text:
Can I use my Travel Money Card for PayPal transactions?
See all Travel Money Card FAQs
Last updated 30 September 2016
You can register the Travel Money Card for PayPal transactions and can use your Travel Money Card to pay online in the currency quoted by the seller, whether it is in Australian Dollars or in any of the other foreign currencies specified by PayPal.
When submitting a payment through PayPal, you need to complete the following steps:
- Click 'Other Conversion Options' on the 'Review Your Payment' page
- Choose 'Bill me in the currency listed on the seller's invoice'. Select this option to ensure that your Travel Money Card is charged in the currency you want.


text:
Around 100 people met to celebrate 50 years of humanitarian work by Blythswood Care, a Christian charity working in many countries, particularly in Eastern Europe.
Blythswood provides emergency aid to those who suffer sudden crises; long-term projects for the sick, the elderly and children; and shoeboxes – a Christmas gift for folk who have very little.
This special event included afternoon tea, then a Service of Thanksgiving, both at Worthing Tabernacle, who kindly hosted the occasion.
It was the last of a series of nationwide Celebrations this year.
The Service included a DVD of the charity's special projects, such as improvements to a Home in India for street children and the renovation of a community centre in a poverty-stricken area of Romania.
The Worthing event gathered people from all over the South East region.
This region sent 2,000 shoeboxes to Serbia in 2015.
A team of staff from Blythswood's HQ were also present, as was our special guest Pastor Dragisa from Serbia.
The beautiful cake was cut by James Campbell, Blythswood's CEO and Pastor Dragisa.
For more information about the charity, visit the Blythswood Care website at www.blythswood.org.
Don't miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.
Here are four ways you can be sure you'll be amongst the first to know what's going on.
1) Make our website your homepage at www.shorehamherald.co.uk/
2) Like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ShorehamHerald
3) Follow us on Twitter @Shoreham_Herald
4) Register with us by clicking on 'sign in' (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.
And do share with your family and friends - so they don't miss out!
The Shoreham Herald - always the first with your local news.
Be part of it.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
I am quite ready to welcome a new month, though I think this month will definitely be one of the busiest ones for me that I have had in a while!
First of all, I have family coming to stay with me for a couple of weeks, so you know what I've been up to--tidying up every nook and cranny of our home. In fact, I found some nook and crannies I didn't even know we had!! Second of all, the kids are on "Spring Break," so I am having to rack my brain to find activities to keep them (and me) busy. Third, my friend's baby shower is at the end of the month, and I have yet to order the decorations, but I will be helping out with the party. And last (but not least) I will be meeting up with my fellow blog friend Kyle this month to do some fun shopping in Atlanta! Whew! That is only the half of it, but just so I don't bore you with all my "oh my gosh you guys, I am sooooo busy" talk, I think you have probably gotten the picture already : ).
Well, last I left off, I was working on my daughter's Easter dress, Simplicity 2265. It would have been nice to finish it at the end of last month, but I am thankful that March was officially the most productive sewing month I have had all year! So even though I am joyfully trudging along with this Easter dress, in hopes of finishing it in time for the holiday, I feel good overall with the progess I have made in these last few weeks. I started out with a plan for March, and falling one garment short of success is pretty darn good.
As far as Simplicity 2265 is concerned, here is where it stands right now:
I finished the bodice and attached the petals. Also, I have gathered the petals, which was a difficult chore in itself, but it came out ok. Considering past mistakes I have made regarding fitting garments, I chose to fit the bodice three different times already! I bet you can imagine how the fitting process went with my almost three year old!! But hey, I am not taking any chances with this dress.
Finally, I did give the Butterick shopping bag to my friend, and she was so pleased and excited to receive it! She really liked the colors of the bag, and felt special that I made it. I decided to include a card and a beautiful journal too.
I'll update you as soon as I can!
Stay sew-filled!!


text:
Nov 2011
Thanksgiving 2011 Menu is planned!!!
Posted in Uncategorized by admin at 10:38 am | No Comments »
So, here we are, another year behind us and one of my favorite holidays is once again upon us. That said, the menu is together, and we're getting ready to head out and do our shopping.
- Veggies and Dip
- Scooby Snacks
- Stuffing balls
- Turkey
- Ham
- Mashed Potatoes
- Gravy
- Sweet Potato Pie
- Rolls
- Green Beans
- Green Bean Casserole
- Stuffing
- Dressing
- Cranberry Chutney
- Macaroni and Cheese
- Cherry Crumble Pie
- Pecan Pie
- Ambrosia Salad
- Pumpkin Cheese Cake
Yup…Gonna be another fattening and tasty Thanksgiving! I can't wait!!!
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.


text:
The first day of school was Thursday, and we officially started PokéMath on Friday (for which I dressed all day in the costume shown here: Ash Ketchum!)
I have decorated the room with Pokémon decals, and have printed the PokéMath sticker awards for every student (see my previous PokéMath introduction and setup post to learn more about getting started and set up), and I have created a Pokémon-themed class website. The students were introduced to how the PokéMath "game" will work in class, and it succeeded in generating a lot of excitement! About 40% of the students said they play Pokémon Go, so they were obviously excited… but several others also seemed interested in the idea of collecting monsters as they master math skills!
Some students asked "Can we work on these Khan Academy skills and try to catch them at home or on the weekends?" (YES!)
One student said "I didn't think I was going to like math this year, but this changes everything!" (YES!)
Another student was so into it, he started brainstorming ways to improve it and make it more fun (and improve his chances to "Catch 'em all"): "Could you make it so the one for Band can also be caught if you spend, like, a lot of points?" (apparently, he is not in band, but still wants to have a chance to get them all. I don't want to exclude anybody from that opportunity, so I'm changing it, due to his suggestion! Band participation or 500 ClassDojo points…)
He also asked "Is there a way we could challenge our friends?" (to a duel, like in the actual game)
"No, not right now…" I replied. "I know that would be fun, but I haven't thought of a good way to do it yet. For now, it will just be collecting them, but if we come up with a good way to play with them, that could be fun…"
"Maybe students could, like, answer questions, and then get bonuses based on the type of Pokémon" (hey, that's not a bad idea, I thought)
"Yeah, we'll keep brainstorming, and if I can figure out a way to make it work, we'll do it."
Well, based on that kid's insightful proposals, I may have figured out a good system for "battles" to take the interactivity, gamification (and motivation) to the next level!
Introducing… PokéMath Duels!
This is something I plan to try at some point… maybe once a week (on Fridays, for example), or just one question/duel each day. Students will be able to actually use the monsters in their pokédex to win "battles" or challenges vs their table partners!
These duels will be a simplified version of how the game actually works:
- Each student in the pair will (secretly) choose a monster in his/her pokédex to use for the duel. They will write the monster name on their whiteboard.
- A question/problem will be shown on the projector for students to answer. Each student will write their answer on the whiteboard within a certain time limit (depending on the problem.)
- If the student gets the answer right, their chosen pokémon scores a hit! The hit will have a strength that is modified by: (a) rarity (power) of the pokémon, and (b) the opponent's pokémon type (each type has strengths and weaknesses against other types.)
- If both pokémon score a hit (both students get correct answer), the one with the stronger hit wins the duel! The winning student is rewarded with ClassDojo points (in my class, I have a "Superstar" behavior that is worth 3 points.)
Updated resources including the Duel Instructions and Modifier Table as well as desk labels for Gyms/Teams will be found in the PokéMath Google Drive folder!


