text:
Tag: Fremantle
An Afternoon Fishing – E Shed Jetty
On The Water – Swan River Cruise
Today we drove into Perth, had lunch at the Lucky Shag, strolled around Elizabeth Quay and took a cruise down the river to Fremantle.
The following are just some of the photo's that I took during the cruise.
Pemberton / Second Best Western
Our second day of travelling, south of Perth, found us bidding farewell to Margaret River and aiming for Pemberton. Travelling along Warner Glenn Road we crossed the Blackwood River where we stopped so that I could take a couple of photos. By coincidence a couple of kayakers were passing through…..
The figure in the bow of the yellow kayak is that of a dog, proudly acting as lookout. As I walked up the slope from the bridge, back to the car, I noticed a small yellow sign…… lower left corner of the photo below.
The sign has a line, indicating the flood levels in January 1982. Which means that the bridge would have been totally submerged. Given the height of the bridge, over the current water level, that's a significant amount of water.
Back on the move again we continued towards Pemberton. The "satnag" had routed us through quite a remote region and once again, well for Gerry and I, we found ourselves watching the fuel gauge. However, it wasn't really an issue and we were soon in the centre of Pemberton.
Pemberton is a small town named after original settler Pemberton Walcott. The main industry of the town was timber and there were a number of sawmills processing timber to supply half a million railway sleepers for the Trans-Australian Railway. There are a number of associated artifacts dotted around the town.
Before touring the town we hunted down a cafe where we could have a bite to eat. There are a number of cafe's and we soon settled ourselves on the veranda at the Crossings Bakery. This establishment self promotes themselves as the "Home Of The Great Aussie Pie" and advertises "Home Made Chunky Meat Pies" "All $5.00".
Well I don't know if they are "great" or if this the home of the pies but they hit the spot and when washed down by coffee's and iced teas our little group were fighting fit to go and hit Pemberton's tourist hotspots.
As per usual we headed for the visitor centre where we fought off the urge to purchase copious amounts of Koala Fart, but discovered that we had about ten minutes to get aboard the Pemberton Tramway which was about to set off on its last trip of the day. This journey is well worth the time spent and, if nothing else, means you get a cooling breeze as you trundle through the forests. In their own words ….
This unforgettable 1¾ hour service shuffles out of Pemberton, past the Saw Mill and descends deep into the Karri forest. The tram meanders through the forest, crossing six bridges, stopping at the Cascades and ending at the Warren River Bridge where the Lefroy Brook Joins the Warren River. Your tram then returns to Pemberton.
This is not the most comfortable ride you will ever take but it is fun and informative, the drivers dialogue will have you laughing, well smiling perhaps. We were lucky enough to see a Kookaburra take off from a tree branch and keep pace with the tram for quite some distance before zooming off into the trees.
The tram ride takes you from one side of Pemberton, across the main road, past the remaining sawmill before plunging into the forest. The following photo's were all taken from the tram.
The tram ride paused at the Cascades where we were invited to disembark and explore the river below.
Apparently, at the Cascades, the Lefroy Brook transforms from a gentle flow in mid summer to a raging torrent in winter. I guess being December it was summer time and the flow was decidedly tranquil. Definitely a pretty spot, only spoilt by the hoards of tourists just dumped from their tram ride.
Oh yeah, I was one of those bloody tourists too.
I held back to take some shots when the tram horn blew, calling all the passengers back.
After a twenty-minute interlude at the Cascades the tram carried us further to Warren Bridge, the end of our outward journey. After a few minutes admiring the view …..
….. the tram headed back to Pemberton. The return journey was a lot faster, and with little or no commentary.
Once back at the Pemberton station I thought this grand only veteran railway engine was deserving of a mention.
This engine was built in England at Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn's Darlington works at a cost of some £55,019 . It was in service from 20th December, 1955 through to its retirement on 17th June, 1971.
This class of engine was designed to haul coal from the Collie mines to Perth and Fremantle and were also used for heavy freight on the Perth – Bunbury and York – Albany lines.
From the station we headed back into town to search out the hotel. All of us were feeling the need to freshen up. Our hotel was very easy to find, situated as it is, right on the main road as you drive into Pemberton.
First let me say that the photos on the Best Western Pemberton Hotel website bear little similarity with our rooms. Dull, tired, dated, these are all descriptors that I would use for our accommodation. Certainly not bright and airy as the photos seem to imply. At least the room was clean.
Having freshened up we headed out to take a look at the Gloucester Tree. None of us had any plans to climb the tree which, at 58m, is way out of our league.
We stood and watched a number of people set off up the tree. Quite a few made it fairly quickly. A couple stopped part way and returned to the ground after only 10m or so. What really had us bemused were the number of apparently sane adults who were allowing their 8-10 year old children to climb, when they could barely span the step between the pegs. And, I know this is Australia, but climbing in thongs (English "flip-flops"). Come on folks.
After the Gloucester Tree we went exploring and came across Big Brook Dam. This is a man-made lake, built in 1986, to provide water for the Pemberton region.
This late in the evening the area was very quiet but looked to be a great place for walking and picnics.
As time was moving on we thought we would find somewhere to eat and returned to Pemberton centre. Much to our dismay we found that all of the earlier eateries were now closed. The only choices seemed to be our hotel, a fish and chip bar, and a curry house. It seems that Pemberton goes to sleep between 16:30 and 18:00.
So, it seemed to us that the Pemberton Hotel is the "only show in town", unless you want a curry or a fish supper carry out. Because of this the restaurant / bar was very busy and the food service was poor. There were four in our party and two of our starters didn't turn up. Oddly it was the first two dishes we ordered. I had to go and enquire, seems they had lost / forgotten part of our order. Then we had to wait for nearly an hour before the mains were delivered. It felt like we were being punished for having the temerity to ask where our food was.
To be quite honest, the quality of the food left a lot to be desired and wasn't worth the wait. It was very poor, probably the worst we have had in WA. Over cooked, bland and the seafood batter was heavy, way too thick. I had Salt & Pepper Squid which seemed to have been cooked with out the Salt & Pepper !!!
When ordering our meals I had considered having the salad bar instead of a normal starter. The one and only healthy thought I had during this week away. When I looked at what was on offer I quickly changed my mind. There were just four dishes with some sort of coleslaw, some tomato slices, some beetroot and some kind of pasta salad that had seen better days. It was like a time warp back to the seventies.
During our meal, my wife pointed out to a waitress that someone was smoking, despite signs clearly stating that was not allowed. The waitress ignored my wife who was left to confront the offender who thankfully was compliant and moved away to the smoking area. In general the rest of the waiting staff were friendly but I think they were overwhelmed by the work load.
Somewhat depressed by our meal experience we headed off to our rooms. The room Gerry and I had been allocated had two single beds. It transpired that the wheels on my bed were not locked and the bed, like a supermarket trolley, had a mind of its own,moving around the room at will. Also, as I subsequently found out, the mattress hadn't been set on the bed properly so the edge wasn't supported. After having laid down for a while, when I first went to stand up, the mattress tilted down and I was spilled onto the floor. I sorted the mattress out but, overnight, it seemed to have moved again.
And a general note, the car park is limited for space not enough spaces for the number of rooms. Although we managed to park on site for check-in later in the evening when we returned we had to park out on the street.
So for the hotel I'd rate it as the Second Best Western. Pemberton gets a thumbs up although the early curfew is a pain. Many of the cafe's could make a bomb if they opened a bit later in the evening.
Many of the properties in Pemberton are heritage listed. Some are in dire need of some TLC but all add to the charm of this country town.
Beachside BBQ
Spent yesterday evening down by the shore at North Coogee, a coastal, western suburb of Perth, WA.
Close by is the derelict site of the South Fremantle Power Station which closed in September 1985, after 34 years service. Originally coal-fired, later converted to oil. After closure its four chimney stacks were demolished. Seems odd that after thirty years this site has not been cleared.
We had been invited to join my grandson and his partner for a BBQ with some of their friends. This was our first ever, al fresco, BBQ.
The actual BBQ site was a small park separated from the sea by the ubiquitous sand dunes.
The park is part of the C.Y. O'Connor Reserve and had been the venue for a very large party on New Years Eve. There were huge piles of rubbish everywhere, and the public conveniences were not very, convenient that is. In fact they were indescribable.
This did not put us off the BBQ and we had a great time with some tasty food, a few beers and a relaxing time spent talking with some new acquaintances.
At around 20:00 we were treated to a superb sunset…
A great evening.
Up The Swanny
Out of the blue, a phone call from our grandson, and an offer of an evening trip up the Swan River, on Christmas Eve. Being our wedding anniversary, what better way to round off the day. Few details were provided other than that we needed to be present at the East Street Jetty for around 19:00.
The trip was being provided by my grandsons partner who runs a charter business.
Arriving at the jetty, we soon found other folks, similarly awaiting the arrival of a boat.
While we waited Steve and I started to scout out the area as a possible fishing venue, having already noted the presence of several anglers. After chatting with one guy, who was packing up, we have added the jetty to our list . Easy access with parking very close by and straight into deep water.
It wasn't long before our transport appeared upstream and was tied alongside ready for boarding.
MV Cygnus is a fully licensed 53′ Catamaran and is apparently capable of catering for up to 60 people. I think that might be a tight squeeze, however we weren't that many so had room to meander.
Shortly after boarding it was time for a little something to moisten dry throats. Make the most of the next photo. It features yours truly which is a rare occurrence as it's not often that I step in front of a lens.
By 19:15 we were underway, heading up river and it was time to point the lens outside of the boat. Having made a similar daytime trip, several years ago, we knew we would see some very nice properties along the river banks. At least while the sun was still up. However, an evening trip was going to be somewhat different.
These cranes, silhouetted by the setting sun, look somewhat like prehistoric creatures heading to the river to drink.
My grandson is a member of the Water Police. This picture shows some of their toys. Am I jealous ? , go on, ask me.
Down here in Oz it gets dark very quickly so photography on a moving platform becomes something of a challenge. Here are some "snaps" taken once darkness had arrived.
At some point we tied up to a buoy, so that the hot food could be cooked on the huge BBQ at the stern. We sat swinging at the whims of the river currents and the wind, just offshore from Mosmans Restaurant.
The crew laid out quite a spread, with steaks, chicken drummies and prawns cooked on the BBQ, supplemented with a variety of salads and roast vegetables followed by fresh fruits and cheeses.
Food consumed, we were then of further up river until the city came into view. Time for some more snaps but, several beers in, I wasn't really up for the challenge.
Yes, that's twice I've been in front of the lens on one single occasion.
Here is the best of a bad lot …..
It would have been nice to have cruised right up into the city, but that was as close as we got. Still looks good though.
There was a disco on board and we did get up to dance, a bit. Well that's perhaps a very loose description of the gyrations I was making. I am pleased to say that there are no photos of that brief interlude.
All too soon we were heading back to the East Street Jetty. Just a short distance, from the jetty, is the Left Bank, bar and restaurant.
This place, The Left Bank, was having a Xmas Eve party. It started at Noon and was going on till 2 am . From the jetty we could see that they had swarms of hi-viz jacketed security outside. We could hear it from the river as we cruised by. Call me an old fart, but any pub that requires that level of security is not a place I would want to frequent. Having said that we did have a nice early evening meal there a few years back.
So there you have it, our trip up the swanny.
There are many interpretations of the phrase "up the swanny", including ballsed up, stuck in the mud, tits up, up shit creek, up the creek without a paddle and so forth.
None of these are applicable. We had a great time and our thanks go to Kate and her crew for a super evening.
Early Days
So, here we are down under. Must be an age thing but I think the journey has taken more out of me than usual.
We flew Cathay Pacific and the service and comfort was very good. But thirty plus hours of travel and wakefulness has taken its toll.
We have spent time relaxing by, and in, the pool. Soaking up a few rays. Temperatures have been up in the thirties, centigrade that is.
On Friday we trundled down to Fremantle, for a mooch around the fishing harbour, which is always lively and interesting.
After a gentle stroll in the sunshine what could be better than a long cool pint of beer. And where better than the Little Creatures Brewery . We have been visiting them since they opened. The beer is excellent and the food very good too, although we weren't eating there this time.
Dinner was reserved for Kailis' Fish Market Café Fremantle. Here, we had superb Snapper Fillets with Chips.
Saturday was very hot and, apart from a run to the bottle shop, the day was spent in and around the pool.
On Sunday we took a run up to Lake Leschenaultia
where we had a pleasant walk with an ice cream and watched the kids enjoying themselves swimming and kayaking..
Today has been spent, once again, in and around the pool although on this occasion my granddaughter gave me a thorough workout playing a cross between water polo, basketball and football. Most importantly she beat me eight to five.
Little Creatures Lunch
Just had a very nice lunch, with my wife and two of my grandchildren, at the Little Creatures brewery in Fremantle.
Eats were a "Prosciutto, Mozzarella & Lemon Thyme Pizza", "Chilli Beef Nachos with Guacamole, S/Cream & Jalapenos"," Steak Sandwich, Beetroot Relish & Frites" and "Barramundi Fillet with Frites & Salad".
Only two puddings, "Chocolate & Cranberry Brownie with Vanilla Ice Cream" and "Apple and Rhubarb Crumble with Vanilla Ice Cream".
All that scrummy food washed down with Pipsqueak Cider (5 . 2%) for the grand kids, Little Creatures Pale Ale (5 . 2%) for my wife and a pint of White Rabbit Dark Ale (4 . 9%).
After adding all those calories we took a stroll round the quayside watching the fish and also took in a floating art exhibition ….


