The most destructive wildfire in California's history started on Nov 8, 2018,1by bad electrical cables in the town of Paradise. It burned for 17 days and caused $16.5 billion in2, destroying nearly 19,000 buildings, killing 85 people and leaving 50,000 others homeless. Paradise was3a paradise (乐土).
Shane Grammer grew up 15 miles away in Chico, and he4the news of the fire's deadly path from his home in Los Angeles. The 47-year-old father of three works as a creative director for Disney's theme parks. Grammer still has5 in the Paradise area. When his childhood buddy, Shane Edwards, posted pictures of his white chimney ― the only part of his house to6 Grammer felt helpless. And then he had a(n)7.
"I've got to paint that8," he told Inside Edition. "It was an opportunity for me to express myself and be a(n)9.
On Dec 31, Grammer10three hours painting a beautifully sad black-and-white image of a woman on the chimney — a reminder, perhaps, of the11of life, or even just of life itself.
Grammer12the image on Instagram. The victims of the fire, especially, had13feelings. "You bring beauty and hope," one said.
14, Grammer realized that his artistic expression had15into something deeper, the hallmark (特征)of true art. Over a period of three months he returned eight times,1617 pictures of victims and mythical (神话里的) heroes on walls, pickup trucks, and ruined buildings. "There is17," he explains. "There is beauty in the ashes."
Grammer's work in Paradise has become a bigger18. He has traveled the world painting big pictures in19places that needed some light: a home for orphans in Tijuana, Mexico; a youth center in San Francisco. "I want to do something powerful and create art that20people," he says.
Here's your weekly roundup of who's hiring in town and in nearby St. Charles County and Maryland Heights.
Who's Hiring: Petco
Location: St. Charles
Job: Cashier
Description: The cashier will help achieve store sales goals while helping to provide customers with the products they need for happy and healthy pets. Petco is looking to you to provide exceptional customer service as you perform all aspects of point of sale service - cash, credit and check sales, returns and exchanges: This means offering quick and polite response to those customers who choose to shop with us.
Requirements: While a high school diploma is preferred, you must be able to demonstrate basic math skill and strong communication skills. You must be customer service focused and able to interact professionally and effectively through both verbal and written communication with everyone with whom you come into contact.
To Apply: Apply online.
Who's Hiring: City of St. Peters
Location: St. Peters
Job: Temporary Parks Worker
Description: Performs general labor to repair and maintain parks, playgrounds, athletic fields, and trails. Operates and performs minor maintenance to light and heavy equipment, power tools, motorized equipment, and vehicles.
Requirements: Must be a U.S. Citizen. High School graduate certificate. One year of applicable experience. Ability to frequently lift and/or move up t0 50 pounds and carry it a reasonable distance, and occasionally lift and/or move more than 75 pounds.
Pay: $15.27 per hour
To Apply: Apply in person, fax t0 636-477-1044, or mail to: #1205-Human Resources, City of St. Peters, P.O. Box 9, St. Peters MO 63376.
Who's Hiring: Commerce Bank
Location: Maryland Heights
Job: Teller
Description: Responsible for handling deposits, check cashing, money orders, official checks, traveler's checks, and saving bonds. Know customers' needs and suggest appropriate bank services. Make referrals (移交) to sales staff to assist the branch in meeting its sales goals. Commerce Bank reserves the right to fill all Part Time Teller positions as soon as qualified candidates are identified.
To Apply: Apply online.
Dear daughters,
Most parents tell their children, "You can be anything you want when you grow up." I feel the same and I say this often. But I also want you to understand that realizing your dreams comes from hard work, some good luck and good timing. Here are some words of wisdom for you as you make your way in the world, from an entrepreneur (企业家) and from your mama.
⒈Be open-minded to changing your path along the way
In high school, I wanted to be a politician. I left my hometown and went off to college in Washington, DC. There, I discovered that I loved to support women. It taught me that I'm creative, a strong leader and great at marketing. As a result, I moved on to be the head of a national healthcare nonprofit. Becoming a mother while in that job opened my mind to launching a breast pump bag (储奶袋) business. Now I run a highly successful company that I started up on my own. I'm not a politician!
⒉Failure is critical to your success
Failure can be heartbreaking. But I will tell you that every failure I've had along the way has absolutely made me better. Failing the big math exam in high school and going to summer school was embarrassing. I eventually passed, and I've never failed an exam again. I learned from that experience to ask for help. Now, I ask for help in business all the time. I'm proud to be a role model to you as a mom and an entrepreneur. I hope I inspire you to believe that you can be anything you want. It will be my pleasure to watch your lives unfold before my eyes.
