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Showing posts from December, 2016

[Rebroadcast] So you want to work abroad? An interview with David Dininio

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[Episode 58.1] Today's episode of the Social Work Podcast is a rebroadcast of a 2010 interview with international social work recruiter David Dininio. I'm rebroadcasting Episode 58 because Kai Searle with Amicus Recruit has a fantastic opportunity for licensed social workers from the USA, Canada, South Africa, and Australia to do child protection work in the UK starting in January / February 2017. If you�re a licensed social worker with experience in child protective services and want to do social work in South East England, email  kai@amicusrecruit.com . In today's Social Work Podcast I speak with David Dininio, Recruitment Manager for HCL Social Care International , about how social workers in the United States can work as social workers in other countries. Let�s be honest. You didn�t become a social worker because you wanted to travel the world. Even if you�re someone who has the travel bug � You�re a social worker. You�re not making a whole lot of money? How are you goi

HACKBERRY SPRING

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HACKBERRY SPRING Tonto National Forest/Superstition Wilderness Hackberry Spring Dec. 25, 2016 Intrepid hikers with a good pair of boots and reasonable balance will have no trouble navigating the maze of horse trails that lead to Hackberry Spring in the Superstition Wilderness Area. The hike begins on an old dirt road that leads to a collection of decaying corrals and dilapidated buildings that surround the spidery legs of a windmill. Over the years, the windmill�s blades gradually rusted, fell to the ground and eventually disappeared. Please take only pictures and leave only footprints. From this abandoned ranch site, look for a slim dirt path to the left of the windmill and follow it to the slickrock corridor of First Water Creek. Slickrock section through First Water Creek Veer left and enter a stony corridor that flanks the wilderness boundary. Although the route is heavily travelled, directional fortitude and minor scrambling is necessary. Depending on rainfall, the creek can be c

CAROL BARTOL PRESERVE at SAGUARO HILL

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ARTISTIC MUSINGS on SAGUARO HILL Cave Creek Art imitating life. In his essay The Decay of Lying , Oscar Wilde stated: �Life imitates art far more than art imitates Life.� This concept has been fodder for arguments among philosophers and pundits since ancient times. Throughout history, notable minds have contributed to the fray.   �Art is imitation and that�s bad.�   Plato   �Art completes what nature cannot bring to finish. The artist gives us knowledge of nature's unrealized ends.� Aristotle �Art is what you can get away with.� Andy Warhol Genuine and imposter saguaros mingle on the hill. The serene memorial gardens and trail at the Carol Bartol Preserve at Saguaro Hill is an excellent place to ruminate on the muddling of life with art and there�s a perfect subject waiting at the gateway--fake saguaros. At the top of the preserve�s entry staircase, visitors are greeted by an array of enormous sculptures imitating Carnegiea gigantean . At first glance, their too perfect, unblemis

DAVID YETMAN TRAIL

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DAVID YETMAN TRAIL Tucson Mountain Park View of the Tucson Mountain on David Yetman Trail How exactly do people get a trail named for them? Well, there�s probably no one formula, but it certainly helps if you�ve made considerable contributions in the fields of conservation, outdoor recreational planning or the sweat and grind of construction and fund raising for Arizona trails. Or, maybe you become a celebrity scientist who stokes curiosity in desert biomes. David Yetman Ph.D., is that kind of guy. As a scientist, author, photographer and host of The Desert Speaks series on PBS, he�s been educating the masses for decades.   The "stone house" is made from local rocks. The eponymous trail is a roundup of all things desert-y offering a rich trip among Sonoran desert plants, animals and homesteading history wrapped up in the ragged peaks and jumbled washes of the Tucson Mountains.  One of the most popular attractions along the trail is the Bowen Homestead which is also known as t

BLACK CANYON TRAIL: Gloriana Segment

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BLACK CANYON TRAIL: Gloriana Segment Near Bumble Bee View of Bradshaw Mountains from BCT Sandwiched between the spot where Interstate 17 splits to begin its climb up to the mesas and gorges of Agua Fria National Monument and a gaping valley below the Bradshaw Mountains, the Gloriana Segment of the Black Canyon Trail is the middle road between a freeway and  dusty dirt double tracks. The 80-mile route flows from Carefree Highway in Phoenix to just outside of Prescott following centuries-old Native American trails, defunct livestock paths, dirt roads and sections of new construction. A battered saguaro stands above Maggie Mine Road The trail is divided into segments with trailheads located along its entire length. The 3.4-mile-long Gloriana Segment is smack dab in the middle and wanders along slopes above the scoured courses of Sycamore, Poison, Arrastre and Rock Creeks.   Geology buffs will find a plenty to explore. Within a few hundred feet of the trailhead, the path bumps into an outc

DOUGLAS SPRING to BRIDAL WREATH FALLS

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DOUGLAS SPRING to BRIDAL WREATH FALLS Saguaro National Park, Rincon Mountain District Bridal Wreath Falls Sometimes, timing is everything.   This is particularly true in the desert where spectacular waterfalls appear like raging liquid phantoms after periods of rain, only to dissolve into trickles and knat-loving muddy drop pools within days.   One of the most accessible transient water shows happens in Saguaro National Park East.   Almost anybody with a pair of decent hiking shoes, a few liters of drinking water and a spare afternoon can marvel at the wonder of an ephemeral desert water chute by way of the Douglas Spring Trail to Bridal Wreath Falls.   Because it's so easy to access, the trailhead is a busy place, especially on weekends.   A shaded kiosk marks the trail gateway into a sunny land of cactus and scrub backed with views of Tucson�s Rincon and Santa Catalina Mountains, which tower to over 8,000 feet.   Rincon Mountain views on Douglas Spring Trail The route is tantamou