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Blood Test Could Lead to Early Diagnosis of Fibromyalgia
One of the many frustrating things about fibromyalgia is getting it properly diagnosed. According to the American College of Rheumatology, fibromyalgia patients spend an average of three to five years before being diagnosed with the chronic pain disorder.
A simple new blood test could now be on the horizon to change that.
"We've got really good evidence of a test that could be an important aid in the diagnosis of fibromyalgia patients," says Tony Buffington, DVM, PhD, a professor of veterinary clinical sciences at Ohio State University and senior author of a study being published next month in the journal Analyst.
In a small study at Ohio State, researchers used a high powered infrared microscope to identify a pattern of molecules in the blood that is unique to fibromyalgia patients.
That pattern – a biological "fingerprint" of fibromyalgia – was then tested in a blind study against blood samples from patients with rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis. The blood test confirmed, with 100% accuracy, which patients had fibromyalgia.
"It separated them completely, with no misclassifications," Buffington said. "That's very important. It never mistook a patient with fibromyalgia for a patient with arthritis. Clearly we need more numbers, but this showed the technique is quite effective."
Buffington may be a veterinarian, but he's spent the past 25 years studying interstitial cystitis (IC), a painful bladder disorder that occurs in both cats and humans. He identified a similar molecular "fingerprint" for IC that is shared by both cats and humans.
Because many IC sufferers also have fibromyalgia, Buffington decided to expand his research.
"I frankly don't know much about fibromyalgia," Bufffington is quick to admit. But he was curious to see if a fingerprint could be found for fibromyalgia in human blood.
Working with other colleagues at Ohio State, Buffington obtained blood samples from 14 fibromyalgia patients, 15 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, and 12 with osteoarthritis. The other conditions were chosen because they produce similar symptoms as fibromyalgia, but are easier to diagnose.
The infrared microscope recognized a molecular pattern in the blood of fibromyalgia patients, a combination of amino acids that was different from those with rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis.
Even Buffington was surprised by the results.
"Frankly I didn't believe it," Buffington told National Pain Report. "It's not that I disbelieved it, it's just that we should all be skeptical of results like that. But we looked at it as carefully as we could and it kept coming back the same."
He says more research is needed to precisely identify which molecules and amino acids are present in the blood and in what quantity.
"We can identify the pattern, but we haven't clarified what the pattern is the result of, exactly which molecules and in what concentrations. That's a fairly daunting task," he says.
A simple blood test would be a godsend to fibromyalgia sufferers, who often spend years battling chronic pain, fatigue, insomnia and depression – and often the disbelief of physicians and loved ones.
"It takes, according to statistics, about five years to get a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. And five years in our medical meat grinder is more than most people can stand," says Buffington.
"I think the earlier we diagnosis this, the more time, money and frustration we're going to save for everybody."
Studies have shown that a diagnosis alone often improves the health satisfaction and symptoms of fibromyalgia patients, and the cost of their medical treatment declines significantly once other health problems are ruled out.
"The importance of producing a faster diagnosis cannot be overstated, because patients experience tremendous stress during the diagnostic process. Just getting the diagnosis actually makes patients feel better and lowers costs because of reductions in anxiety," said Kevin Hackshaw, MD, a rheumatologist, associate professor of medicine at Ohio State and lead author of the study.
Other researchers are intrigued by the Ohio State study.
"My first impression is that this is a powerful analytical technique," said Frank Rice, PhD, president and chief scientist of Integrated Tissue Dynamics LLC , where researchers recently reported that fibromyalgia patients had extra nerve fibers in the blood vessels of their hands.
"I think the authors would agree that the objective of the study was to determine whether they could discriminate between fibromyalgia patients versus patients with osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. They were successful in showing that the fibromyalgia profile was substantially different than that of the other two conditions," Rice said in an email to National Pain Report.
But Rice also pointed out that the study did not compare fibromyalgia patients to normal subjects, so the blood analysis could not be called a diagnostic test without further research.
A company based in Santa Monica, California recently came out with a blood test that it claims can diagnose fibromyalgia with 93% accuracy.
EpicGenetics says its FM test looks for protein molecules in the blood called chemokines and cytokines, which are produced by white blood cells. Fibromyalgia patients, according to the company, have fewer of these proteins in their blood.
But critics say the same protein markers can also be found in people with other illnesses, such as rheumatoid arthritis.
The FM test costs $744 and is not covered by insurance. Results are usually available in about a week, according to EpicGenetics.
At last!!
I am so glad someone out there hasn't forgotten about us fibromites! It did not take my Dr long to figure out I had fibromyalgia once my test results came back. I have been in extreme pain way before I began seeing him. I also have OA and it's good to know they are able to distinguish the difference.
I did not believe in fibromyalgia the beginning. My spouse believes if I would just exercise all the time I will be fine. Unfortunately he is one of the many that don't understand how painful it is. I do try to exercise as much as possible, I do not see a difference in how I feel. It's a real shock in life knowing you have something wrong inside with no cure. We cannot give up hope, it's all we have for now.
I guess I was lucky. I got diagnosed the first time I went to my doctor. I had complained to him for years about not having any energy and being tired all the time and he never did anything about that but when I went to him about the muscle spasms he made the diagnosis right off. He doesn't like to give pain meds though. Says pain pills won't help the kind of pain I have, whatever that means. I finally had to make an appointment and go see him just specifically for my knee and he finally put me on ultram. But that's ok, I don't want to be on narcotics. I take flexeril, neurontin, ultram, naproxen and mobic and I still hurt! I have heard too many bad things about Lyrica so I don't expecially want to try that one if I don't have to. I'm still working but not by choice. Some days I just don't even want to get out of bed.
As a 20 yr sufferer of fibro I would appreciate being put on your email list or newsletter list for updates. If you ever need a guina pig I would gladly volunteer. This disease is brutal and needs to be conquered soon before it takes us down for the count. In FL the DEA is putting a lot of heat on the doctors and pharmacies which is cutting off the narcotics to those of us who need it the most. This is a deadly disease that will kill by the hand of those who can no longer tolerate the constant beating of unbearable pain. We appreciate your dedication and work. Terri
$744 for the blood test is a lot less than I paid for all the tests that came back negative, not to mention the multiple CAT scans, etc. that will probably cause cancer for me in the future.
Belief of the physicians in the patient's pain at the outset would be the most beneficial outcome of this type of test!
Please keep working hard to find a definitive blood test. Why? I have always been told we do not have a cause and until we do we cannot have a cure. We need a cure. For our sake as well as our children. There are many in my family who have Fibromyalgia and we are all type A personalities who work too hard and burn the candle at both ends. It is devastating to be forced into a life wear pain dictates everything you do (or cannot do) anymore. For those who don't think it's real…..I really hope you don't end up with it. It never goes away. I tried all the mess in the beginning to TREAT the symptoms not the disease. Quickly I realized I would either deal with this in a natural way or becoming addicted to pain killers that really hinder your thought process. I chose the natural way and it is a lot more clearer and manageable than all the drugs. There really is another way. There are tough days but with a clear mind, massage, rest, hot showers, positive thoughts I have been able to manage the pain. I really am hoping and praying for a cause and cure for myself and all the many people who suffer from this.
My 10 year diagnosis of Fibro was a crock! I was finally treated with antibiotics for Lyme disease and Lyme co-infections, and my 'fibro' disappeared!
Sounds like they've figured out a new way to diagnose Lyme.
BTW- Lyme disease is a blood born infection cause by a spirochete bacteria. Fibro is a description of symptoms, a label, for a condition that is identical to Lyme, that they can find no cause for. Do the math.
It's exciting to know that there IS research being done to find a definitive test for Fibro. I've had Fibro for over 20 years, although my "official" diagnosis was only 3 years ago. I've been on Disability since Oct. 2009 as my Fibro and Chronic Fatigue rocketed out of control. Despite the cocktail of drugs that I take (including OxyNeo and Tramadol narcotics for pain, Cymbalta, Cesemet and Cyclobenzaprine), the most relief I'm able to get is a 3-4 on the pain scale (and I'd be off the charts without that cocktail).
Anything new that comes up as a treatment for Fibro will be welcome – and I hope there WILL be new treatments discovered. What's the sense in a test that confirms what you have, when there's nothing that can really be done for you?
Rest, healthy diet, exercise as you are able and stress management are the big areas where help with Fibro would be welcome. Pain and fatigue make it almost impossible to exercise, but without moving around, you simply increase your pain as your muscles start to atrophy from lack of use. Yes, exercise can make us hurt more…the goal is to find some type of activity you enjoy, like AquaFit (which is great for the joints and muscles).
Fibro is a lifelong condition once you've developed it…I've not heard of anyone who's been "cured" but the hope is still there. That's my motto with this – there is always hope!!
It is good that there is a test for FM….but the expense of it and it not being covered by the insurance will probably not allow people to use it. I know that a lot of us FMers are unable to work anyway. I guess it is good to know for sure that it is really FM that we have. Doctors do sometimes makes mistakes on things.
It would be wonderful if there was such a test available. I too have RA as well as FM & CFS. It took 4 years for a definite diagnosis to be made. Four years of life just wasted, going from Dr to Dr & each one giving a different diagnosis from Multiple Sclerosis to Encephalitis. Even being sent to see a Psychiatrist who did support the diagnosis of MS, but he did have thoughts of anorexia as well because of the weight loss. How do you eat, when you have constant nausea from the severity of the pain..It is a vicious cycle, one you wouldn't want your worst enemy to go through.
I received dx of chronic fatique 20+ yrs ago & did not believe it.
DX'd w/ fibro 5 yrs later and thought it was b.s. Luckily the doctor was a very good one who convinced me that if I did not take care of the fibro it would turn into something worse. She explained that she believed the chronic fatigue which I left untreated had turned into fibro.
So I was sufficiently convinced and do the best I can to live healthier and less stressful lifestyle. The amount of stress, rest, and sunlight/fresh air I get is directly related to my pain/functioning level. So that is becoming my own best current prescription.
Everything else for pain, sleep, etc is just so sedating that it's counterproductive. I will be happy when I am completely RX free.
I wonder how many cases of "fibromyalgia" could be cured with antibiotics? My "polymyalgia" was cured with antibiotics (for Lyme).
Just to know for sure and have a real name that can be diagnosed instead of laughed at. So much pain and have even have one doctor report to social security disability that I was just morbidly obese and lazy. I was lucky enough to get back with a doctor that knew me from before that decided tests were needed to rule out all but fibromyalgia!
HI I agree with Deb moore
W e need more on tabs that can help.
Iam on gaberpitn its ok but need to take other painkillers to help.
,It took me seven yrs to be diagnosed, couldn't explain what the pain felt like,the fatigue was and still is terrible. Even now with all the pain relief i have days it is hard to walk, days i just want to stay in bed and sleep and days and nights i can't stay in bed because of the pain. I have now been referred to another dr that is more into the fibro, and am hoping to get more answers than what i am usually left with more questions. My mum waz also diagnosed with fibro two yrs ago, i am 49 she is 76.
Very informative. Hope you come up with a test that is covered by insurance.
So, am I to believe that the test for oa and fibro are two different tests? I thought I read that this test differentiates between the two. I have both…so not sure how the test would work. I've had fibro most of my life, all three of my kids had/have it, I have two grandchildren with it. I do believe the weakness for the disease can be passed on to your offspring. They may or may not come down with it, but in my case, it was 100%. My husband does not have it.
Deb Moore I agree with you! I have rsd and fibrp and my quality of life is not good either! Some days I can hardly function! When I get my prescriptions filled and get all the narcotics I have to take, I notice being looked at in a different way!! Without those meds I don't think I could handle the pain at all! I hope someday they come up with something to really help those of us with fibro and rsd!!!
hoping they also come up with the cause for fibro too. i suspect for my daughter it s an autoimmune reaction from vaccines she got in her mid teens.
I too went many years with Fibro but thank God after going to many doctors and being made to feel i was maybe crazy i found a great dr that said i wasn,t crazy and recogonized my symtoms as that of Fibro!
What about people who have Fibromyalgia and Osteoarthritis like me? How would the blood tests show up then ? Would it say I only have osteoarthritis when in fact I have both ?
i was one of the really lucky ones. i got my diagnoses in about a year. went to the dr. diagnosed me with depression and put me on prozac. (keep in mind my life was what i considered perfect at the time) Prozac helped a lot to relieve my symptoms. A year later the prozac quit working and i went back to the dr. Got the right diagnoses of fibro at that time. My problem hasn't been that i couldn't get a diagnoses it has been no one has wanted to treat it. i am lower than the scum of the earth because narcotics are the only thing that helps with the pain. The mental torture I have been put thru has resulted in someone that can barely cope with anything. i think it is great that there is now a test that can diagnoses fibro but until the medical community understand how it truly destroys a persons life and comes up with some treatments that truly relieve the symptoms those of us with fibro will still be second class citizens. even though i had a diagnoses 1/2 of the medical community still doesn't believe in how bad fibro effects someones life. the really hard part about fibro is that some have it and manage to pretty much go on with life as normal, then there are those that can't get enough relief from their symptoms to manage any quality of life. the myth that exercise will improve your quality of life is such a scam. if you can barely manage to walk to the bathroom how are you gonna exercise? come on there has to be a better answer than exercise. besides, before i got fibro i was so active i didn't need a regular exercise program. i did wallpapering and painting for a living. what better exercise than climbing a ladder all day every day. then after work i coached my sons t-ball team so i pitched t-ball 3 to 4 nights a week as well as participated in everything to do with the game. now how do i add exercise on top of that? when would i have had time and just what good would an exercise program have done me? someone has to come up with something better than to exercise. what the drug companies don't tell you is that at least 50% of the people with fibro either can't take or get no relief from the 3 drugs approved for the treatment of fibro. i actually went insane on lyrica which caused a whole new set of problems on top of the fibro. so although it is great they are developing a true test for fibro unless more effective treatments are developed the test isn't going to prove anything.
Thank you for this interesting foray into diagnosing Fibromyalgia! It took me two years to be diagnosed. I didn't now that I should feel so blessed about that time frame. Diagnosis does take a lot of the stress away. Please do a much larger study. God bless you.
I've lost track of how long it took for my diagnosis of Fibromyalgia. I do remember that at one point my Dr said it sounded like Fibro, but I didn't have the required number of points on my body that had severe pain. Guess what, by the next year I had more than enough and now I've been told that they don't even consider the number of painful points for diagnosis. I was a Medical Technologist before I had to go on Medical Disability and intellectually I needed a definitive test result to confirm what my body already knew. I kept wondering if at least part of it was all in my head or if there was something I could do to change things. A test that would clearly diagnose Fibro vs Osteoarthritis (which I was diagnosed with much earlier) would have helped me deal with my feelings of guilt. I applaud Dr Buffington for his work toward this end and hope that with a better understanding of Fibro, a better treatment will follow.
Thank so much for this work and the difference it will make for both IC and FM patients. Many Fibromyalgia patients are still mistreated by doctors. Your study seems thorough and offers a real improvement.
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Fibromyalgia have a significant overlap in patients as well as IC and ME having an overlap. I wonder if it may be possible to show a similar but unique pattern in patients with ME (chronic fatigue syndrome), this would be life altering for millions of patients.
I thank you most sincerely for your very encouraging work.
was just wondering , will my children get it as my daughter is showing signs of it.
It took 10 years for me to be diagnosed with Fibro and I can say it was very stressful to not know what was wrong and to have family and colleagues at work say there was nothing wrong with me and it was all in my head. One doctor, which I don't see anymore also said that and suggested I see a Psychiatrist.
I finally found the right doctors for me and finally had some answers. But in the past 5 years I have also been diagnosed with Lupus and Dysautonomia. So now it's even harder to tell which illness is causing which pain and sickness.
I am however very pleased that this research may have a timely answer for many frustrated in pain people. Thank You for your work.
From what this article says, it's not about both disorders having the proteins. It's the PATTERN of molecules. It's like having two walls painted with the same color, but one wall is painted with up and down strokes, while the other is painted with side to side movements. The paint is the same, but the brush strokes are different.
If you have RA or OA, but not fibro, then the pattern WON'T show up. But if you do have fibro, then the pattern WILL show up, whether you have RA or OA, or not.
It's like having two different puzzles. RA and/or OA is one puzzle, and FM is another puzzle. The pattern they're looking for doesn't show up in the RA or OA puzzles, so if it's not in there, then there's no FM. If the pattern does show up, then you have the FM puzzle, and you may or may not have the separate RA or OA puzzle as well.
In some ways this is very exciting and gives me some hope that someone is interested in figuring out this awfull condition and maybe just maybe the cure I have been praying for could be a possibility!
On the other hand…..I understand needing and wanting a diagnosis and the correct diagnosis at that, but It doesn't matter what you call it…..the main problem is that no one listens to us, if there is pain, treat it! If there is fatigue treat it! I guess a test will give us the PROOF that there us something wrong……but I have always known that! SMH……
I have the same question as Sandy fernandez sheehy has . . . what about people with both RA or OA and Fibromyalgia? And I understand there are strides being made in distinquishing RA from OA in those who do not have the rh factor but have other symptoms of RA. It would be wonderful to have a blood test that insurance would pay for and did not cost almost $750! Accuracy is also important and it sounds as though Buffington is on the trail of such a test. Good. So very glad.
I wonder how early someone can be tested for it? I don't know a lot about fibro. It took me just over 6 years to get diagnosed though. I'm very concerned that I may pass it on to my kids. Does anyone know if fibro is something that is imbedded and, guaranteed to develop if you have that certain marker?
What about patients who have BOTH Rheumatoid Arthritis and Fibromyalgia, like I do? I am sero positive for RA, how would you diagnose Fibromyalgia in me if the proteins are found in both diseases?


