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[ "Moonlight Haze has announced that their new album titled “De Rerum Natura,” will be released on June 21, 2019 via Scarlet Records, and will also be available in Japan on June 19 via Avalon/Marquee.\n\nThe album was mixed and mastered by Simon Malaroni (DGM) and includes some guest musicians such as Mark Jansen of Epica, and Laura Macri (Mayan) as well as Fabio Lethien Polo(Elvenking) on violin and Fang Yu on guzheng.", null ]

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[ "A better cure for cancer – and other illnesses – could already be in existence, hidden right under our noses.\n\nThe problem is that possible new lifesaving drugs are created much faster than scientists can study them. Millions of untested compounds wait, jumbled together in no particular order in vast repositories called compound libraries.\n\n“You imagine that somewhere in there is some chemical that might be the key to unlocking any question that you have – but how are you going to find it?”\n\nA new search method that blends cellular biology and computational analytics may be the answer. A husband-and-wife research team at UCSF – Altschuler and his longtime spouse and collaborator, Lani Wu, PhD, also a professor of pharmaceutical chemistry and member of the cancer center – have developed a way to do the job much faster and at a fraction of the cost of the traditional method. The work involved designing a new kind of cell, writing some new software, and then parsing the resulting landslide of data.\n\nRead a digital flipbook of the entire winter issue of UCSF Magazine, featuring this and other stories.", null, "“We were very lucky to be there at the right time and see the connections,” says Altschuler. “Going in, we didn’t even realize that there was a need for this.”\n\nThe couple was uniquely poised to develop this method, as their work is informed not only by their current collaboration but also by their earlier shared careers in other fields. They have worked together since they met as students almost 30 years ago.\n\n“We met in the mailroom,” Altschuler says. “It was the first day of grad school for her; I was a second-year.”\n\nThe pair started out their parallel careers in mathematics and went on to work for Microsoft, then for a biotech firm, before moving into academia.\n\n“Most of us wouldn’t even think of an analogy between drug discovery and what they were working on at Microsoft with image recognition and things like that,” says Matthew Jacobson, PhD, chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, who recruited Altschuler and Wu to UCSF. “To me, this just shows the power of bringing people with different types of backgrounds into biology and drug discovery.”\n\nToo Much of A Good Thing\n\nScreening compounds for potential medical uses has to date been both time-consuming and expensive. For example, a lab looking to develop better chemotherapeutic agents would likely be interested in DNA-damaging drugs that have yet to be tested. Usually, researchers are looking for drugs that affect the chain of cellular events by which a given disease advances or can be treated – a biochemical process known as a pathway. An unknown number of such compounds are likely available in libraries housed at universities and pharmaceutical companies around the country. But how to find them?\n\n“Over the last few decades, drug discovery has tended to be fairly pragmatic,” says Jacobson. “We tend to make various simplifying assumptions about how things work inside cells.”\n\nOften, scientists search for new drugs using carefully engineered “reporter cells” to screen for sought-after compounds. These cells are designed in a lab to change in a unique way when a compound achieves a desired effect, indicating to researchers that they have a match. However, this method tests for just one purpose at a time – and it costs hundreds of dollars to test each “mystery” compound. This means researchers generally can afford to screen only a small, random subset of the available compounds.\n\nEnvision a compound library as a massive box containing thousands of unorganized, unlabeled photographs. The current method is akin to each researcher pulling out a handful of photos and looking through each handful to find pictures of one particular person. They may be able to identify a few, but every future project has to start from scratch.\n\n“Whenever anyone goes in there with a specific question, they might find 12 chemicals that are interesting to them, and the rest just go right back into the bin,” Altschuler says.\n\nBy contrast, imagine a method that digitizes the photos and then screens them with a program akin to facial recognition software. This is the first step in Altschuler and Wu’s new method, which categorizes reporter cells in much the same way that Facebook tags photos of your friends: by digitally identifying their features.\n\nNow, when a compound library with unknown properties is screened with reporter cells, the software can identify which of those compounds is generating a desired response. The cost for each test drops from hundreds of dollars to a dollar or less, Altschuler says.\n\nThat was phase one of the work. More recently, the couple has found a way to test drugs for multiple purposes at a time using this same principle. An experiment that their team described in Nature Biotechnology this past January used only one type of reporter cell to screen nearly 11,000 drugs from multiple compound libraries for six disease pathways. That’s like using facial recognition software to digitally sort through hundreds of thousands of photos – think of multiple boxes stored in Grandma’s attic – and tag photos of six different people at once. Up until now, researchers would have had to do one experiment just to find photos of Steve, a separate one to find photos of Lani, and so on.\n\n“The ability to do very sophisticated mathematical analyses basically allows them to identify the effects of drugs much more sensitively than other approaches have been able to do,” Jacobson says.\n\nThis may sound straightforward enough, but consider the fact that researchers had previously found it difficult to coax a single reporter cell into partitioning multiple unidentified drugs into categories of usefulness. Yet Altschuler and Wu not only did that but also yielded results that can be processed digitally – making it clear that this is a quiet but revolutionary breakthrough.\n\n“The grand challenge here is really trying to understand how administering a drug to a cell affects not just one individual protein but the entire network of proteins and, ultimately, the cell’s behavior,” Jacobson says.\n\nStandard reporter cells essentially work like matching cards in the children’s game known as Memory: when a new compound generates a response that resembles that of a known drug, it tells researchers that the two operate on a similar pathway and are likely to affect the target disease in a similar way. Over the last decade, such genetically encoded reporter cells have become increasingly popular in biotech research.\n\nBut Altschuler and Wu wanted to design a single, versatile type of engineered cell that would report when a compound matched multiple different pathways – something that had never been done before. Instead of trying to reason their way to a solution, the team decided to seek a boost from chance: Using the fluorescent tags that are used to build reporter cells, they put roughly 600 cells through the DNA tagging process – but did not attempt to control where the tags landed.\n\nIt’s actually not that different from maybe a music recommender. Music gets classified, and you say what genre you like, and it tries to bring back some more like that.\n\nThey hit the jackpot. In their initial pool of potential reporter cells, they found one that was 94-percent accurate in discriminating among six diverse cancer-relevant drug classes. They named it ORACL, which stands for Optimal Reporter cell lines for Annotating Compound Libraries.\n\n“They just randomly tried stuff and found that there is a tremendous amount of information in a very small number of proteins – you don’t even have to really think too hard about what they are,” Jacobson says.\n\nThe challenge with such a versatile reporter is to know what it’s saying. The human eye can distinguish only some of a reporter cell’s responses – for example, the way DNA-damaging drugs make the reporter swell up or the way certain cellular inhibitors make it grow long, spiky arms. But other changes can be identified only by computer – which is also the only way to parse the sheer volume of data.\n\nThis is a trend that has been on the rise throughout the field. “Data science is a big part of biology right now,” Wu says.\n\n“No human being could look at this,” Altschuler says. “The changes are too subtle, the numbers of conditions are too large, for any human to assess. This really required innovations in identifying cells, extracting properties of the cells, and comparing how the cells had changed in different conditions.”\n\nA senior researcher in the lab tested the process before the machines took over. Jungseog Kang, PhD, dripped nearly 11,000 compounds and 38 reference drugs into the waiting mouths of tiny wells full of ORACL cells. Once the cells had reacted to the compounds, they were photographed through a microscope. Then, photos were analyzed by software developed by a graduate student, Charles Hsu, producing digital profiles that were matched to those of reference drugs. The results were cross-checked by a literature review and experimentation. In the end, the method proved 94 percent accurate.\n\n“A lot of the magic is in the software, [in] being able to extract maximal information out of a minimal number of experiments,” Jacobson says. “Basically, they are asking, ‘Might it do something interesting and useful? And if so, does is it look like anything we’ve seen before? Or is it something totally new?’ And both categories are interesting.”\n\nThe ORACL found 100 new compounds that fit one of six drug classes. And it had still more to reveal. To the team’s surprise, additional clusters of potentially useful compounds were identified, despite not being in the experiment design – including glucocorticoids and ATPase inhibitors, which can treat autoimmune conditions and cancer, respectively.\n\n“That was really cool,” Altschuler says. “That means it’s a way to go fishing even beyond what we thought we were going to catch.”\n\nTip of the Iceberg\n\nSeated at a sterile stainless steel hood, postdoctoral scholar Louise Evans, PhD, has taken over from Kang. Sliding a bristling phalanx of nearly 100 pipettes back and forth on a mechanical arm, she is helping move the ORACL on to its next step. Compared to the number of compounds that remain uncategorized, this experiment’s 10,000-compound sample is the tip of the iceberg.\n\n“Once you get into the hundred-thousand- to a million-compound range, that would be considered pretty interesting for a phenotypic screen in academics,” Altschuler says. “But I’m not sure that the size of the library you screen is the most important thing.”\n\nThe vision is that in the future, the ORACL method will lead to compound libraries that are indexed and searchable according to each compound’s effect – instead of being the black boxes that they are today.\n\n“In principle, we hope a researcher can come to us with a type of compound they are interested in, and we can go into our database and say, ‘We’re going to recommend a few different ones that are just like it for you,’” Altschuler says. “It’s actually not that different from maybe a music recommender. Music gets classified, and you say what genre you like, and it tries to bring back some more like that.”\n\nThe next step is likely a partnership with the private sector, where there are the resources to test the method on a larger scale.\n\n“There is a hunger in the pharma companies for new approaches, a willingness to try things,” says Jacobson. “Drug discovery is a long and exceedingly painful process. In the short run, the impacts will come through just scaling up this new approach. I think in the next few years, it will come clear whether this is going to be widely adopted or not.”" ]

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[ "I was cageside in 2012 when Joel Vasquez made his MMA debut vs Matt Turnbull at XFE 19. To this day, it remains my favorite fight of all time. Both guys went non-stop for the entire bout. Turnbull was bloodied up but kept coming and battling back. It was an incredible display of determination from both young men making their debut. Afterwards, they would go on to become friends. Turnbull has since gone pro and has three fights on his résumé. Vasquez has been derailed by the struggles of real life and sustained several injuries after getting to 3-0 as an amateur. He hasn’t fought in over 2 years. That drought is about to end.\n\nPlease listen in to our audio interview in the link above. Joel tells us his story and how he has battled back to be able to compete again. Vasquez is a very talented, hard worker and he is getting to work in a muay-thai rules bout at USKA KO Cancer on May 18th in Hamburg, PA. He hopes to be back in the cage soon thereafter and going pro after ridding himself of some rust.", null, null, "By Dylan Bowker 11 mins ago" ]

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[ "VIDEO: Behind the Scenes at CEAVCO — An Interview with the Emersons from CEAVCO on Vimeo.\n\nAt AV Alliance we are fiercely proud of our members’ rich histories and years – in most cases decades – of expertise. Some companies in our network, however, have much longer time to look back on than others. This year, on January 21 to be precise, our Colorado-based member CEAVCO celebrated its 60th anniversary, and it is a huge milestone to be commemorated – especially after the toughest years this industry has faced in recent history.\n\nWe sat down – virtually – with Matt Emerson, President of CEAVCO, to talk a little bit about his family’s business, the year 2020, and of course the future.\n\nBut before we do that, we need to begin with the past. John “Jack” Charles Emerson, a life-long lover of the ski slopes of Winter Park, moved from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Colorado with the intention to create a business for himself, and “build a company that would stand the test of time”. Around the time he founded his business, a great deal of federal funds was allocated for education, and with the goal of enhancing the level and quality of education, schools were investing in audio visual equipment. Jack saw this as a good business potential, and thus CEAVCO was born on January 21, 1961.\n\nBelieving that surrounding himself with the right people was the key to success, Jack set out to do just that with CEAVCO. As he used to say, “a great place to work attracts really good people, and really good people attract customers.” It never was a secret that the solid foundations of his company were built on Jack’s core values – such as service, accountability, integrity, and passion for a job well done – and these values were transferred to his children from a very young age.\n\nMatt Emerson cites honesty and integrity as the most influential values that shaped his personality as a child. When Matt joined the family business, the father-son duo also established a fun but honest working relationship that was built on complete trust and transparency. These are, to this day, among the main characteristics of CEAVCO’s operations, as any client or employee that has worked with them will tell you.\n\nJack hired Matt as CEAVCO’s VP of Finance in May 1989. He became the 15th employee of the company that back then primarily sold audio visual equipment and had a two-person rental department. Of course, these days they no longer sell AV gear, and equipment rentals have become a much smaller piece of their business, as CEAVCO has always operated by Jack’s vision and principle of adapting to changes in the industry. In 2003, Matt became executive vice president. When Jack retired from the business in 2013 as President he passed the mantle to his son.\n\nUnbeknownst to him, Jack’s vision would become as crucial in CEAVCO’s future in 2020 as it was back in the 1960s: “You have to be ready to adapt to changes in the marketplace and changes in technology.” The company managed to achieve that by hiring people who were very much into the audio visual business and were also interested in success. In response to the challenges of 2020 but with the same passion for the AV industry, Matt and some of those very same people asked the hard questions about how they could pivot the business and provide value to their clients while empowering them to achieve the outcomes they seek.\n\nCEAVCO was one of the many AV Alliance members that quickly recognized the opportunity lying before them; the company now offers virtual event platforms and has built two world-class virtual studios, adding a depth and breadth of new skills to their repertoire. For clients old and new, CEAVCO has been producing exceptional pre-recorded and live-in-studio town hall meetings, keynote presentations, panel discussions, award shows, fundraisers, concerts, performances, and workshops.\n\nEven though the company has much transformed over the past 30+ years, especially during last year, there are some things that have not changed throughout CEAVCO’s history. Their dedication to sharing industry knowledge, providing exceptional support to their valued clients, and cultivating the relationships with customers old and new. Matt says, “though it may sound clichéd, we do everything we can to help our clients meet their objectives. That’s our niche and our passion.”\n\nAfter all, “entrepreneurialism is about identifying a need and fulfilling it”, and Jack, who sadly passed away in 2018 at the age of 91, certainly had a lifelong reputation for honoring his entrepreneurial vision and doing the right thing. That responsibility now rests on his son’s shoulders, and those who know Matt will tell you in a heartbeat that for him doing the right thing comes naturally. Having inherited much more than just Jack’s passion for skiing, Matt takes pride in the values that his father instilled in him and in carrying on with his legacy.\n\nDuring this unprecedented time in the history of the event industry the pressure that AV company owners have been under is quite staggering. While everyone expects leaders to “do the right thing”, it is not always clear what the right thing to do is in what can only be described as a life-or-death situation for businesses. In many cases it also involves making a series of hard, painful, and mostly unpopular decisions. We were curious to learn how CEAVCO managed the hurdles that came with having to make such decisions.\n\nYou mention honesty and integrity as your core values that you had learned from a young age from Jack, and those characteristics are clearly very much part of you. Has it been difficult to keep the same level of honesty and transparency that you always had with your team during the crisis?\n\nMatt: Not at all. In fact, I think that times of crisis call for the highest levels of honesty and transparency. People are smart and perceptive. They notice a lot and are aware of what’s going on. In March of 2020, our team knew that things were bad and getting worse. I think that our team appreciated how honest and transparent we were with them about the situation and how we were addressing it.\n\nSeeing your thriving business being derailed by something you have no power over is a hard blow for any company owner. What were the things that you have been able to draw strength from the most to keep pushing forward?\n\nMatt: Knowing that it’s not my fault. That we are doing everything that we can for the team and our clients. Also, it has helped to be very clear about our goal to survive the pandemic and to be of service to our clients today and into the future.\n\nThis past year CEAVCO certainly followed the principle of adapting to the changes of the marketplace and technology. How challenging was it to build up the digital/virtual production side of the business in such a short time?\n\nMatt: Building our first studio was pretty easy. Sure, we made some mistakes that we corrected when we relocated it. But the studios include all the technology and many of the practices we mastered long ago. Figuring out the platforms and workflow were very challenging. I’m super proud of the work the team putting into exploring the options and mastering new skills.", null, "What were the highlights of the past year, if any, for you business-wise?\n\nMatt: For sure there were highlights! We built relationships with lots of new clients whom we hope to continue to work in virtual, in-person, and hybrid environments for years to come.\n\nFor you personally, ensuring the survival of your family business and Jack’ legacy must have been the goal in mind during this crisis. What do you think he would say to you now, seeing how you have risen to that challenge?\n\nMatt: I think he would tell me that he was very proud of me and the team, especially.\n\nLike Jack, Matt also resides in Denver, Colorado with his family: he and his wife Lisa have two daughters. We were curious as to what Matt would say if either of them decided to join CEAVCO in the future, and what he would say to them?\n\nMatt: The event production industry has been great for me. I’ve had an extremely rewarding career and built many, many amazing relationships. Make sure that you have the stomach for the business cycles and that you see ample opportunities to fulfill your career passions. Join the business only if you’re convinced it’s what you want to do. Don’t do it for me.\n\nIs the event business going to return to its full glory in the next decade, and be a viable career option for young people?\n\nMatt: I think that the industry will return far sooner than that. People are social beings and so much of the value of attending a conference comes from the networking, the chance encounters, the conversations during breaks, at the bar, and over a meal. People will go back to in-person events as soon as they feel safe doing so. We will get there sooner rather than later. Our industry presents amazing opportunities for young people. They get a chance to amaze and delight audiences and make a difference to clients. Every position presents opportunities to learn new skills and advance.\n\nHis father’s original vision from 1961 has clearly remained at the core of CEAVCO’s ability to adapt to changes in the marketplace and deliver the support and value their clients need, even during the year 2020 and beyond. Having celebrated their 60th anniversary in a socially distanced way but certainly with enormous pride, CEAVCO is definitely carrying on with Jack Emerson’s entrepreneurial spirit.\n\nWe at AV Alliance wholeheartedly wish Matt and his team continued success, and at least 60 more years of making their clients’ visions a reality and shaping the future of the event industry!\n\nWelcome to the Jungle | AV Alliance Get Together 2022 in Panamá" ]

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[ "Champaran Meat: Everything You Know About This Cuisine", null, "If we’re talking about non-vegetarian foods in Bihar, The first thing that comes to mind is Ahuna meat, also known as Champaran meat in other parts of the country. In this blog, we will know Why Champaran meat is so tasty and famous?\n\nLet us explain to you the story of this meat delicacy cooked in clay pots on today’s tour.\n\nThis one-pot pork meal is thought to have originated in Ghorasaran, a village near the Indo-Nepal border. It then made its way to Bihar’s Champaran region, where the preparation procedure took on a new dimension.\n\nSince then, the popularity of this meal has expanded throughout the country.\n\nLet’s start with Patna’s Old Champaran Meat House in pursuit of the recipe and its flavors.\n\nFirst, we’ll prepare some onions in accordance with the gravy then some smashed garlic, and after that, two garlic pods, and chilies (green).\n\nWe’ll use green chilies instead of red because red chilies upset our stomachs.\n\nThen we’ll take some salt according to personal preference then there’s the masala. In a half kilogram of mutton, how much masala is there? We put five tablespoons in one kilogram.\n\nSo we’ll need two and a half tablespoons for this. Now we’ll add the oil. Mustard oil is a seed oil that is extracted from mustard seeds. Obviously, It’s been smoked already. The spiciness has been lessened by heating the seat.\n\nThen we’ll go get the mutton and all of these will now be combined.\n\nIt has a lot of pores, as you can see. As a result, if we add the mutton directly, the water from the mutton will leak. As a result, mustard oil is used. Put it in there, by moving it, we are able to line all of the pores.\n\nWe’ll now put these into it.\n\nWe’re going to put the meat in the handi now. It’s intended to be used as a rice cooker. We’ll set it on this, and as the pressure inside it builds up, it’ll be released from here.\n\nWhat does the word Ahuna mean?\n\nThe word Ahuna comes from the Bhojpuri language. Ahuna is the name for a clay pot.\n\nWhen the first potato crop is harvested, villagers perform a ritual called Ahuna, in which they take the first production of the season, combine it with field residue, and smoke it.\n\nIn Bhojpuri, this technique is called Ahuna.\n\nAhuna is the name of the handi.\n\nThe handi mutton is now ready to be prepared into Ahuna mutton in the Old Champaran home manner.\n\nSo, let’s put it to the test. It can be used with any type of burner or flame. You can make it using a gas stove or a heater and can also prepare it in pits with dried leaves if you’ve gone to a picnic place. You may cook it on any flame by regulating the flame.\n\nHow long do you think it’ll take to cook on this?\n\nIt is dependent on the goat’s size.\n\nWe used a 7-kilogram goat for this purpose. So, for a 7 kg goat, 1 hour of cooking time is required.\n\nAnother deception is that we deduce it from the vapors.\n\nAnd we’ve gotten so used to producing it that we can tell whether it’s done or not just by holding it.\n\nAfter ten minutes, a cloud of vapor has formed and air will escape. The top of the structure has cracked open. It is obvious that it is loaded with gases. It has also started to release the lid has been slammed shut. We will not abandon it, even if it pushes towards the summit.\n\nAnd we’re going to mix everything up like this.\n\nYou may perform it 5 to 6 times in 45 minutes to an hour. If you shake it a few more times, the mutton will not be disturbed. It also appears to be getting chilly air from the sides. There is a lot of pressure inside. This will add to the earthiness. You’d be surprised at how flavorful it would be.\n\nSo far, 45 minutes have passed.\n\nThe finishing touches are being applied to the mutton. Even if certain portions are still raw.\n\nSo, it’s time to lock the pressure. It will cover the meat and simmer it until it is done.\n\nChamparan meat has some advantages\n\nMeat consumption has a number of disadvantages.\n\nSanjeev Chauhan is a content creator for Healthy Life Human. He is a Digital Marketing Expert also likes to share latest information on technology, health, travel, business etc. He is very passionate about providing quality information to the online users. To find out more about Sanjeev, connect to him on LinkedIn\nPrevPrevious10 Surprising Health Benefits of Yoga\nNextYou Must Have These Fitness Gadgets For Your WorkoutNext" ]

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[ "To a great extent, Love and Rockets is synonymous with Hoppers and Palomar... but there was always more to L&R than that. Amor Y Cohetes finally collects together in one convenient package all the non-Maggie and non-Palomar stories by all three Hernandez Brothers from that classic first, 50-issue Love and Rockets series -- a dizzying array of styles and approaches that re-confirms these groundbreaking cartoonists' place in the history of comics. The book leads off with Gilbert's original 40-page sci-fi epic \"BEM\" from 1981's very first issue of Love and Rockets, featuring a very different Luba and a much looser, Heavy Metal- and Marvel Comics-inspired way of storytelling. Other stories include Jaime's charming \"Rocky and Fumble\" series starring a planet-hopping girl and her robot; stunning one-shots such as Gilbert's Frida Kahlo biography \"Frida\" and his shocking autobiographical fantasia \"My Love Book\"; Mario's genre thrillers which take place \"Somewhere in California\"; Gilbert's brutally dystopian \"Errata Stigmata\" stories; the playful \"Hernandez Satyricon,\" with Gilbert drawing Jaime's characters, and \"War Paint,\" with Jaime trying out Palomar; Gilbert's light-hearted \"Music for Monsters\" starring Bang and Inez; and even a fantastical \"non-continuity\" Maggie and Hopey story \"Easter Hunt\" by Jaime that didn't fit into the other books.\n\n\"At an age when artists tend to have settled into refining a successful approach, the Hernandez Brothers are challenging themselves as much as they did a quarter-- century ago, and it's a joy to see them freaking out.\" --The New York Times\nSee More See Less\n\nLove & Rockets Library\nThis double-feature collects two Gilbert Hernandez graphic novellas in one! In the Eisner Award-winning \"Hypnotwist,\" a woman wanders through a series of increasingly surreal scenes, confronting motherhood, alcoholism, a sinister smiley face, and worse fates. Illustrated psychodrama as you like it! Meanwhile, in \"Scarlet by Starlight\": Imagine a B-movie cross between Star Trek and Heart of Darknes\n\nLove & Rockets\nThe comic book event of 2016! Love and Rockets is back as an all-new, ongoing comic book series (Vol. IV for those keeping track at home)! On Jaime's side: What do you do when none of your old punk friends want to be punk any more? And just who does the evil Princess Animus think she is? (Hint: She doesn't know, she has amnesia.) On Gilbert's side: Family drama takes center stage when a Fritz disc\nLove & Rockets: New Stories\nLove and Rockets: New Stories #1 rebooted the beloved Love and Rockets series in 2008 as an all-new annual graphic novel length package. Jaime launches the new format with a story that's unusual even for him... A full-on, pulse-pounding super-hero yarn! Penny Century realizes her longtime dream of acquiring super-powers, but at a terrible personal cost. Now she rampages through the galaxy, half ma\nChildren of Palomar\nThe Children of Palomar is Gilbert Hernandez's much-anticipated return to the small Central American town of Palomar, more than a decade after his last \"Heartbreak Soup\" story. Originally released as a three-issue magazine series titled New Tales of Old Palomar in the acclaimed international \"Ignatz\" format, these stories are finally collected into one handsome book. All of these stories deal with", null ]

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[ "Home » Lifestyle » Karen Yossman explores the rise of the ‘Instapoets’", null, "Meet the new poet idols: Move over, Adele! A fresh wave of lyrical superstars is winning millions of fans online and helping fuel a £12 million market. Karen Yossman explores the rise of the ‘Instapoets’\n\nThe latest generation of pop stars are – as one might expect – young, stylish and articulate, their heartfelt lyrics drawn from personal experience of love and despair. They boast sellout gigs, legions of fans whom they like to communicate with directly via social media, and fawning profiles in music magazines.\n\nMost of them, however, don’t sing a note, because this new crop of stars aren’t musicians – they’re poets. And they have found a receptive audience online, particularly on the photo-sharing site Instagram, where their verses provide welcome respite from the seemingly endless stream of sexy selfies and envy-inducing holiday snaps.", null, "Poet Cleo Wade has more than half a million followers on Instagram. It doesn’t hurt that many Instapoets happen to look glamorous\n\nDubbed the Instapoets (although it’s a moniker that makes most of them cringe), the most popular have online followings that run into the millions and even include celebrities. New York-based poet Cleo Wade counts Katy Perry, Drew Barrymore and Nicole Richie among her fans, while Cat Deeley and Orlando Bloom follow Canadian Rupi Kaur. Some have even earned the royal seal of approval: the Duchess of Sussex quoted a poem by enigmatic US-based Instapoet Nayyirah Waheed on the official @sussexroyal Instagram page in May to commemorate US Mother’s Day.\n\nIt doesn’t hurt that many Instapoets happen to look glamorous, thoroughly upending the staid stereotype of thick wool tights and librarian glasses. Last year Rupi Kaur, who has 3.7 million followers and was named ‘Queen of the Instapoets’ by Rolling Stone magazine, appeared on the cover of Cosmopolitan India, while Cleo Wade can often be found in the front row at New York Fashion Week. In London, society favourite Greta Bellamacina has hosted poetry readings and edited anthologies for top brands such as Burberry and Fortnum & Mason.\n\nAnd, just like their chart-topping counterparts, these Instapoets are comfortable on stage. Earlier this year Rupi headlined a sellout show in London’s West End, while Brit favourite Charly Cox gave a reading at Wilderness Festival last year alongside Nile Rodgers and Chic, Groove Armada and Bastille. ‘There’s something so amazing about being in a room and listening to a poet perform their work,’ says Greta Bellamacina, who has performed at Port Eliot Festival and the Poetry Café in London’s Covent Garden. ‘There’s something quite magical about that side of it.’\n\nAlthough it might seem surprising that a generation raised on the internet has discovered a passion for something as archaic as poetry, in many ways Instapoets offer the same sense of solace as singer-songwriters such as Adele or Ed Sheeran, whose success is predicated on lyrical honesty. One of Adele’s best-known hits, ‘Someone Like You’, is about coming to terms with a romantic break-up.\n\nAnd in bypassing traditional publishing houses and posting their work online, the Instapoets are making poetry not only accessible but hip. ‘Reading poems on social media that resonate with us makes us feel less alone and supported in our emotions,’ agrees Diana Raab, a poet with a PhD in psychology. ‘It also helps validate our own lived experiences.’", null, null, null, null, "Charly Cox, who boasts more than 40,000 followers on Instagram, is among this new crop of young, predominantly female poets storming the literary world via social media. We meet at the infamous Chateau Marmont hotel in Los Angeles, where she is in town to work on some new material. Clad in a leopard-print vintage maxi dress with smudged kohl-ringed eyes and just-fell-out-of-bed hair, 23-year-old Charly looks every inch the rock star as she flops into a chair, a glass of wine in hand. She’s even a touch hungover, she admits, despite having landed in LA a mere 36 hours earlier. But, unlike your typical pop diva, she’s warm and forthcoming. ‘I never realised that I was writing poems,’ she says of her initial foray into the field. ‘It was just a form of coping and absolutely a form of therapy.’\n\nCharly, who grew up in Northwest London, began experimenting with poetry in childhood and continued after dropping out of school at 16. ‘I left during my A-levels because I had terrible depression and anxiety and couldn’t get on the train into college,’ she explains. ‘I quit without telling my parents.’ When they found out, she was given an ultimatum: find a job or go back to school. Charly swiftly talked her way into a job at Burberry as a studio assistant and stylist, where she worked for a year before moving into digital production.\n\nSoon, however, she found herself lamenting what she felt was a lack of creativity in her work. Friends encouraged Charly to pursue poetry instead, chiding her: ‘“You write poems all the time; you get drunk and stand on our sofa and recite them”,’ she recalls with a laugh. Her poems, which are drawn from her own experiences, explore many of the maladies faced by young women today, such as depression, body image and ghosting (when someone cuts off contact without explanation).\n\nCharly’s verses immediately struck a chord with Instagram users, over half of whom are female, and before long she was fending off multiple offers from publishing houses. Although the Instapoets are known for their success online, many of them still hanker after ink and paper, the ultimate goal being to score a publishing deal with a top literary house. ‘It’s a hard time to be a woman,’ says Charly, referring to the acute pressures brought about by social media and the internet at large. ‘But it’s a great time to be a woman in that publishers are looking for young female voices.’\n\nCharly’s debut collection, She Must Be Mad, was released last year under an imprint of HarperCollins and was named the bestselling poetry debut of 2018. As one fan wrote online: ‘This is poetry that is understandable and relatable for anyone who has experienced mental illness, being a young adult or having negative body-image thoughts.’\n\nLike Charly, 32-year-old Nikita Gill is one of the UK’s most popular Instapoets. Born in Northern Ireland and raised in India, Nikita currently lives in Hampshire, where she regularly shares poems and self-penned axioms – as well as frank updates about her battle with depression – with her 525,000 Instagram followers. Singer Sam Smith recently reposted one of her verses on the site, an event she describes as ‘amazing’. Although Nikita credits social media with kickstarting her career, having bagged her first book deal through blogging site Tumblr, she is wary of exploiting her vast online presence.\n\n‘I don’t want to be an “influencer”,’ says Nikita, who has been approached about ‘monetising’ her Instagram account through sponsored posts. ‘I have always been very, very clear on one thing: I’m a writer, and that is all I am.’\n\nThe Instapoets at their most heartfelt", null, null, null, null, "Her stance is all the more admirable considering Nikita’s path to success was not an easy one. After moving from India to England to pursue a master’s degree in publishing, she worked in a variety of jobs to support her nascent poetry career, including cleaning (‘I was terrible at it,’ she laughs) and as a carer at a school for children with learning difficulties. ‘Initially I started putting out my work anonymously [on social media] because I was a bit scared,’ she recalls.\n\nIt was her pupils who, after reading her poetry, convinced her to put her name to it. Nikita’s most recent collection, Fierce Fairytales: & Other Stories to Stir Your Soul, was released last autumn under an imprint of mega publishing house Hachette. ‘The reason I started writing poetry was because I found it was a really beautiful way of capturing a moment in very few words,’ she explains. ‘That’s kind of what I fell in love with.’\n\nPoetry’s potential conciseness is partly what makes it stand out on Instagram, where a stanza can be artfully framed in the square tiles that are the site’s hallmark. ‘Poetry lends itself really well to social media,’ agrees Judith Palmer, director of the Poetry Society. ‘The Instagram poets that are successful aren’t just slapping words on a page. They’re thinking carefully about the framing of the words; where they fit, what the font is.’\n\nIt comes as something of a surprise to hear her sound quite so enthusiastic about the concept of Instapoetry, given that she heads a 110-year-old organisation dedicated to promoting one of society’s most venerable literary forms. Far from being snobbish about the phenomenon, however, Judith says that the Poetry Society is just as welcoming of writers who have found fame via social media as those who have pursued more traditional routes, in part because they are raising poetry’s profile more generally. ‘Our research shows that people are coming across poetry on Instagram and that they both enjoy it and also then go on to discover other poets they like,’ she explains.\n\nThat certainly appears to be the case according to industry statistics. Sales of poetry texts and anthologies hit an all-time high of £12.3 million last year in the UK, according to Nielsen BookScan research. In fact, poetry sales have been increasing steadily since 2012, a trend that coincides with the ubiquity of Instagram, which launched in 2010.\n\nStill, not everyone is thrilled by the rise of the Instapoets. Rupi Kaur’s scant and sometimes anodyne verses – ‘fall / in love / with your solitude’ goes one – are routinely mocked online. Her bestselling collection Milk and Honey has even inspired a parody version called Milk and Vine, which hilariously transcribes quotes from viral videos in Rupi’s syntax-free style (sample: ‘girl / you’re thicker than a bowl of / oatmeal’). And, this being the internet, the parody book quickly scaled Amazon’s poetry charts – at one point even overtaking the original.\n\nTraditionally trained poets have also bristled at the deluge of writers landing coveted publishing deals via Instagram. Oxford and Cambridge-educated writer Rebecca Watts, whose debut poetry collection was hailed by multiple publications as a book of the year in 2016, eschews social media entirely. Rebecca caused something of a stir last year when she was asked to review a poetry collection by ‘spoken word artist’ Hollie McNish (who boasts 28,000 followers on Instagram and more than 22,000 on YouTube), for the prestigious PN Review. Rather than reviewing McNish, Rebecca instead penned an essay excoriating the emergence of Instapoetry, branding it artless and amateur. She wrote: ‘The ability to draw a crowd, attract an audience or assemble a mob does not itself render a thing intrinsically good: witness Donald Trump.’\n\nWhile there are no doubt plenty of Instapoets who have more in common with lifestyle bloggers than Sylvia Plath, it undeniably takes courage to share something as intimate as poetry with thousands of anonymous strangers, especially in an era of cyber-bullying. Even the most innocuous verses can sometimes result in a barrage of abuse. Recently, a tongue-in-cheek poem Charly Cox penned about kale (which features the line: ‘I only eat you so boys want to undress me’) was reposted on stationery brand Papier’s Instagram page. ‘Suddenly I had this stream of people going “This is so irresponsible”, “This is awful”,’ she says fretfully. ‘It was catastrophic in my world.’\n\nCharly, who is currently single, admits her new career has also had a knock-on effect on her love life. ‘It’s really hard on a personal front to explain when you’re dating someone,’ she says, jokingly imagining how such a conversation might go: ‘You know, “What do you do?” “I write about my feelings for a living so please don’t break my heart.”’\n\nCharly pauses for a split second. ‘Or, “Please do break my heart because I have a book deadline in three weeks”,’ she says with a laugh. ‘That’s the Adele effect.’", null, null, null ]

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[ null, "As we quickly approach winter, the need for winterizing pools has become even more pressing. In cities around the country, drownings are up and officials are pleading with homeowners to make responsible choices in regards to safety. For those who haven’t yet done anything to winterize their pools, time is running out.\n\nDrowning is a Serious Problem\n\nIt’s easy to assume that drowning-related deaths aren’t a major problem in our country, but a quick look at the statistics says otherwise. According to the CDC, there were an average of 3,536 fatal unintentional drownings (non-boating related) annually in the United States between 2005 and 2014. If you do the math, that equates to roughly 10 deaths per day. That’s ten families shattered every single day of the year.\n\nJust 20 percent of people who die from drowning are 14 and younger, which is also quite astonishing. Most people assume that the vast majority of drownings involve young children who don’t know how to swim.\n\nWhile risk factors and causes of drowning vary from case to case, a lack of barriers is often one of the leading issues. “Barriers, such as pool fencing, prevent young children from gaining access to the pool area without caregivers’ awareness,” the CDC explains. “A four-sided isolation fence (separating the pool area from the house and yard) reduces a child’s risk of drowning 83% compared to three-sided property-line fencing.”\n\nThis is why winterizing swimming pools is so important. If every swimming pool was properly guarded or covered during the winter months, the total number of deadly drownings would drop considerably. With that being said, here are a few tips homeowners all across the country should take to heart:\n\nIt all starts with a barrier. Thankfully, there are a number of solutions and you can find one that aesthetically and functionally fits your pool. Some of the top safety products include fences, nets, covers, and automatic covers. If your pool is heated and you plan on using it intermittently throughout the winter, the latter is an especially wise investment. It lets you open and close your pool with the flip of a switch.\n\nHaving a cover or a fence isn’t enough. You also need to place signage around the pool. This is especially true in areas where there’s lots of snow. Snow can easily cover the pool, which leaves people at risk of walking over a cover that’s already weighed down by the ice.\n\nFences and guards aren’t invincible. If you plan on fully protecting your pool, then you need to routinely inspect your barrier for signs of damage. A hole in a pool cover is almost more dangerous than having no cover at all. Someone could fall through the hole and then be unable to climb back out.\n\nEven with the right safety measures in place, you should talk with your children and neighbors to ensure that they know the rules regarding pool safety. Children should know that they aren’t allowed in the pool during the winter and shouldn’t even play in the area. Neighbors should relay this message to their own kids to keep a safe environment at all times.\n\nMost Drownings Can be Avoided\n\nThe harsh reality is that most fatal drownings can be avoided. It’s better that you learn this now, rather than after the fact. During the winter, when your pool isn’t in use, make sure you’re taking the proper steps to winterize. It takes some extra time and effort, but it’s well worth it in the end." ]

