text:
Rolling Our Own
Well, Roll Yer Own was a big hit last week. There were reportedly about 100 people there at The Red Chair in Midtown Thursday night, and I do have to say that I was quite impressed by the three huge screens in the restaurant area, where Roll Yer Own commensed. Thank you all for showing up. Lou was a happy man.
A very eclectic mix of work was shown, ranging from student work (pencil & 2D, computer, stop-motion), some independent stuff, and ended with recent work from local animation studios. Oh, and an episode from Harvey Birdman was shown as the big finale, courtesy of Birdcage Studios. (Hard to hear because of the low audio levels on that episdoe, but very very funny, nonetheless.)
I really don't mind watching student work. Even though I'm a big fan of nice, fluid Disney-style animation, and often enjoy the limited style of UPA and HB (when it's executed right), I can turn off that animator-purist alarm in my head and just sit back and watch newbie animators try their best at figuring out this artform. (Good luck guys, as the rest of us are still trying to figure that out.) To me, there's something endearing in watching young artists try their hand at character design, timing, pacing, storytelling and overall design and layout, as I was there at one point in my career. Sure, there were some faulty pieces shown during the student section of the evening, but I didn't mind. What I enjoyed was the intentions behind these pieces. The students worked hard on their shorts. Sometimes it paid off, sometimes it didn't. Hats off to the Atlanta College of Art and Savannah College of Art and Design students for willing to showcase their work to the animation community here in Atlanta. Best of luck to you all.
There was some great work shown by local animation studios, from the likes of Cartoon Network Domestic & Latin America, Dagnabit!, Turner Digital & Turner Productions, as well as Primal Screen, proving that the the animation scene here in Atlanta is definitely not dead. At least not yet.
And now a rant (you know it wouldn't be The Ward-O-Matic without one):
The evening was momentarily marred, in my opinion, by a series of horrendous shorts by some online animation studio. (Not from Atlanta, I might add.) Loud, humorless, and downright ugly to look at, I had the hardest time sitting through this mess. I'm not even going to say what the company's name was for that would give them far too much credit. I hate to be such a poo-pooer on the work done by this company, but geez - in my opinion, it was the most sophomoric, idiotic, insipid stuff shown that night. Really. Lou, I know that these guys might be nice and all, but for the sake of ASIFA-Atlanta's credibility, please hold off on showing any more of this company's work in future Roll Yer Owns. Nobody I talked to after the show liked their work. And it certainly didn't help their situation any further when one of the guys kept whoo-hoo!-ing drunkenly throughout the evening. Whatever. I am terribly sorry for those who were new to this screening and had to witness such dreck. End of rant.
Be that as it may, I don't feel that the evening was a complete loss. Oh no. I really and truly enjoyed the evening and it was great to see some kind faces, most of whom I've had the great privilege of working with in the past. And that is the great thing about working in the animation field here in Atlanta: that a big city can still feel like a small town, where everybody pretty much knows each other and that you're bound to be working with them at one point in time.
10 comments:
ATL Shawdy !ReplyDelete
I couldn't stay for the whole evening, and I took the opportunity to bail out during the section of shorts you mentioned. After seeing a couple of them, I knew it was something I wouldn't mind missing, so off I went. I'm sorry I couldn't stay to see much of the great stuff that must have followed (though at least I saw some of the Primal Screen stuff before I had to leave).ReplyDelete
And Powdered Toast Man served as a great warm-up act to the evening.
redcrow--thanks for stopping by. Too bad we didn't hook up, that would've been cool to meet some of the new people that I've met via this blog. Hope you enjoyed the rest of it, though.ReplyDelete
I really found some of the student work to be inspiring actually. Some of the shorts were better than others obviously, but I still couldn't help but be impressed with the earnestness and commitment...ReplyDelete
As to the low point of the evening, I feel you... I woudn't have minded said shorts had they been a) funny b) well done c) brief. In spite of the fact that I laughed a couple of times, I do have to say that they represent what can be a real danger--not only in animation, but in cartooning as well, and that's when we confuse this kind of stuff with satire. It isn't. And why so much of it? I mean, it was like a half hour of the stuff!
- AnonymousMarch 01, 2005 1:12 PM
Yeah, I agree Ward. It's always nice to see all the Atlantans who get excited about animation all together in one place, showing their work. It's a hard discipline (and I don't even do cell), so it's good to get exposure, and you know the students must love showing their assignments. Although, I wish a few of them would preface their pencil tests with a visual title, so we'd know what they were attempting to do. I think one student did, and it made a big difference.ReplyDelete
As far as the "professional" studio shorts you mentioned, I'm right there with ya. I sure hope Lou doesn't continue to include them. I mean, I love a good Richard Simmons gag as much as the next guy, but some of their humor crosses the line from playfulness to downright hate. Believe me, I looooove non-p.c. humor, but did we really need to see Simmons splayed on his back begging Heston to penetrate him? That was done in such poor taste–––not to mention his head being blown off later. Yikes guys.
Thanks for keeping us all updated on the show. Sorry to hear that some of the entries weren't all up to par... :(ReplyDelete
And proud of it, sister. If you saw the offending "work" done by this company, you would be singing the same tune. Trust me.ReplyDelete
snob snobReplyDelete
Nice. Check out my stuff if you get a chance...................ReplyDelete


text:
Lincoln College Croquet Club just signed up.
3 years ago
Amateur croquet players, professional crew daters.
University of Oxford
We promise bevs and a big mallet.
No one has dared be associated with this crew.
Amateur croquet players, professional crew daters.
To post on Lincoln College Croquet Club's wall you must either log in as a crew, or you can post as yourself using Facebook.
We will never post anything to your Facebook or store your personal data.
Just connect with Facebook to add yourself to the crew. We will never post to Facebook as you and don't save any of your personal data.
To request a crewdate with Lincoln College Croquet Club, just enter a message below. Better make it good...
Copyright 2012 Juxon Partners

