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prayer which we usually have at the opening and beginning of every meeting,<|fim_middle|> the greater good of entire mankind.
God bless Nigeria (and the world at large)! | we always sing the second stanza of the National Anthem of our great country (The Federal Republic of Nigeria),My patriotic thoughts have prompted my post for today.
From my thoughts and reflection on the national anthem which was adopted in 1978,there are many lessons to be learnt, but i will mention a few.The first stanza is a call to action while the second stanza is a powerful prayer for any country that would be great and flourish. I personally believe in the greatness of Nigeria.
I learnt in this anthem that the call to action came before the prayer.The call to action is a call to responsibility and to show personal leadership that will lead to our greater good as a country. This informs that when we do what is in our own power to do as individuals and as a nation, God will always fulfill His own part.
We cannot put the cart before the horse. You need to do your own part, we all need to contribute our own quota of work and value for the greatness of our beloved countries and for | 205 |
Wroxeter Roman City
We have changed the opening arrangements of our sites to play our part in stopping the spread of COVID-19. Wroxeter Roman City is currently closed and any tickets pre-booked for the closed period will be cancelled and refunds automatically made as needed, so there is no need to contact us. We are keeping a selection of sites open for<|fim_middle|>The Bath House
The Old Work
The Roman Town House
Market Hall and Forum
Legionary Fortress
Daily Roman Life
Heritage Inspired Shopping
Cantlop Bridge
3.16 miles from Wroxeter Roman City
Haughmond Abbey
4.2 miles from Wroxeter Roman City
Wall Roman Site
33.09 miles from Wroxeter Roman City
Chester Roman Amphitheatre
Great Witcombe Roman Villa
Gallery for Wroxeter Roman City | local people to use for exercise during the lockdown period. These are a mixture of free-to-enter and paid sites, and all have plenty of outdoor space for safe social distancing. Visits to paid sites must be booked in advance. We hope to be able to reopen all our sites in the near future, and we are taking bookings for February half-term and beyond. Thank you for your understanding, patience and support during this difficult time.
Find out which sites are open and what to expect.
Wroxeter Roman City, Wroxeter, (Sat nav postcode: SY5 6PJ), near Shrewsbury, Shropshire, SY5 6PH
Discover urban-living 2,000 years ago at Viriconium (Wroxeter) - once the fourth largest city in Roman Britain. Wander the remains of the bathhouse and explore a reconstructed town house from a city which was almost as large as Pompeii. Discover the daily lives of the people who lived here with the audio tour and through their objects - found here and on display in the museum.
Take The Audio Tour
| 224 |
Think and act for entrepreneurship in Africa
Launch of the blog "Entreprenante Afrique"
I&P and Ferdi
The blog Entreprenante Afrique was officially launched on Thursday, November 15, with a conference gathering journalists, bloggers, and the blog's founding partners: Investisseurs & Partenaires, the Foundation for Studies and…
Introducing the blog «Enterprising Africa»
Guillaumont Patrick, Khalifou Sidi and Severino Jean-Michel
Jean-Michel Severino, President of Investors & Partners, Patrick Guillaumont, President of Foundation for Studies and Research on International Development (FERDI), and Sidi Khalifou, President of the African Entrepreneurs Club, discuss…
Image by Jori Samonen from Pixabay
Algeria awaiting structural changes
Plane Patrick and Da Piedade Camille
In 2019, Algeria has been at the forefront of African political life, with the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in April. The economy is currently suffering, not so much from…
In 2019, Algeria has been at the forefront of African political life, with the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in April. The economy is currently suffering, not so much from its growth rate, price, and cost competitiveness, as from its inability to diversify and create the hundreds of thousands of jobs needed each year for the annual cohort of young people who enter the labor market.
A lack of public support for entrepreneurship
When we compare its political and economic governance to other countries, Algeria is lagging behind the North African average, and in some aspects, behind the African continental average.
The Algerian context of individual freedoms has not allowed citizens to engage in politics fully. In this background, the accountability of public decision-makers has been structurally low, although raw material resource rents have helped to buy some "social peace" through subsidies for household consumption (Le Billon, 2003).
The last four presidential terms (1999-2014) have permitted a return to civil peace. The regime has gradually opened up to more cooperation with the private sector, but has never really abolished cronyism. Consultation frameworks have fostered actors close to, and respectful of, the authorities. This networking spirit has produced significant shortcomings in the transparency of public actions and the establishment of effective competition mechanisms. With an inexorable rise in social discontent, the government's responses focus more on the short term than on the implementation of a strategic vision with long-term measures compatible with the requirements of globalization and job creation.
The continuation of half-measures has helped to alter the desire for reforms to protect the economy from the vulnerabilities associated with the downturn in the commodity "super cycle". Short-term rent management and cronyism have hindered the initiative of local entrepreneurship and have not taken into account long-term perspectives in a context of high corruption.
So far, both the stimulation of business creation and the opening of tenders to agents without connections to the "political clan" have remained timid. Current events will determine to what extent the organization of political, economic, and social life will lead to public order and civil peace. The success of the change of President will determine Algeria's ability to project itself into the more integrated sub-regional space which is expected to develop with the prospect of ECOWAS enlargement and the establishment of the African continental free trade area.
Prices and costs in line with competitiveness
The FERDI Sustainable Competitiveness Observatory (SCO) has Algeria in first place to for price competitiveness, both for North Africa and for the whole continent. This position, which could not be more flattering, cannot fail to amaze. It suggests that diversification has not suffered from the "Dutch disease" caused by oil and gas rents, which generally drives up costs to the point of crowding out the production of non-primary tradable goods (Djoufelkit 2008).
The purchasing power conversion factor against the dollar estimates that the cost of the basket of goods in 2016 was only 25% of the price in the United States, 40% of the African average and 30% of the average for North African countries (Graph 1). In Algeria, the level of wages is also relatively low. The wages of a cashier in a supermarket are much lower, at the current exchange rate than in other North African countries, and are not very far from the African average; but Algeria is an upper-middle-income country. However, a more detailed analysis of prices leads to nuanced conclusions.
Graph 1: Evolution of the Algerian Dinar conversion factor
* The conversion factor for purchasing power parity used here is the number of units of national currency required to purchase the same amount of goods and services in the domestic market that a US dollar would buy in the United States.
The first reason for the nuanced price competitiveness is the consequence of an interventionist tradition which contributes to define prices that do not necessarily reflect the reality of market prices, and to a framework of commercial margins that is still prevalent. In December 2017, a problem arose in concrete terms for bread. Hundreds of bakeries had taken the initiative to defy public regulations by raising the price of a baguette to 15 dinars. At that time the official price was 8.5 dinars, unchanged since 1996, with a typical price of 10 dinars in Algiers. According to the federation of bakers, which is not recognized by the Government, the price regulation, which no longer covered production costs, could force many bakeries to close. The difficulty is to make economic logic and social logic compatible. As in most developing countries, the price of bread is a sensitive issue, because it is an essential part of household food consumption. For a population of more than 41 million inhabitants in 2017, 70 million baguettes would be sold every day!
Interventionism in price may correspond to instant consumer protection, but may cause problems in the longer term. It impoverishes the competitive market and leads to the emergence of cheating on product quality. Beyond bread, public preference for regulation can, therefore, lead to distortions in the allocation of resources within the economy. It leads to uncertainties about the profitability of companies with implications that are poorly measured for the long-term well-being of the community
The second reason for the nuanced price competitiveness, stems from public subsidies. With prices maintained below the economic cost, a subsidy can compensate the producer for the loss of income. For this economic logic to hold permanently, it is necessary to assume that these subsidies are sustainable. To validate this assumption information about the cost of oil and gas production is strategic. However, little is known about it. For Algeria, the break-even point per barrel of oil would be a price of between $20 and $40. Given the importance of oil and gas in the country's economy, we can see the influence of these rents on GDP and their contribution to the financing of the State budget (upto 60% of revenue).
Graph 2: The percentage of rents in Algeria's GDP (1990-2016)
Consumer subsidies and transfers to the economy have become the Achilles' heel of Algerian public finances. Their share of GDP has tended to increase since the late 1990s, from 4% to around 12% in 2012, while in 2012 oil prices had not yet started to decline. The consumer products concerned are numerous. In the fiscal year 2015, IMF staff estimated that subsidies cost about 14% of GDP and were equivalent to twice the combined annual budgets of the Ministries of Health and Education. According to the most recent figures from the Ministry of Finance, about 10% of direct subsidies are covered by the State budget. 18% are implicit subsidies, such as tax advantages granted to companies for their investments, which are more difficult to assess,. The role of these subsidies is essential. Probably, the new Algerian government team will quickly be faced with the daunting dilemma of choosing between companies and consumers, between the short term and the long term in an approach that has to be both coherent and compatible with political feasibility.
Le Billon, P. (2003). Buying peace or fuelling war: the role of corruption in armed conflicts. Journal of International Development, 15(4), 413-426. https://doi.org/10.1002/jid.993
Djoufelkit. H, (2008), « Rente, développement du secteur productif et croissance en Algérie », AFD, Document de travail, n°64, Paris. https://www.afd.fr/
Observatoire de la compétitivité durable : https://competitivite.ferdi.fr/
By : Plane Patrick and Da Piedade Camille
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© Béchir Malum
How to address informality in African enterprises?
Bruno Caire
Nearly 90% jobs are informal in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the International Labor Organization. It is by far the highest proportion in the world. Many small African companies operate in…
Nearly 90% jobs are informal in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the International Labor Organization. It is by far the highest proportion in the world. Many small African companies operate in a more or less informal way… How can we change the situation? How can we support these companies in their formalization?
For more than 10 years now, I have been working on a voluntary basis with the group Investisseurs & Partenaires, which is dedicated to financing and supporting small and medium-sized businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa. My background as an entrepreneur has led me to focus on an appropriate method for investing in the informal sector and supporting companies in their formalization.
For us, this is a key impact factor: the impact generated by an investment is directly proportional to the efficiency and performance achieved by the company. It provides greater added value, which increases self-financing capacity, makes it possible to support expenses such as health insurance, treatment of effluents or solid waste, investment in less polluting vehicles, etc.
The successes, difficulties and failures experienced over the years have enabled us to identify two main features:
The manager's skills should match with his/her project: a manager with a commercial profile, for example, will have difficulty deciding and monitoring technical investments; a high-level, visionary researcher may have difficulty convincing his collaborators to improve management processes…
The formalization process, which is essential to improve the company's performance, should not be underestimated. The changes are in everyday reflexes, in the implementation of precise measures at many levels… The work that this requires is always longer than expected.
What do we mean by "informality"?
The concept of informality can be simply defined: it is a mode of organization in which the transmission of information is not written. Let us quickly detail these two elements.
By ''information'' we mean:
All information involving an external factor (purchase contracts, sales contracts, rental leases…)
The information necessary to ensure collaboration between employees in their respective functions: definition of functions, measurement of work results, measurement of their quality, etc.
The information required by the entrepreneur to monitor the evolution of the company (the dashboard which provides monthly key operational or accounting data)
The information necessary to establish reliable accounting: list of documents, data collected, and procedure for recording them (regardless of the medium)
By "written" information we mean: a precise form, verified, on an appropriate medium (whatever it may be), and with a method, and a frequency, known by the employees concerned. Conversely, the information that is not "written" is not precise, is not verifiable, can be misinterpreted, cannot be transmitted, and ultimately prevents any organization from making progress.
Historical perspective: the informal is only one step in the microeconomic evolution!
Until the 1960s, very few SMEs in France had really formalized their organizational structure. Job descriptions, quality controls, safety procedures and many other operating procedures were not written.
It was only in the 1970s that the need to specify the nature of the information, its transmission procedure, or its form, was essential to introduce computer processing of processes and data.
What are the consequences for investors?
The informal operation of a company means that the level of risk for the potential investor is much higher.
Indeed, because of this informal operation, the assessment of past performance remains unclear:
At the operational level: how has the quality level evolved? What is the machine shutdown rate? What is the average overrun of the estimates? Service share?… etc.
At the accounting level: the figures are not the result of stabilized procedures, and the best audits will not be able to reflect the reality of the past (average stock? average customer outstanding? historical costs per activity? etc.)
If the past figures are approximate, the business plan will present an additional risk (to the "normal" risk), which the investor must try to reduce.
How should the investor proceed?
Only a down-to-earth approach makes it possible to observe an informal organization. The investor will have gathered several indications that will drive its approach, defining the main priorities and next steps to anticipate:
Before the investment is made
There<|fim_middle|> can be digital tablets. In Niger, for example, Editions Afrique Lecture[8] is the first company to provide high school students with preparatory textbooks for their baccalaureate. For these entrepreneurs, the strategic relationship with governments and other stakeholders in the education system is at least as important as the use of technology to provide services that are truly useful to local schools and students.
What role for Impact Investors?
Impact investors must support this entrepreneurial dynamism with appropriate return expectations depending on the maturity and size of the projects. Current research shows that most investors only support schools and universities that are already very well structured, and in many cases designed to provide educational services only to the wealthiest segments of the population. To a lesser extent, these investors have also supported innovative and more affordable educational projects, but these projects had to grow at a disproportionate speed to meet the investors' profitability objectives. The well-known example of Bridge Academies[9] in East Africa highlighted how difficult it was for a network of low-cost schools to scale up without deteriorating the quality of teaching… and the company's relations with public authorities. The needs for impact investing initiatives in the education sector is pressing, especially in French-speaking and Portuguese-speaking Africa. Impact funds must find ways to support less advanced projects, for example in the technical and vocational education cycles where public actors are less involved. These investors must therefore develop financial and non-financial instruments (coaching, technical assistance) suited to this specific social sector, with a particular focus on the inclusion of young women and vulnerable populations.
The needs for impact investing initiatives in the education sector is pressing, especially in French-speaking and Portuguese-speaking Africa.
To support the emergence of accessible and quality educational opportunities, impact investors will need to be innovative in building new partnerships with other stakeholders in the sector. Partnerships with foundations and other philanthropic donors will allow impact investors to reach young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. Scholarship or student loan schemes funded by these foundations could broaden access to quality private institutions whose social impact commitments will be guaranteed by the presence of an ethical investors as minority shareholder. In addition, partnerships between impact investment teams and philanthropic actors could be designed to support start-ups and other early-stage projects. The pioneering example of the Education Impact Fund in Côte d'Ivoire[10], resulting from a partnership between the Jacobs Foundation and the impact fund Comoé Capital, is a good illustration. This programme has benefited 6 promising start-ups and young companies in the Ivorian education sector, including a hospitality training centre located in the popular district of Yopougon[11] and the start-up Etudesk[12], recently selected as one of the 10 most prominent Ed-Tech companies on the continent[13]. The success of this investment programme relies on the targeted use of risk capital provided by a philanthropic donor and on a particularly committed investment team working alongside entrepreneurs. But there are many other strategies to explore. It would be relevant to partner with research institutions to measure and evaluate the long-term impacts of the education models supported by the investors. Thus, the development of blended finance instruments[14], mixing investments and grant funding support will be key to providing solutions adapted to the emergence of responsible and committed private education businesses.
To meet the challenges of quality, access and relevance of education in Africa, impact investors will have to design and mobilize innovative strategies and methods, tailored to the needs of a crisis-stricken social sector and a fast-paced entrepreneurial ecosystem. The active support of bilateral and multilateral development organizations will ensure the credibility and sustainability of these new models of mixed funding and innovative partnerships. Through their governance and practices, impact investors should pursue the dialogue with public authorities to ensure that they are well integrated into local educational ecosystems. Associated with expert philanthropic players, these new initiatives will have to support the best models of schools and ancillary activities combining economic sustainability and impact performance. It is only with this attitude of innovation, cooperation and partnership that impact investors will be able to make a relevant contribution to the challenges of education in Africa.
[1] See the data collected by UNESCO (2018): http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/fs48-one-five-children-adolescents-youth-out-school-2018-en.pdf
[2] See Page 10 (Fig. 6) of the above-mentioned: most of the countries severely affected by the non-enrolment of children in primary school are located in the Sahel or Central Africa.
[3] The World Bank's World Development Report 2018 provides an in-depth analysis of this learning crisis: http://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2018
In French-speaking Africa, the performance of students during primary school is evaluated by PASEC about every 3-5 years. http://www.pasec.confemen.org/
[4] Many reports have highlighted these deficits in school materials and equipment, as well as the size of classes that can reach an average of 50 children in Burkina Faso or Mali and up to 90 in Malawi and the Central African Republic. http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/school-resources-and-learning-environment-in-africa-2016-en/school-resources-and-learning-environment-in-africa-2016-en.pdf
[5] On the issue of the relevance of education and the lack of adequacy between education and employment, see World Bank's report (2014) : http://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/africa-regional-studies/publication/youth-employment-in-sub-saharan-africa. This phenomenon is also sometimes reflected in a higher unemployment rate for graduate students than for non-graduates in several African countries. Because their training is poorly adapted to the labour market, graduates have difficulty finding employment in skilled positions.
[6] The average youth unemployment rate in Sub-Saharan Africa is 6%, the world average 5%. But this figure hides far more precarious realities, with self-employment rates reaching 70% in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Ghana. The rate of working poverty could reach 80%, according to the ILO. https://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/may-2013/africa%E2%80%99s-youth-%E2%80%9Cticking-time-bomb%E2%80%9D-or-opportunity
[7] This figure is estimated by the team of the Report "Business of Education in Africa" (2017) https://edafricareport.caeruscapital.co/thebusinessofeducationinafrica.pdf
[8] http://afriquelecture.com/index.html
[9] See notably RFI's article (2018): http://www.rfi.fr/afrique/20180301-ecole-privees-bas-prix-bridge-international-academies-lettre-fermeture-ong
[10] See the website of the partnership: http://www.edimpactfund.com/ but also the announcement of the first investments in 2018: http://www.ietp.com/fr/content/investissement-editions-vallesse . The complete portfolio of the six investments will be published soon.
[11] https://www.facebook.com/roijuvenal/
[12] https://www.etudesk.com/
[13] See the startups selected at the famous Dubai Global Education Conference (22-24 March 2019) https://www.forbes.com/sites/mfonobongnsehe/2019/02/25/meet-the-10-african-startups-competing-for-the-next-billion-edtech-prize-in-dubai/#46d350f03e1b
[14] Also called blended finance. The term refers to the use of catalytic capital from public or philanthropic sources to increase private sector investment in developing countries and sustainable development
https://www.convergence.finance/blended-finance
By : Tom Dilly
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Entrepreneurship for a better tomorrow in Guinea
2 August 2019 2 August 2019
Magassouba Kouramoudou
Kouramoudou Magassouba presents the NGO Horizons d'Afrique, which he launched in 2017 to promote social entrepreneurship among Guinean youth. Entrepreneurship is not – or should not be – limited to…
Kouramoudou Magassouba presents the NGO Horizons d'Afrique, which he launched in 2017 to promote social entrepreneurship among Guinean youth.
Entrepreneurship is not – or should not be – limited to wealth creation alone. Starting an entrepreneurial project is above all about passion, creativity, strongly believing in a project. The NGO Horizons d'Afrique has been promoting this message since 2017 to Guinean students, so as to train a new generation of young entrepreneurs who are aware of social and environmental issues.
I launched The NGO a few years after my return to Guinea, in a context of latent economic and social crisis (high unemployment rate, especially among young people, illegal emigration). In 2010, I started teaching at a private university in Conakry while working at the Central Bank of the Republic of Guinea. Working directly with young scholars, confused about their futures and very much in need of advice, opened my eyes and pushed me to take action. Because if some government initiatives exist in this area, they are largely insufficient for the moment…
With former students and banking sector professionals, we launched Horizons of Africa to promote the learning of entrepreneurial skills. We do everything in our power to ensure that students are better prepared to enter the entrepreneurial world when they leave school. this cannot be learned in a day!
Promoting Entrepreneurial Spirit in Guinea
Horizons d'Afrique's ambition is to build a community of at least 1,000 young entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs by 2025, capable of creating sustainable jobs.
We say "intrapreneurs" because we are aware that not everyone can or wants to be an entrepreneur. However, we believe anyone can develop entrepreneurial qualities, such as creativity, innovation, or organization. We can offer employees the tools and opportunities to create and innovate. In other words, we can train them to act as entrepreneurs within the company.
Launching impactful companies in Guinea
Our programs are open to all young people. They are designed to promote entrepreneurial qualities and values that we believe are fundamental for the society as a whole. Today there are about 6,000 new businesses created yearly in Guinea, but most of them are individual companies and do not create any jobs.
We advocate three key values in particular:
Empathy: we encourage students to put themselves in the shoes of others and imagine possible solutions to Guinea's major social and environmental challenges.
Optimism: we promote students' empowerment and "positive mental attitude"
Performance: to create positive impacts on the long-run, a company must be sustainable. The economic model of the company must therefore be viable and generate wealth.
Developing programs that address local needs
Horizons d'Afrique has developed a range of programs, depending on the target audiences (high schools, universities, technical schools…). They all provide support to young people who are starting (or are willing to start) an entrepreneurial project. We have built a strong network and we are now able to offer shared resources and skills. For example, we have set up a common technical team (accounting, communication) for the several startups supported by our programs.
With the technical assistance of Pierre ALZINGRE, founder of the Visionari Agency and Start'Up Lycée in France, we concluded in June the first edition of our program "Start'Up Lycée GouTina", specifically dedicated to high school students. Ten public and private institutions took part in this competition. The students worked throughout the year on entrepreneurial initiatives related to the Sustainable Development Goals. Each working group (made up of ten high school students, including at least four girls per group) was accompanied by a team of three people: a teacher, an NGO staff member and a professional entrepreneur.
Throughout my academic and professional career, in Guinea, Morocco and France, I witnessed on many occasions the importance of educating and training young people, so that this new generation can do something constructive for their lives and the development of their country. With African Horizons, we are working as closely as possible with young people to make this possible. Sharing skills and experience is essential. Knowledge is only knowledge if it shared with other people!
By : Magassouba Kouramoudou
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Image par Binesh A B de Pixabay
In Madagascar, what future for vanilla? The black gold at risk!
ZUCCO Marion
Vanilla is now the second most expensive spice in the world after saffron, and is an important issue in Madagascar, where more than 80% of the vanilla produced worldwide comes…
Vanilla is now the second most expensive spice in the world after saffron, and is an important issue in Madagascar, where more than 80% of the vanilla produced worldwide comes from. Grown mainly in the SAVA region, in the northeast of the country, the vanilla orchid has become real black gold and provides a living for between 80,000 and 100,000 farmers. A short-lived Eldorado? For several years, the vanilla sector has been surrounded by difficulties: corruption, soaring prices, deteriorating quality, insecurity, natural risks, and competition from synthetic vanilla.
By : ZUCCO Marion
No Comments on In Madagascar, what future for vanilla? The black gold at risk!
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A blog to promote entrepreneurial dynamism in sub-Saharan Africa and better understand the context in which African entrepreneurs are working | are two aspects that the investor must absolutely analyze when starting the investment process:
Corporate culture on the one hand: Formalizing the nature and flow of information in a company means changing habits… but a company's culture cannot be decreed! The culture of a small or medium-sized company is, in fact, generated by the personal attitude and functioning of the entrepreneur. Thus, the ability of the entrepreneur is an essential aspect of a company's culture, which the investor must be able to appreciate. We are talking here about the manager's ability to translate into figures the projects, to monitor the results with precision, to define precisely the objectives assigned to the employees, his/her ability to be precise and rigorous…
The solidity of the economic model on the other hand: the impact investor must first and foremost target economic models whose earnings capacity has already been demonstrated. The construction of value added, and its transformation into EBITDA, can only be observed with the available data. Therefore, the development of a dashboard, for example, is greatly facilitated when the economic model is already known.
Investment & Implementation of an Action Plan
Observing how the company operates leads to the construction of an action plan, which will be discussed and validated with the manager and his/her team.
Some actions can be taken well before the investment date (examples: storage of stocks; registration of trade receivables; various quality measures, etc.). Others will require external technical assistance, which will be facilitated, or even partially financed, by the investor: this will be the "value creation" plan.
This plan generally includes various operational components, including one concerning the progressive implementation of reliable accounting procedures.
In all cases, a simple dashboard, including some key data, (operational and/or accounting) should be produced by the end of the first month after investment.
Follow-up of the company after the investment
The first few months are key to determine the success or failure of the changes introduced in the company (introduction of greater rigor, precision, and a culture of results.)
An informal management mode does not allow reliable monitoring for the investor.
I&P's experience has shown that, whatever the number of teleconferences, meetings, verbal exchanges and Excel tables, the reality of a company's evolution has often only been assessed in terms of the cash flow situation!
At the time of the investment, the investor and the manager must have two monitoring "tools":
The monthly dashboard, including 4 to 6 key, simple, and 100% reliable data.
A value creation plan, the progressive implementation of which is assessed with predefined steps.
In addition, it is often vital to have planned in advance the intervention of external experts (especially in training teams in rigor and precision).
Key takeaways for the investor
Management of habit change
The rigor and precision in measuring the results of everyone's work is often highly appreciated by employees. However, the effort to apply, every day, precise procedures must be the done through many exchanges and listening!
The benefits of this change must be felt positively and accepted by employees: the improvement of the quality rate of their work must be recognized; the achievement of specific objects must enable them to receive financial recognition, etc.
The entrepreneur has an exemplary role. It is important that his or her personal functioning is in line with the progress of precision, rigor, and timeliness. If this is not the case, it could lead to the failure of the value creation plan.
Monitoring of results
Margins is the key parameter to be monitored. The investment team must follow its files with a clearly established method and the tools mentioned above, which will allow it to be more efficient and save precious time:
Monthly reading of the dashboard (the right dashboard is released within 3/5 days after the end of the month)
Request for explanations on the data that attract his attention.
In-depth discussions, in detail, on the corrective actions implemented.
Good monitoring should focus on important and urgent measures.
The most successful investments made by I&P over the years generally have two characteristics:
A manager who listens, naturally valuing the need for precision in operation and accounting management, following an investor's entry into his capital.
A rather "'structuring" sector of activity, requiring a certain degree of precision because the company works with demanding professional clients or makes "general public" sales (pharmaceutical distribution, microfinance, technical installations, energy, IT services etc.)
Whatever the company, the sector of activity, or the investor's attention to the above points, all scenarios possible! We can see, in the same sector of activity, one leader succeeding against all odds, and another, with all the required diplomas, failing… Humility and intuition remain the main values of any investor on this subject.
By : Bruno Caire
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Digital technology to increase school success rates in Africa
Christelle Hien-Kouame
It is October 2018, 18 years since I left the school where I spent all my secondary education from the 6th grade to 12th grade. It was the local school…
It is October 2018, 18 years since I left the school where I spent all my secondary education from the 6th grade to 12th grade. It was the local school in the largest municipality of Abidjan, a large municipality with a high population density, but also and especially significant a school with a high student/teacher ratio, at that time: 80 pupils per class on average. In 2018 I found it split into 2 parts for better management of the excessive number of students, but in the same old buildings dating back more than 30 years.
Enthusiasm and nostalgia perfectly reflected my feelings when I go to present my project, a heart-felt project of great ambition: to raise the success rate for the Baccalaureate (at age 18) examination of this school, which is around 30%, similar to the Cote d'Ivoire national average for the Baccalaureate (40% on average over the last 5 years).
My name is Christelle HIEN-KOUAME, marketing and communication engineer, I have been an entrepreneur for 9 years in the field of communication and marketing, and I am passionate about the education offered to students in my country and my continent.
Help to raise the national school examination success rate, is it not too ambitious a goal?
Work in the education field is exciting and demands commitment because it concerns everybody – from the educational level of household employees to the professional performance of the employees in a firm, we are all impacted. So, for my part, it is essential to contribute in our way and with our means.
The project – www.prenezlesfeuilles.com
The initial project was to offer students a revision toolbox, a digital collection of homework and exams from the best schools in Côte d'Ivoire to:
– Prepare them to do well in their homework and exams, with tools adapted and customized: Homework and exams are defined by a school schedule in our education system
– Give them back their self-confidence, because, in reality, a child in the 3rd grade of a school well graded in the capital does not have the same level as a student in the same cycle in another part of the country!
Having defined my two primary objectives, I turned to digital solutions to offer an accessible, reliable, and innovative approach to the students. I started without any digital experience, and with only the funds of my communication agency. I collected homework from all disciplines and from institutions which had at least 70% success rate in the Baccalaureate.
My project was born. It was stolen in a neighboring country, and was therefore renamed one year later as www.prenezlesfeuilles.com, was officially presented to the authorities (Ministry of National Education), was appreciated, and finally allowed to be spread to students in all schools in the country. The difficulties of its beginning have given it more resilience, and more objectives to achieve. Making homework and exams available to students became restrictive. We had to offer more alternatives to encourage them to do their homework challenge them, motivate them to surpass themselves regardless of their series or disciplines chosen, and do better than we did in the past.
Evolution of the project
After an analysis of the success factors, one key factor seemed irrefutable (other than the environment and motivation): learning tools.
We then integrated three important tools to the platform: Motivation by reward by offering gifts for quizzes or exercises performed correctly within a given time frame, Orientation assistance by talking about jobs with different people, and enriching experiences, and Small general culture broadcasts on WhatsApp.
In August 2019 www.prenezlesfeuilles was acquired by ENEZA EDUCATION, a technology company, initiator of another innovative educational service via mobile that offers tutorials and quizzes via the SMS channel of mobile phones. Today, the Cote d'Ivoire student has access to the lessons of the entire school program explained in tutorials, and with quizzes allowing them to test their knowledge. The website www.prenezlesfeuilles.com helps students to prepare for future tests based on homework already done in the best institutions in the country.
The next challenge is to make this solution better known to all students and parents throughout the country and to prove its real impact on subscribers' academic results.
I love to take challenges up! Like when I was 18 and I was the only girl in a science final year class in a high school in the commune of Yopougon (a working-class district in Abidjan), and succeeded at the Baccalaureate. Or like the challenge 9 years ago when I resigned from my job to set up as a young entrepreneur, and I had to assume my choice and everything that entailed. Taking up challenges is not for euphoria or pleasure but giving back a part of what we have graciously received from the family, the State and society. Because giving back is to be more alive!
By : Christelle Hien-Kouame
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Photo by Alex Iby on Unsplash - Electricty
Measuring the impacts of decentralized electrification, an essential condition for scaling up
Jean-Claude Berthelemy and Christophe Angely
On the basis of data from the IEA WEO 2018, considerable progress has been made in recent years in the field of access to energy and more specifically in the…
On the basis of data from the IEA WEO 2018, considerable progress has been made in recent years in the field of access to energy and more specifically in the field of access to electricity. In 2017, for the first time, the population without access to electricity fell below the billion mark.
By : Jean-Claude Berthelemy and Christophe Angely
No Comments on Measuring the impacts of decentralized electrification, an essential condition for scaling up
How businesses bounce back after conflicts: lessons from Côte d'Ivoire
Dosso Ibrahima and Florian Léon
Ibrahima Dosso and Florian Léon for The Conversation. For developing countries to have lasting development, they must have economic systems that are resilient to shocks such as climate change, natural…
Ibrahima Dosso and Florian Léon for The Conversation.
For developing countries to have lasting development, they must have economic systems that are resilient to shocks such as climate change, natural disasters and conflict.
Recent research has focused on evaluating the long-term effects of these potential economic shocks, and how to mitigate them. For example, several studies highlighted the fact that natural disasters and violent conflict have long-term effects on households.
In a recent study we looked at the resilience of businesses in Côte d'Ivoire after the 2010-2011 electoral crisis. Businesses play a vital role in Côte d'Ivoire's economy. Small to medium-sized businesses alone employ nearly half the working population and account for around 20% of the country's GDP. Yet few studies have looked at the mid to long-term effects of adverse shocks on businesses.
Côte d'Ivoire endured a protracted crisis when the incumbent president, Laurent Gbagbo, refused to leave office following his defeat to Alassane Ouattara in the presidential run-off election of 2010. This resulted in widespread violence. The death toll has been put at over 3 000 and the number of displaced people at 700 000. The political standoff ended in April 2011 when military forces loyal to President Ouattara arrested Gbagbo.
We found that businesses did indeed recover, but that there were disparities in how quickly they did based on their size. For example, businesses more able to rebound tended to be those that were smaller (10 employees or less) or those that had access to credit.
After a shock
Although economic activity may contract following a shock, it does not disappear.
Extreme events tend to stimulate the development of informal economic activity. In addition, surviving businesses may benefit from a massive influx of external aid (financial, human and material), or the disappearance of competition. The effects can be differentiated according to the specific characteristics of the businesses and according to their sector.
Despite the brevity of Côte d'Ivoire's conflict, it had profound consequences. Economic activity was severely disrupted, with an embargo on many exports, the closure of banks, and limited access to certain goods – such as medicines and fuels.
After Gbagbo's arrest, fighting rapidly died down and the economy was able to recover in the post-crisis years.
Our study involved monitoring the activity of all formal businesses in Côte d'Ivoire (both local and foreign) from two years before the crisis to three years afterward. This enabled us to gain an understanding of how businesses bounced back from the crisis.
Our results show that three years after the crisis, businesses had made up only half of their productivity losses. However, this average masks large individual disparities.
There are several reasons why smaller companies with less than 10 employees were able to bounce back more quickly.
First of all, smaller organisations are more flexible in the face of an uncertain future. Secondly, they are more oriented towards local markets, making them less sensitive to disturbances in infrastructure. Their management system is also far simpler, enabling them to adapt more quickly to changes in the market, and to logistical challenges.
Conversely, businesses with foreign investment, which are more externally oriented and therefore require access to foreign markets (ports and roads), suffered more than local businesses, both during and after the crisis.
These businesses were weakened by restricted access to external markets, in terms of both inputs and sales. Furthermore, they were probably hit particularly hard by the exodus of foreign workers.
Our study provides two other interesting results relating to previous research.
First, businesses using more highly qualified workers or employing more executives were particularly affected. This is because many qualified workers come from neighbouring countries, or more distant ones, such as France, and were the first to flee when the violence began. Many probably never went back.
Access to financing is a major advantage
Our research also highlighted the importance of access to capital to help with business recovery.
The businesses that were the least restricted financially prior to the crisis bounced back with the most ease. Banks suffering from the effects of the crisis probably favoured their older clients over other businesses. Banks in Côte d'Ivoire suffered an increase in delinquent loans in 2011, according to data from the banking commission of the West African Monetary Union (WAMU).
This result confirms a study on Sri Lankan businesses after the December 2004 tsunami, which showed that financial aid enabled a quicker economic recovery.
Our research sheds interesting light on the construction of resilient economic systems. While calling on qualified workers and executives is crucial for business development, it can be a source of vulnerability when a shock occurs. Businesses that are too dependent on a small number of individual employees can be severely affected by their death or flight.
It is therefore important to find tools to mitigate these vulnerabilities by developing training for executives, engineers and technicians to grow the available pool of human resources, and by encouraging the return and re-training of these workers following a sudden shock (conflict or natural disaster).
Quick access to capital is also crucial for economic recovery. Emergency tools, such as IMF emergency loans, can be developed to facilitate the targeting and granting of loans post-crisis.
Furthermore, banking regulations can also be adjusted for extreme situations. For instance, a moratorium on capital ratios could be considered to enable banks to continue to finance current activity.
Lastly, it appears vital to extend this reflection beyond the banking sector (to insurance and capital investment companies, for example) and to use technological advances (such as mobile banking and fintechs) to mobilise and allocate funds in an efficient and cost-effective way.
By : Dosso Ibrahima and Florian Léon
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Enko Education, John Wesley © Béchir Malum
Insights Perspectives
Support Education in Africa: Towards a New Partnership Approach
Tom Dilly
Faced with the many challenges of education in Africa, a boiling entrepreneurial dynamic is emerging and provides innovative solutions. Impact investors, characterized by their intention to generate a positive social…
Faced with the many challenges of education in Africa, a boiling entrepreneurial dynamic is emerging and provides innovative solutions. Impact investors, characterized by their intention to generate a positive social and/or environmental impact, can give decisive support to this dynamic. But it seems necessary to develop specific tools and a real partnership approach with the other stakeholders in the sector in order to bring out a new generation of private schools and education businesses that are responsible and fully oriented towards the continent's development challenges.
From Education to Employment: the numerous challenges of the African continent
Despite tremendous progress since the early 2000s, African education systems are in a critical situation and are struggling to ensure successful learning and employment opportunities for young Africans. Primary school enrolment in Africa is gradually reaching generalization thanks to the massive effort made by African governments and their partners under the framework of Millennium then Sustainable Development Goals. Yet 34 million children are still not in primary school[1], particularly in fragile countries or in conflict situations[2]. In addition, many national and international evaluations have shown that the majority of African students do not acquire basic knowledge and skills after completing primary school education[3]. Schools face many human, material and pedagogical resource deficits and the large size of cohorts of pupils in many public schools produce more frustration than effective learning[4].
While a minority of the population accesses higher education and vocational training, these training courses are often considered too theoretical and disconnected from the needs of local or international employers[5]. While youth unemployment rates in Africa are not higher than in other regions of the world, rates of informal employment and working poverty remain critical and constitute an increasing risk of social and political destabilization[6].
The Private Sector is Growing in the African education systems
The private education sector, in all its diversity, is gradually emerging as an important player in addressing these challenges. It is now estimated that about one in five students in Africa is enrolled in a private school[7]. But this figure covers a very diverse sector, made up of religious schools, for-profit institutions, informal structures or schools directly managed by philanthropic organizations. We observe however a common dynamic across African countries: private operators are gaining ground and are increasing the range of training available in most educational cycles.
This gradual expansion of the private education sector represents both an opportunity and a considerable challenge for all actors in the education chain. States and their partners must strengthen their capacity to regulate these private operators and ensure that no educational institution, whether public or private, can break the needed trust between the school, the learner and society.
A new wave of African entrepreneurs is emerging, bringing promising solutions to educational challenges across the continent. From e-learning solutions to SMS-based course platforms and teacher coaching sessions, entrepreneurs have plenty of ideas to experiment with new pedagogical models and to overcome the material constraints that have long hampered the entire education system. With the boom of promising solutions to build the African school of tomorrow, the role of research and impact evaluation becomes key to select the most relevant and effective models for enhancing learning and inclusion for all. The role of education technology education is also becoming an important element of debate for all stakeholders in the education system (governments, entrepreneurs, teachers, parents and learners).
A new wave of African entrepreneurs is emerging, bringing promising solutions to educational challenges across the continent.
But ed-tech leaders are not alone in demonstrating innovation and dynamism, quite the contrary. Hundreds of creative entrepreneurs overcome complex logistical and institutional challenges to provide schools with textbooks, furniture and equipment that are key inputs for the ecosystem as | 4,307 |
<|fim_middle|> as they ride up by throwing boxes at them. There are a few bugs to take care of but once they're knocked out I believe this experience will give players something besides puzzles to enjoy.
Created rough drafts of levels 7-9.
Created boss art and sliced it to be ready for animation.
Animated monkey prefab its ready to be implemented into the game.
Researched and tested slope movement for the characters. | This week was our last week of building new levels. Everything from here on out will be testing, fixing bugs and polish. That's a pretty big milestone and I'm excited to have gotten this far and to still have a month and a half left to clean up the game. Our team is still anxiously waiting to find out if we were selected as finalists to the TERMINUS conference and even if we aren't we're still planning on launching the Steam Greenlight campaign soon.
I built level 7, which serves as an introduction to the new mechanics the player will encounter in level 8. I also added in an updated version of something I worked on a couple months ago in our puzzle experiments. An elevator that travels up to the start of level 8 where the characters have to defend themselves from attacking animals | 163 |
What legal and regulatory requirements need to be met?
Can governance policies be consistently applied across content and records throughout their lifecycle?
Where do content and records reside, and who are the business owners of these systems?
What file formats need to be supported (including paper)?
What security concerns exist around content and records?
What has hindered the adoption of existing records management systems?
Developing robust answers and workarounds for these important questions will help avoid sn<|fim_middle|> in terabytess of unstructured content—important for complying with regulations such as GDPR or 23 NYCRR 500.
Holistic records management—A strong governance program requires a unified records management strategy, meaning that records managers should have the ability to apply standard policies and classification schemes to content stored in disparate applications and locations. A central hub for records management provides maximum flexibility for both the business and IT, with the ability to manage records in place, in a centralized repository, or in both. Quite often, this hybrid approach leveraging a central hub can be very effective, as shown in this table. | ags in implementation of a governance plan, ideally saving both time and money in the process.
Intelligent Classification—Solutions with this capability use a business rules engine to automatically declare a record, populate its metadata, and file it in the right place. Records management can be integrated seamlessly into any workflow, making it easier for users and eliminating haphazard, error-prone manual processes.
Auto-Classification Engines—These solutions use machine learning and analytics to automate content classification at scale. They discover and tag sensitive or compliance-related data (such as personally identifiable information, or PII) | 116 |
CIA's Food Conference Rethinks Eating Habits
May 23, 2014 | Industry News
reThink Food: Mind, Behavior, and Culture is a new conference series co-presented by The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) and the MIT Media Lab to explore how people experience food—from the workings of humans' sensory systems, to the impact of new technologies on food systems, to the habits and<|fim_middle|> behaviors around cooking and eating, developing advances for healthier eating practices, creating new food and distribution technologies, or seeking to understand flavor preferences.
Former Buffalo Wild Wings Director of Marketing Joins Famous Dave's | rituals.
In its first year, reThink Food will bring an audience of 300 from the science, marketing, technology, food, and media industries to the CIA's Napa Valley campus, Nov. 7-9. The three-day program will include research presentations, panel discussions, tastings, culinary demonstrations, and a variety of sensory experiences led by world-class experts who include behavioral economists Dan Ariely (Duke University) and Michael Norton (Harvard University); scientists Stuart Firestein (Columbia University) and Howard Shapiro (Mars, Inc.); chefs Christopher Kostow (The Restaurant at Meadowood), Daniel Patterson (The Daniel Patterson Restaurant Group), and Maxime Bilet (Art for Food); Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Moss (The New York Times); inventor and author Nathan Myhrvold (Intellectual Ventures); and CIA President Tim Ryan along with MIT Media Lab Director Joi Ito.
At the most basic level, emerging brain and sensory research is upending what is known about how individuals develop biases in their food and beverage choices, whether it is at home, at the grocery store, or in restaurants. At the same time, understanding the complex factors that drive change in American food culture is critical to identifying openings for innovation. reThink Food will also review and reveal cutting-edge ideas in product development and marketing that are spurring growth in the trillion-dollar American food sector.
"From the latest chef-curated food experiences to robotics in the kitchen to the splintering of consumer aspirations, the pace of evolution of food in America has never been more kinetic than it is today," says Dr. Tim Ryan, president of the CIA. "The fresh insights offered by this inspired joint venture between the CIA and the MIT Media Lab will allow us to delve deeply into the possibilities of design, science and technology, flavor discovery, and entrepreneurship that are disrupting how we're collectively re-imagining what's next for dinner."
With over 10,000 years of innovation in agriculture and cooking, food represents some of the earliest and most transformational technologies.
"There is no reason to slow down now," says Joi Ito, director of the MIT Media Lab. "We should be rethinking production, distribution, preparation, and the interactions of food with our brains and bodies. On a human level, we are beginning to understand taste and are shedding light on the multi-sensory activity of eating. Collaborating with the CIA, we look forward to bringing our unique research capabilities to the rich traditions and the remarkable future of how, and what, we eat."
reThink Food will provide crucial insights and strategies for those launching a new restaurant or retail food concept, researching cultural | 543 |
Paquito D'Rivera, Sammy Figueroa, Nicole Henry, and more!
As part of an interdisciplinary college, we offer unique learning experiences within Miami's only public research university. Students learn from award-winning artist-faculty in accredited programs in the heart of one the country's most vibrant, diverse, and creative cities. Music students benefit from working in a conservatory-style atmosphere alongside internationally celebrated performers and composers, scholars, and teachers, who are dedicated to inspiring and mentoring the next generation of music leaders. Our School has educated hundreds of performers, scholars, and music educators, many of whom are now leaders in their respective fields across the state of Florida and around the world.
Housed in the Wertheim Performing Arts Center since 1996,<|fim_middle|> through lessons, masterclasses, coachings, networking opportunities, and performance.
The School of Music faculty is comprised of highly-trained artists and scholars who are nationally and internationally known and respected. They are also superb and dedicated teachers who are committed to student success.
We will provide support to help you achieve your educational aspirations while successfully managing your finances. Get some helpful links, tips, contact information, and more.
Registration is open! The Panther Summer Music Camp offers aspiring musicians at all levels, an opportunity to work with top professionals in a non-competitive environment this July 22 – August 2, 2019!
FIU Music Hour, ran by music students, takes place every Tuesday, 11am – 12pm, as a live performance and broadcast in the WDNA Jazz Gallery. The program features FIU School of Music students, faculty, alumni and friends. | we attract internationally acclaimed musicians and scholars every year to present masterclasses and guest lectures, or to perform side-by-side with our students and faculty artists. The breadth of performance opportunities offered at FIU include orchestral, band, choral, jazz, large and small chamber ensembles, fully-staged operas, and the latest in cutting-edge new music.
With over 100 performances at the Wertheim Performing Arts Center and in the community, we have something for everyone!
Every year, internationally acclaimed musicians and scholars come to our School to present masterclasses and guest lectures to our students. All masterclasses are free and open to the public for observation.
Connect with us! Stay-up to-date and check out our videos and photos.
With a number of cutting-edge programs in performance, business, composition, education, and technology, students gain a broad range of skills and experiences | 178 |
We had a nice, peaceful morning in White Lake beginning with breakfast on the boat. Dana made french toast and bacon, and we enjoyed breakfast outside in the quiet morning. There were only a few boats in the municipial marina, including 3 who were halfway through the great loop and having a "fantastic journey." After breakfast, we got back to trying to find an a/c pump.
Without success, we decided to journey on our<|fim_middle|> just transfer over to boating on Lake Michigan. Glad you made it back to boat another day on calmer seas. | bikes to the lakeshore to check the lake conditions, since the NOAA weather report was calling for 3-5 foot waves. White Lake was about 6 miles long, so we figured we could manage it, and end up at the lake eventually. We found out this was a bad idea when 40 minutes later we realized the trail had curved and we were riding away from the lake! We aborted this mission and turned back around. It was still a nice bike ride though.. and we needed to burn offsome calories from all the good eating we've been doing!
On the way back to town we stopped off at a neat little sandwich shop called Pekadill's and enjoyed a nice lunch.
After debating back and forth, we decided to try to make it north at least to Pentwater. We loaded up the bikes and got ready for travel. Cruising through White Lake on the way to the channel, we were optimistic. It was hard to belive that Lake Michigan could be that bad considering White Lake was flat calm with little wind.
Entering the channel though, we could see boat after boat in front of us turning around mid-way out of the channel...we should of taken this as a bad sign. The channel between White Lake and Lake Michigan is a very narrow steel lined channel and it got really hard to control the boat the closer we got to the lake. Considering at that point it would have been too hard to turn around without smacking the wall, we went for it!
Bad idea. As soon as we were out of the channel we immediatly hit a wall of water followed by 5-6 foot waves one after another! We made it a couple miles before deciding to turn around and head back to White Lake. We were in a bad postion since turning around in waves like that can be dangerous. If one were to hit us broadside in mid turn we could roll. I was looking for a calm spot to turn around when a huge wave hit the bow, sending it skyward quickly followed by the bow diving into a deep trough. Shortly after I looked over to see Dana putting on her life jacket and handing me mine. We battled the waves a little longer until I found a good chance and in a quick motion poured on the throttle and cranked the wheel starboard before the next big wave hit us.
Whew! We successfully turned around, but now we had to try to get back in the channel, which might be even more dangerous. And to make it even worse, as I was concentrating on not crashing the boat against the steel wall, Dana pointed out in panic that 2 kayakers were trying to enter the channel right next to us! It's hard enough to keep the boat from hitting the wall, but now we had 2 people we could barely see above the waves to look out for. We had a few scary moments when the boat pitched sharply to the port side, but soon we were back into the calm. We learned our lesson. When boats bigger than ours are turning around and it looks too bad to go out, it probably is. :-) At least we gained some more lake experience. We will continue on our visit to White Lake in the next post. Thanks for reading!
Pilots have an old saw that goes "it's better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air than in the air wishing you were on the ground." I think that might | 696 |
If we were to ask you about the one appliance was in your house that helps to keep your home comfortable during the summer season, we're pretty sure you would say it's your air conditioning unit. That's because there's something that's so great about being able to walk into your house, turn on your thermostat and immediately feel cool air in just a matter of moments.
But sometimes, we're so used to the convenience<|fim_middle|> paying for the maintenance, you can easily save 30-40 percent on energy costs, which makes having your unit serviced a great investment. For information on how to find a good HVAC technician within your area, visit HVACRAdvice.com. | of our air conditioner that we don't provide it with the consistent maintenance that it needs. And when that happens, it can lead to costly repairs or perhaps even the need for a replacement.
In order to prevent this from happening to you, we've provided you with a list of five reasons why annual AC maintenance is essential. That way, you can enjoy your unit this summer and in the future summers to come too.
It detects small problems. One of the main reasons why it's such a good idea to have a professional maintenance your AC once a year is because they are skilled in being able to detect any small issues that your unit may have. The reason why this is beneficial is because small problems, over time, can turn into costly repairs; however, you can avoid this if you have a licensed technician inspect your unit regularly.
It keeps your air quality cleaner. Another benefit that comes with properly maintaining your unit is the fact that it can help to improve the indoor air quality of your home. That's because when air filters are changed and air ducts are vacuumed, that results in there being less dirt, dust, debris, dander and mold spores in the atmosphere for you and your family to breathe in.
It makes your unit more efficient. When your unit is dirty or it doesn't have proper fluids inside of it, that can cause your air conditioner to be as efficient as it needs to be. And when your unit is working hard, that can put a significant amount of wear and tear on it. So, in order to keep your air conditioner working at an optimal level, this is just one more reason to invest in its maintenance.
It increases comfort. If you were to ask a company like Filter Filler to provide you with another reason why annual AC maintenance is needed, we're willing to bet that one of the things they would tell you is having your unit serviced can help to increase your comfort levels. When a unit is in great condition, it is better able to cool all of the rooms in the house. As a direct result, you won't have to worry about adjusting your thermostat a lot.
It saves you money. Finally, perhaps the best reason to have your unit professionally checked out on an annual basis is that when it's working at its optimal level, that helps to conserve energy which ultimately helps you to save money. This means that even though you are initially | 482 |
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Remembering the 8th
on 22 November, 2016 at 15:10
During the final weeks of the project we've worked with a number of Churches across East Anglia to provide interpretation boards for their stained glass windows & memorials dedicated to the men of the 8th USAAF. These are intended to provide further information for visitors and local communities about the stories associated with local air bases and the men and women who served there. They reveal some of the more personal stories of those who used these churches as places of rest, respite, comfort and care. Many of these churches played an important and sometimes overlooked role in the international story of friendship that developed out of the conflict, and sharing these stories and images will help to preserve their memory.
The boards launched as part of a number of services for Remembrance week 2016 at the following locations:
All Saint's Church, Great Ashfield
St. Andrew's Church, Quidenham
All Saint's Church, Conington
All Saint's Church, Carleton Rode
St. Michael and All Angels, Martlesham Heath
St. George's Church, Anstey
St. Andrew and St. Patrick, Elveden
St. Catherine's Church, Litlington
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Airfields & LocationsEast Ang<|fim_middle|> their own words – The Eighth in the East podcasts
Airfields & Locations
Copyright © 2013 Mustard Creative | All rights reserved. | lia at WarMuseums & ExhibitionsStories & MemoriesThen and NowTraces of Lives
Endings and beginnings
In their own words - The Eighth in the East podcasts
In | 38 |
Fitness Intervals: a customizable tool that lets you try CrossFit, HIIT, circuit training, and tempo workouts. It comes with a timer, stopwatch, and other useful tools. It has an Apple Watch app as well.
TuneTime Interval Timer: a music interval timer that helps you push your body harder. TuneTime lets you know how many intervals you have to go and lets you use your own music<|fim_middle|>? Please share them here.
Fitness Intervals: Ultimate Interval Training App for iPhone & iPad? | to exercise.
Timewinder Pro: an interval timer and task manager for iPhone. It works for Meditation, CrossFit, Tabata, HIIT, and other workouts. The Apple Watch app gives you access to interval timers and notifications on your wrist.
Chronic Timer: this app is designed for HIIT, MMA, and other workouts and timed tasks. The beautiful Apple Watch interface gives you access to your routines.
Timers: this app provides timers for workouts and other tasks. The Apple Watch app gives you access to all your timers.
Have you found better fitness timers and cross training Apple Watch apps | 121 |
The key finding of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election shouldn't be a surprise to anyone – except liberals and most journalists, who believe President Trump is guilty until proven innocent of accusations made against him.
Barr's letter confirmed that Mueller did not recommend any further indictments growing out of his investigation and that there are no sealed indictments that have not yet been made public.
Even the most ardent Trump-haters can't argue that Mueller failed to conduct a thorough investigation. In fact, the special counsel employed 19 lawyers and an additional staff of 40 FBI agents, intelligence analysts, forensic accountants and other professional staff in his probe.
Mueller issued "more than 2,800 subpoenas, executed nearly 500 search warrants, obtained more than 230 orders for communication records, issued almost 50 orders authorizing use of pen registers, made 13 requests to foreign governments for evidence, and interviewed approximately 500 witnesses" according to Barr's letter to members of Congress. And the Mueller investigation lasted almost two years.
Now Mueller's long and extremely thorough investigation finally removes a cloud that has been hanging over the president – the question of whether he or his campaign worked with the Russians.
As we already knew from the prior indictments of Russian agents, the Russians tried to interfere in our 2016 election in two ways.
First, a Russian organization called the Internet Research Agency conducted "disinformation and social media operations in the United States designed to sow social discord, eventually with the aim of interfering in the election," Barr reported in his summary of the Mueller report.
Although Barr did not say so, this type of disinformation campaign is nothing new. Similar campaigns were carried out by the Soviet Union throughout the entire Cold War. The only change today has been the use by the Russian government of something that didn't exist back then – social media platforms.
The Russians also conducted computer hacking operations to "gather and disseminate information to influence the election" and did so successfully against the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, Barr wrote.
The information the Russians stole was then distributed "through various intermediaries, including WikiLeaks," and Mueller indicted a number of Russian military officers for these actions, Barr wrote.
The second part of Mueller's report is about his investigation of the president for possible obstruction of justice, Barr said. Mueller did not "draw a conclusion – one way or another – as to whether the examined conduct constituted obstruction," according to Barr.
Instead, Mueller's report sets out "the evidence on both sides of the question and leaves unresolved what the Special Counsel views as 'difficult issues' of law and fact," Barr wrote.
The Mueller report "does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him," Barr reported. That left it to the attorney general to determine whether the facts described constitute a crime.
After consulting with senior Justice Department officials and "applying the<|fim_middle|> | principles of federal prosecution that guide" the department's charging decisions, Barr concluded that the evidence developed by Mueller "is not sufficient to establish that the President committed an obstruction-of-justice offense," he wrote.
In other words, it is difficult to charge an individual with obstruction of justice if there is no crime to obstruct.
While Barr's letter to Congress is a four-page summary, parts of the actual Mueller report may still be released.
But some material in the report can't be made public. For example, grand jury information and proceedings are secret under Rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and can only be disclosed under certain limited circumstances.
The Justice Department is going to have to carefully review Mueller's report and redact any information covered by the grand jury secrecy requirement. Barr may also withhold information on other "ongoing matters" that have been referred by the special counsel to other Justice Department offices.
So did the Russians try to influence the 2016 election through a disinformation campaign that used social media and disseminated stolen information? Yes, they did. But our intelligence agencies reported this before Mueller even began his investigation.
To the surprise and disappointment of those who oppose President Trump, the Mueller report cleared him of the collusion charge.
And did the president obstruct the investigation? According to Attorney General Barr, the president did not.
After almost two long years, the Mueller report is a complete vindication for the president and a victory against his detractors. | 297 |
SRJC Hockey Team Sets Official Roster for 2016-17 Season
Second-year head coach Blake Johnson made it well known when the Polar Bears began training camp in August that no player was guaranteed a spot on his team. He put all SRJC skaters, returning and new, through an intense five-week audition to determine who would suit up for the 2016-17 season.
Now, just days away from the Santa Rosa Junior College Hockey team's first game of the year, Johnson has officially announced his roster for the team's inaugural Division II campaign.
A total of 22 players will put on the SRJC jersey, including 17 returning skaters and five freshmen.
Presumed captain Josiah Nikkel leads a talented group of forwards that include last year's standouts Max Brownlee and Evan Hastings. Nikkel is in his last year with the Polar Bears, and ranks first on SRJC's all-time points leader list with 121 goals<|fim_middle|> into SRJC's first games with the level of talent of his roster combined.
"This year we won't have loads of healthy scratches each game, but our top 3 forwards lines and top 2 d pairing are as strong as we have ever had," he said. "We are fortunate enough to have a large number of returning players this year, which allows me to mix and match lines to find the right combination that will | and 128 assists.
Joining him is fan favorite John Keshishian, Matt Katicich, Jackson Waldron, Tommy Dennen, Travis LaBrucherie and John Zerbe. All forwards on this year's team have at least one SRJC season under their belt.
2016 will also see the return of last year's breakout player, Lane Beliveau. After starting the 2015-16 season as one of SRJC's best freshman players, Beliveau had season-ending hip surgery in December 2015. SRJC did not expect Beliveau to return this fast, if at all, to the team.
Colin Ridenour and Tim Buchter anchor the Polar Bears' blue line, providing much needed veteran experience to the relatively green defense. Former forward Alec Runge joins them, along with rookies Anthony Giampaoli, Derek Osborne and Shawn Pabros.
SRJC has a few "switch hitters" on this year's roster — including returning players David Lundgren and Larry Hansen— who could potentially change positions over the course of the season. These players are currently listed as forwards, but have practiced in both positions. They, along with Nikkel and Waldron, could all spend some time as D-men.
Johnson gets his pick of goaltenders this season with veteran Jacob Pavsek returning for a final year and Miles Kellam suiting up a third time. Two new goaltenders join the ranks, including 23-year-old former Glacier Nationals juniors player Steven Morten, and former Santa Rosa Flyer Matthew Colgrove. Each had impressive preseasons, and will definitely give both returning netminders a run for their money.
SRJC's game roster may only house 20 players each match — two less positions players than the maximum number allowed (22 position players, two goalies)— but Johnson has the option to run four lines if needed. Each line has strong, experienced centers, coupled with the rotating three sets of D-partners.
While Johnson has not named any official lines or defensive partnerships, he's confident heading | 429 |
U17 beat SKS U17 5-1
July 3, 2021 Junior Tournaments China (Shanghai) International Youth Football Invitational SKS FC 中国(上海)国际青少年校园足球邀请赛
After our inaugural super difficult inaugural match against SIGP U17 in China (Shanghai) International Youth Football Invitational tournament, we only had 16 hours to rest for our 2nd match of the tournament against SKS U17. SKS is a Korean team and it was for them the 1st game of the tournament. After we lost Brandon on Friday with an ankle injury, we heard that Henry was also not able to play on this Saturday game. So with a small squad already and tired legs (as opposed to our opponent), it sounded like the game will be difficult for us. However, with the SIGP match behind us, we knew that we could keep composure throughout that match… This made our confidence stronger.
We started really well with a lot of speed and aggression and SKS U17 struggled to keep the ball. It resulted in several goal-scoring opportunities but we were not clinical enough to finish the job. Our defense was solid with David on the right, Max & Kevin in the center while Subaru-san was on the left. But as it goes in football, if you don't finish your own scoring opportunities you ask for trouble… This is exactly what happened with us gifting SKS U17 the 0-1.
It was a blow as our heads were down for 10 minutes but when we got a corner everything changed for us. For the parents' information… We have been practicing corners and set pieces all year round. Each combination has been given a "girl name" and each player knows what to expect and where to go. Pat is the master of this and when he saw the corner was taken he wondered which "girl" it was :). Then, when the ball got brought into the box after a short one-two, Seiwa did score with a header. This goal turned around the game and we started to play better.
David had a very strong game so far as right back and when he came up to the penalty box he didn't hesitate to try his luck and his shot went into the left corner. Now, the game was back our hands (or feet) and we went into halftime 2-1 up.
The halftime talk focused on being more aggressive on the willingness to score. Once you get the chance, you need to take it with all your heart and soul.
5 minutes into the second half we got more bad luck as David had to come off injured after a poor challenge from his opponent. Luckily, David seemed to be ok afterward. We managed to maintain our territorial domination and SKS U17 players were<|fim_middle|> on the left which he blasted into the net. 3-1 for the Lions!
Soon after we got another corner… No, I will not disclose the "girl name" that was called. It didn't work 100% but Max saved the ball with a tackle setting up Kevin who didn't hesitate to score in the left top corner. Ryan got his 2nd goal with a low strike hard enough to make the Korean keeper drop it… This goal probably helped him won the MOM award.
In the end, we tried to save the legs as we will play our 3rd game in 3 days tomorrow against Juventus Academy.
[ Youth Tournament ] Shanghai Lions FC 5-1 SKS FC
What we liked today was the overall positiveness within the team. Each player tried to help each other and we did nice combinations resulting in great goals. All the goals were team efforts. We also liked the rising leadership within the team… It is important when things don't go according to the plan or expectation. Last but not least, we liked the way our substitutes came in… They all did well knowing we're only allowed 5 subs per game in this tournament. Ok, one more satisfaction point is that none of our players got cramps against both SIGP U 17 & SKS U17… It proves that the drills at trainings are paying off.
The parent support was great today. We really appreciated that. We also appreciated Eric and his family coming to try replacing Brandon. Unfortunately, the organizers didn't allow us to do.
