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A new study has revealed the positions in which paleontologists believe dinosaurs had sex, complete with detailed illustrations. Very exciting. As kids love dinosaurs and are known to be inquisitive, here's a handy guide for how to talk to your child about it.
They'll Ask: How did dinosaurs have sex?
You'll Answer: They kind of straddled each other and rubbed what was called a cloaca together as a mating ritual.
They'll Ask: What's a cloaca?
You'll Answer: Uhhhh, it's a single body opening used for urination, as well reproduction.
They'll Ask: So they just rub them?
You'll Answer: I guess. (Say with intrigue as you never pondered this, but are certainly interested)
They'll Ask: So is that like scissoring?
You'll Answer: Really good call...Wait, what? How do you know what scissoring is?
They'll Say: Mom said it once.
You'll Answer: Mom says a lot of things. (Stare off in the distance as this strikes a chord with you)
They'll Ask: So if it's not like scissoring, how does it work?
You'll Answer: (You'll show them a picture of two dinosaurs doing it because of a sudden need to impress your child)
They'll Ask: Did you draw that?
You'll Answer: No, the one I drew didn't turn out as good and actually I made it years before this study even began, as I am wont to do with my free time. Also don't ever open any of my notebooks.
They'll Ask: Can I stop looking at this picture now? It's making me sad.
You'll Answer: Just 5 more minutes.
Wait 5 minutes. Really be accurate with the scarring of your children.
They'll Ask: So dinosaurs have penises and vaginas?
You'll Answer: Do they! (Really sound enthusiastic here)
Show them another picture.
They'll Ask: Did you make this one?
You'll Answer: No. I improved it.
They'll Ask: Why is his erection so big?
You'll answer: Science.
They'll ask: Why does Mom say you're obsessed with penises?
You'll answer: I'm not the only one.
Then you'll laugh and laugh at the notion that your ongoing obsession with dinosaur genitalia has led to the dissolution of your marriage.
They'll ask: Why are you crying?
You'll answer: It's called being an adult.
They'll ask: What should I do with all these dinosaur pictures I found in your notebook and why does one have Mom's face on it?
You'll answer: Tell your mom that if she needs me I'll be at the Andersons for the weekend.
As you pack your belongings, pat yourself on the back for being such a good parent. | <urn:uuid:c9e6bed7-9042-4fc2-b88b-949beaf3ff08> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.funnyordie.com/articles/a0ce488752/explaining-the-pictures-of-dinosaurs-having-sex-to-your-children | 2014-04-18T03:11:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609532480.36/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005212-00052-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978987 | 611 | [
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We have local SVN repo over Apache location with WebDAV.
Our passwords are stored in
passwd file using
In this situation only admin can add/change/assign a password to user using
sudo htpasswd /etc/subversion/passwd <username>
But we need to add possibility to change password by user-self, so after admin added new user - user would be able to change password to own.
Is there any ready or easy to implement solution to realize this feature? May be some CMS or other LAMP solution? Or CGI...
Of course, every user should be able to change only his own password | <urn:uuid:bea243f3-4d7f-4c17-a745-6472882bd465> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://stackoverflow.com/questions/10578900/how-to-change-svn-user-password-by-himself | 2014-04-20T16:48:32Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609538824.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005218-00116-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.906135 | 135 | [
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The Jamboree is a family event with free admission and free activities for all ages, including great live music all day by a popular band, hayrides, animals to pet, pony rides, lots of games and activities for children, a rock climbing wall, tours of the 74 acre farm, and live and silent auctions and a gift table with a variety of donated goods and services, many at bargain prices! Food and beverages will be available. Our “Fellow Traveler†award ceremony will honor one or more supporters for their contributions to Dawn Farm and the recovering community. Dawn Farm welcomes old friends and new friends to join us and share in celebrating our successes in helping people with alcohol and other drug addictions become part of the recovering community, and to celebrate the tremendous power of hope, recovery and community in the lives of individuals, families, and our entire society. Funds raised from the sales and auctions will help defray treatment costs for individuals who need help and lack resources. | <urn:uuid:6ef0ac8e-3abe-49fd-bc79-d891299de4cc> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.choopersguide.com/event/addiction-community-events-addiction-recovery-events-dawn-farm-39th-anniversary-jamboree.html | 2014-04-20T15:51:42Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609538824.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005218-00116-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938249 | 203 | [
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FS: OEM exhaust, $50
I am moving from Fort Collins to Boulder. I don't want to take the exhaust with me. I don't have a truck, but its possible the exhaust will fit in my jetta? Otherwise its Fort Collins pickup.
$50, its a steal for OEM exhaust mod? Perfect condition. Taken off M3 at ~6.5k miles.
2011.5 E92 ///M3 Space Gray; Fox Red & Blk; 6MT; ZCP; ZCV; ZP2; ///M Performance Exhaust (sold)
2012 VW Jetta TDI (sold)
2002 Subaru WRX (sold)
The World in 35mm | <urn:uuid:fd635829-473e-495d-9de6-a69396df51dc> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12611325&postcount=1 | 2014-04-20T15:56:21Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609538824.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005218-00116-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.886725 | 143 | [
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Are you looking for a good Kawana dentist that is perfect for the whole family? Here at Oris Dental we provide a whole range of services from fluoride treatment and mouth guards for children to crown and bridges for seniors with plenty of services in between. Whether you would like regular checkups for your children or require emergency dentistry for yourself, the staff at our conveniently located Minyama dental clinic is able to provide for you.
We know that the dentist can be scary, especially for those who are visiting for the first time. At Oris Dental, the staff are proud to give a level of care that you won’t find anywhere else. Our children dentist on the Sunshine Coast makes going to a dental clinic a positive experience from the very start. We treat every patient with care, offering a gentle and calm environment to put your mind at ease. From your very first visit you become a part of our large family where you are greeted with a smile.
Bring in the whole family and take advantage of the many services we have available here at Oris Dental, including comprehensive Sunshine Coast orthodontist services. We strive to cater to all of your needs and bring a passion to the job that shows. Regular checkups are a crucial part of a healthy mouth; make sure the dentist you choose is reliable and able to make you comfortable. Contact our staff at your local dentist on the Sunshine Coast – Oris Dental – when you are ready to make an appointment.
Please note that we are a Medibank dentist; we also accept other insurance as well as Medicare teen dental vouchers.
We would like to welcome you to our new, modern and friendly dental practice.
Our aim is to offer you with high quality, value for money dental care in a friendly and comfortable environment.
From the moment you enter our office, we want you to feel at ease. We have paid attention to every detail to ensure that we can transform all routine and even the more complex dental procedures into a truly pleasant experience.
It comes down to a feeling of trust. Our job is to listen to you, educate you and respect your decisions. We understand you might be anxious about the process of receiving dental care.
We are working to provide dentistry the way you want – rather than the way it has always been done.
Thank you for visiting our website. Feel free to call or email us if you have any questions. We look forward to serving you and your family.
Our Practice, Our Team
Cosmetic Dentistry Sunshine Coast Here at Oris Dental, we are dedicated to giving all of our patients the perfect smile that they are after. We offer a range of services at our clinic to get you smili
Sedation Dentistry Sunshine Coast Fear No More with Sedation Dentistry Are you a dental phobic? If you answered yes, you don’t have to worry about your dental health any longer. We’re the dentist
Teeth Whitening Sunshine Coast At Oris Dental Whitening procedures have effectively restored the smile of people with stained, dull, or discoloured teeth. The darker tissue of your teeth, the dentin,
What Are Dental Implants Dental implants are usually referred to the teeth that are replaced by artificial means. The dental implant is usually made of Titanium or Titanium alloy. The dental implant i | <urn:uuid:3e153e77-7ce2-4a45-8445-1363008936f3> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.orisdental.com.au/local-dentist-sunshine-coast/ | 2014-04-20T15:50:52Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609538824.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005218-00116-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950887 | 687 | [
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UPDATED: Friday, April 13, 2012 - 9:54am
COLLEGE STATION -- For students at A&M, bikes are the quickest and most efficient way to get around on campus.
In fact on any given day more than 1,500 students ride their bikes to get to and from class but a lot of those riders are finding out if you don't follow the laws, you will pay the price.
Sophomore, Grace Liu, has been riding her bike on campus for two years now and even though she says it can be dangerous, she does it anyway because it's a much quicker way to get around.
"I definitely got hit the other weekend. A car was pulling out and I was going on by on the sidewalk and they didn't look to their right and so they were turning and I was going straight."
Sergeant Allan Baron, with the University Police Department, says accidents like that happen every year and it's due largely in part because bicyclists don't follow the laws.
"Many of them are not aware of the traffic laws that exist that require them to follow the rules of the roadway," Baron said.
Bicycles are considered to be a motor vehicle, so students have to follow all traffic rules and regulations.
"They need to be sure to stop at all stop signs, yield to the right of way to pedestrians in crosswalks and also go the correct direction down the street," said Baron.
Liu said even though she knows she's supposed to, she doesn't always do it.
"We as bikers have to follow the motor vehicle rules but at the same time if there are no cars and you can just zoom on by I think that's totally fine as well."
If a University officer catches you breaking one of these laws, your citation could cost you up to $140.
"That's more than a parking ticket here and I don't think the fines should be that expensive at all," said Liu. | <urn:uuid:732e891d-228c-43d4-bc9a-56346c5911f4> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://kwkt.com/class-reunions/university-police-issuing-citations-bicyclists | 2014-04-23T14:04:49Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223202548.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032002-00148-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988813 | 408 | [
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Thursday, April 24, 2008
The government first proceeded with a criminal action against a former AOL executive. (see here and here). After a "not guilty," was returned by the jury, the government tried the civil route. Because the government has the ability to use parallel civil proceedings, they can proceed twice with basically the same evidence and not be precluded by claims of double jeopardy.
Although the government has the right and power to try a second time in a different forum, the results did not change with respect to the former AOL exec. The jury returned another win for the defense, resulting in a finding against the government's civil fraud charges. (see here)
Attorney Hank Asbill, a partner at Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, and attorney for the AOL exec, will be speaking as the keynote speaker at the forthcoming White Collar Crime Institute at Stetson U. College of Law's Tampa campus in Florida on May 8, 2008. To attend this function, see here. See here for more details. | <urn:uuid:b947f9d6-098a-4d99-8412-71c2cb4f88ee> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/whitecollarcrime_blog/2008/04/aol-exec-cleare.html | 2014-04-23T13:46:11Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223202548.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032002-00148-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945085 | 209 | [
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When most of the top athletes in any sport are asked what the top three things have made them so good, the majority say ‘Practice, Practice and more Practice’. This is what separates the average athlete from the ones who excel in their particular sport. Basketball is no different, with the cream of the crop getting to the highest levels by practicing and perfecting their skills when others do not. Not all of us will get to this level but there are many ways to drastically improve your skill level and performance by practicing and training from your home, especially if you can’t always make it to the court.
Having your own facilities for any sport makes it easy to regularly improve your skills. If you have the space, adding basketball hoops gives you the opportunity to practice whenever you like without having to leave your home. This can help you to score more lower percentage shots and increase the amount of scoring opportunities you have that may not have been achievable without the extra practice. Completing your own shooting drills such as rebounding and shooting gives you a huge advantage when you go out on the court again. When an individual works on their game it becomes very noticeable compared to players who don’t practice as much in their spare time.
Basketball’s not all about scoring. There are many other elements of the game that have to be considered. To develop into a better player you also need to look at improving your dribbling skills, catching skills, offensive plays and defensive plays. However, in order to work on these parts of your game it’s a good idea to allocate an area for practice. This isn’t always practical and depends on how much space you have available to devote to this type of training. If team members live close by, training with them could help improve both of your games because it makes training more effective and you’ll have more of an incentive to train harder.
Jumping higher is the goal of all players and is actually something you can work on and develop too. Vertical jump also known as Plyometrics helps increase the height you can jump. This type of training involves specific exercise routines that target the muscles that contribute to a higher jump. This and other flexibility training is a vital part of becoming a more effective player. Having an area to do this type of training and getting into a routine for this type of exercise will improve this important aspect of your game.
You can find quality basketball hoops for sale from brands like Gorilla basketball hoops, Lifetime basketball hoops, Spalding basketball hoops, Goalrilla, Bison, Huffy, Goliath, Mammoth and some of the other best brands. Whether they're indoor or outdoor, mini, adustable, wall mounted, inground or outdoor, some of the best hoops can be found realy cheap.
You can find cheap basketball hoops for sale in many sporting goods stores and online retailers. Gorilla basketball hoops, Lifetime basketball hoops and Spalding are some of the best basketball hoops for kids and adults. Goalrilla can be an adjustable in ground model or an outdoor water model. Huffy, Bison, Goliath and Mammoth make some of the best inground and wall mounted hoops available. Mini basketball hoops for rooms obviously cost significantly less.
There’s no shortcut to success when it comes to sporting activities especially basketball. No matter what level you play at, preparation and practice makes all the difference and will change you from playing well below your potential to becoming a much better player and perform at a level you may not have thought possible. Some simple changes to your home, such as installing basketball hoops and creating a space will help you to concentrate on improving your game even further. | <urn:uuid:05a317eb-4a58-4ebb-9bd1-7ae3df1f39e6> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.simplybasketballhoops.com/ | 2014-04-23T11:49:03Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223202548.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032002-00148-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963624 | 755 | [
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Italian officials say two more bodies have been found on the Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia, bringing the number of confirmed dead from the capsized vessel to 15.
Italy's civil protection agency chief, Franco Gabrielli, said Monday divers located the bodies of two women near the ship's Internet cafe. They, along with most of the other victims of the January 13 disaster, have not been identified.
The bodies of two other women were retrieved on Saturday and Sunday from the grounded ship, which tipped over off the small Italian island of Giglio and is lying half-submerged on its side.
Seventeen people — most of them passengers — are still listed as missing. There is also concern that some unregistered passengers may have been on board.
Gabrielli, meanwhile, says the removal of nearly 2,500 metric tons of fuel from the ship can proceed. He says the stricken ship is stable, and there is no danger of it sinking further.
Officials have been concerned that the fuel inside the huge ship could start spilling into the sea, raising the possibility of an environmental disaster.
On Saturday, Italian authorities declared a state of emergency on Giglio.
The captain of the cruise ship, Francesco Schettino, remains under house arrest, accused of manslaughter and abandoning the vessel. | <urn:uuid:b3657fcc-4b19-4397-94f2-3b6a46269cf3> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2012/01/23/divers-find-2-more-victims-of-italian-cruise-ship-disaster-fuel-removal-to-begin/ | 2014-04-24T19:24:30Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223206672.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032006-00180-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973576 | 266 | [
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by Skinny Ms.
Love creamer in your coffee but not all the added sugar or artificial sweeteners? This recipe is made with natural fruits and milk.
Yields: 1 cup | Serving Size: 1 Tablespoon|Calories: 23 | Previous Points: 0 | Points Plus: 1 | Total Fat: 0.3 g | Saturated Fat: 0 g | Trans Fat: 0 g | Cholesterol: 1 mg | Sodium: 6 mg | Carbohydrates: 4.6 g | Dietary Fiber: 0 g | Sugars: 4.1 g | Protein: 0.6 g
- 1 cup milk (regular almond, coconut or soy milk will work–no added sugar of course)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, optional almond extract
- 2/3 cup raisins OR 10 dates cut in half
Combine milk with either raisins or dates, cover and refrigerate 24 hours. Remove raisins or dates from milk and discard, cover and keep refrigerated until ready to use. The result is some very sweet milk, perfect for that morning cup of Joe.
If you use milk other than skim, you can also make a nice form or froth by whipping.
For details on The Sweetest Challenge, click here. | <urn:uuid:5d93d80b-0ae2-4aff-b35d-47b33ef95673> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://skinnyms.com/coffee-creamer/ | 2014-04-24T19:09:49Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223206672.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032006-00180-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.882402 | 264 | [
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All teams need to find the balance between attack and defence. Perhaps it’s the most crucial equation in football. Formations are designed to meet both needs, with compactness a key when out of possession, and movement essential once in control of the ball.
The further up the table you are expected to be, the greater the need for a higher number of match-winners and magicians. The lower you go, the more likely you are to find a greater number of stoppers, with just a couple of lock-pickers. Occasionally you find players who excel at both sides of the game, and these are like gold dust. Right now, I’d say that Liverpool have at least three: Suarez, Gerrard and Agger, who are as creative as anyone else in their respective positions, but also work hard to win the ball. Perhaps Kuyt should be included, too.
There’s a lot of talk about formations, and they are obviously important. But they do not define how attacking a team is. To me, the vital aspect is how many attacking players you get into the team, whether they line up in the defence, midfield or up front.
My biggest gripe with Roy Hodgson was that he put so few forward-thinking players in his team, particularly because he selected defenders who were not comfortable beyond the halfway line. He had “two up front” (ergo he was “attack-minded” – © Andy Gray, Sky, prior to the 3-0 mauling at the hands of Manchester City), but good teams – and both Benítez and Dalglish know this – need a large number of players who can move smoothly between zones, given how the opposition’s main aim is almost always to thwart rather than defeat.
Obviously it’s impossible to predict Liverpool’s side for the opening game against Sunderland next month, and line-ups depend on who is fit, in form and the strengths/weaknesses of the opposition. But it just so happens that it’s the fixture that I used to contrast between Benítez and Hodgson when writing in October 2010. I’ll return to this fixture in a bit.
As things stand, with so many central midfielders in particular, it’s hard to know what the strongest XI would be, if everyone was fit and and firing. And therefore it’s harder to gauge the balance of attacking/defensive intent. And it seems likely that some key players, including Luis Suarez (Copa America) and Steven Gerrard (injury) may be missing, for the Sunderland game at least.
But what I would say is that, if you accept that Liverpool haven’t signed any ‘fantasy’ players this summer – the Brazilian-style winger so many crave – the chances are that the strongest XI (as a rough best guess) could feasibly have just one “non attacking” outfielder (Jamie Carragher), and a greater number of players who are strong both offensively and defensively. (And of course, as noted many times, even Pepe Reina is a footballing goalkeeper.)
Indeed, the most interesting thing about this summer’s signings is that they are neither pure defenders/workers nor solely attack-minded. The main demand from fans has been for a silky winger, and that’s where some unrest remains with the signing of the more prosaic Stewart Downing.
At this point it’s worth noting that three of the Premier League’s top five ‘defensive’ wide midfielders last season were Reds: Maxi, Meireles and Kuyt. (By ‘defensive’, Who Scored? were looking at tackles, interceptions, etc, based on Opta stats.) What’s interesting is that two of the three – Kuyt and Maxi – also broke double figures for Premier League goals, and the Dutchman continued his excellent assist rate.
Meireles represents more of a grey area. While he was far better out wide under Dalglish than Hodgson (perhaps due to the greater freedom he was afforded as part of a more fluid system), all but one of his goals came when stationed centrally behind the main striker, and it appears that he was not a particularly successful attacking player in that position. Also, a lot of his chance-creation stats were from set-pieces and central midfield. So while he’s okay out wide, he is in no way exceptional.
(To quote the aforementioned article, “His cross accuracy was a weakness with just 12% of his deliveries reaching their target, while he netted just 1 of his 5 goals from last season from a position on the wing, proving his goal threat is somewhat nullified in this area of the pitch.” A caveat I would add is that interchanging of positions after kickoff means that some of these stats may be a little out, but it’s still an excellent guide.)
And of course, Maxi’s best work came within the space of a few games towards the end of the campaign, rather than spaced out over 10 months. The issue is more one of consistency, but last season was his first full campaign in England, and the first six months were a write-off for many Liverpool players (as it happened, three goals under Hodgson wasn’t bad). His crossing accuracy stats are even worse than those of Meireles, at a pretty terrible 8%, but he appreciates how to get into the box at the right time, often appearing centrally in front of goal when the ball is on the opposite flank (as opposed to dribbling into shooting positions from a wide starting point, in the way Luis Suarez often did when moving to the flank to receive the ball).
Statistically, Dirk Kuyt stands out: eight goals in 21 games when playing wide (although I’m not sure how many were penalties, the taking of which of course bears no correlation with starting berth), and a very impressive 19% cross success rate – particularly when you consider that the top crossers usually achieve no better than 25%. So the Dutchman’s stats prove what many instinctively know (but others still miss) – Kuyt is a player who is effective in all areas of the game.
While there are faster and more skillful wingers than Downing, many of them don’t work hard, show any tactical awareness or bother to track back. That’s more acceptable if they are absolutely outstanding going forward – John Barnes was forgiven such ‘laziness’ – but in the modern game, few teams are happy to carry passengers out of possession. Even Lionel Messi works his little cotton socks off.
If Downing can help maintain the kind of defensive stats Meireles and Maxi posted on the left, but, as a more natural winger, offer a different kind of delivery into the box as well as the 10 goals that Maxi delivered (the former Villa man managed nine last term), then that could feasibly provide an improvement. While Maxi will be more inclined to cut inside and pass or shoot, Downing – who also likes to do that – can just as happily go outside and cross.
While I find it harder to see how Jordan Henderson fits into the strongest XI right now, he is clearly a young player who offers alternatives. Many of Dirk Kuyt’s best performances last season came as the most advanced striker; his partnership with Luis Suarez was a potent mix of shared wavelengths and phenomenal work-rate. Should Kuyt play up front, as remains an option with only three recognised out-and-out strikers (Suarez, Carroll and Ngog), then Henderson is perhaps the most likely candidate for the wide-right role, although Gerrard and Maxi are viable alternatives. (The joy of strength in depth.) And while nothing truly remarkable, Henderson is yet another strong all-round team player, rather than a specialist/soloist.
Charlie Adam is yet another all-rounder. His lack of pace means that he’s never going to be running beyond the strikers, but he’s an excellent passer and a very robust tackler, enabling him to do a similar job to Xabi Alonso, whose defending was grossly underrated.
While Adam’s long-range passing appears to be on a par with the erstwhile no.14, he is likely to fall short of the Spaniard in terms of decision making when in possession. (While plenty of British players can also play lovely long passes, few seem capable of just doing the simple thing time and time again, displaying patience before picking the right incisive ball. They pass short, receive it back, and then feel compelled to hit long, whereas the likes of Alonso and Xavi are happy to exchange five or six passes with the same player within five yards of him until a more ambitious ball is on.) Of course, Adam possibly edges it in terms of set-piece play, so he needn’t be too much of a poor man’s Alonso, even if he is likely to be a slightly pale imitation.
If there’s one mark against Alberto Aquilani (beyond his fitness record) it’s that he’s a specialist ballplayer who doesn’t offer too much out of possession. Of course, players like Luka Modric have shown that you can excel in a Premier League midfield with the physical strength of a wet tissue, and that if you rarely give the ball away you can remain a big asset. But ballplayers usually need minders, to compensate. It’s often a question of weighing up the pros and the cons, and seeking to strike that balance. Players like Modric and Aquilani need not be luxuries, but they do require protection.
Last season’s player of the year, Lucas Leiva, perhaps presents a conundrum. While he is better going forward than given credit for, and not a mere backwards passer, he is far from his best in the final third of the pitch. (Full breakdown of Lucas’ passing: 1190 forward, 66.33%; 148 backward, 8.25%; 87 left, 4.85%; 369 right, 20.57%. Courtesy of @BassTunedToRed via @AnfieldIndex.) Like Jamie Carragher, he is most effective patrolling his particular zone, and not straying too far from that comfort.
If both full-backs are ambitious, then you almost certainly need someone like Lucas. Add a work-shy winger, a central midfielder who bombs forward and a centre-back who steps into midfield, and you can see how important the disciplined holder/s become. However, if everyone does a bit of everything, then maybe you can look at a different approach; it’s just a risky (brave?) strategy that could backfire if the entire midfield gets carried away and joins an attack. Whether or not Lucas starts every game, he’s still an incredibly important asset.
Should the central midfield duo (in a four-man midfield) comprise two of Gerrard, Adam, Aquilani, Henderson and Meireles, then it would contain players who are all capable of killer passes and scoring goals. Of that quintet, only Aquilani fails to offer defensive solidity, although Meireles offers it more by positioning and intercepting than tackling.
(Of course, if reports are to be believed, one of Aquilani and Meireles may yet be sold, and possibly even both. I like both players. I prefer Aquilani on the ball, and Meireles off it.)
So if everyone can offer ‘very good’ creativity, and share the same work ethic, that can be better than a couple offering ‘outstanding’ creativity. But if you have some outstanding creative talents, then you may opt to play to their strengths, but add a counterbalance to the side. Every time you adjust the balance by even just a fraction, it has knock-on effects; because for every player you add to the XI, you have to lose another. It’s why so many “final piece of the puzzle” signings over the years have failed to improve things – something gets unexpectedly lost, because you never go to 12 pieces.
All of which brings me around to how badly the balance was out last season before Dalglish returned, and how quickly he remedied it.
The following is my assessment of the attacking capability of Liverpool XIs in a home game against mid-quality opposition (Sunderland, as previously mentioned), and is judged in relation to the the players’ starting position within the XI and how they generally performed in that role/system within the previous year or two.
This may seem very subjective, in that it’s just my personal assessment, but it’s heavily – if not totally – based on statistics (goals scored, chances created, assists, key passes, crosses, etc.), and, I belief, the results are reflected in the goalscoring stats of the team under each different manager. All three XIs are fairly indicative of the thinking of the boss, so it’s not like I’m focusing on unrepresentative teams.
Some of the scores may be a little generous, i.e. the ‘7’ awarded to Joe Cole is based on his pretty decent couple of years at Chelsea (when fit) before arriving at Liverpool, rather than the poor, unfit player we saw last season, or the player at his mid-20s peak, when he was a ‘9’.
Similarly, ‘8’ for Carroll as a centre-forward may seem a stretch based on his similarly injury-plagued, half-paced Liverpool showings last season, but he was certainly an ‘8’, if not a ‘9’ in a Newcastle shirt.
Remember, it is purely their forward intent and capability I am assessing, and not their overall ability; hence why Insua gets an ‘8’ – he was the top-assisting full-back in the first six months of his only full Premier League campaign (2009/10), with six, compared with the single assist of his replacement, Paul Konchesky, over a similar time period in 2010/11 – whereas the young Argentine’s defensive susceptibility would score him down to, say, a ‘6’ if rating him overall. (Weirdly, the more defensive Konchesky was, if anything, even worse at defending.)
The total team scores are 81 to Dalglish, 77 to Benítez and, lagging well behind, 60 to Hodgson.
Perhaps Kenny has an advantage in the scoring: he has a fully fit (and more expensive) squad to choose from, as it is purely theoretical at this stage. But it does fit in with the kind of sides he was fielding in similar games last season, and the ambition of the players when selected in those particular positions. You could argue that he may field a more defensive left-back come opening day, and that his team may include the insurance policy of Lucas, who would bring the figure down to around the 77 of Rafa’s side.
Roy’s XI lacks the hugely gifted Agger, who was by this stage injured, but the player had already fallen behind Skrtel in the pecking order, and even, heaven forbid, the likable but limited Soto Kyriakos (whose score would be a ‘2’ in open play, but perhaps boosted to a ‘5’ on account of his set-piece threat). Hodgson did play Glen Johnson, but as with Agger, it was clear that he didn’t really trust him.
Rafa tended to play Steven Gerrard in central midfield at home to most teams (except the big boys), but he would usually field a bit more quality on the flanks than seen here. You could argue that in terms of intent, Babel was actually a ‘9’ for attacking – a purely forward-thinking player who offered nothing going back – but the quality, in reality, was rarely better than a ‘5’. I compromised on a ‘7’, but Yossi Benayoun would have scored higher, at ‘8’ or ‘9’.
Other times Rafa fielded both Lucas and Mascherano in the centre of the pitch, but again, at Anfield at least, this tended to only happen against the best sides. So while that would lower the central midfield score, the fact that Gerrard and Torres would then be the front two meant a duo of ‘10 out of 10’ players, who were perhaps worth 21 out of 20 when in tandem. (Spinal Tap maths based on them exceeding the sum of their parts. This was a 50-60 goal partnership.) Put Yossi and Dirk on the flanks and the side would be 74 rather than 77, but would work harder than the XI here.
Going back to my earlier statement, if you filled the team with ‘8 out of 10’ players in every position, you’d have a hugely attack-minded team. You don’t necessarily need ‘10 out of 10’ stars, so long as you get a good balance. It is no coincidence that much of Manchester United’s success has involved the likes of Darren Fletcher and Park Ji-Sung as counterbalances to the more flamboyant stars.
To select three defenders with little forward-thinking ability, as Hodgson frequently did, you’d need a fair few ‘9’s and ‘10’s further forward for it to be acceptably attacking for a club expected to win six out of every ten games. As it was, he went with Poulsen, who was once a young goalscoring midfielder but whose game had become increasingly defensive over the past eight years (to the point of offering next-to-nothing), as well as deploying Meireles on the wing, where he neither assisted nor scored under the former Fulham boss. Liverpool won only 33% of games, and had a negative goal difference. Put Ngog up front instead of Kuyt, and move the Dutchman to the wing, as Hodgson often did (including the dismantling at City), and it’s not much better.
So this summer’s transfer activity, while not adding a single ‘10 out of 10’ attacking player (in theory, at least), has helped assemble a greater number of ‘8’s … but – and this is important – ‘8’s who will also rank similarly when out of possession.
Out of Possession
For all the passing plaudits that come Barcelona’s way, their manager, Pep Guardiola, is most obsessed with the art of winning back the ball.
When I looked at the same three Liverpool XIs in terms of the mix of defensive ability and intent, the results were Hodgson 77, Benítez 78 and the new Dalglish XI quite a way ahead at a superb 84.
Rafa’s side is hampered by the inclusion of the very un-Benítezesque Babel, who I scored at 2 (perhaps in terms of how many times he’d track back in a season). Kuyt ranks 10 for work-rate and endeavour wherever he plays, although I only gave Gerrard a ‘9’ on account of his tendency to undo so much good defensive work with lapses of concentration. I scored Torres a 7, although this was a mix of the hungry ‘9’ he started off as and the ‘5’ he became as the sulks set in, when much of the chasing he did was in anger.
Replace Adam with Lucas to the new season’s XI, and the hard work/defensive side of the team gets even better. Lucas is the one ’10′ central midfielder defensively, because he’s not prone to being caught out of position, is a brave as a lion, and will tackle absolutely anything. I’ve pointed out that he made the most successful tackles in the league last season (111), but others say “yeah, but he lost the most, too” (61). However, that just means that he’s doing even more to try and stop the opposition; remember, even a failed tackle can put an opponent off his stride, and slow him down for others to pick off. He makes so many tackles because he chases and chases, and that pressing may be something Liverpool, in reality, cannot do without.
The joker in the pack that Kenny possesses is Luis Suarez, who scores a ‘10’ in both directions. Indeed, his partnership with Kuyt scores 18 going forwards, but the full 20 in retreat. One thing that Kenny and Rafa understood – indeed, Bob Paisley’s teams with Ian Rush were the first to really master it – is that if you harry and harass defenders into conceding possession near their own goal, you can create chances that don’t require defence-splitting passes or sublime skills.
(Thinking back, it was perhaps Rush’s superior work-rate that saw Dalglish jettison the equally prolific John Aldridge in 1989, in order to pair him with the league’s other most fervent defender-harrier, Peter Beardsley.)
Find a defensively sound left-back, and the 2011/12 team’s score could rise to 88. Replace Adam with Lucas – the league’s best defensive midfielder last season – and it hits 90, with an attacking score still in the mid-70s.
So, with enough creativity – Suarez, Gerrard, Johnson, Kuyt, Downing – to work their way past defences, this side will also be able to chase and bother them into submission. That bodes well for a top four challenge.
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Shabby Chic Clocks Baby and Christening Garden and Outside Gifts
Welcome to Sparks Gift Wholesalers
Sunday 25th May
Bank Holiday 26th May
Have a browse through our site and you will see that we carry a comprehensive range of gifts that include angels, animal figurines, bags, birthdays, campervan gift products, candles, candleholders,
We also stock traditional gifts, ornaments and figures from all over the world including Egyptian, Indian, Native American, Oriental, and of course the UK. Our wide range of homeware items include clocks, lamps, jewellery stands, photo frames and albums, ornaments, figurines and statues, vases and planters, candles and diffusers. We stock many leading brand names such as Leonardo, Regency, Juliana, Nag Champa and Amalfi statuary and garden ornaments.
Established over 20 years ago, Sparks are one the UK’s premier wholesale gift suppliers. Operating a trade only and volume buyer cash and carry warehouse just minutes from the M25 ( by Brands Hatch Race circuit ) we now have pleasure operating online to supply gifts and homeware gifts to all Retail Shops and Outlets, Tourist Attractions, Museums, Garden Centres, Florists, Independant Gift Retailers, E-bay Shops, Market Stall Holders and all Trade Gift Re-sellers. We ship throughout the UK, Europe and Worldwide and to place a trade order simply just register and you’re ready to buy! (Click on Log in/Register Tab above).
Available in sensible quantities, many in singles !! - our minimum wholesale order value is just £50 (exc vat) and standard UK delivery charge from only £7.50 (exc vat) for all orders under £200. Delivery is free (into mainland UK) for orders over £200 (exc VAT).
We can dispatch worldwide - For all delivery and carriages costs, service and terms and conditions please refer to our delivery conditions. We accept all major credit cards online. If you’re paying by cheque, no problem, however you will have to wait for it to clear before we can dispatch your goods.
In the ever demanding world of retail gifts we are pleased to now offer loyalty points for our customers as a way of saying 'THANKS' as we really do appreciate your custom.
We are always trying to give the best possible customer service that we can and feel that this is a significant step in adding to the service we offer and giving something 'back' – we hope you agree.
In essence 1 Sparks Gift Wholesaler reward point will be earned for every £1 spent and will be easy to redeem. Please see our 'Rewards' scheme policy for full details.
Happy shopping and Happy collecting.
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The Pitfalls of Buying Cheap Luggage
- Your new luggage will not roll properly if the rollers are made from cheap plastic. It will tip immediately while going through airport parking lots or as you attempt to roll it on thin airport carpet. You will end up dragging it along on its side.
- If the pull handle fails to lock into place it can quickly result in a bent handle after you check it at the airport. If it slides out while traveling through baggage, you risk having it show up with a bent handle. Once the handle is bent it is no longer a useful tool.
- A big cheap metal zipper will spread apart quickly if you put too much pressure on it by over packing or if it gets squashed by bigger heavier suitcases in the luggage compartment of an airplane or on the baggage trucks. There is no quick or inexpensive fix for a broken zipper.
- Warrantees on cheap luggage often contain too much double talk and really do not cover much of anything. Most of the time the cost to send it to be fixed isn't worth it.
Be very careful about purchasing expensive luggage from designers that are not in the luggage business. Often times the luggage is poorly manufactured using low quality materials. The designer may design your favorite jeans but that does not mean they know anything about well constructed luggage.
Quality Inspection for Luggage
What Size Should You Buy?
- Know before you shop of how you plan on using your new luggage and the size that you will need.
- Many well made suitcases offer expandability for additional packing space which might be a good option for meeting different travel demands.
- Be certain to open the luggage completely and check the actual packing space inside. If you have a piece of older luggage that meets your needs, measure the inside and compare it to the new piece that you are considering.
- For trips from one to three days: Recommendation - 22-inch carry-on.
- For trips from three to seven days: Recommendation - 24-inch upright case.
- For trips from a week to 14 days - 27-inch upright case.
- For trips from 14 - 21 days - 30-inch case.
Recommendations Based on the Length of Your Trip:
The Outer ShellDeciding on the type of suitcase that you want depends a lot on how you plan on using it.
Hard-Sided CasesThese are mostly molded and although a lot heavier than its counterparts, a hard-sided suitcase is tough, stain resistant, and will help protect fragile items. Although the sturdiest among the choices it can dent or crack if dealt a hard blow. Today's hard-sided cases usually come with wheels and a pull straps although navigation is not as smooth as with the soft-sided cases.
Semi-Soft Sided CasesThese have become more popular over recent years because they are partially framed and offer good durability, some protection, and often have expandable packing chambers. They come with wheels and pull straps and because of their weight, they usually glide successfully through airports and on hotel carpets.
Soft-Sided CasesA popular choice for carry on luggage, soft-sided cases are the lightest weight of the three choices and seem to grow as you pack them. Another advantage is that they can be squeezed into tight overhead luggage chambers.
FabricationThe term 'denier' is used a lot when talking about luggage fabrication. It is a unit of fineness for nylon, and other fibers, based on a standard mass per length of 1 gram per 9,000 meters of yarn. Generally speaking with luggage, the higher denier, the better although the type of fabric is also important.
- When choosing either the semi-soft or the soft-sided cases, aim for the more expensive fabrications that offer superior wearability and longevity.
- Less expensive bags are usually made of 600 to 1800 denier (d) polyester.
- The higher quality bags are will be made in 500 - 1000 Cordura, known for its ability to resist punctures and 800 to 2500 denier ballistic nylon which is smooth, resists lent, and is used for many of the high-end merchandise.
- If you select a piece of luggage with a retractable handle be sure to test it to see if it slides up and down easily and if the handle comes up far enough for you to use it comfortably.
- You will also want to make certain that it has a locking system so that if you decide to check it at the airport, the handle won't slide out while in route and become damaged.
- Lifting handles should be available on both the long and short sides of the bag and should be securely attached with screws or bolts.
- Any piece that is going to endure a lot of stress should have extra stitching such as the gliders that the shoulder straps go through.
- Straps should be double stitched and adjustable.
- Shoulder straps should include padding.
- Interior straps should be in place to help hold your garments and keep them neat.
ZippersMetal zippers are strong but if they split apart they are difficult to repair. A better choice may be the synthetic zippers made of interlocking nylon coils. These zippers have a slide that repairs a split by just running it back over the zipper.
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OK ~ April Fool's ~ she has on a bikini! ;-D LOL! But she does have a "pair"! No vulgarity intended.... for you prudier folks!!! ;-D
Flash Draw Created Apr 01, 2011 460 x 640px Unless noted Copyright 2011 Salita.
We encourage you to submit a comment and let the artist know what you think of this drawing. Please log in or join to post a comment.
Great imagination and a wonderful drawing! She is really cute, attractive and athletic! 5h!
Unique idea. I would pay to see this...:)
Made me laugh!!!!
I wasn't going to tell EVERYONE what we do in our spare time... after church and art of course!!! LOL!!! ;-D
Sali!!!!! What are you doing posting my picture on here??? (blushing) ^A^
Thank you ~ I always want to enjoy life and "help" some others who don't seem to know how!!! ;-D LOL!
LMAO!!!!!!!! Great humorous drawing!!!!!! Not sure if the pair is helping her with balance or making things more difficult! LOLOL I LOVE Your sense of humour! Great April Fool's Pairs Drawing! 5h + Collection!
LOL! She definately has some "momentum" going on there! LOL!
Lol..a lot of motion going on in this one ..like it 5/5
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Puppynap went around to see Phobe and Flo but didn't take me with him so I got a little bit bored as Daddy was crushing some sweets on his computer and not playing with me so I had to make my own fun.
Puppynaps shoe is a brilliant game to play. What you do is get the stringing lacy thing and pull and pull and pull. Sometimes I go on my back and hold it between my paws and rub the lovely string between them.
But Puppynap came back in and caught me and asked me to stop.
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Toronto Internet Marketing
Online search results are at an all time high, more and more people are joining the Internet every second in and having a sane Toronto Internet Marketing Specialist is a must!
We now live in an age where people are constantly connected to the Internet through computers at home, work and on the road with their Smartphone.
