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Experiences from a pilot study on how to conduct a qualitative multi-country research project regarding use of antibiotics in Southeast Europe
© Kaae et al. 2016
- Received: 18 January 2016
- Accepted: 11 May 2016
- Published: 23 May 2016
In 2014, a qualitative multi-country research project was launched to study the reasons behind the high use of antibiotics in regions of Southeast Europe by using previously untrained national interviewers (who were engaged in other antibiotic microbial resistance-related investigations) to conduct qualitative interviews with local patients, physicians and pharmacists. Little knowledge exists about how to implement qualitative multi-country research collaborations involving previously untrained local data collectors. The aim of this paper was therefore to contribute to the knowledge regarding how to conduct these types of research projects by evaluating a pilot study of the project.
Local data collectors conducted the study according to a developed protocol and evaluated the study with the responsible researcher-team from University of Copenhagen. The pilot study focused on 'local ownership', 'research quality' and 'feasibility' with regard to successful implementation and evaluation. The evaluation was achieved by interpreting 'Skype' and 'face to face' meetings and email correspondence by applying 'critical common sense'.
Local data collectors achieved a sense of joint ownership. Overall, the protocol worked well. Several minor challenges pertaining to research quality and feasibility were identified, in particular obtaining narratives when conducting interviews and recruiting patients for the study. Furthermore, local data collectors found it difficult to allocate sufficient time to the project. Solutions were discussed and added to the protocol.
Despite the challenges, it was possible to achieve an acceptable scientific level of research when conducting qualitative multi-country research collaboration under the given circumstances. Specific recommendations to achieve this are provided by the authors.
- Qualitative methodology
- Antibiotic use culture
- Multi-country project
For decades, a considerable number of research collaborations have been launched between western and non-western partners with the aim of improving health in emerging economies. Several critical factors have been identified in this regard, including (too little) attention to local priorities, feasibility, capacity building, pilot studies, stakeholder support, refinement of research protocols and information systems, and ethical issues [1–3].
Research on antimicrobial resistance is one contemporary health area in which partnerships between different countries have been established. For example, the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe has undertaken numerous initiatives in different locations, including in the region of Southeastern Europe. One initiative includes the continuous surveillance of antibiotic (AB) drug consumption. Systematic surveillance measurements and publications of antimicrobial consumption within the European setting began with the ESAC initiative with EU countries [4], but data on AB consumption are now also being collected through the management of the Health Technologies and Pharmaceuticals group (HTP), the WHO Regional office for Europe in non-EU Southeast European countries. Through this effort, it has been documented that a high level of inappropriate AB use is present in this region [5].
To determine the reasons for inappropriate AB use and trends in consumption in this area, it has been suggested to supplement consumption data with additional data on prescriptions and to collect detailed information about national programmes and campaigns on the prudent use of antimicrobials [6]. Another useful approach to understanding the reasons for the inappropriate use of AB is to apply qualitative research. Hence, in 2014, an additional qualitative research project in the geographical area of Southeast Europe was launched with the aim of investigating the AB use culture, i.e., the knowledge, attitudes and actual behaviours of patients and health care practitioners, to inform individual countries on how to target future interventions. Countries already engaged in the WHO AB consumption data collection group in the non-EU Southeast European region were invited to take part in the qualitative project with the role of becoming the primary data collectors i.e., local project facilitators. Originally, 17 countries participated in the AB consumption data collecting group [5], and the group has now been expanded to include 19 countries in total.
There are many advantages to having local countries conduct qualitative research. First, there are no language barriers. This enables a dialogue with all relevant stakeholders in the country without the use of interpreters, as the use of interpreters has been shown to reduce validity [7]. Another advantage is that locally based research is more sensitive to capturing local practices and ideas. However, in qualitative studies, the researcher becomes the data collection instrument. In general, the results therefore depend more on the skills of the researcher when compared with quantitative instruments such as surveys, in which questions and categories of answers are pre-determined and standardized.
The qualitative project was managed by researchers from the Section of Social and Clinical Pharmacy at the University of Copenhagen (SSC). The SSC has decades of experience in conducting research projects employing qualitative methods within the field of medicine use [8]. Knowledge exists on how to develop research collaborations between partners, such as academic researchers and practitioners, in different countries [9, 10], including for qualitative projects [11]. However, we found little information regarding how to implement qualitative research collaborations involving up to 19 countries using local data collectors, most of whom were expected to be previously untrained in qualitative methods.
The aim of this paper is therefore to contribute to the knowledge on how to conduct qualitative multi-country research projects under the aforementioned settings. The information was obtained through a pilot study and therefore illustrates our experiences conducting the qualitative AB project in Albania, Kosovo and Turkey.
Local ownership (acceptability)
Research quality (implementation)
Feasibility (practicalities)
Local ownership was a priority to ensure that local project facilitators considered the project relevant and that they could achieve valuable knowledge by participating in the project. Because the goal of the project was to enable countries to make informed interventions, it was also essential that the research results were of an acceptable quality. Finally, feasibility was important. Most facilitators had no previous experience conducting qualitative research and were often busy carrying out other jobs simultaneously. As a result, it was necessary to develop and evaluate these elements through a pilot study.
Measures to ensure local ownership, research quality and feasibility
To generate local commitment, the first step of the project took place in 2014 in Slovenia when the project was presented to a group of countries in the Balkan area of Southeastern Europe. Seven countries participated, and the attendees were primarily health care professionals (typically pharmacists and pharmacologists) working at national medicine agencies and universities. Three countries volunteered to run the pilots: Albania, Kosovo and Turkey.
Initial decisions and rationale to ensure ownership, research quality and feasibility (before conducting the pilot evaluation)
Rationale with respect to: local ownership/feasibility/research quality
Data collection and transcriptions should be completed by national project facilitators
Local ownership
Local participants carry out and transcribe the conducted interviews to create local ownership and specific insight into how future interventions could be targeted.
General practitioners (GP) and community pharmacists who prescribe or sell antibiotics should be interviewed
Research quality
Interviews with GPs were supplemented with interviews with community pharmacists due to their role in dispensing/informing patients about antibiotics in general and the documented practice of providing antibiotics without a prescription in community pharmacies in some countries in Southeast Europe (Hoxha et al.).
Patients interviewed should be adults who have suffered from an infection within the previous 3 months that they treated with antibiotics (with or without a prescription)
Research quality
Adults were chosen to ensure a minimum comparability of data (antibiotic use by children is believed to contain other aspects, especially regarding attitudes – Wun et al.). A 3 month limit was selected to reduce memory bias. Both patients with and without prescriptions should be included, as the high antibiotic consumption could be caused by both groups (Mitsi et al.).
Infections should consist of only upper respiratory tract infections
Research quality
The area of infection was specified to ensure comparability of data. Furthermore, upper respiratory tract infections are common diseases, hence constituting an ideal case to study the typical reasons behind high antibiotic consumption with regard to knowledge, attitudes and behaviour.
Specific antibiotics to be investigated were: amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, azithromycin, ciprofloxacin and ceftriaxone
Research quality
Specific antibiotics were selected to ensure the comparability of data. The four antibiotics selected have all been shown to be used irrationally in the region of Southeastern Europe (Versporten et al.), with a risk to public health, as most are broad spectrum. A few deviations to this could be tolerated if the ABs were not used in a specific country.
