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Jail Bird Pin Up HarleyQuinn505 Cosplay
Black and White With The Fuji X100f (Photos) and Nikon D600 (Video)
If you have spent any time looking at my work you know I enjoy shooting portraits. You may have also noticed that I often process my photos in black and white. It's typically not something that I elect to do on purpose the photos just end up that way. In the case of my most recent shoot with Haven Hudson I ended up making the entire section black and white.
Why Make Photos Black and White?
The most common reason that I choose to make photos black and white is because they were shot in low light. Because I'm compensating with a higher ISO and to a lesser extent larger Apertures the photos I shoot in low light tend to have a shallow depth of field along with a noticeable amount of "noise" (Grain, Static, artifacts and discoloration). While noise is a common byproduct of increasing the sensitivity of your camera's sensor it is typically something many photographers would like to avoid. It's why camera manufactures will invest a respectable amount of research and development into getting cameras to shoot at higher ISOs with less Noise. However even the best cameras shooting at 6400 ISO are going to show some noise but that doesn't mean an image is ruined.
In my opinion a humble amount of noise can give photos a film like quality. In an era where Photoshop can polish an image down to the point where it looks more like a life like painting it can be a bit refreshing to keep some of the old rough edges to images as opposed to scrubbing the photos of their soul and leaving them as nothing more than images. The issue is though is that Digital Noise isn't film grain. It has completely different qualities, the most significant being the way it effects color tones; They can become muddy and difficult to grade colors the way you want. It is especially difficult when it comes to skin tone which tend to be a pain in the ass to change anyways. However if you are okay with less color and a bit of grain you can get some very vintage/filmic looking images.
This is what makes black and white such an effective method of editing. You're not worried about what the colors look like you're more focused on what your exposure, Contrast, whites, blacks, shadows and highlights are doing without having to stress about color balance or saturation as well.
Technical justifications aside the main reason to process in black and white is purely a aesthetic choice. I have always loved the way black and white photography looks especially when it comes to my more candid and improvisational photography. I like having photos that look like you could find them in the attic of you grandparents house and it's a big reason I frequently order 4×6 prints on some of my favorite photos. One day someone is going to be going through my old stuff and that photos I have taken throughout my life.
Shooting with the Fuji X100f.
The Fuji X100f is a relatively new addition to my camera bag. I have had it for the last 6 months and in my time shooting with it there are some certain qualities that I have grown to appreciate and other that I have learned to loath and this Black and White series is a good illustrations of the good the bad and the ugly when it
comes to this camera.
The Good:
The image quality off the sensor of this camera is excellent. I have grown so spoiled by shooting with a full frame Nikon DSLR that I have grown pessimistic when it comes to smaller sensors but the APS-C sized chip on the X100f Renders details and colors so well that in the right lighting conditions you would think that you were shooting with a full 35mm sensor.
I personally believe the sensor benefits from having a well paired lens attached to the front of it. The 23mm f2 lens that is fixed on the Fuji is roughly a 35mm equivalent on the APS-C Sensor and the combination of the f2 wide open aperture and being fixed focal length allows for very precise rendering that takes some very breathtaking images.
The final thing that I love about the camera is how fast it is. The auto focus, the shutter response (along with being incredibly quite) allows me to shoot very quickly and the responsiveness of the camera to my adjustments happen at such a pace that I can focus on shooting more than constantly making minor adjustments.
The Bad:
The X100f is not well suited for portraits, Not going to lie about that. While I am super pleased with the image quality coming out of the camera there are some things that makes it hard to get portraits to look the way portraits to should look (at least for my personal prefrence.
Because the lens is a 23mm it has a lot of the qualities and drawbacks of a wide angle lens. Noticeable distortion, the bokeh (blurred Background) never quite gets the subject isolation you want and getting the right composition becomes a bit more of a challenge.
Most of these things can be overcome with some editing. Adobe Lightroom (Which I almost exclusively edit with) has profile corrections built right in for this camera and the you can add more blur the background if you're into that kind of thing but ideally you want to minimized editing by getting as much in camera as I can and having my processing for implementing the style I want. Not so much for fixing issues.
The Ugly:
The high ISO performance on this camera is sketchy at best. The noise after 3200 ISO is Pretty noticeable but the thing that I constantly notice is how muddy the mid-tones become as you raise the sensitivity. It is especially rough on the color quality. after 1600 ISO the color starts to fall apart on the RAW files to the point that you almost feel like you have to go to black and white which I why I elected to edit all of these photos in black and white. I've noticed in time that people are really committed to color photography and I will often deliver black and white photos and have people ask me to convert them back to color. So for me I'm okay with living with a camera I know I'm going to get some color issues but I think there a lot of photographers and clients out there who color quality is non-negotiable.
Video in Black and White:
I want to get back to shooting video more often. Typically I don't mix a lot of my video work with my portrait work but it has been something that I have wanted to do. After Editing the whole set in Black and White I decided I wanted the video I captured to match.
I shot the Video on my Nikon D600 with the Nikon 24-120 f4g lens. This Camera is a bit on the old side when it comes to video performance. It shoots at 1080p at 30fps (I shoot in 24fps) on a H.264 codec which is respectable but there are a lot of 4k 60fps options hitting the market with better codecs and more video centric features. But the footage from the 35mm sensor looks great and 1080p is still respectable in the online space. (But I still am tempted to upgrade.) The real drawback of doing video on this camera is the focus. The back screen makes it really hard to tell when things are in focus and nikon photography lenses really aren't suited for manual focusing. Another thing that some of the more latest and greatest cameras have are better video auto focus features that the D600 just doesn't have. All complaints aside, the best camera is the one you have on you and the D600 has been a work horse since I bought it and part of working in the creative space is being able to work within the limitations of your equipment and to a greater extent yourself to realize your creative vision.
I was actually really happy with how the video came out but I do want to improve a few things going forward. First I need to get a better stabilization setup. Not necessarily something fancy like a DJI RONIN or a Glide Cam but possibly a shoulder rig to give me more steady movements going forward. Also I need to get back on my music game because it's very hard to get quality music that you can use in videos. Luckily Brain Altano has encouraged people to use the music he is now making for his new creative project Weird Heat on their own projects so I have decided to take advantage of his generosity.
The Set:
I feel fortunate to have been able to shoot with how busy I have been lately but I'm finding it important to continue with my own creative endeavors. A lot of what my day (and night) job have me do is beneficial to my professional growth, but being able to do things like this black and white series makes me feel like still have the ability to flex my creative muscles.
Joy as Biker Ivy
When planning a quick shoot with Joy Coy I knew right away that I wanted to do something Poison Ivy related.
Especially since she started cosplaying the Character AFTER I had left new mexico. The hard part was coming up with of what kind of variation of the character we wanted to do. The first thing that popped into my brain was Biker Ivy especially given my new obsession of motorcycling. (I have just purchased Harley Davidson that I am currently in love with.) With a simple grunge setup and some stellar natural light I was increadibley pleased with the shots we get. If you want more Joy Coy and see some of her other nerdy and burlesque art you can check her out on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/ohjoycoy
The creative part of my brain is significantly broken.
Not that I can't be creative, but rather I can't conceptualize what I want to do and then take the necessary steps to create my idea. Instead I treat every piece that I do as an improve performance. When I took music lessons I could never write an original piece but I could pick up any instrument and make it sound decent to a rhythm. I could never draw a coherent picture but I could doodle in my notebook in class all day long. The same thing goes for my photography, a lot of the time I just show up where I show up, get the camera out and just wing it until I'm happy with the images that I have captured. Lucky for me I have a lot of friends willing to work with my erratic style and do last minute shoots with no real solid concept behind them. That's how this shoot with Tara came to be. It was on my most recent trip back to Albuquerque where we met at her place, we went through her wardrobe, picked out a few outfits and just shot for about 2 hours. As always, we had a ball just screwing around until we looked back at the photos and appreciated what we shot.
The thing I love about these photos was how we used natural light to really bring out some of Tara's Natural features.
She is honestly one of the hardest working people I know and it shows. The thing both of us couldn't get over in the photos were her abs. buy angling her just right in the window light we were able to accentuate that feature. It worked best when she was back lit by the window and the fill came from the rooms natural bounce light and some shadow raising in Lightroom.
What Tara typically brings to the table is a certain raw emotion to every photoshoot.
Sure she's gorgeous, and her style with the tattoos and wild hair makes her look edgy, but the great thing about her is that she's a genuine soul who just loves to be around other people as long as they are good people. She never looks fake, or "superior," in her photos. She just looks like Tara, and that's what makes shooting with her so enjoyable.
Girls of Geek Reunion.
Virginia has had a lot of things going well for me. Stable job doing video production, a comfortable home life with a wonderful support system, and I'm the healthiest I have been in years. But if there is one thing it lacks it is the lack of connection with the modeling/cosplay community that I had back in Albuquerque NM. Going back home offered me the wonderful pleasure of working with a group of girls who I always have a ball shooting with. The Girls of Geek were always my favorite part of shooting in Albuquerque. Weather we were aiming for Nerdy or Sexy it is always great being around them. The best part of shooting with them is that it never feels like a photoshoot. It feels like a bunch of friends to goof around, play dress up and have some memorable pictures taken to commemorate the event. I'm happy to be living in Virginia, but as long as these girls are still in Albuquerque I'll probably be finding my way back out there.
Overnight Snow
We got some overnight snow in the Northern Virginia area so I went out this morning to shoot some video.
La Llorona Lightroom Tutorial
Exploring National Harbor
One of the places I have frequented now that I live on the East Coast is National Harbor. It's just across the bridge from Alexandria and has a lot to do and see in the way of entertainment. I spend a couple of hours down there just looking around and taking photos. Being that it was the middle of the day on a Wednesday there weren't a whole lot of people around but what was around was some unique opportunities to brush up on my photography skills when not shooting people.
FLZ Jacqui Daniels Makeup: Lightroom Timelapse
A year ago I did a shoot where I helped my friend Jacqui Daniels Get started on her makeup portfolio with a shoot where she introduced me to Feliz. The shoot was themed to be a very high fashion glam look. It featured a lot of gold and so for the edit I wanted that gold look to shine through so that became a main focus of the editing process. Balancing out colors is always a challenge but what I always find works best for portraiture is to lower the saturation by at least 30 and that counters anything drastic that you do with contrast or the white balance. Other than some basic retouching and softening on the skin all the photos really came together
To check out Jacqui's makeup go to https://www.facebook.com/makeupbyjacquidaniels/?fref=ts
You can see more photos of Feliz on instagram at https://instagram.com/flzmrtnz