Love,
Your mom
With climate change and overfishing threatening our oceans, it is becoming increasingly important for researchers to closely observe and check sea animals and plants. However, it's almost impossible to make it since human presence scares the animals. Now, thanks to the robot, aka SoFi, researchers may be able to solve the problem.
Built by MIT's laboratory, the snow-white remote-controlled robot simulates fish, complete with a flexible tail that moves from side to side and two "fins (鳍)".
When the robot is under the sea, a motor is pumping water into a pair of balloon-like rooms located in the robot's tail. These rooms operate similarly to the key parts in engines. As one room expands, the tail bends to one side; when the motor pushes water to the other channel, the tail bends in the other direction. Thus the robot gains the ability to move to where it wants to go.
SoFi solves many of the issues that have affected the usefulness of previous robots — some types of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs)
AUVs traditionally often have had to be tied to a boat because radio frequency communications do not work well underwater. So researchers use sound waves. The new technology can travel greater distances, allowing drivers, by using a controller, to pilot SoFi from up to 50 feet away. SoFi can move around the ocean, unaffected by ropes. Also limiting traditional AUVs' usefulness is the risk of hitting something, like hard stones. With the outside made of rubber and plastic that can keep its built-in electronics dry, SoFi can efficiently avoid hitting. So a soft robot is more likely to survive a potential crisis.
During test dives in Rainbow Reef, SoFi swam alongside the unsuspecting ocean life at depths of 50 feet for up to 40 minutes at a time, obtaining high-quality photos and videos. More importantly, it was able to do so without causing any disturbance. Researchers say sometimes the fish would swim alongside the strange-looking robot in curiosity, while at other times they appeared to completely ignore its existence. "It's not perfect, but we're improving it. Our efforts will pay off," says Robert Katzschmann.
It's good to make mistakes, and here is why.
First of all, mistakes are a clear sign that we are trying new things. It's always good to try new things because when we are trying new things, we are growing. If we never try anything new, how can we improve? How can we expand? The simple answer is "We can't". Look around us. With very few exceptions, either everything you see in your physical world or every single detail of every single thing is the result of someone trying something new.
Another good thing about mistakes is this: When we are making mistakes, we are learning. Consider this — Edison failed 10,000 times before he perfected the light bulb. When asked how it felt to fail that many times, he said that he had learned 10,000 things that didn't work.
Finally, when we make a mistake, we are much closer to success. Why? Because when all is said and done, we will have tried some number of things before we succeeded. Every time we make a mistake we eliminate one of those things and are one step closer.
But all this doesn't mean that we should go through life without considering the consequences of a mistake. Quite the contrary, when we try something new we have to be willing to set some reasonable limits so that in the event that it doesn't work out the way we want it to, we will be in a position to try again. We all have limited resources --in the form of time and money -- so we shouldn't blow them all on one approach to a problem. Realize that it probably won't be perfect the first time and allocate (分配) these resources appropriately so we can learn, make corrections, and try it again. Only by accepting and using our mistakes in this way can we make significant advances in our lives.
There is an old saying that goes, "If you're not making mistakes, you're not trying hard enough." So go forth and make mistakes. And learn. And grow. And prosper.
When I was in school, the class I dreaded most was my eighth grade art class. The teacher put down my every attempt at completing an assignment. I simply couldn't produce art the way she wanted it. Luckily, I'd already proven myself in other creative areas. Yet, that art teacher was successful in convincing me that I had no talent for painting, drawing, or anything related to them. Imagine my surprise when I published my nature photography and became a volunteer art teacher!
Unfortunately, my story is all too familiar to many people who come through my workshops and practice. Even more unfortunately, the vast majority of people were so discouraged in childhood that they cut off the creative impulse (冲动) in most areas of their lives. Their teachers, parents, or classmates convinced them they had no talent, so they gave up. The pain of failure was simply too great.
Why have we forgotten creativity is an experience, not a result? Let's consider why we express creativity in first place. To be creative is to be human. Everything we've at our disposal (处理) is the result of someone's creative expression and willingness to take a risk. Even so, for creativity to flower and feel free of encumbrance (累赘), it needs to be about the joyful moments spent creating, not just about what we've to show for those moments. Whatever pattern you need to break, try to make it about the pleasure and not about the outcome.
Therefore, I'd urge you to curb your perfectionism not enthusiasm! Perfectionism is the leading killer of artistic expression. Relax a little and bring back your childlike nature when you create. Children instinctively (本能地) know how to give over to the joy — until someone teaches them otherwise! Let your creation be whatever it wants to be. See if it can lead you rather than the other way around. Let your unconsciousness come through, and let the expression of yourself be beautiful regardless of how it compares to anything else. After all, it's yours, and no one but you could create it!