text:
Going into this one, I was a little trepidatious -- the album cover looked like the worst kind of self-conscious cover art and the number of songs seemed really ambitious. Sixteen songs is a pretty hefty track list, and Rihanna's albums are generally bursting with filler.
'Work' is another big hit which I cannot get into. The chorus is repetitive and grating. The interplay with Drake is the best part of the song, and saves it from being a complete washout.
'Desperado' is this weird, kinda-slow jam with an imposing bass and synthetic drum beat. It builds into a strangely romantic track about a woman basically threatening her lover who is getting itchy feet.
At this point, the album starts to sound like if Frank Ocean remade Marvin Gaye's Here, My Dear. Songs like 'Woo' and 'Needed Me' have that same focus on synth atmos and disconnected vocals. There's a bit of echo to Rihanna's voice which makes it a little more haunting and almost James Blake-like (especially on 'Yeah, I Said It').
The lyrics are concerned with failed relationships, and making a clean break. While not as explicit as Marvin Gaye's autobiographical 1978 album, Anti is similarly introspective and self-focused. The way Rihanna's voice drifts in and out, with a simple, repetitive, almost dance-like rhythm is also very evocative of songs like 'When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You' and 'Anger'.
Unlike Gaye's effort, the focus on synths means Anti is a more chilly affair. Thematically, this makes more sense -- Rihanna's album is about a woman looking back with a degree of distance; Gaye's album is stuck in the moment, when the anger and confusion still feel fresh.
Of these tracks, 'Same Ol' Mistakes' feels like a culmination. Over 6 and a half minutes, Rihanna castigates herself for feeling like a 'new person' even though she keeps falling into the same line of behaviour.
'Never Ending' sees the album change tacks again -- it's another ballad based around acoustic guitar. It's too bad Rihanna is such a four-quadrant pop star: it would be cool if she took one album to go into one of the genres she cherry picks from.
'Love On The Brain' is a wonderful surprise. It's an old school, 50s-style soul number, complete with backing chorus and electric organ. More of this please!
'Higher' is a more comedic take on a torch song. Containing lines like 'This whiskey got me feeling pretty', slurred delivery and a slightly jerky string section, it manages to be pretty funny while also feeling completely sincere, as Rihanna beseeches her lover to take her back. There's a vulnerability to her vocal which makes the song a bit darker, and adds an edge to the humour.
'Close To You' sounds like a piano ballad from the early Nineties. It's a nice, subdued little number and the perfect closer.
The edition I have is the deluxe version, with three extra tracks. I have to say, they are pretty anti-climactic.
'Goodnight Gotham' strikes a bum note -- it sounds like a crappy cast-off from Rated R. The next two tracks, 'Pose' and 'Sex With Me', are better but in a similar aggressive vein. Best to go with the regular release -- these tracks are not essential, and detract from the overall effect.
I have to say, I REALLY liked this album. The time away has really helped the overall quality of this effort, and the extended track list allows Rihanna to try out a bunch of different styles and tones. Following a few albums where it felt like she was in neutral, Anti feels like a genuine progression for the pop star.
For her next album, Rihanna should consider working with a different creative team -- like Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Maybe it's the vague echoes of Janet Jackson on some of her harder tracks, but I feel like a collaboration with those guys could lead to something really cool that will keep her feeling fresh and interesting.
Previous reviews
Music of the Sun
A Girl Like Me
Music of the Sun
A Girl Like Me


text:
More than 8,000 Ontario school children from kindergarten to high school age are expected at the Harbourfront Centre Tuesday and Wednesday to participate in the 19th annual Forest of Reading® Festival of Trees™, a celebration of the love of reading presented by the Ontario Library Association and the Authors at Harbourfront literary reading program.
The festival will host more than 70 authors and book illustrators for readings and workshops, book signings, Q&A sessions, book-making and illustration exhibits, and other reading related activities at the festival, which is supported by Ontario schools and is also open to the public, Meredith Tutching, program coordinator for the Ontario Library Association, told the Star.
"To the young readers, these authors are rock stars. More than 250,000 Ontario school children have voted on their favourites in seven fiction and non-fiction 'trees', or age categories of readers, and when the winners are announced in sequence during the 2-day event, they roar like fans at a rock festival."
Organizers are expecting 1,700 to attend each award presentation in the Harbourfront Centre's band shell, Tutching said.
Participants for this year's festival include nominated authors Kelley Armstrong (The Calling, Spell Bound), Gail Sidonie Sobat (In The Graveyard), rapper Wes "Maestro" Williams (Stick to Your Vision), Neil Pasricha (The Book of Awesome) and Kevin Sylvester (Neil Flambé and the Marco Polo Murders).
ALOUD: a Celebration for Young Readers presented by the Festival of Authors as part of the Festival of Trees program, will host guest appearances by children's authors Eric Walters and Teresa Toten (The Taming), and Karen Levine (Hana's Suitcase).
"This is a major gathering of children's authors and book publishers, the largest children's literary event in Canada," Tutching added.
"The purpose is to engage young readers, and to encourage the joy of reading. On a commercial level, it benefits authors as well. Nominated books go on to be best sellers."
For the first time, the Forest of Reading Festival of Trees will follow up the Toronto event this year with a road tour, featuring 12 authors to 1,000 young readers in Ottawa and 8 to 1,100 in Thunder Bay, Tutching said.
Tickets for the Harbourfront event are still available at http://tinyurl.com/cc5y9pm. For details about Forest of Reading, go to http://tinyurl.com/78qrtno.


text:
Produced with care and love, Lui & Lei comes from Korea's leading cosmetic company, Hanbul Cosmetics.
Hanbul is the only manufacturer in Korea that has invested in creating an in-house lab that specially formulates
all cosmetics without using third-party labs to ensure quality over price. Made with the highest quality ingredients
on the market, we are committed to making superior cosmetics that fit your everyday needs. Lui & Lei offers a wide
variety of products that target all life stages.
Our unparalleled Diana Gen line is specifically made with the rarest ingredients. A patented Black Royal Fish mucous formula
(from gently removing regenerative outer secretion), White Gold Caviar extract, and White Truffle extract showcase this line.
All our products are free of animal cruelty, parabens, and sulfates.


text:
Hudson Postal Codes
Hudson city is located in Quebec, Canada
You can search for the Hudson QC postal codes by its streets and block numbers
Hudson Area Code is 450/579 and Time Zone is Eastern (GMT -05:00).
Hudson is also known as Choisy
Hudson Postal Code - Quebec
Hudson Postal Code is a six-character string that forms part of a postal address in Canada. Like British and Dutch postcodes, Hudson - QC postal codes are alphanumeric.
The first three characters (alpha-numeric-alpha) of the postal code which represent a geographic area in Hudson.
The last three characters denote a Hudson local delivery unit (LDU). An LDU denotes a specific single Hudson address or range of addresses, which can correspond to an entire small town, a significant part of a medium-sized town, a single side of a city block in larger cities, a single large building or a portion of a very large one, a single (large) institution in Hudson, Quebec, such as a university or a hospital, or a business that receives large volumes of mail on a regular basis
If you want to send a mail to Hudson City, you should use the corresponding Postal Code.


text:
Think Big Anyway! That's what Innovation Excellence contributor Robert B. Tucker advised students when he delivered the commencement address at the University of California, Davis. Given the exponential rate of change and the inability to predict where technology (and their careers) will evolve to, Tucker challenged this group of 500 PhD candidates and innovators to "Think Big, Anyway," despite the ...Read More »
How Should We Educate Children to Win the Fourth Industrial Revolution?
Thriving in the fourth industrial revolution will require nothing short of restructuring public education at all levels, not just K-12. One goal should be to create entrepreneurial schools and universities, and by that I don't mean teaching children how to start businesses. Instead, creating the entrepreneurial mindset is about the pursuit of opportunity with scarce resources with the goal of creating user defined value through the deployment of innovation.Read More »
15 Must Watch TED Talks on Creativity
While innovation is fundamental to a successful and progressive business, finding time, creativity, and inspiration can be challenging. You may already be familiar with TED (short for Technology, Entertainment and Design), but in case you are not, it is a media company that hosts talks by thought leader with the purpose of igniting change and innovation. Speakers range from artists, to ...Read More »
Agile Intrapreneurship at LabCovéa [Interview]
Philippe Lebeaupin, Innovation Coach at Lab Covéa (insurance company) explains in details the origin of the Lab, and the way he coaches intrapreneurs' projects, sharing some exciting business pivots along the way!Read More »
Inside Four Decades of Breakthroughs at IBM Research
American industry has a rich heritage of top-notch corporate labs. Bell Labs created not only the transistor, but also other fundamental breakthroughs, such as the laser and information theory. PARC, developed much of the technology we associate with modern computers, such as the mouse and the graphical user interface. Both labs have attained mythical status and rightly so. Yet IBM ...Read More »
Your Phone is Trying to Control Your Life [Editor's Choice]
Whether you're killing time in line at Starbucks or scrolling through an endless meme stream on Twitter, your smartphone is trying to seduce you. Former Google employee Tristan Harris felt something needed to be done to combat tech designers' relentless efforts to influence our behavior. Special correspondent Cat Wise talks to Harris as part of a collaboration with The Atlantic.Read More »
Are Your Employees Afraid to Tell You The Truth? [video]
How can you uncover "The Ground Truth" in your organization? POPin president Lee Ott explains.Read More »
TED Talk: Why are there still so many jobs? [video]
In this talk about the future of work, economist David Autor takes on the question of why there are still so many jobs -- and comes up with a surprising, hopeful answer.Read More »
TED Global: Open-Source, Open World [video]
Embrace our wide-open shareable future where everything's hackable and the power of the crowd propels innovation… Massimo Banzi helped invent the Arduino, a tiny, easy-to-use open-source microcontroller that's inspired thousands of people around the world to make the coolest things they can imagine — from toys to satellite gear. Because, as he says, "You don't need anyone's permission to make ...Read More »
Personal Mastery : An interview with Ida Nielsen – Bass Anchor for Prince
I had the unique privilege of interviewing Ida Nielsen, bass anchor for Prince and now stepping out in her own right as a singer – songwriter, following Prince's tragic and premature death, age 57. In the interview and subsequent private conversations with Ida I discussed a number of topics with parallel lessons for anyone seeking to innovate by breaking the mould. Discipline ...Read More »