Now let's focus on tomorrow's match. We will play in our away kit which you will get tomorrow at the field. Please bring your pass as usual. Well done Lions and get ready for the BIG match tomorrow.
Freek, Pat & Nick
Previous U17 take the lesson vs. SIPG U17
Next U17 lose vs. rival J Academy | even starting to get cramps. On a brilliant move from Daniel, Ryan received the ball | 18 |
Our Ridgecrest Vineyards was the first vineyard planted on what would become the Ribbon Ridge AVA, purchasing the land<|fim_middle|> 1.33 inches of rain in all of September, the average of the last 7 years almost exactly. The heat accumulation has reached a record high for my CDD records, now at 2552 degree days through September. Cool dry ripening is anticipated for the next 2 weeks, so the last blocks of Pinot Noir and especially Riesling will slide gently into the end of harvest. | in 1980 and beginning planting in Spring 1982. And it all came to fruition in 1985 with our first harvest. On September 23rd we began picking Pinot Noir from our oldest block there and by tomorrow, October 1st, we'll have the harvest complete.
Many things have changed since Harvest 1985, number ONE. Most are good and normal, like white hair, more pounds, tighter vineyard spacing, better and better grapes and wines with vine age, new labels, Stelvin closures rather than cork, and Wynne doing great winemaking rather than "when are we going home" whine-making at 5 years of age!
Ridgecrest is the source of our Reserve Pinot Noir, as well as single vineyard, Statement, and a good portion of 3 Vineyard Pinot Noirs. It carries the red-to-black fruited profile of Ribbon Ridge AVA and can range from ultimately elegant to structured, depending on vintage and winemaking elements such as whole cluster use.
Our other vineyards are exceptional, with specialties including Chardonnay at Stoller (the best Chardonnay vineyard in the state) and Riesling at Corral Creek.
We're in a rhythm in the vineyard and winery, still daily pressing 4 loads of whites and consumed with Pinot Noir at varied stages of processing, all fermentors being full and new fruit picked and coming in to fill the open space made by ferments ending and being pressed. With only 16 days into harvesting, we are over 80% complete, so this is "Fast and Furious" harvest, with long hours and little time off, but soon we'll be done—and likely the earliest completion to Crush ever!
The heat has now subsided, but the sun remains, with all but a handful of days bright. We've seen | 395 |
South Coast Painting<|fim_middle|>, support, account inquiries, and how to be an affiliate, the best way to get in touch is through numbers: (909) 370-0990 Full Phone Report.
It has been operating since , boasting total quality assurance, and an annual revenue of $500.000 to $999.999. Their Single Location can be reached with the use of the following coordinates: 34.039486,-117.305067. They currently have 1 to 4 employees, and you can learn more about their offerings at .
You can also view their clients' testimonials, government compliance and annual reports through their website. South Coast Painting Contrs aims to strengthen their BOTH relationships through advertisements and brand promotion. | Contrs is a Painters business in Grand Terrace, CA.
South Coast Painting Contrs classified under Painters, with principal employer is located in 11806 Preston St, Grand Terrace, California CA 92313. For sales | 52 |
Pressure Composition Diagrams
These diagrams combine information about the composition of the liquid and vapour phases at a given temperature, and how the compositions of the phases change with pressure. They have the general form (where we maintain our convention of A being more volatile than B):
The point I indicates the vapour pressure of a liquid phase of composition xA. The point II indicates the composition of the vapour, yA, that is in equilibrium with the liquid at this pressure. i.e. if the two phases are at equilibrium at this pressure, then the liquid phase has a composition with mole fraction xA of A, while the vapour phase has a mole fraction yA of A. Note it is not necessary for the two phases to be in equilibrium at this pressure. If the mole fraction of A in the entire system is sufficiently low (to the left of xA on the diagram) only a liquid phase exists. Conversely, if the total mole fraction of A is high enough (to the right of yA on the diagram) there will be only a vapour phase.
It is important to note the labeling of the horizontal axis at this point. It gives the overall composition, in terms of the mole fraction of A in the entire system, zA. At all points above the diagonal line, the pressure is greater than the vapour pressure of the system and only a liquid phase exists. In this instance, zA is equivalent to xA, the mole fraction of A in the liquid. At all points below the lower curved line, only a vapour phase exists and zA is equivalent to yA, the vapour phase mole fraction of A.
At points between the two lines, two phases, one liquid and one vapour, coexist. The amount of information that can be derived from this region is large, and worthy of slightly more detailed study:
Consider that the system starts off at point Φ. Here it is composed of a single liquid phase, with composition ΦA. If the pressure on this liquid mixture is then reduced, no change in the overall composition occurs, so the state of the system moves down the vertical line in the diagram.
The system remains as a single liquid phase until the point Φ1 (corresponding to a pressure of p1) is reached. At this point, the liquid may exist in equilibrium with its vapour.
The composition of the vapour phase at this pressure is given by the point Φ1′ (the point on the lower curve at which the pressure is p1.) The horizontal line that joins the points Φ1 and Φ1′ is called a tie line. At the point Φ1 the composition of the liquid is negligibly different from that at Φ, as there is virtually no vapour present, but the small amount that there is will have the composition Φ1′.Consider that the system starts off at point Φ. Here it is composed of a single liquid phase, with composition ΦA. If the pressure on this liquid mixture is then reduced, no change in the overall composition occurs, so the state of the system moves down the vertical line in the diagram.
Lowering the pressure to p2 takes the system further down the vertical line to the point Φ2″. The overall composition of the system is still given by ΦA, but there are now two separate phases that make up the system, each with a different composition. The liquid phase has a composition given by the point Φ2, and the vapour it is in equilibrium with has a composition Φ2′. i.e. the mole fraction of A in the liquid phase at p2 is given by the x coordinate of point Φ2, while<|fim_middle|>3′. Since the composition of the vapour at Φ3′ is the same as ΦA, the overall composition of the system, it follows that there must be a negligibly small amount of liquid present at this pressure. What liquid there is, however, will have a composition given by Φ3.
Further reduction of the pressure takes the system into the region where only vapour is present, and thus the vapour must have the same composition as the overall system, which is in turn the same as the composition of the original liquid.
Given that the overall composition of the system remains the same throughout, it is possible to see that the position of a point in the two-phase region of such a diagram indicates the relative amounts of each phase present. This observation is set out as the lever rule. If there are two phases, α and β, in equilibrium, then we measure the distances lα and lβ along the tie line (these are the distances from the point under consideration to the edge of the appropriate single phase region) and apply the lever rule:
where nα and nβ are the amounts of the two phases in moles.
The rule is the same in form as the rule for two weights at the ends of a seesaw being in equilibrium. (The turning force of each weight is given by its mass multiplied by its distance from the pivot, and the two turning forces must be equal for the seesaw to balance. This is the classical mechanical theory of levers, which is where the rule gets its name from.) It may be helpful to bear this analogy in mind when applying the rule.where nα and nβ are the amounts of the two phases in moles.
We can immediately see, for instance, that whichever phase X for which the distance lX is shorter will be present in greater amount than the other phase. (the weight nearer the pivot on a seesaw must be heavier than the other weight for the seesaw to balance.)
Note that although this page has focused exclusively upon a liquid and vapour phase in equilibrium, analogous diagrams may be derived for other such systems with two phases of different composition in equilibrium, for example between a solid and a vapour phase.
Vapour Pressure Diagrams
Temperature Composition Diagrams | the mole fraction of A in the vapour phase is given by the x coordinate of the point Φ2′.
If the pressure is lowered further to p3, then the composition of the liquid and vapour readjust to those given by the points Φ3 and Φ | 57 |
Some of life's great truths have the staying power of Keith Richards and Bob Dylan combined. Which is to say, they're not pretty, but there's no getting rid of them.
One of these truths is that the new guy will always get the "fun" stuff.
A second is that the news always happens, regardless of any calendar dates or holidays.
Put these together, and you'll understand why, about 20 years ago, I was heading into the newsroom of The Garden City Telegram on Christmas Day.
Mind you, the world wasn't burning down — well, no more than it usually is, anyway. No apartment buildings had exploded, no planes had crashed on Main Street, no eccentric billionaires had decreed that every resident of southwest Kansas was getting a lifetime cash award. (Darn it). But there would still be a newspaper on Dec. 26, and so the rookie got to come in and keep an ear on the police scanner in case anything happened ... and to work on a short feature in case nothing did.
Appropriately enough, I spent the time talking to my colleagues of the moment — namely, the others who by choice or circumstance found themselves working on the holiday. Truckers. Ambulance workers. Police officers. All the folks who quietly keep the gears moving, even when life seems to come to a halt.
For most, it wasn't a day lost, but a day postponed. There would be time to celebrate, to observe, to enjoy ... once the job was done. A time claimed rather than found, a moment to be made rather than simply reached.
After all, it's a lesson Heather and I came to know very well.
Christmas Eve in Garden City. Our first as a married couple. A friend had invited us to a candlelight service, one of Heather's favorite things in the world - only for one of her chronic illnesses to have a brief flare-up that evening. We didn't have to go to an emergency room, but we clearly weren't going anywhere else, either.
Young husbands do many things out of desperation. Which is how I happened to sit at our piano that night by candlelight, playing carols from the hymnal and reading appropriate sections of the Christmas story. Since Heather couldn't go to the candlelight service, I brought the service to her.
We weren't where we meant to be. We weren't where we wanted to be. But together<|fim_middle|> be claimed at any time.
Or even at every time.
May that moment always be with you, whenever you choose to make it. May it comfort you with a warmth that will last and endure.
If we're truly fortunate, it might even outlast Keith Richards. | , we made the moment.
And a memory that still endures for both of us.
We imbue dates with a lot of power. That can create a sort of magic where it feels like everyone around you is acting in a common purpose, to a common goal. But if for some reason you're disconnected from the revelry, that approaching holiday can become awkward instead of wonderful, something that everyone else gets to enjoy while you stand to one side.
And like that, "Christmas is coming" starts to sound less like a carol and more like a threat.
Christmas isn't about Dec. 25. It never was. It's about setting a time aside to recognize unexpected joy and quiet love, to treasure those who are closest to your heart and focus on what's truly important. To see those around us as people deserving of kindness (even if they do have horrible taste in sweaters).
That's a moment that can | 188 |
EMHS Joins Healthcare Systems to Form Purchasing Coalition
(Brewer, ME) - April 18, 2011 – Twenty-eight healthcare systems representing more than 100 hospitals in six New England states have come together to form a new company, the Northeast Purchasing Coalition LLC. This supply network represents close to 17,000 hospital beds, 5,000 physicians and more than $2 billion in combined annual non-salary expenses. Dan Coffey, EMHS executive vice president and chief financial officer is chairman of this new venture.
These organizations will work together to lower costs through aggregating purchasing volume on contracts, decreasing product utilization and incorporating clinical subcommittee recommendations into their decisions.
With declining reimbursements and rising costs, this collaborative approach to non-salary cost reduction will help ensure hospital resources are preserved for direct patient care. The coalition's members, all members of VHA Inc., the national healthcare network, plan to leverage VHA's supply chain management expertise and Novation's contracting power to obtain better pricing on aggregated purchases. The boards of directors of VHA New England and VHA Northeast used their collective strength and enthusiastically endorsed this endeavor as their innovative way to reduce non-salary expenses—providing essential executive-level support.
"Hospitals are pressing hard to find new ways to save money and deliver efficient care without cutting staff, limiting services or sacrificing clinical quality," said Gerry Roche, area senior vice vice president/executive officer for VHA Northeast and VHA New England. "By aggregating volume through VHA SupplyNetworks™, our members can zero in on standardization opportunities and establish a platform to discuss clinical utilization, both of which hold significant potential for savings and higher<|fim_middle|> entire supply chain
• Achieve savings above and beyond what they could accomplish on their own
• Share and learn best practices from other participants
• In their most mature form, VHA SupplyNetworks help members pursue higher value activities such as centralized ordering and centralized logistics. Supply networks also provide innovative platforms for utilization discussions because their collective intelligence enables the hospitals to reach a clinically supportable consensus that should lead to better clinical performance.
• VHA currently supports 23 VHA SupplyNetworks nationwide. Combined, these supply networks saved participants $100 million in 2010.
About VHA - VHA Inc., based in Irving, Texas, is a national network of not-for-profit health care organizations that work together to drive maximum savings in the supply chain arena, set new levels of clinical performance and identify and implement best practices to improve operational efficiency and clinical outcomes. In 2009, VHA delivered record savings and value of $1.47 billion to members. Formed in 1977, VHA serves more than 1,400 hospitals and more than 28,000+ non-acute care providers nationwide, coordinating delivery of its programs and services through its 16 regional offices. VHA has been listed as one of the best places to work in health care by Modern Healthcare since 2008 and one of the best places to work in IT by Computer World since 2007. | quality of care. VHA SupplyNetworks also creates opportunities for operational efficiencies that aren't available through any other means in the healthcare industry today."
Representing a strong commitment to collaboration among these hospitals, the NPC will be operated by a committee of supply executives recruited from the NPC's members who will develop the strategies, guidelines and processes to ensure the group can reach their savings objectives. The members have agreed to abide by the following principles:
• A defined purchasing decision making process
• Volume-aggregated contracting strategies
• Member commitment
• Sustained contract compliance
• Members will retain the ability to make independent decisions about product purchases but have agreed to aggressively pursue product standardization whenever possible in order to achieve dramatic cost savings.
• On average, hospital members of VHA SupplyNetworks save between 8% and 12% annually through network contracts that enable members to:
• Gain better control over the | 182 |
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The Mt St Helens Adventure Tour from Portland
Discover lava tube caves, old-growth forests, waterfalls, and more on a guided tour of Mt. St. Helens. The park's vastness and variety of attractions can be overwhelming on your own, but by visiting with a guide you don't miss any of the highlights. Plus, you can learn about the area's geology, ecology, and history—much of which you might miss if visiting the park on your own.
Craft Breweries of Portland Walking Tour
With more breweries than any other city in the US, Portland is a beer drinker's dream. It can be hard to decide where to start, so this craft brewery tour takes you to a handful of the best on the city's East Side, a neighborhood known for its innovation but off the radar of many tourists. Challenge your taste buds and find your new favorite brew, from West Coast IPAs to seasonal lagers and barrel-aged beers.
Downtown Portland Airplane Tour
People love to look at the Downtown Portland skyline from the International Rose Garden, from the Eastbank Esplanade, or while driving past on I-5 through the city. There's something special about this skyline, especially at night, that we all seem to love. In spite of the horrendous traffic, Portland is a beautiful city to look at, and even better when flying above and around it…especially at night! This Portland air tour is a perfect and affordable way to check it out.
US$16.42 savings
Private 40-minute Waterfall Air Tour for Three
See Oregon's infamous waterfalls from above on a private airplane tour through the Columbia River Gorge. Get 360-degree views as you soar over the Vista House, Booneville Dam, the Bridge of the Gods near Cascade Locks, and more. This private experience allows you to customize your itinerary to fit your preferences.
Skip the Line: End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center Admission Ticket
Visit the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center and pre-book your tickets with this admission pass. This fascinating hands-on historic experience brings visitors back to the days of the Oregon Trail, with historic exhibits, artifacts, and a feature film, "Bound for Oregon," detailing what it was like to head out West in the 1840s. There are also plenty of interactive exhibits that recreate life in pioneer days, including pioneer dress up, butter making, and candle dipping.
30-minute Multnomah Falls & Columbia Gorge Air Tour
Multnomah Falls is Oregon's most popular tourist destination with about 2 million visitors each year. A staggering number considering how many parking slots are available. But it's a beautiful place and it's hard not to see why it's so famous. However, with fame also comes long traffic queues, enormous<|fim_middle|>gers, before the century-old highway, this was the land of people with a rich mythology. We tell the stories that have been told to us by the indigenous people as best we can. But what's most important, we remember the long long history this place holds. Our tour also provides the most active hiking and visits waterfalls you will not see on other tours.
Deschutes River Rafting - Half Day Adventure
Crash through the rapids on a whitewater rafting trip with your friends or family. This Deschutes River tour is an exhilarating full day adventure. Enjoy exciting rapids, deep canyons, placid pools, and a delicious barbecue lunch. No prior experience is necessary; professional guides support you every step of the way.
Guided Hike in Portland's Forest Park! (Largest Urban Wilderness in the USA)
Visit the lush trails of Portland's gargantuan Forest Park, the only urban wilderness park in the U.S. Your guide will take you along forested trails, telling you about the plants, animals, and history of the park—and the region—as you walk. And if you feel like turning back, there's no pressure. The hike is a moderate 3–5 miles (5–8 kilometers) long, but can be shortened or adjusted to meet your needs.
ATV Tour-Bend Badlands
Experience the thrill of off-roading while discovering the natural wonders surrounding Bend on this all-terrain-vehicle adventure. Traveling in an ATV lets you get off the beaten path and catch panoramic views most travelers never get to see. Plus, while guides are there to provide pre-trip instruction and lead the way, you get to take out your own 4-seater ATV. This makes the tour ideal for families and friend groups.
Full Day Portland And Columbia Gorge Jet-Boat Adventure
Ride the Explorer Jet-boat from Portland to the Columbia Gorge as we embark into the Heart of the Columbia Gorge to search for the illusive creature known as Bigfoot. See the Landmarks that make the Northwest Famous, while listening to live and recorded narration about the history of the Columbia Gorge and Bigfoot's presence in the Northwest. Enjoy content created by Animal Planets "Finding Bigfoot" Star, Cliff Barackman. This full-day adventure includes 6 hours of cruise time, with a 1-hour break in Cascade Locks. This is a covered Jet Boat, dress for the weather, you will not get rained on as it is covered. Please be prepared with a sweatshirt or jacket, as it can be cooler in the morning. Feel free to bring a lunch, snacks or drinks. There is no food available onboard. There is a restroom on board. We do stop in Cascade Locks where you can purchase lunch.
Rogue River Scenic Float
Spend the day on Oregon's Rouge River on a 5-hour rafting trip. Meet your guide in Ashland for a shuttle ride to your rafting location. Start with a safety briefing and then embark on your rafting adventure down 6 miles (9.6 km) of scenic class I-II rapids. Your guide handles paddling and steering so you can sit back and enjoy the ride. Stop midway for a snack and have lots of opportunities to get out of the raft to swim if you want. Kayaking can be an option deepening on the weather conditions. You return to the departure point and the end of the trip.
Exclusive 1 Hour 20 Minute Private Gorge & Portland Air Tour for 3
The Columbia River Gorge cleaves a massive canyon between the Oregon and Washington state lines, just east of Portland. On this full-day flight tour, you'll soar over the gorge and its dozens of waterfalls. Then, you'll cruise over the city of Portland, taking in its skyline and collection of unique bridges. Your guide will narrate the trip, pointing out highlights along the way.
Private Air Tour of Multnomah Falls
Take in aerial views of Multnomah Falls, one of Oregon's most popular natural attractions, with this adventure flight over the Columbia Gorge. Board a small plane in Troutdale on the outskirts of Portland and fly into the waterfall-rich Gorge region, where you'll catch glimpses of Bridal Veil Falls and Wahkeena Falls along the way.
Oregon Wine Country Experience - All-Inclusive Tour by Bike or Shuttle
Located outside of Portland, the Columbia River Gorge is home to an abundance of orchards, vineyards, and sweeping views of Mt. Adams, and Mt. Hood. With this guided tour, choose to explore the area by bike, e-bike, and/or shuttle. Stop at three local wineries for vineyard tours, tastings, and locally sourced fresh-food pairings.
Kayaking Brookings Chetco River
Take to the water to explore the scenic Chetco River estuary in Brookings with this 2.5-mile kayak tour. Paddle through the calm, clear waters to look for wildlife, including pelicans and kingfishers. Glide through the boat basin to see Coast Guard, commercial and leisure boats at the docks. Kayak for approximately 1.5-2 hours.
***Driver covers all tasting fees and charcuterie ($150 value)*** Experience the best of Willamette Valley wine country on a guided wine-tasting tour from Portland. With a small group of fellow wine lovers, spend full day visiting upto five handpicked wineries such as Adelsheim Vineyard, Archer Vineyard, Blakeslee Vineyard, Parrett Mountain Cellars, and Rallison Cellars. Meet local vintners and sample award-winning varietals while marveling at Oregon's stunning countryside. The driver will cover all tasting fees and charcuterie at the locations listed.
More Tours in Oregon
Attractions in Oregon
Mt. Hood Railroad
Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum
Oregon Rail Heritage Center (ORHC)
Lan Su Chinese Garden
Alphabet District
End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center
Camp 18 Logging Museum
Vista House
North Mississippi Avenue
Powell's City of Books
Portland Art Museum
Mt. Hood National Forest
Oneonta Gorge
Crown Point State Scenic Corridor
Historic Columbia River Highway
Portland Chinatown
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Recommended for Oregon | amounts of people, and on a hot day, that's not exactly fun. But, do you know what is? An airplane ride to see the famous waterfall with beautiful aerial views. Come experience the waterfall on an air tour of Multnomah Falls.
Forest Park Urban Hiking Tour
When tour guests asks us, "what one thing should I not miss in Portland," we pick the 4.5- to 5-mile (8-9 km) hike in Forest Park. No matter what the season, hiking in the park is entering another world right on the borders (and through the fabric) of the city. We offer two daily departures, both with varied terrain and about 900 ft elevation gain. The morning hike is focused around a classic Northwest Portland experience, and ends at the International Rose Test Garden, the Forest Park Experience (9 a.m. to noon). The afternoon hike starts at Goose Hollow, weaves through the neighborhoods and up into the park, the Goose Hollow to the Forest (1 to 5 p.m.). Both pass the iconic spots; Japanese Garden, Pittock Mansion, and Witch's Castle; but take a different approach to the forest. Being in Forest Park is to be immersed a fluid place that exists both in and out of time. In the forest—within minutes leaving the street—you can forget, or wonder at the fact that you are still in a city.
Rogue Valley Rapid Run
Start off slow and work your way towards crashing through the rapids on a family-friendly whitewater rafting trip. This Rogue River tour is a fun half-day adventure from Ashland, perfect for beginners and more advanced rafters alike. Progress from paddling and floating to riding class II and III rapids. No prior experience is necessary; professional guides support you every step of the way.
1-Hour Private Air Tour of Mount Hood and Columbia Gorge
Experience Oregon from the sky with this aerial tour above some of the state's most dramatic scenery. This flight for up to three people will take you above the Columbia Gorge, over the Mt. Hood National Forest and back. Note that prices are for the entire plane ride, so bring a couple friends and make a day of it.
Deschutes River Rafting - Full Day Adventure
Raft, swim, and enjoy a day in the sun on this full-day white-water rafting trip on the Deschutes River. Admire gorgeous canyon scenery as you glide through gentle and challenging rapids alike—your guide leads you the whole time, ensuring a fun and safe ride for you and your group.
20-minute Private Gorge Air Tour for 3
If you've never flown on a private plane before, this 20-minute ride over the Columbia River Gorge will be an unforgettable experience and a thrilling overview of the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest. Your knowledgeable pilot will take you east through the Gorge toward the Vista House viewpoint, past the waterfalls and cliffs of the Gorge.
20-Minute Columbia River Gorge Air Tour
Soar over the Columbia River Gorge on a sightseeing flight that takes you from Portland to the scenic gorge. Ideal for visitors who are short on time but don't want to miss any of the highlights, these 20 minutes of flying time show you more than you could see on a full-day ground excursion. Plus, the aerial view provides great photo opportunities.
Luxury, All Inclusive, Willamette Valley Wine Tour
***Driver cover all tasting fees with charcuterie plates ($90 value)*** Experience the best of Willamette Valley wine country on a all inclusive guided wine-tasting tour from Portland. With a small group of fellow wine lovers, spend a few hours visiting two or three handpicked wineries such as Adelsheim, Archer Vineyard, Blakeslees Vineyard, Bravuro Cellars, Parrett Mountain Cellars, and Rallison Cellars (others may substitute depending on availability). Meet local vintners and sample award-winning varietals while marveling at Oregon's stunning countryside. You will experience a wide variety of Willamette Valley wines in this fast paced trip.
Hike and Bike Tour to Columbia River Gorge Waterfalls
Our tour provides the best of its category -- best bicycles, best guides, best vehicles, best snacks! We transport our guests and bikes in Mercedes Sprinters, and our guides ride with our very small groups. You'll get personal attention and the safest experience we can provide. Like no other active tour of the gorge, we tell the stories that are just beginning to awaken from this place. Beyond the 180 years of pioneers and log | 954 |
In an announcement 15 months in the making, the acquisition of Gemalto by Thales for $5.4 billion has reportedly created a Group that will be a leader in digital identity and security. Employing 80,000 people, this larger Thales will reportedly address all the technologies underpinning the critical decision chain for companies, organizations and governments.
Incorporating Gemalto, Thales said it will develop secure solutions to address major challenges like unmanned air traffic management, data and network cybersecurity, airport<|fim_middle|> defense customers and will strengthen its industrial presence in 68 countries. Thales will expand its operations in Latin America, Northern Asia, Southeast Asia, India, and North America. | security, and financial transaction security.
Research and development is at the stated core of the new Group, with a portfolio of 20,500 patents, of which more than 400 new ones were registered in 2018. With more than $1 billion a year devoted to self-funded R&D, the group plans to continue to work on new technologies in the Internet of Things, Big Data, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
Gemalto will form one of Thales's seven global divisions, to be named Digital Identity and Security (DIS). Gemalto will interact with civil and | 121 |
The Rockford Park District announced that board of commissioners president Ian Linnabary received the Mike Cassidy<|fim_middle|>wood Silent Sports Trail, Rockford Bank and Trust Pavilion, and most recently, helped finalize an agreement between the Park District and Six Flags Entertainment Corporation to operate Magic Waters Waterpark. | Commissioner Community Service Award at the Illinois Association of Park Districts (IAPD)/Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA) annual conference luncheon held in Chicago recently.
The award is presented to a commissioner who has demonstrated assistance and leadership through contribution of time, services or volunteer efforts for the community he or she serves. The award is named after long-time Freeport Park District Commissioner Mike Cassidy, who worked to improve the quality of life for those in his community.
Ian began his volunteer service with the Rockford Park District in 2011 and has been instrumental in numerous projects such as the At | 123 |
Arcos de la Frontera is considered one of the most beautiful villages in Spain. The municipality is perfectly located on a rocky rock. In the vicinity of the town, the Guadalete River is nearby. Due to its great natural and architectural beauty, it is an important tourist destination within the province of Cádiz.
Arcos de la Frontera is the largest municipality in the Sierra de Cádiz and was declared a National Artistic Historic Set for its surprising natural beauty, its monumental importance and its archaeological wealth. It has a strategic position between the Campiña de Jerez and the Sierra de Cádiz.
Its boundaries are Bornos and Espera municipalities to the north, Villamartín to the northeast, El Bosque and Prado del Rey to the east, Ubrique and Benaocaz to the southeast, Algar and San José del Valle municipalities to the south and, finally, to the west is Jerez de la Frontera.
Their antecedents are very distant,we can prove with the Cave of the Higueral of Valleja, where they have been found prehistoric burials and cave paintings. But it is in<|fim_middle|> its white villages, its streets and patios adorned with multicolored flowers, the warmth of its people and the indisputable offer of great white wines and red wines. Wines that have been gaining popularity over time and that are currently very well considered.
Route of the bull: This route goes from Jerez de la Frontera to Los Barrios, along approximately 100 kilometers, through Los Alcornocales Natural Park, and crosses those cattle areas where brave bulls are raised and the autochthonous breed of retinta cow, appreciated for its meat. It is a route of enormous landscape and cultural value.
You can take the opportunity to visit Arcos de la Frontera to coincide with some of the festivities that take place in this town.
Holy Week: Declared of Tourist Interest, it is sounded early on Good Friday, when the procession of the Nazarene, the most popular among the inhabitants of Arcos de la Frontera.
Other festivities to highlight are the Carnival in february; the Evening of Our Lady of the Snows, which is the patron saint of Arcos de la Frontera and is celebrated the first week of august; the San Miguel Fair at the end of september; the May Crosses held in the old town; and the Bull of Alleluia, which takes place on Easter Sunday and is one of the most peculiar festivities in the province of Cádiz.
Highlights include sausages, the garlic to the mill, the soup of closing, the gazpacho serrano, the asparagus soup, the tomato soup, the cabbage, the chickpeas with thyme, the asparagus scrambled or the dishes cooked with game meat, pork and lamb.
In sweets, easter buns, pestiños, patties or compota watered with mountain honey. It is also a must visit if we go through Arcos de la Frontera, go to the Convent of the Mercedarian Nuns to buy its excellent pastry, famous throughout the area. | the Muslim era when Arcos de la Frontera emerges as a true prosperous and flourishing city, becoming in the 11th century, in a small Kingdom of Taifa. In this period the enclosure of the town was walled. Reaching its zenith between the 15th and 17th centuries.
During the 18th century, the city developed definitively outside the walled enclosure.
The 19th century with yellow fever and the confiscation of Mendizabal, and the first half of the 20th century with social revolts, civil war and the postwar period, brought to Arcos de la Frontera misery, unemployment and stagnation.
In the last third of the 20th century and especially in the actually 21st century, Arcos de la Frontera is the entrance to the Route of the White Villages and Historic Artistic Set. Together with its magnificent landscapes, they make it a tourist destination of the first order in the province of Cádiz, which constitutes its main source of income.
Palace of the Earl of the Águila: Gothic Mudejar style, built between the 14th and 15th centuries, located on the Cuesta de Belén.
Castle of Arcos de la Frontera: Military construction that is located at the highest point of the town and has been declared an Asset of Cultural Interest.
Parochial Church of Santa María de la Asunción: Of Mudejar origin of the 14th and 15th centuries with deep remodeling carried out during the first half of the 16th century, in the coexistence of other Renaissance and Baroque styles.
We can also highlight other places of interest in Arcos de la Frontera, such as the Convent of San Agustín, from the 16th and 17th centuries; the Church of San Pedro, from the 15th to 17th centuries; the Palace of the Mayorazgo, of the 17th century; the Town Hall, from the 17th century; the Church of San Francisco, from the 16th and 17th centuries; the Matrera Gate, of the old Arab wall, or the Hospital of Charity and the Church of Charity, from the 16th and 17th centuries and the Roman Ruins of Calduba.
In addition, their houses are Baroque and Renaissance, with narrow streets and abundant arches, which give clues of their Muslim influence. In fact, the Arabs were responsible for the current urban configuration of Arcos de la Frontera and one of its main characteristics, the courtyards.
Many of the houses are small orchards, because they are raised around a central patio in which a well opens that serves to feed an endless number of flowers and plants. Arcos de la Frontera becomes a small labyrinth of interlaced alleys that adapt to the difficult orography of the hill. To move around the town, you must leave the vehicle and walk the place.
The neuralgic center of the population is the Cabildo Square, the highest point of the city. The square is a set of interesting monuments: the Santa María Basilica, the National Parador and, of course, the wide viewpoint Balcony of the Peña that overlooks the Andalusian countryside.
Peña of Arcos: It has a balcony at high altitude and has been declared a Natural Monument of Andalusia.
Junta de Los Ríos: Also known as the Dam of Arcos. It has an artificial beach next to the Nautical Sports Center. It is a beach with a length of 250 meters. Next to the beach, on the same lake, there is the Nautic Club of Arcos where you can practice canoeing, paddle surfing, sailing, boating and water skiing. All well integrated and with guaranteed security.
Route of the White Villages: It includes a large part of the villages of the Sierra de Cádiz and some of the La Janda region, also in the province of Cádiz, and the Serranía de Ronda, in the province of Málaga. Many of these towns belong to the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park, which gives them an additional factor of tourist interest.
Coast route: Departing from Arcos de la Frontera we can take a route along the Costa de la Luz in the province of Cádiz, from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, next to the Doñana National Park, to Tarifa, the capital of surfing, passing through Chipiona, El Puerto de Santamaría, Cádiz, Chiclana de la Frontera, Conil de la Frontera, El Palmar, Caños de Meca and Zahara de los Atunes.
Routes of wine: We can choose between two routes, the Wine Route and the Jerez Brandy, which starts in Chiclana de la Frontera, passing through El Puerto de Santa María, Rota, Chipiona, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Trebujena, to end in Jerez de la Frontera and where the best fine wines, brandies, odorous and chamomiles of the world are produced. The other is the Wine Route of the Sierra de Cádiz, it combines the appeal of | 1,123 |
"What a joy to<|fim_middle|> October 2015. Image size and substrates vary. All prints are signed and numbered by the artist and include a certificate of authenticity. Paper prints are shrink wrapped on foam board. Canvas prints are coated with a protective spray. | see the sky filled with 'a flutter of butterflies'; hand painted fabric 'kites' floating on the gentle breeze."
Artist comment: "Certainly one of the most delightful handmade train of kites I observed at the Washington State International Kite Festival (WSIKF) was this unique train of butterfly kites. I watched enthralled as I made sketches and took notes as I talked with the lovely couple who created them. In my studio I put them on pastel paper and was thrilled once again as they emerged one at a time as though fresh from the cocoon and into a glorious blue sky."
"A Flutter Of Butterflies" is a 24" X 18" pastel painting on Mi-Teintes paper.
"A Flutter Of Butterflies" is a limited edition, giclée print from an original pastel painting by Carol Thompson. The edition includes 3600 authorized, signed, limited edition prints (3500 numbered and 100 artist proofs). Release date is | 207 |
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Almas Tower
Almas Tower (Arabic: ??? ?????? Diamond Tower) is a 68-storey, 360 m (1,180 ft), supertall skyscraper in the Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Construction of the office building began in early 2005 and was completed in 2009 with the installation of some remaining cladding panels at the top of the tower. The building was topped out in 2008, and became the tallest building in Dubai until 2009 when it was surpassed by Burj Khalifa.
The Basler Messeturm (Basel Trade Fair Tower) is the third Largest building in Basel, Switzerland.
Completed in 2003, it has 32 floors and is 105 m (344 ft) tall. There is a bar on the top floor. The Ramada hotel chain | 320 |
5 Greatest Computer Engineers of All Time
We live in an increasingly digital world, and computer engineers are an important part of the social fabric today. Computer engineering is more<|fim_middle|>What Makes Civil Engineering So Interesting?
Everything You Need To Know About Architectural Engineering | than just writing good code; it is also about designing and developing new software, technologies, and applications that change the way we do things. So, if you have been wondering about pursuing a degree in computer engineering from an international engineering college, this list of the top five greatest computer scientists (after Charles Babbage, of course!) and their achievements should help you make up your mind:
1.Tim Berners Lee
Sir Timothy Berners Lee is a famous British computer scientist, who created the World Wide Web or the 'internet' as we know it. In November 1989, Lee and his team successfully implemented the first communication between a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client and a server, opening the gateway to sharing information across the virtual world. For his achievement, Lee was awarded the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering and inducted into the World Wide Web Hall Of Fame, where he is one of only six members.
2.Dennis Ritchie
Known as the inventor of the C programming language and the UNIX operating system, Ritchie was a celebrated and oft-awarded computer engineer. With his pioneering work, he paved the way for the creation of various software applications, embedded system development, and new-age operating systems like Windows and Linux. Ritchie passed away in 2011, and the Fedora Linux 16 was released in his memory.
3.Linus Benedict Torvalds
A Finnish-American computer engineer, Torvalds was the dreamer behind the development of the Linux kernel. Due to his immensely important contribution to the project, he was later offered the role of the project' chief architect and is currently the coordinator for the kernel project. In 2012, Torvalds was awarded the Millennium Technology Prize by the Technology Academy Finland, in honour of the open source operating system he helped develop. Torvalds was also the driving force behind popular distribution version control system Git, and Subsurface – a diving log software.
4.Donald Knuth
The American scientist Donald Ervin Knuth is dubbed the 'Father of Algorithms'. He retired as a Professor Emeritus from the prestigious Stanford University, and is known for his work in developing and systemising formal mathematical techniques for the analysis of computational complexity of algorithms. His work has been instrumental in advancing the field of theoretical computer science, and popularising the asymptotic notation.
5.James Gosling
An Officer of the Order of Canada, James Arthur Gosling will forever be remembered as the creator of the Java Programming Language. Since 1994, application developers have been using Java and its 'write once, run anywhere' (WORA) features to code for computer and Android applications. Without Java, the smartphones we use today would probably not be the same! The importance of Gosling's work is reflected in his appointment as the Foreign Associate member of the United States National Academy of Engineering, and by the number of mobile applications flooding the internet today.
The list above is by no means comprehensive, and with the right education and career choices, you too could be on it someday! Make the most of your student years by enrolling in the ICAS Manipal International Transfer Programme and choose from the best foreign universities to complete your B. Tech abroad.
About ICAS Manipal
ICAS Manipal has been facilitating a unique International Transfer Programme for students wanting to study B.Tech abroad. Under the programme, students can complete the first two years of study at Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India. The following two years can be pursued at a premium university in the foreign country of their choice, such as USA, UK, Australia, Germany, Canada and France among others by transferring their credits obtained from the first two years of study.
| 754 |
Culture & Religion — April 5, 2018
How much does it matter whether God exists?
What are we really talking about when we debate the existence of God?
An Indian artist dressed as the Hindu goddess Kali participates in a procession to celebrate the Ram Navami festival. (Photo: Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images)
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Two rooms, in two different cities, but pretty much the same scene: one man stands before a few dozen supporters, many of them middle-aged white males, plus a smaller, precocious cohort in early adulthood. As the man speaks, they interrupt him with good, earnest, detailed questions, which he ably answers more or less to their satisfaction. These crowds crave the intricacies of arguments and the upshots of science. The only thing that seems beyond their ken is how their counterparts in the other room could be convinced of<|fim_middle|> do. I've come to care less whether anyone says they believe in God or not, and to care more about what they mean by that, and what they do about it.
This article was originally published at Aeon and has been republished under Creative Commons.
The Black Hole Information Paradox, Stephen Hawking's Greatest Puzzle, Is Still Unsolved
The paradox is one that Hawking himself claimed to have a solution to many times, but none of the proposals have held up to scrutiny. The paradox is still unresolved.With […] | something so wrong.
One of those rooms was in New York City, high in an office building overlooking the ruins that then still remained of the World Trade Center; the man was Richard Dawkins, the Oxford zoologist and 'New Atheist' polemicist. The man in the other room was his arch-rival, the evangelical Christian philosopher and debater William Lane Craig, speaking in a classroom on the sprawling campus of his megachurch in Marietta, Georgia. If one were to attend both events without understanding English, it would be hard to know the difference.
Whether such a thing as God exists is one of those questions that we use to mark our identities, choose our friends, and divide our families. But there are also moments when the question starts to seem suspect, or only partly useful. Once, backstage before a sold-out debate at the University of Notre Dame between Craig and Sam Harris, Dawkins's fellow New Atheist, I heard an elderly Catholic theologian approach Harris and spit out: 'I agree with you more than I do with that guy!'
During the heyday of the New Atheist movement, a few years after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, I was in the wake of a teenage conversion to Catholicism. One might think that my converts' zeal would pit me squarely against the New Atheist camp. But it didn't. Really, neither side of the does-God-exist debates seemed to represent me, and the arguments in question had little to do with my embrace of my new-found faith. I had been drawn by the loosey-goosey proposition that love can conquer hate and death, expressed concretely in the lives of monks I had briefly lived among and members of the Catholic Worker Movement who shared their homes with the homeless and abandoned. I actually agreed with most of what the New Atheists wrote about science and free enquiry; what I disagreed most sorely with them about was their hawkish support for military invasions in Muslim-majority countries.
Still, I became fascinated with the question of God as I tried to wrap my head around it for myself. I travelled around the world to meet God debaters, and studied the historical thinkers from whom their arguments derive. I found that I wasn't alone in doubting the pertinence of the question.
The thinkers who crafted the classic proofs for the existence of God – from Aristotle to Thomas Aquinas, for instance – were writing to audiences for whom the existence of divine beings was uncontroversial. The purposes of these proofs had more to do with contentions about what we mean by God, and how far into such matters human reason can really take us.
Consider, for instance, Anselm of Canterbury, an 11th-century monk who devised his proof in a fit of early morning ecstasy. His claim, which has been debated strenuously from its first publication until now, was that the very concept of God contained in it the proof of God's existence – which, to Anselm, was a testament to God's omnipresence and love. For centuries, his fiercest critics objected not to Anselm's God, but to his reasoning. Centuries later, the Jewish apostate Baruch Spinoza employed a very similar argument in 17th-century Holland: he took the reasoning but mostly put aside the God.
Today, Spinoza stands as a progenitor of the modern, scientific worldview. The atheist philosopher and novelist Rebecca Newberger Goldstein considers him 'the renegade Jew who gave us modernity'. Yet at the centre of his system is a proof for God, one very much akin to that of the Christian monk Anselm. Where Anselm saw the Christian God, Spinoza saw the totality of the universe. He insisted that this was indeed God, that he was not an atheist. In his devotion to reason, Spinoza became famous for his piety; the German Romantic poet Novalis would later call him the 'God-intoxicated man'.
Spinoza and Anselm both passionately believed in God, and adopted a similar way of thinking; the difference was in the kind of God they had in mind.
In the 20th century, the novelist and philosopher Iris Murdoch would take up their basic argument again. She saw in it neither Anselm's God the Father nor Spinoza's God of Nature, but the Good – the underpinning of morality and beauty in a post-religious world. When we compare her to Anselm and Spinoza, the question of God-or-no-God seems far less interesting than the argument they shared and the ways in which they tweaked its meaning. I wonder what Anselm and Murdoch would say to each other if they were to somehow meet.
What are we really talking about when we debate the existence of God? I think it can become a shortcut, a way of side-stepping more necessary and more difficult questions. Denouncing others as atheists, or as believers in a false God, can become an excuse to treat them as less than human, as undeserving of real consideration. When terrorists attack in the name of a certain God, it can seem easier to blame their religion than to consider their stated grievances about foreign military bases in their countries and foreigners backing their corrupt leaders. When religious communities reject scientific theories for bad reasons, it can seem easier to blame the fact that they believe in God, rather than to notice that other believers might accept the same theories for good reasons. Good ideas and bad ideas, good actions and bad actions – they're all on either side of the God divide.
Pope Francis's provocations in recent years have been palpable reminders of this. When Francis released his recent encyclical on ecology, many non-religious environmentalists received it more warmly than some of my fellow Catholics. Francis himself addressed the document not merely to Catholics, but to 'all people', and he has welcomed secular activists to the Vatican to discuss it. (The journalist Naomi Klein was so enthusiastic upon returning, she told me, that she had to remind herself 'not to drink too much Kool-Aid'.) Meanwhile, the conservative Catholic blogger Maureen Mullarkey dismissed it as an 'extravagant rant'. Catholic friends of mine found it depressing, while I read it by a lake with tears of joy. The fact that we share a belief in the God that Francis calls upon was, for better or worse, beside the point.
I believe in God, but I often find more common cause with those who say they don't than those who say they | 1,344 |
Researchers from the Acupuncture and Moxibustion department at Beijing Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital recently conducted a study for the treatment of migraines. Their study was conducted with a total of 140 patients through<|fim_middle|> migraine frequency but in intensity/pain as well, ultimately leading to complete remission of symptoms over time. | 5 hospitals to treat migraines pro-actively (migraine prophylaxis). The study was double-dummy, single-blinded, and randomized.
All of the patients included were having recurrent migraines, without aura, and were randomly assigned into 2 treatment groups, one with regular acupuncture and one with sham acupuncture and the generic calcium blocker drug flunarizine. Acupuncture treatments were offered 3 times per week and the medications were given nightly.
Researchers were primarily looking for reductions in frequency of migraines, however, they also analyzed intensity of the migraines when they happened. Patients were checked at the beginning of the study, then at week 4 and finally at week 16.
The study found that the acupuncture group had a significantly higher reduction in frequency of migraines vs. the medication group although reductions in pain of remaining migraines was mild and similar between the two groups.
Further studies should be performed with acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine to replicate what we often see clinically which is not only a reduction in | 206 |
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CNN LATE EDITION WITH WOLF BLITZER
Interview With Abdul Aziz Al-Hakim; Interview With Shimon Peres
Aired December 10, 2006 - 11:00 ET
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's 11:00 a.m. here in Washington, 8:00 a.m. in Los Angeles, 4:00 p.m. in London and 7:00 p.m. in Baghdad. Wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us for "Late Edition."
We'll get to my interview with James Baker and Lee Hamilton in a few minutes. First, though, let's check in with CNN's Fredricka Whitfield for a quick look at some other important news making headlines right now.
(NEWSBREAK)
BLITZER: Let's go live to Baghdad where our senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, has been watching the Iraqi reaction to the Iraq Study Group report and an unexpected visit by the secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld.
Nic, what's the latest?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Wolf, very surprising reaction from Iraq's Kurdish president, Jalal Talabani, a staunch ally of the United States, criticizing the Iraq Study Group's report, saying it undermines the sovereignty of Iraq.
He calls leaving so many U.S. military trainers training the Iraqi army undermines its sovereignty. He calls the study group's report unjust, unfair, and dangerous.
JALAL TALABANI, IRAQI PRESIDENT: I think that the Baker-Hamilton is not fair, is not just, and it contains some very dangerous articles which undermine the sovereignty of Iraq and the constitution.
ROBERTSON: And this comes on the heels of the words from another senior Kurdish leader in Iraq, saying that the study group plans to essentially take away from the Kurds control over their oil revenues, from the Kurdish area, putting it more under central government control. He called it unworkable.
The visit here by outgoing defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld was a very wide-ranging visit, highly secret. Military spokesmen here weren't aware of it before he was coming, couldn't tell us about it when he was here.
But he visited the al-Asad air base in the West, a massive Balad air base about 50 miles north of Baghdad, that is a major U.S. medical facility.
He came here to Baghdad -- the mission, it seemed, to thank troops, thank commanding officers for their work. He spent time with the troops, ate with them, talked with the officers here.
BLITZER: Nic Robertson, we'll check back it you in Baghdad. Thanks very much.
The Iraq study group and its blunt criticism of the war and the president's policy set off a political uproar here in Washington this week.
Joining us now, the two co-chairmen. In Houston, James Baker; he was the secretary of state under the first President Bush. He's now honorary chairman of the James Baker Institute for Public Policy at Rice University.
And here in Washington, Lee Hamilton, the former Democratic congressman from Indiana, currently the director of the Woodrow Wilson Institute for Scholars.
Gentlemen, thanks very much for coming in. Let me start with you, Secretary Baker.
Jalal Talabani, the president of Iraq, a man I assume you know quite well -- we've interviewed him many times -- very blunt in rejecting your report, saying it contains very dangerous articles that undermine the sovereignty of Iraq.
You just heard him. What's your reaction?
JAMES BAKER, IRAQ STUDY GROUP CHAIRMAN: Well, I think that's disappointing, if that's indeed what he said.
On the other hand, the only one that was cited in the report, Wolf, was the fact that we call for a sharing of oil proceeds. That's a part of national reconciliation.
And quite frankly, the whole future of Iraq depends upon whether or not the Iraqi government can effect a program of national reconciliation between Kurds, Shia and Sunni.
And one very indispensable element of that national reconciliation program is the sharing of oil proceeds on the basis of population. Everything we saw on our trip to Baghdad, everyone we talked to agreed with that.
BLITZER: Here, Congressman Hamilton, is exactly what Talabani, the president of Iraq, said.
I'll read it, specifically. "I think the Baker-Hamilton report is unfair and unjust. It contains very dangerous articles that undermine the sovereignty of Iraq and its constitution. I consider the report to be a type of insult to the Iraqi people... The report has a mentality that we are a colony where they impose their conditions and neglect our independence."
Those are strong words from the Kurdish president of Iraq.
LEE HAMILTON, IRAQ STUDY GROUP VICE CHAIRMAN: Part of the problem, I'm sure, is that we recommend conditional aid to Iraq, depending on their performance. We want them to meet a number of milestones with regard to national reconciliation, security, and delivering the basic services.
And if they do not meet those milestones, then we recommend a reduction in military or political or economic aid.
Up until this point, we've given a blank check to the Iraqis. And I'm not surprised that the president would like that sort of a deal.
But we believe that the American people want our aid to be conditional. We want that aid to be given only if there is a response from the Iraqi government that shows performance.
I do not believe that the American people want to extend $8 billion a month to Iraq, to a government that is not doing enough to stop killing in Iraq. And we want them to do something about it.
BLITZER: Secretary Baker, I suspect, also, because I've spoken with other Kurdish leaders, that they don't like your notion of having an international conference in which all of the regional neighbors of Iraq would be involved because, as you well know, and as Congressman Hamilton well knows and our viewers know, the Kurds have no great love for Turkey and they certainly don't want Turkey playing a role in the future of northern Iraq, which in effect, has become an autonomous Kurdistan.
BAKER: Well, they don't want Turkey playing a role in terms of moving in there and preventing them from enjoying the status that they currently enjoy, thanks, of course, totally to the actions of the first President Bush in 1991, as an autonomous region up there in the North.
But they certainly don't want the Turks coming in and clamping down on them. And that's one of the main purposes of our suggestion, not that there be a conference but that there be meetings of all of the countries neighboring Iraq, meetings sponsored by the United States and the government of Iraq, and meetings, by the way, that Prime Minister Maliki has supported.
So I'm really rather confused by that critique.
BLITZER: Congressman Hamilton, right after the president met with Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, arguably the most powerful Shiite politician in Iraq right now, and he made it clear he disagrees strongly with several of your key recommendations, including this notion of bringing in these regional players, of the neighbors. He's a Shiite leader. He wants to have, in the southern seven or nine provinces of Iraq, the same kind of autonomous area that the Kurds have in the North.
And he also doesn't want Sunni Arabs from Saudi Arabia, from Egypt, from Jordan, getting involved in what he sees as the future of a Shiite-led country in Iraq.
So you have the Kurdish leader, the Shiite leader both rejecting your recommendations or at least key aspects of your recommendations.
HAMILTON: Well, we want a unified Iraq. It doesn't surprise me that Hakim wants to exclude the Sunnis. You've got three groups, three large groups there -- Kurds, Sunnis and Shias -- and there's a real movement ahead, picking up, to shut out the Sunnis.
That's a prescription for ongoing war. It's a prescription for permanent war. The Sunnis will not accept a Shia-led government by itself if they're shut out of the deal and don't have a fair deal.
Now, moreover, all of our friends in the region are Sunni. And they're not going to let a government form in Iraq which is only Shia or only Kurd or a combination of the two.
So we have a prescription, under this approach, of kind of a permanent war.
BLITZER: Secretary Baker, go ahead.
BAKER: Wolf, let me answer that also. It could be a prescription for a wider regional war.
And, as Lee said, it's understandable, I think, that the Kurds, who would like their own independent state, might have some problem with some of the things we suggest in there, which is to support the president's vision, this current administration's vision, of an Iraq that can sustain itself, defend itself and govern itself, and that the Shia in the south might want their own state.
But that is a prescription for not just a broad-based civil war but a wider regional war.
HAMILTON: Yes.
BLITZER: Secretary Baker, the Kurds not excited about your report, to put it mildly. The Shia apparently not very happy as well, if you listen to Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, that interview coming up here on "Late Edition."
Listen to what a Sunni parliamentarian said this week, reacting to your report: "These recommendations might be a solution for the American crisis in Iraq but not a solution for the Iraqi crisis. The withdrawal of the American forces at a time when the Iraqi forces are still poorly trained is bad. There should first be a broad purging of the security elements, because they were established on a sectarian basis with militias. There is no assurance that they will enforce justice." So, at least Dhafir al-Ani not very happy about your recommendations either.
BAKER: Well, it would be a good idea for him to read the report, because we're not talking about a withdrawal before the training and equipping mission is proceeding, before additional Iraqi brigades are deployed. And any withdrawal would be subject, of course, to changed conditions on the ground. He ought to read the report before he makes those kind of suggestions.
BLITZER: I want Lee Hamilton to weigh in as well, because, you know, you're getting negative reaction from all the key groups in Iraq.
HAMILTON: Well, it doesn't surprise me that the Sunni leader wants us to stay there, because right now the American forces are protecting the Sunnis.
We've got to move these people toward the concept of a unified nation. President Bush is trying to do that. Our whole -- the premise of all of our policy in recent years has been a unified Iraq.
What you're seeing with all of these statements you're reading to us this morning is individual leaders talking about their own ethnic groups and looking at the situation from that perspective. If that is the perspective that these leaders are going to adopt, then there will be no unified Iraq, and there will be no United States presence there in a pretty short period of time.
We want a unified Iraq. We're prepared to put a lot of resources into it to get that. But these kinds of statements make it very difficult for us to do it.
BLITZER: You can want it all you want, obviously, but if they don't want it, it's going to be hard to impose a solution.
HAMILTON: That's right. But all of these leaders talked to us and said, "We want a unified Iraq."
BAKER: Yes.
HAMILTON: And our recommendations move in that direction.
BAKER: Wolf, you're absolutely right. If they don't want it, we're not going to get it. And we're not going to get it simply militarily. Unless they get together and actually receive national reconciliation and all of these statements go in the direction, as Lee just pointed out, of their own sect interest or ethnic group interest, unless they get national reconciliation, we are not going to solve the problems of Iraq.
BLITZER: All right, gentlemen, stand by, because we have a lot more to talk about.
We're going to take a quick break. Just ahead, we'll continue our conversation with James Baker and Lee Hamilton.
Then we'll go to Baghdad. We'll get an exclusive Sunday interview with arguably the most powerful Shiite politician in Iraq, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim. He was at the White House this week, met with the president. We'll tell you what he has to say.
And coming up later today for our North American viewers, an hour of excellent analysis of all aspects of the conflict in Iraq. "This Week in War," with our John Roberts, coming up at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, right after "Late Edition."
We'll be right back.
BLITZER: Welcome back to "Late Edition." I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. We're continuing our conversation with the two co- chairmen of the Iraq Study Group: the former Secretary of State James Baker and former Democratic Congressman Lee Hamilton of Indiana.
Secretary Baker, here's a question our viewers want to know: Is it worth it right now, given what you, yourself, point out in your report, $2 billion a week it's costing U.S. taxpayers, already nearly 3,000 Americans killed? If the U.S. stays for another year, let's say, and another 1,000 American troops are killed, 5,000 injured, $100 billion spent, is it going to really make a difference when all is said and done?
BAKER: Well, Wolf, you can't put any value on just one American life. There's no way to value that. And yet, we have significant national interest in what's going on in Iraq and in what's going on in the region.
We're there now. We simply cannot pick up and leave. Then you would have a broader-based civil conflict, you'd have a region-wide war. And America's interests all over that part of the world would be severely, severely damaged. So we really have no choice.
We say that you change in the primary mission of our forces, an enhanced and more active and vigorous diplomatic offensive. And conditionality, by way of our aid to the Iraqi government, can make a difference, it can help us succeed.
BLITZER: Because, as you know, Congressman Hamilton, a lot of your Democratic colleagues, former colleagues, in the Congress, they think it's over right now, and it's just imperative to get these American troops out of Iraq as quickly as possible, including John Murtha, who's been saying that at least for a year now.
What do you say to the American public who think that, you know what, it's simply not worth it to continue this policy, to continue to endanger these Americans?
HAMILTON: I think Jim's on the right track there when he talks about our large interests in the region. There's no area of the world that caused us more heartburn than the Middle East over a period of years. And we are trying to propose here not just a solution for Iraq but a comprehensive, diplomatic strategy that would begin to deal with all of the problems in that region.
Look, Iraq is where -- it's an oil-rich nation. It is where the Sunnis and Shias, kind of, come together. It is a country that's, kind of, at the crossroads, in that sense.
And instability in Iraq is going to spill over all over the place in that region. And you could really have a very, very chaotic situation which would be very detrimental to American interests.
BLITZER: It's interesting, Secretary Baker, that a lot of the criticism here in the United States, domestically, of your report not coming from Democrats but from the conservative element, especially among your fellow Republicans.
The New York Post had an editorial, "The Counsel of Cowards" it was entitled. "The study group offers 79 recommendations, adding up to a cowardly exit from Iraq and the abandonment of tens of thousands of Iraqis who took America's promises at face value. Also to be tossed overboard are regional allies who believed America has the will to finish the fight it began." And then it had a front page, you saw, "Surrender Monkeys." You and Lee Hamilton depicted on the front page of the New York Post.
What is your reaction to that?
BAKER: Well, my reaction is, if you believe that editorial, you believe in the tooth fairy. That's simply not true.
The fact of the matter is that we have a comprehensive strategy here that we have proposed that involves military, political, diplomatic, and a change in the nature of our relationship and our approach to the Iraqi government.
There is no provision in here for a blanket withdrawal. There is a provision -- there are calls in here for changing the primary mission of our forces. I don't think the American people want their sons and daughters to continue to be sent to Iraq to referee sectarian violence between different sects in Iraq.
We still think we can achieve the president's goal of an Iraq that can defend itself, support itself and sustain itself, govern itself, if we make the changes that we have suggested.
We said before we started this, Wolf, that we were going to be criticized from all sides, and, indeed, that's probably true.
But the truth of the matter is, America has a huge problem here. The administration has a big problem here. It's not going to be solved by those kinds of comments and editorials. And it's not going to be solved, frankly, by resort to politics as usual. And that's a little bit of what that is.
The American people don't want this to be treated as just a political matter. They want it to be treated with the seriousness that it demands.
BLITZER: Are you encouraged or discouraged, Congressman Hamilton -- because we only have a few seconds left -- by the initial response from President Bush?
Because you met with him; you heard his public statements. He's not excited about unconditional talks with Iran and Syria. He's not excited about a timetable for a precipitous, in his words, U.S. withdrawal.
HAMILTON: We don't want a precipitous withdrawal either.
Yes, we're encouraged. He said that this report, he points out it's bipartisan, that it may be the basis for common ground. He's going to be getting a lot of recommendations in the next few days. This is the only recommendation he's going to get that's bipartisan, that can bring us together as a country, that can unify our efforts as a country.
We're not going to be have unanimous support for any proposal in Iraq. This is a way forward with an effective proposal that takes into account the political environment in Washington, keenly split, the political environment in Iraq, also split; permits us and the Iraqis to join together as a way to conclude this war while protecting the American interest.
I think the president has to look at this very, very hard before he goes off on another choice.
BLITZER: Well, he said he's actually read the whole report. I have, as well, and I recommend it to our viewers here in the United States and around the world.
Lee Hamilton, thanks very much for coming in.
Secretary Baker, always a pleasure having you on "Late Edition," as well.
BAKER: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: And good luck to everyone involved in this effort.
Coming up in just a few minutes, will any policy changes end the violence and the death in Iraq? We'll speak with one of Baghdad's most powerful politicians, the Shiite leader, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, in an exclusive Sunday interview.
And we're also following all of today's other important news. The Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani, rejecting the Iraq Study Group report. In Lebanon, Hezbollah and other anti-government forces holding massive protests. And another typhoon hits the Philippines.
We'll bring you all of the latest developments. Stay right here. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (NEWSBREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to "Late Edition." I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.
U.S. officials say Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of the largest Shiite political party in Iraq, has enormous influence in the shape of a future Iraq. He met this past week with President Bush and Vice President Cheney here in Washington.
Following those talks, I spoke with Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, also here in Washington.
BLITZER: Your Eminence, thanks very much for coming in. Welcome to Washington. Welcome to "Late Edition."
ABDUL AZIZ AL-HAKIM, UNITED IRAQI ALLIANCE LEADER (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I would like also to express my thanks to you, to allow me -- to give me the opportunity to talk to the Washington people.
BLITZER: Thank you.
You come at a momentous time to Washington. I know you met with the president of the United States and the vice president of the United States and other top U.S. officials. You also come when the Iraq Study Group has issued its report, making recommendations to the president.
Here is one recommendation which represents a direct pressure point on your government, the government of Prime Minister Nouri al- Maliki. I'll read it to you.
"If the Iraqi government does not make substantial progress toward the achievement of milestones on national reconciliation, security and governance, the United States should reduce political, military or economic support for the Iraqi government."
Is this a wise U.S. strategy?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Regardless of what came in this report, but actually there are a lot of positive things in it. And one of them is it's a pro-the reconciliation, national reconciliation.
The reconciliation did not come because of the pressure of the United States or any other forces, outsiders, but it was just coming from the Iraqi government itself. And it was given to the parliament, and the parliament voted on it.
BLITZER: It looks like the situation in Iraq right now is falling apart. The situation seems to be deteriorating, even as we speak. AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It's not out of control, because this government is controlling everything. And this government is taking care of security. And there are, of course, violence in Baghdad, in some other governorates. But in some areas, it's quiet. There are a lot of efforts to stop the violence in many directions.
BLITZER: Here's what the report says: "The Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq," your organization, "seeks the creation of an autonomous Shia region comprising nine provinces in the south. Hakim has consistently protected and advanced his party's position. SCIRI has close ties with Iran."
Here's the question: Are you aligned with Iran right now? And do you want to create a Shiite theocracy in Iraq aligned with Iran?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): This is not up to us. The constitution says that -- it just declared the federation, and it was voted on, and it's not up to our council. It was by the Iraqi people, and it was voted up on this federation.
And the coalition that we are part of agreed upon having those nine governorates to be part of the federation. And, of course, it will not take place unless the whole Iraqi people vote on it and accept it.
BLITZER: Are you aligned with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, as this Iraq Study Group alleges?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): This is also an inaccurate statement, because we have a strong relationship with Iran, as well as we have a strong relationship with the United States. We have good relationships with many countries.
But when it comes to the whole national decision, we make our national decision on our own, without the interference of outsiders.
