Edgar Linton has more right Essay

The word hero conjures an image in one’s head of a valiant, courageous, strong individual; one who puts the needs of others before their own, a being who defies evil with their handsome charm and fearless nature. However, this stereotypical image does not accurately depict the full extent to which the term hero covers, as there are many different types of hero including the Byronic Hero, Classic Hero, Medieval Hero, and Romantic Hero. Classic Heroes are those in Greek and Roman literature; they are often of royal birth or even like the Titan Prometheus; half mortal, half god. Although Edgar Linton is not of royal descent, he is from a family of the highest social class throughout the country which allows him to fall loosely into this category of noble birth. Heathcliff on the other hand, is from a discernible background and is brought into the household at Wuthering Heights as a ‘gipsy brat’ after Mr. Earnshaw saw, ‘it starving, and houseless, and as good as dumb in the streets of Liverpool.’ Another characteristic of a Classic Hero is that they perform extraordinary feats. Throughout the novel Edgar Linton displays no obvious signs of having done anything extraordinary; he is a calm, weak natured individual who avoids conflict and allows himself to be easily overpowered both by Heathcliff and his wife allowing the latter to mock him, ‘I wish Heathcliff may flog you sick, for daring to think an evil thought of me!’ In contrast to this, Heathcliff performs many extraordinary deeds however, few of which are in any way admirable and for the benefit of anyone but himself for example, after being degraded for years at the abusive hands of Hindley, Heathcliff disappeared for three years and that space of time turned himself into an outwardly respectable and wealthy man. In addition to the former points, a classical hero must be a perfectly ideal individual but for one fatal flaw. One’s opinion of Edgar Linton can be altered to allow him to fit into this category as he is a well-mannered character who is obviously fully devoted to both his wife and his daughter; Nelly Dean observes, ‘I don’t believe he ever did speak a harsh word to her.’ However, his gentle, spoiled upbringing may be his flaw as it has made him subservient character that lacks the confidence and passion Heathcliff possesses and thus lacks the ability to keep hold of Catherine and make her happy. Heathcliff again, does not fit the mould of the Classic Hero as he fails to meet this criterion; he is an abusive, evil, sadistic individual who shows no hint of remorse or of possessing any admirable qualities. Although neither Edgar nor Heathcliff perfectly fit the mould of a Classic hero, Edgar has more right to be called a Classic Hero than Heathcliff does. However, Heathcliff does fully reserve the right to be classed as the Byronic Hero within the novel as he possesses all the characteristics of one of these heroes while Edgar has none of them. These heroes are manipulative, violent and unrepentant. Heathcliff shows his manipulative nature when he allows Isabella Linton to fall in love with him, he tells Nelly, ‘she abandoned them under a delusion’, showing he was fully aware of her feelings and used them to his advantage, employing them as a tool in which he could gain control and ownership over both properties; Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. His displays of violence are prominent throughout the novel, beginning as a young boy and developing into adulthood. As a young child he, ‘seized a tureen of apple sauce’ and threw it over Edgar Linton’s face. As an adult his violence worsens as, ‘he snatched a knife from the table and flung it at’ his wife, Isabella’s head. In addition to this, he comes close to murdering Hindley and even with Catherine, his true love he does not possess the capability to be gentle, ‘so inadequate was his stock of gentleness†¦ I saw four distinct impressions left blue in her colourless skin.’ Heathcliff’s unrepentant nature is evident via the lack of regard he holds toward his victims which stems from his arrogant personality. The height of his arrogance is seen when he tells Catherine in front of Edgar, ‘This lamb of yours threatens like a bull!†¦ It is in danger of splitting its skull against my knuckles. By God, Mr. Linton, I’m’ mortally sorry that you are not worth knocking down.’ Arrogance is also a common trait of Byronic Heroes. Despite the fact that both men can be called heroes in their own right to a certain extent, it is because of his amiability and good nature Edgar Linton has the right to claim the title of the respectable hero within the novel. However, in saying this looking at all the characters within the novel, it may be argued that neither man deserve the title but a woman does as the women in the novel are strong, independent and highly feministic characters.

Speech About Education in Indonesia

Assalamu’alaikum Wr. Wb. Firstly, I would like to say thank because it is a great honor for me to stand here and give a brief speech entitled â€Å"Formal Education in Indonesia† Education system in our country is divided into two major parts, they are formal and non-formal. A formal education is divided into three levels: primary, secondary and tertiary education. While non-formal education is carried out for the learners who get difficulties to meet the requirements in formal education. An example of non-formal education is PLS or Outside School Education.Before entering primary or elementary school, children in ourcountry usually have attended kindergarten. But this education is not compulsory for Indonesian citizens, as the aim of this is just to prepare them for primary school. Children ages 7–12 attend primary education at Elementary School. This level of education is compulsory for all Indonesian citizens. Similar to education systems in the U. S. and Aust ralia, students must study for six years to complete this level. Some schools offer an accelerated learning program, where students who perform well can finish elementary school in five years.The next level is secondary education. After graduating from elementary school, students attend Middle School or Junior High School for three years from the age of 13-15. After three years of schooling and graduation, students may move on to Senior High School. In Indonesia, this school is basically divided into two kinds: SMA and SMK. SMA is different with SMK in their studies. The students at SMA are prepared to advance totertiary education or university, while students of SMK as a vocational school are prepared to be ready to work after finishing their school without going to university/college.The last level of education in our country is tertiary education. Students who have graduated from senior high school may attend to university or academy. They can choose any kinds of university or ac ademy based on their interests or scopes of knowledge, for example majoring in English, Mathematics, or teacher training university. I think that’s all my speech. I hope my brief description on the formal education in our country will be useful for us. Finally, I would like to say sorry if there are mistakes in my speech words. Thank you very much for your attention. Wassalamu’alaikum Wr. Wb.

Review for Midterm

Review for midterm Note: You must be able to perform calculations, make decisions under various alternative situation. Simply knowing the definition is not sufficient to earn good grade. Chapter 1 Management functions Manufacturing costs Cost classifications Prepare Cost of goods Manufactured schedules/Cost of goods sold statements Cost of goods sold statements : Calculate missing amounts from given data set Ethical issues Chapter 2 Difference between Job costing and process cost systemCost flow in Job order costing (Cost accumulation and assignment by cost elements), including journal entries Be able to calculate applied manufacturing overhead/under-over applied manufacturing overhead from given data, including adjustments of under-over applied overhead Chapter 3* Cost flow in process cost system Be able to prepare production cost report and its components Analyze Production cost report Compute missing data within the production cost report *Only Weighted average method Chapter 5 Kn ow cost behavior, identify types of costs from given data set and why it is so important Relevant rangeApply High-low method to determine fixed/variable cost CVP: Assumptions of CVP analysis Be able to prepare CVP income statement Compute Contribution margin, and contribution margin ratio What is Break-even point Be able to complete break-even analysis under different scenario Include Target net income with break-even analysis, Margin of safety Review problem 1. Temp Range Company prepared the following income statement for 2014: TEMP RANGE COMPANY Income Statement For the Year Ended December 31, 2014 ——————————————————————————————————————————— Sales (5,000 units)$200,000 Variable expens es 75,000Contribution margin125,000 Fixed expenses 83,200 Net income$ 41,800 Instructions Answer the following independent questions and show computations to support your answers. 1. What is the company’s break-even point in units? 2. How many units would the company have had to sell to earn a target net income of $33,000 in 2014? 3. If the company expects a 65% increase in sales volume in 2015, what would be the expected net income in 2015? 4. How much sales (in dollars) would the company have to generate in order to earn a target net income of $288,000 in 2015? #2: Job order costingSandro Clean uses a job order cost accounting system. On October 1, the company has a balance in Work in Process Inventory of $4,200 and two jobs in process: Job No. R92, $1,600 and Job No. R93, $2,600. During October, a summary of source documents reveals the following: ForMaterials Requisition SlipsLabor Time Tickets Job No. R92$ 2,200$ 7,100 Job No. R931,7004,100 Job No. R944,7003,300 Job No. R952,2005,100 General Use 1,800 2,000 $12,600$21,600 Sandro applies manufacturing overhead to jobs at an overhead rate of 90% of direct labor cost. Job No. R92 was completed during the month.Instructions (a)Prepare summary journal entries to record the requisition slips, time tickets, the assignment of manufacturing overhead to jobs, and the completion of Job No. R92. Show computations. (b)Answer the following questions. 1. What is the balance in Work in Process Inventory at October 31? 2. If Sandro incurred $13,000 of manufacturing overhead in addition to indirect labor and indirect materials, was overhead over- or underapplied in October and by how much? Cost of Goods Manufactured and Sold Selected account balances of Santana Manufacturing Company appear below for 2014:Beginning of YearEnd of Year Finished Goods Inventory$15,000$ 17,000 Work In Process Inventory22,00021,000 Raw Materials Inventory13,00019,000 Sales380,000 Direct Labor43,000 Factory Supervisory Salaries17,000 Incom e Tax Expense32,000 Factory Insurance18,000 Raw Material Purchases93,000 Administrative Expenses12,000 Sales Returns and Allowances3,000 Factory Depreciation8,000 Indirect Labor14,000 Selling Expenses44,000 Instructions Using the above information for Santana Manufacturing Company, Prepare Cost of goods sold statement. Support your answers with clearly identified computations.