text:
I'm still in the midst of learning the beast that is called Adobe Illustrator. Frankly, I have much better luck with Photoshop and the two things that keep me opening up AI and trying … again … is it has a recolor tool that is the bomb! If you have a pattern with several colors, you can push a button and it comes up with a whole new look. Then you can add a whole new color palette and come up with yet a whole other look. You can keep pushing said button and get a myriad of looks. It. Is. The. Bomb. And vectors. Vectors is a plus if you want to make sure your doodles or motifs (similar to elements in the scrapbook world) scale at any size and look good.
But, I find I can get more done doodling and coloring on my iPad Pro then bringing them into Photoshop to create the pattern. There's just so many ways to create patterns it has taken quite awhile to figure out which works best for me. I'm going to try to get in more patterns in an upcoming Instagram pattern challenge. Check out my Instagram or you can even just glance over to the right and scroll down to see some of my patterns.
I wonder how many times I've used the word "pattern" so far? 😀
I'm spending so much time trying to learn a new program that I have done little in the way of any freebies here or any new email signup gift. So, I put together a couple of printable To Do lists – or whatever kind of lists you can use them for – to give away here. These are made with two of my patterns and I hope you like them and can use them. They'd be best printed on thicker paper so they'll hold up better than normal copy paper. One is a mandala design and the other is a swirly flower.
I still need to come up with a new email signup freebie and it will probably be some sort of printable. My current members will receive whatever I come up with as always. 😉 A new post will come when I get that done.
Click the link below the preview to grab your free printables. These are for personal use only, print as many as you'd like. Enjoy!
As always, thanks for visiting!
Download freebie: To Do Lists


text:
Women's strappy heels from Senso. Crafted from black leather with a chic, matt finish, the 'Stella' shoes feature an open toe, strappy front with silver tone hardware and an open heel. Set upon a chunky three inch heel and manmade sole.
Upper and Lining: Leather. Sole: Synthetic.
Heel Height: 3" (approx.).
Product 171/240


text:
SAC Capital lost yet another massive influx of cash, the Wall Street Journal reports. This time, from Japanese bank Mizuho Financial Group.
Since the beginning of 2013, the most profitable hedge fund in the world, has been girding its loins for a mass exodus of capital. Investors are running from the scrutiny of an intense SEC investigation into the firm's operations, as last November, federal prosecutors wrote that SAC CEO Steve Cohen i nteracted with alleged insider trader, Mathew Martoma in their complaint.
Cohen was mentioned in the complaint as 'Portfolio Manager A,' and you don't want to be Portfolio Manager A.
The exodus of cash has already been public and brutal. Clients can pull 25% of their investments out of the fund every quarter, but they have to give the firm 45 days notice. The next deadline for notifying SAC is February 15th, and a bunch of firms have already announced that they're clearing out.
Here's a list of some redemptions made public so far:
- Societe Generale's Lyxor Asset Management arm (with $113 billion assets under management) announced that it would take its money out of SAC.
SAC has said it expects to see $1 billion worth of redemptions (17% of its total outside investment capital).
Meanwhile, investors aside, there have been a bunch of other signs that things are going south for SAC. The fund is closing its Chicago office and pumping up bonuses for portfolio managers by 3% to stop them from leaving the firm.
In Court, former SAC analyst Wesley Wang walked away from his insider trading guilty plea with a slap on the wrist (2 years probation without a fine) after wearing a wire and naming as many as 20 names connected to insider trading schemes, according to federal prosecutors.
In short: Things are just not looking good.


text:
It's a lovely 80-degree day for meeting up and getting coffee.
Shirt: Anthropologie / Sweatshirt: Stateside / Skirt: J.Crew / Shoes: The Limited / Bag: Rebecca Minkoff
Karen says...
In a strange way, I still have not adapted to the change back from Casual December. This must be why I continue to mix casual items with my worky work clothes, like this chambray top and My Current Favorite Sweatshirt which I slung over my shoulders to make its relaxed vibe a little less discernible.
But, both my awesome lunch companion (my pal Duke) and my awesome coffee companion (my pal Paloma) approved of my look, so I feel aces!
Cardigan: LOFT / Tank: Target (maternity!) / Skirt: J.Crew Factory / Shoes: Jessica Simpson
Paloma says...
I am a busy lady these days at work, had to take a break when Karen told me she was having lunch across the street from my office so I could have coffee and a photo session with my dear buddy - the best!
Another day dressed like it's summer - I don't mean to keep talking about the weather but it really is kinda crazy. Beginning to wonder if we are just going to skip winter this year. And also wondering if this means summer 2014 will be brutally hot. Hope not. And hope winter comes soon! This warm weather is getting a bit boring.
In other news, this maternity tank sure has done me right over the years - its nice and long and super stretchy which means I can wear it basically forever.


text:
Taking a back seat; or, the 'trailing spouse'
When we first moved abroad I kept my job from the UK and worked from home, thanks to the understanding and flexibility of my former employer. And yet, notice the adjective 'former' employer. Unfortunately the role wasn't really suited to telecommuting (or perhaps I wasn't suited) and by six months in I had left.
I then found myself in the position of many people I've met here - partner of someone whose job led them abroad, and in a kind of weird (but incredibly privileged) position. Moving back to the UK for me to find work isn't a very attractive option since we love it here, but it's still an option. Much better would be for me to find work in Lyon.
So... I could look for a similar role to one I had before, but with a French company. My French could use some work, and it would be hard with my current level of fluency, but possible. However, part of the reason we are so happy here is the freedom we have with our lives because I'm not currently tied to a nine-to-five (my husband works shifts so he's not on a regular routine) and that would completely change if I got a full-time role.
So do I look for part-time work? Try and find something not too constrictive that we can build our schedule around? And what would that look like... a bar, a restaurant, a shop? All jobs I have done before and could do again, but not really my number one ambition. During the last school year I looked after and taught English to kids part-time, and while that was okay I didn't love it, or derive as much satisfaction as you're led to believe you will if you teach.
I understand that I'm in an extremely lucky position that I can be choosy about what kind of job I want, and I know that this luxury of time to decide is not normal and in no way am I trying to complain.
But I'm left in this strange position, with semi-regular writing jobs popping up, working but not really working. And shamefully not too bothered about the career I should be pursuing, but kind of bothered enough that I beat myself up about not contributing much to the household income.
It has made me realise that such a large part of our identity is (rightly or wrongly) tied up with our jobs, and not having a proper job title means you have a little bit less to say about yourself. Talking about work is an easy ice-breaker, a fall back conversation topic when the chat starts to falter, a first question when you get in the door in the evening.
We make so many - perhaps largely unconscious - sweeping generalisations about people based on what they do or don't do for a living. You can usually tell someone's income, education and 'class' from that first "So what do you do?" question.
I have never been particularly career-minded, so it doesn't feel like I've sacrificed anything, but I know plenty of people over here who have had to wrestle with the decision of whether or not they are happy to neglect their own job prospects while their partner pursues opportunities. I know it's a struggle that's not exclusive to the expat community, but it feels heightened here somehow.
A question my husband asked me recently was whether he thought my willingness to let him take the lead with his career was because we both had internalised traditional gender roles, and I immediately said no, it's solely because he has a more focused career at the moment, and I've never really had much of a plan. When we discussed it further I had to admit that if I were a man and he were a woman I don't know if I would be so quick to move wherever his job took him, and take a random part-time job. It would be more expected to keep up a long-distance relationship while we both continued our careers. I don't really know how I feel about that.
In any case, I feel I struggle more with the perception of not working much than actually not working much. The freedom I have now is far more rewarding (to me, I know lots of people would hate it) than any job I've had. Plus I'm dreadfully lazy.


