text:
Interview the Job Before the Candidates
Dinah Daniels
The scenario is familiar to human resources professionals and hiring managers. A job opening occurs within the organization, and a file drawer full of resumes is pulled open to start the arduous task of finding the "right" candidate.
If the company is on its toes, a written "job description" may exist, giving the human resources department a roadmap to the educational background, job experience, skills and qualifications that the ideal candidate should possess.
However, if HR proceeds with interviewing candidates before performing one critical internal assessment, a potential hire who looks great on paper may, in fact, be the wrong person for the job.
First, the HR department should "interview" the job before interviewing the job candidates and define a "job profile." This profile should include information about key result areas, critical connections within the company, behaviors, values and education and experience required to perform the job.
Creating a job profile gives an organization far more useful information than a written job description gives. While a job description states the functions of a specific job and the education, background and skills required to perform it, a job profile illustrates how the job fits into the context of the company. It profiles whom the person holding the job will deal with as key connecting people within the organization. It looks at values and how the job impacts the entire organization as well as specific, measurable outcomes of job performance.
With the creation of a job profile for a given position, a company connects that position to the entire organization in a meaningful way. It requires human resources professionals and line managers or department supervisors to work together and establish a consistent understanding of how a job should be filled and the type of person who should fill it.
Traditionally, the interview and selection process is viewed as a chore that happens in isolation from everything else in a company. But with the creation of a job profile, utilizing input from everyone who is affected within an organization, the decision makers are able to take a fuller view.
The second critical step in the interviewing and selection process is building a candidate profile. Based on the job profile, the candidate profile will give the hiring managers a clear picture of the person they want for the job before they meet a single candidate.
The candidate profile is critical because there is more to matching people to jobs than simply finding the right education, job experience and skill set. Two candidates may possess the same college degree, similar levels of professional experience and work skills that match the job. But if the job requires an assertive decision maker, someone who embraces risk and thrives in a fast-paced environment, suddenly the two candidates may not appear so equal. One may function well in an environment that is more deliberative and predictable, making him inappropriate for the opening. The other may possess the quick-thinking, authoritative characteristics needed, but may also show signs of being somewhat reckless.
No candidate is a perfect fit for any job. There are always gaps between the requirements of a job and the capabilities of even the best person hired to fill it. But an enlightened company will not wait until that person is on board to discover – and be caught unaware – by those gaps.
A successful interviewing process will have several key results. It will: Determine where the strong fits are between a candidate and a job. Determine if there are gaps between the company's needs and a candidate's capabilities.
If there are gaps, the interviewing process should yield enough information about a candidate to determine if there is anything the company can do to bridge the gaps or compensate for them. Perhaps the candidates need only take a college course, or perhaps another person within the company can spend a short amount of time providing assistance and training to the new hire.
Many organizations make the mistake of engaging in wishful thinking when job candidates come to them with recognizable gaps. Hiring managers believe that when the person starts working at the job, he or she will adapt to its needs just by becoming acquainted with the organization's culture. That rarely happens, and the company ends up shaking its finger at the new employee, when it should be blaming itself.
Even in a tight labor market, a company is setting someone up for failure by hiring him when it knows of serious gaps between the candidate's personality or skills and what the job requires. An enlightened company may go ahead and hire this person, but with a clear idea of the options for filling his or her gaps:
The company can shore up the gaps with other resources within the organization. Or it can redefine the job to fit the capabilities and qualities of the new hire, understanding that some functions will have to be absorbed elsewhere in the organization.
Most failure in the hiring process comes from the fact that people are vague about what a candidate can or can't do. Maybe they like the way a person meets and greets, or they like the candidate's education level, but they don't look at the whole picture, and in the end they make the hiring decision based on the wrong factors.
Most importantly, hiring professionals need to avoid the temptation to compare one candidate to another. What they really need to do is compare each candidate against the job.
By creating both a job profile and then a candidate profile, hiring managers dramatically increase their chances of long-term hiring success – before ever meeting a single job candidate.
Finding Candidates
- 10 Reasons to Hire Vets
- Hire Older Workers
- Improving Candidate Quality
- Sourcing 101
- Sourcing Candidates Well
- Tips for Building Employment-Related Websites
- U.S. Employ of People with Disabilities: Free Workshops
- Virtual College Recruiting
Interviewing Basics
- 10 Commandments of Recruiting
- 5 Keys to Successful Hiring
- 7 Tips for Successful Phone Interviews
- Behavioral Interviewing Basics
- Contrary Evidence Questions
- Interview Questions: Do's and Don'ts
- Interviewing Opening and Closing Remarks
- Interviews: Common Weaknesses
- Mistakes Amateur Interviewers Make
- Phone Screen Interview Mistakes
- Probing Techniques Explained
- Screening Interviewing: Top 10 Red Flags
- Strengthen the Validity of Your Interviews
- Telephone Interviews: Basics
- Ten Bad Listening Habits of Interviewers
- Types of Interviews
- Typical Probes and Follow up Questions
- What Do Interviewers Need to Know to be Effective?
Interviewing Best Practices
- 7 Keys to Effective Selection Interviews
- A Closer Look at Behavior-Based Interviewing
- Advantages / Disadvantages of Interviewing
- Applying Core Competencies to Selection Interviews
- Are You Really a Behavior-Based Interviewer?
- Assessing Speaking and Listening Skills
- Best Practices in Interviewing Candidates
- Deadly Interview Mistakes
- Death by Interview
- Ensure Hiring Success in Every Situation
- Executive Assessment Should Be Mandatory
- Generational Interviewing
- Hiring Interview + Strategic Applicant Management
- Hold Evening and Off-Time Interviews
- How to Interview a Top Performer
- Improve your Interviewing Techniques
- Interview Questions to Assess Soft Skills
- Interviewing for Ethics
- Interviewing Millennials
- Interviewing: Business or Psychology
- Metrics Interview
- Peeling Back the Onion
- The Positives of Panel Interviews
- Time for Candidate Advocacy?
- Tips for Conducting Successful Interviews
- Two Critical Interviewing Questions
Laws & Documentation
- Applicant Reference Release
- At Will Employment Release
- Avoid Negligent Hiring Mistakes
- Employee Referral Program Metrics
- Fair Labor Standards Act Information
- Four Interview Questions Never to Ask
- Giving Employee References
- Hiring Compliance Guidelines
- Hiring for Small Business
- Interviewing People with Disabilities
- Job Denial Letter
- Legal Issues in Interviewing
- Minimize Employment Risks: Document
- SAMPLE Employment Policy
- SAMPLE Letter: Educational Records Check
- SAMPLE Letter: Reference Check
- Ten Safe Hiring Tools
- What is Negligent Hiring
Line Manager / Recruiting Partnership
- Defending Candidates to Hiring Managers
- Interlocking Core Competency Interviews
- Internal Application Process
- Making Internships Work for You
- Making the Case for Behavioral Interviewing
- Non-Traditional Merit Pay Alternatives
- OFCCP Definition of an Internet Applicant
- Why Managers Shouldn't Do Most Hiring
- Workforce Planning: Strategic Staffing Strategy
Pre-Planning & Retention
- Bonus or Incentive?
- Brand-Building on a Budget
- Build a First-Rate Hiring Process
- Closing the Deal
- Compensation Plans: An Overview
- Conducting an Exit Interview
- Good Hiring Starts with a Good Job Profile
- Improve the Quality of the Employment Function
- Interview Process Problems
- Interview the Job Before the Candidates
- Job Description Template-Link Pay to Performance
- Linking Pay to Company Performance
- Selecting and Using Salary Surveys
- Succession Planning
- Succession Planning: Identifying Top Performers
- Using a Pre-Interviewing Questionnaire
- Winning the War for Talent
- Worker Shortage by 2010: Preparation
Reading the Candidate
- Beware of Those Who Boast
- Blind Man's Bluff
- Decision, Decisions: Choosing the Better Applicant
- Detecting Deceit in Interviews
- Little White Lies on Resumes
- Suspend Judgment Until the Interview is Over
Recruiting Basics
- College Recruiting Basics
- College Recruiting Essentials
- Cut Down on Interview No Shows
- Discouraging Low Quality Applicants
- Don't Hold Too Many Interviews
- Job Descriptions: Why are they Important?
- New Strategies for Screening Job Candidates
- Preventing Resume Overload with Questionnaires
- Resume Review Basics
- Test Validation Explained
- The Value of Person-Organization Fit
- Three Companies Cut Turnover with Tests
Recruiting Best Practices
- 25 Telltale Signs of the Wrong Candidate
- 5 Overlooked Ways to Hire Winners
- Asking the Right Recruitment Questions
- Attracting Your Competitor's Employees
- BPR.......for Recruiters!
- Candidate Engagement
- Cloud Recruiting
- Evaluate Your Capture Strategy
- Hiring Best Practices
- How Do You Attract and Retain the Best People?
- How to Attract Applicants to Undesirable Jobs
- How to Attract, Develop and Retain Best People
- How to Find and Keep Valued Employees
- Ignorance and the Human Condition
- Onboarding Success Secrets
- Secrets to Non-Profit Hiring
- Selecting Top Management Talent
- Semi-Active Candidates are Best Bets
- Six Core Selling Principles
- Skills Based Recruiting: When, not How
- Smart Choices: How to Hire the Best
- Strategy for Hiring the Best This Year
- The Uses and Misuses of Personality Tests
- Top 10 Employee Selection Mistakes & Solutions
- Treat Candidates with the Carbon Rule