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text: News Volleyball 10/05/2015 From the top of Europe to the top of the world A rare attack by Tatiana Kosheleva that got past the Eczacibasi block Zurich, Switzerland, May 10, 2015 - Eczacibasi VitrA Istanbul have thrashed Dinamo Krasnodar 3-1 (25-16, 25-21, 24-26, 25-19) in the final of the 2015 FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship to become the third Turkish team to claim the most coveted club title in the world.Eczacibasi followed in the footsteps of their cross-town rivals Fenerbahce (2010 in Doha) and Vakifbank (2013 in Zurich) as they blocked their way to victory. Dinamo simply couldn't find around and certainly not over the Turkish block, which contributed as many as 15 points to Eczacibasi's tally.It could even have been easier, had Eczacibasi capitalised on two match points at 24-22 in the third set. With Tatiana Kosheleva effectively neutralised, Cuban-born Rosir Kalderon came on and temporarily gave some solutions to Dinamo's offence. It was not to be, though. Kalderon couldn't last and Ecazacibasi ragained control to bring the game home in four. USA's Jordan Larson-Burbach emerged top scorer of the final, with a total of 20 points (3 aces, 15/36 kills and 2 stuffs) to add the World Club title and MVP of the tournament to that of national team World Championship from last year in Milan.German middle blocker Christiane Fuerst, who played a decisive part in Eczacibasi's win, set an individual record of her own. She has become the only player in history to have won three gold medals-and it's all been done with the three world champion Istanbul sides.Earlier in the afternoon, hosts Volero Zurich defeated Rexona-AdeS Rio de Janeiro 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-18) to claim the bronze medal.Follow the final, as it happened, here. Print this Page News {{item.LocalShortDate}} {{item.Title}} All the News


