DUFFY'S CULTURAL COUTURE

Sunday, 28 August 2016

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro on the Marangu Route
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro on the Marangu Route

By Tammy Duffy

The oldest route on Mount Kilimanjaro, the Marangu route, is also known as the "Tourist Route" or "Coca Cola Route". This route has the least success rate of reaching the summit. Everyone’s goal in climbing Kilimanjaro is to get to the top, to be on the summit when the sun rises over the glaciers and the plains of Tanzania below.

Prior to our trek, we’d heard that the Marangu Route was rather dull on the landscape front. However, we were pleasantly surprised by both the beauty and variety we found each day. As for pace, aside from an especially challenging final ascent, it's all about progression.

Kilimanjaro is remarkably beautiful. The land over which it rises in such imposing isolation is scarcely less so.

The village of Marangu has an elevation of 5,000ft. From the village the mountain looks overwhelming. However, climbers have little to fear, this is not a technical climb. One must be aware of altitude sickness. Even the most experiences porter can be overtaken by altitude sickness on a trip of the mountain. It's unpredictable.

As we signed in at the base, I had the same thought come over me when I went to run my first marathon. "What the hell am I doing? Can I really do this?" I have ran numerous marathons since my first so I removed the thought of failure from my mind. The team I climbed with were friends I trust with my life. Our guide and porters, the ultimate professionals.

Starting from the base (6,100ft) at the Marangu gate we traversed through a rainforest. You will be surrounded by towering soaring Eucalyptus trees, beautiful flowers, birds, and even the Colubus monkeys. The wide and well formed gravel path is fairly steep and leads steadily uphill, but the forest is so pretty that you don't mind. There are areas of difficult climbing. I soon found that looked to where I had to go (looking uphill) was playing with my mind. I quickly placed a person in front of me so block my view.

For a while the path follows a little stream and it passes a couple of picturesque little waterfalls. The normal time to reach Mandara is 3 to 4 hours. We made it in 2.5hrs. We also saw several colobus monkeys on our trip. They literally ran across our path.

As we near the huts we notice the vegetation change. One enters the next climate and vegetation zone—the alpine heath and moorland. The first heathers appear, but most noticeable is the lichen dangling from all the trees and shrubs, leading to the name "bearded forest". This was an 8KM walk (12.8 miles), 8990 feet.

The atmosphere is that of a rainforest, damp and green on your way up. We rested at Mandara Hut for 20 minutes to each lunch, then continued to Horombo. This is another 3200 foot (5 miles) staircase. One we reach Horombo Hut we are at 12,200 feet elevation. This Horombo zone turns into the moorland zone. The plants in this area are tougher than they look and it is easy to forget that this gentle, rolling country is higher than many peaks. Pole/Pole is the order of the day for the next 3.5 hour trek (another 7.2 miles). We then rest for the evening in the tea houses on the mountain.

The next day brings us to Kibo. Just after the Horombo huts we pass a stream known ominously as Last Water then some low, striated cliff known as zebra rocks. Ahead is the Saddle, the sway-backed ridge which connects Killimonjaros two main peaks, Kibo and Mawenzi. The upcurve to Kibo takes us to 15.400 ft. We hike 5.7 miles and it takes 5.25 hours.

This is the barren plain of alpine desert between the two main peaks of Kilimanjaro: Mawenzi and Kibo. The only living things left are some hardy grasses and the occasional everlasting flower. (How DO they do it? Blooming in this environment.)

We began to feel a bit of the altitude here. The path doesn't LOOK steep, and it isn't (except maybe for the very last section), but the lack of oxygen turns the hike into a major effort. We were all taking dexamethasone to assist in our climbing efforts.

Known among mountaineers as “dex,” dexamethasone is a steroid used to treat high-altitude cerebral edema. Every year about 2 percent of mountain climbers suffer from this life-threatening condition, However, a trend has emerged in which mountaineers use dex to sustain performance and alleviate the symptoms -- nausea, fatigue, dizziness, confusion, mood swings -- of acute mountain sickness. The use of dex to increase exercise capacity for high altitude climbs is controversial and poses health risks.

Dexamethasone can increase your exercise capacity via various mechanisms. For example, it boosts the amount of nitric oxide in your system, reducing the pressure in your pulmonary arteries. It enhances your body’s ability to remove sodium and water, which facilitates the diffusion of oxygen. Because it eases inflammation, dex helps you to achieve a positive frame of mind. While a single dose can be life-saving in the case of high-altitude cerebral edema, some climbers are regularly taking dex prophylactically before the effects of high altitude have yet to kick in. They claim that the steroid use equates to the use of supplemental oxygen, both of which make a high-altitude climb easier

The landscape can be quite dramatic, open and windswept, with big clouds rolling across it. We really enjoyed this part. We were taking But it all depends how well acclimatized you are.

You will be looking at Kibo the whole time, and you will be having a good view of the challenge that lies ahead for you tonight.

The Kibo Huts at the foot of Kibo (huts are on the left, summit trail in the middle). The huts are a dreary place. We all huddle into sleeping bags to rest. We have to wake up at 1:00AM to begin our ascent to the summit. We zigzag to Gilman's point at dawn and see the amazing sunrise. The reason for the early start is to see the sunrise and to maintain a visual ignorance for what is ahead. If you clearly saw what you had to climb, you may turn back.

As we plod on, we create a slow yet staccato rhythm. Our guide was singing to take our minds off the the climb. The guides do an amazing job of creating distractions for the hikers. At this altitude, oxygen is cut by 50%. Our breathing becomes laborious and we stop frequently for quick one minute breaks. Our trek was filled with switchbacks, winding you up the steep scree before reaching Gilman’s Point on the rim of the crater (18,640 ft/5,861 m). Here, you are greeted by the snow-filled crater and its icecaps. Hiking along the crater rim, you will reach Uhuru Peak. The true summit is Uhuru point, only 700 feet from Gillman's point. This takes another hour to reach the true summit. We were then standing on the Roof of Africa! It was important to begin your descent immediately soon in order to allow yourself enough time to rest at the Kibo Huts. Upon reaching back to Kibo, we have lunch, grab some much needed rest. We descending the next day refreshed in 10 hours.