text:
Cure takes care of a game title of speed and adrenalin? Should you simply like cars and all sorts of vehicles that arrived to the forefront, you'll certainly love the driving games which are presented on on the internet portals. Driving games are vehicle-related games in which your career would be to control a particular kind of a vehicle, a truck, from the obstacles on the highway. You don't always need to race against other players. But you have to arrive at the finish line successfully.
That's the primary distinction between racing games and driving games. With racing games, you will see other cars around the game screen and you're matching facing them. With driving games, whatever you need to do determining your vehicle completely towards the finish line. You rarely find other cars in play – but plenty of hurdles, obstacles, along with other stuff that could prevent you from dealing with the aim.
The very best factor about online driving is always that these ones ought to be plain to know. There aren't any complex game rules or keyboard and mouse controls to get accustomed to. As with most racing games accessible online, driving games essentially uses the laptop keyboard arrow secrets of control the vehicle. The direction from the arrow moves vehicle for the corresponding path. The same thing goes true for mouse-controlled driving games. Here, you just move it within the course that you would like your vehicle to trek.
Games usually make the perfect simulation of driving real vehicles. In some instances, find gears and auto part upgrades that the vehicle needs to undergo to follow the game. For each level that you simply complete, you unlock the following stage with some upgrades for that vehicle.
The internet driving games offered at gaming portals normally make use of the regular flash-based programming and animation. They are also available in different complexity levels, meaning some games were created for adults while some can be viewed as fit for children. When looking for these games online, attempt to browse the description from the game first before installing it which means you know pretty much in the event that is a kind of game that you want to experience.
Flash-based games rarely needs download though. The driving and racing games must be loaded in your browser also it would run as intended. These kinds of games are rather short and limited. Which means that it's merely a couple of levels to accomplish, maybe 3 to 5 in a number of cases. Should you need a more graphic-intensive game, it's best that you simply consider a downloadable driving game that should be installed on your pc before you listen to it. They're mostly multiple level driving games that offer for lengthy hrs of adventure and fun.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Crew members said that they heard a "pretty loud bang" shortly before landing. In photos from the local press, significant damage to the nose of the Boeing 737 passenger jet is visible. Grupo Aeromexico SAB started an investigation whether a drone had indeed collided with the passenger jet as it was approaching its destination in Tijuana, Mexico.
Boeing 737 passenger jet may have collided with a drone
The collision took place on Wednesday, as flight 773 from Guadalajara approached its destination in Tijuana, Mexico. Photos from the local press clearly show the nose of the Boeing 737-800 passenger jet damaged.
According to crew members of the Boeing 737 passenger jet a "pretty loud bang" was heard as the jet approached its destination.
"The exact cause is still being investigated," Aeromexico said in a statement, according to Bloomberg. "The aircraft landed normally and the passengers' safety was never compromised."
The growing popularity of drones
With the growing popularity of drones, the number of drone incidents has risen as well. Many fear that drones, flown close to airports or at high altitudes, can be a grave danger to manned aircraft, especially commercial passenger jets. Since we have launched DroneDJ over one year ago we have seen one drone hitting a military helicopter close to Staten Island, NY, a drone collision with a turboprop in Canada, a very close call with a helicopter, a drone looping over a commercial airplane and a number of other drone incidents.
Most countries, the U.S. included, prohibit flying drones close to airports and above a 400 feet elevation to reduce the risk of drones and manned aircraft colliding. Unfortunately, though, the number of drone incidents keeps growing. Even though this latest collision with a Boeing 737 passenger jet has not been officially confirmed yet as a drone collision, the lack of any visible blood and feathers might indicate that an unmanned aircraft indeed was involved.
Fortunately, the Boing 737 passenger jet proceeded to land safely atGeneral Abelardo L Rodriguez International Airport and nobody was harmed.
Desde Tijuana nos hacen llegar estas imágenes del Radomo de un B737 de Aeromexico en Tijuana.
Nuestra fuente indica que se trató de un impacto a un dron en la aproximación final. pic.twitter.com/YJhKVGKY4W
— FsMex.com (@FsMexcom) December 12, 2018
Increase in drone incidents
Bloomberg reports that according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) there has been a dramatic increase in the number of safety reports involving drones in recent years. Through June this year, 6,000 drone sighting by pilots and airline crews have been reported.
So far the only two confirmed drone collisions have been the one with the military helicopter close to Staten Island, NY and one with a turboprop carrying six passengers near Quebec on October 12th, 2017. Both of these collisions did not result in any loss of life or other injuries.
Various studies have been performed to estimate that damage that might occur as a result from a drone strike. Based on a 2017 study, the FAA concluded that a drone would cause more damage to an airplane than a bird of similar size because of heavy metal parts such as batteries and motors. The study concluded that significant damage to windshields, wings and tail surfaces was possible but that small consumer drones would probably not cause catastrophic damage. It seems that this possible drone collision with a Boeing 737 passenger jet confirms that as it proceeded to land safely.
Please fly safely and responsibly. Go to the FAA website if you want to learn more about the rules and regulations that apply to all drone pilots. Or check out 'Buzzy the Drone' if you want to teach your kids.
Aeromexico #AM770 from Guadalajara suffered nose cone/radome damage on approach to Tijuana. Local media reporting it collided with a drone. No injuries reported. XA-ADV Boeing 737-800. pic.twitter.com/2WHv8TMyn1
— Tom Podolec Aviation (@TomPodolec) December 13, 2018
If you'd like to stay up to date with all the latest drone news, scoops, rumors and reviews, then follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram or sign up for our email newsletter DroneRise, that goes out every weekday morning at 6 am.
Buy your next drone through directly from manufacturers, such as DJI, Parrot, Yuneec or retailers like Amazon, B&H, BestBuy or eBay. By using our links, we will make a small commission, but it will not cost you anything extra. Thank you for helping DroneDJ grow!
Photo: AFAC Aviacao


text:
The cover story for the September 2020 issue of InDesign Magazine is my article InDesign MVPs: Most Valuable Plug-Ins. InDesign Magazine asked me to highlight the winners of a survey where they asked InDesign experts about their favorite plug-ins, scripts, and other third-party tools for Adobe InDesign. How do these add-ons extend what's possible with InDesign?(more…)
Introducing Share for Review: Article for InDesign Magazine
InDesign Magazine has published my article Introducing Share for Review, for the July 2020 issue. I talk about the new Share for Review collaborative commenting feature, the latest in a long line of InDesign review workflows. What's new or different about it?(more…)
InDesign to WordPress: iziExport review for InDesign Magazine
iziExport is an Adobe InDesign plug-in by Revolumedia that makes it easier to convert InDesign documents to WordPress posts, so it's an intriguing option if you're interested in converting some of your InDesign documents for publication on a WordPress-based web site. I reviewed iziExport for InDesign Magazine (November 2016).
Read my review of Blurb Book Creator in InDesign Magazine
The Blurb book publishing service provides several tools for you to design your own self-published book, but you may feel that those tools are limited. If you'd rather create a Blurb book using the full range of professional design and production capabilities in Adobe InDesign, the Blurb Book Creator plug-in may be for you. I reviewed Blurb Book Creator for InDesign Magazine (February 2015). I think it's a great tool that simplifies Blurb book creation, and can help spot and resolve problems before they turn into costly printing mistakes.
Click the link below to read the article at InDesign Magazine:
InDesign Magazine, Issue 70: Inspired Designs
It's a pretty strong issue overall, with lots of well-researched and informative content like Justin Seeley's article on using Adobe Muse, Sandee Cohen's article on the many ways to place graphics in InDesign layout, and David Blatner's article on using RGB images for prepress.
The article is part of an issue of InDesign Magazine that you can buy as a single issue or as part of a subscription. InDesign Magazine is a bimonthly periodical devoted entirely to Adobe InDesign and to the thriving community of InDesign professionals. With editorial direction by page-layout guru and author David Blatner and CreativePro.com editor in chief Mike Rankin, InDesign Magazine brings you the in-depth features, reviews, and tutorials you need to master Adobe InDesign. You can download a free trial issue.
Read my Lightroom Mobile review on CreativePro.com
The debut of Lightroom Mobile on the iPad naturally brings high expectations: Can this new app help a tablet replace a laptop in a raw photo workflow, and how well do photographers' favorite features of the desktop version of Lightroom translate to the Apple iPad? If you want to know what I think, you can now read my review of Lightroom Mobile, published on CreativePro.com.


text:
Archive 2015:
Remembering the best bits about creating the art and branding for this UK metal festival. Catching up with Jake Bannon of Converge, and giving him the stack of posters I made for their appearance. A great weekend, before the bizarre and untimely demise of the event just a year later.
Temples Festival 2015
Archive 2015:
Posted in Uncategorized. RSS 2.0 feed.


text:
BH-74 - Common Eider, King Eider - Uhuulda C36
The mighty Common Eider, King Eider return; with much anticipation just as they are smoldering their way through the European Underground on tour. Here in total ghost mode, this music is truly beautiful andhaunting. Hushed vocals and sparse electronics dominate the four tracks. The sound that emanates from the skeletal remains of the dark ambient, dark folk, and doom metal genres. Gold offset printing on red metallic stock. Standard 2-panel j-card with a six page lyric booklet that is hand inscribed with the Common Eider King Eider logo on the front in gold metallic ink by Rob Fisk. Packaged inside a red velvet bag, with a red tipped pheasant feather. Limited to 200 copies on red tapes with gold labels. Split label release with Cloister Recordings.


text:
It is the third night that Roger Martinez, a young man of 35, comes home drunk. His wife cannot handle this situation any longer. She had to ask her neighbor for two eggs to accompany the white rice she made for her children's dinner. Meanwhile, she wonders how her husband manages to get money to intoxicate himself nearly every single day.
Daily, Roger goes out to search for a job, but a self-employed job. He'll clean a backyard, he'll do some construction in certain homes, etc. He does not have a specific occupation, but he does anything in order to live day to day. For him, working in the street means more income than he would make with a monthly salary. All in all, however, it is still not enough to get by.
Before, when he would lay his head on his pillow, he would think of the different ways he could resolve the economic difficulties that awaited him the following day. He had to figure out a way to pay for all the electrical appliances given to him during the "Energy Revolution," to continue supporting his children, to get food, to repair the house, etc.
Now, his situation has only worsened. To work for himself and at his own risk he needs a government license. The Tax Administration Office of his municipality has required him the guarantee to be a grocer, dependent of the centers which deliver the subsidy quota, that way he will be accredited that he is not a "debtor of the nation." On the contrary, they will not let him operate as a self-employed citizen.
Martinez now finds himself in a dilemma — in order to work legally, he has to settle his debts with the State. The problem lies in the fact that he does not know how he will get more than 10 thousand pesos to pay for all the appliances given to him by the benevolent Battle of Ideas. He can barely even guarantee food for his children.
He has no other option but to work illegally and to incur one of the legal violations that come along with self-employment. Infringement is punished by a fine of 1,200 pesos, and that's just for taking part in activities that are "legally authorized" without presenting the proper documentation which certifies him as a self-employed worker.
Roger wonders where he will get the money from if this happens. His problems do not diminish, instead they grow. The only solution for the time being is to not think. Either way, the only alternative to survive is to run the risk and work "on the left"*, as they say out on the streets.
His day starts at 6 AM in the bar at the corner of the street. At that time, he gulps down his first drink of the day. He ends up stumbling and talking to himself on the way back home. Drinking alcoholic beverages has become his main attraction, as a way to not face his frustrations and weakness. An escape from the harsh reality, a remedy to not have to think.
Translated by Raul G.


