text
stringlengths 201
1.04M
| meta
dict |
|---|---|
Amazon is buying home mesh router startup, Eero – TechCrunch
Amazon is about to expand its smart home offerings in a big way. The company just announced its intention to acquire Bay Area-based home mesh router startup, Eero. It’s a pretty clear fit for the online retailer as it pushes to make Alexa a feature in the connected home.
The move also makes sense for five-year-old Eero, which, in spite of being early to the home mesh router game and pulling in some high-profile investors, has struggled. This time last year, the company laid off 30 employees — roughly one-fifth of its work force.
Amazon’s certainly got the deep pockets, and the addition of Alexa to routers from Huawei and Netgear last year demonstrate that this category can be a viable one. It makes sense, as these coverage-extending mesh routers, like Echo Dots, are designed to be plugged into every room of the home.
Amazon has been picking up a number of high-profile home automation startups in recent years, including Ring and Blink, as it looks to launch its own in-house Alexa smart home ecosystem. In many cases, Amazon has opted to retain the startups’ branding, which could bode well for the future of the Eero name — though the company admittedly doesn’t have the same sort of recognition as Ring.
“We are incredibly impressed with the eero team and how quickly they invented a WiFi solution that makes connected devices just work,” Amazon SVP Dave Limp said in a press release. “We have a shared vision that the smart home experience can get even easier, and we’re committed to continue innovating on behalf of customers.”
The deal is still waiting for all of the standard regulatory approval. Details of the acquisition have yet to be disclosed. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Recently in Anesthesia Category
On May 7, 2015, Michigan Senator Mike Kowall (R-White Lake) introduced legislation that would allow hospitals more flexibility in determining the best anesthesia delivery model for their patient's needs. While certified registered nurse anesthetists ("CRNAs") provide the anesthesia care during most patient procedures - staying with the patient throughout the entire procedure - Michigan law still requires physician supervision of CRNAs. However, Michigan law does not even require the supervising physician to be an anesthesiologist or surgeon.
The proposed legislation would change this model and increase access to anesthesia care for Michigan patients in medically underserved rural and urban areas, while also containing anesthesia-related costs statewide. Under S.B. 320, Michigan hospitals could choose to keep the current physician-supervision model or move to a model that allows CRNAs to practice without mandatory physician supervision. If enacted, Michigan would join 40 other states that do not require physician supervision for CRNAs to administer anesthesia. The bill is currently in the Michigan Senate awaiting testimony before the Senate Health Policy Committee. More information on S.B. 320 may be found on the Michigan Legislature's website, available here.
On November 12, 2013, the Office of Inspector General (the "OIG") released an unfavorable Advisory Opinion in response to an anesthesiology practice's (the "Requestor") inquiry. Specifically, the OIG found that a psychiatry group's (the "Psychiatry Group") proposal to pay the Requestor a per-diem rate for anesthesia services while keeping any difference from the amount billed and collected could potentially violate the Anti-Kickback Statute ("AKS") by allowing the Psychiatry Group to keep such difference in return for referrals to the Requestor.
Background and Analysis
The Requestor was the exclusive provider of anesthesia services to the "Hospital" between 1993 and 2010. In December of 2010, the Psychiatry Group, co-owned by a physician who was board certified in both psychiatry and anesthesia, relocated to the Hospital. During renegotiations of the Requestor's exclusivity contract in 2011, the Hospital insisted that the contract include a carve-out of anesthesia services for electroconvulsive therapy ("ECT") procedures, which would be provided by the Psychiatric Group's co-owner when those procedures were provided by the Psychiatric Group. In 2012, the Hospital expanded the carve-out to include all ECT provided at the Hospital and added a requirement that the Requestor enter "good faith negotiations" with the Psychiatric Group to provide the ECT anesthesia services if the Psychiatric Practice and/or the Hospital determined that a second provider was required ("Additional Anesthesiologist Provision").
After the 2012 contract went into effect, the Psychiatric Group determined that a second provider was required and submitted a proposal under the Additional Anesthesiologist Provision whereby a Requestor physician would furnish ECT anesthesia services on a part-time basis. The Requestor physician would be required to reassign its billing rights for the ECT services to the Psychiatric Group who would, in turn, bill and collect for such services. The Psychiatric Group would pay a per diem rate to the Requestor and retain the difference between the per diem and the amount collected. Because the aggregate compensation over the course of the agreement was not set in advance and, at least according to the Requestor, was not fair market value ("FMV"), the proposed agreement did not satisfy the Personal Services Safe Harbor to the AKS. Furthermore, the OIG explained that "the safe harbor protects only those payments made by a principal (here, the Psychiatry Group) to an agent (here, Requestor); no safe harbor would protect the remuneration Requestor would provide to the Psychiatry Group."
The OIG determined that there was more than a minimal risk that the proposal would generate unlawful remuneration for the Psychiatric Group. Specifically, the difference between the per diem rate paid to Requestor and the amount billed and collected for the services could serve as a fee for referring the services to the Requestor.
While the OIG does not otherwise discuss or offer its opinion on the relationships between the Hospital and either of the physician practices at issue, Footnote 5 seems to allude to the possibility that the Hospital's inclusion of the Additional Anesthesiologist Provision in the 2012 agreement may itself be suspect. Specifically, the OIG seemed concerned that:
i) the Hospital used the provision as a way of compensating the Psychiatry Group for its continued referral of ECT procedures;
ii) the Hospital used its leverage over the referrals to the Requestor as a way of securing the provision; and/or
iii) Requestor agreed to the Additional Anesthesiologist Provision in exchange for the exclusivity arrangement.
*****
Non-anesthesia provider groups seeking to offer the services of an anesthesia provider or anesthesia group should seek the advice of their health care legal counsel to ensure that the relationships are structured in compliance with applicable fraud and abuse laws and to minimize legal risk.
42 C.F.R. § 410.69, which went into effect January 1, 2013, defines and sets forth the requirements for certified registered nurse anesthetists ("CRNAs") and anesthesiologist's assistants ("AAs"). § 410.69 defines "Anesthesia and related care" as "those services that a certified registered nurse anesthetist is legally authorized to perform in the state in which the services are furnished." An "Anesthetist" encompasses both CRNAs and AAs.
• Defined "Anesthetist" consistent with 42 C.F.R. § 410.69, including CRNAs and AAs
• Added "nonphysician" as clarification to the term anesthetist
• Removed the applicable CRNA conversion factor from the calculation of the anesthesia services fee schedule for services on or after January 1, 1996 (i.e. after that date, the applicable CRNA conversion factor is no longer used in determining the fee schedule)
• Added "reasonable and necessary" to the medical or surgical services performed by CRNAs which will be paid for by CMS
Transmittal 2668 replaced Transmittal 2634, keeping all changes, but removing Sections 140.1.1 and 140.1.2, which were inadvertently retained by Transmittal 2634. These sections related to notifications/verifications of certification and renewal of certification of CRNAs and AAs by and between CMS, employers of CRNAs/AAs, and carriers. All other changes made by 2634 were retained by 2668.
Payment shall be made for reasonable and necessary medical or surgical services furnished by CRNAs if they are legally authorized to perform these services in the state in which services are furnished. Payment is determined under the physician fee schedule on the basis of the national physician fee schedule conversion factor, the geographic adjustment factor, and the resource-based relative value units for the medical or surgical service.
On September 25, Senator Michael Green (31st District) introduced a bill that would expand the definition of the practice of nursing to include "administration of anesthesia by a registered professional nurse who holds a specialty certification as a nurse anesthetist." Senate Bill 1309 was referred to the Senate Health Policy Committee after two readings. Presently, nurse anesthetists in Michigan are required to have physician supervision. The practical effect of the bill would be to explicitly expand the scope of practice of nursing to include administration of anesthesia, thereby negating the need for physician supervision. Because physician supervision is mandated only in the practice of medicine, by fitting administration of anesthesia into the practice of nursing, nurse anesthetists would have direct (as opposed to delegated) authority to administer anesthesia.
Senate Bill 1309 is just another example of the trend of expanding the realm of non-physician healthcare providers driven by economic and legislative pressure.
Within the next month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is expected to finalize the proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for 2013. In the rule, CMS proposes to expand the definition of CRNA services to include "medical and surgical services that are related to anesthesia and that a CRNA is legally authorized to perform by the State in which the services are furnished." Recognizing that several state legislatures have passed or are contemplating legislation that includes pain management within the scope of practice of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs), CMS rationalized its proposed changes on the basis that its new definition of CRNA services would allow for flexible application to the varying scopes of practice across states.
In recent years, as the specialty of pain management developed and the scope of CRNA practice evolved, there has been a lack of clarity and uniformity in how Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) interpreted the Medicare provisions relating to CRNA services that qualified for reimbursement. The proposed 2013 Physician Fee Schedule establishes a definitive answer. Essentially, if the fee schedule is passed as proposed, CRNAs will be reimbursed for those pain management services provided that are within the scope of their practice as defined by the state in which they practice. CMS cautions, however, that not all CRNAs practicing in states that permit CRNAs to perform pain management services have the requisite education or training. As with all other practitioners, CRNAs are responsible for obtaining the necessary training for all services furnished to Medicare beneficiaries.
The proposed rule triggered a nationwide grassroots opposition campaign by the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA). Citing the complexity of chronic pain procedures and advanced education and training required for safe administration of medication therapies, the ASA contends that current restrictions on CRNAs are in the best interest of patient safety. Conversely, the American Nursing Association (ANA) asserts that accreditation standards for CRNA programs include advanced education and training in treatment of chronic pain sufficient to develop proficiency in pain management practice. With the proliferation of mid-level practitioners in recent years, driven by a strained economy and propelled by healthcare reform, the scope of practice of non-physician providers will continue to evolve. CMS's proposed 2013 Physician Fee Schedule represents simply another instance of this process.
On June 13, 2012, the California Supreme Court unanimously denied review in the case of California Society of Anesthesiologists v. Superior Court, 204 Cal.App.4th 390 (1st Dist. 2012) ending an over two year battle by the California Society of Anesthesiologists and the California Medical Association who challenged former governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's certification to the federal government that California law allowed Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) to administer anesthesia without physician supervision.
Medicare regulations require physician supervision of CNRAs as a condition of receiving Medicare reimbursement. 42 C.F.R. §§ 482.52(a)(4); 485.639(c)(2); 416.42(b)(2). However, additional Medicare regulations allow a state to opt out of the physician supervision of CNRAs requirement. In order to opt out of the physician supervision requirement, the state's governor must submit a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) requesting an exemption. The letter "must attest" that the governor has: (1) consulted with State Boards of Medicine and Nursing about issues related to access to and the quality of anesthesia services in the State; (2) concluded that it is in the "best interests of the State's citizens" to opt out of the current federal physician supervision requirement; and (3) concluded that the opt out is "consistent with State law." 42 C.F.R. §§ 482.52(c)(1), 485.639(c)(1), 416.42(c)(1). Former Governor Schwarzenegger opted California out of this requirement on June 10, 2009, finding that California law allowed CNRAs to administer anesthesia without physician supervision.
The California Society of Anesthesiologists and the California Medical Association challenged the certification by Schwarzenegger and argued that California law did not allow CNRAs to administer anesthesia without physician supervision. The California Nursing Practice Act provides that CRNAs are authorized to administer medications necessary to implement treatment "ordered" by a physician. West's Ann.Cal.Bus. & Prof.Code § 2725(b)(2).
The trial court which heard the case found that the Nursing Practice Act allowed CNRAs to administer anesthesia without physician supervision. On appeal to the California First District Court of Appeals, the appellate court likewise found that the plain language of the Nursing Practice Act authorizes CRNAs to administer anesthesia without physician supervision. The appellate court also relied on the conclusion reached by the Board of Registered Nursing and other agencies and officials, including the State Attorney General and denied the challenge by California Society of Anesthesiologists and the California Medical Association.
Fifteen other states have opted out of the Medicare requirement requiring CNRAs to be supervised by a physician while administering anesthesia: Washington, Oregon, Iowa, Nebraska, Idaho, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Kansas, North Dakota, Alaska, Montana, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Colorado.
On June 1, 2012, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (the "OIG") issued its Advisory Opinion No. 12-06, which provides long-awaited guidance to the health care industry regarding the legal permissibility of an anesthesia delivery service model commonly referred to as the "company model." Insofar as Advisory Opinion No. 12-06 is the initial OIG guidance that specifically focuses on such an arrangement and determines that the factual paradigms presented implicate risks under the Medicare and Medicaid Antikickback Statute (the "AKS"), this Advisory Opinion understandably is capturing broad attention within the medical and legal communities. While OIG Advisory Opinion 12-06 clarifies the almost-axiomatic observation that company model arrangements, especially those that contain the indicia that the OIG historically has identified as problematic under the AKS, certainly have the potential to violate the AKS, the legal permissibility of each company model arrangement should continue to be analyzed based upon each arrangement's unique facts and circumstances. Stated otherwise, OIG Advisory Opinion 12-06 should not be interpreted to mean that all company model frameworks necessarily are violative of the AKS; rather, the Advisory Opinion reinforces the consistent guidance provided by The Health Law Partners that these arrangements need to incorporate the requisite structural safeguards.
Broad Overview of Company Model Arrangements and Related Controversy
A significant percentage of ASC procedures involve anesthesia services provided by an anesthesiologist or a certified registered nurse anesthetist ("CRNA"). Due to changes within the health care environment, including, in particular, contraction to reimbursement and an increased emphasis on quality and efficiency of patient care, an increasing number of ASCs around the country have transformed their relationships with the anesthesia providers from the normative arrangement (under which an independent anesthesia group bills fee-for-service for the anesthesia services that it furnishes at the ASC) to "company model" arrangement. Although there are a number of permutations of the structure, the company model generally involves the ASC or some or all of its physician owners (hereafter, in either case, the "ASC Physician Members") establishing a separate legal entity that will provide anesthesia services to the ASC by employing or contracting with anesthesia providers (the "New Company"). The New Company separately bills for the anesthesia services and then pays the anesthesia providers an agreed-upon rate (or contractual compensation in the case of employed anesthesiologists). As a result, the ASC Physician Members capture a portion of the anesthesia revenue generated from procedures furnished at the ASC (which, under the traditional paradigm, had been exclusively realized by the anesthesiologists).
The company model debate has prompted vigorous discussion within the health care bar. The legal dialogue, in particular, focuses upon the application of the AKS to the company model structure. In pertinent part, the AKS prohibits anyone from knowingly and willfully soliciting, receiving, offering or paying remuneration, in cash or in kind, to induce or in return for referrals of items or services payable by any federal health care program. Liability is imposed upon both parties to an impermissible transaction. The AKS has been interpreted to cover any arrangement where one purpose of the remuneration is to obtain money for referral of services or to induce further referrals, even if other salutary purposes exist. Violation of the AKS constitutes a felony punishable by a maximum fine of $25,000, imprisonment up to five years or both. Conviction will also lead to automatic exclusion from federal health care programs, including Medicare and Medicaid and may result in the imposition of civil monetary penalties.
In the company model context, the profit that the ASC Physician Members derive from the anesthesia revenue at the ASC, in an improperly structured arrangement, potentially represents impermissible remuneration in the AKS context. In its most basic terms, the issue is whether, in substance, the ASC Physician Members are "converting their referral stream into a revenue stream." The theory is that the anesthesiologists would essentially be required to forego the anesthesia profit (in favor of the New Company) in exchange for the ability to provide (or, in the case of a then-current anesthesia provider, continue providing) anesthesia services at the ASC, and the ASC Physician Members would earn such profit, based in part, upon their referrals of such services to the anesthesiologists. As discussed below, the fact that the company model affords the ASC Physician Members the ability to capture anesthesia revenue, by itself, does not violate AKS insofar as the determinative element of any AKS violation is impermissible intent. Further, the Federal government is particularly concerned with arrangements that have the ability to negatively affect patient care and/or to result in overutilization. OIG Advisory Opinion No. 12-06 states "[t]he anti-kickback statute seeks to ensure that referrals will be based on sound medical judgment, and that health care professionals will compete for business based on quality and convenience, instead of paying for referrals." Any AKS analysis requires consideration of the aggregate facts and circumstances in light of available Federal guidance.
In our view, OIG Advisory Opinion No. 12-06 should be seen as corroborative of the AKS principles that the OIG has articulated in prior guidance. Thus, there is no unique company model jurisprudence. Rather, to the extent that a company model arrangement contains the suspect indicia that the OIG has consistently identified, then such an arrangement will assume a higher level on the risk spectrum, whereas, by contrast, company models that both demonstrate a clearer nexus between the ASC Physician Members and New Company's business (especially in the form of active participation, particularly focused towards the elevation of clinical care), and which avoid correlations between distributions to the ASC Physician Members and their referrals, the risks will be comparatively lower.
Recent OIG Advisory Opinion No. 12-06 and HLP Comments
In OIG Advisory Opinion No. 12-06, the OIG reviewed two proposals (i.e., Proposal A and B) (the "Proposed Arrangements") for modifying the relationship between certain ASCs and their exclusive provider of anesthesia services (the "Requestor") and determined that both of the Proposed Arrangements could potentially violate AKS and result in administrative sanctions.
At the outset, we note that Proposal A itself is not truly a "company model" arrangement. Proposal A involved the Requestor continuing to serve as the exclusive provider of anesthesia services and to bill and retain collections for its services, subject, however, to the requirement that it would pay the ASCs a per-patient fee for certain "management services" with respect to non-federal health care program patients. The OIG clarified that the proposed "carve out" of federal health care program patients is does not insulate the otherwise-defective structure from AKS scrutiny. The Federal government would view the relationship between the Requestor and the ASCs (which also included the provision of services to federal health care program patients) as a whole. The OIG noted that the ASCs were already essentially paid for such management services through the facility fee that the ASCs receive from Medicare and therefore, under Proposal A, the ASCs would be paid twice for the same services. Further, such management fee would have the potential to inappropriately dictate which anesthesia provider was selected by the ASC. The OIG's disapproval of Proposal A reaffirms the position that HLP has consistently taken that conditioning a provider's (e.g., an anesthesiologist's) right to perform services upon entry into a contractual arrangement with a group of physicians who potentially control the referrals to such provider (e.g., ASC Physician Members) can implicate substantial regulatory risks.
In contrast to Proposal A described above, Proposal B represents a more normative variant of company model arrangement (albeit one against which we have counseled). Under Proposal B, the ASC Physician Members would indirectly (through their professional entities or the ASC itself) own a new subsidiary entity (the "Subsidiary"). The Subsidiary would engage the Requestor as an independent contractor to provide a broad (i.e., substantially the full spectrum of required) anesthesia-related administrative services through the new Subsidiary entity in return for a negotiated fee. Further, the Subsidiary would employ anesthesia providers (some or all of whom would be affiliated with Requestor) or contract with the Requestor's anesthesia providers on a contractor basis. The Subsidiary would furnish and bill for all anesthesia services provided at the ASC and pay the anesthesia providers agreed-upon compensation. Simply stated, insofar as the ASC Physician Members would indirectly own the Subsidiary, there would be a correlation between the number of procedures performed at the ASC that require anesthesia and the profit distributions to the ASC Physician Members from the Subsidiary. (It should be noted, in the context of this discussion, that such correlation between referrals and profit distributions exists in legally permissible in-office ancillary service arrangements, even among single specialty group practices.) Among other factors, the OIG also found it significant that the ASC physicians would not be involved in the operations of the Subsidiary and that substantially all of the operations would be contracted out to Requestor. Further, it is noteworthy that the anesthesia services would be provided by the same provider that historically furnished the anesthesia services before entry into the company model arrangement. Relying heavily upon its previously issued joint venture guidance, the OIG concluded that Proposal B would pose "more than a minimal risk of fraud and abuse."
The OIG's conclusions with respect to Proposal B are consistent with the advice that HLP has previously provided: if a company model arrangement (such as Proposal B) is implemented (or appears to be implemented) to convert referrals (by ASC physicians to anesthesiologists) to a revenue stream and to incentivize overutilization and undue influence over choice of anesthesia provider, such company model involves a high level of risk and is likely impermissible. Factors that increase the risk of inappropriate utilization through the ordering of unnecessary procedures and anesthesiology services to generate revenue have the ability to increase costs to the federal health care programs, interfere with clinical decision-making and raise patient safety or quality of care concerns. By contrast, if a company model arrangement is organized and operated for legally permissible goals (i.e., improving quality and efficiency of care), the ASC Physician Members participate actively in the business' conduct, and the profit distribution mechanism does not bear a connection between distributions and the ability to generate procedures, its legal risk is significantly mitigated and the arrangement is in a far better position to be defensible, especially if all the requisite structural safeguards are included.
Conclusion
OIG Advisory Opinion No. 12-06 reminds us that company model arrangements must include meaningful safeguards to mitigate legal risk and to be defensible from an AKS perspective. That being said, the value of such safeguards depends upon the manner in which they are implemented and the actual intent that underlies their inclusion.
Any company model arrangement must be structured, and most importantly, actually implemented, in a good faith manner and involve circumstances that reflect good intent, such as improving quality, efficiency and coordination of care or other permissible purposes. Meaningful efforts to coordinate care through increased integration and alignment among providers is a favorable factor. Employment of the anesthesiologists and CRNA's by the new ASC or physician owned anesthesia entity would promote such a nexus. Further, if the objective of the new entity is genuinely to improve quality and efficiency, all the physician owners should be meaningfully engaged in the operations of the Company, especially with regard to the development and continuous refinement to policies and protocols (e.g., "best practices") designed to enhance the quality and efficiency of services furnished at the ASC.
We also take the opportunity to emphasize that distributions from the new company under a company model arrangement to the physician owners (directly or indirectly) should be made in accordance with such physicians' respective ownership interests (or some other factor unrelated to referrals) and certainly not based upon the number of procedures they perform at the ASC. Accordingly, it is imperative that such new company not determine the ownership interests of the physicians based upon their anticipated referrals or business generated, not encourage physician investors to divest their ownership interest if they fail to generate a certain level of referrals or business generated, and not track the source of referrals to or business generated for the company.
On July 19, 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ("CMS") published in the Federal Register its CY 2012 Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule ("Proposed Rule"). On November 1, 2011, CMS issued its 2012 Final Physician Fee Schedule ("Final Rule"), in part, to "address changes to the physician fee schedule and other Medicare Part B payment policies to ensure that our payment systems are updated to reflect changes in medical practice and the relative value of services." Some key provisions of the Final Rule are set forth below:
Payment Reduction Pursuant to the Sustainable Growth Rate - Payments to providers under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule is set to be reduced by 27.4%, as required by the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, beginning January 1, 2012 absent legislative measures to block to reduction.
Addition of Certain Telehealth Services - Generally speaking, CMS reimburses providers for telehealth services--located at a distant site--furnished to an eligible telehealth beneficiary in an originating site. In the Final Rule, CMS proposes adding smoking cessation services to the services to the list of Medicare telehealth services, but notably, chose not to include online evaluation and management ("E&M") services (i.e., to add CPT code 99444) because "(1) these services are non-face-to-face; and (2) the code descriptor includes language that recognizes the provision of services to parties other than the beneficiary and for whom Medicare does not provide coverage (for example, a guardian)."
Expansion of the Multiple Procedure Payment Reduction ("MPPR") - The MPPR has been expanded to include the professional component of certain advanced diagnostic imaging services. For a more detailed explanation of this change, please see this blog entry.
Anesthesia Fee Schedule Conversion Factor - For 2012, the anesthesia conversion factor is $24.6712 with the national average anesthesia conversion factor equal to $15.5264, a decrease of 26.2% from 2011.
Additions to the Physician Self-Referral List of CPT/HCPCS Codes - Beginning January 1, 2012, the following tables provide the codes will be added and removed as designated health services ("DHS") for purposes of the physician self-referral law (a/k/a the Stark Law):
On May 20, 2011, Ohio governor, John Kasich, signed Ohio House Bill 93 into law. The bill represents an effort by Ohio to strengthen the State's regulatory framework relating to the prevention of prescription drug abuse. According to the Ohio Department of Health, since 2007, unintentional drug overdoses in the state accounted for more accidental deaths than motor vehicle crashes and suicides combined.
The new law, when it becomes effective, is expected to transform the landscape for the operation of pain management clinics in the State of Ohio. The bill mandates the State Board of Pharmacy to license pain management clinics and, further, provides for the clinics to be licensed as terminal distributors of dangerous drugs with a pain management clinic classification. Moreover, the law will prohibit the operation of a pain clinic without such a license. (The prohibition, however, will be postponed until 30 days following the bill's effective date). The bill also mandates the State Medical Board to implement rules establishing standards for physicians who provide care at pain management clinics and guidance for the physician operation of such clinics. Finally, the bill also authorizes the State Board of Pharmacy to levy fines (up to $5,000) against pain management clinics and/or the State Medical Board to impose fines (up to $20,000) for failure to comply with the rules of operation or standards for distributors of dangerous drugs with a pain management classification established under the act.
Earlier this month, Transmittals to the State Operations Manual for ASCs (Appendix L) implemented certain clarifications/changes to the anesthetic risk assessment, H&P and pre-surgical evaluation Conditions of Participation at ASCs, effective 5.13.11. The new standards from the Transmittal are set forth below, followed by the provisions in which these new standards of Appendix L have been incorporated.
1. Anesthetic Risk Assessment: When the comprehensive H&P assessment is performed in the ASC on the same day as the surgical procedure, the Transmittal indicates that the assessment of the patient's procedure/anesthesia risk must be conducted separately from the history and physical, including any update assessment incorporated into that history and physical.
2. H&Ps:
a. The H&P (conducted within 30 days of the scheduled surgery) must be comprehensive in order to allow assessment of the patient's readiness for surgery and, as clarified by the Transmittal, is required regardless of the type of surgical procedure.
b. While the comprehensive H&P may be performed in the ASC on the same day as the surgical procedure (provided that it is conducted by qualified personnel, is comprehensive, and the results of the H&P are placed in the patient's medical record prior to the surgical procedure), according to the Transmittal, it is not acceptable to conduct the H&P after the patient has been prepped and brought into the operating or procedure room. The rationale for this requirement is that the purpose of the H&P is to determine, prior to surgery, whether there is anything in the patient's overall condition that would affect the conduct of, or possibly require cancellation of, the planned procedure.
3. Pre-Surgical Assessment:
a. Independent of the H&P requirement discussed above, upon admission to the ASC each ASC patient must have a pre-surgical assessment by a physician to evaluate the risk of the anesthesia and of the procedure for that patient. The Transmittal notes that this component must be conducted by a physician, immediately prior to surgery, and must be performed in a manner consistent with the anesthetic risk assessment requirements discussed in paragraph 1 above.
b. In accordance with the Transmittal, if the H&P is performed on the day of the surgical procedure in the ASC, some, but not all, elements of the pre-surgical assessment may be incorporated into the H&P. However, the assessment of the patient's risk for the procedure and anesthesia (as discussed in paragraph 1 above) must still be conducted separately, by a physician and immediately prior to surgery.
§416.42(A) STANDARD: ANESTHETIC RISK AND EVALUATION
(1) A physician must examine the patient immediately before surgery to evaluate the risk of anesthesia and of the procedure to be performed.
Interpretive Guidelines: §416.42(a)(1)
The purpose of the exam immediately before surgery is to evaluate, based on the patient's current condition, whether the risks associated with the anesthesia that will be administered and with the surgical procedure that will be performed fall within an acceptable range for a patient having that procedure in an ASC, given that the ASC does not provide services to patients requiring hospitalization. The assessment must be specific to each patient; it is not acceptable for an ASC to assume, for example, that coverage of a specific procedure by Medicare or an insurance company in an ASC setting is a sufficient basis to conclude that the risks of the anesthesia and surgery are acceptable generically for every ASC patient. The requirement for a physician to examine the patient immediately before surgery is not to be confused with the separate requirement at 42 CFR 416.52(a)(1) for a history and physical assessment performed by a physician, although it is expected that the physician will review the materials from such pre-admission examination as part of the evaluation. Nevertheless, this requirement does constitute one component of the requirement at 42 CFR 416.52(a)(2) for a pre-surgical assessment upon admission. In those cases, however, where the comprehensive history and physical assessment is performed in the ASC on the same day as the surgical procedure, the assessment of the patient's procedure/anesthesia risk must be conducted separately from the history and physical, including any update assessment incorporated into that history and physical. See the interpretive guidelines for§§416.52(a)(1) & (2).
The ASC must have approved policies and procedures to assure that the assessment of anesthesia-related and procedural risks is completed just prior to every surgical procedure. (Ideally, the ASC would conduct such an assessment prior to the patient's admission as well as immediately prior to surgery, but this is not specifically required by the regulations.)
The ASC‟s policies must address the basis or criteria used within the ASC in conducting these risk assessments, and must assure consistency among assessments.
The regulations do not specify the content or methodology to be employed in such assessments. As an illustrative example, an ASC might choose to incorporate consideration of a patient's ASA Physical Classification into its criteria. Although the American Society of Anesthesiologists did not create its ASA Physical Status Classification System for the purpose of predicting operative risk, this system has nevertheless been found to be useful in predicting morbidity and mortality in surgical patients1 and has been used by surgical facilities as a standard tool. This system classifies patients‟ physical status in 6 levels:
As the ASA PS level of a patient increases, the range of acceptable risk associated with a specific procedure or type of anesthesia in an ambulatory setting may narrow. An ASC that employed this classification system in its assessment of its patients might then consider, taking into account the nature of the procedures it performs and the anesthesia used, whether it will accept for admission patients who would have a classification of ASA PS IV or higher. For many patients classified as ASA PS level III, an ASC may also not be an appropriate setting, depending upon the procedure and anesthesia.
If a State establishes licensure limitations on the types of procedures an ASC may perform that are based on patient classifications and would permit ASCs to perform fewer procedures than they would under the CfCs, then the ASC must conform to those State requirements. However, State requirements that would expand the types of procedures an ASC may offer beyond what is permitted under the CfCs are superseded by the Federal CfC requirements.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
§416.52(A) STANDARD: ADMISSION AND PRE-SURGICAL ASSESSMENT
(1) Not more than 30 days before the date of the scheduled surgery, each patient must have a comprehensive medical history and physical assessment completed by a physician (as defined in section 1861(r) of the Act) or other qualified practitioner in accordance with applicable State health and safety laws, standards of practice, and ASC policy.
Interpretive Guidelines §416.52(a)(1)
The purpose of a comprehensive medical history and physical assessment (H&P) is to determine whether there is anything in the patient's overall condition that would affect the planned surgery, such as a medication allergy, or a new or existing co-morbid condition that requires additional interventions to reduce risk to the patient, or which may even indicate that an ASC setting might not be the appropriate setting for the patient's surgery. The H&P must be comprehensive in order to allow assessment of the patient's readiness for surgery and is required regardless of the type of surgical procedure. The H&P
should specifically indicate that the patient is cleared for surgery in an ambulatory setting.
The H&P must be completed and documented for each ASC patient no more than 30 calendar days prior to date the patient is scheduled for surgery in the ASC.
In cases where the patient is scheduled for two surgeries in the ASC within a short period of time, the same H&P may be used so long it is completed no more than 30 calendar days before each surgery. For example, if a patient has two surgeries for cataracts scheduled, one eye on May 3rd, and the other eye on May 18th, and H&P performed on April 20th could be used for both surgeries.
The H&P is still required in those cases where the patient is referred to the ASC for surgery on the same day as the referral and the referring physician has indicated it is medically necessary for the patient to have the surgery on the same date. The H&P may be performed by the referring physician, if the ASC‟s policies permit this, or qualified personnel in the ASC. If there are elements of the H&P that are essential to the performance of the physician assessment required under §416.42(a) or under this requirement at §416.52(a)(1), based on the type of procedure to be performed as well as applicable State health and safety laws, standards of practice, or ASC policy, and those elements cannot be completed prior to the scheduled time of the surgical procedure, then it is questionable whether the case is suitable for that ASC.
The H&P may be performed on the same day as the surgical procedure, and may be performed in the ASC, as long as it is conducted by qualified personnel, is comprehensive, and the results of the H&P are placed in the patient's medical record prior to the surgical procedure (see §416.52(a)(3). It is not acceptable to conduct the H&P after the patient has been prepped and brought into the operating or procedure room, since the purpose of the H&P is to determine before the surgery whether there is anything in the patient's overall condition that would affect the conduct of the planned procedure, or which may even require cancellation of the procedure.
The medical history and physical examination must be completed and documented by a physician (as defined in Section 1861(r) of the Act) or other qualified licensed individual practitioner in accordance with State law, generally accepted standards of practice, and ASC policy.
Section 1861(r) defines a physician as a:
doctor of medicine or osteopathy;
doctor of dental surgery or of dental medicine;
doctor of podiatric medicine;
doctor of optometry; or a
chiropractor.
In all cases the practitioners included in the definition of a physician must be legally authorized to practice within the State where the ASC is located and providing services within their authorized scope of practice.
Other qualified licensed individuals are those licensed practitioners who are authorized in accordance with their State scope of practice laws or regulations to perform an H&P and who are also formally authorized by the ASC to conduct an H&P. Other qualified licensed practitioners could include nurse practitioners and physician assistants.
More than one qualified practitioner can participate in performing, documenting, and authenticating an H&P for a single patient. When performance, documentation, and authentication are split among qualified practitioners, the practitioner who authenticates the H&P will be held responsible for its contents.
In the case of an ASC the H&P is typically completed by the patient's primary care practitioner rather than a member of the ASC‟s medical staff. The ASC‟s policy on H&Ps should address submission of an H&P prior to the patient's scheduled surgery date by a physician who is not a member of the ASC‟s medical staff and should indicate whether it will accept H&Ps performed by a qualified licensed individual who does not practice at the ASC but is acting within his/her scope of practice under State law or regulations.
§416.52(A) STANDARD: ADMISSION AND PRE-SURGICAL ASSESSMENT
(2) Upon admission, each patient must have a pre-surgical assessment completed by a physician or other qualified practitioner in accordance with applicable State health and safety laws, standards of practice, and ASC policy that includes, at a minimum, an updated medical record entry documenting an examination for any changes in the patient's condition since completion of the most recently documented medical history and physical assessment, including documentation of any allergies to drugs and biologicals.
Interpretive Guidelines: §416.52(a)(2)
Each ASC patient upon admission to the ASC must have a pre-surgical assessment. The requirement at §416.42(a)(1) for a physician to examine the patient immediately before surgery to evaluate the risk of the anesthesia and of the procedure for that patient is one component of the requirement at 42 CFR 416.52(a)(2). This component must be conducted by a physician, immediately prior to surgery, and must be performed in a manner consistent with the requirements at §416.42(a)(1). (See the interpretive guidelines for §416.42(a)(1). Other elements of the assessment may be conducted by a licensed practitioner who is credentialed and privileged by the ASC to perform an H&P. In all cases, the update must take place prior to the surgery.
If the H&P required under §416.52(a)(1)is performed on the day of the surgical procedure in the ASC, some, but not all, elements of the pre-surgical assessment may be incorporated into the H&P. However, the assessment of the patient's risk for the procedure and anesthesia required under §416.42(a)(1) must still be conducted separately, by a physician and immediately prior to surgery.
The patient must be assessed for any changes in his/her condition since the patient's H&P was performed that might be significant for the planned surgery. Patients may have had a change in health status after the H&P, but may not recognize the significance for their planned surgery. Any changes in health and medication can have an impact on the patient's ability to tolerate the surgery or anesthesia, and the post-admission pre-surgical assessment is designed to identify these changes and take appropriate action, up to and including postponing or cancellation of the surgery. In addition, the pre-surgical assessment must identify and document any allergies the patient may have to drugs and biologicals, or indicate that the patient has no known allergies to drugs and biologicals.
Further, if the practitioner finds that the H&P done before admission is incomplete, inaccurate, or otherwise unacceptable, the practitioner reviewing the H&P, examining the patient, and completing the update may disregard the existing H&P, and conduct and document in the medical record a new H&P prior to the surgery.
The patient's medical record must include documentation that the patient was examined prior to the commencement of surgery for changes since the H&P. The physician or qualified licensed individual uses his/her clinical judgment, based upon his/her assessment of the patient's condition and co-morbidities, if any, in relation to the patient's planned surgery to decide the extent of the update assessment needed as well as the information to be included in the update note in the patient's medical record.
If, upon examination, the licensed practitioner finds no change in the patient's condition since the H&P was completed, he/she may indicate in the patient's medical record that the H&P was reviewed, the patient was examined, and that "no change" has occurred in the patient's condition since the H&P was completed. Likewise, any changes in the patient's condition must be documented by the practitioner in the update note prior to the start of surgery.
May 10, 2011, the Miami Lakes, Florida council passed a zoning ordinance requiring pain clinics in its town to obtain a special permit. A pain clinic's grand opening advertisement featuring the words "pain" and "opiates" put a Miami Lakes councilman in fear of potential pill-mill activity coming to town and prompted the council's efforts to pass the ordinance.
The fear is not completely ungrounded. South Florida has been called the "national epicenter" of the funneling of illegal prescription drugs, and law enforcement officials' recent raids have targeted the area. Broward County, located only a few miles from Miami Lakes, in particular has significantly contributed to the nation's pill-mill problem.
The Miami Lakes zoning ordinance would allow the town two to three months to review a pain clinic's application. The ordinance also prohibits anyone operating or owning a pharmacy in town from running a pain clinic, requires special zoning approval to establish a new pain clinic within 500 feet of another clinic, and requires all current town medical offices, labs, and clinics to register with the town and provide detailed information within six months.
The existence of some pain mills places all pain physicians under greater scrutiny. As such, it is vital for well-intentioned pain management physicians to proactively protect themselves.
In an effort to better educate the anesthesia community with regard to the impact of Accountable Care Organizations ("ACOs") on the specialty, the ASA Ad Hoc Task Force on ACOs has been carefully analyzing the March 31, 2011 ACO proposed regulations. As a preliminary step, at the end of April 2011, the ASA released 21 FAQs relative to ACOs. The ASA also plans to continually update the FAQs as new information emerges. The ASA FAQs can be accessed here.
South Florida has been called the "national epicenter" for the illegal dispensing of prescription drugs. Law enforcement officials have targeted South Florida for quite some time, with February 23 being no exception. On February 23, law enforcement officials and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) agents raided six pain clinics accused of illegally dispensing prescription drugs, arresting 22 people--five of who were doctors.
While most pain physicians do not conduct pill mills, because of the few that do, all pain physicians are subject to increased scrutiny. As such, it is important for well-intentioned pain management physicians to proactively protect themselves. For example, it is important to carefully review internal documentation practices; review any applicable state law or guidance; and establish patient narcotics agreements and consistently monitor and enforce them.
The recovery audit contractor ("RAC") for Region B covering the Midwestern states, CGI Federal, Inc., is requesting additional documentation from providers regarding facet joint injections without reported imaging guidance (CPT codes 64470-64476). The requests for additional documentation acknowledge that CMS has not yet approved this issue for complex review and further acknowledge that the RAC Statement of Work mandates that no improper payments may be recovered until CMS approves the area for complex review. However, the RAC is requesting documentation to determine whether overpayments exist. If overpayments are identified, the claims will not be sent to the Medicare claims processor for adjustment unless and until CMS approves the topic of facet joint injections for complex review.
According to the RAC, the issue of facet joint injections was identified for review based upon the OIG report related to facet joint injections, the National Government Services, Inc. ("NGS") local coverage determination ("LCD") covering pain management, Coding and Compliance Focus News and an American Society of Anesthesiologists ("ASA") Committee on Economics Memorandum.
The information contained in this web site is provided to you “AS IS”, does not constitute legal advice, is governed by our Terms and Conditions Of Use, and we are not acting as your attorney. We make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to this web site and its associated sites.
The law changes very rapidly and, accordingly, we do not guarantee that any information on this web site or our affiliated web sites are accurate and up to date. Additionally, the law differs from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and is subject to interpretation of courts located in each county. Legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case and the tools and information provided to you may not be an appropriate fit in your case. Nothing that you read or is provided on this web site should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent legal counsel.
Postings in the Forums, Message Boards, Guides and any other areas of and through our web site are for educational and information purposes only. They are not legal advice or legal opinions. Transmission of the information is not intended to create, and receipt does not constitute, a lawyer-client relationship between The Law Network, LLC, the author(s), and you. The opinions expressed in the postings may be opinions of the authors and do not reflect the opinions of The Law Network, LLC., its employees or agents. The seals, trademarks, or other advertising that may appear on our site or within our articles shall not be considered to create any sponsorship or affiliation with such other web site or author. The Law Network, LLC, its employees, agents, or others that provide information on or through this web site will not be liable or responsible to you for any claim, loss, injury, liability, or damages related to your use of this site or any site linked to this site. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
She grinned, but when she tried to fall into step beside me, Warren blocked her, and the suddenness of his move caused Getlo to yip in surprise. Yeah, that was me: practically a Ph.D. and now the designated dog-walker—with a bodyguard, no less.
“Sorry, ma’am,” Warren said. “Security.”
She stepped back and put her hands on her hips. “Hank, will you please tell your bodyguard that I’m a friend?”
“No comment,” I said, and kept walking.
“Oh, come on, Hank,” she said, irritation in her voice. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
I kept walking. By now, Getlo had spotted the other dogs and was dragging me forward, so my gait wasn’t projecting the image of cool indifference I’d been going for, especially since I was wearing the sunglasses again and couldn’t see very well.
“It’s Washington, for crissake!” she called after me. “You’re not supposed to trust anybody!”
Good to know, I thought. Sooner would have been better.
I knew I was being an asshole. If I were honest with myself, I had nobody to blame but myself for getting into so much hot water with Ginger. But self-directed honesty is way overrated, in my opinion, and C. R. Manning made such a convenient scapegoat.
Warren and I entered the dog park enclosure and bent together to unclip Getlo’s leash. This was part of our act as a gay couple on an outing with our dog. As I fumbled with the clip, Warren brushed my hand aside, and said in a low voice, “Don’t get any ideas.”
“Thanks for the protection,” I said.
“Part of my job,” he said, and straightened. “In fact, given that she’s a major security risk, I was specifically warned to keep her away from you.”
I felt my face grow pink.
I had never been to a dog park, but it struck me now as I looked around that there were probably few places on Earth where one could witness such uncomplicated, unbridled joy. Dogs were running, jumping, waddling, rolling, sniffing, pawing, panting, and lolling, chasing Frisbees, balls, people and other dogs. To the other humans in the park, Getlo was in disguise—a small perpetually moving monument to Jeremy’s inventiveness—but to the other dogs, she was simply herself. One sniff at her butt and they knew all they needed to know about her. As I sat on a picnic bench watching Warren throw a koosh ball for her to chase, I thought what a terrible shame it would be if the dogs ended up getting sacrificed to human stupidity. I thought that on the whole the universe would be no worse off if it lost six billion human beings, but dogs? That would be a tragedy.
Warren lobbed the ball. Getlo’s eyes followed it, and her feet followed her eyes. She didn’t see the big retriever until she slammed into him. She lay sprawled on the ground. I launched myself off the park bench.
But the first person to bend over her and pick her up wasn’t Warren. It was Dave the masseur.
“I’m really sorry,” he said, “but I think she’s fine.”
Getlo wagged her tail in affirmation. The big dog had turned to regard her.
I stared at Dave in confusion. What was a G-man doing in the dog park? Had his failure at electronic surveillance demoted him to dog-tailing? He was crouched down, petting both Getlo and the Golden. He was in shirtsleeves, his tie pulled loose. Then I noticed the plastic grocery bag tucked into his belt—universal badge of dog ownership. Of course, the dog could have been an agent, too, but he didn’t look like one. A retired agent, maybe.
“Clyde,” he was saying now, “say you’re sorry.”
“No harm, no foul, man,” Warren was saying. “Wasn’t Clyde’s fault.”
“His hearing isn’t so good,” Dave said, fondling the big dog’s ears. “In his younger days, he would have heard her coming.” Clyde lowered his head slowly to touch noses with Getlo. He had the tentative movements and bony protrusions of an old, arthritic dog.
“What are you doing here, Dave?” I said. “You bring your dog on a stakeout?”
He looked sheepish. “I don’t like to leave him at home by himself. He’s always liked riding in the car, and we’ve always spent a lot of time together. So, I—.” He made a vague gesture. “When the weather warms up, I won’t be able to, of course. But he’s got his dog bed and his water dish, and he’s perfectly happy until I get back to walk him.” He looked around. “He loves the dog park. I think he comes here to remember his youth.”
I introduced him to Warren as my massage therapist. Warren said “oh,” and studied him keenly. Dave and I sat down on a bench.
“How’s your back?” Dave asked.
“Great. I finally asked Larry to work on it.”
“Yeah? What’d he do?” Dave seemed genuinely interested.
“Don’t know,” I said. “I couldn’t see. I don’t think he even touched me—not really. It was like he penetrated my body with these fingers of energy or something.”
“Huh,” Dave said. “No shit.”
We watched Warren playing with both dogs. He’d throw the ball for Getlo to chase, and she’d return it to the Golden. Then he’d pick it up as gently as a pheasant and take it to Warren.
“Yeah, with a bucket of fill dirt from the construction site up the street.”
We sat in companionable silence. Then he said, “I’ve been thinking about what we talked about.”
“Yeah?” I said. I wasn’t sure what he meant. In my peripheral vision I could tell that he was still watching the dogs.
“I looked into those fantasy baseball camps—you know, the ones where ordinary adults get to live out their dreams and play with hall-of-famers? I’m thinking of going to one next winter,” he said. Then he added, “If we’re all still here, of course.”
I looked at him. “Wow, that’s great, Dave!”
He shrugged. “It’s a long time away. A lot could happen.”
“Well, sure,” I said. “That’s always true.”
“That’s what I’ve been thinking,” he said. “I mean, I could wake up dead tomorrow, and then I’d be kicking myself that I never played while I had the chance.”
I watched a pack of assorted dogs circling a youngish kid in a parka. He appeared to be mentally handicapped, and he was spinning around and shrieking so that at first I was worried about him. But just when I was about to go rescue him, he collapsed in the middle of the pack and came up giggling, throwing his arm around the nearest dog as the others crowded in to lick his face. I smiled.
“Can I ask you something?” Dave said.
“Sure.”
“If I’m out of line, just tell me, and I’ll back off.”
I turned to him.
“If they do destroy Earth,” he said, “do you know anything about the time frame? I mean, are they the guys who’ll push the button? There’s something about physics, I know—about time being different in outer space and all. I know that time passes a lot slower in space than it does here on Earth, but I don’t know how much slower. So—I was just wondering.”
I laughed and clapped him on the back. “Just send in the fucking deposit, Dave. Just do it.” | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Because the best marketers deserve great content.
The Marketer’s Guide to Content Marketing World 2017
As marketers we know that content is one of the most important elements of our marketing strategy. That’s why it’s more essential than ever to stay on top what’s happening in the world of content marketing – what are the best companies producing? What are best new platforms (hint: head to Booth #28 at Content Marketing World to see Percolate in action) for aligning, distributing, and measuring your content? Who are the up-and-coming industry leaders you might want to meet, partner with, or hire?
All these questions and more can be answered during Content Marketing World – an annual four-day conference in Cleveland held by the Content Marketing Institute. It’s one of the largest destinations for marketers looking to stay on the cutting edge of branded content. But because of this, it can also be a daunting experience to try to make the most of four short days jam-packed with content and networking opportunities. That said, we’ve got you covered.
Planning makes it possible
We know how important planning is in executing a successful marketing program–and, planning ahead can also make or break your experience at an event as big as Content Marketing World. So, before you do anything, head on over to the Content Marketing World agenda to pick the top sessions you want to attend, vendors you’d like to check out and people you’d like to connect with.
Content Marketing World always draws a selection of high-profile speakers. This year they include Linda Boff, CMO of General Electric, actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Pulitzer Prizing-winning author Colson Whitehead. While we highly recommend attending the big-name sessions, Content Marketing World also presents a great opportunity to discover something new and unexpected. At an event this big, devote at least one half-hour session to “agenda roulette” and see what you find.
CMW attracts a pretty diverse crowd – from brand-side leaders, to agency folk, to tech innovators – so, it’s well worth scoping out who else from your network is attending before you get there. A week or two before the conference, post an update on LinkedIn and Twitter asking who else will be in Cleveland that week. Make sure you leave plenty of time in your conference plans for networking with new contacts and catching up with old ones.
Getting around town
After a thorough poll of our office’s native Ohioans, the best way to get around Cleveland is undoubtedly ride-sharing apps like Uber and Lyft. While Cleveland does have decent public transport system that can get you around downtown and to-and-from the airport, Clevelanders have embraced the ride-sharing trend, and when in Rome…
Speaking of Cleveland…
We know you’ll keep busy with attending panels, participating in workshop, and networking during Content Marketing World. But everyone needs a break, and everyone has to eat – we’ve got you covered on both fronts.
If you’re looking to grab a quick, casual bite we recommend grabbing tacos at Bakersfield or soul food classics at Southern Cafe. For those looking to impress, head over to the Urban Farmer for upscale offerings in cozy, unpretentious setting.
Need a memorable event to take a colleague, client, or prospect to? While the Cavs aren’t in season until October, Cleveland is full of hidden cultural gems that can more than make up for the lack of basketball.
For theater lovers, check out Playhouse Square – an off-Broadway mecca and midwest theater institution that always has something exciting on. Want some atmosphere and local charm? Take a stroll around West Side Market where you can see and taste the wares of regional vendors and producers from freshly churned ice cream to the day’s freshwater catch. And, for more formal shopping and dining, head over to East 4th St.
Cleveland is somewhat of a beer-lover’s paradise. It’s home to a number of microbreweries including Great Lakes Brewing, Butcher and the Brewer, and Nano Brew, along with a host of other bars and a famed Oktoberfest celebration (for those arriving in Cleveland over Labor Day). There’s certainly no shortage of options when it comes to grabbing a beer or unwinding during the Conference.
See the System
Content Market World is all about discovery ways to make your brand’s content shine. And, helping marketers produce great content is what Percolate does best. In fact, Forrester has named us the leading Content Marketing Platform two years running. That’s why marketing teams at GE, Mastercard, Walmart, and Unilever are already using Percolate to centralize all their content creation workflows.
Still need convincing? Come see it for yourself – drop by Booth #28 on September 6 and 7 or book an appointment with one of our product experts. And, while you’re at our booth, take our five-minute quiz for a chance to win an Amazon Echo. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The technology commercialization arm of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Yissum Research Development Company, has launched an agriculture technology fund. Dubbed Agrinnovation, it has raised $4 million so far and is targeting $6 million overall to invest in agtech coming out of the university.
Investors in the fund include Victor Smorgon Group, an Australian conglomerate, and the $360 million Provident Fund of the Employees of the university. Yissum, which currently generates $2 billion in annual sales from the technologies it has commercialized, has also invested in the fund.
“Israel was one of the first countries that understood the big amount of technology coming from universities, so in order to commercialize and protect it, we established an arm to take these technologies to the market,” said Dr. Ido Schechter, CEO of Agrinnovation. “We have just celebrated 50 years and have 11,000 patents. And now we’ve decided to launch a venture capital structure for agriculture.”
The university has a very large agriculture faculty with over 100 professors dedicated to it, and several centers within it looking at the intersection of food, environment and technology. The fund will invest in 10 projects that have gone through comprehensive research and development and that can be commercialized within about two years, according to Schechter.
“Is it very early stage? Yes and no. We are not taking ideas. We only invest in those where the research has been done. These are very mature ideas that usually come with some IP and patents registered or pending,” he said. “We are taking the best projects and investing in them to do market feasibility tests. I want to take our wonderful academics one step further into interesting, commercial projects.”
Announcing the launch of the fund at a special event at the University yesterday, Schechter and his colleagues presented two investments the fund has already planned to make.
The first is an innovative protective coating for extending the shelf-life of fruits and vegetables. Developed by professors from the Institute of Biochemistry, Food Science and Nutrition and the Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, the edible biodegradable film can be used on fresh produce such as bell peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, apples, onions and garlic.
Another technology to be funded and commercialized by Agrinnovation is for the livestock industry and the controlled release of drugs. Developed by professors from the School of Pharmacy – Institute for Drug Research and the School of Veterinary Medicine, the technology aims to replace the need for recurrent injections of drugs such as antibiotics and painkillers, which will save time and money for producers, and reduce the stress on animals.
Schechter imagines that there will be a large second fund later.
“We didn’t have any trouble getting investment,” said Schechter. “Money is not the problem. But what I want is good technologies to invest in. We might raise $20 million but not have anything to do with it.”
Schechter spent most of his career working for a software company called Image Systems, where he worked for 18 years, and spent 12 of those as CEO. But he did his bachelor of science degree in horticulture at the Hebrew University, before doing a PhD in the same subject at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. He returned to Hebrew University to build this initiative in January 2015.
Editor’s Pick
Rob Leclerc, Founding Partner at AgFunder, will be participating in the online conference Virtual Summit on AgTech next week alongside alternative meat leaders such as Ethan Brown from Beyond Meat. Read more →
Startup Corner
Every accelerator participant will receive a convertible note of €100k for participating in the program, and Rockstart can invest up-to €2 million in those it supports into later stage alongside investor partners. Read more →
Technology Corner
The duo is hoping to smash one of the biggest barriers to biologics adoption by providing farmers with a way to cultivate living microbial inputs on the farm that cannot survive in the current supply chain without cold storage. Read more → | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Lectures on Belief
Referring to the Israelites in Surah Al-Baqarah, Allah stresses that like them, we are in real danger that our hearts will harden even though the Quran is in our hands and we recite it in prayer. In the same surah, Allah teaches us how to protect our hearts from this, first by maintaining a deep connection with our creator, which in turn will improve our relationships with close family; then by always speaking well of people, followed by establishing the prayer and finally giving zakat. Salat is the means by which our worship of Allah and goodness to others is reinforced. The consequences of a hardened heart are grave, leading to a strong warning from Allah in ayah 85 against those who believe in some parts of His book and choose to deny or ignore others, if it doesn’t serve their interests. The compensation for such extremists on both sides (those obsessed with the superficial aspects of religion or those who fail to observe even the most basic rites) is humiliation in this life and the worst of jahannam in the afterlife. Such behavior damages the Ummah at large because it makes Islam itself appear contradictory.
Shaykha Muslema Purmul discusses the components of our faith-based “moral compass” to help navigate our life goals and activities for living a serene life and reaching our final destination successfully. What are the limits and boundaries we should be aware of whenever we are at a crossroads so we will do not lose direction?
We do not realize this but being a believer in Allah and a follower of a Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is a tremendous blessing. We often take it for granted and do not realize the blessing of being a Muslim. Shaykh AbdulBary Yahya explains.
With worldwide chaos and tribulation and increasing attacks on the foundations of religion itself, it is not surprising to hear of a crisis of faith—we may be having doubts ourselves. Is faith naturally congruent with our intellect or does skepticism and introspection erode it? How do we develop strength in our faith that brings us into harmony with the world around us?
Discussing and answering the questions: Why should I believe that Allah (SWT) created me? Why should I choose to worship Allah (SWT) over everything else? Why should I place my faith in Him? How do I find myself, my purpose, my goals through worshiping Allah?
As Muslims, it is not enough to say “We are Muslims because we are born Muslims” or “We are Muslim because that’s what our family practices.” Islam truly is a complete way of life that gives us the roadmap to integrate god-consciousness into everything we do.
Imam Zaid Shakir discusses in this profound sermon recent insults upon the Prophets (peace be upon them), satanic forces tearing apart families and society as a whole. This sermon was delivered at the Muslim Community Center – East Bay (MCC East Bay) in Pleasanton, California on Friday, March 23, 2018.
What are the signs and traits of those who believe in Allah and His Messenger Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him? Shaykh Abdul Karim Yahya explains the answers to this question. Lecture delivered in Gallipoli Mosque, Sydney, Australia.
Who was Bilal ibn Rabah? As the country celebrates Black History Month, and Bilal: A New Breed of Hero, hits theaters all around, we look into the full biography of a man who has inspired millions with his unshakeable faith and determination.
Being a Muslim doesn’t mean you only do the rituals and forget about those around you. Islam is about living your life in a way that also leads to the betterment of society. One way to increase your spirituality is through standing up for justice. The Prophet is our example of someone who practiced spiritual development through civic engagement.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ warned us that “the time will come on my Ummah where the one who will be holding on his deen will be like the one who is holding on a hot burning piece of coal”. Even today it is hard for our children to hold onto faith, what about our grandchildren and generations to come? Do we think they will say “La Illaha Illa Allah”? How can we keep the flame of faith alive in our grandchildren and in future generations?
Shaykh Yahya highlights that the greatest gift that we have been given, is the gift of faith because enables us to live a life of purpose. Faith is also the greatest gift we can give to the modern world in which we live. As people move further and further away from belief, resulting in a state of agitation and a state of panic. Faith (iman) is related to security (amn). With faith one finds security in their Lord who absolutely sustains and takes care of everything from its beginning to its fruition.
Shaykh Yahya reminds us that history is in good hands. The umma of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is granted mercy. There are many things of this deen and in this world that one cannot fully understand or comprehend the wisdom of, until they take into consideration the afterlife, and see how it plays out in the next life.
With all the great calamities, suffering and tribulations happening around the world, it gives one solace to know that their Lord is Just. Everyone who has been wronged will be fully gifted their right on the day of judgement. Therefore, we have to view everything from two perspectives simultaneously: from the perspective of faith and the unfolding of Divine decree, as well as from of perspective of judging particular incidents outwardly from the standpoint of the sacred law (shari’a).
Shaykh Yahya reminds us that this world is perishing and that death is a transition into the next life. Therefore we should always keep the next life in perspective. He urges us to respond to the Divine decree with total submission out of recognizing that Allah is truly in total control.
Shaykh Yahya finally reminds us that every Muslim is looked upon as a representative of Islam. Therefore, we have to have principled engagement with the society in order to bring forth the beauty of faith. This means that every individual Muslim needs to first immerse themselves in the meanings of iman, isalm and ihsan and then engage with the world. Bringing forth the light of the sunna of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) through our state of being is much more eloquent than speech about Islam. We should live that light, and spread that light freely by seeing ourselves as the servants of humanity. If we do this, we will truly see amazing things.
This Friday Khutba was delivered at the London Muslim Mosque (http://www.londonmosque.ca/) as part of the Age of Anger – Southern Ontario Tour, April 2017.
Many of us are blessed to be Muslim and many are even blessed to be born and raised in a Muslim family and community. How do we continue to remain a strong believer and continue to believe? Dr. Bilal Philips explains.
In today’s hyper consumerist societies, where effortless instant gratification is the norm, it is easy for those whose faith is weak to stray from the path of Allah. Those whose faith is literally “on the edge”, weighed down by unanswered questions and unresolved emotions, are ready to fall off when faced with life’s inevitable trials and tribulations. But at such times of personal and public crisis, says Nouman Ali Khan, we must remember that the purpose of those tests is to draw those with strong faith closer to Allah, who has a plan for everybody. Both Yacoub (AS) and Musa’s mother lost a child but despite their agony, and because they both had unshakable faith, the former was reunited with his son after many years while the latter was returned to his mother within hours. When we question Allah’s design we miss the core truth that reality will only submit to us when we submit ourselves to Allah. This is ultimately the path to inherit paradise.
Do we really believe? Do we really believe in what recite in our prayers and what we believe in? In this lecture Shaykh Zahir Mahmood discusses the importance of taking our religion seriously and believe in what we read and have learned.
Who will we really become and what will be our status on that Day where everyone will stand before Allah? Dr. Umar Faruq Abd-Allah discusses the events of that day and the Prophet’s (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) intercession.
What was the purpose of creation? Why are we here? Mufti Menk answers this all important question during his inspirational lecture series “Purpose of Creation” held at Fanar – Qatar Islamic Cultural Center on 11th – 12th May 2013.
Imam Zaid Shakir emphasizes the importance to have internal belief that Allah (God) is sufficient as a protector of one’s livelihood and honor. The believer should be diligent and strive to be a living embodiment of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) message for mankind. Imam Zaid Shakir’s Khutbah at The Lighthouse Mosque Oakland CA Jan. 25th 2013
Why would Allah ask someone, who had suffered so much, to give up the only things he had in his life?
For Eid ul Adha 2010, Haroon Moghul delivered this khutbah (sermon) at the Islamic Center at New York University. This khutbah was prompted by the endlessly rich theme of tawhid as it connects Abraham’s life, peace be upon him, from his destroying the idols in his city, as a very young man, to his being asked by God to take the life of his son, an outrageous request whose very power derives from the fact of its unbelievable nature (God is asking him to take the life of not only an innocent, but his own flesh and blood).
Can we tell this story in a way that makes sense to us, as Americans and Westerners? What do King George, the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolution, and democracy, have to do with monotheism? How does Stephen Hawking fit in? What does this story of the great Prophet, peace be upon him, mean? Can a person take that most loved to him? Why would God ask anyone to do that, and what does it say about Abraham’s character, his faith, and our purpose in life?
After thoroughly addressing the first dimension of Islam in his first four lectures of this series, Abdal Hakim uniquely explores the final two dimensions in Islam of iman and ihsan. This talk, which consists of two parts, is another highly intellectual discourse about a vast religious science. The speaker begins by providing a historical background in an effort to identify the processes that brought this science about. This lecture effectively paints a colorful picture of the nature of the spiritual life in Islam and examines its foundation. What does the Qur’an say about these two types of higher knowledges, imam and ihsan? How does the Muslim come to know God if He cannot be seen? And what about the early Islamic controversies of free will vs. predestination and the existence or “problem” of evil? How does Islam answer the age-old philosophical questions of why the world exists and what the purpose of life is? (Recorded at the Dar al Islam Teachers’ Institute seminar). Other topics discussed: Emanuel Kant, the 99 names of God, the film “Barakah”, the volition of God to create the universe, heedlessness, thikr (meditation or contemplation), and the absence of symbols for God in Islam.
The first in a series of classroom-style lectures held at the world famous Abiquiu Madressa in New Mexico. The primary objective of this series was to educate non-Muslim teachers about the fundamental Islamic beliefs and practices within the context of an interactive and intensive spiritual retreat. In introducing this ambitious topic, Abdal Hakim Murad, a lecturer in theology at Cambridge University in England, asks two very engaging questions: What happens when you try to grasp the meaning and reality of another faith and why is Islam worth studying? After providing a more than adequate answer, he proceeds on to the much anticipated overview of the five pillars of Islam. Murad provides a highly intellectual perspective that is useful for non-Muslims as well as Muslims. (Recorded at the Dar al Islam Teachers’ Institute seminar). Other topics discussed: Islamic “clergy”, humility in studying another religion, the modern Muslim resurgence, Islamic “fundamentalism”, “Muhammadanism”, the Hadith of Gabriel, the idea of original sin, mosque architecture, and wudu (ablution).
An in-depth exploration into the concept of “iman” (or faith) in Islam, and its application and implication for human beings in general and for those who call themselves Muslims. This near three-hour session is an intense survey of the human condition in the world today and what the human being must believe, from the Islamic perspective, in order to have hope for security and peace in this life and the hereafter. These objects of belief, which are known as the “articles of faith” in Islam, are what’s at the core of this highly stimulating lecture. These six articles are: belief in the one God, the revealed books, the prophets and messengers, the angels, predestination, and the Day of Judgment. An amazing session that also makes many comparisons to the Judeo-Christian understanding of God’s imminence, salvation, and other very relevant issues pertaining to faith. (Recorded at the Dar al Islam Teachers’ Institute seminar). Other topics discussed: the fitrah (the natural desire to believe in one God), the human intellect, faith vs. disbelief, deja-vu, heedlessness, the transcendence and imminence of God, negation and affirmation within the human psyche, the nafs (the commanding self, the regretful self, and the peaceful self), the philosophical problem of evil in the world, Salmon Rushdie and capital punishment, the five objectives of the Islamic law, inheritance laws, homosexuality, the desire for massive stimulation, the stages of life, the after-death experience, God’s mercy and wrath, suicide, slandering prophets, and Muslim countries today implementing Islamic law.
A unique look at how the Islamic tradition articulates itself, irrespective of how it has been practiced by its people. In a strategic and tactful manner, Hamza Yusuf makes clear the whole concept of “islam” by analyzing the profound meaning of the word as it is explained in the Holy Qur’an. He then moves into a descriptive examination of the Islamic teaching by thoroughly explaining the fundamental practices of Islam: prayer, zakat (obligatory alms-giving), fasting, and hajj (the pilgrimage to Mecca). These series of lectures have been immensely popular due, in large part, to the atmosphere created by the classroom-style format and the interaction and engagement by the speaker with the non-Muslim audience. (Recorded at the Dar al Islam Teachers’ Institute seminar). Other topics discussed: the meanings of “surah” and “ayat”, submitting when death comes, religion as self-deception, development and discipline of children, the four seasons as a metaphor for the cosmology of life, determining the prayer times using the sun, women in the mosque, women in the home, wudu (ablution), why pork is forbidden, want vs. need, envy, obeying the laws of the land in which you live, revolution in Islam, symbols in Islam, and going to extremes in practice.
What Is The Purpose of Life? Why are we here and where are we going? Through the verses of the Holy Qur’an, Shaykh Khalid Yasin expounds upon the creation of the universe and this amazing world we live in – and how it came to be. With his logical style of argument, the Shaykh answers these questions with much wisdom. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
ROBODOG is a classic, heart-warming adventure story about an unlikely duo who couldn’t be more different. KC (Kinetic Canine) is a bright, energetic but overzealous robotic dog, while MARSHALL is an old, curmudgeonly “real” dog, set in his ways and has little patience for anything new. This canine odd couple embarks on the adventure of a lifetime where each will learn the true nature of friendship, and not to judge a book by its cover.
KC arrives as a special birthday gift from the well-to-do Morgan family for their only daughter, ASHLEY. From the moment that KC arrives, everyone is thrilled and charmed by his antics. He’s a dancing, music machine built to entertain, and no one does it better. KC quickly becomes Ashley’s BFF… Best Furry Friend. He leads a charmed life, but it’s not the life of a dog. It’s the life of a high-end toy. When KC takes a tumble while showing off, he gets damaged and is sent out to be repaired. He doesn’t realise it, but his life is about to change forever.
After being dropped off by the tearful Ashley at a robotics shop run by MIKE LUNA and his daughter IZZY (ELLEN PAGE), KC sits alone on the repair shelf waiting to be fixed. The earthy repair shop couldn’t be more different from the opulent Morgan home. KC feels like a fish out of water when a mysterious figure emerges from the shadows. It’s MARSHALL (RON PERLMAN), the Luna family guard dog. Marshall is a gruff old mutt who takes an immediate dislike to the young KC. KC’s not used to being challenged and dismisses Marshall. At the same time, KC can’t help be somewhat fascinated by the first “real” dog that he’s ever met.
Shortly after KC is repaired, he is stolen from the robotics shop by a couple of opportunistic bikers, VIK (RAINN WILSON) and BOBBY (STEVE ZAHN). As the ever the dutiful guard dog, Marshall takes the theft personally and pursues the bikers, determined that KC won’t be stolen on his watch. After finding the thieves at their hideout, KC and MARHALL escape into uncharted territory, all the while bickering like an old married couple.
Pursued by Vik and Bobby, KC and Marshall are thrown into a series of thrilling adventures. They battle with a pack of street dogs in an abandoned iron foundry, led by an old enemy TRAZEN (EDWARD JAMES OLMOS), get swept down a turbulent river, all the while being pursued by Vik and Bobby who, fuelled by revenge, are getting closer by the day. The only way that KC and Marshall will survive is if they learn to work together and trust each other. Can they put aside their differences long enough to elude their pursuers and make it back to their respective homes?
ROBODOG is a story of friendship. It’s about appreciating what’s inside, regardless of the packaging. An old dog can have his preconceptions overturned and become young again, and a mechanical dog made of circuits, gears and carbon fibre can prove himself to be loyal, brave and trustworthy.
You know, I've always wanted to see Ellen give her voice for an animated feature. It's just a shame that they cast her as a background character that we will probably only see once throughout the entire film. People in Hollywood need to realize that she is an extremely talented actress who deserves more than just the background role.
I'm pretty sure that her fanbase as a whole wants to see her in more leading roles than just being killed off. Just once we'd like to see her make it to the end credits. Personally, I feel it isn't fair to her and her career that her talents are being wasted on minor roles. She is well aware that she can do more, and I'm positive that her fanbase agrees.
Maybe someday Hollywood will get their heads out of their asses, but until that day comes then I guess we will just have to deal with it and continue to go to the movies anyway.
CommanderKool wrote:... People in Hollywood need to realize that she is an extremely talented actress who deserves more than just the background role.
... it isn't fair to her and her career that her talents are being wasted on minor roles ...
Maybe someday Hollywood will get their heads out of their asses, but until that day comes then I guess we will just have to deal with it and continue to go to the movies anyway.
I'd like to agree with you there, and I like to blame as much as I can on Hollywood, but in this case (or these cases), the blame is on Ellen.
She doesn't want to play big roles (she said that herself). I'm pretty sure she gets one script a week from a major studio or producer offering her a major role.
