Author: MarleneMB

Working Long Hours Can Be Fun in the Bahamas

Posted on by MarleneMB

Our district, District 47 of Toastmasters International held our Fall 2012 Conference in Nassau, Bahamas. This was the first time after an eighteen-year hiatus from the country. Our Bahamian counterparts have attended multiple meetings and two conferences to fulfill their leadership duties each year. Our leadership thought it was only fair to host the event in their country again.

I was really excited to attend the conference to support the success of the event. From the time I stepped off the airplane to the time I left the Bahamas last night, I was so impressed with the hospitality the Bahamians showed my fellow Toastmasters and me.  When the Bahamian customs officer asked me why I was visiting. I told her that I am here for the Toastmasters Convention. She told me she heard about the event on the news station. Wow! The cab driver was so pleasant and she disclosed that she was also a Toastmaster member. It seems that most people in the Bahamas respect the Toastmaster International organization and many employers on the island are impressed when someone seeking a job acknowledges that he/she is a member of the organization. Amazing.

We were warmly welcomed at the hotel and they went out of their way to accommodate us. Now you may think, they are just being nice because they want our tourist dollars. But I don’t think that is quite so. I observed the interaction between the citizens of this country with each other and they were very respectfully and friendly with each other, the same way they were with us.  Our Bahamian Toastmasters put on quite a show for us. They had a live band both nights; they provided dancers and revealers for our entertainment.

They turned out enforced to support the event. It was by far one of the best conferences I have ever participated in. It was an honor for me to be one of the speakers/presenters in one of the workshop on leadership. I forgot the connector for my laptop and one of my fellow Toastmasters sent someone to retrieve his laptop from his home to loan me for the session. His kindness helped me to conduct the workshop without a hitch. The attendees were very attentive and help to make the workshop a great success.

Although, I did not get a chance to put my foot in the water due to the jam-packed schedule, I left with no regrets, except that I didn’t stay longer. The love that I felt from my Bahamian brothers and sisters left me feeling so welcomed that I almost didn’t want to leave. I can’t wait for the next event in this wonderful country.  I now know why their slogan is “It’s better in the Bahamas.” They certainly lived up to it this weekend.

Live a Diamond Life. Live a Life of Purpose.

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Plan B Update

Posted on by MarleneMB

Well we didn’t get my son’s stolen phone back. I think I lost the opportunity to locate it because I had to travel this weekend on business outside the country. The problem with the Plan B App is that the crooks can see that the App is being loaded on the phone. They have the ability to uninstall it and/or turn off the phone. This means the phone cannot be tracked. What we need is an App that is able to be loaded with such stealth that no one is aware of it.

Also, the Plan B App accesses the phone via the Gmail account. Now that my son has his replacement phone associated with his Gmail account, we may have lost the capability to link the App with the stolen phone. I will keep trying to find an App that would give me this capability. In the end, my son learned a valuable lesson about being more careful with his phone. I’m disappointed that we were not able to locate it, and have the pleasure of handing the culprits over to the police. Yet, I am reminded that this is only a small material loss and there are people in the Northeast who are wondering where they will sleep or what they will eat tonight. My prayers remain with them.

Live a Diamond Life. Live a Life of Purpose.

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Plan B

Posted on by MarleneMB
Plan B

My son sent me instant message on Facebook that his cell phone was stolen last night. I informed him to call the police and report the phone stolen. I had to call Sprint to restrict the use of the phone. Then I had to order another phone for him under the protection plan I have on the phone. Needless to say, I was surprised when my son informed me that the theft was using his phone to access his Facebook account.

I called Sprint and asked them why the block did not work. The young lady informed me that she saw that the restriction was on the phone and nothing should be going through. I asked her if there wasn’t a way for me to locate the phone, a Samsung Epic, similar to the App on the iPhone. She said that Sprint doesn’t have one that would work after phone is stolen; however, she was told by other customers that they found Apps in the Google Store that offer such capabilities. She is not allowed to recommend one.

I hotfooted (okay I typed) my way to wwww.Play.Google.com and type in a search for such an App. I remember the young lady mentioned something called Plan B. Sure enough I found the App. It allows you to remotely download the App to the device via your Gmail account. Your device is tied to your Gmail account, thus the App points right to your and installs onto the phone. I tried it with my phone and it was there. I also got an email message that the App successfully installed and that it will send another message once the device is located. The App claims it should notify me in approximately 10 minutes after I text the word “locate” to my cell phone number from another mobile phone.