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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: Shhh. (02/18/10)
- TITLE: Concert of Rebellion | Previous Challenge Entry
By Holly Hoell
How can we be content without the noise? It's like the noise is tied with our identity, an acknowledgement of our existence. The frequent beep of the text messenger, our heart beat. It deceptively makes us feel alive and important. When I was young, I enjoyed listening to music. Pop music was fun at first, but before long, I found myself desiring heavier music until I was listening to bands such as Mega death, Iron Maiden, or Kittie. The music was powerful and it made me feel tough and exhilarated, like I could take on anything. It was like a surge of caffeine without the coffee. However, along with that, my anxiety was building, my anger would erupt easily. Loudness was not just a band I listened too; I would raise my voice angrily when I didn't get my way.
I was swept up in the churning river of noise that caused distraction and confusion. They worked together like a concert of rebellion, shouting to me, driving me to new lows. Oh how we try to live this life, born in and growing up as part of the machine that is the world. The feedback it gives us is like the clang, clang, clang of a slave master locking together shackles on a captive's legs and wrists. The more we try to make ourselves fit in and feel better, the more we slip backwards into the darkness; feeding the lusts of our flesh, and deadening our spirituality. The hope and the light we once felt become a distant memory as we give up our passions to the cruel master that we allow to reign over us.
But something happened to me that muffled the howling and beckoning voices of the world. It was a moment carved out in time where my attention was turned elsewhere; away from the distracting noise that had so enchanted me. I am so grateful that there was one voice that stood out from wicked taskmaster that held my soul captive. One voice that lovingly said "shhh, listen to me". "Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle (meek) and humble (lowly) in heart, and you will find rest (relief and ease and refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet) for your soul(s)." Mat 11:29 (AMP) It didn't happen overnight, but once the Lord became real to me; it didn't take long for me to stop yelling at my son and fighting with my husband. I now knew freedom. I felt the love and peace of Jesus and I didn't want any noise to disturb that.
He breathed His breath of life back into me. It was like parting the drapes and opening the window to allow the gentle breeze and the sunlight to come through and refresh my soul. When we have blessed quiet in our hearts, there is no turbulence inside that has to find its way out of our mouths. Instead, the peace and joy of the Lord brings warmth to our hearts and flows like honey off our lips in praise to Almighty God, and our contentment becomes a blessing to those around us.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
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When you have a certain mission, a strong message you want to spread – you can't just always surround yourself with people who are already in your team. To make a change we have to step out of our comfort zone from time to time. You guys know how much I value social media to share stories and create inspirational content – but I also really enjoy to get out into the real world, meet new people and discuss ideas and topics close to my heart without hashtags and a like button.
Jil at a conventional beauty fair?


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text: Arakan #441 Posted May 14, 2019 Ah yes and the Randyll and Dickon Tarly scene. How is that different from IS terrorists screaming at you "convert or die"? The answer is, fundamentally there is absolutely no difference at all. People should open their eyes. But I do not wonder why Dany had/has so many fanatic fans, we all have those psychopathic/sociophathic and narcissistic personality traits in us. Some more some less. And we admire those famous people "who live the dream". Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, Louis 14, Napoleon. And of course the more notorious ones like Ghengis Khan, Ivan the Terrible, Stalin, Hitler. But they were a little bit "too much". And in GOT terms Dany is now on the "too much" side. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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About Me
I'm passionate, creative, patient and constantly evolving/adapting to whatever life presents me with. I say what I mean and mean what I say. Integrity is paramount. Loyalty is key. As for the lighter side...well, I admit to having an off-centre sense of humour but would never ever intentionally hurt anyone.