text:
Anyone who's seen a few Hirokazu Kore-eda films will have little trouble identifying the director's primary concern: the fraught relationships within the modern Japanese family, especially those between children and adults. 2004's Nobody Knows examined the challenges faced by a 12-year-old boy compelled to take care of his younger siblings after the disappearance of their mother, while 2015's Our Little Sister focused on three young girls and the introduction of a previously unknown half-sister to their family.
The theme remains the same in Kore-eda's latest, Manbiki kazoku (Shoplifters, opening at Landmark's Embarcadero Center Cinema in San Francisco on Friday, Nov. 23 and at Landmark's Shattuck Cinemas on Friday, Nov.30). This time, though, the film's family is far from a traditional one: instead, they're a collective of lost souls and abandoned children living happily but precariously on the outskirts of legality.
Petty criminal and day laborer Osamu (the curiously monikered Lily Franky) and Nobuyo (Sakura Andô), who works at a laundry, assume the parental roles, while confidence artist Hatsue (the late Kirin Kiki, who passed away in September) plays Grandma; the family's children are Aki (Maya Matsuoka), a young woman who supplements the household's income with cash earned at a peep show, and Shota (Jyo Kairi), a ten-year old boy whose nimble fingers now help put food on the table.
Osamu has taught Shota well; the pair work collaboratively lifting things that "don't belong to anyone yet" from the shelves of neighborhood convenience stores and groceries. Returning from a successful day's shoplifting, they find an apparently abandoned four-year old named Yuri (Miyu Sasaki) and – as she also seems to have no 'owner' – take her home. Bearing suspicious scars suggesting abuse at the hands of her biological family, Yuri is immediately adopted into the clan and seems reasonably satisfied with the new arrangement.
A house full of criminals and kidnapped children is unlikely to be a stable one, however, and as the film proceeds difficulties increase. A few months after Yuri's disappearance, her absence is finally reported to the police; a death in the family leads to some unusual funeral arrangements, and the long arm of the law inevitably intrudes.
Kore-eda clearly likes his characters a great deal and you probably will, too. A trip to the seaside is the film's idyllic highlight: if it ended here you'd leave the theater with a happy glow, but it doesn't. Happiness, Kore-eda suggests, is fleeting: enjoy it while you can. Having already won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, Shoplifters is well poised to reprise that triumph at next year's Academy Awards.
'Hale County This Morning, This Evening'
RaMell Ross is a photographer by trade, but he's taken a stab at moving pictures with Hale County This Morning, This Evening, an observational documentary in the Frederick Wiseman style opening at San Francisco's Roxie Theater on Nov. 23 (no East Bay play dates are currently scheduled). Ross will be in attendance for the film's first screening.
Following two young African-American men in the rural South over the course of several years, Hale County lacks structure but unsurprisingly makes up for it with visual brio. It's more tone-poem than documentary, but the film features many moments of great beauty — as well as the delightful presence of a photogenic toddler who dominates the camera whenever the opportunity presents itself.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
This was a magical moment of lighting this evening.
The sun was setting fast. I wanted to try to capture the sunset before it disappeared but we were in the middle of the city. I did not want urban rooftops and power lines littering the beautiful painted sky. We started driving south, trying to get out-of-town. The sun was dropping, and then I saw what I needed…haybales.
A prairie sunset.


text:
Study Leave
VMware provides Study Leave in accordance with statutory requirements.
All regular employees with a minimum of six (6) months of service or a total of twelve (12) months service during the previous two (2) years have a legal right to unpaid Study Leave.
There are a few restrictions as to the kind of study that may be pursued, but it must be an organized course. Study Leave is limited only by the length of the course.
Scheduling Study Leave
- Discuss your Study Leave plans in advance with your manager. While business requirements must be taken into consideration, your manager will work with you to ensure that work load does not restrict you from taking Study Leave.
- Once agreed with your manager, enter your Study Leave time off in Workday [VMware network access required] under time off type Study/Exams Time Off (Hours) – Unpaid.
FEEDBACK: Was this information useful?
Last Updated: 15 Sep 2021, 3:40 PM


text:
Today was the perfect autumn day to work outside. A bit of a breeze, a lite sprinkle of rain, and some little helpers needing to burn off energy. My wife had our two youngest cleaning branches and pine needles from the driveway and around the house. My eldest child and I cleaned off the roof and gutters. Her and I then worked together to tackle a project I put off all summer.
We tidied our disasterous woodshed. From boards and beams that were haphazardly tossed in, to the logs that had fallen over into the walkway, we needed to clean it all up. We re-stacked the wood to the drier side and swept up the dust. Old wooden beams and plywood made their way to the back of the woodshed for possible future use. I even took the time to show my daughter how to safely chop kindling.
During our afternoon, we shared some good bonding moments that didn't feel forced. Even laughing maniacally as we killed armies of spiders that crawled their way out from the wood. Afterwards, we went back into our home for a late lunch where my daughter also lit a fire.
Our oldest daughter enjoys hanging out beside the fireplace in our large black wingback chair. This is her favorite spot for contemplation and peace during the fall and winter. The woodshed and fireplace are in essence, her way of becoming an adult. Bringing us comfort by warming our home is her contribution to the household.
Little did she know that she also warmed my heart by sharing her time with me today. Talking with her I realized she isn't my little girl anymore, but a young lady with passion in her soul. These interactions become the "A-Ha!" moments that catch me off guard.
With a bit of sadness and a lot of love, I'm glad that together we cleaned the woodshed today.


text:
Around the Region: More winter festivals, expanded shuttle service, 5-concert series
Baker High footballers named All-First Coast
Congratulations to Baker County High School Wildcats CeCe Jefferson and Michael Boone for making the Times-Union's All-First Coast team. The picks are made through coaches' nominations, Times-Union sports staff picks, statistics and team quality. Johnson, a defensive lineman, had 62 tackles and 15.5 sacks. Boone, a "slash player," finished with 22 touchdowns.
Business Association plans for January
The Beaches Business Association announced its upcoming Monday luncheon schedule for January: Jan. 6, Keith Johnson, CPA, new tax laws for small business; Jan. 13, Barbara Halverstadt, director of marketing, Jacksonville Aviation Authority; Jan. 20, Radha Weeder, BBVA Compass, vice president; Jan. 27, state Rep. Janet Akins. Lunches are $8 and all meetings are 11:30-1 p.m. at Jacksonville Beach Golf Club, 605 S. Penman Road, Jacksonville Beach. New members are welcome, call John Cross at (904) 476-0607.
More festivals on tap?
A recent workshop by the City Council included discussion over revising the city's special events policy to open up the possibility of more winter festivals. The potential for change includes holding one multi-day festival - as opposed to the current provision for mostly one-day events - every month from November through February. The only multi-day festival currently allowed under city policy is the Springing the Blues Festival. Further discussion is expected before any kind of official vote.
Expanded shuttle service
The Jacksonville Transportation Authority is adding community shuttle service beginning Monday to Oakleaf Town Center, Orange Park Mall and communities adjacent to Argyle Forest Boulevard and Collins Road, east of Blanding Boulevard. For more call (904) 630-3181.
Soil and Water meeting
The Clay County Soil and Water Conservation District will meet at 9 a.m. Monday at the county Extension Office, 2463 W. Florida 16, Green Cove Springs. For more call (904) 269-6355.
Musical months ahead
The Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival hosts a five-concert series from January to March that kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27, with Chopin and Paris with pianist Natasha Paremski. It's at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 2600 Atlantic Ave. in Fernandina Beach. Tickets are $25. For more go to aicmf.com.
Offices, libraries closed
All non-emergency St. Johns County government offices as well as the public libraries and the Pet Center will be closed Wednesday for the New Year's Day holiday. Regular business hours will resume Thursday. For more information call (904) 209-0559.
Beach walk guide
Guana Tolomato Matanzas Research Reserve guides will give a free interpretive "Beach Walk at the River to Sea Preserve Oceanside" in Marineland 9-10:30 a.m. Jan. 9. For more or reservations call (904) 823-4500.