I’m not sure what most of our staff would do without their Blackberries, IPhones, Android Phones and/or Tablets.
At SEO Web Marketing we believe our customers success is our own, it’s impossible to shake the feeling our clients give us after a successful Toronto Internet Marketing Campaign it’s possibly the best feeling after getting your first car.
Our Toronto SEO clients are focused on their sales and thus unable to focus on the potential of the Internet. Our Greater Toronto Area Internet Marketing Specialists have been hand picked and are all veterans of the trade and have a minimum of 10 years under their belts.
Internet Marketing or Search Engine Marketing “SEM for short” will accomplish the following:
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Global Internet Marketing versus Local Internet Marketing
Why would a company choose Local over Global Internet Marketing?
A good example of a good candidate for Local Internet Marketing would be a florist which would like to improve his revenue but is unable to ship his flowers to China.
This is one of the main reasons our clients come to SEO Web Marketing. We sit down with prospective Toronto clients and go through a multitude of questions and tailor our SEO Services to their specific business needs and this is why we are unable to display prices on our website as there are no set prices for search engine optimization campaigns which tailor to a broad range of clientele.
Companies which have set prices are over pricing their services as it all boils down to “Keyword Search Terms“. When optimizing a Toronto clients website and their specified keyword term is for example “Lawyer Firm” it will not be priced the same as “Toronto Lawyer Firm” as one is marketing to the whole world and the other is marketing to a specific location.
We believe in focusing on one client at a time reinforced what we have mentioned earlier that our customers success is our own.
We have a team of dedicated Internet Marketing experts which will work on different avenues of your business to improve your long term organic search results.
Most SEO companies charge monthly fees but this is an unnecessary cost passed to the client as all our customers are still on the first page of all major search engine “Google, Yahoo and Bing” over 6 years after their marketing campaign was finished.
Our Search Engine Marketing is long term and no hidden fees!
Generating New Sales
Being on the first page of Google now a days is not enough if your Internet Marketing company is not able to generate new sales “ROI” which means Return on Investment.
We have years of experience in Marketing, Content Management Systems and Telecommunications knowledge and bring this knowledge to your business and we are able to modify your website look and feel to appeal to your perspective customers.
Imagine a customer landing on your website as you were ranked on the first page of Google but after a couple of seconds he presses the “Back” button on his browser and goes to your competitor?
Modifying your look and feel of your website is very important as you want to keep your prospective customers on your website for the longest amount of time possible as this will generate revenue.
Below are just some of the major sections we focus on for generating new sales on your website:
- Outlining your Products and Services
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- Contact Form | <urn:uuid:9dd5113e-61ce-4ec2-8953-2725c1bfe399> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://seowebmarketing.ca/internet-marketing/ | 2014-04-24T21:22:40Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223206770.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032006-00516-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952539 | 840 | [
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Hi everyone, I've been having episodes of shortness of breath on and off for over a month. It used to only be occasionally but now I'm lucky if I can skip a day without having it. I can be busy or relaxing when it occurs, doesn't matter. When it happens I just feel so tired. Sometimes i have chest pain with it but I get that a lot so its not really abnormal for me.
I went to my GP today, chest X-ray was clear. Dr says if it keeps up I'll get a pulmonary function test but today he just said he had no idea and offered no other tests. I called my rheumy and he said SJS doesn't cause chest pain (right!) and that shortness of breath only comes from longterm disease. Does anyone have an idea of what this could be? I'm 33 years old and have only been seriously suffering for about a year, but I was sick 6 yrs before being dx. To me at least, 33 seems young to be having random shortness of breath, so I'm wondering if it's the SJS after all. Is this a common thing? I'm worried that it could be here to stay and it is interfering with my life, not to mention scary!
I've had bloodwork done for my chest pain and it didn't show anything, and im on prednisone and plaquenil. I'm not feeling well now, having a bad arthritis flare with inflammation and fatigue, but I wasn't flaring when it first started. Thanks for any input. If I could figure out what it may be I'll suggest it to the doctor. | <urn:uuid:6294cc48-07f0-407f-81a5-4c9f98bd4e3b> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://sjogrensworld.org/forums/index.php?topic=13902.0 | 2014-04-19T17:09:32Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537308.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00092-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984532 | 339 | [
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Rated 3.9 out of 5 by 24
Rated 5 out of 5 by Joyful Great Mug
I bought one of these mugs about 1 yr ago...put ice in it first thing in the morning and the next morning, I still have ice. I bought the second for my best friend who had cancer and was in bed quite a bit until her death about a month ago....we would fill it up with ice and some water every night before she went to bed and it would last her until the next day...that way she didn't have to get out of bed when she was alone because there was always something cold there on her nightstand.....she used it every day and if anyone every enjoyed something, she really enjoyed this...the product can't be beat...a God-send when we were able to get out in the flower garden and work and keep our liquids cold....thanks for such a product.
December 6, 2007
Rated 5 out of 5 by rae I love my bubba jug
yes I call him Bubba Jug because I love this thing. I use it every day and have for almost 3 years. The inside rubber piece did eventually break the other day and it's really not useable now because it leaks when you try to drink from it. I bought a big Sport Bubba Keg which is 72 oz. that I take to work now. I still want another 52 oz. one to drink from at home though. I just can't do without my Bubba Jug!!!
September 15, 2007
Rated 1 out of 5 by FLBASS Bubba Keg
Although it does keep things cold as advertised, it also allows water to seep into the interior of the insulated area when being washed even when washed by hand as the instructions say.
August 28, 2007
Rated 4 out of 5 by karey great but...
I'VE HAD MINE 2 YRS AND STILL USE IT EVERY DAY ITS GREAT BUT HARD TO CLEAN THE INSIDE OF THE LID. IT HAS A DEEP NARROW CREASE AROUND IT THATS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO GET INTO. IT SEEMS THIS COULD BE EASILY FIXED BY MAKING THE INSIDE OF THE LID FLAT AND THE TOP EDGES CURVED.
July 13, 2007 | <urn:uuid:5801648d-e15d-48d7-820e-1662d04f6c7e> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.basspro.com/bubba-52-Ounce-Mug/product/65783/?bvrrp=2010/reviews/product/5/65783.htm | 2014-04-19T17:14:09Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537308.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00092-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976295 | 481 | [
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The power to save money and
save energy is in your hands.
Rising energy costs are a global issue. Now more than ever, it’s important for each of us to use
energy wisely. There are easy ways you can take control of your energy costs. In the coming
weeks, you’ll see and hear easy and inexpensive ways to help you conserve energy, reduce your
energy bills, and contribute to a healthier environment for you and your neighbours.
Watch for our energy savings tips.
They all add up to big savings for you, and for all of us. | <urn:uuid:602c946e-ccee-4a48-882c-734aacdac751> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.docstoc.com/docs/37232120/The-power-to-save-money-and-save-energy-is | 2014-04-21T00:19:02Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609539337.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005219-00124-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931531 | 124 | [
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You have chosen to sponsor your bid up to a maximum amount of .
We are looking for a very experienced Magento and Joomla CSSprogrammer and designer for occasional work.
The current project would involve migrating and updating anout of date (Ver. 1.3.*)? Magento sitesgraphics? and other navigational elementsto a new (Ver. 1.4.*) site. The templates where incompatible so we would liketo avoid future problems by using Magentos default Modern theme to recreate thesites look and navigation. All graphics are already present for use, we mayjust ask for minor changes to them. Most content for Static Pages is present;it may just need CSS and formatting for better presentation.
We require the navigation to be duplicated in a way that itis easily editable from the Admin backend and not through editing code orfiles.
We would like some Static Blocks created that can be seen onthe front end that we can change or rotate easily.
The finished work must work correctly with all custompayment modules. We will want some additional customization to the Log In,Shopping Cart, Checkout and Contact pages. We also will need customization ofthe Email Templates and Printable Order and Invoice PDF to make them consistentwith the website look and feel.
The specifics of the job will be given on acceptance of thejob. If you need further details for presenting an accurate bid, please feelfree to ask. | <urn:uuid:0f21f2fb-7f0e-4a90-94ee-f7ce84b38308> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.freelancer.com/projects/PHP-XML/Magento-Template-Work.html | 2014-04-21T00:02:05Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609539337.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005219-00124-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.890293 | 297 | [
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January, 2006 Safe Award Winner
Thursday December 29, 2005
Jimbo’s Bar-B-Que Restaurant to Receive SAFE Award Tomorrow
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (December 29, 2005) The Louisville Metro Health Department will give its Sanitation And Food-safety Excellence (S.A.F.E.) Award tomorrow.
The award will be presented to Jimbo’s Bar-B-Que restaurant at an award ceremony tomorrow, Friday, December 30th, at 2:30 PM. The award ceremony will take place at the restaurant at 801 W. Kenwood Drive.
The S.A.F.E. Award recognizes food establishments that have demonstrated outstanding food handling and sanitation practices. To be considered for the award a facility must have maintained an A rating for the past two routine Health Department inspections, it must have been permitted for at least one year under its current ownership, and it must have had no confirmed food-borne illnesses or validated complaints within the past year.
The Health Department has instituted the S.A.F.E. Award in conjunction with its restaurant rating system. Each restaurant is now required to post a sign, which gives the facility a letter grade of A, B, or C depending on the result of the Health Department’s last inspection of the facility. Grades are as follows:
A (in green) (Good) Score of 100 – 93% with no critical violations. Acknowledges safe food handling practices and designates a facility as meeting requirements of the Kentucky State Food Code without critical violations.
B (in blue) (Passed) Score of 92 – 85% to include all scores with corrected critical violations. Acknowledges a food facility has met minimum requirements of the Kentucky State Food Code, but improvements are needed to attain an A level card.
C (in red) (Poor) Score of 84% or below. Indicated that the facility has failed to meet minimum requirements of the Kentucky State Food Code. | <urn:uuid:2fdee340-e42d-4f01-a417-173990d0365f> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.louisvilleky.gov/News/NewsItem.htm?PostingGuid=%7B98385F08-137B-41BE-AA29-022CF1744A26%7D | 2014-04-20T23:29:49Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609539337.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005219-00124-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949735 | 410 | [
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Mystics have passed down stories of magical realms hidden from mortal sight, bridging the world of Nature and Spirit. Even before the written word, the ancients established a Di......more
Mystics have passed down stories of magical realms hidden from mortal sight, bridging the world of Nature and Spirit. Even before the written word, the ancients established a Divine partnership between humans and these Hidden Realms. Both agreed to form an eternal Sacred Alliance to establish harmony and balance between the material and the spiritual. The Alliance ensured that when we asked for guidance in manifesting our reality, they would help us find our way to the highest good for all. But in time, humanity turned itself away from the natural world as a source for the Divine and forgot about the realms in the Unseen realities. Religious superstition, dominance, and the power of intellect, reason, and technology became our focus; and our partnership was forgotten, so the realms faded away. As our global concerns have increasingly been more plaintive, they have returned to help us find our way home to our true purpose, prosperity, hope, and happiness.
These cards represent some of those realms and their Queens and Kings, Princes, and other magical helpers. Let the Swan Queen point the way to transformation, the Arrow Master help you reach your goals, the Sun Dancers herald your victories, and the Sacred Union speak to the depth of your longing for love. Ask and ye shall receive, for the Highest Good is their motto. If you call upon them, they will answer
Colette Baron-Reid, the author of Messages from Spirit and Remembering the Future, is a popular spiritual intuitive, seminar leader, radio personality, motivational speaker, and musical recording artist. She has shared the stage with authors Sylvia Browne, John Holland, Caroline Myss, and many others. She currently lives with her husband and their two furry children.
This item will be delivered to you via USPS Trackable Media Mail or UPS Mail Innovations and will take from 2 days to 3 weeks from the time the item leaves our warehouse. *
Items must be returned in new or unused condition and contain all original materials included with the shipment. More details
FINAL SALE EXCLUSION: Items marked as FINAL SALE are not returnable unless the problem you experience is the result of our error.
* For your safety, some orders go through our loss prevention department. If we select your order for this process, we will immediately notify you that there may be up to a 3-day delay on your order.
** Most Oversize orders are delivered within 1-4 weeks. Some orders may take 6 weeks to be delivered. | <urn:uuid:32d97ee8-4272-4b0f-b013-554a6775acc7> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.overstock.com/Books-Movies-Music-Games/Wisdom-of-the-Hidden-Realms-Oracle-Cards/3865926/product.html | 2014-04-21T01:33:05Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609539337.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005219-00124-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938716 | 544 | [
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Right now, most, if not all, native methods in LWAWT are called on event dispatch thread or other Java threads. In native, these methods contain the threading check:
However, these checks are mostly unnecessary since a user application just can't access the AppKit thread managed by AWT native code. Therefore these methods are always called from non-AppKit thread just by code design. These checks only consume memory and CPU resources. Also, for experimental purposes it may be useful to call some of these methods from the AppKit thread sometimes, in which case the checks do a bad job. | <urn:uuid:04d8d8b8-9acf-4ffc-951b-1fc6a71651df> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://bugs.java.com/bugdatabase/view_bug.do?bug_id=7179050 | 2014-04-25T02:47:39Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223207985.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032007-00188-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9536 | 122 | [
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A social documentary photographer, most recognized for her evocative environmental portraits of India and Nepal. Currently based in her origin, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. View her professional portfolio at http://www.valerierosen.500px.com and visit Google+: "Valerie Rosen"
Follow "Valerie Rosen Photography" on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Valerie-Rosen-Photograph
Find me at: http://www.flickr.com
28 Sep 2010 — 20 views
25 Sep 2010 — 29 views, 1 favorite
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28 Aug 2010 — 39 views
Collections are a JPG+ feature. You must be a JPG+ member to create new collections and to add photos to collections.
Sign up for JPG+ to start using collections now!
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Q: Whatever happened to that Smashing Pumpkins contest? I never saw winning photos posted anywhere.
A: Do you know?
- Copyright, Fair Use & Orphan Works: Legal Conundrums in the Use & Misappropriation of Photographs and Visual Images
- Photography & the Law - Beyonce' and Beyond: A Roundup of Recent Legal Issues
- Exposure! Enter Today!
- Expose Yourself!
- A Millions Little Pictures: Analog | <urn:uuid:63104672-917b-4199-b6b2-b8fd06ae1920> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://jpgmag.com/people/bareri/photos/page11?sort_criteria=newest | 2014-04-17T06:00:45Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609526252.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005206-00364-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.813164 | 288 | [
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My granny square quilt is finally finished! Yay! This quilt top had been sitting for awhile to get quilted, so yesterday I worked hard to get it done. I have another quilt that I planned and started last year, that I really want to work on, so I thought I better get this one finished first.
I already washed and dried it to give it that crinkly goodness that I love.
I adore all the pretty colors, and prints together. I did a simple straight stitch around the squares.
I used a vintage yellow wreath rose sheet for the backing. I had a some trouble with the sheet puckering, even though I taped it taught to the floor and pinned like crazy when I basted it.
This is only my 4th quilt that I have done, so I know that I am in need of practice. Would love to hear if you have used a vintage sheet for a quilt and if you had any problems or have a secret tip when quilting with one!
For the binding I chose a pretty aqua calico, which came out so sweetly.
So, a lovely quilt for those cold fall and winter days, which I know or at least hope are coming! ;)
This beautiful vintage piece was one of my first treasures. I am still not really sure what it was used for, or the proper name for it.
The detail is beautiful, with all of it's curved lines, and twisty poles on the bottom.
The top is a velvety tan with a sweet ribbon around the edge.
This is one piece that I love, and would never do anything to change it. I store quilts in the bottom part, and have a bucket of yarn goodness that sits on top. Do you know what it is or what it was originally used for?
Wishing you a lovely and crafty day!! | <urn:uuid:a04168e5-5e8f-4d0f-b1c0-e77793b10a68> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://vintagegreyhandmade.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-granny-quilt-and-vintage-goodness.html | 2014-04-17T04:20:30Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609526252.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005206-00364-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97511 | 393 | [
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Michigan Governor's Mansion
The Michigan Governor's Residences are located in the U.S. state of Michigan.
The primary residence is a gated mansion in a secured area of a private neighborhood of Lansing.
The second home, a summer residence, is located on Mackinac Island.
Both residences are owned by the state of Michigan and are maintained with private donations. The Michigan Constitution specifies that there is to be a Governor's residence at the seat of government, and that the seat of Government shall be at Lansing.
The governor’s mansion in Lansing was built in 1957 for Howard and Letha Sober, who donated it to the state in 1969. The furnishings were provided by the State of Michigan. American architect Wallace Frost, who was known for traditional architecture, designed the ranch-style residence with its stone exterior in a contemporary style. The contemporary architecture was a change from his usual style. A garden room was added in the mid-1970s. The gated mansion sits on approximately four acres of secured area in the Moores River Drive estates of Lansing near the scenic Grand River. Governors who have lived in the mansion during their office tenure include William Milliken, James Blanchard, John Engler, and Jennifer Granholm. The mansion in Lansing was renovated during the early 2000s and contains 10,300 sq ft (960 m2), five bedrooms, and four baths. The current governor, Rick Snyder, has elected to remain at his Ann Arbor residence.
Lawrence Andrew Young Cottage
Michigan Governor's summer residence on Mackinac Island
|Location||Jct. of Fort Hill and Huron Rd., Mackinac Island, Michigan|
|Area||1.6 acres (0.65 ha)|
|Architectural style||Shingle Style|
|NRHP Reference #||97000800|
|Added to NRHP||November 17, 1997|
Built in 1902, the governor’s summer residence on Mackinac Island is a three-story structure located on a bluff overlooking the Straits of Mackinac.
It was built originally as a private residence for Chicago attorney Lawrence Andrew Young and owned later by the Hugo Scherer family of Detroit. In 1944, the Mackinac Island State Park Commission purchased the home for its original cost of $15,000. Since then, the commission has provided the care and maintenance of the residence and surrounding gardens.
The residence home features eleven bedrooms, nine and one-half bathrooms and a full basement. The interior features U.S. Southern yellow pine, while the exterior is constructed of Michigan white pine. The house retains many original fixtures and furnishings, including the Young family crystal in a leaded-glass china cupboard located in the dining room and a tall case clock in the living room.
The governor's summer residence on Mackinac Island was refurbished during Governor Engler's 2nd term in office. Private donations funded the renovations.
Since the first official function in 1945, Michigan’s governors have used this home to host important events with national and state leaders.
The house was named to the National Register of Historical Places in 1997.
- Dolan, Matthew (December 30, 2010).No Thanks, No Mansion for Me, Say More Governors-to-Be. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 4, 2010.
- "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2010-07-09. | <urn:uuid:e46d71dc-3c0f-4684-b7c1-05d61071b6a3> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_Governor's_Mansion | 2014-04-18T13:46:55Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609533689.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005213-00396-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956176 | 712 | [
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Budget Briefing: Community Bankers in Oklahoma Worried About Crushing Regulations Meant for ‘Megabanks’
Federal Banking Regulations Stifle Oklahoma’s Community Banks – “Federal banking regulations designed to rein in the United States’ megabanks and protect consumers will crush small community banks with paperwork and additional costs, Oklahoma Bankers Association representatives said.” Stillwater News-Press
Poll: Most Oklahomans Oppose New Health Mandate – “An Affordable Care Act mandate that is being challenged by an Oklahoma company in federal court is not popular in the state, according to poll numbers released Monday.” Tulsa World
Audit Shows Oklahoma State Education Department Used a “Front Organization” to Host a Conference – “Oklahoma State Auditor Gary Jones said the state Education Department under state Superintendent Janet Barresi used personnel in a questionable and likely inappropriate manner to solicit and spend more than $200,000 for an education conference in 2011.” NewsOK.com
StateImpact Oklahoma is a partnership among Oklahoma’s public radio stations and relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Donate online. | <urn:uuid:f743cab6-f84c-481b-90ab-a3c7790408b6> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://stateimpact.npr.org/oklahoma/argolinkroundups/budget-briefing-community-bankers-in-oklahoma-worried-about-crushing-regulations-meant-for-megabanks/ | 2014-04-18T13:21:58Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609533689.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005213-00396-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913009 | 248 | [
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What are DNA TAGs - Basic background knowledge (Aug/01/2006 )
Can anyone tell me what is the meaning of DNA TAGs?
i can't seem to find it anywhere on the internet
thx in advance
DNA tags are short nucleotide sequences which make it possible to identify genes which have been affected by mutagensis by PCR. (As far as I know this is mainly used in Arabidopsis) But I have also heard it as a generic term for GAL4-binding domain, Lac-Operator, etc.. so I guess the context is important.
The term "tag" is commonly used for an oligo that is attached to another oligo that is sequence specific. The sequence-specific part is hybridised to a PCR product or cDNA or whatever and may then be extended with labelled ddNTPs to identify a SNP. The tag part is then hybidised to a complementary sequence on a chip or bead or whatever to isolate the labelled product, which is then detected. Many genotyping assays use this method. The term can be generally used to identify some structure that is used to isolate DNA or proteins (eg. His-tag or GST-tag in the case of proteins). | <urn:uuid:9dfb9955-b3ba-4f1d-84b7-87b1b4474997> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.protocol-online.org/biology-forums/posts/18705.html | 2014-04-18T13:13:37Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609533689.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005213-00396-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949986 | 253 | [
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“WHY THE VIRGIN BIRTH IS SO IMPORTANT”
1. Open your Bible to Luke chapter 1. Please stand and read along silently as I read Luke 1.26-38:
26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.
28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.
2. “In these verses we have an amazing story - mysterious and glorious! For here is described how God sent a celestial being to the earth with the tidings of the impending incarnation of His Son, Jesus, the Saviour of the world.”
3. What I would like to do this evening, in light of my morning message that was titled “Where The Christmas Story Begins,” is reflect on the great miracle that made Christmas possible, the virgin birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.
4. The dictionary defines the word “virgin” as “a person who has never had sexual intercourse.” This is exactly the assertion that Mary made to the angel in our text: “How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?”
5. But there are skeptics who call into question the accuracy of the Bible and who challenge the doctrine of the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. During this exposition time I would like to respond to these infidels.
6. Turn in your Bible to Isaiah 7.14: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”
7. Never mind that Mary said “How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?” Never mind that Luke 1.27 records that the angel Gabriel was sent “To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.” There are people who deny that the Bible requires the virgin birth of Christ.
8. Allow me to address their errors: “The Hebrew word rendered ‘virgin’ [in Isaiah 7.14] is almah. It is the only biblical word that truly signifies a virgin. Prof. William Beck, who researched this matter with great precision, declared: ‘I have searched exhaustively for instances in which almah might mean a non-virgin or a married woman. There is no passage where almah is not a virgin. Nowhere in the Bible or elsewhere does almah mean anything but a virgin’ (“What Does Almah Mean,” The Lutheran News, April 3, 1967, p. 6).”
9. “Robert Dick Wilson, the incomparable Hebrew scholar who was proficient in forty-five biblically-related languages, declared that almah ‘never meant ‘young married woman,’’ and that the presumption of common law is that every almah is virtuous, unless she can be proved not to be (Princeton Theological Review, XXIV, 1926, p. 316).”
10. “Even the Jewish scholar, Cyrus H. Gordon, who made some of the archaeological discoveries at Ras Shamra, conceded that recent archaeological evidence confirms that almah means ‘virgin’ (The Journal of Bible and Religion, XXI, April, 1953, p. 106).”
11. So, where did this notion come from that almah is not referring to a virgin? “The notion that almah merely signifies a ‘young woman’ was first argued by the anti-Christian Jew, Trypho, in the mid-second century A.D. (Justin Martyr, Dialogue, 67).” But Trypho was hardly an unbiased scholar.
12. “Isaiah’s text plainly says ‘the virgin’ (note the definite article, denoting a specific virgin) ‘shall conceive.’ The passage does not speak of a virgin who would marry (thus surrendering her virginity) and then conceive. She conceives as a virgin. If this alluded to some contemporary of Isaiah, who was the mysterious lady? Were there two virgin births – one in Isaiah’s day, and another involving Jesus? There is no credibility to this view.”
13. “The suggestion made by some, that Matthew took Isaiah’s text and gave it an application alien to the original meaning, is unworthy of a correct view of Bible inspiration. Preachers today who take a text, extract it from its context, and make it a mere pretext for points they wish to establish, are strongly chastised and their credibility is compromised. Yet men, under the sway of modernism, do not hesitate to so charge God’s inspired apostle in the case of the virgin birth [of doing that very thing]. This is a shameful circumstance.”
14. To show how unassailable our position that Jesus was born of a virgin is, how thoroughly orthodox our conviction is, it should be noted that “The ‘church fathers’ were of one mind that Jesus was born of a virgin, and Isaiah 7:14 was appealed to as an Old Testament prophetic proof-text. For example, Irenaeus (A.D. 120-202) wrote:
“Wherefore also the Lord Himself gave us a sign, in the depth below, and in the height above, which man did not ask for, because he never expected that a virgin could conceive, or that it was possible that one remaining a virgin could bring forth a son, and that what was thus born should be ‘God with us’?” (Against Heresies, 19.3).
15. So, if there is such proof that almah in Isaiah 7.14 can only refer to a virgin, providing the Old Testament basis for the assertions in the New Testament that Jesus was born of the virgin named Mary, why are there so many people who question the virgin birth of Christ? My friends, the supernatural basis for the Christian faith has always been assailed by unbelievers.
16. “The earlier scholars of Christendom (e.g., Calvin, Lowth, Gill, Henry, Clarke, Alexander, Hengstenberg, etc.,) argued that Isaiah 7:14 was exclusively messianic in its import. In the mid-nineteenth century, however, as the influence of German rationalism made its presence felt, both in Europe and in America, even writers who were generally considered ‘conservative’ began to yield to the pressure. They thus suggested that perhaps Matthew only ‘applied’ Isaiah’s text to the circumstances, when, in reality, there was a primary application to a ‘young woman’ of the prophet’s own day.” Understand, there was no credible basis for such a view, but unbelievers will do anything to undermine the credibility of the Bible. They had a reason.
17. So, what is their reason for denying the virgin birth of Jesus Christ? “The virgin birth of Christ plays an absolutely fundamental role in the plan of redemption. It is the one event of Christ’s life that has received the greatest amount of attention next to His crucifixion and resurrection. Certainly, next to the resurrection, it is the most debated and controversial doctrine in Christology.”
18. Historically, it has been the case that the “Virgin birth is one of the criteria to determine one’s belief in the deity of Christ and supernatural. As a general rule, one who accepts the virgin birth as true will also accept the other miraculous elements in Scripture, while one who rejects it will also reject a considerable portion of the other miracles.” Therefore, “The doctrine of the virgin birth is important, not only because of its bearing on the doctrine of the person of Christ, but also because of its representative character.”
19. Generally speaking, then, infidelity typically shows up first with doubts about the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. Over time, doubts about other vital Christian doctrines will then appear. But the real issue is the credibility of the Word of God and the natural man’s unwillingness to take by faith what God asserts to be true.
20. Do you deny the virgin birth of Jesus Christ? You can do what you choose to do. But if you deny the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, be forthright enough to admit that you are not a Christian, recognize that your refusal to accept the doctrine of the virgin birth is an emotional decision that is not based upon sound reasoning and honest inquiry, and show enough strength of character and integrity to stand for what you believe by refusing to celebrate the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, what we call Christmas.
21. We who are Christians openly admit that our Christian faith rises or falls on, among other claims, the claim that our Savior was miraculously conceived of the Holy Ghost and born of a virgin named Mary. We know we cannot prove that Jesus as born of a virgin, so we simply declare it as an article of our faith, an integral foundation of our belief system, and a key issue that separates real Christians from pretenders.
22. For you to believe that Jesus was born of a virgin after being miraculously conceived, for it to be a conviction upon which you are willing to base your understanding of the Savior of our eternal and undying soul, will require that you accept the Bible as true in the face of this lost world’s rejection of the Bible.
23. Now brother Isenberger comes to lead us in a song before this evening’s sermon.
1. You recognize, do you not, that the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ was in all likelihood quite normal. There is no indication in God’s Word that Mary’s delivery of her firstborn child was in any way unusual or abnormal.
2. Of course, the angelic choir and the arrival of the shepherds that night and the wise men from the east a year or two later are not typical of most deliveries, but those things occurred after Jesus was delivered. They were not actually a part of the delivery.
3. The real miracle was when the Holy Ghost overshadowed that young virgin and when the third person of the triune Godhead performed some stupendous feat by which the second person of the triune Godhead took upon Himself the nature of man, though without sin.
4. Then, of course, the God-Man grew and developed within the womb of Mary for the proper amount of time. Then, “when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son.” When we refer to the virgin birth of Jesus Christ we are encompassing the entire process, from supernatural conception in the womb of a virgin all the way to the Christ child’s safe delivery nine months later, of Jesus Christ’s journey from heaven to earth.
5. If you liken the Christian faith to a building, a structure, then it is quite reasonable to admit that this structure of our faith is built upon a number of foundational pillars that are absolutely essential to the structure’s integrity. If one of the foundational pillars fails the entire structure collapses.
6. Orthodox Christianity, the Christianity that is contained on the pages of God’s holy Word (not that which is practiced by most so-called Christians these days), rises or falls on such key doctrines as the trinity, the deity of Jesus Christ, the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and so on. Central among these vital truths is the doctrine of the virgin birth.
7. Through the centuries there have arisen men who claimed to be Christians though they denied the virgin birth of Christ. Yet it is admitted by reasonable men, that things that are different are not the same. Therefore, if a central tenet of Christianity is the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, no matter what you call yourself, no matter how sentimental you may feel about the matter, if you do not believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born of the virgin, you are not a Christian.
8. I know I am preaching to the choir this evening. Nevertheless, it is important to pack the earth around the footing from time to time, to tighten up the screws from time to time, to torque once more the nuts holding things together from time to time. So, I want to spend a few minutes reminding everyone why the virgin birth of Jesus Christ is so important.
1A. First, THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS WAS PROPHESIED
1B. During our exposition we looked at Isaiah 7.14: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” It is generally recognized that Jewish commentators have never interpreted this passage as a prediction of the virgin birth of the Messiah. Indeed, prior to Christ’s earthly ministry Jewish scholars never saw this verse in any messianic light at all. But that only shows that, #1, the Christian doctrine of the virgin birth of Christ is unique and not derived from Judaism, and, #2, that Jewish scholars and commentators did not understand this prophecy. It was not until the angel informed Joseph in Matthew 1.23 that this Old Testament prophecy was correctly understood.
2B. But Isaiah 7.14 is not the only Old Testament prophecy wherein the virgin birth is predicted. Turn, please, to Genesis 3.15: “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” This verse is referred to by theologians as the “Protoevangel,” or the “First Gospel.” Notice the phrase “her seed.” “The ‘seed of the woman’ can only be an allusion to a future descendant of Eve who would have no human father. Biologically, a woman produces seed, and except in this case Biblical usage always speaks only of the seed of men. This promised Seed would, therefore, have to be miraculously implanted in the womb. In this way, He would not inherit the sin nature which would disqualify every son of Adam from becoming a Savior from sin. This prophecy thus clearly anticipates the future virgin birth of Christ.”
3B. So, though it was completely missed by Jewish scholars, and was likely not grasped by the prophets of God who wrote those portions of Scripture, there can be no doubt that the doctrine of the virgin birth of the Messiah was predicted in the Old Testament, in two places, and the assertion was made in the New Testament that the birth of Jesus Christ fulfilled the prophecies. That makes the virgin birth of Jesus Christ important.
2A. Second, THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS WAS PLANNED
1B. In Psalm 119.89, the psalmist wrote, “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.” It must, therefore, be recognized that during the centuries when God sent men to write portions of Scripture those men did not originate the portions of God’s Word they wrote. Neither did God originate those portions of Scripture as those men were writing them. God’s Word has always been a settled matter in heaven. When men were sent to write portions of the Word of God they were simply tools used by God to convey to man what was already settled in heaven, and what had been settled in heaven from eternity past.
2B. As well, to corroborate this truth, consider Ephesians 1.11, which reads, “according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.” The thing to note in Ephesians 1.11, as it applies to our concerns this evening, is that God works things after the counsel of His Own will. That is, the decisions that God makes are decisions that were made in the counsel chambers of the Godhead.
3B. Thus, with God’s Word being a settled matter forever, and the decisions that God makes being decisions that He makes after seeking His Own counsel (meaning that such counsel and the decisions that followed such counsel took place in eternity past), the fact that the virgin birth of Christ was an integral part of the eternal plan and purpose of God cannot be argued against. That makes the virgin birth of Jesus Christ important, does it not? I mean, if something is important to God then it is important, is it not? And if something is important enough to be written about from eternity past, and if it is important enough to be decided about from eternity past, then it is important, is it not?
3A. Third, THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS WAS REQUIRED
1B. We have already touched on this just a bit, but further elaboration is beneficial, I think. Allow me to explain what I do not mean when I say that the virgin birth of Jesus Christ was required. The Bible teaches that salvation is by grace, does it not? Being of grace means that God was not in any way obligated to save a single sinner. Being of grace means that Jesus did not have to suffer and bleed and die for the sins of others. He could have justifiably punished every sinner without saving a single one. Thus, nothing associated with the redemption of lost men was in any way required by God. He is sovereign, meaning His will is completely free and unencumbered. But, having embarked upon a course of action to demonstrate His grace and mercy by saving undeserving sinners, it became necessary for His Son to be born of a virgin.
2B. The concept of the kinsman-redeemer is found in the Old Testament book of Leviticus and is illustrated in the lives of Boaz and Ruth in Ruth chapters 3 and 4. My friends, to redeem another one must be a near kinsman, one must be willing to redeem, and one must be able to redeem (which is to say, be able to pay the price of redemption). But you must understand that the passages dealing with the kinsman-redeemer in the Old Testament are types and shadows of the fulfillment that is found only in Jesus Christ.
3B. Because of man’s sin he stands in need of redemption from the marketplace of sin. Only a kinsman is qualified to redeem the sinner. But the sinner’s kinsman who is himself a sinner is thereby unqualified. Therefore, what is needed is one who is a near kinsman, but who is not himself tainted by sin. Such could only have been accomplished by the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, whereby the eternal Son of the living God took upon Himself man’s nature without taking upon Himself man’s sin (because, being virgin born, God is His father rather than some sinful man).
4B. Being the virgin born Son of God, He is fully man and of near kin to men, so that He might redeem men. His willingness to redeem us was established by His willingness to leave heaven’s glory to become a man, first, and then by His willingness to take upon Himself the sins of others that He might suffer God’s just punishment for those sins. And shedding His blood a ransom for all demonstrated His ability to pay the ransom price to redeem us.
5B. Is the virgin birth of Jesus Christ important? Had Jesus not been virgin born He would have been unqualified to mediate between sinners and God. Had Jesus not been virgin born He would have been unable to satisfy God’s demands on our behalf. So, if your eternal destiny, an eternity of bliss versus an eternity of wrath, is important to you . . . then the virgin birth of Jesus Christ is important.
4A. Finally, THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS ACTUALLY OCCURRED
1B. Though it seems to be less and less important to people every day, facts are facts, history is history, and what happened really did happen. Is it important that what God’s Word says happened actually happened?
2B. Genesis 3.15 predicted using words easier to understand after the fact than before the fact that the Savior would be virgin born. Isaiah 7.14 predicted using words easier to understand after the fact than before the fact that the Savior would be virgin born.
3B. But the angel who was sent to Joseph had a message declaring to him that Jesus would be virgin born. And the angel, we are told in Luke, was sent to a virgin. As well, Paul certainly communicated to the Galatian churches that Jesus was virgin born. He said he was “made of a woman.” So, we have an angel who thought Jesus would be virgin born, Joseph thought Jesus would be virgin born, a virgin who was quite sure her child was virgin born, and the apostles Matthew, Luke and Paul who were so convinced that their Lord was virgin born that they were willing to die martyr’s deaths for Him.
4B. And then there is the credibility of God’s Word. Does not Romans 3.4 say, “let God be true, but every man a liar”? Does not Titus 1.2 say, “God, that cannot lie”? Does not Second Timothy 3.16 say, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable”? Does not Psalm 119.160 declare that “Thy word is true”? Did not Peter affirm that “We have also a more sure word of prophecy”?
5B. My friends, if Jesus was not born of a virgin then a great many people were simply wrong. Mary was wrong, but how could a virgin not know that she was truly a virgin? The angel was wrong, but he was a messenger dispatched from the very throne of God. The apostles Matthew, Luke and Paul were wrong, but they were the hand picked envoys of the Son of God. And the Bible is wrong. But Jesus prayed to the Father, in John 17.17, “thy word is truth.”
1. So you see, if Jesus Christ is not virgin born everything unravels. If Jesus is not virgin born we have no kinsman-redeemer, we have no atoning sacrifice that is acceptable to God, we have no eternal purpose of God, we have no reliable prophecies, we have no infallible Bible, we have no authoritative prophets or apostles, we have no Son of God, we have no trinity, we have no Christian faith.
2. Now, I know people who claim to be Christians while denying the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. But they have not thought this issue through to its conclusion, they have not properly reflected on the matter, they have not considered the interdependence of one Bible doctrine upon another. The fact is, if you deny the virgin birth you cannot possibly be a Christian. If there is no virgin birth then the Christian faith is a fraud.
3. So, is the virgin birth of Christ important? The virgin birth is only important if you want a Savior, if you want your sins forgiven, if you want a trustworthy Bible, if you want sure prophecies, if you want . . . . Well, figure it out for yourself if the virgin birth of Jesus Christ is important.
4. Whatever you decide, I promise you that there will come a day when you and I will be agreed that the virgin birth of Jesus Christ is important. I just hope for you that that day does not come too late.
Norval Geldenhuys, Commentary On The Gospel of Luke, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1951), page 74.
Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, (New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1996), page 2124.
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Ibid. 12/13/03
Galatians 4.4
Henry M. Morris, The Defender’s Study Bible, (Grand Rapids, MI: World Publishing, 1995), page 13.
Ephesians 2.8
1 Timothy 2.6
Matthew 1.23
Luke 1.27
Galatians 4.4
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Just Released: Justin Bieber's "Pray" Music Video
Justin Bieber is having trouble falling asleep at night, and it's not because some girl broke his heart. Even though Bieber has only existed on this planet for a mere 16 years, his new music video for "Pray" displays a great deal maturity and compassion for the desitute.
The video follows Bieber bringing joy to hospital patients while splicing in images of people struggling with the economic recession, the earthquake in Haiti, and ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It's a complicated world out there, and the young Canadian is making sure we don't forget it.
Oh, and the video also contains some concert footage of Bieber floating above the crowd in some sort of heart-shaped contraption, because, hey, he still is a pop star and the ladies sure do love him.
The track comes from Bieber's new album, "My Worlds Acoustic."
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Maoming Featured Food:
Huazhou Baiqie Chicken
Concerning Huazhou Baiqie Chicken, people in the west of Guangdong province even in the
whole Guangdong province all speak highly of it.
Because of the high reputation of Huazhou Baiqie Chicken, all the restaurants and hotels in Chenghe Town in Huazhou have done business with the brand of Baiqie Chicken to earn big money. In recent years, there have been tens of hotels and large stalls in the urban area of Maoming City, which mainly depend on the brand of Huazhou Baiqie Chicken to develop. Even in Shenzhen, Zhuhai, one can find the brand sign of Genuine Huazhou Baiqie Chicken to attract guests who come to eat.
