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The headquarters of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is seen on May 12, 2009, in Prague
Prague (AFP) - A quarter century after it helped topple totalitarian Communist regimes in eastern Europe, the US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is duelling Moscow again, this time in a media war over the Ukraine crisis.
Broadcasting from Prague and targeting countries with restricted press freedom, RFE/RL has seen audience numbers for its Russian and Ukrainian-language services soar since the conflict erupted in the ex-Soviet state in November 2013.
"RFE/RL is back, thanks to Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin), because suddenly people realise that what we have been doing is very important," Nenad Pejic, one of the station's two chief executives, told AFP.
As Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in March, the station launched a special website for the peninsula in three languages -- Russian, Ukrainian and Tatar.
"We built up a TV studio in Kiev and became a pretty serious operation there," Pejic said. RFE/RL also runs a programme on the eastern Donbass region where pro-Russia separatists are most active, and another on corruption in Ukraine.
Founded by the United States during the Cold War to counter Soviet propaganda, RFE/RL was banned across the communist bloc, where regimes regularly jammed its signal.
But people still managed to listen in secret to broadcasts that inspired them to oppose totalitarian rule.
Originally aired from Munich, it moved to Prague in 1995, four years after the Soviet bloc collapsed. RFE/RL now reaches 21 countries in 28 languages with a network of some 1,200 journalists and stringers.
As the Ukraine crisis escalated, both funding and staffing were cranked up there, despite an overall cost-cutting drive that saw its budget for 2013 shrink by $1.1 million to $92.1 million (73 million euros), forcing the departure of some top journalists.
The website of its Ukrainian service, known as Radio Svoboda (Freedom), has rocketed in popularity since it live-streamed the pro-European protests that rocked Kiev's Maidan square a year ago.
"Our web audience peaked on February 20, 2014 with 1.5 million hits on the day of the slaughter of protesters at Maidan," Ukraine service chief Maryana Drach told AFP.
"We were able not only to carry the signal, but also explain what was happening and why," as a crackdown by pro-Moscow government forces left nearly 100 demonstrators dead, she said.
Over a month-long period this summer, the site drew 2.3 million users and 7.4 million hits. On Twitter, its followers have soared from 10,000 in November 2013 to more than 180,000, said Drach.
- Beaten, abducted, killed -
"Empires collapsed, walls fell, dictators disappeared, but Radio Svoboda exists and will exist, as well as freedom," Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said at a recent party in Kiev celebrating Radio Svoboda's 60th birthday.
Ukraine's deputy foreign minister, Sergiy Kyslytsya, sees the station as offering a crucial counterpoint to state-funded Russian media covering the conflict, including the 24-hour news network RT.
But its broadcasts have not always been welcome -- with Russian listeners in particular.
"(Russian) people, who are part of our regular audience, started to send us very nasty comments," said RFE/RL chief Pejic, who believes the Russian public is in the grip of "a kind of patriotic hysteria" over Ukraine.
For journalists on both sides, the information war in Ukraine has proven dangerous, even deadly, as the toll from the fighting soars past 3,200.
As of September, five journalists have lost their lives covering the conflict, according to UN figures. Other sources compiled by AFP point to seven, including five Russians, one Ukrainian and one Italian.
RFE/RL says its reporters in the crisis area -- some equipped only with mobile phones, others with cameras -- have risked their lives on the job.
"This year our correspondents and bloggers have been beaten, abducted and harassed in Kiev, Kharkiv, Donetsk and Crimea," the Kiev-born Drach, who has been leading the Ukrainian service since June 2013, told AFP.
"Our key correspondents in eastern Ukraine had to flee Donetsk and Lugansk. Now we increasingly rely on citizen journalism to get information from the territories controlled by separatists."
RFE/RL says its Crimea desk chief was forced to flee the peninsula amid threats reminiscent of those made by the notorious Soviet-era KGB secret police.
"It's very ugly," said Pejic. "First they call you, they talk to you, and when they see you keep going, they go and talk to your mother, father."

subset: commoncrawl


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Quals and Dissertation
Unlike some programs in UCB or UCSF, our graduate program does not require preliminary exams, and both UCB and UCSF Graduate Divisions do not require a dissertation defense. However, we still need to take a qualifying exam and file a dissertation in order to graduate with a Ph.D. degree.
Qualifying Exam → Advancement to Candidacy → Dissertation → Exit Seminar
Qualifying Exam
- Graduate Handbook: Section 3.8 Qualifying Examination:
describes the process and requirements of qualifying exam in detail.
- Qualifying Exam Guide (2018) is a helpful guide presented by 2018 BEAST Co-Presidents.
- Qualifying Exam Guide (2016) is a helpful guide presented by the 2016 BEAST Co-Presidents.
- Sample Ethics Questions
- Sample Statistics Questions
- Bioengineering Student Talks (BESTs):
gives an opportunity to give a practice talk to fellow BioE students. Contact a BEST coordinator to schedule a practice quals talk.
By the end of second year, students are expected to form a qualifying exam committee composed of four faculty members (cannot include your PI): Two BioE professors from your home campus (UCB or UCSF), one BioE professor from the other campus, and one professor outside the BioE department from their home campus.
Students need to schedule their qualifying exam date sometime before December of their third year. You can reserve a room in Stanley using QB3 webpage. For UCSF, you can reserve a room through the MyAccess portal.
Students are required to send the proposal of their research three weeks prior to the exam date.
On a qualifying exam date, students give oral presentations on their proposed research project. This usually takes an hour, and can be extended to 2-3 hours with in-depth questioning by committee members.
Advancement to Candidacy
Basic requirements to Advance to Candidacy include:
- Passing the qualifying examination.
- Maintaining the minimum 3.0 grade point average in all upper division and graduate coursework taken in graduate standing with no more than two courses having been graded as incomplete.
- Submission of Application to Candidacy form to the Graduate Division and payment of the candidacy fee ($90 check out of pocket for UCB (unless you have NSF, then attach a note saying so), $170 for UCSF but is covered by the department).
- Advancement to Candidacy Form (UCSF 2016)
- Advancing to Candidacy Application Form (Berkeley 2017)
- (As of 2017 UCB is in the progress of changing their system, so check http://grad.berkeley.edu/academic-progress/forms/ for updates)
The Dissertation Committee members are similar to Qualifying Exam Committee members, except that your PI serves as the chair of the Dissertation Committee. More detailed requirements are listed below:
- As a Berkeley-based student, your dissertation committee should be minimum two Berkeley faculty members (chair and outside member) and one UCSF faculty member (BioE professor).
- All faculty who serve on a dissertation committee must be members of the academic senate (Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor)
- The chair of your dissertation committee is your PI, if you are co-advised, certainly you would place both faculty as co-chair.
- The outside member (much like the qual) is a Berkeley-based faculty member who either holds an affiliate position in the Group (seen here http://bioegrad.berkeley.edu/faculty/affiliate) or is outside the Group entirely.
- One can have more than three members on the dissertation committee if it makes sense academically — be mindful since more than three members can be complicated.
Filing your dissertation at Graduate Division Office is one of the final step toward the award of Ph.D. Your manuscript is a scholarly presentation of the results of the research you conducted. Your faculty committee supervises the intellectual content of your manuscript and your committee chair will guide you on the arrangement within the text and reference sections of your manuscript. Consult with your committee chair early in the preparation of your manuscript. Your manuscript will be published through the UC Berkeley Library.
Relevant Links:
- Graduate Handbook: Section 3.11 Dissertation
- Berkeley Grad Division Academic Process: Dissertation Writing and Filing
Exit Seminar
Announce your exit seminar to the entire BEAST! Reserve a room in Stanley (QB3 webpage) or through Sarah-Jane at UCSF and send an e-mail to the BEAST e-mail list & put it on the BEAST calendar. Congratulations!
You may find other relevant paperwork under Department Paperwork (2nd Year Paperwork) or (3rd Year Paperwork) section.


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Sunday Song - Got To Be Real
As is so often the case, this song is this week's Sunday song because Mary Anne Hobbs reminded me of it on her 6 Music show yesterday. It also reminds me of an episode of Sex & The City where Carrie falls on the catwalk and has to get up and keep walking.
"Because when people fall down in life, they get right back up and keep on walking."


text:
Black or Gray Marks on Dishes
Possible Solutions
Are there black or gray marks on the dishes?
Aluminum items (such as utensils) should be loaded so that they will not rub against dishes during washing. Throw-away aluminum items should be hand-washed and not washed in the dishwasher because they may break down and cause marking. Aluminum markings can be removed by using a mild abrasive cleanser.
Still need help? Call or schedule service.
You may need assistance from a qualified technician. Call 1-800-344-1274 or click below to schedule an appointment.


