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Worcester, MA Divorce Attorney
Once you have taken the difficult plunge into the divorce process, you deserve to work with a legal advocate who will give you confidence and hope, even in the middle of the crisis. At my family law firm, I am committed to easing your way through legal challenges so that you can focus on successfully transitioning to a strong and steady future.
Coming from a military and law enforcement background, I am an aggressive Worcester family lawyer who combines tenacious representation with compassionate counsel to help clients navigate the legal and emotional complexities of divorce with assurance and determination.
The Realities of Divorce
Divorce is a complicated process, especially when there are children involved. Many issues have to be resolved during a period of emotional turmoil — never an easy task. I am prepared to assist you in all matters of property division, spousal support (also known as maintenance or alimony), child support, child visitation, and, if necessary, restraining orders or modifications in existing divorce agreements. I am experienced, fully aware of all the legal, financial, and emotional components of divorce and well-prepared to protect you from any unexpected fallout.
Coping with Life Changes After a Divorce
For both adults and children involved in a divorce, life will change. The property division aspect of divorce often involves one or both partners moving out of the family homestead, changing careers, and running a household or engaging in childcare without a partner to assist. For children, divorce may mean moving, changing schools, living in two different households (depending on custody arrangements), or spending much less time with one parent than previously. All of these changes are difficult to maneuver, especially for children who are not normally part of the decision-making process.
The lifestyle of the family may alter due to disrupted financial stability. In some cases, law enforcement agencies may enter the picture if there has been domestic violence or abuse. I have in-depth experience in all areas of the divorce process and am confident that I can guide you through the troubled waters of negotiation and/or litigation. I promise to earn your complete trust as we work together to clear the path to your new life.
Why Worcester Family Law Attorney Mandy M. Hebert Is Your Best Choice
In addition to my background as a Military Police Staff Sergeant and my experience in law enforcement, both of which have given me a wide range of experience and a broad perspective, my effective representation in family law matters has earned me many honors, including:
Mandy M. Hebert Honors:
- The 10 Best Award from the American Institute of Family Law Attorneys™
- A Superb Rating by Avvo for Experience, Service, and Results
- More than 45 Five-Star Reviews on Avvo from Past Clients
I am proud to be an award-winning family attorney who is trusted by numerous clients and peers. When you need answers and solutions, I can provide you with reassurance and clarity. Whether you are beginning the divorce process, having trouble with an ex-spouse who is uncooperative in holding up his or her end of the bargain, or need to make modifications to an existing divorce agreement due to unforeseen circumstances, call Hebert Law Offices today. Setting up a consultation with me will help you find your way to a brighter future. I help families across Norfolk & Middlesex Counties including Framingham, Shrewsbury, and Worcester.


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Lucien Clergue (1934 - 2014)
Born at Arles, France, Lucien Clergue originally studied violin but owing to financial constraints was unable to pursue advanced musical studies. In the late 1940s, Clergue turned to photography, a discipline which he mastered through personal study and experimentation. A turning point in his career came when, in the early 1950s, he showed some of his work to Pablo Picasso, who provided encouragement by asking to see other examples. During the next two years, Clergue refined his skills and developed a series of photographs depicting Les Saltimbanques, groups of traveling performers and acrobats then relatively commonplace in France. In late 1955, the ambitious young man finally visited Picasso, beginning a thirty year friendship that lasted until the great artist's death.
With his friend Michel Tournier, Clergue established the annual Rencontres d'Arles photography festival; he is widely recognized for his photographs documenting the lives of the gypsies of southern France and numerous iconic portraits of his friend Picasso. His work, shown in more than one hundred exhibitions during his career, is held in numerous institutions and private collections throughout the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Fogg Museum at Harvard University. In 2003, Clergue was named Knight of the Légion d'honneur and in 2006 was elected a member of the Academy of Fine Arts of the Institute of France. He died at Nîmes.
Portrait d'une Femme
Silver gelatin print, edition of 20. Image size 9½" x 14-3/16"; sheet size 11¼" x 15-13/16". Numbered 4/20 and signed by Lucien Clergue in ink in the lower margin. A beautiful image in fine condition. Ex Forbes Collection of Fine Art.

subset: commoncrawl


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Archive for the 'Geekiness' Category
Execute Oracle procedure from Sql ServerClosed Published by Jordan Ogren December 23rd, 2009 in Geekiness
This took me a while to figure out, and there wasn't good results from Google. So here's the answer, for those who happen to find this.
EXEC('call Schema.ProcedureName()') at LINKED_ORACLE_SERVER
Make sure you've enabled RPC on your linked server too.
We regret this error1 Comment Published by Jordan Ogren March 27th, 2009 in Geekiness
I made this SSIS package a while back, and thought it was awesome at the time…
Yeeeaah… Not so much.
The DBA in the cloudsClosed Published by Jordan Ogren March 11th, 2009 in Geekiness, Thoughts
Recently in the IT blogosphere, there's been a lot of talk about cloud computing, especially in connection with Microsoft's new initiative Azure. The announcement of SQL Server available in the cloud has caused some turmoil in my field of database administration. SQL Data Services will offset the responsibility of hosting, installing, configuring, and otherwise administrating the server as we are akin to. I have mostly avoided all the DBA rants regarding the prospect of loosing jobs to the SDS cloud, for the reason that is succinctly explained in the excerpt below.
Why do I think things will be fine? Because data is King. And those that know how to move data, and get data to the right people, in the right way, at the right time, will always have a job. So, maybe having your database servers in the cloud means we do not have to worry about backups, tape storage, etc. Fine, I don't care about that piece of being a DBA anyway. But you are still going to need someone that understands the tools involved in making your systems and processes work efficiently and correctly.
The full article, found over at BaconBitsAndBytes.com, is a witty (and potentially NSFW/offensive) article by a smart DBA and I highly recommend following the advice.
You are currently browsing the Jordan Ogren weblog archives for the Geekiness category.


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The three people who were badly burned after an RV burst into flames outside a Delta gas station Saturday were siphoning fuel through a trap door in the vehicle, according to police.
Acting Sgt. Sarah Swallow said the trio parked the motorhome above the Petro Canada's underground holding tank around 3 a.m. then lowered a hose through a hole in the floor.
"They'd basically set up a bit of a mini mobile gas theft station," Swallow said. "They put a hose right down into the main fuel tanks and were syphoning as much gas as they could prior to the whole thing blowing up."
Investigators haven't determined how the fire started but believe hundreds of litres of gasoline had already been transferred into a large plastic storage tank in the RV when it ignited.
"It could be anything from a cigarette to electronic ignitions in stoves in the motorhome or some sort of malfunction in whatever syphoning equipment," Swallow said.
Two men were found at the scene and taken to hospital, where they remained in critical, but stable condition Monday. A woman was also seen fleeing the area with burns to her head but police located her Saturday afternoon in New Westminster.
All three face several charges, including theft over $5,000.
Gas theft has increasingly been a problem for police across Metro Vancouver but Swallow said this case is the first she's seen of thieves attempting to access a holding tank directly.
"The difficulty with this type of theft is they're able to hit gas stations after hours when the gas stations are closed," she said. "Our advice to people would be to have good surveillance, good security."
The theft is also less obvious because thieves don't have to park their vehicles near the pumps. Police are concerned that if a similar fire breaks out, bystanders could run over to help without realizing the danger they're in.
"Most Good Samaritans will see a fire like this and go in and help, understandably," Swallow said.
Investigators haven't confirmed where the stolen gas was intended to be sold, but said it sometimes is advertised on Craigslist.


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My Story
My story begins With a small child raised in rural mississippi...And continues to this very day.
I was born and raised in the rural southern United States, where I lived until I was 11. I was a curious child, my two great loves were reading and playing with legos. I did not discover the outdoors until after college, still not a big sports guy. I spent the rest of my formative years living in Florida.
I completed my undergraduate studies at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, FL. I graduated cum laude with Bachelor's degrees in International & Global Studies and Marketing. During that time: I studied International Business in France, did social media and email marketing at a local chamber of commerce, worked as a research fellow in global economics and then in Middle Eastern studies, worked in a computer lab, and got involved with every environmental organization at my school. I joined in and eventually led a project to build a sustainable aquaponic farm with Engineers without Borders. It was in college that I discovered my passion for the environment and the future of food, when me and my best friend built our own aquaponic farm in our backyard. We grew greens and raised fish and rethought our relationship with food.
After graduating, I moved up here to Washington to work as an intern on exchange programs at the International Center for Journalists. Early in my internship, I was hired on to do fundraising and development full-time. I ran fundraising campaigns, helped manage events and managed fundraising records in both their Raiser's Edge and Salesforce databases. I went on to manage those databases for the whole organization and led the project to transfer all of the data to one platform. After finishing this and a few other projects, I decided that I would take a sabbatical and switch gears. I took up photography, writing, podcasting, ukulele, taking long walks in the forest, and meditating. I learned a lot about myself in the process.
Now, I work on digital fundraising platforms and programs with the World Food Program USA, and am putting all of my skills and experiences to use. I still live in the District of Columbia and I still write and podcast and pretend I can play ukulele well. I still seek ways to contribute to the betterment of the world and myself by telling stories better.


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Recently, it was reported that actor Johnny Depp and his wife of just 15 months, Amber Heard, are getting divorced. This story has raised questions similar to the one posed in this headline, especially among people in a situation like Depp and Heard's: those who are divorcing after a short marriage.
While there are things that you cannot avoid no matter how lengthy or brief your marriage was, there are certainly aspects of a divorce that can be avoided or at least made a little easier if your marriage did not last long.
Property division can be one of those things that can be much easier for people who are divorcing after a short marriage. There will typically be fewer marital assets to distribute, since there is less time for them to accumulate. Additionally, it may be easier to trace the source of assets and income back one year versus having to go back several years.
Child custody may also be an area where there is less to discuss. During a short marriage, you may not have had any children. If you entered the marriage with kids, it is less likely that a solid step-parent/step-child relationship warranting shared parenting will have had the time to develop.
Further, alimony or spousal maintenance may not need to be discussed when two people were not married long.
It is crucial to note that just because a marriage may have been brief does not mean these topics will always be unnecessary. In fact, many divorcing couples will deal with one or all of these issues regardless of how long a marriage lasted. Furthermore, the time it takes for a divorce to be finalized also depends heavily on whether you are resolving it outside of court or through litigation.
However, you may be relieved to learn that there very well could be some ways to make divorce a little easier if you were not married very long. Discussing your situation with an attorney can help you identify these areas and take the steps necessary to pursue a fair, efficient divorce and move on to the next chapter of your life.