text:
.I got hoodwinked.
Wink almost makes it sound cute; hood, tough. But it's not! It's damaging to the ego & will have you stewing in the parking lot for at least 30 minutes, while you blow-up rant-Tweet, and eventually call your mother on the verge of tears so that she can tell you everyone makes mistakes and, no, you're not supposed to learn all of your lessons on negotiating just by watching the poor people who get duped on Pawn Stars.
Phew. Good to know.
You see, I went to Plato's Closet.
The one in South Town Plaza (near RIT). It has so many delectable bits of T-shirt & tank top & any other fashion item, articulately arranged in an array of colors. I mean rainbows are jealous. Kay guys. If you're scene is Hollister Eagle meets Wet 21, you're in good hands. Truly. Quality clothes. Reuse, recycle. And they buy books. Books! But I got hoodwinked.
* * *
1. Great Expectations. Sooooo impressed by my spread of clothing (we're talking Banana, Limited, J.Crew, Gap, H&M), that I took pictures ahead of time to commemorate the beauties I knew I would sell.
|.Jungle Dress.
...Yah, that dress & those shoes are still mine.
|.Nude Platform.
(Steve Madden c/o Marshall)
(How could they not want to buy these???)
|.Vary Vera.
(If you're going to do it, do it here.)
* * *
1. Just made someone employee of the month. Kudos to me.
2. Learn my lesson. Now, when I go to sell something of actual worth like, say, jewelry or a car, I shall critique my situation. May I see what I've sold? (Yah. Never asked.) May I ask how this has been priced? (Important to know.) In order to eke out such questions, one must first avoid the stun-gun too frequently fired when monetary figures unload.
...Stun-gun Kevlar?...
Confidence. Don't be nervous (like me) to take your time & understand.
Know your audience. I popped in after work clad, fashionably, in new shoes (Maxstudio c/o Marshalls), cropped tweed pant (Loft), trench (Target), cotton sky blue scarf (Old Navy), & flowered headband (Loft). Put together. And that's the problem. Didn't look like a 15 year old trying to look 18 who is hopped up on Abercrombie & freshman year of high school/college. I mean it's not like the sales associate saw my more demure, mid-20's style & thought she could immediately scoff at my clothing and rip-off my Vera Bradley. But then again...
|I had some brand new shoes,
The were all red... (She & Him).
|Cropped Tweed (Loft)
Faux-skin Red (Maxstudio C/O Marhsall's)
First impressions, no.
.To being $28.10 richer.


text:
The Crown Decorating Centre is helping residents to do their bit for the environment and clear out their sheds and garages.
The Kick Out The Can initiative lets people take up to ten containers of paint along to the Thornes Lane centre for recycling.
Donations are already pouring in but there is still time for anyone who wants to get rid of their surplus paint.
The paint is re-processed by social enterprise company Nimtech and then donated to community projects.
The scheme, which is in its fourth year, has collected more than 30,000 thousand tins of unwanted paint across the UK since its launch.
Mark Lloyd, sustainability manager for Crown Decorating Centres, said: "Kick Out The Can is growing in popularity every year and we're delighted that people are taking the opportunity to do some good for the environment by recycling their unwanted paint.
"Such is its appeal that we've extended the scheme into a third week this year, and to thank people for helping make it such a success everyone who brings in their unwanted paint receives a 20 per cent discount voucher which they can use in-store until the end of the year."
Paint must be in the original container with the lid securely attached and no foreign objects or substances in the cans. Aerosols and rusty cans cannot be accepted.
The initiative finishes on April 18.
For more information, visit www.crowndecoratorcentre.co.uk


text:
Manchester Sweat Style Notes:
An on-trend printed sweat is the ultimate 'go to' item in every man's wardrobe.
Details and Care:
- 100% Cotton
- Regular/Slim fit
- Set in and short sleeves
- Straight hem
- Soft Handle
- Available in black
Model is 6'1 and wears size medium.
Join the Gang
We can't wait for you to be part of the Dead Legacy gang. Tag us on Instagram, @deadlegacy1, wearing your new Dead Legacy pieces. You know what would be even better? If you used the hashtag #deadlegacy or #createyourownlegacy for your chance to be featured on our social media!


