Update! ELCA Formatta Filler Being Replaced by Web-based System Dec 9
We have been informed that the switch from Formatta to the new Form Tool has been delayed until early 2014. Look for more details in January.
New ELCA Forms and Form Tool
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is in the process of making the tools end users utilize most a bit more user-friendly. One of the major changes concerns the many forms used within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Formatta Filler, which has long been the form tool used within the ELCA, will no longer be used as the application for filling out ELCA forms, especially those forms we use in the Call Process. Our new forms will be web-based, allowing them to interface more seamlessly with all computers, web browsers, and small tablets. We hope this change will make it easier for rostered leaders as they complete the Rostered Leader Profile (RLP) and for ministry sites as they complete the Ministry Site Profile (MSP).
If you are currently in the process of completing an RLP or updating one that is in the system, you can continue to use the Formatta form until December 6th. This information also applies to congregations that are in the process of completing an MSP. December 6th is the last day that an RLP or MSP can be submitted using Formatta! The transition to new web-based forms is expected to be complete by December 9th.
When an RLP or MSP is accessed after December 9th, you will see that the data from the old (Formatta) form has been automatically transferred into a new form. We encourage you to review your new RLP to verify that it does read correctly, and if you are serving in a congregation that is working on an MSP, we encourage you to do the same.
As you review your Call Process forms or experience any difficulty with them, please share your questions or concerns by calling Gabrielle Hudecek (614.464.3532) in the synod office. Please note that these forms are new to the synod office as well, so please be patient as we try to answer your questions.
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Don’t be Victimized by Ransomware – Virtual
April 27 @ 10:30 am - 12:00 pm
REGISTRATION is open at this link.
This second session will provide you information to avoid the nightmare surrounding ransomware. Learn about the techniques criminals use to break into your systems and what you can do to protect your company.
This is a three-part series presented by American Family Insurance in partnership with the Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC) and Wisconsin Procurement Institute (WPI).
April 27 – Don’t be Victimized by Ransomware
Presented by – Andy Fiumefreddo IT Security & Risk Manager – Consulting, Assessments, & Third-Party with American Family Insurance.


Foundation Insight: CPES17’s Myra Davis on How to be a Partner
By Candace Stuart, Director of Communications & Public Relations
As senior vice president of information services and CIO at Texas Children’s Hospital, Myra Davis frequently is approached by industry representatives who want to talk with her about products and services. Some succeed while others fail, not necessarily because of inferior goods but because of avoidable mistakes in initiating or maintaining their relationship.
Davis shared some of her experiences at last year’s inaugural CHIME Partner Education Summit (CPES), an educational event for CHIME Foundation firm employees who want to learn more about their customers’ needs and goals. She will return this year to CPES17 to participate on two panels, including the interactive “Ask the CIOs” session.
In an interview, Davis offered her do’s and don’ts as a preview of lessons that can be learned at CPES17:
- For starters, “When you send me an email, don’t misspell my name,” she said.
- If you send an email and it doesn’t get a response, don’t pepper her with more. “Get the hint.”
- Do your homework. “A partner really understands the technology I use, the problems healthcare is facing and helps with the challenges.”
- Articulate the benefits. “Under value-based care models, show how technology will help bring solutions to the table.”
- Put it in context. Whatever the technology or service, understand how it functions within the culture and regulations of a given region or state.
- Don’t poach. “It’s not cool to hire my talent away,” she said. Texas Children’s competes for IT employees with higher-paying industries such as oil in a tight labor market.
Davis, who is also a member of CHIME’s Board of Trustees, complimented last year’s CPES attendees, saying they asked insightful questions and appreciated the CIO presenters’ perspective. This year CPES will take place Sept. 13-15 in Chicago. More information is available here.
More Foundation Insight Volume 1, No. 2:
- Planning for Focus Group Success: 9 Best Practices – Arika Lycan
- Get to Know CPES17 Keynote Tom Atchison – Arika Lycan


My Mom is a knitter and she loves colorful yarn. In Hungary, the yarn selection does not even come close to what is available here in the States. I took her to our LYS (local yarn store) not to Joann's or Hobby Lobby. She had such a great time looking at all the beautiful yarns, I knew she would have fun coloring her own yarn. But not just one color, I showed her how to paint yarn with many colors. You can make your own hadpainted yarn for under $10/skein, versus buying one for $20 or more! It is really very simple and fun to do. I have done this several times with my boys and we have used plants, Kool-Aid and food color. This time though, I splurged and got some Jacquard acid dyes. These steps will show you the basic process to paint wool yarn.
Top right: Covered the table with plastic, and tore off large pieces of Saran Wrap. My mom laid the skeins of yarn on top of the Saran Wrap. One for each skein. (I got the yarn all tied together like this from Knitpicks, but you can find pure wool at Michaels and Joann's too. ) Tip: you do not need white wool. You can overdye any pale colors, like grey or pink or baby blue! If you use grey, the colors come out more muted, not as bright. I have not tried using light pink or blue yet.
Bottom left: Started mixing the dye. I used about 2-4 tsp dye for 2 cups of water. Sometimes even more, depending on how intense I wanted the color. I kept testing it on paper towel. I even mixed some of my own colors, since I only got the primary colors, plus black and gunmetal.
Bottom right: Just used large foam brushes to apply the dye solution. Literally, it was painted on the yarn. Make sure you flip the yarn over and go over the other side too, otherwise you will be left with a lot of white areas.
Then the yarn was rolled up in the Saran Wrap, placed in a colander over a large pot of water. I covered it, heated the water to boil and let it steam for about 20-30 minutes. I used tongues to remove the very hot bundles, and put them aside to cool.
You can follow the same steps and instead of using commercial acid dye, mix together some food color or Kool-Aid (makes yummi smelling yarn) in the desired colors (I would add a bit of vinegar to the dye solution too, just about 2-4 tsp/cup) . As long as you are using wool yarn, you can even use an Easter Egg coloring kit to dye yarn with! It is really that easy. As long as you soak the wool in the vinegar/water mixture and then set the colors by steaming the yarn, you will not be disappointed. My favorite was using Neon Food Colors. You can see here how it turned out, although I dyed wool that was spun into yarn later. I used the guide on the back to mix colors. For 1 skein of yarn, I would use 1/3-1/2 c water and add food color to desired color depth, plus a splash of vinegar in each color I planned to paint with. Remember though, where the colors meet, you will create a new color. Which can make for some beautiful effects!
Here are some links to yarn dyeing. Come back and let us know if you have dyed yarn, so we can check it out!
http://kathrynivy.com/patterns/extras/dyeing-yarn/ check out the gorgeous colors from an Easter Egg Dye Kit!
linked up to Made By You Mondays


This Christmas, get creative and make your gifts extra special with handmade wrapping paper. Okay, we are not going as far as actually making the paper; instead, this is about personalizing brown kraft paper with your own hand-drawn print. Believe it or not, this holiday DIY is super simple and involves an essential tool from your holiday baking kit—a rolling pin!
Wooden Rolling Pin, IKEA, $5.99
Roll of Brown Kraft Paper, Dollar Store, $1.25
Foam Paper Pack, Dollar Store, $1.00
Craft Paint, Dollar Store, $1.00
Martha Stewart Decopauge Glue, $7.99
Step One: Gather together your foam paper and scissors and get to work creating the “stamps” for your printed paper. I went with a deer/Christmas tree/triangle theme but you could do anything from snowmen to little boughs of holly or even a completely abstract or geometric print. This is a great project for kids, too, because they can let their imagination run wild!
Step Two: Using the decopauge glue, start gluing your foam shapes in place on the rolling pin. I recommend using a wooden rolling pin but if you are using a plastic or metal one, you will need to use a stronger glue for the foam shapes to stay attached. Once all of the shapes have been glued let the rolling pin dry over night.
Step Three: On a spare piece of cardboard or foam core, pour out some of your craft paint and spread out to the approximate width and length of your rolling pin design.
Step Four: Roll the rolling pin in the paint until all of your shapes are completely coated in paint. Sometimes rolling pins are not completely round (though they should be), so you might need to touch up some of the shapes with a paintbrush before rolling on paper.
Step Five: Tape your sheet of brown paper to your table. Starting in the left hand upper corner, begin to roll your design smoothly and firmly down the paper.
Step Six: Repeat Step Five until you reach the edge of the paper. Allow to dry.
Hurrah, you have your first piece of custom-printed wrapping paper! I added some striped washi tape to my gifts instead of ribbon. Now, gather your gifts and get wrapping.