text: Michelle Honda-Phillips stands with her transgender daughter, Malisa, at a pre-event for Tadaima in Berkeley, California. Tadaima Bay Area 2016 hide caption toggle caption Tadaima Bay Area 2016 Code Switch In California, A 'Welcome Home' For The Japanese-American Queer Community April 2, 2016 Japanese-Americans in California have been working hard to strengthen ties between the API queer community and its friends, families and allies. This new conference series is a start.


text:
Brick and Stone CleaninganemptytextllineSpecialists in façade cleaning of all types of buildings from family homes to London architecture.
BRICK AND STONE RESTORATIONanemptytextllineOur restoration experts are skilled in stone and brick repairs throughout London and beyond.
Marble and Stone MasonryanemptytextllineWe supply and fit all kind of stone and marble for both interior and exterior use. Find out more.
Mosaics and Victorian FloorsanemptytextllineWe can repair, conserve and replace historical floors and Victorian tile flooring.
When passion meets craftsmanship and reliability
Artem Restoration is a dynamic team of experienced masons who specialise in brick, stone and marble cleaning and restoration. With a mixture of British and Italian expertise, Artem masons marry these two styles with an unparalleled passion for their craft which is reflected in their work. To us, stonework is not a job – it's an art.
Utilising evolving technologies to accentuate centuries-old traditional craft, we work with a variety of materials to restore facades, tiles and bricks to their deserved original beauty.
Utilising evolving technologies to accentuate centuries-old traditional craft, we work with a variety of materials to restore facades, tiles and bricks to their deserved original beauty.
We work in all Greater London, contact us now for a free quote to have your stone coatings sparkling clean.
What Our Clients Say
It's easy for us to tell you how good we are, but there is someone else who can do it even better – our satisfied customers.
"Brilliant workmanship from the Artem team. I am thrilled with the renewed stonework and marble in my house, and will definitely use them for any future projects. Highly recommended``- Charlotte Tilbury | ★★★★★
Google Review: "Great brick cleaning service in London at affordable price!"- Jonathan Dewey – Finsbury Park, London | ★★★★★
Google Review: "We chose Artem Restoration to strip paint from our garden wall. We are very pleased with the result and very impressed with Davide and his hard-working, professional team"- Graham Ward | ★★★★★
From a dirty, tired facade to a gleaming, clean and original colour of brick frontage, this is the work of Artem Restoration. A really classy team and a delight to work with!- Battersea Design | ★★★★★


text:
Video: Mother of Drunk-Driving Victim Shares Her Story
[bitsontherun r8O1VMHD]
Verona, MS (WCBI) — A northeast Mississippi mother is helping sound a warning as part of the "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign. The mother experienced a parent's worst nightmare almost four years ago and is now talking to others about an evening that changed her life forever.
Teenagers, law enforcement officers and others listened intently as Casey Wood talked about her son, Brendon. She is an advocate with the "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign.
For Casey, she describes her 18-year-old son as her 'best friend.'
"We grew up together, like we just grew up together. We had the same interests, same taste in music, same style. He was just my best friend. We talked about everything. He could come to me about anything. "
Although they had a uniquely close relationship, Wood was also the mother who let Brendon and his friends know they could call her for anything, no matter the situation.
"We talked openly about drinking and driving. He was my best friend but I still was the mom to let him know, you know if you are ever in a situation, I've told them since before they got their license, if you are ever in a situation where there's drinking going on, or you drink I want you to be able to call me. I told all of his friends, if you don't feel like you can call your parents, call me, I'll come pick you up no questions asked."
Brendon graduated on May 20th 2010 from North Pontotoc High School. He was a musician and was excited for his future plans of going on tour.
Two days later, on May 22nd, Wood's mother received a phone call from a friend of her son's saying they had been in a car wreck while on the way home.
"I was like 'okay calm down, is everyone okay?' and he said yes but we need you to come up here. So my husband and I called somebody to come stay with our 7-year-old and we drive three minutes down the road which seemed to take an hour to me. We get there and everyone was not okay."
Brendon spent a month in the hospital, he passed away June 22.
"That morning, I was with a lively, funny, made everyone he was around laugh, or feel like something special, knew what I was thinking, could finish my sentences. That night I had a child that could not do anything, could not open his eyes."
Now, Casey Wood is encouraging drivers of all ages to consider the possible consequences before they drink and get behind the wheel.
" If you're drinking and driving, yeah, you're buzzed, feeling good, all is great, you have that liquid confidence, but you could take a life, regardless of how you feel in your mind, how you think, oh, I'm a better driver, or I can do this, I've only had a few, no, it's not that way, you don't know, it's not up to you."
In Verona I'm Alyssa Martin.
The driver of the car Brendon was in was charged with DUI death.


text:
It wasn't as pretty as usual in Auckland today, so we headed below the deck to the fabulous and interactive Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium.
Identifying all the different fish was fun, but making them come to life was the highlight of the day.
First, you color a sea creature.
Then you scan them and they come to life in the digital aquarium. There are about four coloring stations, each with its own aquarium.
Then your sea creature joins the rest of the fish in an aquarium of all of the digitized drawings. Kids catch on quickly and make sure to put their names on each creature so they can track their progress on the screen.
This was truly an ingenious idea and fun for all ages. There were definitely a few grownup fish swimming around in there.


text:
We lost a dear friend in Norm Kreuz the other day after a great life and a long illness [with Ellie by his side through every lasting moment].
I use to love to get Norm talking. Whether it was about old haunts on Niagara Falls Blvd, his childhood before life on the farm, fixing the disposal, falling in love with Ellie, moving the family from Ohio to Buffalo [with the oft-told road-kill story], or just the vast repertoire of remembrances from raising 6 kids – Norm always shared his zest for life with whoever would listen.
Norm was the consummate salesman. He was old-school, and he was the best of a dying breed. I haven't met a 'Norm' in years. Today's salespeople are all about metrics and Tony Robbins' hype. Norm had the charm to go along with the facts. He knew his customers, and they knew him. But it wasn't the way we know customers today. Norm's customers were never data, they were his customers and his friends – and he would see them year after year. It's a lesson Joe learned well. Even today, Joe's guideline for his business is still about building relationships that last a lifetime.
I remember one night back in 1983, when Norm passed by the original Stereo Advantage at around one in the morning [after a little too much gin rummy at the Red Carpet]. Norm walked into our warehouse [which was an apartment living room behind the shop] and he saw Butch doing the work of five guys. Butch was just a 19-year-old kid back then, and he was deciding between the Stereo Advantage and Buff State – and Norm just looked at him like he was crazy – but the pride was undeniable. Norm always knew the difference between shit and Shinola, and he always knew his kids would be successful. But success to Norm [for himself and his family] was never measured by how big your farm was – it was always measured how big the love in your family was.
I'll leave you with two great moments I had with Norm. The first one came a dozen years ago from a simple phone call from Joe asking me if I had seen JoJo. No one knew where he was, and they were trying to get ahold of him. Turns out that he just dropped by Norm's to catch a football game with grandpa. That's all you need to know as a grandparent. That's love – and that's the kind of love Norm gave and received in abundance.
And my last endearing moment with Norm came at a Christmas party at Frank's several years ago. Norm sat me down and told me he just didn't understand why people were killing each other. He wanted to know why there was so much bloodshed. After 80 years of living, he just didn't understand all the dying. He truly wanted to know if I could explain it. For a man who loved life so much, he just couldn't understand how it could be wasted so mercilessly.
For Norm Kreuz, it was a full life – and he never wasted a drop of it. He is an inspiration to all that knew and loved him. We would all do well to share his zest and appreciation for the gift of life.


text:
I believe after the visit to the Shongweni Christmas Market, the Maree family may be visiting annually on the 16th of December. The cheer and love of the festivities was just exhilarating filled with wide grins celebrating the Christmas spirit.
It had been a while since we last visited the Shongweni Market and their Christmas Market is really an absolute treat. If you're looking to get something unique and personal, I recommend a visit. It's a sensual experience, with your eyes devouring the beautiful handcrafted joys and your sense of taste spoilt for choices.
It's a lovely day to spend with family and the kiddies will definitely be entertained. Listen to live music and enjoy a shopping experience outside in the glorious Kwa-Zulu Natal sun. There's such a large variety of stalls with smiling faces ready to great you.
We were even spoilt with a wonderful performance of scotish bagpipe players.
Make sure you visit this festive season between the 15th-18th of December.


