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Key West, our home for the next month, marks an important turning point for Memsahib's Voyage. We just finished mile 4,000, so we're well over halfway home. We've been heading south and west for the past six months, and now our courses will be east and north. Once we're out of Keys, it will be hard to find wilderness. We'll pretty much be running up heavily-populated East Coast, with a few isolated spots still remaining — the Georgia islands, Outer Banks and southern Chesapeake.
Phones and Internet work, and it's easy to find supplies, but I haven't heard a deep South accent in a long time and the pace of life around us is speeding up, although things are still pretty quiet on Memsahib.
We found a very nice, reasonably priced marina that's part of a condo development on Stock Island, one island over from Key West. Perhaps not the world's most glamourous location next to the County Jail, but away from the craziness of Key West. Molly is finally out of the Great Connecticut Blizzard after getting stuck for two days, and we plan to head into town for some significant tourism while she's here.
On our trip down from the Everglades we stopped in Marathon, cruising central for the Keys. The sailing world has activity hubs all over the world (Annapolis, Newport, Isle of Wight) and Marathon is certainly one of them. It's the southernmost ultra-protected harbor in the U.S. and hundreds of boats come down in the fall, pick up a city mooring and don't leave until spring. We stopped to get fuel and watch the Superbowl, since Eric Brazil has made John a stone 49ers fan. We were fortunate that the very nice people at Burdine's Waterfront let us tie up at their fuel dock since they figured (correctly) that everyone would be watching the game, not buying gas. Other than that, there was not a slip or mooring available in all of Marathon, first time we've ever had trouble getting a berth.
Other than working on the boat and poking around on our bikes and John's scooter, our only big activity has been fishing. We finally broke the Kessinger Fishing Curse with a charter captain who knew where the fish were and had this giant, red secret-weapon reel that he claimed always led to fish if it was on the boat, whether actually used or not.


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The New Lock Definitely Snaps…
First Impressions
The Snap Lock looks like the real deal in terms of being a really strong ball. Man does this thing move and cover some boards. I can see why Storm released this ball stateside.
Our Testers:
Sean Jensen
RPM: 400 rpm
PAP: 5 & 1/2 up
Axis tilt: 2 degrees
Axis rotation: 40 degrees
Layout: 50 x 4.75 x 45
Thanks to Jeffrey Smith of Pure It Pro Shop, Lebanon, PA, our partner for ball reviews.
Thanks to Limerick Bowl in Limerick, PA.
Keep in mind that coverstock accounts for 70% of ball reaction, but the core creates the dynamic shape of the reaction. Your driller will alter the shape to suit your game.
Test Pattern:
41ft THS, 24ml
The Snap Lock is in the Premier Line for Storm. Naturally, it commands top dollar and thus I have to be critical around the value proposition. This ball is going to help many strokers and tweeners who are looking for a strong ball with lots of motion. Crankers will get less use due to its strength. Therefore, it loses a bit of value in terms of versatility.
The Snap Lock uses the same Rad-X core in the First Lock with a 2.48 RG, .054 differential, and .018 intermediate differential. Storm brings us a new R3S™ Pearl Reactive coverstock stateside.
So here's the scoop. The Snap Lock is an interesting offering from Storm and I'll talk about why shortly. It's not a surprise for Storm to release a pearl version of the Lock but this ball has been out internationally for almost 6 months. That's unfortunate for us in the US as this is a great ball but it's finally here. Basically, here's how I describe the ball reaction. You have a very rolly core which gets itself into a roll no matter what. As a strong asym, it also has a defined motion downlane. Now we have seen this core in the Lock so we knew what to expect. Now adding the pearl cover, you expect added length and more backend motion. That is true, but everything seems magnified. No doubt, there is lots of backend as you can see in the video. However, don't expect this ball to go 50 feet. The core is so rolly that it forces the ball to transition, even through the pearl cover. What that has done is absolutely magnify the transition from hook to roll. It looks to have a very aggressive motion where you trust it to make the corner every time. There seems to be a synergistic effect of the strong core with the added length of the cover, allowing for this sort of explosive motion.
Now, this motion is magnified additionally due to our testers very end over end roll with little tilt. With more tilt, it will be a little more rounded downlane, but still strong.
Sean is testing on a typical house shot and as you can see, with a decent rev rate, this is just a lot of ball for house conditions. Due to what I mentioned previously, the ball did not want to naturally push to the outside as you would think a pearl should. Instead, it turned over early, which meant Sean had to adjust his launch angles and sometimes, forcing it yields losing it to the outside with no return. Misses inside will not hold.
We wanted to test with the out of box cover per the factory although you can tweak the cover to your liking. For Sean, he would likely want it to settle down as it wears to allow for a slightly smoother reaction. It will also get more play on tougher patterns as well as likely longer patterns that allow it to store energy further down lane.
This ball reminded us a lot of the Hyper Cell Skid in terms of the characteristics we discussed.
I didn't realize it initially, but Pete Weber and John Szerbinski used this ball during the PBA League Elias Cup. There you get a sense of how different rolls affect the ball. For each bowler, the ball definitely makes the corner every time. If you have a lower rev rate, you are certainly more likely to get more use out of this ball. Given its strength, it could be first ball out of the bag on THS. If you are starting to shortlist your arsenal for next season, the Snap Lock merits some serious consideration!

subset: commoncrawl


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Collection of cat 6 wiring diagram rj45. A wiring diagram is a streamlined standard photographic depiction of an electric circuit. It reveals the components of the circuit as simplified shapes, and the power as well as signal connections in between the devices.
A wiring diagram usually provides info regarding the loved one position and also setup of tools and terminals on the devices, to help in building or servicing the device. This differs a schematic layout, where the setup of the parts' interconnections on the layout normally does not correspond to the components' physical areas in the finished device. A pictorial diagram would show much more detail of the physical appearance, whereas a wiring diagram utilizes an extra symbolic symbols to emphasize affiliations over physical look.
A wiring diagram is frequently used to fix troubles and also making sure that all the links have actually been made and also that everything is existing.
cat 6 wiring diagram rj45
Wiring Diagram Pictures Detail:
- Name: cat 6 wiring diagram rj45 – Cat 6 Wiring Diagram Wall Jack Ethernet Wall socket Wiring Diagram Inspirational fortable Cat 6
- File Type: JPG
- Source: magnusrosen.net
- Size: 396.67 KB
- Dimension: 960 x 1243
Wiring Diagram Pics Detail:
- Name: cat 6 wiring diagram rj45 – Cat6 Ethernet Cable Wiring Diagram Cat6 Wiring Diagram Lovely Amazon Installerparts Ethernet Cable Cat6 Cable
- File Type: JPG
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- Size: 226.51 KB
- Dimension: 1024 x 1024
Collection of cat 6 wiring diagram rj45. Click on the image to enlarge, and then save it to your computer by right clicking on the image.
A Novice s Overview to Circuit Diagrams
A very first appearance at a circuit representation may be confusing, but if you can check out a train map, you could review schematics. The function is the same: obtaining from point A to direct B. Literally, a circuit is the course that permits power to circulation.
The Language of Circuitry
Allow s look at some of terms that you will need to understand:
Voltage: Measured in volts (V), voltage is the pressure or pressure of electricity. This is usually supplied by a battery (such as a 9V battery) or mains electricity, the outlets in your house operate at 120V. Outlets in other nations operate at a various voltage, which is why you need a converter when traveling.
Current: Existing is the flow of electrical energy, or even more especially, the flow of electrons. It is gauged in Amperes (Amps), as well as could only flow when a voltage supply is linked.
Resistance: Determined in Ohms (R or O), resistance specifies exactly how easily electrons can move through a material. Materials such as gold or copper, are called conductors, as they easily enable circulation of motion (reduced resistance). Plastic, wood, and also air are examples of insulators, preventing the movement of electrons (high resistance).
DC (Straight Current). DC is a continual flow of current in one direction. DC can move not simply through conductors, but semi-conductors, insulators, as well as a vacuum cleaner.
A/C (Alternating Present). In Air Conditioner, the flow of present regularly rotates in between 2 instructions, commonly forming a sine wave. The frequency of AC is determined in Hertz (Hz), and also is usually 60 Hz for electrical energy in residential and also service purposes.
The Schematics
Completing an electrical design degree and also after that getting a work in the area indicates you will certainly see a whole lot a great deal a great deal of these schematics. It s vital to understand exactly just what is going on with these.
Whenever you determine your details field of electrical design, you could see more complicated representations as well as symbols. You ll find out also that various nations make use of various symbols. Of the two symbols for resistors above, the initial one is utilized in the U.S., while the 2nd is utilized in Europe.