Leadership exercise Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Leadership exercise - Assignment Example The biggest task was convincing the five of them to accompany me to the charity event. The challenge arose from the fact that convincing all, the five, would be a difficult task given that they live in separate areas and have different kinds of preferences. I took the initiative of convincing all the five on individual capacity. To do that, I took note of their needs and feelings. I knew that a good leader must listen to the rest of the team. I made my proposition logically. I told them that I had an idea of visiting the Children’s home. Similarly, the idea of going there would be entertaining as well as a positive way to get back to the society. The logical argument was that going to the charity would give us a rare opportunity of playing with the less privileged children. By so doing, we would impact positively on their lives as we, also, enjoyed free physical exercise (Hoch, 163). After all the five friends agreed to accompany me to the charity, the next task was coordinating the group. I knew that the most important virtue required from me was leadership. That would entail listening to their suggestions, rather than imposing my ideas on them (Washington et al 13). As a leader, I made contact with the Children’s home to book an appointment on Saturday. On the material day, the most difficult task coordinating the entire group to converge at my house. All six of us had different ideas with regard to the meeting place. However, I gave everyone a chance to give their views. On the same note, while giving my views and reactions to their views, I used hesitant language. This is because a good leader should listen to the voice of those being led. I also know that a good leader should lead by example and action. In that regard, I offered to finance the journey by paying for the gas as well as refreshments that we used. Sam and Patricia proposed that, since we were visiting children, we should buy some snacks

Mao and Dynastic History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mao and Dynastic History - Essay Example At an early age, Mao liked to read popular historical books concerning political turmoil and unconventional military heroes. He liked the artistic works of Kang Yuwei, a nationalist reformer in China, and admired the earlier political generations of Chinese history. Indeed, China's last dynasty started to succumb the moment Moa founded the Chinese Communist Party in 1921. Thirteen years later, the political party had a membership of more than eighty thousand individuals. Chiang Kai-shek, a commander of the Nationalist Army, ordered his army to pursue members of the Chinese Communist Party. Although faced with challenges and mistrust, Mao’s party formed an alliance with the Nationalists against the Japanese government during the Second World War. Later on, the Nationalists fled to Taiwan during a civil war that the communists won under Mao’s leadership. Surely, there exist considerable similarities between Mao’s rule and former emperors who ruled in China. For exa mple, Mao established policies that allowed its government to redistribute some lands to peasant farmers. Mao provided a gateway to democracy and realization of human rights by providing college students with the freedom to carry out counter-revolutionaries. Similarly, the former emperors such as Liu Bang established friendly policies that lowered taxation rates and provided people with more freedom. However, Mao had a different leadership model that set in a motion of â€Å"Great Leap Forward† that aimed at safeguarding the industrial, agricultural, and construction sectors.

Case Study Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Case Study Analysis - Essay Example The upholding of these values is what has made IKEA what it is today. This is because in trying to please and satisfy the customer, they learnt how to expand and offer the best customer service and maintain their ethical conduct and also manage competition. One of the strategies was carrying out market research on what the customers and other regular people wanted. By so doing they came to realize that they wanted good quality but at an affordable price. This made them come up with ways of reducing the miscellaneous costs like storage and transportation which made the end product is expensive. They therefore started the â€Å"knockdown† where the customers went to assemble the furniture on their own hence cutting the transportation and storage costs. The other strategy was developing a mutual relationship with the suppliers. This way the company was able to purchase the best raw material at a lower cost and even on credit. They got to know what the competitors were doing since the suppliers of the products were the same. This made them be on top of their game by having the best raw materials and the cheapest final products and hence more and more customers (Bartlett et al. November, 2006). The formaldehyde issue was responded to by the company working directly with manufactures to ensure that the substance did not exceed the gas it produces. Later on when the problem returned, IKEA pulled their bookshelves from the market as an immediate measure before resolving the problem. In the second crises, IKEA sent a team to Geneva to learn more about the child labor problem and how they could correct the problem without having to hurt too many people in the long run and at the same time maintaining and protecting its status. This was such an ideal move that made it even move higher up in customer service and its values (Bartlett et al. November, 2006). IKEA demonstrated that it

Organizational Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Organizational Culture - Essay Example According to his perspective artifacts, values, and basic assumptions do not reflect separate levels of culture. This perspective tries to link the manifestations of culture to provide a deeper understanding of the overall organizational culture. Therefore, the perspectives of these two authors regarding organizational culture are very different from each other. Changing organizational culture is very significant in an organization’s effort to increase its performance. However, this culture requires continuous changes in order to sustain growth in organization’s performance. Organizational culture can be changed by following four major steps. The first step is undertaking a research on the current organizational culture. The second step is designing a strategy to change the culture while the third step is implementing the strategy designed. The final step of changing the organizational culture is the evaluation of the changes obtained from the strategy. Organizations can undertake changes on their different aspects. The changes are always very closely associated with changes in the organizational culture. This is because organizational culture results to overall change in the organization. Organizational development is regarded as a change in the primary level of organizational aspects of a company. Such changes include changes in both the individual and group level of the employees of the organization. Introduction of new technology in an organization is a challenge to both the management and members. In implementing a new accounting information system, I would begin by researching on various accounting management systems and the benefits of each of the systems. After researching, I would select the most beneficial accounting management system and then communicate to employees about the benefits that the organization would obtain from the new system. Moreover, I would inform them the benefits they can derive from the system and

Art Management and Arts Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Art Management and Arts Marketing - Essay Example An arts management course is deemed appropriate to hone the skills of arts enthusiasts and to enable them to develop programs, write grants, provide technical assistance and be responsible art managers. The artists themselves recognized the need to develop a program which would train students who are arts enthusiasts to focus on management of the arts. Accordingly, the important factors which need to be constantly improved are professionalism and relevant management techniques to assure the artists of success in their field of endeavor. What is the relevance of art management to cultural organizations? An arts management student would have direct beneficial contributions to the cultural sector by taking entrepreneurial roles in the development and management of artistic and cultural resources of a particular region. This means that art managers would take an active role in training artists in the management of their own cultural talents. As they enhance their expertise in this field, these art managers would be able to develop regional and international contacts with arts organizations, cultural agencies, and other art practitioners in the field. Finally, entrepreneurial insight and skills would be improved to transform cultural resources into sources of economic benefit for all concerned. (Details from the Postgraduate Diploma in Arts and Cultural Enterprise Management, www.sta.uwi.edu) There are a variety of agencies and institutions who would be interested in the services of an arts administrator or manager who completed an arts management course. The following opportunities are open for art managers: (1) experts in arts organizations; (2) consultants in crafts production industries; (3) book publishers; (4) film producers/directors; (5) events promoters and talent agents; (6) associates in museums and art galleries;

Drunk Drivers Should Be Imprisoned on the First Offense Essay

Drunk Drivers Should Be Imprisoned on the First Offense - Essay Example Drunk driving must be dealt with a stern approach and one of the reasons behind dealing with the same is through punishing the first time offenders. This leads to a chaotic situation where imprisonment seems to be the only way forward. Imprisonment is therefore a grave reality which shall open the eyes of the offenders once and for all and it ought to bring solace to the pedestrians and other drivers on the road that have made no mistake to be present there. Moving ahead, it has been seen that drunk driving leads to problems of magnanimous effects as this has been researched upon through studies and evidence that has been discerned to date. Hence imprisonment seems to be the only harsh reality that can dawn upon an individual when he is doing the undoable, i.e. driving whilst being drunk. If the offenders know beforehand that they would be imprisoned for a set duration of time, they would abstain from getting into such realms in the first place. Also it would mean that the people wou ld have little choice than to forego this habit of theirs forever. These offenders would know that if they commit something wrong in the future, they would not be spared and hence their driving license would also be canceled as a result of the same. (Lobmann, 2002) is of the view that they will not be allowed to drive a vehicle until their license gets active again and hence this would serve as a deterrent to curb the menace of drunk driving all over the world. It is understandable that the problems which this individual will face under such realms would be immense but then again these are needed to tackle this issue once and for all. The accidents have increased all over the world. This is because people are in a rush to make it to their desired destinations. Also the fact that drunk driving cases have increased drastically. People just do not care if they have to make it to their destinations while they are in a state of being drunk. What they forget is the fact that drunk driving makes them feel dizzy and drowsy which is indeed quite a problem for the other pedestrians and drivers on the road. The latter feel that they are at the direct mercy of these drunk drivers and that they would have to do it themselves in the case of safety on the road. Wagner (2011) asserts what is even more discouraging is the fact that some people believe in drinking whilst driving which is doubly dangerous for just about everyone. However precautions need to be taken by the authorities to make sure that drunken individuals do not hit the roads. No matter what happens, it would be a good starting point to put them behind bars for a certain amount of time and revoke their licenses to curb this problem once and for all. From a personal example, I have seen cases when drunken individuals have come on to the road and created absolute mayhem. This has meant that they have lost their control completely and hit different vehicles on the road and even the innocent pedestrians. I have seen accidents so severe that I have not been able to sleep properly after that. What is needed however is an understanding that drunk driving is one form of evil that must be avoided as much as possible because it creates trouble for the people on and off the road. The property that is destroyed under such domains is another aspect that needs to be given proper significance as well. In essence, the drunken drivers should be told to spend some time in