text:
God and man here and there: looking at Chile
A strongly worded editorial in today's Jornada takes the same tack I have when it comes to discussing the clerical purge in Chile: that the pedophilia scandal has as much to do with the Church getting into bed with Agustin PInochet as it did with Francisco Karadema trying to get young seminarians into his bed.
It was not the only in Chile where violating minors and disorderly conduct by the religious became widespread and frequent practices: since the 90s of the last century, when notably in Ireland and the United States, documented cases of pedophilia, with abundant and irrefutable evidence that the Catholic flock almost everywhere was shaken by the evidence that a large number of clerics, often protected by their hierarchical superiors, were more concerned with the body than with the souls of their parishioners. Little by little, people who at some point in their lives were linked to seminaries, orphanages, parishes, hospitals or Catholic social service centers dared to ventilate situations that had remained hidden for decades.
The case of the Chilean Church, however, threatens a crisis of unique proportions despite the secrecy with which the so-called Holy See investigators examine the accusations of pedophilia and various abuses that weigh heavily on the Chilean clergy. In committing their crimes, the ecclesiastics of that country counted on the impunity that guaranteed them by the government of the dictator Augusto Pinochet: their support for the regime given in return for the favor of extending Catholic confessional education in the schools through high school, an old aspiration of the Church in the local educational environment. It is likely that the certainty of impunity impunity contributed to stimulating the commission of sexual crimes to such an extent that it reached into the cclesial structure of the Andean nation.
Although the acts attributed to the accused Chilean priests are condemnable by themselves, the fact that they were committed with the support (tacit or explicit) of a bloodthirsty regime that proclaimed itself a Catholic at all costs, makes them all the more disgraceful and repudiable.
It is difficult to foresee how far the commitment assumed by the Bishop of Rome in the sense of purging the Church of Chile — and by extension the Church in general — from the corruption in one of the most conservative societies in Latin America will reach. And whether it will staunch the rapid disenchantment of the faithful (in 2016 only 45 percent of Chileans declared themselves Catholic, compared to 74 percent who claimed to be Catholics in 1995). But whatever the result of the papal intervention, it will be difficult for the institution to recover the prestige it reached for the times when many of its ministers violated the elementary rights of children, while blessing the abuses and crimes of a de facto president who claimed that human rights were an invention of Marxists .
In election news here, the latest scandal has been a "hail Mary" attempt to smear the leading candidate as anti-Catholic… specifically anti-Virgin of Guadalupe. The two events — the ecclesiastical purge in Chile, and the admittedly pathetic political stunt here — are part of a pattern I've noticed ever since the leadership of the Catholic Church passed from Popes focused on the East-West divide (the European theater in WWII, and the Cold War) to one from the global south. The Cold Warrior, John-Paul II, never really understood our part of the planet, and appeared to take for granted that we would remain "most faithful" no matter what. While when it came to Mexico, he was undoubtedly bamboozed by the odious Marcial Maciel, it also has to be said that John-Paul's attitude towards Latin America (and by extension, Africa and Asia as well) as colonialist. Just as the Church was emerging (better late than never) from its dominance by the old colonial powers… turning to liberation theology on one hand, and the more traditional role of the Church in Latin America as a counterweight to the State… John-Paul sought to turn the clock back, promoting to the hierarchy not just those who were co-opted by state power (like the former Cardinal of Mexico City, Norberto Rivera), but those whose allegiance is to the European reactionaries, like the Opus Dei bishops we find throughout Latin America. Not that I think Opus Dei is more prone to pedophilia than any other order within the Church, only that they are a late import meant to bring "us" back into line, just as the Latin American church was finding its own way.
And, so… the fliers claiming Morena (and AMLO in person) is anti-clerical and opposing the will of the Virgin of Guadalupe. What is more interesting than those behind the fliers is the futility of the effort. The declining number of faithful (Mexico, much more Catholic than Chile, has always been more "liberal" as well, but even here, the number of faithful has been rapidly declining over the last few decades) are much less likely to simply accept "on faith" what they are told by clerical leaders owing their allegiance only secondarily to Rome, but first to the powers-that-be. It isn't only in Mexico City (only starting to recover from Norberto Rivera's reign) that committed Catholics are turning away from what Rome says, and looking to the traditions of leaders like Bartolome de las Casas, the 16th century defender of the indigenous, or Raul Vera, the liberationist Bishop of Saltillo, or Padre Solinde, the human rights activist.
Perhaps what it all means, if anything, is just that Rome is finally decolonizing. Purging the Bishops in Chile one hopes clears the field for a hierarchy more attuned to Chilean concerns (and not those of the neo-liberal elites) as much as the failed attempt to call the faithful in a political campaign means that the Mexicans expect more from the Church than just saying no to any attempt to change the system to one more in our own interest.


text:
Ms. Throwback here with Wesley Adams. It's about the upcoming Indie Game No Mercy from Multivarious. Here is our interview from GDEX 2018.
Wesley: No Mercy is a side-scrolling, hack and slash beat em up game. It's very much a game about consequences. Depending on what you do in the story, who you choose to bring on your journey, and how you evolve that through time will actually change the dynamic of the story.
It's about going into a forest finding different kinds of enemies. Using your different characters, friends to move through obstacles, having a good time doing it. Revealing the story.
Ms Throwback: Taking into account the awesome artwork in the game's promotional images, it sounds like there was a really big emphasis on character design. The nature of the character. Can you tell us some about that?
Wesley: Katie Hamill is our artist. She's done an excellent job of capturing the feel of the game. Her goal was to come up with misfit characters that really interact with each other. She Even did the hand drawn fonts in our game.
Ms. Throwback: When and where can we see this game?
Wesley: No mercy is expected some time in 2019. We're looking for release on Steam, Mac, PC, and Linux. If it does well were looking for release on a platforms such as PS4 and Nintendo Switch.


text:
Fixing B2B demand generation.
Upon doing "The Drill" on ourselves, we eventually boiled it down to the above, simple statement.
A more detailed answer to Peter Drucker's famous question to his CEO clients is that B2B³ (aka B2B Cubed) is a specialty business-to-business (B2B) marketing agency focused on driving awareness, preference, retention and pipeline for companies with innovative solutions/services but an average or underperforming marketing function.
Innovators with strong management, teaching, strategy and B2B execution experience, B2B³ is an agency formed by a team that has consistently delivered exceptional B2B marketing results globally for decades.
B2B³'s founders have built, tested and are now delivering a complete approach and solution to help B2B and B2B2C companies dramatically improve their marketing execution and demand generation results while actually reducing their marketing costs and increasing the trust and empowerment of clients' marketing organizations by their Executive Management and Sales organizations.
Along with our referral network of elite B2B marketing and advertising firms and practitioners, B2B³ can help you achieve (or point you to), the highest ROI marketing in your industry. If you're interested in getting the best B2B marketing expertise in the industry on a contract basis, review our case studies and give us a call.


text:
The line up of winter-edition shoes includes twists on its D Rose 6, Crazy 8 and Crazylight Boost 2015 collections.
NBA players James Harden, the newest face of Adidas' basketball brand, and Derrick Rose are expected to wear the sneakers during their Christmas Day games.
|Adidas Crazy 8 Christmas Day Sneakers
And the Crazy 8 style, retailing for $110, gives a nod to winter's crisp days by featuring a midsole with matching green and white threads. The Crazy 8 Christmas Day edition also boasts gold detailing, particularly on its zig-zag midsole.
Both shoes hit stores Dec. 18.
|The Adidas D Rose 6 and Crazy 8 Christmas Sneakers.


text: This quick imageless post (more like a twitter tweet I guess) finds me walking out the door in a second……like a lamb to the slaughter! How close are these hotels and planners going to book events back to back before one is severely jeopardized? My god, a 5 hour window to reset from a general session to a full on party for 2000 people! I am sure my next post will be reporting a total success….it always goes that way, but I still can't help but think I am walking into an olympic pool sized blood bath. More on all of this later!


text:
Vasa previa: A condition in which blood vessels within the placenta or the umbilical cord are trapped between the fetus and the opening to the birth canal, a situation that carries a high risk the fetus may die from hemorrhage due to a blood vessel tearing at the time the fetal membranes rupture or during labor and delivery. Another danger is lack of oxygen to the fetus.
Vasa previa often occurs with a low-lying placenta (due to scarring of the uterus by a previous miscarriage or a D&C), an unusually formed placenta (a bilobed placenta or succenturiate-lobed placenta), an in-vitro fertilization pregnancy, and multiple pregnancies (twins, triplets, etc). Vasa previa also may accompany velamentous insertion of the umbilical cord.
Vasa previa may not be suspected until the fetal vessel rupture occurs. Reduction in fetal mortality depends on prenatal diagnosis. When vasa previa is found before labor, the baby has a much greater chance of surviving. Vasa previa can be detected during pregnancy as early as the 16th week of pregnancy with use of transvaginal sonography in combination with color Doppler.
When vasa previa is diagnosed, C-section before labor begins can save the baby's life. The C-section should be done early enough to avoid an emergency, but late enough to avoid problems associated with prematurity.