Genzi Rice Noodles With Beef Sirloin: Fresh, Smooth And Brittle
Genzi Rice Noodles with Beef Sirloin is different from the general traditional rice noodles with beef sirloin. Concerning Genzi Rice Noodles with Beef Sirloin, best beef sirloin is chosen to be slowly boiled with moderate fire in a pan together with Chinese anise, dried orange peel, and enclosed fragrance. The beef sirloin is cut as soon as it is sold to the guest as it is liked.
Xinyi Huaixiang Chicken
Xinyi Huaixiang Chicken is listed as one of the three famous chickens in Guangdong. Among the special cook chickens, most famous are Gaozhou Salted Chicken, Huazhou Sesame Oil Chicken, Steamed Chicken and Xinyi Beggar Chicken.
Xinyi Long Used To Eat Rice Noodles
Long Used to Eat Rice Noodles has attracted many guests from all directions because it is smooth, tender and soft.
Long Used to Eat Rice Noodles, Shiguanzui, is actually a kind of rice noodles, of which Chidong Town’s Shiguanzui has a history of more than 100 years.
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Lewis Hamilton rediscovered his form in qualifying for the Korean Grand Prix, breaking the stranglehold Red Bull have enjoyed on pole position since November 2010.
It is his 19th career pole position and his first for 27 Grands Prix, stretching back to Canada 2010.
Although Red Bull’s tactics showed that they had accepted they were not going to be able to beat McLaren to pole, Vettel nevertheless managed to fight Hamilton and to split the McLarens on the grid.
Hamilton was on sensational form, setting a time three tenths of a second faster than team mate Jenson Button and squeezing out Sebastian Vettel to second place.
The last non-Red Bull pole was Nico Hulkenberg in Brazil last November.
Despite his scintillating lap, Hamilton was not triumphant, quite the reverse in fact, “I’m happy and very proud of what the team have achieved over the last two races,” said a subdued Hamilton, who was mindful that the race is the important part. He clearly feels that this weekend offers him a chance for redemption after a troubled season and a chance to put right much of what has gone wrong in recent months, particularly his off form performance in Japan last weekend.
Jenson Button had to change chassis on Saturday morning, but still managed to set the fastest time in the final practice session.
Felipe Massa outqualified Fernando Alonso despite using an old front wing, while the Spaniard had a new development wing. He aborted his final run.
In Q1, Red Bull were the only top team to use a set of supersoft tyres, a very unusual tactic, which they used again in Q2, their idea being to save three new sets of soft tyres for the race. Meanwhile McLaren had a good margin at the front.
Williams left it late to go out and it misfired for Barrichello, who had to back out of his final lap and ended up being eliminated.
Kovalainen was the fastest of the new teams, just under a second off Barrichello’s time. Team mate Trulli was well off, blaming the lack of the new power steering system. Ricciardo didn’t set a lap time, he was told that the car was ailing on his out lap with a water leak.
In Q2 Massa had to do a second run using up a set of supersofts. The Brazilian was using the standard front wing while Alonso had a new development wing.
Force India were again on the pace, with both cars making it into Q3, while Michael Schumacher was eliminated after doing a single run with a vibration.
Vitaly Petrov got himself into Q3, but Bruno Senna on his birthday was well off his pace in 15th place.
In Q3 Hamilton had it all under control, narrowly beating Vettel on the first runs and opening up a larger margin in the second runs.
As far as the tactics for the race are concerned, McLaren’s drivers have done five laps on one set of soft tyres, while Red Bull has three new sets of softs for the race, so they have a slight advantage there if they all need to do three stints on softs. It could be a three or four stop strategy tomorrow and clearly with very little dry running on which to base predictions, strategists will be feeling their way in the race.
The first stop will come early to get off the worn supersofts, but from there on stretching out the soft tyre stints will be key.
KOREAN GRAND PRIX, Qualifying
1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren 1m35.820s
2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1m36.042s + 0.222
3. Jenson Button McLaren 1m36.126s + 0.306
4. Mark Webber Red Bull 1m36.468s + 0.648
5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m36.831s + 1.011
6. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m36.980s + 1.160
7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m37.754s + 1.934
8. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m38.124s + 2.304
9. Paul di Resta Force India no time
10. Adrian Sutil Force India no time
11. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso 1m38.315s + 1.789
12. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m38.354s + 1.828
13. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso 1m38.508s + 1.982
14. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber 1m38.775s + 2.249
15. Bruno Senna Renault 1m38.791s + 2.265
16. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1m39.189s + 2.663
17. Sergio Perez Sauber 1m39.443s + 2.917
18. Rubens Barrichello Williams 1m39.538s + 2.013
19. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus 1m40.522s + 2.997
20. Jarno Trulli Lotus 1m41.101s + 3.576
21. Timo Glock Virgin 1m42.091s + 4.566
22. Jerome D’Ambrosio Virgin 1m43.483s + 5.958
23. Tonio Liuzzi HRT 1m43.758s + 6.233
24. Daniel Ricciardo HRT no time | <urn:uuid:45137508-1480-49c5-92bb-04ad782357e2> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2011/10/hamilton-breaks-red-bull-pole-stranglehold-at-korean-grand-prix/ | 2014-04-19T19:42:50Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537376.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00428-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942261 | 1,167 | [
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The Advanced Certificate Program in Research Ethics for Central and Eastern Europe, a collaboration of Union Graduate College of Mount Sinai School of Medicine (USA) and Vilnius University (Lithuania), which is supported by the Fogarty International Center, has released its first downloadable graduate-level course in international bioethics.
This online course provides students with an overview of the historical and theoretical foundations of bioethics. The materials are provided in Moodle format, an open-source (free) course management system. Therefore, anyone interested in providing bioethics education is welcome to review, adapt, use, and disseminate the materials.
The Advanced Certificate Program plans to release two additional online courses for public use, International Research Ethics 1 and 2. In addition, translated versions—Croatian, Georgian, Lithuanian, Romanian, Russian, and Serbian—of selected course materials will be available for download soon. To download the international bioethics course or to read the overview and sample syllabus, visit the Advanced Certificate Program website.
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June 13 – 16, 2014
San Juan, Puerto Rico | <urn:uuid:b403dcbe-76be-40bd-af7e-933c0bbe970f> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.drugabuse.gov/international/bioethics-education-tools-now-available | 2014-04-23T22:36:39Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223203841.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032003-00492-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.866671 | 232 | [
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SQC for Excel™ is a Microsoft® Excel add-in program for developing statistical Quality Control (SQC) and Statistical Process Control (SPC) calculations, reports and charts automatically. The main difference between the basic and Premium version of SQC for Excel™ is more functionality, lets go over them one by one.
Please read the following page and fill this table. If you have answered Yes any of the below questions, please order the Premium SQC for Excel™ version.
|Functionality||Yes / No|
|1||Partial Component Analysis (PCA).||[____]|
|2||Nested SQC Charts||[____]|
|4||Changing and Saving Charts format||[____]|
Statistical process control, SPC, is being implemented across the industry without consideration to the multivariable nature of the measurements.
The statistical process control, SPC, and statistical quality control, SQC, foundations are based upon the detection of a statistically significant change in a given process. When a process can be described by a single measurement, such as making an object with a desired length, implementation of these techniques becomes an easy task.
However in the majority of the industries, a given process such as a reactor can not be described completely by a single measurement. Implementation of SQC and SPC technology will yield hundreds of control charts, which will identify some causes, but not the status of the process.
The multivariable nature of processes makes it difficult to provide the unit operator with the information with respect to the health of the process based on SQC and SPC technology due to the number of charts generated.
The PCA technique implemented in the Premium SQC for Excel™ reduce a large multivariable system (i.e. 10 tags with 200 measurements) to a manageable system (i.e. 2 tags with 200 measurement) while preserving most of the information in the original system. Suppose that you have system with 5 measurements as it is shown in the figure below.
Application of normal SQC charts will yield to out of control charts. However, with 3 simple clicks.
- Select the data from the 40th to 140th measurement and Start SQC for Excel™
- Click OK for the data type
- Click OK for the data headers
The SQC chart is in control.
Then select all data (40th to 200th ) and re-do the PCA. Observe that the ***
Look at the SQC PCA chart, it takes off after 141 sample, and checking the data shows the first line is draping rapidly.
If you add this functionality to you alarm systems, you can detect run away measurements very easily.
The question is: do you have multi-variable data? If so you should purchase Premium SQC for Excel™.
Suppose a process generates 15 batches of a product. For each batch, 2 samples are taken and the thickness of each sample is measured 2 times.
Using the standard SQC charting techniques described in the previous sections, we can analyze the process using X-Bar and S Charts:
Analyzing the above data yields the following X Bar and S charts:
Question: is your process out of control? With the above technique, you can not be certain.
Considering the above charts, the X-Bar chart is severely out-of-control. In interpreting these charts, one should realize that the control limits in the X-Bar chart were calculated on the basis of the standard deviations within the subgroup on the basis of the within-sample variability. The subsequent subgroups, however, are not only subject to within-sample variability, but also to between sample to sample and batch to batch variability.
What are the sources of variation in a product response? There are three major sources of variation in a process:
1. Measurement variability
2. Sampling variability (within batch)
3. Batch to batch variability
Each of the three sources of variability adds variation or error to the results. The sample pulled from the batch and tested yields to:
E = X - Xbar (Average)
E is the error,
X is the measurement and
Xbar (Average) is the population average.
The overall error has three components corresponding to three sources of variations:
E = E Batch + E Sample + E Measurement
E Batch is the error caused by batch to batch variability,
E Sample is the error caused by batch to sampling variability and
E Measurement is the error caused by batch to measurement variability.
By definition, these errors have zero averages and can be assumed to be represented as normal distributions with fixed variances.
The standard deviation, s , calculated from the data represents an estimate of the combination of these error components.
s 2= s Batch 2 + s Sample 2 + s Measurement2
s 2 is the total estimated variable
s Batch 2 is the batch-to-batch estimated variance
s Sample 2 is the sample estimated variance
s Measurement 2 is the measurement variance
This is lots of statistics, however, the SQC for Excel™ Premium version makes this very easy to handle.
However, you need to run SQC for Excel™ Premium version and you get the following chart:
Now you can say you are in control. If you have multiple sources of data you should consider Premium SQC for Excel™.
The Premium SQC for Excel™ updates all worksheets selected in the Analysis dialog. To ensure that the Premium SQC for Excel™ program does all calculations on time, please follow these steps:
|Start and Stop Button||These buttons Start and stop Premium SQC for Excel™.||Do not use now.|
|Trigger||External: The content of the cell B3 is changed externally. Internal: The program works at frequency entered in cell B4.||Select Internal trigger and enter 00:01:00 for 1 minute in cell B4.|
|Data||The data to be used by Premium SQC for Excel™.||Enter =Now() in cell B8.|
|Output||The data to be sent to the External source.||Enter the UCL and LCL from the calculation worksheet. B13 à =Calculation!C12B14 à =Calculation!C11|
|Reports and Saving||This option allows the user to print a report and save the data to a disk.||Select both options.|
Do the following steps to Start the SQC_DDE:
Once the external data is being forwarded to the Online.XLS, you can Start the Premium SQC for Excel™ program with the following steps:
In the Online worksheet click on the Start button.
Note: You need to click the STOP button to stop the online program. In case of emergency press the ESCAPE key and then click on the END button. The ESCAPE key will make the program terminate incorrectly and you will need to Start over again.
SQC for Excel™ automatically updates all relevant calculations and charts in the online spreadsheet.
Special! Free Choice of Complete Excel Training Course OR Excel Add-ins Collection on all purchases totaling over $70.00. ALL purchases totaling over $148.00 gets you BOTH! Purchases MUST be made via this site. Send payment proof to [email protected] 31 days after purchase date.
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Convert Excel Spreadsheets To Webpages | Trading In Excel | Construction Estimators | Finance Templates & Add-ins Bundle | Code-VBA | Smart-VBA | Print-VBA | Excel Data Manipulation & Analysis | Convert MS Office Applications To...... | Analyzer Excel | Downloader Excel | MSSQL Migration Toolkit | Monte Carlo Add-in | Excel Costing Templates | <urn:uuid:9005c490-6274-400d-ab39-fc74138f7fcd> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.ozgrid.com/Services/sqcprem.htm | 2014-04-23T22:06:45Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223203841.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032003-00492-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.868593 | 1,795 | [
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Despite holding home-ice advantage, the Phoenix Coyotes were never supposed to pose much of a challenge for the Los Angeles Kings -- not after the Kings needed just nine games to dispatch the Western Conference's top two teams in the previous rounds.
But there were moments as Game 5 went deeper into overtime where it looked like the Coyotes would take the Kings to their longest series yet.
In the end, no.
Well, technically yes: The Western Conference Final was the Kings' longest series by virtue of Game 5 stretching 17:42 into overtime, after the Kings needed just 4:27 of Game 5 overtime to get rid of the Vancouver Canucks and needed merely four games to swat away the St. Louis Blues.
But all told, the Kings beat the third-seeded Coyotes the same way they mowed through the first and second seeds: A balanced and methodical attack, excellent penalty killing -- including yet another shorthanded goal -- and the occasional dose of game-saving goaltending from Jonathan Quick.
Quick helped the Kings withstand a slow start to Game 5 with a stunning pinwheel save on Radim Vrbata, just as he has on several occasions this postseason until the Kings took control of a given game.
The Kings outshot the Coyotes 51-41 in Game 5, just as they outshot Phoenix by about 10 shots in every game of the series.
The Kings blitzed the Coyotes in the first two games on the road, just as they blitzed their home-advantage victims in the previous two series.
And once home, the Kings extended the series lead to 3-0, just as they had against the Canucks and Blues, too. A 3-0 series lead is the death knell in hockey, so the rest was just details.
Aside from Jeff Carter's hat trick in Game 2 -- when L.A. won 4-0, outshooting Phoenix 40-24 -- Carter and fellow ex-Flyer Mike Richards did not have a stellar series. But it didn't matter. The Kings are deep and balanced enough to get supplemental help from many sources while Anze Kopitar and captain Dustin Brown lead the way up front, Drew Doughty anchors their excellent blueline, and Quick cleans up the rare mistakes.
Kopitar and Brown lead the Kings in scoring, but for once they are not alone. When it wasn't Carter on one night, it was checking winger Dwight King -- who had four goals in the series -- on another. King scored the late winner in Game 3. Dustin Penner woke up again to score the series-clinching winner in Game 5.
As a result, the Kings have won 12 of 14 playoff games, outscoring opponents 41-22 overall (including four empty-net goals) and outscoring the Coyotes 19-8. A penalty kill that has eliminated over 91 percent of opponents' power plays was key again in Game 5, killing off a 5-on-3 that might have given Phoenix breathing room. A Kings power play that is clicking at under 10 percent hasn't hurt them, as this team has routinely outplayed and outshot opponents at even strength.
If the Coyotes were going to scare the Kings, it was going to come first through the goaltending of Mike Smith, who like Quick, put up a Vezina-worthy season. Smith certainly did his part, earning the shutout in the Coyotes' only win in Game 4 and facing over 40 shots on multiple occasions.
But despite Smith's best efforts and Coyotes captain Shane Doan's two goals in Game 4 to key their only win, the Coyotes simply didn't pose enough of a challenge for a Kings team that looks to be the Stanley Cup favorite.
There's no shame in that though. The Coyotes did no worse than the Canucks and Blues before them. They've merely been ousted by the team that should hoist the Stanley Cup in 2012. | <urn:uuid:6d5ed092-c459-4e2f-8625-73129f082b37> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2012/5/23/3038061/los-angeles-kings-phoenix-coyotes-stanley-cup-final-2012 | 2014-04-25T07:06:14Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223210034.18/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032010-00524-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97071 | 795 | [
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Today we announced our series C funding, $33 million of new investment from four new firms and all of our current investors. We are humbled and honored by the trust our new partners have placed in us, and are equally grateful for the relationship we have had with our existing investors, all of whom have done much over the last several years to guide us to this point.
At Janrain we have been obsessed with authentication, identity, and profile management for many years. We’ve been fortunate to find a business model that allows us to continue to grow and invest in a deep, focused, best-of-breed platform approach solution. What was just a handful of software engineers five years ago is now a team of nearly 200 spread across functional roles and geography. We are on a continuous innovation and delivery cycle. And yet at the same time, our mission and thesis have remained unaltered for the past three years.
Our new investment round will allow us to continue to scale quickly yet responsibly, while also giving us the ability to make some decisions that will have longer term payback. All areas of the company will expand, but we will be making a disproportionate investment in customer success.
We find ourselves in front of a huge opportunity, with a great product, extremely well capitalized, staffed with 180 of the smartest and most pleasant people you’d want to work with across the globe and a great set of partners united to help us build the best company possible for our customers. Let’s go!
- Forbes: Janrain Raises $33 Million To Supercharge Social Media
- TechCrunch: Janrain Raises $33M From Salesforce, And Others For Social Log-In Management Platform
- Oregonian: Janrain confirms $33 million venture round, plans to accelerate growth
- Fortune: Venture capital Deals
- CMSWire: Social Login Provider Janrain Raises New Round of $20 Million
- ClickZ: Janrain Raises $33M Series C Round
- socaltech.com: DFJ Frontier, Anthem Boost Janrain
- techrockies: EPIC Ventures Joins In JanRain Investment | <urn:uuid:42fa17b0-4750-45a4-b7ad-089347e987a9> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://janrain.com/blog/new-funding-positions-janrain-and-our-customers-for-success/ | 2014-04-17T09:35:22Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609527423.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005207-00036-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93255 | 439 | [
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Originally Posted by Armsden&Son
Cool, you ever get much business coloring? I have always wondered about that....
Not really much for lawns. I sub that out, because I'm not very good at it, its messy and I don't wanna spend for equipment I don't have room for.
I do keep a quart of green lawnger and a 32oz hand sprayer mixed up to match dog spots on the nicer properties. The color matches bermuda pretty easily, but what I have doesn't match well with fescue.
I've had good luck with coloring mulch though. Mainly on cleanups and first cuts. When there's berries, dead grass clippings and other little pieces of plant trash mixed in, just give it a light coat. I don't use it as much to renew the mulch, as I do to hide the crap in it haha.
Posted via Mobile Device | <urn:uuid:c0507740-64a5-4d36-ac55-c7e7878febb7> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.lawnsite.com/showpost.php?p=4865549&postcount=14 | 2014-04-17T09:50:06Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609527423.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005207-00036-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981699 | 190 | [
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Is the Official GTA V Game Guide Worth Buying? Official GTA V Strategy Guide slated for release in September, 2013.
Even though the Internet provides nearly every resource a gamer needs to enjoy the upcoming and much-anticipated “Grand Theft Auto V” game. BradyGames, the same company that released previous strategy guides for the series, will be releasing two versions for this game. The paperback version is the “Signature series” version, while the “Limited Edition” is available in hardcover.
The guide is not a make-or-break purchase. You won’t be stuck on a mission for days if you don’t have the guide since the Internet allows you to connect to thousands of other gamers who can offer assistance. Message boards and social networking also make it simple to get cheat codes and help at every stage of the game.
The guide is nice to have if you’re a planner and want to have a guide to assist you the moment you get stuck. You’ll know what to do from the minute you start the game. You might also want to purchase it if you’re a collector and want to add the latest edition to your ever-growing collection of strategy guides.
Get more informations about these two guides: | <urn:uuid:beafe005-546d-40c2-ba41-a8f9e3383713> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.gta5tv.com/official-guide/ | 2014-04-18T18:28:19Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609535095.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005215-00068-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.909505 | 265 | [
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Redhawks confident heading into playoffs
Monroe High's boys will enter the 1A basketball playoffs brimming with confidence after winning the Rocky River Conference title on their home court.
The Redhawks have now won nine straight after holding off Cuthbertson for a 56-52 win in Friday's final.
Monroe has won 14 of its last 15 games to improve to 21-4. Beating a powerhouse program like Cuthbertson for the second time this season gives the red-hot Redhawks even more momentum heading into Monday's first round of the playoffs.
"It's a good motivating factor going into the playoffs," said Monroe coach Johnny Sowell, who led his team to the 1A state title in 2010.
Monroe's Quay Chambers, a 6-3 senior, started at power forward as a freshman on the 2010 team.
Chambers now plays center for the Redhawks, who overcome their lack of size with a steady diet of drives to the basket and 3-point makes.
Dikembe White, Garry Parker, Jaylan Barbour and Brandon Roddy combined to make 12 of Monroe's 13 3-pointers in a semifinal win over Piedmont on Thursday.
"We had four guys shooting with confidence (Thursday)," Sowell said. "Dikembe got his stroke back. He didn't have it and he got it back at the right time."
White averaged 19.3 points per game in the tournament, including 22 in the win over CHS.
Defensively, the Redhawks compensate for being small by using their athleticism to keep pressure on the ball on play the passing lanes.
Most players don't throw the ball inside even if they have a big man, so their isn't much penalty for being short in the post.
And because the 3-point shot is so popular, the long rebounds that come off actually favor the quicker Redhawks — who often turn them into fast-break opportunities.
The Cavaliers have been playing without their best player, junior point guard Shelton Mitchell (knee injury), but Sowell felt they were playing some of their best basketball of the season without him.
"We feel like their ball movement has been better without Shelton and we talked to our guys about that before the game," Sowell said. "They've been playing very well without him."
Mitchell, who has already committed to Wake Forest, fits the modern mold of a scoring point guard.
But there can be a downside to having a superstar, because sometimes his teammates end up standing around and watching him too much.
The Cavaliers finished second in the 2A playoffs last year, and are on a mission to win it all this year.
They can only do that if Mitchell's knee is healthy, and if the guys who have raised their level of play in his absence continue to stay aggressive.
Chitwood's contributionIt was a shame to see Cuthbertson senior shooting guard Zach Chitwood go down with a knee injury in the late stages of a blowout win over Forest Hills in the semifinals.
Chitwood has been starting in Mitchell's absence, and emerged into a weapon on the 3-point line.
Chitwood was seconds from checking out of the game for the last night when his knee gave out Thursday night.
The Cavaliers are still waiting to find out the extent of Chitwood's injury, but he didn't dress out for Friday's final and his career could be over.
With Mitchell and Chitwood sidelined, the Cavs are thin. They played eight in the title game, but went with a six-man rotation for most of the night.
Even with their injuries, the Cavs still have a very good backcourt with Emmitt Afam playing point guard and Cornelius Stradford at two guard.
Afam is a four-year starter who can play either guard spot and Stradford has averaged 15.5 points in the last two games. Both are also excellent defenders.
Salute to the Spartans
After losing almost all of their offense from last year's conference championship team, this looked like a rebuilding year for Sun Valley's boys.
Instead, the Spartans won a share of the Southern Carolina Conference regular-season title for the third year in a row, and repeated as league tournament champs.
The Spartans sputtered early with a 1-3 start, but have won six straight and nine of their last 11 to improve to 17-8.
Sun Valley emerged as the best team in the SCC despite losing all three double-digit scorers, and that's the sign of a successful program.
"We didn't want to settle on making it to the championship game," Spartans coach Keith Mason said. "We want to prove to everybody we were capable of winning it. We wanted to make a statement."
— E-J correspondent Ash Hutto contributed to this story
Friday's late box scores
SCC title games
Sun Valley boys 70, Anson 43
BJ Tyson 6 2-3 15, William Smith 4 0-0 11, Stephen Minter 3 1-4 7, Darren Murray 1 1-2 4, Devonta Teal 3 0-0 6, J'Main Harris 0 0-0 0, Jaquailin Roberson 0 0-0 0, Terrill Tillman 0 0-0 0, Ray Davis 0 0-0 0, Alphonzia Hill 0 0-0 0, Triston Starling 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 4-11 43.
Sun Valley (17-8)
Kendall Ratliff 5 7-13 17, Hakeem Polk 5 2-6 10, Kevin Saxton 5 1-1 11, Isaiah Blanchett 3 0-0 6, Jacquez Johnson 4 1-3 9, Daquan Moody 2 2-2 7, Tony Williams 2 0-0 4, Ty Thompson 0 2-2 2, Malcolm Cumberbatch 1 0-0 2, Jimmy Hudgens 0 0-0 0, Justin Miller 0 0-0 0, Ty Perry 0 0-0 0, Justin Miller 0 0-0 0. Totals 27 15-27 70.
Anson^7^12^16^8 - 43
Sun Valley^18^17^17^18 - 70
3-pointers: A 5 (Smith 3); SV 1 (Moody). Rebounds: A 30 (Minter 14, Tyson 10); SV 39 (Polk 8, Saxton 8). Assists: A 7 (Tyson 6); SV 13 (Saxton 6). Steals: A 5 (Tyson 4); SV 7 (Saxton 4). Blocks: A 4 (Minter 2); SV 5 (Blancheett 3)
Porter Ridge girls 55, Weddington 42
Stephanie Watts 3 7-9 13, Jada Craig 3 0-0 6, Bailee Carter 2 2-2 7, Kelsie Croal 4 0-0 8, Olivia Jenkins 2 0-0 4, Melanie Wierzbicki 2 0-3 4, Molly Mann 0 0-0 0, Emily Schill 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 9-14 42.
Porter Ridge (22-3)
Jada Huntley 4 9-10 18, Jasmine Huntley 5 2-6 14, Kara Cunningham 2 0-0 4, Justice McKinney 1 0-0 2, Bobbie Jones 1 5-11 7, Jade Jones 3 2-2 8, Meghan Madanski 1 0-0 2, Hannah Smith 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 18-29 55.
Weddington^8^15^4^15 - 42
Porter Ridge^4^11^18^22 - 55
3-pointers: W 1 (Carter); PR 3 (Jas. Huntley 2, Jad. Huntley). Rebounds: W 29 (Watts 12, Carter 6); PR 37 (Jones 10, McKinney 9). Assists: W 9 (Craig 5); PR 6 (Jad. Huntley). Steals: W 8 (Watts 2, Craig 2, Croal 2); PR 15 (Jas. Huntley 3, McKinney 3). Blocks: W 6 (Watts 3); PR 3 (Jad. Huntley, McKinney, Jones). | <urn:uuid:fdd4dd5f-ae49-4bb1-b3ff-c61a671bf1f9> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.enquirerjournal.com/sports/localsports/x670456742/Redhawks-confident-heading-into-playoffs | 2014-04-20T00:40:11Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537804.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00100-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938069 | 1,736 | [
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The sky is on fire as the Deer at Sunset gather at the water's edge. This bold, oversized triptych wall art set features a lakeside scene with the silhouettes of trees and deer near a tranquil lake. The sunset blazes across the surface of the water in colors of red and orange. Lithograph artworks are laminated on wooden plaques. Each wall art panel is 11"x17".
• Three-piece wall art set (one of each)
• Made in the USA
• From art by Jean Plout
• Triptych art depicts a stunning sunset and lake scene FREE Standard Shipping on this item! Click Here for Details.
Deer at Sunset Wall Art Panels are lithograph artworks laminated on wooden plaques. Made in the USA.
Keep artwork out of direct sunlight. Dust with a soft, dry cloth. Do not use polishes, chemicals, or abrasives. | <urn:uuid:121aa0c1-bc57-49ef-83fa-d58e3e55b0f8> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.touchofclass.com/deer-at-sunset-wall-art-set-multi-warm-set-of-three/p/H750-001/ | 2014-04-20T01:13:46Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537804.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00100-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.904007 | 191 | [
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CrtH versus CrtD for crit builds
View Single Post
Join Date: Jun 2012
01-24-2013, 01:26 AM
Originally Posted by
k accx3 weapons don't bleed that much over anymore.
The .xls is the actual max crit chance and severity you get from acc modifier. The max listed bonuses you can get is .25% critical chance and 1% critical severity. That is what the game uses! so your accx3 weapons are really really over rated. The only reason you would need accx3 weapons is the Bio neurals in No Win Scenario. HATE THOSE BIOS!!! I'm not kidding either you need accx2 or higher otherwise you see a wall of misses when shooting at those bios.
CrtH is king. Consoles and dhc's inante crit severity and attack pattern alpha gives enough severity you might as well use [acc] [crit]x2 for your weapons.
Very interesting, it really has felt like my accx3 weapons weren't hitting hard enough, this explains it. | <urn:uuid:db152c37-b68b-4c1f-a3e5-8f74b81c67d5> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=7616791&postcount=33 | 2014-04-21T08:07:20Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609539665.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005219-00132-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.915689 | 223 | [
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The combination of traditional printing inks and inkjet for increasing colour choices for artists.
The International Conference Printing Technology SPb'06, St Petersburg, Russia, 26th - 30th June, 2006., p. 6
Full text not available from this repository
|Item Type:||Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)|
|Additional Information:||This paper is based on the relationship between traditional colour mixing (as used by British artists interested in 'colour field' painting during the 60s and 70s) and digital colour. Research questions asked how colour rendition in inkjet technologies might be improved for the artist who wishes to use technologies beyond photographic reproduction. Drawing on access to the Tate Print collection, Parraman's work investigates how screenprinted colourants and surface tactile qualities can be used as a model for inkjet technologies. Through ongoing consultancy with Hewlett Packard and Tate Gallery, London the research investigates a new approach to colour mixing and printing, and was further supported by an AHRC grant (BSG ANS190 APN19134, 1 September 2004 � 30 August 2005) Screen printed colour as a theoretical model for the development of inkjet technology. Parraman's work in this area of colour has resulted in invitations to work at Hewlett Packard Laboratories, San Diego, USA, with a view to collaborating towards new methods for inkjet printing for artists. The Centre has been a beta test site for Hewlett Packard for 3 years, with HP providing £85,000 funding towards 2 research fellows to work at the Centre.
Amongst the research papers that have originated from this programme of work is: 'The Scientific Artist?' the development of the art and science of colour mixing for artists from the 18th to the 21st Century', Impact Conference, Berlin/Poznan, September 2005.
'Experiments in the Hybridisation of Screenprint and Inkjet' given at IRIS, The Essence and Senses of Colour conference, 9-10 November 2005. http://www.ensaia.inplnancy.fr/iris/pdf/C_Parraman.pdf#search=%22carinna%20parraman%22
Parraman was an invited speaker and presented a paper 'How might Inkjet be developed?' at the Gjøvik Color Imaging Symposium, Norway, June 14-15 2007.
|Uncontrolled Keywords:||traditional printing inks, inkjet, colour choices, artists|
|Faculty/Department:||Faculty of Arts, Creative Industries and Education|
R. Upload account
|Deposited On:||22 Jan 2010 15:13|
|Last Modified:||12 Nov 2013 14:25|
Request a change to this item | <urn:uuid:212c5cc3-66b7-4947-b39a-f776048c4d8e> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://eprints.uwe.ac.uk/6863/ | 2014-04-24T05:12:42Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223205137.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032005-00164-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.882178 | 564 | [
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Q Is it illegal to use fresh pigs or beef blood to make black puddings?
No. It is not illegal to use fresh blood when making black pudding. Dried blood is more commonly used by manufacturers of large quantities of black pudding since fresh blood is a perishable product which is more difficult to store and handle than dried blood. Using dried blood is more convenient for larger operators and can ensure consistency.
If fresh blood is used it needs to be sourced from an approved premises where it has been harvested and stored hygienically. The risks need to be assessed and procedures implemented to control these risks. You will have to demonstrate to your inspector that what you are doing is safe and hygienic.
To help with enforcement consistency, FSAI are working on guidelines for this with local authority veterinary officers and will consult on the draft document in due course.
Last reviewed: 14/7/2011 | <urn:uuid:44c125ad-8a26-4a48-93ec-e32f31b3dd96> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.fsai.ie/faqs/black_pudding.html | 2014-04-24T04:53:25Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223205137.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032005-00164-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955285 | 185 | [
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PARIS Lance Armstrong raced onto the crowd-lined Champs-Elyses as a yellow blur, bathed in the shimmering light of a 24-carat, gold-leaf bike, a golden helmet and the race leader's yellow jersey.
Earlier, he let up on the pedals long enough to sip some celebratory champagne.
Nothing but the best for cycling's best.
Armstrong rode into history Sunday, winning a record sixth Tour de France and cementing his place as one of the greatest athletes of all time.
Never in its 101-year history has the Tour had a winner like Armstrong who just eight years ago was given less than a 50 percent chance of overcoming testicular cancer that spread to his lungs and brain.
His streak of six straight crowns has helped reinvigorate the greatest race in cycling, steering it into the 21st century. And the Tour, as much a part of French summers as languid meals over chilled rose, molded Armstrong into a superstar.
Taking advantage of the leisurely pace of the final stage, Armstrong sat up in the saddle and held up all five fingers on his black-gloved right hand and the index finger on his left.
Counting to six was never so sweet for the 32-year-old Texan.
''It might take years. I don't know. It hasn't sunk in yet. But six, standing on the top step on the podium on the Champs-Elyses, is really special,'' he said.
The ride into Paris and its famous tree-lined boulevard was a lap of honor Armstrong savored with the champagne. Even Jan Ullrich, his main adversary in previous years, gulped down a glass offered by Armstrong's team manager through his car window.
''The last laps there, I thought, 'Ah, I want to get this over with,''' Armstrong said. ''But then I thought to myself, 'You know, you might want to do a few more laps, because you may not ever do it again.' And you can't take it for granted.''
President Bush called soon after his fellow Texan crossed the finish line. ''You're awesome,'' Bush told him.
With the Arc de Triomphe in the background, Armstrong put his yellow bicycle cap over his heart during the raising of the American flag and playing of ''The Star-Spangled Banner.'' It might be his last time on the podium, at least for a while. Armstrong has said he might skip the sport's showcase event next year.
Belgian rider Tom Boonen won the final sprint, with Armstrong cruising safely behind with the trailing pack to claim his title. Armstrong's winning margin over second-placed Andreas Kloden was 6 minutes, 19 seconds, with Italian Ivan Basso in third (6:40). Ullrich was fourth (8:50), his worst finish.
Armstrong opened a new page for the Tour in 1999, just one year after the race faced its worst doping scandal, ejecting the Festina team after police caught one of its employees with a stash of drugs.
Armstrong's victories and his inspiring comeback from cancer have drawn new fans to a race that has been won five times by four other riders. His professionalism, attention to detail, grueling training regimens and tactics have raised the bar for other riders hoping to win the three-week cycling marathon.
''He's changed the Tour forever,'' fellow American rider Bobby Julich said. ''He has set the blueprint for success, and he deserves all the success that he is getting.''
Eye-catching in the bright yellow shirt he works so hard for, Armstrong donned a golden cycling helmet for a relaxed roll past sun-baked fields of wheat and applauding spectators into Paris from Montereau in the southeast. He rode a $10,000, carbon-fiber, gold-leaf bike, which Trek will sell in stores later this year.
Armstrong joked and chatted with teammates who wore special blue jerseys with yellow stripes. They stretched in a line across the road with their leader for motorcycle-riding photographers to record the moment. The team was the muscle behind Armstrong's win, leading him in grueling mountain climbs, shielding him from crashes and wind, and keeping him stoked with drinks and food.
Last year, Armstrong beat Ullrich by just 61 seconds by far his narrowest victory. He now admits he was not in great shape.
''I paid the price and learned a valuable lesson, and I won't ever make that mistake again,'' he said.
This year, he roared back with renewed fire.
''It's as if I was with my five friends and we were 13 years old and we all had new bikes and we said, 'OK, we're going to race from here to there,''' he said. ''You want to beat your friends more than anything. You're sprinting and you're attacking. It was like that for me. A simple pleasure.''
With five solo stage wins and a team time-trial victory with his U.S. Postal Service squad, this was Armstrong's best Tour. But it was also one in which he was forced to defend himself against claims he might be taking performance-enhancing drugs.
Repeatedly pointing out he has never failed a test, Armstrong attributes his success to hard training and says the accusations only fuel his motivation.
Last week, he chased down Filippo Simeoni, an Italian rider who has testified about drug use within cycling, when he tried to surge ahead of the pack to win a stage. Armstrong's team also chased down Simeoni several times when he rode at the front Sunday.
Before the Tour, Armstrong sued authors of a book who implied, without offering proof, that he used drugs.
''They want to create pressure that cracks you,'' Armstrong said. ''So, internally I say, 'OK, I will never crack because of that. This will not crack me.'''
Armstrong built his lead from Day 1, placing second in the third-fastest debut time trial in Tour history. That performance silenced doubts that Armstrong was past his prime.
''He's been the strongest man for the last six years,'' Kloden said. ''It's unbelievable.''
Even more so than in other Tours that he dominated, Armstrong finished off rivals in the mountains with three victories in the Alps, including a time trial on the legendary climb to L'Alpe d'Huez, and another in the Pyrenees. He also took the final time trial on Saturday, even though he his overall lead was so big he didn't need the win.
''We never had a sense of crisis, only the stress of the rain and the crashes in the first week,'' Armstrong said. ''I was surprised that some of the rivals were not better. Some of them just completely disappeared.''
Armstrong still hasn't decided whether he will back next year to compete in the race he loves above all others, for which he trains relentlessly, leaving his three children in Texas, with former wife Kristin, while he pounds the roads in Europe.
Seven victories would be like owning seven sports cars, nice but not necessary. Armstrong says he's interested in trying other races like the Giro d'Italia, and breaking the one-hour cycling world record.
Victory has brought Armstrong fame, wealth and softened some of the brashness he displayed when he was younger. He's learned rudimentary French and says his love of the Tour won't end with retirement when he plans to watch the race on TV.
''I don't know what I'll do next summer. I suspect I'll be here,'' he said. ''It's too big of a race. My only hesitance is I think the people and the event perhaps need a change, new faces, a new winner.
''If I'm here,'' he added. ''I race to win.''
Associated Press writer Jerome Pugmire contributed to this report.
Peninsula Clarion ©2014. All Rights Reserved. | <urn:uuid:bd42026f-5e90-417f-aaa3-6a6bfa70e9a5> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://peninsulaclarion.com/stories/072604/spo_072604spo001001.shtml | 2014-04-17T14:00:38Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609530131.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005210-00372-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977797 | 1,659 | [
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Rustic Lighting, Decor, Bedding and Furniture
Lodge Moose Antler Chandelier
This item is custom made. Ships in 2 to 3 weeks.
Moose Antler Chandelier
will light up any great room with its 18 bulbs. With a width of 42 inches and height of 40 inches this hand crafted fixture will be the center piece of you cabins living room. Replica Moose Antlers mixed with Mule Deer Antler and available in Sun Bleached or Natural finishes.
Van Erp Amber Mica Accent Lamp
Faux Leather Antler Floor Lamp
Mason Jar Rustic Pendant Lighting
Creekside Lantern Rustic Pendant Lighting
Bass Plaque Oblong Rustic Pendant Lighting
Rustic Pendant Light Ferron Forge
Van Erp Amber Mica Rustic Table Lamp
Rustic Chandelier Ponderosa Pine
Share your knowledge of this product.
Be the first to write a review » | <urn:uuid:3432385a-9b12-4fe7-8796-318410206df6> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.countrycritter.com/Lodge-Moose-Antler-Chandelier-p/cdn-clr-02.htm | 2014-04-17T12:29:09Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609530131.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005210-00372-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.69267 | 202 | [
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Are interesting events happening in your area? Promote them here on WDIY's Events Calendar and get the attention your events deserve. It's free and easy! Please submit your event at least two weeks in advance. Thanks!
WDIY is pleased to partner with the Pennsylvania Sinfonia Orchestra presenting Winter Vivaldi on Sunday, January 26th at 3:00pm at Wesley Church in Bethlehem, program highlights to include Father Sean Brett Duggan on Piano with works by Teleman, Neruda, Gallo and Bach. | <urn:uuid:5dccda9f-90ed-4b39-8de8-4257ed241659> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wdiy/events.eventsmain?action=showEvent&eventID=1423543 | 2014-04-17T13:06:07Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609530131.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005210-00372-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960544 | 107 | [
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The Syracuse Crunch has signed defenseman Carl Nielsen to a tryout contract.