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[ "Forza Horizon 5 is coming very soon to Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC. It's also coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one of release on November 9, 2021. Or, if you preorder the Premium Add-Ons Bundle, Deluxe, or Premium Edition, you can play it on November 5. It's a little complicated, so read on for full details about what comes in each edition.\n\nWhat's not complicated is the question of whether it's any good. You can read our Forza Horizon 5 review for full details about why our critic gave it a 10/10 score.", null, null, "Forza Horizon 5 Premium Add-Ons Bundle upgrades the base game to the premium edition. It includes early access, allowing you to play the game four days early beginning November 5, 2021. It also includes the Welcome Pack, Car Pass, VIP Membership and two game expansions when they become available. This is perfect for those who just want to play via Game Pass, but also want the benefits of early access alongside other digital incentives.\n\nWill Forza Horizon 5 be on Xbox Game Pass?\n\nForza Horizon 5 will also be available on Xbox Game Pass on day one of release. Right now Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is on sale at Amazon, so you can get three months for $37.99 instead of the standard $44.99. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate gets you online access, plus lets you play well over 100 games that are available on the service. It's a great deal, especially since all Microsoft-published games arrive on the service on day one. That includes Forza Horizon 5, as well as Halo Infinite, which comes out December 8.\n\nThe digital-only deluxe edition of the game includes the full game and Car Pass.\n\nThe digital-only premium edition is also available. It includes early access to the game (November 5), two expansions, VIP, Car Pass, and a welcome pack once the game launches.", null, "If you preorder the game at Best Buy, you'll get a free $10 Best Buy digital gift card." ]

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[ "A new patent titled ‘Multi-functional stylus’ has been published by USPTO on July 23, 2020, which was filed by Microsoft’s senior hardware designer. The patented Surface Pen could potentially be used to write or draw onto the surface of a notebook’s palm rest or even function as an in-air mouse.\n\nThe new Surface Pen accomplishes this feat thanks to a new optical sensor that can improve its ability to function as a mouse, and allows the nib to be tracked on the palm rest area of a Surface Book by detecting two-dimensional movement.\n\nThe patent also shows that the Surface Pen could include additional buttons for right and left mouse clicks, and there’s a strip which can essentially be used to mimic a scroll wheel.\n\nWill a multi-functional Surface Pen boost your productivity when using the Surface Pen? Potentially, but making the stylus more functional and intuitive can only encourage users to pick it up more often.\n\nWhen you consider that the Surface Pen isn’t exactly cheap, and often isn’t bundled-in with most purchases, anything that Microsoft can do to make the accessory more appealing will only help boost its sales.\n\nMon Aug 3 , 2020\nIn an order to make it easier for users to add Nest devices to their homes, Google and ADT have announced a new long-term, strategic partnership. Under the partnership, Google will combine its Nest devices, services and technology with ADT’s expertise in providing security solutions for millions of homes and […]", null, "The Newbie’s Information To WEB OPTIMIZATION\n\nAre Weebly Websites Good For SEO?" ]

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[ "‘Jekyll And Hyde’ Axed After Just One Series | TV News\n\n‘Jekyll And Hyde’ Axed After Just One Series | TV News", null, "Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but it looks unlikely that Jekyll And Hyde will be returning to our small screens anytime soon. ITV have confirmed that they have cancelled the drama after only one series. The series’ creator and writer Charlie Higson (from The Fast Show) expressed his disappointment in a series of heartfelt tweets, describing ITV‘s decision to pull the plug as a “sad day.” I was genuinely moved when Higson added “Ah well, I tried” because I felt he did put a lot of effort into trying to make something very special for the channel.\n\nPersonally, I don’t think ITV ever had a lot of love for Jekyll And Hyde. ITV tried to emulate Doctor Who’s success by airing the series at tea-time, but the often graphic fight scenes better suited a post-watershed slot. One episode was understandably postponed after the atrocious Paris terror attacks; but by the end of the series, ITV seemed to have lost all faith in the show, running episodes 9 and 10 back to back on the same night, as if they wanted to be rid of it quickly. Those of you who, like me, did watch right to the end will know that many questions were left unanswered and that the stage was set for a second series, which apparently filming had even began on.\n\nSometimes shows need time to develop and grow and find their audiences. So hopefully ITV‘s Beowulf will be given a better chance to flourish." ]

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[ "Note this is a review of the first version of Death Frost Doom, the new rewrite makes some changes for the good, adds some stuff, includes a new map and better art. Still the same adventure though.\n\n\nHaving just played through Death Frost Doom in the Pahvelorn Campaign, and survived rather well - of all things considered. I went and purchased the module for the sole purpose of reviewing it (okay also wanted to see if I could steal anything for my own games). This post thus contains a fair amount of Death Frost Doom Spoilers.", null, "Death Frost Doom has assumed a sort of iconic status in “OSR” gaming, and I can see why this is. It has both a very classic old school dungeon crawl feel, with some lovely set pieces (especially early in the module), and is completely willing to main and kill characters with relatively little warning. On the other hand there is something new in the module, representing a 'renaissance' perhaps. Death Frost Doom is clearly not a product of the traditional D&D mentality, found in most early TSR works, that sees the game as having war-game like goals: kill/foil monsters, collect treasure and advance characters. A great deal of Death Frost Doom is spent with lavish attention on atmosphere and its structure is less a series of challenges and more an unfolding horror story. It’s this second part, the focus on atmospherics and novel sorts of adventure beyond the now trite dungeon-crawl experience that make Death Frost Doom noteworthy. Despite Death Frost Doom mostly involving a delve into an ancient tomb, many traditional D&D experiences are lacking – no wandering monsters, no secret traps (all traps telegraph their existence in interesting ways that make the players want to mess with them) and no boss monster to defeat.\n\nThat’s not to say Death Frost Doom lacks challenge. There are a lot of sinister puzzles, deadly traps and more things that look like puzzles and traps but provide only ambiance. The point here is that rather than the dungeon crawl being the challenge and adventure, the challenge and adventure are a result (perhaps inevitable) of figuring out what’s wrong with the dungeon crawl. The lovely set pieces mentioned above exist in Death frost Doom to build tension and atmosphere, and are well worth emulation. I especially liked the chairs that always face the door and the pacifist madman at the foot of the mountain.\n\nI will not reiterate the basic premise and surprise ending of Death Frost Doom, suffice to say that the mad scramble from a newly arisen army of the dead was enormously fun to play and seems like it would be wonderful to run. The tombs and graveyard that make up the adventure location have a lot of interesting things to mess with, and I suspect the average game plays as a slow exploration of increasingly fearful chambers with a fast paced rush through those chambers to escape, or a terrifying bit of social game playing with the ancient general.\nBelow is my list of changes or extras that would improve running Death Frost Doom – since I suspect most people who read this blog will have read or even played the adventure. This isn’t to say it needs improving – the basic weird tale/horror movie feel of the module is an excellent and it’s end options: 1) Death in glorious struggle with undead army 2) Fleeing through the freezing countryside from howling ghoul packs 3) Making a deal with an untrustworthy and vampire general - are perfect for such a genre piece.\n\n\n1) Make the Crypt Map Less Linear – The actual crypts in Death Frost Doom are on a grid that shouts out “this is not the point of the adventure” – some looping sections, steps and oddly shaped rooms would help. This would also making mapping more interesting – and I think requiring the party to map would really help the end game rush as the adventurers attempt to find their way out. A map that provided a logical place to hold off the undead horde would be amusing as well, while it’s equally obvious that a party can’t hold off thousands of undead, some place with clear barricades and maybe a narrow causeway over a pit of even more undead would taunt players into trying and being forced to retreat.\n\n2) Atmosphere in the Crypts - Some atmospheric notes in the crypts would be nice, they are very bare currently. Of course the size of them means that this might be best accomplished with randomized content - a table of things to find in individual crypts (a bone rattle, strange coins over the eyes of a corpse, a mummified pet) could help here as well. These sorts of tables are actually very useful, because while a decent GM can think up the interior of a crypt or other dungeon chamber pretty quickly in isolation, it’s much harder to think up the contents of numerous repeated similar spaces a way that makes them interesting.\n\n3) Provide a Random Encounter Table – not monsters, but odd noises and atmospheric effects. This would both maintain the illusion the random encounters are possible and give the sense the tombs are still sort of ‘alive’.\n\n4) Re-skin it All! – Perhaps a necessity for using Death Frost Doom for grognard OSR types. This adventure is easy to re-skin with all sorts of touches. Cultural glosses are the easiest. Viking style tombs shaped like dragon ships with knotwork and evil runes carved everywhere, Egypt flavored dusty tombs beneath a graveyard of burning sand, A Qin Dynasty terracotta army (with non-historical skeletons inside of course) and monumental bronzes in Zhang style, or a perhaps a Meso-American gloss. All would be easy enough to add, and suggest ways to conceal the fact that this is Death Frost Doom from a group that is in the know. As a general idea I think a re-skinning Death Frost Doom to fit one’s own game world is important as the events at the end of the adventure will be campaign changing. Death frost Doom’s best elements (the trapped doors and strange curses) can be slapped onto anything without losing any impact, so re-skinning makes a lot of sense.\n\n5) Make the Undead more Interesting – When the party flees from the crypts and across the graveyard pursued by scrambling hordes of undead, it seems worthwhile to add a variety of strange dead to encounter. Yes there are child corpses and ghouls, but there isn’t much more here. It’s just boring “ewww a dead guy” – which in D&D is a monster that does not actually inspire fear or revulsion. A table of abominations (chanting lines of undead pilgrims stitched together like centipedes, ghost hounds, corpses with grafted on stone, animal or metal parts, spectral presences, scuttling skeletal hands etc, etc.) would be nice to help run the escape. I think one could even put Death Frost Doom into a modern game – I’d love to see a Boothill campaign change from cowboys and robbers to “Oh damn! Zombie army from the evil Pueblo!”\n\n6) Change the “cult cabin” – There is much discussion within the module about an entire ancient evil nation, yet the cabin above ground is straight out of evil dead. This is a lovely homage to those haunted cabin movies, but really it doesn’t gel with the underground shrine so well - unless one were to re-skin the whole shrine as some kind of hillbilly nightmare of crude mineshaft style construction and sacrificial victims in flour sack body bags. A cabin would be fine, but it’s accoutrements (while excellent) don’t really feel connected to the tombs below. It might be something as simple as making the cabin a new addition with some ancient stonework as it’s basis to give the idea that the evil but inconsequential cult that was run out by villagers a generation ago was connected to some kind of ancient evil. Anyway this connection would work better if it was more concrete as otherwise the descent into the tombs is a jarring switch.\n\nI should mention that when we played through Death Frost Doom in the Vaults of Pahvelorn, Brendan did exactly this, turning the cabin into an ancient wizard tower, while retaining everything within virtually unchanged. This worked quite well.\n\n7) Help the GM Run the Escape – while the two pages of notes are nice, I’d like to see more in the way of game aides. I’ve mentioned some random encounter tables above, but I would also like to see some indication of just how fast the underground and above ground areas fill with undead. Since doing the escape right will require either meticulous time keeping (to be fair) or some great descriptions and events (to be cinematic) a time keeping handout would work wonders, as would a table of random events (sprained ankles, omens, confused poacher encountered in the woods) to help the players feel more frenzied and hectic as they flee from the mountain. Exposure rules, exhaustion rules and such would also be nice – but are unnecessary. Finally a bunch of bulky treasure would be a good addition (fancy tapestries, big bronzes) if it was easy to discover, but slowed the party. Players will talk about the treasure they had to leave behind, and the “drop the valuable and run” quandary is so central to the weird tale scenarios that Death Frost Doom emulates.\n\nThe above are simply I would do to Death Frost Doom to make it more playable for me. It’s an excellent published adventure - first, as a playable module and second, (perhaps more interestingly) as an idea/goad showing what can be done is a table top game.\nPosted by Gus L at 8:27 PM" ]

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[ "Puerto Princesa and the recall paradox\n\nApr 19, 2015 4:20 PM PHT\nFacebook Twitter Copy URL\nCopied\nThere could be times when instead of speaking truth to power, an accountability mechanism becomes a tool of the powerful to constrain governance", null, "Puerto Princesa is at a standstill: It is being prepared to once again decide on whether to replace its mayor or not, just a year before another regular elections.\n\nOn April 7, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) issued Resolution No.15-0284, setting the conduct of a recall election in Puerto Princesa on May 8. This is in response to a petition for recall filed by Al Roben Goh, a former city information officer.\n\nThe Comelec en banc, approving the recommendation of the Office of the Deputy Executive Director for Operations (ODEDO), found Goh’s petition sufficient based on the verification of signatures conducted by its election officer for Puerto Princesa, Mr Roseller Gapulao.\n\nMayor Lucilo Bayron, the official sought to be recalled or replaced, is automatically one of the candidates in the elections on May 8. His term, if not interrupted, expires next year.\n\nA recall is a process by which a local elected officer is sought to be replaced by the electorate in an election conducted like any other regular election. It is initiated through a petition for recall signed by a certain percentage of the total voting population (for Puerto Princesa, it’s 15% of its total number of voters). It traces its roots to two principles found in the Constitution – that “sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them” and that “public office is a public trust.”\n\nA recall, then, is more importantly a democratic mechanism to ensure accountability from local elected officers. Accountability serves a purpose. It ensures that public officials perform well and prevents abuse of authority and corruption.\n\nBayron is not the first mayor sought to be recalled in Puerto Princesa. In 2002, then-mayor Victorino Dennis Socrates was successfully recalled from position and replaced by ex-mayor Edward Hagedorn, who had previously served as mayor of Puerto Princesa from 1992 to 2001. In 2001, Hagedorn ran for Palawan governor and lost, but was elected mayor again through the 2002 recall. Hagedorn, henceforth, was able to serve 3 three-year terms from 2002-2013, serving as mayor of Puerto Princesa for two decades with just a little over one year of interruption despite the term limit set in the Constitution.\n\nThe Local Government Code of 1991 (LGC) provides that a recall may only be allowed a year from the date of the official’s assumption from office, or one year immediately preceding a local election. The one-year ban “provides a reasonable basis for evaluating the performance of an elective local official,” as reasoned in Claudio v Comelec.\n\nThe recall process is a double-edged sword, says former chief justice Reynato Puno. Dissenting from a majority opinion in Claudio v Comelec, Puno says that a recall can be abused when recalls are borne by ill motive of the few; when they disrupt the smooth running of government; and when they destabilize the local government unit.\n\nLooking at the recall election in Puerto Princesa in May this year, those points of then Chief Justice Puno are good to reflect on. Who benefits from another election to be conducted just a little over a year before the next election? Doesn’t this unnecessarily disrupt the smooth running of government and destabilize the local government unit? If the premise is accountability, heeding the voice of the people, that voice cannot wait for just a year?\n\nIn reexamining the LGC’s provisions on recall, there are many valid and critical questions to consider, especially given the lack of apparent and pressing substantive reason that makes the recall in Puerto Princesa – and perhaps other localities – imperative.\n\nThe only basis for the decision of Comelec is the number of signatures, which Comelec declares to be sufficient based on the percentage of voters specified in the law. Can that procedural requirement, which is a small percentage of the total number of voters, undo an electoral mandate of a plural majority?\n\nA procedural requirement is perhaps acceptable if aside from it, a substantive basis is considered too. If an official has a pending Ombudsman case (for example, on corruption) or a Commission on Human Rights case (human rights violation) or a Comelec case (electoral fraud) that has been established to have a probable cause, which compromises the official’s credibility, a recall would probably be just and necessary. However, this is not the case in Puerto Princesa.\n\nThe official involved is in office only for a little less than two years and is already being subjected to recall on the basis of the performance of the entire city, that no two-year work of anybody could ever be fully responsible for.\n\nThere should be a more substantive requirement to initiate a recall for officials on their first term, in particular. Putting a more substantive requirement to initiate a recall should serve as a safeguard for abuse, while still maintaining the principle that “power emanates from the people.” This safeguard is especially needed in a case where the opposition has been in power for many years and hence is well-entrenched compared to the sitting official who just came to power. It is not Rocket Science to expect the ill-effects of a recall on the performance in governance of the sitting elected neophyte official, thus possibly affecting too his prospect in the next regular elections.\n\nComelec and the Supreme Court interpret the one-year prohibition on recall to run only from the recall election itself – and not from the preparatory activities such as the signing of the recall petition or its filing. Chief Justice Puno, in his dissenting opinion on Claudio v. Comelec, has already warned that this means that from day one of an electoral official’s term, he may already be subject to recall, struggling to govern properly with the burden of a recall petition hanging over his head.\n\nAs Chief Justice Puno observes, “the more disquieting and destabilizing part of recall is its initiation more than the recall election itself…it is in the too early initiatory process where the baseless criticisms and falsehoods of a few are foisted on the many.” He adds, “To allow early recall initiative is to encourage divisive, expensive, wasteful politics.”\n\nAs it is now, the recall election against Bayron seems to be evolving into a classic example of judicial bodies favoring form over substance, technicality over substance, letter of the law over spirit of the law. It also seems to indicate a case of how a supposed accountability mechanism could be misused—that instead of it stopping an abuse of power, it is being abused to serve mainly what seems to be a partisan political end disruptive of governance and political transition. – Rappler.com\n\nJoy Aceron is program director of Political Democracy and Reforms (PODER) of the Ateneo School of Government. Anna Bueno is a new lawyer, who is currently a program associate of PODER/Government Watch." ]

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[ null, "Who is Dalton Gomez?\n\nDalton works for the Aaron Kirman group and focuses on “luxury real estate listings,” and in 2020 represented a home in Malibu with an asking price of \"nearly $11million.”\n\nDalton, 25, is friends with Miley Cyrus and they sometimes appear on each other's social media stories.\n\nWhen did the couple get together?\n\nAriana confirmed her relationship with Dalton in May 2020 but she reportedly started dating him in January 2020.\n\nIn her music video for Stuck With U, the singer dances with the real estate agent in her bedroom before they share a kiss.\n\nOn December 20, 2020 Ariana announced that the pair were engaged.\n\nWhen did Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez get married?\n\nThe pop star threw the bash at her Montecito, CA mansion and there was “no real ceremony” and “just a few” guests.\n\nAccording to TMZ, the couple wanted “informal” nuptials and it remains unclear if this was long planned out or an impulsive decision.\n\nWho else has Ariana Grande dated?\n\nAriana has dated some high-profile bachelors in the past.\n\nBefore Dalton. her last serious relationship was with Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson in 2018.\n\nWithin weeks the pair were engaged, but they broke up just months later.\n\nPrior to that, Ariana had a brief fling with Social House's Mikey Foster.\n\nSocial House worked with Ariana on her hit singles 7 Rings, Boyfriend and Thank U, Next, which all debuted on her Sweetener album in 2019.\n\nThe singer also dated rapper Mac Miller, who tragically passed away from an accidental overdose in September 2018." ]

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[ null, "Gravitas Ventures, a Red Arrow Studios company, has acquired worldwide rights to the multi-award-winning Nefarious from Ash Mountain Films following an award-winning festival run. The film will be released March 17, 2020.\n\nThe home invasion horror/thriller focuses on a robbery that goes horribly wrong. The film stars Toby Wynn-Davies (Escape from Cannibal Farm), Nadia Lamin (Hosts), and newcomer Buck Braithwaite. Nefarious is directed by Richard Rowntree from a script he co-wrote with Matthew Davies; both known for their first feature-length film, Dogged.", null, "Nefarious has been collecting high praise, along with multiple awards at festivals in both the US and the UK, including three for best horror feature. With a heavy emphasis on social commentary, particularly relating to economic disparity in the western world, the film features award-winning practical effects and a clever script. Nightmarish Conjurings called this film “a seat-gripping journey of twists and blood-filled turns”, whilst Horror Fuel said it had “a ton of entertainment value.”\n\n“We’re very excited to be partnering with Gravitas on the release of our second feature film in the horror genre, and hope that it serves horror fans and beyond with a thrilling experience.” – Ash Mountain Films\n\nGravitas Ventures is a leading all rights distributor of independent feature films and documentaries. Founded in 2006, Gravitas connects independent filmmakers and producers with distribution opportunities across the globe. Working with talented directors and producers, Gravitas Ventures has distributed thousands of films into over a hundred million households in North America – over one billion homes worldwide. For more information, please visit gravitasventures.com" ]

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[ "We interrupt our regularly scheduled reviews to warn readers who have absorbed my annual praise for Daniel Silva’s usually exquisite novels. Like clockwork a new book featuring Israeli spy hero Gabriel Allon has appeared each July. Two summers ago I set my one-day record for steps (40,500—20 miles) while reading the new arrival slowly and relishing it. But I feel painfully obligated to say this: Despite Bob Woodward’s “Can’t put it down” recommendation, you should save your money and not pick up Silva’s latest, The Order (Harper, published on July 14).\n\nThe problem is that Silva, in book 20 of the Allon series, grabbed from the dried-up modern novelist’s bag of tricks a clichéd conspiracy tale: An ancient document, in this case the “Gospel of Pilate,” disproves the Gospel accounts—so some commit murder to sideline the truth. Gabriel declares “the writers of the four Gospels guilty of the most vicious slander in history” and says anti-Semitism exists “all because of those nine words” in Matthew 27:25—the crowd tells Pilate regarding Jesus, “His blood be on us and on our children.”\n\nIn an author’s note Silva acknowledges that the Gospel of Pilate “does not exist.” He lauds his bigoted sources, including “Bart D. Ehrman, the distinguished professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina,” and “religious scholar Reza Aslan.” He echoes their assaults with statements like “The gospels were never intended to be factual records.” Actually, Luke begins his Gospel by noting that some had compiled narratives and “it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account.” Luke searches for accuracy so his readers “may have certainty” about what they’ve heard.\n\nSilva has sought accuracy in previous works, but The Order is sloppy. He emphasizes Matthew’s inclusion of the “nine words” and Mark’s exclusion: “Both accounts cannot be correct. If one is right, the other is necessarily wrong.” But the details of their accounts are similar, except that Mark doesn’t include the quotation. Silva’s author’s note says: “A reporter who made such a mistake would surely have been reprimanded by his editor, if not fired on the spot. The most plausible explanation is that the entire scene is a literary invention.” But here’s a more plausible explanation: Mark’s Gospel has 678 verses, Matthew’s 1,071. The latter is 37 percent longer and more detailed throughout. One WORLD writer includes more detail; another is terser. I don’t fire either.", null, "Silva, unusual for him, does include one charming mystical touch. Gabriel gets the first page of the “Gospel of Pilate” from a sandal-wearing Father Joshua, and later encounters him during a Venice flood: “The priest seemed to move across the floodwaters without disturbing the surface.” Gabriel, wondering how Father Joshua made it into the Vatican’s “Secret Archives,” says, “Your name doesn’t appear on the staff directory. … You weren’t wearing any identification that day.” Joshua responds, “Why would someone like me require identification?” Gabriel: “Who are you?” Joshua responds, “Who do you say I am?” Hmm. Joshua says, “I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus,” and raises a bandaged hand. Then he disappears.\n\nSilva grew up in a Catholic home, married a Jewish CNN correspondent, and converted to Judaism. One of his characters says, “I decided I could be both a Christian and a Jew. After all, Jesus was a Jew.” As a convert myself I understand different tugs, and enjoy spy novels from a variety of perspectives—but a writer should do his homework. The better response to anti-Semitism is: add, don’t subtract. Instead of trying to eliminate a verse, read it in the context of other verses, such as John 4:22’s “salvation is from the Jews.” Yes, remember that Jesus and all His Apostles were Jews. Remember not to eliminate Matthew 19:19 and 22:39, Mark 12:31, Luke 10:27, Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14, and James 2:8: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”" ]

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[ "A Prayer for Torn Stockings, by Suzanne O’Connell", null, "Finding the memorable and the remarkable in the ordinary elements of everyday life, A Prayer for Torn Stockings presents 77 poems in a revealing first collection.\n\nPraise for A Prayer for Torn Stockings:\n\nOne’s mind boggles at the range of the poems in this book, the authenticity of voice, the vividness of the imagery, and most of all, the sheer breathtaking adventure of language. Were I not prone to speechlessness, I would be speechless. How a poem can break and mend the heart all at the same time is beyond me, but Suzanne O’Connell’s poems do that, one a time, from beginning to end. If you read only one book of poetry this year, this should be the one.\n\n— Jack Grapes, The Naked Eye and All the Sad Angels\n\nSuzanne O’Connell’s poems live between the imagination we never lose and the innocence torn from us; witty, tribal, dream-driven and memorable, her poems are a lantern on childhood secrets and adult desires. Whether O’Connell is seducing Mr. Rogers, cooking a husband, or praying to Jesus for some decent breasts, these poems dance at a touch like wind chimes, anchored by a fierce intelligence and supremely gifted powers of observation. In gardens and domestic interiors where animals and spirits rule above the priss and prim of humans, O’Connell expertly weaves narratives of the power of families, lovers, shop keepers. Her poems conjure real worlds she beckons the reader to enter only to shut the door on hypocrisy and pretension. These poems slip into the skin of other stories, you can hold them up to your ear like a shell and revel in her incantations of the miraculous every day.\n\n“…I can’t tell you everything,” Suzanne O’Connell confesses in her poem, Seducing Mr. Rogers. But the secrets she spills in A Prayer For Torn Stockings are many. She is That Kind of Girl, the kind who “removes her clothes,/climbs the ladder to the rooftop… and dances like she was cardboard coming unglued.” She is the girl with the mother who “you can’t keep away,/no matter how hard you push.” (The Bears), the girl who thinks of herself as a piñata, the girl with feathers “sprouted from all (her) secret places,” (How Ignorant Bliss Is) the one who calls out to the night in dreams (If A Tree Falls). This contrasts beautifully with O’Connell’s flip-side persona, the woman who stabs her husband’s hand with a fork, goes into the ring to box her aged mother, the one whose first word was ‘material.’ “…She knew her family “would provide/colorful material for her stories./Maybe her first word was a warning to them to behave.” (Her First Word) The poems in this collection show what happens when people don’t behave. These poems dance like that girl on the rooftop. These poems sing.\n\n— Alexis Rhone Fancher Poetry Editor, Cultural Weekly; author of How I Lost My Virginity To Michael Cohen & other heart stab poems, and State of Grace: The Joshua Elegies.", null, "With 76 poems set out in seven sections (with nine illustrations that are as unique as the poems), Rot is the second collection from one of San Diego’s most dynamic young voices.\n\n“Rot is a confession, a purge, a provocation and more than anything, an affirmation. Sunny Rey splays open her ventricles with a weathered switchblade and then stitches them up with wide-eyed abandon. Rot eats at me. It insists that we have to fall apart before we can come together. And I believe it.” — ̶ Chad Deal, writer/musician" ]

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[ "Arsenal are reportedly interested in signing Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Alexis MacAllister in January and his potential arrival at the Emirates could be another masterclass by sporting director Edu.\n\nAccording to TyC Sports journalist Gastón Edul, Chelsea, Arsenal and Atletico Madrid are all keen on the Argentina international, who stared at the recent World Cup in Qatar as Lionel Scaloni’s side triumphed against France in the final.\n\nWhile Chelsea are said to be leading the race for the former Boca Juniors man, it is thought that a January move could be extremely difficult, as the Seagulls are in a strong position financially and won’t be keen to sell the 24-year-old after some eye-catching recent performances.\n\nThe young midfielder had already impressed in the Premier League ahead of the World Cup break, hitting five goals in 14 appearances for Brighton, earning a strong 7.05 rating from WhoScored for his performances.", null, null, null, "However, he featured in a more advanced position in Qatar and was one of Argentina’s most consistent players en route to glory, scoring one goal and providing one assist, earning a 7.11 rating from WhoScored which ranked him as his country’s third-best performer behind only Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria.\n\nTherefore, it is clear that MacAllister already has what it takes to perform at the very top and it is easy to see why Arsenal might want to bring him to the Emirates in 2023.\n\nA repeat of Arsenal’s White masterclass\n\nBrighton have cultivated a reputation for identifying top young talents and selling them on for big fees in recent years, with Ben White, Marc Cucurella and Yves Bissouma all leaving for big transfer fees after establishing themselves as top young talents at the Amex Stadium.\n\nWhite, in particular, has caught the eye with his performances for the Gunners this season, earning a strong 6.89 rating from WhoScored for his performances in the top flight, despite being moved to right-back by Arteta this season in order to accommodate William Saliba in the starting XI.\n\nWhoScored state that MacAllister’s strengths include passing, holding onto the ball and defensive contribution, all of which suggest that he has the ability and attitude to be a success at the Emirates.\n\nHe said: “Mac Allister has looked a class, quality player.\n\n“He thinks of what he wants to do when the ball arrives, play it short, run it, defend it. He’s a very good midfield player. He has the capability to go forward and also defend. He’s not big and strong but he wins tackles. He has this attitude and when he has the ball he looks forward very carefully. I think he has been outstanding this season.”\n\nConsidering the success of their last signing from Brighton, it is no surprise that Edu is seemingly looking towards the south coast for another potential addition in 2023." ]

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[ null, "Here’s a surprise for all you Australians trapped in Australia because you chose not to take part in a medical experiment. The reason you can’t leave is not for your own health. It’s not for the health of fellow Australians. It’s because we are “protecting the rest of the world”. This is a world where where fully vaccinated travellers have already spread Covid to every country on Earth and at least 72 countries are happy for you to turn up on their door with your tourist dollars and without a vaccine.\n\nAs Senator Rennick says: “I cannot for the life of me see the health risks in an unvaccinated person leaving the country.”\n\nPaul Kelly, Australia’s Chief Medical Officer explained that it was due to Australia’s International Health Obligations. That’s an international treaty we signed because we’re a member of the WHO. As far as a quick search turns up, Australia, Canada and the UAE may be the only nations still banning their own citizens from leaving. In Canada, things are so inexplicable, the vaccinated don’t even need to do a test anymore. So people infected with Covid are free to fly in or out of Canada shedding virus everywhere. But healthy unvaccinated people “will need to be tested at the airport and again eight days after arrival, and isolate for 14 days.” Righto.\n\nThe Australian PM Scott Morrison keeps telling us he opposes mandates, yet he hasn’t said “boo” about this international treaty. Indeed, if the Australian government was set up as a subsidiary wing of Pfizer and Moderna, they could hardly have done more to lift profits\n\nBelow Senator Rennick asks Paul Kelly, Australia’s Chief Medical Officer, at the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee why unvaccinated Australians can’t leave the country. It may take two repeat-viewings to get the message, there is no sunset clause on locking in the refuseniks.\n\nThe Good news is that finally the two year Pandemic Emergency Biosecurity powers are about to end.\n\nThe Bad news is the government plans to make other rules that will still stop unvaxxed Australians from leaving.\n\nAustralian citizens who wish to travel without getting injections will still need to swim, paddle, ride crocodiles, or renounce their citizenship. Perhaps Prof Kelly is hoping to use this as a “booster” bonus carrot? Will they ban the two-jabbed?\n\nNo one in their wildest mind can pretend it’s about your health anymore: viral loads in both the vaccinated and unvaccinated reach the same levels. Vaccines double cardiovascular risk factors and don’t appear to improve our chances of staying alive overall. In fact US Military Data shows a frighteningly higher rate of vaccination injuries — a 300% to 1000% increase medical billing items related to miscarriage, cancer, neurological conditions, fertility problems and pulmonary embolisms.\n\nThe vaccine data is so bad, it’s commercial in confidence.\n\nThe WHO is a menace — They only had one job in the last 50 years, and they failed dismally, now they want more power.\n\nRemember February 2, 2020? That’s when the WHO could have saved millions of lives and told the world to turn off the flights and keep the Wuhan Flu in Wuhan. Instead Tedros, the former belt-n-road Foreign Minister of Ethiopia, told the world ridiculous fictions and Chief Health Officers believed him.\n\nNow the WHO wants bigger better pandemic treaties. Like the IPCC but so much worse.\n\nA few years ago, before Covid, the WHO recommended Australia needed to do more to overcome “vaccine hesitancy”. Apparently we needed electronic systems for storing information on ill travellers, and we needed to establish centralized vaccination registries… that’s page 28 of the recommendations from “Australia’s National Action Plan for Health Security 2019-2023 “.\n\nWe think the WHO should overcome it’s “cheap drugs hesitancy” and start saving lives instead.\n\nThanks to Sharon W and previously David Maddison\n\nThe Emergency Declaration in March 2020 with the ban on overseas travel." ]

[ "https://kids.kiddle.co/images/thumb/9/96/Microtis_media_habit.jpg/300px-Microtis_media_habit.jpg", null ]

[ null, "habit on Mount Melville in Albany\n\nMicrotis media, commonly known as the common mignonette orchid, is a species of herbaceous plants of the family Orchidaceae endemic to the south–west of Western Australia. It has a single tubular leaf and up to one hundred small, yellowish green flowers arranged along the flowering stem.\n\nMicrotis media are deciduous, chlorophyllous, sympodial, tuberoid terrestrial orchids with a single, tubular leaf 250–650 mm (9.8–25.6 in) long that encloses the lower one-third to half of the flowering stem. The flowers are green, 2.5–3 mm (0.098–0.118 in) wide, arranged around an erect flowering stem 200–600 mm (7.9–23.6 in) high. The dorsal sepal forms a hood over the column and the petals face forwards. The lateral sepals are curled. The labellum is thick and has a more or less rough, irregular margin and a raised callus.\n\nThe species was first formally described by Robert Brown in 1810 from a specimen collected at King George Sound in 1801. The description was published in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. The specific epithet (media) is a Latin word meaning \"medium\", referring to the intermediate floral structure.\n\nThe plant was featured in Curtis's Botanical Magazine in 1825, where it was given the common name middle-sized microtis. According to Allan Cunningham it appeared from a sod of earth containing a Cephalotus, collected by Phillip Parker King from same location, and flowered to provide the source of the illustration by Franz Bauer. The description was \"Whole plant, in general aspect, very much resembling the M. parviflora represented in our last plate, but more than twice the size. The flowers too are extremely similar, and the chief difference is to be found in the lip, which is here larger in proportion to the rest of the flower, and it is singularly wedge-shaped, truncated, and obtuse, even retuse at the extremity :–the disk being moreover furnished with two oblong, warty callosities, and the margin of the lower half and apex, with several globose, tuberculated processes\".\n\nIn 1990, Robert John Bates described two subspecies of M. media and the names have been accepted by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families:\n\nThe common mignonette orchid grow in shrubland, woodland and forest, often in seasonally wet areas and on granite outcrops. It occurs in the southwest of Western Australia between Shark Bay and Eyre.\n\nThis orchid is classified as \"not threatened\" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.\n\nAll content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:\nMicrotis media Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia." ]