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Sold Out
Remember My Soul provides the comforting voice of wisdom at life's most painful moment.
Drawing on decades of experience in Jewish outreach and counseling people who have lost a loved one, Remember My Soul, was written specifically for people with little or no prior knowledge of Judaism and the way Judaism understands and approaches death, loss and mourning. People who have suffered a recent loss-and those for whom a distant loss continues to be a struggle-will find in these pages insight, inspiration and resolution.Remember My Soul includes:


text:
For a while, I've wondered if affirmative action in talent-based degrees such as theater, architecture, music performance, and fashion design is doing its job correctly.
My sister is a senior in high school and is applying to many major schools for musical theater. She attends the Academy of Theatre Arts, where many students do go on to pursue theater at a university. Last year, a graduating senior was accepted into the highly competitive NYU Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. He is a good dancer, but we were puzzling about why he was picked over the many other talented "triple threats" vying for a spot in the program. This student happened to be a mixed race hispanic, so it got me wondering if that had any effect in his being chosen above other students that might have been more talented.
Keep in mind- the above story is an anecdote. There are many things we do not know about the situation to judge how much this student's race affected his acceptance. He could have had an excellent audition, known or worked with NYU faculty beforehand, received superb letters of recommendation… for all we know, the talent level in applicants last year may not have been as high.
However, I do want to examine in this blog post the pros and cons to affirmative action, and if it has truly succeeded in doing its job.
It's a common myth that affirmative action will cause many Caucasian workers to lose out. Government statistics prove that this is not necessarily true. According to the Department of Commerce, "there are 2.6 million unemployed Black civilians and 114 million employed White civilians (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2011). Thus, even if every unemployed Black worker in the United States were to displace a White worker, only 2% of Whites would be affected." This statement, however, is applicable to the general workforce and not the creative pursuits where talent comes into question. Statistics and studies in this specific area are severely lacking.
I do understand that many African Americans don't have as much of an opportunity to learn how to play the violin well, study under a prestigious dance teacher, or visit cities with famous architecture to inspire them in their work. I think this is the problem that should be remedied- that way, we can even the playing field, and the main decision for college acceptances or job offers will be based on talent, like it should be. Surprisingly, one of my least favorite supreme court justices agrees with me. Clarence Thomas, "who has opposed affirmative action even while conceding that he benefited from it, told a reporter for The New York Times in 1982 that affirmative action placed students in programs above their abilities. Mr. Thomas, who was then the 34-year-old chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, didn't deny the crisis in minority employment. But he blamed a failed education system rather than discrimination in admissions."
There aren't many studies to prove that it would be more beneficial to improve the early education system rather than have a quota for minority students applying for college. In some cases, I'm sure affirmative action works great- there are more minority and female workers in the workforce today than ever before. However, when talent is called into question, I wonder if there is a better solution to the inequality conundrum that still plagues us today.


text:
Contact Information
Check with the Children's Librarian at your branch or call 1-866-57-ASKUS (1-866-572-7587)
Grand People & Books
Adult volunteer readers share their joy of reading with eager young listeners in the library. Reading one on one helps to improve reading skills and nurtures a love of reading.
"I hated school. It's embarrassing when your peer would correct your spelling paper and you had practically nothing...The literacy program has really helped me by encouraging me. I never got that when I was a kid."
- Ron
Listen to Ron's Story
At the Library


text:
Putin Declares War
Will Obama and Europe let him get away with carving up Ukraine?
Vladimir Putin's Russia seized Ukraine's Crimean peninsula by force on the weekend and now has his sights on the rest of his Slavic neighbor. The brazen aggression brings the threat of war to the heart of Europe for the first time since the end of the Cold War. The question now is what President Obama and free Europe are going to do about it.
With a swiftness and organization that suggests the plans were hatched weeks ago, Mr. Putin is moving to carve up Ukraine after Russia's satrap in Kiev, former President Viktor Yanukovych,...
To Read the Full Story


text:
Flights to Liverpool from Mahon
Find cheap flights
Flights to Liverpool from MahonFlights Mahon - Liverpool fly from Mahon to Liverpool at the best prices in the market. Flights from Mahon (Minorca-Mahon) to Liverpool (Liverpool-John Lennon) with Destinia. To search for availability and reserve your flight Mahon - Liverpool look at the box above and select the departure and return date as desired. You can also buy several airplane tickets Mahon (Minorca-Mahon airport) - Liverpool (Liverpool-John Lennon airport) at the same time, by selecting the adults, children and babies travelling. You can filter the type of flight if you only want direct flights to Mahon - Liverpool, multiple destinations or flight stopovers.
InformationMahon and Liverpool are 1599 kilometres away from each other, with an estimated flight time of 02:17 h (this may vary depending on the weather or air routes)
Airports near Liverpool
All Liverpool airports
Most popular flights
Selection of the airline routes that are most popular with users of Destinia.
Top destinations in United Kingdom
Book your flights now from Liverpool (United Kingdom) to the most important cities in the world. The box below contains flights from Liverpool (United Kingdom) to the most important cities.
- Flights to Anglesey
- Flights to Belfast
- Flights to Benbecula Island
- Flights to Birmingham
- Flights to Blackpool
- Flights to Bournemouth
- Flights to Brighton
- Flights to Bristol
- Flights to Cambridge
- Flights to Campbeltown
- Flights to Cardiff
- Flights to Carlisle
- Flights to Coventry
- Flights to Darlington
- Flights to Dundee
- Flights to Durham
- Flights to Edinburgh
- Flights to Exeter
- Flights to Glasgow