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Ensemble ILÉA is a flexible ensemble dedicated to improvisation in mixed music (acoustic and electronic instruments). He was founded in 2016 on the initiative of Kevin Gironnay.
It explores new ways of guiding its improvisations and linger over creating music following the instantaneous instinct, accepting the unexpectedness. Its musical range spreads from acoustic tones to harsh noise music. Ensemble ILÉA strolls in between these two worlds, adopting and using their codes and sounds.
Here is the website (with lots of music in it) : https://ensembleilea.wordpress.com/
And here is the facebook page (with lots of news in it) : https://www.facebook.com/ensembleilea/
Logo by Lilith (Charline Dally)
Header picture by Myriam Boucher


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Umpire Legal is a Thai law firm specialising in the legal aspects of registering and operating businesses in Thailand. Even though the firm managed to establish itself as a reliable legal services provider, the old website didn't reflect Umpire Legal's professionalism and quality of service and stood in the way of acquiring new leads and customers.
We helped Umpire Legal overcome this hurdle by creating a credible business website aimed at improving the company's image as well as serving as a lead generation engine.
Website design & development
Information architecture
Value proposition & content
Search engine optimisation (SEO)
Sales funnel
UI & UX design
WordPress web development
Online advertising on Google Ads
Search ads
Display ads
Landing pages
Graphic design & video
Customer testimonial video
Sales promo video
Branding collaterals
At first, we sat down with the owner and took a deeper look into the challenges the company faced. Based on our findings, we were able to prioritise the needs and goals of both the business and its customers. This became the foundation for the website redesign and later the online advertising campaigns.
The goals we concluded were simple – to position Umpire Legal as a professional and credible law firm, encourage visitors to stay on the site longer and generate more leads for the business.
We started off with rethinking the organisation of the entire website from the ground up. The new funnel-centric structure followed the customer decision-making process and focused on converting visitors to leads by seeking help with a particular service or getting in touch for a free consultation. Since we knew we were going to drive traffic via online advertising in the future, we had to strike the right balance between informational and sales copy on the pages.
To increase the browsing time and the firm's ability to compete in the results of search engines, we overhauled the existing content. Over 45 pages of web pages were refreshed in a way that would make the legal information easy to understand and digestible as well as optimised for keywords. The brand and customer insights helped us shape the web content in a way that addressed the customer pains (such as complexity of the legal information online) as well as clearly communicated the firm's benefits.
The last missing piece to the website was the user interface (UI) design. Since the website is often the first point of contact of prospects with Umpire Legal, we had to ensure it creates a good first impression and sets the tone for the rest of the customer interaction with the company. Our design choices were centred around professionalism and credibility. This later prompted us to go a step further and add videos of both customers voicing their experience with the company and the owner presenting the core service.
"The new website was very well received – many of our clients were impressed and complimented on the design. Since the website marks the first impression of the potential clients, it allowed them to explore further by getting in touch with us. We can positively confirm that it helped bring in more business to the firm."– Managing Partner, Simi Singhsachthep
The new website was ready to welcome visitors. Instead of waiting for the SEO improvements to bring in more traffic over a period of time, we opted for online advertising on Google where the demand for legal services was steady and strong.
We quickly ran into a problem with the search ads – the commercial intent of customer search queries was often unclear. This prompted us to structure the campaign granularly into a number of segments, each leading to a separate landing page.
After a series of testing, we found out which keywords work the best and, likewise important, what the visitors want to see when using the query. This helped us adjust both the campaigns and landing page copy accordingly and get the most out of Umpire Legal's advertising budget.
"Since BOLD Digital started to manage the website and marketing for us, we have been getting inquiries from new contacts almost daily. The reports also show positive results meaning that the lead generation is now definitely working to our advantage."– Managing Partner, Simi Singhsachthep
To help Umpire Legal stay on top of mind of an undecided group of previous visitors, we also designed banner ads that would follow them as they browse the web. This, in turn, helps increase the brand awareness and the direct traffic to the website by these targeted visitors.
The investment of Umpire Legal in redesigning its website and lead generation campaigns paid off. The company's position has strengthened compared to the competition and is receiving a steady flow of business leads every month. Moreover, the SEO improvements resulted in a considerable jump of its core service to the 1st page on Google (from the 4th). The legal practice now keeps expanding and has already welcomed new employees.


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"Grits" with Slingshots, an interview with Danielle Corsetto
Danielle Corsetto of Girls With Slingshots fame was gracious enough to take time from her busy day at Staple! to sit down with me for another interview.� Yes, that's right, I said, and stress,�*another* interview.� A freak tape recorder�incident last year and I'm short one GWS creator story.� Fortunately, she was our booth neighbor so it was really easy to sit and stare at her until she relented to being asked some questions.� I call it "the creepy" method.� Not so good for getting dates but great when you want to get some questions answered.
Danielle tells us about McPedro's origins, "falling" for Seth Green, and how at least one of her characters is deathly afraid of meat.
BG Gritskrieg: Looking at your itinerary on your site, you've been pretty busy since the beginning of the year. Are you busier this year as opposed to last year?
Danielle Corsetto: Travel-wise, definitely. I started doing signing tours in January and they've gone so well, I've decided to do more of them and that means I'm not in the house as much. So it's been a lot of extra work but it's worth it. I get to meet a lot more people and travel to wacky places. That's always good.
BG Gritskrieg: What's been your favorite stop this year?
Danielle Corsetto: That's a hard choice. I'm in love with Toronto so any time I get to go there it's always a good time. I love Austin though, I mean the weather alone might make it unfair for me to judge because it's been so freakin' cold back east so it's a welcome change. I like Austin an awful lot, I don't know if that really counts as an answer.
(ed. note: You read it, folks. She likes Austin, Texas the best so "neener" to the other states!)
BG Gritskrieg: Which event has been your favorite so far?
Danielle Corsetto: Wow, that's a tough one. New York Comic Con was not my favorite. *laughing* Driving to New York sucks. I guess this one (Staple!). I really haven't done a lot of other events this year other than the signings. I guess I could say the signing in Toronto was awesome.
(ed. note: We'll forgive that last bit because she said Staple! first which is in Austin, Texas… so "neener" to the other states!)
BG Gritskrieg: This is probably something you get asked a lot but where did you come up with the idea for McPedro, the talking cactus in your strip?
Danielle Corsetto: *chuckling* That's actually a good question. It started when I was approached by a company that wanted to make plushies of the characters from my strips. I thought about it and figured there would be some perverts out there tearing out the crotches of the dolls and… Well, it freaked me out a little� and I thought I would never let that happen to my "girls". But they were looking for something that could be turned into a plushie and so being the snarky asshole that I am I said, "How about a cactus? That's really cushie. It's a plant, you can squeeze it."� And so he just turned into one of the characters. I'm glad he did because the strip needed some sort of weird anthropomorphic character in there. He was good comic relief. Some people really hate him which I understand and appreciate but a lot of people really dig him. So that's where he came from. Poor guy.
BG Gritskrieg: So where did the idea for McPedro and his Mustache to be two seperate entities come from?
Danielle Corsetto: My ass. *laughing* I don't even know. Maybe a drunken night, I'm not really sure. But I was really glad it came to me because it was one of the most fun story arcs I got to write. I needed something more "fantastical" because I had been doing a lot of serious stories. So I thought, "I'll throw something ridiculous in here. How about his mustache runs away?" But the first thing I actually thought of was the end of it where his Mustache turns out to be totally gay and now that it's back on his face, he's very uncomfortable with it. And it's French and McPedro's Mexican with an Irish brogue… So see, I'm ethnically diverse.
BG Gritskrieg: I told you a little bit about my meeting with Marc Silvestri and how I almost passed out from hyperventilating. Has there been anyone you've met in your travels that has had an effect on you?
Danielle Corsetto: Well, this isn't someone I adore on a professional level but I met Rosario Dawson a while back and I thought, "This will be really cool, she's really cool" and I came up and just started giggling like a nervous schoolgirl. I probably looked like an idiot meeting her. And there was someone else I met… Oh, God, Seth Green. This is embarrassing. When I was with the company that was going to do plushies of my characters, they had me over for a meet and greet at a convention in Philly and I'm looking around and thinking to myself how everyone there is really old. There's all these old people and I really have no interest in being there when I see out of the corner of my eye that this cute red head is checking me out. It took me a while to realize it was Seth Green. So we're about to leave and I walk over to meet him and he jumps out of his chair and tells me hi and shakes my hand. And I say, "I'm Danielle…" and then not a word beyond that. It's this awkward silence so I tell him how I just wanted to meet him and turn around to walk off and trip over a chair. *laughing*
BG Gritskrieg: So is there any character that you wish you could work into the strip more often?
Danielle Corsetto: That's a really good question. Well, I can tell you I want to bring Maya in more, that's Thea's sister who has breast cancer and I really want her to come back in and I think I'm going to be focusing in on her pretty soon, I just don't know when. Beyond that, I really want to do a little more about Maureen but that is going to come in soon. I've already planned that and I think it's going to be really fun.
BG Gritskrieg: Second part of the question: Why do you want to work her in more?
Danielle Corsetto: Maureen's not totally one dimensional but she's the blog girl and she's shy and I want to do more with her than that. You know, she's a vegetarian and I want to go into that and why she's just really damn scared of meat. I think there's more to her than what I've shown and I want to bring that in a little bit. Her and Jameson both, they're kind of a package deal. I feel like I'm being kind of sexist by only focusing on the female characters.
BG Gritskrieg: Which is your favorite character to write for or draw?
Danielle Corsetto: Good question. I like writing for Hazel because she's just such a snarky bitch. And who doesn't like writing for the snarky bitch? Jamie is probably the easiest even though I seem to screw up on her face an awful lot… And that always bums me out because I feel like I'm trying to make her cute without being too cute and I just need to go ahead and let her be too cute because she is too cute. Yeah, I think Hazel is the most fun to write. Of course, McPedro's accent is really damn fun to write, too.
BG Gritskrieg: What's in the future of GWS?
Danielle Corsetto: Oh, *I* know but I can't tell you guys all that. Maya's going to become a more prominent character and there's going to be some really big changes coming in this year. At least one that I know of is going to happen very, very soon. Something I've never tackled before, something I've never written about before, it's going to be fun. I'm being so cryptic… "There's things that are going to happen… and stuff". As far as the business goes, I'm going to be doing a lot more. The business end is kind of exciting for me right now. I've never really liked the business end because it takes away from my drawing time. But I'm finally starting to make a real website. I'm focusing more on the redesign for the website. I see Scott (Kurtz) from PvP changing his stuff all the time and it looks freakin' gorgeous every time and I'm going to try to be more like that and change up the site, add more merchandise. People have been coming by today and giving the greatest ideas for new merchandise so I'm going to go ahead and do some of that. There's going to be a lot more fun stuff, t-shirts, things that are going to be non t-shirt items that people will not have. I'm looking forward to it.
Be sure to visit Danielle's site if you've never been.�It's well worth a look-see and you're sure to be amused… or mildly offended.� Or both if you're lucky. Thanks again for the great interview, Danielle.� We look forward to seeing what happens with Girls With Slingshots and to seeing you at Staple! next year!
Gritskrieg – End of Line


