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I think we can safely say that whichever one of the Kardashians "take New York" is not a particularly realistic window on life in the Big Apple. Last time I looked, the reality sisters were holed up in a white apartment that fit their entire family. Which is part of the reason Girls is such a relief to watch.
Now in its second season, it alleviates some of my envy of not living in the fabled city, too. Hannah and her mates live in underwhelming studio apartments and, despite believing they are worthy of careers of great magnitude, struggle not to self-destruct.
Last season we discovered Hannah and her mates Marnie, Shoshanna and Jessa, the central foursome on the Judd Apatow-executive-produced-show, weren't even all that likeable - a realness that somehow made them loveable. Golden Globe-winning writer and star Lena Dunham's character Hannah was embarrassing (and funny) as insufferable Adam's cling-on girlfriend. Now, post-bus accident, he's dependent and apparently in love with her.
Hannah, meanwhile, is busy spooning her gay flatmate and shagging a Republican (played by black comedian Donald Glover - possibly Dunham's answer to critics who last season complained about the lack of racial diversity on the show). Girls (Thursday, 8.30pm, SoHo) is still almost as talky as Gilmore Girls (not to be confused with Gossip Girl, also set in New York), and would be a disaster if it didn't get the dialogue right. But Dunham has a knack for nailing social awkwardness, such as this line from Shoshanna to ex-lover Ray: "If you don't want to date me that's fine because I don't want to date you either, because I only want to date people who want to date me because that is called self-respect."
There's more sex in the city on TV2's slick new show 666 Park Avenue (Fridays, 8.30pm, TV2) only it's the PG version set in the affluent Upper East Side. Unlike Girls, where the sex is too raw to be considered titillating, Park Avenue's cast look like they stumbled out of a fashion mag. Thankfully it doesn't take itself too seriously, which is just as well because the premise is a little hokey. Like Girls, the central characters Jane and Henry - played by Aussie actress Rachael Taylor and Brothers and Sisters' alum Dave Annable - can't afford much more than an apartment in Queens, so they apply for a management position at an upmarket apartment complex called the Drake.
Naturally they win over the evil proprietor Gavin Doran (Terry O'Quinn from Lost), whose wife is the equally threatening Olivia (Vanessa Williams), and who may have something to do with the building's demonic ways. There's another hot young couple living in the building - a nerdy writer and his modelesque photographer wife - who, despite having lived there for a while are only just starting to notice odd things in the building, too. Like a hot blonde chick who strips to her undies by the window. And a psychotic lift door.
Supernatural television series are risky but they can be done well, as we've seen with the likes of True Blood. But it's hard to do horror in prime time, on a small screen. This is not particularly scary, although the opening sequence involving a violinist who cuts himself on his strings was just creepy enough to up the intrigue.
That doesn't mean it's no fun. Whether or not you like the show will ultimately depend on your taste for things that go bump in the night or, in this case, hands that pull people through the walls and ghoulish white faces that appear in the dark.
- TimeOut