Nielsen, 24, is a recent graduate of Michigan Tech, where he played four seasons and tallied four goals and 16 assists. The 6-4, 225-lb; defenseman recorded one goal and four assists in 37 games this season.
Nielsen earned the Gitzen-Loutit Memorial Award as Michigan Tech’s most outstanding defensive player his sophomore season. Nielsen was named the team’s assistant captain as a junior and captain this season.
The Amherst, Ohio, native spent two seasons with both the Mahoning Valley Phantoms and Alpena IceDiggers of the North American Hockey League before attending Michigan Tech. Nielsen appeared in 73 games (7-18) for the Phantoms and 46 games (9-8) for the IceDiggers. | <urn:uuid:c154d171-9932-4fa2-9cb4-f09bd1a151c1> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://blog.syracuse.com/crunch/2013/03/defenseman_nielsen_signs_tryou.html | 2014-04-18T21:10:25Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609535095.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005215-00404-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966402 | 175 | [
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My family (mother, father and five children) left Rotterdam on the Volendam May 25, 1951 and arrived in Canada around June 5th. We docked in Quebec and although I went to Halifax -Pier One- to research information, I was unsuccessful. I am looking for a passenger list or confirmation of this arrival date or any other information you may have. My mother is over 90 and memory eludes her.
Waiting to hear from anyone who may have information. | <urn:uuid:bc843b78-c08b-455e-94c5-09d848eea13e> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.weurope.netherlands.emigration/3676/mb.ashx?pnt=1 | 2014-04-18T23:04:39Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609535095.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005215-00404-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974941 | 100 | [
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The Civil Service Reform programme will introduce a new Fast Track Apprenticeship Scheme giving the most talented school-leavers the opportunity to work at the heart of government, the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude, and the Head of the Civil Service, Sir Bob Kerslake, announced today.
Under the scheme, 18 to 21 year olds who want to learn on the job will be placed in government departments by September 2013. Recruitment for the first 100 places will begin in April 2013. The aim is to increase the total places available to 500 so the programme matches the graduate Fast Stream.
The apprentices will have a structured training programme for at least two years. They will be expected to develop a range of skills and at the end of the scheme they will be able to apply for graduate career opportunities. The scheme will be managed alongside the Civil Service’s other corporate talent programmes.
Apprenticeships are at the heart of the Government’s drive to equip people of all ages with the skills employers need to compete in a global market. The Civil Service Reform Plan published in June committed to developing the capability of all staff and encouraging the most able. This new scheme will strengthen the Civil Service with talented young people who have chosen not to go to university.
Minister for the Cabinet Office Francis Maude said:
We are working to reform the Civil Service, building on its strengths while addressing its weaknesses. Like any big organisation, the success of the Civil Service depends on its staff. It already employs some of Britain’s best and brightest and we have one of the most popular graduate schemes. But we are in a global race and we need to attract more of the best talent, including those who have chosen not to pursue higher education.
“This new Fast Track Apprenticeship Scheme will provide high-quality opportunities for 100 young people, in addition to those available through the existing graduate Fast Stream. Rather than going to university the apprentices will learn on the job, and at the end of the scheme they will be able to apply for graduate career opportunities. I look forward to welcoming these new apprentices into the Civil Service and to following their careers.”
Head of the Civil Service Sir Bob Kerslake said:
“The Civil Service is a great place to work and offers a diverse range of challenging and rewarding jobs – our latest survey shows that 89% of staff are interested in what they do.
“Our graduate Fast Stream programme is consistently ranked in the Times Top 100 graduate employers and our ambition is for this Civil Service Fast Track Apprenticeship Scheme to have the same credibility and status. Indeed, the scheme would place the Civil Service amongst the best in the private sector. We are committed to giving more young people a chance to work at the heart of government and to receive first class training. Just because someone hasn’t been to university doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have a bright career ahead of them.”
Skills Minister Matthew Hancock said:
This is another step forward for our flagship Apprenticeships programme. Apprenticeships are great value for employers, so I’m delighted the Government is practicing what we preach with a new Civil Service Apprenticeship Scheme. Through it, people can learn the business of Government on the job, while the Civil Service gains from having a new route for entrants. | <urn:uuid:13a9edd8-0057-475a-b945-bec628734238> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/news/civil-service-apprenticeship-scheme | 2014-04-18T20:43:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609535095.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005215-00404-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941336 | 684 | [
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We are very excited to have so many things to offer. From books to videos and our embroidery CD we have everything you need to take your sewing skills to the next level.
Learn basic techniques in Peggy's book, correct your techniques, and learn new skills through our series of educational videos. It's one-to-one instruction at your own pace, making the learning process fun, easy and convenient.
We have listened to your needs and address them here, enjoy these new learning tools and most of all, have fun sewing! | <urn:uuid:0d6e5ef5-bb7f-4d42-a08a-f2b2cbefd84f> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.silhouettepatterns.com/html/media.htm | 2014-04-18T21:05:30Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609535095.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005215-00404-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961958 | 110 | [
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Results 1 to 1 of 1
Thread: Any way to force inheritance?
07-10-2008, 08:32 PM #1
- Join Date
- Jul 2008
- Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Any way to force inheritance?
Alright guys, I have a tricky drop-down menu situation here and hopefully there is a way around this. I'm working with a content management system that creates base div tags for setting up menus. Unfortunately I need more menus than the system creates so when I try to create a seperate div tag, it places it outside the div tag I want it in, making positioning a nightmare. What I want to know is if I have a .header div class and I want to place a .menu div class to be placed inside that div, can I use the stylesheet alone to have .menu inherit it's properties? So although in the source code it .menu may be at the bottom of the page, it is still acting is if it's like <div class="header"><div class="menu"></div></div>.
I'm assuming I might be able to do this through some parent-child action, but I'm kind of new to CSS so I'm not even sure it's possible. | <urn:uuid:4bc4b957-cd2b-498f-b428-d5b2493f045b> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.codingforums.com/html-css/143924-any-way-force-inheritance.html | 2014-04-20T05:34:33Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537864.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00436-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.900217 | 273 | [
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] |
Life of Letitia Elizabeth Landon
The principal biographical sources on L.E.L. do not always agree about the facts of her life, and the word "mystery" appears so often in them (with words like "must have" and "presumably") that readers are well advised to view the story of her life, in any published form, as at least partly a documentary figment.1 Consensus has it that Landon was born on 14 August 1802, daughter of a superior clerk and then partner in Adair and Co., a lucrative business operation that supplied the army during the war against France; when that war ended in 1815, Landon and his family entered genteel poverty. An uncle of L.E.L. was the Dean of Worcester College (mentioned sometimes by L.E.L.'s mother, in business correspondence, as an advantageous Oxford connection2). Another uncle was Rector of Aberford, and L.E.L.'s brother (two years younger than she) was Rev. Whittington Landon, who was educated at Worcester College. L.E.L.'s sister Elizabeth Jane was four years younger than she. L.E.L. was educated partly at home, by her cousin Elizabeth, and partly in residence for several months (according to McGann and Riess) or two years (according to Sypher) at a school run by Frances Rowden; previous pupils at this school included Mary Russell Mitford and Caroline Lamb. When she came to the attention of a neighbor, William Jerdan, who was the editor of the Literary Gazette, L.E.L. was 14 or 15 years old, "slightly proportioned" (anon., "Memoir," x) or "plump" (Jerdan, 3: 174), and already bookish, having heard, read, and written stories and poems from early childhood or (according to some admirers) from infancy. When L.E.L. was 17, her mother (according to Enfield) or her cousin (according to Sypher) showed some of her poems to Jerdan, who returned them with comments. L.E.L. or her relations subsequently returned them to him, revised; and her poem "Rome" appeared in The Literary Gazette,3 followed by others, though not until Jerdan had convinced himself "of their being in truth from the girlish L.E.L." This was his test:
In driving from town to Brompton immediately before dinner, on passing St. George's Hospital, it was suggested to be a good subject for verse, and Miss Landon was requested to adopt it. Dinner passed, and within an hour the ladies were joined at tea, by which time a most touching poem of 74 lines was completed on the given theme.4
L.E.L.'s poems that were contributed to the Gazette, whether on assignment or voluntarily, tended to be what McGann and Riess describe as "poems on the subject of paintings and mass-produced engravings of contemporary artists. These sentimental commodity-poems made ambiguous capital of a popular spectacle of beauty."5 L.E.L. wrote often and lengthily in that way, producing a second-order art--and by that phrase we do not refer to art that is derivative, or lesser in significance, but rather art that is about art, on the analogy of Bertrand Russell's concept of "second-order language," which is language that refers to other language.
L.E.L.'s poetry is characteristically about artifice and artificial narratives, and not about language per se. Though readers from her lifetime to now sometimes miss the point, her works are not about the experiences and feelings of the narrated characters; they are about the narration of those feelings and experiences. L.E.L. writes poems about tales of love, but she does not write tales of love.
For example, she wrote often in that way in her hundreds of contributions to gift books and annuals: besides contributing to many annuals, L.E.L. edited and wrote much or perhaps even all of Fishers' Drawing Room Scrapbook from 1832 to 1839, and also Heath's Book of Beauty for 1833. L.E.L.'s book The Easter Gift (1832) was composed and produced in the form of an annual. In her books of poetry--including a section of her book "The Troubador," Catalogue of Pictures and Historical Sketches6 and including numerous and lengthy descriptions of art in the title poem of her book The Improvisatrice7--L.E.L. makes a glittering show of her artificial preoccupation with the artificiality of art.
A striking example of this characteristic genre of L.E.L.'s poetry is the series Medallion Wafers, which appeared in the Literary Gazette for 25 January, 8 February, and 1 March. An earlier issue of that periodical (4 January) had included a description, in prose, of several sealing wafers, each of which bore an engraved reproduction of a contemporary painting. L.E.L.'s poems then imagine their imagery as a narrative (of love), and repudiate the falseness of love in presence of the reality of sorrow.8 Similarly, L.E.L.'s poem "The Hall of Statues" (published in the Literary Gazette 25 June 1831 and reprinted in Selected Writings, 46-50) begins by observing that art (in the form here of crimson Tyrian curtains, ornamented with gold) casts a false light on grim actualities. L.E.L. wrote hundreds of poems about art. Most often, each such poem is literally about a picture or statue (though her descriptions sometimes contradict the pictures), while more trenchantly the poems make an issue of the artificiality of art. One of the last books to bear Landon's name, published in her lifetime, was The Pictorial Album; or, Cabinet of Painting, for the Year 1837. Containing eleven designs, executed in oil colours . . . from the original pictures, with illustrations in verse and prose : the paintings reproduced in this volume are by George Baxter; the illustrations in prose are by James Ollier, and the illustrations in verse are by L.E.L. This genre characterizes her early work, however, as well her later: this genre and this style were established long before she wrote "Verses" in 1828 for the Keepsake for 1829.
An issue on which most (but not all) memoirists and commentators agree is the literariness (i.e., the artificiality) of L.E.L.'s professionally adopted themes. This feature of her work elicits negative judgments from critics in the romantic school of thought, habituated to valuing what they believe to be true personal feeling, or sincerity, or authenticity in an individualistic mode. Art that is about art, or poetry that makes its own artifice into a theme, will not gratify the expectations of such readers unless they mistake its second-order ironies for more innocent pretense of true (personal) feeling. In an anonymous review of "The Improvisatrice" and Other Poems [probably written by Jerdan, and appearing in The Literary Gazette 389 (3 July 1824)], one of the rare voices of admiration for the artistry of L.E.L.'s poetry reduces the concept of artistry to true personal feeling in the romantic school of art:
If true poetry consist in originality of conception, fineness of imagination, beautiful fitness and glow of expression, genuine feeling, and the outpourings of fresh and natural thoughts in all the force of fresh and natural language, it is pre-eminently conspicuous in the writings of L.E.L. (rpt. in McGann and Riess, 292)
More typically, early reviewers presumed L.E.L.'s immersion in true personal feeling and faulted her art, as, for example, the anonymous review of The Troubadour and The Golden Violet, probably written by John Arthur Roebuck and published in The Westminster Review, 7 (January 1827): 50-67:
L.E.L.'s poems are, for the most part, metrical romances; generally sentimental descriptions of sentimental loves: it is nothing wonderful, therefore, that they have attracted the admiration of her female readers. Love is the great business of a woman's life; and any one who discourses with but ordinary ability on this all-important topic, finds in a woman a ready, patient, and admiring listener. . . . L.E.L. has acquired a degree of fame by writing on love, which she by no means deserves. (rpt. in McGann and Riess, 304-305)
More typically still, reviewers, memoirists, critics, and biographers preserve the expectation that poetry does and should voice true and personal feelings, whether they find such a thing in L.E.L.'s poetry or not; and when they do not, its absence is treated as reason for disapproval. Thus, for example, Enfield represents a widely held view (and a correlative negative judgment) that dates from L.E.L.'s lifetime and which reappears even now when works like L.E.L.'s contributions to the literary annuals are discussed:9 Landon, Enfield writes,
wrote to order, for the annuals, Heath's Book of Beauty, the Forget-Me-Nots, the Keepsake, Friendship's Offering, Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, and others. The whole of this extinct species is described by Thackeray in the Spring Annual by which young Pendennis earned his first guineas in London. "That eminent publisher Mr. Bacon . . . used to present to the world every year a beautiful gilt volume called the Spring Annual, edited by Lady Violet Lebas, and numbering among its contributors not only the most eminent but the most fashionable poets of our time. Young Lord Dodo's poems first appeared in this miscellany. The Honourable Percy Popjoy, whose chivalrous ballads have obtained him such a reputation; Bedwin Sand's Eastern Ghazuls, and many more of the works of our young nobles were first given to the world in the Spring Annual, which has since shared the fate of other vernal blossoms and perished out of the world. The book was daintily illustrated with pictures of reigning beauties, or other prints of a tender and voluptuous character, and as these plates were prepared long beforehand, requiring much time in engraving, it was the eminent poets who had to write for the plates, and not the painters who illustrated the poems." (Enfield, 86-87)
That passage appears in Enfield's chapter entitled "Hack Work." But the artifice and artificiality that are there faulted might, if understood more adequately, be perceived to constitute the excellence and achievement of poetry like L.E.L.'s, though that perception requires some historical vantage.
L.E.L. cultivated the double art of a poetry that is a critique of the very illusions that it permits its readers to perceive, if they prefer. As Kathryn Ledbetter has written elsewhere, "the guiding aesthetic in annual literature was that literature gives voice to desires of the heart"11 -- To use Schiller's distinction, this poetry is a sentimental critique which permits its own confusion with the naive. For understanding L.E.L.'s development of such an art, it helps to recall the actual circumstances of her work and her working. After the death of her father, L.E.L. assumed financial obligations for her surviving relations, and she earned money by her prolific writing, on assignment and independently, always with an ability to judge what stylistic, generic, and thematic features were popular at the time. Increasingly, as she grew older, L.E.L. lifted into the explicit surface of her writings a critique of the illusions (foremost among them the conventional story of true love) featured in popular literature and art, but that critique was present (though not always noticed) from the beginning. For example, in "The Hall of Statues" L.E.L. writes of Lawrence Macdonald's sculpture, "Supplicating Virgin," suggesting that the sculpture's fictitious subject woke from "a gentle dream" to learn that "Every thing is false below." In "A Child Screening a Dove from a Hawk, by [Thomas] Stewardson," published in The Troubadour (1825), L.E.L.'s persona says that "Ever amid the sweets of life / Some evil thing must be"--and the "evil thing" is "love." In another poem of meta-art, "Lines Written under a Picture of a Girl Burning a Love-Letter" (published in "The Improvisatrice" and Other Poems, 1824), L.E.L. adopts the voice of the pictured girl, saying "So bright at first, so dark at last, / I feared it was love's history." In her preface to her book The Venetian Bracelet (1828), she mentions--but only to dismiss--
the frequent applications of my works to myself, considering that I sometimes portrayed love unrequited, then betrayed, and again destroyed by death--may I hint the conclusions are not quite logically drawn, as assuredly the same mind cannot have suffered such varied modes of misery. However, if I must have an unhappy passion, I can only console myself with my own perfect unconsciousness of so great a misfortune.
In the same preface, L.E.L. writes that her aspirations involve not love but fame; but already "Erinna" in The Golden Violet (1826) had voiced a loss of that llusion, too: "O dream of fame, what hast thou been to me / But the destroyer of life's calm content!" (ll. 215-16). L.E.L.'s poetry invokes illusions as its materials; disillusion is then its plot:10 "day by day / Some new illusion is destroyed, and life / Gets cold and colder on towards its close" (ll. 264-66). The second-order status of such poetry--not its derivative character, but its ability to make its own illusionary status into its subject-matter--is its achievement. Her work amounts to a trenchant critique of the (commercial and conventional) lies about life that reappeared, then as now, in popular entertainments--especially the sexualized story of true personal love and the correlative reduction of art to an illusion of passionate (and true, and personal) feeling. As a professional manufacturer of such products, L.E.L. had a workaday acquaintance with their fictitious and fabricated nature. She was able to manufacture examples (by the hundreds) that satisfied precisely the expectations of which they were most harshly critical.
That dual theme, more than any other issue, is characteristic of L.E.L.'s writings: her poetry enables its conventional readership to (mis)recognize the artificial conventions of sentimentality, even to enjoy those conventions, and certainly to buy them, while her poetry simultaneously mocks, parodies, and bitterly criticizes those sentimental illusions--first by making them visible as constructed illusions, and secondly by emplotting disillusionment. In connection with this dual theme The Keepsake is an important and especially meaningful venue for L.E.L.'s poetry. To quote one important recent commentator on the annuals,
Everything in and about the Keepsake is false. The illustrations were not engraved, but mostly etched. The ones by Heath were not by Heath but by a group of engravers in his shop that worked on individual parts of any illustration. The edges were not gold. It was not "great" literature but marketed itself so. The readers were not upper class but were "wanna bes" who gazed at images of beauty that weren't the original images, but "engraved" replications of the original paintings that were copies of the original model. And to go even further, the books were not handcrafted as advertising marketing implies, but were made in an assembly line at a book factory. Its binding is fancy dress material pasted on boards, imitating feminine fashion--fashion is not a book but a book is fashion. And the Keepsake longed for the past but had little to do with the past; all is fake. The only ingredient that isn't false is the sentiment attached to the product by the individual reader, which we can't measure and doesn't exist anymore. Its only evidence of desire is the signature plate or inscription on the inner leaf . . . traces.12
To make visible that extreme degree of artificiality, and to clarify the fact that such fakery is the normal condition of poetry that masquerades as personal feeling, is an intellectual accomplishment of some magnitude. If whole generations--whole cultures--were enabled, by such artistry, to see their own illusions as artifacts in vellum (or celluloid, or CRT), much would have been accomplished. Toward that accomplishment, the gilt and silk and vellum of the Keepsake, and even its bribery, its advertising, its marketing, and its questionable business practices, contribute meaningfully. With or without the editors' and authors' intentions, the Keepsake volumes make that condition of artificiality, manipulation, and deceit more clearly visible than most (perhaps any) other volumes of the 1820s.13 The presence in these volumes of work by Wordsworth, Coleridge, Scott, Mary Shelley, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and L.E.L. might make available a more totally critical vision of the period's literary illusions, and the period's own canny comprehension of its artifice, than what has been traditionally supposed.
Two of the most ordinary forms of gossip dominate the remainder of L.E.L.'s recorded life: gossip about her supposed love life, and gossip about her supposedly exotic death. Enfield writes that "about 1830 onwards, she herself, her friends, and acquaintances began to be deluged with anonymous letters accusing L.E.L. of immoral conduct generally, and in particular of being the mistress of a married man" (93). In contrast, Renalds writes that "malicious rumors . . . began to be circulated about her in the mid-1820s" (225). The date and the locus of such slander are matters on which no consensus has been reached: McGann and Riess report that Stephenson "argues that a series of anonymous articles published in the Wasp in 1826 were the first public slander of Landon's reputation (35-36)" (30), whereas "Grace and Philip Wharton" (i.e., Katherine and John C. Thomson or Antony Todd Thomson) "claim that 'the first attempt to injure her character was made in the 'Sun' newspaper' about the time of the publication of The Troubadour (174)" (31). Stephenson terms the public venues of the slander "the gutter press" (36), and dates the earliest examples in October and November of 1826, but she also shows that such gossip had been circulated even earlier--"at least by June of 1826" (37). The gossip concerned L.E.L.'s supposedly scandalous behavior involving men, some of whom were married, and the rumor that such scandals ruined or threatened marriage arrangements that L.E.L. had made. (For details of the gossip, see the biographical sources listed in note 1, below).
As Garnett has said, "no circumstance respecting 'L.E.L.' has occasioned so much discussion as her sudden and mysterious death at Cape Coast Castle on 15 Oct. 1838" (494). L.E.L. had married George Maclean, governor of Cape Coast Castle, in June 1838; in July they sailed for Africa, and three months later she died there. Reportedly, she was found with a medicine bottle in her hand (she had been taking prussic acid for an ailment). The coroner's inquest did not satisfy some of her friends or many among the inquiring public, and rumors have circulated from 1838 to now about her husband's supposedly vengeful African mistress, a possibility of L.E.L.'s suicide, and the supposedly interesting "mystery" (a word that appears in most biographies as well as Enfield's subtitle) of her death. Personalistic sentimentality is understood to be a favorable marketing condition for writings that are believed to be about personal sentiment; such marketing conditions promote the circulation of rumors, the enjoyment of gossip, and the hedonistic substitution of personal feelings for the harder-edged meanings of L.E.L.'s professionally manufactured verbal art.
1. Principal sources include the following, listed in chronological order: Laman Blanchard, "Memoir of L.E.L.," New Monthly Magazine 50 (May 1837): 78-82; Emma Roberts, "Memoir of L.E.L.," in "The Zenana" and Minor Poems of L.E.L. (London: Fisher, 1839; Blanchard, Life and Literary Remains of L.E.L. , 2 vols. (London: Colburn, 1841); Mrs. A. K. Elwood, "Mrs. Maclean," in Memoirs of Literary Ladies of England, 2 vols. (London: Henry Colburn, 1843); anon., but evidently William Jerdan, "Memoir," in Romance and Reality. By L.E.L. . . . With a Memoir (London: Bentley, 1848); William Jerdan, The Autobiography of William Jerdan, 4 vols. (London: Hall, 1852-54); Grace and Philip Wharton [pseudonyms of Katherine B. and John C. Thomson or Antony Todd Thomson], The Queens of Society (London: Hogg, 1860; New York: Harper and Brothers, 1860; Philadelphia: James Hogg, n.d.); S. C. Hall, A Book of Memories of Great Men and Women of the Age (London: Virtue, 1871); D. E. Enfield, L.E.L.: A Mystery of the Thirties (London: The Hogarth Press, 1928); Richard Garnett, "Letitia Elizabeth Landon," in DNB (1937); Anne Ethel Wyly, Letitia Elizabeth Landon: Her Career, Her "Mysterious" Death, and Her Poetry (unpublished thesis, Duke University, 1942); F. J. Sypher, Introduction to Landon's "The Fate of Adelaide" (Delmar, N.Y.: Scholars' Facsimiles and Reprints, 1990); Brenda H. Renalds, "Letitia Elizabeth Landon," in Dictionary of Literary Biography, vol. 96 (1990); William B. Scott, "Preliminary Memoir" of Letitia Elizabeth Landon, in The Poetical Works of Letitia Elizabeth Landon (London: George Routledge and Sons, n.d. ), rpt. with intro. by F. J. Sypher (Delmar, N.Y.: Scholars' Facsimiles, 1990); Glennis Stephenson, Letitia Landon: The Woman Behind L.E.L. (New York: Manchester University Press, 1995). Several but not all of these important sources are cited in the excellent introductory essay in Letitia Elizabeth Landon: Selected Writings, ed. Jerome McGann and Daniel Riess (Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 1997); this volume is especially useful not only for its texts but also for its appendix, "Index to the Poetry of Letitia Elizabeth Landon," ed. Glenn Dilbert-Himes and Cynthia Gay Lawford. Return to Essay
2. In Sypher's introduction to The Fate of Adelaide, Sypher quotes a letter from L.E.L.'s mother to the editor William Jerdan, 27 November 1820: "Mrs. Siddons is shortly going to Oxford, and as we have connections there, and Mrs. S. is taking it up very warmly , we have hope that something may be done for our poetic sketches" (22). Return to Essay
3. L., "Rome," The Literary Gazette 164 [11 March 1820]: 173. At first, Landon published her poems with only the initial L. for a signature; soon she adopted the signature L.E.L. Return to Essay
4. Anon. (evidently Jerdan), "Memoir," p. xi. Return to Essay
5. McGann and Riess, Introduction, p. 12. Return to Essay
6. L.E.L., The Troubadour, Catalogue of Pictures, and Historical Sketches (London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, 1827). Return to Essay
7. L.E.L., "The Improvisatrice" and Other Poems (London: Hurst and Robinson, 1824). Return to Essay
8. Two poems from this series, Medallion Wafers, are reprinted in Letitia Elizabeth Landon: Selected Writings, ed. McGann and Riess, 43-45. For a discussion of the poems, see Daniel Riess, "Letitia Landon and the Dawn of English Post-Romanticism," Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 36 (Autumn 1996): 807-827. Return to Essay
9. See, for example Peter J. Manning's "Wordsworth in the Keepsake, 1829," in Literature in the Marketplace: Nineteenth-Century British Publishing and Reading Practices, ed. John O. Jordan and Robert L. Patten (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 44-73, which combines factual information about the production of the Keepsake with a negative judgment of its literary worth. Return to Essay
10. Ledbetter, "'Begemmed and beAmuletted": Tennyson and Those 'vapid' Gift Books," Victorian Poetry 34: 2 (Summer 1996): 235-45. Return to Essay
11. On disillusion as the theme of L.E.L.'s poetry quite generally, see McGann's chaper on L.E.L., "Waking from Adam's Dream: L.E.L.'s Art of Disillusion," in his The Poetics of Sensibility (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996), 143-49. Return to Essay
12. Letter from Kathryn Ledbetter to Terence Hoagwood, 22 October 1997.Return to Essay
13. The best account of the production of the Keepsake, and the extent to which manipulation of imagery controlled that production, is Kathryn Ledbetter, "White Vellum and Gilt Edges: Imaging The Keepsake." Studies in the Literary Imagination 30: 1 (Spring 1997): 35-50. See also Ledbetter's Ph.D. dissertation (University of South Carolina, 1995), "A Woman's Book: The Keepsake Literary Annual." Return to Essay
Bibliography: Books by L.E.L.
Note: This list is limited to works published initially as separate volumes. See also the "Index to the Poetry of Letitia Elizabeth Landon," ed. Glenn Dilbert-Himes and Cynthia Lawford, in Selected Writings, ed. McGann and Riess.
"The Fate of Adelaide: A Swiss Romantic Tale"; and Other Poems. London: John Warren, 1821.
"The Improvisatrice" and Other Poems. London: Hurst, Robinson; Edinburgh: Constable, 1824.
"The Troubadour," Catalogue of Pictures, and Historical Sketches. London: Hurst, Robinson; Edinburgh: Constable, 1825.
"The Golden Violet, With Its Tales of Romance and Chivalry"; and Other Poems. London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, 1827.
"The Venetian Bracelet," "The Lost Pleiad," "A History of the Lyre," and Other Poems. London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, 1829.
Romance and Reality. 3 vols. London: H. Colburn and R. Bentley, 1831. [A novel.]
The Easter Gift: A Religious Offering. London: Fisher, 1832.
Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap-Book. London and Paris : Fisher, Son, & Co., 1832-38 [according to Renalds] or 1832-39 [according to Stephenson, Letitia Landon.]
Heath's Book of Beauty ... : With Nineteen Beautifully Finished Engravings From Drawings by the First Artists . London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green, and Longman, 1833.
Francesca Carrara. 3 vols. London: Richard Bentley, 1834. [A novel.]
"The Vow of the Peacock" and Other Poems. (London: Saunders and Otley, 1835. [Rpt. in a facsimile edition with intro. by F. J. Sypher (Delmar, N.Y.: Scholars' Facsimiles & Reprints, 1997).]
The Miscellaneous Poetical Works of L.E.L., Author of "The Improvisatrice," "The Golden Violet," &c. London : Saunders and Otley, 1835.
Traits and Trials of Early Life. London: H. Colburn, 1836. [Stories for children.]
Ethel Churchill, or The Two Brides. London: H. Colburn, 1837.
Flowers of Loveliness: Thirty-six Groups of Female Figures, Emblematic of Flowers, Beautifully Coloured. London : Ackermann, 1837. [This short book (containing only 47pp.) includes thirty-six leaves of color plates and thirty poems by L.E.L.]
The Pictorial Album; or, Cabinet of Painting, for the Year 1837. Containing eleven designs, executed in oil colours . . . from the original pictures, with illustrations in verse and prose. London: Chapman and Hall, 1837. [The paintings reproduced in this volume are by George Baxter; the illustrations in prose are by James Ollier, and the illustrations in verse are by L.E.L.]
"The Zenana" and Minor Poems of L.E.L. London: Fisher, 1839.
Laman Blanchard, Life and Literary Remains of L.E.L., 2 vols. London: Colburn, 1841. [Includes in volume 2 a tragedy by L.E.L. entitled Castruccio Castrucani; or, The Triumph of Lucca; 16pp. of poetry entitled "The Female Picture Gallery"; 41pp. of poetry entitled "Subjects for Pictures"; 20pp. of "Miscellaneous Poems"; 42pp. of "Fragments"; and and 12pp. of "Fugitive Poems."]
Lady Anne Granard, or, Keeping Up Appearances. 3 vols. London: H. Colburn, 1842 . [In Letitia Landon (202), Stephenson reports that Landon wrote only part of this novel.]
Critical Writings. Ed. F. J. Sypher. Delmar, N.Y.: Scholars' Facsimiles, 1996. [Reprints reviews and arcticles by L.E.L.] | <urn:uuid:2ed40744-fc68-4827-9f14-172281871fcb> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.rc.umd.edu/print/editions/lel/lelbio.htm | 2014-04-20T03:11:31Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609537864.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005217-00436-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954468 | 6,638 | [
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CBS Helped Script Anti-Abortion 'Focus on the Family' Tebow Ad
According to a story in the Daily Beast, CBS worked closely with 'Focus on the Family' developing the Tim Tebow ad for months!
The major broadcast networks have avoided political advocacy ads for years, so CBS's decision to air the Tebow ad caught abortion rights advocates off guard. But Focus on the Family, the Colorado Springs-based conservative Christian group founded by Dr. James Dobson, says that it has actually been working closely with CBS executives for months on the ad's script.
"There were discussions about the specific wording of the spot," said Gary Schneeberger, spokesperson for Focus on the Family. "And we came to a compromise. To an agreement." Schneeberger declined to comment on exactly how CBS changed the ad's message.
CBS has said that in the last year, in an acknowledgment of "industry norms," it loosened previous restrictions on advocacy advertisements, accepting ads that pushed for health reform and environmental activism.
CBS has been criticized by a coalition of women's groups as well as GLAAD for its alliance with the virulently homophobic group Focus on the Family, an evangelical group that works actively against gay rights and advocates for overturning Roe v. Wade.
Tim Tebow defended his participation in the ad last week, saying he's standing up for what he believes.
Watch the video, AFTER THE JUMP...
Apparently, given its participation, this is what CBS believes too.
GLAAD Calls on CBS to 'Come Clean' on 'Homophobic Double Standard' [tr]
GLAAD Calls on CBS to Explain Decision to Air Tim Tebow 'FOTF' Super Bowl Ad [tr]
Women's Groups Urge CBS to Scrap Tebow Focus on the Family Ad [tr]
Tim Tebow Defends Participation in Super Bowl Ad [tr]
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The Year of the Soap continues on ABC Family with new episodes of SWITCHED AT BIRTH and JANE BY DESIGN on Tuesday, January 31.
SWITCHED leads off the night at 8 p.m. ET/PT with "Expulsion From the Garden of Eden."
Bay helps Emmett move into his dad’s apartment and they both meet his eccentric new girlfriend, Olivia.
Daphne goes on a date with Wilke, but when she finds out he has taken other girls out on the same date, she questions whether she’s special to him or not.
Kathryn runs into Angelo at a farmer’s market and decides to invite him over for a big family dinner. But, just as Regina and Angelo are getting closer, something happens that might pull them apart for good.
SWITCHED AT BIRTH stars Katie Leclerc, Vanessa Marano, Constance Marie, D.W. Moffett, Lea Thompson, Lucas Grabeel and Sean Berdy.
Academy Award winner Marlee Matlin guest stars as Melody Bledsoe, Gilles Marini as Angelo and Maiara Walsh as Simone.
JANE BY DESIGN follows at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Jane is thrilled when Gray sends her to Paris to bring her the coveted Donovan Decker Lookbook, but first Jane must remember where she left it, in “The Lookbook.”
Jane is over-the-moon with anticipation when Gray tells her she will be boarding a flight to Paris the following night to bring her the coveted Donovan Decker Lookbook, which holds all the secrets, inspirations and ideas for the fashion company. When Jane is tasked with secretly securing the Lookbook until she leaves, she will do anything to hold onto it and make the flight to Paris, even if that means she has to turn to her nemesis and best friend’s girlfriend, Lulu for help.
Meanwhile, Billy’s brother Tommy, has a new criminal scheme that he wants Billy to help him with.
JANE BY DESIGN is executive produced by Gavin Polone, April Blair and John Ziffren. The series stars Erica Dasher, David Rogers, Nicholas Roux, Rowly Dennis, India De Beaufort, Meagan Tandy, Matthew Atkinson, and featuring Andie MacDowell.
- INTERVIEW: Katie Leclerc (Daphne) & Vanessa Marano (Bay) Share Lots of Dish and Giggles from the Return of ABC Family's New Hit, SWITCHED AT BIRTH
- INTERVIEW: JANE BY DESIGN's Andie MacDowell
- Why 2012 Will Be "The Year Of The Soap" (Part 1)
- Why 2012 Will Be "The Year Of The Soap" (Part 2): DARK SHADOWS, RAGGED ISLE, DALLAS, Univision Telenovelas and More
- Most Fascinating People of 2011 (Katie Leclerc) | <urn:uuid:7d184ae3-4567-4aee-8ef7-235359bbee02> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://www.welovesoaps.net/2012/01/cw131.html | 2014-04-21T10:04:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609539705.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005219-00468-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.922549 | 628 | [
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Qirina attempts to ascertain what sites are about based on an analysis of the text content on the front page. Did we get this one right? What do you think? If the niche has been incorrectly
identified, earthquaketrack.com's performance can probably be substantially improved by on-site SEO
Here are some keywords which we've determined lie within the same circle of relevance as recent quakes.
1. quakes earthquaketrack.com
2. earthquakes earthquaketrack.com
3. track earthquaketrack.com
4. earthquake track earthquaketrack.com | <urn:uuid:95526ec7-5b91-4b98-aade-f789bc013d86> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://com.earthquaketrack.qirina.com/ | 2014-04-24T07:13:13Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223205375.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032005-00500-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940693 | 125 | [
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Virtual economies are a fascination for us, and EVE Online
isn't the only game with people who spend much of their time playing the markets, of course -- World of Warcraft
is rife with opportunities for rampant capitalism. Case in point: gold-making advice blog The WoW Economist reports that some materials used by the Enchanting profession are selling for outrageously high prices
at the auction house post-Wrath of the Lich King
launch -- an excellent time for money-minded players to cash in.
Writer John Murphy points out that Infinite Dust and Greater Cosmic Essences are selling for 150g and 250g per stack, respectively, and that he made 2,300g in one Sunday afternoon taking advantage of the situation. The recommendation: disenchant, sell now! Level up Enchanting later! There are always these oddly destabilizing surges after expansions in these games, so it's good to know how to exploit them to the max. Go forth and become filthy rich, guys and gals! | <urn:uuid:20ac653c-f96b-4727-b806-1d304444bcef> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/11/24/wow-enchanting-mats-are-selling-high-opportunists-to-the-auc/ | 2014-04-24T06:34:48Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223205375.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032005-00500-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928074 | 204 | [
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SORRY, BABY HAS BEEN SOLD.I still have 1 girl and 1 boy, both are adorable and love to cuddle with humans. they are well socialized and well on their way to being paper trained.Now, about us. Here at Bay Creek Farm, we are an ethical and responsible small breeder of Cavalier King Charles spaniels. With our occasional litters, we strive to raise healthy, quality puppies for families to love. Our cavaliers are checked annually for Cavalier genetic defects and we are happy to provide you with a written 2 year guarantee against those.We breed for health, conformation and lovability. All our dogs, big and small, live in our home, not in kennels. Your puppy will be well socialized and well on its way to being potty trained. All our puppies will be vet checked and wormed 2x before they go to their new home. 1st set of vaccinations have been given at 10 weeks of age. We would love to hear from you and have you come visit our equestrian farm. | <urn:uuid:455e4d3e-7452-41b0-9069-c947098ae00e> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://photos.nextdaypets.com/dogpicture/baby~1934968.aspx | 2014-04-24T06:19:24Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223205375.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032005-00500-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97097 | 222 | [
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When a tornado virtually destroyed Parkersburg last year, Ed Thomas stood tall and fought for the town’s survival.
Where would that town be today without Ed Thomas? Certainly the school district moves all home football games to Aplington. Maybe the school district decides to build a new high school at another location. It’s not that far-fetched that the school district would have considered combining with another nearby district.
Maybe many in the town decide to move away to other communities, possibly the Cedar Falls-Waterloo area. Instead, Thomas demanded the high school remain in Parkersburg. He picked up debris and glass shrapnel on the football field and demanded the school play its first game following the tornado at the “Sacred Acre.”
Ed Thomas won nearly 300 football games and two state titles in his lifetime. But he may have saved Parkersburg with his strong character and leadership last year. That’s a memory that will outlast any of his victories. | <urn:uuid:e0a70308-9b9e-4be8-b8e0-b555684414a4> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://scottdo.wordpress.com/2009/06/24/ | 2014-04-24T05:47:48Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1398223205375.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20140423032005-00500-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970213 | 205 | [
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RAMALLAH, West Bank -- The militant group Hamas will accept a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and a long-term truce with Israel, a leader said yesterday, apparently softening Hamas's hard-line stance and boosting hopes for renewed peace efforts after Yasser Arafat's death.
Sheik Hassan Yousef, a senior Hamas official in the West Bank, said he sees a truce in which Israel and a Palestinian state ''live side by side in peace and security for a certain period."
Yousef's statements signal an apparent reversal of policy for Hamas, which has long sought to destroy Israel and replace it with an Islamic Palestinian state. The group has killed hundreds of Israelis in attacks during the past four years.
The group's top leaders, based outside the Palestinian areas, were unavailable for comment yesterday on the policy change.
''Hamas has announced that it accepts a Palestinian independent state within the 1967 borders with a long-term truce," Yousef said, referring to lands Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
Yousef's comments indicated that four years of fighting with Israel -- during which the military has targeted the group's top leaders -- and the imposition of international sanctions have taken a toll. Arafat's death last month and a drive by new Palestine Liberation Organization leader Mahmoud Abbas to renew talks with Israel after the Jan. 9 election for new Palestinian leader also appears to have changed Hamas's policy.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath welcomed the new Hamas position as a ''positive step" and said the group informed the Palestinian Authority of its new policy during recent talks.