This session was everything my photographer heart could dream of! What made it so unique and special was not just the insanely beautiful waterfall view but the amazing couple I got to photograph.
Nikki and Dylan are the sweetest, most laid back, trusting, and easy to get a long with people! We were laughing and joking throughout the entire session which resulted in such joyful and fun photos!
Nikki and I had been texting back and forth leading up to the session trying to pick out the final outfits and I loved from the start Nikki had a vision of wanting to have an adventurous session and to get in the water!
The three of us had such a great time and it’s couples like these two who make my job feel like anything but work. I can’t wait for their upcoming wedding this fall at Bohemia River Overlook, it’s going to be such a beautiful day!
I want to give a shoutout to my amazing former bride, Lauren, for connecting us! A special thanks also to Allie from Salon 8736 who did Nikki’s hair and Julie from Spa on the Avenue who did Nikki’s make-up.
Enjoy all of these adventurous engagement photos of Dylan and Nikki!
Hair | Allie at Salon 8736
Make-Up | Julie at Spa on the Avenue


IWC is renowned for bold design with no-compromise engineering coupled with traditional watchmaking it had been among the first companies to make a highly antimagnetic design. IWC watch always is available in a distinctive design, its watches also combines the skill. For instance, the IWC Da Vinci Vintage Replica is tribute to some famous artist-Leonardo Da Vinci.
IWC introduced a wrist watch named after him due to his revolutionary thought process within the late 1960s. The very first Da Vinci model surprised watch aficionados having a special quality which has continued to be distinctive with this family to date. Many groundbreaking improvements from IWC have first been produced for use within a Da Vinci.
If you wish to possess a unique watch, you can look at the replica replica Da Vinci watch. It boast tonneau-formed cases constructed from platinum, titanium, 18-karat white-colored or 18-karat rose gold, or stainless. Additionally, it feature probably the most complex and carefully built installments of any watch around the marker. It truly is a marvel of precision engineering. Consider the sides from the cases for among the multi-piece construction and fine finishing.
Things are well built-into the look, the crown is small but simple to manipulate and also the pyramid-formed pushers work nicely and match the situation perfectly without sticking out an excessive amount of. Everything looks hefty and hewn from solid while still retaining very delicate surface finishing. It's large although not extra-large, ideal for a contemporary formal watch. The look is capped having a lightly curved azure very with anti-reflective treatment, as the caseback features an exhibit window to demonstrate the in-house chronograph calibre.
The skill watch never from dated. The replica IWC Da Vinci watch although be a perfect watch in daily existence, but additionally a awesome artwork for you personally. Overall, it's a spectacular watch. After putting on them on my small wrist for some time I truly grew to become keen on the look. The look is bold and stylish, it really is an outfit watch out for man.


|Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/21/12 1:26 PM|
With every ajax update I get , the memory goes up and
I need your help.
1. Jsfiddle (http://jsfiddle.net/kapilrakh/UUnwU/8/
In this fiddle, I have tried to simulate the problem by mapping
the data again with existing model. Ideally the data would be new with every
request ( that is set to happen in 10 seconds interval) .
However everytime I use ko.mapping.fromJS, the memory goes up.
2. Local folder ( see attachment )
In this folder I have an html file and all the js files. This file should be opened with IE as its reading a local file to get the JSON (chrome won’t allow it). All you need to simulate the test is download and unzip the folder , Open html file and click on the link which triggers update cycle.
As with every update, IE memory goes up.
Here is a sieve screenshot.
Your help is greatly appreciated. I may have not written an elegant jsfiddle but I hope you understand the problem.
(The object viewModel need to be preserved as I need to let user select a few items and send a different request.)
Please let me know if there is any other approach to better manage memory. The app is supposed to run for days.
Thanks and waiting for the reply.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/21/12 1:28 PM|
The sieve shows similar statistics when the local html file is used.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/22/12 8:15 PM|
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Paradigm||7/22/12 10:57 PM|
Have a look at http://jsfiddle.net/UUnwU/11/ and see if it helps you. You may need to modify your code to suit the example but memory seems to be stable in chrome where before it was forever increasing.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||szabolc...@gmail.com||7/22/12 11:35 PM|
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Paradigm||7/22/12 11:39 PM|
What's the correct route to take for this case then? Setting the variable to null?
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||szabolc...@gmail.com||7/23/12 12:03 AM|
I don't know, honestly. If delete "seems to work" for you, use it, but technically it shouldn't (and it returning false indicated it couldn't remove the object). Until all references are destroyed to an object, the GC will not throw it away and knockout does way too much "magic" (especially the automapper) in the background (an even if you manage to clean up references, the gc still is a bitch; just take a look at about:memory).
Right now we're struggling with our single page app like mad, to increase performance and decrease memory usage: it's an uphill battle. Yours:
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Paradigm||7/23/12 12:29 AM|
Removing the var before vm makes delete return true and the used memory is even lower. This creates a global though so if that delete fails for whatever reason (not that there is a glaring reason why it would fail) you now would have large variables being created in global scope.
Thanks for letting me know delete doesn't work for those cases, I wasn't aware of its proper usage.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/23/12 4:30 AM|
Removing the var keyword before vm didn't help either. Here is updated jsfiddle with that minor change.
Google chrome task manager showed constant increase in memory. The jsfiddle didn't work in IE.
I need to have the viewModel updated rather than deleting and recreating it. (I need that for further processing. e.g. selecting few rows out of them using checkbox and sending it to the server for another operation.)
Thanks for your replies.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Paradigm||7/23/12 5:39 AM|
Clearing the interval seems to trigger garbage collection in Chrome at least. I've had it running for 10 minutes and it hasn't surpassed 95,000K which is OK considering jsfiddle is around 50,000K itself.
Just remember to avoid anonymous functions and you'll need to internalise as many as you can across your whole Knockout codebase to see any marked improvement as one stray anonymous function that avoids garbage collection could bring your application to a crawl.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/23/12 5:51 AM|
clearInterval(intervalID); has essentially stopped the 10 seconds update cycle. The call viewModel.show(); executes only once hence no memory increase.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Paradigm||7/23/12 6:24 AM|
Of course it does, sorry about that, wasn't thinking properly.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Paradigm||7/23/12 7:01 AM|
Last try and I'm out.
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/46514/index.html (I don't think jsfiddle is best for measuring memory usage)
Memory usage: hovers around 170,000K even after 60 cycles (10 minutes) but is stable.
There are way too many items on the DOM in this test that the browser becomes laggy when scrolling but I don't think this is a memory issue, more a processing/rendering problem. I'd look into paginating the amount of items on a page at any given time to improve usability. I wouldn't expect 6000 data-bound DOM elements to be responsive using Knockout or any library for that matter.
Another optimisation you could look into is to check your incoming data, compare it to your previously received data, and only re-map the stats attribute if the incoming data is different.
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/23/12 7:52 AM|
Thanks Paradigm. The performance of the page is great..I am going to focus on the optimisation now..
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Roy Jacobs||7/23/12 11:34 AM|
You've also opened an issue for knockout.mapping discussing this. Is it okay to close it?
|Re: Knockout Memory Test Single Page Web App||Kapil Rakh||7/23/12 12:15 PM|
Yes. Thanks Roy for the replies.


Michael Webber, Community Director, 248-375-0858
TUESDAY, MARCH 30 & FRIDAY, APRIL 2, 2010
The goal of our annual Senior Easter Baskets project is to bring a little joy straight to the doorsteps of home-bound seniors in our area. On Good Friday (April 2), we will fan out across the city and deliver bags full of food, candy, and household items to recipients of the Older Persons Center Meals on Wheels program. All members are invited to contribute to this rewarding project by participating in the assembly or delivery of the bags. Assembly will take place on Tuesday, March 30, at 6:30 pm at the Rochester Hills City Hall on Avon Road. The bags will be available for drivers to pick up at the assembly event or through delivery to you prior to Friday, April 2. Call Michael Webber, Senior Easter Basket chairperson, for further details at 248-375-0858.