Systemic family therapy(psychotherapy) TEAM Essay

Systemic family therapy(psychotherapy) TEAM - Essay Example Within the systems approach, there are three different ways problems are approached, namely, the strategic approach, the structural approach and the systemic approach. The strategic family therapist addresses problems in light of uncertain and inconsistent hierarchies within the family system (Watson n.d., p.381). He/she elicits "power and control issues, and directs change by means of family assignments or paradoxical injunctions" (Haley 1976, Madanes 1981, cited in Watson n.d., p.381). A structural family therapist looks into family structure, subsystems, and boundaries with an ideal family structure in mind and tries to reorganize the boundaries of families. The systemic approach has its origin in the work of the Milan therapy team inspired by Mara Selvini Palazzoli along with L.Boscolo, G. Cecchin and G. Prata (Wright & Watson 1991, p.407). Systemic therapy involves conceptualization of family problems from a systemic perspective, which plays an important role in the treatment pr ocess. Systemic therapists offer information and advice that liberate the family and enable them to solve their own problems. A systemic opinion is "offered by conceptualizing the presenting symptom as a solution to some other hypothetical or implied problem that would or could occur should the symptom not be present" (Tomm, cited in Wright & Watson 1991, p.427). This is called reframing. ... They offer different and contradicting views of reality, referred to as split opinions, which enable the family to be more open to change (Wright & Watson 1991, p.428). Therapists require the family to follow a pattern of behavior that is different from what it is used to. This is referred to as a ritual. Rituals help families to make new connections which in turn help them find new realities, leading to change and resolution of issues. The reflecting team In systemic family therapy, a reflecting team consisting of consultants or co-therapists from different fields helps the family in finding its own solution. The family is invited to sit behind a one-way mirror and observe the team's discussion on a previously held conversation between the family and the therapist. The team's voicing out aloud about the family's problems and possible solutions directs the family to consider alternate views of the family situation, problems and possible solutions. Andersen has suggested several assumptions and working guidelines for the reflecting team (cited in Jenkins 1996, p.1). A reflecting team follows the assumption that information needs to shared and not withheld, and based on this, the team can share its thoughts with the family during discussions. When there are multiple ideas discussed, there are different perceptions of reality, and the family's perception of its situation is also enriched on hearing these differences. Consequently, the family gets an opportunity to view its problems and possible solutions from alternate perspectives. These enriched pictures of the family and its dilemma form "an ecology of ideas" (Bogdan, cited in Jenkins 1996, p.1). Listening to the multitude of ideas and opinions of the reflecting team members helps the clients

Literature of the Japanese Golden Age Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Literature of the Japanese Golden Age - Essay Example Japanese literature is not as prominent and popular as the Western literature; but it is nevertheless rich in literary traditions and folk stories. Drawing upon almost one and a half millennium of writings, the categorization of Japanese literature into time-bound periods has been the centre of debates and conflicts (Japanese Lifestyle, 2010). Towards late 8th century, the emperor of Japan had an entire city planned and built on a new site, encompassed my verdant mountains, this city which is today referred to as ‘Kyoto’ was then popularly known as Heian-kyà ´, which in literal terminology meant ‘the city of tranquility’, Heian period named after this city and spanning from 794 to 1185 is regarded as the Golden Age of Japan, marked by peace and harmony, as the country and its nationals devoted time to the development of classical culture of Japan that lives to date, these are even read and venerated by the Japanese people in contemporary times. It is this period wherein the Japanese began to transfer from a Chinese influenced literature to a pure Japanese literature, referred to as the Classical Literature period (William and McCullough, 1980). The culture that thrived in this period gave boost to aesthetic writings, stories of everyday lives of the Japanese individuals were written and made inh erent in the history, with their belief that love and compassion is the foremost emotion an individual can have, since the Heian period focused on peace, harmony and solidarity rather than war and bravery as cherished by their later militant counterparts, stories of love and epics of romance became readily acceptable and regarded, the mark of which can be seen in Japanese art and literature even today due to the fact that the patricians of this era associated human accomplishment with the development and progress in art, music and poetry. Women also gained

Book Reporter of Swim the Fly Essay Example for Free

Book Reporter of Swim the Fly Essay Their plan failed because Matt almost got recognized by Kelly in the girl’s changing room. However, Kelly and her best friends Valerie started to pay attention to Matt because his brave move of volunteering in the 100-m butterfly (or his appearance in the girl’s changing room? ). Ms. Luntz (their swimming couch) put Matt, a poor guy who can’t even manage a single lap, in the butterfly medley relay without even asking Matt. Sean and Coop came up with an idea to pretend having a stomachache in order to avoid the embarrassment. Matt’s grandpa sent a kitten to Mrs. Hoogenboom in order to get her attention which turned out Mrs. Hoogenboom almost found out he is the one who tried to suffocate the cat. Relate: T-S connection: I also have friends like Sean and Coop in my life that can not only have fun with but also share sadness with. T-T connection: Matt volunteered for the 100-m butterfly stroke championships so Ms. Luntz figured he wouldn’t mind doing another butterfly medley relay. However, Matt couldn’t even do one stroke and weren’t capable of swimming the fly. T-W connection: I saw a movie called American Pie which described similar situation in this book, a few guys fall in love with the hottest girls in their school and manage to date them out. Reflect: There are always some friends in your life who always make fun of you yet you never get angry with them. It is normal in the western culture for an old man to impress a widow who has just lost her husband? It is kind of unacceptable for me. This part of the book is the rising action because they hadn’t achieved their goal yet. The narrator is 1st person which is Matt himself. How does Matt’s grandpa’s relationship with Mrs. Hoogenboom relate to the story? Why did the author even mention it? Always be prepared, so when the opportunity comes you will be the one grabs it. ( If Matt can do butterfly stoke well enough, he will be able to join not only the medley relay but also the championships in order to impress the girl he likes. )

Difficulties in Developing Petroleum Industry in Vietnam

Difficulties in Developing Petroleum Industry in Vietnam by Nguyen Duc Anh Tuan Introduction Nowadays, in the developing era with fast pace, those agricultural countries, particularly Vietnam, might not only focus on improving the agriculture but also pay attention to developing the industrial area. More specifically, Vietnam has been concentrating on how to develop the gas and oil industry recently. However, the country is still facing a lot of difficulties. This essay will discuss in depth about what are the problems and point out the potential causes for those challenges base on three questions: What are the reasons causing difficulties for the development? What are the effects of these problems for Viet Nam? What are possible solutions to resolve these problems? Definition of oil and gas According to the Vietnam Oil and Gas Law (1993) Oil and gas means crude oil, natural gas and hydrocarbons in gaseous, liquid or solid in its natural state except coal, shale, bitumen or other minerals can be extracted oil. Oil and gas activities is active exploration, development and mining of petroleum, including direct service activities for these activities. There are many oil and gas activities dividing into different areas. Situation of petroleum industry in Viet Nam The petroleum industry contributed most amount of foreign currency to serve the economy as electricity and gas, gasoline and clean energy. Recently, the National Oil and Gas Group Vietnam (PVN) has provided nearly 35 billion m3 of dry gas production, 40% of national electricity production, 35-40% urea demand and supply 70 % of LPG demand for industrial development and consumer welfare. Raw oil export has a strong growth and stability, greatly contributes to country exports, especially in earlier periods, averaging about 15%. Currently, this proportion has decreased and only at about 7.5. Although total exports are declining but oil and gas industry is still keeping the unit contribution at about 18-22% of total national GDP. (tapchitaichinh.vn, 2012) Causes and effects causing difficulties for the development First of all, it can be denied that there has been a lack of technology which put gas and oil industry of Vietnam under difficulty. After a long time being an agriculture focus country, Vietnam has decided to change and transform into an industrial country. Obviously, that decision may lead to the fact that the country might lack skills and technology to adapt to this industry. One of the main weaknesses of our country is that the government might not have enough capital to invest into developing and updating technologies. Prices of various types of equipment, supplies, fuel and services primarily are related to production and business activities which make investments more complicated. Vietnam oil and gas industry today is quite young with limited human resource capacity to supply so that it cannot meet demand. Our country mainly exports crude oil and imports refined oil to serve local demand. There are some refineries that went into operation as the Dung Quat oil refinery, Nghi Son refinery but only supply about 35% of domestic demand. Meanwhile, demand for petroleum products is increasing, not only in the short term but in the long term due to the population explosion and the continuous growth of the industry, especially the acceleration of the transport sector needs to do more According to OPEC, demand for petroleum fuels is increasing rapidly, especially in developing countries, and by 2025, the supply will not meet the demand. Moreover, increasing oil prices also have a tremendous impact on the development of this industry Those reasons above have led to human resource in gas and oil industry became more expensive. That led to the significant increase in the number of people who wish to work in the oil and gas sector. Many students said that they are studying the oil industry not only because of higher salaries, simply because of the fact that oil industry is considered to be the solutions for the future of the energy industry. However, Vietnam labor market is a serious imbalance between sectors and areas. We have abundant unskilled labor and a lot of labor who have shortage of Technical Skill. According to Mr. Hoang Nhat Thong (Office of the General Department of Sea and Islands), the economy in general marine, oil and gas industry in particular, is a severe manpower shortage will affect only the maritime economy and coastal contribute about 53-55% of the total GDP of the country in 2020. Urgent solutions Oil and gas industry is the field has to combine all of those technologies and sciences like astronomy, tides, marine sciences, construction and installation of offshore structures such as rigs, pipelines, tanks, drilling into the ground, the work of geology, geophysics, exploration of the stratigraphy†¦ Therefore, the application of science and technology in the oil and gas activities can ensure high efficiency, save natural resources, enhance oil recovery factor and other resources saving as well as protect ecological resources. Therefore we have to build human resources management system according to international standards, which include the application of information technology systems, mapping capabilities, the standard title, system evaluation, payment regulation, bonuses, rules and criteria for recruitment to appoint the head, proper planning and appropriate building standards, criteria representatives and representatives of Petro Vietnam stake in the oil and gas activities in the country and foreign pilot who runs accordance with the Law on Enterprises. For tax policy should define equality between domestic service with service by foreign companies perform as VAT, import duty, †¦ It should have clear policies and encourage oil and gas activities in the deep water offshore exploration and exploitation of natural gas tax policy should be adjusted based on the refinery and in the planning to compete with imported products, policies for gas and electricity prices should approach the market mechanism . Have appropriate policies related to arrange key capital projects through: Grant, loan guarantee and ensure currency converter to facilitate in arranging loans for major projects the state level, support preferential loans from the Development Bank minimum of 20% to 30% of total investment projects focus on oil and gas.(Pvcfc.vn, 2014) Evaluation Obviously, to develop gas and oil industry, it is important to fully invest in all areas however, all of those solutions have pros and cons themselves. All of the above mentioned solutions usually take long time and a lot of money to consider, improve and implement, especially investing in technologies and human resources. However, once those two are on set, they will have a great impact on this industry. Besides that, probably they do not take as much time as changing the country’s policy since it is much harder to change the whole country’s system. Finally, maybe gas and oil industry should go with technologies first since it is mandatory for such an industry. Regarding to human resources, we recently identified human resource as one of the most important factors to make decisions in production and business activities as well as drive force development of any society, particularly in the oil and gas industry it is also reflected in the work environment , in terms of general science, technology, international environment and different cultures. Conclusion Even though it is clear to say that gas and oil industry is still facing a lot of challenge if the government of Vietnam wants to develop this kind of industry more. In that case, they should consider about how to raise enough capital to invest in equipment, to cover potential loss and to recruit right people. However, it cannot be denied that this area of industry is very attractive for investor therefore Vietnam can also hope for big investment from foreign country to develop gas and oil industry. References: moj.gov.vn (1993), Luà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ­t dà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §u khà ­ năm 1993 (online). Available at http://www.moj.gov.vn/vbpq/Lists/Vn%20bn%20php%20lut/View_Detail.aspx?ItemID=10817 [Accessed 24 Dec 2014] Nang Luong Viet Nam (2014), Ngà  nh Dà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §u khà ­ Vià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡t Nam trÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ºc thà ¡ch thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ©c an ninh năng lÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ £ng quà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœc gia (online). Available at http://nangluongvietnam.vn/news/vn/dau-khi-viet-nam/nganh-dau-khi-viet-nam-truoc-thach-thuc-an-ninh-nang-luong-quoc-gia.html [Accessed 19 Dec 2014] Pvcfc.vn (2014), Chià ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¿n lÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ £c phà ¡t trià ¡Ã‚ »Ã†â€™n ngà  nh Dà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §u khà ­ Ä‘Ã ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¿n năm 2020: Nhà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ¯ng già ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ £i phà ¡p cÆ ¡ bà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ £n (online). Available at http://www.pvcfc.com.vn/article-detail.aspx?id=41 [Accessed 18 Dec 2014] tapchitaichinh.vn (2012), Ngà  nh Dà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §u khà ­ Vià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡t Nam: Tià ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ m năng là ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ºn, tăng trÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã… ¸ng cao (online). Available at http://www.tapchitaichinh.vn/Chung-khoan/Nganh-Dau-khi-Viet-Nam-Tiem-nang-lon-tang-truong-cao/14143.tctc [Accessed 19 Dec 2014] tiasang.com.vn (2007), Khà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ §ng hoà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ £ng năng lÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ £ng là ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §n thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ © 3 [online]. Available at http://tiasang.com.vn/Default.aspx?tabid=62News=1648CategoryID=7 [Accessed 23 Dec 2014] tuyendungthuyenvien.com.vn (2014). Ngà  nh dà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §u khà ­ và   vià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡c tuyà ¡Ã‚ »Ã†â€™n dà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ¥ng thuyà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ n vià ªn tà  u dà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ §u (online). Available at http://www.tuyendungthuyenvien.com.vn/2014/10/nganh-dau-khi-va-viec-tuyen-dung-thuyen.html [Accessed 24 Dec 2014]

