on the board for homework.  Frantic and feeling guilty at not paying attention during instructions about the assignment, he stayed up all night working on the difficult problems, until finally, he solved them both. At the next class, he apologized to the instructor that his homework was a bit messy, explaining he did not have a chance to recopy it.  The instructor looked at the student in astonishment. The problem her student had completed had never been solved before!!!   And since he had fallen asleep and never heard the instructions, he didn’t know that it was considered unsolvable.

Before and after we launch a business, we constantly get messages telling us we can’t.  We can choose to listen to the critics.  We can choose to give up when the going gets tough.  We can choose to let a brick wall stop us in our tracks.  And we can succumb to the fact that what we are trying to do has never been done before. Or, we can fly anyway, we can solve the problem, anyway, we can go around the roadblock or think outside the box, anyway!.  Ignorance is bliss and sometimes, it is the best attitude to take when it comes to being in business!

xo, jan

While vacationing in Williamsburg, VA, this week, I’ve visited all the historical sights of course.  It was particularly interesting today as I went down the famous Duke of Glouchester St and listened to several actors (clad in traditional dress and assuming the role of shopkeeper, cabinet maker, furniture maker, tavern owner) discuss their beliefs, concerns, and business practices.

What would someone say about me a 100 or so years from now? How would they describe my business and what I did?  What kind of impact would they say I had made, if any?  I realize that although I tend to live in the future with most of my actions regarding my personal life, my business operates in the present. I want to start thinking forward and help decide what my legacy will be rather than letting it just happen.  I want to be the business owner that people speaking about me in the future will talk about my passion, my desire to help women realize their dream, my commitment to my students and becoming a great instructor, my ability to connect and help bring together joint ventures and life changes among individuals, my innovation and bright ideas. So starting today, I will direct my actions with the future in mind and the legacy I want to leave behind.

xo, jan


On November 14, 2005, less than 2 years after President Bush signed the program into law, enrollment began for Medicare Part D which allowed seniors for the first time to purchase subsidized prescription drug coverage through Medicare. Seniors were offered choices from among a variety of plans and providers, and premium subsidies based on their income levels. As a result the program was complicated, requiring the launch of a new government website and call center to facilitate enrollment, and a host of back-end systems to calculate eligibility and transmit enrollment information to the insurance carriers.

As you may recall, things did not go as smoothly as planned. One might say the roll-out was plagued by a series of “glitches”. Seniors were confused about their options and the new website contained inaccuracies and was initially overwhelmed by a flood of inquiries.

By the time coverage began to take effect in early 2006, the media was unsparing. It was an unqualified “debacle”, according to Paul Krugman in the NY Times. A “Medicare Hurricane”, according to the Washington Post. Time declared it the “GOP’s Medicare Drug Problem”, Slate a “drug addled fiasco“.

Many Democrats in Congress were just as ruthless in their criticism, even though they had long supported the idea of covering prescription drugs via Medicare. “This has been botched and bungled every step of the way”, said Sen. Kent Conrad (ND). “No greater government failure since Katrina”, he added.

Senator Hillary Clinton called for the program to be scrapped and re-started, calling the rollout a “deep, heartbreaking disappointment” while helpfully reminding everyone that Medicare was initially implemented in 11 months, when “we didn’t have computers”. (video below)

Nancy Pelosi declared it a “complete embarrassment to the Bush Administration” and like Sen. Clinton said that Democrats should “replace it”. (video below)

So how did this embarrassing debacle turn out? By the end of March, only 4.5 months after enrollment began, 27 million seniors had signed up for coverage.

27 million.

Is this is a cautionary tale of how a competent administration, spurred by criticism, can turn an unprecedented failure into something most people would call a “resounding success” within a very short period of time? Perhaps, and the current Administration would certainly like to believe so. But I can’t help but notice that as with ObamaCare the media’s initial stance was curiously in line with that put forth by leading Democrats, all the way up to the point of time in which those inconvenient facts got in the way.


Afitos Halkidiki Greece

Afitos villageAfitos village, sea view

Afitos is one of the oldest villages in Kassandra peninsula, with long history. Built on a cliff, it offers a wonderful view to Toroneos gulf and looks like an Aegean island. Afitos is a picturesque village, full of cobblestone streetstraditional houses built from limestone and colorful flowers. In Afitos you can find excellent taverns and bars (some with great view), and taste delicious traditional recipes and drinks.

In the traditional settlement of Afitos the most distinctive houses are Galani, Katsani and Papavasileiou. In the central square of the village stands Agios Dimitrios church with the dome, build from limestone, in 1858. Near the church the folklore museum is located, in Aletra building. Churches "Agios Georgios" (1867), "Koimisis tis Theotokou" (1885), "Agios Athanasios" and "Agios Nikolaos" (in Liosi) are also worth visiting. Other sights one must visit are Afitos' archaeological area, ancient quarries, Vrisitsa and Moudounou springs. The ancient quarry is located on the eastern side of the settlement, where you can see the intersections on the rocks for exporting large rectangular volumes.

Afitos is well known for its sandy coasts that are discontinued by small sea rocks coming out of the water. The waters are crystal clear and combined with the rocks form a magnificent exotic scenery. The sea also forms some important biotopes for many fish that spawn here. The most known beaches are: Varkes, Liosi, Moudounou, Afitis, Aristotelis, Valopetres, Pounta, Dafni.

Agios Dimitrios church in Afitos villagePots with flowers in Afitos village

Afitos traditional settlement has a history that starts from at least 3000 BC. Its name comes from the ancient name "Afitis", which means "full of plants". The cliff on which Afitos was built protected the village from sea intruders.  Afitos thrived and minded its own currency during ancient and classic years. Ammon Zeus and Dionysus sanctuary, which today belong to Kallithea area, contributed in spreading Afitos' fame. According to several sources and due to some ancient findings it is believed that Afitos survived until romaic era.

According to Herodotus, during the Persian wars (5th century B.C.) Afitos was forced to aid Xerxis, the king of Persians, by giving him army and ships, like other towns of Halkidiki. But after the battle of Plataea it renegaded from Persians and joined the Athenean league. Due to its alliance with the Athenian league, during the Peloponesean war the village was beleaguered by the Spartans' general, Lysander. According to Pausanias, the siege was over after a dream Lysander had, about Ammon Zeus, Afitos' protector, who was telling him to unfasten the siege. It is considered that Afitos was destroyed in 348 B.C. by the king of Macedonians, Philip II, like many other towns on Halkidiki.

For the next centuries there are no data about Afitos' history. During Greek revolution of 1821 many of its villagers played important roles as fighters and many lost their lives. The citizens who survived were spread to many different areas, like Mount Athos, Skiathos and Skopelos. The stone houses that are saved till today were built during the second half of 19th century and they have a characteristic architecture, with inscriptions and reliefs. Archaeological findings, like pottery and jewels were found in the village 's ancient cemetery, inside sarcophagi


Some years ago I had an amazing trip in Italy. Let me share with you the hightlights of what you need to do in Italy. We took a boat from Patras, Greece to Ancona, Italy. The trip to Ancona lasted a half day (most of the time the trip is at night so you have time to get some sleep).
First stop: Venice. What a romantic place! Venice is one of the most important tourist destinations in the world, due to the city being one of the world's greatest and most beautiful cities of art. Today, there are numerous attractions in Venice, such as St Mark's Basilica, the Grand Canal, and the Piazza San Marco. There, we had the opportunity to have a tour with a gondola, taste gelatos, and visit the litle island of Murano where muranno deco are artcrafted.
Next stop : Garda: There we visited Gardaland, the Eurodisney of Italy let us say a place full of adventure and energy. The next stop was Italian riviera! Portofino is the most beautiful place! The part centered on Sanremo, is the "Riviera dei Fiori". Green everytwhere, colourful flowers, and fantastic hotels!
Then we went down to Florence. Florence is famous for its history. A centre of medieval European trade and finance and one of the wealthiest cities of the time. Florence is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance, and has been called the Athens of the Middle Ages. Old buildings and an air of majesty. We had a long walk at the city and we stayed in a wonderful hotel.
Next stop: Pisa. The building which leans on one side is fantastic!
We then spent some days in Rome! Rome is the ancient city of Italy and its current capital. Monuments and museums such as the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum are amongst the world's 50 most visited tourist destinations. Among others, a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture in Rome is the Piazza del Campidoglio by Michelangelo. Rome enjoys a Mediterranean climate. It is very beautiful! Fontana di Trevi is the most amazing place! Shopping is one of the things to do in Rome as well as tasting spaggetti and pizza.
I really had the greatest memories during this trip! Why don't you try it?