text:
Mt. Kenya (5,200m), the second highest mountain in Africa after Mt. Kilimanjaro (5,900m) could be seen from some parts of the Muguga road on a very clear day as if inviting us for a visit. It was a rugged mountain with snow and three main peaks: Batian (5,199m), Nelion (5,188m) and Lenana (4,985m). They are named after Mbatian (a Maasai Medicine Man), Nelieng, his brother, and Lenana, one his sons.
In 1849 Krapf found the mountain, located a few km south of the equator, following a similar story of the finding of Kilimanjaro described earlier. It was Krapf who gave the mountain the name "Kenya", likely to derive from the words Kirinyaga, Kirenyaa and Kiinyaa which mean "God's resting place" in the language of three of the main ethnic groups that live around the mountain: Kikuyu, Embu and Kamba respectively. The mountain gave the country its name.
Mount Kenya surged approximately three million years after the formation of the East African rift valley and it has suffered the impact of erosion resulting in what we see today: weather-beaten slopes, valleys and shrinking glaciers. Mount Kenya is the main water catchment area for two large rivers in Kenya: the Tana, the largest Kenyan river and the Ewaso Nyiro than runs north through very dry country.
The vegetation in Mt. Kenya changes with altitude. Around the base of the mountain we saw fertile farmland extending as far as you could see and I recall the amazing horticultural wealth of the Murang'a market where, among an enormous amount of horticultural produce, I have seen the largest cabbages! Unfortunately, althogh necessary, it was clear that the agriculture frontier was gradually encroaching the forests.
The nature of the forests found in Mt. Kenya depend on rainfall and whether they grow in the south- or north-facing slopes. Above the forest there is a wide band of almost pure bamboo and above it we find the timberline forest with smaller trees. The heathland (wet) and chaparral (dry) zones start at about three thousand metres. The former, located in the wetter part has giant heathers while the latter is found in the drier areas and it consists mainly of grasses.
As we continue our virtual climb, the temperature fluctuations increase to extremes and the air's oxygen decreases and we enter into the most known place of the mountain: the Afro-alpine zone, an area with several endemic plant species such as giant groundsels (senecios) and giant lobelias. After this there are glaciers and rock in the areas that the latter had retreated and no vegetation is present there.
Not being climbers or hikers we had a limited interest in mountains and preferred to spend our time in the more manageable lower grasslands of Kenya. However, we decided to give it go.
During our first visit to Mt. Kenya we entered through the west of the mountain, through the Naro Moru gate, one of the busiest. Although we intended to camp near the gate, we decided to go up the mountain on a exploratory trip through a road that got progressively worse until we reached a point where the kombi's torque and the altitude became even and there we stopped. It was already late so we decided to spend the night in the car, cold and wet, not appreciating the beauty of the place.
The following day we managed to turn the car around in the mud and descended to more manageable roads where we had some joy by watching the vegetation and views of the peaks that, luckily, were uncovered that day. We returned to Nairobi and we promised ourselves to come back.
We did return another year. This time we followed a different route on the eastern side through the Chogoria gate that led to our bungalow at the Meru Mt. Kenya Lodge. It was freezing but luckily there was hot water although the firewood was wet and to make a fire was quite a job. It soon became misty and we could not see anything around us, apart from the buffaloes that apparently found the bungalows a protection against predators!
The following morning the buffaloes had gone and the mist lifted so we decided to go for a guided hike to Lake Ellis and suffered the effects of altitude and cold. This was the country where "Icy Mike" an elephant that lived (and died) at 4,400m, an unusual event as it demands very high energy consumption, not typical of elephants and that is still unexplained.
Like the first, the second visit was not a great success and it was the end of our attempts at 'enjoying' the mountain. We left early and got to Nairobi in time to go to the Fox Drive In cinema to enjoy a good movie and an Indian dinner and, later, a hot shower and a rest. We decided that we had done enough and that from then on we would watch Mt. Kenya from a distance and enjoy it!


text:
Hello everyone! The amazing Teresa Grabs tagged me for The Decade Tag! Thank you so much! You're awesome. Rules: Please share a link to the creator of the tag, Jesusluvsall Share some highlights for you over the past decade and a few low points if you want Tag whoever you wish to Ask them some questions … Continue reading The Decade Tag
Tag: asians
Best books of 2019
I'm not the best with consistency. The first time I did the best books of, I wrote about my favorite books that I read that year, despite when they came out. In 2018, I wrote about the best of the best that came out that year with Goodreads blurbs. So... This year, I decided to … Continue reading Best books of 2019
Book review – Crazy Rich Asians (Spoiler Free)
"I hate to point out the obvious, but here's this tiny bird that's been trying to get through a huge bulletproof glass wall. A totally impossible situation. You tell me it's been here every day pecking away persistently for ten minutes. Well, today the glass wall came down." Title: Crazy Rich Asians Author: Kevin Kwan … Continue reading Book review – Crazy Rich Asians (Spoiler Free)


text:
and combing it with this Besties Selfie Chippy . Here ,I am simply adoring the end results.
I supposed it could also be that I have used some incredible
Stathmore watercolour 12x12 -300gm paper. Mmmmmmmmm lush .
plus some Tim Holtz and Dylusions inks ,a few random lines with my posca ,
a stamp here and there, and it really didn't take long to throw this one together.


text:
Let's face it–January isn't the only time we should be talking about how we need to exercise and eat healthier. And how often do we talk about the other disciplines in life–managing money, getting enough sleep, making the most of our schedule?
In The Art of Good Habits, author Nathalie W. Herrman takes the reader through 250 pages of simple yet life-changing ways to get the foundation of our lives back on track.
Though there are plenty of "self-help" books out there, Herrman offers a bluntness that isn't always found. Each section asks the reader to examine himself or herself, even giving excuses that you might be using to not do your best. "I don't have time to eat well," you may say. "It will be better to deal with this on my own."
She breaks all of these little activities into four groups–health, love, presence, and prosperity. Master these big thoughts, she says, and the small things will become second-nature.
This book is short, sweet, and to the point, recommended for readers who feel that they struggle with some area of maintaining balance in life. But many readers often find that things they thought they had under control could, really, be quite drastically improved.
Look, it's May. New Years resolutions are the furthest things from our mind. But resources like this can make personal growth a journey, not just a single point in time. Give it a go.
Thanks for reading! -Autumn


text:
10 Things I Wish I'd Known Before Traveling To Cuba
1. Cuba has two currencies.
There's the Cuban peso (CUP, otherwise known as the national coin), and the convertible peso (CUC), which is equivalent to 25 CUP and on par with the USD. Basically, tourists have a separate currency from locals and yes, it is confusing.
2. Because of that, it's not as cheap as you'd think.
Since tourists have their own currency, prices can be raised to meet foreigners' buying power. For example, a museum entrance can cost 8x more for a visitor than for a local. Relatively speaking, Cuba is still affordable, but expect to pay significantly more than Cubans.
3. There are really strict tourist laws.
The government has put a lot of laws into place to restrict contact between visitors and locals. Cubans are forbidden to "harass" tourists, so unless you initiate the conversation yourself, your communication with locals is probably going to be reserved to those working in tourist services. And these laws are actually enforced — in fact, it's too easy for a local to get a ticket for seemingly benevolent behavior such as approaching tourists or giving them a ride.
4. Flexibility is not just a suggestion.
On my first day there, my local friend told me: "Cuba is the country of lines." This couldn't have been more true. Due to the lack of technology to help speed things along, everything is a process in Cuba: from exchanging cash, to checking in at the airport, to traveling from city to city — and if you're on a budget, you're going to have to take buses everywhere due to the lack of infrastructure. If you want to avoid stress, it's important to strike a delicate balance between planning your destinations and activities ahead of time, while also remaining flexible to the possibility of making some changes on the fly.
5. You're going to have to forget about amenities.
Toilet paper and soap are rare luxuries — even in nice places. The water runs when it feels like it (read: lots of cold baths with water scooped out of a large plastic bin), and air conditioning comes at a high price. My best advice is to always pack toilet paper, a fan, and hand sanitizer, and emotionally prepare yourself for some occasional discomfort.
6. There is no advertising anywhere. Because Communism.
Considering how many ads we are bombarded with daily across most of the world, it was jarring to see how barren of marketing Cuba was. Many locals haven't even heard of the name McDonald's or Starbucks. The only "advertising" that existed was propaganda: there were images of Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and other communist leaders everywhere, as well as messages endorsing communism and socialism.
7. Most Cubans genuinely don't think they're living in a dictatorship.
It's unsurprising yet still shocking to see how biased Cuban history is against the U.S. and favorable to the Castros. While the U.S. views Cuba as a repressive dictatorship, Cubans themselves don't see it that way; although many — especially the younger generations — seemed to be disgruntled with the current government, I encountered very few Cubans who viewed the state as a dictatorship.
8. If you're a woman, you're going to get cat-called.
Trust me, I do not exaggerate when I say this: as a foreign woman, it is really difficult to walk a few blocks without being cat-called by a local. This comes in the form of hisses, clucks, kissy noises, and everything in between. It took me a while to accept that culturally, this is supposed to be a compliment. But still, be prepared to be consistently creeped out.
9. There is so much more to the country than Havana.
When I first read about Cuba, I mostly learned about Havana and its surrounding locations that are accessible by day trips. I realized when I arrived there that the country has SO many beautiful places to visit, and getting from one to the other is a process since the infrastructure is so limited. When visiting Cuba, I would recommend staying at least 15 days to really see everything, and even that won't be enough.
Some of my favorite places were the valleys of Viñales, Trinidad — a Spanish colonial town and the oldest in Cuba, dating back to the 1500s — and Playa Ancon, which is a crystalline beach near Trinidad.
10. You're going to feel very welcomed.
One of the first things I noticed traveling through the country was how much the Cuban community seemed to look out for one another. The people I met were some of the kindest, warmest, and overwhelmingly appreciative people that I've ever met traveling, especially when it came to welcoming visitors. I've never felt so genuinely wanted as a tourist in another country.
One of my best memories was chatting with an elder street vendor, who gifted me a pair of earrings simply for stopping to speak with him. His payment, he said, was to visit him when I returned to Cuba. Another time, my friend's relatives invited me to have a homemade lunch with them at their farm. Yes, they seemed to have little, but they welcomed and fed me. At the end of the day, Cuba had some quirks that I had to get used to, but as I left, all I felt was joy over the experiences I had there.


text:
Andrew Wommack Daily Devotionals 26 September 2022: Give Cheerfully, Not Out Of Fear
SCRIPTURE: Matthew 23:23 'Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.'
Some have taught that Jesus did away with the tithe since it is not a specific part of the New Testament teaching. But in this instance, Jesus made reference to the scribes and Pharisees tithing and implied that they were right in doing so. The New Covenant did not do away with the tithe but it clarified what the motives for tithing should be.
Abram tithed over 430 years before the law was given. Jacob also tithed approximately 300 years before the time of the law. Therefore, tithing was a Biblical principle that didn't begin or end with the law of Moses. However, the law of Moses did include tithing as part of its commandments and attached were stiff penalties for those who failed to comply. It was concerning these punishments for not tithing, that the New Testament differed from the Old Testament. Malachi 3:8-9 says that if a man doesn't tithe, he has robbed God and is cursed with a curse. Therefore, people gave out of the motivation of debt and obligation. Jesus redeemed us from this and all the other curses of the law, so that God will not curse us for not tithing.
The apostle Paul also made it very clear that any type of giving motivated by anything less than God's kind of love is useless. He went on to explain in 2 Corinthians 9:7, that God wants us to give, 'not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.' The type of giving that God loves is cheerful, freewill giving. This does not mean that tithing is contrary to the New Testament. It is the 'fear of punishment' motive, that the Old Testament law attached to tithing, that has been done away with. Giving and tithing are still very much a part of the New Testament doctrine, and if done with the New Testament attitude, are still acceptable to God. Be a giver.
Credit for today's Andrew Wommack daily devotional 26 September 2022: Andrew Wommack Ministries/Awmi.net