Three interviews should be conducted within the four groups of interviewees: patients with a prescription, patients without a prescription, GPs and community pharmacists; hence, 12 interviews total per country. The patient interviews should contain a detailed description of the last time the interviewee was prescribed/bought an antibiotic. Interviews with health care professionals should address detailed descriptions of 3 specific episodes during the last week in which they handled antibiotics. All specific incidents should further be explored in relation to the way the relevant parties usually prescribe/purchase or prescribe/sell antibiotics
Feasibility and research quality
The number of interviews was designed to maintain a decent workload balance for the participants, yet it was expected that it would be possible through data triangulation of the 12 interviews to detect condensed patterns of antibiotic knowledge, attitudes and behaviour. Antibiotic knowledge, behaviour and attitudes can best be derived through detailed narratives, which are more easily obtained when they address specific recent incidents. To ensure that this recent incident represented typical behaviour, its resemblance to former similar situations was also explored. As the number of AB episodes described in the interviews that would be used in the data analysis was therefore at least 24 (6 from patients and 18 from health care professionals), it was estimated that data saturation could then be achieved regarding aspects of AB use.
Data analysis should be conducted in collaboration between the Section for Social and Clinical Pharmacy and local facilitators
Research quality
Combining the analytical competencies of the researchers from Copenhagen with detailed knowledge of the local culture of local facilitators was assessed as being the most ideal way of achieving high quality results.
Relation between research themes, research questions and interview guides
Themes in the protocol to be explored by the project
- The process of diagnosis
- Why a specific antibiotic was selected
- Where and how antibiotic were purchased
- Use of antibiotic,
- Satisfaction with antibiotic process
- Antibiotic knowledge
- Antibiotic attitudes
Example - Research questions pertaining to the theme 'The process of diagnosis'
- What symptoms made the patient seek the physician or the pharmacist?
- What did the patient want from the consultation?
- What did the patient expect from the consultation?
- Was the patient examined? If yes - how?
Example - Operationalized research questions in the interview-guide pertaining to 'The process of diagnosis' ('Patients with AB prescription'- please see appendix 1 for the full interview guide):
- When was the last time you got a prescription for an upper respiratory tract infection (should be within the last 3 months)
- What was the situation – what were your symptoms – for how long?
- Did you have any idea what kind of disease you were suffering from?
- Did you come here by your own initiative or were you encouraged by family, colleagues or friends?
- Which doctor did you seek – why this doctor?
- What did you want from the doctor?
- What did you expect from the doctor?
- How did the consultation go? What happened? What was said – by whom?
- Did the doctor make a diagnosis/examine you? If yes, how and do you know what the diagnosis was?
Finally, the protocol included practical guidance on how to recruit participants, how to conduct and transcribe the interviews and how to perform the first steps of the analysis (content analysis). Regarding recruitment, the protocol defined 4 groups that had to be interviewed, i.e., adults who were either patients or health care professionals, and delineated the research area into four specific ABs used for upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). The use of the four selected ABs had been found to be particularly concerning in the quantitative consumption study [5], which is why they were considered interesting to investigate in depth; additionally, limiting the number of included ABs would increase the comparability of the data within the same country and between countries with regard to knowledge, attitudes and practices. The patients interviewed should have used one of the selected ABs for a URTI within 3 months, whereas the health care professionals (community pharmacists and general practitioners) were asked to recall 3 episodes in the last week in which they had managed some of the specified ABs for a URTI. The local data facilitators were encouraged to recruit participants with variations in gender, age and education and were further asked by the SSC to consider if they were in need of further inclusion criteria (for example: specific geographical areas, ethnic groups, language, etc.). Different sampling procedures were suggested, one of which was the snowball technique in which one's professional and/or private networks are used to identify people who fulfil the inclusion criteria. It was emphasized that if this sampling procedure was used, it was not recommended for interviewers to interview people they knew personally. It was recommended in the protocol to make an appointment with patients to interview them some days after receiving their AB to investigate how they took the medicine. The protocol highlighted the ethical criteria involved in each step.
The protocol was written in English. As the interviews were conducted in the national language, this required both the translation of the developed interview guides into the local language and the translation of the transcripts of the conducted interviews back into English.
The pilot project
Two-day pilot training seminars were carried out in November 2014 and January 2015 to ensure that the protocol initially developed by the SSC covered key aspects of the AB use culture as perceived by the pilot countries' facilitators. Furthermore, the seminars were designed to train country facilitators to conduct the interviews. This was achieved by training them in the basics of qualitative research and ensuring that the SSC and the pilot countries had an aligned understanding of the content of the research questions in the protocol and interview guides.
Following the training sessions, each pilot country was instructed to conduct, transcribe and translate 3 interviews within each of the four groups of interviewees (patients who had recently had an AB prescription, patients who had recently bought an AB without a prescription, physicians and community pharmacists) according to the protocol.
Approximately 4 months after collecting the data, the pilot countries met with the SSC to complete the content analysis of the collected data.
The pilot countries provided written and oral feedback on their experiences using Skype meetings, e-mail communication and face-to-face discussions. The feedback was focused on local ownership, research quality and feasibility:
Local ownership: Assessing if and how the participating countries experienced ownership of the project. As the SSC had taken the lead to form the project, it had to be ensured that this initiative did not undermine the commitment of the pilot facilitators.
Research quality: Assessing interview transcripts according to the principles of qualitative research, especially the skill to obtain narratives that provided coherent and detailed stories of interviewees' experiences with AB [16]. For example, a full description of how patients purchased an AB in a pharmacy without a prescription would inevitably contain aspects of the patients' knowledge and attitudes towards AB as well as both their and the pharmacists' typical behaviour and social interactions.
Feasibility: Assessing challenges experienced with regard to the recruitment process, carrying out the interviews, documentation and analysis as well as an evaluation of the workload of facilitators.
The assessment was completed by the SSC and was based on the analytical principle of "critical common sense", which Kvale describes as "interpretations that can be broader than the understanding of the interviewee him/herself, i.e., critically assess what is said" [17].
No ethical approval was needed for the pilot evaluation as it consisted of the opinions and experiences of the authors of this article. However, the Danish Data Protection Agency has been approached in relation to the management and later publication of the data collected from the pilot projects.
Results and discussion
Local facilitators in the pilot study achieved a sense of joint ownership. The protocol, including the interview guides, worked well. Several minor challenges pertaining to the research quality and feasibility were identified. These challenges were either a) challenges of qualitative research in general or b) challenges specific to conducting qualitative research in multi-country settings. In the following section, the challenges and solutions are presented and discussed in relation to methodological reflections on conducting qualitative research.
Local ownership
The facilitators expressed feelings of joint ownership over the project. They stated that the interview guides and the project made sense to them partly as a result of having had the opportunity to provide feedback on the protocol initially developed by the SSC. They expressed a feeling of ownership over the data they provided, but not over the research process. They saw the project as a collaboration between three parties: the WHO, the SSC and their own country, and each party had a specific role to fulfil. The pilot countries were comfortable with this division of tasks.
The facilitators also felt that conducting the interviews had mostly confirmed their preconceived perceptions of the culture surrounding patients' and health care professionals' AB use. However, in some cases, the data collection process led to new insights; for example, some facilitators were surprised to learn that many patients were aware that ABs should only be used in some occasions. Finally, the facilitators stated that working in an open multi-country collaboration setting was helpful as they could discuss and learn from each other.