BLITZER: Do you want an international conference, including all of Iraq's neighbors -- Iran, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt -- to be involved in trying to ease the crisis in Iraq right now? In other words, do you want Arab Sunnis outside of Iraq playing a role in determining your country's future?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It's well-known that the Iraqi problem is an internal and external one. And whatever effort outsiders do and support us with that, we welcome any effort and any initiative. But when it comes to the decision, of course, and it's conditional that they don't just take the decision-making from us.
There were many meetings, regional, the countries. They had many meetings about Iraq, and this is not the first time. So they did that before.
BLITZER: When do you want United States troops out of Iraq? How quickly would you like to see U.S. forces leave? AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Of course we would like to see the American forces withdraw, allied forces withdraw as soon as possible. But this depends on the opinion of the military and security experts and the political experts in this, to decide what is the right step for that and what is the timetable for that.
BLITZER: Do you think the presence of American forces, 140,000, 145,000 U.S. troops in Iraq are helping your country or hurting your country?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Of course the number is not a factor, but what is important is for the Iraqi people and the Iraqi government to take care of their own business.
BLITZER: So you would like the U.S. troops to leave?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): We would like, of course, to see them go safe back to their country. And we will welcome them as visitors to our country. And this is the will of every nation. They don't like to see foreign troops on their soil.
BLITZER: Do you believe there is a civil war in your country right now between Iraqi Sunni versus Iraqi Shia?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I cannot say that this is a civil war. Of course, there are some sectarian violence in some areas, but not in all Iraq. But that's what we can see, not civilian war, but some sectarian violence.
Of course, the Sunni leadership -- the Sunni religious leadership, and the Shia leadership also, they don't agree with that, and they don't like to see any violence.
BLITZER: Here is what the Iraq Study Group recommended this week: "As part of a solution to the crisis in Iraq," it said, "there must also be a renewed commitment by the United States to a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace on all fronts: Lebanon, Syria, and President Bush's June 2002 commitment to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine."
Do you support a two-state solution, Israel living alongside Palestine?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Of course, this report represents the people who put it, and it's up to them. I cannot judge all the documents, and I cannot judge whatever came into this report. And it depends on the people who put it.
BLITZER: But do you believe, Your Eminence, that Israel has a right to exist?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Currently I'm not thinking about anything except Iraq.
BLITZER: I ask the question because of your close relationship with the president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who said a year ago, "Israel must be wiped off the map of the world, and God willing, with the force of God behind it, we shall soon experience a world without the United States and Zionists."
Do you agree with him or disagree with him?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): There are many present (ph) politicians who've said many things and talked about many things. But currently we are concentrating on Iraq and the Iraqi issue.
BLITZER: So you don't want to say whether or not you believe in a two-state solution, Israel and Palestine?
Because here in the United States, you know, Israel is a very close ally of the United States. And there is concern that, because of the Iranian position to try to destroy Israel and your alignment with Iran, there is concern about you.
That's why I ask these questions, to give you an opportunity to reassure the American public that you don't stand with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on that sensitive issue.
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): We respect the legitimacy of all other countries and their politics and everything they do. But we now are concentrating about the Iraqi issues. And we will not go beyond the Iraqi issues.
BLITZER: So you don't want to answer that?
I don't want to press the issue much more, but I clearly hear you saying you don't want to answer that question.
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Everyone who understands, it's his right to understand whatever. I explained what I have to explain.
BLITZER: The other sensitive issue that people want to know your position is on, because this has come up often, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's rejection that there was a Holocaust.
Do you believe that there was a Holocaust in which 6 million Jews were killed?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I am currently thinking about the Iraqi issues.
BLITZER: Would you like to be the leader of Iraq one day?
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): My ambition is to stay as a servant for the Iraqi people.
BLITZER: Thank you very much for giving me some time. Welcome to Washington.
AL-HAKIM (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I would like also to express my gratitude for giving me the opportunity to talk to your viewers.
(END VIDEOTAPE) BLITZER: And coming up, we'll get a very, very different perspective. Is the situation in Iraq linked to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict?
We'll ask the Israeli vice premier, Shimon Peres.
And later, Representatives Jane Harman and Chris Shays on how changes in Iraq policy will play on Capitol Hill. "Late Edition" will be right back.
BLITZER: Welcome back to "Late Edition." I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. In the Iraq Study Group report, the Arab-Israeli conflict is seen as inextricably linked to the situation in Iraq.
I put this issue to the former Israeli prime minister, the current vice premier, Shimon Peres, when we spoke here earlier.
BLITZER: Prime Minister Peres, thanks very much for joining us. Welcome to Washington.
SHIMON PERES, ISRAELI VICE PREMIER: Thank you.
BLITZER: A lot of commotion as a result of the Iraq Study Group's recommendation, among other things, a recommendation that directly involves Israel.
I'll read it to you. "There must be a renewed and sustained commitment by the United States to a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace on all fronts: Lebanon and Syria, and President Bush's June 2002 commitment to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine."
In other words, the study group recommends a much more assertive U.S. involvement. And that, in turn, could help the U.S. in Iraq. Your reaction?
PERES: The problem is not to state commitment. All of us are for it. The problem is, there is a two-party situation among the Palestinians. They are split.
The problem is not so much how to build a Palestinian state on the side of the state of Israel but how to unite the Palestinians.
BLITZER: But the general notion that James Baker and Lee Hamilton and their colleagues have that, in order to ease the crisis, potentially a catastrophe, in Iraq, the United States has to get much more intimately involved on the Israeli-Palestinian front.
PERES: I wish it would help. The problem is that there are two different wars. One political, which Abu Mazen, or Abbas, as they call him, is having...
BLITZER: Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority?
PERES: Right. And the other is religious: Hamas. Hamas is not looking for a territorial solution. They want to get rid of Israel. They don't look for victory. They look for domination of the Iranians, the Hamas and the Hezbollah, over the Middle East, religiously.
So you will talk to them and they won't answer. Today the prime minister, on behalf of Hamas, said that, even if we should reach an agreement, we will not recognize Israel.
BLITZER: We're going to get to that shortly.
Another element in the Iraq Study Group's report that came out this past week included a call for the Bush administration to engage in a direct dialogue with Iran and Syria, without preconditions.
And to entice the Syrians, it said this: "In the context of a full and secure peace agreement, the Israelis should return the Golan Heights, with a U.S. security guarantee for Israel that could include an international force on the border, including U.S. troops, if requested by both parties."
Is this a good idea?
PERES: This is a second step. The first step to recommend is that Syria will disconnect relations with Hezbollah. I don't see the first step. So obviously, how can you have the second step?
Basically, we are all for embracing peace. We would like to negotiate some time, somehow. But the Syrians have a double policy. If the Palestinians are split, the Syrians are double...
BLITZER: But hypothetically, if the Syrians were willing to accept these conditions, sever their ties with Hezbollah, other so- called terrorist groups that the U.S. regard as terrorist groups, and negotiate a settlement, a full peace agreement with Israel, would Israel be ready to give up the Golan Heights?
PERES: Israel has shown, in the past, it was ready. Actually, we have had a full agreement with the Syrians. At the last minute, when President Clinton flew to Geneva, to meet Assad the father, and they were sure it was going through, and at the last minute, he said no. All the story with the Syrians is spent (ph) with "no" and "no" and "no."
BLITZER: But was Israel willing to give up all of the Golan Heights?
PERES: At that time, more or less, yes. The difference was minor. It was bridgeable. That was done by...
BLITZER: Do you think the current Israeli government -- you're the vice premier -- would be<|fim_middle|> John Burns was saying, on the ground, and I've reported this; others have reported that the study group says, oh, it is a grave and deteriorating situation...
BLITZER: "Dire" was one of the words.
WOODWARD: Yes. But that's been known. And George Bush knows that and has known that for two years. His own chief of staff, Andy Card, two years ago, recommended that Rumsfeld be replaced because of some of the problems identified in this report.
So the question is: What's going to move Bush, who's the commander in chief, who's going to make this decision?
BLITZER: Is it too little, too late, these recommendations of the Iraq Study Group?
Should these recommendations have been made a year or two ago?
WOODWARD: Sure, obviously. And there should have been a realization -- and this is one of the points of my book -- that there is a truth here on the ground that has not been absorbed in the strategy and the tactics.
And so we are in a situation where, as somebody told me, and I think John Burns would verify this, Iraq is like a Mad Max movie -- the level of violence -- we can't even measure it, as this Iraq Study Group points out.
BLITZER: And they're under-reporting it, apparently, the U.S. government, as well, the level of violence.
John, I read all your columns, all your articles in the New York Times. Let me refer to something you wrote on November 12th: "It is something ordinary Iraqis say with growing intensity, even as they agree on little else. Let there be a strongman, they say, not a relentless killer like Saddam Hussein but somebody who will take the hammer to the insurgents and the death squads and the kidnappers and the criminal gangs."
I've heard this from others outside of Iraq, including some prominent Arab leaders in the region, who say what Iraq really needs right now is a strongman; forget about democracy. Elaborate on what you were writing. BURNS: Well, it's an irony -- perhaps you could even say a tragedy -- of the American enterprise in Iraq that those two elections which brought, ultimately, something like 12 million of the 27 million Iraqis to the polls and which gave everybody so much hope that there was going to be a turn for the better has actually only worsened things here by bringing to power -- and I'm not only talking about the government, the Shiite religious parties, but basically, sectarian interests.
And it's very hard to discern, anywhere in the political class here, a strongman. The one thing, as I wrote in that piece, that all Iraqis agree on is that the Democratic experiment, though it has brought them freedoms that they yearned for, for so long, has done absolutely nothing to stem the tide of the war. And there is a very wide agreement that they could dispense with much of the trappings of democracy if only they could get somebody -- who, it's not very clear; perhaps Ayad Allawi, the first prime minister, the first of three Iraqi prime ministers we've seen since June 2004 -- and give him plenipotentiary powers.
But that's about as unrealistic as anything that you're going to find, frankly, in the Baker-Hamilton report, insofar as it would be likely to bring an end to this conflict at this stage.
BLITZER: It seems like that violence is escalating.
And I want to pick up that point you just made, Bob Woodward, on the intensity of the violence. Here's from the Iraq Study Group Report: "On one day in July 2006, there were 93 attacks or significant acts of violence reported. Yet a careful review of the reports for that single day brought to light 1,100 acts of violence. Good policy is difficult to make when information is systematically collected in a way that minimizes its discrepancy with policy goals."
You wrote a whole book about this, that there was wishful thinking, a state of denial.
WOODWARD: Yes. And those secret reports that I have in the book and report on go to the president. He knows this.
And so, you know, we're in a situation, really, where there has got to be some strategic realignment. This study group says that there are no new ideas. I'm not sure. I mean, John Burns, kind of, suggested one. It's not something you can adopt as a policy. A strongman...
BLITZER: But for this administration to say, you know what, forget about democracy; let's put a Tito...
... or someone who's powerful, who can unite the Shia and the Kurds and the Sunnis with an iron fist, that's not exactly in line with what the president has been saying.
WOODWARD: No. It would be a contradiction. But if the reality on the ground gives us that and it's somebody that we can deal with, maybe that's where we're going.
Also, the factor that disturbs me in all of this is there's no focus on the troops. The troops are the chessmen and women on the board who get moved around for policy or somebody's political cover and so forth.
And too few people are thinking about them.
And the X factor in all of this is Bob Gates. Now he's going to be secretary of defense. As he said, he's not going to be a bump on a log, that he's going to come in and he's going to look at this situation. He's a former CIA director, a realist. And he's going to say, "What the hell have we got ourselves into?"
And something dramatic is going to have to be done. You can't move around the edges on this. This idea that the Iraq Study Group has put forward of, "Well, let's just embed more U.S. forces in the Iraqi units; maybe let's quadruple it" -- I mean, John Burns can tell you, reporters who've been with those units, that's going to do absolutely nothing. And to do it effectively would take years.
BLITZER: All right, guys. Stand by, because we're going to continue this conversation.
A lot more to come up with right after a short break. Bob Woodward and John Burns with more on their special insights from here in Washington and Baghdad.
Stay with "Late Edition." We'll be right back.
We're just getting this in from the Associated Press and Reuters. Military hospital in Chile, in Santiago, says now that the former dictator, Augusto Pinochet, has died. We'll stay on top of this story, bring you the reaction, the fallout. The Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, dead, according to wire service reports.
From Washington to Baghdad, the buzz this week over the Iraq Study Group, its downbeat assessment of the war, and fresh questions of how President Bush will respond. Still with us, Bob Woodward here in Washington, John Burns in Baghdad.
John, the reaction from Iraqi leaders, including the president, Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, today, very negative to this Iraq Study Group recommendations. I spoke with Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, arguably the most influential Shiite political leader in Iraq right now. Sunnis not very happy with it.
Give us your sense of what, if anything, this Iraq Study Group is going to accomplish inside Iraq.
BURNS: Well, my first impression, when the report came down and we began talking to Iraqi leaders about it, was that it didn't seem to have done anything to stir their sense of urgency.
Their reactions all went, as far as we could tell, to their sectarian interests. The Kurds are worried about oil. The Shiites are worried about the constitutional review that the Baker-Hamilton group wants. They're worried about the disbanding and disarming of their militias and so forth.
And I think that many of them were drawn immediately to that qualifier you already cited on the troop withdrawal, American troop withdrawal, barring unexpected developments on the ground. And I think they saw that as the kind of get-out which may well allow them to continue squabbling amongst themselves for quite a long time.
BLITZER: Bob, I want to pick up on something that you spoke about, the new, incoming defense secretary, Robert Gates, to succeed Donald Rumsfeld, who made a surprise visit to Baghdad in Iraq this weekend.
In your book, "State of Denial," you write this: "Some of the senior civilians Rumsfeld appointed were astonished and alarmed at how hard he was now squeezing the Pentagon controls. He micromanaged daily Pentagon life and rode roughshod over people. Rumsfeld's micromanaging was almost comic."
All right. What's going to be the impact now of a new defense secretary with clearly different perspectives coming in?
WOODWARD: Well, he was not there for the war, and so he's going to make a fresh assessment of it. And they have to come up with something -- I used the word "dramatic" or "different," not incremental. Incremental doesn't work anymore.
For instance, I've heard the idea of literally issuing the Iraqi government an ultimatum and saying, "You have 120 days, and then we are moving all our troops out of the violent areas and the cities to the border, to various enclaves, getting our troops out of the line of fire. And in that 120 days, we want to see what you're going to do."
And then, you know, we know in our business that deadlines matter. And sometimes you have to live with deadlines. And sometimes it's very, very painful. And people say, "Oh, no, it can't be done."
But the ball has to move here. Not only politically is there this agitation, but the troops -- what about the troops? How do they feel about this? And they're not happy.
BLITZER: John, how would the Iraqis react to that kind of ultimatum?
BURNS: I don't think that they think they're going to get that kind of ultimatum. I mean, they will have read those first 50 pages of the Baker- Hamilton report as closely as you and I and everybody else did. And they will notice, amongst other things, that Baker-Hamilton raised the moral question. That's just to say, if you will -- it's my term, not theirs -- having broken this society by toppling Saddam Hussein, tyrannical as he was, the assumption of moral responsibility that the United States has to somehow see Iraq through.
Then there are the much wider political questions about the consequences for the United States of a meltdown in the region and of a war in Iraq, a civil war, which I think everybody here thinks would be catastrophic beyond present imagining.
One of my Iraqi friends said to me, "OK, the United Nations says 3,700 Iraqis died in October, civilians." He said, "There will be that many in my district alone in one night" -- he's a Sunni in Baghdad -- "if American troops are withdrawn."
So I think the Iraqi leaders think that that point is not likely to come.
BLITZER: Do you want to react to that?
WOODWARD: Well, yes. I'm not suggesting that the troops leave Iraq. In fact, it's quite possible they will send a handful or even more in. There has to be some strategic realignment.
Our troops are in the crossfire. You know, John talks to them, I get e-mails, I hear from people. And they say they go out and they're waiting to be attacked, and that this is a very passive role they have. They don't like it.
You need some change. That's all. And he's right, you can't pull out instantly, or perhaps you can't set a timetable. But you need something that people will say, "Oh, this is a change, and this has a chance of working." It may not work.
BLITZER: We've got to leave it there, unfortunately.
Bob Woodward's new book, "State of Denial," a best-seller. Thanks very much, Bob, for coming in.
John Burns of the New York Times, thanks very much to you. Stay safe over there.
We'll take a quick break. We'll be right back.
BLITZER: An update for you who are following the story: The former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, dead at the age of 91, this coming in from a military hospital in Santiago.
Pinochet, perhaps the most controversial and notorious of the old Latin American military dictators. Augusto Pinochet, dead at 91. We'll be right back.
BLITZER: I just want to repeat the news we've been reporting. The former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, dead, CNN has now confirmed, at the age of 91, at a military hospital in Santiago. Augusto Pinochet suffered a heart attack last week. And now, in case you missed it, let's check some of the highlights from the other Sunday morning talk shows here in the United States.
On ABC, the British prime minister, Tony Blair, worried about creating any timetable for withdrawal from Iraq.
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I think we've got to plan to succeed. And I think that, if we start saying to the people that we're fighting in Iraq that we're ready to get out, irrespective of the success of the mission, I think that would be very serious.
BLITZER: On Fox, Republican Senator Sam Brownback supported a change in Iraq policy.
SEN. SAM BROWNBACK (R-KS): The country's been pretty patient on Iraq. But now it's time to move things forward.
It's time to get things in the security environment handed over to the Iraqis. It's time to get the regional political atmosphere such that we can engage people in the region instead of them poking at us all the time inside of Iraq, us going to them and really trying to engage.
I think it is really time for us to engage in new strategy.
BLITZER: On CBS, Democratic Senator Carl Levin emphasized what he thought was the Iraq Study Group Report's bottom line.
SEN. CARL LEVIN (D-MI): The key element to this report, to me, is that they say that there is no military solution in Iraq; there is only a political solution in Iraq, and that the Iraqis have got to come together politically.
The Iraqi prime minister acknowledged that the reason that the violence is continuing is because the Iraqis have not reached a political settlement. We've got to put pressure on the Iraqis to do exactly that.
BLITZER: Finally, on NBC, The Washington Post's Pentagon reporter, Tom Ricks, the author of the important book, "Fiasco," gave a prediction on how much longer he thinks U.S. troops will be in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TOM RICKS, WASHINGTON POST PENTAGON REPORTER: I think we'll be in Iraq, probably, for 10 to 15 years, with American troops much reduced in their numbers. That's, kind of, the best-case scenario.
BLITZER: Highlights from the other Sunday morning talk shows here on "Late Edition," the last word in Sunday talk.
And that's your "Late Edition" for this Sunday, December 10. Please be sure to join us again next Sunday and every Sunday for two hours, starting at 11:00 a.m. Eastern.
"Late Edition," the last word in Sunday talk. And remember, I'm also in "The Situation Room" Monday through Friday from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Eastern, and then for another hour at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. Until tomorrow, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.
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Download audio news | Add RSS headlines | willing to do the same if there were a change of heart in Damascus?
PERES: I don't see the change of heart. The present government says we are seeking a full-fledged peace with everybody.
But the Syrians are connected with Hezbollah. The Syrians are hosting the headquarters of Hamas. The Syrians don't want to meet with us.
So, I mean, as a wish, I'm all for it. The problem is, is it more than a wishful thinking? I wish it would be a reality.
BLITZER: On Iran, the study group recommends, also, that the U.S. open up a direct dialogue with Iran and not link it to Iran stopping its enrichment of uranium program.
Your prime minister, Ehud Olmert, said the other day -- he said this. He said, "It is absolutely intolerable for Israel to accept the threat of a nuclear Iran. I prefer not to discuss the Israeli options. Israel has many options."
But your minister of strategic affairs, Avigdor Lieberman, said this on Thursday.
BLITZER: He said, "We must also be prepared to deal alone with this problem. The dialogue with Iran will be a 100-percent failure, just like it was with North Korea.
PERES: Well, I'm not so sure, you know. I think Iran is a problem for the rest of the world. I wouldn't recommend that Israel will monopolize it and make it an Iranian-Israeli conflict. It will be a mistake. Israel has enough troubles of her own.
And I cannot see how the world can tolerate an Iranian bomb and, as a consequence, a Middle Eastern nuclear situation. It will go (inaudible) to terroristic organizations. Even the Russians have to think what will happen if a nuclear bomb will arrive, for example, to Chechnya.
So why should we monopolize it? I think it's a danger.
Now, to talk with Iran, we have had relations with Iran, different Iran. The problem is...
BLITZER: You had relations when the shah was in power.
PERES: The shah, the first king in history that liberalized Israel and was for immigration to Israel was Cyrus, the emperor of Iran, of Persia. He was the best friend Israel had.
BLITZER: That was a long time ago.
PERES: Well, we have time maybe to take a shorter time. The shah wasn't a long time ago. The problem is not Iran, not the Iranian people. The problem is the ayatollahs. If you can talk with ayatollahs, God bless you.
BLITZER: Let's talk a little bit about this book by former President Jimmy Carter entitled "Palestine Peace, Not Apartheid." You worked with Jimmy Carter for a long time. I don't know if you've had a chance to read the book, but it's caused quite a bit of controversy here in the United States, I assume in Israel as well.
PERES: I'm not surprised by it. Jimmy Carter did a brilliant job in Camp David.
BLITZER: Back in 1978.
PERES: Back in 1978. And without him, I'm not sure if Camp David would take place. Shall never forget it. I think this was the most brilliant achievement of his presidency. He really did a great job.
Now, he knows Israel for apartheid -- can a Jewish person be for apartheid? A people that, throughout history, suffered from discrimination, from apartheid of any sort. We shall be for apartheid? Doesn't he know it?
BLITZER: He says that he's not saying that there's apartheid in Israel, but, in effect, in the Israeli-occupied territories, the West Bank. Listen precisely to what he told me, the other day, here on CNN. Listen to this.
JIMMY CARTER, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the West Bank, in the occupied territories, a horrible example of apartheid is being perpetrated against the Palestinians who live there. Israel has penetrated and occupied, confiscated and colonized major portions of the territory belonging to the Palestinians.
BLITZER: Strong words from the former president of the United States.
PERES: Yes, but I'm even more surprised listening to it. He knows perfectly well the Palestinians are divided in two parts. One parts wants to make this -- we promise to help and support the Palestinian state, to give practically all of the land back. What sort of an apartheid?
The other side, there is Hamas. Hamas is against anybody and everybody who is not religious in their sense, who is modern. I mean, without them, the Palestinians would have already a state a long time ago. They postponed it. How can you accuse us?
You know, even take Hamas. We gave back Gaza completely to the Palestinians. We took out all the soldiers from there. We dismantled settlements by force. We paid $2 billion compensation. We handed over the whole land.
Who doesn't enable them to be independent and be alone? I can't understand Mr. Carter. President Carter is a man of fact. He should know it. How can he call it apartheid?
BLITZER: We have to leave it right there. Shimon Peres, the vice prime minister of Israel. Prime Minister, thanks very much for coming in.
PERES: Thank you.
BLITZER: And just ahead, we'll get a closer look at what changes we can really expect in Iraq from two Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters: Bob Woodward of The Washington Post and John Burns of the New York Times.
For our North American viewers, coming up at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, "This Week at War," with John Roberts. That follows "Late Edition."
BLITZER: This is "Late Edition," the last word in Sunday talk.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If we were to fail, that failed policy will come to hurt generations of Americans in the future.
BLITZER: President Bush sticking to his guns on the war, as the Iraq Study Group turns up the heat. Will Mr. Bush accept new proposals?
And can he regain confidence on Capitol Hill?
We'll talk to two key House members, Democrat Jane Harman and Republican Christopher Shays.
BAKER: We do not recommend a "stay the course" solution. In our opinion, that approach is no longer viable.
And the fall-out of the Iraq report in Washington and Baghdad; insight from two Pulitzer prize-winning reporters, Bob Woodward of The Washington Post and John Burns of the New York Times.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN in Washington, this is "Late Edition" with Wolf Blitzer.
BLITZER: Welcome back. We'll get to my interview with Congresswoman Jane Harman and Congressman Chris Shays in just a moment. First, though, let's go to Fredricka Whitfield at the CNN Center for a quick check of what's in the news right now.
(NEWSBREAK) BLITZER: Let's go live to Beirut right now, with hundreds of thousands of protesters once again on the streets, demanding changes in the government.
Brent Sadler, our Beirut bureau chief, is right in the center of the action. What's the latest there, Brent?
BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF: Well, first of all, Wolf, you can hear, very loud, the noise coming out of downtown Beirut. For the past four hours, the city has been paralyzed, once again, by a massive show of strength, supporting the Hezbollah-led opposition that's trying to bring down the U.S.-backed prime minister, Fouad Siniora, who heads a very wobbly government.
However, that government is pledging to hold firm against these continuing protests, accusing the Hezbollah-led alliance of trying to mount a coup, using the momentum of the street to topple the Siniora government.
For the first time this day, there have been counter-protests in the North, in the important Sunni Muslim town of Tripoli. Large numbers there, smaller than here in downtown Beirut but no less politically significant, Wolf.
Now, where is all this leading?
Many people here in Lebanon fear that there is a dangerous sectarian divide separating these rival camps, and that while there has just been one protester killed during the past week, in an isolated incident, given the levels of security with the masses of armed troops, armed security police, and coils of barbed wire around the prime ministry complex of Fouad Siniora, where at least half a dozen of his cabinet ministers are holed up, very grave concerns that this deepening deadlock bodes ill for the near future of Lebanon. Back to you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Brent, we'll watch it closely with you. Thank you very much for that report.
The Iraq study group talked up its bipartisanship, its single voice and unanimous findings. But will the president implement their 79 recommendations?
And how will the U.S. Congress respond?
Joining us now, two veterans of the Iraq debate and of the political wars here in Washington: Democratic Congresswoman Jane Harman of California -- she's been a long-serving member of the House Intelligence Committee -- and Republican Congressman Chris Shays of Connecticut. He's been to Iraq 15 times, more than any other U.S. lawmaker.
Congressman, thanks very much for coming in.
Welcome in, and I'll start with you, Jane Harman. Is it time, right now, for the U.S. to cut its losses and simply pull out of Iraq? REP. JANE HARMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: It's time to change the strategy. And the ISG report lays out a good baseline to change that strategy.
I'm from California, Wolf. And I think we had an earthquake on November 7 when the Republicans were removed from power over the Iraq and corruption issues.
There were two aftershocks. The first one was Rumsfeld leaving. And the second is this report. The fact that it's being shot at from the right and the left shows me that it's pretty sound.
Not every detail is sound. It leaves out energy independence. And I think it fails to notice that the reality on the ground is a partitioning of the country, which I think is OK. But it is time to change our strategy. "Stay the course" is dead.
BLITZER: But you're willing to keep U.S. troops in Iraq, combat forces, for at least another year, whatever the cost, whatever the consequences?
HARMAN: No. I insist that we change the strategy. The report says we should embed troops and start moving our troops out. It doesn't set a firm timetable, except to say, in '08, they should be substantially out. Maybe that timetable should be shorter.
I don't know that I have enough information to say what it is. But I do know that the military mission to have large amounts of troops in Iraq to secure the country has failed and we have to change that strategy now.
Your Republican colleague, Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon, was very emotional the other day on the Senate floor, in coming out -- and he's a good conservative Republican -- and saying, this is not working; it's time to cut losses. Listen to what he said.
SEN. GORDON SMITH (R-OR): I, for one, am at the end of my rope when it comes to supporting a policy that has our soldiers patrolling the same streets, in the same way, being blown up by the same bombs, day after day.
BLITZER: Congressman Shays, he also goes on to say, This may be, may be criminal, what the U.S. government is doing right now.
REP. CHRISTOPHER SHAYS (R), CONNECTICUT: I think he means "criminal" in this sense. It's just outrageous to have our soldiers play Russian roulette: Which car drives by them that has the bomb? Which barrel has the shell?
And so, clearly, staying the course is wrong. And the study committee is right in identifying it. And they're very sensible. They're saying transition Iraqi and American positions, particularly in patrolling the streets; reconciliation. The Iraqis are starting to do that. They've done it on de-Baathification and now with oil. And the last one is you need a diplomatic effort in the neighborhood.
All of that makes tremendous sense. And the key point, I think, is where they say it has to be conditional. In other words, we stay as long as the Iraqis do their part. But the moment they stop doing their part, we're out of there.
BLITZER: Because we're hearing from President Jalal Talabani today, in my interview with Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, the Shiite leader, Sunni politicians -- they don't like this Iraq study report.
They think the U.S. is trying to impose a deal on the Iraqis themselves. And they're saying this interferes in their own sovereignty.
SHAYS: Well, I mean, they can make that point, and it's fair, and they should. And I like the idea that they want to be an independent nation.
But our support is conditional as well. They have a right to take their position. We have a right to take ours. Then they have to decide if they still want us. If they want us to leave, we'll leave.
BLITZER: The secretary, former secretary of state James Baker, the co-chairman of the Iraq Study Group, had this advice this week about -- for the president, in terms of accepting the recommendations, the 79 recommendations of the panel. Listen to this.
BAKER: I hope we don't treat this like a fruit salad and say, I like this, but I don't like that; I like this, but I don't like that.
This is a comprehensive strategy designed to deal with this problem we're facing in Iraq but also designed to deal with other problems that we face in the region.
BLITZER: Accept it all or, basically, don't accept it? What do you think of that advice?
HARMAN: Well, you can take the raspberries out of the fruit salad. I think Chris is right. We agree that the framework is right in this report; Three parts; change the military strategy; performance-based support for Iraq, built around reconciliation and enhanced diplomacy. That's right.
But some pieces may be wrong. The linkage to Israel, the way it is spelled out, may be wrong. But my point is that we have to pay attention to what's happening on the ground. And what's happening on the ground is partition. And that's what the Iraqis seem to be wanting.
Now that they're going to share the oil equitably -- or that's what they said yesterday -- I think that's a very healthy sign that this may be their choice for how to move. The report doesn't support that, and I think that's a flaw in the report.
BLITZER: Because, as you know -- you've been to Iraq a lot, Congressman Shays -- for all practical purposes, at least many observers say, there already is partition. Kurdistan in the North -- Kurdistan -- if you fly into Kurdistan and you have a passport, they stamp it with a visa that says "Kurdistan." It doesn't say Iraq. And if you want to go to the southern part of Iraq from Kurdistan, you need to get a visa to go into Iraq.
SHAYS: That part's accurate. And Kurdistan is the one peaceful area. So if I were the Kurds, I'd like to say peaceful.
I don't think we should divide up Iraq. And actually, that's going to be the Iraqi decision.
My judgment is this, that basically, it's not clean enough. All the urban areas have a mixed population. And I think that the study group pointed that out. So I would not be trying to encourage a division.
BLITZER: But even as we speak, those mixed areas are being unmixed, if you will. There's a lot of -- if you call it ethnic cleansing or whatever -- a lot of Sunnis are leaving, a million refugees so far. Many of those mixed Shia-Sunni neighborhoods are no longer mixed.
SHAYS: And that's because they haven't been dealing with reconciliation. They haven't been confronting that issue. So that's really an indication of a failure because of our staying-the-course attitude.
This agreement now on oil says that the central government will make sure it's divided based on population, not based on region.
HARMAN: I'm talking about semi-independent regions. This is what Joe Biden's talking about, what the former chairman...
BLITZER: You like that idea?
HARMAN: Yes, I do. I'm increasingly...
BLITZER: The Iraq Study Group rejected that notion.
HARMAN: I know they did, because there is some intermixing in certain areas. But...
BLITZER: President Bush rejects it as well.
HARMAN: I know he does. But Yugoslavia is the right model here. We don't need...
BLITZER: To break it up? Balkanization?
HARMAN: We don't need independent countries, I don't believe. I think we can have a central country that provides for equitable sharing of the oil and the common defense.
But basically, if these regions separate, I think there will be more stability on the ground. That seems to be what the choice of the Iraqis is, and that should be what controls.
BLITZER: Is that your assessment, as well?
SHAYS: My assessment is, if we do see real regionization, it's an indication that some of our policies failed. I don't think we should head in that direction. But if that's the outcome, that's the outcome.
BLITZER: Here are a couple of the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group.
"If the Iraqi government does not make substantial progress toward the achievement of milestones on national reconciliation, security and governance, the United States should reduce its political, military or economic support for the Iraqi government."
Another one: "By the first quarter of 2008, subject to unexpected developments in the security situation on the ground, all U.S. combat brigades not necessary for force protection could be out of Iraq."
Are those two recommendations you accept?
HARMAN: I think they're the right recommendations. And I think we could be out sooner. I think embedding troops and the way it is laid out by Bill Perry, who was the architect of this, former secretary of defense who's a member of the study group, is the right way to go.
And our military presence besides that, except to support that effort, should diminish starting right now. We should start moving out.
And by the way, Wolf, you showed just before we came on that clip of what's going on in Lebanon. And Afghanistan isn't going well. There are parts of this world that need more of our attention.
Sandra Day O'Connor, one of the members, said to me, "Jane, take this and move on." And I agree with that.
We have to contain Iraq. These are bipartisan recommendations. We can improve them, but we have to focus now on other parts of the world that are even more dangerous.
BLITZER: Correct me if I'm wrong, but before you were re- elected, Congressman, you wanted more troops deployed to Iraq, along the lines of what Senator John McCain and others are suggesting?
SHAYS: No. I suggested we have a timeline. And that's what was controversial. A timeline to motivate the Iraqis...
BLITZER: But should there be a surge of troops in the short period?
SHAYS: No, no, I don't think there should be. I think the timeline we need is to say, "If you don't do these things in reconciliation, we're going to leave."
BLITZER: What timeline do you want?
SHAYS: Well, I want to see -- first off, I want to see the speed-up that we're now doing on transitioning Iraqi forces. We're cutting that time in half, so that Iraqis patrol the streets, not Americans.
I want to see timelines for them to have reconciliation on oil, on de-Baathification, on how we divide up the...
BLITZER: What is the timeline? When do you want troops out by?
SHAYS: Well, I...
BLITZER: How much time should the U.S. give Iraq?
SHAYS: Well, first off, very little time.
BLITZER: How much?
SHAYS: Really, months to begin, and a year or so before we start drawing our troops out.
BLITZER: All right. We're going to pick up this conversation, Congressman. Stand by.
A lot more to talk about. We'll continue with Jane Harman, Chris Shays, what's happening in Congress, the war, the world, lots more, coming up.
Also still to come, two Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists: Bob Woodward of The Washington Post, John Burns of the New York Times. They're standing by for their view of what's happening in Iraq and over at the White House.
And for our North American viewers, coming up at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, a comprehensive look at all the events in Iraq and analysis from experts and correspondents. "This Week at War," with John Roberts, right after "Late Edition."
We're continuing our conversation with two experienced hands in the U.S. Congress: Democrat Jane Harman and Republican Chris Shays.
Here is one of the conclusions, Chris Shays, of this Iraq Study Group report.
"Our government still does not understand very well either the insurgency in Iraq or the role of the militias. The Defense Department and the intelligence community have not invested sufficient people and resources to understand the political and military threat to American men and women in the armed forces."
When I was there last year with General Abizaid, it was clear to me that the United States did not have a good understanding of the insurgency, of the sectarian violence. It seems like it's not much better now.
SHAYS: I totally agree with it. And I'm a former Peace Corps volunteer. We also don't understand the culture. You embarrass an Iraqi male in front of his wife, you've made an enemy for life.
So, clearly, that's part of what we need to do. We need to understand the enemy better. We need to understand our friends in the Middle East better.
BLITZER: You served on the Intelligence Committee, until now. Is this accurate?
HARMAN: Yes, it's accurate, but it's more complicated. They talk about the rotation system. We have new people coming every year because it's such a hard place to serve. We have a lot of people there. But they're junior.
And you're right, we didn't understand, we still don't understand, the size and scope of the insurgency. We obviously blew it on the WMD problem. Our intelligence community is doing better.
But let's remember, we have everyone in Iraq, and we don't have enough eyes and ears on the ground in Iran, in North Korea -- very hard targets -- in Lebanon and in the other trouble spots of the world. That's another reason why we have to get the Iraq problem behind us.
And let me just add one more thing. Congress has served notice that now there will be careful review of the Iraq budgets. No more budgeting by supplemental. All of this will go through the regular budgeting process. That means the administration will have to come to Congress with specific plans for moving forward, and those will be reviewed.
BLITZER: Can you in good conscience support $2 billion a week -- a week -- to continue this war in Iraq?
SHAYS: In good conscience, I can, as long as it results in good results.
BLITZER: Because you could imagine, with $100 billion over the next year, what you with could do domestically with that kind of money.
SHAYS: Let me just make the point: We cannot fail in Iraq, because if we fail in Iraq, we fail in Iran, we fail in Lebanon, we fail elsewhere. So we need to just be spending this money much better.
BLITZER: Because you know, a lot of Democrats, Jane Harman, would much rather have you spend, over the next year, $100 billion for health care or Social Security or other health issues, related issues, than spend the money in Iraq.
HARMAN: Well, that's true. But also, we are failing in Iraq. A little reality test here. We are failing in Iraq. And this is good money after bad, and good lives after good lives.
We have to change the strategy. Failing in Iraq, which we are doing, not correcting the course, is not going to help us anywhere else in the world and not going to help our...
BLITZER: So you think the U.S. can still win?
HARMAN: No, I think the U.S. cannot win on this course. "Stay the course" has to change.
By the way, I think the president is soon going to lose his command authority. It's going to move to the Pentagon, under Bob Gates, the newly confirmed secretary of defense, who is there to make new decisions, working with Congress.
BLITZER: But the president's still the commander in chief.
HARMAN: Surely, he is. But the vice president no longer is the center of the action in the administration, and I'm saying the president may not be either. It doesn't mean he won't be in place. It doesn't mean he can't countermand decisions. But he's going to have pushback from a Pentagon that's going to have a very different view of this.
BLITZER: You support unconditional talks between the United States and Syria and Iran?
SHAYS: Yes.
BLITZER: That's in the recommendations.
BLITZER: Even though they both, according to the State Department, support terrorism?
SHAYS: To get to the ultimate result you have to go into areas you don't want to to get to that final result. To not have dialogue with either country I think is a mistake.
BLITZER: You don't think the U.S. should demand that they first stop supporting terrorist organizations? SHAYS: I think there should be dialogue behind the scenes to get to a point where we can have public dialogue.
BLITZER: You're comfortable with that?
HARMAN: I think we have to be very tough with both countries. And they are supporting terror. They're different from each other; they have united in common cause against us, which is highly unfortunate. But Syria is Sunni, and Iran is Shia, and they have a lot of differences. And we should be, as Baker says, trying to flip Syria. I think that's a good idea.
BLITZER: How angry are you at the speaker-to-be, Nancy Pelosi, for deciding you should not be the chair of the House Intelligence Committee, even though you were in line to become the chair?
HARMAN: I am not angry. It was her choice. Obviously, I had hoped to stay. I thought I'd earned it and that it had been promised. But I think Silvestre Reyes is an excellent choice. He has my support. I'm going to stay in the game on these issues. Here I am, Wolf.
But I also think that her majority is created by moderates and conservatives who won in Republican seats who talk tough and smart on security issues. And I will help them stay in Congress and help keep our majority in 2008.
BLITZER: You're in the minority now, but was this a good idea, to make sure that Jane Harman is not the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee?
SHAYS: She was doing a great job. And the key is that she wasn't being partisan. We went into Iraq on a bipartisan basis -- two-thirds of the House, three-quarters of the Senate. And we're going to get out of Iraq successfully only if we do it on a bipartisan basis.
BLITZER: How do you feel about William Jefferson, the congressman in Louisiana, being re-elected yesterday, even though the suggestions, the allegations there was $100,000 of bribe money in his refrigerator?
HARMAN: Well, we each get elected by our own voters, and I'm not going to comment on the choice that they made. His case, I assume, is going to proceed, if it is. The Justice Department is looking at it, and they will do what they do. And if he is found guilty, so be it.
But at the moment, he has not been charged, I don't believe. And he won an election fair and square, so far as I know.
BLITZER: Was the Mark Foley -- he's a Democrat, William Jefferson. Mark Foley was a Republican congressman. The House Ethics Committee came out with a report saying that members and staff were negligent, not protecting underage congressional pages, but no one is going to be charged, no one is going to be accused of any flat-out wrongdoing. SHAYS: Well, it just points out how difficult it is for people to police their own body. And, frankly, I think there should have been more than just a description of what happened, but some people should have been held accountable.
BLITZER: Chris Shays, Jane Harman, let me congratulate both of you on being re-elected. Chris Shays narrowly being re-elected, but I'm sure you're happy to be here in Washington.
Thanks very much to both of you for coming in.
HARMAN: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: And still to come, insight from two journalists who know the Iraq story very well: Bob Woodward of The Washington Post and John Burns, the Baghdad bureau chief for the New York Times. They're standing by, live.
And we're following all of the rest of the day's top news: a startling new claim surrounding the death of Princess Diana; the latest on another typhoon that hit the Philippines; and a deadly fire at a hospital in Russia.
All that coming up on "Late Edition." We'll be right back.
BUSH: I thought we would succeed quicker than we did. And I am disappointed by the pace of success.
BLITZER: President Bush, sparring with reporters this week about the war and his reaction to the Iraq Study Group.
Welcome back to "Late Edition." I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.
With me now, two reporters who followed the war from the very beginning. Joining us here in Washington, Bob Woodward of The Washington Post. His most recent best-seller is entitled "State of Denial: Bush at War, Part III."
And joining us from Iraq, Baghdad bureau chief for the New York Times, John Burns. Both of our reporters, Pulitzer Prize winners.
Guys, thanks very much for coming in.
And John, let me start with you. Let me read one of the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group: "By the first quarter of 2008, subject to unexpected developments in the security situation on the ground, all U.S. combat brigades not necessary for force protection could be out of Iraq."
There are some qualifiers there, but is that at all realistic? JOHN BURNS, NEW YORK TIMES: Frankly, I don't think it is. I've not met many people here, Iraqi or American, who think it is. And let's look, first of all, at the qualifier, "subject to unexpected developments on the ground."
One thing that's been sure here, from the very beginning, is that there are unexpected developments on the ground.
The war is a great deal worse than now it was at the beginning of 2006, and there's very little reason to believe it's going to be any better at the end of 2007 or the beginning of 2008. It may be a great deal worse.
And what we've seen of the Iraqi armed forces to date, although there have been units that have fought bravely alongside American units, it has to be said it's very difficult to see how, even stiffened by an increase in 10,000 or 15,000 American advisers, the so-called military transition teams, that army could sustain itself and protect the government here within 15 months.
After all, it's been now, what, 3 1/2 years since the United States embarked on trying to build an army here. They had to start again after the first year. And they have an army, an Iraqi army which has about a 50 percent readiness rate. That's to say, at any one time, only about 50 percent of the units are ready to deploy.
Fifty percent of the 10 divisions -- it's in the Baker-Hamilton report -- are not deployable outside of the regions in which the recruits joined up.
It does not look like a realistic objective. From here, it looks much more like a proposal, like many others in the report, that was designed to bind up wounds in Washington, D.C. than to bind up wounds here in Iraq.
BLITZER: That's what a lot of people are now concluding.
Bob Woodward, a lot of people are also suggesting, and this is implied in what John just said, that it's going to get worse before it gets even worse in Iraq.
In other words, the violence we're seeing today may be just the beginning, as bad as it is right now.
Here's what the president said on Thursday at his news conference with Tony Blair.
BUSH: I understand there's sectarian violence. I also understand that we're hunting down Al Qaida on a regular basis and we're bringing them to justice. I understand how hard our troops are working.
I have made it abundantly clear how tough it is. I also believe we're going to succeed. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: All right. I'll paraphrase from the title of your book. Is the president still in a state of denial?
BOB WOODWARD, WASHINGTON POST: Well, what's interesting -- all the fireworks about the Iraq Study Group, which is earnest, sincere effort, it's a year or two behind the curve.
As | 7,229 |
Mil's sign. All images courtesy of the restaurant's Instagram page
Virgilio Martinez has high hopes for his remote new restaurant
The Peruvian chef's new restaurant Mil opened last week - but you'll need detailed instructions to get there
As we write this it's not that hard to get a table at Mil. The new restaurant from Phaidon author and World's 50 Best Restaurants chef Virgilio Martinez opened last week and has availability for most days this week. However, it is a little harder getting to your table at Mil. The place, which opened a few days ago, is located over 11,000 feet above sea level, beside the ancient Inca ruins of Moray. It's a 90-minute drive from Cusco, the nearest city, and Cusco is a 70-minute flight from the Peruvian capital, Lima.
Mil - which means 'one thousand' in Spanish - makes a virtue of its high-altitude location, by drawing its food from suppliers at similar elevations. Martinez's best-known restaurant, Central, features a menu on which dishes are arranged according to how many feet above sea level the ingredients were grown, caught or raised; Mil, conversely, only serves high-altitude food.
Virgilio Martinez with his wife, fellow chef Pia Leon
There's no seafood on the menu, though Virgilio and his team will source fish from the lakes, while also serving fermented corn drinks, braised alpaca, quinoa and potatoes cooked in traditional, Incan stone ovens.
The Moray ruins
The Moray ruins are ad kind of ancient, stepped plant nursery, which may have been used to develop new foods. In the same spirit, Virgilio's new restaurant is an attempt to both preserve old traditions, and pioneer new gastronomic techniques. The restaurant will also house facilities for Virgilio's Mater Iniciativa research initiative, which aims to discover more about the Andes' food culture and its edible flora and fauna.
Mil's view out on to the Moray ruins
"The way we're conceptualising the whole thing is by trying to give the<|fim_middle|> the unknown. Virgilio forges not one path to understanding Peruvian cuisine but many, and from this research and determination, he is giving back to Peru centuries of ancestral wisdom through fine dining."—Massimo Bottura of Osteria Francescana (Modena, Italy)
"We believe that what we do in our kitchens is to create beauty as the legacy for future generations. This is what Virgilio's work in Central communicates - and we know the readers will feel this emotion."—Dominique Crenn of Atelier Crenn (San Francisco, United States)
"What Virgilio and his team at Central have created is an entirely new lexicon of cuisine, while maintaining the ancient traditions, the beauty, and the integrity of the cooking of his land."—Carlo Mirarchi of Blanca (New York City, United States)
"Central is a testament of passion, integrity, and knowledge - a generous gift of sharing with others. Through Virgilio's food I learned so much about the culture and people of Peru, but most of all, I learned this importance of others and the richness of endless discoveries. This is a very special book and Virgilio is an outstanding human being." —Joan, Josep & Jordi Roca of El Celler de Can Roca (Girona, Spain)
"Features food photography worthy of a modern-art gallery wall and exquisite signature recipes from the famed restaurant."—Plate
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AUD$75.00 AUD$45 CAD$65.95 CAD$39.57 €49.95 €29.97 £39.95 £23.97 T59.95 T35.97 USD$59.95 USD$35.97
Massimo Bottura: Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef
René Redzepi: A Work in Progress | diner a sense of time and place and people and view and landscape and produce," the chef told Eater. "We don't just want to cook well and cook farm-to-table. It goes way beyond that."
Central by Virgilio Martinez
For more on this chef's ancient yet modern take on contemporary cuisine get his Phaidon book Central.
Central Virgilio Martínez
The extraordinary cuisine of Peruvian chef Virgilio Martínez, one of the most admired emerging talents in the culinary world
This exquisite monograph from acclaimed Peruvian chef Virgilio Martínez follows the innovative and exciting tasting menu at his signature restaurant, Central, in Lima. Organized by altitude, each chapter highlights recipes, food, and documentary photographs, together with personal essays. His journeys and life as a chef are motivated by his insatiable curiosity and passion for the biodiversity of his land.
"At Central we cook ecosystems." —Virgilio Martínez
Virgilio Martínez has cooked in restaurants around the world and in 2009, in Lima, he opened Central. In 2013 he debuted on the World's 50 Best list and in 2015 he reached #4 and was named the #1 chef in Latin America. He is the founder of Mater Iniciativa, which documents indigenous foods in Peru. In London, he runs the restaurants Lima and Lima Floral. He lives in Peru.
Featured on the Netflix documentary series Chef's Table
As featured in Bon Appetit, Bloomberg Pursuits, Domino, Food & Wine, Four, La Repubblica, Lucky Peach, Saveur, Vogue, and Wine Enthusiast, and on New Worlder and Vice Munchies; as heard on Heritage Radio and WBUR - On Point, Boston
"For hundreds of years, Peruvian biodiversity has been a hidden treasure of thousands of unique ingredients. Today, in the Peruvian Amazon, deserts, Andes, Altiplano, and all of their ecosystems, some ingredients, like quinoa and native cacao, are already traveling all over the world. A small group of chefs wanted to explore deeper than ever the potentials of each ingredient, each environment of Peru-listening, smelling, touching, learning-with a style of cooking that was absolutely modern, unique, and Peruvian. Leading the creativity of this young and free generation of chefs is Virgilio Martínez. If you want to discover Peru and its treasures in its most modern version, to feel our unique biodiversity, to celebrate our multicultural society, and to taste the soul of young Peruvians proud of their culture, this book is the perfect way to do it. In Central, Virgilio will take you on a journey, from the Pacific Ocean to the high Andes, discovering the magic of the ingredients of Peru."—Gastón Acurio of Astrid & Gastón (Lima, Peru)
"Central is about Virgilio's desire to tell the story of a collective wish from a individual pulse, and of a passion that comes from history. His book features a strike of authority achieved through culture and creativity."—Andoni Luis Aduriz of Mugaritz (San Sebastian, Spain)
"Virgilio Martínez doesn't settle with what is already in everyone's imagination about Peruvian cuisine. He is a chef who looks deeply into the unknown, into the forgotten and rejected to find a different way to embrace his culture. Virgilio brings to light another side of Peruvian culinary culture, one inspired by Big Nature: the vast landscape and diverse terrain of this unique place. He is a keen observer who isn't afraid to open his kitchen to | 756 |
With the idea of setting up a school culture of excellence and performance, we aspire to provide education that will provide learning that will last a life time. We strongly believe that a child gains more than just academic knowledge in school. In accordance with the philosophy of J. Krishnamurthy, we inspire our students to do well in every possible way.
While adhering to the CBSE curriculum, we experiment and innovate to provide a child centric methodology. We realize that each child is unique and needs different approach and opportunities to be motivated. A<|fim_middle|>, music, theatre, oratorical skills, physical wellbeing and sports.
Value education is an intrinsic part of our curriculum. We intend to promote social skills of our students by creating empathy for the people around us, the environment, our nation and the global family.
We strive to provide a culture of learning for our teachers too.Our faculty consists of well trained, dedicated and skilled teachers. We encourage and provide training pertaining specialization in their subject and for general enrichment and grooming.
At DCS, prime importance is given to ensure safety of our students and staff. Special care is taken to abide by all safety norms and rules. We engage students in a happy and relaxed environment. | variety of innovative instructional approaches are used for the purpose.
Our goal is to facilitate, identify anddevelop what lies within each child. This helps instill pride in their abilities and help hone the skills already possessed. We inspire students to their best at every stage.This approach challenges them, not only to do their best, but also to instill a love of learning and competence.
We focus on enhancing problem solving capability of our students. Main aim is to inculcate reading habit, as a part of their daily life. This would help develop them as good communicators and collaborators and help them be truly successful in the 21st century.
At DCS we organize and encourage a vast array of programmesall-round the year, for different grades. This encourages and enriches the appreciation of arts | 159 |
Tex-Mex Enchiladas
By admin Last updated<|fim_middle|> dish is made in a crock pot and is served with sour cream. You'll also need enchilada sauce.
Enchiladas can be prepared and served immediately, or they can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a day. You'll want to allow at least 20 minutes for the enchiladas to stand before serving them. They're also good for storing in freezers for up to two months.
You can also make these enchiladas in a crock pot. Simply combine all of the ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for eight hours. Then, flip the enchiladas and cook them for another two hours. If you plan to freeze the enchiladas, thaw them in the refrigerator overnight.
If you're looking for a quick meal for a weeknight, try making easy chicken enchiladas. The recipe is easy to make and combines your favorite enchilada sauce with shredded chicken. It's also a great dish to serve with salsa and sour cream.
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Tex-Mex enchiladas are very tasty and can be made in a number of ways. One of the most popular ways is to mix a variety of different meats together in order to get the right flavor profile. Some of the best Tex-Mex enchiladas can be found at places like Chipotle and Red Robin.
1 Tex-Mex enchiladas
2 Origins in the Aztecs
Tex-Mex enchiladas are a staple of Mexican food. They are made of tortillas filled with meat or cheese, dipped in enchilada sauce, and baked.
The Tex-Mex style of enchiladas can be made with any filling. You can make them with ground beef or even picadillo. The meat can be seasoned to taste. You can also use mild chili pods. The chili is very flavorful and you can use it to flavor the enchiladas.
The basic ingredients are corn tortillas, shredded cheese, enchilada sauce, and chili gravy. You can make these enchiladas on the stovetop or in the oven. You can also make them in advance and freeze them. You can even bake them twice.
Before you begin, prepare your oven to preheat to 350 degrees. You will need a 9×13-inch baking dish. The dish should be lined with foil. You will also need vegetable oil. To test the temperature of the oil, place one tortilla in the oil and watch for a few seconds. When the tortilla is pliable, remove it with a spatula.
You can add your fillings to the tortillas, but be sure to cook them thoroughly. You can use ground beef mixed with cumin, cream cheese, green chilies, or Picante sauce. The key to getting the authentic Mexican restaurant flavor is to use tomato bouillon.
Origins in the Aztecs
Among the Aztecs, enchiladas are a popular dish. They were sold in markets across the Aztec Empire. The most distinctive feature of the dish was the use of chili pepper. It was also called a chillapizzali, which means 'chili-flute'.
Enchiladas were made with a variety of fillings and sauces. In addition to meat, the dish included avocados, squash, chili peppers, and chocolate. The fillings were wrapped in corn tortillas and served with red enchilada sauce. The dish was also enjoyed during long marches.
The Aztecs considered maize to be a sacred plant. Corn tortillas were considered edible and easy to clean. They were eaten as a wrap or as a plate. A ground chili pepper produced a spicy paste.
In Mexico, enchiladas were popular in the Yucatan region. They were made with corn tortillas wrapped around meat or fish and topped with tomato sauce. They were also topped with a fried egg. They were served on clean napkins. In the early 19th century, they were introduced in Mexico's first cookbook.
In the late 18th century, enchiladas became popular in the United States. The dish was enjoyed by common people. It was easy to cook and could be eaten on the move.
Enchiladas are now eaten all over the world. They have been popularized in Mexico, the United States, and Spain. They are also popular in the Tex-Mex restaurant scene.
Basically, enchiladas are corn tortillas rolled around a filling of meat, beans, or vegetables. Enchiladas are a very popular Mexican food.
The ingredients for enchiladas vary, depending on the person who makes them. Some people add meat, while others use cheese. If you're looking to make a quick and healthy meal, try making enchiladas.
For this dish, you'll need tortillas, black beans, shredded chicken, and cheese. You can also use a package of Spanish rice instead of white rice. The | 811 |
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Fareham - Encyclopedia
FAREHAM, a market town in the Fareham parliamentary division of Hampshire, England, 76 m. S.W. from London by the London &<|fim_middle|> 16th century it was little more than a fishing village. Its commercial prosperity in modern times is due to its nearness to Portsmouth.
https://theodora.com/encyclopedia/f/fareham.html | South Western railway. Pop. of urban district (1901) 8246. It lies at the head of a creek opening into the northwestern corner of Portsmouth harbour. The principal industries are the manufacture of sackings, ropes, bricks, coarse earthenware, terra-cotta, tobacco-pipes and leather. Fareham has a considerable trade in corn, timber and coal; the creek being accessible to vessels of 300 tons. Three miles E. of Fareham, on Portsmouth harbour, are the interesting ruins of Porchester Castle, an extensive walled enclosure retaining its Norman keep, and exhibiting in its outer walls considerable evidence of Roman workmanship; Professor Haverfield, however, denies that it occupies the site of the Roman Portus Magnus. The church of St Mary has some fine Norman portions. It belonged to an Augustinian priory founded by Henry I. At Titchfield, 3 m. W. of Fareham, are ruins of the beautiful Tudor mansion, Place House, built on the site of a Premonstratensian abbey of the 13th century, of which there are also fragments.
The fact that Fareham (Fernham, Ferham) formed part of the original endowment of the see of Winchester fixes its existence certainly as early as the 9th century. It is mentioned in the Domesday Survey as subject to a reduced assessment on account of its exposed position and liability to Danish attacks. There is evidence to show that Fareham had become a borough before 1264, but no charter can be found. It was a mesne borough held of the bishop of Winchester, but it is probable that during the i 8th century the privileges of the burgesses were allowed to lapse, as by 1835 it had ceased to be a borough. Fareham returned two members to the parliament of 1306, but two years later it petitioned against representation on the ground of expense. A fair on the 31st of October and the two following days was held under grant of Henry III. The day appears to have been afterwards changed to the 29th of June, and in the 18th century was mainly important for the sale of toys. It was abolished in 1871. Fareham owed its importance in medieval times to its facilities for commerce. It was a free port and had a considerable trade in wool and wine. Later its shipping declined and in the | 514 |
5 Things You Should Know About Concrete
In terms of total land area, Australia is the<|fim_middle|>19th century, concrete remains popular worldwide.
Author Bio: Carmel Issac is a freelance writer who offers to ghostwrite, copywriting, and blogging services. She works closely with B2C and B2B businesses providing digital marketing content that gains social media attention and increases their search engine visibility. | sixth-largest country worldwide. The latest statistics show that its population has reached around 25.5 million. A large portion of its residents are immigrants. This scenario is not surprising since Australia is currently ranked 5th among countries with a good quality of life. The ranking's bases are safety, excellent job opportunities, and advanced education and health systems.
With a large number of residents, construction is a thriving industry. As a result, building materials like concrete, brick, stone, and timber are primary considerations in building a home.
If you are building a new house, it pays to know how these construction materials play a significant role in strengthening your home.
It Requires Minimum Maintenance
Wood requires chemical treatment to protect homes from termite and insect infestation. With more than 300 termite species in Australia, termites can cause severe damage to properties. But that's not all. Timber needs paint to blend with a home's décor.
In contrast, after the setting of concrete, it requires no weathering treatment. Besides, concrete in Australia already comes in various colours to beautify the patio, driveway, and pool surroundings.
It Lasts for Many Years
According to an article by the Sydney Morning Herald, the majority of Australia's famous buildings, including the Sydney Opera House, were built with concrete. Most construction companies believe that concrete can last from 30 to 100 years.
What makes concrete so durable? Unlike wood or steel, concrete is resistant to rust, earthquakes, and fire.
In Australia, where most residents live in coastal areas, people prefer concrete over steel, which is prone to rust. Moreover, spray-on concrete in Australia protects buildings against earthquakes.
Not only that, but concrete is also fire-resistant. By comparison, wood burns quickly, and steel melts.
It Reduces Costs
Most importantly, using concrete is cost-effective. Manufacturing concrete requires less energy compared to steel.
Secondly, concrete in Australia is measured and produced in precise amounts. Therefore, if calculations are right, there is very minimal wastage. But just in case there is an excess, recycling of concrete is possible by its usage as an aggregate material.
What's more, concrete is an effective insulator. During summers, concrete keeps buildings cool by absorbing heat. By using concrete, homeowners can bring down their electrical bills by reducing the need for air conditioning. With electricity costs steadily increasing in Australia, this is a big help for consumers.
It Reduces Noise
Concrete acts as a noise barrier by reflecting and absorbing sounds. Another way to improve its soundproof capability is by filling the walls with sand or mortar.
It adds curb value
Concrete improves the curb value of homes by transforming the appearance of its driveways, entrances, and other living areas. Modern concrete materials are available in many colours. Aside from more than 60 standard colours, concrete can be customised to match any colour.
Likewise, decorative concrete materials give a polished look to a home's interior. Aggregates, like sand and stones mixed with concrete, can be refined and polished to reveal unique floor designs.
Once you are aware of these five benefits of concrete, you will look at this building material with more appreciation. Although it has been around since the | 654 |
Foto © Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection
Home/Topic/Personal Audio/Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection
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Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection
From headphones and Bluetooth speakers to wireless speakers and soundbars, Bang & Olufsen is now presenting a wide range of products in a special design variant in the newly launched Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection.
With the new Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection, the Danish company Bang & Olufsen is not presenting a concrete new product line, but rather a new design series that extends across the most diverse product groups.
The range starts with personal audio devices such as headphones, continues with Bluetooth speakers and wireless speakers and ends with soundbars.
Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection – Timelessly elegant design
With this design collection, Bang & Olufsen promises to focus on the features for which it has been known for years. The solutions in the Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection are said to have a timelessly elegant design, dominated by a Scandinavian colour palette.
Contrasting cool and warm colours are the focus here, whereby the model range of the Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection is intended to be easily integrated into any modern living environment.
"In these uncertain times, home has become a<|fim_middle|> Olufsen Beosound Balance is an award-winning wireless speaker with dynamic acoustics, designed for wall positioning on a shelf or side table in the home. The Bang & Olufsen Beosound Balance emits carefully regulated sound beams that provide a clear sound experience towards the front, while the sound is intensely amplified at the back. The Nordic Ice Edition features an extruded recycled aluminium base and the flush lithographed logo shimmers on the matte surface.
Bang & Olufsen Beosound Stage – Powerful Dolby Atmos Soundbar
With the Bang & Olufsen Beosound Stage, a completely new dimension of television can be experienced, the Danes are convinced. The soundbar sounds as good as it looks and is a great gift for cinema lovers. The Bang & Olufsen Beosound Stage enhances the viewing experience with a combination of state-of-the-art audio technology and seamless design – and is so powerful that no separate subwoofer is required.