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The Phillies have to be glad that the month of May is over. It was the worst month in terms of amounts of losses for the month since 1928, then the team lost 22 games in the month. May of 2017 tied that mark, and it was one away from tying the most amount of losses ever in a month of May, which is 23 - the Phillies did that in 1923.
We've heard a lot of possible solutions from 'bring up the kids from AAA' to firing the manager, Pete Mackanin. But, what does the GM think about this recent run of what is more than just 'bad luck.'
Jim Salisbury interviewed Phillies GM, Matt Klentak, and he didn't see all that fazed by it, he seems to have settled on the fact that the Phillies may be in line for the first pick because of it, and the team is doing all it can to 'pull out of it." Klentak will not rush any player to the big leagues, he said. That is exactly what the Phillies do most of the time, a lot of Phillies players have languished in the minors for years.
Klentak will not be firing Pete Mackanin, or pitching coach Bob McClure, or will he be making major changes by bringing players up. He talked of meaningless stats like exit velocities with talking about Maikel Franco, and explained that Odubel Herrera had a good April. Klentak could be the problem, (is he watching what we are) and that certainly seems like it could be an issue with this team. He sounded like this was just part of a plan to tank this season and end up with a great pick in the draft because of it.
The issue is that this team wasn't supposed to be this bad though, it's the worst team in the league. If you listen to Klentak though, it's something he can live with. So Phillies fans prepare, it's going to be a very long season with this type of attitude from our GM.


text: Chan Launches Inquest On Leaked WHO Documents; Meetings Proposed On R&D Expert Report 20/01/2010 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window)The first public discussion of an expert report on how to finance the often costly process of research and development to create new medicines, vaccines and diagnostics needed by the poor to address diseases that disproportionately effect them began this week at the World Health Organization. There were immediate concerns about the last-minute release of the report's full text as well as concerns from several governments that it came up short on critical areas, and it was decided that an informal consultation process will take place over the next few months. Meanwhile, World Health Organization Director General Margaret Chan said she has already begun an investigation to find out who leaked drafts of the expert group's work to an international industry group in December (IPW, WHO, 9 December 2009). But she challenged those concerned to come up with evidence indicating there was undue influence by the pharmaceutical industry in the work of the WHO, and said she attaches "great importance to avoidance of conflict of interest." Chan said she was "extremely, extremely troubled by the leakage of documents," and vowed to "find out exactly where the breach is" and if it was internal to the WHO to take action, to the point of waiving the diplomatic immunity of all staff "to facilitate proper investigation." Meanwhile, progress on the rest of the implementation of the WHO Global Strategy and Plan of Action on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property continues apace, according to a report of programme coordinator Precious Matsoso, delivered yesterday. Progress cited includes an agreement on cooperation between the WHO, the World Trade Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization at the director general level to guide work on IP and public health as well as a completed study on technology transfer and a framework for monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the strategy. One member of the expert working group said in an interview concerns remain about the inclusion of key issues in the report. Separately, the proposal being circulated this week by Canada for an open-ended intergovernmental working group to address outstanding issues in preparing for influenza pandemics is available here [pdf]. Pandemic influenza is the subject of discussions at the WHO today. All these discussions are happening in the context of the WHO Executive Board meeting, taking place in Geneva from 18-23 January. Recommendations made by the board are sent to the World Health Assembly, the WHO's decision-making body, which the director general announced today will take place from 17-22 May. Informal Discussions to be held on Expert Report Comments on the report were somewhat hindered by the fact that its full text was not out until the Friday evening before the Executive Board commenced on Monday – and then only in English – so governments were basing discussions off of an extended executive summary of the work [pdf] made available in late December. This concerned several states. For example, Thailand said using only the executive summary for discussion was uncomfortably close to signing a blank check and Brazil proposed that there be informal meetings to discuss the full text prior to the May assembly. Uganda on behalf of the African region supported Brazil "considering that we are unable to have an informed discussion at this moment." Chan promised that the translated reports would be available in all six UN languages and transmitted to governments before the end of February, and after a lengthy discussion member states decided to undertake a web-based consultation on the final report, culminated in a face-to-face consultation to be held 13 May, immediately prior to the WHO Programme, Budget and Administration Committee. Leaked Documents Many – both governments and civil society – expressed concern over selective transparency due to draft documents that were apparently leaked to the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations. "It's no secret" Chan said, that in the past WHO staff have leaked documents to forward their own agenda. But she refused to take the criticism levelled at the WHO in response to the leak "until there is evidence to say that we are being influenced, or that the group of experts is being influenced." She then cautioned against putting too much weight on what she called rumour and innuendo. The working group chair, George Alleyne of the Pan American Health Organization, said he "rejected completely" the idea that pharmaceutical companies had influenced the group. In fact, he told Intellectual Property Watch, the group was so careful not to appear impure in any way that they refused to privately meet with any stakeholders during the process of their report writing. A spokesperson for the IFPMA told Intellectual Property Watch the "EWG is doing critical and important work which depends on the contribution of many different stakeholders. IFPMA believes participation and views of all stakeholders should be welcomed as we all work together to develop increased support and financing mechanisms for diseases of the developing world." Chan promised that she would give governments a report of her investigation when it is finished. Questions on Gaps in Report and Secretariat Answers Governments also questioned the WHO on substantive issues related to the expert report, as several states wondered why certain issues had not been included. The "report confirms our views that the poor bear double burdens on diseases" as well as that "commercial incentives provided by IP rights have not provided solutions to health" issues faced by the developing world, the delegate of India told the board Monday. But it would have been "most important and cost effective" to explore technology transfer in more depth, she added, as it is one of the most promising ways to increase medicines access. And it provides neither road map nor guidance for greater access and wider dissemination of the technologies already available, she added. There were contradictions between earlier work done by the WHO on intellectual property and health and report, said Brazil, including the reintroduction of elements that had previously been rejected, such as tax exemptions. "The paucity of attention paid to IP" in the report is a "serious omission" for which the document does not provide justification, said Bangladesh, adding that it should also have looked at de-linking the cost of research and development from the price of products, concerns later echoed by Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders). "In our experience," said the statement of India, "the greatest impediment to access to medicines has been their high cost and the encumbrances posed by" IP rights. The United States expressed concern about a proposal that the WHO host and manage a patent pool initiated by UNITAID, saying it required careful consideration of what role the WHO should be playing in global health architecture and should not be rushed into. A member of the expert group, senior Colombian Senator Cecilia López Montaño, sent a 15 January open letter to the Executive Board arguing that the report was incomplete and should not be accepted. She had agreed to take up a position on the group to discuss the importance of intellectual property rights, she told Intellectual Property Watch in an interview yesterday. But, she was "very surprised that IP rights were not discussed," and when she tried to bring them up to the group they were resisted. "I couldn't find the space to discuss the one subject for me that was crucial, which was patents and intellectual property rights." If poor people in poor countries are to have cheaper medicines, she said, "you cannot ignore the debate" on IP. What the working group came out with as a result was "for me some sort of charity" mechanism, she added. Her position is not hers alone, she said, but also held by Colombian civil society groups whom she consulted during the process. She also said she thought there might be other members of the expert group who agreed with her. López Montaño said yesterday she is satisfied that members of the Executive Board raised the concern about IP in the discussion of the working group report, and that the issue should come up in the upcoming consultations on the issue. Both Brazil and India proposed inviting the UN special rapporteur on the right to health to the assembly to speak to delegates about a March 2009 report on IP and access to medicines (IPW, Public Health, 16 June 2009). It is unclear what became of this suggestion. Alleyne said that they were limited by a narrow mandate, and that access to medicines outside of the research and development system – while a matter "dear to my personal heart" – was not a part of that mandate. "I am in perfect agreement with almost every one of the comments," about significant areas of public health and IP not touched on in the report, he told Intellectual Property Watch. "But many of them did not pertain to the mandate… our remit was research and development" and not the wider issue of availability of medicines, he explained. Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window) Related Kaitlin Mara may be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com."Chan Launches Inquest On Leaked WHO Documents; Meetings Proposed On R&D Expert Report" by Intellectual Property Watch is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.


text: This makeup tutorial will aid you flaunt perfect-looking skin without even making it look like you might be wearing any make-up. For extra drama, strive layering a lipgloss on over your lipstick. Suck in your cheeks and apply coloration to your cheekbones, working from the temples in. Just follow the traces of your bones—it is foolproof," says Laura Geller, the president of Laura Geller Makeup, in New York City.\n\nWhen you use lip liner, fairly than utilizing your fingers, it is good to use a small, flat brush to apply lipstick for precision's sake. For example, those with oily skin would use a lightweight or gel-based mostly moisturizer. Think about using a neutral lip coloration should you're going wild with eyeshadow.\n\nEmma all the time mixes lipstick to get exactly the color she needs. It will make your face look thinner and longer in look, and provide the shadows that naturally happen with out foundation. Do not be afraid to strive a sparkly eyeshadow.; it'll spotlight the golden tones in your hair.\n\nYou can use your fingers or a small highlighter brush to apply the highlighter. In order for you a bit more dramatic look, apply a second darker matte colour of eyeshadow in a 'C' shape from the outside corner of your lash line up to the highest, outer ⅓ of your eyelid crease.\n\nThis can be a makeup artist secret to brightening eyes. With rich shades and versatile colors, you can create any look, natural or bold. Whereas it's good to hydrate zits-prone pores and skin, dermatologists will let you know that using oil-primarily based products isn't the easiest way to do it, for the reason that heavier system can clog your pores.