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It feels like we just got into the heat of summer when I glance at the cover of a magazine and notice the headline: Fall Fashion.
I smile in disbelief because autumn is my favourite season for fashion, yet I'm loving the dog days of summer. We have been so fortunate on the West Coast this year with endless sunny days and warm weather it's hard to believe that autumn is upon us. Although we don't experience the drastic change in weather like our East Coast neighbours, we can still splurge on some of the major fall fashion trends and tweak them for our milder west coast climate. The trends for this fall are a dramatic shift from last year, with a change in silhouette for menswear. Here are my top 5 fall fashion trends.
Top 5 Women's Fall Fashion Trends:
1. Neo Victorian: For the past few years forecasters have been focusing on the 20th century for inspiration but this fall takes us back to the 19th century with the focal point on high necklines and ruffled collars. Fabrics include lace details and skirts have flouncy hemlines.
2. 70's Vibe: The 1970s have been prominent in previous seasons and remain a dominant trend this fall with high-waisted, flared jeans, gauzy gowns, shearling coats, patchwork and bohemian silhouettes.
3. Chunky Knits: Layering heavy sweaters is a nice alternative to a heavy coat, especially in the fall when the weather is still mild. Heavy cable knit sweaters with an oversized fit balanced with a slim fitting pair of pants or skirt on the bottom completes this look.
4. 1980s Rewind: Elements from the 1980s may surface on the runways for fall 2015, from neon colours, long line blazers, glitzy sequined dresses to a modern take on the mutton sleeve.
5. 21st Century Mod: The A-line silhouette is the shape of the season, layered with a turtleneck under a mod dress or mini skirt. The mod trend has been around for a few years and this is a modern twist on an old favourite.
Top 5 Men's Fall Fashion Trends:
50 Shades of Gray: All shades of gray were everywhere on the runway for fall 2015. The prominence of gray was on everything from suiting, knitwear, outerwear to sportswear.
1. Slouchy and Oversized Coats: Say goodbye to the ultra fitted silhouette from the Mad Men days because the over-sized, slouchy fit is here for fall. Coats have a soft shoulder and an unstructured relaxed fit.
3. Layered up: Pair your light weight merino wool sweater or turtleneck underneath your chunky oversized cardigan for a layered look this fall. Don't be afraid to mix prints, colours and textures.
4. Baggy Trousers: This is a bold contrast from the previous ultra-slim fitting pants for menswear. Men's trouser now have a higher waist and loose cut similar to the Zoot Suits of the 1940s. I think it will take a while for this trend to make its way to the mainstream as most men are just now comfortable with the slim fitted silhouette.
5. That 70s Show: Shearling wool coats, flared jeans, oversized pockets, patched fabrics and turtle necks are all popular 1970s inspired trends for fall 2015.
If you have any fashion questions email me at email@example.com.