Tag Archives: clothes closet

The Konmari Method: Not a Magic Bullet!

51mf3u-jpal-_sx348_bo1204203200_Marie Kondo’s book, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, has been the all the rage for the last two years. I’m guessing it caught on because people were fascinated and hungering for information about how to rid themselves of clutter forever. Wouldn’t that be nice! Or, perhaps the idea that tidying up could be magical and not a dreaded boring task was appealing.

Unfortunately, the only way to rid yourself of clutter forever is to have a highly effective, committed staff that follows you everywhere cleaning up and clearing out behind you or to be dead. As we move through life, we create clutter. The only way I know to live somewhat clutter-free is to make daily clutter clearing a priority along with several larger clutter clearing sessions per year.

Not only was I initially very put off by the suggestion that it is possible to clear clutter forever, I also had a problem with Ms. Kondo’s insistence that everything should be cleared out at once. Having worked as a professional organizer who has cleared clutter for almost 20 years, I have learned that the human brain wears out after an hour or two when making decisions once after another. Going through an entire house can take weeks or even months for most people. It is an enormous task!

Clutter clearing is all about making decisions. The idea that people are capable of working hour after hour, day after day to clear clutter not only is an impossibility (unless a team of people are doing the clearing), but it is a recipe for exhaustion and failure.

I also struggled with the sorting method proposed in Ms. Kondo’s book. At one point she suggested that a person’s closet be emptied onto the floor and clothes from other parts of the house be added to the pile. Then the sorting would begin and continue until all the clothes were sorted.

First, piling all the clothes in one place is a recipe for overwhelm. Seeing all the clothes at once would shut down most of my clients’ brains, especially those with ADHD. Also, it really isn’t necessary to empty closets when clearing them out. In fact, it’s much more efficient to leave all clothes in the closet, except for any that are on the floor, and pull out only those that a person no longer wants.

Finally, it is highly unlikely that even a person who is highly focused and motivated would be able to stay engaged in the sorting process until that enormous job was done. When exhaustion sets in, the brain melts down. When the brain is done, people quit clearing clutter. That would leave a big pile of clothes in the middle of the bedroom, a pile that would be much harder to get back to than it was to work on it the first time.

With all that said, I really liked the feng shui feel of the book. The way she looked at possessions was almost referent. Plus, she linked quality of a person’s life to the condition of their environment. Feng shui teaches that what you have in your space affects what happens in your life.

I can see all my shirts at once! No MIA shirts!

My favorite part of the book, however, was the section addressing how to fold clothes for maximum visibility. Using her suggestions I have totally transformed my sock and nightgown drawer and my shirt drawer using her methods. I feel proud and happy every time I open one of those drawers. Everything is so neat, organized and visible.

No, you can’t banish clutter forever. There are no magic bullets. But, you can improve the condition of your space by clearing clutter every day.


Thursday, December 17, 2015

Antidepressants in Pregnancy: Autism Risk?

Monday, December 14, 2015

Changes in Psychiatric Culture -- Wait Lists, "Efficiency," and Superficial Care

Psychiatrists are more commonly offering the following services:

1) "Assessment":  This is a single 1-hour interview, yielding an obligatory report with diagnostic label, and treatment advice.  In some places, this single interview is all the psychiatric input that is offered.

The single assessment has rich prececents in other areas of medicine.  For example, a visit to a dermatologist could yield a very accurate and fruitful diagnosis of a specific type of chronic skin disease, leading to a clear set of instructions for safe and effective treatments.  In many cases, it would  not be necessary to see the dermatologist regularly after this assessment, unless the treatment regime was going very poorly.

But psychiatry and dermatology are quite different!   Despite our attempts to have a reductionistic and medicalized diagnostic scheme in psychiatry (e.g. the DSM-V), we see that two different people with the exact same diagnosis frequently do not follow the same pathway of symptom progression. Identical treatments do not work in identical ways with different people.

Furthermore, I believe it is an act of significant hubris to assume that one can effectively "diagnose" someone, with respect to issues touching on a person's entire history of self, character, emotion, and intellect, following a single one-hour visit.   The "first impression" from a first interview can be very important to understand a person's life and problems, but as we all know, first impressions can very, very often be inaccurate or incomplete.  For some people, it could take weeks, months, or even years, to share their story.

Yet, this pattern of assessments may, on paper, appear to be very efficient.  One could "manage" wait lists much more quickly.  The problem is that a single assessment is actually not very useful, despite yielding an official-looking report which appears useful.   Offering single assessments only is similar to a teacher offering a single day of school to each of 4 000 students, rather than a whole year of daily teaching for a classroom of 20.   Another insidious consequence of the apparently "efficient" pattern of doing multiple "assessments" is that the therapist, or teacher, who may have a great joy and talent for deeply helping people in an ongoing collaborative relationship, may instead not really get to help anyone very much, leading to sinking morale and rising cynicism.  Burnout would probably follow, much more often.  But the paycheque would not go down -- it would actually be higher (in psychiatry, the fees for assessments are about 25% higher than for spending the same length of time offering a follow-up therapy appointment).

Many of the patients I have seen have had an incredible, audible sigh of relief, when they have discovered that I am actually going to make time to see them regularly!   There is often some sense of surprise that I do not focus on diagnostic labels.   The experience of mental health care, for many, has been one of shuttling between various short-term groups, superficial courses of CBT in a sort of group lecture format, brief one-on-one followup which ends just as a deeper sense of trust is forming, and medication trials with primary care doctors.

2) "Medication management visits":  In many cases, psychiatrists do not offer what could be called "psychotherapy."  Instead, patients are seen for a few minutes,  to discuss medication doses.   These visits could possibly be more frequent if the patient is not doing as well.  It is understandable to have such visits, for people who are wishing to take medication.  In clinics serving those who have major mental illnesses, who are taking complex medication combinations, this type of service is undeniably important.   Other types of psychotherapy or health care may be happening elsewhere.  But if this is the only style of visit which psychiatrists are offering, it creates a frame in which medication use is implied as a norm.  Why would you have a "medication management visit" if you didn't want or need medication?  From the psychiatrist's point of view, why discuss other matters, such as relationships, goals, dreams for the future, etc. unless it pertains to the medication management plan?  The frame leads to an atrophy of therapeutic skill.  I think it is a serious problem if psychiatric visits are framed with an expectation of medication management, particularly when we know what an incredibly, strongly loaded set of biases exist around medication use and marketing.  The medication management visit framework is surely designed to "optimize" the use of psychiatry, in a setting of long wait lists and shortages of care, but in setting things up this way we are inviting a possible massive deterioration in the quality of care.  I note again, that psychiatrists using the provincial fee schedule receive a large financial gain by seeing larger numbers of patients for briefer, more superficial, medication-oriented visits.  The decrement in the quality of care may tragically not be noticed in the short term, because wait lists would be shorter, appearing to be beneficial.

Also, "improved" wait list management may cause an external observer to assume that the system has been "fixed," therefore delaying more substantive systemic changes.

In a further sort of game-theoretical analysis of these evolving trends, I believe that there are even more adverse consequences:   because of the changing culture of the type of psychiatric practice which is considered a norm, the profession itself will attract those who are most comfortable offering this style of service.  Those wishing to do more psychotherapeutic work, or having more skepticism about medicalized psychiatry, would feel ever more part of an eccentric minority, and might choose not to enter a psychiatry residency in the first place.    So psychiatry would become even more "medicalized" with time, in a form of evolutionary selection process.

Ideas for Positive Change:

1) Wait list management.
a)  The public health system in Canada, and possibly private insurers elsewhere in the world, could simply fund private non-medical psychotherapists.  Therapy visits with a psychologist or other counselor could be covered under the public medical services plan.  This could reduce psychiatry wait lists dramatically, while also helping the many psychotherapists who are ironically struggling to make a living, despite there being a massive population need for their services.  For a large institution such as a university, if there were extra funds to spend on mental health, these funds could be spent on providing service availability with local therapists, personal trainers, music & art therapists, pet therapists, gym memberships, etc., rather than spending money on expensive new buildings and other infrastructure.   People help people.  Buildings don't help people much, despite appearing to do so.

b) Non-medical psychotherapists could be allowed to prescribe medication, at least in a very limited way.    I am not meaning to suggest this as a way to increase medication use!  I suggest this to defuse the power dynamic which currently exists among psychiatrists and other physicians.   The basics of psychiatric medication prescription do not require many years of medical education to understand and manage safely.  In fact, the many years of  education may simply consolidate a culture of medication use as an often unnecessary norm.  If there would be less pressure on psychiatrists and other physicians as the sole prescribers of medication, then there could be an opportunity for psychiatrists to be less focused on medication, and therefore more focused on therapeutic alliance.