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[ "NEO is currently ranked 50 on the popular exchange platform Alligat0r making it one of the higher-ranked altcoins. The cryptocurrency can emerge as..", null, "NEO is currently ranked 50 on the popular exchange platform Alligat0r making it one of the higher-ranked altcoins. The cryptocurrency can emerge as one of the top coins in the recent future. But to understand that, a bit of background will help you understand.\n\nNEO was originally started under the name AntShares but later changed. It was initiated by Erik Zhan and Da Hongfei in 2014. It is a China-based project and was initially started as an open-source, community-based GitHub project. It was later developed into what is known today as NEO. Since China has imposed a general ban on cryptocurrencies stating their mining is consuming too much electricity in the country and has considerable environmental effects. But NEO was built in a way using an innovative technology called OnChain technology which has made it regulator friendly. Despite China’s regulations, it can rise as China’s own cryptocurrency.\n\nThe main feature of NEO is that it has its own cryptocurrency and uses the platform as a blockchain network to support it and circulate smart contracts to create assets. NEO aims to create a network that will allow users to manage their digital assets with the usage of smart contracts. In the paper, it has a similar model to Ethereum and has been nicknamed China’s Ethereum.\n\nHow can one transact NEO, and what is GAS?\n\nThe NEO network has two cryptocurrencies: NEO and GAS. NEO works in a slightly different way than most other cryptocurrencies. It uses a particular Byzantine Proof-of-work, which is different from POW or POS concept. Unlike miners, who get rewarded for validating transactions on the blockchain for cryptos like Bitcoin, on NEO, the holder is rewarded for possessing it. So, the NEO tokens signify a share on Bitcoin. In addition, buyers of NEO cryptocurrency who hold it in physical wallets are rewarded with GAS each time a new block is created. It is the method chosen for as long as GAS does not reach its cap at 100 million.\n\nWhen to invest in getting profit from NEO or GAS?\n\nThis cryptocurrency has had a massive return ratio in the past and stayed at quite high prices for long periods. Since the first time the currency was introduced in the West since it was available for buying only through Bittrex, the rush to buy it has shit the price up too high. Bt since then, the price has lowered a lot. For the current time, it would be best if the person could day trade from NEO to GAS or vice versa. It is because the market is currently very volatile for cryptocurrency. It is because China could completely cease cryptocurrency, and that would create unnecessary havoc on the company. Also, the company has not shown any recent improvement, neither any speculation nor hype in the market. So, it would be recommended not to hold it for the long term, but it would be better suited for day trading. But it currently stands at the price of around $50, which is higher than what most expert predictors had predicted for the cryptocurrency stating that it may not even cross $30 by December 2021. So, it is for sure that the company should be kept on close watch to understand its dynamics and continuously monitor it.\n\nThe post NEO Review 2022 – 2023: When to invest with profit appeared first on South Florida Caribbean News.", null, null, null, null, null, null ]

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[ "Ways To Wear White This Winter\n\nThis winter, embrace the shade that best describes the holiday season, white. Just because the ground is covered in the fluffy stuff, doesn’t mean you have to shy away from the colour. You may fear the thought of sporting a head-to-toe white ensemble, but really there is no better time to pop some white into your wardrobe. The colour is both refreshing and clean, and can really brighten up your look during those dark and blistery days.\n\nAt this year’s New York Fashion Week, Kaufmanfranco showcased some crisp white looks from the Fall 2014 collection, like the one photographed above.\n\nIt’s said you can’t or shouldn’t wear white after labour day, but this season celebrities have been breaking that rule time and time again. You can see some wonderful all white looks above.Gugu Mbatha-Raw wore a head-to-toe loof from Calvin Klein at the IFP Gotham Independent Film Awards. Lady Gaga was spotted leaving her apartment in Midtown Manhattan sporting a white trench coat which she paired with a grey fedora. And Angelina Jolie wore a cream dress by Ralph & Russo to the London premiere of Unbroken.\n\nHere are some white hot pieces to add to your winter wardrobe this year:", null ]

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[ null, "In December 1988, Jane Davis lost her daughter Shannon, a junior in Syracuse University's College for Human Development, in the Pan Am 103 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland. With her son, James '87, and daughter Whitney '89, Davis recently pledged $500,000 to the Pan Am 103 Archives at SU to support the collection, which contains one of the largest repositories of information about the tragedy.\n\n\"The idea of the archives pleases me very much,\" Davis said. \"Especially the idea of having all of the resources being gathered in one place and available to the citizens of the world.\" Davis considers the archives a fitting tribute not only to her daughter but to all of the people on the flight. \"At first, we could only think of ourselves and our loss of Shannon,\" she said. \"But then we realized the importance of all the victims, who represented 22 countries.\"\n\nThe archives contain information not just about the 35 SU study-abroad students, but all 270 victims on Pan Am 103, according to Edward L. Galvin, director of Archives and Records Management at SU. The collection is not fully processed, but there are approximately 200 boxes of material, and Galvin is in negotiation with other family members for the donation of more information. \"This was a global event and we are trying to branch out to the United Kingdom and elsewhere to have people support what we are doing here, to make this the center for any research that would need to be done on Pan Am 103,\" Galvin said. \"No other university lost as many as we did. There's a perpetual commitment here at SU that you won't find anywhere else.\"\n\nSyracuse University has become such a central place for those affected by the event that the major victims group, the Victims of Pan Am Flight 103, holds its annual meeting on campus, as does its board of directors. The Davis gift brings the archives closer to the estimated $2 million necessary to endow an archivist position dedicated to the Pan Am 103 Archives. The archivist will process the existing materials and work with family members around the world who may be interested in donating more material. The items collected include writings, paintings, poetry, schoolwork done by the victims, and their personal belongings-such as one man's woodworking tools and another's Cub Scout pinewood derby car. Dozens of books and articles have been written on the subject and the archive strives to catalogue at least one copy of each, as well as copies of video documentaries and audio books. \"After 21 years, you would think that an event like this would be fading into history,\" Galvin said. \"But it isn't.\"\n\nMaking sure it isn't forgotten is one of the reasons why Davis and her children pledged their gift to the Pan Am 103 Archives. \"Everyone in the world is a potential victim,\" she said. \"We need a place where you can study and discuss what happened in December 1988. I love that SU has the vision to serve the global community.\"" ]

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[ null, "If you have burning questions or seek more information about the NSA’s Internet monitoring services then you’ll be interested to know that Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald is taking to Reddit on Tuesday (October 1) to host an Ask Me Anything (AMA) Q&A session.\n\nThe AMA, which will also include editor Janine Gibson, is also likely to focus on how Greenwald’s personal life has been affected by the NSA leaks, since the Guardian journalist is one of the few to whom whistleblower Edward Snowden has provided classified documents.\n\nThat access has significantly raised Greenwald’s visibility, turning him into a target. Last month, for instance, his partner was detained at a London airport for nine hours while travelling back to his home in Brazil — Greenwald called the episode “a failed attempt at intimidation.”" ]

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[ "Seven people were killed Saturday in Iraq, in the demonstrations that demand the departure of the political class. The tough intervention of the security forces comes after an agreement to put ...", null, "Seven demonstrators were killed Saturday in Iraq, where the capital had the air of a battlefield with protesters caught under fire, after a political agreement at the highest level to end the challenge \"by all means\".\n\nAt the edge of Tahrir Square in Baghdad, four protesters were killed, three by bullets and the fourth hit by a tear gas grenade in the face, according to medical and security sources. Earlier in the day, three protesters were killed in a live ammunition scatter in Basra, a southern city where law enforcement officers are now arresting anyone who tries to go out on the streets.\n\nLaunched on October 1, the protest calls for the departure of the entire political class, unchanged for years and considered corrupt and incompetent.\n\nThe tougher intervention of the security forces comes as a result of an agreement by the main political forces to put an end to the protests, including by force, to maintain power.\n\nWhile a movement of civil disobedience blocks for several days schools, administrations and infrastructures, this agreement for a \"return to the normal life\" makes fear more violence.\n\nIn the late afternoon on Tahrir Square, a doctor told AFP he heard \"live ammunition\" while \"security forces are getting closer\".\n\n\"It's over the demonstrations\"\n\nIn the shopping streets of the center of the capital, protesters shout: \"they shoot live bullets!\"\n\n\"The security forces tell us: 'it's over the demonstrations, tomorrow everyone goes back to work, but we set up barricades so that they do not enter Tahrir, tomorrow nobody will go to work,' throws a protester in the middle of the shots.\n\nIn Basra, security forces arrested all those who tried to escape into the streets of the oil city, according to witnesses.\n\nConscienced by the protesters and time in the hot seat, Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi is now consensus among parties and politicians. Those who had time for his departure, in front of which the versatile Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr, turned around, especially under the pressure of neighboring Iran and its allies in Baghdad.\n\nAfter several meetings in recent days, the main political forces have agreed to reforms - far from the hopes of the protesters who want a new Constitution. But, above all, they agreed to end the challenge, unpublished by its spontaneous nature, told AFP two senior officials on condition of anonymity.\n\nFollowing calls on social networks, the Iraqis demonstrated from October 1 to 6 to demand \"the fall of the regime\". The movement was then suspended until October 24, the time of a major Shia pilgrimage.\n\nAbout 300 people, mostly demonstrators, were killed and more than 12,000 wounded, according to a report compiled by AFP.\n\nFor hundreds of protesters on Tahrir, the internet break since the beginning of the week is fear the worst. The first week of October, in a country cut off from the world, 157 people died while snipers deployed on the roofs sowed terror.", null, null, null, null, null ]

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[ "The Tower of London, built by William the Conqueror to dominate his new capital, has a long and fascinating history well worth reading up on. As I approached The Dark Apostle series, and especially the second book, Elisha Magus, it dominated my research for a time as well, but the scenes twist and turn, the plot grows and changes, and some of the scenes I envisioned for the book are no longer there, including one featuring the Traitors’ Gate.", null, "This model shows the Tower as it now stands, with the wharf extended down the river side, surrounding the rectangular St. Thomas’s Tower.", null, "The Traitors’ Gate is a direct entrance from the river Thames into the the Tower grounds. This portcullis sits at the base of the large, rectangular St. Thomas’s Tower, and was built by Edward I in the 1290’s. St. Thomas’s Tower expanded the royal apartments, and provided a defensive bullwark at the riverside, as well as a protected basin for landing small boats on Tower business. Originally, St. Thomas’s Tower projected into the river, but by 1400, the Tower Wharf, which stuck out alongside the western end of the Tower by the city, had been extended the length of the river side to what is now Tower Bridge at the City Wall, thus completing the moat.\n\nAt some time, the water gate begins to be referred to as the Traitors’ Gate. I can date this usage to 1544, when the term appears on a panorama of London, drawn by Anthonis van den Wyngaerde (in the Sutherland Collection at the Ashmolean Library at Oxford). Likely, it was convenient to transport prisoners by barge along the river rather than bring them through the crowded city, especially for high-profile cases.\n\nPerhaps, after the book is published, I can post my deleted scene(s) using the gate. Certainly, it’s murky and atmospheric enough to deserve notice, and the name alone inspires me.\n\nI spend as much time in my office as I possibly can--thinking up terrible things to do to people who don't exist.\nView all posts by E. C. Ambrose →\nThis entry was posted in Deleted scenes and settings, Elisha Magus, history, medieval, research, The Dark Apostle and tagged 14th century, Edward I, London history, medieval history, the Traitor's Gate, Tower of London, Traitors' Gate. Bookmark the permalink." ]

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[ "Bethesda Softworks in 2015 surprised the entire gaming world - without any preliminary announcements, open beta testing and teasers released FallOut Shelter. And she made the game in an unusual genre - instead of running around the Wasteland and fighting all sorts of cockroaches, we have to build our own Sanctuary and develop it. In fact, thanks to Bethesda the genre became so popular that it was followed by several FallOut Shelter clones, and one of the most successful was Hustle Castle. Well, the original was more than successful: in the first two weeks the game brought the company about 5 million dollars in profit, and as of 2018 - more than 90 million.\n\nHow to play FallOut Shelter\n\nFallOut Shelter is a game about surviving the post-apocalypse, and it's a fascinating concept. We act as the caretaker of a certain Sanctuary (probably one of hundreds scattered around the world), and the game starts with the fact that in one of these bunkers the first inhabitants (a man and a woman) appear. Our job is to keep the residents in good spirits and monitor the condition of the Sanctuary. So we take in the survivors and immediately give them tasks - there is no capitalism in the post-apocalypse, and everyone works to keep the Sanctuary alive. Which, in turn, is provided by a working generator (to generate electricity) and a water treatment plant. Your residents also need to eat - there is a canteen for this purpose. In fact, the performance of these three rooms is vital - we must assign the first settlers to these rooms in order to keep the Sanctuary running. If you don't get enough resources, the bunker won't be able to function properly, and all the inhabitants will die, so these rooms must be monitored first.", null, "Resources are generated over a period of time, we only need to periodically (every 2-3 minutes) collect them. If there are more people in the bunker, we will have to build up the rooms - remember that if you put two identical rooms next to each other, they will kind of expand to one common room, and that's cool. So immediately plan that each conditional level (floor) will be built up only one type of room - so it will be easier to navigate, and it looks more aesthetically. The remaining rooms are needed because they are more to improve the lives of the settlers than an absolute necessity. At first they are blocked, but as more residents enter the Sanctuary, more rooms will open. The maximum number of residents is 200, but the rate of \"arrival\" of new settlers is unknown; the game decides who should arrive and when.\n\nWhat is SPECIAL in FallOut Shelter\n\nRecall also that each character has a SPECIAL scale, which could not be localized. These are the seven indicators that characterize a bunker dweller:\n\nIf a resident has one of the indicators higher than the others, he should be directed to the appropriate room, and then he will be happy and productive. This means that resources will be extracted faster. Therefore, constantly distribute your tenants among the rooms, build new ones (if there is an overabundance of some indicator) and make the Sanctuary perfect. Distribution is very simple - a long press on the character activates it, then you need to drag the figure in the right direction. In the upper left corner there is a gear with a list of residents - there you can filter them by name, characteristics and status. There are those who prevail indicator L - they must be sent to explore the area. Such \"lucky\" residents need to be equipped - give them good weapons and armor to make it easier to survive. There you can usually find useful loot and covers, which serve as money here.", null, "What is the best SPECIAL score in Fallout Shelter\n\nYou won't believe this, but Endurance is a very important stat in the game. It is required only in the later stages of the game, when you build the Nuclear Cola Spill Point, it is not needed at all in the Pantry. Well, Endurance directly affects the health points of your resident. That is, he will lose less health when he is damaged by enemies, so it is necessary to pump E for absolutely all characters. Especially those going on missions or exploring the Wasteland, as well as those at the top levels of Sanctuary. Up to level 50 dress your residents in suits with extra stamina.\n\nHow to increase the number of people in FallOut Shelter\n\nThe most interesting (and natural) way to increase the number of people in the Sanctuary is to meet in the living rooms. You can send a man and a woman there, they'll have a nice conversation, then start dancing, then run to the [censored] room, after which the woman gets a bellyful. After a while they have children - at first they walk around the bunker and watch what's going on, then they start to grow up and get involved in the work process too. Interestingly, relatives here with each other can't make babies, so you have to watch carefully who you leave in the room. Pregnancy lasts for 3 hours of real time - you can \"do stuff\" before going to bed, and in the morning there will be new working hands in the Sanctuary. Although you can spend this time in the game - often you will run into radtarkans and raiders, from which you have to shoot back. Just in this situation, pregnant women only interfere - running around the bunker with loud (and a little obscene) shouting, absolutely no desire to fight with fists. The rest of us try to fight back, but with the appearance of armor and weapons it becomes easier to fight back.\n\nAs it turns out, Fallout Shelter has three kinds of inhabitants: normal, rare, and legendary, and they are highlighted in green, blue, and gold, respectively. Normal inhabitants appear from the Wasteland, and can also appear reproductively in the shelter itself. Rare and legendary characters come less frequently, and they can be obtained from lunchboxes and in the course of Caretaker quests, among other things. They differ from ordinary ones in that they already have a high level (from 30 and above), pumped SPECIAL characteristics and specific named clothes that add several stats to the SPECIAL.\n\nFor example, I got Colonel Autumn and Piper - they already have their own clothes and cool stats, they came from the Wasteland on the call of the Radio Station. I got a character named Three Dog for completing a mission.\n\nHow to Earn Covers in Fallout Shelter\n\nAs you already know, caps are the main in-game currency in the world of Fallout Shelter, with which you can build rooms and elevators, as well as buy improvements for the inhabitants of the shelter. Apart from investing real money, there are the following ways of earning caps:\n\n- Lunchboxes. Sometimes cards with some number of lids fall out.\n- Exploring the Wasteland. When you send your residents to the Wasteland, they find weapons, junk, clothing and, among other things, covers.\n- Fulfillment of quests of the Caretaker. And you get not only a fixed fee for completing quests, but also have a great chance of getting covers from the corpses of enemies or crates/safes/cabinets. This should be your main source of income.\n- Raising the level of the resident\n- Performing in-game daily tasks\n- Successfully repelled attacks\n- Selling weapons, costumes and junk\n\nHow to Earn Lunchboxes in Fallout Shelter\n\nLunchboxes usually need to buy for real money, but the developers have provided an opportunity to get them without investment:\n\n- Fulfillment of in-game daily tasks. But not always - lunchboxes will be given only for a small part\n- Completing Caretaker quests. Also on rare occasions, see the \"Rewards\" section when choosing a quest, sometimes they give you lunchboxes for them.\n\nWhat weapons are in Fallout Shelter\n\nAlso three kinds - ordinary, rare, and legendary. The most interesting is the legendary, because it has excellent attack rates, and also has its own names. Legendary weapons can be found only in quests, in lunchboxes, or produce in the armory.\n\nWhy do we need junk in Fallout Shelter?\n\nIn general, you can use the junk to make weapons, armor and interior rooms - you just need to find the appropriate blueprint. No more than 6 people should work in the producing rooms - you click on the room, then on the \"Collect\" button, choose the right blueprint, and if there is enough junk, after a while you will get a tangible result. But the first time you're in the survival stage (up to 80 people in the Sanctuary), it's better to sell it - it's a great way to replenish your cover stock, even if they don't give much for it.\n\nThe game was interesting at the time, and now it continues to please the eye. FallOut Shelter is fully localized (except for SPECIAL, it's really hard to come up with a russified transcription), looks great, is intuitive to play and doesn't require much attention. The graphics here are great - look at how the characters look, how detailed they are drawn. Each room can be zoomed in and see what's going on - the characters are really busy doing their thing, the rooms are all spinning and working, and you can even see the sleeping quarters in the living quarters. The rooms are furnished ascetically, but tastefully and even somehow cozy. In general, the game is very atmospheric - together with the residents you involuntarily start to let the situation go through you and empathize with them even more. And FallOut Shelter is free, but offers to buy the cases (boosters), which contain covers, weapons and upgraded characters. You can do without them, of course, but you will have to play longer, although the end here is not visible. Great game, recommended to everyone, without exception!" ]

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[ null, "She is small in stature, but Stephanie Mills delivered a gigantic performance as the main act at last Saturday’s final night of the Rhythm and Blues Festival held at the Emerald Valley Casino and Resort.\n\nMills who turns 50 years on March 22 didn’t look a day over 30 years as she energetically sang and boogied on stage to popular hits such as “I Never Knew Love Like This Before”.{{more}}\n\nWith her hair down and wearing a blue flowing baby doll dress, Mills with her custom made rhine stonned microphone demonstrated the professional she is, by ensuring that the show went on despite the late arrival of one of her back up singers whose flight was delayed. She bellowed tune after tune, hit after hit and had the audience in a daze with her dynamic vocal ranges.\n\nWhile she allowed patrons to sing short portions from her songs, it was the lucky Fitz Allen Williams of Biabou who got an invitation to dance with the Grammy Award winning songstress. Williams excitedly confessed to the Searchlight, “Oh Gosh! I don’t need nothing else in me life right now. She is like an angel come down from heaven; I can’t believe I just dance with Stephanie Mills!”\n\nAs she handed out pink long stemmed roses to the audience, Mills reflected on her career and said she is blessed to have been in the business since she was nine years old despite its up’s and down’s. She admitted that she never “dis-connected” from loving God and said that this was one of the reasons why she enjoyed such a successful career.\n\nAlso delivering a spell binding performance was the legendary Marva Wright with hits such as “Love Lifted Me” and “Change is Coming.” The legendary Blues Queen\n\nsang with soul as she rendered what has been dubbed the National Anthem of her recently flooded hometown of New Orleans called “When the Saints Go Marching In.”\n\nWright touched the hearts of many when she passionately sang “I Will Survive” and encouraged particularly women to stay alive despite their hardships.\n\nsoul by Ella Andall. Adorned in head wrap and African attire, Andall kicked off her shoes as the rhythms of the drums echoed on the stage and her backup singers harmoniously complemented her songs.\n\nThe Trinidadian rendered songs for women who had been raped and urged them to stand up for themselves but pleaded more for children. In her thought provoking performance, Andall called on society to save what she termed as the “missing generation.”\n\nCommendable performances were given by Ashley Kirby and Company with their soothing pan jazz while the Honky Tonics and the Mount Gay Blues Band brought home funky blues music to the audience.\n\nProving that he is a versatile performer, Ragga Soca King, Bomani served up a collection of Oldie Goldie’s, ranging from Otis Redding’s “Sitting On The Dock Of the Bay” to Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together.”\n\nBut he blew the audience away when he not only sang but played publicly for the very first time a musical instrument. In a blue blazer with gold trimmings and wearing an SVG flag belt buckle he played the piano and sang Elton John’s “Call It The Blues” to the amazement of everyone.\n\nAfter showing that he was international material, the local boy brought it home with a new song for 2007 called “Come Closer” which had the audience screaming for more.\n\nOverall, Blues Fest 2007 was a spectacular event held at what turned out to be a very spacious and romantic venue. The sound system was powerful, lighting excellent and acts well chosen. The Ministry of Tourism could rest assured that the hundreds that turned out had a memorable time and are now looking forward to next year." ]

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[ "Back from the christmas market;\n\nThe provision made by the butchers at this market for the wants of the festive season, was liberal in the extreme. The various substantialities that minister to creature comfort were supplied in great profusion and made a most tempting appearance. The Messrs. Baunton’sshow was remarkably good, and included a magnificent Hereford ox, and heifer, grazed by Mr Henry Coate of Sherbourne. the ox won prizes at Sturminster, Sherbourne and Yeovil, and the heifer obtained a prize at Sherbourne, Mr Dominy’s shop was well supplied, and included some excellent beef grazed by Mr Feaver of West Camel. The display of Mr Bolt was also good, especially the oxen and heifers grazed by W Peters, Esq., and some choice wethers from the flock of the Earl of Ilchester. Mr Saunders had some fine Devons from the stock of Mr H Parson, of Hazelbury, and Mr Stickland some first-rate beef grazed by Mr T Hussey, of Ilchester. Messrs. Bond, Laver and Roberts, also had choice displays of meat; and the stalls of the county butchers, in the market, were well supplied.\n\n(Todays chefs would be chomping at the bit, the knowledge of their meats journey from field to table…)", null, "Visting the the last resting place of loved ones……\n\nFOUND DEAD;- On Monday night, Jane Bishop, 73, residing in John Street, was found dead on her bed by her grandson, a lad of 16. He had left her up by the fire, but on awakening a few hours after found her dead on the bed. It appears deceased had been for some time an out-patient of the hospital, where she had been treated for dyspepsia by \\Dr Carter. An inquest was not considered necessary, there being no doubt death had resulted from apoplexy.", null, "CHURCH DECORATION;-In accordance with the time-honoured custom the different churches were tastefully decorated on Christmas Day. Some of the devices and texts in evergreens, berries, and illuminated characters, were exceedingly pretty, and showed much taste on the part of those whose who had contributed towards this very appropriate work.", null, "Having fun in the snow with Pater and favourite Uncle…….\n\nWe have experienced during the past week a nightly succession of severe frosts. On Tuesday, we had slight showers of snow and sleet; but on Thursday morning we had a very heavy snow-storm and early in the morning the fields and neighbouring hills presented a most wintry appearance.", null, "WEYMOUTH UNION;- The inmates of this establishment were on Christmas Day regaled with beef and plum pudding ad lib. About one hundred and eighty men, women, children shared in the treat, to which was added a sufficient libation of beer, and a “burnt offering” of tobacco for the men.\n\nNot everyone was lucky enough to have family to around them at that special time…..", null, "THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS; It has been practically decided that the shops of the town will be closed on the Wednesday and Thursday following Christmas day.\n\nThough some still had to work….keeping others safe….", null, "On that special night…who can his footsteps as he lands on the roof….", null, null, "Even the less fortunate exchanged such gifts as they could find…", null ]

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[ "Search\nMenu\nSearch\nYou only have to look at the start list of the Tour Down Under to see how its importance as a pre season race is increasing on the world stage. Last year we had Armstrong, Voigt and Hincapie. In 2010 the big names have increased with Cadel Evans and Alejandro Valverde joining the other stars. When I received the press release announcing Valverde’s attendance I immediately contacted Caisse d Epargne director Neil Stephens to arrange an interview.\nI have a picture of Valverde in my head. It is of the finish of Stage One of the 2008 Tour de France from Brest to Plumalec on a boiling hot day. There was a steep uphill finish and what Phil Liggett would call ’The Heads of State’ were all set up for the win. Suddenly Valverde exploded away from the other riders with apparent ease. The photo was taken head-on as Alejandro crested the final rise his face in a huge smile and his arms in the air. He has mirror sunglasses, shining white teeth and a gleaming Pinarello with yellow bars underneath him. Like Erik Zabel before Hell on Wheels, all we ever got to see of Valverde were the sunglasses and the raised hands on the finish line. Nothing else. Because he doesn’t speak English, we never see him interviewed by SBS like we do Lance Armstrong or Mark Cavendish so for me Alejandro Valverde always had something mysterious about him.", null, "In real life Alejandro gives the impres­sion that he could fit in everywhere. He has the beginnings of a receding hairline and stands somewhere around five foot eleven. He could be likened to the descriptions of Magnum photographer Henri Cartier Bresson, who allegedly got such good photographs because no one noticed he was there. During the Tour Down Under, the lobby of the Hilton is THE place for peo­ple to gather. It’s like a mini Hollywood, a lot of people who should be there and plenty who shouldn’t. It can be a dif­ficult place to conduct an interview be­cause you invariably get seen and people wander up to listen. When I interviewed George Hincapie there in 2009 several people sat nearby to watch. And talking with Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen was a mammoth task because they know everybody. But Alejandro Valverde went unnoticed by all and sundry and I could have been talking to my cousin. So with Neil Stephens, to whom I owe many thanks, doing the interpreting, we were able to have a good chat.", null, null, null ]

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[ null, "\"Bob Wilber grew up steeped in the baseball of a different time. He became part of the game professionally, along the way meeting countless unforgettable characters and collecting the memories of successes, disappointments, and adventures detailed here. The baseball parts of 'Bats, Balls, & Burnouts' really resonated with me. As for the drag racing, dear reader, you will have to consult a source more familiar with the sport than me.\" -Bob Costas, Broadcaster, NBC and MLB Network \"I give Bob a lot of respect for the passion he has displayed for everything he has been a part of. This book brings his journey to life.” -Antron Brown, 3-Time NHRA Top Fuel World Champion \"I highly recommend reading this compelling book about the sports-based life of Bob Wilber. The baseball world has so many different adventures, at every level, and the people that are in the game are there for the love of the game. It’s clear in ‘Bats, Balls, & Burnouts’ that the same goes for sports like soccer and drag racing.” -Bert Blyleven, Former MLB pitcher and Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee “Whether he’s hitting home runs, selling soccer tickets, traveling the world, or watching a Nitro Funny Car go from zero to 300 mph in four seconds, Bob Wilber tells the tales powerfully. Bats, Balls, & Burnouts is a joy to read.” -Bob Griese, former NFL quarterback and member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame “Bob Wilber made a big name for himself in the NHRA world because of his fantastic writing style. 'Bats, Balls, & Burnouts' takes it to completely new level. A great read from front to back.” -Ron Capps, 2016 NHRA Funny Car World Champion", null, "Bob Wilber grew up aspiring to follow in his father’s baseball footsteps, and while he was able to secure a full college scholarship and later spend parts of six years in professional ball, as a player, coach, and scout, his mother’s writing, communications, and public relations skills were what eventually defined his career. After a successful and adventurous sports-marketing trek through the sports-apparel business, agency work, and professional indoor soccer, he saw his first drag race as he closed in on his 40th birthday. Little did he know that he’d go on to spend 20 consecutive years as a team manager and PR representative for Del Worsham and then Tim Wilkerson, two of the most popular Funny Car drivers on the NHRA tour. At the conclusion of the 2015 season, Bob ended his drag racing run in order to take on the lifelong dream of writing \"Bats, Balls, & Burnouts.\"", null ]

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[ null, "The troubling calls from Pat and Linda O’Donnell’s only daughter often came in the middle of the night.\n\nPrompted by her boyfriend, then 23-year-old Patricia would blame her parents for her failings. The O’Donnells, who were then in their 60s, believed their daughter was being controlled and intimidated as part of an unhealthy relationship. They even met with Patricia and her boyfriend to tell them so. Returning to Wichita from Kansas City without their daughter “was extremely hard,” Pat said.\n\n“You never know if you’re doing the right thing, especially for fear that things might get worse. And they did,” Linda said.\n\nFinally, in 2005, Patricia left her boyfriend and filed for a protection from abuse order, following the advice of her parents and the staff at Safehome, a Johnson County women’s shelter program.\n\nHer story ended happily, but not all do. Parents and grandparents are often drawn into domestic disputes involving their children and grandchildren, sometimes with tragic results.\n\nIn December, a Wichita man fatally shot his mother-in-law in her Riverside home, where his wife had taken refuge after their separation. The man, who was fatally shot by police, also wounded his wife in the incident. Their two young children, who also were present, were not injured.\n\nOf 52 criminal homicides in Wichita in 2020, 13 were related to domestic violence cases, according to police.\n\nAccording to the Wichita Family Crisis Center, one in three women experience domestic violence or sexual assault at some point in their lives. Last year, the WFCC, one of three Wichita shelter programs for victims of domestic abuse, provided services to about 2,000 women, according to its website.\n\nDomestic violence isn’t limited to physical abuse, said Keri McGregor, program director with Catholic Charities’ Harbor House, another Wichita program that works with domestic violence victims. It’s also about intimidation, control and power over one’s partner and can extend to the victim’s children, other family members and even pets.\n\n“It’s sad what happened in Riverside,” McGregor said. “It’s not common, but it can happen.”\n\nParents and other family members who see a loved one in an abusive situation often want to help them, McGregor and others said.\n\n“Our crisis line is not just for victims but anyone who is impacted by domestic violence,” McGregor said.\nLast year, Harbor House received about 90 calls from individuals who were not victims but wanted to know more about what they could do to help their loved ones in a suspected abuse situation.\n\nKarla Armbrister, outreach coordinator for the Wichita Family Crisis Center, formerly the YWCA Women’s Crisis Shelter, said she recently fielded a call from a mother who was calling on her daughter’s behalf to get information. The daughter had been reluctant to call herself but was willing to listen in.\n\nCalls from parents tend to run along the lines of identifying signs of abuse, trying to understand why the victim may be reluctant to leave and figuring out how they can help, said McGregor and Armbrister.\n\nHelping a loved one leave an abusive relationship can be a long and difficult process. Victims may stay in situations for various reasons, ranging from fearing more harm if they leave and lacking financial means to support themselves to lacking self-esteem or even feeling guilt.\n\n“If you are a family member and you see someone in an abusive relationship, don’t be judgmental, but try to be compassionate,” said Carol Munsell, the senior victim/witness coordinator in Sedgwick County District Attorney’s office.\n\n“It’s important to let the survivor know that you are there to listen, and your main concern is to keep them safe,” Armbrister said.\n\nLoved ones also can help document incidents of abuse. Those records can help in providing evidence to support a domestic violence case, Munsell said.\n\nPat and Linda O’Donnell said one of the things that helped their daughter was to tell her in every call that they loved her.\n\nParents need to realize that when a victim leaves, that’s when the risks for both the victim and even extended family are highest, McGregor said.\n\n“It can go from zero to 60 so fast when the abuser realizes that the person has left. When that person loses control in the relationship, they become very irrational, and the risk becomes very high,” McGregor said.\n\nAccording to news reports about the Riverside shooting, the daughter had moved into her mother’s home in November, and her husband had been served with a protection from abuse order shortly before the fatal incident. The husband shot out a front glass window to gain entrance to the home.\n\nIn 2018, a Wichita mother of six was shot to death by her husband, who also wounded his father-in-law before taking his own life. The murder prompted passage of Kristin’s Law, named for the victim, which requires police to notify victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and other crimes when their abusers are released from custody.\n\nIn the past several years in Sedgwick County, there’s been a concerted effort to provide more help to domestic violence victims. Now when victims file protection from abuse orders, they do so through community advocates employed by one of the shelter programs in the courthouse rather than having to negotiate that process with court clerks. The advocates also help them connect to resources for other services.\n\nThe Wichita Police Department also has reinforced its sex crimes and domestic violence division thanks to an $850,000 Department of Justice grant, said Lt. Christian Cory, the section’s commander. Last year, the division started doing concentrated domestic violence offender pickups for those with active warrants. Wichita police also use what’s called a lethality assessment, a set of questions to determine a victim’s risk and immediately get them in touch with an advocate depending on the situation.\n\nPat O’Donnell said intervening in their daughter’s relationship was “the most uncomfortable thing ever,” but he is glad he and his wife did. Today they live in Kansas City near Patricia, who volunteers for a woman’s shelter.\n\nIf you suspect a loved one is the victim of domestic abuse, here are some ways to help:\n\nCall a shelter or victim’s crisis hotline to find out about available resources, including shelter programs and legal ways to help get them out of the situation.\n\nWork with domestic violence programs and law enforcement to create a safety plan for when the victim leaves the situation. Inquire about creating a plan for yourself, too, as offenders may extend abusive actions to family members.\n\nHelp document instances of abuse, intimidation, stalking and other such behavior.\n\nKansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence: 888-363-2287 and kcsdv.org" ]

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[ "With a refreshing history of LGBT activism and a thriving society, Chicago offers one of the best gay lifestyle views in the united kingdom, especially in Boystown. Although its conventional name is Lakeview, Boystown will be the commonly used called for this famous gay location.\n\nLocated on the north area of Chicago, this ancient city has-been the middle of the town’s LGBT people because 1960s. It really is right here the place you’ll select the highest quantity of gay-friendly taverns and bars, in which many people are thanks for visiting getting on their own and take pleasure in who they really are and exactly who they like. Almost always there is something totally new and exciting happening, but for the classic date in Boystown, stick with the tried-and-trusted watering holes.\n\nIn Boystown, gay bars are plentiful on as well as in involving the major thoroughfares of Halsted and Broadway. If you are not even in a dancing vibe, there’s a lot of pubs offering a laid-back, but still fun celebration atmosphere.\n\nBoystown is actually host to enough bass-thumping groups which can be well-versed inside artwork of arranging motif nights and costume outfit tournaments. Whether you are looking for things posh or need a https://datingmentor.org/swapfinder-review/ hankering to whistle at some go-go dancers, the neighborhood supplies a large different party bars.\n\nWhen you really need to make straight back several of those calories your burned up on dancing flooring, Boystown features an abundance of LGBT-friendly dining being open late and ready to provide.", null, "Across the U.S., Chicago is revered for its funny world together with Boystown-situated make fun of plant is amongst the most useful spots in most of Chicago to look at many area’s up-and-coming laugh-makers. The dance club in addition appeals to larger names occasionally, so that you really can’t say for sure the person you might read during the mic on any given night.\n\nAnother spot for funny in Boystown may be the Annoyance theater, room of Chicago’s longest-running (and raunchiest) musical. In addition to stand-up, this really is in addition a good destination to get boundary-pushing earliest performs, sketch-comedy, and improv.\n\nBoystown is the middle on the action during pleasure Fest, which happens around every June. Every homosexual pubs, restaurants, and organizations are going to have some thing special in the pipeline in this month and also the infectious rainbow-spirit spreads across Chicago. This two-day road festival in Boystown will feature numerous levels of live performances, DJs, drag concerts, an animal parade, and a singing contests.\n\nTheir Annual Pride Parade is the four mile affair, taking a trip through several Chicago neighborhoods, beginning at Montrose Avenue and Broadway and wrapping up near Lincoln Park. It will require place on the past sunday of June annually, commemorating the anniversary associated with Stonewall Riots. A good option to take pleasure from the parade is in Boystown, where in actuality the vitality will likely be at its gayest, proudest, and the majority of fun." ]