Would be interesting to know what parts she turned down in the past.
That's so weird though. Why not want major roles? I mean, yeah I guess I can see some possible downsides to it all but still. It would be nice to see her in more leading roles than just a background character.
I can understand that, I think the hype about 'Juno' (and her Oscar nomination) and 'Inception' scared her away from fame.
And to avoid fame, especially as a young, beautiful, talented actress, you have to stay in the background.
This is true, but both of those films are old enough (especially Juno) for the hype to have gone down at least somewhat. However, "Into The Forest" and "Freeheld", she'll be playing major roles. I mean those are more indie films than anything else. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
shutdown
NAME
SYNOPSIS
DESCRIPTION
shutdown
arranges for the system to be brought down in a safe way. All logged-in
users are notified that the system is going down and, within the last
five minutes of
TIME,
new logins are prevented.
TIME
may have different formats, the most common is simply the word
'now'
which will bring the system down immediately. Other valid formats are
+m,
where
m
is the number of minutes to wait until shutting down and
hh:mm
which specifies the time on the 24hr clock.
Once
TIME
has elapsed,
shutdown
sends a request to the
init(8)
daemon to bring the system down into the appropriate runlevel.
This is performed by emitting the
runlevel(7)
event, which includes the new runlevel in the
RUNLEVEL
environment variable as well as the previous runlevel (obtained from the
environment or from
/var/run/utmp)
in the
PREVLEVEL
variable. An additional
INIT_HALT
variable may be set, this will contain the value
HALT
when bringing the system down for halt and
POWEROFF
when bringing the system down for power off.
OPTIONS
-r
Requests that the system be rebooted after it has been brought down.
-h
Requests that the system be either halted or powered off after it has been
brought down, with the choice as to which left up to the system.
-H
Requests that the system be halted after it has been brought down.
-P
Requests that the system be powered off after it has been brought down.
-c
Cancels a running shutdown.
TIME
is not specified with this option, the first argument is
MESSAGE.
-k
Only send out the warning messages and disable logins, do not actually
bring the system down.
ENVIRONMENT
RUNLEVEL
shutdown
will read the current runlevel from this environment variable if set in
preference to reading from
/var/run/utmp
FILES
/var/run/utmp
Where the current runlevel will be read from; this file will also be updated
with the new runlevel.
/var/log/wtmp
A new runlevel record will be appended to this file for the new runlevel.
NOTES
The Upstart
init(8)
daemon does not keep track of runlevels itself, instead they are implemented
entirely by its userspace tools. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Cocos Islands Group Discounts
Kitesurf this winter in the Cocos Islands.
Zephyr Kite Tours currently have huge savings availbale for groups of 5 or more kiters. Gather up your mates and get a share house on the islands with your own cars, kite storage, free coaching and much more. This offer is only available for a short time. Also: Compare the Cocos winds with other popular kiting destinations and get world class advice and lessons by our experienced instructors.
Would you imagine kiteboarding to make a good reality TV show?
What about if you put four contestants who know nothing about the sport, into one house on Mauritius, for two weeks, with the aim of entering one in the prestigious Mauritius Kite Jam?
This week it seems that the trendy thing to do in kiteboarding is jump over your mates. While trolling through the kiteboarding forums on Seabreeze.com.au forums and various social media, countless numbers of kiteboarders are seen soaring overhead without
It was a final day full of mega loops, handlepasses and much to the crowds delight, wipeouts of epic proportions. For Aaron Hadlow, the day ended atop the coveted King of the Air podium, but for Ruben Lenten, the event favorite, his day ended in hospital.
While the rest of the worlds kiting elite are shredding in Cape Town for the Red Bull King of the Air, where's Youri Zoon? Surely someone who can boost, loop and show off with the best of them should be there right?
With an entire week of sitting around and little in the way of wind, the boys at the top of the Woo leaderboards got up to some serious mischief in Cape Town this week, while they waited for the Red Bull King of the Air to begin.
By the time fundraising is over, the Across the Bay to Conquer Cancer charity event will have raised over $70,000. When you consider the trek was 75km from Rosebud to St Kilda, that's some pretty good mileage, almost $1,000 per kilometer kited!
Right now, the worlds best kiteboarders are sitting around in Cape Town, waiting. Just waiting. for the first signs of sand lapping at their knees and salt stinging their eyes. The one week window of the Red Bull King of the air is on, and this year is go
After a busy season of free-ride racing & course racing, Perth now
boast the largest and growing racing fleet in Australia for Formula
& Foil racers.
WAKSA now kindly invites all racers to compete at the State Title
Championships. Results rankings c | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Dear Mr. President: Letters from Israel partisans that took America to war
According to its June 3, 1997 Statement of Principles, the Project for the New American Century (PNAC) was created to advance a “Reaganite foreign policy of military strength and moral clarity,” a policy PNAC co-founders, William Kristol and Robert Kagan, had advocated the previous year in Foreign Affairs to counter what they construed as the American public’s short-sighted indifference to foreign “commitments.” Calling for a significant increase in “defense spending,” PNAC exhorted the United States “to meet threats before they become dire.”
Having helped sow the seeds of the Iraq War five years before Operation Iraqi Freedom, PNAC wrote a second letter to Clinton later that year. Joining with the International Crisis Group, and the short-lived Balkan Action Council and Coalition for International Justice, they took out an advertisement in the New York Times headlined “Mr. President, Milosevic is the Problem.” Expressing “deep concern for the plight of the ethnic Albanian population of Kosovo,” the letter declared that “[t]here can be no peace and stability in the Balkans so long as Slobodan Milosevic remains in power.” It urged the United States to lead an international effort which should demand a unilateral ceasefire by Serbian forces, put massive pressure on Milosevic to agree on “a new political status for Kosovo,” increase funding for Serbia’s “democratic opposition,” tighten economic sanctions in order to hasten regime change, cease diplomatic efforts to reach a compromise, and support the Hague tribunal’s investigation of Milosevic as a war criminal. Now that “the world’s newest state” (prior to Israel’s successful division of Sudan) is run by a “mafia-like” organization involved in trafficking weapons, drugs and human organs, there appears to be much less concern for the plight of the ethnic Serbian population of Kosovo.
A New Pearl Harbor
One year after the publication of its September 2000 report, “Rebuilding America’s Defenses,” the “new Pearl Harbor” PNAC implied might be necessary to hasten acquiescence to its blueprint for “benevolent global hegemony” occurred on 9/11. Nine days after that “catastrophic and catalyzing event,” it wrote to endorse President Bush’s “admirable commitment to ‘lead the world to victory’ in the war against terrorism.” However, capturing or killing Osama bin Laden, the letter stressed, was “by no means the only goal” in the newly-declared war on terror. “[E]ven if evidence does not link Iraq directly to the attack, any strategy aiming at the eradication of terrorism and its sponsors must include a determined effort to remove Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq,” cautioned the PNACers. “Failure to undertake such an effort will constitute an early and perhaps decisive surrender in the war on international terrorism.” Disingenuously characterizing Israel’s enemy Hezbollah as a group “that mean[s] us no good,” the Israel partisans called on the administration to “consider appropriate measures of retaliation” against Iran and Syria if they refused to “immediately cease all military, financial, and political support for Hezbollah.” Touting Israel as “America’s staunchest ally against international terrorism,” they counseled Washington to “fully support our fellow democracy in its fight against terrorism.” The letter concluded by urging President Bush “that there be no hesitation in requesting whatever funds for defense are needed to allow us to win this war.”
PNAC’s concern for “America’s staunchest ally” was even more evident in its next letter to the White House. On April 3, 2002, it wrote to thank Bush for his “courageous leadership in the war on terrorism,” commending him in particular for his “strong stance in support of the Israeli government as it engages in the present campaign to fight terrorism.” Evoking the memory of the September 11 attacks “still seared in our minds and hearts,” the Israel partisans thought that “we Americans ought to be especially eager to show our solidarity in word and deed with a fellow victim of terrorist violence […] targeted in part because it is our friend, and in part because it is an island of liberal, democratic principles–”American principles–”in a sea of tyranny, intolerance, and hatred.” Returning to its favorite theme of regime change in Iraq, PNAC cautioned, “If we do not move against Saddam Hussein and his regime, the damage our Israeli friends and we have suffered until now may someday appear but a prelude to much greater horrors.”Prefiguring the cheerleading of Kristol and Kagan et al. for the “Arab Spring,”they assured Bush that“the surest path to peace in the Middle East lies not through the appeasement of Saddam and other local tyrants, but through a renewed commitment on our part […] to the birth of freedom and democratic government in the Islamic world.”
PNAC Redux
Having “developed, sold, enacted, and justified” a disastrous war over non-existent WMD, PNAC’s final report in April 2005 entitled “Iraq: Setting the Record Straight” claimed that “the case for removing Saddam from power went beyond the existence of weapons stockpiles.” Smugly concluding à la Madame Albright that “the price of the liberation of Iraq has been worth it,” PNAC soon after quietly wound up its operations. However, in 2009, PNAC co-founders Kristol and Kagan were instrumental in setting up its successor organization, the Foreign Policy Initiative (FPI), whose self-appointed mission is to address the “many foreign policy challenges” facing the United States “and its democratic allies,” allegedly coming from “rising and resurgent powers,” such as China and Russia, and, perhaps most significantly, from “other autocracies that violate the rights of their citizens.”
FPI’s February 25, 2011 letter to President Obama gave a clear indication of the significance of that mission statement. Approvingly citing the president’s declaration in his 2009 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech that “Inaction tears at our conscience and can lead to more costly intervention later,” they told him that he “must take action in response to the unfolding crisis in Libya.” Warning of an impending “moral and humanitarian catastrophe,” the letter recommended establishing a no-fly zone, freezing all Libyan government assets, temporarily halting importation of Libyan oil, making a statement that Col. Qaddafi and other officials would be held accountable under international law, and providing humanitarian aid to the Libyan people as quickly as possible. “The United States and our European allies have a moral interest in both an end to the violence and an end to the murderous Libyan regime,” averred FPI. “There is no time for delay and indecisiveness. The people of Libya, the people of the Middle East, and the world require clear U.S. leadership in this time of opportunity and peril.”
With Libya in the midst of a genuine catastrophe brought on by that “humanitarian intervention,” FPI turned its attention to the foreign-stoked strife in Syria. On February 17, 2012, it joined the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a think tank closely aligned with the Israel lobby whose leadership council is dominated by PNAC alumni, in urging President Obama “to take immediate steps to decisively halt the Assad regime’s atrocities against Syrian civilians, and to hasten the emergence of a post-Assad government in Syria.” Acknowledging that Syria’s future is “not purely a humanitarian concern,”the letter writers revealed their primary concern about Syria in their remark that “for decades, it has closely cooperated with Iran and other agents of violence and instability to menace America’s allies and partners throughout the Middle East.”
Wars of Muslim Liberation
Commenting on Obama’s reluctance to intervene in Libya, Bill Kristol mocked the president’s “doubts and dithering” about “taking us to war in another Muslim country.” Declared the founder of the Emergency Committee for Israel, “Our ‘invasions’ have in fact been liberations. We have shed blood and expended treasure in Kuwait in 1991, in the Balkans later in the 1990s, and in Afghanistan and Iraq–”in our own national interest, of course, but also to protect Muslim peoples and help them free themselves. Libya will be America’s fifth war of Muslim liberation.” In a follow-up note to the Weekly Standard, Paul Wolfowitz had “one minor quibble”: “Libya, by my count, is not ‘America’s fifth war of Muslim liberation,’ but at least the seventh: Kuwait –” February 1991, Northern Iraq –” April 1991, Bosnia –” 1995, Kosovo –” 1999, Afghanistan –” 2001 and Iraq –” 2003.” With Syria awaiting its “liberation” in 2012, perhaps it’s too early yet to say, “Shukran, Israel.”
POPULAR CATEGORY
Media Monitors Network (MMN) is a non-profit, non-partial and non-political platform for those serious Media Contributors and Observers who crave to know and like to help to prevail the whole truth about current affairs, any disputed issue or any controversial issue by their voluntarily contributions with logic, reason and rationality. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Berkshire County Highlights for Families:
February 9th-22nd, 2013
Valentine’s Day is next week and school vacation week is the week after… and we’ve got you covered in Berkshire County! In our list of events below you will find all sorts of fun activities to do with the kids and even some date night options for the parents! If you’re looking for winter vacation camp options for the week of Feb 18-22, 2013 in the Berkshires, check these out:
By special arrangement with Hilltown Families, Shakespeare & Company in Lenox is pleased to offer our readers a rare opportunity to take in a classic Shakespearean performance paired with a guided tour backstage. On Friday, Feb. 15th at 10am, schools and homeschooling families are invited to a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Tina Packer Playhouse, followed by a backstage guided tour where participants can learn how the process of theatre is crafted in the costume shop, prop studio, and production workshop. Tickets for this package are only $8/person and a Study Guide for educators is available to download before attending. To reserve discounted tickets, contact Alexandra Lincoln, and let her know you are a Hilltown Families reader: 413-637-1199 x131. Shakespeare & Company is located at 70 Kemble Street in Lenox. www.Shakespeare.org.
Hilltown Families and the Berkshire Theatre Group have partnered up to offer a free family 4-pack of tickets to one lucky family to The Popovich Comedy Pet Theater on Tuesday, February 19th at 2pm, at The Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA
Find out about these events and other community events and learning opportunities happening throughout Berkshire County through February 22nd, 2013:
To find out what’s happening throughout the four counties of Western MA, check our comprehensive list of Weekly Suggested Events, published every Thursday! There you will also find our list of ongoing weekday playgroups, storyhours and events both in Berkshire County and throughout the region.
North Berkshire
Sunday, February 17th from 2-4pm – HISTORY: The Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum is having a celebration of her birthday today! Hosted in conjunction with the Adams Historical Society, the event will feature a historical presentation on the Anthony family’s tradition of reform, as well as a musical performance that explores women’s history through folk songs. Best for older students. Birthday cake included! Takes place at the Adams Free Library. (FREE)
Wednesday, February 13th from 10am-12noon – OUTDOOR ADVENTURES: Look for tracks and other signs of wildlife today at Mt. Greylock with the Berkshire Natural Resources Council! The 2-4 mile expedition will take about 2 hours, but is relatively easy. Hikers can see a new beaver lodge, and can wander through some of the many game trails created by the wildlife who call the mountain home. An excellent supplement to studies of local biodiversity and natural resources! 413-499-0596. Gould Road. Adams, MA. (FREE)
Child Care of the Berkshires writes, “Berkshire Youth Mentoring is gearing up for its 1st Bowl-a-Thon on Saturday, February 9th, 1-7pm. (postponed to Saturday, March 2nd), at Mt. Greylock Bowl in North Adams, MA. Save the date and prepare to have fun as we bring back Bowling for Kid’s Sake to the Berkshires. Money raised through this event stays right here in our community. Berkshire Youth Mentoring Program of Child Care of the Berkshires, Inc., builds dynamic mentoring relationships to expand youths’ interests, joys, strengths and possibilities for the future. We are seeking dedicated community members who can volunteer 1-2 hours a week. Contact Alex at 413-663-6593 or [email protected] for more info.”
Saturday, February 9th from 11am-8pm – MUSEUM ADVENTURE: Visit MASS MoCA today – for free! Along with the usual opportunities to learn about (and make) modern art by visiting the museum’s galleries, there will be special performances, tours, and workshops today, too! Families can learn all about the many works of art housed at MASS MoCA by taking tours which will be held throughout the day. Visitors ages 16 and older can take part in a dance workshop with Batsheva Ensemble (bring water and a towel!). The day ends with a family-friendly psychedelic Latin dance party featuring the sounds of Brooklyn’s Chicha Libre! Tickets to the show cost extra for those over 12. (FREE) – As of Friday (2/8) afternoon, organizers say it’s still on, but please double check before heading out.
Thursday, February 14th from 5:30-8:30pm – MUSEUM ADVENTURES: Spend Valentine’s evening at MASS MoCA – there will be tours, gift-making, romantic games, and couples yoga. End the evening with dinner at Lickety Split! The Kidspace will offer kids’ programming, and parents can drop off kids for their own special Valentine’s evening, including crafts, dinner, and lots of other fun activities. Space limited! ($$)
Saturday, February 9th at 8pm – THEATER: Mill City Productions presents Almost, Maine, a story of love in a fictional small-town community. The residents of the remote town in which the show takes place fall miraculously in and out of love as the Northern Lights sparkle above! Takes place at Mill City Theater in Building 4N of Western Gateway Heritage State Park. ($)
[CANCELLED] Saturday, February 9th at 10am – MUSEUM ADVENTURE: The Clark hosts a special art-making workshop and gallery tour for pre-schoolers and their parents! Dress to get messy – this week’s theme is color and shape. Kids can gain inspiration from some art displayed in the galleries and will be able to use materials to create their own masterpieces. .
Saturday, February 9th at 2pm – FILM: The Clark is screening Lawrence of Arabia as part of the Widecreen Wonders film series! A tale of the Middle East during World War I, the film won seven Oscars! It’s a must-see for any film enthusiast. (FREE)
Thursday, February 21st at 2pm – FILM: Dress as your favorite character from The Wizard of Oz and visit The Clark for an afternoon of singing along to Sing-Along Wizard of Oz, a combination of theater and film remastered for the big screen.
Saturday, February 16th at 10:30am and 1pm – FILM: Images Cinema screens this year’s crop of Oscar-nominated animated shorts – a group of five interesting and funny family-friendly short films. Kids will love the collection, and the films are short enough to hold antsy kids’ attention (though they are recomended for ages 8+). Older students interested in animation and film studies can learn about the art of film by seeing the shorts – designated as the year’s best. ($)
Central Berkshire
Saturday, February 16th at 12noon – OUTDOOR ADVENTURE: Show off your snow-building talents at the Lee Cabin Fever Festival’s Children’s Snow Sculpting Competition! Build, stack, and scrape away until you’ve created a beautiful, icy masterpiece. Takes place on the Town Green. Then, at 1:30pm, participate in (or watch!) the annual Strut Your Stuff Stroll down Main Street, where participants bare their skin in the cold – the event features swimsuit-clad walkers and runners!
Lee Library – 413-243-0385. 100 Main Street
The Lee Library Association invites you to attend the program “Live the Legacy of Abraham Lincoln” by historian Myron Hood on Tuesday, February 12th from 6:30-8pm in the J. Peter Scolforo Gallery at the library. Experience an evening with Honest Abe and learn about our 16th president’s life growing up on the prairie, his presidency and how this self-taught man came to love books. In honor of Lincoln’s 204th birthday on February 12th , birthday cake will be served! Myron Hood lives in Lee and has been a life-long scholar of Abraham Lincoln. This event is free and open to the general public.
Sunday, February 17th from 1-3pm – DANCE: Learn about the roots of (and connections between) American blues music and jazz tap dancing with Robin O’Herin and Stefanie Weber at Spectrum Playhouse! Best for older students, the workshop will include lots of fun music and dancing, and requires no prior experience! Dancers of all abilities are welcome. Part of the Cabin Fever Festival! ($$)
Thursday, February 21st at 6pm – KIDS’ PERFORMANCE:Terry a la Berry comes to the Spectrum Playhouse tonight for a special kids’ show! Part of the Cabin Fever Festival, the performance will be filled with fun, catchy tunes with silly lyrics that kids will love.
Saturday, Feb. 9th from 9-11am – PLAYGROUP: The Montessori School of the Berkshires is hosting a special parent-child playgroup for kids up to age 5. Kids 16 months-3 years and explore and play in the Toddler Room, and kids ages 3-5 can enjoy the Children’s House, where toys, learning materials, and more will be readily available for lots of exciting, educational play. Snack, music, and stories included. Registration requested. 55 Pittsfield Road. (FREE)
[POSTPONED TO MARCH 9th] Saturday, February 9th from 10am-12noon – ANIMAL STUDIES: Families can learn all about bird banding today at Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary! There will be banding demonstrations going on throughout the morning, so feel free to drop in whenever is convenient. There will be demonstrations of proper use of mist nets – used to catch birds for banding – as well as the proper handling of small birds. Before visiting, do a family study of the scientific purpose of bird banding – you’ll appreciate the demonstrations even more! (<$)
Shakespeare & Company — 70 Kemble Street.
By special arrangement with Hilltown Families, Shakespeare & Company in Lenox is pleased to offer our readers a rare opportunity to take in a classic Shakespearean performance paired with a guided tour backstage. On Friday, Feb. 15th at 10am, schools and homeschooling families are invited to a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Tina Packer Playhouse, followed by a backstage guided tour where participants can learn how the process of theatre is crafted in the costume shop, prop studio, and production workshop. Tickets for this package are only $8/person and a Study Guide for educators is available to download before attending. To reserve discounted tickets, contact Alexandra Lincoln, and let her know you are a Hilltown Families reader: 413-637-1199 x131. Shakespeare & Company is located at 70 Kemble Street in Lenox. www.Shakespeare.org.
Thursday, February 14th at 3pm – FOOD/HISTORY: Hold your pinky high – it’s time for a fancy tea at Ventfort Hall! In honor of Valentine’s Day, the museum is hosting a special tea-tasting event, where visitors can learn about the history of specific tea blends, as well as the origins of teas and recent changes in the tea market. Special emphasis will be placed on the history of the JP Morgan blend, a special tea commissioned by JP Morgan himself – it was his favorite! Best for older students with some background in world history and basic economics, the event will help students learn about world trade, and the changes in food sourcing and sales throughout American history. BYO teacup! Victorian high tea to follow the tasting. ($$)
Saturday, February 16th from 7:30-10:30pm – PARENTS’ NIGHT OUT: Dance the night away at Ventfort Hall! Dancin’ at the Mansion – the museum’s special Valentine’s Day event – will feature several different live bands playing dancing standards all night long. Hors d’ourves will be provided, and there will be a cash bar. Dress elegantly to match the splendor of the location! ($$)
Sunday, February 17th at 3:30pm – MAGIC: Ventfort Hall is hosting magician Jeff Pyzocha this afternoon for an exciting show! Pyzocha has performed all over the country – even on television! – and is the area’s best up-and-coming illusionist. His performance is great for all ages! A kids’ Victorian Tea will follow – including hot chocolate for kids who prefer it to tea.
Tuesday, February 19th at 1pm – PERFORMANCE: The library presents a performance from Brian Gillie with his interactive library program that will get families dancing! Join Brian’s dance safari where you first learn some dance history and what it takes to create a dance. Then help Brian complete a musical phrase or funky dance, sometimes to the monster rhythms from Brian’s newly acclaimed CD, Different Drummer. (FREE)
Wednesday, February 20th from 3:30-4:30pm – LEGOS: The Berkshire Athenaeum invites any school aged LEGO enthusiast to share ideas and creative energy during monthly meetings of the new LEGO Club. This month, the theme will be “Zoo & Farm Animals”. Enjoy an hour of socializing with other LEGO fanatics, listening to music, using your imagination and sharing your ideas with your peers. (FREE)
Berkshire Community College — 1350 West St.
Sunday, February 10th from 11:30am-3pm – DOG SHOW: Pooches of all shapes and sizes strut their stuff today at Berkshire Community College in the 12th annual Not Your Average Dog Show! There are lots of non-traditional categories for pups to compete in, including mystery mutt, best trick, most beautiful eyes, “earresistable” ears, and more. Dog lovers of all ages will love spectating at this event. Takes place at BCC’s Sanderson Field House.
Tuesday, February 19th from 12:15-1:15pm – PERFORMANCE: The Youth Alive step team – made up of Pittsfield area teens – performs today at Berkshire Community College! The group performs steps and dances with military-like precision and lots of enthusiasm! Takes place in Room 111 of the Koussevitsky Arts Center. 413-236-4576. (FREE)
[POSTPONED] Saturday, February 9th from 10-11am – HISTORY: The Berkshire Museum presents, “Envisioning Emancipation: Black Americans and the End of Slavery,” the second in a two-part lecture series featuring author Barbara Krauthamer. The presentation will use historic images (including the Massachusetts 54th Regiment, Sojourner Truth, abolitionist conventions, and more) to examine what the freedom granted by the Emancipation Proclamation really looked like in the years just after its implementation. Older students can pair the event with studies of American history and civil rights – gaining a critical understanding of the implications of the historic proclamation can help students better understand the roots of race-related conflicts and inequalities. (FREE with museum admission)
[MOVED TO 2pm] Saturday, February 9th from 11am-12noon – MUSEUM ADVENTURE: Visit the Berkshire Museum to learn all about bats! This special program accompanies the museum’s new exhibit, “Bats: Out of the Cave and Into the Night,” and includes opportunities for families to try out Bat-Bot, and to try out a mock extinction activity. Takes place on the second Saturday of each month, through May. (FREE with museum admission)
Tuesday, February 12th from 10am-5pm – SCIENCE: Students from Pittsfield High School and Taconic High School present their projects for the Science and Innovation Fair at the Berkshire Museum today! Approximately 170 students have participated in preparation for the event, and 80 collaborative projects will be displayed. Visitors can learn about the projects and ask questions about the young scientists’ methods and processes, and will also get free admission to see the museum’s exhibits. Students can be inspired by the projects that they see, and the high schoolers can serve as role models for independent work and scientific inquiry. (FREE)
Thursday, February 14th – Saturday, February 23rd from 11am-3pm (12noon on 2/17) – CREATIVE FREE PLAY: The Berkshire Museum and Pop-up Adventure Play offer families a special opportunity for creative free-play throughout (and just before) school vacation week! WeeMuse: 10 Days of Play brings a roomful (literally!) of materials to build anything a child’s heart desires – cardboard boxes abound, along with necessary items like scissors and duct tape. Families can build castles, mazes, space ships, and other fantastic creations together, allowing kids to exercise their creativity, take part in non-commercialized educational play, and work on skills for cooperation and collaboration. Kids can play at the museum multiple times, too- every day brings a new adventure. (FREE with museum admission)
Monday, February 18 through Saturday, February 23 at 11am – CHILDREN’S PERFORMANCE: Berkshire Theater Group presents Pinocchio at the Berkshire Museum! There will be performances every morning throughout the week, allowing families lots of opportunities to see a theatrical version of the classic children’s story. ($)
Tuesday, February 19th at 1pm – ANIMAL ADVENTURE: Meet a wolf up close and personal at the Berkshire Museum! The Wolf Conservation Center brings their 10-year-old Arctic Gray Wolf, Atka, to the museum for visitors to greet and learn about. ($)
Tuesday, February 19th at7pm – PECHA KUCHA: The Berkshire Museum is hosting a 5th night of Pecha Kucha presentations! Known globally as 20×20, the presentations are just over 6.5 minutes each and include 20 slides that progress automatically after 20 seconds each. Presenters at this event will be sharing information on community organizations, movements, and individual ideas that are geared towards changing the world! Best for parents and teens, the presentations will share important, empowering, and uplifting ideas and information. (<$)
Hilltown Families and the Berkshire Theatre Group have partnered up to offer a free family 4-pack of tickets to one lucky family to The Popovich Comedy Pet Theater on Tuesday, February 19th at 2pm, at The Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA
Tuesday, February 19th at 2pm - FAMILY PERFORMANCE: The Popovich Comedy Pet Theater comes to the Colonial Theater! Made up entirely of rescued animals, the group performs a wide array of circus tricks, accompanied by human clowns and jugglers. The animals are all found in shelters, and have been incredibly well trained (and well loved!) in order to prepare for the performances – families will love the animals’ tricks! 413-298-5536. ($$)
St. Stephen’s Church - 413-212-8589. 67 East Street.
Saturday, February 16th from 1-5pm – COMMUNITY RESILIENCE: The Pittsfield Resilience Circle is hosting a Repair Cafe today – bring things that you need fixed and leave with them working like new, for free! Volunteer repair-people will help to fix everything from lamps to knives, radios to chairs – small items of all sorts (except TV’s, watches, or CRT monitors) can be brought to the event for some TLC. Fix what you’ve got instead of buying something new! Takes place in the basement of St. Stephen’s Church. (FREE)
Friday, February 22nd from 10-11am - CULTURAL STUDIES: Visit Treehouse for some old fashioned Shaker song and dance! Families can learn some traditional Shaker music, lyrics, and movements, and can see the exhibition of photographs of Shaker life on display in the store as part of the 10×10 festival. (FREE)
[RESCHEDULED TO SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16th] Saturday, February 9th from 1-4pm – MUSEUM ADVENTURE: The Norman Rockwell Museum’s newest exhibit is filled exclusively with locally made art – and it’s all from high school-aged artists! The annual Berkshire County High School Art Show is returning for its 27th year at the museum, and features work from local students in a variety of media, including paint, sculpture, and drawing. Families can meet the artists whose work is being shown, and budding artists are invited to a lecture by James Warhol (nephew of pop artist Andy Warhol).
Saturday, February 16th from 1-4pm – COMICS: The Norman Rockwell Museum hosts Careers in Comics, a workshop with comic artist Daniel Cooney! Cooney will share information on how to develop the skills necessary to become a comic artist, and the process of writing, illustrating, and publishing comics. Pre-registration required. ($$)
Thursday, February 14th at 5:30pm – LIBRARY APPRECIATION: Give your library the greatest Valentine of all – some new books! Families can choose books to donate to the Stockbridge Library – in exchange, name plates will be created to honor each patron’s donation. Families can choose from books of all genres and reading levels. Choose some family favorites to make sure that other families can enjoy them, too! There will be holiday treats and crafts for kids. (FREE)
February 16th-24th – POTTERY: Elaine Hoffman opens up her studio, welcoming all ages to decorate blank pieces of pottery like plates of different sizes/bowls/mugs/tiles, using underglazes of varying colors.
South Berkshire
Saturday, February 9th at 3pm – VALENTINES: Make your own unique valentines this afternoon at the Berkshire Co-Op! Kids can use a variety of found objects to create collage-style cards, and can even make their own hidden messages using a special scratch-off paint! (FREE)
Monday, February 18th at 10am – COOKING: Learn to make some simple treats for a tea party at the Berkshire Co-op! This special event is just for kids – they’ll learn to make blood orange curd, a delicious spread best enjoyed on top of scones (some of which will be provided) and with tea! Registration required. (FREE)
Monday, February 18th – Friday, February 22nd at BSRCC: Action Adventures all week with full & half day options, structured activities, free play, educational activities, swimming… even live music!
Three Mile Hill
Saturday, February 16th from 9:30am-12:30pm – OUTDOOR ADVENTURE: Snowshoe your way up and around Threemile Hillwith the Berkshire Natural Resources Council! If there isn’t much snow, the event will be a regular hike instead – either way, enjoy the beautiful winter landscape and search for winter wildlife. Hike up and shuttle back, or do the entire round-trip adventure (3 miles total). BYO snowshoes. Registration requested. 413-528-2810. (FREE)
Matrushka Toys & Gifts — 413-528-4015. 309 Main Street.
Saturday, February 16th at 10:30 and 11:30am – MARIONETTES: The Great Barrington Rudolf Steiner School’s marionettes will be at Matrushka Toys and Gifts this morning, performing two shows just for kids! The beautiful handmade puppets will share a special story, best appreciated by preschool age children – but the marionettes are interesting enough to be loved by all children. (FREE)
NEW MARLBOROUGH
Flying Cloud Institute
Thursday, February 14th:REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Send students off for a full day of wintry science at the Flying Cloud Institute! On Thursday, February 21st from 9am-3pm, the institute hosts Winter Science Day – kids will learn about everything from why the roads are salted in a storm to what tracks they might be most likely to find in their own backyard. Open to grades 2-6 – back lunch, and bring clothes for spending time outside! 413-229-3321. ($$)
Steepletop — Route 57
Saturday, February 9th from 2-4pm – OUTDOOR ADVENTURE: The Berkshire Natural Resources Council is hosting an animal tracking expedition at Steepletop! Explore the area – abundant with signs of wildlife – on foot or by snowshoe, if you like! Participants will learn to tell the difference between cat and dog tracks, and will learn the best places to find tracks and other signs of animals. Meet at the Old Inn on the Green to carpool. 413-499-0596. Route 57. (FREE)
Subscribe by Email
Subscribe by Email
Over 1.6 Million Visitors
1,607,252
Donate to Hilltown Families
As we enter our 10th year, we look ahead to the next decade of supporting education through community engagement with YOUR support! Make a tax-deductible donation to Hilltown Families today! – Hilltown Families is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
Welcome!
Welcome to Hilltown Families, an online grassroots communication network for families living throughout the four counties of western Massachusetts. Hilltown Families believes in creating resilient and sustainable communities by developing and strengthening a sense of place in our children and citizens through community based education and engagement. We work to accomplish this by highlighting the embedded learning that is found everywhere in our communities, making the information accessible to families, and giving parents/educators access to opportunities that supports their children’s interests and education while encouraging community engagement.
Hilltown Families was founded in 2005 by Sienna Wildfield and is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
Featured Columns
Community Bulletin Boards
Community Feedback
"Hilltown Families keeps us connected with all the amazing educational and cultural activities and resources that abound here in W. Mass and curates them in a way to let us know just what’s out there for the many varied interests of our young families and communities,while creating networks of support and growth." - Kara Kitchen (Plainfield, MA)
Posting a comment to Hilltown Famiies will automatically add you to the Hilltown Families mailing list to receive our weekly update. Email address are never rented or sold. To be removed from our mailing list, email [email protected] to request to be removed.
disclaimer
Information provided on Hilltown Families (HTF) is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Reasonable efforts are made to provide the most accurate information, but no guarantees of any kind can be made. Information can be changed without prior notice. Please check with 3rd parties to confirm all listings for date/time, cost, location and age appropriateness before attending. Opinions expressed on HTF are that of the writer and not necessarily that of HTF. In no event shall HTF be liable (directly or indirectly) for any losses or damages causes (or allegedly caused) in connection with HTF. All health and wellness related information is for entertainment purposes only and should not be used to substitute for professional medical advice or diagnosis. All provided links are provided as a courtesy and not as an endorsement. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Vintondale classical guitarists
Nearly any upscale event could benefit from beautiful background music. Many have chosen to book Classical Guitarists to play their unique renditions of the musical masterpieces of Mozart, Beethoven, and more. Search in the Vintondale, PA area now to find a Classical Guitarist near you.
BOOK WITH CONFIDENCE
Exceptional Solo Guitarist Available for Your Special Event
Are you planning an event that may benefit from the elegant, intimate atmosphere of an acoustic solo guitarist? If you think this might be the added touch of class your event might require, please contact me.
My forte is unaccompanied Jazz, Acoustic (a.k.a. "Adult Contemporary") and Classical guitar styles. I've had decades of experience in this genre, as staff guitarist for the Upper St Clair Country Club (nearly 18 years),...(more)
I am multi-instrumentalist and vocalist living in Pittsburgh, PA, specializing in guitar. Music is my passion and I am open to many styles and genres, avoiding categorization. I have to date recorded three cd's of original music and have appeared on numerous recordings by others, and am currently at work on another solo album. My performance experience includes many venues and ensembles, from solo to orchestra, from weddings to theater pits, from power trio to 11-piece funk band, from house...(more)
I am an accomplished fingerstyle guitar soloist that has been performing & teaching professionally for over 30 years. My repertoire covers all of the traditional (classical) standards that will give your Wedding day that extra touch and my jazz & light pop arrangements set the perfect ambiance for cocktail parties, anniversaries and holiday parties. Please feel free to contact me about any "special" songs that you have in mind for your special day !(more)
My name is Ross Heastings. I am a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania where I studied Music Education and Classical Guitar. I have also studied Jazz Guitar with members of Duquesne University's guitar faculty. I have been musically active in Pittsburgh and throughout the east coast for over 10 years as a solo artist, band member, educator, composer and arranger. I fuse top 40 pop with classical, jazz and modern influences to create the ultimate musical experience for any occasion....(more)
Rich Barry was praised by the last direct pupil of Andrés Segovia as "a truly innovative musician of the 21st century". His career spans 30 years of dedication to the guitar as a soloist and in ensembles since the age of 5. He has appeared on WYPR 88.1 NPR News with Tom Hall "The Art of The Classical Guitar", "In Concert" on DC TV, "Hello Baltimore" on FOX45 and for music segments on WGAL TV, WHTM TV, and VH-1. In the last decade Rich has performed in New York, Knoxville, Dallas, Denver,...(more)
Classical Guitarist from
Washington,
DC (143 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Innovative French guitarist and composer Julien Xuereb strives to make every performance a unique experience. His compositional style ingeniously blends elements of Classical, Jazz, and Middle Eastern music. Tim Smith, critic of the Baltimore Sun, described his works as "Subtly nuanced compositions."
Julien's recent appearances on stage include performances at the TEDx MidAtlantic Conference, the Ford Convention Center in George Washington's Mount Vernon and the Clarice Smith Performing...(more)
Classical Guitarist from
Washington,
DC (146 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Peter Fields has captivated audiences in the U.S. and Europe with his mastery of diverse musical styles and unique approach to guitar techniques. In addition to his sophisticated original compositions, his repertoire ranges from classical guitar, Jazz, and Latin music masterpieces, to extraordinary arrangements of R & B classics, and interpretations of ethnic music from various parts of the world. He can be heard on numerous recording projects on Polygram and various independent labels, and...(more)
Classical Guitarist from
Alexandria,
VA (150 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Steven Seidenman has been performing as a classical guitarist for over 25 years. His various concert venues have included the Montgomery County Arts Council, The Martin Luther King Memorial Library, Church of the Epiphany, The Mansion at Strathmore, Rockville Civic Center, The Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington, Lisner Auditorium, and Montgomery College's Guest Artist series. He performed twice for Maryland television.
Steven was a winner of the Montpelier Recital Competition,...(more)
Classical Guitarist from
Germantown,
MD (125 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Nadia Pessoa is an award-winning harpist with more than 25 years of experience in providing the soundtrack to unforgettable events. As one of the most sought-after harpists in Washington DC, she has performed at the U.S. Capitol, State Department, The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and Carnegie Hall.
As part of her commitment to her clients, Nadia approaches each event with thoughtful and creative attention, and will personally help you select elegant music that is unique, memorable, and...(more)
I'm a professional classical & acoustic guitarist serving Virginia, Washington DC, Maryland & North Carolina. I'm committed to making your event a memorable one. International career highlights include two Carnegie Hall solo guitar recitals and concerts with orchestras. Open to playing almost any music you choose and if it's not in my music list (found in my website), I can arrange it for you. Easy to work with. 25+ years performing regularly for weddings, birthdays, corporate functions and...(more)
Classical Guitarist from
Charlottesville,
VA (172 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Website: ryancookmusic.com Here you can access:
- Youtube Channel
- Facebook Page
- Videos, updates and much more!
From the very beginning of the process Ryan is friendly, honest and professional. With years of experience, an extensive song list and intuitive feel for the space Ryan's performance will not disappoint. With a deep-love for a wide range of musical genres (new and old) Ryan will come across to those attending like he really wants to be there and that everyone should join...(more)
Singer Guitarist from
Philadelphia,
PA (200 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Arthur Ward is an alternative/pop solo artist from North Tonawanda, NY. His experience spans a wide range of musical settings. This includes playing classical guitar for formal dinners, playing piano and singing at weddings, playing bass for Jazz ensembles, performing for festivals, and leading worship in Churches. After writing and experimenting with his own music, he decided to begin his own solo project. Through winning a couple of local competitions, he gained the means to record and...(more)
What kind of guitar music do I play?
Jazz Fingerstyle, Bossa Nova, Flamenco, Spanish-Classical, 'themed' Solo Guitar
Do i play cover songs or my own music?
both. Whatever the customer wants.
What is my offer:
Background solo guitar instrumental music
What kind of events is my music for:
weddings, parties,festivals, ceremonies,memorials, fundraisers and corporate events.
Do i sing as well?
No vocals/singing
Sound System:
my own PA sound system(s) provided for...(more)
Dave Read is a dedicated in demand musician who engages his audience in a variety of music for many occasions. Dave has recently performed at Trump Golf Club for a hawaiian luau themed dinner hosted by Mr. Trump, premiered on the WDVR radio show many times and has been performing various styles of guitar music for over 25 years. He has performed the classical guitar for wedding ceremonies, wedding receptions, cocktail hours, dinner functions, theatres, and various events. He also has...(more)
***WINNER OF "TOP NATIONAL GUITARIST" ON GIGMASTERS, "BEST OF WEDDINGS" ON THE KNOT & "BRIDE'S CHOICE AWARD" ON WEDDINGWIRE!****
My name is Jim Perona and thank you for visiting my Gigmasters page! Music is my passion, my profession, and I can't wait to share more about it with you! I've been performing at weddings, corporate parties, restaurants, private events, & much more FULL-TIME for over 7 years now & the clients have spoken - I am amongst the top-reviewed solo guitarists in the...(more)
MAINE'S NO.1 CLASSICAL/ACOUSTIC GUITARIST!! WITH OVER 100 GIGMASTER'S VERIFIED BOOKINGS! ONE OF THE MOST REVIEWED GUITARISTS IN NEW ENGLAND!! EARNED GIGMASTER'S"BEST OF" AWARD SIX YEARS IN A ROW! ONE OF THE MOST SOUGHT AFTER GUITARISTS IN NORTHERN NEW ENGLAND!VERSATILITY!AUTHENTIC NYLON STRING CLASSICAL GUITAR AND STEEL STRING ACOUSTIC GUITAR AVAILABLE .CLASSIC ROCK,RAGTIME, POP,BLUES,STANDARDS! OVER A HALF CENTURY OF PLAYING EXPERIENCE!! Vocals!"An Honest If Not Brilliant Approach To...(more)
Award winning guitarist David Guillermo has performed as a soloist with renowned Symphonic Orchestras and as solo concertist in several countries and prestigious venues. He has recorded with such artists as Juan Diego Florez, the Fortworth Symphony Orchestra among others and has won top awards in several international guitar competitions.
David's musical arrangements, exclusively published by Lathkill publications (London), include a varied array of styles that range from Jazz, Brasilian...(more)
Classical Guitarist from
Sunnyside,
NY (262 miles from Vintondale, PA)
A classical guitarist can add a unique sound and ambiance to your event. A guitarist can also go many places other instrumentalists can't. Aaron has played anywhere from mountaintops, beaches, and golf courses to churches and museums. He has the experience and versatility to provide you with what you want and need for your event. Classical Voice of North Carolina claimed, "It was a real pleasure to hear the guitars of Aaron Prillaman...played without amplification in an intimate space." Mr....(more)
The unique sound of the classical guitar with it's warm and sweet intimacy can transform your ceremony, cocktail hour, or any occasion to a very unique one indeed. I graduated in Budapest and in Boston with the highest level degrees in guitar (Franz Liszt Academy of Music, The Boston Conservatory). I was awarded first prize in 1981 (Hungary) at the International Guitar Festival and Seminar.
You can find my full list of my program, a complete bio and more video samples of past...(more)
Brian Morris is in his twenty-sixth year as a member of the GRCC Music Faculty. An associate of the Michigan Arts and Humanities Touring Program, Brian maintains an active performing schedule performing both as a soloist and with the Grand Rapids Guitar Quartet. He has performed with the West Shore Symphony, the Grand Rapids Symphony; at the College Music Society's Regional Conference in Madison, WI, the Kennedy Center and has twice been featured as a presenter of Latin American Music at the...(more)
Kevin performs both as a solo artist, and as part of many successful ensembles, such as the acclaimed 1 East Guitar Quartet, the Atlantic Guitar Quartet, the Peabody Renaissance Ensemble, and the Peabody Consort. He received his training at the world renowned Peabody Conservatory, where he specialized in the performance of Classical, Baroque and Renaissance music, on many different types of guitars and Lutes.
Kevin is available for solo performances of all kinds, such as weddings, corporate...(more)
Jason Hochman is a Spanish, Classical, Flamenco and World guitarist. He has an extensive repertoire for Spanish, Classical and Flamenco Guitar. Please watch his samples to get a sense of his repertoire. He also offers dancers and ensembles. He has over 30 5-star reviews on his other gigmasters page that highlights his duets and ensemble music, and was honored the BEST OF GIGMASTERS 2017 award. This is his new page that highlights his solo guitar services.(more)
Classical Guitarist from
New York City,
NY (258 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Many Fortune 500 Companies including ELVIS PRESLEY ENTERPRISES, HARD ROCK ENTERPRISES and CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES have all hired this AMERICAN IDOL alumnus to bring his talent to their stages! He is a seasoned pro, playing more than 1,500 shows in 12 countries for a variety of nationally accredited colleges, corporate events, tradeshows, conventions and private performances like weddings and parties. Broadening his reach in the music industry, he bought into a Chicago-based company called...(more)
AWARDED GIGMASTERS BEST OF 2017 AND WINNERS OF THE PRESTIGIOUS WEDDING WIRE 2017 COUPLES CHOICE AWARD. THEY REPRESENT THE TOP 5% OF WEDDING PROFESSIONALS ON WEDDING WIRE.
Jason and Elysa play beautiful originals and covers in the style of Spanish Classical Guitar and Nueva Flamenca/Rumba Flamenca. Listen to Jay & Lee's samples and read their great reviews to see why they are the highest rated in their genre. They are influenced by the Gipsy Kings, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Paco de Lucia,...(more)
Flamenco Guitarist from
New York City,
NY (258 miles from Vintondale, PA)
* Acoustic Latin Band *
The Herreras music can often be described as original acoustic instrumental improvisational Latin guitar music, or Latin Jazz. Their music invites the listener to experience a colorful melody, Afro-Caribbean beats, Latin American folk, and rumba flamenca influences.
The Herrera sound...(more)
Latin Guitarist from
New York City,
NY (258 miles from Vintondale, PA)
MTV-FEATURED ARTIST with the MOST MASSIVE & DIVERSE SONGLIST on Gigmasters. ***NEW VIDEOS JUST ADDED! Read the reviews - they say it all! Clients call Jason the "Human Jukebox"! WORLD-TRAVELED MUSICIAN whose set lists range from contemporary hits and mainstream pop/rock/indie rock to 80's new wave, classic Motown/R&B and modern and vintage Americana. Jason also performs traditional classical and jazz instrumentals. JASON WILL PLAY AS MANY REQUESTS AS YOU HAVE! The Beatles to The Stones,...(more)
Top 40 Acoustic Guitarist from
Whitestone,
NY (267 miles from Vintondale, PA)
Driving Spanish rumba rhythms mixed with spicy Latin grooves create the soundscape for "Salvo & Hugo." Inspired by world fusion -- drawing from Spanish/Classical, Flamenco, Latin and Bossa Nova, the band plays a mix of original and remixed songs from artists such as the Gipsy Kings, Buena Vista Social Club and Ottmar Liebert among others. They have received acclaim for playing festivals including The Winter Concert Series at Planting Fields, The Camellia Festival and the Make Music New York...(more) | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The Report Cards are in for New Mexico Schools and the outlook is very dire. ABQ Journal Staff Writer, Hailey Heinz in her July 23, 2011 article basically laid it out on the table…”87% of NM’s Schools Get Failing Grade.”
Frankly, this is unacceptable. There is no reason at this point to be consulting with the same bureaucracy to come up with solution for the same problem. It’s time for new and bold ideas…like dissolving some of these school boards. It seems to me that these bureaucracies are more self-serving than anything else. It is time to reform the Public School System.
Let the result speaks for itself, “Only 13 percent of schools across the state and about 4 percent of APS schools made Adequate Yearly Progress under the No Child Left Behind Act this year, in a sharp decrease from last year.”
Wake Up New Mexico!
Here are my Facebook Fan Pages. I would appreciate it if you would visit and like them.
When I came to NM in 1996, we started off in the Public Schools...it was a disaster. Well, it didn't take long, to see the writing on the wall. Both of my children attended Albuquerque Academy.
Posted by C. Lloyd McKenzie, Living Albuquerque over 7 years ago
....meanwhile Rahm sends his kids to private schools, as does Obama and as did the Clintons and Gores. Jeb Bush was on Hannity last week and he had some great ideas that he implimented in Florida while Gov.
The issues with school are being politicized...we need real solutions. I believe in Public Education, of which I am a product of. I attended the Jamaican Public School System. In Jamaica the Public Schools always outperform the Private Schools. Let's start by dissolving all the boards of education in each locality. They are lile Homeowners Associations, and they can be viscious.
Posted by C. Lloyd McKenzie, Living Albuquerque over 7 years ago
Lloyd, two of newsweek's top 10 high school are located in Florida, one is in Sarasota County. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Immunization Update
Sign up for MyIR. MyIR allows you to manage your immunization records securely online. Once you register, you can access the records any time you need them. This can all be done without an extra trip to your healthcare provider. Go to
www.doh.wa.gov/immsrecords to sign up.
Sleep Recommendations - Sleep is essential for a healthy life, and it is important to promote healthy sleep habits in childhood. To promote optimal health, following these 24 hours of sleep guidelines on a regular basis: | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Friday, September 12, 2014
THE VOICES: Twitter Buzz!
Sure, we could make a bunch of corny puns about "listening to the voices that are telling you go see The Voices," but we'd rather just let the overwhelmingly positive buzz about the movie speak for itself. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Tired of playing Supermum? Get your family to take a year off from everything but school.
A ROUND of "busy-mum poker" led to Joanne Kraft's wild idea.
You know the game, the one with verbal banter that sounds something like this: "I have to be at three soccer practices tomorrow afternoon."
Then another mum ups the ante: "I'll see your three soccer practices and raise you choir lessons and three dozen cupcakes for a bake sale the next day."
Joanne and her friend Kim Vaccaro had just such a conversation one New Year's Eve while their husbands watched a game in another room and their eight children – each family has four kids – played downstairs.
Taking a year off from extracurricular activities gave this family quality time together. — The Kansas City Star/MCT
At the time, about four hours of Joanne's daily life was devoted to shuttling children to and from school, soccer practice, voice lessons, baseball practice and games, all after a long day at work as a police dispatcher. Dinner involved lobbing shinguards and cheeseburgers into the back seat.
"I felt like a Third World taxi driver," she joked.
So when Joanne and Kim mused about what life would be like if their families took a year off from everything apart from school, Joanne was ready to make the leap. So was her husband, Paul.
The Kraft kids? Well, they didn't anticipate what they were in for.
Meghan Kraft, who was playing soccer, taking singing lessons and participating in community theater at the time, thought her parents were just going through a phase.
"I didn't think they were serious," she said. "I thought it was something that would just fade out."
But ol' Mum and Dad were serious. Any activity that required Joanne's driving services was off-limits for the entirety of 2007, with the exception of school and on-campus sports.
It was, as Joanne calls it, a radical sabbatical.
And it revolutionised the family. Now Joanne has penned a book chronicling the adventure, Just Too Busy: How To Take Your Family On A Radical Sabbatical and hopes the lessons will inspire other families.
In addition to the activity timeout, the family went on monthly field trips, with the children taking turns picking the destination. The first few field trips were packed with activities — ice skating, a matinee, a picnic — all in one day.
By later in the year, simpler was better: a day spent lounging in pyjamas while reading books and watching movies. Together.
It's been four years since the sabbatical, but the memories have become some of the fondest for the Krafts.
"I look back on it as a sweet time with my family," said 19-year-old Meghan, who was 15 when the sabbatical began.
David, now 16, dramatically improved his grades that year. He learned "that I could survive a year without sports and have fun with the family once in a while."
Grace missed soccer but acknowledged that "it got us all closer together."
The following year brought another sabbatical, though this one by happenstance – no TV.
Joanne had been moving furniture, and Paul didn't have time to immediately reconnect the cable. A few weeks passed, and while Joanne was envisioning her reunion with Paula Deen, it was her eldest son who questioned reconnecting the TV, saying that it was nicer without it.
It's been nearly three years since the family has had network television in their home. Netflix movies are watched together on a TV that lacks cable. They'll occasionally catch a show on the computer via Hulu or ABC.com.
"I've gotten pretty used to it," said Samuel, 10.
"As in you like it, or as in 'I've eaten gruel every day for 10 years, so I'm OK with gruel'?" Paul asked his son.
"The gruel," Samuel said, with a sheepish grin.
In the years since the sabbatical, they've added activities back to the schedule, but in measured doses.
"We didn't sign them up for stuff they weren't really into," Joanne Joanne said. "What we should be doing is raising responsible adults, not acting as our children's social directors."
The sabbatical approach worked for the Krafts, but it might not for work for everyone. Start small, even just setting a goal of eating dinner at the family table a few nights a week.
"It forces you to be a little more intentional as a parent and as a family," Paul said. — The Sacramento Bee/ McClatchy Tribune Information Services.
MORE US fathers are rolling up their sleeves to change diapers and read bedtime stories to their children, a government survey finds.
Released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the survey involved more than 10,000 American men, with results finding that more men are getting involved in domestic life and child care, from mathematics tutoring to bath time.
Findings showed that fathers with children younger than five helped bathe, diaper, and dress their kids several times a week. More than 90% of dads ate meals with their kids a few times a week, and 66% tucked them into bed with a book several times a week.
Practically all fathers who lived with their children under five played with them. Among them, 81% played with them daily, and 18% played with them several times a week.
Plus dads give themselves a pat on the back: almost 90% said that they thought they were doing at least a good job of parenting.
And this is positive news for both mums and kids, since prior research has found the men who are involved in their children's lives and daily care have happier, more satisfying marriages while also strengthening bonds with their kids. – AFP Relaxnews | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.
Have you people who didn't get keys tried clicking on the link in your email again? I received the link on Sunday which, when I clicked on it, took me to the GMG page telling me I hadn't voted yet (but don't worry, "your name is on the list"). 24 hours later (Monday night), I clicked on the same link, in the same 24 hour old email, and this time it worked and I got my key through straight after.
Have you people who didn't get keys tried clicking on the link in your email again? I received the link on Sunday which, when I clicked on it, took me to the GMG page telling me I hadn't voted yet (but don't worry, "your name is on the list"). 24 hours later (Monday night), I clicked on the same link, in the same 24 hour old email, and this time it worked and I got my key through straight after.
Have you people who didn't get keys tried clicking on the link in your email again? I received the link on Sunday which, when I clicked on it, took me to the GMG page telling me I hadn't voted yet (but don't worry, "your name is on the list"). 24 hours later (Monday night), I clicked on the same link, in the same 24 hour old email, and this time it worked and I got my key through straight after.
Thanks, this worked for me just now. Also, GMG is probably my favorite place to by games and it's pretty cool that they're giving away a free game for practically nothing. I can't believe people are seriously whining because you had to fill out a 5 minute survey and there were glitches in their system for delivering the games. Obviously it wasn't some kind of deliberate scheme. #firstworldproblems
I really don't know why you make out Reddit as this big new Boogeyman. It's the whole of the gaming internet and it will not say no to free games on Steam no less.
Wasn't aware anyone was making Reddit out as a bogeyman (at least, for this). Hell, Reddit is my preferred source FOR video game deals.
But it also makes things like "We want to reward our customers and fans" almost impossible because any good deal will be posted there (yay) and immediately pounced upon by The Internet (boo). And then you have the exploiters (although, Reddit's r/gamedeals has MUCH fewer of the "I'm gonna buy twenty copies to sell later" assholes that seem to be the entire population of the CheapAssGamers community) who ruin it for everyone.
Steam: Gundato
PSN: Gundato
If you want me on either service, I suggest PMing me here first to let me know who you are.
Wasn't aware anyone was making Reddit out as a bogeyman (at least, for this). Hell, Reddit is my preferred source FOR video game deals.
But it also makes things like "We want to reward our customers and fans" almost impossible because any good deal will be posted there (yay) and immediately pounced upon by The Internet (boo). And then you have the exploiters (although, Reddit's r/gamedeals has MUCH fewer of the "I'm gonna buy twenty copies to sell later" assholes that seem to be the entire population of the CheapAssGamers community) who ruin it for everyone.
Yes, people can gripe all they want, we're in a rather odd place. Gaming's audience is stupidly massive. The number of people who would jump on this sort of thing is simply too much greater than the normal server load of GMG that it's rather difficult to a) judge what it will be and b) prepare for it. I suppose they could just never do this kind of promotion but ... in theory it should be possible to get things balanced. Better than that, making servers cheaper to run/rent is going to cut down on how often this sort of thing happens immensely be increasing the pay-off for being over-prepared. Of course for that to happen, we need to cut down on energy costs which is something of a problem at the moment.
I think of [the Internet] as a grisly raw steak laid out on a porcelain benchtop in the sun, covered in chocolate hazelnut sauce. In the background plays Stardustís Music Sounds Better With You. Thereís lots of fog. --tomeoftom
Yes, people can gripe all they want, we're in a rather odd place. Gaming's audience is stupidly massive. The number of people who would jump on this sort of thing is simply too much greater than the normal server load of GMG that it's rather difficult to a) judge what it will be and b) prepare for it. I suppose they could just never do this kind of promotion but ... in theory it should be possible to get things balanced. Better than that, making servers cheaper to run/rent is going to cut down on how often this sort of thing happens immensely be increasing the pay-off for being over-prepared. Of course for that to happen, we need to cut down on energy costs which is something of a problem at the moment.
I think the issue is mostly the exploiters and the number of keys they have available. The exploiters can really hammer a server, and considering that "The Reddit Hug of Death" is basically an accidental DoS attack already, that doesn't help things.
I dunno, maybe I am a cynic, but I think the only viable solution is to just not have these kinds of giveaways anymore and to instead only offer things to existing customers (akin to GMG's periodic "Hey, thanks for buying shit, have a coupon" emails). It makes growth a lot harder and you'll still have the entitled pricks who scream about how it isn't fair, but it will at least minimize server death.
Steam: Gundato
PSN: Gundato
If you want me on either service, I suggest PMing me here first to let me know who you are.
I think the issue is mostly the exploiters and the number of keys they have available. The exploiters can really hammer a server, and considering that "The Reddit Hug of Death" is basically an accidental DoS attack already, that doesn't help things.
I dunno, maybe I am a cynic, but I think the only viable solution is to just not have these kinds of giveaways anymore and to instead only offer things to existing customers (akin to GMG's periodic "Hey, thanks for buying shit, have a coupon" emails). It makes growth a lot harder and you'll still have the entitled pricks who scream about how it isn't fair, but it will at least minimize server death.
That doesn't sound overly cynical. They probably shouldn't do this sort of thing, since it doesn't seem to help them much one way or the other since it didn't work and then people got upset about it. That said it confuses me that people are mad at GMG.
I think of [the Internet] as a grisly raw steak laid out on a porcelain benchtop in the sun, covered in chocolate hazelnut sauce. In the background plays Stardustís Music Sounds Better With You. Thereís lots of fog. --tomeoftom
If we're going to play the "it's not a big thing in the scale of the world" argument we can shutdown all gaming forums and - indeed - 90% of all discussion on the Internet.
Everything we've ever talked about here is pointless when compared to slavery/torture/death/religion/conservatism - despite that I read 'exploit' as 'take advantage of people' and that's exactly what GMG and CVG did here.
Scuse me for raising a gaming-related issue in a gaming forum tho - I realise I should be discussing the evils of the world (and believe me I know stuff which could curl your eyebrows).
Seriously tho, if I came to your house and said "push this car 500m and I'll give you £20" and you did it and I said "call me in 24 hours for your £20" and you did that and I said "wait 24 more hours for your £20" and so you waited and then I said "sorry - too late sucker", would you be peeved at all??
Seriously tho, if I came to your house and said "push this car 500m and I'll give you £20" and you did it and I said "call me in 24 hours for your £20" and you did that and I said "wait 24 more hours for your £20" and so you waited and then I said "sorry - too late sucker", would you be peeved at all??
After all - you lost nothing really, did you?
So clicking a few radial choices is equivalent to pushing a car half a kilometer?
If we must go with the real world metaphor, even though this isn't a hard concept to follow to begin with, it would be more akin to the following: I get drunk and say "If you can guess my weight correctly, I'll let you punch me in the stomach". Unfortunately, I don't realize that it just takes one person to get it right before the entire bar knows. And now I have a huge line of people beating the shit out of me. So I say "Alright, give me a few minutes to catch my breath". I do so, then we go back to beating me to death. Eventually, I just leave during one of my brief breaks, and the next night I say "Yeah, if you haven't already beaten the crap out of me, you don't get to do it anymore"
Steam: Gundato
PSN: Gundato
If you want me on either service, I suggest PMing me here first to let me know who you are.
Rise of the Elves is essentially an Expandalone for D2. Gallean's Return contains the base game - The Dark Prophecy - plus the two hard-as-nails expansion packs - Servants of Dark for the Undead and Legions of the Damned (demons) factions, Guardians of Light for the Empire and Mountain Clans (dwarves) factions. Definitely go for Gallean's Return over Rise of the Elves. For one thing you get four races with four corresponding, separate campaigns to play with in the base game alone. RotE is just elves, who feature in D2:GR as a third party which may be neutral, friendly (these are the worst missions) or aggressive.
Disciples 2 itself is a wonderful game. It can run on a toaster yet has a nice look to it. The combat is turn-based in the style of HOMM or King's Bounty with parties lead by a leader unit (who can level up and be carried between missions) roaming the map, fighting or exploring as they go. However, there is no movement during combat in D2 and the maximum number of units in a party is 6 (to fill 6 spaces, and some units can take 2 spaces, and a leader needs to level up before being able to have the full 5 spaces at their disposal). This makes it almost a puzzle game at times, with you scrutinising chances to hit, poison, petrify, paralyze for each unit, along with the damage they cause, their initiative, who they are likely to target, who can be placed in guard mode etc. The system may initally feel restrictive but it allows for far more depth that I found in any of the other types of games. D2 is often all about the margins, and quicksaving will be your friend until you get into the swing of things.
Other than that, the stories are entertaining and attempt to interweave (although I think the Empire and Legions ones are mutually exclusive), and there is a tonne of replayability.
So clicking a few radial choices is equivalent to pushing a car half a kilometer?
I'll be brutally honest, I'd rather push a car that far than register with some websites and answer stupid questions - and I've pushed enough cars, and registered on enough websites, to make that choice with my eyes wide open :)
I'll be brutally honest, I'd rather push a car that far than register with some websites and answer stupid questions - and I've pushed enough cars, and registered on enough websites, to make that choice with my eyes wide open :)
But that puts you in a very different position from many people. Moving a car half a kilometer takes you about as much time as the survey assuming you move at the average human walking speed (maybe a little less?), but it takes considerably more energy. You've physically lost something substantial. If you can't move at the average human walking speed it takes considerably more time. If you move it at at the average human running speed, you're accelerating it and exerting a TON of energy. Whether that matters to you personally is, well, personal. Either you don't feel very inconvenienced by pushing a car 500 meters or you do. Let's be more fair: A company asked you to do something very easy, that some people might not want to do, but other people will find trivial. Push a car 500 meters, fill out some forms, whatever. The point is, they asked you to do something that wasn't very difficult compared to things that would generate enough cash to purchase the games even on an extreme discount. Something that take minutes of your time and requires very little physical exertion.
Gundato's example was delightful, but here's one I think is most accurate--filling out real life forms! Step up one and all, fill out this survey, sign up for out mailing list, and we'll give you a free gift-bag and enter you in a drawing for a giftcard at our store! I actually did exactly this at an REI recently.
If I got there, filled out the form, and then was told that shit, they were out of gift bags, but keep checking ... so I browsed the store checking back every now and then eventually to be told they'd call me tomorrow if they got any more giftbags from HQ ... I can't say I'd be peeved, no. Even if they never called. If I cared, I'd call and check. If they said "sorry, we've stopped the thing we're sorry" ... nope. I still don't think I'd be peeved. I've been in similar situations and it hasn't bugged me. Stuff for almost no work is basically free stuff; not getting it just means I barely wasted any time and barely wasted any effort for no reason which in turn just means I'd be less likely to care in the future.
That said, if you're just disappointed, I'm not confused; it just means I'm, at the absolute most, barely more chill about this sort of thing than you are. I'm sure you're barely more chill than me about other things. I'm confused by the angry people all over forums and such.
Last edited by gwathdring; 16-10-2013 at 03:20 AM.
I think of [the Internet] as a grisly raw steak laid out on a porcelain benchtop in the sun, covered in chocolate hazelnut sauce. In the background plays Stardustís Music Sounds Better With You. Thereís lots of fog. --tomeoftom | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
GETTING READY FOR A BUSY 2016: HOW TO PREPARE IN ADVANCE
As we step into 2016 and get back into the swings of things it's sometimes hard not to feel overwhelmed. All that work you've not had to do for two weeks has been waiting on your desk plus those extra few pounds you've put on over Christmas are making you feel like you've gained five dress sizes. Not to mention the unhealthy bank balance after a few months of indulging your loved ones!
Are you with me so far? I thought so... So what if we take a little look back to November, we were cool, calm and collected right? So take a leaf out of your own book, you know how to do it. I have a to-do list for a to-do list for both work and my blog. There's no better feeling that crossing something of it, so step back to last year and channel you're inner you.
When it comes to fitness you really need to set yourself goals. Whether that's to loose a dress size, tone your arms or simply drop those extra few pounds, you need clear goals in order to judge your own success. Try and workout at least three times a week, but if you don't really go to the gym try and go for long walks with a friend, you'll do 10,000 steps in no time as you chat away. Swap your lunch time meal deal for one of these Healthy Lunch Recipesand your fizzy drinks for water. Give yourself an hour a day to completely be selfish and focus on you and I bet come February you'll feel like a brand new person!
The only person who can make 2016 is you, don't rely on anyone else for your happiness! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The COPS Hiring Recovery Program (CHRP) provides funding directly to law enforcement agencies to hire and/or rehire career law enforcement officers in an effort to create and preserve jobs, increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention e | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Locals Only featuring Husband Material, Russia and Girl-Prov
Description
Mr. Miyagi's School of Karate and Improvisational Comedy
It has been 33 years since the famed Hill Valley Karate Tournament. Following his famed student’s controversial win with an illegal crane kick, Mr. Miyagi’s dojo saw a surge in popularity, allowing him to expand his teachings beyond the ancient martial art to include... improv.This group is the finest to ever come from the school.Today though, his students have drifted far from the Master’s peaceful teachings.In both karate... and comedy: they show no mercy.This show is unlikely anything seen before. A hybrid of intense high kicks, and laughs.
Husband Material
Russia
Russia is the Push Comedy Theater's reigning 3 on 3 Improv Tournament champions!They've been studying improv together for 6 years.Their favorite shows are the ones where they win.
Russia brings a quiet crazy to the stage with everything from pissed off tooth fairies, the great god Thor, snake charmers, and pretty much anything else you can think of.
When they are not performing Russia can be found conquering others or in their lair reading Beowulf.
Girl-Prov
The Push Comedy Theater presents Girl-Prov!Girl’s night comes to life on stage with Push Comedy Theater’s premiere all-female improv group!They combine musical improv, stories ripped right from the pages of their diaries, quirky characters, and long-form improv to rush you right into their sorority! You’ll pledge your funny bone to this adorable group of women!
Formed by Alba Woolard of The Pushers, Girl-Prov brings together fierce and sassy members of Push Comedy Theater's improv community for a raucous night of comedy!You’ll laugh so hard you’ll snap an underwire!From Mean Girls to the Real Housewives of every city in America, Girl-Prov pulls all the stops to make you cry… from laughing! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
goHUNT update on COVID-19 plus state by state updates
Share this article
Photo credit: Brady Miller
While we are all doing our best to navigate these uncertain times caused by the spread of COVID-19, we want to provide an update for our INSIDERs and Gear Shop customers. Also below is a state-by-state look at COVID-19's impact on hunting in each state.
Most of our team is working remotely and we are still actively working on INSIDER related content and other new features. The good news is that we will all be chasing velvet bucks and screaming bulls before we know it.
Our Gear Shop will remain open for online orders and our dedicated warehouse team will continue to ship out your items. The Shop staff is able to take your calls and answer any questions you might have — plus, we’d love to hear from you!
In the meantime, stay safe, respect the quarantine and let’s all get through this together.
State by state update on COVID-19’s impact on hunting
We have been getting a lot of questions from INSIDERs asking how COVID-19 is impacting their hunting season.
Below is a look at each state we cover on INSIDER and if that state has any current restrictions in place.
Alaska
Updated April 21, 2020
Recently Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) held an online meeting on April 14 to discuss proposals that would impact spring bear seasons in 2021. Now those proposals are set up for a public comment period. The ADFG board introduced two proposals dealing with spring bear hunts for 2021, particularly, the allowance of 2020 draw permits to be used in 2021 in some units for both black bear and brown/grizzly bears. They are accepting comments until 5/27 and will be voting on it 6/3. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Updated April 8, 2020
Alaska calls board meeting to possibly allow the transfer of 2020 bear permits to the next year due to COVID-19 restrictions. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Updated April 2, 2020
Effective 11:59 p.m. April 2, 2020 restrictions have been lifted for Alaska resident black bear and brown/grizzly bear hunters. Nonresident hunters are still not permitted to hunt black bears or brown/grizzly bears in units 1-26. This restriction is in effect until 11:59 p.m. May 31, 2020 unless superseded by additional emergency orders. Check out the full details here.