text:
Fandango's FOWC is cantankerous, the Word of the Day Challenge is tops, Paula's 3 Things Challenge words are martini, tire, whale , and Teresa's Story Starter Challenge phrase is "I will have to change my milkman."
I woke Monday morning and looked out to see yet another cloudy day. There wasn't even a benefit of rain to go with it. Opening the the door to throw the trash into the bin, it was also bitterly cold out. Cloudy and cold spells cantankerous.
Yes, it was only 11 a.m., but I needed something to wash my toast down and chose a martini. It would probably cause me to feel tire(d) early, but having no schedule meant I could take a nap if it happened. The cosmopolitan washed the toast down so well I decided to have another.
Noon rolled around and I heard the doorbell ringing. Living this far out into the country, rings at the doorbell are not the usual. I looked out of the blinds of the side window. In the driveway was the van belonging to the organic farmer I bought my fresh goats' milk and free-range eggs from. I had forgotten that Stan, of Stan The Man with the Organic Van's Farm, delivered on Monday afternoons.
Stan was one of those upstanding, hard-working, middle-aged farmers that rose before dawn and went to bed long after dark. He also happened to look like a cross between Jax Teller and Jon Snow. My mind was going to dark places as it had been loosened with alcohol just thinking about how I'd like to corrupt him. My mood was improving, even if down a dark path.
I hurried to the door and opened the blind enough so he could see me and said, "Just a minute, Stan," then I scurried to throw on a pair of capris and a t-shirt. Stan was admiring the iris at the front of the house when I opened the door to let him in.
"Those are some gorgeous iris, Li!" he said as he carried in a dozen eggs and 2 quarts of milk.
"Thanks, Stan, they were here when I moved in, and they keep going strong."
"Li, I wanted to tell you that there is extra cream in the tops of the milk today. The goats just freshened and are producing cream like crazy."
"Yum! I love that in my tea!"
"Li, you owe me the usual, $12."
"Come on, Stan, couldn't we find another way to work out the balance?"
Right after I said it, my mind was reeling. Never again would I drink 2 martinis in the morning.
Later that afternoon, I woke up in my bed, nude, feeling rumpled, and with a whale of a headache.
Embarrassed beyond belief at what had transpired, I thought, "I will have to change my milkman." Too bad, as the product was superior.


text:
Dining Spotlight: Satu'li Canteen
Here is a First Look at the new menu for Satu'li Canteen in Pandora—The World of Avatar at Disney's Animal Kingdom! Disney's Parks Blog just release some new information and photos on the exciting new dishes that will be featured at the canteen.
You can enjoy dishes that have wholesome grains, heard proteins and fresh vegetables cooked directly on an on-stage grill. Dishes will start with a quinoa and vegetable salad, mixed whole grain and rice, red and sweet potato hash or a romaine and kale salad as the base. Next you will get the choice of either wood-grilled chicken, fish, chili spiced fried tofu or slow-roasted beef. Top it off with either a creamy herb dressing, charred onion chimichurri to a black bean vinaigrette. You can also select from a menu of "pods" which items such as vegetable curry or even a cheeseburger with root vegetable chips and veggie slaw.
Photo Credit: Disney Parks Blog
What's different about this canteen? You will now be able to order and pay for you meal on the go with the My Disney Experience App using the Mobile Order option. With this, you will be able to select menu options, customize your order and pre=pay for your meal. When you arrive, you simply will touch the "I'm Here" button on the app and the kitchen will prepare your meal. You will be alerted when it is time to pickup your meal from the window. This will also be implemented into other fast-casual and quick-dining service restaurants later this year. At this time, Mobile Order will only be accepting credit cards.
Here is the back story on the Satu'li Canteen: This was once the main mess hall of the Resources Development Administration located in Mo'ara. The interior has been transformed with colorful Na'vi items filling the walls and hanging from the ceiling. Now, the canteen is owned and operated by Alpha Centauri Expeditions tour company and has been transformed into a beautiful dining room with museum style touches. The canteen features hand-woven tapestries, cooking tools, and other natural Pandoran elements decorate the restaurant. After seeing the preview photos for the World of Pandora, we cannot wait to check out the food that goes along with it!
Sheena Moberg is an Independent Agent of Fairytale Adventures Travel. She is the founder of the blog Confessions of a Disney Mom. Sheena specializes in family travel experiences to Walt Disney World Resort, Cruising, and All-Inclusives. She can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com or on Facebook.


text:
You all heard abut Ted Cruz' short trip to Mexico? From the WAPO: Cruz's media tour
After being the subject of widespread bipartisan criticism, Cruz arrived back in the US — and immediately headed out in front of the cameras. The Texas senator first delivered remarks at the Cancun airport. He then spoke to KTRK's Tom Abrahams for a sit down interview in which he admitted he had made a mistake by traveling to Mexico. And he capped off his night chatting with Sean Hannity, who strongly came to his defense. As Max Tani tweeted, Hannity treated Cruz as someone who was "dropping the kids off in Cancún like you'd talk about dropping the kids off at soccer."
Cruz's story shifted as journalists reported new details
Cruz initially released a statement suggesting he had merely aimed to drop his children off at the Cancun resort and head back. He blamed the whole idea on them. But Skift reporter Edward Russell reported that Cruz's return flight had originally been scheduled over the weekend, not Thursday. And NYT's Shane Goldmacher and Nicholas Fandos obtained some texts that Heidi Cruz sent to friends explaining they had planned to get away to escape their "FREEZING" house for a few days. By the end of the night, after all the reporting, Cruz was even fessing up to Hannity that he did plan to stay in Mexico through the weekend…
A crowd-sourced story
"Aside from the whole elected -official-goes-to-Cancun-during-wintry-disaster bit, the camera-phone crowdsourcing involved in every aspect of this story is just amazing," commented NYT's Katie Rogers. I couldn't agree more.
WaPo's Dan Zak got at this when he wrote about how the political firestorm erupted. Zak explained it commenced "when TV journalist David Shuster tweeted a photo of Cruz headed for his seat, passport apparently in hand, on an airplane Wednesday afternoon." Then, as Zak reported, "Twitter users started sleuthing immediately, trying to corroborate this reporting with photographic details of gate and flight information. The evidence suggested that Cruz was in an Economy Plus seat, with plenty of legroom, on a United Airlines flight out of Houston." From there, the story took on a life of its own…
TWEET OF THE DAY: LA City Councilman Kevin De Leόn @KDeLeon on Sen. Ted Cruz's (R-Texas) Mexico trip: "When America sends its people, we're not sending our best… Lo siento Mexico"
HAVE THE TELEMARKETERS grown more craven lately? I got a call from one at EIGHT FIFTEEN IN THE MORNING!!! From the Juvenile Leukemia etc in case you'd like to join me in boycotting them.


text:
If this newsletter doesn't display properly,
click here
09 February
Our newsletter contains information about the activities of our network, its members and observing members and about important initiatives of social movements we are taking part in.
Featured Article
Call for Action
The Greek people needs our solidarity!
The pressure on Greece on the part of the European Central Bank, the Euro-group and some EU government has tremendously increased. Counter pressure is necessary. transform! europe has therefore agreed to issue the following call:
[read more... ]
Scholars Appeal for Greece
We the undersigned call on the governments of Europe, the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF to respect the decision of the Greek people to choose a new course and to engage the new government of Greece in good faith negotiations to resolve the Greek debt.
[read more... ]
Progressive Economy Initiative: Statement by Members of the Scientific Board
We welcome the decision of the Greek people to elect a new government committed to fundamental change in the policies of Greece and of Europe.
[read more... ]
Out now!
transform! Yearbook 2015: "United Europe, Divided Europe"
Problems and conflicts within and between European states have taken on new and alarming dimensions as economic crisis and neoliberal austerity policies continue to wreck havoc.
[read more... ]
Share this email with your friends or visit us on:
Contact us
Subscribe to the transform! newsletter
The transform! newsletter is a free email sent by our network straight to your inbox.
To sign up for the newsletter go to our website
and select your preferred language.
If you want to unsubscribe please
click here


text:
Ashraf Farahat
Graduate Student Profile – Ashraf Ahsan (MASc '19)
By Sam Charles on August 27, 2018
Ashraf Ahsan uses Raman spectroscopy to study the influence on the crystallinity and scattering of carbon thin films that have been synthesized using different deposition techniques by varying the Raman laser's wavelengths or frequencies.
Posted in College of Graduate Studies, Graduate Students, News, student profile | Tagged Ahsan, Ashraf Farahat, electrical, Grad, school of engineering, student, Studies | Leave a response
UBC engineers partner with Saudi Arabia to solve water quality woes
By Sam Charles on January 31, 2014
Partnership will allow exchange of students between the two countries.
Posted in Faculty, Graduate Students, Research, Spotlight | Tagged Abdullah Al-Zahrani, Ashraf Farahat, Rehan Sadiq, saudi arabia | Leave a response