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August, 7 2013 - In an unprecedented agreement between the Department of Justice and the FBI and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) and the Innocence Project, more than 2000 criminal convictions based on microscopic hair analysis will be reviewed. This historic review has already found 27 death penalty cases in which FBI forensic experts may have provided exaggerated scientific testimony regarding hair analysis. Forensic DNA has proven that the "matches" declared between a suspect's hair and hairs found in a crime scene investigation were significantly overstated and, in many cases, flat-out wrong. DOJ has agreed not to raise procedural objections, such as statute of limitations or appellate and procedural default, in response to petitions of defendants wrongfully convicted based upon exaggerated reports of matches in hair comparisons. The 2009 National Academy of Sciences Report on forensic science found microscopic hair analysis "highly unreliable." The report was also highly critical of bitemark analysis, toolmark and firearm analysis, fingerprint analysis, and other disciplines that rely solely upon the subjective eye of the analyst.
"The government's willingness to admit error and accept its duty to correct those errors in an extraordinarily large number of cases is truly unprecedented. It signals a new era in this country that values science and recognizes that truth and justice should triumph over procedural obstacles," said Peter Neufeld, Co-Director of the Innocence Project, which is affiliated with Cardozo School of Law. "Unfortunately hair analysis is only one of many flawed forensic practices that are still used that pose the threat of infecting criminal trials across the nation. We need leadership in Washington to ensure scientific rigor and greater oversight over forensics to prevent these miscarriages of justice."
It's unfortunate this "junk" science was allowed into trials as evidence in the first place. Defense lawyers have been raising these complaints since the 70's. However, with the 2009 NAS report, the weight of science has brought the FBI to this change in position. Credit must be given to the leaders in the Department of Justice and FBI for challenging their previous testimony and for actually pursuing justice in these cases. However, it must be noted that this would not have happened but for the insistence, persistence, and hard work of criminal defense lawyers, NACDL, and the Innocence Project.
"This review is an example of our judicial system at its best -- prosecutors and defense lawyers working together to see that justice is done," said David Koropp, an attorney working pro bono for the Innocence Project. "Determining whether erroneous forensic evidence may have been used in criminal cases is vital to maintaining the integrity of our criminal justice system. The FBI is to be commended for the leadership position it has taken to help ensure that only scientifically valid evidence is used to identify and convict criminal defendants."


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When you own a piece of property, maximizing your living space is always a great thing to do. But why stop indoors? Outdoor living space is a fantastic way to enjoy great weather while still being in the comfort of your own home.
In our latest project, we gave our client a much needed backyard overhaul. With a spacious new deck, updated patio stone and a maintenance free artificial turf, this entire backyard space has been rejuvenated into a beautiful new area for our client to enjoy this summer and many more to follow.
Before we got on site, grass had a difficult time growing, a small and old deck was very underwhelming and the patio had hit its expiry. Demolition was fairly simple since the canvas was already pretty blank. We were able to get our footings dug out and poured quickly, the old patio stones removed with a new retaining wall prepped and installed. Once city inspection for the deck footings were approved, we were able to move onto the installation of the deck's structure while the rest of the landscaping was being prepared for the artificial turf. The underside of the deck was laid with river rock which we left open so our client could still use the area for basic storage.
Once the deck structure was completed we moved onto getting all the railing posts installed securely, ensuring they were all plumb and level. Next came the deck board installation along with a minor skirting we included to give a cleaner finish. Finally, we installed a black aluminum picket railing system rather than the generic 2×2 cedar pickets. Aside from a much better aesthetic finish, it also gives a more open and airy feel.
With the deck all wrapped up, new patio stone was laid, the new turf could be installed, and all the finer details could be finished so the homeowner could finally enjoy the summer with their brand new backyard oasis.
With just minor changes, this backyard received an incredible makeover and looks entirely different from before. It's now actually a "useful" space and visually appealing. Not to mention, a major boost to the property value. This project was a pleasure to be apart of and we can't wait for our client to enjoy this backyard for many years to come!


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Rangita de Silva de Alwis
Associate Dean for International Affairs
Rangita de Silva de Alwis is a globally recognized international women's rights expert. She serves as the Associate Dean of International Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania Law School where she teaches international women's rights and has been appointed Leader-in-Residence at the Harvard Kennedy School's Women and Public Policy Program for 2019-2021 academic years. She serves as an Advisor to the National Security Council on addressing legal barriers that preclude women's economic participation in developing economies, with an emphasis on Africa. In 2017, she started the Global Women's Leadership Project and Women, Law & Leadership Lab under the auspices of UN Women's Executive Director, Under Secretary-General Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka to map the laws that regulate the status of women in the family. Rangita serves as Special Advisor to the President of Wellesley College and as Distinguished Adviser to the Executive Director of UN Women on global women's rights and women's leadership. Rangita is a Non-Resident Senior Fellow of Harvard Law School's Center on the Legal Profession where she is co-authoring a Study with Under Secretary General Mlambo- Ngcuka on the transformative impact of business leadership, innovation and inclusion on accelerating the SDGs. She also serves on the UN Women High Level Working Group on Women's Access to Justice and as Advisor to Gender Equality at UNESCO. In 2017, she was appointed a Global Advisor to the UN Sustainable Development Goal Fund. Most recently, Rangita advised the European Union in directing Foreign Policy and development cooperation in the EU Resolution "Toward an EU external strategy against early and forced marriage" introduced before the European Parliament in 2018. By appointment by the Hon. Julia Gillard, the former Prime Minister of Australia, she serves on the Steering Group for the Global Gender and Leadership Index at King's College, London. At the appointment of the World Bank's Legal Vice Presidency, Rangita serves as an Expert to the Access to Justice and Technology Task Force of the World Bank.
Before coming to Penn Law, she was the inaugural director of the Global Women's Leadership Initiative and the Women in Public Service Project launched by Secretary Hillary Clinton and the Seven Sisters Colleges at Wellesley College which then moved to the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Rangita is a women's human rights scholar and practitioner with over 25 years of experience working globally in over 25 countries with a vast network of academic institutions, government, and nongovernment entities on women's human rights law and policy making and institutional reform. She has convened several transnational networks including the Women's Leadership Network in Muslim Communities, the Asia Cause Lawyer Network in India, and the Gender and Law Expert Group and the Women's Watch in China. She has worked over 15 years with Chinese gender and law experts and academics and has testified twice before the Congressional Executive Commission on China on the status of women's rights in China. She has advised UNICEF, UN Women, UNFPA, and UNDP on state accountability under the relevant human rights treaties and the intersections of the different treaties and treaty bodies. She has lectured at Yale Law School and spoken around the world on gender-based law reform. She has served as Visiting Faculty at the Hong Kong University School of Law in 2017 and 2018. She has published widely with the United Nations, and in various leading law journals including with Yale Journal of Law and Feminism; NYU Journal of International Law and Politics; Texas Journal of Gender and the Law; University of Pennsylvania East Asia Law Journal; Duke Journal of Gender and the Law; UCLA Pacific Rim Journal; UCLA Journal of International Law and Foreign Relations, Michigan Journal of International Law, University of Washington International Law Journal, University of Pennsylvania International Law Journal, and the Berkeley Journal of International Law.
Most recently, she developed a Gender Supplement to the U.N. Secretary General's Guidelines on Disability, and a report to the World Bank on Women's Voice and Agency. Her latest work has been on Gender and Disability Lawmaking for UN DESA.
Rangita has a LL.M and S.J.D. from Harvard Law School and was a Teaching Fellow with the European Law Research Institute at Harvard Law School, a Research Fellow with the Women and Public Policy Program at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University and a Visiting Fellow at Harvard Law School's Human Rights Program. She was a Fulbright Specialist with the Asian University of Women, a Distinguished Visiting Lecturer at Wellesley College, a Senior Scholar at Wellesley Centers for Women, a Salzburg Global Fellow and an Honorary Professor of China Women's University. She has received many recognitions for her work on international women's human rights. Most recently she was honored by Harvard Law School as a Woman Inspiring Change, 2015. She serves on several Boards including the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Law, Brain and Behavior at Harvard University, the Landesa Board of Directors, and is a trustee of the Harpswell Foundation.
Currently, she is working on a chapter on gender equality and leadership for the Handbook on the Sustainable Development Goals, Oxford University Press.
Rangita's recent work was featured in the Financial Times (FT). She has also appeared on C-span's Book TV.
MAKING LAWS, BREAKING SILENCE: CASE STUDIES FROM THE FIELD (Rangita de Silva de Alwis ed., 2018).
Articles and Book Chapters
Goal Five and Gender Equality, in TREATISE ON THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS) (Oxford Univ. Press, forthcoming 2021). (forthcoming 2021)
Why Women's Leadership is the Cause of Our Time, in GENDER, POWER, LAW & LEADERSHIP 25 (Hannah Brenner & Renee Knake eds., 2020).
"Long Past Time": CEDAW Ratification in the United States, 3 J. L. & PUB. AFF. 16 (2018) (with Amanda M. Martin).
Women's Human Rights and Migration: Sex-Selective Abortion Laws in the United States and India, 19 ASIA-PAC. J. ON HUM. RTS. & L. 69 (2018).
Women and the Making of the Tunisian Constitution, 35 BERKELEY J. INT'L L. 90 (2017).
The Role of Personal Laws in Creating a "Second Sex", 48 N.Y.U. J. INT'L L. & POL. 1085 (2016) (with Indira Jaising).
Freedom from Violence: A Global Perspective in Light of Chinese Domestic Violence Law, 2015, 37 U. PA. J. INT'L L. 1 (2015) (with Jeni Klugman).
Why Women's Leadership is the Cause of Our Time, 18 UCLA J. INT'L L. & FOR. AFF. 87 (2013), reprinted in GENDER, POWER, LAW & LEADERSHIP (Hannah Brenner & Renee Knake eds., West Academic forthcoming 2020).
Domestic Violence Lawmaking in Asia: Some Innovative Trends in Feminist Lawmaking, 29 UCLA PAC. BASIN L. J. 176 (2012).
Examining Gender Stereotypes in New Work/Family Reconciliation Laws Around the World: The Creation of a New Paradigm, 18 DUKE J. GENDER L. & POL'Y 305 (2011).
Opportunities and Challenges for Gender-Based Legal Reform in China, 5 E. ASIA L. REV. 197 (2010) (Translated into Chinese by the China University of Political Science and the Law and published in WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN CRIMINAL PROCEDURE (2010)).
Mining the Intersections: Advancing the Rights of Women and Children with Disabilities within an Interrelated Web of Human Rights, 18 PAC. RIM L. & POL'Y J. 293 (2009).
Reconceptualizing Human Rights to Challenge Tobacco, 17 MICH. ST. U. J. INT'L L. 291 (2008/2009) (with Richard Daynard).
The Recently Revised Marriage Law of China: The Promise and the Reality, 13 TEX. J. WOMEN & L. 251 (2004) (with Charles J. Ogletree, Jr.).
When Gender Differences Become a Trap: The Impact of China's Labor Law on Women, 14 YALE J. L. & FEMINISM 69 (2002) (with Charles J. Ogletree, Jr.).
More publications can be found here.
Working Papers
Redefining Leadership in the Age of the SDGs: Accelerating and Scaling Up Delivery Through Innovation and Inclusion (August 21, 2019), Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession working paper (with Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka). (forthcoming)
[View Document]