2) Style of Practice
Here, I think it is very simple:  make time for people!  Doctors, make time for your patients!  Be willing to see them!  I am less concerned about what style of psychotherapy or other tactics.   I am more concerned about being present, collaborative, empathic, and available.   We should be well-informed about medications, and about therapy styles such as CBT, but we should focus most of our attention on very basic matters of building rapport, trust, and working alliance, without fear of the relationship being cut off.

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Cochrane Review: ADHD medications have lower-quality evidence than most people believe

A new Cochrane review, published on November 25, 2015 by authors Storebø and Zwi, looked at the use of stimulants to treat childhood ADHD (specifically, methylphenidate).  Their conclusions included:

1.  "the low quality of the underpinning evidence means that we cannot be certain of the magnitude of the effects."
2. "the general perception of methylphenidate as an effective drug for all children with ADHD seems out of step with the new evidence."

The authors found a great deal of industry sponsorship in existing studies, and found that "all 185 trials" had a high risk of bias.   I would add that more recent ADHD studies, involving newer, more expensive medications, are most likely at an even higher risk of similar biases.

In general, the weaknesses of existing data are similar to the weaknesses in much other psychiatric research:  studies are usually brief, rather than long-term, despite  treatments often being given for many years or permanently.

Other authors, such as Hinshaw (2015)[] have reached similar conclusions, including
"the diminution of medication's initial superiority [was apparent] once the randomly assigned treatment phase turned into naturalistic follow-up. The key paradox is that while ADHD clearly responds to medication and behavioral treatment in the short term, evidence for long-term effectiveness remains elusive"

How should this information inform our understanding or management of ADHD?

First, I do not think it is necessary to stop using stimulants as a treatment.  However, I do think it is necessary to step away from the assumption that long-term stimulant use is appropriate for every person with ADHD symptoms.   Other ways of using stimulant medication could often be more appropriate for many, such as using stimulants sporadically, to manage attentional symptoms for brief periods of time.

The evidence also does not strongly support the long-term effectiveness of behavioural therapies.  This, too, is not really surprising to me.

I think that the answer lies in moving away from a highly medicalized, reductionistic approach entirely.  Phenomena such as ADHD have broad biopsychosocial underpinnings:  some factors exist within the individual, while many others exist in family, social, and educational structures.   In some ways this is similar to other public health issues, such as obesity or addictions:  a single medication or behavioural treatment is very unlikely to be a remarkably effective strategy to help with these problems.    Yet, each of these strategies has a role, provided that the role is not overvalued by those offering it.  Other larger social factors are extremely important as well, including factors relating to poverty, economic equality, community supports, provision of justice & public safety, etc.

So in conclusion, I see -- not surprisingly -- that we must not have exaggerated expectations of medication for treating ADHD or any other psychiatric phenomena.  I do think stimulants have an important role, however, for many people, provided that the expectations are modest, and provided that side effect risks are not discounted by an over-enthusiastic prescriber with biased beliefs about long-term effectiveness vs. risk.

It is also important not to be biased against any particular treatment.  In some cases, for example, balanced medication treatment of ADHD could reduce various types of risks, including substance use problems and traffic accidents, etc.   It is just that the magnitude of such protective effects are likely to be exaggerated in most practioners' minds, due to the biases described above.

 As with other life issues, I believe it is necessary to have a very broad view about helping strategies, which includes other types of therapeutic support if desired, as well as attention given to community, educational, cultural, and family resources--not in isolation, but in a comprehensive and holistic way.

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Potentially Dangerous Biases in Policy Planning Meetings

Administrative meetings are are a common part of many people's professional lives.  Teachers, academics, health care workers, engineers...we all at times are required to attend meetings, some of which have a theme of planning for the future, and of changing the way things are done.

Quadrant 4
The importance of reflective, proactive planning is very high.  I often refer--with my patients-- to the four "quadrants" described by Stephen Covey (1989) in his very popular book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.  He wisely points out that many people are devoted to what I call "quadrant 1", which is taking care of short-term, important tasks.  For many workers this could be answering calls, or dealing with emergencies.   While quadrant 1 is important, it often consumes so much time and energy that there is nothing left for long-term planning.

 It is an obvious problem when people are spending too much time in quadrants 2 and 3:  short-term or long-term unimportant tasks (such as engaging in unhealthy habits).

 But Covey's simple but great point of wisdom is that the highest priority ought to be setting aside time for "quadrant 4":  long-term, important tasks.  Many of us are too busy with the urgent matters of the day to make time for these things.   If more attention was given to long-term, creative, imaginative planning, the short-term important tasks could often be taken care of much more efficiently, leaving more time for deeper, higher quality, more meaningful work.

So, reserving time for meetings, in order to plan for change, can be vitally important, even if they take us away from our important daily work.

Meetings have Costs
However, meetings have costs!   Many meetings are unproductive and boring.    The cost of the meeting is not only financial (i.e. to pay for the salaries of those in attendance, plus any costs of using the space, or getting food, etc.), but more importantly there is a cost in terms of the work that could have been done if the meeting did not take place.   If there are 40 health care workers in a 3-hour meeting (which is really 4 hours, if we consider the time to get to the meeting place and back), this represents 160 patient-hours of health care which was not provided.   For some types of brief psychotherapy, which consist of 8 sessions over a 2-month period, the meeting has a cost of 20 suffering people not receiving help.    An added cost could be a decrement in morale caused by wasted, unrewarding, unproductive time.

Cognitive Biases & Heuristics in Meetings
One of the biggest problems with meetings, in my opinion, has to do with the manner in which they occur.  Daniel Kahneman, the Nobel-laureate psychologist and behavioural economist, has written about the strong cognitive biases that occur in group interactions such as meetings.

If a meeting begins with a number of presentations which the rest of the group watches, then these presentations are likely to have more influence than is rationally expected.  This is particularly true if the presenters are seen as "experts."  This is in keeping with other social psychology work, such as that of Cialdini, looking at factors heightening pursuasion.  These six factors have strong, often unrecognized power to manipulate decision-making.  The factors are natural phenomena, and not necessarily "bad"--in fact, as Kahneman points out, these phenomena (heuristics) can help us make important decisions more quickly, because they are "cognitive short-cuts."  For example, if we have a trusted expert educating us about the use of a new technique, it may spare us from having to take a much longer time researching and learning about the technique on our own.  But unfortunately, these persuasive factors are also used manipulatively by marketers, and may also enchant us so much that we do not do the necessary critical thinking about ideas that are presented persuasively to us.  Furthermore, even if those involved with the heuristics do not have any negative or manipulative motive, the biases exist nevertheless.  They cause a potential harmful impairment in rational decision-making, even without anyone being aware of it!

Cialdini's Elements of Persuasion
Here are five of Cialdini's six elements of persuasion, as manifest in a typical professional meeting:

1) Reciprocity (we are more likely to be persuaded if someone has just given us something of value, since we are likely to feel grateful and indebted):  meetings may begin with tasty snacks & coffee.  We may get our own personalized name tag, which makes us feel valued and important.  We may be entertained by a friendly, humorous, engaging presenter.  It makes us primed to cooperate!  Because we have invested time and effort to come to the meeting, we are probably more apt to be "receptive" to the ideas presented, so as to compensate ourselves for the effort.   This mechanism has been well-researched before in other studies of how people form allegiances to groups via strenuous tasks necessary to join, such as in fraternities or the military.