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SULLENLY, persistently, the rain came down. In the harbour the wash was just sufficient to make the ravelled fruit‐baskets, the shredded vegetables, the crusts and offal thrown out from the galleys, heave and sway upon the oily surface of the water, while screaming gulls dropped greedily upon the floating refuse, and rising, circled over the black, liquid lanes and open spaces between the hulls of the many ships. But it was insufficient to lift the yacht, tied up to the southern quay of the Porto Grande. She lay there inert and in somewhat sorry plight under the steady downpour. For the moment all the winsome devilry of a smart, sea‐going craft was dead in her; and she sulked, ashamed through all her eight hundred tons of wood and iron, copper, brass, and steel. For she was coaling overdeck, and was grimy from stem to stern. While, arrayed in the cast clothes of all Europe, tattered, undersized, gesticulating, the human scum of Naples swarmed up the steep, narrow planks from the inky lighters and in over her side.
"Beastly dirty job this. Shan't get her paint clean under a page: 461 week!" the first mate grumbled to his companion, the second mate—a dark‐haired, dreamy‐eyed, West‐country lad, but just out of his teens.
The two officers, in dripping oilskins, stood at the gangway checking the tally of coal‐baskets as they came on board. Just now there was a pause in the black procession, as an empty lighter sheered off, making room for a full one to come alongside, thus rendering conversation momentarily possible.
"Pity the Boss couldn't have stayed on shore till we were through with it and cleaned up a bit," the speaker continued. "Makes the old man no end waxy to have anyone on board when the yacht's like she is. I don't blame him. She's as neat and pretty as a white daisy in a green pasture when she's away to sea. And now, poor little soul, she's a regular slut."
"I know I'd 'ave stayed ashore fast enough if I was the Boss," the boy said, half wistfully. "That villa of his is like a piece of poetry. I keep on saying over to myself how it looks."
"Oh! it's not so bad for foreign parts," the senior officer replied. "And you're young yet and soft, Penberthy. You'll come off that presently. England's best for houses, town and country; and most other things—women, and fights, and even sunshine, for when you do get sunshine at home there's no spite in it.—Hi! there, you, ganger," he shouted suddenly, and resentfully, leaning out over the bulwarks, "hurry 'em up a bit, can't you? You don't suppose I mean to stand here till the second anniversary of the Day of Judgment, watching your blithering, chicken‐shanked macaronies suck rotten oranges, do you? Start 'em up again. Whatever are you waiting for, man? Start 'em up, I say."
The boy's dreamy eyes, full of unwritten verse, dwelt with a curious indifference upon the broken procession of ascending, black figures. He had but lately joined, and to him both the fine vessel and her owner were invested with a certain romance.
"What was the fancy for calling the yacht the Reprieve?" he asked presently.
"Wait till you've had the chance to take a good look at Sir Richard, and you'll answer your question yourself," the other man answered oracularly. Then he broke out again into sustained invective:—"Hold up there, you little fool of a tightrope‐dancing, bella Napoli gorilla, and don't go dropping good, honest, Welsh steam‐coal overboard into your confounded, stinking, local sewer! I don't care to see any of your blamed posturings, don't flatter yourself. Hold up your grimacing, great‐grandson of a lousy she‐ape, can't you, and walk straight.—Take page: 462 him all round Sir Richard Calmady's the best Boss I ever sailed with—one of the sternest, but the civilest too.—Shove 'em along, ganger, will you? Shove 'em along, I say.—He's one of the few men I've loved, I'm not ashamed to say it, Mr. Penberthy, and about the only one I ever remember to have feared, in all my life."
Meanwhile, if the scene to seaward was cheerless, that to landward offered but small improvement. For the murk of low‐brooding cloud and falling rain blotted out the Castel S. Elmo, and the Capo di Monte and Pizzafalcone heights. Even the Castello del'Ovo down on the shore line, comparatively near at hand, loomed up but a denser mass of indigo‐grey amid the all obtaining greyness. The tall multi‐coloured, many‐shuttered houses fronting the quays—restaurants, cafés, money‐changers' bureaux, ships' chandlers, and slop‐shops—looked tawdry and degraded as a clown's painted face seen by daylight. Thick, malodorous vapours arose from the squalid streets, lying back on the level, and from the crowded shipping of the port. These hung in the stagnant air, about the forest of masts and the funnels of steamers. And the noise of the place was as that of Bedlam let loose.—The long‐drawn, chattering rush of the coal pitched from the baskets down the echoing, iron shoots. The grate and scream of saws cutting through blocks of stone and marble. The grind of heavy wheels upon the broken, irregular flags. The struggling clatter of hoofs, lashing of whips, squeal of mules, savage voices raised in cries and imprecations. The clank and roar of machinery. The repeated bellowing of a great liner, blowing off steam as she took up her berth in the outer harbour. The shattering rattle of the chains of a steam crane, when the monster iron‐arm swung round seeking or depositing its burden and the crank ran out in harsh anger, as it seemed, and defiance. And through all this, as undercurrent, the confused clamour of the ever‐shifting, ever‐present crowd, and the small, steady drip of the rain. Squalid, sordid, brutal even, the coarse actualities of her trade and her poverty alike disclosed, her fictions and her foulness uncondoned by reconciling sunshine, Naples had declined from radiant goddess to common drab.
It was in this character that Richard Calmady, driving yesterday and for the first time through the streets at noon, had been fated to see his so‐fondly‐idealised city. It was in this character that he apprehended it again to‐day, waiting in his deck‐cabin until cessation of the rain and on‐coming of the friendly dusk should render it not wholly odious to sit out on deck. The hours lagged, and into even this bright and usually spotless apartment page: 463 —with its shining, white walls, its dark, blue leather and polished, mahogany fittings—the coal dust penetrated. It rimmed the edge of the books neatly ranged on the racks. It smirched the charts laid out on the square locker‐table below. It drifted in at the cabin windows, along with the babel of sound and the all‐pervading stench of the port. This was, in itself, sufficiently distasteful, sufficiently depressing. And to Richard, just now, the disgust of it came with the heightened sensibility of physical illness, and as accompaniment to an immense private shame and immense self‐condemnation, a conviction of outlawry and a desolation passing speech. He looked for comfort, for promise of restoration, and found none, in things material or things intellectual, in others or in himself. For his mind, always prone to apprehend by images rather than by words, and to advance by analogy rather than by argument, discovered in surrounding aspects and surrounding circumstance a rather hideously apt parable and illustration of its present state. Just as this seemingly fair city was proven, on intimate acquaintance, repulsive beyond the worst he had ever feared and earnestly refused to know of it, so a certain fair woman, upon whom, since boyhood, his best, most chivalrous, most unselfish, affections had centred, was proven—herself, moreover, flagrantly contributing to that proving—vile beyond all that rumour, heard and passionately denied by him, had ever ventured to whisper concerning her. Nor was the misery of this revelation lessened by the knowledge that his own part in it all had been very base. He had sinned before. He would sin again probably. Richard had long ceased to regard these matters from a strictly puritanic standpoint. But this particular sinning was different to any that had gone before, or which could come after it. For it partook—so at least, it now appeared to him—of the nature of sacrilege, since he had sinned against his ideal, degrading that to gross uses which he had agreed with himself to hold sacred, defiling it and, thereby, very horribly defiling himself.
And this disgrace of their relation, his own and hers, the inherent abomination of it all and its inherent falsity, had been forced home on him with a certain violence of directness just in the common course of daily happenings. For among the letters, brought to him along with his first breakfast yesterday after that night of secret licence, had been three of serious import. One was from Lady Calmady; and that he put aside with a certain anger, calling himself unwilling, knowing himself unfit, to read it. Another he tore open. The handwriting was unknown to him. He began reading it in bewilderment. Then he understood.page: 464
"MONSIEUR,"—it ran,—"You are in process of exterminating me. But, since I have reason to believe that no sufficient opportunity has been afforded you of realising the enormity of your conduct, I rally the profoundness of nobility which I discover within me‐ I calm myself. I go further, I explain. Living in retirement, you may not have learned that I am in Naples. I followed your cousin here—Madame de Vallorbes. My connection with her represents the supreme passion of my passionate youth. At once a frenzy and an anodyne, I have found in it the inspiration of my genius in its later development. This work must not be put a stop to. It is too majestic, it is weighted with too serious consequences to the whole of thinking France, of thinking Europe. A less experienced woman cannot satisfy the extravagance of my desires, the demands of my all‐consuming imagination. The reverence with which a person, such as yourself, must regard commanding talent, the concessions he must be willing to make to its necessities, are without limit. This I cannot doubt that you will admit. The corollary is obvious. Either, monsieur, you will immediately invite me to reside with you at your villa—thereby securing for yourself daily intercourse with a nature of distinguished merit—or you will restore Madame de Vallorbes to me without hesitation or delay. Her devotion to me is absolute. How could it fail to be so, since I have lavished upon her the treasures of my extraordinary personality? But a fear of insular prejudice on your part withholds her at this moment from full expression of that devotion. She suffers as well as myself. It will be your privilege to put a term to this suffering by requesting me to join her, or by restoring her to me. To do otherwise will be to prolong the eclipse of my genius, and thereby outrage the conscience of civilised humanity which breathlessly awaits the next utterance of its chosen poet. If you require the consolation of feminine society, marry—it would be very simple—some white‐souled, English miss. But restore to me, to whom her presence is indispensable, this woman of regal passions. I shall present myself at your house to‐day to receive your answer in person. The result of a refusal, on your part, to receive me will be attended by calamitous consequences to yourself.—Accept, monsieur, the expression of my highest consideration,
For the moment Richard saw red, mad with rage at the insolence of the writer. And then came the question, was it true, that which this letter implied? Had Helen, indeed, lied to him? page: 465 And, notwithstanding its insane vanity, did this precious epistle give a more veracious account of her relation to the young poet than that which she had herself volunteered? He tried to put the thought from him. Who was he—to‐day of all days—to be nice about the conduct of another? Who was he to sit in judgment? So he turned to his correspondence again, taking another letter, at random, from the pile. And then, looking at the superscription, he turned somewhat sick.
"MON CHER,"— wrote M. de Vallorbes,—"My steward informs me that he has just received your draft for a quarter's rent of the villa. I thank you a thousand times for your admirable punctuality. Decidedly you are of those with whom it is a consolation to do business. Need I assure you that the advent of this money is far from inopportune, since a grateful country, while showering distinctions upon me with one hand, with the other picks my pocket? I find it not a little expensive this famous military service! But then, ever since I can remember, I have found all that afforded me the slightest active pleasure equally that! And this sport of war, I promise you, is the most excellent sport in which I have as yet participated. It satisfies the primitive instincts more thoroughly than even your English fox‐hunting. A battue of Communards is obviously superior to a battue of pheasants. To the dignity of killing one's fellow‐men is added the satisfaction of ridding oneself of vermin. It becomes a matter of sanitation and self‐respect. And this, indirectly, recalls to me, that report declares my wife to be with you at Naples. Mon cher je vous en fais câdeau. With you, at least, I know that my honour is safe. You may even instil into her mind some faint conception of the rudiments of morality. To be frank with you, she needs that. A couple of months ago she did me the honour to elope—temporarily, of course—with M. Paul Destournelle. You may have glanced, one day, at his crapulous verses. I suppose honour demanded that I should pursue the guilty pair and account for one, if not both, of them. But I was too busily engaged with my little Communards. We set these gentry up against a wall and dispose of them in batches.. I have had a good deal of this, but, as I say, it has not yet become monotonous. Traits of individual character lend it vivacity. And then, putting aside the exigencies of my profession, I do not know that anything is to be gained by inviting public scandal. You have an English proverb to the effect that one should wash one's dirty linen at home. This I have tried to do, as you cannot but be aware, all along. If one has had the page: 466 misfortune to marry Messalina, one learns to be philosophic. A few lovers more or less, in that connection, what, after all, does it matter? Indeed, I begin to derive ironical consolation from the fact of their multiplicity. The existence of one would have constituted a reflection upon my charms. But a matter of ten, fifteen, twenty, ceases to be in any degree personal to myself. Only I object to Destournelle. He is too young, too rococco. He represents a descent in the scale. I prefer des hommes mures, generals, ministers, princes. The devil knows we have had our share of such! Your generosity to her has saved us from Jews so far, and from nouveaux riches, by relieving the business of commercial aspects. Give her some salutary advice, therefore, mon cher, and if she becomes inconvenient forward her to Paris. I forgive to seventy‐times‐seven, being still proud enough to struggle after an appearance of social and conjugal decency. Enfin it is a relief to have unburdened myself for once, and you have been the good genius of my unfortunate ménage, for which Heaven reward you.—Yours, in true cousinly regard and supreme reliance on your discretion,
That this, in any case, had a stamp of sincerity upon it, Richard could not doubt. It must be admitted that he had long ceased to accept Madame de Vallorbes' estimate of her husband with unqualified belief. But, be that as it might, whether he were a consummate, or merely an average profligate, one thing was certain that this man trusted him—Richard Calmady,—and that he—Richard Calmady—had very vilely betrayed that trust. He stared at the letter, and certain sentences in it seemed to sear him, even as the branding‐iron used on a felon might. This was a new shame, different to, and greater than, any his deformity had ever induced in him, even as evil done is different to, and greater than, evil suffered. Morality may be relative only and conventional. Honour, for all persons of a certain standing and breeding, remains absolute. And it was precisely of his own honour that he had deprived himself. Not only in body, but in character, he was henceforth monstrous. For a while Richard had remained very still, looking at this thing into which he had made himself as though it were external and physically visible to him.
Then, suddenly, he had reached out his hand for his mother's letter. A decision of great moment was impending. He would know what she had to say before finally making that decision. He wondered bitterly, grimly, whether her words page: 467 would plunge him yet deeper in this abyss of self‐hatred and self‐contempt.
"MY DARLING,"—she wrote,—"I am foolishly glad to learn that you are back at Naples. It gives me comfort to know you are even thus much nearer home and in a country where I too have travelled and of which I retain many dear and delightful recollections. You may be surprised, perhaps, to see the unaccustomed address upon my notepaper and may wonder what has made me guilty of deserting my post. Now, since the worst of it is certainly over, I may tell you that my health has failed a good deal of late. Nothing of a really serious nature—you need not be alarmed about me. But I had got into a rather weak and unworthy state, from which it became very desirable I should rouse myself. Selfishness is insidious, and none the less reprehensible because it takes the apparently innocent form of sitting in a chair with one's eyes shut! However that best of men, John Knott, brought very bracing influences to bear on me, convincing me of sin—in the gentlest way in the world—by means of Honoria St. Quentin. And so I picked myself up, dear Dickie,—picked the whole of myself up, as I hope, always saving and excepting my self‐indulgent inertia,—and came away here to Ormiston. At first, I confess, I felt very much like a dog at a fair, or the proverbial mummy at a feast. But they all bore with me in the plenty of their kindness; and, in the last week, I have banished the mummy and trained the scared dog to altogether polite and pretty behaviour. Till I came back to it, I hardly realised how truly I loved this place. How should it be otherwise? I met your father first here after his third term at Eton. I remember he snubbed me roundly. I met him again the year before our marriage. Without vanity I declare that then he snubbed me not one little bit. These things are very far away. But to me, though far away, they are very vivid and very lovely. I see them as you, when you were small, so often pleaded to see a fairy landscape by looking through the large end of the gold and tortoiseshell spy‐glass upon my writing‐table. All of which may seem to you somewhat childish and trivial, but I grow an old woman and have a fancy for toys and tender make‐believes—such as fairy landscapes seen through the big end of a spy‐glass. The actual landscape, at times, is a trifle discouragingly rain‐blotted and cloudy!—Roger and Mary are here. Their two boys are just gone back to school again. They are fine, courteous, fearless, little fellows. Roger makes a rather superb middle‐aged man. He has much of my father— page: 468 your grandfather's reticence and dignity. Indeed, he might prove slightly alarming, was one not so perfectly sure of him, dear creature. Mary remains, as of old, the most wholesome and helpful of women. Yes, it is good to dwell, for a time, among one's own people. And I cannot but rejoice that my eldest brother has come to an arrangement by which, at his death, your uncle William will receive a considerable sum of money in lieu of the property. This last will go direct to Roger, and eventually to his boys. If your uncle William had a son, the whole matter would be different. But I own it would hurt me that in the event of his death there should be no Ormiston at Ormiston after these many generations. In all probability the place would be sold immediately, for it is an open secret that, through no fault of his own, poor man, William is sadly embarrassed in money matters. And he has other sorrows—of a rather terrible nature, since they are touched with disgrace. But here you will probably detect a point of prejudice, so I had best stop!—I look out upon a grey, northern sea, where 'the white horses fume and fret' under a cold, grey, northern sky. The oaks in the park are just thickening with yellow‐green buds. And there, close to my window, perched on a topmost twig, a missel‐thrush is singing, facing the wind like a gentleman. You look out upon a purple sea, I suppose, beneath clear skies and over orange trees and palms. I wonder if any brave bird pipes to you as my storm‐cock to me? It brings up one's courage to hear his song, so strong and wild and sweet, in the very teeth of the gale too! But now you will have had enough of my news and more than enough. I write to you more freely, you see, than for a long time past, being myself more free of spirit. And therefore I dare add this, in all and every case, my darling, God keep you. And remember, should you weary of wandering, that not only the doors of Brockhurst, but the doors of my heart, stand forever wide open to welcome you home.—Yours always,