Research quality
Challenges to research quality were identified. A general problem with interview flow was identified. Moreover, one specific challenge that arose was that the project facilitators in the pilot countries did not always manage to obtain narratives. Collaboration between the pilot countries and the SSC was found to be fruitful when analysing the data.
General challenges – flow of interviews
Facilitators felt that they had to repeat several questions, especially when asking health care professionals to describe three episodes from the last week in which they had managed AB use. According to the facilitators, this hindered the overall flow of the conversation.
Solutions – flow of interviews
In semi-structured interviews, it is of utmost importance for the interviewee "to talk freely and spontaneously about their feelings, experiences, attitudes and behaviour" [18]. As a result of this expressed challenge, changes to the interview guide were made. First, the number of recollections of specific AB episodes required by health care professionals was reduced from 3 to 2 episodes. Additionally, the facilitators suggested changing the order of questions for health care professionals.
Specific challenges – obtaining narratives
Obtaining narratives was feasible. One example was the story told by a father about his son, who had become ill. The father took the son to a general practitioner (GP), who concluded that the son was not ill enough to receive ABs. The GP orally instructed the father that if the situation deteriorated, the father should go to the community pharmacy and pick up a specific AB. The father was not given a prescription and was not instructed on how to use the AB should it become necessary to purchase it later on.
This example underlines the strength of recording narratives, as this short story provides insight into typical AB behaviours (GP promoting the use of AB without a prescription and some GPs appearing to provide only oral instructions and no information on the dosing regimen). The example also reveals underlying attitudes regarding AB use (GP thinks that not all situations should be treated with AB).
The transcripts also revealed that narratives were not always obtained. The transcripts were different in terms of the level of detail collected partly because not all local researchers had been authorized to record the interviews. However, even when recorded, narratives were not always provided. This could be due to the study design, which employed local facilitators who primarily had backgrounds in natural sciences.
Solutions – obtaining narratives
It was decided that from a workload perspective, no further interview training was feasible. Instead, the original protocol of 3 interviews within the 4 groups of interviewees (designed to balance data quality with feasibility) was changed to require 4 interviews per group. In this manner, more information about the AB culture would be revealed, not by conducting deeper interviews but by conducting more interviews. This compromised the workload of the data collectors but was necessary to ensure saturated themes regarding AB use.
Despite raising the number of interviews from 12 to 16, it was further deemed necessary to ensure the consistency of data and the possibility of achieving data saturation by having the interviewees address the same types of AB situations. The interview guides for the health care professionals were therefore revised, and they were now asked to recall 2 typical examples of AB consultations (and not just 2 consultations) during the last week.
Fruitful settings for analysing data
Coming from a different cultural context, the researchers from the SSC could guide the process of analysis as well as question the nuances of and reasons behind the AB knowledge, attitudes and behaviours revealed in the data. The pilot facilitators could correct and expand upon the SSC researchers' understanding of the transcripts. Altogether, the collaboration provided more results, as well as more precise results, than if the parties had performed the analyses separately.
The materials developed for the project worked well, and only minor adjustments had to be made. The major practical obstacle for the pilot facilitators was difficulty in recruiting patients. The local facilitators emphasized that it was a challenge for them to devote as much time to the project as they would have liked.
General challenges – recruitment of patients
Pilot facilitators used the snowball sampling technique to recruit patients but found it difficult to recruit enough patients. Furthermore, the facilitators discovered when conducting the interviews that patients sometimes had other types of infections that required ABs; however, due to a lack of physiological knowledge, they had agreed to be interviewed. There were no instances of incorrect recruitment due to patients having used a different AB than requested.
Solutions– recruitment of patients
The recruitment of participants is essential to the success of research projects [18], and difficulties in recruitment are common. Supplementing the snowball recruitment technique by offering financial incentives for participating patients was suggested. Using contacts at local community pharmacies was suggested as another method. These suggestions were added to the protocol.
To maintain a realistic workload balance for the facilitators, the SSC decided to include a small number of interviewed patients who were being treated for types of infections other than URTI as well as a few cases when the child was the one who was ill, as it was assessed that these interviews could still provide useful answers to the research questions.
General/specific challenges – interview guide
A few questions from the pilot countries were raised: a) the specific importance of and difference between certain questions in the interview guide and b) the experience that some questions in the interview guide had negative connotations. For example, the facilitators felt that it was patronizing to ask the patients: "Can you explain what an AB does in your body?"
These questions showed that the training sessions did not ensure that all questions in the interview guides and the nature of conducting qualitative interviews were understood in the same way by the SSC and pilot facilitators. Difficulties employing multiple interviewers can be found in all qualitative projects [19]; however, in this scenario, the challenge was likely reinforced by the multi-country setting.
Solutions – interview guide
Despite the recognition that a full acquisition of understanding between researchers is hard to achieve [19], it was assessed that the specific issues raised could be resolved. Hence, it was now explained more thoroughly in the protocol that interviewing allows for flexibility, for example, that questions can be phrased differently as long as they facilitate answers that can be used to answer the research questions of the study.
The identified challenges underlined the importance of closer contact between the SSC and the individual countries to discuss challenges that local facilitators experienced while conducting the interviews.
Specific challenges – allocating time
The facilitators in the pilot studies found it challenging to allocate a sufficient amount of time to the project. The local data collectors required between 15 and 80 min for the interviews (with some variation between the three pilot countries), with interviews with patients often being shorter than those with health care professionals. This timeframe was in many cases found to be acceptable; however, in some cases, this timeframe was too short, as some participants, especially patients, appeared to be in a hurry. Transcribing and translating the transcriptions were perceived to be the most time consuming tasks. This led pilot facilitators to ask the SSC for tighter instead of looser deadlines. It was therefore concluded that tighter timelines should be implemented.
We found both general and specific challenges with regard to conducting qualitative research in a multi-country setting; however, of these challenges, we identified only a few that were caused by the specific topic – culture of AB use. One such specific challenge that the pilot facilitators experienced was that patients agreed to be interviewed even when they suffered from the "wrong" infection or when it was the child and not the adult who was ill (despite these requests being stated in the protocol). In this study, most of these interviews were considered to contain valuable insight into the research questions and were therefore included in the analysis; however, this decision despite original intentions then to a small extent increased the heterogeneity of some of the data. As topic-dependent challenges were limited, we trust that most of the results of our evaluation are transferable to other qualitative multi-country research settings.
One study limitation that is probably transferrable to other settings was that several of the interviewers worked at national medical agencies, and it was thus expected that this would influence the answers of the interviewees, for example by omitting admissions of illegal conduct. This might certainly have influenced some results; however, surprisingly, most community pharmacists admitted that they sold ABs without prescriptions even though that is required by law. Hence, a high degree of truthfulness in many interviews was obtained.
The data collectors from Albania in particular had difficulties obtaining permission to record their interviews, which of course reduced the quality of the collected data, as using data recordings should be emphasized in all qualitative projects as the prime data collecting technique.