2) Consistency & Commitment (if we have already agreed to a certain component of an idea, we are more likely to be persuaded to go farther with it in the future, otherwise we could feel as though we are contradicting ourselves or being inconsistent).   This can happen when there are repeated meetings, perhaps spaced out weeks or months apart.  If people have agreed to certain aspects of a plan, they are much more likely to continue agreeing with the same plan, and to go farther with it, even though the plan may at this future point be inappropriate or worthy of questioning.  In sales, if you can convince someone to sign a petition, and to wear a sticker touting some kind of apparently wholesome idea, you are much more likely to be able to convince that person to contribute their time and money to the cause later on, even if that person would otherwise have had a lot of doubts about the plan.  In intimate relationships, if you have said "yes" to someone a number of times previously, it can be harder to say "no" to a similar future request; this often leads to people staying in an undesired relationship, or tolerating negative relationship behaviours, which they regret afterwards. In political movements, initial commitment to a group's policies can have an "inertia" which makes members go along with the group's subsequent negative actions (extreme examples of this phenomenon can be found in various political movements of the past century).

3) Social Pressure (if other peers are conforming to an idea, we are more likely to as well).   Fellow members of the meeting may be smiling and nodding at the presenter's ideas.

In one meeting, in which electronic gadgets were discussed as a therapeutic modality (not only therapy apps, but also things such as covert monitoring of online activity to monitor health), one could notice that many people in the room had their heads buried in their laptop screens (an irony, speaking to the interpersonal detachment caused by electronic devices!)    Murmurings could be heard from nodding heads, of "yes, yes, therapy apps, yes, what a good idea!"   An objection to the idea of using electronic gadgetry this way would be perceived by the group as a jarring and unwelcome dissonance or even a disrespectful action.

Also, another tactic in policy presentations can be to show that other large groups across the world are adopting the idea in question.  We may be shown that professional peers, perhaps in Australia, Germany, or Japan, have adopted some new policy, and are thriving with it.   It makes us feel like joining in, or even catching up to our Australian friends!  In an environment with a lot of social pressure, one would feel deterred from objecting to an idea, because of a concern that it might offend our friends, or that it might cause us to look reactionary or old-fashioned!  Clearly, it is important to learn about what our peers are doing, but the problem is when the social pressure becomes a biased cognitive short-cut, leading us to not question or think critically about the matter in question.

4) Liking.  If the presenter is friendly, likable, humorous, and kind, we are more likely to be persuaded by his or her ideas.  Many salespeople and presenters are indeed friendly, likable people, which gives them a big persuasive advantage!  The trouble is, supposing we had some very shy or less social people in the group, who might have a more abrupt or chilly manner.  Yet, suppose these people had very, very good ideas to contribute to the discussion.  These voices would carry much less persuasive power because of the influence of this factor.    Sometimes quite harmful ideas have been "sold" to groups, because of the likable, engaging demeanour of the person presenting them.  Once again, one does not have to look far in political history to find unsettling or even frightening examples.

5) Authority.  At the beginning of most presentations, we are usually shown a lengthy list of qualifications that the presenter has.  This might include degrees from major universities, academic awards, publications, etc.  Such a list conveys that the person we are listening to is an "expert," and that we should perhaps trust more strongly what is said.  Often, this is a useful cognitive short-cut.  But in many other situations, the qualifications may have nothing at all to do with the message being conveyed in the meeting.  I can think of some highly-paid professional experts who have much to say about clinical care of patients--but their area of expertise relates to extensive publication of research articles, and extensive attendance of international meetings.  The "expert" may actually have much less experience with clinical care than a humble colleague-- who lacks the impressive credentials-- in the next office, who spends his or her day seeing patients, while not publishing or attending meetings at all.   Qualifications should be respected, but we need to watch out for the impressiveness and "authority" of a presenter causing irrational biases and influence in our decision-making.   Another manifestation of the authority bias has to do with the sincere well-meaning nature of many presenters.  They may be very excited about their new idea.  They may be asked to give speeches and presentations about it across the country, and may even be getting famous as a result.  Their work may be grounded in a passion and commitment for their work, and also the enjoyment of getting acknowledgment and respect professionally.   The trouble is, this very excitement, ambition,  and the existence of professional credit and fame, could lead to a bias in which the presenter becomes overly attached to their ideas, and too eager to push the ideas without critique.  The audience may also really respect the presenter, and the integrity of the presenter's motives, but as a result may be too willing to agree respectfully with the ideas, instead of questioning them rationally.

Behavioural Economic Biases

Other biases in meetings:  some of these biases are described in behavioural economics.

6) Joint vs Single comparison bias:  in many policy discussions, there may be a presenter excitedly showing results based on a new system or technique.  The results may be very positive.  But very often, there is no fair control group.  When we look at just one thing without comparing, it causes our assessment to be distorted.  Kahneman's classic example is of how people would value  sets of dishes:  in one set, there could be 10 plates in perfect condition, plus an eleventh plate which is defective.  In another set there would be just 10 plates in perfect condition, without the eleventh plate.  If people assess these two sets at the same time, they would value them identically, since they both contain 10 good plates.  But if people assess the sets individually, without comparison, they would give the first set a much higher value than the second.  The existence of the defective plate would make it seem like the whole set has something wrong with it.   In presentations, we often see only "one set of plates."

7) misuse of statistics.  There are many ways to misuse and misrepresent statistics (either deliberately or inadvertently) which ends up unfairly favouring a policy agenda.  A couple of simple, common examples occur to me, pertinent to mental health care:

a) no control group for self-limiting phenomena.    This type of data gathering often occurs in emergency services.  A person in crisis may present to an emergency room.  A symptom questionnaire is administered, showing very high symptom scores.  In the emergency room, the person may be lying on an uncomfortable stretcher in a noisy hallway for hours, be interviewed five or six times by nurses, ER physicians, residents, and then a psychiatrist.   Perhaps a different psychiatrist the next day.  The whole ordeal could be frightening, very uncomfortable, or even frankly traumatizing.    Yet, after three days, the same symptom questionnaire could be administered again, showing a dramatic reduction in symptom scores.  The person would be discharged home, and the data would appear to show that the emergency service was functioning very well.

 In this case,  the person improved mainly because of the passage of time.   Possibly the emergency room offered some measure of safety, and perhaps even some empathic support.  But mainly, it would have been the passage of time for an acute crisis to settle down.   Many of the features of the emergency room stay could have been frankly harmful, yet the data would not show this.   In order to show whether the emergency service was indeed helpful, one would need to have a comparison group, offering a different type of experience (for example, a comfortable, cozy, supportive, community-based environment which had rooms for people to stay overnight).    Probably, the alternative service would show better results, and also a much lower risk of severe adverse effects (such as a patient feeling traumatized).

b) short-sightedness.   Many treatment trials are short term, leading to rapid improvement in symptoms.  If we use potent sedatives to treat insomnia, for example, we are likely to see almost instantaneous improvement in symptom scores.  But if we follow this medicated group for a year, we would most likely see that the medication group was doing no better, or often worse, than a control group.   We see this type of bias all over our culture.  Evidence about the dangers of greenhouse gasses or other pollutants in the atmosphere require data spanning decades.  Short-term data may lull us into believing that there is no risk, or that a harmful policy is benign or beneficial.      In psychotherapy, there is indeed evidence that psychotherapy (of all types)  can have long-term beneficial effects for many people.  But a short-term view would unfairly discourage the use of longer-term psychotherapy.  It is technically easier to gather short-term data, and such data have less technical error (due, for example, to fewer patients lost to follow-up, etc.).   But just because some types of data are easier to gather, and appear to show a positive result, we should not be biased into thinking that long-term approaches are invalid.

 Zimbardo's Work on the Social Causation of Negative Behaviour
 There are dramatic analogies to be made, looking at historical events.   Philip Zimbardo has written extensively about the manner in which disasterous, or even "evil" events can occur, due to the dynamics of a group context.    In groups, if there is a pre-existing majority position, the meeting can become a time in which the majority position becomes "celebrated" and pushed further, due to contagious group enthusiasm, particularly if the group features a type of hierarchy or a power differential.    A dissenter in such a meeting could be viewed as "negative" or "difficult," and there would be social pressures which discourage contrary points of view.  If one of themes in the meeting is "collaboration," then any comment which seems negative or "non-collaborating" may be seen to be violating the group ethos, even though the comment may be of high ethical import.     This phenomenon occurs in all human groups, including those in which the members are highly intelligent, sophisticated, and "civilized."   The decision making in groups leading to some of the world's great wars of the past centuries have often involved contagious enthusiasm from a strong majority view, in which dissenters were initially suppressed due to social pressure alone, then later due to threat of punishment.