Tni Or Training Need Indentifaction Commerce Essay

Tni Or Training Need Indentifaction Commerce Essay This is basically identified by the supervisor / manager as per the performance of the individual or the future plan of growth which has been charted.. But many organistaions who have a complete Performance Management System in place, fix the TNI upon mutual agreement with the concerned employee and supervisopr/manager in accordance with the goals determined and agreement upon for the next PMS cycle. Sometimes TNI is also fixed upon to improve an individuals performance/skill. There are so many ways for conducting a Training Needs Analysis, depending on the situation. Is it to lead in to a design of a specific purpose improvement initiative? Is it for managers to identify training and development needs of their individual staff during the performance appraisal cycle? Is it to devise a calendar of training courses? How best to conduct the analysis will depend on your answer to this question. In any case, determining training needs starts with a gap analysis the gap between what skills your employees have and what they need to move the business forward. We should use one or more of the following data sources: Training Needs Analysis (TNA) is an essential first step in management development. If we wish to achieve the greatest improvement in performance and best value from your investment in training, development, practical experience or networking, we should first undertake a comprehensive training needs analysis. This will form the basis for designing a cost effective management or talent development programme. Training needs analyses can incorporate a 360 ° feedback survey, or an analysis of current corporate needs. For senior individuals an intensive interview programme, including work shadowing can be justified. Design a TNA:- Before starting on a training needs analysis, it is desirable to carry out an audit of the current situation, desired changes in job or responsibility, and probable technological and organisational developments. This will provide the information needed to determine what is required of the individual, team or organisation. Then we can determine performance standards in terms of skills, contacts and practical experience. Simple questionnaires help us identify where individuals stand on a range of competences in management, corporate goverance and director behaviour, and corporate culture. Both the process of answering the questions, and the feedback will contribute to self awareness, especially if the results include contributions from line manager, peers and direct reports. The training need is the difference between the current performance and the required performance. 360 ° feedback surveys :- A 360 ° feedback survey helps the organisation obtain quality information about performance and relationships by posing a set of standard questions to an individuals line manager, peers and direct reports. This all around (360 °) approach identifies any variation of behaviour in different roles and minimises personal bias. Brefi group recommends that a 360 ° survey should precede any developmental coaching programme. When reviewing an individual it is often best to ask open questions such as: Keep doing:  What are the things which  name currently does which help you and which you hope (s)he will continue to do? Do more of:  What are the things you would like  name to start doing or do more of? Do less of:  What are the things which  name does which get in the way and which you would like to be done less often? Development needs:  What are the areas upon which you feel  name should really concentrate in order to improve the managerial performance of the organisation? You may wish to highlight aspects of how (s)he manages or specific objectives or accountabilities which you feel need attention. Personal strengths:  What do you see as the key strengths which  name brings to his/her job? This information can then be consolidated by an independent consultant and fed back in a relatively unattributed manner. However, for a larger or organisation-wide survey it is better to get numeric information that can be analysed and presented by computer. Brefi Group has developed two on-line TNA analysis programs for this purpose. BuddyCoach is a low cost on-line service for individuals the basic service is free. Using standard questions based on competencies in personal effectiveness, managing communications, managing people, effective directorship and corporate culture an individual can obtain an analysis of personal strengths and development needs. For a small charge up to ten others line manager, peers and direct reports for instance can be invited to comment too. The graphical results contrast the results from the different categories of feedback and also compare them with the norm for our international database. For each competence result there are suggestions of how to improve. CorporateFeedback is a powerful tool for organisations to identify individual and corporate training needs. It is a fully customisable on-line 360 ° feedback program which draws on a reservoir of independently benchmarked competencies for managers and directors. The software is hosted on our servers but can be fully integrated into the website or intranet within a template of your design. CorporateFeedback offers a choice of job role, that can either be specified by the client or draw on our standard list. Within each job role there is a choice of modules, such as managing people or managing finance. Again, these can be specified by the client or draw on our existing selection. Each module comprises a number of competencies. Brefi Group has evolved a large selection of competencies, many based on international standards. Clients can draw on these and also include specific competencies relevant to their own organisation. Each competence is represented by four statements which are included randomly in the questionnaires with options to agree or disagree. The results are presented graphically, with options for department heads and HR departments to view consolidated results and for learning recommendations to be included within each category. Personal interviews Personal interviews by a trained interviewer who is independent of the organisation is a means of obtaining high quality information about an individual or members of a team. Not only can the interviewer collect standard information, but he/she can ask penetrating questions to identify the reasons for the feedback. The information can be fed back to the subject in a non-attributable manner, but with much more information, including not only actual quotes but theappropriate voice tone and emphasis of the original quote. If the interviewer is also commissioned to coach the individual or team, this quality information will ensure that real issues are properly dealt with. Work shadowing Work shadowing involves a coach spending time with an individual while he or she is carrying out their normal work. The coach sits in on meetings and observes the individuals behaviour in different circumstances. Feedback can then be immediate, or compiled into a formal report. The instant feedback is a valuable part of the coaching process. Conventional training is required to cover essential work-related skills, techniques and knowledge. Importantly however, the most effective way to develop people is quite different from conventional skills training, which lets face it many employees regard quite negatively. Theyll do it of course, but they wont enjoy it much because its about work, not about themselves as people. The most effective way to develop people is instead to  enable learning and personal development, with all that this implies. So, after covering the basic work-related skills training,the focus should be on   enabling learning and development for people as individuals   which extends the range of development way outside traditional work skills and knowledge, and creates far more exciting, liberating, motivational opportunities for people and for employers. Rightly organisations are facing great pressure to change these days to facilitate and encourage whole-person development and fulfilment beyond traditional training. As with this website as a whole, this training guide is oriented chiefly around whats good for people, rather than chiefly whats profitable for organizations. The reason for this is that in terms of learning, training and development, whats good for people is good for the organizations in which they work. Whats good for peoples development is good for organizational performance, quality, customer satisfaction, effective management and control, and therefore profits too. This is central to a fairly balanced  Psychological Contract  in employment organizations. Profit is an  outcome  of managing and developing people well. People and their development enable profit. Enable people and you enable profit. Organizations which approach training and development from this standpoint inevitably foster people who perform well and progress, and, importantly, stay around for long enough to become great at what they do, and to help others become so. Training is a very commonly used word, but  learning  is in many ways a better way to think of the subject, because learning belongs to the learner, whereas training traditionally belongs to the trainer or the organization. Training should be about  whole person development   not just transferring skills, the traditional interpretation of training at work. Whatever your role and responsibility, you might not immediately be able to put great new emphasis on whole person development. Being realistic, corporate attitudes and expectations about what training is and does cannot be changed overnight, and most organisations still see training as being limited to work skills, classrooms and powerpoint presentations. However, when you start to imagine and think and talk about progressive attitudes to developing people beyond traditional skills training for example: enabling learning facilitating meaningful personal development helping people to identify and achieve their own personal potential then you will surely begin to help the organisation (and CEO) to see and accept these newer ideas about what types of learning and development really work best and produces class-leading organizations. Training is also available far beyond and outside the classroom.  More importantly, training or learning, to look at it from the trainees view is anything offering learning and developmental experience.  Training and learning development includes aspects such as: ethics and morality; attitude and behaviour; leadership and determination, as well as skills and knowledge. Development isnt restricted to training its anything that helps a person to grow, in ability, skills, confidence, tolerance, commitment, initiative, inter-personal skills, understanding, self-control, motivation and more. If you consider the attributes of really effective people, be they leaders, managers, operators, technicians; any role at all,  the important qualities which make good performers special are likely to be attitudinal. Skills and knowledge, and the processes available to people, are no great advantage.  What makes people effective and valuable to any organization is their attitude. Attitude includes qualities that require different training and learning methods. Attitude stems from a persons mind-set, belief system, emotional maturity, self-confidence, and experience. These are the greatest training and development challenges faced, and there are better ways of achieving this sort of change and development than putting people in a classroom, or indeed by delivering most sorts of conventional business or skills training, which people see as a chore. This is why training and learning must extend far beyond conventional classroom training courses. Be creative, innovative, and open-minded, and you will discover learning in virtually every new experience, whether for yourself, your team, or your organization. If you want to make a difference, think about what really helps people to change. All supervisors and managers should enable and provide training and development for their people training develops people, it improves performance, raises morale; training and developing people increases the health and effectiveness of the organization, and the productivity of the business. The leaders ethics and behaviour set the standard for their peoples, which determines how productively they use their skills and knowledge. Training is nothing without the motivation to apply it effectively. A strong capability to plan and manage skills training, the acquisition of knowledge, and the development of motivation and attitude, largely determines how well people perform in their jobs. Training and also  enabling learning and personal development   is essential for the organisation. It helps improve quality, customer satisfaction, productivity, morale, management succession, business development and profitability. Use these tools and processes to ensure that essential work-related skills, techniques, and knowledge are trained, but remember after this to concentrate most of your training efforts and resources on  enabling and facilitating meaningful learning and personal development for people. There is no reason to stop at work-related training. Go further to help people grow and develop as people. Induction Training is especially important for new starters. Good induction training ensures new starters are retained, and then settled in quickly and happily to a productive role. Induction training is more than skills training. Its about the basics that seasoned employees all take for granted: what the shifts are; where the notice-board is; whats the routine for holidays, sickness; wheres the canteen; whats the dress code; where the toilets are. New employees also need to understand the organisations mission, goals and philosophy; personnel practices, health and safety rules, and of course the job theyre required to do, with clear methods, timescales and expectations. Managers must ensure induction training is properly planned an induction training plan must be issued to each new employee, so they and everyone else involved can see whats happening and that everything is included. These induction training principles are necessarily focused on the essential skills and knowledge for a new starter to settle in and to begin to do their job.. An organisation needs to assess its peoples skills training needs by a variety of methods and then structure the way that the training and development is to be delivered, and managers and supervisors play a key role in helping this process. Peoples personal strengths and capabilities   and aims and desires and special talents (current and dormant)   also need to be assessed, so as to understand, and help the person understand, that the opportunities for their development and achievement in the organisation are not limited by the job role, or the skill-set that the organisation inevitably defines for the person. As early as possible, let people know that their job role does not define their potential as a person within or outside the organisation, and, subject to organisational policy, look to develop each person in a meaningful relevant way that they will enjoy and seek, as an individual, beyond the job role, and beyond work requirements. If possible top-up this sort of development through the provision of mentoring and facilitative coaching (drawing out not putting in), which is very effective in producing excellent people. Mentoring and proper coaching should be used alongside formal structured training anyway, but this type of support can also greatly assist whole-person development, especially where the mentor or coach is seen as a role-model for the persons own particular aspirations. Its important that as a manager you understand yourself well before you coach, or train or mentor others: Are your own your own skills adequate? Do you need help or training in any important areas necessary to train, coach, mentor others? What is your own style? How do you you communicate? How do you approach tasks? What are your motives? These all affect the way you see and perform see the training, coaching or mentoring role, and the way that you see and relate to the person that your are coaching, or training, or mentoring. Your aim is to help the other person learn and develop not to create another version of yourself. When you understand yourself, you understand how you will be perceived, how best to communicate, and how best to help others grow and learn and develop. And its vital you understand the other persons style and personality too how they prefer to learn do they like to read and absorb a lot of detail, do they prefer to be shown, to experience themselves by trial and error? Knowing the other persons preferred learning style helps you deliver the training in the most relevant and helpful way. It helps you design activities and tasks that the other person will be more be more comfortable doing, which ensures a better result, quicker.   