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[ null, "I am so exhausted, but it’s completely worth it. I just spent a whirlwind 36 hours in Las Vegas. I was with my husband and a group of seventeen of his friends from the Navy and some spouses. It was such a fun group and a great bonding experience, to say the least!\n\nWe drove from Ventura to Vegas on Friday evening, arriving at around 10pm. We were quick to get all dressed up and hit the night club, Light, at Mandalay Bay where we were all staying. I haven’t been up dancing that late in, well… a very long time. My one bad decision of the whole trip was taking a shot (I do not do shots) with all the girls about halfway through the night. In the grand scheme of things that can go wrong in Las Vegas, my dull headache the next day wasn’t that awful.\n\nSo when you wake up at 10am, after 6 hours of sleep, mildly hungover, what do you do? Brunch and cocktails, of course.\n\nI got a mimosa, and my husband got this ridiculous ultimate Bloody Mary from Citizen’s Kitchen & Bar. Yes, that’s a crab leg, a jumbo shrimp and a huge beef jerky strip in there. The photo also doesn’t do it justice, it was the biggest Bloody Mary I’ve ever seen. I needed something to soak up all the fun I had the night before, so I opted for this big Belgian waffle for my meal.\n\nAs a group, after chowing on waffles, egg sandwiches, chicken sandwiches, fruit cups, gravy smothered waffle fries and mac and cheese (to name a few of the wonderful hangover cures) we headed out to the pool to relax for the afternoon.\n\nNight two started at about 6:30pm with all seventeen of us going down the road to New York, New York for dinner at Tom’s Urban. I had such a good time, I forgot to snap any photos there. It happens. My husband and I split a margherita flatbread pizza, that was surpisingly salty, so you aren’t missing a lot. I have eaten at Tom’s Urban in Los Angeles and had a great meal, I just don’t think I’ll be getting the pizza again.\n\nNext on the agenda was heading over to the Linq and doing the Happy Half Hour on the High Roller. Similar to the Londen Eye, the High Roller is a giant Ferris wheel with capsules that hold up to forty people. One rotation takes a half hour, and we went for the slightly pricier tickets that included an open bar for the entire ride. I didn’t chug down as many cocktails as some of the group, but I managed a couple vodka cranberries while taking pictures of the Vegas Strip from 550 feet in the air. That’s where the featured image from this post was taken. This was the highlight of the trip to me. It was a lot of fun and the view was incredible at night.\n\nWhen we were done, it was on to the Omnia night club at Caesar’s Palace. It was another fun night of dancing, but after the first night I went pretty easy on drinks and my husband and I ducked out around 1am and caught a cab back to Mandalay Bay. We changed into comfier clothes, met up with another couple from our group and found the once place still serving food at the hotel, Ri Ra Irish Pub.\n\nThese are Irish potato cakes and they might be the most perfect dish after two nights of drinking. They were made with cheese and chives, and topped with sour cream and a thick balsamic drizzle. Ah-maz-ing. I wish I had them right now. I also wish the photos were a little clearer, but it was a dark pub. My husband got shepherds pie, not pictured, and we also split some boneless chicken wings. Warning! The medium heat wings from Ri Ra were intense. I love spicy food and could handle it, but I would not want to try the hotter sauces. We all probably benefited from sweating out a little alcohol.\n\nAfter a another short night of sleep, a couple of us headed back down to Citizen’s for a quick breakfast before checking out. I got a smoothie, a bagel and this lovely fruit bowl. I could almost hear my stomach thanking me for the vitamins and fresh food. It was the perfect ending to an indulgent weekend.\n\nSoon after, we drove back, luckily beating most of the Sunday traffic. By 5:30pm I was back on my couch, snuggling up with my pup. It was a fast and fun trip, with good food and great people, but I am happy to be home and to get back to normal. I’m glad I paced myself and didn’t feel the need to keep up with the younger half of the group, but I can safely say I won’t be touching hard liquor for a long time.\n\nI also just realized, I didn’t gamble once! Well, I guess I’ll just have to go back some day and try my luck. And try some more restaurants." ]

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[ null, "Multi-platinum selling, multi-award-winning artists Chris Tomlin and UNITED will co-headline their long-awaited 2022 “Tomlin UNITED” Tour. Anticipated to be the biggest Christian music concert of the year, the Tomlin UNITED Tour will welcome thousands of fans each night to worship together and experience songs that have shaped modern faith today.\n\n“We really believe this tour is going to be something unforgettable,” said Chris Tomlin and Joel Houston (UNITED). “We’ve been trying to do something like this for a long time and we have a real sense of trust in the fact that this is the right time. This is the moment for what God has been planning and in that, we think the timing has everything to do with the people joining us each night.”\n\nAfter an 18-month delay, the “Tomlin UNITED” Tour aims to not only bring the church back together but also bring faith back to the center of our conversations. Expected to be an experience unlike any other, the tour offers friends, family, and strangers the opportunity to worship together again after what has been a long season of isolation.\n\nOn their collective desire for the tour, Tomlin and Houston said, “At the heart of it, we want people to leave with the understanding that there is a greater hope in this world. This is a critical moment in time for people to be reminded that there is a true and living hope, and that’s Jesus. That is what we proclaim with these nights.”\n\nIt is estimated that 20-30 million people across the world sing one of Chris’ songs every week in church services in nearly every language. TIME magazine heralded him as the “most often sung artist in the world” as his music has inspired and uplifted an entire generation of believers. Along the way, Chris has scored 17 #1 one singles at radio, placed 29 top ten hits (more than any other Christian artist), sold more than nine million albums with 4.5 Billion career global streams, earned a Grammy, three Billboard Music Awards, 26 Dove Awards, became a two-time BMI Songwriter of the Year honoree and an ASCAP Songwriter of the Year. In 2016, he was named one of only four artists ever to receive the Sound Exchange Digital Radio Award for over 1 Billion digital radio streams, alongside Justin Timberlake, Pitbull and Garth Brooks. Chris is also the first Christian artist to reach the Billion streams threshold on Pandora and was presented with their BILLIONAIRE award. On the heels of the success of Chris’ #1 debuting album Chris Tomlin & Friends, which currently has over 150 million global streams, included his second longest running #1 song “Who You Are To Me,” featuring Lady A, Chris and UNITED have come together for what is expected to be the biggest Christian tour of the decade. As one of the most successful Christian touring artists today, Chris Tomlin has sold-out venues everywhere including New York City’s Madison Square Garden, Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, Red Rocks in Denver and more.\n\nUNITED is a multi-award-winning, platinum-selling artist whose chart successes (repeatedly no. 1 on Billboard’s Christian charts and up to #5 on Billboard 200) are only bested by the millions of lives they’ve impacted across the globe. Reporting over 50 million people singing from the Hillsong catalogue songs every Sunday, the modest band born from a youth ministry out of Hillsong Church in Australia, touts a reach of over 10 million across all major social network platforms to date, including 2.1 billion minutes garnered from YouTube viewers. Comprised of an evolving, eclectic mix of musicians and songwriters, the band is led by Joel Houston and Taya, names that have become synonymous with Christian radio, dominating airwaves with every new release. Their last four studio albums have each topped the USA Christian chart, with “Zion” and “Empires” charting no. 1 (“Zion” recently also went Gold in the US); “Oceans,” written by Houston and band member Matt Crocker recently went triple platinum in the States, counting 200+ million streams and reigning on top of the Christian songs chart for a record 54 weeks.\n\nIn studio, on tour or at home, UNITED is committed to writing songs that speak truth, create a unique sound and connect people everywhere with God, evident by the success they’ve seen globally. With over 50 countries and six continents visited, UNITED continues to sell out arenas and stadiums around the world, including sold-out nights at the Forum, STAPLES Center and The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, The Toyota Center, Oracle Arena, Air Canada Arena, American Airlines Arena (Miami and Dallas), and Red Rocks to scratch the surface. UNITED functions from the deep understanding that everything they do is an expression of a really extraordinary God doing what only He can do, through really ordinary people." ]

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[ null, "Starring Dan Fogler, George Lopez, Maggie Q, and the guy who does the second best Christopher Walken impersonation in the world – Christopher Walken (dressed like a geisha slut and sporting a ‘do more audacious than Gary Oldman in BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA).\n\nWalking that fine comedy line just above Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell, BALLS OF FURY is so wilfully asinine it succeeds.\n\nDirected by Robert Ben Garant and written by Garant and Thomas Lennon (renowned for his Officer Dangle on TV’s RENO 911, with a penchant for wearing tourniquet-tight shorts), BALLS is a journey deep into the dark heart of underground ping ponging, where Feng (Walken) gathers the best players from around the world to take part in a sudden death (literally) ping pong competition. Is it coincidence that Walken overlords these scenes like the Vietnamese slave-traders in THE DEER HUNTER who forced him to play Russian roulette? Only now, the chopstick is on the other won ton. How the writers make this death match plot instrumental in Feng ruling the world is anyone’s illogical guess.\n\nLopez is the FBI “Secret Agent Man” who enlists the aid of ping pong prodigy and Def Leppard fan, Randy Daytona (Fogler), a child star now grown lazed and portly on Vegas matinees, to infiltrate Feng’s operation and nab him – for what, I still can’t quite figure.\n\nExcellent performances (especially from Fogler) and a highly stupid script keeps BALLS on its toes: James Hong as the blind mentor; Jason Scott Lee as a fried-furious kung fu antagonist; Diedrich Bader as a fruity courtesan, Thomas Lennon as a wild-eyed German champion who’s wardrobe choices somehow emulate Officer Dangle’s – hip-hugging leotards and shorts so tourniquet-tight we can see his balls of fury." ]

[ null, "https://nationalinterest.org/sites/default/files/styles/hero-320w/public/main_images/2020-05-21T000000Z_134684984_RC27TG9ZDO58_RTRMADP_3_HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS-COLLEGECHAT.JPG.jpg?itok=BLVx5VtP", null ]

[ "6 Ways a Drop in International Students Could Set Back U.S. Higher Education", null, "Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, fewer and fewer international students were coming to study in the United States.\n\nThis trend will undoubtedly accelerate in the fall of 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The American Council on Education predicts that overall international enrollment for the next academic year will decline by as much as 25%. That means there could be 220,000 fewer international students in the U.S. than the approximately 870,000 there are now.\n\nOne reason is that the U.S. has more COVID-19 cases than any other country. Other reasons include disapproval among international students regarding the U.S. response to COVID-19 compared to other nations, the ongoing suspension of the processing of U.S. visas and negative perceptions of the Trump administration’s immigration policies and rhetoric.\n\nInternational students often pay full tuition, which averages more than US$26,000 per year at public four-year institutions and $36,000 at private nonprofit four-year institutions. That matters because the tuition from foreign students provides extra funds to subsidize the costs of enrolling more students from the U.S. At public colleges and universities, the revenue generated from international enrollment also helps to make up for cuts in state funding for higher education.\n\nOne study found that for every 10% drop in state funding for higher education, international enrollment increased by 12-17% at public research universities from 1996 to 2012.\n\nAccording to the Institute of International Education’s 2019 Open Doors Report, 872,214 international students are enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities.\n\nAs states cut budgets due to the loss of tax revenue brought on by the economic crisis caused by COVID-19, many institutions of higher education will be forced to raise tuition. While this may help college and university finances in the short term, in the long term it will make it more difficult for international students to be able to afford to study in the U.S., which in turn will make the U.S. a less attractive study destination.\n\nInternational students contribute an estimated $41 billion to the U.S. economy. However, the actual figure is surely much higher considering these students also pay various taxes to federal, state and local governments.\n\nOne of the strongest factors that influences future international scientific cooperation is having students study in different countries. This ability to collaborate across borders is critical to addressing the world’s greatest challenges, from combating climate change to eliminating COVID-19.\n\nAdditionally, economists at the World Bank estimate that a 10% increase in the number of international graduate students in the United States raises patent applications in the U.S. by 4.5% and university patent grants by 6.8%.\n\nInternational students who participate in Optional Practical Training – a program that allows these students to gain practical experience in their field of study by working temporarily in the U.S. – help employers fill critical positions when they are unable to locate qualified U.S. workers. This is particularly true in certain science and engineering fields. The Trump administration is looking at putting restrictions on the program, it was reported on May 24.\n\nAs international enrollment declines, U.S. employers will have a harder time filling jobs. This may lead companies to look for talent in other countries – or possibly relocate jobs abroad.\n\nWhen students interact with people from cultures other than their own, it enhances their ability to think more critically. It also reduces prejudice.\n\nWhile more than 300 current and former world leaders were at one time international students in the U.S., other nations are making concerted efforts to catch up. If there are fewer students from other countries studying in the U.S., it will lessen the ability of the United States to touch the hearts and minds of future world leaders." ]

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[ null, "People who have lived in the District for over a year inevitably start trying to sum up current and past fads. Usually done with a wave of the hand or toss of the head (or both!), we can say things like, “Yeah, first it was cupcakes, then crepes, now it’s hot dogs. What will those crazy kids think of next?”\n\nHot dogs are, I’ll admit, not my first thought for a pick-me-up. They just don’t look attractive somehow. You know what I mean. Huh? You don’t? OK, let’s just move on.\n\nCould it be that the hot dog, while not as European or cosmopolitan as the crepe and cupcake, is a reaction to the Great Recession? All-American, affordable, and customizable, a hot dog could be just what we need right now. It’s the Sarah Palin (in 2008) of fads! Or maybe the Ron Paul. It’s definitely a Republican.\n\nBut whatever we decide to call it, it can be truly delicious. I’ve had some poor hot dogs, but the ones at DC-3 leave them far behind.\n\nLocated in Eastern Market at 8th and E Streets, SE, DC-3 serves up hot dogs named after various places around our great nation (and beyond). Anytime you’re homesick for Chicago, Cincinnati, Tuscon or San Francisco, you can just come here for a taste of home.\n\nThe name for the Matchbox-owned outpost comes from the Douglas DC-3, a revolutionary aircraft flown in World War II, it’s also a handy gimmick for a place in the heart of DC. The decor is all forties: vintage soda bottles, paper caps worn by the grillers, and high bar stools at the tables. The atmosphere is very Buddy Holly soda-shoppe-y. With pictures of the hot dog options and a cheerful hot dog jerk to take your order, it’s easy to feel pretty good about life in general. No matter what state your portfolio is in." ]

[ null, "https://www.techlicious.com/images/av/john-summerson-painting-for-life-lg-supports-the-arts-winner-510px.jpg", null ]

[ "'Painting from Life' Wins LG's Art of the Pixel Contest", null, "Techlicious extends its congratulations to Pacific Northwest College of Art student John Summerson. He’s been officially named the first ever winner of LG’s “The Art of the Pixel” video contest. His entry, titled Painting For Life, beat out nearly 300 others from students from around the country, earning him $10,000 in cash, a free trip to New York City and a $50,000 grant for his school.\n\nPainting from Life expertly mixes video, music and stop-motion watercolor paintings. The 1 minute, 30 second piece starts in Summerson’s studio as he mixes paints. It then transitions over to the artist’s window, where passing pedestrians and bikers are turned into vivid stop-motion watercolor paintings. The colors in the video are beautiful and vivid, and the production is flawless.\n\n“I thought John’s piece was particularly clever,” explains Art of the Pixel judge and digital artist Mark Tribe. “His choice of music as well as his decision to turn vibrant watercolors into stop-motion really came alive on LG’s new Ultra HD and OLED display technologies. It just goes to show that every artist, like each work of art, is unique.”\n\nSummerson’s Painting from Life was recorded in 4K resolution, so of course, the best way to watch it is on your own Ultra HD 4K television. Of course, you can be forgiven for holding off on buying one of LG’s models for the time being, gorgeous though they may be. The company’s 65” 4K Ultra HDTV will set you back a whopping $9,999 when its released in October. LG’s larger 77” model, meanwhile, will sock your bank account for $24,999 this November.\n\nYou can take a look at Summerson’s beautiful video by the LG Supports the Arts website. And while you’re there, be sure to take a look at all the truly worthy videos from the runners up. They all look terrific whether you have a 4K Ultra HD television or not." ]

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[ "2 edition of In Remembrance of A King found in the catalog.\n\nSo we see that this written record served as a “book of remembrance” and, in this instance, resulted in the king’s favor and a fitting reward being assured to that faithful servant Mordecai. . Malachi King James Version (KJV). 16 Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before .\n\nMalachi , ‘book of remembrance.’ In Esther (where see note) we have the shorter expression ‘the book of the chronicles.’ and they were read before the king] The original . View the Book of Remembrance Memorial for Weston Crematorium, Ebdon Road, Worle, Weston Super Mare, Somerset, leave messages of condolence and share with family and friends.\n\nbook of remembrance was written, Mal. (3 Ne. ). plates of brass a genealogy of his fathers, 1 Ne. who are not found written in the book of remembrance, D&C book . Remembrance book. Read reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Bestselling romance writer Hayden Lane has found her soul mate - or ra Remembrance 4/5.", null, null, null, "In Remembrance of A King by Germany. Inter Nationes. Download PDF EPUB FB2\n\nAs Malachi presented God’s words to the people, they would have understood what a book of remembrance represented. The kings of Persia kept such books, records of. Remembrance (The Transcend Time Saga Book 1) - Kindle edition by Madow, Michelle.\n\nDownload it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like 4/4(). BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE. re-mem'-brans (cepher zikkdron, \"book of record\"): Is related in meaning to the \"Book of Life.\" It refers to a list of the righteous, recorded in a book that lies.\n\nI have read this book at least four times and it is one of my all time favorite books. I first read it in the late 90's and lost my copy of it in a move. I have thought about it ever since. I was trying to /5(). You can view the Books of Remembrance at Enfield Crematorium - London by a date.\n\nStart by selecting a month followed by the day. Bible verses related to Remembrance from the King James Version (KJV) by Book Order - Sort By Relevance Exodus - And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep.\n\nThe Book of Life, Books of Remembrance and How God Predestined us for Salvation “And I saw a great white throne and Him who was seated upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven.\n\nA book was written in his presence to be a reminder to those who feared the LORD and respected his name. JPS Tanakh Then they that feared the LORD Spoke one with another; And the.\n\nNetherlands’ Queen Maxima (front L) and King Willem-Alexander (front C) arrive for a wreath-laying ceremony on May 4, in Amsterdam on Dam Square to attend the. A Book of Remembrance - Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, And the Lord listened and heard them; So a book of remembrance was written before Him For those who.\n\nView the Online Book of Remembrance for Enfield Crematorium - London, leave messages of condolence to a loved one and share with family and friends. Skip to content. View Books.\n\n“A book of remembrance began to be written up before him,” notes Malachi. That book is a record of all those who have served Jehovah in integrity. Notice that it is called “a book of. This book was dedicated in 7th book, \"In the Service of Canada\" A seventh Book of Remembrance, dedicated on Novemlists members of the Canadian Forces who Designed by: James Purves.\n\nAn online book of remembrance is being set up so residents can pay tribute to an Ashfield politician who died from coronavirus. Anthony Brewer, 74, who served as Skegby Author: Andrew Topping. Book of Tears – In Psalm 56 v.the psalmist says that YAHweh puts our tears in a bottle and in His book.\n\nIt is, along with The Winds of War, the Gold Standard of historical fiction for World War II. Readers should /5.There were at one time three clerks of the remembrance, the King's Remembrancer, Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer and Remembrancer of First-Fruits and Tenths (see Court of First .Such examples can make this recurring Book of Mormon theme of stirring up remembrance more vital, more meaningful.\n\nWhen we think of Lamanites like Abish or Samuel, stalwart saints who ." ]

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[ null, "Kanye West is doing his best to keep his identity a secret while moving around Paris Fashion Week behind a custom Harley Davidson mask." ]

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[ null, "In the topsy-turvy world of the G20, women’s economic empowerment – a controversial issue given the poor record of some G20 members – has become an area where it seems easier – relatively! – to build consensus. Praise, or blame, First Daughter Ivanka Trump to promote the gender economic agenda with her father. Or admire Angela Merkel’s diplomatic skills given that, earlier this year, she picked gender equality as one of the few items that were unlikely to be stumped on by the new US administration.\n\nPerhaps women’s empowerment is the unintentional winner from the Hamburg Summit; even so, the detailed section in the communique and the launch of the Women Entrepreneurs Financing Initiative (We-Fi) are two significant steps toward international action to close the gender gap.\n\nThis is not new to the G20 that first embraced gender equality in Los Cabos in 2012 – “We commit to take concrete actions to overcome the barriers hindering women’s full economic and social participation and to expand economic opportunities for women in G20 economies. We also express our firm commitment to advance gender equality in all areas, including skills training, wages and salaries, treatment in the workplace, and responsibilities in care-giving.” Two years later, in 2014, the G20 made a clear and measurable commitment to reduce the gender gap in the labour market and increase women’s participation to the formal economy. In Brisbane the G20 leaders pledged to reduce “the gap in participation rates between men and women in our countries by 25 per cent by 2025, taking into account national circumstances, to bring more than 100 million women into the labour force, significantly increase global growth and reduce poverty and inequality.” In 2015 the G20 established the W(omen)20 as one of its engagement Groups.\n\nSince its setting up as leaders’ forum in 2008 the agenda of the G20 has progressively shifted from a financial and economic focus – as a coordinated response to the global financial crisis – to issues such as food security, financial inclusion, climate change, inequalities, that affect long-term prosperity and welfare. The focus on women’s contribution to economic growth and on the stark gender disparities is part of, and reflects this shift, recognising that investing in women’s and girls’ economic empowerment is not only a fundamental human right, it is also smart economics.\n\nThe benefits of bringing more women to the formal economy – while acknowledging the economic contribution provided by many women at home home – are clear. Global GDP can grow by as much as US$28 trillion, or 26 percent by 2025 if female participation to the labour market is increased to full parity with male participation. But change is slow and significant gender inequalities persist in all G20 member states, even in those that are the best performing in the group – there are significant differences among the G20 members in terms of women’s legal rights and economic empowerment. Women are paid less than men (on average 17% less than men), work longer hours as they take care of family members and are often excluded from the labour market; in some countries they have limited – or no – access to finance and limited – or no – property rights. There are still more women than men in poverty in both developing and developed countries, and many of them are still excluded from economic decision-making within their own household and from participating in public life.\n\nEven if the benefits of gender economic inclusiveness are clear, the pace of change is too slow: currently it will take several decades to achieve gender parity. Therefore, active policies to promote gender inclusiveness are critical to build more robust, sustainable, resilient and inclusive economies around the world. The We-Fi is the first initiative that the G20 take collectively to tackle gender inequality. Before, the responsibility to respond to commitments like the “25 by 25” was left to the domestic policy domain of each member states. Will We-Fi work?\n\nNot many details have been made available yet: Besides that the fund will be managed by the World Bank and established as a Financial Intermediary Fund, it will have more than $1 billion of financing as a mix of donor grant funding and commercial financing. It will support women-led SMEs in “World Bank Group client countries” by facilitating access to capital, providing technical assistance, and investing in other projects and programs that support women. So far US$325 million have been raised and a number of G20 – Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, United Kingdom, and the United States – and non-G20 countries – Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, United Arab Emirates – have committed to support the initiative.\n\nThe key question about this new initiative, and the whole We-Fi, is whether it will manage to become a truly public-private funding facilities aiming at providing capital and credit to women-led sustainable and potentially scalable SMEs, or if it will be more focused on poverty-relief and micro-credit. If the latter, the risk is to replicate many of the already existing programmes. Indeed the gap to be addressed is at the level of SMEs that need “to scale their operation, build capacity, ensure their equal access to finance and markets, and accord them their fair share in global value chains”, as recommended by the W20. By focusing on the ability of women entrepreneurs to serve their debt and build financial sustainable enterprises the We-Fi fund will be in the position to continue to serve this market and even to expand its resources. Only by having a clear mandate, identifying the best channels to disburse the funding, establishing strong governance and best practice the We-Fi fund can fill this critical gap and make a significant difference for many women entrepreneurs in developing countries. For the moment the jury is still out.\n\nA step to the side: the G20’s climate dance, by Brigitte Knopf\n\nFrom Taormina to Hamburg: A fruitful G7-G20 relationship? by Franco Bruni", null, "Paola Subacchi is an economist and author. She is a senior fellow at Chatham House in London, a visiting professor at the University of Bologna and a board member of two FTSE-listed companies." ]

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[ null, "Kentucky Women Fight for the Vote\n\nWhen the Declaration of Independence was signed by a group of wealthy white men in 1776, poor white men, African Americans, and women quickly discovered that the unalienable rights it promised were not truly for all. The Nineteenth Amendment eventually gave women the right to vote in 1920, but the change was not welcomed by people of all genders in politically and religiously conservative Kentucky. As a result, the suffrage movement in the Commonwealth involved a tangled web of stakeholders, entrenched interest groups, unyielding constitutional barriers, and activists with competing strategies.\n\nIn A Simple Justice, Melanie Beals Goan offers a new and deeper understanding of the women's suffrage movement in Kentucky by following the people who labored long and hard to see the battle won. Women's suffrage was not simply a question of whether women could and should vote; it carried more serious implications for white supremacy and for the balance of federal and state powers -- especially in a border state. Shocking racial hostility surfaced even as activists attempted to make America more equitable.\n\nGoan looks beyond iconic women such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton to reveal figures whose names have been lost to history. Laura Clay and Madeline McDowell Breckinridge led the Kentucky movement, but they did not do it alone. This timely study introduces readers to individuals across the Bluegrass State who did their part to move the nation closer to achieving its founding ideals.\n\nMelanie Beals Goan: Melanie Beals Goan is associate professor of history at the University of Kentucky specializing in women's history in the United States. She is the author of Mary Breckinridge: The Frontier Nursing Service and Rural Health in Appalachia." ]

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[ null, "How to beat the \"Tomorrow Syndrome\" that almost everyone faces.\n\nPeople procrastinate for many reasons, but the result is always the same: they rush to get the task done at the last minute or miss the deadline. Even though it feels frustrating to procrastinate, people still continue this bad habit. Why?\n\nAccording to Caroline Webb in the Harvard Business Review, our brains are programmed to put off tasks. Webb shows research from UCLA proving that the allure of near-term gain almost always outweighs the attraction of future reward. Given the choice between concrete and more abstract ideas, our brain naturally sides with more material notions.\n\nBut just because our brains are seemingly working against us doesn't mean we can't overcome procrastination. Instead, it should inspire us to work at the task even more because it isn't a personal flaw but a part of our natural make-up that can be re-trained.\n\nWithout further ado, here is the research backed-guide to get started:\n\nWhen we share our goals with someone else, it creates social pressure, but unlike the peer pressure we faced in high school, this type can lead to success.\n\nSharing your goals with a partner can create a system where you have a cheerleader and walking living reminder to stop procrastinating. In fact, according to Webb's research, experts have found that we instinctively want to be respected by peers, and are more likely to reach our goals this way.\n\nSo when you have a task at work to complete, tell someone when you will finish it. If you tell a client or employee exactly when you'll get something done, your brain will feel more obligated to actually do it. Even better, if you're trying to accomplish a big-ticket item, harness the power of mentorship to boost your accountability and success.\n\nIdentify the first step. Sometimes we're just daunted by the task we're avoiding. We might have \"learn French\" on our to-do list, but who can slot that into the average afternoon? Caronline Webb says the trick here is to break down big, amorphous tasks into baby-steps that don't feel as painful. Even better: identify the very smallest first step, something that's so easy that even your present-biased brain can see that the benefits outweigh the costs of effort.\n\nSo instead of \"learn French\" you might decide to \"email Nicole to ask advice on learning French.\" Achieve that small goal, and you'll feel more motivated to take the next small step than if you'd continued to beat yourself up about your lack of language skills.\n\nTie the First Step to a Treat\n\nWe can make the cost of effort feel even smaller if we link that small step to something we're actually looking forward to doing. In other words, tie the task that we're avoiding to something that we're not avoiding. For example, you might allow yourself to read lowbrow magazines or books when you're at the gym, because the guilty pleasure helps dilute your brain's perception of the short-term \"cost\" of exercising. Likewise, you might muster the self-discipline to complete a slippery task if you promise yourself you'll do it in a nice café with a favorite drink in hand.\n\nSometimes we find ourselves returning to a task repeatedly, still unwilling to take the first step. We hear a little voice in our head saying, \"Yeah, good idea, but . . . no.\" At this point, we need to ask that voice some questions, to figure out what's really making it unappealing to take action. This doesn't necessarily require psychotherapy. Patiently ask yourself a few \"why\" questions -- \"why does it feel tough to do this?\" and \"why's that?\" -- and the blockage can surface quite quickly. Often, the issue is that a perfectly noble competing commitment is undermining your motivation.\n\nFor example, suppose you were finding it hard to stick to an early morning goal-setting routine. A few \"whys\" might highlight that the challenge stems from your equally strong desire to eat breakfast with your family. Once you've made that conflict more explicit, it's far more likely you'll find a way to overcome it -- perhaps by setting your daily goals the night before, or on your commute into work.\n\nTrust Yourself to Start Now\n\nOnce you've figured out what's keeping you from taking action on a specific task or project, it's time to get over your fear. Webb's research shows that we're more likely to perform a cost benefit analysis on something new, but are far less likely to weigh the potential disadvantages of maintaining the status quo. This omission bias can keep us from doing things better just because it means doing something differently.\n\nGet over this fear by using the 70% rule from the Marine Corps. As long as you have 70% of the information to make a decision, 70% of the resources to complete the project, and you're 70% sure you'll succeed, then you're ready to go. The heart behind the 70% rule is that it's impossible to be fully prepared for anything. Trust your gut and get started.\n\nFocus on the Results of Procrastination\n\nMark Twain once said, \"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow.\" Don't listen to him!\n\nInstead, focus on what will happen if you put off a task or project until the last minute. You might have an emergency come up causing you to miss the deadline. The result is you miss out on a good deal or you hurt your business image. Your client may feel you provided poor customer service, which could also affect your reputation and ability to obtain future work.\n\nAs you think more about the negative effects of putting off a task, you'll be more motivated to avoid those effects and get the job done. According to Webb, Psychologists call this a prevention focus, because most people seek to avoid negative consequences even more than receiving positive results. This mindset will keep you pushing on even when you want to quit or put the job off to another day.\n\nAccept that procrastination is a natural part of who you are, but just like anything else, you also that you have the power to retrain your brain and overcome it with these practical steps. L.M. Heroux said, \"Stop talking. Start walking.\" I'd like to alter that advice just a bit and say to you, \"Stop reading. Start succeeding!\"\n\nCEO and Founder of LexION Capital" ]

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[ null, "ICT sector of Nepal is one of the fastest emerging sectors in the country, with huge potential for growth in the coming years. According to the Nepal Telecommunications Authority, the internet penetration rate in Nepal drastically increased from 35.70% in 2014 to 62.94% in 2017. Similarly, mobile penetration rate is more than 100% with the number of mobile subscriptions increasing from 18.93 million in 2013 to 32.12 million in 2016, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics. As there are only two major telecommunications companies (NTC and Ncell, the latter being a successful example of FDI) dominating the sector, there is room for new firms to enter the market. Building on the Trade Policy 2015, the Government of Nepal has identified IT services and business process outsourcing (BPO) in the Nepal Trade Integration Strategy 2016 as one of the three priority potential export service sectors. The sector has the potential to generate high growth and significant profits and is expected to be one of the most significant growth sectors in Nepal. Foreign companies reap the demographic advantage by tapping into the young English-speaking population and benefit from the cost advantages offered by low wages, low set-up and operating costs. Globally, the ITES and BPO service industry accounts for nearly US$ 2.3 trillion annually. This reflects an increase of 4.6% over 2013/2014. This growth has fuelled the demand for global outsourcing, which grew by 9-10% –nearly twice the global technology growth. Nepal is an attractive destination to tap into this industry. There are successful examples of companies offering BPO services in Nepal such as include Verisk Information Technologies, Deerwalk, Javra Software, Leapfrog, F1Soft, Incessant Rain Animation, and Cloud Factory, among others. Moreover, there are unmet needs for the use of ICTs in governmental agencies and the private sector. Nepal also offers conducive international trade regime, including WTO services waiver for LDCs." ]

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[ null, "Inauguration of the Ismaili Jamatkhana and Center, Houston\n\nHis Highness the Aga Khan delivering a speech at the opening ceremony of the Ismaili Jamatkhana and Center in Houston, Texas. akdn / Gary Otte\nLocation\nHouston, Texas (USA)\nRelated Information\n\nGovernor Perry,\nFirst Lady of Texas, Anita Perry,\nMayor Wallace,\nLeaders and representatives of the Congress of the United States, the State of Texas and the City of Houston, Consuls General,\nDistinguished Guests\n\nIt is a great pleasure to be here today to welcome one and all to the Inauguration of the Ismaili Jamatkhana and Center at Houston. I am particularly thankful for your presence Governor Perry, and of the First Lady of Texas, and for that of many other elected officials on an occasion of great significance for the Ismaili Community of greater Houston.\n\nBecause this Center also incorporates the permanent home of the Ismaili Council of the United States and other Ismaili constitutional bodies responsible for the well being of the Community all over this country, the Center we inaugurate today is equally important for every Ismaili in the United States. We are honoured that you have taken time on a day of rest amidst your heavy schedules to share this moment of celebration, gratitude and reflection with us.\n\nThe conception and completion of a project as complex as this requires dedicated and sustained contributions from many people -- too many to recognise individually. I congratulate the design architect, The ARCOP Group of Montreal, Canada, and the General Contractor for the project, Durotech of Houston. I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of the Aiglemont Construction Department and the Imara Volunteers.\n\nThe person who unquestionably deserves individual mention is the senior design architect, Mr. Romesh Khosla of New Delhi, India. Mr. Khosla’s career has been marked by many accomplishments and awards. Among them is the design for the Mughal Sheraton Hotel in Agra, which faced the challenge of creating a contemporary structure with clear references and reflections of deep historical and cultural elements, and to do so within sight of the Taj Mahal! For his success with that assignment, Mr. Kholsa was selected by an independent jury of his peers to be among the winners of the triennial Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1980, the first year of the Award’s existence.\n\nIn the Center we inaugurate today, the design brief charged Mr. Khosla and his colleagues to create a contemporary building that would similarly express Islamic values, ethics and attitudes but, in this instance, in the context of Southwestern and Texas architecture and materials, and in harmony with elements of the site’s natural setting and surrounding buildings.\n\nMany of you may be surprised by the amount of time I have devoted to talking about architecture on this occasion. Those familiar with my understanding of the importance of architecture in the teachings of Islam and Islamic history will not have the same reaction. Islam does not deal in dichotomies but in all encompassing unity. Spirit and body are one, man and nature are one. What is more, man is answerable to God for what man has created. Since all that we see and do resonates on the faith, the aesthetics of the environments we build and the quality of the interactions that take place within them reverberate on our spiritual lives. As the leader of a Muslim community, and particularly one that now resides in twenty-five countries on four continents, the physical representation of Islamic values is particularly important to me. It should reflect who we are in terms of our beliefs, our cultural heritage and our relation to the needs and contexts in which we live in today’s world.\n\nSome years ago we gathered a group of eminent scholars of Islamic culture and distinguished architects and designers representing all major faiths, in a series of seminars to wrestle with the challenge of coming up with a definition of Islamic architecture. One of the first outcomes of the effort was the conclusion that no single definition exists because over its long and distinguished history, Islamic architecture has reflected different climates, times, materials, building technologies and political philosophies.\n\nBut this is a very important finding in itself. It shows that trying to establish a norm would be counter productive, because it would stifle that strength which comes from the diversity and pluralism of Muslim societies, past and present, and the creativity of those who will build around us in the years ahead. Unfortunately there are forces at work in the Islamic world that seek to establish just such a norm. This makes it all the more important that we strive to counter such efforts by employing all the means of intellectual discourse -- research, discussion, celebration of innovative projects, and the commissioning of freshly conceived but well researched new buildings.\n\nI think it would be appropriate for me to say something on this occasion about the Ismaili Community – in Houston, Texas, the United States and around the world. Today the Ismailis are a global community that comprises a multiplicity of peoples ranging in their origins from the north-west of the Arab world and the Middle East, through Iran and the Indian sub-continent to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Western China. Migrations in the late 19th and early in 20th centuries created a substantial presence in sub-Saharan Africa as well. As Shia Muslims, the Ismailis are united by their recognition of the Prophet Muhammad’s appointment of his cousin and son-in-law Hazrat Ali as the first Imam and his declaration entrusting his Authority to his progeny through Hazrat Ali and his wife Fatima, the Prophet’s daughter.\n\nIn 1957, I was still a student at Harvard when I inherited the responsibilities of the Ismaili Imamat from my Grandfather, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah. It seemed inconceivable then that there would ever be substantial communities in the West. The Ismailis were too deeply rooted in their ancestral homes, indeed frozen there by the Cold War in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. But dislocations in the wake of decolonialisation, and more recently the collapse of the Soviet Union and the prolonged difficulties in Afghanistan, have caused a number of Ismailis to seek new lands and homes. These migratory movements over the last half-century have resulted in a substantial Ismaili presence in Russia, in Western Europe, the United Kingdom and Portugal, and particularly in the United States and Canada.\n\nIn these settings Ismailis have found themselves rejoicing with new opportunities, but also confronted by new challenges. Bolstered by a long tradition of self-reliance, and a strong system of Community organisations, Ismailis have established themselves quickly as productive members of society in their new homelands. This has been particularly true in the United States with its long history of welcoming immigrants, its sense of opportunity and hope, and its recognition of accomplishment and merit. I express my gratitude to the people and leadership of the State of Texas for giving concrete expression to these important American values.\n\nNine eleven has scarred America, but not just America. It has scarred the Islamic world, and hundreds of millions of devout and practicing Muslims for whom the word of the Quran is the word of God. We have clarity and direction enough when the Quran affirms that to save a life is, as if, to save humankind altogether. It is in this context that I request that you view the Ismaili Jamatkhana and Center, Houston, as much, much more than a place of congregation, and a home for administrative offices. The Center will be a place of peace, humility, reflection and prayer. It will be a place of search and enlightenment, not of anger and of obscurantism. It will be a center which will seek to bond men and women of this pluralist country to replace their fragility in their narrow spheres by the strength of civilised society bound together by a common destiny. It is already a symbol of the hopes of people who lived through change and turbulence, and have ultimately found security and opportunity here in the United States, the majority of whom have chosen the State of Texas.\n\nThank you for sharing this important occasion with us." ]