Bang & Olufsen Nordich Ice Collection is available now
According to the manufacturer, the solutions of the new design line Bang & Olufsen Nordich Ice Collection will be available immediately, in all Bang & Olufsen shops as well as selected retailers.
Design has always played an important role at Bang & Olufsen, so it comes as no surprise that the Danish company is once again presenting a completely new design line with the Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection, which covers large parts of the product range, especially in the area of personal audio devices. Nor is it the fact that the solutions to be found here are, first and foremost, products that can justifiably be described as modern consumer electronics for the modern lifestyle.
Price Bang & Olufsen Beoplay EQ Nordic Ice Edition € 419,-
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H95 Nordic Ice Edition € 849,-
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Nordic Ice Edition € 259,-
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay A9 Nordic Ice Edition € 3.299,-
Bang & Olufsen Beosound Balance Nordic Ice Edition € 2.500,-
Bang & Olufsen Beosound Stage Nordic Ice Edition € 1.999,-
Manufacturer Bang & Olufsen
Distribution Bang & Olufsen
Bang & Olufsen Bluetooth Bluetooth Headphones Bluetooth Speaker Headphones Lifestyle Soundbar
Cayin N8ii Reference Digital Audio Player – New Firmware v1.4EN for MQA Support | safe retreat away from the outside world for many of us. With our Nordic Ice Collection, we wanted to tap into this feeling of calm and well-being in one's own home and create products that convey a sense of serenity and balance. The upcoming Christmas season will be more than ever about families coming back together after a long separation to share experiences and memories. This year, give the gift of music and bring joy to friends and family with our Nordic Ice Collection. "
Christoffer Poulsen, SVP of Product Management at Bang & Olufsen
Broad design collection
As already mentioned, the new Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection includes a wide variety of solutions from different product groups. The spectrum ranges from headphones to Bluetooth speakers, wireless speakers and soundbars.
Specifically, the following Bang & Olufsen solutions are available in the special version of the Bang & Olufsen Nordic Ice Collection:
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay EQ – Elegant wireless ANC headphones.
These noise-cancelling headphones from Bang & Olufsen feature six built-in microphones for clear call quality and authentic sound. The cool aluminium tone contrasts with the soft materials, which are in a warmer hue, and the neat details of the flush lithographed logo on the aluminium disc are framed by the glossy polished bevel.
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H95 – World-class wireless ANC headphones
The Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H95 are designed for the ultimate listening experience with long-lasting comfort, effective active noise cancellation and powerful sound produced by custom-made titanium drivers. The cool aluminium colour contrasts with the warm hue of the lambskin ear cushions for ultimate comfort.
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 2nd Gen – Waterproof Bluetooth Speaker
The Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 is the perfect portable speaker with loud, fascinating and bass-rich sound. The waterproof and dustproof Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 is ready for up to 18 hours of uninterrupted music enjoyment. The noble surface of the aluminium grille shines in a cool shade reminiscent of Nordic ice.
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay A9 – The legendary wireless WiFi speaker
Thanks to its powerful 480-watt digital amplification system, the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay A9 fills any room with detailed sound, making it a must-have for music lovers, according to the manufacturer. The built-in room tuning feature matches the sound perfectly to the environment, so you can hear the music exactly as the artist intended. Made for the first time from bead-blasted aluminium, the legs of the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay A9 have a high-quality, matte finish in a cool colour.
Bang & Olufsen Beosound Balance – Dynamic Wireless WiFi Speaker
The Bang & | 570 |
Бузина́ черво́на (Sambucus racemosa) — листопадний кущ роду бузина родини пижмівкових (раніш відносили до жимолостевих), заввишки 2—4 м.
Морфологічна характеристика
Гілки з буруватою серцевиною.
Листки супротивні, непарноперисті, з 5—7 яйцеподібно-ланцетними, пилчастими листочками.
Квітки двостатеві, правильні, дрібні, зеленувато-жовті, всі на ніжках, зібрані в яйцеподібну, щільну, спрямовану<|fim_middle|>ерея
Див. також
Бузина чорна
Список дикорослих корисних рослин України
Джерела
Ягоди
Лікарські рослини
червона
Рослини, описані 1753
Флора Азії
Флора Європи
Флора Північної Америки
Флора України | вгору волоть.
Плід — червона кістянка. Квітне у травні — червні, плоди достигають у серпні — вересні.
Поширення
Росте в лісах, чагарниках, на скелях у Карпатах, на Прикарпатті, рідше на Західному
Поліссі та в Лісостепу. На півдні України вирощують як декоративну рослину.
Сировина
Використовують квітки. Рослина неофіцинальна.
Хімічний склад
Квітки бузини червоної містять флавоновий глікозид рутин, дубильні речовини, цукри (глюкозу і фруктозу), сліди ефірної олії.
Фармакологічні властивості і використання
В народній медицині квітки бузину використовують як потогінний, проносний та протизапальний засіб.
Листя і кора виявляють проносну і блювотну дію.
Водний теплий настій і спиртову настойку квіток використовують як потогінний засіб при простудних захворюваннях, бронхіальній астмі та інших хворобах дихальних шляхів, при головному болі, ревматизмі. Кисіль із плодів використовують як проносний засіб.
Зовнішньо відвар квіток використовують при ангінах і запальних процесах ротової порожнини (у вигляді полоскань).
Рослина проявляє інсектицидну та фітонцидну активність, у зв'язку з чим настій листя використовують у боротьбі проти шкідників.
Гал | 594 |
Mariaville Falls is a 123-acre preserve on the east shore of the West Branch of the Union River. From the parking lot,<|fim_middle|> the path.
Mariaville Falls is a 123-acre preserve on the east shore of the West Branch of the Union River. From the parking lot, the trail travels though the woods and over a small brook. At the bottom of a hill, the trail intersects with another trail that follows along the shore of the Union River. Mariaville Falls is about 0.3 miles to the right of this intersection. The trail extends a little further past the falls and ends at a bend in the river. To the left of the intersection, the trail follows the floodplain of the river and along the side of a steep slope and comes out at a gravel pit. Hikers can follow the access road back to the parking lot.
Mariaville Falls is a dramatic stair falls that can be seen from an overlook along the path. The river is clean and wild as far as you can see. In the early 1800's, William Bingham of Philadelphia established a thriving village at Mariaville Falls. There is no longer any trace of the dam, the two timber mills, the tannery or the boardinghouse and homes that once comprised a village of fifty families.
Visit Frenchman Bay Conservancy's website for more information and a printable map.
From US-1A/Bangor Road in Ellsworth: go north and turn right onto Mariaville Road at Ellsworth Business Park at Boggy Brook. Keep bearing right on ME-180/Mariaville Road for 8.3 miles until you reach the junction of ME-181 (just past the Beech Hill School) on the right. Take ME-181 and go for 9.7 miles to the wooden Frenchman's Bay Conservancy preserve sign on the left. The access road to the trail begins at the sign. A parking area is located at the trailhead/kiosk. | a trail meanders through the woods for 0.5 miles and then follows the Union River to Mariaville Falls, a dramatic stair falls that can be seen from an overlook along | 37 |
Vila do Conde (, ; "the Count's Town") is a municipality in the Norte Region of Portugal. The population in 2011 was 79,533, in an area of 149.03 km². The urbanized area of Vila do Conde, which includes the parishes of Vila do Conde, Azurara and Árvore, represent 36,137 inhabitants. Vila do Conde is interlinked to the north with Póvoa de Varzim, forming a single urban agglomeration which is a part of the Porto Metropolitan Area. The town is on the Portuguese Way of the Camino de Santiago.
History
Vila do Conde is one of the oldest settlements in northern Portugal. Geological artifacts dating to the Paleolithic have been discovered in sites in the parishes of Modivas, Malta, and Labruge dating from 100,000 to 15,000 years. In other parishes there have also been discoveries of implements and mounds dating back to the Bronze Age and Neolithic periods indicating a period of transition between forging and sedimentary civilizations.
Its origins date back to the founding of the Portuguese territory; the earliest written document (953), by the Countess Mumadona Dias, refers to the Villa de Comite, in a chart used for the sale of land by Flamula Pelagius, to the Monastery of Guimarães. But its ancient origins date back to the Castro of São João (Hillfort of St. John), and other Iron Age castros, that include dispersed settlements in Retorta, Bagunte, Ferreiró, Vairão and Labruge. In the 18th century, Jerónimo Contador de Argote, citing references to the castro culture, identified the existence of one of these structures in the hilltops of Cividade de Bagunte, a structure occupying . Other castros within the municipality have been mostly agricultural, and some discoveries of ceramics have occurred, although most have been found in ruins. Similar vestiges of the Roman occupation of the region continue to be discovered, and archaeological digs are ongoing in a dozen sites throughout the municipality.
The origin of the toponym is unknown. Most authors point to the 9th century counts of the Reconquista, those who came from Galicia and Asturias and were ancestors of the aforementioned Flamula, as probably linked to the genesis of the name.
Later, King Dinis of Portugal bestowed on Maria Paes da Ribeira these seigneurial holdings (Dinis had long had many illegitimate children with the noblewoman).
In 1318, Afonso Sanches (the illegitimate son of King Dinis of Portugal and Aldonça Rodrigues Telha) and Teresa Martins (daughter of João Afonso de Menez, Count of Barcelos, granddaughter of Sancho IV of Castile) and great-great-granddaughter of Maria Pais da Ribeira, founded the Monastery of Santa Clara. Later referred to as the Convent of Santa Clara, the construction of the monastery developed from the bad relationship between King Dinis and his wife, Queen Elizabeth of Portugal, due to the king's preference for his illegitimate son. The queen re-founded, in 1314, an abandoned monastery in Coimbra, which she renamed Santa Clara. This prompted King Dinis to sponsor and authorize Afonso Sanches to build a monastery of the same invocation on the right bank of the Ave river, where an ancient Celtic hillfort was located. The cornerstone was laid in 1318, and once completed it was deposited in the hands of the Franciscan Order, which he patronized throughout his life, eventually leaving Vila do Conde, its lands and rents, in their possession after his and his wife's deaths. Today it is the ex-libris of Vila do Conde. The priory became the judicial seat, with all the royal rights in the area. Yet, King Edward began to contest these grand privileges during his reign, and King John III of Portugal finally stripped them of those rights in 1537, investing his brother Edward, with the seigneurial titles. At the marriage of Catherine, his daughter, with John I, 6th Duke of Braganza, the Infante Edward passed on the title to the Royal House of Braganza. Consequently, Vila do Conde had representation in the Royal Cortes and their alcaldes were nominated for dukedoms in the Royal House of Braganza. But this was also responsible for the local government weakness and high taxes on most local economic activities, except shipping and trade, where the national government had sole control.
During the 16th century, attained the apex of its commercial and maritime importance due to naval construction, associated with the Portuguese Age of Discovery. Many of the historical buildings, such as the port and customshouse, were all integral in the commercial relief of the 16th century. The passage of King Manuel through Vila do Conde, during a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, in 1502, helped to develop some of the important infrastructures in the city: the Matrice Church, Praça Nova and municipal buildings, along with new arterials, were begun under the reign of Manuel I. The Praça Nova (), today Praça Vasco da Gama was opened in 1538, during the reign of King John III of Portugal, and where the municipal buildings were located.
Manuel I conceded a foral (royal charter) in 1516, due to the active and integral participation of its population during the exploration of the new lands in India. Of these mariners of note, were the brothers Paulo and Francisco Faria, who were on Vasco da Gama's expeditionary voyage.
During the 19th century, French troops were responsible for the destruction and pillaging of many of the infrastructures and deaths. By the middle of the 19th century, the town had one ecclesiastical parish, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, founded by Manuel I of Portugal, and erected by the archbishop of Braga, Diogo de Sousa in 1518. In addition, the community included the Church of the Misericordia, hospital, six chapels<|fim_middle|> caps and 71 for Portugal
Fábio Coentrão (born 1988) a retired footballer with 240 club caps and 52 for Portugal
André André (born 1989) a footballer with over 300 club caps and 3 for Portugal
Ana Monteiro (born 1993) a butterfly swimmer, competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics
Messias Baptista (born 1999) a sprint canoeist, competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Raquel Queirós (born 2000) a road cyclist and cross-country mountain biker, competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics
References
Sources
External links
viladoconde.com - tourism and History of Vila do Conde
Cities in Portugal
Municipalities of Porto District
Populated coastal places in Portugal | , municipal building, customhouse, the Convent of Santa Clara (now remodelled and expanded since its construction), and the Convent of Nossa Senhora da Encarnação. In addition, the secular buildings included a small theatre, a recreational assembly and ornate dock of rock on the right margin of the Ave River towards its mouth, and across from the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Guia.
In 1987, the urbanized area was elevated to the status of city.
Geography
Physical geography
Vila do Conde is located in the north-west coast of Portugal, surrounded by the municipalities of Vila Nova de Famalicão Municipality (east), Maia (southeast), Trofa (southeast), Matosinhos (south) and Póvoa de Varzim (north). Fronting the Atlantic Ocean and the Ave River (to its south), the municipality includes of beaches, in addition to extensive rural areas with fields and estates. Located from Porto, access to the municipality is completed through many of its transport networks: the A28 (linking Porto to Viana do Castelo), the EN13, a Metro line and the A11 roadway.
The area of Vila do Conde is part of the granite-metamorphic basement, the Iberian Hercynian massif, that extends from the Spanish border to Espinho ( south of Porto). Over the Hercynian bedrock there is a prevalence of sandy beaches, and in other areas, the erosion of these sands has allowed the exposure of the rocky substrata. Most of the rock outcrops (never more than 20 metres) disappear north of the Ave River. Yet, these deposits are irregular, and most comparable sediments are not necessarily found at the same altitude. There are also deformations associated with the last inter-glacial period, that have affected these sedimentary layers, most commonly in the beach of Sampaio, where deposits have been discovered between various altitudes (5 and 9 metres).
Human geography
The municipality is subdivided into the following local government civil parishes, of which Azurara, Árvore and Vila do Conde form the urbanized city of Vila do Conde:
Árvore
Aveleda
Azurara
Bagunte, Ferreiró, Outeiro Maior e Parada
Fajozes
Fornelo e Vairão
Gião
Guilhabreu
Junqueira
Labruge
Macieira da Maia
Malta e Canidelo
Mindelo
Modivas
Retorta e Tougues
Rio Mau e Arcos
Touguinha e Touguinhó
Vila Chã
Vila do Conde
Vilar e Mosteiró
Vilar de Pinheiro
Twin towns — sister cities
Vila do Conde is twinned with:
Ferrol, Spain
Le Cannet, France
Portalegre, Portugal
Olinda, Brazil
Economy
The municipal authorities have promoted a future-looking environment in Vila do Conde, that have concentrated on the tourist market, involving the requalification of many of the historical buildings (such as the Convent and customshouse), in addition to promoting an ocean-centric tourist economy associated with the Programa Polis initiative.
The communities along the coast, which include the main beaches and bird sanctuary, are essentially beach resorts with a high technology industrial park in Mindelo with some semi-conductor industries.
Transport
Vila do Conde is serviced by an ample network of terrestrial, aerial and maritime transport links. The road networks include accesses to the national auto-estradas (), and inter-municipal roadways, along a north–south axis from Vila Nova de Cerveira until Porto via the A28 Auto-estrada. The A7 crosses the A28 along an east-to-west intersection, along the north of the city, linking Vila Nova de Famalicão to Guimarães.
The national roadways that cross the municipal borders as managed by the municipality, including the EN13, which crosses the municipality and city along a north-to-south axis, linking into the northern agglomeration of Póvoa de Varzim. In the north, the EN205 intersects the municipality along an east to west trajectory from Vila do Conde to Vila Nova de Famalicão. Similarly, the EN104 crosses the municipality in the centre, along a similar orientation (east to west), and connects Vila do Conde with Trofa and Santo Tirso. The ancillary EN205 and EN104 are primarily used by motorists within the municipality and interlink the many civil parishes. Municipal public transport is primarily operated by Litoral Norte - Transportes Urbanos da Póvoa de Varzim, although the remains lines are managed byTransdev. The B Line of the Porto Metro system connects Vila do Conde with Porto and the airport, providing both normal and express services, in addition to northern connections to Póvoa de Varzim. The line also operated an older rail-line that connected Porto and Póvoa de Varzim, with intermediary stops in Vila do Conde, but was discontinued in 2002 in favour of Metro services.
Situated from the centre of Vila do Conde, the Porto-Francisco de Sá Carneiro International Airport (OPO), the second largest international airport in the country is linked to Vila do Conde across the A28, EN13 and Porto Metro.
Architecture
Civic
Aqueduct of Vila do Conde () - initially constructed between 1705 and 1714, it had 999 arches and ran for four kilometres; the aqueduct is the second longest in Portugal, connecting a spring in Terroso, Póvoa de Varzim, with a fountain in the monastery of Santa Clara.
Municipal Hall of Vila do Conde () - located in the Praça Nova (or Praça Vasco da Gama) square, date back to 1543 (supposedly the date of completion), it is located in front of the municipal marker (), and is one of the more important urban interventions in Vila do Conde since the 16th century. The executive office block and the Salão Nobre (), in particular, are the centrepieces of the building, with an ornate portrait of Queen Maria II of Portugal surmounted by royal coat of arms.
Mill of Azurara () - a rectangular building, with the coat of arms in sculpted rock of the Marquess of Vila Real (who in the 16th century ordered its construction).
Military
Fort of Saint John the Baptist () - the fort is located at the mouth of the Ave River.
Religious
Chapel of Our Lady of Help (), the chapel is implanted on a rocky escarpment over the Ave River, on the Rua do Socorro; the chapel is atypical of Portuguese architecture: it has a square plan and large rounded dome. Yet, in the interior, the chapel exemplifies 18th-century architecture, with azulejos showing the life of Christ, and a Rococo-style altar. It was ordered built by Gaspar Manuel, knight of the Order of Christ and chief-pilot in service to the King during voyages to India, China and Japan, and his wife Bárbara Ferreira de Almeida; both were buried there on their deaths.
Chapel of Our Lady of Guidance (), the chapel dates back to the 10th–11th century; located at the end of Avenida Marquês Sá da Bandeira (Vila do Conde), the chapel is referenced in a 1059 inventory of the Monastery of Guimarães, but designated as the Hermitage of Saint Julian the Martyr. It is an irregular building, with an interior of azulejo from the 17th–18th century, and a roof decorated with scenes from the Bible and figures of saints.
Church of Saint John the Baptist () - also referred to as the Matrice Church of Vila do Conde, located along the Rua da Igreja, the building is a late Gothic structure with elements of Manueline, Baroque and Neo-Gothic styles, represented by a Latin cross of three naves, transept (with two chapels). Its construction in the 16th century was initiated by King Manuel of Portugal's visit in 1502, who defined the plan, provided a substantial budget and imposed a tax to support the project. The architecture is marked by a large portico (by João de Castilho), a rectangular bell tower (erected in 1573 (designed by João Lopes the Elder), while the interior is richly decorated, with ornate pulpits and chapels;
Church of Mercy, and Casa do Despacho - initiated in 1559, the plan of the Assembleia da Irmandade was to construct a church with a bell tower similar to the Misericórdia Church in Porto and having a pulpit comparable to that of the Church of Santo Eloy, similarly in Porto. The church has one nave whose interior is decorated in azulejo, while the roof is supported by wooden beam. The ancillary Casa do Despacho is notable for its window in the Manueline-style.
Church of Azurara () – located between Rua Padre Serafim das Neves and Rua Nossa Senhora de Fátima, the church was constructed in the 16th century, with large naves (three), rectangular chapel and bell tower. The Manueline portico is built in sculpted rock, with rosettas and with a central coat of arms of King Manuel I. The interior, with its azulejos and gold-leaf altar/sacristy and 17th-century paintings, bely its stark exterior.
Roman Church of Saint Christopher of Rio Mau (), the church is a simple Roman church in a stark Romanesque-style single rectangular body, surmounted by a Templar Cross.
Monastery of Saint Clare (), also referred to as the Convent of Santa Clara, although founded in 1318 by Afonso Sanches and Teresa Martins, is an 18th-century refurbishment, since by the middle of the 17th century the building was in ruins and conditions did not allow the nuns to properly use the building. The remodelling of the building was discontinued after events in the 19th century and the abolition of monastic orders. Between 1936 and 1940, the DGEMN - Direcção Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais () intervened to protect the building, the ex-libris of Vila do Conde.
Church of the Convent of Santa Clara () (and the Founders Tombs), located in the Largo D. Afonso Sanches (Vila do Conde), is a monument constructed in 1318, with traces of Gothic, Manueline, Baroque and Rococo architectural styles. The church is based in a unique nave and transept of large dimensions, with the interior marked by richly decorated woodwork. The Chapel of the Founders () houses the Manueline and Rococo tombs of historical nobility. The chorus is marked by two aisles of seating and paintings, while the high altar is embossed with gold-leaf.
In addition, in the interior ( from the beaches) are several examples of prehistoric and Roman structures such as the Castro de São Paio, or the Roman civitas Bagunte, in addition to homes and estates of rural gentry, or monastic settlements, such as in Junqueira, Azurara or Vairão.
Culture
Vila do Conde is the centre of one of the more prestigious fairs of traditional artisans, that include quilts, wool sweaters, ironworks, in addition to needlework.
During the summer, the municipality is known for the several secular and religious celebrations. These include the Curtas Vila do Conde - International Film Festival, the Feira Nacional de Artesanato, the Feira da Gastronomia, the Feira das Actividades Agrícolas and the Festival of São João. Every four years, the religious Festivals of Corpo de Deus are significant, and known for the road covered mats of flowers, used in processions from the circuit the main churches.
Sport
Rio Ave F.C. is based in the city.
Notable people
Manuel de Sá (1530-1596) a Portuguese Jesuit priest, theologian and exegete.
José Maria dos Reis Pereira (1901–1969) pen name José Régio, a Portuguese writer.
Albino Aroso (1923–2013) a doctor and politician, known as the father of family planning in Portugal.
Manuela Azevedo (born 1970) a Portuguese singer.
Sport
António André (born 1957) a retired footballer with 412 club caps and 20 for Portugal
Paulinho Santos (born 1970) a retired footballer with 287 club caps and 30 for Portugal
José Azevedo (born 1973) a Portuguese retired road racing cyclist
Emanuel Braga (born 1975), known as Emanuel, a retired footballer with 465 club caps
Hélder Postiga (born 1982) a retired footballer with 397 club | 2,894 |
D-Day for BTS to drop 'Love Yourself-Answer'
By Kim Hye-soo
Published : Aug 24, 2018 - 11:25
Updated : Aug 24, 2018 - 11:25
K<|fim_middle|>," RM's "Love," Suga's "Seesaw" and Jin's "Ephiphany."
Timed with the release of the new album, BTS is to kick off its "2018 BTS World Tour Love Yourself" at Olympic Stadium in Seoul on Saturday.
Korail launches travel package to Chuncheon for foreigners | -pop sensation BTS is set to release its new EP, "Love Yourself: Answer," on Friday at 6 p.m.
"Love Yourself: Answer" is the group's third and final installment in the "Love Yourself" series. Previous albums "Love Yourself: Her" and "Love Yourself: Tear," were megahits, catapulting the group to multiple Billboard music charts.
(Big Hit Entertainment)
The new EP is a repackaged album that brings together 18 previously released songs and seven new songs, including lead track "Idol."
The teaser video for "Idol" hit 9 million views in half a day Thursday. The concept album is to contain two CDs that include several solo tracks, such as J-hop's "Just Dance | 153 |
Home/MARKETING/TikTok leads in App Annie's 2021 app performance report [Infographic]
TikTok leads in App Annie's 2021 app performance report [Infographic]
App Annie has published its annual review of apps with the best<|fim_middle|>, which will be a key element in the app's growth over a billion users.
Short videos cannot use in-stream ads, so platforms must find alternative ways to monetize, and for TikTok, this will largely depend on its ability to make e-commerce and brand offerings easier for creators.
If it can ensure that creators get paid, it will continue to publish them in the app and strengthen its audience – but if other platforms have better revenue-sharing offers, you can bet they will migrate over time.
The data here suggests that TikTok is in a strong position to continue to grow and provide business opportunities for more creators.
Of course, none of this is surprising, because almost every report has strengthened the growing power of TikTok, and as mentioned, every social application is now working to deny TikTok's expansion if it can. But it is another reminder of the impact and position of the platform, which could make it the largest social platform in the final stages of the media as we know it, before moving on to the next phase of digital connectivity.
Here you can see the complete report on mobile applications App Annie for 2021.
Practical: HyperDrive Duo Pro USB-C hub for MacBook Pro 2016-2021. [Video]
IPhone 14 Pro models have a screen with holes | performance in terms of downloads and revenue, which once again highlights the dominance of TikTok and the impact it has on the wider social media space.
As App Annie explained:
"[TikTok's] the impact on data for 2021 is obvious. It took 2nd place in the app spend chart (this chart ranks the apps that recorded the biggest change in spend over 12 months), and also ran CapCut to the top of the breakthrough downloads chart. Why? Because CapCut is an editing tool for TikTok, which appeared worldwide in April 2020. "
As you can see here, both TikTok and CapCut rank high on each list, although Instagram is still strong in the number of active users, and Facebook is at the bottom of the top 10.
But it's not just TikTok's own apps that highlight its impact, with TikTok replica apps like India's MX TakaTak and Mine are also gaining in force, as a replacement for TickTok which is banned in the region.
This wider impact is why every social application is now trying to add features and elements similar to TikTok, because the wider shift is based not only on TikTok's own rise, but also on common trends and inspiring behaviors that users now actively engage with in other spaces. .
Does this mean that all applications will end up looking like TikTok? Yes, it probably is, because Twitter has launched a new experiment with its Explore feed, turning it into a TikTok screen, and Instagram is also now testing a new one. vertical format for stories also.
Pinterest's Idea Pins increasingly resemble TikTok, Snapchat's Spotlight feed already uses a drag-and-drop full-screen user interface. It is safe to say that usage trends indicate that everything is going in the style of TikTok, at least until the theoretical metaverse takes over, and we all get involved in completely impressive virtual environments.
In terms of total spending on apps, according to App Annie, TikTok also experienced the biggest jump over the previous year.
This is good for expanded e-commerce and ambitions to monetize the app, which will help boost the creator economy | 437 |
In this article we are going to show you how to make the most powerful 2-ingredient mixture against corns, blisters, cracked heels and how to remove the thick and rough skin of your feet in just 10 days. First, you should know that this homemade remedy is really amazing. In just 10 days you will be amazed by the results – your feet will look 20 years younger. So, you should definitely read the article bellow and learn how to make and use this amazing homemade remedy for cracked heels.
Some people think that cracked heels are just an aesthetic problem, but the actual truth is that if you don't treat them on time – the cracks will become deeper and more painful, so they will become health problem. So, if cracked heels are not treated on time, the dirt will accumulate inside the cracked skin and they can become infected. And you should know that this can be really serious problem. So, this is why it's extremely important to react on time and take all the necessary measures. You should also know that the thickening of the feet usually occurs cause of the excess dead skin cells, which often leads to poor blood circulation and poor elasticity. But, you shouldn't be worried, because this can be solved with pumice stone<|fim_middle|> and nourishing the skin on your feet. Here's what you need to do – just apply some oil on your heels and massage it with circular movements and leave it for a while. As we said in the beginning of this article, we are going to show you how to make the most effective 2-ingredient recipe, which will help you with your cracked heels. This 2-ingredients mixture is very simple and easy to make. You just have to follow the simple instructions. Here's what you need to do.
First, you need to crush the 10 tablets of aspirin (300 mg), and make them like powder. Then, you need to mix the powder with 250 ml of brandy (or 70% medical alcohol) and leave it for 1-2 days. This is extremely important – make sure you shake this mixture every night. How to use it – first, you need to dip one piece of folded gauze in it. Put the gauze soaked in this mixture on your heel (calluses, foot), wrap your foot with a nylon bag and put on your socks. You need to leave it on overnight. In the morning, when you wake up, you need to wash your foot with warm water, wipe it, and apply some nourishing skin cream or glycerin. Just after ten treatments you will be amazed by the results. Your heels will become clear and without trace of the rough skin or hard deposits.
You should also know that you can clean your heels with a heel brush or a heel stone, and then apply the cream. You should also know that you can use this mixture to treat the painful areas on the varicose veins (varicosities) as well. You just need to massage the painful areas with this mixture and the pain will disappear immediately. You can use this tincture to treat osteochondritis as well. Massage the painful place and the pain will disappear instantly.
This remedy is very simple and easy to make. You just have to follow the simple instructions. Here's what you need to do – first, you need to mix 5-6 crushed aspirins and some lemon juice, until you get a thick paste. Then, you need to rub the paste on your feet, wrap it with nylon, and put a warm towel over it or put your socks on. Wait for 10 minutes, remove everything and wash your feet with a sponge or a pumice stone – to remove the dead skin cells. We really hope you find this article helpful and don't forget to share it with your friends and family. Thank You.
What Will Happen If You Dispose The Meat And The Meat Products From Your Diet? | or a file. You should do this when the skin on your heels is soft, so you can do it after a shower or bath. And you should remember this – you mustn't remove the dead skin cells with a sharp object, because you may remove too much skin from your heels, which can cause an infection.
When you are done with this (eliminating the dead skin cells of your feet), then you need to nourish the skin on your heels. You need to nourish the skin to speed up the healing process – after the treatment. Well, you shouldn't be worried, because there are many different homemade creams and remedies, which you can make them in your own home. These creams and remedies are very useful in nourishing and moisturizing the skin on your heels. Olive or coconut oil – these two oils are very useful and beneficial in moisturizing | 175 |
Szélesmező (1899-ig Valopolya, ) község Szlovákiában, az Eperjesi kerü<|fim_middle|> Travelatlas.sk
Jegyzetek
Szelesmezo
Zemplén vármegye települései | let Homonnai járásában.
Fekvése
Homonnától 8 km-re északkeletre, a Laborc bal partján fekszik.
Története
1430-ban már "Szélesmező" néven említik először. Ezen a néven szerepel 1557-ben is, amikor az adót nem fizető települések között sorolják fel. A Drugethek homonnai uradalmához tartozott. A falut a 17. századtól kezdik szlovák nevén említeni, így 1630-ban "Weliepolia" néven említik. A Drugethek után a Szirmayaké, akik 1701-ben templomot is építtettek a községnek. 1715-ben 10 adózója volt. 1773-ban "Welopolya" néven találjuk. 1784-ben 44 ház állt a faluban 356 lakossal.
A 18. század végén Vályi András így ír róla: "VELYOPOLYA. Tót falu Zemplén Várm. földes Urai Gr. Csáky Uraság, és a' Plébánia, lakosai katolikusok, kevés oroszok, fekszik n. kel. Lubiséhez 1/4, n. ny. Kochanóczhoz 3/4 órányira; határja 3 nyomásbéli, földgye hegyes, agyagos, és követses, gabonát, és zabot középszerűen, búzát, árpát tsekélyen terem; erdeje kevés, piatza Homonnán 1/4 órányira."
1808-ban "Welopole" alakban szerepel a korabeli forrásokban. 1828-ban 47 házában 380 lakos élt.
Fényes Elek 1851-ben kiadott geográfiai szótárában így ír a faluról: "Velopolya, Zemplén v. tót falu, ut. p. Homonnához északra 1 órányira: 342 romai, 40 g. kath., 20 zsidó lak. 662 h. szántóföld. Jó rét a Laborcza mentiben. F. u. Szirmay és a homonnai plebánia."
1890-ben 216 a lakosainak száma, akik főként mezőgazdasággal, seprűkötéssel, vesszőfonással foglalkoztak. Később főként Homonna üzemeiben dolgoztak.
Borovszky Samu monográfiasorozatának Zemplén vármegyét tárgyaló része szerint: "Szélesmező, előbb Velyopolya. Laborczmenti tót kisközség, 38 házzal s 234 róm. kath. vallású lakossal. Postája és vasúti megállója Udva, távírója Homonna. A homonnai uradalom tartozéka volt, de a XVII. század végén Izdenczy Miklósnak is volt benne része. Ez időben Weliepolia alakban találjuk feljegyezve. Azután a gróf Csákyaké lett s most Szirmay Pálnak van itt nagyobb birtoka. Az 1873-iki kolerajárvány sok lakosát ölte ki. Róm. kath. templomát gróf Csáky István 1775-ben építtette."
1920 előtt Zemplén vármegye Homonnai járásához tartozott.
Az iskola 1967-ben, a kultúrház 1983-ban épült.
Népessége
1910-ben 221, túlnyomórészt szlovák lakosa volt.
2001-ben 318 szlovák lakosa volt.
2011-ben 342 lakosából 338 szlovák.
Nevezetességei
Római katolikus temploma 1701-ben épült barokk stílusban. 1776-ban átépítették, ekkor épült tornya is. 1970-ben a régi templomot modern templommá építették át.
Külső hivatkozások
Hivatalos oldal
E-obce.sk
Községinfó
Szélesmező Szlovákia térképén
| 1,232 |
Léon Marie Charles Jacques François Xavier de Florisone (Ieper, 4 september 1827 - Brielen, 3 mei 1880) was een Belgisch volksverte<|fim_middle|>, Brussel, 1988.
Jean-Luc DE PAEPE & Christiane RAINDORF-GERARD (red.), Le Parlement Belge 1831-1894. Données Biographiques, Brussel, 1996.
José DOUXCHAMPS, Présence nobiliaire au parlement belge (1830-1970). Notes généalogiques, Wépion-Namen, 2003.
Florisone
Belgisch volksvertegenwoordiger
Belgisch liberaal
Gemeenteraadslid van Ieper | genwoordiger.
Levensloop
Jonkheer de Florisone was een zoon van volksvertegenwoordiger Auguste de Florisone en van Elisabeth Mazeman de Couthove. Hij bleef vrijgezel.
In 1859 werd hij verkozen tot liberaal volksvertegenwoordiger voor het arrondissement Ieper en vervulde dit mandaat tot in 1868.
Hij was ook gemeenteraadslid van Brielen.
Literatuur
Oscar COOMANS DE BRACHÈNE, État présent de la noblesse belge, Annuaire 1988 | 142 |
Exploring Class Approvals, Supported by CAD Marine News, Oct 2018 #40
ABS software supports designs across most vessel sectors. This pilot project focused on tug and barge designs, producing promising results.
Jensen Maritime, the naval architecture and marine engineering arm of Crowley Maritime Corp, and ABS have completed a precedent-setting pilot project using three-dimensional computer-aided design (CAD) models to support plan reviews for class approval.
In what is believed to be an industry first, the innovative pilot was not proprietary to specific brands of CAD software, allowing designers to use the versions with which they are most familiar, or those that are best suited to the design project.
Saving Time and Money
In eliminating the need to create 2D drawings to submit for the class design-review process, the initiative is expected to achieve a time savings of as much as 25%, and reduce the designer's costs of approval.
"Being able to send our 3D models directly to ABS for engineering review saves us time and resources that are currently used to develop 2D drawings," said Crowley Maritime Vice President of Engineering Services, Jay Edgar. "ABS's CAD-agnostic approach is an important factor in this process because it allows us to use the modeling program that best fits our needs for the project."
The ABS software would support designs across most vessel sectors, but the pilot focused on tug and barge designs, a sector where Crowley and Jensen Maritime have considerable industry recognition and experience. It used a detailed 3D-model environment that seamlessly integrated with the ABS classification processes.
Unique to the ABS-engineered solution is the ability to upload 3D models that are developed by using all major CAD modeling software – including widely used brands such as Aveva/Tribon, Intergraph, Autodesk/Autocad and Rhino – expanding the options for designers and owners.
The Future: 3D Modeling
Three-dimensional modeling is increasingly relied upon by the maritime industry's design houses and builders for planning initial structural and machinery systems, with more than half of respondents confirming adoption in a recent ABS survey.
"Using 3D software models is the logical next step for ABS as we expand our digital footprint and continually enhance the class experience," ABS Vice President for Technology, Gareth Burton said in announcing the pilot project with Jensen Maritime. "Until now, only two-dimensional drawings have offered the fidelity of detail required to support ABS classification. But advances in technology and 3D modeling techniques now enable one end-to-end project model, backed by an extremely detailed data set, for plan approval."
The digital revolution is beginning to have a major impact on how class is delivering its primary services such as plan approval. While the overall objective remains the same – to help maintain life, property and the natural environment – how those services are delivered is being transformed throughout the lifecycle of the asset.
Class, in partnership with industry and academia, is using the digital revolution to make its processes less intrusive to stakeholders' day-to-day operations; using 3D modeling for plan-review is just one example.
"The time and resources we don't spend creating 2D models for review can be used on other strategic design activities, so using 3D models that are already an integral part of our design process to meet class requirements is clearly a benefit to us and, ultimately, our clients," said Edgar. "It is an example of how thoughtful application in technology can be used to streamline the design process."
While using 3D CAD models to support class's plan-review process is not entirely new, working with design houses and shipowners to create a process that supports many different types of CAD software is unique.
Traditionally, maritime partnerships have been formed with the CAD and/or software companies, compelling designers to work in that software environment. This has created the interoperability issues that are common in the hyper-competitive software world, where protection of intellectual property can restrict cooperation.
Agnostic, Interoperable – and Cutting Edge
Because designers and shipyards develop their 3D models using a variety of CAD software, ABS chose the agnostic approach to accommodate as many of the industry's established tools and workflows as possible. "It was essential to the success of the review process because it provides clients with the confidence that their models can be accepted and reviewed by us," Dan Cronin, ABS Vice-President Class Standards and Software, said.
The software-agnostic goal was built into the work scope for the Crowley/Jensen pilot. It included the identification of 3D model formats that Jensen Maritime wanted to submit for ABS review, and the determination of the 3D models that were to be submitted for testing. The program was tested with hull scantling models. As the focus was on the plan-review workflow, a full engineering plan review of the models was not conducted for this part of the pilot.
ABS verified the design, conducted spot checks of the details required for plan review to ensure that the models could be fully reviewed. Other details of the work scope included:
Collection and preparation of documentation, data, and 3D model required for the test workflow, which addressed:
Commenting and Amendments
Software compatibility
Testing of the pilot-approval workflow with the 3D model and accompanying documentation
Report and review test results
Development of best practices for the 3D model-based plan approval process based on the lessons learned from the pilot
A key obstacle that had to be overcome was the interoperability of the third-party platforms, how to develop a process so that data can be shared across different CAD platforms. To support an efficient design-review process, the designer creates sectional views, which allow ABS engineers to more easily navigate the model. When used in tandem with a file-transfer protocol, engineers and designers communicate comments and annotations via 3D PDFs, assuring the secure transfer of data.
As the next logical step for this technology, ABS is interested in piloting it for use in class surveys, an exercise that would build understanding about how designers and shipyards could best use 3D CAD models during vessel-construction phases.
"We expect significant time and cost savings for designers and shipyards if 3D CAD models are adopted during the construction phase," said Cronin. "However, there will be challenges, because shipyards may need to modify some workflows. It may also impact a range of stakeholders, including crew on board vessels and Flag States."
ABS is already talking to Flag States about how they may be able to accommodate 3D CAD models, particularly with regard to use in the field. They have expressed interest in 3D model plan review, even though use in the field is limited at present. Beyond this, ABS is also exploring ways to use 3D CAD models to reduce non-value added modeling<|fim_middle|> and vary- requirements. piping during maintenance activities ing pH levels. Standard water pumps Using CIRCOR's 3D modeling, Bil? n- such as replacing wear parts like a me- cannot withstand this operation. ger pinpointed the optimal con? guration chanical seal
July 2019 - Marine Technology Reporter page: 69
conjunction with semi-customized launch and recovery aids beam, magnetometer and SSS (side scan sonar) instrumenta- supplied by PanGeo Subsea. tion with 3D automated control of altitude and run-line via www.pangeosubsea.com EIVA ? ight software. PanGeo Subsea said that its SeaKite Underwater data acquisition
has developed multiplexer solutions for the worldwide an extensive quantitative optical test marine industry including ROV, seis- setup. Testing includes 3D prototyp- mic, FPSO turret and oceanographic ing, 10m x 1m in-house test tank, im- applications. This year Moog Focal has age calibration, and nearby
has been carried out poration that in 2006 took over the ac- coincide with the offering of new prod- ucts, new capabilities have been added more than 500 3D projects since then. tivities of Erlingsson Sub-Aquatic Sur- During the last 12 months, besides the veys. In 2018 it delivered the 4th-gen to the
produced 10 high-resolution images which were selected using the Kongsberg REFLECTION soft- ware package from standard HISAS imagery. Additional- ly, eight 3D surfaces of the sea? oor were produced using Fledermaus software. Kongsberg EM304 multibeam data was uploaded online and team members at UNH cleaned
to reveal more to the market next year. The company has tooth AUV's ability to dock in a safe and controlled manner at also been developing and trialling 3D simultaneous localiza- a remote sub-resident docking station, where it could access tooling packages, be recharged and transfer data, including tion
include side Scan Sonar System that produces real time, high resolution, scan sonars, sub-bottom pro? lers, bathymetry systems, com- side scan imagery and 3D maps of the sea? oor. EdgeTech's bined sonar systems and acoustic releases. new combined sonar platform is the 2300 system. This deep- In the side
dent "we will dou- full line of underwater products including KATFISH Active- ble revenues in 2019." ly Controlled SAS Tow? sh, ThunderFish AUV, SeaVision 3D Laser Imaging system, and pressure tolerant components The Tech such as thrusters and batteries. Kraken's R&D of advanced Kraken has the unof? cial
September 2019 - Marine Technology Reporter page: 49
modeling would include a tool with Geometric modeling speci? c capabilities for propeller blade design, augmented A full "designed for manufacture" 3D CAD model with general-purpose CAD/CAM software for the is then developed and delivered for prototype less geometrically challenging roles (includ- testing | time.
This article first appeared in the October print edition of MarineNews magazine.
Digital Feature Extraction with PropCad Premium 2018 Marine News, Nov 2018 #72
A new utility automates feature extraction from 3D CAD data.Marine propellers can last a long time – it is not uncommon to find a vessel running on its original set of propellers. Sometimes, these propellers even outlive the companies that produced them. For example, some large volume propeller manufacturers
Provide Solutions Introduces 3D Laser Scanning Maritime Reporter, Oct 2003 #56
LIDAR-based 3D laser scanning allows designers and builders to view structural and machinery units already fit as a final product before construction and assembly are finished. Quick dimensional comparison can be made between drawings and constructed units, checks for accuracy and alignment can be
MTR100 '13 FarSounder, Inc. Marine Technology, Jul 2013 #71
.com Website: www.farsounder.com CEO/President: Cheryl M. Zimmerman Employees: 12 FarSounder is a leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of 3D sonar systems. The company applies its 3D technology to commercial, recreational, defense and homeland security markets, internationally as well as domestical
DNV GL Debuts New Explosion Hazard Software Maritime Reporter, Feb 2014 #57
DNV GL's new Phast 3D Explosions software module enables advanced 3D modeling, increasing both the accuracy and detail of the evaluations as well as information about the speed of vapor cloud explosion (VCE) analyses. Phast software is used to model safety aspects of design options for proposed new
New Explosion Hazard Software Maritime Reporter, Mar 2014 #24
historically had to undertake time-consuming analyses and have been unable to show all the combined influences in different scenarios. DNV GL's new Phast 3D Explosions software module enables advanced 3D modeling, increasing both the accuracy and detail of the evaluations as well as information about the
3D Laser Scanning for the Marine Industry Maritime Logistics Professional, Q4 2013 #46
FARO 3D laser scanning allows the Chief Engineer or Project Manager to work in detail with 3D model shots of machinery spaces with increased accuracy and reduced costs. The time to install a Ballast Water Treatment (BWT) System or maybe an Exhaust Gas Scrubber is rapidly approaching. Or, perhaps, you are
MTR100: Coda Octopus Products Marine Technology, Aug 2016 #14
Octopus Products Limited has become a global leader and specialist in underwater technologies as the patent holder for the world's first and only real-time 3D sonar, the Echoscope, which enables subsea operators to constantly monitor operations when poor water visibility prevents the use of traditional cameras
Meet the Future of Visualization and Mapping Sonars Marine Technology, Jan 2018 #22
environment than the pre-cursor technology, the single beam. The multibeam however has limitations as its outputs require post processing to render useful 3D images of the area being inspected and cannot image moving objects. Many subsea applications require technology that can facilitate real-time 3D decision
Lockheed Martin's Revolutionary AUV Marine Technology, Jan 2014 #30
prior to decommissioning and provide operators with significant improvements over general visual inspection (GVI) by the addition of sensors that produce 3D models of the structure being inspected. "Additional benefits include rapid response when a loss of well containment requires large standoff distances
MTR100 '13: Teledyne BlueView, Teledyne Odom Hydrographic, Teledyne RESON Marine Technology, Jul 2013 #52
of underwater vision applications. In addition, many AUV systems have been deployed to provide integrated gap-fill, obstacle avoidance, automated homing, and 3D imaging capabilities on most major platforms. BlueView customers enjoy a low cost of ownership with reliable operation, exceptional service, on-site
FarSounder Updates Navigation Sonars Marine Technology, Apr 2015 #56
The release of SonaSoft 3.0 represents an upgrade to its real-time forward-looking sonar capabilities. New in SonaSoft 3.0, FarSounder has improved its 3D sonar display, the developer said. According to FarSounder, improvements include target persistence via new image stabilization techniques, updated color
January 2020 - Maritime Reporter and Engineering News page: 55
exhibition it aims • A doubling of the size of the marine interiors section to enhance the coming event accordingly. • A doubling of the size of the Live 3D printing area on the While SMM is a large, ship technology show, it has expand- show ? oor ed and stayed relevant by adding and exploiting targeted
devices or head-mounted displays, Tech- Guide enables engineers to use their preferred learning style on a Photo: Greg Trauthwein job, whether through 3D-models, animations, video, to have instruc- tions read aloud or to browse a pdf. It is currently being put to the Synthetic Natural Gas test on a number
of science and technology (NTNU) has established a new ? rm, Zeabuz, to promote Photo: Wilhelmsen and build upon its newly devel- Zeabuz' (zero-emission 3D Printed Spares oped autonomous sea-bus) is an all-electric, 10-30 pax waterbus con- Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) launched an early adopter pro- waterbus
entity, NTNU Discovery. The 22 m boat's times shorter. Volvo Penta IPS 1050 will help it do 32 knots carrying 12 pas- Fast-forward 10 years, and the 3D impression of another sengers, plus two stretcher holders. Passenger access appears ambulance launch catches our eye at Nor-Shipping in south- to be
December 2019 - Maritime Reporter and Engineering News page: 23
up to eight people which is housed in a Commissioning June 2019 Deadweight 6.060 GT / 1.945 NT sion system and dynamic positioning bird crane with 3D motion stabilization. special davit system in a hull recess on Propulsion Diesel electric DP2. It can accommodate 90 people, This means that during
November 2019 - Marine Technology Reporter page: 50
, but the quality of the data is Police and Search & Rescue organiza- Photo: Farsounder dependent on accurate calibration. tions. FarSounder: New 3D Forward- Calibration of wave spectra and in- When a ? xed transducer installation Looking Sonar tegrated wave parameters from radar- in a small vessel
from tial density that will help ? ll critical data research studies in the region. The lidar Kootenay Lake in British Columbia. gaps in 2D and 3D hydrological model- and hyperspectral data also provided And, with new insights into the river's ing applications. The success has led the invaluable
like transmitting tion and mapping (SLAM) to navigate tanks and to use roll/pitch/yaw data from gyro boxes to observing ROVs mosaicing software to produce 3D heat maps of areas during subsea construction projects to give on-deck needing maintenance. The ? rst ExRay is due to launch crane operators, for
November 2019 - Marine News page: 84
. Propeller professionals have looked the propeller geometry, prepare 2D drawings, inspection Hto HydroComp for over 35 years for industry- documents, and 3D models. Many manufacturers are ex- leading analytical tools to ensure that the right propeller is porting full 3D CAD models from PropCad to create
October 2019 - Marine Technology Reporter page: 61
, temperature, depth and altimeter data, which is used to enhance the operational capability of the Freedom resident vehicle. www.valeport.co.uk 3D Models of WWII Sub Viewport3 have been collaborating with explor- er Tim Taylor to process underwater 3D scans on the bow and stern of a U.S. submarine
October 2019 - Maritime Reporter and Engineering News page: 57
starts, it must then be boiled down to the speci? cs. CAD has obviously helped to speed that pro- cess along, but in my mind, the implementation of 2D and 3D CAD hasn't really shortened the entire design process, but it's allowed us to get a better product. We still take the same amount of time to design
, it must then be boiled down to the speci? cs. CAD has obviously helped to speed that pro- cess along, but in my mind, the imple- mentation of 2D and 3D CAD hasn't really shortened the entire design process, but it's allowed us to get a better product." Cory Wood, Vice President Bristol Harbor Group
? nd ourselves emerging from the awkward ado- of palming the pages of a general arrangement from Tplexity of power systems, and new access to lescence of 3D modeling. Until recently, ships were hand to hand, there are clearly new bene? ts in design high-latitude shipping routes. While new digital design
where they are headed to remain aligned. In the I am truly excited about autonomous vessels and the past ? ve years, we have lead the industry in low cost 3D growth in design opportunities around the globe. This adds modelling supporting not only ships, but aviation assets and incredible variety to our
October 2019 - Marine News page: 57
against line-to-ground elec- and easier to use. Whether extract- and equipment, and jetting-in pil- trical shock hazards. The GFCI ing data from full 3D CAD ? les or ings on marine construction jobs, Duplex Receptacle complies with inputting custom distribution data, the new pump set is the latest
September 2019 - Maritime Reporter and Engineering News page: 52
from the emissions at high temperatures | 2,171 |
** Disclosure: I am a Verizon Ambassador and have received a Droid Razr Maxx HD and six months of service in return for my honest reviews.
Karen Austin from The Generation Above Me and I teamed up to host one fantastic party featuring some fabulous Verizon products. We had a blast and so did our guests. Our party was set up as an Open House event. People could come and go at any time during those 3 hours. At one point we had standing room only.
Karen is an instructor by trade and boy did that talent shine through during the party.
Karen had the undivided attention of the audience as she demonstrated very popular products, like the FitBit One.
There were many great questions asked and plenty of one-on-one time for those wanting a closer hands-on demo of particular products.
Guests enjoyed hands-on time with these great Verizon products.
There were drawings so our very<|fim_middle|>ed on the products / services, for being kind to my friends, and for doing all that driving (in harrowing conditions, no less). | enthusiastic guests could win these great products.
Yeah, we had some very happy party guests.
Everyone who attended the party also received on of these Verizon Gift Bags.
And those bags were full of 'Goodies'. The bag itself was very cool, but inside… Yeah, very cool stuff indeed!
Guests also enjoyed a variety of goodies throughout the afternoon. Yes. They were delicious and fun!
Thank you Verizon for providing such excellent products for our party guests.
You did not need to attend our party to learn about Verizon's product line. Visit your local Verizon store or go online and see for yourself. They have some great deals going on right now on new Droid phones. Check them out by visiting Verizon today.
Looks like you had a good time, Cheryl, as did all. Home parties are indeed a great way to share info about new products. Last wkend I attended one for ladies Jockey comfort wear and was very impressed.
That's a cool idea! Wonder if Mac would sponsor something like that?….probably not.
If they do, I am at the front of the line to sign up!
How fun and informative. I finally got a FitBit a couple of months ago and I really love it.
Yeah, once you start using FitBit you never want to be without it.
I bought a FitBit and can't figure how to make it work so it just sits on my desk staring at me.
Looked like a fun affair!
Also, great post with all the pictures. It helps to re-create the experience.
I was so nervous about the party, and it turns out that everyone loved it! It looks like your guests had a great time too!
Thanks for the flattering pics! And thanks even more for being so well vers | 354 |
Vontae Davis To Malik Hooker: 'Don't Ever Leave Your First Ball!'
Intro: While he's been sidelined with a groin injury, Vontae Davis has remained a leader for a young Indianapolis Colts secondary. His advice has extended as far as proper etiquette for your first interception, which was helpful on Sunday for rookie safety Malik Hooker.
Jack Carney
Colts.com Contributor
INDIANAPOLIS — As cheers rained down from the Lucas Oil Stadium crowd, Vontae Davis approached the hero of the moment, safety Malik Hooker, with additional congratulations — but also a critique.
"Malik, this is your first pick," Davis told his rookie teammate. "Don't ever leave your first ball!"
Hooker, the Colts' 2017 first-round draft pick (15th overall), had just completed his first career NFL interception by snagging a Carson Palmer throw at the Colts three-yard<|fim_middle|>.
Davis realizes how special this moment was for Hooker. He's racked up 22 interceptions during his nine-year career, but, he still remembers his fist pick well.
He was in his rookie year with Miami in 2009, and the play came in the second quarter of a Week 4 win for the Dolphins over the Buffalo Bills. Bills quarterback Trent Edwards fired a short pass intended for wide receiver Josh Reed.
"I knew it was an out route, and I just jumped underneath and ran into the end zone."
Davis jumped the route and ran the ball back 23-yards for a touchdown.
"I remember it like yesterday," Davis said. "It's your first one, so no matter how long (ago) it was, I'm always going to remember my first pick."
And, of course, Davis had the good sense to hang on to that football afterwards.
"It's at home somewhere," he said with a smile. "I've got it in my archives." | line and returning the ball 32 yards to the 35.
The rookie had done everything perfectly, reading the veteran Palmer, anticipating the pass and sprinting over to the corner of the field before timing his jump and collecting the overthrown ball. But amidst the celebration of his first big NFL moment, Hooker committed a fist-interception cardinal sin, Davis told reporters on Wednesday.
"He forgot the ball, so I got on him about being his first pick," David said. "So he went back and got it. Somebody – I think (Rashaan) Melvin got the ball for him."
Davis has spent much of the past month trying to mentor a whole flock of young secondary teammates, like rookies Quincy Wilson, Nate Hairston and Hooker, as well as second-year safety T.J. Green, who has been tasked with making a transition over to cornerback, as well.
"I've been the leader on the back end, helping the young guys any way I can," Davis said. "I just give them all the insight I can, so that they can improve week in and week out."
This insight even includes post-interception etiquette, apparently | 234 |
"Patience + Mindfulness = Success" is an interview with Glasstone's founder, glass artist Ernest Vitin for the British Contemporary Glass Society quarterly magazine "Glass Network" Issue 64/ June 2017.
Ernest Vitin (Ernests Vītiņš) is a young Latvian born and based artist working exclusively with float glass: cold-working it into powerful, monumental and architectural layered glass art pieces www.ernestvitin.com and memorials www.glasstone.eu. He embraces the layered, also called- stacked glass technique. Twice- in 2014 and 2016, Ernest has been nominated for the prestigious Art Academy of Latvia award for a<|fim_middle|> 22 tons heavy layered glass architectural installation in Latvia, perhaps in the Baltics- "In Nature" (2015). The hand treatment of "In Nature" spans over 20 km or 12.5 miles. It is located in the main foyer of the newly built, multi award-winning, modern Academic Centre for Natural Sciences of the University of Latvia.
Ernest, there aren't many artists working in layered glass technique. Why, would you say, this is?
What made you choose the layered glass technique over other alternatives?
What would be the first thing to work on if someone was to take up layered glass technique?
What is the hardest and the most fulfilling about being a layered glass artist? | significant contribution enriching and strengthening culture locally and internationally. He is the author of the largest, entirely handmade, over | 23 |
The Nile Co.
Rebranding the Nile Company, the oldest factory in the Middle East and North Africa producing cement<|fim_middle|> of cookies. Accept | tiles.
The Nile Co. History
Founded in 1942, The Nile Company was the first factory in Egypt and the Middle East to make cement tile products and to this day remains one of the largest manufacturers of high quality cement and terrazzo tiles in Egypt & the MENA region.
The Nile Co. Rebranding Strategy
We built the new brand strategy based on the invaluable heritage of the company as a pioneer in the cement tile industry for over 70 years, we wanted to create a timeless, solid identity that celebrates the golden era of Egyptian industry. The logo reflects the unique essence of classic Egyptian logos created in the early 20th century. We used simple iconic ancient Egyptian design elements like the zigzag water symbol and the lotus flower to represent the Nile. The logo incorporates a subtle Art Deco design aesthetics, a fitting tribute to the era of the company's founding in the early 1940s, which itself drew heavily on ancient Egyptian motifs.
An award winning identity, Won 2 prestigious branding awards, How International Identities Award from USA, and The International Visual Identity Award from London. The logo was feature in Dubai Design Week and in Beirut design week. The new brand image disrupted the local market significantly, and as a result, it increased the company's brand equity and successfully repositioned The Nile Co. as Egypt's leading encaustic tile manufacturer.
Every tile takes from 3 to 4 minutes to be produced before being cured in water bath and then polished.
I had the pleasure of working with Habi and Rina on the complete rebranding of The Nile Co., a tile company established in 1942. They delivered outstanding work in all aspects of the project; from a strong and original concept, to highly creative design solutions, to meticulous attention to detail in execution. They are genuinely invested in the brands they work with, and offer valuable insights and suggestions all along the way. Their professionalism, creativity and enthusiasm made for an extremely enjoyable and productive working experience, and I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for a creative partner to help them take their brand to the next level. Thank you Habi and Rina!
Hala Said, Nile Co. Marketing Consultant
Infinity Natural Beeswax
Ovio Christmas Tin Boxes
Ovio Artisanal Products Packaging
La Bodega Anniversary Invitation
Global Impex Logistics
Labib Tadros
Rebranding Pharos Holding
RISE Egypt
© 2019 Tandem, All rights reserved.
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Cranbury Historical & Preservation Society
Memberships & More
For Sale at The History Center
Elizabeth M. Wagner History Center
The Elizabeth M. Wagner History Center
history<|fim_middle|> is a charge for research services.
contactCHPS@gmail.com
6 South Main Street, Cranbury, NJ 08512 Sign up for our newsletter | center@comcast.net
We welcome questions about Cranbury's history, both about people and places! Please contact us at historycenter@comcast.net. The center is open by appointment.
About the Elizabeth M. Wagner History Center
In 1736 the land now occupied by the Gristmiller's House and the Cranbury Firehouse was purchased for the site of a gristmill, to grind grain for the farms throughout the Township. The mill burned down in 1860, but was reconstructed. It was probably then that the present Gristmiller's House was built.
Cranbury Township acquired the Gristmiller's House from an early Cranbury family, and from 1968 to 1985 the house served as Cranbury's Police Station.
When the Police Department moved to other quarters, the house began to deteriorate and was threatened by demolition. The Cranbury Historical and Preservation Society leased the house from the Township in order to save it. With the help of a matching grant from the New Jersey Historic Trust and the generous support of Cranbury residents, friends ,and businesses, the restoration of the Gristmiller's House was completed in the spring of 1993, and dedicated on September 18, 1993.
The house functions as the Cranbury History Center, and was renamed to the Elizabeth M. Wagner History Center in November 2018. The Society's collection of all visual, oral, and written records of Cranbury's history is kept there. It also provides storage for artifacts and memorabilia not on current exhibit, and the Society's textile collections. The Cranbury History Center is open to the public for research and use of the Society's records. There | 362 |
TT 2022: Official TT programme goes on sale
The Official Isle of Man TT Races programme including the full race guide is now available in stores and retailers across the Island.
This year's programme will retail at £10, reducing the<|fim_middle|> qualifying, racing profiles of ones to watch, a course map, spectator guide and the current lap and race records around the Mountain Course – an essential guide to this year's racing.
Subscribe to get Energy FM News direct to your mobile device
You can get Energy FM News delivered direct to your mobile device using one of the following methods.
In the Apple News App on iOS search for Energy FM IOM and then just add it to your favourites
In the Google News & Weather App just search for Energy FM and then add us as a customised section
If you use an RSS Reader then just add our feed to your app, click here for our news RSS feed | cost by nearly 50% compared to 2019.
The Programme and Race Guide are now combined into one action packed book that's bursting with all the exclusive features, insights and race information that fans need for the complete TT experience.
Returning cover star and 23-time TT winner John McGuinness MBE reflects on reuniting with Honda Racing and the Fireblade for his 100th Race Start. Plus exploring the conversation that can be heard all over the Island, featuring insight, analysis and opinion, this year's programme takes a look at who is the greatest TT racer of all time?
By purchasing the Official TT programme fans can get a first look at the stellar debutants appearing in 2022, featuring an in-depth interview with Glenn Irwin, one of the most highly anticipated riders for this year's TT. Irwin talks BSB glory, aspirations and realising his road racing dreams.
Plus discover full details of where to watch, how to watch online and on air plus full details the new MONSTER ENERGY FAN PARK, promising two full weeks of free to access lively entertainment, live music, signing sessions, live coverage and more.
The 2022 Programme exclusively carries the full entry lists for each of the nine TT Races, including detailed race previews, a guide to | 268 |
An examination of the role of social media in global politics
Hilton hotel external and internal analysis
How to write a cover letter for an internship programme
Dividend signaling
Bhattacharya demonstrates that if information was shared, that all information known to both the insiders of the company and the public, then the market would be strong form efficient.
Non-Cooperative Game Theory In all public companies, the manager Dividend signaling the firm, whether it be the Board of Directors, or a sole CEO of the company must define and determine its dividend policy. Or so we thought Zhang, and Mary Varterasian.
The bacteria excise tumor tissue in a precise, localized way that spares surrounding normal tissue. Operating sinceBVD advances its mission with commercial capabilities and resources typically unavailable to academic institutions. Rank stocks by dividend history and corporate history length the longer the better.
Weeks later, a follow-up MRI showed that a significant amount Dividend signaling tumor had been destroyed. The researchers hypothesized that injecting the spores directly into tumors would not only overcome this problem, but might also Dividend signaling localized inflammatory and immune responses against tumor cells.