The validity of the evaluation of the study is believed to be high, as the results were discussed between the SSC and the pilot facilitators, and all contributed actively and equally to this publication.
The aim of this paper was to contribute to the knowledge regarding how to conduct multi-country qualitative research. We propose that supporting previously untrained local facilitators to collect and analyse data is a means of achieving valuable research results. We recommend conducting formal discussions between research managers and local data facilitators to identify inadequacies in project design. Second, research managers should be prepared to adjust their protocols, both with respect to the depth and the breadth of the research, and to balance these aspects of research quality with the acquired skills of the enrolled researchers and their available time. Through testing, an acceptable balance can be achieved. Third, managers and data collectors should analyse the data together as this can contribute to highly valid results. Based on our experiences, we believe that qualitative multi-country research collaboration is possible when these issues are addressed. The results of this type of work could be of considerable importance for the health of populations worldwide.
We like to thank Professor Lars Bjerrum, Section for General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen for consultation on defining relevant themes for the research protocol and interview-guides. We further like to thank Professor Kreshnik Hoti, Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Prishtina, Kosovo and Curtin University, Australia for valuable comments on the manuscript.
Authors' contributions
SK developed the protocol i.e. project design, carried out analysis and interpretation of data and made the initial draft of the manuscript. SKS contributed to the design of the protocol, carried out analysis, and interpretation of data; helped drafting the manuscript. JMT contributed to the design of the protocol, carried out analysis and interpretation of data and revised the manuscript. H W-K contributed to the design of the protocol, carried out analysis and interpretation of data and revised the manuscript. LSN contributed to the design of the protocol, carried out analysis and interpretation of data and revised the manuscript. AJ revised the protocol, carried out data collection/ obtained experiences with running the project in Kosovo, made analysis, and revised the manuscript. DR revised the protocol, carried out data collection/ obtained experiences with running the project in Kosovo, made analysis, and revised the manuscript. EUG revised the protocol, carried out data collection/ obtained experiences with running the project in Turkey, made analysis, and revised the manuscript. AA revised the protocol, carried out data collection/ obtained experiences with running the project in Turkey, made analysis, and revised the manuscript. IH revised the protocol, carried out data collection/ obtained experiences with running the project in Albania, made analysis, and revised the manuscript. AM revised the protocol, carried out data collection/ obtained experiences with running the project in Albania, made analysis, and revised the manuscript. LCA made contributions to the conception of the project, revised the protocol, helped interpretation of data and revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Open AccessThis article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
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If you've ever felt on the losing end of a one-sided relationship, PLS&TY understands you. The Miami-based artist's new track "Motives", featuring Dutch producer GANZ and LA-based singer/songwriter Nevve, weaves a poignant picture of heartbreak and indifference with its cinematic, chilled-out basslines and emotive vocals. After dropping Rusko's remix of his "Rebel Love" last month, PLS&TY dishes out more groovy, molten basslines with "Motives," adding a dash of vulnerability for good measure. Check out what he had to say about the track below:
"'Motives' is about one partner wanting so desperately to feel love, no matter how hard the fall or heartbreak, in spite of the other partner's lack of commitment. One person ultimately ends up the 'friend,' and the other the 'fool,' for developing true feelings amongst the partner's indifference. Yet, as genuine 'motives' always surface, I believe it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all," explains PLS&TY.STREAM/DOWNLOAD
Tommy Leas – better known as PLS&TY – is burgeoning into the future bass scene with his unique sound: languid bass, captivating vocals and enough upbeat melodies to make anybody feel good. After a collection of chart-topping singles including "Good Vibes" (#1 on iTunes US Electronic Charts), "Down For Me", and "Rebel Love" (#1 on iTunes US Electronic Charts), PLS&TY would receive Remixes from both Grammy-nominated Morgan Page & dubstep-don Rusko. Combined with multiple television successes, such as his remix of Genevieve's "Colors" in Hershey's "Hello Happy" TV commercial being viewed over 1 BILLION Times, his track "Run Wild" being featured as the theme song for Canadian reality TV show "Occupation Double," and "Good Vibes" placement in MTV's Siesta Key, PLS&TY has officially proven himself as one to be watched. PLS&TY has made it clear he has a collection of music ready for our ears in 2019, alongside upcoming festival performances at Electric Forest, Shaky Beats, Summer Camp, Backwoods, Firefly, and more. Keep an eye out for more soon from this exciting up-and-comer.
PLS&TY: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
Future Bass
justlikeu Knows How You Feel, & He's Writing It In Sounds: Listen To "electricity"
You know the feeling: a spine-tingling, goosebump-inducing rush of lightness and power as if the whole world is – even if only for this moment – at your fingertips, and all you have to do is reach out and take it. The wordless sensation has been sonically embodied by enigmatic new artist justlikeu in his stunning single "electricity", a captivating journey through downtempo bass, glittering melodies and hypnotizing vocals. Aiming to embody an element of the human experience with every release, justlikeu paints a vignette of vibrant energy, a rush of adrenaline and bittersweet hope with "electricity," his second release ever after his debut "nocturnal animals".STREAM/DOWNLOAD
justlikeu explains how his musical experiment came to be, saying "I realized we all go through ups and downs, feel the highest highs and the lowest lows, have weird thoughts of self-doubt and wake up after partying all night and feel sad. That's why this project is named 'justlikeu,' to try and remove the hands in the air DJ hype and embody the human experience." In generation addicted to the blue-light glare of technology screens, serotonin rushes, and social media fame, justlikeu is an artist with a simple mission: channel emotions through music, so that we may realize that we are all more alike than we are different. Recognizing both, the positive and negative fundamental elements of human nature, his embodiment of everything from power, to joy and sadness are masterpieces in their ability to coax a catharsis from even the most closed of hearts. Come along for the ride as justlikeu sets about breaking the rules of expression and expectation through sound.
MORE INFO ON justlikeu
Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Spotify
Future Bass
Adrien Rux Raises The Level By Remixing "Trouble" From CLMD
Despite his youth, Adrien Rux has released songs through some of the most important record labels in the electronic scene such as SIZE Records or Bibliothèque Records, with the musical support of artists like Steve Angello, Tiesto, and Pete Tong.
Adrien Rux flips the script on this one, adding a harder bassline, plus a cinematic atmosphere to the mix. His dark bassline and lighter top synths create the perfect frame for the vocals, which fit excellently to finish this stellar remix. A track in which at times we can appreciate some elements of Future Bass, and in which the desire to dance will be present from beginning to end.
The year couldn't start better for the young artist, and this great work leaves us with hope to continue listening to his upcoming releases. A promising career that invites us to stay in alert.
Future Bass
You Won't Believe EDM Can Also Be Emotional, Listen To "Care" By N3WPORT
If you believe EDM is a genre that lacks deep emotions, then you haven't heard the newest single from N3WPORT called "Care". Noteworthy, he reveals a personal and intimate story as the source of inspiration. To sum up, all relationships go through difficult times, but real ones get through it. That said, you'll be fond of this song's lyrics.
Besides that, in terms of sound design, he makes good use of contrasts. On the one hand, you'll notice its chill vibe. On the other, there's great intensity, especially when the drop hits so hard. In my own personal opinion, this type of music is more suitable for radio play than for big festivals. The Washington-based artist promises his next release on the Wonderlust imprint will be pretty uplifting. Therefore, stay tuned on his socials because N3WPORT is able to please various musical tastes with heavy hitters too!
Electro4 months ago
Maximals & Boothed Release Electro-Progressive 'Up & Down' EP On Protocol Recordings
Electro5 months ago
Sam Void's Bass House "Feel The Low" Kicks Off 2019 For Protocol Recordings
Electro3 months ago
Sebastian Park's New Tune Is Full Of Energy & Latin Vibes
Electro5 months ago
Michael Feiner Delivers A Latin-Influenced Sound On "Aventura"
Dance3 months ago
French Producer RavenKis Releases Smooth Progressive Downtempo Track "Roller Coaster"
Electro5 months ago
Best Electro House Mix Of 2018 — Free Download
Pop2 months ago
KINGQUEEN Releases Music Video For "Running In Water" — Watch it Here!
Trap3 months ago
ALOL Is A Producer, Composer, DJ, Remixer In All Styles Of Music