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[ "Tonight I’ll be wining about the Seven Deadly Zins Zinfandel by the Michael David Winery. I’ll be honest, I already drank 2/3rds of the bottle a few days ago and forgot about it, I was feeling tormented and couldn’t find the desire to author my words.\n\nThis wine has been around for some time, and I’ve encountered better vintages, but now I’m forced to endure through this 2014 sip by sip. It’s nice for the price point, and I do enjoy a good zin.\n\nI like the story behind the brothers that made this wine (Michael and David), describing it as a “lust for hedonistically seductive wine”- a result of catholic (gasp) schooling. One sip for Jesus, one sip for me.\n\nThe bottle is not goth at all, so I’ll have to rely on my pallet of integrity… Thankfully they put their phone number on the cork, just in case you need to call and wine about things. But, its after midnight so I doubt they would feel like chatting.\n\nThe wine drinks somewhat bitter yet seductive as promised. I’m not sure I’d stop drinking it, seduction aside. Its earthy plum and slightly dry bitter tannins make for a nice drink by yourself. It doesn’t feel like something I’d share… more like a wine that would pair with The Cure’s greatest hits in a dark alley.\n\nI shall reward this wine 4.2 points. I would like the bottle and uncorking to embody more darkness in the spirit of zinning, but its easy to drink and cheap, so I’d definitely drink it again.", null, null, null, null, null, null ]

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[ "The city of Westfield is attributing $92 million worth of developments already built or under construction to its Grand Park Sports Campus.\n\nCity officials did not specify all of the projects corresponding to those figures or explain its criteria for deciding when the campus was \"a motivating force\" behind a project. Asked for more detail, city officials didn't supply supporting materials by IBJ deadline.\n\nThe campus opened on June 22, 2014, with 31 outdoor sport fields. A 370,000-square-foot events center and a fieldhouse for indoor basketball and volleyball were added in 2016. Many of the new commercial real estate projects in Westfield sparked by the campus are hospitality-focused businesses serving visitors to the park, the city said.", null, "The city's media release did mention two projects whose development could be attributed to the park: the $17 million Cambria Suites currently under construction (see accompanying rendering), and Noble Roman’s Craft Pizza & Pub, which opened earlier this year.\n\n“When choosing a location for our very first Noble Roman's Craft Pizza & Pub, we wanted a premier site and Westfield was tops on our list,” Scott Mobley, president and CEO of Noble Roman’s, said in a prepared statement. “Grand Park made this an easy decision. We knew they would be drawing great crowds that were a perfect fit for what we have to offer.”\n\nAccording to IBJ research, other projects near Grand Park that are either finished or under construction include:\n\nThe projects with known costs add up to $79.2 million.\n\nOther upcoming developments include Steve Henke’s Chatham Commons near U.S. 31 and 191st Street, which is expected to include two Marriott-branded hotels totaling $40 million. The project would also include restaurants, a grocery store and pharmacy. A total figure has not been released.\n\nHenke is also the developer for the proposed 220-acre Grand Park Village. The $225 million mixed-use project could include shops, restaurants, entertainment venues and multi-family housing surrounding a lake with a boardwalk. Progress has been slower than expected, but the Cambria Suites is located within the property and is expected to spur other investments.\n\nA large housing development designed for residents ages 55 and older is also in the works on property just north of Grand Park. The 265-acre neighborhood known as Osborne Trails could include single-family homes, attached residential units and some commercial uses. A total cost has not been given.\n\nAccording to a study from Phoenix-based Applied Economics that the city released Thursday, Grand Park had a total economic impact of nearly $470 million from 2014 to 2016. The annual economic impact is expected to increase 4 percent this year to $259 million.\n\nThe study noted that the park is “approaching full operational levels, and so future annual increases are not projected to be as large.”" ]

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[ null, "His image could be found on currency in Bosnia and Herzegovina.\n\nUndisclosed\nFind out more about Skender Kulenovic net worth here.\n\nDoes Skender Kulenovic Dead or Alive?\n\nHe wrote his first poems when he was eleven years old. Later, he studied law at Zagreb University.\n\nSkender Kulenović was born in 1910 in the Bosnian town of Bosanski Petrovac, when it was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Kulenović family was a Muslim land-owning family, though Skender's parents ran a rented hotel and a grocery shop. Skender was the third of four sons (one of whom died in infancy) and one daughter. In 1921, impoverished by the land reforms brought in by the new Kingdom of Yugoslavia, his family moved to the central Bosnian town of Travnik, his mother's birthplace. Here Skender Kulenović became a day-boy at the Jezuitska klasična gimnazija (the local Jesuit Grammar School). Here too, he wrote his first poems, culminating in the publication of a set of sonnets (Ocvale primule, or Withered Primroses) in a 1927–28 school almanac.\n\nIn 1930, the Kulenović family recovered a little of their former prosperity – enough to enable Skender and his sister Ćamila to continue their education. Skender registered to study law at Zagreb University – the main reason, as he admitted, being that the Law Faculty allowed students to do the bulk of their studying at home. When in Zagreb he became inspired by leftist ideas, joining the Yugoslav Communist Party (KPJ) of which his elder brother, the painter Muhamed Kulenović, was already a member, in 1935. In the same year he gave up his law studies to focus on journalism and literary work. Over the next four years he published essays and short stories in various journals, including Putokaz (Signpost), a journal of which he was a founder member.\n\nThis was a time of increasing political tension in the first Yugoslav state. Externally, the authoritarian Regency of Prince Pavle was trying to balance popular pro-French and pro-British sentiments with a need to maintain good relations with the country's Fascist Italian and Nazi German neighbours. Internally, political life was becoming increasingly dominated by Serb-Croat hostility; in 1939, a vain attempt was made to defuse this by imposing a bipartite federal system, under which most of Bosnia became Croatian territory. In late 1939 or early 1940, Skender Kulenović was expelled from the KPJ for having refused to sign an open letter criticising the government and advocating autonomy for Bosnia and Herzegovina – a decision which prevented him from publishing in many of the journals he had worked with until then. In 1940 he married his first wife, Ana Prokop.\n\nIn March and April 1941, Prince Pavle's balancing act finally failed: he was deposed in a popular pro-Western military coup, upon which the Nazis invaded and occupied Yugoslavia. Muhamed Kulenović was immediately imprisoned as a KPJ member; in July, he was shot after an escape attempt. In November the same year, Skender joined Josip Broz Tito’s Partisans, and was readmitted into the Communist Party. In 1942, just after the German summer offensive had narrowly failed to wipe out the Partisan army, he composed perhaps his most famous poem, “Stojanka Majka Knežopoljka” (“Stojanka, the mother from Knežopolje”), a modernist Partisan version of the traditional Bosnian lament with strong elements of the Serbian folk-epic. In the same year, Skender's remaining brother Muzafer was executed in Belgrade.\n\nWhile in the Partisan forces, Kulenović also edited various newspapers and journals, continued to publish, and helped set up a theatre group. It was here, in 1944, that he fell in love with Vera Crvenčanin, who was to become his second wife. In 1945, Skender Kulenović was appointed Drama Director of the National Theatre in newly liberated Sarajevo. In 1947 he and Vera moved to Belgrade, which was to remain their home until his death. The postwar years he devoted largely to drama and journalism: he wrote several successful theatre plays, but also a number of short stories, essays and poems, and edited various literary and non-literary journals. In 1954, after having published an essay by the dissident Milovan Đilas, he was sacked as editor of the journal Nova misao (New Thought). Though he was to continue with his theatrical work, this, with the death of his father in the same year, dealt a severe blow to his confidence and self-esteem.\n\nKulenović's long contact with the city of Mostar began in 1956, when he stayed there during the production of his play Djelidba (Division). In 1959 he published “Stećak”, the first of his forty Sonnets. He also traveled to Egypt, which inspired a series of travelogues – and, later, the sonnet Vaze (Vases). 1968 saw the publication of the first twenty Soneti (Sonnets). Soneti II, the second set of twenty sonnets, followed in 1974. In 1977 his novel Ponornica (Lost River) appeared. He was working on a sequel when he fell ill late that year. After one last stay in Mostar, he returned to Belgrade in January 1978, when he died of heart failure.\n\nSkender Kulenovic is a member of", null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null ]

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[ "‘A Quiet Place 2’ is best seen in the movie theater\n\n‘A Quiet Place 2’ is best seen in the movie theater", null, "You know they passed on calling it “A Quieter Place.” It’s not like they didn’t think of it. They chose not to. Anyway, “A Quiet Place Part II” is a John Krasinski joint. He wrote, directed and appears in the movie. This one takes place right where the last one left off, but also flashes back to the first day of the disaster, which was a bit that they brilliantly left out of the first Quiet Place.\n\nThe intrigue of the first movie was its mystery. The monsters’ particular attributes were unknown and you are dropped into a world which had adapted to the monsters. Like in most sequels, the mystery is gone.\n\nThis sequel did as much as it could without having anything left to reveal but it had nowhere near the punch of the first. Even with that said, this is an excellent movie to see in a theater with other people, especially since it might be the first one you do that with. The quiet spaces really build more suspense with one hundred other people collectively holding their breath. If you see it, see it in a theater.\n\nAlso, Kpolly and I get into a lengthy What Else We’ve Been Watching that takes a turn to the intricacies of doing an impression and early Bernie Mac stand up sets. Come for “A Quiet Place,” stay for the weirdness." ]

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[ null, "Foliage has a protective function\n\nIt is best not to cut off the leaves. They are a natural winter protection when they fall down in autumn and lie over the root area of ​​the plant. If you don't remove it but leave it in place, you don't need to equip your Funkie for the winter in any other way.\n\nAfter the first frost has struck the hostas, the leaves tip over. They begin to wither noticeably. In addition to their function as winter protection, they represent an important shelter for insects during winter.\n\nIf you think that the old foliage doesn't look nice, but rather disturbs the overall picture, you can of course remove it. However, this means that winter protection is no longer available and may have to be made available elsewhere, for example by fir branches. In the fall, you can cut away the foliage if you don't like them.\n\nRemove old parts of the plant in spring\n\nIf you left the foliage on the hosta:\n\nCut away the old inflorescences\n\nIn addition to removing the old leaves, the inflorescences should be cut off in summer. This also applies to hostas in the bucket. The flowers are on the long stems that shoot up from the center of the perennial from around June. Cut down these stems when the flowering period is over.\n\nIf you don't do this, the black seed pods will form:\n\nThe leaves can also be cut from May to August and used, for example, for floristic purposes (bouquets or flower arrangements)." ]

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[ "In the nonfiction tradition of John Berendt and Erik Larson, the author of the #1 NYT bestseller The Lost City of the Monkey God presents a gripping account of crime and punishment in the lush hills surrounding Florence as he seeks to uncover one of the most infamous figures in Italian history.\nIn 2000, Douglas Preston fulfilled a dream to move his family to Italy. Then he discovered that the olive grove in front of their 14th century farmhouse had been the scene of the most infamous double-murders in Italian history, committed by a serial killer known as the Monster of Florence. Preston, intrigued, meets Italian investigative journalist Mario Spezi to learn more.\nThis is the true story of their search for--and identification of--the man they believe committed the crimes, and their chilling interview with him. And then, in a strange twist of fate, Preston and Spezi themselves become targets of the police investigation. Preston has his phone tapped, is interrogated, and told to leave the country. Spezi fares worse: he is thrown into Italy's grim Capanne prison, accused of being the Monster of Florence himself.\nLike one of Preston's thrillers, The Monster of Florence, tells a remarkable and harrowing story involving murder, mutilation, and suicide-and at the center of it, Preston and Spezi, caught in a bizarre prosecutorial vendetta.", null ]

[ "https://twp.duke.edu/sites/twp.duke.edu/files/styles/news_full_image/public/news-images/Colton%2C%20TWP%20Photo_0.jpg?itok=rW_u48li", null ]

[ null, "It's a pleasure to introduce myself and to join the Thompson Writing Program! My affinity for writing centers and composition pedagogy began at Vassar College, where I first found a space for thinking about what it means to be a writer and how to relate to other writers as a peer. I was fortunate in my PhD studies at the University of Virginia and postdoc at Georgia Tech to further my commitment to writing centers, first as a graduate consultant at the UVA Writing Center and then as an assistant director of the Georgia Tech Communication Center. Georgia Tech in particular offered me an opportunity to pursue empirical research into writing centers, collaborate with a STEM-oriented student body, and expand my knowledge of communication genres. My thinking typically takes place in the spaces between rhetorical and literary studies; in recent years, I've considered the emergences of concepts like sincerity, authenticity, and irony in post-1945 US fiction and popular culture, and I'm now in the early stages of a project on literary representations of writer's block (and their lessons for working with blocked writers). This fall, I'm teaching a Writing 101 seminar on the popular non-fiction essay, asking students to consider the rhetorical implications of writing from personal experience, about popular culture, and to change public opinion. Beyond the university, I'm an avid concert-goer and occasional surfer. I'm very much looking forward to meeting everyone in the TWP and, eventually, figuring out the differences between the types of barbecue in North Carolina.\n\nWhen you’re told to write “an essay,” what do you imagine? Five paragraphs, rife with evidence and organized in service of an argument? A personal story that discloses your innermost hopes, fears, and beliefs? An investigation into a forgotten subject, built from interviews and historical research? An interpretation that casts new light on a popular book, film, album, or show? Or some combination of the above?\n\nIn this seminar, we’ll take a deep dive into the messy and ambiguous genre of the essay, charting its many powers, forms, and subjects. In doing so, we’ll take up three specific and hotly debated topics that pervade contemporary essay writing. We’ll consider how the essay might elevate, scrutinize, and reveal the influence of popular culture, looking to recent examples from Hanif Abdurraqib, Chuck Klosterman, and Wesley Morris. We’ll examine the uses (and abuses) of writing from personal experience, guided by Jia Tolentino, Leslie Jamison, and David Foster Wallace. And we’ll determine what it takes for an essay to shift public thinking on the concepts that structure US culture and politics—such as race, gender, and power—through works by James Baldwin, Angela Davis, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Gloria Steinem.\n\nOver the course of the semester, we’ll also write substantial, well-researched essays of our own. Among these will include close readings of particular essay writers’ techniques and a position paper in which students will stake out their own understandings of what is and isn’t an essay, and what an essay can or should do. The major project for the course will be a long (~10 pages) essay on a subject of students’ choosing, brainstormed, outlined, and developed throughout the semester. In the past, students have written on topics including immigrant identity and the English language, major league sports and political responsibility, and growing up in the US South. Students should expect to share and revise their writing in pairs and small and large groups; each student will circulate their writing to the entire class for feedback at least once." ]

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[ "More and more I am seeing a certain expression on folks' faces. I'm not talking about the look that the Brocker gives me when I'm acting up and she's not gonna put up with it, (you married guys know what I'm talkin' about, 17 different ways of saying \"no\" and none of 'em mean \"yes\"). This is not the wide-eyed deer-caught-in-the-headlights look that a lot of innocent/naive/ignorant don't have a clue dingbats are wearing. Like, \"Oh, gee, do people really do things like that?\" Our country is tanking and they still think it's like a game.\n\nI am talking about a look that is in the eyes. Face too, but not so much, it is all in the eyes. Men mostly, but the women have to be strong as well; folks that have killed others, buried family, lost crops, pulled victims or bodies out of wrecks; y'know, that have a pretty good idea of what life and death are all about. They are tried in the fire and hammered out on the Anvil of Life.", null, null, null, null, "This is get-down time. Batten down the hatches, we're in for stormy weather. Executive Orders, Martial Law, race riots, food shortages and some other catastrophic conditions I can't think of right now. All the poignant film clips of the Dustbowl Depression years, families living in a busted down Model A or a tent, all the Wall Street guys jumping out of windows, it ain't some James Stewart/Frank Capra movie. It all happened and it's gonna happen again. A lot of men know this, more than show it - denial helps keep the lid on - but check it out. Look at your neighbors, at the guy that changes your tires, at people that get their hands dirty for a living. It is not a look of defeat. It is a look of dpjk.\n\nAre you serious?\nWhat's so funny?\nCut the crap.\nYou talk like a sausage.\nPiss off.\n\nI've found that machinists are the most dpjk people I have ever met in this business. Like friggin' special forces of manufacturing. I design in +/- a couple thousandths and they machine in +/- a couple ten thousandths. When they like you they stare at you with cold, mean, dead expressions. When they don't like you they just get up and leave without saying a word. Very dpjk. - Philistine\n\n\nA lot of people are scared nowadays. They cover their fear with a pasted-on smile, with a false bonhomie. I'd rather have the dpjk. at least I know where I stand. Up front and no surprises.\n\nAs Remus says, avoid crowds. Watch out for anyone that enters your perimeter. Those who would do you harm are always oh so clever, and they think they are invisible. If you maintain Situational Awareness you can see right through them.\n\n\nWell, there's a whole lot in life I don't care much about, but I am pretty well centered in my own spirituality and the older I get I reckon there's probably 23 different ways to get into Heaven. \"Everybody's got their own way to butter their bread\" as my father would say, \"don't trust the priests, son, all they got a key to is the shithouse\".\n\n\nAnd besides, as I get older, I pay more atten­tion to the evi­dence and less to the arguments. The walk is more important than the talk.\n\n\nI have smelled the foul sulphur breath of Satan as I lay dying; I have crawled the narrow path to lay at Jesus' feet, asking He intervene with Father God to spare my life; there are wicked wild hounds that visit me in the dark hours before dawn, scratching at my door, looking to carry me away if I drop my guard; but I do not fear them. I have been washed in the Blood of the Lamb.\n\n\nWhen I see some of these young people run­ning their game I want to say “Kid, I served in the military, blowing things up and killing people; I ran with bik­ers, shot junk, robbed banks; my hands have taken lives and saved lives; I worked with the Billy Gra­ham Cru­sade; I’m thirty years clean and sober; I’m half dead with the cancer; I got a mil­lion miles of high­way under my ass, slept with dogs, danced with angels; I got screw­drivers older than you … what are ya gonna show me, uh?”\n\n\nBut I don’t. Nowa­days I just kinda watch it all going down.\n\nAn aside: what with the cancer, possible kidney failure, possible cirrhosis of liver, my wife heading into dementia, probably a couple things I haven’t thought of yet, my outlook has changed. I am definitely not suicidal nor do I feel defeated in any way. I will not sit on the couch whimpering either. Mind you I’m not gonna buy a motorcycle and go a hundred mph, defying death. A lot of things that used to bother me (we all have ‘em, little things like the toothpaste or some jerk in front of us in traffic) don’t bother me anymore. Some other things that I have taken for granted, like a nice sunset or my wife hugging and kissing me, now these things mean a lot to me. When it comes down to standing up against a threat, some jerk wants to harm me, I have an advantage. I can say to the guy “look, I am willing to die for my beliefs, make your move.”" ]

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[ "Jeffrey Barrington has been appointed instructor of trumpet at Campbellsville University.\n\nPrior to this appointment, he served as a teaching assistant at the University of Kentucky, where he taught applied trumpet to music majors and minors, trumpet methods, and served as assistant director of the trumpet ensemble. He was also assistant host of the 2019 National Trumpet Competition. He has taught adjunct applied trumpet for Asbury University and Scott County Public Schools. He has also served as the Divisional Music & Arts Director for The Salvation Army in both the Texas and New Jersey Divisions.\n\nBarrington received his bachelor’s degree from Asbury University in 2002 and his master’s degree from SUNY Purchase's Conservatory of Music in 2004. He is currently a student at University of Kentucky, where is ABD toward a Doctor of Musical Arts in trumpet performance. Barrington is the principal cornet of Lexington Brass Band and the Southern Territorial Band of The Salvation Army. He has also served as principal trumpet of the Artemis Chamber Ensemble in New York, and has performed and recorded extensively with the New York Staff Band and the Southern Territorial Band.", null, null ]

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[ null, "Britain’s heir to the throne has been offered a special starring role in the upcoming James Bond film, according to The Sun.\n\nCharles, 70, would not be the first member of his royal family to appear alongside 007 — his mom, Queen Elizabeth II, starred in a short homage for the opening ceremony of London’s 2012 Olympic Games.\n\n“They loved the buzz around the Queen’s appearance alongside Daniel Craig and think Charles could top even that,” a source told the UK paper of the scene, where the Queen was made to look like she parachuted from a chopper.\n\n“He is the epitome of everything British, perfect for a cameo role and Bond fans worldwide would absolutely love it.”\n\nThe possible cameo in “Bond 25” was reportedly brought up when the prince recently visited the film set, posing for photos with Bond actor Craig, 51.\n\n“Now he is considering it,” the source said.\n\nIf he turns it down, the source believes there would be two obvious replacements for the gig — Charles’ sons, Princes Harry and William.\n\n“If Charles doesn’t go for it Harry and Wills could be in producers’ sights next,” the source told the paper.\n\nIf so, they would hope for a better outcome than their previous bid for movie stardom, with both ending up on the cutting-room floor after filming cameos as Stormtroopers in 2017’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” but being deemed too tall.\n\nThe so-far untitled “Bond 25” has been stricken by problems, including planned-director Danny Boyle quitting, an explosion on the film set and Craig needing surgery for an ankle injury.\n\n“It is no secret that the film has suffered a number of setbacks but landing a Royal could be just what the movie needs,” the source told The Sun of the film, due in cinemas next April.\n\nThe prince even joked about the film’s woes when he visited the set, according to The Sun, asking, “You haven’t had any more things blowing up recently?”" ]

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[ null, null, "in Fradin passed away in Providence, Rhode Island at the age of 88 on June 1, 2018. He joined his father, Hyman Fradin, in the family business and oversaw Charles Fradin Incorporated, expanding the business far beyond its original scope. An innovative thinker, Copley Distributors and other entities followed, along with a series of mergers and acquisitions which added to the business footprint; ultimately becoming part of Horizon Beverage Group. Fradin was known for his efforts on behalf of his employees and the larger community with a focus on issues relating to social well-being. A husband, father, grandfather and philanthropist, he supported Temple Beth-El, the Jewish Federation of Rhode Island, Miriam Hospital, The Groden Center, The Providence Hebrew Day School, and The University of Rhode Island." ]

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[ null, "A Russian teenager has refitted his car to drive it backward, and got a shoutout from Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk. But this didn’t stop the police from stripping him of the car registration.\n\nThe 18-year-old was stopped earlier this week driving the battered Lada backward. The teenager showed in a video posted on social media that he had refitted the car, removing what was underneath the hood to where the trunk normally is, and reversed the driver’s seat.\n\nThe video, posted on Twitter by the Russian television station NTV, got a shoutout Monday from Musk’s verified account who said, in Russian, that it was “awesome.”\n\nLocal police, however, were not impressed and fined the teenager for driving backward, illegal refitting the car and driving without insurance." ]

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[ "Opposition left-wing Akel to get new leader, Kyprianou steps down after 12 years", null, "Left-wing Opposition Akel party faithful will elect a new leader at the end of a two-day conference which opens on Friday, expected to focus on the reasons behind May’s worst election showing in recent history.\n\nOne thing for sure is that no woman candidate is in the race for Andros Kyprianou’s replacement tipped to be either MP George Loukaides or MP Stephanos Stephanou.\n\nAkel’s outgoing leader was at the party’s helm for 12 years during which time his party suffered two electoral defeats at the parliamentary level, losing 10% of its vote (50,000 voters).\n\nAfter eight years in opposition, Akel failed to win over voters and saw it garner 22.34% on May 30’s parliamentary elections, down 3.3% on the previous ones.\n\nDespite being the main opposition party to a government tormented with scandals ranging from the disgraced golden passports to officials forging their academic credentials, it also lost one seat.\n\nWhen Kyprianou took over in 2009, Akel had got its former General Secretary, the late Demetris Christofias, elected President of the Republic.\n\nThe first predominantly AKEL government was tainted with leading the country into a punishing EU bailout to save the bankrupt economy in 2013 and the 2011 Mari naval base disaster.\n\nIn the 2006 elections, the last one before Kyprianou took over, Akel received 31.3% of the vote, coming first ahead of ruling right-wing Disy." ]

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[ null, "I’m an apostate of epic fantasy. Until about 5 years ago I was completely up-to-speed and up-to-date with most of the major sagas: ‘The Sword of Truth’, ‘The Wheel of Time’, ‘Shannara’, ‘Coldfire’ etc. and etc. I’d even attempted, as a teenager, to read whatever it was that Tolkien wrote surrounding Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit: you know, all those long, dorky mythos books and histories (stop sniggering at the back – I’m not ashamed!). But in recent years I’ve grown impatient with a genre whose current identity seems more dependent on Homeric length than any attempt to break imaginative moulds and creative precepts. A genre has a problem when I can use the somewhat oxymoronic phrase “standard fantasy setting”, only to find that everybody knows exactly what I mean.\n\nSo I gave up on epic fantasy when I realised that the singular sense of readerly joy I was gleaming from the genre was a kind of smug and breathless mountain-climbing satisfaction at the grinding achievement of having read yet another 1000 page tome in which absolutely nothing happens. To this you could add my more recent intellectual problems with the 200 page end-of-novel historical appendices that seem to dominate the epic fantasy paperscape. In my view, reducing something as massively subjective and complex as history to a list of ordered names and dates at the back of a book and subsequently claiming (as the fanboys will tell you) that this amounts to narrative depth is nothing but a great big structural fallacy (history is not objective, and meticulous world building is not deep).\n\nBut sans all the newest epic fantasy releases piling up on my desk, I still found myself yearning for the more abstract and aspirant tenets of the genre. This conflict lead me to discover, for want of a better term, “short form fantasy”; and, long story elided: I now encourage you all to read everything by Michael Moorcock and everything by M. John Harrison (if I ever grow the analytical balls, I might attempt a review of his cathedral (adjective) Viriconium sequence). Sure, short form fantasy appeals to me in practical, time consumption terms, but I’ve also fallen for the sharper focus and experimental lyricism that’s necessitated by the strictures of a much lower word count – there’s a definite feeling that short form encourages more heretofore untried and interesting story telling modes. The sense of scale and wonder implicit in fantasy now has to come from a ferocious and creative linguistic poetry that’s so often lacking in its epic genre brothers: siblings that too often rely on high page count to craft the illusion of scale, and appendices to craft the illusion of depth, or to function as substitute for the same.\n\nUrsula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea is one such example of short form fantasy that encapsulates all of my more favoured genre aesthetics – a bleak and ambiguous approach to history, psychologically impactful monsters, a sense of massive scale, a barrenness of landscape and a convincing depth of characterisation – and does all of this, without, thankfully, running to 900 fucking pages.\n\nI’m wary of making any grand claims that Le Guin was, in 1968, attempting to subvert a genre whose Tolkien-derived clichés were only just beginning to be instituted, but there’s definitely something gloriously cavalier and anti-establishment about both A Wizard of Earthsea’s form and its content. Nowhere is this more immediately apparent than in Le Guin’s treatment of mapping. Epic fantasy has a strange hang-up tendency to offer the post-war comfort of relegating evil to a definite and confined place on a map (c.f. Mordor, D’hara, Northland etc.) – and perhaps it’s my own historical imperative of being a post-9/11 reader that’s doing the talking here – but I find this model simplistic, over-used and somewhat of a fop to nationalism and the idea of evil as exclusively external alien otherness. (I should note that I have no problem with fantasy mapping or imagined geography as a concept – it’s the bullshit metaphors for good and evil that get pasted over the top of these maps that really grind my gears). Of course such an established and rigid convention of mapping (good is here, evil is here, monsters be here etc.) paves the way for some wonderful tom-foolery at the hands of more ironically self-aware writers – nowhere more so than in the ‘evil’ empire of Grenbretan featured in Moorcock’s Hawkmoon – a fantastic mapped inversion of post-war geopolitical paranoias. A Wizard of Earthsea takes a subtler, but nonetheless powerfully disdainful approach to subverting this perverse tradition.\n\nI knew I was going to enjoy the book, then, when I encountered the wonderfully indecipherable Jackson Pollock mess that is the mandatory hand-drawn map printed at the start of the text. Imagine tearing Middle Earth into a thousand pieces and re-assembling it at random, and you’ll have some idea of the paratextual cartography that dominates A Wizard of Earthsea. The scrawly, scatter-gun map with its too-small-to-read annotations, half obscured by the crease of the binding, is of absolutely no use to the reader – neither as an aid to narrative clarity nor as an aid to a visualisation of the world’s landscapes – but that’s entirely the point. Its narrative uselessness functions as an ironic and playful exposé of this most bullshitty convention of the genre.", null, "But Le Guin’s playfulness doesn’t end here. There’s a beautifully post-modern dismissal of these conventions in the actual narrative – specifically the ending – which takes place (I kid you not) off the edge of the map. It’s perfect fodder for imaginative fantasy, and not only pokes fun at the (anachronistic) medieval notion of a flat earth, but makes a more theoretical statement about the limited ability of these fantasy maps to aid or contribute to narrative coherency. Just as the novel ends, when one might arguably rely on the map the most, the map becomes its most useless. It’s extraordinary.\n\nIn plotting, A Wizard of Earthsea melds the more familiar tropes of high fantasy (faux-medieval setting, dragons, wizards etc.) with what can only be described as a penchant for those darkest aspects of Weird fiction-inspired horror. The protagonist, Ged, is a young wizard who, in an ego-driven attempt to impress his classmates, hubristically summons a face-less, name-less, tentacular black monstrosity from some unknowable cosmic place of panic and violence: it would sit comfortably within Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos. And it’s this monstrosity summoned from within, rather than any invading dark wizard with his deformed armies of foreign others, that stands as the primary antagonist. The book is essentially a bildungsroman; Ged’s quest to locate and overcome this dark, passion-ridden and uber-brutal creature stands as a metaphor for the suppression of the id and his arrival into adult life and responsibility.\n\nOnly one man’s life is at stake; and, as I’ve stated, there’s no mad, demonic force trying to destroy the world without ever quite explaining how it is they’d benefit from such an endgame. While this offers a pleasing alternative to the standard fantasy plot, the tight focus on one individual does come at the cost of weaker characterisation elsewhere. The majority of the book’s characters play to familiar type: there’s the pederastic old wizard-mentor, the homosocially charged relationship with a loyal best friend, the parents who aren’t themselves magical, and the usual given allotment of tavern maidens, dragon kings, helpless villagers and taciturn knights. So although A Wizard of Earthsea wilfully experiments with the praxis conventions of epic fantasy, it remains very much enamoured of the base aesthetics of the genre: it’s still a rollocking good medieval Fantasy at heart.\n\nSo, yeah, A Wizard of Earthsea stands as further testament that it tends to be within the constraining vagaries of short form Fantasy that the genre is at its most experimental and subversive. The book isn’t a radical genre departure, nor is it dismissive of its roots, but if like me you’re feeling more-than-a-little fatigued with “epic” fantasy, I recommend you give short form a try – and this is as good a place as any to start.\n\n10 responses to “A Wizard of Earthsea – Ursula K. Le Guin”" ]

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[ null, "Flare, AKA Veiling glare is stray light in lenses and optical systems caused by reflections between lens elements and the inside barrel of the lens. It predicts the severity of lens flare— image fogging (loss of shadow detail and color) as well as “ghost” images— that can occur in the presence of bright light sources in or near the field of view. (It does not measure the ghosts in detail.)\n\nVeiling glare is measured by Stepchart using a standard Kodak Q-13 or Q-14 step chart mounted beside a “black hole,” i.e., a box lined with black behind a small opening, mounted on a large white board, as described in detail in Veiling glare.\n\nVeiling glare can only be measured reliably with RAW images, preferably decoded with gamma = 1, because image processing (especially conversion to sRGB color space) can affect the “toe” (dark) region of the tonal response curve, which is critical to veiling glare measurements. Special care must be taken to distinguish pixel offsets (minimum pixel levels in sensor or camera outputs— built into some video/cinema color spaces such as Rec. 709) from flare light." ]

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[ "We cordially invite you to join us for Atmanam award function on Saturday, 30th of September 2017 from 05:00 to 7:30 P.M at Kaviko mandram, Mylapore – Chennai.\n\nAtmanam Trust, a registered body instituted to commemorate the memory of the Tamil poet Atmanam (1951-1984), has been functioning from 2014. Right from its inception, it has been contributing significantly to poetry, poetics and contemporary Tamil literature. It presents an annual award to a Tamil poetry collection.\nThe inaugural Atmanam Award for poetry was presented to Isai in 2015 in Chennai by the Kannada poet and playwright H.S. Shivaprakash. The second annual award was given to K. Mohanarangan for his collection of poems ‘Meekaamam’ in2016 in Erode. The Malayalam poet Anitha Thambi was the chief guest.\nBesides according awards to writers, the Trust organizes seminars and critical review meetings on the works of contemporary Tamil writers. A seminar on the works of Sukumaran, ‘Sukumaran – 60,’ and a review meeting on a five-novel compendium, ‘Kanavuchirai’ by Devakanthan, were organised in Chennai.\nThe 2017 award for poetry goes to Anar for her collection of poems ‘Perungadal Podukiren.’ The Trust has founded another annual award in the name of Atmanam to a book of poems translated from other languages into Tamil. N. Sathyamoorthy gets the inaugural award for the same for his translation of Rumi poems from English entitled ‘DhakamKonda Meenondru.’ The 2017 award function will be held in Chennai on 30th Sept 2017. Professor K. Sachidanandan, the Malayalam poet and critic, will give away the two awards. The Trust publishes annually a collection of articles on the award winning works.", null ]

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[ null, "Summary: This is a far broader and more exciting use of Li’s agility while Yeoh and Siu-ho provide excellent support.\n\nBack before Hollywood distracted Jet Li long enough to see him dedicate his time to trashy rap-inspired action thrillers or wafer-thin roles in blockbusters, he was producing and starring in martial arts classics like Tai Chi Master. Stripped of American gloss and steeped in Asian traditions, the simple but effective filmmaking from 1993 has a charm lost on translations into western productions which have tried to take his skills and implant them into movies that have generally fallen flat. Here Li is joined by Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s Michelle Yeoh and directed by The Matrix choreographer Yuen Woo-ping for a real showcase of his talents.\n\nTai Chi Master sees two young orphans Junbao (Li) and Tianbao (Siu-ho) become best friends as they are raised in the legendary Shaolin Temple watching warriors train. The cheeky monks often fight between themselves to see who is stronger – getting into trouble while they are at it. In a fight for promotion up through the Shaolin ranks, Tienbao almost kills another student for using a concealed weapon no-one else sees. Junbao supports his friend but a brawl erupts which results in the pair being banished from the temple. Initially the two travel together to learn life outside the temple, meeting up with local rebels including Siu Lin (Yeoh) who fight for the freedom of their people. But when Tienbao seeks to fulfil his ambitions on a barbaric rise to power, the two ultimately come face-to-face in a deadly scenario.\n\nThe tale of childhood friends becoming enemies is a simple and effective foundation for a blend of a comic beginning leading to a darker conclusion in true Asian style: there’s plenty of slapstick and misunderstanding between Junbao and Tienbao while the fight scenes are more gentle exercises at the start. As events become increasingly dangerous, so does the ambitions of Woo-ping’s direction and choreography. Inventive fight scenes see Li using barrels to defend himself, piling them up and blasting them back at his opponent, and an impressive display of bo skills as he uses his speed to dodge and block an onslaught of assailants. This is a far broader and more exciting use of Li’s agility while Yeoh and Siu-ho provide excellent support.\n\nTai Chi Master captures Li at his finest – the closest recent performance to match what’s on offer here is Fearless which saw him return to Asia to tell the story of Chinese Martial Arts Master Huo Yuanjia with Woo-ping back on set to work the martial arts magic. However, to see Li in his prime, this is a must." ]

