text:
Several minutes before the school bell rang,
three pets entered their classroom, early as usual. Nieve, a Starry Lupe dressed
smartly in a crisp blouse and skirt, eyed the pink and red decorations stuck
to the walls of the room. "Valentine's Day already? Seems like just yesterday
everything was purple and green for Jhudora Day," she remarked.
"Actually, I think it was yesterday," said Danus,
leaning against his desk. "I remember doing a quest for her on her day."
His friend, Hentor, emitted a mock gasp. "You
did a quest for Jhudora? And survived?" He pretended to check the green Lupe
for bruises. "Funny, you don't look like you got zapped. What did she do to
you, then?"
Nieve rolled her eyes. "I'm sure Danus can take
care of himself, even against a Dark Faerie."
"That's right," Danus said, with a mock glare
at the yellow Ogrin. The Lupe shrugged. "Anyway, I never liked Valentine's Day
much myself."
Nieve looked surprised and almost disappointed.
"Why not?"
"It's too commercialized these days. Places like
the Chocolate Factory and Garden Shop start advertising their luscious brown
chocolates and giant roses a month in advance. As if anyone's going to buy a
Valentine's Day present that early," the green Lupe scoffed.
"Yeah, I'd eat the chocolate long before I had
a chance to give it to anyone," Hentor said.
"And the roses would wilt by the time Valentine's
Day came around," Danus added.
"Not if you planted them," the Ogrin said.
"Under my care, they'd wilt." Danus chuckled.
"They might," Hentor conceded.
Nieve uttered a brief laugh. "Wilted roses and
bitten chocolate wouldn't make much of a Valentine's Day gift. I expect you'd
do better than that if you ever gave someone a present."
The bell rang then, and the Starry Lupe hurried
off to find her seat. Hentor threw a meaningful glance at Danus, which, as he
didn't know the meaning, confused the green Lupe. "What?" he mouthed.
The Ogrin raised his eyebrows at him.
Still not understanding, Danus chose to ignore
his friend and opened his schoolbook. Hentor immediately poked him.
"Don't do that," Danus hissed. "What is it?"
Hentor launched into a series of wild gestures,
waving his hooves in the air as a peculiar way of trying to convey a message.
It wasn't working.
"Danus, Hentor," the teacher said with a frown.
"Please sit still and pay attention to the lesson."
Danus threw his friend a look of frustration,
conceived of both his inability to understand the Ogrin's attempts at communication
and the fact that his antics had earned them both a reprimand, and bent over
his book.
Watching from the back row, Nieve wondered if
she should be thankful that she didn't sit next to her two friends for the sake
of her good grades. Her eyes strayed briefly to the pink hearts floating on
the white walls, but she soon focused her attention on the teacher once again.
* * * * *
"Listen, Danus, you've got a big decision to
make," Hentor said to the Lupe he sat across from at the school lunch table.
Danus raised his eyebrows. "This is the first
I heard of it. What decision?"
"The one I told you about in class, of course!"
"You mean when you were acting all weird? I didn't
have a clue what you were trying to do."
"I had to tell you somehow, without attracting
attention," Hentor said.
"You can always pass a note, you know."
The Ogrin waved his hoof in dismissal. "Anyway,
the point is that you need to decide what you're going to give Nieve for Valentine's
Danus looked mildly surprised. "That's not really
a big decision. Besides, I already said I don't like Valentine's Day."
Hentor stared at his friend in disbelief. "You're
not going to get her anything?"
"That's right."
"You can't do that!" Hentor exclaimed. "Did you
hear how she was talking earlier? She clearly wants you to give her a Valentine's
present! Think how disappointed she'll be if you don't! She'll never let you
forget the day that you forgot to buy her a gift! She'll shun you for it forever!"
Slightly put-out, Danus replied, "Oh, come on,
she's not that shallow."
"Well, what's it going to hurt for you to buy
her something?"
"First, I don't have money to spend on things
like that, and second, I don't want to be just another guy who gets a pack of
impersonal chocolates because it's Valentine's Day."
"So give her a card. They're cheap."
"Then I'd be just another guy who gets a cheap
card because it's Valentine's Day."
"You can be really insensitive sometimes, you
know." Hentor paused, thinking. His eyes lit up and a smile spread across his
face as an idea flashed into his mind. "Tell you what, you don't have to do
anything. I'll take care of the whole deal. I'll buy presents for her and all
that. Then on Valentine's Day, you pick up the stuff I got and give it all to
Nieve. She'll think you picked it all out for her and will be overcome with
admiration for you. And you won't have to do anything," he repeated.
Danus looked at him skeptically. "I don't know…
it sounds kind of sneaky."
"You said you didn't want to buy gifts yourself.
Besides, I want to do it! It'll make Valentine's Day a lot more interesting
for me." The Ogrin was clearly excited at the prospect of helping Danus win--or
buy--Nieve's appreciation.
"Look…" Danus began, intending to tell his friend
that this wasn't right.
Before he could finish, Hentor yelped, "She's
coming!" He reached across the table and clapped his hoof over Danus's mouth.
He whispered quickly to the Lupe, "Remember, you don't have to do anything!
See me on Valentine's Day. And above all, don't tell Nieve what's going on!"
"Mmph," Danus mumbled, trying to shake the hoof
away from his mouth.
Hentor straightened up and looked brightly at
the Starry Lupe who was now standing by their table, eyeing Hentor with his
arm stretched across the table to block Danus's voice from escaping his lips.
"Hey, Nieve! What'd you get for lunch? We weren't talking about anything important
while you were gone. Certainly nothing involving you."
Nieve rolled her eyes as she sat down. "Whatever
you said had better make me look good."
"It did, in a way," Hentor said, considering.
"Ahn yo' te'ing me na' 'oo te' 'er?" Danus mumbled.
"Sorry, I didn't understand you," Hentor said,
keeping his hoof over the Lupe's mouth.
Nieve sighed. "Will you please let him talk now?"
"Oh. Sure."
"Thank you," Danus said, glaring at Hentor.
Nieve took a bite of her sandwich, trying to
ignore the broad grins and meaningful winks that Hentor was giving to a slightly
irritated Danus. The Ogrin annoyed her at times; she surely wouldn't put up
with him if he wasn't Danus's friend. "So, um, Hentor, are you doing anything
for Valentine's Day?"
"Oh, no, of course not, what makes you ask?"
Hentor said loudly. He nudged Danus, who gave Nieve an embarrassed look. The
Starry Lupe pretended not to notice. Danus shook his head. This arrangement
just didn't feel right.
The morning of the day when Cupid was said to
make his rounds arrived too quickly, it seemed. The first thing Danus thought
of when he woke up was Hentor's plan. He heaved a sigh at the realization that
they were going to go through with it. Danus supposed it was nice of the Ogrin
to offer to buy gifts for the Lupe to present to Nieve, but all the same he
wished his friend had just left the subject of Valentine's Day alone. "I'll
dread seeing what he bought for me to give her," the Lupe muttered, imagining
scores of candies and valentine cards waiting at Hentor's house. Supposing that
he'd better find out what his friend was planning for that day as soon as he
could, he threw on some old clothes and headed outside.
When Danus reached the Ogrin's residence, Hentor
opened the door and ushered him inside with a wide smile. "Everything's all
set," he told the Lupe. "The presents are ready and waiting, and Nieve is coming
over in ten minutes."
Danus stopped in surprise. "What? She's coming
here? In ten minutes?"
"Yes, that's what I just told you."
"So you can give her the presents. Of course,
I didn't tell her that when I invited her." Hentor eyed the Lupe. "Hmm, I would've
worn a nice suit if I were you. Those jeans and stained T-shirt take away from
the Valentine's Day atmosphere."
"If you'd told me she was coming, maybe I'd have
dressed in something different," Danus said, glancing down at his worn clothing
self-consciously. This now seemed very much like a bad idea. "What are the gifts
I'm supposed to give her?"
"Just a minute." Hentor left the room, and returned
with a giftwrapped box in his hooves. The wrapping paper was covered with pink
hearts, and there was a large red ribbon on top. On closer inspection, the red
ribbon appeared to be hiding a cluster of air holes punched in the top of the
box. "Tada! Here's gift number one."
"Gift number one? What is it?" Danus asked, shaking
the box. Something inside the box shook back. Somewhat nervous, the Lupe asked,
"Hey, Hentor, is something alive in here?"
"Of course; it's a Petpet!" Hentor declared.
"Nieve doesn't have a Petpet, so I thought the best gift she could get this
Valentine's Day would be a faithful companion she'll adore forever."
"Isn't that supposed to be my role?"
Hentor stared at him. "You want to be fed canned
food and taken on walks?" He scratched his head. "I guess it does sound kind
of appealing. After all, you'd get to chase Symols. If that's really how you
feel, I've got a spare leash and collar that you could…"
"Never mind," Danus said quickly. Eyeing the
box uneasily, he asked, "So what kind of Petpet is it?"
With great pride, Hentor declared, "It's a Slorg."
Danus blinked. "A Slorg?"
"Yes." Hentor grinned.
"A Slorg. Not a cuddly Faellie or Kadoatie, but
a Slorg."
"Why a Slorg, of all things?"
"Furry Petpets are overrated."
Danus stared at the box. "You want me to give
Nieve a Slorg for Valentine's Day," he said incredulously.
"What, do you have something against Slorgs?
I always did say those poor things didn't deserve their bad reputation."
"Nieve is a girl, Hentor. Girls are notorious
for not liking things like Spyders and Slorgs."
Hentor frowned. "You think so? Let's see!" He
stuck his head out the window and yelled to an Aisha walking down the street,
"Hey, what do you think of Slorgs?"
The Aisha shuddered. "They're the most disgusting