subset: commoncrawl


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BitComet Turbo Accelerator is an effective plug-in for BitComet P2P. The program includes most modern technology that is used to increase speed of BitComet downloads.
Also the number of your download sources will be improved – you can have more seeds available than normally revealed by your BitComet. Interface is beautiful and easy to use. Application is FREE and there are NO Ads, NO Adware, NO Spyware, NO Trojans bundled! A must-have utility for all BitComet users!
© Copyright 2006 - 2018 GimmeCoupon.com. All Rights Reserved.


text:
Join us for our next installment of our wine class series, aptly named Sunday School. Andrey will take on a region or style of wine and go down the proverbial rabbit hole about its historical context and wine making styles.
In April, we will be covering the beloved classic region Napa Valley. The iconic region synonymous with cult Cabernets is much broader than today than it ever has been. It has many different soil types, exposures, and microcliates that produce a myriad of styles of wine from many grapes. We will explore mountain fruit vs. valley floor, various varieties, and current releases vs. classic older vintages. The class is capped at 24 guests, and we will be trying some very high quality wines. Cost is $55 per person.
Please make reservations online at www.reedsamericantable.com or call 314.899.9821 .
Class– Sunday April 3rd @ 3pm!


text: During my daily commute I drive over a small mountain with little traffic, so it's pretty tempting to floor the the watt-pedal and drive "actively". :love: Other than the obvious extra wear of tires and brake pads, should I be worried about damaging the motor? It has only happened once that it limited the power, I guess I usually don't run it hard for long enough for that to be a problem. But still, I'm conserned about the long term effects.


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Sta-Rite Swimming Pool Pumps
Above and In Ground Pool Pumps
Sta-Rite swimming pool and spa pumps for both above and in ground swimming pools. Sta-Rite pool pumps provide High Efficiency, Low Maintenance and Maximum Performance and are just a few of the qualities Sta-Rite swimming pool pumps provide for today's residential and commercial pool & spa installations. With many different Sta-Rite pool and spa pumps to choose from they probably have just what you are looking for when you need a new pool or spa pump.
Sta-Rite Super Max 3/4 HP Swimming Pool Pump
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Price: $757.14
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Sta-Rite Super Max 1 HP 2 Spd Swimming Pool Pump
Price: $806.34
Sale Price: $671.95
Last Updated: 01/23/2019 12:33 PM - ID:1189


text:
"Just because Idina Menzel lended her vocals to Frozen doesn`t mean the movie has any effect on her personal life choices. So let it go.
The Tony award-winning actress went on Good Day L.A. on Friday and set the record straight about her new blonde locks.
`They say I did it because I was inspired by my Elsa character, which I found very insulting. That I would wake up one day and want to be blond, so I could look like an animated character."
Let it go people, just let it go! Idina Menzel didn`t go blond to imitate her Elsa character, don`t say anything of the kind, or she`ll serve you a frozen look.
Idina dyed her hair blond for the same reason millions of other women do likewise: She wants attention. Well, she`s certainly got my attention, and here`s my ten cents: Idina looks one hundred percent better as a brunette.
But the color of her hair is irrelevant, it`s her powerful pipes that grab our attention.
Photo Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
Follow Robert Paul Reyes on Twitter: http://twitter.com/robertpaulreyes


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Onion-Power Makes Recharging iPods Easy
It turns out a white onion will do in a pinch in case you've lost your charger and need to juice up your beloved iPod. All you'll need is said onion, 2 cups of Gatorade/Powerade, a screwdriver and your USB cable (not all commonplace items, we know, but it's better than nothing); then just follow the handy directions provided in the above video and you'll be on your way.
So how exactly does this all work? As Mike Schramm at TUAW hypothesizes, it might lie in the ability of the Gatorade's electrolytes to break down the onion's cells, releasing some form of harnessable energy in the process.
Via ::TUAW: Charge an iPod with an onion (blog), ::Household Hacker: How to Charge an iPod using electrolytes and an onion (blog)
See also: ::UnTreeHugger: Onion Goggles, ::DIY iPod Bicycle Charger


text:
Strombolis Catering
Stromboli's Catering specialises in: Weddings, corporate events, delivery of healthy home cooked meals as well as focusing on churches, religious groups, summer camps, school camps, alpha courses and marriage courses. Craig and his team offer a catering service that is both dedicated and motivated to providing exceptional yet affordable meals for every occasion.
contact details
- Address: 12 Adam Tas Avenue, Bothasig, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
- Telephone: +27215584849
- Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Buy With Confidence
We've been creating childhood memories for years. Our innovative swing set designs, quality construction and exceptional value has gained us the confidence of hundreds of customers. Our Swing Sets are made from 100% Cedar Construction and backed with guaranteed satisfaction.
easy as 1–2–3
Find Your Playset
With so many choices available, we make it easy for you to choose the right Swing Set for your property and budget.
Browse Our Products
Swing Sets
We believe all children deserve to enjoy active play in their own back yard. That's why we offer low interest financing on all of our playgrounds.
Who We Are
About Us
We believe in making playtime fun by getting the whole family outside! We follow a simple philosophy "provide the customer a quality product, excellent value and exceptional customer service".
Frequently Asked
You have questions, we have answers! From installation, to financing and everything in between.