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System: Urethane Modified Cement
Urethane-modified concrete has all the benefits of Epoxy Trowel Mortar Floors, but also adds Thermal Shock and High Temperature resistance…excellent for Food Processing facilities. It is great for environments that are susceptible to impact, abrasion, chemicals and organic food acids. Additionally, modified urethane cements offer various additives that give this floor coating exceptional thermal shock resistance features and we can also add an anti-microbial additive to inhibit the growth of bacteria and micro organisms.
- Food processing areas
- Production areas
- Bottling areas
- Cook / chill areas
- Commercial kitchens
- Wash areas
- Chemical processing areas
- Loading / unloading vehicle areas


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Is Residential Electrician Any Good?
Should you get an electrician? When you hear about the term "residential electrician," you immediately jump to the conclusion of impracticality. Why? It's because, most people can do plumbing and even electricity nowadays. Besides, the internet is also a vast "how to" guideline to know it more. Being a homeowner, you mustRead More


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- on Education & Information
- Published in issue 3/2004 on page 0
500 Links on Microcontrollers
Datasheets and applications
Microcontrollers have become firmly established in modern electronic circuits. These multi-legged beasts use programs to do all sorts of things. Depending on signal levels presented to them, micros are capable of taking decisions and controlling entire processes. A micro, then, offers a good way to add intelligence to your circuit. But where do you start picking the right type?Over the past few decades we've witnessed the increasing dominance of microcontrollers in electronics in general. These days, it is almost impossible (and a waste of time and money) to design new digital circuitry of some complexity without incorporating a microcontroller. In the past, designers when faced with complex logic did not hesitate to throw in dozens of TTL or CMOS integrated circuits resulting in a monstrous, current devouring circuit whose reliability was often inversely proportional to the number of parts on the board(s).
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Property Details for MLS® # C4255451
274200 Rge Rd 40, Rural Rocky View County
Detached Bungalow for Sale
- Size: 41.87 acres
- Price: $1,795,000
- Bedrooms: 3
- Bathrooms: 3(full) 3(half)
- Status: Active
- Year Built: 2011
Rolling Hills Walkout Bungalow & Conference Centre situated on 40 gorgeous acres with Mountain Views. This acreage provides an awesome lifestyle with INCOME POTENTIAL. When you open the front door you are greeted by tons of Natural light along with High Ceilings. Whether cooking for yourself or entertaining you'll love the chefs kitchen w/ LARGE ISLAND, Dual Fridge/Freezer, Dual Oven, and lots of space. Enjoy eating meals in the large eating area next to the fireplace & overlooking the views that walk onto a large deck. Relax in the cozy living room or read a book in the Year Round Sun Room. The Master BDRM views are breathtaking with a Spa Like Ensuite Bath. The lower level offers a LARGE FAMILY RM, MEDIA RM, FITNESS RM W/SAUNA and two more bedrooms each with their own full bath. The Conference meeting room is a large room with Full Media/Sound, & kitchen. Incredible to provide Team Building Sessions, Weddings, Family Gatherings, or even a legal Nanny Suite. Come see this property.
Contact Kelly Kernick About MLS® C4255451
Kelly Kernick, 403-875-7629 at Urban Real Estate Services, 820, 26th Street NE , Calgary, Alberta, T2A 2M4
property information
- Property Type: Detached Home
- Style: Bungalow
- Year Built: 2011
- Lot Size: 41.87 acres
- Lot Shape: Rectangular
- Total Floor Area: 3,491 sq.ft
- Restrictions: Utility Right Of Way
Community Information
- Neighbourhood: Rural Rocky View County
- City: Rural Rocky View County
- Postal Code: T4C 1A6
- Directions: West to Cochrane from Calgary. North on Highway 22. East on Township Road 274. North on Range Road 40 for 2Klms. The driveway is on the East Side of Range Road 40.
- Included: Dishwasher-Built-In, Dryer, Garage Control, Garage Opener, Hood Fan, Oven-Built-In, Refrigerator, Storage Shed, Stove-Countertop Electric, Stove-Electric, Vacuum System Attachments, Vacuum System(s), Washer, Window Coverings-All
- Bedrooms: 3 (Bedrooms Above: 1)
- Bathrooms: Full: 3 / Half: 3
- Rooms Above Grade: 11
- Basement: Walkout/Walk Up, Fully Finished
- Floor Finish: Carpet, Ceramic Tile, Hardwood
- Exterior Features: Estate Property, Fenced, Golf Nearby, Landscaped, Private Setting, Rolling Land, Schools, Shopping Nearby, View Mountain
- Exterior Finish: Fiber Cement Siding, Stone
- Foundation: Concrete
- Roof: Asphalt Shingles
- Front Exposure: East
Main Floor Room Dimensions
- Sun Room: 3.15m x 3.43m
- Recreation Room: 8.43m x 7.14m
- Office: 3.25m x 3.58m
- Office: 3.05m x 3.58m
- Master Bedroom: 6.63m x 5.89m
- Living Room: 3.91m x 4.65m
- Laundry Room: 2.87m x 2.51m
- Kitchen: 4.60m x 3.23m
- Kitchen: 3.81m x 4.85m
- Dining Room: 4.06m x 6.81m
- Den: 6.27m x 5.61m
- Utility Room: 4.95m x 5.41m
- Storage Room: 6.40m x 2.34m
- Recreation Room: 7.54m x 6.96m
- Other: 3.78m x 4.24m
- Media Room: 3.94m x 5.03m
- Bedroom: 3.96m x 3.07m
- Bedroom: 3.45m x 4.17m
services & amenities
- Features: Deck, Fire Pit, Greenhouse, Tankless Hot Water, Insulation-Upgraded, No Smoking Home, Patio, Programmable Thermostat, Sauna, Vaulted Ceiling, Wall Unit-Built-In, Workshop
- Parking: Triple Garage Attached, Insulated, Heated, RV Parking, Shop
- Heating: Forced Air-1,In Floor Heat System
Registration Benefits
By Creating an Account You'll Access:
- More Rural Rocky View County Listings Browse through every listing in the MLS® System and do as many different searches as you like!
- Days on Market & Financial Info See protected details including Days on Market, Taxes, Condo Fees, Possession Dates, and more!
- Save Your Favorites Star favorite listings, add personal notes, and save custom searches you use frequently!
- Real Time Email Notifications Opt in to receive emails when new properties are listed that match your saved searches!


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Addiction is an obsession or compulsion for something, which lowers the survival of the individual and in some cases will ruin the individual's life or even kill the person. Addiction can be a physical and psychological dependence such as, drugs, alcohol, and medication. It is usually associated with the use of substances, but is applied to compulsions that are not related to a substance used such as, gambling problems, computer addiction, etc. With these common usages, the term addiction is used to describe a recurring compulsion by someone to engage in some specific activity, despite harmful effects to the individual's health, mental state or social life.
The word "addiction" comes from the latin "addicere" which means to give consent or agreement, it means one has given consent to be overpowered.
Therefore, this means one who is addicted has given consent to it. He has agreed to give it power over himself. He has elected the object of his addiction to run his life. It is a decision that was made by the person himself.
(Reference: Webster New World Dictionary and Thesaurus. )
This is an interesting point as a lot of materials written on the subject place the cause for addiction on various "reasons" such as a bad.
- Childhood
- genetic blueprint
- Post-Traumatic distress
- character flaw
- mental illness
- a disease
And so on. All of these factors and more can be seen to be present in an addicted person. They can also be seen to be present in a non addicted person. However, certainly, where present, these factors would all lead to a less than ideal life or lifestyle and to achieve happiness, these factors all warrant a thorough resolution.
However, addiction, in its definition, means having given consent to or agreement to be overpowered by, or having given consent to being controlled by the object of addiction.
This is an important point that can be overlooked in treatment of addiction.
Often a treatment program gives a person a chance to address and resolve many painful and troubling issues that would be otherwise just ignored or suppressed. This is a very good thing. It can lead to a great deal of relief and lead to a better life and happier existence. However, if an "addiction treatment" program fails to handle the actual cause of addiction, per the definition, it will leave the person still under the power of his own prior decision, which was when he gave consent to being overpowered. Make sure the treatment program you choose actually handles "addiction" - which means the decisional capability of the person needs to be fully restored. If that does not happen, the original decision stays in place, and hence you have "relapses" and "failures to recover." A failure to recover or a relapse, just means that the person was not brought up to the realization and understanding of his own power of decision and consent - that is what needs to be rehabilitated. There are many ways to do this. However, it is the one thing that will is key to the whole subject, as that is the anatomy of addiction.
Talk to one of our counsellors about this very important aspect – it is one that gets overlooked from time to time.


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Appcelerator Acquires Particle Code To Enhance HTML5 Mobile Development
Desktop-as-a-Service Designed for Any Cloud ? Nutanix Frame
This week Appcelerator announced the acquisition of Particle Code, a mobile gaming and HTML5 development platform. By including features from Particle Code within its Titanium development platform, Appcelerator will be able to provide more services for HTML5 mobile developers.
The Titanium development platform already allows the creation of Android and iOS apps and supports HTML5 mobile functionality. The new features from Particle Code will be added to Titanium in the latter half of 2012. As the vice president of marketing at Appcelerator, Scott Schwarzhoff, put it, "Additional gaming application development capabilities come with the acquisition, due to the nature of Particle Code's technology, but our focus is on unifying the native application development and the HTML5 mobile Web development."
The CEO of Appcelerator, Jeff Haynie, also commented about the acquisition, stating that "As fragmentation among proprietary mobile vendors increases, Appcelerator offers an open-source, integrated mobile platform as a better approach for unifying cross-platform native and HTML5 mobile Web development."
Read the original article here.
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I first joined AFCOOP (the Atlantic Filmmakers Cooperative) in 1999 shortly after moving to Halifax. I never went to film school so AFCOOP became more of an alma matter to me than any school, college, or university that I ever attended. I had studied and practiced photography since I was 14, and had shot a few in camera super 8 films before moving to Halifax, but AFCOOP is really where I cut my filmmaking teeth. They had a great workshop series on weeknights: $25 for a 4 hour workshop from 6 - 10 pm. You could pick and choose whatever workshops interested you, and if you signed up for 4, you got the 5fth free. So every season I would pick and choose 5 workshops fitting what I wanted to explore. From storyboarding, to camera operation, optical printing, editing on the steenbeck, sound recording etc. As a member I could also rent gear at discounted rates, so I would rent cameras and facilities for my projects, and process the film in my darkroom at home. They also had open grants four times a year through which members could apply for up to $3000 in funding to help cover the costs of film stock, lab fees, shipping, and other expenses related to making films. So it was in that period from 1999 - 2004 when I really started making films, just by taking workshops as I needed them, renting gear, working on other people's films, and making friends who were also making films. I made some good friends, saw a lot of films, learned a lot, and experimented a lot. During that period, they had a lot of committtees, and I served on the newsletter committee (writing and editing for Workprint, the hard copy quarterly newsletter that got mailed out to members), the education committee, the finance committee and the board of directors.
I had actually been the chair of the board of directors in 2004 for AFCOOP's 30th anniversary when we produced a documenatary about the history of the co-op. That was the year I moved away to Vancouver. Even while living in Vancouver, I made a point of continuing to volunteer for AFCOOP from the other side of the country, writing letters of support, proof reading documents, planning screenings and workshops. I would travel back every summer to teach workshops and participate in a few events. Even when I lived in Amsterdam, I returned to Halifax in the summer to teach a workshop and participate as a mentor in the Frame X program. After returning to Canada and settling in New Brunswick, I continue to rent equipment and facilities from AFCOOP for my films, travelling regularly to Halifax for equipment and facilities. In 2010 I was voted in as a lifetime member.
However, somehow I feel more disconnected from the Co-op these days, even moreso than I did when living in Vancouver and Amsterdam. Perhaps there are less opportunities to volunteer from afar now that the Workprint is no longer produced. Perhaps it simply has to do with time and turn-over of staff and members, in that the people I was close to and friends with when I lived in Halifax have moved on. Perhaps it has more to do with me settling into my own practice and focusing on my own work and not reaching out enough to develop and maintain relationships with the new crew of people who have stepped in. It can't be the geographic distance, since I am even closer now than I was before, but I feel further away. Who's to say. Whatever the reason, time passes and people and things move on, but AFCOOP still holds a very near and dear place to my heart. As such I was deeply touched and flattered to be included in AFCOOP's 40th anniversary retrospective screening that was presented at HIFF (Halifax Independent Filmmakers Festival) on June 6 this year.
AFCOOP played a major role in my history as a filmmaker so it means a lot to for me to be considered as a part of their history.