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Ex-pediatric practice manager sentenced 3-9 years for stealing more than $3 million
Jan 2019 – LI NY, Peter Singh, the Selden resident accused of embezzling more than $3 million from Five Town Pediatrics, PC, a local pediatric practice, in Woodmere and Bellmore was sentenced to three to nine years in prison on Jan. 9 and ordered to pay $3,102,764.30 in restitution.
Singh, 43, pleaded guilty before Judge William O'Brien to grand larceny second-degree on Nov. 7
Between 2004 and 2018, allegedly embezzled more than $3 million. He was arrested on May 15. He was employed as the practice administrator and had access to bank accounts and payroll. During the time frame, he arranged for a direct deposit from the business account into his own account in the amount of roughly $83,500. He then arranged to give himself pay totaling $1,126,800.
He added his wife to the payroll for $1,726,700 with the funds going directly to himself; he also added his step-daughter to the payroll. The money — $136,053 — went to him, and he set up a false company collecting $29,600.
Having issues with the business account, Pediatrics Healthcare hired a certified public accountant to review the financial records. The alleged fraudulent activities were then discovered.
"This defendant was entrusted with managing Five Town Pediatrics' finances, and he betrayed that trust when he stole more than $3 million over eight years," Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said in a news release. "Peter Singh's greed will cost him his liberty, and I'm grateful to the NCPD and our prosecutors for bringing him to justice."


text: Recipe# 2262516 Apr 20 141caloriespertoast French Toast, Eggless French Toast by Tarla Dalal 12 reviews French Toast – a name that makes people drool the world over – is generally out of the reach of vegetarians as its other name is "Eggy Bread"! It is basically bread that is soaked in beaten eggs, then deep-fried and drizzled with honey. This vegetarian version is just as tasty! Here, we have dipped .... Add to Cookbook Upload a Photo View Reviews Received Recipe #22625 French Toast, Eggless French Toast You are not signed in. To add recipes to your cookbooks requires you to Sign In to your account Select the cookbook to add this recipe to Not signed in My Page My Recipes My Photos My Cookbooks My Reviews My Reviews Received


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Athletics Report, Match 3, Longford Park, Trafford -…
After an extremely close final match in Bolton last weekend Holmfirth Harriers came out on top.
Parlaufs 2019 - heat & final results
Results from 2019 Parlauf Heats & Final
Harriers clinch victory in match 4 to top their leag…
After an extremely close final match in Bolton last weekend Holmfirth Harriers came out on top.
Senior team aiming for promotion to Division 1
HHAC senior team is aiming for promotion
Yorkshire Track and Field championships were held in…
Holmfirth Harriers were represented by 11 athletes and had 9 podium performances!
First Northern Track and Field league in Blackpool
Our team topping the table by over 20 points
Parlaufs 2017 Final Qualifiers
Tuesday 6th of June 2017
Northern Track and Field League - Match 2
A great day for the team in Bury
Holmfirth Harriers AC Parlaufs 2016
Tuesday 14th of June 2016
Northern Track and Field League Match 3
Harriers off to flying start
Harriers Triumph in 1st Track meeting of the Season
Cleckheaton, 7th May
Track and Field dates 2016 (Junior and Senior)
2016 Track and Field fixtures
Track & Field Review 2015
Track & Field Review 2015
CAN Winter Workshops
13th Feb
Parlauf Final
'A hot final in more ways than one...'
Parlauf Heats 2015
Thanks to all those who attended! Race report and results now available.
Track and Field dates 2015
2015 Track and Field fixtures (U17-Senior)
Track & Field Review 2014
Track & Field Review 2014
Northern League Match 4
report, round up, photos and Top Point scorers
WYT&FL Results and Photos
Plus yorkshire Combined Events Information
Northern League Match 3
HHAC host match 3


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Worcestershire 67 for 0 trail Kent 258 by 191 runs
Patience is its own reward, goes the saying, and one rather needed to believe it on the third day at Tunbridge Wells. Self-improvement had to fill the space normally occupied by unsullied pleasure when play was finally called off in late afternoon.
Not that the day was a complete washout; that would have been too simple. Instead, a clutch of loyal punters and corporate entertainees waited until 3.45pm for cricket to get under way. By that hour the effects of Monday's downpours had been mopped up and the latest rain had abated. Umpires Jeremy Lloyds and Steve O'Shaughnessy, who must have inspected the square and its surrounds at least half a dozen times on Tuesday, were rewarded when Darryl Mitchell leg-glanced Robbie Joseph's first ball for four and clipped the seamer's second to the square leg boundary.
Their persistence apparently justified, the diehards gathered in the Bluemantle Stand settled down to watch 44 overs' cricket. Perhaps such complacency was their first and final error. A mere 15 balls and 11 runs later the rain returned, as if reinvigorated by its brief absence. Just 20 minutes later the players were making for their cars and coaches.
"We can do very little on days like today," Mitchell admitted, whose final single on Tuesday at least gave him the consolation of reaching 700 County Championship runs for the season - the leading tally in the country. "The lads have iPads and iPhones and some of them will mess around on the internet. Other than that, you just try to amuse yourself and pass the time.
"As an opening batsman I've been in this sort of situation a good few times before, so I normally switch off and only worry about batting when we get a start time. We generally get 45 minutes' notice and that's more than enough time to get your head around batting."
Even for those without pressing professional concerns, the hours before cricket began had to be filled somehow. One or two decamped to the racing at nearby Lingfield Park; most, though, read their papers, ate their lunches, and waited.
Yet there are worse places than Tunbridge Wells to watch the rain come down. Indeed, the town which takes its name from the famous chalybeate spring has been a social centre since the early 18th century.
"Company and Diversion is in short the main business of the Place", wrote Daniel Defoe of Tunbridge Wells in his Tour Through Great Britain and Ireland (1724-27) and for long periods of the third morning and afternoon visitors to the Nevill Ground had to hope that similarly diverting fellowship was present nearly three hundred years later.
Fortunately, club members in this part of Kent are nothing if not welcoming and the catering is little if not generous. The CAMRA tent did good business on Tuesday and the home side's omission of Bollinger on the first morning did not portend parsimony. Nearby lanes such as Madeira Park and Cumberland Walk suggest leisured ease and relatively few of the houses are numbered. Name-plates like "Cedars" and "Oaks" lie at the entrance to long drives, at the end of which, large houses hide behind many trees. One would not be surprised to discover that prospective postmen are interviewed for their situations. Even the portaloos on the Nevill Ground offer an expensive brand of handwash and moisturiser.
As for the cricket, the players' concerns on the final day will be more prosaic and professional. "I'd agree this is a game for bonus points," Mitchell said. "I think it's destined for a draw but if we can bat very well tomorrow we can come out of this game with 13 points."
The Worcestershire skipper will not be alone in hoping that he gets the chance to gather such modest riches. Not since 2008 has a four-day match at Tunbridge Wells been uninterrupted by rain. This festival, and the people who run it, deserve rather better.