things ever to crawl the earth!" she replied. "Ugh, I can't stand the thought
of them!"
Danus glared at Hentor. The Ogrin paid no attention
and directed another shout at a passing Kiko. "Excuse me, but do you like Slorgs?"
The Kiko turned to look at the Ogrin leaning
out of the window, revealing that she was carrying a Slorg in her fins. "I love
Slorgs!" she exclaimed. "They're the most wonderful Petpets ever! I don't know
what I'd do without my darling Slorg." She smiled fondly at her Petpet.
Hentor closed the window and turned to the Lupe.
"See, girls do like Slorgs. One out of two isn't bad."
Danus shook his head. "I don't think Nieve likes
"Do you know she doesn't?"
"Well, I've never really asked her, but…"
"Then you can't know! You've got at least a fifty-fifty
chance it'll work out." Hentor grinned. Cocking an ear, he added, "And here
she is now."
The doorbell was ringing. Hentor trotted off
happily to answer it, while the Lupe stood waiting uncertainly with the giftwrapped
box in his paws. He nervously smoothed the ribbon over the air holes, wondering
how he could get out of this. If only he'd stopped Hentor's plan earlier…
"Nice to see you here, Danus," the Starry Lupe's
voice reached his ears. Her gaze immediately fell on the box he was carrying.
Nieve's eyes lit up with interest and a bit of hope. "What's that?"
Danus considered telling her that it was for
his mother, but Hentor destroyed any hope he had of carrying out that idea by
whispering very loudly, "Now! Give it to her!"
"Is it for me?" Nieve's eyes flickered brightly,
and a smile spread across her face.
"Um…" Danus stammered, desperately searching
for an excuse not to give her the Slorg. She looked so pleasant and happy, standing
there with her hands clasped over her blue pleated skirt and a look of innocence
on her face. Surely it would be wrong to crush her hopes of receiving a wonderful
present, but would it be worse to do so by refusing to give her the gift or
by allowing her to discover that beneath the pink wrapping was a horrid creature
of slime?
"Yup, Danus got it just for you for Valentine's
Day," Hentor told the Starry Lupe cheerfully.
"Ooh!" Nieve sounded delighted. "It's such a
big box. What could be in it?"
Danus allowed her to take the package, and then
watched miserably as she eagerly tore off the wrapping paper. The moment he'd
been dreading came as Nieve pulled off the last piece covering the mouth of
the box. She set the box on its side in her lap and opened out the flaps.
Plop! A slimy green thing squirmed out of the
box and began writhing among the folds of Nieve's skirt. She let out a yelp
of horror at the sight of a pair of bloodshot red eyes attached to stalks and
a down turned mouth melting in dripping slime, all belonging to the pathetic
thing in her lap.
Danus turned to Hentor, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"A Mutant Slorg?" he howled. "Why a Mutant Slorg?"
"Get it off of me!" Nieve shrieked, leaping up
and trying to shake the Slorg off. Instead, it wormed its way up through the
paths that her clothing created, leaving disgusting blobs of slime clinging
to her skirt. Finding its way up her arm, the Slorg began moving towards her
head. "AAAH! Get it OFF!"
Danus darted forward, his only thought of undoing
this disaster. He grabbed the Slorg and quickly dropped it back in the box,
closing the flaps over it. Nieve brushed the slime off of her fur with a look
of disgust. She eyed her slime-covered skirt, and then threw Danus a furious
glare. "So that's your idea of a nice Valentine's Day present? Couldn't you
save pranks for April Fool's Day?"
"Nieve, it wasn't my idea," Danus said weakly.
Hentor broke in with a loud exclamation of, "Wow!
Wasn't Danus brave? He heroically stepped in and saved you from that horrible
Slorg! You should thank him, Nieve!"
The Starry Lupe shot Hentor a withering look.
"I wouldn't have needed to be 'saved' from the Slorg if he hadn't given it to
me in the first place!"
"I'm really sorry," Danus mumbled.
"You can go wash the slime off in our bathroom,
Nieve," Hentor put in quickly. "Second floor, last door on the left."
Without a word, the Starry Lupe brushed past
the two pets and headed up the stairs. An angry tear made its way to the corner
of her eye. She should've known better than to think that Danus would really
do anything for her on Valentine's Day. He and Hentor were so immature…
Danus watched the Lupe hurry away, crestfallen.
When she was out of sight, he looked accusingly at Hentor. The Ogrin shifted
uncomfortably. "Huh, I really thought she'd like it."
"Oh, did you?" Danus said with a hint of mocking
in his tone. Sometimes he really wondered about his friend's sense of reasoning.
Hentor's usual grin returned to his face as he
whipped out a small, hard giftwrapped package. "Time for present number two."
"What is it? Chewing dung?"
"Of course not." Hentor made a face at the suggestion.
"It's a most traditional Valentine's Day gift: chocolate. Even better, it's
a Chocolate Lupe Treat. She, being a Lupe, will love it. The guy at the Chocolate
Factory told me that as soon as Lupes smell these treats, they can't resist.
They pounce on the chocolate, attacking it like a wild predator. They lick their
chops and bare their gleaming sharp teeth, and their tails wag in happiness
as they devour the treat with savage glee!" Hentor grinned, pleased with his
detailed description of the reaction he expected of Nieve.
There was a brief silence. Then Danus said slowly,
"Um… that doesn't sound particularly romantic."
"So what? This chocolate will make her forget
all about the Slorg incident."
Danus conceded the point. He took the little
package and waited for Nieve to return to the room. The good smell of chocolate
mixed with a faint scent of Chia floated through the wrapping paper and into
the green Lupe's nose. He willed himself not to eat the treat himself before
Nieve came.
Time passed, and the scent of the delicious Lupe
treat began to be too much. "What's taking her so long?" Danus mumbled, fiddling
with the wrapping paper and trying to prevent himself from pulling it off and
gobbling up the candy.
At last, the Starry Lupe came down the stairs.
She still looked upset, and there were traces of slime on her dress. She gave
Danus a cold stare.
"He's got another present for you, Nieve!" Hentor
piped up, nudging Danus forward.
"Uh, yeah," Danus said, holding out the giftwrapped
Lupe treat.
Nieve looked at it disdainfully. "It smells like
"It is chocolate. It smells delicious," Danus
said, trying to keep his mouth from watering.
"Eat it yourself. I'm allergic to chocolate."
Hentor's eyes widened. Danus could hardly hide
his delight as he tore off the wrapping paper and popped the treat into his
mouth. "Yum," he said blissfully as he chewed it.
Nieve rolled her eyes. "You didn't know I was
allergic to chocolate?" she asked, watching as Danus swallowed the last of the
gift that she had rejected.
"I had no idea," Hentor muttered to himself.
He poked Danus, who was still reveling in the taste of the Lupe treat, and slyly
handed him a bouquet of flowers. "Present number three," he whispered. "These
are sure to be a hit. They're top quality black roses."
"Presents? Oh, right," Danus said, snapping back
into reality.
"I don't know what you're thinking," Nieve said
in distaste, staring at the cluster of dried stems atop which perched a sorry
clump of shriveled dark petals. The "top quality black roses" were wilted into
an unappealing mass of tired plants. "Is this some sort of gross joke?"
Danus glanced down at the roses, and then threw
a glare at Hentor. "Yeah, is this a joke? How old are these flowers, anyway?"
"I found them five months ago and I was going
to press them, but I forgot," the Ogrin said thoughtfully.
"So you decided to reuse them today?" Danus looked
Nieve glanced from Danus to Hentor. "Wait a minute.
Who are these gifts from?"
Instead of answering, Hentor exclaimed, "The
final gift!" He slipped a card into Danus's paw. "Give her that. She'll love
the poem you wrote."
Nieve grabbed the card before Danus could offer
it to her. The front of it showed a stick figure drawing with childish uneven
heart cutouts glued all over it. Opening the card, Nieve read aloud,
"'You are a thoughtful and caring Lupe,
Better than even the faerie of soup.
(Though her cooking is really good too.)
On the scale of worth in Neopia's value log,
At one end there's dung and on the other there's
You are a princess, as beautiful as if you came
from a Mortog!
From Danus'."
"I did not write that!" Danus exclaimed, cringing
at the bad poetry.
"Danus! Of course you wrote it!" Hentor said.
Nieve looked up from the card. "Okay," she sighed.
"I figured it out. Hentor, these, er, gifts are all from you, right?"
"Yes!" Danus said, relieved. "I had nothing to
do with picking them out."
"How did you know?" Hentor asked the Starry Lupe.
"Because this card is written in your handwriting,"
Nieve said. "Rather smart of you to think I wouldn't notice that," she added
facetiously. A sparkle returned to the Starry Lupe's eye, and she smiled for
the first time since she'd seen the Slorg. "I'm really relieved it wasn't you
who chose these gifts, Danus. If it had been, I would've had to think you were
going crazy. As it is, I can plot revenge against this silly Ogrin all I like!"
"No!" Hentor cried. "I was doing it for Danus!
And I thought you'd enjoy the presents I got for you," he added meekly. "Do
you really not like Slorgs?" he couldn't help asking.
Nieve grinned. "I can't say I enjoy having one
in my lap all that much."
"Nieve," Danus said, finding the nerve to speak
to her now that the fiasco was over with. Somewhat ashamed, he said, "I'm sorry
this ruined your Valentine's Day. I shouldn't have let the whole thing start."
Nieve laughed. "It didn't ruin my Valentine's
Day. But for a while I thought I wasn't going to give you this." She drew a
small, narrow box from her purse and handed it to Danus. His eyes widened in
surprise. "Open it," Nieve said with a smile.
"Wow, thanks," Danus said, eagerly flipping up
the lid.
A rubber Cobrall sprang out of the box. The Lupe
jumped back, and Nieve burst into giggles.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Danus."
The End