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1% Yakamein
This is yok, for a better complexion and zip code. Yakamein (aka yokamein, yak, or yok) is an old-school fusion of Chinese and ghetto (actual ghetto, not figure-of-speech ghetto) cuisines. You can find it on the menu of every single Chinese food place in the hood, guaranteed. It varies widely from region to region, but there are a few musts: chicken wings must be cooked in the broth, it must have a breath-destroying amount of onions, and the broth must be vinegary. Many regions require ketchup in the broth, but I don't like that, so it's optional in this recipe. This is as close to a gourmand version of this down-home classic as you're going to get. Don't let its humble roots fool you though, it's packed with umami flavor, is super easy to make, and is very satisfying...especially doused in hot sauce (Texas Pete!). Yields 2 big servings.
- 1½ pounds chicken wings
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 scallion per serving
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 large shallot
- 5 cloves garlic
- 2x 1-inch knobs ginger
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 dried shiitakes
- 6 1x2-inch pieces kombu
- 8 ounces bucatini pasta
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 1 teaspoon sriracha
- 3 tablespoons vinegar
- Ketchup and hot sauce, to serve
- Remove the wing tips. Cut each wing at the joint. In a bowl, toss with the teaspoon salt and set aside at least 15 minutes. Peel and halve the shallots. Peel the garlic. Peel and crack the ginger.
- Prepare a bowl of ice water. Cut the root end off the scallion, then cut into a baton 4 inches up. Very gently, slice halfway through the scallion baton and pull the sides apart to lay the baton out like a book. Slice into the thinnest ribbons you can manage, separating any conjoined ribbons. Place into the ice water and swish around. Repeat with the rest of the scallions while the chicken macerates. The scallions will slowly curl over about a half hour's time.
- Bring a pot of salted boiling water to a boil and set out another large bowl of ice water. Set out another large pot with the stock.
- In a large pan, drizzle the oil. Put the wing pieces in with the flattest, fattiest side down. Place the scallions in the pan, cut side down. Scatter the garlic and ginger around the pan. Turn the heat on to medium. You want to render the fat from the wings slowly, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Check the shallots after 10 minutes or so. Flip the garlic and ginger once they become aromatic and charred. Flip the shallots once deeply charred and softened.
- After one side of the wings have rendered and cooked to a dark brown color, flip and cook another 10 minutes, until dark brown on the other side. As the aromatics are done, transfer to the pot of stock. Once the wings are done, add to the pot of stock.
- Bring the pot of stock, bay leaves, shiitakes, and kombu to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer very low, uncovered, 1 hour. Be sure the heat is very low so as not to over-reduce it.
- At some point, boil the bucatini until just before al dente. It should still be a tiny bit crunchy. Remove from the pot and shock.
- After 1 hour, the stock should have reduced a little and deepened in color. Remove from heat and remove the shallot and ginger. You can remove the garlic if you want to as well. Add the fish sauce, soy sauce, mirin, sriracha, and vinegar. Taste for balance. It should be highly seasoned and somewhat vinegary.
- Add the undercooked bucatini to the broth, cover, and let sit a few minutes until it becomes al dente.
- To serve, place the bucatini in a bowl. Top with a few chicken wing pieces, and ladle over the broth. Top with the curled scallions. Serve with ketchup and hot sauce on the side.


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The Solar Century? A Vision for a Solarized World (Review)
Image credit: Jeremy Leggett
"Building houses that use no fossil fuels, directly or indirectly, is surprisingly easy..."
This is not the type of statement you'd expect from a former oil geologist. But Jeremy Leggett is not your average former oil geologist. Having left academia to campaign for action on climate change, he eventually decided to found Solarcentury, which he describes as his "very own microcosm of hope in the business world." The company has since become the UK's fastest growing energy company, it's launched innovative products like the complete solar roof, it's expanded it's solar operations to Spain and is partnering on bringing major solar installations to the Middle East, and it's even mounted solar arrays on hundreds of schools. You certainly couldn't accuse Leggett of suffering from a failure of ambition. Now he's applying that ambition as editor and lead author of a new book that lays out his vision for a world-wide solar surge that could revolutionize the way we think about energy. The Solar Century is an incredibly inspiring read. So much so, that I had to remind myself to keep a healthy dose of skepticism to some of its claimst—a man who sells solar for a living (and names his book after his own company!) is likely to be a little biased when it comes to the potential of solar energy. Yet Leggett presents a compelling, exciting and inspiring case for solar as a central thrust of a renewable energy future.
Citing studies from the likes of Shell Oil and the German Economics Ministry, Leggett claims that contrary to what naysayers will tell you, it is perfectly possible to power the entire world with renewable energy technologies much sooner, and much cheaper, than most pundits would have you believe. (Previous TreeHugger posts have also covered the question of how much land is needed to power the whole world with solar, not to mention a plan for a world powered by 100% renewables by 2030.)
I'm not qualified to assess the technical feasibility of Leggett's vision, but I do know that we need to aim extraordinarily high if we are going to get anywhere near the kind of carbon reductions needed to avoid catastrophic climate change. And with solar being regularly cited in surveys as everybody's favorite energy source—regardless of political persuasion—what's not to like about a plan to harness the energy falling on our rooftops, parking lots and deserts to create clean renewable energy? (One project in my community exploring how farms can double crop solar energy with food production—just one example of how out-of-the-box thinking can help solar to coexist and even enhance existing land uses.)
The book also takes the opportunity to talk the lay reader through the various solar technologies available, including thin-film, crystalline, solar-thermal, passive solar and solar concentrators, as well as exploring the various potential combinations of centralized versus decentralized supply, grid-tied versus off-grid, and how smart grid technologies may help manage supply and even out demand. The result is a highly accessible guide to the pros and cons of each approach, and an uplifting pep talk on just how much can be achieved if we can only find the political will to act.
Interestingly, for this non-techy reader at least, Leggett and his co-authors' also tackle the potential for improvements in solar technology and explain that media focus on improving solar cell efficiency is perhaps less than half the story—companies are also working on squeezing more value out of their products at every level of the supply chain. In fact, with silicon ingots making up 95% of the costs of solar wafer manufacture, finding ways to use silicon that has not been purified to solar-grade may be at least as important as the actual efficiency of each cell.
There's plenty of big-picture thinking in The Solar Century to keep the visionaries happy too. In fact, the last third of the book is dedicated to defining and assessing a number of visions that could help lead us to a truly "solar century". Ranging from the idea of carbon armies rebuilding economies after the financial crisis, through most buildings being transformed into power plants, to solar reaching grid parity with fossil fuels, Leggett lays out where we need to go, how we need to get there, and what has already been achieved on the road to these goals.
Crucially, while Leggett clearly believes that solar needs to be a central (perhaps the central) technology for a renewables revolution, he also recognizes that efficiency, wind, geothermal and other technologies will play a vital role in kicking the fossil fuel habit.
I started out reading The Solar Century expecting a sales pitch for Leggett's company. In some ways, that's exactly what I got. But when a company stands for nothing less than a startlingly ambitious vision to rethink the way we power our entire world, reading its sales pitch becomes a sheer delight. Having picked up the book early yesterday evening, I found myself still pouring over the details at midnight. Somehow my still relatively new solar panels on the roof are beginning to feel like the first step to something much bigger.
See also my brief interview with Jeremy Leggett back in 2006.
More on Solarcentury
The Complete Solar Roof from Solarcentury
The TH Interview: Jeremy Leggett of Solarcentury
Solarcentury's Thermal and Electric Tiles Win Green Energy Award
Solar4Schools: Solarcentury Launches Initiative for Solar Education
Solarcentury Expands to Spain


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In The Great Gatsby, how does the conspicuous consumption of those living in West Egg contrast with the poverty represented by the Valley of Ashes?
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calendarEducator since 2009
write13,728 answers
starTop subjects are Literature, Social Sciences, and History
This is an excellent question that recognises how setting is used symbolically in this wonderful novel. Of course, the Valley of Ashes is described very symbolically to represent a place barren of hope. It is no mistake that this is the home of the Wilsons, who try to get ahead in life yet seemed to be doomed to living on a low social level. Consider how the Valley of Ashes is described in Chapter Two:
This is a valley of ashes--a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens; where ashhes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and, finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through powdery air.
The metaphor of describing this location as a "fantastic farm" which grows ashes clearly says a lot about the reality of life in this industrial zone, and we can see through the description of George Wilson, who is a thin, pale man, somehow faded, that he is a suitable citizen of this part of town.
However, let us compare this with the way that Gatsby's parties are described at the beginning of Chapter Three:
There was music from my neighbour's house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and stars. At high tide in the afternoon I watched his guests diving from the tower of his raft, or taking the sun on the hot sand of his beach while his two motor-boats slit the waters of the Sound, drawing aquaplanes over cataracts of foam.
Note how wealth and its decadent display are emphasised in such passages. Firstly there is a lot of colour in this passage, compared to the grey of the valley of ashes. Likewise, almost every sentence contains the trappings of wealth, whether it be with references to champagne, motor boats or other things.
Thus we can see the way that West Egg functions symbolically to represent the home of new wealth, with all of its garrulous overtness, and the Valley of Ashes represents the hopelessness of industrial areas.
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I think it's also worth noting the clear juxtaposition of the four main settings in the novel: The economic and social depravation of The Valley of Ashes, the hope and opportunity represented by New York City, the ersatz and gaudy pretension of West Egg and the haughty moneyed feel of East Egg. These are all ripe for analyses and comparison.