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BCG Attorney Search maintains the largest and most up-to-date database of attorney job opportunities inside law firms in the world. BCG Attorney Search-in good economic times and in bad-is built upon the simple core belief that better research leads to better placements. Research is, by far, the most important function a first-rate legal recruiting firm does. In fact, BCG Attorney Search does so much research that our efforts have spawned several independent research-based companies including Legal Authority, Law Firm Staff, LawCrossing and MBA Authority, among others, which collectively assist tens of thousands of individuals both inside and outside the legal profession every year. From our foundations as a Los Angeles-based legal recruiting firm, to our current state as a core group of legal recruiters spread throughout the United States, we have expanded through elevating research to its very highest level.
|Harrison Barnes
This article serves two purposes. First, it discusses the importance of research to the legal recruiting field and how it relates to your job search. It is axiomatic that hiring authorities rely upon legal recruiting firms to do research in order to identify suitable candidates for their open positions. Similarly, candidates rely upon legal recruiting firms to do research in order to identify appropriate positions. A legal recruiter is wasting his or her time with a candidate if they cannot suitably identify appropriate positions where the candidate is likely to be hired and candidates are wasting their time if they are dealing with a recruiter that does not have full market coverage. We believe that without using a legal recruiter with a substantial research base, candidates may be poorly served by using a legal recruiting firm in the first place.
Second, this article also identifies some of the research methods BCG Attorney Search employs in order to do research for both its candidates and client law firms. While many employees inside our company at first did not want us to publish much of this information, we believe it is important to communicate the level of depth we go into on behalf of our candidates and client law firms. Since much of what we do is "invisible" and carried out behind the scenes, our research methodology is important to expose due to the sheer cost and magnitude of this continuous undertaking. For this reason, we believe that a candidate who is represented by BCG Attorney Search is better served in their job search than any other possible method for locating a law firm position.
Research is important to your job search for several reasons. As discussed below, research (A) identifies actual jobs, (B) identifies potential jobs and (C) solidifies relationships with law firms.
A. Research Identifies Actual Jobs
One of the more simplistic tasks that a legal recruiter does is perform research to identify actual jobs. In a market the size of New York City, for example, there are over 500 law firms that regularly use recruiting firms to fill positions. In order for a candidate to be well serviced in their search for a position through a legal recruiter, they need to ensure that their recruiter has identified as many of the actual available jobs as possible.
- A good legal recruiter acts as a candidate's "eyes and ears" in the marketplace. Knowing where the actual jobs are is of fundamental importance. Once a law firm has an actual opening, it has made a decision to hire someone. Without having as many actual jobs as possible for its candidates, a legal recruiter is unlikely to give its candidates exposure to all of the available opportunities available in the market. The importance of having exposure to these opportunities cannot be overemphasized.
Since we consider ourselves the custodians of hundreds of careers each year, it is important that we guide our candidates to make the best possible choices with the opportunities they are presented with. The difference between an attorney going to a firm which is a good cultural, geographic and financial match and one that is not can make a profound difference in the overall quality of their life.
While this fact is somewhat grim, the fact of the matter is that many attorneys who work with a legal recruiting firm are at an extremely important crossroads in their legal career. They may be leaving a dying firm, relocating, losing a position through no fault of their own, looking to find a place where they can increase their compensation, or even flirting with the idea of getting out of the practice of law entirely. The morale of the attorney, their future and their family's future is literally on the line. It is vitally important that the attorney be exposed to every actual position that matches their interests. Every candidate should feel safe in the knowledge that they have chosen a recruiting firm that will find this position for them.
- Without outstanding research, you have no way of knowing if your recruiter is giving you exposure to every potential opportunity in the market. We have no doubt that countless legal careers either (1) ended, or (2) are currently unfulfilling due to the fact that an attorney was not exposed to the available jobs for which they may have been best suited through the fault of a poor legal recruiter.
B. Research Identifies Potential Jobs
The fact that "potential jobs" may exist is something that is quite surprising to those who are not familiar with how recruiters operate at the very highest level. Nevertheless, a good recruiter knows virtually every law firm in the market they are servicing. Knowing these law firms allows the recruiter to understand the types of attorneys that are good fits for certain firms and those that are not. In many cases, we can meet and interview a candidate and know-without the candidate even going in for an interview-that a given firm is quite likely to hire them.
More than 30% of the placements our recruiters make each year come from in-depth knowledge of the firms in their markets and not specific job openings per se. These recruiters are not identifying opportunities by calling law firms seeking openings, checking websites or browsing classified ads. They are making placements because they know the specific type of work the firm does, where it is likely to need attorneys at a given point in time and the specific types of attorneys a law firm will hire. In fact, the very best legal recruiters can review a resume, meet with an attorney and-even if the recruiter is not involved with the search-tell you with surprising accuracy a few law firms the attorney is likely to end up at when doing a job search. The best recruiters do this because they are researching and evaluating law firms and whom they hire consistently every day.
- Many firms never actually "publicize" or have actual openings. Instead, they rely upon talented recruiters to deliver to them candidates they know match precisely what they are seeking. These types of openings are often "constant" and certain firms are always seeking a given type of attorney (albeit, the type of attorney of which there may not be many of in the marketplace). Unfortunately, in a market like Los Angeles with thousands of law firms, a candidate is often unlikely to find these firms or know about them on their own. Good recruiters are always aware of these potential opportunities, though.
In addition, at BCG Attorney Search, we keep detailed records of every job a law firm have ever provided us with and every law firm that has ever interviewed a candidate of ours. The work to create and archive these records is quite tremendous and is something that we have a computer programmer here working on for several hours a week. Our recruiters are then provided access to reports detailing this information on an ongoing basis. We do all of this for one simple reason: Firms often have similar needs on an ongoing basis, or "in cycles". When these cycles are identified, we can often call these firms and persuade them to interview our candidates despite the fact that they do not have current openings.
In addition, we also keep detailed charts and graphical information that track various "hiring trends" in markets throughout the world. This graphical information enables us to know when certain practice areas are rising or faltering in demand and, when attorneys from these practice areas are more likely to be hired. If there is a sharp need in the market for one type of attorney at a given point in time, firms that do not have actual openings are still likely to have interest in this attorney.
- At BCG Attorney Search we believe that our study of the law firm job market is far more significant than any other organization in the United States. We believe that one of the strongest benefits of our centralized means of doing business is the fact that we have pooled our resources to have such an in-depth understanding of the law firm market. This academic approach to recruiting and placement works: Each year, countless attorneys careers are enhanced through our research efforts.
C. Solidifies Relationships With Law Firms
It is vitally important that recruiters know the law firms they are servicing extremely well. In the legal recruiting business, recruiters can quickly lose credibility with law firms if they do not understand their needs. By understanding the precise types of candidates that a law firm is likely to hire, legal recruiters can ensure that the candidates they introduce to law firms are looked at quite closely.
In addition, when a recruiter knows a law firm and the people within it quite well the law firm will trust the recruiter's recommendations in the future. This is of enormous benefit to the recruiter's candidates because law firms can be quite prejudicial against incompetent recruiters. For example, with several law firms we deal with we are the only recruiter that the law firm uses. Law firms are often very cautious of providing their hiring needs to recruiters who do not understand them. In addition, just as a candidate needs an "advocate" to market them in their search for a new position, so too does a law firm need an "advocate" to help promote its positions.
- Recruiters who are familiar with their law firm clients are likely to garner more trust and respect from those law firms than recruiters who do not take the time to understand the needs of their clients and candidates. Very few recruiters, however, actually take the time it takes to get to know their clients. Consequently, these same law firms may literally reject solid candidates that might otherwise be considered for a position, simply out of a lack of respect for the work that their recruiter has presented to them in the past.
D. Conclusions
Research is the single most important function a legal recruiting firm engages in. Through aggressive research, recruiting firms are able to identify actual and potential positions as well as solidify their relationships with law firms.
Some legal recruiting firms do more research than others and there is a reason for this. Recruiters typically work on a commission structure whereby they receive income for each placement they make. For every placement a recruiter makes, they share a corresponding share of the recruiting fee with their placement firm. The more successful recruiters that a given recruiting firm has, the more income the recruiting fee has available for company-sponsored research and development. Conversely, smaller recruiting firms typically do not have a great deal of funds available for research and development. To some extent, the age old saying of "the rich get richer and the poor get poorer" applies to the recruiting genera: Better recruiting firms have better research which builds upon itself both in the short and long term.
Our recruiters are extraordinarily good at what they do and far more successful than most other legal recruiters in the United States. Becoming a BCG Attorney Search recruiter is no easy task and our screening and retention mechanisms are harsh; however, we do produce outstanding recruiters. In fact, most BCG Attorney Search recruiters work much harder than they worked in previous positions. Far from being "refugees" from the practice of law, many of our legal recruiters left the legal profession, we believe, because they felt they were too ambitious for the long-term practice of law. Due to the sheer volume of placement fees our recruiters generate compared to competing recruiting firms, we are allowed to allocate an impressive percentage of our budget for research and development. For every legal recruiter at BCG Attorney Search, we typically have at least two other dedicated individuals doing research for them on a full-time basis.
There are several methods that recruiters typically use to get jobs from law firms: (A) they do not worry about all of the jobs, (B) they meet with law firms, (C) they check web sites, (D) they check classified ads, (E) they call the law firms, (F) they speak with attorneys inside the firm informally and (G) they are put on distribution lists. Without consistently following these methods, a legal recruiter is unlikely to have very good market coverage.
- The above job gathering actions may not sound all that significant. It is important to understand, however, that there are few legal recruiters in the United States that can actually successfully cover the market using all of these methods. While many outside the profession believe that legal recruiting is a shallow business, at its highest level this could not be further from the truth. There are very few national legal recruiting firms for a reason: Namely, the amount of research that is required in order to run a successful multi-state legal recruiting firm makes high-level success prohibitive due to the sheer expense and manpower that the necessary research entails.
A. Most Recruiters Do Not Worry About All of the Jobs
This is how virtually every legal recruiting firm in the United States operates. The reason for this should make perfect sense. In a market the size of New York City there are over 500 law firms that use legal recruiters to fill positions. At most points in time, over 50-percent of these law firms will have some sort of attorney position they are interested in filling for various reasons. Since hiring needs can change from month to month, the average legal recruiter would need to make hundreds of inquiries and do exhaustive research in order to ensure that they have all the jobs. Doing this, in addition to making placements and working with existing candidates, is a massive undertaking. Accordingly, most legal recruiters just focus on working with a few law firms.
- Working with just a few law firms can produce results. Even a recruiter who works with a limited number of law firms will make placements-and sometimes quite consistently. The drawback from the recruiter's standpoint is they have fewer opportunities to make placements. From the candidate's standpoint, the drawback should be quite obvious: They are exposed to fewer employment opportunities. Being exposed to fewer employment opportunities means that the candidate may not find an appropriate position (or might potentially be pressured by a recruiter into accepting an inappropriate position).
Another potential drawback of a recruiter that is not worrying about where actual jobs are is that the prospective candidate may be sent to a law firm that could not possibly have a position for them. If a recruiter does this more than a few times (i.e., "mail bombs" the candidate's resume) the law firm will stop looking at the candidates the recruiter attempts to interest them in.
- Much of the "gate keeping" done by large law firms is done by a recruiting coordinator. Recruiting coordinators are often a point of contact for recruiters without relationships with hiring partners. In addition, many large law firms (to ensure that their hiring partners are able to focus on their practice) require all recruiters to simply make the recruiting coordinator their point of contact within the law firm. Some recruiting coordinators are extremely competent, but others are not, and will have trouble differentiating a good candidate from a bad one beyond a Yale, Stanford or Harvard Law School graduate coming from Latham & Watkins.
If the recruiting coordinators show a few candidates introduced by a "mail bombing" recruiting firm to the hiring partner and the hiring partner becomes annoyed more than a few times, the recruiting coordinator may simply refuse to present these candidates to the appropriate personnel inside the law firm in the future. This can be disastrous for a potential attorney's job search if they are represented by a recruiter that is black-balled.
We should add that despite the fact that many legal recruiters work with only a few number of law firms, this is not always a bad thing. If the legal recruiter has a very strong relationship with a few select law firms, they will often have the ability to persuade a given law firm to meet with a marginal candidate they might not otherwise agree to meet with. In addition, if a legal recruiter has a strong relationship with a few select law firms they may be privy to "inside" hiring information that other legal recruiters are not privy to.
Nevertheless, if the recruiter does not know about all the openings in the market, their candidates can be put at a tremendous disadvantage in their search for a position. It is also important to note that doing in-depth research on a law firm's openings costs a great deal of money and is no easy task. For this reason, larger recruiting firms with substantial resources are more likely to know all of the positions in the legal market than smaller recruiting firms. Still, small and highly focused local firms are often quite effective in local markets
B. Recruiters Meet With Law Firms
