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The New Bay Bridge
Sometimes, the thrills in life aren't just about amusement parks – sometimes, it's about being a part of history.
So when they announced the new, $6.4 billion eastern span of the Bay Bridge was to open ahead of schedule, late last night – I charged up the GoPro and jumped into the Escape:
Our Next Lost Park…
We're hoping that by choosing this park, we just might bring summer back this year…it's freezing in the Bay Area right now!
Well, you know it from it's catchy jingle or if you ever drove through the Central Valley on the way to Yosemite or Sonora…
That's right! We're going back to the "famous" MANTECA WATERSLIDES!
(SKIP to 2:40 for the good stuff…)
Featured on "This Week in Photo" Podcast!
If you haven't already, check me out on the "This Week in Photo" podcast! We'll discuss photo composition, the impetus for me getting into photography…and of course, nausea.
Enjoy, everyone!
Learn more about Frederick's work at: www.thisweekinphoto.com
Lost Parks Episode 2 Debuts This Friday!
If you haven't already, check out our preview for the second installment of the "Lost Parks of Northern California."
Do you know the way to San Jose – and it's first amusement park?
Lost Parks of Northern California – Episode 2 Preview
It's finally here!
Episode 2 of the "Lost Parks" series is in the bucket and ready for release. So until the actual episode debuts, check out this quick preview of San Jose's OTHER long lost amusement park – LUNA PARK!
Look for the actual episode to debut later this month!
Star Tower POV (Point of View) Video
Need a break at work today? Then come along for quite possibly the SLOWEST point of view (POV) video that you will ever see of any amusement park ride on Earth – here's the complete ride cycle for the 200 foot tall Star Tower at California's Great America. That being said, you'll see all of the major attractions of the park in action – a rare feat to capture in just one ride!
Gold Striker Video – Rider Reactions
With Gold Striker now officially open to the public at California's Great America – enjoy this on-ride video of myself and "Lost Parks" Producer, Nicholas Laschkewitsch (who is also the ACE NorCal Asst. Regional Rep) taking in a ride.
KGO Interview
KGO 810 AM here in the Bay Area interviewed me this past Friday on the "Lost Parks" series. Hopefully, it's the start of people discovering my little series!
For those who missed it – check it out!
Lost Parks, Episode 1 – San Mateo's "Pacific City"
Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present to you, episode one of, "The Lost Parks of Northern California," featuring San Mateo's "Pacific City."
Be sure to like our video, comment on it, subscribe to our channel and share with your friends! We're on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter!
You can also follow the American Coaster Enthusiasts (my partner on this journey) at www.ACEonline.org or www.ACEnorcal.org
Introducing the "Lost Parks" series!
This has been a long time coming – but I'm proud to introduce the first in a series of videos on the lost amusement parks of Northern California.
Special thanks to Nick Laschkewitsch for his excellent camera work on this intro.
Enjoy, everyone!
Superman, Ultimate Flight – Media Day Event
Come experience the entire media day festivities for Six Flags' newest thrill ride! Includes after-ride analysis, point of view video (POV) and even a Drew Carey laugh impersonation!
Superman: Ultimate Flight – Rider Reactions
Great American Thrills was invited out to sample the BRAND NEW thrill ride at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom – Superman, Ultimate Flight!
As you can tell from the uncontrollable laughing at the end – it's that much fun, folks! Get out to Vallejo (probably really early to avoid the line) and get on this coaster!


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Explore Our Brands
At ARYZTA we are united by a passion for food and the desire to help food businesses serve memorable taste experiences to their customers. We have developed and enhanced a portfolio of specialist best-in-class brands that embody our bakery heritage and innovative spirit. Our collection of brands includes well recognised names in continental artisan breads, pastries, viennoisserie, French pâtisserie and American bakery.

subset: commoncrawl


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I shocked a few of my neighbors when I said I was biking to Philadelphia this past weekend. It takes an hour to drive using I-95 so it seems crazy far to bike … and besides, how would you go?
OK, it was 50 miles on Saturday, 58 on Sunday. One day for the Pennsylvania side, one for the New Jersey side, using parts of the Philadelphia area Circuit Trails network. We'd biked sections of the two routes so what we really wanted to know is which way is better.
The answer?
There are pros and cons to each, and both have messy bits. If you forced us to decide, you'll get different answers. It may depend on the mix of urban and industrial riding you prefer. And was traffic on Easter Sunday morning too atypical to fairly evaluate one route?
We had hoped to head to Philly on Good Friday, but it was too cold. Plus I was offered a COVID vaccine, so even if it had been a gorgeous day, it would have been hard to say no to the shot.
So three of us headed out on Saturday morning, waiting until 10 am to start because it was still chilly and who says you have to be tough? We planned to follow the East Coast Greenway route, so we picked up the D&R canal towpath at Washington Road in Princeton. Ten easy miles later, we were near Trenton's Battle Monument. The canal towpath peters out here, so even though you still see signs for Delaware and Raritan State Park (the towpath), I'd suggest switching to the road (Warren if you are southbound). The goal is to pick up Capitol Street and the East Coast Greenway route at Calhoun Street, right before the Calhoun Street Bridge that takes you across the Delaware River to Pennsylvania. The approach to the bridge can be confusing, so watch which lane you need and jump on the sidewalk if needed. You'll have to walk your bike across the bridge.
Just after you cross the bridge, look for the red D&L sign kind of diagonally ahead to your left, right after some public restrooms (open during non-COVID times). And then you're back on the trail.
OK, officially there is a gap soon after and you need to take a road detour, rejoining the trail behind a Quality Inn. In the past we've kept going until the trail dead-ends by a car repair place (now a distillery?), crossed the road and taken our bikes down the stairs and to the trail. I admit we chickened out on the road when we couldn't tell exactly where we needed to go (the right turn is just before the turnoff for US 1) and ended up back at the stairs.
2023 update: I'd now say stay on Warren Stret through downtown Trenton and follow it as it curves right to become Bridge Street. Take the Lower Trenton Bridge ("Trenton Makes" bridge) across the Delaware River. Turn left at the second traffic light onto Pennsylvania Avenue. Right before the Route 1 on-ramp, take the road/entrance to the Quality Inn. There's a very short unpaved path at the back of that road to the D&L.
But think of it as another 10 miles of trail until you reach Bristol. We've previously biked it and bit beyond on a search for "weird beer" — and thanks to a few gaps that have been closed, it's infinitely better than the route we took to Philadelphia several years ago.
Lots of points for these 20 miles of trail.
State Road was a concern, particularly going through Bensalem, but we were pleasantly surprised by the shoulder. That's a five-mile stretch.
Shortly after entering Philadelphia, we left State Road and headed to Torresdale Avenue. A big plus for the bike lane on this road. But I felt we hit just about every possible red light, seemingly every block or two. Take points off for that. Would a parallel residential road with stop signs be better?
Now if you were biking on a Saturday or Sunday in June, July, August or the first two days of Labor Day weekend, you'd have a different option: the sidepath on State Road from Linden Avenue to Pennypack Street, then Pennypack Street to the Baxter Trail and into Pennypack Park on the Delaware. Long saga, but until the Baxter Trail is open 365 days a year (or close to it)…
We left Torresdale at Unruh Avenue to head to a trail along the Delaware River. Big points for the trail. Unfortunately, the K&T Trail ends at a dilapidated bridge … but that will change around 2026 when the bridge and the Delaware Avenue extension project are built as part of a mammoth I-95 reconstruction project. Then you'll have many miles of trail until General Pulaski Park. (Here's what I've pieced together about that.) It will be amazing. Until then, though…
The plan was to go back up to Torresdale on Comly Street. But we deviated from our plan, so we can't truly evaluate the rest of the East Coast Greenway route we were going to take. I'll just say we had some messy bits until we reached Orthodox Street and headed back to the river and picked up the existing Delaware Avenue trail. Long and pleasant! Lots of points for this.
When that ended, we stuck to our route but had more messy bits until we got to Penn Treaty Park and a trail that takes you around the casino. Some of this mess is construction-related, but I'd say the Pennsylvania option loses plenty of points here. Oh, and there's plenty of glass too. I'm surprised no one had a flat. More points lost.
After the casino, the East Coast Greenway route takes Spring Garden to the Schuylkill River. But we were headed to South Philly. We'd hoped the new Delaware River trail along Delaware Avenue would be close enough to done that we could take it, but alas, it was the bike lane for us. But soon — a few months? — this will be an awesome route for anyone headed to South Philly, almost all the way to Ikea.
Here's the route on Ride With GPS starting at the Princeton Junction train station and ending at Spring Garden. I couldn't adjust the route by Battle Monument for some reason, so use your judgment.
So what about the New Jersey option?
That was Sunday's ride, and the first step was to get ourselves onto the Ben Franklin Bridge. Sunday morning traffic plus Easter morning traffic … no stress. The stairs on the NJ side are gone so points for the easy ramp.
I know Camden gets a bad rap, but the route we took, using the on-road Camden Greenway, was fine. It's the same route we took from Trenton to Camden in November but in reverse, and I'll take it over Torresdale stop-and-go.
Then we started going through industrial areas following River Avenue/River Road. Those 5 1/2 miles or so were fine on a Sunday morning — but what would it be like during the week?
After some residential streets that could use some repaving, we were back on another main road for less that four miles. Easter traffic was more pleasant than what we encountered heading south on a Saturday afternoon a few months ago. Plus we found some parallel roads. Perhaps we could have gotten rid of about half of that section of main road — but it's easier to do if you're headed north. Take off some points for this.
Riverside, Delanco … we've ridden this before and stuck to the main road in these small towns, which was fine, but residential streets would be nicer. Beverly, Burlington along the river .. all good. Then we hit the big Amazon warehouse north of Burlington … what would traffic be like during the week? Some sidepaths, but uneven. More industrial until we reached Florence and Roebling.
Fun historical fact I learned only later: the route through Burlington goes within a few blocks of 309 Wood Street, where General (and later President) Grant moved his family in 1864. It's privately owned, so all you can do it bike by.
Ah, Roebling. Once the site of a giant factory for the company that built the Brooklyn Bridge, there's now an amazing new trail — part of the Delaware River Heritage Trail — that goes to Crystal Lake Park. Every time I'm on it, I'm in love. Big points for this, and it goes for more than 5 miles.
Then a stretch of road to Bordentown, another lovely town, and the 3 1/2-mile orphan section of the D&R Canal into the southern end of Trenton. Now that we know how to go from there through a park to the minor-league baseball park, it's easy to get to downtown Trenton and back to the D&R Canal towpath around Battle Monument. Then it's an easy 10 miles or so back to Washington Road in Princeton where we turn off. (Here's the Ride With GPS route from Independence Hall to the Princeton Junction train station.)
Still, it's not quite as long as almost 20 miles of uninterrupted trail that we had on the Pennsylvania side. Another big negative for the New Jersey route is that it's nearly 8 miles longer because of the big semi-circle the Delaware River makes from Florence to Trenton.
But both routes felt as flat as a pancake … the biggest "hill" was the Ben Franklin Bridge. So take your pick, because we have a split vote on which is better.