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The WeatherFlow WEATHERmeter for Precision Shooting was designed specifically for shooters to capture a complete on-site atmospheric profile including wind speed, temperature, pressure, relative humidity, and density altitude. It integrates seamlessly with ballistics calculation apps including BallisticsARC and Strelok Pro to provide long range shooters with a complete atmospheric profile. Bluetooth Smart (BLE) technology allows this weather meter to pair instantly to your mobile device for quick in-field sampling.
Note: Wind direction is derived from the the digital compass on your mobile device.
- Wind Speed and Direction
- Barometric Pressure
- Temperature, Wind Chill, Heat Index, and Dew Point
- Humidity
- Density Altitude: displays as ft or meters
- Full ballistics calculation with supported apps.
- Ships worldwide from the US


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Name of project
Hunterston power station
Describe the site currently, including details of protected or threatened habitat or species
Part of the nationally important Portencross Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). This area is an essential staging post for migrating birds including oystercatcher, ringed plover, shelduck and greenshank, which use the mudflats as a stopping off and feeding point. If this is lost to development, this will put extra pressure on the birds; they use this site because it is the best for miles around. As most of Scotland's coastline is rocky, with only about 10% being made up of sandy beaches and mudflats, this is a scarce type of habitat. The site is also important for other wildlife including otter, a nationally scarce plant called seaside centaury, and a type of cuckoo bee which is rare in Scotland.
What development is proposed?
A planning application to develop a coal-fired power station at Hunterston, North Ayrshire, has been submitted for consideration by the Scottish Government's Energy Consent's Unit, with a closing date of 20 August 2010 for objections.
What one thing would help you or your group protect this site?
Visit www.swt.org.uk/hunterston to find out how to lodge your objection to the Hunterston Development. Template letters and emails are available to make objecting to this development as easy as possible for you, however any objection written in your own words will have more impact. By visiting our website, you can also find the Scottish Wildlife Trust's full list of reasons for objecting to this development.
Exact location
55.763262, -4.857068
Ayrshire Power Ltd, part of the Peel Energy Group
Planning authority, and reference number of planning application
North Ayrshire Council and Scottish Government
• If you are the developer and would like to respond to this campaign, please email email@example.com


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Part of Hot Toys new flagship store opening in Shanghai China commemoration.
Hot Toys is very excited to announce its first new flagship store in Shanghai, China is officially opening tomorrow!
To celebrate this tremendous milestone, we are pleased to introduce the new version of the 1/6th scale collectible figure that has been highly-popular among fans – the Iron Man Midas Mark XXI (Gold Chrome Version) as an exclusive item only available at our new store for the Asia Pacific region!
Built for the "House Party Protocol" in Iron Man 3 by Tony Stark as a high-altitude suit, this Midas Mark XXI collectible figure features all-new gold chrome armor parts throughout the body complementing the multitude layers and shades of metallic gold color, LED light-up functions in eyes, chest and palms, interchangeable armor parts, and a dynamic figure stand.
Iron Man fanatics shouldn't miss the chance to visit our new store and add this rare and remarkable Iron Man to your spectacular collection!
Hot Toys Shanghai Flagship Store:
Address: No. 835, Lakeshore, Disneytown, Lane 255, West Shendi Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai
Hours: Monday to Sunday 10am-10pm


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Article Review Sample
This content was COPIED from BrainMass.com - View the original, and get the already-completed solution here!
I need guidance for reviewing an article.
Here is the article:
Hansen, F. D. (2006). Human error: A concept analysis. Journal of Air Transportation, 11(3), 61-77.
Solution Preview
Dear Student,
Hello and thank you for using BrainMass. In this particular problem, you are being asked by your professor to put together an article review. An article review consists typically of the following:
1. Article particulars
2. Summary
3. Analysis of concepts
4. Related ideas & recommendation
Your professor will be looking to see if you indeed went through the details of the article and you can do this by including ideas and concepts that are discussed in the article. Additionally, you need to be able to show that you have done extra research on the matter by citing relevant information. I have shown you below how you can do this. The information below will help you put together your answer. Make sure to follow fair-use of this solution. You can use the listed resources to further explore the topic. Good luck with your studies.
AE 105878/Xenia Jones
Article Particulars
- Authors: Frederick Hansen
- Title: Human error: A concept analysis
- Publication Details: Journal of Air Transportation, 11(3), 61-77
- Publisher: Aviation Institute
Hansen (2006), in this particular article, looked into the problematic phenomenon of human error. For Hansen, human error is a popular subject of study because of the impact it has on a host of events and outcomes across industries in human society. He believes that, while we understand that humans always make mistakes, which is generally what the term refers to, the way we understand the notion of human error is different dependent on the context, our views and the situation. Human error, for example, is seen in a different context when referring to engineering/manufacturing issues or when operating a machine (i.e. piloting a plain). In this particular article, Hansen looks at the varied ways in which the concept of human error is utilised as the outcome or consequence of a particular action or decision taken by an individual. Because of this floating meaning of the concept, experts and researchers across fields whereby the term is utilised rarely agree on one definition ...
Solution Summary
The solution provides information, assistance and advise to help the student (see above) review a paper by Hansen. T Resources are listed for further exploration of the topic.An outline is also suggested.


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After about a month since being in wide release, Clint Eastwood's American Sniper has been one of the most hotly discussed films in recent memory. In the wake of its six Academy Award nominations, the film has divided many. Some call the film brilliant, and a harrowing and beautiful portrayal of a true American hero, while others say that the film is Hollywood propaganda that feels flat and not-so inspiring. No matter what you feel about the film, the response by some folks that don't like it, and the measures that people would go to call out people who didn't like the film, has been pretty stupid. I remember folks like Michael Moore and Seth Rogen got in trouble because of some off-the-cuff remarks, and lots of folks were shocked and outraged (a current fad that doesn't seem to be going away in the country). Uh oh, it looks like I'm about to get on my soapbox, I probably should put that away. Anyways, I saw the hotly talked about film, and here's my review of American Sniper.
Bradley Cooper plays Chris Kyle, the real life sniper who had the most confirmed kills of any solider in the history of the United States. The film is a biography of the late Kyle, who was unfortunately killed by an ex-marine outside of Dallas in 2013 (the trial for that ex-marine is currently going on down in Stephenville, Texas). Kyle is a kid from Odessa who decides to join the military and after 9/11 is deployed into Iraq and goes through four tours of duty. While he's away, he has a wife, played by Sienna Miller, and two children, who are growing while their father is away. The film tries to become a character study of a man who has seen things that most human beings couldn't even comprehend seeing, but it ends up falling flat on its face.
I know, I know, I guess I'm not a true American if I didn't love American Sniper, or at least how that's some folks will want you to think (I won't point any fingers, say any names, because you know who you are). I'll be honest, I think American Sniper kind-of sucked. It pains me to say that, because the story of Chris Kyle is an interesting one, and the fact that its Clint Eastwood, one of my favorite directors of all time, is behind the camera, with Bradley Cooper giving one of his best performances to date in the lead role. What the hell happened? A dull script, some pretty bad dialogue, and maybe a little too much of the flag waving mixed in with a rather generic and tasteless Hollywood feel to the film make American Sniper a pretty big disappointment, and a film that I'd go as far to say is one of Eastwood's worst films.
Granted, I don't have as much of a connection with Kyle as a lot of people do. All I knew about the guy up until his death is that he was a kid from Odessa who had killed a lot of people during the war, and devoted the rest of his life to helping out ex-military trying to transition back home after the war. That's a pretty interesting guy for Hollywood to make a movie about, right? Well, yes, but they chose Clint Eastwood, a man whose made some really terrific but slow-paced films, direct this film. I'll admit, for an 84 year-old filmmaker, a lot of the war sequences were pretty exciting, and there were a few scenes in the film that I thought were just brilliant. One was the opening scene in which Kyle has to decide if he should kill this kid with a grenade, and it was very well done. There's a similar scene with a kid having a rocket launcher, and that was pretty good. But the action sequences lacked any sort of grit or realism. It felt very Hollywood-ized in the whole undertaking.
Steven Spielberg was originally going to direct the film before he left after creative differences with the film, and I think his take on this material would be far more interesting that what Eastwood has done with this film. I feel that Spielberg could've added a certain level or grittiness and realism that would have been akin to Saving Private Ryan, and would've made Kyle's story a more compelling and investing two-plus hours. Eastwood has been known for years to be a very quick filmmaker, only taking a couple of takes per shot before moving on to the next scene. It's worked for the best, and sometimes in the opposite direction. He began shooting American Sniper in April of 2014 and finished in early June, and was able to edit the film in time before year's end. Since the production was rushed, you can notice some sequences that can't be defended, and for the folks that have seen the film, you'll know what I'm talking about. That damn baby. It didn't quite bother me as much as I thought it would, but it was definitely distracting, and made you wonder if it would've killed Eastwood just to wait a day for a real baby in the scene.
As I mentioned before, Bradley Cooper is great in the film, and deserves the Oscar nomination that he received for the film. Granted, I wish that this was a better film, but at least we get a great performance from one of Hollywood's great leading men working today. Cooper gained a lot of weight for the role of Kyle, and looks huge and a little unrecognizable in the role. You can tell that this was a passion project for Cooper, as he puts everything into this performance and into this movie (he was also a producer on the film). I just wished that there was another writer to come in as well as another filmmaker (Kathryn Bigelow isn't doing much these days) to make this film. But to sum it up, American Sniper is a film that I really wanted to love, but I ended up kind-of hating it as I was trying to love it. The movie felt a little bit lazy in bringing Kyle's story to the screen, which is a bit of a shame. But this film has really connected with a core group of people, and they love the film, and more power to them for loving it. I was just hoping for a film similar to The Hurt Locker that portrayed the war in a realistic manner, and challenged everything you ever thought of the war before and after viewing, but that's just me.
The fact that this film is nominated over so many great films like Foxcatcher, Gone Girl, and many more worthy films is pretty embarrassing. I'll be honest when I say that the best part of the film is when the credits began rolling, which is true if you let me explain. The credits show the funeral procession of Kyle's body going up Interstate 35 in Texas to his memorial in Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Its news footage of supporters on the side of the highway waving American flags and supporting Kyle. It was a beautifully done segment, and I gotta admit that watching that made me tear up a bit. It's just a shame that American Sniper couldn't have been as good as the credits.