text:
When the Indian trap shooters step on to the ranges in this month's International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Shotgun World Cup in Cairo, Egypt, it will be their last chance to grab an Olympic berth via individual quota place.
In the 2019 Olympic qualification period, trap shooters weren't impressive and failed to grab Olympic quota place. Overall, India have so far won 15 quota places, including 13 in rifle and pistol, with the other two quotas going to skeet.
"It's very tricky situation. Now the shooters will have to stay on target for podium finish to earn valuable world ranking points. The higher they rank the better the chances for individual quota," said shotgun coach Mansher Singh.
"What is more demanding is the fact that the Egypt World Cup is the only event that offers ranking points for shotgun ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. Shooters have to stay calm to have good results," said the 1994 Commonwealth Games gold medallist in trap. The Shotgun World Cup will be held from February 22 to March 5 in Cairo.
The New Delhi World Cup, to be held from March 18, will have ranking points only for rifle and pistol.
As per the ISSF policy, individual quota is allotted to shooters in a discipline in which India hasn't got quota during the qualifying cycle. The individual quota is for the shooter and not for his country. The world governing body will announce on May 31 who all are eligible for individual quota.
The national preparatory camp will commence from February 15 at Dr Karni Singh Shooting Ranges. The men's trap team comprises Jakarta Asian Games silver medallist Lakshay Sheoran, Kynan Chenai, and Prithviraj Tondaiman.
Shreyasi Singh, the 2018 Commonwealth Games champion, Ria Rajeshwari Kumari, and Manisha Keer have been selected in the women's group.
Talented youngster Gurjot Singh has been included in the men's skeet team apart from Bajwa and Khan. Ganemat Sekhon, Parinaz Dhaliwal and Kartiki Singh are in the women's skeet team. The skeet team will leave February 20 for Egypt while trap squad will leave five days later.
The Indian Team:
Women's Trap: Shreyasi Singh, Rajeshwari Kumari, Manisha Keer.
Men's Trap: Lakshya, Kynan Chenai, Prithviraj Tondaiman.
Women's Skeet: Ganemat Sekhon, Parinaaz Dhaliwal, Karttiki Singh Shaktawat.
Men's Skeet: Mairaj Ahmad Khan, Angadvir Singh Bajwa, Gurjoat Singh


text:
Category: Uncategorized
Short Front Wrap Torso Carry
Want the support of front wrap cross carry but the comfort of a torso carry? Well, you can totally have both!
Try a Front Wrap Torso Carry, and with a short wrap tied under bum! Starts like a nice supportive Front Wrap Cross Carry, but you take the wrap under your arms for no shoulder straps.
Best of both worlds!
I am a using a base -1 for this carry.
What Is Base Size?
The most common question, after how the heck do I use this thing, is what is my base size?
Why different lengths? There are a few reasons. First of all, so you can find the right size for your and baby's needs. Not everyone is built the same, so it's wonderful to find a wrap that will be the size you need.
And different lengths are used for different carries. It would be impossible to do a Double Hammock in a wrap that was way too short. Likewise, it would be frustrating to have so much tail in a Traditional Sling Carry with a too long of a wrap.
When I started wrapping, I had no idea what base size. I bought my first wrap based on price, and bought a wrap smaller than my base size. I was SO frustrated that I struggled to squeeze out a Front Wrap Cross Carry. Then later a VBE told me about base size and that my wrap was cheaper because it was shorter!
So, what is base size?
It's simply the wrap that you can do most carries with easily. This varies person to person.
It will depend on your body and baby's body. The standard way to determine base size is with a Front Wrap Cross Carry.
You should have enough tails to tighten and tie easily.
Too short and you cannot tie a secure knot.
Too long and may have so much tail hanging you may step or trip on it.
Base size is totally arbitrary, the number or length itself does not matter. What matters is you and baby are comfortable and happy.
The best way to determine your base is by trying sizes on.
The "average" size person is usually a base size 6. If you are "average", than give a 6 a try. If you are larger than average, start with a longer wrap. If you are smaller, try a shorter wrap.
Keep in mind that even people the same height/weight can be different base sizes. Everyone is built different, so make sure you get the correct size for your unique body.
So grab some wraps, find you base, and embrace the wrapping love!
Double Sling Opposite Shoulders
Love the idea of a chest belt but the loops dig into your arm pits?
Try how I do it, with the loops going the opposite directions. It's not the most aesthetically pleasing, but it's very comfortable for long-term wearing!
In this video, I paired it with a Double Sling Carry (Formerly a Double Rebozo). This a great carry for smaller babies who need lots of support but aren't seat poppers yet.
Indestructible Back Carry
The very first day I put Jack in a carrier at 3-days-old, he screamed while I got him secured. Seat popping, leaning, and wiggling—all the things that make wearing frustrating. But once I finished, he was happy and never wanted to be taken out.
And this trend continues as a toddler. Screams to be picked up, cries as I wrap him, but has a meltdown if I even suggestion taking him down. He's very opinionated and strong. He's a challenge to wrap (and parent). But I love his spirit, I wouldn't want it any other way.
My husband is half Fijian-Indian, Avinash is his Indian name and was beaming with pride to share the name with his son. Avinash means "Indestructible", which is the perfect name for Jack. My indestructible boundless ball of energy. I needed a carry that was just as indestructible as him. So I thought out what I wanted/like in other carries.
I usually gravitate towards rucks because they are quick and you can do a variety of fun finishes. But he such a seat popper, I end up redoing them—which is a pain on on hiking trails. But I like how easy it is to get knee-to-knee support. This makes it harder for to break free.
Legs passes solve the seat popping problem, which is why I fell in love with the Wiggleproof Back Carry. But doesn't stop the leaning problem.
So a Half Jordan's Back with a tight horizontal pass is another carry that I love. But it's not comfy long term for me (I have a permanent back injury).
I need more torso support to take the pressure off my back, which is I have a new found love for all chest passes and belts. But he can still wiggle out of them….so we are back up the top of the list.
To summarize, I need: knee-to-knee support, leg passes, a horizontal pass, a chest pass, and a fancy finish.
So after much trial and error, I came up with this. The Indestructible Back Carry for my Jack-Avinash. And it really works! He has to try VERY hard to get out of this carry. The day I finally got this, I started dancing around the room while he was trying to bust out, and it barely budged.
It starts with making a good ol' deep ruck seat knee-to-knee seat. I am not normally a stickler for a deep seat, but this child needs one.
Next is chest pass like a Double Hammock, but do a Reinforced Pass instead of a Sling Pass.
Than Wiggleproof Pass with opposite tail.
Then pin that wiggleproof in place with a Poppin's Pass and a Horizontal pass. Tie it off in front/chest.
An indestructible carry for my indestructible kid.
I am using a Soul Slings Flyaway Base +2.
Give it a try!
Short Ruck with an Over The Top Kai Belt
I kept seeing all these beautiful pics of Kai Belts and decided to give one a try. I loved it right away. No shoulder or chest pressure! But somehow when I got outside for a walk and didn't have photo in front of me, my brain made up it's own version. I love this one even more! All I did was add an extra tuck on both sides, but oh man, it's comfy.
I decided to pair this was a Ruck in a short wrap, to show a great back carry for a smaller baby. The bunched pass over both of baby's legs secures the ruck pass, but does not put too much pressure on delicate little legs.
Starting the Ruck off center and tying at shoulder/chest is a great way to make a short wrap more versatile. The one long tail can be used a number of ways (such as this chest belt).
Give it a try!
Bear's Sling Carry
When it's 2 AM and your baby is WIDE awake. You are exhausted and desperate. Why won't baby sleep? What I am doing wrong? How can I make you sleep!!?!?!
A month ago this was me with my little Bear. He was feed, changed, and clearly tired. But, we were in a minor 4-month sleep regression. So there we were wide awake standing in the living room.
I figured if he wasn't going to sleep, I would work on some wrap carries. I started to do a Poppin's Hip Carry, and he was having none Poppin's Pass tightening. He only seemed happy in a Traditional Sling Carry, but I wanted something more fun. I was messing around the the tail and suddenly remembered the Lexi Twist finish you can do in a Coolest Hip Carry. A few minutes later I had some Sling/Poppins/Lexi hybrid and Bear was sound asleep. Bear's Sling Carry was born.
Forward Facing Outward In A Wrap
I already talked about Forward Facing Outward in a Wrap in my Newbornwearing: Best Seat post, :
Oh, the controversial facing forward. In a nutshell, there are several arguments for not facing baby forward. It can be overstimulating, uncomfortable for wearer and wearee, no head or neck support, you cannot see baby's need cues, and not ideal position for sleeping. I agree with most of these claims. It can be overstimulating if you kept baby in that position all the time. You might naturally hold your baby facing out for a short while, but you probably wouldn't hold like that for a long time—and probably not while moving around. It would be hard to keep baby secure. You would probably turn them to face you eventually. But, you would do this holding baby, so it is reasonable to do this in a carrier. It is a bit harder to see if baby is giving you any signs or cues, but it's not impossible. Just pause and take the best look you can—just like you need to do with baby facing towards you as well.
If the wrap is supporting baby in the optimal high and tight position with knees higher than bottom, then it can be comfortable for both baby and you. If you were holding baby facing out, you would probably hold baby up high with their bottom on your forearm lifting knees higher than bottom. This would boost up baby high enough to fairly easily see baby's cues. Even with baby up high and tight, this may not be enough head or neck support for babies who have little or no head control. Your natural instinct is to totally support a newborn's body, so you probably wouldn't hold a baby who couldn't support there head facing outward. But, you might once baby got a bit more control, so it's reasonable to try in a carrier.
Check out my tutorial on how to achieve a FFO carry with deep seat in the optimal position:
Front Double Hammock with a Twist
The joy of a Double Hammock can be duplicated on the front! I added a Lexi Twist to keep a newborn's delicate legs from being squished or spread too far.
I find it too hard to keep tightening and smoothing out the carry with each new pass, so I get all the passes done and then fix it all at the end. If you do it before both shoulder flips done, I find it hard to tighten because there is now resistance to pull against.
Give it a try!
Can You Hike In It: Smitten Gertie Mesozoic
Before I review this wrap, I need to provide full disclosure. I met the owners of Smitten. They lived in the Bay Area the same time I did and I ran into at various local babywearing/mutual friend things. I am also currently a Brand Ambassador for this company. That being said, I would not be working with a company if I didn't think the owners were good people with good business practices.
I let Jack pick a new wrap this time, he's been jealous that little brother has been doing all the babywearig lately. I showed him Smitten's website and he instantly yelled, "DINOSAURS!". I asked what color, he yelled, "BLUE!!". Little did he know he picked the new color!
Manufacturer: Smitten With Wovens
Colorway: Gertie Mesozoic
Color: Blue, Sky blue, ecru, and white.
Pattern Dinosaur Sketches
Size: 7 (base +2 for me)
Materials: 100% cotton
Weave: Jacquard
Release date: October 2016
This wrap was design after Gertie the Dino, one of the first animated cartoons ever made. There a few other colors in the Gertie line, but this is the first multiple color wrap—going from blue to ecru gradient lengthwise. It's very busy visually, but the dinosaurs are not lost in the pattern. I was really blown away by the shades of blue when I opened the package, very rich and calming. It got chucked into the wash right away so it could go on a fun adventure the next day.
Location: Evergreen Aviation Nature Trail
Distance: 1.1 miles
Trail Type: Paved concrete
Weather: Raining
Trail Conditions: Wet and muddy
A few weeks ago we went to Evergreen Aviation and I noticed a little trail at the rear of the parking lot. First thought was, "I should bring Jack here on a day when he's driving me crazy." And that what I did! He was driving me crazy all week, so I called up my friend who lived near by and set-up a playdate for all our munchkins to run around.
The trail is paved and well-maintained. It's sponsored and dedicated to the Boy Scouts. It's essentially a short figure eight loop through a small woods. Nothing fancy, but a lovely little stroll for families. Great for walking toddlers (if you don't mind them getting a bit muddy if they step off the trail).
We did 3 laps total in a Front Wrap Cross Carry with a Twist. Smittens are wider wraps, so it was a bit harder to make a a seat and tighten with so much fabric on a smaller baby. I did the twist so I didn't put too much pressure on Bear's little legs by going under them.
I ended up having to fold the wrap at the bottom a bit before I made a seat to make it fit right. As for tightening, I really had to do small strand by small strand. Half inch sections instead of inch sections to get it tightened properly. Not a big deal overall though.
During the walk, I never had to adjust the wrap once I got it tightening properly. Bear was in it for 3 straight hours and it stayed very comfortable. Smittens tend to be smushy soft and cushiony, but this one has a tiny bit of grip to hold it in place as well. Even held up when we had to chase big brother around the playground.
The next day we took Mesozoic out again in the same carry for babywearing playdate, and it was much easier to tighten after being broken in some. I bet this wrap will be very easy to tighten despite the smushy factor once broken in fully. And, considering there was notably better after one use, I bet it will be broken-in in no time.
That night I let Jack stay up later to watch a movie when Bear went to bed. As soon as I came back into the living room to start the movie, he walked to me holding Mesozoic with one tear coming down his cheek (kid you not, he has a flare for the dramatic). He said, "This was for me. Can I have an uppy now? Please?" I felt horrible and put him immediately up on my back in a Double Hammock. Pulled his arms in and snuggled up, and fell asleep 5 minutes into the movie. I decided to keep him up while I watched more of the movie, to keep him my baby for a little bit longer.
I was very comfortable, I had him sleeping on me for an hour with no pain or pressure points. The chest pass stayed tight and the whole time.
This was wrap was amazing for a toddler! Jack is a tall kid, the width was perfect to make a deep, knee-to-knee seat with his long legs. And it was even easier to tighten than in the morning. This wrap is seriously easy to break in.
I decided to give it a try one more time with Bear before I did this review since it was more broken in. I did a new carry that required a lot of tightening, a Front Double Hammock with a Twist.
As I started to do the carry, I ran into the problem of it being so wide that I couldn't get a good seat on Bear again. I had to fold the wrap down under his bottom again. It definitely tightened easier, but it was just still a lot of fabric for such a little guy. I decided to tie off with a twist again, because I worried it would put too much pressure on his legs again. He was asleep in minutes and I was super comfortable. It also pleats very nicely, making the shoulder flips easy to achieve and tighten.
The key features of this wrap are the width and subtle grip. The width makes it harder to work with on a smaller baby, but is AMAZING for toddlers. But regardless of child size, once you get the carry tightened, the wrap will stay in place. I credit this grip to the dinosaur patterns itself. Those little stitched dinos grip to each other like magic.
Can you hike in a Smitten Gertie Mesozoic? This a great carrier for a infant to toddler, especially on a cold rainy day in the Northwest! It is very soft for great overall comfort. It will stay very supportive even with a wiggly toddler. However, it is a bit wide for a newborn. You can get a good wrap job with a smaller baby if you take your time. Plus, your toddler might love being wrapped in dinosaurs!