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The Peace and Justice Committee would like to thank all of the Queen of Angels parishioners who attended the Lenten Mission on immigration reform Tuesday, March 28. Our guest speakers for the event were Father Joseph Tito and Lucia Cuevas from Our Lady of Mercy Parish along with Raul Botello, lead organizer of the Albany Park Neighborhood Council.
Father Tito led the discussion on immigration reform with a passage from the Gospel of Matthew. He reminded us of our duty as Catholics to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and welcome the stranger. Father Tito believes that supporting human dignity in the immigration process is part of that duty.
Raul then noted that a lack of comprehensive immigration policy affects the communities in which we live and work, also citing specific examples of hardships faced by immigrants to this country, including discrimination and separation from family. Along with many other activists, Raul went to Washington to speak with politicians about the proposed immigration reform, urging them to act on policy change.
Lastly, Lucia shared that parishioners at Our Lady of Mercy organized legal clinics for immigrants, as well as meetings to provide people with further information on the proposed immigration legislation. She also summarized the efforts of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Based on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' support for immigration reform, the Archdiocese held educational meetings on the proposed legislation, sponsored letter writing campaigns, and organized vigils around reform.
The presentation concluded with a call for further action from parishioners, including an appeal to write letters and make calls to legislators encouraging support for immigration reform, or, most effectively, visit legislators' offices in person. For further
information on how you can help, please contact the Albany Park Neighborhood Council at 773-583-1387.


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With the U.S. Senate's approval of tax reform legislation early Saturday morning, both the House and the Senate have now passed their own versions of a tax reform bill. The next step is for the House and Senate to reconcile the differences between their respective bills. This could involve a formal House-Senate conference, informal negotiations, or even the House simply accepting the Senate's version of the tax reform bill.
House Speaker Paul Ryan today announced the House conferees for a House-Senate conference committee on the tax reform bill:
Ways and Means Committee
For the purposes of provisions outside the jurisdiction of the Ways and Means Committee, the conferees are:
Natural Resources Committee
A House-Senate formal conference is only one approach to resolving the differences between the two bills. This approach has its own limitations because there are special rules in the Senate as to what items could be included in legislation resulting from a conference agreement.
A report from the Congressional Research Services (CRS) examines the Senate rules on restricting the authority of conferees to include matters, in their report, not passed by the House or Senate before the appointment of the conference committee.
The CRS report—Senate Rules Restricting the Content of Conference Reports [PDF 547 KB]—examines Senate rules when provisions are "airdropped" into the Conference Report.
According to the CRS report, Senate rules preclude conference agreements from including policy provisions that were not sufficiently related to either the House or Senate version of the legislation as sent to the conference committee.
© 2019 KPMG LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership and the U.S. member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International"), a Swiss entity. All rights reserved.
KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International") is a Swiss entity. Member firms of the KPMG network of independent firms are affiliated with KPMG International. KPMG International provides no client services. No member firm has any authority to obligate or bind KPMG International or any other member firm vis-à-vis third parties, nor does KPMG International have any such authority to obligate or bind any member firm.
The KPMG logo and name are trademarks of KPMG International. KPMG International is a Swiss cooperative that serves as a coordinating entity for a network of independent member firms. KPMG International provides no audit or other client services. Such services are provided solely by member firms in their respective geographic areas. KPMG International and its member firms are legally distinct and separate entities. They are not and nothing contained herein shall be construed to place these entities in the relationship of parents, subsidiaries, agents, partners, or joint venturers. No member firm has any authority (actual, apparent, implied or otherwise) to obligate or bind KPMG International or any member firm in any manner whatsoever. The information contained in herein is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavor to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act on such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation. For more information, contact KPMG's Federal Tax Legislative and Regulatory Services Group at: + 1 202 533 4366, 1801 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20006.
Request for proposal


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Superman X Wonderwoman
The Design Studio fashion illustration
Created By
For as long as I remember I had always been creative, as a child growing up in the Philippines, I had always taken every opportunity to doodle, draw and paint in anything I could find. Whether it was scrap paper or one of my mothers fashion magazines. As I grew older, I started to realise my passion for the artistic discipline and carried on doodling, and over the years I practiced and experimented and evolved as an artist.
(Concept, Originals, Icons / Avatars, Doodles, Line Art, Sketches, Comics, Portraits)
I tend not to alienate myself to certain types of commissions as I believe that I learn more and evolve as an artist by involving myself in as many types of commissions as possible. Many subjects interest me, and as an artist I like to keep myself well rounded and always open to new ideas and styles of art. So anything that catches my interest aesthetically and creatively is a challenge that will be welcomed with open arms. However despite this, one type of illustration I avoid is digital aided illustration or digital painting, mainly because this is a skill I do not possess or have experience in, I am a very archaic artist in that all my works are hand rendered and painted, and I have the ability to emulate the neat and polished finish that a digital painting does. I do things the good old fashioned way.
Preparation before any commission is key, so for this I require the following:
Size of the commission: My works usually tend to be on A3 scale, small enough to be decorative, but big enough to fit a fairly detailed piece. I also work on A4, A5, A2 and A1.
The idea: for me it is very important to know what exactly the client requires, what idea or design they have in mind etc. not only does this make my job easier, but it also ensures that there is no confusion or miscommunication. The more detailed a client can go with an idea- particularly custom posters that amalgamate many different artistic elements - the better I can translate this onto a page.
My prices (GBP) are by size as follows:
A4 piece: £100
A3 piece: £150
A2 piece: £250
A1 piece: £400
For particularly bespoke ideas, or if a client is commissioning me to do a very specific, or own idea that they want me to put on paper, the price is negotiable
My prices are based not on time, but more on the level of detail that I have to cover, and also the amount of materials I have to use on each piece.
Delivery time:
Of course the size of the commission will decide the time it takes to start and finish a piece. A4 and A3 pieces average from a few days to a week. Whereas A2 and A1 sizes become more detailed and would average between two to 3 weeks to finish. After each piece is finished, the picture is sent off unframed (I believe framing should be left as a personal preference to the client - as their own finishing touch), and sent via Royal Mail recorded or special delivery. I can usually include the delivery with the price of the commission but the client will negotiate that aspect with me.
Licensing Use:
The nature of my work means that my clients always receive the original work, of course with my artists signature. They can use it for whatever they require, personal or commercial ( if it was a logo) as long as my work is credited to my name.
All rights and credits reserved for Marco Paolo Wilkinson.
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text:
A few months ago I shared a Essential Oil Recipe Shopping List with my top 10 ingredients to purchase if you were just getting started with essential oils and wanted to start making simple recipes. Those 10 ingredients are still some of my favorite ingredients because they are super versatile and can be used in a variety of recipes! This shopping list is a follow-up to my first one and is perfect Read More
Let's Make Labels!
Designing your own labels is such an easy and fun way to decorate mason jars, gift bags, and containers to use for your essential oil recipes! I keep all different kinds in my craft drawers using my adorable boxes from Birchbox! {If you have a subscription to Birchbox and aren't sure how to use the pretty boxes from your beauty samples...CRAFT DRAWERS! They work beautifully!} I love shopping Read More
Your DIY Recipe Shopping List
If you're new to the Zeal & Grace community, welcome! If you've visited before, hopefully you've seen that one of my main missions is to help make your essential oil journey as easy as possible! Here are my Top 10 Ingredients that you can use as a shopping list to make a wide variety of fun essential oil recipes! I remember being SO excited to make all kinds of homemade goodies. I literally Read More
Spring Classroom Crafts
I'm not sure what preschool teachers did before Pinterest as far as coming up with crafts, but I am so grateful to have it now! It makes lesson planning super easy and convienent. These are a few of my favorite Spring crafts we've done so far! {More to come!} Read More
Snow Paint
For our January "Winter" theme, I wanted to try out a recipe I saw on Pinterest (where all cute ideas are found!) to make snow paint. I was really hoping this would work, because I was out of all of my white paint! You'll need: >>Shaving cream (For some reason the cheap, men's kind works best for me!) >>White Elmer's glue Mix equal parts together and stir well with a paint brush. We Read More
Homemade Beeswax Candle
Who doesn't love a good candle? As much as I love diffusing, I still sometimes miss the homey goodness of a candle burning. My friend Annie shared with me how to make your own beeswax candle, and I couldn't believe how easy it was to make! You'll Need: I'll link materials below at the end of this post! Beeswax Pastilles Candle Wicks Mason Jar Essential Oils Let's Get Read More