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Issues that affect Con Edison and its stakeholders at the federal level that the government relations team are currently engaged in or have recently followed...
In President Obama's 2014 State of the Union (SOTU) address, he focused primarily on economic stability and America's energy future. He touted the positive turn the country has taken though reducing debt, increasing reliance on domestic energy resources and lowering unemployment. The President also reiterated his commitment to act independently and take executive action to in order to move his priorities forward. Read More
On February 13, 2013, the White House unveiled President Obama's Executive Order, "Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity". The Executive Order is designed to create a framework which encourages companies that own critical assets, such as power generation and distribution, to improve their security systems and procedures voluntarily. Read More
After a protracted battle over federal emergency assistance, legislation supporting victims of Superstorm Sandy was signed by the President on January 29th. The bill, H.R. 152, provides for $50.5 billion in Sandy-related aid. The money will be used for both immediate needs and long-term projects to mitigate impacts from future storms. In total, Congress has passed $60 billion in federal assistance for the region. Read More
On January 1, Congress averted the so-called "fiscal cliff" by passing legislation to extend the majority of Bush-era tax cuts, delay automatic spending reductions for at least two months, and address a number of expiring tax and spending provisions. A summary of the bill as well as the full text are provided. Read More
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) provides federal funding to help low-income natural gas customers who struggle with home heating and cooling bills. For Fiscal Year 2011, Congress has funded the program at $4.7 billion. The House of Representatives recently voted to drastically cut the program and the Obama Administration has proposed that funding be reduced to $2.5 billion for Fiscal Year 2012. Based on the Administration's proposal New York State would see a cut of roughly $200 million. Read More
Smart grid combines various technologies that modernize the electric grid, including self-healing capabilities. It also allows for a two-way flow of energy and information between customers and utilities that would ultimately decrease energy consumption and cost to the ratepayers. Read More
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Issues at the state level that the Con Edison Government Relations team are currently engaged in or have recently followed...
The New York State Legislature concluded its 2014 legislative session on June 20th, 2014 after passing a number of energy-related measures, approving a last minute agreement to legalize medical marijuana, and advancing a component of Mayor de Blasio's "Vision Zero" plan that would reduce the New York City speed limit to 25 miles per hour. Legislators now turn their attention to the campaign season as all seats in both houses of the legislature are up for election. Con Edison had several successes this session, including an expansion of joint bidding. Read More
Governor Cuomo released his 2014-2015 Executive Budget today which proposes a $142 billion spending plan for the current fiscal year. The proposed budget has already been widely criticized as neglecting the needs of New York City while favoring the upstate economy (largely manufacturing- and industrial-based) with a variety of targeted tax credits and economic development incentives. Read More
Governor Andrew Cuomo delivered his fourth annual State of the State address January 8th, kicking off the 2014 Legislative Session. 2014 is an important election year for New York's elected officials including Governor Cuomo who is seeking a second term. His speech outlined the achievements of Cuomo's first term and set forth his policy agenda for the upcoming year. Read More
The New York State Legislature concluded the 2013 regular legislative session in the early morning hours of Saturday, June 22, taking action on several energy-related initiatives, including a wide-sweeping and controversial plan to restructure the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA). Before breaking for the summer, the legislature also approved a host of net metering changes and tax relief for out-of-state mutual assistance workers aiding in restoration efforts similar to Superstorm Sandy. Read More
Governor Cuomo's third Executive Budget proposal, released January 22, attempts to close an estimated $1.35 billion deficit for the 2103-2014 fiscal year. The overall $142.6 billion budget includes $6 billion from the federal government for post-Sandy relief and the start-up of the federal health care program. Read More
On January 9, 2013, Governor Andrew Cuomo delivered his annual State of the State address which outlined his long and short-term policy agenda. This was the third address of the democratic Governor's term and focused on Hurricane Sandy-related initiatives such as utility hardening, enhancing the Public Service Commission's (PSC) authority, privatizing LIPA, increasing alternative local renewable power sources, and lowering the RGGI cap to use some of the proceeds to fund such initiatives. Read More
The Moreland Commission presented its preliminary findings and recommendations to Governor Cuomo on January 7, 2013. Governor Cuomo established the Moreland Commission following Hurricane Sandy in order to study utilities' responses to recent major weather events and to provide recommendations on how to overhaul the regulatory structure to ensure the system is better able to handle emergencies going forward. Read More
A coalition of New York State legislators, along with the Independent Power Producers of New York (IPPNY) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), is opposing the proposed construction of the Champlain Hudson Power Express ("CHPE") project – a transmission line intended to bring up to 1,000 MW of hydropower from Canada to the New York metro area. Read More
The state Senate and Assembly are considering legislation in Albany that would require electric and gas utilities to pay prevailing wages to all contracted service employees. It also makes the willful failure to file payroll records with the appropriate public agency a class E felony, and increases criminal penalties for failure to pay service work prevailing wages. Read More
Legislators have approved a bill creating a new "Article X" process for the siting of power plants in New York. The previous system expired more than eight years ago. The bill passed the Senate 59-3; the Assembly vote was 117-13. Read More
Issues related to New York City that the Con Edison Government Relations team are currently engaged in or have recently followed...
On June 23, 1013, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and the New York City Council announced an agreement for an on-time, balanced budget for Fiscal Year 2014. The budget includes no tax increases, continues investments in essential City services, and allocates an additional $58 million to the New York City Housing Authority, filling some of the gap caused by Federal sequester cuts. Additionally, $250 million in City capital funds are set aside for resiliency measures to protect against climate change. Read More
On Thursday, June 27, 2013, the New York City Council overrode Mayor Michael Bloomberg's veto of the "Earned Sick Time Act" (Intro. 97-A). The legislation, which grants paid sick leave to over a million employees within New York City, was originally vetoed by the Mayor in June on the basis that it would increase costs to employers, especially small businesses. The new law takes effect April 1, 2014. Read More
Dark color roofs absorb heat and make our cooling systems work harder. Cool roof coatings reduce internal building temeperatures on hot days, reducing energy demand and costs, and improve the environment by reducing smog. Read More
Con Edison is supporting a New York State Assembly bill (A.8926) to eliminate the separate utility properties' tax category, Class 3, and combine it with Class 4, commercial and industrial properties, creating one class. (New York City has four property tax classes: Class 1 is for single-family homes; Class 2 is for apartment houses, Class 3 is utilities, Class 4 is commercial properties). Read More
Concerned about how pending legislation may affect you or the company? Legislative Memos in support or opposition can help clarify how government affects your life...
As part of the 2014-15 Executive Budget, Governor Cuomo has proposed $5 million in funding to support the creation of 10 P-TECH schools in New York. He also proposes the establishment of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Incentive Program, which would provide a full tuition scholarship to any SUNY or CUNY school for the top 10 percent of high school graduates who are pursuing careers in STEM fields and commit to work in New York State for five years.
These programs will better align education initiatives with employment needs by preparing students for jobs that are in demand. Memo in Support
A.3494 (Calhoun): An act to immediately repeal part NN of chapter 59 of the laws of 2009, increasing the utility assessment cap and the minimum threshold for collection thereunder, and establishing a temporary state energy and utility service conservation assessment and providing for the collection thereof.
Memo in Support
S.7448 (Skelos): An act to accelerate the repeal of part NN of chapter 59 of the laws of 2009, increasing the utility assessment cap and the minimum threshold for collection thereunder, and establishing a temporary state energy and utility service conservation assessment and providing for the collection thereof.
A.1982 (Rosenthal): An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to restricting the operation of diesel powered electrical generation systems in areas identified as not meeting certain federal air quality standards for ozone (NYC).
Memo in Opposition
A.6970 (Wright)/S.3827 (Maziarz): An act to amend the labor law, in relation to enacting the "roadway excavation quality assurance act".
A.9375 (Camara)/S.7434 (Savino): An act to amend the labor law, in relation to prevailing wages for service workers.
A.9149-A (Englebright): An act to amend the public service law and the public authorities law, in relation to the creation of the New York Solar Industry Development and Jobs Act of 2012.
A.5522-B (Englebright)/S.3203-B (Maziarz): An act to amend the tax law, in relation to exempting the sale and installation of commercial solar energy systems equipment from state sales and compensating use taxes and granting municipalities the option to grant such exemption.
Revenue Article VII (Part H): NY-SUN Initiative. Expands the sales and use tax exemption to cover solar energy systems installed on commercial properties, as well as the personal income tax credit to cover expenditures for the lease of solar energy equipment and purchases of power generated by such equipment.
Memo in Support
A.8856-A (Gabryszak)/S.6063-A (DeFrancisco): An act to amend the labor law, in relation to eliminating an employer's annual notice requirement.
Want to learn more about an issue? Issue Snapshots provide concise descriptions of important issues facing Con Edison, including background information and the company's position...
The focus on greenhouse gas emissions is not limited to carbon emissions from power plants. New attention is being given to methane emissions from the natural gas supply chain. Although methane is a short-lived pollutant, it traps much more heat in the atmosphere than carbon. Read More
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and its pipeline safety authority reside primarily within the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), although its inspection and enforcement activities rely heavily upon partnerships with state pipeline safety agencies. PHMSA creates and sets national safety standards and delegates that authority (along with some funding) to the state commissions. Read More
Passed in January 2013, The American Taxpayer Relief Act (also known as the "Fiscal Cliff Deal") made some permanent changes to the tax code, such as establishing the maximum dividend tax rate of 20%, but for the most part, the legislation was a temporary fix. President Obama and Congress still have a number of issues to address to keep the economy moving forward, all of which have the potential to slow the economy if not managed well. Read More
Legislation is pending that would create a new Office of the Utility Consumer Advocate to represent residential utility consumer interests in proceedings before entities such as the Public Service Commission (PSC) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Read More
The lead bill on gas safety classifies different types of gas leaks and sets forth a timeline for repairs. These requirements are generally consistent with current regulations. Utilities would be required to submit annual reports on the status of all leaks to the PSC. Upon request, the reports would also be provided to any legislator and municipal or state public safety official. Finally, the PSC is authorized to establish minimum surveillance standards. As part of these efforts, the PSC would need to determine whether the presence of extended frost cap conditions requires additional surveillance. Read More
Net metering allows electric utility customers who install certain energy systems on their property (solar, wind, CHP, etc.) to receive a credit for both energy supply and delivery charges at retail rates for excess power provided to the utility when their systems produce more electricity than they need. Net metering customers, or customer-generators, remain connected to the grid in order to deliver the excess power back to the utility to supplement their power needs and to take power from the grid when their generating systems are not producing energy. Read More
Last winter saw some of the largest electricity supply price increases in recent memory, ranging from 15% to more than 60% across the state. In response to growing pressure from concerned constituents who struggled to pay their utility bills, legislators were eager to advance proposals that would address the situation. Read More
Two similar bills are pending before the Legislature which would require the payment of prevailing wages for certain utility contractors and subcontractors. Read More
Radon is and invisible, odorless, and tasteless substance found in natural gas which dissipates over time.
The alleged health impacts of radon in natural gas have been emphasized by opponents of the Spectra Pipeline which transports hydrofracked natural gas from Pennsylvania and Ohio to the West Village. Read More
Con Edison pays approximately $1.4 billion annually in real property taxes. These costs are paid by Con Edison customers through their utility bills.
Several bills are pending in the State Legislature that would address Con Edison's real property tax liability. Read More
Con Edison Voter and Election Website, Glossary, Federal, New York State and New York City Government Pages, and other resources for Grassroots Advocates...
The United States Constitution, provides that: "All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives." Therefore, the primary function of Congress is the making of laws. There are a number of steps in the federal legislative process. Congressional action can take one of four principal forms: bills, joint resolution, concurrent resolution and the simple resolution. Read More
Government Glossary. Read More
Visit the get out and vote site and find out what's at stake in 2012. Read More
Access to the web pages of all 100 U.S. Senators, Senate Committees, and other related information. Read More
Access to the web pages of all 435 U.S. House Members, House Committees and other related information. Read More
Access to the web pages of all 62 New York State Senate Members, State Senate Committees and other related information. Read More
Access to the web pages of all 150 New York State Assembly Members, State Assembly Committees and other related information. Read More
Access to the web pages of all 51 New York City Council Members, City Council Committees and other related information. Read More
The Government of the United States. Read More


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One topic that comes up often during a consultation with couples is whether or not to do a First Look. Most couples are open to it as weddings have become more relaxed through the years. Many still have formal elements but couples are choosing to build in some time for themselves on that day.
Recently in a consult I came to the realization that I wished I had done a first look for myself. My husband and I chose to have that moment at the end of the isle. When the door opened and everyone stood up, I couldn't see him! I didn't see his face until I was next to him, it was a whirlwind and I feel like the first time I really looked at him was when we were saying our vows. I had butterflies of course because that moment is very intense and we had 150 sets of eyes looking at us to make it more jittery. The first look is one thing I wish I had done from my wedding and here are a few reasons why
- The day goes by in a blink, literally. Throughout your day family and friends are sharing in your excitement and pulling you every which way. A first look is a great chance to spend a few quiet minutes together alone and breathe.
- You will still be emotional walking down the isle. Its true, there is nothing that can diminish the moment when you walk down to see your partner-in-life standing there. Every couple I have photographed before the isle is still emotional and teary eyed. It will still be powerful.
- You can have more time with Family and Friends by doing your portrait session beforehand. Like I said in #1 your day goes by in a flash. You are going to be so pumped after saying I Do and may want some time to get to cocktail hour or have a few minutes alone with yourselves or bridal party in the bridal suite to breathe, have a drink, and hug your favorite people. By doing a first look you can carve out the time you need for portraits and even family portraits so after the wedding that time can be spent savoring all the planning you did for the past year or two!
Those are some of the top reasons to do the first look. Ultimately it is your choice and as a photographer it is my job to complete what you want on your big day. But I promise a first look will be something you won't regret!
xo -LS