As soon as we got the kids off to bed tonight I whipped out the piles of ornaments, coloring books, crayons, bags of popcorn, holiday cards, candy canes, and assorted supplies that have been multiplying like bunnies and began assembling this years Christmas Goodie Bags.
These must be my favorite to date. I even made some for the kids in my mom's group with the leftovers.
I am a working mother of now (Jan 2011) almost 3 year old twin boys. A confirmed procrastinator who likes to while away her free time surfing the web, cooking, digiscrapping, and of course taking pictures. Then again I would do pretty much anything to avoid cleaning the house. :)


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I took a break from youtube for a while, due to school and work and what not. The idea of making a tutorial was terrifying, and I think that’s perhaps why I put it off for so long. But I really do love making videos, so I decided to just give it a try and see where it goes.
For my first ever youtube tutorial, I thought I would do one of my favourite eye looks. This look is kind of a shimmery smokey-style eye with a sharp crease that is inspired by a cut crease but blended more softly.
I wear this look a lot at work for makeup galas and special occasions, and have gotten quite a few requests to make a tutorial on it!
Since it’s graduation/prom season, I figured that my first youtube tutorial should be more of a special occasion look.
-Smashbox New 24 Hour Eye Primer
-Sparkly Brown Pencil Liner-the name has worn off, but anything blendable will do!
-Stila “In The Light Palette” in the colours “Sandstone”, “Ebony”, and “Kitten”
-Mac “Brown Script” shadow
-Mac “Bare Study” Paint Pot
-Mac Penultimate Black Liquid Liner
-Covergirl Clump Crusher mascara
-Duo Lash Glue
-Quo Glamour Lashes #815
-Lise Watier Black Smokey Kohl Velours Liner
-Smashbox Photofinish Primer
-Mac Studio Sculpt Foundation
-Benefit Erase Paste Concealer
-Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer
-Cover FX Illuminating Setting Powder
-Benefit “Hoola” Bronzer
-Mac “Dame” Blush
-Mac “Subculture” liner
If you like this look, please like/subscribe! Now that I’m done school for the summer I’m going to try to start posting videos again and making a lot more tutorials!
Thank you for watching!


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Prof Roger Beuerman shared that there are between 250 million and 300 million people wearing contact lenses, and he believes tears can shed light on how contact lenses affect the eye.
Why the interest in contact lenses?
There are somewhere between
250 million and 300 million people
wearing them. Most people wear
contact lenses quite comfortably.
But a very small 0.0001 per cent,
which is still a number of people,
run into problems.
One problem we are particularly
interested in is that some people
get feelings of discomfort, as
though they have another condition
called dry eyes.
How do you know if contact lenses
affect the eyes?
We feel that tears can shed light
on this. Across the surface of your
cornea is a layer of fluid that contains
different types of proteins,
and which is only 15 microns thick.
When you look at my eyes or anyone’s
eyes, you are looking right
through the tears. In a way, it is not
even the cornea that influences the
light, it is the tear layer. So having a
proper tear layer on top of the
cornea ends up focusing light very
accurately onto your retina.
Some of the problems that you
can imagine happening with the
tear layer can then happen with
We have done studies looking at
contact lenses and know oxygen
passes pretty well through most
contact lenses nowadays. But do
the cells of your eye feel anything?
And the fact is, they do, they really
How do you study tears?
We start with two methods of collection.
One is the standard clinical
procedure called the Type-1
Schirmer’s test using a standardised
strip of filter paper. You hook it
over the eyelid and you close your
eyes and the tears get absorbed
onto the piece of filter paper.
The other way we do it is by using
a small micro-capillary tube. We collect
anywhere from one to five micro-
litres of tears through this
method. But for people with dry
eyes, this is really too much, so we
use the filter paper because it is easier
We then dilute the tears a bit and
remove any debris or dead cells in
the tears. The proteins in the sample
are then identified using machines
from Sciex – a life science
and analytical technologies firm –
which are hooked up to different
How do contact lenses affect the
Contact lenses change the constituents
in the tear layer. In a
normal eye, there are different
constituents coming from different
In people who wear contact
lenses, we find there is a bit more of
an inflammatory nature to the molecules
floating around in the tears.
So (this causes) a little bit of irritation irritation.
This occurs after wearing the
lenses for only about three hours. It
varies from person to person but
the best way to avoid all this is to
use daily disposable lenses.
What causes the irritation?
We can tell that the cells in the
cornea showed signs that they were
not getting as much oxygen as they
were getting before. It is not a
change that makes them die, but
changes their physiology. What’s
the long-term outcome of that? We
don’t really know. But we know
cells will adapt to conditions. Probably
what’s happening is the cells are
getting used to the conditions in
your eye. They don’t die but they
change how they function a little
bit to adapt to the new conditions.
Can this change eventually cause
In most people, no, but in a few
people it might. It might temporarily
change the thickness of the cornea;
the cornea might absorb a bit more
water but, after a while, it will pump
that out. In most people, the cells
adapt, and they do fine. Once in a
while, there might be somebody
whose cells don’t adapt as well. If the
cornea gets too thick, it changes the
way light bends and focuses on your
retina and affects vision.
Is there a difference between
wearing daily contact lenses and
extended-wear contact lenses?
If you have something in your eye
like a contact lens, which is a very
thin piece of hydrogel, and you are
walking around wearing that same
lens every day, you don’t really
know what it comes into contact
with and what it picks up. There are
lots of things floating around in the
air, like viruses, bacteria, fungi and
spores. Especially here in Southeast
Asia, where the weather is
wonderful for all types of microorganisms
to live. On the other
hand, if you change your lenses,
you have thrown out all the bad
stuff and you have nice clean lenses
Do cleaning solutions for contact
They work pretty well but at the
end of the day, you can say we are
all human and we are sloppy with
that. When we do studies on contact-
lens cases, we find a lot of
them have bugs growing in them.
What’s in a human teardrop?
Human tears contain water, electrolytes,
proteins, lipids and
other small molecules.
They act as both a delivery and
an excretory route for nutrients
and metabolic products of the
During waking hours, the delivery
of tears is continuous, but
fresh fluid remains in parts of the
eye until after the next blink,
when fluid is drawn to form what
is called the tear film or tear layer.
The stability of the tear layer is
important for maintaining the
health of the eye.
With age, the volume of tears
and the levels of the major tear
proteins in them tend to decline,
which result in drier eyes.
Scientists have studied tears,
using them as reference points to
measure the health of the eye.
They have also studied the chemicals
One study, for instance, found
that a woman’s tears of sadness may temporarily lower a man’s
testosterone level. The researchers
from Israel found that
men who sniffed the tears became
less sexually aroused than
when they sniffed saline solution.


The solely occasions we remember a florida locksmith is when many of us are locked from household or when toy trucks lost a key. Yet, we all cannot neglect their benefits in the smooth feature of your lives. Every day, dozens of people seek out the assistance of durham locksmithlocksmith durham north carolina with regards to home security requirements. If you want to help receive the best services regarding the best cost, anyone need to go with regard to an experienced professional having the right set connected with skills, areas of expertise and company qualities.
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Delta (DHS) Class of 1957 Alumni List
Help us Update the Delta 1957 Class List by adding any names missing from the list below:
1957 Class List
The top movie in theaters during 1957 was The Bridge on the River Kwai, grossing over $33,300,000 in its lifetime. The most popular television series for 1957 was I Love Lucy
Reunions and Delta High School News
More 1957 alumni from Delta HS Delta, CO have posted profiles on Classmates.com®. Click here to register for free at Classmates.com® and view other 1957 alumni.
Missing some friends from DHS that graduated with you in 1957? Check the list below that shows the Delta Delta, CO class of '57.