At each Gate you have to sign in. By the time you get to the last gate, you are a bit disoreiated and have great difficulty writing in the information.

Day 1 - Marangu Gate (1860 m/6100 ft) - Mandara Huts (2700m/8860 ft)
Walking distance: 8 km/5 miles
Walking time: 3-4 hours : We did 3.5 hr
Altitude gain: 840 m/2760 ft

Day 1 - Mandara Huts - Horombo Huts (3700 m/12140 ft)
Walking distance: 12 km/7.2 miles
Walking time: 5-7 hours: We did 5.7 hrs
Altitude gain: 1000 m/3280 ft

Day 2 - Horombo Huts - Kibo Huts (4700 m/15420 ft)
Walking distance: 9.5 km/5.7 miles
Walking time: 5-7 hours: We did 5.25 hrs
Altitude gain: 1000 m/3280 ft

Day 3 - Summit via Gilman's Point (5700 m/18700 ft) to Uhuru Peak (5895 m/19340 ft) and descent to Horombo Huts (3700 m/12200 ft)
Elevation(ft): 15,400 ft to 19,340 ft to 12,100 ft
Distance: 4 km up/2.5 miles
Hiking Time: 10-15 hours : We did it in 12 hours
Habitat: Alpine Desert.

We completed the entire walk down, walking distance: 21 miles, in 10 hours.

Posted by tammyduffy at 4:29 PM EDT

Updated: Sunday, 28 August 2016 6:28 PM EDT

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Reaction In The Sky
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

REACTION IN THE SKY

Taken post bendryl, predinisone and Epipen

When a food is cross-contaminated by peanuts, it means that traces of peanuts have ended up in your food, even though peanuts are not a main ingredient. Often this happens because a food has been processed in the same factory as a food containing peanuts or because food has touched a surface with peanut residue on it. If you have a peanut allergy, you must be aware that any amount of peanut that you eat or breathe in may cause an allergic response. This is why it's a good idea to be prepared for an allergic reaction at any time.

During a recent trip to Africa, I was extremely diligent with the planning of the trip to address my nut allergy. The cooks at the places we ate at, stayed at, and where we were hiking had to be on board with the caution of my nut allergy. Everything went well during the entire trip.

However, on my Turkish Air flight on my return after eating the dinner they provided, I immediately had a reaction. I began itching on my scalp, got the chills, GI upset and was overcome with nausea. This is what always happens during my reactions. I did not eat anything that had nuts in it on appearance. However, nuts were served on the plane and in some of the options available. I started to try and reverse the reaction by taking 150mg of Benadryl by mouth. This did not work, my throat started closing off. I was too embarrassed to ask to help (the flight attendant catering our row was so nasty I doubt she would have helped anyway). My face began swelling up to the point I looked like a twin of Shrek. I had administer my Epipen. (the every ones that Mylan pharmaceuticals now charged $610 a piece) It was not enough, my symptoms got worse. I was miserable in my seat and decided to use a second epipen. That seemed to do the trick but the swelling to my face was so massive by the time I landed in JFK people were staring at me as though I was a freak. I came home and took an additional 150mg Benadyrl, some swelling went away. This seemed to help.

I then went to bed. When I woke up in the morning I felt like my entire head was swollen. I looked in the mirror and was stunned by my appearance. The worse I have ever seen it. My breathing became very labored, and my throat was closing off. So I took more Benadyrl and used another Epipen. This seemed to help, however, it was time to call the doctor. The on call doctor called me back right away. I told him what was happening. He ordered 20mg of Prednisone for me (3 tablets a day for the next 3 days).

There needs to be strong initiatives in the entire airline industry to ensure things like this do not happen in the sky. I was very fortunate to have my Epipens with me. Without them I would not have been able to write this article. Turkish Airlines prides themselves with their "chef on the plane" campaign. Yet, their Chef and flight staff created a cross contamination atmosphere which caused this reaction. On top of it, the food was suboptimal and lacked tastefullness.

The recent news in the press where the CEO of Mylan gave herself an $18 million dollar raise and raised prices of the Epipen from $60 to $613 created a challenge for the average person to afford the Epipens. I myself prior to my trip went to buy new Epipen's and at CVS they were $614 with insurance. The normal person cannot afford this increase. Why is the pharmaceutical industry allowed to do this? If the CEO of Mylan reads this she will probably look at this as an opportunity and her Father will help lobby to get Epipens on every plane in the world. They will do this and raise the price even higher because their concern is not that the drug saves lives, but how much money is in their bank accounts.

Below is a link to another story we wrote on the Epipen.

https://www.tammyduffy.com/ARTFASHION/index.blog?entry_id=2360047

Posted by tammyduffy at 1:45 PM EDT

Updated: Sunday, 28 August 2016 1:48 PM EDT

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How Can Global Epidemics Get Started?
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

By Tammy Duffy

How Can Global Epidemics Get Started?

Of the roughly 400 emerging infectious diseases that have been identified since 1940, more than 60% are zoonotic, ie they came from animals. Throughout history this has been common. HIV originated in monkeys, ebola in bats, influenza in pigs and birds. The rate at which new pathogens are emerging is on the rise, even taking into account the increase in awareness and surveillance. Which pathogens will cross the species barrier next, and which one is the greatest potential public health concern, is a subject of intense interest. A modern outbreak, caused by a previously unknown virus, could travel at jet-speed around the world, spreading across the continents in just a few days, causing illness, panic and death.

Pathogens have transferred from animals to people for as long as we have had contact. The ancient domestication of livestock led to the emergence of measles, and further intensification of farming in recent decades has caused problems such as the brain-wasting Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the human form of BSE. Expanding trade routes in the 14th century spread the rat-borne Black Death across Europe and smallpox to the Americas in the 16th century. Today's tightly connected world has seen the spread of swine flu, Sars, West Nile virus and H5N1 bird flu.