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GLITTERINGS Giveaway
GLITTERRINGS' plus size styles consist of a well edited capsule collection of rings from our Faux Real, Gilty Pleasures, Trend and Unforgettable collections. Each in the collection was handpicked for its plus sized customers to not just fit, but to be flattering. The collection, sized 10-13, is made of 14K gold plated and rhodium plated brass and ranges in price from $30-$150.
"Like" GLITTERRINGS on Facebook too!
I received the "Claire" ring today in a size 10. It's absolutely fabulous. I love how big it is and the shimmer of the glass stone.
14kt gold plating with antique finish
Rich metallic brown faux rutilated quartz glass stone
Diary of a Fatshionista and GLITTERINGS is partnering up to give one fabulous reader a chance to win one of my favorite GLITTERINGS from the collection.
Details to Win:
1) Follow @MiaTheBoss on Twitter.
2) "Like" Diary of a Fatshionista on Facebook.
3) Follow Diary of a Fatshionista on Blogger.
4) Tweet the following: "I just entered the #DiaryofaFatshionista #GLITTERRINGS giveaway. Follow @MiaTheBoss and visit http://diaryofafatshionista.blogspot.com for your chance to win! RT!"
5) Leave a comment stating you done the above, include your e-mail address, ring size, and which ring you want.
6) I will choose 1 fabulous follower at random to win! You must follow all rules in order to be eligible. One entry per person. The contest ends Friday, November 25, 2011 – 11:59 PM EST. The winner will be contacted via e-mail and announced on Saturday, November 26, 2011. Good luck!
19 comments:
That ring is DOPE!ReplyDelete
I follow you on twitter as IslandFashion24
I liked you on Facebook as Shade' Morrison
Off course I follow you on GFC as Shade'
Cute rings!ReplyDelete
I, @2mySOUL followed you on twitter and liked your FB page
size 10
I forgot to put my ring size and ring... 9 and claire!ReplyDelete
Hey hun! I'm following you on everything LOL! I would like to win the Chandra size 10! I love the giveaway :)ReplyDelete
I'm following you on twitter, facebook and blogger. My email is firstname.lastname@example.com. I'd like the Chandra in a size 8.ReplyDelete
I've completed the steps! My email is firstname.lastname@example.com. I'd like chandra in a size10ReplyDelete
I have completed all of the steps. My email is firstname.lastname@example.com. I would like to have the Chandra in a size 12.ReplyDelete
Awesome Giveaway!ReplyDelete
I've followed the rules.
Ring Size 8 it's so hard choosing, but I'll choose Claire
Hey Mia!ReplyDelete
ring size= 7
I want Claire!
I've completed the steps! My emails is carmesha102@gmail. I would like Claire, size 8ReplyDelete
Hey Girl!ReplyDelete
I follow you on twitter, blogger, and like you on facebook. I even tweeted @classicdaisy
I'd like Emme in a size 8!
Here's my email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Ive Completed All The StepsReplyDelete
Claire Size 11
Twitter: _@imperfectelise
Facebook: Shaina Fennell
Ive Completed All The Steps! :-)ReplyDelete
Ring-sized 11
Facebook-April Denise
I have followed all of the instructions :0)ReplyDelete
Email firstname.lastname@example.com
Twitter @mhssuga06
Facebook Ashley Essix
Ring Size 10
Thanks for sharing this fabulous giveaway with us Mia!ReplyDelete
I completed all of the following:
1. I already follow you under the name cheapchicCURVY
2. I "liked" Diary of a Fatshionista on Facebook
3. I follow your blog via Google Friend Connect
4. I tweeted about your blog via cheapchicCURVY
As you can see I've completed all the steps to enter this giveaway!
Ring Size-8
I love the Sadie ring!
I just found out about your blog through "The Curvy Fashionista" and am sooooo glad I did! these rings are gorgeous! My favorite ring is the Chandra, it was a close call between Chandra and Sadie but I like that Chandra is edgy and girly at the same time! I completed everything to be entered in the contest.ReplyDelete
Ring Size: 10
Email: email@example.com
Ring: Chandra
I kind of need that Emme ring in my life - size 11! I just followed and liked you as well :)ReplyDelete
Great blog!
I have done all of the above and would love to have "Chandra" size 8. my email is firstname.lastname@example.com
I followed the rules.ReplyDelete
Ring size 8. Sadie
I tweeted via @Buniqueboutique
Thank you for visiting my blog, www.MIATHEBOSS.com. I encourage and welcome feedback! If you have a question, please e-mail me at firstname.lastname@example.com! You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram.


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The Italian Tribune's All Italian All Star Team
The ballots have been cast and the votes are in! Thank you to the many readers who sent in their suggestions for this illustrious team. We hope that everyone has enjoyed the series. Here are the selections for the Italian Tribune's All Italian All Star Team. We have broken the team into American and National Leagues.
The American League
Catcher – Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra, Hall of Famer and one of a kind personality.
Pitcher – The pitching category has three selections: a right-hander, a lefty and a reliever. For the lefty, Andy Pettitte, also tough in a battle on the mound; while for the righty, the most dominant when in his prime was Vic Rashi. The reliever is converted starting pitcher to dominant closer Dave Righetti.
First Base – Slugger Jason Giambi gets the selection
Second Base – Hall of Famer Tony Lazzari
Short Stop – Another Yankee Hall of Fame player, Phil Rizzuto
Third Base – Frank Malzone
Left Field – We moved "The Little Professor" out of center to get Dom DiMaggio's speed, smarts and bat into the lineup because there's no denying who is at the next position…
Center Field – "The Yankee Clipper," Mr. Baseball, Joltin' Joe DiMaggio. Oh, by the way, he is another Hall of Fame player.
Right Field – We went with Rocky Colavito.
Manager – This became a battle of the Joes. Should it be Joe Torre Hall of Famer and manager of the four World Series Champion teams for the Yankees, or Joe Maddon, who inherited a bad Tampa Bay team and turned it into a winning franchise? He also took a good Chicago Cubs team and has turned it into a great team. Many have argued that Torre inherited a great Yankee team, stood back and allowed them to play to their abilities. That is certainly an understatement, but in a surprise upset, the fans have spoken and Joe Maddon gets the vote.
The National League
Catcher – Hall of Fame player Roy Campanella
Pitcher – Our right-hander is Hall of Famer John Smoltz. For our left-handed selection we went with Cy Young winner Frank Viola. Coming out in relief with 424 saves is John Franco.
First Base – Soon to be inducted Hall of Famer Mike Piazza. Even though he made his name as a catcher, Mike had plenty of time at first and any team, in fact EVERY team, would want his bat in the lineup.
Second Base – Hall of Famer Craig Biggio.
Short Stop – This was a tough call. Larry Bowa was a great ball player, but Joe Tinker is in the Hall of Fame. The result – Joe Tinker.
Third Base – Ron Santo, another Hall of Fame player gets the vote.
Left Field – We moved Jack Clark over to left to get his fiercesome bat in the lineup
Center Field – For whatever reason, the National League hasn't had the same depth at this position as the American League. We went with four-time All-Star and National League MVP Phil Cavarretta, who was an excellent first baseman and right fielder. Perhaps a little slower than you'd want in center, but his .355 average in his '45 could not be ignored.
Right Field – No question about this one – the Reading Rifle Carl Furillo. Seriously, why is this man not in the Hall of Fame?
Manager – Hall of Famer Tommy Lasorda
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General Price List
We believe that trust is built on a relationship of openness and honesty. To insure your needs are met, please know that we will answer all your questions in a clear and understandable manner. We will insure the arrangements you make will meet with your individual wishes. We will explain all of your options available for your particular situation,and we will clearly and openly explain our prices and payment methods.Read more
Immediate Need Form
In this page you can provide us the information we need to complete a few required documents. We are here to serve you and your family in this often stressful time.Read more
Moser Funeral & Cremation Service is proud to offer our families the finest in cremation and burial products. We invite you to review our selection prior to meeting with a member of our staff for the arrangement conference.Read more
Helpful Links
Here you will find different links to local businesses that provide helpful products and services.Read more
When a Death Occurs
When a death occurs, the order in which things need to be done often depends on where the death occurred. That's why we suggest that you ask a friend for help - someone who is more able to think clearly, and give you the support you need.Read more
Funeral Etiquette
Accepted customs of dress and behavior in a funeral have changed over time, but courtesy never goes out of style. Here's what we'd like you to know about funeral etiquette.Read more
Frequently Asked Questions
You'll find the answers to some of the most common questions relating to the value of a funeral, or memorial service, the practices of funeral service and funeral home operation.Read more


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Why should you become a member of a church?
A personal commitment to Jesus Christ is to be lived out in the context of a local church. Our discipleship to Jesus is personal, but never private. The most important way you can get involved at UCCD is through becoming a member. In membership, our spiritual relationship as members of the Body of Christ is practically displayed through our commitment, fellowship, and care for one another.
Members of UCCD promise to live together under our Church Covenant, which shows how we live out the gospel in community.
We hold Membership Matters classes throughout the year, both as occasional 2-day weekend sessions, or during Friday Foundations at 9:30am as a 6-week course. Learn more on our Events page.
For further information, please contact our Church office: email@example.com.