The Brainstorming Myth

Another common event in policy planning meetings is "brainstorming."  This may be a process in which the attendees are split into groups of 5-7 people, and asked to freely, imaginatively, constructively express positive ideas for change, perhaps building on the ideas of others, with notes being taken, and with no criticisms allowed.  But more recent evidence has shown that brainstorming techniques could be inefficient in a variety of ways.  The same social dynamics outlined above could subvert the process, discourage dissent, and discourage a challenge to authority.   It could be much more fruitful, in a group dynamic, not to have "brainstorming," but rather to make strenuous efforts to permit a truly free debate, in which members have fully adequate time to prepare in advance.  In some meetings, there may be opportunity for debate, but the members have had no time to prepare.  This would be like having a court hearing for an important case, in which there would be ample opportunity for debate, but in which one side would be allowed weeks of preparation, while the other side would have to improvise on the spur of the moment with no preparation at all!

Making Meetings Better

What can be done to improve meetings and to reduce unwelcome cognitive biases?

1) participants in meetings can be asked to contribute ideas before the meeting begins, perhaps anonymously.

2) free questioning, with uncensored feedback, must not only be encouraged, but the right to offer such feedback must be fiercely protected.   This is the foundation of a free society, and of a modern educational process as well.

2) I do not believe that a decision-making meeting should feature educational presentations at all.  It is simply not possible for a group to critically appraise educational material in an unbiased fashion in the space of only a few hours.   If important group decisions are to be made in a meeting, the presence of a presenter causes very strong influence on this.  We assume that the presenter has good intentions, may be very wise, etc. -- but if there is no opportunity for detailed critical appraisal or debate, then the presenter is given automatic power to influence the group, through various mechanisms of psychological bias.

 Imagine attending a family meeting to decide on a vacation spot, or on a new school for the children, in which there is a presenter advocating some strong point of view on the matter who introduces and leads the meeting, complete with video display and free pastries! There is already a conflict of interest if a group facilitator already has a specific change agenda in mind.  The facilitator is then not really a facilitator anymore, but is a lobbyist.  It is especially harmful if the people attending the meeting assume that the facilitator is neutral, without knowing that there is a strong lobbying effect going on.

The presenter in our hypothetical family meeting might argue a very convincing case for boarding schools, or home schooling, or on the wonderful possibilities of vacations in Mexico!   But would we want family decisions to be influenced by such a presentation?  My point here is not that presentations are bad -- in fact, they could be very useful and informative -- but the problem is when single presenters have the power to influence a group's decision-making agenda, without fair opportunity for critical analysis, and for other points of view to be fairly and thoroughly explored.   It is not enough to allow an hour during the meeting itself for critical debate!  Many of the arguments presented by a sophisticated lobbyist could require weeks to study.

One of the strengths of the modern legal system is of allowing a fair opportunity for free debate before a decision is made about a legal or ethical matter.  We would never have a situation in a legal proceeding in which the person running the meeting (e.g. the judge!) would give a sales presentation encouraging a particular decision, with no opportunity for the different groups to study the proposal in detail (usually, with weeks to prepare), before decisions are made.

3) In many cases, meetings do not need to occur at all, as the cost of them (as outlined above) may greatly exceed the benefits.

4) Great care should be taken to minimize bias of all types, and to encourage any marginalized or "hidden" voices to be heard.  In mental health care debates, there are many with strong opinions on the matter.   In many public health analyses, there could be broad population surveys to decide upon future policy.  This is reasonable.  But in many cases, those who have actually accessed and benefited from long-term therapy are not heard from at all in the surveys.   This is analogous to making major decisions about cardiovascular health care by interviewing thousands of random members of the public, while not interviewing those who have actually had heart surgery.   People could conclude from such a survey that a rapid-access, short-term exercise program is what people really want for cardiac health, and that a heart surgery program is far too expensive and inefficient.  But this conclusion would be the result of numerous layers of bias, as well as from an inadequate understanding of the experiences of everyone involved intimately in the issue.

5) "Pre-mortem"  Another of Kahneman's good ideas about decision making, particularly in group settings, is to have a "pre-mortem."  This means imagining that a particular decision has been made, but imagining further that the decision has led to very negative or even disastrous results in the future.  The exercise is to describe ways in which this negative result could have come to be.  The advantage of a pre-mortem could be to use the group's energy not simply to drift enthusiastically into contagious cognitive biases favouring a particular decision, but to work at exploring hidden risks which the group's enthusiasm would previously have been blind to.

6) "Non-meeting" meetings:  I think it is a great idea to set aside and pay for times in which employees and colleagues can engage in structured healthy activities, such as an exercise class, a walk in the forest, a fine arts class, or a concert.  While this could seem wasteful and expensive, I think that the benefits for morale, group cohesiveness, enjoyment of work, reduced absenteeism, and work efficiency, could be substantial.  Also this would be an example of self-care on a group level, which I think is an important model for our patients to follow.  If we are doing healthy and enjoyable self-care activities as professionals, it is more likely that our patients will be willing to do the same.

5) Heroism.  Zimbardo concludes his thesis about negative group dynamics by calling for each of us to be a "hero."  The type of heroism he means is to be boldly willing to challenge authority, to speak up freely, even when there is a risk to doing so.  One of the best and strongest aspects of American culture is a respect for free speech (and certainly a respect for heroism).    But this wonderful cultural foundation needs to be constantly nurtured, exercised, and practiced, in order to prevent it from being eroded by other cultural forces.    Be heroic :  speak up!

Cialdini, R. B. (1984). The psychology of persuasion. New York: Quill William Morrow.

Covey Stephen, R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Simon & Shuster, USA.

Furnham, A. (2000). The brainstorming myth. Business strategy review, 11(4), 21-28.


B is for Branding // A Party

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

I had a special party last month. You can call it the small scale version of what I hope to be doing one day ... large scale.

There's something about branding that I simply love. I'll be chatting with a photographer and suddenly I start piecing together the identity of their brand from our conversation. There's always quirks and characteristics of a person's life that define them. But I think it's SO difficult for us to do that with ourselves. To step back and articulate what our style is. Right?

You have ideas, sure, but to start omitting the junk and refine your message ... well, that takes..

So there we were. An intimate group of working professionals: photographers, event coordinators, jewelry makers, and engineers. I asked each photographer to bring their favorite THREE photos. Photos that they would confidently say "these images represent my style of photography."

I created stations for each photographers to set their photos up. Then I handed each one an index card to privately write THREE WORDS that they would use to describe/define their style.

Fold it up. Tuck it away.

Now everyone would receive a set of index cards (photogs and non photogs), and go around the room and privately write 3 words on a single index card, per photographer, that they personally thought of when they saw this photographer's work. Keep in mind they have not seen what the photographer wrote for him/herself.

When everyone finished, each photographer took their set of index cards and one by one, we each read aloud and revealed what words we ended up with.

I'll share some of mine: romantic, comfortable, classic, captivating, flowy, sensual, honest, emotional. The funny thing is when I read "sensual" aloud, others spoke up and said "yeah! that's a good one!" I also had romantic three different times!

I absolutely love, love, loved the discussion we all had about our words, why those were chosen, and our honest thoughts about how they portrayed our work. The word "sensual" lingered in my head and now I've turned it to --> intimate. My style is feminine, intimate, and playful.

Can I just ask, why is it that the only 2 males at the party had THE B.E.S.T. INSIGHT?!

After the discussion, I gave everyone a handout with action steps on what to do now that they had specific words to apply to their photography. One of them involves coming up with your target market. As in, WRITE IT DOWN IN A SENTENCE. I remember I first heard about this through Promise's presentation on the PASS Tour and it has stuck with me.

There's so many times that I want to write on my blog for everyone. Does that ever happen to you? There's so much freedom in understanding and accepting who you are, what your style is, and knowing that people will both embrace it and reject it. Yes... reject it. And that's okay. Because honestly, your talents will never shine if they don't represent you. Love you because you are the only difference between everyone else.

SO! Would you throw a branding party in your city?! Do it! I would be insanely excited to hear about it :) If you need help planning, just contact me! alejandra(at)imaginaledesign.com

  1. I was honored to be a part of your first party! The process was really thought and emotion-provoking - harder than I thought it would be. Our discussion afterward was a great time of opening up eyes to the insights of others. Your mini-lesson on action items was the perfect takeaway so that this exercise had an impact on the professionals. Great job mi amiga!