text:
On Recovering from The Catcher in the Rye/
"Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around — nobody big, I mean — except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff."
By Sam Yang - Get similar updates here
I picked up Catcher sometime in middle school. For a while, I used to read it once a year — now if you know anything about the book, you might also know it's the favorite of many famous crazies. I hope I am not one of them, but if by small chance I am, I most certainly am not one of the dangerous ones. (I swear.)
This book was banned, criticized, and feared — and I can't say I blame them. The book is antisocial, anti-authority, anti-convention, and disobedient. The kids loved it. Sure it made us a little crazy entering the mind of the main protagonist, Holden Caulfield, but that madness was what separated those who understood the book and those who didn't. I mean, you need a certain amount of intellectual insight to be mad, right? The genius and the madman both see what no one else sees, so it's a fine line, I suppose. But geniuses always suspect they are mad, and the mad think they are geniuses. So trust the person who believes they are fallible.
You will hear people say, "Oh, I think I read that book, isn't it about that boy Holden something?" This is how you know they didn't get the book. Now if they did, they would say, "I definitely read the book. It's about phonies." And now in the age of positive reinforcement, perhaps people view the book as "too judgmental." "It's about that kid who always judges everyone, right? He's too negative." And when books and movies about children and teens are all Hollywood-happy and Disneyfied, Holden is the resistance. For that very reason, Holden hates Hollywood (J.D. Salinger requested his book never be made into a movie), it doesn't give us what is there, it gives us what we want. And in that way, it warps our senses, makes us ill-prepared for adulthood, and sets us up for the fall in the rye.
Phony No Longer a Thing
In the 1950s, when The Catcher in the Rye was first published, calling people "phony" was all the rage. It was a derogatory term for people who put on a false air, those who were self-important, driven by materialism, intellectualism, influence, achievement, success, reputation, and winning. It was all so phony. We didn't like these people because they were jerks. Yet no one says "phony" anymore because now it more or less describes everyone. It's ubiquitous and lauded — we compete in phoniness. (Though I suspect it's what other animals and space aliens call us behind our backs.)
Now we call phonies "authentic" and give them reality shows and ask them to appear on TED. They host podcasts and appear on Oprah and NPR, they run companies or run for the highest public office. We pay to listen to them speak — we call them influencers and leaders (my personal favorite is "thought leader," what a title), we buy their books and add it to our queue of books we'll never read. (I know, I know, they also write blogs.)
"Authentic" influencers routinely tell us to "fake it 'til you make it." Smile, even when you aren't happy and you'll become happy. Act confident, and you become confident. And we do, we comply. This is not a dystopian future, this is present life. And we are sick of being around all these fakes. We have to talk to our therapists about how disingenuous we feel, where even eating feels inauthentic, and eating like ourselves is called a "cheat," and it comes with guilt and shame. And whenever we do act like ourselves, we are told there is something wrong with us because it doesn't conform. Who would have thought that individuality doesn't conform to uniformity? And there is a heavy emotional cost to this form of "authenticity." A life crisis is looming — actually several.
When our parents used to smile when they were unhappy, we called it unhealthy, that they were bottling their emotions and how backward people of the previous generation were. Yet when we do the same thing, we call it a productivity hack. It's different when we do it because we now defend it with sciency-sounding jargon and people at Apple do it. "Hey, our parents were forced to, we are choosing to." Willfully fake, as opposed to being fake against our will. Yeah, a lot better. Yet the same science says, yes, it helps us get more work done, and it also makes us less happy. But do leaders want us to be happy? Or fake being happy, so we keep working for their companies and keep consuming their products?
Here's a passage from Catcher where Holden has just watched a play with Sally Hayes, but like everything else in the book, it's his commentary on society that is most real and palpable:
Holden's viewpoint is funny because humor is observational. He could make a great stand-up comic if he didn't consider that a sell-out, phony profession that panders to the audience for approval. His older brother D.B. Caulfield is a successful screenwriter, which makes him a failure in Holden's book.
Holden continues his thoughts on George something from Andover:
That slice of life is life. The absurdity of life. The things we take as important are only important because we think they are important, not because they are necessary. None of it is necessary.
What Would Holden Caulfield Say about Contemporary Culture?
Sally says everything is "marvelous," which Holden makes it a point to mention. If everything is marvelous, then what is marvelous? If everything is special, then nothing is special. Then it's all meaningless. We are making life meaningless by pretending we are somehow elevating it and adding to its value with nothing other than excess. By that same logic, if one aspirin is great, twenty is even better. Originality doesn't actually mean being original; it means more of the same: artwork is original when it is twice as abstract as what came before it, not because it is different. If a little plastic surgery is good, then a lot must be better. If being thin is good, being rail thin is better. Says who? They say. Who is this they? I don't know but whatever we think they like, the more important it becomes to us. "They" don't even need to exist, the origins of the popularity doesn't matter, we can even know it's a sham, but if everyone else is buying into it, you don't want to be the only FOMO mofo that misses out. Even before anyone's doing it, "everyone's doing it," until everyone actually is doing it.
Maybe everyone knows it's all a sham, but we don't want to say, so we all keep pretending it isn't. It's like keeping up with the Joneses when the Joneses don't exist and never have existed. Kids know when they are playing make-believe, but adults keep claiming these figments are the "real world." We get PhDs in make-believe projections and predictions, still trying to see the future. That's the disappointment of Holden; he knows kids make things up as they go along, he didn't know that's what adults were doing, too. And even that he can accept; what he can't accept is that they pretend that what they are doing is something different. He can't take the arrogance and posturing.
Is a celebrity really popular? Or are they only popular because we think they are popular? Is a topic really a big topic or is it only a big topic because we thought it was always a big topic? The thing is, there is no way to know.
A fake Mona Lisa isn't fake, nor is the Mona Lisa's smile, but it is the Mona Lisa itself, the whole convention of it that is fake. It's valuable only because we think it's valuable, only because we think we are supposed to think it's valuable — because we think other people think it's valuable. The real Mona Lisa is always the one we give status to; a "fake" can become the genuine article once we all believe it is the genuine article. And that status we assign isn't a real thing, it's pretend and that makes the whole thing phony. But rather than be the only fool in the room who doesn't get it, we keep the whole charade going. The emperor always has clothes if we believe he has clothes. And if you were the only person to say he has no clothes, and especially if you were a child, in this version of reality, everyone would dismiss you. Too much is relying upon the status quo. It's all bougie-bougie nonsense; an aspiration to be in a higher class than we are. And if we are all pretending to be on a higher level, no one knows what level anyone really is. So why does it matter? That's what Holden calls "bourgeois," a want to always be higher in a system that can't be defined. It's abstract. Fighting for a better spot in a void. You won't be able to make sense of it.
"Construct" is the new academic-sounding word they are using in places like New York and San Francisco to describe what we used to call phony. Because "phony" sounds bad, it's not PC. "Construct" is more civilized, more bourgeois.
What Salinger illustrates in the above passage with Holden, Sally, and George is a type of conversation many of us have been a part of, where we stare into blank eyes and listen to empty words. Like a shallow pond, there isn't much below the surface — they can't tell the reflection from the water. It's all a silly meaningless game that adults keep trying to win. But there is no prize, and you can never define what winning is. But that doesn't stop them from trying. (At least kids know they are playing a game, and that is their innocence.) This type of talk is called "small" for a reason, because it is small. But if you're not good at it, you will probably be diagnosed with some social illness. My question is, why is anyone good at talk that is small?
I am reminded of an episode of The Simpsons, where someone is trying to explain something to Homer, and he stares at them deadpan, and then a gentle wind blows the three strands of hair on the top of his head. Desolation. No one is home. This is under the assumption that you are staring at someone like Homer, but if you are usually the Homer, you may have no idea what I am talking about. Then hopefully, you are still reading along because my arrangement of words is entertaining to you.
It's all so artificial, and that was bad. But now instead of calling people phony being all the rage, being artificial is all the rage. Artificial, superficial, less than authentic is the new authentic. The more artificial things you do, the better. It's a good thing! When people artificially alter themselves, we the public, regardless of truth, tell them they are now officially their real selves. Then what were they before? Fake? Are we born fake? Look at this fake baby? Should they get some work done now and pose naked for a magazine and embrace their realness? (This seems the norm, though the norm seems awfully odd.) Then what is real? And what is phony? There is nothing you could do to make you phony because all of it is authentic. Start from the outside in, pretend until it's true, stand tall until you become confident, act happy until you are happy. If not, here's a pill, here's surgery, here's an implant, here's hormones, here's gene editing, here's a combo pack, and some self-help books and seminars. And don't forget the behavior modifications. The new body-image acceptance: Accept your body, unless you feel your body isn't the real you, then reject your body and pay for a bunch of alterations. Fuck labels, unless you like labels, then tack on as many as you like. All of them just as authentic and none of them contradictory. And no matter how many you add, it all means better than average, rather than just another way to say human, and human naturally encompassing many traits.
Who wants real intelligence when you can have artificial ones: artificial interactions, artificial entertainment, and artificial love? Well, I guess I do, but quickly I am becoming the minority, an old curmudgeon. It used to be, you had to be at least sixty to be an old curmudgeon, but times are moving so fast, you only have to be thirty.
If it were a computer, we could just say we upgraded it, or modified it. But computers don't have feelings or cognitive dissonance. We were taught to accept ourselves as is, but to also not accept ourselves as is. So, our mental loophole has been to call it being more real, rather than what it really is, changing. This is somehow easier than dropping the pretense and just doing what we want because we can. But that is not praiseworthy.
Why can't we say the real version of us sucked, and we upgraded to a better version? Or more truthfully, a version we like better? (Better is subjective.) Isn't that more accurate? Why do we have to call the artificial, real? Whatever we see as an improvement, whether it really is an improvement or not, automatically is what is "real." Then better means real. Then what word do we have for realness that is independent of better or improvement? If something is bad, we can't say that is real, we have to say that is wrong, and we have to fix it until it is real. It's a religion, or an illness, perhaps it's interchangeable. Something that trickled down from the Ivy Leagues when they were religious schools (and still closed off to non-WASPs), a mixture of intellectualism, spirituality and magical thinking, a belief based on nothing — that inherently people and nature are good and happy and our lives are predetermined to be good and happy. The academics at the time thought this just sounded nice and was a nice way to live — societal design by people who knew better for the new workforce. So we believed them because we aspired to be like them. And whenever things are not good, and we are not happy, well then, things are unnatural and not how they were meant to be, and we must fix it. But then again, what the hell is real? And real being things as they are, not how we think they ought to be. Rather than adapting to what is, we cater what is to suit us. Reality itself must pander to us. Like the Queen of Hearts from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, where reality is whatever the Queen says it is. If the world doesn't fit into our preconceived notions, rather than adapt, we will paint it red.
Here's the thing — not much is real anymore. Whether it is real, marvelous, new, special, authentic, zen, successful, hack, namaste, or money, it all means the same thing: better than you. Or if we cut through the bullshit, it probably means more fuckable than you and richer than you. Because being real isn't actually about things being better, it's only about things sounding better. Rather than "selling out," we are "buying in," (by constantly distracting ourselves with purchases) because that sounds nicer. Realness is about presentation, not how it really is. We are only pretending things are better when in actuality, we are dying inside. A pandering reality that gains in vanity but sacrifices wholeness.
Idealism Comes at a Price
This is probably the most popular and defining passage from the novel. It gets to the core of what drives Holden — that innocence is the only thing of value and saving the innocent is the only redeeming cause. He's telling this to his younger sister Phoebe, the one he wants to protect most:
You ask people what they want to do with their lives, they give you a job title. A job title? Think about that for a minute. How does a job title answer what the question is asking? Productivity is the new child abuse. Imagine if you never got to play, no leisure, no childhood, and every hour of your day scheduled so you could be the most employable adult ever? How is that not abuse? No other animal, no matter how cruel, would do this, rather than preparing it for life, to prepare it to work for another animal. Does that make us the cruelest? What if you got more time to be a dirty and playful child but got spanked every once in a while? Let's be real, to most kids that would be preferential than a life designed from birth for employment. But that's convention, we aren't really asking what people want to do with their lives, we are asking what ideal job they wish to hold. And they answer appropriately. What we mean and what we say are independent most of the time.
Holden, however, answers the life purpose question by describing the purpose of his life. What he actually wants to do, symbolically and physically. Now don't get me wrong, Holden is far from perfect and majorly flawed and troubled, but in his idealism, he cuts through so much red tape and confirms many of our suspicions.
It's Okay to Sometimes Think about Death, It's Good for You
Death is always on Holden's mind, and with that, the preciousness of life. (Holden tends to think about it too much.) He wants to save people from themselves, from living a meaningless life, because Holden doesn't pretend death isn't coming. He knows it's coming and he knows people may regret the life they lived. No one will complain at the end of their life that they didn't own enough cars, looked hot enough, or slept with enough people. Phoniness is relative to: if it were to all end tomorrow, how important was any of this? And if the way you live your life is not linked to that question, then you're just pretending because that is the only life-defining question.
Do you want your funeral to sound like a job interview, and your eulogy your resume? How you went to London for a summer internship so you could come back with a phony British accent (or even faker Mid-Atlantic accent) so you could get into the right college? To join the workfarce? And the total gross you made for your company? How many derivative conversations you had? How many McParties you went to, the McSpouses you married, and McHouses you owned? Well, that might sound impressive to the living, but to the person who is about to die, they may wish they really examined what it is to be alive. And not only that but what it means to be a unique individual that not only was a part of but also served a greater collective. Not just another McPerson having a McFuneral.
Dabbling in Moralism and Ethics When We Have No Clue What They Are
The character of Holden is complex, much like us. Perhaps we, too, were once like Holden, and then we forgot. Holden wants to save people, but you can't save everyone. "Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around — nobody big, I mean — except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff." This is how alone Holden feels, he understands he's not an adult, but he puts a tremendous amount of pressure on himself. The adults aren't doing their jobs and when a child falls through the rye, he blames himself. It's what eventually drives Holden mad.
The world is absurd and full of hypocrites, but they aren't doing it intentionally. It's not even hypocrisy or absurdity until you begin to notice it, then it's all-encompassing.
Then there is this quote by Edmund Burke:
That combined with Catcher, and it really threw idealists off the cliff. Kids play and know it's a game. Adults play but have their noses in the air, as if what they're doing — adult stuff — has more gravity. That it's not some silly game but "real life" stuff. And that's what makes it so silly and phony and what kids do more genuine. Holden wants to preserve that.
The way Holden defines innocence isn't how we would commonly define it, something more akin to naïveté. He uses innocence to mean being genuine and original — without air or expectations. Kids are innocent to the perceptions of others, they have no other choice but to be themselves without being self-conscious about it. Yet we don't call kids authentic, we call celebrities who pander to the camera "authentic," because they are popular on social media.
Struggling with Collectivism, Individualism, Altruism, and Moral Superiority
This has been the great struggle for many who contemplate and value innocence. But what I have come to realize is, from where my nose ends and yours begins is space. Where I end, you begin. Who am I to say you are a phony? Or to save someone I deem less than a phony? After all, I am an unreliable narrator just like everyone else. And some of the biggest phonies love this book. And according to Quote Investigator, Edmund Burke never said, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." That, too, is phony, though it is real because we keep quoting and believing Burke said it. Because in our reality, it's not always about how it happened, but how it ought to have happened. Burke didn't say it, but he should have. So we as a collective corrected it.
To hold subjective expectations of others is in a way, the same as thinking we have ownership over them. That they must somehow act in accordance with how we think they should act. (The same thing phonies do.) And in saving others, we believe they are ours to save. There has to be some level of balance and reason. Catcher is a cautionary tale of what happens when you don't find that balance. Holden is so idealistic, he lacks common sense. He knows the dangers of apathy, which is indifference. But he doesn't realize the dangers of extreme empathy, which can lead to hate. The fans of the book who committed violence did not understand that either. And in less severe ways, idealists can turn antisocial, realists can become cynics, and people who want a utopia are always disappointed and warn of the end of the world. This may sound cliché if it weren't true, but once a wise priest told me that my welfare is just as valuable as the welfare of those who I sought to help. Something you forget in the pursuit of a redeeming cause.
True Idealism Can Never Exist Because It Is Married to Privilege
You can't avoid phoniness; you must actively participate in it to get through school, make platonic friends, make romantic friends, make money, and survive — unless you want to live alone as a hermit in the woods somewhere. Which Holden toys with, but most likely he would be arrested for trespassing and hunting without a license. He may also die out in the elements with no proper training or provisions. To avoid that, he could live off of his parents, who would buy him a cabin in the woods and pay for his property tax and send him food, which he would hate. I know many wealthy people who did something similar, some becoming endless dream chasers and spiritualists. Like a cat, they pretend they are entirely independent when they are completely dependent on their keepers. Though strangely, they keep calling their parents, "the universe." "The universe sent me money this month." "I traveled around the world." Who paid for it? "The universe..." But why can't we be clear and accurate? Why the alternative to facts? And why the faux, ethereal, Eastern accent and appropriation of both Indian and Native American culture? Because we don't want people to just envy our lives, we want them to also envy being us. That we don't have any added advantages other than being better than them. If we were precise and accurate (and real) in how we were, people would say we have great lives. If we pretend, we think they will say, not only are our lives great, but we are great. It's not that we are afraid of being criticized for being privileged — we would be just as unhappy with criticism or without, because neither of them are praise. Even if we were alone on an island, we would think about "they" and whether they would praise us for the hut we built. We would probably chuckle to ourselves like a mad-person.
It's all phoniness, but some moderation of it is required, though you don't have to pretend with yourself or go overboard with it. Just enough to survive but not so much that you lose touch. That's just a suggestion, but ultimately it's your choice.
The world isn't as phony as Holden red-paints it to be. Holden saw the very worst of it; just as Salinger saw the worst of literary circles and New York social elites. If Holden had grown up working class or poor and gone to a public school, he might not have had the privilege even to notice it, just focusing on basic needs and survival. When all needs are met, all you have left is phoniness, the same as when a house is built, all that is left are decorations. It's all for show. Fluff. (Why you live is a luxury when you're still figuring out how to live.) We think there is some endless amount of steps up the social ladder, but there's only two, and once you go beyond needs, it's just endless accumulation of fluff. That's the expectation. Like George Jetson, your job is to push one button, you have no idea what that does, but that's the expectation, for you to push it forever (or until you die, whichever comes first). We pretend there's more to it and think perhaps eventually we will accumulate enough to reach nirvana, or all of our spinning in circles will eventually take us to enlightenment, (is that why we love spin class?) but it won't. That's an entirely different path that requires constant struggle with needs.
When You Take Life Apart, Make Sure You Know How to Put It Back Together Again
None of us can truly be authentic because none of us are truly independent. We are all dependent on each other. Either the world can turn into an altruistic desireless utopia tomorrow (don't hold your breath) or we learn to get on each other's good sides and be respectful to survive. We must commingle idealism with the practical. And being interdependent, relying on others and liking it, isn't all that bad. Neither is flirting with madness; how else do you know you have really lived?
(Camus didn't say this either, but memes think he should have.)
Throughout history, there have been books similar to Catcher, where eventually the protagonist meets a philosopher or teacher who guides him through his thoughts. I kept waiting for it, and it never happens. Holden partially examines his life and has done a good job deconstructing it, but putting it back together is the real challenge. That is the rest of the journey (and by rest, I mean building a coherent philosophy that doesn't drive you crazy), and that is up to you. Without the second part, it's only a meltdown.
The Ivy League spiritualists gave us one more con, rather than thinking through and working out the negative, we have been taught to avoid thinking about it. That thinking about it itself will cause more negativity. So rather than learning to manage life's obstacles, we have learned to avoid them. So we never think about death because it's unpleasant. And life becomes a means of distraction from death, which only leads us to regret. This is very unique, especially to America. The happiest country, Bhutan, thinks about death the most. They cultivate gratitude rather than taking things for granted. It is the cultivation of peace rather than escape. Since most of us have been indoctrinated early in avoidance thinking, meditating on death is foreign, many of can't imagine it. "How is life not sheer terror? Why wouldn't you kill yourself?" Yet suicides are highest when expectations are highest. That is mindfulness, the awareness of the life's impermanence.
If Holden did discover some philosophical truth, he would probably say:
Explaining what that means, finding that clarity, is how you put yourself back together. Otherwise you're lost in the dark forest of uncertainty.
You Cannot Give Comfort without Receiving It
The "catcher in the rye" analogy is a sweet childlike analogy. Holden in many ways is the most innocent character in the novel. He wishes he could have caught his brother, Allie, as he was falling. He wishes he could have kept him from dying. Though he sounds adult, Holden is still a teenager reeling from the loss of his younger brother. This event has dramatically shaped his impressionable worldview. Like a child, he somehow believes it is his fault that Allie died. His young mind still can't process the impermanence of life. It is why he wants to save his little sister, Phoebe. Yet, many times the roles are reversed, and it is Phoebe who acts as Holden's watchful protector. She's only ten, but in many ways, she is older than Holden, who has been emotionally stunted by the death of Allie. Holden believes "Coming thro' the Rye" is a children's song about protecting innocence. It is the backdrop for the whole novel and symbolizes everything that he is. Phoebe knows in actuality, it's an adult poem about the loss of innocence — that innocence is overrated. She knows Holden's quest is ultimately futile and the world he's built is based on a misunderstanding. Or perhaps it's an innocent understanding. Our own reality.
Phoebe gives him advice, gives him money, even keeps him dry in the rain. That's life. It isn't a one-way street. If we catch others, they, too, catch us.
Holden takes Phoebe to the park so she can ride the carousel. He tells her his plans to run away. It begins to rain:
The hat was Holden's gift to Phoebe, but she puts it on Holden so he wouldn't get wet while she rides the carousel. A motherly act. It is the idealist who is always the child.
Going around and around, not going anywhere. For most of the book, the absurdity of life, that we're going around in circles, never going anywhere, is pretty goddamn depressing. Yet, at this point in the book, Holden has a moment of Zen; that we're going around on this ride, but that's okay, and that's beautiful. So beautiful, he feels like crying. He loves his sister, she reminds him of life's compassion, she reminds him of Allie and Holden wishes Allie was there to see her. Phoebe is the metaphor for hope, that we all circle around innocence and loss of innocence. It's not as if once we grow up, we become complete assholes. We will have moments in our lives, in our day, where we'll circle back around. Children are the proof. Holden, like his namesake, is trying to "hold" on to time. But at this moment, he yields to it; he doesn't need to hold so tightly because innocence and hope always come back around.
Real Things of Value, Like Tenderness, Cannot Be Quantified
It's those deep connections, and all the moments that along come with them, that keeps life meaningful. They are what save us. Somewhere in Holden's mind, he knows this as well. Tenderness isn't showy or nice for the sake of manners, it's subtle and easy to miss. Yet they are acts of kindness that are unquestionably real. Holden never ends up running away. If feeling alone is despair, then knowing we aren't alone is relief.
This is the passage I find most haunting and deserving of attention. It gets to the heart of the human condition and laces it with hope:
We often feel lost and alone — perhaps drowning is the appropriate word. And that's when those connections come in, knowing there are people out there who care about us. Even when we can't see them. We think we are saving others when it is them constantly saving us. Holden wishes he could have saved his brother, but in reality it is Allie and Phoebe, his younger siblings, who are always catching Holden when he is unable to find a secure foothold in this world — on the edge of the cliff, about to fall "down, down, down" on his path to adulthood. Holden hates how "angel" is overused, just like when George Andover uses it. That word has special meaning to Holden, it is reserved for people like Allie and Phoebe, his guardian angels. Holden is still a wounded boy. Perhaps many of us are wounded, as innocent in our idealism as Holden — just falling through the rye.
It's okay to let go and be caught. The world isn't going anywhere.
Useful Companions (Improve Your Education and This Site by Buying a Book):
- The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
- Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass – Lewis Carroll
- Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales – Hans Christian Andersen
- The Myth of Sisyphus: And Other Essays – Albert Camus
- Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion – Paul Bloom