In the Middle East, a strong collectivist culture, based on extended family networks and kinship ties, creates interconnected relationships that blur boundaries between family and business. The traditional model of handing down control of family businesses has favoured male succession, as does legislation around inheritance.
Daughters have been overlooked for formal leadership succession, largely for cultural reasons, embedded in assumptions around the role of daughters once married – in many cases, they are no longer part of their ‘blood family’. There is a general lack of acceptance of women leading large businesses.
Despite the invisibility of women in formal leadership positions, research shows they are pivotal, taking on a buffer role in managing the relationship between the generations, but their value is rarely acknowledged.
Deeply ingrained succession patterns often mean male heirs have an expectation of taking over the business on graduation, while daughters expect to look for a job or create a business. Where daughters do join the family business, it is often to build a charitable arm or lead on limited projects. However, over the past decade, family businesses have undergone a radical shift in attitudes towards succession as population changes, and the number of female graduates, has influenced the succession pool.
The push to improve governance has brought in specialist family business consultants who look for talent and potential. Research by McKinsey in 2015 found companies with gender diversity in their leadership improved financial performance by 15%. Family businesses are therefore paying greater attention to female family members.
The entry of daughters into family businesses alters the dynamics and even the culture of the business, introducing different challenges. The younger generation has to overcome bias in how they are viewed by their parents, older family members, employees and other significant stakeholders.
For daughters, expectations around their roles in the family business extend to maintaining family roles – often described as “kinship roles” – aligned to the feminine qualities of nurturing and caring. This creates a tension for daughters and reinforces expectations around their involvement.
With family businesses, there is an implicit assumption that girls will be ‘good’ team players and endorse decisions made by their elders. When daughters do not conform, they are often sidelined or displaced by male siblings. Their credibility quickly erodes and their exit affects both the business and their relationship with their parents.
However, where family businesses have integrated daughters into the business, building strong working relationships, the impact has been huge. Creating a diverse and inclusive culture in family businesses powerfully challenges norms and behaviours established 20, 30 or even 50 years ago.
We have seen the impact in updated governance structures that no longer restrict succession to male heirs. Challenging the norm and bringing more women into leadership roles raises their visibility in the media. Power lists of family businesses identify 31 women in the Middle East.


ITANAGAR- Dr. Gamba Padu Riba of Arunachal Pradesh and , resident of Naharlagun, succumbed to COVID-19 and multiple organ failure on Tuesday. After about 37 days in the ICU, she breathed her last on November 9 at the New Delhi AIIMS.
Dr Gamba Padu Riba used to visit special children homes regularly with her husband Dr Komri Riba as a member of Helping Hands NGO for medical check up, said Robin Hibu, President, Helping Hands
Robin wrote in his time line ” Kabhi alvida na kehna dil se – painful life of corona warrior, late Dr Gamba Padu Riba who succumbed due to corona”.
Amidst these reach out to the needy patients beyond the call of her regular duties at Tomo Riba Hospital as senior physician, Dr Gamba Padu Riba was always available for medical counselling with enigmatic smile and few words of wisdom to patients .
Helping Hands will miss this ever ready sensible doctor, who have touched hundreds of needy hapless patients and children. Said Hibu.
villagers in Arunachal would also miss her regular medical camps under the banner Riba Foundation with Helping Hands NGO in remote areas with other doctors .


Put to the side the chance to consider your AC program. You should take the time right presently to get it completed, regardless of the fact that this really is anything you will maybe not do from time to time. Consider how hot night it seems to go into your home on the exceptional and accept heavenly climate hit that person. Think lying-in rest, extraordinary and incredible since there is a consistent course of air appearing out of the port nearby.
Today put to the side the chance to consider that second whenever the environmental change on for that first time each year. Similarly you some place inside you are aching that it starts and you have not utilized the air in different weeks, gets wonderful, and runs obviously. The undeniable actually, there’s for the most part the shot that anything will isolate or once the AC program is not in-dynamic use possibly a section will go south in these weeks. You scarcely at any point really grasp what will occur whenever the machine change on for that first time year, if you do not are experiencing the body broke down something like one time a year.
The ideal opportunity to plan the yearly exam for the system is just a little before you need to begin using the machine. Consider the month that you simply usually wind up trading it on and plan the body look for concerning multi month going previously. This ensures the machine completely saw as it relates time for you to switch the change and have the astounding climate spilling in the ports and continues being traded on. You will experience when you have beforehand had it seen with a certified, significantly more extricated up turning about the air for that first season of the entire year by domesticationsbedding. They will teach you if you will discover parts that need to wind up changed, with the schedule each month early you will have time moreover have them traded as significant and for you to get these fragments in. In case a certainly broad issue is that requires having the opportunity to be set, you by then ought to before long have occasion for the assistance bunch later on in and complete it going before the truly warm environment strikes.
Remember how essential your AC program is during the time’s pre-summer if you begin to scrutinize the criticalness of getting sorted out this yearly test. Close your eyes and brief oneself once the sparkle is a ton to keep outside how staggering the environment shows up Air Conditioner advantage review. It is super scarcely observable this tendency when you are glancing through the screen to piles of snow or great, yet every conceivable work to uncover to oneself the environment is also as major while the gleam. The sensation in the world is positively an overheated house. This happens once the AC program is not accurately saved with time, subsequently arranging this 1 visit going before the hot weeks may relinquish that trouble every one of you.


One of the top Joint Strike Fighter officials outlined the arguments he will present Wednesday to OSD's Program Analysis and Evaluation office, the Joint Evaluation Team, and the Cost Improvement and Analysis Group about why the program is not an additional two years behind schedule.
Dan Crowley, F-35 executive vice president and program manager for the Joint Strike fighter, told reporters after the roll out of the plane's carrier version that the Joint Evaluation Team had identified four areas that posed threats to the program's manufacturing; schedule and cost: personnel retention; software; and the frequency of flight tests.
The JET report found that the JSF program faced a likely delay of two years, Crowley said. Lockheed had manufacturing issues under control, while the JET had based it analysis "largely on legacy results" such as how the F-18 and other planes have fared in construction, Crowley said.
The second issue the JET identified is the kind of thing only a major defense program might suffer from -- how to intelligently and economically shed the 4,000 engineers who have made the program possible in the first place. Crowley said JSF should be able to shed half of those jobs by the end of the year and absorb many of the remaining positions inside the company.
One of the most ticklish issues facing the program is software development, according to the JET. Crowley said the program's software development "has been better than planned" in contrast to the JET's estimate that it would grow substantially. He pointed to the fact that, although the program is in the early stages of flight testing, they have "never had a jet abort because of software."
Finally, the issue that probably means the most in terms of pushing the program out of its scheduled envelope, is flight testing. The program projects 12 sorties a month but the JET thinks this is probably too optimistic, Crowley said.
Boil all this down and Crowley said he believes the JET is judging JSF by the false standards of past programs because they don't have data from programs managed as JSF is being developed and managed. They are being conservative, in effect, because they don't how else to be until the JSF program proves them wrong.
We'll see who's right and whether JET, PA and E and the CAIG believe the Joint Strike Fighter Program is flying the right course.
Full disclosure: Lockheed flew me and a small group of journalists down to Fort Worth and paid for us to stay in a hotel.