Technology Rules Over Us

Most of life today can be described as technology. Technology is a form of precious living to many young adults in this century; and many say that they cannot live without it. Electronic devices have grown to show that it is possible to take away happiness from our lives. What can happen to these people if we do take away these devices from them?

Many things are possible when people look up to see what is around them. Like Adam Atler, a psychologist has done, take vacations for an example; they are supposed to be times where you escape from reality for a moment and enjoy your surroundings. Nowadays, however, have changed where vacations have turned into snapping photos and capturing memories to look at later; rather than capturing memories with your very own eyes at the moment. Vacations can be much more valuable when you enjoy every second of it and take an advantage of the place. It is much more different seeing laughter and joy through a camera’s screen than in person.

Electronic devices are now used as a necessary source to go through life. It saves notes for us and reminds us of things we need to do later. It takes pictures and saves them in the storage as “memories”. It “entertains” us with games that never end. However, we do have the ability to do all of these actions with our own physical bodies. For example, we can memorize things off the top of our heads, which usually means we have a good understanding of the topic and will remember it for a longer time period. We can also see things around us and remember it while enjoying it thoroughly in detail at that very moment. Last but not least, we can play games with other people. Interaction with others is a major factor that has been taken away from us.

We do not experience the world as we used to a couple of years ago. Back then, kids used to play in the dirt, play with other kids, and run around playgrounds all day long. Meanwhile, parents cooked dinner as the rest of the family got home, and proud families attended high school sport games. Today, we give little kids our phones or tablets to keep them from crying; and we watch the highlights on social media. We are preventing ourselves from any social interaction with the real world and instead are strengthening the interaction between ourselves and our phones.

Adam Alter went over the typical life of a person in his TEDtalk, “Why our screens make us less  happy”. It showed a change from 2007 to 2017; and although many of the topics stayed the same, our personal time changed tremendously. We have completely changed the ratio of personal time to technology time. In the following table, Alter emphasized the major impact of electronic devices in our lives. In reality, we don’t ever find time for ourselves because we spend it all on our phones.

Atler presented this table during his TEDtalk to help his audience see the change over time. The red shows the time taken up by our electronic devices.

Alter states that this is because of  the lack of stopping cues. Stopping cues let us know when we are done with something; like finishing a book. Once a chapter is done, we know it is time to put the book done. However, social media seems to never end; for example, you have instagram that gives you another page to look at other topics that lead to other relating topics and then subtopics and so on. Media is a source that never gives you a stopping cue; so your mind must dig deeper to reach an end that is nonexistent.

In the end, we can conclude that our attachment to our phones is because of our decisions to look further into something over completing our duties. We can each change that by taking baby steps away from our electronic devices. It will eventually get to a point where productive and personal time dominate over technological time in our lives. This will lead to a happier life with an expansion towards your interactions with the real world.


Download the snapchat for IPAD using below links:

Download the snapchat for IPAD using below links:

Download Snapchat for your IPAD. It is a must app for your iPad

What is an ipad? An ipad is a tablet computer that operates on ios (internetwork operating system) mobile operating system.ios is the most powerful mobile operating system after android and it powers mobile devices like ipads, iphones and ipods. ipad comes with several applications that enables one to carry out different functions with it. These applications include safari, mail, photos, video, ipod, appstore, ibooks and imaps among others. You may be wondering what the difference between an iphone and an ipad is. The main difference between the two comes is on the size iphone is smaller than ipad .Another significant difference is that iphone is a phone whereas ipad is a tablet. However, the two have all major similarities that are the ios, operating system; Gpu and cpu are the same. This implies that the two have the same features.
Many people mostly use Ipads and they are preferred due to their size. Imagine performing all the functions of a computer on ipad. It is quite fascinating. Ipads are easy to carry around because of their portability.

Ipads comes in different sizes and depending on one’s taste and preference, one can choose the most suitable one. Whether it is ipad mini or ipad air generation Ipads have many uses some of which include carrying notes for the meeting, sermon by a pastor lecture notes and even type and reproduce documents. Due to their popularity, ipads are replacing laptops at an alarming rate. Most of the people prefer to use ipads instead of notebooks in different places.

Chatting made easy by using ipads this is due to their sizes. Being smaller it has a private outlook as compared to laptops. They are slightly bigger than smart phones therefore a clearer interaction. The images being magnified makes the chat appear real.

Snapchat for ipad is another interactive app or a feature that you can add to an ipad.

It is not an inbuilt feature but freely downloaded from google play. This feature facilitate the quality of communication with friends and loved ones one can consider having this feature in their ipads by downloading a snapchat for ipad. Snap chat is one of the best tools that are currently gaining popularity in the market. The market had never imagined of this unique feature. However, it has truly appreciated due to its uniqueness. Initially it was used by individuals to share their experiences privately but it is slowly evolving to a wider extend to even share the image messages in public to a group of people. Celebrities are using this feature to share with their funs and get as many likes and follow-ups as possible.
This makes them to be more popular and even acquire votes from their funs especially during competitions with fellow celebrities. Organizations are also appreciating this feature by incorporating it in their product and brand enhancement. How is this possible by sharing some of the experiences publicly with the consumers, it is a clear way of brand awareness and reinforcement.

It is easy to install the free snapchat feature on your ipads and go to google play or app store and open then search for snap chat. Select the snap chat icon and double click to open once it has opened click on free then download. Once it is installed on your ipad the next step will be to sign up. The sign up process is also easy and straightforward, as one only is required to feed most basic information like the email phone number date of birth and off course password for security reason.

The account will be created that will enable you to save the contact information of your friend and loved ones. Snapchat will enable to see those in your contact list that are currently using the feature and therefore connect. For those not using it gives you an opportunity to invite them to start using the feature and share the experience.

Whether you are a celebrity and organization or even an individual with the desire to share your experiences, download a snapchat for ipad and use it for to catch an edge in the act of communicating.


rugby training guide

There is no doubt over the last 20 years that rugby players in every position have packed on more lean muscle, became faster and hit harder. The average player size is up by nearly 2 stone since the early 90s which is an incredible stat. This is down to a few key factors which are nutrition and training. In this article, we are going to cover the training principles of the top rugby players.

Strength Training

rugby strength training

We’ve interviewed many top players here at RugbyWarfare and nearly all players mention their training revolves around strength training. This means in the week they will include upper body and lower body strength workouts consisting of roughly 3-6 reps and 3-4 sets. Mostly Olympic lifts are used as they are functional and can translate into better performance on the field. Prowlers, ropes, skipping rope sessions are also now popular to help improve muscular endurance.

Bonus: Get your FREE rugby specific strength training program to improve on-field performance. Click here to download.

Muscular Endurance

rugby strength training

Rugby players still do super-sets and hypertrophy (hence their muscular builds). Strength training and doing functional lifts does improve performance but it’s also important that players do add muscle so that their strength can keep increasing in the future. Adding muscle also helps with body composition, rugby players are typically around the 10-15% body fat mark. This is the optimal body fat percentage for muscle growth, performance, and recovery. Being too lean can negatively affect performance and likewise for carrying too much fat.

Rehabilitation and stretching

An often overlooked area of training is rehab and stretching. Rugby players take it seriously. After speaking to 10s of players they all mention the use of the foam roller before and after training to ensure optimal recovery times. Rotator cuff training is also used as this means the shoulder joint is always warmed up prior to heavy push sessions. This decreases the risk of injury. Many injuries in the gym happen due to pressing and not being warmed up properly so this is key for rugby players. Check out this research study on the effectiveness of foam rolling.

Fitting it all in

The body is an incredibly efficient machine. It will adapt to high-frequency training and will become stronger from it. Overtraining is often thrown around when discussing training 3-4 times a week. If you are covering all bases with your nutrition (which will be covered in a different post), and ensuring you are getting enough protein, carbs, and fats to recover and build then overtraining should not be a problem. This does not mean you should fit in as many weights sessions as possible, timing is vital. Rugby games are played on the weekend and you need to make sure that your training sessions on the field are not negatively impacted by your weights sessions. This also spreads into the weekend, you need to ensure that you are giving your body all the tools it needs to grow and recover. 2-3 whole body strength sessions with some added hypertrophy training should be adequate enough to see substantial increases in performance and muscle mass over the course of a season. Again, check out this program we have created here, it’s in PDF format and easy to follow with a training calendar.