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An oscillating tool is a very handy and useful tool for tradesman and DIY guys out there. It may not only help you with your backyard and regular household works, but it's also going to get your productivity level a notch. But to use the oscillating tool efficiently, you will need to keep some facts in your mind.
Using an oscillating tool needs to be perfect. Either it can be achieved by experience, or you can gather the information through different books, articles, and guides.
Table of Contents
- 1 Using Oscillating Tools Efficiently: Tips and Tricks
- 1.1 Know How the Oscillating Tool Works
- 1.2 Know the Purpose of Oscillating Tools
- 1.3 Choose the Proper Types of Oscillating Tool Blades
- 1.4 Choose a Pads on Which Your Will be Using a Multi Lool to Cut Wood
- 1.5 Choose Good Blades of Oscillating
- 1.6 Use Right Grit Sandpaper That Doesn't Damage Original Surface
- 1.7 Protection for Oscillating Tool
- 1.8 Last Few Words
Using Oscillating Tools Efficiently: Tips and Tricks
By using the tips and tricks on using the oscillating tools and your experience, you can do home improvement works rather perfectly. Here are some tips and guides to follow for the new home improvement enthusiasts.
Know How the Oscillating Tool Works
The principles mean the very basic thing. You need to know how an oscillating tool works. If you are familiar with other backyard tools, then you might as well know that it's also a basic tool to work with, but it has different working principles compared to the others.
It has a head just like the rotating tools. This head oscillates left to right at a very small angle like three degrees in very fast motion like 20000 strokes per minute. This fast motion cannot be seen by any eyes. On the oscillating head, you can attach any head attachment to your choice.
The tool works with battery power or electrical power. So, you will see both portable and nonportable wired oscillating machine in the market.
Know the Purpose of Oscillating Tools
Just because the oscillating tools has many kinds of head attachments, it's because it has many basic working using purposes. Most of the good oscillating tools come with a lot of head attachments. So, you have the basic working components.
Now if you are going for paint removal job, then you will need sanding paper with moderate grit and if you are going to finish any wooden surface, you are going to need sandpapers with a lower grit. It's really important to use attachment according to the purpose.
Choose the Proper Types of Oscillating Tool Blades
If you are going to use blades on oscillating tool's head, most probably you are going to be attaching it for grouts removal or caulk removal. It comes with oscillating tool blades that work with the circulation of the motor and can drill and sand anything.
Understand the types of oscillating tool blades and how they work with the machine.
For these kinds of jobs, you will be needing a uniquely shaped grout removal job. You will find blades of different thickness and you have to pick the right thickness as you will need. And if you are going to cut through wood you will be needing blades that comes with teeth.
Choose a Pads on Which Your Will be Using a Multi Lool to Cut Wood
When you are going for sanding any wooden surface, removing paints from any surface, you might need pads to attach on the oscillating head. Then you can attach different kinds of sanders on the surface of these pads. Pads you are going to choose has to be chosen wisely.
You can choose any triangular shaped pads. They reach to the corner of walls or substances that you might be sanding. Or sometimes the woodworkers use round pads too. Whichever pads you use, make sure to put the machine on it with proper alignment.
Using a multi-tool to cut wood on the nonaligned pad will result in a mismatch of the cut.
Choose Good Blades of Oscillating
If you are into plumbing and you want to cut through plastic or metal pipes, then a stainless and treated blade is going to help you a lot. And for wood jobs, you have to choose the thinnest ones with the most amount of power efficiency.
You will see that some of the blades on the market have scales painted on them so that you know how deep you are cutting.
Use Right Grit Sandpaper That Doesn't Damage Original Surface
Before repainting a surface, you are obviously going to remove the coating that is present on the surface. A pad on the oscillating tool is a perfect tool for this job. But for this, you have to choose small grit sandpaper so that you do not damage the original surface.
And if you are going to smoothening any wooden surface you can use moderate grit sandpaper. It's that simple and efficient.
Protection for Oscillating Tool
Before using any kind of electrical or mechanical tool, like bosch tool you will need protection to protect yourself from any accidents. Regardless of how careful you are, any accident might happen while the oscillating tool is on the job. You should always use a pair of heavily protective hand gloves for hand protection.
And a pair of protective goggles to save your eyes from any flying parts or materials that you are working on. And a great pair of booths will always be helpful for further safety.
Last Few Words
On the final note, we can say that there are no shortcuts or any secret formula to get the best out of your oscillating tool.
You most probably have one and you have the knowledge and concept of what and how you are going to do with that. Know the right tools, application and work with protection. It's that simple and easy.


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The Cubs' Pacific Coast League club was shut out for the first time this season. One Cubs' right-hander has joined the I-Cubs for rehab. The Peoria Chiefs have snuck up on the rest of their division. Starlin Castro "will" be in the big leagues at some point this season. Another young shortstop, Darwin Barney, is recording multi-hit game after multi-hit game. All that and more in today's Down on the Farm Report. … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 05/03/10
The Cubs' AAA affiliate has dropped nine straight games to a single opponent for the third time in franchise history. This streak dates back to 2009. In the mean time, the Cubs' AA squad has also hit a rough patch. Even the organization's top prospect has gone into a bit of a slump. Plus, one Cubs' farm hand threw a no-hitter this week. All that and more in today's Down on the Farm Report. … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 04/22/10
The Chiefs have caught fire, and the Smokies have stayed hot! However, the Iowa and Daytona clubs are still looking to rap off some victories. One Cubs prospect was named a Player of the Week, while another has started his year with a bang after beginning the season on the DL. Lastly, Ted Lilly has made the trip down to Iowa and Peoria to rehab and spend some time with some Cubs prospects. All that and more in today's Down on the Farm Report! … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 04/19/10
After a slow start, the Iowa Cubs are back on track. The Smokies have continued their hot start while the Daytona Cubs and Peoria Chiefs are both hovering around the .500 mark. One minor leaguer has been placed on the DL, one big leaguer will rehab in Mesa, and two former Chicago Cubs pitchers were beaten by Cubs' farm clubs in a span of three days. Today's Down on the Farm Report will get you caught up on all this and more! … [Read more...]
Twelve Down … Twenty-One to Go for the Chicago Cubs
The Cubs are 8-4 after twelve Spring Training contests and have twenty-one exhibition games remaining on the schedule. So where do the Cubs stand after the first two weeks of Cactus League games? The Cubs reduced their 60-man Spring Training roster to 51 players on Sunday. Mitch Atkins (Triple-A Iowa) and David Patton (Double-A Tennessee) were optioned to minor league camp. Seven other non-roster invitees were assigned to minor league camp ... Brett Jackson, Josh Vitters, Vince Perkins, Matt … [Read more...]
The Kids Star-lin Another Win – Cubs 8 Padres 7
Game Seven - Cubs 8 Padres 7 WP - Carlos Silva (1-1) LP - Jon Garland (0-1) Save - None The Cubs ended their two-game losing streak behind more stellar play from the young Cubs ... namely Starlin Castro, Robinson Chirinos, Tyler Colvin, Bryan LaHair and Sam Fuld. The Cubs jumped out to an early lead on Jon Garland and the Padres. Garland could not find the strike zone. Garland walked in the first run of the game and the Cubs scored four runs on three hits with three walks in 1 2/3 innings … [Read more...]
Talkin' Cubs Live – Cubs vs. Giants – 03/10/10
Spring Training Game Six: Cubs (3-2) vs. Giants (6-1) Game Time - 2:05pm CST Coverage - TV: None - Radio: MLB.com (Giants feed) Location - HoHoKam Park, Mesa Carlos Zambrano (0-0, 0.00/0.00) vs. Jonathan Sanchez (0-0, 0.00/3.00) The Cubs will square off against the Giants for the first of two times on the spring this afternoon. The Cubs travel to Scottsdale during the final week of Cactus League play to face the Giants on March 30. Carlos Zambrano will make his second start of the spring. … [Read more...]
How the 2010 Chicago Cubs Roster was Constructed
The Cubs began Spring Training with 39 players on their 40-man roster ... and the roster figures to have a couple of additions and subtractions before Opening Day in Atlanta. 14 players came to the Cubs via the trade route, six signed as free agents, ten were drafted by the Cubs, five signed as non-drafted free agents, three signed as minor league free agents and one was acquired in last year's Rule 5 Draft. Here is how the Cubs 2010 Roster was constructed ... … [Read more...]
Chicago Cubs … Storylines of the Spring and Roster
The first pitch of the Cubs' 2010 exhibition season is less than 24 hours away. While most of the roster spots may be filled, Lou Piniella has stated in recent days his team has six open spots on the active roster ... that will be decided during Spring Training. Beyond the Opening Day roster (that many focus on this time of year) is the Cubs' Major League roster ... or 40-man roster. It is important for young players, as well as non-roster invitees, to have good springs and make positive … [Read more...]
Nothing But Baseball for the Chicago Cubs
Happy 70th Birthday to Ron Santo! The first week of Camp Lou IV concluded on Wednesday ... and what a week it was for the Chicago Cubs. After the excitement of pitchers and catchers reporting, Ted Lilly and Alfonso Soriano's knees, the weather, the Ricketts family, Starlin Castro and the first full squad workout, the Cubs just focused on baseball on the eighth day of Camp Lou ... well, for the most part. For the Chicago Cubs, it's not about Twitter or a reality show ... it's about … [Read more...]


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Series: See inside
By Alex Frith
Over 60 flaps to lift to discover the wonderful, mysterious and often funny stories behind some of the world's most ground-breaking inventions. Featuring eye-catching illustrations, quirky facts, and surprises such as flaps within flaps. With internet links to websites to find out more and design your own inventions.
"A hands-on science lesson!"
Lancashire Evening Post
Alex Frith has been a children's author for more than a decade, covering every topic on Earth, from prehistoric animals to robots with artificial intelligence, and everything under the Sun, from the origins of the Universe to the adventures of Thor, God of Thunder. At home he reads too many comics, and attempts to raise three children with an awful lot of help from his wife, and no help at all from his cat.
The Royal Society Young People's Book Prize celebrates the best science books designed for young readers. Announcing the shortlist, the judges said about See Inside Inventions: "It's wonderful to see a whole book devoted to the stories behind the world's most important inventions and we hope that this one might inspire the next generation of young entrepreneurs." The six titles on the shortlist are now being judged by panels of young people across the UK, before the winner is announced at the award ceremony on 15 November 2012.
"There's a lot to be said for flaps. They draw out curiosity (who wouldn't want to know what is hidden behind a flap), they introduce drama to reading (what's going to be revealed…?) and they keep hands busy (great if your reader isn't one who likes to sit still), so See Inside Inventions was already looking like a winner, even before we started reading... when we did start reading, we loved the book even more."
Playing by the Book blog
"Find out more about the world's most fascinating and funny inventions."
Hay Fever blog
"I absolutely loved the interactivity of this 'lift the flaps' book... What's more it is not just a parade of facts – we find out about people and the history behind the inventions, essential context to make the science interesting."
Popular Science
"Famous inventions often come about for strange reasons and this book shows how things were invented, often by chance, such as the sticky burrs on a dog's coat that led to the introduction of velcro.. Lift the flaps (over 60 of them) to reveal intricate drawings which show the hidden workings inside inventions. Engines, flying machines, electricity and more - all explained in easy-to-understand language."
Parents in Touch
"I would recommend this book. I liked the flaps and pictures. The information was interesting. Some of it I already knew, but there was lots I didn't. I liked reading about the Swiss engineer who invented Velcro. He got the idea from the burrs that stuck to his dog."
Angus Whitworth, age 9, The Times Eureka Magazine
For links to specially selected websites with video clips and activities or a pronunciation guide for this book, visit the Usborne Quicklinks website.