text:
LTS Pink Faux Leather Block Heel Mules In Standard Fit
No hidden fees 18+ terms apply.
- Open toe
- Slip-on mule style
- Leather look
- Block heel
- Padded insole
- Heel height:7.5cm/3"
- Standard fit
Fit & Fashion Notes:
These new-in mules are perfect for your Saturday night plans. They feature a block heel in a slip-on mule style, complete in a leather look finish. Ready for you to pair with jeans and a nice top.
Care Instructions
Explore more


text:
Sometimes, when skin is more than forty years old, it becomes invisible: hidden under worry and smoke particles and more skin, old skin, skin that can't fall off fast enough, embarrassed skin hiding behind itself, behind acrylic knit sweaters, jaunty patterns and ponchos. But not hers. Her skin gleamed. It danced with freckles, all open-mouthed and joyous against the bright clearness of her back. Sprinkles. Confetti. They fell in constellations, and he prayed for enough time to memorise them.
If he were to press his thumb to the surface before him, it would feel instantly warm and yielding, like a fresh doughnut, or the skin of his mother's cheek when it smiled. You can't touch people like that, Wellington, she used to tell him. Only me. And only things, not other people.
That hair, fine as silk, was trying hard to work itself out of the messy twist high on her head. Around her neck snaked the finest of gold chains. From the clasp hung a circular charm engraved with the letter U and an asterisk. It could have been the symbol of a horseshoe. A blind smile. The conveyor belt juddered forward. One of her upright bottles fell backwards onto his items. He felt himself stiffen.
'Gosh, I'm sorry,' the woman said as she fumbled to catch it. He felt her eyes find him for a second. He imagined her crouching like a fox cub by the roadside. What he replied with was part-grunt, part-word, as if an engine was revving at a junction. He could no longer look at her, and when she finally paid and left, he could breathe normally again.