If a business has maintained a high growth rate for several years, they are likely to continue to do so. Look for businesses that people invest Dividend signaling during recessions and times of panic.
At the time officials make the decision to offer a dividend, they usually make an announcement, providing information about the amount and date so shareholders know what to expect. There were three June dividend increases in the Canadian Dividend All-Star List an excel spreadsheet with a lot of stock information on all Canadian companies that have increased their dividend for 5 or more calendar years in a row.
After months being ravaged by this creepy ransomware, we thought we finally had implemented processes to minimize risks and thwart the attack. Know the difference in how fair value hedges, cash flow hedges, and net investment hedges are treated — new this year!!!
Rank stocks by share repurchase yield. One hundred percent of the profits from BVD will also accrue to the benefit of the Stowers Institute. When a business downturn occurs, the dividend must be reduced. Following major changes to their corporate structure in August, Emilygrene Corp.
Exploration and production activities include oil and natural gas exploration and field development and production upstream activities ; together with pipeline transportation and natural gas processing midstream activities.
There is a theory, Dividend Signaling, that suggests that dividend increases generally indicate the stock will perform well in the future. Keep reading for more detailed information on each of The 8 Rules of Dividend Investing. These troublesome spots lack the blood and oxygen needed for traditional therapies to work, but provide the perfect target for a new cancer treatment using bacteria that thrive in oxygen-poor conditions.
According to them, the investor is indifferent between dividend payment and capital gains. The dividend yield as of June 29,was 1. They have more than 1, retail stores corporate, franchise, affiliate as well as over retail fuel locations, operating in every province and in more than communities across Canada.
As I have mentioned earlier that BP pays its shareholders every three months however, I have only declared the total yearly figure of the last three years. Income, Insight and Independence for Today's Investor Each month I update readers of all the dividend increases in the Canadian Dividend All-Star List Canadian companies that have increased their dividend for 5 or more years in a row along with a brief summary of these companies.
Dividend irrelevance theory If a company makes money, in the form of cash inflows, that money belongs to shareholders. This show features 12 artists and over photographic pieces and runs through January 30th, These earnings are then useed in predicting future earnings.
Lintner opined that managers usually have reasonably definitive target payout ratios over the years, dividends are increased slowly at a particular speed of adjustment, so that the actual payout ratio moves closer to the target payout ratio.
Want to share your opinion on this article? Know the difference in how fair value hedges, cash flow hedges, and net investment hedges are treated — new this year!!!
With wineries in<|fim_middle|> writing activity | British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia, the company markets wines produced from grapes grown in Ontario's Niagara Peninsula, British Columbia's Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys, and from vineyards around the world.
Rank stocks by dividend yield. For example, some studies suggest that dividend policy plays an important role in determining firm capital structure and agency costs. Dividend Investing Rules 1 to 5: Critically discussed and compared dividend policies of three different companies.
In this respect, we can clearly see the role played by dividends. In this game, only one player has all the information and the other has little information. Know the factors that promote economic growth 2.
The company was founded and has been paying dividends every year since Dividend signaling also makes sense from a common-sense perspective: Miller and Modigliani [] view dividend payment as irrelevant.Join the Nasdaq Community today and get free, instant access to portfolios, stock ratings, real-time alerts, and more!
Friday, November 23, AM EST Latest StreetInsider Headlines Nov 21, Nov 21, Nov 21, Nov 21, Nov 21, Nov 21. At 23 years, its dividend streak is impressive as this is the sixth longest dividend streak among Canadian companies, but its credit ratings are too low for me to consider it at this time.
Once a company makes a profit, management must decide on what to do with those profits. They could continue to retain the profits within the company, or they could pay out the profits to the owners of the firm in the form of dividends. Now that the bloom is off the cryptocurrency rose, investors looking for the latest hot sector have descended upon the pot stock space.
Marijuana-related companies look likely to have raised $8 billion from investors in Stock quote for Norfolk Southern Corporation Common Stock Common Stock (NSC) with real-time last sale and extended hours stock prices, company news, charts, and research at Nasdaq.
Hydrogen fuel cell thesis
Kahulugan ng kapitalismo
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Bear snores on | 486 |
Detail of Champlain's 1607 map showing what is today Boston Harbor.
Samuel de Champlain may have been one of the first Europeans to sight what is now Boston Harbor. On July 17, 1605, Champlain described encounters with Native Americans nearby. During this voyage, a landing party disembarked near Nahant and named the River du Gas (present Charles River). The expedition then proceeded to Port Saint Louis, now known as Plymouth Harbor.
Champlain mapped a number of Native American settlements along the coastline and at estuaries. Archeological evidence throughout the northeast suggests that people established large villages during the Late Woodland period, which began circa A.D. 90<|fim_middle|> months, people may have dispersed to smaller sites across the landscape.
Archeology on the islands in Boston Harbor has unearthed a number of Native American sites, particularly along the south-facing sides of the harbor. Local people have speculated that these areas were popular for clamming. A decade after Champlain's journey, in 1614, John Smith noted seeing corn planted on the islands during his own explorations.
Visit the harbor and islands to see how the coast has changed since Champlain mapped the French explorations.
Learn about the cultural life of Boston Harbor in exhibits and tours.
Find out about the maritime history of the Massachusetts coastline. | 0 and ended during the time of early contact with Europeans.
"We saw in this place a great many little houses, which are situated in the fields where they sow their Indian corn. Furthermore in this bay there is a very broad river which we named the River Du Gas. In my opinion it extends toward the Iroquois, a nation at open war with the Montagnais who live on the great river Saint Lawrence."
Champlain's map of Port Saint Louis at Plymouth Harbor, 1605.
Archeologists believe that Native American communities gathered and shared food during the spring and fall, fished and hunted, and met for social and political gatherings. In the summer and winter | 140 |
On Sunday, June 4th, I accomplished a goal that I've been preparing for over a<|fim_middle|> my pain had progressed to significant locking in my hip, shooting pain down my leg and an all encompassing discomfort with all activities and sleep.
30 mile backpacking trip with Scouts.
Heading to Philmont for a 12 day trek in June.
Glad to share more if anyone wants more information. | year. I successfully completed my first Tough Mudder. I have been physically, mentally and spiritually transformed in the last 12+ months. From not even being able to simply run…to now after my hip resurfacing leaping, jumping, running and climbing PAIN FREE !
Thankful to friends and family who have encouraged and applauded my hip resurfacing through it all! Your energy sustained me.
7-1/2 years on left and 3 years on right and still going strong. I cannot emphasize enough that it takes continued exercise, stretching and conditioning to keep your new (or old) hips going strong. Add a few pounds and go through a lazy spell and I will start to limp and clunk again.
In July of 2006, a month before my wedding and in the first year of my thirties, I thought I pulled a muscle in my thigh. I let it drag on for about six months, continuing my usual recreational activities of golf, softball, and ice hockey. Finally in January of 2007 my wife forced me to see a doctor as | 225 |
Fees to use bank ATMs hit an all-time high nationwide
By Gary Dinges gdinges@gate<|fim_middle|>.
The average fee is now $4.72, according to a Bankrate.com analysis. That works out to $3.09 from the owner of the ATM and an additional $1.63 from the accountholder's own bank.
The fees, on average, have increased 33% over the past decade.
To arrive at those figures, CNBC says Bankrate looked at 10 banks in each of the country's 25 largest metro areas.
Fees were highest in Houston, averaging $5.58 per transaction. They were lowest in Los Angeles, coming in at $4.15.
The differences are due, at least in part, to the amount of competition in each city.
"In areas where the market share isn't as concentrated, there's a greater disparity in fees, which can serve to bring down the overall average," Bankrate's Greg McBride said.
To avoid fees, try opening an account at a credit union. You can also get cash back when making a purchase at most retailers.
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Accessing your cash from an out-of-network ATM is now more expensive than ever | 54 |
I love anything shiny, or that's what my husband thinks anyway. He's probably right. A safe bet for Christmas presents is always jewelry. Step that up a notch with jewelry that reminds them of the meaning of Christmas and God's love for them.
Enter DaySpring and you've got an amazing store that sells beautiful Christian jewelry (and cards, gifts, books etc.). I love working with them because of the meaningful message they send with every one of their products. Their vision is to connect people with the heart of God through messages of hope and encouragement every day, everywhere. DaySpring also strives to give Christians tool for communication in fresh, new ways.
A couple of weeks ago, they sent me some beautiful pieces of jewelery to try out for myself. Every piece was beautiful and well-made with a reminder of God's love and grace stamped on it. My favorite item was the God's Heart for You sterling silver necklace. It's simple and beautiful and says, "created, chosen, celebrated, and cherished" all the way around it. I've been wearing it pretty much constantly the past few weeks and already had the chance to get into a few conversations about it and the words on it.
DaySpring is giving $100 DaySpring credit to one Southern Savers reader! You get to pick what you want from their large selection of gifts, books and more.
1. Comment: Leave a comment below telling me the most encouraging thing you've ever received from someone.
3. Follow DaySpring and Southern Savers on FACEBOOK, or DAILY EMAIL and leave a comment below that you are.
This giveaway is sponsored by DaySpring. I received products to review, but all opinions are 100% my own.
Don't miss all the other Christmas gift giveaways currently running!
when I graduated college, one of my college roommates made me homemade recipe cards of all of our favorite recipes we made together. she knew i was nervous about cooking on my own, and this was the perfect gift and ver encouraging!
Job offer from a colleague who remembered me years later. Very affirming.
The stain glass cross that sits on my nightstand.
The most encouraging thing I received the little gifts my kids brought me when they were small – like pictures they drew or dandilions picked form the yard. Little reminders of their love for me were priceless.
Mine was a bead for my pandora bracelet from my 19yr old!!
When my son was diagnosed with cancer, my best friend of 30 years, sent me a book, Blessed Be Your Name by Matt and Beth Redman.
The most encouraging thing I've recieved is a baby sitter and a night to take a break and enjoy myself.
Power of a Praying Parent Book. Awesome.
A card with a story and money. The story talks about a yr when a family did not have any money for the holidays, nothing for gifts or food. A person gave them $50.00 (back in the 50's) and they made a promise that when they got back on there feet, that they would give $50.00 to someone every year. As a recipient, once I got back on my feet, I was to forward the money on. That will happen this year. After all these years, this has been a gift that has kept on giving.
The most encouraging thing that I've ever received was a Bible from a co-worker and now a friend who gave me the gift of faith.
the most encouraging thing i was given was 3 shares of stock. weird, i know. it's mostly lost value and my husband wants me to cash it out but i won't because it was a gift from my mom. she told me to leave it and just watch it. i dont know much about it but i haven't lost ALL of it. it encourages me to hold onto things even when all odds are against it!!
Cards from my 5 years olds that say "I love you Mommy" So wonderful!
A bracelet that my 10 year old son bought me while on a school field trip.
My husband put Christmas tree cakes in my stocking the first year we were married. It was my first time spending Christmas away from my family and it meant a lot to me, because my mom used to always put those cakes in our stockings.
The most encouraging thing I ever received was a tiny sheet of paper over my shoulder in church one evening after requesting prayer for a family situation. It was so small yet so powerful and I still keep it in my Bible to this day holding marking the page it told me to go to: Romans 8:37-39. I read this scripture so often I think I could quote it from memory but wouldn't try for fear I would leave something crucial out! I send friends to it often when I feel they too could be lifted up and I am soooo grateful to the one that sent me to it. To this day I am not sure who that was, I only felt a tiny touch on my shoulder and saw the tips of the fingers of the person who handed it to me. I don't know if it was man, woman, child, or spirit; only God knows and it is my believe that the scripture came from Him to me anyway.
A figurine that was given to me from the Willow Tree Collection when my son was stillborn.
My most encouraging thing was some money given to us for gas at a time when my husband and I had decided to take a leap of faith and trust God!
I just got a Comfort Cross, Love it.
4 months before from my wedding, I was living with my family overseas. My fiance surprised me by coming over during his spring break, and bringing me 10 gifts: 1 for each week before I flew back to the states. I think that was the most encouraging thing I've ever gotten: his thoughtfulness during those hard months.
The most encouraging thing I've every rec'd was a lenghty handwritten letter from a friend telling me (specifically) how special I am to her and how she values our friendship.
One of the most memorable gifts was a Christmas cactus. It may sound strange, but I was very discouraged after being on bedrest for 3 months with my first child to prevent a premature delivery. A good friend and her mom brought me this gift at Christmas. It was full of red blooms. To this day, it still blooms every Christmas and it reminds me God brought me through that storm with a very special present, my daughter. She was still 6 weekd early but God was good.
My best friend gave me an inspirational silver bracelet with a verse from Proverbs for my birthday. Little did we know when we exchanged birthday gifts at our annual lunch meeting, my gift to her was also an inspirational silver bracelet. I have put God's Heart for You silver necklace on my Christmas list, and would love to pay it forward and give my best friend the same one for Christmas.
One of the most encouraging gifts I received was a simple Mother's Day card from my son and his wife. It said, "Thank you for all you do – your prayers, your words, your example…You are appreciated, celebrated, and loved." The God's Heart for You necklace you mentioned reminded me of the message in my card.
You know the simplest things can lift you up and encourage you. For me that thoughtful little card that someone sends when you are struggling so badly and really the only one that knows is God; but he laid you on the heart of that other person and they obeyed.
I received a hand written letter from my mom about the way I mother my 2 sons. We've had a tough year with my oldest, and her words brought my to tears, gave me encouragement, and gave me confidence. She guided me to prayer for strength to get through this trying time. I kept that letter, and plan on re-reading it from time to time as the years go by.
I follow on daily email.
The most encouraging thing(s) I've received is/are little handwritten notes from my husband, especially the ones he gave me while I was going through graduate school.
A local artist creates a new card each year during Christmas. A couple of years ago I was a den leader for our Cub Scouts. I was so touched to receive an honor card from a Tiger Scout and his parents.
I follow you on FB. Great giveaway !
Hearing the testimony of a friend from college say that my persistence in getting her to go to church with me kept her on the right path. I had no idea until I heard her words of encouragement.
I love Dayspring products so thanks for this opportunity.
Great advice from a friend… a necklace I won that reminded me of lessons learned from a friends mom..
I just bought my mom's Christmas present from Dayspring! I would love to be able to buy more!
The most encouraging thing I ever received were words from my mother. She was always there for me and , although she is no longer with me, her words live on….
When I was about 19 I ended up at an eye specialist to find out that I had a corneal ulcer (one of the worst pains I have ever felt). I had started out at my regular doctors to find out that I had a UTI and an upper respiratory infection to boot. I hadn't eaten in almost two days because of the way I felt. Needless to say, I remember that being one of the worst days (healthwise) I can remember and my attitude was not the greatest. One of the elderly women that worked at the eye specialist took pity on me, even with my horrible attitue, and brought me a pack of cheez-its and a coke to the waiting area. She was so kind and so understanding even with me not being very appreciative at the moment. A few days later, once I was feeling better, I wrote her a thank you note expressing how her caring actions touched my heart and the next time I saw here, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said "you know, that thank you card is the nicest thing anyone has done for me in a long time". It made me cry and I have never forgotten since then, how important it is to thank those around you for even the smallest of things…I thank God for that woman, her cheez-its and a coke!
We received many special care packages from friends and family when we moved far away from home. It was very encouraging!
My daughter passed away in 2008, and a few most after her funeral a friend sent me a ring with fingers clutching my finger like a baby holding onto me. This was the most meaningful gift I have ever receiveded.
following dayspring and southern savers on facebook!
An art piece of a lighthouse, all done with black chalk. Gorgeous!
The most encouraging thing I've received lately is from a missionary family of 5 that sent us a 100 dollar visa gift card in the mail!
The most encouraging thing I have received is the words from my parents. They always know what to say when I need it the most. I am very close to them and they mean so much to me. As a mother of two young boys I want to always be close with them and them to know they can always come to me no matter what. Just as my parents always told me.
for me, the most encouraging thing is always a hand-written note from the heart.
Anytime I receive a card with a handwritten note in it, I'm encouraged beyond belief. Writing is a lost art these days. I cherish them all equally.
The most encouraging thing I have ever recieved is a prayer cloth from my mother. I was going through a hard time and she knew exactly what I needed.
A few years ago, I was going through a tough time, and 3 of my co-workers got together and bought me a gift certificate for a 1-hour massage. That really touched my heart!
The most meaningful thing anyone has ever given me are my 3 children.
I follow DaySpring and SS on Facebook and I get your daily email.
The most meaningful thing I've gotten is a particular hand written card from husband when I was having a rough time.
My best gift was actually a song. My husband would call me at work late in the afternoon or on my way home. If I had a bad day he would sing to me. You are my Sunshine. He would sing the whole song and by the time he got to the end I always felt better.
The most meaninful thing I ever received would have to be when my husband proposed to me with his mothers engagement. It's really nice to be able to keep them in the family and hopefully continue to pass them down generation to generation.
most encouring thing i've received was a stand up to cancer survivor shirt signed by all my radiation techs and assistants.
When I first started teaching I was at a school where I didn't know anyone and there were no mentors at that time. Several special education teachers who were good friends and did a lot of things together outside of school started checking on me to see if I needed any help, supplies, or wanted to go to dinner etc even though I was a regular ed teacher. We all eventually became good friends and they inducted me into the group with a Step Sister plaque since I wasn't a special ed teacher. They really made me feel welcome and were a big help.
The most encouraging thing I ever got (and still have) is the chance to participate as a volunteer for a most wonderful organization called Camp Happy Days – camphappydaysDOTorg. We have a week long camp for kids with cancer and their siblings. I've been volunteering for a decade now. This week is life changing and if you want to find encouragement, go to camp! I wouldn't miss it for the world.
As the mother of a teen battling Leukemia, I receive encouragement on a regular basis from the kind strangers in stores who ask her about her story, offer her hugs, prayers and sometimes financial blessings. People are always quick to offer both of us smiles and kindness.
the most meaningful thing was a letter from my husband a few months after we got married (11 years ago :)) I still have it , we were struggling a bit, he lost his job and had to keep a family that was growing as of then (i got pregnant) It was the sweetest thing to do!
A spontaneous hug from my teenage children!
Something encouraging and special was a crocheted that my mom made one Christmas. That was the only thing she could do for me being that we were not doing well financially, it meant so much and was the best Christmas gift ever. 20 years later, I still have it and am encouraged to do something special for others even in tight times.
Last year, my 16 year old daughter gave a certificate for World's Best Mom. This was after a year of many arguments between us and me feeling like she must hate me. I framed it and it will always sit on my dresser.
Following DaySpring on Facebook. They have beautiful merchandise.
I have received so many encouraging things- one was cards from the students at the after school program I worked for.
(One of the) most encouraging thing I received from someone: baseball cleats!
A locket from my grandmother that she received on her 60th wedding anniversary. The locket has pictures of my grandparents when they were younger. My grandmother died 14 years ago and I really miss her. I know she is in heaven watching over me.
I received a beautiful framed art to go on the wall. It is in my foyer and it encourages me daily and I also think of the lovely lady who gave it to me.
"Liked" Southern Savers on Facebook!
I follow Dayspring and SS on FB.
The most encouraging thing I've ever received was a handmade Nativty from a Caramlite Nun.
I follow by daily email – which I love. Thanks!
Cards or hand written notes with scripture verses always give the most encouragement to me. I keep them in a folder and go back to reread them when I need a little extra encouragement.
While recovering from surgery, my son's nursery teacher came over and brought dinner for my family. In the days that followed, we had more food than we could eat delivered from sweet friends and family. It was very encouraging to know that God has provided some awesome friends who care for me so much!
Shortly after my husband and I started attending our church, a friend set up a dinner with a small group & our pastor & his wife, so that we could have an opportunity to get to know them better. The pastor's wife arrived to dinner with a book for me she had just finished reading, along with a sweet note of encouragement. Even now nearly 6 years later that book still means a lot to me.
The most encouraging thing I ever received was a folder full of letters from my friends and family at my HS graduation. They were so uplifting and helped me remember that everything will work out in life…even when there are bumps in the road!
My mother gave me several keepsakes that belonged to my grandmother after she passed away. They adorn my coffee table and I treasure them!
When I was pregnant with my daughter, I was completely nervous. So my grandmother (who adopted me) gave me a letter from my grandfather, who had died 5 years before. The letter was one that he had written her when she was pregnant. In it he talked about how much he loved her, and how strong she was, and that he knew she was going to make a great mother. She said she just found it one day around the house, and felt he wanted her to give it to me.
A journal that led me to start journaling with my 1st child!
one of my friends telling me and encouraging me that I can do something, that was hard for me to do, she told me every day!
The most encouraging thing I've ever reeived was a hand written card from a friend.
I follow dayspring on facebook!
I would have to say the most encouraging thing I received from someone would be a heart necklace with a very encouraging card from my dear friend.
One of my bosses sewed this little heart and attached a saying to it and gave us this jar filled with inspirational daily quotes to help us get through the day.
I received a necklace with a cross and 2 circles for my wedding from my husband 33 years ago and I still love it and wear it.
The most encouraging gift I've ever received was a check to use to self-publish my first book from my Grandma. It meant the world to me to finally have the funding to get my book out there!
notes from my nubby that he writes to me nearly weekly are always a great pick-me-up.
My band teacher in 9th grade told me I should try to go to Julliard after high school for playing the clarinet.
most encouragin thing I've received is a thoughtfull, heartfelt card from a friend.
I love Dayspring's products! The most encouraging thing I've received is a hearfelt handwritten note from my sweet mother when I was going through a difficult time.
I follow Southern Savers and Dayspring on facebook.
When my husband and I were about to get married, my husband worked for an adult group home for mentally handicapped. He invited me over to the home one night for a get-together with 2 other homes. When I got there, I was greeted with a surprise! It was a surprise bridal shower.
The most encouraging thing I've ever received was a hand written card from one of my Bible study group members. She had just completed a brave journey of reconciliation with the Lord, and she was thanking me for my part of sharing God's love and mercy with her. I cherish it and carry it with me.
Encouraging words from a friend when I was going through a difficult time.
I follow Dayspring and Southern Savers on FB.
The most encouraging piece I have ever received was a sterling silver hour glass necklace that told how precious time is and we need to live each moment as it could be our last.
Box of crayons and paper and told to continue being creative.
The most encouraging gifts for me are the unexpected ones. A friend gave me a plant/bush for my birthday, just because at one point she's paid attention and remembered I said that would be a great plant to have in my new yard. I never thought of it again, but she remembered! Thanks for the giveaway!
I like Dayspring Products. Thanks for hosting the giveaway.
My grandson, who was 5 at the time, gave me a bracelet that he got to pick out himself at school last year.
every piece of art my sons have ever giving to me is meaningful. Thanks alot.
i follow you on fb, and twitter and tweeted this giveaway.
The most encouraging thing I received was a story from the pastor of the church where I work. It mirrored something I was going through and helped me work through some real anger.
The most encouraging thing I've ever received from someone was a handmade marquetry Christmas Card from my Dad and a stained glass handmade nativity scene from my uncle. My uncle passed away this year, but I keep his nativity up year round as a reminder of him and that I'll see him again.
I follow Southern Savers on daily email.
I have been encouraged so many times by loved ones and friends that I can't name them all. The Lord is good to me.
My most encouraging item received is my Bible, from my parents when I was in high school. There have been moments I don't know what I would do without its guidance!
The most encouraging thing I have ever received was a guardian angel coin. I was having a difficult pregnancy and a friend sent me the angel to watch over me.
I think the notes that I've received from people have been the most encouraging things!
LIKE Dayspring and Southern Savers on FB- Kimberly F.
An I love you from my hubby with a kiss on the forehead is one of my most encouraging things!
My daughter gave me a willowtree container that had favorite Bible verses written inside.
I am now a follower of Dayspring on FB and I get your daily emails!
When I was going through a hard time, a coworker came into a room I was by myself working in, laid down down an encouraging prayer card, and walked out. No 20 questions b/c my coworker knew I'd tear up. No words at all. But thoughts of prayer and encouragement. I carried it in my pocket for months and pulled it out and read it on hard days.
One of the most special things I received was my Bible. It is one of the few things my dad wrote in for me. It will always mean a lot to me.
The most encouraging thing I have ever received was a jar filled with daily inspirations. I was supposed to pick one every day! It was great.
Encouragement from my in-laws has always meant a lot to me. They've welcomed me into their family with open arms!
Following Dayspring and SS on facebook too!
This may sound mushy, but the best encouragement I've ever gotten is a hug. :D It warmed me up.
A card from a friend after my Dad died. The words in the card meant so much.
When a teacher told me I wasnt dumb.
I love hand-written notes that encourage me.
The most encouraging thing I ever received was an email from a former student thanking me for being her teacher. She gave me a hard time but I never gave up her. She moved to a new school and scored the highest score in her class on her end of course test. Her email gave me the encouragement to continue doing what I do for all of my students.
a friend sent me an inspirational book!
most encouraging thing ever received was when my daughter's teacher met me for the first time and she said, "Oh I have heard so many good things about you. I have heard ____ and ____. And i said oh from who?? and she smiled and said, "your husband". That was the most encouraging thing ever given to me. . the praises of my hubby. Thanks for the generous giveaway!
I recently got a card from someone at church that really was encouraging. Thanks for a great giveaway!
My boss – she bought me a box of Godiva chocolate when my promotion did not come through. She was just as disappointed as me that they did not consider her recommendation. She did not have to get me anything, but she wanted to<|fim_middle|> spring on FBI.
The most encouraging thing that I've received is a phone call from a friend, just to check up on how I'm doing.
A letter my husband gave me on our honeymoon he hid in my suitcase… 8 years later … still have that letter!!!
My husband and I got married two days before Christmas. He gave me a Bible for Christmas that year, with the most beautiful letter in the front and my new married last name engraved on the front. What a legacy to our children that we started out marriage off putting God first above all.
I am following Day Spring and Southern Savers on Facebook!
I would say letters or emails from my brother encourage me more than anything!
When I was a new believer, I received many encouraging notes and letters and also, the letters my husband sent while we were dating long distance are still my favorites!
When I was in highschool, my father passed away and my classmates got together and made a wonderful card with many notes of encouragement and sympathy. It really meant a lot to me.
It always means so much when my friends from out of state send cards that speak of how we are so close and so far away at the same time .I have wonderful friends!!!
When I was in undergrad I worked at a Christian camp during the summer. My second summer there, my guitar (which I cherished so very much!) was stolen out of my friend's locked car. I was so upset for the weeks to follow, since I had no financial means to replace the guitar. In the month of July, the camp has a "Christmas in July" week for the campers. It is always a lot of fun, and everyone makes crafts to give as Christmas presents on "Christmas morning" (the last day of camp). I woke up on "Christmas morning" to find a guitar with a bow wrapped around it sitting outside my cabin door with a note "love, santa". The gift was suppose to be anonymous, but I knew it was from the pastor that lead the camp. I recognized the guitar as one that he had passed down through his 3 sons. I still have the guitar and remember his love, generosity and encouragement every time I play it.
When I was stumbling back to GOD after a long separation in our relationship ( I left he never did) a friend gave me a card encouraging me to keep taking my baby steps in Faith and a small faith, hope, and love plaque with the promise of a larger one to be given at a later time. It was a symbol that my faith at the time was small but that she believed it would continue to grow. And it certainly has!
A card from a friend that moved away.
The most memorable gift that I received for Christmas one year was my grandmother's Bible that I had watched her read as a child. It brought back warm memories of her love for me and God.
The most encouraging thing (intangible) I have ever received from anyone is God's grace! The most encouraging thing (tangible) I have ever received from anyone is a love letter from my husband!
One of the most encouraging things I've ever received from someone was a recent card to tell me how thankful someone was for me and my helpfulness. It meant a lot to know someone was paying attention.
I think personal notes of encouragement are really powerful – especially when they are sincere! Dayspring has a great card collection that can help those encouragers!
I liked Dayspring on Facebook- love their stuff!
My husbands unwavering encouragement to accomplish anything I want!
Support from my husband to adopt our oldest son.
I started participating in the Zumba group that is sponsored by my church. Every time I attend my prayer bucket is filled back up and I get the support that I need to get through the week. Not only do I get the strength that I need for my body, I am renewing God's temple by attending! I love my Zumba group and the ladies I attend with!
I was in a meeting one day and noticed a bracelet someone was wearing. The bracelet had written on it "Never, never, never quit". When I asked her about where she got it, she took it off and gave it to me. I have since bought one just like it and did the same thing to someone who asked me about it. The saying was what my mother always taught me as a child…..never, never, never quit!
At one time in my life I was in the hospital for sever depression. The cards and letters from people all over were a big encouragement for me. I am free of depression now!!!
Most encouraging thing I've ever been given was a phone call and someone asking me how I was doing & really wanting to hear the answer.
When I was a young mom of two little ones ….. in a new area with no friends ….. and felt all alone and down …. I joined a local MOPS group and I can not even tell you what an encouragement those other moms were to me …. I no longer felt alone.
I don't know about the most encouraging. I do love the jewelry and home decor from Dayspring, though.
I follow Day Spring and Southern Savers on FB.
The loyalty of my best friend through all of these years.
One of the most encouraging things I received was a booklet put together by students and teachers recommending me for teacher of the year! The words the students wrote were priceless and made me feel that I had done my job!
I follow Dayspring and Southern Savers on facebook and subscribe to emails.
One of the most encouraging things have had done for me is just to have someone tell me that they are praying for me during a difficult time.
I was pregnant with my 4th baby and had found out that something was wrong with her. Doctors were not sure what was going on but had me scared out of my mind, telling me she wouldn't live but an hour after birth. I was shopping one day at a local flea market and this older man came up to me and gave me a HOPE beanie baby that is kneeling in prayer and told me that he felt led to give it to me and to tell me that I should keep praying about my situation. I did keep praying and God gave me a peace about my little girl and, although she has some issues, she is alive and is 10 years old today!!!
I tweeted and I follow SS on FB and by email and now follow Dayspring on FB too!
I follow both SouthernSavers and DaySpring on Facebook. I tweeted the giveaway. The most encouraging thing is the words of comfort and prayers I receive from friends and family.
After I lost my cousin/ best friend my friend at work gave me a Willow Tree angel for my desk to remind me of her every day.
The most encouraging this I received wasn't really for me. Someone helped me afford Christmas for my kids last year. That meant everything to me.
My first Bible! I was about 5 years old (and still have it). My mom gave it to me. Of course, I didn't understand the full meaning behind it until later on in life. Through all my difficult times (the divorce of my parents, my own divorce, health problems etc) what could be more encouraging than God's word, his love and his comfort.
My bible that my Dad gave me when I was just a small child. It is pocket size and has my name engraved on it. I still carry it in my purse everyday.
A random card in the mail while I was going through a difficult time.
I received a gift wrapped small box that says something about I am being prayed for so just keep the box and look at it as a reminder…I wish I kept it but it was years ago.
Already follow Dayspring and Southern Savers…yea.
A photo album full of cards and photos of me and my grandmother that had just passed away.
A recent one was when our neighbor brought us dinner after my son was born.
I am following SouthernSavers and Dayspring on FB. Oh, I guess I should say that I LIKE you both on FB!!
Any time my kids say thanks for the work I do!
When I left my job to be a SAHM my boss wrote the nicest note telling me just how valued I was as an employee and that I was always welcome back.
The most encouraging thing I recall lately was a comment a new friend had made to me. She had observed my willingness to help my husband when he needed my help, regardless if I wanted to or not. I never noticed this about myself, but knew I tried doing this daily. It was encouraging to know that perhaps I was succeeding in some small way….
It would have to be a bible from my parents – I am happier than I have ever been in my life! My marriage is better, my kids enjoy mom more and I don't let the little things get to me like I did when I was younger.
The most amazing encouragement I ever received was from my oldest daughter. I was struggling through a difficult time and she hugged me close, led me to the bedroom, and sat on the bed reading Scripture to me.
most encouraging gift was a necklace with a profounding message on it.
I've liked DaySpring and Southersavers on FB.
I received a prayer box from a great friend of mine.
The most encouraging thing someone gave me was a hug!
my daughters are looking for some necklaces for Christmas. These are great.
The most encouraging thing that I received was a personalized motherhood ring.
the most encouraging thing that i have received is the look on someones face when i volunteer at thanksgiving delivering food to needy families.
A handwritten note was easily the most inspiring thing I've ever received.
A snowflake necklace from my son.
a bible that i got from a total stranger, its been the most inspirational thing ever!
The most inspirational thing I ever received was a bracelet with the word HIS to remind me I belong to God. | send me a message that she appreciated everything that I was doing.
The most encouraging thing I have received was a book of prayers from my grandmother.
I like both you and dayspring on fb.
The most encouraging material item I received was a piece of adoption jewelry.
A note specific to me.
I follow southern savers & day spring on facebook. My husband wrote an encouraging note in my bible when he gave it to me about how proud he was of me.
I like you both on facebook and get the daily emails!
My encouraging things are my children, having them love you unconditionally is a gift from god!..
The most encouraging thing I ever got was a picture of a tree with the attributes written around it "strong" "loyal" "chosen" "thoughtful" "nourished" and "well-loved". It was a gift from my parents as I went to college to remind me of home and remind me of them. It cam with a stick from our backyard. My mother made the entire thing.
My fiance is my daily encourager!
acceptance letter from the school I wanted to attend.
Two compliments that were given to me from two different people always stick in my mind. One from a lady that told me that I had more humility than anyone that she had ever met. A man told me that I was the real thing concerning my walk with God. This two compliments will forever be special to me. I try to live up to them each day.
The love of "my wonderful guys"!
I would say the most encouraging thing I have received was just out of the blue for no reason card from a friend, that just said "you were on my mind today". It came at a time when I was feeling so alone and was exactly what I needed!
Probably one of the most encouraging things I've ever received is one of several books that I usually get. To me, books are about the most encouraging things you could ever get.
The most encouraging thing I ever received from someone was to see all the hard work that my stepfather did to make a better life for me.
My sister gave me my first journal…it encouraged me to write and that in turn was the greatest gift ever!
I received a necklace charm that is 3 peas in pod for me to wear in anticipation of our 3rd child (we're adopting)! I thought it was so thoughtful. And I love it!
The one of the most encouraging things that I ever received was from a secret santa, I got an angel and it said you are an angel in my life.
The love from my mom and dad.
When I was accepted into the paramedic program, my husband, who was a flight medic at the time, gave me his very first stethoscope to use during my clinicals.
The most encouraging gifts I received was a Bible study book from my mom that she had gotten for me, my sister, my 2 sisters-in-law, and herself for us to all read and work through together!
I follow Southern Savers & Dayspring on Facebook!
The most encouraging gift I have ever received was from a lady I never had the honor of knowing. She would send my Mother gifts often and at one of the lowest points in my life, I received a package from her through the mail. Enclosed was a silver necklace with a charm on it. The charm holds a center piece that spins and on each side, inscribed in hebrew the word "JESUS", but if you spin the center piece it reads "JESUS" in english. I still to this day have that necklace and it hangs on the rearview mirror in my car…I always know that "JESUS" is with me!!
I like Dayspring and Southern Savers on FB.
A necklace from my sister-in-law that said I Believe in Miracles when I went through 2 major surgeries in 2008.
Liked DAYSPRING and follow you on facebook!
The most encouraging gift I ever received came from God himself. He gave my son to me, whom is a constant reminder of God's love. My son brings joy to my life everyday and reminds me that God has big plans for our lives.
A note from one of my students that said how much I meant to them and how much they had learned. It was so special!
The most encouraging thing I have received is a letter from my Mom, when my son was born. I have it kept tight in my "treasure box" and anytime I feel like I'm failing as a mom, I pull it out and read it.
Prayers are the most encouraging!
I love jewelry as well and even more with the gospel message!
The most encouraging thing I ever received (or at least the first thing that comes to mind) was a note that my cousin wrote me when she was five. In her own cute little handwriting with misspelled words, she wrote about how much she loved me and how she wished I was her big sister :-) She's all grown up now with a new baby of her own and she will be a great mama!
I like Dayspring and Southern Savers on Facebook.
To always finish what you have started.
I received a call – out of the blue – saying a friend was praying for me!
I'll never forget the first encouraging gift I received – a single balloon from my dad while I was in middle school. It was the day after I failed to make the cheering squad and I was crushed. He always knew how to make me smile!
I was very sick 2 years ago and had lost my voice. I had a vocal cord implant surgery so now I can talk. A friend sent me a beautiful quilt that she made by hand…. I wrap up in it every night while watching TV. I treasure that gift!
The most meaningful thing I ever received was a heartfelt thank you note from a family whose home had burned down and lost everything. My family adopted them through the Salvation Army locally and provided christmas and essentials to them. A complete stranger wrote me the most beautiful thank you note that I still have and brings me to tears just thinking about it again.
The most encouraging thing I've ever received was a wheeled leather portfolio bag from a very close friend when I was in college with a note attached that said this is for you to use when you fulfill your dream of becoming a teacher.
Like Dayspring on facebook !
The most encouraging thing I have ever received was the love and support of my grandmother growing up. My mom and I were not very close and without my grandmother, my teenage and college years would have been awful. Thanks, Miney, I miss you everyday but I know you are still cheering my on from the clouds.
Most encouraging thing I ever received: Would have to be my son. I can go through ANYTHING for him!! To see his smile, hear his laughter, watch him grow, makes lifes hardest moments melt away!
The most encouraging thing I have received was a simple card. Working at a school as a teacher's assistant and the teacher just quit with no warning. We were without an official teacher for months. It was very stressful on me and the special needs kids in the class. All the other teacher assistants got together and signed a card of encouragement for me and it meant a lot to me!
the most encouraging thing are the Grandmother books I received. Now, that my grandmothers are passed I cherish them.
Notes written from my mom. She is the best!
A framed quote reminding me of the important things in life.
A daily prayer book from my husband at a time when I was not in a good place.
I received a framed picture from my son, who had a hard time spending money on anything.
I was invited to a fellowship church sermon and my name was announced in a prayer letting me know that I had been said a prayer for by the person who had invited me.
When I was away from home at college and sick in bed with the flu, my sister came and brought me medicine and hot tea with honey. It wasn't home, but it was the next best thing.
The week I was diagnosed with MS, a friend gave me a bookmark that was a cross with the word FAITH engraved on it.
The most encouraging gift I ever got was words, actually! I belong to a homegroup from my church and we choose one person a month to focus on and encourage. We start by telling the people what we love and appreciate about them, and then we pray for them. I was completely undone when they shared their words for me.
I want that necklace it is beautiful!
I am following Dayspring and Southern Savers in hopes of winning the Dayspring giveaway!!
The most encouraging thing that I've ever received from someone is a reason for faith!
The most encouraging gift I have ever been given is the 24/7 support of my father when I became a single mother. Whenever The baby and I would enter the room grandpa would literally jump off the couch!
The most encouraging thing anyone has ever given me was my step dad who to me was my father. My mom worked so hard for us and our birth dad was very abusive. My mom showed us that life didn't have to be that way and she took us out of there. She met my father Gabriel and he encouraged me to get an education, to be the person I am today. He passed away from cancer in July of 2009 and it's been hard, but I just try to remember his words, "God makes all things possible". I'm 27 and living proof that when things don't begin right God can change that and have this big picture ready for you to just grab a hold of.
The most encouraging thing(s) anyone has ever given me was/were hugs my mom gave me when I am down or discouraged.
The most encouraging thing God has giving me was my LIFE. Nov.13,2008, I fell and hit my head. I was in a semicoma state for 3 days, woke up and had no memory of my life, the only person I knew was my MOM. She passed 2 yrs ago with ALS. I had to relearn how to eat, take a shower, education, but most of all, I went home with a Stranger and 2 beautiful girls. I forgot my education so now at the age of 37 am back in school. I have come to learn how to love my family, but it is a work in progress. The most encouraging facter is that before I fell I do remember studying the Bible, and when I began to speck, my langage changed, I lost my southern accent and speck now as of King James Bible langage, with a English accent. Not to boast but I, myself with Gods guidance encourages myself to get up a try to be the best Wife, Mom, Friend, Sister, Aunt, Daugther, in which I can be. I am very humble to the fact that I am alive and breathing to be able to encourage others with my story.
When I was recovering from an addiction, my priest came to pray at my bedside and as if that weren't the most wonderful gift ever, she brought me a devotional that was written for people going through that very process of giving up an addictive substance. It was truly heartwarming and encouraging and has been one big reason that I've made it through my first (of MANY) 5 years. I could so find something from daysprings to give her for Christmas or to give to someone else in my shoes 5 years ago.
I follow both and have signed up for your daily emails!
The most encouraging thing anyone has ever given me has been a phone call just when I needed specific words of encouragement and prayer. Means more than any physical gift I could ever recieve.
Following Southern Savers and Dayspring on facebook!
After my 1st miscarriage a friend sent me the Footprints in the sand card.
I follow you and dayspring on facebook.
I follow you and dayspring on facebook….
One of the most encouraging things I have ever received was from one of my doctors. I don't think he was even trying to be encouraging. I have a chronic autoimmune disease that affects my eyes. Law school was horrible on me with all the reading and studying. Through it all one of my specialists was always asking about how school was and what I was studying and how finals were and the like. The fact that even though he saw my illness for what it was and how hard it made school for me he was always positive that I would finish made me sure that I would too.
A hug and kind word right when I need it encourages me most.
When I was working full time and then decided to go back to college I had a friend give me a card with many encouraging words. She has always been a great friend and cheerleader for me. I am blessed to have her as my friend. I would love to share this gift cert with her.
I'd love to win! thanks for sharing!
I follow Dayspring and Southern Savers on FB!
I am a teacher of students with special needs and just this week I received the most heart felt thank you letter from one of my parents letting me know what I great job I am doing and that they really appreciate all my hard work. That was most certainly encouraging to hear!
When my son was born 11 years ago, they thought he was going to need surgery and sent him by ambulance to another hospital. My friend/coworker brought a bottle bag filled with body wash, magazines and stuff to keep me occupied while I waited to find out what was going on with my baby. She was so sweet I cried even harder!
The most encouraging thing I've ever received were words of encouragement from my 4th grade teacher. She made me believe I could do anything.
I follow through daily email..
I received a fabulous gift from an employee in another department yesterday when, unknown to him I had just been told I was being demoted and all but told to leave the city where I work, he saw my name on my id and told his buddy next to him, "she's ours, the one we call for help- she's great." He made me feel 10 feet tall knowing I had the respect of the guys working in the field, especially when things were going so cruddy.
I follow on daily emails!
During a tough time a card filled with encouraging words I needed to hear at that moment.
A hug and kind word right when I need it most.
The most encouraging thing I received from someone was a willow tree angel when my mom passed away suddenly.
Being told that I could handle anything that God gives me when he gave me a child with special needs and she was right!!! My daughter is special in so many ways, not just the physical disability that she has to battle each day!
Support from family and friends during a difficult time.
A card waiting on my desk at work during difficult times.
The most encouraging thing? God gave me my children. They encourage me to be the best I can be, everyday.
I have to say it would be a simple thoughtful note of encouragement.
A friend gave me a vase with Proverbs 3:5,6 on it to use in my dining room.
A handwritten note from a friend that I can keep reading when things get tough.
My mother had just passed away and one of my students gave me a hand-written note telling me how God was watching over me and my mom. I thought it was profound that a third grader knew exactly what I needed to hear.
At my highschool graduation, I was given a devotional book that I still love to use!
Follow SS on Facebook and daily email.
Still today, the most encouraging thing someone can do is to say that they're praying for you.
Someone gave me a rosary that I still use and cherish today. :) It was even more special that it came from a student of mine.
My Grandmother gave me my first Bible.
My grandmother gave me a collection of her earrings shortly before she passed away. My daughter and I wear them as often as we can – its a little way to remember her.
To me the most encouraging thing I have ever received are hand written notes from friends. They mean so much and can be saved and read over and over again.
When I married my husband I recieved my step daughter she was 4 years old at the time. She is now 11 and I never though how much she would change my life. It gave me a chance to shape and mold this beautiful child. I am so proud of her how she is becoming a young teen.
The most encouraging thing I ever received was "a key". My younger brother had gotten killed in a car accident on his way back to school. Needless to say it was devastating. It was hard enough trying to grasp what happened but then family and friends were all over everywhere asking questions and trying to help. Although I knew there intentions were good, it was totally overwhelming. At times I just wanted to sit somewhere quiet without phones and doorbells ringing. One of my best friends came by and he gave me a key to his apartment. He said, I know you have a lot goin onand you're probably stressed out. Just use it if you need to get away and get your head together. He said, you don't have to call first or anything, I understand. That meant so much to me.
I received a gift with this quote, " All the darkness in the universe cannot hide the light os a single candle".
Encouraging words fromy dad. He always finds a way to sneak them in before a big event my life.
My mom writes me nice notes to brighten my day.
These are great Christmas gifts!
The most encouraging thing I've ever received from someone are my two children. They are an inspiration to be a better person everyday.
Our pastor gave my husband & I really great pre-marital counseling.We weren't even officially engaged yet, but he spent time with us anyway. That was a great gift.
My little girl (5) at the time said "Mom I know its hard being a Mommy but you make it seem so easy!" I gave her the biggest hug and stole away to my private place for a big ole cry! She encouraged me at a time when I really truly needed it!
The most important thing I have ever received from someone is faith. My daughter was born with cerebral palsy and she has the biggest heart and more love than anyone I know. Even though we are losing our home, she still thinks of others everyday. She always tells me that there are others out there that have less than we do. Every Christmas she tells me to buy for children who will not have any presents instead of buying for her. What a great child that God gave me.
I received an antique rosary from a lady in our church that she had used almost daily. Every time I use it, I am reminded of her.
That would definitely be a brand new AC unit for our home!! My son was in treatment for cancer – our unit went out out – no fixing it. Money was incredibly tight and we were under so much emotional stress. My husband went to talk to the owner where we were going to purchase the new unit to see if we could work out a payment plan. The owner told him it was already covered – men from our church had already paid in full!!!! I don't think there is ever a time that we pull into our driveway and look at that big ole unit and get a few tears in our eyes ……. a constant reminder to us that God is our Provider.
My husband is the youth pastor at my church and I work closely with him. Youth ministry is often a thankless job and it may take several years to see the fruits of your labor. It can be discouraging to feel like you're giving everything you have to your students and they still don't get it. But God is always faithful. Last year at Christmas, the parents of 3 students (siblings) in our youth group, gave us the most beautiful card with a beautiful passage of scripture it. They basically said thanks so much for all you're doing for our kids. They are learning & growing and we have seen such a deeper love for God from each of them. The scripture was Romans 10:14-15. "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" My husband and I moved from Indiana to Florida to be the youth pastors at this church and they thanked us for obeying the call and coming down here. They thanked God that he sent us here and ended the card with this, "Your feet are beautiful." It was so encouraging to me to feel that we are making a difference in the lives of these students and that they are growing in their relationships with Him. It was a beautiful reminder of God's perfect plan for our life.
I also like Southern Savers on Facebook.
my husband surprises me with little post-it notes sometimes stuck to our mirror so i will see 1st thing when I get up. they are always very sweet & simple notes, but it makes my day!!!
A glass sparrow my aunt gave me before I had surgery & a note saying God loves & takes care of me even more than the sparrows. It was such an encouragement. We pass it along to family facing surgery or cancer to remind us of God's love for us.
Shortly after my husband died, an older woman from our church began sending me articles relating to the grief process. They were copies of things she had been sent by a friend when her husband died. These women were most certainly "passing it on" and I so appreciated that!
For graduation, my parents gave me, among other things a card with a "life verse" written inside that they had chosen for me to think on and to inspire me through life. Very special.
My mom and grandma put together a recipe book with all of our family recipes, in their own handwriting. My grandma has since had a stroke and can no longer cook, so more than ever, I cherish taking those recipe cards out and following her handwritten instructions.
One of the most encouraging things I have ever received, was a call from my aunt at a very difficult time in my life. She said that I would get through this, to wait on the Lord, and that he never puts more on us than we can stand. I have never forgotten that.
When I moved away from home for the first time my family sent cards of encouragement, flowers and they phoned just to check in on me. I was lonely but they definitely made it bearable.
I received a plaque from my church for volunteering with the youth program making props, etc. The plaque stated "In recognition of your God given talents". It's one of my most prized possessions!
When I left my church to begin ministry with my new husband at the church he worked at, my church family collectively made a quilt for me. All the families/people that I was close to decorated and wrote to me on their respective squares: words of encouragement, verses, poems. By far the sweetest thing a group has ever done for me. And it was so beautiful!
The most encouraging things for me was when parents would write me letters/emails about how much their child had learned in my class and when my mom would send me heartfelt cards about the "good"mom that I am.
I was a teacher for 8 years, and the best gifts were always the heartfelt inspirational notes from my students!
The most encouraging thing I have ever gotten was a necklace from a friend when my daughter was born 3 months early and in the NICU for 110 days. The necklace had 3 charms on it (a cross, and my two children's birth stones on it) so that I would always know that God was with me as were my two children although I couldn't be there every moment with her as I wished I could have been.
Notes and cards from my kids and husband.
I love following you and have added DaySpring to my "likes"!
I follow SS on FB and receive e-mails too!
When my mother passed away suddenly last year, the children I tutor in reading sent homemade cards to me, it turned a very sad occasion to a feeling of thankfulness and joy.
The texts I got after singing this week. I was asked to perform and a luncheon (with the mayor and many councilmen attending) and I was so scared and nervous. Afterwards, the woman who had invited me ( a long time friend and mentor) texted me and told me how proud she was of what I had done. Many other friends did so as well, even some who were not there but knew of what I was doing that day.
Thoughtful handwritten notes and a heart felt poem that my daughter wrote for me.
I don't know it if this is THE most encouraging gift I've ever received, but it has to be at the top of the list. My first year as a teacher, my father passed away and three of my students gave me a cross necklace. One of their mothers (a coworker) came to me when I returned to work and told me a little story them picking out the necklace. Her daughter had told her, "Oh, we need to get her a cross. She has a strong faith." And, her mother told her, "Good, that is the only thing that will get her through this." The comments, the observations of that student was the gift in essence.
The most encouraging thing you've ever received from someone is a kind word and hug.
I once got a "You can do it" figurine when I was writing my dissertation.
A heartfelt letter telling me the ways they see the Lord living in me & using me for His work. The author also reminded me that being a mother is often a thankless job but it is worth it all & the Lord is blessed when I serve Him as a mother to my boys.
The Word of God is the greatest gift and love letter anyone could ever receive. He reminds me daily of how much HE loves me and teaches me I am an overcomer in this life..
I am following DaySpring and SouthernSavers on facebook.
The most encouraging thing I have ever got from someone is when I was 16 my parents got me a ring that simply said "purity". As a teenager if I was feeling peer pressure to "do" something I didn't want to or knew I shouldn't, that simply ring was a reminder to me that I can still keep my "purity".
I am following dayspring and southern savers on facebook.
the most encouraging thing i received was support to participate in a half-marathon. i was so proud to have completed that difficult distance and wouldn't have done it without the words of friendship.
I follow dayspring and Southern savers on Facebook.
Words of encouragement are what I have been given all through my life from the people who mean the most to me. Especially through the difficult times in my life. Just hearing it will be O.K. or you will get through this can really push you through the hard times in your life.
Lately I recieved a journal from a special friend. My husband and I have been trying to become parents for some time now. There have been so many ups and downs through this whole process. We are both 44 years old and know without a doubt God has a special plan for our lives. I have shared my hopes and dreams with her. My dear friend gave me a special journal where I record my prayers to God. It is very special to me.
I "like" DaySpring and southernsavers !!!
When I was getting ready to move out of the area for grad school, my church held a farewell potluck brunch where they gave me a "money tree" – definitely some of the most caring people you could ever hope to encounter!
Going through a divorce, with a 1 yr old and a newborn, working full time…a friend got extra key from my landlord and cleaned my whole house, dishes, 6 loads of laundry, etc. Still makes me cry thinking about it.
the most inspiring thing I've ever gotten was a wall hanging.
The most encouraging thing I have received was my grandfather's medals from the wars he fought in along with the pictures signed by the Apollo crew he helped launch.
A letter from someone I didn't know that well telling me how great a mom I was. I have kept that for over 7 years now.
I think it was a letter from a friends Mom while I was in college. It was such an encouragement.
A Bible from my grandmother on my 13th birthday. It had my name printed on the pink cover.
A hug when I needed one.
The most encouraging gift I've received was a beautiful, leather bound Bible from a fellow believer. Loved it then, love it now.
I was feeling depressed & my daughter wrote me a letter telling me how much she appreciated me & all I had done for her. Sure made my day!
When my daughter shared how she was able to forgive someone because of my example.
A card from my mother.
Someone telling me that me being at church added to the organization there.
My husband cleaning up the kitchen and putting the kids to bed after I'd had a long day.
I like both Dayspring and Southern Savers on Facebook.
The most encouraging thing I've received is time from someone that gave me words of wisdom and encouragement when I needed it most. It hasn't been a tangible item.
I posted the giveaway on Twitter.
I'm following Southern Savers and Dayspring on FB.
the best thing i have received was their time and love.
There were so many days of frustration adjusting to our new blended family life and becoming a stay at home mom again. It meant so much when my husband told me that I was an awesome mother and wife.
A hug is the best thing I think I've ever been given!
Notes of encouragement from family and friends is something I cherish.
Handwritten, heartfelt letters are my most treasured gifts!
I received a women's prayer book while my son was in the hospital. Much needed then and now.
My oldest daughter (10) just gave me a Top Ten List of all the things I am good at….the most encouraging and treasured gift I have ever received!!! I would love to win this and buy her some inspirational jewelry with it.
Like SS and Day Spring on Facebook!!!
I am following southern savers and day | 6,312 |
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Santoríni, Greece
"… a somewhat exclusive destination of unparalleled global appeal, a place-to-see-before-you-die location par excellence. Oozing romance and voguish in the extreme, its world-famous vistas, landscape, architecture, and cave house infinity pools have graced the pages of nearly every glossy travel or lifestyle magazine ever printed and formed the backdrop for many a bikini-clad fashion model shoot, (staged) social media influencer selfie, or dreamy wanderlust-inspiring GoPro video footage."
Image || Iconic Santoríni. Dusk over the village of Oia. April 28, 2017.
← Island Hopping, Greece Páros, Greece →
Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece
As the poster child for all sun-drenched Greek islands, Santoríni is scarcely a secret. Hasn't been for a long, long time. A tourism hotbed stretching back to the early 1970s, the tourist hordes have long since changed the traditional way of life of this particular Cyclades island escape.
The Cyclades standard cubist architecture and blue domes in the picturesque clifftop village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Today Santoríni, first port of call on a Cyclades island hop, is a somewhat exclusive destination of unparalleled global appeal, a place-to-see-before-you-die location par excellence. Oozing romance and voguish in the extreme, its world-famous landscape, vistas, architecture, and cave house infinity pools have graced the pages of nearly every glossy travel or lifestyle magazine ever printed and formed the backdrop for many a bikini-clad fashion model shoot, (staged) social media influencer selfie, or dreamy wanderlust-inspiring GoPro video footage. Undoubtedly a beautiful place, Santoríni attracts beautiful types with the promise of having a beautiful time. And I imagine it rarely, if ever, disappoints.
dMb Country Overview - Greece
Region – Southeastern Europe/The Balkans (dMb tag: The Balkans). Capital – Athens. Population – 10.8 million. Official Language – Greek. Currency – Euro (€) GDP (nominal) per capita – US$21,000 Political System – Unitary parliamentary republic. EU Member? – Yes (10th member joined January 1981). UN Member? – Yes (founding member joined October 1945). G20 Member? – No. Size – 132,000 km² (Europe's 15th largest country is approximately half the size of Ecuador, twice the size of Sri Lanka, and roughly the same size as the US southern states of Alabama and Louisiana. Topography – A mountainous interior (80% of Greece is mountainous), a long and convoluted coastline, and hundreds of offshore islands. Independence – 1830 from the Ottoman Empire following 1821 to 1830 Greek War of Independence. Brief History – From the eighth century BC, the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states, known as poleis (singular polis), which spanned the entire Mediterranean region and the Black Sea. Philip of Macedon united most of the Greek mainland in the fourth century BC, with his son Alexander the Great rapidly conquering much of the ancient world, from the eastern Mediterranean to India. Greece was annexed by Rome in the second century BC, becoming an integral part of the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine Empire, which adopted the Greek language and culture. The Greek Orthodox Church, which emerged in the first century AD, helped shape modern Greek identity and transmitted Greek traditions to the wider Orthodox World. After falling under Ottoman dominion in the mid-15th century, Greece emerged as a modern nation state in 1830 following a war of independence. UNESCO World Heritage sites – 18. Tourism Catchphrase/Slogan – All Time Classic. Famous For – Endless coastline and beaches; shipping; democracy (born here); a classical and hallowed past; ouzo; sun-drenched islands; Alexander the Great; the Olympics; being the cradle of Western civilisation; food (tzatziki, feta, souvlaki, moussakas, yogurt, grapes, olives and olive oil); economic collapse & austerity.
Ouzo for sale in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece.
Highlights – Cyclades island-hopping and the remnants of all that ancient history (Greece boasts four millennia of sun-bleached ruins, artefacts, and architecture). Greece Titbits – At nearly 14,000 km (8,500 miles), Greece has the 11th longest coastline in the world; Greece is considered the cradle of Western civilisation, being the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, Western literature, historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, Western drama, and the Olympic Games (the country's rich historical legacy is reflected in part by its 18 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, as of 2017); the Greek economy is the largest in the region with an economy larger than all other Balkan countries combined, this despite its well-documented economic battering and subsequent austerity measures.
Visits – 2 (May 2008 and April/May 2017). Where I Went/What I Saw – Thessaloniki; The Cyclades (Santoríni, Paros, Mykonos, Delos, Tinos); Zakynthos/Zante; Olympia; Sparta; Mystras; Athens.
"… a destination of unparalleled global appeal, a place-to-see-before-you-die location par excellence… a beautiful place, Santoríni attracts beautiful types with the promise of having a beautiful time."
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A portion of the clifftop village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
A departing ferry disturbing the evening caldera perfection in Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Approach & Caldera
You could easily fly here from the mainland, some 200 Kilometres (120 miles) or so to the northwest. But where's the fun in that, and why the rush? Island-hopping via ferry is an unrushed and integral part of the Greek escape, one not to be missed. Offering Greece's best island-hopping, the Cyclades island group, named for the circle they form around the sacred island of Delos, comprise of over 200 islands in total scattered across the azure Aegean Sea between the Greek mainland and Crete. The majority of the Cyclades are small uninhabited ocean-piercing mountain tops. Only two of them, Santoríni being one (Milos the other), are volcanic in nature. Of the 20-plus main islands, some are household names with Santoríni, the most southern of all the Cyclades, probably the most famous of the lot. And only once in your lifetime will you sail into its caldera for the first time, something you can't do on an aeroplane. Doubtless it's a moment I'll never forget.
CALDERA | The clifftop village of Oia as seen from the waters of the caldera. Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 27, 2017.
It's one of those indelible travel memories, the first glimpse, which quickly turns into an intense gaze, of one of the world's most dramatic sights, the sheer 300-metre-high curtain wall of reddish-brown, black and grey pumice layered cliffs of the Santoríni caldera as the ferry glides past approaching the end of the 5-hour sail from Pireas port outside Athens on the mainland (you can savour it upon departure too, although the reverence is diminished by then). As impressive as Santoríni is from up there (and it is), the full dramatic impact of the unique landscape of this island can only really be appreciated from down here.
Santoríni even shines at night. The village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
CAVE HOUSE | A traditional whitewashed Cave House overlooking the caldera in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 27, 2017.
Architecture & Cave Houses
While Santoríni shares the iconic spectacle of its (mostly whitewashed) cubist architecture and blue-dome churches with the rest of the Cyclades, the island boasts its own unique architectural feature when it comes to cave houses. Stretching back centuries, they were hewn into the steep cliff faces by island inhabitants who couldn't afford to build on the limited land available elsewhere on the island. The abodes, whose volcanic rock helps to regulate internal temperatures year-round, were functional (just) but rarely spacious and a far cry from the two-story neo-classical mansions built by wealthy island inhabitants. The tourist boom of the 1970s revived not only Santoríni but all of the then economically deprived Cyclades, and today you'll find the former houses of the poorest island inhabitants enlarged and converted into luxury villas and suites for the well-heeled traveller, the (really) high-end dwellings (upwards of €1000 a night) boasting every conceivable amenity including private infinity pools, hot tubs, plunge pools, and even butler service.
This Cave House did not come with butler service. Nor a private infinity pool. It also did not cost €1000 a night but, crucially, did come with €1000-a-day Santoríni caldera views. It was nice opening this door of a morning. Olympic Villas Cave House 134, Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Santoríni's idyllic beauty, with its pretty sugar cube dwellings tumbling down the steep cliffs of a part-sunken caldera à la icing on a cake, belies its formation as the result of such an apocalyptic event, one that scarcely concerns the modern-day tourist but one I'm sure they are grateful for (assuming they are even aware of it).
BOOM! | Caldera panorama<|fim_middle|>7.
On a portion of the Fira to Oia Cliff Walk, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
The Greek orthodox Church of Panagia Platsani in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
The village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Waiting for sunset in Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
A distinctive blue church dome among the lanes in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Passaggio, bites & drinks, Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
A portion of the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Steps. Everywhere. Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 27, 2017.
A whitewashed cave house in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 27, 2017.