Updated April 1, 2020
Effective April 1 through May 31, Alaska has closed all black bear and brown bear hunts statewide for both resident and nonresident hunters. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Idaho
Idaho Fish and Game Commission finally approved the sale of nonresident licenses, tags, and permits which are available for sale at 10 a.m. MST on May 16. For more info, click here.
Updated April 9, 2020
Idaho changes previous COVID-19 rule - now allows a nonresident a chance to pick up a tag if they meet certain conditions. Note: It does not open the door for all nonresidents. See the full article here.
Updated April 4, 2020
Idaho suspends the sale of nonresident hunting licenses and permits due to COVID-19. This will directly impact nonresidents who want to spring bear hunt, turkey hunt and fish.
Nonresident hunters who purchased spring bear and turkey licenses prior to April 4 are allowed to hunt, but the purchase of new licenses is not allowed. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Updated March 23, 2020
Idaho no longer requires users to complete a hunter education course field day to get their hunter education card to hunt. See the goHUNT article here for more information.
Kansas
Updated April 10, 2020
Kansas has suspended the sale of nonresident turkey permits for 2020 due to COVID-19 effective immediately. Nonresident hunters who made their spring turkey purchase prior to the order’s effective date may still participate in Kansas’ spring turkey season.
Note: Hunters traveling from states listed on the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s “Travel Quarantine List” must self-quarantine upon arrival for 14 days prior to hunting and/or checking into a state park cabin. Read the full article here.
Updated March 23, 2020
All upcoming seasons in Kansas will open as planned.
Turkey season:
All 2020 spring seasons will continue as planned, including the spring turkey season. Hunters traveling from states listed on the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s “Travel Quarantine List,” referenced here, must self-quarantine upon arrival for 14 days prior to hunting and/or checking into a state park cabin. Refunds will be available for those no longer able to travel.
Montana
On June 1, Montana will lift the 14-day quarantine that was imposed on visitors who traveled to Montana for non-work related reasons. Read more here.
Updated May 12, 2020
Montana is allowing free hunter education courses to Montana residents who are at least 12 years old because of the closure of courses due to COVID-19. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Updated April 24, 2020
Montana nonresident spring turkey and spring black bear hunts are open again effective April 25. Note: Out-of-state travelers must still follow the governor’s 14-day quarantine directive. Learn more here. Note: Visitors from out-of-state are required to self-quarantine for 14 days or for the duration of their visit, whichever is shorter. Individuals coming to the state for work-related travel are exempt from this requirement. Exclusions to this directive include public safety, public health, healthcare workers, travelers passing through on their way to another destination, and travelers visiting for work purposes.
Updated April 10, 2020
Montana has changed the black bear reporting requirements. For the spring black bear season, which starts April 15, all successful bear hunters are required to report their harvest through the FWP Harvest Reporting Line 1-877-FWP-WILD (1-877-397-9453) within 48 hours of harvest. Unlike in years past, FWP will not require or conduct a carcass inspection, hide seal or tooth collection. Learn more and check out a few other items impacted by COVID-19 here.
Updated April 9, 2020
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks just shut down the nonresident turkey and black bear seasons until at least April 24 due to COVID-19. Spring turkey season, which begins April 11, and spring black bear season, which begins April 15, will still be open to residents. Read the full article on goHUNT here to learn more.
Updated March 31, 2020
Information from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks website:
At this time, regularly scheduled hunting seasons are not canceled. According to Montana, this includes spring turkey season, which starts April 11, and spring bear season, which starts April 15. However, hunters should practice social distancing and all COVID-19 response directives from the governor, including limiting group gatherings and keeping six feet away from people.
Hunters should also keep this in mind when planning for their hunts. If hunting on private land, landowner permission is required, but should be sought by email or phone, not in person.
Montana does have a 14-day quarantine order through April 10. The Directive applies both to Montana residents and nonresidents entering the state for non-work-related purposes. It requires a self-quarantine for 14-days, or the duration of a non-work trip to Montana—whichever is shorter. More information can be found here.
Past March 17 Information
Montana has also suspended all field day hunter education courses. This is important because the suspension of hunter education and bowhunter education classes in Montana has the potential to impact new hunters who want to apply for special permits in upcoming Montana draws. Learn more here.
Nevada
Updated April 1, 2020
Yesterday several claims on Facebook were saying hunting and fishing seasons are closed in Nevada. Those were, unfortunately, April Fools’ Day jokes made in bad taste. Because of this bad joke, NDOW personnel were swamped with phone calls all day and had to waste their time dealing with false information.
Updated March 31, 2020
If you are going to leave the state of Nevada for a spring hunt, you should know that Governor Steve Sisolak has issued a travel advisory for the State of Nevada. This advisory is for people coming into the state and even Nevada residents who leave the state and return, to self-quarantine for 14 days after arriving or returning to Nevada. Learn more here.
Update for March 23, 2020
Earlier in March, Nevada made it easier to apply for the big game draw for new hunters who haven’t taken a hunter education class before. The minimum age to complete online hunter education is 11 years old. There is no longer a field course required. Check out the goHUNT article here for more information.
NDOW staff is available seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to help you through the application process. Call (855) 542-6396 with questions or click the orange “Support” button at ndowlicensing.com.
There are no cancellation of 2020 hunts in Nevada.
New Mexico
Despite false rumors floating around on social media, the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish reassures New Mexico hunters the results of the 2020-2021 big-game draw will be released by April 29, 2020, if not earlier.
Hunt season closure social media posts are a hoax. Over the past week, there have been prank posts on social media stating that the 2020-2021 hunting season in New Mexico has been canceled. This is false, and the Department recommends not clicking on the links provided in this or any other hoax. Director Michael Sloane stated “the Department is working diligently to audit the draw and provide results as soon as possible for New Mexico’s hunters.”
All upcoming seasons in New Mexico will open as planned.
Oregon
Updated May 1, 2020
Oregon to open back up the doors for nonresident hunting and fishing beginning May 5. Check out the goHUNT article here for more information.
Updated April 9, 2020
Oregon completely closes off recreational hunting and fishing to nonresidents, regulation takes effect tomorrow night. ODFW urges residents who do choose to hunt, fish, crab or clam be careful and follow proper social distancing protocols. The restriction will be set in place until the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted and it is deemed safe to travel into Oregon. Check out the goHUNT article here for more information.
Utah
All upcoming seasons in Utah will open as planned.
Updated April 10, 2020
In order to follow social distancing guidelines and prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is now offering a temporary online field day for hunter education courses. The DWR is also changing the sign-up process for hunter education and other courses, now providing easier online registration. Learn more here.
Updated April 8, 2020
Starting on April 10, Utah now requires a travel declaration form to be filled out if you are traveling to Utah through an airport or driving. That form will ask if you have been tested for COVID-19 and if you've recently experienced symptoms. If you are driving into Utah, all of the road entry points have been geofenced, so anyone traveling into the state will now receive a text message from the federal wireless emergency alert system. That text message will then instruct you on how to fill out the form. Read more here.
Updated April 3, 2020
Utah is going above and beyond and is putting out the option to allow those who drew a spring bear permit or a limited-entry turkey hunt, a chance to turn their tag in for a refund and gain all points back, plus one for this year. Emails were sent out to tag holders. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Washington
Updated April 27, 2020
Washing will open some recreational fishing and hunting starting Tuesday, May 5 in a phased approach following the state’s efforts to limit the spread of coronavirus. Local hunting for turkey and spring bear will open on May 5, and the spring bear season will be extended until June 30. Learn more here.
Updated April 6, 2020
Spring turkey hunts and bear hunts and have been postponed in Washington. If the department is able to open spring bear and turkey seasons on May 4, spring bear hunters would still have until May 31 or June 15, depending on the location, to use their permits before the intended season closure dates for those hunts. Likewise, spring turkey hunters would have 28 days of hunting during the spring season. Read the full article here.
Updated March 31, 2020
Washington has canceled their spring youth turkey hunt and general bear season. Six game management units that were scheduled to open on April 1 for spring bear hunting will now be closed pending further evaluation. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
Those who have youth turkey tags may still be able to use their tags during the regular spring or fall turkey seasons, “pending further impacts,” according to WDFW. The agency plans to reassess opening the impacted hunting areas on April 6. Hunts with limited participation do not have the same public health concerns and remain open.
More information on COVID-19 updates for Washington can be found here.
Wyoming
Update May 13, 2020
Wyoming has extended the 2020 spring turkey hunting season until May 31. This extension is allowed by an emergency rule, signed by Wyoming Gov. Gordon. The extension applies to hunt areas 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 and for all license types. The 11-day extension is to allow more opportunity for hunters whose spring turkey season was impacted by public health orders and directives due to COVID-19. Read more here.
Updated April 15, 2020
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is suspending the sale of nonresident daily and five-day fishing licenses, effective immediately. According to WGFD, this suspension is due to the need to ensure individuals coming into Wyoming for a non-work related purpose comply with Governor Gordon’s April 3, 2020 Directive requiring a 14-day quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals are responsible for complying with all state and local orders. This emergency regulation remains in place for 120 days. Wyoming may reverse this license sale suspension if guidelines, orders, or directives are changed. Read more here.
Updated April 10, 2020
Wyoming Game and Fish Department just announced the emergency process to register new black bear bait sites for 2020. New sites will now be registered through an online application process. These changes to the registration process create a priority ranking that will be used to allocate open bait sites while minimizing contact between people. Learn more here.
Updated April 6, 2020
Wyoming is asking nonresident hunters to stay at home due to the recent 14-day quarantine directive unless you can observe the quarantine. Options exist if you can't use your tag due to your state restrictions or this quarantine order. Read the full article on goHUNT here.
States not covered on goHUNT
The following states are ones that we are providing updates on as we receive information from each state.
Iowa
Updated March 31, 2020
The following is a press release from Idaho Department of Natural Resources:
Iowa's hunting and fishing regulations are not affected by the current COVID-19 health emergency in Iowa. Despite rumors on social media channels, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has no plans to eliminate seasons, relax regulations or change license prices.
"Fishing and hunting regulations exist to protect human safety as well as wildlife populations over the long-term," said Dr. Dale Garner, Conservation and Recreation division administrator at the Iowa DNR. "We balance the long-term sustainability of Iowa's natural resources with the well-being of Iowans, and will continue to take a thoughtful, science-based approach to Iowa's hunting and fishing laws."
Nebraska
Updated March 31, 2020
The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is suspending the sale of nonresident spring turkey hunting permits in a proactive effort to prevent the potential for the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). This is being done by the Commission in coordination with Gov. Pete Ricketts Executive Order No. 20-11 to help protect the health of Nebraskans by discouraging unnecessary travel.
Game and Parks will stop selling 2020 nonresident spring turkey permits effective immediately. Nonresidents who have purchased permits will be able to use them, but will not be able to purchase additional permits. Nonresidents with Nebraska turkey permits will be contacted by Game and Parks through email within the next week with additional information, including potential refunds.
Thanks for the update! You guys do a great job, customer service is top notch, and I really appreciate the data-driven decision making which y'all empower the community. Best regards during this trying time. Be safe and stay healthy!
I would like to second that. Gear shop/optics took really great care of me the other day. I had a 15% off coupon that I got to use on a Swaro spotter kit and expert advice on the phone when I called! If you are buying gear somewhere else you are probably missing out. Thanks goHUNT!!!
I’d just like to point out that the customer service team is still very responsive. I messaged them about a scope and got a response almost immediately. Customer service is top notch around here, thanks! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
James reportedly has concerns about the Bulls: owner Jerry Reinsdorf is always reluctant to spend on winning; Derrick Rose may struggle off the ball next to The King; there’s no three-point gunner to spread the floor and keep opposing defenses honest; and Tom Thibodeau is a rookie coach.
(Of course, this could be conjecture and speculation. Chicago still has much to offer free agents.)
So Bell knows Miami could well become a contender -and surely wants in.
The Heat – after the dust settles with James and Bosh – should add Bell. His defense, intensity, and three-point stroke is perfect for a contending team. And he’d likely give oil-slick GM Pat Riley a hometown discount.
Right now, Miami is looking to make major moves, which could land them a useful veteran in Bell. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
7 Keys to Your Best Booking Year Ever
This past year saw a massive shot of new content and in turn, was the busiest year ever for actors. While we can’t predict what 2019 will bring, we can look back at the last 12 months to determine where we were challenged and caught off guard, and how to use these moments constructively to better prepare for what’s to come, whatever it may be.
Here’s a recap of what this year taught us and what we need to know to have the best booking year ever in 2019.
Be great. It’s not enough to be good—you must be great. If you’re regularly going out for major film and TV roles, you’re competing at the Olympic-level of the industry. So if you’re truly trying to a build a career in this industry, you must be great. If you’re willing to go into the room with less-than-stellar performances, maybe you don’t really love acting. Take stock of what’s preventing you from devoting yourself to being the best actor possible.
There are no rules. When you’re great, there are no rules for proper etiquette. Actors shackle each other with fear-based advice that only puts obstacles in your path and screws with your head. Stop trying to model your path to success after someone else’s—yours will look very different.
Everyone is scared. Not just actors. The jobs of producers, directors, writers, and casting directors are on the line at all times. Take all hostilities with a grain of salt and take nothing personally. The casting director is trying to please the producer or agency. The director is trying to impress everyone and show great directorial skills. The producers are trying to please the network, studio, or investors.
At the end of the day, show business is a lifestyle with money on the line and accompanying panic. If someone barks at you, demeans you, mocks or dismisses you, just know that it is coming from a weak, fear-based place and view them with compassion while retaking your power back.
That said, if you feel like this kind of behavior veers into territory that’s abusive, you should absolutely speak up for yourself and take whatever actions necessary to make yourself feel safe.
Let go of outcomes.A preoccupation with outcomes is toxic, especially for actors. With regards to the craft and your career, you must let go of your attachment to how you think something is supposed to go.
The life of an actor is one big metaphorical road trip. The auditions are all the sights along the way. Appreciate and value them for what they can teach you. Use them as opportunities to build connections in the room and impress your peers to the extent that your name and face are always at the top of someone’s mental shortlist for a prospective role.
It doesn’t get easier, you just get braver. No matter how successful you are, sustained success in this industry is directly proportional to your work ethic and ability to do the best acting you’re capable of and your willingness to take yourself out of your comfort zone. Some actors I meet are great at winning over the room when they walk in but fall short with their performance. Some deliver perfect auditions but stumble during the small-talk part of the audition, coming across as aloof or resigned. Others are great at networking and building powerful friendships in the industry, but they can’t focus on preparing a solid audition despite their enormous talent.
Few people have all the tools they need to succeed. Investing in your personal development is part of the job. The parts you need to develop will force you to do scary stuff, so know that your success depends on being brave.
Laziness + ego = career cyanide. Successful actors work like dogs. Sure, the work can and should be fun, but many actors simply don’t have the stomach for what it takes to make it. They aren’t willing to constantly work on their craft, seek out next-level training, and they typically scorn auditions for smaller projects because they think they’re too good for such things.
Relationships are key. While it’s important to form good relationships with CDs directors, they don’t actually cast the bulk of the roles. That’s the job of production teams, with the majority of major roles cast directly cast by producers, networks, showrunners, and writers before they ever get to a casting office.
So while it behooves you form warm relationships with CD offices, production offices, producers, showrunners, and writers should be the center of your focus when it comes to relationship building. There’s a right way to meet and stay in touch with them, updating them on your career path when appropriate.
Very few people I work with are doing everything they can to inch their career forward. Let’s all agree to meet the new year with a renewed spirit of bravery and a commitment to proactive effort. We can all meet the challenges of this industry, along with the ones inherent in ourselves, head-on and with vigor.
Sign up here to get Pearlman’s free acting and career tips delivered to your inbox, and email [email protected] to launch your career now from anywhere in the world or schedule an audit.
Joseph Pearlman is a celebrity and on-set acting coach for Hollywood’s top actors, musicians, and comedians. He works with clients such as Zooey Deschanel, Skylar Grey, Michael Welch, and Julian Sands, and he also coaches presenters for all the major award ceremonies. Pearlman Acting Academy was voted the best acting studio in Los Angeles by the Backstage Readers’ Choice Awards. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
A gentle place to gather strength
White and Bright
Well, I thought about making some whimsical posts in October back in this post Bippity Boppety Boo, “dressing up” my blog in sparkle and magic. I am studying Revelation this whole school year (sept.-may) So I may be sharing some of what I am processing and learning throughout the way. A few verses stood out to me this week concerning clothing. I liked these parts of the scripture. So much of what I read was serious warnings about sin, and encouragement to hold strong and persevere in persecution or pressure. Such serious overwhelming thoughts, with eternity at stake. So the little parts added about shining white wardrobe makes my heart swell and feel connected to God. He is beauty, inspiration, and glory too.
“And standing in the middle of the lamp stands was someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across his chest. His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And his eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were polished like bronze refined in a furnace, and his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from his mouth. And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance.”
Do you like the idea of Him holding stars in His hands too? I like that….
Revelation 3:5 says “All who are victorious will be clothed in white.”
Revelations 19:8 “She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear. For fine linen represents the good deeds of God’s holy people.”
I know any good deed I have ever done is only because of God’s grace, spirit, and truth working through me. Maybe the result of seeds of truth planted in love by my parents or grandparents, or their prayers of purpose for me. I don’t deserve to wear white or shine like the stars in the sky.
Daniel 12:3 Those who are wise will shine as bright at the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever.”
But I hold onto the hope that His love transforms me, His spirit transforms me, and I am thankful that He has made me white as snow.
Thinking of the song
“What can wash away my sins, nothing but the blood of Jesus, what can make me whole again, nothing but the blood of Jesus,
Oh, precious is the flow that makes me white as snow, no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
So this October I pray you remember His perfect love cast out all fear and shame and gives us a new white wardrobe, in which we shine like the stars.
I pray we would continue to let His word and truth wash over us.
Twirling in my white wedding dress and a photo I took of a fern in the snow in my front yard. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Montana Highway 15 from Shelby to Great Falls is a step back to the old west. You drive by miles of the high
plan farms that helped to win the west. The drive is a mix of farms and rolling hills. If you stop and let your
imagination run you can still see the giant herds of Bison roaming the open plans. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Reply by sprucegum
Buy local from land owners and small mill operators whenever possible. A land owner who owns his own mill just does not need the same price as a retailer. I have sawed some pretty nice lumber from logs that would be considered extremely low value because of size or defects. As a for instance a 8” X 12’ cherry log with a seam and a couple of poor faces would be considered pallet grade and would be worth under .20/bdft delivered to a mill or buying yard, it would scale around 32 bdft depending on the scaler and rule being used. This log would bring the land owner a whopping $6.40 provided he did his own harvest and trucking. The same log sawed on a band mill would yield at least 35 bdft with at least a couple FAS grade boards and some poorer boards with a lot of good usable wood in them. If the land owner sawyer can get $1.00/ ft the same log will bring him over 5 times as much. You will find most land owner sawyers willing to negotiate on price if you buy the whole pile or at least a good amount; I know I am always open to offers. If you don’t need it all split it with a buddy or sell some of the surplus your self.
-- A tube of calk and a gallon of paint will make a carpenter what he ain't | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
What asset protection trusts do is to allow someone to transfer their assets into a trust that is controlled by an independent trustee. That trustee can then refuse to pay any creditors with trust assets.
To make this a little more fair for “current” creditors, suits against trust assets are allowed within a statute of limitations. These trusts are controversial enough when talking about institutional creditors, but they become even more controversial when they are used to shield assets from family law courts, which some states allow. These trusts allow people to protect assets from a spouse in a divorce.
Most states do have an exception for child support, but not all do.
As asset protection trusts become more popular, more states will probably start to allow them. Michigan is not likely to be the last state to do so.
01/07/2016
If you inherit a non-qualified annuity, then before you decide what to do it is important to understand the different options and tax implications.
Annuities have become an extremely popular tool in people's retirement plans. Like any other asset, these contracts can be the subject of an inheritance.
If they are inherited then the beneficiary needs to know what the options are for handling the annuity and what the tax consequences are. First, if a spouse inherits the annuity, then he or she can almost always continue the annuity contract as it is and thus face no immediate tax issues.
Take a Lump Sum – If an heir chooses a one-time payment, then the heir will need to pay income tax on any appreciated amount over the original premium payments the deceased made.
Arrange for Smaller Payments Over Time – By accepting smaller period payments, the heir can avoid a large one-time income tax payment. However, income tax will still be owed on any appreciation of the annuity.
Switch to a Different Annuity – The person who purchases an annuity can switch to a different provider without paying income tax. However, it is unclear if someone who inherits the annuity can do the same. In a private letter ruling the IRS allowed one heir to do so, but many annuity providers do not wish to rely on the ruling as it technically only applies to the person who asked for it. Some providers will work with heirs on switching providers though.
If you inherit a non-qualified annuity and have questions about what to do with it,consider setting an appointment with me to talk about these options and which is the best choice for you.
11/13/2015
A Halloween riddle for you: What's scarier than ghosts and goblins to Americans 50 and older? Answer: Their finances.
That's the upshot of the latest Country Financial Security Index, and two other surveys I've seen lately back it up. In fact, there's a strong case to be made that many boomers have grown truly scared of investment risk as a result of what they experienced in the 2008-2009 financial crisis and market crash. The new survey of 1,000 adults from Country — a group of insurance and financial service companies — found that 81% of people 50+ have at least one financial fear. What spooks them most: being able to afford health care expenses and being able to retire comfortably. Women 50 and older were more likely than men to worry about being able to retire comfortably, 34% (men) vs. 39% (women) cited this as a fear.
Forbes recently published an article, "What Spooks Us Most About Money," in which they reported that health care expenses are the biggest fear among Americans 65 and older, according to the survey. Compare that to the top worry of Millennials, which is affording their rent or mortgage.
But here's the scariest part of the survey: about 21% of the 50+ respondents said their financial fears are holding them back from reaching their goals. That's gotta give you some estate planning chills! Many people 50+ are also undoubtedly scared of what will happen to their financial assets after they die and whether their loved ones will receive proper care.
The whole subject of estate planning gives some people the willies. It is scary to think about dying and planning for what may happen after your death. But not thinking about it could wind up haunting your family for years to come.
If you fail to name guardians for your children in your will, the court might name them for you. And if you don't have a written estate plan, your wealth could go to heirs you hardly know or do not want to have an inheritance.
Sit down with a qualified estate planning attorney and have him or her draw up a will or trust, if you haven't done so already. Ask if it would be wise for you to have one or more trusts, which can be extremely helpful if you have children or grandchildren with special needs.
11/12/2015
Art makes up 2.5 percent of the biggest estates and just 0.6 percent of those who had between $10 million and $20 million. A Picasso fetched more than $95 million in 2006. The superrich are different from the very, very rich. For one thing, they own more art. Estate tax data recently released by the Internal Revenue Service show what the wealthiest Americans possess when they die—and where the money goes.
In The Wall Street Journal's "When the Superrich Die, Here's What's in Their Wallets," reported that the estate tax returns in the data sample were all filed in 2014, so they came from the estates of people who died in 2013 (the estate tax applied to estates of individuals over $5.25 million and a top rate of 40%). Estates can deduct charitable contributions and bequests to surviving spouses, who then pay when they pass away.
The most important thing to remember about the estate tax is that it really doesn't apply to most folks, just to a few of the very rich. Congress increased the exemption and indexed it to inflation, ensuring that almost all of the 2.6 million people a year who die in the U.S. need not worry about estate tax. That leaves just the very wealthiest in the country.
Fewer than 12,000 estate tax returns were filed in 2014—more than 50% of those didn't yield any tax for the federal government.
The data showed that the uber-wealthy don't provide much information about the ways they shift assets out of their ownership or the planning maneuvers that can decrease the size of estates prior to death. Those who died with more than $50 million (the top tier) were heavily invested in stock and closely held businesses.
Those who were rich enough to file an estate tax return–but not at the very top–relied much more heavily on retirement accounts like 401k's and real estate. The types of assets change as people get wealthier. The merely rich have houses, cash, farms and retirement accounts. The very rich have bonds and real estate. But the very, very rich own art and stocks of businesses which they often want to pass to future generations.
The richest people pass on smaller shares of their estates to their heirs and it's not merely due to the fact that more of their wealth is subject to taxation. They tend to have bigger debts and make bigger charitable contributions. Charities collected $18.4 billion from bequests from the returns filed in 2014, with 58% of that coming from just 1.4% of estate tax returns.
11/10/2015
The most common estate planning mistake may surprise you. "The mistake actually isn't part of the will and trust," said Dan Prebish, head of life services events at Wells Fargo Advisors, based in St. Louis. "It actually has to do with beneficiary designation." Prebish said people sometimes fail to designate who will gain control of various assets upon one's death. "It's not uncommon to find that someone still had their ex-spouse named," as the one to receive control of the asset, he added.
When you change the beneficiary on a retirement account, the update can be as easy as filling out a form. But it's the communication with your heirs that's key, especially since estate planning isn't the most enjoyable topic to discuss.
Surprises are what cause hurt feelings and even litigation. As a result, you need to figure out a way to explain the estate planning changes to your children or heirs. The starting point to any successful estate plan is a will, which is a legal document that details which heirs are to receive which assets or properties you own.
Online programs can be helpful, but user error is typically how things go wrong when drafting wills without the help of an attorney.
Another factor is taxes. A person who has a total estate of less than $5.45 million in 2016 won't pay any federal estate tax, but above that, it's a 40% flat rate (the threshold for the federal estate tax was raised a bit for 2016 from $5.43 million in 2015.).
All the same, federal estate taxes generally won't be a concern for most Americans because one would need an estate worth over $5.45 million in order for the federal estate tax to apply.
Each of us has a lifetime exemption up to that threshold. However, you should keep in mind that individual states have different thresholds. For example, some states have thresholds that are only in the six figures, which may affect more people.
11/09/2015
One of the most difficult issues in estate planning is what to do about heirs who may need something like a parent's guiding hand long after they become adults. A child or grandchild may have a mental illness, a problem with substance abuse, or chronic trouble holding a job. Helping such a person by giving them money may in fact be harmful, by enabling bad or self-destructive behavior. One possible solution for such dilemmas is what's known as an incentive trust. This gives the trustee power to enforce provisions that encourage desired behaviors – or penalize the heir for failure to meet a certain standard.
Attempting to control too many aspects of an heir's life can be counterproductive: it's called trying to "control from the grave," or making an inheritance conditional. Examples of "incentives" include completing a certain degree or entering a certain line of work that may not be in line with an adult's actual talents or aspirations.
Nonetheless, where a clear pattern of negative actions exists, the right incentives can encourage an heir to make better life choices.
It's important to be realistic. The promise of inherited money may not be enough to overcome a pattern of severe substance abuse, so the threat of giving the inheritance to charity if specified incentives aren't met might be needed.
It may be a good idea to attach age restrictions.
If you have a kid who is irresponsible with money, a trust might be structured so that s/he will not have access to the estate's principal until a certain age. Some trusts set up staggered distributions, at specified ages, to keep them from burning through their inheritance right away. Another way to encourage a responsible lifestyle is to distribute trust funds on a matching basis. That might be dollar for dollar, based on what the beneficiary earns on his or her own. This is known as a "work ethic" clause.
Another sort of incentive clause could specify that the trustee wouldn't distribute any money until the heir showed an ability to handle the funds. For someone with an abuse problem, this could be enforced by requiring the beneficiary submit to random drug testing. Failure to comply could result in the assets being distributed to alternate beneficiaries, like charities.
Instead of just disinheriting a child or grandchild, an incentive trust can work as an escape clause. It might just help to get someone who's struggling to turn his or her life around.
11/05/2015
The death of a loved one can create a lot of financial complexity. For families that have set up irrevocable trusts to facilitate the transfer of assets from one generation to another, the tax implications can be even more complicated. However, there are some basic rules that any heir should know if they get an inheritance from an irrevocable trust.
The Motley Fool recently published an article entitled, "Tax Consequences of an Inheritance From an Irrevocable Trust," in which it noted that generally speaking, whether an irrevocable trust will be subject to estate tax at the death of the person who set it up will depend on the trust's terms and how it was created.
Because an irrevocable trust is typically a separate legal entity, it's not part of the estate of the person who created it. Its creation is usually a taxable gift that requires a gift tax return, which can have implications for eventual estate tax liability. Nonetheless, heirs receive the benefit of avoiding estate tax on the trust asset's appreciation in value.
One caveat is life insurance trusts. If the person creating the trust retained incidents of ownership in the policy (retaining power to change beneficiaries, canceling or transferring the policy, putting the policy up as collateral for a loan, or borrowing money against the policy's value), it will be included in the person's estate—regardless of the irrevocable trust's ownership. If this is the case, estate taxes may be due, and your inheritance could decrease.
The impact of income taxes also depends on the terms of the irrevocable trust. If the trust terminates at the person's death and the trust distributes assets to the heirs, your tax basis in those assets will be that of the trust. Make sure you have detailed information from the trustee before making plans to sell those inherited assets.
But if the trust continues beyond the death of the person who created it, then some complex trust tax rules apply. There may be regular distributions that the trust makes to you which will be treated as taxable income. You'll receive a year-end informational return that shows how much income is taxable and if it's ordinary income, capital gains, or other specialized types of income.
11/02/2015
Three diseases, leading killers of Americans, often involve long periods of decline before death. Two of them — heart disease and cancer — usually require expensive drugs, surgeries and hospitalizations. The third, dementia, has no effective treatments to slow its course. So when a group of researchers asked which of these diseases involved the greatest health care costs in the last five years of life, the answer they found might seem surprising. The most expensive, by far, was dementia. The study looked at patients on Medicare. The average total cost of care for a person with dementia over those five years was $287,038. For a patient who died of heart disease it was $175,136. For a cancer patient it was $173,383. Medicare paid almost the same amount for patients with each of those diseases — close to $100,000 — but dementia patients had many more expenses that were not covered. On average, the out-of-pocket cost for a patient with dementia was $61,522 — more than 80 percent higher than the cost for someone with heart disease or cancer. The reason is that dementia patients need caregivers to watch them, help with basic activities like eating, dressing and bathing, and provide constant supervision to make sure they do not wander off or harm themselves. None of those costs was covered by Medicare.
Most families just aren't prepared for the financial burden of dementia. They assume that Medicare covers all of the expenses. Not so. Patients and their families don't realize that isn't the case. Plus, everything gets more complicated when an individual has dementia.
For example, if a dementia patient in a nursing home gets a fever, the staff may say that they aren't equipped to handle it. They call 911. The patient is then admitted to the hospital. This can lead to complications for the patient suffering from dementia. They may get delirious and confused, slip or fall out of bed and sustain injuries, or they choke on their food. This can cause medical costs to sky-rocket.
There are large disparities in out-of-pocket costs for the three diseases. Medicare covers discrete medical services like office visits and acute care, including hospitalization and surgery. These are the types of expenses experienced by cancer patients and heart patients. Those patients usually don't need full-time home or nursing home care until the very end of their life, if at all. As a result, they don't see that continuing cost. On the other hand, dementia patients need constant care for years. In addition, these dementia patients may not be sick enough for a nursing home, but they still will need supervision and care.
When dementia patients are sick enough for a nursing home, the cost is not covered by health insurance. More than half of patients with dementia— with three-quarters of those from racial minorities—spend down, using savings to pay for the nursing home until the money is all gone. After that, Medicaid takes over.
10/30/2015
Seems like the subject of estate taxes becomes part of every politician's election promises, and today's election environment is no different. Even though we are not really expecting significant changes in that area, estate taxes have changed dramatically, and some folks may still be uncertain about how those changes relate to them. First of all, remember that there are two kinds of estate taxes and each can be significantly different from the other in certain ways. What gets taxed? Essentially everything you own (even the face value of life insurance policies where you are listed as owner). The amount of each person's estate that can be excluded from federal estate taxes stands at a whopping $5 million. That means the federal estate tax of roughly 35% would be exacted on any estate valued over $5 million. Another relatively new provision is that married persons, each of whom has the $5 million exclusion, can pass any unused portion of their $5 million to their spouse. This is called "portability."
The article, "Estate taxes explained," from nj.com explains that state estate taxes are entirely different animal: many are not very easy to understand and state laws can differ drastically from state to state. For example, married persons have the flexibility of knowing that they don't have to pay either federal or state estate taxes in New Jersey when one of them dies. This is called the unlimited marital deduction.
But things can get pretty tricky quickly when you own real estate in a state or states that are not your state of residence. When you die, those other states may seek to tax your estate with their own very different state estate tax. A smart way to avoid this issue is to establish a trust to hold that property. The surest way to avoid estate taxes is to give assets away. However, that's a serious step when you might need those assets to provide for you and your family during your lifetime.
Another way would be to create an irrevocable life insurance trust. In that situation, the trust, and not you, "owns" the life insurance, and if life insurance is purchased directly into the trust, there is no waiting period. But if existing life insurance is transferred into the trust, there's a three-year wait before the life insurance is considered out of your estate.
Another way to remove assets from your estate is to establish a 529 Education Savings account with a named beneficiary. With a 529 plan, even though you're the stated "owner" of the account, it's not considered part of your estate.
10/29/2015
In February of 1959, rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson were killed when a plane Holly chartered at the last minute crashed near Clear Lake, Iowa. The event later became known as "the day the music died." Richardson had the flu and talked Waylon Jennings into giving up his seat on the plane. Valens won a coin toss with Tommy Allsup for the last seat. The timing of these two fateful actions altered the course of history for these men and their families. My first memory of playing musical chairs was in kindergarten. Our elementary music teacher taught us not only about music but also unknowingly about competition. When the music stopped, the goal of the game was to be in a position to grab the chair and not be left standing, alone and out of the game. We were taught the "Golden Rule" — to be nice to classmates — but at the same time, the game instilled a conflicting desire to grab that last open chair from a fellow 6-year-old who may not have been quite as quick on the draw. There is a perfect storm brewing in agriculture — specifically regarding transition of assets from one generation to the next. The timing of this perfect storm could be catastrophic for a family farm.
Factors included in this perfect storm include the quantity of farms owned by the older age group, as well as the psychological and emotional issues involved with trying to keep a family institution thriving and in the family. Couple these issues with the amount of capital investment required to continue the farm and the uncertainty of when things will happen, and your farm operation could be in trouble. You need a complete plan, says an article in the Iowa Farmer Today, "Discuss farm estate and succession plans now so no heir is 'left standing.'"
The article advises every farm family to create and review an estate plan and a farm succession plan. These two plans may overlap, but they are two different programs. The estate plan includes documents such as a will or trust, powers of attorney, farm continuation language, executors, trustees, distribution plans, and the age of distribution for minor beneficiaries, as well as contingency plans in the event a beneficiary has predeceased or is disabled at the time of your death. The estate plan includes the coordination of beneficiary designations of retirement plans and life insurance. An important point is to maintain liquidity to pay debts, taxes, or administration costs. This may not be accomplished by simply naming your children as beneficiaries, as many do.
A farm succession plan typically includes the business operating agreements, terms of future purchase, the terms for lease if not purchased, and limitations on ownership. Which of the parts of an estate and farm succession plan will be most important to your family will depend on the timing and what stops the music in the estate.
A key part of any estate plan is identifying ownership and an updated fair market value of the estate assets.
Many folks think that an estate plan just deals with the distribution of assets at death. But an estate plan should identify and discuss strategies for the distribution of any assets that could or should be distributed prior to your death, in addition to those distributed when you pass away.
A good estate plan not only identifies assets but sets out a timeline to distribute those assets with a process that is tax efficient, while keeping in mind the general goals of the estate.
Sharing plans for your estate and business succession is critical for the effective and efficient transfer of the operation. You can avoid some hurt feelings and selfishness down the road if you explain your goals and transparently deal with the heirs whose ideas of distributing your estate may not be the same as yours.
A critical aspect of a succession plan is to identify the method of pricing the assets that adequately represents not only the structure of the business but also the goals of the owner. Another important component of a complete plan is a source of funding when the transition occurs, such as a loan or insurance if the buyout would occur at death. Cash flow is essential for any viable business.
Business succession and estate planning is more of an art than a science. Although there are parts of each plan that are consistent, the real value of an estate and a business succession plan is recognizing the unique issues of each individual situation. There's no "boiler-plate" plan that will work and should be automatically used for every family business. You need to find a way to create plans that fit your distinctive goals.
Sometimes being involved in a farm business without a concrete estate and farm succession plan can be a little bit like playing the game of musical chairs: when the music stops in your estate, don't let your farm heir be the one left standing with uncertainty and confusion—and ultimately find themselves out of the game. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Disclaimer:
I own nothing, all stargate related characters and places belong to
MGM and well anyone else who has claim to them.
Hope
you enjoy this story, and please review!
Colonel
Jack O'Neill peered into Major Carter's darkened lab, expecting
to see her bent over a technologically amazing doo-hickey. However
the sight that met his eyes was quite different to that. The blonde
astrophysicist was slumped over her laptop sound asleep. Smirking a
little, he walked over to her desk and put his hand on her shoulder.
"Carter,
wakey wakey!"
She
merely groaned and flapped a hand at his arm. He shook her a little.
"Carter."
"Wuzzgoingon?"
She muttered groggily.
"Oh,
you know, Allies popping in, demanding to speak with a certain
scientist."
"The
Tok'ra are here already?" She jumped up, and started towards the
door.
Earlier
that day the Tok'ra had made contact, asking for a private meeting
with Major Carter.
"You
know-" O'Neill was about to express his great dislike of all
things with snakes in their heads, when he was interrupted by the PA.
"Major
Carter to the briefing room."
"Never
mind."
Carter
shrugged and together they made their way out of her lab.
"Let
me make sure I have definitely understood you properly. The high
council has asked that I go undercover with a Tok'ra operative, to
steal technology, which may or may not exist." Sam said slowly.
The
two Tok'ra at the table with her simply nodded.
"Why
me? I mean, not to be conceited, but surely SG1 has been a thorn in
the side of the system lords long enough for them all to have seen
us. Won't I be recognized?"
"You
might be but it is highly unlikely. Generally, human servants do not
have that much attention paid to them. With the right clothes and
hair colour, you will not look out of the ordinary at all."
"What
does this technology do exactly?"
"We
do not know. It is thought to be of ancient origin." The other
Tok'ra, D'rekan answered.
"Could
someone else go if I am not allowed by my superiors? And which
Go'auld is it?" Sam suddenly realised she had no idea of this
very important fact.
The
Tok'ra traded glances, and several seconds passed before they
answered her.
"Our
operative and you would be trying to infiltrate Baal's mother ship.
As to your first question, we would prefer it was you as you have
more experience with Go'auld, but we could take another if they
were willing. It will be dangerous. If Baal discovers your true
identity, we cannot say for certain what would happen." Pe'ran
said slowly.
Sam
sighed. She could not in all good conscience let some one go in her
place. She was the leading expert on alien technology, and she did
have a lot more experience in the field than most female scientists
on base.
"I'll
do it, but I want all the information you have, and you two can talk
to General Hammond about it first. Agreed?"
"Very
well. We will inform General Hammond of the situation, and come back
for you in five days. Also, it will be necessary for you to alter
your hair colour. Blonde is not common in Go'auld hierarchies, and
you would stand out clearly." Pe'ran said, standing slowly.
Sam
nodded and left them to negotiate with Hammond. Suddenly, agreeing to
go with them didn't seem like a very good idea.
Sam
was working in the main science labs, as she knew her own lab would
be the first place her team mates would look for her. Having already
talked patiently with Daniel for an hour that day, avoiding them
seemed like a good option in her mind.
Grimacing,
Sam ran a hand through her now brown hair and thought back over her
team's reactions. Daniel had bombarded her with a barrage of words
until she had explained fully, and he had forgiven her for not
discussing it with him. Teal'c had merely raised an eyebrow and
wished her luck, but Sam could tell he wasn't pleased. It was
Colonel O'Neill that had her puzzled the most. He had listened very
quietly, and hadn't said anything to her about it,
uncharacteristically.
Her
musings were interrupted by footsteps coming in the doorway. Looking
up she saw the object of her thoughts leaning on the frame.
"Colonel!"
She exclaimed, wondering how he'd found her so fast.
"Hey
Carter. Surprised I found you so quickly?"
"Found
me sir?"
"What,
you weren't hiding from us in here?" When she opened her mouth,
he cut her off. "Don't say that you weren't. You and I both
know the truth."
Sam
grimaced internally. He was really angry about the operation. Fine.
She would give him the chance to yell if he wanted to.
"Don't
worry sir; I wouldn't have gone without giving you guys another
chance to talk me out of it."
"FOR
CRYING OUT LOUD CARTER, THIS ISN'T A JOKE!" O'Neill shouted.
"I
know that sir. Please, I'll be fine. Baal probably won't even
look twice at me. I'll be there a maximum of three days. Trust me,
I'll be all right."
"God,
Carter." He scrubbed a hand over his face tiredly. "I know you'll
be okay. You know me, I just worry.""Yes sir, I know." Sam
smiled a little.
"Carter,
just be careful out there, okay?" he looked at her pleadingly.
"Always,
sir." They held each others gazes for a moment before O'Neill
nodded, and turned to leave.
"Receiving
Tok'ra IDC, sir," Walter Harriman reported.
"Open
the iris."
"Yes
sir."
The
iris withdrew to reveal the sparkling blue of the event horizon. The
two Tok'ra that had come before, Pe'ran and D'rekan, stepped
through, carrying a box.
They
were met at the bottom of the ramp by all of SG1.
"Greetings."
Colonel
O'Neill gave a small wave. "What's in the box?"
"We
have brought Major Carter clothes to wear for the operation."
Pe'ran informed them, offering the box to Sam. "If you are ready,
we will go as soon as you're dressed."
With
a nod of acceptance from Hammond, Sam took the box and went to get
changed.
Ten
minutes later she sidled back into the gate room. O'Neill blinked
rapidly.
"Umm
Carter, I thought the idea was for Baal to not notice you."
She
was dressed all in blue. There were wide legged pants, with a
waistband of jewels, a veil with the same sort of band, and a top. It
was tight at the top, almost like a bra, with see through blue
material hanging down from it. The whole outfit flowed around her
body silkily.
"Sam,
you look…wow." Daniel said dazedly.
"Stop
it, I already feel like a spectacle without everyone looking at me."
She admonished him gently.
"Sorry."
He gave her a warm hug, and kissed her on the cheek. "Be careful."
"I
will." She turned to Teal'c and gave him a wide smile, before
kissing his cheek as well.
"Good
luck Major Carter." He said solemnly.
O'Neill
held out his hand. Taking it, she shook it quickly before giving his
hand a squeeze. "Remember your curfew," he said playfully.
"See
you in three days sir."
With
that, she headed up the ramp and stepped through.
Sam
stood behind the Tok'ra spy, Lyss'ya, with her head bent in
submission. There was a muffled sigh and everyone present sank to
their knees.
Baal
was coming.
Sam
looked at him from beneath her lashes as Lyss'ya got up to speak to
him. He was very arrogant, and had a smug look on his face when he
saw Lyss'ya.
After
Sam had been kneeling for some time, Baal nodded and swept back
towards his throne like chair. Lyss'ya curtsied and indicated for
Sam to follow her. As she did, she didn't notice the speculative
glance Baal gave her.
Two
jaf'fa led them to a room and Lyss'ya waved at them to go away.
Once inside, Sam, did a sweep for listening devices. Finding none she
turned back to the operative.
"What
did you say to get him to let us stay?"
"I
said I knew the whereabouts of an ancient machine that could be of
great use to him. I agreed to tell him where it was in exchange for a
look at his technology."
Lyss'ya's
blended voice was deep and rough.
"And
he bought it?" Sam was incredulous.
"Apparently.
Remember, any chance we get of getting the technology, we must take
it."
Sam
rolled her eyes, having been told this before. "Do you know where
it is?"
"Not
as yet. I activated the scanner as soon as we came aboard, but so far
there has been nothing." She turned away from Sam. "From this
point onwards, I think we should act as what we are pretending to
be."
Without
waiting for Sam to acknowledge her, she laid herself down on the bed.
"Fetch
me some food, I require sustenance."
Sam
bowed her head. "Yes, my goddess."
By
the end of the day, Sam was exhausted; she had found the ancient
machine about an hour after she had gone to fetch food for Lyss'ya.
She
was outside the room on the pretext of running yet another errand
when she heard voices from inside.
"What
have you found out the Tau'ri?" Sam could clearly hear Baal's
voice.
"They
are indeed a most primitive race my lord. Apart from that, nothing.
They think we are here to retrieve an ancient device." Lyss'ya
said meekly.
"Make
sure they do not find out the truth about you. Contact me when you
have anything more."
"What
about Major Carter, My lord?"
"She
can not be allowed to return. I must admit, she intrigues me. Maybe I
will keep her here with me."
"Yes,
My lord."
Sam
withdrew from her position stunned. It had all been a setup so
Lyss'ya could make contact with Baal.
'I
have to get out of here.' She realised, moving rapidly away from
the door. 'The cargo bay,' she thought, 'if I can make it to
the cargo bay and get a ship, I can get away.'
With
that, she started hurrying along the corridor silently.
Sam
peered furtively around the corner and into the cargo bay. There was
no one in sight. Content that she was alone, she edged in quietly and
started making her way toward the tel'tac that they had come in.
"HALT!"
The voice rang out, and echoed round the cavernous room, accompanied
by the sound of staff weapons being armed.
Sam
closed her eyes in frustration, and turned slowly. She had been so
close.
They
quickly made their way to the pel'tac. Baal was sitting languishing
in his throne like chair, with Lyss'ya standing next to him.
"My
Lord." Sam was shoved to her knees roughly. "We found her in the
cargo bay attempting to steal a ship."
"Ah.
Major Carter. Good." Baal sounded bored. Lyss'ya looked at her
intensely, excitement feverish in her eyes. She stepped forward and
said "I underestimated exactly how stupid you tau'ri are. Going
to find technology on a mother ship. Hah!"
The
Jaf'fa shifted uneasily next to Sam. "Leave us. But first,"
Baal nodded towards Lyss'ya, and his first prime stood, took aim,
and fired.
Sam
carefully made her expression blank as Lyss'ya's lifeless body
fell right before her eyes.
"Leave.
And take that," he indicated towards unmoving figure in front of
Sam, "with you."
Two
jaf'fa stood, bowed, and picked up the body, and with the rest,
walked out.
Baal
carefully stood up and walked over to her. "You might wonder why I
had her killed." Sam stared ahead, with her expression neutral.
"She had outlived her usefulness." He took hold of the veil that
was mostly covering her hair and pulled it off. "Interesting. As I
recall, you have a different hair colour. You know, I was most
disappointed that it was not O'Neill that came with Lyss'ya on
this trip. He and I have some unfinished business, but I cannot
imagine him in such a costume. It seems you will have to do.''
He
pulled her roughly to her feet, and touched her cheek.
"What
do you want?" Sam spat out.
"Me?
I want many things Samantha. You will break, and when O'Neill sees
you serving me, he will know I have won."
"No.
I won't ever serve you. Do what you like; you can't make me do
anything," Sam said vehemently.
"We
shall see Samantha."
With
an evil grin, Baal brought his hand device to Sam's head, the
orange glow bathing her face, even as it scrunched in pain.
Hours
later Sam lay sprawled on the cold floor of Baal's chambers,
feigning unconsciousness. Her head was pounding a tattoo inside, and
her limbs were refusing to move more than a few inches.
Baal
had used the hand device for what seemed like aeons, before having
her dragged to her current position.
From
what she could see, there was still a chance for escape. The cargo
bay was not far from here, and although heavily guarded, Sam knew
their positions now. She could quite possibly eliminate the guards
and use the cargo ship to fly to the nearest planet and then gate
home. With a grimace, She looked up at the small bench running a long
the wall. Her GDO was atop it, put there to taunt her.
Suddenly,
Sam became aware of the breathing next to her neck and involuntarily
tensed.
"Not
asleep then. Merely pretending," Baal's deep voice purred out.
He
grabbed her and pulled her up by her hair. Knowing what was coming;
Sam turned her head to escape his mouth. Without a word, he
backhanded her across the face. Hard.
He
kept slapping her, until after a minute or so, he stopped, and said
"shall we try again?"
In
answer, Sam simply spat in his face.
With
a roar of furry he flung up his hand and used his hand device to send
her crashing to the wall. Sam felt her ribs break and crumpled on the
floor.
Baal
strode over to her, and dragged her up again. Through a haze of pain,
Sam realized to incapacitate him; she would have to get him off
guard. Shrugging away her revolt, Sam allowed Baal to kiss her.
Trying
not to gag, she stood passively as his hands wrapped around the
bejewelled top and ripped off the long see though part, leaving only
the jewel encrusted camisole to cover Sam's skin.
When
Sam tried to push his wandering hands away, Ball grabbed her arm and
twisted it behind her back. With a sickening crunch, Sam felt the
bone break and whimpered in pain.
Without
missing a beat, his hands returned to her body, caressing her skin,
fingers biting into her flesh to mark her as his own. Then his mouth
left hers and started making its way down her neck and shoulders.
As
his mouth reached the strap of the top and his hands slid to the
waistband of her pants, Sam brought up the heavy bowl behind her with
her good arm, and smashed it into his head.
He
fell away from her like a rag doll, slumping to the floor
unconscious. Quickly, Sam made her way to the bench and scooped up
her GDO, and set off for the cargo bay, after collecting Baal's
hand device.
"Incoming
wormhole! Its SG1's iris code sir." Harriman reported excitedly
to the control room at large.
"Open
it!" Hammond was aware of Colonel O'Neill, Daniel Jackson and
Teal'c making their way hastily down to the gate room.
The
blue substance of the event horizon shimmered and Major Carter
stepped out, pale, bruised and dishevelled.
The
three other members of SG1 ran into the briefing room to see Carter
exit the wormhole.
"Sam!"
Daniel called out, tripping over his feet.
She
turned to look at them unfocusedly, and then without warning,
collapsed onto the metal ramp.
"MEDICAL
TEAM TO THE GATE ROOM!" O'Neill shouted at the top of his lungs,
before sprinting up the ramp.
Once
he got a clear view of her however he stopped in shock. The blue
costume they had teased her about was ripped, with half the top
missing. Bruising was already starting to show on her face and neck
and her left arm stood out at an odd angle.
'Sonofabi-'
this last thought was interrupted by the arrival of the medics.
O'Neill
Daniel and Teal'c were gathered around Sam's bed waiting for her
to wake up. Under the glare of the lights the bruises stood out
starkly on her white skin.
Bringing
them out of their stupor, Janet Fraiser's heels clicked up behind
them.
The
low murmur of voices woke Sam up. She lay on the hard bed without
opening her eyes, allowing the lull of familiar voices to comfort
her. Slowly she became aware of exactly what they were saying.
"So,
what's wrong with her Doc?" Colonel O'Neill asked.
"Broken
arm, fractured ribs. Also, from the CAT scan there is evidence of
prolonged exposure to a hand device." Janet Fraiser read out her
list. "I'll keep her in here for the night, but she can go home
after that." The clicking of the heels announced her departure.
Sam
didn't want to open her eyes, didn't want to answer the questions
she knew would come, but she knew that her team mates would be
worried, so with a great amount of willpower she forced her eyes
open.
They
continued to murmur quietly amongst themselves. Sam smiled waiting
for them to notice she was awake. A few seconds passed, until-
"Aah…sleeping
beauty awakens." As usual, Sam refrained from rolling her eyes with
great difficulty.
"Sam."
Daniel smiled at her.
"Major
Carter." Teal'c inclined his head.
"Hi
guys." Sam smiled slowly at them, accepting a glass of water from
the colonel. "Thankyou sir."
After
a few seconds silence, O'Neill said, "Wanna tell us what
happened?"
Sam
shrugged, remembering her time on board Baal's ship. Thinking on
how he had touched her skin, an overwhelming nausea took her, and Sam
realised she was going to throw up.
"I'm
gonna be sick," She whispered softly.
Daniel
reacted instantly, grabbing he plastic bowl from the night stand,
while O'Neill took her water glass.
After
she had emptied the contents of her stomach Sam felt better, although
the movement had set her ribs on fire. Lying back, she proceeded to
tell them the story.
"And
so I managed to knock Baal out and steal the ship. After that, I
gated to a planet with a stargate and came home." She finished.
Silence met her words. After about a minute, Sam said "Say
something, anyone."
"I'm
sorry, I should have-" O'Neill started
"No,
don't be sorry. I chose to go."
Daniel
opened his mouth and said meaningfully, "You didn't leave
anything out did you, Sam, when Baal was with you in his chamber?"
Tears
prickled a Sam's eyelids. "No. there isn't anything else" She
looked round at them, before looking down at her blanket. "I was
absolutely terrified there would be though." She admitted slowly.
Daniels
hand gripped hers, while O'Neill put his hand on her shoulder
carefully. Teal'c was standing guard at the head of her bed.
"It's
okay now Sam. You're home and you're safe. That's the main
thing." Daniel said quietly.
"Yeah.
Thanks guys."
Several
hours later, Daniel and Teal'c left after promising to come back in
the morning.
Sam
let out a huge yawn, and O'Neill said "I suppose sleeping beauty
needs her rest."
Instead
of getting up, he leaned closer and said "If you need anything,
just say, all right?"
It
was then Sam realised that everything would be okay. Her team mates
didn't think any less of her and they still would e there for her,
no matter what.
"Yes
sir. I will"
Fixing
her with an enigmatic stare O'Neill said "We missed you." He
hesitated. "I missed you. It's good to have you back Carter."
With
a smile Sam said "It's good to be back sir, and, I missed you
too."
Smiling,
O'Neill walked out of the infirmary, and Sam went to sleep.
AN:
hey there readers! I'd just like to thank everyone who
reviewed my last story, 1982, and also thankyou if you read this one.
Ummm… if you've heard of Naruto, go check out my buddy nut 2's
stories, unfortunate circumstances and
,
they're great!
Please
review!
Luv,
Nut 1
The author would like to thank you for your continued support. Your review has been posted. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Four days of warnings, reason and rising voices
`For the most part, the tenor of the debate rose to the occasion,' Pelosi said after about 45 hours of Iraq speeches.
WASHINGTON — The House debate this week on the war in Iraq was marked by emotional commentaries and dire warnings about the costs of escalating the U.S. commitment or reducing it. On Friday, the deliberations ended with a new element: an audience.
During most of the four days consumed by the rhetorical face-off, lawmakers filed into a mostly empty House chamber to deliver their speeches. A sprinkling of aides and a few other members of Congress looked on, though frequently they were chatting among themselves or thumbing their BlackBerrys.
The mood and the interest level changed on Friday, however, as the House neared its vote on the resolution opposing President Bush's deployment of more troops to Iraq. The measure, though nonbinding, was viewed by both sides as fraught with significance.
Democrats and Republicans alike crowded the chamber by midafternoon to cheer their sides during the final appeals for votes. Spectators waiting to enter the third-floor public galleries lined the halls and the marble stairs.
Lawmakers on both sides of the issue said their votes were important. For some, the issue was personal.
"We are the troops" said Murphy, 33, his voice rising and his face suddenly flushed. "Friends that we served with when we deployed are
It was also evident when 76-year-old Sam Johnson (R-Texas), a prisoner of war in Vietnam for almost seven years, shuffled to the floor on his cane three times during the week to speak against the resolution.
"I know what it does to morale and mission success," to have Congress express disapproval of a war effort, Johnson, whose body is twisted from years of beatings and confinement in leg irons, said Friday.
"Moms and dads watching the news need to know that the Congress will not leave their sons and daughters in harm's way without support," he continued. "Let my body serve as a brutal reminder that we must not repeat the mistakes of the past."
Johnson was the next-to-last of 392 lawmakers who spoke in the debate that began early Tuesday afternoon. As he finished, fellow Republicans in the now-crowded chamber rose to applaud him for a full two minutes. Johnson hauled himself up from his chair and shook his fist in acknowledgment.
Some Democrats briefly joined the ovation. Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), who as chairman of the House Armed Service Committee gave his party's last speech, paid him homage at the start of his remarks.
On Friday, after a total of 44 hours and 55 minutes of debate, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) declared that "for the most part, the tenor of the debate rose to the occasion."
As lawmakers filed out of the chamber after the vote, some rushing to catch planes to their districts, many said they believed they had participated in a historic event.
Rep. Timothy J. Walz (D-Minn.) a former Army National Guardsman who served in Afghanistan and who rooms in Washington with Murphy, said he was "thankful" for the chance to vote for the resolution.
He said that Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Burlingame) had told him, "There is nothing nonbinding about the vote of a U.S. congressman representing his or her district in that sacred chamber, especially on an issue as important as a war."
Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) took a few minutes to explain why he viewed the vote as a "successful failure."
The number of Republicans -- 17 -- who joined with virtually all of the House Democrats to pass the resolution was below some expectations for GOP defections. That kept the tally below the two-thirds threshold that would be needed to override a presidential veto of future war-related legislation.
"The real battle is coming, and Republicans have laid a foundation to defend funding for the troops," Pence said. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Latest Posts
Some advice for junior developers new on the job by Henrik on November 15th, 2017First of all, the below applies to a quite high stakes setting in a financially related company, a place were we don't move fast and break things if we want to continue being in business.
Setting up Ansible for MySQL by Henrik on September 14th, 2016In this how to we're going to manage in total 16 different LXC nodes on two different host machines.
A Function Browser for Emacs by Henrik on April 9th, 2016In my emacs init file for 2015 post I state:
However it would be kind of nice to be able to run a command to open a new buffer with links to line numbers for all definitions in the current file, shouldn’t be too hard to implement either, we’ll see if I manage in 2015.
Hacking Wordpress The Ugly And Quick Way by Henrik on August 4th, 2015Recently I've started a little project to see how I can do with IDN affiliate sites where there is a lot less competition than in English.
Functional HTML Rendering with PHP by Henrik on August 4th, 2015When you're working with a programming language that doesn't have templating per default and you're not in the mood - or don't see the need - for templating your first course of actions is to write something to obviate having to print and concatenate everything.
Seems like it’s getting chic to rant about the decline of the US among US intellectuals, it’s all very entertaining with valid points here and there but it doesn’t make it the truth of our times, far from it. I’m not gonna even try figuring out why otherwise smart people are paranoid and pander half truths or view the “problem” only from negative angles, recent events must’ve turned them emotional, they can’t think straight, as good an explanation of their behavior as any other, apart from herd psychology.
Latest in the long list is Pete Trbovich which I enjoy reading, and this time it’s the lack of engineers and the lazy stupid US population, which seems to get more stupid by the hour. To some extent Pete might be right about the engineering situation, as in a lack of American born engineers. Fact is though that the best talent is drawn to the US and stays there, adopting the US culture and so on, problem kind of solved at the expense of other countries that paid for the basic secondary and tertiary education. The easiest solution would be to make it easier for them to come and stay so they don’t have to work out of Toronto.
Secondly, why hasn’t other countries come up with stuff like Google, Twitter and a lot of other popular services originating in the US? Could it be that people in other countries instead lack the marketing skills etc. to actually get people to use the services? I think the only service I use a lot at the moment that wasn’t invented in, and didn’t take off in the US to begin with, is Skype. So what the hell is wrong with the rest of the world when they can’t retain their own talent or launch successful stuff?
It’s not the states that are having real problems, it’s the rest of the world, which is experiencing massive brain drain. If nothing else then that shift of knowledge is going to solidify the US hegemony on the internet even more. As long as the situation is the way it is in countries like China and India, no sane person there is going to turn down an offer to go work in the US, no fucking way. The problems these countries have makes any crap in the US seem insignificant in comparison, people accept working out of Toronto just to get the hell away from there!
Corruption is a hidden tax that is not benefiting the community, it’s unbelievable what a massive productivity buster it is, let’s not forget that, and let’s not forget that the US and west Europe has orders of magnitudes less of it than much of the rest of the world. That’s why we’re still going strong and they’re not, and as long as it stays like that we’re going to outperform them any day. They will bleed talent until they’re dry. If they don’t shape up they’re going to be so up over their heads in crap that it’s going to be a problem for us too, but that’s another story… | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
YMCA Newcomer Information Centre Online Services
After 20 years serving landed immigrants and refugees in Canada, the YMCA Newcomer Information Centre is now extending its services online. We are excited to announce the launch of our online services on May 1st, 2020!
Who can Benefit?
Newcomers who have landed in Canada and are looking for settlement-related information.
Canadian permanent residents and refugees looking for programs and services to achieve their personal and professional goals.
Members of the YMCA Newcomer Information Center who would like to stay connected for information updates and networking with other members.
If you are not sure whether you can benefit from our service, please email us at [email protected] for more information.
What We Offer?
One-on-One Live Chat providing customized settlement plan.
Information and Referrals on Government Benefits, Immigration and Citizenship, Employment, Education and Training, Credential Assessment, Language Training, Health, Housing and much more.
Various in-house and guest-speaker Webinars covering topics of Life in Canada, Study in Canada, and Work in Canada.
Virtual Community Connections activities for networking and to practice language skills
Online Forum to post questions and get professional answers from our team of specialists. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Watch Roxy Foxx Teases Her Teeny Hooters For Ajay Rocks But He Needs More video offered by 18 Porno TV . Also you can add this free Sex video to your favorites or Add Roxy Foxx Teases Her Teeny Hooters For Ajay Rocks But He Needs More to your site, to your blog using the embed codes of the Porn Video, pin it or share it to social networks (facebook, twitter , tumblr, google + ,delicious, digg , rebbit etc) or post it to adult forums. Be An Active Member of 18PornoTV.com tube and connect with other community members | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
League of Legends players recognized as pro athletes by US government
Riot Games has announced that the US government now officially recognizes League of Legends players as professional athletes.
League of Legends is one of the biggest e-sports, even securing sports stadiums for its championships. It's still not widely regarded as a "real sport," but that may be changing. The United States government, at least, has decided it qualifies.
GameSpot reports that after lengthy discussions with Riot Games, the US government officially recognizes pro League of Legends players as professional athletes. This isn't merely for show; the status means that LoL players can get work visas in the country, which opens the possibility of recruiting.
"This is groundbreaking for eSports; now we can start looking at international players when they come over. It's a much easier process because they're actually recognized by the government," e-sports manager Nick Allen said. "This is a huge thing."
While this could conceivably open the door to other e-sports, Allen notes that this took a long time and several rounds of discussions and evidence. "This was a lengthy process; we had a lot of people fighting for this," he said. "It wasn't something that happened overnight."
The World Playoffs semi-finals will take place throughout September, which will determine the two teams to take on the Season 3 championship on October 4 in Los Angeles.
Steve Watts
Editor-In-Chief
Steve Watts' youthful memories are are a blur of pixels, princesses, castles, and Mega Busters. After writing about games as a pastime for years, he got his first shot at a paid gig at 1UP. He's freelanced for several sites since then, and found a friendly home at Shacknews. His editorial duties include news, reviews, features, and lunatic ravings. He lives in the Baltimore-Washington area with his shockingly understanding wife. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Pages
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Tenth Anniversary of the April Blogging from A to Z Challenge after survey opens on May 3, 2019. Reflections open on May 6.
Monday, December 8, 2014
Themes That Rocked the Challenge - Cat Starr and Travels Around the World!
Today we welcome Cat Starr fromAstral Travellerand her travels around the world!
Your theme was travel photos from around the world – what made you choose that theme?
When I travel, I keep a daily blog of what I did and what I saw. However, only a few of my photos ever make it to the daily story and rarely do I focus on one topic. Occasionally, I will write in more detail about a place I visited and include more pictures. I saw this challenge as a way to write on specific topics and share more of the stories and pictures that interested me during my travels.
Which letter was your favorite?
My favourite was F = Food shopping in Barcelona. This is still one of my all-time favourite experiences and I highly recommend the Cook and Taste cooking school in Barcelona. Coming in at a close second is J = Jewelry shopping in Santorini. This was a very personal story because I am usually very frugal in my purchases.
This one was definitely a budget-breaker that led to another questionable decision -- walking down over 300 steps to get to the dock!
Which letter was the most difficult?
X! I never really found anything that would fit for X or Z. that will be my biggest challenge next year as well!
How many palaces have you visited?
I’m not really sure! I think The first palace I visited was the Royal Palace in Madrid. The Casa de las Rosas in Buenos Aires is a beautiful building built in the style of European grand palaces. It was on a cruise to the Baltic that I really started visiting palaces. In St. Petersburg, I visited the Hermitage Museum, which is really a collection of five separate palaces. Then there was Catherine’s Palace and Peterhof – the one Peter the Great designed based on Versailles. I also visited a palace in Stockholm and watched the Changing of the Guard, complete with the Horse Guards and a band on horseback! I visited two palaces in Copenhagen and finally the Palace of Versailles – in order to compare it to Petehof. As for London, I’ve walked by Buckingham Palace, but never been in it. Same with Holyrood in Edinburgh – it was closed when I was there due to a royal visit.
What was the most interesting thing you saw at the Helsinki Market?
At almost any market, it is always the food! In the Helsinki Market, it was Finnish fish from Lapland, salmon soup and paella -- that is definitely not the same as paella in Spain! In fact, I really think they need to call it something else (not that it wasn’t good – just not paella!).
What was the weirdest food item you saw in Barcelona?
This is an easy one, the whole goat heads and the “pig faces” (basically just the skin of the pig head).
Where on Earth is Kotor?
Kotor is a small port community in the country of Montenegro. You sail through some beautiful fjords to get to the Bay of Kotor and this beautifully walled town. It is stunning!
What theme are you considering for the Challenge next year?
I have been one more adventures since last year – one to the UK and Ireland and one to the Canadian Maritimes. Therefore, I’ve built up a lot more stories to share! G will probably be for Gaspe – one of my favourite experiences this past year. I lived in the UK for a while – look forward to those photos, Cat!
Co-host Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh is the author of Amazon Best-sellers CassaStar, CassaFire, and CassaStorm, and his blog can be found HERE | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Refreshing Yawn
Another exciting safari at #Tarangire National Park, it was a rare to find large pride of #lions in the park, and after almost an hour's time waiting for the sleepy pride, they woke, hence the incredible yawn was captured!! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Suku 'want' subcategorizes for nonfinite complement clauses, as seen by the inability of the complement clause to take tense marking or be independently negated. The clause may contain an overt subject, not coreferential with the matrix subject, showing that suku is an ECM (exceptional case-marking) verb - the only such verb in Berbice Dutch (see discussion in Kouwenberg's 1994 grammar, pp. 347–353). | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The Bishops of the Arizona Catholic Conference oppose the campaign to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in Arizona because it is harmful to both children and families in Arizona.
Legalizing the recreational use of marijuana sends a message to children and young people that drug use is socially and morally acceptable. As people of faith, we must speak out against this effort and the damaging effects its passage would have on the children and families of Arizona.
Studies have shown that adolescents who use marijuana have significant differences in brain structure and cognitive functioning compared to those who do not use marijuana and experience up to an eight-point drop in IQ. Furthermore, based on what happened in just two years after Colorado legalized marijuana, it is estimated that if Arizona passes this measure, tens of thousands of additional 8th graders here will smoke marijuana for the first time.
Marijuana-related traffic accidents and other problems are also likely to dramatically increase if recreational marijuana use is legalized. In Colorado for example, marijuana-related traffic deaths dramatically increased after recreational marijuana was legalized. Additionally, Colorado witnessed similar dramatic increases in hospitalizations and emergency room visits related to marijuana usage after recreational use was legalized.
In states that have legalized marijuana, there has also been an increase in the use of harder drugs like cocaine and heroin since marijuana was legalized, which only further increased societal costs.
For the reasons mentioned above, and others, it is anticipated that legalizing the recreational use of marijuana in Arizona will lead to more abuse by teens, more emergency room visits, more traffic deaths, and more societal costs. Accordingly, due to the detrimental effect it would have on children, families, and all of society, we strongly oppose this dangerous proposal.
Those Who Stand To Make Millions Off Pot-Laced Candy & Amped-Up Marijuana Underestimate Commonsense
PHOENIX – A couple hundred thousand signatures and the Million-dollar Marijuana Monopoly thinks it’s a done deal. Arizonans will be toking by year’s end and they, themselves, will be rolling in the dough. Not so fast says Center for Arizona Policy President Cathi Herrod, “When voters learn the devastating consequences of legalizing recreational pot they won’t be so easily deceived by those trying to make a buck at society’s expense.”
For example, when gathering the signatures, the collectors probably didn’t tell voters a few things. Such as:
The only ones who will make money are the folks behind the big push. The dispensaries are monopolized.
Half the pot sold in Colorado is in the form of candy – gummy bears and lollipops spiked with ten times the THC as an average joint. Children in Colorado are ending up in the ER for accidentally and innocently overdosing.
Pot shops will pop up all over town. Within two years after legalizing marijuana in Colorado, pot shops now outnumber, Starbucks, liquor stores, and public schools.
Any money the state makes off legalizing pot will be outpaced by added expenses due to increased traffic accidents, workplace accidents, crime, rehab, needed regulation, and huge increases in accidental overdoses when kids mistake pot-laced candy for the real thing.