text:
One thing you have to give Senator Obama, he can put on a show. He knows what sunglasses to where with a flak jacket. He knows just the right moments to lose the baby blue tie and roll up his sleeves, and shoot some hoops. He can address thousands of adoring fans, and whip them into a frenzy. He can do all this without addressing any issues. He can fix the world just don't ask him how.
On the other hand, Senator McCain is not the most gifted speaker to ever run for president. It sort of looks like someone is chasing him when he reads from a teleprompter. He doesn't look like a J. Crew model, he looks like someone you might run into at the hardware store. However, ask him a policy question anywhere anytime and he'll give you a thoughtful honest response.
The media seems somewhat baffled that McCain has been closing in on Obama's lead. No pretty pictures come out of the McCain campaign. He's talking to folks in restaurants, in grocery stores, and in town halls across America. How could that possibly be more appealing than Senator Obama's stage show. Screaming fans, massive crowds, the media eating from the palm of his hand, but no 'world tour bounce' for Senator Obama.
Substantively, what did come out this week is that Senator McCain was right about the surge. He made a solid foreign policy decision that could have hurt him politically, and the country is better off for it. Could voters possibly be choosing substance over form? Could the media's crush on Obama be so obvious that voters disregard their glowing reviews of him? Could the fact that Senator Obama doesn't answer questions, be starting to backfire? Could 'hope' and 'change' be wearing thin for people paying $4.00 a gallon at the pump? This race could possibly come down to whether voters choose the candidate of substance or choose the candidate of show.
Hype the Obama Effect - the movie
Friday, July 25, 2008
Obama McCain – Form vs. Substance
Posted by kmorrison at 7:42 AM
No comments:
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
- About GSE
- Academics
- Admissions & Financial Aid
- Faculty & Research
- Our Students
- Our Alumni
- Support
Join the Incoming Penn GSE Students Facebook group to connect with your future classmates!
Remember the first step is completing your enrollment form, and, if applicable, submitting your non-refundable tuition deposit. The non-refundable tuition deposit will be credited to your account once you enroll. However, if you do not enroll, you will forfeit your deposit.
Penn GSE has the advantage of being a small school nestled within a large university. While Penn consists of 10,000 graduate students from 12 schools on campus, GSE consists of 1,000 students with over 20 areas of specialization...
Read More
3700 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 898-6415
3700 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 898-2059