Caldera panorama. Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Nikolaou Nomikou, the main pedestrian thoroughfare in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Ouzo for sale in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
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Uniquely showcasing the beauty of the world - over 150 countries & territories on all 7 continents - since 2002 | as seen from the veranda of Olympic Villas Cave House 134 in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
The island we know today as Santoríni was once (over a million years ago) part of a series of volcanoes that became dormant, its fertile volcanic soil subsequently harbouring an advanced culture dating to as early as c. 3000 BC, as evidenced by recent excavations on the island. A notoriously seismic region and always unstable (the island suffered a major earthquake as recently as 1956), a – BOOM! – massive volcanic eruption, one of the biggest the world has ever seen and dated to around 1600 BC, shattered the good times, is said to have taken a whole civilisation with it (the Minoan civilisation, one of the most powerful in the Aegean at the time), and caused the centre of the then circular volcano-island to collapse, leaving the stunning 10-kilometre-wide caldera with towering cliffs that we see today (with the help of some much-needed post-apocalyptic subsidence, settling, and a few more violent volcanic disturbances down through the years).
THE ISLAND | The caldera, the clifftop village of Imerovigil (centre), the bustling island's capital of Fira (right of centre), and southern Santoríni as seen from the northern village of Oia. Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Seahorse-shaped Santoríni is small. It's approximately 73 km² (28 sq mi) in size, is no wider than 6 kilometres east to west, and, were you up for it, it takes about 5 hours to walk the 25 kilometres from the Akrotiri Lighthouse on its southern tip (seen here in the distance beyond the island settlements of Imerovigli and Fira) to the village of Oia on its northern tip – the walk skirts the island's caldera-facing eastern edge with, and as you might imagine, splendid caldera views every step of the way.
CLIFF WALK | Approaching the northern village of Oia as seen from the 10-kilometre Fira to Oia Cliff Walk, a small portion of which I walked daily, about as adventurous I got on the island. Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
To-do (or Not To-do)
There's plenty to keep you occupied on Santoríni from sunup to sundown, if that's your want: there's a late 17th century lighthouse (Akrotiri Lighthouse); there are beaches, mostly volcanic black sand and pebbles (for all its allure, Santoríni is not a beach destination); museums; volcanic landscapes; chic galleries and boutiques; and even a microbrewery and vineyard (Santoríni is one of Greece's most important wine producers). And there's culture too: churches; a Bronze Age-era archaeological site; and Byzantine castle and mountaintop ruins (Ancient Thera). But Santoríni isn't that kind of location, or it wasn't for me. It was never going to be. Knowing culture – and effort – lay in wait elsewhere in Greece, I was happy to while away a few languorous days drinking in caldera views (and Mythos beers) and exploring the sineous lanes of Oia in the build-up to the day's main event, sunset from the walls of Oia's Byzantine Castle ruins (get there early). Wash, rinse, repeat. One day melted into another. Effortlessly.
SANTORINI DUSK | Dusk over the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
It feels like the whole island congregates at Oia's small Byzantine castle ruin to catch the evening sunset, easily the biggest event of the Santoríni day. Lovers canoodle and photographers, the more serious among them having set up shop in a prime location well in advance, adjust settings and filters. There's really only one vista on offer for those in attendance as the sun sets below the horizon to the west (left), the one seen here looking from the castle ruin across to Oia's hillside dwellings and iconic windmills (the larger of the two is rented as a villa but needs to booked upward of 9 months to a year in advance) at the tip of the island, which is why this invariably is the Santoríni post sunset (dusk) shot seen all over the internet. This just happens to be my version of it.
BRIDAL PARTIES | A bride in Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
If you're looking for anyone or anything to blame, it's the success of the 2014 Chinese romance movie Beijing Love Story. Partly filmed on Santoríni, the movie was unfortunately a hit domestically (it garnered some success internationally too) meaning these days you're guaranteed (mark my words) to see Chinese newlyweds being martched from one scenic Oia location to another by an utterly ridiculous bevy of supporting crew (lighting technicians, makeup artists, artistic director, assistants and, of course, the photographers, plural), all no doubt under pressure to deliver the goods. They can't really mess it up, can they? The list of places on earth more photogenic than (an early morning or late afternoon) Santoríni would be a short one.
Oia. Where Santoríni smart reaches its zenith. The picturesque clifftop village of Oia is one of the most desirable locations in the Cyclades. It's built hugging precariously to the eastern slope of the caldera at the very northern tip of the island, far enough removed from the other island settlements so as to be distinguishable, both visually and geographically, from them. Something of a Santoríni pheonix, it was largely rebuilt following the utter devastation of the 1956 earthquake, which hit the village particularly hard. Today Oia is a typical Cycladic settlement of whitewashed cubic architecture and trendy galleries, boutiques, jewellery stores, cafes, restaurants, and high-end accommodation, most of which nestle in niches hewn into the volcanic rock and all of which are connected by pedestrian passageways, myriad inclines and declines, and countless numbers of steps. Oia is one destination in which to pound the pavements, and what beautiful, bright and explorable pavements they are.
Nikolaou Nomikou, the main whitewashed (sunglasses recommended) pedestrian thoroughfare in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Art for sale in the lanes of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
While the pictures herein prove it to be the case for me, it – Santoríni – is not all about Oia. There are, of course, other places to base yourself when on the island, but I feel you'd be missing out on the complete Santoríni joie de vivre experience as ably provided by Oia – the traditional architecture and cave houses, the views, the sunsets, all that polished chicness – by basing yourself somewhere other than right in the heart of showy Santoríni's showiest settlement. Yes, it's more expensive and crowded here than elsewhere on the island, but that's the price Oia pays for its unparalleled beauty… and the price people pay to stay here. And even I can buy into that for a few days. So, splurge a bit, splash the cash and splash around in your private cave room pool (infinity or plunge, it doesn't matter). This, after all, is Santoríni (and you probably deserve it anyway).
"… I feel you'd be missing out on the complete Santoríni joie de vivre experience as ably provided by Oia – the traditional architecture and cave houses, the views, the sunsets, all that polished chicness – by basing yourself somewhere other than right in the heart of showy Santoríni's showiest settlement."
Signing Off | The Complete Santoríni Gallery
Cubist architecture and blue-domes churches. Iconic Santoríni. Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Art for sale in the lanes of Oia, Santorini, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Bride. Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
The caldera, the clifftop village of Imerovigil (centre), the island's capital of Fira (right of centre), and southern Santorini as seen from the northern village of Oia. Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Dusk in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
A departing ferry disturbing the caldera perfection in Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Honeymoon pose approching seunset in Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
Olympic Villas Cave House 134 morning caldera views. Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
For sale in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
A church roof in the village of Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 29, 2017.
Nikos Villas, Oia, Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 28, 2017.
The clifftop village of Oia as seen from the waters of the caldera aboard the ferry from the mainland. Santoríni, Cyclades, Greece. April 27, 201 | 2,231 |
We continue our #WhyAustin series with Indeed President, Chris Hyams.
Indeed launched in 2004 and is now the world's #1 job site. With 12 years under their belt, they have built one of the strongest companies in the United States. And wouldn't you know… it all started here. So when we asked Chris "Why Austin?" he knew just what to say.
"This is a place where you can grow and given the speed with which Austin is growing<|fim_middle|> Genius, to discover more about what makes Austin a great place to work, play and grow. | , we know that there will always be more people available," Hyams said.
Austin is a mixture of small town pleasantries and big city fun. People are driven to our "Keep Austin Weird" lifestyle and so are the businesses that chase the best talent. We are a melting pot of tech nerds and creative weirdos who work and play in one of the greatest cities in the world.
Stay tuned for more episodes in the #WhyAustin series, produced by our team at StoryCraft and The American | 102 |
It's the old psycho-developing-an-affinity-with-unorthodox cop story again, with Mitch Leary (John Malkovich) taunting and seducing guilt-ridden Presidential guard Frank Horr<|fim_middle|> Horrigan drinks at traditional hack hangout the Old Ebbitt Grill, 675 Fifteenth Street NW. Established in 1856, it was a favorite of Presidents – including Ulysses S Grant, Grover Cleveland, Warren Harding and Theodore Roosevelt – and it's still a meeting spot for political insiders, journos and celebrities.
Horrigan chills out with an ice cream on the steps of that inevitable D.C. location the Lincoln Memorial, in front of the Reflecting Pool.
The 'Denver' hotel where Horrigan stays with Lilly Raines (Rene Russo) is the familiar old Millennium Biltmore Hotel, 506 South Grand Avenue, not in Colorado at all but in downtown Los Angeles, on Pershing Square. It's seen in loads of films, but most famously Beverly Hills Cop.
Horrigan follows the Pres to – um – Los Angeles, where the assassination attempt, and final shoot-out, take place at the futuristic high-rise glass-towered Westin Bonaventure Hotel, 404 South Figueroa Street, downtown.
Another old favourite location, here showing off its California Ballroom – the largest in LA – the Bonaventure has been seen in plenty of movies including real-time thriller Nick of Time; Barry Levinson's Rain Man; Christopher Nolan's Interstellar; Kathryn Bigelow's futuristic fantasy Strange Days; James Cameron's True Lies; Walter Hill's 70s actioner The Driver, and of course classic mockumentary, This Is Spinal Tap. | igan (Clint Eastwood).
Set, not surprisingly, in Washington D.C., where | 18 |
n 1983 Cat Dancer was the first nationally marketed interactive cat toy (toys designed to be used by a cat and their owner simultaneously). According to a recent survey by the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, 40% of all the cat toys now sold in the US are interactive in nature.
Cat Dancer is now used in millions of homes worldwide to provide house bound cats with healthy play and exercise and is singled out by veterinarians for its safe design.
Cat Dancer Compleat includes a soft paw to attach to your wall or other vertical surface so the cat can play with the toy when<|fim_middle|> one that is safe for pets of both the feline and the canine persuasion. I can think of one product in particular, a cat toy that consists of flexible wire with fire-cracker-like papers attached to the end. The product is inexpensive, cats and kittens love it, disabled people can manipulate it, and young puppies who discover and destroy it can't get sick by eating the little paper wads.
Dr. Martha Gearhart, a columnist for The Pet Dealer operates her New York clinical practice on a consulting basis, with emphasis in small animal care.
Cat Dancer Products has been around for over 26 years and is staffed by several generations of three families. Unfortunately, most were too shy to have their photo taken for this page for fear of being mobbed by hordes of grateful cats.
One employee who was not shy is Otis, our Corporate Product Tester. This is Otis as he pitched us the idea for the new RingTail Chaser Cat Toy, he was very convincing. | you don't have time or are away from home.
Catnip Cat Dancer includes a mouse shaped handle that is impregnated with 100% catnip oil. The handle will give off the scent for a full four months after opening and is refillable.
But cats and people need variety in their toys, so we designed Cat Charmer which is an unbreakable handle attached to four feet of colorful fleece. The attachment is made with a powerful glue and covered with a rubber collar for safety and holds the fabric to the rod securely, the fabric will tear before the joint lets go and has been tested to over thirty pounds(13.3 kilos).
For chase and fetch play we have three toys called Chasers, RingTail Chasers, Whisker Chasers and BowTie Chasers which are all made from the same cardboard we use on the Cat Dancer and a bit of the fleece used in the Cat Charmer. These ingredients will combine in your cat's imagination to create irresistible play, chase and fun.
Mouse in the House is the first automatic cat toy which is designed with a timer to call your cats, and then play with them when you are not home. Our busy lifestyles often keep us away from our pets for several days at a time, this can lead to separation anxiety, overeating, laziness, obesity and even health and behavior problems. Mouse in the House is designed to provide stimulation and exercise for housecats left alone.
The Wall Scratcher is a scratching surface for cats to use to remove the outer sheath of their claws to expose the fresh healthy nail underneath. Using Command strips which hold it securely to your wall without damaging the surface, the wall scratcher is vertical just like the trees cats use in nature. It includes a Cat dancer toy that makes it into a play station for cats.
Cat Dancer Products is dedicated to providing fun and innovative products for you and your cats.
When it comes to pet entertainment, you can go crazy trying to decide what items to stock. They all look tempting and fun, so it's hard to make a choice about what products deserve to take up precious shelf space.
But as a veterinarian, I can tell you that you ought to choose carefully. There really are bad toys, good toys and great toys out there, and unfortunately the lines separating these three categories are sometimes blurred.
For example, when a good toy is given to the wrong pet, it automatically becomes a bad toy … for that particular pet. Do you see what I mean about blurred lines?
A truly great toy is | 519 |
Out Island Boy
Green Turtle Cay
Extracts From Harold Ward's Journal in 1958
Published on November 14, 2021 November 9, 2021 by Out Island BoyLeave a comment
Friday, 20th June
From Governor's Harbour, we motored up to Gregory Town from where we went by small boat (about 10 or 11 feet long), heading for Lower Bogue. We were on our way to Spanish Wells to stay with Bill and Pat Ross, and during our stay to conduct the N. Eleuthera Circuit Missionary Meetings. As usual when Elma was travelling the wind was fresher and the sea choppy, but most folks agreed the wind would be behind us. The boat was not ready, and the outboard motor took a bit of starting, but we were assured it was okay. I anticipated it would be a bit rough for a short way after leaving the sheltered harbour but that it would quieten down. Unfortunately the wind seemed to increase and also it decided to shift so that instead of behind us it was almost broadside. Though getting splashed and rolling around all went well. Sandra was sick and cried a little.
After passing Glass Window (the narrowest point in Eleuthera where the sea can splash over from the Atlantic into the Exuma Sound when rough), and being about halfway on our journey the motor stopped and could not be restarted. We threw out the grapnel, but it did not hold, and slowly we were being driven towards the very rocky coastline. By throwing out the grapnel and pulling on it we tried to keep the boat's nose into the sea, but gradually we got nearer the rocks. It was obvious to me that we would be driven on to the rocks. Looking at the coastline we saw that there was one narrow ledge (about 6 feet in width), the only spot where there was a chance of getting ashore. So we pulled up the grapnel. Wendell sculled towards the ledge, though I believe we were washed towards it more than anything. I prepared to jump from the boat to the ledge – it would be about 6 feet out of the water, no more than halfway up the rest of the rocky coast. The two young men with us would throw Sandra up to me. But that was not to be. As the boat got near to the cliff a wave more or less swamped the boat and the backwash from the cliff sank it. Wendell and the other lad had seen what was happening and somehow managed to go with the wave and get onto the ledge.
Elma, sat in the boat and holding Sandra tight, went down with the boat, but she had the sense to know that she must push Sandra up, which she did and trod water. As Sandra came up out of the water, pushed by Elma, Harold managed to take her. At that exact moment his toe touched a sand bar and he was able to turn round: he yelled "Wendell!" and threw her up and Wendell took her. She looked like a drowned rat, but fortunately she was not harmed in any way, not a cut or bruise. Elma and Harold were thrown against the rocks. The next wave came and Harold helped to push Elma up so that she could get her hands on the ledge, so that with Wendell's help she could get on Terra-firma. The next wave dashed Harold on the rocks but he managed to go with the next wave and grip the edge of the ledge and Elma and Wendell helped him out. We looked like a pair of wrecks, both of us having grazes and cuts on arms, legs and feet. Elma's mouth got a bash, but fortunately her teeth were not broken. Also, fortunately, no cuts were serious enough to cause excessive bleeding or to necessitate stitching. Having said that, the honeycomb rock really did make a mess of us, and the legs of my slacks were tattered and torn. My shirt was torn, Elma's blouse had one tiny hole, her skirt was torn and her pants were ripped. Our sandals stayed on, for which we were more than thankful. To have lost those would have meant we couldn't walk, for the ground was all honeycomb rock, very jagged and sharp.
The boat itself, I believe, overturned, and it was buffeted about breaking it up to some degree. The engine went to the bottom (it was later recovered – whether anything good was made of it I don't know). Our cases went down of course. One burst open and a few things floated in. Elma's dress case being light floated. Wendell recovered it, and we left it on dry land. Normally I carried money in my back pocket, but travelling in a small boat I thought it best to pack in a case. All our worldly wealth at that time was £40, over half of it which was to meet expenses during our time away was lost. One £1 note later floated in. My sermon notes were lost, which didn't really matter, but three missionary addresses that were full of facts (not easy to remember) were later recovered.
After getting out of the water we sheltered for about half an hour in a large pothole, I suppose to get over the shock and to make our mind up what to do next. Sandra shivered a bit despite the mid-day heat, but at about 12.30 we set out to go to Upper Bogue. The two lads decided to head back to Gregory Town. I guess both they and we had roughly the same distance to walk. We didn't strike inland, though we knew there might be farms inland, for we were unaware of whether there were any discernible pathways. We felt it best to keep to the coastline, knowing that eventually we would get to our destination. The going was tough and slow, not only because of honeycomb rock, but because of the many potholes and gulleys, some of them 6 feet deep, and because of the bush. I had to carry Sandra (all 31 pounds of her) all the way, and so Elma sometimes went ahead and held bushes back so that we could get through unscathed.
We covered about 4 miles in approximately 3 hours and then reached a short stretch of beach. How good it was to put Sandra down, and she was glad to get down for a while. Soon after leaving the beach we heard someone calling – a man coming out of his farm to return to Upper Bogue had noticed our footprints in the sand. and he wondered to himself, '"What is a small child doing out here?" He caught us up. He gave us sugar cane, which moistened our dry mouths. Then he carried Sandra the rest of our walk to Upper Bogue, about another 1 ½ miles. He was indeed an angel with a black skin and dirty farm clothes. We reached Upper Bogue about 4 pm, worn, weary and sunburnt. Our hats had washed away, as you would guess, so I had covered my head with a knotted handkerchief, I still got sore on top. A boy was sent from Upper to Lower Bogue on his bicycle, a distance of about 2 miles, to fetch Cyril Blatch, the senior steward of our Methodist church who had an old truck. Cyril wasn't long in coming, along with a few others, and when he saw us was terribly upset, almost overcome, for he realized how near we had been to tragedy.
He drove us to his home in Lower Bogue, already having asked the driver of a Spanish Wells Truck ('Junior') to wait for us. Our Methodist folk gathered round; Cyril owned a small shop and he fitted us all out with clean clothing, Elma and myself had everything from the skin out and from head to toe. They gave us hot soup, coffee and bread. The ladies swashed Elma's arms and legs with alcohol, to kill any germs, and that made her sit up for a little while as you can imagine. I managed to get out of that somehow, with the exception of one arm. The Spanish Well's truck took us to Gene's Bay, and from there we had a ten-minute boat journey over to Spanish Wells, where we arrived at Pat and Bill Ross's about 5.45pm, much to their astonishment. They thought we had not bothered, the weather being rough, although Bill had been concerned as he knew we had left Governor's Harbour, having phoned to find out.
The settlement nurse, Consuela Newbold, cleaned out our cuts and painted us with Mercurochrome, and gave us pheno-barbitone to help us sleep. I also plastered my head with calamine lotion. I had cuts on my throat so couldn't wear a collar for some days, also could only wear soft footwear as the top of my foot was sore and swollen. The first night Elma found a book to read, hoping it would help her get off to sleep. Her choice was hardly suitable – a book about deep sea diving by Jacques Cousteau!!! Needless to say her dreams were about the sea. Dreams or nightmares?! Certainly she was disturbed! News soon flashed round Spanish Wells, and we had plenty of visitors. Clothes and money were given to us in plenty. I ended up with more shirts, slacks and underwear than I had ever had. Some things were new, some things slightly worn but very usable. Both of us have more clothes than we set out with.
Saturday, 21st June
The men from Bogue had been to the place of the accident and redeemed what was possible. Elma and Sandra's dresses, not much of my clothing because my case had burst open. Elma's rings and watch which had been in her handbag were safe. The watch we sent to Nassau for repair – not much hope. The almost new camera and light meter were a write-off. Dorcas Kelly at Spanish Wells used to work at Fashionette, a clothing store for men in Nassau, and she knew my measurements. She contacted Lem Sawyer, the owner, and he sent up from Nassau by air a new suit, a real beauty in dark grey, wash and wear. The fact that we came through alive and well was a miracle, made up of several miracles, of which I number those that come to mind immediately:
1. The place where it happened. The only possible spot where we could have got ashore, with a ledge over halfway down the cliffs which would stand at least 12 feet out of the water at high tide. Also in front of the ledge a sandy bottom where our toes just managed to touch at vital moments.
2. We were not hurt more. Sandra was unscathed. Elma, usually afraid of water, unable to swim much at all, scared of getting water in her mouth – she felt as if an "angel" kept her mouth shut, or put a hand over her mouth so that she did not swallow water and become troubled at all.
3. Elma not troubled by the strenuous walk, and Harold given the strength to carry Sandra in the heat of the day.
4. The black "angel" who came to our aid when we felt weary.
5. A few of our things recovered, particularly Elma's rings.
6. We were going to Spanish Wells, a place where our needs would most certainly be met.
7. The Missionary addresses, with all the needed facts they contained, were recovered, little damaged.
Gwen the Librarian
Published on January 1, 2021 by Out Island BoyLeave a comment
By 1845, Eleuthera led the islands in the Bahamas in growth and export of pineapples. There the first canning factory was established in Governor's Harbour in 1857. During the following decades, the pineapple industry boomed in the Bahamas. In 1885, over a million pineapples were exported to the United States and England. This tropical fruit wove itself into the fabric of Bahamian culture. Today it is featured in the popular conch salad, local tarts and jams, and it adorns the Bahamian nickel coin.
One of these pineapple plantation owners, Thomas William Griffin Jr. has Bahamian roots dating back to 1700s. Thomas and his Harbour Island bride, Mabel Louisa Hall, helped contribute to this pineapple boom. Mabel's father, Benjamin Joseph Hall served as Magistrate and Customs Officer . His territory included the Exuma islands.
Thomas William Griffin (1860-1947)
Mabel Louisa Hall (1861-1951)
In 1895, Thomas and Mabel's baby girl Gwendolyn Mae arrived. Joy now overshadowed grief from a prior child loss. Gwen grew up on the family's plantation along with her older brother William Edwin 'Willie" and younger sister Amy Adele – my maternal grandmother. These siblings rode horses and tended goats as the pineapple fields filled the landscape.
Gwendolyn Mae Griffin (1895-1985)
After the turn of the 20th century, the Griffin family moved to the colony capital Nassau. Mabel's widowed sister, Mary Ann 'Minnie' Moore, offered accommodations on the family property located downtown Nassau on King and George Streets. Here, Minnie and widowed daughter Nellie Saunders lived in these picturesque Georgian dwellings where they operated boarding rooms for locals and tourists. Opposite, the majestic Christ Church Cathedral points the way up George Street to the Government House on top of the hill.
Here on these streets, siblings Willie Griffin and Amy Griffin met fellow migrants from Marsh Harbour, Abaco. William Jesse Lowe, his wife Mary Odiah Albury and family had also relocated to George Street. Two of their thirteen children, George Basil and Charlotte Marie fell in love with the Eleutherian siblings. Two marriages ensued. George Basil Lowe married Amy Adele Griffin and his sister Charlotte Marie Lowe married William Edwin Griffin.
Spinster Gwen fixed her fascination on the city's public library just a few blocks away on Shirley Street. This converted jail structure offered Gwen convenient employment. For fifty years, she devoted her life service to the colony of the Bahamas. She shared her book passion with locals and foreign visitors.
Aunt Gwen (Right) at work in the the Nassau Public Library. Photo courtesy of Steffie Bethel
Gwen remained at the George Street residence with her parents until the devastating 1942 Bay Street fire. During the middle of that night, the family evacuated. Authorities made the decision to dynamite the residence in order to prevent the fire from spreading across King Street to Christ Church Cathedral.
George Street Aftermath – Photo courtesy of Ronald G. Lightbourn
The Griffin family, devout Methodists, joined the Trinity Methodist congregation on Frederick Street. The late Betty Carey Higgs recalled that Gwen's mother Mabel ministered her organ musical talent to Trinity parishioners. At Trinity, Gwen developed lifelong friendships with May Johnson Higgs and Alma Saunders. These ladies often assisted in the communion preparation for Trinity.
Gwen and her parents resettled on Princess Street by Government House. Gwen never married. She remained caregiver for her aging parents. Later, Gwen moved to the home of her Trinity friend Alma Saunders on Montrose Avenue. I have fond memories of visits to that home on top of the hill where their white cat Fifi provided entertainment. The two ladies remained roommates until their deaths in the 1980s. Alma worked at the successful Nassau Shop on Bay Street. Her car provided transportation for Gwen who never learned to drive.
Aunt Gwen seated between her great nephews. Alma Saunders to the far left.
Mom Doreen Lowe always referred to her Aunt Gwen as her favorite aunt. When teenager Mom worked on Bay Street, she would visit Aunt Gwen at the library on her lunch break. Aunt Gwen loved to travel. She would visit relatives in Canada and the United States. She enjoyed stamp collecting and bought my sister her first stamp book.
Poise distinguished Aunt Gwen. Refined and tastefully dressed, she included her signature pearl necklace. Mom would provide transportation for Aunt Gwen to patronize the local hair salon. Her nieces and nephews became her children. Her generous heart seemed always open. At Christmastime, she guaranteed us a treat. Often a book to challenge our minds and a box of chocolates to satisfy our cravings.
Aunt Gwen passed away on New Year's Eve in 1985 at the full age of 90.
Calling All Kinfolks
Published on October 18, 2020 by Out Island BoyLeave a comment
William Curry Harllee's 1935 Kinfolks trilogy has been a treasured resource for generations. In Volume II, Harllee traces the Curry and Kemp families throughout the Bahamas and Key West. Marriages weave in other Bahamian surnames including Lowe, Russell, Saunders, Sawyer and Thompson to name a few.
In 1998 with permission from Harllee's son, a special reprint of Volume II was pioneered by Joy Lowe Jossi. This comprehensive resource highlights the antecedents, descendants and collateral relatives of (1) Benjamin and Mary Curry and (2) Samuel and Amelia (Russell) Kemp. The front cover artwork was contributed by Alton Roland Lowe.
If you would like to own one of these national treasures, please consider a gift (link below) to benefit the repair and restoration of the Albert Lowe Museum. Known as the first historic museum in the Bahamas, the Albert Lowe Museum resides on the quaint island of Green Turtle Cay. The museum is comprised of two of Abaco's oldest structures. Although the buildings survived Dorian's wrath, they were severely damaged. See photographs below (courtesy of Amanda Diedrick).
With a minimum gift of $125 to the Albert Lowe Museum Restoration Project, you will receive a FREE unopened copy of this special edition of Kinfolks (U.S shipping addresses only).
Limited supply – orders are on a first come, first serve basis
Click Here To Give
Before Dorian…
After Dorian…
Memories of Aunt Janet
Published on September 7, 2020 December 2, 2020 by Out Island Boy3 Comments
In 1903 at Green Turtle Cay's historic New Plymouth settlement, my paternal grandmother Bessie Caroline Curry was born.
Bessie Curry Lowe with daughter Janet Caroline
With four older siblings, the family for farmer Pa Wes Curry and Ma Lilla Carleton Curry would now be complete. Twenty-one year old Bessie fell in love and married mariner Howard Lowe, also a Green Turtle Cay native. After three short years of marriage and a healthy baby boy (my Dad John), Howard (age 29) died due to an infection sustained during his sea travels.
During the early 1940's, widow Bessie and her teenage son relocated to Nassau to seek medical attention for her ailing Pa Wes. During this transition time, Bessie met widower Ashbourne Lowe, a skilled Abaco carpenter. Widower Ashbourne worked carpentry assignments in Nassau. He pursued a courtship with Bessie that led to their marriage in 1942. Two years later, their union produced a daughter, Janet Caroline Lowe. When his Nassau carpentry work was completed, Ashbourne, Bessie and Janet returned to Green Turtle.
Bessie Curry Lowe holding daughter Janet. Son John stands by her side.
Ashbourne & Bessie Lowe with daughter Janet
Janet attended the Green Turtle Cay All Age School on top of the hill. One of her classmates Estella Curry Lowe recalls…
During school days at break time, we all gathered underneath the big fig tree in the school yard exchanging our stories. At lunch time we all ran down the steps on the hill into town. We went home for lunch at noon. Once we had finished eating, we met and ran back to school before the bell rang!
Janet was a member of the Girls' Brigade organized by missionary Dr. Walter Kendrick. Estella continues…
We met once a week at widower Dr. Kendrick's house along with one or two church lady chaperones. Dr. Kendrick played the piano while we all sang. He taught us valuable life lessons and we often played games. When we were finished, a lady chaperone would walk us home.
Every Monday afternoon when school was over, we gathered in Dr. Kendrick's yard for a game of hockey.
During Flag Day each year in May, the Girls' Brigade dressed in our uniforms assembled at Dr. Kendrick's home. We marched a short distance to the Government Building where the Commissioner, Police, and all Government officials gathered. The Girls' Brigade performed a few songs while everyone paid respects to the British flag.
Janet had a laid back and quiet personality. She never bothered anyone and always gave a ready smile to everyone.
Photo Courtesy of Amanda Diedrick.
Can you identify any of the members of this brigade?
Some of Janet's teenage friends included siblings Iris and Elayne Lowe, Cynthia Curry, Hilda Curry, Mavis Lowe and Estella Curry. During summers, Janet and her friends enjoyed swimming in Settlement Creek. If the weather prohibited a swim, the teen girls bought conchs from Mr. Herbert Lowe who kept them in a crawl. The girls made conch salad. When the island winter season rolled around, these friends resorted to land activities like bicycling or roller skating. They rode their bicycles down the bumpy coral trails to Gillam Bay. Here they gathered alluring and delicate seashells. These sea treasures they crafted into fashionable jewelry to sell to tourists.
The Cay girls loved to visit Mavis' home. Her dad Mr. Ludington Lowe would scare them with ghost stories. Many events he claimed to have seen himself! When it was time for the girls to go home, they'd hold each other tightly, expecting one of Mr. Lud's ghosts to appear at any moment!
Escorted by her dad, Janet and a friend sailed over to Munjack Cay to spend hours harvesting seagrapes and cocoa-plums. As a young teenager, Janet assisted Ms. Tessie Roberts Key in her dry goods store on the Cay.
In the early 1960's Janet moved to Nassau with her parents. For a temporary period, they lived with my parents' family in Montague Heights. Soon Janet began to work at the turtle shell jewelers Johnson Brothers located downtown Bay Street.
Her mother Bessie passed away in 1967. Before her passing, Bessie requested cousin Iva Lowe Scholtka to care for her daughter Janet. Iva and Janet became lifelong friends.
Later Janet changed employment on Bay Street to Nassau Jewelers. Her clientele included locals and cruise ship tourists. Here she met a handsome cruise ship worker Alik Sjahri originally from Indonesia.
Alik recounted…
During the 1970's, I had changed my work assignment to a Caribbean itinerary with stops in Nassau. One day at sea, I lost the pin to my watch. When we arrived at the next port, Nassau, I searched Bay Street for a jewelry store to fix my watch.
Alik & Janet Sjahri
Alik located Nassau Jewelers owned by Mr. Paul Cleare and situated on Bay Street across from John Bull. Behind the counter of the jewelry establishment stood an eager employee Janet Lowe. She quickly solved the sailor's dilemma. With his timepiece secured on his wrist, Alik returned to the luxury cruise liner. On future port stops, Alik visited the jewelry store maiden. They fell in love and were married in 1974.
Janet and Alik enjoyed time spent with family and friends, especially days at the beach. Janet had no children. She developed a close bond with us, her niece and nephews. She proudly stood as maid of honor at her niece Paula's wedding. She recalls that Janet graciously bought her a new dress for Paula's first date.
L to R - Iva Lowe Scholtka, Janet Lowe Sjahri, Alik Sjahri, Iris Lowe Powers
L to R - Paula Lowe Higgs, Janet Caroline Lowe, Donna Cox Serrano
Janet grew up attending church. Her mother was very involved in the Church of God on Green Turtle Cay. Janet would also attend afternoon Sunday school sessions on the island. On the day that her dad passed away in 1986, Janet realized that she needed something more than church. She accepted God's free gift of salvation.
Janet loved spending time with her cousin Iva in Nassau's downtown library. She enjoyed baking her signature pound cake with jam filling. Janet and Alik often traveled to the United States on vacations to visit loved ones.
Life seems to cycle. Janet and Alik bought a house in Centreville and became neighbors of Ms. Tessie and Mr. Wilbert Key. More than neighbors, Janet served as a substitute daughter to her young life Green Turtle Cay friends after their daughter Jettie Key Lowe moved to Hollywood, Florida.
L to R - Tessie Roberts Key, Janet Lowe S<|fim_middle|> have on earth is taken from you in a few seconds; what use is it to set your heart and mind on things below? We deeply felt the sudden loss, of course, of our dear Pearl Eleanor, but God has blessed it all throughout the following years in so many ways. We shall see our darling baby again – in His presence.
The Van Ryns continued to serve in the islands for three more years. August Van Ryn and Robert Stratton had a 52-foot yacht named Evangel built for their ministry travel to the islands. The Evangel's anchor held fast during the 1926 hurricane. The Evangel was said to be the only vessel that came through the storm without any damage.
August Van Ryn authored many Bible study books including his autobiography "Sixty Years In His Service." In his latter years, fearful of losing his eyesight, he memorized the entire New Testament. This man and his ministry were both a tribute to his God and King.
Betty Adina Carey Higgs
Published on February 14, 2019 June 13, 2020 by Out Island Boy4 Comments
Hope Town was settled in 1785 by British loyalists who fled after the American Revolutionary War. Situated on one of Abaco's barrier reef islands, Hope Town is easily recognized by its candy-striped lighthouse that towers over the settlement of New England style clapboard cottages and narrow bicycle lanes.
Photo by Leroy Anthony Higgs, son of Walter Leroy Higgs and Betty Adina Carey.
Here during the 1860's, William Michael Carey (son of William Carey and Mariah Russell) was born. He courted and married Emiline Adina Russell (daughter of William Henry Russell and Jane Anne Malone – great granddaughter of Hope Town's loyalist matriarch Wyannie Malone).
William Michael Carey and Emiline Adina Russell
William Michael and Emiline Adina married during the early 1880's and had at least six offspring: William Michael, Jr. (1885), Laura Alice (1887), Samuel Edwin (1890), James Percy (1892), Anthony Burrell (1897) and Rowena Gwendoline (1904).
Anthony Burrell Carey fell in love with Rosa Maude Bethel from Cherokee Sound, Abaco. They married in Hope Town's Wesleyan Church in 1921 by Gilbert Moon.
Anthony Burrell Carey and Rosa Maude Bethel
Anthony and Rosa Maude reared eight children: Rosa Pauline (1922), Percy (1923), Betty Adina (1925), Gwenyth Charity (1927), Thelma Rosalie (1929), Mildred Cecilia (1932), William Winer (1935), and Doris Catherine (1939).
Back L to R – Betty, Anthony, Maude, Percy / Front L to R – Thelma, Mildred, Winer, Doris.
The family cottage sat on the hill's high ground opposite the school house. From their upstairs bedroom window at night, the Carey children watched with fascination the lighthouse beam's rotation. Like many Hope Town residents, Anthony made his livelihood on the sea. Along with Samuel Edwin, the brothers transported goods from Cuba to Miami.
Anthony's daughter, Betty Adina, reminisced her fond fishing memories with her dad. They hauled schools of jacks out of the Abaco Sea. Betty sculled the boat to allow her dad to strike a turtle, a local delicacy. She learned a host of maritime skills from her dad.
Betty recalled a local sailboat race held during the island's celebration of Queen Victoria's birthday in May. Earlier that month, an Englishman arrived at Hope Town to do lighthouse maintenance. He offered Betty the use of his small sailboat for the race. Betty won the race and was awarded an English £1 (one pound), the grand prize.
Betty Adina Carey and my Dad John Wesley Lowe were both Abaconians born in 1925. Although they grew up on separate barrier islands, each had vivid memories of the 1932 hurricane that decimated the islands.
Betty told that her father and Uncle Edwin happened to be away on a Miami cargo haul when the tempest approached. Her mother Maude and her six children hunkered down in their clapboard cottage. Neighbor Trelawny "Lawn" Malone (1884-1958), a seacaptain, peeked out at the Carey house. As winds strengthened, Captain Lawn witnessed the Carey roof shake. Maude and the children were in imminent danger. Lawn braved the wind's fury and dodged flying debris as he headed to the Carey home. He held ten-year-old Pauline tightly in his arms as he returned home. He started back to rescue younger sister Betty and returned with Betty safe in his arms. The storm intensified. To his dismay, Captain Lawn was unable to return to the Carey home for the other Carey children. As a father of five himself, he felt helpless.
Maude remained with her nine-year-old son Percy and his three youngest sisters – ages five, three and five months. She decided to seek shelter under the school house across the road. As Percy prepared to evacuate, the winds hurled him towards the school house door. Maude retrieved him and sheltered him underneath the school floor.
Maude braved the raging elements as she crawled one by one with each child to the school's safety. During Maude's final trip, the wind's violence sucked five month old Mildred from Maude's arm. Baby Millie disappeared into the storm. Instinctively, Maude risked her life to search for her baby. Miraculously she located Millie buried in sand. As she held her tightly, the pair crawled back under the schoolhouse.
When the winds subsided, Lawn and Louise quickly came to Maude's rescue. Baby Millie needed prompt attention. Her mouth, nose and ears were filled with beach sand. The wind force of the sand punctured Millie's eardrum.
When Anthony returned home from his sea travels, he saw the community devastation. His house gone! His daughter Betty recalled…
Dad came up over the hill and saw the condition we were in. We were sitting on the steps of Ms. Louise home. He threw himself on the ground and cried, "My God, what am I going to do with my family?"
Their entire home was destroyed. Betty stated…
We found nothing. We were homeless, food-less, and clothes-less. Momma couldn't even find a pot! I wore a pair of unions for the longest time. We slept on the floor of my cousin's Sidney's home.
Uncle Mait (Maude's brother) lived in Florida. When he heard of the devastation, he packed two large boxes for us – one with food and the other with clothing. Uncle Mait shipped them on the Betty K with Captain Howard Sweeting.
The family vessel that the Carey brothers sailed was severely damaged during the hurricane. The depression years loomed as Anthony now sought any means to provide for his family. After several years of hardship and struggle, Anthony and his family relocated to Nassau. He learned carpentry skills and worked with contractors Mr. Morton Turtle and Chester Bethel. Anthony later returned to his seafaring passion and worked as a cook with Captain Wade on the Arawak. He was noted for his sumptuous stews.
In Nassau, Betty and her siblings attended the Seventh Day Adventist School on the top of Hawkins Hill. She loved her teacher, Ms. Lawrence, a true mother-type.
Betty Adina Carey
Betty Adina Carey in front of JP Sands
After finishing school, Betty landed employment at JP Sands grocery store on Bay Street. She fell in love and was soon engaged to Sergeant Lloyd Henderson Fraser, son of Scottish missionary James Fraser and local Vera Gladys Malone. Lloyd served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II. On August 11, 1944, a few weeks before their wedding date, twenty year old Lloyd perished over London.
Betty Adina Carey & Lloyd Henderson Fraser
During this tragic time, Betty lived with her sister Pauline and husband Charles Eastborn Roberts in Shirley Heights on New Providence island, Bahamas. Pauline and Charles rented this home from Ralph and Miriam Higgs, who lived nearby.
During an afternoon of chores, Betty struggled to tote a large bucket filled with rainwater back to her home. Walter Leroy Higgs noticed the damsel in distress and offered his assistance. Their relationship grew and in September 1945, Walter and Betty tied the knot in the parsonage of Trinity Methodist Church. They were blessed with two boys, Leroy Anthony and Lloyd Walter.
Walter Leroy Higgs & Betty Adina Carey
Back L to R – Betty Adina Carey, Walter Leroy Higgs / Front L to R – Lloyd Walter Higgs, Leroy Anthony Higgs,
L to R – Leroy Anthony Higgs, Walter Leroy Higgs, Betty Adina Carey, Lloyd Walter Higgs
In 1970, son Leroy Anthony Higgs married my sister Paula Mae Lowe. This union connected the Lowe family to the Higgs/Carey family. For decades, these Bahamian families shared many special memories both in Nassau and in Florida.
L to R – Paula Lowe Higgs, Leroy Higgs, Betty Carey Higgs, Walter Higgs
L to R – Betty Carey Higgs, Gwenyth Carey Winter, John Lowe, Doreen Lowe, Mildred Carey Lleida
Proud Grandparents – L to R John Wesley Lowe, Doreen Mae Lowe, Chantal Higgs Chung, Betty Adina Carey Higgs, Walter Leroy Higgs
In September 2018 at the age of 93, Betty Adina Carey Higgs was carried by God's angels to be reunited with her husband Walter.
Memories of Nana – by granddaughter Chantal Higgs Chung
I enjoyed hearing Nana tell stories about her childhood in Hope Town, Abaco. Her experience and survival through the 1932 hurricane was nothing short of miraculous. Even though radio warnings were received on that island, no one expected the hurricane to be such a formidable storm. Nana recalled that the barometric pressure dropped extremely low. She described the "clouds lay in the roads like banks of snow." Nana and her siblings hunkered down in their wooden home with only their mom. During that time, her dad was out at sea on a schooner. They transported bananas and sugar between Cuba and Miami.
Nana loved her family. One of my favorite childhood memories was the summer of 1985 when I was 12. We lived in Nassau, Bahamas while Nana lived in Miami, Florida. After Nana persuaded my mom, I visited Nana's Florida home for a couple summer weeks. Nana introduced me to numerous Carey cousins who lived in Miami. We created great memories as we shopped in Miami stores for souvenirs. We enjoyed the outdoors and often fed neighborhood ducks. On several occasions, we visited with her Czechoslovakian neighbor where we delighted in homemade pastries.
My favorite dish of Nana's is chicken 'n spaghetti. We eagerly anticipated this tasty meal on our visits. She taught her granddaughters the secret family recipe. We continue to cook this simple but delicious meal in her memory.
Nana loved to crochet. She taught me the basics. She blessed others with her crochet handiwork that included potholders, blankets, and hats.
Nana's love for God was evident in her prayer life and church involvement. We worshiped in church together during that summer. She willingly helped and gave to others despite her frugal means. I miss her encouraging reminder that she daily prayed for me.
Memories of Nana – by granddaughter Sophia Higgs Farmer
Nana was a humble, loving, caring, and giving person. She loved her family and demonstrated that love by time spent with us. She taught me to crochet and always helped me in the kitchen. She delighted in playtime with her great grandchildren. She made each of us feel special and loved.
Papa Walter bragged "Nana's a good cooker." Nana taught us how to cook our family favorite dish, chicken 'n spaghetti.
Her life exhibited a sincere love for her Creator and Savior. She offered counsel and guidance on all aspects of life. I remember her advice on church attire. "How would you dress to meet the Queen of England? Well then, how much more you should dress in your best to meet with the Lord?"
A funny, quirky phrase that Nana said, "He never cracked his kisser to me." She explained the meaning. It describes someone who ignored you. Nana had a great sense of humor!
The Art of Giving
Published on December 25, 2018 December 25, 2018 by Out Island Boy1 Comment
During the 1940's, young men from Green Turtle Cay headed to the nation's capital Nassau to seek employment. Two such lads included my Dad, John Wesley Lowe, and his cousin, Earl Anthony 'Tony' Roberts, grandsons of Thomas Wesley Curry and Lilla Carleton.
Dad landed a job at Maura Lumber Company and was promoted to manage the paint department under the leadership of World War II pilot John Maura. Dad built a successful career at Maura's for nearly 20 years.
During the 1960's, cousin Tony Roberts acquired a struggling furniture store in the Centreville district of New Providence. He actively recruited Dad with his retail expertise to manage this new operation. Family ties held strong. Dad left his successful career at Maura's to help cousin Tony. It was a risky and bittersweet decision for Dad. He had built many strong relationships with coworkers and had an endless list of satisfied customers.
Dad's Business Card
For the next 22 years, Dad devoted himself to transform Robert's Furniture Company into one of the island's leading furniture retail operations. His devotion led many to believe he was the actual owner of the company.
Dad expanded the existing showroom with adjacent properties. He oversaw the construction of an additional two story warehouse. During this building phase, Dad retrieved old bottles buried underground that were exposed during site preparations. Their origins remain a mystery, perhaps from the prohibition era. These bottles are proudly displayed today.
During my high school years, Dad gave me the opportunity to work in the store. He was careful not to show special treatment. I swept floors, emptied the trash, assembled furniture, organized the warehouse, cashiered, assisted customers, and answered phones. Dad taught that you do what it takes to get the job done.
Dad recognized I planned to pursue a college degree in Accounting. During my senior year of high school he challenged his business office employees to "show me the ropes." Under their supervision, I reconciled the cash register drawer, prepared the daily deposit, posted sales orders, recorded payments to manual Accounts Receivable ledgers and typed customer statements. No computers existed.
While I greatly value those educational experiences, I was mesmerized with Dad's leadership skills. Dad understood the value of building relationships with both employees and customers. Without a high school or college diploma, Dad was skilled in the art of sales and management. He listened. He gladly entertained "interruptions" from office duties to engage in conversations with customers. People visited the store just to say hello to Dad.
His reputation extended to the family islands as well. Satisfied customers expressed gratitude with gifts of their livelihood: lobster, conch and fish.
My sister recalls..
Dad loved to create the finest window displays with the latest furniture and artwork. He sold everything from bedroom suites, living and dining room sets, appliances, mattresses, artwork, lamps, linens, draperies and baby furniture. Expecting mothers would register for their baby shower. Dad always took the time with his customers.
Christmastime was especially memorable. We brightened the store with classic 1980's foil tinsel decorations to signal the beginning of the Christmas season. Traditional promotional calendars were handed out to all patrons. In addition, Dad purchased boxes of assorted chocolate and French perfumes and colognes to present to valued customers. These gifts were wrapped in festive paper by Mom at night.
The staff at Robert's Furniture adored Dad. Many of them built long careers. A few employees during my tenure included Maude Ferguson, Bloneva Moss, Oliver Hall, Paul Bethel, Mr. Turnquest and Mr. Gibson. Others employees over the two decades included cousin Noel Roberts, Freddie Albury, Billy Sands, and Rochelle Weech McCabe
L to R, Oliver Hall, John Lowe, Paul Bethel, Mr. Turnquest
L to R – Bloneva Moss, John Lowe, Maude Ferguson
During those 20 years at Robert's Furniture, Dad formed lasting friendships with sales representatives from the United States. During vacations to Florida, salesmen such as Paul Gorin and Roland Brown treated our family to special meals and excursions. Mr. Brown recommended Dad consider the coastal town of Jupiter, Florida as a retirement home. With it's lighthouse, beaches and waterways, Jupiter reminded Dad of his homeland.
L to R – Salesman Roland Brown, Doreen Lowe, Evan Lowe, John Lowe
John Lowe with salesman Paul Gorin and wife Clara.
In 1988 after almost 50 years of employment in Nassau, Dad retired and moved to Jupiter, Florida until his passing in 2013. His work ethic is forever instilled in me. I am blessed and challenged by his life that demonstrated it is better to give than to receive.
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Whenever travels would take us to Nassau, we made certain to visit Aunt Janet and Uncle Alik. A tight hug and a warm welcome always awaited.
Aunt Janet with her great-nieces and great-nephews
We devoured tasty slices of pound cake or banana bread. Aunt Janet's homemade punch and Uncle Alik's virgin Pina Colada washed down the baked goodies. A basket of native tropical fruit provided send-away gifts. As we chatted in the family room, Janet reminisced about the community of people from a place that was near and dear to her heart – Green Turtle Cay.
Janet Caroline Lowe Sjahri
Janet Caroline Lowe
Siblings John Wesley Lowe and Janet Caroline Lowe
Cottage by the Sea
Published on April 18, 2020 April 18, 2020 by Out Island BoyLeave a comment
Dad loved to reminisce of his boyhood days on Green Turtle Cay. He longed for any opportunity to return. In the early 1990s, my wife and I discovered that Disney's Premier Cruiselines offered an itinerary that cruised the Abaco islands. Their Big Red Boat made stops to Green Turtle Cay, Man-O-War Cay, and Guana Cay.
Twenty years had elapsed since Dad last visited his birthplace. He and Mom Doreen eagerly packed for this memorable journey accompanied by my wife and me. The four of us departed Port Canaveral on July 2, 1992.
After a routine evacuation drill and slide presentation of the upcoming ports, we feasted on Italian cuisine. That evening we scouted around for the cruise director to explain the unique circumstances of their Green Turtle Cay native passenger. We were given permission to spend the entire day on the island instead of the typical shorter excursion.
For over two centuries, Dad's ancestors called this New Plymouth settlement home. The guided tour by Dad would be the highlight of any vacation to date.
Dad's boyhood home in the center with the dormer window overlooking the harbour known as Settlement Creek.
As we entered the harbor, Dad pointed to a modest cottage nestled in this seaside community. A simple wooden structure stood full of history and memories. This home had miraculously survived the catastrophic 1932 hurricane. According to Dad, the home was built by his father, Howard Lowe.
The Walter C. Kendrick family
Inside this home a medical missionary doctor, Walter C. Kendrick, guided Bessie Caroline Curry Lowe as she delivered a son John Wesley Lowe – my Dad in June 1925.
As a common safety precaution in those days, the kitchen was detached and located behind the main living structure. An upstairs room with a dormer window overlooked the harbor. Enough space existed to accommodate Bessie's widowed father, Thomas Wesley 'Pa Wes' Curry.
A portion of the property was donated to allow construction of the first Church of God on the Cay (building pictured on the right in the photo above). The first pastor of the church was Dad's paternal grandfather, John Aquilla Lowe.
During the early years of my life, my father passed away. Mother was now a widow and had the sole task of looking after a little boy who was left fatherless. Pa Wes (Wesley Curry) lived alone and needed assistance. My mother invited him to stay with us. She was the youngest of his four daughters. Her sisters were Dora, Edith and Emmie. Pa Wes had only one son, Herman Curry.
Our house was built by my dad and had a second floor, suitable for Pa Wes. Since the house was by the water's edge, it was an ideal place for a farmer to have his sail boat anchored nearby.
Journals of John W. Lowe
Dad John Lowe and Mom Doreen Lowe in front of his childhood home.
When the cruise ship tender docked at Settlement Creek, we raced to our first stop, the Albert Lowe Museum. Here we met curator Ivy Gates Roberts and husband Noel Roberts. First cousins Noel and Dad were also lifelong friends. They shared many island memories formed in Green Turtle Cay and later in Nassau. Ivy proudly provided a detailed tour of the museum's collection and artifacts. Afterwards, she invited us to their home a few doors down for a tasty Bahamian lunch.
Left to Right – John Lowe, Noel Roberts, Ivy Gates Roberts and Doreen Lowe in front of the Albert Lowe Museum.
The next destination was the historic cemetery. Dad desired to see the graveside where his father was laid to rest at a young age of 29. The cemetery revealed generations of ancestors that occupied this island settlement. Dad located the tombstone of Bianca Curry. With a spirited resonance in his voice, Dad recalled how "Binkey" (1801-1860) is considered the matriarch of our Curry line in the Bahamas. He noted that her ancestors emigrated from Scotland to South Carolina. They remained Loyalists during the Revolutionary War who left South Carolina after the war for the Bahamas.
From the cemetery we walked up the hill and the thirty steps that led to the schoolhouse. It was the first time for my son and his wife, but for me it was a flashback of the ten years of my life that I attended this school. Mr. Herbert Roberts was the principal at the time.
Mom & Dad at the base of the steps that lead to the schoolhouse.
Mom & Dad at the schoolhouse on the top of the hill.
After leaving the schoolhouse, we determined to locate my friend Laine Curry. He lived within a stone's throw from the cottage where I was born. We were the best of friends during our boyhood days!
We found Laine inside the family business, Curry's Food Store. After he and Dad reminisced of their boyhood days, we enjoyed refreshing treats on that hot summer day. In like manner, we had memorable visits with cousins Chester, Thalia and Pearl; cousins Sidney Lowe and daughter Martha; cousin Danny Albury and retired school teacher Amy Roberts.
Danny Albury & John Lowe
Our last stop was to the modest cottage of Roger and Nell Lowe. We enjoyed their company and the amazing wild boar hunting stories that Dad and Roger shared. The view out their window that faced west across the Abaco Sea to the Abaco mainland was simply breathtaking.
Dad spent the first 15 years of his life in New Plymouth. Around 1940, Pa Wes needed urgent medical attention in Nassau. Widowed Bessie sold the small cottage for 120 British pounds. With her teenage son and ailing father, Bessie boarded the mail boat bound for Nassau. Though Dad had physically left the place of his birth, Green Turtle Cay never left his heart.
John Lowe in the Memorial Sculpture Garden
Categories Bessie Curry, Green Turtle Cay, Howard Lowe, John Aquilla Lowe, John Lowe, Thomas Wesley Curry
Life on Shirley Street
Published on December 24, 2019 April 15, 2020 by Out Island Boy2 Comments
During the 1920s, a pleasant, laid-back neighborhood lay east of the capital city of Nassau, Bahamas. Island-style homes were built on the eastern portion of Shirley Street to provide a rustic feel to folks eager to leave Nassau's city bustle. As locals headed east from Nassau by foot, bicycle or horse n' buggy, historic landmarks adorned the trail, including the Nassau Public Library, the Royal Victoria Hotel, the three-storey R. H. Curry house (pictured below), St Matthew's Anglican Church and Ebenezer Methodist Church. At the eastern end of the road that joins East Bay Street, the Montague Beach Hotel on the shoreline overlooked the sheltered bay.
J F Coonley photo of Shirley Street looking West. Published in Ronald G. Lightbourn's Reminiscing II with permission of Syndics of Cambridge University Library. The roof and weather vane of the Nassau Public Library can be seen in the background on the right.
During this era, two young transplants, George BASIL Lowe and Amy Adelle Griffin, traveled on Nassau roads. Their families had relocated to Nassau from the Out Islands during the 1920s. The Lowe family emigrated from Marsh Harbour, Abaco while the Griffin family arrived from Governor's Harbour, Eleuthera.
Basil and Amy met on Nassau's King Street when they lived downtown. Here they fell in love and married in 1927.
The couple decided to move east to start their family. Basil, a skilled carpenter by trade, erected a modest home on the Shirley Street property where his sister Charlotte MARIE and brother-in-law, William "Willie" Edwin Griffin lived.
William "Willie" Edwin Griffin and Charlotte MARIE Lowe Griffin
Willie Griffin and Amy Griffin, Governor's Harbour, Eleuthera siblings, married two Marsh Harbour, Abaco siblings, Marie and Basil Lowe.
In this Shirley Street home, Amy gave birth to three children: Jean Adell, George Stanley and my mother, Doreen Mae.
Childless Aunt Marie Griffin provided tender help with her sister-in-law Amy's growing family. Aunt Marie would push baby Doreen in a stroller around the Shirley Street neighborhood. Uncle Willie, a skilled house painter, nurtured a variety of freshwater fish, bees and birds on the property.
Doreen Mae Lowe (1934-2019). Photograph colorized by artist Ida Moore Lightbourn
Doreen Mae Lowe. Photo on the grounds of William and Marie (Lowe) Griffin.
As Basil's carpentry business grew, he saved enough money to purchase a plot of land a short distance west on Shirley Street. He dismantled their two-storey home and relocated it to the new site. Upstairs had separate bedrooms for Doreen and her brother George. Basil converted the downstairs porch into another bedroom for Jean, the oldest sibling. At this location, Amy gave birth to her fourth and last child, Elizabeth "Betty" Evon.
Children of Basil Lowe and Amy Griffin. Standing left to right – Jean Adell, George Stanley and my mother, Doreen Mae. Seated – Elizabeth Evon.
Basil built a carpenter's workshop on this sizable property to house the artisan's equipment. Soon he enlisted the help of nephew James RENARD Lowe, son of Basil's older brother Harvey LAIRD Lowe and Amelia Estelle Key. Mom recalled that her cousin Renard lost a fingertip in a workshop accident.
George BASIL Lowe (1905-1971), son of William JESSE Lowe and Mary ODIAH Albury.
Basil and Renard's accomplished reputation spread. They built homes for locals and foreigners. They also handled commercial construction jobs. Their most notable commercial project was a three-storey building on the southeastern corner of East Street and Shirley Street. This building once housed the medical practices of Canadian Dr. Hugh Quackenbush and Dr. Kenneth Eardley.
Adjoining Basil and Amy's property backyard was the home of Green Turtle Cay native Emma Louise Curry Moree. Mom described an enormous tamarind tree that hugged the property line. The tropical fruit borne was a tart delicacy to Mom, her siblings and other neighborhood children. One afternoon, Mom's craving was thwarted. The ten-year-old peered up the massive tamarind tree to seek low hanging fruit. She encountered the glare of a large snake's eyes. She ran!
During Mom's early years, she attended Queens College classes on the lower level of Trinity Methodist Church. She transferred to the Seventh Day Adventist School on Wulff Road. She rode her bicycle to school via the Kemp Road trail that connected Shirley Street to Wulff Road.
Bicyclist Doreen Mae Lowe on Shirley Street.
Mom remarked that she could ride her bicycle in safety anywhere over the island during those years. She also enjoyed horse n' buggy rides west on Shirley Street to visit her Griffin grandparents who lived in downtown Nassau.
At the roadside of the Shirley Street residence, Basil erected a modest grocery, fruit and dairy stand. Industrious residents had several revenue streams.
After school, teenage Doreen served local customers. She shaved snow cones from blocks of ice purchased from Bay Street vendors. These cold treats sold quickly to hot and thirsty travelers on the Shirley Street corridor.
Doreen Lowe at the side entrance of the Lowe Convenience Store on Shirley Street.
In the late 1940s after World War II, Mom was rushed to the former air force barracks Prospect Ridge Hospital for an appendectomy performed by Dr. Meyer Rassin. Her long episode prevented mom's completion of high school. She took several evening classes from Mr. Herbert Roberts, former headmaster of Green Turtle Cay's All Age School.
One afternoon, Bay Street businessman and Eleutherian native Ted Pyfrom, stopped by the home of Basil and Amy. He recruited Mom to work in the Pyfrom businesses on Bay Street between Frederick and Charlotte Streets. Brothers Theodore "Ted" and Sidney Pyfrom owned several businesses in the heart of Nassau. Unbeknownst to Mom at that time, these Pyfrom brothers were cousins that descended from Griffin lineage that dates back to the 1700s in Eleuthera.
In Pyfrom's Juvenile Shop, Mom assisted customers shopping for baby items and English linen luxuries, including gloves. A dirt alley between the Juvenile shop and Pyfrom's Carib shop provided a convenient spot for Mom to park her bicycle. During lunch breaks, Mom often walked a couple blocks east to the Nassau Public Library on Shirley Street between Parliament Street and Bank Lane. Librarian Gwendolyn Griffin provided updates on the latest book additions as well as a fond hug to her niece. After all, she was mom's favorite Aunt Gwen.
Gwendolyn Griffin (R) at work in the Nassau Public Library. Photo courtesy of Steffie Bethel.
In 1950, Mom embarked on her first overseas flight along with her cousin, Nellie Moore Saunders wife of photographer Walter Saunders. The two adventurers explored Miami, Florida where they resided with Nellie's sister, Adele Moore Mallett, wife of Dr. Eugene Mallett. When Nellie flew back to Nassau, Mom lodged with her first cousin Dorothy Louise Lowe and her husband George HORACE Albury for a few extra days. When Mom returned and landed in Nassau, no one was at the Oakes Airport to meet her – a stranded teenager. A family friend at the airport came to her rescue.
Doreen Lowe and John Lowe
As life unfolded on Shirley Street for this young woman, she noticed a young man who rode his bicycle around the neighborhood. He'd often stop at Basil's workshop to chat with Renard. These two young men developed a brotherly bond. The visitor's name was John Wesley Lowe. He had moved to Nassau from Green Turtle Cay, Abaco.
John's blue eyes locked on petite Doreen. He had now found another reason to increase his visits to Basil's workshop. History was in the making.
Doreen Mae Lowe (circa 1950)
Grande Island Life
Published on December 3, 2019 December 3, 2019 by Out Island Boy5 Comments
For over a decade, our family vacations in an "Old World" Florida community called Boca Grande. Located on the southwest coast, Boca Grande is situated on a barrier island called Gasparilla, named after the legendary pirate Captain José Gaspar.
The seven-mile tranquil island is void of traffic lights. Pristine beaches stretched along the Gulf deliver a plethora of shell treasures. Two historic lighthouses protect seamen who navigate the waterways. In the early evenings, dolphins play along the shoreline as the Creator paints a masterpiece sunset.
Boca Grand Sunset – Thanksgiving 2019
Our family has built wonderful memories within this island community. Shell hunting, beach football, park playtime, lunches at the Loose Caboose, and after Thanksgiving "pink" Friday sales are just a few of our family favorites. This year, however, our island getaway delivered an unexpected twist.
Just before we left this year for our Thanksgiving getaway to Gasparilla Island, I found photos of Thomas Wilson Lowe, a Green Turtle Cay native-born in 1866. After a deeper dive into the life of Thomas Wilson Lowe, I discovered he and wife Eliza Matilda Stirrup Lowe raised their family of nine children on Gasparilla Island.
A visit to the unpretentious, welcoming Boca Grande Historical Society added more to the story. We learned young Thomas Wilson Lowe ran away from home at the tender age of fourteen, the legal age to leave school. He went to work as a cabin boy on a sailing ship that transported pineapples from Green Turtle Cay to Key West.
While in Key West, he met Eliza Matilda Stirrup, also a native Bahamian. She had moved with her parents John Stirrup and Sarah Parker Stirrup from Spanish Wells to Key West. The younger couple married in Key West in July 1889.
From mid-August to mid-January, Thomas would migrate to Florida's west coast to fish for the mullet around Gasparilla Island. Mullet was salted down in brine and placed in barrels. Thomas sailed the barrels of mullet to Cuba to sell or trade for rum to sell back in the United States. He returned to his Key West home when he wasn't mullet fishing. Thomas found other ways to supplement his income. He ran freight up and down the west coast of Florida. Grandson Freddy Futch born 1933 noted that his grandfather transported the lumber and other materials to build one of the two lighthouses on Gasparilla Island.