text:
That's how Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee Billie Beamer sees her feisty colleagues on the OHA Board of Trustees.
The nine-member board has a long-standing reputation for fussing and fighting, and critics say it keeps OHA from its mission: to improve conditions for Hawaiians.
"If you look at their performance, the behavioral patterns of trustees throughout its existence, it has always been one in which there has been a lot of friction, confrontation, fisticuffs and four-letter words - the demeanor leaving much to be desired," said Beamer. "That, to me, is the primary reason for the public disappointment and disdain."
Among some blowups in recent years:
"I was very, very concerned if I became the chairman or any part of this majority, that if I didn't do what people wanted, they would start attacking, you know," DeSoto said. "And I would be a puppet. Consequently, I changed my mind."
Melvin Kalahiki Sr., president of the Council of Hawaiian Organizations, who lobbied for OHA's creation in the late 1970s, said there is too much politicking on the board.
"Once in a while the trustees need to take off their shoes and feel the ground outside and get back to the people in the community," Kalahiki said. "I think they stay in that office too long."
Lela Hubbard of Na Koa Ikaika, a Hawaiian rights group, said trustees should run OHA like a business, not a political body. "What occurs in OHA is that if you are in the loop, you get help. If you're not, then you just come back and back and end up with all this red tape to go through," she said.
OHA, a semiautonomous agency created in 1979, was set up as a money trust to pay for Hawaiian programs. Its sizable resources - $226 million - came under recent scrutiny at the state Legislature, where money-hungry lawmakers proposed cutting annual payments to OHA by 80 percent for the use of ceded lands. The bill died.
And there were calls for OHA participation in state-funded programs for Hawaiians.
OHA's answer was a three-month, $300,000 public relations campaign to polish its image and protect its wealth. Newspaper, radio and television ads trumpeted the agency's accomplishments and called for full payment on ceded lands.
But Beamer said too little is spent on programs for Hawaiians, while the bulk of OHA resources goes into investments.
"What are we saving for the future for when we are sacrificing the people and the children of today?" she said.
Meanwhile, OHA's image problems persist.
Francis Kauhane, vice president of Hui Kalai'aina, said many Hawaiians are tired of OHA's antics. The group, which traces its roots to 1888, hopes to unseat all four trustees up for re-election this fall: Kinau Boyd Kamalii, Moanikeala Akaka, Moses K. Keale Sr. and Samuel L. Kealoha Jr.
"The objective of Hui Kalai'aina is to restore a Hawaiian political party that will hold OHA responsible to a platform formed by Hawaiian voters," Kauhane said.
Trustees serve staggered four-year terms, with four or five positions up for election every even- numbered year.
Beamer, who some trustees say is set on exposing the board's "dirty linen" to make herself look good, blames Hee's leadership for OHA's current problems.
Their contentious relationship worsened last summer after Beamer wrote a dissenting report that led to Carpenter's firing last August. The report charged the former Big Island mayor with chronic lateness, lack of managerial vision and failure to work closely with trustees.
Council watchers say the payback came when Beamer resigned as human services committee chairwoman after she couldn't get pro-Carpenter trustees to attend her meetings. And items passed out of her panel often weren't put on the full board's agenda.
After Beamer stepped down as committee chairwoman, the board established a new rule limiting postal privileges to committee heads. That curtailed the mailings Beamer relied upon to reach her constituents.
"I realize that there are political cultures in all entities, but this culture here is one in which if you are not part of the majority party, like the state Legislature, you're in shackles," Beamer said.
Hee, currently in a five-member voting majority, has been criticized for his flamboyant, sometimes heavy-handed style of leadership.
In this April 29, 1992, photo, a group calling for OHA chairman
Clayton Hee's resignation storms a board meeting. The group
was formed because of internal troubles at the agency.
Photo by Terry Luke, Star-Bulletin
"Everyone has a stake in this organization," he said. "It's never one person's fault exclusively. To believe that is unreasonable and wrong."
Hee is proud of OHA's growing portfolio, which ballooned from $19 million in 1990 to $226 million this year.
The growth is partly due to a $134 million payment by the state in 1992 to settle revenues due from the use of ceded lands.
According to Abraham Aiona, OHA vice chairman, the money is invested in stocks and bonds. Long-range plans include land and market investments, he said.
But Rep. Dennis Arakaki (D, Kalihi Valley), chairman of the House Hawaiian Affairs Committee, said OHA needs to do more than build its investments.
"I think until people can actually see results from that investment, and results in terms of outcomes for Hawaiian people, there's going to be a hesitancy or a feeling that we're sort of having this pipeline that goes into OHA and nothing coming out," he said.
OHA would be well-served to end its internal bickering, he added.
"Of course, it doesn't help when they have all this infighting when actually they have a singular purpose - unlike others - by bettering the conditions of the native Hawaiians," Arakaki said.
The television, newspaper and radio ads - which showcase programs that have benefited from OHA funds - began in February and will end this month.
But even the media blitz has proved divisive among OHA's trustees. Akana said the ads nauseate her because they glorify OHA without showing exactly where its money goes.
While she was one of the five who voted to approve the campaign, Akana said the original plan was to show how OHA receives and uses its entitlements.
She now says she would would have tried to change the ads.
"It is absolutely ridiculous," Akana said. "It's not supposed to look like that."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Home/Conservation/Successful Coexistence
Successful Coexistence
"We don't want to see livestock die because of wolves and we don't want wolves to die because of livestock. Our shared love of animals and our shared value of open space promote collaboration between our organization and the American ranching community." Karin Vardaman, California Wolf Center.
- Fladry: brightly colored flagging installed around holding pastures and property to deter wolves from crossing. These flags play on the neophobic (fear of new things) nature of wild wolves!
- Livestock guarding dogs: most effective at alerting people to the presence of wolves, although the mere presence can be a deterrent to wolves. Certain breeds, such as Great Pyrenees and Anatolian shepherds have been carefully bred to be successful livestock guarding dogs.
- Range riders: a person on horseback who rides alongside livestock. Wolves are inherently shy of humans, and human presence has shown to be a successful deterrent to wolves. A range rider can also move livestock away from an area inhabited by wolves, avoiding potential conflict.
- Supplemental feeding programs: providing supplemental feed to livestock producers to allow them to move livestock away from grazing areas with known wolf activity, allowing wolves to utilize the best available wild habitat.
California Wolf Fund
Select an amount and click Donate Now.
By donating to the California Wolf Fund you will be promoting a culture of coexistence in California. Funding for education on the use and implementation of nonlethal, proactive solutions to wolf-livestock conflicts is critical to prevent these conflicts before they happen. Help make California a safe haven for wolves!
Mexican Wolf Fund
Select an amount and click Donate Now.
A donation to the Mexican Wolf Fund means you are directly donating to save the lives of Mexican gray wolves as human caused mortality continues to be the number one cause of death for this critically endangered wolf. Help us bring coexistence to the Southwest!