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Green Motors Practices Group™
Verifying "Craftsmen Saving Energy"
Continual Quality Improvement
Motor service centers looking to implement a quality assurance program may wish to consider "Continual Quality Improvement". In both the Green Motor Initiative and EASA Accreditation, motor repair/rewinding high quality is the goal. The following is an easy way to start:
|For example, consider using EASA's Accreditation self-audit draft to determine KPIs. Responsible staff completes an EASA self-audit form of the motor service center establishing what's done and what needs to be done. Determine cost to complete each incremental item "to be done", prioritize using importance to the shop, available budget and timeline to complete. Then get started:


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** We have called Mesquite Plumbing on two separation occasions. The first was a flooded basement. Kiven gave us a competitive quote and installed a sump pump that works great. Mesquite Plumbing also installed our hot water tank. And they did it quick and with respect for our property - leaving no mess behind. **
1927 Faithon P Lucas Sr Blvd
(972) 850-6457


text:
So today I started work on this chevron cardigan. I chose it because it works up quickly, and as I said, I'm already cold. Also, when I looked at the project pictures on ravelry, they were all pretty cute; that gives me confidence in a pattern, when it works in anyone's hands. Also also, it says it only needs 600-800 yards of yarn, which is pretty good for a sweater.
This is the first 9 rows. The first 5 rows increase from the neck down, and after that it's a relatively straightforward chevron pattern for the remainder of the yoke. I'll get back to you after I have the yoke done.
Here's a stitch detail. I got a gift card to Michael's for Christmas, and the store was duly ransacked by holiday shopping; the yarn shelves were depleted. That meant the only sport weight yarn available was in the baby section; I was happy to find anything designed for someone over 18 mos old. This is Bernat Softee Baby in Flannel (I don't know why it's not just called grey.) The pattern suggests a size J/10 hook, and that is working nicely to match the gauge so far.
I am looking forward to seeing how this one takes shape. And then to being warm.
--Update 9.8.2012 --
Sometimes I make myself laugh. I put this sweater down for a VERY long time, and when I finally picked it back up, it took all of 3 hours to finish. At least I'll have it for the cold months this year.
I am happy with the finished product. My buttonhole is too wide, and the button stock at the craft store left something to be desired, so I couldn't find a big enough button that suited the color of the yarn. The black one I have on now will do, but I will likely change it out.
In the meantime, enjoy these pictures of the finished sweater:
|Add From the front. The shoulders aren't actually all that football gear-ish. I just have on an inappropriate undershirt.
|From the rear. I shall be more careful to untwist my sleeves in future.
|I like the texture of this sweater a lot.
|Detail of the closure and its abnormally large buttonhole.


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Manny is puttin' in work right now! His new Mag Minute is chock full of bangers. Have a look…
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on Monday, March 7th, 2011 at 11:08 am and is filed under Uncategorized.
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text:
I just stumbled across this AMAZING JetBlue deal (thank you JetBlue Facebook!) where they are offering 50% off of many flights from the US to the Caribbean!!! There are two different promotions (both for 50% off, do not worry), but just include different non-stop flights between two time frames. You must book your flight by 11:59pm April 29th (this Sunday). This is by far the best deal I've seen this week and and one of the better deals I've seen this year (assuming you live in a participating city). Way to go JetBlue!
Participating non-stop flights between April 28th and May 29th: (*promotion code: FLYHOMEMAY12)
Orlando, FL to:
- Montego Bay, Jamaica
- Ponce, PR
- Santo Domingo, DR
- Aguadilla, PR
New York, NY (JFK) to:
- Santo Domingo, DR
- Puerto Plata, DR
Jacksonville, FL to:
- San Juan, PR
Ft. Lauderdale, FL to:
- San Juan, PR
Participating non-stop flights between April 28th and June 16th: (*promotion code: FLYHOMEJUNE12)
New York, NY (JFK) to:
- Barbados
- Santiago, DR
- Bermuda
Boston, MA to:
- Santo Domingo, DR
- Bermuda
- Santiago, DR
Ft. Lauderdale, FL to:
- Kingston (new service starts April 30th)
West Palm Beach, FL to:
- San Juan, PR
Westchester County, NY to:
- Nassau, Bahamas
You must purchase through the site www.jetblue.com/promo and enter the corresponding promotional code in the "Promo Code" box. You will see the discount on the right-hand side of the page once you select both the departure and return flight. This is valid for round-trip or one-way fares, however, your departing city must be the US city listed and cannot start in the desired Caribbean destination. For a round-trip flight, your departure and return both must fall within the promotional time frame. If you are looking to return after the window period, book two one-way flights and this way at least your departure will get the 50% off.
Remember, this promotion is valid until 11:59pm EST on April 29th – that gives you slightly over two days to figure out if this works for you! Also, remember now with the new rules put in place, you can cancel any flight within 24 hours of making your reservation.
I looked up potential fares from JFK to Barbados and was able to find fares as low as $234.40 per person with this 50% off discount!! That cheap fare along with the inexpensive hotel deal I found on Jetsetter earlier this week can make one relatively inexpensive vacation!
You can read more details of this deal here. Anyone able to take advantage of this deal?!