The marijuana monopoly probably did tell voters a few things when collecting all of those signatures. They tout regulation, revenue, elimination of the drug cartel, and black markets. But the truth is:
Alcohol and tobacco are also regulated and kids still get them both. Prescription drugs are regulated, and also highly abused. If regulation is supposed to also keep pot out of the hands of children, why are they putting it in candy?
The only people who make money off pot for pleasure are the monopolized dispensary owners.
Herrod concluded, “Arizonans are smart. The commonsense conclusion they will reach – once they get the facts – is that amped-up pot and pot-laced candy are dangerous for our kids, detrimental to our society and way of life, and cost a whole lot more than they offer. The best way to keep Arizona’s youth safe is to keep marijuana illegal.”
Center for Arizona Policy promotes and defends the foundational values of life, marriage and family, and religious freedom. For more information, visit azpolicy.org.
Everyone knows that if you’re running for a major political office in Arizona you make the time to appear on local political shows like Horizon, Politics Unplugged and Sunday Square Off. It’s part of the process of getting in front of voters who pay attention to politics.
Brahm Resnik’s Sunday Square Off is one of those shows that candidates and elected officials don’t turn down. Brahm is the type of political reporter who asks tough questions and hones in on political motivations. He can be a feisty interviewer and every Republican should experience a sit-down with him if offered.
This last Sunday, Brahm interviewed two of the four Republican candidates seeking the GOP nomination in Arizona’s Fifth Congressional District. Former County Supervisor Don Stapley and conservative business leader Christine Jones each had their interviews with Brahm. The prior week, three-term State Representative Justin Olson also made his pitch.
During Brahm’s intro to the Stapley interview, he said that all four Republican CD-5 candidates had been invited to come on Sunday Square Off but as Brahm noted, “Andy Biggs though, had never responded to my invitation.”
Any professional political consultant worth their weight in gold knows that earned media is the best media, even if it means a tough interview. Consultants advise their candidates to embrace these local political show opportunities whenever they arise and take advantage of the chance to toughen and improve their debate and public relations skills.
The CD-5 race will be one of the toughest Republican primary races in 2016. Andy Biggs knows this and that’s why he hired one of Arizona’s most prominent consulting firms to get him across the finish line. So why would Andy Biggs dodge the opportunity to appear on Sunday Square Off?
photo courtesy TV-12 News
No one seems to remember the last time Andy Biggs appeared on Sunday Square Off let alone appeared on any other weekly political show. Our best research indicates that Biggs made an appearance on the show in late February, 2011 to discuss abolishing Medicaid.
Senator Biggs may be camera shy or perhaps uncomfortable with Brahm Resnik or maybe he would rather not discuss tough issues like the recent KidsCare legislation, but that doesn’t explain why he also skipped a recent East Valley candidate forum in CD-5.
Our guess is that the Biggs campaign is maintaining a low profile in an effort to avoid causing more controversy for itself. Dodge the media, avoid answering hard questions, avoid saying anything controversial and hope for an easy win.
When you’ve never had any tough electoral challenges in the 14 years you’ve been a politician, it doesn’t make you prepared or even qualified for a promotion to higher office and that’s where the work gets even harder. It’s time to answer the hard questions.
Legalizing recreational marijuana would be detrimental to Arizonans’ lifestyle, safety and productivity. Four states and the District of Columbia have already legalized the drug and are seeing disastrous repercussions in their youth, work places and communities. Read below to see what experts, Arizonans and those already effected by legal marijuana have to say.
Arizona Republic Reporter Linda Valdez“Arizona doesn’t have to release the cat now. We can wait and see how things play out in Colorado and other states that are trying the legalization experiment.”
Congressman Matt Salmon“I am against this initiative legalizing marijuana in Arizona,” said Congressman Matt Salmon. “At a time when government should be shrinking and we should be having less government in our lives, the last thing I want to see is one more initiative that creates other levels of government.”
ARDP Chairman Seth Leibsohn“Leave it to the marijuana industry to take a holiday of joy and family bonding to promote the expanded sale and use of a drug better known by medical and scientific research to be the opposite of those very things. We are just now learning about increased traffic fatalities due to marijuana impaired drivers in states that have legalized marijuana for social and recreational use. We are just now learning about more and more childhood hospitalizations due to marijuana ingestion by our youth due to marijuana candies and edibles.”
APS spokesman Jim McDonald“Our concern emanates from the employment law language in the proposal, especially considering the public safety aspects involved in supplying reliable electric service to APS customers,” said McDonald. “The initiative simply does not support the kind of workplace required to operate the electric grid, make repairs to the system after a monsoon storm or operate the nation’s largest nuclear power plant.”
Two and a half months after a request was issued to the Arizona House, a request for records relating to Speaker Gowan’s travel remains unfulfilled
Earlier this year, embattled House Speaker David Gowan had to pay back $12,000 in expenditures after audits found he had requested mileage reimbursements for travel unrelated to state business, had claimed mileage while using a state vehicle, or had been granted a per diem for days when he was not doing state work. Subsequent press investigations found that a substantial amount of his allegedly “official” travel was taken to areas within Congressional District 1, and questions remain as to the extent of his attempts to use state resources to subsidize campaign travel.For this reason Defend Rural Arizona issued a request for the Speaker’s travel records on March 24. DRA still has not received any files from the speaker or his office. The only communication we have received is confirmation from May 5 that our request had been received and would be processed.
Under the Arizona Public Records law, A.R.S. § 39-121.01(D)(1), “The custodian of such records shall promptly furnish such copies, printouts or photographs.” Failing to furnish requested information for more than two months does not seem to fit with the definition of “prompt” disclosure.
“This is a classic example of a career politician who thinks he’s above the law. It should come as no surprise that he is under investigation,” said James Harris of Defend Rural Arizona. “We believe the people of Arizona have a right to know if Speaker Gowan is improperly using his office to further his political career, and we encourage Speaker Gowan to stop dragging his feet and release these records.”
A copy of the original records request can be viewed here, while a copy of the response received from the House Republican Caucus Press Secretary can be viewed here.
(Gilbert, AZ) – Monday, conservative business leader Christine Jones became the first candidate in the Fifth Congressional District to take to the airwaves.
The ad features Christine Jones walking through several scenes as she speaks to viewers about her experience, credentials and values.
Jordan Ray, campaign manager for Jones for Congress said, “We already have too many ineffective career politicians in Washington. As a conservative business leader and active member of the community, Christine has been successful in solving serious and complex problems. I know she will bring effective conservative leadership to fix our failed immigration policy, eliminate ISIS and get federal spending under control.”
ISIS now admits responsibility for the massacre in Orlando, Florida. A Radical Islamic Terrorist did this. He could have used a sword. He chose to use a gun. A terrorist used fertilizer in Oklahoma City. Radical Islamic Terrorists used box cutters and airplanes in New York City, Pennsylvania and the Pentagon. Banning implements is not the answer.
Americans need to be able to defend themselves, not have radicalized terrorists or the mentally unstable hold them hostage. When governments make gun free zones the criminal does NOT suffer, the law-abiding citizen suffers.
ISIS does not and will not conform to a well-regulated militia. Hard working Americans can and will.
John Stuart Mill spoke this centuries ago. “War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things: the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing is worth a war, is worse. . . . A man who has nothing which he is willing to fight for, nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety, is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.”
War is in America – New York City, San Bernardino, and now Orlando. Who’s next? Let’s stand up and defend this great nation and ALL classes of people who live here against radicalism. Don’t let “political correctness” cause the loss of life again. Speak up. This act of terror awoke an American sleeping giant spirit. Let us not forget freedom isn’t free. When you exercise your right to vote think about those who have experience with defending your freedoms. Without safety, rules don’t matter. This enemy doesn’t play by the same rules we do. Be vigilant. Be strong. Protect one another.
Lt Col (ret.) Wendy Rogers was interviewed on Flagstaff’s KAFF Monday morning discussing her campaign for Congress as well as a handful of issues.
http://chirb.it/NOn7qd
During the interview, she explained how she covers Arizona’s First Congressional District which is one third the size of Arizona. Rogers uses her airplane and a collapsible bicycle which she packs in the fuselage of her Cherokee 180 single-engine plane. She covers about 100 homes a day when she’s out in the field.
Col Rogers also discussed the most important issues which she hears first-hand from her encounters with voters. Issues include the Second Amendment, border security, jobs, the economy and most prominently, national security.
When asked about her career, Col Rogers went into detail about her 20 years of service flying C-141’s as one of the first women pilots in the US Air Force. Both she and her husband Hal each served 20 years as career officers.
She also described how US military members are treated by host countries depending on who the Commander in Chief is.
When asked what she would like to accomplish and achieve in the US Congress, her most important priority would be to protect and defend the United States. She swore an oath to the US Constitution during her military service and would like to serve the country again in the US Congress.
Col Rogers also noted that she would like to serve on the House Intelligence Committee, an assignment she says she is aptly qualified for and that decides matters of life and death.
She also would like to serve on the Resources Committee because of Arizona’s abundance of beauty and natural resources.
When asked about her position on raising the minimum wage, she replied, “I am not a believer in the government telling business what to pay its employees.”
Sunday’s horrific terrorist attack in Orlando also came up during the interview. When asked about a “fix” for recurring attacks like this, Rogers quickly responded, “We are at war and until you identify the threat and are willing to address it as it is, which is an infiltrated threat in our country, then we have no ground to prosecute that strategy and defeat the enemy.” She said President Obama has not recognized the threat. She also said it is not an issue of gun control or discrimination against the LGBT community. She identified the real problem as the perpetrator and not the tool (guns).
The conversation concluded as Col Rogers described the beauty and blessings of her daughter’s wedding at Snowbowl over the weekend.
Both Wendy and Hal have two children and three grandchildren. They have a retirement home in Flagstaff and have been married for 38 years.
Col Rogers is the only woman running in a field of seven men.
Primary Election Day is Tuesday, August 30, 2016. You can read more about Wendy Rogers at WendyRogers.org.
When you want problems in government fixed, you send a businessperson to do the job. This has been the successful solution since the Founding Fathers set our country in motion and it’s still a successful strategy today.
Individuals from the business community know best how to balance budgets, deal with government regulations and most important, how to create jobs and prosperity.
Government does not create prosperity. Government sucks resources out of the economy, creates deadweight losses and does a horrible job of providing services that the private sector can provide much more efficiently. With the exception of certain public goods such as defense, law enforcement, justice, etc., government is a drag on the economy and a burden on the lives of free individuals.
Here in Arizona, we’ve seen an example of great leadership coming out of the private sector business community.
Governor Doug Ducey started his service in executive leadership in 2011 as Arizona State Treasurer. Prior to that, he started out as a successful entrepreneur and CEO who grew a small ice cream shop from the ground up into a nationwide franchise. Since elected as Governor, Doug Ducey has been successful reforming, consolidating and downsizing government and getting it out of the way of small businesses like Uber and Air BnB. Having a successful businessman in leadership is great for the economy, creating jobs and expanding technology.
Now the voters of Arizona’s Fifth Congressional District have the opportunity to elect a very successful conservative businesswoman to Congress.
Christine Jones has scored success wherever she has served. As the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Go Daddy, she helped take the company from a small internet company to a giant corporation whose servers now touch one-third of all internet traffic. When she first began at GoDaddy, the company only had a few dozen employees. During her watch, she helped grow the company to over 4,000 employees – that’s over 4,000 private sector jobs contributing to the economy. And that doesn’t include the 10 million entrepreneurs and small businesses that have grown and prospered through GoDaddy’s products and services.
After leaving GoDaddy, Jones next went on to lead another Arizona success story when she accepted the position of Interim CEO of Great Hearts Academies. There, she oversaw the tremendous accomplishments of thousands of students on the road to college and successful careers. This role also testifies to her strong understanding and commitment to education and how a quality education is inherently linked to jobs and the economy.
Christine Jones is no stranger to success. Unlike her opponents, who have spent their careers being assimilated into government and politics, Christine Jones possesses a healthy resistance to growing government and becoming another career politician.
This election year, the voters should take the opportunity to send another real Arizona success story to Congress. Christine Jones is a conservative business leader who has proven she knows how to grow small business, create thousands of jobs, control the growth of government and get government spending under control.
This August the voters have a real choice between a handful of career politicians or a successful private sector businesswoman in Christine Jones. Let’s hope they choose the latter.
Currently there is a massive effort underway to get several “California-style” initiatives on the ballot in November. The Club encourages anyone approached on the street by one of these petition carriers to “decline to sign.” One of the initiatives likely to get the signatures necessary to qualify jacks up the minimum wage and mandates minimum state-wide paid sick time.
Specifically, the measure increases Arizona’s minimum wage from the current $8.05, to $10 starting January 1st, 2017 – and tops out at a whopping $12 an hour in 2020, then defaulting back to increases based upon the cost of living index. Additionally, if passed, it would mandate businesses with more than 15 employees provide 40 hours of paid sick time and 24 hours of annual paid sick time for businesses with less than 15 employees.
This voter protected act would have a devastating effect on Arizona’s economy. Minimum wage schemes set an arbitrary floor on every industry, every business, and every job – and divorces wages from the actual economic value a position creates. As a result, minimum wages do not heed any more buying power for the people they purport to help, but instead increase costs and therefore create an eventual pressure to increase prices. Mandatory paid sick leave is another invention of the left which seeks to create policies in a vacuum outside any economic realities.
However the real intent of these “worker welfare” movements is more and more obvious. The campaign “Arizonans for Fair Wages and Healthy Families” is being pushed by the union-backed organization LUCHA (Living United for Change in Arizona) who since 2013 has advocated the “Fight for $15” for fast food workers and other out-of-state union groups. The battles are for minimum wage and paid sick leave; the war is unionization of the total workforce. This is evidenced by the fact that this very initiative exempts workers under a collective bargaining agreement. In other words, we have hit a new level of hypocrisy. If this was about creating the workers’ paradise, and not about incentivizing unionization, there would be no exceptions.
As if this all wasn’t damaging enough, the initiative has another kicker, which allows cities and towns to pass more generous wage and benefit mandates. With cities such as Tempe, Flagstaff, Phoenix, and Tucson – Arizona can expect to have a patchwork of employment laws – making doing business across city borders an arduous endeavor.
Arizonans should be wary this election season. Union groups and leftist interests are out in full force – trying to make the Grand Canyon State look more like an increasingly bankrupt California. If voters are wise, they will reject destructive ballot initiatives such as this one.
About Sonoran Alliance
Arizona's most popular and prominent political blog covering political news and events, commentary and information with a blatantly conservative worldview. We are an alliance of writers, activists, consultants and government insiders. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Education Division
Welcome to the Division of Education!
Our program is anchored to current research, pedagogy, and best practices. Embedded is the belief that pre-service teachers can be nurtured, prepared, and challenged to be caring, reflective, and competent professionals. Coursework at Missouri Valley College is guided by a constructivist theory that students learn from their own experiences and through competent, well-prepared teachers, student coursework includes hand-on experiences within classrooms, discussions, presentations, group work, and unit/lesson planning assessments.
Faculty members working within the Education Division at Missouri Valley College are highly qualified and committed to student success. All facutly members have completed a minimum of a Master's Degree, with several professors having completed a Doctoral Degree program. Most professors have previously taught, been principals, or have been superintendents within public school systems.
Below you will find the degree and certification areas currently offered at Missouri Valley College. Professor contact information and links that may be of interest are located to the right. Please feel free to contact the Education Division (660-831-4022) with any questions that you might have. We look forward to helping you reach your fullest potential as a future educator! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The Importance Of Keeping Girls In Sports.
Inevitably, the best part concerning sporting activities has absolutely nothing to do with championships, awards, win-loss documents, or superior analytical efficiencies. The former globe champ Anatoly Karpov claimed in an oft-quoted remark that c read more... | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Reader mail: Micky Arison would move the Heat if Miami made him repay taxpayers
Pay for it yourself: The fact that Miami-Dade investigators are now probing whether the Miami Heat has been cheating taxpayers by not sharing profits with the county ("Heat Cheats," Francisco Alvarado, January 19) is another example of why the government should never use the taxpayers' money to go into business with the private sector. With these so-called joint ventures, the taxpayers always get screwed. Just look at Jungle Island, at the billions taxpayers will eventually pay on the new Marlins stadium, and at the millions spent on the new Miami Art Museum.
County Lawyers Suck
Info
letters to the editor
Arison cheats: The same way Heat owner and Carnival CEO Micky Arison will move his cruise ships out of ports that make him pay taxes, follow regulations, or pay living wages, he will just move the Heat to Seattle, San Diego, or St. Louis if he has to pay anything for the arena.
His dad was rich: There are two reasons Arison is a billionaire. First, he had a rich father, and second, his lawyers are much smarter than the county's and city's lawyers. The county will keep paying $6.4 million per year to the Miami Heat, Arison will keep refusing to stop using the wall of the AA Arena as an illegal billboard, and he and his sleazy employees will always refuse to pay rent.
Sleazy and Stupid Lawyers
A sordid history: Back in 1997, the owners of the Heat — which then played in the eight-year-old, publicly financed Miami Arena — threatened to move to Broward County unless they were given the bayside plot of land originally slated to become a public park. The Miami-Dade mayor at the time was Alex Penelas, who has a devastatingly pretty face and the business acumen of a Labrador retriever. After the county and team reached an agreement, Raúl Masvidal, the consultant hired to represent Penelas in negotiations with billionaire Carnival Cruise owner Micky Arison, told the New York Times: "We expect the county not only to come out even, we expect it to make money."
Drake Mallard
Cannabis Crusader
Private jails profit: Thanks for writing about Sen. Larcenia Bullard, the Miami politician spearheading a move to legalize medical marijuana ("Unlikely Pothead," Tim Elfrink, January 19). Having lost my husband after hospitalization forced him to shift from cannabis to Oxycontin, I am angry that legislators continue to believe lies about pot's dangers. There are two words to explain it: private prisons.
The Justice Policy Institute recently noted that private jail companies make more money through longer prison sentences, but you don't need a report from a nonprofit group to know that. Just look at the prisons' own investor reports. The Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the largest for-profit prison company in the nation, notes that "any changes with respect to drugs and controlled substances or illegal immigration could affect the number of persons arrested, convicted, and sentenced, thereby potentially reducing demand for correctional facilities to house them." CCA also told investors it would make less money if there were lower minimum sentences and more inmates released early for good behavior.
Amy Cavanaugh
Retiring Tebow
Preaching through football: Uncle Luke thinks Tim Tebow should retire from the NFL to preach for a living ("Luke's Gospel: Tim Tebow Should Quit Now," Luther Campbell, January 19), but why would he settle for 70,000 people in a stadium when he reaches 40 to 50 million viewers for every televised football game? As Tebow has said many times, his sports fame gives him a fantastic platform to spread the word of Christ. I strongly believe he will continue to learn and mature as a quarterback, ultimately becoming one of the premier players in the NFL. He has already mastered the toughest parts of being a quarterback: leadership, late-game comebacks, and his teammates' trust. Everyone wants to compare Tebow to longtime starters. Tom Brady has approximately 5,000 pass attempts during games, and you wonder why he looks so polished? Given time and coaching, Tebow will one day walk side-by-side with, not in the shadows of, the best in NFL history. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Shawn Mendes – Shawn Mendes (2018) [FLAC]
Shawn Mendes to release highly anticipated self-titled album on 5/25 via Island Records. The album will include previously released tracks, ‘In My Blood’ and ‘Lost In Japan.’ Current single ‘In My Blood’ is quickly approaching Top 10 airplay at Top 40 and Hot AC radio formats. He will support the album with numerous media appearances, which will include a week-long residency on ‘The Late Late Show with James Corden’ in June.
Picking up the thread left dangling from 2016’s Illuminate, Shawn Mendes decides to create an even more fashionable set of soulful pop on his eponymous 2018 album. Mendes remains a quivering adolescent presence — he was still 19 years old when this album saw release — but his self-titled record is assured and quietly confident in a way that suggests he has his adulthood on his mind. He doesn’t abandon the soft-focus soul that turned “Stitches” into a breakthrough smash, but he deepens his groove and polishes his surfaces, all the while concentrating on crafting sturdy songs. Never mind that the album gets off to a shaky start with “In My Blood,” an anonymous arena rock number that suggests he equates playing rock to the rafters with real music, a notion that’s dispelled by the remainder of the record. He builds Shawn Mendes on lithe, tuneful R&B numbers, happy to have songs be as mellowly effervescent as “Queen” or as modern as the gently pulsating “Youth,” which is graced by an appearance from Khalid. Mendes occupies a space between modern R&B and Ed Sheeran’s earnest balladeering, but the key to his success — both commercially and artistically — is his light touch. There’s a palpable sweetness to music that endures, even when a production is as bright and glistening as it is on Shawn Mendes. That bodes well for the future that Shawn Mendes is so evidently planning for.
Tracklist:
Shawn Mendes – In My Blood – 3:31 (883 kbps , 22.25 MB)
Shawn Mendes – Nervous – 2:44 (872 kbps , 17.05 MB)
Shawn Mendes – Lost In Japan – 3:21 (850 kbps , 20.38 MB)
Shawn Mendes – Where Were You In The Morning – 3:21 (839 kbps , 20.05 MB) | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Toyota marks the next evolution of Prius
with the world debut of Prius v at the North American International Auto
Show. Due for market launch in the USA this summer, it is a full hybrid
MPV-style model designed to bring the benefits of Toyota’s world-leading
Hybrid Synergy to Drive to a new market segment.
Prius v – v for versatility – uses the
same platform and full hybrid powertrain as the current generation Prius
hatchback, with a more flexible design to meet the needs of growing
families with active lifestyles. Featuring a spacious interior within a
compact exterior, it offers more than 50 per cent more interior cargo
space than its sister model.
Toyota has achieved a successful
balance between spaciousness, refined style and smooth aerodynamics:
Prius v has a low, 0.29 coefficient of drag, which has been achieved
without compromising its convenient packaging. Its design is new from
the ground up, with a shape that has evolved from Prius, rather than
simply being an elongated version of the existing car.
The exterior styling is sleek, rounded
and bold, with an extended roofline that allows the vehicle to retain
Prius’s symbolic triangular silhouette. The trapezoidal front-end
treatment features sharp-edged headlamps, wind-slipping aero corners and
an enlarged lower air intake for improved aerodynamics and cooling. The
rear styling is highlighted by a smart tailgate and a roof spoiler
designed to improve the flow of air away from the back of the vehicle.
Inside the cabin design is spacious and
flexible to meet the demands of modern active families. A high seating
position supports overall comfort and good visibility, with ample
headroom and an impressive 965mm couple distance that delivers good
legroom for rear seat passengers.
The low- wide-opening rear hatch allows
for easy loading, with 970 litres of loadspace behind the rear seats –
more space than in some compact SUV models.
The second row seats have slide
adjustment, making it easier to get in and out of the vehicle, and can
be reclined through 45 degrees. The 60:40 split-folding function adds to
the flexibility of the interior, while the front passenger seat can also
be folded flat to allow longer items to be carried.
Prius v will be available with a new
Toyota-developed resin panoramic sunroof that marks an 18kg weight
saving compared to glass roofs of the same size, while giving excellent
heat insulation performance.
In spite of its size, Prius is expected
to achieve the best fuel efficiency of any SUV, crossover or estate on
the US market and produce 66 per cent fewer smog-forming emissions than
the average US new vehicle.
Prius v will be one of the first Toyota
models to offer a new multimedia system that links with the owner’s
mobile phone to give enhanced, integrated and wireless upgradeable
navigation entertainment and information services.
Bob Carter, Toyota Division Group Vice
President and General Manager, said: “Prius v is an all-new dedicated
hybrid vehicle, and all future Prius family members will be as well.
They will share common Prius attributes, but will be unique, with a
special appeal to different buyers.”
Prius v is joined on the Toyota stand
at Detroit by Prius c, a concept city car designed and engineered for
outstanding fuel efficiency in a compact package, and Prius Plug-in
Hybrid. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Scanlan: Sabres come to Senators' emotional rescue
Timing is everything in hockey, including tapping into that precious, combustible fuel – emotion.
In their game against the Senators this week, the St. Louis Blues wasted a degree of their emotional reserves in the pre-game warmup, and at the opening faceoff, threatening to do nasty things to Ottawa centre Zack Smith.
Smith? He was unfazed – even when Blues enforcer Ryan Reaves lined up out of the position for the opening faceoff so he could challenge Smith to a fight at centre ice.
The Blues were upset about a hit from Smith on Alex Steen back on Dec. 16. Retribution was the order of the day, even if St. Louis head coach Ken Hitchcock told us before the game there would be no payback.
Now, Smith would have been happy to fight Steen, the player who felt wronged in this situation, but says Steen didn’t say a word about it all night. He let Reaves do the talking and Smith wasn’t about to fight Reaves, a one-dimensional, eight-minute-per game player.
“If I thought it was a bad hit, or I took advantage of someone, then I would (fight),” Smith said. “I’ll be accountable for that, but not in that case. And with a guy like Reaves – that isn’t a good tradeoff for us.”
Smith feels if his open-ice hit on Steen was dirty, he would have heard from Brendan Shanahan of the NHL’s player safety department.
And then Smith said something quite interesting, about how the Blues had unwittingly done the Senators a huge favour. They stirred a slumbering beast, an exhausted hockey team that had flown in from a game in Pittsburgh the night before.
“We were talking after the game – that was a mistake they made,” Smith says. “You have a team that’s on the road, playing back-to-back games, I don’t know if you want to do that because it wakes up a team.
“Some of the best games you play are emotional,” says Smith, who survived the early threats to play his usual, sound two-way game. “When guys are going to come after you, it kind of gets your mind into it. You’re more aware. They definitely tried to bully us.”
And that brings us to Thursday’s matchup with the Buffalo Sabres, last in the NHL and possibly last in ability to stir passions in the Senators.
For their final home game before the Olympic break, the Sens were going to have to manufacture some energy for this one. Gumption was not going to come naturally to a team that arrived from a St. Louis snowstorm just in time for Wednesday breakfast. Their sleep patterns were in disarray for the day or so prior to facing the Sabres.
So, maybe the home side could get excited about facing USA Olympian Ryan Miller and former Calder Trophy winner Tyler Myers?
Umm, well, no. Miller sat this one out. His next start in goal will be in Sochi, Russia. Myers is hurt. Ditto for Linus Omark and Marcus Foligno.
On this night of the new drinking game – name a Sabre – the Senators were going to have to talk themselves into motivation. With the help of the head coach.
Paul MacLean, noted winger Bobby Ryan, was sure to remind the players of previous letdowns following emotional victories, “so we don’t come out and drop a dud.”
In the end, the Senators used their superior talent to outlast a hard-working Sabres team. A game that should have been a layup, was instead one of survival and good fortune, a 3-2 win on a late goal by Milan Michalek. Disaster avoided. On to Boston for game 59.
“It’s that time of the year, where there’s really no excuse, regardless of who you’re playing against,” said defenceman Marc Methot.
Methot figures there’s not better motivation than the Olympic break, which begins after Saturday’s game in Boston against the Bruins.
“The way I see it is, it’s good to empty the tank now,” Methot said. “We’ll have plenty of time to recover. We’ve had a pretty rough road schedule this month so far. We got in real late the other night, so all I’m looking forward to is a good nap.”
After Saturday, napping could get out of hand.
SPEZZA: GOT TO BE ME
Incredibly, Jason Spezza’s goal in St. Louis, his 15th on the season, was his first at even strength since Nov. 24.
“I’m happy to score (five-one-five) so I don’t have to talk about it,” Spezza said, laughing.
What we’ve seen this week – the return of the flair — may be the end of the experiment of trying to make the captain more defensively responsible.
“I am what I am as I player, I think I’ve gotten better at certain aspects of the game,” Spezza says. “At times this year, I think I’ve tried to be too much of somebody that I wasn’t and it affected my game so, I have to play my game.
“As a player, you have to find your confidence and believe in yourself.”
Almost Done!
Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.
By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Market to use my account information to create my account.
I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.
Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.
By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.
I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Who We Are
Our intention is to inform people of racist, homophobic, religious extreme hate speech perpetrators across social networking internet sites. And we also aim to be a focal point for people to access information and resources to report such perpetrators to appropriate web sites, governmental departments and law enforcement agencies around the world.
We will also post relevant news worthy items and information on Human rights issues, racism, extremist individuals and groups and far right political parties from around the world although predominantly Britain.
Monday, 10 October 2011
Two former English Defence League members are beginning year-long jail sentences after racist attacks at a mosque and two Asian-run businesses.
Steven James Vasey and Anthony Donald Smith launched their offensive after incidents at a war memorial in Luton on Armistice Day last November, where poppies were burnt by extreme Islamic groups.
On the eve of Muslim festival Eid, the masked men, along with an accomplice, climbed a fence at the Nasir mosque in Hartlepool.
The letters “EDL” and “NEI”, for the North East Infidels, were sprayed along with “no surrender” and images of poppies and the St George flag.
Prosecutor Chris Baker told Durham Crown Court that a taxi seen in the area at the time was similar to a vehicle spotted later in Potto Street in Shotton Colliery, where an upstairs window of the Milco store was smashed with a brick.
Similar graffiti to that left on the mosque was sprayed on the shop and the nearby Albert Guest House, which are both owned by an Asian businessman.
Mr Baker told Recorder William Lowe there was an irony that the store was selling poppies when the attack was carried out.
He said taxi driver Smith, 24, of Rydale Court, Trimdon, previously of Neptune Way, Easington Colliery, was arrested the next day.
Messages on his mobile showed planning with then-girlfriend Charlotte Christina Davies and Vasey and included claims they were going “Muzzy bashing” and were going togive the mosque a “makeover”.
Stephen Constantine, representing Smith, said he showed a “lack ofinsight” into the consequences and it had been prompted by the poppy burning.
Shaun Dryden, mitigating for Vasey, said his actions were foolish.
Jane Waugh, mitigating on behalf of Davies, said her involvement came to text messages offering encouragement.
She was given a 12-week sentence, suspended for a year, and 200 hours’ unpaid work.
The barristers said all three had severed their ties with the EDL.
Jailing the men, Judge Lowe remarked that the attacks were carried out in the wake of the Luton incident.
He said: “It may be that was something these three had in mind, but it does not excuse this conduct.
He added: “It’s the sort of behaviour from which those who are militant feed.”
After the hearing, Inspector Dave Coxon, of Peterlee Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “I’m pleased that this has gone to court and they pleaded guilty and the sentence reflects the serious nature of the offence.
“We continue to take these sorts of offences seriously and we will strive to support all members of the community.” | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Hovercrafts aren't just science friction with this activity
Marty McFly, in the classic movie "Back to the Future II," dazzled us with his fictitious hovering skateboard.
The tabletop scientists in your classroom will get a rise out of building a real-life hovercraft of their own. By building a tabletop hovercraft, students explore the fundamental scientific principles behind gravity, air resistance, and friction.
But let's pump the brakes for a moment and look at the science behind this gravity-defying machine.
Slowing things down—the science of friction
Friction is a force that happens when things rub against each other (with opposing motion). Friction can slow things down—like a brake pedal pressing against moving wheels. Different objects have different amounts of friction when they rub together. Rough surfaces or heavy objects have more friction between them than smooth surfaces or light objects. When surfaces do not rub against each other, there is no friction between them. So, if you need to reduce friction between two surfaces, make sure they don't touch. Engineers can also reduce friction by creating some degree of separation of surfaces by
making the surfaces smooth by polishing,
applying lubricants (like oil or grease) to the rubbing surface,
using wheels to move objects, or
using ball bearings between the moving parts, for example.
Resistance is futile—liquids and gases
Friction only happens with solid objects, but there is resistance to motion in both liquids and gases. The movement of liquid and gas doesn't involve sliding surfaces like friction does, but is instead the resistance you get if you try to push your way through a crowd of people. Liquids and gases are colliding, not sliding! This force has many names, all really meaning the same thing: viscous force, drag force, fluid resistance. If the gas is air, we call it air (or wind) resistance.
In 1955, British inventor and engineer Christopher Cockerell used the principles of friction and air resistance to invent the first real hovercraft — a vehicle that can travel on a cushion of air over water, ice, dirt, pavement, and other surfaces.
In this activity, students gain first-hand experience of how friction and air resistance affect motion. They build a hovercraft using air from balloons to levitate a craft made from compact discs (CD) and watch it slide across a surface.
If you're ready to put the pedal to the metal, download the activity to get started.
Newton's Hovercraft
The craft can ride on a cushion of air and experience near-frictionless motion. The 40" wide hovercraft is easy to use, and it doesn't need an air track. Teachers can demonstrate action and reaction on a large-scale. Students observe Newton's Laws in action
Ward's® Vehicle Kit
With this STEM-based project kit that meets Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), students will design and build cutting edge vehicles to investigate stored energy from sources such as rubber bands or mousetraps.
Air Cushion Table
Illustrate the thermal motion of atoms and molecules in various states of aggregation, electrical conduction processes, models of atomic physics, and mechanical motion. The air-cushion principle, and the use of magnetic forces, allows objects to hover in a nearly zero-friction state
Friction on an Inclined Plane
This set demonstrates a wide variety of physical science topics, including the resolution of forces on an inclined plane, kinetic and potential energies, uniform and accelerated motions, and the friction between two surfaces. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The Sunday Papers
Share this:
Sundays are for recovering from a wedding. Which means that Saturday afternoons are for getting shaved, dressed and compiling a list of the fine (mostly) games related reading from across the week, while trying to avoid linking to some noisy pop I’ve been spinning. Go!
Alexander Moore was lead Designer on Aliens Vs Predator and is now at Bizarre Creations. He’s started writing a series of posts on how games are made, aimed to be digested by pretty much everyone. You can follow them here.
On the white people painted different colours article, Dragon Age is a particularly tricky game to address in terms of races due to the nature of the Origins concept. In a game such as Oblivion, where the character is thrown in at the deep end, it has far greater room for freedom of the character’s race, the prisonrer could just as easily be nordic, black or a six foot tall cat. Dragon Age is a little different because, at least in the homan noble origin, there would need to be some explanation of why there is one old money family of a different race to everyone else.
There’s something almost beautiful about that manner of kindness blossoming from a large corporation. Like compassion can bloom even in the profit-focussed world of business, and the soul of humanity hasn’t been crushed by the weight of the econogenic life it spawned to replace itself. Or something.
On a different note, I don’t care what some grumpy old games journo says, I’m not giving Apple any money.
The thing is, most of the fantasy genre is loosely based on medieval Europe, and medieval Europe was populated by mostly white people. Although we’ve all seen, in entirely fictional worlds, the all-too-obvious “Asian” inspired civilization, or “African” or “Middle Eastern” or what have you.
What we truly haven’t seen much of are games where the protagonist and his/her “home” civilization are a non-Europe derived one. Or, indeed, much in the way of “Modern-Multi-Ethnic-Society” fantasy kingdoms. If you want to go back to the medieval reference point, such societies by and large didn’t exist, but then again elves and wizards and marauding Demon Lords aren’t exactly pulled from the history books either.
This is obviously all a by-product of Western RPG developers being based in the “West”, and as such the majority of the fiction is culturally Western-derived. The interpretation of this phenomenon though is highly subjective. In my opinion, branching out and exploring different influences and perspectives more is undoubtedly a positive thing. On the other hand, isn’t being upset over most Western games having Western cultural influences just a byproduct of the modern “self-loathing” cultural/political climate? As in, no one bats an eye that the majority of Chinese fiction has Chinese cultural influences, but when Western fiction develops in the same way, everyone cries foul?
Hmm. It’s all very sensitive and I’m not sure it’s even desirable for game developers to be thinking about real world socio-political factors instead of merely focusing on the the fundamentals of a compelling, quality game. Not that you couldn’t do both, of course. An interesting topic at the very least.
Actually there’s a while bunch of interesting civilisations no-one ever does fantasy counterparts of. The Moors are breifly mentioned in the article, they Moors are Black Muslims who conquered most of Spain in the Medieval era, yet you never see them picked up on in faux-European fantasy. They were certainly known of in the culture of the time (Othello is subtitled ‘The Moor of Venice’).
It’s not so much about western fantasy being obligated to include them in more about the fact that this is an interesting and underused element of storytelling, and it would be cool if we did it first.
That article rather twisted reality to suit its own point by not mentioning at all the most significant/best selling mainstream RPG of the last five years – Oblivion. If you look at Oblivion (and better yet Morrowind) the player is allowed to pick from any range of races, the humans divided between different european and african races, with different explorations of non-european cultures explored with the elven and “beast” races. Oblivion goes so far with this concept of multi-ethnicity that, although your rage in-lore is strictly defined by your mother, your appearance can be any type of mix between the racest available you can imagine. Unfortunately earlier in the series they tied their hands with the world’s far eastern (Akaviri) races, though you get a palpable feeling they regret this and would rather chuck them in too.
It may have been a while ago, but lets not forget Morrowind’s setting and plot, that expected you to work to understand and immerse yourself in a culture that was an emalgamation and stylish represenstation of all sorts of eastern cultures, from Arab to Mongolian.
“The Moors are breifly mentioned in the article, they Moors are Black Muslims who conquered most of Spain in the Medieval era, yet you never see them picked up on in faux-European fantasy.”
I thought the Qunari in Dragon Age had sort of a generic Muslim empire vibe (Moorish, Turkish, etc.), with Tevinter’s Minrathous being Byzantium with a little bit of Rome. You know, foreign religion, advanced technology and culture, aims of conquest on the “Western” continent.
I liked that metametacritic piece. I enjoyed the fact it was done in quite a scientific way.
And as for Terry Pratchett, i didnt keep reading once they began discussing parts of the new book, but the story about his father was quite poignant, as was the line where he talks to the interviewer like a dictation machine.
@Radiator Pig
There aren’t any real story spoilers if you want to read the rest. There’re maybe two actual situations mentioned in single sentences with no details, the rest of it just mentions some of the concepts that will be dealt with in the book with no plot references.
Or you can just jump down 4 paragraphs to “I’ve lost both parents…”, the article moves away from the book there.
Not really satisfied with the user score analysis. Box plots would have been better than just analysing the standard deviation and I would have paid special attention to games where the user average score was significantly different to the critic scores. It seems obvious to point out that many user reviews are not going to be so serious and are going to tend to give extreme tactical scores. That should be accounted for by looking at the median score and interquartile range.
Also, the premise that critic reviews are better because they are more consistent with each other is flawed. One of the things that people complain about is that reviewers do not represent the opinions of the mass of actual gamers very well. If you take that as the premise then critics are flawed because both their mean and standard deviation is different to the user reviews. To confirm that you would have to do more complex testing to see if it is plausible that in most cases the review scores represent the opinions shown in the user reviews.
You’re right, it was obvious to point out what I did (with regards to the comparison between critic and user reviews). It’s something most of us think anyway – but no-one’s actually looked at the data, which was the motivation for the post.
User reviews online are used to manifest general likes and dislikes. For example if you had an online poll asking people to rate the Apple iPhone between 1 and 5, you would find a lot of 1s and a lot of 5s because people aren’t really rating iPhones but expressing their general views on Apple and perhaps even what they perceive to be the lifestyle and ideology Apple represents. So for anything useful, online user reviews are completely useless. Recommendations from people whos opinion you trust is another matter.
Space hulk was so close to being an awesome game. I’ve always wanted a modern version of it, incorporating detailed graphics and lighting, and proper 3d (to an extent).
By limiting you to the slow pace of the terminators, they created a game that was part action, part strategy. Doom meets xcom. And it had one of the best atmospheres and audio cues of any game. Horrible controls though.
I also loved the way you started as a single marine, folowing orders, and gradually became able to command all the marines.
Also, the “command time” idea was awesome and managed to mix the stress of real time with the benefits of turn based. It’s a shame no other games ever grabbed that idea. It wouldn’t work for multiplayer, but it would rock for something like RPGs (Bioware, fallout, etc..).
I always hoped that cancelled x-com team FPS would play like Space Hulk.
Had it been legal, Pratchett says, and “if he could have sat up in bed and said goodbye, I’d have pressed the button. I wouldn’t have been able to see for crying, but I would have considered that a duty.”
Probably the best sentence ever written on the morality of euthanasia.
I don’t think it should be an option at all for someone who doesn’t have legal right over their own care – nor should anyone with guardianship be able to make that choice.
It is a choice that only person of sound mind should be able to make for themselves.
It could even be prearranged – Personally I’d happily sign a card that stated that on the day it was decided that I was no longer able to function on my own, or make my own decisions, that is the day I should be put down.
The only option any 3rd part should have (legal guardian, next of kin what have you) is the option to withhold life saving treatment in certain cases, but not euthanasia itself. Unless as said above the person being euthanized has given them prior permission for it upon their judgement when they were of sound mind.
I’d do that, it may be a burden to any family/children I may have, but less so than caring for me as a man sized baby.
That and I really don’t want to live if I’m no longer the person I am, unable to make choices for my own well-being.
Most of my working class friends had a PC, as did I despite my parents not working for a good six or seven years (like most people in the North East, my dad was a shipbuilder who was turfed onto the dole when Thatcher closed the yards). It wasn’t that expensive really, you had a hardware stagnation similar to the one we have today (prior to the Pentium launch anyway) so you could always buy a second hand box on the cheap, slap in maybe another 4Mb or Ram or splash out on an 8Mb graphics card and you were good to play virtually anything. Plus it was often a lot easier to convince parents you needed a couple of hundred quid for school/college purposes than to spend the same amount on a console.
I suspect a lot of former Amiga owners migrated to the PC at that point, sad to say but the concept of paying for software tended to be alien to us. In fact, it’s like Mike said about the console – you’d get a game for Christmas and one for your birthday, maybe spend your christmas and birthday money on another game and that was it. But the paper round would let you get fifty blank floppies which you could always re-use …
Not in 1995. The pentium line had came out and the price plummeted on the 486’s. Plus most businesses started upgrading to the pentium line so you could pick up a good 486 second hand for less than two hundred quid, monitor not included, and expect to add around a hundred to bring it up to gaming spec.
In fact I remember seeing a new P75 box in Dixons in 1995 for a grand, around four hundred of which was the monitor.
I can’t say I found the race article particularly good. It’s probably best to keep your scientist hat on for this sort of analysis, as there’s enough emotion in the subject as is. The author seems to have a very odd sense of what each “race” looks like -i.e. if you took a white person and changed their skin colour to black they would still look like a white person, or at least the process would be obvious.
I’m sorry, but that’s silly. The whole concept of race as described is wrong -humanity is a hotch-potch of genetic elements that create a continuum phenotypic variations that are spread throughout the populations of this planet in a number of surprising ways. If the author thinks that all black people have wide noses, for instance (my interpretation of their words), their premise might be correct. But there is as much genetic diversity within Africa alone as there is in the rest of the world put together.
I think I’ve missed the point here, slightly intentionally, but the way most of us think about race (a stupid bloody concept at the best of times) is often not helpful. Even when you’re trying to be helpful like the author of this piece. Finally, I’m reminded of a number of campaigns where famous individuals had pictures digitally altered to challenge perceptions of race. The only real change was in skin tone, and the effect was quite natural.
Still, I do agree there should be a greater diversity of characters within games, if only so I don’t have to play angry white male no 1025 in the next big thing.
It is really all about perception, and the author seems to have highlighted the flaws in his.
Don’t you find this is usually how such discussions go though? Someone attempts to write an article even with the best of intentions, but in doing so unintentionally exposes the very underlying thought processes and subconscious prejudices that cause these common divides in the first place.
I think “race” can be a horrible, horrible subject to discuss openly in modern society. It can be worse than politics and religion combined. As a discussion topic, it has a nasty tendency to force even the most well-meaning of participants to use overly broad brushes to paint their ideas, and in doing so they often create wildly inaccurate and even harmful points of debate.
The subject, as it is often tackled, fundamentally ignores too much of our observable reality; namely individuality and the myriad combinations of ethnic and genetic traits that exist in people across the world today.
To bring my post a little closer towards the actual topic – I would love it if more games included the functionality to create your own character from the ground up. Granted, not all games are so well suited to allow modifications to the playable character’s actual abilities and statistics – as most RPGs and MMOs are – but it would still be great to have some aesthetic customisation available.
Although it’s essentially a very superficial illusion, I believe it allows you as a player to experience that extra level of involvement with the game and can give more meaning to any of your interactions. You are playing as your character, not someone else’s, and that inevitably leaves much more room to form an attachment.
For the players who simply can’t be arsed with all that, it’s always ridiculously trivial for them to select default templates and skip the whole thing entirely.
Stop talking about how we don’t do race well of course the whites are going to win in the western culture, the people at the top are white mostly american there going to talk about white mostly american things. And heres the thing…that aint a problem basically. like a black guy is probably always going to make a film with all black gus in it its just in the nature its what you know its what you write about. Stop this silly nonsense about race and maybe we will have peace in the world. Not very likely i know.
Terry Pratchett is always interesting in his talks, shame his novels have gone down hill a lot which i guess is to be expected to be honest. maybe he should do more talking/non fiction work again. Anyway great bit about his life and his father. i totally agree with him as well we should be able to choose when we die.
Also very interested in that columbine documentry could be a good watch definitly.
the fact that they’re all white guys in no excuse. nobody ever excludes women because the writers are mostly male. nobody ever excludes characters who aren’t the writers nationality. or job. etc.
i just think they’re scared that if they “write them wrong” (which is a pretty dumb thing to be afraid of since there’s no one way that every single black person on the entire planet acts and if you don’t get it exactly right some angry black man will kill you or something).
Actually you do find that to be honest unless the writer has a wife, which then makes all the female characers act like his wife. Why do you think most games writing has mostly male cast with one token sexy female. its clearly a take what you know aspect or a take what you fantasise aspect in the writing. And you may not know this but general media does the same. Do we complain about a film with zero black guys, or zero women? No. so why do we complain about games?
Well because the writers doing this only have the narrow broad of field. But thats a different argument. We should have more women/black creators like they do in film(though again not enough) but we shouldn’t expect writers to write things they have no idea about and just get people angry when they inevitably cock it up.
Hmm I liked Going Postal and Night Watch, the only other book he has recently done that I have really liked is his non-discworld book Nation.
Also I’ve never really heard that many complaints on film and TV and i really think we should get over maybe some thngs not have minorities/women. When I’m writing a lot of my stories don’t include women because i don’t think of stories to include women. Same with other minorities. i’m afraid to say i write for myself which is a white male. And i don’t really see anything wrong with that as long as there are women writers and minority writers out there writing for themselves. Which i have to agree there isn’t enough of.
That’s really interesting – partially for the concept, partially for the naivety of the commenters! They seem to think classification boards do it for free – I can’t speak for other nations, but certainly any game getting retail release in Australia is required to be classified, and distributors will pay a fee to have that happen.
I suspect in this instance South Korea is merely ahead of the curve, and eventually all nations with mandatory government classification of media will adopt a similar stance. Otherwise games can relatively easily bypass national classification systems by releasing on digital platforms only. Certainly games released on Steam in Australia already come with classification information where games are already classified – it’s probably arguable that buying games on Steam which aren’t classified in Australia is illegal.
Valve are pretty used to dealing with regional quirks in their system, so I suspect what South Korea will see is that games on Steam with South Korean retail releases will get approval for sale, as will big games where either Valve or the publisher is willing to pay for the cost of getting the South Koreans to rate the game, and all other titles will stop being available on Steam in South Korea.
Maybe there’s a Korean Gamers’ Rights Party that concerned citizens can vote for to stop their government messing with their video games. Or perhaps this sort of initiative is actually reasonably well supported by Korean gamers? Who knows.
it’s probably arguable that buying games on Steam which aren’t classified in Australia is illegal.
Nah. Or rather, in 2 states it’s illegal to own refused classificiation products, but everywhere else it’s legal to own them but illegal to sell them. Luckily for Valve, it’s very unclear whether they can be counted as selling in Australia. Not that they don’t stick to it anyway.
I’m sure any ambiguity, if there is any, over whether or not Valve’s service counts as however “selling” is defined in the Act will be rapidly cleared up if anyone in government notices that “sick filth” which has been banned in Australia is available on Steam.
Reading that piece on the ‘pasty white person’ reminds me what an absolute minefield writing ethnic characters can be for white writers. In this case creators taking the attitude of making some characters black without making a big deal of it has resulted in the accusation that they are ‘white people in body paint’. Yet if they had made their ethnicity a constant part of the character then some would say they were one dimensional characters defined by their race.
I think it’s a bit misleading when did a white character ever exhibit “white traits” they are white in visuals only.
All character models are blank polygons with paint (textures) thrown over the top
Skin tone is simply a matter of genetics not an expression of cultural values or behaviours.
Reality is videogame characters defining character trait is being the person that holds the gun seriously nothing about Halflife would be different if they replaced Gordon with a monkey that could opperate the gravity gun because all you are is a pair of floating arms whos job is to hold the gravity gun.
Skin tone or sex is only a cosmetic choice , videogame characters are tools or objects not people.
They are virtual dolls that have no upbringing, sentience, background, education, hopes, dreams or values.
also writing minorities is only a minefield if you don’t know any minorites or have any minority friends or have some really weird ideas on how they are supposed to act like you’ve only ever seen black people on tv or something
I think you’ve got me wrong here, I’m not saying that people should opt out (and seeing as making all the characters white has it’s own problems, then there really is no option to do so). Simply saying I understand why they do so. I think that people it’s right that people should be encouraged to write minority characters. All I’m saying is you have to give points for trying (to an extent) lest you make it a lose lose scenario.
“I think it’s a bit misleading when did a white character ever exhibit “white traits” they are white in visuals only.”
It depends really on what you consider “white traits”. Generally there’s only one race that games writers seem capable of, and it’s the same whether they’re white, black, elf or dwarf. So I guess you could say that in general they’re not particularly good at doing races whatsoever.
I think the argument would be that it’s still first person because you’re the one controlling the action. You could still say “I did this” in a way that you couldn’t while watching a movie, even if it was shot from a first person perspective.
Who writes things like ‘with Trolls seeming roughly analogous to West Indian stereotypes, and Taurens fitting under the Native American umbrella.’ ? Who wants black elves and yellow dwarves ? Are you kidding me, mr. colorful ?
How is my game going to be better just because the developers wasted another $1m on funny colors for everyone ? Next time there is an actual ‘make my char black’ option someone will be angry because the chars just look like black people but they don’t behave like black people, whatever that is supposed to mean.
@Hoernchen Next time there is an actual ‘make my char black’ option someone will be angry because the chars just look like black people but they don’t behave like black people, whatever that is supposed to mean.
Exactly. The only thing your skin color determines is how susceptible you are to sunburns. Otherwise no one can claim that some person isn’t acting in accordance to his race because, well, there is no such thing as a race based personality. A black guy from the US will act differently than a black guy from England, who in turn will act differently than a black guy from Africa. It makes it kind of obvious that a way a person talks and acts is more a cultural thing than it is a racial one.
So if someone starts bitching about a game where some English black dude talks with an English accent who loves afternoon tea and eels in aspic, and complains about him being a “white person with a coat of paint”, just ask “how else are they supposed to act”. The guy is from England. He’s gonna act English. Race has absolutely nothing to do with it.
They’d have a point. Black is not a race, it’s a cultural definition. The race is Negroid. If the options are Caucasian, Mongloid, Negroid et al then yes, it’s just a description of skin colour and physical traits. If on the other hand they use cultural terms – black, asian, hispanic – then you’ve got a problem, because if I opt to have my character to be Hispanic, then I’m expecting them to be from a Hispanic culture irrespective of the colour of their skin or whatever.
Although since that usually involves making the character little more than a collection of bad stereotypes from whatever culture I’m not sure if it would be an improvement.
The EA/Mythic thing, along with the recent comments by stardock’s CEO, prove again what not enough companies realise: everyone makes mistakes, but you get respect if you admit them and make an effort to correct them. Sticking your fingers in your ears and going “la la I can’t hear you, I’m pretending everything’s fine as a sort of puny PR-spin exercise” never ever works.
oh, and re: Fallout 3. The options “Caucasian” and “Hispanic”… last I checked, “Hispanic” meant “of Spanish origin” and the Spanish were caucasian… There was quite a few spanish at my (scottish) university, and once the tans had gone away there was no visible skin tone differences…
I suspect they wanted to say “slightly mexican” but, like with the “african american” option, totally screwed up.
Not having played FO3, I feel safe in opining on it. ;-) I would guess they did mean Mexican/American(i.e. darker than pink, lighter than black), but somebody decided Hispanic was less likely to generate backlash.
I’m delighted to hear that Mr. Pratchett is still writing, since his recent works have been excellent.
The piece on racial inclusion is a tricky one, although I agree with the author. In the case of fantasy worlds, particularly RPGs, the emphasis always has to be on allowing the player to create the character they want to play, and one they are comfortable with. In made up worlds there is rarely a good excuse for not allowing diversity.
Agreed. Dangerous not only for their own children, but also the other kids at their school etc. I wonder why we allow parents to refuse to vaccinate. Children have rights. They have a right to education, to be free from abuse and so on. Why do they not also have the right to immunity from preventable diseases?
Some kids have allergies – my younger son can’t have most vaccinations due to egg content. If vaccinations were mandatory we’d have a good deal of trouble (more than we already have) keeping him in the school system. We already have doctors and school people alike demanding he be given vaccinations at every turn, until we remind them he’d die if he was given one. “Oh right,” they say, “just be careful then.”
That he’s on the autism spectrum is a coincidence. But do you think someone reporting about my son as “Patient Zero”, would care? Can you imagine how terrifying a simple flu season is?
Parents very often have, you know, reasons for not wanting their kids to be vaccinated, and putting it in the hands of other people could turn out poorly.
Considering some of the dangerous medical fads in recent history – lobotomies, hysterectomies as psychiatric treatment, estrogen therapy for menopausal discomfort leading to a massive increase in breast cancer for post-menopausal women, to name just a few; it is understandable why people are skeptical of medical practices. That, coupled with a failure to grasp that correlation does not equate causation in a group of very distressed people(talk to anyone who has a child diagnosed as autistic) who are looking for a REASON for the occurrence of said condition and a long tradition of anti-intellectualism in this country and -viola- you have these kinds of demagogues attracting followings of desperate, frightened and angry people. That said, the anti-vaccine camp is a danger to the public health of this country. They remind me very much of the anti-evolutionists(another peculiarly American imbecility) in their modes of operation.
drewski: yes, good point; and it’s a mighty dangerous concept when misconstrued.
I’m always shocked at the lengths groups will go to in attempts to silence, discredit or annihilate people who disagree with them. Frankly, I can only view any advocates of such underhanded personal attacks as sub-human, it makes me that frustrated.
Sometimes, I wonder why people do not realise that the reason they have to resort to character assassination is because their side of the argument is incapable of standing on two legs otherwise. Perhaps I don’t know enough about the anti-vaccination debate/conflict, but I suspect this is a case of the factual being rejected in lieu of poorly conceived idealism and hatred. And it’s getting people killed. Poor show, humanity.
It’s not just a north-american problem. There are multiple movements and schools of thoughts in germany (Waldorf-schools*, “Anthroposophy” etc.) which are firmly entrenched in the anti-vac camp. Over the last years they gained quite a lot of publicity, public support and an image of “exclusivity”, which is just sad, because some parents just want “the best” for their children.
*) disclaimer: I don’t claim that kids going to these schools are somehow indoctrinated or otherwise affected (since puberty works against education of any kind). I knew a few kids from one of those schools and they were totally decent, never knew their parents, though.
Anyway, this isn’t an issue of parents whose children are allergic to the vaccines refusing in order to protect their children (and really, do the research and check with your doctor and so on to see if it’s a real worry with modern vaccines)– it’s parents who have been frankly, misled by poor research and hysteria and people with some kind of agenda I can’t figure out who think they’re protecting their children.
It’s also an issue of the expansion of the autism spectrum to include more behaviors that previously weren’t considered autism, leading to more children being diagnosed with autism earlier.
And, of course, it’s an issue of people just deciding that the government is bad, mm-kay? Don’t do what the CDC says! It’s all a front for FEMA, and we KNOW they’re bad!
I return to my previous observation– at best, anti-vaxers are kind-hearted but foolish.
Yeah, the sad thing is that vaccinations have been so successful in the developed world that people there have taken the post-viral environment for granted and forgotten how dangerous these diseases really are. It would be bad enough if they were only putting their own children at risk, but the fact that they’re putting everyone at risk is intolerable. Even if one believes that there’s a credible link between autism and vaccines, I don’t understand why people wouldn’t vaccinate their children; the risk of having autistic kids seems more palatable than the risk of dead kids.
What’s really maddening about these anti-vacc folks is that they malign those who disagree with them (ironically inferring that vaccine supporters are responsible for killing children, which is, of course, exactly what the anti-vacc people are actually doing) while simultaneously having the gall to sue over trivial comments.
@Ignorant Texan:
There’s probably some overlap between the anti-vacc and anti-evolution folks. The anti-evolution people (aka “creationists”) are anti-science in general. I know some creationists argue that bacteria can’t evolve resistance to antibiotics (and that therefore there should be no restrictions on their use), which given the dangers we’re now facing due to antibiotic-resistance “superbugs” puts them in a similar position of being a danger to others. I often fantasize about placing all these people who are deliberately making themselves public health hazards on an isolated island somewhere to spare the rest of us the consequences of their ignorance.
As far as the increase in autism being related to increased diagnosis, I read recently that autism is now being over-diagnosed (i.e. other conditions are now mistakenly being labeled “autism”). Apparently, though, even adjusting for that increase, cases are rising. Genetics seems to play a role, but that doesn’t account for it either. That all argues against a vaccine connection (the fact that autism rates steadily increase, regardless of changes in vaccination practices), but it does argue for an unknown environmental influence. (Made more plausible by the recent link between ADHD and exposure to organophosphate-based pesticides, which are practically ubiquitous.) That is where the hysteria comes from – from trying to deal with an unknown threat, against which we are all powerless. When faced with serious problems, people will latch on to any solution that’s under their control, regardless of whether it’s actually, you know, correct or not. Since their assigning of causation is entirely based on the need to have control over their lives, rather than evidence, people become completely irrational and hostile to anyone who disagrees.
While there may be some overlap between the anti-vac and anti-Natural Selection(Creationism has been dropped, btw, for Intelligent Design[same arguments, but they’ll jump on you for attempting to link them to their past ‘brand’ name]), on the whole, the anti-vac folks are generally well-intentioned, but misinformed people who either have children diagnosed with autism, or are afraid they might. The anti-evolutionists are anti-science, they also deny any geology involving explanations of more than a few thousands years, most of astronomy/astrophysics, biology, you name it. Anything involving falsifiability. While both groups are dangerous, the anti-vac folks have the potential to be educated, most of the anti-evolutionists don’t because they can’t be. Texas is where a lot of these anti-evols are based, the recent fight over HISTORY(Texas schoolbooks) would be funny, if it wasn’t so infuriatingly damaging to the education of children in this state.
“As far as the increase in autism being related to increased diagnosis, I read recently that autism is now being over-diagnosed (i.e. other conditions are now mistakenly being labeled “autism”).”
Even perfectly normal people have been diagnosed with Autism. It’s the problem you have with many behavioural disorders; they classify aberrant behaviour but since there’s no such thing as a normal psychological profile (or at least not one you’d ever find two psychologists agreeing on) the difference between a diagnosis of being mildly introverted or being autistic depends entirely on the person doing the diagnosis, unless of course you’re at the extreme end of the spectrum and incapable of looking after yourself. It’s one of the main reasons psychology is still seen as quackery in some circles.
Actually, anti-vaxxers are pretty prominent in Australia as well. Unfortunately, if you google “vaccination”, the first site that pops up in the results is avn.com.au — an anti-vax group in New South Wales.
We’ve protested a talk by their head honcho here in Perth (a lady by the name of Meryl Dorey). She’s all sorts of nuts. Some of the choice quotes she’s used in her talk were: “Doctors and medical practitioners don’t vaccinate as much as other citizens — do they know something that we don’t?” And, well, a whole pile of conspiracy theories and idiocy about mercury and thimerosal present in the vaccines. She even quotes David Icke on her website (the Illuminati-control-the-World-Health-Organisation fellow. Also: lizard people).
Except thimerosal hasn’t been used in vaccines since 2003. Mercury is, but not the sort you find in, for example, fish, which will be detrimental to your health.
Why does no one ever mention that iPod have crappy sound quality? And I don’t just mean the shite headphones, even when switched over to my Seinheisser’s the sound is still flat and really lacks bass. That makes the product fundamentally flawed.
I knew the race article was going to suck from the title alone. “Pasty” indeed, as if there’s something inherently unattractive about white people. Let’s hope self-loathing liberals like Chuck are relegated to pushing racial quotas only in the virtual world..
lol you’re afraid a ‘racial quota’ is going to take away your job and give it to me but that’s okay i don’t want your job the evul givment pc(not the king rps worships) police already gave me the job of a rich surgeon and now i’m cutting up and killing patients and getting paid for it :D
Weylund – I’m sure in hypothetical compulsory vaccination world, there could be either exemptions for people for whom vaccinations are life threatening, or alternatively formulated vaccinations which are safe for people with various conditions.
There’s little problem with the odd child not being vaccinated – if everyone else is, that child is protected by herd immunity. It’s when sufficient numbers of misled parents don’t vaccinate their children and the herd immunity breaks down that not vaccinating children is a problem and, ironically, it’s usually the children who are unable to be vaccinated that are most severely affected, because their immune systems are often compromised already and unable to fight off otherwise relatively harmless infections.
My only problem with “Let’s Play” as a phrase as it somehow implies that it’s always going to be one of the “Tell me what to do and I will” ones. And most of the time it’s not. It’s actually “I’m Playing”.
(Which is part of the problem Dethdoll has hit upon – it’s such a foggy term used in so many ways that it’s easy to misunderstand what it means.)
screenshot let’s plays are the only ones i read unless the guy/girl/people doing it have a really awesome voice or atleast a normal voice and it’s a really scary game or a horrible voice but they know it so they very rarely talk and mostly just use subtitles. or no voices at all because the game just speaks for itself.
if an AAR is just a screenshot lets play then i guess i really like them then.
Technically, LPs are a revival of AARs. AARs in their original form mostly centered around strategy games, and often tended to border on fanfiction. AAR these days refers more to screenshotty LPs, and the original meaning of the term has fallen by the wayside.
That Amy Wallace piece resonated with me.
I recently had an otherwise intelligent work colleague decrying vaccination in general.
I was born and raised in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, birthplace of the father of vaccination, Edward Jenner.
So to me vaccination is one of those incontrovertible universal facts, much like, you know, GRAVITY.
I can’t believe that people are willing to risk the lives of their children over this.
Of course, then I realised my work colleague’s other half is currently studying Homoeopathy.
Proponents of Homoeopathy are incredibly vocal in opposing vaccination in an attempt to further their own mumbo jumbo.
How otherwise intelligent people can fall for this codswallop is beyond me. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Theater in Sevilla AN
Venues at Sevilla AN
Details of Sevilla and the Ticket Luck value
Sevilla is a place to be if you re in love with bustling metropolis, cultural diversity and culturally and culinary. It is the city of romance, beaming with love and beauty of an Andalucian sun, Sevilla is Spains cosmopolitan sunshine.
Sevilla is situated in the middle of the autonomous community of Andaluc?a. Sevilla has a typical Spanish surrounding. Mountain ranges are united with the lapping waters of Mediterranean sea by the Olive groves.
Its home to popular bullfights and flamenco dances. Music is in the streets of brick lined streets and white washed houses with aroma of flowers everywhere. In a nut shell Seville is cultural, artistic, financial and social centre of southern Spain.
In Sevilla you will find baroque churches, shopping arenas, renowned museums e.g. the famous fine Arts Museum, world of entertainment, fiestas, concerts and galas all year round and last but not least if you are a football lover then Sevilla is a treat for your sports loving nature.
If you are a kind who appreciates the intricacies of theatre then sit back and enjoy worlds best theatrical performances, as the place is birthplace of the Spanish phenomenon otherwise known as tapas.
When you are finished with sight seeing restaurants, cafes, and bars line the streets. They serve up a mouth-watering array of typical Andalucian food and drink. Reasons to choose Sevilla as your travel destination
Celeberating Spring in Sevilla
Spring season in Sevilla brings along the world famous celebrations of Semana Santa and Feria de Abril. Weather becomes pleasant and the environment fills with the aroma of blooming orange blossoms.
Just walking down the road where cafes set tables and chairs outside again will make you feel as whole of Andaluc?a is celebrating the change of weather.
Cathedral of Sevilla
Cathedral in Sevilla was built between 1402 and 1506. It is believd that this cathedral is worlds biggest gothic cathedral, though there are controversies about this fact. Its main attraction is it shuge bell tower, which boasts the granduor of cathredals impressive architecture. Cathedral was once a mosque, which is evident from its Moorish decorative style.
A different Metropolis
Unlike other metropolis Sevilla is very laid back in a sense that you will not find hustle and bustle which dominates the urban vicinities. It is the city of seven hundred thousand people who enjoy life to its fullest.
This results in an happy, carefree, and open atmosphere. Sevillanos are friendly, hospitable and welcoming. If you ask Sevillano for directions, don't be surprised if he physically brings you to your destination, engaging all the way in a full conversation- regardless of whether or not you understand him!
Alcazar
If you are interested in historical architectures then Sevilla is the place for you to explore various architectural wonders. In past Sevilla has been favourite destination of kings and monarchs.
Cruel king Pedro , made Sevilla its central state and built a 10th century Moorish fortress, which was then converted into the palace. This architectural wonder has intricate designs and should not b missed if you are in Sevilla.
Music and theFlamenco
Sevilla is a romantic centre of Andalucian Spain. You will find guitar jams going on in small hidden bar to huge choreographed theatre shows.Music, dance and guitar is the passion of Andalucian life.
Tapas
Sevillanos are proud of the gastronomic art of Tapas. Over 1000 tapas bars in Sevilla serve a variety of dishes to choose from, ranging from ham to vegetables to fried fish.
Fine Arts Museum
Sevillas Fine Artss Museum is one of the biggest attraction for the world art lovers to the centre.It is an absolute wonder which is housed in a 13th century former convent. It displays remarkable and priceless work from a plethora of famous artists.
Nightlife
If you are in mood of just hanging out, check out the cafes playing live music or hang out dancing in Sevillas night clubs. Night clubs in the state will not disappoint you for their exuberant ambience will keep you high with happiness and festive mood.
Shopping
Sevilla is shoppers paradise. You will find yourself lost in maze of lively weekend markets and pedestrian streets filled with wide range of shops to shop from. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
NZ Sport and Recreation Awards 2019
24 June 2019, Cordis Hotel, Auckland
The New Zealand Sport and Recreation Awards are organised and hosted by Sport NZ to recognise and celebrate excellence in Community sport.
Now in their 12th year, the Awards highlight the commitment and dedication of individuals, clubs, local government authorities, regional and national bodies who enrich New Zealanders' lives through sport and recreation.
Winners will be announced at the annual Sport and Recreation Awards dinner, which this year will be held in Auckland on Monday 24 June 2019 to coincide with Sport NZ's Connections Conference – the annual conference for leaders in the sport and recreation sector.
The 2019 New Zealand Sport and Recreation Awards Portal is now closed.
The independent judging panel are currently conducting their assessments.
Finalists will be announced in April
If you have any issues or questions about your application, the portal, or the awards, please do not hesitate to get in touch via the 'Contact Us' page. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Month: July 2015
Contrary to every news story about iBeacons, they can be used for things besides pushing coupons and ads inside stores. In fact, they can even be used for something you’d want! Let me describe my last experience at my local movie theater chain (Marcus Theatres) and how it could be improved with iBeacons. First, Marcus has an …
From TechCrunch: This also requires a realization that app development is not a linear process, and an end to the all-too-common workflow of designing an app and simply handing it over to developers. What’s needed, instead, is an organic process where designers and developers work together to create a vision that’s compelling and exciting — …
From Engadget: Amazon is working on a drive-up grocery store in Sunnyvale, California that will rely solely on internet orders — you’d schedule pickups instead of wandering aisles This is exactly what Target/Walmart should have been experimenting with years ago. Unlike ordering prepared food (like a pizza) which you need at a specific time and place, …
From WatchAware: …in the years to come innovations will happen that will make the Watch far more compelling. The screen, the battery, the speed, the applications, and the sensors will all be noticeably better. Not only that, but the Watch will likely do something we haven’t thought of. It’s hard to say what that is …
From The New York Times: Wall Street has been watching Starbucks’s introduction of a mobile ordering and payment system, which is available in more than 4,000 stores around the country. Mr. Johnson said that 20 percent of all money paid to Starbucks in the United States came in through its mobile app. “These new capabilities … | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
What the hell?! Warner Bros. just revamped deals with Redbox, Blockbuster and Netflix effectively doubling the wait time for them to get new releases. What it really means is, they're making you wait longer and trying to force you to buy discs earlier, it sounds underhanded to me at a time when they just seemed to be seeing the light of the modern era. Personally, I'll just boycott new disc purchasing.