text:
This industrial wall until will exceed all your living room needs. Featuring fifteen shelves crafted from premium select hardwoods and veneers, the unit showcases a thermostat controlled fireplace console with four flame settings. Completed with faux concrete tops, the set adds extended storage to your home and is able to heat an area of 400 square feet.
The Steampunk Collection Industrial Fireplace Entertainment Unit with 15 Shelves by Legends Furniture from Boulevard Home Furnishings. We proudly serve the St. George, Cedar City, Hurricane, Utah, Mesquite, Nevada area. Product availability may vary. Contact us for the most current availability on this product.
Featuring a built-in electric fireplace that can be controlled with the touch of a button, this console provides a safer alternative to a traditional wood-burning fireplace. Designed to be the best of both worlds, the console ensures space for your media devices and accessories, and allows you to have the benefit of a fireplace without needing to mount your television on the wall above.
The Steampunk collection showcases industrially styled furnishings for your home living room, bedroom, and office space. Crafted with premium select hardwoods and veneers, the collection features faux concrete tops, English dovetail drawers, extended shelving, felt-lined drawers, and even a thermostat controlled fireplace console. Perfect for your modern home, these items showcases beautiful style and extended accommodation.
The Steampunk Collection collection is a great option if you are looking for Industrial furniture in the St. George, Cedar City, Hurricane, Utah, Mesquite, Nevada area.
This item has been tagged as: Wall Unit, Modular Pieces, TV Wall Unit, Living Room Wall Unit, Bedroom Wall Unit, Wall Storage Unit, Corner Wall Unit, Wall Shelving Unit, Media Wall Unit, Home Furnishings, Media Center, Entertainment Center, Entertainment Wall Units, TV Wall Unit, Television Wall Unit, Extended Entertainment Walls, Entertainment Unit, TV Furniture, Living Room Furniture, Entertainment Furniture, TV Armoire, Television Armoire, Media Storage, Bookcases, Wall Bookcase, Home Theater Furniture, Home Entertainment Furniture, Bookshelves, Home Theater Storage, Entertainment Armoires, Curios, Wall Curio, Curio Cabinets, Wall Curio Cabinets
Nothing on this page may be copied or reproduced without explicit permission.


text: 2008 Tesla Roadster First Drive Lots of details, and a nice video, although this part seems questionable: ================================================================================================== "Tesla insists that the 1.5 package will enable the one-speed car to meet the Roadster's original performance target of 0-60-mph acceleration in 4.7 seconds. We asked one of our own engineers to do a little number-crunching based on the few facts Tesla would supply, and we estimate that the new system will be rated at somewhere around 320 hp and 275 lb-ft of torque — a not-insubstantial boost of 30 percent." ================================================================================================== I don't know where they got that 4.7s target, nor how they came up with those powertrain 1.5 numbers.