The biggest pandemic on record was the 1918 Spanish influenza, which killed 50 million people at a time when the fastest way to travel the globe was by ship. In 2009 swine flu was the most recent pandemic that got public health officials concerned; first detected in April of that year in Mexico, it turned up in London within a week.

The 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak that killed over 11,000 people was an unprecedented epidemic tragedy. As countries pick up the pieces, a central truth emerges -- that external solutions did not match local needs. A virus does not strike in an organized, top-down fashion -- the health response cannot function this way either. As UNICEF said, “the battle against Ebola ...will be won at the heart of the community”. Epidemics strike the community first. And the community must be the first to stop them.

Treating the health system like building blocks we can place at will is a mistake. In real life, and in real time, people are what make up the health system. Effective epidemic preparedness and response must include community members in both planning and action.

Outbreak interventions came largely from external leaders with one-directional ideas. As these initiatives disseminated, they failed at the community level. Why did this happen?

Ebola spread because responders treated communities like objects. Official interventions were tainted with disregard for traditional culture and lack of empathy. Locals were not treated as the free agents they are, with individual values and behaviours.

Over the last 60 years international tourist arrivals increased from 25.3million in 1950 to 1,035 million in 2012. Changes in travel patterns include a continuing trend for visiting remote destinations and for longer stays.

Many people are unaware that exotic destinations include potential exposure to infections that are rare in their home environment and other infections such as malaria that they have never encountered previously. The resurgence of malaria in many parts of the world, with an increasing pattern of drug resistance, has led to an increase in the number of cases presenting in non-endemic areas/endemic areas. The emergence of new infections such as SARS, pandemic influenza H1N1 and the spread of dengue fever, chikungunya and West Nile Virus place an increasing responsibility on doctors to remain up-to-date with current practice.

Responsibilities that traveler's need to accept before travel include:

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Seeking advice in good time

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Complying with recommended vaccines and other medications

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Carrying a medical kit

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Obtaining adequate health insurance cover.

Regulations regarding entry requirements such as the need for yellow fever certificates can be obtained from organizations such as WHO. All travelers (domestic and international) should be up to date with routine vaccinations. A pre-travel consultation should address what vaccines are recommended, their potential side-effects and their suitability for each traveler. Knowledge of relative risks in particular destinations is essential, as is an assessment of the patient’s overall medical health and current medications. Advice for those with pre-existing chronic illness should be included. Patients who are very young, those who are pregnant and the elderly warrant special consideration.

During the planning of my recent trip to Africa, I went to the CDC website to see what vaccines I needed for traveling. I also went to my family doctor to get a consultation and the vaccines. The Yellow fever vaccine had to be administered by an infectious disease specialist.

South Africa states that they strictly enforce entry and exit requirements and other immigration laws. Failure to observe these requirements may result in the traveler being denied entry, detained, deported, and/or deemed inadmissible to enter South Africa in the future.

United States citizen visitors to South Africa for stays of up to 90 days for tourism, short business meetings, or in transit do not require visas in advance. A visitor visas will be issued at the port of entry in South Africa. If you travel to South Africa for any other purpose (e.g. employment or study) you must obtain a visa in advance. According to the CDC in order to obtain this visa, at the airport (which US citizens must pay $100 cash, circa 2003 bill issue), visitors must show proof of all vaccinations.

Travelers entering South Africa from WHO-designated countries with risk of yellow fever virus (YFV) transmission must present their current and valid International Certificate of Vaccination as approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) ( “yellow card”). No exceptions.

Here is the reality. During my trip to Africa this past week to climb Mt Kilimanjaro, it was clear the "strict enforcement" of proof of vaccination is not being followed. An entire plane of people were not asked for their proof of vaccination to obtain a Visa to enter the country. We all got a Visa, no questions asked. This is exactly how global epidemics can happen.

In July, there was a vicious attack at the Ataturk, Istanbul airport. For my trip I had to fly through Turkey to get to Kilimanjaro. Upon landing we were sent down a open hallway filled with people. People were stepping over the barriers to get to where they needed. In order to get on my next flight I just walked to the next plane. There was no passport check. Nothing. I thought this was crazy. We were all sent down this crowded hall where people were coming and going. No one was questioned about anything, no paperwork or passports checked.

My next stop would be Kilimanjaro airport. It was there I purchased my Visa for $100 USD, with a newer bill stamped 2003 or greater. Evidently from what I learned from locals about the importance of the 2003 date, is because the government views older bills as less valuable. If you give someone a tip in USD in these countries with a bill that is older than 2003, when they go to cash it in, it's value will be decreased by half.

The line at Killimonjaro airport was very long for the visa purchase. The Visa's were given out and not one person was asked to show proof of any vaccines. Not one. I found this very odd. I had all my vaccines and paperwork, but clearly this goes against the "strict enforcement" of the African government. I left the airport to commence my holiday.

The second part of my holiday included a trip to Zanzibar. When you enter the airport there is a huge sign warning visitors about yellow fever. Yet, again my vaccine paperwork was never asked for. There was a long line to get a Visa at this airport as well. Being I already had my Visa a asked a random policeman what was my next step. She asked to see my Visa. I showed it to her. Again, no asking for my proof of vaccines. She told me to go to baggage claim.

My 5 return legs of flight to the USA also found no check as it pertained to my vaccines. Everyone is assuming that the "other guy" checked it because I had a visa. They were handing out Visa's like candy at Halloween.

For epidemic prevention to succeed, communities must be actively engaged, not just issue orders. Humanitarian response means working with people, not handing our Visa's like $100 candy bars. Everyone is responsible for global health.

We had better learn from history before the next outbreak hits. Countries must be more vigilant in the strict enforcement of document reviews within countries.