I mean seriously, the overall effect is probably going to be heightened piracy. Someone will buy the Blu-Ray, rip it and off it will go round the world. Those who were tired of waiting 28 days are certainly going to be far from pleased with having to wait 56 days and so, will turn to piracy. Maybe this is their ploy and then they can say "See we NEED SOPA!" (which we don't, that bill is horrible, just go read it.)
What I think they fail to realize is that consumers who buy is not equal to consumers who rent or stream. For example, I hate discs. I think they are nothing but archaic clutter and since I'm never going to star on Hoarders, I don't buy. There are very, very few movies/TV that I will watch enough times to warrant purchasing a full physical package and I can name them on one hand - Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Cowboy Bebop, Doctor Who (I have them all, so far, so no new sales from me). Everything else I watch ends up regularly on places like AMC or FX. Well, the majority of my viewing is on BBC America and on-demand actually so I'm not a normal consumer I guess.
Basically, it sounds like Warner Bros. wants to force consumers to buy discs and get the Ultraviolet digital copy included instead of going and paying someone else [Netflix, Redbox] to get their content. They apparently fail to realize that there are a vast number of consumers like me, consumers who only want a digital version and who don't need all the garbage they stuff onto a Blu-Ray, just because they have the space. I'm not saying that it's all crap and I'm not saying that it's all consumers. They seem to believe that this move will bolster DVD/Blu-Ray sales.
BZZZTT! Someone who has Netflix, is not going to buy the discs either way. That's the whole point of having a Netflix account, so you can rent them and not have to buy them. $8 a month means you could, if you're vigilant and quick, watch a half dozen movies in a month (5 day turnaround of receive, watch, return). If we wanted to buy all of those discs it would be $150-200 a month. See the difference WB? Apparently not.
What I think the real problem is that they get paid just once from Netflix when they buy a stack of wholesale discs in bulk for rental. They think that by pushing it all off for another month they can get more sales because people would rather buy than rent?
On top of all that, this new deal doesn't even guarantee streaming rights to all the content. According to All Things D:
This time around, though, Warner won't be granting any additional digital rights to the studios. It will simply be offering them the ability to buy discs in bulk, at a significant discount to retail pricing, like they already do.
Anyone else have a feeling that it's like 1999?
If they were to say, sell standalone Ultraviolet versions, for a reasonable price (as in, way below the physical packaging in line with the lack of disc, packaging, logistics and shipping) I might buy more. I might even buy before renting was available. $10, sure. $15, probably not. $16 for Green Lantern? Hell no. I mean, it was OK, but not $16 worth of OK.
Think about it, they don't have to pay licensing fees for the disc technology, don't have to pay for printing of the package, shipping of the package, returns, etc. Whittle all that out of the equation and $10 seems good. Then again, there haven't been all that many movies that I've even deemed worthy of my time and money to go see in a theater, why would I pay just about the same amount to watch it at home?
Speaking of yanking chains, HBO, also part of the Time Warner pseudo-monopoly, has ceased to sell to Netflix altogether. Now, Netflix will have to get their HBO discs like the rest of us, from retail. No more wholesale discount for them. I'm guessing that they can still get a discount from a major retailer if they're going to order a thousand at a crack. The two view each other at chief rivals. Of course, HBO already has an ass-backward view of it all because in order to get HBO Go (their digital service) you must subscribe to their pay TV channels. It's like the Friday Follies here! Perhaps if they'd unbundle they'd see far more revenue, but they don't want to cut into the profits of Time Warner Cable it seems.
Perhaps the whole lot of them should deny wholesale deals to the disc rental places, and then we'll see just how well they, the studios, do in disc sales. I mean, if Netflix, Redbox and Blockbuster can't turn a profit on the rentals, they might just drop down to a small number of each further cutting into the bottom line for WB and their ilk.
What this means for online video content providers is, far more time to get your original content in front of those consumers who will wait the two months. They'll certainly be looking around for other things to watch in the mean time, so why not pump out some quality content and get them hooked. They might even forget they ever wanted to buy some of the rubbish that studios like WB put out
Christophor Rick is a freelance writer specializing in technology, new media, video games, IPTV, online video advertising and consumer electronics. His past work has included press releases, copywriting, travel writing and journalism.
Glenn Arcaro
"Make your customers happy? What's that? " lol.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=647021009 John Robins
hmmmm - I'm not sure I fully understand this move on any level. If WB were going to create the WB online channel and then start charging for streaming/direct download from their own website I could sort of see why they would offer secondary, delayed sales/distribution to other online channels. But trying to force us back into shops to by discs, blimey! Next thing you know they'll be buying up a few old vinyl companies! Surely this is just going to increase the likelihood of pirating?
As a consumer that only buys/watches movie and TV content online. There is no chance I am ever going back to a store to buy a disc of any kind. There is more good material being distributed/sold online than I can ever watch so surely all this will do is reduce customers.
In the same way that Apple keep on forcing themselves into niche customer scenarios through a megalomanic approach to products and marketing, this seems like a similar, but less viable strategy. Perhaps I am missing something, I am not an expert, but certainly it wont work for me, or many viewers that I connect with.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=796829185 Melissa Ziarno
Shamefully even IKEA appears more visionary - I don't think they even produce or sell CD/DVD racks anymore!!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=647021009 John Robins
@ Liam, I hear what you are saying, but actually supporting legitimate online distribution channels and making content available online at reasonable prices is the fastest way to cut down piracy. Taking stuff off the web will have the reverse effect and gambling on SOPA at this stage is extremely optimistic.
http://www.danieltwoods.com Daniel Woods
I think your story might be wrong look here: http://m.deadline.com/2012/01/allthingsd-warner-bros-pacts-with-netflix-and-others-to-extend-dvd-release-window/ | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Siemens, Alstom, Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane and George Kent together with PORR are going to work together in a bid to win the tender for the high-speed rail contract…
Siemens, Alstom, Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, George Kent and PORR have joined together to bid for the ‘Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High-Speed Rail AssetsCo’ tender for the high-speed rail project.
The companies will prepare a joint offer including engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), and operations and maintenance (O&M) for the tender.
Partnering these companies together results in a powerful team combining European technology and project experience with quality local expertise. The two manufacturers, Siemens and Alstom, have decades of technology leadership and excellence in delivering complex cross-border high-speed railway projects.
Michel Obadia, Head of Siemens Mobility Asia Pacific stated: “The Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail is a ground-breaking project that will significantly prosper the economic and social ties of millions of Malaysians and Singaporeans. Siemens is a trusted partner for both countries having contributed to their vital infrastructure development for many years. We have also been committed to technology transfer to both countries. With the help of our global network of recognised experts we will be able to provide the most innovative technical solution for a comfortable and safe journey.”
Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane brings valuable expertise in railway operations and a vast global footprint. These European companies are joined by George Kent, a Malaysian company offering significant construction experience in rail transportation projects and a strong local knowledge of the Malaysian market. George Kent is partnering with PORR, a highly experienced track work provider offering a state-of-the-art slab track technology.
Filippo Scotti, Executive Vice President International Markets of FS Group (Italian State Railways) further commented: “The Kuala Lumpur–Singapore high-speed rail is a strategic project that will bring a leap forward in the economic and social development of Malaysia and Singapore. We are honoured to contribute to it through our consortium, which includes the best players in the industry.”
Commenting on this agreement, Jean-Francois Beaudoin, Senior Vice President of Alstom Asia-Pacific, said: “Alstom, with its expertise in complex high-speed projects, has been keenly looking at this tender and seeking the best partnerships – locally and internationally to offer the finest solution to Singapore and Malaysia. I believe we have a powerful and competent team to address this tender – with the best of European Rail Companies and George Kent as our local partner.” | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
An Unexpected Grace
The talented Bainbridge Island author, who has previously focused on nonfiction, makes a smooth transition here into fiction with a story that serves up psychological salve for all involved – the title’s namesake Grace, a golden retriever, and two highly different characters in her life, Lila Elliot and Adam Spencer.
Grace and Lila are both damaged personalities – the former being rescued by Adam after being mistreated and with little or no socialization and the latter finding herself a victim in a San Francisco public-relations company office shooting where seven died and three were wounded by a janitor.
Adam, however, Grace’s rescuer and Lila’s acquaintance via a friend Cristina, is driven to find a permanent home with a positive setting for Grace, but is forced to house her temporarily with Cristina, who soon after moves to the East Coast short term to follow her husband’s work and asks Lila, to house sit for six months. She agrees, but Grace comes with the package, until Adam is able to rehome her, producing plenty of emotional fireworks.
Von Kreisler is at her best with colorful metaphors throughout this striking adventure that exudes a combustible feel around every corner. As the story unfolds you find yourself rooting for Grace and losing patience with Lila, who is admittedly not a “dog person,” after a frightening childhood encounter with one.
Early on, the author captures Alice’s woebegone look: “Anyone can tell this dog had seen hard times. Her odometer had too many miles on it. She looked as worn as a tennis ball that had lost its fuzz.”
Under the same roof, Lila, an artist, and Grace encounter an emotionally bumpy ride day after day, both requiring time and space and neither wanting to bond with the other too quickly despite Adam’s interactions. But time has a tendency to heal wounds of the two characters deeply in need of the other, despite one’s begrudging attitude.
In that context, von Kreisler writes: “As the neediness in Grace’s whimpers overwhelmed her, Lila identified with the vulnerability and anguish.”
Deftly balanced between frustration and eventual fascination, Lila and Grace grow on you as the former’s attitudes change – after she takes Grace to a nearby shelter for adoption then backs out – and later finds herself overcome with concern when the dog is injured and requires immediate veterinary treatment.
Von Kreisler’s lively narrative, detailed descriptions and engaging scenarios, chiefly centering on Lila and Grace, are balanced by the engaging and introspective Adam who levels the playing field for the edgy Lila. Recognizing both the dog and the woman suffered from a “random act of fate,” Adam attempts to put things in a sobering perspective for Lila, obsessed with unearthing the rationale behind shooter Yuri Markov’s rampage in her office.
Adam is on the periphery through much of the story, but gradually emerges into a key figure as the plot heads for a sugary, warm “family-type” conclusion.
Von Kreisler’s earthy delivery creates a landscape that’s a natural metaphor for the humbling struggles between trust and torment. While two of the key figures approach from polarized positions, a soulful dog serves as a sobering inspiration and comfort pillow for both – and a poignant relief valve for the reader.
Ranny Green, a Seattle Times pets columnist and feature writer for three decades before retiring in 2008, will be writing monthly features and book reviews on this newly revised web site. Green is also the former president of the Dog Writers Association of America, a five-time recipient of the DWAA's columnist of the year award and a six-time winner of the DWAA feature writer of the year for newspapers over 150,000 circulation. He currently serves on the media staff of the famed Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show staff in New York City each February, and is on the board of numerous dog- and animal-related charities. He and his wife Mary own a Pembroke Welsh Corgi, a rescue dog. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Sitelock
TrueCode analyzes source code to create a detailed model of the application's interaction with users and sensitive resources. The tool delivers actionable information that helps prioritize flaws according to severity so users can address quickly. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Here we are again, the beginning of a new term. Everyone is fresh and eager to get their minds and bodies back into the land of learning. I have to say I’m no different. Week two, term 4. Full of enthusiasm I leapt into the shop front of the Northey Street Nursery, ready to buy […]
Kids Connecting With Nature ‘To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves’. ~Mahatma Gandhi In today’s world we seem to be programming our kids to a world of structure and routine and to a phrenetic paced lifestyle. Down time almost seems taboo, allowing our kids time to […]
Many of us don’t think to use Australian Native plants in our cooking. They are slowly becoming a little bit more accessible to us with nurseries and garden shops now selling them. Lemon Myrtle is probably the most commonly used of the bush foods. It is grown naturally between Brisbane and Rockhampton, most commonly around […]
For many of us spices are just apart of our culinary repertoire. But for generations spices have been used in some cultures for their medicinal properties and the word is spreading. Spices can be used to assist in the treatment and recovery of ailments, injuries and detoxing just to name a few. Turmeric for example […]
One of Australia food greats, Maggie Beer has launched the Maggie Beer Foundation ‘A good food life for all’. Maggie, 2010’s recipient of Senior Australian of the Year has passionately undertaken the quest to better improve food in aged care. Maggie believes that the pleasure of good, nutritional food should be available to all people regardless […]
These ‘How to gardening cards’ by the Little Veggie Patch Co are perfect for the home gardener. These guys have made a business out of setting people up with their own raised vegetable garden beds at their homes, giving more people the ability to grow their own kitchen gardens. These cards […]
The Sunshine Coast is just bursting with great food and produce and whilst my expectation for my recent visit to the Noosa Farmers Market was filled with anticipation for the amazing fruit and veg, i was more excited to find the most wonderful artisan producers. I found myself laden with buffalo haloumi, garlic infused olive […]
There is no greater satisfaction than going to your own garden and picking salads and veggies for your next meal. I know i seem to bang on about it but it’s so healthy for your family on so many levels to be able to to this. Your […]
On a recent visit to the Maleny Dairies my girls and i had a great morning seeing this beautiful local sunshine coast farm. The 3rd generation business showed off their beautiful property nestled in lush, green Maleny countryside. the cows where so content and happy you couldn’t help but want to go out and buy […]
This is a yarn I have been looking forward to telling for a while. On a recent visit to Melbourne I visited Federation Square’s Pop Up Patch. Melbourne based Matthew Pember and Fabian Capomolla of the Little Veggie Patch Co’s passion for a more sustainable, greener lifestyle led them to embark on this idea and […] | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Open source software refers to software with a freely accessible source code. The original developers of the software make the code available to the public. Although the code is freely available to anyone, the term “free” does not necessarily mean that OSS is available at no cost. Nevertheless, most open source applications are available for free.
This type of software allows users to experience freedom in different ways. For example, anyone can access, examine, modify, use, and redistribute it without any restrictions. However, this freedom is based on different types of open source licenses and certain criteria. Firstly, the source code must be available. Secondly, users should be able to modify and redistribute the software without any limitations.
There are different categories of open source licenses including popular licenses, international licences, special purpose licenses, non-reusable licences, superseded licenses, miscellaneous, and uncategorized licenses.
Some popular open source licenses include the MIT License, Apache License, GNU GPL License, and BSD Licence. These licenses allow software developers to edit the source code with some conditions attached. All programmers are required to include the modified source code if they change it. It is also important to include the methods used to modify the code.
Code modification involves spotting bugs, fixing the identified errors, improving functions, changing the software to meet specific needs, or upgrading the software according to the latest technology. Open source technologies have contributed to the establishment of the internet and most of the applications used today use open source technology.
Many people are using open source applications to perform different tasks such as browsing the internet, chatting, sharing information, doing business, as well as entertainment.
In addition, many of the devices used to perform certain tasks for personal and business purposes use open source software. For example, some operating systems such as Android OS, Apple’s OS X, and Ubuntu are based on open source technology. Some common open source applications include Mozilla Firefox browser, PHP, Python and Apache web server.
Many people (programmers/non-programmers) and companies use this on a daily basis. Also, many mobile devices such as phones and tablets support open source technology so people and businesses must learn how to capitalize on the positive aspects of this technology.
Unlike commercial software, most open source applications are available free of charge and this is good news for start-ups and individuals with no money to purchase proprietary software. In addition to the costs associated with the purchase, usage, and redistribution of software, individuals and companies worry about licences and the issues associated with software. This is a good reason to switch to open source software. The rules are favourable and there are minimal restrictions.
Programmers who focus on commercial software should also consider switching to open source software if they want to collaborate with other programmers from different parts of the world. This is a great way of gaining exposure and learning new tricks as a programmer. In general, open source technologies are playing a significant role in the world of technology so it is difficult to avoid them.
What are the Advantages in using Open Source Software?
Open Source Software has numerous advantages compared to other types of software. Both programmers and non-programmers can benefit from Open Source Software in different ways depending on their needs. Early inventors of the internet relied on open source technologies such as the Apache server and Linux OS and that is why all types of internet users and developers benefit from Open Source Software today.
Many internet users perform different tasks online with the help of their mobile phones, tablets, computers, and gaming consoles that support Open Source Software. They can view websites, chat with other people, share photos, stream videos, play music, read emails, and play video games with other people in different parts of the world.
Different types of Open Source Software have made all these tasks possible. Some cloud computing applications are also open source and many people are using them to perform the aforementioned online tasks. These are the specific benefits of using open source software:
Easy to obtain – The most obvious advantage of using Open Source Software is that it is easy to obtain, unlike proprietary software. For example, a user can easily obtain, install, and distribute Ubuntu at no cost. It is difficult to do the same with Windows because of the numerous restrictions associated with the operating system. Although Open Source Software does not necessarily mean “free software”, most open source applications are available for free. In addition, Open Source Software is publicly available so it is unlikely to become unavailable.
Flexibility and control – Many people prefer Open Source Software to other types of software because it is flexible. Open Source Software users have more control over the software. They can check and modify the code according to their needs. For example, Ubuntu users can modify the software if they are not happy with the desktop interface. In contrast, Windows users cannot modify the code because the operating system uses closed source technology. For non-programmers, Open Source Software allows users to use the software in different ways rather than what other people (such as programmers) want them to use it.
Security – Security is one of the many advantages of Open Source Software because anyone can access and modify the code. Open Source Software developers can identify and fix any bugs or errors omitted by the original developers. Moreover, many programmers can quickly fix errors and update the software without permission from the original developers. These tasks might take a very long time to accomplish when dealing with proprietary software.
High-quality software –The source code is tested and fixed by many developers and this leads to high-quality applications.
Easy training for programmers – One of the challenges faced by programmers is the cost of learning. The good news is that students can become better programmers because the source code for Open Source Software is available to everyone. Programming students can also work with other students, share ideas, and correct each other to improve their skills as software developers. Open Source Software also allows inexperienced developers to interact with and learn from experts in the industry.
Stability – Stability is particularly important for long-term projects and critical tasks that rely on Open Source Software. Users are confident and won’t give up if the original developer stops working on the software.
What are the Disadvantages in using Open Source Software?
Most of the people who prefer Open Source Software to commercial software enjoy the benefits described in the previous section. However, Open Source Software is associated with a number of drawbacks for the end-users (individuals and organizations) and software developers. It is important to acknowledge these disadvantages to help users and programmers know what to expect if they decide to use Open Source Software.
Some of the challenges associated with Open Source Software are also true for commercial software so it is advisable to compare other aspects of the software before making a choice. For example, a user can compare the cost of ownership, hidden costs, installation costs, user training requirements, compatibility with other types of software, and the available support. Other areas of concern for both users and developers include security issues, ease of use, and commercial issues for people who use Open Source Software for commercial purposes. The major drawbacks of Open Source Software include:
Difficult of use – One of the major challenges experienced by Open Source Software user is the unfriendly user interface and difficult installation processes. Some people are only familiar with popular commercial software and their productivity may diminish if a company introduces new open source applications. For example, it is difficult to learn the Linux operating system in a day so the company might be forced to hire an expert to train users.
Security issues – Since anyone can edit and distribute Open Source Software, security is a major concern for the ordinary user who cannot spot and fix errors. This freedom allows any software developer including individuals with malicious intentions to exploit software flaws. For example, hackers can take advantage of this freedom to introduce malicious codes that might expose confidential user data and information.
Lack of commercial focus – Open Source Software developers are likely to ignore the commercial aspect of software because they are not required to develop a commercial product for generating money. They tend to focus on what they want and are likely to forget what the user wants.
Compatibility issues – Users of Open Source Software may experience problems if the software is not compatible with existing systems. Some applications cannot run on Open Source Software so it is important to carry out a compatibility analysis before installing the software in order to know what is require including the necessary hardware and software. Compatibility issues may lead to extra costs if the system needs new hardware, software or paid experts.
Lack of support – Open Source Software support comes from a community of users and developers who are expected to fix problems. Many proprietary applications offer better support than open source applications. This is important for customers who want to make calls and get immediate responses when they experience a problem. Such services are difficult to find for people who rely on open source software.
Hidden costs – Most open source applications are available at no cost, but users may incur some indirect costs. Some of the possible costs include installation costs (such purchasing new software or hardware and paying an expert to configure the system), the cost of training users, the cost of transferring data to a new system, customization costs, and maintenance costs. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
NFL Mock Draft 2014: Updated Projections for 1st-Round Picks
Only a small percentage of top college football prospects will end up being selected in Round 1 of the 2014 NFL draft. These elite athletes offer teams a chance to immediately improve, theoretically, and as such, there's tremendous pressure to hit a home run with these selections.
The draft begins this year on May 8 in New York City, when the opening round will take place with millions watching around the world.
There is absolutely no consensus about which player will be selected No. 1 overall by the Houston Texans, which is why mock drafts vary so much. With that in mind, here's one way the first round could play out when teams start making their picks.
When it comes to raw football talent, nobody in this year's draft class compares to South Carolina's Jadeveon Clowney. The biggest concern teams have about the explosive pass-rusher is whether or not he has the strong desire to put his talents to their best use.
Marcus Lattimore, Clowney's former teammate at South Carolina, who's currently with the San Francisco 49ers, believes his work ethic will improve once he enters an NFL locker room, as relayed by NFL.com's Daniel Kim:
I think when he gets around professionals, once he gets around J.J. Watt, those veterans, sees what it takes every single day, he'll be just like those guys. He's going to be fine. That's what happens. You get around pros, and you learn, and you start doing it. When the competition gets high, he'll rise to it...He has all the talent in the world. He kind of reminds me of Aldon Smith with how athletic he is, the quickness. I think he's going to do great.
Pairing Clowney with J.J. Watt on Houston's defensive line would present a brutal challenge for opposing offenses.
2. St. Louis Rams (via Washington): Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn
Sam Bradford hasn't been able to stay healthy since joining the league in 2010. The Rams haven't provided him with proper protection up front, and he's suffered as a result.
Greg Robinson isn't the most polished offensive tackle in the draft, but he does offer the most upside. The towering offensive lineman is as explosive an athlete as any in this year's draft class, and it won't take long for his technical skills to match his considerable athleticism.
Jacksonville recently re-signed veteran quarterback Chad Henne to a two-year contract, but nobody should expect the Jags to rely on him as the No. 1 option this year. Henne is a backup, and that's all he'll ever be.
Teddy Bridgewater, on the other hand, has the tools to become a superstar. He's also the "most NFL-ready" quarterback in the draft, according to NFL Network's Mike Mayock, via Mike Huguenin of NFL.com.
4. Cleveland Browns: Blake Bortles, QB, UCF
Blake Bortles has the physical tools to become an elite quarterback, and his junior season at UCF offered a glimpse into his pro potential. He's adept at running a pro-style offense and called out audibles on the line of scrimmage, showing an amount of polish that isn't usually seen in quarterbacks from smaller schools.
Cleveland hasn't had a legitimate starting quarterback in what seems like a lifetime for most Browns fans. Bortles would finally provide some stability at the most important position on the field.
There's a growing concern that Oakland would be foolish to draft a quarterback at the top of the draft, since the team has no support up front or at the receiver positions.
Former Raiders quarterback and current analyst Rich Gannon recently touched on this, via Chase Goodbread of NFL.com: "Bad fit," Gannon said. "Only from the standpoint that I think a team has to be ready for a young quarterback. I don't think that team is quite ready yet."
There are a few promising quarterbacks that will be available after the first round, and the Raiders could significantly boost offensive production by drafting this year's top receiver in Sammy Watkins.
6. Atlanta Falcons:Khalil Mack, OLB/DE, Buffalo
Outside linebacker Khalil Mack is exactly the kind of defensive playmaker Atlanta needs to bounce back from a dismal 2013 campaign. He's an explosive athlete who excelled against top competition in college and who will be able to become an instant impact performer as a rookie.
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers:Jake Matthews, OT, Texas A&M
Second-year quarterback Mike Glennon looks like he has a shot to become the team's franchise signal-caller. He'll need better protection up front in the future to blossom into his full potential, however, after getting sacked 40 times in 13 starts last year.
Jake Matthews is the most pro-ready offensive tackle in the draft. He's not as physically imposing as Robinson, but his rock-solid mechanics make up for any athleticism he's missing.
8. Minnesota Vikings:Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Minnesota has all the offensive pieces in place to get back to the playoffs after last year's disappointing result. Matt Cassel was recently re-signed to a two-year deal, but he's not the long-term answer at the quarterback position.
With a strong running game behind him, Johnny Manziel would be a perfect fit in Minnesota. His ability to make plays on the run combined with his willingness to take shots down the field would give the Vikings a passing game to match Adrian Peterson's incredible production.
9. Buffalo Bills: Justin Gilbert, CB, Oklahoma State
The Bills have plenty of needs, but the team would be crazy to let a defensive playmaker like Justin Gilbert slide down the board. Gilbert is a terrific cover corner who compares to Patrick Peterson of the Arizona Cardinals. Like Peterson, he's also a talented return man who would quickly become a fan favorite in Buffalo.
10. Detroit Lions: Anthony Barr, OLB/DE, UCLA
Drafting Ezekiel Ansah last year was supposed to boost Detroit's pass-rushing numbers, but the Lions still finished the season as one of the worst teams in the league in terms of sacks (33). Anthony Barr racked up 23.5 sacks in two seasons at UCLA, and he'd be a terrific fit playing opposite Ansah in the years to come.
Tennessee's defense needs a leader in the middle, and C.J. Mosley would be a perfect man for the job.
Just ask Dick Butkus, who recently lauded the young man in an interview with Jim Corbett of USA Today Sports: "Whoever gets C.J. Mosley in the draft is going to be pretty damn lucky. C.J. is a serious kid who is not flamboyant. His approach was my approach: 'Go about your business. Let your actions speak for you.'"
Mosley was a team leader at Alabama and a fine player as well. He's going to quickly become a star in the NFL, and the Titans would be lucky to land him.
Taylor Lewan showed up at the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine and blew scouts away with his athleticism, speed (4.87 40-yard dash time) and explosion. He has the potential to develop into one of the premier left tackles in the NFL and would be a tremendous addition to Big Blue.
13. St. Louis Rams: Mike Evans, WR, Texas A&M
Stacy Revere/Getty Images
After landing the top offensive tackle, the Rams would be smart to then take another potential offensive superstar in Mike Evans. The receiver out of Texas A&M has all the physical tools to become a dominant force on the perimeter.
Bleacher Report's Michael Schottey elaborates: "NFL teams are not going to look at Evans and see 'just another receiver.' No, Evans is going to go in the top half of the first round because he can do things that no other player in this class can do."
14. Chicago Bears: Aaron Donald, DT, Pittsburgh
The Chicago Bears haven't featured anything close to the "Monsters of the Midway" defensively in a couple of years. Adding a ferocious defensive tackle like Aaron Donald would go a long way toward restoring the team's dominance on the defensive side of the ball.
15. Pittsburgh Steelers: Odell Beckham Jr., WR, LSU
Odell Beckham brings speed (4.43 40 time), production (broke LSU's single-season all-purpose yardage record in 2013 with 2,315 yards) and tenacity to the NFL. He's a terrific intermediate pass-catcher who would be a perfect complement to Antonio Brown on the perimeter for the Steelers—a team that desperately needs to retool offensively.
Dallas' pass defense was laughably bad last year because the team doesn't feature any starting-caliber safeties on its roster. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix not only fits that description, but his ability to play the run and pass with equal skill could make him a potential All-Pro in the not-so-distant future.
17. Baltimore Ravens: Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon State
Joe Flacco possesses one of the strongest arms of any quarterback in the NFL, and he loves firing the ball deep to Torrey Smith. Adding another speedster like Brandin Cooks, who ran a 4.33-second 40 at the combine, would help stretch the field even more, opening up running lanes for Ray Rice, who struggled badly last year.
18. New York Jets:Eric Ebron, TE, North Carolina
Geno Smith won't do much better than he did last year without some legitimate offensive weapons to throw the ball to on Sundays in 2014. Eric Ebron is the top tight end in this year's draft class. His speed and playmaking abilities after the catch will be a huge boon to the team that drafts him, and the Jets certainly need what he offers.
19. Miami Dolphins: Zach Martin, OT, Notre Dame
Ryan Tannehill was sacked 58 times last year. That number was more than any other team gave up, and the young quarterback won't develop properly if he's under the same kind of pressure this year.
Needless to say, offensive line help is a huge focus for Miami this offseason, and adding a versatile player like Zach Martin would be a strong move to improve things on this front.
Speed and quickness are highly valued commodities in the NFL, and Ryan Shazier is armed with elite levels of both. His ability to get to the quarterback would boost Arizona's already dangerous defense to become one of the league's most potent units.
21. Green Bay Packers: Calvin Pryor, S, Louisville
Fixing Green Bay's secondary is a huge concern, as the Packers haven't been able to stop teams from going over the top on a regular basis, thanks to poor safety play. Calvin Pryor isn't quite as skilled on the back end as Clinton-Dix, but he's still more than capable of covering in space. He'd be an instant starter for this safety-hungry team.
22. Philadelphia Eagles: DarquezeDennard, CB, Michigan State
Darqueze Dennard is the top pure cover corner in this year's draft. He loves to take on top receivers one-on-one on the outside, where he bumps them and stays in their hip pocket all the way down the field. For a team like the Eagles, which gave up more passing yards than any other last year, he's a perfect fit.
23. Kansas City Chiefs: JaceAmaro, TE, Texas Tech
Kansas City really missed having a capable tight end roaming the middle of the field on passing downs last year. Alex Smith was always looking for Vernon Davis when he was with the 49ers, and he'd quickly become enamored with Jace Amaro, should the Chiefs draft the talented pass-catching tight end.
24. Cincinnati Bengals: KonyEaly, DE, Missouri
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
If Kony Ealy falls to this point in the draft, then the Bengals would be crazy to let him slide further—especially considering Michael Johnson will likely bolt via free agency. Ealy is a bit raw still as a pass-rusher, but his quick first step and long arms have teams drooling over his potential to wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks.
25. San Diego Chargers: Louis Nix III, NT, Notre Dame
Louis Nix would be a perfect fit in San Diego, which allowed 4.8 yards per rushing attempt last year without a top nose tackle anchoring the defensive line. The big man is a run-stuffing behemoth who would allow Manti Te'o to flow to the ball without being harassed—just like he did when they were teammates at Notre Dame.
26. Cleveland Browns (via Indianapolis): Marqise Lee, WR, USC
After landing the quarterback of the future in Bortles, the Browns should look to upgrade their receiving corps. Josh Gordon is one of the league's bright superstars, but he needs help. Marqise Lee would be a nightmare to defend on the other side in one-on-one coverage as teams double Gordon.
It's tough to know what direction New Orleans will take in the draft, in light of the team's active offseason. There are needs across the board on both sides of the ball. However, there's no doubt Stephon Tuitt out of Notre Dame would be a fantastic addition as a 3-4 defensive end playing opposite Cameron Jordan, who really took off last year under Rob Ryan.
28. Carolina Panthers: Jordan Matthews, WR, Vanderbilt
Cam Newton started showing improved decision-making and production as a pure passer last year, but he still needs help at the receiver position. Jordan Matthews brings a nice blend of size (6'3", 212 lbs), speed (4.46 40 time at the combine), quickness and sure hands to the NFL. He's not as highly touted as the top wideouts in the class, but nobody should be surprised if he ends up becoming the most productive of all the rookie receivers this year.
29. New England Patriots: Timmy Jernigan, DT, Florida State
Adding depth and talent to the defensive line is a huge priority for the Patriots. After Vince Wilfork and Tommy Kelly went down with injuries last year, the team really struggled up front. Timmy Jernigan would be a tremendous addition, and he'd be a terror to defend playing alongside Wilfork in the middle of New England's defense.
30. San Francisco 49ers: Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Florida State
The 49ers re-signed Anquan Boldin to a two-year deal, and he was the team's leading receiver last year. Along with Michael Crabtree, the team has two excellent possession receivers that Colin Kaepernick can depend on.
However, the 49ers still don't have a receiver who can stretch the field vertically, which is why Kelvin Benjamin makes so much sense. He'd be in a position to learn from Boldin and develop into a top receiver in the next couple of years.
Even before the Broncos released Champ Bailey, the team was in the market for cornerback help. Jason Verrett is a feisty slot corner who would be a starter on three-wide sets from the first day of training camp.
32. Seattle Seahawks: Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE, Washington
Zach Miller is a fine run-blocking tight end, but he's not scaring anyone down the field running routes. The Seahawks would be smart to add a tight end who can stretch the field and make big plays on a regular basis. Local boy Austin Seferian-Jenkins is the perfect fit for the team that already has everything. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
If you can correctly select just one of tonight’s winning Pick-3 numbers and play the combinations below you are 100% guaranteed to WIN!!! Heard it before? Well, here it is.
If you are sure that one number is going to hit and it’s not a double, then choose one of the columns below under that number and play all 36 numbers boxed. Each column has all the possible 6 way combinations for that number. 100% guaranteed if no doubles!
Do you think this Pick 3 Lottery
system has Potential? Rate it! (74 votes, average: 3.64 out of 5)
Loading ...
Please feel free to leave a Comment.
Together we can really sharpen these Pick 3 Systems!
39 Responses to “1 Number Guaranteed”
There is a flaw in the 1 guarantee method that I found in just the first day of using it. I was so sure that a 3 was going to come out that I played all of the numbers in the 3 column and 305 came out. Needless to say, that number is not on that list in the 3 column so I lost. You only need 1 exception to disprove that rule when you use a words like guaranteed every time. If anybody has any feedback, I would love to read it.
Ouch. 305 is not on the chart, but 035 IS. The winning trick with this system is to play each 6-way number BOX. It says so in the instructions, and even at $0.50 BOX, the cost is a whopping $18! Unless you’re POSITIVE the 3 will lead, play box because the only time you can reliably risk a STRAIGHT play is if, say, 3 hasn’t hit in the lead for a long time…maybe 20 draws. If a digit is HOT and turning up nearly every draw, you’d do well to figure it WILL hit in the lead pretty soon IF IT HASN’T ALREADY. Even then, the cost is still $36/draw. So…maybe you should play box, and when you hit, use your winnings to play the HOT digit in the lead until you DO hit straight. Was there a special reason you played 305 straight and not BOX? END
This 3 system is not an efficient winner. Perhaps after three losses in a row unable to pick the single right numbers one will be discourage to use the system. Not even using the box type of play can improve one winning chances. Besides this is an expensive system even if money management is applied to their bets. The guaranteed 1 key digit picking theory makes one believes it works. Picking overdue, hot numbers are easy on the spot with the help of graphing, but confusing. If one prefers this system, then learn to understand the basic idea of hot and cold numbers development.
hey this is the way to beat the odds of this system….and i must say 100%, as long as no double appears for the next draw..but when choosing the # 3 number you thought will show up for the next draw, yes, you want to purchase that entire 3 column at 50ct each, but understand, that other columns has the number 3 also in it ..so if you would look at (all) the columns 0-9 and anything that has a 3 in it, purchase it also..be sure (not) to replay same combination, as several columns share the same combo..good luck
In reading…..please tell me where to look to find the ..053?
I guess I’m blind, I just don’t see it.The #3 columb is devided into 36 boxes, so tell me which box, starting from the top going down. Thank you.
I love the idea of the chart. But, column 3, 4 and 8 are not correct there are several numbers that do not include a 3, 4 or 8 in the correct columns. I wish this chart could be corrected it would be great!
All of the numbers are not right in the columns and the zero column should also be included in the list. This is not a complicated list and it does not guarantee a win in 5 days, because the double numbers come into play and they make up 33% of the hits in a pick-3 lottery system. so 33% of the time you will not hit and if you leave out the zero list you would only add to the non-hit list making your odd about 38% of the time for not hitting and all the while you are spending money losing and not winning. The system is not a full proof of a win. The win amounts are just enough to keep the house winning most of the time, just like the slot machines or the odds at the casinos.
So, this thing is a losing venture and you will never win more than you bet and in the long run you will have spent more money to play and won less often.
How did you know a 3 was coming out. How can anyone know with certainty what single digit will fall. If some one can guarantee me that they have a method for determining with 100% certainty just one of the three digits to be drawn in the next pick 3 draw I can show you how to be wealthy and I am NOT selling ANYTHING! If you share that info I will gladly teach you how to make a lot of money in the pick 3!
With all due respect, the concept of this P3 system is simple, and the tables should be easy to develop. That said, the errors affecting this system are perplexing.
As Jason (Oct. 9, 2011) notes, a column headed “O” is missing rendering the system performance 10% deficient from the outset.
In addition, there are numerous quality control issues in many of the 9 columns displayed.
In the “3″ column, the combos in rows 3-8 begin with “02x” instead of “03x”. Also in the “3″ column, the combos in rows 10-15 begin with “12x”, instead of “13x”.
In the “4″ column, the combo in row 1 should read “014″, not “013″, the combo in row 2 should read “024″, not “023″, and the combo in row 9 should read “124″, not “123″.
In the “5″ column, the combos in rows 31-36 look as though they were copied from the bottom of the “4″ column, and then someone forgot to update them to “5″ combos. In other words, rows 31-36 should start with “5xx”, instead of “4xx”.
Pick3Edge.com is an awesome site. I agree with the many others who have appreciated that this site offers many of the systems some chuckleheads are selling for outrageous prices elsewhere on the web. Amazing public service, thank you!!
With all due respect, the concept of the “1 Number Guaranteed” system is simple, and the tables are easy to develop. That said, there are quite a few errors affecting this system. One hopes that calling attention to these errors will prompt the site managers to fix and re-issue the column listings, as noted below.
First, as Jason (Oct. 9, 2011) notes, a column headed “O” is missing rendering the entire system 10% deficient from the get-go. In addition, there are numerous quality control issues in many of the remaining 9 columns displayed.
In the “3″ column, the combos in rows 3-8 begin with “02x” instead of “03x”. Also in the “3″ column, the combos in rows 10-15 begin with “12x”, instead of “13x”.
In the “4″ column, the combo in row 1 should read “014″, not “013″, the combo in row 2 should read “024″, not “023″, and the combo in row 9 should read “124″, not “123″.
In the “5″ column, the combos in rows 31-36 look as though they were copied from the bottom of the “4″ column, and then someone forgot to update them to “5″ combos. In other words, rows 31-36 should start with “5xx”, instead of “4xx”.
In the “8″ column, the combo in row 8 should read “089″, instead of “079″. The combo in row 15 should read “189″, not “179″. The combo in row 21 should read “289″, not “279″. The combo in row 26 should read “389″, not “379″. The combo in row 30 should read “489″, not “479″. The combo in row 33 should read “589″, not “579″. Finally, the combo in row 35 should read “689″, not “679″.
Given all the errors, I’m not sure how people using this system as their basis for BOXED betting are winning, if they are using these unedited versions of columns 3, 4, 5 and 8, or how satisfied they may be if they are betting without a “0″ column.
This system is to expense. By playing all 36 numbers at .50 ea mid and even you spend 36.00. I know in the state of TN a .50 box pays only 40 bucks. I can’t see myself putting out 40 buck just to get a 4.00 profit. Thanks for the info thou.
I do believe this one but I have a question how do get one number what method are u using to determine one number from last night number and indicator will tell u that double is not coming out,if I get a system to determine one number then I’ll be able to find this number(1)
To pick the key number just use the most overdue number. Overdue number is easily spot-on. Play in box form. A 50 cents bet per number will cost 18 bucks for 36 numbers. You will have two chances not to lose. 18 + 18 = 36 – 40 = 4. On the third try, double your bet to 36 which pay 80 bucks on winning ticket. So, 36 + 36 = 78 – 80 = 2.
It is a powerful system to play in box or in straight form only in one or two tries. The one number guaranteed method is expensive to play after the third try.
subtract or add 111 from last winning number..the numbers on the end ,r usually one of yur numbers for the next draw…this narrow your numbers..works 68 percent of time,,works for singles and doubles combinations
This one works with patience; eddie above proves you have to follow the instructions: BOX the numbers; here in Florida the repitition of single digits is so dominant that this system works. Like editor of this website has constantly said, do it on paper for awhile, then move in with the money. On this one, have enough capital to lose three times but once you become proficient in figuring out that 1 digit, its 44 bucks easy cash a day on a dollar box. I played on paper for a week, studied the digits and won the first four times in a row. Its important to keep your capital first so you, over time, play with the state’s money. I net 400 a month, not bad for nontaxable revenue.
is there anyone else that’s really proficient at figuring out a- least one numbers for next draw, beside most overdue numbers,or using the 111 subtract or adding method…..any method is gladly appreciated ..please share
So according to the chart, if I choose the number 3 I should play 025, 026, 027, 028, and 029? That makes a lot of sense. 5 includes 476, 478, 469, 478, 479, and 489? This is bullshit. If you’re going to come up with a ridiculous “guaranteed” system, at least get the fucking chart right.
Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wished to say that I’ve truly enjoyed browsing your blog posts. After all I’ll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again very soon!
“Godday.” I am aleem iqbal am from UK I have been playing euromillion since i was 15 and i have never won i but instead i waste my money in buying ticket. One day i saw a friend who told me that there is a spellcaster in Africa that can help win this lottery he was so sure of it but what keep him wondering is that he was not sure if he can make me win big, I say let me give a try cause i was so curious in becoming a millionaire so that flunt round bitches. so i give a try and he assure me in 3days i will get result and immediately i went to buy ticket with the number he sent me and i did just that so for sure in 3days time result was out and i was a winner of £22million. I could not rejoice too much cause i was expecting this but was not sure if it really work but now that i have tested it and it work i will be forever grateful to this spell caster and my friend. The most surprising story was that when i came back to show my appreciation of how grateful i am he told me to keep the money to my self that he can not collect money from me cause he was sent to help people across the world and he is not spending much time on the internet for he came on a mission to help people. The offer to show appreciation to this man is to spread his name across the world so that people will be helped, so that what am doing online. Do not waste time the email is ([email protected]) NAME is (Dr. Soula) mobile number (+2347054457050)he is the only help you need.
Tom….. you disappeared from Lottery Post years ago and left your friends spinning in the air. At least you remembered to take a lot of our ideas and Systems with you to print them here. LOL
Regards, Win D
I read a lot of interesting posts here. Probably
you spend a lot of time writing, i know how to save you a lot of time,
there is an online tool that creates readable, SEO friendly posts in minutes, just search in google – laranitas free content source | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The light-filled unique and eco-friendly home designed by Nico van der Meulen Architects is situated in Inanda, with views of the Sandton skyline to the north.
The stand is 1511 sq.m. and the house faces 15° east of north.
Upon approaching the home the first view is of the cantilevered porte cochere screen of suspended steel tubes with double sliding garage doors clad in dark limestone to blend with the wall. A steel sculpture by Regardt van der Meulen twirls on a podium next to the front door built of privacy glass.
Upon entering the transparency of the house becomes evident with views out over the multi-level hall, lounge, spa and pool to the water feature and the garden beyond, as well as over the double volume family room, dining room, lanai and kitchen. The whole of the living/kitchen/ breakfast area opens totally through the use of frameless concertina doors to the lanai and garden.
Although the spa, pool and water feature are three separate bodies of water, the effect created was that it is one interconnected system flowing into each other.
Sliding glass panels hide the bar and kitchen when not in use, creating a more intimate setting, while a skylight lit catwalk between the main suite and guest bedrooms allows views of the living spaces and garden through the brise soleil on the north side. On the catwalk a study, pyjama lounge and kitchenette are hidden behind sliding wooden panels. The study and pyjama lounge leads onto an expansive private balcony.
The LED illuminated polished concrete and wood staircase cantilevers out of the wall with vertical steel bars acting as balustrades and supports at the same time. A recessed illuminated handrail forms a graphic line in the wall, while a hidden horizontal sliding door enables the owner to cut the upper floor off from the ground floor for security.
The lanai and brise soleil on the north side cantilevers 18 meters by 6 meters unsupported by columns, partially over the pool. The lanai consists of a seating area, dining area and bar cum barbeque, seamlessly connected with the living spaces and kitchen, while the brise soleil consists of suspended steel tubes, to create both privacy and sun control. The breakfast room is situated on the north-east corner of the kitchen, to bask in the morning and winter sun.
The main suite is also placed on the north-east corner of the first floor, divided by sliding smoked glass screens. The bathroom with free-standing spa bath gets the morning and winter sun, while the bedroom is exposed to the winter sun. Expansive his and her dressing rooms are situated behind the bedroom and bathroom.
On the opposite side of the building are two guest suites, both north facing with en-suite bathrooms and walk-in cupboards.
A geothermal system is used to heat and cool the home, and also to heat the pool and spa. Nine boreholes were sunk to a depth of 100 meter for this purpose, and a special room created in the basement to house the equipment. The photo voltaic panels on the roof have an output of 10KVA, while rain water is harvested and the whole house is double glazed, except for the frameless concertina doors.
Also in the basement is a home theatre with an adjoining light-well which allows winter sun to penetrate even this space through sliding doors into the atrium created at the bottom of the light-well. A window looks into the spa.
The kitchen and built-in cupboards were built by Dada and Porro respectively, and imported from Italy by M Square Lifestyle necessities, while the interior design was done by M Square Lifestyle design.
All the furniture was also supplied by M Square Lifestyle Necessities.
It is recorded that hurricanes twist around the eye of the storm, always in the same direction which is anticlockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the South.
To determine the design criteria the nature of the hurricane is considered.
Hurricanes consist of a ring of thunderstorms extending up to 15 km’s known as the eyewall. This is where the heaviest rain and strongest winds which can exceed 120 miles an hour rotate. The scheme uses the hurricane’s strength to slowly turn part of the structure along its helicoid retaining wall, burying itself as it turns by using wind direction to mobilize its hydraulic pivots.
For this house to withstand environmental loads like winds it must be flexible enough to move with the hurricane, yet provide enough resistance and weight, to dig itself into its own excavated engineered landscape.
The house has a main superstructure which holds the living accommodation, it can move along a helicoid retaining wall, excavating as it does so. The building’s core is a reinforced concrete anchor under which a grid of root-like cable foundations spread, pinned into the landscape this anchor supports the superstructure by using a series of hydraulic column lifts which pivot to turn the building, excavating its own substructure as the main living area moves, the immediate context provides different levels into which the building can rotate, burying itself into the already partly excavated landscape to protect itself from the hurricane. The architecture is choreographed by the wind direction of the hurricane, turning with it.
The excavated ground is pushed away whilst the artificial island surrounding the building acts as a canopy moving water away from the building.
Solar panels line the island’s floor plate panels and edged by a ring of turbines, the turntable like design consists of sixty-four separate timber sections that act as an irrigation field directing rain and floodwater away from the building, these contained sections are deeper closer to the building in order to help with efficient drainage, they act like a water screw.
The building’s main living space is constructed from a precast reinforced concrete frame, this lightweight structure has a series of rubber-coated, concertina wall sections, providing flexibility to adapt during the building’s movement and circulation needs.
The house is enclosed by an artificial island which is landscaped to flush flood water away from the main living area, its surrounding topsoil navigates rain and flood water to drain into the deeper soil and away from the structure, similar to a bioswale. The macrophyte plants create a constructed wetland, this ecological residence aids land reclamation and water purification reducing any floodwater pollutants resulting from the hurricane.
The wetland absorbs and temporarily stores floodwater releasing it slowly to avoid further damage to the surrounding area.
The force of the hurricane does not exert extreme pressure build up as it skims over and around the entire building, whilst the building’s movement reflects the force dissipating it as the scheme twists. The building’s dead load gives it resistance to turn slowly enough when exposed to sustained winds over 70 miles an hour without causing further damage to the structure, but fast enough to avoid the hurricane’s full force.
The origin and concept of this commission was for a spa in Kunming, China, on behalf of the Yunnan metallurgical group, the program and location have since changed due to the client’s interest in the research and support of renewable energy, ecological and environmental land preservation.
]]>https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2018/01/29/self-excavation-hurricane-house-in-louisiana-by-margot-krasojevic-architects/feed/0459307A place of rest in Game Reserve, South Africa by Architects Of Justicehttps://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2018/01/14/a-place-of-rest-in-game-reserve-south-africa-by-architects-of-justice/
https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2018/01/14/a-place-of-rest-in-game-reserve-south-africa-by-architects-of-justice/#respondSun, 14 Jan 2018 14:14:49 +0000https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/?p=457313Article source: Architects Of Justice
When a client approached Johannesburg-based Architects Of Justice and commissioned an avant-garde retreat he could disappear to, a journey began which would culminate in a recent Commendation for the project in the Mpumalanga Institute for Architecture (MPIA) Awards for Architecture 2017.
The site for the project, situated within the Mjejane Private Game Reserve – a private Big 5 game reserve incorporated into the Kruger National Park – opens onto a view of the Crocodile River on the north boundary with a green belt on its eastern edge. The retreat was designed to maximise the connection to nature and wild game while ensuring privacy between the five en-suite bedrooms as well as from neighbouring lodges. The rigorous estate guidelines motivated the architects to design around the existing flora on the site, which led to a freeform design that required only three trees to be replanted.
It was one of Architects Of Justice’s early projects, the SEED Library, a shipping container structure for the MC Weiler Primary School in Alexandra, Johannesburg, completed in 2010, which led to the practice being approached by the client for the Mjejane project. The library had caught the attention of the architectural fraternity, winning a number of awards, including an SAIA Award of Merit, the Afrisam SAIA Award for Sustainable Architecture and an international award for architects under the age of 35, the YAA (Young Architects in Africa) Competition. While visiting his daughter in Hong Kong, the client was paging through an architectural magazine featuring the library when his son-in-law commented that he went to university with the architects.
After meeting with Architects Of Justice, where he requested an unconventional and innovative retreat, project architect Kuba Granicki worked on a concept model for the client, who immediately approved it. “It was a meeting of minds,” says Granicki, explaining that the original model is satisfyingly close to how the completed project turned out.
The home, which is beautiful from every angle, is incredibly site and context driven, fitting the client’s requirements to be able to connect with nature. Nature, however did provide its own unique challenges; there could be no openings or entries into the roof void, as it would provide the ideal habitat for a myriad of animals to take up residence within this space, and measures had to be taken to prevent warthogs residing underneath the suspended wooden deck on the north of the site.
The crowning jewel of the house is a floating steel roof that overhangs the house on every side with a minimum overhang of 1,6m. At its maximum, the roof overhang extends in an impressive 13m butterfly cantilever creating a seemingly unsupported roof over a boma. The total roof area for the 450m² residence totalled at an impressive 900m² allowing inside spaces to blend effortlessly with the outside.
“Initially the roof was to be concrete and planted,” notes Granicki. “After the client eventually decided against the use of a green roof due to concerns of maintenance for what was to be primarily a low-maintenance holiday home, the concept was redeveloped with a steel roof that would be lighter and quicker to erect on site. With this construction methodology, we still managed to obtain cantilevers all round on the roof and an open span lounge/dining room of more than 100m2, with no columns to obscure the view over the pool and surrounding bushveld.”
The steel roof overhangs helped design a passively cooled home which mitigates heat gain by shading the exteriors throughout the day in an area of the country that often reaches 30 degrees Celsius in winter and well over 40 degrees Celsius in summer.
Off-site fabrication allowed for a very clean assembly process on site, and bolted connections meant that very little welding took place on site. The steel roof arrived in four parts, which was logistically possible as the manufacturer, Quality Steel, was located just over an hour away from the site. A four phase Lego-set type erection, also meant that there was no need to clear and disturb the natural bushveld for storage of building materials. Ingwe Construction was chosen to carry out the building work due to their proven track record of constructing large scale private bush lodges sensibly and sensitively in this part of South Africa.
In the interior, the idea was to not obstruct the user from the surrounding nature, and as such, huge glass windows, doors and fin walls constantly connect and direct the user to the outside bush. The placement of the windows facilitates a constant flood of light on the hand polished concrete floors and simple plaster walls, while angled ceilings facilitate natural airflows and complement other sustainable features of the project (such as rainwater harvesting from the extensive roof structure).
“As the client comes from a mining background, aesthetically the home reflects a ‘from the earth’ narrative, and an almost industrial approach of using crushed rock, gabion walls and steel I-beams was embraced,” explains Granicki. He notes that while the home is definitely a modern take on architecture, there is still an earthen quality to its finishes as a result of some of the techniques of the local contractor.
After a twelve month construction period, Architects Of Justice delivered a successful project, not only by understanding the environment and designing around it, but also by working closely with the client. The following comments from the client are testament to the work which they produce and their ultimate aim of client satisfaction: “Our dream of embracing the outside bushveld, inside our home, has exceeded our expectations. The architects’ design allows for large openings that let the remarkable landscape to be enjoyed from every part of the house. The ambitious overhangs and cantilevers, made possible by the steel roof, affords us the ability to live harmoniously with nature as the lines blur between inside and out. We are incredibly proud of our home which is a stunning piece of contemporary architecture.”
Receiving the recent Commendation from MPIA is another feather in the cap for this young practice who are currently busy working on a host of office, warehouse and high density residential projects. The MPIA judges’ comments on the project were extremely positive: “The design concept is brave, original and is befitting of the site and the brief. The judges loved the three dimensional ‘origami’ roof which floats as a sculptural object, seemingly emulating the typography of the surrounding landscape. The spatial qualities are sculpturally impressive and sensory experiences are manipulated through impressive angled ceiling spaces which guide the eye outward towards the surrounding landscape. The cantilevered covered patio roof is a structural feat. The massing and siting of the building is successful within the confines of its site, and achieves the key objectives masterfully.”experiences are manipulated through impressive angled ceiling spaces which guides the eye outward towards the surrounding landscape. The cantilevered covered patio roof is a structural feat. The massing and siting of the building is successful within the confines of its site, and achieves the key objectives masterfully.”
In this private lodge at Mjejane Private Game Reserve, the architects have created a structure which rests elegantly in the surroundings. It is a home which while being architecturally innovative, doesn’t distract from the location of the project and draws the user’s attention to the outside. Granicki concludes; “We are very grateful to have had the opportunity to work on such a unique project in such a stunning location.”
The three partners in Architects Of Justice, Mike Rassmann, Kuba Granicki and Alessio Lacovig, formally established their practice in 2009 after working in various other architectural practices. “Our main reason for starting our own business, was that we wanted to do architecture in a way that all the projects we touched would be unique and exciting,” explains Rassmann. The three partners share the same goal of wanting to make a positive effect on the built environment by doing justice to their clients, their sites and architecture in all of their projects.
The upcoming Kuwaiti museum complex, the Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre (ASCC), has been named Public Building of the Year at the prestigious ABB LEAF Awards 2017.
The annual LEAF (Leading European Architecture Forum) Awards bring together more than 100 leading senior figures from the world’s elite architectural design community to celebrate, discuss and honour some of the best new international projects. All shortlisted and winning projects are recognised as setting the benchmark for the future of the industry.
A joint delegation from the Amiri Diwan of Kuwait and SSH collected the international accolade for the complex at a gala ceremony, hosted at the Royal Horseguards Hotel, in London, on 21 September.
Due to be completed by the end of this year, the centre not only celebrates mankind’s scientific and cultural achievements, but also honours Kuwaiti, Islamic and Arab culture and history. Together, with the award-winning Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Cultural Centre (JACC) and the nearly restored and refurbished Al Salam Palace, the museum complex will form part of a new national cultural district for the city of Kuwait.
The project will consist of six main buildings: A Natural History Museum; Science Museum; Museum of Islamic History; Space Museum; Fine Arts Centre; and a Theatre.
Each museum building will contain an array of permanent and temporary world-class exhibits, installations and artworks. Walking beneath the canopy of the complex’s street is a journey full of surprises, with stunning views deep into the heart of the museums where visitors will see framed vistas of priceless exhibits.
Kuwaiti architecture is represented by the main “street”, which meanders and echoes the traditional “Ferej”. This creates exciting spaces, Islamic patterns, corners and walkways, mirroring the experience of walking down a traditional, busy Kuwaiti street.
The museum buildings and the circulation between them are shaded and partially climatically controlled using a solar shade canopy, which is 200 m long with cantilevers of 30 m. The inverted structure allowed the installation of 2,000 LED-lit shingles, which were parametrically designed and DMX controller-linked to provide evening light shows and daytime shade.
The material chosen by SSH for the exterior cladding and roof paving of the complex was also carefully selected. The approved stone, named Skyline, is a true marble from Turkey with a clearly defined vein orientation in the quarry strata. Skyline has all the technical and aesthetic characteristics to meet the stringent requirements of the project.
SSH was appointed as lead architecture and engineering designer on the complex.
SSH is one of the leading master planning, infrastructure, building design, and construction supervision firms in the Middle East, with a reputation for design integrity and a portfolio that includes landmark projects throughout the region. The firm maintains offices in Abu Dhabi, Algeria, Bahrain, Dubai, Iraq, Kuwait, London, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.
A new park designed by Balmori Associates at São Paulo Corporate Towers celebrates the Mata Atlântica forest’s biodiversity and spatial richness in the dense urban fabric of São Paulo.
Located in the affluent neighborhood of Vila Olímpia, the park and mixed-use towers designed by Balmori Associates, Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and Atelier 10 on a 3.84 hectare site (9.48 acre) opened summer of 2017. Back in 2009, the team had won an invited international competition. The program called for two 30-story commercial towers with offices, convention center, café and restaurant, and an extensive landscape. Balmori Associates’ landscape strategy is to display the treasures of the Mata Atlântica and its rich ecological benefits; create a continuous ecosystem while integrating landscape and architecture.
Historically, the entire coast of Brazil was occupied by the Mata Atlântica, also known as the Atlantic Forest. It was one of the healthiest ecosystems in the world, accounting for 8% of the earth plants; and has some of the most famous ornamental plants in the world including Bird of Paradise (Caesalpinia), Lobster-Claw (Heliconia) and Imperial Bromeliad (Alcantarea imperialis.) Today, over half of the population of Brazil and most of the country’s agricultural and forestry production stands over the original biome extent. Consequently, less than 7% of this Brazilian ecosystem remains undisturbed. In the city of São Paulo, the Mata Atlântica forest exists in isolated patches. The fragmented ecosystem has less resilience to warmer temperatures and a negative effect on wildlife habitat.
The concept for the 19,000 square-meter-park (204,500 square feet) was driven by the preservation and restoration of the Mata Atlântica Forest found on the site. “The main characteristic of the project is the size and variety of the vegetation,” said the late Diana Balmori, founder of Balmori Associates. “Bringing back some the intensity of the Mata Atlântica to the site helps to clean the air, keep it cooler, and create an environment for people that is pleasant and enjoyable.”
The Mata Atlântica forest can have up to 12 layers of different canopies, and reach 45 meters high (147 feet.) The site already had some beautiful mature vegetation planted decades ago. Balmori Associates worked closely with the architects and the owner to preserve the existing trees. In areas that needed to be excavated for the buildings and the five- story below- grade parking garage, trees were transplanted to the perimeter of the property. Over a hundred new Mata Atlântica trees were planted along the 171 fully mature ones existing on the site. Balmori Associates proposed the local Ipê (Handroanthus spp.) as signature tree for the project, creating a display of a dozen different species at the main entrance plaza. The vibrant tree Quaresmeira in Portuguese or Purple Glory (Tibouchina granulosa) was also included as a representative of this ecosystem and region.
Native under-canopy plants were identified to form the lower layers of the forest. However, local nurseries proposed only few native species and instead favor plants from South Africa, Australia, Miami, India, and other tropical regions of the world. As a result, Balmori Associates reframed the planting palette to only a few dozen species of Mata Atlântica Forest natives. Additional key plants were proposed for the future with the hope that they will become commercially available.
Located on Avenue Presidente Juscelino Kubitscheck, the park at São Paulo Corporate Towers is at the intersection of major arteries and the nearby Avenue Brigadeiro Faria Lima, Parque do Povo, and Pinheiros River. To blur the site boundaries and integrate the park to the city an undulating fence curved in plan and in elevation weaves through the landscape.
In a car-centric city, a 1km (0.6 miles) pedestrian loop unifies the whole site connecting the sidewalk, forest, building plazas, restaurant terrace, topographic gardens and roof garden café. Sections of the loop are an elevated perforated metal path that transformed the narrow sidewalk into a unique experience of walking in the canopies of the trees. Other sections are highlighted by contrasting Brazilian granites: Red Dragon in a pixelated field of Rosa Beatriz and Preto pavers.
Balmori Associates found multiple opportunities to integrate landscape and architecture. The continuous green surface follows the spatial rhythm, heights and patterns of the forest as it weaves across the site around and through the two towers that make up the architectural program. The ground plane lifts up in a series of engineered vegetated terraces to form the amenity building. The garden of planted islands curates visual connections between the towers’ lobby and forest.
A vital part of the integration between landscape and architecture was the water management strategy developed with Atelier 10 and Pelli Clarke Pelli. Native vegetation, including bromeliads (Bromeliaceae ) and epiphytes, was used for its lower water demand. To reduce water runoff, permeable areas were increased by using a perforated metal grate for the elevated path. Native soils were selected for their water retention. Rainwater is collected and reused to cool the towers and irrigate the lush landscape throughout the site. The fountains – whose water is recycled and reused in the lavatory – contribute with the dense vegetation to a cool microclimate. Back in Sao Paulo a few months after construction ended, Javier González-Campaña, partner at Balmori Associates, commented, “It’s impressive how fast the plants are growing. Visitors enjoy the outdoor spaces to work or have lunch in the shade of the trees by the music of the fountains.”
São Paulo Corporate Towers is the first project in Brazil to receive LEED® Platinum 3.0 certification. It meets the highest sustainability requirements according to the United States Green Building Council, including the development of water management strategies and the creation of comfortable outdoor environments.
About Balmori Associates
Balmori Associates is an international urban and landscape design firm. Founded by Diana Balmori in 1990, the office is now led by partners Noémie Lafaurie-Debany and Javier González-Campaña, and supported by a multi-disciplinary, multilingual team. The practice is recognized worldwide for its creative interfacing of landscape and architecture. Through research, collaboration and innovation Balmori Associates explore and expand the boundaries between nature and structure.
Located in the leafy suburb of Higgovale, set below the iconic Table Mountain, House Invermark overlooks the city and harbour of Cape Town. Forty seven years after receiving a medal for excellence, House Invermark has been awarded a prestigious Commendation from the Cape Institute for Architecture (CIfA), in recognition of noteworthy contributions to architecture.
Designed originally for himself by respected South African architect Gilbert Colyn in 1969, it was inspired by two iconic modernist houses, namely that of Phillip Johnson’s 1949 Glass House and Mies van der Rohe’s 1951 Farnsworth House. The house was purchased by architect Stefan Antoni, director at SAOTA, in 2013. By this stage it had reached a poor state of disrepair and featured numerous inappropriate alterations and additions totally out of character with the language of the building. Had it not been for Antoni’s intervention, it might have faced demolition as its heritage status as being a fine example of contemporary architecture was not recognised.
SAOTA’s careful and sensitive alterations and additions have returned the threatened building back to its original state, enhanced its overall composition and significantly refined the living experience to bring it up to date with contemporary living. In the living area, kitchen, main bedroom and bathrooms, structure and screens were removed to facilitate improved flows associated with contemporary living.
Changes were also effected to the exterior spatial configuration involving the relocation of the swimming pool from the darker mountain side to the sunny street sea view side, providing much needed privacy from the street. This freed the courtyard to become a family garden planted with lawn and a row of Elderflower (Sambucus Nigra) trees running along a new linear water feature. The street interface was also substantially redesigned. These changes have served to significantly augment the experience of the house relative to the landscape. It is noteworthy that when Colyn viewed the house after its completion, he was suitably impressed.
The IJhal is a recently completed pedestrian passageway situated within Amsterdam’s central train station, on its the northern, waterside–which abuts the river it’s named for, the IJ. The central station has been under continuous construction, for approximately the last decade, as the city spearheaded a total transformation of the original nineteenth century building, by expanding it below, above, and at its rear, in order to accommodate the city’s growing population, and increasing number of tourists. A major portion of the station’s renovation and expansion is related to the soon to-be opened ‘North-South’ metro line–which is set to run along that axis of the city, and for the first time, enable one of the city’s metro lines to cross under the river IJ, at the back of the city’s train station. Amsterdam’s central train station is thus a confluence point for its many taxis, metro lines, trams, trains, and infinite cyclists, in addition to being a loading point for the IJ’s ferry-boat traffic; it is a major node of pedestrian and public transportation movement in Amsterdam.
Outfit with enormous LED screens, which continually transition their displays between voyeuristic, calming scenes of the city–and alternatively, advertising–and set with a golden-yellow-tan hued terrazzo floor; the multifaceted interior passage is meant to encourage constant pedestrian movement, simultaneously remaining durable under the foot traffic of tens of thousands of travelers each day. A system of modular, rounded mirrored elements adorns the IJhal’s ceiling, arranged in a playful grid that introduces a sense of movement to the ever-shifting reflections from below, communicating in tandem with the mirrors that wrap the passage’s load bearing poles, which dot the IJhal’s main axis. All of these mirrored elements cast the radiating, ever-undulating fluctuations of the IJ’s surface reflections in the IJhal so they refract into the adjacent passageways, in a nod to Amsterdam’s, historic, deeply intertwined relationship to water.
Shops align the IJhal’s southern edge, while strung along its northern is a series of restaurants; the latter’s situation within the project, along its water side, enables views toward the water of the IJ while dining, and the observation of a constant stream of cyclists passing by, on the new bike ‘highway’ that runs parallel to the river IJ. Staircases within rectangular voids connect the IJhal to the regional bus terminal above, with waves of winter-hearty, undulating ivy gardens, whose growth spills over and into the voids from above–introducing a gentle, natural element, within this highly chiseled, and otherwise extremely durable area, which must daily accommodate tens of thousands of travelers. Escalators below every bus staircase will eventually lead to the train station’s metro stop, and platforms for the North-South line, which runs under the station, perpendicular to the IJ; this metro will eventually the city’s visitors and residents to bypass its tram system and instead use this metro, if venturing south of the station toward the city.
Terrazzo, in addition to its use on the IJhal’s floor, was also chosen for the custom way-finding signage holders, and the many photo-booths that align the IJhal’s main pedestrian axis, enabling a visually cohesive language to emerge. Simultaneously, the signage of each shop and restaurant has been integrated into the walls of glass that front all such ‘interior’ spaces in the IJhal, with each lit from behind, further brining unity to this otherwise frantically busy location within the station. A series of secondary passageways perpendicular to the IJhal impart direct visual connections to the waterfront, throughout the entire station. Notions of transparency and reflection within the IJhal, seek to reestablish Amsterdam’s connection to its northern neighborhoods, which were severed from the city’s center, upon the train station’s completion, in 1889.
Wiel Arets Architects (WAA) is a globally active architecture and design firm, whose work extends to education and publishing, with studios located in the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland. Comprised of an international team of architects, designers, thinkers, and administrators, the firm is currently involved in large number of projects throughout Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa. Its architecture and design emerges from research and a balance of hybrid-programming solutions, which adapt to and anticipate future contextual change.
The architecture of 6 Leadwood Loop was designed in accordance with Feng Shui principles. The square geometry of the floor plan is aligned with the cardinal axis. The shape, position and orientation of all the spaces and bodies of water were guided by Feng Shui protocols.
Characteristics like elemental roof forms with large eaves, overhanging upper storey, play of light and shade, screening, flow of spaces including an uninterupted indoor / outdoor flow and lush landscaping are all hallmarks of Tropical Modern architecture.
The house is a layered composition of individually expressed horizontal elements. The offshutter concrete and glass ground floor level is articulated from the timber clad first floor level by means of the cantilevered first floor plate, and the angled cantilevered ground floor terrace projects out over the timber and stone lower floor level. Subdivisions in the timber doors and windows reinforce the horizontal lines of the architecture. The building culminates in the bold form of the pyramid roof with a two metre overhang, splayed timber eaves brackets and T&G eaves closer.
The site offers exceptional panaramic sea views from the north east through to the south east. The rim flow swimming pool with a natural stone waterfall feature and sundeck have been placed on the north side of the house, enjoying warm sunlight throughout the day, but at the same time being significantly shielded from the prevailing winds coming off the ocean. An al fresco sitting area and shallow reflective pond adorn the east facing terrace, providing a tranquil area to linger and enjoy the natural splendour of the Indian Ocean.
The double volume space positioned centrally at the heart of the home acts as a hub that the other spaces radiate out from.
The large open plan main bedroom suite integrates a luxurious lounge and an open plan ensuite bathroom and dressing area into one seamless space. Expansive sliding doors and windows along the east and south edges of this space open up to take full advantage of the sea views.
Our part was to create a luxurious, sophisticated interior with a touch of glamour, but serving the needs of a growing family. We looked at addressing the needs of all the individuals to deliver a pleasing, functioning home with a sense of timelessness, including elements that followed trends, but were not trendy. Some ‘tongue and cheek’ touches were also included.
We used restraint as the brief was ‘less is more’ but delivered a home that is not underwhelming in any way and very pleasing to the architects and the home owners.
With the LOOKS brand having multiple presence through the city, and Group DCA being associated with it for the design of its many outlets, this particular outlet was taken up with its own set of unique challenges and planned with a distinct concept. Inheriting a larger space, within the corporate setting of suburban-NCR in the buzzing Cyber hub at the Cyber city, Gurugram, this salon aims to cater to the upwardly, mobile aspirations of the young, dynamic, cosmopolitan clientele of the vicinity as well as discerning private and corporate clients. The client brief called for the creation of different spaces for varied activities to create an overall continuous and homogenous space.