Reading which gentle, yet in a sense daring, words, Richard's shame took on another complexion, but one by no means calculated to mitigate the burning of it. His treachery towards de Vallorbes became almost vulgar and of small moment beside his cruelty to this superbly magnanimous woman, his mother. For, all these years, determinately and of set purpose, defiant of every better impulse, he had hardened his heart against her. To differ from her, to cherish that which was unsympathetic to her, to put aside every tradition in which she had nurtured him, page: 469 to love that which she condemned, to condemn that which she loved—and this, if silently, still unswervingly—had been the ruling purpose of his action. That which had its origin in passionate revolt against his own unhappy disfigurement, had come to be an interest and object in itself. In this quarrel with her—a quarrel intimate, pre‐natal, anterior to consciousness and to volition—he found the justification of his every lapse, his every crookedness of conduct and of thought. Since he could not reach Almighty God, and strike at the eternal First Cause which he held responsible for the inalienable wrong done to him, he would strike, with cold‐blooded persistence, at the woman whom Almighty God had permitted to be His instrument in the infliction of that wrong. And to where had that sustained purpose of striking led him? Even—so he judged just now—to the dishonour and desolation of to‐day, following upon the sacrilegious licence of last night.
All this Richard saw with the alternately groping, benumbed, mental vision and the glaring, mental nakedness of breeding fever. Small wonder that looking for comfort, for promise of restoration, he found none in things material, in things intellectual, in others, or in himself! He felt outcasted beyond hope of redemption; but not repentant, hardly remorseful even, only aware of all that which had happened, and of his own state. For Lady Calmady's letter was to him little more, as yet, than a placing of facts. To trade upon her magnificent generosity of affection, and seek refuge in those outstretched arms now, with the mark of the branding‐iron so sensibly upon him, appeared to him of all contemptible doings the most radically contemptible. Obviously it was impossible to go back. He must go on rather—out of sight, out of mind. Fantastic schemes of disappearing, of losing himself, far away in remote and nameless places, among the coral islands of the Pacific or the chill majesty of the Antarctic seas, offered themselves to his imagination. The practical difficulties presented by such schemes, their infeasibility, did not trouble him. He would sever all connection with that which had been, with that which had made for good equally with that which had made for evil. By his own voluntary act and choice he would become as a man dead, the disgrace of his malformed body, the closer and more hideous disgrace of his defiled and prostituted soul, surviving in legend merely, as might some ugly, old‐time fable useful for the frightening of unruly babes.
And to that end of self‐obliteration he instantly applied himself, with outward calm, but with the mental hurry and restless‐ page: 470 ness of increasing illness. His first duty was to end the whole matter of his relation to Helen,—Helen shorn of her divinity, convicted liar and wanton, yet mistress still for him, as he feared, of mighty enchantments. So he wrote to her very briefly. The note should be given her later in the day. In it he stated that he should have left the villa before this announcement reached her, left it finally and without remotest prospect of return, since he could not doubt that she recognised, as he did, how impossible it had become that he and she should meet again. He added that he would communicate with her shortly as to business arrangements. That done, he summoned Powell, his valet, bidding him pack. He would go down to the yacht at once. He had received information which made it imperative he should quit Naples immediately.
To be out of all this, rid of it, fairly started on the road of negation of social being, negation of recognised existence, infected him like a madness. But even the most forceful human will must bend to stupidities of detail and of material fact. Unexpected delays had occurred. The yacht was not ready for sea, neither coaled, nor provisioned, nor sound of certain small damages to her machinery. Vanstone, the captain, might mislay his temper, and the first mate expend himself in polysyllabic invective, young Penberthy cease to dream, stewards, engineers, carpenters, cooks, quartermasters, seamen, firemen, do their most willing and urgent best, nevertheless the morning of next day, and even the afternoon of it, still found Richard Calmady seated at the locker‐table of the white‐walled deck‐cabin, his voyage towards self‐obliteration not yet begun.
Charts were out‐spread before him, upon which, at weary intervals, he essayed to trace the course of his coming wanderings. But his brain was dull, he had no power of consecutive thought. That same madness of going was upon him with undiminished power, yet he knew not where he wanted to go, hardly why he wanted to go, only that a blind obsession of going drove him. He was miserably troubled about other matters too—about that same brief letter he had written to Helen before leaving the villa. He was convinced that he had written such a letter; but struggle as he might to remember the contents of it they remained to him a blank. He was haunted by the fear that in that letter he had committed some irremediable folly, had bound himself to some absurdly unworthy course of action. But what it might be escaped and, in escaping, tortured him. And then, this surely was Friday, and Morabita sang at the San Carlo to‐night? And surely he had promised to page: 471 be there, and to meet the famous prima donna and sup with her after the performance, as in former days at Vienna? He had not always been quite kind to her, poor, dear, fat, good‐natured, silly soul! He could not fail her now.—And then he went back to a chart of the South Pacific again. Only he could not see it plainly, but saw, instead of it, the great folio of copper‐plate engravings lying on the broad window‐seat of the eastern bay of the Long Gallery at home. He was sitting there to watch for the racehorses coming back from exercise, Tom Chifney pricking along beside them on his handsome cob. And the long‐ago, boyish desperation of longing for wholeness, for freedom, brought a moistness to his eyes, and a lump into his throat. And all the while the coal dust drifted in at each smallest crevice and aperture; and the air was vibrant with rasping, jarring uproar and nauseous with the stale, heavy odours of the city and the port. And steadily, ceaselessly, the descending rain drummed upon the roofing overhead.
At length a stupor took him. His head sank upon his arms, folded upon those outspread charts, while the noise of all the rude activities surrounding him subtly transformed itself into that of a great orchestra. And above this, superior to, yet nobly supported by it, Morabita's voice rose in the suave and passionate phrases of the glorious cavatina—"Ernani, Ernani, involami, all'abborito ampleso."—Yes, her voice was as good as ever! Richard drew a long breath of relief. Here at least, was something true to itself; and amid so much of change, so much of spoiling, still unspoilt!—He raised his head and listened. For something must have happened, something of serious moment. The orchestra, for some unaccountable reason, had suddenly broken down. Yes, it must be the orchestra which disaster had overtaken, for a voice very certainly continued. No, not a voice, but voices—those of Vanstone the captain, and Price the first mate, and old Billy Jinn the boatswain—loud, imperative, violently remonstrant; but swept under and swamped at moments by cries and volleys of foulest, Neapolitan argot from hoarse, Neapolitan throats. And that abruptly silenced orchestra?—Richard came back to himself, came back to actualities of environment and prosaic fact. An infinitely weariful despair seized him. For the sound that had reached so sudden a termination was not that of cunningly‐attuned musical instruments, but the long‐drawn, chattering rush of the coal, pitched from the baskets down the echoing, iron shoots.
The cabin door opened discreetly and Powell, incarnation of page: 472 decorous punctualities even amid existing tumultuously discomposing circumstances, entered.
"From the villa, sir," he said, depositing letters and newspapers upon the table.
Richard put out his hand, turned them over mechanically. For again, somehow, and notwithstanding the babel without, that exquisite invitation—"Ernani, Ernani, involami,"—assailed his ears.
The valet waited a little, quiet and deferential in bearing, yet observing his master with a certain keenness and anxiety.
"I saw Mr. Bates, as you desired, sir," he said at last.
Richard looked up at him vaguely. And it struck him that while Powell was on shore to‐day he had undoubtedly had his hair cut. This interested him—though why, he would have found it difficult to say.
"Mr. Bates thought you should be informed that a gentleman called early yesterday afternoon, as he said by appointment."
Yes—certainly Powell had had his hair cut.—"Did the gentleman give his name?"
"Yes, sir, M. Paul Destournelle."
Powell spoke slowly, getting his tongue carefully round the foreign syllables, and, for all the confusion of his hearer's mind, the name went home. Vagueness passed from Richard's glance.
"He was refused, of course."
"Her ladyship had given orders that should any person of that name call he was to be admitted."—Powell spoke with evident reluctance. "Consequently Mr. Bates was uncertain how to act, having received contrary orders from you, sir, the day before yesterday. He explained this to her ladyship, but she insisted."
Richard's mind had become perfectly lucid.
"Very well," he said coldly.
"Mr. Bates also thought you should know, sir, that after M. Destournelle's visit her ladyship announced she should not remain at the villa. She left about five o'clock, taking her maid. Charles followed with all the baggage."
The valet paused. Richard's manner was decidedly discouraging, yet, something further must at least be intimated.
"Her ladyship gave no address to Mr. Bates for the forwarding of her letters."
But here the cabin door, left slightly ajar by Powell, was opened wide, and that with none of the calm and discretion displayed by the functionary in question. A long perspective of page: 473 grimy deck behind him, his oilskins shiny from the wet, with trim black beard, square‐made, bold‐eyed, hot‐tempered, warm‐hearted, alert, humorous—typical West Countryman as his gentle dreamy cousin, Penberthy, the second mate, though of a very different type—stood Captain Vanstone. His easily‐ruffled temper suffered from the after effects of what is commonly known as a "jolly row," and his speech was curt in consequence thereof.
"Sorry to disturb you, Sir Richard," he said, "and still more sorry to disappoint you, but it can't be helped."
Dickie turned upon him so strangely drawn and haggard a countenance, that Vanstone with difficulty repressed an exclamation. He looked in quick inquiry at the valet, who so far departed from his usual decorum as to nod his head in assent to the silent questioning.
"What's wrong now?" Richard said.
"Why, these beggarly rascals have knocked off. Price offered them a higher scale of pay. I had empowered him to do so. But they won't budge. The rain's washed the heart out of them. We've tried persuasion and we've tried threats—it's no earthly use. Not a basket more coal will they put on board before five to‐morrow morning."
"Can't we sail with what we have got?"
"Not enough to carry us to Port Said."
"What will be the extent of the delay this time?" Richard asked. His tone had an edge to it.
Again Captain Vanstone glanced at the valet.
"With luck we may get off to‐morrow about midnight."
He stepped back, shook himself like a big dog, scattering the water off his oilskins in a shower upon the slippery deck. Then he came inside the cabin and stood near Richard. His expression was very kindly, tender almost.
"You must excuse me, sir," he said. "I know it doesn't come within my province to give you advice. But you do look pretty ill, Sir Richard. Everyone's remarking that. And you are ill, sir—you know it, and I know it, and Mr. Powell here knows it. You ought to see a doctor, sir—and if you'll pardon plain language, this beastly cess‐pit of a harbour is no fit place for you to sleep in."
And poor Dickie, after an instant of sharp annoyance, touched by the man's honest humanity smiled upon him—a smile of utter weariness, utter hopelessness.
"Perfectly true. Get me out to sea then, Vanstone. I shall be better there than anywhere else," he said.page: 474
Whereupon the kindly sailor‐man turned away swearing gently into his trim, black beard.
But the valet remained, impassive in manner, actively anxious at heart.
"Have you any orders for the carriage, sir?" he asked. "Garçia drove me down. I told him to wait until I had inquired."
Richard was long in replying. His brain was all confused and clouded again, while again he heard the voice of the famous soprano—"Ernani, Ernani, involami."
"Yes," he said at last. "Tell Garçia to be here in good time to drive me to the San Carlo. I have an appointment at the opera to‐night."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Thursday, 24 May 2012
ISC'12 Hamburg Preview
I will be attending, along with several of my NAG colleagues. Will you be attending? What will you be looking to learn? I will be listening out for these five key topics.
GPU vs MIC vs Other
As at ISC'11 last year (and SC11), I think there will be a strong fight for attention in the key area of manycore/GPU devices - and a matching search for evidence of real progress. So far the loudest voice has been NVidia and CUDA, especially following NVidia's successful GTC event recently. However, interest in Intel's MIC (Knights Corner) is strong and growing - MIC has often been a big discussion topic in workshops, conferences and meetings over the last year. As the MIC product launch gets closer, people will be making obvious comparisons with NVidia's Kepler announced at the GTC.
What about others - will anyone else develop a strong voice in this manycore world? AMD Fusion? ARM? DSP-based products? Will we talk with the same energy about the software issues of manycore, or just the hardware choices?
What is happening with Exascale?
The quest to attain exascale computing rumbles on. I'd expect exascale to take a big share of the debate and agenda at ISC'12. What is happening with the exascale programs around the world? How are the budgets in the weak global economy affecting the exascale ambition? How are the various national pride (I mean national competitiveness) efforts towards exascale progressing? Will the software challenges get the level of investment needed? What new technologies will emerge to be studied as candidates to solve part of the problems getting to exascale?
Is exascale so old hat - do we need to move to discussion of zettaFLOPS to be trendy now? Will zettaFLOPS be impossible (Sterling) or inevitable (Barr)? Maybe we should spare some discussion for making multi-petaFLOPS work properly first?
Top 500, Top 10, Tens of PetaFLOPS
Will any of the next batch of supercomputers vying for title of most powerful in the world leap from the shadows at ISC'12? Will the Top 500 have a new leader? What about the 10/20/30 petaFLOPS systems in build? Has K grown since SC11? Is Sequoia fully built yet? Is Jaguar still Jaguar or has it morphed into Titan? Will it be called Jagan or Tituar if it has only partly morphed? Mira? Blue Waters? Etc.?
Or will there be other big new entries in the Top 10? I believe there will be at least one new multi-petaFLOPS entry in the Top 10. And I'm sure there will be several new entries in the Top50.
Finding the advantage in software
We will hear about applications of HPC to a wide range of problems - academic research, industrial research and engineering, etc. But will we learn how software has enabled those successes? Or will we focus only on the big machines that the software ran on? What about the computational software engineering skills needed? Or the pre/post-processing and workflow challenges? Without attention to these broader aspects of HPC, we are left only with a big box of computers and an electricity bill - much less powerful than a balanced portfolio of supercomputers + software + people + ...
Big Data and HPC
Some of you will have heard me say over the last few months that "cloud" is a buzzword of the past now, as was "green computing" before it. Marketing departments need a new catchphrase to use. I believe "Big Data" is that new buzzword. Just as broad swathes of the HPC product space were labelled "cloud solutions" last year, so will they be mandated to be "big data" solutions this year. Am I joking? Partly. Am I cynical? Of course. Am I right? Probably.
There is a serious side to this too - big data is potentially a huge user of HPC technologies - and HPC in turn generates big data. So the cross-over is real. We just need to seek out the nuggets of value and genuine new solutions among the buzzword deluge.
What will you be looking out for at ISC'12? Leave a comment or get in touch for a direct conversation with me or NAG.
2 comments:
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.ReplyDelete
- Wolfgang Gentzsch27 May 2012 at 08:59
Andrew, thanks, these are my key topics as well. I have a sixth one: "HPC going mainstream", a buzz for quite some years, but still not really here. We are seeing the 'few' big users all the time, but not the many small ones. So in Hamburg I will look especially for industrial HPC use cases, especially from the SMEs. The more I find, the more I get confident that it will come...ReplyDelete
"Big Data and HPC" is similar, for many years we are seeing the few big ones (e.g. in business analytics) but not really the many small ones.
BTW, if you want to see at least a good handful of each, stop by ISC's child (or spin-off), the ISC Cloud Conference in September in Mannheim, http://www.isc-events.com/cloud12/, with HPC and Big Data in the Cloud. We have tried hard to invite those speakers with real experience presenting their HPC Cloud use cases.
NAG moderates all replies and reserves the right to not publish posts that are deemed inappropriate.