text:
Battlefield: Bad Company team isn't forgotten, just on a long vacation, says DICE
Battlefield: Bad Company 3 isn't even on the map, but DICE is aware a lot of you want it to happen. Creative director Lars Gustavsson has pretty much said that the studio will return to the series once a few projects like Mirror's Edge and Star Wars: Battlefront are out of the way first.
Reporting on a DICE event – that our own Brenna Hillier attended this week – PCGamesN picked up on Gustavsson addressing the prospect of a third Bad Company game. He said, "My feeling is that I would love to do it. For me, when we started the company with 1942, it was really a work of passion. And then we worked our way through the era of different wars, and I loved them all, like my little babies. When it came to Bad Company, it was creative freedom; don't take yourself too seriously."
"But trust me, the Bad Company [team] isn't forgotten, they are just on a very long vacation. So they are out there, they're coming back."
Hot damn. What do you make of the above?


text:
We stand for work incorporated
Your cart is empty.
Side bound
A5 (148 x 210 mm)
Ruled (7 mm)
2 note pockets
We offer fast and free delivery to metro areas when you spend $55 or more*. Find out more about next day delivery
and see our delivery timeframes for your area.
If you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, we accept returns on most products from our catalogue within a reasonable time frame*. Exclusions apply, such as customised products and products specifically indicated as being non-returnable.
*For more information view our Terms and Condition of Sale.
2 of 2 items selected
a5 notebooka5 spiral notebook1888535786610166spirax a5a5spiraxa5 spiral notebooksa5 note
These products are Australian Made.
As part of our commitment to sustainability, we have developed the EarthSaver classification to assist our customers in identifying products that meet environmentally preferable product criteria. More>>
This item is no longer part of our in stock range and is only available while stocks last.
This product is not eligible for change of mind returns. See our Returns Policy.


text:
The best live in carers in Ashtead
Looking for live-in care in Ashtead? Hometouch can help find the perfect carer for your loved one. In fact, we can provide carers in Ashtead or anywhere in the country.
Help your loved one find exceptional live-in care in Ashtead – contact a hometouch Care Advisor today.
A compassionate and quality live in care agency in Ashtead
All our carers are handpicked and carefully vetted – we'll ask you about your loved one's preferences and care requirements, and suggest a curated selection of carers we think will be a great match. You can tailor your care plan to make sure your loved one gets the right level of care, from companionship to clinically complex support.
hometouch was founded by Dr Jamie Wilson, a former NHS dementia specialist, to help people live happily, safely and with dignity in their own homes. As well as dementia care, we offer respite care, post-operative care, palliative care and end-of-life care
Affordable live in care services in Ashtead
Our prices start from £850 a week for live-in companionship care in Ashtead, and we also offer packages for more complex medical needs. Whatever your loved one's care needs, companionship or clinical support, we'll find out their interests, preferences and requirements and match them with an exceptional carer. Get in touch with a hometouch Care Advisor to find out how we can help.
What is live-in care?
Live-in care is when a carer lives with the person receiving care in their home. From companionship care all the way to round-the-clock complex care, a live-in carer can provide one-to-one support in your loved one's own home. This is especially important for people living with dementia, who may become increasingly confused or distressed in unfamiliar surroundings.
A dedicated live-in carer can provide your loved one with more individual care than they'd receive at a residential home. So whether it's a day out on weekends, or fish and chips in front of the TV on a Friday evening, your loved one can carry on doing the things they enjoy. And because the carer is staying on-site, it's often cheaper than a care home too. To find out more about the cost of care where you live, take a look at our page on understanding the cost of care.
At hometouch, we help people live happily, safely and with dignity in their own homes. If you think live-in care could be right for your loved one, contact a hometouch Care Advisor today.
Find out more about live-in care
|Home care vs. care homes
|What qualifications should carers have?


text:
Skip Hire Bowston from YourLocalSkipHire.co.uk
When you need to hire a skip in Bowston, YourLocalSkipHire.co.uk is here to help. As one of the UK's leading skip hire companies, we've provided a professional, reliable skip hire service throughout the country.
Our sizing guide is available so you can choose the right skip for your requirements. YourLocalSkipHire can supply a range of skips in a selection of sizes, so you can be certain that our suppliers will provide you with the right container for your project.
To book your skip using YourLocalSkipHire.co.uk, let us know your postcode using the box above. We'll get back to you with a no-obligation quote. No messing around required – giving you more time to plan your project. If you'd rather book your skip over the phone, just drop us a line now on 0330 1130 700, and we'll handle the rest.