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"No-One's More Punk than Vivien Goldman," pronounced Pitchfork Magazine. In that freewheeling spirit, the boundary-busting Vivien Goldman is a writer, educator, broadcaster -- and a musician, too. A Londoner, she has lived in Paris and now resides in New York. Her can-do attitude and outernational insights have been on display in journalism, books, radio, television, university teaching, multi-media lecturing, museums, the recording studio and the stage, ever since the punky reggae mid-1970s - and her beat goes on.
"Revenge of the She-Punks," Goldman's sixth book, is being published by the University of Texas Press in May 2019. That same spring, she will lecture on David Bowie at the Seattle MoPop Festival -- and perform her songs old and new at the Marfa Myths Festival. A long-time Adjunct Professor at NYU's Clive Davis Institute of Recording Music, Tisch, her lecturing life has taken her to London, New York, Los Angeles, Munich, Bilbao, Lagos and beyond. You can often catch her speaking in music documentaries that use the woman who one director jokingly call the bomb-dropper, for her ability to succinctly sum up complex scenarios.
And quietly but effectively, Goldman lends her vivid, poetic prose to marketing, too.
Goldman's archive is collected at the Fales Library, NYU as The Vivien Goldman Punk & Reggae Collection. Her vintage journalism can be found at rocksbackpages.com.
Vivien Goldman is available for hire: lecturing, journalism, marketing advertorial -- and musical performance!


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Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Who Are YOUR Friends
What does this mean though for us moving back to Cyprus? To give you a little back story about how this conversation came about, we were talking about one of Mr. Milk's friends, who has very recently decided to have his wedding one week after ours! He got engaged about a month ago and informed Mr. Milk that he was thinking about an early October wedding. Mr. Milk told him that we would likely be on our honeymoon then and to try to arrange it so that he could attend the wedding. They have been friends since middle school so Mr. Milk really wanted to be at his wedding.
So last week we find out that the wedding is being arranged and has been set for the week after ours. And no, he was not the one who told us, we found out from a third party. I flipped out! They have joined friends who will be travelling from other parts of Europe for our wedding so there's been no consideration for what they'll do. Then there's the issue of bachelor parties. Mr. Milk is planning on going to Mykonos with his buddies. He doesn't want to share a bachelor party! And for me, frankly I feel like some of our thunder has been taken away. I know it's somewhat childish but that's how I feel. On top of that, we will be having guests over from this part of the world, who we actually want to spend time with since they travelled thousands of miles and spent thousands of dollars to be there! Can you tell I'm pissed off? Do you think I am overreacting?
Anyway, it takes me some time to get over such things. When people are inconsiderate it drives me up the wall. So I tell Mr. Milk that if our international guests are still there I will not be leaving them to go to this so called friends wedding. And so started a larger discussion about friends and socializing.
Mr. Milk is far more social than I. He is quite content being in any kind of situation and making small talk with just about anybody. I on the other hand are far pickier about people who I call friends and am more of a home-body. I prefer to have friends over for dinner, talking, laughing, bonding, than to be out with a bunch of people I don't know but have to feign interest in. Plus I have greatly missed my best girls being over here, and I think at this point in my life, I just want my good old girlfriends versus the effort of making new friends, if that makes sense.
So what will happen when we are back in Cyprus? Will there be conflict about who to hang out with or will we naturally gravitate to some people versus others? And what if we prefer different people? What do we do when we're invited somewhere, with people that one of us isn't a huge fan of? These are all the questions that were floating around my head in the wee hours of the morning. My poker face is non-existant! This is definitely something I can work on, but for the most part I wear my heart on my sleeve and I fear people will be able to see right through me. I guess it will take some time for us to create our own social network as a couple and get into a natural flow. Maybe its just the stress of the big move that is making things look so daunting at the moment.
So what do you guys do? Any advice? How has it been for you guys to establish mutual friends?
18 fabulous blogger's comments:
- Hannah said...
I wish I could offer you some great advice. We are always dealing with friends graduating and leaving us (as we live in a college town) so there will never be a chance to live with all of our friends, ever.
I vote you both take it slow and be very aware of how each of you are handling it. Keeping communication open will make sure that both of you are settling happy :)
- April 27, 2010 at 7:06 AM
- Leanne said...
First of all, you are 100% NOT over reacting. I would be furious at this friend for getting married a week after me.
I think mutual friends are an issue that every couple needs to go through. C and I have the opposite problem. I'm WAY more social, where he prefers to stay at home and keep to himself. I think the best way handle it is to find a happy medium but how to successfully do this is beyond me.
Sorry I couldn't give better advise!
- April 27, 2010 at 7:29 AM
- Chic 'n Cheap Living said...
I'm totally like you! No poker face, increasingly want to stay with good friends (though hard since I' moved to another country - good thing there are some great grad school friends here). I think you both have to be ok with having your own sets of friends. I thought it was so important to see my friends on my own time though of course the Mr. came out more often with us.
- April 27, 2010 at 7:35 AM
- Chic 'n Cheap Living said...
p.s. I knew a girl whose sister got married in Hawaii a week after the girl's honeymoon so she had to fly BACK to Hawaii. The friend's totally being inconsiderate but it could be his fiancee, family, etc. Either way, he should have told you guys. I'd totally hang out with my out of towners instead of going to the wedding too.
- April 27, 2010 at 7:36 AM
- penga said...
bummer about the friend getting married so soon after you.. :(
and sak and i have a problem making friends too. we're both in the reserved/home-body group, so unfortunately I don't have too much advice.. :P
- April 27, 2010 at 7:42 AM
- Salt said...
In some cases I would think that people would be overreacting if they got upset about a wedding being so near theirs, but in this case I think you're completely justified in how you are feeling. It would be one thing if they did it like a month after yours or whatever, but a week is cutting it SO close, especially with people traveling such long distances to be there.
I think it's pretty thoughtless. There is no way that they would consider moving the date? Sadly, I think if I were in that situation, I'd skip their wedding.
- April 27, 2010 at 7:52 AM
- Ams said...
I am pretty sure that I would be LOSING MY MIND if I was in the same situation as you. That is just crap... and I agree - you definitely have every right to feel like your thunder is being stolen. Such garbage...
The bottom line is you know your priorities, you know it's about you and Mr. Milk... it will work out the way it's meant to right?
I think that as far as mutual friends etc.... that might just take some time. Things will have changed since you have lived back in Cyprus... probably for the good as people have grown up and are establishing their own lives. I think it will come naturally... you all will figure it out!!
(Terrible advice! I'm sorry!!)
- April 27, 2010 at 9:01 AM
- Bicoastal Bride said...
I would feel the same way you do about his friend's wedding plans. It's very inconsiderate. I'm also similar to you, with a group of close friends rather than a large circle of casual friends. Since Stephen went to college with my best friend, and it was through her that we met, we actually have a good number of mutual friends. Unfortunately, they are all on the West Coast, so we hardly see them. Here in D.C., most of our friends are Stephen's work buddies, who are awesome, but who we're not as close to as our friends back home.
- April 27, 2010 at 9:15 AM
- redwhitebride said...
i'd feel the same way about your fi's friend's wedding. but then again, it might be his fiancee or fiancee's family, or other reasons.
i'm also like you, no poker face. i'm comfortable with my circle of friends and his closest friends, but i'm not good at meeting new friends (my fi is good at that, he can be sooo close with anyone he meets the first time).
- April 27, 2010 at 10:08 AM
- PMerr said...
I don't have much advice for you either :( It stinks that he just decided to do it the week after. I've had my thunder taken with a baby due 2 weeks before my wedding, both parents are in the WP, so I know what you're going thru...kinda.
- April 27, 2010 at 10:23 AM
- Morgan said...
That's really tough! Both about the wedding being scheduled so close to yours, and the whole thing of how to handle hanging out with people you don't really care for. There are a few of my hubby's friends that I don't enjoy spending time with, so mainly I just let him go hang out with them by himself. Occasionally I will suck it up and put on a happy face and see them. But it's a lot easier because it's only a few times a year. I couldn't handle it all the time! Good luck figuring out what will work for you!
- April 27, 2010 at 12:46 PM
- sonya said...
Good luck with this one. I know you'll make the best decision.
- April 27, 2010 at 8:44 PM
- browneyes_24b said...
I'm probably going to sound cliche, but it's true: things find a way of working themselves out. You will figure out what you enjoy once you settle into life together! Best wishes to you!
I'm stopping by from SITS! I hope you have a great day!
- April 27, 2010 at 11:01 PM
- Katie said...
I would be super pissed off as well! A wedding is a once in a lifetime special event, and for them to knowingly set their date SO CLOSE to yours is really inconsiderate!
- April 27, 2010 at 11:31 PM
- Melissa said...
I would be irritated about the wedding, butI think you are over reacting. You can't expect people to schedule their lives around you. They have to prioritize themselves as you are prioritizing yourself. They ave friends and family who they had to consider when scheduling their wedding. Your thunder hasn't been stolen. Have they sent out invitations? Is this something that is set in stone? You can take a few hours away from your international guests to go to their wedding. You don't have to share a bachelor party. I feel like I know where you are (in your head) and I think you are over thinking this. Don't waste your time thinking of all the reasons this could go wrong. Just concentrate on your wedding and what you *can do. Remember, your friendships will most likely last forever, but this wedding is only one day. Let's not throw away loving bonds with people over a one day event.
As far as "couple" friends, that will happen more organically than you think. As a couple, you will naturally gravitate toward people. You're not always going to be with your husband every time he goes out and he is not going to with you, either. There will be times you're invited places you'd rather not go and will have to grin and bear it, but that's how it goes. It's more about you supporting your husband and his interests than about your wants or likes.
Followed you through Sits!
- April 28, 2010 at 6:15 AM
- BeerBudgetBride said...
Normally I'd say most reactions to "thunder stealing" is overreacting, BUT in this case, the details set it apart. Your "friend" just sprung this on you and there's no recourse but to deal with it. You're 100% right to be ticked off. I certainly would be. Your common friends may have to choose between you. Not cool.
Since it's primarily Mr. Milk's friend, I'd let him decide. If he truly wants to go and you can't stand the idea - how would you feel about letting him go alone?
I wish I had more helpful words for you but like you, I have ZERO poker face. I can make nice to acquaintances I'm not very friendly with but if I honestly don't like someone - they know it. Good luck. And breathe. :)
- April 30, 2010 at 10:17 AM
- Mrs. Smith said...
Finding mutual friends has been hard. We have a few, but even in those cases, it's really more one of us or the other that is truly friends with the person. I would love to know the secret for figuring that part of life out.
As for that friend and his wedding date, that guy is a jerk. So inconsiderate. You should not feel bad AT ALL for being angry.
- May 2, 2010 at 1:49 PM
- Mrs T said...
I don't think you're overreacting. If you guys have the same friends it makes it awkward for everyone to have to try and be two places so close together on the calendar.
But you know you're wedding will be better - and because it's first they will all just compare the second one to yours!
I am so like you with friends. Have a small group that I'm really close to. Where Mr B has lots of friends that he sees every now and then.
We only have a handful of mutual friends - and we've been together six years. We spend the most time with my best male friend and his wife.
I can't see you every taking long to make friends!
- May 5, 2010 at 9:35 PM