Until now, Hamas had rejected peace accords and carried out suicide bombings and other attacks, killing hundreds of people and badly damaging peace efforts.
Yousef said the Hamas position was new, calling it a ''stage." In the past, Hamas has said it would accept a state in the 1967 borders as a first step to taking over Israel. Yousef did not spell out the conditions for the renewable cease-fire nor did he say how long it would last.
''For us a truce means that two warring parties live side by side in peace and security for a certain period and this period is eligible for renewal," Yousef said. ''That means Hamas accepts that the other party will live in security and peace."
Yousef said Hamas, which announced Wednesday it would boycott the January vote, still planned to participate in Palestinian politics. It previously shunned any role in the Palestinian Authority because it rejected interim peace accords with Israel that created the governing body.
''Hamas wants to join the Palestinian political leadership and there are meetings over this issue," he said. ''Hamas being a part of the political equation means Hamas will deal with the other party [Israel]."
Hani Masri, a commentator for the Palestinian newspaper Al-Ayyam, said Hamas was weakened by its listing as a terrorist organization by the United States and European Union. Those listings led to asset freezes that dealt a strong blow to the group's finances.
The group, which also faced Israel's hunt for Hamas leaders -- including the killing of spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin in March -- and Palestinian exhaustion with the uprising, could not survive if it did not change, Masri said.
''That doesn't mean there are no extremist wings in Hamas," Masri said. ''There are still extremists in Hamas and they still have the ability to function, but I think the Palestinian Authority with Abu Mazen at its top will help Hamas to rein in the extremists."
Abu Mazen is Abbas's nickname.
A Hamas official said on condition of anonymity that Abbas will meet Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal in Syria next week to arrange a truce before next month's election.
Mahmoud Zahar, a Hamas leader in Gaza, said Thursday that cease-fire negotiations could begin next week. ''If the Israelis stop their aggression against our people, I think through the negotiations . . . we can reach a final agreement," he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Thursday that Israel would halt offensive military operations if calm prevailed.
However, Israeli soldiers shot and killed an Islamic Jihad leader yesterday during an arrest raid in the West Bank village of Rabba. The army said the man, Mahmoud Dobie, 25, was armed and tried to flee.
Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat condemned the killing, saying it ''undermines the efforts we're exerting" to reach a truce with militants. | <urn:uuid:800cf164-a6eb-4bdd-8e33-ec31abe022b7> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2004/12/04/hamas_ready_for_truce_official_says/?camp=pm | 2015-07-02T05:48:31Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095404.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00306-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963353 | 924 | [
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The Master of Disguise Movie Review
Most people could predict it from the previews, but I had to see it just to make sure. I shouldn't have bothered. "The Master of Disguise" is a dreadfully boring and stupid comedy from Dana Carvey, a man that was funny once but has done little to show that he has what it takes to carry a film nowadays.
Carvey stars as Pistachio, a young idiot who is forced to learn the ways of his family's ancestry after his parents are kidnapped. He trains to become a master of disguise, a "wizard" that can change his appearance into just about anyone.
Carvey, like the movie, is not funny at all. There are a few one-liners here and there that made me grunt a laugh, but other than that, this film just sucks. It is probably aimed more at kids than adults, but aside from the PG-rating, it is hard to tell. I would hate to think of the few parents that were dragged along with their children to see this movie; or the children that were dragged along by their parents.
Carvey is obviously a talented guy, but he needs to realize that you can't just make a bunch of funny faces and voices and except an audience to sit there for even half an hour.
"The Master of Disguise" is one of the worst movies of the year.
Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated. | <urn:uuid:e048a259-6a5f-401c-aba3-ae3d667b073c> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.filmjabber.com/movie-reviews/the-master-of-disguise.html | 2015-07-02T05:22:46Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095404.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00306-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.992185 | 301 | [
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I have no words…this recipe that came out of nowhere, makes an incredible mozzarella that tastes how I remember dairy buffalo mozzarella tasting, only better! Just go make this. Like, now. It’s so easy to make and it will impress everyone.
400gr plain soy yogurt
1/4 cup virgin coconut oil, liquified
1 cup water
2 tbsp agar powder
2 tbsp tapioca starch
1 tsp pectin
1/4 tsp guar gum or xanthan gum
Place agar and water in a pot and let it boil for about 5 minutes, or until the agar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, add in tapioca starch and whisk. Transfer it in a blender, and add the rest of the ingredients, except the coconut oil. Blend until smooth and with the blender running, slowly pour in the coconut oil.
To shape the mozzarella balls, you will need a bowl filled with cold water, 1tbsp salt and ice cubes. Using an ice cream scoop, take some of the mixture and drop it in the water. Do this with all the mixture. The mozzarella will harden instantly, but let it sit in there for a minute or two. Using a slotted spoon transfer the balls in a container, without piling them on top of each other. Keep in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
Oh, and did I mention you can make an amazing mascarpone cheese, for let’s say tiramisu? Just use only 1tsp of the agar powder and after blending you are done! | <urn:uuid:7802855b-3c07-4c99-a301-5fe051f9e9b6> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.veggie-wedgie.com/?p=2337 | 2015-07-02T05:14:37Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095404.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00306-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.901058 | 335 | [
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In the Garden:
Bright yellow, lantern-shaped flowers in late summer and fall and persistent fluffy seedheads give Clematis tangutica great garden appeal.
The Flowers of Autumn
At a recent meeting of gardeners, many people lamented that their garden looked so bad at this time of year. My guess is that the problem is more one of weariness on the part of the gardener than unattractiveness on the part of the gardens. The incident reminded me to concentrate on seeing the flowers and other beauties of fall and focus less on the weeds and chores waiting to be done. For indeed, there is an abundance of plants that can make the garden a spot of appealing color in this season. Of course, many annuals continue to bloom until frost, but many woody and herbaceous plants bloom from summer into fall.
Since it's not too late for fall planting and never too early to be thinking about additions to the garden for next year, I'll suggest some fall bloomers that are on my plant radar.
Bluebeard (Caryopteris cultivars) remains one of the best of blue-flowered plants, whatever the season. 'Grand Bleu', 'Petite Bleu', and 'Sunshine Blue' are newer cultivars that have proven to be very good.
The airiness, long bloom season, and attractiveness to butterflies of Brazilian verbena (Verbena bonariensis) has kept it as one of my favorites.
Staying in the blue-purple color range, 'Rozanne' hardy geranium has survived severe neglect in my yard and still blooms profusely.
Golden lace (Patrinia scabiosifolia) remains a great perennial for its long-blooming chrome-yellow flowers, as does 'Fireworks' goldenrod (Solidago). I would also recommend 'Golden Fleece', which is a lower-growing goldenrod.
Maiden grass (Miscanthus cultivars) must now be used with caution, since in Zone 7 and warmer it is becoming invasive. Fortunately, there are lots of native grasses available, with the various cultivars of switch grass (Panicum) especially offering good substitutes for miscanthus.
I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Japanese anemones as they remind me of a special place and time in my life. A six-year Chicago Botanic Garden study found that the best three cultivars were the white-flowered 'Andrea Atkinson' and the pink-flowered varieties, 'Max Vogel' and 'Serenade' (http://www.chicagobotanic.org/pr/press05/Anemone2.html).
Toad lilies (Trycyrtis species and cultivars) are shade perennials native to Asia that bear small but abundant flowers resembling an orchid or miniature passionflower. There's a wide range of flower colors, including purple, white, yellow, and speckled; plant sizes from 4 inches to 4 feet; plant forms from upright to arching; and foliage forms from shiny to hairy, plain to spotted. Provide moist, humus-rich soil in open shade.
Hardy begonia (Begonia grandis) is an old-fashioned plant that hasn't lost it's appeal. Growing 2 to 3 feet tall in open shade, the plant is often chosen for the large, red-veined, red-backed leaves as much as for the fall-blooming pink flowers. Place it in the garden where it can be backlit by the sun, which makes the leaves glow.
Turtleheads, both the white-flowered Chelone glabra and pink-flowered Chelone obliqua, are native to eastern North America, usually growing in moist to wet soils. Fortunately, they adapt to more ordinary garden soil, especially with the help of an organic mulch. Turtleheads can grow in full sun to light shade. The uniquely shaped flowers, which indeed do resemble a turtle's head, are borne above the rounded, upright, 2- to 3-foot plants. The foliage of the white turtlehead is the larval food for the Baltimore checkerspot butterfly.
For a fall-blooming native garden, Gene Bush of Munchkin Gardens recommends combining turtlehead with great blue lobelia, asters, and Joe-pye weed. I would also add the native white-flowered false aster (Boltonia asteroides var. 'Snowbank') to this group.
Hopefully, no gardener ever forgets to have some brightly colored chrysanthemums in the garden, plus some asters, including the newer, shorter-growing ones. Sedums should always be on the list, too. And, of course, there is the vining, white-flowered sweet autumn clematis, as well as the bright yellow-flowered Clematis tangutica.
As for shrubs, we can't forget the pink-flowered Elsholtzia stauntonii, with its fragrant foliage; the hybrid, non-seeding, white-flowered 'Diana' rose-of-Sharon; and Lespedeza thunbergii with its pink, pea-like flowers.
The butterfly bushes (Buddleia) just seem to bloom on and on and on. Given the worries about these becoming invasive, the best ones to consider are 'Orchid Beauty', 'Summer Rose', and 'White Ball'.
Crape myrtles (Lagerstroemia indica) are also long-blooming, especially the new, dwarf 'Razzle Dazzle' series, which is well-adapted to our region.
And then there's .... Okay, the list may not be endless, but it is long. So let yourself become excited about gardening again, even in the fall.
Care to share your gardening thoughts, insights, triumphs, or disappointments with your fellow gardening enthusiasts? Join the lively discussions on our FaceBook page and receive free daily tips! | <urn:uuid:5bd4252e-7f06-4ff2-bf4d-ab0fd91d1a07> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.garden.org/regional/report/arch/inmygarden/2236 | 2015-07-04T11:47:29Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375096706.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031816-00246-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928763 | 1,257 | [
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This upload features tracks from Extrawelt.
Titelheld is so good!I love this set!
Hi was geht
I've been looping this over and over for many days now, gets better with each listen... Agent D
F***in orgasmic !!!!! 14:00
Press play to try again.
You can get it here. | <urn:uuid:9f803d3e-00a5-46d1-8004-5148ab4d2de7> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | https://www.mixcloud.com/sereno767/extrawelt-nature-one-01082009/ | 2015-07-04T12:07:23Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375096706.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031816-00246-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916018 | 76 | [
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Jeff Hirsch is President and CEO of AudienceScience.
AdExchanger.com: Do you agree that audience has become more important than placement? If so, what have been the key drivers?
JH: I absolutely agree that the reaching right audience is the most important component of any advertising. Contextual placements are often a proxy for reaching a specific audience. In addition, placement in context on premium sites is inventory supply limited, and with the need for campaign efficiency greater than ever, audience targeting is a vital resource to marketers.
Behavioral targeting is an effective form of online advertising. But - privacy concerns aside - where are the areas that can be developed or improved with BT?
We are able to create the most accurate audience segments, targeted to great detail; however the challenge to marketers is being able to efficiently match creative and messaging with each specific audience segment in a timely manner. Another area that can be improved is the analysis of the massive amounts of data (strictly anonymous of course) available to gain consumer insight on an individual level. Through deeper analysis we can target consumer with relevant messaging customized to their particular stage in the buying process and reach them anywhere on the web.
How effective is porting offline data (such as Datran or Aperture) to online campaigns today? Is AudienceScience using offline data on behalf of its clients?
This practice looks to be very effective; more data to incorporate into a segment can only improve targeting accuracy and scale. However, we do not engage in this methodology yet as we are still weighing the consumer privacy issues.
How will media agencies need to change to keep up with ongoing innovation in the online ad industry?
Media agencies will need to implement technologies and practices that give them a deeper understanding of their client's audiences. This advanced knowledge will empower agencies to deliver campaigns that reduce waste and increase ROI.
Where should publishers be looking to improve yield in the future?
They should expand the boundaries of their site and not allow themselves to be limited by data or inventory. Publishers have spent years developing monetization strategies around their inventory . They need to spend the same energy developing strategies around the value of their audience. By doing so, they can dramatically expand their revenue opportunities.
Does AudienceScience participate in data exchanges or ad exchanges? Or will it create its own data exchange?
We find value in working with any quality source of inventory or data. Our value proposition is to find audiences anywhere and any technology that offers us the ability to do so in a brand safe environment is important to us. We do not foresee building our own exchange as our core focus is on the qualitative construction and targeting of comprehensive audience segments.
How will demand-side optimization and real-time bidding (RTB) affect AudienceScience?
For AudienceScience as an entity that creates high value audiences and then targets those audiences on inventory we buy, RTB is a welcome development. We are looking for specific users that we want to target, and being able to bid on only those impressions we want is more efficient and benefits both buyers and sellers. Doing this on a per impression basis in real time enables us to determine the true value of the impression to us, and by extension to our advertiser clients, using all of the data available to us. We are better able to do demand side optimization.
Any trends you can discuss as to what part of the purchase funnel behavioral advertising is affecting today? Are brand awareness campaigns growing with BT or is it still direct response-focused with brand still a ways off?
We have seen success with brand awareness campaigns. Behavioral targeting has an effect throughout the sales funnel, because it does not rely on context or placement, and can tailor messaging and creative specific to audiences no matter which stage of the funnel they are in. It can be a powerful branding channel; unfortunately, automated brand measurement methodologies are still very limited. | <urn:uuid:f0692326-ff94-44ac-995f-6534681e440d> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://adexchanger.com/ad-networks/behavioral-targeting-audiencescience/ | 2015-07-06T11:20:58Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098196.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00186-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950521 | 793 | [
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I was at an case respective weeks ago and saw a woman who looked absolutely beautiful.
Perfect quill. Perfect place. Perfectly practical makeup.
She walked up to me and cask my paw and offered me a pamphlet.Post ads:
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And past I saw it.
A attention absent bad - chipped horny structure polish, ragged nails (that looked approaching they were chewed on pretty usually) and thing inside of me went..."Hmmmm."
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Of education you cognise what happened!
I cognitive content "This entirely applies to company as well!"
Sometimes we have ...
Chipped Nail Polish Sales!
And for all of you who give attention to no one sees those information - healed... I have report for you.
PEOPLE DO SEE.
AND THEY MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT YOU BASED ON IT.
Are Your Customers Being Treated Like A Bad Manicure?
Would you approaching to manufacture more than hard cash in the side by side 30 days?
Then I Diva-Dare you to club into your on-line consumers and take home certain no one has any "ragged edges, smears or chips" once they are dealing near you!
3 Ways To Add More Polish In The Next 30 Days:
o Don't Leave Your Clients High and Dry! I really dislike having to put my safekeeping beneath the staple drier at the art gallery. Why? It is so borrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring and I can't even read a public press unless I can vault the pages beside my nose! I end up individual fully unobserved by the fastener technician as she moves on to other purchaser. Make confident you displace out a Thank you paper after you have normative company from one of your clients and support in touch beside them all 6 weeks.
o Book In Advance. Just as tresses and nails obligation first-string "maintenance" so do your clients! What is the NEXT STEP for them to "purchase" you??
o How You Can Help Them During Their "In-Between" Stages? Are you causation out an e-zine or newssheet with tips? Mailing serviceable information that can help implant them? (and NO - sending them your recent SALE statistics doesn't count!)
I cognize you tough grind so tall at attracting regulars.
It takes oooooodles of time, life and coins. So generate secure you are EXTENDING the existence of your customer's "manicure" near you - and they'll LOVE YOU for it! | <urn:uuid:0f0f5d74-ff29-44c3-ac86-57a49f71b9c9> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://daviyo1.pixnet.net/blog/post/62205643 | 2015-07-06T11:32:30Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098196.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00186-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.819311 | 1,124 | [
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edTPA in NYS breaking news
Congratulations to all our students who have already passed the edTPA.
There is good news for anyone who fails this year. There is a one year “safety net”. Check out the news here. You still can get certified by taking the ATS-W.
This gives us a year to circle the wagons and let SCALE and Pearson and NYS and AACTE and everyone else know what you think about edTPA as a standardized measure of your performance as a beginning teacher. More info on how to participate with us will be forthcoming. | <urn:uuid:2353bdf5-bd56-471c-b178-65eb44881e9a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://tceleminclusive.pressible.org/tcelementaryinclusive/edtpa-in-nys-breaking-news | 2015-07-06T11:18:45Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098196.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00186-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971645 | 124 | [
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|John Raoux/Associated Press|
|Georgia will reportedly be without Josh Harvey-Clemons for the first three games of next season.|
Georgia defensive back Josh Harvey-Clemons will be suspended for the first three games of the 2014 season due to a violation of the school's drug policy, according to ajc.com.
The publication cited multiple sources saying that Harvey-Clemons' suspension from Georgia's Gator Bowl loss to Nebraska began a four-game suspension mandated by UGA because the Bulldogs' safety had violated UGA's policy on marijuana for the second time.
Harvey-Clemons' first reported violation of the UGA drug policy came about 11 months ago when he admitted to smoking marijuana in his dormitory room when campus police were called to investigate a suspicious smell. He was suspended from Georgia's season-opening loss to Clemson following that incident. According to the AJC, Harvey-Clemons has been subject to more frequent drug screenings since that first incident.
A three-game suspension to open the season would put Harvey-Clemons, who will be a junior, on the sideline for two of UGA's toughest games against Clemson and South Carolina, plus a non-conference contest against Troy. At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, he was Georgia's third-leading tackler in 2013 with 66 stops, was outstanding against the run, and is considered among the Bulldogs' better young talents. As a pro prospect, he might outgrow the safety position and play linebacker, where his troubles in pass coverage could be better managed.
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter @ChaseGoodbread. | <urn:uuid:75563177-dd11-425a-aee5-91f7d69f7a2a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000314289/article/report-georgia-db-josh-harveyclemons-suspended | 2015-07-06T11:43:21Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098196.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00186-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971377 | 339 | [
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Rate Dr. Nahrain H. AlZubaidi
Dr. Nahrain H. AlZubaidi's Ratings
Dr Alzubaidi clearly cares about her patients and doesn't rush them. She's thorough and I've even managed to bring my mom along who now has an appointment with her too.
Quality care without being rushed is hard to find. If you're impatient this may not be the place for you but the wait is worth it. I've gotten called the day before an appointment to come an hour late and still waited 2 hours. I just waited 2.5 hours recently without coming late at all, and I've waited an hour before too after they called me to come later. EXPECT A WAIT, especially later in the day. She works late though which really shows she cares! I've had appointments at 8pm before and there were still people after me! That's so rare! She has Saturday hours too. I never call ahead either but that's the smart thing to do. Wait until close to leaving and then call again in case the wait got longer after certain patients that needed more time. When you arrive you can ask how many people are in front of you and you cash estimate about 30 or more minutes each. There are restaurants, shops, and the movie theater all nearby though to kill some time thankfully.
I just saw Dr. AlZubaidi for the first time today. I was expecting the worst in regards to wait time and office staff based on the reviews. And guess what? Nice office, minimal wait time (and I was actually early), great staff, excellent physician. After an odyssey to different doctors without ever being diagnosed correctly, I was pretty disillusioned about seeing another practitioner. What a surprise, when I sat down to talk to Dr. AlZubaidi. Very knowledgeable, the best bedside manners I have seen in a very long time, friendly, respectful, and smart. She also has 2 skills that they apparently don't teach in school anymore: She cares and listens. I left the office with a treatment plan, and the most important thing - a positive outlook on my treatment. While I did not experience any wait time, I would have to say that I would gladly spend 10 hours in the waiting room, as excessive as it sounds, just to see a physician like Dr. AlZubaidi. You instantly know that she loves her chosen field and does not look at you as a walking paycheck. She's a gem, and I have never felt more inclined to recommend a physician. If you want an excellent endocrinologist, look no further.
Dr. Al-Zubaidi is a fantastic Endocrinologist. It's true, there is always a wait but the staff will call you ahead of time to tell you when to come in. It's best to book her first appointment or make it for later in the day on a day when you can run errands and other stuff while you wait for them to call. I fortunately live only a few minutes away so I can come in whenever. Dr. Al-Zubaidi is very thorough and she'll sit and listen to everything you have to say. She's very frank and will give you her honest opinion. She'll also work with you and provide you with alternatives if you need them. I'm a difficult case and she's taken the time to understand the whole picture. Not many doctors will do that. They'll just diagnose you with something and then write off everything else. If you can get over not having a solid appointment time, she's well worth the wait.
Great Staff. Friendly and helpful. Office is busy! It's best to make your appt as the first appt. of the day. She takes a good hour. Results received in a timely manner. Prescriptions are sent out electronically, so the pharmacists has the order right away. The only issue that I see would be the wait time if you are not the first patient of the day. Expect to wait for 2 hrs if your appt is later in the day. However, the office is good on keeping you posted on the wait time and will tell you not to come in so you don't have to sit there. There are alot of shops and stores to go to if you need to wait however.
Everyone that wrote about her appointments being late were right. I waited almost 2 hours past my appointment time to see the doctor, however, I read these reviews first and was prepared for that. I called before I left work to get an estimate of when the doctor would be ready. I had thyroid cancer and had my thyroid removed, since then (about 2 yrs ago) it's been a battle of side effects. She was AMAZING. She sat down and did a very thorough check of my past and current medical history and was so knowledgeable. I didn't have one question she didn't have an answer to. She ran a plethora of tests and assured me we'd find out what was going on. If anyone has been through what I went through, waiting two hours is nothing to pay for a good doctor. The one thing I will say, the nurse that took my blood wasn't gentle and left a week long bruise on my arm. Sounds silly but when you have blood drawn often, you come to appreciate someone who can do it with ease, and she did not.
WOW! So many positive reviews and it can be so easily wrecked with the experience of JUST TRYING to make an appointment! I called this morning at 9:48. No staff answered the phone. I was "received" by an answering machine! By 1:18 pm I STILL had not received a return phone call so I called them again! I was greeted just perfunctorily, forget any pleasantry, by a thickly accented woman (no ID but not the doctor.) The FIRST available appointment was Sept 6th, 3 months from now. She did ask if it was "okay." She did not ask if there were any urgency nor did she suggest a waitlist as well. No! I had to ask to be put on a waitlist. I identified myself and that I had called and left a message. After agreeing to the appointment, I asked why no one answered the phone this morning and why no one had returned my call. She stated that they don't return calls until later and that they were very, very busy. Oh my! How very OFF-PUTTING!
Dr. Alzubaidi, I have referred friends and family to her. She takes the time to listen. No doubt as a patient of Dr. Alzubaidi, you will be heard. She is clear and concise with her communication and thinks outside of the box, listens to the patient and does not rush or make you feel hurried. She has taught me to take responsibility for my health and with her knowledge and guidance my health had dramatically improved. The reason I gave rated her with a 5 for punctuality is because she has her considerate staff call you ahead if she is running behind. For an added bonus, the office is located a great area, movie theater, shopping, and water feature where children play and laugh.
After 2 visits, told me to get a gastric bypass. Doesn't that strike you as odd? I mean I am overweight, but not to the point where I am any different than any of her other patients, many in the waiting room larger than I. At the second appt. she throws her hands up in the air and says "so what do you want to do now"? Bad (and lazy) medicine
This Dr saved my life and my quality of life! Granted you have to wait to see her (she's always behind because she's taking her time & giving her patients 100%). She also wants to know about any other problems so she can make sure there's no interactions with any other treatments. She also realizes that labs are "snapshots." So she'll sometimes have you get tested at different points during the day. If a medication has side effects that mess with your quality of life, (like certain birth control pills lower libido. Not good for a newlywed!) she'll see what's out there to reduce or eliminate that side effect. She treats the whole patient, not just your disease. Her staff is fun and quirky and treat you like a human being. The Saturday office hours are a bonus too!
Everything was great, but one bad thing with this doctor's office, you have to wait for 2 hours than your appointment time. First time we were shocked and frustrated about the fact that we wasted a complete saturday evening. Next visit, we kind of realized a little bit. Third visit, we assumed that it is going to be delayed and took care of our dinner in potbelly downstairs and sat in the park for sometime:). After all complaints, doctor is great and the best in the field. She takes care of things very well. I hope she understands the pain about punctuality sometime soon!!!
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#5 of 30 | <urn:uuid:9136af00-e0d1-4652-998f-a45c6df6b1a7> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.ratemds.com/doctor-ratings/17723/Dr-Nahrain-Al-Zubaidi-Fairfax-VA.html | 2015-07-06T11:31:07Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098196.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00186-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987135 | 1,909 | [
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Sante Fe Pale AleMarch 1, 2003 Santa Fe, NM
Santa Fe Brewing Co.
Santa Fe, NM
Available: NM, CO
The Santa Fe Brewing Co. began in 1893 as the Terrace Bar, a watering hole for Mexican frontiersman, cowboys and Eastern traders. Almost 100 years later, the Santa Fe Brewing Co. was opened on the same site, in a gutted livery stable, with hand-made equipment. Santa Fe Pale Ale is brewed in the traditional English pale ale style.
Alcohol by weight: 4.2
Not a traditional pale ale, but it is a pleasure to drink. A heavy-handed hophead added just the right amount of hops—a lot. They perfume the air when the glass comes close to the nose. A bright gold tinged with copper color pleases visually and, while I might prefer slightly more malt flavor on the palate, it is a beer that suits very spicy foods. We enjoyed trying it with hot, home made salsa, and organic blue corn tortilla chips.
- Charles Finkel
Amber pale ale the way it used to taste. There’s no polished, refined, homogenized, beer-for-the-masses character in this crafted ale. Reminds me of the way pale ale was made by very small microbrewers in the early 1980s. Bottle-conditioned, slightly hazy but with a rich complexity of yeast; hops and malt character not found in large-batch or filtered ales. Well-brewed local ale that deserves local support.
- Charlie Papazian
Burnished copper color with a tightly beaded collar of foam. A rich aroma dominated by a sappy, woody note from the hops and a bready, malty underpinning. Hops come to the fore on the tongue, balanced by juicy malt and a touch of ripe marmalade fruit. The fruit lingers into the finish, which has a big, juicy malt character and a pleasing touch of spicy hop. A well-made, delectable beer and the ideal aperitif.
- Roger Protz
Founder of Merchant du Vin and the Pike Brewing Co., Charles Finkel is a pioneer in the marketing of craft beers in America.
Author of the New Complete Joy of Homebrewing, founder of the Great American Beer Festival and a Beer Examiner at www.examiner.com, Papazian is a leading voice in beer and brewing.
Roger Protz is the author of Complete Guide to World Beer and 300 Beers to Try Before You Die. He is a respected beer authority and editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide. | <urn:uuid:100c598d-1eeb-4818-8467-65070ad498a0> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://allaboutbeer.com/review/sante-fe-pale-ale/ | 2015-06-30T08:19:19Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375091925.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031811-00126-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.911678 | 549 | [
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I play guitar.
I write music.
I support the cause.
New album out June 21st!
I found this to go with @pierrebouvier 's video from Israel.
Montreal sous la neige...
Yo @fredbarnik, check ma guitare!
Just got over 55 000 followers! Thanks everyone! ^^
Ya deja des gens dans le lobby!
This is an awesome picture on the middle of the street.
Dog pee in the elevator.
Miam! Ribs! @pierrebouvier 's recipe.
@cadygroves that is you!!!
Van at night.
One of the vancouver crazies getting arrested. A common sight.
Stanley park. Very nice!
Chilling. @chuckcomeau and @seblefebvre (me) on the couch in the studio.
@jeffstinco ripping it!
This guy is wearing his @vasuma reading glasses to see what to order tonight.
Can you see him? There he is!
Tastes like shit but it's good for ya!
Vancouver looks orange in the morning. Please let me go back to bed !!!
©2015 Twitpic Inc, All Rights Reserved | <urn:uuid:9e696597-561c-4acc-b4a6-9b634c6372a5> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://twitpic.com/photos/seblefebvre?page=3 | 2015-06-30T09:31:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375091925.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031811-00126-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.781787 | 272 | [
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Mark Millett named 2014 Steelmaker of the year at AISTech 2014 show.
Mark Millett, president and CEO of the steel minimill company Steel Dynamics Inc., headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has been named 2014 Steelmaker of the Year at the AISTech 2014 convention. Additionally, Millett was recognized with the 2014 William Hogan Memorial Lecture Award.
The AISTech event, held May 5-8, 2014, is organized by the Association for Iron & Steel Technology (AIST), a nonprofit organization with 16,000 members from more than 70 countries that represents a network of steel industry knowledge and expertise.
The Steelmaker of the Year Award was established in 1991 to recognize contributions of a prominent individual to the steel industry.
In receiving the two awards, Millett said, “It is both gratifying and humbling to receive such an award when it is at the discretion of one’s peers.”
Millett’s second honor, the William Hogan Memorial Lecture Award, recognizes an individual who provides strong leadership to the iron and steel industry. Millett was recognized for his presentation titled “Making Money in the Steel Industry Is Not a Mystery.”
In remarks, Millett noted that SDI’s experience can be an example for other companies and industries. It’s easy to make money and outperform peers by doing three things right, he said. The first is to be sure that the average raw material input costs are lower than the competition’s. The symbiotic relationship between its steel and scrap operations helps SDI achieve this, he said.
The second tenit is to ensure that the average selling prices for its products are higher than the competition. SDI achieves this by focusing on creating value for its customers, developing niche market opportunities to insulate it from imports and by exploring new markets. This has allowed the company to sustain higher production utilization rates through market cycles, generating greater profitability.
The third focus area, and the key driver to the company's success, Millett said, is the company’s lowest cost operating culture. While having state-of-the-art facilities producing quality products is important, it is also critical to have a passionate culture in which to exploit it, he said. The right people in the right place create the backbone of a quality organization, and they will create and sustain value for a company, its customers and its shareholders. | <urn:uuid:691d5c14-69db-4d76-bb95-15472e2440c8> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.recyclingtoday.com/steel-dynamics-millett-awards.aspx | 2015-06-30T08:22:12Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375091925.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031811-00126-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960944 | 501 | [
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What's new in production ///
One of the major trends noted in this month’s forecast is the transformation that development drilling for shale gas has had on the US industry. This process has not yet occurred in Canada, where most gas comes from conventional plays.
But that will change in the future. The Alberta Research Council Inc. (ARC), a government-owned, not-for-profit corporation, has partnered with Schlumberger on a research initiative in unconventional gas resource recovery and technology development. According to Ian Potter, vice president of energy at ARC, the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin shales hold from 86 to 1,000 Tcf of gas. As conventional gas reservoirs decline, unconventional gas will be needed to meet market demand. ARC operates five facilities in Alberta serving the energy, life sciences and manufacturing sectors.
The first research program will focus on improving gas production from immature shale reservoirs through rock characterization and non-damaging-fluids fracturing.
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Join Our Newsletter ///
Sign-up for World Oil Daily News
Latest News ///More | <urn:uuid:70f1d1ac-9cc0-4222-be1f-3a115e026992> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.worldoil.com/magazine/2008/february-2008/columns/what39s-new-in-production | 2015-06-30T08:22:19Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375091925.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031811-00126-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928379 | 239 | [
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Wayne Perryman, a black minister, and community activist, has filed a legal brief for a class action lawsuit, against one of the two major political parties in the United States, for its long history of racism and discrimination.
The plaintiffs, who refer to the defendants as the “Father of Racism,” allege that as an organization, the Democratic Party has consistently refused to apologize for the role they played in slavery, Jim Crow and for other subsequent racist practices from 1792 to 2011. Mrs. Frances P. Rice, the Chair of the National Black Republican Association is also a named plaintiff in the class action lawsuit.
The case cites the collective work of over 350 legal scholars and includes Congressional records, case law, research from our nation’s top history professors, racist statements from Democratic elected officials, citations from the Democrat’s National Platforms regarding their support of slavery, excepts of speeches from Senator Obama, individual testimonies from blacks who lived in the Jim Crow South and opinions from the NAACP.
Perryman said President Obama was named as a defendant not only because he is the official leader of the Democratic Party, but because of certain statements he made about his own party in his book, Dreams from My Father. In 2009, the President was asked to issue an apology to blacks on behalf of his party, but he refused. Unlike other reparations lawsuits, this lawsuit merely asks for a public apology, but no monetary damages. | <urn:uuid:812f06a7-e59a-45a8-8237-dae0ceefd1f1> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | https://trutherator.wordpress.com/2011/12/18/zilla-of-the-resistance-black-community-activist-sues-racist-political-party/ | 2015-06-30T08:20:10Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375091925.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031811-00126-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975685 | 295 | [
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Limited Winter Edition Cheetos Puffs Winter White Cheddar apparently really wants you to know that it’s winter. I’m sure those of you who live in the Northeast are already well aware of that. Nevertheless, Cheetos wants a reason for the season. Actually, they want a reason to make limited edition Puffs. Winter is often white, because of snow. White cheddar is (somewhat) white! Boom. I’m disappointed they didn’t make the Puffs in the form of snowflakes. Perhaps that technology is not yet available.
Cheetos already makes White Cheddar Puffs, but they’re only available in their Natural line of products. This means that instead of organic corn meal, cheddar cheese and sour cream, Winter White Cheddar Puffs contain enriched corn meal, cheese seasoning, and MSG. But Chester Cheetah is riding a Puff like it’s a snowboard! The back of the bag says “Strap on your gear because you’re in for a ride.”
I’m assuming by “gear” he means your obesity-necessitated sleep apnea machine and by “ride” he means the ambulance ride you’ll take when you forget to take your insulin. I’m just saying.
I just read on Frito-Lay’s Snack Chat blog that Winter White Cheddar Puffs were only available through the end of December. I guess that shows you how long I’ve had them (in my defense they have not reached their expiration date yet) and also that you will not be able to eat them. I’m sorry. Egg on my face, eh?
Snack Chat also brought to me this interesting sentence: “The packaging even features Cheester Cheetah snowboarding, and they’re made with real cheese.” The “even” makes me feel like they’re a little desperate. Wait, didn’t I already explore this joke three paragraphs ago? It’s disturbing to think that I’ve started mind-melding with Frito-Lay’s marketing department.
The sentence is also worded in such a way that it reads like the two have something to do with each other. Snowboarding and cheese, together at last. Oh, and I just realized Frito-Lay blog writer “Katherine” spelled Chester’s name wrong! With quality writers like Katherine, how am I not writing for Snack Chat already? Oh, it’s probably because of unnecessarily scathing criticisms like these. Hm.
While the white cheddar on the Puffs is rather white, apparently they couldn’t take a step further and bleach the enriched corn meal. This means the Puffs themselves are yellow, and they couldn’t drench them in enough cheese seasoning to hide that fact. So the Winter White is more like Summer Sunset Pale Yellow. Ah well, at least you can still use them as a snowboard.
I’ve never had Cheetos Puffs before. I was surprised at how big they are. Any one of them could have replaced my index finger, if I wanted my index finger to always be crooked and Cheetos were medically approved to be used as finger transplants. One day, technology will catch up.
Cheetos Puffs are fluffy, crunchy and somewhat dense at the same time. They remind me a little bit of Planters Cheez Balls. The corn meal taste of Cheetos is definitely present, and the white cheddar powder compliments that flavor. I found myself going from “eat for review” to “see how I can fit a Puff into my mouth like I have a retainer” to “mindlessly munching while watching TV instead of writing review”. At worst, that makes them inoffensive. At best, I seem to enjoy shoving giant Cheetos into my mouth.
Limited Winter Edition Cheetos Puffs Winter White Cheddar stands on a pretty weak gimmick, especially considering there’s already a version of Cheetos White Cheddar Puffs out there with (allegedly) healthier and more “real” ingredients, but I like them anyway. I’m a sucker for limited edition products, even more so when they’re trying to tie themselves to a holiday or season. Plus, you know, Chester Cheetah riding a Puff like a snowboard. You could pick up pretty much any white cheddar-flavored snack food and get the same flavor powder, but hey, why not have it on a Winter Puff? Oh, right, because they no longer exist. The texture of the Puff is interesting, although I wish they hadn’t made them the size of my entire jaw. Will I Winter Puff again? Well, no, because I’m an asshole and waited too long to write this review, so now we all can’t. But I may try the Natural White Cheddar Puffs just to see if the better ingredients add up to better flavor.
- Score: 3.5 out of 5 Cheeeeeesters
- Price: $1.29
- Size: 3 1/4 oz. bag
- Purchased at: Circle K
- Nutritional Quirks: With the same serving size, Winter White Cheddar Puffs and Natural White Cheddar Puffs have the exact same amount of calories. Natural has one less gram of fat. Winter actually has 70 mg less sodium. So much for natural meaning healthier! | <urn:uuid:8ef429e9-0cca-4925-ac89-d479b9ba2be1> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://junkfoodbetty.com/2011/01/24/limited-winter-edition-cheetos-puffs-winter-white-cheddar/ | 2015-07-04T19:44:00Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375096870.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031816-00006-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946702 | 1,180 | [
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The Power of a Radical Minority – at Home and Abroad
In transformational times, assessing and reassessing one’s basic assumptions is critical for navigating the confusing and dangerous shoals of public and foreign affairs. Like those who perpetually “fight the last war,” far too many people are inclined to view every development through the lens of their own experience. The conflict in Syria and the U.S. government shutdown may be two differing but relevant cases in point.
The United States and Russia may have agreed to a framework for identifying and destroying Syria’s chemical weapons, but for all of the difficulties associated with getting rid of this arsenal it is no longer the critical issue it once was in determining the outcome of the conflict. The nature of the opposition to Bashar al-Assad is. With a Geneva II peace conference in the works, the international community is grappling with the inherent problems of assessing and making progress with a dangerously fractured opposition.
Despite the U.S.-Russian agreement, these two countries have yet to have a full meeting of the minds on the nature of the Syrian opposition and what that means for the outcome of the civil war and the future of the region.
It appears from the outset that the United States has downplayed the growing role of al-Qaeda- linked groups among the anti-Assad opposition. Just last month, Secretary of State John Kerry said, “I just don’t agree that a majority are al-Qaeda and the bad guys. That’s not true. There are about 70,000 to 100,000 oppositionists…Maybe 15 percent to 25 percent might be in one group or another who are what we would deem to be bad guys.”
Secretary Kerry also suggested that the United States would somehow end up as the power broker were Assad to be ousted — going on to say that this would require a negotiation on who would eventually run Syria.
The Russians have been at best skeptical of American assumptions and at worst shocked by what they might describe as U.S. naiveté. Rightly or wrongly, their take on the what they regard as an opposition riddled with Islamist radicals has led them to support the Syrian government at all costs –as their way of keeping a lid on the growing extremism in that country, and the potential for it to further destabilize the region.
The differences in Russian and American perspectives on this says a lot about the way our respective cultures interpret facts—not surprisingly, largely through the lens of our own historical experiences.
The potential for a minority faction takeover of an opposition movement is is infused in the Russian mind. Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the minority Bolshevik faction in the opposition Russian Social Democratic Worker’s Party, staged a successful coup in 1917. This power grab marginalized the majority of his party, the Mensheviks, and overturned a nascent parliamentary government in Russia—thus ushering in communism and the establishment of the Soviet Union, which lasted for more than seventy years.
The power of a radical minority, as the Russians well know, garners its strength and capability from its utter devotion to its cause and a willingness to use any means whatsoever to accumulate and ultimately seize power. With such determination, others who are unwilling or unable to be similarly focused and ruthless often have virtually no leverage at the end of the day.