Many organizations face the challenge of developing greater confidence, initiative, solutions-finding, and problem-solving capabilities among their people. Organisations need staff at all levels to be more self-sufficient, resourceful, creative and autonomous. This behaviour enables staff can operate at higher strategic level, which makes their organizations more productive and competitive. Peoples efforts produce bigger results. Its what all organizations strive to achieve. However, while conventional skills training gives people new techniques and methods, it wont develop their maturity, belief, or courage, which is so essential for the development of managerial and strategic capabilities. Again, focus on developing  the person, not the skills. Try to see things from the persons (your peoples) point of view. Provide learning and experiences that theyd like for their own personal interest, development and fulfilment. Performance and capability are ultimately dependent on peoples attitude and emotional maturity. Help them to achieve what they want on a personal level, and this provides a platform for trust, emotional contracting with the organisation, and subsequent skills/process/knowledge development relevant to managing higher responsibilities, roles and teams. 2.Examining training in large municipalities: linking individual and organizational training needs. By Willow Jacobson Ellen V. Rubin Sally Coleman Selden    |   Ã‚  Public Personnel Management     Winter, 2002 Both practitioners and academics in the private, not-for-profit, and public sectors are increasingly focusing attention on organizational and  human resource  management  performance. An important component or predictor of government performance is  its  training  infrastructure. It helps organizations recruit and retain workers, as well as ensure that workers have the requisite skills and opportunities to perform in their current and future positions. Training is a direct means of developing individuals, and subsequently organizational capacity. This capacity, in turn, is linked to overall organizational performance. This article utilizes data collected as part of a national study of local, state, and national governmentthe Government Performance Project. Specifically, it focuses on training in the largest municipalities in the United States. First, this article briefly reviews the existing research on training, demonstrating the need for a holistic examination of training in the public sector. Second, using data from the Government Performance Project, it describes the nature of training in 33 of the 35 largest cities in the United States. Finally, drawing upon what was learned through survey questions and personal interviews with city officials, this article presents a training model that integrates employees, the organization, and the environmental context in which employees and the organization operate. A recurring discussion in the training literature relates to the categorization of trainingmanagement training, technical training, and skills of an aging workforceand the inclination on the part of scholars is to limit their research to a particular type of training. As responsibility for the delivery of public sector goods and services is passed down to local governments, understanding the opportunities and mechanisms for developing employees becomes increasingly more important. With this delegation of responsibility come expectations that local government employees will deliver an increasing range of services. The need to provide additional services corresponds to a need to train employees for the delivery of extended services. Furthermore, in an increasingly competitive job market, it is essential that governments explore training as both an opportunity to retain employees and as a means to attract and develop new employees. This article is designed to fill the gap of knowledge about training in local governments by examining and discussing training for all employees and managers. In addition, this article will look at the relationship between different measures related to training and the environment. Finally, based upon data collected and analyzed, we develop a framework that can be used to guide government planning and training analysis. The human  resource  management  survey instrument contained a series of multi-part, open-ended questions designed to yield information about a given citys training system. The survey instrument was designed and pretested in four states, four local governments, and four federal agencies in 1997. Based on this pilot study, the instrument was revised and streamlined to focus as directly as possible on the evaluation criteria for human resource management. After completing a survey of 50 states in 1998, the survey was revised. Training need identification:- Some cities track employees training records centrally, while others assign this responsibility to individual agencies in which employees work. Specifically, in 76.0 percent of cities, the central personnel department keeps records of individual employee training, and in 66.6 percent, individual departments keep records. Records kept by the central office were computerized more frequently (82.6 percent) than those kept at the department level (50.0 percent). Computerized records allow managers and policy makers easier access for planning and analysis. Having a training catalog on the Web can make it easier for employees to stay up-to-date with course offerings. Honolulu and Jacksonville are two cities that provide online training catalogs. Finally, cities may offer incentives to encourage training. Other incentives for obtaining training are the rewards employees receive for completion. The GPP identified five possible rewards for training: class certification, college credit, recognition by supervisor(s), meal (ceremony), and skill pay. Rewards for training can motivate employees to not only seek, but complete training. Despite their potential positive impact, the survey results show that less than a third of cities offer rewards for completing training  explored a series of bivariate relationships between training-related measures and environmental factors including unionization, workforce planning, and workforce age. Unionization and workforce planning are significantly associated with diversity of training opportunities and training capacity. Monetary encouragement is significantly associated with average workforce age; however, the nature of this relationship is negative.   While the data is useful in providing information about the array of courses offered and a broad sense of the training environment structure, it offers limited insights about the quality of course offerings or the extent to which training meets the strategic needs of the government. As a result, this article develops a framework that structures our understanding of training from both the individual employee perspective and the organizational perspective. The model clarifies how the organizations training structure represents two distinct components and how these components may be prioritized. Strategic Systems Training Model: An Integrated Approach The Strategic Systems Training Model (SSTM) is based on the premise presented by Abraham Maslows A Theory of Human Motivation (1943) in which he describes a hierarchy of needs: when a foundational need is met, a more complex need emerges that an individual strives to fulfill. It is the emerging tension that motivates employees. Maslows model is based on the assumption that all individuals have needs that underlie their motivational structure, and as a lower level need is fulfilled, that need no longer drives behavior. However, a new higher order need becomes the source for motivation. (22) Component 1: The Individual Employee Using Maslows model as a starting point, he argues that humans have individual motivational structures. We take a similar approach and argue that individuals have individual training structures. In Maslows model, individuals are motivated at the most basic level by physiological needs that include their basic survival needs. In the individuals training structure, the most basic level of need is training on minimal occupational skills needed for basic employment survival. Depending on the individual, this may be basic literacy training or basic computer training. As shown in Figure 1, as an individual moves up the hierarchy, his or her motivation becomes more refined and specific. Similarly, as public sector employees progress through the training hierarchy of needs, the training requested becomes more advanced and specialized. n Maslows model, individuals still need to fulfill lower-level needs as they progress up the hierarchy. The training model begins to deviate from Maslows model at this point. Basic training does not need to be continually re-taught as more advanced training is undertaken, but the basic skills gained through previous training do need to be maintained. An individuals training structure is the  blueprint  for the training the individual needs to build his or her capacity, based upon the foundation of skills and training the person has already received. Component 2: The Organization An organization, like an individual, has its own training structure based on its needs and the skills of its workforce. (23) The training structure for an organization is made up of its employees, who bring their own training structures. Employees fill the layers within an organization; the organization needs to be aware of an employees current level of need and train him or her accordingly. The organization must also consider how the different needs and skills of its employees fit within the overall needs and mission of the organization. An organization that works to train all employees at the most basic level can then shift resources to other areas of training the organization needs to prosper. Furthermore, an organization must reconcile the obligation of meeting the training needs of its individual employees with its responsibility to develop an organizational training structure that suits its overall needs. An organization with a strategic focus advances and develops through its acquisition of new human capital and the development and training of its current human capital. The diversity of employees training needs means that an organization has to carefully plan its training structure to train employees at the appropriate level according to both individual and programmatic needs, which requires a more holistic understanding of how employees fit into the largerorganizational  structure  and how that employee contributes to the accomplishment of the organizations mission. Matching employees to training levels actually results in the separation of the organizational training structure into two training sub-structures or components: one that focuses on training managers and the other that focuses on general training. These two components are then treated as separate but interactive pieces of the organizations training structure. They can be prioritized and developed differently. The priority that one component may receive over the other is often due to limited resources, training philosophy, or other contextual factors. In an ideal system, both compone nts receive attention. In reality, one part is often prioritized over another due to budget constraints and other limited resources. This prioritization often relates to greater philosophical and contextual factors (see Figure 2). For example, cities that believe in succession planning, or filling management positions with people that have worked their way up through government, are more likely to focus their attention on the bottom triangle, expecting employees who complete those  training  courses to later progress into management positions. Thus, they want to advance the individual within that individuals training structure because they will take those skills to their next positions. This type of city is likely to prioritize the general training component. Cities that place a priority on the manager training structure might feel that trained managers transfer information to employees, so general training is not as important. This notion implies that managers act as trainers for employees, and as a result, fewer formal courses may be offered to general employees. This could lead to a less-developed training program. The transfer of training through informal networks does not allow for formal record keeping of an employees progress, thus making it difficult for the organization to accurately plan organizational training that meets individuals needs. Another explanation for the focus on the manager component could be justified by cities that are undertaking massive change; the priority may be to familiarize managers with changes so they can help transition the organization. Research has demonstrated the significance of the environment on organizational structure and behavior These examples demonstrate this significance by presenting factors that are outside the organizations training structure, yet have a serious impact on how the training system operates. The influence of these contextual factors on the training system are included as important explanatory factors in this model. This model serves two purposes in the planning process. First, it allows planning for individual training needs, and second, it allows planning at the organizational level. This second purpose is multidimensional, including the individuals that make up the organization, the capacity they bring to the organization, and how this interacts with meeting the future goals of the organization Conclusion:- This article presented a picture of training in 33 city governments, as well as key relationships that help us to understand training capacity, both overall and in relation to some of its key components. Cities offer a range of courses to general employees, ranging from the most basic to more advanced skills. Interestingly, fewer cities offer basic training than a more specialized set of training courses Finally, this article provides a model that helps to conceptualize individual training structures an