We believe that meeting with law firm is, by far, one of the most effective methods for getting jobs. In a face-to-face meeting over lunch, for example, a law firm is likely to give a recruiting firm far more insight into its hiring needs than they will in a simple phone call. Understanding the psychology of this is quite important because it underlies the fundamentals of what a good recruiting firm does. Recruiting is a relationship-driven business and these relationships are quite important to the running of a successful recruiting firm.
The reason that meeting with law firms is so important is that it can help put a face behind the legal recruiter and also establish a platform of trust between the law firm and the legal recruiter. Law firms want to be aware of the fact that a recruiting firm will treat its hiring needs with discretion and not blatantly solicit every attorney on the market for the potential position. In addition, law firms, like most of us, want to deal with recruiters that they feel comfortable with.
When a recruiter meets with a law firm, they are also more likely to have the ability to understand the culture and personalities of the firm. Every law firm there is has a culture and, as recruiters, we believe we bring a high degree of insight into our understanding of law firms that enables us to understand the types of attorneys that are likely to fit in at various law firms.
As a final note, when a recruiter meets with a law firm, their sole intention should not be to simply get openings from the firm. They are meeting with the law firm to form relationships and these relationships are the fundamentals of any outstanding recruiting firm. Recruiters who take the time to develop solid relationships with their clients are the ones who are in the business for the long term. They are also the recruiters that are likely to get calls immediately when a given law firm has an opening.
C. Recruiters Check Web Sites
Law firm jobs can be posted on many different sites. It is our business at BCG Attorney Search to be aware of every job on the market. Every evening we check over 5,500 law firm web sites. For every opening posted on law firm web site, we are generally aware of the opening within 12 hours. In addition, we have a dedicated staff of 5 people who check "job posting boards" for us every day of the workweek.
- Law firm websites, while informative, are not necessarily the best place for recruiters to find jobs. While we check over 5,000 websites each evening, this is not necessarily the most effective way to locate jobs. We would estimate that over 30% of the positions on most law firm websites are out of date because the law firms simply fail to update them. One of the largest benefits of knowing the openings on law firm websites is that they can provide information pertaining to "hiring trends" in various markets. For example, many practice areas in certain markets may begin to experience hiring activity before others. Studying these trends can be extremely useful. In addition, seeing openings on law firm web sites can allow us to "cross reference" jobs we have for the firm that we may learn about from other sources.
In addition to law firm web sites, law firm jobs will also often be contained on a myriad of "job posting boards" and other sources. We check these sources as well on a weekly basis. These sources help us be aware of all the opportunities within the market. Like law firm web sites, many of these job posting board are out of date. Since the relevance of job posting boards is often based on the fact that they have "the most jobs", many of the boards will leave their jobs up far after the position has been filled.
D. Recruiters Check Printed Classified Ads
Classified ads are a good source of intelligence for recruiting firms. We subscribe to virtually every legal publication in the United States that lists jobs. Many firms often duplicate their efforts with recruiters by using classified ads. Most firms of more than 15-20 attorneys rarely fill openings through classified ads. Nevertheless, in large markets like San Francisco classified ads are often used by larger law firms to actually advise recruiters (as opposed to candidates) of the fact that they have positions available.
- Classified ads are a good source of information for most recruiting firms due to the fact that they are likely to be quite current. In almost all instances, ads in printed publications are more current as a general rule than ads on law firm web sites or on public job boards.
As an added benefit, printed classified ads are also likely to be less highly browsed (and receive fewer applications) than ads on Internet job posting boards due to the fact that someone actually has to get a physical copy of the printed publication.
E. Recruiters Call Law Firms
Most recruiters will call law firms from time to time in order to get jobs. While this entire procedure of discovering jobs could sustain an entire treatise in itself, it is important to note that this is one of the more important sources of jobs that a recruiter can get. A recruiter can generally only pick up the phone and call a firm for positions if they have a strong existing relationship with the firm. Many law firms are very careful with their openings and will only provide them to recruiters that they trust. These same law firms are not likely to (1) post job openings on their web site, or (2) advertise these jobs in classified ads or on job posting boards.OBSERVATION 11:
- Our experience has proven that a large share of the law firm placements we make come through a phone call or other phone interaction with a law firm. Law firms simply want to deal with recruiters who take the initiative to contact them about their openings and discuss the exact parameters of what the law firm is seeking with them. Once a recruiter has spoken directly with the law firm about what they are seeking (and in fact understood what the law firm is speaking about) the recruiter is in a far better position to promote the law firm's opening.
F. Recruiters Speak With Attorneys Inside the Firm Informally
Recruiters speak with attorneys inside law firms all day long, every day. Most recruiters spend at least 4-5 hours a day on the phone speaking with attorneys. Because recruiters spend so much time speaking with attorneys, it stands to reason that they are likely to get quite a bit of information and, because recruiters will be recruiters, a great deal of this information has to do with jobs inside the attorneys' law firms (or lack thereof). Virtually every week BCG Attorney Search makes placements in firms where we learned about the firm having a "crushing workload" in one practice area or another. In a majority of the cases, the fact that the firm may have a hiring need is something that could not be known either by visiting the law firm web site or searching various ads. In fact, we believe that informal knowledge of what is going on inside of law firms is among the most important sources of knowledge a recruiter can have. Despite all the research that recruiters might do, they are not going to be aware of most of the openings within their market unless they are actively engaged with attorneys from that market.
The way in which BCG Attorney Search operates provides us with a powerful tool for gaining awareness of what goes on in various legal markets around the country. We are a national recruiting firm that specializes in geographical regions. We have offices in Los Angeles, Orange County, Chicago, New York, Texas, Miami, and Washington, DC, with each of our recruiters specializing in their particular region of the country.
- Many outside the legal recruiting profession are under the impression that a great deal of the work that a legal recruiting firm does simply involves locating jobs through simplistic means. If this were the case, there would be little point in the existence of recruiting firms, as attorneys could find employment on their own just as easily. Through speaking with attorneys in various markets several hours a day, we are able to keep our finger on the pulse of the hiring needs of various firms that in many cases actually eclipse what many inside the law firm know about.
G. Recruiters Are Put On Distribution Lists
Law firms will generally put their favored recruiters on distribution lists and send them their jobs every few months. Most law firms that follow this practice do not typically make their jobs publicly available except to their preferred recruiting firms.
Law firms trust us to provide them with the attorney candidates that best fit their needs because we have built a reliable name for ourselves. Due to the established relationship we have with these firms, we often receive law firms hiring needs before anyone else. In many instances, we are often notified of a new opening before the law firm even releases it throughout their firm.
Additionally, law firms have sought us out to perform an exclusive search for a particular kind of attorney. Law firms know that we have an extensive database filled with the top qualified attorneys in the country and have the ability to present them with these candidates in the most professional way, and therefore routinely choose to employ us in their recruiting efforts.
H. Conclusions
More than 75% of the placements we make a BCG Attorney Search are in firms where we have identified a need through sources that a candidate could not possibly find on their own. We do not need to tell you that the benefit to our candidates from this is tremendous. By identifying needs through means that are not public, we give our candidates a shot at opportunities that are simply off the radar screen for most attorneys. If the above illustrations serve any purpose, it should be to make you aware that the work that sophisticated recruiting firms engage in is by no means an easy task and it can be extremely involved.
Blanket cold calls, mass mailing of resumes and high-pressure sales tactics are tell-tale signs most of the time that a legal recruiting firm is not making use of the research function. The very best legal recruiting firms devote their efforts to research above all other pursuits. Better research simply leads to better placements. We believe our research and ability to get jobs is unrivaled for numerous reasons:
- First, we have pooled the resources of numerous recruiters to have the resources and breadth to study and understand the market to the greatest extent possible
- Second, we are purposely specialized in making exclusively law firm placements and do not dilute our efforts by doing in house or staffing placements (i.e., paralegals, legal secretaries, etc.);
- Third, we maintain strong relationships with the large number of law firms we count as clients and therefore are able to gain firsthand knowledge of their hiring needs;
- Fourth, BCG Attorney Search's recruiters have unparalleled market understanding in their regions, which enables us to accurately assess the needs of many firms, even without them directly advertising available positions;
- Fifth, we purposely hire recruiters that are likely to be very good at what they do. We do not hire "refugees" from the practice of law who are looking for an easier life or fewer hours outside of the practice of law; and,
- Sixth, and perhaps most important, we are continually identifying new opportunities through various research methods that provide us with the kind of openings that few others have the capabilities to recognize.
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Click here to contact HarrisonAbout Harrison Barnes
Harrison Barnes is a prominent figure in the legal placement industry, known for his expertise in attorney placements and his extensive knowledge of the legal profession.
With over 25 years of experience, he has established himself as a leading voice in the field and has helped thousands of lawyers and law students find their ideal career paths.
Barnes is a former federal law clerk and associate at Quinn Emanuel and a graduate of the University of Chicago College and the University of Virginia Law School. He was a Rhodes Scholar Finalist at the University of Chicago and a member of the University of Virginia Law Review. Early in his legal career, he enrolled in Stanford Business School but dropped out because he missed legal recruiting too much.
Barnes' approach to the legal industry is rooted in his commitment to helping lawyers achieve their full potential. He believes that the key to success in the legal profession is to be proactive, persistent, and disciplined in one's approach to work and life. He encourages lawyers to take ownership of their careers and to focus on developing their skills and expertise in a way that aligns with their passions and interests.
One of how Barnes provides support to lawyers is through his writing. On his blog, HarrisonBarnes.com, and BCGSearch.com, he regularly shares his insights and advice on a range of topics related to the legal profession. Through his writing, he aims to empower lawyers to control their careers and make informed decisions about their professional development.
One of Barnes's fundamental philosophies in his writing is the importance of networking. He believes that networking is a critical component of career success and that it is essential for lawyers to establish relationships with others in their field. He encourages lawyers to attend events, join organizations, and connect with others in the legal community to build their professional networks.
Another central theme in Barnes' writing is the importance of personal and professional development. He believes that lawyers should continuously strive to improve themselves and develop their skills to succeed in their careers. He encourages lawyers to pursue ongoing education and training actively, read widely, and seek new opportunities for growth and development.
In addition to his work in the legal industry, Barnes is also a fitness and lifestyle enthusiast. He sees fitness and wellness as integral to his personal and professional development and encourages others to adopt a similar mindset. He starts his day at 4:00 am and dedicates several daily hours to running, weightlifting, and pursuing spiritual disciplines.
Finally, Barnes is a strong advocate for community service and giving back. He volunteers for the University of Chicago, where he is the former area chair of Los Angeles for the University of Chicago Admissions Office. He also serves as the President of the Young Presidents Organization's Century City Los Angeles Chapter, where he works to support and connect young business leaders.
In conclusion, Harrison Barnes is a visionary legal industry leader committed to helping lawyers achieve their full potential. Through his work at BCG Attorney Search, writing, and community involvement, he empowers lawyers to take control of their careers, develop their skills continuously, and lead fulfilling and successful lives. His philosophy of being proactive, persistent, and disciplined, combined with his focus on personal and professional development, makes him a valuable resource for anyone looking to succeed in the legal profession.
About BCG Attorney Search
BCG Attorney Search matches attorneys and law firms with unparalleled expertise and drive, while achieving results. Known globally for its success in locating and placing attorneys in law firms of all sizes, BCG Attorney Search has placed thousands of attorneys in law firms in thousands of different law firms around the country. Unlike other legal placement firms, BCG Attorney Search brings massive resources of over 150 employees to its placement efforts locating positions and opportunities its competitors simply cannot. Every legal recruiter at BCG Attorney Search is a former successful attorney who attended a top law school, worked in top law firms and brought massive drive and commitment to their work. BCG Attorney Search legal recruiters take your legal career seriously and understand attorneys. For more information, please visit www.BCGSearch.com.
Harrison Barnes does a weekly free webinar with live Q&A for attorneys and law students each Wednesday at 10:00 am PST. You can attend anonymously and ask questions about your career, this article, or any other legal career-related topics. You can sign up for the weekly webinar here: Register on Zoom
Harrison also does a weekly free webinar with live Q&A for law firms, companies, and others who hire attorneys each Wednesday at 10:00 am PST. You can sign up for the weekly webinar here: Register on Zoom
You can browse a list of past webinars here: Webinar Replays
You can also listen to Harrison Barnes Podcasts here: Attorney Career Advice Podcasts
You can also read Harrison Barnes' articles and books here: Harrison's Perspectives
Harrison Barnes is the legal profession's mentor and may be the only person in your legal career who will tell you why you are not reaching your full potential and what you really need to do to grow as an attorney--regardless of how much it hurts. If you prefer truth to stagnation, growth to comfort, and actionable ideas instead of fluffy concepts, you and Harrison will get along just fine. If, however, you want to stay where you are, talk about your past successes, and feel comfortable, Harrison is not for you.
Truly great mentors are like parents, doctors, therapists, spiritual figures, and others because in order to help you they need to expose you to pain and expose your weaknesses. But suppose you act on the advice and pain created by a mentor. In that case, you will become better: a better attorney, better employees, a better boss, know where you are going, and appreciate where you have been--you will hopefully also become a happier and better person. As you learn from Harrison, he hopes he will become your mentor.
To read more career and life advice articles visit Harrison's personal blog.


