OPTIONS continued from page 3 with an expensive physical server instead of going to a cloud system, connecting computers via the internet. “It just seems like a lot of money for servers,” Wilkinson said. The new servers are needed as the Association has taken on the task of scanning all property and building files — replacing bulky paper folders with electronic records. In handling those demands, the Association’s three servers have reached their maximum storage capacity, as well as nearing the end of their functional life as outdated technology. Steve Comstock, chief financial officer, said they received bids from vendors that are all within the Dell family. RSF Association President Ann Boon said it makes sense for the Association to take the time to look at other vendor options and explore the possibility of the
cloud. Later in the meeting, the Association approved a funding request related to the RSF Association’s and RSF Golf Club’s financial software conversion. The board previously approved $65,000 with the belief that it would be sufficient funding for the transition, however, more than $51,000 has already been expensed and there is still a lot that needs to be done, according to Comstock. The revised project completion cost is now $80,919 and the board approved the additional capital funding not to exceed $81,000. Director Rochelle Putnam said she was fine with approving the expenditure but wanted to make sure that the end game was known and that the Association wouldn’t just keep spending on this project. Comstock said he believed the additional funding would be sufficient to complete the software conversion.
SURVIVOR continued from page 3 even more determined to train harder and return the next year. DeFrancesco trained in a pool four times a week and twice a week in the ocean, logging 55 to 60 miles a week. As swimmers are not allowed to wear wetsuits for the Channel Swim, she prepped for cold by traveling to colder waters in Ventura and Lake Tahoe, taking frigid showers, and riding in her car with the air conditioning on full blast. Channel swimmers are encouraged to add 30 pounds of weight, so on Sundays the lean DeFrancesco prepared a vat of mashed potatoes for the week and stocked up on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. On this year’s trip to England, the weather was the opposite of the year before, absolutely beautiful, DeFrancesco said. “I came with a different air of confidence,” DeFrancesco said. “I had the sun on my back and my swim was rough but it was manageable, it was enjoyable.” During her swim she sang songs in her head and was immersed in thoughts
— as people from home sent texts to Finn he would write them on a white board and hold them up for her to see. Wearing a glow stick during the dark hours, she swam through shipping lanes with tankers so big they looked like “cities on water,” through jellyfish, one-to-three meter seas, and 18mile-per-hour wind gusts. “I just kept thinking ‘I’m in the English Channel, this is me swimming the English Channel, I’m going to swim the English Channel,’ “DeFrancesco said of her racing thoughts. It’s commonly said that the channel swim really begins in the heavy current of the French waters, 19 miles in, and DeFrancesco can confirm. The currents can take a swimmer up to eight miles off course. “I was nearly crying into my goggles my hip flexors hurt so bad,” she said. There’s no beach on the French side so she climbed up onto the rocks and hoped that she wouldn’t have to swim any further. Luckily she had landed at the “Holy Grail” of destination points for Channel swims, Cap-Gris-Nis, and didn’t have to swim — a dinghy fetched her and brought her back to her crew’s boat. Her hips and
Rancho Santa Fe Review
September 12, 2013
shoulders aching and her stomach churning, she took a nap on a tackle box. She felt well enough to enjoy breakfast for dinner — a feast of English bacon. DeFrancesco said she is still processing what she accomplished — it has been a whirlwind since she got back on Aug. 31. She went right back to work on Labor Day at her job at the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla. The “swim of a lifetime” behind her and after two years of being consumed with the channel swim, she is now looking forward to having extra time with her family, friends and puppy. She has some ideas about what she might attempt to conquer next, admitting that marathon swimming is addicting. Whether it’s a big swim, raising funds for First Descents or heading to grad school, this survivor will tackle her next big challenge with confidence. “I want to raise awareness about the importance of survivorship,” DeFrancesco said. “Whatever your adversity is, don’t let that weigh you down or define you.” To learn more or donate to First Descents, visit DeFrancesco’s site channeledin. com.
AUTHOR
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continued from page 23 learned that there is wisdom among all peoples and that fundamental human characteristics are shared universally. I explored the works of the French structural anthropologist Claude Levi Strauss and came to the conclusion that there are aspects of the human mind and the human experience which are fundamental to all peoples and perhaps fundamental to the essential purpose and meaning of all of life and the evolution of consciousness. 10. What do you want your readers to take away from “The Power of Twelve?” Bottom line is I want them to enjoy the book and be entertained. In addition, I believe that “The Power of Twelve” will accelerate the dialogue that must happen if we are to alter the current course of human history. I love this planet and appreciate so much what our present world cultures have created. There is real danger of losing the essence of nobility and greatness as the world continues to overemphasize material values. It is time for each one of us to demonstrate courage in our daily lives and to put an end to wrong-headed thinking and fear-based action which have put our entire world at risk. Antoinette Kuritz and Jared Kuritz are the team behind both STRATEGIES Public Relations and the La Jolla Writer’s Conference (www.lajollawritersconference.com).
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