text:
Kids Joker Graphic Novels
Genre: Action (Age Rating 13+)
: Stocking Item - Usually Ships Within 24-48
Hours Unless Backordered
Hotaru Yanagawa is a high school student with dreams of becoming a police officer.
One day, when she tries to help a woman who is being assaulted in the street, a mysterious man - Yui, a member of a clandestine security organization - comes to her aid. Now, Hotaru will do anything to tag along with Yui...
...and it could cost him his life!
|Kids Joker, Vol #1, Graphic Novel


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Why Doctors Don't Care
So, a couple of weeks ago, Abi Cotler O'Roarty wrote a piece for the Huffington Post called "Why I'm Protesting for My Natural-Birth Friendly OB." In there, she shared the plight of Dr. Robert Biter, an OB/GYN here in San Diego and his suspension and reinstatement from Scripps Encinitas Hospital. During the suspension, hundreds of women came out and protested in front of Scripps Encinitas, even Ricki Lake joining us one day. If there was ever any question about Dr. Biter's magnetism, these demonstrations took care of that. For those that've read my blog for any length of time, you know I've written about "Dr. Wonderful" for years now. (The first birth I did with him was three years ago last week!) While I knew I wasn't alone in admiring the man, it was stunning to see the outpouring of compassion for his situation.
Abi's article spoke eloquently about her birth experience with Dr. Biter and how different it was from her first birth where she'd been given a mangling episiotomy from a resident at UCSD. Dr. Biter repaired her severe damage and then guided Abi, during a tumultuous labor, as she birthed her baby over an intact perineum. All sorts of legalities are going on regarding Dr. Biter and six lawsuits pending (all GYN), but hoards of us continue supporting him in his calling to help women.
Then, Abi wrote a follow-up piece asking "Are Today's OBs Giving Women What They Really Want?" Much of the article continued with Dr. Biter's ordeal, sharing why women will sit for hours in his waiting room or holding placards in the street, all the while being nine months pregnant! It wasn't until the last paragraph that she says:
"But I wonder, if more doctors were willing to stay present with a woman in birth and allow her labor to move at its own pace, would they too have a packed waiting room and hundreds of picketers clambering to support their mission? If word of mouth has any place in medicine today, then Dr. Biter's success might just be a lesson to OB's everywhere: start respecting a woman's right to choose the kind of birth that's right for her, or lose your business to someone who will."
I wanted more of that meat, the flesh I expected the article to explore. So, I decided I would explore it myself.
Over these last three years, I've watched woman after woman abandon their doctors and traipse over to Dr. Biter's practice. Once I learned what he was about, his style (if you will), I totally understood the draw. Others make snide comments about Hero Worship or deifying him. I chuckle knowing those that throw the epithets around are seriously jealous and/or don't have any other way to explain the loyalty Dr. Biter enjoys. Women don't throw themselves at his feet, don't keep their husbands from going to prenatal appointments so they could have him for themselves and certainly don't see him as anything but a kind and giving man who happens to be an OB. Why is it so strange for a man to be loving to another human being? Why are his motives questioned by those that don't know him? What is so hard about believing someone really can perform an act of kindness without expecting something in return? Amusingly, his tactile motives have been called into question, again by those who don't know what they are talking about… that he must be hitting on the women, that he must be being sexually inappropriate with them. What's so funny about that is the ongoing speculation that he must be gay to be able to be so kind to women in labor and birth! For crying in a bucket, who gives a whit about his sexuality! (None of the women I know do.) He just is.
So, why don't doctors offer care like Dr. Biter does? Office visits that linger, company to women during long labors, gentle hugs of encouragement, standing back and holding the space as women wander around in their own clothes during their rites of passage… and cooing over a mother's success and the perfection of the new baby she just brought into the world… why don't they mimic these behaviors?
I know there are a myriad of reasons that, collectively, create the doctor's attitudes. Talking to doctors, nurses and nurse midwives over the last couple of decades, this is one of the questions I've often asked.
Over and over, one remark kept coming up: It is too painful to make such a deep emotional investment in a client. Apparently, caring (not just attending) for a patient sucks the life out of the doctor, so it's easier to put up walls and treat everyone as a thing instead of a living being. Even as a midwife, we are taught not to cry with our clients. Well, I break that rule, probably with each woman. Of course, there is the importance of not sobbing on a client, not turning the tables so she is soothing you, but showing compassion through tears, in my opinion, is never a bad thing. (Probably because I do it, right?) Dr. Biter typically cries at each birth. I am sure other doctors are equally horrified and disgusted by his behavior. Patients, on the other hand, find his empathy validating of their triumphant experiences.
Lately, I've noticed a difference in my care at Kaiser (an HMO… a damn good one, as far as I'm concerned). My weight isn't the primary issue discussed, the triage nurses have been offering to take my blood pressure on my lower arm so the cuff isn't so tight, the doctors have begun sitting on the stool (lower than the patient on the table?!? Horrors!), looking me in the eye and not standing with my chart in one hand and the door handle in the other. Might compassion be becoming fashionable? (I haven't heard there's any change to the gross care of women in L&D, unfortunately.)
Compassion takes time. For most doctors, there is never enough time. The things that must be done are crammed together so the things they want to do get the bulk of the day/week/month/year/career. Compassion requires listening to women and seeing each one as an individual. It might require remembering her name or, at the very least, her face. Compassion puts the others' feelings and experiences above your own. Convenience is not a hallmark of compassion.
It's distressing hearing how prenatal visits are with pregnant women's doctors (and even some nurse midwives)… how they wait and wait and wait, then go pee and wait some more, sometimes undressed on the exam table. The nurse does the vitals and once the doctor comes in, s/he is there for maybe five minutes, seeing the woman as a batch of numbers: blood pressure, weight, weeks pregnant, fundal height and fetal heart rate. Psych-social issues are to be addressed elsewhere; if the woman is lucky, she might even get a piece of paper with referrals on it. The doctor doesn't have time for chitty-chatting (I've heard that phrase on several occasions), so assembly line-ing patients doesn't begin in the delivery room, but here, in the doctor's office. Chitty-chatting would not only mean taking time, but getting emotionally invested in the woman. If he's emotionally invested, he will think about her after she's gone. He might worry about her when he should be listening to the next lady's baby. He might find concern disconcerting as his concern for woman after woman piles into a giant heap of hardships, difficulties, happy thoughts, worries, joy and pain. It's far easier to blankly stand before every woman, giving her equal care, adding a few more tests for this patient or sending that one in to be induced.
What's baffling to me is how women put up with this! This is care?!?
Doctors continue this practice because it works for them. In and out, both in the office and in L&D. Herd them in and spit them out; the faster the better. And we are well-trained patients, following the un-written rules created by a society of men.
I have a distinct feeling that care in labor isn't going to change until we change the care we receive as prenatal patients (clients!). Those who want a natural birth in the hospital often choose a CNM for their care. CNMs are wont to spend, if not buckets more time, at least spoonfuls more than most doctors. And that time spent is reflected in the labor process. CNMs spend much more time (typically) with moms in labor than an OB would. Doctors, however, breeze in for prenatals and breeze in to catch the baby, deliver a placenta and sew up a mom… before zipping out once again.
We homebirth midwives spend loads of time with our clients. If we only see them for their regularly scheduled appointments (rare for me), we've spend a whole lot more time with them than the doctors or CNMs would. The average CPM prenatal (from what I know around the country) is one hour and then, factoring in the labor, birth and postpartum visits, we really do get to know the nuances of our clients and their families. We see them as those numbers the doctors do, PLUS as spiritual, emotional and integrated human beings that have thoughts, wishes, hopes, dreams and fears. In our time with women, we address these aspects that, while not directly affecting the baby as, say, GBS might, do affect the entire family, including the baby.
Women share with us things they would never share with their doctors –because the doctors not only have a wall for themselves, but that wall also keeps women at arm's length. We're able to hear that a woman's husband might be having an affair or that her dietary habits aren't what she tells the OB they are. Women will ask us about sex, saying, "I can't talk about this with my doctor." If a woman can't talk about the very act that created the reason for the doctor appointment itself, there is something very wrong with that system.
There are some notable exceptions to the status quo of the OB in America today. But, it is sad that they can be called out by name and city. It should be the other way around! The yucky ones should be pushpins on the map to avoid and the great OBs everywhere else.
I haven't come up with the "cure" for the crappy prenatal care/crappy birth care situation. And as stupid as it is that we have to figure out a solution, no one else is going to. I know that, until doctors take the time to see women as whole human beings, they will never be able to respect the choices she makes in birth. One cannot happen without the other.
Where do we start?
Please be sure to read the final Judgement by the Medical Board of California. I summarized it here in the Dr. Biter Judgement Posted.


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Will Forte and Tim Robbins have joined the cast of writer/director Dan Schechter's The Switch, based on the 1978 novel by Elmore Leonard. Variety has the news, saying that the actors will replace the previously-announced Ty Burrell and Dennis Quaid, joining Jennifer Aniston, John Hawkes, Yasiin Bey and Isla Fisher.
The film will serve as a prequel of sorts to Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown, which was, in turn, based on Leonard's own literary sequel, "Rum Punch." The novel, simply called "Switch," is officially described as follows:
Ordell Robbie and Louis Gara have lots in commontime in the same slammer, convictions for grand theft auto, and a plan for a big score. Theyre going to snatch the wife of a Detroit developer and collect some easy ransom money. They dont figure on a bum of a husband who has a secret mistress and no desire to get his wife back. Or on his crazy, beautiful broad of a housewife whos going to join Ordell and Louis in the slickest, saviest crime of all.
Forte recently appeared on the big screen in Rock of Ages and The Watch with Tim Robbins having starred in Green Lantern and the upcoming Thanks for Sharing.
(Photo Credit: FayesVision / Ian Wilson / WENN.com)


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About Rancho Sienna
Rancho Siena is a neighborhood in northeast Leander, Williamson County, Texas. It is located on Ronald Reagan Boulevard (more commonly known as Parmer Lane) which extends from Manor, TX to Georgetown, TX. The 610 acre site just north of the South San Gabriel River includes underground electric, Chisolm Trail water, LCRA sewer and "smart" fiber optic cable in its infrastructure. Eventually the subdivision will be accessible from Highway 29.
Ranch Sienna Amenities
Amenities for the neighborhood include a spring-fed stream with a series of small ponds that meander downhill into a beautiful lake. When I visit Rancho Sienna, there are many ducks and other waterfowl in the lake as well as numerous deer, wild birds and other Texas wildlife. Nearby are new hospitals in Round Rock as well as the new Cedar Park Regional Hospital and other health care facilities and practitioners. Shopping is available at the new 1890 Ranch in Cedar Park, the new Wolf Ranch in Cedar Park, Lakeline Mall in Cedar Park or the Premium Outlet Mall in Round Rock. The new Capital MetroRail commuter rail service from Leander to Downtown Austin is up and running. There are many great golf courses nearby in Leander, Georgetown and other nearby areas. The new Cedar Park Center is nearby as well and is a great venue for hockey, circus and other shows, as well as live music.
Where is Ranch Sienna?
To get there, travel north on Parmer Lane past 1431, 2243 (Leander Road) and the South San Gabriel River. Rancho Sienna will be on your right on the east side of Ronald Reagan Reagan (Parmer Lane). Look for the beautiful live oak trees and the native stone walls.
Street names are Tuscan or Mediterranean sounding like North and South Tuscany, San Matteo, San Miniato, Cortona, Amiata, Grosseto and others. The landscaping is very Hill Country, which is great for water use as well as a great look. Many streets have great views of the Hill Country that go on for miles.