text:
Deranged / Deranged: The Confessions of a Necrophile (1974) ****
Ed Gein was horrifying on at least two levels. The first, obviously, was the part where he dug up a bunch of corpses, killed a bunch of people, ate parts of them, and used the rest to create what in later years might have become the stock for the world's ghastliest Etsy store. But just as frightening in its way is what Gein did in the mental hospital where he spent the second half of his life— which is to say, nothing. By all accounts, Gein was quiet, polite, cooperative, and all around just about the least troublesome cannibal killer a psych-ward orderly could want. It doesn't compute. People who do what Gein did aren't supposed to say "yessir" and "no ma'am." They're not supposed to hold doors for little old ladies or practice correct hat etiquette. They're not supposed to bother with "God is great, God is good, and we thank him for our food." If someone's going to be a monster, they should at least have the decency to act like one! So maybe it isn't surprising that most of Ed Gein's cinematic doppelgangers have been more conspicuously aberrant in their personal demeanor than the actual article. Jame Gumb in The Silence of the Lambs is a secret smartypants, with his night-vision goggles, his lavishly appointed and strategically designed murder basement, and his high-tech ranch for Southeast Asian moths. He may not be on Hannibal Lecter's level, but he's got layers and layers and layers beneath his façade of dim bumpkinry. Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre goes to the opposite extreme, scarcely even qualifying as human. And even Norman Bates, the most unassuming Hollywood Gein knockoff, has that serpentine Mother persona he withdraws into during Psycho's final scene. You just know changing his bedpan is a short-straw chore among the staff of whatever Arizona loony bin that's supposed to be at the end there. Deranged is different, though. Alone among the Gein-derived fright films I've seen, it fully exploits the horror inherent in a man of dull-normal intelligence, embodying a recognizable if weirdly old-fashioned version of homespun country values, being also the kind of guy who digs his mother up from the cemetery and stuffs her. The quietest and most low-key picture of its kind, Deranged is also the most haunting. Whereas Psycho and The Silence of the Lambs wow you with their technical prowess, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre leaves you gasping and drained from the savagery of its assault, Deranged produces a lingering unease that none of its more famous fellows can match.
Deranged begins by punching the "based on a true story" button extra-hard, claiming that only the names and locations have been changed. That's a lie as usual, but Geinecologists will note that it turns out to be a much smaller lie than one normally expects. Then we meet Tom Sims (Leslie Carlson, from Deadly Harvest and Videodrome), the newspaper reporter who supposedly broke the story of the Butcher of Woodside, and who will intrude from time to time throughout the film to narrate us over some rough patches in the tale. The first time, Sims serves as the Voice of Exposition, introducing us to poor farmer Ezra Cobb (Christine's Roberts Blossom) and his ailing mother, Amanda (Cosette Lee). Amanda had a stroke twelve years ago, which paralyzed her from the waist down, and now I'm pretty sure she has stomach cancer. On the night of her death, Amanda has a mouthful of parting advice for her son, virtually all of it having to do with what a bunch of no-good, conniving, sex-mad bitches women are, and how the only one he might be able to trust is a middle-aged widow she knows, by the name of Maureen Selby (Marian Waldman, of Black Christmas and When Michael Calls). Mama figures Maureen is too fat to go whoring around with any great success, and she knows Maureen doesn't drink alcohol. But whatever he does after Amanda is gone, Ezra must always remember that the wages of sin are "gonorrhea, syphilis, and death!" Not the cheeriest note to go out on, but then something tells me cheer was never a big part of Amanda Cobb's repertoire.
Ezra gives up farming his own land after his mother's funeral, supporting himself instead as a freelance handyman doing odd jobs for his fellow Woodsiders. Naturally his most frequent customers are his next-door neighbors (which is to say that they live only about three quarters of a mile away), the Kootzes. Indeed, Harlon Kootz (Robert Warner, from The Cult and Octaman) becomes about the closest thing Ezra has to a real friend. No one can replace Cobb's mother, though, and his grief grows steadily deeper, weirder, and more obsessive until one night, acting upon commands from bad dream, Ezra sneaks off to the cemetery to open Amanda's grave and bring her home. Mind you, she's not in the best shape after a year under the ground, so Ezra has some work to do fixing her up. He reads up on taxidermy and experiments with everything from fish skin to cotton batting, but enjoys dishearteningly little success until Harlon inadvertently sets him on the right track. Ezra has never really cared what went on in the world beyond his farm, so he's also never read more of a newspaper than could be captured by a cursory glance at the front page. Consequently, he'd never heard of an obituary before the morning when Kootz shows him the one for his mother's old friend, Mrs. Johnson. Suddenly it hits Ezra. With these obituary things, he could find out to the day whenever a fresh body goes into the graveyard— fresh enough to be useful for whatever repairs Mama might need! He skedaddles to the cemetery that very night, and returns home with Mrs. Johnson's head. The flesh of her face supplies patches for the most badly decayed parts of Amanda's, while her skull goes onto one of Mama's bedposts so that she'll have someone to keep her company while Ezra is out of the house. As the months go by, Ezra makes more trips to the boneyard, until eventually there's a veritable quilting bee of mummified old dead gals hanging around the Cobb property.
It's possible that matters would have progressed no further than that had Jenny Kootz (The Reincarnate's Marcia Diamond) not gotten it into her head that Ezra needed more of a social life than she and her family could provide. But the day soon comes when Jenny spreads a little asphalt on the road to Hell by suggesting that her neighbor ought to get himself hitched. Ezra is skeptical at first— gonorrhea, syphilis, and death, remember— but then he recalls Mama vouching for Maureen Selby. Ez goes a-courting, and Maureen proves remarkably open to his advances, fumbling and hesitant though they may be. What really does it for her is when she sees that Ezra is dead earnest when he speaks of talking to his mother even now. Maureen still talks to her late husband, too, which is why everyone in Woodside who doesn't dismiss her as a fat pig dismisses her as a loony-bird instead. The pair's first date is to be a dual séance at Maureen's apartment, but it goes badly for all concerned. When Maureen begins channeling her husband, the dead man insists that Ezra take her into the bedroom at once and "make her a woman again." Ezra knows what Mama would say to that, and the date concludes with him shooting Maureen to death in her own bed.
The murder of Maureen Selby initiates a new phase in Ezra's psychological disintegration, in which his newly awakened libido goes to war against the prudish misogyny instilled in him by his mother. The result is invariably deadly for any female who catches his eye. Ezra's next victim is a barmaid called Mary Ransom (Micki Moore, from The Vindicator and The Believers), who works at Goldie's Tavern. Under-socialized as he is, Ezra is unable to distinguish between the pose of professional flirtatiousness which Mary adopts while on the clock and genuine romantic or sexual attraction. You can imagine how he reacts to discovering there's a difference. Then comes Sally (Pat Orr), the new girlfriend of Harlon's teenaged son, Brad (Brian Smeagle). Sally is quite simply the most beautiful girl Ezra has ever seen, and he's not about to let the age difference between them, the fact that she's already spoken for, or his own close personal ties to the guy doing the speaking stand in his way.
The main writer of Deranged was Alan Ormsby. If that name sounds familiar, it might be because we've encountered him before around here as the writer and star of Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things. I have a significantly higher opinion of that movie than most people, but even so the improvement between it and Deranged is simply astonishing. Orsmby already proved himself an astute observer of psychology in Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things, but that time around he did so within what was obviously his native social milieu, and his script had little merit apart from that. In Deranged, Ormsby shows that he could see just as keenly what makes practically anyone tick, and that he could translate that perception into a story with readily understandable stakes and a bit of forward momentum. Let's put Ezra Cobb himself aside for the moment, and look at how vividly Ormsby sketches the supporting cast— none of whom get a lot of screen time. Amanda Cobb, I grant you, is pretty much a cliché, the dour Fundamentalist anti-sex fanatic. Just the same, though, Ormsby both makes her an internally consistent cliché, and allows her enough idiosyncrasies to feel believable as an individual person. Maureen Selby, on the other hand, is an extraordinary creation, uniting bathos, tragedy, sensitivity, and a mental illness almost as repellant in its way as Ezra's own. The séance scene— especially the part where she supposedly channels her husband— manages to be eerie, funny, psychosexually skin-crawling, and achingly sad all at the same time. Mary Ransom is pretty straightforward in comparison, but I'm impressed nontheless with how unequivocally Orsmby (and Micki Moore, to give credit where it's due) establishes what Ezra is unable to see, that Mary's demeanor at Goldie's is an act that she puts on as part of her job. Considering what happens to her because of it, it's vital that we see how completely Cobb has the wrong idea about her. Finally, consider the Kootzes, who don't look like much, but are crucial to the functioning of the film. Their role is to dramatize and to render intelligible how an Ed Gein type can go undetected even in a community where everyone knows everyone, and is constantly all up in each other's business. On at least three occasions, Ezra essentially confesses to Harlon what he's doing, or is planning to do, but Kootz fails to grasp the significance. Either he takes Ezra's confession as a bizarre joke, or he attributes to it some other meaning based on Cobb's status as the town eccentric. But when Ezra abducts Sally, Brad Kootz understands at once who is behind the girl's disappearance. Unlike his father, Brad recognized all along that Cobb was crazy. Brad's just a kid, though, so he lacks the standing to render such a judgment against one of his elders except in the direst emergency. Between polite silence, deference to adult authority, and willful obliviousness, a guy like Ezra Cobb can get away with a lot.
Ezra, of course, is the true triumph of Deranged, but the laurels for him belong less to Ormsby, I think, than to Roberts Blossom. Deranged is practically a one-man show for much of its length, and frankly I'm at a loss to understand how this performance didn't make Blossom the most sought-after portrayer of aging oddballs in the business. Just watch the scene in which Ezra reports to Mama's corpse on his first meeting with Maureen, and allows as he's not altogether sure the gal's elevator goes all the way to the top floor. (It's the talking to spooks that has Ezra concerned. Mama's a different story, you see— she's a mass-having, space-occupying corpse, so Ez knows she's got to be real!) That scene is a miniature masterpiece of both understated psychological horror and deadpan black comedy, and it's just one of the treasures Blossom lays at our feet here. He can be an adroit straightman, as when he cycles through an indescribable array of facial expressions in response to Maureen's revelations about her continuing relationship with the departed Eric. He can play a pitiable man-child, as we see when Ezra falls in love with Mary's public persona in spite of all Amanda's advice to the contrary. He can do wily menace, like during Ezra's campaign to steer the barmaid into his clutches. And he can be downright terrifying, too, like when Ezra springs his trap on her at last, rising from among his collection of mummified grannies, masked with one of their preserved faces. Sure, Blossom got plenty of work between Deranged and his retirement from the screen at the turn of the century, but he deserved the kind of career that generates fandoms. On the basis of Deranged alone, people ought to speak of him in the same breath as Ken Foree and Angus Scrimm.
Home Alphabetical Index Chronological Index Contact


text:
From the Guardian: Roman remains threaten metro.
A planned hi-tech driverless underground railway line set to bring desperately needed transport links to the historic heart of Rome has run into a minefield of Roman remains.
Planners aim to send the new C line under the city centre at a depth of 30 metres, well beneath the archaeological treasures that litter Rome. Stations will also be built deep underground, but even the simple task of digging entrances and exits is proving a headache and could mean the scrapping of the Largo Torre Argentina stop, which serves crowded tourist sights such as the Pantheon. [continue]


text:
SpaceX have deployed the United States Air Force (USAF) X-37B spaceplane into orbit following a successful launch of their latest Falcon 9 rocket. The autonomous X-37B will orbit the earth for an unspecified number of days and then glide back to Earth landing at the Kennedy Space Center. The exact mission objectives of the USAF spaceplane are not known.
Today's launch of SpaceX's Falcon 9 carrying the X-37B, also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle, marked the company's 41st launch of their flagship rocket. With the previous launch occurring just 14 days ago, the company is quickly becoming one of the most reliable orbital transport providers in the world.
Due to the classified nature of the Falcon 9's cargo, SpaceX did not show its deployment on its live broadcast of the launch. However, the company later confirmed that the rocket's payload had been successfully deployed.
The exact mission objectives of the X-37B are largely classified with officials only revealing that it is used to perform tests that cannot be replicated on Earth. In a recent post by Popular Mechanics, the X-378's objectives were posited as being used to "test new military space satellite technologies including ion thrusters and optical and radar-based sensors designed to spy on objects on the ground or other satellites." Although it may very well be testing the USAF's latest spy technology, it is unlikely to be doing any spying of its own given that it is highly visible with even commercial-grade equipment.
With the successful launch of SpaceX's Falcon 9 complete, the Kennedy Space Center will begin preparations for Hurricane Irma. With projections showing that the powerful Category 5 hurricane is likely to pass through Space Coast, officials on the ground are securing any and all launch assets that may be affected by the strong winds.
Image Source: 45th Space Wing
Disclaimer: The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.


text:
Jonny Gustafsson (KTH) with Ian Stroud (EPFL, Switzerland) seated at the holographic display demonstration. The laptop projectors above emit different views, which are reflected or obscured based on angle by the holographic pattern on the table glass.
T24 STEP Manufacturing Meeting and STEP-NC Machining Accuracy Demonstration at KTH, held in conjuction with the ISO TC184/SC4 Meeting in Stockholm, June 11-15, 2012.