ADP and Paychex are notorious for using the ploy of payroll integration as a main selling feature for their particular platforms.
They also work with local advisers for these types of plants in hopes that the advisers will refer other clients back for payroll services
In our fifty-years of retirement plan consulting I have seen many changes In the industry and ADP and Paychex are just two of a myriad of product proliferators.
As the prior adviser posted it would behoove you to spend some extra time understanding the landscape of vendors and solutions so you end up with a plan that matches your demographics And price points.
Ideally you should end up with a full open architecture platform without being bound to revenue-sharing and approved products on lists which are predetermined by the platform
If you want any additional help feel free to reach out.
And by the way you are not bound to the advisor being recommended by ADP
You could go out and interview any number.
Just a quick point here - no, you don't have to go with any suggested advisor. If you've already selected ADP as the vendor, then when you do a search for an advisor, look for one who has experience working with them.
Each vendor has strengths and weaknesses and you'll want someone familiar with the usual stumbling blocks and way of service. Example: ADP has a form for everything and they like THEIR forms only! But, sometimes you need to put particular information on the form as a work-around to accomplish what you want to do. Also, the "seamless" integration isn't always seamless, especially on the smaller plan product. You'll want an advocate on your side who has already navigated some of this so you don't add work to your/your administrative staff's plate trying to figure it out yourself.
(And now for the shameless plug: I just put a guide up on my page for selecting an advisor.)
hi John, You do not have to use ADP advisors. I would also tell you that I am sure there are better providers out there than ADP. I would suggest before you implement the change, take a good look at our sources that disclose their fees and investment selection. Slowing down the process by a month is insignificant if it means getting the right plan. Good luck
Hi John - To answer your question directly: NO! If this is an advisor paid for by your company I would see if your company would be willing to pay for an advisor of your choice. If the ADP advisor's fee is baked into your fees, I would definitely take exception to this if you do not want his/her advisor services. You shouldn't pay for something you do not want!
John, if you are a responsible plan fiduciary, you are required to preform a prudent due diligence process when selecting any service provider, including a financial advisor for the plan. This means you are ultimately responsible for selecting a quality and cost effective advisor for the plan (assuming you determined the plan should have an advisor). Simply accepting the advisor suggested by ADP is not prudent without the due diligence process. If you are only a participant, then you can get advice from anyone you want. You may be wise to take advantage of the availability of advice from the plan advisor that your plan sponsor has chosen, but you do not have to take any advice from anyone.
If you care to clarify your role in the plan and the circumstances of the particular situation, I would be happy to be more specific.
Beware of record keepers that have created a commodity service. In other words, the provider offers 401k recordkeeping as an additional service at a very low cost. They hire the minimum number of employees and use systems that can automate all functions. While recordkeeping service has gotten better due to technological advances, there are so many variables involved with a plan that good, qualified employees are necessary to avoid going afoul of the many rules that plans must follow.
The IRS and DOL do not care that a plan was done at low cost and by incompetent processors. They put full responsibility on the plan trustees to make sure the 401k plan is administered correctly. Be sure whoever you hire is capable of keeping your plan in compliance. The best investment advisor for a 401k plan is a person who has worked in the retirement space a long time. You can choose whoever you decide is capable for your ADP plan.
We would suggest you look for a fee-only advisor, who can hopefully show you how to build a plan using "unbundled" service providers. That means, the record keeper is separate from the custodian, and the advisor is separate from them both. An advisor could also help you understand the cost involved in any approach. Costs can vary dramatically, and is no predictor of quality of the offering. Getting a few bids would help you show you have done your due dilligence, and may help you understand the landscape better.
Depending on the assets in the plan, you may find that you can have a plan with significant number of choices, using a combination of index ETF's and/or best-in-class active managers.
If you are the plan sponsor, that is, acting on behalf of the company and responsible for selecting the company 401(k), then you can select another financial advisor. My guess is that you are an employee and your company has already selected a new provider, you have had contact with the financial advisor of the plan, and you have not been impressed.
Every 401(k) has a financial advisor for the plan. Among other duties, they help select the investment options that are available in the plan. These investment options should make available all of the major asset classes available. As an employee, you have to invest your contributions amongst the investment options available. Depending on your risk tolerance, you should be able to set up an appropriate portfolio ranging from conservative to aggressive. You may not love all of the actual investment choices offered, but they should still cover the major asset classes. Typically they will also offer a default investment option that is considered a reasonably safe investment along with a risk-based group of asset allocation funds and/or an age-based group of funds that will automatically get more conservative as you get closer to retirement age. In just reading this, you may be thrown off by the terminology, but when you look at the actual investment choices being offered, I think it will start to make sense.
The financial advisor of the plan may or may not, offer to you as an employee, recommendations as to where to allocate your money. You, and not the financial advisor manage your account. If he is the financial advisor of the plan, you, as an employee, have no control over that. But you don’t have to accept him as your personal advisor. You can take none, some, or all of his advice.
Though you can, and should, seek assistance if you feel you need it, you make your own decisions on how to invest. You should have received an employee handbook. Some of them are quite helpful. It will include a ‘Risk Tolerance‘ questionnaire. and a lot of the questions may seem to not make sense; go with your instinct. There are no right or wrong answers to the questions, Score yourself, and see where you fall among the spectrum of conservative to moderate to growth. This in itself will be a big starting point for you.
You can seek the assistance of trusted friends and neighbors. If you have a financial advisor, you can seek advice there as well.. You can do your own research and develop your own investment style; just be disciplined. You can subscribe to companies that will provide you advice on how to allocate your account. They will charge what they consider a nominal fee.


SME broker hails ‘solid performance’
Xbridge, which trades as Simply Business, reported that its pre-tax profit rose to £2.89m in the year to December, up 8% from £2.68m a year earlier.
The online SME broker said turnover rose to £29.1m from £25.1, while net profit slipped to £2.17m from £2.78m as a result of a higher tax bill, according to documents lodged with Companies House.
Simply Business said the rise in turnover stemmed from a “solid performance within new business sales and a growing renewals book”.
It said it met its profit targets for the year, and added that it “continues to invest heavily in its proprietary technology, sales and customer facing infrastructure, enabling the business to evolve rapidly while also providing excellent customer service”.


Thank you for joining me for the third segment of The Launching Pad’s Small Steps: Big Leaps series aimed at helping Americans from diverse professional backgrounds embark on successful entrepreneurial careers and thereby revive the U.S. economy. For more information on this series, check out my April 2nd post, and to join this movement to grow the economy through large- and small-scale entrepreneurship, please check out The Startup Stand.
In the first two installments of this series, we have discussed identifying a need in your (broadly defined) community and identifying, utilizing, and developing your talents and skills. The third critical step to launching a successful venture is conducting market research, whether formally or informally.
The potential market for your products or services can be defined as the pool of consumers or businesses who would consider purchasing them. In other words, they have a need that your business might help them address. It is key to clearly define your market before endeavoring to conduct research. For example, if want to open an athletic store, you need to decide if you will cater to runners, swimmers, golfers, tennis players or all of the above as well as if you will focus just on one segment like footwear or broaden to include apparel, equipment and more. Once you define the scope of your potential business and the corresponding potential market for your products and services, you need to determine why a consumer or business would purchase from you rather than a competitor. Do you offer the lowest price? Unparalleled service? A unique product mix not available elsewhere? Before investing significant time and money in actually starting your business you need to find your niche and determine your clients’ willingness to pay for your offering.
To obtain such crucial information, entrepreneurs use a variety of resources to conduct market research. Broad sources of demographic information, such as your local chamber of commerce, the U.S. Census Bureau, and the SBA, provide valuable information to business owners and should be explored thoroughly particularly as you consider where to locate your business (if you will have a customer-facing physical location). One invaluable tool that was made available last September by the SBA is SizeUp. With SizeUp, you can input your business’s industry and city and it maps out your competition, highlighting areas with abundant competition in orange and areas with a lot of potential customers but few competitors in green. Your competitors’ prices and performance are also available which is helpful for new and expanding businesses. SizeUp can also point you to the best channels through which to advertise. The tool will show you areas with the highest annual revenue for your selected industry, and you can tweak the results based on audiences you wish to target; for example, you can use income level and other filters to focus on specific consumers.
Be sure to also conduct your own primary research to get information specific to your particular, unique business and the sub-set of consumers you hope to attract. A few research tools to consider include interviews, surveys, questionnaires, and focus groups, which can identify critical information about the importance of price and certain features as well as the strengths and weaknesses of competitors. For example, before I started my company, Stratus Prep, I held focus groups to determine the market size and willingness to pay for industry-leading test prep and admissions counseling services. This process also helped me identify which specific features were most important to potential customers (such as weekend availability and the unmet need for study space open to students). I then compared the consumer information I gathered to my cost structure to ensure that even after expenses like paying employees, renting space and developing materials, the business would be profitable in the short- or medium-term based on the price consumers were willing to pay. Fortunately, this research paid off as we were profitable within our first four months of operations and have never been in the red since then.
It is important to be open-minded and adaptable when conducting market analysis as some of the feedback you hear may not be exactly what you were expecting and hoping for. You may feel attached to your business idea and wish to change nothing about it, but after conducting a survey maybe you find that customers are looking for a slightly different service or additional features. Do not scrap your idea, but do consider adjustments to accommodate your customers’ demands. Remember that you are just one consumer and likely a slightly idiosyncratic one at that. You want your business to have relatively broad appeal.
A great example of a company which performed such market analysis is JetBlue, which prior to launching, determined that airline passengers cared more about comfortable leather seating and TV entertainment than a hot meal, a first class cabin, and the other “amenities” offered by legacy carriers. JetBlue invested in upgraded seating and TVs and emphasized a relaxing, calm journey at a relatively modest price. The strategy campaign was so successful that other airlines soon followed suit and numerous imitators emerged.
Another example of a business that identified and catered to unmet consumer needs is Starbucks, which turned an everyday beverage into an experience. While
By doing your homework before starting your business, you can be assured that your product or service is properly priced and positioned and you are offering the most sought after attributes. This will make your company a powerful force in a competitive business landscape.
You are now armed with the first three steps to starting your own business and revolutionizing not only your economic future but also that of your community and the nation. Check back next Tuesday for step 4 on finding and leveraging operational efficiencies.
What have you discovered through your market research? Let me know in the comments, email me at firstname.lastname@example.org, or contact me via Twitter at @shawnpoconnor. If you would like to be a Startup Stand featured entrepreneur, send me your bio and picture for a chance to be featured in our weekly email and inspire others to pursue entrepreneurship!