The concept of earning ones citizenship Essays -- essays research pape

The Concept of Earning One’s Citizenship Citizenship is defined as a being a citizen or a person owing allegiance to and entitled to the protection of a sovereign state. Citizen preferred for one owing allegiance to a state in which sovereign power is retained by the people and sharing in the political rights of those people. The concept of which in one of its earliest was given to us by the Romans, who had just began to understand the importance of a populace contributing to the decisions of its own fate. Modern American citizenship as we know it today was defined for us in the constitution of this nation by the founding fathers. Citizenship as they had envisioned it even back then was not free, but came with a price. A citizen was expected to carry out certain civic duties and responsibilities such as the defense of the republic, participating in state and local government, and voting on affairs of the nation as a whole. Benjamin Franklin once said, â€Å"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunc h. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!† Given all the communication technology; receiving and sending information has never been easier, however civic involvement is at one if its lowest points in the past 100 years. Eleanor Roosevelt once wrote of her husband, that Theodore Roosevelt taught by precept and example that men owed something at all times, whether in peace or in war, for the privilege of citizenship and that the burden rest equally on rich and poor. He said that, no matter what conditions existed, the blame lay no more heavily on the politician and his machine controlling city, state, or nation, than on the shoulders of the average citizen who concerned himself so little with his government that he allowed men to stay in power in spite of his dissatisfaction because he was too indifferent to exert himself to get better men in office. In order to maintain such a jewel of democracy, a new superior breed of citizen is required, one that has stepped forwa rd and reached out to carry the torch of freedom and guard it from those that would seek to extinguish it. He or she must wear his or her citizenship like a badge of honor. For citizenship to be so greatly prized it must be earned. One should have to make great sacrifices in order to be awarded the status quo of a class that steers and maintains the republic for the greate... ... â€Å"Democracy and the Public Service† Oxford University Press 1968 The scope of this book is to tie in â€Å"protected† non-electoral public service with being responsive to the public, and operating in a manner compatible with a democratic society. It explains how public service is the last industry to grow and take advantage of the increasing knowledge of every generation of workers’ and changing advances in regards to technological, and social concepts. Noteworthy: this book looks at the problem from both the publics and the public servants point of view. Eleanor Roosevelt â€Å"Good Citizenship: The Purpose of Education† Pictorial Review, April 1930: 4,94,97 Reprinted Online. Internet. Available http://newdeal.feri.org/er/er19.htm 4 oct. 2002 Eleanor writes to us about the problems she saw already manifesting in the civil populace of her time. She provides us with insights and lessons from her husband and his political career. Her ideas and concerns are not that far removed from the quotes that evolved in the hearts and minds of our countries great theologists. Bolie Williams IV â€Å"Robert A. Heinlein† 7 August 2001 Online. Internet. Available 4 oct. 2002   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Effects of Smoking While Pregnant :: smoking while pregnant

During a pregnancy there are many choices to be made and smoking should not be one of them. Smoking while pregnant can cause major effects before the birth of the child and also in the child’s future. Here are a few effects before the actual birth of the child: 1) Cigarettes contains a large number of chemicals that harm unborn babies. 2) Smoking raises the levels of carbon monoxide in your bloodstream. This gives less oxygen for baby. 3) Nicotine tightens the blood vessels, meaning the oxygen is passed over less effectively to the baby 4) Miscarriage or stillborn.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome triples if the mother has smoked during pregnancy. â€Å"It is estimated that twenty-five percent of expectant mothers in the U.S. smoke throughout their pregnancies. According to a report from the Surgeon General, twenty percent of low birth weight births, either percent of preterm deliveries and five percent of all perinatal could be prevented by eliminating smoking during pregnancy.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Not only can smoking cause considerable damage to the unborn baby, but it could affect the baby later in life. Smoking increases the chances of the baby having birth defects. For example, the child might develop severe brain damage. The baby also might be considerably light in weight. All these outcomes are extremely negative and can cause guilt.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another thing that should be taken into consideration is secondhand smoke. Even though the smoking is not being done firsthand, there is still a big risk. Side effects of secondhand smoke are ear infections, colds, and damage to the lungs. And even though it is not definite that complications during pregnancy might not occur, the chance of putting a child at risk for the sake of smoking a cigarette should not be taken.