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[ "The Agency team has never been known to shy away from a party—and after ten years as a company, we have a lot to celebrate. Our agents and staff will be doing just that when they come together in Palm Desert for The Agency Global Forum 2021 event and enjoy three incredible days of special events, workshops, guest speakers and our 10-year anniversary celebration.The last decade has been an exciting ride for The Agency. Starting out with eight agents in 2011, the company has now grown to 817 agents and 47 offices across the globe. With an initial office in Beverly Hills, The Agency quickly grew along the California coast, breaking into the international market with our Los Cabos office in Mexico. The Caribbean soon followed with an office in Turks & Caicos. The Rocky mountains with Park City and Aspen, arriving on the East Coast and then Canada. Fast forward to 2021, and we’ve already opened nine new offices this year (and there’s more on the way!).Our agents are twice as productive as the average agents and have accomplished $30 billion in global sales through 2020, and the world has taken notice. We’ve been selected among Inc. 5000’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America for the past six consecutive years and have been named One of The Americas’ Fastest Growing Companies by Financial Times for two years. We were also an Inman Golden I Top Luxury Brokerage Finalist this year and the world’s most-followed residential brokerage on social media with 365K+ Instagram followers.There’s a lot to look forward to as The Agency continues its global expansion, making a splash in some of the world’s premier cities and most exciting locales—and bringing a unique flavor wherever red yard signs stand. One thing never wavers: our commitment to the signature culture of collaboration that sparked the company’s original founding. At The Agency, it’s one for all and all for one—and we’re proud to have it that way.", null, "What Is The MLS?\n\nDepending on your knowledge of real estate, you may or may not have heard of the MLS. The MLS plays a huge role throughout the real estate realm and ...Read More", null, "The Agency Gives Back - Why I Love This Brokerage\n\nOwning a home is an incredible and huge life-changing experience. The Agency partners with a community of real estate agents committed to building ...Read More", null, "How The Agency Gives Back\n\nThe real estate brokerage called The Agency is known for giving back to local communities. The founding principles of the business is commitment and ...Read More", null, null ]

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[ null, "Oh, I’ve been meaning to do a Gally (Gallifrey One, the greatest Doctor Who convention in the world) report for, uh, two months now? A long time anyway. In my head it was a beautiful thing, detailed, and effervescent and lengthy. I think I’m going to manage one of those things. For this post will be guided by the photos I managed to take whilst in California.", null, "Me and my sister! I convinced her to come to Gally last year, and she loved it, so she came back this year. We’re at Universal for the day, and it was fun both for theme park-iness yay, but also getting to spend some quality time with sis.", null, "We went to Moe’s! In Simpsons land. Where we were carded, cause clearly we are nineteen years old and not women in our thirties. So much great theming in the park! It’s not Disney level theming, but it’s still v pleasing.", null, "I am not a taking pics with characters person, but LOOOOOK. Frankenstein’s monster!! (Also there was a tiny little bit of Universal monsters merch, and that was where I spent all my money.)", null, "Verity podcast panel game! (In Defence Of, where you have to defend terrible things for a minute and then the audience votes with claps on who wins). I tried so hard to convince sis to play, but she said she was too nervous, and then in the middle of the panel she was “no! I can do this!” Very proud.", null, "This panel was also the place where The Greatest Convention Moment Ever happened. It was like actually being in a musical, except it was Real Life. In the final round of the game we had two truly amazing players. So witty, so smart, so damn sharp. WHO WOULD PREVAIL? Tom Dickinson of The Moment podcast ended up singing Hamilton song while changing the lyrics to Doctor Who-ish ones on the fly. HOW COULD THIS BE BETTERED? His opponent (I’m so sorry, I’ve forgotten her name) picked up the challenge by going for a Wicked made Doctor Who-ish number; and she could *sing*. And then she brought Tom in to join in and then the audience were on their feet and singing and it was AMAZING. I had feelings, everyone had feelings; there were a hell of a lot of feelings.", null, "This was an *amazing* panel with *amazing* people. What was it about? Excellent question, I can’t remember. DON’T JUDGE ME. It was brilliant, that’s why I took a pic.\n\nIn the TARDIS Talks symposium (run by Joy Piedmont and Paul Guest), Rachel Donner was magnificent, delivering a fascinating talk on Jewishness and Doctor Who.", null, "Loot! For the first time in so many years I remembered my list of missing Who books, and picked up a few. This pile was bought for the princely sum of $20.", null, "This was Paul Cornell’s regular What Is the Best Doctor Who Thing panel. This year it was Producers and Script Editors. Obviously the correct answer was Verity Lambert. Who won? Excellent question. Can’t remember (this is why you shouldn’t wait two months to write a con report). It was the wrong answer though, that’s the important thing. Also Erika BETRAYED the Verity! podcast by voting against Verity lambert. It was a very sad moment and we had to fire her.", null, "Ahhh! Look at this magnificent cosplay! The glasses are what make it for me. THAT LOOK. It’s so perfectly what this Doctor gave us onscreen.", null, "I was very dignified when I saw the Alpha Centauri costume. And isn’t the Davros one *amazing*?", null, "OMMMMMEEEEGGAAA! Is it better than what we actually got in Arc of Infinity? QUITE POSSIBLY.", null, "I mean, come on, how perfect is this?", null, "Yes, it’s a terrible pic, but you can just about see Steven Schapansky and Christopher Eccleston. STEVEN INTERVIEWED HIM. It was amazing.", null, "And then the next day Deb Stanish and Tai Gooden interviewed him. It was amazing too! (Con goers were asked to only attend one, but it was okay to come in if there was room; I was ten minutes late and standing at the back, in case I am being judged by anyone for breaking the honour rules.)\n\nReally, so many friends did brilliant things at this con, but I confess seeing these folks up there, saying words at Eccleston was the most incredible.", null, "A Skarasen! I was making wee videos of him as our room gathering viewing of new Doctor Who was being set up. I forget who knitted him, I’m so sorry, but he was beautiful.", null, "This was the very final panel of the con, and I took this terrible pic because I wanted to remember that in a v tricky panel (for there are like 12 guests up there) these two people chatted about their memories of working on Fury from the Deep.", null, "This was the Verity! panel where we are just there and talk to the audience. Standing room only! I find this bizarre, I confess, as we’re a fan podcast and there is so much awesome stuff going on elsewhere. But it’s very lovely that so many turned up and listened to our nonsense.", null, "The Verity! panel from the other side! (Pic by Annette Wierstra). Erika was either being terribly mean or terribly nice. That is my reaction to either thing.", null, "The awfully fancy looking set up provided by Erika and Steven for podcast recording. We’re about to sit down for Verity! and for the very first time I wasn’t practically falling asleep! (Yup, I did excellent self-care through con.)", null, "And that was Gally 2020! When we were able to go outside and mingle and travel and all that lovely stuff. It feels so long ago." ]

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[ null, "Although I couldn’t act my way out of a wet paper bag, I ended up getting involved with the drama kids in high school. I was way too inhibited to ever get speaking roles and only got cast as a Shark girl in West Side Story because I could hit the high notes in “America”. At the time, I didn’t know from Stephen Sondheim (or Leonard Bernstein, for that matter). I’d never even seen the film version of West Side Story! Oh, the deprivation that comes from not having television during most of my years living at home. I hammed it up in a couple of plays in 5th grade, before the mean girls at my tiny junior high killed my soul, and music has always been a big thing in our family. After West Side, I mostly stuck to the backstage world. I was totally unqualified to work on costumes, but had a lot of fun producing and stage managing.\n\nAlthough I did go to San Francisco to see Tim Curry in Me and My Girl (which was more because we were in our midnight Rocky Horror phase than anything else), my first real introduction to musical theatre came from my first housemate, Laurenn. We listened to the Sweeney Todd and Evita soundtracks all the time. Laurenn described the plots and I was fascinated by these shows without ever having seen them. To this day, I’ve still experienced more musicals this way than I’ve been able to see live.\n\nOver the years, I’ve realized that, for musicals I want to listen to again and again, I need Sondheim. Kander & Ebb come in second, but Sondz is my man. I’ve been lucky enough to be in the same room as him twice…how stalkerish does that sound? In 2001, I visited my friend Jenn in New York City and we went musical crazy. One night, we went to Carnegie Hall for a Sondheim tribute and realized we could see him from our seats. About three years ago, I had tickets to see Sondheim in a Q & A session in southern California. Unfortunately, due to bad weather in NYC, his flight didn’t make it. Not only did he reschedule, but the singers (Christine Ebersole and Brian Stokes Mitchell) who were only supposed to sing a few songs that night put together a whole evening and came back on the new date as well. I think I cried when he came out on stage. Yep, I’m pretty starstruck when it comes to genius.\n\nA brief tangent before I get into Sweeney Todd: a few weeks ago, I met up with some of my high school theater friends to see Pippin in San Francisco. Both of them were in the show when we put it on during my junior year. I didn’t participate in that show, for some reason that I don’t remember. I definitely saw it, so I was probably an usher. In any case, one of them played Pippin and both of them live in SF, so it was great fun to have dinner with them and to see the show. We got great seats pretty cheap, too, which is always nice. We enjoyed the show, even though we were not super impressed with the actor playing Pippin…of course, when he was suddenly replaced by his understudy about halfway through Act 1, we felt a little guilty. Is it terrible that it was kind of exciting? The three of us have been involved with a fair number of productions and have all attended many, but none of us had ever experienced the lead actor being replaced mid-show due to illness. It gave us an opportunity for a quick “ussie”.", null, "Okay: on with it. I’ve been on a Sweeney diet for the last month or so. The gluttony began when I saw an announcement in my Facebook feed about PBS airing a Lincoln Center concert production that was filmed in March and was going to be on on air 15 minutes later…I almost missed it! I know good and well that PBS repeats shows like crazy, but it was listed as “Live from Lincoln Center”. How was I supposed to know that it was going to be Sweeney Todd?! I quickly set up my TiVo to record it, because I knew I’d be watching it more than once, especially when it started and I found out that it was directed by Lonny Price and starred Emma Thompson and Bryn Terfel. Um, okay…are you serious? It was so good! It was a semi-staged concert production — there were costumes and props and a bit of staging. There was a bit of fourth-wall breaking, which you may remember I have feelings about. It worked in this show, because Sweeney tends to be a bit “wink, wink” anyway. Emma Thompson was enjoyable as Mrs. Lovett — if she mugged a bit and was more funny than dark, the show is known to be over the top, so it worked for me. Bryn Terfel was definitely the creepiest Sweeney Todd I’ve seen and Philip Quast as Judge Turpin was suitably dark. My biggest criticism is not for the production itself, but for PBS or the FCC, or whomever decided to bleep out the word “shit” twice. This aired at 9:00 on Friday night on PBS, so which children were watching this and being unduly exposed to vulgarity I’m not sure…especially considering that the plot of Sweeney Todd includes rape, pedophilia, murder, and cannibalism!\n\nAround the time this was broadcast, I finally got around to buying tickets to see a local production of Sweeney. In fact, I ended up buying season tickets to Theatreworks, as the rest of the season looked pretty good. I decided to go on Wednesday nights to lessen the gap left in my calendar by the end of the silent film series. In between the PBS show and the live production, I spent some time revisiting my Sweeney audio. I have some completist tendencies, I admit. Of course, I have the Original Broadway Cast album (Angela Lansbury and Len Cariou), which is the version I’ve been listening to since 1990. I prefer this version because I know it so well that it’s the most fun to sing along to…what my neighbors think about that is none of my business.\n\nAnother cast album I have is from the 2005 revival, starring Patti LuPone and Michael Cerveris. The orchestration is very spare, probably because the cast played their own instruments. Although there is much to this recording that I enjoy, LuPone’s attempt at a Cockney accent is, um, not good. I wouldn’t be much of a theatre geek if I didn’t have some love for Patti, and I do — I saw her perform at the Hollywood Bowl about 20 years ago and loved it — but I don’t like her in this. It might have been different live, but I actually find her annoying here.\n\nThe newest cast recording in my collection is from a 2012 London revival, with Imelda Staunton (I love her!) and Michael Ball. To be honest, I haven’t listened to this one much, but I like it and what I’ve seen on YouTube indicates that it was a good production. I could spend my life going around the world watching productions of Sondheim shows…wouldn’t that be delicious?!", null, null, null, "I also watched a non-musical film version of the story from 1936 starring the aptly-named Tod Slaughter and revisited both the 1982 televised version of the musical with Angela Lansbury and George Hearn and the 2007 Tim Burton film (which I enjoyed in the theater when it came out and which I own on DVD — it’s aged the worst of all, in my opinion). I might be as obsessed with Sweeney Todd as the barber himself is with revenge.\n\nFinally, the night of the live show at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts arrived. MVCPA is a small, beautiful theatre with underground parking (!), and my seat ended up being in the fifth row. I was a bit confused by the lobby’s World War II themed posters until I discovered that the show’s director had chosen to set the show during The Blitz (about 100 years later than the show is usually set). I must start by saying that this production featured the best overall singing of any other version I’ve heard. Keep in mind that the other versions I’ve heard were all recorded in studios and this was live. The standouts for me were Beadle Bamford, played by Martin Rojas Dietrich, and Mrs. Lovett, played by Tory Ross (who was in Kinky Boots on Broadway!). Any singer can tell you that singing Sondheim is no joke and Sweeney Todd is full of numbers in which there are four or five melodies going on and in which not everyone is singing the same lyric. To make this sound beautiful instead of cacophonous is no small feat, and this cast pulled it off beautifully. I really can’t say enough about Ross’s Mrs. Lovett. The staging was cleverly done, the orchestra was tight, the entire evening was fabulous. I had goosebumps for the first five minutes of the show and teared up several times. At the end of the show, the cast came back out on stage to answer questions, too, which is always fun.\n\nMy appetite for Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street has been satisfied for now and I am only sorry that I’ve taken so long to write this that the show’s run is now over. I wish everyone could have seen this production. I’m looking forward to the rest of the Theatreworks season!" ]

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[ null, "Next to getting ambush kissed by Stephanie Harbison in the first grade, cutting the grass of the family’s yard was by far my biggest passageway into manhood.\n\nI made lap after lap around the backyard of my Dad’s house today, not that the grass needed cutting all that bad after the recent drought, but there were various spots of long blades of grass and the dried-up, fallen leaves didn’t look that good.\n\nI always liked to cut grass. Outside of showering, or napping or fishing, it’s one of the few things that you can do in the daylight hours without being interrupted. Left alone to think to yourself.\n\nAnd as the mower roared and the dead leaves were mulched, some thinking I did do.\n\nAs I navigated around the old English Walnut, and bobbed and weaved through the bird feeders, my thoughts had nothing to do with the last time that the feeders had been filled, but of impromptu football games played by the neighborhood kids. Of how Johnny Lee had inadvertently swallowed a grasshopper after being tackled one day. When Mrs. Womble, my math teacher, had publicly scolded me, not for bad grades, but for sending her son home once again with clothes soiled beyond the hope of any modern detergent.\n\nAnd when Stan Latham and I had lined the field of our wiffle ball stadium with a bag of lime straight from my Dad’s old shed, and killed all the yard’s grass along the length of the left and right baselines.\n\nThat same Stan was the apple of my younger sister’s eye, the day that she tried carrying the football across the imaginary goal-line stand of several local young boys, then suddenly went off crying to Mommy. Only to return an hour or so later with a fresh cast on her broken arm and her brother’s regret for many years to come.\n\nThe Tuttle family became our new neighbors one year, in the lot next to ours that had remained vacant for so many years. In what eventually became their backyard, we had planted an annual field of potatoes and heads of cabbage. Those were the first days of me meeting a gasoline-powered machine, with the mandatory weekly chore of fighting a rototiller through the dry, rocky dirt.\n\nShortly after the Tuttle family moved in, the teenaged daughter Lynne took to the chaise recliner in their backyard while wearing a flowered-pattern bikini, just as I began to mow the grass of our family’s back forty. And well-cut our grass was after I had lapped the entire length of the yard some six or seven times, both horizontally and vertically, just trying to catch one little peek. And what does a young man do after cutting grass all day, but go and take a shower.\n\nIt’s late afternoon, the skies are all silver, the leaves are wrinkled and brown.\n\nTo round out this day, helping Summer turn to Fall, is some butter melted over apples, sprinkled with cinnamon, brown sugar, and a pinch of nutmeg. A homemade pie, topped with vanilla ice cream.\n\nOne thought on “Just Cutting Grass”" ]

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[ null, "November 25, 2019- Mike Babcock got fired last Wednesday and the entire NHL world went into a frenzy on social media. Some fans, mostly Toronto agreed with the decision while some disagreed. However, it seemed like it was inevitable as Toronto was a horrendous 9-10-4 despite having expectations to the roof this year. With talent like that in your locker room, obviously everyone expects you to jump out of the gates, especially after losing back to back game 7’s to the same team.\n\nWhat this means and Predictions:\n\nToronto now has Sheldon Keefe as their heads coach and he got his first win in his first game against the Arizona Coyotes. The Leafs have rallied around as seen in a recent locker room interaction below.\n\nThis speech given by the captain shows how he will rally this team around their new coach and start to win more hockey games. Once Keefe gains some more experience being the main man behind the bench, expect these Leafs to keep rolling and possibly contend with the Bruins for the Atlantic Division and maybe even get them over that first round hump.\n\nToronto narrowly loses Atlantic but keeps up with Boston.\n\nKeefe wins coach of the year." ]

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[ null, "The First Lady of Ghana, Mrs Lordina Mahama has been elected as the new President of the Organisation of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS (OAFLA) at the 15th Ordinary General Assembly of OAFLA in Johannesburg, South Africa.\n\nThe First Lady, the favourite among the other contestants present at the OAFLA conference organized at the sidelines of the AU conference beat four others including Nigeria in the heavily contested polls to emerge the winner and she will serve for a two year term of office.\n\nShe took over from the First Lady of Chad, Hilda Itno Derby who congratulated her for working so hard for Ghana in particular and the continent of Africa s a whole.\n\nThe First lady of Malawi also clinched the Vice president title and pledged to assist Mrs Mahama in all her endeavours to raise the Flag of OAFLA very high.\n\nIn an acceptance speech, Mrs Mahama expressed her appreciation to the organization for the vote of confidence and the honor repose in her by electing her as the new president.\n\nShe said as a founding member of OAFLA Ghana is fully committed to the mission and vision of the organization.\n\nMrs Mahama, who is expected to be sworn into office in July this year at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, called on all African First ladies to support her in order to move the organization to higher levels.\n\n” In my own work as the First Lady and OAFLA representative for West Africa for the past two years I have ensured that my priorities revolved around attaining the objectives of our strategic plan of reversing the trends of HIV and AIDS, eliminating mother and child transmission”, she said.\n\nThe First Lady said part of the strategic plan was also to empower women and their partners as well as advocating for a comprehensive and integrated sexual and reproductive health services towards maternal mortality.\n\nShe indicated that she also focused on advancing health, general well-being and social protection of the orphans and vulnerable children towards a reduction in child morbidity and mortality.\n\nMrs Mahama has the firm belief that if all First Ladies could ensure the health of their women and empower them economically; the future of Africa would be secured.\n\nShe pledged to work fervently as the president of OAFLA and promised the outgoing president, the First Lady of Chad that she would not lose the momentum that she has gathered the work and the great visibility that she has brought to the organization.\n\nToday OAFLA has more than forty (40) African First Ladies as it active members, each leading their national chapters to do exemplary work in the areas of HIV/AIDS, empowering women and children. OAFLA is administered by a Permanent Secretariat in Addis Ababa, with the oversight of a Steering Committee." ]

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[ "Jekyll and Paul, here, a flaw is found. It was instituted by General Walther von Brauchitsch on 1 June From 6 Junethe medal was adapted with a small plate at the base with 50 for those soldiers that had taken part in numerous attacks.\n\nReal-life cowboy Ron Woodroof's free-wheeling life was upended in when he was diagnosed as HIV-positive and given 30 days to live. David Cronenberg Assistant Director: She has little patience with the conservative ideas her mother Emma Thompson holds about proper etiquette for girls, and even less tolerance for her kingdom's traditions regarding the marriage of a princess.\n\nBeautifully waffen amt marked and with original paint decoration. This badge came as a WW2 souvenir from a British Serviceman of WW2, who fought in Germany untiland then transferred to the Military Police to continue to serve during the occupation till As Bourne and Marie struggle to stay below the radar in France, all of the stealthy muscle of Treadstone is focused on tracking them and neutralizing Bourne as quickly and efficiently as possible.\n\nThe ending of the novel also shows this, as Hyde is adamant that he will take over Jekyll, even if it means he must die for this to be achieved. Infour additional corps were formed with the inclusion of the five divisions of the Austrian Army after the Anschluss in March.\n\nIt's a large question. He has spent a great part of his life trying to repress evil urges that were not fitting for a man of his stature. With it affixed to his Mauser Gew 98 rifle, he had a considerably longer reach than his British, French or Belgian counterpart, and standing in his trench, defending from attack from above, his reach was as long as a spear and deadly to an advancing Tommy.\n\nMills argument convinces with skill and confidence and a very specific set of circumstances, but a lack of evidence fails to bring the reader to comply with his message. Hyde brought them to this door and provided a cheque signed by a reputable gentleman later revealed to be Doctor Henry Jekyll, a friend and client of Utterson.\n\nLorenz, a man who has invented a poisoned flower corsage to use on unsuspecting young brides to put them in a zombie-like state, abduct them, steal their blood, and inject it into his aging wife to keep her young forever. During the Second Boer War,the Lancers took part in the following actions: Similarly, Carl Sagan whose book this is based on, and the screenwriters James V.\n\nUnlike many previous royal baptisms, George was christened using local water, rather than water from the River Jordan. They were embracing vice. The youngest inhabitant of the planet has just died at the age of 18, and all hope for humanity has been lost.", null, "Bennet Omalu Will Smiththe brilliant forensic neuropathologist who made the first discovery of CTE, a football-related brain trauma, in a pro player and fought for the truth to be known.\n\nIn the small hours of one morning,[ Evil has been both cryogenically frozen and shot into space, and Austin Powers is also cryopreserved to follow his nemesis. Meanwhile, foxholes deep enough to conceal a man in standing position have been dug about 10 to 15 yards to the side and rear of the projector.\n\nIn preparing for the Messines battle he had authorised the laying of 22 mine shafts underneath German lines all along the ridge, his plan being to detonate all 22 at zero hour at. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Illustrated) and millions of other books are available for instant access.\n\nIt is /5. The following items can be found on the The Lanes Armoury website, with full descriptions, photographs and prices. Buy The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Read 77 Movies & TV Reviews - schmidt-grafikdesign.com Strange Case of Dr.\n\nJekyll and Mr. Hyde Where did Stevenson get the idea? The tale originally came to its author in a dream. Robert Louis Stevenson had always trusted to \"brownies\" – meaning his daydreams and nightmares. He felt that stories Prime Stage – Strange Case of Jekyll and Hyde.\n\nBooks at Amazon. The schmidt-grafikdesign.com Books homepage helps you explore Earth's Biggest Bookstore without ever leaving the comfort of your couch." ]

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[ "No. 17 Baylor Volleyball stays perfect with sweep of Syracuse", null, "BU’s offense posted a season-high .349 hitting percentage and went 38-of-86 with only eight attack errors against the Orange. Defensively, the Bears held their opponent below a .100 efficiency for the second time this season (.099).\n\nYossiana Pressley paced the Bears with 11 kills on a .320 efficiency, and four other Bears posted at least six kills. Shelly Stafford and Gia Milana had seven each, followed by Marieke van der Mark and Kara McGhee with six kills in the match.\n\nHannah Lockin posted her second consecutive double-double while leading the team with 29 assists and 11 digs.\n\nBU came out quick in the opening frame and forced an early Syracuse timeout when Pressley posted two consecutive kills for the 5-1 lead. With Shanel Bramschreiber at the service line, BU pushed ahead 15-6 after two consecutive blocks by van der Mark and Stafford. BU finished with a .324 hitting percentage to take the opener, 25-15.\n\nSet two was no different. BU went up 12-7 with a McGhee kill, and then the Bears proceeded to take nine of the next 11 points for the commanding lead. Pressley closed out the set with a kill for the 25-11 win.\n\nSyracuse came out swinging in set three and took the lead at 17-15 after a Baylor attack error. Down 20-16, BU ran off five straight points for the 21-20 lead while forcing four attack errors. BU never relinquished the lead and used a Lockin kill to take the match in straight sets, 25-23.\n\nHIGHLIGHTS\n• Thursday was the first meeting between Baylor and Syracuse. BU takes the 1-0 series lead.\n• BU opened the season at 3-0 for the second consecutive season.\n• BU has won nine straight sets to open the season for the sixth time in program history and for the first time since 2009.\n• BU improves to 3-2 against ACC schools under McGuyre.\n• BU had five players with six or more kills.\n• Yossiana Pressley led all hitters with 11 kills on a .320 efficiency.\n• Hannah Lockin posted her second double-double of the season and the 16th of her career.\n• Baylor is now 26-11 as a ranked team under McGuyre.\n• Kara McGhee posted a season-best six kills on a .667 clip.\n• Marieke van der Mark had a career-high six blocks against the Orange.\n• Baylor hit a season-high .349 attack efficiency against the Orange.\n\nSTAT OF THE MATCH\n.349 – the hitting percentage against the Orange.\n\nTOP QUOTE #1\nHead coach Ryan McGuyre\nOn the win…\n“With three matches this week, you never want to drag any of them out. We were off to a good start the first two sets. We still finished it off in three, but we would like to be rested and not too beat up from it. I’m really impressed – we had four players without hitting errors in the match. For them to play as cleanly as they did made it really easy. Syracuse gave us a few points with some errors, but they figured it out in the third set. (Hannah) Lockin with a timely kill was pretty good.”\n\nTOP QUOTE #2\nHead coach Ryan McGuyre\nOn the third set…\n“Our passing settled down (late in the third set). Syracuse was all or nothing (with) hitting and serving at times. For a short segment, the stars aligned, and to their credit they had some great, tough serves. We added some errors too. We remained steady, and our defense was able to get it done. Tactically, we feel like we have a mature and smart team. We’re getting Kara (McGhee) caught up, but we were able to serve and take out some hitters.”\n\nWHAT’S NEXT\nBU (3-0) will close out play at the HotelRED Invitational by facing host and fourth-ranked Wisconsin Friday night at 8 p.m. CT. BU is 1-0 against ranked opponents so far this season.\n\nThe Baylor-Wisconsin match will be on the Big Ten Network." ]

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[ null, "LOS ANGELES -- The action thriller \"Sicario: Day of the Soldado\" on the surface looks like a political movie. The sequel to the 2015 hit \"Sicario\" presents a world in which the Mexican cartels are suspected of smuggling terrorists across the border into the United States, and shows how U.S. agents respond in turn. It depicts a harrowing Rio Grande crossing in the dead of night, a car bomb at the border, a terrorist attack at a Kansas City grocery store and even alludes to the U.S. president's relationship with Mexico. But while the filmmakers wanted to portray these scenes authentically, they also actively avoided taking a political position, leaving it up to the audience to draw their own conclusions.\n\n\"Like the first one, we didn't want to get too political. We wanted to show the effects and consequences of something on both sides of the border,\" said producer Trent Luckinbill. \"The minute you start digging in at the White House it's a different movie. We wanted to be objective and show a world and an issue and not make commentary on it.\"\n\nIn fact, the movie, which opens nationwide Friday, doesn't even introduce or name the U.S. president. That helps the movie not only avoid taking a biased standpoint, but to also stay focused on a specific vantage point: the ground level operators.\n\n\"This is Soldado. This is the point of view of one of them, the soldier. And the soldier doesn't know exactly what is going on, they barely understand. You just receive the order,\" said director Stefano Sollima. \"They are king in their area, but they have someone over them to decide and they don't know why. They're just a small pawn.\"\n\nThe apolitical current events movie has become a sort of specialty of Texas-born screenwriter Taylor Sheridan in films like \"Sicario,\" \"Hell or High Water\" and \"Wind River,\" who creates worlds that speak to both sides of the political spectrum. Sheridan was dreaming up the story for a \"Sicario\" follow-up during the first film, which became a box office hit and critical darling that went on to receive three Oscar nominations.\n\n\"Sicario: Day of the Soldado\" revisits some of the key characters from the first film, including Josh Brolin's federal agent Matt Graver and Benicio Del Toro's mysterious and ruthless mercenary Alejandro, who, faced with a new chapter in the drug war, endeavour to kidnap the teenage daughter of a drug kingpin in the hopes of destabilizing the cartels and them into a war.\n\nThe production took pains to make everything as authentic as possible, shooting in practical locations on both sides of the border, including Mexico City, Albuquerque, the To'hajiilee Reservation, Laguna Pueblo, Bernalillo, Santa Clara Pueblo, Belen and Algodones. The filmmakers used local extras and borrowed military grade equipment, from forward-looking infrared thermal cameras, to Blackhawk helicopters and Humvees.\n\n\"We wanted to keep the integrity of what we thought we accomplished with the first one, the DNA of it, the prestige intersection with a commercial movie,\" Luckinbill said. They're even discussing a possible third film now.\n\nThere were hopes that French Canadian director Denis Villeneuve would return for the sequel, but when his schedule made that impossible, the producers found an intriguing substitute in Sollima, an Italian director who also has a background in war reporting in Kosovo and the Gulf War.\n\nSollima approached the film and his subjects with a journalistic eye, consulting with former soldiers and going to the Mexican border himself to research what he'd be depicting. He even saw parallels with immigration in his own country, but also holds back judgment and commentary.\n\n\"I always try not to put my own moral judgment on the actors or the story. I think that it's unnecessary,\" Sollima said. \"For me as an audience, I don't want to go to a movie and have someone else explaining to me what to feel. I want to feel on my own.\"\n\nThat there are thematic crossovers with the current news cycle is merely a coincidence.\n\n\"Sicario: Day of the Soldado,\" Del Toro said, \"Has nothing to do with what's happening right now on the border.\"\n\n\"It uses elements of what's out there on the news or what's been there on the news in the last like thirty years and creates a fiction that exists in that world,\" Del Toro added. \"But what's happening in real life is completely different than what happens in the movie.\"" ]

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[ null, "Parliament wants the Green Deal to be at the core of the EU’s Covid-19 recovery package. Find out more about this roadmap for a climate-neutral Europe.\n\nDuring the coronavirus pandemic economic activity slowed, causing a reduction in carbon emissions but leaving the EU facing recession. In a resolution adopted on 15 May 2020, Parliament called for an ambitious recovery plan with the Green Deal at its core.\n\nIn response, the European Commission came up with Next Generation EU, a €750 billion recovery plan. The plan, along with the next EU long-term budget which still needs to be approved by member states and Parliament, aims to build a greener, more inclusive, digital and sustainable Europe and increase resilience to future crises such as the climate crisis.\n\nIn November 2019, the Parliament declared a climate emergency asking the Commission to adapt all its proposals in line with a 1.5 °C target for limiting global warming and ensure that greenhouse gases emissions are significantly reduced.\n\nIn response, the new Commission unveiled the European Green Deal, a roadmap for Europe becoming a climate-neutral continent by 2050.\n\nFind out about EU’s progress towards its climate goals.\n\nThe first steps under the Green Deal\n\nIn January 2020, the Commission presented the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan, the strategy to finance the Green Deal by attracting at least €1 trillion worth of public and private investment over the next decade.\n\nThe Just Transition Mechanism, which should mobilise at least €100 billion over 2021-2027, will help alleviate the socio-economic impact of the transition on workers and communities most affected by the shift. In May 2020, the Commission proposed a public sector loan facility to support green investmentsin regions dependent on fossil fuels. It still has to be approved by the Parliament.\n\nIn March 2020, the Commission proposed the European Climate Law, a legal framework to achieve the 2050 climate neutrality goal. In January, Parliament had called for more ambitious emission reduction targets than those initially proposed by the Commission. The EU executive is expected to come up with a revised interim target for 2030 later in 2020.\n\nIn March 2020, the Commission presented a new Industrial Strategy for Europe to ensure that European businesses can transition towards climate neutrality and a digital future.\n\nAs 99% of European firms are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), accounting for 50% of the ‘s gross domestic product and responsible for two out of three jobs, the Commission also proposed a new SME Strategy, encouraging innovation; cutting red tape and allowing better access to finance.\n\nIn addition the Commission presented the EU Circular Economy Action Plan in March, which includes measures along the entire life cycle of products promoting circular economy processes, fostering sustainable consumption and guaranteeing less waste. It will focus on:\n\nFind out more about EU measures on the circular economy, and how the Parliament fights plastic pollution.\n\nThe food sector is one the main drivers of climate change. Even though EU agriculture is the only major farm sector worldwide to have reduced its greenhouse gas emissions (by 20% since 1990), it still accounts for about 10% of emissions (of which 70% are due to animals).\n\nThe Farm to Fork Strategy, presented by the Commission in May 2020, should guarantee a fair, healthy and environmentally friendly food system, whilst ensuring farmers’ livelihoods. It covers the entire food supply chain, from cutting the use of pesticides and sales of antimicrobials by half and reducing the use of fertilisers to increasing the use of organic farming.\n\nFind out how the Parliament is combatting pesticides in food.\n\nAt the same time the EU aims to tackle the loss in biodiversity, including the potential extinction of one million species. The EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, unveiled in May, aims to protect nature, reverse the degradation of ecosystems and halt biodiversity loss. Among its main objectives are:\n\n0\nprevious COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS\nnext Draft Electricity Amendment Bill: Centre crosses federal boundaries" ]