text:
Last week we received an exciting delivery, of the second edition of Wheesht. When we published this title in December 2019, I had no idea of just how timely some of the themes the book explored would come to seem during the following weeks and months, and certainly did not expect to sell out the first edition quite as quickly as we did. Wheesht is a book I generally hoped readers might reach for when faced with moments of creative difficulty: when unsure which direction to take, when feeling generally uninspired, or when things seemed blocked or stuck. It seems that many have felt that way during the past year. My job is always rewarding, but I have to say that my work is at its most heartening when I hear that someone has found that what I've written has chimed with them in some way, has helped them to see something differently, to recommence or to move forward. Such is the case with Wheesht, a project I really enjoyed working on and am very glad to have produced. I thought I'd celebrate the second edition today by sharing one of my favourite essays in the book: about mending, and about the work of my favourite textile artists, Celia Pym. Thanks, again, to everyone involved in Wheesht (especially the creative folk whose work I discuss like Celia, Evelyn Glennie, and Amanda Thomson) and to the many readers who have shared their responses to the book with me.
Recent years have seen an unrelenting trend towards a "move fast and break things" model of creativity. This antagonistic mantra—famously adopted by Facebook in its dogged crusade to monetise our attention—has now garnered familiar resonance in a wide range of contemporary discussions of everything from technological entrepreneurship to the practice of fine art. Speaking personally, I find the now widely accepted notion that you must destroy in order to create deeply troubling, and I don't mind admitting how heartily weary I am of hearing that creativity always has to be about "disruption". Why should the idea that it is the business of art to break rules, smash conventions and engage in the aggressive "disruption" of established norms be now so very widely accepted? Why are current concepts of creative transformation and originality so very often underwritten with ideas of risk-taking, norm-busting and models of behaviour that seem at best naïve and at worst needlessly adversarial?
The fact that contemporary applications of the "disruption" buzzword involve some of the worst excesses of late capitalism perhaps tells us something quite important. For "creative disruption" is a phrase perhaps most commonly associated with gig-economy pioneers, whose business it is to make unprotected workers shoulder the burden of economic competition while simultaneously mining the last corners of the self for profit. "Creative disruption" may well spur a revolution in the market, but it also facilitates the transfer of resources from many hands to very few;reduces much-needed regulation; exploits human labour and leaves unscrupulous "disruptors" unscrutinised and untaxed while we all blithely hail our next ride. Is this a good example of what contemporary art should strive towards? Do we really need more "creative disruption" in our making disciplines and practices? Our political discourses have collapsed into a disarray that's been harnessed by those in power in the service of their own self-interest while they simultaneously fail to address the stark realities of a globe at ecological breaking point from the perspective of our shared humanity. No-one can ignore the fact that the world in which we live seems increasingly precarious and fragile. Is there that much more remaining to be broken? And why would we want to break it anyway? In the midst of a digital sphere wearied by its own discursive fracture and division, surrounded by the wreckage of contemporary politics and culture, perhaps an idea of mending things, rather than of breaking them, might prove the more radically transformative.
Mend your socks
Think about what is involved when you darn a pair of socks instead of buying a new pair. Mending our existing socks is first about taking care of what we already own rather than demanding box-fresh novelty. Stopping, examining the damage, then slowly repairing the worn areas allows us to take stock while we take care of our ordinary possessions. In mending, we pause with our socks, examine them, and get to grips with the different meanings and memories they embody. Who made these socks? What kind of yarn was used, and why? Where have these socks been, and what places have they seen? How have our bodies aged and altered over the months and years in which we've worn them? Have our thoughts, ideas or circumstances slowly altered with the accumulation of steps we've taken? And, just as the time of wear and tear might make us reflect on the bigger picture of our time passing, so the time of our mending might also become time dedicated to the appreciation of our socks, as the process of repair enables a renewed and deeper understanding of their usefulness and significance. In darning, we are both making do (the socks are already in our possession) and making new (darned socks are completely different objects to worn-out and holey ones). Then, in their newly mended form, their darns become marks of restoration which enable our freshly functional socks to carry our feet forth to new adventures. Imbuing strength to objects that have been weakened by wear and tear, darns are marks both of healing and of continued resilience. And, in the movement of our hands and the thread or yarn we choose, the darn also identifies our socks as distinctively ours. With darned marks, our mended socks acquire their own material signatures, becoming unmistakably, irretrievably associated with our own sock-wearing bodies. We know that anyone might own an identikit pair of new socks, but does anyone else wear carefully darned socks that have been worn and mended quite like these? And finally, in the simple act of making itself visible, the darn celebrates the flaws and inconsistencies that are inherent characteristics of all made things. In mending our socks, we are also giving ourselves permission to embrace the essential beauty of their material imperfection.
So, why not forget about disruption; forget about breaking things to force something new upon the world; forget about destroying in order to create? Instead, let's pay careful attention to the damage. Let's thoughtfully repair what we already own. Let's make mending integral to creative making.
Mend, like Celia Pym
Celia Pym is an artist whose practice explores—and engenders—care and repair in many different contexts. Beginning her working life as a teacher, Pym went on to study textiles at the Royal College of Art before training and qualifying as a nurse. In Pym's creative practice, all three of these roles are interestingly combined: the communicative, supportive role of a teacher; the practical skill and nuanced understanding of textile artistry; and the nurturing, caring work of nursing. In their different ways, all three of these roles involve ideas of care and repair, and the act of mending—in the widest possible sense—is what her art is all about.
Celia Pym's aesthetic medium is the darn, and she first became interested in darning after inheriting a well-worn sweater owned by her great-uncle, Roly, which had been repeatedly repaired by Pym's great-aunt and Roly's sister, Elizabeth. Roly had been an artist, and his sweater was worn out in the particular places where his arms had pressed against his drawing board in the routine course of his work. While the everyday movements of Roly's body were present in his sweater's areas of wear, the practical care of his sister was equally present in its places of repair. Elizabeth's darns were, Pym says, distinctive: "a reflection of her practical character [with] an individual style which I loved". Handling Roly's worn and darned sweater, Pym immediately saw how it spoke of the body and activities of its wearer, the character of its repairer, and the caring relationship that had existed between two siblings who were no longer alive. Feeling the materiality of Roly's sweater very forcibly, Pym was struck by how the related slow processes of wear and mending might articulate something very complex, very tender and very human too.
Pym taught herself to darn, and carefully filled in the thinning areas of Elizabeth's repairs, adding her own marks of care—her own layers of human meaning—to Roly's sweater. She then began to explore darning in a range of different artistic and community contexts, participating in projects in which people could bring in objects to be mended, or receive advice about fixing and renewing broken things. Through these educative participatory projects, Pym began to develop a creative practice in which darning became a great way to open conversations; to continue dialogue by sharing stories in which grief was often an auxiliary to damage; and to exchange acts of care between repairing humans and the material objects that, through repeated use, had assumed significance in their lives. Mending also became a means for Pym to reflect more broadly on ideas of ownership and cost. Worn-out or broken things are still, in their most basic sense, possessions, and yet Pym realised that the desire to repair material objects conferred on them a human value that far surpassed the economic. Why would you bother mending something that doesn't actually mean anything to you?, Pym's work implicitly asks. Or, as she puts it succinctly in an interview, "you only really want to mend what you live in".
Whether mending 60 sports socks with bright, colourful yarns in First One's the Best (2015), or revivifying a gansey from Annemor Sundbø's ragpile that was worn and felted to the point of complete unwearability through darns that are beautiful material objects in themselves (2010), Pym describes her practice of visible mending as profoundly "unapologetic". Central to her work is the idea that darning is much more about display than about disguise—and we might reflect on that in three different ways. First, wear and tear are part of the action of time that lends meaning to the things we make and use. Material objects are worn, broken or damaged through processes that are themselves integral to that object's life. Retaining the memory of an object's wear or damage through the obvious visibility of repair is, for Pym, a way of adding to, or celebrating, that object's narrative. Second, against the backdrop of worryingly unsustainable global textile production, at a moment when clothes are increasingly cheaply acquired and just as casually discarded, the careful repair of garments through visible mending might enact a kind of resistance to a culture of disposability. In a world where we can easily choose not to think about an object's provenance and processes, and simply throw everything away, mending rather than replacing is one practical way of our starting to think differently. Finally, Pym's visible mends are important forms of aesthetic production in and of themselves. "I like it when things are lumpy and bumpy," she says. "It's nice when you can see the landscape of damage which although I am mending I am also distorting." Pym's visibly darned distortions are the aesthetic form that gives her expression to her creative impulses. Yet there's an implicit feminist politics to such distortions too. For many centuries, darning has largely been women's work, part of the countless inconspicuous acts of daily care through which women have maintained themselves, their wardrobes, their domestic textiles and their families. While the very idea of invisible mending seems in itself to be a powerful symbol of the historic invisibility of women's labour, Pym's beautifully conspicuous visible mending reclaims a much-overlooked and often-derided domestic activity as a significant act of creative invention.
"I value tenderness," says Pym. "It is important to me as an approach to working. There is a tenderness in noticing holes, worn-out things, damage, and also in handling objects, garments, materials." There's a profound tenderness, too, in that other practice in which Pym has experience of noticing damage and working with the hands—nursing. While nursing is "intimate work, requiring great tenderness", sewing is, says Pym, "an act of healing". "I use [nursing] skills when I make things or mend them, but perhaps it's the other way round," she says: "perhaps I took these skills from mending into nursing." So much of what Pym does seems to be about bringing the tender, nurturing disciplines of nursing and stitching together—and perhaps nowhere is this more powerfully apparent than in her Parallel Practices work of 2014, part of a collaborative project between King's College Cultural Institute and the UK Crafts Council. Working with Richard Wingate, head of anatomy at King's, Pym became interested in developing a dialogue between the activities of human dissection and repairing human possessions. "Notions of mending and repair", Wingate reflected, were already part of the "intimate and unusual territory" of the dissection room. On the one hand, because of the profound and inescapable materiality of the human body, a dissection room is inevitably filled with emotion and affect, yet, on the other, medical students often find themselves having to depersonalise and distance themselves from their dissection work simply in order to manage the experience of cutting into real people with real stories. Pym set up a "mending desk" at one end of the dissection room, and invited staff and students to bring in their beloved worn and damaged textiles for her to repair. What would it mean to bring the practice of mending human textiles into such close proximity to work that's often assumed to be dehumanising?
While Pym acclimatised herself to the strong smell of preserving fluids, so the anatomy students accustomed themselves to having the activity of mending taking place at the same time as dissection. "They brought their favourite things," says Pym: "a jacket with a mouse hole chewed in the cuff, a backpack from childhood, an abaya that was new before being ripped at the knees from a fall." As she mended their possessions, Pym engaged in conversations with staff and students about their backgrounds, families and career ambitions. Staff spoke of how they continually held in mind the relatives of the donated bodies with which they worked, and of their occasional personal knowledge of these families or sometimes the donors themselves. Soon, Pym's mending desk became a sort of informal breakout space, as students overwhelmed or close to fainting came to sit with her while they recovered. Conversations with these students enabled reflections on skin as a very particular kind of worn-out textile, one that's particularly intimately and profoundly bound up with a human sense of self and identity. Some students spoke of their instinctive difficulty with handling certain kinds of skin—skin that reminded them of people to whom they were close, such as an elderly relative—or of how encountering marks of an individual's history—like scars or injuries—increased the difficulty of handing and dissecting certain bodies. Students shared with Pym how they found the human signs that a body possessed a personality—such as tattoos—quite literally hard to handle. And, at the same time that these students confronted their own difficult feelings about these visible marks of human preference and intent, Pym quietly mended the possessions which spoke similarly of their own intentions and desires.
Pym's creative practice found its origins in a dead man's sweater and the profoundly tender, profoundly human act of mending it. Continuing to repair Roly's sweater brought a new kind of understanding to it as a possessed object, and lent it a new kind of life. Possession resonates doubly with ideas of ownership and haunting, and both meanings seem important to Pym's project in the King's College dissection room. While a dissection room is a place of the dead, its single purpose is to increase knowledge and understanding of the living human body in those who will be later entrusted with its care. Enabling reflections on our ownership of our own bodies and on what our damaged physical possessions might mean to us as humans, Pym's project suggests how placing the activity of mending in a dissection room might allow the ideas of tenderness that are already inherent in that space to be foregrounded. During her residency, Pym found that she "thought again about why I found my way to darning and also to nursing". Establishing a mending desk as part of the dissection room made that space explicitly and effectively about human care—the care of the staff and students through supportive dialogue and the repair of their possessions alongside the distinctively human act of handling and caring for another human body, before and after death, with kindness, thoughtfulness and respect. This is the kind of creative care we might consider extending more broadly to the broken material world that now surrounds us.
Through creative acts of mending, we might see that alongside the death of a body or the damage to a material object there are forms of life-giving renewal and restoration. In mending, we acknowledge in the midst of wreckage and despair, there can also be also the slow, thoughtful, reflective work of repair. And, in these times in which we are often forced to confront the emotional and material realities of our own personal damage, Celia Pym describes her mending as an act of "emotional sustainability". So, as we turn our backs on destructive or disruptive models of creativity, there's a profound lesson in Pym's work about what contemporary creative making might now strive to achieve.
Images of Celia Pym's projects can be seen, and her work more fully explored at her website
You might also enjoy my interviews with Flora Collingwood Norris and Tom van Deijnen about their own mending practices
The second edition of Wheesht is now available from the KDD shop!