text:
Availability: In stock
* Mandatory fields
Patent Pending.The Powerskin Carbon Ultra incorporates a new level of support and movement management with an internal structure inside the suit. This is the ULTRA LINK SYSTEM, designed to optimise the body physiology. By providing targeted compression zones, it further supports and streamlines your body to reduce turbulence and drag.
The Powerskin Carbon Ultra delivers intelligent compression and anatomical support without limiting your freedom of movement. This is achieved by incorporating the X-PIVOT feature.
The INFINITY LOOP feature of the Powerskin Carbon Ultra is designed using a deep knowledge of the key muscle chains that help you to hold a streamlined body position. The ULTRA COMPRESSION PANELS are designed to work with the ULTRA CAGE fabric to deliver targeted areas of additional compression on the inside of the suit. The ULTRA CAGE fabric contains three times more carbon than before and the fabric is woven more tightly. This means it is able to more accurately conform to your shape, distributing pressure to streamline your body.
The fit of a swimsuit should be based upon your individual needs and preferences. This size guide refers to competition suits, which are designed to fit the body tightly, in order to provide superior muscle compression. These suits are designed to be worn for short lengths of time, and therefore if you wish to train in one, for your comfort we recommend purchasing a larger size
In order to ensure that your Arena swimsuit provides you with the best possible performance for a long time to come, we recommend you take the following precautions:
- rinse immediately after use, in non-chlorinated water;
- do not leave the wet swimsuit in a bag or other container for a long time;
- do not expose the wet swimsuit in a bag or other container to direct sunlight;
- wash with detergents suitable for delicate clothes;
- air-dry away from heat sources.
Follow the washing instructions given on your product label.
The label provides useful symbols giving information on how to take best care of it.


text:
From CCRMA Wiki
Your home directory is backed up automatically each day to backup server. You can access these daily images by going to:
There you will see directories with names like '
20070804,' which corresponds to the date of the backup.
Inside this directory you'll see another directory named '
tree' corresponds to your home directory. So, in side it you'll see all the files and dictories backed up on that date. This is an 'image' or snapshot of what your home directory looked like at backup time. Backups are taken sometime between midnight and 8am generally.


text:
We love Texas. It's a state where the women are smart and beautiful, the license plate frames are illegal and everyone is armed. Robert "Jack" Parker was found guilty today of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after attacking one of his customers with a machete. According to the guy's defense attorney, he made a "Bold Move" with his machete because he feared his customer (who was just trying to pick up his plates) was making his "Way Forward" to get a gun. Having lived in Texas most of our lives, and having worked for a congressman in the area, we can assure you that the chances were more than even that the guy actually had a gun. Let this be a lesson: when buying a car in Texas keep your hands in plain sight at all times and for god's sake, get the rustproofing.
Tyler Car Dealership Owner Convicted of Machete Attack [Houston Chronicle]
Use A License Plate Frame, Go To Texas Jail [Internal]


text:
Jordan Levin
Two Miami-made films tell stories of the city's unique music scene
The way we sound is the way we are. At least that's the case made by two Miami-produced documentaries being released in the next week. Both tell stories of the city's music scene that show music as a metaphor for the creation of a Miami cultural identity.
The first, Deep City: The Birth of the Miami Sound, screening Friday at the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts as part of the Miami International Film Festival, tells the story of a little known Liberty City-based soul music label in the 1960s that was a crucial link between the vital Overtown music community and Miami disco hit factory TK Records. The movie was funded and produced by public television station WLRN.
Miami Boheme examines Latin fusion bands such as DJ Spam and the Spam All-Stars, Palo!, Suenalo and Locos Por Juana that have been heating up local clubs since the early 2000s with another kind of Miami sound. The film makes its debut at the Design District club The Stage on March 19 and airs on WPBT-PBS 2 on March 27 before it is distributed to PBS stations nationally.
Although they look at different eras and genres, both films showcase how Miami's unique mix of cultures and musical styles produced a distinctive sound unlike anyplace else. And both sets of filmmakers say they were inspired by a desire not only to document the city's musical history, but to make the case for the value of that music and what it says about Miami's culture and identity — even though neither has produced national hits.
"We as a community are starting to tell our stories," says Dennis Scholl, co-producer and co-director of Deep City with Marlon Johnson and Chad Tingle. "This is part of our history, and . . . for too long we have ignored these historical moments. We felt very strongly this was a story we wanted to tell as Miamians, a story that deserved to be told about Miami."
Miami Boheme director Joe Cardona, whose previous film, The Day it Snowed in Miami, documents the battle over gay rights here in the '70s, was inspired by years of going out to hear Miami bands. "We've never been thought of as a music town," says Cardona. "But I think Miami has earned the right to be part of that conversation when people talk about different cities and the sounds that come from there. It's not something that gets the recognition it should."
The Deep City label was created in the early '60s by Willie Clarke and Johnny Pearsall, who ran their tiny enterprise out of Pearsall's Liberty City record shop, Johnny's Records.
Clarke, raised in Overtown and Liberty City, attended Florida A&M University, where he played in the famed Marching 100 marching band and met Pearsall. Back home the pair hooked up with with songwriter Clarence Reid (also known as Blowfly, an obscene rapper with a cult following).
Inspired by the success of Motown, they began making records, combining raw, soulful local singers like Helene Smith, a shy high school student who worked at the shop, with the power and drive of Marching 100 players, and rhythmic flair from Bahamian and Jamaican musicians flavoring Miami's black music.
Deep City had a number of local hits, but Clarke and Pearsall, who worked as teachers and administrators in the Miami-Dade school system, didn't have the connections or financing to get national airplay or distribution. "Being black in the South . . . we could not get money from the banks," says Clarke, 70, who is retired. "They looked at us like, 'What question you want to ask next so we can say no?' "
FLASH SALE! Unlimited digital access for $3.99 per month
Don't miss this great deal. Offer ends on March 31st!SAVE NOW
But Tingle says their drive was representative of Miami's black community at the time. "They felt they had a bigger purpose than living in a segregated community. . . . They had this DIY spirit that we can make this better than Motown, we can be just as good."
Clarke and Reid (and other Deep City musicmakers) would go on to become key parts of Henry Stone's TK Records, helping produce a string of disco hits in the '70s, most famously from KC and the Sunshine Band. They brought along their hottest act, singer Betty Wright, whom they discovered at age 12 when she came into the record store to collect a prize from a radio contest.
But the dreams, energy and frustration of the Deep City years linger in their creators. "We were excited about making something, getting our friends together and having fun doing it," says Clarke. "Then everybody eats the cake up and you don't get any. The only satisfaction we got is it sounded good for us and a lot of people."
Scholl discovered Deep City via one of two CDs issued by Chicago label Numero Group, which put out a series of reissues of obscure regional soul labels that flourished before national radio chains and labels homogenized the music landscape.
"I moved to Miami in 1963. I had no idea this was going on," Scholl says. "This is a moment in time our community has lost . . . we felt an obligation to these great artists, musicians and singers to tell their story and give them their moment."
Scholl, vice president/arts for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, enlisted filmmakers Johnson and Tingle, and the trio spent several years digging for photos and film, and coaxing interviews from people like Smith, who quit singing and worked as an elementary school teacher for 32 years.
The moment in Deep City when Smith sings along with one of her records is one of the most moving in the film. "It was like the skies opened up," Scholl says. "It took her back to a period when things were possible."
The sounds of Miami Boheme have been filling Miami's clubs since 2002, when DJ LeSpam and the Spam Allstars began playing a Thursday party at Little Havana club Hoy Como Ayer.
The group was created and headed by Andrew Yeomanson, mixing tracks from his vast collection of Cuban, salsa, Miami "booty" bass and other funk and soul records with a group of Cuban and American musicians to create an irresistibly danceable, only-in-Miami mix. The Spam Allstars would inspire other bands to create their own blend of Miami sounds, becoming a distinctive, regular presence at clubs and music festivals ever since.
They range from Locos Por Juana, led by Colombian immigrant Itagui Correa and heavy on cumbia, ska and reggae, to the mostly Cuban-inflected Palo! That group was started by Steve Roitstein, whose Jewish family came to Miami in the '60s, and who has produced records for Cuban exile idol Willy Chirino and a host of other Latin artists — a grandchild of European Jewish immigrants shaped by a new generation of Latin American immigrants.
Wherever they come from, they are shaped by the city they now call home. In one interview, Correa recounts the reaction in Colombia to Locos Por Juana's first tour there. "They let us know that's not cumbia, that's something you created, that's American . . . which we love. It's just the Miami sound."
Cardona, 46, says he thinks the music shows how the city is maturing into its mixed identity. "The older I get the more I feel like a Miamian," he says. "Yes, I'm Cuban-American, but I'm really Miamian. More of us now, whether we're born here are not, are feeling more comfortable with that. This sound represents that."
A key figure in both films is Yeomanson, whose passion for and knowledge of Miami music (he has been collecting Deep City records for years) make him a unique advocate for the sounds of the city he loves, whether now or half a century ago.
"We've built an audience in Miami tuned to what we do because we share a certain background and taste . . . whether it's bass or old Cuban music," Yeomanson says.
Though he and his Miami Boheme compatriots, like their Deep City predecessors, haven't made a big national splash or had a major hit, Yeomanson thinks Miami's rich, distinctive sound is more valuable than ever, a throwback to times when cities from New Orleans to New York to Nashville to Detroit to Los Angeles created their own music.
"Regional music is a good thing," Yeomanson says. "That's how you get away from the homogenization of pop music, all this crap that sounds the same.
"All that's been important to me is that people look at this and say it's not like anything else."