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[ null, "Today is the 104th birthday of the singer/actor Frank Sinatra. I have been listening to his vintage Rocky Jordan detective podcasts from the 50s lately and really enjoy them. His house in Palm Springs is one of my favorite examples of Mid-Century Modern Palm Springs architecture. The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss that he has left.", null, null, "BERGEN COUNTY, NJ – 1938: Pop singer Frank Sinatra poses for a mug shot after being arrested and charged with “carrying on with a married woman” in 1938 in Bergen County, New Jersey. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)", null, "BEST KNOWN FOR: Frank Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 20th century, forging a career as an award-winning singer and film actor.\n\nFrancis Albert “Frank” Sinatra was born on December 12, 1915, in Hoboken, New Jersey. The only child of Sicilian immigrants, a teenaged Sinatra decided to become a singer after watching Bing Crosby perform in the mid-1930s. He’d already been a member of the glee club in his high school and began to sing at local nightclubs. Radio exposure brought him to the attention of bandleader Harry James, with whom Sinatra made his first recordings, including “All or Nothing at All.” In 1940, Tommy Dorsey invited Sinatra to join his band. After two years of chart-topping success with Dorsey, Sinatra decided to strike out on his own.\n\nBetween 1943 and 1946, Sinatra’s solo career blossomed as the singer charted a slew of hit singles. The mobs of bobby-soxer fans Sinatra attracted with his dreamy baritone earned him such nicknames as “The Voice” and “The Sultan of Swoon.”\n\n“It was the war years, and there was a great loneliness,” recalled Sinatra, who was unfit for military service due to a punctured eardrum. “I was the boy in every corner drugstore who’d gone off, drafted to the war. That was all.”\n\nSinatra made his movie acting debut in 1943 with the films Reveille With Beverley and Higher and Higher. In 1945, he won a special Academy Award for The House I Live In, a 10-minute short made to promote racial and religious tolerance on the home front. Sinatra’s popularity began to slide in the postwar years, however, leading to a loss of his recording and film contracts in the early 1950s. But in 1953, he made a triumphant comeback, winning an Oscar for supporting actor for his portrayal of the Italian American soldier Maggio in the classic From Here to Eternity. Although this was his first non-singing role, Sinatra quickly found a new vocal outlet when he received a recording contract with Capitol Records in the same year. The Sinatra of the 1950s brought forth a more mature sound with jazzier inflections in his voice.\n\nHaving regained stardom, Sinatra enjoyed continued success in both movies and music for years to come. He received another Academy Award nomination for his work in The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) and earned critical acclaim for his performance in the original version of The Manchurian Candidate (1962). Meanwhile, he continued to be a formidable chart presence. When his record sales began to dip by the end of the 1950s, Sinatra left Capitol to establish his own record label, Reprise. In association with Warner Bros., which later bought Reprise, Sinatra also set up his own independent film production company, Artanis.\n\nBy the mid-1960s, Sinatra was back on top again. He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and headlined the 1965 Newport Jazz Festival with Count Basie’s Orchestra. This period also marked his Las Vegas debut, where he continued on for years as the main attraction at Caesars Palace. As a founding member of the “Rat Pack,” alongside Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop, Sinatra came to epitomize the hard-drinking, womanizing, gambling swinger—an image constantly reinforced by the popular press and Sinatra’s own albums. With his modern edge and timeless class, even radical youth of the day had to pay Sinatra his due. As Jim Morrison of the Doors once said, “No one can touch him.”\n\nThe Rat Pack made several films during their heyday: the famed Ocean’s Eleven (1960), Sergeants Three (1962), Four for Texas (1963) and Robin and the Seven Hoods (1964). Back in the world of music, Sinatra had a big hit in 1966 with the Billboard No. 1 track “Strangers in the Night,” which won a Grammy for record of the year. He also recorded the duet “Something Stupid” with his daughter Nancy, who’d previously made waves with the feminist anthem “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’.” The two reached No. 1 for four weeks with “Something Stupid” in spring 1967. By the end of the decade, Sinatra had added another signature song to his repertory—”My Way,” which was adapted from a French tune and featured new lyrics by Paul Anka.\n\nAfter a brief retirement in the early 1970s, Sinatra returned to the music scene with the album Ol’ Blue Eyes Is Back (1973) and also became more politically active. Having first visited the White House in 1944 while campaigning for Franklin D. Roosevelt in his bid for a fourth term in office, Sinatra worked eagerly for John F. Kennedy’s election in 1960 and later supervised JFK’s inaugural gala in Washington. The relationship between the two soured, however, after the president canceled a weekend visit to Sinatra’s house due to the singer’s connections to Chicago mob boss Sam Giancana. By the 1970s, Sinatra had abandoned his long-held Democratic loyalties and embraced the Republican Party, supporting first Richard Nixon and later close friend Ronald Reagan, who presented Sinatra with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, in 1985.\n\nFrank Sinatra married his childhood sweetheart Nancy Barbato in 1939. They had three children together—Nancy (born in 1940), Frank Sinatra Jr. (born in 1944) and Tina (born in 1948)—before their marriage unraveled in the late 1940s.\n\nIn 1951, Sinatra married actress Ava Gardner; after they split, Sinatra remarried a third time, to Mia Farrow, in 1966. That union, too, ended in divorce (in 1968), and Sinatra married for a fourth and final time in 1976 to Barbara Blakely Marx, the ex-wife of comedian Zeppo Marx. The two remained together until Sinatra’s death more than 20 years later.\n\nIn October 2013, Farrow made headlines after stating in an interview with Vanity Fair that Sinatra could be the father of her 25-year-old son Ronan, who is Farrow’s only official biological child with director Woody Allen. In the interview she also acknowledged Sinatra as the great love of her life, saying, “We never really split up.” In response to the buzz surrounding his mother’s comments, Ronan jokingly tweeted: “Listen, we’re all *possibly* Frank Sinatra’s son.”\n\nIn 1987, author Kitty Kelley published an unauthorized biography of Sinatra, accusing the singer of relying on mob ties to build his career. Such claims failed to diminish Sinatra’s widespread popularity. In 1993, at the age of 77, he gained legions of new, younger fans with the release of Duets, a collection of 13 Sinatra standards that he rerecorded, featuring the likes of Barbra Streisand, Bono, Tony Bennett and Aretha Franklin. While the album was a major hit, some critics assailed the quality of the project as Sinatra had recorded his vocals well before his collaborators laid down their tracks.\n\nSinatra performed in concert for the last time in 1995 at the Palm Desert Marriott Ballroom in California. On May 14, 1998, Frank Sinatra died of a heart attack at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He was 82 years old and had, at last, faced his final curtain. With a show business career that spanned more than 50 years, Sinatra’s continued mass appeal can best be explained in the man’s own words: “When I sing, I believe. I’m honest.”\n\nIn 2010, the well-received biography Frank: The Voice was published by Doubleday and penned by James Kaplan. The writer released a sequel to the volume in 2015—Sinatra: The Chairman, marking the musical icon’s centennial year." ]

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[ "A Time of Love and Tartan – Does Bertie’s Life Get Better?\n\nBook Review : A Time of Love and Tartan\n44 Scotland Street", null, "When Pat accepts her narcissistic ex-boyfriend Bruce’s invitation for coffee, she has no idea of the complications in her romantic and professional life that will follow. Meanwhile, Matthew, her boss at the art gallery, attracts the attention of the police after a misunderstanding at the local bookstore.\n\nWhether caused by small things such as a cup of coffee and a book, or major events such as Stuart’s application for promotion and his wife Irene’s decision to pursue a PhD in Aberdeen, change is coming to Scotland Street. But for three seven-year-old boys–Bertie Pollock, Ranald, and Big Lou’s foster son, Finlay–it also means getting a glimpse of perfect happiness.\n\nAlexander McCall Smith’s delightfully witty, wise and sometimes surreal comedy spirals out in surprising ways in this new installment, but its heart remains where it has always been at the center of life in Edinburgh’s New Town. (Courtesy of goodreads.com)\n\nEven though I like many of the characters in the 44 Scotland Street series, the one who keeps me coming back for more is Bertie. I always wonder, will his life get better or worse this time around? Connected to Bertie are the characters we also love to hate; Olive, Pansy and obviously his “cow” of a mother, Irene. At times I even want to slap Stuart (Bertie’s father), just enough to get his attention and to tell him it’s time to grow up and at the same time grow a spine. (Since he’s fictional there is no danger of me actually slapping anyone.) His mother says much the same thing, though with little hope. Though I won’t give away a spoiler, I will say I always feel hopeful for Bertie, and maybe that’s because he is so filled with hope that his life will be better when he grows up.\n\nWhy do we love books like A Time of Love and Tartan or The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency written by Alexander McCall Smith? I believe the answer is simple, we see something of ourselves in the characters, something of our neighbors and the foibles of society become clear. We wish things could wrap up nicely, that we could gain wisdom and that our lives were a little more simplified. For example Big Lou sees everything through the lens of her upbringing and it makes her decisions clear for her. She cares for the people she likes, she takes care of those who need care, she reads and serves coffee and bacon rolls. If she has too dark of a dilemma she can fall back on her upbringing.\n\n“Och, away with all that,” said Lou. “What’s wrong with bacon? I know plenty of people who ate bacon every day of their lives. My Uncle Willy, for example…” (p.68)\n\nSee how easy that was? According to Lou we can all eat bacon!\n\nHere is a bit of wisdom from the Duke given to Matthew.\n\n“You’re right, of course – every generation thinks its situation is uniquely worrying – but the world has always been on the brink of disaster. Yes, that’s right, but that doesn’t detract from the particular difficulty of specific times.” (p.123)\n\nI love it when Ranald Braveheart Macpherson and Bertie have been exploring in the park. They still have vivid imaginations.\n\n“Bertie did not reply. He did not think it likely that his mother would allow him to keep a body in the flat; there were so many restrictions in his life, and that was just one more of them.” (p.136)\n\nHow about the title for one of Pat’s chapters? Doesn’t it show the state many find themselves in, whether they admit it or not? Chapter 36 She Wanted A Man So Desperately\n\nStuart receives an unexpected invitation, because of his difficult wife.\n\n“Stuart read the print on the card. Men Underground, it said. And then, under that, The Male Resistance. He saw a telephone number.” (p.231)\n\nI always enjoy this series, and even though this is book 14, if you haven’t met Bertie and the rest, pick up the first book. They are a fast, delightful read. I highly recommend them.\n\nI am a mother of four children and have a passion for reading. I love sharing my treasury of books with my kids. I also do experiments in cooking which includes such things as Indian Tandoori Chicken slow-cooked in a tagine. I write stories and illustrate in ink.\nView all posts by Tales Untangled →\nThis entry was posted in All Time Favorites, grown up books reviewed and tagged 44 Scotland Street series, A Time of Love and Tartan, Alexander McCall Smith, Bertie Pollock, Big Lou, books with wisdom, charming books, funny books, good summer reads, humorous books, Irene Pollock, Stuart Pollock, witty books, women's literature. Bookmark the permalink.\n\n2 Responses to A Time of Love and Tartan – Does Bertie’s Life Get Better?" ]

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[ null, "Born in Havana, Cuba, Mitchell Rivero is a dedicated guitar instructor with several years of expertise. Mr. Rivero studied guitar at the “Gerardo Guanche” conservatory (1991-1994) with teacher Teresa Rodríguez, and later at the “Amadeo Roldán” conservatory with professor Sergio Morales from 1994 to 1998.\n\nIn 2004, Mr. Rivero graduated in Music Composition at the “Instituto Superior de Arte” in Havana, under the instruction of professor Calixto Álvarez. Mr. Rivero has composed original works and arrangements for several instrumental and vocal formats. In 2006, his symphonic work “Concerto for Orchestra” was premiered by the National Symphony Orchestra of Cuba, conducted by Roberto Valera, within the 21st Havana Festival of Contemporary Music.\n\nIn addition to composing music, Mr. Rivero has worked as a guitar teacher at “Casa de Cultura de Guanabacoa” from 1998 to 200, as well as at the “Conservatory Manuel Saumell” from 2002 to 2006.\n\nFrom 2005 to 2011, Mr. Rivero worked as a singer and music arranger in the vocal ensemble specialized on early music “Camerata Vocale Sine Nomine” with which he performed in various international festivals and competitions. Later, Mr. Rivero joined the prestigious choral ensemble “Schola Cantorum Coralina” conducted by Alina Orraca, performing in concert venues and festivals during 2011-2012.\n\nSince 2012, Mr. Rivero has lived in Miami, where he worked as a guitar teacher for several music academies, as well as he holds membership of some ensembles such as the “Miami Classical Guitar Orchestra” conducted by Carlos Molina and the Vocal Ensemble “In Illo Tempore” conducted by Jannette Valdés. In 2019, Mr. Rivero joined Encore Academy of the Arts as a guitar teacher." ]

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[ null, null, null, "© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Japan’s Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki speaks at a news conference after Japan intervened in the currency market for the first time since 1998 to shore up the battered yen in Tokyo, Japan September 22, 2022. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon\n\nBy Tetsushi Kajimoto and Yoshifumi Takemoto\n\nThe yen’s sell-off is hurting the world’s third-largest economy by driving already surging import bills and challenges the Bank of Japan’s commitment to ultra-low rates in the face of rapid global monetary tightening to combat rampant inflation.\n\nThe Japanese currency jumped 4 yen to 145.28 per dollar in early Asia trade on Monday, suggesting authorities had stepped in for a second straight day after a similar move by Tokyo on Friday.\n\n“We won’t comment,” Masato Kanda, vice finance minister for international affairs, told reporters at the Ministry of Finance (MOF), when asked if they intervened again on Monday.\n\n“We are monitoring the market 24/7 while taking appropriate responses. We’ll continue to do so from now on as well,” said Kanda, who oversees Japan’s exchange-rate policy.\n\nHowever, the yen failed to cling to early gains and briefly hit a low of 149.70 per dollar, as markets continued to focus on the widening divergence between the Bank of Japan’s ultra-easy monetary policy and steady rate hike plans by the U.S. Federal Reserve. It last stood around 148.80.\n\n“Strength in the dollar is the biggest factor behind the weak yen. If the United States shows signs of its rate hikes peaking out and even cutting interest rates, the yen would stop weakening even without intervention.”\n\nThat is much bigger than the roughly 2.8 trillion yen Japan spent supporting the currency on Sept. 22, which was the first yen-buying, dollar-selling intervention since 1998.\n\nThe yen’s plight puts the BOJ under the spotlight as it meets for a two-day rate meeting ending on Friday, when it is widely expected to maintain ultra-loose monetary policy.\n\nWith inflation relatively modest and the economy unable to move into a faster gear, the central bank is wary of raising rates and risk triggering a recession.\n\n“It’s desirable for inflation to stably achieve our 2% target accompanied by wage rises,” Kuroda said, stressing the need to keep supporting the economy with ultra-low rates.\n\nThe Fed, which meets the following week, is widely expected to hike rates again as it focuses on fighting red-hot inflation.\n\nThe widening U.S.-Japanese rate differential is likely to keep downward pressure on the yen, which has fallen more than 20% against the dollar this year.\n\nJapanese authorities confirmed that they stepped into the market when it intervened on Sept. 22. Since then, authorities have remained silent on whether they made any further attempts to support the currency including on Friday, when Tokyo likely conducted stealth intervention.\n\nAt $1.33 trillion, Japan’s foreign reserves provide it with enough fire power to intervene many more times, but traders doubt that Tokyo will be able to reverse the yen’s downtrend on its own.\n\n“We absolutely cannot tolerate excessive moves in the foreign exchange market based on speculation,” he told reporters at the finance ministry. “We will respond appropriately to excess volatility,” he said, a view echoed by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in parliament later on Monday." ]

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[ "Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister appeals to the international community to prevent ‘the demise of Lebanon’\nMENA\n3 min read\nThe New Arab Staff & Agencies\nLebanon's caretaker prime minister called on the international community on Tuesday to help the nation plagued by multiple crises, saying that linking aid to reform has become a “threat to the lives of Lebanese”.", null, "Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister appealed on Tuesday to the international community to save his country from “death and demise” as multiple crises push it dangerously close to total collapse.\nHassan Diab's plea came as he spoke to diplomats in Lebanon, where politicians have failed to agree on forming a new government, nearly a year after Diab’s Cabinet resigned. His government has been acting in a caretaker capacity since August 2020, when he stepped down following a massive explosion at the Beirut Port that only compounded the country’s crises.\nDiab urged friendly nations to extend assistance despite the lack of a new government, saying that linking aid to reform of a deeply corrupt system has become a “threat to the lives of Lebanese” and to the country’s stability.\n“What sin have the Lebanese committed to pay a dear price? Are the Lebanese people supposed to die at hospital’s doors on the way to holding the corrupt accountable?” Diab said.\n“I appeal through you to the kings, princes, presidents and leaders of brotherly and friendly countries, and I call upon the United Nations and all international bodies, the international community, and the global public opinion to help save the Lebanese from death and prevent the demise of Lebanon,\" he told the diplomats.\n“Lebanon is a few days away from social explosion,\" he added. “The Lebanese are facing this dark fate alone.\"\nRELATED\n\nIn-depth\nTala Ramadan\nLebanon’s economic and financial crisis has unfolded since late 2019, spiralling out of control in this country of over 6 million people, including more than a million Syrian refugees.\nA foreign currency shortage has crippled the import-dependent nation, leaving residents struggling to find fuel, medicines and basic supplies.\nDaily power outages last for hours - threatening hospitals and food stores - and leaving entire neighbourhoods in darkness.\nThe World Bank called it one of the worst crises since the 1850s and described Lebanon’s economic contraction as brutal.\nThe national currency lost nearly 95 percent of its value, plunging the once middle-income country into poverty.\nInflation and unemployment soared and waves of professionals have migrated abroad, seeking a better life.\nThe political crisis is rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by a post-civil war political class that has accumulated debt and done little to encourage local industries.\nBanks, once the country’s booming sector, have imposed informal capital controls and depositors are unable to freely access their accounts.\nLebanon has been promised billions in international assistance, pending a reform plan to deal with corruption. But vying for power and trading blame, the political elite never reached an agreement." ]

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[ null, "The owner of Thunder television, a media outlet managed and operated by Nana Agrada at Aplaku, in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana, has indicated that she is completely set, to return to the media scenes once again after breaking off from air distancing herself from the former practices considered and thought to be superstitious acts she had been exhibiting on her television channels to enticing more vulnerable individuals to seek her face independently for spiritual awakening exercises and consultations in allegedly, helping them to come out of their financial challenges and setbacks in life from all aspects of life for a fulfilling life living.\n\nNana Agrada stated that it seems to her that, she has been brought low after she denounced her earlier practices and accepted Christ Jesus as her Lord and personal Saviour but to her, she said, things are not picking up with her the way she is expecting it to be therefore, she is coming back to her former practices very soon and so, her customers should watch out for her as she is preparing fervently, to stage a come back to the scenes on thunder television which she owns and does her practical advertisement on for her patronizers to see how she does her activities and the traditional or superstitious acts that she engages herself in.\n\nAccording to her, her viewers should patiently wait for her return this year on; Tuesday, 2nd August 2022 for such fascinating programs to be aired live on television as it used to be in the previous years before she decided to accept Christ and now that she says she is returning to her superstitious practices, it appears she will or has even dropped the Bible already because it is not clear to someone how she is going to blend the two practices on the basis, Christian religious practices are different from that of her perceived sorcery practice where she is even seen on television shows deceiving people that she has the power to charm or double money for those who need it and thus, those who need financial restoration and emancipation, their last stop is where they must come and meet her privately for her to find out the details of what they must bring as tokens before their financial debacles are sorted out from their lives totally for liberation.\n\nIt is somehow telling some people that, based on the conduct of Nana Agreda, who used to be a fetish priestess on thunder television and her private residence for many years, turned a Christian a few months ago after she openly accepted to be a servant of Jesus Christ and later, started to be preaching the good news to people from all walks of life where in some instances, she would either ignorantly or inadvertently, quote wrong and unfounded Bible scriptures to her suspecting people of the world.\n\nThere are replete reasons as to why many people do not take Christianity seriously nowhere because of such behaviors coming from certain individuals professing to be called the children of God but denying the power thereof. Even it has been observed that, if truly she was earlier genuinely called by the Holy Spirit, she would not have any superstitious thought in her mind any longer but because she was not called, she has now come out to be embarrassing herself coming from one religion into the other and within a twinkle of an eye, going back to the former, it does not serve tangible purposes as to why attitudes of that nature should be tolerated or it is because of the financial influence that she has on certain individuals in the country, she is thinking of using such a mentality to win the hearts of Ghanaian people in supporting her.\n\nThose who are watching the whole scene, have concluded that she is just advertising herself because she is not any individual who must be relied upon due to her cross-carpeting conduct which no responsible religious leader in Ghana, has ever condemned yet by setting the records straight to letting other defenseless teenagers identify that yes indeed, there is a crop of people in our society, who are only interested in squeezing them of their sweat no matter the difficult moments that they may likely find themselves in.\n\nBut those who are birds of feathers with her would surely be elated seeing her coming back to her old superstitious practices which she used to stage on her television channel, thunder tv where her activities are broadcast live on air for all and sundry to see without any reasonable and proper television channel regulations guideline coming from the national media commission or the private association of Ghana Broadcasters as a stop-gap measure in curbing the negative effects that her sorcery activities are likely to cause to the teenagers who may perhaps, at the time of the program, be watching proceedings keenly for themselves in trying to ascertain if indeed her superstitious activities are genuine or a mirage." ]

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[ null, "Claire Bromund’s lemon/lime Brompton with my red Brompton. Claire’s bike is at least as old as mine, but it looks shiny new because it has been well cared for, while mine looks ancient because it has been used so hard. We are at Selland’s, on the Tour de Vino which Claire organized, a combination of SABA-like bike ride and her regular wine tasting group.\n\n9: Saw In the Next Room at CapStage, very funny and enjoyable, great acting. So many great plays in Sacramento.\n\n11: Did a day full of dancing, historical dancing with Leilani and Robert (Sacramento Ballroom Society), just beginning to learn about Redowa, a kind of waltz, and doing a part of the Fledermaus Quadrille. Then to the waltz workshop with Rich Albanese, this first one a review for me but as part of a series of four, I’m expecting some new things as well. Then the regular Sacramento contra dance, a good evening with a room full of lively dancers and the superb calling of Joyce Miller and the superb playing of Hot Cider.\n\n17: Danced in Davis, another contra sponsored by the Sacramento Country Dance Society, with a lot of newcomers. After a long dip in attendance, many of the regional dancers seem to be experiencing a resurgence, with larger crowds than I’ve seen in a while.\n\n18: Took my Brompton to Channel Wasson in Palo Alto to get a rear rack added. With all the folding and unfolding and travel my bike sees, the fender with a little wheel was just not standing up to the abuse, and the rack should be much more stable and long lasting. I bought my bike from Channel about 16 months ago, and it is always a pleasure to take it back and just talk.\n\nThen some time with my friend Michael in Oakland, and off to the BAERS (Bay Area English Regency Society) Cyprians Ball at the Elks Lodge in Alameda. The ball was an evening of waltz and country dances taught by Alan Winston. Slower and more elegant than contra dancing, and enjoyable in its own way.\n\nThe weekend in the bay area was all getting around on Amtrak, BART, Caltrain, and my bike. I love being able to do this, it just all works. Every place ought to work so well.\n\nI’ve only taken one trip with it so far, from Reno to Sacramento and back on Amtrak, and it was a real pleasure. It tucked into the baggage shelf just fine. It folds down to the size of a medium suitcase, so works well for train, bus or plane (at least on Southwest, which is all I fly anyway). I’m going to fly with it for the first time in January, part of a trip to San Luis Obispo for Contra Carnivale. The rest of the trip is on train.\n\nIt was great to have a bike while in Sacramento. I rode the American River Parkway one afternoon, got to the conference I was attending (Safe Routes) on light rail and riding, and rode to dinner twice and the grocery store once. I’ve taken my road bike to Sacramento and even San Francisco before, but always had to use the bus to Sacramento because the only way to take full bikes on the Amtrak California Zephyr is to box them.\n\nI’ve ridden a lot around Carson City, and everywhere I go I get compliments or at least comments, which was rarely true on my road bike. Kids especially think the bike is cool, and many ask me if they can ride it.\n\nThough I test drove the bike for a couple of hours last summer, I was unsure about how different it would feel and handle from my road bike. My road bike is a 1971 Motobecane Grand Touring (made in France, 10 speeds, classic steel frame). The weight is not much different, and it doesn’t really handle much different. I lose a little power due to the small 16 inch wheels, and a little to a more upright riding position, but not much. Handling is a bit looser. not a bike to ride hands-free, but it tracks well. And it has fenders and wider tires, so it was no problem to ride it in a few inches of snow this morning.\n\nI bought the bike from Channell Wasson in Palo Alto, who used to be the only US dealer, and the bike is made by Brompton in London, England. Channell spent about four hours with me talking about Bromptons and bikes in general, and I’d recommend him to anyone." ]

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[ null, "Lisa Hannigan performs ‘Oh Undone’, live from a cottage in Baltimore as part of a pre-production rehearsal during the making of Passenger for the song Oh Undone which did not make the album. This is the last and final take from a total of 12 where the band were introduced to the song only a few hours beforehand. I was there cross-legged on the floor in the middle of everyone, trying not to be seen. The camera movements were very slight, I only had room to twist my torso and extend my arms but the use of the 50mm f1.4 lens meant that it looked more like I was flying around the room on the back of a bumble bee. I was using a very old Nikon lens by holding it up to the housing of the Canon so my hands were kept very busy. I later discovered that it’s easy to find Nikon to Canon converter rings online, so I’ve been using Nikon Nikkor lenses ever since, especially when I need that enormous depth of field. Have a look at the Lisa Hannigan Recording Diaries to see more footage from this night and the following days.\n\nI captured this very beautiful song from the Irish folk singer Niamh Bury in Phoenix park last sunmer. It's a ray summer light... a sign of what's just around the corner! Hope. See the full video by folllowing the on-screen link, or the IGTV link in my profile. Find out more about Niamh via the Patreon post I created about her, by following the Link in Bio.\nThe full story of my neighbours Eddie & Elsie, both in their 80's and madly in love, is now available to watch free on my Patreon landing page, by following the on-screen link, and link in my bio.\nSuch massive chats with @pantisocracyradio today and making all the right sounds with @ronano.snodaigh Will be out on her new podcast series coming May 1st! #ThePantiPersonals\nClassic view looking south from Camden Street towards Rathmines, and today, a very holy looking Mary Immaculate Church dome. Happy Easter! Hope you're having a good wan 🐰" ]

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[ null, "Gabriel Lopez stands for a portrait at his work at Homeboy Industries in Boyle Heights on April 19, 2021. Photo by Shae Hammond for CalMatters\n\nSACRAMENTO, Calif. - If Billy McCasland had gotten his $1,200 stimulus check, he would have moved his family out of the Modesto house the pediatrician says is responsible for his 7-year-old's lead poisoning.\n\nL.A.-based single father Gabriel Lopez said he had hoped to take his youngest to the Selena museum in Texas, a bright spot after a tough year full of remote school and family turmoil.\n\nAnd in Sacramento, Stacy Estes would have bought a car so he could get to work on his own, without scheduling shifts around his fiancee's workday. Any car would work, so long as it fit his budget.\n\nBut these fathers, all of whom owe thousands -- in some cases, tens of thousands -- in old child support debt didn't get the first federal stimulus checks. Instead, California clawed away money meant to be a lifeline for food and shelter during the worst public health crisis in a century, checks taken to repay decades-old debt.\n\nThe same thing happened when Estes applied for unemployment. His weekly checks went from about $80 to just over $60, not nearly enough to cover food, rent and utilities.\n\nAcross the state, many of California's low-income parents behind on government-collected child support payments saw their $1,200 checks that went out in the spring of 2020, along with enhanced unemployment benefits, intercepted last year. California responded with a good-faith effort to halt garnishments on the second and third round of stimulus checks. Department of Child Support Services Director David Kilgore said the state prioritized families by passing stimulus funds to custodial parents.\n\nStill, records reviewed by CalMatters and The Salinas Californian showed the state kept a record $430 million last year, a 16% increase from the prior year, essentially taking from one government pot to pay back another.", null, "Billy McCasland photographed at his parents’ home in Modesto on April 29, 2021. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters\n\nParents saddled with child support debt told CalMatters they never saw their stimulus checks and federally funded $600 unemployment checks -- and the money didn't always go to their kids, either.\n\nBased on the idea that people who tap public assistance have a responsibility to repay the government, California intercepts child support payments from custodial parents who sign up for government aid such as CalWORKS. It imposes penalties like interest and driver's license suspensions when the noncustodial parents fall behind.\n\nAs a result, California charges noncustodial parents millions of dollars in interest on past-due child support payments, making it nearly impossible for many to land employment, support their children and pay off the debt.\n\nCalifornia typically collects about $2.5 billion from parents each year through the Department of Child Support Services. Most of that money goes to custodial parents, but the state agency holds some of that back. In 2019, it kept about $370 million, half of which went to the state's general fund.\n\nThose numbers -- from collections to retentions -- skyrocketed in 2020, which state data suggests is thanks to the state taking funds Congress approved to catch people teetering on the edge of an eviction cliff during the pandemic. Last year, the agency kept about $430 million of the $2.8 billion it collected, sending $207 million to the state's coffers, an increase of about 25% from the year before.\n\nStimulus checks and unemployment benefits accounted for so much of the money intercepted that it dropped the percentage typically collected through income withholding, where the agency takes money directly from noncustodial parents' paychecks. Job loss also contributed to the drop.", null, "Normally income withholding accounts for 75% of the billions collected, but in 2020, the percentage dropped more than 20 percentage points.\n\nStimulus check interceptions fell under the category of federal tax refunds, which tripled from 2019 to 2020.\n\nThat means stimulus checks and unemployment benefits from Estes and others were primarily responsible for the increase in child support collections during the pandemic.\n\nWhile the most recent $1,400 and $600 checks cannot be intercepted by the state on behalf of the parent, in many cases the first check was intercepted to pay old debt owed to the state and federal government, Department of Child Support Services' Kilgore said.\n\nInterception is typical for federal funds like tax returns. It is an easy way of getting additional money to pay down a parent's debt to the agency.\n\nKnowing that the funds would be intercepted and the food and housing insecurity the pandemic had spurred, Kilgore said, the agency worked with Gov. Gavin Newsom to create an executive order that would funnel the intercepted stimulus checks to the custodial parent first, rather than the government.\n\nHowever, if none was owed to the family, the rest went to the government to repay old debt.\n\nGolden State Stimulus checks cannot be intercepted. However, they can still be taken through a bank levy for delinquent child support payments, according to the Franchise Tax Board.\n\nAs a result, between 2019 and 2020, the amount of child support funds California kept for itself increased from $166 million to $207 million.", null, "Stacy Estes drives DoorDash to keep up with child support debt owed to the state. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters\n\nStacy Estes drives DoorDash to keep up with child support debt owed to the state. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters\n\nAdvocates were outraged at the state's decision to keep any money for itself during the pandemic.The diversion of stimulus checks meant less money for families to pay rent or utilities, said Western Law Center Director of Policy Advocacy Mike Herald.\n\n\"There are millions of people in California who lost jobs at the start of the COVID crisis and it means those dollars went to pay child support arrears instead,\" he said.\n\nSeveral fathers who owe tens of thousands in old child support debt shared letters they had received from the state instead of their $1,200 stimulus checks. The letters said the checks had been intercepted on behalf of the Department of Child Support Services.\n\nTo them, that lost money represented lost chances.\n\nThis article is part of the California Divide, a collaboration among newsrooms examining income inequality and economic survival in California." ]

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[ "Brown-Burke Urges Gov’t on Code of Conduct for MPs, Right of Recall", null, "Dr. Brown-Burke says the government members are dragging their feet in relation to motions brought by the Opposition for a Code of Conduct for MPs and the right of recall.\n\nOpposition Members of Parliament yesterday clashed with government MPs and the House Speaker, over where embattled Central Westmoreland representative, George Wright, should sit in the House.\n\nHe’s alleged to be the man in a viral video beating a woman with a stool.\n\nWright has neither denied nor confirmed if he’s the man on the tape.\n\nHe’s resigned from both the JLP and it’s Parliamentary Caucus, but remains an Independent MP.\n\nDr. Brown Burke says the opposition believes some mechanism should be utilized to distinct him from other members on their side of the aisle.\n\nThe Opposition MP also says Mr. Wright has failed to show his apparent breaking with the governing party." ]

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[ "Sarz Vs Shizzi: The Battle Of Hits", null, "Sarz Vs Shizzi: The Battle Of Hits\n\nNigerian veteran record producers, Sarz and Shizzi had a glamorous evening as they concluded their challenge ‘Battle of Hits‘ which couple of hours ago.\n\nSarz and Shizzi spent about 2 (two) and half hours on Instagram live which had about 16k viewers with the like of Davido, Swizz Beatz, Dremo and others where they both reviewed some of the biggest hits they have produced over the past decades.\n\nIn particular, this is the first time in the Nigerian music history where you can find two superb record producers going up against each other to sample their works.\n\nOn the other hand, Shizzi made some revelation like he co-produced Davido’s song ‘Risky‘; he also teased an unreleased song ‘Won Le Be‘ recorded about 5 years ago by Davido alongside Wale and other wonderful songs he produced.\n\nIn addition, Sarz gave Shizzi lots of work to do as he shared most of his incredible work; he stole the night at the end as he wraps up the amazing show with Wizkid’s song ‘Come Closer‘ with Drake.\n\nUP NEXT: Sarz and Shizzi concluded by suggesting Pheelz vs Masterkraft and Kel P vs Rexxie!\n\nCheck out some songs from the Sarz Vs Shizzi playlist I curated below;" ]

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[ "Independence Day For More Than the U.S.A.\n\nOn this day we celebrate our independence in the U.S.A., another country half way around the world is celebrating theirs. Democratically elected President Morsi was overthrown by the military in Egypt and a new government is forming. What does the future hold for this nation that many think reached its peak power over 3,000 years ago? Only time will tell.\n\nKing Tut was another ruler of Egypt whose reign ended early. He was Pharaoh of Egypt for ten years, but died under mysterious circumstances at the young age of 18 around 1323 B.C.\n\nThis colorful note celebrates the ancient culture of Egypt, with a picture of King Tut on the front.", null ]

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[ null, "On February 15th you can own the fourth season of Spin City that starred Michael J. Fox in his final season of the hit sitcom. Heather Locklear joined the cast during this season to help give Fox less of a workload. Read the studio description below:" ]

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[ null, "We have been in the last age for over 2000 years! Conflict and war rages across the globe. Disaster after disaster unfolds upon the nations. Economies are collapsing around the world. Animal life is diseased and dying. And wickedness and sin is rampant. Do you have eyes to see what is happening? God is giving us plenty of warning!\n\nThe signs of the end times is something that all end time prophecy students look for to find out how close we are to the second coming of Christ Jesus. Even many non believers are looking into this issue now, which shows there are significant changes going on in our world today. Many people are wondering what is happening with all these disasters, wars, worldwide economic woes, animal deaths and a general degradation in society. And the Bible has the answer. They are the signs that the end of the world as we know it is close.\n\nFor more than 10 years they have kept the lid on this…\nBut now THIS INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY reveals the dark conspiracy that may wipe out 281 Million Americans in the next 6 months. Its director was the only one brave enough to expose this…While mainstream media is too busy with Kim Kardashian to show you the real news…", null, "But at this very moment, the final part of this sinister agenda is being carried out……and this will bring God’s Judgment on America. >> CHURCH LEADERS PRAY YOU NEVER SEE THIS <<\n\nA new poll reveals many Americans believe that our country is spun off of its axis and that we’re out of control. Well I have news for you: it’s not just America that has spun out of control, it’s the whole world and I’ll tell you why: we are living in the last days, no question about that whatsoever,” he summed\nIn Matthew 24:14, the Bible says that the Gospel (the news about Jesus and his offer of salvation and eternal life) will be preached throughout the world. The Bible also says that sometime after this happens, the end will come. The Bible has been preached throughout the world for a long time. But now, with the increasing worldwide availability of television and the Internet, there is greater potential for the Gospel to be preached to everyone, everywhere.\nWatch This video below that revealing Biblical End Of Days (World Events Jan. 6-10 2016) End Times Signs:\n\nThe world is buckling under great pressure. War, violence, terror attack, earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, tornadoes, mass animals dying. These things are just a fraction of the destroying forces raging throughout our world. Nature isn’t the only thing going wrong in our world today. Everything else seems to be going horribly wrong too. War, terrorism, economic trouble, increase in sin and Godlessness. Confusion and strife reigns everywhere in this world today. God is withdrawing His Spirit from the earth ready for the last days and Satan is gaining more and more control.\nThe world is in such a mess these days that even non religious people are starting to think what is going on and what will become of all this. And what is the answer? Why are all these things happening in our day? The answer can only be found through a source that the majority of people have forgotten about … THE BIBLE! When you study the Word of God you will see that these things were prophesied to happen a long time ago. Then the mystery begins to unfold and our eyes begin to open as to why this world is in such a terrible state.\nWhat do you think? Is the world living In the End of Days?\nI highly recommend you to watch this free survival video that reveals the most important skills to survival in any situation.\n\nComments (35) on “What The Majority Of People Have Forgotten About? Do You Have Eyes to see What is Happening?”" ]

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[ null, "The “Game of Thrones” cast leapt to the defense of its much-maligned final season in front of a boisterous crowd at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday, blaming the backlash on negative media coverage.\n\nThe HBO fantasy epic’s conclusion enraged fans around the world, and organizers of the pop culture convention reminded attendees before the retrospective panel to make the cast “feel welcome.”\n\nWhile the cast drew a rapturous reception, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau — who played Jaime Lannister — was booed after describing his character’s death in the arms of his sister and lover Cersei as “perfect.”\n\n“It made sense to me,” said the actor, before being interrupted by a heckler.\n\n“This show has brought so many people together, watching it, loving it. So obviously when it comes to an end it’s going to piss you off no matter what… just don’t call people names,” he added.\n\nAn online petition to HBO to remake the final season with “competent writers” was signed by 1.6 million people.\n\nThe panel was billed as the show creators’ first public outing following the backlash.\n\nBut showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss quietly withdrew along with two cast members earlier in the week.\n\nThe remaining members expressed support for the final season. Conleth Hill — who played Varys — described the fan response to the show over the years as extremely positive, referring to the negativity as a “media-led hate campaign.”\n\nThe atmosphere quickly lightened as cast members joked about stealing props from the set.\n\nJohn Bradley, known to fans as Samwell Tarly, addressed another controversy, shooting down theories that he was to blame for a plastic water bottle accidentally left in shot during the final season." ]