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NewDelhi: India is mulling its options on whether to go ahead with foreign secretary-level talks with Pakistan scheduled for later this month after militants attacked an Indian Air Force (IAF) base over the weekend, a government official said on Monday.
A final decision on the talks, scheduled for January 15, is expected to be taken after security forces have completed their operation at the Pathankot air base, near the Pakistan border, the source said, requesting anonymity.
The move comes after a brazen militant attack on the Pathankot air base, a sprawling compound that lies 25km from the border with Pakistan, on January 2.
The attack, a rare targeting of an Indian military installation outside the disputed region of Kashmir, threatens to undermine a tentative thaw in relations with Pakistan.
A fresh gun battle commenced on January 3 and fresh firing was reported on today (Monday). Pakistan strongly condemned the attack.
Officials said the attack bore the hallmarks of previous suspected assaults by Pakistan-based militant groups, underscoring the fragility of recent efforts to revive bilateral talks between the nuclear-armed neighbours.


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With a fractious lineup decimated by injuries to key players, the Twins have ridden the bats of Eduardo Escobar and Eddie Rosario to stay in contention in the wide-open American League Central.
They could ill afford to lose either of them.
Maybe that's why the Twins scratched Rosario because of discomfort in his throwing shoulder ahead of Thursday's series finale against the Boston Red Sox at Target Field. After missing Thursday's 9-2 loss to the Red Sox, the left fielder vowed to return for Friday's series opener against the Texas Rangers.
"I'll play tomorrow," he said. "One hundred percent."
Escobar, batting .300 with 12 home runs and 48 RBIs as the primary fill-in for Miguel Sano at third base, left Thursday's game after being hit in the right elbow by a Rick Porcello fastball in the first inning. He initially stayed in the game, but Molitor pulled him after he struck out in the third inning. He is day to day.
Rosario is hitting .320 with a team-high 16 homers, and his 46 RBIs rank second only to Escobar. He has been playing through a shoulder issue more or less since spring training, Molitor said, and as of Wednesday had appeared in a team-high 70 games as the Twins' everyday left fielder.
"I was ready to play today," Rosario said, "but sometimes people take care of you."
Molitor said Rosario did not aggravate the shoulder on one particular play.
"I think it's just been accumulating a bit, little by little," he said. "We go back to spring and he had a little shoulder issue and things. I know he's been in there trying to keep it as game-ready as possible, and today maybe … it's to the point where we talked to the trainers and we thought it was the best thing."
The Twins have been without Sano, first baseman Joe Mauer and center fielder Byron Buxton for large portions of the season. Sano, on whom the Twins were counting for big offensive production this season, has been demoted to Class A Fort Myers to reboot a moribund season. Buxton, arguably baseball's best, and fastest, center fielder, is on the disabled list with an injury to his left big toe.
Ryan LaMarre was added to the lineup in center field for Thursday's game; Robbie Grossman played left
Sano has played in two games since being demoted to the Miracle last week, going a combined 2 for 8 with two runs scored, one walk and one strikeout. Molitor said he texted his erstwhile third baseman on Thursday morning.
"Still monitoring his schedule as far as the days that are more heavy workload, as opposed to the days that are just playing," the manager said.
Sano, 25, was an all-star last season, hitting .264 with a team-high 28 home runs and 77 RBIs in 114 games as the Twins won an AL wild-card spot. Before being demoted this season, he was batting .203 with seven homers and 27 RBIs in 37 games. He also had 66 strikeouts.
The Miracle were scheduled to play four games at Bradenton, Fla., starting Thursday night, and it was unclear when he would play next.
"The reports are that he's working his tail off in the gym in the mornings, and when appropriate, we're getting him into games," Molitor said.