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Series: Beginners
By Katie Daynes
Currently unavailable on this website
How do pigs keep cool? Why do farmers shear their sheep? Which farm animals live underwater? These and other questions are answered with vivid, full colour photographs and illustrations and short, informative text. Includes internet links via Usborne Quicklinks to exciting websites to find out more. Usborne Beginners are exciting books for children who are beginning to read on their own.
Katie Daynes has written oodles of books for Usborne, from lifting the flaps on germs and poo, through things to spot in the sea and at school, to the life stories of Nelson Mandela and Marie Antoinette. She wrote My First Chess Book after being taught by her son, Joe Birks, who became the British Under 9 Chess Champion in 2017. She now lives in Yorkshire with her architect husband, two inquisitive children and a hamster called Toffee. When she's not writing books, Katie likes walking on the blustery moors, meeting friends for coffee and playing competitive board games.
Visit Usborne Quicklinks for links to websites with carefully selected video clips and activities about farm animals for young children.


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US men's soccer union sounds off on 'false narrative' about equal pay for women
Written by Leah Jones on February 14, 2020
Andy Lyons/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Soccer fans the world over are known for their loud and unwavering support — just as America's men's team now backs the women's.
Members of the U.S. men's national soccer team again are voicing support for their female counterparts, ahead of the women's national team's gender discrimination trial in May that involves the U.S. Soccer Federation.
How the men are supporting the women
In a lengthy and emphatic statement released Wednesday by the United States National Soccer Team Players Association, the union sounded off about U.S. Soccer's "false narrative" regarding collective bargaining agreements and equal pay.
"The Federation has been working very hard to sell a false narrative to the public and even to members of Congress," the statement read, adding that the federation has used it "as a weapon against current and former members of the United States Women's National Team."
The association said it has long left the women's players and their representatives to pursue any grievances on their own, but decided now to back them due to the "success" of the federation's narrative.
"By coming forward to explain the situation, the USNSTPA hopes to create a better understanding and perhaps help bring about a resolution," the statement continued.
The men's statement further broke down why equal pay in soccer matters now more than ever, particularly in comparing the women's CBA from April 2017 to the men's from 2011 to 2018.
"What we believe should happen is simple," the men's union said. "Pay the women significantly more than our recently expired men's deal. In our estimation, the women were due at least triple what our expired deal was worth in player compensation."
U.S. soccer has not yet responded to the union's statement.
How we got here
U.S. Soccer historically has "resisted any concept of equal pay or basic economic fairness for the USWNT players" and "refused" to include the same provisions in CBAs with the women's team.
"This is systematic gender discrimination that should have never happened," the men's union added.
Historically, the men have negotiated their CBA with U.S. Soccer before the women, setting the stage for those talks.
When the women's team negotiated its most recent CBA, in April 2017, the federation's revenue had grown by more than $33 million since 2011, according to the USNSTPA.
"The expectation was for dramatic increases in their compensation, comparable to the Federation's triple-digit increases in revenue," the USNSTPA said. "The women's 2017-2021 CBA did not bring the women equality in working conditions and the women did not benefit from the dramatic increase in revenue associated with the USWNT."
The men's union also is claiming U.S. Soccer potentially is spending millions on legal expenses that instead could be be used to pay players.
Last March, 28 members of the 2015 Women's World Cup champion team filed a class-action gender discrimination lawsuit against the federation, after years of publicly demanding equal pay. A trial is set for May 5.
"The USSF has utterly failed to promote gender equality," the lawsuit reads. "It has stubbornly refused to treat its female employees who are members of the [women's national team] equally to its male employees."
The U.S. Soccer Federation did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
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Even issues resolved to cultivate old softly, there's simply no reason never to use the most effective products possible to manage your epidermis. Developing an antiaging organic natual skin care regimen can be an important solution to appear a lot more vital and also youthful. In this post, we'll current some information regarding all natural natual skin care products for girls in britain who want in guarding and conserving the younger vigor of these skin.
Oxygen can be a Key Element
Just even as need o2 to inhale and exhale, the epidermis needs oxygen to keep clear and also pure. Oxygen is thought to accelerate epidermis regeneration and also decrease the particular rate of which skin loses quite components elastin and also collagen. Oxygen even offers anti-inflammatory outcomes, helping to be able to calm and also heal skin. The finest oxygen-containing natual skin care products tend to be handmade, and also, because they cannot contain preservative chemicals, need being refrigerated. Oxygen works to boost collagen thickness and epidermis firmness. Organic natual skin care products made up of oxygen must also have any neutral pH that wont upset the particular skin's pH equilibrium and result in irritation.
Royal Jelly is One more Ingredient to take into account
Royal jelly can be an organic attractiveness product produced from bees. It's got a frothy texture and also strong antibacterial attributes, so that functions being a skin defender. Royal jelly even offers skin-soothing qualities which is sometimes utilized to relieve epidermis conditions just like atopic dermatitis. Furthermore, it stimulates collagen production and contains a normal-range pH of approximately 3. 5 to be able to about some. 0, rendering it slightly acidic but nevertheless compatible together with human epidermis. Finally, royal jelly can be an anti-viral and also anti-fungal agent which is thought to aid damaged epidermis cells replenish.
Aloe Vera can be A Very Desirable Element in Organic Cosmetics
Aloe vera can be a plant that is known given that ancient times for the healing and also anti-inflammatory attributes. It functions by increasing the flow of blood to velocity healing. Aloe notara reduces the possibility of contamination and aids protect skin from experience of ultra-violet rays. It's also a fantastic treatment regarding frostbite, psoriasis, melts away, sunburn, abrasions, epidermis lesions, pest bites and also stings and also hives. Aloe vera can be a powerful inclusion to organic antiaging skin care products.
It's amazing the amount of effective and also beneficial antiaging organic natual skin care products can be purchased in the BRITISH. Why utilize chemically centered formulations any time organic goods are just as valuable and acquireable?


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Who-Is-Who Of Hong Kong InsurTech
We Profile 17 Startups / 10 Insurers / 4 Re-Insurers / 5 VCs Thrilled to share with you our latest Asia Insurance-Tech (InsurTech) Directory, covering Hong Kong ecosystem. With this directory we aim to drive positive impact through encouraging impactful collaborations between startups and insurance corporates. Let's start with a few key insights about Hong Kong ecosystem.


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It's tough out there. The economy isn't showing much sign of getting back to 'normal'. Businesses have reopened after the floods. But many people feel the bite of austerity, low wages, zero hours contracts, debt and turbulent times.
Do we need a different approach? A vision for a just, sustainable economy where people matter? One that helps us take control?
Picture our community, secure and prosperous, resilient from the financial, political and ecological shocks in the country and the world. Imagine a Calder Valley where the economy comprises hundreds of small businesses with social and sustainability aims at their core.
Imagine being part of one of these businesses, where your community and co-workers support you and the enterprise and your enterprise supports others. We can make this a reality, if we foster mutual self-help between existing and new enterprises – a solidarity economy.
Another economy is possible. This is a chance to be part of it.
Please join our mailing list to be kept informed about what we're up to.


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Fans of tiny little sluts, I've got to warn you: grab some tissues before checking out Marsha May (AKA Bibi Miami, Bianca B, Lil Peachy). The teen starlet is a mere 4'11", 94lbs, with an absolutely stunning 32D-24-32 frame. She's blonde and has a super-cute face to match, so what's not to love? Marsha isn't just beautiful; she's a totally depraved slut and has been getting fucked on camera since 2014. It's pretty obvious from watching that she couldn't wait to get into the porn business. This girl seriously loves being fucked!
Marsha has some big-ass titties for a babe her size, making her perfect for fuck movies like Big Oily Boobs A-bouncing. The ever-lucky Keiran Lee gets the privilege of slamming that bald pussy in this picture. When he's ready to pop, he puts it all over her happy face. Johnny Sins gave her more of the same kind of action in Last Stop, Titfuck Road - another treat for boob connoisseurs.
She also has a growing collection of bondage clips on the Internet. It seems Marsha really likes being tied up and fucked while she's helpless. She's still young and very sexy, so it's going to be incredibly hot watching Marsha May explore her various desires on camera as her career progresses.