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This T shirt is FREE when you spend $50 or more today! Just choose your size and color, and add (only 1 T shirt) to your cart.
If you'd like an XXL, or XXXL, there's a $3 charge to cover my additional costs. Sorry big guys...
And, of course, Stripn's always free shipping applies to your entire order.
- If you happen to checkout with less than the $50 required to trigger the FREE offer, you'll get an email explaining so, and your order may be refunded. If you place more than one FREE T shirt in the cart, you'll only receive the one FREE T shirt.
- Returns are not accepted on free gifts.
- This offer is for one free gift of your choosing for any order over $50. Please do not add more than one free gift to your cart.
- FREE! T Shirts are available only to US customers.
The tell-tale sign of goodness happening all around.
Printed on an absurdly soft, 60/40 cotton/poly blank, tear-away tags, and a slightly fitted shape, this will be your new favorite T shirt!


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Whether buying or selling your home, you need to be represented with honest, intelligent and diligent support.
At Llewellyn Real Estate we are passionate about serving you. We take the time to know your real estate wants and needs. As a 100% referral company we succeed through your satisfaction. We offer the best practices and best technologies to serve your real estate goals with our team of professionals.
We want your experience with us to contain the least amount of stress and the greatest amount of peace and comfort possible.
Our goal is that when we're finished you will want to work with us again and again.
We are the 3rd generation of Llewellyn Real Estate practitioners in King and Pierce County, with a combined 40 years of real estate experience in the Northwest market.
At Llewellyn Real Estate we love to work with first time home buyers as well as seasoned corporate clients serving each client with the same level of excellence and personal service.
Morgan Llewellyn has a CCIM Designation and was the past president of the Seattle Chapter of CCIM. He is a recognized expert in the disciplines of commercial and investment real estate. Educated in Construction Management with a degree from the University of Washington College of Architectural and Urban Planning, Morgan Llewellyn understands all aspects of development and construction and is a tested and proven leader for commercial and new development projects.
Denise Llewellyn is a Senior Real Estate Specialist (SRES) as well as an Accredited Home Staging Specialist (AHS). Voted Seattle's Best agent from client surveys all around the Seattle area, Denise's diligent service, aggressive negotiation skills and professional integrity have earned her a reputation of thorough client care.
Denise has also attained an ABR designation. The Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR®) designation is the benchmark of excellence in buyer representation. This coveted designation is awarded to real estate practitioners by the Real Estate BUYER'S AGENT Council (REBAC) of the National Association of REALTORS® who meet the specified educational and practical experience criteria


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This tutorial will help you understand what an If Statement is. If Statements will help your application decide what to do in a given situation. They are also a part of every programming language in existance. Key Terms: ————— If Statement Then End If
4 thoughts on "Visual Basic 2008 / Visual Basic .NET Tutorial #4 – If Statements"
if textbox1.text = "hello" or textbox1.text = "hi" then
label1.text = "goodbye
end if
I've Subscribed. Great Tuts.
Watch my tutorial on Operators, it's like #27 and #28
Can i have 2 words in the text box which would bring up the label for example
if "hello" or "hi"
are used then goodbye comes up as a lable


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I Am Reading: Ricky's Rat Gang
by Anthony Masters (author)
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Product description
A sugar spillage in the supermarket storeroom means a sticky feast for three little mice. But their arch-enemies, gangsters Ricky and Ronnie Rat, want to steal their sugar from them! Will a daring plan involving the Night Watchman's dog give the mice their first victory against their bitter enemies, and make that yummy sugar mountain taste even sweeter?
This fabulous read-alone treat from a popular series bridges the gap between picture books and chapter books. With glowing colour illustrations and an audio CD to read along to, it's a really satisfying story for little learners to devour!
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text: I've been having a bit of a clear out recently. I don't know about you, but I'm always amazed at what I find when I do this. Things I had forgotten all about. Things that delight me all over again and distract my attention from the task at hand. So whilst sifting piles of old CDRs I came across this recording of The Gossip playing at The Cavern in Exeter way back in August of 2003. I'm quite sure there are a million live Gossip boots out there, many of them likely with better sound quality than this one, but maybe some folks will find it of interest.


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All of these recipes are original, super simple to follow, and full of wholesome ingredients! Most of them have step by step photos of the whole process, so you should have no trouble recreating these in your own kitchen. Most of the recipes are also customizable, so feel free to experiment with whatever you have on hand, and please let me know if you do a variation and how it turns out! Every recipe listed here is vegetarian except for one, though I do eat fish occasionally as well.
- Mexican Egg Muffins
- Stuffed French Toast
- Skillet Souffle for Two
- Heat n Eat Steel Cut Oats
- Breakfast Couscous
- Green Monster 101
- Eggs Florentine with Creamy Avocado Sauce
- Perfect Poached Eggs w Avocado
Main Dishes
- Stuffed Eggplant (SO GOOD)
- Cheesy Baked Eggplant
- Healthy Eggplant Parm
- Spinach and Artichoke Lasagna Bundles
- Caramelized Red Onion Mini Calzones
- Mini Mexican Casseroles (one of my favorites)
- Veggie Fried Brown Rice
- Lentil Loaf Recipe
- Black Beans That Will Change Your Life
Tofu Recipes:
"Burger" Recipes
- Easy Homemade Veggie Burgers
- Asian Style Tuna Burgers
- Maple Apple Tempeh Burgers
- Zucchini Burgers (one of my favorites)
- Quinoa Burgers with Yogurt Sauce
- Curried Coconut Veggie Soup
- Spicy Tempeh Chili
- Chilled Cantaloupe Soup
- "Cream" of Asparagus Soup
- Chilled Watermelon Soup
Side Dishes
- Cilantro Rice Recipe (just like Chipotle!)
- Black Bean, Corn, and Cilantro Salad
- Zucchini Banana Bread Muffins
- Make Your Own Microwave Popcorn
- No Bake Mini Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies (printable recipe here)
16 Comments on Top Recipes
Dear Beth;
I just wanted to say that I am very very impressed with your recipes and photos. They are all very healthy and extremely creative.
I teach a course in 'weight loss / management" and will certainly promote your website to my class. When there are many options for a quick fix…you have changed your lifestyle through healthy eating and exercise.
Congratulations!!!! It is one of the hardest things to do in life….change.
Thanks for this great website!
Beth, I am a vegetarian and have a hard time finding good weight watcher recipes. I am so excited to find your website, and hopefully be motivated to restart my journey.
Hey, just did your Lentil Bolognese Sauce and it was great, thanks for a great recipe. Even my son enjoyed it and he's a dedicated carnivore.
I am so excited to find a site full of vegetarian friendly Weight Watchers recipes! My husband is vegetarian, so we keep a meat free house and finding recipes has been a real challenge,
Your recipes look amazing….
Thank you for the great recipes! You make it so easy by showing the pictures of how the food should look as it is being prepared.
Hi! This is great! Finally a vegetarian friendly place to learn how to cook yammi and healthy treats! Thank you! I think I will start with Zucchini Banana Bread Muffins today! mmmm 🙂
Hi! Finally I found a vegetarian friendly place with yammi recipes! I going to start with Zucchini Banana Bread Muffins tonight…mmmm 🙂
6Pingbacks & Trackbacks on Top Recipes
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[…] and healthy to ignite your flame. Healthy eating DOES NOT have to be boring. Check out some of Beth's recipes, especially her Stromboli which I can testify is […]
[…] me through today's article, please take a look around and I hope you find some great original recipes to try and some motivation! Here are a few great places to look to help you get to know me and […]
[…] In an effort to add more vegetarian options to our routine, we hit up the net in search of some inspiration. We knew we wanted to do something with fresh zucchini, which lead us to find a great recipe over at Beth's Journey, a transformative blog which follows a foodie's quest to get fit the healthy way, and it features some great healthy recipes. […]


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The National Dreamtime Awards is an opportunity for First Nation people from across our country to come together and recognise our excellence in the categories of Sport, Arts, Education, Health and Community.
The awards are attended by the country's most high profile political and community figures, sporting stars, entertainers and personalities.
The Awards recognise excellence across 17 categories, plus 3 major awards.
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Where: Sydney
Venue: The Star, Event Centre
Date: Saturday 16th November
Time: 6:30 PM
Set Up: Table of Ten (Three Course Meal and Beer Wine)
Contact Matt Rose