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The most important social group in Agios Ioannis was the nuclear family. Loyalty to one's family members should be more important than friendship, and with regard to outsiders the family should always present itself as a unified front. The need of the family was more important than the need of others, and members of the household would work together to improve the family's position in society.
Bilateral kinship (kinship through both the father's and the mother's family) is the second most important organizing principle after that of the nuclear family. However, kinship on the father's side is the most important. When a person marries, both one's own first cousin and the first cousin of one's spouse will be addressed by the same kinship term. The terms aunt (theia) and uncle (theios) are used both for parents' siblings and grandparents' siblings, as well as more distant relatives or sometimes unrelated persons. Both first cousins and second cousins were normally referred to as cousin, and people would only distinguish between the two terms if reqested to do so.
People are quite aware of who their first and second cousins are, both their own and those related through marriage. This knowledge is important since a person has rights and obligations regarding one's cousins and is not allowed to marry a first or second cousin. The relation to the siblings of one's spouse, their husbands and wives and nephews and nieces on both sides is also an important one.
The girls married young. There were few reasons for postponing a marriage and no need for them to wait until their fathers and brothers had saved enough money for a dowry. Parents who wanted to secure a good marriage for their daughters, might marry them off when a good offer came, in spite of the girl being only 16 or 17 years old. A large group of Sfakians had settled in New York, and some men returned from USA to find a young and good-looking wife.
Everyone we talked to claimed there was no dowry in Agios Ioannis. The village was poor, and what had previously been used as dowry – sheep, olive trees or a house in the village – was no longer acceptable. During the difficult years of the Second World War a man paid three sheep for a house and gave it to his sister as dowry. However, it was different in other parts of the island. During our stay, one man from Agios Ioannis married a woman from Chania who had a house, 100 olive trees and 100 orange trees. Even in the late '70s the young girls would spend several years working on their trousseau, which every girl in the village had to have: tablecloths, bedclothes, etc. Earlier, the girl and her mother would need ten years to make these items, but later, much of it was store-bought.
In Agios Ioannis the youngest son inherited his parents' house, while the land would be split up between all the sons. However, few of the sons would stay in the village and were therefore more interested in receiving cash. When the parents died or left the village, the houses were abandoned and the land sold to those who stayed. In this way those remaining have been able to build up bigger plots.
Most men got married in their early thirties. One man was concerned when his son married at the age of 24. He thought this was a bit too young. However, when an 18 year old, unmarried girl from one of the neighbouring villages visited relatives in Agios Ioannis, the local women thought she was rather old for someone not to be engaged. The irony was that these women were all in their 20s when they got married which was the normal age before 1970.
The marriages in Agios Ioannis were usually arranged marriages. Earlier most people found their marriage partner within the five village area consisting of Agia Roumeli, Samaria, Agios Ioannis, Aradena and Anopolis. In the late 70's the men from Agios Ioannis were seldom potential marriage partners for the village's girls. Most of the families were related either through marriage or godparenthood. These girls would therefore have to find their spouses outside the village, and they themselves preferred to move to Chania or another town. However, during the period 1900-79 almost 40% of the women found their spouse inside the village, and 7 out of 13 married women living in the village in 1979 were born in Agios Ioannis.
Women and men would not be allowed to be alone or live together before they got married. The villagers told us about a teacher who some years earlier had brought his girlfriend along, and the villagers immediately found her a room in one of the houses not realizing she had planned to live with the teacher. Everybody thought this was a funny story, but they still thought their way was the best way.
In addition to kinship relations inside Agios Ioannis everybody had strong ties with the surrounding villages. Out of 29 adults in the village, one came from Aradena, three from Samaria, three from Anopolis and one from Askifou. The rest were born in Agios Ioannis.
Every person had one or more marriage sponsors or godparents. One could have both women and men as sponsors, but usually the sponsor would be a man. Few people would use close relatives as sponsors, and it was obvious that most people used this ritual sponsorship as a way of creating close ties with previously unrelated families.
The most important sponsorship was the baptismal sponsor. This person had responsibility for the spiritual upbringing of the child, but should also have a concern for the welfare of both the child and its family. The sponsors and their family became spiritual members of the child's family, and members of the two families were not allowed to marry. The relationship between a person's child and godchild was supposed to be closer than that between cousins. Two godchildren of the same sponsor were regarded as spiritual siblings and were, therefore, not allowed to marry each other.
I had tried to make a illustration of kinship in Agios Ioannis in the late 70's including blood ties, marriages and godparents, with arrows and lines in many colours but soon got lost. It is very complicated and only proved what I already knew – that, in the village, everybody was related to everybody else one way or the other.
Kinship ties could be useful in finding a spouse for the children, finding work and helping during an education. Relations would also be activated for economic and political benefits and it was usually for these reasons people tried to find an influential sponsor for their children. Under normal circumstances a person's immediate kin consisted of a few close relatives and some more distant relatives living close by. However, every person in Sfakia had a large group of kin, including first, second and third cousins in addition to spiritual kin, and this extended kinship network could be activated when necessary.
Many of the villagers in Agios Ioannis could trace their ancestors several generations back. One man was able to trace his genealogy back six generations, to one Michalis Passaramadakis who was probably born between 1650 and 1700. His son Ioannis Michelodopapas married one of Daskalojannis' (a revolutionary hero born in Anopolis) daughters and had five sons who were all ancestors to families in Agios Ioannis. Only one of the sons, Nikos, had descendants still living there. One of Nikos' sons was Vardis Passaramandakis who was the father of another revolutionary hero – Ioannis Vardinakis (1828-1900), also known as Vardinojannis – the ancestor of one of the country's most prominent shipowner families.
Greek naming patterns make life difficult for any foreigner trying to understand the family structure. Ideally people should name their first son after the father's father, the first daughter after the father's mother, the second son after the mother's father and the second daughter after the mother's mother. In reality these rules are not followed strictly, at least not in Agios Ioannis. Most families had many children, and if all of them named their offspring after the grandparents, this would lead to a duplication of names even more pronounced than what we experienced. Instead, people would use the names of their own brothers, sisters or grandparents and only one or two brothers could use the father's name for a son.


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Daily Archives: January 29, 2014
The Rottweiler, The Pussy President And The First Booty Call
You would not believe what is happening in France these days.
The woman who accepted to become the mistress of a man living with another concubine plays victim because another woman has now accepted to become the mistress of the same man. All three of them grown up – at least anagraphically – and with children.
The same First Concubine, who tried to play the forgiving partner for the sake of the five servants, the life of luxury, and the international prominence, has now been pretty unceremoniously kicked out. She was only the concubine, you see, so no big formalities here. Adieu, servants who cater to her every whim. Adieu, photo-ops at the side of the powerful husband (eh? Oh, sorry, mistake!). Adieu, meeting with the Obamas next month. She would have looked so good beside man-jawed Michelle O., her dear, dear friend! Their conversations on "how to house-train your husband" were so funny!
As to the Child President, he must have had with some trusted functionary a conversation of this kind: "look, Monsieur le President: it's clear you can't keep your little friend in your pants, and it is only a matter of time before another woman takes the place of this actress. It would, therefore, be much wiser to keep the palace free from concubines and mistresses of all sorts. When the time comes to take the next toy on board, the noise will be greatly reduced. You want to stand for re-election one day, n'est-ce que pas?"
The President – who is a child, but an ambitious one – realised these were wise words, and decided to henceforward become officially single, though with the – how banal – actress on the side. He now has the double advantage of getting rid of the old witch without having another one squatting on the Élysée palace and making his life miserable. That should make for a happy child for a while.
Oh, about the witch… It turns out Ms Trierweiler is affectionately called "Rottweiler" by those who know and, as far as it goes, love her, and her stern behaviour towards her man-child is now becoming universally known. Apparently, on one particular interview Monsieur Hollande made the big mistake of mentioning – as in: mentioning – his once lawfully non-wedded quasi-wife, Ségolène, and later complained with the interviewing journalist the Rottweiler would now make his life hell for that; and he said this in all seriousness, and allegedly bleaching as soon as he realised his faux pas. Granted, the rumours of great devastations and damage in the Palace from the angry she-dog in a horrible bout of Rottweilerhood have been denied, but the entire country seems to have considered the tale of 2.5 million Euro damage credible for a moment. Go figure.
I am, therefore, probably not the only one to think Madame Rottweiler will now submerge Monsieur le Président under a tsunami of unsavoury revelations, and … bite him as hard as she can. As the Bard said, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Particularly – though the Bard didn't say this – when she is a Rottweiler.
So there you are: an angry Rottweiler now unceremoniously kicked out of the extremely luxurious kennel; a first-mistress-in-waiting who will not be allowed to be one, and is now also unceremoniously relegated to the role of First Booty Call; and, most tragically, a man who is called to lead a great Western power and is such a spineless child that he is terrified of his concubine, even to the point of paling for having pronounced in an interview the name of his once lawfully wedded wife.
This bunch of children, sluts, and witches is a perfect representative of the liberal society; people who play the good and tolerant whilst they destroy families, behave like children or sluts, live for the notoriety and power and fake prestige their bed companions give them, or are such spineless jerks they are afraid of their own mistress even as they control nuclear weapons.
Are you surprised these people reflect that kind of society always ready to attack Catholicism, and to glorify sexual perversion? What do you expect from a President like that: that he upholds traditional morality?
France is, hopefully, waking up to the kind of infinite ass they have sent to the Élysée Palace. One hopes for the future they will elect I do not say chaste men – not much hope of that in France, anyway – but at least men decent enough to know what is right and what is wrong, with some respect for Christian values, and possibly with some balls to boot.
Still, it's a democracy, and in a democracy you just get what you deserve.
Enjoy the show, France. Enjoy the motherload of manure the Rottweiler will unload on your President, most of it very probably deserved. Enjoy the spectacle of the man you have put at the top of a Nuclear Power behaving like a capricious child, and he in his Sixties. Bask in the knowledge he was terrified of his mistress, and is possibly only looking for the next woman of whom to be terrified – pussies don't change, you see; not at that age -. Wait for the next instalment of this Old Children Saga, showing you once again how rotten your society has become.
Still… perhaps there is hope. Perhaps the healthy part of France will in the next years manage to carry others on the right side. Perhaps this pit of insolence, stupidity, immorality and sheer childishness will serve to wake up some people, and wake in the French nation a new desire for at least basic decency. The Manif pour Tous is an excellent start, and it is branching out in other countries, like Italy.
For the moment, though, the French will have to cope with an angry Rottweiler, a Fitst Booty Call, and a Pussy President.
It won't be pretty.
Rolling Shoe
And it came to pass "Rolling Stone", last time I looked not a beacon of political conservatism, put Francis on their cover.
Did they do it because they have become nearer to Catholicism? Nope. They did because Francis is rather similar to them, so they can't avoid liking him.
The article explaining the choice has no qualms in telling us Francis has pleased the majority of Catholics, with which the pleasure of the majority officially becomes Rolling Stone's metre of a Pope doing a good job. Congratulations. You are smart. Please throw away the joint.
The usual grounds are also mentioned: the "who am I to judge" stunt before all, the "stance" concerning homosexuality in particular, but also the populist drive with the "simplicity" of life; and again, that Francis keeps a simple background in order for him to shine the more in the foreground escapes the brilliant minds of "Rolling Stone", of whom it can safely say that the dope hasn't really improved their analytical faculties.
What does Francis do in all this? Is he not tired of being praised to the sky by obvious enemies of Catholic morals, whilst the criticism among Catholics becomes more and more vocal? Should he not react like everyone else would: giving a couple of very hard interviews, and making clear this nonsense of the "hippy Pope" has to stop? Please think this: just a couple of very obvious statements concerning very obvious Catholics truths (say: unless atheists repent before death they will go to hell; Muslims are infidels; Proddies are heretics; there is no salvation outside the Church; very, very basic stuff like that) would cure the planet very fast from any idea concerning the "hippy Pope".
The problem is, he is a hippy Pope. Rolling Stone "gets" him far better than the Pollyannas of the Neocon fraction. Actually, it's fair to say in the meantime the entire non-Catholic planet gets him, only the majority of Catholics still don't. Notice that, in fact, the "Rolling Stone" journalist was given access to the Vatican so he could spin the man better.
Whenever something like that happens (Francis praised by fags; Francis praised by socialists; Francis praised by abortionists) ask yourself why they didn't like Benedict, and they like Francis so much.
If they are so stupid that they can't understand Francis' message, why did they not do the same with Benedict? If Francis says the same Benedict always said, why have they now suddenly learnt to listen? And most of all: if they praise him, as they all do, for the wrong reasons, why does Francis refuse to set the record straight?
The answer is evident to everyone who is not entirely deluded and willfully blind: because Benedict was different in both style and content; because they are as able to listen now as they always were, and because Francis' religion is his own popularity, with poverty and social justice a distant second and Catholic values and battles nowhere to be seen.
Francis wearing the Red Nose is more and more the perfect image of this pontificate. A pontificate that will hopefully be short and followed by someone who has read the Gospel in the last five decades, and has understood what it says.
Pray for Francis, that he may discover Catholicism. And pray for the Church, that she may be freed from him if he doesn't.
Reblog: Hell And Mercy