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New Workflow Helps Grow by More Than 600% in 12 Months
iHeart Studios
RunMyProcess has provided iHeart Studios with a competitive advantage in the industry ... and is supporting continuous improvement across all processes leading to greater efficiencies
Sjors Bos, General Manager
Human Centric Innovation
- Simplicity of the technology makes it easy for new user adoption without substantial training cycles
- Status of received items is visible in the application, ensuring full transparency of the process
- RunMyProcess(*1), the cloud integration platform, connecting a wide range of cloud services
Business process transformation in response to rapid business growth
iHeart Studios is a rapidly expanding digital content studio based in London, with a strong ambition of becoming the biggest photography studio in the UK. Since 2008, iHeart Studios has been working with top retailers to supply highquality creative visual content. With its expansion, iHeart Studios was looking for a way to manage and organize their workflow. All work was done manually with little technology involved. The teams would receive boxes of clothing items from multiple clients, enter data on each item into a Google spreadsheet, and then organize photo shoots according to clothing rails.
Using spreadsheets to record item information didn't give the clients enough visibility of where their items were within the photo shoot process. The lack of a connected system complicated the process management, leading to errors when managing rails, extra re-shoots, and higher costs. The studio needed a unified way to manage its entire business workflow, from the arrival of the clothes to photography, retouching, and returning the customers' items.
All workflow solutions iHeart Studios considered were either too costly or couldn't provide the required level of customization for their specific processes. In 2012, iHeart Studios approached twenty26, process automation and integration consultancy firm, for a workflow solution, who advised a RunMyProcess business process management application.
Introduction of a new platform that support and visualize the entire business process
iHeart Studios worked closely with twenty26 to develop and integrate a RunMyProcess application that would manage the entire business process and lead-to-cash workflow, from an initial sales enquiry to sending a final invoice to the client.
The RunMyProcess-based application uses Salesforce as the primary information system. Because all information on the project is stored in a single source, it simplifies the project management task for iHeart Studios. The teams can also monitor all Key Performance Indicators at all time thanks to real-time dashboards.
The application allows the team to identify and classify damaged or missing objects, as well as create records for items that were not originally listed in the "Collection report". The application also notifies the staffs if the received item has already been photo shot for the client. This helps the team save time, as no double shots are made, and save costs for the clients who don't have to pay twice for the same shots.
iHeart Studios is very satisfied with the developed application. "RunMyProcess has enabled iHeart Studios to get full end-to-end managed processes and business transparency, which adds value to the core product and ensures our client base with security and confidence on the management of their products and the completeness of their jobs", shares Sjors Bos, the General Manager of iHeart Studios.
Thanks to this automated business process, iHeart Studios is now able to process a larger amount of orders, growing by more than 600% in 12 months, without major disruption in the business processes. To respond to rising demand, iHeart Studios also increased their user base: growing from 12 to 102 employees in 6 months. "Simplicity of the technology makes it easy for new user adoption without substantial training cycles ", explains Bos.
Evolving the system to run the process like a continuous production line
At the moment iHeart Studios is further working with RunMyProcess to develop a new version of the application that is more adapted to the needs of this rapidly expanding business.
The arrival of new clients, including luxury London department stores, large high street fashion retail chains and premium fashion & sports brands, that send 1,000+ items for photo shoot daily, forces iHeart Studios to evolve their business model, becoming less job specific and more like a continuous production line. The release of an updated application is planned for the start of 2014.
*1 RunMyProcess:
Fujitsu's cloud integration platform PaaS which provides more than 2,400 available connecters from SaaS and other applications.
(Please see P.24 of "Fujitsu Technology and Service Vision Main Booklet")
Services, Products and Solutions
Customer Profile
|London, United Kingdom
|No. of employees
[ Published in 2014 ]
Technical data subject to modification and delivery subject to availability. Any liability that the data and illustrations are complete, actual or correct is excluded. Designations may be trademarks and/or copyrights of the respective manufacturer, the use of which by third parties for their own purposes may infringe the rights of such owner.
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Bringing world-famous online games to users much faster with a new delivery platform
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New Workflow Helps Grow by More Than 600% in 12 Months
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The Formax FD 382 Automatic Folder offers quick, easy set-up, and exceptionally fast folding with speeds up to 20,100 pieces per hour! Fully automated fold plates provide one touch setup of the 18 pre-programmed fold settings or for choosing one of the 25 custom folds that can be stored into memory.
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text: Entertainment TV & Film A Buyer's Guide to Wi-Fi Internet Radio Receivers Share PINTEREST Email Print Entertainment TV Shows Movies by Corey Deitz Former Lifewire writer Corey Deitz is a veteran radio broadcaster, voiceover artist, and author with more than 25 years of broadcasting experience. Updated May 11, 2019 01 of 10 Aluratek Internet Radio Alarm Clock with Built-in Wi-Fi Aluratek Wi-Fi Internet Radio. Photo Credit: © Aluratek This Wi-Fi radio connects to either a wireless or wired internet connection to access 11,000 radio stations. The Aluratek includes a built-in FM tuner, access MP3, WMA, WAV from a USB flash drive, alarm clock with 2 programmable alarms, and integrated amplifier. MSRP: $159.99 Compare Prices: Aluratek Internet Radio Learn More: Read my Full Review. 02 of 10 COM ONE Phoenix Wi-Fi Radio Phoenix Wi-Fi Radio from Com One. Photo Credit: © Com One The Phoenix requires a Wi-Fi gateway or wireless router and features a preloaded menu listing audio by genre, country, state, and city, online radio stations programmable online via drag-and-drop database, alarm clock with snooze and sleep functions, eight preset radio station buttons and search mode, and integrated stereo speakers. It also allows the user to listen to MP3, ASF, WMA, PCM/WAV, Real Audio MSRP MSRP: $249.00 Compare Prices: Phoenix Wi-Fi Radio 03 of 10 IntelliTouch Grace Wi-Fi Radio IntelliTouch Grace Wi-Fi Radio. Photo Credit: © IntelliTouch The IntelliTouch streams Internet Radio in conjunction with your Wi-Fi router, is Pandora-compatible, and plays MP3, WMA, WAV, ACC, and AIFF files. MSRP: $199.00 Compare Prices: IntelliTouch Grace Wi-Fi Radio 04 of 10 Roku R1000 SoundBridge Radio Wi-Fi Music System Roku R1000 SoundBridge Wi-Fi Radio. Photo Credit: © Roku As with other radios in this class, the Roku only requires a router and broadband connection. It also features AM/FM, plays any music stored on your computer, dual alarms, easy-to-read display, SD memory card slot, stereo speakers, and lets you search your MP3 collection. MSRP: $329.00 Compare Prices: Roku R1000 SoundBridge Radio 05 of 10 Sangean WFR-20 Wi-Fi Radio Sangean WFR-20 Wi-Fi Internet Radio. Photo Credit: © Sangean The Sangean product boasts access to 6,000 Internet stations, plays MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, AIFF, FLAC, Real Audio and AU files, has 12 station presets, 4 alarm timers, a sleep timer, easy-to-read display, and remote control. MSRP: $290.00 Compare Prices: Sangean WFR-20 Wi-Fi Radio 06 of 10 cubo elements W cubo elements WiFi Internet Radio by Sonoro. Photo Credit: © Sonoro the cubo is an Internet and FM radio that offers access to over 13,000 Internet radio stations. Users can search by genre, such as "Jazz" or "Hip-hop" or by geography, such as "Argentina" or "Japan". The radio streams music from any WiFi network in the home of office. Available through Saks and other retailers for about $399.00 07 of 10 Sonos Multi-Room Music System (BU150) Sonos Multi-Room Music System (BU150). Photo Credit: © SONOS The Sonos wireless multi-room music system offers both subscription-based services (Napster, Rhapsody and SIRIUS) and free music services like Last.fm, Pandora and Sonos Radio. (Direct Link) All of these services stream music directly from the Internet. Sonos' Radio guide, powered by RadioTime, lets you tune in to more than 15,000 free Internet radio stations. MSRP: $999.00 08 of 10 Acoustic Research Infinite ARIR200 Wi-Fi Internet Radio Acoustic Research Infinite Wi-Fi ARIR200 Internet Radio. Photo Credit: © Acoustic Research Listen to Slacker radio, Internet radio, MP3tunes, AM/FM radio stations, weather forecasts from WeatherBug and music stored on the internal memory or a USB device. 24 presets Free instant weather updates with continuous emergency weather alerts and instant text-to-speech conversion from six synthesized voices Built-in memory to record live radio for up to 10 hours (AM, FM, or Internet source Stereo speakers Clock radio and alarm clock functionality, including adjustable sleep options and the ability to wake up to multiple audio sources Bright and adjustable LCD that shows five lines of text Price: $129.99 MSRP 09 of 10 Grace Wireless Internet Radio Grace Wireless Internet Radio. Photo Credit: © Grace Digital Audio Listen directly from your wireless router without your PC or MAC Includes free Pandora streaming. Supports Real Audio, MP3, WMA, WAV, AAC and AIFF formats MSRP: $199.00 10 of 10 Ira Wireless Internet Radio Ira Wireless Internet Radio from Myine Electronics. Photo Credit: © Myine Electronics Myine Electronics, makers of the Ira Wireless Internet Radio, are very excited about their product because as they told me: "The best thing about this product is that it eliminates the hassle and confusion that comes from some consumer electronics. So many products have too many features to count, which can make it difficult to set up and operate. " The Ira Wireless Internet Radio brings thousands of Internet stations to the user, you can hook it up to any sound system and it's compact: 2x6x3. Users can filter by location or genre to find Internet radio stations and you don't need a computer as part of the procedure. It's easy to get up and going: the company says it has a 3-minute first-time auto setup. Suggested retail price is $149.99. Continue Reading