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[ null, "Our guest this week is Mitchell Gladstone, who covers Arkansas State for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. As the Red Wolves prepare to play Ohio State for the first time ever, Gladstone fills us in on what to expect from the Buckeyes’ second opponent of the year, who won only one game against an FBS opponent in 2021 but started its 2022 season with a blowout victory, albeit against an FCS opponent in Grambling State.\n\nAfter going just 2-10 last season, Arkansas State opened this season with a 58-3 win over Grambling State. Do you take that as a sign of better things to come for the Red Wolves this year, or did they simply beat up on a weak opponent?\n\nGladstone: I don't think the two things necessarily have to be mutually exclusive. Grambling was downright bad – the Tigers committed 14 penalties for 128 yards and only broke the 100-yard mark on their final offensive snap of the night – but this Arkansas State team should be better than last year’s version. Some of that is simply because the bar was set so low, but there’s definitely the pieces there for this team to punch above its weight as the year progresses.\n\nFormer Florida State quarterback James Blackman is in his second season with the Red Wolves and it's the first time he's had the same coach and offensive coordinator in consecutive seasons since high school. Defensive end Kivon Bennett is an All-Sun Belt caliber player who started his career at Tennessee. Safety Eddie Smith – previously with Alabama and Illinois – has already brought immediate stability on the back end of a defense that was downright bad last season. There's a whole lot of youth around them, though, so it's going to take time if things are going to end up clicking.\n\nBrian Snead started his college career at Ohio State, but Johnnie Lang led the way as Arkansas State rushed for 339 yards in the season opener. What made the rushing attack so effective against Grambling State, and what should Ohio State fans expect to see from the Red Wolves’ ground game this week?\n\nGladstone: Because Arkansas State's defense was so bad last season, its weak running game somewhat flew under the radar. The Red Wolves were third-worst in rushing yards per game at 83.3, so it was notable that they committed to the ground game early against Grambling State. Lang and Snead are going to be a one-two punch, so I almost don't think it matters who starts. If you take out Lang's one long carry of 47 yards, both guys had 12 carries – Lang with 81 and Snead with 57. They are different types of runners, each with power-conference pedigree (Lang transferred in from Iowa State prior to last season).\n\nA-State is still going to be a pass-first offense. Blackman looked far more comfortable Saturday than he did at any point last season, but No. 1 wideout Te'Vailance Hunt missed the opener with a nagging injury and Butch Jones has been non-committal on his status going forward. Expect the running backs – which might be the Red Wolves' most talented position group – to be heavily involved, either running or catching the ball out of the backfield.\n\nArkansas State gave up more than 500 yards per game in 2021. What were the Red Wolves’ biggest issues on defense last season, and do you expect them to be better in those areas this year?\n\nGladstone: I think a lot of the issues early were a product of new defensive coordinator Rob Harley. Yes, his great uncle is Chic Harley, but Rob has mostly been a defensive guy since he was a safety for the Buckeyes in the early 2000s. Last year was his first season running a defense after spending multiple years under Pat Narduzzi at Pitt and it did not go well. But the numbers started to improve over the back half of the season as the younger Red Wolves on that side of the ball grew comfortable with his scheme.\n\nCombine that with the fact Arkansas State has better depth on its defensive front and there's reason to think they can take a pretty significant step forward, even if the offense remains the better unit. Bennett and the now-graduated Joe Ozougwu played more than 90 percent of A-State's defensive snaps at defensive end, which clearly hampered the pass rush and ultimately, the defense as a whole.\n\nFor people who will watch Arkansas State for the first time this week, who are a few players that you think will catch their eye?\n\nGladstone: Ohio State fans will be familiar with Snead, obviously, and likely Blackman as well. So I'll highlight another name that might not be on folks' radars.\n\nKivon Bennett is the big name on defense. His dad, Cornelius, was a three-time All-American at Alabama, then the No. 2 pick in the 1987 NFL Draft before picking up three first-team All-Pro honors as an outside linebacker for the Buffalo Bills. Kivon was intending to move to OLB and follow in his dad's footsteps with eyes on the NFL, but at least for now, he's playing as a traditional hand-in-the-dirt defensive end again this season. His best skill is getting to the quarterback, although dealing with Ohio State's offensive line will be a much tougher task than he's used to.\n\nThis is the first time Arkansas State has ever played Ohio State. What's the level of excitement among players and fans for the opportunity to play the Buckeyes?\n\nGladstone: There's always an excitement in Jonesboro when the Red Wolves get a chance to face a big-name opponent. They did it last season, trekking to Washington, and have played at Georgia, Alabama, Nebraska and Auburn in recent years. Just in talking to Jones and players after Saturday's win, they know the challenge ahead of them in facing the nation's No. 3 team and a perennial national title contender, so I don't think they'll be caught off-guard by what they're up against when they step onto the field at Ohio Stadium. As for the fans, I don't know how many will make the trip — it was a small crowd in Seattle, though that's a longer trip — but Jonesboro is a small community and the excitement will certainly ramp up around town as the week goes on.\n\nConsidering Ohio State is a 44-point favorite for this game, what do you think would realistically constitute a good day for Arkansas State on Saturday?\n\nGladstone: I know you didn't ask me to put a prediction on the record, but I'll say 49-10 Ohio State. So, I think Arkansas State does cover — even if the Red Wolves have to go through the back door. What's a good day, then? Let's say holding the Buckeyes to under 40 points and/or keeping the margin to 30 or fewer. I don't know that I'd bet on either happening, but Ohio State's offense is so dangerous (even if Jaxon Smith-Njigba is out) and that in and of itself will be a massive test for the Red Wolves' defense. If Ohio State doesn't get into the 40s, that would be a sign that A-State's defense is coming together even faster than I anticipated.\n\nRELATED Ohio State Doesn’t Expect Jaxon Smith-Njigba or Luke Wypler to Miss Much Time, But Preparing to Play Without Them If Needed\n\nOn the other side of the ball, Grambling State couldn't slow down James Blackman and the Red Wolf offense. Trying to score against Ohio State will be much, much harder. How the A-State offensive line holds up will dictate much of how this season goes. That's where I'm going to have my eyes Saturday. Even when A-State's defense struggled last season, the offense showed an ability to at least give the Red Wolves a chance in multiple games." ]

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[ "I’ve been traveling this week, giving a talk at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, so this will be a short post.\n\nIn my experience, most non-scientists don’t know about the national labs. In the US, the majority of scientists work for universities, but a substantial number work at one of the seventeen national labs overseen by the Department of Energy. It’s a good gig, if you can get it: no teaching duties, and a fair amount of freedom in what you research.\n\nEach lab has its own focus, and its own culture. In the past I’ve spent a lot of time at SLAC, which runs a particle accelerator near Stanford (among other things). Visiting LBNL, I was amused by some of the differences. At SLAC, the guest rooms have ads for Stanford-branded bed covers. LBNL, meanwhile, brags about its beeswax-based toiletries in recyclable cardboard bottles. SLAC is flat, spread out, and fairly easy to navigate. LBNL is a maze of buildings arranged in tight terraces on a steep hill.", null, "I forgot to take a picture, but someone appears to have drawn one.\n\nWhile the differences were amusing, physicists are physicists everywhere. It was nice to share my work with people who mostly hadn’t heard about it before, and to get an impression of what they were working on." ]

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[ "Google Removes Egg from Salad Emoji as a Vegan-Friendly Gesture", null, "Jennifer Daniel, UX-Art Manager of the Expression design team at Google, tweeted about removing the egg from their salad emoji for Android P Beta 2. It may seem like a small edit, but by doing so the emoji is a “more inclusive vegan salad,” she says.\n\nThis inclusive reference stems from a larger issue that Google’s corporate culture has faced over the past year. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has been scrutinized on how they handle diversity and equal-pay issues.\n\nWhen it comes to convincing consumers that they are committed to diversity, unfortunately, removing the egg from a salad emoji doesn’t cut it with Twitter. This egg-removal and tweet from Daniel sparked a large thread of conversation, consisting of mostly sarcastic remarks and jokes.\n\nRegardless of the backlash, Google is still moving forward on 157 new emoji updates." ]

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[ "Goosie Tanoh is seeking the mandate of the NDC delegates to lead the party into the 2020 general elections[/caption] Aspiring presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress, Goosie Tanoh, has joined calls for an independent probe into the violent incident at recorded near a polling station in the just ended Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election. Describing the episode as embarrassing to the nation, Mr. Tanoh wondered why government would invest in vigilantes and other security groups whereas there is constitutionally established Police Service and military which lack resources. “What happened is clearly unacceptable. There must be a swift investigation into the violence that would lead to disbanding vigilante groups,” he said at the end of his campaign tour of the Eastern Region. Gun-toting men in black and khaki trousers stormed the residence of the NDC candidate in the by-election and allegedly fired shots injuring at least six persons and disrupting temporarily, voting at the La Bawaleshie Presby polling station which was a stone throw from the house.\n\nSome of the men were alleged to have assaulted the Member of Parliament for Prampram, Sam George, for questioning the violent shooting incident that forced the National Democratic Congress to pull-out of the by-election won by the New Patriotic Party candidate. Various civil society groups and organisations including the UN agency for development, the UNDP, have unequivocally condemned the violent acts of the hooded men, and warned Ghana against complacency over its touted peaceful atmosphere.\nREAD ALSO: Boko Haram 'technically defeated' in Nigeria\nThe minority in parliament, CHRAJ, NCCE and other civil society groups have all called for an independent probe into the incident by the masked hooded men who are said to be national security operatives. Vigilantism; the monster to eat you up Adding his voice to the calls for a probe, Mr. Tanoh suggested that the investigation be extended in scope to cover acts of vigilantism, which have permeated the country’s politics and currently churning out acts of lawlessness. From his perspective, the teeming unemployment, and what he described as economic crisis, are what has encouraged the people, mostly the youth into these vigilantes. “Many of these vigilante groups are formed and sponsored by political parties. After a while, they assume power and begin to terrorise people. It is irresponsible to encourage that” he stated without equivocation. Mr. Tanoh indicated that politicians spearheading vigilante groups in the country will eventually become prey to these same groups, saying “The politicians who are sponsoring them [will] become victims of monsters they are creating”. The aspirant expressed worry over the issue of vigilantes, which many security experts have warned could threaten the country’s democracy and peaceful atmosphere, particularly in the 2020 general elections. He cited Rwanda and other countries which have suffered from similar political violence as an example and urged Ghana to take lessons from them. “Knowing the genocide and the toll it had on sister African countries, we cannot afford a situation of disrupting our peace,” he stated. What I have for you Meanwhile, on what he would do should he be given the mandate of the party, Mr. Tanoh promised a new and fully energized NDC to win the 2020 elections. “I Promise you a new NDC fully energized commitment to uplifting the grassroot support and a new national revolution”.", null, "Addressing a news conference in Koforidua, he said, his tour of the Eastern and other regions has revealed the NDC has fallen short its basic principles in recent times. He was confident of a positive response from his engagement with delegates and town hall meetings Mr. Tanoh pointed out, the economy, jobs, unity, accountability and respect for party structures were high on peoples agenda, hence will pursue those. The flagbearer hopeful also promised a national economic revolution that support entrepreneurs, farmers, market creation, value chain that allow for the integration of the agriculture industry, through which he said he would create jobs “Everywhere we go, the issue of jobs is high in the agenda. So clearly, the current government statement of creating jobs is certainly not born out of the realities we are witnessing on the ground,” he observed.\nREAD ALSO: Mahama mourns with ‘rival’ Bagbin\nBy Yvonne Neequaye|3news.com|Ghana]]>" ]

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[ null, "Not all teaching unions joined the strike action, which was called to protest the current Covid-19 health situation in school, and its impact varied around France.\n\nFrance's education ministry said on Tuesday afternoon that 9.58 percent of the country's teachers participated in the strike action.\n\nIn Paris the level of participation was slightly higher in secondary schools (15.3 percent), but down at 4.5 percent in high schools (although 8.7 percent in technical colleges).\n\nIn the country's collèges (secondary schools), 45 percent of teachers participated, according to SNES-Fsu.\n\n“The objective is that the schools remain open until June, but without additional resources, how are we going to ensure social distancing and reduce staff?” David said.\n\n“We must go further to ensure the safety of staff, students and their families with measures for secondary schools – much forgotten in the ministerial announcements; a clear framework for the functioning of half classes; details on other elements of the health protocol, including cleaning and ventilation of rooms, which remain vague in the current protocol.”\n\nStudents of five Parisian high schools attempted to stage blocus (blockages), which is the French term used about physically blocking the entry during a strike action.\n\nMy son's school in Paris this morning: riot cops baton charge and fire tear gas after kids tried to lack school entrance in protest at lack of anti-virus measures. https://t.co/9BnTLnvXzj\n\nVideos on social media showed how police officers sometimes clashed with the high schoolers as they tried to pile bins outside their school gates.\n\nThe protocol in French schools has varied significantly during the pandemic, from a total closure in March, April and May to the current situation where schools are hosting full attendance, but with a raft of rules in place including compulsory masks for all pupils over the age of six and teachers.\n\nLast week education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer announced the cancellation of many exams for the 2021 baccalaureate, as well as a guarantee of 50 percent face-to-face teaching time for all pupils in lycée (high school).\n\nAt present most lycée classes are in-person, so the announcement seems to herald an increase in online teaching for older students.\n\nUniversities are already limited to having half the normal number of students in lecture halls, and are running some teaching online.\n\nPupils at some French schools have already staged protests over health regulations that they say are too lax." ]

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[ null, null, null, null, null, "If you’ve ever played XCOM and thought, “Yeah, it’s pretty good but it could do with a few more ducks” then this one’s for you. Say hello to Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden.", null, null ]

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[ null, "New Delhi, March 18: Fitch Solutions expects the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to cut its key policy rates by 175 basis points (bps) by end FY2020-21 versus 40 bps previously. This would take the policy repurchase (repo) rate to 3.40 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively from 5.15 per cent and 4.75 per cent at present.\n\n“We expect inflation to ease significantly over the coming months on the back of the ongoing oil price war and also easing food inflation from improving food supply as the winter (Rabi) harvest feeds through from February. This easing of inflation towards the lower bound of the RBI’s 2-6 per cent target range over FY2020-21 would provide room for the RBI to ease monetary policy significantly,” the credit and macro intelligence solutions stated in the analysis.\n\n“We expect the RBI to ease heavily at the first instance it sees inflation easing, given that high inflation has previously limited its ability to ease its interest rates in line with other major global central banks. Our forecast now puts us significantly lower than what is priced in by the market over a 12-month horizon, which is only looking at the repo rate falling by 55 bps to 4.60 per cent,” it added.\n\nIt further cautioned that with the spread of coronavirus globally and in India there is a downside risk to its earlier projections.\n\nLow inflation will provide room for the RBI to implement deep interest rate cuts to combat the economic shock from COVID 19.\n\n“We have revised our forecast for India’s inflation to average just 3 per cent in FY2020-21, versus 3.5 per cent previously. While we had previously factored in an easing of food supply conditions over the year, the ongoing oil price war started by Russia and Saudi Arabia on March 8, which has since sent Brent oil prices plunging from about $50/ bbl to about $30/bbl at the time of writing, will also ease inflationary pressures in India through fuel and lighting deflation over the coming months,” the report said.", null, null ]

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[ "Colombia’s Congress voted to recognize gay unions, approving a bill to give same-sex couples full rights to health insurance, social security and inheritance benefits. The measure would make Colombia the first country in Latin America to extend such rights to gay couples, a prospect celebrated by gay rights advocates from Buenos Aires to New York.\n\nThe lower house of Congress approved the bill 62 to 43 on Thursday night after a long lobbying effort by gay rights activists, who argued that gay couples have a human right to the benefits that heterosexual couples enjoy. In the Americas, only Canada has approved a similar law. In the United States, a handful of states entitle gay couples to health and other benefits. But those rights are not recognized nationally, and several states have approved laws prohibiting gay unions.\n\n“I think this is an incredible victory that should resonate across both continents, north and south,” said Scott Long, director of the gay rights program at Human Rights Watch in New York. “It should definitely be an example to the United States. Colombia is a country that’s Catholic, with a conservative government, and they still recognize that this is the right thing to do.”\n\nColombia, like most Latin American countries, does not have fundamentalist groups with the kind of influence and funding to launch a national campaign against gay rights. But it does have a powerful Catholic Church, which argued that extending rights to same-sex couples would violate church doctrine. “This gives legal sanctity to families that are artificial and false,” said José Galat, a prominent Catholic activist.\n\nAfter a long public battle, advocates from groups such as Diverse Colombia slowly won over many lawmakers in Congress. Among those who support the bill is President Álvaro Uribe, a conservative Catholic. He is expected to sign the measure.\n\nElizabeth Castillo, a lawyer and gay rights advocate, said activists succeeded by shifting the debate from morality to human rights. The country is still in the midst of a long guerrilla conflict marked by widespread rights violations. But human rights groups have increasingly gained prominence here in recent years — a trend that helped the gay rights movement.\n\n“This argument was never based on moral or religious grounds, even though the detractors always went to the religious and moral arguments,” Castillo said.\n\nCompared with Bogota, the capital, other Latin American cities have traditionally been considered more tolerant of gays; Mexico City and Buenos Aires have passed laws extending health and other benefits to same-sex couples. But Bogota has a thriving gay neighborhood, bars whose patrons are openly gay and a center that provides counseling and legal advice to members of the gay community. Local politicians, among them Mayor Luis Eduardo Garzón and prominent members of Congress such as Sen. Armando Benedetti, have supported the drive to give more rights to gay couples.\n\nStill, activists say violence against gays is not uncommon and discrimination remains a recurring problem. Castillo said that even with the new law, many partners in gay relationships would probably be denied health and other benefits.\n\n“It’s possible things won’t change for some people,” Castillo said, “as if the law had never been passed.”", null, null ]

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[ "The Best Skilled Labor Jobs by Employment Growth and Salary", null, "The United States is in the midst of a skilled labor shortage — the likes of which has never been seen before. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported there were 6.6 million open jobs as of July 31, 2020. Among the industries with the highest increase in job openings are skilled labor occupations, including the construction industry.\n\nA recent National Association of Home Builders survey found that 77% of builders were experiencing a decreased willingness of workers and subcontractors to report to work due to the pandemic. There are concerns that when these laborers do return to work, they’ll opt for a field with better working conditions and benefits, such as grocery store retail, even if it means taking a pay cut.\n\nThis is only part of an ongoing trend away from skilled labor work, as students are being pushed to pursue four-year degrees, and leaving states due to the struggle to fill mid-skill-level jobs. The fact is that while the cost of college is skyrocketing, the salary premium degree-holders can expect to earn is barely increasing each year. With the cost of college so high and the job market in flux, could a skilled trade profession be the answer for many Americans?\n\nTo find out, we used data from the BLS to see which occupations were most in demand, how much they paid, the education requirements, and which states were best to work in.\n\nWhich Occupations Will Have the Fastest Growth Over the Next Decade?\n\nTo gauge the projected employment levels for the skilled labor industry, we looked at the BLS’s Employment Projections Program: a 10-year projection for employment by industry and occupation from 2019 to 2029. It uses historical and current economic data to determine where job growth is likely to occur, as well as which industries may see a decline in employment growth. We defined skilled labor occupations as those in the BLS categories of “Construction and Extraction” and “Installation, Maintenance, and Repair.” Overall, these skilled labor occupations are expected to grow by 3.4% from 2019 to 2029.\n\nJob growth is only one element of a promising future career. To get a fuller picture of which occupations within the skilled labor industry will provide the best future opportunities, we compared projected job openings to the 2019 median annual wage. This showed us not only where future job openings lie, but also which occupations could provide the best career opportunities.\n\nBased on these two metrics, electricians and plumbers offer good opportunities. Electricians have the fourth-highest wage of all skilled labor occupations in 2019 with a median annual wage of $56,200. This combined with the BLS’s projection of nearly 95,000 job openings between 2019 and 2029 makes for an attractive prospective career.\n\nPlumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters have similarly good prospects. These occupations earned the fifth-highest median annual wage in 2019 at $55,200 and are expected to have over 66,000 job openings in the next decade.\n\nProjected job openings are a gauge of how easy it may be to enter a given field, but sometimes a higher salary is worth the higher competition when applying for jobs. To get a look at which jobs paid the highest, regardless of demand, we sorted all skilled labor occupations by their 2019 median annual wage.\n\n“Elevator installers and repairers” and “electrical and electronics repairers” have the highest annual salaries at over $82,000 each. But even on the lower end, “Rail track laying and maintenance equipment operators” earned a median annual wage of over $56,000 in 2019 — well above the national average of approximately $40,000.\n\nGiven that the average annual price of getting a college degree (including tuition, fees, and lodging) was $30,500 in 2020, and the average cost of a four-year degree stands around $122,000, finding a career with a good salary but minimal education requirements can be a smart move. Plus, student loan debt is getting less and less appealing as wages aren’t rising at the same rate as the cost of attending university.\n\nCollege degree earners make less than 50% more, on average, than workers with only a high school diploma, a number that has grown by less than 1% in the last year, and even declined between 2016 and 2018. Meanwhile, students borrowed over 116% more over the past decade, which means students are taking on more debt to go to college, but their salary premiums aren’t increasing to compensate for it, making skilled labor occupations all the more attractive.\n\nStates Where It Pays to Be in a Skilled Labor Occupation\n\nWages vary across states, which makes comparing earnings on a national scale less meaningful. The fact that the national annual wage for skilled laborers is $47,300 doesn’t make much difference to a laborer in Arkansas earning $38,000 per year. When choosing a field of occupation, it pays (pun intended) to think not just about what you do, but also where you’ll do it.\n\nLooking at the annual median wage among skilled workers by state, we found the ten highest paying states and ten lowest paying states for skilled labor. Topping the list is Alaska, where skilled laborers earn a median of $61,900 per year, and Hawaii, where laborers earn $61,600 per year. Among other states, Illinois has the highest median skilled labor wages. Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Washinigton, Minnesota, and New York are other good prospects, each with median annual wages over $54,000.\n\nOn the other side, the states with the lowest median annual wages for skilled labor occupations are Arkansas and Mississippi. Workers in these states can expect to earn around $20,000 less per year than those in the highest earning states.\n\nThat said, the cost of living cannot be ignored. While Alaska and Hawaii promise the highest median wages, these states are also among the least affordable to live. Arkansas, on the other hand, is ranked as the 12th most affordable state and Mississippi as the 15th. So your $38,000+ salary will go a lot further in these states. Florida, however, is probably not a skilled laborer’s best destination, as it pays the third lowest average annual wage while being the 15th least affordable state to live in.\n\nThe States Hiring the Most Skilled Laborers\n\nWyoming had the highest employment rate of any state at 85.5 employed skilled laborers per 1,000 population. So while it may fall in the middle of the pack in terms of annual wage at $52,400 a year, Wyoming can still be a promising state for skilled laborers.\n\nThe Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment to grow by six million jobs between 2019 and 2029 with roughly 470,000 jobs coming from the skilled labor group. While the fastest growing sector in terms of employment is the health care sector, these jobs require significant higher education, and sometimes up to a doctorate degree. Meanwhile, skilled labor jobs can pay well above the national average, but require only a high school diploma and perhaps some trade school certifications.\n\nTruth is, many parents and students simply are not aware of the numerous career and job opportunities that pay well without requiring a four-year degree. If there is one lesson to be taken from the global pandemic, however, it’s that we are in the midst of a new societal norm. This could be the perfect time to try something new by pursuing a career in the skilled labor industry.\n\nWhen you’re ready for a new job or career change, Joblist is here to help. Our mission is to help you find a job that is tailored to you. By answering a few quick questions, we can help you create a curated list of job opportunities to meet your criteria. We’re passionate about matching the right people with the right jobs, regardless of educational attainment. Get your personalized job matches today at Joblist.com. We look forward to helping you find your dream career!\n\nNo statistical testing was performed. As such, the results on this page are for informational purposes only.\n\nIt’s important to go into any job search well-informed. We’d love for you to share the findings of this study with anyone who could benefit from its information, but ask that you do so only for noncommercial reuse. Also, please include a link back to this page so that readers can view our full results, and our contributors can get the credit they are due for their hard work in compiling these data." ]

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[ "Top tip: One day Syria will reover from the present Civil War and we will delight in helping to re-introduce you to one of the Middle East’s most remarkable destinations.", null, null, "Syria is bordered by Turkey in the north, Iraq in the east, Jordan in the south and Israel and Lebanon in the southwest. North of Lebanon, Syria has a stretch of coastline on the Mediterranean. The country can be divided into four main geographical areas: the fertile plain in the northeast, the plateau, coastal and mountain areas in the west, the central plains, and the desert and steppe region in the central and south-eastern areas. The Euphrates flows from Turkey in the north, through Syria down to Iraq in the southeast. It is the longest river in the region at 2330km (1450 miles), of which 600km flow through Syria.\n\nThe climate in Syria is dry and hot, and winters are mild. Because of the country’s elevation, snowfall does occasionally occur during winter in the mountains. Spring is the best time to visit as temperatures are mild and the winter rains have cleared the haze that obscures views for much of the year.\n\nAlthough Nomadic Thoughts are not arranging travel for clients in Syria presently – due to the civil war – we do sincerely hope that sooner, rather than later, we will be able to support their society through tourism. In the meantime, the world watches, waits and hopes for a peaceful solution.\n\nNot least as this country has a magnificent array of ancient sites and cities to visit ranging from the Mediterranean coastal regions to the desert areas in the East. Damascus, Syria’s capital is the world’s oldest inhabited city. A central feature of the city is the Ummayyad Mosque, which was built on the site of a temple to the ancient Aramean god Haddad. Aleppo is possibly even older than Damascus. Its massive Citadel standing on the site of a Hittite acropolis is one of the most magnificent examples of Islamic Arab military architecture in Syria. There are an impressive number of mosques in the city. One can’t go to Syria without visiting the Crac des Chevaliers (Castle of the Knights), situated in the only significant break in the mountain range between Turkey and Lebanon, and is the most famous crusader castle in the world. Palmyra in the Central Region of Syria is set in a desert oasis. The ruins of the Valley of Tombs, the Hypogeum of the Three Brothers, the Temple of Baal and the Monumental Arch are considered as some of the most famous monuments to the Classical period in the Middle East. Bosra has probably the best-preserved Roman amphitheatre in the world as well as some of the oldest minarets in the whole of Islam\n\nThe fruit orchards around Damascus in early spring, when apricots, plums and cherries are in bloom, are just one of the breathtaking sights of Syria. This country, riddled with strife in recent years, remains one of the most fascinating travel destinations in the Middle East, with its rich historical and cultural heritage reaching back thousands of years and still visible today. The country boasts sensationally beautiful ruined cities, labyrinthine medieval souks, and countless hidden mosques, as well as a cuisine you won’t be able to get enough of – stuffed vine leaves, honeyed pastries and mouth-watering lamb are delicacies that are alone worth visiting for.\n\nThe area now called the Syrian Arab Republic was part of the Mesopotamian Empire from abuot 2300 BC, during which time the cities of Ugarit and Byblos expanded into powerful commercial centres. By about the fifth century BC, southern Syria came under the sovereignty of Egypt, while the northern territories had been incorporated into the Mitanni Empire. Within a few centuries, however, the Hittites from the north, an empire that in turn collapsed following invasions by the Mediterranean Sea peoples, had infiltrated the rest of Syria. From this period up until the 6th century AD is characterised bya struggle between Assyrians, Phoenicians, Babylonians, Canaanites and many other peoples for control of Syrian trade. Alexander the Great absorbed Syria into his empire in the third century BC but control of the region was disputed throughout the second and first centuries BC by various people trying to gain control of his inheritance.\n\nSyria became a province of the Eastern Empire (the Byzantine Empire) after the collapse of the Roman Empire. Invasions from the Persians in the east were repulsed but Syria eventually fell to the Muslims in the mid-seventh century. From then on, Syria was to be firmly part of the Muslim world, although Christian and Jewish populations do remain to this day. Muslim control of Syria was central to defeating the Christians and expelling them from Jerusalem. However, during the 13th century, a far greater threat was that of the powerful Mongols Empire, which in just 50 years, expanded throughout Asia from Korea to Moscow. By 1260, they had overrun Syria and deposed the Abbasid Khalif. Later that year, the Mamluk General Baybars defeated the Hulagu army at the Battle of Goliath’s Well, a decisive military victory. By 1520, the region had fallen under Ottoman Turkish rule and so Syria became prosperous once again.\n\nThe 19th century was a period of growing restlessness in the Middle East, leading to Napoleon’s campaign in 1799/1800, the Egyptian invasion in the 1830s and the insurrection in 1860-61. The Turks were defeated in the First World War and Syria was briefly occupied by the French, before being granted full independence in 1946. Three years later, the country came under the first of a series of military dictatorships. As in the rest of the Middle East, Arab nationalism became a major political force during the 1950s. The influence of Nasser’s revolution in Egypt on the Syrians was so strong that Syria joined Egypt in forming the United Arab Republic in 1958. The alliance was short-lived, Syria seceding in 1961, to form the Syrian Arab Republic. The greatest political power in Syria since then has been the Ba’ath Party or Arab Socialist Renaissance, which seized power in 1971, under the dictatorial leadership of General Hafez al-Assad, until his death in June 2000. Assad’s main power base was the Alawite Muslim sect to which 10 per cent of the Syrian population is loyal. With his customary tactical skill, Assad dealt comfortably with the challenges to his supremacy, largely by retaining tight control of the army and the country’s myriad intelligence organisations.\n\nThe major exception occurred in February 1982, when the Muslim Brotherhood, Assad’s principal opposition, launched a rebellion in Hama. The rebellion was crushed, with several thousand deaths, by military forces led by Assad’s brother Rifaat who then controlled the country’s security forces. A few months afterwards, Assad then faced his most serious foreign policy challenge in years: the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Syria interpreted Israel’s strategy to be the creation of a Christian-dominated client state, underpinned by Israeli military power. Syria could not hope to match the Israelis militarily but Assad nonetheless managed to manoeuvre the Syria into a dominant position in Lebanon. This he achieved by supporting the main Lebanese Muslim militias, Amal and Hezbollah, and then introducing a substantial military presence of its own, remaining careful to avoid direct confrontation with the Israelis (see Israel and Lebanon). In 1984, the Israelis moved into a self-styled ‘security zone’ south of the Litani River and in 1999, after a decade and a half of attritional guerrilla warfare with the Syrian-backed Hezbollah, the Israelis pulled out altogether.\n\nSyria’s relations with the West reached a low during the late-1980s, but the 1991 Gulf War came as an unexpected blessing, with the USA eager to attract Arab states into the anti-Iraqi coalition. Assad had always been a staunch opponent of Saddam Hussein’s Iraq: the pan-Arab Ba’athist movement split along ideological lines in the 1960s and has never healed. The Syrians were content to back the UN coalition, as a consequence securing substantial financial support and the guarantee of a free hand in Lebanon.\n\nIn June 2000, after years of deteriorating health, President Assad died, leaving his second son, Bashar, as heir. While domestic policy has seen something of a relaxation under Bashar, Western hopes that Syria would pursue a more pro-Western line have proved unfounded. The Syrians have provided some help in the US led ‘War against Terror’ but were strongly opposed to the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq in 2003. Syria pulled its forces out of Lebanon in 2005, following intense international pressure having been implicated in the assassination of former Lebanese leader, Rafik Hariri.\n\nDuring 2011 and 2012, in an attempt to crush anti-government street protests inspired by the Arab Spring in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, security forces deployed tanks, opened fire and carried our mass arrests. Very rapidly these protests took on a more formal nature when the opposition began to organise a long uprising against the government. The stand-off escalated into civil war as 2012 drew to a close, with defections from the governing elite signalling the inevitable collapse of central authority.\n\nInternational sanctions were imposed in response to the bloody suppression of protests. The US, Turkey, the Gulf states, Britain and France had, by December 2012, recognised the main opposition National Coalition of the Syrian Revolution as the “sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people,” indicating their lack of confidence in Assad government. The civil war continues to rage while Assad refuses to step down." ]

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[ null, "Mark Twain may have said it best: “Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”\n\nThat’s a good approach just about any day, but especially during polarized times such as these. After all, very few of us are happy with the way things are going in Washington, D.C., no matter your party. And even if you are among the few who are pleased with Congress and the president, just give it a few years. Things will change. That’s the nature of politics; it’s cyclical.\n\nThere’s a lot I’d change about D.C. and the country, but I still love America and the ideals for which it stands. That’s the way my wife and I are raising our kids. We don’t worship America but we do believe the U.S. is immensely blessed — and we want our kids to appreciate that.\n\nHere are seven ways we’ve taught our kids about the United States and its history that might benefit your family, too:\n\n1. Tell them about America’s triumphs. Teach them about the freedoms the Founders established that were uniquely American at the time – freedom of the press and religion. Talk about the great inventors: Samuel Morse (telegraph), Alexander Graham Bell (telephone), Thomas Edison (phonograph, motion picture camera, electric light bulb), the Wright Brothers (airplane). Discuss the role America played in World War I and II, and the way it won the space race and put the first man on the moon, and even won that 1980 Miracle on Ice.\n\n2. Tell them about America’s flaws. Otherwise, their perspective of the United States will be skewed, even unbiblical. No country is perfect. We’re still a nation, for instance, that enslaved an entire race and that waited nearly 150 years to give women the right to vote. Then tell them how the Founders, through the Constitution, laid the groundwork to right the nation’s wrongs, and how no country – no matter how dominant – can thrive continuously without God’s blessings (Daniel 2:21, Psalm 22:28).\n\n3. Pray with them for America’s leaders. That city board member or state leader or U.S. representative or president you were badmouthing last week, in front of your son? Pray for that person, with your son. As Christians, we’re commanded to do that (1 Timothy 2:1-4), even if it’s difficult. If we don’t, we’re not only disobeying God, we’re also discounting the power of prayer. And while you’re at it, learn to turn off MSNBC, Fox and CNN.\n\n4. Watch a 40-episode educational show with them. Sound crazy? It’s not. It’s called “Liberty’s Kids,” and if you’ve never seen it, you’re missing out. My oldest sons loves it. It’s a cartoon miniseries that tells the story of the Revolutionary War through the eyes of kids living in the late 1700s. Each episode is about 25 minutes long, and I learn something every time I watch it. It was first broadcast on PBS but is available on DVD for around $10 and free on YouTube. It doesn’t whitewash American history, nor does it ignore the role that Christianity played in the nation’s founding. You’ll be whistling a patriotic tune at the end of each show.\n\n5. Read a patriotic kid’s book. When my son was 4 and I wanted to teach him about the Fourth of July, I bought a board book, “The Story Of America’s Birthday.” Then I got a small paperback, “In 1776.” He loved both and wanted me to tell him more about the “bossy king.” Another good one is “Good Night America.” This year we bought a new one, “The Story Of The One And Only Declaration Of Independence,” which is great for older kids and recounts the fascinating journey of America’s founding document through its 200-plus-year history.\n\n6. Visit a local historical site, or even a veteran’s cemetery. I’m often dragging my family to the nearest historical sign, museum and building, and believe me: There are fascinating historical sites no matter where you live. But don’t make it boring; build it up beforehand (“we’re going to President Thomas Jefferson’s home!”), don’t stay too long, and do something kid-friendly (we once bought special souvenir suckers). Don’t know where to start? The National Park Service has a great resource on its website, with listings by state. There are many reference books, but the best one I’ve found is the National Geographic Guide To America’s Historic Places. It’s out of print, but you can get a used copy for less than $5.\n\nAnd last of all …\n\n7. Buy some fireworks – or attend a fireworks show. Buying them is as much fun as lighting them. I enjoy bang snaps for young kids, and bottle rockets for older ones. President John Adams would approve. He told his wife that future generations of Americans would celebrate independence with “pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations.” He also said we’d commemorate it with “solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.” That’s an even better idea, don’t you think?" ]

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[ "The originators of humorcore, Psychostick are proud to share with fans their latest creation Dogs Like Socks inspired by the band’s moral support, the Siberian husky duo of Elphie and Mishka.\n\n“This song answers the question, ‘can you make something cute brutal?’ We just did this for fun. We have a recording studio, we had inspiration, so why not? Those dogs are the best. This is our tribute to them.” comments guitarist Josh “The J” Key.\n\nAfter completing their Santa’s An Asshole Tour this past November/ December, Psychostick are now gearing up for their next tour in March with dates soon to be announced in support of their latest release Space Vampires VS Zombie Dinosaurs in 3-D, which is now", null, "Most high school friends can’t even stand to look at each other once school’s out, but in the case of vocalist Rob “Rawrb” Kersey and guitarist Josh “The J” Key, they decided to spend even more time together after graduation.\n\nHarnessing their crazy sense of humor and love of all things metal, they joined forces with drummer Alex “Shmalex” Dontre and bassist Matty J “Moose” to create Pyschostick, a band they’ve coined as humorcore. With hilarious lyrics, heavy riffs, notorious stage antics and high-energy performances, the band has caused millions of laughs around the world and hundreds of mosh pits across the US, often simultaneously, since its birth in Phoenix, AZ in 2000.\n\nAlmost 100 percent do-it-yourself, Psychostick never strays from its signature sound, a combination of heavy music Chimaira, Machine Head and Hatebreed would be proud of and wit and humor that would make Tenacious D and Weird Al Yankovic holler with laughter.\n\nWith two full-length albums behind them – We Couldn’t Think of a Title and Sandwich – the band released their latest record, Space Vampires VS Zombie Dinosaurs in 3D in 2011, following it up with a tour with Mushroomhead to add to their total count of 21 nationwide tours that have hit 47 states." ]