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This novel begins with an interesting premise: Captain Jim Agnihotri, an Anglo-Indian officer whose English father is unknown, is in a military hospital recovering from injuries he received in a violent skirmish near Karachi. For a long time after being wounded, he does little but reread the cases of his hero Sherlock Holmes. Then one day, a newspaper article about a shocking event in Bombay—two Indian women from a prominent Parsee family fall to their deaths from the high clock tower—captures his attention. Adi, the husband of one of the women and cousin of the other, is quoted as saying he feels left behind. Which is precisely how Captain Jim feels about surviving the battle in which many of his men were killed.
On impulse, Jim approaches the grieving man and is hired to investigate the case. The ensuing months of digging for answers forces Jim to deal with the complex rules of the upper classes, the troubled waters of India's political conflicts, and several physical dangers and endurance tests.
The mystery is interesting enough to keep the reader going. It takes a twisting path that goes in several unexpected directions. The characters are engaging; it is especially interesting that many of them are Parsee, an Indian minority I hadn't encountered in fiction before. The setting is one I usually enjoy—I've read a fair number of Indian novels over the years—but I found that this novel didn't feel quite as rich with sensory description as most of the others. Even so, I took enough pleasure in the book to give it a solid four-star rating.


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The Arts
Our school is committed to providing a vibrant and expressive Arts program for all students. Participation in the Arts stimulates students' imagination, opens them to new possibilities and encourages creative problem-solving. The Arts fosters self-expression, confidence and creativity while improving overall academic performance.
The Arts program at Castlemaine North includes Visual and Performing Arts:
Weekly class Music lessons which develop children's singing, playing, listening, moving and creating skills.
Weekly Art lessons which provide opportunities for students to creatively express themselves through a variety of media, with experiences in painting, drawing, threads and textiles, modelling, construction, printing and collage.
Circus program
Opportunity to play Indonesian gamelan and angklung instruments
Community performance opportunities
Instrumental tutor program – violin, cello, woodwind, clarinet, piano, guitar & drums
School concert – every second year (2021, 2023…)
Artist in Residence programs every second year (2022, 2024…)
Contact Details for Instrumental Music Tutors
Guitar and Drums – Scott Sanders – email@example.com
Piano – Carl Pannuzzo – email@example.com
Woodwind and Voice – Sarah McDonald – firstname.lastname@example.com


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"Then Peter came to him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?"~ Matthew 18:21
We've all heard it and perhaps even said it ourselves a time or two, which is the age-old saying, "I can forgive you, but I will never forget what you did." Let's face it, when someone wrongs us, it hurts us at our core, and the greater the offense, the hurt runs deeper and is long-lasting. The pain we endure reminds us of how someone has hurt us, whether yesterday, months, or even years ago.
That is not a new concept born in the modern era, for even apostle Peter once believed that enough is enough when being hurt by others. Peter once asked Jesus, "Lord, how many times shall my brother sin against me and I still forgive him? Up to seven times?" It's easy to see in Peter's question that even forgiving someone up to seven times was pushing it in his opinion; "how many times Lord shall my brother sin against me and I "still" forgive him?"
Jesus answered, saying, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." Now we know that equation comes to 490 times that we must forgive someone for hurting us. However, the intent is that the forgiver will have lost count long before reaching 490. If a person ever counts 490 times for forgiving someone, the person never truly forgave in the first place.
Jesus further shares a parable about a servant who owed the King a large sum of money, and when the King sought repayment, the servant could not pay up. The servant pleaded for mercy, and the King forgave the servant and released him from his debt. When the servant found a fellow servant who owed him money but could not pay, he imprisoned the man. When the King learned of his actions, he called him a wicked servant saying, "I forgave you all of your debt. Should you not have also forgiven your fellow servant?" So the King imprisoned the servant until he repaid all that he owed.
In closing, Jesus said, "My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart." The heart is the key. You see, it's easy for us to forgive someone on the outside with a false smile while truly despising that person in our hearts. Genuine forgiveness comes from the heart, for how can we ask our Heavenly Father to forgive us if we are unwilling to forgive others?
The truth is we cannot because Jesus reveals in the model prayer that forgiveness requires one to be a forgiver. Jesus said, "And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." Therefore, let us continually offer genuine forgiveness from our hearts to those who hurt us and extend forgiveness and a path to reconciliation because our Heavenly Father does the same for us daily.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
© 2021-2023
A Faithful Sower Publishing
Limited Liability Company
All Rights Reserved