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Home Page > Insulation > Polyisocyanurate Roof Insulation
Polyisocyanurate is one the most efficient and high performance insulation materials available for loft conversions and is becoming more and more popular with builders.
This material is most commonly supplied as foil faced rigid boards.
Supplied in a variety of thicknesses from 20mm up to 100mm and sized 2400 x 1200mm these boards can be used in both pitch and flat roofs as well as for wall insulation.
Polyisocyanurate (PIR) is one of the three most common multi-use rigid insulation boards along with phenolic foam (PF) and polyurethane (PUR) but is a more fire resistant material than its competitors.
The fire safety aspect of polyisocyanurate insulation material is hugely important for loft conversions.
With the building regulations so rigid when it comes to fire resistance the reduced combustibility of PIR makes it very attractive to planners and builders.
Although polyisocyanurate roof insulation is made in a similar way to polyurethane and, although the same elements are used in the manufacture of the two products, the higher intensity of materials used in polyisocyanurate gives it greater fire resistance and forms less smoke.
The material uses a blowing agent, often pentane, which expands the foam and enhances the thermal resistance of the insulation.
The performance of insulation material can be measure by its conductivity value.
And foil faced polyisocyanurate has the best (lowest) figure.
Typical values are:
Foil faced polyisocyanurate 0.017
Foil faced phenolic 0.021
Foil faced polyurethane 0.021
The great benefit to builders and planners in using multi-use rigid insulation boards such as foil faced polyisocyanurate is that only half the thickness is needed compared to other more traditional boards such as expanded polystyrene which has a conductivity value of 0.033.
For more info see the related pages below
So - What Is The Best Loft Insulation?
The Loose Fill Alternative To Polyisocyanurate Roof Insulation
The Cheapest Materials Aren't Always The Best
Get A FREE No Obligation Loft Conversion Quote From Local Builders
Attic Stairs For Your Loft Conversion A Brief Overview
When looking for the best loft insulation it should be remembered that most loft conversions involve upgrading the existing roof
Steel And Timber Beams For Loft Conversions What You Need To Know If Your Are Converting Your Loft


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Home >>> Oil for engine >>> Mitsubishi
Recommended Type of Engine Oil for Mitsubishi Cars. How Much Do You Need
Below shows type of oil for engine and capacity which you should use for Mitsubishi by models. Please select your model from the list.
3000 GT ASX Carisma Colt FTO Galant Grandis i Lancer Outlander Pajero Pajero Pinin Pajero Sport Sigma Space Runner Space Star Space Wagon Eclipse Space Gear Cordia Sapporo Starion Tredia L200 Challenger L 300 Airtrek Delica Libero RVR


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Over its 15 years of establishment, Athens Underground has developed a world within the borders of Athens, Ohio. The vintage store is filled with historic objects and ephemera from the fashion world's past, all placed inside its small, tavern-style build.
The shop, as the name implies, is located 10 feet below the concrete surface on the north end of Court Street near Ohio University campus. The storefront, reminiscent of a New York City alley, is plastered with university-wide event fliers and price tags between 50 cents to $1.50. The narrow passage leads to a small, mahogany brown door draped with a "We're Open" sign across its center.
Once inside, an emporium of vintage and antique pieces stretch from Athens Underground's far corners and worn coffee-colored hardwood floors. The store's displays are split into two separate rooms. The first room, centered near its doorway, is filled with sunglasses, thickly-knitted wool sweaters and plastic-wrapped vinyl records organized by genre in record slots. The second room has a selection of tailored men's suit jackets, trench coats and women's sequin cocktail dresses, flower hats and prom gowns.
There, Barbara Stout stands in her cuffed jeans, boot socks, one-strap sandals and thick flannel top with the collar stylishly flipped upward. Her thin-framed glasses slip from the clutches of her shortened-brown hair as she frantically combs through a rack full of similarly styled flannel T-shirts with her right hand, while holding six hangers of wool Christmas sweaters in her left as she prepares for the winter to come. In her own right, she's a local fixture herself.
Yes, Stout is the owner of Athens Underground and, at 65 years old, her 40-plus years of experience in vintage clothing signifies something different. Stout's representative of the lifestyle. In fact, she thinks of herself as a high-end recycler.
Rather than allow valuable pieces of antique collectibles and items disappear into oblivion, Stout refurbishes them, washes them and steams them — three or four times over — in hopes of repurposing them. She wants people to see the same value she envisioned when vetting through the hundreds of thrift stores and shops in a year's time to find them.
For Stout, this is routine. She's been entrenched in the art of vintage clothing since she was 10 years old. Then, she'd scour out 50 cent Nancy Drew books — $1 if they were new — at local thrift stores when her family lived in Columbus. And in high school, she'd search through her grandmother's closet to try on Great Gatsby-stylized nylon dresses and circle skirts from her grandmother's past.
Back then, it was merely an extension of her interests in fashion, but one that would carry into adulthood. When she arrived at Ohio University, she worked at the film department's costume shop through most of her four years. And after completing a degree in theater, Stout decided to pursue a career in New York City (NYC). Upon her arrival, she quickly realized it wasn't her calling — a reason Stout declined to name.
Instead, Stout began selling vintage clothes before, by her account, it was even considered "vintage." She got her start exchanging old lingerie she'd found, dyed, ironed and displayed for purchase in NYC subways during rush hour. Then, Stout began selling large quantities of items to more established retailers, which she refurbished from various thrift stores and antique shops in the city.
Eventually, she opened her own antique store, gaining moderate success during its operation. However, after 20 years of living in NYC, Stout decided to go back to Athens. Rather than compete in the oversaturated market in NYC, where there's two-to-three vintage stores on every block, she wanted to re-establish in a location void of neighboring competitors.
Upon her return to Athens, Stout landed a job at the former clothing shop, "Second Hand Rose." There, she worked as a sales representative while maintaining her shop in NYC. But when the owner decided to forgo the lease of the property in 2002, Stout stepped in and took over the store's ownership, establishing a new business model and look to the shop.
Stout decided to reduce the display size, creating a more intimate feel, and shift the store's look from a sloppy, thrift-store like appearance to a more orderly setting and renamed it "Athens Underground."
Since the store's opening in 2003, it's become a cultural axis for many OU students. They gravitate toward the rarity of the store's antiques and collectibles, which Stout said she picked up from various suppliers and locations on her travels.
Beyond students' interest, the store has also garnered clientele outside of the city's barriers. Stout attributes the store's expansion to its reputable operations and orderly look.
"I think it's because we're clean," she says. "We're cleaner than any thrift store. We have customers that come from Marietta and Meigs County because there aren't big stores like this where you can get this kind of selection."
Beyond Athens Underground's visual appeal, much of its draw are from the people. Joe Balding, who works as a sales representative at Athens Underground, said his four months of experience working in the shop have been great. Three days out of the week, Balding, who's since retired from his previous profession, spends his time interacting with Stout and watches her attend to customers and other workers, creating a family-like environment.
"Barb," he affectionately calls her, "[she's] very easy to work for. She explains procedures clearly and is patient with new workers such as myself. I enjoy working with her a lot."
However, despite much of the store's past success, its sales have gradually declined in the last 10 years, especially during the city's biggest event: "HallOUween Weekend." Aside from a few high-priced transactions, mainly vinyl records and prom dresses, Athens Underground has struggled.
Since 2007, Stout said the store's sales have dropped nearly 80 percent. She attributes the store's decline to the expansion of the Internet, as the transactions of vintage products have become easier and more accessible to a larger consumer base.
"I think Halloween may have peaked," she says. "But beyond that, the rise of the internet, the difference in economy and I don't think people are quite as into it [in-store purchases]."
Though the Internet has contributed to Athens Underground's drop in sales, many students also attribute the decline to the store's "high" priced selection of vintage pieces. Amber Grigley, a senior studying microbiology and environmental health, believes the prices of Athens Underground's items have hindered people's interest.
"They're personally too high for me," Grigley says. "I feel like you could get small pieces like jewelry or a patch for a reasonable price, but the actual clothes are pretty pricey. I personally don't think the shop is trying to cater toward the typical college student's shopping habits or needs."
Stout denounced this notion, insisting that the prices fairly reflect her efforts. Stout's not only bought all the items she sells — aside from a few donations — but the process each of them undergo is a high cost, especially for clothing.
By the year's end, Stout says she goes through 25 gallons of soap and writes off her water bill expenses on her taxes because of the volume needed to cleanse the material. But perhaps the biggest mistake students make, she says, is comparing Athens Underground's prices to the city's thrift stores.
"We are not a thrift store," Stout says as the glasses from her head begin to slip and her voice grows louder. "I clean my stuff; I curate my stuff. Most stores aren't curated. For an antique store, our prices are very reasonable. They don't do the things that I do."
Despite Stout's denial, it's evident: These issues have affected Athens Underground's business. As a result, Stout has been forced to reshape the store's business model, focusing on modernizing the shop like so many other Athens businesses have done. So far, she's shortened the sales display to draw customers toward other sections of the store and, surprisingly, she's decided to reduce the prices of items. Stout has even began selling items online to accommodate for the absence of in-store purchases.
"We're transitioning," Stout says. "Probably more space being occupied by books and records and CDs. You have to pay attention to what's selling [and] what's not. If it's not [selling], mark it down."
Despite the pitfalls that have amassed the past decade, Stout has remained optimistic. Through her 40 years in the business, she's seen all the shifts in the market. For her, the satisfaction rests on the journey, the fabric in every piece. Not the material itself but the stories attributed to each item.
These valuables, in the eyes of most explorers, are overvalued. But with each piece, Stout says, there's a historical or chronological value that transcends beyond the numbers on the paper-made tag. These items are representative of her vision, one that's centered on the importance of yesteryear. Just like the clothes she collects, the experiences she's gone through have made her who she is. She wears them on her sleeve, stylishly.
When Stout's going through the former belongings of the recently deceased, she is exploring a home filled with other's experiences. Of course, she insists that the family collects the valuables they want first before she enters through the vacancy to find a few of her own. These moments are the most peaceful for her, as it brings back memories from her childhood.
Yes, Stout may find a few items she thinks are worth obtaining. But even the ones she doesn't think are fit for her store, she takes too. She places them in trash bags, carries them to her pickup truck and donates them to various thrift stores and shops she knows will value them. As a self-described "high-end recycler," she doesn't want these memories to be lost.