text:
Feeding Old Horses
2017 Mid-Atlantic Nutrition Conference Takes Place April 5-6
February 10, 2017
Equine lecture topics will include feeding endocrine-challenged horses, allergies, equine aging, supplements, and more.... Read More
Feed Tags: Four Components to Evaluate
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How Much Grain Should I Feed My Colic-Prone Horse?
January 16, 2017
An owner with a colicky horse is worried that grain could be the culprit and wants to know how much to feed.... Read More
Resolve to Weigh Your Horse's Feed
January 09, 2017
Do you want to make sure your horse is getting the right amount of feed? Use a scale!... Read More
Diseases That Affect Nutrient Delivery in Horses
January 08, 2017
Watch for these conditions that impact nutrient absorption and lead to weight loss.... Read More
Feeding Older Horses With PPID, IR, or Metabolic Disease
January 02, 2017
Are there any parameters for offering senior feeds to horses diagnosed with Cushing's and laminitis?... Read More
When is an Older Horse Ready for Senior Feed?
December 19, 2016
As horses age, they might require additional nutritional support. Get advice for feeding senior horses.... Read More
The Science Behind Equine Supplements
December 15, 2016
Manufacturers make many claims, but do supplements really work? We'll look at the research and answer your questions!... Read More
Risks Associated With Feeding Horses Traditional Bran Mashes
December 12, 2016
While steeped in tradition, feeding bran mashes can cause GI distress in horses. Learn why, and discover alternatives.... Read More
Equine Weight Management: Facts and Fiction
December 11, 2016
Are you trying to help your horse gain or lose weight? Here are some facts and fallacies to consider.... Read More
Can Fat Help Horses Gain Weight in Winter?
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Find out how to safely feed horses fat and if it's a good weight-gain solution.... Read More
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A reader asks about the risks and benefits of her horse eating a favorite treat: grapefruit. Our nutritionist weighs in.... Read More
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Poll Recap: Weighty Feed Options
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Human nutritionists encourage eating whole foods and avoiding processed ones. Does the same logic apply to our horses?... Read More
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text:
Follow these steps and your trip will be a breeze.
Arrive a few minutes early at the designated stop and wait where the operator can see you.
As the bus approaches, check the number and destination written on the front of the bus. Make sure it is the line you want.
Be ready with cash, valid bus pass, E Pass or activated GoPass for smoother boarding access.
We are not able to issue change or refunds for cash overpayments.
As the bus approaches, stay back from the curb and wait for it to reach a complete stop before boarding.
When you are ready to get off, push the plastic strip near the window to request the next stop.
When exiting, gather personal items and leave through the exit door at the rear of the bus.
If you need help knowing what route to take, call Customer Service at 817.215.8600. Our helpful representatives are available to help plan your trip, by phone, from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The Customer Service kiosk, inside the ITC (Intermodal Transportation Center) is open from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and closed on Sunday.
If you ride only in The T's Downtown Free Zone, there is no need for fare. The Free Zone includes all of the Central Business District, bounded on the south by Lancaster Ave., west by Henderson St., north by Belknap and east by Jones St.