text: If there is one thing Doll Face loves, it's a good party. With her Tippi Hedren hairdo and her cherry-red lips, she plays hostess to her friends Plate, Fork, Cup, Spoon, Knife, and Teapot. Chair and Balloon are late additions to the festivities, once they agree to help Doll Face track down some music (in the form of Little Red Piano) and the illusive Sweet Cake. Conrad, a well-known author of YA books and, recently, The Tub Grandfather (not reviewed), gives everyone a good time with this slight story, and Selznick's funny, color-saturated illustrations set just the right mood. The retro-looking Doll Face is particularly resplendent, with her feet turned off at odd, twisted angles, and her hilariously inanimate way of eating and drinking. Funny in a subtle, knowing way. (Fiction/Picture book. 3-7)


text:
In "Kingsman: The Golden Circle," our heroes face a new challenge. When their headquarters are destroyed and the world is held hostage, their journey leads them to the discovery of an allied spy organization in the US called Statesman, dating back to the day they were both founded. In a new adventure that tests their agents' strength and wits to the limit, these two elite secret organizations band together to defeat a ruthless common enemy, in order to save the world, something that's becoming a bit of a habit for Eggsy…
KINGSMAN 2 New Trailer
Cast : Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Taron Egerton, Mark Strong, Halle Berry, with Sir Elton John, Channing Tatum, and Jeff Bridges
Release Date : 22 September 2017
Genre : Action Spy Movie
KINGSMAN 2 Trailer
© 2017 – Fox
Comedy, Kids, Family and Animated Film, Blockbuster, Action Movie, Blockbuster…


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We were incredibly excited when this cutting of a 15-year-old Angela Merkel's appeal to "Bravo Magazine" was a penpal was forwarded onto us (via @world_first)
Poor Angela! Looks wise, it appeared to be her:
Here's a rough translation:
I am 15 years old and looking for pen pals from around the world. Who will engage me in correspondence? I like Abba and reading. If you like, guys, then pick up the pen!
Sadly, ( as readers at this blog have pointed out) isn't the Angela Merkel who we've all come to know and love — the German leader grew up in East Germany, was born Angela Kasner, and would have missed ABBA's peak when she was 15.
So either this mysterious woman existed somewhere else in Germany, or this is a fake.


text:
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
July 5, 1839 --- The Death of Lady Hastings
Early in the year, gossip spread that Lady Flora, maid-of-honor to the Queen's mother, the Duchess of Kent, was "beginning to show." The father, said the tale-bearers, was Sir John Conroy, the Duchess' chief-of-staff. Victoria despised Conroy, "a monster and demon incarnate whose name I forbear to mention." She could easily believe the rumors that he had seduced Lady Flora during a long carriage ride the two had shared from Scotland. She ordered her personal physician, Sir James Clark, to examine the Lady who only reluctantly agreed to the procedure. Not only did they find no pregnancy, the doctors also confirmed that Lady Flora, at 32, was still a virgin.
Lady Flora complained that Sir James had been rough and rude. Now, the influential Hastings family raised a public uproar, demanding to know the source of the falsehood and the Duke of Wellington had to be called in to quiet the scandalous row. But strangely, Lady Flora continued to fill out, taking to her bed in June. Victoria, regretting her earlier suspicions, visited her often, finding her "literally a skeleton, but the body very much swollen like a person who is with child." In the end, "The poor thing died without a struggle." A post-mortem revealed a massive liver tumor and, if only to clear the poor woman's name for history - the doctors declared "the uterus and its appendages presented the usual appearances of the healthy virgin state."
Critical papers suggested the cause of death was more a broken heart. The Morning Post led the attacks, reflecting what it called "a universal feeling of indignation." The Queen's popularity fell to a new low. She had been hissed at Ascot, supposedly by the Duchess of Montrose and Lady Sarah Ingestre. Victoria expressed a wish - unfulfilled - to have them both flogged. Lady Flora's death heightened the Queen's disfavor; stones were thrown at a Royal carriage she sent to the funeral. The diarist Lord Holland described the whole affair as an "ugly offspring of prudery, tittle-tattle and folly."
Posted by Tom Hughes at 5:42 AM
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New And Used Starilifts, The Gift Of Independence
It's less than 10 days till Christmas and we are all totally wrapped up in the idea of opening those presents and spending time with friends and family. You might even get the special privilege of an elderly visitor this year, or one with mobility problems.
Every year at Christmas time many of us play host and hostess to family members that struggle with the simple everyday tasks that we take for granted. We wish that we could make a change to their lives, even if it's just a small one.
New stairlifts and used stairlifts are now easier than ever to buy and with our expert team of fitters you can expect next day installation.
A Stairlift Is For Life, Not Just For Christmas
Of course it's not just during this festive season that our loved ones are faced with mobility issues. Although a new stairlift would be a priceless gift for Christmas it would be welcomed at any time of the year. If you make a gift of a new or used stairlift you will be allowing someone to safely access rooms in their own homes that have been taken away from them by age or disability. Stairlifts Liverpool give the gift of independence.
How To Choose The Right Liverpool Stairlift Company
If you decide that another wool cardigan or tin of biscuits just won't do this year and you decide to buy a new stairlift or used stairlift then you will want to make sure that you are purchasing from the right company. You want a company with experience, ethics and a genuine concern for the person that you are buying for. Here's some things to expect from a reputable Liverpool stairlift company:
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From everyone at OneStop Mobility we wish you a safe and m0bile Christmas!


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€1m rowing bonanza for south Donegal
Businesses in south Donegal will enjoy a big boon this weekend, with the All-Ireland Coastal Rowing Championships and Donegal Bay Maritime Festival expected to add an additional €1m to the area's economy.
More than 2,000 rowers and at least as many supporters are already arriving for the championships, which take place at the Lakeside Centre, Ballyshannon, from Friday to Sunday.
In addition, there will be a host of activities in Donegal Town, with the first ever Donegal Bay Maritime Festival, from 2pm on Saturday and Sunday, mostly centred at the pier. All proceeds are in support of Events Against Suicide.
Accommodation from Bundoran to Donegal Town was booked out within days of Ballyshannon being chosen as this year's host venue for the rowing championships.
Hosts Donegal Bay Rowing Club campaigned hard to secure the event, assisted by Barney McLaughlin and Joy Harron of Donegal County Council as well as Fáilte Ireland.
Seamus Maguire, chairman of Donegal Bay Rowing Club, said club members have been hard at work for more than a year and are looking forward to an extremely hectic but rewarding event.
"The experts have told us the championships will bring in at least €1m to the local economy. And that's just the immediate spin off. The finals on Sunday will be streamed live over the internet to around 90,000 people as well. This means phenomenal publicity for Donegal."
Securing the event, he says, is "our way of saying thank you to all the local businesses who have so generously in their support over the years." He said the late Jim White was especially good to the club.
He also thanked Donegal County Council, Cllrs John Campbell, Noel Jordan and Barry O'Neill, Fáilte Ireland, the Lakeside Centre and all the local clubs.
Emer Keon, at the Lakeside Centre, said it's been "all hands on deck" there for the last week. "There's a great buzz. It's a huge boost for Ballyshannon and the area."