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So, when we last saw our hero he was looking pretty toon but he wasn't very mobile. Well, that's about to change!
For his first adventure as a "living" character I decided he should revisit the original logo but with a little story leading up to the static image. First things first: let's have him emerge from the water, Rambo style (but with a smile)!
That sequence presented a problem: he's holding a glass of beer. How would that survive being submerged? Easy answer: it wasn't! CGI and animation are magic already, so it was a no-brainer to have him work a little hocus pocus to fill that empty hand. The nail in his other hand made for a perfect magic wand; et voila:
Bonus content! Here's a "Beer Cam" shot from when I was working a detail camera while tweaking the surfacing materials for the glass and the beer:
And this is the hot mess my computer screens look like when I'm hard at work:
The top left window is in "VPR" mode, which gives me a real-time always-refreshing render's eye view of what the currently-active camera is seeing. Very useful to get real-time feedback when tweaking surface materials and lights. The other two are currently in perspective mode, which is the standard fly-around god's-eye view. I use the lower left one mainly to zoom in for grabbing controllers and seeing stuff close in, while the larger window on the right gives me perspective for the whole scene. The inset window is actually from my second screen and is currently displaying the graph editor for the curves controlling the left wrist (of the hand holding the nail). Every object in motion has curves defining every translation, rotation and scaling change in three dimensions, and for those motions to occur as desired these curves often need lots of tweaking of the slopes as they enter and leave key frames. You still remember doing derivatives from school, right?
Today a friend remarked that the image looks just like a movie sound stage, to which I replied, "You bet!" This work requires set dressing, lighting and camera work comparable to what they do for live shoots; the main difference is my equipment is all virtual and I never have to deal with meat puppets going all diva on the director (me).
Spinland Studios, LLC is a high-tech branding and marketing studio in the Mohawk Valley of Upstate New York. We leverage the power and magic of 3D modeling and animation to take your company's image places you can only imagine—for a lot less than you'd think. Defy conventional marketing and bring your brand to life! Visit www.spinland.studio for more information and examples—then hire us to boost your company's marketing image into the 21st century!