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Restaurants have heavy-duty ranges, special grill pans, even butane torches to cook meat, but you don't have to have any of that equipment to turn out a mouth-watering steak. Oiling the pan helps prevent the steak from sticking -- resulting in a tasty crust. If you're out of oil, or just choose not to add any additional fat to the steak, your steak can still have that crisp brown crust enclosing juicy tenderness.
Prepare the Meat
Season the steak with your favorite rub or use a combination of garlic powder, onion powder, dried herbs and spices. Marinating the steak for a few hours, even overnight is another option to increase moisture. Bring the steak out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before you plan to cook it, so it comes to room temperature. Keep it loosely covered.
No Oil Needed
If you don't have oil, you can also use bacon drippings, lard or shortening. Butter has a lower smoking point than oil, so if you want to use butter you'll have to clarify it first. Melt it until it bubbles around the edges. Put the melted butter into a tempered glass or metal container. When the butter becomes solid, pour off the liquid. Another option is to use the fat of the steak itself, if it has some. Hold the fatty end down against a hot pan. Use tongs so you don't burn yourself or pierce the meat. The fat will melt.
Grill It Up
Grilling the steak over hot coals or a gas grill requires no oil, but the grill has to be hot enough first. Hold your hand about 5 inches above the grill. If you can't keep your hand over the grill for more than two seconds, it's medium hot. Another tip to keep the steak from sticking to the grill is not to move it until you're ready to turn it over. How long this takes depends on how well done you like the steak.
Under the Broiler
The broiler is like a reverse grill. On a grill, the heat comes from below the steak. Any juices or fat drip away from the steak into the hot coals. The broiler provides heat from above. Using a ridged grill pan or the perforated broiler pan keeps the steak from sitting in its own juices. The fat drips down into the ridges as well. A 1-inch-thick steak will reach 145 degrees Fahrenheit in 14 to 18 minutes. Turn the steak over at the halfway point.
Oven Roasted
Restaurant chefs often sear a steak in a hot frying pan and finish the steak in the oven. There isn't any reason you can't do the same. Put an oven-proof pan in a hot oven -- 475 F. After 10 minutes put the steak in the pan and return it to the oven. Let the steak cook until the oven goes back up to 475 F. Then lower the heat to 400 F. Cook the steak to at least 145 F to prevent foodborne illness.
- License to Grill; Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby
- Betty Crocker: Timetable for Broiling Meats
- Jupiterimages/liquidlibrary/Getty Images


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Zencoder plays MoneyballDave McClure, one of our investors, wrote an infamous blog post last summer that coincided with the launch of 500 Startups. The post is called MoneyBall for Startups: Invest BEFORE Product/Market Fit, Double-Down AFTER. Dave argues that startups are changing and technology is changing, but VCs are slow to adapt. Startups no longer need $3M to get a product out the door - products are cheaper and faster to build, marketing can be done inexpensively, and many startups can start making revenue on day one. When you think about it, it should be obvious that technology companies are easier to start today than they were 20 years ago. The internet, open source software, and (now) cloud services empower smart people to build amazing things with very little money. But venture capital in 2011 looks suspiciously similar to venture capital in 1991. Dave outlines a new model for financing startups, in three stages.
1) Product: $0-100K, 3-6 months to develop basic MVP that's functional & useful for at least a few customers. Get to small product/market fit. 2) Market: $100K-$2M, 6-12 months to test marketing & distribution channels, understand scalability & customer acquisition cost, conversion to some non-zero revenue event. Get to large product/market fit. 3) Revenue: $1-5M, 6-24 months to optimize product/market fit and get to cash-flow positive.This is exactly - to the numbers - what happened at Zencoder, with the addition of a Step 0. 0) Bootstrap Zencoder spent two years as an unfunded side project. We built Flix Cloud during that period, but otherwise, like most side projects, we didn't get real momentum until we moved to the next stage. 1) Product. We raised $20,000 from Y Combinator, supplemented this with personal savings, and completed a working beta in 4 months (January-April). Zencoder launched in May of 2010. 2) Market: Just after launch, we raised a convertible debt round from Chris Sacca, Dave McClure, and others. We used this money to hire a team, get Zencoder to product-market fit, and start making meaningful revenue. After about 4 months, things really started to click. Customers now love Zencoder almost universally, and revenue and usage have been growing quickly. After this clicked, we began working hard on our sales and marketing alongside of continued improvements to the product. 3) Revenue: We just closed $2M in funding. We'll use this money - and I quote the Moneyball post - "to optimize product/market fit and get to cash-flow positive." Give 500 Startups credit: this isn't just talk. They first invested in Zencoder before product/market fit, and they doubled down after. So did a number of our angels. This approach to fundraising would have been difficult in the 20th century, or at least rare. But it's not unusual today, and it's only going to become more common.


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We love our 1920's bungalow but it leaves much to be desired when it comes to security. We're not paranoid, but there have been break-ins in the area and we want to make sure our home doesn't become another statistic.
We've added motion-sensing outdoor lighting, put our indoor lights on timers and raised the height of our backyard walls, but our French doors in the backyard are a liability. The doors are great as they let in a lot of light but the glass would be easy to break, and then with a twist of the lock from the inside a thief could get in. To remedy this we wanted to add double-cylinder locks to every exterior door which require a key to lock and unlock from both the inside and outside. It's an extra bit of security that can make a world of difference between a robber only getting as far as breaking a panel of glass, to them being able to open the door and walk out with as many belongings as they can carry.
Another concern is that we have lived in this house for six years and over time we have provided multiple house sitters, dog sitters, and neighbors with copies of the key. Some were returned, some were not. We also don't think our landlord ever changed the lock when the old tenants moved out, so who knows how many people have a key.
This all adds up to some compelling reasons to change our locks. We've had great success with Kwikset's SmartCode keyless entry system, and we really love the new Kevo SmartLock, but our solution was a bit more low-tech but just as effective.
Our plan was to add double-cylinder locks to our three exterior house doors as well as to our separate studio and garage. And replace all of the door knobs with locking knobs.
Kwikset's SmartKey re-keying locks, solidified our choice for going with Kwikset all around. The SmartKey enables you to re-key any lock in just a few seconds. No more calling a locksmith or having to replace cylinders. Just use the included SmartKey which recalibrates the tumbler so it can accept and new key. You need to have the old key to make it work so there are no security concerns. We can now re-key our home if needed just for the cost of cutting new keys.
Here's the SmartKey shown being inserted into the slot next to the key. It's a simple process for rekeying the locks.
Kwikset's website makes it easy to shop for locks and levers of all types, styles and finish. We went with a satin nickel finish on two doors and brass finish on the front door for this double cylinder deadbolt, and added Tustin keyed entry levers, also with SmartKey technology.
Here's the new knob next to the old one.
The deadbolts locks screwed right in as well as the levers. The deadbolts and levers were basically plug and play and lined up perfectly with the existing strike plates and door jambs.
After all of the locks are installed you simply choose a key to use as your master then use that to re-key all of the locks to. See the video below for instructions.
Changing out all of our locks took a bit of time but has been well worth it considering the peace of mind we now have when we leave the house locked up for the day or for the week.
The newest locks from Kwikset are BHMA/ANSI Grade 1 certified – the highest level of residential security. They feature patented side locking bar technology which offers improved security by protecting against lock bumping, an attack technique used to defeat conventional pin & tumbler locks.
We highly recommend upgrading your deadbolt locks now, as waiting is often times too late.