As you can see, the training of a professional rugby player in 2015 consists of heavy strength training using functional movements, mobility, and rehab work to ensure the body is flexible, agile and injury free and also on-field sessions for skills and endurance. This is a lot of work each and every week but the body is a machine, it will adapt and grow.

George Lowe mentions that skills are more important than weights so the weight room shouldn’t be central to your game. Use it as a tool to get bigger, faster and stronger.

It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog. - Archie GriffenClick To Tweet


1. Compare different experiences between associations, teachers, parents, grandparents, social workers, volunteers in the field of non-formal education on non profit cooperation, volunteering, social inclusion, active citizenship, human and social growth, intergenerational dialogue, creating a concrete space of confrontation and training for participants and co-organizers;

2. Raise awareness of teachers and institutions on the role of other possible active players of the educational field (parents, grandparents, social workers, volunteers, associations etc...) and on the positive results of the unity of purpose in the education field; involve them directly as active players in the learning and active citizenship process;

3. Experiment a new concept of extended family, where parents do not take care only of their own children, but they offer their time and competences to help other parents and adults in general, opening the school to the outside world and concretely contributing to increasing chances for everyone children; and different pedagogical approaches (informal, formal and non formal);

4. Promote creativity and arts as an approach to getting knowledge and inclusion, and create different outputs to represent the subject of the project: videos, theater performances, artworks, romance or poems, documents, dance or other sports' events, communication tools...;

5. Promote the “culture of social capital” as an opportunity to develop active citizenship, to promote volunteering and sense of ownership of the EU, whilst enhancing tolerance, inclusion, solidarity and mutual understanding, confidence on collectivity and on human relationships and raise awareness on the importance of entrepreneurship and innovation in using gained knowledge in practice.


Used Cars

Mexico's unshakable auto industry

An army of tow trucks tackles Houston's flood-damaged cars

How do you remove hundreds of thousands of damaged cars from a massive city still mired in water and muck? Tow-truck driver Alex Toll will tell you: one vehicle at a time.


Belfast Telegraph

Sextant belonging to Titanic rescue hero is on course to fetch £50,000

By Rod Minchin

He became a national hero when his ship rescued hundreds of survivors from the stricken liner Titanic.

Now the sextant Sir Arthur Rostron used to set a course to the site of the disaster is to go under the hammer.

The navigation instrument, owned by the family of the famous captain of RMS Carpathia, is expected to fetch up to £50,000 when it is sold by Henry Aldridge & Son, a leading auctioneer of Titanic memorabilia.

Sir Arthur's prompt response to the sinking of Titanic in April 1912 is widely credited with saving more than 700 lives.

Sextants were used to measure the angle between a celestial object and the horizon and were an essential part of navigation at sea at the time.

The polished brass instrument up for sale on April 23 was acquired by Arthur Rostron while serving as a cadet at the Merchant Navy Cadet School HMS Conway in 1883 and was used throughout his career. It is presented in its original mahogany box with brass label 'A.H. Rostron Conway'. Rostron wrote his own name on the retailer's label inside.

The sextant is of polished brass form with its original fittings and is engraved 'A.H. Rostron RNR'.

His great-granddaughter, Janet Rostron, said: "The sextant has never been on public display before and has been kept within the Rostron family, passed down from father to son for the last 104 years.

"The sextant would have been used by him throughout his career and would certainly have been the instrument he used to navigate through the ice floes."

Andrew Aldridge, from auctioneers Henry Aldridge & Son in Devizes, Wiltshire, said: "This is without doubt one of the most important pieces of Titanic memorabilia due to the integral part Sir Arthur played in the rescue of the surviving 705 men, women and children.

"The sextant is without doubt a truly unique part of the Titanic story and is estimated to sell for between £40,000 and £50,000."

Belfast Telegraph

From Belfast Telegraph


rosetta philaetouchdown ESA/ATG medialab

Last November, the European Space Agency made history by landing the first probe, called Philae, onto a comet.

But the landing didn't go as planned and Philae, instead of landing in the sunny spot that ESA scientists had chosen for it, ended up in a shadowy corner of the comet. Without sunlight to feed its solar-powered instruments, the little lander remained awake for only about 60 hours after touchdown — not even a fraction of the time scientists had hoped it would live for on the comet.

However, when Philae went silent late last year, scientists anticipated that as the comet approached the sun, the lander might gain new life as the sunlight striking the comet grew stronger. And their hopes were confirmed on June 14 when Philae phoned home for the first time in about seven months.

But now the lander has fallen silent, once again, the ESA announced on its Rosetta mission blog on July 20. They've tried to get the Rosetta satellite, which is in orbit around the comet, to communicate with Philae, but since July 9 the lander hasn't picked up.

This is a bad time for the lander to play shy, because it's just 22 days before the comet will reach its closest approach to the sun — when the most sunlight will be striking the surface of the comet and when Philae has the best chance to fuel up and use its instruments on board to study the comet.

Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, the one the lander is supposed to be exploring, takes 6.5 years to orbit the sun, which means Philae won't get another chance like this for another 6.5 years.

Although scientists are not quite sure what's going on with Philae, they suspect the desk-sized lander has shifted its position and now it's antenna is pointing in a different direction. This could be why the Rosetta satellite has not been able to lock signals and speak with Philae.

If the lander has shifted position, it's plausible that Philae ended up on uneven terrain. Comets are active objects. They have ice beneath their surface, which sublimates — changes from a solid to a gas — and once the ice is gone, the ground above it has less overall structural support and can weaken as a result.

What's more, Rosetta has its own problems. The spacecraft will soon have to distance itself from the comet, which has become increasingly active in the past few weeks, the ESA said. That's because as the comet gets closer to the sun, the ice below the surface sublimates at a higher rate into space and in the process can fling tiny, solid bits off the surface, which could potentially damage Rosetta.

Starting July 24, Rosetta will move farther away from the comet and and will therefore have a tougher time reaching out to Philae. But ESA scientists aren't giving up yet. If Philae's momentous awakening last month taught them anything, it was dare to hope for the best:

"Several times we were afraid that the lander would remain off – but it has repeatedly taught us otherwise," said Stephan Ulamec, the lander's manager, in the ESA Rosetta blog entry.


Piezosurgery Falls Church, VA

Piezosurgery is a recently developed system for cutting bone without damaging soft tissue (like nerves, or the membrane that lines your sinus cavity) using ultrasonic micro-vibrations. Developed for use in Oral Surgery, Implantology, and Periodontics, this innovative technology allows doctors to perform procedures that were not previously possible. Traditional methods of bone-cutting (i.e.: drills and burs) can result in some tissue and bone loss no matter how careful and precise the doctor may be. Piezosurgery eliminates this risk. Piezosurgery uses ultrasonic vibrations produced by a special surgical instrument to achieve unparalleled precision and patient comfort. The doctor is able to perform procedures such as extractions, crown lengthening, periodontal therapy, and implant site preparation with increased accuracy and minimal discomfort. Leading doctors across the country are achieving consistently positive results using Piezosurgery. Patients are seeing amazing results with faster healing time, less swelling, and less post-operative pain.