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Right of Death
Game Called Murder
Book 2:
Oscar Wilde and The Ring of Death
(title in UK)
Oscar Wilde and A Game Called Murder (title in USA)
Book Description
| Excerpt
| Reading Group
Guide | Q
& A with Gyles
Chapter One
The Fortune Teller
It was Sunday May 1, 1892, a cold day, as I remember.
And I do remember. (And if I did not, I have my journal at my side
to remind me.) The day was cold, though the sun was bright. I recall
in particular the way in which a brilliant shaft of afternoon sunlight
filtered through the first-floor front window of Number 16 Tite
Street, Chelsea – the London home of Oscar and Constance Wilde
– and perfectly illuminated two figures sitting close together
at a small window table, apparently holding hands.
One was a woman, a widow, in her early forties, with
a pleasing figure, well-held, and a narrow, kindly face –
a little lined, but not care-worn – and large, knowing eyes.
She was dressed all in black silk and on her head, which she held
high, she wore a turban of black velvet featuring a single, startling,
silver and turquoise peacock's feather. The colour of the
feather matched the colour of her hair.
The other figure seated at the table was quite as
striking. He was a large man, aged thirty-seven, tall, over-fleshed,
with a fine head of thick deep-chestnut hair, large, slightly drooping
eyes, and full lips that opened to reveal a wide mouth crowded with
ungainly teeth. His skin was pale and pasty, blotched with freckles.
He was dressed in a sand-coloured linen suit of his own design.
At his neck, he sported a loose-fitting linen tie of Lincoln green
and, in his buttonhole, a fresh amaryllis, the colour of coral.
The woman was Mrs Robinson, clairvoyant to the Prince
of Wales among others. The man was Oscar Wilde, poet and playwright,
and literary sensation of the age.
Slowly, with gloved fingers, Mrs Robinson caressed
Oscar Wilde's right hand. Repeatedly, she brushed the side
of her little finger across his palm. With her right thumb and forefinger
she took each of his fingers in turn and, gently, pulled it straight.
For a long while, she gazed intently at his open hand, saying nothing.
Eventually, she lifted his palm to her cheek and held it there.
She sighed and closed her eyes and whispered, 'I see a sudden
death in this unhappy hand. A cruel death, unexpected and unnatural.
Is it murder? Is it suicide?'
'Or is it the palmist trying to earn her guinea
by adding a touch of melodrama to her reading?' Oscar withdrew
his hand from Mrs Robinson's tender grasp and slapped it on
the table, with a barking laugh.
'You go too far, dear lady,' he exclaimed.
'This is a tea party and the Thane of Cawdor is not expected.
There are children present. You are here to entertain the guests,
Mrs Robinson, not terrify them.'
Mrs Robinson tilted her bird-like head to one side
and smiled. 'I see what I see,' she said, without rancour.
Oscar was smiling also. He turned from the table and
looked beyond the pool of sunlight to a young man of military bearing
who was standing alone, a yard away, observing the scene. 'Come
to my rescue, Arthur,' he called. 'Mrs Robinson has
seen "a sudden death" in my "unhappy hand".
You're a medical man. I need a second opinion.'
Arthur Conan Doyle was then three weeks away from
his thirty-third birthday and already something of a national hero.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes was one of the most popular books
in the land. Doyle himself, in appearance, was more Watson than
Holmes. He was a handsome fellow, sturdy and broad-shouldered, with
a hearty handshake, beady eyes and a genial smile that he kept hidden
beneath a formidable walrus moustache. He was the best of men, and
a true friend to Oscar, in good times and bad.
'I'm no longer practising medicine, Oscar,
as you know,' he said, moving towards the window table, 'but
if you want my honest opinion, you should steer well clear of this
kind of tomfoolery. It can be dangerous. It leads you know not where.'
He bowed a little stiffly towards Mrs Robinson. 'No offence
intended, Madam,' he said.
'None taken,' she replied, graciously.
'The creator of Sherlock Holmes can do no wrong in my eyes.'
Doyle's cheeks turned scarlet. He blushed readily.
'You are too kind,' he mumbled awkwardly.
'You are too ridiculous, Arthur. Pay no attention
to him, Mrs R. He's all over the place. I'm not surprised.
He's moved to South Norwood – wherever that may be.'
'It's not far,' Doyle protested.
'It's a world away, Arthur, and you know
it. That's why you were late.'
'I was late because I was completing something.'
'Your sculpture. Yes, I know. Sculpture is your
new enthusiasm.'
Conan Doyle stood back from the table. 'How
do you know that?' he exclaimed. 'I have mentioned it
to no one – to no one at all.'
'Oh come now, Arthur,' said Oscar, getting
to his feet, smiling and inclining his head to Mrs Robinson as he
left the table. 'I heard you telling my wife about the spacious
hut at the end of your new garden and the happy hours you are intending
to spend there, "in the cold and the damp". Only a sculptor
loves a cold, damp room: it's ideal for keeping his clay moist.'
'You amaze me, Oscar.'
'Mrs Robinson would have uncovered your secret
too – by the simple expedient of examining your fingernails.
Look at them, Arthur. They give the whole game away!'
'You are extraordinary, Oscar. I marvel at you.
You know that I plan to include you in one of my stories –
as Sherlock Holmes's older brother.'
'Yes, you have told me – he is to be obese
and indolent, as I recall. I'm flattered.'
Conan Doyle laughed and slapped Oscar on the shoulder
with disconcerting force. 'I'm glad I came to your party,
my friend,' he said, '– despite the company you
'It is not my party, Arthur. It is Constance's
party. The guests are all alarmingly respectable and the cause is
undeniably just.'
The party – for about forty guests, men, women
and children – was a fund-raiser in aid of one of Constance
Wilde's favourite charities, the Rational Dress Society. The
organisation, inspired by the example of Amelia Bloomer in the United
States, was dedicated to promoting fashions for women that did not
'deform the body or endanger it'. The Society believed
that no woman should be forced to endure the discomfort and risk-to-health
of overly tight-laced and restrictive corsetry nor be obliged to
wear, in total, more than seven pounds of undergarments. Constance
spoke poignantly of the plight of so many women – scores of
them each year: young and old, serving girls and ladies of rank
– who were either maimed or burned to death when their voluminous
skirts, petticoats and underpinnings accidentally caught on a candle
or brushed by a hearth and were set alight.
Oscar and Arthur stood together looking about the
room. Conan Doyle leant forward, resting his hands on the back of
one of the Wildes' black-and-white bamboo chairs. 'The
cause is indeed a good one,' he said. 'Rest assured:
I have subscribed.' He smiled at Oscar, adding, 'I remain
to be convinced, however, about the complete respectability of the
guests. For example, who are those two?' He nodded towards
the piano.
'Ah,' said Oscar, 'Miss Bradley
and Miss Cooper.'
'They look like chimney-sweeps.'
'Yes,' said Oscar, squinting at the ladies.
'They do appear to have come en travestie. I think the costumes
are deliberate. They probably wanted to bring us luck. They are
not chimney-sweeps by trade. They are poetesses. Or, rather, I should
say, "they are a poet". They write together, under a
single name. They call themselves "Michael Field".'
'I observed them in the hallway, smoking cigarettes,
and kissing one another, upon the lips.'
'Extraordinary,' said Oscar, shaking his
head wanly, 'especially when you consider the amount of influenza
sweeping through Chelsea this spring.'
'And what about the unhealthy-looking gentleman
over there? He has the appearance of a dope-fiend, Oscar.'
'George Daubeney?' exclaimed Oscar. 'The
Hon the Reverend George Daubeney? He's a clergyman, Arthur,
and the son of an earl.'
'Is he now?' replied Doyle, chuckling.
'Why do I recognise the name?'
'It has been in all the papers, alas. The Reverend
George was sued for breach of promise. It was a messy business.
He lost the case and his entire fortune with it.'
'He has a weak mouth,' said Conan Doyle.
'And a stern father who declines to bail him
out, I'm afraid. I like him, however. He is assistant chaplain
at the House of Commons and part-time padre to Astley's Circus
on the south side of Westminster Bridge.'
'No wonder you like him, Oscar! You cannot resist
the improbable.'
Now it was Oscar's turn to chuckle. He touched
Conan Doyle on the elbow and invited his friend to scan the room.
'Look about you, Arthur. You are a man who has seen the world,
the best and worst of it. You have journeyed to the Arctic in a
whaler. You have lived in Southsea out of season. You are familiar
with all types and conditions of men. Consider the assorted individuals
gathered in this drawing-room this afternoon and tell me which one
of them, to you, looks to be the most incontrovertibly "respectable".'
Doyle was entertained by the challenge. He stepped
back and stood, arms akimbo, fists on hips. He pursed his lips and
narrowed his eyes and, slowly, carefully, surveyed the scene before
him. Constance had gathered a motley crowd to her charitable tea
party. 'What precisely am I looking for Oscar?'
'The acme of respectability,' said Oscar.
'The face, the figure, the demeanour, the look that says to
you, "This chap is sound, no doubt about it."'
'Mm,' growled Doyle, taking in the faces
around him, turn by turn. 'They all look a bit doubtful, don't
they?' He looked beyond where the Reverend George Daubeney
and I were standing, to the doorway, where Charles Brooke –
the English Rajah of Sarawak, a particular friend of Constance –
was holding court. 'Brooke has the look of a leader about
him, doesn't he? I know him slightly. He's sound. He's
a gentleman.'
Oscar raised his forefinger and waved it admonishingly.
'No, no, Arthur. Don't tell me about people you already
know. I want you to make a judgment entirely on appearance. Look
about this room and pick out the one person who strikes you as having
about him an air of absolute respectability.'
'I have him!' cried Doyle triumphantly.
'There!' He indicated a sandy-haired young man of medium
build and medium height who was standing with Constance Wilde at
the far end of the room. Constance's older boy, her six-year
old, Cyril, was at her side with his arms clasped around her skirt.
Her younger son, Vyvyan, then four-and-a-half, was seated happily
on the young man's shoulders tugging at his sandy-coloured
'He's your man, Oscar,' said Conan
Doyle. 'He's easy with children – and children
are easy with him. That's a good sign.'
'He is Vyvyan's godfather,' said
'I'm not surprised. You chose well. He
has the air of a thoroughly dependable fellow. What's his
'Edward Heron-Allen,' said Oscar.
'A sound name,' said Conan Doyle, with
'Indeed,' said Oscar, smiling.
'A respectable name.'
'And his profession, Oscar? He's a professional
man - you can tell at a glance.'
'He is a solicitor. And the son of a solicitor.'
'Of course he is. I might have guessed. Look
at his open face – it's a face you can trust. It's
the face of a good-hearted, clean-living, respectable young man.
How old is he? Do you know?'
'About thirty, I imagine.'
'And how old is The Hon the Reverend George
Daubeney, may I ask?'
'About the same, I suppose.'
'But Daubeney,' said Doyle, his eyes darting
from Oscar to Constance, 'looks ten years the older of the
two, does he not? Daubeney's face, I fear, speaks of a life
of dissipation. My man's face speaks of The Great Outdoors.
He has colour in his cheeks. His jaw is clean-cut, his eyes sparkle,
his conscience is clear.'
'My, my, Arthur, you are taken with him.'
Conan Doyle laughed. 'I'm only doing as
you asked, Oscar – judging by appearance. Edward Heron-Allen's
appearance is wholly reassuring. You cannot deny it. Look at his
'The tailoring is unexceptional.'
'Precisely. The man is not a dandy. He is a
gentleman. His suit is sober – it's exactly the sort
of suit you'd expect a solicitor to wear on a Sunday –
and his tie, I think, tells us he went to Harrow.'
'He did indeed,' said Oscar, grinning
broadly, 'and played cricket for the First XI.'
Conan Doyle caught sight of Oscar's wide and
wicked smile and, suddenly, with a clenched fist began to beat his
own forehead. 'Oh, Oscar, Oscar,' he growled ruefully,
'Have I taken your bait? Have I fallen headlong into an elephant
trap? Are you about to reveal to me that my supposed model of respectability
is, in fact, the greatest bounder in the room?'
'No,' said Oscar, lightly, 'Not
at all. But we all have our secrets, Arthur, do we not?'
'What's his? Has he embezzled all his
clients' money?'
'He is in love with Constance.'
'Your wife?'
'My wife.'
Conan Doyle looked concerned. He was a loyal and conscientious
husband. His own young wife, Louisa, known as 'Touie',
was a victim of tuberculosis. Doyle went out and about without her,
but she was never far from his thoughts. Arthur Conan Doyle was
that old-fashioned thing, a man of honour. His marriage vows counted
with him. He tugged at his moustache. 'This fellow, Heron-Allen,
being in love with your wife, Oscar - does it trouble you?'
'No,' said Oscar, 'not at all.'
'And Mrs Wilde?' asked Doyle, 'How
does she feel?'
'It does not trouble Mrs Wilde.' Oscar
smiled. 'Mrs Heron-Allen, however, may find it a touch perturbing.'
'Ah,' said Arthur frowning, 'the
fellow's married, is he? He doesn't look like a married
'I agree with you there, Arthur. He looks totally
care-free, does he not?'
'He looks quite ordinary to me,' said
Conan Doyle. 'That's why I picked him when you started
me off on this absurd game. I shouldn't have indulged you,
'Edward Heron-Allen is anything but ordinary,
Arthur. He cultivates asparagus. He makes violins. He speaks fluent
Persian. And he is a world authority on necrophilia, bestiality,
pederasty, and the trafficking of child prostitutes.'
'Good grief.' Arthur Conan Doyle blanched
and gazed towards Edward Heron-Allen in horror. The young solicitor
was lifting Vyvyan Wilde from his shoulders. He kissed the top of
the boy's head as he lowered him safely to the ground. 'Good
grief,' repeated Conan Doyle.
'I've seated you next to him at dinner,
Arthur. You'll find him fascinating. He's another chiromancer
– like Mrs Robinson. Let him read your palm between courses
and he'll advise you whether to plump for the lamb or the
'I'm speechless, Oscar,' said Conan
Doyle, still staring fixedly in the direction of Edward Heron-Allen
and Constance Wilde. 'I'm quite lost for words.'
'No matter,' said Oscar blithely, 'Heron-Allen
can do the talking. He has a great deal to say and you'll
find all of it's worth hearing.'
'Are you serious, Oscar?' Doyle protested.
'Is that man really joining us for dinner?'
Oscar chuckled. 'Why not? He looks respectable
enough to me. In fact, he's my particular guest tonight. Sherard
is bringing the Hon the Reverend George Daubeney. Who is your guest
to be?'
Conan Doyle was now blowing his nose noisily on a
large, red handkerchief. 'Willie . . . Willie Hornung,'
he said, hesitating to name the name. 'You don't know
him. He's a young journalist, an excellent fellow, one of
the sweetest-natured and most delicate-minded men I ever knew.'
'Hornung . . . Willie Hornung.' Oscar
rolled the name around his mouth, as though it was an unfamiliar
Doyle returned his handkerchief to his pocket and
looked Oscar in the eye. 'Perhaps I should advise Hornung
to stay away. Willie's not what you'd call a man of
the world.'
'Don't be absurd, Arthur. How old is he?'
'I don't know. Twenty-six? Twenty-seven?'
'Keats was dead at twenty-six, Arthur. It'll
do Mr Hornung good to live a little dangerously, take life as he
finds it. It's the possibility of the pearl or the poison
in the oyster that make the prospect of opening it so enticing.
Besides, we have to have him or we'll be thirteen at table.'
'Is Lord Alfred Douglas coming?'
'Bosie? Of course.' Oscar threw his head
back and brushed his hands through his hair. 'Bosie is coming,
very much so. And he's bringing his older brother, Francis
Douglas, Lord Drumlanrig, with him. You'll like Drumlanrig,
Arthur. He's about the same age as your young friend, Hornung,
and sweet-natured, too. I'm all for feasting with panthers,
but it's good to have a few delicate-minded lambs at the trough
as well. One can have too much of a bad thing.' He looked
around the room. 'Where is Bosie? He should be here by now.'
The Wildes' drawing room was beginning to empty.
Katherine Bradley and Edith Cooper, the poetesses dressed as chimney-sweeps,
were standing by the doorway blowing kisses towards Oscar. Miss
Bradley, the taller of the two, had taken a huge bulrush out of
a vase by the fireplace. She called to Oscar: 'I'm stealing
this, dearest one. I hope you don't mind. Moses and Rebecca
Salaman are coming to supper. This will make them feel so at home.'
Oscar nodded obligingly. Charles Brooke, the Rajah of Sarawak, was
handing Constance a cheque and grandiloquently saluting her for
her charitable endeavours on behalf of humankind in general and
the Rational Dress Society in particular. His wife, Margaret, a
plain and patient woman, was pulling at his arm. 'Will he
ever stop talking?' she asked.
'Only if we start listening,' answered
Constance, with a kindly laugh, kissing her friend on the cheek.
'Thank you both for coming. And thank you, Charles, for your
generosity. Every one has been so kind, so good.'
'It's you, Mrs Wilde,' said Edward
Heron-Allen, stepping toward his hostess and lifting her hand to
his lips. 'You inspire us.'
Conan Doyle spluttered into his red handkerchief and
whispered to Oscar, 'The man's intolerable.'
'You inspire our devotion,' Heron-Allen
continued, still holding Constance's hand and looking into
her eyes. 'We love you. It's as simple as that.'
'We love Oscar, too,' said a voice from
the landing, 'But that's more complicated, of course.'
'Ah,' said Oscar, clapping his hands,
'Bosie is upon us.'
Lord Alfred Douglas appeared in the doorway of the
Wildes' drawing-room and held his pose. Bosie was an arrestingly
good-looking boy. I use the word 'boy' advisedly. He
was twenty-one at the time, but he looked no more than a child.
Indeed, he told me that, later that same summer, a society matron
was quite put out when she invited him to her children's tea
party and discovered her mistake. Even at thirty-one, people would
enquire whether he was still at school. Oscar used to say, 'Bosie
contained the very essence of youth. He never lost it. That is why
I loved him.'
Oscar did indeed love Lord Alfred Douglas and made
no bones about it. Slender as a reed, with a well-proportioned face,
gently curling hair the colour of ripe corn and the complexion of
a white peach, Bosie was an Adonis – even Conan Doyle and
I could not deny that. Oscar loved him for his looks. He loved him
for his intellect, also. Bosie had a good mind, a ready wit –
he liked to claim credit for originating some of Oscar's choicest
quips – and a way with words and language that I envied. He
was intelligent, but indolent. He left Oxford without a degree.
(But so did I. And so did Shelley and Swinburne. Bosie's poetry
may not rank alongside theirs, but, nonetheless, the best of it
has stood the test of time.)
Oscar Wilde also loved Lord Alfred Douglas because
of who he was. Though he made wry remarks to suggest otherwise,
Oscar was a snob. He liked a title. He was pleased to be on 'chatting
terms' with the Prince of Wales. He was happy that his acquaintance
encompassed at least a dozen dukes. And he was charmed to find that
Bosie Douglas (with his perfect profile and manners to match) was
the third son of an eighth marquess – albeit a marquess with
a reputation.
Even in 1892, Bosie's father, John Sholto Douglas,
8th Marquess of Queensberry, was notorious. Ill-favoured, squat,
hot-tempered, aggressive, Lord Queensberry was a brute, a bully,
a spendthrift and a womaniser. His one strength was that he was
fearless. His one unsullied claim to fame was that, with a university
friend, John Graham Chambers, he had codified the rules of conduct
for the sport of boxing. He was himself a light-weight boxer of
tenacity and skill. He was also a daring and determined jockey (he
rode his own horses in the Grand National) and a huntsman noted
for ruthlessness in the field. He was said to use his whip with
equal ease on his horses, his dogs and his women. In 1887, Lady
Queensberry, the mother of his five children, divorced him on the
grounds of his adultery.
Bosie despised his father and adored his mother. In
Bosie's eyes, Sybil Queensberry could do no wrong. 'My
father has given me nothing,' he said. 'My mother has
given me everything, including my name.' Lady Queensberry
had called him 'Boysie' when he was a baby. Oscar called
him 'my own dear boy' from the moment they met, early
in the summer of 1891. They became firm friends almost at once.
By the summer of 1892, they were near inseparable. Where Oscar went,
Bosie came too. I liked him. Constance liked him, also. Conan Doyle
had his reservations.
As he stood, posed, in the drawing-room doorway, with
his head thrown to one side, like a martyred saint upon a cross,
Bosie looked straight towards Constance. 'Mrs Wilde,'
he cried, 'Peccavi. I have missed your party and I didn't
want to miss it for the world. Will you forgive me?' From
behind his back he produced a small bunch of primroses tied together
with blue ribbon. He stepped forward and presented them to her.
She kissed him, as she might have done a child, and said, 'What
a sweet thought, Bosie. Thank you. I'm glad you're here.
I'm sure Oscar was getting anxious.'
Bosie, nodding to Edward Heron-Allen, went over to
Oscar and Conan Doyle. George Daubeney and I joined them. 'I
apologise, Oscar,' he said. 'I've had a damnable
afternoon. Arguing about money. With my father. He's been
through £400,000 you know and won't advance me fifty.
The man's a monster. I'd like to murder him.'
Arthur Conan Doyle raised an eyebrow and sucked on
his moustache.
'I mean it,' said Bosie seriously. 'I'd
like to murder him, in cold blood.'
'Well, you can't, Bosie,' said Oscar,
' – leastways, not tonight.'
'Why not?' demanded Bosie petulantly.
'It's Sunday, Bosie,' said Oscar,
'and a gentleman never murders his father on a Sunday. You
should know that. Did they teach you nothing at Winchester? Besides,
it's the first Sunday in the month and we are going to dinner
at the Cadogan. You can't have forgotten, surely?'
Copyright © 2007-2008 by Gyles Brandreth