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February sees us marking Valentine's Day and Ash Wednesday: both ultimately to do with love and both affected by the current pandemic. This year, Valentine's Day falls on a Sunday, which would have been perfect for the weddings afternoon that we have held at St Matthew's for a number of years. We should have been inviting couples who have booked weddings with us to a meeting in church with the prospect of a glass of fizz and the opportunity to talk about the plans for their big day. It has always been an enjoyable occasion as we have welcomed couples, and their guests, and shared their excitement.
25 people attended last year's event – brides and grooms, bridesmaids and best men, mums and dads. We offered them a cup of tea and a piece of cake, showed photographs of weddings from previous years, played the bridal march, and interviewed some returning couples who said – without being bribed and with very little prompting – what a fabulous wedding ceremony they had had at St Matthew's. 'Perfect', was the word they used.
We also had bellringers, flower arrangers, a musician, a warden, and a verger, to talk about what they could offer to make each wedding personal and special.
In the end, of the six weddings booked at St Matthew's for 2020, only one actually took place – a much-reduced ceremony postponed to Christmas Eve for a couple determined to get married whatever the circumstances! The wedding was very different from what they had originally envisaged, but it was nonetheless a very special and memorable occasion.
At the start of 2021, we have a number of couples looking anxiously at the restrictions in place and wondering if, by the time their wedding day comes around, they will be able to celebrate as they hoped, or if they will have to postpone yet again.
Lent, Holy Week and Easter
The Church of England has also published advice on how to mark Lent, Holy Week and Easter in a COVID-secure way. Ash Wednesday – which falls on 17 February this year – has traditionally been marked by a service including the Imposition of Ashes. This is usually done by the priest making the sign of the cross on someone's forehead in a mixture of ash (made from last year's Palm crosses) and oil. But how do you do that safely in a pandemic where social distancing is prescribed? The guidance suggests sprinkling the ash on the forehead; but I don't see that going well: worshippers will be getting it in their eyes, on their clothes, up their noses and everywhere. I'm not sure it's something we can do in a dignified manner. So, maybe the imposition of ashes is one of the things we'll have to give up for Lent this year?
What's Love got to Do with it?
I started by saying that Valentine's Day and Ash Wednesday were both ultimately to do with love. Valentine's Day celebrates romantic love. It was originally a Christian festival honouring a martyr (or two) of that name who possibly performed marriages for Roman soldiers who were forbidden to marry. Of course, the saints' feast day falls in Spring when, according to the poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love". The romantic associations of Valentine's Day ensure the sales of cards, chocolates and flowers, and make it hard to get a table in a restaurant, at least in a normal year.
But turning to Ash Wednesday, and paraphrasing Tina Turner, "What's love got to do with it?" Most churchgoers associate Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent with Jesus fasting in the desert for 40 days and being tempted by Satan. Lent, however, has varied in length through its history and was associated with solemn preparation for Easter, particularly by those who were to be baptised and those seeking to be reconciled to the church. The practice of abstinence, prayer, and study recommended itself to other Christians and became a part of the Church's year. If you do decide to follow some Lenten observance, starting on Ash Wednesday and ending on Easter Eve (or Holy Saturday), then have a look at your calendar: you'll see that it adds up to 46 days. How do we reckon the 40 days of Lent? Well, obviously, as I am fond of pointing out, Sundays don't count! Why? Because every Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection, a little Easter. It's a day for feasting (in moderation, of course), not fasting.
But what's love got to do with it? The bible tells us that
God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life
John 3.16
This self-giving of God shows us what love looks like. Our loved-up wedding couples are just one example of what love can do. It changes lives. Jesus shows us what love looks like taken to the infinite degree. He holds nothing back but gives his all for the world he loves. The story of Good Friday is the story of love without limit. The Easter gospel of resurrection shows us that a love like that knows no bounds. It is eternal.
Love in the time of coronavirus may feel in short supply, particularly for those who live alone; or for those who share a home with someone they don't love, or who doesn't love them. But we hold on. We hold on to our conviction that, at the end of the day, love wins.
Perhaps the saint for our times is Julian of Norwich (1342 to 1416). Mother Julian lived in the wake of the Black Death and was – as we would say today – self-isolating in a small cell linked to St Julian's church in Norwich. She experienced a world devastated by plague, and her own sickness led her to believe that she was on her deathbed. Into this darkness came the light of Christ, in the form of visions ('shewings' or revelations) of God's love, demonstrated particularly in the passion of Christ.
In one vision, Julian sees something no bigger than a hazelnut, sitting in the palm of her hand. What is it?, she asks. She is told that this everything that God has made. She is amazed and concerned by its littleness and fragility. How can something so tiny and so vulnerable survive? The answer?
It lasts and ever shall, for God loves it. And so have all things their beginning by the love of God.
Mother Julian sees God's creation as loved and sustained by God.
How shall we see our world? The world glimpsed only through windows if we are shielding. The world we encounter on our daily walk (if we are able to get out). The world seen through fogged-up glasses (if we wear them with a mask). The pandemic reminds us just how fragile our world is.
Before AIDS, SARS, Ebola, and now covid-19, it was tuberculosis, the plague, cholera, typhoid, and influenza that cut swathes through the populations of the world. Perching like puffins on the cliff edge is the historically normal situation for humanity, but we had forgotten.
The precariousness of our existence is an uncomfortable thing to dwell on. But we have come through a year in which there were tens of thousands of excess deaths in the UK, and we are not through yet. Julian believed that our fragile world was created and is sustained by divine love. So I will give the last word to her, finding light in the darkness:
but all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well
Alan Jewell