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Aetna encourages health through online gaming
Aetna has announced a collaboration with Mindbloom, a Seattle-based social media company, that will offer plan members an enhanced version of Life Game, Mindbloom's online social game for personal wellness.
Starting this fall, Aetna members will have access to a new engagement model that uses the science behind social gaming – a blend of technology, art and behavioral psychology – to engage people in achieving personal health and wellness goals.
[See also: Social media tools may reduce attrition in online health programs.]
"Considering that Americans are spending over $200 billion a year on healthy living products and services, but the rates of chronic health conditions and obesity continue to rise, the time is right for a new approach to engaging people in achieving better overall health," said Kyra Bobinet, MD, medical director of health and wellness innovation at Aetna. "We think the Mindbloom Life Game will provide a fun, rewarding and effective way for Aetna's members to make lasting improvements in their physical and emotional well-being."
Life Game, a personalized wellness application that inspires and helps people to live healthier, more balanced lives. The Life Game helps people focus on many areas of life including: health, spirituality, relationships, leisure, lifestyle, finances, creativity and career. Mindbloom's players grow and maintain a virtual "life tree" and a forest of their family and friends, earn virtual rewards and make progress in their real lives. The Aetna collaboration will involve a significant enhancement to the Life Game as well as new mobile features.
[See also: At Aetna.com ask 'Ann' anything.]
"Most of us recognize the value of maintaining healthy, balanced lives yet we continually fail to make healthy behaviors a consistent priority," says Mindbloom's CEO, Brent Poole. "It seems the motivation is there but we can all use a little nudge. By incorporating social networking, multimedia, a virtual rewards system and psychology-based gaming mechanics – and making it all accessible through mobile phones, email and social media channels – Mindbloom is bringing the missing ingredient of personal engagement to the wellness equation."
Mindbloom's social gaming expertise complements Aetna's full suite of health and wellness programs, which are designed to help people achieve better overall health. For an overview of the Life Game, visit www.mindbloom.com/aetna.


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Roger Desfrançais has been nominated as auditor, charged to verify our accounts.
Our Digital Library contains more than 1,100 digitized documents, with permission of their authors or their publishers. Discover the list of articles and books integrated in this library by downloading this file: LIST.
More about our Digital Library, click here.


text:
Adzookie has received "thousands" responses (including one from a church) to its offer to pay the mortgage for homeowners who let it brand the exterior.
Romeo Mendoza, Adzookie's founder and CEO, told MSNBC he wants to help cash-strapped homeowners, although he originally intended to paint 10 houses. Now, he's hoping to find other advertisers willing to join in on the gambit so he can fund 100 billboard/houses.
It's all, of course, a bid to build brand awareness (accomplished) as Adzookie seeks to gain market share for its mobile ad network.[more]
"We're already seeing a big movement into mobile advertising. As smartphones become smarter, ads will literally reach out and touch customer's senses," says Mendoza.
The scrappy startup is making a lot of noise in order to take on bigger mobile ad networks including Google's AdMob and Apple's iAd network, and independents like Millennial Media, Chalk and Mojiva.
With the Paint My House deal, there are a few caveats: "You must own your home. It cannot be rented or leased. We'll paint the entire outside of the house, minus the roof, the windows and any awnings. Painting will take approximately 3 – 5 days. Your house must remain painted for at least three months and may be extended up to a year. If, for any reason, you decide to cancel after three months or if we cancel the agreement with you, we'll repaint your house back to the original colors."
"People are having a hard time out there," comments Mark Oskorus, VP marketing for Adzookie. "It's hit a really interesting nerve. It's a really sensitive subject, making ends meet."
In addition to homeowners, at least a dozen businesses, seven restaurants and one church had applied yesterday.
The budget for the promotion is only $100,000, to be spread over painting the houses with advertising and repainting them their original colors if a customer opts out or the promotion ends — hence the desire to bring in other advertisers.
The house-painting stunt isn't Adzookie's only marketing gambit.
Users who let Adzookie place location-based ads on their mobile websites can use the credit to buy ads on the network. "We're going through the [venture capital] process right now," adds Oskorus, hoping their mortgage promotion will attract money, advertisers and colorful buzz in order to realize its vision for the smartphone of the future:


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I love deep brain sex, so I want to share This Little Secret Will Teach You How To Give Your Brain An Orgasm
For this post we will view orgasm through the lens of brain science. Each and every day we can learn more and more about pleasure through understanding our brain. But the brain is composed of cells – so let's first look at your brain cells.
The standard brain cell is called a neuron. Axons are the very long projections or cables of neurons that flow from the brain and offer feedback about our surrounding environment.
Over time, glial cells wrap around the axon projections and form a fatty insulation that's called the myelin sheath. Basically, this layer of insulation, much like the insulated wires in your home, increases the efficiency and speed of electrical impulses moving up and down the axon.
The thing is, we aren't born with this insulation. It develops over time as we use neural networks over and over again. We stimulate particular neural pathways and because we use them, they get more efficient at passing electrical impulses.
The Clitoris
The tip of the clitoris is at the end of one of these long axon projections from the brain. Therefore, the clitoris offers an opportunity for us to "wire up" and insulate a rich pathway of pleasure.
The Ancient sexual technique that I'm sharing with you is intended to do just that – insulate your pathways of pleasure so they become even more efficient.
Even if you have little or no feeling, or have a difficult time orgasming, just relax, practice the exercise daily, and feel and notice what happens in your body.
The Technique
To experience the full power of the technique, take a deep breath now, and imagine the clitoris as a feeler, an sensitive fingertip extending out directly from the brain, passing sensory rich information about our sexual environment. Make the image vivid and bold.
Now imagine the clitoris is wrapped in beautiful, golden threads of pulsing light that travel to and from your inner brain to the clitoral tip, pulsing a gentle current of pleasure back and forth. Communicating to you. Spreading pleasure.
Take another deep breath, and notice the pulsing awaken something deeper and deeper inside. You let go. Let the warm feelings expand in your body as you breath deepely. Feel and imagine a glow begin developing from your clitoris to your brain. Notice how the brain awakens to the pulsations of pleasure. Notice how the body responds. Notice the erectile tissues in the pelvic floor fill up with blood.
Squeeze your pelvic muscles tight. Then release. Breath. If you keep this technique up, eventually your brain will be awash in orgasmic flow as you imagine a cascade of the awakened pleasure flowing back down to your clit and then circle it back up again into your brain again. Each and everytime you do this you intensify the pleasure until your brain is frothing in pleasure and orgasmic energy.
I call this process "The Golden Circle of Pleasure."
I run The Golden Circle of Pleasure within myself all the time. And endless circle because I love the way it makes me feel inside.
We can use this technique anytime, anywhere, to feel awesome in our brain and body. Nobody has to know why our smiles shine so brightly.
That will be our secret.