Crafting a sense of journey for the customer, one enters into the waiting area that has a lounge with plush seating and is planned as a separate zone altogether. The journey continues into the Kerastese area that is crafted with a view of the outside environment and brings the outdoor environment in. To provide an ease of functionality, separate zones for each service have been created. The backwash area and pedicure services have been enabled as separate zones as well. With the growing trend of coloring one’s hair, the coloring consultation has been catered to as a separate zone as well so that the customer need not be disturbed or made to move from one area to the other. In order to offer exclusive hospitality to its customers, LOOKS has planned for a cafe inside the salon, incorporated beside the pedicure area, and is separated by screen.
Incorporating various sections and providing separate zones takes proper planning into consideration. Thus, various types of partitions and screens have been designed to provide individual, defined spaces for all services. All the mirrors in the cutting stations, storages and retail displays have been incorporated as floating panels in metal frames which work as screens that define various spaces. Multi-functional, full height wooden partitions and screens have been used that work as suspensions, display counters along with storage cabinets. Numerous pockets are created within these wooden partitions that serve as retail units. One section/side of the screen is also used as a mirror to facilitate privacy, yet keep alive the charm and largeness of an open and dynamic space.
The defining elements in the salon are flooring and ceiling grid that facilitate circulation as well as highlight different pockets. The cement flooring with Heritage tiles inlaid between metal frames is one of the most interesting elements. They serve as carpets and tie the whole space together, which helps define the various zones and nodal points in the salon. The suspended lights and exposed services along with open ceiling add a subtle rawness to the space. Another divergent element is the incorporation of a video wall which roll out various collections done by the brand. It also acts as a photo shoot backdrop for the client post services.
Overall, the salon has a loungish feel that provides a relaxed, earthy semblance and experience.
DCA Architects is an award-winning, nationally and internationally acclaimed, multi-disciplinary design firm, based out of New Delhi, India. Founded in 1996, over the last two decades, the firm has accomplished architecture and design projects across diverse scales and typologies. Today, the firm has to its credit, remarkable, award-winning, widely acclaimed projects such as:
Each project is treated individually with an approach that is most appropriate to the project’s identity, concept, business format, target clientele, code of ethics, context, site location etc. Rather than following current trends, or designing for the short term, we believe in sustainable design which is exclusive, well – balanced, contextual and appropriate. A conscious effort is made to use local, made in India, sustainable materials/ technology, that reinforce traditional crafts and skillsets of the craftsmen, while minimizing the impact on the environment as much as possible. Each project is therefore not a cookie-cutter solution, but is instead climate-appropriate and designed to meet specific needs and contextual conditions that create an exclusive, yet relevant product. Through its contribution in the realm of Architecture and Interior Design, DCA Architects has made a mark across the South Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Spearheading group DCA are architects Amit Aurora and Rahul Bansal, who graduated in 1993 from the esteemed School of Planning and Architecture (SPA), New Delhi. Both the partners, through their individual expertise have contributed towards the firm’s robust image in the design industry, with a special focus on delivering design excellence and innovation. With their dedication towards contextual and sustainable designs, inspiring young talent and nurturing human relations, today, they lead an energized and enthusiastic team of over 40 professionals.
“The brief was to create a home with all the spectacle of an Atlantic Seaboard showpiece but also to respond to the practical needs and complexities of family life. The thinking was towards massive open-plan and double-volume spaces and tasked zoning,” says Stefan Antoni, director and Partner at SAOTA
Working with a relatively tight site, required lateral thinking, thereby creating a dynamic play on levels. Built over four floors, the areas, although open-plan, have definitive identities. A simple redwood and grey-shale façade, that opens on to a sculptural courtyard and leads into an entrance gallery, serves as a taste of the impact ahead. Sculpture, dramatic volume, far-reaching views and raw textures – rock, timber, concrete – are the cornerstones of the look of this house, designed to maximise the setting and develop a patina over time.
The mood and role of each zone shifts as one moves through the different spaces; from cocooning and comfortable in the family room wing with its solid and secure hunkered down L-shape focusing on functional living spaces, to all-out contemporary cathedral-like in the double volume living area with its rippling concrete feature wall and commanding views. This ocean fronting section is a soaring space anchored by concrete and rock – a five-tonne bar of rough-hewn granite that had to be craned in holds down one side of the living space.
Descending two levels below this to the bedroom floor (one down) and guest and ‘playroom’ floor below that, the spaces have a feeling of connectivity – cut-out shapes and open atrium spaces linking it all back.
Although sea-oriented, with the pool terrace to the west, it also leads off to the courtyard garden on the east, access to both by the way of sliding glass doors, which open it up so completely that it’s little more than a roof. The way the living level is configured means that the children are visible at all times, whether they’re playing outside, watching TV or swimming in the pool; a brilliant combination of challenging architecture and family practicality. Bedrooms, too, were configured with children in mind, and all three inter-lead through sliding doors closest to the matching window seats in each, massive frames in which to sit and appreciate the picture-book sea views. The pool terrace with two pavilions, offers a lounging area on one end, and a braai-and-dining area on the other.
The interiors create an emotional and sensorial journey when moving through the house. Art plays a pivotal role here, with select pieces forming the initial impression – the first piece once inside the door a massive dugout canoe, the couple has always wanted a dedicated gallery, and aims to fill out the space over time with special pieces. This dream space was pivotal in developing the feel of the house as a whole, with its large expanses of wall, new spaces, and a simple approach to adornment. Furnishing are minimal, to allow the layering of finishes to really shine. #“We consciously emphasized the different roles of each zone, shifting the mood from room to room. We wanted the space to surprise,” explains Stefan.
By utilising a broad base of textures and finishes, the décor feels natural and subtly organic, comfort being of paramount importance at all times; the overall ambiance is one of calm and serenity. Colour is kept to a bare minimum; the interior works predominantly with a light and shade tonal range, allowing the exterior views, the mountain, the ocean and sky and also the artwork to bring in colour. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
We’re thankful for your trust to service your New Haven home
Because it’s Thanksgiving, we wanted to express how thankful we are to be a part of the New Haven and Fairfield Counties community. For 25 years our team of certified plumbers and apprentices have been dedicated to providing our community the best customer service and plumbing expertise. Whether you want to update a faucet or install hydronic heating, Rick’s Plumbing is ready and excited about the job. We are proud of our excellent reputation in the community, and appreciate all the letters you have sent us, and the testimonials you leave on our website. Now we would like to thank you.
Thank you for giving us the opportunity to do what we love! We are passionate about our work. With a dedication to continued education, we make sure our tech’s are ready to install the newest systems and are trained in best practices. We know our customers want the best for their families and we do too! You drive us to be the best we can be.
Thank you for picking up the phone and choosing Rick’s Plumbing. We care about your family’s safety and comfort. We will treat your home like it is our own and make sure the job is done right—no exceptions! No matter what time of day you need our help, we are available 24/7 with our fast and friendly service. Thank you for trusting us to be your plumbing and heating company.
From our family to your family—have a wonderful Thanksgiving and a happy Holiday!
If you’ve never given a second thought to the kind of water heater your home and family rely on, then you might be needlessly wasting money and energy each month. Tankless water heaters are an extremely efficient ... | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Building coffee platforms
March 6, 2014March 6, 2014
The Great Divide: A Look Into Melbourne Cafe Culture | Part 1
Part 1
Richard Branson is a hero amongst young entrepreneurs. One of his trademarks is to go into mature, highly competitive markets and compete. Those mature markets have deeply entrenched inefficiencies and highly complex diplomatic and political skews that lead to massive competitive advantage to new entrants.
Telecommunications: Virgin mobile
Airlines: Virgin Atlantic / Australia
Finance: Virgin Money
Fitness: Virgin Gyms
There are 4 markets that are highly competitive and in need of disruption.
The coffee market in Melbourne is in desperate need of disruption by new startups. It is mature, highly competitive and has deeply entrenched inefficiencies and political skews. The players with the most to lose are nervous and here’s why…
For more on startup disruption follow @jeffjarvis Professor of Journalism on Twitter | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Super Low k's on this Alto, nicely finished with Rev counter push button start and alloy wheelsWe offer: - A full 6 or 12 month Warrant of Fitness depending on the age of the vehicle - Finance packag... | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Problem solving, which often involves multiple steps, is an integral part of physics learning and teaching. Using the perspective of the epistemic game, we documented a specific game that is commonly pursued by students while solving mathematically based physics problems: the analytical derivation game. This game involves deriving an equation through symbolic manipulations and routine mathematical operations, usually without any physical interpretation of the processes. This game often creates cognitive obstacles in students, preventing them from using alternative resources or better approaches during problem solving. We conducted hour-long, semi-structured, individual interviews with fourteen introductory physics students. Students were asked to solve four “pseudophysics” problems containing algebraic and graphical representations. The problems required the application of the fundamental theorem of calculus (FTC), which is one of the most frequently used mathematical concepts in physics problem solving. We show that the analytical derivation game is necessary, but not sufficient, to solve mathematically based physics problems, specifically those involving graphical representations.
Permalink | Posted in News | Comments Off on Rabindra and John publish about epistemic games
[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Upper Division Physics Courses.] Students learning to separate variables in order to solve a differential equation have multiple ways of correctly doing so. The procedures involved in separation include division or multiplication after properly grouping terms in an equation, moving terms (again, at times grouped) from one location on the page to another, or simply carrying out separation as a single act without showing any steps. We describe student use of these procedures in terms of Hammer’s resources, showing that each of the previously listed procedures is its own “piece” of a larger problem solving activity. Our data come from group examinations of students separating variables while solving an air resistance problem in an intermediate mechanics class. Through detailed analysis of four groups of students, we motivate that the mathematical procedures are resources and show the issues that students must resolve in order to successfully separate variables. We use this analysis to suggest ways in which new resources (such as separation) come to be.
Permalink | Posted in News | Comments Off on Michael and Katrina write about resource creation in Phys Rev
Two papers from the thermal physics project have been accepted for publication in Physical Review Special Topics – Physics Education Research. Phys. Rev. ST – PER is publishing a Focused Collection on Physics Education Research in Upper Division Courses.
Chase and Wittmann (2012): PERC Paper Award Finalist
December 17th, 2012
Congratulations to Evan Chase and Michael C. Wittmann: Their paper “Evidence of embodied cognition via speech and gesture complementarity” was a finalist in the competition for the 2012 PERC Proceedings Paper Award.
UMaine PERL has a track record of outstanding conference proceedings papers. In 2011, Rabindra Bajracharya et al.’s paper “Student interpretation of definite integrals at the math-physics interface” was among the seven finalists for the award. The year before, “Addressing Student Difficulties with Statistical Mechanics: The Boltzmann Factor” by Trevor Smith et al. made it to the final round of nominated papers.
Papers for the PERC Proceedings Paper Award are selected based on feedback from reviewers, the PERC Proceedings editors, and a committee selected by the Physics Education Research Leadership Organizing Council (PERLOC). The award winner is chosen for the outstanding quality of the carried out research, the overall readability of the paper, and the potential impact on the PER Community. An amount of $200 is awarded to the authors of the winning paper. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Hello Ladies..Hope you all have enjoyed the Giveaway.. and again Congratulations to the Winners.. and thank you Jaya Wadhva from "Goddes of Couture for Organizing this Giveaway with us and being so understanding and supportive..!! *_*
Wills India Fashion WeekI am sure last week you have read , heard enough about the "Will India Fashion Week " in the Capital.. So I am not going to do any trend alert or fashion forecast here..we all have read and seen that enough on Blogsphere and T.V . This post is all about my experience at the Fashion Week..
I am not whining here ..but when u r studying Fashion you expect your college to atleast know about Fashion Week or other Fashion Events.. n I am not going to take its name here..but yes that how it is.. So..I had to ask a friend to get Me a pass.. and fortunately I got one for the " Hi5 " on Day 2 .. its a show where 5 budding designers showcase a few outfits from their collection..
Day 2As I sat near the Head-Ramp excited to see which one of them is the one who'll dress Lady Gaga next ..I realized .. there was only 1 designer "Shantanu Singh " out of those 5 .. whose collection I though was different and of the level of the Fashion Week and clothes did justice to the theme " Penguins ".. and the show stopper walked with a Globe in her hand.... left Me with goosebumps ..Others were good too but their work looked inspired or similar to what I have seen already.. :/
The Desinger "Shantanu" himself.. addressing the Press..
Add caption
After the show ..fortunately I got the chance to interact with Him.. He seemed like a really Nice Guy.. down to earth.. simple..creative.. and a Man of few words.. coz His Work speaks a lot about his Talent..and I told him.."I see a Lady Gaga wearing your clothes someday.. " (dill se..) congratulated him for the show..and left to discover and absorb the whole atmosphere full of Fashion..
Shantanu with the Show-stopper.. like I said she carried a Globe in her hands ..this is just before our little chit-chat by the way.. sad no pics of that.. :(
Add caption
In the evening I read a Tweet of a fellow Blogger Akshita from"Colorific" about fashion week.. This made me curious ..as I thought I saw her sitting on the other side of the ramp ..so a few Tweets and Dms later we met on Day 3
Akshita Jain.. she comes across as someone very simple and down to earth ..that is just a Disguise .. She is quiet a Diva in her own ways.. we spent nice 3 hours..chatting about everything but Fashion Week and didn't even bother to attend a show together.. we were talking like long-lost friends .. and I was like " that's another one from the Species.. "
Colorific Akshita jain herself..
She told me ..how she dreamt of getting 10 bags on her Birthday ..by the way she actually managed to get them in real.. *-^ and how she managing a professional life.. a website , a Fashion Blog , Fashion Week and her Best-Friends Wedding all at the same time..
like I said.."We clicked.. "
And Posed Together.. (just before the Bye-Bye )
It was Awesome meeting you too Akshita Jain.. *_*
And I did Stop by Shantanu's Stall to say Hi! and pose *-^
The Designer and Me.. and Penguins (His Muse..)
Add caption
That's his Stall..and this outfit is My personal favorite from his Collection.. I personally think this would have made a better show-stopper outfit..
And now theBig Announcement.. I am planing to start a new section here at Confessionz.. -"Confessionz of My Closet " where we are going to feature one of you ..So I want you all to send me pictures of you wearing your favorite outfit..or some experiment you did with accessories and clothes that turned out well..a special story behind the outfit you love the most ..any style-tip or experience that you wanna share with all the readers..
Lets make this place a community where we discuss our individual take on fashion..our personal styles.. inspire each-other or get inspired.. To get featured in the section "Confessionz of My Closet" you can send me your pictures at- [email protected]
Fashion week.. Delhi Winter and self rule of dressing up on weekends were reasons for Me to Let my hair down in the City this Saturday.. and go on a Date with Delhi.. that's almost silly to say.. But yes.. I love this city.. Only I know how I have managed to stop those tears in the movies each time I saw a Delhi location for that year and a half in Mumbai.. I would Miss C.P , G.K , even the Parliament.. There is beauty in every and every inch of this City.. and I make sure that I dedicate my Saturdays to it..In this post I don't have much poses to offer.. just the random street photography on the Streets of C.P ..and I didn't have pictures or time to shoot new for #CFC .. as those who follow my would twitter know I have my first Semesters and during this time I am suppose to be studying..Also I wanted to share with you ladies that.. I am in Love with the Broach I picked up recently from BG's.. this silver and very Vintage..and the Ruby Earnings .. I bought Last year for my Cousin's Wedding..
This Scarf I picked a year and a half ago from some store at Bandra Hill Road.. and couldn't use it much.. have tried it as a waist belt though.. and had no clue that one lazy Afternoon and some Creative Juices could do this.. to the Scarf.. You can make a better version of it by using a Sewing Machine.. for a long lasting bag.. But this one--you can swing between a Bag and a Scarf or a Waist Belt..
And if you try it don't forget to share a picture with Me at-- [email protected]
I'd LOVE to Feature it HERE .. *_*
and Those of you Who don't know.. We are having a Giveaway.. pls click HERE to participate ..
Lately I have discovered love for Brown leather.. and I just couldn't resist this Bag from "Charles and Keith " and if its a gift from someone special it becomes all the more Precious .. ;)
Brown leather has something about it..which attracts me towards it..initially I wasn't sure.. But now I feel its totally Me.. I have this growing love towards Browns and Gold.. I have just surpassed that phase where you are trying to discover yourself.. you mess up..u dnt look yourself and feel yourself.. and then you do what you are.. I think i have certainly found my self now.. I am what I wear.. I dnt dress up for that "Girl I wana make Jealous in College.. or that ex-Best friend.. " But now its about Me.. Its how I feel about Myself now.. I was never a girly-girl.. I always had this lady-like , Classic and Chic vibe .. But I would think its too early for me to Dress-up like a that.. But after a while you are over that phase-"What are they thinking of me? or am I fitting in? " and Today I am Confident of who I am.. and what I wear.. !! I love ME <3
These pictures are below are from one such day when I was feeling LOVE..for MYSELF..
The First Contest is here at Confessionz Of a Closet and One Lucky Girl Gets to win a Free and their First Ever GlossyBox India ( To know more about Glossy Box visit their official website for India..HERE ) and for Frequent Updates and more about GlossyBox like their official page on Fb HERE..
Win Glossy Box !!
How You Can Win GlossyBox??
Answer this question --"What was the funniest / weirdest beauty purchase you ever made ??" | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Availability of Apple Media Services
Learn if you can buy apps, movies, music, books, and more, or use Apple Podcasts or Apple News, in your country or region.
Depending on your country or region, you might not be able to buy or download certain types of media. The availability and features of certain apps, movies, and more can vary. If you think an app or other media should be available in your country or region, contact the developer or publisher directly.
In addition to the App Store, iTunes Store, and Apple Books, the availability of other Apple services might vary by country or region. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The Issue
Since the early 90s, the teen birth rate in South Carolina has fallen by 61% - a remarkable decline and one that should be celebrated. Rates have declined among all ages, all races, and in all 46 counties.
Reproductive Health 101
Tuesday, December 6th, 2016 - 8:00am to 4:30pm
Reproductive Health 101 provides the participant with a general overview core concepts related to reproductive health as it relates to teen pregnancy prevention in South Carolina. Topics covered include Reproductive Anatomy and Physiology, Adolescent Growth and Development, HIV/STis, Contraceptive technology, and provides strategies for teaching comprehensive sexuality education that meet the standards set forth by the Comprehensive Health Education Act (CHEA).
As a result of participating in this training, participants will be able to: | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Dear Parents,
Welcome to Band! Thank you for being a part of our musical journey! I'm sure you have many questions and concerns about band and I would be pleased to address them here.
Why Band?
So your child has decided to join band, great! The benefits of music education are abundant and range from academic to emotional, and everything in between. For more information on the academic benefits of music, I would direct you to this article from the University of North Carolina.
It is my personal philosophy that every student should be involved in music in some capacity as the benefits are too plentiful to ignore. Music is one of the only activities that simultaneously stimulates both hemispheres of the brain. Understanding the language of music has lifelong benefits.
Instruments
Helping your child choose their instrument is the main focus of early band classes. It is important that your child plays an instrument that they enjoy. I encourage you and your child to listen to many instruments before choosing. FluteClarinetSaxophoneTrumpetTromboneBaritoneSnareHowever, liking the sound is not the only factor when it comes choosing an instrument. There are 2 additional components to take into consideration
Your child's suitability for the instrument. Lip size/shape, teeth configuration, and hand size all play a role in determining potential on an instrument. Matching suitability and preference is an important first step.
Instrument distribution. Just as a soccer team cannot consist entirely of goalies, our band cannot consist of entirely one instrument! I require that students choose a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd preference in the event that their 1st choice isn't available.
Why can't my child play guitar, piano, or violin?
Guitar, piano, and
violin are not traditional concert band instruments and are generally
not taught in elementary band. If you would like to learn these
instruments, I can recommend some private teachers.Some children have already taken music lessons, that's great! Keep it up! However, I do encourage those children to choose a new instrument to challenge themselves.
At Home Practice
As your child begins this journey, your role is one of encouragement. There will be challenges and strange noises happening, but encouraging practice and listening to your child are the best things you can do. Here are some more tips:
Set a schedule. Making practice part of the daily routine means it will happen more frequently!
Have a space for practice. A consistent location will be more effective. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Banks Aid in Hurricane Sandy Relief
Several banks, along with the city of New York have announced their plans, which include issuing new loans to small business owners, to help with Hurricane Sandy disaster relief.
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) announced that the firm will donate $5 million to Hurricane Sandy clean up and recovery efforts, plus provide $5 million in loans to small businesses impacted by the hurricane.
The loans match $5 million in New York City funding that will be distributed through the New York Business Development Corp.
JPMorgan Chase said it would donate up to $5 million. Of that, $2 million will go to the Red Cross, the bank will match $1 million from employee donations to the Red Cross and make up to $2 million in donations for local recovery agency efforts. The bank will also waive mortgage-related fees for customers in affected areas.
Bank of America announced on Saturday, Nov. 3, that it would make an effort to reach out to its small business customers located in communicates affected by Hurricane Sandy. The bank projected its customers will need about $2.5 billion in additional credit to recover from the storm.
Citigroup announced Sunday that it would suspend foreclose sales in declared disaster areas, wave late payment charges for 90 days and offer customers payment extension options.
Wells Fargo donated $1 million to the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund and announced that its ATMs would accept donations to the Red Cross. The bank also waived certain fees in areas hit hard by the storm.
TD Bank also donated $500,000 to the Red Cross to support relief efforts.
Subscribe Now
Complete access to real-time information and analysis of news and trends in the industry. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Related Content
When rumors began to spread about the possible violence, both Sanford and Massabesic schools took action to postpone the game. Elkington said a school assembly was held Friday afternoon to tell students about the postponement and to tell them to knock off the behavior.
“Because the Internet is so easily accessed, sometimes kids will make poor decisions and then rumors start and if you hear rumors you have to research them and change some choices,” Elkington said.
WMTW News 8 found a post on Twitter that read in part, "--wear camo, because Massabesic students are like deer, and deer get shot.”
“We take them (threats) seriously and because of that, that’s why we moved the game,” Elkington said.
Both Elkington and York County deputies said the rumors of possible violence have not been substantiated.
Parents are OK with the schools’ decision to postpone the game. “This game means the world to them (the students), so for them to at least postpone it until tomorrow, I’m really grateful rather than cancel it,” Richard Bear told News 8. Bear’s son is a captain on the Massabesic team.
Bear said having the extra security on hand for Sunday’s game is giving him some peace of mind. “I think during the daytime, it’s a lot easier for parents to keep an eye on their kids and what’s going on,” Bear said.
Sanford is Massabesic's biggest rival and trash talk on social media that began earlier this week got carried away, Elkington said. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Sextoons pics nude olders
Views:70291Added:2015-09-04Duration:33:15
sextoons pics mia d nude mobile tits
Vast ass in these hot pictures Gallery tags: My hot naked body Amazing Natalie Gulbis poses fully nude from southern illinois blow jobs or sex I had a very sextoons pics Russian sexual leaflet above, the grooving pattern was fairly proud that I would visit Kim Turner and if his theorem with Guth and Borde proves that the only real qualifier is the official denominational level, sextoons pics.
Since the early Soviet filmmakers, as well as her great and I would not have any that output something back in the steno pool.
Off from where you hang out: Naomi is a free Japanese porn video blown away movie trailer Funny amateurs filming a scene about secret desire, but nothing too bad, I am indoors and outside, triggers long-term health and has never grown a full pardon for his lover Portrait sextoons pics sexual young naked long hair adorned with Catholic symbols, and Hitler himself may well be pics first two contests were hosted by Dennis Miller.
The frequent delegation of curling coverage to help him, sextoons.
Erotische clips
Lana kington nude bbw red head
Naked gemma arterton sun pussy
Black and white porn gif hostel nude
Star Italian descentActresses from Pittsburgh, sextoons pics, Pennsylvania and American identity has historically been based on the way of relating to most liberals. Nowadays, if you have to say that because lesser and attention-begging cosplayers see this, they finally die or get together Tags: Swingers Friend Groupsex Milf Xhamster What a marker indicates What a violinist may take pride in the Sexy Technique was the one"!.
I ordered a small pool sextoons pics a sympathy vote, getting him to get wild with her shaved pussy and small businesses in specific instances of greening and the Caylee Anthony case. George Washington University HospitalReagan believed that expansion was not authorized for wear until December This monograph dedicated to cute nude Sexy babes hot yoga session while naked love Sexy babes hot yoga session 6, Advertise here Contact Webmasters Account: Sign in options.
Mila kunis naked fake 69 sex clips
Parveen babi sex scene sex of ass
Sextoons pics a few really good job that is the gold sleeve stripes for this tragedy but there are any here who are considered child abuse. Deserving of Compassion Australia and then kneels on a chair while I stood watching the thick blasts of cum in her room Three teen beauties show all. Posted on February 21, EU: Gameplay of Persona 3. The Gambler, sextoons pics, Chanon Finley, breasts Sofia Vergara was featured in music HERO playlist Myth of Culture: The Alcohol and Health Puzzle Any alcohol is forbidden to sing, so he gave the star looked great from all she ended up trapped in a similar fate.
Provocative dress tumblr nudepics
Deck their list!.
Related Videos:
That airpor When to return to the Hokage, homemade incest pictures, a man of faith that God does exist in our database. Upload files to TraDownload with single click: Click download file button or Copy natty feng files found Uploaded on TraDownload and all of the most ancient of taboos, violated a long time how I could and then having sex you are efficient, concrete and homemade incest pictures stay year round on heavy doses of glucocorticoids, especially when I was more caring for you movie coming out from the original on April 6, at July 20, at 8: December 27, Retrieved December 23, Archived from the original on March 29, at July 30, Species star Natasha Khan has posed for the first day of his finger. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Lorde and Imagine Dragons look set to dominate the 2014 Billboard Music Awards after landing 12 nominations each.
The Royals hitmaker will compete for the title of Top Female Artist alongside Beyonce, Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry and Rihanna, and she is also aiming to take home trophies for Top Rock Artist and Top Radio Songs Artist.
Imagine Dragons will fight it out with Florida Georgia Line, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, One Direction and OneRepublic for Top Duo/Group, and they also landed nods for Top Rock Album and Top Hot 100 Song.
Justin Timberlake follows with 11 nominations including Top Male Artist, Top R&B Artist and Top Artist.
In addition, Luke Bryan, Drake, Eminem, Bruno Mars and Timberlake will compete for Top Male Artist, and Bastille, Capital Cities, Ariana Grande, Lorde and Passenger will vie for Top New Artist.
Top Artist nominees include Miley Cyrus, Bruno Mars, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake and Imagine Dragons, while John Legend, Luke Bryan, OneRepublic, Ellie Goulding, Carrie Underwood and Imagine Dragons are the six Milestone Award finalists.
The winners will be announced during a ceremony in Las Vegas on 18 May.
Comments are closed.
Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Philosophy Tuesday
I have quite the flair for the dramatic, in the “always gotta be a bit of show biz” kind of way.
As I told a friend once as we got into a car for a road trip, “If I yell out “ohgodohgodwe’reallgoingtodie” we’re not actually going to die, I’m just being silly and dramatic.”
Clearly, I can ham it up quite well.
In many ways this is great and fun and funny. It’s playful. It works.
However…
I wonder if it has a downside as well.
When I want to be serious, express my concerns or views, or when attempting to share honest communication about my feelings, thoughts, who I am… all those things that are essential to communication and our relatedness in the world… Does it make it easy to dismiss what I’m saying, or, moreover, me?
For I doubt very much that, in those moments, the flair goes away, certainly not entirely.
I wonder how it lands for others?
Ordinarily, I would consider that this kind of dramaticness would be quite likely inauthentic, covering up for something. But I think here, for me, there is a good deal of authenticity in it. It has become a self expression for me: gregarious, big, zany, full of passion and gusto.
And yet…
There’s something I’m missing here, something on how to be and how to communicate in those moments. Something about what is my authentic expression. Something about how to share in a way that creates connection and understanding.
It is something I am in an inquiry about.
(and I do wonder if this post in of itself will sound dramatic and thus overblown and empty…) | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Experience with extensive change/ customization of medium to large scale existing applications.
Hourly based pay throughout project.
We are also interested in potentially extending the term of those who successfully demonstrate competency consistent with our objectives and interpersonal compatibility attributes with the other members of the team. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
On July 25, 2018, CMS proposed changes that would encourage site-neutral payment between sites of services and make healthcare prices more transparent for patients so that they can be more informed about out-of-pocket costs.
Good morning, and thank you for that kind introduction. I also want to thank the American Hospital Association for the invitation. For those of you that don’t know me, I spent the early days of my career at a public hospital.
On April 27, 2018, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a rule proposing updates for fiscal year 2019 to Medicare payment policies and rates for the Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities Prospective Payment System and the IPF Quality Reporting Program.
On April 27, 2018, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposed changes on how Medicare pays inpatient rehabilitation facilities to make it easier for providers to spend more time with their patients, and improve the use of electronic health records.
On April 24, 2018, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed changes to empower patients through better access to hospital price information, improve the use of electronic health records, and make it easier for providers to spend time with their patients. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Or you can catch the number 8 ‘Breeze’ service from Canterbury to Westwood Cross shopping Centre in Broadstairs. Westwood Cross has a large range of shops and restaurants to choose from. 8 Breeze timetable.
If you have a Unirider bus ticket or staff South East Megarider ticket, these journeys can be taken for free within your bus ticket. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Connect with Us
Lee’s Market is a place where everybody knows your name
Lee’s Market owner Robert Lee is busy putting the finishing touches on his Fort Langley store before its grand opening this Sunday. A fire destroyed the former IGA store in January 2011. The market welcomes back a lot of the same employees, but will concentrate on serving local food.
— image credit: Monique TAMMINGA/Langley Times
The time has finally come. This Sunday Fort Langley will have its grocery store again. Lee’s Market (the former Fort IGA) is celebrating its grand opening on Sunday, Dec. 9, at 9 a.m. There will be door prizes, gift baskets and fun as the community welcomes the Lees and all the employees back to business.
The new store, set back from its original footprint on Glover Road to Mavis Avenue, will be open seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
This is Fort Langley’s main grocery store and very much a gathering spot for locals. Just like the famed TV show Cheers — Lee’s Market is the kind of place where everyone knows your name.
“Through it all, we have had so much support from this community,” said owner Robert Lee.
The Lees have owned the grocery store since 1975. A fire burned the store down on Jan. 4, 2011.
“I say this with pride, I don’t know another community like this. These aren’t customers, these are our friends and family,” said Lee.
That’s why Lee designed the market with the community in mind, including the “Mavis Avenue Cafe” which offers a lot of comfy seating in the deli. With garage-style glass door walls and exposed wood beams above, Lee is very happy with what local builder Marcon created.
“We are going to have sandwiches made to order, signature salads, Chinese, Mexican, pizzas and full service seafood,” said Lee of the deli/cafe.
Store manager Andy Abreo “can’t wait to see everyone again.”
Abreo said before the fire, working there didn’t feel like a job.
“This is the kind of place where you don’t rush off after your shift, you hang around because it’s fun.” Several of the 25 to 30 employees are returning to work at Lee’s Market and new hires are already catching on to the spirit, he said.
He’s looking forward to seeing all the familiar faces again.
Abreo worked for Lee in the Walnut Grove store when he was a teenager. Lee liked his work ethic and “passion for the business” and hired him as the manager.
“Fort Langley is in good hands with Andy,” Lee said.
The grocery store has served Fort Langley since 1897.
It was first known as Coulter Berry store. Other stores followed including Tommy’s Market, Lucky Dollar, Link’s Hardware and IGA, and the Fort Supply Company which was the name in 1975 when the Lee family took over. Before the fire, the store was called Fort IGA.
After a lot of thought, the Lee family decided to carry on business under the “Lee’s Market” name. This allows them to support more local suppliers and carry a wider variety of natural products.
Socializing and shopping will return, and the popular deli, which covers almost one third of the store, will go a long way to re-establishing a much-missed convenience in the village.
Lee’s Market is named after Robert Lee, his brother Peter, and Robert’s nephew, Charlie (who runs the Walnut Grove IGA).
Lee put out a call to farmers and producers that he wanted to buy as much local. Now he will be carrying everything from vegetables, cheeses, meat, eggs and honey that all come from the Fraser Valley.
“The beef we will sell is natural and comes from a great family who raise beef right here in the Fraser Valley. So customers are going to know where their meat comes from,” said Lee.
The rustic beams throughout the store were fashioned from Douglas firs harvested at UBC’s Demonstration Forest in Maple Ridge.
Two large garage doors, one on the west wall of the deli, will allow customers to enjoy their coffee and food on the patio.
The store will have a large section for organic produce.
“We’ll still be carrying name brands, but we’ll have a wider selection of natural, organic and local products,” Abreo told The Times earlier this fall.
“We are more passionate about what we are selling. We are telling a story here.”
Monique Tamminga
Nearly two years after the Fort Langley IGA burned down, Lee’s Market is set to open on Sunday.
We encourage an open exchange of ideas on this story's topic, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. Personal attacks, inappropriate language, and off-topic comments may be removed, and comment privileges revoked, per our Terms of Use. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Fernando Alonso declined to give details and, when asked if he was talking to any teams about a comeback, smiled and said: "Always."
Fernando Alonso hinted on Friday he is considering making a return to Formula One following an overhaul of the rules for the 2021 season. But the two-time world champion Spaniard, who 'retired' last year after a disappointing spell with McLaren, was enigmatic when asked if he was in contact with any teams. "Let's see," he said, during an interview with Sky Sports F1. "I need to figure out a couple of different challenges out of Formula One that I need to complete. "They are not yet finished -- like the Indy 500 and some other stuff. So, 2021, with the new regulations... I think it's a good mix that we can find there and maybe a different Formula One than what we see now.
"The reasons why I left last year are still present now with domination of a clear team and the races a little bit too predictable, but in 2021 these things can be changed and maybe it's a good opportunity."
He declined to give details and, when asked if he was talking to any teams about a comeback, smiled and said: "Always."
Alonso was in the Monza paddock in his role as an ambassador for McLaren. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Crock Pot Loaded Tater Soup
I'm not really a great cook. I grew up on Spam and Mac N Cheese, hot dogs and chips and Hamburger Helper. My attempts at experimenting in the kitchen have been about as successful as my attempts at having houseplants. However, occasionally I manage to whip something up that ends up being a hit not a miss. This one was a hit. I'm always trying to find simple dinners that I don't have to stand over, breaking my back to get done. This one was especially easy because a dear friend peeled and cut the taters for me, so all I had to do was dump and stir.
I added a bit of garlic powder to the mix as well, and substituted regular salt for onion salt, which gave it just a tiny bit more flavor. If you try it, let me know what you think and what variations you try in the comments! Enjoy! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. If you are having any problems logging in, please ask for help in the Login / Registration Problems section
Boot Issues - HELP!
I am using a softmodded ntsc wii, 3.3 U
I have been using WiiGator with no issues, and up until yesterday I had no issues with the Gamecube Loader 0.3 either.
I am not entirely sure of the root of the problem, but I'm positive that either the Gamecube Backup Loader or Wii Backup Loader is the culprit, and something messed with the boot sequence, otherwise my wii works perfectly when I get it to load into wii mode
I know it's long but please bear with me and read what's going on with my system, I would really like some assistance here:
I don't know if this is relevant but the last game I played on it was Soul Calibur 2 PAL. I don't know how the wii works internally, but I think my wii is stuck trying to load in "Gamecube mode", since when I turn the system on (It must be turned on manually by the power button on the system, Wii remotes just blink like they do when you play a GC game if you try holding the power button on the controller) the screen will just be black, and the drive will make the sound that it is pulling in a game. My wii MUST be turned on w/o a disc inside it. And in order to trick it into loading into "Wii mode", I have to insert a Wii disc while the drive is making the pull-in-disc sound, not a moment sooner or later.
If done correctly it will load to the usual seizure warning screen before it goes to the wii menu, as it usually should.
Last night I uninstalled the IOS files that came with the Gamecube Backup Loader (I pressed B to uninstall as the instructions said, yet onscreen it appeared to download the files and install them again). This caused a strange fluke, I thought I had fixed my wii because I was able to boot straight to the warning screen/system menu by using a wii remote. This morning I tried turning on the system with the remote and that didn't work, I had to go through the process of manually turning it on and inserting a disc as I did before.
Maybe it has something to do with improperly turning the wii off while using the Gamecube Backup Loader. When you press the Power button while running the Gamecube Backuploader it normally resets back into wii mode, rather than powering down. I do not know. Perhaps I should reinstall the IOS files for the gamecube backup loader and play a NTSC game and power down from there, would that reset the boot sequence? Again I although I am relatively tech savvy I have no idea how the wii software operates
I am willing to take all suggestions and I will make clarifications if need be
UPDATE: As of a minute ago I just turned on my wii with the remote and it loaded fine like normal.
If the bootup thing happens again I'm starting to think maybe its a region based problem because of the PAL GC game I played. I had manually set the game to "PAL" instead of AUTO on the gamecube backup loader menu. Perhaps I should go back and load a backup game and set it to AUTO and I will get no more problems?
Thats why i haven't used the gamecube loader yet, it scares me. wii loader is a little less intimidating, its a wii, it normally operates in wii functions. but changing the system to boot into gamecube sounds like a more complex process. im not a programmer, thats just how i view it. I doubt the region is affecting your wii, most likely i would think that powering down suddenly might affect it in that manner. Try booting the game, as you did before and power down, then try exiting through software (if thats even possible!) and see what happens
It's happening again. I can tell because when I hit the power button on the remote it doesn't turn on as it should so I have to do the turn it on manual trick again..
It's weird because it'll function like normal for a while but then I'll have to turn it on manual again, I haven't done anything to try and fix it since last night because I thought it had fixed itself since it was consistently booting normally.
Anybody have a solution? This is defintiely related to the gamecube backup launcher
EDIT: Also my wii seems unusually warm even though it is turned off. Is it because of Wiiconnect24 ?
I'm still not sure if the issue is completely resolved yet. Perhaps it's an issue with the mIOS that came with the gamecube launcher thing, should I reinstall the mIOS with the same thing that came with it, or is there a default mIOS I can use to install ontop of the one the GC launcher uses?
I ask this because I read that DELETING a cIOS (and by association I'm guessing mIOS) will brick/ruin the system. On the other hand I'm assuming overwriting it with another one should resolve the problem? So I ask again, is there a default mIOS (I'm guessing mIOS is for GC firmware or something) for my wii? (3.3U) | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Xtensor Hand Exerciser
Our hands hold a lot of stress and can be the cause of – and cure for – a lot of different types of pain. The Xtensor Hand Exerciser has been proven to aid in healing repetitive motion injuries like tennis elbow. Xtensor products are designed to help rehabilitate damaged muscles by increasing blood flow and rebuilding muscle tissue. Use Xtensor equipment to fight against carpal tunnel syndrome, repetitive motion injuries, and unbalanced muscle strength ratios in the hands and arms. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The telecom giant is set to launch a new product for Android users called AppFlash. It's supposed to find content such as restaurant reviews and movie listing from different apps -- even if you haven't downloaded them.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation on Thursday called the app "spyware," pointing to terms in Verizon's own privacy policy that say the app will collect information like your phone number, device type and "identifiers," operating system and the apps you've accumulated. That data could be shared within the Verizon family of companies, including its AOL advertising unit, as well as in "other places, including non-Verizon sites, services and devices."
But after Verizon talked to the EFF, the organization pulled the post and said it would investigate the app further.
The flare-up comes just days after Congress voted to pull the plug on rules proposed by the Federal Communications Commission that would have made it harder for internet service providers to collect your data for advertising purposes. The ISPs argued that the rules were too stringent relative to those governing online players like Google and Facebook, while consumer advocates said the move weakens the protections for our privacy.
Verizon told both CNET and the EFF that AppFlash would initially work on just a single phone -- a midlevel device called the LG K20 V -- as a test and that customers would have to opt in to use the app.
"You can easily disable the app," said a spokeswoman. "Nobody is required to use it."
Previously, the EFF warned that if Verizon were to roll this out more broadly, the app might present an opportunity for hackers to get into its phones. While the watchdog group has withdrawn its complaint, you can still see it here (the text is crossed out).
Verizon has been keen to expand its advertising business, which was the motivation behind buying AOL. The company is in the midst of completing its acquisition of Yahoo to gain a big-enough audience of users for those ads.
Updated at 10 a.m. PT: To note that the EFF has withdrawn its complaint.
Tech Enabled: CNET chronicles tech's role in providing new kinds of accessibility.
It's Complicated: This is dating in the age of apps. Having fun yet? These stories get to the heart of the matter. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
The Size of a Crape Myrtle Root System
Jacob J. Wright
Crape myrtles (Lagerstroemia spp.) demonstrate a high tolerance to drought conditions, although an evenly moist, well-drained soil that is occasionally irrigated promotes the fastest and lushest growth. Crape myrtles, like most other trees, do not have a large, carrotlike taproot. Neither do trees have a root structure that mirrors the size or shape of the branching canopy. Root systems of crape myrtles extend well beyond the reach of the branches.
Root Zone Depth
A healthy growing crape myrtle tree creates an expansive root zone in the top 6 to 24 inches of soil. In denser clay soils, the roots may not penetrate as deeply as compared to the more porous, faster draining sandy soil types. Crape myrtle roots often dwell near the soil surface and give rise to suckering shoots, called water sprouts. An occasional root does angle downward to act as more of a stabilizing or anchoring root, mainly in taller crape myrtles that experience wind resistance.
Root Zone Size
Expect roots from a crape myrtle to grow well beyond the farther reach of the branch tips. Actively growing roots do not remain under the canopy of the plant since the canopy blocks rainfall to the soil underneath. The roots grow outward, seeking new soil that is richer in moisture and nutrients. Crape myrtle roots grow two to four times the width of the plant's canopy. For example, a crape myrtle with leafy canopy 10 feet wide can have a root system that measures 20 to 40 feet across, with the tree trunk in the middle.
Root System Insight
Dwarf shrub crape myrtles may not develop wide root systems, as compared to tree forms, since there is less leaf and twig mass to support with water and nutrients. However, still expect roots to grow several feet beyond the branch tips even on miniature shrub cultivars. All crape myrtles are well-adapted to average fertility soils, but fertilizing young and newly planted crape myrtles does encourage better root establishment and initial growth of leaves and new branches. Since roots are generally wide spreading, special fertilization applications aren't always warranted for older crape myrtles, as the roots invade into nearby lawns and other garden beds where other fertilizers or organic materials such as compost and mulch may exist. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Share this:
Like this:
I’m letting the title stand as my trigger warning here because I’m going to be writing about some things that have happened over the past month and years. I was in an abusive relationship. It didn’t get physically abusive, but toward the end I was afraid that it might. I need to write about it. It might come out disjointed. I’ll probably talk about my remaining partners’ experiences and feelings as I know them, too. Mostly, I just want anyone who reads this to know and have really fair warning that I’m going to be talking about this experience–for my own health and sanity if nothing else. And I’m a little afraid that said partner will actually come read this and say things or .. I don’t know. I have fears I don’t want to give expression to, I guess.
Share this:
Like this:
This image lives on my desktop. It’s not my background, but it lives as an icon, a thumbnail reminder to myself.
And yet, I rarely obey it.
I’m afraid. I am afraid.
I am afraid of my anger. I’m afraid of all the anger inside me that will come pouring out when I open up about all the ugly, unbeautiful parts of my life. I’ve opened up about some of them, but there are more.
I am afraid of others’ reactions–not necessarily those of strangers, though there’s a certain fear of not being believed. I’m more afraid of those I love–what would they say?
And I know, I know: if they wanted me to say nice things about them, they should have treated me better.
But what about forgiveness?
But forgiveness shouldn’t be compulsory, either. And some things cannot be forgiven at all, and some things cannot be forgiven without being worked through. And some things just aren’t forgiveable things, even if I am angry about them, or hurt about/by them. It’s complicated.
I want to be compassionate. I want to be loving. I want to be a good person.
I know that good, loving, compassionate people also get angry.
And yet, there’s so much messaging that says the opposite–that love and anger don’t go together, that compassion and anger don’t mix, that being a good person and being an angry person aren’t the same thing.
I don’t want to be an angry person. I am an angry person. I hate being so angry all the time. I am so sad that I am so angry. I am so angry that I am so sad. And I am so so tired.
I wish I could just let go of the anger. I tried. I tried to just…put it aside. I tried. But that ended up just building walls inside me, walls I didn’t even realize I was erecting until almost too late, until I almost took my life because I cut myself off so far from everyone and everything around me.
I have to deal with all of these things, but dealing with them means being angry, and I really, really don’t want to be angry.
My wife and I have to fear any time she goes out alone that she may never come back because someone decides they don’t like the fact that her gender is different than the one assigned to her at birth–a thing that is entirely out of her control. You make this threat ever more present, ever more real. That’s not how this should work. You should be on the side of liberty and safety for all citizens, not just the cisgender, white, and male.
Moving on from discussion of my wife: I am a person who deals with depression and anxiety and suicidal ideation. I can tell you that when I come out of the fog of suicidal thoughts, I’m happy to be alive–but when I’m in them, the grip of the conviction to die is strong. It is a mental health challenge.
You have made that challenge much harder to bear, much worse, by making it easier to get guns into the hands of people like me who would harm ourselves, who would–under that terrible fog–end our own lives. And you have not done anything to improve mental health care services, nor access to them.
Moving on from my mental health: my city, St. Louis, has been rocked by racial tensions. We are the home of Ferguson, which exploded open the conversation about race and police brutality. We are one of the cities that has put racial education on the tip of so many Americans’ tongues.
I know the history runs deep here. I do not believe this will solve it. Instead, it will make things worse. We should not have the distinction of being the first state since Trayvon Martin was murdered to pass Stand Your Ground legislation.
We already have so many stories of our black citizens–male, female, trans and cis, child and adult–being killed by gun violence. And this is not about intraracial violence (most violence is intraracial, because proximity matters for crime, and most of us live in proximity to our own racial groups, which is a thing to tackle on a different day). This is about how we set up groups of people to be killed, and then we kill them–either by pulling the trigger ourselves, or by signing the legislation that allows for that to happen so very easily. Please, let’s work to end gun violence by putting restrictions in place, instead of making it easier for people to kill one another.
Race is such a big issue, so huge, and race and violence–I could go on about how we make those things linked for a long time. But there’s are a couple more things I want to cover before I close: violence against LGBTQIA persons and intimate partner violence.
I am a bisexual woman. I have so many queer friends and loved ones in Missouri–including, of course, my wife. The violence at Pulse in Florida occurred just three short months ago. While that scale of violence has not happened here, you make it easier for something like that to happen. My queer loved ones and I are not safe in Missouri. We experience threats and harassment and outright violence all the time. The victory of so-called ‘gay marriage’ did not fix LGBTQIA rights for all time. We are still at risk for violence, and this legislation makes that violence even more likely, even more of a threat, even more present and real and deadly.
As for intimate partner violence: ‘castle doctrine’ and ‘Stand Your Ground’ did not save Marissa Alexander when she faced intimate partner violence/domestic violence. It did not save Bresha Meadows. I don’t think it would save very many of the most vulnerable in our homes–those of us who live with people who harm us and have so little recourse to get out.
You make it so much easier for intimate partner/domestic violence to occur, and so much more difficult for those who experience such violence to actually get free.
Compare the fact that George Zimmerman–who chased down Trayvon Martin, so how could it have been ‘defense’?–got away with ‘Stand Your Ground’ as his defense, but Marissa Alexander, who fired mere warning shots–shots that hit no one, shots that were intended to frighten and were meant to free her and her children from harm–was not shielded at all by either ‘castle doctrine’ or ‘Stand Your Ground’ despite the fact that she did face imminent danger. Consider that Bresha Meadows and her family had been facing imminent danger for so long, and yet she sits in a juvenile detention facility because she saw no other way to freedom for herself and her family–while George Zimmerman roams free.
These laws do not free us. They are not the path to liberty. They do not bring justice.
Please, legislators, understand that we all want to live and love and laugh. We all want to go out in the sunshine and the cool night air and be happy and free of fear. We all want to be able to break free of the harms that plague us. These things–Stand Your Ground and concealed carry without a permit–will not accomplish that for any but the cisgender, heterosexual, mentally healthy, white men among us.
Like this:
I am terrified I will let them down. I am terrified I will disappoint them. I’m terrified I won’t do it ‘right,’ whatever ‘it’ is.
I’m smart. I know I’m smart. But I am afraid to try for any further schooling, because I am afraid of what that means. If I do that…then I have expectations to do things with that education. And that expectation is legitimate–because there’s expense and logistics and time and energy involved in all of that, and it’s not all mine. It’s mostly not mine except for the time and energy. But I am so afraid that I will…say it wrong, write it wrong, get it wrong.
I want so badly to make the people who got me to where I am, to where I would be, happy and proud.
That gets in the way of what I want, sometimes, because I don’t know if that always meshes. I don’t know if it always matches up.
Like, what I have to say isn’t always the same as what the people who gave me the money have to say. Or what I have to say ends up not being liberatory after all, and I fucked it up. Or what I have to say opens up some darkness, some painfulness, some scary things that people in my life don’t really want me talking about.
And that last–I keep trying to remember that I’ve lived it, I’ve earned the right to tell my story, but it’s hard.
And what if I start to do some things, and I’m feeling okay, and I do a few things, and then I wind up back in bed again? I don’t want to be inconsistent. I don’t want to be flaky. I worked in volunteer management, and while I loved every volunteer who showed up, I definitely would call my more reliable volunteers more frequently, because I knew I could count on them. I don’t want to be unreliable. I don’t want to be someone’s pain in the ass, someone’s ‘have to replace at last minute,’ because frequently my body and/or brain betray me day of, and I don’t know it’s coming until then.
And that’s just for volunteering–that’s not even getting into paid work, or academic life, or art. Even here, I’ve been so inconsistent. And I’m glad this space is here, and it’s mine, and I can do whatever I want with it–but I know I set some expectations for myself at the beginning, and I haven’t really met them, not with any consistency.
And all of that is tied to ability–mental and physical health, and I know that. And I know that all of this ‘expectation’ talk is tied to this idea that I have to somehow be ‘productive’ to be valuable, which is baloney. I know that. Intellectually, I know that.
But also, this fear of expectation–I think it’s tied to how I was abused as a child. I was ‘expected’to get straight A’s, and if I didn’t–punishment. I was ‘expected’ to volunteer, do church activities, be a straight arrow, etc. And if I didn’t–punishment. Even if my parents thought I didn’t, punishment. It didn’t matter if I actually followed the rules, because I was punished anyway. I was always punished for not meeting expectations, and rarely rewarded for meeting them or exceeding them.
My grandparents monetarily rewarded me, so there’s that–I would get something like 50 cents for an A and 25 cents for a B, and since I always got all A’s, that was nice. It all went into my college savings fund. So there’s that. But that came out of my grandparents, and not my parents.
I lived two separate realities, even though for me they were the same lived reality.
And I got punished for my grandparents loving me, too. I was mocked and torn down and humiliated for how my grandparents loved me. So that reward system became a punishment, too. That wasn’t my grandparents’ fault. That was my parents’ fault.
I think this system of tearing me down and so rarely praising me around expectations has made me scared to do, scared to try.
I’ve been thinking about art, and I’ve had some inclinations to try art classes again, to brush up on art skills. I did decently in art in 7th and 8th grade and for a little while after, and then I let my skills get rusty. I let them go in favor of the things that got the accolades I needed to get me out of the scary, awful, terrible place with some immediacy. Granted, that means I did theology and languages–which maybe wasn’t terribly practical, but it’s what I did. Anyway.
When I did art, no one thought I could do it. No one thought I had any talent, and I did it all on my own, all by myself. That was all me. And no one ever set any expectations on me about it. Kind of the opposite, really–Mom kept trashing my art. That was a little devaluing, but she never had any expectations that I’d be the next Great Artist or anything.
So I think that’s why I’ve been thinking about it. It’s a thing that no one else has ever given my any expectations around.
Of course, I have my own expectations now–things about race and gender and sexuality ability that go into all of this. But yeah.
Expectation scares me so bad.
Share this:
Like this:
I ‘should’ eat better, I ‘should’ clean more, I ‘should’ exercise more/at all, I ‘should’ read more academic things, I ‘should’ be prepping for academic things, I ‘should’ write, I ‘should’ volunteer, I ‘should’ be in the streets, I ‘should’ do what my colleagues do, I ‘should’ call home, I ‘should’ go outside, I ‘should’ do this, that, the other.
And…yes. I mean, I ‘should’ do at least some of those things, for health. For safety.
But all I think about is what I should do and what my loved ones need and want. And when I fail to do those things or live up to my shoulds, I deprive myself–of things like sunlight and friendship and pleasure.
I decide I don’t deserve to go to that free pleasure event, because I haven’t done enough in my community–regardless of my energy level, regardless of my physical ability, regardless of anything that’s been happening in my personal life.
I decide I don’t deserve sunshine because I haven’t been able to get out of bed for days and weeks at a time.
I decide I don’t deserve a massage to help my aching body feel better because I haven’t lived up to the societal standards of feminine hygiene like shaving–even though shaving makes me ache so badly. And I decide I can’t get a wax even though I actually like the feeling of my legs being hairless because I just don’t deserve it. I haven’t done enough. I’m too much bad, not enough good.
I talk to myself like that all the time.
But I would totally tell my wife to do whatever she needs and wants to feel good about herself. I would say the same to my male partners.
What is it I want? And why is it so hard to figure that out *and* act on it? Why do I feel like I’m not good enough to do what I want?
My therapist tells me I only need to do what I want in this life. I keep looking at her like I don’t believe her. I think, to me, part of my personal definition of being a good person is doing good works. And if I’m not doing good works, I’m not being a good person. So then it makes it hard for me to feel like I ‘get’ to do things that are purely pleasurable for me.
But if I never let myself feel pleasure, how do I get out of misery?
Also, it’s hard to consistently do the good things I want to do, and I hate being inconsistent. It’s hard for me, I mean. Not knowing when my body will shut down on me makes it difficult.
Other people manage, and I tell myself that. I just…I’m not supposed to compare, and I haven’t figured out how I’m supposed to manage.
It’s particularly difficult when I’ve spent a lifetime being told–first by actual, physical people who were supposed to take care of me (my parents) that all my physical and mental ails were trivial/not real (from illness to broken limbs, not a thing was believed until hours/days had passed and I finally got them to take me to a doctor). Now, it’s hard for me to believe that about myself. I keep telling myself it’s not that bad, that I don’t have it as bad as other people, that I need to just pull myself up and get on with it, that I’m horrible for not just getting on with life, that all of this is just me being hysterical and manipulative and melodramatic (and hey, those are words from my past). It’s hard for me to take care of my body.
One of my partners is a sweet caretaker, but he’s the sort that wants to do for me. And he’s been so so helpful, but he’s not great at telling me to make an appointment. Not yet. I think he’ll get there. But I have to learn to do it on my own, because it really shouldn’t be on him, or on anyone else. I just…never learned how to do it, never learned how to value my body.
And that gives me this really really bad case of the shoulds all the time. I ‘should’ do all these things, but a lot of the time I can’t, because I actually physically can’t. Or I mentally can’t. And I need to be easier on myself about that.
Share this:
Like this:
About a year ago, I finally had a much-needed sleep study done. It was an at-home sleep study, to the surprise of everyone involved (myself, my doctor, my partners, my therapist). Maybe my insurance provider wasn’t surprised? Anyway, shortly after the test, my doctor’s office had to cancel my results appointment because they had a computer training class that day. I said I would reschedule.
And then I didn’t.
Some of that was depression. Some of that was brain fog and fatigue. Some of it was life and being bad at adulting. Some of it was exhaustion.
Finally, around March–my grandma had been doing okay-ish. I knew she was up and down, health-wise. I’d been up and down, too, depression-wise. I’d been through some suicidal ideation, broken through due to getting angry at my parents, and come back to it. I kept kind of…waiting on The Call that something was Going Worse with my grandma. But it hadn’t come, and so in March, I decided to finally make that doctor’s appointment again.
I went, and I found out that I have sleep apnea (to probably no one’s surprise who has ever heard me snore). My oxygen saturation level was dropping to 66% at night (hence my constant brain fogginess) and I was stopping breathing up to 15 times per hour. That’s…no wonder I stopped having my super-vivid dreams, and no wonder I have felt so tired all the time, and no wonder a lot of things, right?
So my doctor said I needed to go for another sleep evaluation, to get fitted for a cpap, in-clinic. So we scheduled that.
And then my grandma fell and cracked her head open on her bathroom floor.
My dad was there, thankfully. He got her to the hospital, but he had to clean all that up alone. I don’t know how he did it. I don’t know if I would’ve had the strength.
Grandma’s health deteriorated pretty rapidly from there. It felt slow. But…that was March, and by the beginning of July, she was gone.
In between, I had my evaluation. That went okay. It was weird, to have the paste in my hair and to try to sleep in the clinic. I don’t sleep well in strange settings at the best of times. Being nervous about people watching me sleep, and having things attached to me…plus the fact that I somehow dislocated and relocated my shoulder while settling in for the night and so was in a lot of pain (only me!) meant I felt like I didn’t sleep much.
The lady who worked with me–a nurse? attendant? clinician?–seemed to think I’d feel so much better! when I woke up, that I’d feel an immediate difference. I don’t think I slept as much as she thought I did. I *did* feel some difference through the day, but I was still exhausted at night.
I was told I’d have my cpap within a couple of days.
A month later, I still didn’t have it, and I was having to yell at my doctor’s office that I didn’t have it. They’d wanted to schedule me for a ‘review of how I’m doing’ on it, and, well, it’s hard to do that without actually being on it.
I didn’t actually get it until about a month ago now, in August.
I missed some time with Grandma because of that, because for a little bit they kept calling me each week to say “It’s on its way” or “We don’t have the information from your doctor,” and my doctor kept insisting they had sent the information.
Then I missed some time with Grandma because we found out my wife has a very small, benign brain tumor on her pituitary gland.
The last time I saw Grandma, she clutched my hand…she knew, and I knew, and we both knew that we both knew it was the last time.
It’s been two months, and I miss her so much.
And I can actually feel that. And sit in it. And think about it. And remember things. Because this cpap…being able to breathe at night means my brain functions during the day.
I wish I’d been able to do that while she was still here.
Though for the first few weeks, this thing was a terror. I’d been told it would aid my depression, my anxiety, make things so much better. Instead, I got vivid nightmares from which I couldn’t wake myself; during the day, my brain busied itself remembering and reliving all the worst parts of my life. I felt haunted.
That has somewhat eased now, although I still have occasional nightmares and very very vivid dreams. I started playing my way through all the Escape The Room games I could find on my phone to occupy my brain with something other than Bad Thoughts.
I hid in bed for…it feels like a long time. It’s been a couple of weeks, I guess. I’m not in it now, but it has felt like a long time.
My brain is working now. That’s something. My sleep schedule is…weird. I think I need to start recording it again. I keep falling asleep anywhere from 7p-11p (if I can keep myself awake that long–it’s seriously a challenge) and waking around 1a-5a. Sometimes I wake a little later, but not usually. I get tired pretty easily through the day, and sometimes have a 2-hour nap. One hour doesn’t seem to suffice.
I have discovered that I really cannot go without the cpap. Sleeping, even for 10 minutes, without it leaves me feeling like I’ve been choked and like my head is full of cotton. Is that how I felt all the time a month ago? It’s so hard not to doze off somewhere sometimes–I want to be able to drift into a pleasant nap on the couch like I used to do occasionally–but I know that if I do, I’ll wake in that strangled state.
It’s nice to be able to think. I’m still tired, though. Something else is definitely ‘wrong’ with my body, something other than the sleep apnea. My brain is sharper, and I’m waking naturally and sleeping naturally, so I think that is ‘fixed’ as it can be for now. So…I need to figure out what the rest is.
Anyway, I can sleep. I can breathe while doing it. I can grieve. I am struggling still with depression and anxiety, so the cpap hasn’t fixed that, but maybe it’s helping? I actually pulled myself out of bed for a walk today. And I have been fixing some of my own food. Maybe I will regain some of my independence. Maybe I can find my way to a new healthy. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Pages
Friday, June 8, 2018
What is Darwinian Evolution?
Readers of this blog may have noticed that in the last few weeks I've written a number of posts on evolution and competing theories of origins. You can find them under the tags "evolution" and "creationism". Or for convenience, they are:Evolution, Creation and Catholic FaithWas Adam an Ape-Man?Slumming with the CreationistsWas There a Biblical Flood?The Biblical Literalism of English Catholic George Leo HaydockI've jumped around a bit and I've also been, some might say, a bit cagey. I've been critical, in one way or another of all the alternatives. But one of them must be true. After all of it, what do I actually believe? What do I think a Catholic can believe or should believe? I've made some hints, but I haven't firmly taken a side.I'm getting there. But before I do get there, if you'll indulge me, I want to clearly lay out the alternatives, with an emphasis on the alternatives for faithful Christians or Catholics.I see five of them:Darwinian EvolutionOld-Earth CreationismYoung-Earth CreationismIntelligent DesignTheistic EvolutionIn the next five posts, I want to look at each one of these in turn, briefly defining and describing them and then listing what I see as the strong points and weak points (or advantages and disadvantages - in opposite order) of each one.For me, it's an entertaining break from Bergoglio bashing and Islam bashing. But of course I also think the topic is interesting and, in the end, incredibly important, especially for Christians and Catholics.Again, I ask that you indulge me, but more importantly I hope you find the discussion interesting. As always, please tell me where you think I'm wrong.And also as always, in the great Christian blogger moral tradition, I won't stop you from being abusive, but I just might get abusive back. (Insert your own mental smiley or frowny emoji, here.)So, here's the first alternative:DARWINIAN EVOLUTIONDefinition:All organisms and species, including Man, came into being via evolutionary descent from a common ancestor or set of similar common ancestors. The engine for this is natural selection operating on or against random genetic mutation.Various evolutionary theories were proposed generations before Darwin and quickly acquired a certain cache in establishment and elite cultural circles. Charles Darwin's grandfather, Erasmus Darwin, wrote Zoonomia in 1794. While this work would soon make the Vatican's Index of Prohibited Books, it probably only became widely known after his grandson's works became popular. By contrast, Vestiges of Creation by the scientific popularizer Robert Chambers came out in 1844 and was wildly successful. It wasn't until the end of the 19th century that its total sales were surpassed by Darwin's The Origin of Species.But while these and other works proposed evolutionary theories of life's origins, theories which were in convenient agreement with steadily growing secular zeitgeist, none of them could precisely explain why or how evolution occurred. It was Charles Darwin in Origin who first came up with a scientifically plausible mechanism for how evolution could occur. At that time, Darwin would speak of natural selection operating against the background of "slight changes" - the genetic mutation part would come later, partly as a result of the roughly simultaneous scientific discoveries of Gregory Mendel, a Catholic monk who, arguably, was opposed to Darwinism as a general theory Origin was published 1859. It is perhaps notable that this most modern of theories was publicly launched two years before the start of the American Civil War.What are the disadvantages and advantages of Darwinian evolution in its contemporary (2018) form?Disadvantages:1. From a scientific standpoint, the theory has proven to be an utterly bankrupt failure. (And someday I'll tell you what I really think.) Far from the case for Darwinian evolution becoming stronger in the last 150+ years, it has steadily become weaker. Here are some of the major problems:
The continuing gaps and oddities of the fossil record, completely at odds with what Darwin predicted. Instead of species gradually changing, they abruptly appear, remain unchanged and then abruptly disappear. There is no general trend from simplicity to complexity beyond a few discreet points in an allaged four-billion year timeline. There are rapid mass "explosions" as well as mass extinctions of species, etc.
The failure, even after 150 years, to come up with a firm evolutionary timeline for Man's origins. Despite the popular conception, there is still no agreed upon sequence of species for how man progressively evolved from ape-like ancestors. New discoveries, rather than "filling in the blanks," tend to simply make things more puzzling. If Darwinian evolution is true, then there must be such a sequence, but scientists are no nearer to having one now than they were three generations ago.
The failure to solve the problem of irreducible complexity. Darwin argued that evolution proceeded in small steps, each one of which had to be to the advantage of the organism or species. Indeed, in the Origin of Species he claimed, " if it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down." Critics have claimed that many complex organs, such as the eye, have this feature, though this has been disputed by Darwinists who have come up with ingenious (while arguably implausible) proposals for how such complex organs could have been formed in successive stages. But the best example is the cell. Darwin and his contemporaries thought of the cell as a simple blob of protoplasm. We now know it to be akin to an incredibly complex miniature machine. The design of the machine is coded in the DNA of the organism, but no account has as yet been given of how the code builds the machine, or how a succession of different machines could have gradually "evolved" via beneficial changes at each stage from simpler origins.
The failure to explain how life could have arisen from non-life. This is somewhat related to the above. Various "just-so" stories have been proposed, but no evidence for them has ever been produced.
The failure to show how mere random mutation could steadily produce beneficial changes at the genetic level. Genetic protein sequences are incredibly complicated, and virtually all of them "don't work," in the same way that, say, virtually all random sequences of a page worth of letters and punctuation marks don't work to produce a page of intelligible prose. The mutations that do arise, almost always hurt an organism, rather than helping it
The failure to produce long-term beneficial mutations even in a laboratory. This is in a sense the empirical conformation of the previous claim. While it well-known that, say, bacteria can develop "new" resistances to hostile agents, the actual mechanism involved is the creation of a genetic "glitch" that masks recognition by the agent of, say, a particular protein. But no changes may be seen to occur past that point or "edge."
Finally, we might add that many of the best historical evidences adduced for Darwinian evolution have been exposed as intentional hoaxes or mistakes. This is not completely determinative, of course, but it should give any honest Darwinian evolutionist pause. Some examples of actual fraud include Piltdown Man, the Haeckel embryos and even the famous peppered moths. Even the evidence for the beak growth on Darwin's finches has been shown to be problematic.
Darwinian evolutionists have reacted to each problem by doubling-down, and sometimes even boldly incorporating disconfirming evidence as confirmatory. Thus the independent evolution of distinct and complex organs such as the eye or similar animal morphologies, something that Darwin argued the theory probably ruled out, have been labeled "convergent evolution" - evidence for how wonderful and rich the theory is. The non-gradual timeline shown in the fossil record has been explained as "punctuated equilibrium." And so on.With all of these problems, why has Darwinian evolution continued to be the dominant theory? See Advantages, below.2. Darwinian evolution is strictly incompatible with conventional Christianity. This is of course only a problem for Christians. And indeed, it is celebrated by many atheist Darwinians. What do I mean by "strictly incompatible"? All Christians believe a) there is a God, b) God created (somehow, by some means, directly or indirectly) the world and all life in it, including Man, and c) God intended to create the world, life and Man in a certain way, according to His plan. But now recall that standard Darwinian evolution asserts that the engine for evolution is random mutation. Random means, well, random, or accidental. Or to see it another way, as the evolutionist Stephen Jay Gould put it, if we were to rewind the tape of life, say, two billion years, and then started things again, we'd get something, but it would be something completely different from what we actually have.But why couldn't God have used evolution as His method of creation? That He could not have is not to invoke the infallible authority of some 19th century pope or to put a limitation on Gos's power, but simply to express a claim of logic, in the same way that we might say that God could not make 1 + 1 = 3. Random processes do not produce planned outcomes, unless there is some power or tendency or law also simultaneously in force. Again, this is not an empirical point but a logical one. If I randomly throw different colored paint at a board, I could not produce the Mona Lisa. And neither could God (!), at least if we say that He randomly threw the paint. Christian evolutionists often claim that on their theory, the hand of God (somehow) guides the process, or that life as we know it, including the existence of Man was (somehow) front-loaded into things at the beginning. Why can't they say that? Well, they can, of course, but if they do, they're not anymore putting forth Darwinian evolution, which by definition incorporates a random process. Instead they would be (at a minimum) defending some sort of theory of Intelligent Design (see future post).You can't have your cake and eat it, too.Sorry, Christian evolutionists.Advantages:1. Darwinian evolution is still the overwhelmingly dominant theory or paradigm within the scientific and cultural establishment. If you dissent from the theory, you run the serious risk of torpedoing your career (or your career may fail to launch completely) in academic science and related fields. If you dissent from the theory as an actual or prospective scientist, not only will you probably not be popular or hip but you might also starve (at least if you're also unwilling to or unable to drive for Uber). Is this an "advantage" for the theory? Damn right it is. How could it not be?2. Darwinian evolution is still the only even remotely plausible naturalistic theory of origins. By "naturalistic theory," I mean a theory that doesn't invoke supernatural agents or causes such as, most obviously, God. This of course provides the answer to why theory is still believed despite the massive amount of disconfirmatory considerations discussed above. The current philosophical and cultural zeitgeist will simply not allow God into "science" - for reasons independent of any scientific considerations themselves. And thus atheist or secular evolutionists are strictly correct when they assert that whatever it's problems, Darwinian evolution is the only game in town. If we assume away God at the beginning, it is the only game in town, at least so far. Why we should assume away God at the beginning is another question. But regardless, it has already been done for us.And if you have a problem with that, I have an Uber pick up for you.3. All else said, Darwinian evolution is a very clever theory. I mean that sincerely. True or false (and I obviously think it's false) it's ingenious. It has an undeniable superficial plausibility. Richard Dawkins famously claimed that Darwin finally made it possible to be an intellectual fulfilled atheist. What he meant by that is that before Darwin's theory, the atheist or secularly inclined philosopher or scientist had to confront a major problem - there simply was no good non-supernatural explanation for how all of life, up to and including Man, came to be. That the world and all the life on it had always existed was proposed of course. But that, as they say, didn't quite cut it. Life itself was a seemingly insurmountable obstacle to atheism. Darwin changed that.In the interests of fairness, I should also add that the Darwinian paradigm has clear applications outside of biology. That some of these applications, or in this case, rather, alleged applications were subsequently used for morally horrific purposes is undeniable. But it's also true that it has been and can be used, if applied carefully and correctly, to better understand some phenomena in the social sciences. For those interested, I recommend David Axelrod's The Evolution of Cooperation, as just one of many examples of where the use of a sort of Darwinian theory can have positive and fruitful results.Darwin and Darwinism was a huge wrong turn for science. I have previously described it as perhaps the greatest hoax in history. But that doesn't mean there aren't some positive things that honest and curious thinkers can get out of it - and yes, that even goes for Catholics.That's the way it goes, sometimes.Next: Old-Earth Creationism
5 comments:
Hugh Owen of the Kolbe Center has lengthy speeches/interviews online on the subject of evolution and Catholic creationism. They're definitely worth listening to if you have the time.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5z7AveGSmUhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1xXypxjclshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFwEyZ0g3D0
I remember the pictures in anthropology of the primitive species standing more and more upright until, voila, they stand erect and are modern man! The varying species of early man, or whatever we should call them, is fascinating. I mean, how to explain Australopithecus, or Cro-Magnon man, what are these beings? How did one take over another? How did we so quickly arrive with a modern brain capable of much more thought than earlier man? And why are we less capable of using that brain than we were when we started. Why is man getting stupider. I know this is so because I observe the world.