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Truer words could not have been said than those of comedic artist, Mort Walker…
"Seven days without laughter, makes one weak"
In an effort to remind ourselves, and everyone else, how important laughter is we have put together a meme of Internet Marketing Humor that we have collected from across the web. Consider this collection to be part 1 of many more to come. We hope you get a few chuckles out of what we have found and feel the need to share your laughs with someone else. Enjoy!
Want to see more? Check back in as we will post future memes of some funny Internet Marketing Humor we find from across the web.
If you have ones that you think would make someone laugh, then we would love to add them to our upcoming collections. We will even be sure to give you credit.
nice post
nice blog!


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Are you a professional cleaner? Are you looking to add pressure washing to your landscaping business? Do you need to keep a fleet of vehicles clean? If you have demanding jobs, you need a Vortexx pressure washer. Their cold water commercial pressure washers don't cut corners. From their pumps to their frames, every component is built for maximum reliability, making the best choice for commercial operations.
Why Should I Choose a Vortexx Commercial Washer for My Business?
The most important reason: COOLFLO pump protection. These pressure washers don't use off-the-shelf pumps. Vortexx works directly with AR's engineers, adding re-buildable unloaders, extra filters, three-foot bypass hoses, and thermal relief valves to their pumps. Stainless steel quick connectors are used on every connection from the pump to the gun. These modifications reduce or eliminate the most common points of failure. Vortexx guarantees these pumps for 6 years of commercial use, something you will never see from other manufacturers.
Everything is mounted on a one-piece welded aluminum frame. That means you don't have to worry about corrosion, and there are no frame bolts that will vibrate loose during use. This frame has built-in storage for the hose and wand. There are also cutouts in the frame to drain oil, making maintenance cleaner and easier.
Vortexx's exclusive tow and stow handle slides out when you need to move the cart, and folds back down to take up less space during transport or storage. All three of these commercial models use foam-filled tires that won't go flat.
8,850 Cleaning Units
The smallest of these commercial models uses a Honda GX200 to power an AR VRT3 triplex plunger pump. This sends water through a 50-foot non-marking hose. The gun handles a maximum of 4,500 PSI and has a 48-inch long lance.
16,000 Cleaning Units
Look at the GPM and PSI ratings, and you might think that this pressure washer is only about 30% more powerful than the VX3000HD. However, when you put the added flow rate and pressure together, you get almost double the cleaning power.
To deliver this much power, Vortexx pairs a Honda GX390 with an AR RRV Series pump. The VX4000HD comes with a 50-foot Uber-Flex hose by Propulse. This hose is kink and abrasion resistant, and its textured finish reduces surface friction, making it easier to wind, unwind and drag. The gun is rated at 5,100 PSI, and it comes with a 48-inch lance.
16,000 Cleaning Units
On the surface, this washer doesn't seem much different from the HD. The two pressure washers share most of the same components, but the XG has a gear drive that reduces pump speed by 50%. This extends service intervals on the unit's AR RX Series pump. Otherwise, you get all the same features as the HD, including the Uber-Flex hose.
Vortexx has everything you would expect for your pressure washer. Need a foam lance to lay down cleaning chemicals? What about a surface cleaner for pavement, or a deck cleaner to spread out spray for faster cleaning? Want to use a rotojet or turbo nozzles for quick coverage and less chance of surface damage? What about a longer lance that can reach up high to clean windows and gutters? They have all of those attachments, often with several different size options. They also have a couple of unusual attachments you may want to consider.
The sludge vac turns your pressure washer into a trash pump, moving up to 15 times the rated pump GPM. This lets you use it for everything from cleaning out car wash pits to emptying flooded basements. It uses water flow from the pump to drag along gray water and trash. That means there are no moving parts involved, making it less susceptible to damage than a standard trash pump.
The industrial and professional wet sandblaster kits use water pressure to draw in and mix sand with water. This is as effective as a regular sandblaster, but since the sand is wet, it doesn't create dust. The industrial sandblaster has the option of using different sizes of tungsten carbide nozzles.
We're Your Professional Equipment Headquarters
Shank's Lawn Equipment is an authorized dealer for Vortexx, AR Pumps, and Honda Engines. That means we don't just sell these pressure washers, we can service everything on them. If you're looking for a new pressure washer, or you want parts or service for your current machine, visit our shop at 4900 Molly Pitcher Highway in Chambersburg, PA.
Do you need parts or accessories for your Vortexx pressure washer? Visit us online at www.shankslawn.com. You can order what you need from our website and have it delivered to your door, whether you live in the United States or Canada.


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Another sign that the end times are near.
Kansas athletic director Lew Perkins was paid $4.4 million in 2009, according to a report in the Kansas City Star.
Perkins' pay is the equivalent of $85,000 a week, and the athletic director made no apology for his compensation.
"It is what it is," he said. "It was all based on when I got hired, negotiated from day one. ... It was all part of the deal of me leaving Connecticut to come here."
Andrew Zimbalist, a sports economist at Smith College in Massachusetts, said of Perkins' compensation: "It's utterly outrageous. I can't believe he's worth that kind of compensation in the marketplace. It strikes me as a hideous compensation level."
Perkins was paid $648,281 in 2007 and $900,000 in 2008. Perkins' 2009 salary reflects a retention bonus, and his pay will revert to the paltry $900,000 this year.
Kansas defended Perkins' salary by saying that most of it came from general athletics revenue, including supporters' donations, conference revenue, student fees and other sources.
Salaries of athletic directors have been skyrocketing in recent years, with Florida's Jeremy Foley topping the 2008 compensation list at $965,000. Then came Perkins ($900,000) and Wisconsin's Barry Alvarez ($750,000).
Then there is the case of Oregon's Mike Bellotti, who left after only nine months on the job but was given a $2.3 million payout. Bellotti's deal is being investigated by the Oregon University System and state attorney general John Kroger.
While athletic directors and football and basketball coaches continue to get rich, the departments they work for are often money-losing operations. To make up for the shortfall, universities are getting a larger percentage of revenue from student fees. USA Today reported Friday that more than half of athletic departments at Division I-A public schools were subsidized by at least 26% last year, up from 20% in 2005.
Last week, University of California chancellor Robert Birgeneau asked a panel to address the long-simmering problem of university support for its money-losing athletics programs. The athletics department has an annual budget of $65 million and 27 teams. Twenty-four of those lose money. Only football and basketball take in more than they spend. Men's golf breaks even.


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Haas F1 this morning unveiled its new VF-18 ride that will challenge for the FIA Formula One World Championship.
The Kannapolis, North Carolina-based team enters its third full-time season on the F1 circuit in 2018.
The VF-18 evolved from last season's VF-17 model, which finished eighth in the 2017 constructors standings, scoring 47 points, 18 more points than the 29 points the team earned in its debut season in 2016, becoming the first full-time F1 team from the United States since 1986.
"People see what we can do in Formula One and people believe Haas Automation can build world-class machine tools," team owner Gene Haas said in a media release. "Being a Formula One participant brings a level of credibility that you just won't get through traditional advertising."
Haas said he has used principles and attributes from his Haas Automation firm, the largest machine tool manufacturer in North America, focusing on details and constant refinement to keep the F1 team moving forward and progressing.
"We eliminated a lot of the variables where we knew we were weak," Haas said. "We've focused on what it's going to take to get our car to be consistent and close that gap to the top teams."
Keen additions to the VF-18 are the addition of a halo and what is termed as a "drastic reduction" in the sharkfin.
"The biggest part of the car's evolution was the addition of the halo," said Guenther Steiner, team principal, Haas F1 Team. "It took quite a bit of study by the aerodynamicists, but the designers had to work hard to modify the chassis so the halo could survive the mandated loads.
"The total minimum weight of the car increased because of the halo, and there's a higher center of gravity simply because of the halo's position. But, everyone is in the same boat.
"The regulations stayed pretty stable between 2017 and 2018, so the VF-18 is an evolution of our car from last year. It's less about reinvention and more about refinement. You see elements we had from last year on the car this year.
"Our 2017 car was actually pretty good, but we didn't always get the best out of it, and that's what we aimed to change in 2018. We got the car as light as possible to carry more ballast. We were able to do a better job of putting the weight where we wanted it."
The team will put the VF-18 through its paces at upcoming tests at Circuit de Barcelona in Catalunya, Feb. 26-March 1, and again March 6-9 before the season-opening Australian Grand Prix March 25 in Melbourne.
Several other F1 teams are expected to reveal their 2018 liveries in the next couple of weeks prior to the Barcelona test.


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Call recording laws apply to inbound, outbound, marketing and non-marketing calls alike. Thankfully, courts have routinely held that by disclosing that the call may be monitored/recorded at the outset, participants who remain on the line without objection have impliedly consented to the recording. Do not bury the call recording disclaimer deeper in the script as you don't want to risk recording part of the call before the disclaimer is made. Also, do not rely merely on clicking/beeping or other background noises to sufficiently notify the recipient about the recording. You need to make an express disclaimer. Finally, if you rely on an automated "whisper" intro to make the recording disclosure, ensure that the caller cannot circumvent the disclaimer by pressing a button early in the automated script.
Because it is often impossible to know for certain where the consumer is standing when they answer your call (or call you), the best practice is to always give the recording disclaimer if you record any of your calls. This eliminates the risk of error present when trying to only give the disclaimer to residents of "two-party" states. Also, on web forms meant to capture consent or drive inbound calls, you should add a call recording disclaimer to those pieces as well. Potential fines are significant. In California, for example, fines can total $5,000 per call.
Monday, June 5, 2017


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HEART: Humane Education in Chicago
How is one organization making the world a more peaceful place? HEART is Humane Education Advocates Reaching Teachers, a program aimed at empowering students to think critically AND to act … Continue reading
Issues with your young kid's behavior? TUESDAY'S CHILD can help you!
If you feel that your kid's behavior is too often out of control due to tantrums or aggressiveness, TUESDAY'S CHILD is an outstanding nonprofit organization operating on the north side of Chicago … Continue reading
LETTER FROM THE COMMUNITY: 'The Comprehensive Child' Blog by Jennifer
Dear Chicago 4 Community, I enjoyed your video magazine feature on the amazing organization Tuesday's Child. Being a mother with a child on the Autism Spectrum I have come into … Continue reading


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I was in desperate need of a creative treat
to move past the status quo of my
default thinking and doing. I needed to get unstuck and move to the next level of my creative vision.
So I took a trip to Benicia at the head of the San Francisco Bay Area tagging along with artist friend Lisa C. as she attended her art class nearby. And…What a treat just in time for the Hallow's Eve to feed the soul.
As we toured the gardens, and the studio of master artist and teacher of such fine things Lisa Kokin, I walked back into the world of creativity. I could feel my soul being revitalized with inspirational movement back into the world of curiosity and inquiry.
I began to see thoughts expand beyond the original story. There became a new dialog taking shape in the art of the lovely Lisa's.
That's what artist do…they see a new story to tell from what might seem like a hot mess and turn it into art. This is how I want to view my life.
I want to turn my hot mess stories
into ART!
Even if it's in my own head
The Lisa's rearrange what seem like trash to the unwilling eye into new ways of seeing, being, and showing up in the world. Their art tells a new story of what would be throw-a-ways. There is a new look at what might seem useless as it morphs into opportunity to expand into something uniquely new, with a designed purpose.
After a short time of being in this creative environment I could see my life as the beautiful art project that it is. I was filling back up with inspiration to continue designing my thoughts, and my stories into a new collection of carefully chosen patterns that inspire and delight me.
We don't have to toss aside our used goods (aka useless things we tell ourselves, our stories). We can give then a new-found respect and assign them into a new useful purpose. I like the idea of being the artistic director of my life.
I want to stay curious, and find new ways to continue to change and evolve.
Thank you Lisa Culjis and Lisa Kokin for reminding me of my personal art project of turning my old used up expressions into new creative inspirations….my life as art!
I choose a personally designed version upon which I have created a new use for my old stories. I choose to tell myself a new dialog that makes my life a curious art project!
If you would like to move beyond the status quo of your default way of being and doing, and into your created future, and if you would like to expand your vision, get unstuck, and design your life then…