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Seminar on Reconciliation
This seminar lasts one day; participants arrive in the morning.
Ceremony of the Service
Before thinking about reconciling, we begin by meditating on the experience of reconciliation in order to transcend the psychological and place it on a level of profound spirituality. This is no small challenge, because it defines the mental placement required for a good work of reconciliation. It also proposes creating a personal aphorism that concentrates a great positive emotional charge and facilitates the process of progressive reconciliation.
We begin with the video of Silo's talk on Reconciliation at Punta de Vacas on May 5, 2007. Participants take notes on whatever they consider most important.
Note: This whole seminar lasts about 7 hours, depending on the number of participants. It is best not to set time limits on the different parts, but instead to allow everyone to take as long as they need.
Exercise 1 – Group work Form groups of three. Read and study the talk, with a copy for each participant.
Exercise 2 – Individual work Write a summary and synthesis of the talk.
After reading and studying the material in small groups, individuals carry out an initial reflection on reconciliation as a profound spiritual experience. This involves looking for the register of an internal disposition that profoundly moves our whole being in connection with our most heartfelt aspirations and our deep need for internal freedom, and the great coherence this implies. In other words, this reflection is carried out from and for the depths of the heart, with an elevated spirit of internal letting go, without reservations, in order to reach an appropriate internal depth. It also means not paying attention to resistances that arise from hidden resentments or skeptical rationalisms, which might relativize this or any other profound spiritual experience.
Exercise 3 – Individual work Reflection on the dimension of reconciliation as a profound spiritual experience, connecting with our inner depths in the way that moves us most profoundly.
Exercise 4 – Guided practice, whole group I sit comfortably and relax my external muscles, dissolving all my muscular tensions, both localized and general… … I move deeper inside my body, letting myself sink into the warmth of the sensations, relaxing any tensions… …Then I move down through my inner body, first through my throat and then through all my internal organs, all the way down to the bottom of my trunk… …Now I gradually relax my head, starting at the top, and moving inward and downward… …I repeat this several times… … …Now I try to feel my reconciliation as though it were a migrating bird that travels tirelessly thousands and thousands of miles, knowing where it must go… …knowing what it must do… …I am guided by my rebellion against suffering… …
Exercise 5 – Individual work Look for similar registers and experiences in Exercises 3 and 4, and take notes.
Exercise 6 – Work in groups Interchange about experiences with Exercises 3 and 4, with one person writing down conclusions in each group.
Exercise 7 – Whole Group work Interchange about the conclusions of each group.
Here we set about internally defining an internal aphorism to help us launch a progressive work of reconciliation in which we uproot all resentment in order to transform our lives.
Exercise 8 – Individual work Reflection on positive, mobilizing images that can be reduced to an aphorism. Start by making a list of hopes, certainties, or powerful guiding thoughts, with the idea of finding a word or short phrase that fits. One can also use an inspiring image. This reconciliation must be rooted in an aspiration that has a positive, emotionally moving charge such as, for example, to feel a longed-for flood of kindness toward ourselves and others. This seems to be the only way reconciliation can truly become a profound spiritual experience. Take notes.
Reconciliation can mean acknowledging and accepting our own frustrations, failures, mistakes, weaknesses, and deficiencies. It can also have to do with things we've done, incoherent actions that caused suffering in others, and with things others have done that hurt us deeply. We might also want to reflect on any mood of hopelessness at the world situation, so charged with violence and intolerance, and resolve to change our outlook, wagering instead on the process of humanizing the Earth and freeing the spirit.
Exercise 9 – Individual work I sit comfortably and relax my external muscles, dissolving all my muscular tensions, both localized and general… I move deeper inside my body, letting myself sink into the warmth of the sensations, relaxing any tensions… …Then I gradually relax my head, starting at the top, and moving inward and downward… …I repeat this several times… …Now I search for a look, or perspective, of understanding… …a look that recognizes in my greatest mistakes, how certain factors piled up and overcame my ability to respond… …I try to admit that my ignorance… …my inability… …and the weight of circumstances… …could scarcely have allowed me to overcome that interplay of such adverse forces or the suffering they unleashed… …I go over those situations that have made me feel the most resentment… …and I make an effort to humbly admit that at that time I was unable to give better responses so that others would not suffer… …I admit my ignorance in knowing how overcoming suffering and conflicts… …in the same way, I seek to accept the ignorance and the fears of those who have caused me suffering… …now I try to recognize in myself my best moments - those invaluable moments of hope… …of getting things right… …of being coherent, of acting according to my truest thoughts and feelings… …I try to recognize in those moments the states of internal fulfillment and freedom I've experienced… … in this way, I try to balance the scale of my life, to endow it with the luminous meaning to which I aspire… … and I resolve, by doing so, to transform the environment I live in…
Exercise 10 – Group work Interchange in groups of three about the previous individual work. Take notes.
Exercise 11 – Individual summary and synthesis Write a summary and synthesis of all the personal work you have carried out today.
Exercise 12 – Whole group interchange Free interchange with all participants about the day's work.
In the Hall or other meditation space, give thanks together for the understandings reached and ask for ongoing, progressive reconciliation.
Gather for shared refreshments.
download: Seminar on Reconciliation.pdf


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H&M brings Jimmy Choo to the masses
But today, H&M, one of the original innovators in collaborations, stepped up the game when it announced that stiletto virtuoso Jimmy Choo will produce a line of shoes for the store.
This is a major coup for H&M because, until now, the holy trinity of couture shoes -- Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo and Christian Louboutin -- has stood impenetrable to the high-low trend. And to be honest, I assumed they'd always stay that way.
Unlike the nascent, edgy designers who usually accept a mass chain's invitation, these lines, which pride themselves on the bespoke nature of their handcrafted shoes and which price their products at $400 and up, have always seemed to lay beyond the realm of realistic partners. In other words, I always thought a collection like this was about as likely to occur as Prada for Wal-Mart.
But maybe things are changing for the holy trinity, all three of which were made famous by, yes, that inexhaustibly relevant cultural treasure, "Sex and the City." After all, when Choo, Blahnik and Louboutin rose to fame during the show's heyday, they benefited from a steady blossoming of consumer spending.
The recession, though, has probably been tougher on these three than on their counterparts in the ready-to-wear world (we can't know for sure -- they're private companies and don't make financial results public).
As renowned as they've become, they're still intimate in terms of operations -- it takes hours to build each shoe, and if the companies were to mark down their goods for the recession, customers would never tolerate them creeping back up when the economy rebounds.
Of course, that didn't stop Christian Louboutin from dipping its pedicured toe in the discounting waters -- earlier this spring, it marked down its shoes by up to 40% for just 10 hours on Bluefly.com.
The collaboration with H&M is a smarter idea -- it keeps the brand front-of-mind across the country in a time when it otherwise might fade to near obsolescence.
I'll just offer one piece of advice to Jimmy Choo president Tamara Mellon: make sure that H&M presents to you an airtight plan for neatly merchandising the Choo-branded footwear. That place's shoe department usually looks like the aftermath of a giant stripper brawl. Carrie Bradshaw would so not approve.


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The FIA on Monday backed Adam Parr's claim that Ferrari said it fielded technically illegal cars in formula one.
The FIA on Monday backed Adam Parr's claim that Ferrari said it fielded technically illegal cars in formula one.
A spat broke out in Shanghai between the Italian team and Parr, who is Williams chief executive.
Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali, backed by Renault's Flavio Briatore, hit out at Parr, after comments attributed to him suggested Ferrari had used illegal cars in the past.
But on Monday, the FIA said Ferrari did indeed admit to committing "a technical violation" of the technical regulations in the past during the Court of Appeal hearing last Tuesday.
"Ferrari acknowledged that multiple vertical transitions had been used by many teams in the past, including Ferrari itself, and argued that all such prior uses (including its own) had constituted a technical violation of the (technical regulations) which had been tolerated," the Court of Appeal finding said.
The FIA published the court's 20-page findings in full on Monday.
In the document, the court - which found in favour of the diffuser teams Brawn, Toyota and Williams - acknowledged the loophole that led to the saga.
Amazingly, the diffuser teams and their rivals had argued at length about whether holes in the controversial designs were actually holes.
"The (diffuser teams) and the FIA submit that, while there may be spaces between different surfaces, the surfaces themselves do not have holes in them. They contend that the spaces between different surfaces are not holes within the very specific meaning of" article 3.12.5.
The FIA also denied Red Bull's claim that the governing body turned down its clarification in January 2007 about designing a similar concept.
Monday's document reads: "The questions put to (the FIA) in previous cases were different and answered correctly and in a manner consistent with its present position."


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The parquet floors and quintessentially Venetian drapery, linen and furniture nonchalantly mask the gamut of modern convenience at your fingertips, creating an ambience of bygone grandeur while still allowing for such gadgets to inconspicuously coexist there such as the retractable plasma TV that slides behind the mirror.
The spacious marble en suite bathrooms are all equipped with bath or shower, hairdryer and full Courtesy Kit.
Anything not provided by the Courtesy Kit or the Mini-bar should be requested from our professional body of staff who will endeavour to make your stay with us as pleasant as possible. All rooms are secure and fitted with smoke alarms for your safety. If you have any special requests or require any further information, please contact us.


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Happy Friday – LOTS of gorgeous detail in this spotlight!
Hey there, Odd friends! Hope you've had a WONDERFUL week and are as excited as we are that Friday has arrived! Not only does it mean the WEEKEND is here, but it's time for a spotlight!
Leah here, and as promised, I am switching things up a bit… Periodically, as people add their projects to our Linky Party on the right sidebar, I will "notice" you, and give you a little somethin'-somethin' for participating. Surprise!
That's exactly what I'm going to do today to one lucky linker. Ready? Check out this spectacular spotlight from Oddie DORA using the always-radiant Formal Mae digi stamp!
Wowza! Wasn't I right about there being lots of gorgeous detail? STUNNING! So many interesting little things on which to rest your eye – I'm loving the shaped card and all the little borders, each little die-cut and flower is so perfectly placed! And those BOWS! Seriously. LOVE the bows.
Dora, thank you for linking up! Folks, be like Dora and link up! And to be eligible for the BIGGER prizes, remember to link back to us in your blog post – it's that easy! You can create anything you like using Some Odd Girl stamps, and link up ANY project made during the month… Yep! All of your May Some Odd Girl projects are eligible, even if you also share them in our Facebook group or on Pinterest or Instagram or wherever! 🙂
So Dora, congrats! Please send an email to firstname.lastname@example.com and she's going to hook you up with a code for TWO digis of your choice! Yep, just like that!
Have a wonderful weekend, everybody! We'll be back with a brand new Featured Digi (those of you with green thumbs will appreciate this one!) and a TON of inspiration from our Odd Girls! Not to mention Movie Monday will be here, and that's DEFINITELY something to look forward to! See you then!


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The Challenge in Obama's West Point Speech
President Obama's commencement address at West Point on Wednesday offers a chance for the administration to recharge its national security vision at a time when much of its international agenda seems stalled and critics, including some of us sympathetic to the administration, have raised concerns.
Mr. Obama is not likely to move the needle with the foreign policy commentariat. But at times of uncertainty, many still look to the American president to outline a set of ideas about how to lead in an era of global change.