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Addicted to Silky Satin
I love all aspects of cross-dressing and being Chloe, but none more than having the chance to wear sumptuous silky satin lingerie and clothes next to my skin. For me, satin ranks as one of the most sensuous and feminine fabrics that clothing could be made from. Lace and satin ribbon trim always accentuates the feminine look of a garment too and you can rest assured that most of my girlie clothing and lingerie hanging in my closets and neatly folded in my drawers is adorned with plenty of both.
I like nothing better than stripping off after a day at the home office to take a long hot shower before closing my front door and slipping into something silky, smooth, and sumptuous for a cozy night in. My balcony is situated next to a quiet back road and it looks out over open land towards distant mountains. This means I can sit out on these warm summer nights wearing satin nightwear watching the sun drop. It's always the perfect ending to any day, relaxing with a nice drink feeling the sensual caress of the silky satin nightdress and robe that is cocooning my body. Mmmm….my peach coloured satin sheets are beckoning me to my sumptuous bed where I can snuggle up with a nice girlie movie or my current lesbian novel.
Love your satin my friends
Link to this post:
Addicted to Silky Satin


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Markus on Development and PublishingThis is Markus Egger's professional blog, which covers topics such as development, publishing, and business in general. As the publisher of CoDe and CoDe Focus magazines, and as the President and Chief Software Architect of EPS Software Corp., Markus shares his insights and opinions on this blog.
Markus on Development and Publishing
This is Markus Egger's professional blog, which covers topics such as development, publishing, and business in general. As the publisher of CoDe and CoDe Focus magazines, and as the President and Chief Software Architect of EPS Software Corp., Markus shares his insights and opinions on this blog.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007.Net Rocks! Episode is now Live!My .NET Rocks! interview about WPF, publishing, and Xiine is now available at www.DotNetRocks.com!. Check it out!
Update: Here is a link to the episode I was on:http://www.dotnetrocks.com/default.aspx?showNum=257
Posted @ 2:34 PM by Egger, Markus (email@example.com) - Comments (16)
Tuesday, July 24, 2007.Net Rocks! Episode is now Live!
My .NET Rocks! interview about WPF, publishing, and Xiine is now available at www.DotNetRocks.com!. Check it out!
Update: Here is a link to the episode I was on:http://www.dotnetrocks.com/default.aspx?showNum=257
Thursday, July 19, 2007Another .Net Rocks! Appearance
I have done another interview with the popular .NET Rocks! show (podcast). It will go live on July 24th, 2007. The show focusses on WPF as well as Xiine and publishing (both digital and a little bit about print).
Tuesday, July 17, 2007More iPhone Activation...
I have previously talked about my iPhone activation problems. By now, I finally managed to get it activated, more than a day after I purchased it. The actual process of doing the activation through iTunes went quickly, but even after that process, it took another 2 hours (or so) before the phone finally had service. (And yes, I did turn it on and off several times in between, just to make sure).
Just to put all of this in relation: When I activated my T-Mobile phone, International access was activated automatically. No extra cost. The voice by-minute charge is similar, but data access is completely free even international. (And much faster at the same time).
Monday, July 16, 200712 Coding Languages That Never Took Off...
Check this out for a somewhat humorous (and certainly interesting) list of 12 programming languages that never made it.
Not all of the languages on the list truly fall in the category of "never took off" (such as Delphi), but other languages, such as brainfuck (which supposedly is a real language) I have never messed with before.
Sunday, July 15, 2007iPhone Activation...
So I broke down and got an iPhone. Yes, I know what I said. Yes, I know I am usually very committed to Microsoft. My opinion is still the same, and the device is just about as useless to me as it gets. But can't a man just every now and then make a stupid decision and buy something that there is no rational explanation for? Exactly!
Plus, this is really just competitive research. And I only plan to use the iPhone as a secondary device and I def. will hold on to my Windows Mobile SmartPhone, which will remain my main mobile device. Take that, Apple!
So now I am finally home, installed iTunes, and am ready to activate the darn thing. And here is what I see:
Saturday, July 07, 2007Darn the iPhone is sexy! If it only worked right...
Yes, I admit it: I have been looking at the iPhone. But what do you expect? I love cool UIs, and as far as UIs go, the iPhone really shows how its done. And let's face it: The coolness of the iPhone is skin-deep. Frankly, it is a crappy device, but the cool UI is building up all the hype. (For those who have been asking why WPF and Silverlight is important, the iPhone gives a great answer. If it didn't look this good, nobody would care about it...)
Then, there is the web browser. "Not a watered down version of the Internet", they say. Well, the browser is pretty nice (and scrolling and zooming a page is very cool with the multi-touch touch screen). But the problem is that the thing doesn't support Flash or Java or Silverlight. Not even DHTML really. So a very large sampling of the web pages I looked at either looked very bad, or didn't work at all. And I wasn't looking at fancy or unusual pages. It may not be watered down, but you better enjoy looking at 10 year old pages, because everything beyond that doesn't seem to work right. Can you say "broken"?
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Capitol Alert
Bernie Sanders takes on Trump over drought and climate change
Bernie Sanders, traipsing across far-flung regions of California as he seeks a comeback victory here next week, swatted at likely Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump for minimizing the state's water shortage and the effects of climate change.
"The people of California perceive that there was a drought here, and Donald has come to tell you that you're wrong," Sanders said. "You thought there was a drought, but Donald, who has studied this issue intensely for decades, has reached the conclusion there is no drought."
Speaking to a crowd of more than 9,000 on the campus of UC Davis, Sanders sounded familiar themes about income inequality, broken criminal justice and campaign finance systems, the predatory nature of student loans and the need for universal health care and expanded Social Security.
"We have built jails, not colleges," he said. "It's time to reverse that trend."
At a Friday rally in Fresno, Trump declared, "There is no drought." Part of the reason for the lack of water, particularly in the Central Valley, he said, is the state prioritizing the needs of the Delta smelt over farmers.
Sanders, continuing with his playful knock on Trump as "one of the great meteorologists in the world," noted that the New York businessman has previously said that climate change is a hoax.
"What the scientists ... tell us is if we do not get our act together in a very short period of time, if we do not boldly transform our energy system away from fossil fuel to energy efficiency and sustainable energy, the current problems will become much, much worse," Sanders said.
Sanders has taken steps in recent weeks to soften his blows against Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, though not eliminate them entirely, continuing to criticize the sources of her contributions.
Polls show the race here between Sanders and Clinton as a dead heat, even as Clinton directs much of her energy at Trump, who spoke Wednesday in Sacramento.
Earlier in Spreckels, the old Monterey County company town known for its sugar beet production, Sanders reiterated his stance against hydraulic fracturing – a controversial process of extracting natural gas by directing a high-pressure water mixture at the earth.
Sanders took aim at Clinton for merely backing fracking regulations rather than calling for an all-out nationwide ban, which he supports.
"Secretary Clinton in one way or another wants to quote-unquote 'regulate' fracking. I think it is too late for regulating," Sanders said. "I think fracking has got to be banned in America."
The fracking ban provided yet another opening for Sanders to tie his insurgent campaign to a policy issue with deep resonance in California, where he's making a late push to win Tuesday's primary election. Repeating the line in Davis on Wednesday night earned Sanders his biggest cheer from the crowd.
Monterey voters this fall will weigh a countywide ban on fracking and new oil drilling. Sanders used previous stops in California to endorse a statewide ballot initiative imposing price controls on state drug purchases as well as a separate November measure seeking to legalize recreational marijuana.
Later, at a stop in Palo Alto, Sanders made an appeal to Asian Americans. He contrasted his open-armed approach to immigrants and fighting prejudice with Republican stances against Muslims.
"I would hope that we would have learned the lesson that bigotry is unacceptable in the United States," Sanders told the crowd there.
Sanders' Northern California stops follow days of frantic zig-zagging across the state, including rallies in towns that are usually considered flyover country here, shunned in favor of wealthy Bay Area and Los Angeles communities where candidates hold fundraisers. He's scheduled to rally supporters Thursday in Modesto and Chico.
Christopher Cadelago: 916-326-5538, @ccadelago


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Latest News
Dos Palos turns to youth
DOS PALOS -- Mike Sparks' coaching creativity was pushed to the max last fall. Lack of speed, depth and experience left the Dos Palos football team with potential holes all over the field.
The 21-year veteran called upon all of his guile to patch the holes with spackle and tape, but the result was Dos Palos' first losing season in some time.
Sparks may have to be even more clever this season.
Faced with the same set of problems, the DP coach is turning to four sophomores on offense for the first time in his long tenure.
"Last year we weren't as talented as we've been, but the kids played hard," Sparks said. "We lost more games than we were used to, but we were in most of those games.
"This year could be a lot like last year. We're going to have to play hard every single week."
Avoiding a repeat of last season's struggle may depend on how quickly the sophomore quartet adjusts to the varsity game.
"We've got four sophomores stepping in to play key positions," Sparks said. "There will probably be some growing pains.
"They're all highly skilled players, though. They can play on the varsity level and that's why we have them in there."
Ryan Yriarte will take over at quarterback, Sean Demmers is the starting center, Travis Martin takes over at right tackle and Kevin Schofield will play one of the running backs in Dos Palos' I-back, double-tight offense as well as starting at linebacker.
"My brother was on the team last year and it was pretty disappointing to watch," Schofield said. "Our motto this year is working hard to get back on track.
"The sophomores aren't really feeling any pressure, we're just trying to learn as fast as we can.
"We've been running this system since we were in junior high, so it helps. It's also nice knowing there are other guys your age going through what you're going through."
Fortunately for Dos Palos, there are a few veteran returners to provide stability while the underclassmen find their legs.
The most dangerous of those veterans is returning all-conference wide receiver Hector Gomez.
It's not easy for a receiver to make a name for himself in DP's run-heavy offense, but Gomez's combination of hands and speed make him tough to ignore.
"I don't get thrown to a lot, because we run the ball, but coach has been trying me in different things," Gomez said.
"I've been moved around -- sometimes lining up at running back -- and there's been some plays added just for me.
"It's been fun."
Senior tackle Joseph Maldonado will anchor the offensive line and protect Yriarte's backside.
And if DP's offensive drives happen to sputter, four-year varsity kicker Humberto Del Rio should make sure the team comes away with points.
On the defensive side, senior Cody Green makes the move from cornerback to safety and Eric Jacobo will lead the team's linebacking corps.
The bulk of DP's starters will be first timers, but despite the team's lack of experience, Sparks sees the potential for success.
"One thing we have going for us is tradition," Sparks said. "Our guys don't want to let down those traditions.
"The last year we won the Valley wasn't necessarily our best team, but they got it done.
"If these guys continue to work hard, we'll be in every game."
Sparks' veterans are spreading the word.
"We didn't always work hard last year and we let down a lot during the fourth quarter," Gomez said. "This year we're working much harder and the leaders are emerging.
"I think it's going to be a good season."