text:
I asked in my last post what problem is being solved, and what need is being met by time shares. I thought back to some high pressured sales pitches I've found myself under. I have succumbed to many, including a couple of multi-level marketing organizations. I learned two things:
- I am not cut out for sales, whether multi-level marketing or otherwise
- Often, you think life is going just fine until you sit through one of those presentations and learn that somehow your life is all screwed up. It can take years to overcome what they put in your head in one of those organizations.
I figured I would share one. In early 1994, I was a 19 year old FC3 (Fire Controlman 3rd class, or E-4). I was finishing up my class "C" school in San Diego, and had orders to report to the U.S.S. White Plains in Apra Harbor, Guam. I went to the Fleet Exchange for something, probably uniform items. As I walked in the door and showed my ID, a woman sitting at some display booth just inside the door called me over to show me something. To this day, I'm not entirely sure what it was. She was selling some set of books, but they weren't encyclopedias. She was selling the entire set all at once, and as it cost more than $2000, it could be financed and she could arrange the financing. She seemed more interested in giving me the financing as they probably made a lot of their money on interest from young sailors. A lot of people make a lot of money on interest off of young servicemen, which is why they hang around the bases.
From what I can remember, this set of non-encyclopedia books could somehow be used for college credit. You can get a long way with a young sailor by using the words "college credit." To this point, I had come up with a few questions. Note, I did not have the 3-point test I mentioned in my last post at this time. I had just been sucked into that multi-level marketing organization the year before, and I would succumb to many more apparent rip-offs in the years to come.
I asked if I could buy them one at a time. The answer was no, the entire package had to be bought. Hmm, that sounded silly. I said that I was on my way to a ship, and I had no idea what personal space I would have to keep a set like this. She said that sailors told her they can always find places to put things (this is true; sailors can be incredibly resourceful) but she could keep them and mail them back and forth to me while I'm overseas. I had never been to Guam, but I grew up in the Air Force and I know how well the postal system can work overseas.
To this point, she was being very nice. Then I asked if I could think about it overnight and come back the next day. Then her composure started to fail. She said that she wasn't feeling well and might have to be out sick the next couple of days, and I believe this was my last week before going on leave then flying to Guam. She really got insistent that I buy the books before I walked away. At this point, somehow I had enough gumption to tell her that I wasn't going to commit to anything today, and if she's back before I leave, then we can talk. I walked away, bought whatever I came for, then went to lodge a complaint with NEX Customer Service that this woman was trying to strong arm sailors into parting with their hard earned money. I have no idea if Customer Service listened or not, but I never saw her there again.
Maybe I'll have to do a series on sea stories. Do you know what the difference is between a fairy tale and a sea story? A fairy tale begins "Once upon a time..." A sea story begins "You're not going to believe this, but it REALLY happened..." (NOTE: that is the clean version of the joke.)
Technorati Tags: Rip offs,high-pressure sales


text:
…Dragon's Breath Cowl by Nim Teasdale!
This cowl is knit using just one skein of the light and fluffy Alpaca Lace from Cascade Yarns. This yarn is super soft 100% alpaca that has a beautiful loft and the magical alpaca ability to keep you nice and warm. The total cost for this project is (hold on to your butts!) $8.50, needles not included but the pattern is free. That's right kids, eight dollars and fifty cents! We added beads to ours, which you can pick up at any craft store (check out the Potomac Bead Company on Main Street in Mechanicsburg for bead overload) for around $3. Talk about knitting bang for your buck!
Have fun and stitch on my fellow theorists!


text:
How to use JNBridgePro with new and emerging languages
Over the last few months, we've given examples of how to use JNBridgePro to bridge between various "emerging languages" (for example, Python – here and here, Groovy, and Clojure) and "legacy" Java or .NET code. But what if you encounter a brand new language that you want to integrate with your Java or .NET code? How would you approach this problem? Here are some guidelines.
The "new" language must have an implementation on the Java or .NET platforms. Since JNBridgePro bridges between Java and .NET (or, more precisely, between the Java Runtime and the .NET Common Language Runtime), the new language must be implemented on one of these platforms.
If you want to call from the new language to your Java or .NET, the "new" language must allow for calls to other binaries that run on the same platform. If the language has been implemented on the Java platform (like Jython or Clojure) it needs to have a mechanism for calling other Java binaries. If programs in this language can call Java classes, then they can call proxied .NET classes generated by JNBridgePro, thereby supporting cross-platform calls. Similarly, if a .NET-based language (such as Iron Python) can call other .NET assemblies, then it can call proxied Java classes. In either case, just call the proxied classes and methods in the same way as you would call the Java or .NET classes that the language/environment was designed to support calling.
If you want to call from your Java or .NET code to code written in the new language, the new language, when compiled, must expose an API that can be proxied and called. This is a little trickier. If the new language compiles to object-oriented Java or .NET binaries, then proxying those APIs should be trivial. However, if the new language runs in its own runtime (albeit .NET- or Java-based), then a different approach is necessary. Generally, such languages provide a .NET- or Java-based invocation API that allows outside callers to access the runtime and invoke specified methods. If such an API exists, you can simply proxy it, and use it to invoke the desired methods cross-platform.
For example, if you want to call a Groovy method myMethod from Groovy file myFile.groovy from .NET, you can proxy the Java-based Groovy runtime class
groovy.lang.GroovyShell and
java.io.File (along with supporting classes). Once that's done, you can write the following C# code to call the method:
using groovy.lang; using java.io; … new GroovyShell().parse( new File( "myFile.groovy") ).invokeMethod( "myMethod", args );
Similar APIs exist for calling Clojure and Jython from Java, and can be proxied and used from .NET.
In some cases the language in question may not offer an obvious invocation API. A number of years ago, we had a customer who wanted to call Fujitsu NetCOBOL code (admittedly not a "new" or "emerging" language) from Java. The compiled DLLs exposed an API that looked like gibberish. In such cases, look for instructions on calling the language in question from other .NET languages; here are instructions for NetCOBOL. If the API that's used is a managed interface, it can be proxied and called cross-platform.
Make sure you configure JNBridgePro before you make the first proxy call. Once you've determined your proxying strategy, and have included proxy calls in your application, you'll need to make sure that JNBridgePro has been properly configured. If you're calling from a .NET-based application (in whatever language) you can place configuration information in the application configuration file in the usual way, or you can call the
JNBRemotingConfiguration.specifyRemotingConfiguration() API using whatever mechanism your language allows to call methods in external .NET DLLs. Similarly, if your calling language is JVM-based, configure JNBridgePro through a call to
DotNetSide.init() as you would if you were starting in Java, again using whatever mechanism the language uses to call external Java binaries.
Beware of implicit static initialization. In some languages, explicitly referencing a class can cause the class to be loaded and its static initializers to be executed. This can lead to problems, particularly if the class being loaded and initialized is a proxy class, and the JNBridgePro configuration code has not yet been executed. Recall that this happened in our Jython-calling-.NET example. Like Java, Jython allows you to import a specific class name or a package name (that is, it imports the names of all the classes in the package). However, unlike Java, where the
import statement simply makes names visible the Jython class name import statement (
from-import) actually loads the class and executes its static initializers. This presents a problem when the class is a proxy class; its initializer will be executed at the very beginning of the code, before the configuration code can execute. As we saw in that blog post, the problem can be avoided by using package
import statements, which don't cause classes to be loaded.
In general, you will need to be aware of your language's behavior when it comes to loading classes and executing initializers. If this happens before JNBridgePro can be configured, this can cause errors.
There are lots of new languages out there, and many are based on the .NET and Java platforms. Over the past few months, as a way to help alleviate developer fatigue, we've provided examples of how JNBridgePro can be used to support interoperability between some of these new languages and Java or .NET. Based on what we've discovered when putting together those posts, we've put together this framework, so you can approach any novel interoperability scenario involving a new JVM- or CLR-based language. We will be posting new language interoperability scenarios in the coming months, but in the meantime, we hope this framework will be useful for any new interoperability situations you might encounter.
Are you planning any integrations using new JVM- or CLR-based languages? If so, let us know.


text:
Hannah is a dog lover. She studies books about dog breeds. A recent gift was a book about puppies. A puppy encyclopedia that includes breeds such as the Nova Scotia Duck Trolling Retriever. Dogs that probably don't exist in reasonable quantity.
When I came home from my trip to the Mideast, I found a new addition to the pile of stuffed animals. This one was easy to notice.
It's as big as Hazel (who is almost 50 lbs).
I asked her where the Swiss Mountain dog came from. She said, in a huff, "Mom! That's a Bernese Mountain Dog!" (In my defense, the two breeds are very similar.)
The dog was borrowed from her friend Cady. It's been here for a couple of months; it's time to return it.
Who knew that Hannah had named it?
Yup. Bernice the Bernese Mountain Dog.
After much
harassment encouragement, I entered the blogosphere to document the delightful (or otherwise) and unexpected moments of my younger daughter's life. Hannah was born in 1998. She surprised us with her extra chromosome, and continues to surprise us with her humor, intellect and obstinacy. She takes our breath away. As my elder daughter once wrote, when Hannah was born, our family went from ordinary to extraordinary.
October 8, 2010
1 comment:
the Nova Scotia Duck Trolling Retrievers are wonderful dogs. my parents have one and she is the happiest dog i have ever met.
- October 8, 2010 at 11:46 AM
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Brown/Grizzly Bear Hunting in Alaska
RB090 Permit Hunt Information
for Regulatory Year 2022
Hunt Details
Hunt Number: RB090
Regulatory Year: 2022
Hunt Type: Registration
Species: Brown Bear
Legal Animal: 1 Brown Bear, except cubs or females accompanied by cubs
Number of Permits
|Number of Permits
|Up to 99999 permits
|Alaska residents
|Up to 99999 permits
|Total Number of Permits Available
GMU, Area
Unit 5
Season Dates*
09/01/2022 - 05/31/2023
*See Drawing or Subsistence Supplements for season details.
Residency Restrictions
- Hunt available to Nonresidents
- Hunt available to Alaska residents
Reporting Requirements
Successful Hunters
- Must report to ADF&G in Douglas or Yakutat within 10 days of kill.
- Specimens Required: Skull and hide with evidence of sex attached
Unsuccessful Hunters
Must return the completed hunt report to ADF&G, or report online at http://www.hunt.alaska.gov , within 15 days of close of season.
Internet Reporting
You may report online at http://www.hunt.alaska.gov
Hunting Conditions
This permit is valid for taking one brown bear in Unit 5 covered by Registration Hunts RB090/091 in accordance with the current Alaska Hunting Regulations and conditions described below:
1. Season dates: September 1, 2022 - May 31, 2023.
2. Legal animal: One brown bear, except cubs or females accompanied by cubs.
3. Evidence of sex (penis sheath or vaginal opening) must remain naturally attached to hide until sealed.
4. Successful hunters must report their kill to ADF&G in Douglas or Yakutat within 10 days of kill. Complete hunt reports must be returned to ADF&G, or submitted online at http://hunt.alaska.gov, by the time of sealing.
5. Unsuccessful hunters and permittees who did not hunt must return the completed hunt report to ADF&G, or report online at http://hunt.alaska.gov, within 15 days of close of season.
6. If you fail to report, you will not be eligible to receive any permits the next regulatory year. In addition, your name may be forwarded to the Alaska Wildlife Troopers for enforcement action.
Hunt conditions and season dates can be changed by Emergency Order. Visit the Emergency Orders and Announcements page for more information.