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In Radical Leadership, our core purpose is to turn up the magnifying glass on our lives so we can begin to see and understand things at new levels. While we all might admit to being a villain, victim or hero on occasion, when we actually look at a deeper level, we can see that we, as a culture, are conditioned to live there most of the time. This default to drama is stealing our life, our time, our talent and our sense of aliveness. What would be possible if you took back your life from the Trickster?
This is another of our tools of awareness. How engaged are you? In your life? In your work? In this moment? Secondly, are you effective and getting the results you want and intend! In RL, we help you see what's getting in the way, what's sabotaging you life, aliveness and success, so you can easily choose to redirect your energy in a way that's generative, life-giving!
While we hope this gives you some awareness that helps you see something new for yourself here, we know that EXPERIENCING these discoveries in community with others accelerates and enhances the enjoyment of the return to wholeness.
You can do that in your organization through a custom RL Retreat or one-one with coaching with an RL Certified Coach. Contact us now!
The Edge of Possibility is the fine line between learning and panic. It's that place of being fully in this moment completely alive with heightened awareness. At the same time, it's exciting and energizing, it's scary and terrifying because you are stepping into the unknown and that is a place of tremendous vulnerability. But more importantly, that is also the land of possibility! At Radical Leadership, we know you don't want to walk this "edge" alone and we know how to make it less risky with far greater reward.
Creating awareness, so you can turn up the magnifying glass so that you are able to see things you could not have seen before. Like a scientist you'll be able to see & discover new possibilities.
© 2022 People Builders Inc, All Rights Reserved


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So we're starting a new section here on a-Tunes that will highlight articles and posts found elsewhere online and we consider to be must-reads. Our first such feature is this piece by Lauren Lola, written for Kollaboration, tackling the issue of how two primary characters of Asian-American background are portrayed in a limited fashion on the hit series, Glee.
Here's an excerpt.
With an obvious shortage of Asian-American talents in mainstream media and their roles being molded into Hollywood stereotypes, it is refreshing to see Glee feature two non-stereotypical Asian American main characters. However, despite Tina and Mike's unique quirks, the two never fail to reference their race and say the word "Asian" in almost every episode. As a couple, Tina and Mike were both counselors at "Asian camp" and share "Asian kisses" – we kid you not, they actually call it that. And when their relationship dives, where do they turn to? Asian couples therapy!
Not to mention, there seems to be a lack of original and substantial plots for Glee's Asian-American cast members.
Do yourself a favor and check out the rest. It doesn't dive tremendously deep into the issue but I appreciate how the author can acknowledge progress but isn't willing to settle for it just yet.


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A portion of Route 56 was shut down this Morning for several hours following a crash.
The accident happened around 7:45 near Pleasantville and involved multiple vehicles including a tractor trailer.
The road was reopened a little before Noon.
County dispatch tells us one person had to be flown from the scene but no one else was injured.


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- by Mohamad O.
- Posted: 2 Jul 2013
Children's Book Illustrator and Book Designer
- by Wendy H.
- Posted: 5 Jul 2011
Wendy H.Glasgow, GB
Chloe's bid was one of almost 90 bids for the same project. At first, I was a bit wary of hiring her: although her art work seemed to be exactly the comical style I was looking for, she didn't have a fancy website like the other bidders and she had no portfolio on peopleperhour, so it was hard to judge the overall quality of her work and in particular, her technical skills with software such as Adobe or Photoshop. But I decided to give her a chance anyway because Chloe had just recently graduated (and hadn't got round to the fancy website by then).
Also, she answered all the questions I asked her about being able to comply with the printer's specifications I needed her to in order to produce the finished .pdfs of a children's illustrated book, so I reckoned she would do well.
And I am so glad that I took that chance. Chloe was totally professional from the outset, answering emails promptly and in detail, taking all constructive criticism with good grace (not that there was really any "criticism" as such, more a suggestion here or there, as is usual in editing a book). Chloe did edit after edit without a single quibble.
The pictures themselves were amazing - lively, funny, bright and very well drawn - exactly what I needed in a book for nursery school-aged children.
Chloe also designed the book, both the interior and the cover. The cover especially is wonderful - very eyecatching and yet charming.
I would have no hesitation in recommending Chloe for any task that she applies herself to: she invests herself totally in her work and the end result shows that.
I hope to work with Chloe again in the near future on our next book.
Hire her - you'll be delighted!
- by Daniel S.
- Posted: 4 Aug 2013
No result found


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Artist: Ellen Starski
Song: "Pure Intention"
Album: Sara's Half Finished Love Affair
Genre: Folk, Alternative, Indie Rock, Indie Folk
Nashville artist, Ellen Starski's, newest album, Sara's Half Finished Love Affair, is set for release on May 8th, 2020 – and the first single recently dropped for your listening pleasure. The new album "introduces some darker, grungier elements as well as a bright, alternative pop sense to Starski's characteristic mix of ethereal and earthy, new qualities she says developed from a shift in her songwriting method." The songs on the new album were all written a capella, and the accompanying music for the melody and lyrics grew from there. I love this approach, as it seems like it would allow the artist even more creative freedom to truly express the story they are aiming to get across with their music.
Ellen Starski definitely hits me as a great storyteller. The character of Sara for her new album has an entire back story that is elaborately laid out. In reading it, I honestly couldn't decipher if Sara was a real person or not, but I assume she is a creation that takes pieces from Ellen's life. Ellen says that the new album is "a step back into the artist I was prior to motherhood. When I sat down and started working on the music, and album title I was somewhat unaware of who Sara was, but as the project progressed it became obvious that she was emerging from my subconscious as yours truly."
This is an except from Ellen's/Sara's story below:
Sara and I drank the night away in an unexplainable landscape, somewhere outside of the understood laws of the physical world. There was a confidentiality in that space, a whisper in the breeze, forgotten answers enclosing us. We approached and entered a realm without rules, only patterns that develop and expand like love or music. We summoned a call from deep within ourselves and sent out that call like warm radio waves.Together, we summoned Sara's love.
You can begin your journey with Ellen and Sara by checking out the first single from the album, "Pure Intention." The single takes notes and inspiration from Billie Holiday, of whom Ellen Starski has been a fan since she was a young girl. Starski's crisp vocals drip with emotion ahead of the dream-like backing music on this track. Check out the new single in our Check This 2020 Playlist below:
Ellen Starski website: http://www.ellenstarski.com/
Ellen Starski Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellenstarski/
Ellen Starski Twitter: https://twitter.com/StarskiEllen
Ellen Starski Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellenstarski/


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Office of Regulatory Services
REGULATORY STRATEGY: We provide expertise and insight to help you INITIATE the right path for your medical device.
Strategy Plans and Business Development: It can be a challenge to identify objectives in the research, development, and marketing of a medical device. We help you understand what steps to take in order to move your medical device to market, answering questions like — How does the regulatory process work? What challenges might arise? What are the best practices when submitting an application? How can we best navigate the process?
Determine U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Oversight for your medical device: With deep knowledge of the various offices and divisions within the FDA, we can help you determine a high-level strategy for moving your device to the U.S. marketplace.
Identify Pathways for your medical device: If you are working with the FDA for the first time — whether you are new to the medical device world or new to the U.S. regulatory process — we can help determine the appropriate pathway for your device or drug-device combination product (e.g., Pre-Market Approval, 510K, DeNovo, or Humanitarian Device Exemption).
Contacting the FDA: We take the guesswork out of whom to contact at the FDA, helping you establish contact with the right people to answer your questions and facilitate the process.
EARLY FEASIBILITY STUDIES & RISK ANALYSIS: Let us assess THE EARLY FEASIBILITY OF INITIATING A DEVICE STUDY IN THE U.S. AND help de-risk your product to accelerate it along the pathway.
Risk Assessment: When developing novel technologies, the identification of challenges as well as potential paths forward in bringing a medical device to market are extremely important. We assess the uncertainty you may face when moving from idea to reality via a clinical study and help to identify solutions to mitigate those risks and facilitate regulatory engagement.
Evaluation of FDA Strategies and Proposed Submissions: We will evaluate your strategy for submitting to the FDA, as well as your submission, while considering the type of device technology and your stage or status in the submission process.
Substantive Review of Submissions: Let us review what you have submitted to the FDA, to help you anticipate regulatory feedback and potential challenges.
Summary of Challenges and Recommended Solutions: In addition to identifying potential challenges with bringing your ideas to reality, we propose solutions that enable a path forward. We can identify potential solutions and provide you with trusted partners along the way.
PREPARING SUBMISSIONS FOR THE fda: We can ease the burden of the regulatory submission process and put you on A SOLId path.
Review, edit, and assist in preparing your documents: We are here to help streamline the FDA application process and increase the probability of success in reaching the U.S. marketplace.
FDA Documentation Preparation and Submission: We assist in the groundwork before submitting to the FDA and supporting agency engagement over the total product life cycle of the medical device. We can focus your engagement with the FDA, whether we assist in pre-submission or in helping prepare your final submission.
Outline Submission: We can help build an outline for your submission and assist with the development of your regulatory strategy.
Submit to FDA: If you haven't submitted to the FDA before, we can help every step of the way, introduce you to the process, identify the appropriate contacts, and support your idea to reality.
The Office of Regulatory Services is led by our Chief Regulatory Officer, Dr. Carlos Peña, former Director of the Office of Neurological and Physical Medicine Devices, at the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Before his FDA Director role, Carlos served as Assistant Director of Emerging Technologies in the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy (OSTP) in the Executive Office of the President. He looks forward to sharing his expertise and helping advance life-saving neuro and physical medicine technologies to get them to patients sooner.
Please let us know if you are interested in engaging with the JI on any of the above listed services by filling out this form, below.