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L.I.E. (film)
Theatrical release poster
|Directed by
|Michael Cuesta
|Produced by
|Michael Cuesta
Linda Moran
Rene Bastian
|Written by
|Stephen M. Ryder
Michael Cuesta
Gerald Cuesta
|Brian Cox
Paul Dano
Billy Kay
Bruce Altman
Walter Masterson
James Costa
Adam LeFevre
Tony Donnelly
B. Constance Barry
Gladys Dano
|Music by
|Pierre Földes
|Romeo Tirone
|Edited by
|Eric Carlson
Kane Platt
|Distributed by
|New Yorker Films
Lot 47 Films
Release date
Running time
|97 minutes[1]
|United States
|Box office
L.I.E. is a 2001 American drama film about a relationship between Howie, a troubled 15-year-old boy, and a middle aged man known as "Big John".[2] The title is an acronym for the Long Island Expressway. The film was directed by Michael Cuesta, who has said that the film is about exploring sexuality.[3] It stars Paul Dano in his first lead role as Howie, and Brian Cox as John.
Howie Blitzer is deeply affected by the death of his mother in a car accident on the Long Island Expressway. His situation is exacerbated by his acrimonious relationship with his distant father Marty, who brought a trophy girlfriend into the house less than a month after his wife's death. Howie's only solace is the company of his best friend Gary, a juvenile delinquent and hustler. Although Gary is attracted to Howie, Howie is unsure of his own sexuality. They have two other friends their age, one of whom has an incestuous relationship with his sister. The four boys routinely break into neighborhood houses.
One night, they break into the house of "Big John" Harrigan during his birthday party. Gary knows his way around the house; it is later revealed that Big John is one of his steady clients. Big John interrupts them, and they narrowly escape with a pair of rare and valuable Russian pistols. John later confronts Gary over the burglary and Gary names Howie as his accomplice.
Pretending to be a friend of Howie's mother, John introduces himself and invites Howie back to his house. Once there, he confronts Howie about the burglary, demanding the return of the guns. Howie is able to retrieve only one of them from Gary's room, so John demands $1000 for the other; Howie can only offer to work off the debt. Putting on a pornographic video, John hints that Howie can repay him with sex. Howie hastily leaves, but after returning home, masturbates to a fantasy involving John and the girl in the video.
Gary steals money from Howie's father and disappears to Los Angeles, leaving Howie alone. John and Howie begin a tenuous friendship in which John becomes a kind of father figure to him. There is no sexual activity, but there is talk of sex. Howie realizes that he wields a degree of sexual power over John, something John is aware of. Howie stays over at John's house, temporarily displacing John's 19-year-old lover Scott, who warns Howie not to take John from him. Howie discovers a stash of child pornography in the house, including photos of a younger Gary as a blond 11-year-old boy.
Howie's father happens to see him skipping school, and losing his temper he hits the boy. Later that day, he is arrested for dangerous practices in his construction business, and when Howie returns home to find him missing, he believes his father has abandoned him. He goes to John, approaching him in his bedroom wearing just his underpants, expecting they will have sex. But John explains to Howie what happened with his father, and the boy breaks down and cries. John leaves Howie to sleep by himself.
The next morning, John is all charm, fixing Howie breakfast and taking him to see his father in jail. Howie's father apologizes for hitting him, and promises to spend more time with him once he is out of prison. Howie is unconvinced, and merely tells his father never to hit him again.
After dropping Howie off, John returns to the local rest area where young hustlers connect with johns, and sits in his car. Scott, devastated by John's abandonment, drives by and shoots him dead.
In the final scene, Howie contemplates the expressway, vowing he won't let it get him too.
- Brian Cox as Big John Harrigan
- Paul Dano as Howie Blitzer
- Billy Kay as Gary Terrio
- Bruce Altman as Marty Blitzer
- Walter Masterson as Scott
- James Costa as Kevin Cole
- Adam LeFevre as Elliot
- Tony Donnelly as Brian
- B. Constance Barry as Anne Harrigan
- Gladys Dano as Voice of Sylvia Blitzer
Portions of the film were filmed at Harborfields High School, located in Greenlawn, New York, not far from the Long Island Expressway. A scene was also filmed at the Dix Hills Diner on Jericho Turnpike in Elwood, New York.
Because Paul Dano was underage at the time of production, his mother, Gladys, was present on set and additionally plays the non-speaking role of Howie's deceased mother, Sylvia, in several flashback and dream sequences.
Sexual identity is a major theme in the film; director Michael Cuesta has said that the ambiguity of Howie's sexual orientation and his relationship with Big John and Gary is at the heart of the film.[3]
Brian Cox has said, "Big John realizes that Howie is much more than a little boy, a young boy he can hit on".[4] Cuesta has said that John is confused, and doesn't know if he wanted "to be with him, sexually, or just father him".[3]
NC-17 rating[edit]
L.I.E. received an NC-17 rating from the MPAA, although the rating was later surrendered and the film was released without a rating. Both an edited version which received an R rating ("for strong sexual content involving teens, language, and brief violence") and the original unrated/uncut film are available on DVD.
L.I.E. has a "Certified Fresh" score of 83% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 84 reviews, with an average rating of 6.96/10. The critical consensus states that: "L.I.E. is a well-acted and unsettling look at a boy's relationship with a pedophile."[5]
Awards and nominations[edit]
- Awards
- Independent Spirit Award
- Best Debut Performance – Paul Dano
- Producers Award – Rene Bastn, Linda Moran, and Michael Cuesta
- Satellite Awards
- Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama (Brian Cox)
- Nominations
- Independent Spirit Award
- Best Lead Actor – Brian Cox
- Best Supporting Male – Billy Kay
- Best First Screenplay – Stephen M. Ryder, Michael Cuesta, and Gerald Cuesta
- Best Director – Michael Cuesta
- Best Feature – Rene Bastin, Linda Moran, and Michael Cuesta
- AFI Awards
- AFI Featured Actor of the Year – Male – Movies Brian Cox
- ^ "L.I.E. (18)". British Board of Film Classification. 2002-10-31. Retrieved 2013-07-04.
- ^ Durbin, Karen (September 16, 2001). "FILM; Finding the Wild Heart of Long Island". The New York Times.
- ^ a b c Michael Cuesta Commentary issued as extra on DVD
- ^ Brian Cox Commentary issued as extra on DVD
- ^ "L.I.E." Rotten Tomatoes.
External links[edit]
- L.I.E. on IMDb
- L.I.E. at Box Office Mojo
- L.I.E. at Metacritic
- L.I.E. at Interrogation Reports
- 2001 films
- English-language films
- 2000s drama films
- American films
- American LGBT-related films
- American teen drama films
- American teen LGBT-related films
- Films about child sexual abuse
- Films about pedophilia
- Films about suburbia
- Films set in New York (state)
- Films shot in New York (state)
- Long Island in fiction
- American independent films
- Directorial debut films
- Films directed by Michael Cuesta


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Guess What Your Favorite Southern Celeb Will Be for Halloween
Our favorite Southern celebs have a way with Halloween. They love dressing up for parties and trick-or-treating just as much as we do. We can't wait to see what they dress up as for Halloween this year, so we're taking a walk through memory lane with their Halloween costumes from years past. Creating a Halloween costume can be daunting, but these Southern celebs are pros. Makeup? Check. Costume? Check. They are ready to dazzle, and sometimes they are ready to scare and give you a fright. From mythical creatures to iconic pop stars, our favorite Southern celebrities are good at choosing Halloween costumes (and couples costumes) that are sure to be contenders at any office or family holiday party. Will we see a repeat of last year's Halloween costumes from our favorite celebs? Maybe! Keep your eyes peeled for these costumes walking around the neighborhood—you may end up running into a celebrity on Halloween night. Trick or treat? Treat, definitely!
Beyoncé and Blue Ivy Carter
Houston native Beyoncé and her daughter, Blue Ivy, dressed as pop royalty—Janet and Michael Jackson—for Halloween. We're thinking a sing-along to "Thriller" is in order.
Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan-Tatum
This duo took a page from Dr. Seuss' book for their coordinating Halloween costumes, The Cat(s) in the Hat.
Evan Rachel Wood
The actress from Raleigh, North Carolina, dressed up as the notorious maid from Rocky Horror Picture Show, a cult classic perfect for re-watching on October 31.
Ginnifer Goodwin
This Memphis native got her Halloween costume inspiration from a classic horror film, Rosemary's Baby.
Jessica Simpson
The 2000s pop culture phenom dressed as a mummy while preparing to become a mommy.
LeAnn Rimes
This country music queen made a convincing unicorn while attending a festive Halloween party.
Lucy Hale
This Memphis girl dressed as Twitter, her favorite social media platform—here's hoping her Halloween fun was longer than 140 characters.
Miranda Lambert
Always a classic, the country star's Rosie the Riveter costume does its part for the war effort.
Taylor Swift
We think the country music-turned-pop star created her own mythical creature for last year's Halloween. Have you seen any pegacorns wandering around Nashville lately?
Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins
Country singer Thomas Rhett and his wife Lauren Akins dressed as the wizarding duo Harry Potter and Hermione Granger for a magical Halloween.


