Climate of Hope Article

Here is an article about global climate change but with a message that applies equally to all of the great crises of today.

CLIMATE OF HOPE
By Kevin Sweeney
Salon
April 4, 2006

Link to Article

Global warming is the worst news of our time. But pessimism saps our will. It's time to embrace the challenge, and call boldly on Americans to win the fight of a lifetime.

All of this [various presentations of climate change] should be good news because it offers Americans a better handle on climate change. But it's not all good news, largely because it's all bad news. Really bad news. Something is missing from all of these stories: hope.

Attitutor Trademark Registered

Great news! I have received the official registration of my trademark on the term Attitutor for the delivery of educational services. Registration Number 3,070,924 from the United States Patent and Trademark office which came in the form of a very formal certificate bearing a gold seal with an eagle standing on a shield with four arrows and a branch in his claws with the words United States Patent and Trademark Office Department of Commerce. I began the registration process about a year ago, it seems to me. I had one call from the Examining Attorney with suggestions for minor modification of the language a couple months ago, which I accepted and, viola, now I’m authorized to put the little “R” in a circle next to the word.

More on My Recent Travels

I neglected to get a photo of the Sacramento Hostel I mentioned before but here are the other hostels I stayed at recently. First I stayed at the wonderful San Luis Obispo Hostel. It is a very homey environment that is welcoming and sociable. You can tell a lot by the signs shown in these three pictures.

The next night I was at the Santa Barbara Tourist Hostel. It is not nearly as homey, although the folks there were laid back and basically friendly. It seems to be geared towards the basic party amenities meaning that it is not conducive to a family friendly experience. The place was generally clean and seemed to be operating fairly well, it's just not a great place to expect much more than the most basic accomodation.



Then after spending a night at my cousins house in L.A. I was in Hermosa Beach at the Surf City Hostel. It is definitely party central. Thankfully it is off season. Located right above a night club that plays very loud music until late I was told by a staff person that it can be a very wild place when all the Aussies and Kiwis fill it up. I am blessed with the ability to sleep in spite of moderate amounts of noise so with the aid of earplugs I got adequate sleep during my three nights. This hostel is not affiliated with Hostelling International like the other two, so it does not even pretend to uphold any standards. It was basically clean and reasonably kept, but not much more than that.