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Something about a jean jacket and black cuffed jean pants screams, "Welcome to the 80's!" While the outfit was not one of my favorite mash-ups of the season, I liked experimenting with these pieces together.
Note: the sleeves of the jean jacket are cuffed once because, well at 5′ 1″-ish, I'm basically petite so the sleeves would have been a little long otherwise. The pants, on the other hand, were cuffed because it's trendy nowadays to wear them that way with your ankle boots, heels, etc. Oh so effortlessly chic.
(My apologies for the poorly photographed mirror photo. Sadly, it will not be the last.)
Over: Denim Trucker Jacket in Medium Blue (Old Navy)
Top: Feather Dolman-Sleeve Graphic Tee in Cream (Old Navy)
Bottom: Mid-Rise Rockstar Super Skinny Jeans in Black (Old Navy)
Shoes: Suede Ankle Books in Black (DSW / Crown Victoria)


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Four PoemsLeave a comment
December 20, 2010 by The Citron Review
by George Moore
The Basement Room
I am twenty. I will let no one say it is the best time of life. Everything threatens a young man with ruin: love, ideas, the loss of his family, his entrance into the world of adults.
–Paul Nizan, Aden, Arabie
Beneath the hollow lives
of those who would control you,
make you sleep, eat, and dream
as they do (are they real or just
images out of the shell?), you live
in this cave of your parents' neglect.
You hear their skin shedding
through the floor. They die
and you go on living, yet refuse to inherit
the energy of their TV, the wine
spilled in the bathroom, which
sparkles like a hospital,
the meals your mother fixed, carefully
carving out your portion. You do not want
the perfect balance of give-in
and get-it-together. You want to live
on the other side of the moon,
not in the darkness but of it,
as in the airless shadow of this room.
You breed dragons in this dungeon.
Some say you am already buried
but you are the one who survives,
the one true root of all humanity.
Ars Poetica
Say something
that involves you,
the morning when thin was better than full,
and perhaps a bird of mistaken genus
flew out. But the bird, a metaphor
for hunger, and for the struggle to survive
the constant battle with the poem's careless act
of naming, is writing now, more often
winter's unyielding edge touching
the small-boned inconsequence.
Say something but don't mistake
art as the poetic act.
Over five
bodies asleep dead in
ease, rocks in a shore's
undertow, dream scattered
on the motel's
floor, sardines, feet
to head, never
thinking this would
mind, that is
as a verb, to mind,
make room where even
less would keep
rolled on the edge
an injection of sea
into the present
of a different time
But then sleep
is the great ocean's
feeble mimic of dreams
always out there
beyond, inside a flat
unfathomed line of sight
permanence, signatures
you call to be
Dark becomes you more than light.
At times the ephemeral photon decays
and wakes your transitoriness.
Dark does not last but was there
before the time sense of last
and before the first.
Dark is a human thing or otherwise
you could not resist it, give mouths to it
mother of us all.
Dark is not the absence
of desire but its root, the empty part
of you calling back over your shoulder.
George Moore has held artist residencies in Canada, Greece, Portugal, Spain and Iceland, and collaborated on works with artists from Austria, Iceland, and Canada. His poetry has appeared in The Atlantic, Poetry, Queen's Quarterly, Antigonish Review, Dublin Quarterly, North American Review, Colorado Review, Orion, and Blast. In 2009, he was nominated for two Pushcart Prizes and two Best of the Web awards, and in 2010 for The Rhysling Poetry Award. His recent collections include Headhunting (Mellen, 2002) and the e-Book, All Night Card Game in the Back Room of Time (Pulpbit.com, 2007). Moore teaches writing and literature with the University of Colorado, Boulder.You may read more about him here.


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[Meta Method 1, Part 1] First, fall in love with this exact version of Andrew Bird's Tables and Chairs, and listen to it at least once per week for a decade (give or take one year):
[Method 2] All the while, contemplate its lyrics, wondering in particular whether he is painting a picture of a utopian or dystopian future*… and in either case,
[Method 3] ask yourself both what this perspective might reveal about your professional calling's current overlap with the FinTech industry, and finally,
[Method 4] debate whether either of the above matter in the short term, if at all.
[Meta Method 1, Part 2] Then, watch this video of him playing the same song (while marveling again at both his incredible talent AND how privileged we are to witness live performances):
This concert recording does justice to Andrew Bird's skills with both amazing video AND sound quality, so check out the whole thing if you're so inclined!
*Bonus Method! I experience a similar challenge with / appreciation for the Talking Heads song (Nothing but) Flowers; are they decrying the trajectory we're on (ie, let's just pave everything!), or are they making fun of those of us who would work toward a different outcome? Does it matter when it sounds so good?


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"Most people don't realize that the mind constantly chatters. And yet, that chatter winds up being the force that drives us much of the day in terms of what we do, what we react to, and how we feel." ~ Jon Kabat-Zinn
If you are anything like I am, then you will immediately connect to this claim: At times, there is so much 'chatter' in my mind that my inner self is drained of any energy, which is best used in achieving internal peace. But then again, such effort turns me into a thought-driven being – one that is actually not being but rather becoming and trying to become constantly . . . How do you attain the delicate balance in-between?


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The scientists from South Ural State University are developing and manufacturing innovative educational and laboratory equipment, as well as software using 3D technologies. Using virtual educational equipment means that it is less expensive and more efficient to train top-ranked specialists.
The contemporary innovative education policy more and more demands the requirement to implement virtual computer-based simulators and complexes. The virtual innovations by the SUSU scientists are used in economic sectors such as construction and housing, public utilities, ecology, oil-and-gas, chemistry, engineering, shipbuilding, aviation and space exploration, military sector, food technologies, and many others.
"SUSU has been supplying educational equipment and software to thousands of customers from all over the world for a number of years already. We are designing innovative educational and laboratory equipment, research-and-development complexes, training simulators, computer-based simulators, emulators and simulators using 3D technologies, as well as virtual reality 'sensors,'" says the Head of the Virtual Software Complexes Department at the SUSU LLC Uctech-Profi Gleb Zhbankov. "It is these innovations that help to develop competent specialists meeting the demands of the modern labor market, and help to solve research-and-development tasks."
A virtual stand is specialized software featuring three-dimension models and control boards analogous to the actual equipment, which help better demonstrate the principles of operation of equipment parts and units and also provide the possibility of monitoring and changing the parameters of the main elements, imitating failures and deviations of the parameters from the default ones. Simulators and emulators allow the retrofitting of material-and-technical base and quality upgrade of courseware, thus moving the training process in the priority fields of science, technology and engineering development to an entirely new level.
"Virtual stands are a replacement for expensive equipment. They may feature any equipment models: from small laboratory installations to whole production lines and workshops! Our simulators allow a step-by-step study of all the work processes, the internal and external structures due to simulation of work, as well as the results in the form of the obtained knowledge. Moreover, each simulator is provided with a support system and reference manuals," explains Mr. Zhbankov.
Virtual stands can deal with three-dimension demonstrations, cross-sections and animated models of equipment. Physically correct imaging, simulation of burning, flowing of liquids and gas processes – all these processes may be demonstrated using these simulators. Each stand is supported through virtual reality. Using real-time special controllers, both effects, and reactions to the effects in virtual three-dimension objects can be simulated.
The system of distance learning using up-to-date means of communication allows for an individual schedule and taking training online in any place at any convenient time.
"Our main customers who order the equipment are institutions of higher education, technical schools and colleges, vocational and training schools, and training centers based at industrial enterprises. The geography of supplies of our equipment and software complexes is wide: from Kaliningrad to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in Russia, to Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Turkey. Currently we are holding negotiations with partners from Iran and Egypt."
The scientists of this major Russian university are planning to adapt their products for international competitions on professional skills under the standards of WorldSkills, as well as for Quantoriums and ABilimpics projects (analogues of WorldSkills for people with disabilities), to expand the technology and equipment around "sensor reality" (in particular for virtual reality helmets), and many other innovations, as well as to approach the education markets of Iran, the countries of Africa, South America, Europe and South Asia.


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Neighbor Laurie, who has a wonderful propensity to paint watercolors instead of snapping photos, brings us this terrific image that captures the Wild Kingdom drama of a canine/rodent confrontation on Bernal Hill. She writes:
This dog was staring intently at a hole on the west side of the hill, which was inhabited by some small rodent (a gopher?) that kept poking its head up and then ducking back down again. I was amused by the idea that this large muscular dog was completely powerless to catch the tiny rodent.


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