text:
A wish is much more than just a nice thing. And its reach extends far beyond a single event, or moment in time. Wish kids, parents, medical professionals, volunteers, and others say that wish experiences can change the lives of everyone involved, forever.
Wishes are powerful. A lot goes into granting them. Here are some facts and figures that will give you a behind-the-scenes look at Make-A-Wish® and its work in the United States and its territories.
* "Wish Impact Study Results – Second Phase: Jan. – Aug. 2011" (consolidated results), November 2, 2011.
Whalen - September 2013 Wish Kid Skydiving
According to the results of a 2011 Wish Impact Study that surveyed wish parents, health professionals, and Make-A-Wish volunteers, a wish come true empowers children with life-threatening medical conditions to fight harder against their illnesses. When wish kids are granted a wish, they get more than just a great experience for a day, two days, or a week. That experience improves the quality of life for them and their entire family.
Health professionals treating them say the wish experience is an important adjunct to medical treatment, and they observe their patients feel better and comply more readily with treatment protocols when they experience their wish come true. And the community volunteers who grant wishes say the wish granting process heightens both their ability to see the best in others, and their commitment to actively help more people in need.
Improved Health Status
A combined 89 percent of doctors, nurses and health professionals surveyed say they believe a wish experience can influence wish kids' physical health.*
Enhanced State of Mind
Ninety-nine percent of parents reported that the wish experience gave their children increased feelings of happiness and 96 percent said that the wish experience strengthened their families. *
Strengthened Communities
Ninety-five percent of community volunteers reported an increased sense of compassion and 84 percent felt an increased faith in humanity. *
* "Wish Impact Study Results – Second Phase: Jan. – Aug. 2011" (consolidated results), Nov. 2, 2011.
Shane - March 2013 Wish Kid
December 05, 2020
March 06, 2021
Join us at our 2020 Golf Tournaments!
Stay in Touch!
Sign up to receive email from Make-A-Wish.