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Filed under: Major Movement , Competitive Strategy , Barrick Gold (ABX) , Commodities , Federal Reserve Back in the late 1970s, the Hunt brothers from Texas tried to corner the silver market . That drove prices to $48 an ounce. Now, 31 years later, silver is shooting higher again. The March silver futures contract closed at $32.296 per ounce , up 72 cents. Since gold is expensive, investors are turning to silver to hedge against inflation. Many fear that the Federal Reserve will not be able to control the spike in commodity prices. The Fed is buying $600 billion of treasuries and keeping interest rates near zero. Continue reading Silver Near a 31-Year High Silver Near a 31-Year High originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink �|� Email this �|� Comments
Stillwater Mining (SWC): Platinum and Palladium Profits
"With annual revenues of $394 million, Stillwater Mining ( SWC ) is a small cap play in the palladium, platinum and associated metals mining sector," says technician Leo Fasciocco . The editor of Ticker Tape Digest explains, "Technically, the stock has broken out from a nine-week flat base. The move carries the stock to an 8-year high. "Stillwater produces palladium, platinum and associated metals from a geological formation in south central Montana known as the J-M Reef and from the recycling of spent catalytic converters. Continue reading Stillwater Mining (SWC): Platinum and Palladium Profits Stillwater Mining (SWC): Platinum and Palladium Profits originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Feb 2011 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink �|� Email this �|� Comments
The United States of Debt
You've been hustled. We've all been hustled. And as a result, the American dream has turned into the American nightmare for tens of millions of our countrymen. Many of us are drowning in extremely high levels of debt, pushed onto the American public by the banks and financing companies looking to compete with each other for higher revenues. They successfully convinced Americans that we could afford future payments. But now, many are virtually enslaved by the debt these swindlers pressured us to accept. Just say no to debt dealers Massive debts are keeping Americans awake at night. And many are struggling with payments due to a number of grim economic factors. The real rate of unemployment, for instance, is most likely double whatever number the government tells you. Meanwhile, even the money we do have in the banks is suddenly not as safe as it once was… Since 2007, the number of banks that have failed each year has increased 5,534%�— and is rising annually. This year, the number of banks to fail has already exceeded 2009's closures. Take a look: At the same time, investments in the stock markets seem to have taken on the air of a gambling casino, and the pillars of greed and corruption go unchecked, virtually without bounds in our major financial institutions, governments worldwide, and within the general fabric of society. But that's just the half of it… The world is scrambling to control resources needed to keep economies going. This is causing diplomatic issues, currency wars, and geopolitical strife of all kinds. Crude oil, gold, rare earth metals, clean water, silver, palladium , and platinum, for example, are increasingly becoming more difficult to obtain at reasonable prices. Without these precious commodities, we don't have the building blocks to keep modern society going. List of U.S. Taxes Accounts Receivable Tax Building Permit Tax Capital Gains Tax CDL license Tax Cigarette Tax Corporate Income Tax Court Fines Dog License Tax Federal Income Tax Federal Unemployment Tax Fishing License Tax Food License Tax Fuel permit tax Gasoline Tax Hunting License Tax Inheritance Tax Interest expense Inventory tax IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties Liquor Tax Local Income Tax Luxury Taxes Marriage License Tax Medicare Tax Property Tax Real Estate Tax Septic Permit Tax Service Charge Taxes Social Security Tax Road Usage Taxes Sales Taxes Recreational Vehicle Tax Road Toll Booth Taxes School Tax State Income Tax State Unemployment Tax Telephone federal excise tax Telephone federal universal service fee tax Telephone federal, state and local surcharge taxes Telephone minimum usage surcharge tax Telephone recurring and non-recurring charges tax Telephone state and local tax Telephone usage charge tax Toll Bridge Taxes Toll Tunnel Taxes Traffic Fines Trailer Registration Tax Utility …
Ben Plans, Commodities Soar
Welcome to the Wealth Daily Weekend Edition�— our insights from the week in investing and links to our most-read Wealth Daily and sister publication articles. Don't look now, but the Fed has just driven the magic bus right off of the cliff. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, it's break on through to the other side. With nearly $1 trillion in new money now set to roll off the printing presses, the Fed has finalized its course. Inflation is the destination. It does so with a giant magical checkbook that creates money out of nothing. And as we know, since the 70s, it is one that is no longer tied to gold. It's what the gold bugs mean when they denounce the dollar as being nothing more than "fiat money." That is, it's backed up only by the "full faith and credit of the U.S. Government." That's why commodity prices have been going nuts as of late, as investors place their bets against all of Big Ben's phony new greenbacks. For instance, did you know that copper has surged 28% on stronger demand and a weaker U.S. dollar? Or that cotton and gold traded recently at all-time highs for the same reasons? They have�— and along with everything else, including oil, commodities are likely headed much higher from here… In fact the dollar's weakness, inflationary pressures, and stronger emerging-market demand, all mean that commodities are going to be very bullish over the next 12 to 18 months. Advertisement The Options Guide Your Broker Doesn't Want You to See… Most people think profiting from options requires years of investment experience or a seasoned stock broker. That's why people are losing thousands of dollars everyday. Our in-house options expert Ian…
Gold Powers to a Record $1,383 per Ounce
Filed under: Commodities , Oil , Agriculture , Federal Reserve The gold market exploded Thursday with the December contract up $45.50 to $1,383.10 per ounce, as reported in the Wall Street Journal . As usual, there are lots of reasons for the spectacular rise. The two main ones are currency worries and inflation. Let's take the currency issue first. The December U.S. dollar contract is hovering just above the 75 level. That level held and the dollar then rose to 89.11. Now it has come back down to the 75 level. A breach of 75 would signal a further move down. Continue reading Gold Powers to a Record $1,383 per Ounce Gold Powers to a Record $1,383 per Ounce originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink �|� Email this �|� Comments
George Soros' $32.6 million Junior Platinum Stock Investment
Speculators who bought platinum just 24 months ago have already seen investment profits up to 124%. Similar metals, like palladium , have returned even bigger investment gains up to 286%. Driving these profits, phenomenal demand from the recovering global automobile industry has conquered the attention of investors. The potential for platinum and palladium has even allured some of the biggest names in investing�— including George Soros, who just upped his stake in a junior platinum and palladium stock by nearly 1,000%. Here's the whole story… Advertisement The Next Gold Mining Breakthrough This tiny gold company is about to rewrite the book on mining exploration… And they're doing it just in time to catch the biggest gold bull market in a generation. Make over 10,800% as this Nevada mining company breaks all the rules… and all the records. Learn more here. George Soros just bought this junior platinum stock Billionaire investor George Soros abruptly raised his stake on Monday in Platinum Group Metals Ltd. (AMEX: PLG and TSX: PTM ) , a Vancouver-based junior mineral development firm. In a filing with the SEC, Soros Fund Management increased its holdings in Platinum Group Metals from 1.5 million shares in early October to a 15.5 million share position in the company this week — a whopping 933% increase. The Soros Fund now owns 9.73% interest in Platinum Group Metals. The fund's position is currently worth $32.6 million. Platinum Group Metals Ltd. Company: Platinum Group Metals Ltd. Corporate Presentation Exchange: NYSE and TSX Symbol: PLG and PTM Share Price: $2.10 Shares Outstanding: 159.3 million Market Cap: $334 million Fully Diluted: 172.5 million Website: www.platinumgroupmetals.net Platinum Group Metals controls a significant land position in the Bushveld Igneous Complex of South Africa, which hosts 80% of the world's platinum and palladium production. The company is focused on moving its high-grade, near-surface Western Bushveld Joint Venture platinum/palladium deposit into production. The Western Bushveld Joint Venture is a unique project, and likely to be one of the last large-scale near-surface developments on the high-grade Bushveld Complex. In Platinum Group Metals' Western Bushveld Complex, two projects contain nearly 15 million ounces of platinum group metal reserves and resources. These mineral resources are primarily platinum (64%) and palladium (26%), but also include rhodium (7%) and gold (3%). Advertisement Most Important 500 Square Miles on Earth Becomes Private Property It was a stretch of barren landscape just a couple hundred miles away from the North Pole… But locked within it sat a 50-year supply of the most important class of industrial metals known to man. Earlier this year�— for the first time ever — a single company took hold of this land… And altered the course of the world's high-tech market forever. Learn more here. A feasibility study has been completed for the Western Bushveld Joint Venture projects. The study showed it would cost approximately $443 million and take two years to construct a mine, and another …
Five Gold Investment Alternatives
Gold prices are soaring. Last month, the price of gold breached a new all-time record high of over $1,387 an ounce. But with gold increasing almost 20% in three months, speculators concerned with a correction in prices may want to consider other hard asset commodities as an alternative investment. So with that in mind, today I bring you five hard asset alternatives to gold to consider. Five gold investment alternatives Gold is a commodity. As such, the yellow metal derives a large part of its value from the balance of supply and demand. The majority of the world's supply of gold comes from mining (58%) and recycling (42%). Meanwhile, global gold demand is dominated by the jewelry and investment sectors. The applications, market, and dynamics of its supply-demand balance make the first investment alternative to gold obvious. Gold Investment Alternative #1: Silver and other precious metals Like gold, world supplies of silver and other precious metals — including platinum and palladium — are dominated by mine production and recycling. In the case of silver, 80% of global supplies are mined while 19% are recycled. Meanwhile, worldwide supplies of platinum and palladium are more dependent on recycling and stockpiles. Unlike gold, the demand for silver, platinum, and …
Goldman Sachs' New 12-Month Gold Forecast: $1,650 an Ounce
Investment powerhouse Goldman Sachs now believes gold may rally more that 20 percent from this month's record to $1,650 an ounce in 12 months citing further quantitative easing in the United States and the prospect for falling long-term interest rates. Goldman also raised its three- and six-month gold price forecasts to $1,400 and $1,525 an ounce, respectively. Analysts from Goldman Sachs wrote in a report this week: With U.S. real interest rates pushing lower off the slowdown in the pace of the U.S. economic recovery and the growing prospect of another round of quantitative easing, we expect gold prices to continue to climb…. Despite the rebound in net speculative length, it remains well below levels consistent with the current low U.S. real interest rate environment… The return to quantitative easing will likely be a strong catalyst to drive gold prices higher, and we expect the gold price rally to continue until U.S. monetary policy begins to tighten. The investment bank expects the Federal Reserve to return to quantitative easing with purchases of U.S. Treasury securities of $1 trillion, which should depress U.S. bond yields. The analysts recommended buying Comex December 2011 gold futures. They also recommended investors buy Nymex January 2011 platinum, saying that "recovering global automobile demand will likely continue to put upward pressure on auto-catalyst demand and therefore on platinum and palladium prices." Good Investing, Luke Burgess Editor, Wealth Daily Investment Director, Hard Money Millionaire and Underground Profits Goldman Sachs' New 12-Month Gold Forecast: $1,650 an Ounce originally appeared in Wealth Daily . Wealth Daily is a free daily newsletter featuring contrarian investment insights and commentary.
U.S. Mint Raises Premium on American Silver Eagles
The U.S. Mint has increased the premium charged for American Silver Eagle bullion coins from $1.50 to $2.00 per coin due to higher production costs. The Mint does not sell American Silver Eagles directly to the public, but distributes the coins through a network of Authorized Purchasers, who resell the coins to other bullion dealers, coin dealers, and the public. The price for American Silver Eagles sold to Authorized Purchasers is determined based on silver content plus a premium. The last time the Mint increased the premium for Silver Eagles was February 2009 when it was increased from $1.40 to $1.50 per coin. Prior to that, premiums were raised in October 2008 from $1.25 per coin to $1.40 per coin. The U.S. Mint's American Eagle series of bullion coins has become very popular over the past few years. Sales of the American Silver Eagle increased 191% between 2007 and last year. *2010 estimate Meanwhile, sales of the American Gold Eagle increased 616% over the same time; and sales of the American Platinum Eagle shot up a staggering 2,700% in just three months ending in October 2008, when the Mint ran out of platinum blanks to produce the coin. The U.S. Mint still hasn't been able to keep up with the soaring demand for the American Platinum Eagle bullion coins. Over the summer, the Mint announced it would produce 10,000 American Platinum Eagles. When the Platinum Eagles were released in late August, they sold out in less than a week. To help ease the buying pressure from the gold, silver, and platinum American Eagle bullion coins – and to support a major mining company in his home state – Montana-based Republican Denny Rehberg recently introduced new legislation that called for the production of a new American Palladium Eagle bullion coin . I recently published a new report on this new American Palladium Eagle bullion coin and what it could mean for palladium prices and you as an investor. I called the report simply The New American Palladium Eagle Bullion Coin. You can read this free report now by clicking here or by copying and pasting the following link into your internet browsers address bar: http://www.wealthdaily.com/articles/the-new-american-palladium-eagle-bullion-coin/2749 Good Investing, Luke Burgess Editor, Wealth Daily Investment Director, Hard Money Millionaire and Underground Profits U.S. Mint Raises Premium on American Silver Eagles originally appeared in Wealth Daily . Wealth Daily is a free daily newsletter featuring contrarian investment insights and commentary.