Boca Grande Lighthouse – courtesy of the Boca Grande Historical Society
Lowe children – Thanksgiving 2008
Thomas moved to Tarpon Springs to operate a fleet of sponge boats owned by a Tarpon Springs gentleman. After a weekend family picnic at Anclote Key, the Lowes sailed home to Tarpon Springs. Thomas navigated the larger sailboat with his wife Eliza and daughter Pearl. An employee and son Brian (born 1898) used the smaller sailboat. As they left the cay, heavy fog set in. The smaller sailboat vanished. It never arrived home. When the fog lifted, Thomas searched for his lost son. Brian and his sailboat were never found. Thomas' employee was miraculously pulled from the water. On board, he died immediately. Unfortunate loss.
Unable to resume life in Tarpon Springs, the grief-stricken Lowes established their home on Gasparilla Island in 1910. Fond of the place where he had fished for mullet, Thomas and Eliza landed their sailboat on the northern end of the island. They lived on their sailboat for several years. A tar-papered shack functioned as a kitchen to cook their meals. They ate fish, oysters, shrimp, scallops, and crabs. The family fished on the beach for mackerel and pompano with nets. His grandson Freddy Futch recalled.
We only took from the sea what we could eat. If we took too much, we carried it to the neighbors. My grandfather would fish for stone crab in the winter. He would catch these crabs alive and put 'em in pens and feed 'em until people bought the large claws from him.
Eliza was a fisherwoman herself. Each morning after baking her Bahamian 'light bread' and cleaning the kitchen, she would take her fishing pole and potato sack out to the water to catch dinner. Her grandson Freddy caught fiddler crabs on the beach for bait.
Eliza Matilda Stirrup Lowe – courtesy of the Bahamas Genealogy Group
In 1914, Thomas built a three-bedroom home at Gasparilla Village. The Lowes were one of the first residents in this new settlement. With the building of the railroad, a new era dawned in the fishermen's community. Refrigerated train cars replaced the Cuban "smack" boats.
Thomas Wilson Lowe and Eliza Matilda Stirrup Lowe – courtesy of the Bahamas Genealogy Group
In 1943, Thomas Wilson Lowe passed away. The Gasparilla Fishery moved its facilities to the mainland of Florida. All the land at the north end of the island was sold to a developer. A few fishing families remained on the island, including Thomas' sons Albert (1912-1992) and Raymond (1916-1995).
Son Albert Lowe – courtesy of the Boca Grande Historical Society
Today Gasparilla Island offers us a thanksgiving place to relax, shop, dine, and unwind. This hidden paradise of beachfront vacation rentals and golf cart dominated streets is one of many coastal communities in Florida with a rich Bahamian legacy.
Our Family – Thanksgiving 2019
The Tidal Wave of 1926
Published on March 19, 2019 March 19, 2019 by Out Island Boy9 Comments
In 1890 just outside Amsterdam in The Netherlands, August Van Ryn was born. At age 17, he immigrated to New York with his older brother Louis. Two years later, August headed to Grand Rapids, Michigan where he surrendered to a life of full time Gospel ministry.
In 1916, a missionary that served in the Bahamas came to Michigan for a visit. Robert Stewart Stratton traveled to the Bahamas a couple years before to preach the Gospel. Stratton met and married a local Bahamian Lilah Roberts, daughter of John Goodwin Roberts and Emma Marion Roberts of Marsh Harbour, Abaco.
Van Ryn and Stratton served together in Michigan for a few weeks and quickly developed a bond. After the Strattons returned to the Bahamas, he wrote a letter to Van Ryn to express the need of more missionaries to serve the scattered islands.
On December 31, 1916, August Van Ryn found himself in a small motor-driven boat heading from Miami, Florida to Nassau, Bahamas where he was welcomed by Robert and Lilah Stratton and their baby girl. They visited Nassau for a few days before they boarded a sailboat to Marsh Harbour, Abaco.
August Van Ryn also fell in love with Bahamian native Persis Roberts, who was the sister of Stratton's wife Lilah. Even though, August only intended to stay in the Bahamas for couple months, his ministry in the islands lasted over thirteen years.
One of his amazing journal entries describes his experience at Marsh Harbour during the severe hurricane of October 1926.
The night before everything broke loose it was a lovely, balmy evening…So we went to bed, but were awakened around midnight by the roaring of the wind, when the violence began to smash the town. The velocity of the wind increased till it blew close to 200 miles an hour…Our house stood firm…as the gale increased that night it drove the heavy rain through the roof and in turn this soaked through the upstairs floor and into the rooms downstairs. I spent part of the night trying to dry things out a little. But the house stood.
Then, about 7 o'clock in the morning there fell a complete calm. It was a really eerie sensation-this perfect calm seconds after the raging wind…Our house stood close to the water-not to the ocean itself, but to inland waters with direct access to the ocean in the distance some five miles away. It was from there – from the Atlantic – that the tidal wave came and drove its furious course in till it reached our town…a solid wall of water about six feet high. It smashed against our house; drove in the front door and windows and broke away an addition to my house I had recently built.
Now the water stood about two or three feet high in our living room. It was too deep for us with our small children to remain there so we stood together on the stairs that led to the second floor. There we stood with our four little children, not knowing what to do; but we could and did pray…And then, in a few minutes more, the real tidal wave rolled in. We could hear its fearful roar before we could see it; it was a solid wall of water rising about twenty feet high. When my wife and I saw it bearing down on us and on our home, we kissed each other and I said to her, "Goodbye darling, we'll see each other in the glory."
The wave struck the house and smashed it to smithereens. I myself apparently went through the glass window on the stairway by which we stood, for my leg had great big cuts in it. The next thing I knew I came to my senses lying on a piece of wreckage. I had been knocked unconscious and had lost our dear baby. When I came to, I saw my wife in the raging waters further inland, with the three small children clinging to her and she to them.
This sensational experience left a deep impression on my wife and me, and as a result, has brought us rich spiritual blessing. When all you | 5,240 |
Tagged: Invasion of The Body Snatchers
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Invasion of The Body Snatchers (1978) – A '31 Films Of Halloween' Quick Capsule<|fim_middle|>), Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers, Invasion of The Bodysnatchers (1956), Sci-Fi Films, The Invasion Comment
Phil's Top 5… Underrated Film Directors
Each week Phil, from Phil's Quick Capsule Review, takes a look at a different movie or TV related Top Five. This time out: My top 5 Underrated Directors!
Close but no cigar: Isaac Florentine, Richard Donner, Neveldine/Taylor
5 – Don Siegel
Without Siegel modern cinema would look very different. From the reboot of Invasion Of The Body Snatchers to an Elvis musical through to a John Wayne western and of course Dirty Harry.
4 -George Miller
Mad Max director Miller doesn't get much love for his non Mad Max films, but he's a talented director who has could flip from hardcore action to kids fantasy with ease.
3 – Martin Campbell
The man who twice reinvented the Bond franchise with Casino Royale & Goldeneye, Campbell is adept at high qulaity action on a relatively modest budget.
2 – Joel Schumacher
Yes he made Batman & Robin but aside from his Batman franchise killing, he's also made some excellent films. From The Lost Boys to Phone Booth and A Time To Kill, Schumacher when focused can deliver top notch thriller.
1 – Tony Scott
From Top Gun to True Romance, from Enemy of The State to Unstoppable Scott was and remains one of my favourite directors. Sadly no longer with us, Scott delivered top quality blockbusters like no other.
Feb 12, 2018 Aug 12, 2018 Tagged: A Time To Kill, Babe, Batman & Robin, Casino Royale, Crank, Dirty harry, Don Siegel, Enemy of The State, George Miller, Goldeneye, Invasion of The Body Snatchers, Isaac Florentine, Joel Schumacher, Mad Mad Fury Road, Mad Max, Martin Campbell, Neveldine/Taylor, Phil's Top 5, Phone Booth, Richard Donner, The Lost Boys, Tony Scott, Top 5, Top Gun, True Romance, Unstoppable Comment
Phil's Top 5… Remakes!
Each week Phil, from Phil's Quick Capsule Review, takes a look at a different movie or TV related Top Five. This time out: Remakes.
Yes the dreaded "R" word. But hey not all Remakes are rubbish like Total Recall or Point Break. In fact some are stone cold classics. Here's some of my favourites…
Close but no cigar:The Fly, Little Shop Of Horrors, Cape Fear, 12 Monkeys, Halloween
5 – Scarface
Remaking a 30's little known gangster film, DePalma struck gold with what is one of the definitive films of the 80's. It cemented Pacino as a stand out talent and helped launch careers of Michelle Pfeiffer among others. It also owns pop culture with it's iconic images and quotes. Say hello to my little friend indeed.
4 – Invasion of The Body Snatchers
Now on it's third remake, Body Snatchers best incarnation is for sure it's 70's Donald Sutherland starring vehicle. That said the 90's version holds a lot of affection for me and the Daniel Craig/Nicole Kidman version has it's moments.
3 – Oceans 11
The original Ocean's 11, whilst starring the kinds of cool in the Rat Pack, is a mess. The remake updates it, adds a top notch cast and became a bonified mainstream hit. Shame the sequels in the whole were messy and forgettable.
2 – Dawn of The Dead
I love Dawn Of The Dead, Romeo version. It still is outstanding. So it says a lot that I rate Zack Snider's modern remake so highly. It's excellent. Okay so fast Zombie's may not be everyone's taste but the pace, set pieces and cast help this one become one of THE best remakes.
1 – John Carpenter's The Thing
The Thing is not only the best remake for me but also one of the best 80's films full stop. From Carpenter's relentless direction to the spot on cast to the pounding music and ground breaking visual FX… The Thing has it all. The modern remake/prequel was utter tosh however and did NOTHING to add to this films legacy.
Nov 28, 2016 Aug 12, 2018 Tagged: 12 Monkeys, Cape Fear, Dawn Of The Dead, Halloween, Invasion of The Body Snatchers, John Carpenter's The Thing, Little Shop Of Horrors, Oceans 11, Other cr*p, Other Crap, Phil's Top 5, Remakes, Scarface, The Fly, The Thing, Top 5 Comment | Review
Phil's Quick Capsule Review:
Invasion of The Body Snatchers is one of my favourite science fiction films of all time. It's hugely claustrophobic, oppressive and nihilistic. It leaves you feeling unsettled both through its naturalistic cinematography and performances, in a story that feels just one step away from possible. Director Kaufman is on top form and Sutherland, Nemoy and Adams deliver memorable performances. In short I consider the '78 version of Body Snatchers essential viewing.
Best Bit: THAT Ending
Buy, Stream, Avoid: Buy
If You Liked this Try: Invasion of The Body Snatchers (1956), Body Snatchers, The Invasion
Phil Hobden
Phil Hobden is the former Film Editor & Writer for renowned martial arts focused COMBAT MAGAZINE in the UK. He is also a filmmaker in his own right, having produced two cult Independent action films in LEFT FOR DEAD and TEN DEAD MEN. He was the host for the award nominated Filmsploitation podcast for 4 years, currently co-hosts Ross And Phil Talk Movies and is a writer/editor for his own blog Phil's Quick Capsule Review…
www.philhobden.co.uk
Oct 9, 2019 Oct 20, 2019 Tagged: 31 Days of Halloween, 31 Films Of Halloween, Body Snatchers, Body Snatchers (1993), Horror Films, Invasion of The Body Snatchers, Invasion of The Body Snatchers (1956 | 328 |
La Saoura, est une région désertique algérienne, constituant la limite Ouest du Grand Erg occidental.
Étymologie et origine
La région doit son nom à la vallée de l'oued Saoura qui est l'union de l'oued Guir et de l'oued Zouzfana.
Géographie
La Saoura constitue la partie occidentale du Sahara algérien, de environ, de part et d'autre de l'oued qui la traverse, entre le grand Erg au nord et l'Erg Lghidi. Ses principales villes sont Béchar, Tindouf, Beni-Abbes, Timimoun et Adrar, et au sud se trouvent les oasis du Gourara et du Touat.
La végétation composée essentiellement de buissons suit le cours des oueds, sur<|fim_middle|> région porte le nom d'« allée des palmiers »).
Béchar se trouve à proximité du qui porte la même appellation. Sa palmeraie est l'une des plus importantes de la Saoura.
Population
Photos de la Saoura
Notes et références
Liens externes
Géographie de l'Algérie
Saoura
Sahara algérien | les rives de celui qui longe le grand Erg occidental, se trouvent des palmiers (cette | 23 |
Chat to our friendly i-SITE Visitor Centre staff about making<|fim_middle|> Alpine each offer unique travel experiences.
Cross Cook Strait on a Bluebridge ferry and enjoy some real Kiwi hospitality. Bluebridge carry passengers and vehicles between downtown Wellington and Picton up to four times daily and offer a range of fares to suit your budget.
Snapper is the magic way to pay for everyday things, it's safer than cash, and fast! Snapper is NZ's leading contactless payment system, bringing together the latest technology and the best people. | the most of your visit to Upper Hutt and the Wellington region. We are local travel experts and can book a range of sights and activities, transport and tours throughout the region and beyond.
Browse the brochures, enjoy a coffee in our on-site Limelight Cafe, cruise the internet with our free Wi-Fi then book the next part of your excellent adventure with us!
We are located within Expressions Whirinaki Arts & Entertainment Centre, 836 Fergusson Drive, Upper Hutt and provide comprehensive up-to-date information and have free wi-fi.
We are very proud to stock a superb range of artworks from local and New Zealand artists, so be sure to check them out!
We're easy to find, located in the Upper Hutt CBD at Expressions Whirinaki Arts & Entertainment Centre, 836 Fergusson Drive, between the Upper Hutt City Council building and H2O Xtream aquatic centre.
Parking if plentiful and free, but you need to be aware of allocated two hour time zones. Street parking is available on Fergusson Drive, and a large carpark shared with the pool is located at the rear of the building off Brown Street. The parking at the rear of the building is a combination of all day and two hour parking.
Interislander's Cook Strait Ferries travel between Wellington and Picton New Zealand. The 92km voyage takes 3 hours and has been described as "one of the most beautiful ferry rides in the world".
InterCity have been transporting Kiwis and international visitors around New Zealand for more than 30 years. Today they operate New Zealand's largest premier coach network.
KiwiRail Great Journeys of New Zealand offer long distance scenic train experiences in New Zealand. The Northern Explorer, Coastal Pacific and Tranz | 366 |
LEGO must be one of the most ubiquitous toys in the world. It's hard to imagine growing up without it. Somehow, the company has managed to remain relevant all these years, finding new ways to engage with kids as the world around them changes. One of the most highly anticipated LEGO releases for some time is the Boost Creative Toolbox, which tasks you with building a robot named Vernie, among others, and programming them to perform certain actions using "drag-n'-drop coding." It's due to ship from August 1st, and in preparation, the Android app has just been made available.
We cover a lot of app and game sales here on Android Police. We actually have a really complex system we use to find new sales and check the previous prices before presenting them to you (it's called "checking Appbrain"). But soon you might not need to take our word for it: one of our readers spotted a new visual element on the mobile version of the Play Store highlighting apps on sale directly to users. A similar feature has been in place for movies, TV shows, and books for some time.
As virtual reality becomes more and more mainstream, brands are slowly realizing its potential to market to consumers. LEGO is the latest company to do this, releasing Brickheadz, a VR app for Google's Daydream platform and accompanying headset, to the Play Store in 'unreleased' beta state. If you're unaware, as I was, Brickheadz is a LEGO range released earlier this year with blocky characters, using Marvel and DC super heroes.
[Deal Alert] Lego Harry Potter is down to $0.49 ($4.50 off) in multiple countries, including U.S.
In many parts of the world, we are preparing for the most magical time of the year. What's better to go with the holiday season than a little bit of wizardry? Well, we've got you covered. The Lego Harry Potter games, both Years 1-4 and 5-7, are on sale for $0.49 each in several countries including the U.S.
Many years ago, my first game console was a Nintendo DS Lite. And one of the first games I got for it was LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga. It still remains one of my favorite games of all time, mostly because of nostalgia to that red and black handheld, but also because the LEGO video games are incredibly fun and engaging (for all ages).
LEGO Harry Potter was originally released in 2010 for Windows, various game consoles, and iOS, followed by a Mac release a year later. Almost six years after it was released on that other mobile platform, Android users can finally enjoy the blocky<|fim_middle|> the case, a tie-in with LEGO for toys and games is pretty brilliant. After a substantial delay, you can now play the LEGO video game version of Jurassic World, which also includes bits from the original Jurassic Park, Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and that other one with Téa Leoni. | wizard-themed fun.
The LEGO games are great - a little repetitive, maybe, but very good, especially for mobile devices. For the Star Wars fans out there (and boy are there a lot of you), your time has come: LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens has hit the Play Store, almost a month after release on consoles and PC.
We all know the LEGO formula by now: run around with a character, collect as many coins as possible, and advance through the game. This is tried and tested, so I'm not going to doubt it, but the gameplay does feel a little tired now.
LEGO has gained a well-earned reputation for releasing solid mobile games that eschew the usual advertising and in-app purchases, making them great choices for kids. (Okay, technically every LEGO game is an advertisement for those super-expensive toys, but there are worse ways to advertise to children.) LEGO City My City 2 - that's My City 2, using the long-running My City toy line brand, if you're wondering - is one of the company's most elaborate mobile games to date.
Far be it from me to criticize a multi-billion-dollar company for falling behind in its release schedule but... really, Warner Bros? The LEGO Movie came out more than two years ago, and you're just now getting around to releasing an Android version? Even back when video games ran on machines with the power of a calculator, they generally got around to releasing the movie tie-in within a month or so of the theatrical release.
Okay, so Jurassic World didn't exactly live up to the groundbreaking standards of the original movie. That probably doesn't matter to the herds of kids who went to see it just to watch some dinosaurs scaring the crap out of a bunch of puny humans. That being | 366 |
"Preliminary practice for preparing the leg muscles for the more severe strain required of them for the Hundred Up exercise.
Draw two parallel lines on the ground<|fim_middle|> force into the work so as to loosen the muscles of the shoulders and make the upper part of the frame active and pliable in order that it may act in perfect union with the legs when the Hundred Up is performed.
Now obviously this is not running but only a start forwards and a correct action for running but it is well that the athlete should acquire this first for it prevents the legs from moving in unnecessary directions It gives a general habit of straightness and directness. | eighteen inches long and eight inches apart.
Place one foot on the middle of each line. Stand flat footed the feet lying perfectly straight on the lines. The arms should be held naturally loosely and nearly straight with a slight forward inclination the body being upright and straight.
Now raise one knee to the height of the hip that is precisely in the same way as in walking only the knee action is higher and bring the foot back and down again to its original position touching the line lightly with the ball of the foot repeat the raising and lowering of the leg ten to thirty times and repeat with the other leg.
Practically this amounts to balancing the body on one leg while exercising the other. Care must be taken that the knee comes to the level of the hip every time. This may not be found easy at first but practice will soon bring about the desired result.
Great attention must be paid to keeping the body upright and the legs and feet quite straight while exercising. Practise slowly until the necessary balance is acquired and the exercise accomplished with ease. Otherwise the Hundred Up will be found unsatisfactory.
Prepare lines as for the preliminary practice.
Stand on them as before except that the body must be balanced on the ball of the foot the heels being clear of the ground the head and body being tilted very slightly forward and the hands down by the sides.
Now spring from the toe bringing the knee to the level of the hip as in the slower exercise letting the foot fall back to its original position.
Repeat with the other leg and continue raising and lowering the legs alternately.
This action is exactly that of running except that instead of the legs moving forward the foot drops into the original position on the ground.
The main point to remember is correct action. The knees must be brought at each stride up to the level of the hip while as the knee comes down the foot behind should be carried farther backwards and level with the backs.
When the knee is brought higher than the hip the body is thrown out of its perpendicular backwards when the foot is thrown out behind farther than level with the back the body is correspondingly forced forward. Either is a hindrance to form and pace the two objects striven for by those who train whether for health or competition. All such will undoubtedly derive more benefit from doing their practice correctly than the reverse.
While doing the Hundred Up use the arms as in running ie hold them almost at full length and swing them half way across the chest forward and backward a few inches behind the back as each stride is taken.
A good practice is to stand still on the lines and use the arms as in running putting plenty of | 524 |
WHS GIRLS BASKETBALL: Tourney action continues…
WHS GIRLS BASKETBALL: Tourney action continues for Ladies
By Colleen Pappadakis |
PUBLISHED: December 24, 200<|fim_middle|> score was 57-67.
Snyder led with 20 points and 11 rebounds.?Foltz had 14 points and 13 rebounds.?Jessup had 10 points and 7 rebounds.
"They are a Division 1 high school in a very difficult league," said Mehtlan of the Heritage squad. "It was great to play against them and I think this game was a real boost for our girls. They realize that they can play with any team."
Colleen Pappadakis | 9 at 12:00 a.m. | UPDATED: August 24, 2018 at 12:00 a.m.
The Lady Wolverines continued their preseason tournament action last week, traveling up north to play in the McKinleyville Tournament.
Eight teams came to play, and in the end it was the home team that won the tournament; North Coast Secion No. 2 ranked McKinleyville.?Willits finished in fourth place with one win and two losses.
Game one was played last Thursday against Hoopa, a tough team Willits beat in the championship game during their own tournament, held earlier this season.?After struggling early in the game, the Wolverines eventually found their rhythm and pulled ahead, beating Hoopa 55-40.
"Since we weren"t shooting the ball well, we focused on the defensive side of the ball and held them to 15 points the second half," said coach Eric Mehtlan.?
Ceara Snyder led the Wolverines in scoring with 20 points.? She was 4×4 from the free throw line and finished with 12 rebounds and 1 block.
Besse Foltz dominated the boards as she grabbed 15 rebounds for the Wolverines and finished with 11 points, 4 steals and 2 blocks.
Brenna Jessup led in assists with 6 and had 9 point, 8 rebounds and 5 steals.?Whitney Dunham finished the game with 9 points, 4 rebounds and 1 steal.?Mariah Escobedo played a strong defensive game, leading her team with 7 steals, and added 6 points and 5 rebounds to her stats.
"Hoopa is a good team, so beating them is a great accomplishment," said Mehtlan.
Friday"s game matched the Wolverines against the Eureka Loggers. It was a difficult game for the Willits team, not only because they were playing a strong team, but because they had completed their final exams at home the same day.
"Our girls had finals Thursday and Friday so we had to travel both days." noted Mehtlan.? "Friday"s game was a struggle for us. With traveling and doing finals both days, they had very little left in them for basketball."
Eureka played well, and the Wolverines found themselves struggling from the beginning.? The Loggers went on the win 45-60.
"We played with little passion," said Mehtlan. "It was not our girls" fault, just a difficult agenda. We will probably look at a different tournament next year. Finals week is very draining on our players."
Jessup led in scoring with 17 points, while Snyder followed with 16 points and 16 rebounds.
Saturday the Wolverines played their final game of the tournament, competing against Brentwood"s Heritage High School.?Unlike the previous day, the ladies came out with clear minds and rested bodies, ready to play.
"We stayed the night in Arcata and it made a big difference," said Mehtlan.
The first half was back and forth between the teams.?The Wolverines held their lead most of the half, and it wasn"t until the third quarter that they lost the game.?Several turnovers cost Willits, as Heritage capitalized on Wolverine mistakes. The final | 684 |
Del Mar Historical Society
info@delmarhistoricalsociety.org
To discover, record, collect, preserve, perpetuate, and display for public benefit the historical facts, artifacts, properties, and other material concerning the history of the<|fim_middle|>Oral histories of prominent Del Mar residents
Miscellaneous files of significant documents from Del Mar's past
We meet monthly on the second Wednesday at 5:00 pm in the conference room at 225 9th Street, Del Mar. These meetings are open to the public. Also, we hold periodic history programs for the public in different venues.
Our membership includes anyone interested in Del Mar history, and we have no membership dues. To carry out our mission we rely on the generosity of people like you with an interest in Del Mar's past. We have a PBS-like gift program to thank you for your tax deductible donations. | village of Del Mar.
Old Del Mar
Alvarado House
The Del Mar Historical Society is an independent 501(c)(3), California Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation founded in 1985, striving to fulfill its long-time mission to discover, record, collect, preserve, perpetuate, and display for public benefit the historical facts, artifacts, properties, and other material concerning the history of the village of Del Mar.
Our resources include:
Del Mar Looking Back, the only complete written history of Del Mar
Discovering Del Mar's Past, a walking tour book with pictures and maps
More than 2000 historical photographs
| 133 |
Calvert, Mike and Muchira-Tirima, Koi (2013) Making sense of professionalism and being a professional in<|fim_middle|> insights into the values, attitudes and motivations of lecturers. The article charts the expansion of higher education and summarises the challenges that it faces. It goes on to examine through interviews with faculty (staff) in one private university in Kenya what they understand by professionalism, what constitutes professional (and less than professional) behaviour and whether they feel that the institution supports or militates against professionalism amongst the academic workforce. The findings suggest that their view is unproblematic and resides in their specialist knowledge and accompanying values and behaviours and is less concerned with status, autonomy or agency. Faculty are clear what a professional is and what constitutes professional behaviour, but appear to recognise and accept that this is a low-status profession where colleagues struggle to survive materially, often prioritise extra teaching for research and enjoy limited opportunities for professional development. The research suggests that Kenya, and other countries in a similar position, may well struggle to provide an environment where professionalism will flourish as staff face a range of challenges to grow and improve their higher education system. | a Kenyan higher education context. Journal of Education for Teaching, 39 (4). pp. 370-382.
The concept of the professional in the context of a rapidly expanding higher education sector in a developing country offers interesting | 51 |
GoSmile: Elevating a Brand through Web Design
GoSmile needed a new website that would help differentiate their growing line of products, reflect the beautiful design of their products and improve user experience.
GoSmile is the premier, luxury tooth whitening brand. From their beautiful packaging and the elegant product designs, it's immediately clear that they're a step above the average teeth whitening you encounter in supermarket. However their website had lagged behind on proprietary software that restricted the functionality of the website and made updates extremely challenging. They wanted to move to Magento, get a responsive design, and, in the process, re-conceptualize their website.
The initial website design did not reflect the sophisticated design of their products.
Since the brand had long since overgrown their old website, we started by organizing the content and information architecture of the site. Once that was agreed to, we began to wireframe the individual pages.
Visually, the first priority was to align the site with the look of the products. In the previous version, the website was contained in a boxy template that didn't to reflect the airy, modern designs of the products. By incorporating the feel from the packaging and products, we opened up the designs and replaced the boxy with more expansive, modern designs that were unique to their brand.
Functionality-wise we wanted to allow multiple paths for users ranging from experienced users who want the quickest path to purchase, to informational browsers looking to read more about the products. We identified and eliminated several unnecessary steps in their previous website and were able to streamline and improve the experience for both types of users.
However one of the key challenges we quickly identified was distinguishing between the products. GoSmile has grown substantially and has an array of core products, all of which solve essentially the same problem: whitening teeth. While they each have unique selling points, these weren't immediately clear to website users. To avoid self-competition and a push to the lowest-price, it was crucial to create a clear system of distinguishing the products.
The previous website used a quiz to walk users through a series of their preferences before giving them a product recommendation. While quizzes can be a useful strategy, it required a high level of engagement and the recommendations felt opaque — they failed to orient users to the relative advantages of one product vs another.
We identified three areas to differentiate based on:
Intensity — the amount of total whitening that could be achieved.
Time — the length of time required to achieve the desired result.
Method — how the product is used.
We created icons for each and included this information on the product pages and the navigation drop down menu. To give an overview at a glance, we also compiled it into a comparison chart to give customers a quick, easy to understand overview of each product.
Based on these distinctions, we built personas for each product. For example, Teeth Whitening Gel is a low intensity, easy-to-use method perfect for a busy mom who wants to maintain her smile but doesn't have time to add an additional step to her routine. Meanwhile, the more intensive, time<|fim_middle|>Bon Appétit: From Print Magazine to Ebooks
Older PostAquaReveal: Design for a Skincare Start-Up | -consuming method Double Action Whitening System would be perfect for a bride preparing for her big day who wants to look her best in the shortest amount of time. Based on these personas, we created banners with lifestyle images and taglines to match.
In the end, the redesign improved user experience, created unity between the product, packaging and website and differentiated the products to users.
FROM THE CLIENT
"The site is so beautiful and the launch was smooth.
Thank you for all the hard work and giving us such a great new look. It was a pleasure to work with you and look forward to working with you more in the future."
— Sunday Perez, Director of Marketing
Design Concept & Strategy
Wireframes & UX Design
Visual Design using Adobe CS
Development in Magento
Kevyn Aucoin: Ecommerce for an Iconic Beauty Brand
UTMOST: Redesigning an arts and culture magazine
AHAVA: Ongoing Design for a Skincare Brand
EOS: Packaging and Digital for a Skincare Brand
Squarespace for Service Businesses
Furi: Building a Brand to Disrupt the Tennis Market
Trophy Skin: Website Evolution and Optimization
Calvin Klein: Design Packaging Concept
Customize Product Landing Pages for Retailer Websites
Laura Geller: Engaging User Experiences
Tagged: Beauty, Digital
Newer Post | 271 |
The Step Table Is Best in Show of NYCxDESIGN 2020
06.22.20 | By Kelly Beall
Erika Cross has made her debut, and the international design community couldn't be more excited! Honored as the Best in Show of NYCxDESIGN 2020, her Step table is a coffee table inspired by tools found in the workshop – step blocks which are simple mechanical devices used to clamp and hold. The Step table consists of two pieces –<|fim_middle|> fabricating an original prototype that was quite labor intensive, but which serves as a master for creating a mold for shell casting other materials (such as Jesmonite)," Cross said.
Motivated to elevate ordinary objects and familiar forms, Erika Cross Studio's Step is part of a larger body of work that explores common industrial objects, transforming scale to create new forms with familiar functions. Through research, intuition, experience, and experimentation, Erika challenges limitations by developing her own innovative methods and objects. We're looking forward to seeing what's to come!
Photos by Erika Cross Studio.
Kelly Beall is senior editor at Design Milk. The Pittsburgh-based graphic designer and writer has had a deep love of art and design for as long as she can remember, and enjoys sharing her finds with others. When undistracted by great art and design, she can be found making a mess in the kitchen, consuming as much information as possible, or on the couch with her three pets. Find her @designcrush on social.
You can follow Kelly Beall on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram. Read all of Kelly Beall's posts. | a wedge and a cylinder – that can be arranged with either piece on top, adjusting the overall height with the ridges on the opposing surfaces.
"Step was designed with efficient batch production in mind. I wanted to be able to reproduce the design in a streamlined and flexible way without the need for specialized tools or workspaces during the production phase. This was achieved by engineering and | 75 |
Trainspotting first graced our cinemas in 1996, however, it took me another 20 years to finally watch the cult classic. Ridiculous I know as a prior film student, but it took a fantastic film marathon at a friend's house for me to finally sit down watch it. Trainspotting is arguably one of the most powerful representations of the drug culture, unique owing to not only its refusal to be set in a glamorised format but also because of its unconventional manner, such as the film's poster. Trainspotting explores a profoundly dark and seedy narrative, with scenes made from the stuff of nightmares, but with what I can only imagine to be realistic scenarios when things inevitably go wrong.
The two things that resonated with me after watching Trainspotting were the remarkably intelligent design of the film. How the director Danny Boyle used the sets, the music, and the atmosphere to create what one would imagine to be a realistic depiction of the inside of a drug users mind. Boyle, along with the cast and crew, created something really quite profound, and importantly something that I hadn't seen before nor have I seen since. That, and McGregor's performance. Now, I grew up watching McGregor in the Star Wars Franchise, in fact, I believe it was the first place I saw him, I would, of course, grow up to see him in classics such as Moulin Rouge! Watching him in Trainspotting was quite blown away by his performance, how authentic he both looked and behaved. A performance I sadly haven't seen him once replicate to that same level of intense believability. So, though I have no plans to revisit the first film, it is seared onto my brain as one of the more authentic films I have witnessed.
So, I suddenly found myself aboard the hype train along with every other Trainspotting fan, and I have waited with baited breath to watch T2. With the DVD release this week I finally had my chance. T2, as you are all probably aware, takes place 20 years after the first film. Why 20 years? Well because Danny Boyle wanted a certain amount of time to pass before once more exploring the lives of Renton, Spud, Sick Boy and Tommy. At least that was Boyle's reasoning when he appeared on Graham Norton's show with the rest of the cast. A statement I initially doubted, given how many reboots, sequels and prequels have been both released and are currently being made. Having now watched T2, I'm even more sceptical regarding the necessity of its creation.
The first half this film is great, much like a gap between seasons of your favourite TV show, it's fascinating to see how these characters have changed, where they are, what are they doing and in Trainspotting's case, are they all still drug addicts? What is initially striking is how bloody good they look, considering the sheer volume of drugs they must have ingested, injected, snorted and smoked, they ought to resemble someone closer to Keith Richards (A legend who I hugely admire, before any fellow Stones fans start heckling me).<|fim_middle|> powerfully. Had there been a greater focus on the second half, tighter editing and a reduction in time from nearly 2 hours to the time of the original, then perhaps this would have served as a worthier sequel to the cult classic.
RECOMMENDATION – I was expecting something more from this film, which began with the correct intentions but never quite followed through. | Richards looks appropriately fitting for someone to have done all he claims, he has earned those lines in his face, lived those tales he describes in his book and has earned that classic rock star attire thus cementing him as the real deal. McGregor, despite a double-take opening scene, looks incredibly baby-faced, as does Jonny Lee Miller as Sick Boy. In fact, in one scene that was used for publicity, the pair are seen walking through a farmyard, looking not out of place if the location had been swapped for a Californian beach, even the attire might be fitting with local trends. Though I must say my favourite moments of the film are when Brenton first reconnects with both Sick Boy and Spud, a realistic, brutal and disgusting couple of moments that call to moments in the original film.
Once the narrative moves beyond the halfway point, the narrative really struggles to keep the momentum going. With scene after scene beginning with some bizarre moments such as Brenton and Sick Boy performing in a country make-shift fan club where Renton and Sick Boy must steal money, only to conclude on quite a funny note with a healthy portion of nostalgia applied.
So, there are moments of genuine hilarity and entertainment mixed with some insightful moments, and these moments are best summarised by Sick Boy when, in one scene, he discusses the concept of nostalgia with Brenton. Sick Boy highlights with a degree of unexpected clarity and articulation not only their own trapped predicament in life but also the basic concept of the film "Where will you go next in the nostalgia of your childhood". This theme of continually flashing back to the original film and beyond to the group growing up together is something the film relies a little too heavily on, through very carefully edited scenes. Frustratingly the final act of the film leaves you not only with a number of unanswered questions, but it also chooses a jarringly conventional ending for a film famous for doing the exact opposite. The film ultimately suffers from its inability to impact in the same manner in which the first was roaring success. Though there are glimpses of the old magic, such as Brenton making a decent effort of commenting on modern society through his "Choose Life" moment.
I know it's perhaps not fair to compare notes, however, the theme of nostalgia is so heavily relied upon it's quite hard not to do so. When I watched the first Trainspotting film, I was totally gripped, immersed in a story of such impressive filmmaking and an honesty about drug culture I have not seen since I was taken aback when the film ended. It is after all only just an hour and a half while T2 is closer to a full two hours, something it doesn't suit.
T2 then is the poor man's Trainspotting, one that lacks that same mix of horrific and euphoric moments. The honesty and emotional depth are perhaps better articulated, but as this film examines a middle-aged crisis rather than teenage angst it's one that sadly leaves the film feeling closer to a generic blockbuster.
OVERALL- *** Danny Boyle knows how to stylistically create these films, play with the locations and music, but T2 lacks the impact the first one delivered so | 651 |
This is a commercial<|fim_middle|>, colourful landscapes, a colourful culture, and colourful characters – more shades, tones, and hues than you ever thought possible.
The commercial song is "Colors" by Catherine Allan from Fortunate Ones. However, this song was produced specifically for the commercial and unfortunately, it is not available to purchase or download on any music sites.
The original version of "Colors" is a song that was released on December 1st 2006 for American musician Kira Willey. Here, you can preview songs and check them on Amazon or iTunes.
oops, I mean to say song Crayons written by Catherine Allan. | ad of Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism. This commercial was released in January 2016 in Canada. Under the title of "Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism: Crayons".
Newfoundland and Labrador is a deeply colourful place, slightly off-kilter with the rest of the world. Around here, there is no beige. Instead, you will find colourful place names, colourful houses | 76 |
ST. CLOUD, Minn. (FOX 9) - When you're 14 and you're in love, relationships seem so simple.
Mary Zeigler remembers dating her first and only boyfriend, Bill Henrichs.
"He was a musician and I would hang out with him when he would be in the band and help drag around the amplifiers all over the place," she said.
As soon as they turned 18, Bill and Mary headed to the altar. They had only ever dated each other, and back then that was the natural progression. Fourteen years later they had two children, Matthew and Macy. But as time went on, Bill and Mary grew up and apart.
"Bill's very cerebral. I'm very athletic and we just you know had less and less things in common," Mary said.
So, after 24 years of marriage, Bill and Mary decided to divorce. Matthew and Macy were just eight and five. The couple was determined to get along for their kids, for the long haul.
"I mean whatever happened, happened. You have to take from it and move forward," Mary said.
And that's when Bill and Mary's story goes from "good for them" to "wait, what?"
"Linda came into the picture and I will<|fim_middle|> we kept it between us. It was never bringing the children into it," Linda added.
You don't have to be a good match to be a good example.
"If this story changes one person's actions or attitude towards their ex, it'll be all worth it," Mary said. | say it the rest of my life - I thank God for her coming into our life."
Bill remarried to his second wife, Linda. She and her two daughters from a previous marriage quickly blended in.
"That pretty much sums it up. That he never left our family and Linda joined it," Mary said.
Smack dab in the middle is Bill.
"I trust them both. I trust after so many years of getting along, working through it, I know that there's not gonna be any strange issues. We'll just get together and get it done."
That's where Bill and Mary and Linda's story goes from "wait, what?" to "get outta town."
As Mary puts it, "It's kind of an unusual story."
In February 2018, Bill found out he needed a kidney transplant; he needed to find a donor.
"Things were just starting to point my direction… and sent the first round of blood work down and not only were we a good match, but they said we shared some antigens," Mary said.
Mary tested at the Mayo Clinic and was a solid match.
"For me, it wasn't even a decision. It was kinda like him calling up and saying, 'can you come over and help us rake leaves?' That's how I think of it," Mary said.
This past October, 44 years after she gave Bill her heart, Mary gave him her kidney.
"The month before I really dialed in my diet really drank a lot of water. I mean I gave him a nice fat voluptuous kidney."
Bill adds, "The doctor did say it was an excellent kidney when I woke up."
She fulfilled a promise she had made so many years earlier, in a way no one could've imagined. Mary says her kids love telling people the story.
"They knew that if mom could do something for dad she would and they were proud of me."
Whether you're 14 or 62, relationships are rarely simple.
"There were times we might not have agreed but | 411 |
The GP locomotive series are four-axle road switchers built by Electro-Motive Division (EMD), a division of the General<|fim_middle|> | Motors Corporation -- which was evenually purchased by Caterpillar Inc. in 2005. The GP7 line of locomotives were built between October 1949 and May 1954 while the GP9 series were built between January 1954 and August 1963. In total, approximately 2,700 GP7's were built and 3,400 GP9's – mainly for US and Canadian railways.
The GP7 locomotive was the first diesel produced in the GP (General Purpose) series of EMD locomotives. Powered by a 16 cylinder, 1,500 horsepower motor, the GP7 was a reliable and solid performer. Although the GP's were designed for both freight and passenger service, they would become an instant success with freight hauling lines. With improved front and rear visibility due to its center cab design, as well as lower maintenance costs, the GP7 was an immediate victory for railroads. In the mid-1950's EMD increased the output of these units to 1,750 horsepower and were sold under the GP9 series.
Lionel began production of their version of the GP7 diesel series in 1955. It was not until 1958 when Lionel first marketed a GP9 locomotive in their product line. For Lionel, the distinguising feature between the 7 and 9 series was the inclusion of a dynamic brake blister on top of the GP9. On the real railroad, both the GP7 and GP9 came with or without this dynamic brake blister unit.
2348 M. & St. L. | 347 |
Evergreen Worship Group circa 2006. Photo courtesy of the author.
People who feel called to dedicate their lives to loving and serving God in radical ways have often found it necessary to live together. Roman Catholics created monasteries and convents for celibate renunciates, while the first Quakers demonstrated a way to live God‐focused lives while maintaining a family and carrying on occupations in the world. They supported those called to ministry through extensive home hospitality for travelers and by raising funds. Our society is not nearly as communal as theirs was, and today most people live in isolated family units. Young people still share houses while engaging in studies or beginning their professional lives, but most Quakers in our time maintain the individualistic norms of the culture regarding living arrangements. Some Friends, however, have continued to explore alternatives.
Quakers in the Philadelphia area established Bryn Gweled and Tanguy Homesteads in 1939 and 1945 as housing communities where people of "different backgrounds and heritage" could live together cooperatively. In 1971, a group of Quakers with an even more radical aim established Movement for a New Society (MNS), "a nationwide network of groups working for fundamental social change through nonviolent action." They created a cluster of communal households in a low‐income neighborhood in West Philadelphia.
When I moved to the same neighborhood in 1989, however, MNS had mostly dispersed. I came seeking a way to live that would allow me to follow a spiritual calling. It had become clear to me that I must take only part‐time paid work and learn to live frugally. I saw a clear relationship between my lifestyle choices and the amount of work I had to do to pay for each choice. For many years, I lived in small apartments in low‐income neighborhoods. I chose not to own a car and did not buy health insurance. In my free time, I engaged in study and practice to eventually become a teacher of Quaker spirituality. Along with other Friends, I became convinced that many treasures of Quaker faith and corporate practice are gifts that the world urgently needs, and that in order to fully give our gifts, Quaker meetings need to deepen spiritually.
Fired with a sense of being called to teach and write, in 1996 I experienced an inner call to give up even my very modest but regular income from teaching college classes, in order to dedicate more of my time and energy to teaching and writing about the spiritual life. To release myself for ministry, I needed to give up my own apartment and find a less expensive way to live. This would require support from others. Embarrassed to ask for help, I wrestled for months before finally giving notice that I was leaving my job. Although not having this job has not always been easy, in the past two decades I have experienced God's providence in many ways, and in particular through the generous community of Friends. I am one of an increasing number of Friends who have heard a call to release ourselves and be released by our community for God's service, in the myriad forms that service takes.
The communal living arrangements I've experienced have fallen into three general categories. The first is shared households located in low<|fim_middle|> modest living expenses in such places has enabled members of the household to free themselves and each other from much or most of their salaried work in order to follow leadings or carry a ministry. At times, some Friends have felt called to invite me and others into a second kind of living arrangement: sharing their homes and offering a spare bedroom. In such situations, the homeowner does not expect to receive an equal share of housing and utility costs. Sometimes no rent is charged at all. At other times, the one following a leading or carrying a ministry pays a modest rent. A third alternative has been to live as a house‐sitter in someone's home while the owners are away for an extended period of time. House‐sitters pay for the utilities they use, and sometimes also a modest rent.
In 1997 I moved to Casa Amistad/Friendship House in an inner‐city Philadelphia neighborhood called Fairhill. Jorge Arauz had bought a house facing a small park that was the turf of drug dealers. He felt led to what he called "a ministry of presence" to the neighbors. As one of them, he nurtured the community to reclaim the park as a safe place for children. A Quaker committee called Fairhill Friends Ministry met twice a month to provide spiritual and practical support, and they called for other Friends to live in the house. I was the second Friend to respond to the invitation, and soon, in addition to teaching and writing, I was helping to organize community events and efforts to make Fairhill Square beautiful and safe again. At Casa Amistad, three of us shared household expenses, including the mortgage and utilities. Jorge and I also shared food expenses and cooked together. On the weekends, we were joined by the young daughters of my two housemates.
After two and a half years, for health reasons, I needed another place to live, and Hollister Knowlton invited me to live in her house for a time. At first, she charged me no rent. Then she began to acknowledge that she, too, was called to reduce her full‐time employment and devote more time to her leadings, which were related to protecting the environment. As her financial situation changed, I took part‐time jobs to contribute more to household costs. Then she sold the house to move to a smaller one down the block. When another Friend bought the house, I stayed on for a while. After I left, other Friends needing to be released from ministry and for witness followed me in this house of hospitality, a center of community sometimes referred to as Angels Landing.
For seven years, I was the summer house‐sitter for two Quaker schoolteachers. In June they went to their summer home in Vermont, and I moved into their old stone house. I lived alone and did research and writing six days a week. I paid for the utilities, mowed the lawn, watered the plants, and gave attention to occasional maintenance needs.
After four years of full‐time employment as a teacher of Quaker spirituality, I wanted to stretch my savings as long as possible so I could finish a book. I entered another house‐sitting arrangement, staying in the apartment of a couple who had taken a one‐year appointment to work in another city. They came home a few weekends a month. I used their guest bedroom and paid them a modest rent.
Next I moved to Richmond, Indiana. For three years, I lived in a rich community of people knowledgeable about Quaker faith and practice, with access to the Earlham College library's Quaker collection. I audited some courses at Earlham School of Religion and received support there for my research and writing project. Housing costs in Richmond are about 30 percent cheaper than housing in the Philadelphia area. Through several different living arrangements and by taking a part‐time job, I was able to make my savings last longer in Richmond.
In addition to financial and communal benefits, there are equally important spiritual benefits to living with others who are also seeking to be faithful. Conversations at meals, while doing chores, and during leisure time can be rich opportunities for mutual spiritual sharing, learning, encouragement, and inspiration. Being led into such household arrangements, in whatever role, can provide a new lens for the challenges that inevitably arise in every sort of living arrangement. Understanding that we are together in service to God's work in the world can help ease the challenges of living together. Such frictions can become part of the spiritual process of becoming a more faithful instrument of God's love.
From the beginning of my journey as a Quaker, Pendle Hill retreat and study center in Wallingford, Pennsylvania, was a crucial hub for experiencing and learning about Quaker spirituality. As soon as I discovered it, I began signing up for weekend workshops and an occasional five‐day course. Pendle Hill had a policy of matching any scholarship given by meetings, which made their programs affordable to me. I lived near enough to attend the free lectures and enroll in some resident student classes. I loved the daily morning meetings for worship; lasting just 30 minutes, they often had a charged, holy quality that was rare at the Quaker meeting I attended on Sunday mornings. I learned experientially that a meeting for worship can be about something even more powerful and transforming than the quiet centering, wise spoken messages, and loving community I experienced on Sunday mornings.
At its creation, Pendle Hill borrowed from the Benedictine monastic model to create a rhythm of community life conducive to a deeper immersion in the experience of God and supportive of those called to live in a radically faithful way. In addition to the morning meeting for worship, the resident community of staff and students also shared a rhythm of shared work, study, and leisure. Pendle Hill was created, in part, to allow those called to some form of spiritual nurture or teaching ministry to deeply explore their spiritual life and Quaker faith. It was also created to provide preparation and spiritual renewal for those called to lives of service or social action. Those who came as resident students for one or more ten‐week terms ranged in age from 18 to 85. Their experience was often life altering.
In 2005, I enrolled for two terms as a resident student. Later I returned to serve for four years as the resident Quaker studies teacher. At Pendle Hill, I witnessed how community can encourage deep acquaintance with the presence of God and with divine guidance. A community can also support its members in making faithful lifestyle choices that are different from the culture, offering encouragement to take risks and step out in faith.
For me and for many others, the way of life there inspired efforts to create spiritual community elsewhere. Before living at Pendle Hill, I spent a year in a group house in the Endless Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania with two other women, recent Pendle Hill staff members called to write books. The three of us gathered for a half‐hour meeting for worship each morning, and then we went to our separate rooms to write. We shared some of the cooking and household chores. A small insurance settlement from a car accident provided enough money for me to write for a year without paid employment; my housemates each took local part‐time work. On Sunday mornings, we gathered with two others who had recently lived at Pendle Hill. An hour‐long meeting for worship was followed by a time of spiritual sharing and reflection, then brunch. We were joined occasionally by Friends who came to partake of the community experience and the fresh country air.
Evergreen Worship Group in 2015. © Miyo Moriuchi.
Years later, I participated in another effort to create daily community rhythms of spiritual practice. In the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, five Quakers lived on a street called Evergreen Avenue. We often shared meals in each others' homes, had occasional meetings for worship in a backyard or living room, stood together in peace vigils, and participated together on committees. After Laura Melly bought a house on the street, with the intention to foster spiritual community, we began to hold daily weekday morning meetings for worship. A half hour of worship was followed either by a half hour of study of scripture or other readings, or else half an hour of spiritual sharing and prayer requests. We called ourselves the Evergreens and took turns meeting in each others' houses. Soon we were joined by Friends from other streets and neighborhoods, and also by neighbors who were not Quaker. Eventually a large community formed, out of which a group of three to ten people—on average—might meet for worship each morning. Those whose work schedules made it difficult to participate in the morning began to hold an evening meeting for worship one day each week, followed by a potluck dinner. The community held special events to celebrate holidays and birthdays; helped meet each other's practical life needs; prayed for each other; and came out in support of one another's ministries, creative projects, and witness. Several peer groups were formed to meet on a regular basis for mutual spiritual support and accountability. Some participants moved away, but other people joined. More than a decade later, the Evergreens are still meeting regularly.
A few years ago, I married Terry Hauger, a retired social worker. In order for me to continue to follow my leadings, we needed to find an economical way to live. We were led to buy a duplex on the edge of Chester, a city southwest of Philadelphia. We live in a multiracial neighborhood near a beautiful park and midway between some leafy, affluent suburbs and the struggling inner city of Chester. Our house is a 12 minute drive from Pendle Hill, and the same distance from Swarthmore (Pa.) Meeting.
There are several Quaker households in our neighborhood. After the recent presidential election, a multiracial community group was formed of local Quakers and other neighbors concerned about caring for the least advantaged in our society. The group has focused its efforts on supporting refugees who are being settled in Chester. In addition, some local Quakers, from both Chester and Swarthmore, have been holding a monthly meeting for prayer and healing at Chester Meeting. When I see houses for sale on my street, I dream of community forming here, a community of Friends sharing one another's inner lives and practical needs, and engaging together in the community, in spiritual nurture, and in social action. If those who live in more affluent neighborhoods sold their homes and bought a house on our street, they could free up hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in their real estate.
My dream is not only for my own community but a vision of faithful communities blossoming all over the world. Wherever Friends live, if we seek communal ways to support and release each other, we can free up time, money, and resources for greater faithfulness, service, witness, social action, and ministry. We can learn to know and support each other more intimately and become more radical in dedicating ourselves to God's work of healing and transforming the world.
Marcelle Martin, a member of Swarthmore (Pa.) Meeting, is the author of Our Life is Love: the Quaker Spiritual Journey. She leads workshops at retreat centers and Quaker meetings. Currently she is the core teacher for the Nurturing Worship, Faith & Faithfulness program at the Woolman Hill Quaker retreat center in Deerfield, Mass. Visit her website at awholeheart.com.
This is one of the most inspiring FJ articles I've ever read. Friend Marcelle has managed to speak to my condition while reflecting on her own experiences in a lovingly written piece.
The balance between looking back at what worked and looking forward with prophetic eyes as she lives into her calling towards a faithful service has offered me a glimpse at the beloved kin‐dom we have been building as Friends for so long. I'm grateful for Marcelle's personal reflections and parts of her story shared so that others may join the conversation.
The call to live faithfully and forward has helped me reframe the fear that, as a Millennial, I will never be able to consider home ownership or a place to offer steady hospitality. Thinking about how to offer steady and faithful hospitality within the act of living this faithful spirituality is not something I would have come up with on my own. Considering other avenues, opening myself up to discern the workings of Spirit, and voicing my needs to my community to hear if others are on the same page with the same needs are all things I would not consider. Thank you for modeling those actions in your life and work, Marcelle. | ‐income neighborhoods. Dividing up the | 8 |
This Chili Garlic Beef recipe is my new favorite weeknight dinner recipe! I get asked MOST frequently about easy weeknight dinners. People are looking for easy, delicious dinners that<|fim_middle|> vinegar, brown sugar, and chili garlic sauce. Combine with thinly sliced cucumbers and onion. Let sit for at least 15 minutes.
Prepare the thickener: Mix the 1 tbsp of cornstarch with the 1 tbsp of water. Add to the pot. Use the sauté feature and let it come to a simmer for approx. 3 minutes.
Serve with cooked rice or noodles, and garnish with scallions and sesame seeds.
To make in your slow cooker: Prepare seasoning and cooking sauce as stated. Brown the beef on HIGH and place in the slow cooker. Pour cooking sauce over the top and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours or high heat for 3-4 hours*.
Cook temperatures for slow cookers vary so check at the minimum time and adjust as necessary.
If you want to check out the Instant Pot. | require very little effort and minimal planning. Sounds perfect right?!
I think we all appreciate an easy meal that the whole family will enjoy and this Chili Garlic Beef Recipe doesn't disappoint.
If you frequently save dinner prep for the last possible minute or you get home late most nights, I would suggest looking into an Instant Pot, an electric pressure cooker. I wasn't initially sold but when you can create a meal like this or my Chicken Tacos al Pastor, you can't really go wrong. I have always loved my slow cooker but if we are going to be real, I often forget to start it in the morning or happen to be missing an important component thus ruining dinner plans. That's a non-issue with my Instant Pot.
Don't worry though; if you aren't quite ready for an instant pot, I have included slow cooker instructions as well.
This chili garlic beef was adapted from a recipe that came with the Instant pot but I have adjusted it for ingredients you most likely already have on hand. It has the Asian flavors of you favorite takeout but uses much cleaner ingredients and results in tender, fall-apart, beef served over rice (or noodles) with some steamed broccoli. Easy enough.
Easy weeknight meal: Tender, Flavorful, Asian Chili Garlic Beef made in the instant pot, served with rice and steamed vegetables.
Prepare the seasoning mixture: Combine the cayenne pepper, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, and garlic powder in a small bowl. Toss with the cut chuck roast.
Prepare the cooking sauce: Whisk together the soy sauce, water, brown sugar, grated ginger and garlic, chili garlic sauce, and rice vinegar till the brown sugar is fully dissolved.
Brown the seasoned beef in the avocado oil and sesame oil using this 'sauté' feature. You just want them to get a little color; approx. 5 minutes total. Work in batched to not overcrowd the pot. Set the already browned beef aside.
Add the beef back to the pot and pour the cooking sauce over the top.
Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes. Do a quick release.
If preparing quick pickled cucumbers and onions: Stir together the rice | 444 |
The indie rock band Monks of Mellonwah is slowly rolling out their new full-length album Turn The People.
In a unique twist, the Sydney Australian quartet is releasing the<|fim_middle|> | album in three parts. The first EP was "Ghost Stories" (June 29), while their new EP is an advance release for the second EP, "Afraid To Die" (October 4). Their third installment is due for release December 2013.
Signing a development deal with A&R Worldwide (home to bands Muse and Coldplay), The Monks have garnered international praise, winning 'Best International Rock Band' at the LA Music Awards and AIM Music Awards in 2012. This year the band toured nationally and played Singapore's Music Matters Festival.
With apparent influences by classic rock artists like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, The Monks of Mellonwah are equally comparable to artists like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Muse, John Frusciante, Incubus and The Black Keys.
The Monks of Mellonwah prove to be true artists as they experiment with new sounds ranging from rock, electronic and pop influences, all the while always offering emotionally alluring lyrics and stellar vocals.
Their newly released EP "Afraid to Die" offers a fascinating experience of Indie Alternative Progressive Rock as each song carries its own distinctly fresh sound.
The song "Afraid to Die," off the EP with the same title, is a super catchy song that instantly makes listeners feel like they are listening to a soundtrack made for a blockbuster action film.
Band Member Joseph de la Hoyde deserves high praise for the powerful production, engineering and mixing of this head bobbing song. The vocal by lead singer Vikram Kaushik perfectly showcases his dynamic range, powerful vibrato and exceptional delivery of the lyrics.
"Alive For A Minute" leans more toward a pop rock song with the musical production establishing a mysteriously haunting vibe. Once again, Vikram reveals his incredible vocal talent as he sings about a tumultuous relationship.
The Monks of Mellonwah's experimentation with new sounds and consistent delivery of catchy songs will continue to garner them a growing fan base. | 400 |
⇑ back to "Health"
Consider Your Ways
10:51AM EDT 4/29/2020 Christine D. Johnson
(Getty Images/istock-Iopba)
When the Holy Spirit moves in Ginny Marshall-Frye's life, He alerts her through her physical senses. This can happen while running errands, shopping in a store or at work, so just about anywhere. That's how she knows God has assigned her to minister to or to pray with someone in need.
"Sometimes God will just show me to go talk to somebody," she says. "I was driving home from work one day, and I got this surge of energy going down my right leg. I saw this guy on the road, and I looked at him and said, 'God, he looks really sad.' And then I felt this surge of energy go through my leg, and I said, 'OK, God, you must want me to go talk to him.' And so I turned around, and I looked for him. I was a little apprehensive because he looked a little scruffy. I stayed in my car, and God didn't give me any words to say to him, but I rolled down the window and said, 'Well, hi. You must be pretty special because God showed me to come talk to you. Are you doing okay?' And he said, 'Well, you know what? I've gone through a lot of stuff over the last month. I lost my mom. I had cancer. I dealt with this, but I love God with all my heart.' I just said, 'Well, can I say a prayer?' And he almost started crying, and I prayed with him. And he said, 'You don't know how much this has blessed me because I was really down today.'"
Something similar has happened to her in grocery stores.
"I'll just get a sense like I'm supposed to say something to somebody, and sometimes it's like, 'Oh, Lord, I don't want to go talk right now. I've got to get back to work' or whatever, but it's a blessing when you can bless somebody else. I would like to talk to more people. I would like more opportunities to share what I've learned about who God is and encourage people to to be all they can be for God."
Healed and Whole
Marshall-Frye also has prayed for others in need of healing and seen positive results. She prayed for a friend who was about to have neck surgery. Afterward, "she texted me and said, 'My doctor cut my surgery by four hours because my neck was completely straight,'" she says. "I prayed for her right before her surgery. God gets the glory, but I know that's a gift God's given me."
Marshall-Frye's day job is in a cardiology practice where she puts patients through the paces in diagnostic testing. On occasion, God leads her to pray with a patient. One time while at a Youth With a Mission event a year after doing so, she discovered that God had healed the woman on the spot at the cardiology practice.
"I was talking to the young kids about getting out of their comfort zone and speaking when God tells them to do something," she says. "This young girl came up to me and said, 'You prayed for me at the doctor's office last year, and I got completely healed,' and I didn't even know that happened. I was so glad that I spoke up and said something because I didn't know that. She came in as a patient, I felt the anointing, and I started asking her questions. I ended up finding out she was a believer, and she was dealing with some health issues, so I just took it upon myself and prayed for her there because I thought the Holy Spirit was showing me to do that. And I found out a year later that she got healed."
The two went up to the platform at the YWAM event and testified of what God had done as she prayed for her patient even when she felt out of her comfort zone. She was able to point the young people to a real living example of what God can do when you obey even when it's uncomfortable.
God continues to open up opportunities for Marshall-Frye to use her call to share the gospel and lift the burdens of people in need. This may be in her church or at work, in a healing room or homeless camp, in the county jail where she served as a chaplain or in the street ministry she started.
Saved and Surrendered
Marshall-Frye is a Spirit-led believer who knows the importance of not being so busy with life's demands that she cannot be tuned in to God's leading and be able to respond at a moment's notice. Her heart is to follow in the footsteps of her Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Saved at age 12 at a Nicky Cruz crusade, she realized later in life that she needed to give her all to the Lord.
"I really hadn't given my life completely over to God," she says. "You can have Jesus as your Savior, but is He Lord of your life? I had not completely surrendered, and surrender is totally a process. It's like a full-circle thing because I got saved at a Nicky Cruz crusade, and I thought it was kind of cool that God birthed in me a street ministry. When I went up, when I made that commitment, I thought, This man can change from a heroin addict to somebody going around talking about Jesus Christ. That's the kind of God I want to serve. And so it just spoke to me so dramatically at such a young age."
Later, in her early 30s, she fully committed her life to Christ. Now, she says, she's gone through a "spiritual evolution." God woke her up "to get me out of myself," she says. That came with a powerful altar-call prayer that broke off problems, including depression, in her bloodline.
Marshall-Frye wrote about her spiritual journey in Going for a Ride: A Journey to Your Heart's Calling (going4aride.com). In the book, she tells how she found her true purpose in life and felt an irresistible call to step into her destiny.
In this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, she believes it's time for a reevaluation for every believer on life's journey.
"As time goes on and our relationship grows deeper with the Lord, it changes us and it changes our thinking processes," she says. "It changes how we may view life. And so I really believe, especially in this time and season, the true call is for people to wake up, as far as what is going on in our world, what is going on in our society. What is God's purpose for people to do and to act and to be like?
"We are so bombarded with how the world says we're supposed to live our life. To be in the world but not of it takes a real discipline, to look at what God is saying, who God is saying I am, not who the world says I am, and that we can be life-givers. We can help people in this time because those who don't have God's mind or heart or Spirit are probably walking in fear and need hope."
She is calling believers to more fully follow the Holy Spirit.
"I try to encourage others to especially be open to the Holy Spirit because I think sometimes people can have a dry walk if they're not filled," she says.
She says the church must be open to the Spirit to influence society.
"To be impactful,<|fim_middle|> really changed me," she says. "I always had a love for animals, but not like I do now. I learned to care for those that don't have a voice for themselves, the animals. It was a very rewarding experience. The rescue I was involved in took animals that most likely would be euthanized, and we saved their lives. Many of them were misfits or came from hoarding situations or shelters that euthanized their animals if they were sick, pregnant or not getting adopted."