Posted by tammyduffy at 1:01 PM EDT

Updated: Sunday, 28 August 2016 1:08 PM EDT

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Friday, 12 August 2016

The Public Domain: Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center
Topic: ART NEWS

The Public Domain

By Tammy Duffy

Music is intimate. Who controls one's entrance into a work of art? You do. Who controls the experiences you have in life? You do.

This summer I saw a Tweet on Twitter. This tweet talked about in 140 characters about a unique opportunity in NYC to sing in an amazing performance, the public domain. I proceeded to the website the tweet referenced and signed up to particpate. I was confirmed to be a part of the performance as a singer.

I sing to my rescue dogs every day, they find it very soothing. I have played the flute since I was in the 5th grade. I can read music and carry a tune.

As I proceeded to attend the first rehearsal I quickly became transformed. Our strand leader Deborah Simpkin-King helped all of us warm up our voices and teach us the score. Many of the participants had never read a note of music. Yet, she was able to teach them the score.

The Public Domain is a once in a life opportunity to sing piece of music that has been written for 1,000 singers. This has never been done before, in the whole history of music. Composer David Lang, who won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Music for the little match girl passion, has written a score that is incredibly romantic, the public domain. This piece was commissioned by Lincoln Center and has its world premiere on August 13 at 5pm, as part of the Mostly Mozart Festival. Simon Halsey is such an energetic conductor. He creates an electric atmosphere that is contagious. You just want to sing your heart out for him.

This piece came to fruition when Lang attended an Arsenal soccer match and the sounds around him as people cheered, chanted, and sang sparked his creativity. This is how he created, the public domain score. There is singing and choreography as part of the piece.

When those entering the fountain area of Lincoln Center on Saturday, Aug. 13, the public will feel like you are at a football match. You have all of these different sources coming at you from different sides. Sometimes they’re doing different things, sometimes they’re doing exactly the same thing but they’re out of sync with each other because they’re so far apart. The sound is quite deep. The distance between voices make it seem like you are in the middle of something vast. You will see the singers perform choreography that connects the singers to the music.

One thousand perfect strangers this summer practices many hours to learn the score written by Lang and conducted by Simon Halsey. The singers together feel like they’re building a utopian society. There are no instruments other than 1,000 volunteer singers who range in ability in the Public Domain score. In order to make a beautiful and convincing shape out of the piece, Lang also has whispering, clapping, talking, and singing incorporated into the score. Annie B. Parsons is the choreographer for the piece.

I would go straight from work to a 3 hour rehearsal at night. I would drive some nights 2 hours to get to rehearsal and drive 2 hours to get home. These were very long days for me, yet, I never missed a rehearsal and constantly practiced at home with the videos they created for us of the score.

The public domain is about building a large community around the things that people share. We live in a very fragmented world. We go to different kinds of entertainments, we watch different kinds of programs on our various different devices, we have different political opinions. And there are things that are encourage us to identify ourselves in such a way that we push other people away. Because this is about a crowd, a mass idea, the Internet was very helpful in creation of the score. To generate the text, Lang did endless Internet searches of things that we share. As you know, you ask one question of the Internet and you get 10 million answers. Most of them are pornographic or say terrible things about other people and you can’t use them. So he had to sift through all the answers to say this one is actually something he could build a piece around.

Ny'ers who come to watch this performance will bring an additional essence to the piece. The will create an additional layer of complexity.

In the spirit of the Mostly Mozart Festival’s conception, the world premiere of the public domain by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang will be a performance that not only welcomes the public as a free and open event, but will also be performed by the public. A piece inspired by the theme of the collective knowledge shared amongst us all, the composition will be performed on Saturday, August 13, by 1,000 volunteer vocalists from throughout New York City, conducted by Simon Halsey, Choral Director of the London Symphony Orchestra. We have all lended our voices to make our Lincoln Center debut for this unique event.

So what does a gal after this, to top this kind of experience? Next week, I will climb Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa. I hope you can attend this performance. It's lovely!

Extend your wings and do what you normally never do and your life will be transformed forever. This experience has taught me how to listen differently, to not be distracted by the "noise" around me.

http://mostlymozart.org/thepublicdomain/

Posted by tammyduffy at 8:40 PM EDT

Updated: Friday, 12 August 2016 8:46 PM EDT

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Saturday, 6 August 2016

2016 Kelsey Awards
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

2016 Kelsey Awards

It’s awards time once again at Mercer County Community College’s (MCCC’s) Kelsey Theatre. The “2016 Kelsey Awards,” a Tony Awards-inspired evening that celebrates the best theatrical productions and performers from the 2015-16 season, takes place Saturday, Aug. 20, starting at 7 p.m. Kelsey Theatre is located on MCCC’s West Windsor campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road.

Based on voting by Kelsey Theatre fans, the Kelsey Awards will highlight the best performances, best technical achievements, best direction and best choreography from the past year. The ceremony will also honor Pete Labriola with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Labriola has been an innovator in the theater community for decades and has served as artistic director for Pierrot Productions, one of the companies that performs at Kelsey Theatre, since 1989.
The event will reprise performances by the casts of “The Addams Family,” “Mary Poppins,” “Violet,” and “City of Angels.” New this year will be preview performances from two upcoming shows: “Miss Saigon” (Sept. 9 to 25) and “In The Heights” (Oct. 14 to 23), along with a reunion performance by the cast of “Avenue Q” from 2013. Hosts for this year’s show are comediennes Jaimie McMillin, Maria Aromando, and Kim Cupo.

“To gather some of the best talent in New Jersey and have them on one stage in one big show is a unique night of enjoyment for theater fans,” said Kyrus Westcott, the show’s producer, director and head writer. The Kelsey Awards have been presented by K2KEntertainment and the Kelsey Theatre Advisory Board as a live show since 2011. (The awards were first presented in 2009.)

The nomination round took place in early July. The second round of voting, which will decide the winners, will be held Aug. 13 to 18. For more information, visit www.KelseyAwards.com.