text:
BARCELONA -- Sony made its mark in entertainment technology and is taking that tradition to wearables with its new SmartBand wrist-wearable device.
The new SmartBand, with waterproof core sensor technology, goes on sale globally in March for 99 euros (US$130), allowing customers to connect to an Android app called Lifelog, the company announced at Mobile World Congress here on Monday.
The SmartBand will connect to any Android 4.4 (KitKat) device, not only the new Sony Xperia Z2 smartphone or Xperia Z2 Tablet, also announced Monday.
With the Lifelog app and SmartBand, Sony described how users can "effortlessly capture life and entertainment," including places visited, music listened to, games played and books read.
"Smartband and its innovative core extend beyond fitness tracking to add colorful, fun entertainment experiences to users' lives," Sony Mobile Communications CEO Kunimasa Suzuki said at the MWC event. "It goes far beyond health and fitness to capture not just emotions but [experiences]."
The core sensor in the SmartBand SWR10 connects to Android smartphones via Bluetooth and near field communication. The core sensor itself -- about an inch long and a quarter of an inch wide -- fits inside a flexible wristband. It has a micro USB connection for charging. The battery typically runs for seven days.
The first SmartBands will be available in black, but a variety of colors will appear after the launch.
When the SmartBand is beyond about 10 yards from the smartphone or other connected Android device, it will emit a vibration alert. The SmartBand measures sleep by using a vibration to waken the user. Tweets, calls and messages to the Android device are transmitted to the SmartBand with a vibration notification.
A Walkman app can be used to play, pause and skip music tracks when a user presses a button on the SmartBand or by tapping the band.
Read more about personal technology in Computerworld's Personal Technology Topic Center.