She cautions that the way we think about pets and other animals "can transfer to humans as well." After watching some documentaries, she took a big step out of her newfound convictions.
"I made the choice to become a vegetarian and speak up for those who don't have a voice, the animals," she says. "I began rethinking why I lived the way I did and changed how I lived my life. I woke up and saw different needs while working at the shelter, and it expanded my heart."
"Many people believe animals were made for us, but God said we were to steward creation and take care of the animals. He said in His Word that a good man cares for the needs of his animals [see Prov. 12:10]. In fact, there are many instances in the Bible where God used animals, including Baalam and the donkey, Jonah and the whale, Daniel and the lion's den. It's about caring for all those who have breath and life!"
Beyond caring for others, including animals, she's taking seriously God's original intention in the garden to take care of creation.
"Look how we have destroyed our planet," she says. "One of the benefits of this pandemic is reduced pollution. I was just reading there has been a 30% reduction in pollution from the start of the lockdowns. This isn't to diminish the lives that have been lost, but it has changed our planet for the good with the lockdowns. It has caused our planet to slow down and renew itself."
Overall, she says she has learned that the simple things "give our lives fullness and meaning!" That includes serving humanity and stewarding creation. She sees this time prophetically when "we are at a pinnacle of society, and this virus is a wake-up call to slow down and get back to the basics, what is truly important to us."
Although she thinks it's important to stay informed about what's happening in the world, she doesn't want the news from overseas or her own community to consume her.
"I've just said, no, I have to trust that God sees everything that is happening in the world and look at it through the eyes of what I feel in my heart and my spirit," she says. "I also think it's a time for people to repent and really go, 'OK, God, where am I falling short? Do I need to make different decisions with my time? Do I need to spend more time with my family and those I love? Hopefully, it will bring people to a place of a decision if they haven't made a decision for Christ. What does it really mean to make a decision for Christ? Is He your Savior and your Lord? Who is Christ, and what are His ways? What about people's souls and where are they spiritually? Your neighbors, your friends, your loved ones?"
As a "people person," Marshall-Frye hopes that social distancing soon will be a thing of the past. She's ready to get back to her ministry in the healing room of Bellingham, Washington. In the meantime, she continues to look for balance in her life. Rather than being busy all the time, she looks to sense where and how the Spirit is leading.
She also takes responsibility for her health so God can use her for many years to come.
"We have to be healthy—body, mind, soul, spirit," she says. "I've heard people say, 'Well, God's going to help me.' And I'm like, 'Well, of course, God's going to help you, but you've got to help yourself too.' I've got my master's degree in exercise physiology with an emphasis in cardiology. I work in the cardiology field, but my minor was in health education, so I've always been interested in healthy kinds of things."
She wants believers to stop merely "going and doing" and being caught up in their own lives.
"Part of being believers is standing up for righteousness, standing up for holiness," she says. "We first have to take care of ourselves. How can we help others if we don't even know the God that we serve and know what His heart and His mind is about things? So I think it's about waking up to what's really happening in our world and waking up to what our true purposes are on earth at this moment in time."
Christine D. Johnson is an editor at Charisma Media and podcast host of Charisma Connection.
Fasting for Breakthrough
Scriptures for Faith, Deliverance and Healing | we need to let the Holy Spirit come and have His way," she says. "Why did Jesus say to wait and tarry till the Holy Spirit comes? Because the power will come from on high. They had to wait for what the Holy Spirit was trying to show them, what to do next, how to be."
Rest and Reevaluate
During this time of protecting one's self from COVID-19, we must understand that God is in control.
"God is sovereign, and He allows things to happen," she says. "Our whole world system has shut down. We need to leave our routines and learn from this. We need to ask God, 'What are you trying to do here? What's the purpose? What are we supposed to learn?' As we are forced to slow down, we must ask ourselves, "Has this caused me to be more aware and awake? What can I change in my life moving forward? Is this a purposeful pause?'"
She believes it's time to leave our routines and ask, "OK, God, what are you trying to do here? What's the purpose? What am I supposed to learn from this?"
She has done the same thing in her life even to the point of asking some significant questions: "Do I believe in that? Is that what I believe is truth? Do I do it just because everybody else does it, or am I doing it because that's what I've been told to do?"
During this season, Marshall-Frye has been focused on three things.
"I've been praying a lot more than I have in the past. I also have been getting outside a lot more. I've been gardening a lot more, so I've been focusing on God's purpose for me right now in this time. By being more introspective, I've been a lot more reflective about things, like what's important to me. What do I value? How has the busyness of life tended to maybe take time away from the simpler things in life?"
She has been looking to help others, not only spiritually but also practically.
"That's what I've been doing, really looking at ways I can grow from this time and season instead of being fearful, and being wise about what I'm spending my time doing and how I'm expending my energy."
She has been resting and reevaluating the way she lives her life.
Care and Conviction
Her concern for practical needs doesn't stop with humanity. She also has a love for the rest of God's creation that only grew as she volunteered with an animal rescue group.
"It | 527 |
Are you planning to start your own social forum or want to convert your existing blog into a Social Community website? BuddyPress is one such WordPress plugin which allows you to add certain features to the website and convert it into a community site.
If you are looking to start a fresh website, then it is ideal to go for a hosting which is optimized for BuddyPress. This article is written with a similar purpose, we will give you all the information about BuddyPress hosting plans so that you can opt for the best.
How do we come up with the list of Best BuddyPress Hosting?
If you have been reading our articles, you would know that we follow a strict PICK-SIGN UP-TEST-RANK system to rate the top BuddyPress hosting providers. The information we provide is based on the data we receive through this process. This is a foolproof method as we will be sharing reviews based on our personal experience.
How does ProQuotient Review and Rank Website Hosting Services?
After researching for days and putting up each of them on a test, here is the list of some of the best web hosting providers in India.
BuddyPress is a Free WordPress plugin which allows website owners to convert their websites into a social community website using WordPress. This has been popular since the launch and has garnered more than 2,00,000+ active installs. It provides a host of features which enables you to create a community type environment for your blog/ website.
Before we explore more on the features let us look into some of the important factors you must consider when choosing to host for BuddyPress.
As you would know, social community users need everything fast. The attention span of users is at an all-time low, in the case of community websites, it is the lowest. People end up 'infinite scrolling' on most social media networks. What happens when the images/ videos don't load when they scroll on the website? They will try loading and it again and then finally abandon the website.
For this exact reason, you may have to fast and high performing hosting plan/hosting provider that offers customized hosting for BuddyPress. While doing so, ensure the server you're opting for is powerful enough for the website being hosted. It has to serve the content instantly so that there is no wait time for the users. For this to happen, you will have to pay close attention to three things in the server: Disk Space, Bandwidth, and RAM.
The requirements depend on the traffic you receive. It is ideal to buy a plan which is suitable for additional traffic of at least 10-20% from you what you currently receive. Make it a practice to perform monthly audits and ensure the website loads quickly.
How often have you seen Facebook or Twitter going down? There have been only a couple of instances when these social media giants went offline for a few minutes. What followed was absolute chaos and outrage. So, what does this mean to you?
Social community/forum users do not like it when the website faces any sort of sudden uninformed outage. This is why you have to ensure that your website doesn't face any sort of downtime. While it is natural to face downtimes due to various reasons, employ a mechanism to get it fixed as soon as possible. Do not go with hosting providers who have low uptime metrics. This table will help you make a better choice.
It also depends on the load on the server, if you are hosting on a shared server, and then be prepared to face frequent downtimes. There can be instances wherein the server fails due to the increase in load on other websites in the server. Which is why, it is advised to go for either VPS, Cloud or Dedicated BuddyPress hosting plans.
Check with the hosting provider on the assistance they provide in case of an outage. Do not just go by the promise of 100% uptime, there is nothing like that. Check the uptime of the server using the freely available online tools. Anything above 99.5% is decent and 99.9% is Ideal. These are something things you'll have to consider when you check for uptime.
Cyber threats are on the rise and no website is safe. Even well-known websites have been prey to hackers in spite of the highest level of security measures. This is because hackers see the value of data the websites possess. Social forums need the highest level of security because you would be storing all the sensitive data in the server.
Firewall: This acts as the gatekeeper of the server. You can block or restrict access to the server and customize it based on the need. This acts as an extra layer of security and makes the server less vulnerable.
Private Networks: When you want to restrict the usage of the server to a particular user group, you can make use of private networks. This avoids instances of access by unauthorized users. However, the server would still be vulnerable as the group of users has access to it. To avoid such a situation, it is important to set some security measures for their usage of the server.
SSL Encryption: This is an extra security layer between the website and the web user. A lot of data is exchanged between the website and the reader. SSL ensures that all of this is encrypted so that the data is completely secure. In fact, Google has said that websites with HTTPS (SSL encryption) will have positive SEO benefits. Here is an informative article by Neil Patel titled – Do SSL Certificates Affect Search Rankings?
Server Auditing: The above-mentioned security measures are primarily software related. Server auditing is an administrative task which ensures that the server is in good health. Ensure that the hosting provider undertakes frequent<|fim_middle|> be Ideal. Based on the information we have provided, understand what would be the requirement of your social media website. The choice is ultimately yours and we do not want to make a decision for you.
However, we strongly advise you to stay away from the like of shared hosting and cheap hosting in this specific case. If you are not willing to put in the money, then building a social media website is probably not your cup of tea.
ProQuotient is available to help you out. Should you have any queries, please write to us or contact us. | server auditing. This helps in identifying possible hacking attempts and strengthening the security further.
Installation and Set up: BuddyPress installation is simple and easy. The plugin is freely available for download on WordPress. Just click the install button and you will have the plugin on your WordPress dashboard. As you are looking to build a social media website, you would need BBpress, which is a WordPress plugin that can be integrated into BuddyPress like a charm. With the help of these plugins, you can easily convert your existing blog to a social networking website.
Features offered: BuddyPress offers a host of features. Users can create custom profiles and also change the privacy settings of the profile. Easily allow users to create groups and micro groups, thus fostering a community environment. BuddyPress also gives provision to add other users as friends and take networking beyond groups. You can easily add different types of forums using BuddyPress. Add internal messaging so that users can communicate with ease.
BuddyPress supports third-party extensions as well, thus making it easy for website owners to add more functionalities as per their requirement. As this is used by many users, 600+ plugins work perfectly along with BuddyPress. Keep the users informed about their friends with an updated activity stream.
Support: BuddyPress has a vibrant user community. The forum is active and has discussions on most of the issues. While they do not have a separate support team, BuddyPress users can find a solution to most of the issues on forums. As the software is free, the user community is large and people aren't shy about helping each other.
Knowledgebase: Let's face it! Opening a social media platform is no joke. You will have to set up and implement all the features to fully realize the potential of BuddyPress. This is not possible if there is no comprehensive set up documentation. Fortunately, BuddyPress has a good and golden collection of guides which will come in handy for first-time users. In case you cannot find specific information, you can pose it as a request in the forum.
Pricing: The plugin is completely FREE and doesn't come with any hidden pricing. However, you may have to pay for third-party applications which integrate with BuddyPress. This may be required if you are looking for additional features.
Do you need a specific Theme for BuddyPress?
Most of the WordPress themes can be used for BuddyPress. Having said that, it is also very important to get the look and feel of the website right. Go for themes that are specifically made for social media websites. Such themes will surely blend well with BuddyPress.
BuddyPress Hosting – Which Hosting Provider Should You Choose?
There is no second thought that BuddyPress is a powerful plugin that can help you build a feature-rich social forum website. A Facebook or a Twitter should not stop you from building your own social media network because there is always a space for niche based social media networks.
It is important that you choose the right BuddyPress hosting because 'any other' hosting may not | 604 |
Astus' Frances Dickens barters down under
Written by Hannah Prevett, Emilie Sandy on Tuesday, 03 February 2015. Posted in Big business, Interviews
When Frances Dickens co-founded Astus in 2003, it was a tall order persuading the media world that the barter business needn't be confusing nor murky. She's now doing the same Down Under as the company takes its wares to the world
As barter company Astus geared itself up for expansion to Australia in 2011, it became apparent that one of the senior management team would need to relocate in the short term. That duty fell to co-founder Frances Dickens. "The trouble with barter is you can't pick it up quickly," she says. "We didn't have anybody in the UK office who didn't have young kids and who had the level of experience to go out there and open it up."
She's right that media barter certainly has its complexities. Put simply, the process means companies can pay for media campaigns (in newspapers, magazines etc) partly in cash and partly in their own products or services. So a car manufacturer may pay 80% in cash but the rest in cars. These products will then be sold on to corporate clients. The media owners are happy because they get new advertisers or additional media spend, while the company has saved itself some cash. Everyone<|fim_middle|> in to try and do Astus."
Still, it was difficult to make ends meet. "I took an enormous pay cut; it was very tough. I hadn't juggled money like that since I was a teenager," she exclaims. By this point, son Jack was in a prep school and fees needed to be paid. "Luckily, my husband was working so he took on the lion's share of paying for everything. It was very tight."
The company grew quickly. In month three, it signed its first big client: Mercedes. In year two, it doubled revenues to £12m. In year three, it doubled them again to £22m. Dickens says the secret to their success is the company's ethics. "We drew up a charter about how we would conduct ourselves as a company both externally and internally. This included things such as we'd not sign a client without their agency knowing about it. We won't sign a deal we can't deliver. And one of my personal bugbears was when companies spend so much on entertaining and then people don't bother to show up; it used to really annoy me. So one of the things I put on there was, 'if you're invited to something and you accept it, you will go'".
When she overheard one of her employees (who no longer works for Astus) saying he wasn't going to attend a hospitality day clay pigeon shooting the next day, she went in his place. "I was stood there in the car park in my jeans and Timberlands and there's all these guys with all the gear and their guns and I'm thinking, 'Oh for God's sake'. But I bloody loved it." And so began her love affair with clay pigeon shooting – which has since come to replace horse riding as her hobby of choice. "I'm just too broken to risk falling off," Dickens explains.
It's just as well she has plenty to keep her occupied at the office then. One current challenge is trying to find new office space for Astus's 32 UK-based staff. To upsize within Victoria, London, where they currently are, they're looking at rent and rates amounting to £500,000 a year. "It's mad money." But she's reluctant to uproot the team. "I don't want to move and find we lose members of the team because their journey becomes a pain in the backside. It's a real dilemma – and a time-consuming one at that," she adds.
She has the company's ever-expanding global portfolio of clients to attend to, too. Astus is beginning to pick up more custom in Asia and, although it now has staff in Singapore and Shanghai, Dickens still travels to the area regularly to check things are progressing nicely. She also has a couple of lengthy trips to Australia a year.
But nowadays she no longer travels solo. "John comes with me. Having had that year apart, I just said: 'that's it.' We have to pay for his flights ourselves, which makes it quite expensive, but he loves all the places I go and it just makes it a bit nicer." It also means she doesn't rush back. "We're about to go to Australia for a month: I'll work three weeks of that and have a week off in the middle. To be honest, if John wasn't travelling with me, I'd probably have wanted to come back after two weeks."
John isn't the only man in her life. There's son Jack, who has just scored a place at the University of Cambridge. And let's not forget Jackson. Dickens says the best decision she ever made was going into business with him. "He does the numbers, I do the words. We actually fit really well. I love him to bits; he's my best mate." That's not to say they don't drive one another to distraction sometimes. "In the early days, we'd go out in the street to shout at each other because we didn't have a boardroom to start with," she smiles. "I'm not very good a sulking though so it doesn't last very long. I do remember getting annoyed at him about something and we had to go and do a big presentation at Sky. We were walking down there and I wasn't speaking to him. He said: 'You're sulking but I know you – you'll have forgotten you're sulking by the time we get to Sky.' He was right."
Hannah Prevett
Prevett likes to think she's something of an expert when it comes to small business. Having cut her teeth writing about tech, she latterly moved on to such illustrious titles as Growing Business, Management Today and the Sunday Times to indulge her enthusiasm for entrepreneurship: from P&Ls to private equity and all that's in between, you can't keep this girl away from the heady world of start-ups.
Back in the day when she had spare time, she would spend it networking, horse riding, drafting and re-drafting ideas for novels, and playing auntie to her niece and three god-children. Those were the days...
Emilie Sandy
Aside from dashing between the Cotswolds and London to shoot business types for magazines such as EB and TV stars for the Beeb, Sandy is also a visiting lecturer at a college in Stroud – not to mention a proud mother to son Freddie and daughter Fjola. She has photographed our cover stars since our very first edition. You know what they say – if it ain't broke...
http://emiliesandy.com | is a winner.
Because it can be a tricky business to explain to new customers, Astus needed a safe pair of hands to spearhead its Australian expansion. In February 2011, Dickens located to Sydney for a year. It's a common misconception that there won't be substantive differences in a new market just because it happens to be English-speaking, she explains. "We learned from doing Ireland it's still a big change from running a successful company somewhere people know how it works versus breaking into a market that's still suspicious and difficult. It means using the old skills that probably only three of our current management team have got – me, my co-founder 'Jacko' [Paul Jackson] and David Jones, our UK MD."
Eight years after she and Jackson had started the business, she was starting again. "It was really good going back to scratch and doing all the stuff I like doing and doing the presentations for the agencies and clients," she says. "I worked like an absolute fiend. I was in the office at 7 o'clock in the morning and I left there at 7 o'clock at night when I'd go to my apartment and keep on working."
There was a method in her madness. "I was working constantly – which probably wasn't very good health-wise – but I got so much done so quickly because I just wanted to get home. I missed my family horribly." Dickens had had to leave husband John and son Jack, now 18, behind in Blighty. "I hope I don't have to do it again," she adds.
The career that has now taken her to the other side of the planet wasn't on the cards when she was a youngster. Having harboured dreams of being a three-day event horse rider, she fell into a sales job after leaving school. "I was an absolute disaster in my O-levels; I only passed three. School bored the hell out of me. I was much more interested in learning how to make money and going out and riding horses than actually sitting in lessons."
She then took a job in life insurance, where she did surprisingly well. "I'm sure it's much more respectable now but then it was really like the Wild West. I did really well by telling the truth – which was quite an unusual thing for people selling life insurance then." After a brief stint working alongside James Caan at his newly formed recruitment firm Alexander Mann, Dickens began a career in the outdoor advertising industry – which eventually led her into the world of media barter.
"I went to work for a big American barter company, which was probably not a smart move. I should have done a lot more research than I did because if I had I wouldn't have taken the job," laughs Dickens. Before the headhunter had approached her about the role, Dickens had not even heard of barter. "I thought it sounded interesting and quite entrepreneurial."
Yet within a month, she was beginning to wonder if she'd been handed a poisoned chalice. The saving grace was a relationship she'd begun to form with her colleague and now business partner Jackson. In two years they managed to bolster media placements £4m to £43m in a year.
But while she and Jackson worked hard to restore the reputation of media barter in the UK, the same couldn't be said of her colleagues. "They over-promised and under-delivered. They got commission on the products so they didn't care if they could deliver [the returns for the client] or not." Dickens began considering a new 'delivery-first' model – which meant clients would get their media first, then would owe the barter company product – thereby boosting the service the customer received. "Paul and I just thought, 'we can do this differently,'" she recalls.
Before deciding to go it alone, she initially pitched her idea to her employer. "There was a two-day bank holiday in June and I spent that time in New York, including seven hours in a bloody meeting in a room with no windows, trying to convince the Americans to change their model to go delivery-first," says Dickens. When they said no, she and Jackson decided to forge ahead.
First things first, they needed capital. This was no mean feat in the barter industry. "It took us ages to get the funding; me and Jacko hiked around everywhere. The biggest problem was getting venture capitalists to understand what we did. The most disheartening day was when we presented to this guy and we thought he got it. At the end he said, 'I haven't got a clue but if so-and-so gives you £150,000, I'll give you £150,000 too.' We didn't want money that way: we wanted somebody who really got it."
Eventually, they managed to find a private investor who ploughed £300,000 into Astus. With Frances' and Jackson's contribution and investment from each of the remaining six founding team members, that brought the total kitty to £640,000. It eventually transpired that they didn't need the safety net – the business generated £6m in revenue in the first year and £3,000 in profit. But Dickens has no regrets: "I don't think for a minute we would have been nearly as successful if we hadn't done that. Working in a start-up is tough; you have to work really hard. If you haven't got a piece of skin in the game I don't think you ever work in quite the same way as if you have. Even now we have a good share option scheme so everybody has got a piece of the company, no matter how small."
Little by little, Dickens and Jackson set about changing the perception of the barter industry. "We'd started the process of cleaning it up during our time at [the American company]. We had agencies that trusted us and media owners that saw that we were delivering so it wasn't as much of a leap as if we'd just gone straight | 1,238 |
Discussion in 'Digital Photography' started by Nazmi Gabriel, Jul 2, 2011.
can I use Extender EF 1.4X III with EF 16-35 and 24-70mm ?? I know I can use it with 70-200mm lens, but not sure about the others.
Is the 24-70mm lens range within the 24-105mm, or is it totally a different entity lens.
You can<|fim_middle|> but came before and I don't use it so often to replace it. My other lens violating the rule is 500/f4. The Sigma-Bazooka mentioned before is out of reach.
venues, travel and all day round plus landscape.
It's hard to achieve most of my personal activities with one lens, and I hate changing lenses, but beggars can't be choosers, what do you suggest!
Don't forget the 70-200/f4 with stabilization. Top quality lens, and probably the best bargain in the whole Canon lens line-up. | find used copies of the original Sigma 12-24 HSM for cheap now, as there is a new "II" version.
That 24-70 is going to cover the same range as your 24-105. You want to get the other two lenses, as they cover very different focal ranges. If I were you, I'd see if I could ditch the 24-105 and get all three of the lenses you mention, since that's a near perfect coverage of the relevant focal lengths.
The 1.4x will not work on any zoom lens with a focal range that's smaller than the 70-200. It will also not work on any fixed focal length lens smaller than 135mm.
I'd also invest in some books and classes on photography if you haven't already. Having that kind of glass around and not knowing how to use it would be unfortunate.
The largest difference between them is the aperture, 24-70 is one stop brighter and can freeze action better. 24-105 however has IS which helps with non-moving subjects in low light.
If the question was really about if the 24-70 focal length falls within 24-105 then I suggest you read up more about the technicalities about lenses. A lot more.
But seriously, you haven't said what you will use these lenses for. Why do you need 2 new lenses? You run the entire gamut from (ultra)wide to telephoto. The only reason I see that these are all that much different than your current lens is an extra stop. Do you need that extra light? If you do, you do. What do you shoot? Portraits? Landscapes? Fast moving sports? Bright sunlight? Dimly lit gyms? What body do you have? Full-frame or crop?
Until you let us know these, we can't really help. Until then, my vote stays with the 800mm.
While most everyone would giggle in delight with a 70-200 2.8, you should describe what you like to shoot. Are you ok with heavy lenses? And perhaps what camera you use.
EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM and the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM with the 1.4 extender and keep the 24-105. But that's my 2c.
The 24-70 is better than the 24-105... the IS you loose is gained by the stop in aperture. Of course it's my own opinion as a full time commercial photographer.
The 70-200 II is rivaled by no other lens imo. It's amazingly sharp. It's the lens that get's used the most amongst my three lenses at the moment.
I was actually looking to expand my kit myself, and was looking at the 16-35. However the only reason I would ever buy this is if I had to do interiors... and even then I would probably rent it.
If I wanted to own a wide lens I would probably go for the Carl Zeiss 21mm 2.8 (scenery and people) or the Canon 24 T-Se lens (architecture and interior), which should be amazing in sharpness and lack of distortion.
An alternative if I was shooting nature would be the 17-40mm which is far cheaper than the 16-35 and delivers a more than decent result for scenery shots. Also the 17-40 has less flare than the 16-35 and less fall off in the corners.
and maybe buy the extender to boost your 70-200. Supposedly even with the extender it's pretty sharp.
the same set I have in my collection ... in case of 70-200 the previous version; but still very good lens. Most of the time attached on the body.
I kind of set a rule for myself not going slower then f2.8 which helps in low-light focusing and also gives me better blurred background. The 17-40 violates this rule | 898 |
Concert for George
29 tracks | 2003 | 146 min | TV-G
On November 29, 2002<|fim_middle|> he loved, performed by a lineup that included Clapton, Jools Holland, Jeff Lynne, Paul McCartney, Monty Python, Tom Petty, Billy Preston, Ravi and Anoushka Shankar, Ringo Starr, Dhani Harrison and many more. Directed by David Leland, the Grammy Award-winning CONCERT FOR GEORGE captures stunning renditions of some of the most significant music of the 20th century, including "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (featuring Clapton on guitar, McCartney on piano and Starr on drums), "Taxman" (performed by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) and "The Inner Light" (covered by Jeff Lynne and Anoushka Shankar). Lynne, Harrison's longtime friend and collaborator, produced the audio elements of the concert, while Clapton oversaw the entire proceedings as Musical Director.
Ravi Shankar - Sarve Shaam
Anoushka Shankar - Your Eyes (Sitar Solo)
Jeff Lynne - The Inner Light
Ravi's Orchestra - Arpan
Monty Python - Sit On My Face
Monty Python - The Lumberjack Song
Jeff Lynne - I Want to Tell You
Eric Clapton - If I Needed Someone
Gary Brooker - Old Brown Shoe
Jeff Lynne - Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)
Eric Clapton - Beware of Darkness
Joe Brown - Here Comes the Sun
Joe Brown - That's the Way It Goes
Jools Holland and Sam Brown - Horse To The Water
Tom Petty - Taxman
Tom Petty - I Need You
Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne - Handle With Care
Billy Preston - Isn't It a Pity
Ringo Starr - Photograph
Ringo Starr - Honey Don't
Paul McCartney - For You Blue
Paul McCartney & Eric Clapton - Something
Paul McCartney - All Things Must Pass
Paul McCartney & Eric Clapton - While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Billy Preston - My Sweet Lord
Eric Clapton & Band - Wah-Wah
Joe Brown - I'll See You in My Dreams
Because you like Various Artists
Bob Dylan: The 30th Anniversary ConcertVarious Artists
Bridge School BenefitVarious Artists
All Things PassGeorge Harrison
Living In The Material WorldGeorge Harrison
Live from GatorvilleTom Petty
CSN 2012Crosby & Stills & Nash | , one year after the passing of George Harrison, Olivia Harrison and longtime friend Eric Clapton organized a performance tribute in his honor. His closest friends gathered at London's Royal Albert Hall to celebrate his life in the only way they knew how – by playing his music. The momentous evening featured George's songs, and music | 65 |
Bailout For Thee, But Why Not For Me?
By Martin Peretz
I don't agree that George Bush is responsible for the entire financial calamity through which we are trying to make our ways. But never in our history -- and certainly not during the Great Depression when the conscientious Herbert Hoover was in the White House -- has there been a president so blithe as this one. Has Bush asked from where the trillion dollar bailout will come and, moreover, how we will ever pay for our super-gargantuan debt?
An interesting letter, "Dear Mr. Bernanke and Mr. Paulson," made its way to the New York Times letter columns<|fim_middle|> the way, how are we to treat foreign banks that are at the short end of our nasty stick?
Entertainment, Environment, Business, The Spine, Health, Politics | , complaining:
"My student loans are too big and it is hurting the economy. Can I have a bailout, please. I need $92,000. Thanks. Nathan Kottke, St. Paul, Sept. 17, 2008"
Why the banks and not him?
But real choices have been made. To rescue the counting houses. But not to pay for medical care. And, also, not to fully equip our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.
And, by | 103 |
I just picked the first of our beans in the garden yesterday and to celebrate I wanted to do something special with them for dinner. My first picking was a combination of both green beans and wax beans, but since they were the same size I knew they would cook just fine together. I know many folks think beans are a pretty boring vegetable, but personally I love them as they go with just about any protein, and are very versatile. I prefer to blanch my beans first until they are tender crisp, and then drop them into an ice water bath to stop the cooking and keep the beans bright in color. Just before serving, I then dry off my beans and quickly sauté them with whatever flavorings I decide. When purchasing either green or wax beans<|fim_middle|> Of course I used our own extra virgin olive oil to cook everything and this easy side dish turned out exactly as planned. Since I prefer side dishes such as this one at room temperature, it is a great option for grilled meat or seafood as it can be prepared an hour or two ahead of time, giving you extra time to grill.
Tender, green beans are mixed with onions and peppers in this vibrant colored vegetable side dish.
Rinse your beans under cold water, and snap off the pointy ends removing any tough strings that run along the length.
Heat a large pot of lightly salted water to boiling, then drop in the beans and cook just until tender crisp, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Drain the beans, and immediately drop into a large bowl filled with ice water.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat and then add the onions.
Cook, stirring often until tender, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the pepper strips and cook another 2 to 3 minutes or just until they begin to soften.
Move the vegetables to the side of the pan and tip it slightly to allow the oil and vegetable juices to flow to the other side.
Add the anchovy paste, lemon zest, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to the oil and use a spoon to mix well.
Drain the beans and pat dry with kitchen towels.
Add the beans to the skillet and toss everything together, cooking just until the beans have rewarmed, about 2 minutes.
Toss the vegetables with the fresh parsley, and immediately remove from the heat and place in a serving bowl. | , look for slender beans that are vibrant in color and free of dark spots. Fresh beans should easily snap when broken. Beans can be wrapped in paper towels and stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Looking through my larder, I decided to add some sliced sautéed onion, thinly sliced garlic, and red pepper strips along with a little anchovy paste, red pepper flakes, and some lemon zest to my just picked beans. | 96 |
"Beach<|fim_middle|> chance. Tony Vandenberg, also known as Bermudaboy, proved that determination pays off. | Time": the windsurf-inspired animated cartoon series
November 23, 2020 | Windsurfing
My name is Mark Fiore Martino. I learned to windsurf in 1979.
My favorite spot is Waverly Beach, near our home in Kirkland, Washington. I moved there because jobs were plentiful, but mostly so I could sail the Gorge a lot, which I did.
Lately, I've slowed down. Fifty-five-degree water is more daunting now that I'm 69.
Kenosha, Wisconsin, where I was born, is also the birthplace of my windsurfing passion.
At 29, I moved back to Wisconsin from San Jose, California, where I had been hang gliding, until I noticed that even experienced pilots crash, sometimes fatally.
When I saw a windsurfer on Pewaukee Lake, I thought, "Hey, that looks exciting and a lot safer."
So I took my first lesson from her.
After two hours of flailing and falling, I got my first ride. It was only a couple hundred feet, but it was amazing.
I was cold, exhausted, and hooked on windsurfing.
That summer, I took electrical engineering classes in the morning, windsurfed in the afternoon, and danced in discos at night.
Awesome summer!
An Artistic Background
A lot went on before that. My father, Palmer Martino, a commercial artist, taught my sister Linda, my brothers Mike and Jim, and me to draw and paint signs.
My brother Michael excelled at both, even more so at sculpting. His outdoor bronze sculptures are on display in Milwaukee, Chicago, and other places.
Linda got a degree in fashion design and worked for clothing manufacturers in Milwaukee.
Jim's a software engineer and the only sibling who understands my engineering rants.
Using the art skills my dad taught me, I got jobs to finance getting an art degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UW-M).
I worked as a cartoonist, sign painter, set designer and builder, graphic designer, technical illustrator, drafter, and circuit board designer.
I financed my BSEE from UW-M with the money I made.
Then I worked as an electronics engineer, software engineer, computer graphics engineer, game scene programmer, screenwriter, and movie producer.
I bounced from startup to startup.
Windsurfing and Animation
Whenever I could, I was cartooning, screenwriting, animating, and making movies. Over about 15 years, I wrote and pitched over a dozen screenplays.
Then, I spent about $16,000 of my own money to produce two comedy shorts.
I had no more money to spare, so I needed a way to make movies from my screenplays cheaply.
Three years ago, I found the tool that lets me do that: Apple Keynote.
After making a bunch of animated cartoons with Keynote, I decided to combine the two things I love to do: windsurf and animate.
I had already written a romantic comedy about windsurfing called "Beach Baby," so I came up with a plan to turn it into a cartoon series.
It's called "Beach Time."
Each episode is a funny story set on a beach that feels magical yet familiar. It took me a couple of months to refine the idea and design a production process.
Over the next six months, I worked on "Episode 1 - Escape to the Lake."
I put it up on the MoviesByMartino YouTube channel and started "Episode 2 - Rather Be Windsurfing."
Five months later, I published that one. I'm about a third of the way through Episode 3.
As I do each episode, I make elements I can reuse in other episodes and learn ways to speed up the process.
I'm working towards publishing one episode a month.
Since "Beach Baby" is a feature-length screenplay, I've got plenty to work with, possibly twenty or more episodes.
The Animation Method
Developing an episode goes like this: I combine new ideas with stuff from the "Beach Baby" screenplay to create the screenplay for an episode.
An episode can be two to five minutes long.
I copy the text from the screenplay into a Keynote file. I break the text into shots by moving a few lines of text at a time into slides.
Then, I record the dialogue on each slide in Keynote.
I do voices the way standup comedians do them when they are telling stories.
Sometimes for female characters, I'll ask an actor to record them or use one of the artificial voices on my Mac.
When the dialogue is pretty much done, I draw and animate each slide to make the shots. I use the vector drawing and animation tools in Keynote.
Then, I make sounds and music using GarageBand.
Along the way, I generate videos using Keynote's export to movie feature. I also make video clips with transparent backgrounds so I can layer them into the main video.
When it's all done, I generate a final MP4 file.
I love using Keynote because I can make changes to the story, the art, the animation, and the sound at any time during the process.
I've learned lots of Keynote tricks and post them on LinkedIn.
Because Keynote is a simple tool compared to full-on 2D and 3D animation and video tools, it keeps me from getting too bogged down in the technical aspects.
That way, I get to stay in touch with the story and the emotional and artistic aspects of it.
Words by Mark F. Martino | Creator of the "Beach Time" series
A different way of being "in irons"
Why a 1987 windsurfer's rescue matters so much today
From the USSR to California: windsurfing into a new life
Does blending windsurfing and football really work?
The band named Windsurf
Latest windsurfing news
Windjammer: the world's first soft sailboard by Morey Boogie
Building the next generation of windsurf sails
Sarah Hauser sets world record for the largest women's windsurfing wave
Top Stories | Windsurfing
Imagine a sail that is half the weight and lasts five times as long.
Sarah Hauser has been awarded the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever windsurfed by a woman.
A windsurfing marathoner's journey to redemption
Sometimes, we all need - and deserve - a second | 1,332 |
Currently looking for trades Alberta wide.
" Our decision to purchase our custom home from Grandview Modular Homes was solidified when the salesperson confidently told us to "shop around" and that at Grandview "We do things better not the basics". We had already been searching so we knew what Terry said was true. Terry was awesome to deal with, he explained everything in detail as well as sending updated pictures of how our home was progressing. We love our home and there is nothing we could or would change. Grandview Modular was a pleasure to do business with and we highly recommend Terry and Grandview Modular Homes in Red Deer. "
" I was referred to Grandview Modular Homes by a friend. I really liked the quality of my friend's home and I noticed that Grandview Modular Homes also had standard features that the other places didn't. The salesperson Terry Herbert was really great to deal with, he answered questions, explained the whole process and was available during the whole process. Even when the delivery was delayed<|fim_middle|> We looked on the internet and we found Grandview Modular Homes in Red Deer. We really enjoyed Terry our salesman. He was great to deal with and there was no surprises in the end. We have recommended Grandview Modular Homes several times as we are so pleased with our home. The only way to have a better experience would have been to get the home for free. " | due to weather Terry kept me informed. The service was great even after the delivery, I have no problem recommending this company to anyone. Very happy! "
" We knew friends that had purchased a Grandeur Home and they really like it. So when it came time for us to look for a home we knew we wanted a Grandeur Home because of its quality and it felt like a "real home". | 81 |
1485 Commissioners were in a better position to carry it out than the Police Authorities. He considers<|fim_middle|>, proper care being taken to have the refuse thoroughly burnt and rendered innoxious. | however that the Government should defray the cost of the special staff which would be required and bear all working expenses, until such time as the Municipal Commissioners find themselves in a position to carry on the work without the aid of Government. Mr McKerrow deprecates the idea of pledging the Municipal Commissioners to the enforcement of the Ordinance, on condition that they receive all fines imposed by the Magistrates. He contends that the fines will not cover the expenses of carrying out the work. After further discussion, it is proposed by Major McCallum and seconded by Mr McKerrow that the Government be informed. That the Municipal Commissioners will enter on their estimates for 1889, a sum for carrying out "The Weights & Measures Ordinance 1886", on condition that Government will give a grant in aid to cover the cost of working. Mr Scott proposes as an amendment, "That the consideration of the matter be postponed until Ordinance IX of 1887 is amended." The amendment is seconded by Mr Lim Eng Keng and on being put to the meeting, is supported by the proposer & seconder only. Major McCallum's motion is then put to the vote with the following result. For Against ------ ----------- Major McCallum Mr Scott Mr McKerrow Mr Lim Eng Keng Col. Dunlop Mr Sohst The President The motion is accordingly declared carried. (Govt. letter re taking over of all Munl. arrears of rates & taxes outside the new Munl. Limits) Read letter from the Hon'ble the Acting Colonial Secretary, Malacca 6623/88, dated 7th instant, inviting attention to the Government letter of 8th March last, on the subject of the proposal of the Government to buy up the arrears of Municipal Rates & Taxes up to 31st December 1887. The Secretary informs the Board that, in the course of certain interviews, he had had with the Colonial Secretary, it had been stated by that officer that the Government were prepared to pay the Municipal Commissioners 40 per cent of the total of such arrears & that a similar offer 1486 offer had been made to the Penang & Malacca Municipalities, the object of the Government being to relieve the poor people in the outlying country districts of the extra half years assessment, which they would otherwise be compelled to pay under the provisions of the new Municipal Ordinance. The Secretary is instructed to state in reply that, the Municipal Commissioners accept the offer of the Government with thanks. (President's memorandum re introducing a complaint book for the use of Ratepayers) Read a memorandum from the President, suggesting that a complaint Book be provided, in which any Ratepayer could enter any reasonable complaint. It is agreed that a complaint book be kept in some convenient & easily accessible part of the office for the use of Ratepayers. (Munl. Engineer's six weeks leave of absence - sanctioned) The President submits an application from the Municipal Engineer, (accompanied by medical certificate) for six weeks' leave of absence. Application sanctioned. (Letter from Military Authorities re claim for exemption from Horse & Carriage Tax) Read letter from the Deputy Asst. Adjutant General, calling attention on behalf of the Military Authorities to the actions of the Municipal Commissioners in endeavouring to levy the Horse & Carriage Tax on officers residing within the Tanglin & Fort Canning Barracks, these districts having been already exempted by Government Notification No. 477, from the jurisdiction of the Municipal Ordinance. The opinion of the Municipal Legal Adviser having been communicated to the Board, it is resolved that the question be referred for the decision of His Excellency. The Secretary is also instructed to intimate to the Deputy Asst. Adjutant General that the matter is under consideration. (President's report for June) The Secretary lays on the table the President's Report of work done during the month of June. (Engineer's report re Town Refuse) The Secretary reads the report of the Municipal Engineer on the present system of the disposal of town sweepings and also as to other improved methods of burning same, as carried out in some of the principal towns in England & on the continent. The question of introducing a system of proper destructors & carbonisers being, in the opinion of the Board, too costly and unsuited for local requirements, it is unanimously resolved that, the existing arrangements be adhered to | 926 |
Athletics & Recreation / News
Freshman goalkeeper helps lead Pioneers into lacrosse postseason
Posted May 5, 2011 at 11:25 am
Freshman goalkeeper Jamie Faus fields a shot<|fim_middle|> had great games — we played great against Duke, we played well against Notre Dame — but I think we're still improving and there is more that we can do to get better."
The ECAC conference tournament begins May 5 and continues throughout the following weekend. NCAA action begins May 14.
Tags: Athletics & Recreation, Events, featured, student | in a recent lacrosse game. Photo: Alan Schaefer
Jamie Faus was a little uncertain whether he would be able to capably step in as starting goalkeeper for the University of Denver men's lacrosse team.
There is little question that the jump from high school to Division I — let alone playing for a program looking to take the next step on the national stage — presents a monumental change in expectations and competition for any athlete.
So when Faus arrived last fall from Lakeville, Conn., he promised himself a few things. Even if he ultimately did not land the Pioneers' starting goalkeeper role, Faus vowed that no one would work harder than him, and that he would play with the sort of confidence that would soon win over his new teammates.
Displaying the sort of swagger that is rare among true freshmen stepping into high-profile roles, Faus has gone from a potential question mark to a bona fide strength in just a few short months.
Faus' continued ascension will be one of the Pioneers' biggest keys as they begin their final tune-up for the NCAA tournament when DU (11-2) opens the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) tournament against Ohio State at Peter Barton Stadium.
Faus will enter the conference tournament showing off some prestigious hardware after he was named the ECAC's rookie of the year. Faus also earned a second team all-ECAC honor.
"I didn't know if I would get that spot. I'm not really one to think that way," Faus says. "I was confident that I was going to work hard, and that I was going to try and work harder than not just the other goalies, but everyone else on the team. That's in conditioning and on the field. I really wanted to show that I was confident. I didn't want to seem like I was nervous.
"Goalie is a spot where you can't really hide on the field. You really have to have that sense of confidence out there. And I wanted to make sure that the guys I was playing with had confidence in me, so that they weren't worried about me and all they would have to do is make their plays. I was confident that I would be confident, but I really didn't have any expectations."
Faus' confidence, however, was not going to carry him through the Pioneers' demanding early season schedule. Almost from the beginning of the preseason, head coach Bill Tierney admitted he was not sure what to expect out of his rookie netminder. Immediately tossing Faus into the fray for the season opener at perennial power Syracuse was fraught with enough tension it would be easy to understand if Tierney had developed ulcers.
Instead, Faus assured his coach — and his teammates — that he was the right man for the job essentially from the opening faceoff.
"First of all, it's the hardest position in the game. Secondly, we start him at Syracuse, which is the hardest place in the world to play," says Tierney, the ECAC coach of the year. "Third, to go through a 13-game schedule with only two losses and never having a really horrible game … he has just been consistent. The best part is that he is playing his best lacrosse right now, which is kind of hard to believe after such a long season for such a young player."
Faus finished the regular season ranked second in the ECAC in save percentage (.562) and fourth in goals against average (8.28) while earning four ECAC player of the week honors. Even Tierney did not expect Faus to surpass the statistical totals compiled by last season's starter, Peter Lowell. And few expected Faus to be the defensive focal point of a team that recorded a monumental victory against defending national champion Duke and is rapidly emerging on the national stage.
Faus understands there still are doubts — both about him and about Denver's new status as a national power. Continuing to turn heads, beginning in the ECAC finals and then in the NCAA tournament, certainly will erase any doubts.
"We've got to realize there are still people that are unsure about what's going on out here and how good we really are," Faus says. "I think we look at that and take it for what it is and let that fuel our fire.
"We aren't really sure we've put together a full 60 minutes of the best lacrosse we can play yet. We haven't put together a full game, I don't think, where we've done everything right start to finish. We've | 935 |
Cereálie, neboli obiloviny, se dělí na celozrnné a necelozrnné. Obilovina ve formě obilky představuje hlavní produkt obilnin a současně je surovinou potravinářského průmyslu.
Název cereálie je odvozen od římské bohyně Cerery.
Při klasickém zpracování zrna se používá v<|fim_middle|>, měď, mangan, vápník, draslík, hořčík
Antioxidanty – selen, vitamín E, fytochemikálie
Odkazy
Reference
Externí odkazy
Pojem cereální
Cereální strava: Oddělte zrno od plev
Obiloviny: situační a výhledové zprávy
Obilniny | ymílací proces, při kterém se odstraní obalové vrstvy i klíček. Do výsledného produktu se pak dostává pouze jedna část zrna označovaná jako endosperm, který v zrnu představuje zásobárnu energie (pro růst zárodku nové rostlinky). Tímto postupem je však mouka ochuzena o řadu důležitých vitamínů, minerálů a jiných cenných živin obsažených v ostatních částech zrna. Rafinace také obvykle odstraní z potraviny většinu vlákniny.
Celozrnné cereálie obsahují všechny tři části zrna: obalovou vrstvu (ektosperm), endosperm a klíček. Výhodou celozrnných cereálií je z výživového hlediska vyšší obsah cenných látek, které pocházejí z obalové vrstvy – otruby a ze zárodku neboli klíčku.
Při zpracovávání celozrnné mouky se melou všechny části zrna. Potraviny v nerafinovaném stavu obsahují vyšší množství vlákniny, antioxidantů, vitamínů a minerálů:
Vitamíny skupiny B – thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, kyselina pantothenová
Minerální látky – železo, zinek, jód | 419 |
Tom Swarbrick
Sir Gerald Howarth: Public Opinion On Brexit Has Not Shifted At All
5 August 2018, 08:50 | Updated: 5 August 2018, 09:05
The former defence minister said he did not believe public opinion was any different when it came to Brexit, and that EU negotiators have "basically put two fingers up at the UK".
Sir Gerald Howarth, a board member of Leave Means Leave, said that people who voted to leave the EU were "pretty confirmed in their view" as he told Tom Swarbrick that public opinion had not changed.
The former defence minister also said that people who voted to remain now accept the result of the referendum.
"I don't think public opinion has shifted at all,"<|fim_middle|> have "basically put two fingers up at the UK". | he said.
"Those who voted to leave, I think, are pretty confirmed in their view."
Sir Gerald Howarth. Picture: PA
Sir Howarth said that Remainers "now take the view that it is better to get on with it, get a deal, and make our own way in the world."
The former minister also told Tom that the EU negotiators | 75 |
More full-time employees are taking a second shift. But it's not necessarily to care for family. It's to moonlight as a freelancer. As the pandemic has more people considering freelancing and as big business commit to hiring freelancers, there's a lot of opportunity on the table. What's interesting, though, is the number of people who don't want to leave their full-time employment.
A whopping 82% of people said they wanted to add freelancing on top of being a full-time employee, according to a study by Paychex. Not everyone took the leap, though. The study found that only 59% of people actually freelanced while also working full-time.
Analyzing the second shift: what kind of freelance work full-time employees do
As expected with the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority (62%) of freelancing is virtual. 20% is both in-person and virtual, while only 18% is in-person. When it comes to<|fim_middle|> a lot of opportunity out there. | the types of work people take on, the work is overwhelmingly content-focused: research (48%), data entry (37%), writing (29%), and editing & proofreading (20%) make up the top four tasks. Other work includes visual design, development, or coaching.
Source: Paychex
Not everyone who freelanced during the pandemic started freelancing because of it. According to the survey, only 22% of people started freelancing for the first time during the pandemic. However, of all people who freelanced during the pandemic, there's a common thread: remote work. 69% of respondents said they could do their current full-time jobs from any location.
You may also like → Remote Companies More Likely To Hire Freelancers, Study Reveals
One potential issue, though, is whether employers know about an employee freelancing. 52% of people haven't told their full-time employer about moonlighting as a freelancer, despite on average spending 15 hours per week doing freelance work. Further, 12% say they've been caught doing freelance work while on paid work time and 16% have missed a full-time work meeting because of freelance work.
More work, more enjoyment from freelancing
Thinking about why a full-time employee might risk their job for freelancing, the data shows it's because they like it. More than half of people (51%) say they prefer either freelancing alone (24%) or both freelancing and their full-time job together (27%). This is consistent with a study showing that, on average, full-time freelancers like their work more than full-time employees do.
Further, there's demand. More than half (54%) of respondents have seen increased demand for their services. When it comes to balancing work, that doesn't seem to be a problem for most. 44% say it's easy to balance work and freelancing while 28% say it's not easy or difficult. Only 29% say it's difficult to balance.
With increasing demand and enjoyment, it's no wonder that 59% of respondents said they'd like to continue freelancing for a few years (22%) or indefinitely (37%). Nearly half (49%) would also happily quit their jobs to freelance full-time if they could make more money doing it.
As freelancing continues to grow – both due to existing trends and the COVID-19 pandemic – there's | 507 |
Der Paulhubergrabenbach ist ein fast 0,3 Kilometer langer Bach im Gebiet der Gemeinde Kainach bei Voitsberg im Bezirk Voitsberg in der Weststeiermark. Er fließt im südlichen Teil der Gleinalpe, an einem nach Süden streichenden Auslä<|fim_middle|> mündet nach fast 300 Meter langem Lauf mit einem mittleren Sohlgefälle von rund 16 ‰ etwa 49 Höhenmeter unterhalb seines Ursprungs direkt an der Grenze zwischen den beiden Katastralgemeinde Kainach und Oswaldgraben in den Oswaldgrabenbach, der danach nach rechts abbiegt.
Auf seinem Lauf nimmt der Paulhubergrabenbach keine anderen Wasserläufe auf.
Quellen
Einzelnachweise
Geographie (Kainach bei Voitsberg)
Gleinalpe
Gewässer in den Alpen
Gewässer im Bezirk Voitsberg | ufer des Mandlkogels und mündet dann von links kommend in den Oswaldgrabenbach.
Verlauf
Der Paulhubergrabenbach entsteht auf einer schmalen, zwischen zwei Waldstücken gelegenen Wiesenfläche an einem vom Mandlkogel nach Süden streichenden Ausläufer auf etwa im südöstlichen Teil der Katastralgemeinde Oswaldgraben.
Der Bach fließt anfangs auf einer Wiesenfläche nach Südosten, ehe er nach rund 40 Meter ein Waldstück erreicht. In diesem Wald umrundet er in einem flachen Rechtsbogen eine Erhebung und fließt dabei insgesamt in eine südliche Richtung. Nach etwa 130 Metern schwenkt der Lauf auf einen relativ geraden Südkurs, ehe der Bach nach rund 40 Metern schließlich den Wald verlässt. Direkt nach dem Wald durchfließt der Paulhubergrabenbach das Betriebsgelände eines Bauernhofes. Kurz nach diesem Bauernhof lenkt der Bach auf einen relativ geraden Verlauf nach Südwesten und erreicht nach etwa 50 Metern schließlich seine Mündung. Rund 25 Meter vor seiner Mündung unterquert der Paulhubergrabenbach noch die Landesstraße L 341, die Kainacherstraße. Der Gsturmnitzgraben | 314 |
Once again this year, José Luis Blondet, curator of special projects at LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art), will select the eight Latin American artists to participate in Solo Show Zurich. Each artist is represented by<|fim_middle|> she grew up in the Dominican Republic and her work deals with issues of migration, the construction of identity, and gender roles. Mexico City-based Proyecto Paralelo will exhibit work by Lake Verea, an artistic duo formed by Francisca Rivero-Lake Cortina (Mexico City, 1973) and Carla Verea Hernández (Mexico City, 1978); Parque Galería, also in Mexico City, will show work by María Sosa (Morelia, 1985). Proyectos Ultravioleta from Guatemala will exhibit work by Naufus Ramirez Figueroa (Guatemala, 1978), and Isla Flotante, in Buenos Aires, work by Rosario Zorraquin (Buenos Aires, 1984). ABRA Caracas will show production by Sheroanawë Hakihiiwë (Sheroana, Amazonas, 1971), an artist that lives and works in the Amazon. Finally, Teresa Burga (1935, Iquitos), a conceptual artist crucial to the renewal of the Peruvian art scene in the sixties and seventies, will be featured by Lima-based 80M2 Livia Benavides gallery. | a gallery in the fair—some of them longstanding participants and others with us for the first time, as is the case with Casaquien from the Dominican Republic. The proposal this year does not revolve around a single theme or common thread; the selection, rather, formulates a subtle relationship between works on the basis of the singular nature of their research. This edition will include a great many women artists and focus on the traditions of native peoples. Artists featured include Joiri Minaya (New York, 1990), represented by Casaquien gallery; | 114 |
The Daily Texan • October 20, 2021 • https://thedailytexan.com/2021/10/20/analyzing-texas-womens-soccer-transformation-into-big-12-contender-leader/
Analyzing Texas women's soccer transformation into Big 12 contender, leader
Jackson Stublar/The Daily Texan
Arjun Rao, Sports Reporter
If I told you that the Texas women's soccer team would be leading the Big 12 one month ago, you would have called me crazy.
And yet, here the No. 21 Longhorns are.
With three games left in the regular season, the surging squad is holding a narrow lead over TCU for first in the conference.
How did Texas get here?
During an uninspiring 2-3-2 start to the season, the rotations in the games were a major question. In losses to UCF and No. 11 Georgetown, head coach Angela Kelly brought seven different players in to substitute her starters. In a tie against Florida, Kelly used six different subs.
The Longhorns seemed to be enduring an identity crisis.
Kelly was left with two options: continue giving her more experienced players playing time or hand the keys to the extremely talented, albeit inexperienced, freshmen duo of Trinity Byars and Lexi Missimo. Kelly chose the latter.
In her first five games, Byars had only exceeded 90 minutes of playing time once against then No. 13 Rice in a game that went into overtime. Her playing time in the first seven games of the season was often sporadic, with her minutes dipping to as low as 61 in a 3–0 exhibition win against Abilene Christian University.
Since its nail-biting loss to Oregon Sept. 9, there has been a noticeable shift in Texas' rotations. Rarely, if ever, does Kelly pull Byars or Missimo out of the game anymore. And the Texas offense has improved significantly as a result.
Byars recently had an eight-game scoring streak, tied for second in Texas history, with the streak ending after she failed to score against Baylor last Friday. Missimo has regularly scored points in bunches for the Longhorns too, including a game against UT-Rio Grande Valley in which she scored four goals and<|fim_middle|> secure the title this year.
The blossoming offensive talent the Longhorns have at their disposal will build confidence about their chances as they enter the stretch run for the crown. | another game against Oklahoma in which she tallied four assists.
The Longhorns are undergoing a youth revolution, and the key to winning that revolution is to give these players the minutes they need to develop.
Mistakes due to inexperience have been common for Texas. Rather than making the extra pass to a teammate with a better angle, many Missimo shots have sailed far over the goal. Byars has dealt with many offsides penalties this year that have nullified potential scoring opportunities. With the talent that these players have, it is vital to accept mistakes as part of the player maturation process and utilize them as a teaching opportunity. And Kelly has done just that.
As a result, both players improved at a far faster rate than anyone could have imagined. Missimo and Byars, who were recently named the top two freshmen soccer players in the country by Top Drawer Soccer, are firmly in the driver's seat for the Longhorns now.
As conference play wraps up, Texas will look to continue its momentum after a nine game win streak.
Its next opportunity will be against West Virginia Thursday. The Mountaineers fell out of the top 25 and are currently struggling after losing two of its last three games. Texas will attempt to assert its dominance early on by playing hard and fast.
With Big 12 standings being determined by points-per-match, Thursday's game will likely feature unrelenting attacks by both sides, as winning isn't enough to | 294 |
Marketing your club is a key<|fim_middle|> information about the benefits of charitable estate and financial planning.
Weekly Update provides the latest Rotary news. It can be used for club and district newsletters and Web sites. | factor in attracting and retaining membership and overall Club Image is very important.
How does your club rate?
There is a wide range of promotional material in both printed and electronic formats available to all Rotary members.
in the Rotary world. The PR Tips are a great aid to Club PR chairs.
practices, project resources, and important service-related events.
End Polio Now is a quarterly newsletter about polio eradication. The newsletter includes both the latest statistics and inspiring stories.
stories about how Annual Programs Fund contributions enhance people's lives.
upcoming Future Vision pilot deadlines. Everyone is welcome to subscribe.
and young adult programs: Interact, Rotaract, and RYLA. You can sign up for the newsletters by visiting these programs' Web pages.
Peace Net – The Peace Net newsletter is a forum for the Rotary Centers community.
PR Tips – The biweekly PR Tips offers innovative ideas for clubs and districts to promote Rotary in their communities.
Reconnections is the source for news about Rotary Foundation alumni.
features practical information for Rotary club and district officers, incoming officers, committee chairs, and other leaders.
highlight Rotary's local and international work.
decisions that affect training, and training tips.
Youth Exchange events and resources. It's intended for all Youth Exchange officers and interested Rotarians.
Visions provides | 262 |
We have had requests for many years for a long sleeved jacket - so here it is! This jacket is perfect for the colder months, and will prevent hair splinters entering the skin, especially at elbows.
Same fit as our popular Milano jacket. Features elastic at end of the sleeve to allow the sleeve to be pulled up and stay up during washing.
This is a super LONG SLEEVED jacket at an AFFORDABLE PRICE. Not many retailers do long sleeved as an option and I chose this as it looked smart and is made of hair proof material (I was getting pretty fed up of hair sticking through my previous one). Elasticated cuffs and long body length suited me perfectly. Good deep pockets and quality zip. Well pleased.
Wasnt sure on ordering this if short sleeved would have been better.However really pleased with this as keeps hair and water of skin and protects against dog claws.Qiuck to rinse and dry ready for the next day, though hard waearing.Love the design pockets handy.Love it!
Very true to size and comfortable to wear. Love the long sleeves as I wear jumpers most of the time .
It's great to be able to stay warm and not have damp sleeves. It would be useful if the jackets had hanging tabs as I've had to<|fim_middle|> sizes im a 16-18 so I ordered a xxxL, it's okay at the chest but by the waist it's tight. | sew them in.
Quality item. Ordered size M, but is not big enough. It is more of a size 10. Worried if I order a size L it will be too big. !
Good quality but small | 46 |
We Love Chocolate Olivers. The British call them biscuits; We Americans call them the most delicious, deluxe chocolate covered cookie in the world. A delicate, slow-baked cookie, made with a hint of hops and malt, is surrounded with a thick layer of luxurious dark chocolate. The combination is absolutely irresistible. Made in Great Britain, Chocolate Olivers are difficult to find in the States, but we assure you, they are well worth the search.
John Lennon once famously requested payment for a TV appearance in Chocolate Olivers instead of British pounds!
The original plain biscuit at the heart of the modern Chocolate Oliver was invented by Dr. William Oliver (1695-1764), a physician who offered medical treatments at his exclusive Spa in Bath, England. Dr. Oliver first developed the Bath Bun, a rich, sweet bun which had the negative side effect of causing his spa patients to gain weight. He modified the original recipe and developed the plainer and less caloric (but still delicious) Bath Oliver Biscuit. Dr. Oliver ultimately willed his secret recipe for the biscuits to his coachman, Atkins, who set up a baking business and became a wealthy man on the strength of that recipe.
The recipe has passed through several changes of ownership over the course of nearly two centuries but the original plain biscuits are still being made to this day.
in a 200<|fim_middle|> rich, bittersweet chocolate coating thicker.
We've enjoyed chocolates and cookies from around the world, but none have come closer to sweet perfection than the Chocolate Oliver. It is a luxury dessert with a luxury price tag, but in our opinion it is an indulgence worth the price. | gram tin The brilliant melding of gourmet dark chocolate with Bath Oliver Biscuits occurred in the 1930s, and the Chocolate Oliver was born.
The search for the elusive Chocolate Olivers became impossible in the 1990s, when the manufacturers Huntley and Palmers went out of business. The company was resurrected in 2006 and limited production of Chocolate Olivers began once again. The modern-day Chocolate Oliver is even more mouth-watering than the original, thanks to the decision to make the biscuit smaller and the | 114 |
Teacher awarded ICE 200 medal in recognition of his work promoting civil engineering to school children - the first to go to a non-engineer.
A local Manchester school teacher who has developed an educational programme to inspire school children to think about civil engineering has been awarded a special ICE 200 medal.
Daniel McDonagh from St Ambrose Barlow RC High School in Swinton, received the special ICE 200 medal - the first to be awarded to a non-engineer - in recognition of his work to promote the profession.
Daniel, subject leader for Design, Engineer, Construct!<|fim_middle|> classroom and careers resources online. | and STEM coordinator, first approached ICE Manchester Branch five years ago to start a STEM outreach programme, using his school as the base.
Following some hands-on bridge building sessions he recognised the potential to do more and inspire more pupils.
Working closely with ICE Manchester Branch, he now runs a summer school programme that extends to four days, seeing some 200 pupils engage with activities such as the ICE Bridge to Schools kit and tetrahedron building.
Daniel has also gone on to help develop a primary school education pack, alongside other primary school teachers, which has been successfully used in six local schools establishing civil engineering alongside the existing curriculum.
Want to inspire young people about civil engineering? Find | 137 |
I'm Summer! I'm a wife and mama of 2. We are an army family and have been here almost a year! I'm also a substance abuse therapist in town.
I started CrossFit in July last year. I was a long distance competitive runner all through high school and college and honestly, after having my first kid running was never the same and I hated it! However, I have also battled eating disorders and body image disorders for years and running had become the thing I did to<|fim_middle|> much strength I already had- and am super surprised at the strength I've gained! And the most amazing thing CrossFit has done for me is taught me to love myself. I can whole heartedly say I haven't battled eating or body image issues in MONTHS! I feel so free! I also love that I can continue challenging myself and I can continue getting stronger. I have already taken steps to overcome fears and challenge my mental game by getting my first competition out of the way! And lastly, I've met some of the most amazing humans at this gym. DCL is a treasure to me. The people and the sport of CrossFit have allowed me to find myself a bit (cheesy but I don't care) and be comfortable with who I am while challenging me to be even better than before! | "stay skinny." I noticed I didn't really have any strength- could run for miles but could barely carry a laundry basket upstairs. I reached a low point last year with my struggles and had to make a decision to either continue torturing myself or make a change. I also had my daughter to think about. I knew if I kept on, she would catch on. I couldn't stand the thought of my daughter hating herself the way I did.
I reluctantly joined CrossFit. I had the typical fear of "getting bulky." But I have kept up with it. I surprised myself at how | 121 |
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