Tickets are $16 and are available online at www.kelseytheatre.net or by calling the Kelsey Theatre Box Office at 609-570-3333. Kelsey Theatre is wheelchair accessible, with free parking available next to the theater.

Posted by tammyduffy at 9:05 AM EDT

Updated: Saturday, 6 August 2016 9:09 AM EDT

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HAM Offers Scholarships for Fall Artistic Expressions Class
Topic: ART NEWS

HAM Offers Scholarships for Fall Artistic Expressions Class

The Hunterdon Art Museum is offering 10 full scholarships to its fall Artistic Expressions class for adults with developmental disabilities.
Scholarships are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. To qualify, just visit the Hunterdon Art Museum’s website at http://hunterdonartmuseum.org/education-programs/special-needs-students/ and complete the application, or call HAM Education Coordinator April Anderson at 908-735-8415. Deadline to apply is August 30.

Two Artistic Expressions classes will run for 10 weeks during the fall: a Tuesday class beginning Sept. 13 or a Thursday class that starts Sept. 15. Both begin at 6:30 p.m., and run for consecutive weeks (except for Tuesday, Oct. 11). Scholarships are available for either class.

Artist Jim Pruznick leads this open studio class for adults and teens with developmental disabilities, in which art-making topics are tailored to new and returning students, and include drawing, painting, sculpting, mixed media, woodworking, photography and fiber arts. An open studio class gives students the opportunity to experiment with a variety of materials and mediums and to create art at their own pace and skill level. Two instructors and a maximum class size of 10 students means each student receives individualized attention while working in a fun and supportive environment.
“Artistic Expressions is a class with creative, therapeutic and social objectives,” noted Jennifer Brazel, education director at the Hunterdon Art Museum. “And it’s the perfect way to build skills, dexterity and self-esteem.”

The scholarships were established through donations received by the Museum. If you’d like to make a contribution toward this scholarship program, please contact Donna Huron, HAM’s Individual Giving Officer, at donna@hunterdonartmuseum.org.
Artistic Expressions is made possible in part by a grant from Investors Foundation.

GENERAL INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC
The Museum is at 7 Lower Center St. in Clinton, New Jersey, 08809. Our website is www.hunterdonartmuseum.org and our telephone number is 908-735-8415. Hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 am – 5 pm and suggested admission is $5.

Posted by tammyduffy at 8:52 AM EDT

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Sunday, 31 July 2016

Who Is Watching Who In Our Government?
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

Who Is Watching Who In Our Government?

The past months our TV, newspapers and magazines have been overtaken by the Presidential campaigns. The playing field has been narrowed down to two people. But, I do not know who I am voting for. I recently stumbled on some data on the web, that begs the question, Who is watching who?

The Pentagon’s top 100 contractors raked in $175.1 billion in obligated contracts in 2015, down slightly from 2014’s total of $177.6 billion, according to government figures released this week.

Lockheed Martin was the largest single contractor for the US government in 2015, easily lapping the rest of the field with $36.2 billion. The next closest competitor was Boeing at $16.6 billion.The federal government’s top 100 as a whole obligated $238.5 billion in 2015, meaning the DoD represented about 73.5 percent of those contracts awarded to the biggest firms.

General Dynamics ($13.6 billion), Raytheon ($13.1 billion) and Northrop Grumman ($10.6 billion) rounded out the top five contractors. Health care services firm McKesson, which has a series of major contracts with the Tricare system, was the only non-defense contractor to make it into the top eight overall federal contractors.

The vendor with the most contracts awarded by the Pentagon was FedEx, with 6.1 million, or roughly 46 percent of all contracts handed out by the department. The next closest by number of actions was Cardinal Health, which accounted for just over 2.3 percent of total transactions.

But the number that matters is dollars, and by that regard, Lockheed Marin continues to reign. The world’s largest defense firm, which also topped the contracting list in 2013 and 2014, ensures its dominance of the department with a mix of high-end, exquisite systems and cheaper more numerous weapons and sensors, said Byron Callan, an industry analyst with Capital Alpha Partners.

“Lockheed Martin's dominance can be explained by the F-35, Trident Fleet Ballistic Missile, C-130J and electronics, weapons and services programs too numerous to list,” Callan said. “Their dominance should increase with next year's data as it should reflect the Sikorsky acquisition, though the divestiture of ISGS should somewhat offset the contribution from helicopters.”

Lockheed was the top contractor for the Navy ($15.5 billion), Air Force ($7.3 billion) and Army ($4 billion), as well as for US Special Operations Command ($656.4 million).

This link below takes you to the federal spends

https://www.fpds.gov/fpdsng_cms/index.php/en/reports.html

This link below takes you to the IG strategic Plan as mentined below

http://www.dodig.mil/pubs/strategic_plan/DoDIGFY12-17StrategicPlan.pdf

In the report from the Office of the Inspector General, Strategic Plan 2012-2017. There are some goals set by the Department of Defense Inspector General. One of the goals; Goal 2, was to identify, deter and investigate fraud, waste and abuse. (entire report is here: http://www.dodig.mil/pubs/strategic_plan/DoDIGFY12-17StrategicPlan.pdf)

How well did the government follow their own strategic plan? They did not do so well. In one area in particular where there are BILLIONS of dollars spent each year, in private contracting. The Army did not consistently comply the requirements for assessing contractor performance.

https://www.fpds.gov/fpdsng_cms/index.php/en/reports.html (shows the top 100 contractors spend)

The mission of the Inspector General to provide independent, relevant, and timely oversight of the Department of Defense that supports the warfighter; promotes accountability, integrity, and efficiency; advises the Secretary of

Defense and Congress; and informs the public.