text:
Prayer Coach
- Jim Nicodem Author
- 2008 21 Jun
Chapter One: Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail
I stopped by the home of a friend recently. He's a relatively new believer who's been coming to our church for only a short time. At the end of our visit, I volunteered to pray about some of the things we'd been talking about—the uncertainty of his job, his growing relationship with God, his concern for his teenage daughter. When I finished, he looked at me somewhat wistfully and said, "Some day I'd like to be able to do that."
Not quite sure what he was referring to, I asked, "You'd like to be able to do what?"
"Pray!" was his emphatic response. He didn't mean it as flattery. And I didn't take it as such, because, after all, there is little skill involved in praying well. Praying is not a talent to be applauded, like piano playing or public speaking or golfing. It's more like… well… mowing the lawn. It's something we just do. I wouldn't be flattered if my friend had said to me, "Someday I'd like to be able to mow the lawn just like you."
One of my major objectives in writing this book is to convince you that praying is not just for the pros. You don't have to be an apostle Paul or a John Wesley or a Billy Graham to pray well. There is no special skill involved. It is something, rather, that we become good at by just doing it.
And that's the problem. Most Christ followers don't do it. Often when I am speaking on the topic of prayer, I will ask my audience, "How many of you are satisfied with the amount of praying you do?" I have yet to see a single hand raised. We all wish we prayed more. We don't need another pep talk on the importance of prayer. We believe it's important. We just don't do it!
Why not? Let me begin with some prayer busters, or obstacles, that keep us from praying. These roadblocks are common to all of us and must be removed in order for prayer to take off in our lives.
The solutions I propose are simple and practical. If you find anything super deep in these pages it probably got there by accident. I have read many profound books over the years on the topic of prayer. Unfortunately, most of what I learned didn't translate into more praying on my part. The goal of this book, again, is to get you to actually do it.
That's what Jesus' example prompted the disciples to want for themselves. In the opening verse of Luke 11 we read: "One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, 'Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.'" There is a sense of urgency to this request. Bible scholars tell us that the verb is an aorist imperative. An aorist imperative is often used to convey a demand for immediate action.
Having observed Jesus at prayer, the disciples were now imploring him, "Teach us to pray… right now! Don't put us off. This is something we need immediately. We're tired of being prayer deficient."
Interestingly, this is the only place in the four Gospels where Jesus' followers ask him, directly, to teach them something. Not that such a request would have been unusual. It was common, in the culture of that day, for students to ask for instruction on specific topics from their rabbis. And yet this is the only time we find Jesus' disciples making such a request of him. This is important. There is an urgency about it. Teach us to pray!
Please note, as well, that this is not, strictly speaking, a how-to request. The disciples are not asking for a lesson on prayer techniques (i.e., "Lord, teach us how to pray"). They are simply seeking help to get going. It's the same as when I ask the Lord, "Teach me to love So-and-so." Am I asking for ideas about how to do it? No, I just need a kick in the pants to start loving. Similarly, the disciples wanted a push to start praying. Teach us to pray!
If this is the cry of your heart, if you wish you prayed more than you do, if you're ready to remove the obstacles that keep you from just doing it, consider the common prayer busters which can be overcome with God's help.
No Plan
Stop and think for a moment about something you meant to do—but haven't gotten around to. Maybe it's the oil in your car that should have been changed three thousand miles ago. Or the important phone call that should have been returned last week.
Or shouldn't you have taken the dog to the vet for his annual shots by now?
Why haven't you done these things yet? Chances are pretty good that your problem is as simple as not having a plan for getting the job done. You haven't officially put it on your "to do" list or written it on your calendar. You've heard it before: when we fail to plan, we plan to fail.
This is why my heating bill was so high this past winter. We have trouble with the airflow in our home, which makes it necessary for me to close all the first-floor vents in the summer (to force the cool air upstairs) and close the second-floor vents in the winter (since the heated air will rise anyway). When temperatures started to drop in late fall, I kept telling myself, I've got to readjust all those vents. But I never got around to it.
All winter long I pumped hot air up to the bedrooms, which meant that the first floor thermostat never warmed up enough to turn off the furnace. It ran and ran and ran. On bitter cold January nights I found myself perspiring and kicking off blankets. Each morning I'd think, I've got to readjust all those vents. But the job never got done. Why? Because it didn't make it to my chores list. I didn't write it in my Day-Timer to be done on my day off.
The things we get done are typically the things that we schedule to do. No plan, no action. This is just as true when it comes to the practice of prayer. Do we have a set time and place for this spiritual discipline? (This is not to suggest that we shouldn't be praying spontaneously throughout the day. But this sort of impromptu praying is more likely to happen if we have developed the habit of daily planned prayer.)
Jesus made plans to pray. He intentionally set aside time and had specific places he liked to go to talk with his heavenly Father. It is not surprising that his disciples observed him at prayer in Luke 11, because Jesus is frequently found praying in this Gospel. In fact, some have referred to Luke as "The Gospel of Prayer." Here's a quick survey:
3:21: When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened…
5:15–16: Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
6:12–13: One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them…
9:18: Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say I am?"
9:28–29: About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.
22:39, 41, 44: Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. . . . He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed… And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
Prayer was routinely on Jesus' agenda. It was something he made plans to do. And if prayer is going to happen in our lives we will have to put it on our schedules. When and where will you pray each day? That's what a plan comes down t time and location.
Start with the "when." If you were to inject fifteen minutes of prayer into your day, when would be the best time to schedule it? How about setting your alarm clock a quarter of an hour earlier and using that time to pray (after you've shaved or had a cup of coffee or done whatever it takes to wake you up)? Or maybe you have drive time on the way to work that could be spent in prayer. If you want to include the rest of the family in the venture, perhaps you'll want the fifteen minutes to be scheduled right after dinner.
Some people like to wrap up their day by kneeling for prayer at the side of their bed.
What time works best for you? As basic as this decision sounds, I believe it's so critical that I would encourage you to stop reading for a moment and lock in a daily prayer time. Actually put it on your calendar or Day-Timer or PDA or wherever you schedule important activities.
Now that that's settled, where will you pray? It needs to be a distraction-free environment. And it helps to develop the habit if the location is the same each day. At the desk in your study? In the park near your home? By the side of your bed? In the parking lot where you work?
I always make my way, first thing in the morning, to my reading chair in the living room. Just sitting down in that familiar spot, cup of chai tea in hand, reminds me what I'm there for. God and I have a regularly scheduled appointment. Prayer happens because I've planned for it to take place.
No Praise
I like to think of praise as the spice of my prayers. Without praise my praying becomes bland. There is a sameness about it, which causes me to lose interest in it.
I recently made an appointment with an ENT specialist due to a problem with my throat. I was periodically losing my voice—not a good thing to happen to a preacher. The doctor numbed my sinuses and ran a scope through them in order to get a look at my larynx. (It gave new meaning to the old taunt, "up your nose with a rubber hose.") The good news was that there were no nodules on my voice box. But the bad news was that my throat was scarred by acid reflux.
The doctor gave me four steps for correcting the situation. First, he asked me to start on a certain medication. "I can do that," I told him. Next, he told me to put the head of my bed on wooden blocks so that I am slightly inclined at night. "I can do that," I responded. (My wife just loves sleeping downhill!)
Third, he instructed me to eat my dinner earlier so that my food is digested before I go to bed. "I can do that," I assured him. Finally, he asked me to stay away from spicy foods. "I can't do that!" I objected. No way am I going to give up Mexican, Indian, Szechwan, and Thai food. Spice is what makes eating enjoyable.