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AUSTIN, TEXAS, Feb. 20, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lion Street released its 2017 Annual Report during the annual Institute meeting. The report described the company's best year since inception in 2010. At the close of 2017, the company had added 30 Firms for a total of 160 Owner Firms in 35 states.
"Lion Street's original vision is closing in on reality," said Bob Carter, founder and CEO. "We have quality Firms in nearly all major markets and continue to expand our national footprint. Our 'Firm behind the Firm' in Austin has 60+ full-time employees dedicated to helping Lion Street Owners grow and prosper."
Growth Results Fueled by Three Main Areas
The accomplishments highlighted in the 2017 Annual Report were measured on three key financial metrics: premium, revenue and net income. Life insurance, Lion Street's core business, grew 30% in premium growth and placed more than 200 cases of over $100K premium. A large case consultation team was built to support these cases, several providing more than $100 million in death benefit. Lion Street Financial (LSF), now has almost 100 registered representatives. Additionally, LSF celebrated its second consecutive year of being awarded Broker Dealer of the Year by Investment Advisor magazine. Lastly, Lion Street expanded its Corporate and Business Solutions unit to prepare for future growth in this space.
Institute Features Distinguished Keynote Speakers
Institute is an annual meeting hosted by Lion Street in Austin, Texas, for Owner Firms to share ideas and best practices. Executive management of major insurance carriers participated in discussions of solutions and legislative developments impacting planning needs for high net worth and corporate clients.
The meeting featured several keynote speakers including Dr. Arthur Laffer, the distinguished American economist, Lewis Schiff, Executive Director of Birthing of Giants; Dr. Bob Pokorski of Prudential; and Michael Maslansky of maslansky + partners on the Language of Trust in Life Insurance.
About Lion Street
Lion Street is a leading financial services company based in Austin, Texas. Lion Street provides elite independent life insurance advisors access to the financial products, intellectual capital, and specialized resources they need to meet the sophisticated needs of high-net-worth and corporate clients. Every affiliated financial advisor is a stockholder of Lion Street. Together, Lion Street's Owner-Firms are strongly committed to building a fiercely independent, yet highly collaborative network of professionals.
To learn more about Lion Street, please visit www.lionstreet.com or connect on LinkedIn.
Karyn Hamilton, VP, Marketing Lion Street 512.776.8466 [email protected]
Source:Lion Street


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These are my 14 LOVELY chickens!!!
This is Sprinkles, the Americana, we call her Spy for short. She is always climbing on the coop watching you, like a spy, so that's why we call her Spy. She is also very dominant and bullies the other chickens.
This is Bell, the Americana. She may be small, but she has a big attitude and bullies the other chicken. But it's hard to get mad at something this CUTE!!!
This is Snicker's, the Americana. She's the nicest one to other chickens and hates confinement because she likes places where she can spread her wings!!!
This is Anna, the Easter Egger. She always looks like she's tired because when you pick her up her eyes are barley open, and she is a very pretty bird.
This is Cotton, the Buff Orpington. She's the most curious and is always the first one to try something new she runs like a maniac moving her bottom side to side.
This is Pecky, the Isa Brown.She's our flightiest one and our dumbest one too.
This is Brownie the Isa Brown. She is so cute and you can barely see her in dirt, the only way you can tell she's there is when dirt is flying everywhere.
This is Jasmine, the Black sex-link. Jasmine is one of our fattest chickens and loves pecking boots,coats, and clothes.
This is Gloria, the Black sex-link. She is our prettiest bird and loves anyone with bread in there hand.
This is Fat Cake's , the Barred Rock.Fat Cake's is our fattest chicken and sits around and eats all day long and her face is so droopy!!!!!!!!!!!
This is Sassy, the Austerlorp. Sassy loves all the seasons even winter. You will see her outside in the snow in 20- degree weather taking a dust bath!!! Sassy is also the sweetest chicken named Sassy you will ever know.
This is Cotton and Cindy the Orpington twins getting ready for bed.
This is Bun's,Brownie,and Cindy getting ready for bed too.
This is Anna,Jasmine, and Snicker's. Snicker's is getting ready for landing!!!
I love my 14 chickens and I'm getting 13 more this Spring! I feed them Dumor laying crumbles and they live in a horse stall. I'm sorry I didn't have a single picture of Bun's and Cindy and I' going to post another page on the chicks when I get them!!! If you have any questions or comments please reply. THANKS FOR READING!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By chicken04 · Mar 4, 2015 · ·
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NiteLites of Ft. Myers Deck Lighting Takes a Look at the Latest Pool Design Trends
- On August 31, 2015
NiteLites of Ft. Myers Deck Lighting examines the current pool market and all the must have features! The perfect time is now for home owners to begin planning the swimming pool of their dreams. Pools are great investments that help increase the property value of any home. Here are some of the current trends and […]Read More


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Robbie Williams Has Gone 'Vegan' After Health Scare
'He's vegan-ish now. I don't think you can have hamburgers if you're vegan!' his wife Ayda Field reveals.
AceShowbiz –
Robbie Williams has overhauled his diet following a health scare last year (17).
The pop star's wife Ayda Field has revealed the singer has become "vegan-ish" after abnormalities were found in his brain last September, while he was touring.
Speaking on her U.K. talk show Loose Women on Friday, June 01, she said, "He's doing amazing, he's great. Last year he had some health issues and that was an awful time for us but now it's so nice to see him back…
"He's vegan-ish now. I don't think you can have hamburgers if you're vegan!".
"Everything is OK now, everything is great," she added. "My big monkey is doing really well. He's still got the jazz hands and is still ripping his clothes off!".
Doctors discovered what appeared to be blood on Robbie's brain after he fell ill backstage at a gig in Switzerland.
"I had various scans, including ones of my heart and my brain, and there were some abnormalities found, including something on my brain that looked like blood," the singer previously explained. "That was obviously very scary, so the decision was taken out of my hands and I was sent straight to the intensive care unit.
"It's very weird to go from being on tour to suddenly being in intensive care, but that's where I found myself".