text:
The gasps and murmuring grew. Though some were hardly more than whispers, clear words reached Jace's ears—dangerous, monster, animal, soulless. He tried to back away from their accusing eyes, but the collar pulled hard against his throat and held him in place.
For all his years as a slave, Jace has known nothing but the hatred people hold for his mixed blood—one half human, the other half the blood of a race considered monsters. Always, he is the outsider and quickly learns it is better to keep to himself. But, when his volatile ryrik blood leads him to do the unthinkable, he is thrown into a world of violence and bloodshed.
Forced to become a gladiator, Jace finds more and more of his heart dying as his master works to break down his will not to become the monster everyone believes he is. When a stranger interferes with his master's harsh punishment, Jace's world is upended yet again. But with it comes the possibility of hope that has long since died. Could the man possibly hold the key to escaping the hopeless darkness that is Jace's life? Is there such a thing as life beyond the cruelty of slavery?
See where Jace's story all began...
coming this summer!
Jaye L. Knight is an award-winning author, homeschool graduate, and shameless tea addict with a passion for Christian fantasy. Armed with an active imagination and love for adventure, Jaye weaves stories of truth, faith, and courage with the message that even in the deepest darkness, God's love shines as a light to offer hope. She has been penning stories since the age of eight and resides in the Northwoods of Wisconsin.
As part of a month-long celebration for the one year publication anniversary of Resistance (Ilyon Chronicles - Book 1), Jaye is giving away several fun prizes! Enter for a chance to win using the form below! U.S. entries only please.a Rafflecopter giveaway
participating bloggers


text: Liam (Matt Lanter) and Navid (Michael Steger), in an effort to get teenage pro-surfer Cassie (guest star Marie Avgeropoulos) to be their first sponsored athlete, ask her favorite musician Olly Murs to do a special performance. Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) travels to New York to make a good impression on Jordan's (guest star Robbie Jones) mother, Cheryl (guest star Robin Givens) with disastrous consequences. Annie (Shenae Grimes) decides to publicly say her novel is fiction but Dixon (Tristan Wilds) persuades her to tell the truth.


text:
Of all of Trump's cronies and hanger-ons, none is so charmingly goofy as his physician, Dr. Harold Bornstein, author of a strange letter written in five minutes in which he declared, "If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency." Bornstein has resurfaced in a bizarre interview with the website STAT News, in which he offered this incredibly blase assessment of his patient's ability to survive his term in office. "If something happens to him, then it happens to him," Bornstein quipped. "It's like all the rest of us, no? That's why we have a vice president and a speaker of the House and a whole line of people. They can just keep dying." Bornstein also said he saw no reason to "share" regular information with the press, offering a very troubling historical analogy: "Ronald Reagan had pre-senile dementia. I mean, seriously, did they share that one with you, or did Nancy just cover it up?"
Bornstein's attitude to his duties seems to be: "We're all going to die anyways, so who cares?" That might be the best attitude to have in the Trump era.


text:
Newcomers Club
New to Washington and Lee? The Newcomers Club sponsors various events to welcome the newest members of our community and provide opportunities for new faculty and staff to become acquainted. Activities are open to those hired in the last three years.
Contact Anne Remington to join the Newcomers Facebook group.