On the U.S. home front we enjoy the blessings of stable government. The prevailing mood of the majority has largely triumphed. But due to continuing standoffs over fiscal matters, many people in America are beginning to wonder if we may have inaccurately analyzed a developing brand of domestic extremism. While they do not necessarily advocate violence, fringe elements on the right and left are extremists nonetheless as they do not accept any form of compromise; they get their energy from the unwavering righteousness of their causes.
At the moment, a faction of the Tea Party movement has provided the “leadership,” albeit one with a radical agenda, to shut down the United States government for the first time in 17 years. Moderates and traditional conservatives, fearful of their political tactics, have only just begun to realize the true danger posed by this dedicated and unyielding group.
Until now moderate Republicans have tolerated this minority in their ranks, assuming that in the end they could control, if not appease, this small faction. But the GOP establishment’s gamble may fail, threatening the party’s prospects for the mid-term elections and possibly damaging its longer term viability. The attention-seeking Senator Ted Cruz and his ilk are not dedicated to defunding the Affordable Care Act as much as they seek to dismantle much of the federal government. It appears that they will stop at nothing short of getting their way, since they have no strategy for ending this stalemate. While it is inconceivable that this minority’s tactics could extend beyond legislative measures, the potential to do catastrophic harm to our economy looms with the coming debt ceiling negotiations.
While the situation in Syria and the United States are in no way contextually similar, there is at least one lesson we can learn from what is now unfolding. Our collective experience of “majority rules” is the lens through which the United States often reflexively evaluates developments – at home and abroad. In the 20th century our system largely shielded us from political and sectarian violence. Even with a fortunate history, however, we are living in a fast-moving era that requires us to keep an open mind – constantly reevaluating the true nature of what is really happening. The United States should not underestimate people who have a fanatical passion to prevail – not overseas, and apparently not even in the halls of Congress. | <urn:uuid:f89bf75d-4578-4706-916a-02fbc26aeb8a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://susaneisenhower.com/2013/10/03/the-power-of-a-radical-minority-at-home-and-abroad/ | 2015-07-04T18:58:46Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375096870.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031816-00006-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962243 | 1,154 | [
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Robert Morris golfer prepares for NCAAs
College Football Videos
There was little typical about C.G. Mercatoris' path to the NCAA Division I men's golf championships.
So it's fitting Mercatoris, a senior at Robert Morris, and his coach, Jerry Stone, drove from Pittsburgh to Cleveland to catch a flight to Erie.
Erie, Colo., that is.
Mercatoris, the Northeast Conference champion, is competing at Colorado National Golf Club today through Saturday in one of six NCAA regionals that will pare the field for the NCAA Division I finals.
"I kind of expected them to send me nowhere close," Mercatoris said Tuesday following a warm-up round in Denver's mile-high atmosphere. "But I'm excited. It will be fun to get out there."
Mercatoris, who averaged 72.9 strokes per 18 holes this season, is the first Robert Morris golfer to reach the NCAA tournament.
The 54-hole regional, held just north of Denver, features 13 teams. The field is led by top-ranked Oklahoma State, plus an additional 10 players, including Mercatoris, who qualified with automatic bids or at-large selections.
Penn State senior T.J. Howe received an invite to the Virginia Tech regional, where he is the No. 1 seed.
The low five teams and the low individual player not on one of those teams from each regional will advance to the NCAA championships May 31-June 5 at Karsten Creek in Stillwater, Okla.
Mercatoris didn't get serious about golf until his sophomore year at Brookville High School and missed last year's NCAA regionals by one stroke after blowing a lead in the NEC tournament with three holes to go.
"To come up one shot short was disappointing," Mercatoris said, "but at the same time, it made me work harder to get where I want to be."
Mercatoris got there by winning this year's NEC title with a 1-under-par 215 at ChampionsGate G.C. on April 29-May 1 in Orlando.
Now he's back to being a longshot. Mercatoris is the lowest-seeded individual at the Colorado regional and is ranked No. 485th among Division I golfers by Golfweek.com.
"He doesn't bomb it off the tee, but he's got as good a short game as there is," said Stone, an 11th-year coach. "He puts it in the ground and he figures he can beat those guys. We didn't come out here for nothing."
The Colorado regional includes Oklahoma State's Peter Uihlein, the No. 1-ranked amateur golfer in the world, along with top-25 teams Auburn and Georgia, traditional powers Arizona State and Clemson and multiple top-100 ranked college golfers.
Mercatoris has golf in his blood. His cousin, Nathan Smith of Brookville, is the No. 7-ranked amateur in the U.S. and No. 18 in the world.
The 6-foot, 160-pound Mercatoris isn't a huge hitter - the thin Rocky Mountain air notwithstanding - and will count on his short game on a 7,676-yard layout that includes a 696-yard par 5.
"The fairways are as important as anything," he said. "You don't have to hit 300 yards off the tee to score well."Additional Information:
At a glance
School: Robert Morris
Notable: First golfer from RMU to qualify for the NCAA Division I men's golf tournament
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- Bomb squad removes unattended backpack near Pittsburgh police station | <urn:uuid:c762023c-e5bb-482c-a425-bd64d56b25a7> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://triblive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_737845.html | 2015-07-04T19:01:29Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375096870.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031816-00006-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95756 | 898 | [
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by Edwin James Welch
Edwin James Welch, The Tragedy of Cooper's Creek
Enforced desertion of the Depot
Burke and his three companions were no sooner away than Brahe and his men started to erect a stockade for their own protec¬tion, being less sanguine than their leader had expressed-himself to be about the pacific character of the natives; and this precaution was almost immediately shown to have been wisely taken, for the blacks surrounded them in large numbers and harassed both them and their stock by constant visits, impudent demands made by signs accompanied by loud talk and gestures, and petty thefts of any small articles left about the camp. But no attack was made and the small party settled down to a life of enforced idleness, anxiously waiting the return of those who had gone northwards, or some sign of the existence of Wright, from whom nothing had been heard. Four weary months passed in this unsatisfactory manner, but in the meantime they were attacked by scurvy without actually knowing the precise nature of the symptoms. They attributed their sufferings to rheumatism, and it was not until Patton became seriously ill, and unable to move about that Brahe decided to move southwards and endeavor to join forces with and place some of his responsibilities on the shoulders of the missing third officer.
Just here it may be as well to quote from Burke's last despatch to the Committee on the eve of his departure from Cooper's Creek, and which was afterwards published in the Melbourne Argus, to show what his intentions were, Dated 13th December, 1860, it ran thus:
Brahe, in confirmation of the time specified by Burke for his return upon the accuracy of his statement that Burke's final instructions to him when bidding "good-bye" were:
The pity of it that these instructions were not given in writing! However, Brahe maintained his position at the Creek depot for five weeks beyond the allotted time of three months, and only decided to leave it when both he and his men were suffering acutely and becoming worse daily. Could he have foreseen the terrible tragedy that was to result from his departure, he would assuredly have remained but that was impossible; and the blame that it was afterwards sought to attach to him for "deserting his leader and disobeying his instructions", was in no sense modified by a consideration of the extremely difficult position in which he was placed. Human lives were at stake on either hand, and he acted, as he believed, for the best; certainly in the interest of those for whom he was directly responsible. It was all he could do to move his small party at all. Riding caused them excruciating pain, and compelled them to travel very slowly, and in spite of all the attention and care they could bestow upon him, Patton died before they were able to effect a junction with Wright. | <urn:uuid:ba9c5a3d-6e06-49ea-8663-893cbe58f873> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.burkeandwills.net.au/Journals/Welch/Welchs_Chapter_04.htm | 2015-07-04T19:01:08Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375096870.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031816-00006-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.99364 | 590 | [
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Today is my first showing of work made with ceramic beads by Lisa Boucher of Clayworks. You can read more about the Cup of Bead Soup project by clicking here.
I knew I was really going to be challenged by this month's beads. I don't typically work with this style and the bail of the pendant I chose to work with today is a tough one at times to design with. If you string with it, you have to be sure to but larger holes at the ends of the "tunnel" so the beads don't slide back and forth and you lose your center. Then you need to make sure the beads aren't too big because you don't want the wire to show when the necklace is held up. Making wire loops is an option, but then you get an entirely different drape. All good things to keep in mind!
I wanted to challenge myself with some fiber this time and chose a length of raw linen I got from Stephanie Lee at a class I took with her. The idea was to create a "caught in the sea by a net" image. I have no idea if I created that or just created Amateur Hour.
As with most new mediums, I'm apprehensive and fly by the seat of my pants. I have no idea what I'm doing. I don't draw out plans. I just wing it. And sometimes that makes a really cool piece -- and sometimes it creates a piece that needs some work. So I welcome your comments on how to make this better.
I started by knotting the linen at the sides of the pendant so it wouldn't slide. Then I took some smaller pieces of thread and knotted on a few copper spacers, like flotsam caught in the net.
Next I added a ring from Vintaj that I filed to weather it a bit, knotted on the matching ceramic beads, more copper (both strung and knotted on), and finally the clasp at the top. When I originally received this box of beads, I had plans for the clasp on the side of the necklace, but it just didn't look right this time.
I honestly have no idea what I've created. Is it interesting? Is it a flop? Does it need something? Should I start all over? I know what I had in mind but I'm not sure I got there. Any constructive comments are welcomed -- please don't say "oh lovely you rocked it you are the queen" when you have ideas! That's how I learn.
One thing that shines, though -- Lisa's beads. Not a THING wrong with those. So please visit her at the following sites:
Blog: Lisa's Clay Happenings
Lori Anderson creates jewelry for her web site, Lori Anderson Designs, and wrote the blog An Artist's Year Off. She's also a contributor to Art Bead Scene. She is also the creator of the Bead Soup Blog Party. | <urn:uuid:b18c442e-8760-4888-95bd-e37df63fa18c> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://lorianderson-cupofbeadsoup.blogspot.com/2011/07/1st-cup-of-bead-soup-with-lisa-boucher.html | 2015-07-06T17:47:21Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098685.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00256-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978219 | 604 | [
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Comcast announced Tuesday it will offer 100 Mbps broadband service to businesses in the Twin Cities as the company increases speeds on its network as a result of network upgrades.
The company is offering the service over its newly upgraded Docsis 3.0 network. The Minneapolis-Saint Paul region was selected as the first area to get the service because it is one of the most mature Docsis 3.0 deployments that Comcast currently serves.
Comcast hasn't provided a schedule for when the service will be expanded. But a spokesman said the company will eventually introduce it in all its markets that have been upgraded to Docsis 3.0. These markets include Boston and parts of Southern New Hampshire, parts of Hartford, Philadelphia and surrounding areas, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, large parts of New Jersey, parts of Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Ft. Wayne, Chattanooga, Portland, Seattle, City of San Francisco and the Bay Area.
Comcast's goal is to reach 80 percent of its national footprint this year with the faster Docsis 3.0 technology. Currently, it covers about 65 percent of its footprint. By the end of the year, if Comcast reaches it goal, its faster broadband service will be available in more than 40 million homes and businesses.
Comcast already offers 50 Mbps service to businesses and residential customers in these markets today. But now the company is stepping up its efforts with the 100 Mbps service.
Comcast's rival Verizon Communications doesn't yet offer 100 Mbps service for any of its customers. The fastest service available from the company's all-fiber Fios network is 50 Mbps. Verizon's all fiber network is capable of delivering 100 Mbps speeds, but the company says it hasn't seen a big demand for it from either residential customers or business customers.
"We offer 50 Mbps in every market we serve," said Bobbi Henson, a spokeswoman for Verizon. "We haven't seen a tremendous amount of demand for 100Mbps service."
But Comcast's Kevin O'Toole says there is demand from small businesses. He said that businesses, such as those in healthcare or real estate, which send large files are in the most need of more bandwidth. What's more, Comcast offers several other services along with the broadband service to make the service more valuable to business customers.
For $369.95 per month these businesses get access to Microsoft services, such as Microsoft Exchange email, which provides shared corporate calendar and address functionality, and Microsoft Sharepoint, which allows businesses to have their own intranet. Comcast also will offer these 100 Mbps customers hardware firewall protection and 25 seats of McAfee security. It also offers free web hosting and domain support.
Comcast isn't competing against Verizon's Fios service with this 100 Mbps service. It is actually competing with Verizon's and other phone companies' T1 data services. This is the kind of service that most larger businesses subscribe to from a telephone provider. Not only are T1 services expensive, in some places costing close to $1,000 a month, but T1 lines are also slow, only providing downloads of 1.5 Mbps.
Comcast believes that small businesses with fewer than 20 employees is an underserved market. And in 2006 it started its business service unit. The strategy of going after these small businesses has paid off. And iIn the second quarter of 2009, the company reported that the business services unit grew revenue by 51 percent compared to the second quarter of 2008.
This is an underserved market that really needs the speed of 100 Mbps service," O'Toole said. "Plus we offer them a great value when you look at the entire package." | <urn:uuid:d15b3e89-bef8-42bf-a328-67a7cd801a1a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.cnet.com/news/comcast-to-offer-100-mbps-service-to-businesses/ | 2015-07-06T18:21:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098685.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00256-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964769 | 737 | [
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Integrating Renewable Energy
Why Renewable Energy?
We live in a world where air and water pollution, a direct result of coal, and gas fired energy production, pose serious health, safety and environmental concerns. Demand for these fossil fuels is not sustainable. Increasing dependence upon foreign sources of oil and gas threaten our long-term national security. Turning to nuclear energy, while offering a short-term panacea, increases radiation waste and decreases our security by offering another tempting target to those who wish to do harm.
Renewable sources (solar, wind, biomass, geothermal and hydropower) offer a way out from an increasingly polluted and insecure world. Each of these sources of energy are needed for a prosperous and secure future.
Solar is the most universally available source of all the renewables. With solid state conversion of photons from the sun to electrons for electricity, solar power is unmatched by any other renewable source for accessibility. Photovoltaic (PV) reliability has been tested for decades on spacecraft in the harshest of all environments. PV thin-film flexible laminate panels include a 25 year power output warranty and 5 year system warranty.
Why Sundial Energy, Inc.?
For the commercial business, residential developer or individual homeowner, Sundial Energy offers complete solar power system installations tailored to meet each customer's preference, including industry leading inverters, charge controllers, batteries and monitoring.
Sundial Energy is the right choice for your home or business. | <urn:uuid:c95d91e6-2269-4474-bef5-3f8dd0b5b5c8> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.sundialenergy.com/ | 2015-07-06T17:47:06Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098685.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00256-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.903313 | 299 | [
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All things Twilight related belong to Stephenie Meyer, no copyright infringement is intended. Thank you to AWayWithWords, Savannavansmutsmut, and Jess2002. All mistakes are our own.
***FFN version is highly edited for content to not violate the tos, the unedited for content files may be read at TWCS and FICPAD.***
It Started With a Proposal
"Hey, Eddy, my man," Emmett, my roommate, says as he slaps me on my back.
The force that he uses pushes me forward a little and my coffee spills partially over my work.
"There's a party tonight – you coming?"
I pick up the papers quickly wiping them off, hoping all is not lost.
"Eh… no… I've got loads of work to do."
"Come on, man, one night is not going to kill you."
I don't answer him, as I place the papers carefully over the old radiator to dry faster.
"Come on, man, who knows, you may even get laid. Word on the street is that Mike has dumped Tanya, and she's upset over it. You could offer her a shoulder to cry on, and then make your move. You could dip your stick, and double click her mouse – either way you hit home base and she feels good."
He wiggles his eyebrows as he grins.
"That's disgusting, Emmett. Tanya and Mike dated for a good five years. Now, you want me to use the fact she found out that he slept around on her most of the time, to get laid?"
Emmett looks unaffected by my words and just scratches his head.
"Okay, I was never planning on asking you this, because it doesn't matter to me. I mean, you're my friend, and I was sure you weren't—not that there's a problem if you were—but man, in the seven years I have shared a room, and known you—you've never been with a girl."
I roll my eyes at his stuttering and start working on my school work again.
"I'm not a virgin, Emmett," I say tersely.
Just because he flaunts his girl around, doesn't mean we all do.
"Oh, well, that's good, man, but are you gay?"
I drop my pen and just look at him.
"What?!" I yell and he holds up his hands.
"It's just… well, Mike thinks you're in the closet."
I pinch the bridge of my nose and shake my head.
"No! I am not gay."
Emmett gives me a curt nod and walks away to his room.
It's a few hours later when there's a knock on the door.
"Emmett – door," I yell. It's always for him anyway.
When the knock sounds again, I sigh, and move knowing Emmett must have left.
When I open the door, I'm surprised to see Bella, my little sister's best friend, standing there. I frown at her as she talks, not getting any of it since she's sobbing so hard.
I pull her into the apartment and to the couch to sit. It takes me well over an hour, before her sobbing calms enough for me to understand her.
"They said I have to leave, that I can't stay," she sobs out as her shoulders go up and down.
I frown at her, not following what she's talking about.
"Alice?" I say questioningly. "You know what she's like, I'm sure whatever mood she's in, she will come back out of."
Bella shakes her head at me.
"No… the Government—well the Immigration and Naturalization Service—anyway."
Bella wipes her eyes.
"They said that my mom was not a US citizen, and since I came here as an infant, I'm not either."
I swallow, unsure of what to say… what to do.
"She only just died and now they're kicking me out of the only place I've ever known. What the hell am I going to do in England?"
I softly place my hand on hers as she begins to sob again.
"I don't want to leave," she cries and she places her head on my chest.
She got both fists full of my sweater, holding it tightly as she sobs harder than before.
Bella and Alice have been best friends from the age of eight. She's always been around, but I still don't know her that well. I was always, and still am, the loner of my large family. I don't make friends easily, and keeping them, I find even harder. My mom always said it was because I was special.
Emmett, the only friend that I have been able to get and keep, says he agrees with my mom. I was special all right ... special needs.
Bella's always just been there. I'm not even sure if we are friends or not. We haven't really spent a lot of time together, not with me being four years older than her. Even when she and Alice came to the same college, I still didn't get to know her. I was Bella's TA that first year, but we were never what I would call friendly or really close.
Things started changing for Bella only a few months ago, when she graduated from college. Her mother, Renee, became quite ill. I found out from Alice that she had an aggressive cancer, and there was nothing they could do. Renee passed away a month ago in her sleep … now this? It's no wonder Bella's sobbing so hard.
I rub my hand up and down her back. I look at the time seeing it's well into the early hours of the morning. I have a shift at the animal hospital in a few hours. I tilt my head and push Bella's hair out of the way. I see that her red puffy eyes are closed. I softly move a little at a time and lay her on the couch. I get a blanket to cover her up with, and get back to the work. Just before I head out in the early morning hours, I pick Bella up and place her in my bed. Beside her I leave a note, telling her I'm sorry and explaining if there's anything I can do to help, just ask.
I yawn as I open my front door, and try to wake up enough to get to my bed. I had to work the early shift at Starbucks, and then had a shift at the animal hospital. After the animal hospital, I had a night class, only to be called in to work the night shift at Starbucks, because Mike called in sick. I have now been awake for just over twenty-four hours, and been on my feet for all, but three hours of it.
"Edward?" a soft voice says and I turn my head a little to the side. Looking down, I see Bella standing there, in her pajamas. Good thing she only lives next door.
"Oh, hey, how are you?" I ask pushing my apartment door open.
"I just wanted to thank you for sitting with me, and I'm sorry you had to see that."
She chuckles oddly as she picks at peeling paint around the door frame.
"It's okay," I say softly as I make my way into my apartment just needing my bed.
"Edward," Bella says as she touches my arm. "Did you really mean it, that you would help me?"
I nod at her, while yawning hugely.
"I ask ... because there is away ... if you can do it ... well then, um, it means I can stay?"
I nod at her as another yawn racks my body, and I fight exhaustion.
"Yes, all you have to do is ask," I say once I'm able to talk.
"Drive me?" I nod at her as I yawn again, trying to keep my focus on her and what she saying.
"Really?" Bella says in a surprisingly loud excited voice. I'm not really sure why she's so happy that I am going to drive her somewhere. I wonder where she wants me to drive her to.
"Yeah, sure," I say sleepily.
Bella hugs me and gives me a big smile.
"Should we sit and talk about what we should do now?"
I yawn and nod at her, moving inside with Bella following me. I sit down on the couch as she tells me all about her plan.
I rub my face as I wake up feeling sore. As I look around myself, I see that I'm in the living room still on the couch. I sit all the way up and rub my neck, before removing the sleep from my eyes. I can just about make out my glasses on the table in front of me. I grab my glasses and put them on trying to work out why I was sleeping on my couch and not in my bed.
It slowly comes back to me that Bella was here. She asked if I would drive her someplace and if I would talk to them, too. I try to remember what else she said, but I keep coming up blank. I sigh and head out the front door, down the hallway, and knock on her door. Within a few seconds the door opens, and I see a weak smile on Bella's face.
"Can I come in?" I ask tugging at my hair.
"Yeah, sure," she says biting her lip as I follow her.
"I take it you don't want to do it now that you've had time to think about it?"
The sadness on her face hits me hard. Bella is a very beautiful girl, and this sadness just doesn't fit her natural beauty.
"No, I said I'll do it and I will," I say and Bella's face lights up.
I chuckle as she suddenly wraps her arms around my middle and hugs me to her.
"Really? I mean, I felt really bad for asking you when you were so worn out."
I pat her back, when she fails to let me go. I swallow as I try to think of a way to tell her I don't know where she wants me to drive her to.
"Marrying someone is a big thing," she says and I feel my face drop, as Bella keeps talking, "and I know it means a lot to you. I swear, I wouldn't be with anyone else, no dating, nothing."
Her eyes meet mine.
"I mean, you can ... I mean, I wouldn't ..." she starts to stutter, I'm sure, because of the shocked look on my face.
"Marry you?" I squeak out.
"Yeah," she says slowly.
"You asked me to marry you?"
She nods at me and I can see she's now holding back tears.
"Yes, if we get married, I can stay. We would need to be a married for few years, but ... did you not ... what were you saying yes to?"
I swallow again, touched by how sad she looks.
"I thought," I clear my throat, "I thought you asked me to drive you some place."
I grimace as she bobs her head.
"Bella, I'm not sure if ..."
She waves me off, stopping my words.
"It's fine, really, Edward. I'm sure I can come up with something else—if not, England isn't that far."
I watch her close her eyes. Without meaning to, my hand goes to her face and she leans into my touch.
"Why me? You have loads of male friends. Jacob would love to marry you." I was well aware of his lust for Bella.
"Because, I don't feel that for him, and that wouldn't be fair of me to lead him on like that. Besides…" she stops talking and turns a little, looking right at me.
"You're amazing, really amazing. You like the books I like, the music I like, we can talk, and neither of us are into partying, and going out, or being the center of attention. You're a thoughtful, kind, funny, smart man, and I trust you. Out of every male I know, I trust you the most. I know you don't think of me as a friend. I'm just Alice's friend to you, but I do see you as a friend and I know I would be safe with you."
I swallow and feel a little pang, when she thinks I wouldn't – don't – see her as a friend.
"Okay," I say and she looks at me tilting her head. "We'll get married, but I would like us to at least be friends and we must live together, too, and ..." I pull at my hair. "I would like you to be—to the outside world—act like my wife. Like you said, no dating or seeing anyone, I'll do that, too."
Bella smiles and leaps into my arms.
"Really! Thank you, Edward," she says kissing my cheek and neck. I feel a little panic over what everyone will say about this. I can just hear the ribbing Emmett will give, and of course, Alice will have something to say about it.
"One last thing," I say holding her close to me, liking the feel more than I should.
"No one but us should know the reason why we're getting married," she says.
I pull her a little away from me, and look into her eyes. How did she manage to read my inner thought?
"No one knows about this thing going on with the INS. Alice has been busy with Jasper, and ever since Rose and Emmett hooked up ... well, you're the only one that knows I'm not a US citizen."
I nod at her as she continues to look at me.
"You still look tired. You should get some more sleep."
I chuckle at her shaking my head.
"No, I'm not back on until tomorrow night."
Bella bites her lip and looks at me.
"Do you need to study, or do want to spend some time together?"
I pull at my hair, knowing I really should study.
"Why don't you get your books; you can study here for a few hours, and then we can watch a movie or something?"
I grin and nod at her, not genuinely wanting to leave.
"Yeah, that sounds good, but I need to shower before, so I'll be back."
"Okay, I'll be here."
I walk back to my apartment, taking a quick shower, and changing my clothes. I grab all of my books, before heading back to Bella's.
I grin, seeing that she has set up a table with food and drinks for me. I walk in shaking my head, but smiling largely.
"You didn't need to do all this for me."
She raises her left eyebrow at me.
"This is for me. I need to fill out all of these crazy forms, but I'll share," she says playfully.
I chuckle putting everything I need down on the table beside her and getting to work.
"Edward," I hear softly and I look up, seeing Bella holding out a plate for me.
I look to my watch, seeing it's been close to five hours I've been working.
"Oh, wow, sorry. I think I must have just been zoned on my work," I say looking down at the amount I've gotten done. "I never manage to get that much done at one sitting," I say chuckling.
I look back at Bella who seems to be fine with my lack of talking for the past few hours.
"I'm not surprised with Emmett as a roommate. He's not a quiet person. I'm not sure I've ever seen him sit still for more than five seconds."
I chuckle nodding at her, because she's correct. I take a big bite of the dinner she made and hum loudly.
"This is very good," I say after swallowing the first bite.
I watch her blush a little.
"You always seem to enjoy the food I cook, even though no one else does."
I shake my head, her food isn't like some five star restaurants, but it's not bad at all. Bella just tends to cook things that her mother taught her.
"Do you want to watch a movie now?" I ask eating more of the food, because it really is quite tasty.
"You finished?" she asks looking at my workload.
"Not even close, but I can take a few hours off for a movie, besides I need to have a break from it sometimes."
I help her clear the table and we do the dishes, before sitting on her couch. She hands me the remote and I flick through and stop on the first movie we come to.
"So," I say trailing off.
"So, what?" she chuckles and pulls at my hair.
I've never been good at talking to girls, not even my sister or my mom.
"When do we have to ... you know, get married?"
"Oh, I'm not sure. I need to meet with them next week. Can you come with me?"
"Of course," I say and nod at her.
"I know they'll ask us questions about how well we know each other. I think we'll do okay, we have known each other for years. I know most of the answers about you, like your favorite color ..."
I tilt my head at her, not sure how she would know what my favorite color is, and it makes her stop talking for a second.
"It's blue," she says with a grin.
I swallow as she gets it right and I watch her as she smirks at me.
"Yeah, it is," I agree.
"Your birthday is the twenty-first of June. You were born in eighty-nine and you just turned twenty-five. Your favorite color is blue, as I said. You like all kinds of music and what you listen to goes by how you feel. When you want to relax, you listen to classical. When you feel buzzed or hyper, you lean more toward classic rock. You don't listen to pop often if at all. You like the classic books and you have a diary that you write in every night. You prefer Italian food over most other. You can speak Italian, German, French, and you also you know sign language. You used to have an imaginary friend named Garrett and he was a vampire. You can play the piano, violin, and the guitar. You want to be a Veterinarian, because you love animals."
I nod at her in astonishment.
"How ... how do you know all this?"
"Edward, I see you, I've always seen you. You have been in my life for thirteen years."
I shake my head at her.
"But I know nothing about you," I say feeling guilty. She's been able to get all that about me, yet I know nothing about her.
"You're not a people person, that's fine, we have time."
"What's your favorite color?"
"Ah, starting off with a hard one. It changes from day to day, just depends on how I feel about what's happening. Today, it's green," she says looking at me.
"Like you, I love all music. The nineties music is the best."
I try not to frown at her and she slaps my arm lightly.
"I know you're a fan of books," I say pleased at knowing something. "I know you tend to read the same books over and over."
Bella nods at me and I turn my body more toward her and she mirrors my movement.
"Edward, I'm going to ask you this, and I'll answer first before you do. This is a question I know they will ask."
I nod at her hearing the worry in her voice.
"They will ask what we know about each other's past relationships."
I feel myself pale, but Bella keeps going on.
"I have had one boyfriend that lasted three years, that was Paul. We dated when I was seventeen, until I turned twenty. He was my first in everything, but we didn't sleep together, until I was nineteen. It really wasn't that good and because of that, it didn't happen very often. After him, I've only been with one other—one time—and again that wasn't good. I honestly don't know what all the hype is," she chuckles a little at the end.
The faint blush on her face tells me she's a bit embarrassed to admit all of this to me.
"Okay, well, I've never had a girlfriend, but I have had sex with four girls. First time was when I was sixteen; she was older—much older, my teacher in fact." I laugh a little, even though I hate admitting to it all. "We sort of had an affair for six months; she taught me a lot—no pun intended. The next was another older woman, but was causal dating. With her, I wanted more, she didn't. I later found out she was married. The other two were drunken one night stands."
Bella just nods and stares at me.
"What?" I ask feeling a little self-conscious.
"You really have no idea, do you?"
"How sweet, kind, and how good looking you are."
I chuckle feeling nervous and shake my head.
"No, I know I'm not, I mean, Emmett and Jasper are ..." I just stop, not feeling like I should announce my own personal inadequacies.
She touches my arm and smiles at me.
We keep asking each other questions we think we will be asked and even come up with our story about how we started dating.
I sit down, placing Bella's coffee down and look to see she's fast asleep. I look at my watch, seeing it's now in the early hours of the morning. Knowing she can't sleep on the couch, I pick her up and carry her to her bed.
"Edward," she says softly and I look at her smiling. I remember Alice telling me how Bella talks in her sleep. I move back out to her living room and clean up. As I do, I think back over the whole night together and I'm shocked at just how much I laughed with her. I shake at the warm and gushy feeling I have inside.
"You're just helping her out, nothing more, nothing less," I say out loud to the empty kitchen.
Once I'm done cleaning up, I take another look in at Bella. I move to her bed, seeing she's sound asleep and I move her hair gently out of her face. I smile at just how pretty she looks.
"I had fun tonight," I whisper.
"Meee, tooo," she moans out.
I tilt my head a little and smirk.
"Really, with boring old me?"
"You're not boring. You're nice and very sexy."
I swallow not really sure what to say next.
"I'm going to the chapel and I'm gonna get married, now pass the M&M's."
I chuckle loudly, which of course causes Bella to mumble more. I quickly stroke her forehead and smile as she goes back to her peaceful sleep.
I walk into my apartment and head to bed. When I get there, I just lie there looking at the ceiling. I have lived almost twenty-five years alone, and been completely fine with it. However, tonight, lying here, I feel lonely, like there's something missing in my life.
A loud moan wakes me and I sit up feeling sticky and wet. I pull back my blankets and see, that yes, I have just had my first wet dream in ten years. I get up stripping my bed, before heading for a shower. As the water runs down my body, I close my eyes, and my mind drifts back to my dream. I watch as Bella grins at me, and walks toward me, swinging her hips as she moves.
I jump, opening my eyes.
"Eddy, come on, I need to piss," Emmett yells.
I turn off the water and rub my face, shaking off my daydream. I grab the towel, wrapping it around me, before walking out of the shower.
"You've been in there for almost an hour," he says barging past me.
"Sorry," I say walking to my room and getting dressed. I grab clean sheets and make my bed. I let out a groan, when I hear a knock on my door, and Emmett pops his head in.
"Is everything all right, Edward? I mean, dude, you're acting a little strange ... well, stranger than normal anyway."
"I'm fine, I've just got a lot on my mind with work, class and that. Speaking of which, I need to head out, or I'm going to be late."
"You know my door is always open, if you need to talk, unless I got Rosie in there," Emmett chuckles.
"Yeah, I know," I say, picking up my bag with my books in it.
"Remember it's family meal night, tonight. Alice says that you have to be there and she's making Bella come, too."
I swallow, ducking my head down as I feel my face heat up.
"I'll try my best," I say and Emmett sighs.
"Edward, come on man, it's only one night."
I nod at him and walk out of my room, heading for another shift at my shitty daytime job.
"Welcome to Starbucks, what can I get for you?" I ask without looking at the person in front of me.
"I'll have a small hot chocolate and a sugar cookie."
I close my eyes when I hear Bella's sweet voice. What the hell has gotten into me?
"Coming right up," I say turning away from her and get her drink.
"That's three dollars," I say and my eyes go unwillingly to hers and I can see she's frowning.
"Can we talk, when your shift's over?"
I nod at her and she hands me ten dollars.
I get her change, hot chocolate, and cookie, handing it all to her.
"I get off in an hour."
She nods and I watch her sit down at one of the tables and start to read a book.
"Shit, man, she's hot. Who is she and how do you know her?" Mike asks and I turn to glare at him.
I sigh nodding at him.
"Shit, no wonder Jacob follows her around. Is she seeing anyone? Not that it matters really, because all girls fall for me."
"Don't even think about it," I growl out.
"Why? Even if she knows my rep, all girls love a challenge, thinking they'll be the one to tame me."
I shake my head.
"I said no."
"She's my girlfriend," I snarl out.
"No way," Mike chuckles. "There's no way a guy like you, could land a girl like that?"
I close my eyes and take a deep breath knowing he's right. I could never have Bella as my real girlfriend.
"Hey, baby," I suddenly hear my angel say, and I turn to see Bella looking right at me. "I know Alice's planning this big get together tonight, but how do you feel about skipping it and having some alone time?"
Bella bites her lip and keeps her eyes locked with mine. I feel a little panicky about what she's doing.
"Hey, I'm Mike," the douche says like he's all that and a bucket of chicken.
I swallow, but I can't seem to drop my eyes from Bella's.
"I know who you are, Mike," she replies making a face like she's got a sour candy in her mouth.
"So, how about I keep you company tonight?"
"Mike, Edward just got done with telling you to leave me alone and that I'm his girlfriend. He's my boyfriend, and well, honestly, even if he wasn't, I still wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole, especially with all those new rumors going around about your rash and recent trips to the campus health department's clinic."
Mike laughs, like Bella just shared a joke with him.
"You're actually turning me down, for him?"
"Hell yeah, he's twice the man you'll ever be, but I'm also turning you down for myself, because you're a parasite at best."
I feel my face heat up and I grin a little, when Bella looks at me shyly.
"You should be careful, Mike. The last guy that chatted me up in front of him didn't come out of it too good. You almost done, baby?"
I look at my watch and see that it's time for me to clock out, so I nod at her.
"Yep, love, get your stuff and I'll be right there."
She blows me a kiss as she walks away and I turn to Mike for the first time. I can see just how shocked he looks and I hold back my laughter. I clock out, picking up my bag and I shake my head, seeing that Mike's still standing in the same place, with his mouth open.
I walk to Bella, taking her bag from her.
"Thank you," she says sweetly.
I nod at her.
"So, I thought we could go to my place, and talk?"
"Sounds good," I say with a smile.
Bella and I stop and get take-out for our dinner, and then take the fire stairs, so we can avoid running into Alice.
From the corner of my eye, I watch as Bella keeps looking my way and not eating. She opens, but quickly closes her mouth and looks away from me.
"Is there something wrong?" I ask looking at my meal.
"Should we ... I mean, I think they'll expect us to ... you know ... so I thought we should maybe try it out, so we're ... practiced. I mean, while we are alone the first time. What do you think?"
I tilt my head and look at her.
"Sorry, Bella, but I'm not following what you're saying?"
"Kissing, Edward, I think we should kiss."
I drop my fork and my throat starts to feel dry.
"If we tell them we're dating, and getting married, then they'll assume it's something we would do. I just thought we could try to do it when it's just us, so that way if it's too weird or you don't like me—we'll forget it and just say we're not in to PDA or something."
Bella's eyes drop as she speaks but, by the end of her speech, I could hear a little insecurity in her voice. I look at her, and see that she has a red flush to her face, and her eyes are still clearly on the floor. The look on her face tells me she's waiting for me to reject her. I feel the need and desire to laugh at the absurdness of it all, like I could ever reject her, but I don't laugh.
"Okay, I think we should move to the couch."
Bella's head snaps up and she looks at me with her mouth open.
"Really?" she squeaks out and I grin, nodding at how cute she's being.
"Sure, I mean, you're right, we'll have to kiss when we get married. It'd be best to get to know each other ahead of time."
I can't hide my grin, when her blush gets darker. I stand up and hold out my hand, which she takes and I lead her to the couch.
"So, how are we going to do this?" she asks quietly.
I take a deep breath, as my eyes go back to hers. I move my hand up, pushing her hair out the way and gently clasp her face.
"Hold still," I say and I edge closer to her. I suck in a breath, taking in her scent. I stop my lips just before they touch her. "This could change everything," I mumble as I place my lips on hers. I give her a few chaste kisses, and I feel her hands run up my arms. I pull back and smile, before we lean in together again. We pull back a little to breathe, and then almost as if hunger takes over, we pull toward each other. Suddenly, her fingers thread into my hair and grip, pulling me closer. My hands are on her back, pulling her to straddle my lap. Our mouths open at the same time and our tongues begin to dance with each other.
This does not feel like a first kiss, this feels, too familiar, too comfortable. It's almost as if we've been kissing each other for years. My hands moves like it knows her body, her wants, and needs. They find themselves inside of the back of her top. As my hands move up the top follows. Her hands let go of my hair, so that I can pull her top off and I throw it aside. I turn us, so she's lying flat on the couch, and I start to trail kisses down her body.
"Patience, love," I say huskily.
"Please, Edward," Bella moans out.
I move a little away from her, when she tugs at my sweater. I rise up a bit, and whip my sweater and t-shirt off at the same time. My eyes meet hers and I see that they are filled with desire and lust, the same feelings coursing through me.
I move back on top of her, pressing my whole body against hers.
"Please say that you feel this, too?"
I nod as I'm kissing her, not wanting to take my lips off of her again.
"I want this so much. Why didn't we know this before? I don't understand."
I moan in agreement.
"Bella, why are you hiding? EDWARD, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY FRIEND?"
I freeze and Bella's arm quickly covers her exposed chest.
"Alice, what's with ... wow. Yeah, semi-naked Bella and Edward never mind," Emmett says in a voice which is twice as loud as what Alice just shrieked.
I groan and drop my head on Bella's shoulder.
"Alice, that key was for emergency use only, and not to let yourself into my place anytime you want. I know this is not an emergency; now if you two can go, we can get dressed."
"I want know," Alice starts off, but Bella cuts of her off.
"No, Alice, we'll tell you when we are ready, now get out." Alice glares at me, and storms out, slamming the door.
"High five, bud," Emmett says holding out his hand.
I give him the 'are you stupid or something' look.
"Or… not. This is great, wait until I tell Jasper we can include you in our guy talks now. I'll close the door and hold her back for ten, after that, you both are on your own."
I let out the breath I was holding, when I hear Emmett close the door, but he keeps talking as he makes his way back to our apartment next door.
I look down at Bella to see she has tears in her eyes. I wipe them quickly away.
"What is this about, sweetheart?" I ask, more than a little worried she regrets how far we went.
She shakes her head at me.
"I hate fighting with Alice and I think we're about to have a huge fight. But that was the best kiss of my life, and I'm scared in case she makes you change your mind. It's not just because I will need to leave, but after that kiss and don't ..."
Not wanting to hear talk of her leaving, I place my lips on hers, tasting the salt from her tears.
"I won't; she doesn't make my choices for me, and that was the best kiss of my life, too. It felt like I knew you, where to touch you."
Bella nods at me in agreement and swallows.
"We better get over there, before she comes back."
I sigh, before moving off her. I let my hand linger on her waist for a few seconds more, then the rest of me. I pick up my shirt and sweater, and pass Bella her top.