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When I first walk into Red Emma's to meet with the organizers of Fields Festival, the multi-day arts festival and camp-out that brings the best and weirdest parts of Baltimore's DIY arts scene to the middle of the woods, they are in a conversation with someone at a nearby table who has an idea to more effectively pick-up trash. As someone who signed up to be a volunteer, he should be getting an email very soon, they assure him.
A little more than a week out from the festival, that's just one thing on their seemingly endless list. Wristbands just had to be expedited, another phone call to the insurance guy has to be placed, and much, much more. But it's all worth it to Amanda Schmidt and Stewart Mostofsky, who both look back on their inaugural effort in 2014 and talk about how transformational and positive it was.
In many ways, this year's Fields Festival is bigger and better than the first, with even more Baltimore bands, national headliners, more artistic disciplines, and a full-fledged wellness center. This year's lineup includes Sun Ra Arkestra, Future Islands, Dan Deacon, Lower Dens, Deakin, Wolf Eyes, TT the Artist, and Abdu Ali, just to name a few.
I talked with Schmidt and Mostofsky about their efforts to expand the festival, why you can still only buy a weekend pass, and more.
City Paper: You had the first one in 2014, and then there was the year off, so why decide to do it again? What was the story behind bringing it back?
Amanda Schmidt: Taking the year off was much needed for me. It's hard. It takes up so much of our time. It takes up most of the year. Something we've been saying is that this is a totally DIY event. It's not corporate sponsored. We're funded by ticket sales and that means that there's not a ton of money to go around. It was difficult for me to invest that much of my year last year. That was part of it. But coming back to it, I thought I could give it a second shot at least. It was owed that much.
Stewart Mostofsky: I mean it was artistically and creatively and personally and emotionally an enormous success last time. Both of us experienced this: people coming up to us and saying how transformational it was, how incredible it was. So it left everybody with this enormous positive feeling about community and artistic and creative potential, and I think also just the sort of general potential of people to come together to create positive things.
And so that was then, as Amanda said, balanced with the fact that it was a lot of work and enormously taxing in that way. In the end it seemed best to take the pause. It wasn't as if there was a definite plan to then come back this year, but we kept thinking about it and talking about it and then—I don't know sometime around the turn of the year, December, January, maybe it was a little earlier.
AS: We actually met last October.
SM: Was that when it was?
AS: Yeah.
SM: When we met in Druid Hill Park? Was that October?
AS: Yeah, it was. But then we met here after that. It was like October or November. But it didn't really get started until probably February or March again. But yeah, it was so overwhelming and exhausting, and so if we are going to come back to this, how do we try to make it feel more sustainable, at least from a management standpoint. So one part was getting more people on board, delegating more. We went from 15 managers the first time to 30 managers this time. Which of course doesn't always reduce the headaches, now it's just more people to manage. But yeah, it's coming together. It's happening this time. I don't feel as crazy and stressed, right now, one week out, as I did two years ago. So, that says something too.
CP: It seems like there are more national acts this year. Was that a concerted effort?
SM: Really the main effort was having more diversity of people as well as more diversity of artistic representation. Some of that meant reaching out in other ways within Baltimore but some of that then meant reaching out nationally as well. That was really the main impetus. There definitely are more sort of nationally represented acts, but I think a lot of it came more from that notion.
AS: They all really had a tie. It's not like they are randomly nationally represented acts, you know? Everybody who's coming has some tie to Baltimore or at least the D.C., New York, Philly area. The people who are coming from the West Coast have at some point lived here. I think that's true.
SM: Right, so like, Natalie [Mering of] Weyes Blood, Mild High Club, they're coming from California but some of them have lived in Baltimore at some point or have strong connections to Baltimore. Natalie lived in Baltimore for a couple years.
AS: Right, I mean Deakin, of course, nationally represented, but he's often not associated with the Baltimore scene because he's not really active here.
But I think that we did want this to remain a celebration of Baltimore culture, and particularly DIY culture—you know Sun Ra, of course, being DIY legends. We did extend the net a little bit further, but I still see it primarily of a celebration of all things Baltimore.
SM: Right, you know other headliners like Eartheater or Pictureplane or Princess Nokia, these are people who have performed and have strong connections to people within the Baltimore DIY scene, so it definitely feels still like an extended community, extended family. And I think we're looking to maintain that kind of spirit, that intimacy, at the festival and we expect that's what will be present again this year.
CP: Yeah.
SM: So, it'll be larger. There are more headliners, so to speak, and there are more people generally, more artists performing, not only within music. In some ways, our largest expansions are outside of music.
AS: Yeah. The other departments. Because there's a limit on how many stages and how much music we can put on. We put one more stage on, but you know there's only so many hours in the day for music. But yeah, we've extended across other departments.
SM: Right. So performance art, theater, comedy.
AS: Yeah. Recreation and wellness are new ones here.
SM: And some of these things were present the first time: visual installations, sound installations, dance, poetry. All of these things have certainly been expanded, and as Amanda mentioned, there's also an actual recreation area that includes a wide variety of activities and then the wellness zone. That was Amanda's dream and something I was very much on board with. And that's a big part of the presence in the festival this year. That wasn't nearly as present. We had some yoga and qigoing that went on last time.
AS: [This year there's] massage, acupuncture, energy healing, plant walks, tarot, sound immersion therapy. There's going to be like sound atmosphere, soundscapes. It's really important to me, that's been a big part of my life, being involved in various wellness communities, healing modalities. I am excited about the idea of seeing more integration there between the DIY arts community and healing wellness people who are active in Baltimore. A lot these kind of practices, when we engage with them, and creativity and meditation—I think there's a similar intentionality, there's something that is parallel or one is chaos and one is grounding and they kind of inform and balance each other.
We are going to like walk the perimeter of the space on Thursday and do an opening ceremony on Friday to really set an energetic intentional space. To hold the perimeter, hold the psychic space, to really ground what's about to happen on the campgrounds. I have a really new age-y philosophy about it, but I think that this festival is so much more than just getting fucked up at a campground for a weekend. I really see it as something that can be healing and transformational. Something that really resets where people are in life and can actually be really life changing, maybe.
SM: This is a weekend-long event. And we were talking about this yesterday, there's obviously this joyous celebratory aspect to it. As Amanda said, there's a getting fucked up aspect to it that's part of that joyousness and celebratory aspect, but there's also an importance in the balance and, like Amanda, I'm increasingly engaged particularly in mindfulness practice, to have that sort of opportunity to create space within this campground. To have both this ecstatic, celebratory atmosphere as well as this grounded, thoughtful atmosphere is really crucial to us.
AS: Which I think is also something we've been talking about when we talk about the spirit of the Baltimore arts community. There's something that's kind of ecstatic and absurd and ridiculous, and then there's still something that's still very serious and intentional about it. I think that's always kind of characterized where Baltimore art comes from and how it is different from New York or some other places.
CP: I didn't go the first time and the main reason was The Clean was playing that Saturday here in town, and you could only get a weekend pass. The decision to only have weekend passes is something you guys stayed with. Was there any thought of changing it?
SM: Not at all. Not even a little hesitation.
AS: The day pass thing really promotes a lot of the coming for one act and leaving. I think a really important part of what we want to get people engaged with and experiencing at this event is really settling into a new space for the weekend. There's this new level of shared community that everybody engages with when they've made a new home, a new space for the weekend.
And maybe it's that it also plays into more of the capitalist venture and it's not at the forefront of what we're doing.
SM: The parallel I'll give is this other festival that I'm involved with, High Zero, that I've been involved with for nearly 20 years now. The way that festival's set up is that there's a community created because the artists are all playing with each other throughout, and so it's not you're invited to play in this experimental festival and you are playing with your band at this one time so come and go as you please. It creates a community. That's what we are looking to do here. It's the creation of a community, which is exactly what happened the first time. And what we're looking to have happen again this time.
There are some exceptions, but nearly all the performers are planning on being there the entire weekend, even though they are doing one performance. As far as the audience goes, that's what we're looking to create: this community that transcends what typically happens at festivals where people are splintered based on when they're performing or when they want to see particular artists perform.
AS: We do have a schedule we posted, we'll have a printed schedule that's getting handed out. But we want it to feel more exploratory and more immersive and we want people kind of wandering around and stumbling upon stuff that they had no idea they were going to experience. I think that's a really exciting part of how we put this lineup together. I can't think of a single person who actually knows every act that we've booked. We do, we might be the only people. So that's exciting. I don't want there to be as much of a goal-oriented attitude of, I'm going to go see this and then I'll go see this. I think having the day pass kind of articulates that.
SM: And people will do that, but I think I'll draw the parallel again. Every year at High Zero, I find time and time again that the true magic for me was not the artists that I particularly knew in advance, it was the discovery of what I didn't know about. And that's what happened for a lot for people for the first year of Fields and it's going to happen again this year. All these people are going to show up and maybe they are showing up because they want to see Future Islands or Dan Deacon or Sun Ra Arkestra or Horse Lords or whoever it may be, but there's just the nature of the situation and the space and the people—it's conducive [to exploration].
It's called Fields because it's fields and physically it's conducive to wandering around and discovering unknown things, and the idea that we didn't like put a label on Fields is that it's an open tablet. It's a clean slate, so to speak. You are going to be coming, and yes, you might have particular ideas about what you are going to see and you are probably end up seeing those particular things, but there's going to be an enormous amount that you as an audience member end up being exposed to that you had no idea about, and doors will open that will create new paths for people who attend the festival.
AS: And I do also want to say, it's not that people can't leave and come back, too. Somebody did email us about that. They were like, "I'm upset that I can't leave the festival," but you can.
CP: You mentioned before not wanting to think of this as a capitalistic venture, but at some point that has to creep into your mind, right? You guys are both personally invested and I would imagine financially so as well. Is that a concern?
AS: [laughs] Somewhere on the list it is.
SM: Yeah, you know, we're 100 percent off of ticket sales. But I think Amanda's point was that we didn't get corporate sponsorship, we weren't looking for corporate sponsorship.
AS: We're not selling alcohol. We're not even taking cuts from our food vendors.
SM: Right and not selling alcohol, I mean, we can make thousands and thousands of dollars, tens of thousands of dollars, probably, selling alcohol. People can bring alcohol, it's not like it's a dry festival so to speak—in any respect.
AS: I said this yesterday in an interview, that I watched the Woodstock documentary recently and the guy who put it on was being interviewed, and the reporter was like, "So how are you doing financially?" And he's like, "Oh, this was a financial disaster." I think they might have lost like a million dollars, $500,000, but the reporter was like, "You don't seem so upset." And the guy was like, "Yeah, but look at what we've done, and how can you put a price on this?"
SM: Little did they know that they'd make plenty of money off the album and the movie. But, right, that's not going to happen for us. There isn't going to be an album. There is going to be a documentary made, but we're not going to make money off that.
AS: Clearly there is a financial risk and it is concerning and we are concerned, right? [laughs] We're concerned about being able to break even. That's a concern, but that hasn't been the top of the list.
SM: Right and we've already have sold well beyond the number of tickets we sold the last time, total, and last time we sold half of our tickets in the last week. So we're not even in the last week yet. We're not terrified right now, but yeah, we're keeping an eye on things that's for sure.
CP: There were murmurs about how it fared last time. Would you care to set the record straight on that?
SM: We lost a little bit of money. It was like a small loss. It wasn't dramatic, but there was a small loss.
BW: And so the fact that you are ahead at this point...
SM: Well, yes and no. We also have more headliners.
AS: The budget is significantly [higher.]
SM: This is my experience time and time again with this kind of stuff: The first time you do something, everybody is willing to sort of jump on board and do it for a very little amount. The second time, even though the same spirit of community is there, everyone is wanting and expecting that we take more risks. And we are taking more risks.
AS: I've said this before, but I feel like if it does move forward, we have to find sources of funding that are more than ticket sales. I don't want to go with corporate sponsors.
SM: A more socialist model. Grants, arts grants.
AS: People basically all worked for free and played for free the first time around. This time we've paid every single person—at least a little—who's working, who's involved in this. It's very little. It does tend to reinforce this structure in which artists undervalue themselves and aren't compensated fairly, and that's not something I'm interested in contributing to. I'd love to find a way that we aren't just another entity that's making people feel like their work is a sacrifice and not sustainable.
SM: One of the things that we really struggled with and went back and forth with was the price point for the festival. So we increased it some from last year. Last time it was $70 in advance and $90 at the door I wanna say? And this time it's $100 in advance and $125 at the door, which still if you compare to other festivals—and I understand that these other festivals have bigger headliners so to speak. I challenge any notion that people have a better time at those festivals necessarily than ours. In fact, I would say just the opposite. And yet we are charging 1/3 to maybe even 1/4 of what those large-scale festivals charge and offering much much more in a lot of ways.
Unfortunately, there's just sort of a general notion of art being devalued in this culture, in American culture, and part of that is along with teachers and reporters and everyone else.
AS: Freelance writers.
SM: Exactly. People are not getting paid what they should be paid. If you look at how much hedge fund managers contribute to our societies versus artists, it's laughable and obviously it's totally imbalanced. Part of that is there, too. We understand, and the reason we didn't push it much higher this time around is because we understand also that our community...
AS: To want to make it affordable for people. That balance.
SM: Right. We don't want it to be like only people who can afford $200 tickets can come to this festival. So that was a big consideration as well.
AS: At the end of the day, there's 500 people, between artists and staff, getting in for free. That's $50,000, right? These people are getting free vacation for the weekend subsidized by the ticket sales. That's part of it, too.
We aren't charging anyone who's involved to be there, and they are getting paid a small amount. It's tough when that's such a large amount of people who would be paying for tickets if they weren't involved.
It's gonna happen this time and it's gonna be wonderful—I'm really excited. I think if it happens in the future, we have to really look at what that could look like.
CP: What are you going to do the Monday after it's done?
AS: Oh my God. Somebody just asked me that and I hadn't thought about it. And the first thing I said was, I am so excited to wake up and think to myself, "What am I going to do today?"[laughter]
My calendar is nauseating. It's so packed and I'm scheduling time to hang out with my friends like weeks in advance. It's ridiculous. So I'm so excited to wake up and do what I feel like.
SM: I'm taking Monday off to sleep and catch up with my kids. Last time I hardly slept and part of it was just working the festival but part of it was—especially Sunday. Sunday, I could have gone to bed at three or four in the morning. But I was like, I don't want to go to bed. I want to soak up every last ounce of this. It was already such a glorious experience. So yeah, I don't think I'm going to get much sleep, and I think it's definitely the case that I'm going to need to sleep a lot on Monday.
The next day I am going to see Brian Wilson and perform "Pet Sounds" at The Hippodrome. Have a first row mezzanine seat. All by myself. It's going to be splendid.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
Fields Festival runs Aug. 19-21. Tickets are on sale now.