Alberti and urban context

Among Renaissance architects, Leon Batista Alberti was perhaps the most visionary authority on urban context and city planning.Though he was not an urban planner in the modern sense, he had a keen understanding of the city as an integrated, organic whole, and his designs and writings reveal his view that cities should be well-ordered and buildings should integrate themselves smoothly into that overall fabric.   In this regard, he was well ahead of his time and anticipated the ideas of urban context that exist today.Despite his visionary skill and prowess at architecture, Alberti (1404-72) was actually not a professional architect and seems never to have actually even supervised the construction of any of his works.   He was a polymath, or â€Å"Renaissance man† – cultured, well-educated, and well-versed in various academic fields, from art and religion to science and mathematics.According to art historians Ludwig Heydenreich and Wolfgang Lotz, Alberti â€Å"remaine d to the end the adviser who laid down the general lines and occasionally gave instruction for details . . . but he never set one stone on another.†[1]   Biographer Anthony Grafton’s description is even more to the point – â€Å"an impresario of society and space.†[2]Indeed, Alberti lacked the practical building experience most contemporary architects had, mainly because he was trained to advise and administer rather than actually build.   Born illegitimate but privileged in Genoa, he was well-educated as a youth and in 1428 took both a degree in canon law and orders in the Catholic Church.For much of the remainder of his life, Alberti served as an administrator and advisor to the popes, most notably Nicholas V, a friend from youth, who hired him to consult on major building projects in Rome.   Though mostly a career church administrator, Alberti pursued a wide array of intellectual interests and â€Å"presented himself as a master of all the ration al arts of living upon which his contemporaries set great store.†[3]In accordance with the Renaissance’s reverence for ancient Greek and Roman models, Alberti drew heavily from antiquity – not merely for decoration (which he believed should be used sparingly and tastefully, not simply for the sake of decoration alone), but for proportion and, more importantly, placement within a given physical and historical context.For example, in one of his first major works, the church of San Francesco at Rimini (whose renovation and redesign he supervised around 1450), Alberti used exterior motifs drawn from the area’s ancient monuments, varying these to suit the building itself and thus let it reflect the local architectural, cultural, and political contexts.The church’s faà §ade uses simple forms and a scale suited to the buildings around it, because, says Heydenreich, no single person’s vision would dominate that setting: â€Å"[It] was the product o f a collaboration between patron, adviser, and working architects. . . . ‘Local styles’ of this kind occasionally appear, but only where the political structure of the region favours them. . . .†[4]   In this sense, he heralded the post-modernists of the late twentieth century, who believe in urban fabric and context rather simply in designing buildings with no relationship to their surroundings.Alberti’s works in Florence between 1455 and 1470 demonstrate, in Heydenreich’s words, â€Å"[how] deeply the traditional forces in a city can influence the idiom of an architect.†[5]   There, his church of Santa Maria Novello draws heavily from local Tuscan styles and fuses them with a large Roman scale (as mandated by the Pope), making a distinctive building that fits with its prominent neighboring structures.(Though he used local elements freely, Alberti rarely directly imitated other buildings; when he borrowed forms or elements, he tended to f use them with those on nearby structures.)   Also, and perhaps more importantly, it embraces a unity of design, both within itself and in relation to the buildings around it, so that it does not appear incongruous or artificially imposed on its immediate context.Alberti also aimed to site buildings according to surveys he conducted, in keeping with his mathematical and cartographic skills.   Using a measuring disk he created, his survey of Rome (conducted around 1444, when he first entered architecture) â€Å"allowed him to establish the radial coordinates of Rome’s main churches and the towers on the city walls and to plot those in plan.†[1] L Heydenreich & W Lotz, Architecture in Italy, 1400 to 1600, Penguin, London, 1974, p. 27. [2] A Grafton, Leon Batista Alberti, Hill & Wang, New York, 2000, p. 263. [3] Grafton, p. 21. [4] Heydenreich & Lotz, p. 32. [5] Heydenreich & Lotz, p. 33. [6] R Tavernor, On Alberti and the art of building, Yale University Press, New Ha ven, 1998, p. 13.