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Waterproofing Services and Consultation
S&W Waterproofing knows that American businesses lose billions of dollars and millions of lost workdays every year due to water damage in their facilities. We can help you eliminate your most troublesome waterproofing problems.
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S&W Waterproofing understands that your facility is not just a building. It is a place where people may work, live, or play. We will prevent damage from happening with the use of our high-quality sealing and waterproofing materials.
Ask our experts about your waterproofing options.
We will protect your new construction from future problems using the best positive-side waterproofing methods and materials applied to the exterior face of below-grade foundation walls and under slabs.
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Wall Of Death
I may have mentioned before of my interest in the British fairgrounds and more recently and specifically the wall of death.
There are I believe two walls travelling at present and they turn up at some of the bigger shows. Whilst the attraction has always been motor cycles being ridden at speed around the wall, before the war a number of people drove cars on the wall and post war, karts as well. A number of these cars were versions of the Austin 7, a car in which I have a special interest.
I have been looking to find a genuine Austin 7 special that once was driven on the wall, but so far they have eluded me, maybe there are none left.
To spice up the act in the 1930's a number of riders rode with a lion on the sidecar. My good friend Richard Peskett has recently bought on ebay a picture of a BSA 3 wheeler car with a lion being carried alongside.
This is the first time I had ever seen a picture of a BSA car on the wall let alone with a lion. The picture is said to have been taken on Southampton Common in 1939. The driver "Speedy Joe" is thought to be Joe Grant The car is clearly lettered with "BSA Speedy" (and perhaps Joe as well but the photo is indistinct at this point).
I contacted Graham Skillen who has recently published "The BSA front wheel drive cars" (Amberley Publishing.) He told me: "This is a V-twin model. The wheel at the back has been canted significantly – it should be right behind the drivers elbow…. The trunnion carrying the swinging arm at the back is on two vertical bolts on the chassis, so removing one and fitting a spacer would cant the wheel out of line, but as the rear spring is inside the chassis forward of the trunnion it won't fit any more, so I guess no rear suspension, other than the tyre.
"The rear wheel is 1931/1932, but the fronts are from a BSA Scout with the BSA logo in the centre, so the photo must be 1935 or later. It is definitely a three wheeler rather than a four as the swinging arm is visible. None of the bodywork aft of the bonnet is the original. Stability was undoubtedly a problem, as when getting the trike onto the wall it could easily overturn unless you had the rear wheel offset.
"No doubt the non-aligned tyre scream added to the attraction!"
from p. 11 of issue February 2017
Subscribe now - http://classicmotor.co.uk/classic-motor-monthly-subscriptions


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It's August! So here are my latest empties...
The new Soft & Gentle Daily Shower Wash* is brilliant. It's a gel-like texture and foamy so it feels like it's really cleansing and can be used everywhere...everywhere. Perfect for the really humid, sticky days we've had recently.
Next, the NuSkin ageloc Transforming Night Cream* which it's really light yet leaves my skin nicely hydrated without it being sticky. There isn't much to say except it does what a night cream is supposed to do. I've absolutely loved it!
Also finished this month is the L'Oréal Miss Manga Mega Volume mascara. I'm quite fussy with my mascaras. My lashes are naturally quite long so I want volume over length, and I can't get on with false lashes so I need a mascara that it nice enough for day but can be built up to be quite dramatic. This mascara is perfect for that. Definitely re-purchasing!
Finally, the REN Instant Brightening Beauty Shot Eye Lift - one of the best eye creams I've ever used. Hands down. There's a reason Sali Hughes dedicated an entire column to this one product. It is beautiful, is packed full of quality ingredients, has a lovely texture and if I've had a rough night, it definitely helps it to not show! Well done REN.
*PR sample


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I bought a damaged SPL kit yesterday. I just went to GC to look at bop kits. I felt a lump on the kick bearing edge so I took the head off and low and behold, a split seam. Originally $345, after some discussion I offered them a $100 bill. Walked out the door with it for $120 tax included. Now I just have to fix it! Wish me luck.
Note: this is my first ever non Pearl drum set. Hurt my feelings a bit. It will be a fun project and I'm just going to use it at my bass players house.


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I've wanted so much to reach out every day this past week to tell all of my friends of color that, sure all lives matter…but for me…YOU matter. You are my friends and I hope you know that I hate how this all feels for you.
I know that despite my cultural openness I am still guilty of assuming and pre-judgement. I am openly admitting that so that, hopefully, you will forgive me. I am another victim of the books, movies, music and even cartoon portrayals of black men and women everywhere. In my heart I don't see you that way but my mind is forever recording garbage. It is the shaping of misconception; like movies that make you not trust old bridges.
In every movie, that involves an old bridge, something bad happens when you cross it. Maybe if they filmed happier scenes on the bridge, more often, I wouldn't be so sure something bad was going to happen when someone went across it. Nothing bad has ever happened to me on a bridge before and other than seeing some beautiful ones in pictures I've never actually seen anyone plummet through one. I have nothing to base my bridge anxiety on, except those movies; but I'm still unnerved by them. I think media influence can do that to you; make you feel emotions that you might not otherwise feel.
People of color, who know me, come to know quickly that I don't judge others by their skin color but how do I express that to those who do not know me? I am always kind to everyone, I meet them with a handshake, a hug when appropriate, and look them in the eyes. I laugh with them in elevators and ask how their vacations are going when we're out of the state. But truthfully, sometimes I am still afraid; afraid of offending you! So, I say nothing because I'm afraid to say the wrong thing.
I do see your color, I acknowledge it because it's beautiful and it's an important part of your life and culture, but I treat you with respect like every person I meet. Still, I trip on myself not refer to your skin color because I'm not sure if I should use the term African American or Black American or just black. I don't tell you how beautiful your weave is or how jealous I am that you can wear the brilliant colors you're wearing because I wonder if that feels like I am "trying too hard" even though I sincerely mean it. I want to say something in the summer time about my fear of blinding you with my neon white legs and how I wish I was that beautiful golden brown you are, but I stay silent because I am worried that you will think I'm being fake about it. I look in envy every time I see a large black woman wearing tight clothing because she is so much more secure in her body than I am in mine, but I wouldn't say that out loud for fear that she might think that I was actually being condescending and not flattering.
Yes, I am aware of the differences in our skin colors but not in the way you think. More like in the way someone admires all the shades of blue in the sky at sunset. Yes, I'm sometimes afraid of you when we meet but not for the reason you believe. It's usually because I'm wondering if I can smile at you and you will honestly believe I'm not "one of those" white people (insert whatever unkind thing you've heard about us). Yes, my eyes follow your children. But because I love children and find your children fun to watch or beautiful as teens growing into adulthood. You are not all the same. We are not all the same. We are not all thinking the same things.
Please don't be frustrated with me for not knowing what to say. So much has happened in our family's pasts to make it hard to know for sure how you will respond to me. I am not my ancestor but just like a new husband I am paying for your ex-husband's sins until you get to know me better.
So why haven't I said anything before this? Because I don't know what to say. And I desperately want to say something. Each time I read Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s words, "In the end we remember…the silence of our friends," I feel the responsibility of saying something I don't have the right words to say.
What can I say to the people I love and care about (and to others I don't even know as well) that coming from my white mouth, would not feel like phoniness to your black ears? How can I make you feel my heart when I say, "You matter to me!", and that I die a little inside as I empathize with the injustices that you feel?
A couple of days ago I talked with a couple on the phone for almost an hour about helping them adopt a baby. I didn't know until the end of the call that they were an African American couple. Yesterday we met with a single, black woman about adopting. We spent over an hour visiting because we had so much fun and so much in common. For some of us life goes on the same in both worlds. We meet, we laugh, we visit, we are touched by one another. The world does not define us or our relationships. This cloud exists only to darken what could have been an even more enjoyable relationship. And yet we each feel the impact as if the world is shaken in two.
And we, straddling the divide, look at that bridge and dare to cross it.


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The story of how Andreas Krieger became assistant winemaker to Sean Thackrey, the reputedly enigmatic vintner who's been ensconced with his barrels in Bolinas since 1981, is really quite simple. "I put my bike on the fence, and walked around to the door, and introduced myself," says Krieger. "I said, 'Hi, I'm Andreas from Switzerland.'"
Now it's just as easy to introduce yourself to the wines of Thackrey & Co. at its Forestville location—tucked away in an old backstreet cellar—where Krieger tends to the winery's flagship Pleiades red blend, while juicing up the brand with new white blends.
Thackrey got the inspiration for his "heretic wine" when a batch of Nebbiolo that turned out rather wan and funky was transformed by the addition of Grenache. The blend is consistent year to year only in the way that a painter's style is, explains Krieger: you recognize it in an entirely different painting. The heresy of Pleiades XXIV Old Vines ($24) is that it's based on Pinot Noir, which is rarely seen in blends, let alone with Sangiovese. Showing a savory, sage aroma and light cherry fruit, the wine takes its time introducing notes of mandarin orange tea, raspberry pastille and vanilla bean. Silky texture builds on the light, quaffable palate as the wine becomes more interesting with each sip.
The new, white version of Pleiades, La Pleïade II ($24), is a blend of Roussanne, Marsanne and Viognier that hints at "orange wine," although the crushed grapes were only soaked, not fermented, on their skins. An exotic medley of fermented apricots, marmalade, butterscotch and cinnamon bark leads to fleshy fruit and a firm, dry finish.
The second vintage inspired by a Sangiovese project that preferred to be a rosé instead, the 2014 Fifi ($24), is a bright, fun rosé with crunchy cherry flavor. On the deeply colored and alluring end of the spectrum, the 2013 Sirius Mendocino County Petite Sirah ($45) plays up the varietal's cassis and blueberry sauce character with flavorful results.
Thackrey calls his 2013 Orion ($90) a "California native red wine," a typically cryptic designation that really means it's a single-vineyard field blend from old vines. Unlike many such blends, it's light on Zinfandel and heavier on blueberry-fruited Petite Sirah (and whatever mystery varieties the vineyard contains). At 15.7 percent alcohol by volume, it's a big, deceptively juicy wine, the intense olallieberry fruit obscuring a tannic chassis that, rather than crumbling after the bottle's been open for three days, just keeps rolling that fruit along.
Thackrey's wines are also available by the glass or bottle at Marin Sun Farms. Thackrey & Company, 6450 First St., Forestville. Tasting by appointment, Saturday and Sunday. 707.820.1428.
(See this week's Feature for an interview with Sean Thackrey.)


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28 July 2010
Kerim Aytac - To See Here
Title: To See Here
Artist: Kerim Aytac
Edition size: 300
Digital Offset
£3 +pp
"In the street photography of Kerim Aytac there is no decisive moment, or any moment at all it seems, but instead a focus on the details and abstractions that support our public lives. Aytac searches for the hidden language of the city; one that does not manifest itself visibly, obviously, and one that speaks most clearly when there are no people to hear it."
website/to order
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