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Please note that the link in the title to this entry will take you to the essay about Margery Kempe on my Internet site - don't miss the quotations. I'm assuming anyone with the patience to regularly visit this blog is already acquainted with my old friend Geoffrey Chaucer.
Recently, I've been thinking of adding a few new essays to my Internet site. My site is not truly scholarly - it is intended more as an introduction and overview for certain medieval subjects, mostly spirituality. At present, the only two essays on Chaucer are about the Prioress and the Miller... why I feel I know those particular characters so well probably stems from how I love the earthy quality of the latter and loathe the affected 'lady-like' ways of the former. (There - I said it and I'm glad. Be forewarned that I'm in one of my restless moods, and shall have to discipline myself if I want to save my satire on being 'lady-like' for another day... whether I'm capable of such discipline at the moment is anyone's guess.)
The problem with preparing any essays on Chaucer (and I fell in love with The Canterbury Tales decades ago, a love which has deepened with the years) is hardly a lack of ideas. Rather, his references are so rich and clever - incorporating direct mention of or allusions to scripture, mythology, classical thought, great literature of his own time, canon law, liturgy, and so forth - that one wonders where to stop. :) I find myself alternating between laughter (his humour was exceedingly dry and wry), mentally preparing a sermon, going off on a tangent, whatever. The 'courtesy books' and sermons of Chaucer's day (...and a few I saw or heard in my own youth...) valued silence as a feminine virtue - I suppose I'd have had no more chance to be the first female Franciscan canonised as a Doctor of the Church then than now...
But I digress. I've been considering preparing an essay on the Wife of Bath, whom I consider a delightful character for her sheer honesty. For all our differences, I can see myself enjoying sharing a tankard of ale with Alison, because Chaucer creates her as one who has no need to fit into conventional expectations (nor do I... for a split second, I found myself envying the freedom one would have if she'd inherited from five husbands and was warming up for another... despite my thinking it quite fortunate that I never had even one husband of my own...). Granted - few women, in any day, wanted the 'woe' (Alison's word) of marriage five times in succession, and I doubt Alison would endear herself to most pilgrims by the ending benediction which wishes women husbands who drop dead. Yet I'm sure that those who struggle to be conventional and acceptable could not help but inwardly envy not only her wealth, her freedom to travel about, and her not caring a fig for whether others think this 'old crone' (past 40 - the age when anyone then was supposed to be totally concerned with the spiritual in preparation for death) mind her wearing her red stockings and looking for another man to bed.
I had the oddest thought come to me as I reread the Wife of Bath's prologue and tale, though I've done so many times. She reminds me very strongly of Margery Kempe, and not only because both had a taste for pilgrimages. Alison and Margery, if you'll forgive the cliché, are different sides of the same coin. Both consider experience to be greater education than wisdom handed down traditionally. (In their day, not only was study of the classics reserved to men, mostly clergy or those in minor orders, but it was based on learning texts in order to use them in arguments. They were not questioned or really explored in most cases.) They are women of means (Alison from both inheritances and being a master weaver - Margery from owning a brewery), who have to have mastery (Margery's of her confessors. The only one who lasted long with hearing her daily confessions, tellingly, was the one who understood only German.) Both must always have their own way. They are incapable of embarrassment - in fact, Margery's description of some of her temptations make Alison's outright talk of 'how pitifully she made her husbands work at night' seem downright modest by comparison.
Alison's red stockings have a counterpart in Margery's religious garb. Margery had only one husband (and 14 children), but, when she decided she was the greatest mystic of her century, she wanted retroactive status as a consecrated virgin. (The confessor who thought it inappropriate for a married lady to go on pilgrimage in such garb was cautioned that Margery would reveal his sins if he kept her from this choice. Where Alison's ways of distinguishing 'counsel' from 'commandment' actually show sophistication - and her overall references make one wonder if some interesting pillow talk led to quite a degree of learning - whenever I read of Margery's manipulation of her directors I wish someone could have taken the rocks out of his head to plug the holes in hers.) Alison is aimed at being an adequate, not perfect, Christian - the everyday dish of brown bread. (She displays yet another form of sophistication in her admittedly accurate assessment that a man won't be unable to light his candle if others use the same lantern.) Probably most of those en route to Canterbury would have sincerely felt much the same way - but the clergy and nuns undoubtedly would not have admitted this, though nearly all of them show a deficiency in virtue which make a merely lusty woman seem superior if only for her honesty.
Chaucer's tales show no adulation for the bliss of marriage, to be sure. Alison at least is honest about her avarice. Margery Kempe thought herself a great saint (and wore companions out making sure they knew it as well), but her avarice, equally intense, is more subtle and therefore harder to spot. Margery's was a spiritual avarice. She was totally focussed on increasing her bank account of merits - totally self absorbed, her acts of devotion show no love of neighbour beyond what she can do (even for her own husband during his terminal illness) to raise her stock value for heaven.
There is another, perhaps more subtle, similarity I see between the two. (I must add this - the pedantic among you may have noticed that I refer to both the all too real Margery and the literary character of Alison as if they were 'real people'. So be it. Any exceptional fiction includes a huge amount of truth, and there were and are many an Alison... one even meets a reasonable facsimile of the 'real' Margery here and there.) In Alison's descriptions in the prologues, and in her tale, women desire mastery indeed - and including an authority to teach, based on experience which often is a far better indicator of truth than arguments based on total adherence to classic works. Note how, in her tale, the women who do get authority are the source of a good end! The young knight is a rapist - the queen and her ladies are the ones who save him from execution. The old crone he weds (for giving him the true answer to what women want most - dominance), probably a witch since she can take the form of youth and beauty at will (and he gives her the choice of which to assume), not only saves his life but effectively transforms a rapist into a good husband.
Margery took on all too much authority to teach! (One wishes she had the wisdom of Alison, at the least. One doubts that the priests she consulted had many gifts of wisdom in the first case, but one must allow for that they'd have toppled into a brewery vat at the effort of trying to get a word in edgewise...) Her faith was true, but her versions were unquestionably of her own minting. She could learn nothing because she already had all of the answers. Equally as lusty as Alison (though within a perfectly respectable marriage, not multiple marriages which, at the time, were tolerated for widows only as a concession to weakness, and were seen as far from the Christian ideal), Margery informed her husband that the Trinity would make him drop dead so she could revert to 'virginity' (somehow, Alison's wanting wealthy husbands to die to get their money is a step short of that...), and sought her 'consecrated virgin' status as an asset in her spiritual bank account.
The qualities I admire in both (even while shuddering at the thought of the manipulation and sheer greed both display) are sheer honesty and the courage to admit to what others undoubtedly felt - but would have refrained from admitting, out of respect for convention or perhaps some worries about censure. Some of their ways are deplorable, and, were I in the company of either for long, I probably would find them insufferable (even if I'm an 'old crone' who wore purple, pink, and orange stockings within the past week - and net ones to the Sunday Eucharist, though my Tau cross was about my neck as always). Yet Chaucer's clergy and religious (though I dare say that, then as now, many good people were in both categories... and more than a few close cousins to Chaucer's crowd though less entertaining) largely are far from honest - whether in blatant manipulation of others or, as with the Prioress, in affected self-deception.
Still, I'll leave my readers with a thought that I undoubtedly shall ponder. Avarice is at the root of many of our failings, and spiritual avarice can be the more dangerous because we're unlikely to recognise it for what it is.
Monday, 4 May 2009
Margery and Alisoun - two sides of the same coin
Posted by Gloriana at 21:57
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Vintage Gold Over Porcelain Salt and Pepper Shaker Set Floral Flower DesignUnknown
This vintage salt and pepper shaker set have a simple yet classic design. They are made of porcelain with a gold overlay and a beautiful floral design. This set shows some wear to the gold but would still look nice with a vintage dining set. The shakers measure approximately 1-1/8" tall by 1" wide.


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San Francisco Decorator Showcase Opening Night PartyApril 25th, 2015
Chelsea Ledell, show more of Chelsea Ledell photos or correct name Brittany Haines, show more of Brittany Haines photos or correct name Jessica Donehower, show more of Jessica Donehower photos or correct name Cindy Winship show more of Cindy Winship photos or correct name
Perfect for printing with no watermark up to 8x12. If you need something larger, we can usually do a custom print.
Perfect for screen and social, but not great to print. There is a small watermark in the lower right corner (you can crop it out).
For a commercial or editorial license, please email email@example.com.


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Sarah you shouldnt feel like you need to excuse yourself by providing a character flaw.
I honestly find it quite rude for people to make those type of comments and will just say "Thanks for opinion but it wasnt requested, we made our choice based on what was logical for us." or just say that "we have no rush and want to enjoy the planning process." Although my reasoning has to do more with not having time to plan until I'm done with MA (in June of 2011) and also to save money but that's none of their business. I only provide that info to those who are close to me.


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Puma Men's Rebel Crew Fleece Sweatshirt - Cotton Black
Puma takes sportswear and makes it fashionable. Amplify your workout with this functional and stylish sweatshirt. Crafted from mid-weight cotton-rich fleece, with a brushed interior and ribbed stretch for added warmth and comfort.
Available in men's sizing - see size chart for correct fit!
- Puma apparel
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- Style: Rebel Crew Fleece Sweatshirt
- Colour: Cotton Black
- Sizing: Relaxed fit
- Mid-weight cotton-rich fleece with brushed interior and ribbed stretch
- Striped colour-blocking
- Crew neckline
- Long sleeves w/ ribbed cuffs
- Branding printed to chest
- Ribbed hemline
- Materials: 68% cotton, 34% polyester
- Machine washable
- Country of origin: N/A
Whether you're on the street, at work or even performing to the max on the sporting field, Puma products help drive people towards the next level of comfort and energetic living - it's in the brand's DNA. Suitably simple in style and appearance, grab yours today!


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These days things are winding down somewhat, although I still have a few irons in the fire.
Over the summer, we'll have three seminarians staying here. This is made possible because a parishioner, many years back, set up a fund at each parish, to help seminarians. So we use the funds to give them summer employment--good for the men, good for the parishes.
Today, I met with members of the staff to identify various projects, which I turned over to the three seminarians so they can organize their summer. We'll get things in good order in the school, we'll have their help at the festivals and Vacation Bible School, they'll make some communion calls and help with some maintenance items, help plan a couple of things--all good and realistic experiences in parish life.
I also had a few emails and phone calls to deal with, as well as one appointment. Tonight, I have the "graduation Mass" for the eighth graders. And so it goes. Nothing else on the calendar, a light day.
I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified -- St. Paul, I Corinthians 2:2
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
What's going on here
Posted by Fr Martin Fox at 5:14 PM
2 comments:
Everyone deserves a "light day" once in a while, especially a busy priest. Enjoy, Father.
- May 27, 2008 at 8:22 PM
- TerryC said...
I think that it's wonderful that young men in formation get a chance to see what a parish priest does over a period of weeks or months.
It can only help make them better men and better priest.
I must say that I think the three are lucky to be able to work with a strong, orthodox priest such as yourself.
I'll keep all four of you in my prayers this summer.
- May 28, 2008 at 6:02 PM
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