The Return: Nightfall Chapter 31

Let us at least have the dignity of walking out of your trap on our own feet – or should I say, using your own key?Damon thought to Shinichi. To Elena, he said, â€Å"Yes, we're looking for what's-his-face. But you took a bad fall. I wish – I would like to ask you – that you stay here and recuperate whileI go look for him.† â€Å"You think you know where Matt is?† That was the entire sentence distilled for her. That was all she heard. â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Can we gonow ?† â€Å"Won't you let me go alone?† â€Å"No,† Elena said simply. â€Å"I have to find him. I wouldn't sleep at all if you went out alone. Please, can't we go now?† Damon sighed. â€Å"All right. There were some† – (there will be now) – â€Å"clothes that will fit you in the closet. Jeans and things. I'll get them,† he said. â€Å"As long as I really, really can't convince you to lie down and rest while I look for him.† â€Å"I can make it,† Elena promised. â€Å"And if you go without me, I'll just jump out a window and follow you.† She was serious. He went and got the promised pile of clothes and then turned his back while Elena put on an identical version of the jeans and Pendleton shirt she had been wearing, whole and un-bloodstained. Then they left the house, Elena brushing her hair vigorously, but glancing back every step or so. â€Å"What are you doing?† Damon asked, just when he had decided to carry her. â€Å"Waiting for the house to disappear.† And when he gave her his bestwhat're you talking about? look, she said, â€Å"Armani jeans, just my size? La Perla camisoles, same? Pendleton shirts, two sizes too big, just like the one I was wearing? That place is either a warehouse or it's magic. My bet's on magic.† Damon picked her up as a way to shut her up, and walked to the passenger's door of the Ferrari. He wondered if they were in the real world now or in another of Shinichi's globes. â€Å"Did it disappear?† he asked. â€Å"Yup.† What a pity, he thought. He'd have liked to keep it. He could try to renegotiate the bargain with Shinichi, but there were other, more important things to think of. He gave Elena a slight squeeze, thinking, other,much, much more important things. In the car he made sure of three small facts. First, that click which his brain automatically registered as passenger buckled up really did mean that Elena had her seat buckle properly fastened. Second, that the doors were locked – fromhis master control. And third, that he drove quite slowly. He didn't think that anyone in Elena's shape would be throwing themselves out of cars again in the near future, but he wasn't taking any chances. He had no idea how long this spell was going to work. Elena must eventually come out of her amnesia. It was only logical, since he seemed to be, and he'd been awake much longer than she had. Pretty soon she would remember†¦what? That he'd taken her in the Ferrari against her will (bad but forgivable – he couldn't know she'd launch herself out)? That he'd been teasing Mike or Mitch or whoever and her in the clearing? He himself had a vague picture of this – or was it another dream. He wished he knew what the truth was. When wouldhe remember everything? He'd be in a much stronger bargaining position once he did. And it was hardly possible that Mac was getting hypothermia in a midsummer snowstorm even if he were still in that clearing right now. It was a chilly night, but the worst the boy could expect was a twinge of rheumatism when he was around eighty. The vital thing was that theydidn't find him. He might have some unpleasant truths to tell. Damon noticed Elena making the same gesture again. A touch to her throat, a grimace, a deep breath. â€Å"Are you carsick?† â€Å"No, I'm†¦Ã¢â‚¬  In the moonlight he could see her blush come and go; could sense her heat with detectors in his face. She flushed deeply. â€Å"I explained,† she said, â€Å"about feeling†¦too full. That's what it is now.† What was a vampire to do? Say,I'm sorry – I've given it up for Moonspire ? Say, I'm sorry – you'll hate me in the morning? Say,To hell with the morning; this seat reclines two inches ? But what if they got to the clearing and found that something really had happened to Mutt – Gnat – the boy? Damon would regret it for the rest of the remaining twenty seconds of his life. Elena would call battalions of sky spirits down on his head. Even if no one else believed in her, Damon did. He found himself saying, as smoothly as ever he'd spoken to a Page or a Damaris, â€Å"Will you trust me?† â€Å"What?† â€Å"Will you trust me for another fifteen or twenty minutes, to go to a certain place I think what's his name might be?†If he is – my bet is that you remember everything and you never want to see me again in your life – then you'll be spared a long search. If he isn't – and the car isn't either; it's my lucky day and Mutt wins the prize of a lifetime – and then we go on looking. Elena was watching him intently. â€Å"Damon, do youknow where Matt is?† â€Å"No.† Well, that was true enough. But she was a bright little trinket, a pretty little pink, and more than all that, she was clever†¦. Damon broke off his polyrhythmic contemplations on Elena's intelligence. Why was he thinking in poetry? Was he really going crazy? He'd wondered that before – hadn't he? Didn't it prove you weren't crazy if you wondered if you were? The truly insane never doubted their sanity, right? Right. Or did they? And surely all this talking to himself couldn't be good foranyone . Merda. â€Å"All right, then. I'll trust you.† Damon let out a breath he didn't need and headed the car toward the clearing. It was one of the more exciting gambles of his life. On one hand, therewas his life – Elena would find some way or other of killing him if he'd killed Mark, he was certain. And on the other hand†¦a taste of paradise. With a willing Elena, an eager Elena, an open Elena†¦he swallowed. He found himself doing the thing closest to praying that he'd done in half a millennium. As they rounded the corner on the road to the little lane, he kept himself in hyper-alertness, the engine a bare hum, the night air bringing all kinds of information to vampire senses. He was thoroughly aware that an ambush could have been set up for him. But the lane was deserted. And as he suddenly hit the accelerator to reveal the little clearing, he found it blessedly, bleakly, blankly empty of either cars or of college-aged young men whose names started with â€Å"M.† He relaxed against the seatback. Elena had been watching him. â€Å"You thought he might be here.† â€Å"Yes.† And now was the time for the real question. Without asking her this, the whole thing was a sham, a fraud. â€Å"Doyou remember this place?† She glanced around. â€Å"No. Should I?† Damon smiled. But he took the precaution of driving on up another three hundred yards, into a different clearing, just in case she should have a sudden attack of memory. â€Å"There were malach in the other clearing,† he explained easily. â€Å"This one is guaranteed monster-free.† Oh, what a liar, I am, I am, he rejoiced. Have I still got it or what? He'd been†¦disturbed ever since Elena had come back from the Other Side. But if that first night it had discomfited him into literally giving her the shirt off his back – well, there were still no words for how he'd felt when she'd stood before him newly returned from the afterlife, her skin glowing in the dark clearing, naked without shame or the concept of shame. And during her massage, where veins traced out lines of blue comet fire against an inverse sky. Damon was feeling something he hadn't felt for five hundred years. He was feeling desire. Human desire. Vampires didn't feel that. It was all sublimated into the need for the blood, always the blood†¦. But he was feeling it. He knew why, too. Elena's aura. Elena's blood. She'd brought back with her something more substantial than wings. And while the wings had faded, this new talent seemed to be permanent. He realized that it was a very long time since he'd felt this, and that therefore he might be quite wrong. But he didn't think so. He thought that Elena's aura would make the most fossilized of vampires stand up and blossom into virile young men once again. He leaned away as far as the crowded confines of the Ferrari would allow. â€Å"Elena, there's something I should tell you.† â€Å"About Matt?† She gave him a straightforward, intelligent glance. â€Å"Nat? No, no. It's about you. I know you were surprised that Stefan would leave you in the care of somebody likeme .† There was no room for privacy in the Ferrari and he was sharing her body warmth already. â€Å"Yes, I was,† she said simply. â€Å"Well, it may have something to do with – â€Å" â€Å"It may have had something to do with how we decided that my aura would give even old vampires the jigsies. From now on, I'll need strong protection because of that, Stefan said.† Damon didn't know what the jigsies were, but he was prepared to bless them for getting a delicate point across to a lady. â€Å"I think,† he said carefully, â€Å"that of all things, Stefan would want you to have protection from the evil folk drawn here from all over the globe, and above all other things that you not be forced to – to, um, jigsy – if it was not your wish.† â€Å"And now he'sleft me – like a selfish, stupid, idealistic idiot, considering all the people in the world who might want to jigsy me.† â€Å"I agree,† Damon said, careful of keeping the lie of Stefan's willing departure intact. â€Å"And I've already promised what protection I can offer. I really will do my best, Elena, to see that no one gets near you.† â€Å"Yes,† said Elena, â€Å"but then something like this† – she made a little gesture probably to indicate Shinichi and all the problems brought about by his arrival – â€Å"comes up and nobody knows how to deal with it.† â€Å"True,† said Damon. He had to keep shaking himself and reminding himself of his real purpose here. He was here to†¦well, he wasn't on St. Stefan's side. And the thing was, it was easy enough†¦. There she was, brushing her hair out†¦a fair pretty maiden sat brushing her hair out†¦the sun in the sky was nonesuch so gold†¦. Damon shook himselfhard . Since when had he gotten into ye Olde English folksongs? What waswrong with him? To have something to say, he asked, â€Å"How are you feeling?† – just, as it happened, as she lifted her hand to her throat. She grimaced. â€Å"Not bad.† And that made them look at each other. And then Elena smiled and he had to smile back, at first just a quirk of the lip, and then a full smile. She was†¦damn it, she waseverything . Witty, enchanting, brave, smart†¦and beautiful. And he knew that his eyes were saying all that and that she wasn't turning away. â€Å"We might – take a little walk,† he said, and bells rang and trumpets played fanfares, and confetti came raining down and there was a release of doves†¦. In other words, she said, â€Å"All right.† They picked a little path off the clearing that looked easy to Damon's night-acquainted vampire eyes. Damon didn't want her on her feet too much. He knew that she still hurt and that she didn't want him to know it or to pamper her. Something inside him said, â€Å"Well, then, wait until she says she's tired and help her to sit down.† And something else beyond his control, sprang out at the first little hesitation of her foot, and he picked her up, apologizing in a dozen different languages, and generally acting the fool until he had her seated on a comfortably carved wooden bench with a back to it and a very light traveling blanket over her knees. He kept adding, â€Å"You'll tell me if there's something – anything – else you want?† He accidentally sent to her a snippet of his thoughts of possible contenders, which were, a glass of water, him sitting beside her, and a baby elephant, which he had earlier seen in her mind that she admired very much. â€Å"I'm very sorry, but I don't think I do elephants,† he said, on his knees, making the footstool more comfortable for her, when he caught a random thought of hers: that he was not so different from Stefan as he seemed. No other name could have caused him to do what he did then. No other word, or concept, could have such effect on him. In an instant the blanket was off, the footstool had disappeared, and he was holding Elena bent backward with the slender column of her neck fully exposed to him. The difference,he told her,between me and my brother is that he is still hoping somehow to slip in through some side door into heaven. I'm not such a moaning ninny about my fate. I know where I'm going.And I don't – he gave her a smile with all canines fully extended – give a damn about it. Her eyes were wide – he'd startled her. And startled her into an unintentional, thoroughly honest response. Her thoughts were projected toward him, easy to read.I know – and, I'm like that, too. I want what I want. I'm not as good as Stefan. And I don't know – He was enthralled.What don't you know, sweetheart? She just shook her head, eyes shut. To break the deadlock, he whispered into her ear, â€Å"What about this, then: Say I'm bold And say I'm bad Say – you vanities – I'm vainer. But you Erinyes, just add I kissed Elena.† Her eyes flew open. â€Å"Oh, no! Please, Damon.† She was whispering. â€Å"Please! Please not now!† And she swallowed miserably. â€Å"Besides, you asked me if I'd like a drink, and then suddenly it's no drink. I wouldn't mindbeing a drink if you'd like, but first, I'mso thirsty – as thirsty as you are, maybe?† She did the little tap-tap-tap under her chin again. Damon's insides melted. He held out his hand and it closed around the stem of a delicate crystal glass. He swirled the splash of liquid in it expertly, tested it for bouquet – ah, exquisite – then gently rolled it on his tongue. It was the real thing.Black Magic wine,grown from Clarion Loess Black Magic grapes. It was the only wine most vampires would drink – and there were apocryphal stories of how it had kept them on their feet when their other thirst could not be assuaged. Elena was drinking hers, her blue eyes wide above the deep violet of the wine as he told her some of its story. He loved to watch her when she was like this – investigating with all her senses fully aroused. He shut his eyes and remembered some choice moments from the past. Then he opened them again to find Elena, looking very much the thirsty child, eagerly gulping down – â€Å"Yoursecond glass†¦?† He'd discovered the first goblet at her feet. â€Å"Elena, where did you get another one?† â€Å"I just did what you did. Held out my hand. It's not as if it were hard liquor, is it? It tastes like grape juice, and I was dying for a drink.† Could she really be that naive? True, Black Magic wine didn't have the sharp odor or taste of most alcohol. It was subtle, created for the fastidious vampire palate. Damon knew that the grapes were grown in the soil, loess, that a grinding glacier leaves behind. Of course, that process was only for the long-lived vampires, as it took ages to build up enough loess. And when the soil was ready, the grapes were grown and processed, from graft to foot-stomped pulp in ironwood vats, without ever seeing the sun. That was what gave it its black velvet, dark, delicate taste. And now†¦ Elena had a â€Å"grape juice† mustache. Damon wanted very much to kiss it away. â€Å"Well, someday you can tell people you drank two glasses of Black Magic in under a minute, and impress them,† he said. But she was doing the tap-tap-tapping again under her chin. â€Å"Elena, do you want to have some of your blood drawn?† â€Å"Yes!† She said it in the ringing-bell tones of someone who has finally been asked the right question. She was drunk. She flung both arms backward, draping them against the bench, which conformed to accept her body's every new motion. It had become a black suede couch with a high back: a divan, and just now, Elena's slender neck was resting on the highest point of that back, her throat exposed to the air. Damon turned away with a little moan. He wanted to get Elena to civilization. He was worried about her health, mildly concerned about†¦Mutt's; and now†¦he couldn't haveanything he wanted. He could hardly bleed her when she was drunk. Elena made a different sort of sound that might have been his name. â€Å"D'm'n?† she mumbled. Her eyes had filled with tears. Just about anything that a nurse might have to do for a patient, Damon had done for Elena. But it seemed she didn't want to unswallow two glasses of Black Magic in front of him. â€Å" ¡Ã‚ ®M'shick,† Elena got out, with a dangerous hiccup at the end. She gripped Damon's wrist. â€Å"Yes, this is not the kind of wine to guzzle. Wait, just sit up straight and let me try†¦Ã¢â‚¬  And maybe because he said the words without thinking, without thinking of being rude, without thinking of manipulating her one way or another, it was all right. Elena obeyed him and he put two fingers on either side of her temples and pressed slightly. For a split second there was a near disaster, and then Elena was breathing slowly and calmly. She was still affected by the wine, but she wasn't drunk any longer. And the time was now. He had to tell her the truth at last. But first, he needed to wake up. â€Å"A triple espresso, please,† he said, holding out his hand. It appeared instantly, aromatic and black as his soul. â€Å"Shinichi says espresso alone is an excuse for the human race.† â€Å"Whoever Shinichi is, I agree with him or her. A triple espresso, please,† Elena said to the magic that was this forest, this snowflake globe, this universe. Nothing happened. â€Å"Maybe it's only attuned to my voice right now,† Damon said, flashing her a reassuring smile, and then he fetched her espresso with a wave. To his surprise, Elena was frowning. â€Å"You said  ¡Ã‚ ®Shinichi.' Who's that? Damon wanted nothing less than for Elena to get involved with the kitsune, but if he was really going to tell all she was going to have to. â€Å"He's akitsune , a fox spirit,† he said. â€Å"And the person who gave me that Web address that sent Stefan running.† Elena's expression froze over. â€Å"Actually,† Damon said, â€Å"I find that I would rather get you home before taking the next step.† Elena lifted exasperated eyes to the sky, but let him pick her up and carry her back to the car. He had just realized where the best place to tell her was. It was just as well that they didn't urgently need to get to any place that was out of the Old Wood right now. They didn't find any road that did not lead to dead ends, little clearings, or trees. Elena seemed so unsurprised at finding the little lane that led to their small but perfectly appointed house that he said nothing as they entered and he took new inventory of what they had. They had one bedroom with one large, luxurious bed. They had a kitchen. And a living area. But any of these rooms could become any kind of room you chose simply by thinking of it before opening the door. Moreover, there were the keys – left behind by what Damon was realizing was a seriously shaken Shinichi – that allowed the doors to do more. Insert a key in a door and announce what you wanted and there you were – even, it seemed, if it should be outside Shinichi's territory in spacetime. In other words, theyseemed to link to the real outside world, but Damon wasn't entirely sure about that.Was it the real world or just another of Shinichi's play-traps? What they had right now was a long spiraling stairway to an open-air observatory with a widow's walk around it, just like the roof of the boardinghouse. There was even a room just like Stefan's, Damon noted as he carried Elena up the stairs. â€Å"We're going all the way up?† Elena sounded bewildered. â€Å"All the way.† â€Å"And what are wedoing up here?† Elena asked, when he had her settled in a chair with a footstool and a light blanket on the roof. Damon sat down on a rocker, rocking a little, his arms wrapped around one knee, his face tilted to the clouded sky. He rocked once more, stopped, and turned to face her. â€Å"I suppose we're here,† he said, in the light self-mocking tone that meant he was very serious, â€Å"so that I can tell you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.†