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San Diego investment firm frozen by SEC, accused in $300 million fraud
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges Thursday against ANI Development, an investment company founded by well known San Diego businesswoman Gina Champion-Cain.
Federal agents called the company a "multi-year $300 million scheme" that defrauded approximately 50 retail investors in recent years.
The announcement came after investigators reached an agreement with Champion-Cain to freeze the company's assets and allow the government to appoint a receiver to take control.
"The SEC took emergency action to stop what we allege is an egregious fraud," said Michele Wein Layne, regional director of the SEC in Los Angeles. "Importantly, the agreement we reached with the defendants to freeze their assets during the litigation will give investors the best chance to maximize their recovery going forward."
Champion-Cain declined to comment on the investigation or agreement, through a spokeswoman.
According to a 19-page complaint filed Wednesday, ANI Development fraudulently raised hundreds of millions of dollars since 2012 by claiming to investors that they could profit by issuing short-term, high-interest loans to people applying for alcohol licenses in California.
Instead of making loans with the investors' money, Champion-Cain directed "significant amounts of investor funds" to a company that she controlled, according to the complaint.
"In exchange for her services, Cain and her company, ANI Development, told investors that defendants would secure an interest payment for each license approved by the state of California, which they would then split with investors," the complaint alleges.
In one case, after an unnamed a high net worth real estate investor bypassed Champion-Cain and contacted an escrow company directly to check on his investment, the defendant sent an email apologizing to the escrow officers.
"I told them NEVER to call and bother you ladies," Champion-Cain wrote in a July 2017 email, according to authorities. She concluded by saying, "[I]f they call asking about escrow agreements and alcohol licenses, blah, blah, blah… just say 'SURE WHATEVER NOW SHOW ME THE MONEY… HAHAHAHA'"
In some cases, she promised investors returns of 15 to 25 percent in one year, the SEC said.
The complaint names Champion-Cain and ANI Development LLC, one of approximately 40 business interests controlled by Champion-Cain and her umbrella company, American National Investments Inc.
The defendants agreed to the asset freeze without admitting any guilt, federal officials said.
American National Investments is listed in the complaint as a relief defendant, meaning it is not accused of wrongdoing but received property or cash illegally.
In addition to allegedly steering investors' money to other uses, Champion-Cain is accused in the complaint of using forged signatures to create escrow agreements to provide to investors, the complaint adds.
"Defendants provided their investors with forged and fabricated escrow agreements in order to lead them to believe that their investment was secure, and that ANI Development was using their funds – as represented to them – to finance the transfer of a liquor license," the complaint said.
Federal investigators also accused Champion-Cain of misrepresenting facts to investors.
"Cain acted knowingly, recklessly, and negligently in making material misstatements and omissions concerning ANI Development's investment strategy and use of funds, and she failed to exercise reasonable care to ensure that investors were not deceived as to this information," they wrote in their complaint.
Champion-Cain, 57, has been a well-known San Diego business leader for years.
She earned an MBA from the University of San Diego in 1994 before founding American National Investments, according to her biography on the university website. She is credited with redeveloping or repositioning 10 million square feet of commercial real estate space and more than 5,000 residential units.
In addition to real estate development, Champion-Cain has dabbled in restaurants such as the Patio, nightclubs such as the House of Blues and even beachwear.
She served on the board of the now-defunct Centre City Development Corp. and on a panel of business experts who contribute to the weekly Econometer feature in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
In a 2015 interview, she told the Union-Tribune there was a commonality to her investments.
"I'm in the people business and, if you understand you're in the hospitality business, you know it's all about pleasing people, whether I'm providing them a great meal or a nice place to stay, or a nice shop where they're buying my surf attire," she said. "I really see it as one. As a company, we really are one family. I have some superstars that run these different businesses and they are committed, which you can tell because they're doing well."
She also is active in local politics, co-hosting a $250-per-plate fundraiser in April at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club for Todd Gloria, the San Diego assemblyman now running for mayor.
The SEC action is a civil proceeding. It was not clear Thursday whether the case has been referred to criminal investigators.
Staff writers Morgan Cook and Lori Weisberg contributed to this report
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This layout is becoming a favourite go-to design. A stamped image in the centre with some Designer Series Paper (DSP) strips at the top and bottom with onset strips of the card base colour between the stamped image and the DSP.
These are the pieces ready to be assembled. Since the base is 4-1/4×5-1/2, I wanted the rest of the pieces put together to be 4×5-1/4. The math is below. The stamped image piece is 2-1/4 high which subtracted from the 5-1/4 total I wanted left 3 inches for the DSP and spacers in total. The two 1/8 'spacer' strips take a total of 1/4″ which left 2-3/4 for the total height of the 2 DSP pieces. I kept it simple and simply cut them in half to a height of 1-3/8″ each. But you can mix it up and have the top piece thinner or thicker than the bottom piece.
The best way to create the 1/8″ inset strips is to start with a wider piece of paper and just cut of the 1/8″ strips. Try to make sure to keep them to 1/8″ (or at least make sure that the 2 you use total to 1/4″ total so that you have the right spacing on your matting once assembled.
The easiest way I have found to stick down the inset pieces is the put down some tape runner onto the card base just under the top edge of the bottom piece and again just under the top edge of the stamped image piece.
I actually coloured the image piece before adhering the card together.
Then I stamped the image onto the back of the card, at the bottom of the the inside insert as well as on the envelope flap and top left corner.
Colouring them was the next step. Like on the main card image, I mostly used Stampin' Blends markers. So far I only have two colours (Old Olive and plus an old Copic brown marker. So I used a Wink of Stella brush to pick up the Calypso Coral ink from a block for the flowers and the same process for the Crushed Curry for the beaks. That added bonus of that method is that it adds a bit of glimmer.
Now it's your turn;
Create. Treat. Repeat


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It's cooking time again! Our very own host Mama Baba Ganoush visits Indo-Chin Restaurant - Doha's newest go-to hotspot for Asian food lovers! Their head chef Shaffy shows a couple of delicious Asian dishes that are mouthwatering and easy to prepare.
The restaurant features an open-kitchen that specializes in a wide variety of Asian cuisine including Indian, Thai, Chinese, and Philipino. The restaurant is fun, friendly and informal, as well as featuring a private dining area which is ideal for business meetings or celebrations.
Phone: +974 4004 7400
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://www.facebook.com/pg/IndoChinRestaurant
Filmed and edited by Rafael Manuel
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Today's family anniversaries
This afternoon I opened up my Relatively Yours program to look at details for the Congress 2015 Research Interests. I was somewhat surprised to discover what an important date today is in the lives of my families. Perhaps it's something we should do daily to pick up these coinciding anniversaries. On 25th January my family … More Today's family anniversaries