text:
Application report
MEASUREMENTS WITH Si-PIN DIODE POINT DETECTOR
Measurements of Li2SrSiO4, K3[Fe(CN)6], Fe and Mn2CrO4 applying a scintillation counter and a Si PIN diode point detector
Samples of Li2SrSiO4, K3[Fe(CN)6], Fe and Mn2CrO4 were measured using transmission geometry on a STOE STADI MP diffractometer equipped with pure Cu Kα1 radiation. Measurements were carried out with a scintillation counter (with and without secondary beam monochromator; 0.2mm slit size) and a Si PIN diode point detector (0.2mm slit size).
A Si PIN diode enables the energy discrimination of the incident radiation, with a FWHM of the energy peak close to 200 eV. Therefore it is possible to clearly separate between Kα and Kβ radiation of Co, Cu, Mo and Ag and also cut off X-ray fluorescence appearing at absorption edges.
Using a secondary beam monochromator for measurements of Fe (or Mn) containing samples with Cu Kα1 radiation and a scintillation counter reduces the background and increases the signal-to-noise ratio but reduces the overall intensities to ¼.
The Si PIN diode point detector is able to completely cut off the fluorescence of Fe (and/or Mn) and therefore provides data with a signal-to-noise ratio up to two times higher than the scintillation counter with secondary beam monochromator. Due to the lower height divergence caused by the smaller detector size of the PIN diode compared to the scintillator crystal, the resolution is considerably better.
The slightly decreased intensity of the Si PIN diode due to the smaller detector size compared to the scintillation counter is overcompensated by the lower background and the higher quantum efficiency (~98 % vs. ~30 %).
[[1]] A. Le Bail, H. Duroy, J. L. Fourquet, Mat. Res. Bull. 1988, 23, 447.
[[1]] L. W.Finger, D. E. Cox, A. P. Jephcoat, J. Appl. Cryst. 1994, 27, 892.
Feel free to contact us for any questions:


text:
Mrs Slagg, while impressed at Dobby's diminishing verse, reckons she could go one better.
In fact, she's written a couple. Read on;
Me and Mr Slagg had a spat
Over the new girl called Pat
He thinks she's where it's at
Stale Pie
Mr Slagg said my pie was stale
I gave him what for, a sorry tale
Now he's gone out to drink ale
The Plate
Mr Slagg deliberately broke me best plate
He's been so very stroppy as of late
I blame the dog bowl off which he ate
The New Girl
New girl Edna is full of charms
But it's Mr Slagg who that harms
So I slapped him about on the arms
What do you think, PL's? Do you think you could do a better one? With less violence? Please send them in, and risk Mrs Slagg's wrath. Are you brave enough?
Send one in if you dare! thanks for tuning in, we'll be back real soon


text:
Thinking about purchasing a home in League City?
Take a look at 1325 Altavilla Lane!
Gorgeous 4 bedroom 3.5 bath and 3 car garage Mediterranean style home with stone exterior accents in the very desirable Tuscan Lakes community. Upgrades throughout include wood floors, window seats, tons of windows and crown molding. 2 story entry leading to the dining room and study with french doors. Gourmet kitchen with 42″ cabinets, granite counter tops, stainless steel upgraded appliances and double ovens, and large island overlooking the family room with wood beam ceiling, and gas fireplace. Master suite with walk in closet, double sinks, granite counter top, soaker tub and oversized shower with frameless door. Wrought iron staircase leads to upstairs guest rooms, media room, game room and balcony. Oversized laundry room with sink and built in storage. Private backyard oasis with covered travertine patio, custom landscaping, outdoor kitchen, fire pit, and pergola. Call today for your private showing!!!


text:
Lohan's Father Undergoes DNA Test
LINDSAY LOHAN's father MICHAEL has undergone DNA testing with hopes of proving
he is not the father of a secret lovechild.
Michael Lohan has admitted to having an affair with Kristi Kaufmann during a
period in 1995 when he and his now ex-wife Dina had separated.
But the born-again Christian has denied Kaufmann's allegations the result was
her 13-year-old daughter Ashley, and he has instructed his lawyers to seek the
truth of his former mistress' claims.
Lohan tells U.S. magazine Star, "I took the DNA test this morning
(30Jun08)… It was important for me to know the truth, so I took the test."
Lohan expects the results of the paternity tests to reveal his relationship
to the teenage girl within two weeks.
He insists he had no idea that his one-time lover had given birth to a child
after their romance.
Kaufmann hit him with the bombshell news while he was in prison, serving time
for a DUI and other charges in 2005.


text:
The model S6 is the starting model into Pfanzelt's forwarding trailer programme. A compact forwarding trailer with considerable power.
The second model in the S-line series is compact but nevertheless a small power pack. It was designed for the use by private forest owners and semi-professional operations. The
S-line forwarding trailers are agile and productive.
With its Profi forwarding trailer series, Pfanzelt offers the most extensive forwarding trailer range on the market. With its special modular design, the user can put together the forwarding trailer according to his own requirements and choose between various weight classes, brake systems, loading cranes and an extensive range of accessories.
The logLINE forwarding trailer series rounds off the Pfanzelt forwarding trailer range with two top of the range models. These models are characterised by uncompromising, powerful professional technology.
There is no difference here. Whether crane trailers, timber trailers or forestry trailers – these are merely regional terms for a forwarding trailer for use in forests.


text:
This reality star faced serious backlash due to her cover for 7 Hollywood.
- Kim Kardashian faced serious allegations due to being accused of 'black face'.
- Kim Kardashian recently was the cover girl for 7Hollywood.
Kim Kardashian inspired Elizabeth Taylor look was featured on 7Hollywood. On the other hand, Kim Kardashian's cover for 7Hollywood led caused her to face serious backlash on social media.
Twitter users were very upset and appalled by Kim Kardashian's look on the cover. Also, some Twitter users defended Kim Kardashian.
[adinserter block="1″]
Kim Kardashian was unbothered by the 'black face' comments, and she continues to post and promote her makeup collection with Mario.


text:
Women's Study: Seek First
Starts: May 16, 2022 9:30
Ends: May 16, 2022 10:30
Mondays | 9:30 - 10:30 a.m. (304)
5 Mondays beginning May 9 and ending June 13. (We will not meet on Memorial Day May 30.)
Books are available on Amazon or the church will order when you register. When you register there will be a place that indicates if you want Covenant to order the book for you. Books are $15.00.
Please read the first 2 chapters before our first meeting.
Led by Sandy Whitten and Brenda Hembree


text:
Wednesday, May 20
On the Menu:
- Pork roast
- Cheesy potatoes
- Fruit cup
- Dessert
There will be no pick-ups at the church. This is delivery only.
Deliveries will begin around 4:30 to your house. We will call to let you know that we are there, and dinners will be left on your front step for everyone's safety. Please RSVP by noon Wednesday to Deb Monnin at 937-726-0579 (by Text or phone call) with:
- Your name
- Number of dinners you'd like
- Your phone number
- Your address.


text:
I am familiar with all the places you hurt and all the things that stir up your anxiety. Come to Me anyway, even though things don't feel great all the time. Come to Me and find that just for a moment, perhaps, all feels well and manageable. Allow that glimmer of hope to squeak through the cracks of those hard, cold walls of pain or fear. Whisper this truth: I am with you in all things. Nothing will be too much to bear. Let Me comfort you with an attentive reassurance that you are never, ever alone in your suffering.
#managingpain; #nomoreanxiety; #youcandoit; #Godunderstands