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If you are having issues with the email sync here are a few things to remember and steps to try to resolve it.
Please note that the sync works with emails going forward once your email address is connected to Follow Up Boss. It will sync with the contacts email address that is in Follow Up Boss. We do not currently sync past emails.
Emails Not Showing Up
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Emails From My Desktop Email Program Do Not Show Up (Mac Mail, Outlook, etc)
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If they are not, then you will need to set up the SMTP settings on the desktop software, contact your email provider for the correct settings.


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Ag Policy Blog
A Tale of the Average American Farm Family
I've spent the better part of my career writing about the various ways national policies affect American farmers. So I can honestly say that I was immediately troubled when I started reading the book "This Blessed Earth, a year in the life of an American family farm," by Nebraska author Ted Genoways. "This Blessed Earth" was published by W.W. Norton & Co. in mid-September and I was able to pick it up just a few weeks later when Genoways and I both attended a Society of Environmental Journalists conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
I was troubled after turning just a few pages of "This Blessed Earth" because I realized it is the book I wish I had written.
Genoways details both a single farm year and the history of the Hammond family and their farm operation, Centennial Hill Farm, in east-central Nebraska. All the while, Genoways weaves a parallel tale of American agricultural policy, innovations and the booms and busts throughout the lifespan of this farm's existence.
Genoways met the Hammonds while he and his wife were reporting on the fight over the Keystone XL pipeline. The Hammonds were opposed to the Canadian tar sands pipeline and decided to send a message by producing renewable energy on ground where the pipeline would cross. With some support from the group Bold Nebraska, the Hammonds built a solar barn and wind turbine in the path of the pipeline. The barn was adjoined property the family's patriarch originally acquired in the 1870s. Genoways and his wife, Mary Anne Andrei, began to know the Hammonds during construction of the barn. Mary Anne came up with the idea of following the family and photographing them over time. Ted later began thinking there was a story in words as well, so the couple collaborated on the book.
"Mary Anne was the one who really started talking about how we, like a lot of other people, had covered different families along the pipeline route and the potential threat it posed to their land and water and those concerns. But we hadn't really had the opportunity to tell the stories of one of these families in-depth," Genoways said in an interview.
Through this one family and one piece of ground, Genoways is able to highlight a broad array of national policies and global issues that farmers across the country constantly have to confront.
Regarding the pipeline itself, which now has been an international story for more than a decade, Rick Hammond's decision to protest the Keystone XL ended up costing the family a lease on hundreds of acres. A neighbor who supported the pipeline pulled the lease because of the family's outspoken opposition. The lost land cost the Hammond family substantial income.
"For Rick, those decisions were always hard because he felt like he had to do this. He felt like the pipeline was a threat to the family operation and he couldn't do nothing, but then protesting presented its own threat to the operation. There is always such pressure that the families are under."
The Hammonds are a close family, though, and as Genoways explains, they have managed through generations of success, failure and success again -- to the point that their farm ground was lost by one generation only to be reclaimed by the next.
Rick Hammond bears the burden of ensuring the farm will pass down to his daughter Meghan and her husband Kyle. At times, Rick laments his aggressive nature to keep buying more land and taking on the mortgages for that ground when he was a younger, cockier farmer. Every time Rick sees a light at the end of the financial tunnel, another opportunity comes up that carries some risk and doesn't quite work out, often because of situations that are out of Rick's control.
As Genoways noted, "And I think that's a real common story. I don't think that's unusual at all. Farmers are at the mercy of weather and insects as they always have been, but increasingly farmers also have to deal with a complex landscape created by global competitive forces."
Genoways, whose family has Nebraska roots not far from the Centennial Hill Farm, also realized while writing the book that most people have major misconceptions about the way farmers interact with the broader world.
"The thing that really struck me right from the beginning is I just think so many people in cities think farmers kind of lead these idyllic lives out in the country and far away from modern concerns and I think farmers are more plugged into global issues than almost anybody I know," Genoways said. "They are directly affected by trade deals and policy that is shifting almost day-by-day, and certainly the global commodity markets. They are the farthest thing from isolated and away from the concerns of the world. All of the worries of the world seem to pass right through farm country every single time."
Readers have been surprised by the decisions that a farm family faces season to season, generation to generation.
"There has been some surprise from some readers about how sophisticated and complex farming is, and consequently a recognition that farmers are not just out in the field making sort of simple decisions. They are really knowledgeable and resource we should be drawing upon."
In 2014, Rick also noted his fears over what the situation would be like if corn remained below $4 a bushel for two or three more years. The family is still doing well, but they also continue to face the same run of hard years that have hit commodity farmers everywhere.
"Everybody keeps hoping something is going to happen to make things better and it just doesn't happen," Genoways said.
He added, "The Hammonds are intensely private folks and they were just incredibly brave to let us follow them around for so long, but they were very much involved in the process as I made sure the book did not further harm them. As the book has come out, they have been kind of shy about the publicity. It's the middle of harvest season and they are out worrying about the soybeans and the corn, and they are going to let me worry about the book."
"This Blessed Earth" can be found on Amazon, https://www.amazon.com/…
Chris Clayton can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com
Follow him on Twitter @ChrisClaytonDTN
© Copyright 2017 DTN/The Progressive Farmer. All rights reserved.


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Sometimes you bake with kids and it's a dream. They get on well, they take turns, everyone's laughing and just a little flour-smudged in a photogenic way, like you're in a Cath Kidston advert and someone's about to present you with a lifetime supply of floral patterns.
Then other times you bake with kids and they screech and elbow each other and drop eggs and poke dirty fingers into the mixture and throw flour around by the bucketload. Generally speaking, if I post something about baking and the boys are in the photos from the start, we've had the Cath Kidston scenario. If they're only in the last photo, eating the cake, then…it was a crapocolypse.
You may draw your own conclusions from the photos below.
Still! Flour-flinging aside, these strawberry cheesecake muffins are great to make with little ones. Like most muffins, the method is simple enough; the assembly involves enough detail to be interesting but not so much that they can get it wrong. I will defend my lacklustre Muffin Feelings to the death: they give you a sky-high calorie hit for what is, let's face it, a pretty uninteresting mouthful of crumbs. I'd rather have proper squishy cake or pie any old day of the week. But these are delicious, and less stodgy than they should be because of the surprise strawberry-and-cheesecake filling baked into the middle.
The recipe is here (weirdly, this sad little misspelled page is the only version of it I can find online, but it must be an official BBC Good Food bake, since it's in my book). Mix your wet and dry ingredients separately, then combine. Apparently you should mix sparingly after that, because the less you touch it the lighter the muffins will be. I always find it difficult to overcome my fear of leaving lumps in things – a hangover from a lifetime of making Yorkshire puddings, I reckon – but in this case you have the universe's permission to leave the lumps just chilling in there. Outrageous.
Then comes the assembly: fill half the case with batter, then get your willing children to push in strawberry halves with chubby fingers. Tell them every time not to push the strawberry to the bottom, then watch as they push the strawberry to the bottom. Add a spoonful of the cheesecake mixture, then top with more muffin batter.
They take fifteen minutes in a hot oven and come out as proud and glorious golden mounds. You'll be tempted to eat them immediately, but remember that there's a boiled strawberry lurking in the middle somewhere, and it'll be like sticking your tongue into a volcano. Wait ten minutes. Then eat with caution, and many 'mmm' noises.