Once we both have our clothing fixed, I take hold of her hand, leading her to my apartment. Before opening the door, we can hear Alice's frantic voice bitching about us.
"They can't date! She's supposed to be my friend and he's my brother. That's just weird, like incest or something."
I roll my eyes at the dramatic performance that Alice is giving right now.
"Tonight was my night—it was meant to be all about me and Jazz getting engaged, now you're all going to be talking about Bella and Edward," Alice huffs out loudly.
I can't hear anyone's replies, mainly because I know the rest of them must be speaking at normal voice levels.
"She such a spoiled brat at times," I mutter.
"She does have her moments," Bella says with a sigh.
"You ready for this?" Bella shakes her head, and we both take a deep breath, and walk in.
Alice's eyes lock on us and her head slowly moves around to face our direction.
"So?" she says crossing her arms and tapping her foot.
"Alice, Bella and I have been dating for a few months now," I start off with the agreed story we came up with to tell people. "We decided to become a couple last month, when everything went down with her mom. I asked her to marry me today, she said yes, which led us to doing couple stuff."
As I talk, Alice's face goes red, but Emmett, Jasper and Rose all look happy for us.
"No!" Alice screams like she's telling us we can't do something.
"Yes," I counter in a normal tone and Alice busts into tears.
"How could you do this to me? And you – are you really that desperate that you had to go after him? I thought you were over that stupid ass crush you had on him," Alice harps.
My head snaps to Bella, and she gives me a shy smile, before turning on Alice. Hmm, she had a crush on me, when?
"Alice, I swear to God, you better watch what you're saying. I'm not desperate; Edward's a great guy and any girl would be glad to have him."
"Really?" Alice says narrowing her eyes. "Well then, we should get to celebrating then." As soon as she's done talking, she downs her drink and walks away.
Bella rubs her head and we move. I sit on the seat and Bella surprises me by sitting on the arm of that chair. My arm goes around her, pulling her into my lap. This was not something I planned when she sat there. It was almost as if my body wanted her closer. I feel Bella relax and lean more against me. I can't help but smile, that she's having the same reactions as I am.
"Let's play I never," Alice says as she slams the bottle of vodka down on the coffee table.
"Alice, baby, I ..."
Alice just glares at Jasper, cutting him off.
"I'll start ... I have never screwed my best-friend's brother."
Bella looks at Alice, not taking a drink.
"Why aren't you drinking up?"
"We want to wait until after we are married," I say quickly, saving my girl from having Alice be more vindictive to her.
"My turn," Bella says. "I've never had sex with the father of someone I know."
I frown at Bella, who raises her brow at Alice, who looks ready to cry. Alice jumps up, picks up her glass of water, and throws it over Bella, before running out of the flat.
"Oh, that went well," Emmett chuckles, "so what's that story?"
Bella just shakes her head a looks glum.
"It's okay, she'll get over it, and she was being a spoiled rotten bitch."
"Yeah, maybe," Bella says softly and she jumps up quickly. "Well, I'm going to head to bed."
She doesn't look at me as she runs out of the apartment and back to her own.
"Edward, this is your cue to go after her."
I turn looking at Emmett.
"What?" I mumble out.
"Look man, I know I fuck around a lot and I give you a hard time, but Bella's a cool chick, and you two look good together. Now, when your girlfriend walks out like that, you go after her."
I look at Rose who nods at me, to say she agrees with Emmett.
I get up and walk to Bella's apartment. When I get outside the door, I can hear a faint sob coming from inside.
"Bella, it's Edward," I say as I knock on the door softly.
I pull at my hair, when she fails to answer. I close my eyes as I try the handle, finding she's left it unlocked. I walk in and my heart drops as I see she's curled up crying on the couch. I walk over to her quickly, picking her up, and sitting her on my lap once I am seated.
Bella mumbles something, which I don't catch.
"Shush, sweetheart, I've got you," I say and swallow a little at the end.
I'm playing this by ear, this is my first relationship.
"She's going to hate me forever," Bella says again, and I silently curse Alice and her selfish ways.
"She'll never know."
"She will, when you divorce me."
I pull back a little and look at her. "Why would I divorce you?"
"Because," I let out a sigh. "Bella, I like you and I always have. You know that I'm not good at dealing with people. But the time I've spent with you, now and in the past, I find easy. It's like this," I wave my hand between us, "has always been there. I know that you asked me, because you want my help, but maybe as time passes, we'll truly find love. We could fall in love with each other, and want to stay married. Could you ever see yourself loving me, the way a wife loves her husband?"
Bella nods at me as she sniffles. "I think it would be easy to fall in love with you."
I grin at her, pushing her hair back from her face.
"I feel the same about you, so let's try?"
"Okay," Bella says, as she hugs me.
It takes a little bit of time for Bella to fully calm herself. When she does, we sit talking and laughing with each other. I kiss her softly at the end of the night, making my way back to my apartment.
The week has gone by quickly, and neither Bella nor I have heard from Alice. My mom and dad called to ask what was going on, and I told them that Bella and I are getting married and are in love. Normally, if I lie to my parents, I feel guilty and stutter my way through it. But, saying that I loved Bella and that we're in love seems to roll off my tongue so easily.
Emmett and Bella's friend, Rose, have been showing their support of our new relationship. Jasper, who Bella and I rarely talk to, has of course taken Alice's side of things. Due to Alice not hanging around Bella as much, it has given Bella and me the time to get to know each other, and I now see her as my best friend.
Today is the meeting with the INS worker. Bella and I are both clearly worried about it.
"Miss Swan, Mr. Cullen, we will talk to you each separately and together."
First, Bella heads off with an agent and another one speaks to me. It's all very odd and they inform us of our rights and we are sworn in like in a court of law. They even video tape us, I imagine it's to try and catch us in lies easier.
After an hour or so, I'm led back to the waiting room and soon Bella comes out, too.
"We will be going over your interviews. You have a short time of waiting here, before the joint interview. There is a small cafeteria around that corner; don't leave the building."
We sit together and hold hands, not speaking, but holding each other close. We eventually walk around a bit, use the restrooms, and grab something to drink. I think we're both too nervous to eat at this point.
We are sitting back where we were left three hours later, when an agent comes to get us.
Bella swallows and I can feel her shake as we stand up and follow the man into the office.
"I'm Aro, and I'll be conducting your joint interview. I see on your forms that you are engaged to be married?"
When Bella fails to answer, I speak up.
"Yes, that's right."
I place my hand in Bella's and rub my thumb over her knuckles.
"How long have you two known each other?"
"We met when I was eight, so thirteen years?"
I nod at Bella and turn it to see Aro watching us intently.
"Have you been friends all this time?"
"Yes, no, well sort of, you see Edward's four years older than I am. I grew up as a best friend to his little sister, Alice. It was the start of this year that things changed, and we found that we were attracted to each other and wanted more with each other. We began dating, and then my mom started getting sick. During her illness, we grew closer. By the time she passed away, I knew I was in love with him."
I swallow and I look at her. I smile a little, when I see her blush.
"And how do you feel about Miss Swan?" Aro asks as he looks right at me.
"It's not real easy to put into words. I could sit here and tell you that I love her – I want to spend the rest of my life with her, but those are just words. So I'll tell you how she makes me feel. I feel normal when I am with Bella—I feel more comfortable with her than I do with anyone else. She has a smile that lights up her eyes and makes my insides feel warm. She touches me, and it sends tingles down my body. I gravitate to her, and I have this need to always be closer to her. Being with her, I know that I will never fail, never be alone, because she returns to me everything I feel for her."
Aro just looks at me a few minutes, before he clears his throat and writes something down on his pad.
"And the wedding is soon?"
Bella and I just look at him.
"It would be best to be married within the next twenty-one days for this application to go through quicker and without any problems," he says arching his brow at us.
We spend a few hours going through his list of questions. At the end, he says he'll be in touch in a few days. Bella and I just about run out the building, when he says we are free to go.
"That went well, right, don't you think?"
I smile and nod at her. "Yeah it did," I say kissing her hand.
"Where are we going now?" she asks me with a smile as we walk down the sidewalk.
Bella stops and frowns at me.
"Well, if we need to be married soon and that is the best option, right?"
"Oh, yeah, sorry," Bella chuckles.
"Shit, I know that's not a great thing and you more than likely want to get married in church, but ..."
Bella cuts me off by kissing my lips. The second they touch mine, I pull her to me, picking her up as I do.
"The courthouse is fine, and I already have a ring for you," Bella says shyly and I raise my brow at her.
"Want to see it?" she asks. I grip the back of her head, bringing her lips back to mine as I put her back on the ground.
"Yeah, I want to see it. Let's go make our arrangements first, okay?"
Bella nods and we head to the courthouse. We make all the arrangements for our wedding at the courthouse in two weeks.
We arrive back at Bella's apartment, and she runs into what was Renee's bedroom. She comes back out with a ring box. She sits on the couch next to me, and opens it. I see a white gold men's wedding band.
"It was my dad's, and I would like you to wear it."
I look at Bella as she talks, seeing that she's looking to the floor, while biting her lip.
"Are you sure? What if you find another ..." I say and a pain hits my chest as the images of her with another man flash in my mind.
Bella shakes her head at me. "Edward, shit, I wasn't completely honest when I told you why I asked you." She stops and clears her throat. "Well, more to the point, I left something out, when I gave my reasons for asking you. When I was younger, I had a huge crush on you. When my dad died, and my mom said that I could have this to give to the man I marry, it was always you who I pictured in my head. As I grew up and you went off to college, my crush ended, but I could never picture anyone but you with this ring. Even when I dated Paul, it was you I saw wearing it. You mean a lot to me and I know that you've only just gotten to know me, but I do know, that this," Bella says showing me the ring and then placing it in my open palm, "will always be yours."
I clasp Bella's face with my free hand, and kiss her as I place the ring down on the table. Right away, Bella's hands go to the back of my head as she pulls at my hair.
I pull back and look at her puffed lips and the hunger in her eyes.
"Fuck," I say only for the lusty look in Bella's eyes to heat up. "So, you like the dirty talk then?" I chuckle and Bella blushes, dropping her hair to hide her face from me.
"I like talking dirty," I whisper in her ear. "Having sex seemed to be the only time I could talk to girls, not that what I said could be taken as talking to them." I place a soft kiss on her neck. "Let me see this side of you, and I'll show you what you've been missing. I would like to wait until our wedding night. It'll give us some more time to get to know each other."
Bella nods and tries to get off my lap, but I hold her in place.
"Will you move in now or after?" she asks me.
"You want to live with me?"
"Yeah, to everyone we'll be married?"
I chuckle and nod at her.
"I'll move in now, if that's okay, but I'll still pay Emmett for the next two months, so he has time to find someone."
Bella grins a little at me.
"Well, I was going to put Rose's name forward, since she needs a place and was going to live with me, until she found out about us. They slept together a few times now. They were off and on for a while, but seem to float back to each other, and they still talk when they are not together. What do you think?"
"I'll say something to him, and you can say something to Rose. They're old enough to make their own choices."
"Need help packing?"
I shake my head at the grin on her face.
"Don't have much, but sure, you can help me."
My watch buzzes and I frown, pouting at her.
"Well, that's me, I've got to go. I have another shift at the animal hospital this evening."
"Will you come back here afterward?"
The hope is so clear in Bella's face, and all I can do is nod at her.
"I'll get the spare key for you, since Alice threw it at me the last time I saw her."
I take the key from her and head to my own apartment to change. Before I leave, I tell Emmett that I need to speak with him. The whole time I'm at the animal hospital, all I can think of is Bella.
I walk into the building and just stand there looking at Bella's door as I play with her key on my key chain. I let out a slow shallow breath and unlock the door walking in. I turn closing and locking the door and grin when I seeing she has pinned a note up inside the door.
Hi, there is juice and food in the fridge all made up if you want a snack before coming to bed. Oh, that sounds weird and I hope I haven't scared you away, but we should share a bed, right? I swear, I won't molest you, well, unless you want me to *wink-wink*.
Okay, that was my lame attempt at a joke. But please come to bed, my mom's bed is gone and the couch is not very comfortable. I will understand if I don't wake up with you tomorrow morning, but I hope that I do. Shit, I always say more than I should. Okay, bye for now.
I feel my heart race as my eyes widen. She wants me to come to her bed, share her bed? Shit, I've never shared a bed, not even with Alice when we were younger or my parents, not even as a baby. I shake my head trying to calm myself.
I walk into her room and see her lying there peacefully. I move to her and brush her hair out of her face.
"In for a penny, in for a pound, okay, Edward, you can do this," I say giving myself a pep talk.
I strip down leaving my boxers and t-shirt on, before climbing in the bed. I turn on my side and just look at Bella sleeping. Before closing my eyes and allowing myself to go in to a deep sleep, I smile, knowing she will soon be my wife.
As I slowly come out of my dream state, I become aware that I'm lying on top of a soft body. I open my eyes and see that I'm draped over Bella.
"Sorry," I say. I go to move back, but Bella's legs and arms that are wrapped around my body stops me.
"This is too nice, just a few more minutes, please?" she asks sleepily closing her eyes again.
"Are you okay?" I ask worried about how tired she is.
"Yeah, I'm just feeling sorry for myself, and the whole not sleeping so great these last few months, has caught up with me."
I nod at her and my lip touches her forehead. I can't seem to stop myself from placing a soft kiss there.
Her eyes open and go to mine. She smiles at me, "This is good, right? It's good that this doesn't feel awkward, I mean. I just have this voice at the back of my head repeatedly asking why we haven't been doing this for longer."
"Me, too, and yes, this is beyond good," I say kissing her head again and moving us, so she's now draped over me. I pull her close, and I grin at the fact she comes willingly to me.
I close my eyes as I place my head in the crook of Bella's neck and I kiss it softly and hum.
"I really like this."
My grin gets bigger as Bella speaks.
"Me, too, me, too," I reply.
"Edward?" Bella says softly after a few moments.
"What are you going to wear when we get married?"
I open my eyes frowning as I think about it, especially when something else pops in to my head.
"You'll need a ring, too. Hmm, well, looks like our spending time inside alone and secluded is over, time to do some shopping."
I pull the covers off and get out of bed.
"Do you mind if I go for a shower first?"
Bella grins shaking her head and I lean back over the bed to kiss her lips. It doesn't take us to long to eat, shower, and to get dressed. When we get out to the shop Bella chose, I'm a little surprised. Instead of the upper scale shops I'm usually taken to with Alice, we're at a smaller shop without the high-end pricing.
"What do you think?" I ask showing her another suit. She looks me up and down as I pull at the collar.
"It looks good, so don't get me wrong, but it's just not you?"
Bella stands up and looks along the row of suits. She picks up pants and a dress shirt handing them to me.
"Try them on and I'll be back."
She walks away quickly and I chuckle making my way back into the changing room.
"I'm back," Bella says softly from outside the door.
Since I'm already changed, I walk out and she smiles at me softly.
"Much better, but this is missing," she says handing me a soft blue sweater.
I pull it quickly over my head and smile as I look in the mirror, feeling more like me.
"Okay, well that's me done; now it's your turn."
I smile when Bella picks up a blue dress that looks like it will be quite fitting. She disappears into the changing room and comes back out twirling around. My reaction shocks me slightly, because I instantly feel myself harden. My eyes travel down her body as I take in her beautiful curves—it's perfect—she's perfect.
"You should get this," I say sounding like I'm out of breath. "In fact, I'll get for you. Even if you don't wear it when we get married, I know you'll wear it at some point when you're out with me."
"You like it that much?"
I shake my head at her. "No, I love you in it."
I bet it will look even better when I'm peeling it off of her, but I don't say that. I watch as Bella blushes and I'm a little worried I had said my inner thoughts out loud. Before I'm able to dwell on it too much, Bella starts to speak again.
"Okay, I'll go and get changed."
As soon as she's dressed, we pay for our new clothes. As we head outside the shop, I move my hand to hold hers.
"So we're done then, now what should we do?"
I shake my head and she looks at me confused.
"We're not done yet, you still need a wedding ring."
"Edward there's ..."
I turn looking right at her, and whatever she sees in my face makes her stop talking.
"We already agreed to try making it a normal marriage; therefore, you need a real ring."
I turn back around and start walking, pulling her along behind me.
It has been two hours and so far none of the rings we have seen seem to be the one.
"What about that one?" Bella says pointing to a ring. I look at it and shake my head as I close my eyes.
"What's wrong with it?" Bella asks and I can hear the faint chuckle.
I'm sure it's because of my facial expression.
"There's nothing wrong with it per se, it's just ... it's not us."
I rub my face slightly out of frustration.
"Do you know what kind of ring you have in mind?" the saleslady asks.
I look at the saleslady and frown. I try to picture the ring in my head, and suddenly I can see Bella wearing the perfect ring as it comes to mind.
"Does that look mean you thought of something?"
I turn to Bella and nod at her, happy that I finally know.
"Yes, and it's absolutely perfect. Thank you, ma'am, for your help," I say to the saleslady. "Come on, let's go," I say taking Bella's hand.
I drive straight to my parents' home and yell for them as I walk in the door.
"Edward," My mom sounds surprised as she looks between Bella and me.
"Remember, when I was younger, you said grandma left me her wedding ring?"
My mom's face lights up as I talk.
"You want to use your grandma's wedding set when you marry Bella?"
I nod at her with a big grin, because I can see how pleased this makes my mother.
"Oh, this is such a good day. I'll send both of the rings off to be cleaned and sized. Well, maybe we should hold off on the wedding ring ..." my mom goes quiet as she seems to drift off to deep thought.
"Mom, we're getting married in twelve days."
"What? Why ... she's not, is she?"
My mom's eyes go to Bella's stomach.
"No, we're waiting until we get married before ... you know."
My mom tilts her head as she looks at me.
"So, what's the rush to get married?"
I move my eyes, so I can look at Bella who looks close to panicking.
"Mom, the past few months have shown us that we must grab on to the things we want, and this is what we want."
My mom smiles a little and nods her head at us.
"Okay, then I'll go and get them. We can see what we can get done for the big day."
My mom walks off and I pull Bella to me, moving her hair so I can talk into her ear.
"You need to stop panicking all the time. I swear I've got this."
I feel her tense body starting to relax and I run my hand up and down her back.
"Here, I thought you were the one that could talk to people, but you're making me look like a master at it."
I can feel her gently chuckle on my chest.
"We can do this, I swear," I say kissing her head.
I only pull back, when a flash of light hits my eyes.
"Mom," I say blinking my eyes trying to readjust my eyes.
"What? You two look so cute and in love. I just had to take a picture."
I look at Bella grinning and wink at her, when I see her faint blush. I know I, too, will have a faint redness in my face, which only makes me enjoy this even more.
My mom sighs and passes me the ring box and walks away. I open it, and smile when I see the two rings. Bella looks at them in awe.
"These are beautiful, are you sure you want me to have them?"
"Just like what you said about your dad's ring, these just seem to be yours."
I take the engagement ring out and place it on her finger.
"See how perfect it looks, and it fits like it was designed for you."
I place a kiss on her finger, and then interlock our fingers together. Bella looks at the ring, then into my eyes, and I feel my heart starting to pound faster. I can almost swear I can already see the love there in her eyes and I know mine must look the same.
Bella and I spent the last week moving our things together into her apartment. Rose and Emmett chose to be an exclusive couple and are now living together. Things are going well and all is pretty much perfect, except Alice, who is not speaking to us at all.
I kiss Bella's neck as we walk in the door together, after we went out for breakfast. I'm really enjoying this more intimate side that we have been sharing these past ten days, since deciding to truly give ourselves this chance.
"What's that?" Bella asks bending down, which pushes her ass against my groin.
She stands back up holding a piece of paper with both our names scribbled on it.
"Who is it from?" I ask, but it comes out in a mumble, since I now have my lips pressing against her neck.
"Alice," Bella says and I pull away hearing that she's holding back a sob.
I take the letter from her and read it.
Edward and Isabella—
I just wanted to let you know that I will not be attending this sham of a wedding you two are having. Who in their right mind gets married in a courthouse? What a joke! This just confirms to me that you two are playing a cruel joke on me. I will not speak to either of you until you have put a stop to it, and have made it up to me. *Note – I expect a lot of gifts and begging from you both. You both owe me so much and I will never forgive you if you don't put a stop to it immediately.
Goodbye for now, from a very hurt and angry, Alice—
Alice is really starting to piss me off. This whole, everything has to revolve around me and I am the queen of the world, should've been knocked out of her years ago. If she keeps this up, I may just beat it out of her.
"Bella, honey," I say softly as I run my hand along her face and into her hair.
She shakes her head with a look of pure heartbreak and loss on her face. It goes straight to my heart, almost making me drop to my knees.
"Please, honey, I'm here ... she ... she's just being a self-centered, spoiled rotten bitch."
Bella's head turns back up and I wipe the tears that have fallen in her silent crying.
"What?" I ask as her mouth stays open.
"I'm just a little shocked to hear you speak like that. You're normally so reserved in what you say."
"Yes, you're right, I am, but there are really no other words that could be used to describe how Alice is behaving."
Bella lets out a breath.
"Are you sure this ... that I'm worth losing your sister over?"
I move closer to her, placing my hands into her hair and making her eyes meet mine.
"Yes, I think that you are. Never in my life have I ever felt half of what I feel for you, and it's only been two weeks. I believe with time, what we can have will be great, and I want it. I want the chance to have something great with you, and I will not allow Alice's temper tantrums ruin it. Will you?"
She shakes her head for a fraction of a second, before placing her lips to mine.
After a heated kissing session, I leave Bella, who's a little happier, to go for another shift at Starbucks.
"Edward, I need you to take my shift Friday and Saturday," Mike says in his usual, I'm really telling you not asking voice.
"Can't," I say and carry on with my own work.
"Come on, Edward, I'm taking Tanya out. We're getting back together, she's been missing me. Thanks man," Mike says hitting my shoulder as he walks away.
"Mike, I said NO, I can't do it," I say again, but Mike just blinks at me as he sits down at one of the tables putting his feet up as I do all the work.
I carry on with my work slowly getting more pissed at Mike as he continues to do nothing.
I groan loudly, when I hear Alice's shrilly voice.
"So what, Alice, I need to work?" I say only glancing at her.
"No, you need to talk to me! What are you doing, Edward, I mean, Bella – really?"
"I love her," I say.
The words roll out of my mouth, and I know that I have never spoken truer words before.
Alice laughs shaking her head at me.
"Cute, you have your first crush, but girls like Bella don't go for guys like you."
I close my eyes and move away from where Alice is standing.
"Edward, you're my brother and I love you…"
I stop walking and turn to face her cutting her words off.
"Really, after all of this, you say you love me? I'd absolutely hate to see what you would say if you hated me. We, Bella and I, are getting married, and that's the end of the story. For the record, dear loving sister, I don't need your approval."
"Edward," Alice says as she stomps her foot, "she's my friend. I told you when you wanted to be friends with her that you couldn't – you've betrayed me."
I shake my head giving her a little chuckle.
"Really, how do you figure? Bella is a person, not a toy, and she certainly doesn't belong to you."
As soon as the words are out of my mouth, Alice starts to cry her fake ass crocodile tears.
"Please, Edward, don't take her from me. I'll find you a better girl and more beautiful."
"More beautiful?" I say out loud wondering if my sister is mentally insane. I mean, she's really lost it. Bella's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen.
"Yes, Edward, Bella's pretty and all, but she's kind of plain, too. You should meet my friend Kate, now she's a knockout. You can have Kate and don't worry about telling Bella, I'll do that."
"I don't think so, you must truly be stupid. Bella and I are together and we're staying that way. Now leave," I growl out. For the first time Alice looks afraid of me.
"You are…" I bite my lip to stop the words from coming out. "Bella and I are getting married, if you don't like it, tough. If you go anywhere near her, I swear to God, Alice, I will tell Jasper about you sleeping with his father."
"She told you?" Alice screeches loudly and I have to rub my ears.
"No, you weren't very discreet about what you were up to."
Alice looks at me confused.
"You fucked him at Renee's wake. I was the one that walked in on you."
Alice crosses her arms and then storms out. I let out a breath as I walk back out front to see that my boss is there with Mike.
"Yeah, so I switched Friday and Saturday with Edward."
"No, you haven't. You asked and I said no, I can't do it."
Mike glares at me. "My mom's sick, and I have done the last four weekend shifts," Mike boldface lies.
"Edward, you need to take your turn and Mike's mom is real sick. He should be there, not here doing double the work, because you won't switch. I mean really, you could give up time with your girls for once to work a weekend," Marcus says.
Mike looks at me with a smug grin, and I take off my apron and hat handing them to Marcus.
"If you believe that bull, then I'm done."
I go to move away, but Marcus grabs my arm.
"Edward, we can get to the bottom of this between the three of us."
"No, Marcus, we can't. You see that there," I say pointing at Mike, "is a waste of space. He never does anything. We all work to cover for him. I clean this whole place, plus do his shift work, while he gets paid for it. I—ME, not HIM—have done every weekend shift for almost two years, which you clearly should be aware of."
"Hey, who are you calling a waste of space?" Mike says with a glum look on his face.
Marcus sighs rolling his eyes turning his body away from Mike and looks to me.
"Come in this one weekend and I'll hire someone to do the weekends after that."
"No, you're only asking me because you know he won't come in. Fire him, if he doesn't show up for his scheduled shift. Just because his dad's your boss, doesn't mean you have to bend over and take it up the ass. I have something far more important than this place to do this weekend. I think marrying the woman of my dreams is more important than covering for that douche, so he can go out on a hot date with his ex."
I shake Marcus' hand off my arm and get my jacket walking out. When I'm on the street, I feel a mix of panic that I have spoken to my boss—well probably ex-boss—in such a poor manner, but I also feel alive and free. For so long I wanted to say most of that and more to both Mike and him. To finally say a large part of it has taken some of the weight off of my shoulders.
I arrive back at Bella's apartment—well our apartment—and smile as the thought of it being our home floods my mind.
"Hey, you're early?" Bella says as she looks away from her kindle to her watch.
"I missed you," I say walking over and sit down next to her. I hum when she starts to run her fingers through my hair and I close my eyes.
"Alice came by and we had a verbal fight. Then Mike started his usual wanting this weekend off shit. Marcus, of course, assumed I would just drop everything and cover even after I told him I couldn't, so I walked out."
Bella's hand stops and I open my eyes looking at her.
"It's fine. I feel so much better and I said a lot of things I've wanted to say for a while now." She gives me a weak smile and I brush my head on her hand hoping she'll start to move her fingers again. I grin closing my eyes as she giggles and starts to move her fingers again.
I have been standing in the living room with my hand in my pockets waiting for Bella to come out for the past twenty minutes. I let out a sigh looking at the time. I see that we are cutting it close. I open my mouth to call her just as her door opens and she walks out. My eyes go up and down, taking in the beautiful sight of my soon-to-be wife.
"Wow, you look amazing," I say putting my forehead on hers as she stands on her tip toes.
I bend a little more, touching her lips with my own.
"As much as I love doing this with you, we have to go."
Bella just hums and kisses me again.
"We have plenty of time for more of this after the wedding, love," I say and she nods taking my hand as we walk out of the apartment.
We arrive at the courthouse with ten minutes to spare.
"Hey, you two," Emmett yells as we walk through the door.
"Bella, you look amazing," Rose says hugging Bella.
"I'm glad you both could make it," Bella says as she looks around. It's as if she's looking for someone and I know who that is.
"Sorry, Bella, she's not coming. Jasper took her away for the weekend; she left first thing the morning."
Bella nods and I kiss the side of her head.
"Bella, Edward," I hear Ben's voice.
I turn seeing Angela and Ben, two more of Bella's friends, running toward us.
"Sorry, oh God, my alarm didn't go off. I swear I set it before going to bed. But I got up and saw how late it was. We had to rush to get ready, and then I couldn't find anything, even my door keys, they were not in my purse. I called Alice, but her cell was off. I was just about ready to try to shimmy my way out the fire escape, when Ben found the keys in the fridge."
As Angela tells us about her morning, I knew this was Alice's doing. Alice and Jasper share an apartment with Angela and Ben, so it would be so easy for her to do.
"Cullen and Swan, wedding party," the clerk calls out.
I look at the man and Bella looks around, before looking to me with hurt all across her face.
"What's wrong, love?"
"Your parents aren't here, maybe this is a sign," Bella says and I pull her to me hugging her.
"Yeah, it's a sign all right, a sign saying that Alice has been a bitch and they're allowing her to get away with it."
"I need the Cullen and Swan wedding party now," the man yells again looking right at us.
"Come on, let's get married."
I kiss her lips, before she can say another word pulling her to the room.
"Is this everyone?" The judge asks and we nod our heads. "Okay, then I will begin. We are gathered here—"
He gets cut off by the door opening and my parents walking in looking out of breath.
"Sorry, traffic was a nightmare," my dad says and walks in standing behind us.
"Is everyone now here?" the judge asks, clearly irritated.
We again nod at him and he starts off again.
Ten minutes later, we walk out holding hands and smiling. Bella smiles, looking at the rings on her finger and it makes me happy. We're now a married couple. We all head to a restaurant for a late lunch. My dad taps his glass lightly standing up.
"Bella, you have been a part of our family for so long, and we have thought of you as a second daughter for a long time. I'm so very pleased that you and my son—who I also love dearly—are now married. When I was first told, I was surprised, shocked even, but as I thought about it, I could see how right for each other the two of you are. Edward, you were always more alive when Bella was around, you even had a twinkle in your eyes. And, Bella, you would often stay in Alice's shadow, but when Edward was around you, it was like you were bathed in light."
I turn looking at Bella with my head a little tilted toward my dad as I think over his words. As Bella smiles looking back at me, I know that he is right; we are and always have been so right for each other.
"I know you'll have a very happy life together, so please, everyone, raise your glasses to Bella and Edward."
"Bella and Edward," the rest of them say, as they raise their own glass.
We say our goodbyes to everyone and return to our apartment. I walk through the door carrying her over the threshold. I head over to the stereo, putting on some music.
"Dance with me," I say holding out my hand.
"I should warn you that I'm not good at dancing," Bella says walking into my arms.
"Oh, I know, think my toes are still broken," I chuckle and Bella pouts at me. "But I'll gladly take the chance, if it means dancing with you."
As we sway a little, I gently kiss her lips again. I move my hands out of hers, and placing them softly on her back. My hands softly move up her back and I pull back from her, as I drag her zipper down. She nods at me and my lips go back to hers and I slide it down as it drops to the floor. I pick her up as her legs go around my waist, and her fingers are in my hair, holding my head to hers.
It only takes me a little time to get to our room. As I lay her on the bed, she pulls my sweater and shirt off, in one fell swoop. I kiss my way down the top of her body, unclasping her bra as I go. I palm and suck on her breasts, as she unzips my pants. Before long, I'm kicking my legs to finish getting them off.
"You're sure about this? That you want this?" I ask, almost pleading.
"Yes, do you?"
"More than I want to be a vet. I need you and this with you, more than I need to breathe."
She smiles, as she pulls my head back to her. I run my hands down her body and up her legs, hitching them back around my waist.
I look down at Bella, still grinning at the fact I was able to make her feel ultimate pleasures the first time we joined together. I know that's not really something to be overly pleased about, but usually it takes time to learn another's needs. For us, it seems to be natural, like breathing.
"I know how you feel, that really was something," Bella say sleepily against my chest.
"Yeah, it was, and I can't wait to do it again with you."
"Me, too," Bella yawns out closing her eyes.
I hold her to me as she sleeps.
"I don't like pink, Alice," Bella growls out and I look down to see that she's talking in her sleep.
"Please, don't take Edward away from me, Alice."
"She won't, Bella, I'm with you, right where I want to be," I whisper in her ear, hoping to calm her back into a peaceful sleep.
"I love you, please, Edward, I love you," Bella begs.
I feel my heart racing hearing her say that for the first time, even if it's just in her sleep. From the sound of her voice, it was so clear and heartfelt. I can't help but want it to be true. I'm brought out of my mental thoughts, when Bella starts to whimper.
"Bella, love, wake up."
I shake her gently and she opens her eyes and starts to cry right away.
"Hey, what's this?" I say pulling her on top of me.
"They said no. They said no, and I had to leave and you didn't come with me. When I finally was allowed to come back, you were married to another woman. Alice was there and said your new wife was better for you and you didn't want me. I was yelling for you and you just walked away, saying that I was not worth losing your family for."
I pull her closer to me and make her look in my eyes.
"That won't happen," I say, holding back my own fear that I will lose her in some way.
"It may ..."
I shake my head clasping her face in my hands.
"No, it won't, because if you have to leave, then I'll be coming with you."
Bella looks at me and then tilts her head.
I sigh and kiss her lips, tasting her tears as I do.
"I know this in some ways has been fast, but in others, it feels like a long time coming. Bella, I'm in love with you. When I think back to before now, I realize it's always been there, just growing stronger all the time. Without you, my life would be incomplete. I really, honestly, truly love you, and I'm in love with you."
Bella pulls back from me and just looks at me.
"Bella, if you don't fe ..." the word feel, comes out in a half mumble as Bella starts to kiss me. Just as I'm getting into it, she pulls back.
"I love you, too. I should've said that before."
I kiss her lips and flip us over, so I can hover over her.
"Let's do this right; from here until death do us part. I love you, Isabella Cullen."
"And I love you, Edward Cullen."
I feel my heart leap as if it's trying to escape my chest. I lock our hands together as my body enters hers for the second time tonight. The entire time we make love, our eyes remain locked on the other. Only minutes from joining, we both reach our peak and fall over the edge together.
"I'm never letting you go, and if you have to leave, I will come, too," I say softly into her ear, flipping us again so she's on top of me.
Bella and I have been married for a little over a week now, and we're very much in love with each other. Everything seems to be falling into place and running smoothly. We still have our deciding interview to attend with Aro, tomorrow. We're both hopeful that it'll go well.
I knock on my parents' door, before walking in. We're joining them today for Sunday lunch. As soon as we walk through the door, we're greeted with Alice, who has her arm crossed over her chest.
"Still playing house, I see?" she snarls.
"Still being a bitch, I see," I reply and she narrows her eyes at me, before glaring at Bella.
I watch her eyes go wide as she catches sight of Grandma Platt's wedding set on Bella's ring finger.
"That's nana Mary's rings! You gave her MY nana Mary's rings!" Alice shrieks, making the rest of the family come running out.
"What's going on now?" my mom says looking at the three off us.
"You bitch," Alice yells and pulls Bella's hair. Within seconds, Alice is trying to take the rings off of Bella's hand.
"That's mine, you give it to me, you trashy bitch!"
I pull Alice roughly off of Bella, and just about throw her on her ass, but sadly Jasper catches her. He puts her behind him as he steps forward to me.
"Enough!" my dad yells and we turn to him. "Those rings were left to Edward to give to whomever he married, and that person is Bella."
"No, Daddy, he was meant to give them over to me, for when I got married to Jasper."
I look at her like she crazy.
"What planet are you from? Why on earth would I do that?"
"Because, I'm your sister and I wanted those rings. You all knew that and the old bag knew that, too. She only gave them to you, just to spite me," Alice says and then huffs.
I shake my head and look at my mom who looks hurt over what Alice just said. Before any of us can speak, the doorbell sounds.
"I'll get that," my mom says sadly and walks quickly away.
"What's wrong with you?" Bella says. "Esme loved her mother very much and to hear you speaking of her like that was very horrible. Seriously, Alice, what is wrong with you?"
Alice's head slowly turns to Bella.
"You know nothing! You're just using him for his money."
"Everyone, this is Aro Volturi, and he's from the INS," my mom says and Bella and I both look at each other swallowing, before turning to my mom and Aro.
"Bella, Edward, I heard you got married. I've just come to speak to the family. I've already spoken with most of your friends."
"You're an illegal immigrant?" Alice yells again. "So this is why you married him, so you could stay in America? Oh, I knew you were a low-life, back-biting cunt, but really, this takes the cake, Isabella."
"You think they only got married so she could stay in the USA?" Aro asks.
"Well, yeah, they never spent any time together until about three weeks ago. Then there's the whole getting married at the courthouse—I mean who does that other than lowlife freaks or people with shady shit to hide—unless the skank is pregnant."
"No, I'm not pregnant. None of what you said is true, we love each other. Bella doesn't have any family left and Mom and Dad were both at our wedding, ask them. I only have one real friend besides Bella, so there was no reason for us to spend all that money on one day, when we could use it to build our future," I say holding Bella's now weak body to mine.
"Hmm," Aro says. I know Alice may've done unfixable damage to this.
"What Alice is claiming is not true," my mom says and we all face her.
"Edward and Bella have been dating for a while. They're both just private people. Edward asked me for my mother's ring, before Renee had passed away. He wanted to ask Bella to marry him, but Renee's death knocked Bella down so hard, he held off as long as he could."
I just stare at my mom. To say she spins a very good sounding lie would be an understatement.
"You'll have to forgive Alice, she's not taken this well and as her mother, I can only blame myself for repeatedly giving into her demands when she was a child. You see, she's just jealous, because she wanted something she can't have, because it was not left to her by the old hag it belonged to," my mom spits out the ending part, while flat out glaring at Alice.
Aro nods in understanding.
"No, mom, what are you saying? She's only using him," Alice says again.
"Okay, well I have everything I need, and I'll see both of you tomorrow morning at nine," Aro says.
Bella doesn't say anything and I can hear her breathing becoming shallower. As my mom walks Aro out, Bella bends over trying to breathe easier.
"Nice and easy, love," I say sitting on the floor and pulling Bella onto my lap.
"I knew it, I told you all this was some lie," Alice says cheerfully. "And before they kick your ass out of my country, I want my rings!"
"You spiteful, horrible, ungrateful, worthless, bitch," I say standing up and moving to her. "That's all you want, everything done your way, right? You're so stupid, she's been your friend ..."
Alice goes to cut me off, but she sees something in my face and gulps remaining quiet.
"For thirteen years, Alice, she's stood by you. In all that time, she's always been there for you. You are so hateful and such a horrid person, I could care less if I EVER see you again. And, for the record, if they kick her out of YOUR country, she will still have the rings, Alice, because she'll still be my wife."
"She'll be screwing some guy before the plane hits the ground when they send her back where she belongs," Alice says finding her voice and I chuckle nodding at her.
"I know she will be, because I'll be that guy."
Alice looks at me confused.
"If she has to leave, well then I'm going, too! So I do hope what everything you did and said in all of this, was worth losing your brother and your best friend."
I don't let Alice say anything, I just walk to Bella picking her up and carrying her out to the car. As I drive away, I can see my dad holding my mom who is crying. I do feel guilty for leaving so quickly, but if I stayed any longer, I would have been arrested for beating the shit out of Alice.
When we arrive back at our building, I carry Bella to our apartment, and straight to bed.
"It's going to be okay. I'll be with you no matter where we have to go. I'll be right by your side," I say into her ear, "because I want to be with you, I love you."
"But your family," she sobs out finally.
"Bella, you are my family, you are the only thing—one that matters to me, now. Besides, my parents like to travel. If we have to leave, they'll visit, often."
I kiss her lips and we pull at each other's clothing, touching each other everywhere we can. We spend the whole night joined together. It's not just sex, but this all-encompassing kind of coming together that makes you feel complete as if you need more at the same time. When morning arrives, we both leave without breakfast and head to the immigration office waiting on Aro.
"Bella and Edward, please come in," he says and we follow him into his office.