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On Air Now
The Capital Weekender with MistaJam 7pm - 10pm
24 February 2021, 13:37
Spider-Man 3 stars Zendaya, Tom Holland and Jacob Batalon have been pranking fans over the title of their upcoming movie.
The stars of Spider-Man 3 have been teasing fans about the upcoming movie title for the sequel of Spider-Man: Far From Home, and it has been keeping fans well and truly entertained.
Tom Holland, Zendaya and Jacob Batalon had a hilarious exchange on social media about the potential names for the Marvel movie's sequel and it's fair to say people were left pretty confused!
Who Is Zendaya Dating & Who Are The 'Malcolm And Marie' Star's Exes?
It all started when Tom shared a snap on his Instagram page, with him as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Zendaya as his girlfriend MJ and Jacob as his BFF Ned Leeds, alongside a title card for the upcoming film.
The card read Spider-Man: Phone Home, as he captioned the post: "So excited to announce the new Spider-Man title. Can't wait for you lot to see what we have been up to. Love from Atlanta."
Spider-Man: Homecoming Official Trailer
Malcolm and Marie star Zendaya then took to the comments to pen: "What the hell," whilst Jacob wrote: "Woah woah… wait… why is your different?!?", and so the trolling continued.
Jacob then shared a post with a different image of the stars, alongside a title card which read, Spider-Man: Home-Wrecker, adding: "We're so excited to share the TITLE of our new movie!! Swipe right for the big reveal!! Also enjoy this exclusive still from the movie, just an extra gift from us [kiss emoji] [sic]."
The Euphoria actress went on to share a similar post of her and her co-stars, this time with the title reading, Spider-Man: Home Slice, with the caption: "So excited to announce the new Spider-Man title. So proud of this one...FOS is back!"
Watch the official Cherry trailer starring Tom Holland
At this point, it was fair to say that fans had caught on to the prank, especially after Tom and Jacob joked they would be 'calling' their director, Jon Watts, following Zendaya's post.
So, it's safe to say we don't have a title for the new movie just yet, but we do have a release date, so that's something - right?!
Spider-Man (and the unknown title) is set to drop on December 17, 2021.
> Here Are All The Ways You Can Listen To Capital


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FAQWho are we?
Studiocare are a well-established Professional Audio Supplier, Hire Agent, and Service Centre based in Liverpool UK.What should I do when posting my equipment to Studiocare?
We always suggest sending your equipment to us using a reputable courier service, we offer to collect warranty repairs, this collection is free of charge. It is the customers responsibility to ensure the unit is sent securely and sufficiently for transit, original packaging and boxes is always best.What kind of DJ gear will you fix?
We repair all Pioneer Pro DJ Equipment.Do I need to send extra info in the box with my repair?
If your unit has a specific external power supply please always include this. Other than that just please ensure the unit is securely packaged for transit.Will I get any used parts from the repair once removed?
We don't do this as standard, but can do at customers request.How can I check the latest firmware version for my equipment?
Check the manufacturer website to ensure you have the latest firmware version.
More Info On Pioneer's Website.
Yes in most cases this would involve replacing the power supply, depending on the model.Does Studiocare sell spare parts?
Yes please "email us" with your spare part enquiries (email@example.com).Can you repair damage caused by spilled drinks?
We would need to investigate the damage caused by the drink spill and work out a quotation to ascertain whether the unit is economically viable to repair or not, in this case we would need to charge a £70 + investigation fee in advance of receiving the unit.I tried fixing the unit myself without success, can you repair it?
We would need to investigate the damage caused by the attempted repair and work out a quotation to ascertain whether the unit is economically viable to repair or not, in this case we would need to charge a £70 + investigation fee in advance of receiving the unit.How much do you charge for repairs?
Our minimum repair charge is £70 + VAT which covers inspection of your unit and up to 1 hours repair labour, once inspected we will issue a full repair estimate to advise any further labour costs and the price of any parts required.How long will it take to complete the repair?
We aim to complete warranty repairs within 5 working days. For non-warranty repairs this will vary depending on a number of factors which can include; current workload, amount of items waiting in repair queue, availability of parts.Can I bring my unit to you for repair on the same day?
We manage our repairs using a queuing system so therefore we cannot repair units on the spot.What parts of the UK do you cover?
Studiocare are based in Liverpool but we are authorised to perform repairs and servicing for the whole of the UK.


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Hosted by Breaking The Spine, this section will feature future upcoming releases that I personally am excited about. These will generally be coming up later in the year. Let me know what you're looking forward to, or even what you're writing, and maybe I'll feature it here as well.
Cyn Balog - Touched
• Pub Date: August 14, 2012
• Publisher: Random House Children's Books
• Format: Paperback 320 pp
• Age Range: Young Adult
Nick Cross always listens to the voice in his head. Because if he doesn't? Things can go really, really wrong. Like the day he decided to go off script and saved a girl from being run over....and let another one drown. Trying to change the future doesn't work.
But this summer at the Jersey Shore, something's about to happen that Nick never could have predicted. He meets a girl named Taryn and finds out about the Book of Touch. Now the path that he thought he was on begins to shift....and there's no way to stop things from happening. Or is there?
In a life where there are no surprises, nothing has prepared Nick for what he's about to discover--or the choice he will be forced to make....
Sounds interesting, right?! I'm looking forward to seeing how this one turns out. Hopefully it's great! What are you waiting for this week? Let me know! Happy Wednesday :o)


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Zero Dark Thirty is the followup feature film from Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow. Kathryn won the Best Director and Best Motion Picture Oscars in 2010 for The Hurt Locker. Zero Dark Thirty focuses on the hunt for Osama bin Laden. This puts Kathryn back into the same theme and environment as The Hurt Locker. I never had much interest in seeing The Hurt Locker, but finally saw it a couple of months ago and was very impressed with it. The cast for Zero Dark Thirty includes Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Taylor Kinney, Mark Strong, Scott Adkins, Chris Pratt, Harold Perrineau (Lost), Jennifer Ehle, Kyle Chandler, Edgar Ramirez, Frank Grillo (Warrior, End of Watch), Mark Duplass, Joel Edgerton. Mark Boal wrote the screenplay.
This is indeed a teaser trailer. You don't get a lot from it, but you will know what it is about by the end of it. There are glimpses of scenes and characters talking throughout the trailer. This could be an intense film.
Zero Dark Thirty is in theatres December 2012.
Source: Yahoo! Movies
by Sarah Ksiazek