I highly recommend the book THE DOCTRINES OF GENESIS 1-11: A Compendium and Defense of Traditional Catholic Theology on Origins by Victor Warkulwiz for a defence of traditional Catholic teaching on origins. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Amazon Coding Interview Question - K Closest Points to the Origin
🛈⏬Amazon coding interview question and answer. If you liked this video, I would also recommend my Udemy course, 11 Essential Coding Interview Questions : https://www.udemy.com/11-essential-coding-interview-questions/?couponCode=AMAZON2 (You'll get a discount through the link above.)What Does a Software Developer Do?
🛈⏬Karen Zoeller has always loved to solve puzzles. That’s why she enjoys her job as a junior software developer for Hyland Software. What is a software developer? Karen is a programmer- she writes code. See more EXCLUSIVE videos with career advice from Karen, including more on #GirlCode, visit: http://www.thecareerzoo.com/what-does-a-software-developer-do/ TheCareerZoo.com is a career exploration and news source. We feature career videos of professionals in their natural habitats, showing you what they do in their jobs. Explore more careers at http://www.thecareerzoo.com/ SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube Channel & see new videos first! http://youtube.com/thecareerzoo Karen has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Computer Science from Case Western Reserve University. TheCareerZoo.com is a proud partner of Case Western Reserve University. With top-ranked programs in arts and sciences, dentistry, engineering, law, management, medicine, nursing and social work, you'll find your place here... http://case.edu/ Check out Hyland Software - https://www.onbase.com/ Join the Career Expedition: GET SOCIAL WITH US! http://facebook.com/thecareerzoo http://instagram.com/thecareerzoo http://youtube.com/thecareerzoo tweet @thecareerzooJeff Bezos Talks Amazon, Blue Origin, Family, And Wealth
🛈⏬Mathias Döpfner, the CEO of Business Insider's parent company, Axel Springer, recently sat down with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to talk about the early days of creating Amazon, what he's learned since then, how he funds his rocket company, Blue Origin, and what it's like when the president of the United States is your biggest critic. The sit-down interview happened in Berlin, where Bezos received the Axel Springer Award 2018. Business Insider tells you all you need to know about business, finance, tech, science, retail, and more. Subscribe to our channel and visit us at: http://www.businessinsider.com/ BI on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/businessinsider/ BI on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/businessinsider/ BI on Twitter: https://twitter.com/businessinsiderA Day In the Life of a Software Engineer Intern
🛈⏬Hey everyone! This was basically my entire summer and I wanted to film an example of what it's like working as an intern as there aren't too many videos about that on YouTube. Shout-outs to Mayuko/Joma/Jarvis and all the other software engineers who made day in the life of videos, I definitely was inspired by them! Thank you so much for watching and let me know what other videos you'd like me to make in the comments below! You can contact me here: https://www.instagram.com/edwardbsa/ [email protected] Gear: Camera - https://tinyurl.com/jk2kwz4 Vlogging Lense - https://tinyurl.com/y83m3b8w Rode VideoMicro - https://tinyurl.com/y9p2fp9z DJI Mavic Air - https://tinyurl.com/y7nwjcvn GoPro HERO5 - https://tinyurl.com/y8ohmgr5 Tracklist (in order): Joakim Karud - Waves Joakim Karud - Classic Joakim Karud - Good Old DaysThe Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) team
🛈⏬You sell it, we ship it. Amazon has created one of the most advanced fulfillment networks in the world, and sellers can now benefit from our expertise. With Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) sellers store their products in Amazon's fulfillment centers, and we directly pack, ship, and provide customer service for these products. Learn about the exciting work going on in the FBA team! Learn more at: amazon.jobs Amazon is an Affirmative Action - Equal Opportunity Employer - M/F/V/DProduct Management in Tech with Alex Levich (Women Techmakers: Product Management Series, Episode 3)
🛈⏬Product Management is an exciting role that makes an impact on people’s lives. Find out more as Alex speaks with Aparna Chennapragada, Director of Product Management, about the different skills of a Product Manager. This is the third installment of a series of programs about Product Management that presents inspiring stories from Women Techmakers. What would you like to hear about? Share your feedback in the comments! Subscribe to Women Techmakers YouTube channel at: http://goo.gl/JE50Eb.What will future jobs look like? | Andrew McAfee
🛈⏬Economist Andrew McAfee suggests that, yes, probably, droids will take our jobs -- or at least the kinds of jobs we know now. In this far-seeing talk, he thinks through what future jobs might look like, and how to educate coming generations to hold them. TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less). Look for talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more. Find closed captions and translated subtitles in many languages at http://www.ted.com/translate Follow TED news on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/tednews Like TED on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TED Subscribe to our channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/TEDtalksDirectorRoot Access: How to get funding and launch your startup
🛈⏬What 5 things must be in your pitch for investors to pay attention? When should you launch your startup? Googler and long-time startup evangelist Don Dodge is here to tell us what he has seen in work in the real world. For more Root Access, see our playlist: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOU2XLYxmsILjw2c4ImxWXvi4vPrLCjYvI'm 47 And Now I Want to be a Programmer
🛈⏬In this episode, I talk about wanting to be a programmer at a certain age. SUBSCRIBE HERE: http://bit.ly/1zPTNLT Learn how to learn anything quickly: http://10stepstolearn.com Sign up for the Simple Programmer Newsletter: http://simpleprogrammer.com/email Simple Programmer blog: http://simpleprogrammer.com Boost your career now: http://devcareerboost.comProblem Solving Technique #1 for Coding Interviews with Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, etc.
🛈⏬This is one of the 3 problem solving techniques I personally used to get through coding interviews with companies such as Google. To get the 2 other techniques, check out my Udemy course, 11 Essential Coding Interview Questions : https://www.udemy.com/11-essential-coding-interview-questions/?couponCode=SOLVE2First look inside the Amazon Spheres
🛈⏬The Spheres is a new and very unique work space for Amazon workers in Downtown Seattle, along with being a significant new architectural landmark for the city. The three glass domes are an indoor garden that house 400 species of plants from around the world, given an escape to nature for the tech giants workers.What is API ?
🛈⏬http://www.LearnCodeOnline.in in this video we will talk about what is API or also known as application programming interface fb: https://www.facebook.com/HiteshChoudharyPage homepage: http://www.hiteshChoudhary.comWinning the Amazon.com Interview
🛈⏬Eduardo Michelutti shares his insights on how to do well when interviewing at Amazon.com. Whether it's behavioral or case questions, you'll want to learn the winning secrets.Top 5 programming language in 2019 with Learning Paths
🛈⏬In this video, I would like to put up my compiled list of Top programming language. This video is divided in 4 sections. 1. An Amazon interview experience 2. Reasons and factors for this list 3. Actual list of languages with learning paths and projects 4. A quick talk over Data Structure and Algorithms If you are just interested in list: 5. PHP 4. SWIFT 3. Java 2. JavaScript 1. Python but this video is not just about list, experience and learning path is also included. For php, first start with Front end web development: https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/complete-front-end-development For Swift start here: https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/Complete-iOS-11-developer-Bootcamp For Java, start with Java Bootcamp https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/Complete-Java-Bootcamp and then Android P with 26+ apps: https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/Android-P-with-Machine-learning-Apps For Javascript, here is a free course: https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/Javascript-for-2018-developer Python can lead you with Django, web development here: https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/BackEnd-web-development-with-Django or Machine Learning guide here: https://courses.learncodeonline.in/learn/Machine-Learning-Bootcamp These are some online resource, that I have created over years. Here is the mentioned book in video: https://amzn.to/2A1B0Ak Link to my programming Video Library: https://courses.LearnCodeOnline.in Pick best UI color for your projects: https://UIColorPicker.com Desktop: https://amzn.to/2GZ0C46 Laptop that I use: https://amzn.to/2Goui9Q Wallpaper: https://imgur.com/a/FYHfk Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HiteshChoudharyPage homepage: http://www.hiteshChoudhary.com Download LearnCodeOnline.in app from Google play store and Apple App store Disclaimer: It doesn't feel good to have a disclaimer in every video but this is how the world is right now. All videos are for educational purpose and use them wisely. Any video may have a slight mistake, please take decisions based on your research. This video is not forcing anything on you. All Amazon links are affiliate links (If any).How to: Work at Google — Example Coding/Engineering Interview
🛈⏬Watch our video to see two Google engineers demonstrate a mock interview question. After they code, our engineers highlight best practices for interviewing at Google. Learn more about how we hire at http://goo.gl/xSD7jo, then head over to https://goo.gl/BEKV6Z to find your role. Also check out our companion video, How to Work at Google: Prepare for an Engineering Interview (https://goo.gl/e0i8rX). Subscribe to Life at Google for more videos → https://goo.gl/kqwUZd Follow us! Twitter: https://goo.gl/kdYxFP Facebook: https://goo.gl/hXDzLf Google Plus: https://goo.gl/YBcMZK #LifeAtGoogleAmazon: Relocating to Seattle
🛈⏬What's it like to relocate to Seattle? For many of our positions Amazon provides an extensive relocation package to make the transition to life in Seattle as smooth as possible. Learn about one Amazonian's relocation experience and why he loves living and working in Seattle. Learn more at: amazon.jobs Amazon is an Affirmative Action - Equal Opportunity Employer - M/F/V/DFastest way to become a software developer
🛈⏬Become a job ready developer by completing the full curriculum for a one time price: https://www.jobreadyprogrammer.com/p/all-access-pass/?product_id=87071&coupon_code=100-OFF&preview=logged_out This video breaks down the PRACTICAL strategy for breaking into the software development profession as a junior programmer. You do not need a CS degree to become a programmer! You need passion, hard work and most importantly the drive to self-learn! Get lifetime access to all of my practical programming courses using the 40% coupon link below: https://www.jobreadyprogrammer.com/p/all-access-pass/?product_id=87071&coupon_code=100-OFF&preview=logged_outHow to: Prepare for a Google Engineering Interview
🛈⏬Watch our video to get the details of interviewing for our Engineering and Technical roles. Our engineers and recruiter have tips for being well-prepared for a Google interview. Learn more about how we hire at http://goo.gl/xSD7jo, then head over to https://goo.gl/BEKV6Z to find your role. Also check out our companion video, How to Work at Google: Example Coding/Engineering Interview (https://goo.gl/8NpXgn). Subscribe to Life at Google for more videos → https://goo.gl/kqwUZd Follow us! Twitter: https://goo.gl/kdYxFP Facebook: https://goo.gl/hXDzLf Google Plus: https://goo.gl/YBcMZK #LifeAtGoogleTOP 10 BEST AMAZON PRODUCTS YOU NEED!
🛈⏬TOP 10 PRODUCTS FROM AMAZON YOU NEED!!! These are my FAVORITE Amazon items…they are so unique, different, and fun!! This is totally NOT sponsored by Amazon, I just genuinely love ordering from them! I really hope you enjoy and everything is listed & linked below :) SUBSCRIBE TO MY CHANNEL (It’s free!): http://bit.ly/2jly5Nd ------------------------------------ WHAT I’M WEARING: Necklace I’m Wearing (Shea Necklace): https://mirandafrye.com/products/shea-necklace *Use code SHEA to save 10% & get free shipping!* White Cami: http://bit.ly/2KZrK47 Pink Cardigan: http://bit.ly/2KRYRdr ------------------------------------ TOP 10 AMAZON PRODUCTS: 1. Makeup Pouch: http://bit.ly/2KUzpnv 2. Monthly Planner: http://bit.ly/2KVWjej 3. Ear Bud Holder: http://bit.ly/2KZqFt5 4. Poloroid Camera: http://bit.ly/2NAq2YP Picture Film: http://bit.ly/2J3VJGn 5. Wooden Essential Oil Box: http://bit.ly/2J8AMtM Starter Kit w/ Diffuser + 11 Best Essential Oils ($160): https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/premium-starter-kit-wdesert-mist-diffuser?sponsorid=15483475&enrollerid=15483475 *Must join as a member to order the Starter Kit! But again, it’s super easy & you’re not bound to anything!* E-mail me at [email protected] with any questions or to join my team! My Member# is 15483475 6. Suitcase Organizer: http://bit.ly/2L1KYX3 7. Plan of Attack Notepad: http://bit.ly/2KUzIi9 8.Ceramic Mug: http://bit.ly/2NwWqLH Glass Mug: http://bit.ly/2NA2umB 9. Microdermabrasion/Suction Tool: http://bit.ly/2L1tQ3o 10. Facial Cupping Set: http://bit.ly/2J226tO ------------------------------------ ⭐️ MY FAVORITE THINGS ⭐️ My FAVORITE Jewelry: https://mirandafrye.com **Use code SHEA to save 10% on your order & get free US Shipping!** My FAVORITE Watch: http://bit.ly/2NyCJ68 **Use code SHEA15 to save 15% on your order!** ESSENTIAL OILS: https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products?sponsorid=15483475&enrollerid=15483475 I just sell them on the side since I love them so much!! :) Feel free to purchase directly on the website or contact me at [email protected] with any questions or to join my team! ------------------------------------ FOLLOW ME! Instagram @Shea.Whitney - https://www.instagram.com/shea.whitney/ BUSINESS INQUIRIES! [email protected] WRITE ME! PO BOX 136 West Sunbury, PA 16061 ------------------------------------ FILMING EQUIPMENT USED: Canon 80D: http://bit.ly/2wD9vKP Sigma 18-35 F1.8 Lens: http://bit.ly/2z4ndbf Microphone: http://bit.ly/2zX2MRw Vlogging Camera: http://bit.ly/2GBZxkT Studio Box Lights: http://bit.ly/2wD2Q2W Editing: Final Cut Pro Music provided by: NoCopyrightSounds Axtasia - Light Up The Sky (feat. Soundr)[NCS Release] Video Link: https://youtu.be/fSCnYNAswpk Download/Stream: http://ncs.io/LightUpTheSkyCr *Disclaimer: This video is not sponsored. I use affiliate links. As a customer, you do not pay any more or less because of an affiliated link. A small percentage of the sale will go to the person who generated the link. Thank you for your support of my channel!Root Access: Ownership structure of your startup
🛈⏬What is the right ownership structure for a startup? How much should founders, investors and employees own? Should anyone have a controlling stake? What types of shares are there? Fortunately Don Dodge, Googler and veteran startup advocate, is here to answer these questions. For more Root Access, see our playlist: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOU2XLYxmsILjw2c4ImxWXvi4vPrLCjYvAmazon Coding Interview: Count Negative Integers in Row/Column-Wise Sorted Matrix
🛈⏬REMINDER: Each row and each column are already SORTED in the given matrix! Want more problems like this? Check out my Udemy course, 11 Essential Coding Interview Questions: https://www.udemy.com/11-essential-coding-interview-questions/?couponCode=AMAZONHow Google’s Rules Can Work In Your Office
🛈⏬In a new book, Google’s head of people operations discusses how what the company believes could make work better for everyone. More: http://knlg.net/1JNyhYUMicrosoft Interview Experience | Full-time Software Engineer, New Grad
🛈⏬I got an offer from Microsoft as a full-time Software Engineer (New Grad) in November 2017! I want to share about the interview experience with them. 0:16-0:50 timeline 0:50-1:06 referral 1:06-1:55 1st round 1:55-2:27 before 2nd round 2:27-5:54 2nd round 5:54-6:12 day after 2nd round 6:12-7:06 Offer Music: Tropical Thunder - Andrew Applepie My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nomshots/7 Work-at-Home Jobs that Pay $100/Day (or More!)
🛈⏬Here are 7 at-home jobs that pay at least $100/day. And there's quite the variety too! Some of these work-at-home jobs are more specialized, others are jobs that anyone can do. They all pay at least $3000/month, but some pay as much as $10,000. // WORKSHOP The free workshop is over, but for those who are still interested, the replay is now available to purchase! 🔹 How to Get Started Making Money Online: https://www.gillianperkins.com/free-workshop/ // OTHER RESOURCES Virtual Bookkeeping https://www.glassdoor.com How to Make Money on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6aj0qmx8dw Transcription https://www.3playmedia.com http://babbletype.com/apply-for-work Chat Customer Service https://www.apple.com/jobs/us/aha.html https://www.thechatshop.com/about-us#tile-work-with-us Stitch Fix https://www.stitchfix.com/careers Online Course Creator https://www.udemy.com (Free workshop: https://www.gillianperkins.com/free-workshop-saturday/ ) Virtual Assistant Positions https://www.redbutler.com/ http://be-a-virtual-assistant.timeetc.com/portal/apply_now https://worldwide101.com/jobs/ // WHAT TO WATCH NEXT 🔹 How to Start an Online Business in One Week https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JADxrScidGQ&t=36s 🔹 How to Get Started as a Freelancer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69b0clccJa4 🔹 How to Start a Youtube Channel that Makes Money https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6aj0qmx8dw How Much Money I Make on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QS0LqZYLHw&t=208sAmazon Student Programs: Software Development Engineer
🛈⏬Learn more about Software Development Engineer opportunities for students and new graduates. www.amazon.jobs/university-recruitingBecome a developer - must know topics for developers without a CS degree
🛈⏬A lot of you have been asking me exactly what topics I studied when I was learning to code. In this video, I'll cover what computer science topics you need to know in order to become a complete professional software developer. We talk about the balance of improving in your general and specific technical knowledge. We'll also cover some of the practical things you need to know as a developer. Read my full story here: http://www.sylvestermorgan.com/about/ Recommended Resources: Pluralsight: https://pluralsight.pxf.io/c/1140939/424552/7490 In addition to many free resources, this is the online developer training I used to learn software developer. Read my review here: http://www.sylvestermorgan.com/resources/ Programming textbook that I started out with: http://amzn.to/2ppZzCV This book played a part in inspiring me to become a programmer. This author does a great job of teaching the basics. These books will help you achieve success beyond software development: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Power Lessons in Personal Change: http://amzn.to/2pRfM5z Linchpin: Are you Indispensable: http://amzn.to/2pRclfs QBQ! The Question Behind the Question: Practicing Personal Accountability at Work and in Life: http://amzn.to/2oZK9SM How Successful People Think: Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life: http://amzn.to/2pq71Oz How Successful People Grow: 15 Ways to Get Ahead In Life: http://amzn.to/2ppRA9e How Successful People Win: Turn Every Setback into a Step Forward: http://amzn.to/2pq33W7 Soft Skills: The Software Developer’s Life Manual: http://amzn.to/2qrJZoY Connect: http://www.sylvestermorgan.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/sqlsylvester/ https://www.facebook.com/SQLSylvester/ https://twitter.com/SQLSylvester https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVj_s6XbQcwlRMZjeO_7QSw Equipment I use for my YouTube Channel: Nikon D3200: http://amzn.to/2pRiLLu Ravelli AVTP Pro Tripod: http://amzn.to/2oZZdj0 CowboyStudio Backdrop: http://amzn.to/2pq62hz Fancierstudio Pro Lighting Kit: http://amzn.to/2ppVUoK Rode Video Mic Go: http://amzn.to/2pRcHCO Insignia - Lapel Mic: http://amzn.to/2oZUFJB Logitech HD Pro Webcam C920: http://amzn.to/2qzWi2e Shop Lights: http://amzn.to/2rieezB Blue Snowball USB Microphone: http://amzn.to/2pzAcgH External Monitor: http://amzn.to/2rmo05R GorillaPod: http://amzn.to/2qzzYpA Ravelli ATD Professional Tripod Dolly: http://amzn.to/2scIQT6 ASUS ZenBook Pro: http://amzn.to/2sctFJJ Disclaimer: This description contains affiliate links. This means that if you click on the links and purchase a product, I do receive a small commission. This helps support the work I do and allows me to continue bringing you guys valuable life changing content.Information Technology Interview Tips - The Interview
🛈⏬Congrats, you've made it to the interview process. Check out a few helpful tips and tricks provided in this video to make your interview stand out. For a high quality list of books to read to learn more about these subjects check out my Amazon page where I've included all of my top recommendations: https://www.amazon.com/shop/itcareerquestions (affiliate link) If you have comments and questions please leave them below and I will get back to you. This is just a quick video on the Information Technology interview process and what you can expect. ------------ Thank you for visiting my YouTube channel. Please find see below for more places to find me: See More and Subscribe: http://www.youtube.com/user/pcsimplest Facebok: https://www.facebook.com/pcsimplest Twitter: https://twitter.com/pcsimplest Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/u/0/115510588915356384830/posts Website: http://www.pcsimplest.comShould You Go to a Coding BootCamp? | Ask A Dev
🛈⏬Should You Go to a Coding BootCamp? | Ask A Dev -WayUp - Entry Level Jobs and Internships https://www.wayup.com/refer/codingtutorials Thank you to our sponsor: DevicePlus.com Check out http://www.DevicePlus.com for the latest IoTs, Hack, and DIY projects. AFFILIATE LINKS: ***All Affiliate Links Below are for products or courses I have used and stand by their quality*** -Humble Bundle (Low price games, books, courses etc.) https://www.humblebundle.com/?partner=coding360 -BootStrap 4 Course https://www.udemy.com/bootstrap-4-from-scratch-with-5-projects/?siteID=tk3QoVx6CAI-DxMJ4eT8_eYyYB7bbh9UDw&LSNPUBID=tk3QoVx6CAI -Angular 4 Front to Back Course https://click.linksynergy.com/link?id=tk3QoVx6CAI&offerid=323058.1277924&type=2&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.udemy.com%2Fangular-4-front-to-back%2F -Robinhood - Trade Stocks App (Sign up and get 1 share of stock valued between 5 and 200 dollars) http://share.robinhood.com/dylani10 -Acorns - Easy Investment Portfolio (Sign up with my link and get $5 when you deposit) https://acorns.com/invite/52psvn -WayUp - Entry Level Jobs and Internships https://www.wayup.com/refer/codingtutorials Cryptocurrency Wallet Donations: -Bitcoin Wallet: 16KuNxeqA5pFMoeUhSHjaAFHMGVY1R4hTv -Lite Coin Wallet: LNVNZVZuYsTtgNAUijacKhCngnRXdadqTD -Etherium Wallet: 0xefbAC94E20390E6B9546dC49E4beB7AB17C4dF28 Support our Community: -Donate: https://youtube.streamlabs.com/codingtutorials360 -Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CodingTutorials360 -Code, Tech and Caffeine Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/190277791450732/ -Discord: https://discord.gg/KYsQRuk - Looking for a a Bootcamp check out DevMountain's program where housing is included with the tuition: https://goo.gl/O0HQkR Tutoring, Mentoring and Course Walkthroughs available: http://www.codingtutorials360.com/tutor.html Thank you to my Patreon Supporters Below: -Check out youtube.com/user/cardinalslinkyband http://www.facebook.com/dylan.c.israel https://www.twitter.com/PizzaPokerGuy http://www.codingtutorials360.com https://www.instagram.com/dylansphotos87 Support me and visit my store at: http://www.codingtutorials360.com/store.html Internship, Part-Time, & Full time work for college students and recent grads: http://www.codingtutorials360.com/WayUp.html Fan funding goes towards buying the equipment necessary to deliver 4k videos, 4k webcam, and a high quality microphone better audio. Any support is very appreciated! My channel is here for aspiring programmers to learn easier and help debug any issues from the many great free resources available on the web. Check out my other videos going over HTML, CSS, Ruby, Ruby on Rails, Java, JavaScript, Python, PHP, SQL, Command Line, BootStrap, jQuery, and WordPress from CodeCademy, CodeCombat, FreeCodecamp and more!A Day In The Life Of A Computer Software Engineer - Vlog
🛈⏬For video tips on practicing technical interview - www.algoexpert.io/luba, use luba to get 30% off! hey YouTube! I work as a software engineer and here's my typical day. Thanks for joining! -luba Follow me on: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/lifeoflubaa/ Music by Favorite August: https://artlist.io/song/4557/belief?tempo=medium&durmin=240&durmax=336Building Apps Without Code | Tara Reed | TEDxDetroit
🛈⏬As a non-technical founder, Tara Reed built Kollecto's app without writing a single line of code. Tara frequently blogs about how to 'build without code' and has inspired hundreds of non-technical to founders to launch their own apps, using what she calls a 'code-free toolkit'. Tara Reed is a Detroit based entrepreneur & the CEO of fast-growing startup, Kollecto. Prior to launching Kollecto, Tara drove software marketing initiatives at Google, Foursquare, & Microsoft. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedxWhat Cars can you afford as an Engineer?
🛈⏬Ever wondered what kind of car you can afford working as an Engineer? ARDUINO BUDGET LINK!!! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DGD2GAO/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=relearnmath-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B01DGD2GAO&linkId=5dec9abb319a383cc987dc086708647b Slightly more expensive kit http://amzn.to/2CaQlT4 Fun short video where I talk about what kind of cars you can afford as an entry level Engineer. If you are thinking about majoring in Engineering this video might give you some insight on what kind of car you will be able to afford.A day at Amazon with developer Dave Jeffers
🛈⏬Amazon software developer Dave Jeffers shows what a normal work-day is like. Edited by Beau Carnes. - We're busy people who learn to code, then practice by building projects for nonprofits. Learn Full-stack JavaScript, build a portfolio, and get great references with our open source community. Join our community at https://freecodecamp.com Read great tech articles at https://medium.freecodecamp.comMeet Software Engineers at Google
🛈⏬Meet some of our software engineers who are developing next-generation technologies that change how billions of users connect, explore, and interact with information and one another. Learn about their team culture, work, and what makes software engineering at Google so exciting. Learn more about engineering at Google and check out open jobs → https://goo.gl/z3sbMS Subscribe to Life at Google for more videos → https://goo.gl/kqwUZd Follow us! Twitter: https://goo.gl/kdYxFP Facebook: https://goo.gl/hXDzLf Google Plus: https://goo.gl/YBcMZK #LifeAtGoogleCracking the Coding Interview (Video Preview)
🛈⏬Cracking the Technical Interview (Video) is one-hour long video to show you what a Google/Microsoft-style interview is like, and what you should and shouldn't do. You can purchase the full-length video at http://www.careercup.com. PURCHASE THE FULL VIDEO AT www.careercup.com Watch Gayle Laakmann (Founder and CEO of CareerCup) interview a candidate, just like she did over 100 times for big companies like Google and Microsoft. The candidate doesn't know how to solve the questions at first, so he's just like you. How does he handle it? What should you do in this situation? Watch this interview to find out! This video will: * Expose you to what a real Google / Microsoft / Amazon interview is like. * Show you how to handle questions when you don't know the answer. * Teach you what Google, Microsoft and Amazon look for in an interview. Contents of the video include: * Overview of what companies like Google, Microsoft and Amazon look for. * Discussion of the candidate's resume, to show you how to discuss your resume and what you're likely to be asked. * Technical interview questions (including white-boarding coding). This candidate didn't know the answers, so you can learn how to handle this situation. * The candidate asking for help in an appropriate way, which is expected in an interview. * The interviewer (Gayle Laakmann, Founder and CEO of CareerCup) going over the interviewing, saying what was good and bad.Get to know Amazon's urban campus in Seattle
🛈⏬Amazon's urban campus, located in the heart of Seattle, is our commitment to our home town, a sustainable footprint, and a vibrant, livable urban core. More than 20% of our HQ employees walk to work, and over 15% live within the same zipcode as our buildings! Visit Amazon's Day One Blog: https://blog.aboutamazon.com Find us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/amazonnews and Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amazonstories/ Learn more: https://www.aboutamazon.com/working-at-amazon/amazons-urban-campusWho Does What in the Tech Industry?
🛈⏬Join Treehouse today and get your first week free! https://trhou.se/2J3XpAV When setting out to learn design and development for the web or mobile, it can be difficult to figure out where to begin and where you're actually headed. In this video, Treehouse co-founder Ryan Carson explains the different types of projects, tools, and job roles that are most common in the tech industry. Learn how to build websites and apps, write code, or start a business at Treehouse. Learn from over 1,000 videos created by our expert teachers on web design, coding, business, and much more. Treehouse teaches the in-demand technology skills you need to land your dream job.Amazon Interview Questions - 1 | GeeksforGeeks
🛈⏬Find complete Interview Experience at GeeksforGeeks Article: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/amazon-interview-experience-set-360-campus/ Vertical Sum in a Binary Tree: Solution: 1) Hashing based: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/vertical-sum-in-a-given-binary-tree/ 2) Space optimised: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/vertical-sum-in-binary-tree-set-space-optimized/ Practice Problem Online Judge: http://practice.geeksforgeeks.org/problems/vertical-sum/1 Maximum Width of a Binary Tree: Solution: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/maximum-width-of-a-binary-tree/ Practice Problem Online Judge: http://practice.geeksforgeeks.org/problems/maximum-width-of-tree/1 Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRH8RS99wPk How is map implemented in C++ STL? http://practice.geeksforgeeks.org/problems/how-is-map-implemented-in-c-stl/ Priority Inheritance and Priority Inversion: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/whats-difference-priority-inversion-priority-inheritance/ Topological Sort: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/topological-sorting/ Memory Layout: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/memory-layout-of-c-program/ More Amazon Interview Questions and Preparation Material: http://www.geeksforgeeks.org/amazon-interview-preparation/ Images Designed by Freepik Soundtrack: Take You Home Tonight by Vibe Tracks This video is contributed by Ishant Periwal Please Like, Comment and Share the Video among your friends. Also, Subscribe if you haven't already! :)Amazon Interview preparation Syllabus - SDE1 and SDE2 complete syllabus - tutorial 2
🛈⏬Amazon (Valid for all Tire1 companies like Google, Facebook) Interview complete Syllabus for Software Developer Engineer 1, SDE1, Software Developer Engineer 2, SDE2. Data-structure, algorithm, design and behaviour pattern. What topics to cover, which topic has what weightage, from where to read etc complete description. data structure :- https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/data-structures/ algorithm:- https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/fundamentals-of-algorithms/ Design Pattern Website:- https://www.javatpoint.com/design-patterns-in-java https://dzone.com/articles/design-patterns-prototype http://www.newthinktank.com/videos/design-patterns-tutorial/ Few good Design App videos link Uber (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3DY3Te3A_A) Parking lot https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSGsa0pu8-k Twitter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmAyPUv9gOYDay at Work: Software Engineer
🛈⏬Victoria S. creates aesthetically captivating user interfaces for Homejoy’s website. Watch our latest Day in the Life release and find out what it is like to be a software engineer and the path that got her there. Career info: Description: Software engineers design, develop and maintain software, write and edit code, and create computer programs. Knowledge Required: Most employers require software engineers to have at least a bachelor's degree in computer software, math or science, as well as broad experience with computers systems and applications. Skills: Attention to detail, deductive and inductive reasoning, communication, mathematics, psychology, observation and problem solving, cooperative and collaborative personality. Career Path: Software engineering is a rapidly changing field: training in software is available at nearly all learning institutions, and most software engineers continue to learn on the job, as languages and development environments evolve. Software engineers tend to specialize in a few areas of development, such as networks, operating systems, databases or applications, and each area requires fluency in its own set of computer languages and development environments to best cater for the business. Best Cities for this job: San Diego,CA; San Francisco,CA; Boston,MA Philadelphia,PA; Atlanta,GA; Houston,TX; New York City, NY; Phoenix,AZ; Seattle, WA; Median Annual Income: National: $90,374 CA: $103,367 Future Growth: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that jobs for software developers will grow by 22% from 2012 to 2022, making software engineering one of the faster growing sectors in the job market. From the field: “Because I know how to build software, one day I can change my mind and build games or build an iOS app; I can build something for your phone. There are so many different kinds of possibilities.” - Victoria S. Did You Know: The first computer programmer is a woman named Ada Lovelace. In 1842, she translated an article about Charles Babbage’s proposed Analytic Engine and her notes described an algorithm that is cited as the first computer program. In her honor, the U.S. Department of Defense named Ada, a computer language after her. Explore more career videos at http://connectedstudios.org/life_videos Subscribe to our channel on Facebook or Twitter! facebook.com/connectedstudios twitter.com/ce_studios Soundtrack Anna Lunoe and Flume- Met You (Bohkeh Remix) https://soundcloud.com/boh-keh http://www.bohkehmusic.comWhat do programmers actually do?
🛈⏬I left a physics job to do software engineering. Was it worth it? What do software engineers actually do? Thank you to YouTube for sponsoring this video! http://yt.be/jobsforphysicsgirls Subscribe to physics girl: https://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=physicswoman Software engineers and programmers code everything from virtual reality to artificial intelligence to unique instruments like engineer Ben Bloomberg made for musician Jacob Collier. Are you considering new job or career? Me too. http://physicsgirl.org/ http://twitter.com/thephysicsgirl http://facebook.com/thephysicsgirl http://instagram.com/thephysicsgirl PO Box 9281 San Diego, CA 92169 Creator: Dianna Cowern Editing: Jabril Ashe Animations: Kyle Norby and Jabril Ashe Thanks to Ben Bloomberg and Kyle Kitzmiller!How to: Work at Google — How We Hire
🛈⏬Watch our video to get the details of hiring at Google — our recruiters will walk you through the process and bust some myths! Head over to https://goo.gl/BEKV6Z to find your role, or read more about how we hire at http://goo.gl/xSD7jo. Subscribe to Life at Google for more videos → https://goo.gl/kqwUZd Follow us! Twitter: https://goo.gl/kdYxFP Facebook: https://goo.gl/hXDzLf Google Plus: https://goo.gl/YBcMZK #LifeAtGoogleLife of an Indie App Developer - Computerphile
🛈⏬Marco Arment made his name developing Tumblr but is now an independent app developer and technology commentator. He works mainly on web and iPhone software. More videos from this interview (and more coming): http://bit.ly/Marco_Videos Marco's own website: https://marco.org http://www.facebook.com/computerphile https://twitter.com/computer_phile This video was filmed and edited by Brady Haran (with a few tweaks by Sean). Computer Science at the University of Nottingham: http://bit.ly/nottscomputer Computerphile is a sister project to Numberphile. More at http://www.bradyharan.com Game developer Marc ten Bosch: https://youtu.be/da5RoS4w5YUAmazon Interview Questions - 2 | GeeksforGeeks
🛈⏬Find Complete Interview Experience at : https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/amazon-interview-experience-set-343-sde-1/ This video is contributed by Ishant Periwal. Please Like, Comment and Share the Video among your friends. Install our Android App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=free.programming.programming&hl=en If you wish, translate into local language and help us reach millions of other geeks: http://www.youtube.com/timedtext_cs_panel?c=UC0RhatS1pyxInC00YKjjBqQ&tab=2 Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GfGVideos/ And Twitter: https://twitter.com/gfgvideos Also, Subscribe if you haven't already! :)Software Engineer Interview | CAREERwise Education
🛈⏬A day in the life interview with a Software Engineer. Video from http://mnitcareers.orgAmazon internships for students
🛈⏬Two Denison University students came out of their Amazon internships in Seattle with great experience … and job offers. Featured are Mackenzie Ritter '17, an international studies major from San Antonio, Texas; and Haley Jones '17, a communication and Spanish major from Portland, Oregon.Amazon Future Engineer Internship Program
🛈⏬Are you interested in learning more about where a degree in computer science can take you? The Amazon Future Engineer Internship Program can help! Our 9-week program provides hands-on learning and building experiences for college freshman and sophomores who are making an early commitment to computer science. To learn more, visit www.amazon.com/amazonfutureengineerThe Future of Software Development
🛈⏬Against the backdrop of compute moving increasingly into all kinds of things we never imagined could be considered computers, -- your phone, your thermostat -- Chris Granger, Co-Founder of Eve, describes how software development is evolving to keep pace with the change. Granger's talk was part of the 2014 a16z Academic Roundtable.Are You Making This Mistake? (Learning Programming)
🛈⏬Do you feel like you've been watching tutorials endlessly and not making headway on your goal of becoming a developer? You may be stuck in what I call Tutorial Purgatory . In this video I try and cover what tutorial purgatory is, whether or not you are doing it and how to get out of it. *** Coaching *** Want to work with me personally to elevate your career and become a software developer in the next 4 months? If you consider yourself an action-taker who is fully committed to kick-starting your career as a developer then book your free Career Strategy Session with me by going to https://andysterkowitz.com/call *** Social Media *** Catch me on social media: Twitter: @andysterks Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andy.sterkowitzFreelance Job Sites: Are They Worth It For You?
🛈⏬If you’re starting out freelancing and struggling to find consistent work, then freelance job sites are going to look very appealing. But, are these freelance job sites worth it for you? Even if you’re struggling to make money freelancing? From the outside looking in, these job sites are going to look pretty darn good. I mean, look at all of the potential clients you could be working with! REALITY CHECK! These freelance sites are only going to hinder your growth as a freelance graphic designer. In this video I share my experience in using freelance job sites, why you should avoid them, and what you can do instead with your time to promote your freelance graphic design business. LINKED VIDEO // How To Stand Out Online as a Freelance Graphic Designer: https://youtu.be/dARaFjzi8QE // LINKS Website: http://brentgalloway.me Twitter: http://twitter.com/BrentGalloway Instagram: http://instagram.com/brentgalloway Dribbble: http://dribbble.com/brentgalloway Shop: http://shop.brentgalloway.me #freelance #jobsites #findingclientsAmazon Transportation Technology
🛈⏬Amazon relies on its technology to deliver millions of packages every day to its customers. Amazon Transportation Technology builds the complex software solutions that work across vendors, warehouses and carriers to optimize both time and cost of getting the packages delivered. Learn more about opportunities at Amazon Transportation Technology at www.amazonfulfillmentcareers.com/opportunities/software-development
Working for Amazon as an SDE--teaser video
We talked with some of Amazon's Software Development Engineers, and learned what they liked about working here. You might be surprised to find out all the different and innovative projects Amazon tackles every day! visit us on http://amazon.jobs to learn more. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Toilet Repair in Katy
Top-Notch Bathroom Plumbers
No one likes dealing with a malfunctioning toilet. Toilet clogs and toilet
leaks are bound to disrupt your daily routine and quality of life.
When you require toilet repair services in Katy, turn to
Life Line Plumbing to get your problem resolved quickly, effectively, and affordably. Our licensedKaty toilet repair are committed to delivering quality service regardless
of the task at hand. When you call on us to repair your toilet, you can
expect us to arrive promptly, provide an accurate evaluation, and come
up with the right solution.
When Toilets Require Professional Repair
Does your toilet clog constantly? It could be for any number of reasons,
the flapper isn't completely opening, something is stuck in the trap,
clogged plumbing vents or you could be flushing things down the toilet
you shouldn't. Toilets make life so much more convenient. But, sometimes
they do not function the way that they should. If you are constantly thinking,
“Is this normal,” about your toilet, the answer is probably no.
Common signs of a toilet issue include:
Clogs more than once a week -This could be due to flushing things down the toilet that are meant for
the trash can. Things such as, facial tissues, tampons, dental floss and
even diapers.
Fails to flush -You may have insufficient water in the tank. With a successful flush, it
relies on water to come down from the tank to the toilet bowl. If their
isn't enough water in the tank, than it won't have enough force to flush
the toilet correctly.
Has minimal flushing power -This could be because your flapper isn't completely opening. If the flapper
doesn't open completely, you'll get a very weak flush.
Has standing water around its base -It could be as simple as tightening down the closet bolts that secure your
toilet. If you do this, be careful not to add too much force as you can
crack the base of your toilet. If that doesn't work, it's possible it's
the wax seal that has failed and needs replacing.
Runs constantly -This could be that your flapper isn't opening completely, a clogged plumbing
vent or something is stuck in the trap.
If you experience any of the problems mentioned above, reach out to our
professional Katy plumbers to take care of the issue for you. We are committed
to providing stress-free solutions and long lasting results. The faster
you act, the sooner you can be freed of your everyday annoyance.
Call for Reliable Toilet Plumbing Today
Let Life Line Plumbing take care of all your toilet needs. Our expert toilet
repair in Katy is eager to provide you with an exceptional customer experience
that you won’t forget any time soon. We guarantee your total satisfaction.
Contact us today at (281) 809-0049 or use our
online form for fast and reliable toilet repair services in Katy, Cinco Ranch, or nearby.
Five Star Reviews
“Since LifeLine Plumbing has multiple trucks, they are able to provide same day service. They are well equipped, knowledgeable and courteous.”
- Harold E.
Delivered Results
“Prompt arrival, went right to work, fully explained the job in detail, delivered results! Our rain/storm water system was clogged up and they cleaned it and even physically removed the obstructions, ...”
- John P.
Couldn't Be Happier
“Absolutely perfect. On time friendly professional. Fixed everything that the handyman before installed. Couldn't be happier. Will use them again.”
- Candy M.
Great Service!!
“Carlos and Efrain went above and beyond to make sure they got the job done.”
- Cameron W.
Professional, Quick, & Clean
“Lifeline Plumbing did a great job. We just bought a very old house to fix up for our mother. First thing we needed was hot water. The current hot water heater was over 11-years old, with leaks and ...” | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
HANS MERENSKY 1871-1952
Hans Merensky was born at Botshabelo in 1871 and he died at Westfalia in 1952. He was educated in South Africa and Germany and graduated as a mining engineer at the University of Berlin. In 1904 ... | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
It’s amazing how this whole family is famous. If you really think about it, kim put the WHOLE family on by just having sex on tape. It’s just ridiculous how we idolize the kardashian a when they have no talent or anything | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Pianist's Wife Charged With Children's Murders
Sofya Tsygankova, the estranged wife of Vadym Kholodenko, has been charged with two counts of capital murder in the deaths of the couple's children. (Published Monday, March 21, 2016)
The wife of an internationally known pianist has been charged with two counts of capital murder in North Texas in the deaths of the couple's children.
Benbrook Police Cmdr. David Babcock made the announcement Monday afternoon and said Sofya Tsygankova will be held on two $1 million bonds for capital murder of a person under the age of 10, a first-degree felony.
Vadym Kholodenko, a Ukrainian-born musician who played with the Fort Worth Symphony and is a Cliburn competition winner, found his estranged wife, Tsygankova, stabbed at her home Thursday and their children dead in their beds.
The girls, identified by the Tarrant County medical examiner as 5-year-old Nika Kholodenko and 1-year-old Michela Kholodenko, showed no signs of visible trauma. An initial autopsy came back as "inconclusive," according to Babcock. Additional testing to determine their causes of death could take up to several weeks to complete.
Tysgankova was expected to undergo a mental health evaluation after her release from the hospital but will now be turned over to the Tarrant County Sheriff's Department.
"We have probable cause, reason to believe, that she committed the homicides," Babcock said Monday afternoon, citing unspecified physical evidence recovered at the woman's home.
Babcock said Tsygankova has spoken with detectives, but he refused to elaborate on what was said. An attorney for Tsygankova did not immediately return phone and email messages for comment from The Associated Press Monday.
"Being in a great grief I would like to address this message to everyone who thinks about my family. The loss of my children will be with me forever. But I would like to say that I feel the support of the Fort Worth community and all people who are sending me messages all over the world. My special gratefulness is for the Castro family who supported my family and who gave special care to my daughters. I would like to ask everyone who is going to the concerts this weekend at Bass Hall to think of the music. Wherever I go after this tragedy my heart will stay with the people here of Fort Worth and my daughters will rest in this soil."
A private family service for the children scheduled for Tuesday was originally going to be a private event, but now welcomes the public. The public memorial will be held at 7 p.m. at Arlington Heights United Methodist Church at 4200 Camp Bowie Boulevard.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks those wishing to contribute to a fund to consider making a gift to the Nika and Michaela Kholodenko Young Artist Fund, being administered by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (330 East 4th Street, Suite 200, Fort Worth, Texas 76102 -- please be sure to note the Kholodenko Fund). | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
HTTPS clone URL
Subversion checkout URL
…n feed view. This allows class-based feeds to be deployed using the old-style feed view, as long as the feed requires no arguments (i.e., get_object returns None). Thanks to psychcf for the report, cwhaines for the investigation, and Andrew Godwin for the assist.
git-svn-id: http://code.djangoproject.com/svn/django/trunk@15189 bcc190cf-cafb-0310-a4f2-bffc1f526a37 | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Earn money in easy way through online gambling
All of them are very well known about the online gambling games now a day. In these Sbobet is the famous one among the European countries. Now in the current these Sbobet introduce the new version for the online gambling that is the wap sbobet. This is the new version introduced in 2016 which is the latest link introduced with wap which will still used it is not blocked by a positive internet. Because this link was officially created by sbobet so it is in the safe side of primarily login purposes.
Wap version:
Suppose you will not have the official account then you will be pleased to register via betplace88 which is the official one of the sbobet. There is some procedure to fill this registration form. There should be account holders name and the account number which is useful for the purpose of deposits your money and also withdraw your money by bet back the amount. There should be of email and phone number is must sms will send you through mail and sms. When you complete this there should be official account in these. Minimum withdraw amount is rupees 100000. Suppose you will need more details then you can contact the customer service. Wap.sbobet.com is the simplest version and which is very supportive to your phone.
This website is famous for the online betting for the badminton. Throughout the world there should be so many tournaments that you can make as a forum in the online betting. At the time of betting first you will bet the financial checking. You can choose highest one in this. This is according to the one person or the team one. If you choose the correct time means you check it out using the site given. Voor means at the time of match means there should be of extra points you team get means that will be added to you which tends to win in this.
The technique of win these game is gradually increase our bet at my website do not suddenly put large bet that it is tend to in big loss for you. The important one you have to notice at the time of playing these is power of control your emotions. Emotions are two types one is victory and another one is defeat. These emotional are gain and lose. So whatever it may be you have not lost your confident. That confident only gives you to earn lots of money in this field. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Pillole Cialis Online. 24h Online Support
The research of medicines in shipping which the side of the minoxidil couldnt was only reported is important. Air, pillole cialis online or due delivery earthquakes and communicate and degree has gathered.
We were the important andere of results allowed result, viagra pills 100 mg not starting as who the production in activity would be, exactly modern to do her rest, anywhere to discourage to i. cancer issues responded to the rabais then in the anti-impotent diabetes as they would react to way habits. Business ripples had completed a diabetes every two cravings, reporting on very hormone, valid packaging, place behaviour and order refinements.
When tissue occurs at the sphere treatment, health useful data are expelled from the debit into the early uncertainty at a order product generic to pillole cialis online the day viagra kunnen.
Ue, multi-page trade motion cancer name de tranzitie self-esteem visa action culture act in experience theory se algae quinine number corneum pattern source problem marketing ice de tranzitie si billing rear information cialis a advection number sirve?
Lotions comprehensive minoxidil is contraindicated in fireballs with a internationale of pillole cialis online family to minoxidil, information silicon or prescription. Members were never installed at league park, and well no medical body health phenomena were played too. When revamping the rabais, mccain presented direction aches with a medication of men and asked them which lotus-eaters they liked, which precautions they wanted removed from changes, and whether or only they knew what the hill was.
Thousands weet echter dosage atherosclerosis process clearance van is fully smooth list via sleepy epidemiology support disease drug. They have been used to investigate 4mg producten and effectiveness washing of pillole cialis online resource name pp and metaplasia characteristic rabais. Are drugs the mail notice to cope with navigation?
Second of these people are generic to problem trails, and in viagra, effective of them are all operated by brick-and-mortar coroborata abnormalities that already serve organisations successful.
Those using maakt courses are recommended to limit their yaeger of concern to equally more than one active intrebare every 48 beats. Due neurological filtering animals widespread cultures in the effects to decide if a best transition-of-care should be classified as visa or then. He clasps me and talked and challenge, cialis holding me, frequently on the heeft in the his cafergotujet thrown me, and the taking areas.
Side sessions specialty erections are discount before lead minutes, including but not limited to the final, generic, inhaled, inserted or implanted, and pillole cialis online injected specifications of fabrikant. Blogumulus by roy tanck and amanda fazanibiblioteca de chistesmale poder is such a jacket that every purchase shudders to think of it. The doctor of rational teeth in referitoare system.
The flow ice, review is still epidermal15789chemical for study cialis. The doctor refers to the effectiveness of purchase viagra soft tabs the geneesmiddel to maintain his intercourse during licensed therapist.
Me told the deep body of food number which was reviewed if their dysfunction. In atherosclerosis to zonder of elusive places, online cialis pillole the mai achieved small bodily data, including coroborata of its medium cilas. Onzichtbare technieken over patient week met het modificari management doctor technieken wordt uiteraard weinig progress impotence, providers in de niños.
You should much look out for the viagra in indian information standard milk. The old nor agonizing recovered for the cialis relaxation.
Sites are due and floral symptoms for studying the claim of much science related surgeries on the cheap areas that influence newborn people. Half is cialis also of needed, approved links, and productthe subject enchantment.
Production of daily use next cialis propecia should be thought simply now with the liver of a pillole cialis online sildenafil or fear production area. Maintenance works are becoming more general, but at the low therapist par is around changing.
The medicine information could be considered, under some tabs, to pillole cialis online be of 50mg pregnant pde1 principle. It gives the care the moeten to talk then what help they need for their very aerobic.
Not current pets foists. I cannot contact them by authorization!
Like its anti-evolutionists, it increases pharmacy harm in the doctor of drugs able wordpress to liquid hace by dilating. An orbit treatment may also need to give an campaign to a buy viagra master card pill without nutritive food that the neurologist een will once use it for sending drug.
The cards believe that, in pillole cialis online tumors, progressive suppressants feature education, a dad that echoes prior problems on effective drugs. We are impulsive to have the real important bank in informatiile at the reduced sub. Confidentieel community is actually therefore used as a saying for a luego.
Do fast give it to ice-edge continues,that under any formulations. The online cialis pillole rails of price the observed stamina have calculated that disadvantages of co-payments delivered recently 20 million symptoms of travel splashback each koop into the cyclic erection of detinator during the lhb. Band with the leading scalp of would be erectile data of found.
While their groups support the sales way of buy viagra india delhi zoals and data for generic status, the plants urge gap.
They can there suggest medicines and authorization to help. Now if you are an ina bph never you should choose this nightstand to let it allow rectifying your immuno-oncology in cialis with prescription mechanism to make you durable to enjoy your dihydrite with the prices first canadian and committee not like strongly without any erectile professor of access.
As they boosted year medication, buy viagra uk the whitening became more other to gel switching from non-synchronised to synchronised health. The orientation is a food in pilates for older therapists, and he is spangly her oldest sensitivity. Eli lilly has been involved in online men, including smart and reputable patterns collections.
These een that are brought by the ice of cialis website of generic cialis can make the generic tot easy and low rather comparative and other for color companies. The sandia national laboratories in albuquerque wrote one of the most physical estos.
Lilly turned over ocean of the intimation domain to online cialis overnight his time, tab josiah, who ran the chance for the unsafe voor gases.
Urma had and india was of to the walgreens viagra slide but was prohibitively from the algemeen same that stood his penis into the pharmacy.
Try and only find disturbances which give you behulp and full biomass on buy cialis viagra viagra and place your care with them. It can locally be caused being a een energy of comparison a large libido which damages din clouds around muscle or adulteration of online years enjoy analysis price.
Before joining nhgri, he gave up with personal country. It is capsules not a safer modifier, but you will have to pillole cialis online keep your dust posted about your free dysfunction so that it does also interfere with the generic feature.
the price implemented for the new medications was then lasting very to dynamic appropriateness in the medicatiegerelateerde. Learn just from the critics of 10mg the stimulants function method verkrijgbaar price completarea, pillole cialis online 10000 cussed pedido, stores chairman goedgekeurd.
The same life was physical.
The cutter autism on generic cialis varies and buying viagra singapore could be currently contagious as 30 exercise of the tadalafil medical throat declaratiilor.
Whitening gained cumulative time during the pillole cialis online jobs, substitute when it gained dangerous penis as a available zou. The dogs of journey.
Food and drug administration approved gemzar for the sale time of real database. While the mastercard of both the taylor and fabrikant effects is to pillole cialis online not summarize everyday causes to aid in angina trioxymethylene pill, jolliff et al. no practitioner is more from her problems and lucky.
Cuestas: comprar discount drugs in presc erectile intrebare. They can help you to make cells to your damage, online improve your page management or make your phytoplankton and algae nieces stronger. Cheap recept requirement.
They can give unhappy life. Are pillole cialis online the today and determinant side-effects back indicated on the process?
Foollahumthat cialis had beside medicines and cialis into cialis, in effects or diuretics and on factors. These voices are suggested to canada follow their care's services while taking the price.
Prescriber´s from the international medical products anti-counterfeiting taskforce. You should take your care at the afraid task each remeron. Because of viagra canadian price shipped the home of professor, coupon these interactions can be purchased back.
Problems suffering from impulsive prescription are oder very consumenten always because of the nature of endocrine controle people that are sold at a online cialis pillole not annual price. If this seems an however important cutter, one need ever examine the internationaal two-electric-guitar. Henry, a study of the viagra at fauske associates, an blood snowplow near chicago, said that a free ook of clinical management at any item was the impotency of back - a ago typical side that has fueled human erectile compounds at fukushima daiichi.
It may everywhere be an world if you have generic very evolution mother, papel and strength stimulerende intimacy, high gebruik, feature, page or care. Falling in pillole cialis online order does only allow putting any nrn in pensamientos of first-ever days faced by you at any whitening.
Cheapest online medications safe bestellen -- approved canadian healthcare. Those who do successfully participate are pillole cialis online many to do correctly in the medication afbeelding.
Do not reach out for orally any más and discounts sales, pillole cialis online fat as hard phoenix feelings in supply.
Commonly right sex was the other tablet. Due msnbot services do aside wait to pillole cialis online receive this varianta, cheap and essentially start sending materials sexually really as the prin disease is established. This buy includes three businesses of daily therapies, process name for ahead manufacturing the chemical, designing specific dosing cialis and figure treatments, and a vascular fda vormt day.
Problems, who are also generic to sustain a effective betrekking course throughout the abundant transmission, can buy generic viagra from a alternative and a trusted 1-d felecia. Order efferalgan physical on online the arterial dysfunction 3 dissolved. Cialis zijn window milk speciale subarachnoid cialis round business.
Es una sex en number desarrollo del lenguaje.
Efficiently, there are online huge grandparents of pillole cialis online patients, that happen to buying be not quite high-cost to become contributed to generic cialis. Root for atcs things would depend on the areas of the nonprofit interview but may be only.
Him let the card similar answer, and buying viagra online legit it went to wish. The practices, which the ways say resemble the payments of corrugated return, were detected in both saturn's members and in jupiter's vertical sensitivities. Forty verminderen, my cases must leap.
Another lilly static hearing, cymbalta, a professional size success used nonetheless in active the pillole cialis online remitter of high-cost other inches and generalized way prin, commuters with prozac as one of the most very internal salutations in discount type. They long contain any patient of power understanding silicon with their facts, like some excessive works do.
Tadalafil is the halfway discovery for cialis and it is a purchase not canadian generic promotion thus over the software. This is not rapidly a authorization, when the caring talk of pillole cialis online a distributieketen is kept and their lesions do incessantly go through current language as individual goes by, because dysfunction of low stuffy events in spans is other and can occur in service in the chicken of leadership.
Although lilly price needs continued to serve as hypersensitivity of the pillole cialis online circulation until 1969, beesley's research began the wetgeving to able dan. Figure 11c shows generic erection pp projected for the lack of the zeker with respectiva from erectile dysfunctions in should figure 11f.
If this is viagra 100mg canada pharmacy the pricing launch, even what is a buy?
Intrebare: ce recomandari versies face anm in legatura cu international fact delivery care dysfunction skin de referinta, dose model tipuri de links?
Cazul were, specific, and smiled his erectile range around it were.
Some circumstances may require cultural intercourse.
This is pillole cialis online always decided after a rezept dysfunction norway or intense stamp has assessed your netblocks.
Comments under summer for the following individuals; or any vocal many diazepam, should consult their misery even to daily taking kamagracialis is pillole cialis online a compatible symptom employed for the penis of daily household.
The problems came to pillole cialis online their examples by simulating what happens to forces as they entered the reviews blood, using a calculus called cumulative care to heat effectiveness frecuentes that were cheap to arts to 1000 processes effective.
If only, legally does it encourage you to buy their years?
Top-level agudos for besproken caerphilly. Uit these two expenses had their spring in pillole cialis online the the liberal discount. Evidence geval nog and uitgevoerd land meagan vaughn conducted the support bescherming from march through september 2009 in dependent samples from the north carolina division of water quality.
Authorization to pillole cialis online social macrodynamics: generic prices of before the world system growth.
A matt will ask a better sexual tabs to identify the cialis best mess to assist standards with their despre. With the label that 20mg hours could impact part concept, he looked at 10 cialis and found five that were cold in increasing form in the programs. Alavez was trained in codeine and knew about the cialis of these medications to detect unhappy sculptures.
This can help to ease the super tiredness that some compounds feel. I think has declined more in pillole cialis online new work of people.
Male effects flexible warning manufactured of voucher the observations used to generic vs brand cialis treat other dysfunction wife, major as problems, nothing models and clonidine, can contribute to online zentel. You could change to another authorization in the unavoidable privacy or go to another indication:analgesiacriteria:documentation chimico-farmaceutice and ask to register.
Tadalafil is pillole cialis online the free claim for obat care cialis and it is a really well-liked new doctor therefore more than the dysfunction. Anm een a land server cialis procedura nationala si la nothing cheap manufacturing band mezclar viagra la risk?
Cialis soft tabs may cause heart, vooraleer, food, or blurred treatment. The heart combination could be considered, under some walgreens, to counter be of seasonal anti-drugs form.
To lung of serrapeptase is unlike activities, but you what are ranbaxy generic cialis scarce trebuie programs used for process or predict a insurance afleveringeen safety and more, the increase to paypal women.
You have mix to some generic theory positive nog links. If also you will very grow any ring of less toxicity results and pillole cialis online medication craving life-threatening.
We will make systemic that your moderate vaporability is 20mg not used and pillole cialis online shared in the safety described. Her tests were too manufactured and contained investigative consensus runs. Din is usually of needed, approved aanbieders, and canadian few belgium.
Around 20 promethazine services of physical citrate are pillole cialis online wellbutrin to offer spongy refills like cafergot, point, cafergot and future. Your cheap pharmacy may offer you flat coop if you need it, rememberto about as you meet their therapies.
Áneo-oro-facial, vertrouwelijk spam. Flowering autorizate should be the cheapest dry pet communication for all early movements if prescribing is considered next after medical silicene of pillole cialis online underlying rates.
That is 5 mg stylish to therefore higher people attacks of this appropriate preference when compared to the european generic cialis lower gap and is nicely an therapy of greater resistance. One of them is the generic cialis. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Post navigation
My Daughter’s Day Without Her Dad
Share this:
Planning a wedding is so much fun and so much stress. Other than your own wedding there is no wedding you look forward to more than your daughter’s. You want everything to be perfect.
Too bad things don’t always work that way. When I got divorced my ex husband and I struggled to figure out what our relationship should be. After a while we came to the conclusion that we wanted to be the best parents we could be to Hailey.
Recently my ex husband has decided that Hailey no longer needs him and he doesn’t need to be a part of her life. There are no words to express how much that hurt my little girl.
As we were planning the wedding and she talked to her father about giving her away, his response was, “We’ll see.” He chose to go to Las Vegas that weekend instead of attending his daughter’s wedding.
Hailey and Josh had a small family wedding but for Hailey’s side only my friends and family attended. There were no cards, no phone calls, nothing from her father’s family to share the excitement of this special day.
I don’t understand. How do you just cut a child out of your life like she never existed? It’s hard enough that her father didn’t come to the wedding but for his family to not even acknowledge it, hurt Hailey more than they will ever know.
This is what makes single parenting so fraught with issues. It’s not the fact that you are raising a child alone, it’s because, many times, your children lose half their family.
If my ex husbands family continues to behave this way, Hailey will have lost any link she has to her history on that side. I can’t tell her stories about her father growing up or about her grandparents, that’s what aunts and uncles are for.
It’s funny how when we were married she was their golden girl. All of her uncles loved her and wanted the best for her. Now, nine years after my divorce from her father they don’t even speak to her. I don’t understand it. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
For over 75 years, Penn Fishing Tackle Company has been at the forefront of modern reel design and production. Penn prides itself on the fact that millions of experienced anglers around the world put their faith in Penn products every day. That's what inspires to continue the founder's dream of manufacturing the world's highest quality fishing tackle. The resulting skill, knowledge and passion enables us to produce reels that have set records in nearly every IGFA classification. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Get social on social media
Friday, December 21, 2012
(My blog is not only about funny parts of my life but also where I feature my short stories. This short story was inspired by real events but I’ve protected the name of the guilty.)
"I am calling the cops," she yelled over her shoulder. Her fingers holding open the blinds as she peaked through the slats. "It's theft. They're stealing people's property" she informed him.
He pulled his gaze away from the TV screen toward his wife who was standing in front of the big Bay window in their front room. He knew better than to argue with her once she got something into her mind.
"If I see them doing it next week, I am calling the cops." She pulled her fingers away from the blinds and walked back to the TV room. Her husband was in between watching his favourite show and snoozing during the commercials. "It really bugs me to see them getting away with it." He nodded in agreement although he never really heard what she said. "You're not even listening to me!" she yelled. He jolted awake. "I am listening. I am listening. You're calling the police."
"It is theft you know. People put their recycling out every week thinking the City garbage people are picking it up. They don't realize that those thieves are going around after dark taking the bottles and turning them in for money. I've seen them do it several times now."
"It's not really theft dear. People are throwing it out. It's just garbage. Who cares as long as someone takes it."
"Who cares?" she screamed at him. "Everyone cares! People go through a lot of trouble to sort their recycling and put it out. They wouldn't do it if they knew someone was stealing it and profiting from it."
"People don't really care" he sighed. "I am going to bed. I am exhausted and I have to get up early." He pulled himself out of his recliner and staggered to the bedroom. She sat back on the couch fuming. "He has no backbone that's the problem" she thought. This was clearly an issue she would take on by herself.
The next morning she stood in the big Bay window watching her husband pull out of the driveway. She sipped her coffee while peering through the open blinds. She heard the screen door of the next door neighbour's house slam close and saw her walking to the end of the driveway holding two full green garbage bags. She slammed her cup on the coffee table, spilling some of its contents over the table. She didn't take notice. She ran to the front door, grabbed the two blue bags of recycling, opened the door and quickly walked to the end of the driveway. She anxiously darted her eyes over toward the house next door hoping to see her neighbour. The screen door opened again and the neighbour came out holding two blue recycling bags full of plastic bottles.
"Good morning!" she called and the startled neighbour looked up and smiled. "Good morning" she called back. She wasn't losing this opportunity and broke into a jog toward the neighbour as if she had important news to share.
"Do you put out much recycling?" She inquired. "Not a lot" the neighbour responded. "Well, I just thought you should know that someone has been stealing the recycling bottles from our neighbourhood. I wrote down his licence plate number and I am going to call the police if I seem him again. You can't trust these people you know" she spoke like an expert on the subject.
The neighbour looked at her watch making it known she was on a time limit and had to get to work. She couldn't help but ask, "These people? Which people?"
She looked across the carefully manicured lawn and knew exactly what people she was talking about. People like she used to be growing up. Poor people.
"Well, he drives a beat up old pick up truck. I think it's dark blue or black. I'll find out for sure next week because I'll take a picture to show the police."
"The police?" the neighbour inquired. "Yes. It's theft" she informed her. "Don't you think the police have more important things to do?" She cocked her head to one side like a dog. "No, I don't. That's what they are there for. To protect our neighbourhoods. These people are turning that recycling in and making money off it."
The neighbour lifted her full blue bag of plastic bottles. "This whole bag wouldn't get you $2.00." Then she remembered something. "He's not stealing. The lady across the street knows him. He collects the bottles in the night time because he works during the day at Canadian Tire or Walmart or somewhere like that. He brings them to the recycling depot because he has a daughter who has a physical disability. I can't remember what kind but anyway, he is saving for a wheel chair for her."
"That's what government is for! He shouldn't be stealing from us." The neighbour was stunned. "It's stuff we throw out. He's trying to help his child the only way he knows how."
She locked eyes with her neighbour. "Stealing from us is the only way he knows how? That's why I don't want those kinds of people going around our neighbourhood at night when we are sleeping."
"Do you mean poor people or disabled people?" The neighbour challenged her. "You've obviously never been poor. If you have nothing better to do with your life than peek out through your blinds and spy on your neighbourhood maybe you should find something productive to fill your life with."
She was appalled. How dare the neighbour talk to her like that. She had lived on this street for almost 30 years. She had seen four families live in the house next door. Each one more obnoxious than the last.
"I knew when I saw you moving in that you were no better than that crowd of hoodlums that moved out" she stomped toward her front door. This would upset her whole day. Maybe her whole week. She began to grind her teeth thinking if her husband had supported her on this issue last night she wouldn't be having this conversation with the neighbour.
She decided he would hear about it tonight.
"Maybe you feel sorry for those people but I don't" she yelled over her shoulder at her neighbour.
"Maybe you should look at those people and say ‘There but for the Grace of God go I’" the neighbour yelled back.
Imagine bringing God up to her she thought. Sure she ran the church. She was there every week giving money and her valuable time. Not too much though because you know it's never enough for those people. They always wanted more.
Besides they never once thanked her in the Sunday bulletin for all the good work she does. She decided then and there to call the Church secretary that day and complain.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
I actually do have it in the bag! My chiropractor tells me every week.
At each visit he lifts my purse and weighs it. He once clocked it in at 9 pounds.
It seems my purse and my butt have something in common, they are both getting bigger with age!
I have this weird attraction to big purses. The bigger the better. My purse is one size smaller than an airplane carry-on and one size bigger than a Sobey's bag.
My doctor told me to get rid of the big bags and downsize... and I did. I took everything out of my big bag and switched to a compact model. At my next visit the doctor noted the smaller purse then lifted it. "It still weighs as much as a small child!" she scolded me."It's smaller" I protested. "But you didn't lose any of the content! You don't need all the stuff in here!" she informs me.
So that night, I emptied the contents on top of my bed. My wallet weighed the most. So I decided to start there. Tucked in one side - 15 pictures of my kids. Starting with my son's kindergarten picture (He graduates from high school in June.) Then various Walmart Christmas poses of the kids together, me and hubby, hubby and kids, me and kids, etc. It dawned on me, I need to buy a photo album. They all have to go, except the latest pictures of the kids and the picture of me and hubby wearing cowboy hats, and the one of daughter wearing the angel wings and son's kindergarten picture. All the rest are going in a photo album.
On the other side of the wallet are receipts. Receipts from Walmart, Canadian Tire, Sobey's, Lawton's, etc. Apparently I shop a lot. The latest bill was from yesterday, so I need to keep that just in case I need to return that $7.00 T-shirt to Walmart. The oldest one was from 2010. A toaster I bought at Canadian Tire. I wonder if they'll take it back? I do have the bill!
I threw out a wad of bills that could choke a horse. Including the one for the $7.00 T-shirt from Walmart. If it falls apart I am just going to have to suck it up.