text:
Brooklyn Heights taproom titan Pilar Montero, the beret-sporting matriarch of Montero's Bar and Grill, who kept the magnet for longshoremen booming long after the borough's days as a waterfront capital passed, died on Jan. 14 at SUNY Downstate Medical Center. She was 90 years old.
Montero, who was born in Manhattan and divided her time between Brooklyn Heights and Meiras, Spain, defied the odds by working well into her 80s at the establishment she opened on Atlantic Avenue off Hicks Street in 1947 with her late merchant marine husband, Joseph.
The former child ballerina and AT&T worker, who first traveled to Brooklyn as a girl on the ferry with her ferryman father, endeared herself to generations of patrons with her elegant beauty, trademark bluntness and canny ability to explore current events from her catbird perch at the front end of the glass-brick bar.
The comforting sight became as famliar to patrons as the on-again-off-again pink, blue and red neon sign flashing outside the history-steeped alehouse, where plaques reading "If the Captain Ain't Happy Ain't Nobody Happy" and "Company and Fish Stink After Three Days" still jostle for space with nautical paraphernalia from Brooklyn's "On the Waterfront" era and a photograph of Montero's son and grandson with Ronald and Nancy Reagan. The restrooms across from two old wooden phone booths are still distinguished by a Popeye cartoon for the men and an Olive Oyl one for the women.
The establishment's appeal has only increased over the years — a point noted by New York magazine, which named Montero's one of the city's best "dive" bars in 2004.
Thanks for that is owed in part to the "beautiful lady who lived up to her name," according to family friend Vincent Raccuglia, who owns Raccuglia & Son Funeral Home in Carroll Gardens, where Montero was laid out after passing from age-related complications for a one-day viewing on Jan. 17 before being cremated.
"Pilar means stone column, that's how strong she was," said the undertaker, a frequent patron who recalls Montero smiling with delight whenever he brought over lard bread freshly baked by his sister.
"She would say, 'Vincent, oh, I'm so glad you came, let's all share!'"
Montero served her children dinner at a well-appointed table away from the bar, but managed to hold her own against even the rowdiest patrons.
"When somebody got out of line, she would say, 'If you don't knock it off, I'm gonna throw you out, and they would stop!" said her son Ramon.
Her maternal side enchanted regulars whom she would serve paella and tripe whipped up in the kitchen years after the restaurant portion of the bar had closed, while her business savvy on the stock market bordered on blue chip. She once scooped up 20,000 shares in telephones for Mexico at $1.30 that climbed to $68.
"Everybody, they thought I was crazy," she said in a 2005 interview.
But it was Montero's work ethic that never ceased to amaze. She opened up the bar at 8 am like clockwork to let in the stream of thirsty longshoremen getting off their midnight shifts before her husband took over at 1 pm so that she could tend to their four children, Ramon, Joseph, Josephine and Frank.
Pilar Montero is survived by her four children, seven grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Reach reporter Shavana Abruzzo at [email protected] or by calling (718) 260-2529.


text:
Of course, the choice is purely theoretical, a little like the premise of the play in question. Written by Murphy Guyer, The Infinite Regress of Human Vanity centers on mathematician Kurt Gödel's incompleteness theorem. If that sounds deep, don't be put off. It's actually a comedy. About the theater.
May promises that the play, which opens next week, will appeal to just about everyone. "It's a really witty take on art, on political correctness, on the modern state of theater," he says. Developed for the Cleveland Play House's 1999 Next Stage Festival of New Plays, it had a limited run the following season, playing to sold-out audiences. Its popularity alleviated worries that the work was "too much of a theater in-joke," says May, an artistic associate at the Play House. "We had to have the audience come in and give it validation."
Guyer's Vanity is as much about the human ego as it is about actors, directors, and playwrights. May stars as Nathan Pine, a playwright whose fragile psychological state is severely tested when his work is produced for a new-play festival. Nobody around him gets his point: that people are incapable of escaping their own vanity and self-interest. This is Guyer's point as well, and he illuminates it by applying Gödel's mathematical theorem to the realm of human vanity. Simply put, Gödel stated that rational thought can never penetrate to the final, ultimate truth; Guyer suggests that it's impossible to get beyond self-interest to arrive at truth.
Shallow thinkers need not cringe. Guyer's fast-paced script is more about witty dialogue, cogent observations, and broad characterizations than overt philosophizing. As Nathan, May is onstage virtually the entire time. His character realizes, to his growing horror, that people not only misunderstand his play; they want to change it to suit their own purposes. The work "gets to the crux of humanity," says May. "It gets to our inevitable flaws."
Playwright Guyer -- "an incredible man of the theater," says May -- is also an actor whose credits include L.A. Law and The Sopranos. Now appearing in the Broadway-bound production of The Graduate with Kathleen Turner (he plays Benjamin's father), he was able to spend only a couple of days in Cleveland working with the cast that May assembled. May says Guyer has tweaked the play considerably since it was performed here.
May fully expects Vanity to become a staple for theaters around the country. It's that good, he says. In the meantime, as he's subjugating his own vanity for the sake of the play, don't forget to applaud wildly for the leading man.


text:
Call for a quote:
Contact Us
(Download or view our newest Table Top Conveyor literature now.)
Plastic chain, (table top conveyors) stainless & carbon steel constructions all have their industry-specific benefits. Our modular chain systems offer straight running or side flexing features with horizontal, incline or decline configurations. Chain widths are designed for the application in a full range from 3 inches to 120 inches. Multi-Conveyor's team works directly with you to ensure the chain we specify meets or exceeds your project requirements. Guiderails are fixed or adjustable. End to end or side transfers are additional design choices.
Table style chain conveyors constructed with similar features. Often carbon steel constructed, these systems show every attention to detail, from painted bearings and structural angle supports, to fixed or adjustable guiderails.
Our turnkey processes will keep your business scheduling on track.
Have a project? We can help.
Send us your RFQ or call 1-800-236-7960
Complete Capabilities Brochure (in a nutshell)
Why choose Multi-Conveyor?
Learn how we are your full service company
Cheese & Dairy Specific Conveying Solutions
Food Conveyors: Your Packaging Lifeline (PFW)
Conveyor Purchasing: Due Diligence (PTT)
Evolution of Conveyors in Food Manufacturing
Testimonial: KARBEN4 Brewery
Testimonial: Eden Pet Products
Testimonial: Valley Popcorn
Accumulation Solutions-All Styles
ARB™ Technology Conveyors
Controls, Electronics, Servo Systems
Mat Style Top Plastic Modular Belt
Mat Top New Radius Belt Curve Technology
Rotary Tables: Accumulation or Unscrambling
Plastic Chain Table Style Top
Slim-Fit Low Profile Sanitary Conveyors
Success Line "Quick Ship" (Overview)
Success Line "Quick Ship" Complete Catalog
NEW! Accumulation Reference Chart
Spare Parts
Support and Foot Options
Electrical Components Resource Guide
Jump to View Videos
Designed and configured to maintain optimal product quality, our
conveying systems offer maximum flexibility, speed and
efficiency in transporting product...singularly or multiple
packaging lines.
Call us at
800-236-7960 or
inquire here.
Copyright 2023 by Multi-Conveyor, LLC
| Privacy Statement