text:
Jelly Bud Earphones
Amazing jelly earbuds!!! Each is made from silicone and has a in-ear design that is made to fit in your ear! Perfect for Ipods, MP3 players, etc! Each comes in either pink, blue, or black and a 48 inch cord. Excellent sound quality and WAREHOUSE DIRECT! These are CLEARANCE items that are selling for far cheaper that they would at ANY store. Don't be fooled by the cheap Ebay rip offs with...
Arriva Sports Stereo Headphones - iPod / MP3 / Shuffle wired headphones
* Headphones iPod, MP3 player headphones * Sports stereo headphones. * Comfortable to wear all day long. * Our design fits like a soft spring. * One size fits all. * Compacts, stores anywhere. * Plugs into any standard 1/8" (3.5mm) headphone jack. * Our discreet design is almost unnoticeable to others. * Utility patent pending.


text:
Took my first (on purpose) fall bird this evening, a nice jake of the year.
Today was the only day this week I didn't have meetings at work: I took that as a sign that I was meant to go hunting.
Left the house at 5:00 AM with a plan to hit some of the public land I had scouted during the summer. Arrived at the first spot at 20 to 6:00 to find trucks parked at both ends. Assuming they are bowhunters and not wanting to bugger their hunts, I turn around. The second spot on my list, is only 5 minutes away. As I was unloading another truck pulled up and two more bowhunters stepped out (apparently everyone else had a meeting free agenda today as well...), so I walked over to see where their stands were. Turned out they were tracking a deer they had shot the evening before, and were heading to the opposite side of the public from where I wanted to go.
It was windy all day, which made hearing birds difficult. I heard nothing on the roost or at flydown. After a few 1/2 hr calling sessions with no responses, I started trolling around the area. The habitat looked good, I was surprised to not hear any birds or even find any sign. Around 8:00 I decided to head over to another piece of public ground I had scouted. On the way I drove past one of the farms I have permission to hunt to see how much progress they were making on getting the crops out. Just down the road from the farm I did a double take: about 30 birds picking bugs in a back pasture a couple hundred yards from the road.
The second piece of public ground also turned out to be a bust. I covered most of it in a couple hours, again no birds seen or heard. Not even a feather or a track seen. 11:00 AM found me sitting in the truck eating a sandwich for lunch and thinking about where to head next. I finally decided on another piece of public ground where I had seen a few birds two weeks before (I was purposefully avoiding the private ground I have permission on as I had hit them pretty hard on opening weekend, and wanted to give those birds a bit of a rest). By chance I happened to be driving down the same road I had taken earlier. The birds in the pasture had been replaced by a couple dozen cows, but there was a truck in the driveway. I figured what the hell, and pulled into the driveway. The farmer was very friendly and after a nice 15 minute talk he told me It'd be fine if I hunted his land this fall, as long as I was careful about the cows. A handshake and a few smiles later and I was headed through the cattle gate and into the pasture.
The wind is blowing pretty good by now, making hearing difficult, but over the next few hours I manage to make contact with a couple groups of turkeys (one a brood hen with her poults, and a group of bigger birds that I didn't get a solid ID on. Last year's jakes maybe?) while slowly walking and calling while staying as hidden as possible. The birds where pretty chatty when I could get close enough to hear them, but a shot never did present itself (the safety came off twice...) and both groups eventually drifted away. I attempted to scatter the larger birds for a recall attempt, but they were wise to that game and I couldn't get close enough before they all winged off together to the next ridge over.
I spent the last hour sitting in the shade at a trail crossroads cat napping, enjoying the weather, and throwing out some gobbler yelps and clucks every now and then. I packed it up at 5:00 pm so I could be home at a reasonable time and started the walk out. About halfway back to the pasture gate I thought I heard purring coming down the wind. A few steps later and I was sure of it. I could hear flapping wings and clucking, and caught a glimpse of birds jumping around 100 yards ahead and off to the side of the wheeler trail I was walking. I eased over to the side of the trail and began to slowly close the distance, screened from the birds by the saplings and undergrowth that lined much of the trail. At 50 yards distance I sat down, put my gun on my knee and let out a short series of jake cuts, rolled into a kee kee run, and threw in a fighting purr for good measure. Everything goes silent and I take a breath to kee kee run again when 12 birds round the corner in a dead sprint right at me. A single cluck stops them in their tracks at 30 yards, and they up periscope. The lead jake drops at the shot and the rest take wing in all directions. I sit there for a minute to make sure they've all moved off, then get up and walk over to the jake. I slit the time and date on the tag, fix it to his leg, and place him over my shoulder to resume the walk out. The first kee kee run rings out 100 yards up the ridge, followed by a second, then a third. I smile. With two more tags in my pocket I am certainly tempted, but no, it's a long season. The birds aren't going anywhere. I turn and head down the wheeler trail towards the pasture gate, listening to the recall going on without me...
I think I am starting to like this fall thing.


text:
By Ben Levisohn
It's been years since developing nation's last faced a crisis. They could be heading for one again.
First, a little history, courtesy of Robbert van Batenburg, director of market strategy at Newedge. Back in the early 1990s, he writes:
Many Emerging Markets had enjoyed massive inflows of speculative capital, comforted by the fixed exchange rates many of these countries maintained and lured in by the higher growth and interest rates. The influx of cheap capital created over-leveraged economies in Asia and rising current account deficits. Once the capital flows reversed, a credit crunch ensued, the currencies collapsed and bankruptcies soared. Many Asian countries made futile attempts to support their own currency by raising interest rates to excessively high levels and buying their own currency with their foreign reserves. The high interest rates further damaged their economy and did nothing to halt the outflow of capital. Ultimately many Asian currencies and stock markets collapsed.
The setup is looking quite similar today, van Batenburg argues. Investment, which came close to $3.9 trillion from 2009 through the end of 2012, is now reversing. Some $1.9 billion has left emerging-market funds during the past three weeks, the result of slowing growth in China and higher interest rates in the U.S.
Out the two together and you have the makings of a crisis in emerging markets, van Batenburg says. He writes:
The virtuous cycle of growth and capital inflows into Emerging Markets is now in reverse due to two simultaneous events; The Fed's gradual unwinding of its double dose of QE and the significant slowdown of the Chinese economy. If the capital flight escalates, it could risk an old fashioned crisis in several Emerging Markets.
Who's most at risk? van Batenburg looks to Latin America.
Today we find many of the most vulnerable emerging markets in Latin America. Brazil is exceptionally vulnerable due to its mercantilist policies, deteriorating trade balance and high dependency on commodity exports. Peru and Mexico are overly reliant on foreign capital, as foreigners own the majority of their government debt.
He also worries about South Africa, "given its deteriorating trade balance, reliance on commodities and overleveraged household sector." The iShares S&P Latin America 40 Index ETF (ILF) has fallen 2.4% to $34.80 today, while the iShares MSCI Mexico Capped Investable Market ETF (EWW) has dropped 2.7% to $58.25, the iShares MSCI Brazil Capped Index ETF (EWZ) has dipped 2.7% to $42.74, the iShares MSCI All Peru Capped Index ETF (EPU) has fallen 2.4% to $33.25 and the iShares MSCI South Africa Index ETF (EZA) is off 2.1% to $54.17.
Also at risk: Banks with more than half their revenue coming from emerging markets. That includes BBVA (BBVA), Banco Bradesco (BBD) and Itau Unibanco (ITUB).


text: Clf growles on just about every retreive, on the way there mostly but still at least 1/2 the time on the way back too. Loves to play if she wants lol. She will also try to get the bumpers off of the smartworks vids before the screen dog dose, was funny at first buy satrted to get a little out of hand when she tried to jump into the screen. this was taken at 12/13 weeksAttachment 9853