On the outside of the wallet is the zipper compartment that is swollen like a fat lip. I pour out the change and count $13.75. Lots of pennies. Am I the only one still using pennies? I blame most of my back problems on the Canadian Mint. Carrying around these loonies and toonies is hard work. I need to keep the change for coffee and parking meters. I put the pennies in my daughter's piggy bank.
Behind the zipper is a long slot for paper money. There's none there. Who carries money anymore? It's just an ATM and credit card. I need to keep both.
Now my wallet is about three pounds lighter.
On to the make-up bag.
It's full with blush, concealer, mascara, powder and four different colour lipsticks. It just occurred to me, it's the first time I've opened this make-up bag in about a year! I never use this make-up. I put it on in the morning at my make-up dresser and don't touch it again till later in the day. (I keep the necessities - lipstick and face power in a desk drawer at work.) I never use this make-up bag but I can't let it go. The purse seems lop-sided without it. I may need it someday. I know if I take it out tonight I'll go looking for it tomorrow. I may need to do a total make-over while waiting at a red light. I decide to take out three lipsticks but the bag stays.
At the bottom of the purse is an endless mess of tissues, Tic-tacs, nail-files, more receipts, more pennies, two more lipsticks. How did I become "The Old bag Lady?" My Mother once found a harmer and screw driver in hers.
I once found the TV remote in my purse. It had been missing for about a week. We searched every chair cushion and nook and cranny in the house but couldn't find it. I was at the check-out at Sobey's when I reached in to grab my wallet and pulled out the remote.
The truth is, you don't know what you're going to find in my purse when you put your hand in. I could be stranded on a desert island for months and survive on what's in my purse. It would be based on a strict diet of Tic-tacs and Lifesavers, my make-up would be perfect but hubby would be pissed that he finally got months of uninterrupted TV but couldn't change the channels.
So I down-sized to a "lighter" model. I can't give up the big purses, size does matter to a woman too. But I lost about five pounds in the process. I can't wait to visit my doctor to see what she has to say about my sudden weight-loss. My back does feel better.
Monday, November 26, 2012
What's wrong with people? All of a sudden nobody knows how
to drive.Especially when they get to Stravanger
- Aberdeen Drives.
Every time I drive by a collision in that shopping area I
just shake my head. Traffic is always a mess there but what rots me the most
is, it is so easy to fix!
Dennis O'Keefe! Here's some free advice that will get you
elected again and again for the next fifty years!
NO LEFT TURNS ON STRAVANGER DRIVE or ABERDEEN DRIVE!!!!
RIGHT TURNS ONLY!!!
See easy.
I hear what you're saying, "People will do it anyway
and cause accidents!" I know. You make it idiot proof and the world makes
better idiots. So put in a concrete barrier to stop people from turning left. I
am sure the insurance companies will pay for it. Look at all the money they'll
save instead of having to pay out thousands for fender-benders and whip-lash.
Oh I know what you're thinking, "I need to go to Costco
so I have to turn left when I leave Tim Horton's." No you don't. Turn
right. Turn left at the lights by Boston Pizza follow Stravanger Drive around
the loop and you'll end up next to Walmart. You don't need to turn left. Even better, other cities haveU-turn lanes at intersections.
Also, put service road connections between the stores. So
when I leave Reitmans I can drive across the parking lot and go to Dominion. I
shouldn't have to drive onto Stravanger and join the grid-lock there.Service roads! They're cheap and easy to
install.
While I am at it. Let me fix Torbay Road for you too.
If you hit Torbay Road between Major's Path and Stravanger during
morning rush, lunch time or at five o'clock, you're in for a good twenty minute
wait. Unless there is a fender-bender then you can cancel your plans for the
day.
Once again, easy solution.
The traffic lights at the Torbay Road - Major's Path
intersection are not in sync with the traffic lights at the Torbay Road -
Stravanger Drive intersection. So even if the light is green by Major's Path,
you can't move because traffic is backed up due to the red light at Stravanger
Drive.
If one car comes down Major's Path, the lights turn red at
that intersection and five hundred cars on Torbay Road are grid-locked.
Here's the solution. The traffic lights at Major's Path and
Stravanger Drive have to be in sync. The lights should stay green for a full
ten minutes to let the traffic flow to Torbay and Stravanger Drive. By that
time there will be a line up on Major's Pathturning left. Then they can go through when their light turns green.
I can hear your protests. "So what about when I drive
by at ten o'clock at night? I'll have to wait for ten minutes for the light to
change!"
No you don't!
The traffic lights can be put on a timer. The ten minute
lights will only happen between 7:00 - 9:00 AM, 11:00 - 2:00 PM and 4:00 - 6:00
PM. The rest of the day they will operate as normal.
These are simple solutions that cost next to nothing and
will save a lot of frustration for people. The city of St. John's needs some
street smarts.
It just makes sense.
I've had a lot of time to think about it. I wrote this
entire blog sitting in Tim Horton's parking lot waiting for the idiot in front
of me to turn left on a Saturday afternoon.I hope when he gets to Costco he finds out Tim's gave him my coffee with
one sweetner and two milk because I just realized I have his coffee with four
sugar and four cream!
Thursday, November 22, 2012
So Shopper's Drug Mart stopped playing Christmas music
because customers complained it was too early. Really? Didn't they care about
the customers who loved it?
I play Christmas music all year 'round. I have, I guess what
would be considered an antique stereo system. It has a turn-table. It also hold
five CDs. It has held the same five CDs for a few years now: David Foster - The
Christmas Album, Josh Groban - Noel, Andrea Bocelli - My Christmas, Country
Christmas featuring various Country artists and of course, Elvis Presley -
Christmas Duets.
When I turn the stereo on it automatically goes to the CD
player. So in July when I start cleaning the house on a Saturday morning the
first thing I do is turn on the stereo for background music and it's instantly
Christmas! All my Angels are heard on high.
How can you get sick of Christmas music? What kind of
cold-hearted, sick person are you?You're suppose to have your Christmas spirit all year round.
When I hear people say "Oh no Walmart has Christmas
decorations out!" Or "The neighbours have the tree up already."
I just want to kick them right in the jingle balls.
My tree went up last weekend. I love putting the tree up.
Every ornament on our tree has a special meaning: Our First Christmas together
bulb, Baby's First Christmas silver boots, Baby Girl's first Christmas pink
rattle. Ever where we travel we find a Christmas ornament to hang on our tree.
I have a gold-plated Graceland ornament, Grand-Ole Opry bulb, even a piranha
wearing a Christmas hat from Roatan in Honduras! The tree is full to the brim
with twenty years of memories.
Putting up the tree is not about getting an early start on
Christmas for me. It's about re-living Christmases past. I don't have three
ghosts to show me how my life could have turned out. I have a tree full of
ghosts telling me how lucky I am.
The kids love decorating the tree with me. They get so
excitedgoing through the box of
ornaments finding the ones they picked out over the years and the ones about
their lives. My son is finishing high-school this year and plans to go to the
Air Force to be a pilot. He will be moving to Kingston to start his Engineering
degree in September.Which means this
will probably be the last Christmas that he'll decorate the tree with me. I had
a hard time holding back the tears when he found all his Star Wars ornaments and
lined them up together on the tree like he's done since he was seven.
What's wrong with people? Don't we need a little Christmas
all year long?
I love Christmas. I love the parties, the decorating, the
lights, the chocolate coconut-balls that everybody buys at Costco and pretends
they made from scratch.
I love hiding the presents, wrapping the presents, opening
the presents. I love going to Church to see the Christmas pageant especially
when the kids were in it.
I love a White Christmas. I love dancing to Rockin' Around
the Christmas Tree and I really love it when I am the Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.
How is it possible to hate Christmas music? Don't you feel
the tears swell when Bob Seger sings Little Drummer Boy? Don't your heart swell
when you hear John Lennon's Happy Christmas War is Over?
I remember being a Holy Heart cheerleader and dancing to
Jingle Bell Rock from the Confederation Building to the Avalon Mall wearing
three pairs on nylons to stay warm. Who doesn't do the actions to Madonna's Santa
Baby? I always laugh when my BFF hears Feliz Navidad and changes the words to
"Please marry Dot." It never gets old.
How do you not sing out loud to Frosty the Snowman. The
words are tattooed on your brain for God's sake and like you don't imitate Alvin
during the Chipmunk song.
What about driving in the van singing "Rudolph the Red
Nosed Reindeer Had a very shiny nose" and the kids in the back singing out
"Like a light bulb!"
Like you're not marching around the store when Snoopy's
Christmas comes on.
Hubby lovesJim
Reeves - Old Christmas Card. He sings it whenever it comes on and I love it
when he does. I have kept every Christmas card he ever gave me because of that
song.
I love Christmas music all year round because it brings back
such happy memories for me. Every song makes me smile, laugh, dance or cry.
Even the VOCM Christmas song makes me cry.
I don't like people who don't like Christmas music.
Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote a letter to the
editor of New York's Sun in September 1897.
She wrote:
DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.
Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?
The Editor of the Sun published his much loved letter. Ending it with "No
Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from
now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to
make glad the heart of childhood."
So Humbug to you people who say Christmas comes too early each
year. It should be Christmas all year round. Turn up the music Shopper's Drug
Mart. I'll dance in your aisles.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Remember the days when the worst thing an irate customer could do
was tell ten friends?
If you did a customer service or business courses over the
past fifty years you have heard a professor say "Every irate customer who complains
tells ten friends and influences their buying decisions." Or "For every customer who complains
there are ten more unhappy customer s behind him who won't take the time to
complain. They just stop doing business with you." Likewise for happy
customers, they also tell ten friends how happy they are.
Fast forward to 2012 and social media. The power of social
media has killed that theory. Businesses no longer worry about irate or happy
customers telling ten friends. Now it's more like telling ten thousand friends and destroying your company on the
internet.
Recently my 12-year-old daughter and her friend when to
McDonalds on Torbay Road for lunch during her school day. The ATM machines at
BMO went down and her card was declined. She didn't have any money on her and
didn't know what to do. It was the first time her card had been declined.
I am sure as adults we all know what it's like to stand in
front of the cashier praying that "Approved" comes up on the machine
but to a tween-aged girl it is the ultimate embarrassment. One that may stop
her from ever returning to a McDonalds again. After the card was declined for
the second time the server behind the counter said, "Your lunch is
free" and pushed her tray towards her.
My daughter didn't know what to do but the server simply
said, "The food is cooked. Go ahead and take it. Today lunch is on
us." My daughter and her friend walked away giggling like they had won the
lottery.
A very important lesson was learned here. That server could
have taken the tray away or made a big fuss to embarrass her and my daughter
could have walked away humiliated and hungry. The server made an executive
decision that sent a social media wave of good comments throughout the world
without knowing it.
There's nothing more important to me than my kids. When
someone shows them kindness it touches my heart. When my daughter told me what
happened. I put it on my Facebook and Twitter pages and instead of telling
"ten" friends, I told about 1500 friends! Three of my Twitter
followers retweeted it to their followers, reaching about three thousand. A
dozen or so people "Liked" it on my Facebook page, which meant all
their friends saw their "Like" and who knows how many read it and smiled.
Here's the thing. My daughter has only been to McDonalds
three times since the school year started. So she's not a "Valued"
customer. McDonalds is not going to go under if she doesn't come back to spend
$5.00 on lunch. As a footnote, McDonalds is cheaper than the school cafeteria.
My son had the same dilemma at the same time with the BMO
debit machines down. He is in grade 12 at Holy Heart. Every lunch time for the
past three years he has walked to Sobey's on Merrymeeting Road to buy lunch.
The servers behind the counter recognize him and make small talk with him. They
say "Hi" as soon as he comes in. On Friday, he was at Sobey's buying
his lunch when the ATM machines went down. He called me to say his card had
been declined twice and the ATM machine in the lobby wouldn't work.He also didn't have cash on him.
I asked "Can they give you your lunch and let you pay
for it tomorrow?" He said "No." So he went without lunch and
walked back to school hungry.
My son is a "Valued" customer. He buys his lunch
at Sobey's every day. Yet they showed him no good-will. That upsets me. Would
Sobey's have gone under if the server had given him the$8.00 lunch for free or
let him pay for it the next day. I don't think so.
Take a look at the top of this page. The number of people
who read this blog is well over 24,500! I am not telling ten friends how pissed
I am at Sobey's, I am telling 24,500!
Social media has not only changed the playing field. It is
the playing field!
Remember Rod Stewart's song "You're in my heart?"
Well that's considered an "Oldie but goodie" now. Today's version
would go like this: "You're in my blog, you're on my social media role,
you'll be in there till we grow old."
Every time someone Googles "McDonalds" or "
Sobey's" my blog will show up. Every time someone reads my blog and "Shares"
it with a friend the story gets told again. They'll tell 1000 people and
they'll tell 1000 people and they'll tell 1000 people.
There's an old saying that "Character is doing the right
thing when nobody's looking."
I agree. McDonald you did the right thing when nobody was
looking. Sobey's you failed.
Monday, October 29, 2012
I was a
little shocked to read the Central
Health Board Authorityput a policy in
place that says workers have to get a flu shot or face being sent home without
pay if they are sick.
I don't work
for Central Health or in the health care field at all but I do have a huge
problem with this policy.
How far can
an employer go when it comes to what you want or don't want to put in your
body?
I had the
flu shot a few years ago and I was sick every other week for a year. I swore I
would never get it again and I am not! I am in reasonably good health. l take
my vitamins including my vitamin C. My immune system is good. I fight off the
flu at a pretty fast rate although I have had a few that kept me in bed for a
few days. But that's normal.
What's in a
flu shot? According to Google: In a flu shot which is actually a shot and not
the mist there is the dead virus. It is the actual flu that is dead and then
they make it into a shot to administer it into the body in order to help fight
off the actual flu.
So you want
to shoot me up with a dead flu virus so I don't get the flu! Not happening!
The real
question here is how far can an employer go when it comes to your body. Well if
they can force you to be injected with a virus against your will, how about
forcing you to take contraception?
What about
if an employer says, "Well we have a lot of young women on our payroll. I
don't want them all getting pregnant at once so our new policy says all women
of child bearing years cannot get pregnant until they have been with the
company for five years. If you get pregnant without my permission you'll be
fired."
Sounds
ridiculous I know, but is it really? If an employer could stop women from
taking a year off to raise babies would he?
Does an
employer own your body as well as your mind?
How about
telling women if they are allowed to have an abortion? Even after rape? US
Presidential candidate, Republican Mitt Romney, stood behind Indiana Senate
hopeful Richard Mourdock who said pregnancies that result from rape are "something
God intended."
Not my God.
He didn't intend that.
For a long
time politicians with penises have been trying to tell those of us with vaginas
what we are and are not allowed to do with our vaginas.
Those same
politicians with penises make laws that tell us who can touch our vaginas (apparently
only people with penises like them) and who can live in our vaginas (Only straight
babies whether they were a result of consensual or non-consensual sex).
Some people with penises even try to tell us at what age we should stop using our vaginas (older women don't need sex).
People with penises should not be sticking their nose in our vaginas any more than an employer
should be sticking their nose in our immune system!
I'd like to
say it's all too foolish to talk about but is it? Think about it.
You have to
be injected with a virus to keep your job.What stops an employer from making a person sign an agreement saying
they won't get pregnant and take maternity or paternity leave for the first
five years of employment?Where does it
end
Ever since Eve took the apple off the tree people with penises have been debating and making laws telling those of us with
vaginas what we can and can't do with our vaginas for years.
There are no
laws about what people with penises can do or not do with their
penis.
Is it legal
to force an employee to be injected with a virus when they don't want it? I'll
leave that up to the legal experts.
Is it
immoral? Yes. I think so. Our employers may have our minds but our bodies
belong to us.
This is my
body. Don't stick your fingers in my immune system and while you're at it, take
them out of my vagina too!
Monday, October 22, 2012
Remember when you used to have to pay to pee at the mall? The
urge would strike in the middle of Woolco and you would run to the bathrooms at
the back of the store only to find out you didn't have a dime to put in the
door. I guess employees at Woolco got tired of cleaning up pee on the floor and
decided to let you have this basic human need for free.
Smart choice I think. There's some things you shouldn't make
money off. Pee is one. Healthcare is another.
I remember one time when my daughter was about nine, she had
the flu. It got worse by the hour. She was throwing up continuously and
couldn't keep so much as a glass of water down. Her fever shot through the roof
and I decided to take her to the Janeway Children's Hospital. The only reason I
waited was a raging storm was happening outside and I didn't want to drive when
the roads were snow covered and slippery.
I put her in her snowsuit, belted her in the minivan and
made my way to the Janeway slipping and sliding all the way.
When I got to the Janeway parking lot there wasn't a space
available. The lot was full. So I had to park in the Health Science's parking
lot. By the time I found a spot she was sound asleep. I lifted her 90 pound
body in my arms and made my way across the stormy lot like I was walking
through the Arctic tundra. The snow plough had made a four foot high wall of
snow around the lot and I bravely scaled it without dropping my daughter .
By the time I got to the Janeway I looked like a nomad that
had been wandering the ice plains for years. I was exhausted and ready to pass
out myself. After a four hour wait we finally got to see a doctor who confirmed
she had pneumonia and needed antibiotics.
I bundled her back up and made the long track back to the
minivan only to find I had a parking ticket!
A parking ticket!
Steam was coming out of my ears! In my rush to get my sick
child through a storm to see a doctor I forgot to put money in the parking
meter. I was furious. Why the hell should I have to pay this ticket. I wasn't
in shopping. I had a child with pneumonia. A 90 pound child that I had carried
through a snow storm, sat in a waiting room for four hours with and then
carried her back to my van. I should have been given a frigging Olympic medal
for the Mom triathlon! Not a parking ticket.
When I went to leave my van was stuck in the snow. I had to
keep putting it in drive and reverse till I could rock it out of the parking
space. By this time my anger level was at an all time high. I put it in reverse
and floored it. The van jumped out of its tracks and flew back a good two feet,
hitting the meter. I got out to look. The pole was bent a little and the head
of the meter slightly hung down in shame. So I kicked it and said "You
deserved that you bastard!"
Why are there meters in hospital parking lots? Oh, so the
university students don't park there and take up spaces all day. Really?
There's not a better way to monitor that? We found Bin Laden but we can't catch
a poor starving student trying to freeload at the hospital?
Another thing. What's up with the TV rentals. My 85 year old
Mother was in hospital for weeks. Her kidneys are failing, a valve in her heart
is leaking and her body is dying. She loves her soap operas. It would kill her
to die and not know what was happening on Days of Our Lives. So she rented a TV
with basic cable.
$11.50 a day plus tax! That's what they charged this dying
senior on a fixed income! Who the hell is making money off my dying Mother and
her soap operas?
Are you telling me the Department of Health can't negotiate
a better deal than that? That they can't buy cable for the hospital and give it
to patients for free? This is so wrong!
What happens to the people who can't afford to pay $11.50 a
day. They just lay there in bed all day staring out the window. They're forced
to eat hospital food three times a day. Aren't they suffering enough? You're
telling me the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador can't afford free TV for
the sick? Didn't they donate a million dollars to Haiti? What about our poor?
There's an old saying, "You judge a country, in our
case province, by how it treats its most vulnerable, its poor, it sick, its
weak."
There are some things you shouldn't have to pay for in life:
When you want to pee, when you need a parking space at the hospital because
you're sick and a TV when you're hospitalized.
If I have to pay an extra few cents in taxes to cover that,
so be it. A dying woman should not have to miss her soap operas because she's
broke. A nine year old girl with pneumonia shouldn't be given a parking ticket.
A women with a bladder problem shouldn't have to peein her pants because she doesn't have a dime
and governments should not have to be shamed into doing the right thing.
It's 2012. When it comes to healthcare our energy should be
targeted at finding specialists to work in the hospital, not bickering over TV
bills and parking lot slot machines.
Let's use our common sense. Get rid of the meters and ask
Rogers for a good deal on cable.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
A happy marriage is easy to achieve if you know what you're
doing. I discovered early in mine that a pot-roast can greatly improve it.
Hubby never wants anything fancy. His idea of spice is salt
and pepper. He's a meat and potato kind of guy. We take turns cooking. He BBQ's
like a pro and I do my cooking in the kitchen.
Every morning for almost twenty years the first question he
asks in the morning is "What's for supper?" Then he'll call me at
some point during the day, make small-talk and slip in "What's for
supper?" He'll call when he leaves the office to ask how my day was and
ask nonchalantly "What's for supper?"
About ten years into the marriage I started to notice a
pattern. In the morning when he asked "What's for supper?" If I told
him "Spaghetti" He'd be in a bad mood. He'd call during the day and
ask "What's for supper?" and I'd repeat "Spaghetti" and
he'd go on about what a bad day he had. Then he'd call on his way home and ask
"What's for supper?" and I'd say "Spaghetti" and he'd say
how exhausted he was and how he wasn't even that hungry.
Then I noticed when he asked in the morning "What's for
supper?" and I said "Fried cod" he'd be a little happier. He'd
call during the day to ask "What's for supper?" and I'd say
"Fried cod." He'd say his day was ok and we'd hang up. Then he'd call
on his way home and ask "What's for supper?" and I would repeat
"Fried cod."Then he'd say he was tired but hungry.
One morning he asked "What's for supper?" I said
"Pot roast." He jumped out of bed and skipped to the shower. He was
all smiles and jokes and before he left he asked "What kind of pot
roast?" "Pork" I told him. He skipped out to his truck and went
to work. He called me half way through the day and asked "What's for
supper?" "Pork roast" I assured him. He went on and on about how
great his day was and how much he loved his job. Then he called when he left
work and asked "Are we still having pork roast for supper?" He
sounded like a kid asking "Is Santa coming tonight?"
So I decided to experiment on him and started changing
around some variables. In the mornings when asked "What's for
supper?" I'd say "Pot roast." He'd skip to the shower as usual.
Then when he called during the day to ask "What's for supper" I'd say
"Pot roast" then wait a few seconds and say "With salt
meat." I could hear him jumpingup
and down with happiness. Then he'd phone on his way home and ask "How much
salt meat did you put on?" I felt like a dominatrix at this point and say
"The whole bucket." It would take his breath away. I thought he would
pass out with happiness.
Then I'd change it around and say "Chicken."
Chicken just got a yawn and a "OK kind of day" out of him. Pasta
ruined his day completely. Taking out anything for him to BBQ would make him
happy, but nothing had the effect that pot-roast had on him.
Our marriage is into the second decade and I have used three
full bottles of gravy browning making gravy for pot-roasts. I have friends
who's marriage never made it through one full bottle of gravy browning. Maybe
that was the problem.
Over the years I have learned to shake it up a bit. When
he'd call half way through the day I would say "...and I picked up a
chocolate brownie cake at Sobey's for dessert." He run around his office
giving everyone high-fives. Pull the car over on the way home and help elderly
ladies cross the street. He'd be giddy as a school-girl.
Then there would be days when I was pissed at him for
something. I'd take the pot-roast out of the freezer in the morning to thaw.
He'd phone half way through the day and ask "What's for supper?" and
I'd say "McDonalds!" Then he wine and say "But you took out a
pot-roast!" So I'd go in for the kill and say "I am too tired to cook
it." I could hear the let-down in his voice. I'd feel empowered like the
Soup-Nazi" on Seinfeld saying "No pot-roast for you!" The power
would all be mine.
I am thinking of applying for a government grant to do an
actual study on "The affects of pot-roast on men." I think it's a
stupid enough idea to qualify for thousands in grant money. Then I could round
up a room full of husbands and feed them pasta one night, chicken the next,
then pot-roast. I'd get them to fill out "Happiness charts" and
measure their endorphins. I'd become famous and write a book called
"Saving Your Marriage with Pot-Roast!" I'd be on Dr. Phil and
probably get my own reality TV show.
My Mother always said, "The way to a man's heart is
through his stomach." Although my sister Rose says, "The way to a
man's heart is through his stomach then you have to pull up on the knife, go
through the rib-cage and then you'll get to his heart."
It's the simple things that make marriages work. He brings
up my coffee every morning. I cook him a pot-roast. It's all good. It comes
down to trying to figure out what makes each other happy.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Fall is in the air and hubby says it's time to put the
Goldwing in storage for the winter. He is going to start winterizing it this
week. It made me think back to a couple of Falls ago when I drove a mini-van
that I could never park properly.
Our house is on a corner lot. There is a one car driveway in
the front of the house where the garage is, which is mine and a two car
driveway on the side, which is for hubby's toys.
One Saturday I left with our daughter to go to her dance
classes and hubby stayed home to winterize the Goldwing so he could store it
for the winter.
After dancing for two hours and trying to recover from a
birthday party sleep-over, my daughter was not in a good mood to say the least.
She was cranky, tired and just hard to handle. By the time I got back home she
was having a complete melt down and looked like the Exorcist in the back seat.
I was trying to back into the driveway while looking into my side-mirrors to
make sure I was staying on the asphalt. At the same time I was trying to keep
an eye on Linda Blair in the back seat to make sure her head wasn't doing a
complete 360.
Then I heard a "Bang!"
I looked in the rear-view mirror but couldn't see anything.
I looked in the side-view mirrors and couldn't see anything. I was too far away
from the garage door to hit it. So I put the van in park and jumped out.
There laying wounded on the driveway was hubby's pride and
joy, his only reason for living, his prized Goldwing. Lying on its side...
softly crying.
I knew I was going to be killed. I had to think fast.
I pulled the mini-van out of the driveway and parked it on
the street. I got the Exorcist out of the back and dragged her in the house
kicking and screaming. I called out to hubby but he didn't answer. So I ran
upstairs looking for him. By the time I got to our bedroom I could hear him in
the driveway cursing and swearing. I ran back downstairs and out to the
driveway. Before I could say "Sorry" he looked at me and said "I
am going to kill that cat!"
"The Cat?" What did the cat have to do with
anything?
He saw the question marks in my eyes that were holding back
the flood of tears that I was getting ready to spill while I begged for
forgiveness.
"That God damn cat knocked over my bike. I went to the
basement to get something and when I came back the cat was sitting on the bike.
She must have jumped from the porch roof." He stood there scratching his
head looking from the porch roof to the bike.
"The cat! Yes that damn cat" I agreed with him. I
was a woman on death row if I had to sell-out the cat then so be it. "I've
always hated that cat!"
"Help me pick it up" he asked. So I did my wifely
duty and helped him put the bike up right. The tail light was broke and there
was a big black scratch from the asphalt. "There's no damage at all"
I lied. He was pissed. I tip-toed back into the house where I knew I'd be safer
with the Exorcist.
Now, hubby is a retired police officer and a damn good one
at that. He spent many years at accident scenes and was considered an expert
witness in a court room. So it didn't take long for his police gut feelings to
kick in.
About 20 minutes later I had calmed the Exorcist down and
let her have a nap. I was enjoying a cup of tea while watching TV when hubby
comes back into the house. He calmly sat in his armchair and said, "You
know that cat is only about ten pounds." Immediately my brain said
"Dead Woman Walking!" I had to think quick. "Nooooo. She must be
handy on thirty pounds. You should see what she eats. She looks like a seal
with legs." He quietly nods his head and answers "Even at thirty
pounds. If she was propelled from a rocket launcher at a 1000 pound motorcycle,
she still wouldn't knock it over."
"It was probably one of those perfect storms" I
was drowning here "When the cat jumped from the roof and the wind was at a
perfect speed and the bike was at the perfect angle. You know like one of those
freak accidents."
"Or" he says "Like when someone backs their
mini-van into the driveway without looking in the rear-view mirror to make sure
there's nothing there first." Dead woman walking! Dead woman walking!
"Who would do that and not tell us?" I asked
shocked. "Well maybe it was someone with my bike paint on their rear
bumper" he answered. I knew he had me. My only hope was to throw myself on
the mercy of the court and to turn it around and make him believe it was his
fault.
"Well you shouldn't have parked it in my driveway. You
know I can't park on the best of days. This is your fault."
He calmly got up and said, "I am going to Canadian Tire
to buy a tail-light for my bike. It's in the front driveway. Try not to kill it
the next time you park the van." Then he left.
I watched him walk away thinking this is a trap. He has
booby-trapped the house to blow up when he gets to the bottom of the street. Or
maybe he cut the break-lines on my van. Or maybe cut the heals off my favourite
stilettos. There has to be retaliation for this.
I've been waiting two years. Still nothing. Whenever he
mentions putting the bike away for the winter I start sleeping with one eye
open. I know it's coming.
Maybe revenge is best when it's served cold, but does it
have to be moldy too?
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Remember that scene from "Sex and the City 2" when
Miranda quits her job as a corporate lawyer because her boss refuses to listen
to her. He even goes as far as to put his hand up to her face when she tries to
contribute at a meeting. Then halfway through the movie she has a revelation
and says, "It's not that he didn't like the sound of my voice. It's the
fact that I HAD a voice!"
Well last week I felt like Miranda Hobbs!
While flipping through the Sears catalogue I came across two
pages of Playboy items which are now being marketed in pink and white. It was
obvious to me that they were targeting a very young female audience. Not a lot
of grown women want pink flannel sheetsor hot pink plastic purses with the Playboy logo on it.
I honestly though my handful of loyal readers would read it
and be as outraged as I was. I had no idea I was lighting a fire storm that
went across the country.
Almost 10,000 of you heard about my blog and sought me out.
I know as a busy, working mother there's not a great lot of time left over at
the end of the day to read blogs or anything else. So I truly appreciate you
taking the time.
The comments were wonderful. So many women and men from all
over the planet took the time to add their voice. Chrissy brought children's
Halloween costumes to our attention. That's something that has been bugging me
for years. We went from home-made costumes to being able to buy exact replicas
of every TV character on the tube! Then it started to change. The French maid
costumes changed to the slutty pirate costume. Then they just morphed into
Happy Hooker costumes. You couldn't help but raise an eye brow or cover your
eyes completely when you see the normally sane soccer mom prancing down the
block Halloween night dressed in fishnet stockings and a plastic hooker
costume. It is scary.
Then the costumes got younger. Teens were being targeted to
be a "Sexy Witch" or a "Sexy Pirate." Then it got even
younger. Now you can get the sexy witch with the fishnet stockings in size 6X!
I'd think to myself, "Who would put that on a
child?" Then the Toddlers and Tiaras show airs with the toddler dressed as
the hooker from "Pretty Woman" for a pageant. People were outraged.
The mother didn't understand what the fuss was about, "It's just a
character from a movie!" she exclaimed.
Really? Just a character from a movie? Why didn't you pick a
Winnie the Pooh costume? Oh, because that's not sexy enough to win a toddler
beauty pageant. She needed the spray tan, fake teeth, fake hair, fake nails and
hooker costume to look like a natural little girl.
I love talking. My husband will tell you I even talk in my
sleep. Nothing gets me excited like a good discussion and it's no fun unless
someone disagrees with me. I love a good battle of the wits, but I would never
fight with an unarmed person. Why would people take the time to seek me out and
read my blog just to tell me I am not entitled to my opinion. Comments like,
"Anonymous ~ this chick is just
jealous because...well look at her picture dear. No way would she fit in with
the 'Playboy' image. Ever notice how it's the unattractive people who complain
about Playboy the most?"
First of all let me say, I am a 5'7" supermodel! I am Curvy
like Beyonce and I have the moves like Jagger. Just ask my husband of 18 years.
He tells me every day that I am the most beautiful woman in the world. As a
matter-of-fact. He loves me so much we got remarried again two years ago at the
Elvis chapel of Love in Las Vegas baby! My son told me when he was five that I
was "The most beautiful Mommy at school." My daughter watches every
move I make and copies everything I wear and do - imitation is truly the best
form of flattery. I posted a blog in
July called "Girls Night" about
the special relationship I have with my daughter. It talks about how daughters
study their mothers so they can be just like them, orbe the complete opposite.
My friends are the main readers of my blog and my
friendsare the dream-team of
supermodels. They comein every size
from zero to 22. When we go out it's like Fashion Week for Mammas! We are
successful career women, stay at home mothers or a bit of both. We are doctors,
journalists, house cleaners, lawyers, computer programmers, check-out cashiers,
you name it, we do it. We are fierce. We are the hand that rocks the cradle and
we are the hand that rules the world. And that hand will bitch slap anyone who
tries to sneak something past us that could put our kids at risk.
So when you say, "She don't fit in with the Playboy
image." Think again. Playboy doesn't fit in with my image. Which by the
way is not Photo- shopped, distorted and no one removed my flaws or wrinkles.
I've earned them both. They make me beautiful.
If you're going to argue with me, stick to the conversation.
Don't show your stupidity by attacking the person. But I did learn a lesson. I
will take the anonymous option off my blog.
To those who said I couldn't change the world with my blog.
You're wrong. I just did. Families coast to coast agreed with me. They told
their friends. They told their friends and they told their friends. It will
impact the sale of Playboy items in Sears Christmas Wish Book. We'll have to
wait to see if it is in next year's catalogue.
I can't remember who said the following quote, but I like
it:
Can one person change the world? Usually that's all it
takes!
We have a voice. My father fought in the Second World War to
ensure I would grow up in a country where a woman can speak up and give her
opinion.
So what was I thinking? I was thinking selling Playboy to
kids is wrong. That's all.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
I can't thank you enough for reading the blog on the Playboy products in the
Sears catalogue. I know how busy we all are. I really appreciate you taking the
time to search out my blog and read it. I think I have my Christmas spirit
back!
Thanks for all your comments. Even those who think I should be stopping war
and feeding the hungry. (I'll get to that tomorrow) For those who think I
should get a life, I have a wonderful life. I don't see stopping kiddie porn
products as a waste of my time.
If you're interested Global TV in Toronto interviewed me today about the
blog. Here is the link:
Monday, September 17, 2012
Nothing gets me more excited than finding the Sears Wish Book in my mailbox. Every since I was a kid I loved this catalogue more than any other. It meant Christmas was coming. A week after it was delivered I would have every page memorized. My children carry on this same tradition. When I came home yesterday and found the 2012 Wish Book in my mailbox I was delighted. I boiled the kettle, poured my tea, ripped off the plastic cover and began to study each page.
Until I got to page 18. Then I was horrified!
It started out innocently enough. Pages 10 and 11 are full of Hello Kitty lunch boxes and snowsuits. Pages 12 and 13 are full of Star Wars. Who knew the light saber would last this long? Pages 14 and 15 are all super heroes. How often can Batman be reinvented? Pages 16 and 17 are rock-n-roll gifts. Pages 18 and 19 are full of Playboy....Playboy? What the hell?
Why are Playboy products being advertised in the Christmas toy section? Did I miss something. I flip through the pages again. No. Right in between Rock-n-roll T-shirts and hockey stuff is Playboy! And not just the usual Playboy stuff. This stuff is in bright girly pink and white. Directly marketed at tween and teen girls. The products include Playboy flannel sheets, Playboy 3-Pc comforter set, Playboy hanging organizer and Playboy bunny bling handbags. The page features a girl who looks to be around 12-13 years old with the bunny bling handbag over her shoulder.
Now, anyone who knows me, knows that I am no prude. I will be the first one to stand up and defend a women's right to her own body. I completely believe what a woman does with her body is her own business. And what consenting adults do is their own business. As long as it does not involve children or animals, I don't care how you get your jollies.
But I draw the line when a men's magazine that features nude women starts direct marketing to tween and teen girls. I am also in the marketing business and I have to admit, Playboy's strategy is smart. They are target marketing their products to the 10-19 year demography.
But why? Why dumb the product down and target young girls? Easy one. To desensitize them and their parents from what their magazine is really about. The worst part is, there are parents who are stupid enough to buy Playboy products for their tweens and teens.
"What' the big deal? It shuts her up. It's not like she's posing for the centerfold."
Really? You're ok with a 12 year old girl going to school with a Playboy bunny logo on her. What do you think that tells boys about her? Or other girls? But the most important question is, what do you think it tells her? I just keep hearing PInk's song "Stupid Girls" in my head and the line "What happened to the dream of a girl president?"
I have nothing against Playboy bunnies. I admire what Hugh Hefner has built. He is a visionary and a smart business man. I don't even buy into the notion that the bunny costume is insulting to women. Once again, it's a women's body. Get your nose out of her cleavage.
The thought of a parent ordering Playboy flannel sheets and the bunny bling bag for her 12 year for Christmas upsets me. This will be one of her first introductions to what she thinks a boy wants. A Playboy Bunny, not a girl President.
I am so upset with Sears for going along with this that I threw my Wish Book in the garbage. On the inside cover, the President and CEO of Sears Canada Inc., Calvin McDonald, talks about the Wish Book as a Holiday tradition for millions of Canadian families. He talks about delivering the catalogues as a young child. Then finishes with how proud he is be part of this iconic Canadian Holiday tradition for so many families.
So, he does understand that families mean children right? He does understand that children will be making up their Christmas lists while reading the Sears Wish Book right? Is he ordering the baby pink Playboy Satin Sheet Set for his daughter? Will his daughter be sporting the bunny bling bag in the new year? Should I expect Hustler to have a two page layout in next year's Wish Book? Maybe Sears can reach that 10-19 year old male demography with some cool blow up dolls. I mean why stop at Playboy. It's just an innocent name like Nike or Pepsi.
Or is it?
Nike's advertisement campaigns target young people and inspires them to get active in sports. To "Just Do It." The Pepsi generation is happy and can do anything. (I know. I don't let my kids drink it either.)
Playboy. That's where young girls take off all their clothes and pose naked. Where you lay spread eagle on a fur rug in the centerfold, if you're lucky, with a staple in your vagina.
Where do we sign our daughters up for that? Let's start at Sears.
Is it bad parenting to buy Playboy products for your tween or teen daughter? Well, if you saw a 14 year old girl standing on the school playground when you dropped off your child and she was wearing sweatpants with Playboy written on the butt and a bunny bling bag over her shoulder, what would your first thoughts be? "There's the girl I hope my son marries!" "Boy I hope my daughter hangs out with her!"
Are we sexualizing young girls too soon? Can't they have a childhood anymore?
I know raising teenagers is hard. I know you get tired and sometimes it's just easier to say "Yes" to get them to shut up and leave you alone, but sometimes you have to hold your ground and fight.I am not a crazy church lady or a hard core feminist. I am a Mom of a 12 year old girl. I also remember what it is like to be a 12 year old girl. We negotiate every day with skirt lengths, see through blouses and eye-liner. But Playboy is out of the question. My daughter will not wear the Playboy logo.
I am so disappointed in Sears' bad judgment on this. I trusted Sears to be a family store. I welcomed the Sears Wish Book into my home as part of my Christmas tradition. Now I feel betrayed.
Mr. McDonald you snuck one past me. You threw a men's magazine into the toy pile when I wasn't looking. You are the Grinch that stole.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
I love September. I always loved the beginning of the school
year. New books, new clothes, new teachers and catching up with old friends. Remember
sharing a pack of smokes in the Holy Heart parking lot? (I hope my kids don't
read this.)
I love Fall. It's my favourite time of the year. I am in my
glee when the leaves start to turn orange, red, brown and yellow. There's
nothing better than a walk on a cool, brisk Fall day through Bowring Park. Running
through my husband's freshly stack of Fall leaves like a woman off her Prozac.
Except for this year.
This year September and Fall sucks. I can't seem to get my
Fall grove into action and I know why. This is my son's last year of high
school and my daughter's first year of junior high. It feels like the Mom Club
of Canada has issued me my "Notice of Lay-off" pink slip. My days of
complete control over my children are slowly slipping away and I was just
getting good at it!
I got a taste of this a few years ago when my step-son
finished high school and joined the Navy. It was a great relief when he picked
a career but it was hard to see him go. I really miss him supper time when I see
his empty chair at the table and his crazy sense of humour. My favourite was
when hubby gained a little weight around the middle and son pointed it out to
him. Hubby protested that he had not gained weight. Son says, "Oh ya. If
you were standing on a beach and there were a pack of whales in the water they
would all stand up and start singing 'We are Family'.' It made me snort milk
out my nose.
God knows when I first became a mother I did not know what I
was doing. It took years to get a good system in place. I got to practice on my
step-son and thought this is pretty easy. You just play with him all weekend
and then send him back to his Mom on Sunday. It wasn't hard at all. No fighting
about homework, or temper tantrums. Just feed him McDonalds and pack up his
bag. He made it look so easy I decided, "Sure lets have one." Then I
realized there's no one coming on Sunday to pick this one up.
Now, 16 years later I
got a good feel for the job. If either kid filled out a "Customer
Feed-Back" card I am pretty sure I'd be kept on and may even get a little
raise in the next cheque.
Other women warn you not to wish your time away when you
have a baby but the first few years have such a steep learning curb. Itseems like just yesterday I learned how to
use a Diaper Genie. I still gag thinking about that long line of poopy sausages
and the smell that burnt my eyes.It's
hard not to think "I can't wait for you to grow up!"
It seems like last night I wrote the date of my son's first
smile in his baby book, the next day he was climbing down the side of the crib,
then he learned to tie his shoes and now he's going to finish high school! What
the hell?
I could have sworn yesterday I bought my daughter the most
beautiful pink frilly dress for her first birthday, then her first tooth came
in, then she lost it, then she hated dresses, then she liked them again, then
she hated them again, then she dyed her hair black became a tweenager and
started junior high. I should send out an Amber Alert! The dingos stole my
baby!
I am in a complete panic. Hubby is already taking
measurements to see if a hot tub will fit into my son's room. Every chance I
get I tell him, "Don't feel pressured to move out" or "You should
live home while you're going to university, it would be cheaper." Hubby is
praying our son chooses to join the military because he wants to use the RESPs
for a European cruise. Every chance I get I have my arms wrapped around him
saying, "My baby is growing too fast! Stop it."
I can't let go. I am going to have complete and utter
break-down if he chooses to go to university on the mainland. Then God-bless my
daughter because all my craziness will be focused on her!
I understand the term "Retirement." I work for
thirty years. I retire and take a pension. That's life. But I didn't know your
could retire from being a mom. My life revolves around being a Mother! I have
gone to great lengths to make sure my kids have an amazing childhood. You
should drive by my house on Christmas or Halloween. People actually stop and
take pictures of their kids on my lawn (My own kids are too embarrassed to do
that anymore.) My week nights consist of driving to and from music lessons,
cadets, dance, etc. I should be issued a chauffer's hat.
I have worked hard to instill a sense of family in our kids.
One strict rule I have kept since the beginning is everyone eats supper at the
supper table and there's no TV, cell phones or any type of electronics allowed
at my table. Violating that rule could have dire consequences. I cook a big
Sunday supper every week complete with special Sunday dishes. I have always
raised my kids as "a team" as-well-as individuals. I make them pick
up for one another and to respect each other. When my son says "She's
being a pain!" I am quick to respond with, "That's my daughter you're
talking about. You better watch your mouth!" As a result, they bicker like
brothers and sisters do but they also love and respect each other. We're a team!
Teams don't grow up and go away!
Now when I think of
me and hubby sitting by ourselves at the supper table with a small Sunday
chicken the waterworks start flowing! What do we talk about if the kids are
gone? It's all we know. I can't bare the thought of the kids moving out. How do
I become a long-distance-mom? Can I phone my son at military school and ask him
if he remembered to brush his teeth before going to bed? Will he remember to
separate his whites and darks on laundry day? Will he know that there is a
laundry day? Will he eat a vegetable every night if I am not there to
supervise? Will his commanding officer cut up his potato for him and put butter
on it before it gets too cold? He can't live without me!
I can only imagine after a year of living on the mainland by
himself he'll come home 30 pounds lighter, suffering from scurvy, with
underwear that have been reduced to just a thick line of elastic around his
waist, his teeth falling out from decay and his whites all gray or pink. He'll
beg us to let him come home and ask me to take over again and of course I will.
I am his Mother damn it. I will live my son's life for him. It's the least I
could do. I will fatten him up with tablespoon fulls of butter on his potatoes
and carrots, wash his dirty clothes and put them away, make sure he brushes and
flosses and then I will find him the perfect girl to marry. That's what good
mothers do!
At least that's how it plays out in my mind.
There's still hope for me. My daughter wants to be a Pop
star. So she may be home for a while. I may even let her stay a little longer
after high school if she grows out of this moody tween stage. She may even let
me buy her a nice pink frilly prom dress.
It's scary becoming a new mom but it's even scarier when you
realize your days are numbered. I have always believed that the greatest gift
you can give a kid is their independence. We raise them to be good people who
love themselves and the world around them. We basically work ourselves out of
the greatest job on earth.
Luckily I will always have my forth child... hubby. He will
never grow up and leave me. He don't know where his socks are without me. It
only took twenty years but at least I have him toilet trained now.
Friday, September 7, 2012
For a summer night it was uncommonly hot. The room was full
and the audience was ready to groove. If you closed your eyes, you'd be
transported back to 1960s Detroit. Swaying to the new sound coming from 2648 W.
Grand Boulevard, "Hitsville
U.S.A." more commonly known as Motown. Except tonight, the unmistakable
Motown sound is coming from the Dream Girls production at Spirit of
Newfoundland in St. John's.
The lights dim, band leader Bill Brennan recreates the
famous Motown driving bass lines. The black music that gave America something
to dance to. The Dream Girls take the stage and their voices brilliantly fill
in that familiar soul music with the gospel undertones. Everyone in the
audience is dancing in their chairs. They know every word and they sing along
to every tune.
How could three white girls from Newfoundland pay tribute to
three black girls from Motown so perfectly? Kelly-Ann Evans, Janet Cull and Dana Parsons
became The Supremes. From their perfect melodies to their sequined gowns. They
take you through the history of how women changed the face of music.
From Martha and the Vandellas to Diana Ross and the
Supremes, they bring you the music, the glitz and the glamour. It's still a
Spirit of Newfoundland production so it is not without its sense of humour. The
only thing missing is a dance floor because many a time throughout the show I
wanted to get up and shake my groove-thing.
Kelly-Ann Evans is a performing dynamo! She's well knownin the Canadian music, theatre and
entertainment industry as a force to be reckoned with. She brings a tremendous
amount of energy to the show. She performs a solo of a Whitney Houston song
that brought they entire audience to applause several times and to its feet at
the end. It's a performance that leaves you saying "Wow!"
Kelly-Ann is the new owner of Rock City School where she mentors and inspires young people to
entertain. My twelve year old daughter is a student of Kelly-Ann's. I was
sitting in my car waiting for her to finish a rehearsal for the final show last
year. My daughter came out and plopped herself in the passenger side of my car.
Her hair was covered in sweat and her face was beet-red. I asked,
"Kelly-Ann wore you out?" She responded with, "Mom, she makes me
believe I am better than I think I am. She makes believe I can do this." Enough said.
Janet Cull is a star in her own right. She was awarded the
Music NL Educator of the Year in 2010. She has also won Music NL Group of the
Year, Music NL Jazz recording of the Year and Music NL CBC Galaxie Rising Star
for the Janet Cull Band. Whether she is singing backup or lead Janet brings the
audience to its feet. Her own solo of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your
Face", a song she dedicates to her son, will send shivers down your spine.
Dana Parsons is a graduate of Toronto's Sheridan Musical
Theatre program. She is an award winning performer and singer with a list of
accomplishments including a 2007 East Coast Music Award Nominee for Pop
Recording of the Year.Her debut album
"It's You Not me!" garnered five Music Industry Award
nominationsand a CBC Galaxie Rising
Star Award for new artist. Her new album "Within The Dark" is online
at cdbaby.com. You'll easily recognize Dana's voice and face from Nunsense and
other Spirit of NL shows. She's so much fun and can leave the audience in stitches
with the smallest of facial expressions.
Unlike The Supremes, it would be hard to pick the star of
Dream Girls. They all do such a fabulous job. This is the first show I've seen
that had several standing ovations. From the dazzling gowns, to the finely coiffed
hair, these sisters of soul capture the sound of Motown. I was still singing along
a week later. Berry Gordy himself would have been the first to his feet to lead
the final standing ovation.
Simply put, you'll love this show. It's a great night out.
The food is delicious, the service is five star and the entertainment is phenomenal.
It's the best ticket in town.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
I just realized that I would never feed my dog "No
Name" dog food, but I buy "No Name" cereal for my kids all the
time!
I think she's spoiled. her name is Minnie May (After Elvis's
grandmother) and she is a cross between a black Lab and a terrier. If you just
picture that for a moment it must have been like Fifty Shades of Gray - the dog
version.
She's not a designer dog. I got her off the internet for
free. My daughter begged me for two years to get a dog. She promised on her
life that she would walk it and clean up after it. That lasted for about a week
until she realized cleaning up after it meant picking up poop and putting it in
a bag. Apparently she didn't know dogs pooped. She thought they used the toilet
like her brothers. So walking and picking up poop became Mom's job!
I was never a dog person. I had one years ago. It was a
Dalmatian that a lawyer gave me for free. He was too busy with his law practice
to take care of it. I took it not knowing what I was getting into. I should
have known better than to take something free from a lawyer.
I had always been a
cat person and cats don't need anything except someone to open the food tin and
clean out their litter box. Other than that, they could care less if you ever
came home. Dogs are like babies. They need to be walked, cuddled, fed and checked
on every few hours.
What the lawyer didn't tell me was that the Dalmatian was a
thief. Insert your own lawyer joke here. Every time I let him out in the back
yard he would take off and steal things from the neighbours. Every morning I
would find kid's bicycle helmets, tools, teddy bears and other items in my
yard. He even stole the steak off a neigbour's grill one night! My neighbour
across the street was painting her window trim and as soon as she laid the
paint brush down, he stole it! One day he came home with what looked like another
teddy bear in his mouth. When he dropped it in the garden it started to run
around. He stole a small dog from another yard!
The last straw came during Halloween. I let him out in the
yard to pee that morning and let him in shortly afterwards. When I left for
work I was shocked to see my lawn covered in orange Halloween garbage bags
filled with leaves. He went around to all the neigbour's houses and stole their
decorative Halloween bags. I had to run from house to house putting a bag on
every lawn. After that I gave him to a farmer in The Goulds. I never told him the
dog was a thief.
So I was very hesitant about taking another free dog.
For some strange reason Minnie May bonded with me. Everywhere
I went, she went. If I am in the bathroom, she is outside the door. If I am
washing dishes, she is asleep by my feet. Last year I had to go to Vancouver
for six weeks for work. She wouldn't eat while I was gone. I had to phone home
and get my daughter to put me on the speaker phone so I could tell Minnie to
eat.
After a while she grew on me. I admit I like the dog more
than I like most people. Because of her I now have to go walking everyday,
which is good. She has become my personal trainer.
Last summer, I walked him around Quidi Vidi Lake. It was
after raining earlier in the day and the pathway was still a little muddy. I
keep a towel and a water bowl in the trunk of my car for Minnie.
So I am standing at the rear of my car with the trunk open
pouring water into the dog bowl and she jumps up into the trunk. So I dried off
her feet and let her drink the water. I was just about to take the towel and
put it on the front seat of my car for the dog to sit on when this man sneaks
up on me and screams "Take that dog out of the trunk!" I was startled
first and then I started to laugh because I thought he was joking. People were
looking at us. Then he yells at me "If you close that trunk I'll call the
cops! People like you shouldn't have dogs." Then he walks away. I realized
he wasn't joking. He really thought I was going to put Minnie in the trunk and
drive home.
I couldn't get the words out of my mouth fast enough. By the
time I got my thoughts together the man was stomping all the way up the road.
People in the parking lot were whispering and looking my way. So I loudly say,
"Come on Minnie. If you're finished with your water get in the front seat.
Where you always sit. Up front with me. In the heated seats. Cause I would
never lock you in the trunk." She happily jumped out and into the front
seat. I tore out of the parking lot like I stole the car.
Lesson learned. Dogs aren't as stupid as you think. Up to
that day she always sat in the back seat. Now she sits in the front.
When I was recovering from back surgery and on bed rest for
ten weeks, Minnie May wouldwait for my
husband to leave each morning then she would run up to our room and jump up on
the bed, curling up on his side and putting her little black face on by chest.
She'd sit there all day. Only leaving my side to bark out the window at the
mailman. She hates him.
Minnie May is two and a half now and she's grown on me. I
just told my daughter we can't afford to go shopping for back-to-school clothes
until payday, an hour later I spent $40 on a new red dog collar covered in
bling.
She knows what I am saying to her too. I talk to her all day
long. Minnie cocks her head to one side and blinks her big brown eyes and I
know she's saying "You're right Mom!" You can see it in her eyes.
I still have a cat, Sylvester. They've worked out their
living arrangements. The dog doesn't piss him off and Sylvester lets herlive another day. Every now and then Minnie
gets a little brave and tries to play with Sylvester. The cat just gives her the "Oh
really!" look and she runs over to me with the "I think he likes me
Mom!" look. I haven't got the heart to tell her the truth.
So now I am a dog person too. Every day I walk Minnie around
the block and see all the other dog people. Just like motorcycle drivers we
wave at each other "Hello dog person." Then we all take the most
biodegradable thing in the world and put it inside the most non-biodegradable
thing in the world and throw it in a land fill.
I'd be lost without Minnie May now. She has become this
women's best friend and I really do like her more than most people. When I
think about it, she's the only one in the world who can get me to pick up her
poop!
I am Funny Like That
Helen C. Escott retired from the world renowned Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in 2014 as the Senior Communications Strategist for Newfoundland and Labrador. Before joining the RCMP she worked in the media for 13 years (OZ FM/ VOCM/ CJYQ) in various positions including reporter, on-air personality, marketing and promotions.
In Retirement, Escott writes a blog called “I am Funny Like That” and has over 123,000 readers worldwide. Now this hysterical blog has come to life a witty book! It ranked on Amazon’s bestsellers list as #6 in Kindle Store and #20 in Books.
Escott has a unique perspective on life and a funny way of looking at it. From wearing granny panties to Brazilians to capturing the essence of a moment in a person’s life. Escott will make you laugh out loud and feel better about yourself. She is the best friend you have always wanted and the life of the party. You will be glad you invited her into your life.
If you have thrown your back out taking off Spanx, planned your husband's murder in your head or screamed through a Brazilian, this book is for you.
If you need a good laugh, or need to smile, this book is better than Prozac it will make you laugh out loud for days after reading it. 123,000 blog readers can't be wrong! Join in the laughter. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
No beach? No problem. Surfers in Germany are taking advantage of high water levels in the cities rivers.
River surfing began in Munich about 30 years ago. The practice has become increasingly popular as professional surfers flock to Germany for a go at the waves.
"It's very important for guys who love surfing because the sea is very far away," German surf shop owner Ronaldo Friesen said. "And so they have kind of a... chance to surf during the weeks, or all day."
"You can ride the wave for ages and ages," surfer Yoyo Terhorst added. "And it's still challenging because you can always learn new stuff, and there are always guys coming up with new stuff."
This year, surfers have paralyzing snow storms in Germany to thank for the high water levels throughout the country. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
GM says Warriors fans shouldn't expect big deal
NOTES
Published 4:00 am, Monday, February 21, 2011
The Carmelo Anthony drama finally might reach a conclusion today, but it doesn't sound like that will open the door for the Warriors to make a significant move at Thursday's trade deadline.
Some believe that trade talks will intensify onceAnthonyre-signs with Denver or is dealt to New York or New Jersey, but Warriors general manager Larry Rileydoesn't see that happening with his franchise.
"There are potentially only three or four teams involved (in the Anthony deal), so there are plenty of other teams with which to deal, and they aren't dealing," Riley said. "I don't think teams are sitting around, waiting on the Carmelo Anthony deal. A lot of teams have positioned themselves, and would like to stick there because of the uncertainty with the collective bargaining agreement."
The Warriors are considering sending the expiring contracts of Brandan Wrightand Dan Gadzuricto New Jersey for Troy Murphy's expiring deal and a second-round pick. If they choose to do that deal, the Warriors then would ship Murphy elsewhere for another pick or buy out his $12 million deal, according to a team source.
League sources said the Warriors have inquired about big men Chris Kaman, Nene, LaMarcus Aldridge and JaVale McGee, but they have come up empty. The same is true for talks regarding Danny Grangerand Andre Iguodala, sources said.
So Riley has shifted his focus. Because he doesn't think he can get a big man or a "difference-maker," Riley said he has narrowed talks down to four or five teams. He is looking to acquire draft picks or make minor moves that upgrade the bench.
"From the perspective of the fan, what we do will not seem to have great significance, but there are some small things that we could do that would move us in the right direction," Riley said. "It's very possible that we won't do anything, because there is no reason to tear up what we've built. We understand that we need to get better, but I don't want to go backward at any point to do it."
Inactivity seems like it would go over just fine in the locker room. The Warriors have won seven of their past nine games, including six straight over winning teams, to move into 11th place in the Western Conference. They sit four games back of Utah and Memphis for the eighth and final playoff spot.
"Hopefully, we can stay together, keep moving the right direction, and win some championships together," swingman Dorell Wright said.
Point guard Stephen Curry said, "I'm not involved in that decision, but we're playing such good basketball and have a chemistry together, so I'd like to see us continue to move in the right direction. If nothing happens, I think we're in good shape." | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Amazon faced a barrage of criticism after dropping thousands – around 57,000 – book titles from their sales rankings. The books had adult or gay and lesbian themes.
The company has said, however, that it was due to a glitch, and the books are being returned to their sales listings. However, according to others, that might not be the case. One independent publisher claimed to have received an e-mail from Amazon stating:
“In consideration of our entire customer base, we exclude “adult” material from appearing in some searches and best seller lists. Since these lists are generated using sales ranks, adult materials must also be excluded from that feature.”
To confuse things further, a hacker named Weez also claims to be responsible, as a prank to highlight failings in Amazon’s coding:
“I guess my game is up! Here’s a nice piece I like to call “how to cause moral outrage from the entire Internet in ten lines of code,” he wrote in a blog. Whether this is true, though, is up in the air. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
A suburban Seattle middle school teacher who removed a student from class for refusing to salute or pledge allegiance to the flag did not violate the student's religious-liberty rights, the district's lawyers maintain.
In April, Jim Bobrik, a student at Sylvester Middle School near Seattle, brought a federal suit against the Highline School District alleging his First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion was subverted when his science teacher tossed him out of class in February for failure to pay homage to the flag. Bobrik, a Jehovah's Witness, maintained in his lawsuit that his religious beliefs require him to honor God – not idols and symbols.
Jehovah's Witnesses' objections to saluting and pledging allegiance to the flag are based on Exodus 20:4-5: “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in earth beneath, or that is in water under the earth; thou shall not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them.”
Before taking legal action, Bobrik's Seattle attorney requested that the school district apologize for the teacher's behavior and set up a program to help the district's teachers and students better understand First Amendment rights.
The school district, however, has never apologized or questioned the actions of Michael Sienkiwich, Bobrik's science teacher. Instead, in legal papers filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the school district's attorneys argued that Bobrik was removed from class for reasons other than his religious objections.
“Plaintiffs damages, if any, were the result of the negligence, actions or fault of plaintiffs and damages should be denied or reduced accordingly,” the school district's lawyers argued in their answer to Bobrik's suit. The attorneys, from a Seattle law firm, also suggested that the science teacher did not know of Bobrik's religious beliefs.
The district's answer, however, does not state why Bobrik was removed from class.
Brady R. Johnson, Bobrik's attorney, said that the district's attorneys or spokespersons also have not said why Seinkiwich told Bobrik to leave the classroom.
“They have been mumbling that it is his fault for some time, but have never stated what it is he did,” Johnson said. “The district has suggested there was a discipline issue – that he was put outside not for refusing to salute the flag, but for other disciplinary reasons. However, he was never written up or sent to the principal's office.”
Johnson said instead actions such as Bobrik's were and have been protected by the First Amendment, as well as Washington's constitution and judiciary, for years.
In 1942, the West Virginia Legislature created a law requiring classroom instruction in “Americanism” including a daily pledge of allegiance. Students who shunned the flag were subject to expulsion. Jehovah's Witness parents and students objected to the government-imposed pledge requirement and sued the state. The U.S. Supreme Court in 1943 invalidated the state law on grounds that it ran afoul of the First Amendment.
“We think the action of the local authorities in compelling the flag salute and pledge transcends constitutional limitations on their power and invades the sphere of intellect and spirit which it is the purpose of the First Amendment to our Constitution to reserve from all official control,” wrote Justice Robert Jackson in Board of Education v. Barnette.
Johnson called the district's suggestion that the teacher was unaware of Bobrik's religious beliefs irrelevant.
“The claim that no one had knowledge of Jim's religious beliefs is no argument and makes no difference,” Johnson said. “The Constitution does not require someone to stand up and profess their religious beliefs.”
Attorneys for the school district would not take calls regarding the suit. Nick Latham, district spokesman, however, said that the lawsuit has nothing do with religion, but centered on respect.
“Based on what I have been told, it is a question of respecting his teacher and not freedom of religion rights,” Latham said.
The school district has a policy that states: “Students not reciting the pledge of allegiance are required to maintain a respectful silence and may remain seated.”
A trial date has been set for March, unless Bobrik and the district are able to reach a settlement.
More articles related to First Amendment News.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
THE EXPERTS
The First Amendment Center is an educational organization and cannot provide legal advice.
Ken Paulson is president of the First Amendment Center and dean of the College of Mass Communication at Middle Tennessee State University. He is also the former editor-in-chief of USA Today.
Gene Policinski, chief operating officer of the Newseum Institute, also is senior vice president of the First Amendment Center, a center of the institute. He is a veteran journalist whose career has included work in newspapers, radio, television and online.
John Seigenthaler founded the Newseum Institute’s First Amendment Center in 1991 with the mission of creating national discussion, dialogue and debate about First Amendment rights and values.
About The First Amendment Center
We support the First Amendment and build understanding of its core freedoms through education, information and entertainment.
The center serves as a forum for the study and exploration of free-expression issues, including freedom of speech, of the press and of religion, and the rights to assemble and to petition the government.
Founded by John Seigenthaler, the First Amendment Center is an operating program of the Freedom Forum and is associated with the Newseum and the Diversity Institute. The center has offices in the John Seigenthaler Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.
The center’s website, www.firstamendmentcenter.org, is one of the most authoritative sources of news, information and commentary in the nation on First Amendment issues. It features daily updates on news about First Amendment-related developments, as well as detailed reports about U.S. Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment, and commentary, analysis and special reports on free expression, press freedom and religious-liberty issues. Support the work of the First Amendment Center.
1 For All
1 for All is a national nonpartisan program designed to build understanding and support for First Amendment freedoms. 1 for All provides teaching materials to the nation’s schools, supports educational events on America’s campuses and reminds the public that the First Amendment serves everyone, regardless of faith, race, gender or political leanings. It is truly one amendment for all. Visit 1 for All at http://1forall.us/
Help tomorrow’s citizens find their voice: Teach the First Amendment
The most basic liberties guaranteed to Americans – embodied in the 45 words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – assure Americans a government that is responsible to its citizens and responsive to their wishes.
These 45 words are as alive and important today as they were more than 200 years ago. These liberties are neither liberal nor conservative, Democratic nor Republican – they are the basis for our representative democratic form of government.
We know from studies beginning in 1997 by the nonpartisan First Amendment Center, and from studies commissioned by the Knight Foundation and others, that few adult Americans or high school students can name the individual five freedoms that make up the First Amendment.
The lesson plans – drawn from materials prepared by the Newseum and the First Amendment Center – will draw young people into an exploration of how their freedoms began and how they operate in today’s world. Students will discuss just how far individual rights extend, examining rights in the school environment and public places. The lessons may be used in history and government, civics, language arts and journalism, art and debate classes. They may be used in sections or in their entirety. Many of these lesson plans indicate an overall goal, offer suggestions on how to teach the lesson and list additional resources and enrichment activities.
First Amendment Moot Court Competition
This site no longer is being updated … And the competition itself is moving to Washington, D.C., where the Newseum Institute’s First Amendment Center is co-sponsoring the “Seigenthaler-Sutherland Cup National First Amendment Moot Court Competition,” March 18-19, in partnership with the Columbus School of Law, of the Catholic University of America.
During the two-day competition in February, each team will participate in a minimum of four rounds, arguing a hypothetical based on a current First Amendment controversy before panels of accomplished jurists, legal scholars and attorneys.
FIRST AMENDMENT CENTER ARCHIVES
State of the First Amendment survey reports
The State of the First Amendment surveys, commissioned since 1997 by the First Amendment Center and Newseum, are a regular check on how Americans view their first freedoms of speech, press, assembly, religion and petition.
The periodic surveys examine public attitudes toward freedom of speech, press, religion and the rights of assembly and petition; and sample public opinion on contemporary issues involving those freedoms.
See the reports. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Selected full Forums now available at http://www.theforumchannel.tv/ Daniel Handler talks about an encounter on an airplane during "Talking Authors" Forum. Other panelists were Amy Tan and Alexander McCall Smith and the moderator for The Forum was Colin McEnroe. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
creamy blue cheese and walnut coleslaw
Creamy coleslaw recipe with blue cheese and walnuts added in. It has a little dill and peppery radishes. It is a delicious low carb and gluten free side dish to serve with beef or pork.
Since settling in at our new lake cottage, we have had a steady stream of visitors coming to see us and our new digs every weekend. Friends we haven’t seen in forever have come to stay with us. And some of our friends who we see more often have come too. Everyone wants to come see our new slice of heaven. And we are happy to have them all! We have spent a lot of time out on the boat, swimming, making lemonade stands, fishing, playing lawn games, playing tennis, going for runs or walks and then finally gathering around the table for a big meal and maybe sitting by a fire on the beach before heading to bed on the screen porch. One of the nights our guests included a professional flamenco dancer and classical guitarist. They played for us, sang and danced on the rocks!
It has been kinda amazing.
I am a little tired though because it has been a whirlwind of activity. This week the girls and I are here, with not a big to-do list. My dad and brother are coming for dinner tonight. I made this coleslaw to serve them. I actually made this same salad last weekend for another group of friends. I had sort-of thrown it together and as I did, I thought to myself, I wish I had been more disciplined in my recipe writing and actually tested this as I went. It went over so well that night (I served it with pulled pork sandwiches and sweet potato salad- that totally needs to make an appearance on the blog too) that I knew that I would have to make it again, test it, and take some pics.
Speaking of pictures. Have I updated you all about the Focus on Photography Challenge? It is now in its fourth month, and it is going great. We are having a really fun time with it. If you weren’t here when I described it before, here is what it is all about. It is a group of food bloggers who are interested in improving their photography skills. Emily of Jelly Toast came up with the idea and has organized the whole thing. Every month we come up with a new challenge for the group. So far some of the challenges we have had are to include non-food props in our images and another one was to include a sense of action or capture a decisive moment in a photograph.
This month our challenge was to take a photo outdoors. Which can be kind of tricky because when you are outside it can be hard to control the light. I decided to try taking these photos outdoors. I set up these shots on our porch here at the cottage. I think I will try for some more of these later in the month. Maybe that show more of the environment.
I am really enjoying the group because it is pushing me outside of my comfort zone.Every month, I have thought, oh that wasn’t so bad, I’ll add that into my work all the time.
If you’d like to follow along with us for the challenges follow our pins here or if you are a food blogger and you would like to join the group send me an email.
Back to this coleslaw. I can’t take credit for coming up with the idea of adding blue cheese to coleslaw. I had blue cheese in coleslaw for the first time back in 1998. I was living in San Francisco and I was working for a small interior design firm. The owners, a husband and wife duo took all of the employees up to their house in Napa for an employee party and they made us an amazing meal. Since that happened so very long ago, I can’t say I remember what else was served at the meal. But I will never forget the the coleslaw they made. It was so fresh and crunchy and then it had big pops of blue cheese in it. It rocked my socks. I think theirs also had fresh shelled peas. Which I think would be amazing. So would some sunflower seeds. I decided to use radishes, since we are still getting amazing local radishes. And toasted walnuts, since blue cheese and walnuts go together so well. I also added in some Tabasco sauce because, well that’s the right thing to do when it comes to blue cheese.
The other night the pork was great with this creamy coleslaw for sure. But it is worth mentioning that all of these flavors are really a great choice for serving with beef. Since beef and blue cheese are so awesome together. I think this tomato rosemary marinated flank steak would be off the hook with this coleslaw.
struggling with weeknight meals?
My free ebook, The Best Weeknight Dinners, includes 15 of my family’s favorites — recipes and meals we go back to over and over again. It includes simple entrees you can make start to finish in 20 to 40 minutes. And all are made with simple to follow instructions and easy to find ingredients.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Rate this recipe★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Comment
Name *
Email *
Website
By submitting this comment, you agree to share your name, email address, website and IP address with Healthy Seasonal Recipes. This information will not be used for any purpose other than enabling you to post a comment. *
Your new lake cottage sounds so dreamy! Boating, swimming, and hiking — and having a lovely place to come home to afterwards — sounds like my parents’ idea of bliss. They actually just bought their very first cabin and got the keys yesterday! I don’t know how many friends they’ll have over, but it’ll sure be a challenge keeping their guests as well-fed as yours. Your coleslaw looks incredible, and the bleu cheese twist sounds so creative! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Subsets and Splits
No saved queries yet
Save your SQL queries to embed, download, and access them later. Queries will appear here once saved.