And the spice of praise is what gives flavor to our praying. No wonder the psalmist encourages us to begin our prayers in this way. "Enter his [the Lord's] gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise," we are instructed in Psalm 100:4. This is how we're to come before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. With praise on our lips.
Interestingly, I regularly hear from believers that praise is the most stilted aspect of their prayer lives. Confession may be difficult for us to do, but at least we don't have any trouble knowing what to say in this regard. Thanksgiving is often lacking from our prayers, but when we finally get around to it we can usually come up with a long list of things to express gratitude for. Petition (sometimes referred to as "gimme" prayers) flows quite easily from our lips.
But praise is a different matter. All it takes is a sentence or two before we run out of words. Why is that? Why do we find it so difficult to go on and on in praise of our awesome God? I believe that our biggest problem in this regard is our limited vocabulary. There are a handful of God's attributes that immediately come to our minds (he is holy, gracious, faithful, powerful), but after we have exhausted this short list we are stuck.
Sometimes we try to get out of this bind by praying a generic, "Lord, I praise you for who you are!" That's pretty lame, isn't it? Try that with your spouse if you're married: "Honey, I praise you for who you are." You'll probably get a strange look in response, or a "What's that supposed to mean?"
If we want to praise God for who he is we must expand our knowledge of the attributes and titles by which he goes in Scripture. Over the years I have gradually compiled a list of almost 250 of these descriptions. This A to Z list includes attributes such as patient, wise, angry, just, radiant, generous, exalted, sovereign, unchanging, zealous, and righteous. The titles range from King to Rock, Shepherd, Shield, Way, Trap and Snare, Living Water, Refining Fire, Brother, Refuge, Warrior, Song, and Morning Star. There is a lot to meditate on here and much to stimulate our praise.
This topic deserves additional treatment, so I will return to it later and provide some practical suggestions for turning this list of God's attributes and titles (see Appendix) into praise. But before we leave this prayer buster let me offer one final word of explanation as to why our neglect of praise tends to diminish our praying in general.
Imagine this. You have a neighbor to whom you are always appealing for help. Whenever you speak with him it's always to ask for a favor—to lend you a tool, or to watch your kids, or to give you a hand with a household project.
One day it dawns on you that this is the nature of every conversation you have with him. You wonder if he notices this as well. You reason (and rightly so), "He must get tired of seeing me coming." How do you remedy this situation? There are two ways to go about it. You could either correct the imbalance in your conversations (by talking to him about more than just your personal needs) or you could speak less frequently with your neighbor so that you don't wear him out with your requests.
Many of us take the latter approach in our relationship with God. Aware of the fact that all our prayers seem to be appeals for help, our tendency is to scale back these conversations so as not to be a bother to God. (Even we get tired of our self-centeredness.)
How much better it would be, instead, if we introduced some balance to our praying. Beginning our prayers with praise acknowledges that, "This is not all about me—God, too, will be blessed by these prayers." Such a realization encourages us to converse with him with greater regularity.
No Pattern
I like ruts. That's a strange thing to admit, but it's true. I have found that familiar ruts (maybe a more positive expression would be "routines") help me get started on tasks that I might otherwise put off because of simple inertia.
And when something breaks up one of my routines? I can be paralyzed with indecision. Happened not too long ago. My teenage son had a day off of school. I decided to bag my agenda for the day and do something with him. "What would you like to do?" I asked.
"I dunno," he shrugged. "Go to a movie?" I suggested. "I dunno." "Bowling?" "I dunno." Take the train into the city?" "I dunno."
We were both stuck. The absence of routine had stopped us cold. In fact, we probably would have sat there indefinitely in indecision if my wife had not shown up and threatened to put us both to housework if we couldn't find something to do. That got us going.
I'm a big fan of ruts, routines, and patterns. When I exercise each day, for example, I know exactly what I am going to do. I know how many sets of push-ups I'll attempt and how far I'll run (3.1 miles exactly—not 3.2 or 3.0). I don't make up my workout as I go. I do it the same way, every time. And that's one of the reasons I don't hesitate to get started. I jump right in.
I've discovered that routines are equally helpful when it comes to prayer. There are certain patterns that I go to that launch me into intercession. Rather than getting hung up on the question of "what should I pray for?" I have a familiar way with which to begin.
I'll devote more attention to several helpful prayer patterns in a later chapter, but let me mention a few of these formulas now to give you a better idea of what I'm talking about. I'll start with the believer's armor. There are six pieces to this protective suit that Paul describes in Ephesians 6:13–17.
How does one put on "the belt of truth" or "the breastplate of righteousness" or "the helmet of salvation"? The writer of the old hymn, "Stand up, Stand up for Jesus" knew the answer to that question. "Put on the gospel armor," his lyrics instruct us, "each piece put on with prayer." Good advice. Pray on the Ephesians 6 armor.
My kids and I made a practice of doing this on the short drive to school each morning. (My two oldest are now out of the home—and I miss sharing this routine with them.) Until just recently when he graduated, my youngest and I began many of our days with this prayer as we traveled to his high school. I'd ask him to choose one of the six pieces of armor and get us started. He might select the gospel shoes and begin with: "Lord, I'm putting on the gospel shoes. Help me to be a bold witness today. Let me run toward conversations about Jesus and the good news of his salvation."
Then it was my turn. Perhaps I'd choose the belt of truth. I'd pray something like: "We want to be honest men today, Lord. Characterized by your truth. Help us to walk in integrity—to be the same in private as we are in public. Keep us from using deceitful words…."
Back and forth we'd go until we had prayed through all six pieces of armor (or as many as we could get to before we rolled into the parking lot). Anybody who has high schoolers knows the semi-comatose condition in which they head out the door most early mornings. Trying to engage them in coherent prayer could be a hopeless challenge. But I've found that the use of certain patterns, like the believer's armor, launches us into meaningful intercession in a brief period of time.
Let me give you two more examples. The A to Z list of God's attributes and titles has already been mentioned. Each day I move through this list by taking the next three entries and praising God for such. If I am in the m's, I may be exalting God for being master, mediator, and merciful. Within half a minute of dropping into my prayer chair, I have already begun to extol God with heartfelt adoration. My pattern got me started.
The fruits of the Spirit (described as a singular, collective fruit in Gal. 5:22–23) provide another pattern. Knowing these nine traits by heart (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithful-ness, gentleness, and self-control) allows me to meditatively scroll through the list and choose one to focus on in prayer. "What do I need most today, Lord? Gentleness? Okay, take away my inclination to be harsh with others. Don't let my speech be filled with sarcasm. Remind me of how gentle you have been with me—like a shepherd with his little lamb."
Patterns help us overcome the obstacle of inertia and begin to pray. I'll cover several more of these in chapter 3. You'll learn the routines of "body parts," "a few friends," "persecuted believers," and others.
This is not a technique that I made up. I learned it from Jesus. We've already looked at the disciples' request in the opening verse of Luke 11: "Lord, teach us to pray." His response in the verses that follow has come to be known as "The Lord's Prayer." Most believers are familiar with this model prayer. If they hear the words, "Our Father, Who art in heaven," they know to continue, "Hallowed be Thy name."
Unfortunately, what was intended to be a model prayer has become a mantra to many who use it. High school football teams recite it for good luck in the locker room before big games. Others rattle it off in desperate circumstances as a means of protection.
But Jesus' intention was not to give us an incantation to repeat word for word. He was providing us with a pattern to follow when we pray. A road map that would get us started on our journey. The prayer begins with praise, continues with petition, and wraps up with confession. What a great example.
If we want prayer to play a more significant role in our lives we must overcome some common obstacles: no plan, no praise, and no pattern. Our next chapter will cover five additional roadblocks. But with God's help we can bust the busters.
Copyright © 2008 by Jim Nicodem
Published by Crossway Books, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers
1300 Crescent Street Wheaton, Illinois 60187
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law.