"Well, everyone apart from your sister Alice, all say you been dating for months. The only problem is, they all have different months of when this started, thankfully it's all been agreed it's within this year. They have all given me evidence supporting your relationship. Because of the varying information, the agent in me would say most of it was made up. However, I have seen you and I've watched you closely. From the first time you walked into my office and even more so since then, you look like you're both in love to me. As you sit in front of me, I can almost feel it pour off of you. This inclines me to believe that your sister, Alice, was right. I do think and believe that you got married so that you could stay."
I clasp Bella's hand, ready to fight for her. I don't understand how he can say he sees our love, but thinks we married to keep her here. I frown when Aro starts to chuckle.
"But, Alice is clearly wrong on the fact that you don't really love one another. This whole thing may've started as a way to keep her here, but you two are in love. Therefore, I believe in this marriage, and I believe that it will work. Because of the conditions and situation, I have granted your request, Isabella Marie Cullen, for citizenship."
"Edward, can I look now?" Bella asks with a sigh, but I know it's as fake as can be. I can see the smile she's trying hard to hide.
"No, not yet," I say kissing the side of her head, as I guide her into the room.
Bella bobs her head and I take the blindfold from her eyes.
"This is your old apartment?" Bella says looking around.
"Yeah, it is," I say with a chuckle.
"Why are we here?"
I grin at her, pulling her to the table that I have had set up for us.
"Twenty years ago at that the very door," I say pointing at the door behind Bella, "you asked me to marry you. But today, I'm asking you to marry me, again."
I open the box that has the diamond encrusted eternity band inside and she gasps.
"You're crazy, and of course I'll marry you again. I'd do it all—every bit of it over again."
She kisses my lips and I pull her down on the floor with me.
We spend the rest of the night making love and staying in each other's arms. As she sleeps, I think back on the last twenty years.
After Bella was cleared, she took her pledge to become a US citizen. Our happiness was short lived, when Alice started making things hard for us – well for Bella. Every job Bella had applied for; Alice would call them up or go to the place making them write Bella off, before they'd even seen her. Both my parents tried to talk to Alice, but had no luck when they did. I had to take action when Bella became pregnant. Alice was none too happy when she got served with the restraining order. She was actually arrested three times, before she finally started to stay away. By month four, Bella was able to relax and enjoy the rest of her pregnancy. Our son, Anthony, was born on our first wedding anniversary. He's my spitting image and he's following in my footsteps, also wanting to be a veterinarian.
Life was good for a few months, until Jasper caught Alice and his dad going at it, on their wedding day no less. Then all-hell broke loose. The more Jasper stayed away from her, the more hurtful Alice became with others. When she received the annulment papers two months later, she blamed Bella again. She violated the order of protection again, and tried to seriously harm Bella. This time, when she was arrested, she got a prison term of two years.
After everything that happened, Bella and I moved the few miles back to our home town, after being married just four years. I got a job in the local Veterinary clinic and Bella worked at the local elementary school, teaching kindergarten. Our move was closely followed by Angela and Ben. Angela is the town reverend, a first for our small town. Then Rose and Emmett came and opened their own mechanic shop.
Anthony had just started kindergarten when we were blessed with our second son. Bella and I were finding it hard to find a name that suited him. I wanted to call him Charlie after her father, but she said it was unfair to my father, who pretty much took on the role of being her dad after Charlie passed away. After going through all the names in our families, we found that our fathers shared the same middle name of Lawrence. Strangely enough, the name suited our son very well.
Life became a routine of going to work, coming home, spending time with the family, and once a month the kids went to their grandparents' home and we went out with Rose, Angela, Ben, and Emmett. Over the years, we'd all become dear friends that had each other's back.
The years passed and my boss retired, and I bought the clinic from him. Lawrence was at kindergarten and I was busy at work, when I received a call from someone I had not heard from in almost ten years.
Jasper quickly told me that he and Bella were attending the same teaching course, and during it, Bella doubled over in pain. He rushed her to the hospital. They were scanning her to see if her appendix had burst.
The four-hour journey, only took me an hour and a half. As soon as I was there, I ran all the way to the room Bella was in, arriving just in time to see our surprise daughter Arya being born. After having the boys, Bella filled out and where she wasn't always happy with her new curves and battle scars, I loved the softness it gave her body. Arya was very small, less than five pounds. She was an estimated six weeks early and had to be in the NICU for almost two weeks.
Our happiness over the surprise baby was quickly over shadowed, when Bella became ill and started to bleed. The two hours that it took for them to stabilize her felt like a lifetime to me. I was very grateful that Jasper and his wife Maria stayed with me and called the people that needed to know.
After spending two weeks in the hospital, I was allowed to take Bella and Arya home. We were advised not to have any more children, and as Bella was still healing, I booked myself in for a vasectomy.
Things slowly went back to normal and Bella and I adjusted to having three children. When she went back to work, she found that there were two new teachers coming to the school. We were happy to find that it was Jasper and Maria who joined our small town school system and quickly they joined our group of friends, too.
The last ten years for all of us have been very good. Of course, we had our share of bad luck, money worries, surprise babies, and sick kids, but we got through it all as a family.
It was only a few weeks ago, when Arya was asking us to tell her our story, that I really thought about the fact Bella and I never got a real wedding. So much has changed from that day, long ago. I do know we were both in love and that was the main point, but I still wanted to show her that the love I have for her has only kept growing. I also want to share that with our family and friends.
With the help of Maria, Rose, and Angela, I have most of the work and preparations done. All that was left to do, was ask her, and for her to get a dress, but she has almost three weeks in which to do it.
"Everything okay?" I look down at Bella, who's looking at me a little worried.
"Yeah, I was just thinking about the last twenty years."
She bites her lip and nods at me.
"It has been a roller coaster ride, but I wouldn't change it for anything," she says.
"Neither would I, love," I say kissing her lips.
I take deep breaths and tug at my suit collar.
"Edward, you know you're already married, right? This is just a renewal of your vows."
I turn and glare at Angela, who chuckles at me.
"I'm sorry, it's just you're acting like a guy who's getting married for the first time. It's kind of cute."
I roll my eyes at her.
"Okay, I better get down there. I'll see you in a minute," she says running down and out the door.
The door just closes, when the music begins and Ben walks Angela back down, leaving her to stand in front of me and then he moves to my side. Next down is Rose and Emmett, followed by Jasper and Maria. Then our son, Lawrence walks down the aisle with Arya. Last is Anthony who walks with his mom, my wife, Bella.
As she reaches me, I kiss her softly.
"You look beautiful," I whisper and then we look to Angela, who begins.
Soon the service is over and we head off to the reception to have a big party this time. After we're done with our meal, I kiss Bella's lips softly.
"Can I have your attention please," Anthony says in to a microphone. "... Dad, stop kissing my mom for three minutes."
I just ignore him and keep kissing Bella. Her lips are just too good.
"Mom," he says and I pout as Bella pulls away from me.
"Sorry, Tony," she says with a grin.
He sighs and rolls his eyes at her and I look around the room seeing that our family and friends are all chuckling at my display with Bella.
"Mom, Dad, we're all here to help you celebrate. We all know that Mom didn't get a big wedding and has since been busy raising a family. Mom, you helped Dad when he took over the practice and other things that have come along the way. Dad and us, your family, thought you deserved a special day, you both do," he says looking my way, too. "So we're all here to help you ring in the celebration that you two have been married for twenty years."
Everyone cheers and claps.
"If you killed him, you would've been out on good behavior by now," Emmett yells making everyone chuckle.
Anthony clears his throat and turns to Bella and me again.
"Through the years, you've taught me many great things. One of the main things you taught me is about family and love."
Bella lays her head on my arm and I pull her closer, kissing the side of her head, but keeping my eye on Anthony who's still speaking.
"Even as I watch you now, you are still unable to keep your hands off each other. Where most kids would feel disgusted at their parents acting like this, I only feel hope that one day I will be blessed with a love like yours."
I grin and tip Bella's chin up and kiss her soundly. I can hear the cat calls from around the room.
"Okay, I'm starting to feel disgusted now," Anthony deadpans.
I chuckle pulling back and wave at Anthony to keep going.
"So please, raise you glasses to my mom and my dad, to Bella and Edward, we hope you have another happy twenty years and more."
There are echoes of our names around the room. After toasting with everyone, I stand up.
"I would just like to thank Angela, Rose, Maria, and the kids, who all helped make this day great for Bella and me. Anthony says he learned a lot from Bella and me, well I learned love and what family means from my parents, who have now been married for fifty years."
I stop talking as everyone claps.
"I know I wasn't an easy child to bring up, and was really awkward, but you always helped and supported me, so thank you. As have all of you," I say looking at the faces of my friends. "You have all helped guide Bella and me through the journey of adult life and parenthood. You all mean so much to Bella and me, and to call you friends, seems to almost deteriorate what you truly mean to us. People say 'blood is thicker than water,' but there isn't one of you here who—relative or not—isn't a part of our very souls."
Everyone cheers and I turn to Bella.
"Now for you, my love, my wife, you have been in my life for so long. You are still my best friend, my first love, last and my only love. We have had some bad times, some rough times, but mainly we've had great times. You have given me three of the best kids around, all of whom I'm proud of."
I give each of my kids a look to show them I mean what I am saying, before turning back to my wife.
"I love you so much, and every day I am amazed at how it grows and how the love you have for me grows. I love you and I can't wait to spend another twenty years with you."
Bella stands up pulling me down a little, so she can reach my lips. Her fingers go right into my hair and I run my hands down to her waist, picking her up as I keep kissing her. We pull back and I look down at her. "I love you," I mouth the words silently and she replies back the same way.
I place her fully back on the ground and pick up my glass.
"To all of you, our family."
Everyone says family and takes a drink.
"And to my wife, Bella."
After the hall is cleared of some of the tables, I lead Bella to the dance floor. Over the years, I have pulled her up many times to dance and she has become good at slow dancing with me.
"Are you looking forward to going away with me?" I ask.
"Hell yeah, I'll miss the kids, but it'll feel so good being just you and me. Two nights a month just goes so quick."
I nod and kiss her lips.
"It does, more so when we end up doing those odd jobs that we seem to leave for when the kids are gone."
"Yeah, then there's the sleeping we always have to catch up on."
I chuckle a little, resting my hand on her fine ass.
"We have two whole weeks, just you and me," I say wiggling my brow at her.
"It's going to be heaven."
I nod and spin her around the room. So many stories start with once upon a time—Bella and my story, it started with a proposal—and I truly think we have the best story of them all.
A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing. Hope you all enjoyed this short story. Be sure to check out the awesome banner that goes with this story. Nikky and I wrote a oneshot for this Awesome banner that was made
by, Caitlin Beresford in a contest, where it was awarded 3rd place. You can Google battle of the banner artist blogspot to see more of the banners and learn more about the contest. HUGE thanks to all the entries and Carolina Cullen for trusting us to write this one-shot to accompany the lovely banner Caitlin made. | <urn:uuid:8bc35185-0b77-43dd-a841-2a6dd34edc09> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10245525/1/It-All-Started-With-A-Proposal | 2015-07-06T19:12:03Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098685.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00256-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987304 | 23,271 | [
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Wilson Pass (Hunter - Wills)
A view across to an easy, low (1500m) pass between the Hunter and Wills. Probably the easiest crossing of the main divide in Otago. Except SH6 that is. About 7km upriver from Forbes Hut in the Hunter - tracked to the bushedge but the last 1km is untracked and scrubby to the base of the pass: drop to the river or climb to good tussock faces from tghe end of the track. The Wills is good going: 4km riverbed travel upriver from Wills Hut through gorged sections then 3km good tussock / moraine valley-floor to the pass. As you can see, the pass is grassed, low and easy. Good camping spots exist beside small (very small) tarns 2/3 of the way up the eastern side. Tarns and hollows on the summit also promise good camping if conditions are right.
The photo is taken from the summit of the pass between the Hunter and Sth Huxley above Forbes Hut
- No comments yet. Sign in to add yours! | <urn:uuid:47d5fa3a-2941-415b-aee1-9f3e1a313656> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://tramper.nz/7832/ | 2015-06-30T14:31:57Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375093974.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031813-00196-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913381 | 235 | [
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AncientFaces Member since Jun 30, 2015
About: Researching Riley, Woodward, List, Hawkins, Barker, Starnes. The Riley, Woodward and Starnes family moved through Carolinas, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas. Marks (Marx) came from Germany through NYC to Alabama. Hawkins from the Shenandoah Valley, VA. List family from Bayern region of Germany to Michigan, Sachtleben family from Germany to Illinois.
Rob hasn't shared any stories yet. | <urn:uuid:fbf696aa-ce95-4e10-bab9-e591b26064fa> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.ancientfaces.com/user/rob-riley/29139 | 2015-06-30T14:39:44Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375093974.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031813-00196-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.872926 | 98 | [
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The tech sector fared well in Q4 largely due to channel bullyboy Apple's unstoppable sales juggernaut - but IT distributors are missing out on this boom.
According to the Tech Titan Index by beancounter Canalys, the combined sales growth of Cisco, Dell, EMC, Google, HP, IBM, Intel, Lexmark, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP and Apple was 15 per cent in 2011.
Extract the fruity Foxconn-rebranding firm from the numbers and growth was limited to just five per cent, the analyst said.
"Five per cent growth in Q4 is still pretty respectable but not quite as dramatic so what is also clear is that Apple is taking a huge chunk of the IT industry growth right now," said Steve Brazier, CEO at Canalys.
In the same three-month period, distribution declined one per cent as a sector worldwide, and was facing a "tougher time than the overall IT industry," Brazier added.
There were a couple of "mega trends" that shaped distie numbers, according to the bean counter boss: "One is Apple; love them or hate them, Apple does use distribution but not in the way that Acer, HP or Samsung does.
"Apple is doing quite a lot of business direct too and direct is growing a little bit faster than indirect so some of the growth Apple is giving to the industry isn't coming via distribution."
Meanwhile, wholesaler revenues are being limited partly because major software vendors, including Microsoft and Symantec, are selling software online.
"How they manage that going forwards in a download app world will be interesting and complex. Distribution may have a role there, but they will have to fight hard to keep hold of it," said Brazier.
"Apple and the content industry are acting against distribution," he added.
Enterprises going mobile, data centre transformation and consumerisation of IT are forecast to be the largest industry growth drivers for 2012, concludes Canalys.
The major challenges facing the channel included the economy - although resellers believe the market has improved in the last three months - changing IT consumption models, managing cash flow in the move to services and a skills shortage in areas including HTML5 apps. ® | <urn:uuid:6e703cd0-bd15-448b-a730-408e509ac1a7> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/03/29/canalys_tech_titans/ | 2015-06-30T14:25:31Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375093974.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031813-00196-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963621 | 454 | [
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I enjoy Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli movies. I first saw the movie on video and again recently during a Studio Ghibli series by the local independent movie theater. So when my Kindle showed an advertisement to buy this book for $1.99, I jumped at the chance.
In the first quarter, I could tell a few differences. For instance, in the movie Sophie meets Howl when soldiers harass her. In the book Howl is the one doing the harassing. And the differences grow bigger from there. Enough I would consider them different stories.
If you have only watched the movie, then I recommend reading the book. This story is the interesting of the two. Here Howl is a womanizer. Sophie’s development over the course of the story seemed stronger. Michael, the apprentice, actually has a real point to the story. I kind of wish the book version was the movie made. | <urn:uuid:f5416972-237e-43d4-82af-8eae7d54fa3e> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.ezrasf.com/wplog/2013/07/11/review-howls-moving-castle/ | 2015-06-30T14:24:46Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375093974.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031813-00196-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963135 | 189 | [
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iHerb Customer Reviews
Posted by Reviewer3304296 on Aug 02, 2011
Hey Chocolate lovers!!! Try this in smoothies - with some chocolate stevia drops, whey protein, chia seeds, ice and acacia fiber, and you will love it!!! You can even add 1 c spinach and you will never taste the spinach!! This powder has a wonderful flavor and is so healthy for you too!!! Love it!!
Posted by Reviewer1703515 on Aug 15, 2011
Liked it very much, no taste of sugar on it, just pure cacao
Posted by Reviewer2260173 on Aug 28, 2011
This is a very good way to help my heart and my chocolate cravings at the same time. I will be purchasing more of this.
Posted by Reviewer2245739 on Aug 30, 2011
I had heard some good press about the benefits of beets and ran across this product when looking for a good organic solution. First comment is that it is awesome cocoa. The second benefit for me is that the beet powder really does give me better mental clarity. I have one cup a day and notice a difference in mental acuity when I don't drink it. I also love how it has no sweetener in it, so you can choose what to add, if any.
You definitely can smell the beet
Posted by Reviewer2239859 on Sep 13, 2011
If you're looking for delicious hot chocolate, maybe you'll be disappointed. It's not that bitter but the scent of beet is quite strong. But if you're looking for a way to have beet in your diet, in a pleasant way, this tastes wonderful with a bit of sugar. | <urn:uuid:1e920cdc-4f7b-40f7-92f5-90b08031edf7> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.iherb.com/product-reviews/Madre-Labs-CocoCardio-7-93-oz-225-g-Stay-Fresh-Re-Sealable-Pak/23802/?p=12 | 2015-06-30T14:40:44Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375093974.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031813-00196-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952288 | 351 | [
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Two-year-old Kent Schaible died of bacterial pneumonia in 2009.
"We tried to fight the devil, but, in the end, the devil won," Herbert Schaible said at the time.
When they appeared before a judge in 2011, the Schaibles promised they would never again avoid medical attention for their remaining children, despite the tenets of their fundamentalist church, the First Century Gospel Church. [8 Ways Religion Impacts Your Life]
But last Thursday (April 18), their 7-month-old son Brandon died after suffering severe diarrhea. The couple prayed over their son until he passed away.
What is faith healing?
Faith healing, the belief that diseases and injuries can be healed through the intervention of a higher power, is as old as human civilization, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS).
A number of religious organizations — including Christian Scientists, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormon Church) and the Catholic Church — recognize some degree of faith healing or divine intervention in health matters.
However, only the most extreme, fundamentalist sects of these churches advise their congregations to avoid all professional medical attention.
Does faith healing work?
There have been no scientific studies that affirm the efficacy of faith healing. In fact, medical research has found that faith healing has a dismal track record.
A 1998 study from the journal Pediatrics found that of 172 children who died after their parents refused medical care, 140 of the deaths were from conditions for which survival rates with medical care would have exceeded 90 percent.
The children's deaths resulted from treatable diseases, such as pneumonia, meningitis and insulin-dependent diabetes. In one dramatic case, a 2-year-old girl choked to death on a banana while her parents and other adults prayed for her recovery.
Nonetheless, in some cases, the ACS says, belief in a cure can trigger a placebo effect, in which a person believes a treatment will work even though there's no evidence that it will. This belief can help a patient feel better and cope with their condition more effectively.
Faith healing and the law
Faith healing is subject to a number of state laws and exemptions, many of which shield parents from prosecution even when their child dies of an easily treated illness.
According to a 2011 report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), 19 U.S. states still allow religious exemptions for crimes against children, including child neglect, manslaughter and murder.
"Children who have died in these cases suffer seizures, vomiting," Dr. Seth Asser, a Rhode Island pediatrician, told the CMAJ. "Their deaths are agonizing, slow and extremely painful."
Asser and Rita Swan, founder of Children's Healthcare Is a Legal Duty (CHILD), argue that judges and legislators often fail to acknowledge the risks inherent in faith healing, especially when children are involved, according to the CMAJ report.
A judicial rebuke
The Schaibles once again found themselves in court, where Judge Benjamin Lerner issued a blistering rebuke to the couple.
"I am sorry for your loss. Deeply sorry," Lerner told the Schaibles. "But in all honesty, I am more sorry for the fact that this innocent little child will not be able to grow up to be what he wanted to be."
Because the couple "knowingly, intentionally, hypocritically and callously violated" the most critical term of the probation they received after the death of their son Kent, they now face up to 10 years in prison.
Their seven remaining children have been removed from their home by the Philadelphia Department of Human Services.
- Religious Mysteries: 8 Alleged Relics of Jesus
- Wishful Thinking: 6 'Magic Bullet' Cures That Don't Exist
- Myth or Truth? 7 Ancient Health Wisdoms Explained
- Society & Culture
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Elizabeth I costume at the Globe Theatre in London. Photo May 1998.
Sorry about the relatively poor quality of this photo – I shot it quickly! When I first visited the Globe in May 1998 and they had this display with the costume worn by an actress portraying Elizabeth I during the opening festivities the year before. The photo doesn’t do the dress justice – it was gorgeous! | <urn:uuid:33abfb11-d385-4311-9806-65965cf14723> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://tudorhistory.org/blog/2013/01/23/picture-of-the-week-212/ | 2015-07-02T21:26:44Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095671.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00136-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978455 | 77 | [
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The peacock network is apparently happy Chicago PD, their new Dick Wolf series. NBC has just ordered two additional episodes, bringing the first season to 15 episodes.
Four episodes of Chicago PD have aired so far, averaging a 1.7 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 6.8 million total viewers. It’s currently the network’s fourth-highest-rated scripted series. Chicago Fire is number two.
Chicago PD follows the men and women who work at the Chicago Police Department’s District 21. The cast includes Jason Beghe, Jon Seda, Jesse Lee Soffer, Sophia Bush, Patrick Flueger, LaRoyce Hawkins, Elias Koteas, Marina Squerciati, and Archie Kao.
What do you think? Do you like this Chicago Fire spin-off series? | <urn:uuid:0f544e3a-7d89-48f5-b523-7a488c2f94d1> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/chicago-pd-nbc-orders-two-more-episodes-31403/comment-page-1/ | 2015-07-02T21:32:43Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095671.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00136-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.907382 | 170 | [
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Royal Bank has promised it will never outsource a Canadian job to a foreign worker solely to save money.
The bank updated its code of conduct on Friday, after facing intense criticism last month for its hiring policies.
In a story first reported by CBC News, the bank was criticized heavily for laying off a number of IT workers in order to replace them with cheaper foreign workers.
"As part of its supplier review, RBC looked at the types of work the bank will and will not outsource to suppliers that execute all or part of the work offshore to ensure suppliers support RBC's focus on creating Canadian jobs and prosperity," the bank said in a statement Friday.
'Superior skill sets'
Specifically, the bank says it will only offshore work to suppliers "when their investment in scale, technology or operational knowledge provides superior skill sets and capabilities that RBC cannot duplicate inside its own business or in Canada."
"RBC will not offshore work where salary savings is the primary reason and will make every effort to source in Canada," the bank says.
The bank notes that all of its call centres are located in Canada, despite the trend in many industries to offshore them.
The bank faced harsh criticism for taking advantage of a government program known as the temporary foreign workers program, which is aimed at filling labour needs where suitably skilled Canadian workers can't be found for any given job.
The bank says it has used the program "on a very limited basis for executives and for workers with highly specialized skills," but in the new code of conduct, the bank says it will not use what it called the "low skills workers" program to fill jobs in Canada.
The B.C. Federation of Labour said it welcomed the bank's move.
"RBC has recognized that Canadians expect Canada's banks to provide good, family-supporting jobs in Canada," said federation president Jim Sinclair.
The federation said that following the initial reports of the outsourcing, the province's labour movement threatened to withdraw more than $5 billion in union and pension funds on deposit with the bank.
The federation also said it will continue discussion with the bank on the establishment of an independent monitor to review implementation of the new code of conduct. | <urn:uuid:046be2b9-0b39-42be-8628-a1f90693b35a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/royal-bank-pledges-not-to-outsource-jobs-for-cash-savings-1.1325603 | 2015-07-02T21:53:08Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095671.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00136-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969749 | 451 | [
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Can 'New Urbanism' Bring Health to Your Neighborhood?
"...it's about living amid convenient goods and services and the intangible spirit of a vibrant community. At the forefront of the movement is the Congress for New Urbanism, a nonprofit organization that promotes restoring cities and reworking suburbs into walkable and sustainable communities. But the desire for these places is largely driven by two burgeoning populations—Millenials and baby boomers."
Write your comments in the box below and share on your Facebook! | <urn:uuid:8899c0bc-522a-4228-b8f2-897b204000c4> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.cnu.org/cnu-salons/2012/06/can-new-urbanism-bring-health-your-neighborhood | 2015-07-02T21:47:01Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095671.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00136-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916303 | 100 | [
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'HBO's 'True Detective': Check Out the First Trailer
One of HBO's most highly anticipated new series in recent memory is the upcoming crime drama 'True Detective.' The project marks Woody Harrelson's first regular TV role since Woody Boyd on 'Cheers,' and is the first regular TV role ever for Matthew McConaughey. Created by up-and-coming author and screenwriter Nic Pizzolatto, the series' plot concerns detectives Rust Cohle (McConaughey) and Martin Hart (Harrelson), whose lives intersect and are changed drastically over the course of a seventeen year manhunt for a vicious serial killer claiming victims throughout Louisiana.
The story is told using two time frames, one set in 1995 as Cohle and Hart are investigating the killer's first murder, and the other set in the present day as the two detectives give testimony in relation to the recently re-opened case. The first season will be eight episodes, and is expected to wrap up the mystery by the season finale. If successful, the show would continue with new characters in a new setting the following year, much like the approach being taken by FX's American Horror Story.
And now, for the main event. The first full trailer for 'True Detective' can be viewed below.
I don't know about you, but I found that trailer quite effective. I was already planning on checking the show out, but now it's a certainty. With two heavyweights like Harrelson and McConaughey (contrary to popular opinion, McConaughey is quite the capable actor) in front of the camera, I have no doubt that 'True Detective' will be yet another big success for HBO.
The first season of 'True Detective' premieres in January. Will you be watching? | <urn:uuid:810671b7-ae0b-4ee8-bea2-966efeb5c483> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.tvrage.com/news/7918/hbo-s-true-detective-check-out-the-first-trailer | 2015-07-02T21:53:28Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375095671.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031815-00136-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945699 | 368 | [
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A long and rancorous negotiation with Juneau's teachers, begun in February and spilling over into letters in the newspaper, ended in a burst of bad feelings as the School Board approved a contract Tuesday.
Board member Alan Schorr voted against the contract, and Chuck Cohen said he wasn't satisfied but voted for it.
Meanwhile, the teachers' union asked board members to respond publicly to Schorr's opinion piece in the Sept. 5 edition of the Juneau Empire, which teachers said they considered demoralizing and disrespectful.
Schorr had said this school year's increase in state funding would be better spent on unmet needs such as more counselors and teachers than on giving teachers raises, and he called for a longer work day and year.
School Board President Mary Becker said the school district has bought new textbooks in recent years, and is hiring several teachers this fall to reduce class sizes.
"I'm not sure we have thrown away the farm by this teachers' contract," Becker told the board.
Juneau Education Association President Clay Good told the School Board on Tuesday that a public response from them would "go a long way to healing the pain (Schorr) has caused" and helping the union and school board work together for more state education funding.
School Board members didn't respond at the meeting.
Teacher Patrick Moore, his voice rising at times, told the board he has worked summer jobs to make ends meet and that some teachers qualify for low-income housing. He said teachers came close to not ratifying the contract and many aren't satisfied with it.
A contract that would attract and keep the best and most dedicated teachers is in the best interest of students, Moore said.
In the new contract, rates on the low and high ends of the new salary schedule went up, while many rates in the middle went down. But teachers were placed on the new schedule so they would get pay increases of at least 4.5 percent in the first year.
The new contract increases rates on the salary schedule by 1 percent in the second year, and allows teachers to move up the schedule for further experience and college credits. Many teachers will get a 4 percent pay increase in the second year.
The new pay scale runs from $33,258 to $64,053 in the first year, and $33,591 to $64,694 in the second year.
Cohen said teachers work hard, but said he was dissatisfied the new contract includes a pay increase "significantly above" what the district gave to other employees in recent years.
Those contracts, for support staff and administrators, generally included 3 percent pay increases.
Cohen also said it was disheartening that the Juneau Assembly, "with great lip service to education," would turn down the school district's request for additional funds and yet give city employees raises the district can't afford to match.
Cohen also faulted two Assembly members, Marc Wheeler and Jim Powell, for their June 21 letter in the Empire that urged the school board to give teachers raises, while those same members didn't vote to give additional funds to the school district.
"I found that very, very disheartening," Cohen told the board.
Wheeler, in an interview, said he wanted to give the schools more money but he didn't think he had the votes on the Assembly.
But with the added state funds, "clearly the school district had the revenue to be able to offer the teachers a raise," Wheeler said. "I think it was our responsibility to say that publicly as community leaders."
Eric Fry can be reached at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:6cd04e6f-9032-4ff1-91ca-4b2870cc9a7a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://juneauempire.com/stories/091301/Loc_teachers.shtml | 2015-07-05T00:26:02Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375097038.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031817-00076-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.986813 | 747 | [
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High school girls basketball: Cyprus seniors took separate paths to anchor Pirate squad together
Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
MAGNA — When Abby Barrett, Julie Caputo and Marquessa Gilson pull on their Cyprus High basketball jerseys, they share a unique kind of pride in the team they lead, the school they represent and the community they've come to call their own.
That's because none of the three captains started their high school careers at the Magna school. Instead, they became teammates after circumstances off the court forced them to take paths they didn't expect to travel when they started high school at other places.
The one constant for all three girls is basketball.
It's what brought them together, and it's the life preserver to which they've clung through the painful twists and turns of life.
Abby Barrett was an easy target for bullies in her small-town grade school.
"I was so tall, and I used to beat girls up," she said. "Kids made fun of me because my mom was single and I'm not LDS. They said, 'Your dad doesn't love you; your mom is fat.' It was hard."
She and her mom, Leslie Hughes, moved to Missouri, where she endured extreme poverty.
"In elementary school I had to see a counselor," said Barrett. "I got held back in third grade because after 9/11 I was really scared. I was afraid something would kill my mom while I was away."
Eventually Hughes moved back to Utah. She moved to Panguitch because she had friends there, but Barrettt stayed in Grantsville with her oldest brother. She attended Grantsville High as a freshman, but moved to Panguitch to live with her mom after her brother got married.
"I wanted to give them space," she said.
Barrett said she excelled at athletics, and her height, which made her a target in grade school, became an asset in sports, especially her favorite sport — basketball.
But Hughes was diagnosed with cancer and eventually grew tired of arguing with her teenage daughter when Barrett was a sophomore in high school. So, at the end of her sophomore year, Hughes sent her daughter to Magna for a vacation with her 30-year-old married daughter.
"She'd lost her job, and she was suffering from anxiety and depression," said Barrett. "Finally she called my sister. I was supposed to stay a week and it turned into an adoption."
Despite some of the differences she's had with her mom, Barrett says she harbors no ill feelings toward her mother or the transient, tumultuous life they led, including the decision to send her to live with her sister.
"I know she tries her hardest," Barrett said. "She would give up so much for me. She would go without just for me. One time I wanted a new outfit, and she gave up stuff for herself to get it."
Brittany and T.J. Almeida, Barrett's sister and brother-in-law, decided adopting Barrett would give the teen badly needed stability.
The first thing T.J. Almeida did once Barrett was theirs was call Cyprus girls basketball coach Josh Adams and ask about practices and camps.
Adams was eager to welcome Barrett, so he made a call to the team's lone senior, Lori Parkinson, who now plays for SUU, and she got some girls together for a pick-up game.
Barrett breaks into laughter when she recalls that first meeting with her future teammates.
"I was really scared, really nervous," she said. And then the best player on the team approached her and offered her a cracker.
"I think everything led me here," she said. "I ended up here for a reason, to become better, to have basketball be a goal and to have a future."
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- BYU Cougars finish year with five... 24 | <urn:uuid:37c753ca-e776-4aba-bbfc-205222ee95d5> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865570158/High-school-girls-basketball-Cyprus-seniors-took-separate-paths-to-anchor-Pirate-squad-together.html | 2015-07-05T00:43:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375097038.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031817-00076-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984957 | 982 | [
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This one's a little tricky--note we have a winner!
Fredericka (Reka) Sartorius was born in Adams County, Illinois, on 10 April 1865, the daughter of Hinrich and Trientje Sartorius. The family lived in the northeastern part of Adams County, near Golden and in Northeast Township.
Fredericka married Jann Janssen in 1888 in Adams County, Illinois.
The question is: where is she in the 1880 census? The 1880 is the only year that is a part of this contest.
Your answer must give a VALID REASON why you think Fredericka is on the census page you submit as an answer. "Just cause" or simply submitting the citation is NOT enough. A reason, clear and one that makes sense, must be given.
We have a winner--this contest is closed.
If this search is too tiring, you can always just subscribe to Casefile Clues and worry about locating your own relatives.
This one I KNOW the answer to already. | <urn:uuid:04bcbb2f-eab4-43a4-94dd-08fdba34c8db> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://blog.casefileclues.com/2011/08/win-year-of-casefile-clues-find.html | 2015-07-07T02:46:49Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098987.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00016-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958522 | 214 | [
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A-Z Topical Index
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Like a majority of DeMoss undertakings, the Power for Living campaign turns out to be a simple call to Christ. But a significant minority of the foundation's projects are harder edged, targeting abortion and gay rights and promoting a vision of a Christian America some find overzealous. The DeMoss family, led by matriarch Nancy, 61, is politically and theologically conservative. Its charity was "an early and significant supporter of the religious right," says William Martin, author of With God on Our Side, a history of the movement. As the DeMoss Foundation demonstrates its willingness to pour tens of millions into reaching a mass audience, it inevitably courts the question, What are its larger social goals?
NPR's Guy Raz reports from Berlin that Germany's Federal Broadcasting Commission has banned a series of ads offering free copies of a religious book called Power for Living. The ad campaign was sponsored by the evangelical Arthur S. DeMoss Foundation. German law forbids commercials promoting an ideology or religion. Members of Germany's traditional Protestant clergy say the Power for Living ad campaign represented a dangerous trend toward American-style, mass-appeal religion.
Power For Living The official website, where you can order a free copy of Power For Living (US addresses only). [Note: the link currently leads to the Website Archive listings for powerforliving.com. While the website, first registered Nov. 1998, is registered through Nov. 2011 the Website Archive has not indexed the site as of Apr. 2008. It appears the website has been offline since that time.]
Power For Living (Japan) archived version of the Japanese Power For Living website.
Join us at Google+ | <urn:uuid:c93c5d9b-b0cc-4f43-ab16-ea3b62e32e5a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.apologeticsindex.org/566-arthur-s-demoss-foundation-2 | 2015-07-07T02:30:06Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098987.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00016-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.914029 | 357 | [
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Have stayed here through the years (over a 12 year period) and love it. It's not a secluded place, but it's convenient and well priced. We like getting one of the kitchenette rooms. They are well-stocked and it makes things less expensive to cook. The office workers are helpful and friendly. There's a pool and hot tub. If you are looking for a luxury retreat that is off the beaten path, look elsewhere. But if you are looking for a family friendly motel, that is close to the springs and downtown, this is it. Convenient to the Glenwood Springs bus. | <urn:uuid:415bb2e5-ed1f-48d8-af72-6f157cd5fa75> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g33446-d251632-r115826668-Red_Mountain_Inn-Glenwood_Springs_Colorado.html | 2015-07-07T04:21:50Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375098987.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031818-00016-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97702 | 125 | [
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a sms from any member to my cellphone.
hi people. i dont know to much english, i have a dream where papa roach send me a sms to my cellphone and make my day so happy, its just that my cellphone dont ring to often, and when it does, its from my mom given orders jeje. so if its possible to have some text from yall i will be happy. thanks for you time. jorge alvarez
my number its (664) 345 1516 its from mexico so must be send like this +01 52 664 345 1516 or per5haps +52 664 345 1516. danm i dont know jeje. sorry. it would be better i find out how then i request this.
Replies to This Posting
Re: a sms from any member to my cellphone.
Estas buscándote problemas. No es muy buena idea poner el numero de tu celular en internet.
Problems are temporary, suicide is permanent. | <urn:uuid:c5013bff-7395-455f-979d-09bc5baba3fa> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://paparoach.com/forum/askpaparoach/359051 | 2015-07-05T06:01:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375097246.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031817-00146-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.818472 | 220 | [
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Chris Stamey and Peter Holsapple: A Career Retrospective, Via Video
It's no surprise that I'm stoked for this weekend's appearances by Chris Stamey and Peter Holsapple. But why is this such a big deal? Roy touched on this in his story, but these two men basically were in a band that perfected modern power-pop.
Featuring drummer Will Rigby, bassist Gene Holder and singer/guitarists Peter Holsapple and Chris Stamey, the dB's criss-crossed Southern twang, New York's nervous strumming and pure-pop's sweetness. Although Stamey left after LP two (1982's Repercussion), all four proper studio albums by the dB's contain small gems, the type of songs whose harmonies, melodies and lyrics feel effortless. The band's songwriting is clever without being precious, melancholy without being weighed down by sadness, and sometimes cynical, but not jaded.
Most of all -- and this is my weakness, I suppose -- the dB's specialize in wistfulness, crystallizing a longing for tantalizing thing just out of reach. Consider it music for underdogs, those who don't always get their way in love or life. (My favorite is "Never Before and Never Again," a duet between Holsapple and Syd Straw which I listened to obsessively after a break-up years ago.)
"Big Brown Eyes"
Holsapple and Stamey's post-dB's careers haven't been too shabby, either. Stamey's single "Cara Lee" (which I heard on KDHX on Wednesday afternoon) prompted me to seek out and buy his out-of-print solo CD, It's Alright, which is just a small part of his solo career; he's also collaborated with Yo La Tengo on the 2005 album A Question of Temperature. Holsapple played with R.E.M. for awhile in the late '80s/early '90s and has been an auxiliary musician for Hootie and the Blowfish for years.
Chris Stamey, "Venus" (Television cover)
Stamey and Holsapple's 1991 collaboration, Mavericks, might as well be considered the dB's all grown up; "I Want to Break Your Heart" and "Geometry" are absolutely ageless twang-pop. (You can also buy an expanded edition with bonus tracks at the dB's official website.) Consider it an early, early precursor to the dB's reunion, which happened in 2005 and features Stamey, Holsapple, Rigby and Holder. As Roy reports, a new dB's record is due sometime soon.
The dB's official website has some cool archival video, but commence massive geekout below:
"Judy" (live in Chapel Hill, 1981)
"Ups & Downs" (live 1981, Chapel Hill)
"Bad Reputation" (live in Sweden, 1982)
Nada Surf covering the dB's, "Black & White." Matthew Caws' songwriting (and vocal style, for that matter) owes huge debts to the dB's, mainly in his fixation on the shadier side of life. | <urn:uuid:bd434aa4-a3c9-48e2-8f33-f05be040b3f4> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/rftmusic/2009/01/chris_stamey_and_peter_holsapple_dbs_video_mp3_reunion_repercussion_live.php | 2015-07-07T09:18:52Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375099105.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031819-00086-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949058 | 670 | [
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David and Adrienne's Profile
Hi, we are David and Adrienne, the family behind Manzanita Kids!
Our toys are designed to nurture creative play. Each toy targets specific developmental milestones using only natural materials. We believe in providing beautiful tactile objects that will enrich your child’s life. We believe that toys can be fun, safe and add to the beauty of your home.
We hope our toys foster a love of learning, curiosity and imaginative play for your little ones. Thanks for visiting us!
The Museum of Modern Art in New York uses our Modular Wall sets in their educational program, how cool is that!!!
Learn more about us here
We were featured in the ETSY blog!…
- Joined November 11, 2010 | <urn:uuid:3d58b8ea-6329-4775-9062-a8f36407c78e> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | https://www.etsy.com/people/manzanitakids?ref=ls_profile | 2015-07-07T09:46:59Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375099105.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031819-00086-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916766 | 157 | [
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