text:
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text:
|Large Medium Small
Workers on an assembly line in Sanjiu Huangshi Medical & Pharmaceutical Co Ltd in Huangshi Economic and Technical Development Zone. Core industries in the zone include electronic information, biomedicine, and energy-efficient industries. Photos provided to China Daily
On March 21, the Huangshi, a city in central China's Hubei province, received approval from the State Council for national standing for its Economic and Technical Development Zone, the second to receive such approval in the province, after the one in the capital, Wuhan.
The municipal government of Huangshi regarded this as a golden opportunity to develop the city's low-carbon economy.
The Economic and Technical Development Zone, was founded in 1992, and has served as an engine for the city's social and economic transformation.
Over the last 18 years, great changes have taken place in the zone, which used to be a deserted swamp on the riverbank.
These achievements have paved the way for the zone's promotion to a national industrial zone.
With heavy chemical industry taking up a large proportion of the zone's industrial output, the zone's energy consumption used to be higher than the nation's average level.
Now, with the promotion, the zone is expected to win more financial support from central government to upgrade its energy-consuming machines and equipment enabling it to develop a low-carbon economy.
Government support
To facilitate a smooth industrial transfer from coastal regions to interior regions, the State Council has decided to establish several key industrial bases in mid and western China.
As a national economic and technical development zone, Huangshi is expected to benefit from this transfer and become more competitive.
Huangshi has been designated as a national trial city for economic transformation and it is expected to receive a funding of over 10 billion yuan from the central government in the coming years.
The funding will be used to promote high-tech and energy-efficient industries. The government plans to attract more large enterprises from home and abroad to come and invest in the city's core industries, including new material, mechanics and electrics, electronic information and biomedicine.
After becoming a national economic and technical development zone, Huangshi will play a bigger role in the nation's development strategy.
The author Hu Chao is a member of the Huangshi CPC Standing Committee, secretary of the Party committee of the Huangshi Economic and Technical Development Zone, and director of the zone's administration.
(China Daily 05/25/2010 page24)


text:
You're walking alongside a beaver flowage and encounter large mustelid tracks – a bounding
pattern along the bank for more than 100 yards. Then the tracks cross the broad frozen pond,
whereupon they enter the forest and continue a meandering route up and over a distant ridge.
There are two possibilities: fisher or otter. Fishers will opportunistically visit and inspect wetland
and riparian habitats in search of mammal prey, birds, nuts, and lingering winter fruits. Otters
occasionally leave their semi-aquatic haunts and make beelines over hill and dale in search of other
streams and ponds. So which tracks are these? Here are some clues to help us sort things out.
Story and photos by Susan C. Morse
TRACKING tips
Northern Woodlands / Winter 2015
(Martes pennanti)
Fisher tracks are muffled-looking.
Occasionally tracks may show
clear toe and middle pad features,
but most do not because of the
abundant foot fur that covers
portions of the pads. Fisher feet
have no webbing. Also, note the
four protuberances on the surfaces
of both fisher and otter hind feet.
These are entrances to tiny
conduits that transfer glandular
secretions from within the foot
epidermis. These glands are
employed by both species for
scent marking.
Look at the track image and find
the front foot track; it is the one that
has a clear carpal pad impression
at the base of the track. Notice that
the front foot is bigger than the hind
foot, making it handy for grasping
and gripping prey that are attempting
to escape.
Tracks may lead to evidence of
a male or female fisher's unique
scent marking behaviors, especially
in late winter. Protruding stumps,
roots, and rotten logs that are
above the snow pack are mounted,
rubbed, and rolled upon. Feces,
urine, and fisher hairs will be found
at these scent stations.
(Lontra canadensis)
Otter pad impressions are well-defined because the robust pad
surfaces are largely furless. This
enhances an otter's sensory
abilities, enabling it to better feel
and secure hidden prey within
murky and muddy underwater
habitats. Otter tracks will also, at
some point, reliably register clear
mesial webbing – the webbing
unites the toes at the half-way
point. This webbing is unique to this
piscivorous swimming mustelid.
Hind foot tracks of otters are bigger
than their corresponding front foot
tracks, no doubt a helpful adaptation
because otters are swimmers.
Again, the carpal pad impression
helps us know which track was
made by the front foot.
Otter tracks will always lead back
to water where the characteristic
slide impressions are likely to be
seen. Lengthy slides with clean
edges, a consistent width, and a
smooth toboggan-like base are
the work of the otter's Johnny
Weissmuller-like torso, the legs
tucked in for the length of the slide.
If it's obvious that a good time was
being had, then it oughta be otter!
Susan C. Morse is founder and program
director of Keeping Track in Huntington,


text:
Sunday, May 22, 2011
SOCC Sunday: not this time
8 comments:
Strangely, over the last few days I read where Randy "Macho Man" Savage died and nothing about the upcoming end of the world. You would think the news media could get their priorities straight for our benefit. Maybe next time you could post this a day sooner. I have some important last minute things to accomplish before I check out. Thank you.ReplyDelete
It's interesting isn't it. Lots of fun on FB about this the past 2 days.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 22, 2011 at 3:41 AM
And I even shaved...ReplyDelete
... and paid some bills.ReplyDelete
Sure glad I am still here...got too much living to do before I depart this beautiful earth!ReplyDelete
That's so sad. It says something about human gullibility, irrational hope and peer pressure. I have a fantasy that if I ran a college I'd have a required freshman course called "How To Think."ReplyDelete
I didn't bother. I thought only the truly good were going to be saved, and I didn't think would qualify.ReplyDelete
Zombie showed up to record a Media Circus of Biblical Proportions at Armageddon HQ.ReplyDelete


text:
Wool Care
Each of our pieces is made of 100% natural wool and therefore require special care.
We recommend that you wash your piece in cold water with a mild wool specific detergent. Wrap your item in a towel to absorb most of the water. Do not twist. Do not use a dryer. Lay flat to dry in the shade.
If properly cared for, your piece should last a lifetime.
Payments may be made by PayPal or e-Transfer.
Return Policy
If you are unsatisfied with your purchase please email us and specify the reason before returning. All items must be returned in original condition and unworn.
Returns will be accepted within 14 days. Please note that we do not pay for shipping on returns.
We do not accept responsibility for returned items until these goods have reached our premises. We suggest you use a secure postal service and obtain a tracking number.
Bespoke Return Policy
Due to the bespoke nature of your order we do not accept returns or permit exchanges unless the piece is found to be faulty upon arrival. Each piece is thoroughly inspected for defects before being shipped.
Please note that due to differences in monitor settings the colours may not be exactly as shown.


text:
Choosing a course is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make! View our courses and see what our students and lecturers have to say about the courses you are interested in at the links below.
University Life
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Each year more than 4,000 choose NUI Galway as their University of choice. Find out what life at NUI Galway is all about here.
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About NUI Galway
Since 1845, NUI Galway has been sharing the highest quality teaching and research with Ireland and the world. Find out what makes our University so special – from our distinguished history to the latest news and campus developments.
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Colleges & Schools
NUI Galway has earned international recognition as a research-led university with a commitment to top quality teaching across a range of key areas of expertise.
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Research & Innovation
NUI Galway's vibrant research community take on some of the most pressing challenges of our times.
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At NUI Galway, we believe that the best learning takes place when you apply what you learn in a real world context. That's why many of our courses include work placements or community projects.
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Course OverviewEngineering is a wide area, covering such fields as civil, mechanics, electronics and computer technology. This course offers you the option of studying engineering in a general way for a year before going on to specialise in your chosen field in year two. It has been designed to help you make your choice about what professional engineering qualification you wish to study for by giving you a year to study the basic concepts and fundamentals of engineering. Therefore, it will help you to make an informed choice about what you wish to specialise in by enabling you to find out where your aptitude and interests lie. Undenominated Engineering will always stand to students as a foundation course. On successful completion of their first year exams, they will be able to transfer to the second year of one of the programmes listed under Course Outline.
Applications and Selections
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For A-levels: A minimum of Grade C in A-level Mathematics is required
1 Year (Students then transfer into a denominated programme)
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September 2019
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Year 1
In first year you get to explore different areas of engineering, allowing you the time you need to find the discipline that is right for you. On successful completion of your first-year exams, you will be able to apply to transfer to the second year of one of the denominated programmes.[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Year 2
Choose to follow one of the following denominated programmes:
- Civil Engineering
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
- Electronic and Computer Engineering
- Biomedical Engineering
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Year 3
- Follow chosen programme of Engineering
Year 4
- Follow chosen programme of Engineering
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Honours graduates can pursue higher degrees in a wide range of related disciplines.
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- Tuition: may be paid by the Irish Government on your behalf if you qualify for free tuition fees see - free fee initiative.
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E firstname.lastname@example.com
What Our Students Say
Mary Brigid O'Shea | BE Biomedical Engineering
...I studied Undenominated Engineering and then branched into Biomedical Engineering in second year. I chose the course as I had a huge interest in science and was strong at maths in secondary school. I have an innate interest in how things work. I chose Undenominated Engineering as I was unsure which field of engineering I wanted to pursue. The undenominated course allowed me to try out different subjects from different disciplines so I could make an informed decision. Also, NUI Galway was close to home and offered five month placements for engineering students, an invaluable aid when applying for work...