lols I like how its starting. Just I don't think someone would hold a cam like that though. Wonder what kind of medium are you going to use. moiderr
Mad looks like she's floating though and not resting on the seat. Try to fix it by using perspective a bit.hitedne
ok. well it's just a sketch.
yea. but I like how its comin out. Its due the end of the month. so Keep posting.
I'm thinking the pants and underoos would be stretched across both legs, instead of one on each.
Oh, you may also want to make it so that most of the image is seen through the camera, and only the legs are left out, but that can be seen in regular view, or vice versa.Maybe if you tried an under shot, like someone sneaking in under the stall it may work better, since that's probably what the peeper is looking to see anyway.
well if i eliminate the leg, that would also eliminate the theme of breaking and entering.word verification: pussogrolol.
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Alright guys, I'm gonna start making some LED rings for some of my customers' boats pretty soon. I've experimented with a few things so far:
For cupholders, I've put a single LED facing up in the drain hole of a cupholder, sealed it, then covered with a lens. The lens was cut out with a hole saw, sanded smooth to look frosted, then sealed in. The center hole was plugged with a white nylon cap. It's decent, but could be better. I have pics, but they're not uploaded yet.
I'm considering building a router table. I've already got a 4X8 rolling workbench in the shop, so I'm gonna integrate a router into it. I'll top it first with a full sheet of 3/4" Melamine, then I was going to pick up a Rockler table plate (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=21299&filter=router%20table
), and a Craftsman Professional 2 1/4hp router. The router would be at one end, upside down, mounted with that router plate. Let me know if I'm on the right track.
I chose the CMan router because I'll probably only use this on the table. I have a smaller trim router that I use sometimes also.
What's the best way to cut out these lenses or make LED rings? I use Oznium's LED's so that's covered. Also, how are they frosted? Just by sanding them with finer grit sandpaper? I used a sandblaster on one, but the finish was too coarse and it left the plastic looking brownish.
I think I've seen where some shops have CNC machines to do this with, but that's more than I intend to deal with.
Any help is appreciated. Again, this is for local customers of mine. They won't be marketed or sold online or here.....


The Holy Bible is our roadmap in life written by saints, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and known to be authentic and miraculous by the one, holy, universal, and apostolic Church. As Heart of God, King David tells us, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” With this belief, we search this book undoubtedly for the way to everlasting life.
So, how should we proceed to read and understand the Holy Bible? You may be a first-timer or a life-long reader, either way, these 9 tips can help elevate your spiritual journey.
There is no one way to do so, but we can help provide some tips to consider reading the Word of God:
- Read with Reverence. Before even starting we must consider the Bible holy and read it with reverence. Handle it with care. In it you will find a way to lead your life, you will find words of comfort and guidance. To our fathers, the prophets and apostles, our Lord often taught by His voice and by revelation and while this may be the case for us as well, we must consider this our main way of hearing His word and revelation.
- Pray for Guidance. Try to pray before and after reading the Bible that God may guide you every step of the way. Remember it is not just any book. “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)
- Accept it as Truth. Along with that, we must aim to be obedient as it is God’s word. Before even reading it we should accept it as Truth. Even though it may seem to be difficult sometimes, with an open and accepting heart the guidance of the Holy Spirit will enlighten the scripture you read. Even if you do not understand, don’t give up. Pray about what you read and give yourself time to digest the words on the pages. Always ask, what is God teaching me through this passage?
- Be consistent. Aim to have a consistent reading schedule for holy scripture. Show your commitment to the word of God by the amount of time you invest in it. Do not be like those that, "fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away..." when you read the Word of God. For the Word of God is sweet but we must not think it is enough to read it once in a while, we must create a relationship of great depth with it. To know ourselves as Christians, we must read God’s manual on how to be so. Reading the Bible is just as important as a prayer to your spiritual life, in prayer you talk to God and through the Bible, God talks back. (Among other ways, of course.)
- Read it in its entirety. When reading the Bible, don’t read it in an isolated fashion. Aim to get the big picture as well as the meaning of singular verses. Looking at only the context of a singular verse leads to misinterpretation. Try to read a book or a chapter in the Bible from the beginning and finish it as it was written (and meant to be read).
- Discover its history. Research the context of the book you are reading. (ie who wrote it, why, where, to whom, when?) Knowing the history behind the books that we read can prove to be extremely beneficial in understanding the big picture.
- Use a guiding question. Also, you may find it helpful to use a guiding question to motivate your reading if you find yourself needing an impetus to read. An example may be: “What does the Holy Bible say about Christian virtues?”
- Resources. Utilize resources to help you understand. These may include online Bible studies that can be found on http://suscopts.org/diocese/bishop/bible-study/, http://www.orthodoxsermons.org/,https://www.youtube.com/user/franthonymesseh, simply searching the book which you wish to read. It is always a great option to also reach out to clergy, deacons, and servants at your Church to seek further guidance. It’s important not to rely on none Orthodox resources especially online if you do not feel strong enough to decipher heretical teachings if you come across them.
- Get a Reading Buddy. Find a reading buddy to keep you accountable and to discuss scripture with. “Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up.” Ecc 4:9-12
Though these guidelines are not exhaustive, they serve as a basis to move forward with reverence and intentionally. As they say, you are what you read, watch, and listen too...how blessed would it be to ooze scripture! May God help us to be faithful in our pursuit of Him and His life-giving word.
Reminder: *When we have questions, always seek further guidance from clergy, deacons, and fathers.*
Glory to God,


One of the great things about living in a metropolis like Sydney is that there is access to many specialist professionals. It does not matter what kind of help you might need, you are able to find it in Sydney and there are plenty of professionals offering hypnotherapy services. In choosing which professional to visit, it is important to take your time and find out about the experience of that professional in the field of hypnotherapy.
People come to practise hypnotherapy from many different access points; some may be psychiatrists, psychologists, counsellors, psychotherapists, social workers, nurses, dentists or clinical hypnotherapists who specialise in hypnosis and related subjects. Training is also equally diverse as some professionals may only have done a short course, but clinical hypnotherapists may have spent years studying hypnosis and the art and science of clinical hypnotherapy.
Always look for a practitioner of hypnotherapy who tells you about their training and puts it on their website. If they are well trained they will advertise it loud and clear. Just because someone may be trained well in medicine and psychology does not necessarily mean they have very much experience or knowledge in hypnotherapy because it is a speciality in and of itself.
As with all professional health fields clinicians need to belong to professional associations that monitor their practice and require them to be engaged in constant retraining every year. Professional associations also require their members to be engaged in what is called professional supervision on an ongoing basis with other clinicians to be able to discuss their cases, confidentially, with other clinicians to get an objective point of views on how to help their clients.
Practitioners of hypnotherapy in Sydney are also covered under the New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission under the Public Health (General) Amendments) 2008, of the Public Health Act 1991. Practitioners are required, by law, to enter into a contract with their clients governed by a minimum code of conduct. That Code of Code must be displayed on the wall in their practice for the public to see.
Hypnotherapy is a really powerful modality that can help you change your mind, behaviour and even the ways your body works. It has been used for thousands of years as a healing discipline. It is well respected within medicine and the psychological disciplines. When used respectfully and professionally it can change people’s lives very quickly indeed and help you to achieve your goals.
Because the practice of hypnotherapy in NSW and Sydney is not a registered profession with the government, it is important to ensure that the practitioner you choose has the right qualifications, professional associations and is abiding by a peer reviewed standard of practice.
When choosing a hypnotherapist in Sydney do not choose the cheapest option. Like anything else in life, you get what you pay for. Choose the therapist because they have the right qualifications and experience to help someone like you and they know about the condition or issue for which you may seek help. When you do that, hypnotherapy can be a very good experience for you and help you move positively towards your goals.
Dr Tracie O’Keefe DCH, BSHc, ND – Sydney is an internationally recognised and qualified clinical hypnotherapist, psychotherapist, counsellor, medical herbalist, medical nutritionist and naturopath who holds a degree, post-graduate advanced diploma and doctorate in clinical hypnotherapy and a degree in natural medicine. She is the Director of the Australian Health and Education Centre in Sydney. For many years Tracie has helped thousands of people with hypnotherapy to go on to have a happier more positive life.
Dr Tracie O’Keefe DCH, BHSc, ND, Clinical Hypnotherapist, Psychotherapist. Counsellor, PACFA registered Mental Health Professional and Naturopath In Sydney. You can get help by booking an appointment with her at Australian Health & Education Centre.