text:
Watch a Clip From 'Breaking Bad' Prequel 'Better Call Saul'
Saul Goodman is back, and he's as slick as ever. Well, sorta.
AMC Networks on Monday released a brief clip of its upcoming "Breaking Bad" prequel "Better Call Saul," showing Bob Odenkirk as the title ambulance chaser, who's sporting a bit more hair than we're used to, although he's not quite as smooth-talking. Oh, and his name is Jimmy McGill.
The series, which is scheduled to debut early next year, centers on the days before Saul became the "criminal" lawyer that worked with Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul). In the clip, we see Odenkirk trying to sell his services:
"Lawyers. We're like life insurance. You hope you never need it, but man oh man, not having it? No! Ha!"
Also returning with Odenkirk will be Jonathan Banks, reprising his role as fixer and hired muscle Mike Erhmantraut. The series recently was shooting in Albuquerque, N.M., the setting of "Breaking Bad," and has already been renewed for a second season. Cranston, meanwhile, told the Daily Beast that he will do some directing duties on "Better Call Saul," a role he had on some "Breaking Bad" episodes.
Follow @Michael_Calia on Twitter and write to firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Reuters' Biased Crops
The Gaza flotilla took place on the first day of HonestReporting's study of the AP, Reuters, and AFP/Getty's coverage of the region. Although the flotilla was undoubtedly the most covered and photographed event involving Israel since the 2008 Gaza War, this study will focus primarily on images originating from Israel and the Palestinian territories – with the exception of Reuters' questionably cropped photos taken on board the flotilla vessel, Mavi Marmara, which could not be ignored in a study of photo bias against Israel by the wire services.
The pictures were published during a period of intense public dispute between Israel and flotilla organizers over which side was responsible for the violence that ended in the deaths of nine flotilla passengers and injuries to seven IDF commandos. Israeli officials produced video evidence of soldiers being attacked viciously as they boarded the Mavi Marmara ship. Weapons were found on board the ship despite flotilla activists claiming to be unarmed.
In the first picture, published in a Turkish newspaper, notice the flotilla activist holding a knife in the lower right corner:
The same photo, originally released by Reuters, has been cropped so that the knife, and potentially evidence of the intentions of those on board the ship, is removed:
Within days, blogger Charles Johnson identified another cropped Reuters photo:
The picture is a cropped version of this photo from the website of the IHH, the Turkish Islamist organization responsible for the flotilla:
Reuters has cropped out a large knife and a big pool of blood as well as another badly injured Israeli soldier lying on the ground:
Both photos were originally obtained by the Turkish national newspaper Hurryet from the IHH. After Hurryet published the unedited photos, it sent them to the international wire services for distribution across the world. An editor at Reuters, either deliberately or mistakenly, decided to crop them. The version released by Reuters conformed with IHH claims that they were unarmed. When the crops were exposed, Reuters replaced the cropped photos with the originals. By then, however, the cropped photos had already been published in numerous print publications.
The Reuters crops were deemed sufficiently serious to prompt a complaint from Israel's Minister for Public Diplomacy Yuli Edelstein, who demanded an explanation from Tom Glocer, CEO of Thomson Reuters.
HonestReporting obtained Minister Edelstein's letter, as well as the response from David Schlesinger, Reuters Editor-In-Chief, who claimed the crops were an honest error. A portion of Schlesinger's response is worth noting in the study:
Minister Edelstein, I can assure you that Reuters 2,800 journalists subscribe to and believe in our Trust Principles which put as their highest value the provision of fair and unbiased news in all its forms – text, photo, and video.I think if you look at the totality of our coverage of this incident as well, you will see how seriously we take our professional responsibilities.
From monitoring over 2,000 images from Reuters alone during the course of our three month study, the truth is that Reuters' photo crops are only the tip of the iceberg of flawed and biased coverage of Israel.
Shooting for Dramatic Effect
The rest of this section will focus on images that originated in Israel and the Gaza Strip. One of the most striking features is the lack of balance. There are virtually no images expressing any pro-Israel perspective from the public, even those shot in parts of Israel. Images overwhelmingly portray Israel as the aggressor in the incident.
Few, if any, of these pictures appear worthy of inclusion in responsible coverage of the flotilla. In many cases, they appear to be little more than an opportunity to pour scorn on Israel. The picture below, together with its caption, is a case in point:
This photo from AFP/Getty in Gaza, taken more than a week after the initial confrontation aboard the Mavi Mamara, cynically exploits the suffering of a Palestinian child. The image bears no relationship to the flotilla, but the caption makes the tenuous link by accusing Israel of preventing the 10,000 tons of mainly medical supplies, hospital equipment and construction materials from reaching Gaza.
In reality, much of the medication had expired and many of the medical supplies had been poorly packaged and were rendered unusable. The caption, however, reinforces the claim that the flotilla was a humanitarian mission, not a political one.
In addition, it is vital to remember that photographers do not operate freely in Gaza which remains under strict Hamas control. It is reasonable to conclude that Hamas played a role in creating the image, either active or passive.
In other cases, such as the photo below, provocative – and completely unrelated – images like Israel's security barrier appear prominently alongside objects of peripheral relation, such as a discarded Turkish flag. The captions then focus attention on events not shown in the photos at all, turning the captions into mini-stories of their own.
The next sequence of images was taken in the aftermath of the initial incident aboard the Mavi Marmara.
This gentleman appears in a number of images throughout our three month study. The appearance of the photo is particularly questionable for an international news wire service that claims to be impartial and wants to "avoid any bias which may stem from control by specific individuals or interests."
Not only does it serve its purpose by showing a demonstrator who allegedly needs to use a wheelchair wearing his gas mask in the event that the IDF will fire tear gas to disperse the crowd and attack a disabled man, it also manages to incorporate the flotilla together with what the caption describes as "the controversial Israeli barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin near Ramallah," again making an artificial link that shows Israel in a bad light.
The two pictures below are actually the same image, one from the AP and the other from AFP/Getty. Here we have four particular elements – cancer, woman, child and crying – used to evoke an emotional response.
Only the AFP/Getty caption describes the woman as a cancer patient. However, the AP photo shows the child crying. No explanation is given for the child's tears, which could have been caused by the rush of photographers trying to take the same picture. Regardless of the reason, the tears contribute to the message that the photo subjects are victims of Israeli aggression.
Questioning Israel's Perspective
In addition to local coverage of reactions to the flotilla, the three wire services released photos taken from the IDF's video footage filmed from an army helicopter as Israeli commandos tried to board the Mavi Mamara and were viciously beaten by the passengers. The videos served as Israel's strongest evidence of aggression against its soldiers.
While it is common practice for wire services to indicate that the footage came from an outside source, the language of the captions casts some level of doubt about the contents of the video. Other images, including those supplied by the IHH that were later cropped by Reuters, do not contain the same language.
These are three of the pictures that highlight this example of bias. The first picture comes from Reuters and the second from AP. The third is from a pool photographer, released by the AP.
The first caption emphasizes the fact that the image is a frame grab "from an IDF video showing what the IDF says is a pro Palestinian activist hitting Israeli soldiers with a club-like object."
The AP picture states that it "shows what the IDF says is one of several commandos being dropped on to the Mavi Mamara ship."
Even the third image emphasizes that the IDF reviewed this picture before it was cleared for publication. No pictures from the West Bank or Gaza indicate they were reviewed by Hamas or any Palestinian body.
In addition, AP uses all capital letters for emphasis to indicate it cannot independently verify the pictures. It is a standard disclaimer for images that weren't produced by the wire service. However, no such disclaimer appears on photos filed by Palestinian stringers.
Read the whole of the Shattered Lens series:


text:
Family: Anatidae, Ducks and Geese view all from this family
Dimensions Length: 26-28" (66-71 cm)
Range Western Canada, Alaska, California, Northwest
Discussion Recalls blue morph Ross's or Snow Goose, but plumage is much smarter, adult having welldefined white head and hindneck, black throat and foreneck, and blue-gray body plumage with scalloped pattern created by feathers' black subterminal bands and white edges. Bering Sea specialty; breeds in eastern Siberia and western Alaska, winters on coasts of Aleutian Islands. Casual south to California.


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By The Associated Press
SOUTHAVEN — "It's awesome; I've never experienced anything like this," said Jeff Crow of the Hernando Point area as he, his wife, their 22-year-old son and a friend left the annual tree seedling giveaway in Southaven.
It's all future shade and beauty for his 10 acres in southwest DeSoto County.
"We got loblolly pines — we must have got 300, several kinds of oaks, and some magnolias," Crow told The Commercial Appeal. "There were a lot. One of my goals is to put some of these trees around my pond."
About 10,000 seedlings were given away Saturday in the Snowden Grove sports complex. About half of the 5,000 remaining will be distributed Friday in Tate County and half next week by the city of Olive Branch.
The event is sponsored by the federal Natural Resources Conservation Service, the DeSoto Soil and Water Conservation District and the county Board of Supervisors.
The district provided pines, river birch, Southern crabapple, pawpaw, sugarberry, pecan and magnolias. The Levee Board provided oaks — willow, water, shumard and saw-toothed oaks.
Hernando's community development director, Shelly Johnstone, also a master urban forester, was giving out Southern magnolias, one to a customer, and tips on planting and care.
"I've been doing the giveaway for seven years now, and it's nice to know how many trees will be planted in DeSoto County," she said. "They're good for everything from helping stormwater drainage to cutting air pollution — and trees are just pretty."


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Greenhouse GH-ERC-DMS
" I compared this ultra sound TwinBA IEM with UE700. UE700 and GH-ERC-DMS, both are dual/twin BA, but different tuned. audio source : iPod touch 4G 32GB and iPhone4G 32GB w/ ALAC or MP3 320KBps , 93~94dB normalized. Outlook and packaging: Oh, poor. outfit made with plastic and inner is seems to urethane. cable is really same as MEElec A151. ( shorter than..." --Raphael K
BUDCLICKS EARPHONE Panda
"Budclicks Earphone" is the best earphone which comes with Budclicks. Budclicks is new style accessary with the ability to click charms to earbuds. They allow kids, tweens, and adults to style up those bland white earbuds. The Budclick mount works on iPod and iPhone style white earbuds created by Apple. With over 150 million of these earbuds on the market Budclicks have appeal to just...