Check back tomorrow to see how I made out.

Live a Diamond Life. Live a Life of Purpose.

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Wireless Technology in a Hurricane. Really?

Posted on by MarleneMB

With the power outages so many folks are experiencing due to the damages to the electrical transformers and the power grids that were in the path of Hurricane Sandy; I noticed that people are scrambling to find power source for their mobile phones. Many have cut off their traditional wired phone lines to save cost and to be wire-free and remain more mobile. But there is still that thing called electrical supply that still keeps us wired.

When I decided to cut off my wired-line and install a VoIP phone in my home, I agonized over it. Working in the telecommunications industry for so many years, I know that having that wired-line is a great thing during a power outage most often than not. The wired-line often gets its electrical supply from the phone company. These companies usually have generators and battery back up that will  usually stay running when the electricity goes off. This means calls could still be sent and received.

Now  that I have a VoIP-based service, I am in the same situation as someone with just a mobile phone. If the power goes out, my line will be down and my mobile phone will run out of juice. Yes I received a small battery back up unit with the VoIP service, but this has a short supply life. Now I am thinking if it’s worth it to get the basic line and have it siting there for such a situation. After all, I am living in Florida, the state that sits in the path of hurricanes coming off the coast of Africa, the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico! While I mull this over, I will keep my fingers crossed and keep praying that we keep having the luck that they continue to pass us by. Even more so, I hope that we come up with a better way to charge our devices via solar technology.

What do you think?

Live a Diamond Life. Live a Life of Purpose!

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Ma’s Enchanted Garden on the Little Corner Lot

Posted on by MarleneMB

I was saddened by the events in the Northeast area as I watched the devastation that Hurricane Sandy caused for so many.  So I played some music; worked on my presentation for the upcoming workshop that I will be conducting this weekend; and pulled out one of my poems that I wrote about my mom’s garden. It always seems to cheer me up and reminds me that you can find hope in a garden. My prayers  continue for the folks up north. Much love.

Ma’s Enchanted Garden on the Little Corner Lot

I drove from Miami

from the condo buildings

from the city life that is surrounded by

more concrete than trees.

I drove to Orlando

to my mother’s house

to the quite of the suburbs

and homemade iced-teas.

I pulled in the driveway

remembering to

apply the emergency brakes;

I didn’t want my car to

end up in the lake.

My Ma’s house sits

on a hill in the midst

of a third of an acre lot.

It is surrounded by

her inviting garden with

flowers, trees, and bees

on this corner lot.

A manicured lawn

edged, trimmed and mowed

 is the first to greet you.

It is quite composed,

decked out with

shrubs of Indian Hawthorne

Viburnum and Holly

including the

Double Knockout Rose.

Right of the house

are  loquat,  oleander

and crepe myrtle trees;

all gently swaying in

the warm summer breeze

providing shade from

the glaring sun’s degrees.

Graceful Gladiolus

Stately Sunflowers

Texas Petunias

Day Lilies and

Amaryllis are

rooted on display

left of the house;

preening in their

beauty  a part of

nature’s bazaar

The back garden,

Ma’s pride and joy

is filled with fruit:

avocados, oranges, tangerines, peaches

pineapples, guavas, mangos, sugar cane

strawberries, cherries and grapefruit

It has vegetables and herbs;

peppers, scallions, onions,

cabbages, callaloo, yams,

coco, rosemary  and thyme

all nurtured and primed

Inter mixed with the

Canna Lilies, Oleanders

 Impatiens and Marigolds

On any given day,

You can hear the tinkling

Of the wind chimes

See the twirling

Of the plastic windmills

Hear the running

Of the water in the fish pond

Watch the dancing

Of the birds in their bath

All enter in this place

blue jays, cardinals, humming birds

owls, doves, all sorts of birds;

bees, butterfly and lady bugs,

lizards, frogs, worms, benign insects,

gold fish and mire humans.

But all are not welcomed

feral cats, bobcats, squirrels, slugs,

snakes, mosquitoes, spiders

all considered outsiders.

Ma’s enchanted garden on

this little corner lot

is filled with

such magic

the magic of nature

the magic of nurture

the magic of life and love

by

Marlene M. Bryan

6/16/2011