text:
Hempstead House
Gould-Guggenheim Estate
Hempstead House
|95 Middle Neck Rd, Port Washington, New York
|40°51′34″N 73°41′47″W / 40.85944°N 73.69639°WCoordinates: 40°51′34″N 73°41′47″W / 40.85944°N 73.69639°W
|216 acres (87 ha)
|Allen, August et al.
|Architectural style
|Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals
|NRHP reference #
|Added to NRHP
|September 29, 2006
Hempstead House, also known as the Gould-Guggenheim Estate or Sands Point Preserve, is a large estate that was started by Howard Gould and completed by Daniel Guggenheim in 1912. It is located in Sands Point, New York
The estate[edit]
The grounds contain two castle-like buildings, Hempstead House, the main house, and a smaller house, known as Castle Gould. The main house measures 225 ft long (69 m), 135 ft wide (41 m), and has three floors containing forty rooms, punctuated by an 80-foot tower (24 m).[2] Once construction had completed, the 300-acre (1.2 km2) estate needed 17 house servants and 200 farmers and groundskeepers to maintain its upkeep.[3] Hempstead House in its prime was regarded as one of the most lavish estates to occupy the Gold Coast (North Shore (Long Island)):
In its heyday in the 1920s, Hempstead House revealed a taste for extravagance. In the Entry Foyer was an organ made of oak. The pipes still visible on the walls above were merely for show—the music reverberated through openings in the floors. Medieval tapestries once hung on the walls, and oriental carpets covered the floor. The sunken Palm Court once contained 150 species of rare orchids and other plants. An aviary housed exotic birds in ornate cages among the flowers. The walnut-paneled Library was copied from the palace of King James I; relief portraits of literary figures still decorate the plaster ceiling. The Billiard Room featured a gold leaf ceiling, hand-tooled leather wall covering, and carved oak woodwork from a 17th century Spanish palace.[4]
Howard Gould, son of railroad tycoon Jay Gould, began construction of the estate after purchasing the land in 1900. Initially, the plan was to build a castle that was to be a replica of Kilkenny Castle. Castle Gould, as it came to be called, was intended to be used as the main house. However, the Goulds did not like the castle so they decided to create another house on the estate which would serve as the main dwelling.[5]
After the completion of this house in 1912, the Goulds sold the estate to Daniel Guggenheim. Upon buying the estate, the name of the main house was changed to Hempstead House (the limestone stables and the servants quarters are, today, still referred to as Castle Gould). In 1917, the Guggenheims donated the estate to the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences. Soon after acquiring the estate, the institute sold it to the U.S. Navy who held it from 1946 to 1967. The U.S. government declared the estate as surplus and eventually gave the deed of the property to Nassau County, New York in 1971.[5]
A number of famous movies have had scenes filmed at Hempstead House and the surrounding estate. Some examples are:
- Scent of a Woman (1992)[6]
- Malcolm X (1992)[6]
- Great Expectations (1998).[6]
See also[edit]
- ^ National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
- ^ "Gould Castle, Hempstead House". Dupontcastle.com. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
- ^ "The New York Theatre Organ Society". Nytos.org. Archived from the original on 2012-02-08. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
- ^ "Hempstead House". Sands Point Preserve. Archived from the original on February 4, 2011. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
- ^ a b "Big Man; Big House". big-old-houses.com. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
- ^ a b c Mathews, Jack. "Hey, I Know That Place! If the film setting looks familiar, it may be because you've seen it before—right here on Long Island". Newsday. Long Island. Archived from the original on January 12, 2007.


text:
I am working on catalyst to design a front end for a database. I am new to perl and catalyst. I am stuck with one error in the controller.
I want to fetch gene names from one table and pass each gene name to a subroutine gene_name(call a subroutine gene_name) which will perform certain function. I some how fetched the column with gene names but they are in the form of Hash reference to other table. My call to gene_name is not working.
Any idea how to pass the values to the subroutine rather than reference?
My code is as follows:
my @gene_list = $c->model('Gene::GeneTable')->search({
column =>[qw/symbol/],
foreach my $gene (@gene_list){
push @gene_aliases, &gene_name($gene);
The error I am getting after executing the code is as follows:
DBIx::Class::ResultSet::find(): Can't bind a reference (MyApp::Model::Gene::GeneTable=HASH(0x7ff6d88b7c58))
My gene_name() subroutine is in another module which I have included in the controller. Now I have changed the for loop(in controller) as following and currently it is passing gene name to gene_name() to fetch aliases(But query remains the same):
foreach my $gene (@gene_list){
push @gene_aliases, &gene_name($gene-> symbol);
I am accessing the @gene_aliases in my view file as follows:
[% FOREACH g in gene_aliases -%]
[% g %]
The above code is fetching hash references instead of names in the page. I am not able to display the gene names on web page.If I give [% g.symbol %] in for loop then the page would be empty with no error message.Hope this would be sufficient information for answering my question. If not I would elaborate on it.
My SQL query is as follows:
Select Symbol from GeneTable;
Thanks in advance
As I am not a full time programmer, I am asking these questions on the blog. Kindly help me resolve my issues. If in case I have search form which takes gene name from user and this gene name has to be passed to the gene_name() subroutine, how do I pass this (to the controller and how to call the gene_name()). Kindly help me in resolving this issue.
My form in view.tt is as follows:
<form method="post" action "[% c.uri_for('/gene')%]">
<input type="text" name="search_alias">
<input type="submit" name="alias_search" value="Search">
All my aliases are in the other table called Alias, which is been used in gene_name() subroutine.
Either the
gene_name() function needs to expect a GeneTable object being passed to it, or you would call it like this:
Having said that, the Controller does not look like the right place for this, based on what limited information you've provided.
It would make a lot more sense to have gene_name as a method of
Gene::GeneTable itself, ie:
package GeneTable;
sub gene_name {
my $self = shift;
my $gene_name = ... # do something with $self->symbol
So that the
->gene_name method is available to any GeneTable object in any context.
UPDATE following OP's initial two comments
It sounds like
gene_name() (which possibly should be called
gene_aliases()) is a method of a Gene object. Putting such a conversion into a Controller does not adhere to good MVC philosophy.
Presumably you have model code somewhere - MyApp/Model/Gene/ most likely - and this sub should exist inside
Gene/GeneTable.pm. Then you could use it thus:
[%- FOREACH g IN gene_list -%]
[% g.symbol %]

[%- FOREACH gn IN g.gene_name -%]

[% gn %]

in your template, and anywhere else you have a GeneTable object or collection thereof.
UPDATE #2 Following updated question
DBIx:Class will return an array of objects when called in list context as you do. Perhaps you need to add some
Data::Dumper->Dumper() calls to get a handle on what each step is returning to you.
I suggest you add the following line immediately after your call to
$c->log->debug("gene_list contains: ", Data::Dumper->Dumper(\@gene_list));
...and possibly the equivalent debug for @gene_aliases after you've populated that.
That might give you a clearer picture of what you're getting back from your search, but I'd hazard a guess you're getting
Gene::GeneTable objects.


text:
CD Review — Highway Prayer-Atribute to Adam Carroll
Independent Label, 830 Records, from Jenni Finlay and Brian T. Atkinson. This first appeared in the January 2017 issue of Buddy Magazine
There's a photographer's eye and there's a poet's eye. Adam Carroll's songs seem to mesh the two styles together, using words to paint the photographs of life on life's terms. There's 16 Adam Carroll songs on this project, produced by Jenni Finlay and Brian T. Atkinson. But, Adam only sings on the first one, "My Only Good Shirt." The rest are sung by those who admire this newer-age Guy Clark-style songwriter.
Jason Eady sings "Errol's Song," making a listener wish he knew Errol. ""He held my hand when my boots got too heavy, with the mud from the rice fields coming to my behind… We walked through the graveyard of the rusted combines." And a look at characters Scarface and that dirty-haired girl, in their usual hidey-holes, namely a bar, in Hayes Carll's cover of "Girl With the Dirty Hair." And the singer laments, "If I had me some sense, I'd be five years gone by now."
A personal favorite is "Karaoke Cowboy," covered by Noel McKay and Brennen Leigh. "In a Stetson hat and some snake-skin boots, a bolo tie and jeans, There's the karaoke cowboy, his name is Bob, at the bar in Grand Saline." Bob is clearly seen as a Branson and Nashville wash-up, a success until "a trailer park tornado took all of that away."
And Terri Hendrix immortalizes the pot-growing couple in "Red Bandana Blues." Hippies, who never grew up and never moved to town. "Two tie-dyed, brain-fried misfits, who lived in a shack in the back of the Bodark woods… And in trouble they got deeper when they grew their crops of reefer. Because business and pleasure were two words they got confused. And the days went by with the red bandana blues.
James McMurtry, who sings "Screen Door," is quoted on the liner notes as saying, "Adam's like a very young Kris Kristofferson. He writes about things that are older than me." And the notes also state that the record is dedicated to "the memories of Guy Clark and Kent Finlay, who forever changed Texas music."
— Mary Jane Farmer
Category: *- Features, - CD Reviews