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By Shuli Ren
Maxim Group upgraded China's search engine Baidu (BIDU) to Buy with $200 price target. Baidu closed at $175.5 yesterday.
The research firm previously had reservations about Baidu mainly because of Baidu's declining margins. But Maxim's analyst Echo He changed his mind:
Despite margin pressure remaining in 2014, BIDU's positive drivers will likely outweigh negative drivers in the coming quarters. We believe BIDU should trade at peer average, instead of our previous view of a discount to peers.
For Internet companies, it is all about how successful they are at mobile. Maxim estimates that Baidu accounts for 57% of China's total mobile search market:
We believe China's mobile search is mainly through mobile browsers, mobile search apps, and other apps, each contributing 50%, 25%, and 25% of total mobile search queries, respectively. Based on our estimate, BIDU has a dominant share in browser-generated queries (69%) and mobile search app-generated queries (75%). Mobile search queries generated in other search apps, such as mobile maps, Dianping (private) app, and mobile video apps, represent an important but fragmented market. We estimate BIDU may contribute 15% thanks to its map. Combined we estimate BIDU accounts for ~57% of China's total mobile search queries.
The $200 price target implies 26.3 times Maxim's 2015 earnings estimate.


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Basque derby as Eibar host Athletic Bilbao. Added spice as both are challenging for a place in Europe next season. 23 ore ago
Celtic v Rangers in the Scottish Cup Semi-Final today. 1 zi ago
Chelsea meets Spurs today at Wembley in the FA Cup Semi-Final today with Chelsea going for the double once again. 2 zile ago
Nici fotbal melodii noi aici în ultima lună.
Prezintă un psalm


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Sunlight Data Services
We offer free APIs for a number of our projects and tools. Ready to get started? Sign up for a key on your right. Need some help? Learn more about APIs (a.k.a. application programming interfaces) in this Sunlight Academy tutorial video.
Scroll down for libraries and explore all of the Sunlight Labs open source projects on GitHub.
Capitol Words API
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The Capitol Words API is an API allowing access to the word frequency count data powering the Capitol Words project.
Congress API v3
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A live JSON API for the people and work of Congress. Information on legislators, districts, committees, bills, votes, as well as real-time notice of hearings, floor activity and upcoming bills.
Open States API
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Information on the legislators and activities of all 50 state legislatures, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Political Party Time API
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Provides access to the underlying, raw data that the Sunlight Foundation creates based on fundraising invitations collected in Party Time. As we enter information on new invitations, the database updates automatically.
Real-Time Federal Campaign Finance API
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A JSON and CSV API that delivers up-to-the-minute campaign finance information on federal candidates, committees, PACs and other groups that file electronically with the Federal Election Commission. Summary information for Senate candidate committees, which file on paper, is available as soon as they have been digitized by the FEC.
Docket Wrench API Deprecated
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Docket Wrench enables investigations into the rulemaking process of federal agencies with tracking of similar public comments and entity matching for a complete picture of their influence across millions of documents. Its API gives developers programmatic access to metadata for documents, dockets and agencies, as well as to Docket Wrench's clustering and text analysis tools.
Influence Explorer API Deprecated
API is experiencing degraded service
This API will be discontinued beginning January 1, 2016.
The Influence Explorer API gives programmers and journalists the ability to easily create subsets of large data for their own research and development purposes. The API currently offers campaign contributions and lobbying records with more data sets coming soon.


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|Research Interests
Please click here to see a current list of my publications.
My current research focuses on tissue engineering and the application of robotic technologies and advanced manufacturing processes to create technology-based solutions to challenging problems in health care delivery.
Current projects include:
Biological patterning of hormones using inkjet printing to guide stem cell fates; implantable biodegradable electronics; and computer vision-based cell tracking. I also apply inkjet printing to digital fabrication of organic electronics such as gas chemical sensors.
To effectively carry out this research, I work with multidisciplinary teams from The School of Computer Science (Robotics), The College of Engineering, and The Mellon College of Sciences.
|Research Interest Keywords
|medical robotics, MEMS, quality-of-life technology, rapid prototyping, tissue engineering
|The Robotics Institute is part of the School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University.
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Beantown: Day 2
Trip Start Feb 15, 2010
77Trip End Feb 14, 2011
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Brock and Jennapher's
Once I was at Boston University, I was making my way across the campus when I stumbled upon a chowder competition. About a dozen or more contestants from different groups in the university had made different chowders and anyone was welcome to step up and try them all before placing a vote on their favorite. I hadn't had anything to eat yet, so I figured a dozen or so dixie cups of chowder would really hit the spot
After the tour of the drama department's facilities, I walked around the campus a bit more and spent a half hour relaxing on a bench in the park along the Charles River before going to the school's visitor office for a campus tour. The campus tour led us through the various other common buildings of the university and gave a little more information on the school, but I still have a number of questions I will have to call about later.
Once I had left the school, I headed back to the Boston Common and got ahold of Brock. We made plans to meet up at the common and then go for dinner at a restaurant called Fajita's and 'Ritas. After dinner, we walked around the city for a while before stopping over at the bar that inspired the television show, Cheers. The bar was originally named the Bull and Finch Pub, but they eventually changed their name to match the show. After grabbing a drink there, we headed back to their apartment for the night and watched a few random youtube videos before turning in for the night.


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I can tell you the problem with the heath care "reform." The proposed legislation is 1,000 pages long! Hello! Gibbon's extraordinarily wordy and detailed description of "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" wasn't much longer. And it took six volumes and covered centuries. "War and Peace" came and went with fewer pages. "Gone with the Wind" was barely a thousand pages. And I couldn't make it through it; I fell asleep around about the time Scarlett took her third husband.
I was doing my early morning XM radio channel surfing when my ears caught a bouncy and light tune that also seem vaguely familiar. I turned around to view the window on my radio which revealed I was listening to an Aaron Copland piece. It was called "Duo for Flute and Piano."
I am writing to encourage readers to support efforts to offer health insurance for all Americans. I want to bypass arguments that have been made by experts on both sides.
This is a guts and glory appeal.
We need to address the health insurance issue the American way: Determine that we will do the right thing. With right on our side, figure out how to overcome the obstacles. Make it work right, rather than whimper about some imaginary doomsday.
A Midway restaurant was cited for seven critical violations, while a Gretna eatery received five during recent inspections by health inspectors from the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation.
Jeremy Vickers: Introduction of contraband into a detention facility, possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana
Willie Williams: False imprisonment, domestic assault
Sharum Moore: Armed robbery, grand theft
Alexi Deangelo Jackson: Dealing in stolen property
Manita Patterson: Violation of parole, grand theft, FTA/Obtaining property/Services by PWBC
Peter Clemons: False imprisonment, domestic assault and battery
Preparation is the key to winning.
That's the philosophy of Tavoris Cloud, International Boxing Federation Light Heavyweight Champion of the World. The Quincy native defeated Clinton Woods in a battle of punches for the championship belt at Seminole Hard Rock Casino Aug. 28 in Hollywood. The fight went the length, 12 rounds, before a unanimous decision from three judges was delivered.
East Gadsden High School's Jaguars brought home the first victory of the season after a run-in with the Marianna Bulldogs in a preseason classic last weekend.
In the first half of play, the teams faced off with Marianna hitting the field minus four starters due to injury or illness.
The Jags took the opening ball 80 years and landed the extra point to make the game 7-0 with 7 minutes left in the first quarter.
The Kick-Off Classic was supposed to be the proving ground for the West Gadsden High School Panthers. Unfortunately, inclement weather forced the referee to suspend the game with 3:10 left in the first quarter.
The Panthers found shelter in the "Dog House." It was pouring rain, but the mood inside the "Dog House" was optimistic. The Panthers were only able to run one series on both offense and defense. However, much was revealed in less than 9 minutes of play following about 3 weeks of practice.
Tallavana Christian School is pleased to announce the appointment of Sean Crowe as head boys basketball coach for the TCS Lions.
Crowe, a graduate of Purdue University, is an experienced coach having served as head junior varsity and freshman basketball coach and varsity assistant coach at Chiles High School in Leon County since 2002.
He is well-known in the community as a coach in the summer youth league.
Tallavana Christian School is seeking cheerleading and baseball coaches. If interested, forward your resume to Coach B. Wilford at tallavanacs@-gmail.com or fax to 539-8785.
QPRD football Draft Day will be held Sept. 5 at 9 a.m. at Corry Field for tackle football players ages 8-13 years old. All coaches, assistant coaches, players and parents are encouraged to attend.
All players must be registered with QPRD in order to participate. Players may register during the draft.
For more information, call 618-0042.
Copyright © 2017
The Gadsden County Times is your source for local news, sports, events and information in Gadsden County and Quincy, FL, and the surrounding area.


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Web Stories
'City of God' showing at Frist, Sept. 18-20
Posted September 16, 2003; 02:05 p.m.
The University Film Organization will show "City of God" in the Frist Campus Center theater at 9:15 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, Sept. 18-20.
The film tells the story of Rocket, a teen stuck in the crime-ridden slums of Rio de Janeiro who shoots the action on the streets with his weapon of choice -- a camera.
Tickets are $2 and are available two hours before show time at the Frist ticket office, (609) 258-1742.
For more information, contact Graham Phillips .
Contact: Eric Quinones (609) 258-3601


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California State Turkey Calling Championships
Saturday. Sept. 8th, 2012@ 3pm
Sportsman's Warehouse
6640 Lonetree Blvd. Rocklin, Ca. 95765
State, Friction, Hunter's and Junior divisions
Registration, $20 for State, Friction and Hunter's, Juniors are free!
Registration ends at 2pm day of contest, callers meeting at 2:30. Must be a current NWTF member, memberships available day of contest.
Top 3 callers in each division wil be awarded trophies and Sportsman's Warehouse gift cards.
For more contest information please contact NWTF Regional Director Brian Azevedo, (916)-295-4883 or firstname.lastname@example.com
Will be a great time, so please come out and compete or watch the show!!