MemberMarch 16, 2007 at 11:08 pm
I’m John Stevenson and I’m struggling to replace my avatar
looking forward to the Rugby World Cup for which here are new rules;
1) The England team will chat about the weather, wave hankies in the air and attach bells to their ankles before moaning about
how they invented the game and gave it to the world, but no one appreciates them.
2) The Scotland team will chant “You lookin’ at me Jimmy?” before each of them smash a bottle of beer over their opponents’ heads.
3) The Ireland team will split into two, with the Southern half performing a Riverdance, while the Northerners march the Traditional
route from their dressing room to the pitch, via their opponents dressing room.
4) Unfortunately the Committee was unable to accept the Welsh proposal to form a choir and sing Tom Jones’ “It’s Not Unusual”.
5) Argentina will unexpectedly invade a small part of opposition territory, claim it as their own “Las In-Goals-Areas” and have to be
forcibly removed by the match stewards.
6) Two members of the South African team will claim to be more important than the other 13 whom they will imprison between
the posts. These two will then go about selecting the best parts of the pitch to settle on and claim that they have been there for centuries.
7) The Americans will not attend until almost full time. In future years they will amend the records to show that they were in fact
the most important team in the tournament and Hollywood will make a blockbuster film called ‘Saving Flanker Ryan’.
8) Five of the Canadian team will sing La Marseillaise and hold the rest of the team to ransom.
9) The Italian team will arrive in Armani gear, sexually harass the female officials and then prepare pasta dishes, which they will flog
to the crowd for a fortune.
10) The Japanese will shock fans buy demonstrating how to capture a whale for scientific research buy harpooning an opposition prop.
11) The French won’t have a pre-match display and will simply hide in fear in the dressing room for the whole match.
12) The Australians will have a BBQ on their side of the field and invite the opposition over before the game. The food and alcohol
will be in abundance and by the start of the game no-one will remember what they came to the stadium for. After some
streaking, the singing of dirty songs and the occasional chunder everyone will go home thoroughly convinced it was a bloody
13) The Moroccan team will quietly pray during the first half and then launch suicide attacks against the opposition after the break.
Unfortunately, this strategy works well for the first game only, after which Morocco is forced to withdraw from the Rugby World
Cup due to lack of players.
14) Samoa will prepare a huge feast in the middle of the pitch by digging a large hole and filling it with burning embers. They invite
the opposition over by saying, “We’d like to have you for dinner”. It’s only when the opposition


A reader Valerie writes,
I am currently under contract with my iPhone 5 through AT&T and I’m thinking about cancelling my contract and going prepaid. It’s a toss up if I should stay with AT&T or go over to Net10. If I stick with AT&T would I need to mess with setting up the data and MMS? And if I went with Net10 would I need both the AT&T and T-Mobile SIM cards to set up data and MMS?
Thanks for writing. You definitely can save over half the cost of your AT&T plan by switching to Net10.
First before canceling your contract, you need to find out the cost of the early termination fees for AT&T. Luckily, AT&T has a web page for that. http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/articles-resources/early-term-fees.jsp It costs $325 and you can subtract $10 for each month of service you have completed on your contract. Since the iPhone 5 came out last Septembe, at most you would be subtracting $60-$70. Switching to Net10 could easily save you $40 a month or $480 a year. The payoff for you would really come in the second year. For the first year you would need to subtract your early termination fees from your savings.
I haven’t signed up for the AT&T prepaid service yet. So I don’t know what is required to configure data and mms on their prepaid service.
Best case is you put their SIM card in and it all works. If it doesn’t, configuring data only is pretty easy. You go to a web site and download a configuration file. MMS is a little harder, you need to know the settings needed for MMS and use the SIM swap message to hack around the fact that Apple hid the menu. I’d also note, that many iPhone users send picture messages to other iphone users and end up using iMessage versus MMS without even knowing it.
It’s annoying to configure, but you stand to save a lot of money. Once you get it configured, you don’t really think about it. If you update the software on your iPhone, you may need to set it up again. I’d recommend reading through the post on my blog. I have discussed the pros and cons of Net10, T-Mobile, and StraightTalk.
To make an informed choice, you should have a sense of how heavy of a voice, data, and MMS user you really are. The AT&T prepaid is 1GB of Data for $65 a month. Net10 is 1.5GB for $50. If you live in a city where T-Mobile has upgraded there support for iPhone you can get a great deal on truly unlimited data!
If you are a light data and voice user, there are even cheaper options. Also remember with prepaid, you are only committed for a month. You can jump from service to service until you find one you like.
Feel free to email me if you have more questions.


The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Germany’s international development organisation, the Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
The MOU serves to implement the second phase of a multinational project aimed at improving the sustainability of the textile and garment sector.
Ministry secretary of state Mom Vannak and GIZ Country Director Günter Riethmacher inked the agreement on the Promoting Sustainability in the Textile and Garment Industry in Asia (Fabric) project at the latter’s headquarters on Tuesday.
Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Sam Heng witnessed the signing ceremony.
Implemented in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Myanmar and Pakistan since 2016, and Vietnam, which was just included this year, the project will be extended until March 31, 2021, and cost €6 million ($6.7 million).
In Cambodia, the collaboration is focused on information and contact exchanges between state and private institutions within the textile and garment sector, with national and regional levels.
This is in order to strengthen compliance with sustainability standards “as stipulated in the Kingdom’s Labour Law and international conventions ratified by Cambodia”, the ministry said.
Through the project, the GIZ “provided the ministry with financial and technical assistance to make the inspection system in Cambodia more transparent, effective and credible”.
Moreover, “the ministry is [also] provided with aid to carry out actions in support of the strategic plan for gender mainstream in the labour and vocational training sector to promote gender equality and empower women who work in the textile and garment sector”.
Speaking to reporters after the signing, Nguy Rith, the ministry’s undersecretary of state, said the project would enable Cambodia to “exchange good experiences with and learn from other countries involved in the project in regard to the successful implementation of sustainable practices in the sector”.
Rith stressed: “We have obtained the achievements to the extent that work inspection groups, orders and manuals are established to solve conflicts for law enforcement participation.
“This successful project enabled GIZ to establish a second project to promote social standards in up to six countries.”
Since its inception in 2016 up to last year, he said the project had resulted in highly successful outcomes.
Similarly, Sam Heng lauded the project, saying that the assistance provided by GIZ has improved the effectiveness of the work inspection system and conditions in the textile and garment sector.
He noted that, so far this year, disputes in the industry had been solved more effectively.
“Through this [project], I believe our aim to strengthen the sustainability of the sector would be accomplished successfully,” Sam Heng said.