http://www.dodig.mil/pubs/documents/DODIG-2016-112.pdf

"There are 73 federal offices of inspectors general,^[3] a significant increase since the statutory creation of the initial 12 offices by the Inspector General Act of 1978.^[4] The offices employ special agents (criminal investigators, often armed) and auditors. In addition, federal offices of inspectors general employ forensic auditors, or "audigators," evaluators, inspectors, administrative investigators, and a variety of other specialists. Their activities include the detection and prevention of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement of the government programs and operations within their parent organizations. Office investigations may be internal, targeting government employees, or external, targeting grant recipients, contractors, or recipients of the various loans and subsidies offered through the thousands of federal domestic and foreign assistance programs.^[5] The Inspector General Reform Act of 2008^[6] (IGRA) amended the 1978 act^[4] by increasing pay and various powers and creating the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE).^[7]

Some inspectors general, the heads of the offices, are appointed by the president and confirmed by the senate.^[8] For example, both the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Labor and the inspector general of the U.S. Agency for International Development are presidentially appointed. The remaining inspectors general are designated by their respective agency heads,^[9] such as the U.S. Postal Service inspector general.^[10] Presidentially appointed IGs can only be removed, or terminated, from their positions by the President of the United States, whereas designated inspectors general can be terminated by the agency head.^[11] However, in both cases Congress must be notified of the termination, removal, or reassignment.

While the IG Act of 1978 requires that inspectors general be selected based upon their qualifications and not political affiliation, presidentially appointed inspectors general are considered political appointees and are often selected, if only in part and in addition to their qualifications, because of their political relationships and party affiliation. An example of the role political affiliation plays in the selection of an inspector general, and the resulting pitfalls, can be seen in the 2001 Republican appointment (and resignation under fire) of Janet Rehnquist^[12] (daughter of former Chief Justice of the United States, William Rehnquist) to the post of inspector general for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.^{[13]" (Source:}WIKI)

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) seeks to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Department of Commerce's programs and operations. OIG also endeavors to detect and deter waste, fraud, and abuse. Are they actually do so, or repeating the same things year after year?

https://www.ignet.gov/content/inspectors-general-directory

OIG monitors and tracks the use of taxpayer dollars through audits, inspections, evaluations, and investigations. The Inspector General keeps the Secretary of Commerce and Congress fully and currently informed about problems and deficiencies relating to Commerce's activities and the need for corrective action.

A PARS procedure is utilized for auditing these contracts. PARs are the method for assessing a contractor’s performance on a contract. Officials prepare PARs in the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System CPARS). CPARS is the Government-wide reporting tool for past performance on contracts. The primary purpose of CPARS is to ensure that current, complete, and accurate information on contractor performance is available for use in procurement source selections. The Federal Acquisition

Regulation (FAR)states that agencies must assign responsibility and accountability for the completeness of past performance submissions and that agency procedures

must address management controls and appropriate management reviews of past performance evaluations. When officials submit a completed PAR, it automatically

transfers to the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS). Federal Government source selection officials obtain PARs from PPIRS.

What does the Lead Auditor for the Inspector Generals office get paid?

https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/444820300

Is a $92,000 a year salary enough incentive to really look, to really dig to really want to make an impact?

What were the findings in the audit? This was the third time this audit was done.

DoD OIG issued Report No. D-2008-05 7on February29, 2008. The report stated that CPARS did not contain all active system contracts that met the reporting threshold of $5 million. In addition, the audit team reported that:

• 39 percent of system contracts were registered more than a year late;

• 68 percent of system contracts had PARs that were overdue; and

• 82 percent of PARs reviewed did not contain detailed, sufficient narratives

to establish that ratings were credible and justifiable.

The report recommended USD(AT&L) establish a requirement to:

• register contracts in CPARS within 30 days from contract award;

• complete the annual PARs in CPARS within 120 days from the end of the evaluation period; and

• require formal training on writing PAR narratives and the corresponding ratings for the assessors who prepare and review PARs.

In response to the report recommendations, USD(AT&L) issued a memorandum that requires DoD officials to register contracts and complete PARs within 120 days. However, the memorandum did not require formal training for CPARS assessors, as recommended by the FY2008 report.

Other reasons the PARs were not done:

did not make preparing the PARs a priority
lost track of the PARs
did not realize they were still assigned to the PAR as an assessor
waited for PAR input from technical officials; or
had turnover in the assessors for the PAR.

As of April 20, 2016, the PARs that officials did not complete for the 21 contracts were an average of 312 days late.

There were five contracting offices awarded a total of 156 contracts, valued at $84.4 billion. It was determined that assessors completed PARs for 56 of the 156 contracts as of September 24, 2015. They reviewed the 56 PARs, which had a total contract value of $1.5 billion. One report for Tiber Creek Consulting was 499 days late, why? This was a $122.5million dollar contract.

http://www.dodig.mil/pubs/documents/DODIG-2016-112.pdf (shows all the contracts that were late) You can google each contract number to see who it went to.

$133 Million contract to Cellco Partnership, 344 days late
$235 million contract to Intuitive Research, 305 days late on one report
$31.8 Million contract to Torch Technologies, 298 days late
$11.7 million contract to AI Signal Research, 279 days late
$429 million contract to DRS Optronics Inc, 280 days late
$47.7 million contract to Boeing, 292 days late
$643,219,534 contract to GE, 356 days late
$476 million contract to Redston Defense, 311 days late
etc....

You get the picture. Who is watching how our hard earned tax dollars are being spent? Who is holding who accountable for these actions stated in this article? It is next to impossible to fire a civil servant.

We the people want to know how to optimize this. The American public deserves better treatment. How do we form a more and perfect union?

We need to elect officials who will care enough to change this. To enforce what needs to be enforced. To not be persuaded by lobbyists, special interest groups, large corporations, donors, etc.

Which one of the candidates wants to fix this? Both CAN fix it, who WILL fix it is the better question.

That is the person I will vote for come November. I want the person who will stop wasting American tax dollars and make the American people their first priority.

Posted by tammyduffy at 9:16 AM EDT

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Saturday, 23 July 2016

HAMILTON SAFETY REPORT 2016 The Real Story
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

HAMILTON SAFETY REPORT 2016

The Real Story

*All Data in this article comes directly from the NJSP Crime Reports

http://www.njsp.org/ucr/pdf/current/20160715_crimetrend.pdf

The Mayor of Hamilton has been touting,"CRIME IN MY TOWN IS THE LOWEST IT HAS BEEN SINCE 1977." This constant message is a message to criminals,"ALL CRIMINALS WELCOMED."