Law School Law School 2017-09-24T05:07:53Z Illegal employment of non-EU nationals in Ireland Illegal employment of non-EU nationals in Ireland ARNOLD, SAMANTHA; Whelan, Susan; Quinn, Emma PUBLISHED 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z On the origins and evolution of the Revenue Rule: the quest for certainty On the origins and evolution of the Revenue Rule: the quest for certainty O'HANLON, NIALL The thesis advanced in this work is that the Revenue Rule, which stipulates that whilst forum courts may recognise a foreign tax law, they will not enforce it, does not meet the criteria of certainty. Uncertainties arise in relation to the origins, taxonomy and extent of the Rule, to what constitutes a revenue law, to the distinction between revenue and penal laws, to the supposed distinction between recognition and indirect enforcement of foreign revenue law and to what constitutes the rationale for the Rule. The thesis begins with a modern statement of the Revenue Rule and a review, from a public international law perspective, of the nature and extent of a state?s power to tax. Problems of classification are examined; in particular, the uncertainties surrounding what constitutes a revenue law and the appropriate classification, as between penal and revenue, of the criminal provisions that are invariably contained in taxation legislation. The uncertainties attaching to the precise origin of the Revenue Rule are identified and a conceptual framework is developed and applied in analysing the early decisions relating to the Rule. The fundamental difficulties associated with the recognition/enforcement dichotomy are examined and an alternative classification is advanced. The relationships between the act of state doctrine, the Revenue Rule and the doctrine of state or sovereign immunity, are considered, as are the uncertainties attaching to the taxonomy of the Rule. The hypothesis that the Revenue Rule constitutes a part of public, rather than private, international law is evaluated and the emerging confluence of these two areas of the law is noted. In light of the assertion that, a departure from the Revenue Rule constitutes a derogation from sovereignty, the converse hypothesis, that in circumstances of constrained sovereignty departures from the Rule will be observable, is formulated and tested. Drawing on finance theory, this hypothesis is advanced in two forms; a strong form ? constrained sovereignty will result in a departure from the Revenue Rule, and; a weak form ? constrained sovereignty may result in a departure from the Rule. The various justifications for the Revenue Rule are examined, including the contention that the self-interest of the forum provides the most compelling rationale for the existence and persistence of the Rule. The development of the doctrine of functional enforcement, in the United States, is examined and the possibility of a trans-Atlantic divide, given recent UK and European Court of Justice decisions, is considered. The degree to which it is possible to avoid the Revenue Rule, by seeking in personam and in rem remedies, is explored, and a new category, ad informandum, is proposed. The uncertainties relating to the extent to which the courts are willing to modify the operation of the Revenue Rule to protect the interests of fiduciaries is considered and the evolving application of the Rule, in the context of transnational insolvencies, is examined. The thesis concludes that, notwithstanding the uncertainties that surround it, for as long as it is perceived to serve the interests of the forum, and absent legislative intervention, the Revenue Rule is likely to continue to prosper. APPROVED 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z The data privacy / national security balancing paradigm as applied in the USA and Europe: Achieving an acceptable balance The data privacy / national security balancing paradigm as applied in the USA and Europe: Achieving an acceptable balance MURRAY, PAUL RAPHAEL The overall research question addressed in this thesis is the data privacy/national security balancing paradigm, and the contrasting ways in which this operates in Europe and the U.S. Within this framework, the influences causing the balance to shift in one direction or another are examined: for example, the terrorist attacks on two U.S. cities in 2001 and in various countries in Europe in the opening decade of the new millennium and the revelations by Edward Snowden in 2013 of the details of U.S. mass surveillance practices. The thesis is divided into three main parts. The first part deals with European attitudes and practices in relation to the balancing paradigm. The second part deals with U.S. attitudes and practices on the same basis. It deals with the influence of the various branches of Government in determining this balance. In the third part, consideration is given to the contracts and similarities between the U.S. and Europe in relation to the balancing process, and in particular to the factors underlying the contrasts. The conclusion to the thesis gives details of the findings arrived at. APPROVED 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z The identification of a single model of equitable estoppel based on detrimental reliance The identification of a single model of equitable estoppel based on detrimental reliance DE CONTRERAS, CATHERINE The research objectives were to build a unified equitable estoppel model that simplified the irregularities in the equitable estoppels as identified in England, while consolidating the essential principles to be applied in a unified model, with a view to potentially applying the model generally. Other jurisdictions which received notable focus were Ireland and Australia, chosen respectively because of the fertile Irish ground for further development, and because the Australian approach diverges significantly from that in England. The model sought to simplify and consolidate equitable estoppel, and to make it generally applicable. The focus on English cases throughout the thesis served to highlight some difficulties within equitable estoppel as it has developed in that jurisdiction in particular and hence identify the most confusing features of the doctrine. Two surveys were conducted, which showed four key issues: an imprecision of terminology, a perception that estoppel is a fallback claim, a possible lack of development of the doctrine, and some welcoming attitudes towards a possible unified doctrine and of fulfilling such missing development. In particular, it was questioned whether these concerns were more broadly indicative of the existence of doctrinal inconsistencies, and whether a unified model could be proposed which would address those inconsistencies. A model was incrementally built by addressing some wider doctrinal concerns in the English law. A conceptual sketch found that there is space for welcome development of a doctrine reddressing detrimental reliance, and that this concept is associated with equitable estoppel. On the basis of the views of McFarlane and Liew respectively, it was, first, found that a possible unified equitable estoppel would be in the nature of a liability, and, it was, secondly, suggested that it would give rise to a reflective remedy in the shape of a minimum equity. Meanings of unconscionability, a concept in equitable estoppel which has led to a great deal of commentary, were separated and analysed. It was found that unconscionabilty can mean, first, the jurisdiction in the sense of a basis for the existence of equitable estoppel in the first place; secondly, the context in which v the reliance takes place; thirdly, the justifiability of the reliance; fourthly, whether it is unconscionable to move to an inconsistent position; fifthly, whether the court ought to grant a remedy; and, finally, what parameters aid the court in shaping the remedy. Meanwhile, several inconsistencies were found in the processes of shaping a liability and a remedy in English law. English law and doctrinal commentary generally prefers not to view some estoppels as giving rise to a cause of action, and not to accept a unified doctrine: contrasting views were put forward dealing with both matters. The liability-?‐finding process itself was found to have a simpler basis than it currently has, and the remedy-?‐finding process tending towards the award of an expectation was compared with similar processes in other jurisdictions. All were viewed as potential barriers to further development of doctrine and thus as having a direct bearing upon the findings in the surveys, and their implications. All of this was argued to be conceivably soluble by building a unified model. Having addressed the main doctrinal questions, the findings were used to begin building some answers. A simplified and unified model was built which established the required steps as follows: (A) proof by the claimant of detriment, (A)(i) proof by the claimant of the relevance of that detriment by reference to a subject-?‐matter, (B) disproof by the defendant of inducement, (B)(i) a defence of unreasonable reliance ? which, if leading the court to find that a liability had been raised, completed (C)(i). Then, (C)(ii) allowed the court to find that conscience required the granting of a minimum-?‐equity-?‐based remedy, and (C)(iii) allowed the court to vary the remedy as found. The steps were built upon distinct findings throughout the thesis: for example, (C)(ii) built upon a combination of meaning five of unconscionability, and an analogy with legitimate expectation. The model was then tested using real-?‐life cases. Its positive points and limitations were discussed in relation to its possible adoption in England, Australia, and Ireland. Issues relating to concurrent liability were discussed, and possible general weakenesses identified. APPROVED 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z


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VIP Vacations Inc.

The St. Regis Princeville Resort

The St. Regis Princeville Resort

Perched majestically atop Kauai’s lush emerald cliffs, The St. Regis Princeville Resort holds court over crystal waters, silver sands and golden sunsets, a palatial landmark of exquisite marble and glass set against the stunning Namolokama mountains.
Amid a vibrant splash of tropical colors, find inspiration for body and soul in world class golf courses, sea and rainforest adventures, Hawaiiana culture, an exclusive spa and acclaimed fine dining, as signature St. Regis Butlers attend graciously.
Exceptional luxury is exemplified in 252 lavish rooms, where elegant details define island sophistication. Savor spectacular sunrises through oversized windows and indulgences such as original art, a liquid crystal shower panel and oversized bathtub. Distance from hotel to town, 4 miles (6 kms). Distance from hotel to airport, 29 miles (47 kms).

VIP Honeymoon Experts


Century Palace Restaurant – Markham, ON

My family and I went to Yum Cha at Century Palace Restaurant, located in Markham. Yum Cha literally means "drink tea" but it is a Chinese-style brunch, which involves drinking Chinese tea and eating dim sum dishes. The restaurant is located inside a small mall. There are so many restaurants to choose from, the dim sum here was 'okay'. It isn't bad, but the food was a little bland and pretty standard. Here are some of dishes we ate.

Exterior of Restaurant

Ginger scallion beef tripe

Phoenix claws (鳳爪 fung zao): These are chicken feet, deep fried, boiled, marinated in a black bean sauce and then steamed.

cheung fan (腸粉 cheung4 fan2): These are wide rice noodles that are steamed and then rolled.

Pig’s blood (jue hung. I know it sounds gross, but it’s actually really good!

Cotton chicken(棉花鸡) – Steamed tender chicken with fish maw

Spear Ribs steamed with black bean sauce.

Baked tapioca custard.

Black sesame roll.

MY FAVOURITE 鹹水角 (haam sui gok): deep fried oval-shaped dumpling made with rice-flour and filled with pork and chopped vegetables.

Century Palace Chinese Restaurant on Urbanspoon