Pat Lamanna & Steve Suffet present Pete & Woody - An Unlikely Friendship
This year marks the centenary of the birth of folk icon Pete Seeger. Sadly Pete left us in 2014 at the age of 94 but to mark his hundredth birthday we have a special presentation by two people who knew him well.
Steve and Pat are respected New York based folk singers in their own right and they both knew Pete as a friend from the NYC scene. Tonight they will tell the story of the unlikely friendship between the Harvard drop-out from the family of folk song collectors and classical music composers who threw in his lot with the banjo and the Oaklahoma troubadour and political militant.
The ripples from this friendship continue to influence folk and other music to this day.
Pat Lamanna has been writing and performing songs all her adult life. Her songs have been praised highly by Pete Seeger, Peter Yarrow, and others. They have a strong folk influence, and cover issues such as peace, religion and the environment.
Steve Suffet is a regular visitor to the club and is a Greenwich Village folk singer of the old school.
This evenings performance is our contribution to the 2019 We Shall Overcome Campaign raising food, cash, clothing, bedding, furniture and electrical goods for those struggling at the sharp end of Tory Austerity.
Admission £8 (£6 unwaged)
On the majority of club nights you will be able to pay on the door although we do put advance tickets on sale. On occasion demand will be very high and the evening may sell out in advance or there will be limited availabilty on the door. Please check the website regularly for the current position on specific evenings. For online tickets for this evening go to https://www.wegottickets.com/event/481504


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I love celebrating the Kentucky Derby or really just watching the horse races. I have fond memories of going to the horse track (not in Kentucky), with my dad. We would walk around, look at all the horses, read the information sheet together, and he would let me pick out my horse to win. I always bet on name or color of the jockey’s outfit. As I got older, I loved the statistics of the information sheets, how they placed in previous races, all of the codes for muddy/rainy. Those are really great memories.
Now, I live in North Carolina and he lives in Texas. We won’t be attending the horse track together, but I know we will both be watching it. I also know, he would love this sandwich. He may take the tomato off, I am not sure of that part, but everything else, he would love.
Let’s talk a little more about the sandwich, named Kentucky Hot Brown. Underneath the bacon, the tomato, and the cheesy bubbly sauce, is the part you can’t see delicious roasted turkey on top of perfectly toasted hearty white bread. This sandwich is dynamite.
This is a festive and easy meal that anyone would love while watching the Kentucky Derby. And, if you are looking for a sweet dessert, look no further, this pie is all you need!
Ingredients: 8 slices of Bacon 1/2 cup of Butter, 1 stick 1/3 cup of Flour, all-purpose 3 1/2 cups of Milk 1 1/2 cup of Parmesan Cheese, divided 1/4 teaspoon of Salt 1/4 teaspoon of Pepper 8 slices of White Bread, hearty 1 lb. of Turkey, sliced 2 Tomatoes, sliced
First, prepare the bacon. I like the bake mine at 400 for about 15-20 minutes , or until crispy, on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Set aside.
Now, make the cheese sauce. Melt the butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk for a minute, pour in the milk and whisk often until it starts bubbling and thickens. Stir in 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese and the salt and pepper. Set aside.
Next, set your oven to broil, high, and leave the racks in the middle.
Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Cut off the crust of the bread and place on the baking sheet. Place in the oven for about 30 seconds-1 minute, when the bread browns slightly, flip and brown the other side. Keeping a close eye. Remove from the oven.
Now, you can use the same baking sheet or use individual baking dishes (2 pieces of toast each.) Spray lightly with cooking spray. Place the toast on, divide evenly with turkey, then ladle two large spoonfuls of cheese sauce on each toast, sprinkle the tops with the remaining parmesan cheese. Broil for about 3-5 minutes, keeping a close eye, until the tops start the brown and are bubbly. Remove from the oven and top with a tomato slice and bacon.
Serve immediately with a fork and knife.
Happy Cooking, The Barbee Housewife Source: Southern Living


A college friend of mine who hailed from England harbored both disgust and distrust toward burritos. He thought of them as seeping, seething sacks of food, secretive and primitive in an unappetizing way. I, however, was thrilled to discover such culinary delights and thought of them as one of the many advantages to receiving an education in sunny Southern California, which was worlds away from my Midwestern and East Coast upbringing.
I decided to try my own hand at these Mexican pleasures. I knew that quality ingredients were the secret to culinary success, so I set about finding the best of what I perceived to be the backbone of Mexican cooking: tortillas, both corn and flour.
My first stop was El Indio Restaurant and Tortilleria, which is owned by Eva S. Pesquieira and her husband. She told me that the place was started by her mother- and father-in-law in 1940. They had one employee and made all the tortillas by hand. Now, the corn tortilla machine pulsates from 4 a.m. until noon, churning out 2000 dozen tortillas a day, 5000 on high-production days. The flour tortillas are purchased from a local producer, Circle Foods, which also makes them fresh daily. El Indio doesn’t have the space for the machinery required to make flour tortillas.
Eva enlightened me as to the ingredients and procedure: “The tortillas consist of corn, lime, and water. We get high quality dried corn from the northern part of California. We cook and grind it here. The corn has to be cooked just right — a cooking time of 45 minutes, stirring several times. If it’s undercooked, you will get chunks of corn in your tortilla. Once cooked, the corn must sit at least 24 hours to cool; otherwise, you will get a bubble-gum substance when you grind it instead of masa — cooked ground corn. The masa is then put into a feeder machine. The masa comes through the feeder in such a way that it forms two tortillas at a time and cuts them. They then fall onto a conveyer belt that sends them into the oven. After they travel through the oven, they go to another conveyer belt to cool. Then they are packed into bags and sold by the dozen ($.75).”
Eva invited me into the kitchen to see the machinery in motion. Within minutes, sweat began to bead on my brow and my stomach rumbled. The oven has three tiers; I see flames licking the edge of the belt. “It’s a high heat; it cooks very quickly, probably 30 seconds.” Eva handed me a warm tortilla slathered with butter. My stomach was placated by the soft yet hearty morsel. What makes this tortilla so wonderful?
“It is hot and fresh, with no preservatives. The tortillas you purchase in the store have preservatives, because they have to sit on shelves for who knows how long. Sometimes, when you heat grocery-store tortillas, they will have a funny smell, and that comes from the preservatives. Also, the quality and preparation of the corn makes a difference. Some tortillas are made with powdered corn as opposed to ground, and that affects the consistency. The tortilla will feel very thin, kind of like a potato chip.”
When you get the tortillas home from the shop, “you can heat them up two ways: on the griddle or in the microwave, inside a tortilla warmer. Sometimes, I put a napkin in the tortilla warmer, and that locks the moisture in — they come out steaming.”
I thanked Eva and grabbed some corn and flour tortillas (9˝, $1.69 a dozen, 6˝, $1.10 a dozen). On my way home, I dropped into Henry’s and Vons to pick up some tortillas for comparison. Wanting to give El Indio some serious competition, I also stopped at Gabriel’s Tortilleria on Imperial Avenue, which I had heard was home to the best tortillas in San Diego. I also happened upon the La Mesa Farmer’s Market and picked up another subject for my test.
Patrick grimaced when he saw me stagger in with an armful of tortillas. “Plain tortillas are like plain pizza crust,” he complained. “What’s the point?” But I wanted to taste the pure tortilla, unobscured by guacamole and cheese.
We started with the fresh corn tortillas. Gabriel’s ($1.10 for a three-pound package) had the most intense corn smell and the heartiest golden color. They also had the best taste and a silky texture. El Indio was a close second, also having a strong, fresh corn taste. The La Mesa Farmer’s Market tortillas ($1.50 a dozen) were made by Quintessa. They lacked any golden color, literally paling in comparison, and had the least corn taste.
After savoring the fresh tortillas, I dreaded my task of tasting the grocery-store versions. Henry’s offered La Fe ($.59 a dozen or three dozen for $1.39) and their own brand ($.99 a dozen). Vons carried Mission (three dozen for $1.25), Guerrero (three dozen for $1.14), and the Vons brand ($.50 a dozen). All hit a sour note in the nostrils, except the Henry’s, which smelled of toasted corn. The La Fe were the softest of the bunch, with a light lime and corn taste. Guerrero’s were much the same, but with less corn taste. The best we could say about them was that they were mild and not offensive. The rest offended. Henry’s was mealy and tasteless. Mission was sweet upon hitting the tongue and then backlashed with an acid-limey taste. And Vons was, as Patrick put it, “kinda tart, nasty, terrible.”
Moving on to the fresh flour tortillas. Gabriel’s (made with lard, $1 a dozen) had a smooth, velvety feel and a sweet shortening smell. They were chewy and rich, with a bready complexity — maybe a little too bready. The La Mesa Farmer’s Market (made with soybean oil, $1.25 a dozen) had an oily smell, a decent taste, and a dry, crumbly texture. El Indio’s (produced by Circle Foods), made with canola oil, were our favorite, with a slightly tangy, salty taste. A good midpoint between the other two.