The residents of Cornell Heights for the past two years have been in contact with the Mayors office, the council, the engineering department and many others; as it pertains to a public safety issue in their neighborhood. Their requests for help have gone ignored. The mayors office never responds, the engineering office closes all the complaints immediately, with a message "issue has been addressed", when it has not. This is how Hamilton really works.

Last evening I got to personally witness first hand how unsafe the town of Hamilton has become. I was followed for over a mile on my way home on foot on Sloan rd. I went to Thriftway after eating at Pizza Uno. This young male followed me as soon as I came out of Thriftway. I went into the new kickboxing place to try to get away from him. He waited across the street. I then quickly walked towards train station and thought he would go the other way, he appeared to do that. However, when I turned around he came running toward me. I then turned around and ran to the train station. No police where there. He was a young male in royal blue tshirt 5'8" and jeans. I thought I could to lose him, but he kept finding me. I crossed over tracks to American Metro way. They have a security guard 24/7 there that patrols the parking lot 24/7 due to the high crime to the building there. I asked for his help. He was so nice and helped me. He made sure I got to the end of the american metro way area safely and then I ran like a nut to my neighbors house. My neighbor walked me home and stood there until my garage door closed to the ground. I called the police when I got home to tell them what happened. Hopefully they did go and look for this person.

People may question why I did not call the police when this was going on. I did not because our Mayor has created an atmopshere that leadership does not care about residents public safety. The police are stretched so thin that I doubted, especially in the evening, that anyone could have come to help anyway.

Let's review the crime statistics of NJ and Hamilton, Mercer county specifically.

NJ 2016 Crime (Projected Data)*

	Incidents	Per 100,000
Aggravated Assault	710,616	219
Arson	0	0
Burglary	2,166,837	668
Forcible Rape	77,742	24
Larceny and Theft	5,650,876	1,742
Motor Vehicle Theft	358,849	111
Murder and Manslaughter	13,742	4
Robbery	341,587	105
Crime Rate (Total Incidents)	9,320,248	8,176,915
Property Crime	8,176,562	2,521
Violent Crime	1,143,686	353

New Jersey Violent Crime vs. National Comparison

Since the current mayor has come into power in Hamilton and gave themselves the role of public safety officer, here is what is happening in Hamilton.

Since 2015....to the new reports that just came out July 15 2016

Robbery

By Firearm is up 260%

Other Dangerous Weapon is up 400%

Assault

With a gun is up 125%

Aggravated Assault with (hand,fist, feet, etc) is up 71.2%

Burglary by Forcible entry is up 46.8%

Larceny is up by 62.2%

By the end of 2015, Rape was up by 63.6%.

By the end of 2015, attempted rape was up by 100%

This is why people do not feel safe in Hamilton. For anyone in leadership to pat themselves on the back and state otherwise is irresponsible. The police department is doing all they can with what they have. It's time there is a better focus on public safety by the towns public safety officer, the mayor.

Posted by tammyduffy at 9:34 AM EDT

Updated: Saturday, 23 July 2016 9:35 AM EDT

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Saturday, 16 July 2016

Hunterdon Art Museum Dedicates Terrace To Influential Ceramic Artist Toshiko Takaezu
Topic: ART NEWS

Hunterdon Art Museum Dedicates Terrace
To Influential Ceramic Artist Toshiko Takaezu

When renowned ceramic artist Toshiko Takaezu first gazed upon the charming waterfall beside the Hunterdon Art Museum in the summer of 1964, she knew she had found just what she was looking for: a home and a peaceful place where she could focus on her work.

“What a beautiful scene,” she remembered thinking.
That inspiring view brought her from the Midwest to Clinton. She opened a studio at the historic Music Hall to create art and spent nearly five decades donating her time and energy to the Museum, playing a vital role in its growth and passion for contemporary art.
Now that splendid space beside the waterfall is named in her honor: The Toshiko Takaezu Terrace.
“Naming the terrace in Toshiko’s honor serves as a tribute to an artist who was intimately involved with the Museum and whose inspiring work influenced generations of artists,” said Marjorie Frankel Nathanson, executive director of the Hunterdon Art Museum.

Takaezu passed away at the age of 88 in 2011.
All the ceramic tiles on the terrace commemorating Takaezu were created at The Takaezu Studio in Quakertown and fired in her kiln. There are four blue tiles which hold special significance.

“Toshiko was well known for her blue glaze in her work,” said Don Fletcher of The Takaezu Studio in Quakertown. We had a little bit of glaze left over that was hers, and we wanted to use it to add a little bit of her personality to the terrace. The glaze is a direct representation of her spirit.”

Takaezu’s work evolved early on from traditional small utilitarian vessels into the closed forms for which she became known worldwide. The New York Times noted, “[In her] stoneware and porcelain works, some small enough to fit in the palm of one hand, others monoliths more than six feet tall, Ms. Takaezu blended the expressive bravura of painters like Jackson Pollack and Franz Kline with the calm, meditative quality of traditional Japanese pottery in forms suggestive of acorns, melons or tree trunks.”
Two of Takaezu’s pieces are on display at the Museum including Three Graces, which can be found appropriately enough, in the terrace garden. Takaezu had created Three Graces as she sought to experiment in her expanded studio space with bigger kilns to create works on a larger scale. Three Graces – representing love, beauty and wisdom – are large cylindrical cast-bronze pieces that undulate from their base. The piece is on long-term loan from The Takaezu Studio.

Takaezu was born in Hawaii, studied at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan under a scholarship, before teaching at the University of Wisconsin and the Cleveland Institute of Art. She said she moved to Clinton because she “wanted a quiet studio where I [could] concentrate on my work.” A few years later, she began teaching classes at Princeton University, and did so until 1992.