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Although most of the world press has done an admirable job reporting on the developments of the Iranian nuclear program, the threat to both Israel and the world that Iran presents cannot be understated. This special report has been produced as a resource to use when discussing the Iran threat. It is currently unclear what actions, diplomatic or military, will eventually be used to stop the Iranian nuclear program. Nonetheless, everyone should be aware of the threat and Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons capability.
Time and time again, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has stated that Israel should not exist. Moreover, he has done so with no significant domestic dissent. When the leader of a sovereign nation makes unequivocal statements without domestic opposition, those statements serve as the basis of national policy. It is critical to note that Ahmadinejad's statements go beyond opposition to Israeli policies, he is speaking of Israel's very existence.
In 2005, much of the media reported his call for Israel (actually the "Zionist regime" since Iran refuses to use the word "Israel") to be "wiped off the face of the map" in a keynote address to the Iranian-government sponsored "World without Zionism" conference. Such sponsorship is, in itself, incitement to genocide. Neither the United States, Israel, or any other nation has ever sponsored a conference themed on the destruction of another country.
There are those who say that Ahmadinejad was misquoted. Yet in a June 11, 2006 analysis, New York Times deputy foreign editor Ethan Bronner concluded that:
Translators in Tehran who work for the president's office and the (Iranian) foreign ministry disagree with (those who say he was misquoted). All official translations of Mr. Ahmadinejad's statement refer to wiping Israel away.
At other times, Ahmadinejad has said:
- "The real cure for the conflict is elimination of the Zionist regime."
- "The way to peace in the Middle East is the destruction of Israel."
- "Like it or not, the Zionist regime is heading toward annihilation."
- "The Zionist regime is a rotten, dried tree that will be eliminated by one storm." (For sources of these quotes and more, see The Israel Project, Iran's Leaders: In their own words.")
In addition, almost all senior leaders of Iran have made similar statements. What is especially alarming is that these statements are not aimed at Israeli policies, but rather at the nation of Israel as a whole. As the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs has pointed out in its "Referral of Iranian President Ahmadinejad on the Charge of Incitement to Commit Genocide" (worth reading in it's entirety):
It is essential to distinguish between freedom to oppose a government and incitement to genocide. Verbal barrages (against a government) pose no existential threat to ordinary people in the street. Ahmadinejad's reckless anti-Semitic tirades that "the Jews are very filthy people,""[the Jews have] inflicted the most damage on the human race," "[the Jews are] a bunch of bloodthirsty barbarians," "they should know that they are nearing the last days of their lives," and "as the Imam said, Israel must be wiped off the map" should have aroused trepidation. His apocalyptic utterances are not mere rhetoric. Ahmadinejad's declaration that the Holocaust was a "fairy tale," and his enabling of Hamas and Hizbullah, demonstrate that there is simply no way for his ambitions to be realized without perpetrating a new genocide.
Years before the current controversy involving Iran's attempts to develop nuclear power and (according to almost all experts) nuclear weapons, Iran invested heavily in the acquisition of long range missile systems. When coupled with nuclear warheads, these missiles would give Iran the ability to threaten countries far from its borders. According to Uzi Rubin, a prominent military analyst:
The Iranians are pursuing the most intensive missile program in the Third World, with constantly increasing ranges.
The Iranian Shahab 3 missile (domestically produced within Iran) can threaten either Tel Aviv or Riyadh from the same launch point. The newer Shahab 3ER, with its 2,000 km range, can reach Ankara in Turkey, Alexandria in Egypt, or Sanaa in Yemen from one single launch point deep within Iran. Thus, Iran does not have to move its launchers to project power, making its missile arsenal more survivable.
Yet even this missile does not appear to be enough for Iran. According to the Washington Times:
In January (2006), the German magazine Bild reported that Iran purchased 18 BM-25 land-mobile missiles from North Korea. The BM-25 is a variation of the SS-N-6, a Soviet-made submarine-launched ballistic missile, with a range of up to 1,800 miles. The BM-25, according to Mr. Rubin, "is a nuclear missile…There is no other warhead for this other than a nuclear warhead." The Iranian missile threat is clearly growing. (See also Defense News).
Finally, Iran's ultimate goal seems to be the ability to strike anywhere, including the United States. The Center for Strategic and International Studies took a look at Iranian research plans. They noted that:
…Iran is attempting to create a Shahab-5 and a Shahab-6, with a 3,000-5,000 kilometer range. These missiles would be three-stage rockets. If completed, the Shahab-5 and the Shahab-6 would take Iran into the realm of limited range ICBM's, and enable Iran to target the US eastern seaboard.
Iran's efforts are clearly aimed at the production of nuclear weapons. Iran's declarations that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes lacks any credibility. In August of 2004, former U.S. Representative to the United Nations John Bolton testified that:
Cover stories put forward by Iran for the development of a nuclear fuel cycle and for individual facilities are simply not credible. For example, Iran is making an enormous investment in facilities to mine, process, and enrich uranium, and says it needs to make its own reactor fuel because it cannot count on foreign supplies. But for at least the next decade Iran will have at most a single nuclear power reactor. In addition, Iran does not have enough indigenous uranium resources to fuel even one power-generating reactor over its lifetime — though it has quite enough uranium to make several nuclear bombs. We are being asked to believe that Iran is building uranium enrichment capacity to make fuel for reactors that do not exist from uranium Iran does not have.
While even the "smallest" nuclear attack anywhere is an unimaginable horror, because of its size and population, it would be almost impossible for the country of Israel to survive a single nuclear attack.
The following is an account of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, considered primitive and tiny compared to modern nuclear weapons.
The bomb exploded about 600 meters (2,000 ft) above the city with a blast equivalent to about 13 kilotons of TNT (the U-235 weapon was considered very inefficient, with only 1.38% of its material fissioning), instantly killing at least an estimated 90,000 people. The radius of total destruction was about 1.6 km (1 mile), with resulting fires across 11.4 square km (4.4 square miles). Infrastructure damage was estimated at 90% of Hiroshima's buildings being either damaged or completely destroyed.
Such an attack, again using one of the smallest and least effective nuclear weapons, would destroy almost the entire area pictured and could result in the deaths of most of the 1,190,000 people who live within the Tel Aviv metropolitan district.
Furthermore, radioactive fall-out would spread rapidly not only to all parts of Israel, but across the Middle East and even to Europe with certain wind conditions. The world's economies would be devastated and millions of people would become instant refugees.
The destruction of Israel is a stated goal of the government of Iran. In light of Iran's relentless drive to acquire nuclear weapons, it is clear that action must be taken to avert the threat. Since ensuring survival is the prime obligation of a sovereign state towards its own citizens, diplomatic or other actions against Iran should be considered legitimate acts of self-defense and supported by the world community.
We will continue to monitor and update our subscribers on this subject on the months ahead.


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Steve Cohen
Leave a Review
Best pancake recipe I ever made. It is our family tradition to make these for Christmas brunch. I use the finest ingredients available. Tips: Do not over mix. Do not mash the pancakes. Test griddle with one pancake first. Let them get a medium brown before turning.
I made this for brunch with a few of my friends and it was fantastic!
I have also been making this recipe since it came out in 1999. This is our family pancake recipe, and everyone who tries them seems to love them. I agree with Valerie: you cannot make them too large and you have to watch them a little more closely while cooking, but the flavor and texture are marvelous.
I tried this recipe for the first time in March of '99 when I first saw it in Bon Appetit. Since then it's been my all time FAVORITE pancake recipe. You do have to cook them at a slightly lower heat because they are so delicate and can easily burn due to the sour cream. Also, they are a little harder to flip over. However, they have a melt-in-your-mouth texture and a scrumptious flavor. I usually just top these with real maple syrup, lemon curd (Trader Joe's brand is very good) or jam of some type, but the blueberry compote is yummy and I'll make that for special occasions. If you had trouble with this recipe, as I see some people did, try it again, but be careful to heat the griddle only to about 300 degrees and watch them carefully. Follow the directions exactly, use good quality ingredients (no imitation or cheap sour cream that has fillers, use the real stuff), good quality buttermilk (not store brand), and do not pack the flour into the measuring cup when measuring. That is very important. Just lightly spoon the flour into a measuring cup, then level off, then take 1 Tablespoon of flour back out for every cup of flour that goes into the recipe. In our grandmother's day they sifted the flour when making baked goods, pancakes, etc., but if you lightly spoon the flour, level off, then take 1 TB back out you'll have similar results and whatever you're making will be light and fluffy. These pancakes are also good made with whole wheat flour (but not as light).
Darn it, I fell for the marketing (photo) again. These were a big disappointment, consistency of heavy glue (all those "underdone" complaints? Not underdone, that is the chemistry of the recipe). Waste of expensive ingredients (4 t of vanilla!). Proof is in the pancake. Betty Crocker's (copyright 1950) buttermilk pancakes are still the best I've had.
I'm giving four forks to the pancakes. I didn't make the compote. Very nice tangy flavor mixed with the abundance of vanilla. I really like these pancakes! Will definitely be making often.
I made these well at least I attempted to make these for brunch this morning. The mixture was different from what I usually make, cooking these were difficult they could not flip easily. Now I did not have a griddle but used a good iron pan, even after cooking for the recommended time they were not cooked inside. We ended up throwing them out and went for croissants instead (one of the benefits of living across from a bakery. It's a shame the outer edges that cooked properly were delicious. I did make the compote and that was lovely.
This conserve tastes fresh and flavorful. I made it with fresh blueberries and adjusted the time a little to compensate. Ideal xylitol sweetener was used for diabetic diet. It is a wonderful treat and tastes as good as or better than sugar sweetened product. Yum. I add a little cinnamon sometimes.
This is one of the best pancake recipes ever......rave reviews
Wow says it all....made the pancakes...a few days later waffles. Both were great. The batter really works well for nice thick waffles.


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