text:
I have a confession. I like Sen. Bernie Sanders personally. What's not to like?
Sanders is like that uncle who would visit your family when you were a kid and perform magic tricks. One moment he is pulling a quarter from your ear or miraculously separating his thumb away from the rest of his hand, and it was amazing. But what you would learn later in life was that it was an illusion, a fun distraction. We have the luxury as kids to believe the illusion, but as voting adults we have a greater responsibility. That is what Sanders is peddling, the dangerous allure of a new "Shangri-La" known as democratic-socialism.
The fact is democratic-socialism is a misnomer, a contradiction in terms, two ideologies that are counter to each other. In an America that is a constitutional-republic, bound at times by a loose confederation with democratic tendencies, are the concepts of democracy and socialism even compatible? Many Americans believe they are compatible, flocking to his "Lost Horizon," freely calling themselves democratic-socialists, without understanding the true historical understanding of our own form of government, let alone the dangers of a pure democracy or the eventual tyranny of socialism.
No political-economic system is perfect, and although democracy and socialism mean different things to different people, a factual understanding of both would lead a logical person to understand the goals of socialism and democracy are at odds with each other. A common understanding by some of democracy is that it is often tied to the ideas of political free expression and self-determination. In this regard, some people believe democracy serves as a shield against others more powerful than themselves.
At its foundation, socialism is a form of collectivism that may be suited for a family or small, intimate groups familiar with each other, but will eventually cave in on itself as population expands. In a socialist society, government seizes control of the means of production. The fact is socialism uses control over capital, land, free-expression and the means of labor to institute an economic structure to control people.
French historian Alexis de Tocqueville best described the difference when he wrote – "Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference, while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude."
With democratic-socialism there will always be a fight for balance between individual liberty and self-determination (democracy) and the control of a central authority (socialism). In the end, eventually the democratic principles are washed away, and the tentacles of socialism will wrap tightly around every aspect of the society. The tragedy is those who embrace democratic-socialism eventually voluntarily become slaves to an oppressive system of their own creation.
Democratic-socialism is socialism, and Sanders policies reflect that. According to the Wall Street Journal, Sanders plans would cost $18 trillion, and would raises taxes by 34 percent (Tax Policy Center). Further complicating this issue is that Sanders points to Scandinavian countries as an example of successful socialist societies. The fact that they practice what is known as the Nordic model also masks the fact many of the countries are experiencing numerous breaking points related to the stress on the welfare state they created. Additionally, the matter of human nature must also be factored into the equation. The Nordic culture is built upon trust, with a strong work ethic and an emphasis on personal responsibility.
Many of the Nordic countries consist of a small, homogeneous population, which is being tested by an influx of immigration and a discontented, younger generation burdened by high taxation. The problem of a country that has 5 million people and is roughly the size of California (Finland), cannot compare to a country the size of the U.S., with 320 million people, who derive from many different regions and cultures. Are there things we could learn from the Nordic model? Absolutely. Just as the Nordic model has learned from those in America that practice an ethical, free-market.
With Sanders' rhetoric, we are seeing a growing population that believes an ethical, free-market is somehow unfair and that through government they will find equality. As citizens we have lost our sense of economic stewardship and self-reliance. Most of us understand fair taxation is needed to ensure we pay for government and provide a societal safety net; but socialism promotes legalized theft by redistributing wealth in the name of social justice, and leads to further dependence on a distant government.
Sanders may seem like he is offering a utopia, but what he is in fact offering is an illusion, a pathway to servitude. I understand there are elements of our economic structure that need to be addressed. However, an ethical, free-market has lifted more people out of poverty than any other economic -political structure. So long as people are free to earn money, offer a product and service desired by the community, hire individuals, thereby expanding the economy, there will be individual liberty for all who choose that path.


text:
The National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) announced the return of the Share Your Story Contest for beer distribution employees who have never attended the NBWA Annual Convention. The contest is intended to highlight many of the 130,000 men and women who make up the beer distribution industry, from truck drivers, inventory specialists and graphic artists to sales representatives, fork lift drivers and receptionists.
"The American beer distribution industry is strong because of the amazing people who work in it and the passion they have for the work they do in communities across the country," said NBWA President and Chief Executive Officer Craig Purser. "It's incredible to hear their personal stories that make all of us proud to be a part of this great system, and NBWA is looking forward to sharing those stories."
To enter the contest, beer distribution employees will submit a video entry (no longer than two minutes) that explains why they love working in the beer distribution industry, what they do, how long they have worked in the industry and how their career began. Details may also include how their company positively impacts their hometown, how new products and technology have changed their jobs over time, and any colorful stories that paint a picture of the vibrant jobs in the beer distribution industry.
Entries may be submitted via the online entry form at www.nbwa.org/contest until August 1, 2014. Please contact NBWA Communications Assistant Gabrielle Gosselin at [email protected] or 703-683-4300 with any questions.
The winner will be notified mid-August and will receive a complimentary trip to NBWA's 77th Annual Convention at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans in New Orleans, Louisiana, Sept. 28 – Oct. 1, 2014.


text:
He has an aversion of people repeating his name three times…(updated)
Just finished off a new Wizard for Frostgrave, rumours are he doesn't like hearing his name repeated three times…
As is appropriate for this blog, its The King In Yellow, possibly.
In the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game published by Chaosium, the King in Yellow is an avatar of Hastur who uses his eponymous play to spread insanity among humans. He is described as a hunched figure clad in tattered, yellow rags, who wears a smooth and featureless "Pallid Mask". Removing the mask is a sanity-shattering experience; the King's face is described as "inhuman eyes in a suppurating sea of stubby maggot-like mouths; liquescent flesh, tumorous and gelid, floating and reforming"
Again this appealed to me not only because of the links to this blog, but because a bright yellow would help the figure and its minions would stand out amongst the ruins.
This wasn't the first time I've painted this figure…
A typical Cultist I did about 2001, in brown and red.
And this was the original dolly used, that was the Lone Wiolf Helghast figure, again in boring red.
I think the latest version works better.
Now all I need is to do up a cultist war band. In mellow yellow yellow…


text:
Sale price
Regular price
Unit price
Floor EcoFireplace with Stainless Steel ECO 02 burner, 2 quarts tank capacity, tempered glass and rustic demolition railway sleeper wood* encasing. Thermal insulation made of fire retardant treatment and refractory tape applied to the burner.
Dimensions: 27 9/16" L x 11 7/16" W x 20" H
Weight: 66 Lbs.
Burn Time: 2 hours per quart
Warm up Area: 269 sq. ft.
Tank Capacity: 2 quarts
If you plan to use it outdoors, we recommend the use of our ECO 02 Cap (sold separately) avoid debris or rainwater to damage the unit.
*Our demolition railway sleeper wood comes from the recycling of supporting elements on train railways, thus can present irregularities and/or holes.


text:
There are some moviegoing experiences you vividly remember, even aside from what you thought aobut the movie. Seeing "Die Hard" in the summer of 1988 was one of them. I went with a couple of friends to see it at the old Continental in Denver, as a joke really, thinking we'd make fun of it in the way that teenage boys do. Come on, the guy from "Moonlighting" in an action movie? He looked ridiculous in the trailer. Should be good for a laugh, anyway.
And, as we're in the lobby, heading towards the theaters, we see the crowd from the previous screening letting out. In the midst of the throng is another friend of ours, Kevin. He sees us, and has this dazed look in his eyes. "Best action movie ever" he says fervently. Really? Couldn't be.
Of course, we undoubtedly had that same glazed happy look when we left the theater two hours later. And the "Die Hard" franchise was born. So, with AMC Star Cinema hosting an all-day "Die Hard" marathon today, and with the fifth installment in the franchise, "A Good Day To Die Hard," opening Thursday, it seems like a good time to look back at the very eventful life of John McClane, terrorist magnet.
First off, the original "Die Hard" is just an incredibly well-made action movie that holds up beautifully today — watching it is a Christmas tradition for more than one family I know. A large part of that is its economy, how it uses the confined space of a few upper floors of an office building as a battlefield. You always know exactly where McClane is, exactly where the bad guys are. And, of course, the movie has perfect opposites in its hero and villain — the sweaty, bloody, blue-collar cop and the refined, amused, suit-coveting German villain. "Die Hard" is one of those movies where every element works (well, aside from that last from-the-dead appearance by Alexander Godunov — that felt a little tacked on, right?)
A sequel is amost inevitably a step down, but it was clear right from the get-go that "Die Hard 2" would be a big step down. First off, William Sadler's psychotic super-soldier is just no match for Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber. Doing naked tai chi in your hotel room, then aiming your TV remote like a gun? That's actually not scary at all, dude. Kind of lame, actually.
The sudden deaths of innocents in the first "Die Hard" were genuinely shocking at the time, such as Gruber coldly executing Mr. Takagi. But Renny Harlin's "Die Hard 2" just tried too hard to make its villains seem villainous, resulting in some gratuitous cruelty that really saps the fun out of the movie. How could anyone possibly think it would be a good idea to crash a planeload of innocent passengers — killing more people than were even in the original "Die Hard" — just to establish the bad guy's bona fides? It's a grievous miscalculation, as are the laborious attempts to fit in minor characters, like William Atherton's slimy reporter, into the film somehow.
For me, the "Die Hard" movies work best when they have a clear sense of their environment, that you have good guys and bad guys maneuvering within a defined space, an arena. What's surprising about 1995's "Die Hard with a Vengeance" is that "arena" is really all of New York City. But it still works because returning director John McTiernan uses the geography of Manhattan much as he did the top 5 floors of Nakatomi Plaza. If you're a New Yorker, you know exactly where Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson are at all times. One of my favorite moments is that pell-mell car ride down the length of Manhattan, when McClane not only thinks to call in a fake 911 call so he'll have an ambulance to use "as a blocker," but he knows which hospital to call, and how far the ambulance's call area is.
If there's anything that today's modern CGI action movies lack, it's that sense of spatial grounding. Once you can use digital effects to show anything, from any angle, a director can sometimes forget about those parameters in a hunt for something that just looks cool. What's funny is that, at the time, "Vengeance" was considered over-the-top, and for years Willis would insist that a fourth "Die Hard" would return to the original's gritty roots, possibly with McClane using only his wits to survive bad guys in the South American jungle. So much for that.
Which brings us to "Live Free or Die Hard." The bad guy in this 2007 film (a miscast Timothy Olyphant) calls McClane a "Timex watch in a digital age," which sums up both the problems with the fourth installment, but also its saving graces. Director Len Wiseman chases bigger, better, more implausible stunts at every turn — John McClane jumps on the wing of a fighter jet! John McClane knocks a helicopter out of the sky with a police car! — because that's the way action movies are done now. The film rushes headlong from one setpiece to the next, one effect to the next. For minutes at a time, it could be any action movie.
What saves it, and what makes it pretty fun, is Willis as McClane, still beaten and bedraggled as he was crawling through those air ducts almost 20 years earlier, still smirking away at all the mayhem around him. That the movie ends not with a big blockbuster climax, but with a quick, violent shootout, showed that the "Live Free" did keep its connection, however tenuous, to the series.
Which brings us to "A Good Day to Die Hard," which sends McClane to Moscow to battle a new army of baddies with his estranged son. The previews showcase big, implausible action that makes "Live Free" look like a modest little thriller, and now the fate of the world rests on his shoulders.
It could be fun. But I can't help but miss the guy crawling through the air ducts, the perfectly-wound Timex watch of action heroes.