In the 1960s, Takaezu opened a shop in the Museum to sell the work of fellow artists. In 1967, she organized and planned an Invitational Craft Exhibition that featured the works of prominent artists including George Nakashima, a leading innovator of 20th century furniture design and a father of the American craft movement; and Lenore Tawney, whose monumental sculptural weavings helped create the genre of fiber art. More than 700 people flocked to the Museum for the show’s opening.

Takaezu’s work was celebrated in three Museum exhibitions, including a 1998 show that filled the Museum’s three floors with her ceramics, sculptural forms, painting and weaving.

In 2010, the Emperor of Japan presented her with the Konjuhosho Award conferred on individuals who have made significant contributions to Japanese society, and she chose to have the presentation at the Hunterdon Art Museum. A year later, her memorial service was held at the Museum, near the idyllic waterfall she adored.

Posted by tammyduffy at 11:41 AM EDT

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Saturday, 9 July 2016

CONSUMER ALERT: 2016 Ford Fusion Sedan 2.5L models

This past week my 2016 Ford Fusion 2.5L sedan, died on the highway. The car only has 10,000 miles on it. There is no recall or safety warning that has been sent out by Ford Motor company on any issues with these vehicles.

I was driving down a superhighway at 65mph when all of the sudden the vehicle's RPM's raised in an unusually high manner. After that, an illuminated wrench (see service manual) message was demonstrated on the dashboard. Immeidately, after that, the airbag lights came on. What happened after that, should never happen with a brand new car. The car died. It had no ability to accelerate and slowed down to a crawl. THE RPM's went to 0.

While this was happening, I was driving through a construction zone. There was no way out. I had an 18 wheeler on my tail. The truck began honking his horn aggressively behind me. I really thought the truck was going to come through my trunk. Fortunately, all of the sudden there was a small area of shoulder that opened up for me to pull over safely.

A month prior to this event with my vehicle, a coworker had said the same thing happened to their vehicle. They said they took it in three times before the dealer agreed to change something in the car. It was the Throttle body that they eventually changed in the vehicle. The bad part of this system failure was that each time my coworker took their car in, there was nothing in the error codes to show why the service wrench came on. Their car died on the road three times.

After pulling into the emergency lane, I was able to restart the vehicle. I immediately drove it to the nearest Ford dealer. I shared with them what happened and what also recently happened to my coworkers car. I picked up a rental vehicle and off I went. That same day the dealer called me to say, "We cannot find anything wrong with you car, you can pick it up." I said," I am not picking this car up until you figure out why a new car died on the highway, there is no way I am getting back into that car until it is fixed." The dealer agreed to continue to investigate the issue. I told them to change the throttle body,for that what was done on another, and the car is fine now.

Later in the day, the dealer called again to say, they still cannot find anything wrong with the vehicle. I reiterated, " I am not taking the car back until you figure it out. The car is unsafe." I told them again, "Change the throttle body."

They agreed to have one of their engineers drive the car home that evening and take it out onto the highway to see if they could duplicate the issue. They were able to.

The day after I got my car back there was a safety memo sent out to all employees to get their vehicles in to have the throttle bodies changed. This is a potential safety issue that has occurred numerous times with the fleet that they have from Ford. The 2016 Ford Fusion 2.5L sedans, have demonstrated that they are susceptible to a throttle body failure, resulting in a significant reduction in maximum vehicle speed (with maximum RPM of 1,100). This failure may occur at any time, without warning, resulting in a sudden loss of power. The company did communicate with Ford regarding this issue and has taken expedited, proactive steps to address any potential safety risks and protect company vehicle drivers. What has Ford done for the rest of its drivers globally? If you own one of these vehicles, you need to have your vehicle checked immediately so that you do not have this happen to you.

What is a Throttle body? It is the throttle body cleaning and wiping of the bore and throttle blade. The service is important in order to keep the automobile running smoothly, efficiently, and safely.

What is it?

The throttle manages the flow of fluid and can increase or decrease the engine’s power. It does not control the power or the speed of the engine as is thought by many people. During a throttle body service, a technician cleans out or wipes the bore and throttle blade. When this is done and the air rate is checked and adjusted, a sensor does an idle that is computer controlled. If this is properly done, the car should operate in the idle mode as if it were new.

There is carbon and sludge that the PCV system deposits into the throttle body as the engine operates. This carbon and sludge is cleaned out during the throttle body service. How well the engine operates about a year after service is determined by the way the automobile starts, how well it idles when it’s cold or warm, and when accessories such air conditioning and heat are operating. The carbon and sludge will also affect the way the car starts from a total stop. A service such as this will keep the idle valve, which is computer controlled, clean. If it is left dirty and covered with carbon, it will have to be replaced and such a replacement can be costly.

An important part of the engine is the throttle body, which is part of the air intake system. The air intake system increases the amount of oxygen used for combustion with fuel. You can either gain or lose power with the air intake system depending on the vehicle’s ram. The throttle body is a part of this air intake system. Keeping the throttle body in good operating condition will keep the car running without costly occurrences.

Importance of the Throttle Body Service

Careful and regular throttle body service will keep the emissions from the engine’s exhaust system in check. There is also increased sound when the throttle is applied by way of the accelerator. If the vehicle is operated at lower speeds, there is less noise coming from the engine. However, at higher speeds, the engine tends to become very noisy. These two statements make the throttle body service important in itself, as it makes the automobile more environmentally friendly. A complete throttle body service is recommended every 15,000, 40,000, and 75,000 miles to be sure that the automobile is functioning properly.

It is most important to have the throttle body serviced regularly to avoid the high cost of replacement. The cost of throttle body service or replacing the throttle body varies with the year, make, and model of the car. But, no matter what that year, model, or make may be, replacement is not inexpensive. Excluding the cost of replacing the throttle body for the moment, what is perhaps even more important, is to have the throttle body serviced regularly to keep your car running smoothly and efficiently.

Posted by tammyduffy at 10:16 AM EDT

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