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Raising the money you need to fully fund your budget doesn't happen by accident. You need a plan for fundraising success.
Actually, you need both short-term plans, like those to manage your fundraising activities through the holidays, and longer-term plans that will carry you through all of next year.
But for most people, planning for fundraising isn't easy.
They either don't have time or don't know where to start and it's easier to put it off rather than figure it out.
Sometimes, planning is like trying to grab smoke. You can see it, but when you touch the smoke, it disappears.
Creating a plan for fundraising can be as simple as hitting the pause button—even during the busy holiday season—and putting thoughts on paper about what you want to do in the next 12 months or six months or even three months.
Regardless of the length of the plan, the time to start your plan for fundraising is before you urgently need the cash.
In other words, don't wait until there's a crisis to figure out how to find funding.
Working at the last minute doesn't work out well for anyone plus it's super stressful.
Commit to yourself to get out ahead of your fundraising, so you have time to think about the strategies that will work for your organization.
With just a few weeks left before a new year starts, here are some things you can do NOW to lay the groundwork to make planning for fundraising easier in the coming months.
13 Pre-Planning Best Practices for Fundraising
1. Focus on donors, not money.
It's easy to get tunnel vision about money, and spend all your time thinking about money and how you're going to raise it. Believe me, I get it. When you need money, you focus on it.
But you need to shift your thinking to the source of the money—your donors. Make sure you are taking care of your donors throughout your plan. When you focus too much on money, you come across as needy and greedy. You might even seem desperate.
When you focus on your donors, you will get a better result. Your donors will feel like they are a part of your work and not just an ATM.
If you are new to fundraising, it's CRITICAL to adopt a donor-based fundraising mindset so you aren't constantly bombarding friends and family with small fundraisers.
2. Write it down.
Too many people say they have a plan, but the plan is not written down. Listen, if a plan exists only in your head, it isn't real! It's imaginary. The plan in your head is too easily changed, and there's no one to hold you accountable when you don't complete part of it.
It's too easy to drop parts of your imaginary plan, shift others, and back off your goals because you don't feel like following through.
Get a legal pad and a pen or pull up a Google Doc or a Word Doc. And start writing. How much money do you need to raise? What strategies do you have in mind? What time of year should you execute each strategy?
Just start writing, and see how specific and detailed you can get.
And don't worry – just because you write it down doesn't mean it's carved in stone. Your plan is a fluid document that can be changed as the situation or needs change.
You can grab my simple 1-Page Fundraising Plan template here. This will get you started.
3. Break out of your rut.
It's easy to keep doing things the way we have always done them, but tradition is not a good reason to continue an event, an appeal, or a campaign.
You should only do something again because it worked, not because it's something you always do. In other words, only add a fundraising activity to your plan because it moves you closer to your goal.
Consider ditching fundraisers that drain your energy and your time without giving you the results you need. If you hold the same signature event year after year, ask yourself if there are tweaks you could make to freshen it up, raise more money, and/or make execution easier on your team.
Don't be afraid to try something new. An organization that started a drive-through hot chocolate and cookies fundraiser during the pandemic turned it into a fun in-person event, and it sold out! Another organization replaced their exhausting auction with a poinsettia sale. They signed all their previous sponsors except for one, and the sponsor dollars are 100 percent profit.
We see nonprofits putting more energy into campaigns driven by social media as well as targeted Asks to volunteers centered on specific programs. Others are focusing their energy on building business partnerships and maximizing monthly donors.
All of them are smart to focus on fundraising that will generate enough return to be worth the investment of time, energy, and manpower to pull them off.
Make an effort to try a few new approaches every year with a goal of working as efficiently as possible to fully fund your budget.
4. Set specific goals.
How can you cross the finish line when you don't know where it is?
Too many nonprofits have vague goals for fundraising like "raise more money" or "raise more than last year," but these don't get you anywhere.
So as you work on your plan for fundraising, write down a real number for your fundraising goal! Make it something reachable, maybe a 10% increase over last year. Then set quarterly goals and monthly goals to keep you on track.
Next, write down strategies to ensure you meet each goal. The more specific you are, the more real your plan for fundraising will be and the more likely you will be to stay on pace to meet your year-end goal.
5. Stop waiting for "perfect."
Too many people wait for the perfect time, the perfect Board, the perfect staff, the perfect template, or a perfect something else to work on their plan for fundraising.
But here's the truth: there will never be a perfect time, Board, staff, or template. So, you just have to use what you have and get your plan done.
And, anyway, done is better than perfect.
6. Make the time to get it done.
You make time for things that are important to you.
If you say you have no time to plan, that's an excuse for covering up another reason you don't want to plan.
When you don't find the time to plan for fundraising, you remain stuck right where you are. You have to give yourself a chance to think bigger, find more opportunities, and open up to new possibilities.
Block off time on your calendar for fundraising planning. Give yourself three two-hour blocks over the course of a week or so.
Once you get going you might find the process exhilarating and want to keep going. Or you might find it excruciating and want it to be over. Either way, you're doing it.
When you are finished, you will have a plan! You will be set up for success and in a position of strength when it comes to fully funding your budget and your dreams.
7. Break free from analysis paralysis.
Sometimes we delay working on our plan for fundraising because we think we need a little more info.
We need one more report to show us a magic piece of information. We need one more person's input. One more data point.
This is a procrastination technique, and it works!
If you tell yourself you can't start planning until you have an analysis of your main program's third-quarter spending, and that analysis is the responsibility of someone else … you have a built-in excuse not to plan!
If analysis paralysis is holding you back, dig a little deeper and see if you can figure out the REAL reason you don't want to put a plan on paper.
Maybe you are afraid to write down a goal, because you are afraid of failure. Maybe you are afraid to write down a number, because you are afraid your small nonprofit will never succeed and you will never have enough money to fully fund your budget.
Take a breath and make the plan. Knowing the true amount of money you need to bring in will feel empowering, not scary.
8.Follow up with action steps.
A plan for fundraising that doesn't include action steps isn't a plan at all. It's a car without wheels, and it's not going anywhere.
If you have a big-picture plan but no idea how you will get the work done, well, congratulations, you have taken the first step. You just need to follow up that first step with the next steps.
For example, if you have "Spring Campaign" on your calendar for April, and you plan to raise $8,000, how will you raise $8,000? Will you have an online campaign? What date will the campaign start and end? Will you combine your online campaign with email marketing? How many emails will you send? Will you seek a matching gift?
How much did you raise last year for your Spring Campaign, and how did you do it? What strategies can you add?
Get specific! The more specific you are in your plan, the more confident you will feel in being able to reach your goal.
9. Set right-size goals.
I encourage the nonprofits I work with to reach for the stars, but if your goal is way too big of a stretch and completely unrealistic, you're not reaching, you're setting yourself up for paralysis.
If your goals are oversized, you won't feel motivated to work your plan. You will just feel overwhelmed.
Be kind to yourself and set an attainable goal. Look at the money you raised this year, and look at your opportunities for next year. Set a goal that is based in reality. Set a goal that is the right size for where your nonprofit is right now.
Maybe a 10% increase over last year is the right amount of stretching for you. Maybe simply repeating what you did last year is the right goal.
Take the time to think carefully about what you need and what you can do, taking into consideration everything that's going on inside your nonprofit and your life.
10. Enlist Board support
Board members are supposed to be partners in fundraising, but often they sit on the sidelines.
In many cases, they don't want to ask people for money. In other cases, they just don't know what you need from them. They may feel left out, unsure of what their role is.
It's up to you to engage your Board members in fundraising. Start small, by asking them to share a campaign with their contacts. Give them sample language to include with their email to friends and family members.
Help Board members get comfortable inviting people to contribute to the organization's work. As Board members engage in smaller tasks, give them larger tasks, such as contacting businesses about sponsorships or representing the organization at a networking event.
Most Board members want to contribute to the organization's success. They just need to know exactly what you need them to do.
11. Be realistic.
Let me guess: You belong to the "I can do it" club.
You say "yes" to say too many things.
You overestimate YOU.
You overestimate how much you can get done, leaving little time to think or respond to things that pop up during the day.
Your days are overstuffed with obligations, and your to-do list never ends. When you create plans, you stuff them full of events, new strategies, and bold approaches.
But you can't do it all. So your plan doesn't bring in more money. Your plan just leaves you exhausted.
Create a realistic plan that spreads the work around and leaves you time to think and breathe. Trust me, you'll enjoy your work a WHOLE lot more!
12. Focus on real strategies
Hope is not a strategy.
Doesn't work. Never has.
Hope is a wonderful thing, but hope must be coupled with practical strategies for getting the results you want.
Just believing you will reach your goals will not carry you across the finish line.
I want you to believe in yourself, and I want you to believe in your nonprofit. I want you to believe in your fundraising plan.
But you have to work the strategies you've chosen.
If your goal for the first quarter is to raise $50,000, you need enough strategies to bring in $50,000. First, calculate how much will come in automatically via monthly donors and other sources that you KNOW are a sure thing.
Then, come up with some real strategies for bringing in the remaining funds. Can you enlist two Board members to hold gatherings in their homes? Will each one bring in $3,000? How about a campaign to fund the equipment your organization needs? Can you do a crowdfunding campaign to raise $5,000?
Run a report of everyone who donated to your organization during the first quarter last year. Are there some $500 donations on that list? Are there some $250 donations? Check in with these donors and let them know you value them.
These are real strategies. This is the real work. Don't quit holding onto hope! But also do the work.
13. Invest in success
As you plan for fundraising success, make sure you have the resources to put the plan in motion.
In short, be clear about where you need to invest some funds in order to raise way more funds than you otherwise would have.
If you are selling t-shirts at an upcoming event, have you budgeted for the cost of the t-shirts so you can purchase some inventory to have available? If you have your signature event coming up in the spring, can you put down deposits before sponsor revenue comes in?
How about a videographer to shoot some short, poignant videos? You could use the videos all year long to enhance your fundraising efforts.
What professional support could you use this coming year? Is it time to hire a grant writer to take grant writing off your plate? Or could a fundraising coach make a huge difference in the amount of money you raise?
Without time, money, and people power, your plan for fundraising will sit idle, which doesn't help raise money for your programs.
The Bottom Line
The way to ensure fundraising success is to plan for fundraising success.
If you start planning in the fall for the following year, you will be in great shape to hit the ground running in January. But you don't have to wait to draft a plan. You can launch your plan at the start of a new quarter—April 1, July 1, Oct. 1—or any day of the year.
Block off time to draft a plan and stick to it. The fear that keeps you from getting started on your fundraising plan will be replaced by confidence that you can achieve your goal.
With a solid plan in place, you'll raise the money you need to fully fund your programs and you'll change more lives. And that's what it's all about!