text:
Do you sometimes wonder why you're slower than usual during a training session? Do you often feel great one week and terrible the next? Chances are this could all be related to your physiology, and if that's the case, you may not know your body as well as you think.
Continue reading Understanding female physiology to maximise training


text:
Our portfolio.
Check out some our friends who are loving the EverlightCMS Platform.
Rocky Farm Studios Back to Projects
Rocky Farm Studios
Rocky Farm Studio, a premiere video production company based in Atlanta, GA, approached us with a unique design strategy. Since they already had graphic designers on staff, our team worked directly with their designers to create the exact look and feel they desired.
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Back to Projects | View Live Site | Contact Us


text:
What is this?
- We are not a Fund. (but we'd be happy to work with a Fund to promote UK tech on a not-for-profit basis)
- We are not a Government body (but we'd love to help UK Government be more effective at promoting this UK Tech sector)
- We have a much bigger agenda - helping the UK Tech industry create the Future.
Why do this?
The Innovation Council was started by Lindsay Smith. In my day job I am CTO at Telrock http://www.telrock.com and I run the Research side of the business which you can find out about here: http://telrock-labs.com
I started the Innovation Council from frustration with the failure of the UK to be the environment I want for the Technology Industry. I moved a large part of my companies Development and Operations to Finland. A few reasons why, but what was very clear is that very sadly for a Technology business Finland was a better choice than the UK. The support the environment gives in Finland, from a Government to an Industry level puts the UK to shame.
The award was also partly inspired by The Loebner Prize, the competition for Chatbots with the Turing Test.
If you are interested in getting involved, have ideas on how you can help, want to spread the word, we'd love to talk. You can contact me by email firstname.lastname@example.com
If you want to understand more about the London A.I. Futurists join the discussion here:


text:
New cars will outgrow parking lots soon
By Faiming_low on
23 Nov 2016
Other blogs
According to the report by specialist Accident Exchange, accidents happening in car parks accounted for 30.85 percent of all claims by the company in the last year. It is an increase of almost 8 percent compared to the previous year and the the company believe that the culprit might actually be the sheer size of their cars.
To put things into perspective, the British government's recommended length for a parking space is set at 4,800 mm but the average family sedan like the Ford Mondeo is already longer than the space by 71mm.
In an interview with Autocar, the company's Director of Operations Scott Hamilton-Cooper was quoted, "Drivers are having to squeeze increasingly large cars into spaces that generally haven't got any larger for a very long time. Almost all of the councils we researched carried over the government's recommendation, which makes things tight for large cars."
Locally, our parking space is set by the Land Transport Authority at 4,800mm and 2,400mm wide.
parking, car park, car population
Viewed: 18,094 times


text:
Thursday, July 8, 2010
They Picked Us!
No, no, my tomato plants didn't spontaneously bear hundreds of perfectly-shaped and fully-ripened fruits overnight. Oh, I wish.
A representative from CSN Stores offered us an opportunity to review one of their products with a $40 store credit. CSN Stores sells all sorts of things on their many websites, including lights, greenhouse products, cookware, and lots more. Many of their products also come with free shipping, which is like the holy grail of online shopping for me.
Now, I like freebies just as much as the next person, but I was actually more excited that someone from this company found AND selected our blog for this offer. Then again, I still get super excited and do a (silent) happy dance every time I get a new comment or a follower.
As a building engineer with a specialty in lights, Keith considered selecting and reviewing one of their lights. I admit, they do have some cool lighting products. Still, with this being a vegetable gardening blog, I wanted to pick something more gardening-related. So, we're going with a gardening product, because sometimes Keith just lets me have my way without any fussing. You might think that this is because he's a nice person (which he is), but I have a secret suspicion that it's because he thinks I'm really, really cute.
Anyway, I'm considering one of these products from their greenhouses site.
Next spring, we could use our homemade indoor grow box to start our seeds, and then use one of these covered growing racks to harden off the seedlings before they go into our garden beds. I can't wait to try this out with tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, melons and anything else with seeds needing an early indoor start.
What do you think? Do you have any suggestions on another product we should try out instead?
The generous CSN Stores representative also mentioned that they may let us host a giveaway for a gift certificate to one of you in a few months. Then we get to pick a lucky winner among you readers. Ohh, I can't wait to host my first giveaway on this blog!
14 comments:
- Dirt Lover said...
Hey! Wow! My mom had one of these little greenhouse things. I can't remember which size it was, though. As far as I remember, she loved it. I think it would be a great thing for you to try out. Oh, and keep up the cute gig, it should get you lots!
- July 8, 2010 at 11:11 PM
- thyme2garden said...
Lori, thanks for telling me about your mom's greenhouse. I'm totally looking forward to trying something like this out to expand my gardening experience.
- July 8, 2010 at 11:29 PM
- Dan said...
That is some grow box you have!
It is cages and bamboo that I use. Basically the main stem is tied to the bamboo and then the cage can be used to tie heavy fruit to or suckers that I let grow.
- July 9, 2010 at 12:47 AM
- thyme2garden said...
Thank you Dan! The grow box is working well so far during our trial run. We're really looking forward to the next growing season to give it a go with a variety of seeds.
Also many thanks for the info about tomatoes. I need to figure out a better way to support our tomatoes next year.
- July 9, 2010 at 12:53 AM
Well, I would say that 4-tier rack is always better than a 2-tier rack. And it will be definitely useful for seedlings next year.
- July 9, 2010 at 2:13 AM
- debiclegg said...
Quote "Then again, I still get super excited and do a (silent) happy dance every time I get a new comment or a follower. " I KNOW THIS FEELING!! (BIG SMILE)
How exciting to be chosen!! The growing rack would be wonderful to have!! YEAH FOR YOU!!! (doing happy dance with you)
- July 12, 2010 at 6:30 PM
- thyme2garden said...
vrtlarica - I also like the extra capacity with the 4-tier, but I'm a bit worried about the rack possibly falling over in heavy winds. We do get some heavy winds here from time to time.
* * * * *
debiclegg - thank you thank you!!
- July 12, 2010 at 8:12 PM
- meemsnyc said...
Looks like a cool greenhouse. Hope you get it to try out!
- July 15, 2010 at 10:26 PM
- thyme2garden said...
meemsnyc - eek, I still haven't ordered it, but reading your comment is a good reminder that I need to do that soon! Thank you!
- July 24, 2010 at 8:35 PM
- Ida Olsen said...
How did it go? Thinking about buying one as a starting point :))
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text:
"How on earth did HE get to THAT?" It's a question most, if not all, baseball fans have wondered (or screamed). Simply judging a fielder by the amount of errors he commits doesn't quite paint the full picture of how good or bad a fielder is.
In fact, there are some players who might even commit more errors than another fielder, but on that same token, are able to reach more balls–thus put themselves in more defensive situations/plays. This measurement is of course called "range." Below are the top ten fielders who excel in range runs above average (via FanGraphs' calculations).
1. Brett Gardner (19.5 RngR)
2. Justin Upton (16.8 RngR)
3. Jacoby Ellsbury (14.9 RngR)
4. Chris Young (12.1 RngR)
5. Dustin Pedroia (11.6 RngR)
5. Adrian Beltre (11.6 RngR)
7. Cameron Maybin (11.1 RngR)
8. Gerardo Parra (10.8 RngR)
9. Casey McGehee (9.1 RngR)
9. Elvis Andrus (9.1 RngR)
9. Brandon Phillips (9.1 RngR)
Any statistical information taken from Baseball Reference and Fan Graphs.


text:
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The best ways to get coins for free in to complete Achievements and win Classic or Challenge matches. Coins can also be purchased at the app store using real money.
Deleting Accounts and Starting Over
Games like these have stats and bragging rights among friends can make or break us. Not really but to some folks have an amazing score is a big deal. At first things can be a little fuzzy with mistakes coming more from not knowing exactly how the game operates. This may cause blemishes which others might want to erase and start over. Fortunately, the developers took pity on us and will let us start from scratch again. To do this first unlink any social media attack to your app by going to Menu>Help>Account Information>Unlink. Now simply delete the app and reinstall. You'll have to log in with FB from the start as the email used will be attached to your last account.
More Lives
These tips and tricks will help out a ton. Probably the most desired thing in the game besides coins and spins. With a maximum of 3 and an hour recharge for each you'll eventually be begging for more. #1 The best way is to use multiple devices and gift yourself. The next tip can help out a lot or a little. #2 The only other way to speed up the process is by asking friends and have them send lives via the inbox. It can be tricky to coax friends into joining or give up their precious hearts. For a better success rate head over to Trivia Cracks official FB page and look for people asking to be added. Add them and send them a message that your a regular player looking for friends. You should also leave a comment asking for other to add you. This will give you a much better chance at finding active players willing to share their lives.
For the most part all settings and score keeping are in English. You can however change the language of questions and have them interpreted in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, Catalan, and German. This can be done at the very start of each new game with the buttons on the top of your screen.
Notifications are optional and can be turned off and on in the profile settings. They are on by default so you'll receive messages on your device periodically. These can alert to lives being refilled and when it's your turn to play a round. if your a hardcore play it's probably best to leave this setting on so not to miss any of the action.
Power Ups
These can be used for extra bonuses to help you along during those tough questions. Each one cost a different amount of coins. Only one can be used at a time so stacking the effect is not allowed. These can only be selected during a question at he bottom of the screen. If you want to make these things last the trick is to know when to use them.